So you’ve read the rules, assembled your glorious army and are even now champing at the bit to unleash a smiting upon your opponent! That being the case, it’s time to set up and play a Warhammer battle. Two armies, met by chance or purpose, must now battle for supremacy! Who knows what grim deeds have brought them to this bloody ground? Whether they fight for glory, vengeance, justice or the act of slaughter itself matters not. When the sun rises the carnage will begin, and only the elimination of the foe or the fall of night will bring it to an end. Of course, not all battles are the same – quite the opposite in fact – so we vary certain details, such as deployment and how the winner is determined. Doing this allows us to reflect the particular situation of the clash – classic battlelines, a fight in a mountain pass, the defence of a watchtower, and so on – creating a ‘scenario’ for the game. The scenarios given on the following few pages represent pitched battles, where the armies are of roughly the same size and the situation gives neither side a particular advantage. They are each designed to give both sides an equal chance of winning, and have few, if any, scenario special rules. There are two ways that you can choose which pitched battle to use. The first is to pick randomly, by rolling on the Pitched Battle table shown below. The second method is to discuss the matter with your opponent and agree which battle you both want to fight. This gives the maximum amount of choice and ensures that you don’t end up in a scenario that neither of you wants to play. Each pitched battle contains the information you need to get set up and playing, broken down into the following categories: The Armies (this will normally be two armies of equal points values, see Choosing Your Army, earlier), The Battlefield, Deployment, First Turn, Game Length, Victory Conditions and Scenario Special Rules. This format governs all Warhammer scenarios – not just the ones found in this volume. 

Fighting a Warhammer Battle

Place one model from the unit in the terrain feature, then roll to see what type of terrain it is, then deploy the rest of the models in a legal formation and finally resolve any effects the terrain has. Note that deploying the unit counts as entering the terrain, but it does not count as moving.

After both armies are deployed and any Deployment special rules have occurred but before the roll for first turn.

You must kill the character and his mount to score any victory points.

No, unless their rules specifically say otherwise.

Yes, unless is specifically states that they get to choose. 

The unit is placed in reserve and will enter play in the first turn using the rules for reinforcements on page 27.

The closest unit to the centre of the rubble where the watchtower once stood is the winner.

The terrain feature will count as controlled by whichever side has a unit on/inside it. If it is unoccupied, the side with a unit closest will count as controlling it. If more than one side has a unit on/inside the terrain feature or they are equidistant from the terrain feature, use victory points to determine the winner.

Warhammer Fantasy: 8th Edition

Fighting a Warhammer Battle - Frequently Asked Questions
URL Copied!

Can I deploy a unit in Impassable terrain? (p142)
URL Copied!

Can I deploy in Dangerous terrain? What happens to the deployed unit if I do? (p142)
URL Copied!

How do I deploy in Mysterious terrain? (p142)
URL Copied!

Some special rules, magic items etc. have an effect at the beginning of the battle, or before the game starts. When should these effects take place? (p143)
URL Copied!

If I kill a character but not their mount, do I score victory points for just the character, the character and their mount, or must I kill the mount too in order to score any victory points? (p143)
URL Copied!

Some models can be 'created' by spells or special rules during the game. Are such units worth any victory points if destroyed? (p143)
URL Copied!

When players roll off to see who deploys first, gets the first turn etc. must the winner deploy first, take the first turn etc.? (p144-150)
URL Copied!

During the random deployment on a Dawn Attack mission, what happens if a unit is unable to deploy where the Deployment table says it must, because it will not fit for example? (p145)
URL Copied!

If the watchtower is destroyed in the Watchtower scenario, what victory conditions are used? (p150)
URL Copied!

If we are using an alternative terrain feature in the Watchtower scenario (a hill or forest for example) how do we decide who has control of it? (p150)
URL Copied!

Fighting a Warhammer Battle - Frequently Asked QuestionsURL Copied!

Can I deploy a unit in Impassable terrain? (p142)URL Copied!

Can I deploy in Dangerous terrain? What happens to the deployed unit if I do? (p142)URL Copied!

How do I deploy in Mysterious terrain? (p142)URL Copied!

Some special rules, magic items etc. have an effect at the beginning of the battle, or before the game starts. When should these effects take place? (p143)URL Copied!

If I kill a character but not their mount, do I score victory points for just the character, the character and their mount, or must I kill the mount too in order to score any victory points? (p143)URL Copied!

Some models can be 'created' by spells or special rules during the game. Are such units worth any victory points if destroyed? (p143)URL Copied!

When players roll off to see who deploys first, gets the first turn etc. must the winner deploy first, take the first turn etc.? (p144-150)URL Copied!

During the random deployment on a Dawn Attack mission, what happens if a unit is unable to deploy where the Deployment table says it must, because it will not fit for example? (p145)URL Copied!

If the watchtower is destroyed in the Watchtower scenario, what victory conditions are used? (p150)URL Copied!

If we are using an alternative terrain feature in the Watchtower scenario (a hill or forest for example) how do we decide who has control of it? (p150)URL Copied!