War Battles
War battles in SuikoPokemon will very much be in the style of Suikoden 2 - that is, a number of units on a square grid map facing off against each other in turn-based warfare. So here's the deal. At some point or another, your characters may find themselves in command of forces small or large. Should you find yourself in this kind of scenario, it would be wise to brush up on some important terms:
- Unit - A force of soldiers lead by a Commander and up to two Subcommanders. The number of soldiers is largely handwaved, and thus the most important part of a Unit's stats are the Commander's Attack Rating, Defense Rating, any War Abilities the Commander may have, along with any modifiers the Subcommanders may provide.
- Commander - The leader of a unit. The unit's Attack and Defense Ratings are determined by its Commander. The Commander may also have a War Ability, which may be Passive or Activatable. An example of a Passive War Ability would be Cavalry, increasing a Unit's movement speed.
- Subcommander - Up to two of these may be assigned to a Unit. These usually provide a small bonus to Attack or Defense Rating, provide a War Ability, or a combination thereof.
- Element Type - A Unit may predominantly use a specific elemental type of Pokemon. These may provide various bonuses or penalties compared to having a Neutral Element typing. More on this as I decide rulings.
- Combat Type - A Unit is one of three types of Units, determined by its Commander. It may be a Melee Type, a Marksman Type, or a Rune Type. Melee Types can close in and rout Marksman Types, Marksman Types excel at piercing through distant Rune Types, and Rune Types cast spells that can stop Melee Types cold. Combat Type generally cannot be changed without character growth - a predominant spellcaster is not a very good leader for large groups of infantry, and so on.
- Injury - Damage to a Unit. Units generally have 3 HP. When a Unit sustains Injuries equal to its HP, the Unit is defeated and may suffer casualties.
In game terms, once your PCs are in appropriate position, they may become Commanders. Subcommanders would largely be chosen from npcs you have recruited, and each would have their own various bonuses.
Battles are carried out between units within range of each other. The attacking Unit first rolls 2d6+their Attack Rating. Should the roll exceed the Defending Unit's Defense Rating + 6, the Defending Unit gains an Injury. Whether or not the Defending Unit would survive the Injury, its Commander may choose to initiate a Counterattack, which is decided much the same way. In this way, neither, one, or both Units may come out of the battle with an Injury. This should go without saying, but a Unit may not Counterattack a Unit not in its range.
A Unit with a superior Combat Type (Melee > Bow/Guns > Magic > Melee) gains +2 to its Defense Ratings versus ill-matched opponents. Interesting tactics or clever use of terrain may also provide bonuses, and special types of training or high quality equipment can make a world of difference as well.
Creating your Commander
Commanders and Subcommanders
COMMANDERS:
Katsuo: Melee Commander. 6 Attack, 2 Defense. Forest Ambush: When moving through Forest tiles, the unit's Movement is not reduced to 1. When attacking from a Forest tile, treat your Attack as two higher. Turn Undead. At Will, Swift Action - Roll an extra attack against target Undead unit. Ranged 3. This cannot be counter-attacked.
Cornell: Melee Commander. 5 Attack, 5 Defense. Song of Life x1 - Swift Action, all adjacent allies gain +2 Defense for one turn. +1/+1 Tenkai Star bonus. +1 Melee Defense.
Makoto: Melee Commander. 5 Attack, 3 Defense. +1 Melee Defense. Bugyo x1: Standard Action. Choose up to two commanderless Ninja or Samurai units. These units take an immediate attack if able. These attacks may not be countered.
Garm: Melee Commander. 5 Attack, 2 Defense. Possesses the Heavy Armor war ability, gaining +1 HP.
Iltani: Marksman Commander. 4 Attack, 3 Defense. Veteran Sniper x1: Free Action, treat one of your rolled dice as a 4 instead of whatever number you rolled. Passive: When you down an Enemy Unit, gain +1 Range for one turn. Rose of Conviction x1 - Standard Action. Make an attack against two enemies within four tiles, or against all adjacent enemies. This cannot be countered. This may be used as flaming projectiles, or you may choose to use this as a Rune attack instead.
Sumeru: Marksman Commander. 4 Attack, 3 Defense. Possesses the Cavalry ability, gaining +2 movement.
