Bronze Age Rules Sourcebook

1.0 Version (2005 AD)

Compendium of rules from my RuneQuest campaign set in the Ancient Middle East.

By Eduardo Chamn

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Cover image: Standard of Ur, scenes of war c.2700 BC

Please note RuneQuest and Warhamer Ancient Battles are copyright of The Avalon Hill
Game Company and Games Workshop. All rights reserved. All images taken without
formal permission from the Web, they belong to their respective authors. This text is
purely done for fun and personal use with no intention to earn money or offend the
owners of the images and rulebooks copyrights. Feel free to have fun with it.

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1. Introduction

This file is just a compilation of house rules of my own to set my RQ games in the times
of bronze weapons and chariot warfare. It is my intention to cover all Bronze Age
period, but here I only provide rules from 3000 to 1300 BC. This age includes the
Sumerian and Akkadian Empires, Old and Medium Egyptian Kingdoms and the
Hammurabic Babylonian Empire.
As this work is just some new rules I havent written a full description of every culture
and important day-life information to run a roleplaying campaign. This is not a full
sourcebook like Vikings or Land of ninja (although I would like to have the
knowledge and time to write it), just some useful rules that I hope will help you.
The Cults in the religion chapter are not really in depth developed, but for quick
character creation will give a reasonable guide.
This rules assume the use of RuneQuest III system, the phalanx combat rules appeared
in Sun County and the chariot rules of Monster Coliseum, that even include
sumerian, egyptian and hitite chariots!
Much of the information and inspiration come from the Warhammer Ancient Battles
book Chariot Wars and of course RuneQuest.
This work is dedicated to that rulebooks and to their designers.
Enjoy!

Eduardo Chamn
[email protected]

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Victory stele of Naram-Sim c. 2300 BC

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2. Peoples and cultures.

3000 BC 1300 BC

PRIMITIVE
1- Kush
2- Nubia
NOMAD
1- Amorites
2- Kassites
3- Lybia
BARBARIAN
1- Gutium
2- Hattic States
3- Makkan
4- Minoans
5- Syria
6- Subartu
CIVILISED
1- Akkad
2- Elam
3- Egypt
4- Hammurabic Babylonia
5- Sumer
6- Empire of Ur

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3. Character creation

Characters may access to the profession Chariot driver of Monster Coliseum if they
belong previously to the profession Soldier.
No horse or camel riding until circa 900BC. Nobles, soldiers and suitable professions
will have Drive chariot instead. Nomad professions will change their hability points
of Ride to Hide or Sneak.
No Iniciate of any cult learn to Read/Write except priests and nobles, instead PC get
points in one additional language or Human lore. Scribes of course gain points as
described in their profession, but no through Iniciate experience.

Sargon of Akkad

Sumerian soldiers from Lagash bearing shields, spears and copper helmets

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4. Cultural weapons
These are the weapons and starting percentages most used by each culture, and that will
be worn by a typical soldier with his appropiate armor. In civilised armies there will be
warriors with less armor (slingers, skirmishers), and in any army nobles and officials
will often wear better armor.
Note that some cultures lose points compared to RQIII rules, you can balance PC
creation letting Amorites characters to have points in shield for example, but it wont
be listed as initial equipment.
KUSH / NUBIA
Spear 1H
25
Mace 1H
25
Short bow
25
Small shield 20

HATTIC STATES
Spear 1H
25
Axe 1H
25
Axe 2H
15
Comet shield 25

Armor: None

Armor: None

Notes: Chieftains wear animal skins

capes of 1 armor point in chest,
abdomen and arms.

Notes: They used large shields, use the

norman/comet shield stats.
MAKKAN
Spear 1H
Short sword
Javelin
Dagger

AMORITES
Spear 1H
20
Javelin or Short bow 20

25
25
25
25

Armor: None
Armor: None
KASSITES
Mace 1H
Composite bow

20
20

MINOANS
Spear 1H or 2H
Short sword
Short bow or Javelin
Comet shield

Armor: None
LYBIA
Short sword
20
Javelin or Short bow 20

Armor: Helmet made or boars tusks (3

AP)

Armor: animal hide cloack (1 AP in

chest, abdomen and one leg.)
GUTIUM
Spear 1M
Javelin
Axe 2H
Bow or throwing stick

25
25
25
25

25
25
15
25

Armor: 1AP animal hide on chest,

abdomen and one leg.

