2

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SPAEE GAmER

Issue #2

BO~

THE SPACE GAMER is published

quarterly by Metagaming Concepts,
Austin, Texas.
Copyright 1975@by ~
Ccn::eps. All rights reserved.
Printed inU.S.A.
CONTENTS
2 .. Why S-F Drifts: An Editorial
3 ... Feedback on Your Feedback
4 Where We're Going
6 . S-F /F Game Ratings
7 ... S.-F Gaming News/Plugs
9 .. Reviews of Dungeons & Dragons
10 . From You .
n .. Wantads
14 . A Diversion: Eldon Tannish
18. The Intangibles Headache

Editor: Howard Thompson

Contributors this issue:
Tim Waddell
Andy Pudewa
Thomas Drake
Cover: Black and white reproduction of the new Stellar Conquest
cover sheet by Kelly Freas.

Subscription Information:
6 issues for $3. $4 after
12/30/75. Subscription
for U. S., Canada, A. P. O. ,
F. P.O. only.

WHY SCIENCE FICTION DRIFTS:

AN EDITORIAL
Anyone who's been a s-f fan for a
number of years is aware of the limited
range of products for the science fiction enthusiast. Since s-f is a significant, imaginative aspect of many people's lives, the limited material is
a serious frustration. S-f fans have
little more than a few magazines, an
occasional movie, and books for their
enjoyment. And for those with sufficient commitment, time and money there
are conventions. Events like "Star
Trek" and "Space 1999" are welcome mass
t.v. fare, but sporadic. And that's
the way it's been for several decades-science fiction drifts as the hobby of
a small minority.
Why? The reasons are absurdly
simple. S-f products, almost entirely
printed words, come from firms for
which s-f is only a portion of the
business. ANALOG, the s-f magazine
with widest circulation at 110-120,000
accounts for a minescule fraction of
Conde Nast's total revenue. One page
of advertising in Conde Naste's VOGUE
must bring in more than all ANALOG's
ads for ayear. ANALOG is a smalls i de
activity to them even though it's big
in the world of science fiction. GALAXY is just another pulp magazine in
the UPD stable. THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION is somewhat
different in that it's apparently owned
by a family firm with some interest
in the hobby, but FANTASY AND SCIENCE
FICTION has been a small operation for
years.
Book publishers tend to see s-f as
a modest, if profitable, part of their
business. Donald Wollheim, Roger Elwood and a few other editors are making
some headway in establishing separate
lines of s-f books, but are operating
more as upgraded profit centers for a
larger general publisher.
Thus, science fiction products
are controlled by people who view s-f
as a type of fringe-appeal and not be
those who've had the s-f experience
themselves. Book and magazine editors,
the most influential people in s-f who
have an s-f involvement, with the
FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION exception,
are employees of larger organizations.
When you compare the growth of
conflict gaming to science-fiction,
the evolution has been totally different. Avalon Hill, that's really
Charles Roberts, the founder, started
the whole hobby which grew rapidly
until Roberts lost control in the early sixties due to a financial liquidity crisis. The company made no real

progress or innovations after coming

under control of its non-gaming creditors. SPI, that's James Dunnigan,
started big in 1970, and has made all
the real change and growth in the conflict gaming hobby for five years.
Conflict gaming went, SPI still is,
through two periods of rapid progress
when dominated by two entrepreneurs who
were themselves deeply involved in the
hobby. Science fiction, despite considerably broader appeal, has drifted
and languished. The difference, I
think, is in the people who run the
product production. No s-f fan controls a s-f literature company, so the
s-f hobby drifts; while two individuals deeply involved in conflict
gaming account for two periods of
rapid growth and change.
I believe a s-f oriented magazine
could achieve a one million circulation
with promotion and innovation. It
could be done by an entrepreneur of
ability and money who enjoys s-f himself. None of the existing publishers
can hire an s-f editor, put up a bankroll for promotion and do it. ANALOG's
circulation might be doubled, but
employees can't achieve what an indivi dua 1, persona lly commi tted to the
hobby, can. Science-fiction is the
hobby of imagination about the future
and alternative existences. Yet,
science-fiction's powerful, imaginative
concepts have been scratched in no
more than a drab, commercial fashion.
S-f as a big-time experience is an
alternative future who's time may never
come in our worldline. But, it's a
potentiality that has to dazzle the
imagination of frustrated science fiction fans.

