Rounds & Activations
A game is played out as a series of rounds. The number of rounds in a game will usually depend on the scenario chosen. Each round is split up into several phases:
Phase 1: Initiation
A new round always begins with the initiation phase. The initiation sequence is as follows:
- Each player rolls 1 dice and adds the highest Command Value (CV) of a friendly Commander present on the table. The result is the order players activate, with the player with the highest score winning the initiative and going first, the second highest second and so on. If one single player rolls a 6, they always count as winning the initiative, but if multiple players roll 6s, add the CV as normal. Re-roll any ties after adding CV. A player that won the initiative may choose to give the initiative to the second-highest scoring player.
- Each player discards any unwanted Command Cards.
- Each player replenishes the Command Cards in their hand up to the highest CV of a friendly Commander present on the table (including those embarked in a Transport), or 1 Command Card if there are no friendly Commanders.
- Any effects that result from certain special rules may be addressed now.
Phase 2: Battlegroup Activation
The player that was chosen to go first must activate a Battlegroup that hasn t yet been activated. The player must also declare which Auxiliary squads they will be activating with this Battlegroup (see the Building Your Army section for more details).
A player may not choose to skip activating a Battlegroup if it is their turn to do so, and must complete actions with at least 1 unit when activating a Battlegroup.
A Battlegroup with no units able to complete actions (either because they are all in Reserve or destroyed) is ignored and may not be activated.
Activating a Battlegroup means that the player can now make actions with any squads in this Battlegroup. Choose one squad at a time to activate. Complete that squad s actions before moving onto the next. However, it is often easiest to combine multiple squads's actions, such as units disembarking from transports and moving. In this situation it s always best to offer a little leeway to your opponent in order to speed up the game.
Once the first player has completed all desired actions with this Battlegroup, the next player may activate a Battlegroup, and so on until every Battlegroup has been activated. This will usually involve going through the order of Initiative several times. A player with no more Battlegroups left to activate must wait until the other players have activated all of theirs.
Once all Battlegroups have been activated, move onto Phase 3.
Phase 3: Round Up
Any special rules and effects which apply in this part of the round are completed now, such as Collateral Damage (see Scenery for more details).
If there is any confusion on what order rules take place, follow the order of Initiative.
After resolving special rules, if the scenario states certain conditions under which the game ends, these should now be checked. If the conditions are met, or if the stated number of turns has elapsed then the game is over. If not, the round is over and another one begins immediately.
Winning The Game
At the end of the game, a victor is determined by the conditions in each scenario. If there is no clear winner, the game is a tie.