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SAGA created by Alex Buchel

The Age of the Wolf campaign system by Warwick Kinrade
Editing and iigging: Lord S

Proo Reading: Duncan Macfar|ane

Photography: Wyn Rogers

Original SACA Craphics: Fred Machu
_
The Age of the wolf layouti wargames lllustrated help@wargamesillustrated.net
Figures in photographs by cripping Beast
DaVe odley, ndey Burt, Tim Dagnall, Darren Harding,
Figures painted by Artmaster Studio, M"att Bazley, Neil Bitten,

DarrenLinington,ColinPatten,DUncanPatten,WynRogers,MysticSpiralsandChrisStone
Shield Transfers by LBMS

CustomTerrainbyWynRogers.AdditionalscenerybyGallia,CrandManner,Renedra&4croUnd
Thanks to Andy FoX, Dan and lan at WI

SAGA:TheAgeoftheWolfispublishedby6rippingBeastLtdWithpermissionofStudioTomahawk

SARL. 11 Nouvelle cite, 67]80 Lingolsheim, France,

SARL
SAGA: Skirmishes in the Dark Ages is o Studio Tomahawk
retrieval system ortranSmitted in any
No 'Part ofthis Publi(ation may be reproduced, stored in a
publisher,
form or by any means without prior Written permission o the
First edition, 2o16

o GriPping Beast Ltd.

CONt]Cl,iCS
Setting up an Age of the Wolf

campaign

Playing an Age of the Wolf campaign

ls,
,l,

...............
New scenarios ..........

The battles

.........

Page

""" Page t4
""", Page t8
""" Page z5

'Wake early if you want another man's lfe or land. There s no

lamb for the lazy wo/f, No battles are won in bed.'
- the Havamal

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Welcome to Age of the Wolf, a multi-player campaign system

for use with the SACA Dark Age Skirmishes rules. This
campaign is 'abstract', in the sense that it does not involve
map movement, issuing orders, recordng supply levels and
other such details of an actual military campaign. lt is a svstem
devised to allow players to create a narrative between linked
games of SAGA, that will tell the story of the rise (and/or fall)
of their warlord and the warband he leads. The aim of the
campaign is to become the most powerful Warlord in the
'region'(not being any particular place or time) and thus,
upon completion of the campaign, to be declared the new
King. lt is a title that can only be won at the edge of a sword,
At the heart of the campaign system is the SAGA game itself.
This is not a campaign that can be won by clever strategies
or manoeuvres with never a tabletop wargame being played.
The point o Age of the Wolf is to encourage games, and it
rewards players that play more games over those that try
and avoid battle. Staying at home, tending the sheep flocks
will not win players any great wealth or renown and whlst
your Warlord and his men might be safe(ish) and live to a ripe
old age, no real king, warlord or hero of the Viking Age ever
died peacefully in his bed. This campaign has been written to
continue that tradition. This was an age when brave deeds,
especiaIly those in battle, won fame, glory and riches. For a
tabletop wargames campaign system this is perfect, because
we want to play games with our miniatures and those that do
so can expect to prosper (or die in the attempt), as the sagas

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This campaign can be played using any SAGA Dark Age force
that is currently available in the rulebook or any of the three
supplements: Northern Fury, The Raven's Shadow or Varjazi
and Basileus. lf players aIready have at least a four point SACA
force then they are ready to play. New players will need
to choose a force, coIlect the miniatures and paint them.
Although the campaign starts with a smalI four point SACA
warband, this wilI grow as it progresses and its Warlord (that's
you) gains extra land, wealth and reputation with which to
build up his forces.

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Within you will find sections on how to set-up and organise

the campaign, how to run the campaign turn, a pre-battle setup sequence and a post-battle sequence, which prepares your
warband for its next encounter. The campaign can be played
with a minimum of two players (it will work just fine, although
all the battles will be between iust two sides) and has no
maximum number of players - in theory. Large campaigns can
be played between club members, but once you start to reach
ten or more players, it is likely the campaign turns will slow
down as players try to fit in all their games. An ideal-sized,
interesting and diverse campaign would include from four to
six players in total.
So, that said, now it is time to sharpen your sword blade, don

your helm, heft your shield and go forth into the Age of the
Wolf. May your Cods favour you and bring you victory!

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'A tale is but half told when only one mdn tells it.'
- the Saga of Grettir the Strong
Campaigns have a lot to offer over stand alone wargames,
Whilst stand alone games are easy to organise, require only
two people (generally) and can be an excellent evening's
entertainment, a campaign creates an enjoyable on-going
story and enhances the hobby by informing each player's
decisions on new models to collect. lt helps provide a driving
force behind painting new models (to get them ready for the
next vital battle) and helps create memorable moments and
talking points that will be the future memories of past games,
ln a campaign, suddenly a win or loss can mean something
beyond the moment, it has an effect which will be felt in
future games. Throughout the course of a campaign, players
will bein to identify more strongly with their forces, The little

models get names and begin to develop their own little bit
of gamng history, This adds to the entertainment and the
drama when the models are on the tabletop. No longer is that
warlord iust any old Viking model, but he is now Jarl lngvar
Redaxe, victor at the Battle of Guthrum's Ford, wounded
taking the gates at Haethburh, hammer o the lrish, a storied
and feared warrior - and your opponents will know that too,
Campaigns are also an excellent method or bringing club
players and wargaming groups together in a common cause,

D6

1-3

Anglo-Dane, Saxon,
Era of Princes Rus

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4-5

Viking, Jomsviking,
Pagan Rus, Norse-Gael

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Suddenly they have something in common, they are collecting

forces for the same games system, discussing the ins and
outs of the rules or the related history, comparing painting
techniques, etc. This sense of a common purpose is enjoyable
in itself, but when added to the drama of a battle which
has consequences, seeing your side win (or lose), then the
whole wargaming hobby experience is enhanced, For many,
including the author, playing in a good campaign is tabletop
wargaming at its peak.

DlcE RoLLlNG coNVENT|oNs

Throughout this book, various dice are referred to, A standard
six-sidd die is referred to as a D6. Occasionally a three-sided
die is needed. This is a standard D6 roll, with the result halved
and any factions rounded up. So, 1-2 = 1, 2-3 = z, 5-6 = 3, The
campaign also uses SAGA dice. These are the dice used when
playing the SAGA game, with each faction having its own
set of symbols, Throughout this book, where SAGA dice are
rolled, for consistency we have used the Anglo-Dane/Saxon

symbols:ffi

Any SAGA dice could be rolled in its place, to give the

equivalent result, see the table below. The gods will obviously
favour those that use their own faction's dice,

sAGA DlcE EqU|VALENcE TABLE

Norman,
Breton, Frank

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Strathclyde Welsh

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"Better to fight and fall than to live wthout hope"
- from the Volsunga Saga

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ln order to play the campaign, you will need a gaming group

to play it with and these players need to commit to collecting,
painting and playing with SAGA forces. Hopefully, many will
already own them. Those that don't will have to do some
initial work to get ready.

An Age of the Wolf campaign can include as many ptayers as

you like, with a minimum of two and an ideat of four to six.
More can be accommodated! Players can also join in mid-way
through the campaign. Likewise, some players might wish to
drop out (surely notl) and perhaps rejoin later. This is fine, the
campaign system can easily cope With these eventuaIities and
can continue with the other players largely unaffected.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED

i, Each player wi|l need a four point SAGA warband
choice. This is the minimum sized warband to start

of his
with,
but warbands will grow (and sometimes shrink) through
the course of the campaign. lt is probably best if the players
actually have slightly larger warbands than four points in
their collection, to allow for expansion and some flexibility.
Of course, players can let the campaign's story guide their
extra units and painting, collecting new units as their Warlord
recruits them. The maximum size for any warband in the
campaign is twelve points.
ii. ln addition to the models and the SAGA Dark Age Skirmishes
rules, each p|ayer will need a copy of the faction rules and

Battle Board for his chosen faction. ldeally, each player will
have a copy of this book. Although one copy per group is
enough to run the campaign, players are going to need it
during and after each game, so a few copies to share around
wil| be helpful. The campaign rulebook does contain a

reference guide at the back, and for those that are confident
of the campaign turn rules, this should be enough to keep

going with their campaign games.

well as their rules and Battle Boards, the players wilI

need the SAGA dice for their faction, a vital part of the game.
They'll aso need measuring sticks and standard six-sided dice,
the usual stuff needed for playing SAGA games,
iii. As

iv. Along with the models, rule books and dice etc, the
gaming group will need some mode| terrain. Each game
is going to require itl lf the games are all being played at
a single venue, Iike a gaming cIub, then obviously a |arger
central reservoir of model terrain to draw upon makes life
easy for everybody. Otherwise, the players will need to
provide their own (t is encouraged that they lend terrain
around where possible).

v. Each player will also require a Campaign Roster. The roster

is vital, as it tracks your Warlord and warband's progress
through the campaign and includes all the important detai|s of

your warband, like unit strengths etc. Each player should have
one roster, keep it safe and brng it to every battle. The roster
is included in this book and copies of the roster can be made

for personal use.

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Once a campaign is underlrlay, each player's warband will
develop, gaining extra units, or extra men for those units
it already has, as well as losng men, slain in battles along
the way. The warband may even lose its Warlord. This does
not mean the warband is defunct, and the campaign allows
players to continue as long as they wish.

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na.io prtviae ihe ;id;t'ies ia. ii.

warband;. ln all cases it is assumed that the players will recycle,
miniatures wherever possible, so if a unit loses 5 men, then
gains 4 as new recruits, the same miniatures will be re-used.
The same goes for the Warlord. lf he should be killed, then his
brother, son, nephew or uncle takes over and continues the
campaign, Players are free to replace the Warlord's miniature
if they like, but it is not required, the same miniature can
return (the family likeness is uncannyl).
There will be times when a player's warband expands beyond
his miniatures collection. Here he will either have to borrow
miniatures from other players or add to his collection with new
miniatures. Over the course of the campaign it is likely that the
players will have to collect and paint new miniatures, but part
of playing in the campaign is giving players the drive to finish
units and add new units to old warbands. When the campaign
is over, a|l the players will have excellent collections which
they can then re-use (in re-runs of the campaign or stand alone
games) to their hearts content. Players should take it as read
that by agreeing to ioin a campaign, they are also agreeing to
develop their SAGA warband as the campaign requires.

STEP ONE - A GATHERING OF WARLORDS

The first part of playing an Age of the Wolf campaign is to
gather the players. Once the p|ayers at your club or within

your circle of gaming opponents have agreed to play (see

What You'll Need) then you have taken the first step.

STEP TWO

- EAST OR WEST

:wjll need

to

i.theimpaign(

worth making a
backup too) and they will need to bring t along to each battle.
a campaign so much as a lost roster, so it's

t. Warband Type: write in here what type of warband this

is, such as Viking, Anglo-Dane, Norman, etc,
z. Warlord Name: Your Warlord needs a name, of suitable
style. Nameless men do not rise to become kings and
emperors. So, give it a little thought and write your leader's
name in here, be it lngvar Redaxe, Comte Rufus of Valeux,
Athelstan the Bold or Prince Horlics of Novgorod. This man
represents you throughout the campaign, he is your alterego (in miniature) so it's worth getting this right, you get the

picturel
3. Motivation: Write your Warlord's overall motivation here,
See Motivation later for full details.
4. Traits: Write the Warlord's two starting Special Traits here.
lf he gains any extra Special Traits during the campaign add
them here too. See Special Traits later for full details.

Special Rules: These are any Special Rules the Warlord

has. Remember all Warlords start with the Resilience,
Determination, We Obey, Side by Side and Warlord's Pride
Special Rules as described in the SAGA rulebook. Add them
here along with a single randomly rolled new Special Rule.
5.

