Overview

Dragon Rage is a two-player fantasy wargame depicting dragon attacks on the walled fortress-city of Esirien. One player controls the invading dragons, while the other defends the city with knights, infantry, archers, militia, a hero, and a wizard. The invader attempts to destroy parts of the city for victory points, while the defender tries to protect it. Originally published in 1982 by Dwarfstar, this revised edition features hex-and-counter gameplay with a strong thematic focus.

Components

• Color hex map of the city of Esirien (with Nurkott map on reverse)
• City defender counters: 4 cavalry, 8 infantry, 4 archers, 4 militia (orange), 1 hero, 1 wizard (yellow)
• 2 Dragon counters (with facing arrow, flying/grounded versions)
• Heart counters (tracking dragon damage)
• SP counters (tracking wizard spell points)
• Turn pointer and Last Damage pointer
• Broken pointer markers
• Burned bridge markers, Wounded markers, Magic markers
• Destroyed/Victory Points markers
• Rules reference booklet
• Play aids

Setup

1. Roll die; highest result chooses to play Dragons or City Defender.
2. Place the Esirien map.
3. City defender sets up first: place all forces (4 cavalry, 8 infantry, 4 archers, 4 militia, 1 hero, 1 wizard) anywhere within the city, including towers, waterfront, and along walls (inside). Max 1 troop counter plus hero or wizard per hex.
4. Invader places 2 Dragons on any hex at the west, north, or east edge of the map, next to the forest.

Turn Structure

Each turn has 9 phases in sequence:

1. Invading Player Movement Phase — Move dragons on the map; resolve overrun attacks.
2. Dragonfire Phase — Resolve dragonfire flame attacks.
3. Invading Player Melee Phase — Resolve melee attacks by invaders.
4. City Forces Spell-Casting Phase — The wizard may cast a spell.
5. City Forces Reinforcements Phase — On turns 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30+ the city player receives reinforcement units.
6. City Forces Movement Phase — Move city units.
7. City Forces Archery Phase — Resolve archery attacks.
8. City Forces Melee Phase — Resolve city melee attacks.
9. Advance Turn Pointer — Move the turn pointer to the next box.

Turns repeat until victory conditions are met.

Actions

Dragon Movement

Dragons can walk, slither, bound, or fly. Each mode has different movement costs and effects:

• Walking/Slithering: Ground-level movement across hexes.
• Bounding: Leaping movement that can bypass obstacles.
• Flying: Aerial movement; landing from flight in an unoccupied VP hex destroys it.
• Dragons have a facing direction shown by the colored arrowhead on their counter.

Destroying VP Hexes

Certain city hexes have VP values (1-5 in blue). Dragons destroy a VP hex by:

• Walking into it and spending 1 MP in it
• Slithering into it
• Landing from flight or a bound in an unoccupied hex
• Dragonfire into a hex always destroys it (except towers — only dragonfire through an open entrance destroys tower hexes)

Dragonfire

Flame breath attack resolved during the Dragonfire Phase.

Melee Combat

Both sides resolve melee attacks in their respective phases. Combat results use die rolls against unit combat values.

Archery

City archers attack during the City Forces Archery Phase.

Wizard Spells

The city wizard has spell points (tracked with SP counters) and can cast spells during phase 4. Available spells include Fog and Whirlwind (a Whirlwind destroys all VP in a hex it occupies).

Heroes

Heroes may stack with any friendly unit (max 2 units per hex: hero/wizard + one other). A hero may enter a hex occupied by a Dragon (ending his move), but a wizard cannot. Heroes can be wounded (wounded marker); a second wound kills them.

Terrain Effects

• Sea: No unit may enter.
• River: Cannot enter; bridges/fords provide crossing.
• Walls: Cannot climb over; gates allow passage (inside freely, both directions if smashed).
• Towers: Enter only through entrances (defender controls all until smashed). Cavalry cannot end in towers (may cross via road). Units in towers are considered both “in” and “on top.”
• Roads: Units following road for entire move use road MP value. Dragons gain no road benefit.
• Gates (large, red): 3 hits to smash; Doors (small, blue): 1 hit to smash.

Stacking

No troop unit may move into a hex with another unit. Characters (hero/wizard) may stack with one other friendly unit.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

City Defenders Win:

• All invaders are destroyed
• 10 turns pass without invaders destroying a VP hex
• 10 turns pass without any invaders (grounded or airborne) within the city walls

Invader Victory (by VP destroyed):

• < 16 VP: Invaders defeated (“featherless chicken”)
• 16 VP: Marginal victory (“dragon whelp”)
• 18 VP: Normal victory (“destroyer of cities”)
• 20+ VP: Great victory (“the death from above”)
• All VP: Ultimate victory (“the bane of Esirien”)

Experienced invader players should aim for at least 20 VP.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Dragons have no numerical values on their counters; see rules reference for capabilities.
• Each city defender counter shows Combat ability, Escape value, and Movement (normal “C” and road “D” values).
• Reinforcements arrive on specific turns (10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30+).
• The game includes an optional campaign system linking multiple games together.
• A second map (Nurkott) on the reverse side provides new scenarios.
• Only 1 dragon of a given color may be in the courtyard at the same time.

Player Reference

Turn Sequence:

1. Invader Movement
2. Dragonfire
3. Invader Melee
4. City Spell-Casting
5. City Reinforcements (turns 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30+)
6. City Movement
7. City Archery
8. City Melee
9. Advance Turn

Invader Victory Targets: 16 VP (marginal), 18 VP (normal), 20+ VP (great)

City Victory: Kill all invaders, OR 10 turns no VP destroyed, OR 10 turns no invaders in city