FEEDBACK ON YOUR FEEDBACK

The feedback on issue #1 TSG articles showed a few things we didn't
quite expect. It's clear that at this
time the main differen-e between our
readers is science fiction versus game
interests, not game inexperience versus
game experience, as we'd supposed. As
can be seen in the tabulation, the four
game-related items rated highest and
had a markedly lower number of 1,2,
and 3 scores. The non-game material
had significally more low scores which
shows a definitely favoring of gamerelated material on the average. But,
note in the table that the Eldon Tannish fiction piece had the second highest number of "g" scores. And, Letters
and Wantads were necessarily weak in
the magazine's first issue. A large
minority of readers do like both
science fiction and science fiction
games. Another, slightly smaller,
minority like games, s-f or not, and
definitely don't like s-f. One reader
said, "I feel that sci-fi short stories
etc. should be left to magazines and
books, not a gaming sheet, which
probably-$ums up that point of view
pretty well.
For us the issue is clear. We
need both s-f gamers and games-only
fans to survive. The problem lies
with the fact that s-f fans will find
TSG more enjoyable with science fiction
pieces and perhaps man-in-space type
science articles. The games-only group
clearly finds s-f games an enjoyable
extension of their gaming, but have
no liking for science fiction. It may
be that different or better-written
science fiction will strike the gamesonly group less negatively, but we real i ze that for the mas t pa rt they'd
prefer the space be devoted to more
game material.

TSG Issue #1 Feedback Results (242 responses)

Article
S-F Gaming News/Plugs
Where We're Going
SC Strategy
S-F Gaming Survey
A Diversion
Editorial
Hugo for Games
Letters
Wantads

Rati ng

#1, 2, 3's

!L2.2.

7.26
6.90
6.83
6.80
6.32
5.90
5.87
5.51
5.39

4
3
g
8
31
24
19
29
40

53
24
37
26
45
14
15
5
16

This type of dichotomy is inevitable when trying to blend two different pastimes into an enjoyable
whole. We will continue with s-f material because our whole effort folds
if we lose our s-f fans. If we lose
our games-only group we fold too, so
we need some understanding from both
sides. We aren't asking that you
score high an article you don't like.
If you don't like our s-f pieces, or
any piece for that matter, score it
low. But understand that many may
enjoy it and we need their support.
We'll do our best to increase the quality of all material and continue to
expand our size so both gamers and
science fiction fans will get more of
what they enjoy.
And, by the way, thanks to all of
you who took the time to answer our
feedback questionnaire. We want to know
your opinion--your responses are the
foundation of our efforts, so keep
sending the input.

*Notice*
OVERPAYMENTS: Occasionally a customer overpays us by a small amount.
W-en this happens, we will try to give
you something rather than refund 25
or 50. If you ordered a game we may
return it by fi rst cl ass mai 1. If
that isn't possible, we may enter you
for an extra issue of TSG. If you
have SC, we may send along some extra
Player Record Sheets. If all else
fails, it will show up on your records
for possible later credit. So, if
you get something you didn't expect,
this is the reason.
$1 TSG SAMPLES: Some of our ads
offered sample TSG issues for various
prices to see what was most effective.
The $1 price worked worst, so we
entered everyone who sent $1 for an
extra issue of TSG to give them their
money's worth.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS: If you do
move, let us know fast, so you don't
miss TSG or an ord~ Returned mail
just about kills any chance of a
profit on your order--so notify us
of any address change immediately.

WHERE WE'RE GOING

The first order of business is a
big THANK YOU to all those who have
subscribed to THE SPACE GAMER. Within
the first six weeks TSG was out we
received the minimum number of subscribers to survive. And, it looks
like the number of potential subscribers is large enough to insure an
expansion of our quality and quantity
of s-f gaming material for several
years. That potential puts the burden
of growth on us, right where it
belongs. If we don't grow, it means
we're failing to deliver the fun s-f
gamers want, not that there aren't
enough of you to support s-f gaming
as a separately identifiable hobby.
The response we've had shows that
word-of-mouth publicity is a big
factor. A significant proportion of
our subscribers heard about us from
you. One eager fan even asked us to
send sample issues to six of his
friends, which we did, and three
bought games or subscribed. That's
one way to get some people to play
with if there aren't many gamers
around. So, te 11 someone about us.
It'll help the hobby and probably
get some more gamers in your area.
If your friend wants a "freebie"
copy of TSG, send us his/her name
and we'll mail an issue. Most
successful gaming groups grow from
this basis, and being involved in a
group is the best way to enjoy gaming.
You will note non-staff articles
in this issue are few. We hope that
50-70% of all material we publish
will eventually be generated by nonstaff people. Articles about s-f
gaming by active hobby members should
provide the bulk of the words and
should be of most interest. TSG will
of necessity be a "house organ" type
of zine, but we really mean it when
we say we want to give the hobby a
forum. That means you don't have to
agree with our policies or products
to have your say.
Some do distrust a company publication. One unsigned letter accused
us of writing all the complimentary
STELLAR CONQUEST letters--. We hope
that time will prove our credibility.
Just because we have the time and
money to publish our say doesn't mean
we're always right or see things from
all sides. Fortunately, our subscribers, that's YOU, aren't characterized by timidity or herd instincts.
You clearly delineate what you take
issue with. We certainly won't have
the luxury of being blind to our own
faults.