6. Land: Keep a score of the Warlord's Land here. AIl

Warlords start the campaign with two Land. Land can never
drop to less than one. lf it would, it remains at one.

Next, the players should decide whether the campaign will be

set in the East or the west, This will dictate which warbands
are available to the players, it has little further affect upon the
rules, but hopefully will give the campaign a more historical
feel. This should be dictated by the models the players have
available and their terran collections.

7. Wealth: Keep a score of the Warlord's Wealth here. All

Warlords start the campaign with two Wealth. Wealth can
never drop to less than one. lf it would, it remains at one.

STEPTHREE - CHOOSE WARBANDS

remains at one.

Each player should now choose whih faction their warband

will belong to. Choices are restricted as fotlows:
lf this will be a Western campaign, the players can choose
from the following factions; Viking, Anglo-Dane, Norman,
Welsh, Saxon, Breton, Jomsviking, Scots, Franks, lrish, NorseGael, Strathclyde Welsh.
lf this will be an Eastern campaign, the players can choose

from the following factions: Viking, Norman, Jomsviking,

Franks, Pagan Rus, Era of Princes Rus, Byzantine.
Players are free to choose any warband faction they prefer, Multiple
warbands othe same type can be used. These will obviously be
local rivals. A campaign could be played with all the same type of
warband, as a Viking or Norman (or anyone else) civil war.

Once players have chosen their warband factions, then they

will be using them for the entire campaign. Players cannot
switch factions during a campaign, although they may drop
out of the campaign and return with a new starting warband
of a different faction (not the same faction).

STEP FOUR - WARBAND ROSTER

The warband roster is the heart of the Age of the Wolf
campaign system. lt is here that all the information about

8. Reputation: Keep a score of the Warlord's Reputation

here. All Warlords start the campaign with two Reputation.
Reputation can never drop to less than one. lf it would, it
9. Power: This is the combined score of Land, Wealth,
Reputation and the number of legal units the Warlord
commands, as listed on the roster. So, to start with, a Warlord
will have two Land, two Wealth, two Reputation and four
units, so his Power is ten, See Power for full details later.

o. Campaign Vitory Points: The ultimate arbiter of who

wins the campaign. Campaign Victory Points are earned
throughout the campaign, by winning battles, etc, At the end
of the campaign, the Warlord with the most Campaign Victory
points s the winner.
1. unit Rosters: write down here which units the warlord
has in his warband, listing their unit type (Levy, Warrior or
Hearthguard), size (number of men), number of attacks each,
their armour versus melee attacks and missile attacks, and any
special rules or special weapons the unit has, such as bows, or
iavelins, or Dane axes.
There are twelve spaces for units listed, no warband can grow
to be larger than twelve units in total. A warband's minimum
size is one unit.

Campaign Actions: Record here what action your

warband will take in each campaign season, and against
whom. See later for full details of Campaign Actions.
12.

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ln Age of the Wolf, each Warlord has his own character, which
is defined by his Motivation, his Traits and his Special Rules.

Motivation is what the Warlord desires most, be it Land,

Wealth or Reputation. All Warlords will need to accrue some
of each, but every Warlord has his own driving passion. lf
the Warlord can gain more of his chosen prize than the other
two, then he wilI gain bonus Campaign Victory Points as the
campaign progresses.
The player must choose one of the following motivations. lf
he can't choose, then numbers are included so he mav roll a
dice for it.

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what drives this greedy Warlord. Wealth is power, it buys

Lands, buys armed men to fight for you and, if needs must, it
pays off your enemies.

lf, during the post-battle sequence, the Warlord's Wealth

score is greater than both his Land and Reputation scores, he
gains a bonus Campaign Victory Point.

5-6 Skalds'song: EVen a great man may die, but his name
may live on in the poems and stories of the Skalds, A feted
name is what this Warlord desires, to be remembered as a
great man, not for the Lands or Wealth he garnered, but for
his epic deeds.
lf, during the post-battle sequence, the Warlord's Reputation
score is greater than boih his Wealth and Land scores, he
gains a bonus Campaign Victory Point.

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t-z King's Domain: The Warlord desires Land. All wealth

flows from the ownership o fertile lands, and surely no king
can rule without the tribute and taxes which come rom great
tracts of the best land}

Traits are the Warlord's unique characteristics, small special

rules that affect either the campaign system or the tabletop
game in some way. A Warlord might start the game with
a treasure hoard and have extra Wealth, or be a talented
swordsman, or have superior ability to command, or be an
adventurous sailor, or believe he has been especiaIly fated by
the 6ods (or 6od) for greatness, etc.

lf, during the post-battle sequence, the Warlord's Land score

greater than both his Wealth and Reputation scores, he
gains a bonus Campaign Victory Point.

Each Warlord starts the campaign with two Traits; roll them
up randomly, A Warlord may gain new traits as the campaign
advances, but he can never lose a Trait once he has it.

3-4 Dragon's Hoard: The Warlord desires Wealth. Cold,

silver, jeweIs, plunder, slaves and treasure in all its forms are

is

warlord cannot have the same Trait twice. lf the random roll
gives the same result, re-roll until you get a difierent Trait.

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always suspicious of his rivals and tkes offense ito easly.

The Warlord may never enter into any Alliances during the

campaign, even with a Warlord with the Noble Mien trait or

with an oathsworn warlord.

1_3

4-5

Blood Feud

Landwaster

Fearsome

oathsworn

Far Traveller

Mighty

War-Toothed

Learn'd

Devout

Quarrelsome

God's Eve

Tro1l-hide

Golden Hoard

Noble Mien

Resolute

War Craftv

Hard Ruler

Choose

point o Reputation rather than Wealth or Land,

A quarrelsome Warlord gains two Wealth from his opponent

(if he has it) when ransoming back a captured Warlord, such is
the hard bargain he drives.

Golden Hoard

This Warlord has already amassed a abled treasure hoard of

silver, gold, jewels and exotic treasures.
The Warlord starts the game with +3 to his Wealth score.

Blood Feud

There is a long standing enmity from this Warlord towards

another, for some past slight or injustice, perhaps between
their fathers. The Warlord must pick one of his opponents in
the campaign as the subiect of the feud. This can be any other

warlord involved.
lf the War|ord personally kills this opponent in single combat,
then he gains +3 Reputation for the deed and gains +t
Campaign Victory Point. If any of his units kill the named
Warlord, then he gains +t Reputation instead. A Warlord can
win this bonus multiple times in the course of the campaign as
the feud includes his enemy's close kin as well.
The Warlord may never form an Alliance with the subject

The Warlord may never opt to pay Danegeld to avoid fighting

a battle; he will always fight, lf he fails to play a game (and
therefore has to pay Danegeld instead) he always loses one

of

the Blood Feud.

lf a Warlord with a Blood Feud is killed, then his replacement
will automatically get the same Blood Feud, as the feud is not
yet finished. This is in addition to gaining a Blood Feud against
the Warlord that killed your previous leader.

oathsworn

The wartord is oathsworn to one of the other warlords in the

campaign; they were raised together as foster brothers and

know each other well.

The Warlord may never choose to camPaign against his

oathsworn Warlord and in return that Warlord may never
choose to Campaign against him. They may still Raid each
other though (and no doubt deny it later).

lf one or the other oathsworn Warlords requests an Alliance,

the.fequest cannot be refused, unless one of the Warlords has
the Quarrelsome trait.

War-Toothed

This Warlord is already a storied veteran of many campaigns

and wars, and is always aggressive and warlike in his actions,
The Warlord always counts as the aggressor in any battles he
fights, so can always set the game size,
The Warlord may never choose to Deend in two consecutive
campaign turns. tf he does Defend for one turn then he must
either Raid or Campaign in the next campaign turn.
lf the Warlord is severety wounded in battle he does not have

to Defend in the next Campaigning Season, he may continue

as normal if he wishes. Mere wounds don't stop this Warlord.

War Crafty

This Warlord is a cunning tactician when deending his own lands,

often luring his enemies into prepared traps and ambushes.

When the Warlord chooses to Defend as his campaign action,

he may always elect to play an Ambush scenario against an
opponent instead of the usual scenario required. His warband
is automaticatly the Ambusher in this scenario and the Warlord
counts a5 the aggressor, so can set the game size.
This Warlord also gains +1 to his dice roll when rolling to see
which side wil! take the first turn in a scenario (when applicable).

Landwaster

This Warlord already possesses a feted War Banner, known

and feared by his foes.
The Warlord starts the campaign with +t Reputation.

A single unit on the Warlord's roster gains a War Banner, even

though the Warlord doesn't have enough Reputation to earn
one yet.

Far Traveller

This Warlord often travels far in search of fresh plunder and

new, exotic lands. lnstead of rolling for Fate in the post-battle
sequence, the Warlord may choose to Explore instead and
roll on the Exploration table below, lf he so chooses, roll a
546A dice.

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riillf insteae

Levy as new 'vo|unteer'

The Warlord also gains an extra four
season,.which he can
campaign
each
of
stai
rec-ruits at the

FarWandering

.aJ io .n1l Levy unit on his roster, Alternatively,

prefers,
i"uy ,.y'ra.* a new unit if the Warlord

but no new lands are

found. The Warlord

gains one Reputation

or his journey.

Fearsome
TheWarlordisknowntoshownomercyandleadsavicious
and bloodthirsty band of tough warriors,

Heroic Journey,

two additional points

The Warlord starts the campaign with
(i.e.
four!)
Reputation

to distant lands. The

Warlord gains one Wealth
and one Reputation
for his |ourney.

Epic Journey to

these new

of

in battle, roll twice on the

lf an enemy Warlord becomes a casualty

result you prefer,

WlnorO Casualty Table and apply whichever

neq

Mihty
ir,iwrrora', personal prowess

fruitful and strange lands where

strange 6ods walk, The
Warlord gains one Land, one
Wealth and one Reputation for

H.L

in battle is well-known,

enemy on the
t.rr, strong and quick, a very dangerous

battlefield.
Attack, so six attacks
ln battle, the Warlord has an additional
be chosen as
may
Warlord
This
inrt".a f th" usual five,
and God help his
Champion in the Hazel Wands scenario,
opponent!

Learn'd

literate), this
Wir., .""r, thoughtful (and maybe even

Devout

few mistakes, He
Warlord always plans carefully and makes
details,
bureaucratic
runs his domains with great aitention to
but is no great warrior himself,
scenario is to be
The Warlord may always pick which

played

ih" wurrora
it,.l"

be one of the scenarlos

rather than roll iandomly, lt still must
event,
listed in the campaign
are collected, men are
His lands are well organised, taxes
start of each
trained and defences maintained, At the
of the following:
one
choose
the Warlord may

.;;p;;"

iurn

i.6ain one Wealth, or

unit on his roster, or

ii. Recruit four Levy to add to any Levy
unit on his roster,
Warrior
any
to
add
to
Warriors
iii. Recruit two
Attacks rather than the
ln battle, the Warlord only has three
special rule,
nu.. He does not have the Warlord's Pride

uru.r

God's Eye

ii*".uurc

of his
of Fate avour this Warlord and the eyes

Gods (or God) are on him,

on the Fate table and chose

The Warlord may always roll twice
other is result is ignored,
The
*tlcr, ot tr,e tw results to use,

Noble Mien

rr,iiWurrorO is born of high blood and

well-respected,

natural leader of men,

The

with an additional point

The Warlord starts the campaign
(i,e.
three),
Reputation

of

lfthisWarlordrequestsanAlliancewithanotherplayer,they
is
cannot refuse, unless the requested ally Quarrelsome,

Hard Ruler

fist and drives his

rhis warlord rutes his lands with an iron
to render him more
harder,
peasants and slaves to work ever
His people live in
warband,
his
in
[ut" and taxes, or fight
fear of him.

