Ruckus- My movie style retinues

 

My Baddy Retinue

My baddy retinue is based on the fictitious Baron Blackheart, a Character that has had an increasing presence in my games since I bought the figure from Black Scorpion games earlier this year. He is listed as the Breninmoor Noble man, although there is little that is noble about my bad boy! I figure the Baron can be the big bad boss that I wish for my Ruckus games and Campaigns and act as a stand in for more classic baddies such as Guy of Gisbourne.

I have used I him in several games, quite a few demos and participation games at shows and the figure seems to be a one blessed with good fortune…for other Players using him that is!

As Baron Blackheart, he has only had two outings, both were fun, he dominated the first game and lost abysmally in the second one. Damn that Lincoln Green clad varlet and his archer friends!

Here is the Baron and his Retinue as I have used him in the last few games

Baron Blackheart

Skills Skill’d at Arms, Dastardly Schemer, Evil Genius, Guards! Guards! Behind You! Riposte, Fluted Plate

I drew these Skills at the start of our last game and it produced a Villian that I really like. The combination of Evil Genius and Dastardly Schemer produces a typical movie villain and allows the Bad Guy to manipulate the way the game plays. Guards Guards proved invaluable in my last game where the Blackheart took four Henchmen as his personal guard and sacrificed 3 of them in the first turn to an astoundingly accurate arrow storm from his opponents. The well tested skills of Fluted Plate and Riposte provide protection and a classic movie trope, the underhand stab in the belly from a hidden dagger. I have yet to use Behind You! in a game and have no idea how well it works!

Squires The Barons squires are straightforward normal Ruckus squires and I think I was lucky to draw these combinations of Skills

Kurt Maelstrom Mighty Warrior, Stalwart. Kurt is tall and has a dodgy East European accent and a Klaus Kinski vibe. Kurt is built from a Steel Fist dummy and head. These are superb figures, slightly taller than most of mine which makes Kurt stand out in the Retinue. He totes a massive axe curtesy of the Frostgrave Knights set.

Jack Nastyface Born to Hang, Battle Fury. Jack is an old grenadier figure now produced by Forlorn Hope. I painted his armour with Vallejo Gun Metal then highlighted with Plate and Mail and a final edge lining dry brush with Shining Silver and then made his armour darker and darker as I glazed Nuln Oil and Tyran Blue over all. The trick seems to be just using enough so that the metal still has a glint.

Retainers

Henchmen Lumpy, Chunky, Lopsided, Beefy, Lumber, and Millstone  

Crossbows Slyboots, Shonky, Marketborn, Wiffle, Dregs and Spotlick

The Baron’s Retainers

The Henchman profiles have not had a lot of exposure to game conditions, that is to say, not a lot of playtesting, it will be interesting to see how they do with more game time. I think they work well. They do not have the fighting skills of bill men and cannot provide support. In a normal melee the Henchman is at a real disadvantage, however the Mobhanded Trait should allow them to gang up and use numbers to overwhelm their Opponents, in true Bad Boy style! It would take three Henchmen to guarantee taking out one Billman with average luck due to the bill man having Skill’d at Arms and being able to Fend. I suspect that a Bad Guy Retinue would be about equal to a normal Ruckus Retinue, ie one with 9 Retainers. I also think the Bad Guy Henchmen are an excellent Profile to represent Orcs!

I used a variety of kitbashes utilising many different figures to represent these Minions of Evil, even using the occasional controversial scale armour! Movie medieval baddies pay little heed to historical convention and so neither shall I! Any pretence at historical representation has gone out the window with this particular Retinue!

I used a restricted pallet to create a uniform look of black for the armour, the Citadel Fang triad, with Nuln glaze, for any soft clothing and Citadel Rhinox Hide for coifs etc. Boots and belts were made to appears as scuffed leather created from Army Painter Chocolate, Flat Earth, and Dark Sand. Helmets received a single coat of Gun Metal with a heavy wash/glaze of Nuln Oil.

The Goodies

Robin B’stard and his Messy Men

I don’t really do the Good forces in any game if I am honest, I like the Baddies, the Orcs, The Bandits, the Jack Palances... However, you cannot have one without the other and its all about movie tropes so…

I did not want to do a Robin Hood as I have plans for a whole campaign featuring that particular Character for later in the year, however, I had already knocked up some Outlaws from various figures I had and used the classic Lincoln Green as a theme. And my wife had bought me the Medieval Mayhem set with a rather diminutive RH figure… So here we are with a NOT Robin Hood.

