Playing with Janek the first scenario of Kingdom of Heaven (Scenario A – The First Crusade) really sparked interest in us to continue with the further scenarios. This game had all things we cherish in boardgames: great historical theme, great (albeit sometimes too detailed) rules, nice components (once you clip them) and great implementation of card driven mechanics.

So not long after first session, we played again. Below elaborate session report, with game introduction, historical background and conclusion and tons of (hopefully) nice pictures. Enjoy!

About the Game

In 1097, thousands of lords and knights, soldiers and camp-followers, pilgrims and prophets marched east in response to a Papal appeal, charged with the task of restoring Jerusalem and the Holy Land to Christian control. Their surprising victory led to the creation of the first overseas European colonies and the reshaping of Muslim power in the Middle East. The repercussions of their journey continue to live with us today.

In Kingdom of Heaven – The Crusader States 1097-1291 (KOH) two players use cards to activate forces, trigger random events, conduct diplomacy or prosecute siege warfare on a vast arena stretching from Antioch to Cairo and from Cyprus to Mosul.

Nine scenarios cover all the major campaigns of the era, from the First, Second and Third Crusades to the Mongol invasion and the rise of the Mamluk Empire. In addition to the ‘basic deck,’ each scenario adds different cards representing historical events unique to that campaign. Turns are yearly, and most scenarios can be finished in 3-4 hours.

Historical Scenario Background

Before presenting the session report, let us talk a bit about the Scenario B – The Second Crusade – and its historical background. For me this is first and foremost a lesson in history, and the game allows me to reshape it or even change completely!

The First Crusade was followed by a period of consolidation. Oddly enough, no one had discussed what was supposed to happen if the First Crusade actually succeeded. Most of the lords and knights departed for home, while others carved out for themselves lands in the Near East.

At Antioch, Bohemond’s heirs ruled. Further south, around Tripoli, the old Crusader Raymond of Toulouse made a small principality for himself, although he died before he could do much with it. At Jerusalem, Raymond had refused the crown, hoping thereby to dissuade anyone else from taking it. The ploy failed when Godfrey of Bouillon agreed to become Defender of the Holy Sepulchre.

When Godfrey died, his followers invited Baldwin of Edessa to become King of Jerusalem, and he agreed to head the new kingdom. He handed Edessa over to an old ally, Joscelyn of Courtenay. For the next thirty years, Christians and Muslims tussled, with little permanent damage done on either side.

In the 1140’s the Byzantine Emperor John II showed up in the north with a large army, and briefly imposed his suzerainty on Antioch. His death in 1143 created a power vacuum in the north. This allowed Zengi, the ruler of Mosul, to strike the first blow in the Muslim

Set-Up

With the background done, let us now look at the scenario set-up. For this, we will need to cover several aspects.

Scenario Length: 1144-1149 (six turns – standard for thie game)

Scenario Cards Used: B0-B4 – those cards provide special events, specific to the scenario, which enhance the basic deck.

Scenario B Special Cards (Click to enlarge)

Powers and their initial alignment – some might be influenced during the game:

  • Pro-Christian: Byzantium, Lesser Armenia, Principality of Antioch, County of Edessa, County of Tripoli, Kingdom of Jerusalem, Hospitallers
  • Pro-Muslim: Seljuk Turks
  • Neutral: Damascus, Caliphate of the Fatimids, Assassins

Special Rules:

  • Crusade: A Crusade will arrive on Turn 4 if the Muslim player has 6 or more VP. If they do not, the game ends with a Christian auto-victory
  • Any Crusaders leaving the Constantinople Box must roll TWICE for Attrition on the 16–19 column (regardless of force size).

Victory Conditions:

  • Christian Victory: Christian Player has 25 or more VP (starts with 24)
  • Muslim Victory: Muslim Player has 9 or more VP (starts with 3)

And of course, the initial Map and Forces:

Set-up of the scenario B, with me leading the Crusaders side while Janek took the lead of Muslim forces.
Close-up on the most contested part of the map, with vulnerable County of Edessa clearly visible in the left-top part.
Diplomacy status (with marked pro-Christian and pro-Muslim states), general Game Record track and neutral forces. On turn 4, in case of lack of Christian automatic victory, the Crusaders will arrive!

