Fleeing and Withdrawing say that you can move “backward”, but what does that mean? Is it simply “away from engaged foes”, or “away from an engaged foe” or something else?
Also, is it just straight movement, or can you, once you’ve gotten a couple of steps away, turn corners and such?
Thanks!
Ludanto,
Where are you finding the word "backward"? Are you using the latest version of the rules? (DOMAINS AT WAR: BATTLES FINAL) or one of the earlier numbered version?
The current (final) version states:
Withdrawal: The withdrawal must be directly away from the attacker. If a unit is eligible to withdraw into two or more hexes, the commander controlling the target decides which of the eligible hexes his unit withdraws onto. [This would only be the case when being fired on from an angle using missile fire.]
The unit cannot withdraw into impassable terrain. The unit cannot withdraw into a hex already containing an enemy unit, but may withdraw through friendly units, moving up to one additional hex if necessary to avoid ending its withdrawal in the same hex as a friendly unit. A unit’s facing does not change when it withdraws. If the unit cannot withdraw, it must take the damage.
Flee: The unit immediately becomes disordered (if not already), changes its facing towards its own battlemap edge, and immediately retreats a number of hexes equal to its hustling movement rate in that direction. If a fleeing unit cannot complete its retreat, it is considered routed and removed from play.
Sorry. Too much D@W in the air. I’m asking about just dudes in a dungeon. ACKs core rules and defensive movement. 
LOL! You know, I actually was writing up some rules for hex-based combat at the 1:1 scale using D@W movement mechanics with ACKS…
ANYWAY, if you flee or withdraw you have to move away from the engaged enemy. Anything more specific than that has been left to the Judge. Whether they can, e.g., run out of a door, leap behind a wall, etc. is up to you.
I’d be interested in seeing what you’d be changing at that scale. I’ve been doing some thinking about the squad and platoon level scale, and once you get down to platoon you’re getting into some sort of weird atomic-vs-quantum level where it feels like you’re losing something from both sides (the D@W mechanics and the ‘regular’ 1:1 combat system)