Everybody has a different idea of their favourite version of Robin Hood, mine is from the books by Roger Lancelyn Green, a very traditional story based around the famous tales, a classic in every meaning of the term.  So, THIS hero is a not Robin Hood, lets call him Robin B’stard. He will serve to test the rules and provide a template for the Hero to come.

Robin B’stard-Rogue Knight

Skills Skill’d at Arms, Puissant, Skilled Tactician, Dashing Hero, Hold My Mead! Deadly Blade, …and his Merry men. He saves on 4+ no plate armour for him and all Outlaw Heroes have the skills Woodsman and Nimble

Puissant may be the best Hero skill in the game, a Prowess of 4 makes everything easier. Skilled Tactician enables him to occasionally outwit his devious foe. Dashing Hero makes every Gambit easier to perform, and the experimental Hold My Mede should ensure that luck does not rule in every play! Deadly Blade is a well-known Ruckus skill and His Merry Men should ensure that his Retinue does not vanish into the dark Wood at the first opportunity.

To be Robin Hood proper he would need some shooting skills, Veteran Archer and Deadly Aim might do the trick.

Squires

John Small Saves on 4+, Skill’d at Arms, Strong as an ‘orse, Stalwart The figure is from Oathmark Human Light Infantry metal figures and he’s a beaut

Will Scarlock Saves on 4+, Skill’d at Arms, Hawk Eye, Steady Hand. Another Oathmark HLI Metal and very nice he is too!

The Retainers

The Outlaw Retainer profiles have been around since we first started playing Ruckus and work well as they are so no need to change them. The Figures are from a number of different sources Perry, Frostgrave and Oathmark are the majority of the bodies with arms and weapons form many sources.  They are not quite right yet; I need more quarterstaff toting types and I am waiting on the Wargames Atlantic medieval levy to complete my set.

 

Ruckus-Movie Style Retinues

 

-Movie Style Retinues-

Everybody likes a good movie and a good game of Ruckus does feel like watching an old school Hollywood spectacular, with every roll of the dice filmed in glorious Technicolour! Here are some ideas for creating movie themed Heroes and Villains and their Followers, these rules are not aimed at reproducing any specific film characters, rather they are designed to provide the flavour of the arch villains and true heroes that populate the silver screen. These rules are written for use in “one-off” games with each Character fully developed, but they could easily be used for a Campaign.

Good Guy and Bad Guy skill sets

Players can have their Captains choose whether to be moustache twiddling Villains or big chinned True Heroes by choosing one of these Special Skill Decks. Instead of picking from the Leader, Agility and Strength skill decks, they take all their cards from one of these decks consisting of a mix of appropriate existing Skills and some new Movie-themed Skills

Larger than Life-Movie Heroes and Villains achieve things that normal Humans cannot do therefore each Captain may draw six skills.  Squires are still only humble Squires and only draw two skills each using the normal Skill choices available to them

A Cast of Thousands The emphasis in Hollywood spectaculars is definitely on the hand-to-hand fighting, therefore Movie themed Retinues may have 6 Fighters and 6 Shootists

True Heroes

True Heroes, the Good Guys, are well represented in all good Hollywood action movies, they are usually disenfranchised sons or renegade nobles who have lost their all to some scheming evil treacherous villain and by the end of the film they have defeated their enemy, cleared their name, and claimed the love of their life. 

The Good Guy Skill set

 This set comprises of some appropriate existing Skills and some new flavoursome Good Guy Skills to create your own True Hero.

Dashing Hero If this Character passes a Prowess Test, they may Roll one less dice to perform Movement Gambits. If they fail their Prowess roll, they must Roll as normal

Heroic Ethos Retainers in this bold Hero’s Retinue share their Leaders Heroic principles and may therefore, Reroll any Feckless tests

Light on his Feet This Character is constantly on the move when in melee, dodging, weaving, and dancing, any hit on him has to pass a Blocked Stroke roll exactly as if he is defending an obstacle

…and his Merry Men Retainers in this noble Heroes Retinue add 1 to Feckless Rolls

Skilled Tactician Wins any Draws when rolling for Cunning Plans

Hold My Mead! On their first activation this Character rolls a D6 and, whatever number is rolled, the dice, still showing the number, is set to one side. At any time during the Turn, if this Character makes a successful Prowess Test, they may exchange this roll for one made by themselves or any opponent. They keep the dice they have exchanged with their Opponent and may repeat the process every turn. For example, the Hero initially rolls a 4 which he sets to one side as his “Hold my Mead” dice, then during his first turn he rolls a 1 while rolling a Blocked Shot test. He exchanges his 4 for the 1 and passes the Blocked Shot test his “Mead dice” is now a 1. Next turn, if he makes a successful Prowess Test, he may if he wishes, exchange it for one his Opponent’s dice rolls, forcing them to accept a roll of 1!

