USE ME 15mm Fantasy Rules
Product Description:
UM002 USE ME 15mm Fantasy
(A6 Booklet, 32pp, Colour Covers, ISBN and
Barcode)
£3.50
USE ME means 'Ultra
Simple Engine for Miniature
Engagements' and this system delivers just that. Tactically challenging, easy to learn and for
any age of wargamer interested in ANY
fantasy setting. From skirmish
to full battles, games last from five minutes to an hour or two for the largest
battles. Play in your lunch break or in
the evening when the idea of a really complex system with a long set up time
really does not appeal. Pick up any of
you Fantasy miniatures and get playing
in minutes. This complete rules system
is printed in A6 format which is a booklet which will fit in your pocket (110mm
by 180mm) making it truly portable as well as fantastic value for your
money. USE ME is just that...its for
you!
Theory
and Design of Product:
So here we are four
months after the release and really the fantastic response to USE ME 15mm
Science Fiction rule system. If you would like to know more about the origins
of the USE ME system then refer to UM001 where you can find out all about
it. After hundreds of messages and
requests its now time for the next
step. After science fiction the next
logical place to go is High Fantasy, after all its what many wargamers play and
love as well.
I began with an idea and
the manuscript of the first book and set to work. With the help of Elton Waters and Bob Minadeo
plus some in house testing too I developed a fantasy mechanic that is really
actually rather super on the table.
Keeping in mind that being short of gaming time meant we and most of the
players who would want this game were knackered (read as 'beat' if you are
American) and being generic was vital to allow the use of any and all of your
collection of miniatures was also vital we came up with USE ME 15mm
Fantasy. Skirmish and Mass Battle in one
place suitable for the most veteran player and the total novice and tactically
motivated not sales price of product.
Interested....read on.
The USE ME game system
for 15mm Fantasy. You will need some
miniatures, some terrain and a few six sided dice (D6's) to play the game. This is not much and indeed most of the time
everything in play needs only 1D6 roll to make a decision. In the game all miniatures, monsters and
siege engines and so forth are de-marked into of CHARACTERS and these into
TYPES which allow you to create anything you want in a fantasy setting with a
few tables of TYPES with points costs attached.
The Turn Sequence of the game follows a simple path
of firstly the Initiative Phase where all players roll 1D6 and the highest roll
wins the initiative for the turn (important later on!). Then the main part of the turn, the In Play
Phase where all characters in the game are activated not by the side upon which
they fight but by their Elan Rating.
This means better troops move and fight before poorer quality
troops and within each Elan banding from
6 to 1 activation begins with the initiative holding player. When activated each character can choose TWO
actions, these include move, ranged fire, melee, defend, special action, unique
action. The character may choose two
different actions OR the same one twice with a modifier; very flexible in
battle. Ranged fire and melee are based
on opposed single D6 rolls with modifiers for troop type and weapon
ratings. This super fast system results
in targets being Killed, Struck or Winged by attacks. Killed removes them from play while the other
two results negatively effect their further performance in the game. The defend action allows characters to take
cover against attack while special actions cover those things detailed in the
USE ME Advanced Rules and unique actions are created when needed for a
scenario. The USE ME Advanced Rules
cover off table actions such as bonuses and attacks at a battlefield level plus
advanced mechanics for giving your Personalities extra skills for being a
General, Hero, Cleric or a Wizard. There
is a full magic system with four 'schools' to choose from. There are character traits which give your
troops abilities that make them more Savage or more Nimble or Rage Filled
etc. This tailors to different fantasy
racial types. That covers the skirmish
level of the rules which means from a handful to a couple of dozen characters
but what of the battle level of the USE ME Fantasy rules?
It is at the battle level
that these rules really flex their muscles with whole formations of troops
marching into a maelstrom that can make use of more than a hundred miniatures
per player with ease. To take the rules
to the battle level the 'Rule of Three' is brought into play and nifty it is too!
All miniatures are based
as singles (its what you all asked for to end the tyranny of differing basing
conventions) and to turn these individuals into 'formations' (the USE ME term for Units of any size) the Rule of Three
is used. make a Formation you need THREE
characters to command it, these are typically an officer, a standard bearer and
a musician of your chosen racial and troop type. These three become the COMMAND
THREE of the Formation and remain at its core until the formation is destroyed
or the game ends or you elect to dissolve the formation. You then add
Characters to the command core of the formation in sets of THREE at a time.
