Description

A unique game, Battle Chips contains 30 wooden chips divided into two armies (orcs versus barbarians). Each army has (in descending order of strength) one leader, one wizard, three bowmen, four pikemen, and four warriors. They also have two shield-bearers. On the back of each chit is simply an orc face or a human face, which, if used in combat, is lower than a warrior.

On a given turn, each player secretly selects three units, keeping the remaining units face down in front of him. The players take turns dropping them onto a cloth surface (tablecloth or towel on a table) from about a foot above the table (30 cm). Whichever side they land face up is their strength for the current round.

• a human or orc face allows you to call for reinforcements (one additional chip from your unused chips) for each face showing),
• a shield bearer allows you to protect one unit in the upcoming combat
• a wizard may force a re-drop of all pieces except itself
• a leader allows you re-drop any one chip (morale).

After all special abilities are used, line up your troops from strongest to weakest, and compare with your opponents. The two strongest fight each other, with the loser removed from the game (remove both in case of ties). Then the next two strongest fight, etc. Shield bearers can be assigned to any chips. A shielded chip attacks but may not be killed - remove the shield from the game, instead.

When one side loses its leader, the game is over and the other side is victorious.

While it sounds simple, your choices are actually not always easy. If you risk your leader and it lands the wrong side up, it's the weakest piece on the board. You can call for reinforcements, but units used in earlier combats cannot be called until all combats with the units that started that round have been completed.

For those who dislike the mechanic of dropping chips, you could use a die roll, coin flip, or card cut for each piece to determine its facing.