1or.

to

personal advisor,
Gods'l) advice through his close

onto the field of battle by

The Warlord is always accompanied
Seer (whichever is more
or
Sorcerer
his own Priest, Shaman,
to accompany
appropriate). You'll need a suitable miniature
always
,l[r. W.rrorO, and he always moves with the Warlord,
so is
mounted,
is
warlord
lf
the
i;;.;;;fuihin vs of him,

the Priest.

any units within M of

Once per game, at the start of a turn,
this includes the
Fatigue;
of
point
t
remove
the Priest may
warlord himself.
result of Flood and
The Warlord may always re-roll a Fate
used,
be
Famine, The second result must
is only removed
The'priest'miniature cannot be attacked and
removed,
is
warlord
from the table when the

Troll,hide

by past battles and a

This Warlord is big, tough, ugly, scarred
very fearsome sight,
instead of the usual
lt takes two wounds to kill the warlord
rule as normal,
special
Resilience
the
using
one, this includes
by one to,,!.!e,
lncrease the Warlord's starting Reputation

ResoIute

M range
Warlord'We Obey'special rule works up to

instead of s.

aoJ'r

listens
is close to his God (or Gods) and always

and refuses to
This Warlord will never give in, never surrender
samein his
the
ufr.no*luOg" when he i! beaten, and instills
stonewall,
men. righti-ng him is like fighting a
is forced to
lf any friendly unit within M of the Warlord
a 1-2 the unit
dice,_On
a
roll
withdraw (after a melee) then
to withdraw
refuses
unit
the
a
O
3*
*itr,O..*, u, normal,
instead,
withdraw
must
opponent
and the

Choose
ihe Warlord
he wishes.

above Traits
may freely choose any one of the

*,,

1l,

Wp,l

,
sslf

]E

]P

]F

]I

]E

sS

]P ]E tC

lt

A\

]L

]RtlU ]L]E

Bravery

sS

All WarIords start with the following special rules, as detailed

in the main SAGA rules:
Resistance, Determination, We Obey, Side by Side, Warlord's
Pride.
ln addition to these five special rules, each new Warlord also
gains one extra specal rule, rolled for randomly on the Special
Rules Table.

sPEclAL RULEs TABLE

The first Fatigue point that the Warlord should take each turn
is ignored.

The Great
As long as the Warlord is on the table, his warband can
generate up to seven SAGA dice each turn instead of the
usual limit of six. The Iimit of a maximum of eighi dice per turn
remains as normal.

The Bastard
lf the Warlord uses his We Obey special ruIe, he may activate
S, but if he activates two units, neither of
them will be able to engage in melee with this activation. Also,
any unit activated by his We Obey rule may use this activation

two units within

to Shoot or Move (remember that usually you may only Move

with the activation generated by the We Obey rule).

skilled warrior

1-3

4-5

son of odin

Hero of the
Viking Age

Raider

Braverv

Hero of the
Vikrng Age

Scout

The Great

Hero of the
Viking Age

The Conqueror

The Bastard

Hero of the
\riking Age

Great Ruler

skilled warrior

Hero of the
Vikine Age

The Pennv

Hero of the
Viking Age

Steel

Cannot Bite
Inspiring
Presence

The Warlord may, during the SAGA-abilities step of each

melee, spend any SAGA die currently on his Battle Board in the
Activations boxes (Levy, Warrior or Hearthguard) to gain one
extra Attack die and one extra Defence die. He may do this as
many times as he wants in a single melee though he remains
limited to the usual Attack and Defence dice limits.

The Penny
The Warlord is likely to have paid some of his enemy's retainers.
During the first turn of the game, his opponent only rolls a third
(round up) the number of 546,4 dice he is entitled to roll normally.
In the second turn he only rolls half (rounded up) the number of
SACA dice he is entitled to roll normally. Starting with the third
turn, his opponent may roll his normal number of SAGA dice.

Hero of the Viking Age

The Warlord generates three

5464 dice each turn instead of

the usual two,

i;.

:i]i

son of odin
As a formidable warrior, the Warlord cancels the first two hits
against him suffered in each melee or against each Shooting
action (and not iust the first one as wth other Warlords).

Raider
The Warlord is infamous for his swift attacks. As long as the

Warlord is alive, all units in the warband can be activated with

any SAGA dice, regardless of their class.

,,T?i

they were Warriors.

The Conqueror
During step 3) of any melee, any friendly units within M of the
Warlord gain two extra attack dice if the Warlord himself is
not engaged in melee,

Great Ruler
As long as the Warlord is on the tabletop, he always rolls six
SACA dice at the start of his turn, even if the number of SAGA
dce actually generated by his warband is less.

UslNG HERoEs oF THE ylKlNG AGE lN

THE AGEOFTHEWOLF
Whilst we are busy creating our own heroes for the
campaign, there are of course those historical figures that are
already included in SAGA games, and it seems wrong to bar
them from taking part.
Heroes of the Viking Age may be chosen to lead the
appropriate warband, used as described in the SAGA
rulebook and supplements. They are all listed below with
their own Motivation and Traits for use in the campaign.
A p|ayer that chooses to start the campaign using a Hero of
the Viking Age begins the campaign with a three point SACA
force instead of a four point SAGA force.
lf taken, the Heroes automatically start with the

following

noi'ba-fif;:ffii

War[ord standard special rules except Resilience.':Ati

of each of the Warlord's turns, all units in his warband (not
including mercenaries) remove a Fatigue.

steel cannot Bite

The Warlord has an armour of six, in melee and against
shooting attacks. His armour may never be reduced to below
five by any means (either by SAGA abilities, game effects or

anything else).

MORVAN LEZ BRE|ZH

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: War Crafty, Resolute
ALA|N BARBETORTE
Motivation:5kald's

Song

Traits: Resolute, God's Eye

slGVALDl STRUT_HARALDSSoN

Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits: Far Traveller, Golden

Hoard

VAGN AKESSON
Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits: FarTraveller, God's Eye
KENNETH MAC ALPIN
Motivation: Skald's

Song

Traits: War Crafty, Hard Ruler

MAcBETH

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Quarrelsome, Fearsome

Motivations and Traits, these cannot be changed. The Heroes

do not get a random bonus special rule (they have their own
already).

CHARLEMAGNE

HARALD HARDRADA
Motvation: King's Domains Traits: Hard Ruler, Landwaster

Motivation: Skald's

RAGNAR LOTHBROK

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Noble Mien, War Crafty

Motivation: Skald's

Song

Traits: Cod's Eye, Noble Mien

HARALD GODW|NSSON

Motivation: King's Domains Traitsl Resolute, Golden Hoard

CNUT THE GREAT

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: War-Toothed, Learn'd

W|LL|AM THE BASTARD

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Quarrelsome, Hard Ruler

lvo TAlLLEFER
Motivation: Skald's

Song

Traits: Mighty, Noble Mien

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Learn'd, Noble Mien

ROLAND THE BRAVE

ULF THE qUARRELSOME

Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits; Quarrelsome, Blood
Feud (choose one
other Warlord)

BRODIR OF MAN
Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits: Mighty, Troll hide

slGURD HLoDVlssoN
Motivation: Skald's

ARTGAL

Song

Traits: Landwaster, God's Eye

Song

Traits: Resolute, War Criiftv,

Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits:War-Toothed,

Quarrelsome

oWEN

GRUFFYD AP LLYWELLYN

sVlATosLAV loF KIEV

Motivation: Skald's

Song

Traits: War Crafty, Resolute

ATHELSTAN

Song

:,i,:,;;;

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: War-toothed, God's Eye

Motivation: Skald's

Song

Traits: Noble Mien, Far Traveller

THE BA5lLEUs

AELFRED THE GREAT

Motivation: Skald's

Traitsl Mighty, Resolute

BRAIN BoRU MAc CENNETIG

Motivation: Skald's

MAREDUDD AP OWAIN

Song

Traits: Learn'd, Devout

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Noble Mien,

Golden Hoard

Motivation: King's Domains Traits: Landwaster, Learn'd

HARALD HARDRADA
(CAPTAIN oF THE VARANGIAN GUARD)

Motivation: Dragon's Hoard Traits: FarTravel|er, Hard Ruler

wExrrrm

A\}dD,

]K]E

lP,

{-nTAvr

]t

OD{

two Land, two Wealth and two

Reputation unless the Warlord's Traits modify this. Write the
appropriate number in the boxes on the Roster.
Each Warlord starts with

EXAMPLE OF CREAT|NG A WARBAND,

PART t
Pete, Tom, Garry and Steve have decided they are going
to play an Age of the Wolf campaign and that it will be
set in the West. Pete chooses to play Vikings, Tom will
be the lrish, Garry will be Normans whilst Steve will be
welsh. Let's follow pete as he creates his warband,
Pete fills in the roster with his Warband Type: Vikings
and Warlord's Name: lngvar Redaxe. He chooses the
motivation of Skald's Song, looking to make a big
Reputation with hs Viking leader.
Next, he rolls for lngvar's traits. He gets War Crafty and
Hard Ruler, a tough man on his own turf. Then, he notes
down the standard special rules and rolls for his extra
one. He gets Raider.
Next, Pete fills in the Land, Wealth and Reputation boxes,
each with 2. Part 1 complete, he'll move on to recruiting
the units of his warband.

sST]E]P sS ]EV]EN :

]E

lL]E

Clt- lUtN lf
]t

ss

Each Warlord now selects his starting warband, spending four

points on his SAGA warband as detailed in the main SAGA
rulebook and supplements. The usuaI restrictions apply, as
do any special rules about alternative equipment or mounted

units, etc.

i;
#

or supplments, then he can,oril.$

rom the 3A6A
warband instead of the usua four,
lris
spend three points on
Any unit special rutes that the Hero has, such as upgrading
units or alternative weapons, can be used.
At the start of the campaign, because of the restrictions of
Land, Wealth and Reputation (see Managing the Roster later
for ull details), most warbands start with no more than two
units of each type; Levy, Warriors or Hearthguard. A Warlord's
Traits may alter this.

write down the details of each unit on the roster.

STIE]P]E]trG]Htlf

:sSTA\]K]t]tNG]PO\W]E]R

To calculate a Warlord's Power add together the Land,

Wealth and Reputation totals and then add on the number of
legal units in his warband. So, for most, a Warlord starts the
campaign with a Power of ten. This can be modified by some
Traits, and Heroes of the Viking Age will start with nine Power
(because they only have three units).