Each set of three is placed in base to base contact with the Command Three
building out from it as you go so the command ends up in the centre of the formation. There are different types of formations that
have different functions but you can build formations up to any size you want
for big regiments in big battles.
Formations move as one though injured characters can fall behind and get
separated (which is very dangerous as normal infantry or cavalry are
automatically killed by formations if touched or attacked) and perform attacks
based on every three characters in the formation. This allows attacks to be split or focused
especially for ranged attacks. Formation
melee involves a clash of ranks with the attacks of the front two ranks being
counted and you can literally 'grind down' formations and even feed in more
troops to the rear of the formation, adding them to bolster its numbers. Injuries in a formation can be assigned to
miniatures at the players discretion allowing unparalleled choice in which
ranks of your formation are hurt and killed by attacks. This is a very tactical and entertaining way
to battle and can enact the largest of conflicts.
After the USE ME
game finishes. Most of the time you will
want to play a quick game, cause some carnage and send a lot of little metal
men to their dooms. But it need not be
the end if you want to carry on. USE ME
has mechanics in it for updating your Force Roster (with your troops on it from
the game just finished) to see what happened to those characters who were
Struck or Winged in play to see if they recover in time for the next
encounter. This makes rolling those dice
nail biting and really important for the next scenario. Plus you can make a second lot of rolls for
any characters Killed in play to see if a slim chance of them rejoining your
forces for the next game. A simple
system for linking games together follows and then a page containing narrative
approaches to forming a whole campaign and ideas of how to do it. The end of the game on the table is just the
start.
The
Endless Settings of USE ME. One of the
core ideas for this game system was to make it capable of carrying out
skirmishes, battles and campaigns in ANY
fantasy setting allowing players
to import any and all of their own ideas or those from Books, Television or
Film into play. The character types
table allows you to set your miniatures, your ideas, your setting to the game with
little trouble. Just choose the Elan
Rating, the Weapons, the Movement rates etc for each of your miniatures and
fill out a force roster with their names and statistics; as simple as that. Wars over Magic Rings, Campaigns against
Orcs, Pale faced Elves and more...USE ME can do them all.
USE ME is a pocket rule system that does not
pretend to be anything else. Its fast,
its fun and its affordable. With many
rule systems these days taking themselves far too seriously and with some being
priced at an amount that makes purchasing them a long term goal for most of us
USE ME gives you what it promises and in a format that will make you
smile. Try it, you might want to USE ME
yourself!
Thanks for Reading,
Gavin Syme
Contents of Product:
USE ME contains a lot of material in its little
pages, enough for some cracking single games, linked games, campaigns and even
solo play too.
Here is a run down of just what you get in the booklet.
Frontis Page pg1
Introduction & Contents pg2
What you Need to Play pg3
The USE ME
Rules pg4-20
The USE ME
Advanced Rules pg21
USE ME
Magic Rules pg22-23
Character
Types and Costs Tables pg24-26
Example
Force Creation pg27
Miniatures
Types and Markers pg28
Force
Rosters pg29
After and
Between Games pg30
Linked
Games and Campaigns pg31
HOT
Miniature Rang pg32
Free
Resources Listing and Code pg32
Miniature Ranges Suitable for Product:
The USE ME 15mm
Fantasy rules can be used with any
suitable range of 15mm scale miniatures however we recommend that you look at
our own 15mm Fantasy ranges. These include the HOT 15mm Fantasy range of
more than ninety packs of high quality miniatures and the classic TTF range which features more than fifty
different infantry, creatures and monsters.
Promotion
for Product:
When you purchase a copy
of USE ME 15mm Fantasy from 15mm.co.uk
you get access to two brilliant promotions.
Here are the details.
Firstly this booklet qualifies for our specially
discount MAGAZINE postage rate world wide.
If you order only this booklet (no other books or miniatures) then you
can select magazine for your shipping region and pay only £1.00
postage (UK and Europe) or £2.50
(USA
and ROW). All non UK orders are
by airmail too! Secondly when the
booklet is in your hands turn to its back page and your can gain access to the
following. Firstly an email to get a
free folder of resources in PDF form for the game (Force Roster, Templates,
Counters, Sample Scenario). Secondly a
promotional code to use on the 15mm.co.uk website which will get you not only
5% off your next order from us but also included in that order will be a free
casting of the Orc Warlord on boar pictured on the booklet cover (worth £0.70).
How is that for value on a rule system priced at
only £3.50! Get
your copy today!