Ashley: Marksman Commander. 6 Attack, 1 Defense. Mountaineer ability - When moving through Mountain tiles, the unit's Movement is not reduced to 1. When attacking from a Mountain tile, treat your Range as +2.
Lekha - Rune Commander. 3 Attack, 4 Defense. Vision Reacts x1: Ignore one attack or activated effect applied to this unit, free action. Passive: Gain +2 Defense against Rune Units. Water Rune: Kindness Drops x2 Swift Action. Ranged 3. Target unit heals 1 HP. Reaper's Scythe - Passive. Enemies within three tiles cannot recover injuries. Enemies with a single hit point remaining are unable to attack or counter-attack this unit.
Soma - Rune Commander. 5 Attack, 2 Defense. Whirlwind Dance x1: Free action on your unit's turn to increase your Unit's Attack, Defense, and Movement by 1 for two turns. Passive: Gain +1 Defense versus Melee or Marksman Units, chosen at the start of the War Battle. Lightning Rune: Angry Blow x1. Standard Action. Make an attack against one target within 3 tiles, with a +3 bonus. This attack may not be countered. Berserker State - Passive. If you are not at full HP, you counter-attack enemies an additional time.
Jeane - Rune Commander. 4 Attack, 3 Defense. Charm Rune: Die For Me x1. Standard Action. Choose an adjacent enemy unit. They make an immediate attack against another enemy unit that they may reach, and are countered if possible.
SUBCOMMANDERS:
Unbroken Circle: Subcommander. +2 Attack, +1 Defense, no abilities.
Gavin: Subcommander. +0 stats. Evasion - If an attacking enemy's Attack roll includes a 1 or 2, automatically avoid the attack.
Luna: Subcommander. +1 Defense. Creativity x1 - Swift Action. Regain one use of an expended War Ability or Rune.
Amelia: Subcommander. +1 Attack and Defense. Heal Self x1 - Swift Action. Restores 1 HP to own unit as a Swift action.
Amalthea: Subcommander. +1 Attack and Defense. Improvise x1 - Free action. Change unit type for a single engagement. Retains range.
McGraw: Subcommander. +2 Defense. Tactical Analysis. All adjacent allies gain +1 Attack and +1 Defense.
Aston: Subcommander: +2 Attack. Trickster - Standard x1. Deploys 5/5 Mini-Shuckle batallion. This temporary unit is destroyed at the end of your next alliance phase.
Elydia: Subcommander: +1 Attack, +1 Defense. Shenanigans. You can roll an additional attack against an enemy that misses you with a counter attack. This additional attack cannot be countered.
Luc: Subcommander: +1 Defense. Shredding x1 - Standard Action. Make an attack against a target within 7 tiles.
Viki: Subcommander: +1 Attack. Huh??? - Standard Action.
Terry: Subcommander: +1 Attack, +1 Defense. Hammer and Anvil - Passive. All allied units within 5 tiles gain a +2 Attack bonus if they would be attacking a Flanked enemy. (Normal Rules: Flanking doesn't apply in war battles)
Bhuta: Subcommander: +1 Attack. Unassailable Reaper - Once per battle. When this unit is defeated, remove all injuries. This unit then loses -2/-2 for the remainder of the battle.
Bernard: Subcommander. +1 Defense. Bombard x1 - Standard Action. All adjacent units take one Injury. Own unit takes one Injury.
Merydia: Subcommander. +1 Attack. Heal Self x2 - Swift Action. Restores 1 HP to own unit as a Swift action.
Usagi: Subcommander. +1 Defense. Passive: Bodyguard. +1 HP. Once per battle, this unit may take an Injury for an adjacent unit.
Claire: Subcommander: +1 Attack. Choose one ability at the start of a war battle: Chemistry - Swift Action EOT. When subcommanding for a single, male commander, use this ability to launch an additional attack. OR Magic Sword - Passive: Melee range increases +1, may extend a further +1 once per battle as a free action.
Nari: Subcommander: No stats. Summoner x2, Swift Action. Call forth a Yokai unit for one round that may be Melee, Ranged or Rune. Distribute 7 stat points to this unit. This unit has 2 HP.
Titania: +1 Defense, +1 Movement Speed. Passive: As the Fairy Flies - This unit is unhindered by terrain.
