Updated Biblical Cheat-Sheet

HERE is a cheat-sheet for the core of my adapted rules for fighting biblical-era battles with 10mm miniatures.

They are based on Neil Thomas's rules in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, but you will need that book for specific points not covered here, and in general for how the rules operate on the tabletop.

Some of the adaptations are a result of my studying the period, and of how I like a wargame to work, with some adapted from Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame books.

MOVEMENT

Open-order cavalry, light chariots: 24cm

Close-order cavalry, heavy chariots, camelry: 20cm

Open-order infantry, auxiliary infantry: 12cm

Close-order infantry: 8cm

Turning more than 30° from straight-ahead costs half the movement allowance, except for open-order troops, camelry and light chariots, who are not penalised.

Variation: when a unit tries to use at least 75% of its movement allowance, roll a die, a 6 meaning 25% is added to the distance covered, a 1 meaning 25% is deducted.

MISSILE RANGES

Foot bows and slings: 24cm

Mounted bows: 20cm

Javelins: 8cm

Archers as well as javelinmen can shoot at attackers who make contact after having started more than 8cm away.

HITS

5+ on a die scores a hit. If it is not saved, use the following table:

Quality of unit hit  Lose base  Fall back 3cm

Elite                            1-2             3-6

Average                      1-3             4-6

Levy                            1-4             5-6

A unit that cannot fall back, either straight or within 30° of straight back, eg it is blocked by impassable terrain, by enemy troops or by friendly troops not in open-order, or it would leave the battlefield, loses a base.

A unit in a melee whose opponent falls back may follow up and immediately force another round of hand-to-hand fighting, provided the player's unit suffered fewer hits than its falling-back opponent.

MORALE

The general's unit receives a +1 modifier when testing morale.

If the unit is destroyed, every friendly unit in line-of-sight tests its morale immediately; every other friendly unit tests its morale at the start of the army's next turn.

Scene from a battle fought between Egyptians and Hebrews in late-2024 using Thomas's unmodified rules

Biblical Update - Other Changes & Clarifications

An army is defeated once the number of its units falls below half, rather than, as in Neil Thomas's biblical rules in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, once the number falls to a quarter.

This is, perhaps, not such a big change as might appear at first sight, at least when both sides start with eight units, as "below half" means three units and "a quarter" is two units.

However, I reserve the right in my battles to sometimes vary from the standard starting strength of eight units.

A battle beginning early in the morning can normally last 15 turns before nightfall.

Troops in difficult terrain use the same combat table as for fighting in woods.

Troops behind cover receive an extra die per base in the first round of a melee.

Gadites sheltering in a palm grove

Biblical Update - Generals

COMMANDERS, who were often also kings, played vital roles in ancient armies, and I want them represented in some way on the tabletop.

But since Neil Thomas's biblical forces in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming always consist of eight units, it would be disproportionate, in my opinion, to have an individual figure representing the general.

Instead I rule that in each army an elite unit is designated as the general's (if an army has no elite units, another unit becomes the general's, and the unit is upgraded to elite).

Such a unit receives a +1 modifier when testing morale.

But if the unit is destroyed, the general goes with it, and every friendly unit in line-of-sight must immediately test its morale, and all other friendly units have to test their morale at the start of the army's next turn.

Pharoah's chariot squadron leads Re corps at our refight of Charles Grant's Kadesh scenario 

Biblical Update - Casualties

HITS from shooting and in melees are inflicted on a roll of 5+ (rather than 4+ under Neil Thomas's biblical rules).

This obviously reduces the number of hits, but under my adaptation it is no longer necessary to score four hits to remove a base.

Instead, if a hit is not saved, roll a die:

Quality of unit hit  Lose base  Fall back 3cm

Elite                            1-2             3-6

Average                      1-3             4-6

Levy                            1-4             5-6

A unit that cannot fall back, either straight or within 30° of straight back, eg blocked by impassable terrain, by enemy troops or by friendly troops not in open-order, or would leave the battlefield, loses a base.

A unit in a melee whose opponent falls back may follow up and immediately force another round of hand-to-hand fighting, provided the player's unit suffered fewer hits than its falling-back opponent.

The overall effect of these changes is to speed the game, and in particular to stop melees dragging on, as they otherwise have a tendency to do.

A melee in rocky ground during the Battle of Palm Hill

Biblical Update - Firing At Chargers

ONE rule I have dropped from Neil Thomas's biblical section in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming concerns what happens immediately preceding a melee.

Thomas stipulates that a charge must be declared at the start of the half-turn by the attacking player and that, if contact is successfully made, the defending unit, if armed with javelins, may shoot, provided the enemy started further than 8cm away.

I am dropping the need for a charge to be declared, and I am extending the right to use defensive fire to bow-armed troops, again provided the enemy starts more than 8cm away.

Assyrian close-order archers will be among those benefitting from the increased right to defensive fire

Biblical Update - Missile Ranges

THERE are three missile ranges in Neil Thomas's biblical section of Ancient & Medieval Wargaming.

Bows on foot 24cm

Bows on horseback, slings 16cm

Javelins 8cm

I have discussed these distances in previous posts, for example here, and have made two major changes in my adaptation of the rules.

