Argatoria is a fantasy tabletop battle game in which you collect and paint miniatures that you use to fight battles against other players. The game’s characteristic features are:
Argatoria features an unusual system for activating units. A player does not have to wait an entire turn for their opponent to move their whole army. Activations alternate between players, but a player can activate more than one unit at a time. The number of units is determined by a D6 roll, but a player cannot activate more than 4 units in their single activation.
Argatoria is a game in which the actions of heroes and prayers play a key role in supporting units. By appropriately supporting a unit with a hero, you gain unique opportunities during charges, combat, and other situations. Units gain additional rules when the hero’s base is in contact with the unit.
In Argatoria, players can clearly see whether a unit has been activated or not. At the beginning of the cycle, a die (Action Die) is placed next to each unit. If a player wants to activate a unit, they remove the die. During the game, it is possible to recover Action Dice and take them from opponents using spells and abilities.
Turning units, even very large ones, is simple. The same applies to charges around obstacles and enemies. We have been playing many games since the 1990s, so our goal was to create rules that are clear and prevent disputes and contentious discussions between players. Turning and charges are presented in the rulebook using clear diagrams.
For many players, it is surprising that Argatoria does not feature the classic shooting known from other games. When creating the system, we were inspired by the battles of barbarian Germanic and Scandinavian tribes, where close combat was highly valued and fighting from a distance was often seen as less honourable for a warrior.
Looking deeper into the history of warfare, it is easy to discover that there were historical periods in which ranged combat played only a minor role. One such period was the time of the Peloponnesian Wars, when armed warriors fighting in close formation formed the core of the armies, while archers and javelin throwers were not so crucial. The same was true during the period of Roman conquests, when legionaries threw pila at the enemy before the charge, followed by close combat.
Argatoria does not completely exclude ranged abilities, but the main emphasis is placed on commanding units, including huge units known as hordes. Proper management of units, orders, spells, and abilities is the key to victory. This is not a game where you can simply wait and shoot at the enemy. In Argatoria, you will experience real battles and spectacular charges.
In the world of barbarians, generals’ subordinates could be unpredictable and did not always follow the designated route, while maps were not always accurate. To reflect these unique conditions, Argatoria offers players another surprise. Terrain is placed after both players have deployed their armies. In Argatoria, it is not possible for a player to take up the perfect position on a hill or behind a forest, as we know from other games. Here, players must adapt to difficult conditions and the fact that the terrain is not where they would prefer it to be. It is a harsh world, but that is the world of barbarians.
Is Argatoria a difficult game?
Argatoria is an easy game to start playing with your friends or family. Most armies have all their rules and characteristics contained on two A4 pages. The rulebook gives players access to all the armies, making it easy to check the rules for their own army as well as those of their opponent. The game becomes more complex as you expand your armies with more units and heroes.
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Getting started with Argatoria Wargame / English (PDF)
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Argatoria jeu de guerre – Guide du débutant / Français (PDF)
After familiarising yourself with it, if the game catches your interest, we recommend purchasing the main rulebook in PDF. It will introduce you to all the rules, armies, lore and everything concerning the game.
Once you have chosen your army, it is worth purchasing an Army Starter, which will allow you to play your first games.
Once you have played your first battles, you will know which units you want to expand. Blisters with Full Units will make it easier for you to experiment with multiple small units and hordes.
Argatoria has been continuously expanded for several years, so you can expect new armies and warriors to come! We share all updates on our social media and in our newsletters. You can order the game directly from our store or from selected hobby stores, which you can find in the Stockists section of the top menu.