Session Report

It was already second session with this game, however, after longer break. Again, we were still treating this to large extent as learning experience with the system and supported / commented on all our actions to better familiarize with it. How it went the picture-rich classic AAR will tell 🙂

No surprises – first move of the game by Janek is attack against Edessa. City is poorly defended (Jacelyn II was in Bira, quashing local rebellion) and the garrison will not be able to withstand for too long. Also Christian forces are too weak to lift the siege by attack from outside.
And then dance of diplomacy starts! Fatimids (Egypt) are very susceptible to Turkish influence and they change the stature from neutral to pro-Muslim. Exactly how it was in history.
On the other side, I have decided NOT TO behave like Crusaders in history. Instead of attacking Damascus as they did (royal stupidity) I tried to influence them to the moment, when they aligned with me and went pro-Christian. Not only it gave some points which I lost in Egypt but also secured my flank!
Yes, that secured flank helped a lot as allowed me to get rid of the only Fatimid stronghold in Palestine. Janek seeing futility of trying to withstand the siege, sallied out and his troops… died in glory. Ascalon returned to Christian control.
But the Muslims were preparing another mischief. With their cavalry armies they have huge mobility – thanks to it they easily reached Tripoli and besieged it, starting even a blockade (with event as it is port).
Turn 4 arrived, and the conditions for the Second Crusade to arrive were fulfilled – especially after fall of Tripoli. My beautiful army survived the nasty attrition rolls and were about to sail to Palestine… when Egyptian fleet interfered! This is Card Driven Game, and you need to be aware / conscious of such possibilities. Pity 😦
Still, my Kingdom of Jerusalem units were enough to plan a counter-attack at Tripoli – now I was besieging Jankek’s forces inside this stronghold.
When my gallant crusaders – who were denied the passage via fleet – were crossing and conquering the Anatolia, another disaster struck – Epidemic! That was painful as not only several units were weakened but also leaders died!
The last, futile attempt by what was left of the Crusader army was to attack Edessa. They even managed to besiege it, however, the counter-attack by Turks repealed the threat.

Our Session Conclusion

After about 4 hours of play we concluded the game at the end of turn 6. Below the final result:

Overall situation on the map, after six turns, at the conclusion of the scenario.
Close-up on Palestine. Edessa and Tripoli in Muslim hands, Damascus allied with Christians.
Victory Point track – Muslims with 11 wins the day! My 22 VPs is not enough to reach victory threshold. Egypt allied with Turks but Damascus on Christian side – a much better outcome then historical (see below)

Historical Conclusion

And how did it ended historically? Let us see:

In 1144 Zengi struck at Edessa. With poor leadership and a weak army, Edessa couldn’t hold out for long. The city fell on Christmas Eve. The first Crusader state had fallen.

The news did not immediately cause panic, but in 1145 Pope Eugenius III issued a new crusading bull: Quantum praedecessores. Preached by the charismatic priest St. Bernard of Clairvaux, soon the monarchs of France and Germany, and a large host of followers took up the cross. The land route across Asia Minor, hallowed by the passage of the First Crusade, was again the route chosen.

The Crusaders set off from Constantinople in 1147. This time, the result was different. Although the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I offered assistance, lack of forage and strong enemy resistance took a heavy toll on the marchers. The German contingent was nearly massacred; Conrad fell sick but was personally nursed back to health by Manuel. Meanwhile King Louis had won his way to Attaleia, but the Byzantines did not have nearly the ships to send everyone by sea. Eventually, after further losses, the greatly reduced band of Crusaders made it to the Holy Land.

Once there, they no longer had the forces to strike at Zengi directly. It was decided, therefore, to go after Damascus. This was a royally stupid move (no pun intended). Damascus was neutral and actually leaning toward an alliance with the Christians as defense against Zengi. The local barons may have recognized this, as there is some evidence the campaign was sabotaged.

As soon as the army settled down to besiege Damascus, it was decided to move the camp from the west side of the city to the east. Coincidentally, the east side of the city had no water supplies, so the army was forced to return home after only three days. Nothing further was accomplished and the Crusaders returned home dejected and disillusioned. Meanwhile Zengi had died and been replaced by Nur ad-Din, who proved an even bigger thorn in the side of the Christians than had his predecessor.

Summary

After playing the second scenario, I can honestly say the game won us over. We know the cards better, we understand the mechanics well and see ow they interact with each other. The historical accuracy, meticulous attention to detail, and – most importantly – the brilliant portrayal of siege warfare and the attrition armies endured in those times left definitely a lasting impression on us.

More reports to come!