TEXT:  
   
   
   
  
   
   
   
  BUILDING BRICK COMBAT SYSTEM 
  By Mike Rayhawk 
  Copyright ©1995-2006 Mike Rayhawk 
  Image: "The Deadly Spaceman," Mike Rayhawk, 2001. 
  There is no connection between the Deadly Spaceman and the trademarked LEGO MINIFIGURE™ (a registered 
  trademark of the LEGO Group of Companies). If any slanderous individual were to allege otherwise, whatever 
  superficial resemblances might exist are intended as political satire, serious artistic expression, editorial 
  commentary, and/or any purpose that will give us a shot at First Amendment protection. To be specific, 
  BrikWars is NOT endorsed or acknowledged by the LEGO® Group of companies 
   
  or by any other toy manufacturer. In fact, it stands in pretty direct opposition to many fundamental elements of the 
  LEGO® philosophy, such as "Not Teaching Kids How Funny It Is to Set People on Fire." 
  LEGO® is a registered trademark of the LEGO Group of companies which does not sponsor, authorize or endorse BrikWars or 
  any of its related materials. Please read our Legal Disclaimer. 
  http://www.brikwars.com 
   
   
  
  - INDEX - 
  3 
  INDEX 
  INDEX .............................................................................................................................................................................3 
  Legal Disclaimer..............................................................................................................................................................6 
  Unauthorizations and Unsanctionednesses ..............................................................................................................6 
  Conceptual Progenitors ............................................................................................................................................6 
  Copyrights and Trademarks......................................................................................................................................6 
  Contact Info..............................................................................................................................................................6 
  Fair Use Policy............................................................................................................................................................7 
  Printing Copies.........................................................................................................................................................7 
  Don't Get Me in Trouble...........................................................................................................................................7 
  The BrikWars Universe...................................................................................................................................................8 
  A Magikal Wonderland ............................................................................................................................................8 
  It’s Brik, Not Brick.....................................................................................................................................................8 
  A Tradition of Gratuitous Everything......................................................................................................................9 
  QuikWars.......................................................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.1: Overview of Play ..............................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.1.1 Rolling Dice..................................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.1.2 Wasting Time ...............................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.2: Armies...............................................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.2.1 Minifigs ........................................................................................................................................................10 
  Q.2.2 Heroes...........................................................................................................................................................11 
  Q.2.3 Weapons .......................................................................................................................................................11 
  Q.2.4 Steeds............................................................................................................................................................11 
  Q.3: Constructions....................................................................................................................................................12 
  Q.3.1 Controls ........................................................................................................................................................12 
  Q.3.2 Vehicles ........................................................................................................................................................12 
  Q.4: Victory...............................................................................................................................................................12 
  Chapter One: Gameplay................................................................................................................................................13 
  1.1: Overview of Play ...............................................................................................................................................13 
  Victory....................................................................................................................................................................13 
  1.2: Proper Observance of Rules.............................................................................................................................14 
  1.3: Taking Measurements ......................................................................................................................................15 
  1.4: Rolling Dice........................................................................................................................................................16 
  1.5: Supplies Checklist .............................................................................................................................................17 
  Things You'll Need.................................................................................................................................................17 
  Things You Probably Won't Need But Might Want Anyway ................................................................................18 
  Chapter Two: The Mighty Minifig................................................................................................................................19 
  Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons .................................................................................................................................21 
  3.1: Close Combat Weapons....................................................................................................................................21 
  Hand Weapons .......................................................................................................................................................22 
  Heavy Weapons......................................................................................................................................................22 
  Two-Handed Weapons ...........................................................................................................................................22 
  3.2: Ranged Weapons...............................................................................................................................................23 
  Short-Ranged Weapons..........................................................................................................................................23 
  Long-Ranged Weapons ..........................................................................................................................................24 
  3.3: Bodily Protection...............................................................................................................................................24 
  Shields ....................................................................................................................................................................25 
  Armor .....................................................................................................................................................................25 
  3.4: Desperate Measures ..........................................................................................................................................25 
  
  - INDEX - 
  4 
  Bare Hands .............................................................................................................................................................25 
  Chapter Four: The Player Turn....................................................................................................................................27 
  4.1: Movement ..........................................................................................................................................................27 
  Sprinting.................................................................................................................................................................27 
  Quick Actions.........................................................................................................................................................27 
  4.2: Action .................................................................................................................................................................28 
  Use Ratings.............................................................................................................................................................28 
  Extended Actions....................................................................................................................................................29 
  Large Actions .........................................................................................................................................................29 
  4.3: Enemy Response................................................................................................................................................29 
  Cone of Vision........................................................................................................................................................29 
  Who Acts First........................................................................................................................................................30 
  Bailing ....................................................................................................................................................................30 
  Chapter Five: Combat ...................................................................................................................................................31 
  5.1: Making Attacks .................................................................................................................................................31 
  Checking Range......................................................................................................................................................31 
  Skill and Damage Rolls..........................................................................................................................................32 
  Attack Modifiers.....................................................................................................................................................32 
  Target Size..............................................................................................................................................................32 
  Motion ....................................................................................................................................................................33 
  Combined Attacks ..................................................................................................................................................33 
  Other Modifiers ......................................................................................................................................................34 
  5.2: Close Combat.....................................................................................................................................................34 
  The Angry Inch.......................................................................................................................................................35 
  Close Combat Manövers ........................................................................................................................................35 
  Countering..............................................................................................................................................................36 
  5.3: Ranged Combat.................................................................................................................................................38 
  Missed Shots...........................................................................................................................................................38 
  5.4: Charge!...............................................................................................................................................................39 
  Momentum .............................................................................................................................................................39 
  Collision Speed.......................................................................................................................................................39 
  Collision Damage...................................................................................................................................................40 
  Crushing Bonus ......................................................................................................................................................41 
  Charging Weapons .................................................................................................................................................41 
  KnockBack.............................................................................................................................................................42 
  Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes.........................................................................................................................................44 
  6.1: The Hero ............................................................................................................................................................44 
  6.2: The Ego ..............................................................................................................................................................44 
  Crankiness ..............................................................................................................................................................44 
  RedShirts ................................................................................................................................................................45 
  6.3: Heroic Feats.......................................................................................................................................................46 
  Action-Hero Clichés...............................................................................................................................................46 
  Heroic Feats............................................................................................................................................................46 
  Chapter Seven: Special Creations.................................................................................................................................48 
  Design Overview....................................................................................................................................................48 
  7.1: Structure ............................................................................................................................................................49 
  Structure vs. Surface Elements...............................................................................................................................49 
  Size.........................................................................................................................................................................49 
  Vermin....................................................................................................................................................................50 
  Structure Level .......................................................................................................................................................50 
  7.2: Propulsion..........................................................................................................................................................51 
  Propulsion Damage ................................................................................................................................................51 
  7.3: Weapons.............................................................................................................................................................52 
  Weapon Size...........................................................................................................................................................52 
  Size Limits..............................................................................................................................................................52 
  
  - INDEX - 
  5 
  7.4: Taking Action ....................................................................................................................................................53 
  Minds......................................................................................................................................................................53 
  Half Minds..............................................................................................................................................................53 
  Enhanced Abilities..................................................................................................................................................54 
  Operators ................................................................................................................................................................55 
  The Pilot .................................................................................................................................................................56 
  7.5 Taking Damage...................................................................................................................................................56 
  General Damage.....................................................................................................................................................56 
  Component Damage...............................................................................................................................................57 
  Special Damage......................................................................................................................................................58 
  7.6 Creation Combat ................................................................................................................................................59 
  Close Combat .........................................................................................................................................................59 
  Ranged Combat ......................................................................................................................................................59 
  Charge Attacks .......................................................................................................................................................59 
  Chapter Eight: Squads ..................................................................................................................................................61 
  8.1: The Squad Plate.................................................................................................................................................62 
  Squad Plates ...........................................................................................................................................................62 
  The Standard...........................................................................................................................................................62 
  The Units................................................................................................................................................................63 
  8.2: Forming Up........................................................................................................................................................63 
  Changing Formation...............................................................................................................................................63 
  The Officer................................................................................................................................................................65 
  8.3: Squad Movement...............................................................................................................................................66 
  Infantry and Cavalry Squads ..................................................................................................................................67 
  8.4: Squad Action .....................................................................................................................................................67 
  All For One and One For All..................................................................................................................................67 
  Touch Limitations ..................................................................................................................................................68 
  8.5: Squad Attacks....................................................................................................................................................68 
  Hand to Hand Attacks ............................................................................................................................................68 
  Squad Close Combat ..............................................................................................................................................69 
  Two-Handed Weapons and Skirmishing................................................................................................................69 
  Numerical Advantage.............................................................................................................................................70 
  8.6: Taking Damage..................................................................................................................................................70 
  Targeting A Squad..................................................................................................................................................70 
  Distributing Damage ..............................................................................................................................................71 
  
  - Legal Disclaimer - 
  6 
  Legal Disclaimer  
   
  Unauthorizations and Unsanctionednesses 
  The concepts, rules, information, and general philosophy presented or referred 
  to in this text (which material shall hereafter be referred to as "This Stuff") are 
  completely unauthorized and unsanctioned by anyone, anywhere, with the 
  possible exception of Mike Rayhawk, who pledges to authorize and/or 
  sanction them only half-heartedly and on a very occasional basis. This Stuff is 
  especially unauthorized by the LEGO Group of companies, Mega Bloks 
  Inc., DSI Toys, or by any of the other dozens of producers of plastic 
  construction toys, or in fact by anyone even remotely connected with any 
  producer of any type of toys, plastic or construction or otherwise. 
  Furthermore, if there is anyone else out there we somehow missed, we 
  apologize and preemptively disclaim any apparent or implicit authorization or 
  sanctioning from said parties. In the unlikely event that some presently 
  unspecified party attempt to sanction or authorize This Stuff at some point in 
  the future, we reserve the right to acknowledge or disavow their sanctioning or 
  authorization at our discretion.  
  Images 
  The cover image "The Dread Pirate Two-By-Two" is Copyright ©2005 Mike Rayhawk. Except where noted 
  otherwise, all rulebook images are created and copyrighted by Mike Rayhawk. These images may be construed by 
  hostile parties as bearing some superficial resemblance to products that are trademarks of the LEGO Group or some 
  other producer of plastic construction toys. This does not represent any kind of endorsement or approval by the LEGO 
  Group. BrikWars is not specifically geared towards the "LEGO®" product line, nor towards any specific product line 
  of any producer of plastic construction toys or any other type of toys. In the unlikely event that it can be proven that 
  these pictures are intended to portray products in the "LEGO®" product line, then that portrayal should be interpreted 
  as representing the artist’s personal, subjective, and unsolicited preference for the "LEGO®" product line. These 
  images are provided only as examples - any type of toys, including products from other manufacturers' lines of plastic 
  construction toys, could be used instead.  
  Conceptual Progenitors 
  Early versions of BrikWars were largely inspired by the games 'Lego Wars' and 'Lego Wars II,' copyright ©1991, 
  1995 Eric O'Dell and R. Todd Ogrin (hereafter be referred to as 'Our Divine Ancestors'). A small and ever-decreasing 
  amount of material in This Stuff references ideas and philosophies presented in these games. Any such references may 
  still be under the copyright of Our Divine Ancestors, and are used without their explicit permission. Lego Wars and 
  Lego Wars II were not authorized or sanctioned by the LEGO Group. The word LEGO® is a registered trademark of 
  the LEGO Group, and its inclusion in the titles of Lego Wars and Lego Wars II was quite specifically protested and 
  prohibited by the LEGO Group. 
  Copyrights and Trademarks 
  All trademarks, service marks, and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Where they are mentioned 
  or referred to in this book, they are used for editorial purposes only, and do not imply any endorsement or 
  acknowledgement by their owners. 
  LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group of companies. Best-Lock is a trademark of Best-Lock Group Ltd. Mega 
  Bloks is a trademark of Mega Bloks Inc. C3 Construction System is a trademark of The Art Asylum, Inc. Little 
  Armory is a trademark of Little Armory Toys Inc. RedBean Studio is a trademark of Isaac Yue. There have been 
  dozens if not hundreds of toy companies manufacturering plastic construction-bricks and related accessories over the 
  years; these are used as representative samples throughout the book and are not intended as a comprehensive list.  
  LUGNET™ (http://www.lugnet.com) is a trademark of Todd S. Lehman and Suzanne D. Rich. Peeron™ 
  (http://www.peeron.com) is a trademark of Dan and Jennifer Boger. Brickshelf™ (http://www.brickshelf.com/) is a 
  trademark of Brickshelf L.L.C. All of these websites are incredibly rich resources for plastic-brick enthusiasts. 
  NELUG (http://www.nelug.org) is a trademark of the New England LEGO® Users Group, and is not as rich of a 
  resource unless you live in New England. 
  All material contained in or related to the BrikWars rulebook that can't be proven to belong to one of those entities 
  mentioned in this disclaimer is created by and copyright ©1995-2006 Mike Rayhawk. 
  Contact Info 
  If you have any further questions, please visit http://www.brikwars.com/ or e-mail the author at mike@brikwars.com. 
   
  "The Dread Pirate Two-By-Two," icon of 
  BrikWars, is not a reference to the products of 
  any specific company.  
  Image Copyright ©2005 Mike Rayhawk. 
   
  
  - Legal Disclaimer - 
  7 
  Fair Use Policy 
   
  Printing Copies 
  You may print, photocopy, and distribute unaltered copies of this rulebook for private non-commercial use. 
   
  Modified Copies and Other Material 
  If you create a modified or abbreviated copy of the rulebook, or if you make promotional flyers or other BrikWars 
  material for a BrikWars event, you may print them out and distribute them non-commercially as long as the following 
  guidelines are followed:  
  Any modified or abbreviated version of the rulebook must be clearly labeled as being a modified or abbreviated 
  version.  
  The name and contact information of the individual or group by whom the material was printed should also be 
  included.  
  If you include material that falls under the copyright of any other individual or group, add the appropriate copyright 
  notices.  
  Be sure to prominently include the following text:  
  BrikWars is copyright ©1995-2006 Mike Rayhawk. 
  For more information and the complete rules, please visit http://www.brikwars.com. 
   
  Don't Get Me in Trouble 
  You may not use BrikWars or BrikWars materials for illegal or felonious purposes. These include, but are not limited 
  to: 
  Soaking copies of BrikWars in gasoline and using them to start structure fires.  
  Spray painting rulebook excerpts or unit stats on the walls of subways or police stations.  
  Inscribing pages from the rulebook on heavy stone tablets and dropping them out skyscraper windows in the hopes of 
  crushing pedestrians or small dogs.  
  Using actual humans and assault weapons in the place of toy miniatures.  
  Kidnapping the cheerleading squad at gunpoint and forcing them to play BrikWars for thirty-six hours straight.  
  Etcetera.  
  
  - The BrikWars Universe - 
  8 
  The BrikWars Universe 
   
   
   
  Inhabitants of a plastic-brick universe heed no laws of logic, continuity, decency, or moderation. 
  Unrestricted mayhem is the rule of the day. 
  Mike Rayhawk, 2003 
   
   
  A Magikal Wonderland 
  BrikWars is a marvelous Pandora's box, an endless fount of 
  destruction and mayhem, where every coincidence falls in favor of 
  maximum violence, where life is cheap, plastic, boxy, and bears only 
  the most superficial resemblance to our world of flesh and mortgages. 
  Time is marked from moment to moment by oscillating peaks of 
  melodrama and troughs of sheer ridiculousness. Rules of continuity 
  and physics are as malleable as any of us in the 'real' world have 
  learned to expect from a lifetime of superhero comics, schlocky action 
  movies, and public education -- and they're always trumped by the 
  dramatic requirements of the moment and the most liberal application 
  of Murphy's Law. Even the rules governing BrikWars itself are 
  unresistingly overturned by a haphazard shrugging of shoulders and 
  the players' mutual whim. Spelling is consistently poor. 
   
  It’s Brik, Not Brick 
  BrikWars is spelled without a 'c.' This is not a typo; this is part of its 
  intrinsik nature. BrikWars is about the celebration of mayhem; it turns 
  a suspicious eye towards infidels who believe that rules are made to 
  be followed. If there's a "right" way of doing things, including 
  spelling, BrikWars stands in opposition to it. 
  The trappings of civilization are a fresh canvas upon which the 
  Dimmies splatter mayhem and chaos in broad juniorized 
  strokes. 
  Mike Rayhawk, 2001 
   
  
  - The BrikWars Universe - 
  9 
  The trappings of reality become 'realistik' when translated into BrikWars' realms: bricks become 'Brix,' a mechanic 
  becomes a 'Mechanik,' and unconscionable and horrifying ultraviolence becomes 'Awesome.' 
   
  A Tradition of Gratuitous Everything 
  In their most dignified form, BrikWars battles pay witness to lovingly crafted scenarios and intricate models, presided 
  over by serious wargamers and careful strategic thought. Such battles, while common, are completely inappropriate. 
  Dignity and BrikWars go together like one Mega Blok with another: while they appear to fit together at first glance, 
  their attachment is brief and doomed to violent mutual repulsion.  
  BrikWars battles take place in a world of minifigs, and the minifig species draws its heritage from generations of hard-
  fought survival in the toy chests of six-year-old boys. Whether knights, spacemen, construction workers, or chefs, 
  their souls thrill with the racial memory of a time when a toy's highest calling was to do joyous and bloody battle with 
  all challengers. In that primordial toybox, it didn't matter if one toy was a fire truck and the other was a teddy bear, or 
  if two toys were built to incompatible scales or originated from unrelated eras. It didn't matter whether they had 
  anything to fight about. Combat and danger were ends in themselves. 
  Like all toys, minifigs exist for the sole purpose of getting themselves killed in the most 
  entertaining and gratuitous manner possible. You want to see castle guys get blasted by 
  space cruisers? Sounds great! You want to watch sea pirates do battle with assault 
  helicopters armed with laser-guided stealth buzzsaw sharks? Go right ahead! These are the 
  battles that BrikWars was made for. Minifigs are not bothered by their own grisly deaths, 
  because they’ve seen so many of their brothers and friends die in similar fashions and they 
  know how hilarious it is. Also, unlike green army men (who tend to get melted) and action 
  figures (with their unfortunate affinity for getting blown up with firecrackers), a minifig’s 
  later reincarnation is almost assured, either in whole or in distributed parts. Hideous 
  disfigurements and glorious deaths are the high points in an existence otherwise spent 
  lying around bored in box of unused bricks. 
  So if for no other reason, you owe it to the poor guys. Inject a little joy into their lives by 
  slaughtering huge numbers of them. 
   
  
  - QuikWars - 
  10 
  QuikWars 
   
   
   
   
  Q.1: Overview of Play 
   
  QuikWars is a wargame in which players with construction-brick armies send 
  them onto a construction-brick battlefield to engage in vicious construction-
  brick combat. Players set up their battlefield and armies however they like. 
  Players interested in fairness may choose to field identical armies in two different colors, but random and wildly 
  mismatched armies will work just as well. As long as minifigs get brutally and hilariously slaughtered, everybody 
  goes home happy. 
   
  Rolling dice to determine order of play, the players take turns orchestrating manuevers and assaults until only one 
  army is left standing. 
   
  Each player's turn consists of a Movement Phase and an Attack Phase. In the Movement Phase, a player may move 
  all of his units that are able to do so, and the units may also pick up or drop objects they come across. During the 
  Attack Phase, no further movement is allowed, but all units with weapons may now make an attack against whatever 
  targets are within their range. If they are carrying bricks, they may also choose to build them into constructions during 
  the Attack Phase. 
   
  Q.1.1 Rolling Dice 
  In QuikWars, any time dice are rolled, any die that comes up '6' means you may add another die to the roll, increasing 
  your sum. If that die comes up '6,' add another die on top of that. You can repeat this process for as long as you keep 
  getting such lucky rolls. 
   
  Q.1.2 Wasting Time 
  Do not waste time. Dilly-dallying may be punished by severe beatings at any time, at the discretion of the other 
  players. 
   
  Q.2: Armies 
   
   
  Q.2.1 Minifigs 
  In QuikWars, all Minifigs (miniature figures, or "little people") have the same attributes.  
   
  The Movement stat describes how far a unit can move during a single Movement Phase - 
  in this case, five inches. The Minifig can run across five inches of level ground, climb five 
  inches' worth of stairs or ladders, or leap over five inches of chasm. The only limitations to 
  the 5" rule are these: a Minifig can't jump higher than 2" at a time, and can never swim 
  more than 2" in a single Movement Phase (it may still use the remaining 3" for regular movement on land before or 
  after swimming).  
   
  Minifigs may pick up or drop any number of objects within reach during a Movement Phase. Lifted objects cannot be 
  larger than a standard 2x4 brick unless multiple Minifigs are working in cooperation.  
   
  The Armor stat tells how much damage a Minifig can absorb in a single attack. When a Minifig takes damage, roll 2 
  dice; if the Armor roll is at least equal to the amount of Damage, the Minifig lives. If not, it dies - knock the Minifig 
  over and, if appropriate, detach a couple of its body parts. 
   
  The Nefarious Nega-Bloktrix, patron saint of 
  QuikWars.  
   
  "A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week."  
  - George S. Patton 
  For players without the time, energy, or attention span to take advantage of the full scope of the 
  BrikWars rulebook, we offer this low-calorie substitute. QuikWars is not compatible with the 
  BrikWars system, but is offered as a simpler introductory alternative. 
  Minifigs 
  Movement: 5" per turn
  Armor: 2 dice 
  
  - QuikWars - 
  11 
   
  Q.2.2 Heroes  
  Each army should have one specially-decorated Minifig to be its Hero. Heroes have the same stats as regular Minifigs, 
  but they get two attacks per turn (which can be combined for a single double-damage attack), and they may attempt 
  one Stupendous Feat each turn.  
   
  Stupendous Feats are all the stunts that action-movie heroes are able to pull off that could never happen in real life - 
  lifting up cars, running up walls, catching arrows in flight, dodging thousands of bullets, reviving a fallen comrade, 
  seducing impossible numbers of Minifig women, etc. If Xena, Jet Li, James Bond, Jackie Chan, or Arnold 
  Schwarzenegger can do it, then the Hero is free to try.  
   
  To attempt a Stupendous Feat, a player declares the Feat his Hero is attempting to accomplish, and then rolls a 
  Stupendous die. One of his opponents rolls an opposing die to prevent the Feat from succeeding. If the Stupendous roll 
  is equal to or higher than the opposing roll, then the Feat succeeds. If the opposing roll is higher, then the Feat fails, 
  and the Hero suffers whatever effects would logically result from failing such an attempt. It's up to the players to 
  decide on the most appropriate consequences for failure. In general, the more Stupendous the Feat attempted, the 
  worse the consequences if it fails; and in all cases, the sillier the better. 
   
  Q.2.3 Weapons 
  Each Minifig may choose one of its Weapons during its Attack 
  Phase, and use it to do the Weapon's Damage to a single target 
  within the Weapon's Range. If the Damage is higher than the 
  target's Armor, then the target is destroyed. If several Minifigs are 
  in position to attack the same target, they may all combine their 
  attacks together, adding all their Damage into a single massive 
  roll. 
  Bare Hands 
  There is no unarmed combat in QuikWars. A Minifig without a 
  weapon must use his bare hands to pick one up.  
  Hand Weapon 
  A Minifig with a Hand Weapon (e.g. a sword, axe, spear, etc.) 
  may attack any unit or object that it can touch with the weapon, doing 2 dice of Damage.  
  Ranged Weapon 
  A Minifig with a Ranged Weapon (e.g. a bow, pistol, laser rifle, etc.) may attack any unit or object within 10", as long 
  as the Minifig has a clear line of sight to some part of the target, however small. The attack does 1 die of Damage.  
  Shield / Armor 
  A Minifig gains an additional +1 die of Armor for holding a Shield or wearing a piece of Armor.  
  Brick 
  A Minifig may carry around loose bricks in one or both hands for whatever reason. In desperate situations, the unit can 
  swing or hurl the brick at an enemy for 1d6 Damage. He may also attach the brick to any appropriate surface, in order 
  to build fortifications or repair vehicles or whatever; this counts as the unit's one attack for the turn.  
  Siege Weapon 
  A Siege Weapon is any weapon large enough that it must be mounted on a vehicle, on a building, or on the ground in 
  order to fire. A Minifig may attack with a Siege Weapon if he is standing next to the appropriate controls. A Siege 
  Weapon must be able to point directly at its target, and may only be fired once in a single Player's turn.  
  More powerful Super Siege Weapons are possible, but require more Minifigs to operate them. For each additional +1 
  die of damage and +5" of range, the Super Siege Weapon requires one additional Minifig with access to an appropriate 
  set of controls for the weapon. 
  Q.2.4 Steeds 
  Vehicles constructed out of several bricks are counted as Constructions, described in the 
  next section. Vehicles made from one piece, such as horses, motorcycles, or alligators, 
  are called Steeds.  
  If a mounted Minifig is killed or abandons his Steed, then any Minifig from any team 
  may hop onto the abandoned Steed and ride off. 
  Weapon 
  Damage Range
  Bare Hands 
  None 
  - 
  Hand Weapon 
  2 dice 
  touch 
  Ranged Weapon
  1 die 
  10" 
  Shield / Armor 
  +1 Armor die 
  - 
  Brick 
  1 die 
  5" 
  Siege Weapon 
  2 dice 
  10" 
  Steeds 
  Movement: 10" per turn
  Armor: 3 dice 
  
  - QuikWars - 
  12 
  Q.3: Constructions 
   
  Anything built out of multiple bricks counts as a 
  Construction, whether it's a base, a vehicle, a wall, or part of 
  the landscaping. All Constructions are handled in the same 
  way.  
  In order to damage a Construction, players focus attacks on 
  one of its component bricks. If an attack's Damage exceeds 
  the number of studs connecting the brick to the main model, 
  then the brick is separated from the model and knocked off in 
  whichever direction seems appropriate. If the Damage is 
  especially massive, you may keep separating more bricks until 
  the Damage is used up.  
  Constructions can be easily repaired or rebuilt by simply 
  directing a Minifig to pick up a brick and re-attach it. 
  Attaching a brick counts as the Minifig's one attack for that 
  turn. 
   
  Q.3.1 Controls 
  If a Construction has weapons, propulsion systems, or other devices, it will have to have Controls for the Minifigs to 
  operate them. Controls must be represented by a steering wheel, a computer console, levers and buttons, or some other 
  appropriate element.  
  Any Controls stuck onto a Construction instantly gain access to all of the Construction's weapons and devices. If more 
  than one player has control of a Construction, they may each do whatever they want with the Construction and its 
  devices during their own turn. 
   