WARLORDS AND ATHELlNGS

To start with, the campaign assumes each Warlord is a
young, ambitious, up and coming leader, as yet not worthy

of any title or throne, but a prospect , . . perhaps. once

a Warlord has reached a total of fifteen Power, he has
become a genuine contender, a man with a worthy claim
to the throne, an Atheling - somebody to take very seriously,

once a warlord has amassed fifteen power there are

two advantages. First, he starts to gain bonus Campaign
Victory Points, see 'to the Victor the Spoils' in the postbattle sequence, representin8 that he is now a prospect
for u|timate power and will have other patrons and

backers behind him. Second, only AtheIings have any

chance of ultimate victory. A player that has won lots of
battles and gained extra Campaign Victory Points might
be a worthy opponent on the battlefield, but he just isn't
the stufi of kings, so can't win the ultimate prize without
Land, Wealth and Reputation behind him,

for new players to join a in

All Warlords start with zero Campaign Victory Ponts.
The roster is now complete, each Warlord has his forces and
the campaign is ready to begin. Let the battles commencel

EXAMPLE OF CREAT|NG A WARBAND,

PART z
pete has finalised his warlord and now starts on his
warband's units. He can have four units for lngvar Redaxe
to lead, but no more than two of any one type. He opts for
two units of eight Warriors each, a unit of four Hirdmen and
a unit o four Berserkers, and notes down their profiles on
the roster.
His longship filled, lngvar starts the campaign with ten
Power and zero Campaign Victory Points. lngvar is now
ready to begin his quest for glory in the name of Odin.

is already up and running. First they must create their Warlord

and starting four point warband using the campaign set up

rules. Their warband will then join the fray at the start of the
next campaigning season,

For each campaign season the new Warlord has missed, roll
once on the Fate tab|e in the post-battle sequence and apply
the result to the warband. This way new players won't be
starting completely from scratch and their warbands will have
had a few additions before starting. This should give them
a better chance of a competing, although it is unlikely that
a player that comes late to the campaign can triumph over
those that have being playing from the start, but that should
not stop players joining in for the fun, and it is an excellent
way of learning how to play before the next campaign starts.

ai|4

-'

:.,:.{:-_:i.i]

;i],:ffi

F&4

The

(J..)oS carnpagrn

away f rom
'The foolsh man thnks he will tive forever if he keeps
spe:i";,
t
h
e
if
even
u
ce,
gr ant hm a tr
fi ghtiig; b ut ol d age w on' t

'

_,
'+,],*"

.,3g.,o,

i ,*r

::,,i,:ii ..,{,fl

i|]

Once all the players have completed their roster sheets, then
the campaign is ready to begin in earnest,

]Ht

lE C

A\ \M lPA\

]t

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ss

]EA\SION

An Age of the Wolf Campaign is p|ayed over six campaign

,".ronr (an abstract measure, so the course of a campaign
might equate to anything from one or two years to possibly
a decade). Over the course of those six campaign seasons,
ptayers will fight a variable number of 5A6A battles, Players
might fight n b"ttl", in some campaign seasons or three or

four in another.
All the players should run through a campaign season, finish
it, and then move on to the next season, lt is advisable to set
players have
a time limit on a season, being the time in which
is up to the
is,
this
long
played.
How
games
to get their 546A
plajrers, based on how often the players meet to play, etc,
L.rg", ...p"igns with more players will need longer than a
one--player-against-another-player campaign, but a risk to any
campaifin's p"rogress is not getting the games played, Should
this Le i p.oUl",, then seeihe Danegeld section for an

immediate solution.

For each campaign season work through the following steps,

SST]E ]P,

,-;,

roN ]E|

CA\I\\4[]PA\][

GN

A\CT ]ttoNss

At the start of each campaigning season, each player must

pick a single Action from Raid, Campaign or Defend,

Raid

The player's warband will go raiding, seeking easy plunder

and ioot, When a player chooses to Raid he must also choose
a target for his raids - one of the other Warlords in the

campaign.
the campaign season area of the roster he should write
down Raid an the enemy Warlord's name or faction he
ntends to attack. e.g. Raid - Saxons.
tn

Winning Raid battles gains a player extra Wealth, See the

Spoils of Victory later for full details.

Campaign

a fult scale attack, an invasion o an

enemy Wartord's lands, seeking to capture new territory,
When a ptayer chooses to Campaign, he must also choose a
target for lris aggr,ession - one of the other Warlords in the

the Wariord will taunch

campaign.
ln the campaign season area of the roster he should write
down Campaign and the enemy Warlord's name or faction he

intends to attack, e.g. Campaign

Welsh,

Spoils of Victory latr

:at

Defend
The Warlord wil| stay at home, guarding his own lands,
building his forces and preparing his defences for the

inevitable attacks. When a player chooses to Defend, he does

not have to pck a target.
ln the campaign season area of the roster he shoutd write
down Defend.

Winning Defensive battles gains a player extra Reputation.

See the Spoils of Victory later for full details.

sslf ]E]P''']f

\WrOlCA\MI]PA\][GN]EV]ENlt'sS

After all the players have chosen their action and target,
reveal and compare them to establish the campaign events
this season. The campaign events are what is actually going to
happen in the way of battles to fight and any other events.

the start of the:campaign s*iii#or*l'thli

The Warlord may also recruit once at the start of the

campaign season, before any battle are fought. He may add
eight Levy, four Warriors or two Hearthguard to one of his
units, orthese may be recruited as an entirely new unit on the

roster. This recruitment may not take a unit over its maximum
size of twelve men. lf it would, the unit size becomes twelve
and any extra men are lost.
The Warlord may attempt to form an Alliance with another
Warlord for the next campaign season, see Allances for full
details.

B. Raid Scenario
your Raiders have attacked the borders of the Defender's
lands, seeking quick pIunder and slaves. Fight a SACA game
with one of the following randomly determined scenarios. Roll
the SACA dice when you meet up for the game.

To determine the campaign events, the players cross

reference their action (down) with their target's action

(across) on the Campaign Events Table, to get an event letter,
Do this for each player.

1-3

This letter then determines if there will be a battle and which

scenario will be played when the two forces clash.

The Escort
(see SAGA rulebook)

CAMPAlGN EVENTS TABLE

Defend
Rad
Campaign

Defend

Raid

Campaign

4-5

REsULTs

Harry and Burn

(see new scenaros)

Sacred Ground

(see 546A rulebook)

A. Defence
The Defender isn't attacking anybody. The Warlord is content
to leave the others in peace for now. There wilI be diplomatic
contact between the factions and increased trade.

"-r,'l..,,dry,,,ii.,lt.

{. .,,

{ffi

:'lt

his warband to defend his

in open battle, Fight a
invaders
the
meet
and
sett|ements
with one of the following randomly determined
inCR
game,
Roll the 5464 dice when you meet up for the

ihe otenoer must muster

g.."

n sst'iorttrem;'Fighta

irvira'r,i;i:p7pi"

one'of ihe following.randomly determined

the game,
icenarios. Roll the SAGA dice when you meet up for

ga with

,."n.iior.

Homeland

1-3

Forest Road Ambush

1-3

(see new scenarios)

(see SAGA rulebook)

4-5

The Burh
(see new scenarios)

sacred Ground

The Escort

+-5

(see SAGA rulebook)

(see SAGA rulebook)

Battle at the Ford

(see SAGA rulebook)

D. Encounter Scenario
to face,
Two warbands on the move accidentally come face
of the
one
game
with
a
SAGA
Fight
and battle must ensue.
dice
iotto*ing randomly determined scenarios, Roll the SAGA
when you meet up for the game,

1-3

4-5

F.

Pitch Battle Scenario

full
This is all out warl The two sides have mustered their
a
strength and will meet in a pitched open battle, Fight
d
t
ermined
randomly
following
se"g.*" with one of the
..un..Lr. Roll the SAGA dice when you meet up for the game,

The Hazel Wands

Scouts

1-3

(see new scenarios)

The Challenge

4,5

(see SAGA rulebook)

Battle at the Ford

(see SAGA rulebook)

(see new scenarios)

(see SAGA rulebook)

(see SAGA rulebook)

clash of warlords

sacred Ground

games,
to the excitins bit, the battles, i,e, pIaying the
once alt the players have a campaign Event result, move

first campaigning season of Pete, Tom, 6arry

and
Steve's campaign. Each writes down on their roster
their
action, Pete's Vikings will Raid Tom's lrish. Tom's
lrish
have chosen to Defend. Garry's Normans are
Raiding
Steve's Welsh, whilst Steve's Welsh are Campaigning
It is the

against Tom's lrish.

Pete cross references his Raid against his target's

Defence, to get result B, a Raid scenario.
Tom is Defending and so always gets result
A, Defence,

Carry's Raid vs Steve's Campaigning is result

Ambush scenario,

E, an

Steve's Campaigning against Tom's Defence is

result C, an
lnvasion scenario.
In this campaigning season, Pete will
fight Tom in a Raid.
Carry will fight Steve in an Ambush .nJsteu.
will fight
Tom in an lnvasion. ln those three battles, Pete
and Carry
fight once, whilst Tom's lrish and Steve's Welsh
will fight
twice. They now have to organise and play ther games,

A\]L]L]tA\NrC]EsS
'A man's back is vulnerable, unless he has a brother.'the
Saga of Grettir the Strong
An Alliance is when two Warlords agree to help
each other
out for one campaign season. At the start of
a campagn
season, a Warlord that Defended in the previous
campaigning
season can request an Alliance with one other
warlord. ri tnai
Warlord agrees, then the two players are not allowed
the Raid
or Campaign against each other in the next
campaign season.
A Warlord is free to decline a request for an
Alliance, except
when asked by a Warlord with the Noble Mien
trait or by a
Warlord he is Oathsworn to, in which case he must
agree. A

Blood Feud against or that has a etooJ

enmity runs too deep for any alliances,

Alliance Bonus
During the next campaign season, for any
battle they must
fight, the allied war|ords may include tw
units of warriors or
Hearthguard from their ally's roster on their
own. They may
not use Levy units (that would be an insult). These
two units
generate SAGA dice as normal for their type.
The Warlord's
roster counts these two units when setting the game
size.

Restrictions on Land, Wealth and Reputation

do not apply to
allied units.
lf either warband is engaged in any battles against
an enemy
force which is larger than his own, and wouljthus
have to
hire mercenaries, he can replace any mercenary
unit with
a unit of Warriors or Hearthguards chosen
fro his allied
Warlord's roster for free, instead of paying one
Wealth. Again,
Levy cannot be sent as allies.
The allied units are chosen by the Warlord who
will be playing
the battle, from any units on his ally's roster, and
he should
borrow the models from his ally foi hs next!ame.
These
allies then fight as normal Warriors or Hearthluard
on their
own Batt|e board. The controlling layer will ned
both battle
boards for the game.
The alliance automatically ends at the end
of the campaign
season unless another one is requested (which
means the
Warlord has to have been Defending again).
AlJiances are a way for weaker warbands to
even-up the odds
without the cost of paying for mercenaries. They
are also a
way players can join forces to attack a far stroner
warband.
lf one player starts to become too strong and
ieems
like he might run away with the campaig-n,
then he should
expect that the others players will stari}orming
alliances to
attack him - t is a dangerous place to be, on to
of a ple that
everybody else wants to climb.

;, r
G,.-

'Courage is better than keenest steel'

- Sigurth, Fafnr's Saga

Each Warlord should now know who they will be fighting and
the campaign result, which will generate them a scenario
when it comes to battle, The players now have to organise
playing those games, whenever they can. The battles can
be played in any order. It is up to the players to sort this out
between themselves. The campaign has no central referee,
so players should organise to play when they meet up at club
evenings/days or at another ree, convenient time.

Beore a battle, run through the following steps.

sS]I']E]P'

ON]E: \W]HtA\lf

llO

]B]]RING

i.

Your model co|lection, as required by your

Campaign Roster.
i. Your up to date Campaign Roster.
iii. SAGA rulebook and supplements as required for the
factions involved in the game, and SAGA dice.
iv, Other gaming paraphernalia, like D6s, pencil and
paper, measuring sticks or tape measure etc.
v. Model terrain if required (usually the host or club
provides this).
vi. A sense of friendly, competitive (but not too
competitive) fun. As always, this is a key ingredient for
games of SAGA.

sslf ]E]P ]t'\WtOl: T]Ht

]p, ]R]E -- ]EA\lf

ll

]L

]E

]E
]E

(qU

]E

C ]E

Before p|aying run through the following sequence to get

everything in place for the game.
i. Determine Games Size
The players should decide on the size of this 5A6A battle, in
points. lf both sides have the same number of points in their
warbands, then the battle will be set at that points total, and
both players will use their full warband. lf time is tight then, by
mutual agreement, the players can reduce the game's points
size, but only if they both agree.
lf one player's warband is larger than the others, then the
aggressor n the campaign can set the points size for the

coming battle. The aggressor is determined by the Warlord's

campaign action this season. A Warlord that is Campaigning
is the aggressor over one that is Raiding or Defending. A
Warlord that is Raiding is the aggressor over one that is
Defending.
lf both Warlords have the same campaign action, then roll a
dice for who is the aggressor. The highest roll can pick the
game's size, up to the maximum size of his warband.

ii. Hire Mercenaries (see Mercenaries)

lt may happen that a game's size is set higher than a Warlord's
warband current size, 50, for example, the aggressor sets
the points size as six points, but his opponent only has a
four point warband to command. In which case, the Warlord
with the smaller warband may hire Mercenary units to make
up the numbers and match his opponent's warband. See
Hiring Mercenaries for full details of how this works, but
suff to say here, a player does not have to fight at a points
disadvantage, he can always hire extra mercenary help to
even-up the sides.
A Warlord can choose not to hire mercenaries and fight the

game at a disadvantage, but things will look rather bIeak

for him when it comes to the tabletop game, and this is not
recommended. Fighting at a disadvantage is heroic, but
probably doomed to failure.

