A Little Present For My Tabletop Gamer Readers · 7:12am Dec 26th, 2022
As you know, I am an amateur ludologist - I study games and the mechanisms and processes of play.
One of the 'Holy Grails' of tabletop gaming, especially tactical gaming, wargaming, and Role Playing gaming on a tabletop is a working, decent diceless combat system. A way to have tactical battles with miniatures that requires no dice, no cards, no randomizers at all. Something where all information is seen and known, yet which provides real choices, decisions and tactical options. A system that is solid, defined, and not arbitrary, yet which doesn't need a book full of tables or special rules. A game combat system that only requires miniatures and terrain. And maybe some means of measurement, at most.
It's taken me forty years, but I've done it. And that is my present to you for the Cashmas Buying Season. Allow me to offer you a true diceless tactical wargaming system, for cheap as free. Just remember I invented it - creative commons copyright and all that. Let me present to you...
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PLASTO LATROS
A universal diceless combat system for miniatures of almost any kind
By Jennifer Reitz (Petal Chatoyance), December 25th, 2022
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Plasto Latros (Plastic Warriors) is a completely diceless system of small-scale, team to squad-level tactical combat that does not use stats, hit points, or anything other than a set of miniatures, perhaps some scatter terrain, and some agreed upon unit of measurement. The agreed unit of measure (One Standard Movement) can be any length or size, such as the long or short side of a credit or playing card, the length of a finger, the height of a specific miniature, a piece of string, a ruler or any other tool.
How To Play
The Minis
Each player controls a set of miniatures (minis) which becomes their army in a tactical battle encounter. Any minis may be used, the only requirement is that the mini have an easily definable 'face' or front which can be distinguished from the sides and back of the figure.
Every mini is considered to have a front, or face, two sides, and a back, each comprising 90 degrees. The mini can see, and attack, anything within the 90 degree region in front of its face, and is blind to the sides and back.
The back is uniquely vulnerable to attack.
Movement
The game proceeds in alternating turns. Each player, on their turn, possesses two actions, or 'Movements' which they can choose to use. Movement is a resource which can be spent.
One Movement is equal to any distance up to the maximum imposed by whatever agreed upon unit of length the players are using (for example, the long side of a credit or playing card). They can move a mini some, all, or none of this distance (One Standard Movement) when spending a Movement.
A mini is free to move only when it is not 'Locked In Battle', 'Doomed', or 'Pinned'. These states will be described shortly.
On their turn a player may move two minis, or the same mini two times by spending their two Movement resources. Moving is always in a straight line. Movement cannot be broken into segments, nor bent around a corner, or altered midway to perform a right angle, or deviated from straight-line motion in any way during a Movement.
A Player may choose to 'pass' on one or both Movements entirely, if they desire. They may pass their entire turn, if they wish. The game instantly ends, however, if all players ever pass their turns in sequence.
At the end of each Movement, the facing direction of any mini moved may be set. Once the facing direction is set, it cannot be changed again without spending another Movement. It is possible to rotate a mini in place by spending a Movement and choosing no distance to the move, then setting the facing direction as desired.
Climbing Movement On Terrain
A mini may climb up or down one Standard Movement length by spending a Movement. The mini may not move laterally during such a climbing move except that required to place it securely on the terrain directly above or below.
A mini may also jump from any height straight down to a level below. Jumping always causes the mini to be laid flat on the playing surface, face down. When a mini is laying flat in this manner, it cannot move nor attack, nor do any other action. It requires one Movement resource to stand the mini back up again. Once the mini is standing, it can move and take actions once more.
A mini laying flat can be instantly killed and removed by any successful attack. It is considered to be presenting only a vulnerable back to the world.
Lastly, a mini may hop across any gaps in elevated terrain that are no wider than the mini is tall.
Attacking And Defending
Attacks are automatic, free actions which happen when a mini comes into base-to-base contact, or when a player declares that one or more shooter minis are targeting an enemy mini. Attacks do not cost the Movement resource.
Attacking is only valid if the attacking mini is not itself under (base-to-base) Threat or in a state of Doom, or is Pinned. Only Un-Doomed, Un-(base-to-base)Threatened or Un-Pinned attackers may have their attacks count.
A mini can be in two primary states when under attack. It can be under Threat, or it can be in a state of Doom. A mini under Threat may be 'Locked In Battle' and unable to move, but is not in immediate danger of being killed and removed from the playfield. A mini in the state of being Doomed will be killed and removed unless that status is changed before the end of the turn it is Doomed within. A final, additional state, that of being temporarily 'Pinned', will be described later.
Should a player move a mini so that it comes into base-to-base contact with another mini, it is considered a physical attack. Such a physical attack places the targeted mini into a state of Threat, and locks both minis in place. They are considered to be 'Locked In Battle'. Both minis cannot move, rotate their facing, or take any other action until this state is resolved or changed.
Should a mini ever have two attackers both in base-to-base contact with it, that mini is then considered to be 'Doomed'. If nothing changes this status, at the end of the current player's turn, the mini will be considered dead and removed from the playfield.