  Q.3.2 Vehicles 
  A Construction can be made into a Vehicle with the simple 
  addition of one or more Propulsion Units. A Propulsion Unit is 
  only useful when the Vehicle is on or in the appropriate terrain for 
  that Unit.  
  Vehicles can carry one Minifig and move 5" per turn for each 
  Propulsion Unit in use, up to a maximum of 15" per turn. If 
  additional Minifigs climb aboard, the Vehicle is overloaded and 
  must stop (or land, if it's flying).  
  A Vehicle may turn at any angle at the beginning of its Movement 
  Phase. It may then travel any distance up to its maximum Movement for the turn, but it must move in a straight line. If 
  a Vehicle's pilot is killed or if its controls are destroyed while in motion, the Vehicle continues moving in the same 
  direction at the same speed every turn until control can be restored.  
  When a Vehicle crashes into an object, both the Vehicle and the object take 1 die of damage for each Propulsion Unit 
  the Vehicle is using at the time.  
  Q.4: Victory 
   
  Victory occurs when all opposing units have been wiped out and humiliated. What did you expect?  
  Propulsion Unit  Moves on 
  1 pair wheels / treads / legs 
  solid ground 
  1 sail / 2 oars 
  open water 
  1 copter rotor 
  flying 
  1 pair jets / thrusters 
  any  
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  13 
  Chapter One: Gameplay 
   
   
  The purpose of BrikWars is to provide a safe and comfortable setting in which 
  groups of cute and friendly minifigs can mutilate and slaughter one another. 
  The battle can be large or small, balanced or skewed, ordered or chaotic; 
  what’s important is that the level of mindless violence is kept at an 
  entertaining high. 
  1.1: Overview of Play 
   
  Players prepare for the game by building armies, fortifications, and battlefield 
  landscaping out of plastic construction bricks (or whatever’s most 
  convenient). They have the option of imposing a military budget of 
  Construction Points if they suffer from the notion that armies should be 
  equal and battles should be "fair." Players might spend hours carefully 
  crafting the look and equipment of each soldier and vehicle, or they might just 
  grab mismatched units at random out of a bin. It’s left to the players to decide 
  how serious they want to be. 
  When the battlefield and armies are assembled, players can pick their 
  starting locations by any combination of mutual agreement and dice-
  rolling. If one player designed the battlefield, it’s customary to allow 
  the other players to have first pick of starting locations, to prevent 
  unfair advantage. Sometimes the armies' starting locations will be 
  dictated by the scenario - in a castle siege, for instance, the defenders 
  are arranged inside and around the castle and the besieging force 
  begins at whichever edges of the battlefield seem most advantageous. 
  Once the armies are in place, the battle can begin. Each player takes a 
  turn maneuvering forces and making attacks for all of the units under 
  his control, before passing play to the next player. When all players 
  have taken their turns, the cycle begins again with the first player and 
  continues until one side "wins." 
  Victory 
  An army wins a battle by achieving its Objective. An army's default 
  Objective is "the destruction and humiliation of all other armies," but more 
  complex or specific Objectives are possible, such as "assassinate the enemy leader" 
  or "collect the largest pile of severed heads." 
  As a general rule, it's not entirely common for any one player or team to "win" a battle. This is because getting killed 
  horribly in some ridiculous fashion is always funnier than the alternative (i.e., surviving horribly in some ridiculous 
  fashion), and BrikWars is set up to favor the optimum result of a complete massacre of all participants, along with any 
  bystanders and scenery. You should expect your BrikWars battles to often end with the final victory going to a force 
  of nature or some deadly location rather than to any player. 'Fire,' 'explosive decompression,' and 'nuclear fission' have 
  winning records that no human strategist can hope to match. 
  The 'classic' conclusion for a BrikWars battle is for the entire battlefield to be destroyed in a cataclysmic fireball. This 
  is considered a victory for all sides except those whose Objective was to prevent destruction (e.g., "protect the 
  doughnut factory").  
   
  Unsophisticated players might think that the Letter 
  of the rules is more important than the Spirit - but 
  the Letter isn't liable to sneak up behind you with 
  an axe if you abuse it. 
  "Esprit de Core," 2005  
  "If our most highly qualified General Staff officers had been told to work out the most nonsensical 
  high level organization  
  for war which they could think of, they could not have produced anything more stupid that that which 
  we have at present. "  
  - Claus von Stauffenberg 
   
  Raised baseplates and brick mountains scattered around the 
  floor make a perfectly decent battlefield. 
  Photo: Pete Callaway 
  STUDS's "Battle of Tank Stream," June 2000 
  Winners: SHAG 
   
  "It's never 'just a game' when you're winning." 
  - George Carlin 
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  14 
  1.2: Proper Observance of Rules 
   
   
  "The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will 
  be."  
  - Lao Tzu
    
   
   
  Rules are for the small-minded and weak. Let a 
  little kid loose among your collection of bricks 
  sometime, and watch the way he plays. In his hands, those minifigs will have all kinds of crazy battles and adventures, 
  there'll be all the drama, death, and explosions you could ever want, and the whole time that kid won't have to crack 
  open the rulebook even once. How is it that he's so much smarter than we are? The answer is that most of us have had 
  a lot more years of schooling than he has. Wait until he's eighteen, he'll have become just as slack-jawed and dull-eyed 
  as the rest of us.  
  BrikWars has a lot of rules. If the mandatory education system has had the chance to get its hooks in you, then you'll 
  respect the authority of those rules, because they're all written down in a book, and some of them are capitalized. If 
  things went so badly that you ended up going to college as well, then you'll probably not only shackle yourself to those 
  rules but also then try to lovingly twist them to your own ends, weaseling out loopholes and exploits to cleverly 
  frustrate the other players and ingeniously prevent fun for the entire group.  
  If you find yourself engaging in that kind of rules-lawyering and munchkinism, then you have just failed at BrikWars. 
  Stamp a big F on your report card, schedule a get-together between your face and the Hammer of Discipline, and see if 
  you can't spend a little time afterwards with a couple of five-year-olds to remember the things you've forgotten about 
  having fun.  
  The reason BrikWars has so many rules is that it's a lot more fun to flout a large rules system than a small one. 
  Hopefully you can use these rules as a springboard for the imagination rather than as manacles with which to enslave 
  yourself. However, we also recognize that not everyone is ready to live without the safety net that a system of rules 
  provides, especially while in competition with others. So, before we go any further, here are the two most important 
  rules in the book. 
  THE LAW OF FUDGE 
   
  Fudge everything your opponents will let you get away with. 
  "Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something."  
  - Thomas Edison 
   
   
   
  BrikWars provides chapters and chapters full of rules to calculate events down 
  to the tiniest detail. If a player tries to follow all of them to the letter, their 
  turns will take hours, everyone will lose interest, and no one will want to play a 
  second time. This is for the best. Those people should stop trying to play with 
  construction bricks and instead give them to someone with an imagination.  
  Just because you can assign die rolls to every sneeze and determine landing 
  trajectories for every blown-off body part, doesn't mean you should. The most 
  probable results are very often the least ridiculous, and why bust out the 
  calculators only to spend more time having less fun? Except where your 
  opponents insist otherwise, you should resolve the bulk of your actions with 
  rough estimates, arbitrary decisions, and an abundance of vague hand-waving. 
  Given the opportunity, always fudge in favor of mayhem. 
  Don't waste time on stuff nobody cares about. Following the rules and winning are the two lowest priorities on your 
  list. Getting some good laughs during the battle and having a lot of good stories to tell afterwards are your primary 
  goals. 
   
  "The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules."  
  - Gary Gygax
  The power of fudge overrides all laws. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, fudge 
   
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  15 
   
  WHAT I SAY GOES 
   
  Players are smarter than rulebooks. 
  Especially the ones with the highest dice 
  rolls. 
  "Any commander who fails to exceed his 
  authority is not of much use to his 
  subordinates."  
  - Arleigh Burke 
   
   
   
   
   
  There will be many times when players will have a difference of opinion, when the best course of 
  action isn't clear, or when no one remembers the details of a rule but they don't care enough to 
  waste time looking it up. “Can a zombie bite convert dogs into zombie dogs?” “Can that archer 
  really fire at the petting zoo from where he’s hiding?” “Is that hot dog stand really within bazooka 
  range?”  
   
  If players can’t come to a quick consensus, then it’s time for a What I Say Goes Roll. Every 
  interested player states their position. (If one player takes a position that’s an obvious and deliberate 
  attempt to cheat, his opponents are obligated to beat the crap out of him. The player should then 
  revise his position, although the opponents might let him get away with keeping it 
  if the beating was good enough.) All participating players roll dice, re-rolling ties if 
  necessary. The player with the highest roll wins, and What He Says Goes – as long 
  as he said it before rolling the dice! There's no changing your position once the 
  dice are cast. 
   
  The first What I Say Goes Roll in most games is to decide the order of play. The winner decides who goes first and in 
  what order the players will take their turns. 
   
   
  1.3: Taking Measurements 
   
  In BrikWars, distances are measured in 
  inches. If you don't like inches, you can use 
  any alternate system of measurement that 
  seems reasonable - an inch is about three 
  centimeters, the length of three surface 
  studs, or the height of three construction 
  bricks. It's not important whether or not 
  your conversion is exact, as long as 
  everyone's using the same system.  
   
  As with most aspects of BrikWars, flexibility is key: bendable measuring tape is going to be a lot more useful than a 
  rigid ruler, since you'll often want to measure around corners or in tight spaces. If you haven't got a measuring tape 
  handy, a simple ribbon or piece of string marked off in inches is just as good.  
  Large dice are better than small ones in a  
  What I Say Goes Roll, if you have 
  enough to go around - more sides  
  means less chance of a tie between players. 
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  16 
  1.4: Rolling Dice 
   
   
  "Jacta alea est.”  
  - Julius Caesar 
    
   
  BrikWars uses dice to add an element of randomness into the game. If a 
  minifig fires a rifle at an opponent, sometimes he'll hit and sometimes he'll 
  miss; if the enemy minifig is struck by the bullet, he might survive the damage, 
  or he might not. Die rolls determine the outcome of actions whose success isn't 
  guaranteed. 
   
  In the Core Rules, dice come in two flavors: the d6 and the d10, named 
  according to how many faces are on each die. The six-sided d6es ("dee-sixes") 
  are regular cube-shaped dice, much like you might find from raiding any board 
  game, except that when you call them d6es it sounds 1d100 times as geeky. 
  The ten-sided d10s ("dee-tens") are a little more unusual; you'll have to do 
  some shopping at your local gaming store or website to stock up. The d6es are 
  used for almost all normal action in BrikWars, while d10s are reserved for 
  certain types of high-powered combat.  
   
  If you don't have any ten-sided dice, you can replace any d10 roll with 2d6-2 - that is, roll two six-sided dice and subtract two from the result. Is this 
  statistically equivalent? Not really. Do we care? Refer to The Law of Fudge, above. 
   
  In BrikWars and most other wargames, die rolls are described according to the number of dice involved, plus or minus 
  a modifier (if any). 4d6 means a roll of four six-sided dice, all added together; 1d10+2 means you roll one ten-sided 
  die and add two to the result. 17d6+23d10+0937 means rolling seventeen six-sided dice and twenty-three ten-sided 
  dice together, and adding nine hundred thirty-seven to the result, which you will hopefully never have to do. 
   
  Some people like to refer to dice with a "die" rather than a "dee" prefix. But how, then, do you refer to multiples? With the utilitarian "die-sixes," or the 
  more erudite "dice-six?" The solution is this: whenever someone refers to a die-anything, kick them in the shin. This will forestall any arguments 
  about proper nomenclature and pluralizations. 
   
  No matter how negative a modifier may be, the lowest possible result for any die roll is zero. A roll of 1d6-100 will 
  almost always have a simple result of zero, for instance, unless a player's luck with Critical Rolls defies belief. 
   
  Critical Rolls 
  Rolling dice in BrikWars is never a sure thing. No matter how easy or difficult the task, there’s always at least a tiny 
  chance of failure or success, thanks to a couple of special cases when rolling dice. 
   
  Critical Failure 
  If all the dice in any roll come up ‘1,’ then the roll is a Critical Failure. Whatever task a player or 
  unit was attempting fails completely, no matter how easy it might have been. 
   
   
  Critical Success 
  Luckily, rolls can also turn out unexpectedly well. When rolling any number of dice, for each die 
  that comes up on its highest-numbered face (a six on a d6, a ten on a d10), the player may add +1d6 
  to that roll as a Bonus Die. The same holds true for the additional dice rolled – any sixes rolled on 
  the Bonus Dice continue earning additional Bonus Dice. A player may elect not to roll a Bonus Die 
  that he’s earned, for whatever reason.  
   
   
  An assortment of d6es, d10s, and one glass d0. 
  You will almost certainly never need a d0 in 
  BrikWars. 
   
  The result of this unusually lucky roll is 0 + 6 + 6 + 
  6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 1 0 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10, or 86, 
  ignoring the possibility of Bonus Dice. It's unclear 
  whether or not a roll of 0 on a d0 counts as a 
  Critical Success. 
  Elements shown: dice  
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  17 
  1.5: Supplies Checklist 
   
   
  "The very existence of flamethrowers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, 'You know, I want to set those people 
  over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done.'” 
  - George Carlin
    
   
  Besides the obvious items like armies, a battlefield, and other players, you 
  should make sure you have the following. 
  Things You'll Need 
   
   Fun 
  First and most importantly: fun. It seems obvious, but this item is 
  so often bizarrely forgotten by all types of gamers that it bears 
  repeating: don't play a game if you don't mean to have fun. And 
  for the love of God make sure you bring enough to share, because 
  it's not all about you. 
   
   Dice 
  You'll need a good supply of dice - the more, the better. The Core 
  Rules are written entirely for two types of dice - regular six-sided 
  dice (d6) for regular units, and the more unusual ten-sided dice 
  (d10) for siege- and hero-level units. 
   
   Stat Cards 
  Even if you think you've got all your units' stats memorized, it's 
  good to keep their stat cards handy, if for no other reason than to 
  reassure your opponents that you're not making up numbers off 
  the top of your head. 
   Blood and Fire 
  While not completely necessary, it really adds to the ambience if you have a supply of little red plates and flame 
  elements to scatter around whenever it seems like the battlefield could use more blood or more fire. And 
  seriously, when could a battlefield not use more blood and fire? 
   
   Spare Parts 
  Not a requirement, but it's often nice to be able to whip up a costume change for your hero, a crater and random 
  debris from an explosion, a stand to hold up a minifig in a precarious position, or any number of other objects that 
  might appear as the result of unexpected events. 
   
   Cameras 
  By nature, BrikWars games are full of amazing constructions, crazy action scenes, and hilarious mishaps that 
  you'll wish you had photos of afterwards. Most impressive of all to fellow gamers, as verified by ten years of fan 
  mail, are the astonishing photos that show real live girls playing BrikWars. 
   
   Doughnuts and Beer 
  Pizza, chips, and Mountain Dew are the more traditional food of wargamers, but the proper BrikWars mindset is 
  less about "Gary Gygax" and more about "Homer Simpson." Cheeseburgers are an acceptable compromise. 
   
  Jaw-Jaws and Dimmies are great for 
  demonstrating the use of blood and fire elements. 
  Elements shown: LEGO  
  
  - Chapter One: Gameplay - 
  18 
  Things You Probably Won't Need But Might Want Anyway 
  If you're not making up bizarre and crazy ad hoc rules on the fly, you're not really playing BrikWars. As such, you 
  might want to bring extra gear just on the off chance that you think of funny 
  things to do with it. 
   
   Pencil and Paper 
  In case you want to pass love notes to the cute player on the other 
  team. Otherwise, not really necessary. 
   
   
  Funny Dice 
  Nothing says gaming like funny dice. A 
  Stumble die, for instance, is easily made by 
  taking a Sharpee and dashing off a quick arrow 
  on each face of a regular d6; now with every 
  roll you get both a direction and a number of 
  inches. Good for ad hoc rulings on wind 
  direction, shrapnel trajectories, drunken staggering, etc. 
   
   Goofball Measuring Implements 
  Strings, measuring compasses, and 30/60 triangles open up all kinds 
  of possibilities for goofball rules, from "poisonous gas affects 
  everyone within four inches of the burrito!" to "acid sprays out in a 
  (d6 x 15)-degree cone!" 
   
   Pips 
  If you've ever played a collectible card game, you've got piles of these: colored beads or beans or chits or little 
  pewter brains. Even if you haven't got some counting pips set aside already, it's easy to improvise some with a 
  pile of plastic bricks. Pips let you make up conditions like "everyone remove one blue stone at the beginning of 
  your turn - when they run out, the nuke goes off." 
   
   Fire Rings 
  Complicated and arcane-looking gear with no actual purpose is great for intimidating newbies. More experienced 
  players may just laugh at you whether the things actually have a purpose or not, so be careful. 
   
  Fire Rings have no purpose in BrikWars except to 
  intimidate newbies. If asked why you brought a 
  bag of Fire Rings, say "Just in case we need them 
  for some of the really advanced rules." 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks 
   
  
  - Chapter Two: The Mighty Minifig - 
  19 
  Chapter Two: The Mighty Minifig 
   
   
   
  “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.” 
  - George Orwell 
    
   
  A minifig is a cute and 
  friendly-looking little 
  fellow, but don't let his 
  appearance fool you. 
  Beneath his lovable 
  exterior, a minifig is a 
  vicious and sadistic 
  killer. He’d hack your 
  heart right out of your 
  chest if he thought he 
  could get away with it - 
  his minifig village 
  could live for months 
  off the meat of a good-sized Human heart. Instead, he’s happy to go on massive fratricidal rampages in hopes of 
  gaining favor with his godlike Human overlords. 
   
  Despite its horrifying misanthropy, a minifig is a simple creature, defined by four statistics: Skill, Move, Armor, and 
  Cost. (More advanced minifigs in later sections will also have unique Specialties that give them extra abilities.) 
   
   
  A minifig's attributes are described on a Minifig Stat 
  Card like the one at right. If you're fielding a large 
  number of different kinds of minifigs, you'll want to 
  photocopy and cut out their cards and keep them on 
  the table for easy reference during battle. In the Core 
  Rules, however, most minifigs are exactly the same, 
  apart from the weapons with which they're equipped. 
   
  Skill: 1d6 - see 4.2: Action 
  A minifig’s Skill statistic reflects its ability to 
  accomplish goals. It's a composite 
  measurement of natural aptitude, intelligence, 
  training, and luck. 
   
  The Skill statistic is always listed as a die roll rather 
  than a number, and a unit rolls that many dice 
  whenever he attempts to use his Skill. This minifig's 
  Skill of 1d6 means he rolls one six-sided die each 
  time he makes a Skill Roll (see 1.4: Rolling Dice). 
   
  A minifig's Skill rating is used to determine success 
  or failure whenever it attempts a difficult action, most 
  usually to use an object or weapon to whack another 
  minifig across the skull. These actions are given Use 
  ratings according to difficulty, usually a number 
  between one and six, and the minifig must roll that 
  number or higher on his Skill Roll to succeed. 
  Minifigs are available from a number of manufacturers, and in nearly-limitless variety. 
  Minifigs shown: Best-Lock, LEGO, Mega Bloks 
   
   
  
  - Chapter Two: The Mighty Minifig - 
  20 
   
  Move: 5" - see 4.1: Movement 
  The Move statistic describes how far a minifig can move in a single turn – in this case, 
  five inches. 
   
  Armor: 4 - see 3: Minifig Weapons 
  A minifig’s Armor statistic tells how much Damage he can withstand from a single 
  attack – in this case, four points. If he’s hit by an attack doing four points of Damage or 
  less, the blow glances harmlessly away and the minifig can continue fighting. If the attack does five points of Damage 
  or more, he’s killed instantly. Knock the minifig over and, if appropriate, sever a couple of body parts. 
   
  Minifigs don't have "hit points" like some players might have come to expect from other games - in 
  BrikWars, an attack either kills a minifig or it doesn't. In battles that might involve dozens or even hundreds 
  of minifigs at once, a system of hit points is much too burdensome for players to keep track of from turn to 
  turn.  
   
   
  Cost: 4CP - see 1.1: Overview of Play 
  The Cost statistic describes a unit’s value in Construction Points (CP), which players can use to ‘buy’ 
  soldiers, weapons, vehicles, and fortifications. Players may decide to set CP budgets in order to ensure that all 
  armies are of equal value, although it's much faster and easier to ignore Construction Points entirely. A minifig unit 
  costs 4CP, not counting weapons and equipment. 
   
  Using Stat Cards 
  The Minifig card, shown above, is an example of a single-sided stat card. Single-sided cards are used for 
  units who, like the Minifig, are simple enough not to need an extra panel for explanatory text. These cards 
  can be printed and cut out individually, but it's also common for players to print or photocopy all of their 
  single-sided cards onto a single sheet of paper for quick reference. 
   
  In later chapters, we'll introduce a variety of advanced units with Specialties that grant them extra abilities. 
  These types of units are given a two-sided stat card, so that the descriptions of their Specialties can be 
  printed on the card's backside. While a two-sided cards can be printed out flat in the same way as the 
  single-sided card, its real purpose is to be cut out, folded in half, and glued or taped together. 
   
  If you'd like to make the highest-quality stat card, start by color printing the graphic onto photo quality paper. 
  Before you fold it, cut the card out, well outside the lines - you'll be trimming it down later. If the paper is very stiff, you should lightly score the paper along the fold 
  line on the printed side, using a sharp craft knife and straightedge; this will help prevent tearing along the fold later. In a well-ventilated area, spray the back of the 
  printout with spray-mount adhesive, being careful to follow the instructions printed on the can. Depending on the stiffness of your paper, you may choose to fold the 
  card over as soon as the glue is ready (usually one minute after spraying), or you may need to beef it up by lining up a 3x5 index card or some thin cardboard along 
  the fold line against the back of the printout, and folding the paper around it. Once the glue has set, you can use your craft knife or a sharp pair of scissors to trim 
  the card down to its edges. Finally, you should remember to have bandages handy, because making BrikWars cards is very exciting and you may forget to be 
  careful about playing with sharp knives. 
   
  Print-resolution graphics of all of BrikWars' stat cards, including blank cards, alternate versions, and graphics templates for making your own custom cards, are all 
  freely available for download on the Supplements page of the BrikWars website, at http://www.brikwars.com/supplements. 
  (Download the Two-Sided Blank card) 
   
   
  Element shown: 
  1d6 
   
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  21 
  Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons 
   
   
  “Laughter is the greatest weapon we have and we, as humans, use it the least.” 
  - Mark Twain 
    
   
   
  Weapon  
  Cost
  Use
  Range
  Damage
  Notes
  Close Combat Weapons 
  Hand Weapon (S) 
  2CP
  2
  CC
  1d6
  Range 1d6" if thrown 
  Heavy Weapon (M) 
  3CP
  4
  CC
  1d6+2
  may be paired with Shield 
  Two-Handed Weapon (L) 
  4CP
  5
  CC
  2d6
  Two-Handed; -1" to Move 
  Ranged Weapons 
  Short-Ranged Weapon (S) 
  3CP
  3
  6"
  1d6
  some are Two-handed 
  Long-Ranged Weapon (M) 5CP
  3
  12"
  1d6+1
  Two-Handed 
  Explosive 
  1CP
  3
  -
  1d10 exp
  Range 1d6+2" if thrown 
  Bodily Protection 
  Shield 
  1CP
  2
  CC
  (1d6*)
  * - Parry or Shove only 
  Armor 
  2CP
  -
  -
  -
  +1d6 Armor, -1" to Move 
  Desperate Measures 
  Bare Hands 
  - 
  2
  CC
  Shove 2"
  Shove only
  Random Object
  - 
  3
  CC
  1d6-2
  Range 1d6-1" if thrown 
   
   
  The weapons with which you arm your minifigs are best chosen according to 
  which look the coolest. More practical considerations might increase your 
  army’s chances of victory, but that hardly compares with the importance of 
  looking awesome. 
   
   
  3.1: Close Combat Weapons 
   
  Killing enemies from a safe distance is all well and good, but any real minifig 
  will tell you that's for cowards. Nothing beats the meaty hands-on thrill of 
  physically whacking an uncooperative enemy into a pile of bloody chunks. 
  Close Combat weapons are used to make Close Combat attacks, as you might 
  suspect (5.2: Close Combat). 
   
  Less well-equipped minifigs will try to tell you that it's not the size that 
  matters, it's how well you use it. This is of course completely false. Melee 
  weapons are categorized entirely according to how long they are. They fall 
  into three categories, separated by how they compare to a minifig's height: 
  weapons shorter than a minifig are Short (S), equal to a minifig are Minifig-
  Size (M), and longer than a minifig are Long (L). You might be tempted to 
  think of the letters as standing for Small, Medium, and Large, but that would 
  be much less precise. 
   
   
   
  Players are of course free to invent all kinds of 
  unique minifig items in addition to the generic 
  weapon types. Who knows what mysterious 
  powers this Skully Grail might possess? 
  Mike Rayhawk, 2006 
   
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  22 
  Hand Weapons 
  Size:(S)  
  Cost:2CP  
  Use:2  
  Range:CC 
  Damage:1d6 
  Notes:Range 1d6" if 
  thrown 
  Hand Weapons are 
  the lightest, most 
  versatile, and most 
  readily available melee 
  weapons; anything 
  from maces, hand axes, and shortswords, to baseball bats, bicycle chains, and crowbars. 
   
  Because Hand Weapons are so light and easy to handle, they leave the second hand entirely free for a second weapon 
  or equipment item. They may even be thrown, in a pinch, doing full damage at a range of up to 1d6 inches. 
   
  Heavy 
  Weapons 
  Size:(M)  
  Cost:3CP  
  Use:4  
  Range:CC 
  Damage:1d6+2 
  Notes:May be paired 
  with Shield  
  Heavier than regular 
  Hand Weapons, but not 
  requiring the dedicated 
  use of both hands, 
  Heavy Weapons are 
  sometimes called Hand-And-A-Half or Bastard weapons. Heavy Weapons include such weapons as broadswords, 
  battleaxes, flails, spears, katanas, chainsaws, and beamsabers. 
   Heavy Weapons do not include lightsabers, because the lightsaber is a trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd., 
  and we would never want to risk infringing a trademark. 
   
   
  Less versatile than Hand Weapons, minifigs wielding a Heavy Weapon cannot carry a second weapon of any type in 
  their off hand, although they may equip a Shield. 
   
  Two-Handed 
  Weapons 
  Size:(L)  
  Cost:4CP  
  Use:5  
  Range:CC 
  Damage:2d6 
  Notes:Two-Handed, -
  1" to Move 
  Two-Handed 
  Weapons give heavy 
  troops the power to 
  destroy the sturdiest 
  foe, and the ability to 
  do it at a fair distance - 
  through a rank of other minifigs, over the top of a barricade, surprising a target on a separate building level, or nailing 
  a rider on horseback. 
   
  Their drawbacks are that they are heavy, slow, and difficult to weild effectively. Minifigs carrying a Two-Handed 
  Weapon have their Move reduced by one inch, they have a hard time navigating tight spaces, and they need both 
  hands free to use the weapon in melee. (You don't have to pose your minifig with both hands physically holding the 
  The majority of Hand Weapons are about one Brik shorter than a regular minifig; exactly the height of this dwarven warrior. 
  Weapons shown: Red Bean Studios, Mega Bloks, LEGO, Little Armory 
   
  Heavy Weapons are the height of a minifig. They are most often paired with a Shield, as this Hoplite demonstrates. 
  Weapons shown: Red Bean Studios, LEGO, Little Armory, Mega Bloks 
   
  Even with added height of the most ostentatious helmet plumes, this Centurionette is dwarfed by her massive Two-Handed 
  Sword. 
  Weapons shown: custom mold, Little Armory, LEGO 
   
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  23 
  weapon shaft, as that isn't always possible or easy to manage; it's 'understood' that both hands come together to swing 
  the weapon at the moment of attack, so quickly that the eyesight of mere Humans is unable to detect it.) 
   
