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Fusion
Warp
Fuel/
System
Beam/Screen
Drive
Gnrtr
Crew
Ships
Generator
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Tactical Spaceship Design and Combat
2nd Edition
Game Design by Howard Thompson
(c) 1977 by Metagaming
Revised 1994 by WarpWar Design Group

I. INTRODUCTION
WarpWar is a two- or multi-player game of tactical space combat suitable for realtime,
PBM or PBEM. Players build their own unique ships, move them between stars, and
resolve combat without dice. The object of the game is to eliminate the opponent.
Solitaire playability is nil.
WarpWar simulates a hypothetical future when time for flights between stars is huge...but
ends in brief but violent combat. Warpships can enter the stressed space channels
("warplines") between stars for nearly instantaneous travel. Nevertheless, wars among the
stars last so long that huge advances are made in technology. Older ships are at a
disadvantage against newer ones.
The destructive power of weapons technology has become so great that space combats
have become tactical guessing games between ship commanders. A clear hit will wreck or
cripple all but the most powerful ships. The goal, then, is to outguess the enemy - to use
your own weapons in the optimum manner where his defenses are weakest, while
avoiding a killing counterblow.
Battles are fought for control of resource-producing star systems. Bases are built on
systems to exploit the resources and to construct new ships, but the bases have no other

defenses. The battle for a star is over when its sky is swept clean of ships; the planetary
bases will be helpless.
Are you man enough to accept the challenge of WARPWAR?

II. GAME ELEMENTS

To play a game of WarpWar you will need a star map and these rules. For playing face-toface, a set of counters must be created. Counters should be clearly marked to distinguish
players' fleets from one another, and to distinguish Warpships from Systemships. A
number/letter system is the best for this purpose; Warpships can for example be identified
as W1, W2, W3 etc. and Systemships as S10, S20, S30 and so forth.
A star map is included at the end of this file. Guidelines for creating new maps can be
found in section VII. PBEM. The map is divided into hexes which control movement, and
the hexes are numbered to identify the hexes. Hexes are further distinguished by stars and
warplines
>--<
/SUSA\
(1)*
>
\1207/
>--<

STAR HEX is the term used for all hexes containing a star.
Stars are named and referred to by hex number and name.
The numbers in parentheses is the star's basic econ. value.

>--<
/

SPACE HEX is the term used for any hex on the map that does
> not contain a star. If a hex has a warpline in it but no star,
\1007/ it is just like any other space hex. Space hexes are referred
>--<
to by their hex number.

<

>--<
* \
>--< // >
/
//
/
>--<
// >--<
/
\// /
<
//>--<
\ * /
>--<
/

WARPLINE is the term used for the lines

connecting some stars.

PLAY
In order to set up WarpWar for face to face play, each player must select one set of ship
counters. Players then decide who will move first; the player moving second chooses
which end of the map will be his/hers to defend. The three stars at a player's end of the
map are his/her starting Base stars. The two scenarios below differ in complexity. When
you are familiar with the game, you may want to design your own scenarios.
BASIC SCENARIO

Each player starts the game with 40 Build Points and receives 8 Build Points at the start
of each turn thereafter. Each player has only one Base, in the middle of his/her end of the
map. The first player to destroy the opponent's Base is the winner. Base construction,
Holds, Repair Bays and Technology rules are not used.
ADVANCED SCENARIO
All rules are used. Each player has three Bases, one on each of the three stars at his/her
end of the map. Players get 20 Build Points at the start of the first turn and receive Build
Points at the start of every turn thereafter in accordance with the economics rules. The
first player to destroy the opponent's Bases is the winner.
Players who wish to develop more complicated rules to enhance their enjoyment of
WarpWar are encouraged to experiment. WarpWar's modular design is easily expandable.
A collection of rule variants is known to exist.'

III. SEQUENCE OF GAME EVENTS

Play alternates between players in turns. A game-turn consists of a player turn by all
players. A player-turn consists of a player going through each of the events described
below. When one player has completed his sequence of events, it is the next player's turn.
The sequence of game events for each player-turn is:
1. Build:
(a) Receive new Build Points from owned stars according to the
economics rules. Add to stockpiles and record current base totals. Load or
unload system BPs into Holds.
o (b) Scrap old ships at bases and add Build Points to base stockpiles.
o (c) Build new ships and Bases, repair and resupply old ships. Subtract
expenditures from Base totals New ships are placed on the Star they were
built at.
2. Movement: You may move some, none or all of your Warpships up to the
maximum movement (in hexes) of which they are capable. Systemships may be
picked up or dropped off during this event at a cost of 1 Movement Point per
pickup or drop off action.
3. Combat: Combat MUST occur whenever ships from opposing fleets occupy the
same star hex at the end of a player's movement event. Combat in each star hex is
separate, and ends when only one player's or one alliance's ship(s) occupy that
star hex. Combat does NOT occur when opposing ships occupy the same non-star
hex.
4. Systemship Rearrangement: After all combats on all star hexes are resolved, the
player whose turn it is can have any Warpship drop off any Systemship(s) it
carries at the star it occupies, have any Systemship at a star hex picked up by a
Warpship there that has SRs, or transfer Systemships from one Warpship to
o

another at the same star hex. This event is essentially a free shuffling around of
Systemships in a star hex, and costs no movement.

