Seeds of War is a 6mm scale game that encompasses huge forces fighting it out on the battlefield and there is nothing more impressive than viewing two massive armies with gigantic war machines clashing, struggling to get the upper hand and take control of the battle. The 6mm scale allows players to field a vast array of units or formations, in this case only limited by the force organisations and points required within the rules of Seeds of War. Thus the possibilities of what can be done in the game are endless. Whether you are a player who likes endless numbers of tanks to wreak havoc and destroy anything that moves on the opposite side of the table or a person who likes a more balanced force to secure vital areas on a battlefield as well as destroy enemy units, this game is definitely worth a try.

The Forces Involved
The Seeds of War universe has three main forces to start with; the Pax Arcadians, the Andrayada and the Kraytonians. Each race has its own unique style, background and scenarios with various units available to take the battle to their opponents. You will discover how the Andrayada became who they are today and their dark history with the Pax Arcadians and learn how the Kraytonians grew after finding technology that was advanced for their time.

As you play, you will discover your chosen race's strengths and weaknesses in various situations and learn how to exploit them to your advantage. As time goes on, new details of how each race develops and the new units they create in order to expand their territories will be revealed.

The universe is a big place and although there are only three main races at the moment, there is more life out there to be discovered. The Skyth army have made their appearance and will become quite a race to behold with their own background and units to make things difficult for the other three, and it doesn't end here. You can use the backgrounds given as a template to make up your own forces with a detailed history or create games based on scenarios you would like to play out. There are no limits as to how you enjoy the game and what it has to offer, our background and scenarios are merely an example of what you can do with forces of your own choosing.

As we develop new ideas you will see more new units for all races and these will be revealed in full as the Seeds of War universe expands and our original three races come across new systems and planets where they unearth unexpected surprises.

So watch this space...

The Game

Victory conditions are determined and agreed by both players at the beginning of a game, whether it is capturing certain parts of the gaming board, total obliteration of the enemy or playing out various scenarios that are provided by us or created by you to achieve the relevant conditions to win the game.

The choice of army will be very important in order to achieve a victory while keeping your opponent at bay, so careful consideration should be taken when choosing formations. When your armies have been chosen, the formations are placed on the table within a certain distance of the gaming edge. Orders are placed for the relevant formations on both sides, and once the initiative has been decided, the game begins.

Each order has its own qualities for players to use to their advantage and in combination with other formations they can have devastating effects. Assault orders, for example, have mostly turned out to be bloody affairs when playing with the Kraytonians. If successful, the Reactive Stance orders are just as deadly which I have personally experienced when fighting Vanguard formations in an Andrayada force. Orders are quite destructive and effective when things go the way players have planned, but can of course be a complete disappointment when players either have problems trying to activate formations or have really bad rolls failing to cause mayhem. This means the flow of battle is constantly changing.

A single turn involves both players alternating to activate one formation at a time until there are none left. By activating a formation at a time, it forces a player to think more about their moves and what their opponent's plans may be, and means that players are not waiting around and watching their opponents take actions, unable to respond. The alternating activations test a player's ability and strategic skills to achieve victory as it is rather tempting to only react to their opponent's moves.

This adds another level to the game as players can react to the situation or try to manipulate it and test the opposing player by presenting various different challenges, making it a little more difficult to win the game.

Formation checks, morale and retreats are dealt with at the end of each turn to decide who is still standing as the dust begins to settle and whether victory has been achieved. Otherwise it's back into the fray for another round.

At shows, Seeds of War has proved to be easy to pick up and a lot of fun. The game flows fast given the amount of players we have had, and that is the main goal of the rules - to have fun and play a game that doesn't get bogged down with too many details, but still captures the essential feel of commanding a huge force.

The Rules.
The rules and stats for the three main races can be viewed and downloaded from here.

So if you are interested in the idea of ordering entire units of troops to wage war at your command, give the game a try and see what you think. At the very least you will be able to wreak destruction on your opponent and enjoy yourself in the process, unless your luck has run out and you find yourself on the receiving end.

As always I welcome any feedback and suggestions to improve the game and increase the fun factor.

Have fun!

For suggestions and feedback please contact: drm@darkrealmminiatures.com