Historical Background
On September 7th, 1191, during the Third Crusade, King Richard I ("The Lionheart") led a multinational Crusader force to a decisive victory over Sultan Saladin’s significantly larger Ayyubid army near the coastal forest of Arsuf.
The stage is set. The battle lines are drawn and you are in command. Can you change history?
War Council
Ayyubid Army (Use Tan blocks)
• Leader: Saladin
• 5 Command Cards
• 4 Inspired Action tokens
• Move First 
Crusader Army (Use Purple blocks)
• Leader: King Richard I
• 6 Command Cards
• 5 Inspired Action tokens
Victory
10 Banners
Crusader Scoring:
- 1 Banner per eliminated enemy unit or Leader.
- 2 Banners if Saladin is eliminated.
- 1 Banner for each Baggage unit successfully ordered off-map through an Arsuf ruins hex.
- 1 Banner (scored once per game) if two infantry units exit off-map through the Arsuf ruins.
- 1 Banner (scored once per game) if two adjacent Baggage units (not within 2 hexes of an enemy or the ruins) are ordered to convert into a Fortified Camp. This Banner is lost if the Ayyubids destroy the camp.
- 1 Banner (scored once per game) if a Crusader unit ends its ordered move in the Ayyubid "K" hexrow.
Ayyubid Scoring:
- 1 Banner per eliminated enemy unit or Leader.
- 2 Banners if Richard is eliminated.
- 1 Banner per Crusader Baggage Train destroyed. (Note: The Crusader player also loses 1 Banner from their total for each lost Baggage Train).
- 2 Banners for occupying the Crusader Fortified Camp (instantly destroying it).
- 1 Banner for each Arsuf Ruins hex currently occupied by an Ayyubid unit.
- 1 Banner while occupying the Hill hex C3.
- 1 Banner (scored once per game) if an Ayyubid cavalry unit ends its ordered move in the Crusader "A" baseline hexrow.
Special Rules
Richard the Lionheart’s Marching Battleplan
- Crusader units begin in a marching formation with limited movement.
- Ordered Foot/Infantry and Baggage Trains may only move 1 hex.
- Ordered Mounted units may only move 2 hexes.
- Ordered Leaders moving independently may move 3 hexes.
- Crusader units cannot execute Momentum moves or Momentum attacks until released.
- The Crusader Player can release the army from this formation on or after their 5th Turn by playing a normal Leadership Card alongside 2 Inspired Leadership tokens. The formation restrictions end immediately.
Crusader Rivalries & Grudges
- Richard may not stack with or attach to Hospitaller or Templar Knights until the army is released from the Marching formation.
- Knights Hospitaller and Knights Templar cannot be ordered to end their movement adjacent to each other.
- Guy of Lusignan may never voluntarily stack with Hospitaller or Templar Knights.
Leader Special Abilities
- Richard: When stacked with a unit, his counter may cancel one close-combat hit caused by a sword or helmet roll.
- Saladin: When stacked with a unit, his counter may cancel one close-combat hit caused by a helmet roll.
Baselines, Retreats, and Off-Map Areas
- The Crusader baseline is Row A. The Ayyubid baseline is Row K. Crusader units cannot evade/retreat off the map.
- Crusader Leaders can evade off-map (representing fleeing to the fleet); roll one die, and if a helmet rolls, the Leader drowns and the Ayyubids score the Banners.
- Ayyubid units and Leaders can freely retreat/evade off the map. Roll one die for off-map units: on a sword, the unit is eliminated. On any other result, restore the unit to 4 blocks and place it in the off-map box. Leaders are never eliminated this way.
- Ayyubid units off-map may re-enter by playing a section card and an Inspired Leadership Token. They are placed in vacant hexes on the "K" row of that section and may move/attack normally.
Baggage Train Units
- Baggage Trains act similarly to Leaders; they do not attack or defend on their own and cannot use missiles.
- They can only move 1 hex using Section or Mounted Charge cards. They cannot enter Woods or Swamps.
- Friendly units moving into a Baggage Train hex must stop. Units sharing a hex with a Baggage Train roll one fewer die in combat. Baggage Trains block line of sight.
- An enemy Baggage Train is destroyed if your unit occupies its hex at the start of your turn with no enemy units adjacent to it.
Ruins of Arsuf Terrain
- Treat these hexes as a permanent friendly fortified camp for both sides.
- Missiles fired into the ruins can only be done by stationary units rolling exactly 1 die. Crusader Crossbows do not hit on swords when firing into the ruins.
- The ruins block line of sight and cannot be removed.
Crusader Knights Dismounting
- Instead of moving, an ordered mounted Knights unit may dismount if not adjacent to an enemy unit.
- Replace them with Foot Knights of the same block strength. Foot Knights ignore up to 2 flags if they have 2 or more blocks.
- Maximum limit: 2 Regular Knights, 1 Hospitaller, and 1 Templar. They cannot remount.