True Hero! Pick any Skill from this list

Good Guy Retinues

Good Guy Retinues reflect the values of their Noble Leaders, the Shootists can only carry the noble Longbow, never the Crossbow or new-fangled Gonnes. Players should feel free to be creative with the Fighters and those wishing to play a Robin Hood style of game should use the Outlaw Profiles below.                                                                                                                                    

Villains

The Evil scheming movie villain is well known to us all from the earliest days of cinema from the moustaches-twiddling-dressed-all-in-black Cad tying the distressed maiden to the railway tracks of the early silent movies through the various versions of the Sherrif of Nottingham to Prince Humperdink. In the Films they always fail…but not necessarily so in Ruckus

The Bad Guy Skill Set

This set comprises of some appropriate existing Skills and some new Evil Skills to create your own Proper Bad ‘Un                  

Behind you! This Character may use this Skill at any time in Melee. Once per Melee, force your opponent to make a Prowess Test, if they fail, this Character may then use the opportunity to Stab their Opponent. The Character rolls one Attack dice using Skill’d at Arms and any other Skills to adjust the result, the Opponent can make no reply and may not use Skill’d at Arms to affect the outcome. If the Opponent survives the attack than they both continue to fight a Melee as normal.

Alternatively, the Character may choose to break off the Melee and move away 6”. Any other Characters from the Opposing Retinue will also look away so this Character may move in any direction and may break the 1” rule and even move through enemy Characters.

Exit Stage Left… When this Character is down to their last point of Health they may choose to do a Moriarty. Take a Prowess Test, if they pass, they have used a secret door or tunnel or other secret means to escape and may be placed anywhere on the table up to 12” away. If they are within 12” of a table edge they may instead exit themselves from the scenario. Players are encouraged to monologue as the bad guy when using this skill ending with the traditional Mwahahahahahahahaaa!

Guards Guards! If this Character is hit either by a missile or in Melee, he grabs any friendly Retainer within 1” and pushes them in the way of harm, so that the hit instead falls upon the Retainer who must make a saving Throw as normal.

Dastardly Schemer Rerolls the dice when rolling for Cunning Plans

Evil Genius May draw two Divers Alarums at the beginning of the game

Relentless Enemy May use only once per game, at any time after this Character has been wounded. This Character is so driven by anger and hatred that he may ignore a Wound.  Restore one point of Health.

Arch Villain! Pick any Skill from this list

Bad Guy Retinues

Villains recruit their Retainers from the scum of the earth, the low life petty bullies that hang about on street corners in the worse part of town. They shun weapons of skill such as long bows and bills and instead carry crossbows, spiked clubs, and axes.

Henchmen These villainous Retainers are traditionally less able Fighters than their goody counterparts, they are usually brutes and bullies, they like to gang up on opponents! Henchmen Fighters have Mob Handed and Spiked Weapons.

Mobhanded Characters with this Trait may Charge into melee with another Character to surround an opponent. Each Character with Mobhanded in contact with the opponent adds another Attack to the original Chargers melee. The Player may move as many Mobhanded Characters as can be placed in contact with the Character being charged before commencing melee.

Mobhanded Characters must still obey the one-inch rule.

Scum of the Earth These Henchmen are picked for their particular qualities, that is being unimaginative, brutal, and cruel. Henchmen do not think for themselves so when they are Feckless, they are less likely to use any initiative and are unlikely to leave the battle or seek new instructions.

Henchmen Feckless table

1= Run Awaaaay! Remove the figure from the table

2-3 =I wasn’t doin’ nuffink! The Retainer stands still counting their feet or staring at a sheep

4-5=I gotta ’urt somefink! The Retainer moves towards and if possible, will attack the nearest Character that is not part of their Retinue

6= As my Lord Commands! The player may move the Retainer towards their leader as per the main rules

Spiked Weapon This Character may force their opponent to reroll their saving throw 

Pic from recent game

The Set Up

Movie themed Ruckus is perfect for Heroic moves and there should be plenty of opportunities for Movement gambits. Pack the table with Terrain that allows or, even better, demands Heroics! There should be chasms to cross, walls to scale, rapid flowing rivers, ladders to climb, ropes, or chandeliers to swing on...