  What's worse, a Two-Handed Weapon's extra inches of reach carry their own vulnerability - an enemy minifig can 
  sneak up closer than the weapon's effective minimum range! A minifig swinging a Two-Handed Weapon must have a 
  hand on the bottom-most grippable part of the handle; this may mean that he doesn't have enough space to bring the 
  weapon's striking surface into contact with the target. If the minifig is unable to back up far enough to give himself 
  room to swing, then the enemies inside that distance can only be Shoved, not attacked. 
   
  Unscrupulous players may try to get around problems of minimum striking distance by giving their Two-Handed 
  Weapon a very long striking surface. This is considered to be in poor taste, and justified grounds for a moderate-to-
  thorough beating. The amount of striking surface on a Two-Handed Weapon should never be longer than a minifig. 
   
  There is one important exception to the two-hands requirement: jousting. Although Two-Handed Weapons are too 
  heavy to swing with one hand, nothing stops a mounted minifig from tucking it one under one arm and riding full-tilt 
  at an opponent with it. A minifig riding a steed or vehicle only needs one hand to use a Two-Handed Weapon in a 
  Charge attack (5.4: Charge!), as long as it has a pointy tip. 
   
  3.2: Ranged Weapons 
   
   
  “You can go a long way with a smile. You can go a lot farther with a smile and a gun. ” 
  - Al Capone 
    
   
   
  While it's hard to beat the joy of plunging a hand weapon into exposed enemy flesh (but not impossible: see the 
  Explosives section below), it can be frustrating when some piddly little opponent thinks it's funny to keep bouncing 
  around just out of reach of your hand axe. It's times like that that you want a nice ranged sidearm, to wipe that self-
  satisfied grin off his face in the 
  most literal fashion (5.3: Ranged 
  Combat). 
   
  Short-Ranged 
  Weapons 
  Size:(S)  
  Cost:3CP  
  Use:3  
  Range:6"  
  Damage:1d6  
  Notes:some are Two-Handed 
  Most light ranged weapons fall 
  under the Short-Ranged 
  Weapons heading (also called 
  "Pistols" for short): revolvers, shortbows, blowguns, magic wands, and slings are good examples. Many can be fired 
  with one hand, although reloading (if necessary) always requires the use of 
  both; a little common sense should be enough to determine how many hands 
  a given weapon requires (a crossbow can be fired with one hand, for 
  instance, while a shortbow takes two). Because their short range puts 
  minifigs dangerously close to an enemy's ability to counterattack, Short-Ranged Weapons are best paired with a Hand 
  Weapon in the opposite hand, or used in hit-and-run harrying attacks that keep the Ranged attackers just out of 
  enemies' reach. 
   
  Throwable melee weapons are better purchased as Hand Weapons. In some cases, non-melee versions of regular Hand 
  Weapons may be bought as Short-Ranged Weapons instead (javelins instead of spears, throwing knives instead of 
  daggers, etc.), although players should be careful to make sure there's no confusion about which weapons are Hand 
  Weapons and which ones aren't. Thrown Ranged Weapons are considered to be in 'infinite supply,' but can only be 
  used by one minifig at a time. A ninja throwing a pile of shuriken never 'runs out,' but the thrown shuriken can't be 
  collected and used by other minifigs, and the ninja can't share shuriken with his friends (unless he gives them the 
  whole pile, or they steal it from his lifeless corpse). Ranged Weapons used in Close Combat are always treated as 
  Random Objects at best, even if they look just like Hand Weapons. 
   
   
  Smaller Ranged Weapons give a minifig the power to strike at a distance while leaving his other hand free for 
  life's more visceral pleasures - in the case of this Space Marine, a wickedly serrated gutting-knife. 
  Weapons shown: Red Bean Studios, Little Armory, LEGO, Best-Lock 
   
  “Remember the first rule of gunfighting: 'have a gun.'” 
  - Jeff Cooper 
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  24 
  Long-Ranged 
  Weapons 
  Size:(M)  
  Cost:5CP  
  Use:3  
  Range:12"  
  Damage:1d6+1  
  Notes:Two-Handed 
  Long-Range Weapons (or 
  "Rifles") are higher-powered than 
  regular Ranged Weapons, 
  allowing minifigs to pack a solid 
  punch while staying safely out of 
  enemy units' melee range. 
  Muskets, longbows, heavy crossbows, and magic Rods of Lightning 
  Bolts are all Long-Range Weapons. Long-Range Weapons are generally 
  about the size of a minifig, and always require two hands. 
   
  Because the major construction-brick companies offer such a limited variety of bows for archers, it can be difficult to 
  differentiate shortbows (a Short-Ranged Weapon) from longbows (a Long-Ranged Weapon). If you insist on using 
  both kinds in the same battle, try to make them easy to distinguish, either with different colors ("shortbows are brown, 
  longbows are black") with different troop types ("light cavalry have shortbows, standing archers have longbows"), or 
  by decorating them somehow. 
   
  Explosives 
  Size:-  
  Cost:1CP  
  Use:3  
  Range:-  
  Damage:1d10 exp  
  Notes:Range 1d6+2" if thrown 
  Hand-held Explosives come in a variety of forms for a variety of purposes - grenades for throwing, rockets for firing, 
  and timed charges for dropping somewhere and getting the hell away. A minifig Explosive can do any of the above. If 
  he throws it, it's a grenade; if he fires it from a launcher (launchers are bought as Short-Ranged or Long-Ranged 
  Weapons), it's a rocket; if he drops it on the ground and says "I'm setting the fuse to go off on the end of my next 
  turn," then it's a timed charge. 
   
  Once they go off, though, all Explosives work exactly the same way. The Explosive does 1d10 Explosion damage to 
  every object and surface within a two-inch radius. Loose objects within this radius, such as minifigs not wearing 
  seatbelts, are tossed two inches directly away from the center of Explosion. Fixed objects, such as brick walls, are only 
  tossed away if the Explosion breaks them into loose objects. 
   
  Each Explosive can only be used once, for obvious reasons. If you want three rockets for your bazooka, you need to 
  purchase three Explosives.  
   
  3.3: Bodily Protection 
   
   
  “To a surprising extent the war-lords in shining armor, the apostles of the martial virtues, tend not to die fighting when the time comes. History is 
  full of ignominious getaways by the great and famous.” 
  - George Orwell 
    
   
  Any portion of the military budget can be put to more weapons or more men, but sometimes generals will assign a 
  budget for protective gear for the troops. This is silly - a trooper's job is to kill enemies, not worry about coming home 
  alive. Worse, the soldiers might request this equipment themselves, a bad sign that they're not mentally prepared to 
  sacrifice themselves for their Humans' meaningless cause. 
   
  The cowards that request protective gear are likely to be among your least popular troops, so go ahead and buy them 
  some. The longer they stay alive, the more pissed off the rest of the troops will be, and that's a good state of mind for 
  battle. 
  Long-Ranged Weapons are for warriors who wish to focus exclusively on ranged attacks. This steel-bikinied 
  commando doesn't care much for hand weapons; she's never met a problem her bazooka couldn't solve. 
  Weapons shown: Best-Lock, LEGO, Little Armory 
   
  “The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle!” 
  - John J. Pershing 
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  25 
  Shields 
  Size:-  
  Cost:1CP  
  Use:2  
  Range:CC  
  Damage:(1d6 special)  
  Notes:Parry or Shove only 
  A Shield is like a Hand Weapon 
  devoted exclusively for Parrying 
  (5.2: Close Combat), although 
  they're also handy to Shove 
  opponents into proper position for 
  an attack. Unlike a regular 
  weapon, Shields can even be used 
  to Parry thrown weapons and 
  slower projectiles like arrows and sling-bullets (although not, for instance, rifle rounds or lightning bolts). 
   
  For the purposes of Parrying and Shoving, a Shield has a Damage rating of 1d6. It cannot be used in regular attacks, 
  no matter how much you sharpen the edges. 
   
  Armor 
  Size:-  
  Cost:2CP  
  Use:-  
  Range:-  
  Damage:-  
  Notes:+1d6 to Armor, -1" to Move 
  For warriors who fear death, but not enough to lift a 
  Shield in their own defense, Armor is a great way to 
  prolong their lives as lazy cowards. As a bonus, when 
  they're always last to arrive at the front lines, they can 
  tell their companions that the reason is because their 
  heavy Armor slows them down. Whether or not that's 
  the actual reason for their tardiness is left for debate. 
   
  A suit 
  of Armor adds 1d6 to a minifig's Armor rating 
  against 
  all forms of damage. However, it's less easy to 
  move 
  around in - minifigs wearing Armor also lose one 
  inch 
  from their Move rating, which is why many Armored minifigs prefer to ride horses or other steeds. 
  3.4: Desperate Measures 
   
   “In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” 
  - Charles Darwin 
   
   
  Nothing makes a warrior feel stupider than arriving at a battle and realizing he forgot to bring a weapon. He still has 
  options, but mooning the enemy hasn't been shown to have any useful effect, and he's better off trying to scavenge a 
  real weapon as quickly as possible. 
  Bare Hands 
  Size:-  
  Cost:-  
  Use:2  
  Range:CC  
  Damage:Shove 2"  
  Notes:Shove only 
   
  Because Princess Wendy can't be armored up for official functions, she depends on a ring of heavily-armored 
  handmaidens to absorb attacks against her royal person. 
  Weapons shown: Little Armory, LEGO, Red Bean Studios, Mega Bloks 
   
   
  Sometimes Armor can become a troop in itself, if it's left lying around 
   too long and becomes posessed by armor ghosts. 
  Armor shown: Red Bean Studios, LEGO, Little Armory 
   
   “During the Middle Ages, probably one of the biggest mistakes was  
  not putting on your armor because you were 'just going down to the corner.'” 
  - Jack Handey 
  “Those who have not swords can still die upon them.” 
  - J.R.R. Tolkien 
  
  - Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons - 
  26 
  Minifigs lack the ability to clench their clawlike hands into fists, and 
  the limited range of minifig leg motion means that the groins of their 
  enemies will never be exposed to their nonexistent knees. As a result, 
  unarmed combat between minifigs is an almost complete waste of 
  time. The only worthwhile use for Bare Hands is in grabbing 
  someone else's dropped weapon. 
   
  Bare Hands cannot be used to Attack or Parry. They may only be used 
  to Shove, and only if both hands are empty, in a desperate attempt to 
  get away from the real warriors who remembered to come armed. 
   
  Random Objects 
  Size:-  
  Cost:-  
  Use:3  
  Range:CC  
  Damage:1d6-2  
  Notes:Range 1d6-1" if thrown 
   
  Table legs, broken bottles, burning torches, and even big rocks are all 
  part of a cherished tradition of improvised weapons; a pistol butt, rifle 
  stock, or sword pommel can be used as makeshift bludgeons when the 
  weapon's main function can't be brought into play. If a minifig can't 
  find a real weapon, Random Objects are better than nothing, although only 
  because having nothing sucks to such an impressive degree. 
   
  Any object that could conceivably approximate a Hand Weapon may be used 
  as an improvised weapon. Some objects are obviously excluded: items like shortbows, flowers, and hats are too flimsy 
  to do any damage. The minifig must have an actual object he can hold in his hand; he can't for instance claim "there's a 
  belt printed on my torso, I'm taking it off and whacking you with it." 
   
  Unable to reach the enemy wizard in time to interrupt a deadly 
  spell, Eric Joslin's giant starts hurling the projectiles closest at 
  hand: a flock of sheep. 
  Photo: Eric Joslin 
  "NELUG Gets Medieval," Nov. 2000 
  Winners: sheep 
   
  “It is important when you haven't got any ammunition 
   to have a butt on your rifle.” 
  - Winston Churchill 
  
  - Chapter Four: The Player Turn - 
  27 
  Chapter Four: The Player Turn 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Movement  
   
  Action  
   
  Response  
  During a player’s turn, each of his units may engage in whatever Movement 
  is allowed by its Move statistic, and may each take one Action (preferably an 
  attack). In the meantime, enemy units with unused Actions to spend have the 
  option to take them in Enemy Response to his behavior. 
   
   
  4.1: Movement  
   
   
  “Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there..” 
  - Will Rogers 
    
   
   
  During Movement, a minifig's Move rating of 5" allows him to move five inches in any direction - he can 
  run across five inches of level ground, climb five inches’ worth of stairs or ladders, or leap over five inches of 
  chasm. 
   
  His movement is limited in a couple of ways. He can’t move through obstacles, or leap higher than 1” (three bricks) in 
  a single jump. For difficult types of movement requiring both arms (e.g., swimming, crawling, or climbing a rope or 
  cliff), the Move cost is doubled (every inch traveled costs two inches of Move), and the minifig cannot make attacks 
  while his arms are occupied. 
   
  If the minifig moves within striking distance of an enemy’s hand weapon, it's assumed that the enemy unit 
  automatically attacks him, unless the opposing player says otherwise. If the minifig decides to Counter the attack, they 
  are both entered into Close Combat (5.2: Close Combat) and the minifig’s Movement is over for the turn. If not, the 
  minifig may continue moving normally, assuming he survives the attack. 
   
   
  Sprinting 
  “One ought never to turn one's back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If 
  you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, 
  you will reduce the danger by half. Never run away from anything. Never!” 
  - Winston Churchill 
   
   
  When speed is critical, a minifig (or any living unit) can Sprint, giving 
  itself 1d6 extra inches of Move for the turn, but only in a straight line. 
  Sprinting may be combined with a Charge attack as a single Action 
  (5.4: Charge!); otherwise, Sprinting uses the unit's Action for the turn, 
  and it can make no other attacks. 
   
  Quick Actions 
  Although a minifig is limited to one major Action for the turn, there are 
  many lesser actions he can perform that are too minor to count against 
  this limit. Actions that require no particular attention, aiming, or dice rolls count as Quick Actions, and are taken as a 
  part of regular Movement. Very simple acts, like picking up or dropping regular equipment objects, holding a 
   
  The BrikThulhian Troika can be thought to 
  represent the cycle of Movement, Action, and 
  Enemy Response. But on the other hand it can 
  really be thought to represent just about anything. 
  Mike Rayhawk, 2005 
   
  “The art of war is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at 
  him as soon as you can. Strike him as hard as you can, and keep 
  moving.” 
  - Ulysses S. Grant 
   
  Unarmed, naked, and surrounded by sausage-wielding 
  Dungans, this minifig's best option is to Sprint like hell and 
  never look back. 
  "Ghoirboy," 2002 
  Photo: Shaun Sullivan 
  Winner: Suzanne Rich 
   
  
  - Chapter Four: The Player Turn - 
  28 
  conversation, or sneezing, incur no penalty. More involved actions, such as picking up a heavy object (up to the size of 
  a 2x4 brick), opening a door, or holstering a weapon, cost 1” of Move – taking that action took a small amount of 
  time, and now the minifig has less time for moving. 
   
  Common Quick Actions 
  Cost 
  Talking  
  (no cost) 
  Opening or closing a door  
  -1" 
  Picking up or dropping equipment items  
  (no cost) 
  Picking up a heavy item  
  -1" 
  Dropping to a seated, kneeling, or prone position (no cost) 
  Standing up from a seated or kneeling position  
  -1" 
  Standing up from a prone position  
  -2" 
  4.2: Action 
   
   
  “Action speaks louder than words, but not nearly as often.” 
  - Mark Twain 
    
   
  Any act that requires a minifig’s attention, focus, or concentrated effort is 
  an Action. Due to limits on time and minifig brainpower, he may only 
  take one such Action per turn. He may use his single Action before, after, 
  or in the middle of his Movement, but he only gets one, so he must spend it 
  wisely. 
  A minifig will almost always use his Action to make an Attack (5.1: Making 
  Attacks). But even the most belligerent minifigs will concede that less direct types 
  of Actions are sometimes called for. 
   
  Use Ratings 
  Actions are rarely automatic successes, since minifigs are clumsy and easily 
  distracted. Actions are given a Use rating describing their relative difficulty. The 
  minifig attempting the Action must make a Skill Roll to see if his attempt 
  succeeds. If his Skill Roll is equal to or higher than the Use rating, the Action 
  succeeds. If it is lower, the Action fails, and the minifig suffers whatever 
  consequences would logically result. 
  Minifigs make attacks using the Use rating of their equipped weapon (Chapter 3: Minifig Weapons). Besides attacks, 
  there are all kinds of unusual tasks that minifigs might attempt, from the trivial to the impossible. Most will have a 
  default Use rating of 3; players may agree on a higher or lower difficulty as seems appropriate. 
  Use: Difficulty 
  Attack Example 
  Other Examples 
  - 
  trivial (no roll required) kicking a minifig corpse 
  putting pants on; 
  locking a door 
  2 
  easy; almost 
  always succeeds 
  whacking someone with a club 
  jumping off a ledge to grab a rope; 
  hacking a Diebold election machine 
  3 
  normal; might take 
  more than one try 
  slashing someone with a sword 
  kicking open a regular locked door; 
  mixing complex drinks 
  4 
  tricky; even 
  odds of success 
  chopping someone with a battle axe 
  rock-climbing a vertical cliff face; 
  reassembling an unfamiliar rifle 
  5 
  difficult 
  hacking someone with a halberd 
  disarming a bomb; 
  winning at Vegas 
  6 
  very difficult 
  bashing someone with a battering ram
  walking a tightrope; 
  performing minor surgery 
  8 
  heroic 
  striking a minifig with the 
  energy sword of a giant mech 
  Olympic-level gymnastics; 
  hacking into a military satellite 
  10 
  legendary 
  precision-mashing a minfig with 
  a boulder fired from a catapult 
  catching a crossbow bolt in flight; 
  dodging concentrated machine-gun fire 
  12 
  godlike 
  bullseyeing a minifig with a laser 
  blast from an orbital satellite 
  injuring a Human; 
  performing a judo throw on a T-rex 
  Construction Actions  
  Minifigs are no fans of the kinds of Actions 
  that fail to result in violence, but they'll 
  generally take a tolerant attitude towards 
  the occasional need to put stuff together. 
  Otherwise, the reasoning goes, they'd 
  eventually run out of stuff to blow up, and 
  stuff to blow it up with. 
   
  Connecting bricks together requires no 
  Skill Roll, but can be a very slow process. 
  A minifig carrying a construction element 
  must spend his full Action to attach it to 
  anything, unless he has some Specialty or 
  Feat that he can use to increase his 
  construction speed. 
   
  Makeshift constructed objects have an 
  Armor rating of 1d6 by default, unless 
  there's a reason to claim otherwise for a 
  particular instance.   
  
  - Chapter Four: The Player Turn - 
  29 
  Extended Actions 
   
  “Victory belongs to the most persevering.” 
  - Napoleon Bonaparte 
    
   
  The opposite of Quick Actions, some actions are so involved or time-consuming that they take up a minifig’s entire 
  turn, even if they aren’t difficult enough to require a Skill Roll. These are called Extended Actions. Examples include 
  piloting a vehicle, operating a computer, putting on a suit of plate mail, rowing a rowboat, or reading a wargame 
  rulebook. Extended Actions use up the minifig’s entire Movement and Action; he may do nothing else during that 
  turn. 
   
  The most common Extended Action for minifigs, often extending over a 
  very large number of turns, is "Being Dead." 
   
  Large Actions 
   
  “Great acts are made up of small deeds.” 
  - Lao Tzu 
    
   
  Most actions involve objects designed to be handled or operated by a 
  single minifig - swords, doors, machine gun turrets, or toilets, for example. 
  Other objects may be put to unconventional uses by a minifig if the objects 
  are small enough - generally, equipment items or anything one inch or 
  smaller in Size (7.1: Structure: Size). Lifting a larger object (automobiles, 
  portcullises, boulders) or operating a device not designed for single-
  minifig use (naval vessels, battering rams, giant-sized doors) is a Large 
  Action and either requires multiple minifigs working together, or, in some 
  cases, one minifig working over the course of multiple turns. As a rule of 
  thumb, the number of minifigs required (or turns required for a single 
  minifig) to perform a Large Action is equal to the Size in inches of the 
  object being used. Players may argue that a specific Large Action requires more or fewer minifigs than simple Size 
  would dictate, depending on the situation. Be prepared to make a quick What I Say Goes roll. 
   
  Larger units (Chapter 7: Special Creations) are worth their own Size in minifigs for Large Actions, if the Large Action 
  is a matter of strength. A triceratops would be equivalent to several minifigs when knocking over a siege tower, 
  hauling lumber, or righting an upended tractor, for instance, but would not particularly handy for the Large Action of 
  manning battleship stations or playing symphonies. 
  4.3: Enemy Response 
   
   
  “Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” 
  - Sun Tzu 
    
   
  If you don't use a unit's Action on your own turn, you can save it to use in response to opponents' actions - 
  shooting at scouts as they pop out from behind cover, whacking soldiers that wander into range of your melee 
  weapon, or pressing the self-destruct button when all the invitees have boarded the cruise liner for your 
  birthday party. Of course, your enemies are free to use their saved Actions during your turn as well, so tread carefully! 
  To make a Response Action, a unit must not have used its Action on its previous turn. Similar to the Angry Inch of a 
  Close Combat attack (5.2: Close Combat), Responding units may move up to one inch in order to press, grab, or 
  otherwise touch a critical object (pulling a lever or slamming a door, for instance), or in the usual manner as part of a 
  Close Combat attack. Otherwise, the unit must already be in position to act. 
   
  Cone of Vision 
  A Responding unit must be aware of the specific enemy action or movement to which he's reacting, and in a timely 
  enough fashion to make a proper Response. In almost all cases, this means he has to be able to see it. If he sees an 
  enemy soldier raise a rifle and take aim, he may have time to dive for cover; if all he knows is that he heard a gunshot, 
  it's way too late. 
   
   
  Dice-worshipping Dodekube cultists believe that logic 
  is an illusion and that all of reality is nothing more than 
  the cosmic dice rolls of disinterested Human gods. 
  Their belief arises from the fact that even the most 
  sober minifigs have sometimes been able to "see the 
  dice." 
   
  
  - Chapter Four: The Player Turn - 
  30 
  A minifig's Cone of Vision points in whichever direction his head is facing, and forty-five degrees to either side, 
  making a complete cone of ninety degrees. If an object or event is within that field of view, the minifig can see it; if 
  not, he can't. Whenever it's hard to tell whether or not an object falls within that cone, a quick What I Say Goes roll 
  will resolve the issue neatly. 
   
  Who Acts First 
  "Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”  
  - Abraham Lincoln
   
  Even if a minifig can see disaster about to strike, he won't always be 
  fast enough to respond in time. 
   
  If a unit is taking an Action in Response to enemy Movement, such as 
  firing at the first person to walk past an open window or diving out of 
  the way of a rolling boulder, then his Response is automatically fast 
  enough; take the Action as normal. If his Action is in Response to an 
  enemy Action, even if one or both of those Actions are Quick 
  Actions, then a contest of Skill determines who acts fastest. 
   
  The enemy unit makes his Skill Roll and subtracts the Use rating for 
  the Action he is attempting (if it has one); the Responding unit rolls 
  his own Skill and subtracts the Use rating (if any) of his Response. 
  The unit with the higher total acts first, even if their total was less 
  than zero (meaning their Action was a failure). In the case of a tie, 
  assume that both Actions occurred simultaneously if possible; 
  otherwise, the player whose turn it is acts first. 
   
  Example: Two gunfighters meet outside the saloon for a duel at high noon. They eye each other warily, each prepared to draw and fire the moment 
  their opponent so much as twitches. On Hairtrigger Wayne's turn, he decides he's going to fire first, and declares his attack on Shoot-Em-in-the-
  Back Shaun. Shaun declares a similar attack on Wayne as a Response Action. Both players roll their Skill of 1d6 against their pistols' Use rating of 
  3. No doubt due to heavy drinking, Wayne rolls a 2 and Shaun rolls a 1; both miss their shots. After subtracting their Use ratings, Wayne's total of -
  1 is higher than Shaun's total of -2; his missed shot occurs first. Shaun's shot occurs second, and since it was a Critical Failure, the gun goes off 
  before he even gets it out of the holster. Shaun collapses in agony after shooting himself in the foot, and a great cheer goes up as the crowd of 
  spectators mistakenly assumes that Wayne's shot hit its mark. 
    
   
  Bailing 
  While the recommended Response to almost any enemy behavior is to 
  attack with everything you've got, there are times when a unit's best bet 
  is to make a desperate leap for safety. He may be dodging an oncoming 
  truck, jumping out of a helicopter that's about to be hit by missiles, or 
  diving behind cover when a machine gun turret opens fire on him. 
  Units are not able to Sprint as a Response Action. Instead, assuming 
  their movement type would logically allow it, they have the option to 
  Bail. A Bailing unit can dive to any spot within 1d6" of its current 
  position, ending up lying on the ground in a prone position. After 
  Bailing, a unit is Disrupted, meaning he may not attempt any further 
  action until his next turn, not even to Counter a Close Combat attack. 
  On its following turn, the unit recovers and may once again behave as 
  normal. Remember that standing up from a prone position costs 2" of 
  Move. 
  There is no Use rating for Bailing, so a Bailing unit will get to act first 
  more often than not. However, because he has to roll 1d6 to see how far 
  he's allowed to jump, a low roll can sometimes mean that he doesn't Bail far enough, and a Critical Failure means he 
  just falls on his face right where he's standing. If a Bailing unit doesn't jump far enough to escape the path of an 
  oncoming train, he still gets hit by the train; if he's Bailing to avoid a rifle volley and doesn't quite reach cover, the 
  riflemen just fire at him in his new position instead of his old one. 
   
  The results of this roll have clearly gone better for Shaun than 
  for Wayne. 
  Photo: Alfred Speredelozzi 
   
   
  When a rooftop ninja tosses grenades into his turret hatch, 
  this tank commander decides that discretion is the better 
  part of valor, and Bailing the hell Out is the better part of not 
  getting his butt obliterated. 
  Photo: Eric Kingsley 
  NELUG's "April Fools War" April 2000 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  31 
  Chapter Five: Combat  
   
   
   
  "...in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason." 
  - Ernest Hemingway 
   
   
   
  "One of the few good things about modern times: If you die horribly on television, you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us." 
  - Kurt Vonnegut 
    
   
  Engaging in combat is a minifig's highest goal and greatest source of joy, for he knows that violence is what pleases 
  the Humans best. A minifig unable to make attacks for an extended period of time will become despondent and 
  irrational. His mental imbalance may become so severe that the minifig becomes psychotically pacifistic. Such 
  unfortunate miscreants may find limited use as slave labor, but are best put out of their heartbreaking misery by 
  employing them as target dummies for the other troopers' amusement. 
  5.1: Making Attacks  
   
  Regardless of the type of violence in use, every attack follows the same three steps. First, the player checks the 
  weapon's Range to see if it can reach the target. Second, he makes an Attack Roll to see if the attack hits the target. 
  Third, he makes a Damage Roll to see if the attack does enough Damage to defeat the target's Armor. Each of these 
  steps can be affected by a variety of Combat Modifiers, so all players should try to maneuver their units for best 
  advantage. 
  Checking Range 
  In order to be able to attack a target, a minifig must be able to strike it with a weapon. This requires a couple of 
  common-sense checks. 
   Can he see the target? 
  The minifig must have a clear line of sight between his eyes and some visible part of the target. 
   Can he reach the target? 
  The target must be within the weapon's striking distance.
   If the minifig is using a Close Combat weapon (a weapon with a Range rating of ‘CC’), he must be able to touch 
  the target with the weapon's striking surface. (Some weapons may have additional restrictions, according to 
  common sense - a jousting knight can't stick his lance out sideways to damage a target way off his right shoulder, 
  for instance.) 
   If the minifig is using a Ranged weapon, the target must be within the number of inches listed as the weapon's 
  Range, and there must be a clear line of sight between the weapon barrel and the target. 
   