IV. SHIP BUILDING

During the Build event of a player's turn, he collects BPs on all owned systems, defined
as systems with a friendly base or ship currently stationed on it. If a friendly Base is
present, the player collects double the BP value of that system and may stockpile the BPs
on that Base; if no Base is present, one half the basic BP value is collected and the BPs
must be immediately stored in a ship's Hold or they are lost. Systems produce BPs for a
player beginning on the turn AFTER the turn that player took ownership of that system.
For example, if Player 1 moves thought an unowned star it is now owned by Player 1 and
produces BPs at the start of Player 1's next turn. If Player 2 moves through it on his turn
there are no BPs right away BUT it is now owned by Player 2. If Player 1 now moves
through it there are still no BPs but it is now owned by Player 1. BPs may not be
transferred between Stars except in Holds; BPs may not be transferred between ships. He
may use these BPs to (a) build new ships, (b) repair old ships, (c) scrap old ships, (d)
build new Bases, or (e) resupply Missiles and Shells to old ships. A player builds or
repairs by expending Build Points from Base stockpiles. Ships may be built and scrapped
only at Bases. Ships may be resupplied and repaired at Bases or by Warpships equipped
with Repair Bays. The Build Points are spent as explained below. IT IS NECESSARY to
make a written record for each ship built, the damage it takes, and the repairs and
resupplies it needs. A written record for each system's economic expenditures is also
required.
SCRAPPING SHIPS

Ships may be scrapped for 1/2 their current total BP value. Ships may only be scrapped at
Bases during the Build event.
SHIP ATTRIBUTES
Warpships and Systemships may be built with the following attributes. It is NOT
necessary for a ship to have all these attributes. If you don't want a ship to have (for
instance) Missiles, you just don't build any.
POWER/DRIVE (PD) represents the total effective strength of a ship's engines.
During movement, the PD of a Warpship divided by 2 and rounded up gives its
movement allowance in hexes. During combat, the PD strength of a ship is
allotted to its drive and weapons so that those may operate. During combat, a ship
may NEVER allocate power from PD in excess of the available PD strength. Each
unit of PD strength costs one BP to build.
WARP GENERATOR (WG) is the unit that allows a ship to move from star to
star through space and to jump along Warplines. A ship with a warp generator is a
Warpship. Ships without warp generators are Systemships. Warp generators cost 5
BP to build.

BEAMS (B) represent the ability of a ship to project a beam of destructive energy
at a target. Each ship may have only one Beam projector. The strength of the
projector will vary according to the number of Build Points spent on it. The
number of BP spent on the beam is the maximum strength at which that ship's
beam may be powered during combat.
SCREENS (S) represent the ability of a ship to surround itself with a protective
energy screen. Screens reduce the number of "hits" damage the ship must take
when it is struck by an enemy weapon. Beams and Screens are manifestations of
the same type of energy projection generator. Beam and Screen may be used
simultaneously, but NEITHER may be used on the same round that Missiles or
Shells are fired. The number of Build Points spent on a Screen is the maximum
strength at which that Screen may be powered during combat.
ELECTRONIC COUNTERMEASURES (E) cost 1 BP per point of ECM. The
ship can allocate PD in combat to ECM, up to the ECM rating with which the ship
was constructed. In combat, after orders are revealed, the player using ECM
allocates his ECM points among the attacking Missiles, and then adds or subtracts
the difference between the defending ship's tech level and each Missile's tech
level from the ECM points allocated to that Missile. ECM may be used in the
same combat round with all other ship systems.
TUBES (T) are used by a ship to launch Missiles. Each Tube may launch one
Missile per combat round. It requires a PD allocation of 1 to power a Tube for
firing. Each Tube costs 1 BP to build.
MISSILES (M) may be fired through a ship's Tubes at an enemy ship. Each
Missile does a basic damage of 2 hits if it strikes. The number of hits damage a
Missile does may be modified by other factors as per the combat rules. One Build
Point will build three Missiles. A ship may be built to carry any number of
Missiles, and can never hold more than initially specified. As Missiles are fired,
they must be subtracted from the ship's Missile stock on that ship's record.
Missiles may not be transferred between ships.
ARMOR (A) is ablative hull reinforcement. 1 BP builds (2 + tech level) points of
Armor. One point of Armor will absorb one point of damage. Armor is repaired at
a cost of 1 BP per 2 points of Armor, regardless of tech level.
CANNONS (C) are used by a ship to launch Shells. Each Cannon may fire either
one, two or three Shells per combat round. 1 PD is required to power a Cannon
for one combat round. Each Cannon costs 1 BP to build. Cannons are treated as
Beams as far as combat goes, i.e. ship's drive setting is used on CRT, but they may
not be used with Beams or Screens. May be used with Missiles.
SHELLS (SH) are fired by Cannons. Each Shell does a basic 1 point of damage if
it strikes. Hit +1 and +2 and TL extra damage is added per burst of Shells, not per
individual Shell. 1 BP builds 6 shells. Shells do not have a drive setting; they are
unguided and act like Beams in that they hit according to the ship's Drive and
Maneuver. In other respects they are treated as Missiles - ship may carry any
number, may not be transferred between ships. Shells are not affected by ECM.
SYSTEMSHIP RACKS (SR) let a Warpship carry Systemships. Systemships may
not have SRs and may not carry other Systemships. A Warpship may have any
number of SRs and may carry one Systemship for each SR it has. Each