Generic Units:
You've gained the ability to deploy commanderless units! These weak units may not have commanders or subcommanders, but are expendable muscle that are replaced by the next war battle if lost. You gain the ability to deploy four of these, among the following types:
Mercenary Alliance: Melee, 6/6, +2 HP. Hardy, reliable warriors that possess no skills, but a lot of heart.
Shinobi: Melee or Ranged, 6/1 or 5/3. Shukuchi - Swift Action. Move this unit and one adjacent allied unit three squares and hide them from enemy vision until the start of the next Alliance Phase or until they attack.
Samurai: Melee, 5/5. Midare Setsugekka. Standard Action. Once per battle, deal 2 damage to target commanderless unit. No roll is needed, and no counter attack is possible.
Misc:
Basic Blacksmith Bonus: For having a Blacksmith built in the HQ, a higher quality selection of weapons and armors gives your Commanders a permanent +1 to Attack or Defense, of their choice.
Burgeoning Forces: All gain +1/1.
Strategist: Having a strategist adds an extra layer of tactical depth to the war battle map! Strategists will provide Tactical Points that you can spend to turn tides in your favor. You may choose to exclude any number of units from the tactical map at the beginning of a War Battle. At the start of your turn, you may spend 1 Tactical Point to retroactively reveal a strategy and reveal any number of hidden units in a plausible location on the map. The intentions of a specific strategy are important, and the better thought out a plan is, the more effective it may be. Repeated use of the same strategy, however, may make enemies wise up. You may also spend a Tactical Point before War Battles start to dispatch an npc to perform a specific task (they will be unavailable in the war battle), and reveal what their task was at the start of any of your side's turns.
Terry: 2 Tactical Points.
Units
| Commander | Stats | Sub 1 & Stats | Sub 2 & Stats | Bonuses | Total |
| Katsuo | 6/2 | Elydia: +1 Atk, +1 Def. Shenanigans. | Amelia, +1/1 | +1 Def (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 9/6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soma | 5/2 | Bhuta, +1/0 | Terry, +1/1 | +1 Def (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 8/5 |
| Iltani | 4/3 | Titania, +1 Defense, +1 Movement, Unhindered by Terrain | Amalthea: +1 Atk and Def. Improvise x1. | +1 Atk (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 7/6 |
| Lekha | 3/4 | Luc - +1 Def. Shredding x1: Make an attack against a unit within 8 tiles. | Viki: +1 Atk. Huh?? - Standard Action. | +1 Def (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 5/7 |
| Cornell | 5/5 | McGraw, +0/2 | Claire, +1 Attack, Magic Sword (+1 Range, once per battle +1 more range) | +1 Defense (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 7/9 |
| Sumeru | 4/3 | Aston - +2 Attack, can deploy 5/5 Shuckle Battalion which lasts until end of next alliance phase. | None | +1 Defense (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 7/5 |
| Ashley | 6/1 | Gavin - Evasion. If an attacking enemy's Attack roll includes a 1 or 2, automatically avoid the attack. | Nari, Summoner | +1 Attack (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 8/2 |
| Makoto | 5/3 | Luna - +1 Defense, Creativity (Swift - Regain the use of a limited ability) | Usagi - +1 Defense, Bodyguard (+1 HP, take damage for an adjacent unit), +1/1 (Army) | +1 Attack (Blacksmith) | 7/6 |
| Garm | 6/2 | Bernard, +1 Defense, Bombard | Merydia, +1 Attack, Heal Selfx2 | +1 Defense (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 8/5 |
| Jeane | 4/3 | Unbroken Circle, +2 Attack, +1 Defense | None | +1 Defense (Blacksmith), +1/1 (Army) | 7/6 |
Unavailable
Leknaat: Subcommander. The Mystery Box opens! +1 Attack, +1 Defense. Pale Gate x1 - Make an attack against all enemies within four tiles. This attack cannot be countered or refreshed.
Akemi: Subcommander. +1 Attack and Defense. Skirmisher - Can move 1 space after attacking or counter attacking.
Terrain
Forest - Tree tiles slow most units down to a single point of Movement. Cavalry are reduced to 2 movement.
Mountains - Rock tiles slow most units down to a single point of Movement. Cavalry can't enter at all.
Towns - Heal 1 Injury at the end of the allied turn.