   In the case of thrown objects, the Range is determined by a die roll made after the attack is declared; the minifig 
  may find that his thrown weapon falls far short of the target. This is very embarrassing. 
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  32 
  Skill and Damage Rolls 
  If an attack can be made, two rolls determine its success, resulting in either a 
  glorious kill or an ignominious lack of effect. 
   Does the attack hit the target? 
  If the target is in range, the minifig must be skillful enough to hit it. Roll 
  the minifig's Skill (1d6 for regular minifigs) versus the Use rating of the 
  weapon - this is called the Attack Roll. If the Skill Roll is as much or 
  greater than the Use rating, the attack strikes the target! If not, it misses 
  badly, resulting in humiliation for the attacker. He may say "I meant to 
  do that," but everyone knows he's lying. 
   
   Does it do enough damage to kill? 
  If the attack hits, it has to do enough damage to destroy the target. Roll 
  the weapon's Damage. If this Damage Roll is greater than the target's 
  Armor, the target is destroyed. Congratulations! If the roll is equal to or 
  less than the target's Armor, the attack has glanced away harmlessly, 
  evoking laughter from all who witness the humorous display. 
   
  Attack Modifiers 
  Destroying a target is rarely a foregone conclusion, and the ambitious general will want to give his troops every 
  possible advantage. And while the best defense is an overpowering offense, a pragmatic general will maneuver just as 
  hard to prevent advantages for his enemies. 
   
  There are a number of conditions, called Attack Modifiers (or "Mods") that players can manipulate to improve or 
  handicap a unit's chances of success. Positive modifiers, called Attack Bonuses, add to the Skill of a unit making an 
  Attack Roll, to the Range of his weapon, or to the Damage dealt on a successful attack. Attack Penalties, by contrast, 
  subtract from an attacking unit's Skill. Attack Mods can sometimes raise or lower an attacker's effective Skill by a 
  large amount, but remember that the possibilities of Critical Successes and Failures mean that the results of a roll are 
  never guaranteed (1.4: Rolling Dice). 
   
  Target Size 
  A weapon's standard Use 
  Rating applies when it's 
  used to attack a minifig or 
  similarly-sized target. An 
  simple targeting 
  advantage can be gained 
  from aiming at something 
  larger. 
   
  For targets that are very 
  large, like the ground, the broad sides of barns, and Unix 
  programmers, measure the broadest part of the target from the 
  veiwpoint of the attacking unit. For every 2" in the size of the target 
  area, the unit receives +1 to his Attack Roll, up to a +5 bonus. 
   
  When special precision is required, the attacker might also try to hit targets that are much smaller than usual. For a 
  target area equivalent to 2x4 studs, he fires as normal. If the area is closer to 2x2 studs, he receives a -1 penalty to 
  Skill. If the target is the size of a single 1x1 stud, he fires at a -2 penalty. By convention, most equipment items are 
  considered to be at the 1x1 size. 
   
  Even if an object is relatively large, if parts of it are behind protective cover, the remaining area that an attacker can 
  actually fire at might be very small. Units receive Size modifiers based only the area they're able to target. In the case 
  of minifig targets, this process is streamlined. Rather than trying to estimate how many studs' worth of any given 
  minifig is visible, minifigs are divided into three main sections - the head (including helmet, hat, or hair), the torso 
  (including arms, backpacks, and armor, but not carried equipment), and the legs. If the attacker can see any part of one 
  of these sections, however small, then the section is considered visible. If only one section is visible, the minifig is 
  targeted at -2. If he can only see two sections, the minifig is 2/3 visible and targeted at -1. If he can see all three 
  sections, the minifig is completely visible and targeted as normal. 
  Automatic Hits 
  Combat involves a lot of die rolls, and you 
  should find excuses to skip them wherever 
  possible. One common example is the 
  Automatic Hit: a unit attacking an 
  inanimate object automatically hits it, if 
  he's close enough to touch the object with 
  the business end of his weapon, and no 
  one else is attacking him in the meantime. 
   
  Keep in mind that "inanimate" is a relative 
  term - a Minifig sitting in the passenger 
  seat would be able to take Automatic Hits 
  on his speeding BattleJeep's interior, but 
  not on the stationary mailboxes zipping by 
  outside his window.   
  When checking for cover modifiers, or if you're a ninja 
  practicing swordplay, remember that a minifig is divided into 
  three main parts. 
   
  Target Size 
  Skill Mod 
  Large target area  
  +1 per 2" 
  Full minifig or 2x4 area  (no modifier) 
  2/3 minifig or 2x2 area  -1 
  1/3 minifig or 1x1 area  -2 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  33 
   
  Motion 
  Most attacks will be made by units moving at minifig speed 
  against targets that also move at minifig speed. If a target is 
  Stationary, or if an attacker holds still to Aim more carefully, 
  the attack will be more likely to hit, receiving +1 bonuses to 
  Skill in either case. Contrariwise, it's more difficult to hit a target 
  that's moving very quickly, or if the attacker is moving very 
  quickly itself; the attacker takes a -1 penalty for every 6" in the 
  speed of whichever unit is moving the fastest. 
   
  Regardless of its maximum Move rating, a unit's speed is 
  determined only by the distance it moves during its current or most recent turn. A speedy SuperHero might have the 
  ability to run 20" per turn, but if he stops briefly at the coffeeshop to order the crucial morning quadruple mocha that 
  powers his abilities, his opponents are free to take the +1 bonus for firing at a stationary target. Similarly, a very slow 
  unit might be targeted at -3 if he happens to be sitting in a RocketSleigh zipping along at 19". 
   
  To receive the +1 bonus for Aiming, the attacker must be stationary for his full turn. An attacker riding in a moving 
  vehicle can't be considered stationary unless his target is in or on the same vehicle. 
   
  Minifigs engaged in hand-to-hand fighting are bobbing and weaving around, prone to sudden movements and jumping 
  around without warning. Even if players don't actually move the minifigs, units actively engaged in Close Combat are 
  never considered to be Stationary. 
   
  Combined Attacks 
  If an attacker lacks the power to take down a target by himself, he can 
  coordinate attacks with his friends and allies to deliver a united strike. 
  The main effect of this Combined Attack is that the Damage from all 
  participants is added together and applied in a single massive sum, 
  which is handy for punching through otherwise-impregnable armor or 
  for the utter humiliation of weaker targets. 
   
  All participating units must make their Attack Rolls together; a player may not attack with a few units and then add a 
  few more if the initial effort proves inadequate. A second group could make a second Combined Attack on the target, 
  but could not add their totals to the failed effort of the first group. 
   
  Only units making successful Attack Rolls may participate in the Combined Damage. If by some fluke of luck one of 
  their missed shots still manages to hit the target (5.3: Ranged Combat: Missed Shots), its Damage is counted separately. 
   
  Combined Ranged Attacks (5.3: Ranged Combat) are called Combined Fire and have the simple effect of combining 
  Damage. Any unit capable of making a ranged attack on the target may join in; he does not need to communicate with 
  the other attackers beforehand or to be able to fire at the same part of the target, unless the attack is against a specific 
  Component of a Creation (7.5: Taking Damage: Component Damage). 
   
  Combined Close Combat attacks (5.2: Close Combat) are called Ganging Up. Besides causing combined Damage, 
  Ganging Up on a victim makes it more difficult for him to Counter effectively. Besides the fact that the target's 
  Counters will be quickly used up against multiple attackers, he also receives a cumulative -1 penalty to Countering 
  Skill for each attacker after the first. As a rule, no more than three attackers can Gang Up on a minifig-sized target or 
  smaller at any one time, or they'll end up jostling and lopping each others' arms off by mistake. Larger targets are 
  subject to no such hard limitations, although other limits may be dictated according to common sense. 
   
  Motion 
  Skill Mod 
  Target is stationary 
  +1 
  Attacker is stationary, Aiming 
  +1 
  Slow movement, speed 5" or less (no modifier) 
  Fast movement, speed 6" or more -1 per 6" 
   
  Even Space Ninjas lack the skill to coordinate this many 
  swords at once. The Space Pirate is momentarily safe as his 
  overeager foes become entangled in one anothers' blades. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Red Bean Studios, Mega Bloks 
   
  Attack Type 
  Effect 
  Ranged Attacks 
  Combined Damage 
  Close Combat Attacks 
  (max of 3 on a minifig)  
  Combined Damage 
  Countering Skill -1 per attacker  
  Charge Attacks 
  Combined Momentum 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  34 
  On the victim's turn, he remains in Close Combat with all of his multiple attackers. If he attacks one of them, only that 
  single opponent may Counter. If he tries to Withdraw, all of them may Counter - quite a dilemma! 
   
  In a combined Charge Attack (5.4: Charge!), the attackers combine their Momentum together and do Damage and 
  Knockback accordingly. The target must be big enough for all the attackers to Charge into at the same time; otherwise, 
  they're prone to disrupt the Charge by all crashing into each other. 
   
  It's perfectly allowed to combine attacks of different types, but keep in mind that Close Combat fighters are likely to 
  be directly in the line of fire if any of the Ranged or Charging attackers blow their Attack Rolls. 
   
  Other Modifiers 
  The remaining Attack 
  Modifiers are two that don't fit 
  into any standard category, but 
  will still come up in battle 
  from time to time. 
   
  Ranged attackers with a 
  Height Advantage gain a little 
  extra edge, in the form of one inch of extra weapon Range for every 
  inch of altitude between them and the targets below. (Low attackers 
  shooting at elevated targets are not subject to any corresponding 
  disadvantage.) Altitude is delermined by the surface on which a unit is 
  standing or on which a weapon is mounted; attackers can't give 
  themselves extra Range by holding their weapons over their heads. 
   
  Units firing at a target they can't see are Firing Blind, and receive a -
  5 Skill penalty in addition to any other Attack Modifiers at play. The 
  target may be hidden or invisible, or the attacker may have been 
  blinded or blindfolded, or he may be extra cocky and firing backwards over his shoulder with his eyes closed. While 
  he is unable to see the target, the attacker must still somehow have a very close idea of where the target is (within one 
  inch) to attempt the attack - the target may have chosen a very small and obvious hiding place (like inside a barrel) or 
  may have made enough noise to have given away his location (his cell phone went off). 
   
  5.2: Close Combat 
   
  A unit with a melee weapon can use it to try to whack any object within reach, as described above. Some targets (trees, 
  buildings, helicopters) are not particularly responsive to such aggression; they take whatever damage is applied and, 
  assuming they survive, stoically continue on with whatever they were doing. 
   
   
  More active targets (minifigs, animals, robots) are less likely to take that kind of thing lying down. Whenever one 
  melee unit attacks another with hand-to-hand weapons, the two of them leave the regular cycle of Movement and 
  Action and enter into the more refined state known as Close Combat. Close Combat is usually initiated when one 
  Condition 
  Modifier 
  Height advantage +1" Range per 
  +1" altitude 
  Firing blind 
  -5 to Skill 
   
  Although this assassin can't actually see his target, the 
  shadow on the rice-paper wall gives him a pretty good idea of 
  where to strike. 
   
  Order of Attack 
  With all the attacks and counterattacks flying around, it can be tricky to keep track of when everything happens in Close Combat. Just 
  remember to take attacks one at a time, don't use any weapon more than once in the turn, and whenever one side or the other dies, stop. 
  1. Declare Attacks 
  The attacking player declares his Attacks (or a Shove or Withdrawal, if necessary), and the defending player declares his Counters, each 
  according to their weapons in hand. 
  2. First Attack 
  The attacker makes his Attack or Shove, and the defender Parries if he intends to do so. If the defender dies, stop. 
  3. First Counter 
  The defender may make his Counterattack or Riposte. If the attacker dies, stop. If the attacker is Withdrawing rather than Attacking, the 
  Withdrawal occurs after this step. 
  4. Rinse and Repeat 
  If the attacker has another weapon left to use, repeat step two. If the defender has a weapon left with which to Counter that new attack, repeat 
  step three afterwards. 
  5. All done 
  When the attacker has no more attacks to make, combat is finished for the turn. When the defender's next turn rolls around, the fighters will still 
  be locked in Close Combat. The defender will be the new attacker; start over with step one. 
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  35 
  minifig purposefully runs up to whack another with whatever he's holding in his hands. It can also occur when a 
  minifig carelessly wanders within range of an enemy's melee weapon, and the enemy makes a preemptive attack. 
   
  The Angry Inch 
   
  "Victory is won not in miles but in inches. Win a little now, hold your 
  ground, and later, win a little more.”  
  - Louis L'Amour
   
   
  Minifigs in Close Combat don't take Movement in the normal fashion. 
  Instead, prior to each Attack or Counter (described below), they may lunge 
  up to one inch to better position themselves. This fancy footwork is known 
  as the Angry Inch, and it is not counted against the minifig's regular Move 
  statistic. 
   
  Minifigs can take advantage of this free inch as many times as they make 
  Attacks or Counters against an enemy unit in Close Combat. (Close Combat 
  with friendly or neutral units, or against inanimate targets such as a 
  buildings or corpses, does not make a minifig Angry enough to use an 
  Angry Inch.) A minifig cannot try to use an Angry Inch to move to a 
  location from which he would be unable to complete his Attack or Counter. 
   
  Close Combat Manövers 
  While in Close Combat, the two minifigs are locked into an intense 
  struggle, each attacking and countering every turn with as many weapons as 
  they have available, until one of them is defeated or makes a cowardly 
  retreat. A minifig in Close Combat may take only one of three options on 
  his turn - he can Attack his opponent with whatever melee weapons he's 
  holding, he can attempt to Shove the opponent away, or he can try to 
  Withdraw. (If the minifig refuses any of these options and decides to stand 
  around doing nothing, treat it as Withdrawing at very low speed - i.e., his 
  opponent still gets a Counter against him.) 
   
   Attacking 
  If the minifig chooses to attack, he may move an Angry Inch to 
  position himself, and then attack with any Close Combat weapon he 
  has ready in hand (Ranged attacks can never be made in Close 
  Combat). If his opponent survives and has a CC weapon of his own, 
  the opponent may then Counter (described below). If the attacking 
  unit has a second CC weapon, he may move a second Inch and 
  make a second attack; if the opponent survives and also has a 
  second CC weapon, he can then make a second Counter. This 
  process might be repeated further if the attacker is some fantastic 
  creature with extra limbs, but in most cases a regular minifig is 
  limited to two weapons. 
   
   
  Minifigs without a CC Weapon will be at a 
  serious disadvantage in Close Combat. 
  Fortunately, many types of Random 
  Objects can be used as CC Weapons in a 
  pinch (3.4: Desperate Measures). 
   
  All Close Combat Damage is cumulative for the turn. If a unit is hit 
  by multiple Close Combat Attacks or Counterattacks in the same 
  turn, the Damage is added together. 
   
   
   Shoving 
  Building an Angry Inch 
   
  An Angry Inch is easy to contruct - two bricks and 
  two plates stacked together make a very accurate 
  inch. A nicely-decorated sticker on the side makes it 
  even classier. 
  This warrior lunges forward one Angry 
  Inch to attack an enemy just out of reach. 
  When the enemy gets too close, she 
  jumps back one Angry Inch to give herself 
  room to swing her blade. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Little Armory, Mega Bloks, 
  custom mold 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  36 
  If the minifig has no CC weapon to Attack with, if he has a Two-Handed Weapon and his opponent is too close to 
  swing it, or if he just feels pushy, he may try to Shove his opponent. He must position himself within arm's reach 
  of his target to make a Shove attempt. After taking his Angry Inch, the Shoving minifig rolls against the highest 
  Use rating of whatever weapons his is holding, or with a Use of 2 if he is using his bare hands. If the Shove 
  succeeds (and isn't Parried - see the Countering section, below), the opponent is pushed two inches directly away 
  from the minifig. 
   
  A minifig with a Shield can use it to Shove an opponent as one of its regular Attacks. Otherwise, minifigs cannot Shove and Attack in the 
  same round of combat. A Shield that's been used to make a Shove cannot also be used to Parry a Counterattack in that round. A minifig 
  carrying multiple Shields can only use one of them for Shoving. 
   
   
   Withdrawing 
  A cowardly minifig wishing to escape Close Combat can attempt to Withdraw, moving away any distance up to 
  his full Move. He may not use an Angry Inch for this maneuver. 
   
  His opponent has the chance to make a free Counterattack with one weapon at any point along the Withdrawing 
  minifig's path, which the Withdrawing minifig may not attempt to Counter. If the opponent can't put himself in 
  range to strike the Withdrawing minifig, the free Counterattack is lost.  
   
  If the Withdrawing minifig manages to survive or avoid the free attack, he has successfully Withdrawn and may 
  carry out the remainder of his turn as usual. Keep in mind that Withdrawing used up his Action, so he can't go on 
  to attack anyone else during the turn. 
   
  Countering 
  Regardless of which Close Combat option the active minifig chooses, if the opposing minifig has a CC weapon, he 
  can try to Counter it. On each player's turn, a minifig may Counter once for each CC weapon he is holding. (Unarmed 
  minifigs are limited to Parrying one unarmed Shove, at best.) 
   
  If the active minifig is engaged in Close Combat with multiple opponents at once, then whichever one he attacks may 
  Counter againt him, or all of them can take a free Counterattack if he attempts to Withdraw. 
   
  A Countering minifig can use his CC weapon in one of two ways: he can Counterattack, returning a strike with his 
  own weapon, or he can Parry, attempting to deflect some of the damage from the incoming blow. If he is holding two 
  melee weapons, he do both at once: a Parry and Riposte uses up the Counters of both weapons in a single move. 
   
  Defending minifigs are always assumed to be Counterattacking if they have a CC Weapon, or Parrying if they have a 
  Shield, unless they state otherwise. To be fair, if a minifig intends to Parry or to Parry and Riposte, the defending 
  player should say so before the attacking player makes his Skill roll. If the attacker is too quick with the dice, 
  however, cut the defender some slack - a Parry declared before the Damage roll is usually just fine. 
   
   Counterattacking 
  After a failed Attack, an attacking minifig may be momentarily vulnerable. Countering minifigs can try to take 
  advantage of this, pressing with an immediate Counterattack of their own. The Counterattack is handled exactly 
  the same way as a regular Attack, with an Angry Inch, Skill Roll, and Damage Roll. 
   
  A minifig Counterattacking with a Shield can use it to Shove the attacker, although Shields are usually better used 
  for Parrying. 
   
  The attacking minifig may only try to Parry a Counterattack if he has a Shield. Otherwise, a Counterattack cannot 
  itself be Countered. 
   
   Parrying 
  A minifig that cannot make an effective Counterattack, or that experiences a cowardly fear of getting killed, can 
  attempt to deflect an incoming attack with his own weapon or shield instead. In order to succeed, his Skill Roll 
  must equal or exceed both his own weapon's Use rating, and the attacker's Attack Roll (including Attack 
  Modifiers). 
  If the Parry fails, then the attack is not deflected. Worse, if the Countering minifig was trying to Parry a Two-
  Handed Weapon with a Hand Weapon, or if his Skill Roll was a Critical Failure, then the Parrying weapon is 
  knocked out of his hands, 1d6 inches directly away from the attacker.  
  If the Parry succeeds, the Countering minifig rolls the Damage of the weapon he was using to Parry, and subtracts 
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  37 
  this amount from the Damage dealt by the attacker.  
  If a Shove attack is successfully Parried, then the Shove has no effect - the minifig succeeds in holding its ground.
   
   Parry and Riposte 
  A minifig with two melee weapons may Counter with both of them at once, using one to Parry and the other 
  (assuming he survives after the Parry) to Counterattack. The minifig may use only one Angry Inch for this move, 
  and the Counters of both weapons are used up for the turn. Because of the difficulty of using two weapons 
  simultaneously, all of the Countering minifig's Skill and Damage rolls are made with a -1 penalty. 
   
  Close Combat Example: Yoko vs. Dan 
  Example: Tired of the constant abuse, Yoko grabs her katana and 
  attacks her boyfriend Dan in the kitchen. Both have Skill:1d6 and 
  Armor:4. Yoko's sword is long enough to count as a Heavy Weapon 
  (Use:4 Dmg:1d6+2). Dan's knife is a Hand Weapon (Use:2 
  Dmg:1d6), and his frying pan is a Random Object (Use:3 Dmg:1d6-
  2). 
  Yoko's turn: 
  Yoko attacks with the sword, 
  initiating Close Combat. The sword is 
  much longer than Dan's knife, but 
  Dan's Angry Inch puts her just barely 
  in range for his return strike. Dan 
  declares a Parry and Riposte. 
  Yoko rolls her Skill against the 
  sword's Use of 4; she hits with a roll of 4. She rolls a 3 on the Damage die, for 5 
  Damage total (Dmg:1d6+2) - enough to kill Dan outright, if his Parry fails. 
   
  Dan desperately parries with the frying pan. His Skill and Damage rolls are at -1 because he is attempting to Parry and 
  Counterattack at the same time. The Use rating of his frying pan is only 3, but he also needs to beat Yoko's Attack 
  Roll of 4 for the Parry to succeed. He rolls a 4 for Skill (roll of 5 minus 1), precisely matching Yoko's roll; his Parry 
  connects. With the frying pan's Damage of 1d6-2, minus an additional 1 for the Parry and Riposte, his next die roll of 
  4 is reduced to a single point of Parrying Damage. The Parrying point reduces the damage from Yoko's sword from 5 
  to 4 - Dan manages to survive, but just barely. 
   
  Dan completes his Riposte by leaping forward an Angry Inch and attacking with the knife. He rolls a 2 for Skill, 
  which would normally be just enough for a successful knife attack, but the -1 Skill penalty from the Parry and Riposte 
  causes the attack to miss. 
  Dan's turn: 
  With Close Combat already engaged, Dan attacks with both weapons. He attacks first 
  with the knife, since it's more likely to score an immediate kill. Yoko declares that 
  she'll respond with a Counterattack (if she survives, and with profuse bleeding 
  otherwise). Dan rolls another 2 for Skill, but without the earlier penalty, this time it's 
  good enough for a hit. He rolls a 3 for Damage. Yoko survives, but by a narrow margin 
  - Dan only needs to do two more points of damage with his follow-up frying pan attack 
  for the cumulative total to be enough to kill her. 
   
  Yoko Counterattacks with the sword. She rolls a 6 for Skill - a critical hit! She elects to 
  forego rolling any Bonus Dice since the roll has already succeeded. For Damage she rolls a 6 (roll of 4 plus 2 on 
  Dmg:1d6+2). Dan is killed; he has no chance to make his second attack with the frying pan. Dan's player casts the 
  minifig's head away from the body and sprinkles the area with red bricks for blood. Players will then have to decide on 
  an appropriate Use rating for Yoko's subsequent attempts to get her friends to help hide the body. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
  Yoko's turn: Yoko attacks, 
  Dan parries and ripostes 
   
  Dan's turn: Dan attacks, 
  Yoko counterattacks  
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  38 
  5.3: Ranged Combat 
   
  Rather than get caught up in the chaos of hand-to-hand combat, 
  minifigs may try using Ranged or Thrown Weapons to strike cleanly 
  from a distance. While less exciting than Close Combat, Ranged 
  Attacks have the advantage of not giving enemies any option to 
  Counter. Minifigs may make only one Ranged Attack per turn, and they 
  may not make any Ranged Attacks on the same turn in which they are 
  engaged in Close Combat, either before or afterwards. 
   
  Most Ranged Attacks are fairly straightforward. As long as the 
  minifig's eyes and weapon have an unobstructed line of sight to some 
  visible part of the target, and as long as the target is close enough to be 
  within the weapon's listed Range, the minifig can make the Attack. The 
  Attack and Damage Rolls proceed as normal, making sure to take the 
  applicable Attack Modifiers into account. 
   
  Missed Shots 
   
  “Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result.” 
  - Winston Churchill 
    
   
  When a Ranged Attack misses, a shot is usually considered to have flown off into the sky or landed harmlessly on the 
  ground next to the target. Any player may insist on tracking a Missed Shot more accurately, if he has a good reason to 
  make the effort; for most shots it's not worth slowing down the game. He might think that the target is big enough that 
  even a bad shot would have hit it, or that an Explosive landed close enough to the target to damage it anyway. On the 
  other hand, he might be looking greedily towards other potential targets in the field of fire. 
   
  When an attacker misses a shot, and he or another player insists on tracking it, check to see how many points the 
  Attack Roll missed by. (For instance, if the attacker rolled a 3 when he needed a 5, then the Attack Roll missed by 2.) 
  The Missed Shot landed somewhere within this many inches of the target. The defending player may pick any spot 
  within that range that he wishes. That's where the shot goes, provided that it's somewhere the weapon could 
  theoretically have hit in the first place, no matter how ridiculous or unlikely. The weapon's Damage is then dished out 
  as appropriate. 
   
  The only restriction to the defender's choice of accidental targets is that he cannot choose a victim owned by an 
  unaffiliated player. Player-controlled targets are fair game if they belong to himself, his attacker, or the allies of either 
  party. Anyone else's units are off-limits, unless hitting them can't possibly be avoided. 
   
  Missed Shot Example: Viking vs. Ninja vs. Pirate 
  Example: When this viking sees his pirate buddy under 
  attack from a ninja ex-girlfriend, he hastens to intervene! 
  The ninja is too far away for him to engage in Close 
  Combat, so he hurls his viking axe at her back. 
   
  A thrown Hand Weapon has Use:2, Range:1d6", and 
  Damage:1d6. The viking begins by rolling 5" for Range; far 
  enough to hit the ninja with inches to spare. Next he rolls 
  his Skill. With the axe's easy Use rating, the viking only 
  needs a 2 or higher to hit. Sadly, he rolls a 1. 
   
  Because he missed the roll by 1, the gleeful ninja may now pick any target within one inch for the axe to strike instead 
  of herself. The pirate is the obvious choice - as an ally of the viking, he's a legal accidental target, and he's within the 
  throw's 5" range. The axe hits the pirate, and the viking rolls 1d6 for Damage - a 3, not enough to kill the pirate, just 
  enough to give him major lacerations. 
   