Systemship Rack costs one BP to build. A Warpship may NOT be carried in a

Systemship Rack.
HOLDS (H) cost 1 BP per 10 BP capacity. Holds contain BPs and allow
Warpships to transport BPs between stars. When taking damage, 1 point of
damage will destroy one 10 BP-capacity Hold AND 10 cargo BP, or fraction
thereof. When taking damage on a Warpship with more than one Hold, the player
may choose to damage empty Holds before BP-carrying Holds. BPs may be
loaded or unloaded during the Build event only. BPs may not be transferred
between ships. Systemships may not have Holds.
REPAIR BAYS (R) cost 5 BP. A ship with a Repair Bay may use BPs in Hold or
from Star to repair itself or any number of other ships present on the same star hex
during the build/repair event. BPs mined from Baseless Stars may be used
immediately to repair by ships with Repair Bays. Repair Bays like Warp
Generators do not take damage in combat and are destroyed when the Warp
Generator is destroyed.

BASES are not ship components. They are built on stars during the Build event. Each
Base costs 30 BP. These BP need not all be spent in the same turn, but they must be
brought in Holds to the star on which the Base is to be built. A record must be kept of the
progress of Base construction on all stars. If an enemy ship is present unopposed at the
end of the enemy's turn on the star where there is an incomplete Base, that Base is
destroyed and all BPs spent are lost. BP received from a star may not be used to build a
Base at that star in the turn they were received. A Base doubles the basic BP production
of a system. A Base is destroyed automatically when enemy ships are present unopposed
on the Star hex at the end of the enemy's turn. One half of all BPs present on the
destroyed Base can be immediately picked up by ships in the system if they have
sufficient Hold space. Any BPs not immediately picked up are lost. Only one Base may
be built on each star hex.
BUILD POINTS (BP) are produced at stars according to the economic value of each star.
They are spent to build Warpships, Systemships and Bases, to repair ships, and to
resupply ships with Missiles and Shells. A written record is kept by each player for every
ship he builds. Players show these records to each other after (but not during) the game. A
written record is also kept for each Base, denoting BPs accumulated and spent.
Build Points build ship components according to this schedule:
1 BP = 1 unit of Power/Drive strength (PD)
1 unit of Beam strength (B)
1 unit of Screen strength (S)
1 Tube for firing Missiles (T)
3 Missiles
1 unit of ECM capability (E)
1 Cannon (C)
6 Shells (SH)
2 units of Armor (A)
1 Hold (H)
1 Systemship Rack (H)
5 BP are needed to build a Warp Generator or a Repair Bay.

