First Blood gets its first cleanup pass, and that is good news for players. Since the new edition is still settling, this update focuses more on clarity than heavy balance.
However, enough points tweaks and scenario changes are included to matter. For Conquest fans, this maintenance should make games cleaner and less awkward. This is a summary of a Parabellum community post found here.
Rulebook Clarifications and Scenario Reworks Smooth Out Early Play
The rulebook changes aim at reducing edge cases and tightening common interactions. Declining a Duel now has real bite, since the character loses current command abilities and cannot perform any that phase. That should make cowardice feel costly, which fits First Blood. Obscured Warriors now roll an extra Block die, so Evasion users also benefit properly. Meanwhile, Blessed is narrowed to Attack and Block rolls, stopping it from boosting Impact hits, Aura of Death, or Lethal Demise. Warbands from 1,001 to 1,500 points can now include one or two Warlords, which opens list-building. The dynamic scenarios also get a serious pass. Ransack receives a new layout and rewards the player seizing more artefacts each round with one VP.
Desecration changes layout to reduce awkward triple-neutral battlefield target setups. Proving Grounds now places one artefact at the center, while each player chooses a friendly warrior to carry another. Raze becomes more open, since Critical Sites are no longer locked behind destroying battlefield targets. However, destroyed targets now make those sites worth extra VP each round.
Territories are adjusted to create more no man’s land and reduce first-card placement impact. Divide and Conquer gets a new layout, while Spearhead becomes Encircle the Foe. Encounters are fully reworked to offer additional VP paths, which should make games less linear. Army books also receive smaller but meaningful updates. All Monster Riders drop by five points, helping centerpiece models feel less punishing. Hundred Kingdoms Neophytes gain a range on Intercession, while Nords Mortals slow down and Raiders stop crowding out Mainstay picks. Fenr, Ulfhednar, Dweghom Raeghs, and Pike Initiates all get useful help.
W’adrhŭn gain Scion of Conquest as a Hero option, while Hunters gain Vanguard. Sorcerer Kings streamline Mysticism, improve Raj synergy, and let Elementals ignore matching terrain. Weaver Courts adjust Gemred Knight Hoarfrost, add Wyrd Knights as Taosidhe retinue, and reduce character costs. Yoroni make Geisha teleportation an Action, keeping it useful but less defining. Old Dominion and Spires receive wording fixes, while City States stay unchanged for now.
Summary and Final Thoughts
Overall, this fixes wording, sands down strange interactions, and improves scenarios. It avoids wild overcorrection while touching obvious outliers.