  The pirate and viking laugh together, because pirates enjoy being cut. Thwarted, the ninja ex-girlfriend vanishes into 
  the shadows, where she mentally prepares herself for a night of composing whiny self-pitying entries for her ninja 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks, Little Armory 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  39 
  blog. 
   
  5.4: Charge! 
   
  The third way for units to make attacks is 
  to run flat-out and smash into their target, 
  either with a ramming weapon or with 
  their own bodies. Knightly jousting, 
  football tackles, and car crashes are all 
  examples of Charge attacks. A Charge is 
  the only attack that can be combined with 
  a Sprint into a single Action, allowing 
  units to cover ground and inflict damage 
  in a hurry (4.1: Movement: Sprinting). 
   
  Setting up a Charge requires careful 
  maneuvering, as the attacker will need 
  room to accelerate to full speed. If he can 
  build up the necessary Momentum, his 
  attack will do a great deal more damage 
  and has the potential to Knock Back his 
  opponents and send them flying. The 
  extra power is a double-edged sword, however, as the Charging unit stands to take just as much damage from the 
  collision as his target. 
   
  When a minifig makes an attack on a unit Charging directly at him, he can ignore the usual Attack Penalty for a Fast-Moving Target (5.1: Making 
  Attacks). This is for two reasons. First, because the target stays in the same direction relative to the minifig and can't swerve away, and second, 
  because otherwise jousting would be next to impossible.  
   
   
  Momentum 
  MOM:1 per 2" of Collision Speed, limited by attacker's Size 
  POP:1 per 2" of Collision Speed, limited by defender's Size 
  The strength of a collision is determined by the Momentum of the objects involved. All Charging objects have a 
  Momentum rating, or MOM. Targets struck by a Charge have a corresponding Physical Opposition rating, or POP. 
   
  When comparing the power of their colliding units, it’s traditional for players to pause and take a moment to comment on the fatness of each other’s 
  MOMs, and to discuss whose MOM or POP would really win in a fight.  
   
  Momentum depends on two factors: the speed of the collision, and the size of the objects involved. 
   
  Collision Speed 
  Momentum is built up by the speed of 
  the Charge, based on how many inches 
  the Charging unit travels leading up to 
  the impact. The Charge must be in a 
  continuous straight line; curving paths 
  and other fancy maneuvers break the 
  Momentum and require the unit to start 
  over from scratch. For every two 
  straight-line inches in the Collision 
  Speed, one point of potential Momentum 
  is generated. 
   
  In order to build up speed, an attacker 
  can extend its Charge over a series of 
  multiple turns, but it must be moving as 
  fast as it can on each of those turns, and 
  Sprinting if it has that capability. Extended Charges are best used against inanimate targets like walls and security 
  gates, as more mobile targets can casually walk off of the line of a Charge between turns and sidestep it entirely. 
   
  The defending target can add to the speed of a Collision, deliberately or not, if it's moving in a straight line directly 
  towards the attacker. In the case of a perfect Head-On Collision, the target’s movement on its most recent turn is 
  Charge attacks are not always on purpose. The Charging rules also apply to minifigs that 
  unsuspectingly run headlong into sharpened-stake booby traps, or locomotives encountering 
  abandoned laundry machines. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, string 
   
  Two Knights make opposing Charges simultaneously in a Head-On Collision. Only the most villainous 
  of jousters would aim to lance his opponent's horse instead of the rider! 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Little Armory 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  40 
  added to the collision speed. If the direction of movement is not perfectly Head-On, even if the difference in angle is 
  very slight, then the speeds are not combined. Players should specifically state when they’re lining up for a Head-On 
  Collision, to avoid confusion. A target can similarly decrease the collision speed by running directly away from the 
  charge, but in most cases it’s easier to simply jump to one side and avoid it. 
   
  In the case of an Unintentional Collision, such as for out-of-control vehicles, minifigs running into invisible walls, or 
  objects falling from great heights, it's up to the players to determine the Collision Speed by estimating how much 
  straight-line distance the objects traveled. Only the turn immediately prior to the impact need be considered; objects 
  don't unintentionally make Extended Charges. However, players can be generous in overlooking slight curves in the 
  path of an Unintentional Collision, since Unintentional Damage is much funnier than the regular kind. As a rule, all of 
  a falling object's travel is counted as being in a straight line; players are expected to forget they know anything about 
  parabolas for the purpose of maximizing Collision Damage from falls. 
   
  Size 
  Colliding objects can be moving very quickly indeed, but in order to take advantage of the potential Momentum in the 
  Collision Speed, the units making the Charge attack must have the Size to back it up. Minifigs have a Size rating of 1, 
  and mounted horsemen have a Size of 2. Other colliding objects can be measured as necessary; any object’s Size is 
  determined by the largest dimension of its main body in inches (7.1: Structure: Size). 
   
  Objects can gain one point of MOM or POP for every two inches in the Collision Speed. Regardless of how much 
  Collision Speed is involved, a colliding object's actual Momentum or Physical Opposition rating is limited to its Size. 
  A Size 1 minifig, for instance, can only ever generate a MOM of 1, so Charging further than two inches would grant 
  him no benefit and might even allow extra points of POP for a larger target to use against him. 
   
  Bracing for Impact 
  In most cases, targets will Brace for Impact against a Charge. Bracing for Impact is automatic for targets rooted in 
  the ground like buildings and trees. Mobile targets must be able to face towards the Charge and use a Response Action 
  to Brace themselves (4.3: Enemy Response), unless they are already in the process of Charging at the attacker themselves, 
  in which case Bracing is automatic. 
   
  Braced targets defend with their full Physical Opposition. If a target is unable or unwilling to Brace itself, its Physical 
  Opposition is limited to one half of its Size rather than the full amount. 
   
  Collision Example: Don Coyote and the Fire Giant 
  Example: The biker Don Coyote tilts his lance at a rampaging Fire Giant. His 
  motorcycle gives him a Size rating of 2, so Don Coyote guns the engines along the 
  necessary four inches to build up his full Momentum (MOM:2). 
   
  The Giant has a Size rating of 4, twice the amount needed to take full advantage of 
  the 4" Collision Speed, so he doesn’t even bother to Brace against the puny attack. 
  Instead, he uses his Response Action to punt the pesky biker far into the distance 
  after the lance glances harmlessly off his Giant armored shin plate. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
   
  Collision Damage 
  MOMd6 or POPd6, plus weapon Damage 
  Objects in a collision do 1d6 points of Collision Damage to each other for every point in their Momentum (MOMd6) 
  or Physical Opposition (POPd6). No Skill Roll is required when a unit attempts to ram a target with its own body; the 
  attack automatically hits as long as the target doesn’t Bail or otherwise dodge out of the path of the Charge (4.3: Enemy 
  Response). 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  41 
  Crushing Bonus 
  +(Size) bonus to Collision Damage 
  A Colliding object can do a couple of extra points of Damage by crushing its target against another object. The target 
  might be Smashed into a hard surface that it's standing against or can be thrown into with KnockBack (e.g., a minifig 
  Smashed into the ground by a falling piano, or into a brick wall by a runaway garbage truck). The target might also be 
  Trampled underfoot, if it's knocked down into the path of the Charge so that the attacker can run right over the top of 
  it unimpeded (e.g., the same unlucky minifig knocked down and run over by stampeding cattle). In either case, the 
  attacker deals one extra point of Crushing Bonus Damage for each point in its own Size, cumulative with whatever 
  Collision Damage has already been dealt. 
   
  In order to deliver the Crushing Bonus, the Colliding object must actually be able to smash the target itself - a 
  speeding car may deal enough KnockBack to send pedestrians flying into a wall, but it only receives the Crushing 
  Bonus if it has enough Move left for the turn to reach their final positions and smash them against the wall itself. 
   
  A target may only be Crushed against the ground, or against an object that is larger than itself and firmly rooted in the 
  ground. 
   
  Charging Weapons 
  Ramming enemies head-on is a time-honored combat 
  technique, but most Charging units prefer to lead with a 
  weapon rather than absorb the Collision Damage themselves. 
  Defending targets have a similar preference for Bracing 
  against a Charge with weapons of their own - preferably 
  longer ones than the attackers are Charging with. 
   
  Not all weapons are appropriate for a Charge. A Charging 
  Weapon must be Heavy or larger and designed for spear-like 
  thrusts. Lances, battering rams, and rifle-mounted bayonets all 
  make good Charging weapons. Baseball bats, pickaxes, and 
  swords (even pointy swords) do not. Long-hafted battleaxes 
  and halberds can be used as Charging Weapons if they are 
  pointy at one end. Players may come up with more exotic 
  examples on a special-case basis; a Charging berserker might 
  use a horned helmet or a spiked shield, for instance. 
   
  A minifig with a Shield can use it to Parry againt Collision Damage (5.2: Close Combat), regardless of whether he's the 
  attacker or the target. Mounted minifigs have the ability to Joust, Charging with a Shield in one hand and a lance in 
  the other, ignoring the lance’s regular Two-Handed limitation. 
   
  Using a Charging Weapon has two advantages over simple bodily impact. The first is that the weapon’s Damage is 
  added on top of the regular Collision Damage (Damage + MOMd6 or Damage + POPd6). The second is that, if the 
  Charging Weapon is long enough to strike while the enemy is still at least one inch away from dealing a return blow, 
  then it gives the unit a chance to deliver a killing blow or to Knock the target Back early enough to avoid receiving 
  Collision Damage in return. 
   
  The disadvantage is that unlike a simple ramming attack, weapon attacks can miss. A colliding unit rolls its Skill 
  against the weapon’s Use rating as normal. If a Charging unit's weapon attack misses, it may elect to follow through 
  with its body and collide in the usual fashion, or run past the missed target and continue onwards to the limit of its 
  movement, if avoiding a crash seems possible. 
   
  Poor Olaf's axe isn't pointy enough to Charge with like Betty's. But 
  players might let him Charge with his horns if they're feeling flexible. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  42 
   
  Charging Weapons Example: The Joust 
  Example: The turtle horseman Sir Leo 
  is engaged in a joust with the mysterious 
  Black Dragon Knight. In order to gain 
  first strike advantage, and possibly to 
  compensate for his less-impressive 
  steed, Sir Leo has built a ridiculously 
  long lance for himself. 
   
  It would be almost impossible to 
  maneuver well enough to effectively 
  employ such a lance on the battlefield, 
  but in the linear environment of the 
  jousting lists it seems a little less 
  impractical. Nonetheless, the players 
  house-rule that the lance has a Skill penalty for ridiculousness, bringing its Use rating to 6 rather than the usual 5. 
   
  Both the horse and the dragon Sprint directly at one another. They meet in a Head-On Collision with a combined 
  Collision Speed of 27", more than enough for Sir Leo's maximum MOM of 2 and the Dragon Knight's POP of 3. 
  Because Sir Leo's lance is so much longer, he's able to strike first. (If Leo was targeting the Black Knight, but the 
  Knight was cheating by targeting Leo's horse, then both attacks would actually strike at the same time. 
  Fortunately the Black Knight holds himself above such dishonorable tactics.) To strike with the lance, Sir Leo rolls 
  his Skill of 1d6 against the Lance's Use rating of 6; he rolls a 2 and misses badly. 
   
  With his shorter spear, the Dragon Knight strikes second, rolling against Use:5. He rolls a 5, hitting Sir Leo 
  squarely. His attack does Collision Damage of 3d6 (based on his POP of 3) plus the lance's Damage of 2d6, for a 
  whopping 5d6 total. The Knight rolls a 16 for Damage. 
   
   
  Sir Leo's in dire straits - his Armor is only 4, plus 1d6 from Heavy Armor. He rolls a Critical Success for the 
  Armor, but only a 3 on the Bonus Die - the total is 13 (4+6+3), not enough to save him. Fortunately he's also 
  carrying a Shield, which he can use to try and Parry 1d6 worth of Damage. He rolls a 5 on his Skill Roll for the 
  Parry, which matches the Knight's earlier Attack Roll - the Parry is successful. He rolls a 4 for the amount of 
  Damage Parried, reducing the Damage to 12 - he survives! 
   
  Next, the two opponents roll for KnockBack. Because the Dragon Knight was specific in striking Sir Leo and not 
  the horse, Sir Leo defends against knockback with his own Size of 1 to see if he's unseated. The Dragon and 
  Knight, on the other hand, were not struck, and will defend with their full Size of 3 if they lose the roll. 
   
   
  Sir Leo's MOM:2 means he rolls 2d6; he gets a 7. The Knight's POP:3 means he rolls 3d6; he rolls 11, winning 
  the contest by 4. This is more than Sir Leo's Size, so he is unseated and Knocked Back three inches (4 minus his 
  Size of 1). His horse continues running, riderless, to the limit of its Move. 
   
  Sir Leo is now lying on the ground on his back, directly in the dragon's path. If the Black Knight (Size:3) were able 
  to trample Sir Leo, he'd do 3 points of Bonus Damage, raising the Collision Damage to 15 and overcoming Sir 
  Leo's 13 Armor. However, since the Collision occurred on Sir Leo's turn, the Black Knight is out of luck - he won't 
  get to move until his own turn rolls around, and the Damage doesn't carry over between turns. Although 
  defeated, Sir Leo lives to joust another day! 
  Elements shown: Mega Bloks, LEGO, Little Armory 
   
   
  Sir Leo strikes first, but misses 
   
   
  The Black Knight hits, 
  but Sir Leo Parries the blow 
   
   
  Sir Leo is unseated, 
  and his horse runs away 
   
   
  KnockBack 
  KnockBack Inches = (MOMd6 of winner) - (MOMd6 of loser) - (Size of loser) 
  Unless the two sides miss each other completely, the force of a Charge has the chance to send units on one side or the 
  other flying. In many cases this is more entertaining than whatever Damage resulted from the initial collision: the 
  effects of KnockBack can allow Charging units to disrupt formations, capsize ships, and knock enemies off bridges 
  and into chasms. 
   
  Landscape features and nailed-down objects like buildings and trees are exempt from KnockBack unless they are 
  broken from their mountings by the initial Damage of the impact. Exempted objects may still participate in 
  KnockBack checks to see if their attackers bounce off of them; they just don't have to worry about suffering any ill 
  effects if they lose. 
   
  To determine the effects of KnockBack, each colliding object rolls a number of dice equal to its Momentum 
  (MOMd6) or Physical Opposition (POPd6), and the results are compared. If both sides tie, then each is stopped in its 
  tracks, and no KnockBack occurs. If one side loses the roll by more than its own Size, then it's Knocked Back a 
  number of inches equal to the difference between the two rolls minus its Size. 
   
  
  - Chapter Five: Combat - 
  43 
  KnockBack Example: Crocodile Surprise 
  Example: A Frog Peasant is spending a 
  peaceful swamp afternoon foraging for 
  escargot. Little does he expect that a 
  marauding Crocodile Knight is about to 
  burst from the water in a Charging 
  ambush! 
   
  Because of the difficult swamp terrain, 
  the Crocodile Knight is only able to line 
  up three inches of straight-line 
  Movement for his Charge. This gives a 
  Collision Speed of 3", for one point of 
  potential Momentum. This is less than 
  the Crocodile Knight's Size of 2, so he 
  gets the full Momentum Rating of 
  MOM:1. 
   
  Facing in the wrong direction, the Frog Peasant doesn't see the attack coming, and so he has no chance to Bail, Brace 
  for Impact, or even make the reflexive Surrender for which the Frog people are famous. Because he hasn't Braced, his 
  Physical Opposition is limited to one half of his Size of 1, which rounds down to zero. 
   
  Although the Crocodile Knight successfully makes his Attack Roll with the Halberd (Use:5), his dice come up all ones 
  for the Damage Roll (Weapon: 2d6 plus Momentum: 1d6) and the Frog Peasant manages to miraculously survive the 
  initial Damage. With POP:zero, the Peasant does no Collision Damage in return. 
   
  KnockBack is almost a foregone conclusion. The Knight rolls his MOM die (1d6) against the Peasant's POP (zero). 
  His roll of three, minus the Peasant's POP of zero and the Peasant's Size of one, results in two inches of KnockBack 
  with which to toss the Peasant around however he sees fit. 
  With two inches of Knockback to play with, there are any number of trajectories on which this 
  Crocodile Knight can send the Frog Peasant. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
  The winning player might decide to be kind and move the Knocked-Back unit away from the impact in a simple 
  horizontal line, but that’s pretty unlikely. He’ll get a much bigger kick out of tossing his victim up into the air and 
  spinning it around. After identifying the point of impact on the object’s surface, the player may take that part of the 
  object and move it in any direction that seems plausible based on the angle of the Charge, either moving the whole 
  object in a straight line or rotating it around an opposite corner or edge. ("Plausible" is a matter of opinion - be 
  prepared to make a What I Say Goes roll.) 
   
  If the object gets spun around far enough, it can fall over. This is easy to determine: once the winner has moved the 
  object to its new position, he lets go of it. If it tips back towards its base, then it stays upright; if it tips onto its side 
  then it is Knocked Over. A single inch of KnockBack is enough to knock over a lone minifig, or a horse if it's struck 
  from the side. For a Braced Squad of minifigs, or a similarly large construction, it will take a larger amount of 
  KnockBack to tip it off its feet. 
   
  Units that are Knocked Over are Disrupted until they are able to get themselves back upright on their following turn. 
  Disrupted units are unable to take any action or make any active response to events, including Countering Close 
  Combat attacks or Bracing against additional Charges. For vehicles, it's even worse: Knocked Over boats are capsized 
  and sink at the end of their following turn; flying vehicles tend to crash. 
   
  
  - Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes - 
  44 
  Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes  
   
  6.1: The Hero  
   
   
  Some minifigs are just better than others; you recognize them 
  as soon as you open the box. Their superiority has nothing to 
  do with talent, training, or genetics; the defining feature that 
  separates the Heroes from the regular minifigs is their cool 
  outfits. With shiny armor and flapping capes, there's no 
  confusing a Hero with his inferior minifig comrades. Looking 
  cool makes him fight better, live longer, and succeed where 
  others fail. 
   
  A Hero's standard attributes are significantly higher than 
  those of a regular minifig. Heroes have a Skill of 1d10, are 
  able to Move seven inches per turn, and have an Armor rating 
  of 2d6. With a cost of 11CP, they're also a lot more 
  expensive to field. 
  6.2: The Ego 
   
  The difference between a merely phenomenally-skilled warrior and a true Hero is 
  a matter of Ego. No matter how high a regular minifig's stat numbers may be, all 
  normal warriors recognize the fact that they'll eventually have to die, and that 
  some rules just can't be broken. A Hero admits no such things. Mortality, logic, 
  and the laws of physics are beneath his notice. A Hero is above the concerns of 
  lesser men. 
  Crankiness 
  Above all else, Heroes are the rock stars and prima donnas of the battlefield, and 
  they insist on being more important than any other unit. A Hero isn't bothered by 
  the presence of enemy Heroes, because lesser foes are a waste of his abilities. 
  Heroes on an allied but separate team give him someone to compete with, and in 
  any case he expects to get to stab them in their Heroic backs later when his 
  Human's alliances inevitably shift.  
   
  Specialties 
  A Hero is defined by his Heroic Ego, which is an example of a Specialty. 
  Specialties are special abilities, features, or skills that change the rules for 
  a particular minifig or other unit. 
   
  In most cases, a Specialty is used to grant abilities not available to units 
  under the regular rules, but it might also be a handicap or a simple stat 
  tweak. The effects and rules for any Specialty are listed on a unit's Stat 
  Card for easy reference. 
   
  A Specialty's CP cost is listed along with its description text. This added 
  cost is already included in the total Cost of the card on which the 
  Specialty appears. If you wanted to add the Heroic Ego Specialty to a 
  different unit, it would increase that unit's cost by +3CP. 
   
  Six-sided dice may be good enough for regular 
  minifigs, but Heroes demand a higher 
  standard. Preferably forged from solid gold. 
  Element shown: d10  
  
  - Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes - 
  45 
  Placing additional Heroes on his own team, on the other hand, is a major insult that no Hero can overlook. There can 
  only be one star of the show, and he doesn't like to be upstaged. If a player fields multiple Heroes, their clashing Egos 
  make each of them Cranky, and the more Heroes there are, the Crankier they get. 
   
  For every other conscious unit on his team with a Heroic Ego, a Hero receives a -1 Cranky Penalty, to a maximum of 
  -5. Any time the Hero rolls one or more dice, whether for Skill, Armor, Damage, Heroic Feats, or RedShirts, the 
  Cranky penalty is subtracted from each die (total rolls can never be reduced below zero, however). The penalty is not 
  subtracted from dice rolled against the Hero; he still receives full Damage from enemy attacks, for instance. 
   
  Penalties for Crankiness only remain in effect while the other Heroes on the team are conscious. If the other Heroes 
  are knocked out or killed, the penalty is lightened accordingly. If a dead or unconscious Hero is revived, the penalty is 
  reinstated. 
   
  The one advantage of a Cranky Hero is that he costs less. For every point of Crankiness a Hero has at the beginning of 
  the battle, he costs one less Construction Point, up to a maximum discount of 50% off. 
   
  RedShirts 
  A Hero is more important than any regular minifig. As a 
  result, it's only right that lesser troops sacrifice themselves to 
  keep him from harm. Whether out of love, duty, fear, or the 
  Hero grabbing them by the head and using them as a meat 
  shield, a Hero can rely on nearby allies to leap into harm's 
  way to protect him from damage. These self-sacrificing 
  troops are called RedShirts. It's thought that they earned the 
  name by so often surprise-donating large portions of their 
  bodies to use as a red splatter decoration covering a Hero's 
  chest. 
   
  Any time a Hero takes damage from an external source (i.e., 
  not from something internal like poison, coronary disease, or 
  from having swallowed a live grenade), he may try to inspire 
  a nearby unit within 1d6" to RedShirt. This does not take an 
  Action; the Hero can inspire any number of RedShirts in a 
  single turn, but only one for each specific incoming Damage. 
  If successful, the RedShirting unit will leap in to take the 
  damage instead, knocking the Hero out of harm's way if 
  necessary (for instance, if the Hero is about to be hit by a 
  speeding locomotive, he'll need to be somewhere else when 
  the train rolls in). The inspired RedShirt must be on the Hero's team, it must be capable of leaping (e.g., minifigs, 
  robots, and animals; not tanks or jet fighters, for instance), and it must have a lower CP cost than the Hero (not 
  counting equipment). 
   
  When a Hero learns that he's about to take damage, he has one chance to inspire a nearby RedShirt to save him. Before 
  the Damage is rolled, the Hero chooses one nearby eligible unit to sacrifice. He rolls 1d6 (plus any Bonus Dice, on a 
  Critical Success). If the unit is within this many inches of the Hero, the inspiration succeeds. The sacrificial unit will 
  leap in and take the damage intended for the Hero, and if necessary, the Hero is knocked away the minimum distance 
  required to avoid being hit (even if the distance required is truly riduculous, like getting RedShirted out of a 
  supernova). If the roll is too low or is a Critical Failure, the Hero fails to inspire the unit to RedShirt, and is forced to 
  take the damage himself. 
   
  If the Hero is in a Squad, he can automatically inspire the other Squad members to RedShirt, without having to make 
  the 1d6" distance roll (Chapter 8: Squads). 
   
  RedShirts move unusually quickly and have no problem intercepting gunshots, explosions, or even laser blasts. 
  They're unconcerned with whatever damage this might do to the laws of physics or to players' suspension of disbelief. 
   
  RedShirting should not be abused to try and accelerate units' movement across the battlefield; this will make the 
  Hero's allies want to kick him in the nuts rather than sacrifice themselves for him. A player trying to force a 
  RedShirting by attacking his own Hero is engaging in the stupidest form of rules lawyering. He should be ejected from 
  the game and all his bricks should be confiscated by the other players. The remaining players may then take turns 
  RedShirting him out of the house and into the street. 
   
  Attacked by an evil clone at a publicity appearance, Blue Space Hero is 
  saved by the intervention of a leaping red-shirted passerby. From photos 
  taken at the scene, it's unclear whether the man's leap was intentional, or if 
  the Hero picked him up and threw him in the way of the attack. Either way, 
  he becomes the posthumous envy of Blue Space Hero fanboys across the 
  galaxy. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks  
  
  - Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes - 
  46 
  6.3: Heroic Feats 
   
   
  “A hero is someone who rebels or seems to rebel against the facts of existence and seems to conquer them. Obviously that can only work at 
  moments. It can't be a lasting thing. That's not saying that people shouldn't keep trying to rebel against the facts of existence.” 
  - Jim Morrison 
    
   
  A Hero's amazing abilities stem from both stunning bravado and pig-headed ignorance, but his greatest powers are 
  drawn from a tradition handed down through endless generations of action movies. 
   
  Action-Hero Clichés 
  To realize their full potential, all Heroes must take on an Action-Hero 
  Cliché, drawn from movies, video games, comic books, or Saturday 
  morning cartoons. It is almost mandatory that Heroes develop a 
  ridiculous accent in support of their role. In a pinch, an Austrian 
  accent almost always works; if a role hasn't been played by Arnold 
  Schwarzenegger, it probably doesn't count as a real Action Cliché. 
  Example Action-Hero Clichés 
  Action Cliché  Action 
  Accent 
  Sample Action Feats 
  Super Soldier Austrian / 
  Stallonian 
  Dual-wielding heavy 
  machineguns, 
  performing surgery on self, 
  punching through walls 
  Barbarian 
  Austrian / 
  Swedish 
  Dual-wielding heavy axes, lifting 
  heavy objects, 
  communing with animals 
  Secret Agent 
  Austrian / 
  British 
  Hacking security systems, 
  seducing women/men, 
  sniping, escaping deathtraps 
  Kung-Fu 
  Master 
  Austrian / 
  Chinese 
  Dodging bullets, running up walls, 
  speaking in riddles 
  Pulp 
  Archaeologist 
  Austrian / 
  All-American 
  Dodging booby traps, 
  fistfighting Nazis, whipping things 
  Gunslinger 
  Austrian / 
  Cowboy 
  Drawl 
  Trick shooting, trick 
  horsemanship, 
  trick gambling, trick dueling 
  Warrior 
  Princess 
  Austrian / 
  New 
  Zealander 
  Chakram tricks, impossible 
  acrobatics, 
  nerve pinches, lesbian subtexts 
   
  For Heroes based on specific characters, picking the Action Cliché is easiest of 
  all: a Robin Hood minifig would get one Robin Hood Feat; a Zeus minifig 
  would get one Zeus Feat, and a Davy Crockett minifig would get one King of 
  the Wild Frontier feat. 
   
  Heroic Feats 
  For an action-movie hero in the thick of battle, accomplishing the impossible is 
  more than just an everyday event - it's an every-couple-seconds event. Any 
  such stupendous or wildly improbable act, pushing fictional license to its limits 
  for the sake of spectacle, is a Heroic Feat. 
   
  Heroes are limited to the Feats appropriate to their Cliché - a ProWrestler Hero 
  can't try to calculate energy-shield bypass frequencies off the top of his head 
  the way a ScienceOfficer Hero might, but he can try picking up a motorcycle 
  and swinging it like a baseball bat through a group of opponents. 
   