WARPSHIPS are ships with warp generators. Warpships may have any ship component.
They may move from hex to hex on the star map and may move along the warplines.
Warpships may also engage in combat, carry Systemships, have Repair Bays and Holds.
A Warpship may select any combat tactic. Systemships carried by Warpships are noted by
their numbers on that Warpship's record. If a Warpship is destroyed, all Systemships and
cargo it was carrying when destroyed are also destroyed.
EXAMPLES:
W2 is built during turn 3, which means its technological level is 0.
21 BP are used to construct it. W2 cannot carry any Systemships (SR=0),
but does have beams of strength 3, screens of 2, one Tube and 3 Missiles
to fire, and two points of ECM. W2 also has a Power/Drive strength of 7
to use for movement and to allocate to weapons and drive during combat.
W2's movement allowance is 4. W2's ship record looks like this:
W2: TL0 PD=7 S=2 B=3 T=1 M=3 E=2
(This totals 16 BP. Adding the cost of the warp generator, to make
it a Warpship, brings the cost to 21 BP.
W7 is built during turn 12, which means its technological level is 2.
23 BP are used to construct it. It is built to be a freighter and
repair ship; it can't fight, since it has no Beams, Screens, Missiles or
Cannons. W7's record looks like this:
W7: TL2 PD=6 A=8 H=2 SR=3 R=1 (the numbers of any Systemships
carried by W7 would also appear here.)
SYSTEMSHIPS do not have warp generators. Systemships may not have
Holds, Systemship Racks, or Repair Bays. They may exist only on star
hexes unless carried by Warpships. When a Systemship is being carried
by a Warpship, its number is noted on the Warpship's record sheet, and
the Systemship's counter does NOT appear on the map. Systemships may
NEVER move from one hex to another under their own power. They must
always be carried by a Warpship, and may be dropped off at a star hex.
In combat, a Systemship may never select the RETREAT tactic; it can
escape from combat only if carried by a Warpship.
EXAMPLES:
S20 is built during turn 2 (tech level 0). It costs 20 BP.
have no warp generator, Systemship Racks, Holds or Repair Bay.
record is:
S20: TL0 PD=7 B=5 S=5 E=3

It can
Its

S55 is built during turn 9 (tech level 1). It costs 4 BP; it is a

fighter-type gunship, with PD=1 to power the Cannon. Its record is:
S55: TL1 PD=1 C=1 SH=12

TECHNOLOGICAL LEVELS
The technological level (TL) for newly built ships increases one level every six turns.
Ships always retain their original TL. Ships built on turns 1-6 are TL 0, those built during
turns 7-12 are TL 1, those built during turns 13-18 are TL 2, and so on.
In combat, ships add their TL to the number of hits their Beams, Missiles and Shells (per
burst) do. For example, a TL 3 ship would add 3 hits to its Beam damage, 3 hits to each

Missile damage, and 3 hits to each burst of Cannon fire, when the weapon actually hit.
ECM is affected by tech a little differently: the player using ECM allocates his ECM to
incoming Missiles as desired. The tech level of each Missile is then subtracted from the
tech level of the target ship, and the difference is added to or subtracted from the ECM
points allocated against that Missile ONLY.
TECHNOLOGY IN COMBAT EXAMPLE: A tech level 2 ship fires with a Beam
strength of 4 and hits a tech level 1 ship. The firing ship adds 2 to its Beam strength of 4,
for a total of 6 hits. The target ship had Screens powered at 3. It adds its tech level of 1 to
the Screen power of 3, for a total of 4 hits absorbed by the Screen. Subtracting 4 hits
absorbed from 6 inflicted leaves 2 hits the target ship will have to take somewhere in its
attributes and mark off its ship record before the next combat round.
REPAIR AND RESUPPLY
Repair and resupply occurs during the Build event. A ship must be on a Base star hex or
on a Star hex with a Repair Bay-equipped Warpship present in order to be eligible for
repair or resupply. A Systemship may be repaired or resupplied even when it is loaded
onto a Warpship. Build Points are spent for repair and resupply in the same way they are
spent when a ship is built. One BP builds just as much for repair as for original building,
with the exception of Armor, which is repaired at a cost of 1 BP per 2 points of Armor,
regardless of tech level. A ship can be repaired PARTIALLY or WHOLLY up to its
original strength in each attribute, BUT NO MORE. For example, a ship originally built
at PD=7 and damaged so that its new PD is 2, may be repaired all the way up to 7 -costing 5 BP -- or repaired to some PD lower than 7. It can never be repaired to over 7.
Its TL remains what it originally was.
Resupply of Missiles and Shells allows a player to replace a ship's original stock of
ammunition after some has been fired or destroyed in combat. One BP replaces up to 3
Missiles or up to 6 Shells. A ship may not be resupplied with more Missiles or Shells than
it originally carried. Fractions of BPs left over after resupply are not saved. However, one
BP CAN be used to resupply (for instance) 3 ships with one Missile each.

V. MOVEMENT
During the Move event of a player's turn, he may move some, none, or all of his
Warpships up to their maximum movement allowance (= 1/2 PD), taking any damage
into account. Warpships may pick up or drop Systemships during movement, at a cost of
one movement point per Systemship dropped or picked up. Ship counters are placed face
up on the map, with lettering visible. Systemships are not placed face up on the map
while being carried by Warpships, but ARE placed on the appropriate star hex when not
being carried.
Warpship movement is governed by the Power/Drive unit. One half of a ship's present
PD value, rounded up, is the ship's store of Movement Points. A ship with an undamaged
PD = 7 would have 4 Movement Points.
It costs a Warpship 1 MP to do any of the following:

Move from one space or star hex to an adjacent hex

Move the full distance along a warpline, from the star hex at one end to the star hex at the
other
Drop off OR pick one Systemship
A Warpship may NOT stop at any intermediate on the warpline when
using warpline movement. Warpships may only enter warplines for
warpline movement at one end of the warpline, NOT in the middle
Warpships must stop movement on any star hex occupied by an enemy
ship. This applies to Warpships moving either normally or by warplines.
Warpships may freely move through space hexes occupied by enemy
ships.
In 'blind' games where movement is hidden, such as refereed PBEM
games, players may indicate in advance that they are going to drop
Systemships when their Warpship arrives at a specific star. If enemy
ships are found to be present at that star, the Systemships are dropped
and available for use on the first round of combat. If no enemy ships
are present the Systemships are still dropped. The Warpship must have
sufficient movement points remaining to drop the Systemships.
Warplines between stars are treated as space hexes for non-warpline
movement purposes.
A Warpship whose PD is reduced to zero may not move.
Movement points expended during the move event are not considered
"lost" or expended during the following combat event. When combat
commences, a ship may allocate its full present PD strength.
Ships may NOT move onto an enemy Base star during the first turn.
WARPSHIP MOVEMENT EXAMPLE: W6 starts its movement on space hex 1720
(starting position is indicated by #, end position by %). It moves onto
Umma (1 movement point), moves along the warpline to Girsu (1 movement
point), moves 3 space hexes to Kish (3 movement points), and stops. It
expended 5 movement points. Had it dropped a Systemship on any one of
those three stars, it would have expended one additional movement point,
for a total of six used in that move.
Another example: W8 starts on hex 1919 and moves two hexes to 1717 at
a cost of 2 movement points. W8 treated hex 1818 like any other space
hex, even though a warpline passes through 1818.
>--<

>-||
>--<
||>--<
*(5)--<
>--< *(3)>--<
\Sumarra||\1418/
\151||
\1616/
\1715/
\||14/
\
<
>--<(2)*\ >--<
>--||
>--<
>--<
||-<
>
\1320/
\1419\\
\1518/ ||\1617/
\1716/
\1815/|| \1914/
>--<
>--< \\ >--<
|| >--< #W8# >--<
>--<||
>--<
/
\1420/
\1519\\
\16||/
\1717/Girsu1816/
||915/
\
<
>--<
>--< \\ >||<
======*(1)>--<
||--<
>
\1421/
\1520/
\161\\ ||(2)=====
\1817/
\191||
\2015/
>--<
>--< #W6# >Umma\*=====-<
>--<
>--||
>--<
/
\1521/
\1620/
||719/
\1818/
\1917/ ||\2016/
\
/

<

>--<
>--<
||--<
>--<
>--<
|| >--<
>
\1522/Isin\1621/
\172||
\1819/
\1918/
\20||/
\2116/
>--< *(1)>--<
>--||
>--< %W8% >--<
>||<
>--<
/
\1\\2/
\1721/ ||\1820/
\1919/
\20Kish%W6%2117/
\
<
>-\\
>--<
|| >--<
>--<
>-====*\\(0)-<
>
\1623/ \\\1722/
\1||1/
\1920Akkad\20===== \2118\\
\2217/
>--<
\\>--<
>||<
>--(3)*======<
>--<
\\ >--<

VI. COMBAT
Combat MUST occur when ships of opposing sides occupy the same star
hex at the end of a player's movement. Each contested star hex is
treated as a separate combat and is resolved separately. The player
whose turn it is decides in which order he will resolve combats on
contested star hexes. The combat on one star hex is resolved before
combat on the next star hex is begun. The combat event of a player's
turn is over when combat on all contested star hexes has been resolved.
COMBAT ROUND SEQUENCE:
1. Each player writes an order for each of his ships at that star
hex, keeping it concealed from his opponent. Each order must include:
(a) A combat tactic from the Combat Results Table (Attack, Dodge or
Retreat)
(b) A target enemy ship for Beam fire, if any
(c) A target enemy ship for Cannon fire, if any
(d) A target enemy ship for each Missile fired, if any, and each
Missile's drive setting
(e) A power allocation from PD to Beams, Screens, Drive (PD), ECM
and Tubes (if Missiles are fired). The sum of these
allocations may not exceed the ship's total current PD.
(f) Which Systemships, if any, the ship (if a Warpship) is to pick
up or drop.
2. When both players finish writing their orders, they show them to
each other. Reading the Combat Results Table, in conjunction with the
ship orders, the players determine the result for each weapon fired.
3. Players apply the results of weapon hits to the ships. Any damage
a ship receives is immediately marked off its ship record. Any ship
that has received enough hits to reduce all its attributes to zero,
except for the warp generator and repair bay, is destroyed. Counters
representing destroyed ships are removed.
4. Ships that successfully retreat are moved to any hex adjacent to
the star hex.
5. If both players still have ships on that star hex, a new round of
combat is begun on that hex. Writing, revealing and applying one set of
orders constitutes one combat round.
6. Combat ends on a star hex when:
(a) All of one player's ships there have been destroyed, or
(b) All of one player's ships there have successfully retreated off
that hex, or
(c) Three consecutive combat rounds pass in which no ships take any
damage not absorbed by Screens. In that case, the player whose
turn it is must withdraw all his ships from that star hex to
any hex(es) adjacent to that star hex. Systemships are assumed

