FOREWORD Long Ago, the Great City of Felstad Sat at the Centre of a Magic Empire
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FOREWORD Long ago, the great city of Felstad sat at the centre of a magic empire. Its towering spires, labyrinthine catacombs, and immense libraries were the wonder of the age and potions, scrolls, and mystical items of all descriptions poured forth from its wor shops. !hen, one cataclysmic night, a mista e was made. In some lofty tower or dar chamber, a foolish wi"ard unleashed a magic too powerful to control. A storm rose up – an epic bli""ard that swallowed the city whole, burying it deep and leaving the area as nothing more than a vast, fro"en wasteland. The empire was shattered and its magic faded. As the centuries came and went, Felstad passed from history to legend and on into myth. Only a few wi"ards, clinging to the last remnants of magic knowledge, still belie%ed that the lost city had e%er actually e&isted. But their faith was rewarded. #fter a thousand years, the fell winter has passed. The snows have receded, and Felstad has been unco%ered. Its buildings lie in ruins, o%errun by undead creatures and magic constructs, the legacy of the empire(s e&periments. It is an e%il, dangerous place. To the few hardy souls who inhabit the nearby villages, the city has ac)uired a new name – ‘Frostgra%e( – and is shunned by all right+thin ing people. For those who see power and riches, howe%er, it is an unparalleled opportunity, a deadly maze concealing secrets of knowledge long forgotten... ,-#.!ER O/E WI0#RD1 #/D W#R'#/D1 Welcome to Frostgrave, a tabletop wargame in which the players take on the roles of powerful wi"ards and lead their small warbands into the fro"en ruins of the city of Felstad in search of lost treasure, enchanted artefacts, and forgotten secrets of magic. In this boo you will find all of the information you need to play the game, including rules for how to create your wi"ard and his warband, how to set up a table, and how to fight for possession of those magic treasures. Games of Frostgrave are generally quic , and once you have learned the rules you should have no problem completing a game in an hour or two. Although one+ off games can be fun, it is by combininggames into an ongoing campaign that you will get the most out of Frostgrave. By playing through a campaign, you will be able to watch your wi"ard grow in power and e&perience. You can also spend the treasure you ac)uire in games to e&pand your warband, ac)uire new spells, and e%en establish a base of operations, e)uipping it with such resources as magic laboratories, summoning circles, and celestial telescopes. Frostgrave is designed to be a competiti%e game between two or more players, but most importantly it is intended to be fun. These rules attempt to co%er all of the situations that are li ely to occur during play but, without a doubt, there will be times when the e&act rule for a gi%en situation is unclear. In these cases, use your best judgement and try to come to a mutual agreement with your opponent. If you can(t agree, each player should roll a die and go with the interpretation of whiche%er player rolls highest. You can discuss the situation further after the game and decide how you will handle the situation ne&t time. Finally, thin of this boo and these rules as a starting point. If you thin of ways to ma e your games of Frostgrave more fun and interesting, then do it – it is your game, after all. W-#! 3O5 WILL /EED !O .L#3 !o play Frostgrave you will need se%eral things besides this boo : a table, miniature figures, a tape measure or ruler in inches (89, a couple of twenty+sided dice, a copy of the Wi"ard Sheet from the bac of the boo , and a pencil. Ideally, you will also have a selection of terrain pieces to recreate the ruins of the city on your tabletop. If you are new to the world of tabletop wargaming, some of these items might not be immediately ob%ious and are e&plained below. Miniatures Miniatures, or figures, are basically toy soldiers, made out of metal or plastic. Official Frostgrave miniatures are available from North Star Figures 7www.northstarfigures.com9, and pro%ide options for all the wi"ards and warband members in the game. Other ranges can be found at most gaming stores or ordered online, so you should have little trouble finding miniatures to represent your wi"ard and his warband. Most miniatures are supplied unpainted, and many players find that painting their miniatures is their favourite part of the hobby. Frostgrave was designed for use with 28mm miniatures, which is the most common si"e. Larger and smaller miniatures are available and it is perfectly acceptable to use those instead (as long as your opponent does so as well!9, but you might want to adjust the game(s measurements accordingly. While you are shopping for miniatures, you might also consider getting some treasure. Many manufacturers also produce scenery items such as treasure chests, piles of ancient scrolls, or magic boo s that are great as objecti%es and really enhance the loo of your games. Dice Li e many games, Frostgrave uses dice to determine the outcome of actions. While most games use a si&+sided dice, Frostgrave uses a die with twenty sides 7sometimes referred to as a d;>9. At minimum, you really want two twenty+sided dice to play. Again, these dice are easily obtainable at gaming stores or online. The Table Frostgrave can be played on most household tables. In general, s)uare tables wor best, with 3( by 3( being the optimum si"e for most games. !hat said, a 2( by ;( table will wor for a quic game, and 4( by 4( will make for a very impressi%e game. To get the full effect of Frostgrave it is necessary to co%er a large portion of the table with terrain to represent the ruins of the city. Ideal terrain pieces would be ruined model buildings, which can either be constructed out of cardboard, balsa wood and the li e or bought from a number of retailers as kits or ready+ made pieces. Of course, if you(re just starting out in tabletop wargaming, you might not have a large collection of terrain. That(s fine – just grab some wooden bloc s, boo s, and whate%er else you(%e got laying around to ser%e as your terrain for now. !here will be more ad%ice and guidance on setting up the table later in the boo . The Wizard Sheet In the bac of the boo you will find a copy of the Wi"ard Sheet, which is used to keep trac of your wi"ard and his warband. Each player will need a copy of this sheet. 3ou can either photocopy the sheet from the bac of the boo , or you can download a copy from the Osprey Games website 7www.ospreygames.co.u 9. A ,RE#!I/2 # WI0#RD 'efore you can play Frostgrave, it is necessary to create a wi"ard. The wi"ard represents you on the tabletop and is by far your most important miniature. All of your other figures are really just there in support of the wi"ard. !o create a wi"ard, you will want to have a copy of the Wi"ard 1heet from the bac of the boo . This sheet has spaces for all of the important information about your wi"ard (and his warband9 that you will need during the game. !he first decisions when creating a wi"ard are name and gender. Wi"ards often have strangesounding names, so pretty much anything is appropriate. As for gender, wi"ards are split e)ually between men and women – in fact, gender is irrele%ant in game terms, but it will help you to pic out a miniature to represent your wi"ard. Throughout this boo , wi"ards are generally referred to as ‘he(, but this is just for the sa e of con%enience, and is not meant to imply that there are more male wi"ards or that they have an inherent magic ad%antage. Once those preliminaries are out of the way, the ne&t important step is to select your wi"ard type. !here are ten different types of wi"ard, each representing one of the ten schools of magic. Each school has its own strengths and wea nesses, and your decision should be based on what kind of magic most appeals to you. If you want a powerful wi"ard who throws balls of fire and can call down lightning, you(ll probably want to play an Elementalist. If you prefer to use tric ery and misdirection to win your battles, you might consider playing an Illusionist. Listed below are the ten different types of wi"ard, along with a brief description of their abilities, their typical behaviour, and their normal mode of dress. All of these are generali"ations, and it is perfectly acceptable to have a wi"ard who acts or dresses contrary to the norm. 'elow the description is a table showing the relationship of that wi"ard(s school of magic to the other nine schools. Each school is aligned with three others, neutral towards fi%e and directly opposed to one.