My long anticipated Victrix “Pillage – Ransack the Middle Ages” arrived yesterday. It is an amazing production, but let’s take a more in-depth look at it.

Overview:

Pillage: Ransack the Middle Ages is a narrative-driven skirmish wargame developed by Guillaume Rousselot (Noodle Wargames) and published by Victrix Miniatures. The game is set primarily in the tumultuous Viking Age, spanning from the 793 CE raid on Lindisfarne Abbey to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 CE, though its rules are designed to be adaptable for conflicts across broader medieval periods. It clams to distinguish itself through an emphasis on cinematic, objective-based gameplay, underpinned by a robust “What You See Is What You Get” (WYSIWYG) approach to miniature representation.

The game’s core appeal lies in its ability to foster emergent narratives. This is achieved through highly interactive terrain, a dedicated “Fire Phase” for setting structures ablaze, and comprehensive “Pillaging” mechanics that allow players to seize various forms of loot.

Pillage also benefits significantly from its synergy with Victrix’s acclaimed line of 28mm historical miniatures, which are widely lauded for their detail and versatility within the wargaming community, but the game is totally figure agnostic.

Community reception, however, presents a mixed picture. Recurring concerns include a perceived “silly number of tables” within the rules, which some players suggest could lead to undue complexity and a slower pace of play. The inclusion of specific rules for “kidnapping children” as a form of loot has also been noted as “very weird” and has drawn criticism from parts of the player base. I agree kidnapping is an excellent game narrative, but signalling out gender or age is a indeed “very weird” in this day and age.

Furthermore, a significant point of controversy revolves around the use of AI-generated art in the rulebook, particularly the alleged removal of AI credit in the English version by Victrix, which has left “a real sour taste” for some players, however not all AI tools have a watermark or other credit mechanism.

Pillage is best suited for historical wargamers who prioritize narrative over strict competitive play, appreciate visually intuitive rules (WYSIWYG), and are comfortable with a ruleset that offers a “medium level of crunch”. It offers a distinct experience when compared to contemporaries such as Saga and Lion Rampant, focusing on individual model actions and direct objective play rather than abstract battleboards or larger unit activations. My own experience with Brethren as an alternative will be discussed below.

What is ‘Pillage: Ransack the Middle Ages’?

The game itself was penned by Guillaume Rousselot of Noodle Wargames, with its English edition brought to market by Victrix Miniatures. Victrix is a well-established and respected entity within the historical miniatures hobby, known for its high-quality plastic kits.

Pillage is positioned as a game accessible to both newcomers to wargaming and seasoned veterans, aiming to provide an engaging experience for a broad audience, and to a large extent I agree with this.

The Game’s Vision: Narrative-Driven Raids and Cinematic Moments

The fundamental vision behind Pillage is to deliver a narrative-rich experience where “every battle tells a story”. Gameplay is meticulously designed to emphasize storytelling, dynamic terrain interaction, and objective-based play. This approach aims to elevate individual miniatures beyond mere game pieces, transforming them into “heroes, cowards, and legends” within a player’s unfolding saga.

The game claims to explicitly focus on recreating the “iconic battles of the period: raids and pillaging.” It is does not cover “iconic battles” as it is primarily a skirmish game not a large battle game. Players are given the agency to burn down villages, capture valuable loot, or staunchly defend their homes from encroaching raiders which adds to the period flavour and gamer’s fun. What better bragging rights than that of sacking your opponent’s church and burning their village! The design promises that “no two games are ever the same,” a claim supported by the game’s dynamic objectives and highly interactive terrain elements, but this is no different than most recent narrative games.

This design philosophy highlights a deliberate effort to blend historical simulation with narrative play which is a bit OTT. It is a game not a simulation. The game, however, is set within a precise historical period and seeks to replicate period-appropriate actions such as burning, looting, naval engagements, and the formation of shieldwalls, and it does so within a system that prioritizes dynamic and memorable stories over strict, granular historical accuracy. This approach means that the game’s mechanics are geared towards generating dramatic moments and player-driven narratives.

