Strandhogg - Viking Age Skirmish Rules, 793 - 1066 AD

The rules cover Leadership with several categories including Nobles, Jarls, Ealdormen and Lords; Commanders (Huscarls, Thanes and Milites) and troop types including Warriors, Levy, Archers/Slingers/Crossbowmen, Berserkers, and Armed Peasants/Townfolk.

Warbands are composed of various combinations of these types up to an agreed-upon point value; different categories of soldier have differing values, and accessories such as Spears and Shields add to a type's cost. A Record Sheet is made out with values for each Leader and Warband involved in a game.

Initiative is determine by use of cards from a conventional card deck. Each player is assigned a card number or suit, adding a card for each Warband under a player's control. Additional cards can be added to reflect additional events or participants in a given scenario, for example, the random appearance of a traveling Lord or Bishop and retinue.

Dynamics of play involve Morale, Courage, Agility, Terrain, Non-Warband Movement, Shieldwalls and Wedges, the use of ships, and Mounted forces. Information is provided for Saxons and Normans as well as Vikings, and the system is also adaptable to other peoples with whom the Vikings interacted, including Picts, Arabs or Skraelings (Native Americans) with a little historical research on the gamer's part.

The game is well suited to multiplayer games, each player handling one or more Warbands of anywhere from six to twenty or more figures on the table. Game length is dependent upon the scenario design, from swift ship-to-ship fights to extended coastal raids or open-field battles.

The game is enhanced by the inclusion of a random events card deck which adds variety and surprises to play.

Unlike many sets of miniatures rules, Strandhogg can be enjoyed by players owning only a few dozen figures; an average Warband might number ten to twelve figures, and three Warbands compose a raiding force under a Noble. The rulebook is sprinkled with sidebars featuring excerpts from the Norse Sagas for flavor, and also includes optional rules for special attributes or traits to individualize Leaders or leading warriors (for example, a warrior surnamed "the Stout" gains +1 on Defense; "Leg Biter" enjoys a +1 on Offense).

Players will often find themselves identifying strongly with the fortunes of their warband and even individuals within it; although Strandhogg is not a role-playing game, it deliberately strives to impart a strong flavor of its Viking focus.