For the future, we hope to go to

bi-monthly publication as soon as we
have sufficient volume of material. A
quarterly schedule is appropriate for
learni ng the "how to" of thi s type of
venture, but more frequent is better.
The number of subscribers enters into
this consideration, since economies
of scale are involved. Suffice it to
say, we can do many more things with
2-3,000 paid subscribers than with
500. These early issues will be
somewhat experimental to give us a
feel for what you like and what we can
learn to do best. Before committing
resources to making TSG bigger, we
have to be sure our content is appropriate in subject matter and quality.
As long as you keep giving us strong
feedback, TSG can make a positive
contribution to the growth and enjoyment of s-f gaming.
Some have asked, justifiably, about
TSG's publication schedule. Small
gaming and s-f zines have been known
to fold, and this issue is several
weeks later than we'd hoped. Final
work on THE YTHRI was given priority,
which we felt was justified. Issue
#3 is scheduled for mailing in November, so you have time to send in
orders before Christmas. February and
May, 1976, are the next two dates
after that. Depending on how circulation and contributions go, we will try
to "get-ahead" of our 1976 schedule,
if time is available. We will try to
give firm dates for the next issue
each time. Regular reliability is
very important and we don't want to
give the impression we aren't concerned about target dates--we are.
Our problem is that Metagaming and
TSG are moving from what has been
more of a super fun hobby into a
small business. Just the volume of
order processing and record-keeping
has reached the point where further
growth will require additional labor
and service. A small computer would
help, but we'd also have to find time
to design and write programs, even
if we could afford a computer in the
next twelve months.
Subscribers will note this issue
came in an envelope and was thirdclass mail. Third class costs 3.9
per issue more to mail, but is two
weeks faster than bulk mailing on the
average. The envelope will insure
that your copy will get to you in
better shape. The questionnaire asks
about third-class versus bulk mailing
to see if subscribers would prefer an
extra four pages of magazine or the
faster mailing service. We'll see.
There was a lot of response to a
new name for our "Hymenoptria" game.

Some name suggestions appear in our

questionnaire. One option for us is
to get permission to use the name
"Dragon Masters" that went with the
Jack Vance novel that originally used
the Gaughan illustrations. The game
is only loosely related to concepts in
the novel, but a s-f novel may be a
way of insuring greater sales. There
will be some preview information on
the game next issue after we get the
THE YTHRI successfully launched.
Our big news this time is, of
course, THE YTHRI, as detailed in our
advertisement. It should be well
worth the money for anyone new to
gaming or those that often want a
fast-moving, two-player game. It's
experimental in several ways, and if
successful should go a long way to
boost s-f gaming.
Since the essence of s-f gaming
is the games, we'r~ moving as rapidly
as we can in that di recti on. Our game
discount policy has been very popular
and we've extended it to our own
games plus adding more titles this
issue. We plan to publish two major
games next year. The spring game
wi 11 be "Hymenoptri a," sure to be
renamed, with the fall game scheduled
as the winning game of our game design
contes t.
We may also try prototype games as
an experiment. This would be a
limited edition game emphasizing doit-yourself components for a low
production cost. It would most likely
be a non-staff design with the purpose
of giving our most avid gamers more
variety, and testing a design's appeal
before publishing it in a professional,
wide-distribution format. Hopefully
we would be able to publish several
prototype games per year, the best
of which would go on to wider publication. Only a few hundred of each
would be printed with prices in the
$3-$4 range. Anyone who bought one
would get a hefty bonus discount on
any re-publication in more expensive
form. Response to the prototypes
would determine the design's future.
At this time, the prototype idea
seems a good one to us, and it will
probably be tried at least once. It
has the advantage of providing more,
cheaper games for hard-core gamers
while testing and de-bugging what
may eventually become a best seller.
Since our time is constrained, anything that spreads the 'testing and
de-bugging effort helps us. Yes,
that means the game won't be too good
for novices because of less complete
rules and play aids. But the prototypes should be great for gamers who
end up re-designing games to suit