picked up by any Warpship the retreating player wishes. If

there are no Warpships capable of carrying a Systemship, the
Systemship is destroyed.
POWER ALLOCATION AND SHIP ORDERS
Each ship order describes a ship's actions during one combat round.
Much of the order will detail how much power is allocated from PD to the
other ship attributes. The power allocated from PD is necessary for
those other attributes to operate. No more power may be allocated to
attributes than is undamaged and available in the PD unit. Drives,
Beams, Screens, ECM, Tubes and Cannons are the attributes that need
powering. The Warp Generator, Missiles, Systemship Racks, Holds, and
Repair Bays do not need power in combat.
POWER ALLOCATION EXAMPLE
A ship was built with an original PD of 9. In previous combat 3 hits
have been taken on that PD, reducing it to 6. From that PD=6, the ship
allocates 1 to Drive (for maneuver during combat), 2 to Beams, 2 to
Screens, and 0 to Tubes. This totals 5, so one is unallocated. (The
ship could not power its Tubes to fire Missiles, since it was using
Beams and Screens.)
EXAMPLE OF BEAM FIRE
W3 is going to fire its Beam at S25, using the attack combat tactic.
The order for this combat would look like this:
W3 (TL0) ATTACKS S25: D=0 B=3 S=2 T=0
(W3 also powered its Screens while allocating nothing to Drive or
Tubes. W3 would have needed a minimum of PD=5 for this example.
Obviously, if W3 had not been built with a Beam of at least 3 and a
Screen of at least 2, it could not have carried out this order. Beams
and Screens and ECM cannot be powered past their capacity, even if extra
power is available.)
EXAMPLE OF MISSILE FIRE
S25 fires back at W3, using a Missile and the Dodge combat tactic.
S25 (TL0) DODGE: D=4 B=0 S=0 T=1
M ATTACKS W3: D=3
(Note that S25 needed a PD of at least five to execute this order.
The D=3 for the Missile did NOT come out of the firing ship's PD. Also,
note that S25 did not designate a target of its own. It dodged while
firing a Missile, and the MISSILE attacked W3. When the Combat Results
Table (CRT) is read, the Attack tactic will be used for the Missile to
see if the Missile hit.)
It may be helpful to think of a Missile as a little ship that exists
for only one combat round and always uses the Attack tactic. The
Missile also has its own Drive unit, which can be set to any level of 1
or greater when launched, regardless of the PD of the firing ship. A
Missile does a basic 2 hits of damage when it hits.
EXAMPLE OF CANNON FIRE
S32 fires at W3 using two Cannons and
S32 (TL1) ATTACKS W3: D=3 C=1 (firing
(Note that the number of Shells fired
specified. Each Cannon may fire up to 3

the Attack tactic.

3 shells) C=1 (firing 1 shell)
by each Cannon must be
Shells per round.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

