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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Starfinder RPG

Rules Index | GM Screen | Player's Guide
Battlecry! / Skirmish Units / Building Skirmish Encounters

2. Pick the Battlefield

Source Battlecry! pg. 164
A skirmish encounter is massively dependent on the battlefield. You typically want every PC and their troop to have the option to venture into melee range, so locations that are large and mostly open are usually the best option. You’ll also need to consider the engagement range—how close the PCs and enemies are when you roll initiative and start the encounter. If you choose a distant engagement range, it’s easy for troops and characters with strong ranged attacks to pick off enemies effectively from far away. Usually, you’ll want to set the range far enough that ranged attackers aren’t useless, but close enough that melee attackers who are determined can get at least one attack (or offensive troop ability) off in the first round of combat.

If the battlefield is small, narrow, or has many impediments like walls in the way, it can be hard for troops to engage successfully in melee. Most combats call for something in the middle: a mostly open field that still provides some tactical depth through a couple pieces of terrain, which won’t completely block the path of the forces but must still be navigated around.

Playing at a Different Scale

Troops take up a lot of space on the battlefield. This can be a fun twist if you’re using a digital tabletop that lets you zoom in and out or if you have plenty of space and gaming miniatures to indicate the scale. In other situations, it might work better for your playing space to change the scale of your map for a troop skirmish. You might want to play using a 10-foot scale, with each segment of a troop filling one square. If you do, you’ll need to take care of two main tasks.

Rounding Movement and Size: It’s usually best to round up movement and sizes to the nearest 10 feet. This makes a 25-foot speed travel 3 squares, has a Medium or Small creature fill 1 square, and has a Huge creature fill a 2 × 2 space. You can still place up to four Medium or Small creatures in a single square if necessary, though usually you want to play out skirmishes on a large enough scale that such fine positioning isn’t important.

Track Troops and Individual Creatures: It can be tricky to differentiate between a troop and their leader at this scale. To represent a leader and troop on the battlefield, it’s best to put a miniature for the leader in one square and three miniatures for the troops in the other squares. This way, you can remove one miniature each time the troop drops below an HP threshold, then remove the final troop mini when the troop is defeated, leaving just the leader on the battlefield.

Terrain and Hazards

Source Battlecry! pg. 165
Difficult terrain, hazardous terrain, and mechanical or magical hazards can add more considerations to the battle. This isn’t always a good thing! Skirmish encounters are already complex, with players and the GM already needing to run troops in addition to their normal characters. If you incorporate these features, look for ones that either add to creativity or that grant certain combat participants advantages. For instance, if one of the PCs has a flying troop, you might place some terrain that makes them the best troop to go take out a ranged enemy troop. Alternatively, you might put a fortification of spikes or flaming coals down along the most direct path to the enemy but provide a slightly longer side path, so the PCs need to decide whether to rush through and take damage or get fewer attacks in by taking the long way. Either way, use special terrain and hazards sparingly!

3D Terrain

Source Battlecry! pg. 165
Skirmishes can occur across three dimensions if you make use of multiple floors in a castle turret, a bridge above a bigger battlefield, or similar areas. This can make the best use of your space but can be hard to play out in the game, so these scenarios work best if you’re playing with 3D gaming terrain. In other situations, you might need to build out a map that has segments for each floor and arrows or colored zones to show how they’re linked. If you want to use this technique, it’s best to start small, such as by making a gatehouse that has small turrets to the side, so you don’t need to stack one layer on top of another.