Notes: They used huge bull-hide

tower shields or figure of eight
shields, use the norman/comet shield
stats.
SYRIA
Spear 1H
25
Bow or Javelin25
Dagger
25
Armor: None

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SUBARTU
Spear 1H
Mace 1H
Short bow

25
25
25

ELAM
Short sword
Spear 1H
Composite bow

25
20
25

Armor: None

Armor: Copper helmet (4 AP)

AKKAD / SUMER / EMPIRE OF UR

Short sword, axe or mace 1H 25
Spear 1H or 2H
20
Composite bow (Akkadians) 25
Javelin or stick (Sumer, Ur) 25
Great rectangle shield
25

EGYPT
Axe, mace or khepesh
Spear 1H
Composite bow
Comet shield

25
20
25
25

Armor: None
Armor:
Akkad: Copper helmet (4 AP), leather or
felt cross straps in chest and abdomen
(1AP)
Lagash: Copper helmet (4 AP), leather
or felt cross straps in chest and
abdomen (1AP)
Ur: Copper helmet (4AP), thick felt or
leather cape reinforced with copper
discs
(2AP in every Hit
location except head)
Other cities: Copper helmet (4 AP),
thick felt or leather cape (1AP in every
Hit location except head)

HAMMURABIC BABYLONIA
Short sword, sickle sword or axe 1H 25
Spear 1H
20
Javelin or throwing stick
25
Herald shield
25
Armor: Copper helmet (4AP), felt cross
straps supporting a bronze or leather
breastplate (3 AP on chest and
abdomen)
Notes: Babylonians used medium size
hide shields with a vague shape of
diamond, use the herald shield stats.
Use the Khepesh stats for the sickle
sword. Axes were more common.

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5. Weapons

In Ancient Times men only worked one metal to make tools, the copper; but copper is
too soft to make solid weapons, so for many centuries men fought each other using
weapons made of stone, bone and wood. No doubt that battles were violent, but
weapons were not very powerful.
When men discovered that alloying copper and tin they could obtein bronze, they could
make more resistant tools and weapons, giving more militar adventages to the cultures
with access to that tecnology. That cultures were mainly the ones in the Mesopotamian
state-cities, being able to defeat the threats of the nomad peoples of the Two Rivers
peripheria. Egypt for example was an isolated culture in the times of the Old Kingdom,
settled in the Nile and with a relative state of peace and natural resources.
Mesopotamian regions on the other way had been fighting invasors and each other for
centuries, so when the Hyksos invaded Egypt wearing bronze weapons and chariots it
was an easy conquest. Egypt lands up the Nile had to learn these new technics to fight
for a hard and long time to recover their old Kingdom.
This advance also started the use of some kind of body armor, a technic that will be
hand to hand with the weapons improvements until our days.
The next step was the use of iron, discovered by the Hititites, but used for first time in
great armies by the Assyrians, because of the destruction of the Hitities in the Sea
Peoples invasions. These new iron weapons matched no rivals against the bronze
armors and weapons, and the Assysians had a way to ensure their own reign of terror
(even in the Bible they are the bad guys).
Eventually the forge of better steel was able, and by the times of the Peloponnesian
Wars we can use the weapons stats given in RQIII rulebook.
Forge of weapons is in deed more complex and techniques vary in the following
centuries, but is not my intention to enter in so much detail.

Mycenaean bronze sword and spear point.