Warbands may call on their partners in an Alliance for

renforcements (see Alliances above)

iii. Roll for the scenario

Now roll a SAGA dice to determine which scenario is being

played. This will be one of three listed by the Campaign Event.
All the usual deployment or speciaI rules apply as detailed in
the scenario's description.
iv. Set up Terrain
Players may use any mutually agreeable method to set up
the terrain. SAGA includes a system for placing terrain. Some
scenarios will require extra terrain pieces to be added, like
buitdings, a river or the gateway to a buhr, as detailed in the

scenario.
v. Deploy
Deploy forces as detailed in the scenario description.

Sevre Wund,:"':':'
warlord's wounds were
serious. He must choose to

The

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Defend as his next campaign

action, to recuperate (note, the

After a battle, both players should run through the postbattle sequence, in each other's presence so that all rolls and
changes are verified by an opponent.

war-Toothed trait overrides this

requirement). ln addition, he
loses one Attack dice for the
rest of the campaign, suffering
from his old injuries. This is
cumulative, so each serious
wound will result in the warlord
losing one Attack dice, down to
a minimum of one Attack dice.
Even a crippled Warlord cannot
be left with zero Attacksl

The post-battle sequence works out what just happened to

your Warlord and his warband and gets them ready for their
next battle. All changes should be clearly recorded on the
campaign roster. Once the sequence is complete, your force is
ready or its next battle of this campaign season, or to start a
new campaign season.
i.

The Slain

the Warlord

There hasjust been a bloody battle, so some men are going

to have been killed, whilst others were just injured. First deal
with the Warlord himself. lf either (or both) Warlords were
casualties in the battle, roll to find out what actually happened
to them. ln all cases the player who won the battle should roll
the 5464 dice on the appropriate Warlord casualty table.

Dead
The Warlord has actually been
slain in battle, see 'Death of a

warlord'for full details of how

to handle this

Warlord Casualty Table

Captured
The Warlord counts as Severely

Winning Warband

Wounded (above), but is also

captured by his opponent, A
ransom must be paid, so the
warlord loses one wealth and
his opponent gains one Wealth
as the treasure is handed over.
lf the opponent Warlord has
the Blood Feud trait against a
captured Warlord, count this
result as Dead (above) instead,
as revenge is taken in full and
the prisoner is executed. Hurrah!

Minor Wound
1-3

A mere flesh wound, the Warlord

is ok and will continue
to fight on as normal.

The

4,5

Heroic wound
warlord's wounds were

superficial, but his was a heroic

combat and the tale of his bravery and injuries is told across the
land, gain one Reputation. The
Warlord may continue as normal.

Seriously Wounded

warlord's wounds were

serious. He must choose to
Defend as his next campaign
action, to recuperated (note,
the war-Toothed trait overrides
this requirement). ln addition,
he loses one Attack dice for the
rest of the campaign, suffering
from his old injuries. This is
cumulative, so each serious
wound will result in the warlord
losing one Attack dice, down to
a minimum of one Attack dice.
Even a crippled Warlord cannot
be left with zero Attacksl
The

ii. The Slain, Unit Casualties

After resolving the slain Warlord, work out what happened

to his men.
For every four men in a unit removed as casualties in the
battle, permanently remove one man as slain from the
campaign roster. Round all factions up. So, if a unit lost
between one and four men, one is lost permanently as dead,
lf a unit lost between five and eight men, two are lost ${i!,qad,
and so on.

Hearthguard Resilience: The men of Hearthguara uniir.."

selected from the strongest, fittest men. Better equipped with
superior armour, they are far more likely to survive the battle
with wounds rather than be slain. The first model removed
from the battle as a casualty in each Hearthguard unit is
ignored when determining the Slain. So, if a Hearthguard unit
lost one man, then it counts as having lost no men at all. lf
it would have lost five men, then it only counts as losing
four men.

'.|.:

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,ii

i" "

ExampIe
It has been a hard f ght for Pete's Vkngs,and his eight-man
warrior unt lost six men. Hs twelve Levy lost four men,
whlst his first Hearthguard unit of four men lost one man.
Hs second Hearthguard unt of four Berserkers were wped

out (unsurprisngly). So, after his casualtes, hisWarror unit

has lost two men, so is reduced to a six-man unt. Hs Levy are
reduced by one man, to an eleven-man unit. Because of the
Hearthguard survval rule, hs first Hearthguard unt does not
count a5losng any men at all, so remans at four men strong. As
they are also Hearthgurd, hs Berserkers count as losing three
men, not four, and so are reduced by one permanent loss to a
three-man berserker unit next time.

iii. The Spoils of Victory (To the victor the spoils...)

The gains of a battle depend on the campaign action the
victor chose at the start of the campaign season.

Defend. lf the victor chose to Defend then he has protected

his lands from foreign invaders or raiders, making him much
beloved of his people (the ruler's first task being to protect
the borders of his own lands and his people). He gains one
additional Reputation,

V. Recruitment
Each Warlord may now recruit new troops to replace his
battle losses. He may add either four Levy, two Warriors or

one Hearthguard to a single existing unit on his roster. These

cannot form a new unit, they must be added to an existing
unit.
lf the Warlord spends one Wealth then he may double this
number of recruits and gains eight Levy, four Warriors or two
Hearthguards for a single existing unit on his roster.

Eligible Warlords may also purchase a War Banner.

vi. Fate
The next part of the post-battle sequence is Fate. The Cods
are fickle and the Warlord's fate is already written in the
weave of the world, he cannot avoid it, for good or ill. RoIl a
D6 and a 5464 dice and cross reference on the Fate table,

Fate Table

Raid. lf the victor chose to Raid then he has gained plunder

and slaves to take home. He gains an additional Wea|th.

Campaign. lf the victor chose to Campaign then he has

conquered new land or his people to colonize and farm. He
gains an additional Land.
iv. Campaign Victory Points
The winner of the battle automatically gains one Campaign
Victory Point.
ln addition, if either War|ord is an Atheling (has a Power of
fifteen or greater), and his Motivation of Land, Wealth or
Reputation is higher than (not equal to) the other two scores,
then he gains another one Campaign Victory Point, regardless
of whether he actually won or lost the battle.

1-3

4-5

Revolt!

Fame

Spy in
EnemyCamp

Famine
and Flood

Good

Upgrade ,

Marriage

L"ry

Good

Upgrade -

Harvest

LerT

Reinforcements
2D6Lel,ry

Upgrade -

2D6Lelry
Reinforcements
D6 Warriors

Reinforcements
2D6 Warriors

UpgradeWarriors

poor Harvest
Reinorcements

Warlord

Reinforcements

Experience

ID6 Hearthguard

Warriors

Choose

+.i#ifu.{;ifaEiii*i ai"ii#.6ffi]

th War]ord'i r.ule (too much time away making wr). The

Warlord reduces his Reputation by one point. Next campaign
season the Warlord must choose to Defend regardless of
any special rules (like War-toothed). Also, remove a D6 men
from one Levy unit or a D3 men from one Warrior unit in the
warband (Warlord's choice) as he executes the ringleaders
and rabble-rousers.

Famine and Flood

The gods have not spared your people, it has been a harsh

winter of snows and flooding and famine now stalks the land.
The Warlord reduces his Land by one point.

poor Harvest

The tax yield has been poorer than expected after a poor
harvest. The Warlord reduces his wealth by one point.

Reinforcements

New recruits have been trained and can now ioin the
warband, The randomly determined number of men given are
added to already existing units of the given type. They can
be alI placed in one unit, or spread through different units.
Remember, the new recruits cannot take the unit over the
maximum twelve men, if it would, then the extra recruits are
lost. The new recruits are equipped as the unit they join.
A|ternatively, new recruits can form their own new unit, as
long as there are enough of them to fulfill the minimum unit
size requirements, so two men for Hearthguards and four
men for Warriors or Levy. The Warlord must have enough
Land, Wealth or Reputation, whichever is required to allow
the new unit to form.

WarIord Experience

Hard experience in the arts of war are teaching your Warlord

many new lessons. Your Warlord immediately gains a new
special rule or a new trait, chose which, Roll a random new
special rule on the Special Rule table or a random new trait on
the Traits table and it applies from now on.

Fame
The Warlord's name and word of his deeds are travelling

further afield. Cain one Reputation.

Good Marriage

By a good marriage (it is what daughters and nieces are forl)

you have secured new lands for your domain. Gain one Land.

Good Harvest

The tax yield has been greater than expected after a good

harvest. Gain one Wealth.

Spy in Enemy Camp

You have a paid informer in the enemy camp, and before your
next battle he will provide you with a lot of useful information
about your foe. Pay one Wealth at the start of the game
and you may choose the scenario to be played, and choose
whether to deploy first or second and automatically get the
first turn in the game. lf the Wealth isn't paid, then none of
the above apply.

on,they are treated asvviriors, with thin'rmaf'

value and attacks, etc. lf the unit has missile weapons then
they are replaced with the warband's standard warrior
weapons. lf the warband had any special options for its
warriors, then these may be taken.
The Warlord must have enough Wealth to allow a new Warrior
unit, otherwise the upgrade is lost.

Upgrade - Warriors

A single unit of Warriors can be upgraded to Hearthguards.

From now on they are treated as Hearthguard, with their
normal armour value and attacks, etc. lf the unit was mounted
then it remains mounted. lf the unit was on foot then it
remains on foot, unless the warband's Hearthguard are
always mounted, in which case they also become mounted, lf
the warband had any special options for its Hearthguard, then
these may be taken,
The Warlord must have enough Reputation to allow the new
Hearthguard unit, otherwise the upgrade is lost.

Choose

The Warlord may select any of the above results as his Fate

this time.

vii. Merge Units

Any units which have fallen to below four men may be

merged with another unit of the same type (Levy, Warrior or
Hearthguard). See Managing the Campaign Roster - Merging
units for full details of this.

After merging any units and updating the campaign rosters of

both players they are now ready for their next battle.
lf all the battles from this campaign season have been
resolved, then the campaign season ends. Start again at the
beginning of the next campaigning season, or, if this was the
last campaign season, then resolve the End Times,

WAR BANNERs
Once a Warlord becomes an Atheling, (so has reached
fifteen Power) he may claim his own War Banner, to
announce his presence on the battlefield. ln order
to include a War Banner, the Warlord must reduce
his Wealth by one, but in return he gains one to his
Reputation.

'il
.