II
I

themselves anyway--and there are a lot

of those. Any comments on prototypesin addition to the feedback question
will be appreciated.
Several people have asked about
publishing s-f/f games they've
designed. Metagaming will be publishing non-staff designs next year, so
it's a real possibility. However, we
can't tell you that we'll publish your
game without ever seeing it. The best
thing to do is briefly describe the
game to us, so we can respond to the
general concept. If it sounds like
something we'd publish, if well
designed, we'll ask you to send us a
complete copy for evaluation. We
gain no right to your game and no
promise of publication or remuneration
is implied in an evaluation. It's
just a necessary step to determine
whether or not we want to negotiate
for publication rights. When dealing
with any publisher we advise having
the draft of a game notarized as your
property and design before mailing.
What about the "Game Design
Contest"? The contest is mainly a
publicity vehicle to gain attention
for our desire for outside game
design. Details for the contest will
be in issue #3 of TSG and any design
received before its ending date will
be eligible for prizes. Prizes will
essentially be cash advances on royalties that are non-refundable if
royalties aren't sufficient to cover
the advance. That means, you keep
the prize even if the game is never
published or makes little money. The
best design received will be
published.
SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY
GAME RATINGS
Last issue we published science
fiction and fantasy game ratings as
compiled by Thomas Galloway. At this

*Gorgame11 a
*Space Huk
Dungeons & Dragons
Stellar Conquest
*Star Probe
*Lensman
*Star Lord
Tri p1aneta ry
*A1ien Space
Starforce
*4000A.D.
Hel us Deep
*Rige11ian Wars

time, we don't know if the survey will

be maintained by him or not. However,
ratings seem important to you, and us,
so we've decided to maintain a s-f &
f game rating ourselves on our own
time, or until we get a qualified
volunteer. Ratings from the previous
survey will be incorporated with ones
received since then, and our questionnaire will rate games on a continuing
basis. The up-dated ratings below
exclude games with too few ratings to
be meaningful. Games with an asterisk
had enough ratings to include, but
the statistical variability still will
be great. It should be emphasized
that even STARFORCE and STELLAR
CONQUEST with the most responses still
had few enough votes for their scores
to change significantly with more
input.
To clarify our ratings terminology,
hours refers to the time needed to
complete an average game. Complexity
refers to the game system and play.
Physical quality refers to the game
components and production, and over~ reflects the players genera~ke
or dislike for the game. Complexity,
physical quality, and over-all are
rated on a 0-10 scale, with 0 being
the simplest/poorest and ten being
most difficult/best.
To the best of our knowledge,
GORGAMELLA and SPACE HUK are game
mastered, play-by-mail games. They
were rated in Thomas' survey, but we
received no additional votes on them.
We'd appreciate hearing from anyone
who is in either of these games or
has detailed knowledge about them.
Your ratings are needed to improve
validity. It helps other gamers
decide how to ration their game
dollars for the most enjoyment, so
give them a hand and stick in your
two cents worth!

Hours

Compl exity

Physical
Qual ity

Over-a 11

NA
NA
NA
6.50

6.35
7.33
7.68
7.08
8.50
7.98
4.83
5.73
4.67
6.31
3.10
4.97
3.10

7.35
7.50
7.88
7.21
7.75
6.88
6.50
7.46
5.83
7.65
5.80
5.66
3.13

8.71
8.50
8.39
8.39
7.63
7.48
7.33
6.89
6.83
6.59
6.10
5.59
3.50

9.80
3.20
4.25
3.20
4.18
2.50
2.64
4.10

S-F GAMING NEWS/PLUGS

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, September, 1975;
$1.50.
Not a game, obviously, but an
entire big issue devoted to summarizing the latest scientific knowledge
of the solar system. Anyone even
mildly interested in astronomy owes
himself the pleasure of having this
compact reference. The lead article
by Carl Sagan is followed by separate
articles on the inner planets and the
moon with articles on the outer
planets, smaller bodies (Titan is
very intriguing), and solar fields.
Almost as interesting as Black Holes,
which have been the subject of fascinating articles in recent issue of
SCIENCE, for those with the bug.
TUNNELS AND TROLLS
From Flying Buffalo Inc., Box
1467, Scotsda1e, AZ 85252; $3. Ken
St. Andres, designer. This is a
"Dungeons and Dragon's" type game,
but shorter and simpler. We don't
have a review copy yet, so we don't
know much about it personally, but
commentary so far is favorable and
the illustrations have been mentioned
as better than those in D & D.