COMBAT RESULTS TABLE

Target Ship Tactics
Firing
Ship
Tactics
A

T
T

A
C

D
O

D
G

RE
TRE

AT

DRIVE
DIFFERENCE

ATTACK

DODGE

RETREAT

-3 or less
-1, -2
0, +1
+2
+3, +4
+5 or more

Miss
Hit
Hit +2
Hit +1
Miss
Miss

Miss
Miss
Miss
Hit +1
Hit
Miss

Escapes
Escapes
Miss
Miss
Hit
Miss

-4 or less
-2, -3
0, -1
+1, +2
+3 or more

Miss
Miss
Hit
Hit
Miss

Miss
Hit
Hit
Miss
Miss

Escapes
Escapes
Escapes
Escapes
Escapes

-2 or less
-1, 0
+1 or more

Miss
Hit
Miss

Miss
Miss
Miss

Escapes
Escapes
Escapes

EXPLANATION OF COMBAT RESULTS

MISS: The MISS result means the weapons fired missed the target ship,
and no damage was done.
ESCAPES: The ESCAPES result means that the ship that selected the
RETREAT combat tactic successfully withdrew from its enemy and escaped.
In order to ESCAPE, a retreating ship must simultaneously obtain the
ESCAPE result against EACH enemy ship (not Missile) that fired on it.
HIT: The HIT result means that the Beam or Missile or Shell(s) fired at
the target hit it. A Beam which hits does damage equivalent to the
power of the Beam, plus tech level. A Missile which hits does 2 hits
damage, plus tech level. Shellfire which hits does 1 hit of damage per
Shell, plus tech level per burst. "HIT +1" and "HIT +2" mean you add
one and two hits, respectively, to the hits of damage inflicted by the
weapon.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------READING THE COMBAT RESULTS TABLE
Beam or Cannon Fire: The appropriate cell from the CRT for Beam or
Cannon fire is read at the intersection of the target ship's combattactic column and the firing ship's combat tactic row. The specific row
is found by subtracting the target ship's Drive allocation from the
firing ship's Drive allocation and using the row corresponding to the
difference.
Beam Fire Example: The firing ship selects the Dodge tactic,
allocates 3 PD to drives, and allocates 3 PD to Beam. The target ship
selects the Attack tactic and allocates 2 to Drive with Screens
unpowered. Subtracting the target's Drive of 2 from the firing ship's
Drive of 3 yields a +1. The result from the CRT is read at the
intersection of the target ship's ATTACK column and the firing ship's
DODGE row at +1, +2. The +1, +2 row is read because of the +1

difference between Drives. (It also would have been read if the
difference was +2.) The result at this intersection is "HIT".
Cannon Fire Example: The firing ship selects the Dodge tactic,
allocates 3 PD to drives, allocates 1 PD to its Cannon, and chooses to
fire 2 Shells from the Cannon. The target ship selects the Attack
tactic and allocates 2 to Drive with Screens unpowered. Subtracting the
target's Drive of 2 from the firing ship's Drive of 3 yields a +1. The
result from the CRT is read at the intersection of the target ship's
ATTACK column and the firing ship's DODGE row at +1, +2. The +1, +2 row
is read because of the +1 difference between Drives. (It also would
have been read if the difference was +2.) The result at this
intersection is "HIT" Both Shells hit.
Missile Fire: The appropriate CRT cell for Missile fire is read at
the intersection of the target ship's combat tactic column and the
firing ship's ATTACK row. (Missiles always attack.) The specific ship
tactic row is found by subtracting the target's Drive allocation from
the Drive setting given to the MISSILE. (Remember: A Missile may be
given any Drive setting of +1 or greater, at no PD cost except the 1 PD
needed to power its Tube.)
Missile Fire Example: A Missile is fired and given a Drive setting of
4. It attacks (as always). The target ship selected the Attack tactic
and allotted 3 PD to Drive. Subtracting the target's Drive allocation
of 3 from the Missile's Drive setting of 4 yields a +1 difference. The
CRT result is read at the intersection of the target's ATTACK column and
the firing ship's ATTACK (0, +1) row. The 0, +1 row is read because the
difference between the Missile's Drive setting and target's Drive
setting is +1. The result at that intersection is "Hit +2".
ECM: After orders are revealed, the player using ECM allocates his
ECM points among the attacking Missiles, and then adds or subtracts the
difference between the defending ship's tech level and each Missile's
tech level from the ECM points allocated to that Missile ONLY.
ECM Use Example: A ship of tech level 2 is attacked by a Missile
using a Drive rating of 3 and with a tech level of 3. The ship selected
the ATTACK tactic, powered Drive to 3 and allocated 2 PD to ECM.
Normally the Missile would subtract the target's drive of 3 from its own
drive to get a difference of 0, then read the CRT at the intersection of
the ATTACK (0,+1) row and the ATTACK column, giving a result of Hit +2.
However the ship allocates its 2 points of ECM to the incoming Missile.
Subtracting the Missile's tech level of 3 from the ship's tech level of
1 gives a result of -1; this is applied to the ECM allocated to the
Missile, resulting in 1 effective ECM point. The player using ECM
chooses to lower the Missile's Drive setting to 2. This causes the
Missile to get a drive difference of -1 and to use the ATTACK (-1,-2)
row, resulting in just a Hit.
RECORDING SHIP DAMAGE FROM COMBAT
When enemy weapons hit a target ship, that ship takes damage
cumulatively from all weapons (of all ships) that hit it in each combat
round. The amount of power allocated to a ship's Screens, PLUS that
ship's technological level, is subtracted from all hits a ship receives.
(If the Screen is not powered, no tech level is added to the S=0.) The
Hit + 1 and Hit + 2 results from the CRT add one and two hits,
respectively, to the hits a weapon inflicts. One hit (if unabsorbed by
Screens) does one Build Point worth of damage to the target. Warp
Generators and Repair Bays NEVER take damage in combat; when all the
rest of the ship is destroyed, the warp generator and repair bay
explode.

