Ragnarok Read online

  This book is dedicated to my wife, Dana Korklewski.

  Without her constant support and encouragement to pursue my dream, the Morpheus Engine would never have seen the light of day.

  CONTENTS

  FOREWORD

  THE TALE OF THE END

  THE FRACTURED EDDA

  INTRODUCTION

  WHAT IS THE MORPHEUS ENGINE?

  RAGNAROK: EPIC BATTLES IN A HEAVY METAL AGE

  HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

  WHAT YOU NEED TO PLAY

  Miniatures

  Dice

  The Battlefield

  Terrain

  Tape Measure, Tokens, Counters, Etc.

  THE WORLD OF RAGNAROK

  THE FRACTURED REALMS

  Alfheim

  Asgard

  Helheim

  Jotunheim

  Midgard

  Muspelheim

  Niflheim

  Svartalfheim

  Vanaheim

  MORPHEUS ENGINE CORE RULES

  MODEL PROFILE

  Model

  Attacks

  CHOOSE A SCENARIO

  Battlefield Set-up

  Deploying Models

  MEASUREMENTS

  GAME ROUNDS AND PHASES

  HQ Phase

  Initiative Phase

  Activation Phase

  End Phase

  THE SUCCESS TABLE

  USING ACTION POINTS

  MOVEMENT

  ATTACKS

  Line of Sight

  MELEE ATTACK RULES

  RANGED ATTACK RULES

  Distance Penalty

  Firing at an Engaged Model

  Cover

  Special Ranged Attacks

  FOCUS ACTION

  TERRAIN ELEMENTS

  WEAPONIZE RAGNAROK’S TERRAIN: MAKE IT DANGEROUS!

