Characteristics
In Mordheim the warriors each have different abilities, some being better at certain actions, for example, fighting, shooting or climbing, than they are at others. This variety in each warrior is represented in the form of characteristics and skills. Right now don’t worry about skills – these come later with practice and battle experience. For now we just need to consider a warrior’s characteristics.
Each model is defined by a set of characteristics: Movement, Weapon Skill, Ballistic Skill, Strength, Toughness, Wounds, Initiative, Attacks and Leadership. Each characteristic is assigned a value of (usually) between 1 and 10. The higher the value your model has for any characteristic the better – for example, a model with a Strength of 6 is stronger than a model that has a Strength of 2.
Movement (M)
A model’s Movement rate shows how far the model can move in a turn, under normal conditions.
For example, a typical Human has a move of 4", while a fleet-footed nimble Skaven has a move of 5".
Weapon Skill (WS)
Weapon Skill is a measure of close combat ability (ie, how good the warrior is at hand-to-hand fighting). A deadly swordsman or a crazed berserker would have a high value compared to a lowly acolyte, for example. The higher the WS, the more likely your warrior is to hit his opponent.
Ballistic Skill (BS)
This shows how good a shot the individual is. When you shoot a bow or fire a pistol, the chance of hitting a target depends upon your model’s Ballistic Skill. A normal Human has a BS of 3, though an experienced marksman might have a BS of 4, 5 or even higher.
Strength (S)
Strength indicates how strong a warrior is! It is especially important for hand-to-hand combat, because the stronger you are the harder you can hit. A Strength value of 3 is about average.
Toughness (T)
This is a measure of how easily an individual can withstand a hit from a weapon or a blow from a club or fist. The tougher you are, the harder you are to wound or kill. An average Toughness value is 3, though a gnarled old warrior might have a Toughness of 4!