:a':

The War Banner must be assigned to a unit of Warriors

that is at least eight strong, or a unit of Hearthguard=*,,,.
that is at least six strong. Note it down on the rost#: ]::.,

the warlord's roster does not have such a unit then he

cannot yet claim a War Banner.

a_

Once assigned, the War Banner acts as per the normal

rules (as described in The Roven's Shadaw).lt must be
represented on the tabletop with an appropriate model.

war Banner can never be lost in battle and can be

reassigned to any other eligib|e unit on the roster during
the post-battle sequence. A warband can only ever have
one War Banner.
The

ilcy'mi,are than:ie min in the sam stoick, and

never break the peace whch good men and true make
between thee and others,'
-

from the Saga of Burnt Njal

lt is a hard and dangerous life leading warbands on raids and

into battle, and not every Warlord will survive the Age of
the Wolf alive, but in these violent days few kings ever died
peacefully n their homes.
The death of the Warlord is not the end of the campaign of a
player's faction. lf a Warlord dies the player has two choices.
He may choose to disband the current warband and rejoin the
campaign as a new warband chosen from a different faction.
Note, he cannot reioin as the same faction, so if your AngloDanish Warlord is killed, you can't quit and return as a new
Anglo-Danish faction, but it could be any other faction (see,
joining mid-campaign).
Or, as a second option, the player may replace his lost Warlord
with an heir and continue with the same faction. His heir (son,
nephew, brother, cousin, etc) is a new man. So, replace the

old Warlord's motivation with a new randomly determined

motivation. Replace the old warlord's two traits with two
new randomly generated traits, and replace the old Warlord's
special rule with a new randomly determined special rule.
Also, give the Warlord a new name.
ln addition, if the player so wishes, the new heir taking over
the warband automatically gets the Blood Feud trait against
the Warlord responsible for the death of the previous leader.
This is an extra, third trait in addition to his randomly rolled
traits. After all, a slayng demands vengeance.
As a new starting Warlord, the heir is not the man his
predecessor was (yet!). Reduce the current Land, Wealth and
Reputation ratings by one, but this cannot reduce the score

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Once the roster is amended and the new Warlord s in place,

the player can now continue in the campaign as normal. A
Warlord may be killed multiple times in a campaign and the
player continue to fight on with the same faction, as new
leaders emerge.

lB}lUnYING ]LA\N]D
A wealthy Warlord seeking new land can simple buy it.
During the Spoils of Victory part of the post-battle sequence
a Warlord may chose to reduce his Wealth score by two to
increase his Land score by one,
A Warlord may not do this more than once in each post-battle
sequence, so he can't spend four Wealth to buy two Lands at

one time.
This is worth doing because Wealth is a lot easier to come
by and lose in the game than Land. Some Warlords with
the King's Domains motivation want extra Land and extra
Land allows extra Levy, which can be quickly built up if
your warband looks weak in manpower. Also, the Warlord
with most land at the end of the campaign will gain bonus
Campaign Victory Points.

IDA\N]EG]E]L]D
(or the alternative to not playing your campaign battle)
One reason why wargames campaigns often fail is because
the players just don't get their games played, Time to p|ay is
often tight, and thus the actual playing of a game can become
a problem, then the whole campaign stalls and the other
players can't carry on, and interest wanes, and the campaign
flounders and peters outl (Bitter experience is talking here).
Not so in Age of the Wolf. Danegeld, or paying an opponent
not to have to fight him, is a well honoured tradition in the
dark ages and throughout early medieval warfare. Sometimes,
if you give the enemy silver, they are happy to iust leave you
alone (for a bit),
lf a player can't play a game n time, or if he feels his warband
can't compete (even with additional mercenaries) because
it's too small, or he hasn't got any Wealth left to hire
mercenaries anyway, then he can opt (or be forced to by the
other campaign players bored of waiting for him and eager
to press on) give his opponent one point of Land, Wealth or
Reputation, chosen by his opponent. ln return, the battle
does not have to be fought. lt is called a draw and both sides'
warbands return home. Do not run through the post-battle
sequence for either side.

Note, players should not use the Danegeld rule as a way of

avoiding playing games... that would defeat the object of
playing the campaign (the point being to played linked 5464
games, not to not play games), But, if a player or his opponent
feels that he can't get his campaign game in a reasonable
timescale (like the next couple of weeks), then in order for
the campaign to keep going, he can opt to pay up instead,
There might also be situations were one side's forces.just
can't match the other, and it is acceptable then to pay up the
Danegeld and miss out the battle.
!5;.{,1;t '"

lf he is faced with.a laiger frce; the War|ord with the smallr

warband can make up the numbers by hiring mercenaries. He
may hire as many units of mercenaries as required to make up
the difference in force point sizes. So, if the larger warband
has six points, and the smaller four, he may hire up to two
units of mercenaries to match force sizes.
Hiring Mercenaries costs one Wealth, regardless of how many
points of mercenaries are needed,
Each mercenary unit hired consists of eight Warriors on foot
with standard armaments (spears, shields, swords), These
Warriors have no special rules, do not benefit from the hiring
faction's special rules on Warriors, such as any alternative
equipment, and act exactly like a standard unit of Warriors
when given actions from the Battle Board.

Any appropriate foot models you have available can be used

as mercenaries, be they Vikings, lrish, Normans, Franks, Welsh,
whatever (these itinerant, lordless warriors could be from

MANAG,NG THE CAMPA|GN ROSTER

At the heart of the campaign is the roster. lt records all the
information you will need for each SAGA game the campaign
generates for you. lt is important that the roster is kept up
to date and clear, lt is not a secret document, any players
involved in the campaign can see another player's roster if
they like. Changes to the roster should only ever be made
when another player is present, generally before a game has
staried or after a game has been completed (see pre-battle
and post-battle sequences). This is for transparency, so
that alI the players can trust their opponents' rosters, and

honour between fellow warriors demands everything is kept

above board.

Maximum Sized Units: No unit can be larger than twelve

men for any reason. Once chosen for tabletop game units
or the same type with the same armament can be combined
to form larger units in action, but on the roster once a unit
reaches twelve men, it cannot be given any extra recruits,

Minimum Unit Sizes: ln standard SAGA games the

minimum size of any unit is four men. ln the campaign this
has to be dealt with slightly differently, as casualties and
reinforcements are sometimes going to break the minimum

The mercenaries are only a temporary unit, so do not

include them on the campaign roster. Do not roll for
casua|ties amongst the mercenaries, as they will only fight
in this one battle anyway. Each time mercenaries are hired
they are assumed to be a new unit, even if you are using the
same models,

lnstead of hiring standard foot warriors, Pagan Rus, Rus

Princes and Byzantine warbands can hire Steppe Nomad
mercenaries instead. These mercenary units are eight
mounted Levy, as detailed intheVarjazi andBasileus
supplement (page t5).
Alternatively, for one point, Jarl Sigvaldi and the Jomsvikings
can be hired. These cost an additional point of Wealth (so two
Wealth even if you are iust hiring them) and use the full rules
detailed in the SAGA rulebook. ln order to use the Jomsviking
mercenaries you'll need a model for Jarl Sigvaldi and three
models for his Jomsviking band.

and therefore the Warlord's Power, if it has at least two men.

A Hearthguard unit with.iust two or three men can still be
fielded in a SAGA game.

Merging Units:

Units on the roster can be merged to form

should be done after rolling for the
Fate in the post-battle sequence. lfa unit has less than four
men, it can be combined with another unit of the same type.
The smaller unit will lose any alternative weapons or special
rules and gains any alternative weapons or special rutes from
the new parent unit. Merging just adds new men to a unit, at
the cost of reducing the overall size of the warband.
a single larger unit. This

ExampIe
A Normdn Warband has two units of Warrors, one is nine
mounted men, the other has fallen to just three crossbow,
equipped men on foot. TheWarlord decdes to merge the units,
dsbandng the three-man crossbow unit. These troops are
removed from the roster and the three extra men are added to
the mounted Warrors, becoming a maxmum-sized twelve-man
unt, The crossbows are lost, but the warriors now,count as
mounted and armed as the unit they ioined,
,',,

tltegal Rosters: As

unit can consist of between one and twelve men.

Warlord's Lands, Wealth and

Reputation change throughout the campaign seasons, it is
possible for his roster to become illegal, so, for example a.
Warlord may lose Land and find than he now has too ..=9#i
Levy units on his roster for the Land he possessed. _= _, -.].

lf a Warrior or Levy unit has less than four men, so isn't a legal
tabletop unit, then it does not count towards a Warlord's
power for total units, and cannot be included in a battle,
unless it is combined with another similar unit.

lf this occurs the Warlord must temporarily dismiss one of

the offending units. The unit he dismisses will be the smallest
one, in number of men. lf he has more than one unit with the
same number of men, he may choose which one to dismiss,

four-man rule.
On the campaign roster there is no minimum unit size; any

The unit remains on the roster as it can be reinforced with

new recruits to again become a legal unit.

Hearthguard Minimum: Hearthguards are the elite of

the warband, the Warlord's personal bodyguards. The
minimum size for the Hearthguard unit is two men. A unit of
Hearthguards still counts towards the warband's overall size,

A dismssed unit is not [ost, just sent home for a while. :

Mark it with a * on the roster. when the warlord's fortunes
change and his Land, Wealth or Reputation rise again, he will
automatically get the unit back; remove the *.
A dismissed unit does not count towards a warlord's power
total and cannot be selected in battles.

-;;

l,

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'Luck s one thing, brave deeds another'

-

Grettir's Saga

Once the final campaign season (season six) has been

completed, then the Age o the Wol is over.., almost. First
award the End Times bonus Campaign Victory Ponts,
as

follows:

The Widest Lands: The Warlord with the highest Land score
gains two extra Campaign Victory Points. ln the event of a tie,
all the Warlords with the joint highest Land score gain one
extra Campaign Victory Point,

The Greatest Hoard: The Warlord with the highest Wealth

score gains two extra Campagn Victory Points. ln the event of

a tie, all the Warlords with the joint highest Wealth score gain
one extra Campaign Victory Point.

Warrior of Renown:

The Warlord with the highest

Reputation score gains two extra Campaign Victory Points.
ln the event of a tie, all the Warlords with the joint highest
Reputation score gain one extra Campaign Victory Point.

Respected throughout the Kingdoms: The Warlord with

the highest Powef score gains two extra Campaign Victory
Points. ln the event of a tie, all the Warlords with the joint
highest Power score gain one extra Campaign Victory Point.

ll,
t

,r4
,:..

Now see which Atheling Warlord (so, with a Power of at least

fifteen) has the most Campaign Victory Points. Warlords with
a Power of less than fifteen aren't considered worthy to rule
yet. Only Warlords with over fifteen Power are possible ruIers.
The Warlord with a Power of fifteen or more, and the highest
Campaign Victory Points total is the winner and becomes the
new king ,.. all kneel before himl
]E xr.

t,en.,d[
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rt

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tnnt lD,at ii,p, tnr

The Age of the Wolf campaign is set at six campaign seasons,

as this gives all players enough time to fight battles and
develop their warbands, and still puts the climax of the
campaign within reasonably easy reach, so players can see
when it will all finish. Of course, should all the players agree,
(and maybe they're having such a good time they don't want
to stopl) then an Age of the WoIf campaign can be extended
with extra campagn seasons; seven, eight, nine seasons will
all be playable, and sometimes with lots of players, players
might wish to have more games again5t those opponents they
haven't yet faced.
Be wary of making the campaign too long though, it is better
for pIayers to have an achievable end point to aim for rather
than be overly ambitious and not finish at all,

|onesc Road ArnOush

A warband's route into the enemy's lands leads through the forested wilderness, a deserted
place, only home to wolves, crows and malign spirits, but where cunning enemies could
easily be hidden, lying in wait, ready to spring their trap....

]LA\YOlutlt
This game is played on a 48" by 36" table.
Running across the centre of the table, from one table
edge to another is a narrow road, trail or track. lt

should be no wider than s in width.

