Share your house rules!

[Hex_Enduction_Hour]

Originally Posted by jcb231

As for my house rules....


-we use solid water as "deep water" ala the RTTFF rules, and sparkly water as "shallow water" ala the standard rules....just because they look different, so we feel they might as well be different.

I like your house rules for water types and the ice. I may need to bring that up next game night!

Originally Posted by jcb231

-we allow double-based figures to rotate as a free move....you'd be shocked how much friendlier and simpler this makes things.

Totally agree. IMO it's not fair to limit the 2-spacers because of their figure size. Though Nilfheim may be the exception to the rule. Haha

Originally Posted by jcb231

-we refuse to be anal about line of sight....no laser pointers allowed in my house!

Eh. We don't get anal about LOS but I think it important to get as close to agreeing on the call as possible. We do break out the periscopes from time to time. If anything it's fun to look at the field frmo the POV of the figures.

That's one of my biggest deterrents to using the house rule concerning 50% covered figure gets an additional attack die from ranged attacks - sounds like an invitation to split hairs. Again, we don't get that fickle, but it could come up.

Originally Posted by jcb231

-we roll a d20 before the game to decide who gets what starting area

Yeah, on asymmetrical boards w/o designated starting zones, this is a given. We do the same.

[jcb231]

I forgot one more of our house rules.....we don't penalize fliers for landing in snow or ice. We just thought this was dumb and didn't do it. I'm sure there's some great design reason behind it but my group and I just decided to just rebel against the whole idea.

That's probably our most arbitrary house rule.

[Point Blanks]

*flier* "oh noes! It's the dreaded snow/ice! My movement must be cut in half so I can make a snow angel!"

[Hex_Enduction_Hour]

Originally Posted by jcb231

I forgot one more of our house rules.....we don't penalize fliers for landing in snow or ice. We just thought this was dumb and didn't do it. I'm sure there's some great design reason behind it but my group and I just decided to just rebel against the whole idea.

That's probably our most arbitrary house rule.

What about Stealth Leap? Would you allow this special ability to ignore the heavy snow rule? Stealth Leap is nearly worthless in heavy snow and slippery Ice.

[jcb231]

We allow normal stelath leap in snow as it is basically flying with a height limit.

[Bahde]

We have tried a number of variants to make our games different - we dont have 30 MS to build with so we spice it up with different house rules that change with each game we play. Some of the different ideas we have used include:

>>Drafting glyphs - Where we give them a point value. Usually the +1 A/D, Move and Range go for 100 and the rest for 200.

>>Auction drafting - Start alphabetically at half their listed value, if its unbid we recycle and draft for 1/4 the price at the end.

>>Using two armies each - they dont share glyphs, auras etc but work as allies.

>>Drafting for allies - if we play with more than three of us, we include picking your ally as an option in the draft. Would you rather have Charos or a preferred ally? (If its my three kids and I, I dont let my son draft me - it keeps it more fair when he picks one of the younger girls.)

>>Drafting for starting positions - after the map is made and we are drafting, we will sometimes include a draft for where you want to start. Doesnt matter if its symetrical but it can be a factor on unbalanced maps.

>>Draft surplus terrain - we will often split the remainder up after the core of the map is built, what is left after the even split is later included in the drafting so you can build a higher perch or obstacle.

>>Loyalty enhanced movement - if you draft all from one generals army, you get a bonus +2 move.

>>Airborne delayed entry - sometimes, usually dictated by the map and the objectives, we will make the AE wait a round or two before they can possibly enter.

>>Gorilla climbing - the "Jet Monkeys" (as my kids call them) dont count the first level when climbing, so a height change of one is ignored and a height change of two is considered to be just one etc.

>>Directed curses/winds - rather than affecting the whole game, we switch things up and have them affect either only the person on it or that they can select an opponent for it to affect. Its a different twist on things that has impact on drafting.

We mix it up some, we play loose with some of the LOS rules and such but not too loose.......just wondering what other house rules some of you have tried that were fun.

[johnny139]

My only house rule is that trees are destructable. Kinda like the castle door, but only figures with swords, axes, etc. can destroy them.

Also, I sometimes put Wellsprings on the map. They are one spot of water (double sized) surrounded by a circle of earth raised above ground. It doesn't slow movement, and for when you land on it you get one glyph (whose bonus is granted only to the lander) and they are completely healed.

Yes, I know a similar idea was in HS Codex #3. The thing is, I came up with the idea before I read the magazine! Great minds think alike, eh? I even had the same ground type!

[Rÿchean]

my house rules?

one unique per game

[Roller]

1. We don't count movment for turning double space figures around.

2. Airborne Delay - usually wait till at least the second or third round before we let them have a shot at dropping

3. We share all auras/adjacent bonuses between allies, but not glyphs or bonding.

4. If we play uneven teams (2v3 or 3v4) on a even map we let the outnumbered team use the X's as extra moves to be used in their second turn during a round, but markers 2 and X can't be on the same card.

I'll post more as i think of them

[bluekitsune13]

Really the biggest ones for me are:

1) Only one unique per game, meaning if I have Mimring you can't.

2) All the dice you roll must stay on the table. If one falls off you reroll the entire thing.

3) There is no number 3.

[C28525]

No matter what happens I have to win.


and if I don't win, no one can complain about me being a poor loser...(That one is for my girlfriend)

[LoneDragon]

1. We play with 2 X counters for extra bluffy goodness.

2. Cover - +1 to defense if at least half the figure is hidden.

3. Solid water tiles are shallow water, movement costs double.

We also have a few house rules for individual cards.

~Yub yub, Commander!