For instance, the inclusion of a dedicated “Fire Phase” and detailed “Pillaging” rules serves as a prime example of mechanics that are both historically thematic and inherently narrative-generating. This design choice caters to a segment of the wargaming community that seeks a more lived-in, storytelling experience from their historical games, rather than a dry, purely simulationist exercise. This focus on emergent narrative also illustrates a broader movement within historical wargaming, where the story that unfolds on the tabletop is gaining prominence, sometimes even surpassing the importance of absolute historical fidelity for players.

Deep Dive into Core Mechanics: The Engine of Pillage

Pillage prominently features a “What You See Is What You Get” (WYSIWYG) has been basically enshrined in gaming practice for several decades now and is the norm in rules not the exception.

Alternating Activation and the Five Phases of Play

The game employs an alternating activation system, a mechanic where players take turns activating models (e.g., Player A moves, then Player B moves, then Player A shoots, etc.). This system is comparable to popular games such as Lord of the Rings and is effective in keeping both players actively engaged throughout the turn, demanding careful tactical planning and reaction.

Gameplay in Pillage is structured around five distinct phases, which dictate the sequence of actions within a turn:

Initiative Phase: Players roll off to determine who gains initiative. The winner then decides which player acts first in the subsequent phases. If there is a tie in a later turn, the initiative automatically passes to the other player, ensuring a dynamic flow.

Movement Phase: Players alternate moving their chosen models. Movement across terrain is straightforward, with roads providing a bonus to movement speed. Charges, a critical maneuver, are also resolved in this phase, requiring a D3 roll added to the charging model’s movement distance. Reactions, such as “Closing Shot” (a ranged attack before melee contact) and “Fleeing” (an attempt to escape an incoming charge), occur before models make contact.

Shooting Phase: This phase is dedicated to ranged combat. Players declare their targets, verify line of sight (LOS) and range, and then make a Target Roll. Intervening obstacles, such as other models, hedges, or walls, may require additional rolls to determine hit success. A successful hit roll is followed by the target’s Defence roll, with failure resulting in a wound and loss of a hit point.

Melee Phase: All melee attacks are resolved simultaneously. Models that successfully charged in the Movement Phase receive a +1 bonus to their hit rolls. A tactical option available to models is to “raise a shield” for a +1 bonus to their defense, though this prevents them from making an attack in that turn.

Fire Phase: Uniquely, Pillage dedicates an entire phase to setting objects ablaze. The player with initiative lights fires first, followed by their opponent. Rules for how fire spreads are also detailed, adding a destructive and unpredictable element to the battlefield.

Interactive Terrain and Environmental Rules:

Pillage places a significant emphasis on interactive terrain, moving beyond mere decorative elements. Models can actively engage with their environment by climbing towers, diving into rivers, jumping across obstacles, and utilizing ladders to navigate the battlefield. This level of interaction adds a layer of verticality and tactical depth to games. However, movement through certain terrain types comes with risks; for instance, armored models are penalized when swimming and face the possibility of drowning. Beyond static terrain, the game also incorporates rules for dynamic environmental factors, including varying weather conditions and different times of day, which can further influence gameplay and strategic decisions. All of this is great, but again not new.

The inclusion of a distinct “Fire Phase” is a particularly noteworthy aspect of Pillage’s design and is a unique introduction. Elevating arson to its own dedicated phase, separate from general actions, underscores its central importance to the game’s theme of “ransacking.” This is not a peripheral rule but a core mechanic that directly facilitates objective-based play, such as burning down a village, and introduces a dynamic, destructive element to the battlefield that can dramatically alter the course of a game. This design choice means the “Fire Phase” functions as a powerful narrative engine, directly enabling the “Pillage” aspect of the game’s title. It transforms static terrain into active elements of conflict and strategy, compelling players to consider not just direct combat but also environmental destruction as a viable path to victory or a means of defense. This mechanic significantly differentiates Pillage from other skirmish games in the historical genre. The emphasis on burning and looting reflects a design philosophy that prioritizes the thematic actions of the period, even if they are destructive, to create a more immersive and “cinematic” experience.

The “Pillaging” System: Objectives, Loot, and the Controversial Inclusion of Kidnapping

Pillaging is a core mechanic within Pillage, with extensive rules governing the acquisition of various items. Players can steal anything from livestock, such as pigs and chickens, to barrels, and even precious gold and silver from churches. The rules detail the process of picking up and carrying loot, how it can be lost during melee engagements, and even how it can be handed off to thralls for transport.