After subtracting the hits absorbed by the target ship's Screen from
all hits scored on it, the remaining hits ("effective hits") are taken
somewhere in the target's attributes. When all of a ship's attributes
are reduced to 0, the ship is destroyed. Its counter is then removed
from the map.
The player owning a ship decides where the hits are to be taken.
EXAMPLE
A ship of technological level 0 has Screens powered at 4. It takes 7
hits in one combat round (including tech level adjustments). The Screen
absorbs 4 of the 7 hits. The remaining 3 "effective" hits must be taken
in the ship's attributes. This is done by subtracting directly from
Power/Drive rating, Beams, Tubes, Cannons, Missiles, Shells, Armor, ECM,
Holds and Systemship Racks. Before and after records for one round
might look like this:
BEFORE: W4: TL0 PD=7 B=3 S=3 C=1 SH=12 E=1 (a 22-BP ship, counting
the generator.)
AFTER: W4: TL 0 PD={7}6 B=3 S={3}2 C=1 SH={12}6 E=1
The player chose to take one hit in PD, one in Screens, and one in
Shells. Since 6 Shells cost 1 BP, the one hit took out 6 Shells. If a
ship has only one or two Shells left, it can use them to take a hit.
However, if a ship has 6 or more Shells, a hit in Shells must take out
6. The same is true for Missiles, except that 1 hit of damage will
destroy 3 Missiles.
Suppose W4 did not kill its enemy, but enters another round of
combat. The enemy ship is S35, a TL1 Systemship. It fired two Missiles
last round, and has attributes as follows:
S35: TL1 PD=6 S=3 T=2 M={9}7
Combat orders for both ships are written out. The players chose the
following tactics:
S35 (TL1): DODGE D=4 T=2
M1 at W4: D=3
M2 at W4: D=4
W4 (TL0): ATTACK D=2 B=2 S=1 E=1
The Systemship dodged and fired two Missiles, one at drive setting 3 and
one at 4. The Warpship attacked, firing its Beam at 3 and putting up a
Screen with a strength of 1.
Reading the CRT we see that both Missiles hit W4: one at ATTACK
(0,+1) and one at ATTACK (+2). Those are, respectively, a Hit +2 and a
Hit +1. S35 also adds one more hit to the damage inflicted by each
Missile because it is tech level 1. Thus, the two Missiles that hit
each do a basic 2 hits of damage, plus one more for tech level, and add
the +2 and +1 from the CRT. The two Missiles inflict 5 and 4 hits,
respectively, for a total of 9 hits. W4 had ECM powered to 1, and
allocated that point of ECM to the first Missile. However the Missile's
tech level of 1 is subtracted from W4's tech level of 0 for an ECM
modifier of -1, rendering W4's ECM ineffective.
W4's Screen was powered at 1, which subtracts 1 hit from the 9 done
by the two Missiles -- leaving 8 effective hits. (Since W4 is only tech
level 0, the Screen absorbed no extra hits.) W4 must take 8 hits
somewhere in its attributes. Its record at the end of last round looked
like this:
W4: TL 0 PD={7}6 B=3 S={3}2 C=1 SH={12}6 E=1
After taking 8 hits, it looks like this:
W4: TL 0 PD={7}6 B={3}0 S={3}0 C={1}0 SH={12}0 E={1}0
W4 has elected to preserve all the PD possible in order to make an

effective retreat attempt.

(S35 took no damage, because W4 missed with its Beam fire. The Drive
difference, subtracting S35's drive from W4's drive, was a -2. Reading
the ATTACK (-1,-2) row for the firing ship and the DODGE column for the
target ship gives a result of MISS.
SYSTEMSHIP PICKUP AND DROP IN COMBAT
A Warpship may pick up or drop Systemships during a combat round if
it allocates Drive = 0 and Screen = 0 and selects the Dodge or Retreat
tactic. The Warpship may fire its Beam or power ECM while picking up or
dropping Systemships, but may NOT fire Missiles or Cannons. A Warpship
may pick up or drop during one combat round as many Systemships as it
has undamaged Systemship Racks.
Systemships dropped during a combat round may NOT fire weapons (or be
fired on) that combat round.
Systemships picked up during a combat round may not fire any weapons
during that round, but may power Screens and ECM. They may be fired
upon by enemy ships.
If a Systemship was to be picked up by a Warpship on a given combat
round, but the Warpship is destroyed during that round, the Systemship
is not automatically destroyed, but remains on the star hex.
If the Warpship dropping Systemships is destroyed on the round it
drops the Systemships, the Systemships are NOT destroyed. If the
Warpship successfully retreats on the round it drops Systemships, the
Systemships stay in the star hex.
SYSTEMSHIP PICKUP AND DROP AFTER COMBAT
After all combat on all star hexes has been resolved for a player's
turn, he may designate any Systemships he wishes picked up or dropped by
any Warpship on the appropriate star hex. This is essentially a free
rearrangement of Systemships following combat, for the player whose turn
it was.