Cold Iron
Wargame Scenarios
Felix Enterprises
40pp - [sterling]3.95
Fantasy wargames can start to get a little stereotyped; elves are hippy
tree-huggers, orcs are big, dim, and violent, dwarves are short and stroppy,
and everyone hates everyone else. Line 'em up and roll the dice...
If this sounds familiar, Cold Iron could be just what you need to put a little
spice back into your fantasy battles. A neat, well laid-out A4 booklet,
containing six well-crafted scenarios that get a long way away from predictable
stereotypes. Although they're perfectly playable as stand-alone
engagements, most players will want to run them as the designer intended, as
part of a continuing campaign.
The twist is that, instead of a conventional clash between different races, the
battles are between opposing factions in a civil war among the dwarves. This is
one of those ideas that's so brilliant it's obvious, once someone else thought
of it first...
Each scenario is clearly set out, with an initial paragraph or two filling in
the background to the engagement; what each side's doing there, their orders
and motivation, and so on. Subsequent sections elaborate on the type of
engagement (Opposed River Crossing, Desperate Last Stand, and the like),
battlefield conditions (Dry and Sunny, Muddy and Slippery, that sort of thing),
significant terrain features, victory conditions for each side, special rules
applying to this battle (like the presence of a renowned hero on one side or
the other, or the chance of wet weather rendering gunpowder weapons useless),
and the forces involved. All this data is presented descriptively, allowing you
to apply whatever rule modifications are appropriate for the rule set you
prefer. I'd guess Warhammer, Raven, and Hordes of the Things will be
particularly popular.
All in all, a superb product, well worth the asking price. Felix tell me that
this is intended as the first release in a range of generic scenario packs for
SF, Fantasy, and historical wargames; if they can maintain these standards,
it's a range no tabletop gamer will be able to ignore.
Reviewed by: Alex Stewart
Product supplied by: Felix Enterprises
