I. Introduction
"Jason! I know you're there!" Hector's voice echoed across the valley.
"You can hide behind your goblins and skeletons, but I know you're there,
and I am coming for you!" He knew Jason could hear him,
and he knew that his arch-enemy could not resist such a challenge. But how would he respond?
The answer wasn't long in coming. A huge boulder sailed across the valley and smashed into
the ground just short of Hector's forces. One of his men went down screaming, hit by a sliver
of rock. So Jason had a cyclops in his army, did he?
Hector looked over to his minotaurs, roaring and waving their battleaxes.
They would make short work of a cyclops, and then his ogres would begin the slaughter.
He gave the hand signals for his line of mighty beasts to advance. This would be a day to remember!
If he had noticed the shadow that flitted over him,
he might have looked up and seen Jason's roc beginning its dive on his forces...
Mythfire is a 2-player wargame of mythical beasts, mostly from Greek mythology.
Players choose their armies from an array of creatures with varying abilities, then fight
to the death. This is a complete game with counters and maps. All you provide is one or two
six-sided dice.
II. The Creatures
Mythfire gives you a choice of 20 types of creature, from weak, shifty goblins to huge,
ponderous giants. These are described below, and their abilities are spelled out in the
Creature Table.
At the top of each counter is a row of numbers. The upper left number is the creature's
attack strength; if there is more than one number here, the creature gets more than one attack.
An "A" next to the attack number means the creature can attack air targets.
The middle number is the defense strength. In the upper-right corner is the speed. If there are
two numbers here, the first is the creature's ground speed, and the second is its flying speed.
A number in the center-left is the attack range. No number here means the range is 1.
- Amazon is a woman warrior, skillful with bow and arrow.
Their ranged attacks are the least expensive way to add firepower to a melee,
and their ability to ride some creatures, and fire while mounted,
lets them move quickly around the battlefield. Amazons are considered man-types.
- Centaur is half-man, half-horse, and all dangerous.
Fast-moving and good at archery, Centaurs make superb cavalry. They can carry a man-type.
- Chimera is a nightmare beast with three heads in front (dragon, lion, and goat)
and a snake for a tail. The dragon, lion, and snake can all attack,
but each must attack enemies in different hexes. The dragon head's strength-2 attack works like
a Dragon's fire attack when aimed at a creature and its rider, but only in the target hex.
- Cyclops is a one-eyed giant. It attacks by throwing huge boulders at its enemies
2-3 hexes away. It cannot attack an adjacent foe.
- Dragon is a great flying lizard. When it breathes fire,
it makes a strength-3 attack on the foe(s) in the target hex,
and a strength-2 attack on anything in the next hex in line with the attack.
Unlike other attacks, Dragon fire counts as an attack on a creature,
and also as a separate attack at the same strength against a man-type riding that creature,
without combining their defense ratings.
- Giant is a huge human-looking creature that swings a monstrous club at its opponents.
Its defend rating is the highest in the game.
- Goblin is a weak but fast-moving two-legged creature. It takes two of them to make
a strength-1 attack, but their speed makes them good gap-fillers in your battle lines.
- Griffin is half-eagle, half-lion.
It is a clumsy flier, but a fierce fighter on the ground.
- Harpy is a foul bird with the head of a woman. It can move only by flying,
and has a very weak attack, but a swarm of them can play havoc with other creatures.
- Hero is a man with seemingly superhuman abilities. When he attacks, roll two dice
and keep the higher one as his attack roll. When he gets attacked,
the attacker must make two attack rolls and use the lower one.
If one Hero attacks another, their abilities cancel each other out; resolve combat normally.
Heroes are considered man-types.
- Hippogriff is a cross between a Griffin and a horse.
It is a better flier than a Griffin, and while it is a weaker fighter,
it can attack flying enemies, which the Griffin cannot.
A hero can ride a Hippogriff, but no other man can do so.
- Hydra is about the size of a dragon.
It can't breathe fire, but its five heads do plenty of damage just by biting.