  WEAPONIZED TERRAIN

  Barbed Forest

  Lush Forest

  Magma Pool

  Thin Ice

  WAR CLAN CREATION

  CREATING YOUR WAR CLAN

  Jarl

  Bondi

  Huskarl

  Berserker

  Skald

  Gothi

  Speider

  WEAPONS AND ARMOR

  Melee Weapons

  Ranged Weapons

  Armor

  GOD POWERS AND GODSPARK

  OBTAINING INITIAL GOD POWERS

  GENERATING GODSPARK

  USING GODSPARK

  GOD POWERS

  Balder

  Dellingr

  Forseti

  Frigg

  Heimdallr

  Hermodr

  Hodr

  Loki

  Odin

  Odr

  Sif

  Thor

  Thrud

  Tyr

  Ullr

  CAMPAIGN PLAY

  STARTING AND PLAYING IN A CAMPAIGN

  War Clan Rank

  The Post-Game Campaign Sequence

  RECORD GLORY

  INJURY AND DEATH IN A CAMPAIGN

  RAID

  Usable Items

  Equipment

  Magic Items

  Legendary Items

  Gaining New God Powers

  WAR CLAN IMPROVEMENT PHASE

  Improving War Clan Warriors

  Improving God Powers

  Imprinting God Powers

  RECRUITING NEW WAR CLAN WARRIORS

  Hiring New Warriors

  Hiring Encounter Models as Warriors

  Demimortals

  Disbanding Warriors

  PURCHASING ITEMS AND GODPOWERS

  Purchasing Items

  Selling Items

  Equipping Warriors

  Purchasing God Powers

  SCENARIOS

  OBJECTIVE MARKERS

  ANATOMY OF A SCENARIO

  DETERMINING SCENARIOS AND DEPLOYMENT

  SCENARIO 1: HOSTILE TAKEOVER

  SCENARIO 2: BLOODY CONTEST

  SCENARIO 3: SUDDEN CONFLICT

  SCENARIO 4: THE DEAD DRAGON’S HOARD

  SCENARIO 5: DOORWAY TO THE BIFROST

  SCENARIO 6: RAMPAGE OF TROLLS

  GAINING GLORY FOR CAMPAIGN PLAY

  SECONDARY OBJECTIVES

  List of Secondary Objectives

  OPTIONAL ENCOUNTERS

  DEPLOYING AND ACTIVATING ENCOUNTER MODELS

  BESTIARY

  ANIMALS

  Bears

  Boars

  Apes

  Stags

  Wolves

  CORRUPTED BEINGS

  Eotins

  Corrupted Skraelings

  Hags

  DEMIMORTALS

  Aelves

  Dvergr

  Dwarves

  DEMONS

  DIVINITY

  DRAGONS

  Linnormr

  Scoffin

  Wyverns

  ELEMENTALS

  Air Elementals

  Earth Elementals

  Fire Elementals

  Water Elementals

  JOTNAR

  LYCANTHROPES

  UNDEAD

  ABILITIES LISTS

  SPECIAL ABILITIES

  ATTACK ABILITIES

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  FOREWORD

  The Morpheus Engine is a personal project I have been passionate about for many years. The system’s title is based around the idea that you, as a player, can Play What You Dream—and the name stuck with me. Over the years, I have played quite a few miniatures games; each one requiring I learn a completely new rules system. This made keeping track of game mechanics when playing in multiple tournaments for various games at conventions extremely complicated.

  The Morpheus Engine is my personal answer to this problem: use a core mechanical system that allows you to play anything from Sword and Sorcery Fantasy Mass-Combat battles, to Science Fiction Space Opera fights, to modern-day Cops versus Gangsters and spend only a few minutes learning the handful of extra rules required for each unique game setting.

  These Core Rules went through many iterations, and I am happy to present the final version here, which are used for each game the Morpheus Engine powers. I am working incredibly hard to keep new content coming at you for each game setting to keep your games as fresh and exciting as miniatures games ought to be!

  In closing, thank you from the bottom of my heart for purchasing this product. It means quite a lot to this passionate wargamer that you share in the excitement of my creation!

  Tim Korklewski

  Creator of the Morpheus Engine

  THE TALE OF THE END

  The Fractured Edda

  Gather ‘round, my battle kin, and hear how we came to such a fate. For time unmeasured, Yggdrasil—the World Tree—held aloft the nine realms of existence. Each realm was connected by branch or root to the Great Ash, spread far and wide to allow each realm to flourish on their own without causing great discord to the others.

  Midgard, the realm of mortals, was ours. It was here that we ruled and conquered under the gods’ watchful eyes. It was here that the greatest battles of our time took place and mighty heroes brought down legendary monsters.

  Asgard, home to the Aesir—the mightiest of the gods—sat atop the tree. From high above Midgard, the gods watched over us mortals, intervening in our fates when they saw fit. Our mightiest warriors joined them in Valhalla.

  Jotunheim, the realm of the Jotnar or giants, lay close enough to Midgard to allow the children of Ymir to cross over from time to time and exert their power against us.

  Alfheim, home to the Aelves of Light, was a mysterious place rife with untold magics and ancient traditions.

  Vanaheim, home to the Vanir, the gods of nature and fertility was a realm thick with trees and plant life. Some say that power
s of future sight and wisdom were granted to those who made Vanaheim their home.

  Muspelheim, the realm of fire, eternally smoldered under King Surtr the Fire Giant’s rule. Within the great volcanoes and foundries of the realm, the sun and stars were formed.

  Opposite Muspelheim was Niflheim, realm of ice and mists, home to the mighty Frost Giants—stronger than even our mightiest heroes. Hiding within its mists are the mysterious Niflungar, the cruel and selfish children of the cold realm.

  The realm of Darkness, known as Svartalfheim, was a massive cave that received no light from the sun above. Here dwelled the Svartaelves, Aelves of Dark who lived alongside the great Dwarven smiths. Many great magics were forged into weapons within these dark halls, which also held items of untold power.

  Buried deep within the Roots, deeper than the great wells, was Helheim, the realm of lost souls. This is where the dead ended their passage when they were ill or led a heinous life. It was here Loki’s daughter, Hel, ruled.

  All of that has passed.