  To attempt a Heroic Feat, the player describes the Feat his Hero is about to 
  Which action personality best fits this hard-hitting space 
  marine Hero? Characters from Futurama are proposed, and a 
  nomination for Duke Nukem is met with popular acclaim. But 
  love for Samuel L. Jackson wins out in the end, with the 
  suggestion of "Mace Windu, as played by Jules Winnfield." 
  Attitude firmly in place, Commander "Bad" Moe Faux is born. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks, Little Armory 
   
  The failure of Brendan's Hero to leap to the top of 
  this security tower landed him head-first in a 
  garbage can. After failing three such attempts in a 
  row, the trash bin was ruled to be a permanent 
  part of the Hero's outfit. 
  Photo: Mike Rayhawk 
  BricksWest convention, February 2002 
   
  
  - Chapter Six: Minifig Heroes - 
  47 
  attempt, and rolls 1d6. If one of his opponents would like the Feat to fail (and they probably will), he also rolls 1d6. If 
  the Hero's roll is equal to or higher than the opponent's roll, the Feat succeeds; otherwise the Hero's efforts end in 
  failure. 
   
  A Hero may attempt one Heroic Feat on every turn. If he doesn't use his Feat during his own turn, he may use it as a 
  Response Action during an opponent's turn at no penalty. If he doesn't use the Feat before his next turn, it's lost; Feats 
  can't be "saved up" over time. 
   
  The Consequences of Failure 
   
  “... if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor 
  defeat.” 
  - Theodore Roosevelt 
    
   
  Because the range of possibilities for each type of action hero is so wide, it's up to the players to agree on whether a 
  specific Feat is appropriate to a given Cliché, what the effects of success will be, and what will be the consequences of 
  failure. 
   
  The effects of failed Feats will depend on the seriousness of the battle and the attitudes of the players, but a good 
  general guideline is that the more stupendous the Feat attempted, the more dire the effects if it fails. A Hero failing an 
  attempt to eat a dozen doughnuts in a single turn might suffer the effects of upset stomach. Choking to death might be 
  a more realistic result, but it'd be a little severe compared to the relatively uninspiring Feat. A Hero failing to lift an 
  automobile over his head, on the other hand, would be subject to much stronger consequences on failure: he might get 
  it into the air but then drop it on himself, or he might strain so hard to lift it that he rips his own arms off. It's often best 
  to start by imagining what would have happened to Homer Simpson if he'd attempted such a Feat. 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  48 
  Chapter Seven: Special Creations 
   
   
  Construction bricks can be assembled into an infinite variety of crazy contraptions. Assembly is much 
  safer when on the ground than while the contraption is in flight, but sometimes minifigs don't have a 
  choice in the matter. 
  Mike Rayhawk, 2006 
   
  Watching minifigs hack and smash each other into plastic bits is loads of fun, but few generals will be satisfied with 
  minifigs-only combat in the long run - not while visions of tanks, castles, dinosaurs, and nuclear assault sleighs dance 
  in their heads. 
   
  Rather than attempt to describe and give stats for every possible construction and 
  creature an enterprising player might field, BrikWars provides a quick and simple 
  framework for classifying any Creation you might come up with. 
   
  Design Overview 
  Once you've got your model in hand, the first step for any Creation is to define its 
  Structure (7.1: Structure). All Creations begin with the same two Structural stats: Size 
  and Structure Level, which together determine its Base Cost. 
   
  If the Creation is a simple Building, then the Structure stats may be all that are 
  required. Otherwise, the next steps depend on what type of Creation is being made. If 
  the Creation moves as a Vehicle, it needs one or more types of Propulsion (7.2: 
  Propulsion). If it’s equipped with weapons or other devices, these will need to be 
  purchased separately as well (7.3: Weapons). Lastly, if the creation is a living, robotic, 
  or magical Creature, then it will need to be given the appropriate level of 
  independence (7.4: Taking Action). 
   
  While it's possible to start with a set of stats and try to build a model to match, you will usually come up with more 
  exciting Creations if you build the model first and then base the stats on the model. If the Creation comes out a little 
  more or less expensive than you budgeted, you can usually just add or remove a couple of minifigs from your army to 
  make up the difference. 
  Glossary 
  Creation: any unit or object custom-built 
  by a player. Brick enthusiasts traditionally 
  call their Creations "MOCs," short for My 
  Own Creation. BrikWars games are much 
  improved by high levels of MOCcery. 
   
  Structure: The central body of a Creation, 
  not including limbs and surface devices. 
   
  Building: Any Creation that doesn't move. 
   
  Vehicle: A Creation that is able to move 
  but has no independence or life of its own. 
   
  Creature: A Creation that is able to act 
  independently, because it is alive or has 
  artificial life. 
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  49 
  7.1: Structure  
   
  Structure vs. Surface Elements 
  The foundation of any Creation is its central Structure, upon which the non-
  Structural Surface Elements (limbs, weapons, devices, etc.) are mounted. As 
  a general rule, any section of the Creation with an 'interior' (whether for 
  cargo, minifigs, machinery, or internal organs) is Structural. 
  Surface Elements 
  Any parts that are decorative, moving, have activated functions, or are 
  otherwise not an integral part of the main Structure are Surface Elements. 
  Non-Structual Objects in the Structure's interior, such as furniture, security 
  systems, or intestines, are also considered to be Surface Elements. Surface 
  elements added for a tactical purpose are purchased as Weapons or Devices 
  (7.3: Weapons); otherwise they are free, and great for adding color and 
  interest to an otherwise humdrum and dreary battlefield. 
   
  Creation Type 
  Structural Elements 
  Surface Elements 
  Building 
  walls, floors, 
  basement, roof, load-
  bearing columns 
  furniture, machine gun nest, 
  satellite dish, drawbridge, 
  searchlights 
  Vehicle 
  chassis, cockpit, 
  fuselage, cargo hold, 
  trailer 
  wings, rockets, wheels, laser 
  cannon, crane arm, shield 
  generator, fuzzy dice 
  Creature 
  skull, torso, trunk 
  limbs, wings, jaws, tail, fins, 
  tentacles, weapons, bunny 
  slippers, brains 
  A Structure has two main attributes: Size and Armor Level, which are used 
  to calculate its Base Cost. 
   
  Size 
  To determine a Structure's Size, take your model and measure the 
  number of inches along the Structural section's longest dimension. 
  For a wall this would be its length, for a tower this would be its 
  height, for a sphere you would measure its diameter, and so forth. Ignore 
  Surface elements when making this measurement, and round fractions 
  upward or downward according to preference. The number of inches 
  measured is the Structure's Size rating. 
   
   
   
  Official Toy Company Models 
  It's fun to jump straight into battle using a company's 
  official models, but their designs sometimes leave a 
  little to be desired. Construction-toy buildings suffer 
  from an unfortunate shortage of staircases and rear 
  walls. Players can work around this if they're willing 
  to use some imagination. (And if they're not, then boy 
  are they playing the wrong game.) 
   
  Implied Ladders 
  Minifigs must use actual ladders and staircases if 
  they exist on the model. If they don't, you'll have to 
  assume that ladders are "implied," off-screen 
  somewhere but still available for use. 
   
  At the beginning of a turn, if a minifig is directly 
  above or below the level he wishes to reach, he may 
  sacrifice his Movement for the turn to use an Implied 
  Ladder and "jump" directly upwards or downwards 
  one level (or as close as the building model allows). 
  Implied Ladders only exist inside of a Structure - a 
  minifig standing on the inside of a battlement wall 
  can climb an Implied Ladder to the parapet; a minifig 
  standing on the outside can not. 
   
  Implied Walls 
  Companies' official models are often built as facades, 
  with one or two physical walls and the rest implied. 
  As with Implied Ladders, Implied Walls exist off-
  screen but are dramatically unimportant. 
   
  A minifig on the outside of a building facade may only 
  reach the interior by going over, under, or through 
  the facade. A minifig that walks around the edge of 
  the facade is still considered to be "outside," even if 
  he is now physically on the interior side of the 
  facade. He may not interact with interior units and 
  objects as if he were inside. Because of the potential 
  confusion, it is considered poor form for exterior units 
  to walk around the sides of facades. 
   
  Minifigs on the "interior" of a facade may not walk 
  around the sides. They must always stay in the area 
  directly behind the facade. 
   
  The more props and clever details you can pack 
  into your structures, the more opportunities players 
  will discover for unplanned mayhem. 
  Photo: Shaun Sullivan 
  NELUG's "VersaillesPunk," Dec. 2005 
  Winners: British delegation 
   
  The variety of possible Creatures is limitless, but gauging their relative strength is as simple as 
  measuring the lengths of their spinal column and cranium. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  50 
  Vermin 
  Most Structures have a minimum Size of 1, but for very small Creatures (snakes, bats, scoprions, and parrots, for 
  instance) a Size rating of zero is allowed. These tiny Creatures are called Vermin and do not recieve an Armor Level 
  like other Creations. By default, Vermin have zero points of Armor and a Base Cost of zero CP; additional Armor can 
  be bought at +0.5CP per +1 Armor.  
   
  Structure Level 
  A Structure's Armor is determined 
  by its Structure Level. A 
  Creation's Structure Level is chosen 
  by the player, according to what seems most 
  appropriate. 
   
  SL 
  Armor 
  Rating 
  Equivalent 
  Materials 
  Building 
  example 
  Vehicle 
  example 
  Creature 
  example 
  0 
  1d6 
  rope, drywall, 
  plastic, flesh 
  tent 
  hang glider 
  minifig 
  1 
  1d10 
  wood, sheet 
  metal, steel 
  cables, kevlar 
  outhouse 
  motorcycle 
  troll 
  2 
  2d10 
  brick, log walls, 
  wrought iron 
  brick building 
  pirate galleon 
  dragon 
  3 
  3d10 
  concrete, 
  mortared stone, 
  armor plating 
  castle 
  armored tank 
  stone giant 
  4 
  4d10 
  heavy steel, 
  reinforced 
  concrete, titanium 
  nuclear bunker 
  space warship 
  steel golem 
  5 
  5d10 
  adamantite, force 
  fields 
  Illuminati 
  pyramid 
  Dungam 
  mobile suit 
  Olympian god 
  This is entirely a judgment call on the part of the player. The Armor of a dragon, for instance, might be anywhere from 
  1d6 to 3d10 depending on its size, age, and type. Keep in mind that the larger and more heavily-armored a Structure is, 
  the more it will cost. 
   
  Surface Armor 
  As a rule of thumb, all Surface elements, interior walls, weapons, or devices have a Structure Level one level below 
  that of the main Structure (to a minimum Structure Level of zero). Any exposed hinges, turrets, or other moving parts 
  are considered "weak points" and are two Structure Levels weaker. 
   
  Incidental decorations and other objects mounted to the Structure may have higher or lower Armor Ratings as seems 
  appropriate. 
   
  Base Cost 
  When the Size and Structure Level have been determined, multiply them together (for Structure Level zero, 
  multiply Size times 0.5). The result is the Structure’s Base Cost. A player must pay this many CP in order to 
  build the Creation's central Structure.  
   
  The Armor Level of Shaun Sullivan's evil 
  Juggerbunny fluctuates according to how fast it 
  can absorb live rabbits. Fortunately those little 
  buggers breed quick. 
  Photo: Shaun Sullivan 
  NELUG's "T.E.A.M. Rebirth," June 2005 
  Winners: not the civilians 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  51 
  7.2: Propulsion  
   
  Any Creation that moves around requires a Propulsion 
  system, even if the method of that Propulsion is hard to 
  explain (construction-brick siege engines, for instance, are 
  notorious for rolling around merrily despite a lack of horses or slaves 
  to pull them). All that’s important is the Creation's type of movement; 
  whether or not it has any means to power that movement is politiely 
  overlooked. 
   
  Propulsion Types 
  Most regular types of Propulsion (Ground, Water, and Underwater) 
  cost 1CP per two inches of Move (e.g., it costs 5CP to buy 10” of 
  Ground movement). Flying is more expensive: every two inches of 
  Move cost 2CP plus the creation’s Structure Level. For instance, an 
  armored space transport with Structure Level 2 (for 2d10 Armor 
  Rating) would pay 4CP for each 2" of Flight movement. 
  Speed Examples  
  2" 
  spiders, scorpions, hot air balloons, rowboats 
  5" 
  minifigs, alligators, monkeys, blimps 
  8" 
  tanks, dogs, submarines 
  10" horses, bicycles, boats 
  12" cars, birds, trains, helicopters 
  sports cars, planes, motorcycles 
  16" 
  (upper limit for regular propulsion types) 
  20" fighter planes, spaceships 
  rocket jets, starfighters, superheroes 
  24" 
  (upper limit for flight propulsion) 
   
  Very advanced or unusual Propulsion types (spider climbing, 
  underground tunneling, teleportation) may be allowed as well, if the 
  players can come to mutual agreement about an appropriate CP cost. 
   
  Alternate Movement 
  Creations may sometimes move outside of their usual medium if it’s 
  appropriate to do so. Common sense should be an adequate guide: 
  automobiles can move at lower speed through standing water, but 
  they can’t fly; airplanes can move at lower speed on the runway, but 
  can’t swim; submarines may move at lower speed on the ocean 
  surface, but can’t start crawling around on land. 
   
  Creations moving in an alternate medium move at half speed. No 
  matter how much Move they have to spend, no Creation can move 
  more than five inches in an alternate medium in any single turn. 
   
  Propulsion Damage 
  For most systems, Damage is an all-or-nothing affair: a steering wheel is either slagged or it isn’t, an elbow is either 
  still attached or it's not. Propulsion systems are a little more resilient. If attackers can destroy or disable a major 
  propulsion component (one tire off a dune buggy, one leg off of a RoboSpider), the vehicle's Move is reduced by 1" 
  for each lost component. If half of the propulsion elements are destroyed (one leg off a Tyrannosaurus, one wheel off a 
  motorcycle) then the vehicle's Move is immediately reduced to 1". If all the elements are destroyed (one pogo off of a 
  pogo stick, one balloon off of a balloon), the Vehicle's ability to Move is eliminated entirely. Flight systems are 
  especially fragile - the destruction of one blade of a helicopter or one wing of a dragon is enough to ground them 
  immediately. 
   
  Dave Eaton's magnificent Post-Apocalyptic Research Vehicle 
  is the target in a running battle across the nuclear wasteland. 
  Jonathan Dallas's converted assault schoolbus is loaded with 
  dynamite-strapped kamikaze warriors and a catapult with 
  which to launch them. 
  The massive propulsion treads prove to be a weak spot - the 
  detonation of one well-placed kamikaze snaps the tread and 
  leaves it to trail out behind the PARV until the vehicle grinds to 
  a halt. 
  Photos: Wayne McCaul 
  NELUG's "The Post-Apocalyptic Research Vehicle," Sept. 
  2005 
  Winners: Omics (PARV) 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  52 
   
  7.3: Weapons 
   
  BrikWussies (see sidebar) may try to distract you with talk of the beauty of a 
  Gothic cathedral or the protective strength of castle walls, but in their hearts the 
  real players know the truth. The only reason to build the really large creations is 
  because you need a place to put the really big guns. 
  Weapon Size 
  As with Structures and everything else of real importance, Weapons are 
  classified according to their Size in inches. At Weapon Size 1 (one inch 
  or less), a Weapon is equivalent to what you might find in the hands of a 
  minifig. However, as Size increases, so do the Weapon's stats – every single 
  statistic is multiplied by Size, up to the maximum Weapon Size of five inches. 
   
  Because Weapon Size increases the Use rating just as fast as the Damage rating, 
  the highest-damage weapons are most effective against the largest targets - 
  minifig troops are just too hard to hit with such a high Use rating. Contrarily, 
  high-accuracy small arms are best put to use against minifig targets, since their 
  Damage rating isn't high enough to pose a real threat to larger Creations. 
   
  Size Limits 
  Size is also important because it 
  determines the limit on the number of 
  Weapons a Creation can have 
  equipped. All Creations are limited to 
  equipping twice as many inches’ worth 
  of Weapons as the Creation's own Size 
  rating. Creations flying in the air 
  (rather than in outer space) are limited 
  even further, to their own Size. If a 
  Creation has more Weapons than its 
  Size Limit, the Weapons must be 
  'down-powered' - the physical weapon 
  model may be five inches long, for 
  instance, but only be given stats for 
  Weapon Size 3. 
  Glossary 
  BrikWussy: A wannabe player with a 
  weak stomach for destruction, this lily-
  livered pansy values survival over glory, 
  and cries when a few bricks get knocked 
  off of his precious constructions. 
   
  BrikWarrior: This lord of the battlefield 
  makes every model as awesome as 
  possible so that their destruction will be all 
  the sweeter. His priority list starts and 
  ends with "Kicking Ass." If he stops to 
  consider survival at all, it's with 
  disapproval; every surviving unit is a 
  chance for destruction wasted. 
   
  Element shown: LEGO 
   
  Weapon 
  Cost 
  Use Range 
  Damage 
  Notes 
  Close Combat Weapons 
  Melee Weapon  
  2x 
  2x 
  CC 
  xd6 
  - 
  Jousting Weapon 2x 
  2x 
  (Ram) +xd6* 
  * - Damage added to impact 
  Ranged Weapons 
  Gun 
  3x 
  3x 
  6x" 
  xd6 
  - 
  Launcher 
  3x 
  3x 
  xd6" 
  xd6* 
  * - or payload's Damage rating 
  max payload 1/2 Size  
  Explosive 
  1x 
  3x* 
  0" * 
  xd10 exp 
  * - or determined by Launcher 
  Rocket 
  2x 
  4x 
  6x" 
  xd10 exp 
  - 
  Protection 
  Armor Plate 
  2x 
  2x* 
  CC 
  +xd6 Armor to area 
  Shove 2x" * 
  * - if swingable, it may be 
  used to Parry or Shove 
  Note on Weapon Size: Wherever x appears, multiply the stat by the the Weapon's Size level.  
   
  Weapon Example: The Ripper 
  Blade 
  Example: Cobbling together war machines to 
  defend their swamp and kin, Bayounix take 
  standard weapons and (BAM!) kick them up a 
  notch. Thanks to a discarded hacksaw and a 
  wildly incorrect glasses prescription, a Bayounik 
  man is inspired to forge a vicious Ripper Blade. 
  After selecting and measuring the appropriate 
  Bayounikal element for the blade, the player 
  may choose to make it anywhere from a Size 3 
  to a Size 5 Melee Weapon, according to how he 
  fudges the measurement. He splits the 
  difference and arbitrarily picks a Weapon Size of 
  4. Where a standard Hand Weapon has stats of 
  Cost:2 Use:2 Damage:1d6, his Size 4 Melee 
  Weapon now has stats four times greater. It 
  costs 8CP, has a Use rating of 8, and does 4d6 
  Damage.  
  Size Limit Example: 
  Scorpiosaurus Rex 
  Example: With ratings slipping against 
  sleeker, sexier velociraptor upstarts, 
  Scorpiosaurus Rex is trying to regain popularity 
  with a bionic makeover. 
  The Scorpiosaurus Rex is a Size 3 Creature. 
  With a four-inch Scorpion Tail and two one-inch 
  Claw Blades, it is at its Size Limit of six inches' 
  worth of Weapons. If its owner wants to install a 
  Size 1 set of Eye Lasers in its head, the 
  Scorpiosaurus will have to either lose one Claw 
  Blade or downgrade its Scorpion Tail to Size 3 
  stats, in order to stay within the six inch limit.  
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  53 
  7.4: Taking Action 
   
  Not all Creations are designed for active roles. Objects like trees, 
  warehouses, and bridges perform their duties perfectly well by just sitting 
  there and not wandering off at critical moments. If a Creation is intended 
  for more active tasks, such as moving around, carrying loads, or vaporizing 
  civilians, it will need to have either a Mind of its own, or intelligent Operators at 
  the controls.  
   
  Minds 
  The difference between a Creature and a Vehicle is that a Creature is capable of 
  independent thought and action, whether its brain is composed of meat, circuitry, or 
  magic. If a giant mech requires a minifig to pilot it, then it's a Vehicle; if it can 
  operate independently, it's a Creature.  
   
  Giving life to a Creation is cheap and easy. For a CP cost (minimum 1CP) equal to 
  the Creation's Size, it develops a Mind, becoming a full-fledged Creature with a 
  Skill of 1d6. Additional Skill boosts of +1 
  can be purchased for the same price.  
   
  Creatures with Minds have the same mental 
  abilities as regular minifigs. As long as they 
  have the proper appendages, they can use 
  equipment, open doors, and toss items 
  around as normal. Common sense should be 
  an adequate guide for whether a Creature has 
  the proper body shape to work a stick shift 
  or the fine manipulators to type on a keyboard. In the occasional instances in which 
  players aren't sure, a What I Say Goes roll can quickly resolve the issue with an ad 
  hoc edict or special rules (for instance, an intelligent cockroach can type on a 
  keyboard by jumping real hard, but it takes him twice as long as normal, and he 
  can't use the shift key without the help of a friendly cat). 
  Half Minds 
   
  “Wild animals never kill for sport. Man is the only one to whom 
  the torture and death of his fellow creatures is amusing in 
  itself.” 
  - James Anthony Froude 
   
   
  Creatures with Minds are fully independent, able to form their own 
  strategies and wage effective warfare without supervision. If this doesn’t fit 
  your vision for the Creature, you may elect instead to give it a Half Mind, at 
  one half the cost of a regular Mind. +1 Skill boosts can still be purchased at 
  the full regular price. 
   
   An Incompetent Creature is similar to other full-Minded Creatures, 
  but due to a lack of training, skill, or intelligence, it is prevented it 
  from being an effective combatant. An Incompetent Creature’s Skill is 
  set at 1d6-2 and cannot be raised any further with Skill boosts.  
   
  Examples: Zombies, civilians, zombified civilians, Republicans, 
  corporate middle managers, clone-brand minifigs, ogres, mutants, 
  Democrats  
   
   
  The Minifig  
   
  The minifig is a Size 1 Creature. 
  Minifigs are Creatures too, and their stats 
  can be calculated the same as any other 
  Creature. 
   
  Structure: Ignoring the Surface-element 
  limbs, a minifig's body and head have a 
  Size of 1". A minifig is made of flesh, so 
  his Structure Level is 0, for an Armor of 
  1d6. (Because minifigs are so common, 
  we simplify the 1d6 rating to 4 to cut down 
  on in-game die-rolling.) The minifig's Base 
  Cost is its Size of 1 times one half for its 
  Structure Level of zero, or 0.5 CP.  
   
  Propulsion: A minifig has regular ground-
  based movement, which costs 1CP per 
  2". The minifig's Move of 5" costs 2.5CP 
  total, increasing the minifig's total price tag 
  to 3CP.  
   
  Weapons: The Minifig's weapons are 
  bought separately.  
   
  Mind: A minifig has an intelligent Mind, 
  with a cost equal to its Size rating, or 
  1CP. This completes the minifig and 
  brings its final cost to 4CP.  
   
   
   
   
  If a Creature is clearly Half-Minded but doesn't fit into one of 
  the standard 
  categories, players can make up rules ad hoc for whatever its 
  bizarre impairments may be. 
  Elements shown: Sullis, doughnut 
  Photo Credit: Todd Lehman 
   
  Some Creatures are more intelligent than others.  
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  54 
   A Simple Creature is limited in its ability to make complex strategic decisions, and instead follows a simple set of 
  behaviors. Simple Creatures are given a list of behaviors at the beginning of the battle, and may only behave in 
  accordance with those instructions. A Simple behavior must be fairly specific: “Move to the nearest wounded 
  allies and attempt to heal them” or “Stay close to allied troops and fire at enemy combatants” would be fine 
  behaviors; “Defeat all enemies” and “Win the battle” would not. BrikWars animals are often made Simple for 
  efficiency’s sake, with short behaviors like “flee from any nearby threat” or “if it's nearby and looks edible, try to 
  eat it.” While not technically Creatures, traps are often given Simple behaviors as well, for instance "fire at 
  anything in range and moving" or "if the pressure plate is activated, release poison gas."  
   
  Examples: Kill-bots, golems, summoned elementals, guard dogs, mind-control victims, AOL users, sheep  
   
   A Submissive Creature may have a limited ability to think on its own, but prefers to obey the commands of a 
  master. Under an intelligent minifig’s direction, the Creature may act as intelligently as if it had a full Mind, but if 
  abandoned, the Creature reverts to whatever animal-like behavior seems appropriate: milling around aimlessly, 
  running and hiding, or attacking everything in sight. If another intelligent minifig can catch a masterless Creature, 
  regardless of whether he’s on the same team, the Creature accepts him as its new master.  
   
  Examples: Steeds, androids, grad students, trainees, housepets, work animals, targeting computers, football 
  players, fetishists, cultists  
   
   Subjugated Creatures are restrained or harnessed somehow and 
  forced to cooperate against their will. They may in fact be completely 
  intelligent, but have Half a Mind to break free and run amuck. As long 
  as they are kept in their restraints, they must follow the orders of their 
  captors; if they can be released, they will do whatever they can to 
  prevent being enslaved again. This usually means attacking their 
  captors or fleeing the battlefield, but can also be as simple as just 
  attacking everything in sight, regardless of allegiance.  
   
  Examples: galley slaves, schoolchildren, chain gangs, draft bulls, 
  conscripts, berzerkers, retail employees  
   
  Enhanced Abilities  
  As with minifigs, a Creature with a standard Mind has one Action per turn and 
  can attack with one ranged weapon or two melee weapons. If that's not enough 
  for the species you have in mind, you can purchase additional levels of capacity 
  for the cost of the Creature's original Mind. There are two types of mental 
  capacity:  
   
   Multidexterity 
  Appropriate for Creatures with multiple arms or several natural 
  weapons, Multidexterity increases the number of weapons the Creature 
  can use in a single attack, provided it has enough hands to use them. The 
  Creature can attack and Counter with two additional Close Combat 
  weapons, use one additional weapon in a Ranged attack, or use one 
  additional set of tools for other special actions. The Creature is still 
  limited to one Action against one target during its turn, unless it has also 
  purchased the Multitasking ability.  
   
   Multitasking 
  Appropriate for Creatures with multiple heads or an advanced multiprocessing brain, Multitasking (or "Extra 
  Action") allows a Creature to focus on one additional target during its turn. A Creature with multiple Ranged or 
  Close Combat attacks may divide them between multiple targets in the same turn. A multi-brained or 
  superintelligent Creature can even take two or more completely dissimilar Actions in the same turn (e.g., playing 
  the piano while laying down sniper fire); however, it may not use the same weapon, hand, or equipment item for 
  more than one Action during the turn. It may not use more than two hands or weapons for Actions unless it has 
  also purchased Multidexterity.  
   
   
   
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
  Half-Mind Example: The 
  Warhorse 
  Example: Horses are Submissive Creatures 
  with the following stats:  
   
  SIZE: 2 
  ARMOR: 1d6 (Structure Level 0 x Size 2 = +1 
  CP) 
  MOVE: 10" (2" x 5 = +5 CP) 
  SKILL: 1d6, submissive (Size 2 x Half Mind = 
  +1 CP) 
  WEAPON: Kick or Bite CC UR2 1d6 (Size 1 
  Melee = +2 CP) 
  COST: 9 CP 
   
  This horse's plate mail costs +2 CP, adds +1d6 
  to Armor, and -1" to Move. 
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  55 
  Operators  
  Any Creation can be loaded up with systems and abilities, but if it lacks the 
  intelligence to use them then it’ll need an Operator to take control. 
   
