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So guys i have a box of plastic gripping beast vikings that have been sat ignored for a long while now, can anyone recommend any good small scale rules for them. Hopefully something along the lines of no more than 20 figs a side would be good.

This would only be a little side project and as such don’t want to fork out loads for more rule books that are going to take up yet more shelf space. Plus also something that plays on a small area. Ie 3ft by 3f .

Pretty sure Saga exactly fits your bill?

https://www.grippingbeast.co.uk/SAGA.html

Cheers bud, Saga looks pretty cool am also wondering what the rules that Warlord games have done are like.

Blood Eagle from the Ministry of gentlemanly warfare is pretty cool. Shares a similar system to In Her Majesty's Name.

I've used a variant of the LOTR SBG rules for the Dark Ages skirmish games. The D values tend to be a little lower, helping the game move more quickly.

I also have Age of Blood (v2) which is a d10 based Viking Skirmish, with rules for raiding and pillaging, and campaign play, along with some optional fantastical elements and monsters.

Drop me a PM if you can't find them.

Song of Blades and Heroes, either the Revised rules or the Advanced rules, would be another good option. Just don't use spells and ignore some of the names of traits in favor of focusing on how they mechanically work ("tailslap" is just a very hard blow, mechanically)

It's a good system for making every figure in your warband have a unique flavor.

Saga is right up your alley, but if you need something smaller scale try Fistful of Lead by Wiley Games: https://wiley-games.myshopify.com/

They have a 'historical' version meant to span any time period. It runs between 5-8 figures per player.

There is nothing wrong with using Warhammer Ancient Battles (v1.5). There is also the source book "Shieldwall" for just that period.

While not currently in publication (lots of rules people use are not) there are pdf versions floating around and libraries may have copies of the rules (even using an "inter-library" loan and having your local library bring it in from elsewhere).

Depending upon where you live, members of a local gaming club may have copies or lists for them for sale at a local game store or even a local online buy-sell forum.

Warmaster and Hail Caesar! are better/cleaner versions of WAB. Not that WAB isn't worth a stab, but those are both better systems and are in the same vein/style.

Not really what the OP is asking for though.

I also vote for Saga, its a good tight ruleset and seems well suited to your needs.

Saga has different playability than Warhammer Ancient Battles (WAB) and if you can try some different rules systems you may find one you really enjoy. You may find several you really enjoy!

There are a LOT of rules for historicals out there.

Heck, one could use Dungeons and Dragons' rules and you could give each character individual stats and armour and weapon values. Not to mention levels (of proficiency and experience). THAT could be a LOT of fun!

There are a lot of other rules beside D&D, like GURPS, FATE, d20 system (ie Pathfinder).

Just take out all the silly magic stuff and you can use "barbarian" traits for berserkers, make the others "fighters". You could make a character or two "rogues/thieves" for their abilities, etc. Have some fun, be creative and have a lot of story elements with your characters.

Some lines of figures almost want to be part of a system like this (check out the Wargames Foundry Vikings, for instance). Others like Gripping Beast Vikings not so much but with creative assembly, painting and basing, why not?!

You could make a "party" of Vikings and have a campaign.

That might not be your thing, but if it is, go for it!

Saga is a pretty cool system and there are lots who play. Just be aware there are two sets of rules. We are currently on 2nd Edition, but you may find 1st Edition rules quite cheap because of that. (The first edition is a solid game that many have enjoyed very much - and still do!)

Seconding Blood Eagle......

I had never heard of Blood Eagle before. It looks interesting (and close to a Dungeons and Dragons type)
.

I don't know if it exactly fits the bill, but Osprey recently released a game called Ragnarok which maybe of interest to you.

 Easy E wrote:
I don't know if it exactly fits the bill, but Osprey recently released a game called Ragnarok which maybe of interest to you.

Funnily enough i had just read about that after seeing a pic of the cool cover art from the rule book. Could be a bit of fun to mess around with.