The Dice Are Cast by Protongun
archer line. They may move/ Charge
Introduction:
Welcome to The Dice are Cast, a
minimalist wargame that uses only six-
sided dice.
This game is designed to be fast and
easy to play, and utilises only D6s to
represent units, put into different
formations and positions on a small
battlegrid.
Remember, if any rule seems unclear,
use common sense and remember to
have fun!
Preparation:
The BattleGrid: The game is played on a
flat 3”x 6” square grid.
The Armies: Players must put together
armies of equal number of dice. (8 dice
per player is the recommended count)
Reserves: While building their army, a
player may choose to leave any number
of dice in reserve, but there must be at
least one die on the battlefield in the
first turn.
Reserves can be activated at the start of
any turn after the first one to deploy
them in a controlled or contested
square. They may only be deployed on
edge squares, facing away from the
edge that they are deployed on.
(Controlled squares are the zone from a
player’s archer line to their furthest
unit. Contested squares are squares in
which two opposing units are locked in
combat.)
Deployment: Players alternate in
deploying their units in their starting
zones. The first two rows of squares
from the shortest edges are the starting
zones. The first row from the edge is
the archer line.
Units:
Archers: Any number of dice deployed
in any count/ formation in the archer
line count as archers. Archers cannot
move or charge forward out of the
Turn Formation: The unit turns 90
sideways in the archer line without
changing formation.
Skirmishers: Always consist of only one
die. They get +1 on charge rolls and can
move sideways without changing
formation.
Phalanx: Two dice arrayed in a line.
They give -1 to opposing charge rolls
that target the phalanx.
Spear Head: Three dice arrayed in
triangle. They get +1 to charge rolls.
Turtle: Four dice arrayed in a square.
They give -2 to opposing arrow volleys
and -1 to opposing charge rolls That
target the turtle.
Playing the Game:
Activations: The players alternate
activating their units. The player with
the most deployed units may choose
whether or not to activate first. (Dice in
reserve and deployed reserves do not
count towards deployed units.) If both
players are tied for number of units,
they roll-off, and the winner chooses
whether to activate first. All units can
only be activated once each round.
When a unit is activated, it may take up
to one action.
Dice Rolls: When prompted to roll dice,
roll a D6 per die in the unit that
prompted the roll, and add the relevant
modifiers.
Actions:
Move: The unit is moved one square (a
unit can only move forwards unless
stated otherwise.)
Charge: The unit moves forward one
square into a square with an opposing
unit and rolls to charge, dealing damage
to the opposing unit equal to the roll.
Fight: Only units locked in combat may
use this action. The unit rolls like in
charge, but with no bonuses.
Arrow Volley: Only archers may take
this action. The unit first rolls a D6 to
determine the range, then rolls to
damage an opposing unit in a square
within range. A roll of 1 deals D3
damage to the unit taking the action.
Hold Steady: The unit gets +1 to its next
roll.
degrees in any direction.
Break Formation: A number of dice
from the unit may move to a different
square. Both units count as Broken.
May be combined with Charge to
charge sideways.
Take Formation: Only units that are
broken may take this action. The unit
forms into the appropriate formation
for its dice count and position on the
battlefield.
Others:
Ambush: When a unit is deployed from
reserve into a square with an opposing
unit, it counts as a charge.
Locked in Combat: Opposing units that
are in a single square are locked in
combat. When locked in combat, a unit
can only Break Formation or Fight.
Flanking: When charging at an
opposing unit that is facing away from
the charging unit, The charging unit
gets +1 to the charge roll.
Causalities and Morale:
Causalities: When a unit takes damage,
subtract the number at the top of the
die by the damage taken, and change
the number on top to that result. If
causalities exceed the number on the
die, remove it and move on to another.
A unit is destroyed when all dice from it
are removed.
Morale: If a unit loses a die by
causalities, it must roll X D6(Where X is
the number of dice in the unit.). If the
roll is equal to or below, the formation
is kept, otherwise the formation is
Broken.
A unit with a Broken Formation can
benefit from no bonuses. It may still
move and attack, but it has -1 to charge
rolls.
Victory:
The last player with an army standing
wins the battle.