Players then take it in turns, starting with the
ambusher, to place D6+z pieces of terrain. Players
may choose each piece of terrain to be a wood, rocky
ground, an elevation, a steep elevation or a marsh. The
terrain is placed on either side of the road, and some
part of each piece must be within ]L of the road itself.

'"i;t"o *=
.

N\4tA\lP,

*'-*{l"**;

)6"

48"

]D]E]P,]LOYN\4t]ENT
The sde being ambushed must deploy aIl of its forces first, as
the enemy has been watching them and already knows their
order of march.
The ambushed player must place all his men on the road,
facing in a single direction (he can choose either board edge).
He places his first, vanguard unit, anywhere on the road, but
not within ]L of the table edge. This can be any unit the player
wishes. All his other units must then be deployed one after

the other, behind the vanguard and

also on the road, facing the same
direction, but again, not with tr, o
either table edge. Once all hiirnits
are on the road, one after the other,
he may then place his Warlord in
the centre of the column, between
the front and back models.
The ambusher then deploys his forces. They may be placed
anywhere on the table in terrain (they are hiding) on
either side of the road, but not with ]L of any enemy unit.
Alternatively a unt may be placed out of line of sight of the
enemy (so for example, behind a hill or wood). Once all the
ambusher's units are on the table, place the ambusher's
Warlord anywhere on the table, but in terrain.
The ambushers always get first turn.

]P lE

]t

A\

]L

]RIUUL

]E \

ln this scenario the side being ambushed have been taken by

surprise and aren't well prepared for battle. ln the first turn

they only roll half (round fractions up) of the SAGA dice they
would normally roll, From turn 2 they can roll their normal
number of SAGA dice.

]L]ENGflnHI CI]F GAi\\4t]E

The game lasts for 7 complete furns.

V n C ]rO ]R)Y C ON

]D

]t

T tON
]t

sS

At the end of the game add up victory points, In addition, the

ambushed player gets bonus victory points for models that
escaped from any table edge. The bonus score added to the
ambushed side's total is equal to the model's victory points as if
ey had been killed. So, 1 VP per Hearthguard that escaped, 1
VP for every 2 Warriors or 4 Levy that escape.
If the ambushed player manage to move his War]ord

offany table

edge he escapes the ambush and automatically wins the game.

nd Bunn
A marauding warband have swiftly fallen upon an
enemy village, bringing fire, axe and sword. They come
to wreak carnage upon the common folk and drive
them out, burning their homes and fields. The local
warlord must quickly respond with his own forces
nd fight to defend the common peasantry, or see his
frtile lands laid waste...

]Ll\)YCIlut1l
This game is played on a 48ll by 36" table.
ln the centre of the table lay out a small village of three
buildings (one of these can be a large building). All the
buildings must be Within ]L of the centre of the table, Next,
add three crop fields, these should be placed with L of one of

the buildings,
Other terrain can then be p|aced as normaI, but may not be
placed within lt- of any fields or buildings already on the table.

48"

]DlElP,]LOYivltlENll
The defender deploys a unit first. He places a single unit of
Levy or Warriors with
of any of the buildings.
^\4i

Next, the attacker deploys his WarIord within ]L of his table

edge. The defender then deploys his Warlord within r- of his
table edge, folIowed by his remaining Levy units.
The attacker then deploys aIl his Levy and Warrior units within
lr of his table edge. The defender then deploys his Warriors
and Hearthguard units Within ]L of his table edge.
Finally, the attacker deploys his Hearthguard units within
his table edge.

r of

The attacker then takes the first turn.

sS

]P ]E

C ]I A\ ]L

]FUt ]L

chase away the locals. He can burn a field or building when

any of his units are in base contact with it (or in a field) and
take a Rest action. As well as resolving the Rest action as
normal, the unit attempts to start a fire. Roll a D6, on a 3+,
place a ball of smoke (cotton wool) on the field or building as
it catches and starts the burn. on a l or z the fire hasn't taken
hold yet and the unit must try again on another activation.
Once lit a fire cannot be put out during the game.

]L]ENG]|

The attacker has come to burn the buildings and fields and

: 3;. .;4

".**:*...ls;es!^\_{

GA\N\4[]E

The game last 7 turns.

V I CTO]R)Y C ON]D lt 1l jI tON

sS

lf the attacker manages to set fire to all the buildings and

fields then he automatically wins, regardless of victory points.

-' -**-:is'<e.*{*"i#ie 1\*a*xx;+*.r3*:r*4*pnqa*./r:

*

o]F

Add up victory points as normal, The attacker gains a bonus

+u victory points for each building he burnt, and a bonus +l
victory point for each crop field he burnt.

]E sS

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An enemy warband have been spotted so the common people have fled to the safetY of a local burh, strongPoint,
hilltop fortress or town, sealing themselves in behind its well guarded walls and gate.
But the enemy are not to be so easily denied, and press their assault, determined to cut their way inside and claim
their prize in plunder and slaves. The hard-pressed defenders must hang on and wait for reinforcements.

]LAYOlUtT
The game is played on a 48" by 36" table.
The Defender places an area of walls or palisades on his table
edge, with a single gate in the centre. The walls and gate
should be no more than ]L from his own table edge, lnside the
walls he may place as many buildings as he Iikes. This is the
edge of the burh.

Outside the walls place three additional pieces of terrain as

normal. No terrain outside the walls may be placed within JL of
the burh.
1\\4tA\]P,

]D]E]P,]LO,YMt]ENlf
First the deender must choose t unit of Hearthguard as his reinforcements. This can
be any Hearthguard unit, freely chosen from his warband, but it may not include the
Warlord, l the defender has no Hearthguard, then chose a unit of Warriors instead.

The defenderthen deploys all the rest of his forces first. They must all be pIaced
either inside the buhr or within ]L of the walls or gate if outside the burh.
The attacker then deploys all his forces, anywhere on the table but not within L
the burh or any enemy unit.
The attacker takes the first turn.

unt arrves and can be placed anywhere on the defender's

table edge, outsde of the burh. On any other symbol the unit
has not yet arrived, roll again at the start of the next turn,
The burh walls are heavy cover and a low linear obstacle. The
gate is impassable until it is destroyed.
The gate may be attacked in melee, treat t as a single unit
with Armour 3 and a Defence roll of 5+. To destroy ihe gate,

the enemy must score to hits upon it. Keep a running ttal
of how many hits the gate has taken in the game. The gate is
immune to hits by any missile weapons. Any hits by double
handed Dane Axes count as 2 hits instead of t (they are
very effective at choppng woodl) Once destroyed the gate
becomes passable.

V]tClt,O]RY

coN]D]tT]ttolNss

At the end of the game add up victory points as normal. The

attacker gets a bonus +z victory points if he destroyed the
8ate. He also gets a bonus number of victory points for each
unit inside the burh at the end of the game, The bonus points
are equal to victory points value of the unit if they had been
casualties, so t point for each Hearthguard, for every two
warriors or every three Levy and the Warlord himself is worth
3 Victory points.

Scoucs
Whilst on the move through witd lands two enemy
forces have sent out their scouting parties, to search
the lands ahead of them and to hunt and forage for
food. Now the two rval scouting partes have run into
each other and weapons are drawn.
A runner has been sent to fetch the wartord and
his men to this desolate place as the skirmish

rapidly escalates...

]LAYOlutlf
This game is played on a 48'' by 36'' table.
The scenery is arranged according to the rules described in the

SAGA rulebook.

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wh,s*idp1ofinent1nthe cse'of :drw::

the player with the most impressive facial hair wins). The
winner sets up a single unit of scouts (see speciaI rules). These
are placed in his half of the table, but not within ]L of the
centre line. The rest of his warband are reinforcements (see
SpeciaI rules).
S

]P' ]E

]t.N

]L ]RlUt

i:.::.iifu;ii;,*it,
::::

1nii'"o'u"i*ofi' iiiiorienis-instead, thi ca,b:a*f-*nit,

he likes (including the Warlord). Once all his units are on the
table stop rolling for reinforcements.

calculate the number of sAGA dice rolled in the orders

phase as normal, but in this scenario the players always roll

minimum of z SAGA dice, regardless of what units are the
table at the time.
a

]L ]E ss

A scout unit can be any of the following: any Levy unit,

any mounted unit, any Warrior unit equipped with missile
weapons. lf a warband does not include any of the above
units, then a single Warrior unit may act as scouts instead. The
warlord cannot be a scout.

With only the scouts on the tabte, the rest of the warband
will arrive as reinforcements. From the start of turn z roll one
sAcA dice for which unit arrives that turn. when a unit first
arrives place it anywhere on the player's table edge.

Warriors.

1-3

Place a single unit of Warriors

on the player's table edge.

Hearthguard or Warlord.

4-5

Place a single unit of

Hearthguard or the Warlord on
the player's table edge.

Place a single Levy unit or

the warlord himself on the
player's table edge.

Levy.

]L]ENG]r]HI O]F GA\N\4]E

See Victory Conditions.

V CTO]R)Y C ON
]t

]D

T toN
]t

sS

At the end of each combined turn, both players count the

number of victory points they scored this turn, for casualties
inflicted upon the enemy. Keep a running total of victory
points on a spare piece of paper, When a victory points total
reaches 1o there is chance the enemy will think better of the
engagement and withdraw.
At the end of each subsequent turn the player must roll his
5,464 dice to see if his forces are willing to continue the
battle, calculating the number of dice just as if he were rolling
for Orders. lf this dice roll does not show any 6s, then the
player's warband withdraws and he loses. As long as the
player can keep rolling 6s then he may take another turn.
Note, this is a separate ro|l from the Orders phase, the SAGA
dice should be rolled again in the Orders phase as normal.

Two Warlords have already agreed that their warbands will do battle, at a chosen hour, at a ctearing
marked at the corners with hazel staves, beyond which no warrior may, with honour, step.

lnside this arena the two forces have mustered and two champions are called to the fore to duel,
only then will the slaughter commence...

]LA\YOlu]r
This game is played on a 48|' by 36'' table.
The ground has been chosen to be clear of obstacles. Place
terrain as normal, but any pieces placed must be at least
partially With ]L of a table edge, leaving the centre of the
battlefieId clear.

Mark the edge of the battlefield with 4 corners. Place a

marker (a smalI twig wil| be fine) at each corner. Each marker
must be ]L from both edges of the battlefield at its corner,
NVIA\]P,

]D ]E

]P,

]LODYl\\4t

]E

N ]f

Roll a dice for which player is the first arrive at the field of the
hazel wands. The player that rolls highest deploys his entire
force first, On a tie, the player with the most impressive facial
hair is the winner. AIl his forces must be placed with Mt of the
back edge of the arena area.

After one side has completed its dep|oyment, the opponent

then dep|oys his entire force.
After the second player has completed his deptoyment,
the first player can now switch two units in place, as he
re,organises his ranks before the battle. These two units
are moved into the same position as the one they are
switching with.

Both players then chose r Hearthguard model as their_ ..

champion and place it n the centre of the table.
The side that wins the battle of champions goes first.
5S ]P,

lE

lt

A\

]L

]RIUI ]L ]E ss

The battle will not commence until a duel of champions has

been fought, thus showing whose side the Gods (or just Cod)
favour today.

After deployment, each player

model to be his champion and
the table, in base contact with
War|ord may not be chosen as
the Mighty trait.

must choose one Hearthguard

place him in the centre of
the enemy champion. The
the champion, unless he has

''' '"4"'56A dice for their champion and assign them on the Battle
Board as they wish. Reso|ve the melee as normal, fighting
until one or the other champion is killed. Whilst the champions
are fighting, no other units may be activated.
Once one champion has won, the victor's model
immediately returned to his unit and will fight as normal.
is

]LIENGT]HI O]F

Add up Victory points as normal, The side that won the Battle
of Champions gains t bonus Victory point.
lf any of a player's units left the hazel wands arena area (this
is altowed, just frowned upon) then he Ioses 1 Victory point for
each unit that did so. This includes any units that were forced
to withdraw out of the arena.