Two heads can gang up on a medium-sized creature, and all five can attack a large one.
Otherwise, each head must attack a different opponent.
- Icarus is a man with artificial wings on his arms.
An Icarus starts the game in the air, and can fly at will, but cannot attack while flying.
Once he lands, he cannot fly again, but moves and fights as a man. An Icarus is a man-type.
- Minotaur is half man and half bull; it swings a huge double-bladed axe
and is very fierce. Minotaurs ignore combat results of "Retreat 1."
- Men are basic soldiers with swords and shields.
They can ride centaurs and pegasi, but cannot fight while riding.
Their great virtue is that they can help your Hero provide leadership to other creatures.
Men are considered man-types (duh!).
- Ogre is a slightly smaller version of the giant, and a fearsome opponent.
- Pegasus is a winged horse, the fastest thing in the air
and plenty swift on the ground. They can carry a man-type.
- Roc is a monstrous bird that spends the entire battle flying.
Its attack is to pick up its enemy in its claws, lift it up in the air, and drop it.
Its claws are too big and clumsy to grab small opponents.
- Skeleton is weak, but its appearance terrifies humans.
If a Skeleton attacks a man-type, treat results of "Retreat 1" as Retreat 2,
and "no result" as Retreat 1. Heroes are immune to this fear.
- Unicorn is the fastest runner in the game.
It can carry an Amazon, but cannot attack one.
III. The Map
This game uses maps from the M8 map system. Set up enough maps to give the creatures room to
move. For a 10- or 20-point game, this means seven maps in a hexagon. Bigger games will need
bigger maps. The bigger the map, the longer the game, and the more important high
speed will be. Small maps give a faster game where brute force is more important than speed.
IV. Setting Up
Decide how many buy points each player will start with.
Use these points to buy the creatures in your army. Buy points are given in groups of ten.
A small skirmish might use ten points, while an all-out, all-afternoon battle could use 50 or
60 points. At least half of your creatures must be non-flyers.
Decide if you will use the optional replacement rule.
Set up the maps as described in the previous section. The two armies set up
on opposite sides of the map, using the two rows of hexes nearest the edge.
Roll a die to see who goes first.
V. Playing the Game
Each game turn goes through the following phases:
- Player-1 movement phase: player 1 moves as many of his units as he wants to.
- Player-1 combat phase: resolve all combats that result from player 1's movements.
- Player-2 movement phase: player 2 moves as many of his units as he wants to.
- Player-2 combat phase: resolve all combats that result from player 2's movements.
- Replacement phase: if you are playing with the optional replacement rule,
add replacement points. Spend the replacement points on new units and place these on the edge
of the map.
- Victory phase: check to see if either side has won the game.
VI. Movement
VI-a. Basic Movement
A unit can move as many hexes as its speed rating, subject to terrain limits. No unit ever has
to move its full distance, or move at all. A counter's facing does not matter. A unit can move
through a friendly unit, as long as it ends its move in an available hex.
VI-b. Zones of Control
All units exert a zone of control in the six hexes surrounding them. Any enemy unit that enters
one of those hexes must stop moving for that turn.
VI-c. Air Movement
A unit with a "#A" speed can fly. Such a unit, when flying, can ignore the zone of control of a
unit moving on land, and vice-versa. Flying units ignore terrain restrictions when moving.
If a unit has both land and air movement, the player must announce which kind of movement
it is using at the start of its move. A land/air unit must land or take off at the start of
its move, not in the middle or at the end.
VI-d. Stacking
A unit cannot end its move in an occupied hex, with the following exceptions:
- A unit moving in the air can stack with a friendly unit on the ground.
- A unit that can carry a man-type unit can stack with that unit.
For a man-type to mount a creature, he/she must enter the creature's hex; the creature
can't come to the rider. Likewise, to dismount, the rider must do the moving. A man-type can
mount or dismount at the beginning or end of the creature's move, but not in the middle.
A flying creature must be on land in order for a man-type to mount and dismount.
