Impetus

About this board game

Impetus is a two-player miniature wargaming system with 90-minute battles across the Ancient, Medieval, and Renaissance periods.

Designed by the team behind the Italian Dadi & Piombo miniatures wargaming magazine, Impetus offers a flexible way to recreate armies from a wide span of history. Its scope includes Ancient Egypt, Rome, the Crusades, the Hundred Years War, and Samurai armies.

The rules support miniatures in 6mm, 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, and 25/28mm scales. Miniatures are organized into elements measuring 60mm wide for 6mm and 10mm figures, 80mm for 15mm, and 120mm for 20mm and 25/28mm. Element depth is specified but not vital, making it possible to use armies already based for other systems.

Turns are not traditional i-go/u-go sequences. Players roll for initiative each turn, while units can react to enemy forces out of sequence. Units use three or four statistics, with VBU combining unit strength and morale as the most important value.

Combat is fast and straightforward. A unit rolls dice equal to its VBU, with modifiers adding bonuses to the number of dice. A roll of 6 or a double 5 scores a hit, while accumulated hits reduce VBU; when it reaches 0, the unit routs and leaves the table.

Armies are built using points, with typical forces ranging from 300 to 500 points. The original rules include 15 army lists, often presented as matched pairs, including:

• Alexander’s Macedonians and the Later Achaemenid Persians
• Second Punic War Romans and Carthaginians
• Gauls and Caesar’s Romans
• Crusaders and Saladin’s Army
• French and English armies from the Hundred Years War

With its broad historical coverage and adaptable basing requirements, Impetus brings miniature battles from multiple eras to the tabletop.