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5.1. Weapons Rules

When I read RQIII for my first time I understood that the weapons stats were given for
use in some medieval enviroment (Cormac Saga still fascinates me), being able to be
used from Antiquity (a RPG with gladius and pilum !!) to Reinascense (halberds,
double handed swords, warhammers), and I assumed that those stats were based upon
steel weapons.
Then I discovered Glorantha, just to find that in Glorantha weapons are made mainly of
Bronze using the above stats. In Gods of Glorantha are some rules to introduce
iron/steel weapons, increasing Armor points in 50% and increasing damage to some
non-human creatures.
But in Alternate Earth supplements (Vikings, Land of Ninja and Monster Coliseum) is
obvious that the RQIII weapons stats are based upon steel, so I have used them as steel
weapons as I play usually in Alternate Earth.

In this campaign I wanted bronze weapons different from the RQIII steel weapons:
Less damage: Bronze lose its sharp edge more easily, although is easy to resharp.
Less armor: Bronze is softer than steel.
Same Encumbrance points: These points are calculated based on the weight and the
encumbrace due of the size. A short sword of bronze is of the same size that one of
steel.

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HAND TO HAND WEAPONS

NAME

DAMAGE

BRONZE

IRON

STONE

Axe, combat
Axe, hand
Dagger
Dagger
Knife
Mace, heavy
Mace, light
Sword
Khepesh
Javelin
Spear, short
Spear, long
Pike

1D8+1
1D6
1D4
1D4+1
1D3
1D10
1D8
1D6
1D6+1
1D8
1D8
1D10
2D6+1

7
5
4
8
5
8
8
7
9
9
11

7
5
5
9
5
9
9
7
9
9
11

3
8
-

Notes:
The table above gives damage and armor points stats.
As metal weapons were expensive stone tools were still used for long time before
metals were common. I have assumed that knifes, spear and arrows points were made
also of stone.
Weapons made mainly of wood have more similar armor points to steel weapons.
Swords were small, broadswords and long swords didnt exist. So all swords are RQ
short swords. In fact you can assume the use of daggers and call it also swords in the
game. The metalsmith from that ages were not sophisticated to make broadswords, so it
was very common to use daggers or short blades as main weapon.
A Khepesh is a sickle-sword used by mainly by egyptians.
Pikes were used in primitive phalanxs by Sumerians, Akkadian and Mycenians.

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MISSILE WEAPONS
NAME

DAMAGE

Bow, short
Bow, composite
Javelin
Sling
Stone, hand thrown
Throw stick
Whip

1D6
1D8
1D8
1D8
1D3
1D6
1D4

Notes:
Arrow points were made of stone, bronze or iron.
Sling and hand thrown stones do not impale.
Throw sticks were a traditional amorite weapon similar to a boomerang. They were used
as a throwing club before enganging in hand to hand combat. Use the War boomerang
stats, obviously it doesnt returns to the throwers hand.

Hammurbi stands before Shamash

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6. Cults in ancient Middle East

In the beggining of the cities, each city had its own protector deity of the city. With the
birth of the first empires several cities were under one ruler but the local gods were
added to the rulers cult. Soon there was overpopulation of gods, so they started some
kind of specialization making one god ruler of the air, other god of the water, etc. That
was the birth of the pantheons in the religions. When an empire fell down, the new
rulers carried their new gods, inserting them in the conquested pantheon usually as the
new main god. Priests had then to rewrite old legends and beliefs to include the new
gods, usually through familiar bonds like son, daughter, wife, etc
This a rough guide to the Meseopotamian pantheons; just use the description, magic and
religion skills of its equivalent RQIII rulebook or Gods of Glorantha cult.
The column city refers to the city in wich that god was originally worshipped so it is
the place with more influence for his religion. In that city is usually the Main Temple of
the cult.

SUMERIAN PANTHEON
NAME
Anu
Enlil
Ea
Tiamat

DESCRIPTION
God of the sky,
main god
God of the earth
God of the water,
giver of life
Goddess of chaos
and dark seas

CITY
Uruk

RQ III CULT
Main god

Nippur

God of the
agriculture
Goddess of the
earth
Krarsht

Eridu

AKKADIAN PANTHEON
NAME
Sin

DESCRIPTION
God of the moon

CITY
Ur

Shamash
Ishtar

God of the sun

Goddess of love
and beauty.
Daughter of Anu
God of the storms

Sippar
Uruk

Ada

RQ III CULT
Goddess of the
moon
God of the sun
Uleria

God of the storms

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HAMMURABIC BABYLONIAN (AMORITE) PANTHEON
NAME
Amurru
Marduk
Nabu
Asur