Once a player's mini is determined to be in a state of Doom, the defending player instantly gains one Defending Free Movement outside of their normal turn. That movement may be spent immediately on any figure on the playfield that is not currently in a state of Threat or Doom from being attacked or Locked In Battle. Only one Defending Free Movement is allowed to any single player in the state of Doom. If multiple players are simultaneously in a state of Doom, each only gets one Defending Free Movement per player.
If the defending player can move a mini such that it results in one of the Doom-causing attackers being put into a state of (base-to-base)Threat or Doom (of any kind) in return, then the original Doom state is cancelled, and the original Doomed mini will not die and be removed.
After the end of the attacking player's turn, any minis in a Doomed state are considered killed and removed from the playfield.
Long Range Attacks
Minis representing archers or characters with guns, or other distance weapons may perform long range attacks. Like any attack, such attacks are only valid if the attacker is not themselves in a state of (base-to-base) Threat or Doom (of any kind).
A long-range attacker must announce a target that is within the 90 degree view of the face of the miniature. This is judged by players looking over the head of the mini itself. Distance is irrelevant, all long-range attacks are considered effectively infinite.
Targeting is only valid if 50% or more of the targeted mini is clearly visible from the viewpoint of the attacking mini. If less than 50% is visible, the targeted mini is considered to be in cover and cannot be attacked.
A mini under long-range targeting is considered to be in a state of Threat, but unlike a base-to-base attack, the mini is not Locked In Combat and may move normally on the defending players turn. However, until that new turn, the Threatened mini may not move, and is considered temporarily Pinned.
A mini targeted simultaneously by two long-range attackers is considered Doomed. If that status is not changed, then at the end of the current turn, the Doomed mini will be considered to be killed and removed from the playfield.
When a mini is Doomed by twin long-range attacks, the defending player gains one Defending Free Movement just as happens with a base-to-base attack that results in a Doomed status. The defender may move any other mini not under attack to attempt to thwart the long-range attack. But they may not move the targeted mini, because it is considered temporarily Pinned by the Doomed status.
If the Defending Free Movement results in one of the long-range attackers being placed into (base-to-base) Threat or Doom of any kind, the long-range attack becomes invalid and the original target is no longer Doomed.
Jumping Attacks
A mini standing on a level higher than an enemy mini can choose to jump down upon it as an attack. The jump must be straight down, it cannot involve lateral movement. Jumping down costs one standard Movement to perform.
Any mini successfully jumped on instantly dies and is removed from the playfield. For this reason, the target of a jump attack is considered Doomed. They are also considered temporarily Pinned, and cannot be moved until another turn.
The player of the Doomed mini therefore gains one Defending Free Movement to attempt to stop the jump attack. They may move any mini not under Threat or Doom, and which is not the Pinned, Doomed mini. If this results in the Jumper being placed into a state of base-to-base Threat, or Doom of any kind, The jump cannot occur and the original target of the jump attack is relieved of the Doomed status and is unpinned.
Attacking Terrain And Artifacts
Some players may want to spice their games with artifacts, objects or minis that need to be protected, or other goals beyond combat itself. If such a target subject or artifact is immobile, small and not a playable character, it can be destroyed by only one mini coming into base-to-base contact with it. If it is a wall, door, or other tough, solid, and reinforced object, then at least two minis must make simultaneous base-to-base contact with it. The players are free to invent other conditions or terms by which such goals could be destroyed, captured, or otherwise dealt with.
Ending The Game
While the game may be played for an agreed-upon number of turns, or with the capture or destruction of some agreed-upon goal, mini, or artifact, or any other end game state, the game is always over when only one player has minis able to move.
For example, in the case of a two-player battle, if player A has no more minis capable of moving during a turn, because they are locked in battle or otherwise immobile for whatever reason, then player B is allowed a final turn.
On that final turn, player B may move all of their remaining movable minis any distance, to any location. They may surround the remaining minis of Player A, rendering all of them Doomed and remove them. They may swarm whatever they wish. Then the game is over.
However the game ends, barring any special or house rules, whichever player has more minis left on the playing surface at the end of the battle, wins. If the players have agreed on other win and loss conditions, those take precedent. But in general, whoever remains, wins.
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About Plasto Latros
Astute readers will recognize elements of the ancient Roman game 'Ludus latrunculorum' or 'Latrunculi', as well as portions of 'Go' and even a reference to 'Have Gun Will Travel' in the design of the rules. But, to my knowledge, nobody has ever developed a completely self-contained miniatures combat system before. Even the need of a measuring tool for movement is not a requirement - in a pinch, one can use the height of the miniatures themselves as a ruler, or even the width of a hand. This game could be played with nothing more than just miniatures on a flat surface. Terrain, if desired, could be drawn with a pen on paper, or a stick in sand, or created with piles of unused miniatures if one wanted to prove nothing more is required. If an abstract game is desired, pebbles with a line or dot designating a 'face' or 'front' could work. Disks with symbols. One could use anything, really, as a substitute 'mini'.
All rules in Plasto Latros exist in the mind, like chess. I believe this is unique.