The first is that slings were not outranged by infantry archers, and so I give them the same range as bows on foot, ie 24cm.

But I have also upped the range of bows on horseback to 20cm, and have decided that chariot archers should come under this category (Thomas's rules leave the question open).

Bows and slings on foot 24cm

Mounted bows 20cm

Javelins 8cm

Egyptian bow-armed chariots in action

Biblical Update - Movement

MY rules are very much based on Neil Thomas's biblical ones in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, but the movement section has considerable input from Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame.

At the start of each turn, dice to see who has the initiative, higher score moving first. If the army has a great general, add one to the roll; if the army has a poor general, subtract one.

The higher score moves first, ie the winner does not have a choice in the matter, and the winning player picks a unit of his army to start with, and it moves, shoots, tests morale, etc, before a second unit does likewise, and so on.

Open-order cavalry and light chariots can move 24cm; close-order cavalry, heavy chariots and camelry, 20cm; open-order infantry and auxiliary infantry, 12cm; close-order infantry, 8cm.

Turning is free to open-order troops, light chariots and camelry, but other troops that deviate more than 30° from straight-ahead lose half their allowance.

When a unit tries to use at least three-quarters of its allowance, roll a die: 6, add 25% to the distance covered; 1, subtract 25% from the distance covered.

For example, a unit of close-order cavalry wants to turn to its flank and advance 8cm. Close-order cavalry have a normal movement allowance of 20cm, but since the unit turned more than 30°, its allowance is reduced to 10cm, and since 8cm is more than three-quarters of 10cm, a die is rolled. It lands as a 1, meaning the unit, perhaps because of an unexpected obstacle or confusion about the order, only covers 6cm.

This rule should not be enforced when the result would be ridiculous, eg a unit sent to defend a wall or line a river bank should not be made to move across the wall or into the river as the result of a 6 being rolled.

Assyrian close-order cavalry

*Amended 4/4/26 to make clear that open-order cavalry, as well as open-order infantry, light chariots and camelry, can turn more than 30° without losing any of their movement allowance.

Biblical Update - Moving & Firing

UNDER Neil Thomas's biblical rules in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming it is stated that "close-order* troops may never move and fire."

Nevertheless, a special rule for the Assyrian army allows its close-order infantry and cavalry units to fire with half their bases even after moving.

I have more-or-less kept this special rule in that I am allowing Assyrian professional close-order infantry and close-order cavalry to move and fire.

Moving on to open-order troops, he states that open-order infantry, open-order cavalry and light chariots may move and fire "under certain circumstances."

1. Open-order infantry armed with javelins may throw their javelins either before or after moving.

2. Open-order cavalry and light chariots armed with bows may shoot either before or after moving.

3. Open-order cavalry and light chariots armed with javelins may split-move, ie shoot at any point during their move.

However, no unit may shoot if charging, ie intending to force a melee.

I understand why ordinary close-order infantry armed with bows are not allowed to move and fire, but why are open-order infantry armed with bows the only open-order troops unable to move and fire?

This seems to me a clear anomaly, and I intend treating open-order archers the same as bow-armed open-order cavalry and light chariots, ie by letting them fire before or after moving.

Egyptian open-order bowmen

*He uses the word "heavy," but "close-order" is a better term, as I have explained before.

Biblical Update - Canaanites & Philistines

NEIL Thomas's Canaanite and Philistine list in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming covers "states operating in what is now Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Syria."

He goes on to add the Mitanni, in what is now Iraq, "and even the Hammurabic Babylonian empire."

CHARIOTS bow-armed light chariots, elite 2-4 units

SPEARMEN biblical infantry, light protection, levy 2-4 units

SKIRMISHERS javelin-armed open-order infantry, light protection, levy 2-4 units

ARCHERS open-order bowmen, light protection, levy 0-1 unit

The Philistines are allowed an extra troop type:

GUARDS biblical infantry, medium protection, average 0-1 unit

The Babylonians also receive a compulsory extra:

ARCHERS close-order bowmen, light protection, levy 1-2 units

I do not have much to say about this list at present, except that an argument can be made for upgrading the Philistine guards to elite.

Open-order archers were an integral part of many biblical armies

Biblical Update - Hittites

THE Hittite list in Neil Thomas's Ancient & Medieval Wargaming covers six centuries, and is basically the equivalent of lists 16 (Hittite Old & Middle Kingdom), 24 (Hittite Empire) and 31 (Neo-Hittite & Later Aramaean) in De Bellis Antiquitatis.

HITTITE CHARIOTS spear-armed heavy chariots, elite 2-4 units

SYRIAN ALLIED CHARIOTS bow-armed light chariots, average 0-2 units

SPEARMEN biblical infantry, light protection, levy 2-4 units

SKIRMISHERS javelin-armed open-order infantry, levy 1-2 units

There are no special rules for a Hittite army in A&MW, but two points from the list stand out.

The first is that Hittite chariots, as opposed to the chariots of their allies or vassals, are treated as melee weapons, rather than shooting platforms, and I agree with Thomas's arguments on this score.

The second point is the levy status of all infantry, which seems a little harsh, but I intend going with it unless I find convincing evidence to prove this wrong.

Hittite biblical infantry may have been impressed, but can also have something of an impressive look