  You see, my kin, imprisoned deep within the Yggdrasil’s roots was an immense being as old as the tree itself—and even larger than Jormungandr, The Great World Serpent. For eons, Nidhoggr, The Malice Striker, a great and terrible dragon, desperately gnawed away at the roots of Yggdrasil trying to free itself from its prison. The bodies of those slain and found unworthy in the mortal realms regularly washed up on the Corpse River of Nastrond; thus, the dragon ate them to maintain its strength. Many believed the ever-growing Yggdrasil was strong enough to hold such a heinous beast. And for untold time, they were right.

  Eventually, though, Nidhoggr did the impossible. It clawed and chewed its way free from the World Tree and took flight into the Great Void.

  As soon as Nidhoggr was free, Yggdrasil toppled, slamming the nine realms together with great force—an event you all know as The Shattering. Asgard, which once sat so high upon the tree, took the most forceful blow with Yggdrasil’s collapse; it shattered, the thunderous impact killing the Aesir. The remaining realms collided into one another, causing primordial elements and the beings of the realms to pour unchecked into the remnants.

  This is where we currently sit, my kin—our realm and those surrounding it in chaos, our very existence in peril. We are assaulted on all sides by all manner of beasts and monstrosities. Magma pours forth, burning our great forests to cinders even as the icy wind freezes the air we breathe. From the remnants of Helheim, all manner of dead crawl forth unchecked, trying to reclaim their former lives. The gods are dead; they offer no solace or end to these times. But, not all is lost! You see, bits of the power from which the Aesir were created float about the Fractured Realms, seeking out any brave enough to grasp it. This energy—mere sparks of the dead gods’ power—is there for the taking. If the gods are slain and we need gods to restore order to what remains of the realms, then we must seek out this power… this Godspark! We shall become the new gods and rebuild the realms as we see fit! Raise your weapons high, my kin. It is time for us to rise and create for ourselves a legendary legacy! They shall tell our saga for generations to come!

  Torhild – Skald of the Wyrmkiller clan

  INTRODUCTION

  What is The Morpheus Engine?

  The Morpheus Engine is a core mechanical system used to play multiple different miniatures games. The book you hold in your hands uses the Morpheus Engine to bring this game to life. Morpheus Engine games are for two (or more) opposing players, each of whom control an army or faction of models and fight to complete the game’s set objectives.

  Ragnarok: Epic Battles in a Heavy Metal Age

  Welcome to the dangerous and visceral world of Ragnarok. Set during an alternate version of the legendary Death of the Gods, your War Clan must cut a brutal swath across the Fractured Realms in search of Godspark, become the new gods of what remains of the realms, and claim their rightful places in the tales of legend.

  This game is powered by the Morpheus Engine. If you have other games powered by the Morpheus Engine, you can skip the Morpheus Engine Core Rules section and go straight to Weaponize Ragnarok’s Terrain: Make it Dangerous! where the additional rules and mechanics you need to play this game begin.

  How to Use This Book

  Ragnarok contains all rules necessary to play the game. As with most games from the Morpheus Engine, it is primarily designed for campaign play; however, you can play the Scenarios as one-shot games or reformat them for competitive tournament play.

  What You Need to Play

  To play Ragnarok, you need this rulebook, a table, dice, pen (or pencil) and paper, a tape measure or ruler (in inches, often shown as “) and, of course, the most important part of any miniatures game: miniatures. It is also helpful to have a variety of terrain for your battlefield. This not only blocks an attack’s line of sight, but adds to the players’ immersion in the game making for a much more exciting experience. If you are new to the wargaming hobby, most of these things are explained in detail below.

  MINIATURES

  Miniatures are, by far, the most important part of the wargaming hobby. Typically made from metal, resin, or plastic, you use these toy soldiers to represent the various members of your War Clan and the creatures they face in the Fractured Realms. Hundreds of companies make miniatures, any of which can work quite well for Ragnarok. There are photos of painted miniatures throughout this book, to give you a glimpse of this exciting world. All entries list the model company represented in the photo. In the back of this book, you can find a list of the companies and their websites from which you can order models. Alternatively, you can take this list to your Friendly Local Game Store and request that they order them for you.