GA\N\4[]E

The game last for 6 complete turns,

C2rcended e,7canp[e:
Ca-paigrning Seasons in |utt
tC

ar

nn n,

it aL ,or;611
-

5,9,31

"s,9,

;111 {Qt

1pl,g

lt i5 the f rst campaign season of Pete, Tom, 6arry and Steve's

campaign. Pete s Ingvar Redaxe, leading hs Vkngwarband,
Tom is Eochan Mac'GIbran, Ieading an lrsh warband. Garry
is Drogo Fitzwalliam, leadng a Norman warband andSteve s
Cadoc Ap Blethu, aWelsh warlord.

Pete'sVkings have chosen to Raid

Tom's trsh. Tom's lrsh have chosen to Defend. 6arry's Normans
are RadingtheWelsh, whlst Steve's Welsh will be campaigning
In the first campagn season,

aganst the trish. The games break down as follows:

p
,P4|r

b attl e against the lrsh. A N or m an' Ambush'

st th e W el sh, A W el sh' l nv as o n' b attl e a gai nst

V king' Rad'

attl e aga

in

the lrsh.

{ffi

The first warbands to meet on the tabletop will be the Vikings

and lrsh (atthough the order of games played doesn't matter).

Frst the lrsh, as Defenders, resolve their campaign acton,

ganng +t Wealth and addng 4 men to one Warror unt, Ingvar
is a Hard Ruler and gans 4 bonus Levy before the game. He adds
a new 4 man Levy unit to hs roster.
Ths should be a Raid scenario, but the lrishWarlord Eochan has
the'War Crafty' trait and he's defending, so t automatcally
becomes and'Ambush' scenario wth the lrish ambushng
the radngVikings. The players run through the pre,battle
sequence and it'Il be a 4 point SAGA game, decided by Tom as
the aggressor (agan hs War Crafty comes n handy). They set
up the terrain and roll for the scenaro on the Ambush table. The

result s a'Battle at the Ford', so a rver is added to the centre of

the board.

fic

i@isiust:wiir,

and n.the process Eochan'hlrhietf s a casualty, but tngvar isn't.

post-battle sequence, first they roll for Eochan, a casualty
on the losing side. On a [symbol] 6, he is captured and ransomed
back to the lrish, ganing lngvar +t Wealth and losng Eochan t
Wealth. Not a good start for the lrshWarlord, but t could easIy
have been far worse.
In the

After the game, l in

4 slan men are permanently removed from

each player's roster from those unts whch took casualties.

Next, Ingvar gans his Spols of Victory, as he is Raidng he gains

Wealth (a lucratve trp ths one so far).

+t

As the winner of the battle lngvar also gans t Campagn Victory

Point, but neither starting warband has yet reached Athelng
stdtus, 50 they can't clam the bonus Campaign Victory Point.
lngvar recruits 2 new Warriors to replace some of hs losses,
Eochan recruts 4 new Levy. Neither Warlord chooses to spend
the extra Wealth to increase the number of these recruits.
Both roll f or Fate. lngvar gets Upgrade Warriors, one Warrior
unt mdy become Hearthguard. Except, with only Reputaton
z and already leading z Hearthguard units he can't do this.
Unluckly the good Fate rollis /ost with no effect. Eochan's Fate
roll results n zD6 Warrior renforcements, he rolls 5 and adds 5
men to a warrior unt.

Knrghts to onte of hs unts, Cadoc]s Fate io|l rsutts n a

The peasants are obviously unhappy that he faIed to defeat the
Norman raders, He loses 1 Reputaton, executes 3 Levy as the
rngleaders and must Defend as hs next campagn acton.
The thrd battle of the campagning season sees Cadoc
Ieadng hs Welshmen n an lnvasion scenario aganst the trish,
Again, Eochan's War Crafty trat comes n handy and he gets
to Ambush the Welsh and set the game's sze. The Ambush
scenaro s rolled, and it's'The Escort' result. In the ensung
battle theWelsh are defeated by the trsh and Cadoc s also a
casualty. RoIIng for the casualty, Cadoc s dead!
The dead Warlord can ether be replaced or Steve can drop out
of the campaign as the Welsh and rejon wth another warband.
He chooses to continue, with Cadoc's son, Aethan Ap Cadoc Ap
Blethu, repIacing hs slain father, He rolls the motivation Dragon'
Hoard, and the two traits Hard Ruler and War-Toothed. He also
gets the addtional trat Blood Feud wth Eochan, the slayer of
his father. His new special rule is Hero of the vkngAge. Aethan
loses l pont of hs father's Land, Wealth and Reputaton (hs
Wealth was already ,t and can't fall any lower so remains as t).

ready for ther next game.

The post-battle sequence is completed, with both sides

removng the slain and adding new recruits. The Fate roll for
Eochan results n hm gaining zD6 Levy reinforcements, he gets
just j (poor dce), whilst Aethan gets a good marriage result and
gan; +1 Land. Nether player merges any unit on hs roster.

Meanwhle, the Normans are radng the Welsh n another

'Ambush' scenario. The Normdn ambush is a'Forest Road
Ambush' scenaro, which they win. Drogo is a casualty in ths
game, but as the vctor the roll results in only a minor wound,
he'II be fne to contnue unaffected. The Normans gan t Wealth
for the successful Rad and l Campagn Vctory Pont, Drogo's

Campaign season 1 is now over and campaign season 2 can

begin, with each player choosing hs action. It has been a bad
start f or the Welsh, a Revo|t! and ther Warlord was klted,
but they aren't out of t yet and stil have a force capabte of
matching their opponents under ther new Warlord (who's luck
wII hopefully be better).

Neither player wants to merge any units so both players are

j-:r].!::_

-+

d.iit"

t,

Eq

:=:i'j-:=.;,+:+:j:.1i!:]

tngiair'sVikngs will Rad atgan, ths time agai6l P7ogo's

Normdns. Eochan agan choses to Defend his lrish homelands,
playing to his War Crafty trait. Drogo will Rad, agan against the
vulnerable Welsh, whlst Aethan's Welsh must Defend, because
of the Revolt! last season. (This still counts although it was

again;t his father.)

The lrsh gan +t Wealth from Defendng and add z men to a

Hearthguard unit.TheWelsh gan +tWealth and add 4 men to a

warrior unt.
The first battle wll be an Encounter scenaro between lngvar
and Drogo, as both are Rcidng. Before the game Ingvar agan
adds 4 bonus Levy for beng a Hard Ruler, so hs Levy unt has
grown to 8 men (wth bows). The scenario rolled s a'Scouts'
result. ln the resultng battle lngvar's Vkings narrowly wn, but
both Warlords have fallen as casualtes. Ingvar has only a mnor
wound and will continue unaffected. Drogo has been kIled!

Carry decides that Drogo wIl be replaced by his identcal twn,

brother, Bohemond. Bohemond's new motivation is Skald's
Song, with the trats Quarrelsome and Colden Hoard and he
get the Penny special rule, as well as a Blood Feud against
Ingvar (ddn'tyou kill my brother?). He loses t Land,Wealth and
Reputaton, but s then ready to continue,

aftermath of the battle, lngvar has gained another point

of Wealth and another CampaignVctory Pont. He spends
some of his hard won (stolen) wealth on extra recruits. Ingvar
s startng to look lke a threat and has now reached 15 Power,
making him an Athelng.
In the

The only other battle ths season wll be the Norman Raid on
the Welsh. The scenario wIl be 'Harry and Burn' . When the two
forces meet in a 4 pont SACA game, the Welsh wn a defensve

+ t;tttiifEiiiffi-i*,a-ffi....'.ffi3

Hearthguard renforcements t; h5 l(nl'gt s unit, whilst Aiian's

is to add zD6 Warror reinforcements. Due to battlefeld
casualtes, one of Bohemond's Knight units has dwndled to
iust 3 men, so he decides to merge it into his other Knight unit,
raisng t to strength 11 - a very potent strke force.
No one has attacked the defendinglrish, soTom hasn't played
a game n this campaign season, and he's gained +t Wealth and
the extra troops, he chooses an extra Hearthguard, Hs Power
has also rsen, reachng t7, so he s a|so now an Athelng.

At the end of campagn season

the rosters look lke ths:

Ingvar'svkings have Land z, Wealth

and Reputation z, wth 5

unts (of which one is iust 2 Berserkers, but as Hearthguard they

stll count towards Power), that give him a Power of t5. He has
earned z CampagnVictory Ponts so far.

Eochan has Land z, Wealth 6, Reputaton j, and 5 legal unts ( z

of Levy Kerns of 9 and 8 men, z of Warrior Bonnachts of 9 and
8 men and t Hearthguard Fanna of 4 men) on hs roster, givng
him a Power of l7, with l CampagnVctory Pontfrom hiswin
over thewelsh,
Bohemond's Normans have Land l, Wealth 5 and Reputaton 1,
wth iust 3 unts on the roster (but one of them s t,t mounted
knights), he only has Power to, and 1 Campagn Victory Point,
Finally, Aethan Ap Cadoc'sWelsh have Land 2,Wealth 3 and
Reputation 3, wth 4legal unts on his roster, so he has a Power
of ,tz, and l CampagnVctory Point.
Campaign season three is now ready to commence with each of
the players choosnga new campaign action...

L _) "-.

. ,-T: =: :

::-:_+.

WARBAND TYPE
WARLORD,S NAME

MoTlVAT|oN
TRAlTs

SPECIAL RULES

\W]EA\]Lrt,]HI

----

May not include more

LeVy units than Land

-/

May not inclUde more

wa.rior units than wealth

May not inclUde more Hearth

gUard Units than RePUtation

Total of Land, Wealth,

Rep and nUmber of units

SIZE

UNlT TYPE

ARMoUR
MELEE/MlsslLE

ATTACKS EACH

WEAPONS/SPECIAL

,5
6
7

8
9

o
11

1z

CA\

CA\

I\\4I

I\\4t

]PA\

]t

tG

]PA\ ]t tG

sS

sS

]EA\sSON

lE A\

ir

sSrON 4l

CA\M[

]PA\

A\^\4t ]PA\

]t

]t

tG

sS

]EA\

ssCIN 2

CA\

N\4t

tG

sS

]EA\sSON 5

C A\

IVt lPA\

]PA\

]t

]t

tGN

rG

sS

sS

]EA\

ssa^

]EA\

sstoN

.,

16,

i:

:.,]

Blood and slaughter are let loose upon the world! lt s the
Age of thewolf ... and only the strongest can survive.
lt is the darkest of ages, a tme of blood and fire when
the only rule is that of the sword and the axe. lt is an age
when ambitious young lords must fight to rise above their
rivals, amidst the shattering shields and shaken spears of
the sheldwall. Rival Warlords must face-ofi, mustering
their warbands to pillage, raid and burn, to wn them
new lands, new riches and the undying glory of a bold
reputation that will be written in blood across the sagas.
Raise the Levies. Muster the Warriors. Summon the
Hearthguard to your sde. Jon the desperate fight for
power and glory n the Age of the Wolf.

Within ths book you wll find a complete SAGA Dark Age
Skirmishes campaign system for two or more players,
with players leading their own warband in a bitter
struggle for land, wealth and reputation, to rise above
their enemies and be recognised as the rightful new king.
To create an Age of the Wolf campagn each player

will need hs own 4 pont SAGA warband, chosen from

the SAGA Dark Age Skirmishes rulebook or any of its

supplements. You will also need the basic SAGA Dark
Age Skirmishes rulebook and (optionally) Northern Fury,
Raven's Shadow and/or Variazi and Basileus supplements.

ffi