Knights and Knaves is an interesting rules set. Published by Historic Enterprises, in Rochester, N.Y., the rules have the physical appearance of the old Empire II set. They are bound in the plastic spiral system popularized over the last few years, allowing inclusion of new pages as necessary or desired. The rules set includes the loose bound 36 page rules booklet, an order sheet three color-coded sheets of charts and tables (the ubiquitou.s 'cheat sheets') to facilitate play and some punch-out markers for use on the gaming table. One nice thing about K&K (as the author, Phil Johnston refers to them), is that the print is LARGE. This is welcome as my eyes grow less able to discern the intricacies of 8 point text.

The rules include sections on Morale Command Determination, Movement, Shooting, Melee, Ammunition Use, etc. The scale is 1" equals 6', 1 figure equals 1 man, and each turn equals 10-30 seconds. Preferred scale: 25mm. The command radius is 5" (note: I would recommend modifying this for better, bolder, and louder leaders like William the Conqueror and Robert Guiscard). There is an armor based system for determining stamina and melee/shooting skill is dependent troop type, i.e. a knight has three times the ability of a peasant. Thus skill levels are based on quality.

As for terrain, "the more stuff on the table the more free-wheeling the game..." There are listed standing orders which I find problematic ("attack until... then..."), but they can be easily modified or left out. The author has plans to publish a scenario booklet in the future, but for now he has suggested that for an interesting game, each player could command units of from 5 to 15 or 20 figures. Each turn consists of Rally/Determine Command Control/March Actions/Reveal and Move/Shoot/Melee/Incur Fatigue.

There are standard morale tests, with the quality of the troop type determining pass/failure with some modifiers and a d10 roll. If a figure is within 5" of his commander, orders are given and obeyed (using order chits). For Command Control, if out of 5" from the leader, actions are determined on the Action Table, with modifiers used to find the result. Movement is done by move/countermove, one figure at a time until all are moved.

Shooting is determined by range and shooting skill, with modifiers applied to decide if a hit is made. Once hit, the effect must be checked. A die is rolled (dl0 if over 20" away, 2dl0 if 6"-20, 3dl0 if under 6"). Subtract the target's armor and the number remaining is taken off the target's stamina. Once at 0, the figure is considered dead. In melee, the melee skill+ldl0+weapon value less fatigue and the enemy shield value determines who strikes home. Modify and roll ld10, the high result gets to strike home first.

For damage, roll 1 to 3d10, determined by weapon and subtract enemy armor value, resulting number being the loss of stamina. After this go to the next round. Just to make life a bit more difficult, we have the clumsiness factor to contend with. There is a chance that a figure (or climber) will fall and get hurt or killed! Just my luck to have a charging knight bear down on a group of panicked peasants and fall off his horse. . .it did happen, of course . . . I suppose . The rules are finished up with some sample organizations (Saxon war band, Norman conroi, etc.) and a helpful bibliography. All in all, a nicely done effort and a welcome break from the rigors of WRG, DBM, ARMATI, etc. Available from Historic Enterprises Co.. P.O. Box 1534, Rochester, N.Y. 14603. Price given is $12.95. - TERRY GORE