  Controls  
  Ideally, such Creations should include some type of Control Element (a 
  steering wheel, a flight stick, a computer console), but if not, they should at 
  least have a specified Control Area where a minifig has to be if he wants to 
  act as an Operator. Different types of Controls may be able to control the entire 
  Creation (a vehicle’s cockpit, a building’s nerve center, a space station’s 
  bridge, a horse’s saddle), or simply a single system or function (a gunner’s 
  chair, a ship’s wheel, a missile silo's Big Red Button).  
   
  Enemy minifigs can cripple a Creation by destroying its Controls. But better 
  still, they can kill the Operators and commandeer the Controls directly. 
  (Plastic-brick Control systems lack security precautions like passwords or 
  ignition keys.) If more than one team has minifigs in a Control area at the 
  same time, they can each use their Actions to prevent the other from 
  Operating the Creation at all.  
   
  In the rare case that minifigs from allied teams find themselves at the same 
  set of Controls, they cannot each Operate the Creation on their own turns – 
  that would effectively double the Creation’s abilities unfairly. A team can 
  only Operate a system if none of its allies used the same system on the 
  allies' previous turn. This special limitation only applies to allies; when 
  enemies commandeer a set of Controls they can make immediate use of 
  them, for the sole reason that it’s much funnier to let them have instant 
  benefits than to give the original owners any time to react. 
   
  Systems  
  Assuming he has access to the proper Controls, an Operator can use its 
  Action to control one (and only one) System on a Creation, against a single 
  target. This may be any one of the following:  
   
   Propulsion: driving the vehicle – any combination of steering, accelerating, decelerating, etc. Charge attacks are 
  allowed as part of Propulsion (5.4: Charge!). 
   
   Ranged Weapons: firing a single weapon, or a paired set of identical weapons, at a single target (5.3: Ranged 
  Combat). 
   
   Melee Weapons: using a single melee weapon to attack a single target or parry a single attack (5.2: Close 
  Combat). 
   
   Manipulators: lifting, carrying, throwing, dropping, or otherwise manipulating one object or grouped set of 
  objects. 
   
   Devices: activating, deactivating, or otherwise controlling one special-purpose device, such as sensors, shields, 
  transporters, a cloaking device, or a self-destruct function. 
   
  If no Operator is actively controlling a System, it continues doing whatever it is doing – shields stay up, sails stay 
  unfurled, robotic hands maintain their bloody grip on crushed enemy heads. This is most frequently a factor when 
  steering Vehicles. If the driver of a moving Vehicle switches his attention to firing weapons or operating other 
  devices, the Vehicle continues moving in its current direction, at whatever speed it was traveling at the end of its last 
  turn. 
   
  Elements shown: LEGO, Little Armory 
   
  Enhanced Abilites Example: 
  Professor Monkeyhead 
  Example: A pioneer in the field 
  self-bioengineering, the six-armed 
  Professor Monkeyhead is brilliant 
  but insane. 
   
  Once a normal minifig (4CP), the 
  Professor has spent a further +2CP 
  to raise his Skill to 1d6+2, +2CP on 
  Multitasking to engage in three 
  Actions at once, and +1CP on 
  Multidexterity to use any four of his 
  six hands at the same time. His total 
  worth is now 9CP, enough to apply 
  for tenure in his university 
  department. 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  56 
  The Pilot 
   
  Any minifig can drive a Vehicle or direct a Steed, but if they try to do anything else at the same time (applying 
  makeup, talking on a cell phone, targeting enemy airfields with roof-mounted artillery pieces, etc.), then disaster is 
  almost guaranteed. Steering a Creation and operating its weapons or devices are separate Actions, and a regular 
  minifig can only do one or the other in any given turn. Armed Vehicles will often have separate minifigs acting as 
  drivers and gunners; if the driver of a moving vehicle switches to gunning or some other task, the vehicle continues 
  moving in a straight line at its current speed until the minifig returns his attention to driving.  
   
  The exception to this rule is the specially-trained Pilot, who can steer and take a regular Action at the same time. 
  Pilots will usually use this ability to make attacks: a helicopter Pilot might fly in and open up with machine guns, a 
  gangsta Driver might perform a drive-by spraying handgun rounds out the window, and a horse-mounted Rider might 
  charge past and cave in your skull with a spiked mace. Less belligerent Actions are just as easy, although less 
  destructive: a starship Pilot might use his mid-maneuver Action to recalibrate shields, warm up a cloaking device, or 
  activate the passenger compartment ejection system. 
   
  7.5 Taking Damage  
   
   
  “All created things are impermanent.” 
  - Buddha 
    
   
  For minifigs and other small Creations (Size 1 or less), injuries are simple to deal with. Damage higher than their 
  Armor rating kills them; Damage of an equal or lesser amount has no effect.  
   
  A larger Creation takes a little more work. Overcoming its Armor rating doesn’t grant an instant kill. Depending on 
  how large the Creation is, the Damage might only weaken it by stages or break off chunks of individual bricks. 
   
  When attacking a large Creation, players can handle the Damage in two ways. General Damage weakens a target 
  Creation's overall abilities and wears it down by attrition. Component Damage lets attackers focus on destroying an 
  individual system or construction element.  
   
  General Damage  
  Targeting a Creation for General Damage doesn't take a lot of precision – the attacker just has to be able to target any 
  part of the Creation’s central Structure (7.1:Structure). This will often grant a nice bonus to the Attack Roll, since the 
  attacker can take a Size bonus for however much of the Structure is visible to him (+1 bonus per 2” target Size; see 
  5.1: Making Attacks). If the attack strikes Surface rather than Structural elements of the Creation, it damages the 
  Surface elements specifically rather than doing General Damage (see Component Damage, below). 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  57 
  Size Damage  
  As when attacking minifigs, General Damage must first exceed the target’s Armor to have any effect. If it does, the 
  target Creation takes one point of Size Damage, represented by sticking a colored Damage Pip to a prominent spot on 
  the Creation or its baseplate. Black or red 1x1 bricks are the usual choice for Damage Pips, although other elements 
  may be used for convenience or better visibility.  
   
  When a Creation takes a point of Size Damage, its Move is decreased by 1" (to a minimum of 1") and its abilities are 
  reduced as if its Size were one inch worse. The weapons and devices it can activate during a turn and the Creation's 
  maximum Momentum in a Charge attack are decreased as if it were one inch smaller.  
   
  If a Creation's Size Damage is enough to reduce its effective Size to zero, the Creation is destroyed in the manner that 
  seems most appropriate. Towers collapse, spaceships explode, whales go belly-up, zeppelins burst into flame, and 
  pirate ships sink to the briny bottom. Creations of Size 1" (and Vermin of Size 0") are destroyed on the first point of 
  Size Damage.  
   
  Component Damage 
  When an attacker wants to focus damage 
  on a Creation’s particular weak point, he 
  may single out an individual construction 
  element or a small area (Size 1" or less) 
  for Component Damage. This takes a 
  little more accuracy than a General attack 
  - many elements are small enough to 
  incur Attack Penalties for size, although 
  a rare few are large enough to confer a 
  bonus (5.1: Making Attacks). The 
  advantage of Component Damage is that 
  the targeted sections will often have 
  much lower Armor ratings than the 
  Creation’s main Structure – one Structure 
  Level lower (minimum Structure Level 
  zero) for Surface elements and exposed 
  hinges, and possibly lower still for other 
  decorative features.  
   
  If the Component Damage exceeds the 
  target Component's Armor rating, then 
  the Component is chopped, smashed, or 
  blasted off of the Creation as seems 
  appropriate. The attacker removes either a single building element or a chunk of bricks up to 1” in Size. Where 
  possible, players should try to make the damage appropriate to the attack type – piercing armor plating with an energy 
  blade makes a much smaller hole than pounding it with mortar fire.  
   
  If a Creation is made up primarily of a single large element, it's poor form to try and use Component Damage to try 
  and destroy the whole thing in one hit. Use General Damage, or choose a specific feature to disable rather than 
  destroying the whole element. 
   
  Applications  
  The precision of a Component Damage attack allows for several possible applications. A tank's armor, a castle wall, 
  and a dragon's ribcage can all be breached to expose the juicy innards to more effective follow-up attacks. Critical 
  devices like steering wheels, helicopter blades, and kneecaps can be targeted and disabled individually.  
   
  By targeting narrow connection points (the tail section of a helicopter or the waist of a giant wasp), a successful 
  Component Damage attack can divide one large Creation into two or more small ones. The Size Ratings of the new 
  smaller Creations are reduced to reflect their new stature, but each inherits the full Size Damage of the original 
  Creation, which may mean that one or both are instantly destroyed. Each section may only use whichever weapons 
  and devices remain attached to it, and only if it has the necessary remaining Size rating and controls to activate them.  
   
  Never having been known for its sense of fair play, this Mega Bloks dragon aims for a particular weak 
  spot while making a bite attack on its LEGO counterpart. Finer points of reptilian anatomy aside, it 
  wouldn't be unreasonable for players to grant this attack a couple extra dice of damage or some 
  especially crippling side effect. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks  
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  58 
  Special Damage  
  When the Damage from an attack is much higher or much lower than the target's Armor rating, players may decide to 
  use special forms of Damage to account for the effects. Special Damage takes a little more work than the usual kinds 
  and should be saved for appropriate special occasions. 
   
  Grinding  
  Given enough time, a woodcutter's axe can chop down a redwood, a battering 
  ram can beat down reinforced gates, and a hammer and chisel can punch a leak 
  in the hull of a submarine. When the Armor of a target is too great to ever be 
  overcome in a single attack, Grinding Damage can be used to grind down the 
  Armor statistic over the course of several turns. Grinding can be used in either 
  a General or Component attack. The weakened Armor rating only applies to 
  future attacks of the same type against the same target or component.  
   
  Grinding is different from a regular attack, and a player must declare that he is 
  Grinding before rolling for Damage. Rather than comparing the Damage total 
  to the target's Armor rating, he compares the result on each individual Damage 
  die to the target's Structure Level (e.g., a target with Armor rating 4d10 has an 
  Structure Level of 4 (7.1: Structure)). For each die that comes up greater than 
  the Structure Level, the target receives one point of Grinding Damage (use 
  Damage Pips to record this if necessary). The Grinding Damage is added to the 
  Damage of all future attacks against that target. 
   
  Overkill  
  Especially powerful attacks may cause enough Damage to inflict multiple 
  points of Size Damage or destroy several Components all at once. Normally, 
  attack Damage in excess of a target's Armor rating is ignored. If players think 
  the excess would be enough to overcome the target's Armor again, then the 
  excess amount can be treated as Overkill Damage.  
   
  When an attacker decides to go for Overkill, the defender must roll its Armor once again versus the remaining 
  Overkill Damage to see if the target takes another point of Size Damage or loses another Component. If the Damage is 
  high enough, there might even be another round of Overkill from the Overkill; the process may repeat until there is 
  either no more Overkill Damage or the target is destroyed.  
   
  Besides doing multiple Damage levels to a single large target, Overkill can also be used to blast through a group of 
  smaller ones. With enough Damage and lucky positioning, the Overkill from a single attack might blow through 
  several targets in succession. Normally, Overkill Damage is applied to the same target (or a different part of the same 
  target) as the original Damage. But if the target is broken through, blasted aside, or destroyed, then the Overkill 
  continues on in the direction of the attack, striking whatever new targets fall along its path, to the attack's maximum 
  range. A battleaxe is limited by the maximum reach of its swing, a laser blast by its maximum linear range, and a 
  Charging bull by the maximum distance he's able to run in a straight line. Overkill Damage past the attack's maximum 
  Range has no further effect and is lost.  
   
  Eric Joslin's giant slays a series of Greg's minifig 
  troops with a single mighty swing of his flail. 
  Photo: Eric Joslin 
  "NELUG Gets Medieval," Nov. 2000 
  Winners: a flock of sheep  
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  59 
  7.6 Creation Combat 
   
  In combat, Creations follow the usual attack sequence, choosing between 
  Ranged, Close Combat, or Charge attacks, making Attack Rolls against their 
  weapons’ Use ratings, and rolling for Damage against their targets’ Armor.  
   
  Depending on its Mind, a Creature might do all of this as independently as 
  any minifig. If a Creation lacks a Skill rating of its own, it will need a minifig 
  or other intelligent Operator at the controls (7.4: Taking Action) whose Skill 
  rating can be used instead. If a Creature has both a Mind and an Operator, 
  then the Operator gives the commands but the Creature uses its own Skill 
  Rating when making attacks. 
   
  Close Combat  
  (see 5.2: Close Combat) 
  A Creation with a Close Combat weapon can use it to whack at targets the 
  same way a minifig might. However, Creations are not always able to 
  participate fully in the back-and-forth attacks of formal Close Combat. There 
  are specific conditions under which Creations may have their abilities 
  limited. 
   
   Mindless: Unlike independent Creatures, a Creation being piloted 
  by an Operator lacks the necessary reflexes to Counter attacks. 
   
   Too Big: Larger combatants lack the reflexes to Counter against 
  opponents much smaller than themselves. A Creature can Counter 
  against an opponent with half its Size rating, but no smaller. Only a 
  Size 0 Creature can Counter against another Size 0 Creature. 
   
   Unmoving: Creations without a leaping ability cannot use an Angry 
  Inch when making their attack. 
   
  Ranged Combat  
  (see 5.3: Ranged Combat) 
  Minifigs are able to change facing instantly and swing their arms to point 
  weapons in any direction. Depending on their type of Propulsion system and the way their weapons are mounted, 
  some Creations may be much less flexible.  
   
  To make a Ranged attack, a Creation must be able to point its weapon at its target. The aiming doesn't have to be 
  perfect, however - players are allowed to fudge the angle by up to forty-five degrees. Both the firing angle and the 
  weapon Range are measured from the end of the weapon barrel. (Building a telescoping barrel to take advantage of 
  this fact is perfectly legal, but the Weapon Size must be measured at the barrel’s shortest length.) 
   
  Players can mount a Creation's weapons on any type of turret, hinge, or arm to cover a wider firing arc. This has no 
  extra cost, but remember that any moving parts involved are automatically at two Structure Levels lower than the rest 
  of the Creation (7.1: Structure: Structure Level).  
   
  Charge Attacks  
  (see 5.4: Charge!) 
  Charge attacks are much the same for Creations as they are for minifigs, paying special attention to the proper 
  Momentum limits according to Size. 
   
  A very large Creation making a Charge attack may be able to plow through several smaller targets before grinding to a 
  halt. Overkill (7.4: Taking Damage: Special Damage) works slightly differently in a Charge than in other types of 
  attacks. It doesn’t matter whether the target is destroyed as much as whether it's knocked away; Overkill from a 
  Charge is limited by Momentum rather than by Damage. The Charging unit rolls its Momentum (MOMd6) only once; 
  the total is whittled away by the Physical Opposition (POPd6) of each target that it strikes, until there is not enough 
  left to knock a target out of the path of the Charge.  
   
  Manual Fire 
   
  The namesake model of LEGO set 8873: "Fireball 
  Catapult" uses a rubber band to power a pull-back 
  fireball launcher. 
  A recent trend in the "official" construction-toy model 
  designs is to have projectiles that can really be fired, 
  whether powered by springs, rubber bands, or the 
  flick of a finger. 
   
  If you would like to fire one of these weapons by 
  hand rather than rolling dice when you make an 
  attack, consider the following rules: 
   
  Strike Order: The first spot the projectile hits is 
  where the attack lands. Amy successive hits are 
  ignored, unless the weapon is a type that fires a 
  continuous stream (e.g., a flamethrower) or has a 
  projectile that could believably blow through several 
  targets (e.g., a cannon). 
   
  Range Limitation. No matter how far the projectile 
  actually flies, only the strikes within the weapon's 
  listed range are counted. 
   
  Disarray: Players should discuss whether any units 
  or objects knocked over by the projectile should stay 
  knocked over in the game. 
   
  Mulligans: If the projectile fails to clear the weapon 
  barrel or dribbles limply out the end, the player may 
  declare a Mulligan and take the shot over, either by 
  trying Manual Fire again or by rolling dice. Each 
  Mulligan used inflicts a -1 penalty to Damage for that 
  attack. 
   
  
  - Chapter Seven: Special Creations - 
  60 
  Trampling 
  An attacker can’t Charge the same unit twice; if a unit is Knocked Back into the path of a Charge, the attacker is 
  stopped rather than Charging the unit again. However, if the target has been Knocked Over and is low enough that the 
  Charging unit can run over the top of it without having to jump or climb, then the Charging Unit has the option to 
  Trample the target and continue onward. A Trampling unit does its own Size in bonus Damage, added on top of 
  whatever Damage had already been done in the initial impact.  
   
  The maximum range of Charging Overkill only extends as far as the attacker's stright-line movement. If the attacker 
  stops, swerves, or turns from its course, the Overkill ends. 
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  61 
  Chapter Eight: Squads 
   
   
  Just like a BrikWars player, an Officer's job is to send as many of his minifigs as possible to a 
  horrifying yet entertaining death. He doesn't get any medals for getting killed himself! 
   
   
  “None of us is as dumb as all of us." 
  - Despair Incorporated, "Meetings" 
   
  A turn spent trying to run this many units individually could literally take hours. Broken into Squads, the battle will still  
  take awhile, but there's a much greater chance of players reaching the second turn. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks, Little Armory 
   
  Four soldiers working separately can complete four soldier-sized tasks, but combine those troops together into a 
  finely-tuned combat machine, and they become something greater: a Squad. And Squads can accomplish the big 
  missions that individual soldiers can only dream of. 
  Of course, many other types of units can be grouped into Squads besides just the soldiers - Squads of horsemen or assault helicopters operate by the same rules. 
  A Squad is much simpler to handle if it's composed of identical or similar units (a group 
  of knights all on horseback, a squadron of starfighers), but heterogeneous Squads are 
  just as common (a catapult and its defending crew, a necromancer and his summoned 
  undead). 
  Using Squads offers a number of advantages over handling units individually. 
  Efficiency 
  Efficiency is the number one reason to form a Squad. BrikWars games take long enough 
  as it is; there's no need to slow things down further by handling troops separately when 
  you can run big groups of them at once. 
  Combined Firepower 
  There's only so much damage an individual trooper can do, and many targets have the 
  kind of Armor that's beyond his ability to penetrate. By combining forces with a bunch of 
  his buddies, he can increase his firepower significantly. 
  Giant Attack Rolls 
  If you have a pile of identical troops making identical attacks with identical weapons, you 
  can roll all their Attack and Damage Rolls together in two giant handfuls of dice. The 
  intimidation factor alone is extremely satisfying. 
  Safety in Numbers 
  It's a lot easier to kill one guy than to kill a whole bunch of guys watching each other's backs. Because incoming attacks are spread among the Squad members, 
  individual kills are less likely, and low-ranking soldiers make great meat shields for more important units. 
  Hand-to-Hand Scariness 
  If you hit a guy and he hits you back, you're in a fair fight. If you hit a guy and a dozen guys hit you back, it might be time to re-think your tactics. Strength in 
  numbers makes a big difference in Close Combat. 
  Flexibility Squads can divide and re-form to adapt to any condition - two medium Squads giving each other cover can suddenly combine into one big Squad to take 
  down a heavy target or break into a dozen indivudal troops to confuse pursuit.  
  Squad Appreciation 
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  62 
  8.1: The Squad Plate 
   
  The difference between a random group of soldiers and a Squad is 
  organization, and the expression of that organization is the Squad's Formation. 
  Even if the units' arrangement appears to be random, every man in the Squad 
  knows the location and condition of every one of his Squaddie comrades, and 
  they coordinate their efforts to achieve the Squad’s mutual goal. 
   
  Formations have three important features: the Squad Plate on which the units 
  are placed, the Standard they rally around, and the arrangement of the units 
  themselves. The Squad Plate is used to determine what spaces they can move 
  through and to engage in Close Combat, the Standard is used as the measuring 
  point for calculating range and movement distances, and the arrangement of 
  units determines the distribution of location-based damage from explosions or 
  Charge attacks. 
  Squad Plates 
  The constructible nature of brick warriors makes them easy to group into quick 
  formations – just take all the Squad members and stick them to a shared 
  baseplate. 
   
  The Squad Plate, in effect, combines a number of lesser units into a single super-unit. Instead of having to move 
  Squad members around individually, you can now pick up the Squad Plate and move them all at once. Instead of 
  running individual Squaddies' Attacks, you roll Attacks for the Squad Plate all together. Instead of having to touch 
  each Squad member to the objects they want to act on, you touch the object with the Squad Plate and all the Squaddies 
  gain access to it implicitly. 
   
  The Squad Plate should be an appropriate size for the Squad. As a very general rule of thumb, there should be a 2x4-
  stud area for each minifig on foot, for example, or 4x8 for each rider on horseback. These numbers can be fudged 
  quite a bit, however, depending on the sizes of available plates in the players’ collections, and whether the troops need 
  to be arranged in some specific formation. Munchkin players will try to pack their troops on the smallest baseplates 
  they can get away with, but a couple of friendly group beatings from the other players should help deter any funny 
  business in this regard. 
  The Standard 
  When measuring distances to or from a Squad, players might try estimating an 
  arbitrary point towards the middle of the Squad from which to measure, but the 
  imprecision of this method will tend to cause arguments. The better method is 
  to give the Squad a Standard from which all range and movement distances 
  are measured. 
   
  Banners and flags are the most typical Standards, but any special decoration or 
  equipment item can be used if it's appropriate to the battle – a modern police 
  Squad might be organized around whoever’s holding the communications 
  radio; a Squad of Civil War cavalry might organize around whoever’s blowing 
  the bugle. For quickly-improvised Squads, the Standard might be defined as 
  simply as "the guy standing in the middle." As long as all players are clear 
  about which object represents the Standard for each Squad, almost any item 
  can be used. 
   
  If an object is used as a Standard then it should ideally be carried by or 
  mounted on one of the units. If that's too impractical, then the object can 
  simply be attached directly to the Squad Plate. The only restrictions are that the 
  Standard must be positioned near the center of the Squad, and that players 
  can’t cheat and move it around to improve their measurement results later on. 
   
  A Standard doesn’t necessarily have any “existence” as an in-game object if it's not convenient. Its main purpose is to 
  act as a symbol for the players rather than as a physical equipment item for a unit (although a Standard may be 
  mounted on a "real" equipment item, such as a pennant that’s attached to a knight’s lance). A soldier holding a banner 
  in one hand may still use a Two-Handed Weapon held in the other hand as if he weren't holding the banner. 
   
   
  Tired of flintlock muskets, this squad of redcoats 
  can't wait to give the rebel colonists a taste of their 
  new submachineguns. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Best Lock 
   
  Holy icons make good standards for especially 
  religious Squads, as shown by these dung-
  worshipping Dungans and their sacred Poo-On-A-
  Stik.  
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  63 
  Standards don’t cost any CP, and players may choose to add or remove Standards from the battle at will as new 
  Squads form and old Squads dissolve. In general, minifigs should not be allowed to use a “non-existing” Standard as a 
  weapon or tool (especially a Standard that “magically appeared” in the middle of battle) unless they’re using it to do 
  something funny enough that the other players are laughing too hard to object. 
  The Units 
  How a player decides to arrange the units on a Squad Plate is an 
  aesthetic decision more than anything else. Movement and weapon 
  ranges are based on the location of the Standard, and in most cases 
  Damage is distributed evenly among the Squad members regardless of 
  their placement. Although the plastic figures appear to remain in static 
  positions on the plastic baseplate, in game terms they are potentially 
  at all positions on the baseplate at once, the tactical equivalent of 
  quantum particles. 
   
  Regardless, the units should be arranged in such a fashion that they 
  could believably make their attacks. A heavy cavalry charge works a 
  lot better when the horses run side-by-side than in a single-file line, 
  and soldiers packed together like sardines are going to have a hard 
  time swinging poleaxes or firing rifles. 
   
  While unit positions are ignored for most normal types of Damage, it 
  becomes important again in cases where a Squad is damaged by 
  location-specific effects. In some cases this will be determined by 
  where the Squad is standing when the effect is set off, such as when a 
  booby trap is activated or when they are struck by an unexpected 
  freight train. In other cases an attack may be distributed among the Squad members as usual, but have secondary 
  location-specific effects - a bazooka blast could be distributed to any member of the Squad, for instance, but the 
  Explosion damage that follows is then treated as a location-based effect centered on that unit. 
  8.2: Forming Up 
   
  At the beginning of a battle, players can group their units into Squads however 
  they like, assigning Squad Plates and Formations according to whim. Once the 
  battle is underway, the soldiers have a lot more on their minds, and they aren’t 
  always so quick to reorganize on the fly.  
   
  Changing Formation  
   
   
   
   
  As long as a player doesn’t have to add a new Squad Plate to the field, or change 
  the size of an existing one, most simple types of reorganization have no special 
  cost. Leaving a Squad costs no penalty to a unit or to the rest of the Squad; the 
  unit simply declares itself independent and walks off the Squad Plate. Rearranging 
  the units already on the Squad Plate is also free, unless a player is trying to abuse 
  this ability to cheat a couple of free extra movement inches for one or more of the 
  units. When in doubt, you can force the offending unit to pay the extra inches for 
  moving across the Plate, but in most cases there’s no reason to bother.  
   
  If units reorganize in a way that requires a player to set up a new Squad Plate or 
  resize an old one, or if new units join up with an already-existing Squad, then 
  things get more complicated. Any time a unit is placed onto a new or different Squad Plate, it must Form Up with the 
  new Squad, which counts as an Action for the turn. If the unit doesn't have an Action to spend then he can't Form Up, 
  regardless of how tempting the invitation may be. If he is able to Form Up, because it costs him his Action, the unit is 
  prevented from participating in any Action the Squad might take later in that turn. (But see The Officer, below, for 
  ways to avoid the Action cost of Forming Up.) 
  The ambassador from Reptilia keeps his personal medik close 
  at hand, and puts as many armored bodies as possible 
  between himself and possible danger. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Little Armory 
   
  The Action Cost 
  Why does Forming Up cost an Action? It 
  doesn't seem like joining a new group 
  should prevent a new member from doing 
  anything else, right?  
   
  One of the most important aspects of 
  miniatures wargaming is finding ways to 
  keep things moving - every unit has so 
  many options that the game can bog down 
  in the details extremely quickly. 
   
  BrikWars' primary mechanic for managing 
  this complexity is to limit each unit to one 
  Action per turn. It's a strict limit to how 
  much game-slowing complexity a unit can 
  produce. 
   