Rd., Taylors, SC 29687. This is a

massively detailed game that's at
least five years old. Earlier versions
were published in SPARTAN. Ivan says,
"the game is really more of a hobby
than a game, so whatever you say,
don't tell 'dabblers' and 'di11etantes'
to write me. The 'game' takes a great
deal of time, but is very rewarding ... "
Since copies are hard to come by, be
prepared to pay for xeroxing rules
and a self-addressed, stamped envelope
should facilitate response.
KELLY FREAS REPRINTS
Kelly Freas, Rt. #4, Box 4056A,
Vi rgi ni a Beach, VA 23457. When we had
the STELLAR CONQUEST cover done, Kelly
passed on a flyer, a beauty in itself,
for six reproductions of full-color
cover illustrations. Included are
ANALOG covers for 2/75 ("Lifeboat")
and 6/74 ("Stargate") and for DAW
books: "Conscience Interplanetary,"
"The Mind Net," "Zenya," and "Warriors
of Dawn". They are 12t" by 19",
without type on white, museum quality
paper. A full set is $19.95, signed
$29.95. Single prints are $4.00,
signed $6.00. Postpaid and mailed in
a sturdy tube. (Virginia residents,
add 4% sales tax.)
LASER BOOKS

STAR RAIDER
From David Casciano, 314 Edgley
Avenue, Glenside, PA 19308; $5.99.
Includes 320 hand-illustrated, lightweight, die-cut counters, 23" by 35"
star map in black, red, and yellow on
heavy cardstock; 99 star description
cards al ready cut; an 8-page 6" by 9"
typeset rules booklet; and comes in
a "zipper bag" with a black and white
cover sheet. The rules are about a
fifth as long as STELLAR CONQUEST's
and hand illustrated. The rules have
some flaws such as Basic and Advanced
game versions are mentioned, but never
appear. Also, movement rules appear
in two separate places on the same
page under separate "Movement" headings. This one is probably best for
those with previous experience on
conflict simulation games. Despite
the rules, the game may play well and
we'll have more comment after some
playtesting. There are innovative
wrinkles and brief rules which leave
room for working out problems yourself
without continuous reference.

Roger Elwood is editing a new

series of s-f paperback books that
emphasize people/action in stores.
They have distinctive Kelly Freas
covers and are available in bookstores. Why mention it? Well, they
aren't bad and with few bargains in
s-f these days, the 95 price should
be encouraged.
GREY HAWK
This is the new supplement to
DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS. $5 from TSR
Hobbies, Box 756, Lake Geneva, WI
53147 or $4.25 from us for TSG subscribers. Sixty-three pages chockfull of new material. The content
relates directly to the content and
format of the original three D&D
booklets. Basically, you have new
rules, additions to existing rules,
and suggested changes. The supplement is to be used with the first
three books, so don't order it by
itself.
EMPIRE OF THE PETAL THRONE

SPACE CENTURIONS, revised

Information from the designer
Ivan Travnicek, 205 Walker Springs

$25 from TSR (see address above)

or $21.25 from us for TSG subscribers.
Designed by Professor M.A.R. Barker.

Includes three full-color maps, 8l-" by

11" rules booklet and is boxed. Billed
as "Fantasy Adventure on the World of
Tekumel," the game will surely become
an obsession of the hard-core fantasy
gamers and Tolkein fans. It must have
been designed for love--with that much
effort, shining shoes would have to
pay better by the hour. More in later
issues; reviews solicited.
PRELUDE TO ARMAGEDDON
Glen Taylor, 6908 Buchanan St.,
Landover Hills, MD 20784, and the
rest of the Axis Wargaming Company,
moderates PRELUDE TO ARMAGEDDON, a
very complex tactical space-war game.
Turns are sent to a non-playing moderator about every three weeks, and he
correlates all the happenings of the
turn and sends the results back to
the players in the form of a printout.
At the start of the game all players
are equal except for starti~g positions, with the player deciding the
number, type, and equipment for all
hi s sh i ps. The game represents purely
space-war--no planets are involved.
The mapboard is three-dimensional and
infinite. The game is won by damaging
and destroying opponents' ships.
Intelligence is limited with the
players knowing only the general area
where each opponent is located at the
start of the game. During the game
your knowledge is only what your
sensors (which are directional and
limited in range) can pick up. The
weapon types are High-Energy Laser
(which can be fired in a tight or
wide-angle beam), Short Range Battle
Canon which fire grapeshot, Nuclear
Warheads (which can have proximity or
timed fuses), Ion Bullets (which are
very destructive but have a very small
blast radius), propulsion systems and
Energy Potential. There are formulas
for acceleration, true-distance, and
computing combat odds for the various
weapons. Most combat results depend
on chance. Inter-player diplomacy
plays a very important part as you
try to persuade the other players to
attack someone other than you without
giving any hint where your ships are,
in case of a backstab. This game is
not for novices and should contain
many surprises. Rules 35, game fee
20 per turn. (by Glen Taylor)
MIDGAARD 2
Thomas E. Drake, Rt. 10, Box 294K, Cookeville, TN 38501. MIDGAARD 2
is primarily a fantasy game and
secondarily a medieval wargame. The
large majority of the board is

