Reflecting on mounted combat in Shadowdark

Last week, I DM’d my Horselord of Tanishorn one-shot from EruditeZINE No. 1 aka “WARHORSE”. I was curious about fleshing out the mechanics and rules for my new Knight Lancer Class and Jousting, plus mounted combat rules as well. The one-shot has the PCs mounted, so there are several opportunities for friendly chivalric field jousts in addition to deathly lance attacks while attacking atop a warhorse. Each time I run these encounters, I slightly rethink my rules and modifiers. I don’t want to keep changing them, but I want an optimal set that feels and plays like a comfortable bolt-on addition to Shadowdark without creating a whole sub-set of tedious crunch-heavy RULES. Ugh!

The thing I love most about Shadowdark is the room that the GM/DM has to explore and add more when and where you want to expand the rules or mechanics to suit your setting or the tastes of your group. I believe creator Kelsey Dionne recognized that we ALL homebrew to some extent, regardless of system, and that any rulebook simply cannot cover every possible game occurrence or contingency. It is foolish to try. Keep it lean and intentional, then let the players and DM fill on their own blanks. I love this idea as a creator, but with respect for the game, I will do my best to keep it lean on added rules and buffs so the game keeps moving.

I am also a military wargamer, playing Napoleonic miniatures and board games like Advanced Squad Leader for decades. Those levels of accuracy and realism can’t work in Shadowdark. And I don’t want a Byzantine rule system or excessive crunch spoiling my RPG fun. Instead, realism and accuracy can only serve as inspirational guides. In these new combat rules, they cannot get in the way of the pacing and fun.

I have reviewed the Shadowdark Zine, Cursed Scroll No. 2 “Red Sands” on pp. 28-29 for Mounts and mounted combat. Little of what I have written in my zine conflicts with what I found reviewing “Red Sands”. Rather, I am attempting to expand and open up more avenues for imagination and game play with my first zine, “WARHORSE”.

A reminder while you’re here… if you have not yet bought WARHORSE (Zine No. 1), you can find it here for less than $10. As always, I appreciate your interest and support.

After cursory examinations of multiple D&D editions, Castles & Crusades, ACKS, and Pendragon, I have begun composing a one-page quick reference table for knightly combats on horseback. I am trying to keep only the bare essentials without falling into the wargames trap, which would bog the game down. My main concerns are the imposing physical nature of an onrushing horse to a defender on foot, and the frightful nature of one of these large charging beasts. Morale certainly enters the equation. Everything else involves mounted combatants engaging in melee or a mounted figure attacking foes on foot in melee (not charging). Once morale is passed for a monster of a fighter on foot, they can best attack a mounted adversary with a distance weapon or even a ranged one. Glaives, billhooks, and other polearms become good choices, although NO PC ever chooses these weapons when rolling up a character. Even the common spear can be an excellent choice for the footman. And archers can wreak havoc on mounted attackers once their charge has stopped and lost its impetus or impact.

In any fast combat rules I create, I also want to address damage to mounts, because it is integral to mounted vs mounted and mounted vs foot fighting. These animals are not tanks, machines, or automatons. They spook, run, and bleed. They have traits and personalities of their own that can come into play. These characteristics should be resolved with dice rolls, however. We should be careful not to let mounted players use their warhorses or other mounts like machines. Let’s retain the RPG principles with mounts, too.

So much to think about. When I post my Mounted Quick Reference table for Shadowdark, I hope you will all test it and share your thoughts and comments. Watch for my upcoming post in days or a week at worst. Let me know what you think with an email, please. EruditeDM@gmail.com. Thank you!

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