DESCRIPTION
Old main god
God of the sun,
main god.
Son of Marduk
God of war

CITY
Babylon

RQ III CULT
God of the hunt
Main god

Borsippa
Asur

God of the sun

God of war

Marduk killing Tiamat

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7. MAIN REFERENCES AND OTHER RELATED WORKS I LIKE :

- RuneQuest deluxe by Greg Stafford, published by The Avalon Hill game company
The Game, a nice RPG masterwork.
-Warhammer ancient battles by Jervis Johnson, Rick Priestly, Alan & Michael Perry,
published by Games Worksop and Warhammer Historical wargames.
A very good game, with lots of History and fun. It includes nice artwork. I use
plastic 1/72 historical miniatures for playing the battles.
- Chariot Wars by Nigel Stillman, published by Games Worksop and Warhammer
Historical wargames.
A supplement book for Warhammer ancient battles, it gave me the idea and
inspiration to run a campaign in Bronze Age with RQ system. Really impressive.
-Mythic Egypt, roleplaying in the Land of the Pharaohs by Earl Wajenburg, published
by Iron Crown Enterprises.
A Rolemaster sourcebook in the Campaign classics series. The historical
Rolemaster books are very good, and this one is historic accurate and full of
information.
-The Near East and The Land of Canaan by Isaac Asimov.
Who said History was boring? Fun, easy to read and well explained events and
facts. Maybe too general for people with great knowledge, but ideal for learners
and all kind of readers.
-La Pharaonne de Thbes (The she-Pharaoh of Tebes) by Francis Fvre.
An historical novel/essay. Shows the way of life in the begginig of the New
Kingdom Egypt, through the history of Hatsepsut, the only woman who became
Pharaoh.
- The Holy Bible, Genesis Various authors
Chronicles directly from Antiquity, full of references to Mesopotamia, Canaan
and Egypt. Umberto Eco said: I can read the Bible, Homer or Dylan Dog for
days and days without being bored
-Age of Bronze (Comic book serie) by Eric Shanower, published by Image Comics.
The Iliad made comic through an Historical point of view. RuneQuest flavior in
every page. A real good work.

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-Slaine (Comic book series) by Pat Mills and Simon Bisley.
Celtic fantasy Bronze Age in Europe, a bronze setting not related to the Middle
East, but worth to read and enjoy.
-King David (movie) by Bruce Beresford.
Featuring Richard Gere, is about David king of Israel. Very nice to see the
costumes and places, and the movie works for me.
I discovered this movie recently, and it is an example why I like a lot cinema of
the 80. Well balanced movie between old Peplums (roman, Jesuschrist movies)
and actual historical-lots-of-action-poor-screenplay-and-acting movies.
-A funny thing happened on the way to the Forum (movie) by Richard Lester.
Ok, no bronze, but fun, fun and fun. And there are chariots!
Apart from Spartacus, the RuneQuest adventure I would have like to be able
to run as GM...

I would like to thank my brother Jorge for his help and support, over all in the Bronze
weapons and metals info, and for playing RQ with me all these years.
Of course lots of thanks to my usual (wild) bunch of RQ players and usual pacient
playtesters of my every new campaign project!!
Alvaro (the Jarl), Javi (JAG), Jorge (Persians are invencibles!!), Pablo (Ridley rules!)
and Raul (Keep the units ranks in good order!!!)

I am very pleased with RuneQuest, for its flexible system, full of realism and
appropiate to recreate these times in any campaign. It is my will that one copy of that
rules shall be written on stone, so every one of my vassals can use them, and endure
until the End of the Times
Hammurabi. King, Emperor and satisfied customer.
Translation of the Hammurabis games code, written on diorite stele, found in Sippar.
Source: Miskatonic University, Ancient Studies department.

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Now youre one step closer to run a RQ campaign in ancient Mesopotamia,... its
Sumer time!!

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