unknown to anyone player at game start.

More information can be obtained by
buying (or otherwise acquiring) maps.
Scattered throughout the board are
treasure boards, magical weapons, etc.
etc. in much detail. Rulers, Hecos,
and wlzards are the three main types of
players and their characters vary
greatly. Invention and imagination are
important and players add to the game
within the basic framework. Thomas'
current game was full at about 30 and
there was a waiting list as of June.
Rules are $1 and the game zine,
presumably with continually up-dated
information, is 25 per issue.
WAR OF WIZARDS
From TSR also (see address above)
for $7.50 or from us at $6.50 for TSG
subscribers. This is a complete boardgame of a duel between mighty wizards.
Lots of spells, magic, chants, conjuring, and assorted skull-duggery.
Not as time-consumin9 as many fantasy
games, since it's meant to be played
to completion with a winner. Reviews
solicited.
THE THIRD MILLENIA INC.
This company which published a few
s-f games about two years ago and is
now defunct to the best of our knowledge. (We'll retract on hard information, but they seem dead.) Some of
their games are still available from
Lou Zocchi, 1513 Newton Drive, Biloxi,
MS 39532. It's probably best to
write Third Millenia first before
investing money.
At this time, we have little
information on the games below, other
than the name and source. More information is being requested and reviews
are welcome. A self-addressed, stamped
envelope will probably get information.
BATTLE OF HELMS DEEP, $3 from
Richard Jordison, 8834 McNulty Dr.,
St. Louis, MO 63114.
BATTLE OF FIVE ARMIES, $4.50 from
Larry Smith, 2525 Via Campesina #203,
Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274.
LENSMAN, $5 from Spartan, Box
1017, Bellflower, CA 90706.
STARSHIP COMBAT, $4 from Gary
McGrath, Box 1245, Lafayette, IN 47902.
THE SIEGE OF MINAS TIRITH, $5 from
Fact and Fantasy Games, Box 1472,
Maryland Heights, MO 63043.
WORLD OF THE WORLDS II, by
subscription only from RAND, Box 1776,
Liberty Corners, NY 07938.

REVIEWS OF DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS

o & 0 is the ultimate fantasy game.

Players start as a Fighter, Magic-User,
Cleric, or Thief. They may choose to
be a human, elf, dwarf, half-elf, or
even a hobbit. They must decide to be
lawful, neutral, or chaotic. There is
never any winner. In a good campaign
players start in a town. First, they
must get a room at one of the several
inns. Then, they usually go to a
general store to pick up some equipment such as rope, sacks, etc. If
they have any money left, they'll
go to a tavern, have a drink, and try
to hire some men. How well they fare
at this is determined by charisma,
one of the abilities. The other
abilities are intelligence, strength,
wisdom, dexterity and constitution.
They'll then begin to ask towns people
about the surroundings, about any
legends, etc. The next day bright
and early they'll pack up and set out
down the road. If they have bad luck,
sometimes they even have to get a
job to keep from starving! All this
takes a lot of work and time for the
referee, but it's more than worth it!
The most stimulating part of the game
is the fact that anything can happen.
Nothing' is impossible. Even when you
are standing between a cliff and a
troll, there is still hope, perhaps
Levitation boots! Over a hundred
monsters are provided for, from
trolls, orcs, zombies, werewolves,
vampires, dragons, gargoyles, rocs,
and giant purple worms, to hell
hounds, rust monsters, giant slugs,
and even tyranosaurus rexes and giant
tics. Whether you're exp1ori ng the
depths of the dungeons, roaming in
some forsaken wilderness, or being
pursued by an evil wizard in an intricate castle, I'm sure you'll be having
one heck of a good time!
Tim Waddell

If you took everything possible or

impossible that you ever dreamed
about, read about, or imagined; put
it in a medieval setting, and heaped
it all into one set of rules for a
game, you would have created DUNGEONS
& DRAGONS. As a game, 0&0 is a fantastical outlet for the imagination.
It has the quality of being infinitely
flexible, and with it comes the
reality of impossibility.
What you get when you buy 0&0 are
three booklets, filled with basic
guidelines for a fantasy campaign.

