One of the advantages of being a wargamer (or any kind of gamer, really) today is the veritable smorgasbord of choices available to a player. It seems like, reading Wargames Illustrated, that a new rule set comes out every month. This is the first in a series of games looking at different tabletop skirmish level war games and rule sets. Most of these will be historically based rule sets (to varying levels of historical accuracy, looking at you Test of Honor) given my own proclivities. For the sake of scope, this series will focus on warband/skirmish games, which I’m defining as under fiftyish miniatures per side, as opposed to rank and flank style systems.
Lion Rampant is a rule set offered by Osprey Publishing for a retinue (warband) level wargame played with 28mm figures for the early to late medieval era. Each player appoints a Leader to command a retinue with 24 points. A typical retinue is usually comprised of 6 to 12 models, depending on their cost and abilities. A unit of standard foot yeoman: twelve models. A resplendent cadre of mounted men-at-arms: six models. The higher the caliber of the unit, the more expensive, ranging from 6 points for men-at-arms to a single point for rabble.
What I enjoy about Lion Rampant is the fluidity of the game. While not quite levels of Infinity simultaneity (Infinity being a tabletop scifi skirmish game where players can react during their opponents turn, sometimes with more models than their opponent activated), the ‘I Go You Go’ mechanic is broken up by commanding each unit to perform an action, rather than moving an entire force. Players shouldn’t expect to move every unit in their retinue. Some actions are easier for some units than others. A player will roll two six-sided dice and compare the score to the desired action on the unit’s profile. Anything at or above that result is a success. For example, asking a unit to move may require a 5+. The dice are rolled, the result is a 6, the unit successfully moves. The same is done for attacking, shooting, and testing resolve (the unit’s ability to shrug of hits it has taken and stay on the table). This is done until the player fails a command, creating a more fluid game where turns vary in length and create surprise swings in momentum.
What can happen is a player will fail, the player’s opponent may succeed a number of rolls, then the original player can continue to fail, passing the turn over without having moved a unit. While frustrating in the moment (trust me) it does lend an air of uncertainty to the table. You’re not guaranteed all of your actions. If a player does manage to activate all their units, the turn will pass back to the opponent. You will often choose what you need to accomplish first and hope the will dice roll in your favor.
The Lion Rampant rule book is a slim volume that contains unit descriptions and sample retinues. While each player can select their forces from scratch, it is helpful (especially when starting out) to choose from a sample set that is already decently balanced like the Irish, Later English, Crusader, or Tuetonic themed forces. Stats and retinues for ‘Hollywood’ forces like Robin Hood’s Merry Men are also offered for a more cinematic twist.
I’ve found Lion Rampant to be a decent introductory game for my friends who are new to wargaming. The flow is fairly easy to establish. After our second game we were referring to the rules less and less. I use a mix of movement trays and individual models for moving my figures around the table. I also use Litko Game Accessories’s obviously dead tokens to denote where a soldier falls. I got the idea from a Battle Knights Battle Report. It brings an additional level of immersion to the game; seeing where the action has occurred and where the fighting was fiercest.
Another benefit of Lion Rampant as a system is that it is not comparatively expensive to get into. Perry Miniatures has boxed sets of approximately 30 to 40+ minis, enough for 12 to 20 points when assembled, that cost roughly $30. Similarly, Fire Forge Games offers boxed sets that are great for foot yeoman (48 models in this example). Two or three boxes of either should be plenty for two players to create retinues and get down to the business of playing the game.
Lastly, there are two other systems in the Rampant sphere. Pikeman’s Lament and Dragon Rampant are both extensions of the Lion Rampant system. Pikeman’s Lament is a Pike & Shotte era wargame (1500-1700 approximately), with rules for the different kinds of units seen in that era and the intersection of artillery units. I’ve purchased this rule set but have yet to play it. My vision is to compliment Pike & Shotte, the Warlord Games ruleset, with Pikeman’s Lament for more narrative play, such as small company actions around the larger set piece battles. Dragon Rampant is a fantasy rule set to give players a more, well, fantastical take on medieval warfare.
Taken all together, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed playing Lion Rampant. The barriers to entry are fairly low for a tabletop wargame, both for the time it takes to play a game as well as the startup costs of procuring the models. For a group looking to get into historical wargaming, this is a great entry point.
Ross Blythe is a Chicago based gamer interested in all things tabletop. He enjoys reading history as well as fiction, and so has a soft spot for historical wargames like Pike & Shotte. For the campaigns he runs as a DM he often looks to history for inspiration, for the lessons of the past to challenge the players at his table.