Certainly, this system could be expanded in various ways to add 'crunch'. Certain units could be considered more or less powerful for various reasons, some could require multiple attackers surrounding them to defeat - a dragon miniature, for example, might require four or six minis simultaneously in base-to-base contact to defeat. There are countless variations that could be invented based on this framework, and the player is encouraged to do so if they desire. Thoughts I have considered have included a 'sniper' class that can pin or kill at distance with only one unit instead of needing the targeting of two, but it should be said this presents issues. Such a rule would make it virtually impossible to defeat such a mini, which would destroy gameplay and fun.
The rule of requiring two attackers to defeat one defender (outside of backstabbing) is directly taken from the ancient Roman Latrunculi. There is value in that concept. Sadly, the full rules of the Roman game are lost to time, and it is unlikely we shall ever know them. But, this game was fundamental in the development of Plasto Latros.
It is my hope that tabletop players will find Plasto Latros useful and fun, either as it is, or adapted in some new way. This ruleset is free to use so long as credit is given to me. Go forth and wargame.
- Jennifer Reitz (Petal Chatoyance), Dec. 25th, 2022
Holy Carp! This is neat! I will have to give it a try!
Omg I think I found a new game I will HAVE to play
I will be honest, the rules are everywhere, so perhaps organising the thoughts a little more with basic terminology unfamiliar to new players to be at the beginning may be beneficial.
Elegant! This is the same kind of minimalism as Taasen.
I think this would work well with 'icehouse' pieces (square pyramids of 3 sizes), not using their nesting ability.
Very interesting. I think if you created some visual examples it would help toward understanding this. One specific question:
Do you mean 45 degrees either way, for a total of 90 degrees? Or 45 degrees total, meaning 22.5 degrees either way? The first would make more sense to me since it would mean every point is within some side of each mini, and because almost any sighted creature should be able to see something within that field of vision. But the second is what you have written down.
Very neat! Thanks for this, are you going to post it more widely outside this site? And Happy Holidays to you and your family!
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I screwed up because it was late and I suck at math. It should all be 90 degrees. No 45 at all. 90 degrees, one fourth of a 360 degree pie. A circle divided into four parts. The circle of a minis base with an X through it, one section being the front, two being the sides, and the last being the back.
That was stupid of me, and I have fixed it in the rules. I plead only one thing: Derp.
What a treat.
I shall try this. This game being diceless makes me contemplate why the D120, which is a real die, did not appear until decades after the D100, which is just a ball with numbers.
I like White wolf games. Never been that big on D&D myself.
Here's a primer for them if anyone's unfamiliar
https://m.Of course something like your system might not work ine Masquerade. Not to say it isn't well thought but part of Masquerades charm is rolling 8 successes with a chainsaw and barely scuffing a nail on the Antidiluvian bearing down on you as a trained assassin surgeon with decades of vampire hunts under his belt then being miffed when Melvin the merry murder hobo blasts through its Invulnerability with a single shotgun shot
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I love dice, I got into the hobby in part because dice look so pretty. Like little gems.
I also like the way they can permit surprising and unpredictable outcomes. Oh, I am a dice fan.
But - I also get curious about other possibilities, is all. I have intellectual fascinations that come and go.
This seems like a good place to leave this:
I just saw the D-n-D-Movie. I figured that it would be terrible, but was pleasantly surprised. It is set entirely in the would of a campaign. Hopefully, when it will stream, it will have a version an hour-or-so-longer with the players playing in the real world, fatter, less well-muscled, and, in some cases, gender-swapped as well as the world of the campaign. I recommend it.
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I think about dice sometimes. As much as I like all the different dice, I must admit to die-confusion —— ⸘who has not reached for the wrong die?, from time-to-time! That is 1 of the reasons for the D20-System, where one uses the D20 almost exclusively. More options is better; so now, I propose the D120-System:
If we have to use just 1 die —— ¡a ball with an hundred numbers on it is not a real die! ——, I propose the Disdyakis Triacontahedron has more faces than any other Catalan Solid:
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Disdyakistriacontahedron.jpg
No polyhedra can make a fair die with more sides. The D120 is the ultimate die.
I also once created a campaign where the beings in the universe use Sexagesimal (Base60) and have money based on the superior highly composite number 360:
We would want to minimize both denominations and the amount, in terms of coins and bills, one receives. This is called "RadixEconomy)". RadixEconomy peaks at e. 3 is the closest to e; so therefore, we should have these denominations:
I once created a campaign, which never got a chance play, where the people use sexagesimal. Since 3-ing does not work well in sexagesimal, they use fractions of the superior highly composite number 360, with fractions of a Gold on 1 side, and the number of coppers on the other side:
Most prices are in fractions of a Gold. The Copper has a purchasing power of 1 Euro; so now, a Gold is like 360-Euro bill. All denominations are copper excep 3:
The coins are reeded, in the shape Rouleaux Triangles, and have an hole in the center.
As an example, if one is lonely, one can get female companionship for a Silver, but the bordello has a deal going where one gets 2 courtesans for an electrum and 5 courtesans for a gold.