The first book is Men and Magic.

This basically tells about getting a
character, equipping him, and getting
off to a start. Magic and clerical
spells are listed and described for
reference whenever needed. With
these spells, magic-users and clerics
can make people, monsters, things,
and objects, do anything from sleeping
to serving them or dying. With rules
for developing your own new spells,
the sky's the limit. I feel that
book II, Monsters and Treasure is the
most interesting book of all. This
book describes all the mean, nasty,
and horrifying creatures that the
players get to fight. Then, when
they are finished fighting, this book
describes many rich treasures and
countless magic items, to aid the
players in finding more and better
loot. Volume III, The Underworld and
Wilderness Adventures is probably the
most important book, because it tells
how to go about playing the game, in
either of two settings. Dungeons must
be mapped out by the referee in
advance, and care taken to detail.
The wilderness is rather a do-itas-you-go- situation. This book
also includes ways to spend your
treasure, and other interesting
things such as; Castle construction,
Naval combat and adventures, Baronies,
and much more.
There are drawbacks to the game
however; as there are in any game.
0&0 cannot even begin to get
interesting in less than 20 hours
playing time. Hundreds of hours of
work must be done ahead of time by
the referee, and it takes a fairly
long time to prepare on the part of
the players.
In this game there is no victor as
such, but the object is to gain experience (by finding treasures and beating up on monsters) and become more
powerful and gain more possessions.
Staying alive is a big part of the
game, as there are always monsters
that hate you, lurking in the gloom.
But, if you should happen to die,
don't worry; you can always start
again.
If more complexity is desired, the
supplement GREYHAWK adds outstanding
improvements, and many more ideas.
Also, the Strategic Review, a TSR
newlestter has some good things.
Andy Pudewa

FROM YOU .....

Having seen a few "fanzines," I found
yours rather interesting. It had a great
deal of hard information than compared to
some with "soft chit-chat" about nothing.
Incidentally, your title HYMENOPTRIA sounds
like a disease that affects female virgins.
This reminds me that back when Avalon
Hill was working on an Auto Racing game, it
was called tentatively-Grand Prix. That
was changed when someone helpfully pointed
out what a non-French speaking saleswoman
might call it.
Merle Grabhorn, Tunkhannock, PA
Thank/you for the copy of THE SPACE
GAMER. In addition I would like to compliment you on your decision to go ahead
and develop HYMENOPTRIA. Of the games
described in your first flyer, I felt that
that one, more than either of the others
took full advantage of the possibilities
for new and innovative concepts that seems
to.me to be one of the major strengths of
SC1ence fiction gaming. A planethead
assault, despite the obvious differences
in scope, locale, and weaponry, is still
1nescapably related to the concept of
the beachhead assault of contemporary
wargam1ng. The basis situation and goals
are the same. In HUMENOPTRIA, however one
i~ dealing with a premise almost totali y
w1thout contemporary or historical precedent. This should allow the player the
maX1mum amount of freedom to exercise his
imagination and test his ability to deal
with new and alien concepts. This, after
all, is what science fiction is all about.
With all this in mind, then, I was
frankly very surprised to read that the
majority of reactions to HYMENOPTRIA were
negative. Who more than science fiction
fans should normally be expected to be
wi 11 i ng to accept new and unusual ideas.
I hope that this reaction is not indicative
of a streak of conservatism in the science
fiction gaming community. The insistance
on only familiar or traditional game concepts could prove extremely detrimental
to science fiction gaming's attempt to
provide a viable and unique alternative to
contemporary and historical wargaming.
Consequently, I feel that your decision to
develop HYMENOPTRIA despite the negative
rea~tion is a very healthy one, coming,
as 1t does, from a company placing itself
in the forefront of science fiction gaming.
Marco Alpert, West Los Angeles, CA
Our gaming group at Beyer HS has
enjoyed playing STELLAR CONQUEST for
several months now. It is easily our
most popular multi-player game in our
library of some 20 games. Our group
inc1udes faculty as we 11 as students and

