Volley

Volley

A Volley Action can only be used if the Regiment has at least one Stand with the Barrage Special Rule – otherwise, it doesn’t have a ranged weapon with which to make a Volley.

Choosing a Target and Line of Sight

To take a Volley Action, you must first choose a legal target enemy Regiment. The target must be in range of the Barrage special rule you wish the Regiment to use. The target must also lie within the Regiment’s front arc and also be within Line of Sight.

Check for Obscuration

For each Stand in the front rank of the Volleying Regiment that is in range of the Target, trace a straight line from the centre of that Stand to the centre of any Stand in the Target Regiment. If no Regiments or Obscuring Terrain break this line, that Stand’s Volley is a Clear Shot. If one or more Regiments and/or Obscuring Terrain break that line, the Stand’s Volley is an Obscured Shot.

If you cannot trace an unbroken line from at least one Stand in the front rank of the Volleying Regiment to the centre of any Stand in the Target Regiment, the Target is not a legal one as it is outside of Line of Sight. The Regiment must choose another Action or another Target. Note that a Regiment can be targeted if it is in base contact with an enemy, although this will often mean the Volley of one or more Stands might be Obscured.

Check for Long Range

You’re nearly ready to unleash your Volley. First, however, you need to check if your Regiment is shooting at Long Range. The range given for missile weapons is not their optimal range, but their maximum range – beyond a certain point, hits are possible, but much harder to achieve. To represent this, if the distance between each Stand of your Regiment and the target is more than half the range of your Regiment’s Barrage special rule, the number of Shots (the number of dice) count as Obscured. Note that some Stands in a Regiment may be Obscured while others don’t depending on the distance. A Stand can only be Obscured once (e.g. Long Range and Obscuration will only lead to half shots and will not be halved again).

Determine the Number of Shots

Each Stand making a Clear Shot fires a number of Shots equal to the X in the Barrage X Special Rule multiplied by the number of Models on the Stand. In this way, a Stand’s Shots diminish as it suffers casualties. An undamaged Infantry Stand with Barrage 1 would fire 4 shots. Each Stand making an Obscured Shot fires a number of Shots equal to the X in the Barrage X Special Rule multiplied by half the number of Models on the Stand (rounded up). Stands in any rank other than the first each contribute a single shot.

Rolling to Hit

Roll a number of dice equal to the Shots being fired. Any die that is less than or equal to your Regiment’s Volley Characteristic is a Hit. Any die that is greater than your Regiment’s Volley Characteristic is a Miss. Example: Your 3-Stand Regiment of Longbowmen (Volley 2 and Barrage 1) are Volleying at an enemy Regiment, for a total of 12 Shots. You roll 12 dice. Any result of 1 or 2 is a Hit. Any result of 3 or more is a Miss. Should the Volley Characteristic of the Acting Regiment’s Stand be 6 and above, that Stand gains the Rapid Volley Special Rule.

The Defence Roll

Now, your opponent rolls a number of dice equal to the number of Hits. Any roll that is less than or equal to their Regiment’s Defence Characteristic or is less than or equal to the Regiment’s Evasion Characteristic is a successful Injury Roll – the Regiment’s armour or reflexes have saved them on this occasion.

Any roll that is greater than both their Regiment’s Defence Characteristic and its Evasion Characteristic is a failed Injury Roll and causes a Wound. Note that you only make one roll, which is compared to both the Defence Characteristic and Evasion Characteristic (see page 165 for examples of Injury Rolls).

Remove Casualties & Morale

Tally up the number of Wounds into a Wound Pool, and proceed to Removing Casualties (see page 172). Note that Wounds suffered from a Volley do not cause Morale Tests.

SOURCES

Source Materials