  For Ragnarok, your starting War Clans consist of humans. Eventually, your War Clans face giants, wolves, and other fantastic beasts of legend in various sizes. The typical heroic miniature scale is 28-32mm. While the game does not require that you have exact models, players should try to use models that best represent the armor, weapons, and special gear their warriors carry. The goal is for all players to agree which models represent which War Clan members.

  DICE

  As with all Morpheus Engine games, you need only two, six-sided dice (2D6) and one eight-sided die (1D8). The D8 is for special situations, such as scattering area of effect attacks.

  Most actions in the Morpheus Engine require that you roll dice to complete tasks, such as attacking other models. See the Core Rules section of this book for details about using dice.

  THE BATTLEFIELD

  Typically, a two-player game of Ragnarok is played on a 3’ x 3’ square table. For multi-player games, you can increase the table size to 4’ x 4’ to allow each War Clan a bit more room to maneuver (unless you want to keep the action up-close and bloody from the start). In extreme cases (such as games with 5+ players), you can increase the table size to 6’ x 4’ to clash in a grand battle and acquire as much Glory as possible! The Scenarios section of this book covers proper set-up and deployment options for multi-player games.

  TERRAIN

  As with many skirmish wargames, having plenty of terrain on the table is not only beneficial to game play, it is visually pleasing, as well. It does not matter whether your terrain is store-bought, built from scratch, or a collection of various pieces. You can use many different types of terrain in the Fractured Realms of Ragnarok, the most common of which are forests, large trees, hills, rocky outcroppings, ruined buildings, and crumbled walls.

  The Fractured Realms section in this book discusses the unique aspects of the different realms’ ruined remnants. Read through it to get a feel for the types of terrain that would make each location unique. Use your imagination to come up with stunning terrain you can place on your battlefield to make your battles unique and interesting. Remember, Ragnarok may begin in the remnants of Midgard, but all the Fractured Realms are your warzones!

  TAPE MEASURE, TOKENS, COUNTERS, ETC.

  Morpheus Engine games are measured in inches, so you need a tape m
easure or similar device to measure distances while playing. You also need different tokens and counters to represent current model health, status effects, and the like.

  THE WORLD OF RAGNAROK

  For time untold, Yggdrasil, the World Tree, stood tall—holding the nine realms of existence within its great branches and roots. Each realm was its own separate world, held apart by the tree. Yggdrasil held within it all the power of existence, and each realm held a fraction of that power. Midgard balanced any excess power that spilled forth from the realms. Here, mortals were created; and they thrived.

  While Midgard itself was a place of harmony between the ancient powers, it was not without its own turmoil. From the ashes of ancient mortals rose a warrior stock so mighty that legends speak of their ability to rival the gods themselves. These mortals were called Vikings. Viking culture was built on the back of hardship and glory; Vikings were constantly at war with their neighbors or hunting the beasts of the dark forest without ever fearing the absolution of death. They feared no man or beast because facing such rivals earned them fame and made them worthy enough to catch the gaze of Odin, King of the Aesir. If Odin deemed them worthy, Valkyries would carry any Vikings who fell in combat to Asgard to join him in the great halls of Valhalla, a divine home for legendary warriors. Here, these chosen warriors would train for eternity to prepare for the great war that would end the Aesir.

  But, the great war never came to pass.

  Deep within the great roots of Yggdrasil, an ancient dragon known as Nidhoggr—The Malice Striker—was confined. Nidhoggr was a chaotic and primordial being that fought against its prison with tooth and claw. Each time Nidhoggr severed an earthen bond, Yggdrasil grew an even stronger one in its place. Even the Fates were blind to Nidhoggr’s schemes when it finally broke free and toppled the World Tree, causing the realms to come crashing together in the event known as The Shattering. As the great realm of Asgard existed at Yggdrasil’s very heights, it fell the farthest of all the realms upon the collapse. And the gods who lived there, the Aesir, died on impact, their spirits shattering along with the realm itself. All who survived the collapse immediately felt the divine loss of those who once watched over the mortals of Midgard.