Outremer: Faith and Blood is the latest addition to the Osprey Wargames series, bringing skirmish wargames in the Crusades to your tabletop. Designed for warbands of 3-13 fighters, the rules allow for quick, rapid play, with a skirmish taking between 45 - 60 minutes.

In 1095AD, Pope Urban II made a call to all Christians to take up arms and march forth to the Holy Land. This was in response to a plea from the Byzantine Emperor whose Orthodox Christian Empire was under threat from the Anatolian Turks. Instead of the few knights he was expecting, thousands of Crusaders from all walks of life heeded the call and within two years they had seized Jerusalem and established the Crusader States.

For 200 years the Christians and various factions of Islam simultaneously co-existed and fought each other for control of Outremer until, in 1291, the final major Crusader stronghold of Acre collapsed and the Westerners were driven from the Holy Land.

Outremer: Faith and Blood is a skirmish game set during this period and allows you to field warbands of fighters who are vying for dominance in the name of their God. You must recruit, arm, and lead your warriors as their success or failure will be down to your decisions. This game can be played as a one off encounter but it is really designed to facilitate campaigns, where you will be able to watch your fighters grow (or die) as the campaign progresses.

The Factions:

Crusaders (The Franks)

A band of newly arrived crusaders search the Holy Land for treasure and glory in the name of God.

Originally, the Crusaders were European men and women who came to Outremer in order to liberate Jerusalem from Muslim rule. By the time of the later Crusades many of these individuals had actually been born in the newly formed Crusader States. The individuals making up the Crusader armies were exceptionally diverse with paupers and merchants marching alongside knights and Lords, under the banners of Christ.

Military Orders

The monastic Knights of St. John patrol through the desert wilderness looking for Saracen bandits.

The Military Orders were a unique concept that arose during the Crusader period, they were Frankish fighters who had taken monastic vows and lived as warrior monks, protecting pilgrims, driving back Islamic armies, and acting as advisors to the secular Lords of Outremer. From humble beginnings, these brotherhoods grew in wealth and power until they were amongst the most influential organisations in Christendom.

Saracens

An Islamic warband cautiously moves through the desert of Outremer on the lookout for Christian raiders.

The term Saracen is something of a generalisation as during the 200 years that the Crusader states stood there were various assorted Caliphates and Armies that all served under the Crescent of Allah. Some were united against the Western barbarians that had invaded their lands whilst others fought as viciously against each other as they did the Christian armies.

Outremer: Faith and Blood is currently available to preorder on the store, and will be published on 19th April.