V9: Core Game Mechanics

This page is part of the Official Amtgard V9 Alpha-Playtest Rulebook.

• The Amtwiki is the official home and primary source for Amtgard V9 Rules as of February 25, 2023.
• These rules are currently in Open Alpha Playtest. See the Playtest Disclaimer for more details.
• To learn more about Amtgard V9 Development, please visit Amtgard.com.
• To view the current Amtgard V8 ruleset, please see the Amtgard V8 Rulebook.

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Core Game Mechanics

Every combat activity must have the following core mechanics to ensure it can coexist with the rest of the Amtgard ruleset. These mechanics can be tweaked and adjusted to create an infinite number of different games.

Objectives

The win condition(s) for the activity. This can be any identifiable moment.

Examples include: Eliminate the other team; Eliminate a specific player; Score X points; Survive X time; and so on.

Game Items

Game Items are physical objects that are often directly relevant to the game objective, although the Game Organizer can designate any object as a Game Item for their activity if they deem it necessary.

Game Items must be dropped immediately if the bearer becomes Dead, Frozen, Insubstantial, Invulnerable or otherwise unable to be interacted with.

Some activities may also require the Game Item to be held in a free hand, or for its location to always be public information, meaning it cannot be intentionally hidden and any players who know its location must declare it when asked.

Your Game Organizer will explain any specific rules for their Game Item(s) before the activity begins.

Some common examples of Game Items include:

• The flags in a game of Capture the Flag
• The physical 'Heavy Object' for a game of Heavy Object
• The ball in Phoenix Ball
• The dog skull for Jugging
• Key storyline items in a quest

Teams

This will indicate how many teams the players must be split into, as well as any special instructions for they should be divided. Teams can also be a rotating feature where membership changes as the game progresses.

Some common examples include:

• Two Teams with an equal amount of players.
• Two Teams, and a neutral team that can help or hinder either team as they see fit.
• Two teams split evenly at the start but the first-dead player from the last round switches to the other team.
• The two most recent dead players respawn together as a new 2-player team.
• Free-for-All (every player for themselves)
• 1-on-1 duels

Life Limits

This indicates how many times players are allowed to return to life by respawning, if at all.

Examples include:

• A fixed number of lives per player
• A fixed number of lives per team (often called a Life Pool)
• Unlimited lives

Death Count / Respawn Condition

This is often referred to as the 'Death Count' whether or not there's an actual countdown. It will outline the conditions by which a dead player may return to life by respawning.

Examples include:

• X Seconds On-Death: Players must wait X seconds after dying before respawning. The exact timer is often adjusted in 15s increments to suit the number of players and overall flow of the game.
• Wave Respawn: Players in a designated Dead Zone respawn on pre-set cycles every X seconds on a shared clock.
• Rally Respawn: Players may only respawn together when X other teammates are dead and gathered in a designated Dead Zone. The exact number of players required to respawn is determined by the Game Organizer based on the needs of the game.
• Instant Respawn: Players may respawn immediately upon reaching a certain location or meeting a certain condition, such as touching a tree or moving 50' away from living enemies.

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Respawn Points and the Dead Zone

The Respawn Point and Dead Zone are two integral parts of the cycle of life and death in Amtgard.

Respawn Point

This is the designated in-bounds location that dead players must go when they are able to return to life by respawning. When a player’s death count or respawn condition is met, they simply move to their team's designated respawn point and loudly declare "Alive!" to respawn and return to life.

The Dead Zone

This is a designated out-of-bounds location where gameplay cannot occur. It is an out-of-the-way zone for dead players to hang out in while they wait to respawn. Some death counts or respawn conditions may require dead players to be in the Dead Zone before they can start counting or otherwise be eligible to return to life.

Even if the Dead Zone is not being used for respawn conditions, it will always be valuable as a place for dead players to wait so keep them away from active combat and allow both teams to easily see who is dead at a glance. For these reasons, it important to make sure Dead Zones are placed away from in-bounds areas such as bases and Respawn Points.

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Base

1. Bases are a designated in-bounds location that some or all players may use as their starting area and rallying point.


2. Some abilities will reference bases in their rules text, such as by requiring a player to return to their base, or only being usable while within their base.
   
   V8 Transition Note: The ability to repair equipment at base has been rolled into the new Rest ability.


3. It is not recommended to have bases in close proximity to Dead Zones or respawn locations as bases can often be become cluttered with players when used as strongholds, resting points, or the last line of defense during a combat activity.
   • Respawn Points in or around bases should be placed in such a way that respawning players are not able to come to life in the middle of active combat or in a position that would be seen as unfair or cheap.
     
   • Dead Zones should always be placed in a distinctly separate location from bases or else it can become difficult to determine which players are alive defending the base and which players are dead.

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Refreshes

For game modes that allow players to use abilities, this will indicate the time or condition that allows players to restores the uses of their Per-Refresh abilities.

Refreshes are not required. Refreshes may be withheld entirely or offered more frequently to shape the dynamic of the game by increasing or decreasing the frequency of stronger abilities. More Refreshes equals more explosive, high-power games.

• As a rule of thumb, Amtgard classes have been designed around 0-1 refreshes per activity.

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