  Slowing down the game should always 
  have a cost. Reorganizing a Squad can 
  slow things down enough that, in order to 
  preserve game momentum, the 
  participating units have to sacrifice their 
  Actions to compensate.  
  “The ultimate in disposing one's troops is to be without ascertainable shape. Then the most 
  penetrating spies cannot pry in nor can the wise lay plans against you.” 
  - Sun Tzu 
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  64 
   
  Example: Joining Forces 
  Example: Throwing on blue livery and running around with swords 
  and shields doesn't appeal to just anyone, so when these swordfighting 
  enthusiasts encounter like-minded individuals, they're eager to join 
  together and adopt a silly group name. 
   
  In this case, a blue-shirted swordsman encounters two similarly 
  dressed Squads of two swordsmen apiece. The Squad Plate of the 
  closer group is rather optimistically sized, large enough to support all 
  five swordsmen, so they elect to all pile on board and name 
  themselves Shadowhawks. 
   
  The lone swordsman and the two swordsmen from the smaller Squad 
  Plate spend their Actions to join the larger plate. For the two 
  swordsmen already on the Squad Plate, there's no cost to remain there 
  as the other three join. If the newly-reformed Squad takes an Action 
  this turn, only those two swordsmen will be able to participate; the 
  three that joined during the turn have already spent their Actions. 
   
   
  An individual and two small Squads of swordsmen 
  join together to form a larger Squad. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
  Example: Splitting Up 
  Example: A squad of Coke-loving Shadowhawks is horrified to 
  discover that two of their brothers-in-arms are secretly Pepsi drinkers. 
  Unable to resolve their differences, they are forced to go their separate 
  ways. 
   
  Two of the swordsmen split off from the original Squad of seven in 
  disgrace. Forming their new smaller Squad of two costs them their 
  action for the turn. The five swordsmen remaining in the orginal 
  Squad continue using the original, suddenly-roomier Squad Plate, so 
  they retain their Actions and may use them to sneak-attack the 
  departing group from behind. 
   
   
  A Squad of seven swordsmen splits into Squads 
  of two and five. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
  Example: Changing Formation 
  Example: After losing a few members to meddling girlfriends, these 
  four remaining swordsmen no longer need such a large Squad Plate. 
  They tighten up their Formation to present a smaller target against 
  further girl interference. 
   
  Changing Formation doesn't carry any cost on its own if the Squad 
  Plate remains the same, but in this case, because of the switch from 
  one Squad Plate to another, the Squad must Form Up again and spend 
  its Action to change to the new, smaller plate. 
   
   
  A Squad of four swordsmen tightens formation. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
  There are many cases in which a unit might leave a Squad and later rejoin it in the same turn (most often when a 
  Squad breaks formation to navigate a difficult obstacle and re-Forms when it reaches the other side). However, the 
  opposite is not allowed: units joining a Squad are not allowed to leave again until the following turn. Such tactless 
  behavior would be the Squad equivalent of a one night stand, and no Squaddie would dream of treating his mates with 
  such disrespect.  
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  65 
   
  Example: Breaking Formation 
  Example: The brotherhood of this Squad is too strong to be disrupted 
  by women or cola selection, but the narrow passages of this rocky 
  terrain will require them to break formation if they hope to continue 
  forward.  
  Because their Squad Plate is too wide to fit through the narrow 
  archway, the soliders must break up and move through individually 
  before spending their Actions to re-Form on the other side.  
  The player doesn't have to actually separate the minifigs to act out 
  their individual trips in most cases, unless for some reason the soldiers 
  are interrupted in mid-transit. He can usually just pick up the Squad 
  Plate from one side of the obstruction and deposit it on the other, 
  spending the Action and leaving the breaking and reforming implied. 
   
   
  A large Squad must squeeze to fit through a tight 
  arch. 
  Elements shown: LEGO 
   
   
  The Officer 
  Losing Actions every time a Squad changes formation is inconvenient at best. Fortunately, new squaddies can get 
  organized and sent into fresh Action immediately if they just have a little trained leadership. 
   
   
   
   
   
  While not Heroes in their own right, there are certain minifigs that are possessed of a stubborn mindset that leads them 
  to push themselves and their comrades harder than most would find reasonable. While this results in abilities slightly 
  improved from those of their peers, it is their special pigheadedness rather than their other skills that qualifies these 
  minifigs for Officer training.  
  In most regards, an Officer is nothing more than a slightly-improved Minifig with a couple extra decorations. He has a 
  Skill of 1d6+1, a Move of 6”, and Armor of 1d6+2. His one special advantage is his Leadership training, which allows 
  him to organize new Squads or reorganize existing ones and put them into immediate Action. Any time an Officer is 
  involved with creating, reorganizing, joining, or splitting a Squad, the usual Action cost for Forming Up is cancelled. 
  Units may Form Up and immediately join in with the Squad’s Action for the turn. Even units who've already spent 
  their Action may still Form Up for free. 
  Squads that expect to reorganize frequently in response to enemy tactics should always start with at least one Officer. 
  Squads lacking Officers will want to avoid reorganizing as much as possible, to avoid the Action cost involved. 
  “A team effort is a lot of people doing what I say.” 
  - Michael Winner 
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  66 
   
  Example: Splitting Up 
  Example: As a parting gift, the benefits of an Officer's Leadership 
  even extend to groups of units breaking off from his Squad to form 
  new ones. In the example shown, a large Squad of an Officer and 
  seven swordsmen break into three smaller Squads. All three of the 
  new Squads have switched to smaller baseplates, but thanks to the 
  residual effects of the Officer's Leadership, none of the three have to 
  spend their Actions to do so. 
   
   
  An Officer directs his Squad to split up and search 
  for clues. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks, Little 
  Armory 
   
   
  8.3: Squad Movement 
   
  For the purposes of Squad Movement, a Squad Plate is treated very much like a single unit. Its Move rating and 
  abilities are limited to those of its Squad's slowest and least able members. A Squad runs as fast as its worst runner, 
  jumps as high as its worst jumper, climbs as fast as its worst climber, and so forth. 
   
  A Squad's travel is measured by the movement of its Standard – a Move of 5” means the Standard can travel five 
  inches over the course of the turn, regardless of whatever twists and spins the Squad Plate may perform underneath it. 
   
  Obstacles 
  The main difference between moving a Squad and moving one of its members is that a Squad Plate is naturally much 
  larger, and doesn’t move as easily through confined spaces as an individual unit might. Doorways, corridors, stairs, 
  and terrain obstacles may be too constricted for the full width of a Squad Plate to fit through; the Squad will need to 
  either split up or find other ways around the obstacles in order to proceed. Players should try to optimize their Squad 
  sizes for the environments they expect to operate in – room-to-room combat favors much tinier groups than battles 
  across an open plain. 
   
  Example: Rough Terrain 
  Example: Squads can deal with rough terrain like this in two ways: 
  they can remain in formation and sacrifice a few Movement inches to 
  climb over the rubble, or they can break formation to thread through 
  individually and spend an Action to form back up afterwards. 
   
  When there's an Officer in the group, the choice is a lot easier - 
  breaking and reforming is free. 
   
   
  An Officer leads his Squad out of a cursed temple. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Mega Bloks, Little 
  Armory 
   
   
  A Squad Plate is also restricted by the fact that it can’t stop half-way into a maneuver, or at any spot not large enough 
  for the whole Squad to stand. For example, a Squad climbing over a wall must have enough Move to get the entire 
  Squad Plate to the other side; it can’t end the turn while only partway over. The Squad may have to wait at the base of 
  the wall for its full Move to reset at the beginning of the next turn (if that would be enough to get it over the wall), or it 
  may have to split up and allow its members can climb over the wall individually. 
   
  Note that even if the Squad has enough Move to make it over the wall, enemies may be able to interrupt with 
  Response Actions and prevent the Squad from doing so. If the Squad’s Movement is disrupted in any way that 
  prevents it from clearing an obstacle by the end of its Move, the Squad is Rebuffed and must either break Formation 
  or return to its last legal position. 
   
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  67 
   
  Infantry and Cavalry Squads 
   
   
   
  Squads are divided into two types, depending on 
  their composition. A Squad composed entirely of 
  minifigs, or of units that can move like minifigs 
  (animals, some robots, humanoid aliens), is called 
  an Infantry Squad. An Infantry Squad is treated in 
  much the same way as a regular minifig – it can 
  instantly face in any direction, or run, jump, climb, 
  and swim in a minifig’s standard fashion. 
  Any Squad that contains vehicles (chariots, pirate 
  ships, starfighters), ridden animals (horses, dragons, 
  giant spiders), or any other unit or device that is 
  directed or operated by another unit (catapults, 
  undead slaves, artillery pieces), is a Cavalry 
  Squad. A Cavalry Squad’s abilities are determined 
  by those of its Squad members as usual, but with two further restrictions: 
   Cavalry units can’t turn as quickly as Infantry can. When turning, a Cavalry Squad Pivots around one of its 
  Squad Plate's front corners. The smaller the Squad Plate, the more tightly the Squad can turn. 
   Cavalry units in Formation can’t sidestep or pull other such lateral maneuvers. A Cavalry Squad can only move in 
  the direction it is facing, or backwards at half speed. A Squad of Cavalry butted up against a wall may have to 
  break Formation in order to get itself turned around. 
   
  8.4: Squad Action 
   
  Like individual minifigs, Squads are allowed one Action per turn. Some Actions will involve only one or a portion of 
  the Squad’s members, but most will involve them all. Any regular Action is possible, as long as there's not a specific 
  Squad member preventing it - a Squad of minifigs could use their Action to Sprint, for instance, but it won't do them 
  any good if the Squad also includes a slow Combat Snail holding it back. 
   
  If some Squad members don’t participate in the Squad's Action, their individual Actions are wasted - the Squad 
  doesn’t get to take a second Action to give the unused units something to do. If those members want to use their 
  individual Actions for something other than the main Squad’s Action for the turn, they’ll have to split away from the 
  Squad. 
   
  Even if they're not identical, attacks that are similar enough can be grouped into a single Squad Action. A Squad can 
  declare a general Close Combat attack even if some units are using paired sabers and others are swinging battleaxes. 
  Similarly, a Squad making a Ranged Attack might have some units firing blowguns and others throwing knives. This 
  is perfectly legal. Dissimilar attack types cannot be combined: a Squad of spearmen can’t have half its members using 
  their spears to Charge while the other half throws theirs in a Ranged Attack. 
   
  All For One and One For All 
  When handling a Squad, the Squad Plate stands for all the units in the Squad. If the Squad Plate climbs over a wall, 
  each of its members takes the Move penalty, even if the wall would realistically hamper only few. If a Squad Plate is 
  hit by a truck, the Squad members Brace to absorb the impact as a group, even if only a couple of Squaddies appear to 
  be in the truck’s path. If a Squad’s standard is five inches from a target, then all the members make their Ranged 
  Attacks from a distance of five inches, no matter where they stand in the formation. If a Squad enters into Close 
  Combat with a target, then all of the members are engaged in Close Combat, even the ones standing far to the rear. In 
  a Squad, what goes for one goes for all. 
  There are two main exceptions to this rule. The first is that Damage to a Squad can be distributed to individual 
  members in uneven ways (8.5: Squad Combat). The second is that there’s a limit to how many Squad members can act 
  on a single small object at the same time. 
   
   
  Cavalry Squads can't zig-zag left and right the way an Infantry Squad can. They have to 
  wheel around their Squad Plate's front corners in order to turn. 
  Elements shown: LEGO, Red Bean Studios 
   
  ““There are not enough Indians in the world to defeat the Seventh Cavalry.” 
  - General George Armstrong Custer 
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  68 
  Touch Limitations 
  If a Squad or Squad Plate is touching an object, then any single Squad member can be considered to be touching that 
  object, no matter where in the formation he is standing. But some objects are too small for large numbers of Squaddies 
  to handle during a single turn. No more than three Squad members can touch a minifig or 2x4-sized object, no more 
  than two can touch a 2x2-sized object, and only one can touch a 1x1-sized object in a single turn (note that these are 
  the same size distinctions used for Attack Modifiers for Target Size (5.1: Making Attacks)). 
  If units need to touch an object in order to make a specific Action, then the number of Squad members able to take that 
  Action may be limited. This is especially important in Close Combat and Charge attacks, where it puts a limit on the 
  number of hits a target minifig can take in a single round of combat. 
  Players are free to argue other cases as they become necessary – how many minifigs can attack a hot dog stand at 
  once, for instance? – but in most cases the point will be moot. If there are enough minifigs making successful Attack 
  Rolls that the question comes up, then the hot dog stand is probably toast regardless. 
  8.5: Squad Attacks 
   
  Attacking with Squads is much like any attack with multiple units (5.1: Making Attacks: Combined Attacks). Attack 
  Rolls are combined into a single toss of a giant pile of dice, and the resulting Damage is combined in a similarly 
  massive roll. The larger the Squads you have in play, the more dice you’ll need; in fact, the number of dice available 
  makes a good practical limit for the size of the Squads you’ll want to field. 
  The limitation on Squad attacks is that, because a Squad is limited to one Squad Action in a given turn, all of the 
  Squaddies’ attacks must be of the same basic type. While they might not all use the exact same weapons, the Squad 
  has to decide between making a Ranged, Hand to Hand, or Charge Attack for their turn. Squaddies unable or unwilling 
  to participate in the chosen type of attack take no Action that turn, and just hang around uselessly while their 
  Squadmates get the real work done. 
  Although a Squad is limited to a single type of attack for its members, it may still attack cooperatively with other 
  Squads or units using different types of attacks, as usual. 
   
  Ranged Attacks 
  (5.3: Ranged Combat) 
  A Squad making a Ranged Attack is largely the same as any regular group of units engaging in Combined Fire (5.1: 
  Making Attacks: Combined Attacks). For expediency’s sake, rather than measuring Range for each Squaddie 
  individually, the Range for the entire Squad is measured as the distance from the Squad’s Standard to the target. 
  When ready to fire, roll all the Squaddies’ Attack Rolls at once. Count the number of hits, and roll all the resulting 
  Damage Rolls at once. The target takes the entire sum of combined damage; hopefully this will be enough to reduce it 
  to a fine mist. After the effects of the combined damage have been resolved, any missed shots that may have come up 
  in the Attack Rolls can be handled separately (5.3: Ranged Combat: Missed Shots). 
  Example: A Mixed Attack 
  Example: A whole platoon of Death Marines has combined into a single Squad for efficient management on a mission to secure provisions. The mega-Squad 
  contains two dozen grunts armed with Pistols (Short-Ranged Weapons, Use:3 Dmg:1d6), a dozen snipers with Rifles (Long-Ranged Weapons, Use:3 Dmg 1d6+1), 
  and three mobile Artillery units (Use:6, Dmg: 2d10). 
  Since the hastily-assembled Squad has no Standard, the player estimates the center of the Squad Plate as best as he can and measures the Attack Range from 
  that point - the target is four inches away. This places him within the Weapon Range of everyone in the Squad, so they'll all get to attack. 
  Although their weapons have the same Use ratings, the player makes separate Attack Rolls for the grunts and snipers, since their attacks do different amounts of 
  damage. Rolling twenty-four Skill dice for the grunts, eighteen meet the weapons' Use requirement of 3 or better; out of twelve dice for the snipers, five are hits. 
  Only one of the Artillery pieces hits on its difficult Use rating of 6. 
  The resulting damage is eighteen hits of 1d6 from the grunts, five of 1d6+1 from the snipers, and one hit of 2d10 from the Artillery, for a total of twenty-three d6es 
  and two d10s plus five. The player loads the appropriate amount of dice into a bucket (there are too many to fit in his hand), shakes them up, and rolls them into an 
  empty tray. 
  Adding the dice together, the total Damage comes to ninety-eight points (the player elects to forego the option of rolling additional Critical Success dice or tracking 
  any Missed Shots). This is more than enough to overcome the Armor rating of the Squad's target. The fast-food cashier who refused to serve them any lunch-menu 
  items before eleven is reduced to a cloud of reddish particulate matter. The players may now refer to the Overkill rules (7.5: Taking Damage) to determine if any of 
  the kitchen equipment behind him survives. 
  Hand to Hand Attacks 
  (5.2: Close Combat) 
  As with minifigs, a Squad’s melee attack may be as simple as jumping an Angry Inch and doing a dice-pile’s worth of 
  standard Ganging-Up Damage to an unresponsive target (5.1: Making Attacks: Combined Attacks). But if the target 
  fights back, then the Squad is entered into Squad Close Combat, and subject to the standard rules of Close Combat 
  Maneuvers. 
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  69 
  Squad Close Combat 
  Close Combat for Squads works the same way as for regular units, except that a Squad’s Attack is the combined 
  Attacks of all its members, and the Counter of a defending Squad is the combined Counters of its members. If the 
  Squad makes a second Attack, it’s the combination of all its Squaddies' second Attacks, and the defender's second 
  Counter is the combination of its Squaddies' second Counters, according to how many units in each group have a 
  second hand weapon and are still alive to use it. 
   
  In Squad Close Combat, each Attack and Counter involves a full pile of dice, as all of each Squad's members roll in 
  unison for each step and remove casualties afterwards. Squad members must act uniformly – if one Squaddie attacks 
  with two weapons, all his mates able to do so must follow suit. The defending squad, similarly, can’t have some 
  members Parry while others Counterattack – it chooses one Counter for all its members and sticks to it for that step. 
  Parried damage is distributed among the parrying defenders in exactly the same way as regular damage (8.6: Taking 
  Damage). 
   
  Engagement 
  In order to use the full strength of all Squad members in Close Combat, a Squad must fully Engage with its enemies 
  by bringing its Squad Plate into contact with the target. Once Engaged, all members of the Squad may make Close 
  Combat Attacks (and Counters) against that opponent, regardless of where in the Formation they’re standing. 
   
  Although in real life the units remain neatly arranged on their Squad Plates, in game terms a Squad that Engages a 
  target in Close Combat is considered to be all mixed up with that enemy. If either the Squad or the enemy is hit by 
  Ranged Attacks or other non-Close Combat Damage, then the Damage is distributed equally between both of them. 
  The first hit goes to the intended target, and alternates between the two sides afterwards. The alternation may be 
  interrupted if necessary to ensure that no unit among the group of potential targets takes a second hit before all of the 
  targets have taken their first. 
   
  Multiple Squads and units can Engage with the same target, and multiple targets can Engage back, sometimes creating 
  a long chain of Engagements called an Engagement Ring. The chain of Engagements can only connect through direct 
  Close Combat – a Squad can’t connect to the Ring by trying to Engage with another friendly Squad, or by brushing up 
  against an enemy Squad but not attacking them. 
   
  All Squads and units in an Engagement Ring are treated as one giant Close Combat, regardless of how far one end of 
  the Ring is from the other. That is, all attackers across the Ring attack as one group, and all defenders across the ring 
  Counter as one group, rather than fighting in a number of separate engagements. 
   
  Example: An Engagement Ring 
  Example: Tybalt and Mercutio, each armed with rapiers, are fighting in Close Combat. Seeing this, 
  Romeo leaps in to help his friend, attacking Tybalt with a rapier of his own. Two against one seems 
  mighty unfair to a Capulet Squad of swordsmen, who attack Romeo at once. A passing Squad of 
  Montague swordsmen immediately intercede, Engaging with the Capulet Squad in response. The result 
  of all this aggression is a single large Engagement Ring, with Tybalt and the Capulets on one side, and 
  Romeo, Mercutio, and the Montagues on the other. 
   
  Once the dust has settled and all the Montagues lie dead, Tybalt wipes the blood off his rapier and sets 
  off to find his cousin Juliet to boast about his amazing swordsmanship. 
   
   
   
  Two-Handed Weapons and Skirmishing 
  If a Squad attacks without first being Engaged, then Formation matters a lot more – only the Squaddies who can 
  physically strike the target with a weapon from where they’re standing can participate in the attack. This type of 
  limited attack is called Skirmishing, and is usually the best choice for Squads of pikemen or other troops with long 
  Two-Handed Weapons. A Squad can jump back and forth between Skirmishing and full Engagement as a part of 
  Close Combat, depending on how they use their Angry Inch to maneuver around. 
   
  Two-Handed Weapons require a lot of room to swing. For a Squad that's Engaged with an enemy in Close Combat, 
  that's room that the troops don't have. With Two-Handed Weapons, the Squad will have to use its Angry Inch to leap 
  backwards and give themselves room to swing their weapons in a Skirmishing Attack. If the Squad is unable or 
  unwilling to Disengage, the units with Two-Handed Weapons are limited to using them to Shove or Parry only. 
   
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  70 
  Numerical Advantage 
  If one side of a Squad Close Combat greatly outnumbers the other, the smaller Squad or unit may be Overwhelmed. If 
  the larger side has at least twice as many participating fighters as the smaller side, the smaller group has -1 to Skill and 
  Damage while Countering. If the larger side has three times as many fighters, the penalties are worsened to -2. 
   
  Remember that individual minifigs within a Squad can be struck by no more than three Close Combat attackers at 
  once (although each of those attackers might hit multiple times, if they have more than one weapon). Any further hits 
  in excess of this number are wasted. However, the attacker should still roll Damage for all hits, even the excess ones, 
  since he’s free to pick and choose the strongest results when deciding which hits to keep and which to discount. 
   
  Charge Attacks 
  (5.4: Charge!) 
  Charging with an Infantry Squad (8.3: Squad Movement: Infantry and Cavalry Squads) is pretty simple - the Squad's 
  effective Size is the sum of the Sizes of all its units, and the Charge is handled as normal. 
   
  A Cavalry Squad is much less maneuverable, and their Formation becomes much more important. When calculating 
  Momentum and Damage for a Cavalry Charge, only the units in the front row of the Formation are counted, and of 
  those, only those whose path will actually carry them into the target. The rest of the units are unable to participate, and 
  are primarily along to provide moral support and to help resist against KnockBack Damage. 
   
  Plowing Through 
  When a large Squad makes a Charge, it's unlikely that much-smaller Squads or individual units standing in their way 
  are going to be able to block them. A Charging Squad can use its excess Momentum to Plow Through several 
  blocking units, the same way a large Creation might (7.6: Creation Combat: Charge Attacks). 
   
  Bracing 
  When a Squad Braces against a Charge, the entire Squad resists as a unified force, combining the members' Physical 
  Opposition and Charging Weapons. If the Braced Squad is Knocked Back, then the KnockBack is applied to the entire 
  Squad Plate, making them much more difficult to Knock Over. If the collision is strong enough to Knock Over the 
  entire Squad, then the Squad's Formation is broken completely and all its units are Disrupted. 
   
  If the Squad is unable or unwilling to Brace itself, then all the units are treated as separate targets to be Plowed 
  Through - which means that individual members are much more susceptible to Damage and KnockBack, but others 
  might escape getting hit entirely. Units that are Knocked Back far enough to land outside of the Squad Plate are 
  considered to have left the Squad, however involuntarily. 
   
  8.6: Taking Damage 
   
  Targeting A Squad 
  One of the biggest advantages of forming a Squad is that it makes it much harder for enemies to focus Damage on any 
  single unit. The drawback is that targeting a Squad as a whole is much easier than targenting individuals - as long as 
  an attacker can target any unit or object within the Squad, or even the Squad Plate itself, it can make an Attack on the 
  Squad. Furthermore, since Squad Plates are generally larger than minifigs, opponents making Ranged or Charge 
  Attacks on the Squad will usually get an Attack Bonus for Large Target Area (5.1: Making Attacks: Attack 
  Modifiers). (Close Combat Attacks are still based on the Size of the individual units within the Squad, however.) 
   
  There is an exception to this rule: an attacker can target a specific unit within a Squad as long as the target unit is at 
  least twice the attacking unit's Size. Targets any smaller than that are too difficult to distinguish and single out in the 
  chaos of battle. A Rat (Size 0) could single a Peasant (Size 1) out of his Peasant Squad; the Peasant could pick out a 
  Squad-bound mounted Knight (Size 2); the Knight could focus on a specific Giant of Size 4. 
   
   
  
  - Chapter Eight: Squads - 
  71 
  Distributing Damage 
  Single Attacks 
  Whenever a Squad takes Damage from a single attack, the Squad's player may 
  assign the Damage to any single unit within the Squad he wishes. It's customary to 
  choose a unit who could "reasonably" have been struck by the attack - a bruiser 
  using brass knuckles to take a swing at a Squad from one side isn't likely to see 
  the punch land on some guy at the far opposite end, for instance - but a great deal 
  of fudging is allowed in this regard. Squad members are well-known for making 
  crazy leaps in order to take bullets for each other; you might take that Squaddie 
  from the far end, place him on the near side to receive the punch, and claim that 
  he jumped to the rescue just in the nick of time. 
   
  Secondary Effects 
  When the Damage is of a type that has additional location-based effects 
  afterwards, such as when an Explosion is set off, or a massive laser blast has 
  enough Overkill to burn through a whole line of targets, it's less acceptable to be 
  moving units around when distributing the damage. The player may still choose 
  whichever unit he wishes for the initial impact (once again, trying to make a 
  "reasonable" selection if he has any sportsmanship at all), and the side effects then proceed as normal based on 
  wherever that impact occurred and the arrangement of the Formation of units around it. 
   
  Multiple Attacks 
  There are many instances in which a Squad might be hit by multiple attacks at once - the focused attacks from an 
  enemy Squad, a group of enemy units attacking in cooperation, the concentrated firepower of a multi-payload 
  weapons platform, or any combination of the above. The Damage from these attacks is distributed in sequence among 
  the Squad members, chosen by the defending player according to certain rules. 
   
  Rather than assigning Damage as he goes along, the attacking player just rolls all the Damage Rolls at once, separating 
  and arranging them by total Damage in order from greatest to least. 
   
  Starting with the largest and proceeding in order, the defending player assigns the Damage Rolls to each member of 
  the Squad until every Squaddie has taken a hit. If any Squaddies survive and there's still more Damage to deal out, the 
  process is repeated on the survivors until there's either no more Damage Rolls or no more Squaddies. All Squad 
  members must take one hit before any one of them can take a second. All Damage Rolls are cumulative, and 
  Squaddies are removed from the rotation as soon as the Damage is enough to kill them. 
   
  The defending player may choose his stricken Squad members in any order, but if there's enough Damage to go 
  around multiple times, he should do his best to keep to the same order with each new round. 
   
  Multiple Attacks with Secondary Effects 
  If the defending Squad is unlucky enough to get hit by multiple secondary-effect attacks at the same time, get the 
  complicated stuff out of the way first. Handle all Explosions first, all attacks with potential Overkill Damage second, 
  and all normal types of Damage third. In each case, handle all the attacks, ordered from most to least powerful, before 
  moving on to the next Damage type. 
   
  The Pile of Dice 
  Keeping track of a whole bunch of 
  Damage Rolls at once is a lot easier if you 
  have a really big pile of dice. 
   
  A good dice supply will allow you to just 
  leave the Damage rolls as they stand - if 
  you haven't got a big bag handy, you 
  should compensate by keeping your 
  Squad sizes small. 
   
  In a pinch, you can put off rolling any 
  Critical Success Bonus Dice for each 
  Damage Roll until the Damage is actually 
  applied to a unit - Critical hits are more 
  likely to kill their targets, and then you get 
  the dice back immediately to use for the 
  next Critical. 
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Kid Friendly/6. Beginning Miniatures & War Games/BrikWars/BrikWars - 2005 Ed.pdf