Medieval Warfare

The medieval period was a time of feudalism and fanaticism, to causes religious or secular, fought by men who threw their lives into the maelstrom of bloody hand-to-hand combat, enduring horrendous wounds and deprivations of all kinds. Generals, be they high born kings or ambitious mercenaries, were revered and blindly followed because they were good fighters or simply spoke well. Men fought for God, wealth and honor, not necessarily in that order. A man had to fulfill his feudal obligations or he was sure he would go to hell. These rules are intended to give an intense, exciting and mentally challenging game to those who enjoy a test of wills. Players must make many tactical decisions each turn and these will have more of an effect on the outcome of the game than the luck of the dice. Each turn tactical decisions will be made by the player. Some are simple; to charge or to defend. Others are not; whether to fire an intensive arrow barrage and run low of missiles, or to hold back and trust your accuracy will be enough to blunt the enemy charge. Which units you choose to move each turn may give away your strategy, or perhaps deceive your opponent into committing his reserves. Good tactics will win the game for you. You will find that it is important to weaken an enemy before simply charging in with your heaviest troops. Rarely will a reckless charge be rewarded with success. Above all, you should find each game enjoyable and stimulating. Hopefully, you will gain some knowledge of the difficulties of command in the Medieval period.Gore, Terry L. is the author of 'Medieval Warfare', published 2008 under ISBN 9781901543100 and ISBN 1901543102.