Space Combat

Rules for Space Combat

ATTACKING
If an offensive order is given, it most likely involves firing weapons at an enemy ship. Certain criteria must be met before a weapon may fire at an enemy spacecraft. Range Only weapons within range may fire at a target. ‘Close’ weapons may only fire at close range. ‘Long’ weapons may fire at close or long range. All weapons can fire at point blank range, No known weapons may fire at sensor range. Firing Weapons Whenever an offensive order is issued, the commander of the vessel decrees which weapons will fire as part of that order. All weapons within arc and range can be fired at a single target. Each weapon fired requires a separate attack roll. Attack Bonus formula pending... Attack Roll All attack rolls are made by rolling 1d20 and adding the attack bonus of the firer/attacker. If the result equals or exceeds the Defence Value of the defending ship, a hit is scored. A roll of a 1 is always a miss. A roll of a 20 is always a hit and may be a crucial hit. (see Critical Hit below). Space Combat Critical Hits When a space combat attack roll gets a natural 20 (the d20 shows 20), the character hits regardless of the target’s Defence Value and the character has scored a threat of a critical hit. To find out if it is actually a critical hit, the character immediately makes another attack roll with all the same modifiers as the attack roll that scored the threat. If the second roll also results in a hit against the target’s Defence Value, the attack is a critical hit (note that the second roll just needs to hit to confirm a critical hit; the character does not need to roll a second 20). If the second roll is a miss, then the attack just adds to Total Offence as normal. A critical hit with the first (or only) weapon that hit in a barrage multiplies that weapon’s Offence by x2. A critical hit with the second, third or any other subsequent weapon that hit in a barrage also multiplies that weapon’s Offence by x2. (rule under review - In effect, this means that the weapon’s Offence is not halved when calculating Total Offence for the barrage.)

DAMAGE
Random Craft Damage Chart

EFFECTS OF CRAFT DAMAGE

ORDERS
A round of space combat is very roughly a minute in length and consists of many shots, maneuvers, counter-attacks and so forth. Once the Initiative order is determined, the craft involved all take their turns in sequence. Order Types There are three types of space combat order – offensive, defensive and tactical. Offensive orders govern the use of the ship’s weapons to destroy enemy targets. This includes simply firing at will, concentrated fire and coordinated fire with other ships. Defensive orders govern keeping the ship from harm. Performing risky maneuvers to evade fire, moving to protect a weakened section or raising shields are common defensive orders. Tactical orders involve maneuvering the ship to gain an advantage in the next round – closing with the enemy or beginning a retreat, bringing powerful weapons to bear, and so on. Tactical orders also cover other miscellaneous orders, such as beginning boarding operations, repairing damaged systems and evacuating the ship. Issuing Orders During its turn, a craft’s commander specifies which orders the craft will perform. Any combination of orders may be performed, as long as the commander does not exceed his maximum number of orders per turn. Thus a Veteran commander focused on destroying the enemy may issue three offensive orders in his ship’s turn. A Green pilot may only wish to escape and so perform a single tactical order. Or an Elite captain may decide to perform two tactical orders as well as a defensive and offensive order.

- EXAMPLES: SHIP COMBAT: KLINGON ATTACK This example is of a Klingon Starship attacking a Federation Controlled Sector. As the Federation Controls the Sector initially, their Starship is located at The Center, while the Klingon Ship arrives in the Sector and placed in the Sensor Range region. Initial Deployment: Neither ship is within weapons range of the other, but they are within Sensor range and can attempt to scan and/or establish weapon locks on the other. 2nd Turn: The Federation Ship decides to hold and defend the system and holds position, meanwhile the Klingon Ship advances on its Federation target. The Klingon Ship advances one range category, moving it into the long range category, this puts both ships within Long range Weaponry range. If either ship has long range weaponry, they can now engage each other in combat at long range. Note: If the Federation ship would have advanced, then both ships would have been in Close Range of each other. Had the Federation ship withdrawn, the ships would have remained at sensor range.