Divers Alarums

Movie themed Retinue Divers Alarums are based on classic movie tropes and replace the standard DA

Heroic Divers Alarums

The 7 becomes For…! (insert inspiring name of choice!) May be played at the beginning of the Turn. For this Turn the Good Guy Retinue may Reroll all Mishap tests

The 8 becomes True Grit Play at any time after the Captain has been wounded, like a True Hero he calls on his inner strength and determination. Restore up to two Health

The 9 becomes This is for… Revenging a fallen comrade this Character digs deep and summons up super human strength. Play in melee, this is an Automatic hit on his Opponent that cannot be Parried or Fended with a -1 modifier to the saving throw

The 10 becomes Foiled Again! Play this card immediately after your Opponent plays a Divers Alarums Card, this card cancels the original Player’s Card

Villainous Divers Alarums

The 7 becomes Get Them or Else! The Villainous Captain threatens his Men! May be played at the beginning of the Turn. For this Turn the Bad Guy Retinue may Reroll all Mishap tests

The 8 becomes Mwahahaha!  Play on an Opponent as they move, they must pass a Prowess Test or fall into a pit trap. This might be a previously dug and disguised pit if outside or a trap door if inside a building. Roll d6 +3 on the Falls table and take a Mishap token if unhurt. It will take one Turn to climb out.

The 9 becomes Reluctant Traitor. Play on one of your Opponent’s Retainers. The Bad Guys are holding one of this Character’s relative’s captive, forcing them to become a Traitor! When this card is played, they may be activated, and can be used by the Villain’s Retinue for the rest of the game. This Character also gains the Trait Loner and does not need to be in Command. In subsequent turns they will activate on the Captains card.

The 10 becomes Ah HA! Not So Fast! Play this card immediately after your Opponent plays a Divers Alarums Card, this card cancels the original Player’s Card.

 

Scenario Ideas

The Fugitive A notorious Outlaw, a Good Guy Hero, has escaped from the Baddy’s castle where he was being held, and is hiding in a village. The Baddies are in close pursuit.

Rescue Ye Maiden from Yonder Tower…obvs!

Kill ye King. One player guards the king. The other has to sneak by. Sneaking/discovery rules needed

Stop the Drop! One of the Outlaws has been caught and is sentenced to hang, can the Hero stop the hanging and recover his Merry Man?

Retribution! The Villain raids the Outlaws camp deep in the woods looking for the pesky Brigand leader

Base Currency

 

There have been quite a few requests for information on how I create my Ruckus Tokens so here I have reproduced the article I wrote for Wargames Illustrated in May

Base Currency

 There are many different ways to base your figures and a whole world of different bases to choose from however, if you want my penny’s worth, you cannot beat the humble penny! A preformed magnetic weighty durable base that you can obtain almost anywhere and may already have at home in a jar or drawer or even in your pocket!

When it comes to figure basing everybody seems to use something different, and everyone has their favourite. Top of the range has to be scenic resin bases that depict a piece of the world-planking, cobbles, a leaf strewn forest floor, the volcanic lava pools of planet Z. These weigh in at a pretty penny however, maybe a fiver a throw and are impractical for most gaming but are fantastic for display or small vignettes. 

There are plastic or MDF bases, many companies offer these and you can get them in just about any size, however, they cost well…a pretty penny. And you will need to buy ferrous paper or a magnetic sheet if you want to magnetise them

If you are a penny pincher like me, then you can use waste card, beer mats, scrap plastic packaging- recycling is ethically sound and need not cost a penny! It’s far easier to cut and shape than MDF and there is always a plentiful supply! Beer mats and card are not durable though and may require re-basing through accrued damage whereas most disposable plastics are too thin to be fit for purpose, particularly for heavy metal figures. My armies were always based on beermats back in the day however, since then the penny has dropped…

Any Old Penny?