A particularly notable, and controversial, aspect of the pillaging system is the inclusion of rules for “kidnapping children as noted above.” The game assigns specific stats to kidnapped children, including a 5-inch movement rate and a value of three loot points each. This mechanic has been explicitly highlighted by community members as “very weird” and “a bit too much,” despite its potential historical accuracy. As I said above this borders on distasteful.

The deliberate inclusion of the “kidnapping children” mechanic, complete with specific game statistics, reveals a tension inherent in historical game design: the extent to which designers should represent the brutal realities of a historical period, especially when those realities are morally repugnant to a modern audience. While kidnapping was a grim aspect of medieval raids, its direct simulation in a game, particularly one that aims for “fun” and “cinematic” moments, creates a direct conflict with contemporary ethical sensibilities and player expectations for tabletop gaming. The controversy surrounding this element suggests that for many players, the boundary of “historical accuracy” is crossed when it involves the direct, even if abstracted, depiction of such sensitive acts. This incident serves as a compelling case study in the ethical dimensions of game design, demonstrating that even within historical contexts, designers must carefully navigate player comfort and broader societal values. Failure to do so can significantly impact a game’s reception and market viability, irrespective of its mechanical strengths. I think they have really erred with this one.

Unit Archetypes and Special Rules: Pillage features distinct unit archetypes, each with varying capabilities and roles on the battlefield. Chieftains, for example, are designed to be more resilient, possessing three hit points, while Berserkers are formidable, boasting two wounds and two attacks, with an optional rule that allows for them to take “magic mushrooms” for enhanced abilities. Most other standard warriors typically have one hit point.

The game also incorporates special equipment that offers tactical benefits. This includes items like banners, which can inspire nearby troops, horns, used for rallying or signaling, and even warhounds, which can assist in combat or tracking. Furthermore, Pillage provides detailed rules for historical formations, such as shieldwalls. These formations not only affect movement but also enhance combat effectiveness, reflecting their historical significance in early medieval warfare. The rules extend beyond land battles to include naval combat, specifically focusing on boarding actions, allowing for dynamic engagements on water. All elements which are in most good Dark Ages rule sets.

Balancing “Crunch” and “Simplicity” – The “Tables” Debate: A notable point of contention within the Pillage community revolves around the perceived complexity introduced by its numerous rules tables. One “read-through impression” described the rules as “lukewarm,” primarily due to a “silly number of tables” that, in that reviewer’s opinion, “really should just be a standardized system of passing and failing special checks”. This individual felt that the sheer volume of tables created a “working memory burden” and that the game felt “sloppy” in this particular aspect, suggesting it was “trying hard for the wrong way” in its approach to rules complexity. I totally disagree with this. The table reduce complexity not add to it!

Conversely, other players and reviewers have expressed a different perspective. Some, like “mugginns,” felt that the “TABLES OMG thing is a bit overblown” and that the rules were not “sloppy at all”. The Goonhammer review, for instance, praised the core rules as “simple, clear, and effective,” and commended the rulebook’s layout for its step-by-step presentation of mechanics. I agree. The layout and graphics is exceptional, well laid and extremely clear and assists understanding to those new to gaming.

This divergence in opinion highlights a fundamental tension in the game’s design. The author’s ambition to include rules for nearly “everything you can think of”—from climbing and swimming to naval battles and the spread of fire—likely led to a proliferation of specific rules and associated tables. While each individual table might be logically sound and contribute to thematic depth, their collective volume can create a perception of “crunch” or “slowness” for some players, particularly those accustomed to more abstract or streamlined wargaming systems. The concern is that the numerous small decisions and table lookups might deter players from engaging in larger battles with dozens of figures per side. The substantial PDF file size (240MB) further hints at the extensive content and detail within the rulebook, which could contribute to this perception of complexity.

Overall I liked the game. It adds to the Dark Age rule sets pantheon. I like the fire mechanism but the concept of kidnapping should just be part of the “loot” category. After all running off with unruly livestock is much the same IMHO. This is one aspect that should be changed in any reprint.

I have been playing Brethren Tabletop Games which is simpler without any reduction in enjoyment, and although I have purchased “Pillage” I am unlikely to use it much, if at all. This is not a criticism of the rules just a personal preference.

All illustrations from the Victrix website.