A man-type riding a flying creature does not exert a zone of control on land-moving creatures.
VI-e. Leadership
Any creature within 4 hexes of a Hero, or 3 hexes of a Man, can move and attack at will.
If out of range of a Hero or Man, a creature can attack any enemy within range,
but cannot move unless you first roll a 5-6 on a die for that unit.
Treat an Icarus in the air as a Man for giving leadership to flying creatures.
Amazons and Centaurs are self-directed -- they do not have to be near
a Hero or Man to move freely, but they give no leadership to other creatures.
VII. Combat
VII-a. Basic Rules
- Any unit with enemy units in range can take part in combat, but is not required to do so.
- Multiple units can attack a single foe. Exception: a Hero cannot join other units in
attacking another Hero.
- A strong unit can spread its attack among several defenders,
as long as the defender(s) are adjacent to each other and in range of the attacker.
Some units are restricted in this.
- A unit without an Air attack can't harm a flying unit.
- A unit riding another unit cannot attack, unless the riding unit is an Amazon.
- A man-type riding a creature counts as two separate enemies. Forcing one to retreat will
make them both retreat, but if one is destroyed, the other will not be harmed. To attack them
both, you must treat them as two adjacent units and combine their defense ratings.
VII-b. Resolving Combat
Add up the Attack ratings for each unit attacking a particular enemy unit.
If the total Attack rating is greater than the defending unit's Defend rating, then divide
the total Attack rating by the Defend rating, dropping any fractions.
If the Defend rating is equal to or greater than the total Attack rating, then divide the
Defend rating by the total Attack rating, drop any fractions, and make the result a
negative number. This result is called the combat odds.
Now modify the combat odds, if any modification is required for terrain or other situations.
Roll one die, modify that roll if needed,
and find the number you rolled in the appropriate column of the Combat Results Table.
This tells you how the combat occurred, as follows:
- A X means the attacking units are destroyed.
- A R2 means the attackers must retreat 2 hexes away from the defender. If they cannot
do this because every possible retreat leaves the attacker off the map, in an occupied hex, or
in a hex the attacker can't enter, the attacker is destroyed.
- A R1 means the attackers must retreat 1 hex. Follow the same rules as for "A R2."
- n/r means no result. The battle rages, but nothing has changed on the map.
- D R1 means the defender must retreat 1 hex. Follow the same rules as for "A R2."
- D R2 means the defender must retreat 2 hexes. Follow the same rules as for "A R2."
- D X means the defender is destroyed.
Units attacking from a range greater than 1 ignore "attacker retreat" and "attacker destroyed"
results. Attackers also ignore unfavorable results if they attack a creature that can't
attack them (such as Harpies attacking a Roc, which has no air attack).
Treat such combats as "no result."
VII-c. Divine Intervention
If your army includes a Hero, then once per game, that Hero can call on the deity of his choice
for help. This means that, once per game, a player with a Hero can dictate the result of one die roll.
It must be one of his own rolls, not his opponent's roll.
Deities will not intervene in a fight between two Heroes.
If the Hero is killed before he calls for his divine intervention, it's too late.
VIII. Winning the Game
The last army with surviving units is the winner of a major victory.
A fight to the finish may be impossible. For instance, if one player has nothing left but a
Roc, and the other player has only a Goblin, they can't attack each other.
In such cases, add up each player's surviving Attack points;
whoever has the most gets a minor victory. If it's still a tie, it's a tie.
IX. Optional Replacement Rule
If you choose to use this rule, each player gets a fixed number of replacement points each
turn, which he can use like buy points to add new creatures to his army. The number of these
replacement points is 1/10 of the buy points each player started with. So if you're
playing a 30-point game, each player would get 3 replacement points each turn.
During the replacement phase, each player can spend his replacement points on new
creatures, or save them and spend them later. Replacement creatures must start the game
at the edge of the map where that army started the game.
A player whose army has just been wiped out gets no replacement points.
X. Game Tables