Not really, in fact older pennies are not so good for our purposes, these ‘Copper’ coins were traditionally made from a bronze alloy of copper, tin and zinc. However, since September 1992, they have been made from copper-plated steel. Both types are the same colour, weight, diameter, and design and circulate together, but it is the new copper-plated steel coins that are attracted to magnets. The iron content in the steel core is what makes them magnetic. I have a large bag of pennies that I got from the local bank, ten pounds worth, most of which, but not all, were minted after 1992. To pick the “good” pennies I use a small magnet on a stick and dip into the bag with it, however, it seems that a “bad” (non-steel) penny always turns up!! Another advantage is that as penny-based figures fix to magnetic sheets or rare earth magnets, they are easier to store and transport.

“See a penny, pick it up... all day long you will have another free magnetic, heavy, indestructible, protective base” I may have to get this this printed on a tee 

Inflation For those figures with a wide stance, or even mounted figures, you can use a 2p, with its 25.9 mm diameter, and again its true that it is those from 1992 and later that are the best as they are made from magnetic steel. When deciding what size base to use...remember…2p or not 2p that is the question!

It’s not only the price that counts, Pennies have many advantages over other bases. They are weighty, giving your figure a low, small centre of gravity, which gives them stability and allows them to stand upright on any surface.

When the penny drops… or rather the penny-based figure, they always land base first and as they are made from solid metal this helps to prevent damage to your precious figures as the heavy base takes all the impact. This is particularly true of plastics and 3d prints. In the world of bases there is nothing tougher

Small area a nifty 20.3 mm diameter means they are an excellent size to fit into table top terrain such as balconies or howdahs or vehicles

  Units of Currency Many companies now produce penny sized saboted movement trays with 3mm holes drilled to accept the necessary magnets so you can base your units this way too. Basing units this way means that you can use individual figures from your units for skirmish games or to create an ad hoc skirmish unit, this works particularly well for games like Billhooks and Ruckus as you can use the same figures for both. 

Another great advantage of sabot-based units is the figure can be swivelled on the base to allow figures with long weapons in ranks to fit without their weapons fouling the rank in front.

  So now we have established that pennies make ideal wargames bases how do we mount our figures on them?

For figures with a puddle base … 

…I use a strong contact adhesive…

…and fill around the puddle base with green stuff

Figures with “Slotta” bases require a different approach. Clip off the tag…

…and score the underside of the figure’s feet, this will increase the contact area and create a stronger bond…

…use a pallet knife, sculpting tool or similar to smear a small blob of green stuff to the soles of the feet…

…and while it is still tacky, apply a small drop of cyanoacrylate glue…

…press the feet of the figure firmly on to the penny and use the blade of the sculpting tool to smooth the green stuff down ensuring a good seal 

The glue is often absorbed into the putty causing it to turn white as shown on this figure

Finally smear a thin coat of the putty across the base to obscure the details of the coin and provide a good surface to paint or add scenics too.

Another great attribute of the magnetic ability of the penny base is that you can create a magnetic token to stick to them to indicate any in game status, something that is particularly useful in Ruckus and many other games that use such tokens, Silver Bayonet, Frostgrave and What a Cowboy to mention a few.

  I use cheap plastic tokens 24 mm diameter which means that the penny fits snugly inside, these are widely available, I got mine for £7 for a box of 200 on line

link to tokens

You will need a box of tokens, a pin drill with a 3mm bit, some 3mm magnets and some super glue

Mark the centre of the token

Drill a pilot hole this makes drilling the bigger hole easier and reduces the chance of slipping

drill the hole using a 3mm bit. I like this pin drill from Army Painter, it is well engineered, with four different sized chucks and the bits are sharp!

The Hole!

Insert a 3mm magnet, I find it is best to keep them in a stack, insert one and break it from the stack by moving sharply to the side…

I used 1mm thick magnets for these tokens, I have since made a second batch using 2mm thick which I found wwre much easier to use and are far stronger 

…leaving a magnet behind in the token

Finally press the magnet flat if it isn’t already and secure with a blob of superglue

Tokens in play! In Ruckus, a white token indicates a Mishap, for whatever reason, the Crossbowman cannot shoot this turn. A red token indicates a wound, this Captain had better take care. The Squire on the right has been having a bad day too, a yellow token indicates a Calamity and the Pink shows that he has had his armour broken.

The combination of penny base and magnet in token means that every time the Captain moves, he takes his token with him. As long as you put them the right way up you can stack several tokens this way.

  So, there you have it, the penny perfect! A small, cheap, strong, durable, magnetic, and excellent way to base your figures whatever game you play!