Trench Crusade: Regeln und Armeelisten

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Trench Crusade

Trench Crusade is a skirmish-scale tabletop miniatures game that will plunge players deep into a horrifying alternate timeline. During the Crusades a heretical band of Templars dared defy the Almighty and, casting aside their sacred vows, unleashed the forces of Hell upon the Earth. Over 800 years later, in the Year of Our Lord 1914, this brutal, merciless war between the forces of Heaven and Hell rages on. This is not just a fight for survival, but a cataclysmic struggle that will decide the very fate of humanity’s soul.

Download the Trench Crusade playtest and quickstart rules from the links below.

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++CRUSADER KNIGHTS++

In the immediate aftermath of the Ultimate Heresy, the Princes of the Church faced a terrible dilemma. Never had the Faith needed its finest warriors as desperately as now when the armies of Hell threatened all Creation, and yet the traitors that brought this greatest of calamities came from the very ranks of the holy military orders sworn to protect the Church. How could the Faithful trust their knights ever again, as they had proven to be so susceptible to temptation?

After much deliberation, the Council of Saints offered a solution. To demonstrate repentance for the great Heresy of the Templars, every single Crusader Knight was to swear an Oath of Penance. Whomever joins one of the military orders of their free will is condemned to damnation with but one path to Salvation: dying in glorious battle against the Infernal powers. Should they meet their end due to illness, accident or old age, they would be denied the Last Rites and buried in unmarked pits of the damned. Their vows are enforced by the Four Rites of Passage which not only enhance their bodies but also bind them to their Holy Oath in this world and the next. This made any further Heresy impossible, albeit at the price of an initiate’s soul.

There are thousands of different crusader Orders from across Christendom. Some, like the Knights Hospitaller, are officially sanctioned by the Church, with entire armies under their direct command. Other Orders are small, with but a handful of dedicated zealots, whilst others are not even sanctioned by the church at all. These might come from strange sects with bizarre beliefs that are uncomfortably close to heretical, such as the Order of Iscariot. The Church tolerates their existence as long as they focus all their resources on the Great War, and the Four Rites bind them to fighting the Heretics.

Some crusaders baulk at the four rites they must undergo, and if they refuse to do them are cast out, hated by everyone they meet. Some of these exiles form pitiful bands in order to survive, others are tempted by the promises of the Arch-Devils, and fight under the banner of one of these powerful lords of Hell.

Many of the Crusader Orders have foregone the static chapter houses and commanderies from ages past, and instead opt for Chapter Hulls. These are great machines with caterpillar treads, surmounted by a stone or iron keep and bristling with statues and weaponry. There the crusaders carry out the various tasks of monastic life, all while travelling to the deadliest regions of the Trench Crusade. They seek out the most vicious, brutal and deadly enemies and battles. This serves a dual purpose of the knights never settling in one place too long, for they are admired for their prowess in the Great War and loathed for their Ultimate Heresy in equal measure. The amplified chants of the crusaders as they march to war in their thrice-blessed armour can be heard echoing across the battlefield, striking fear in any opponent who follows the path of damnation.

Entry into the crusader orders is strictly regulated by certain tests and rites unique to each, but there are four rites of passage that enforce their Oath are as follows:

The First Rite: Propagation of the Faith – The crusader novitiate is subjected to a months’ long period of indoctrination, both through studying the precepts of the Crusader Order, as well as being subjected to endless broadcasts of propaganda films from the Ministry of the Propagation of Virtue. The lessons are fed directly into the optic nerves of the initiates by the esoteric, mind-altering machines of the Ministry.

The Second Rite: The Chemical Baptism – The crusader is immersed in a bath of powerful holy chemicals, specifically created to change their body chemistry and grant great strength and stamina. This comes at a cost as the terrible fumes ruin their lungs, making it necessary for them to breathe from tanks of oxygen enriched with incense. Their larynx, usually riddled with cancers, is removed, and in their place an amplifier is installed, allowing them to speak.

The Third Rite: The Armour of God – The crusader is then taken to the Order’s surgeons where they must endure the most painful rite. Their bodies are inscribed with gilded arcs of scripture – the words of their God written in golden ink across their body, as well as within. Their body is flayed open and an Oath of Penance scribed upon their very bones, after which they are sewn up and left to heal. These holy scripts ensure immediate death and damnation should the knight waver in their commitment to God and Church.

The Fourth Rite: Healing Visions – After their painful surgery, the crusader is sent to the healing ward. Their recuperation might take several months and the entire time they are subjected to a battery of powerful mind-altering drugs. The crusader’s mind is opened to what surely must be the voice of God, and there are many scribes huddled around these recuperating crusaders, furiously scribbling as they attempt to capture each prophetic utterance.

-Art by Mike Franchina

Due the large number of requests to learn more about the fiction of Trench Crusade, we are putting together a quick Lore Primer for newbies.

Wait patiently. The Witchburner General is watching you.

Quelle: Trench Crusade bei Facebook

Quelle: Trench Crusade