11

lO

we have a math course which includes the

playing and designing of such games.
Enclosed are some scoring sheets that
have developed here to assist the players.
It is interesting to observe the development of the strategies used by players as
they become more experienced. They usually
are as follows:
1. Learning mechanics. get a DN and
just fight.
2. Pure development, avoid all battles
for 7-8 production years, builds
strong battle fleet late in game.
3. Exploration-send out weak fleets
to "claim" as many worlds as possible to prevent others from
defendi ng them.
4. Raiding-build a DN and ATK and
then develop industry. The ships
are used to attack an opponents
home base at a crucial time in his/
her development. Properly done
the victim is not a factor in
the remainder of the game.
No effective defense against the last
technique has been developed as yet. A
sure defense tends to restrict development.
Amberse M. Banks, Fred C. Beyer HS
Mathematics Department, Modesto, CA
Re your editorial. my dislike of it arises
from feeling that you are too defensive
about your hobby. We are game freaks. we
enjoy games, do we really give a damn if
other people look down their noses at us?
~f you want to meet a really wierd minority
1n th1S country, play duplicate bridge for
a few years.
William F. Schiring, Burlington, VT
Your editorial strikes a familiar chord in
my mind. Most of my friends are sciencefiction addicts, and strangely enough the
most dedicated of them are also wargamers.
Unfortunately, the world of hard core wargamers, we are regarded as strangely aberrant imbeciles, more to be pitied than
ridiculed.
A Hugo for games? I doubt it, at least
for the present. The SF awards arose from
the realization that mainstream fiction had
an award for outstanding authorship, and
that Science Fiction was never recognized.
Hugos are extended to movies and TV shows
because of the Oscars and Emmies which bypassed them (2001 was a notable exception).
Before we can expect a Hugo, we have to
get games (in general) recognized as a
legi tirnate artform, and organize some
regular awards for excellence in presentation, clarity of rules, originality,
fidelity of simulation (of a historical or
literary event transformed to a game), artwork, p1ayabil i ty, and so on. Once an
objective standard of performance exists,
and players can compare games on a better

bas i s than "my game's better than yours",

then we can start bucking for a Hugo.
Norman S. Howe, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Got your first issue. Looks decent,
you may have something going though there
is no telling really. SF garners are not
your run of the mill wargamers (who
aren't human anyway) so I have no way to
judge.
On your ratings, you left out one
thing, and that is price. For example,
STARFORCE sells for $B (6 in bunches)
which gives you .87 (1.16) points per
dollar. TRIPLANETARY used to sell for
$6.80 and is now $8, which gives you 1.13
(now .96) points per dollar. RIGELIAN
WARS, so low in your ratings would be 1.4
points per dollar, about the highest of
the bunch (I don't know all the prices).
While you get what you pay for, there is
the law of diminishing returns. Note
that the scale (1.4--1.16--.96) is opposite
of the ratings. Might make an interesting
article if the other prices fit the line.
I was told once that D&D sold for 16,
which puts it down to 157, but I am just
not sure of that price.
Steve Cole, JagdPanther Publications
Amarillo, TX
(D&D is $10 from TSR--Ed.)
May I be but among the first to extend my
heartfelt appreciation to you and yours
for the enormous contribution you have
made to the Science Fiction Gaming hobby
with your first issue of THE SPACE GAMER.
In THE SPACE GAMER I have found
inspiration. I have found the succinctly
unambiguous raison d'etre for designers
and players alike.
The future of Science Fiction gaming
is in good hands. The gauntlet has been
thrown; so let the play begin.
Brett A. Tondreau, Galaxy 2, Northridge, CA
At first I was just going to fill out your
questionnaire, but then I decided, what
the hell, I'll send you a letter too.
I enjoyed your editorial. There's a
lot of good healthy belligerent antisocialism in there. You laid it on a bit
heavy with the justification and apologia,
tho, escapism and/or entertainment needs
no other justification than it is none of
anyone else's business how you get your
jollies.
I was very disappointed to learn that
you were dropping your plastic map sheets.
This was a big plus in your game, and it
will hurt the sales of your subsequent
games. Do try and get back to plastic
maps (and, maybe, die-cut plastic counters,
too?) real soon.

I thought the basic ideal behind "A

Diversion" sound. But get a good writer.
What you might want is a story along
the lines of a game. A sort of STELLAR
CONQUEST come to life, so to speak.
Rickey Allen, Columbus, GA
... a short critique of SC. Basically,
I question whether or not a cohesive interstellar governmental system would be possible when messages travel at the speed of
light and transport is slower. But as a
game I think its great, though there should
be some optional rules (on 3-dimensionality,
etc. )
Michael Striley, Independence, MO
I have been into wargaming for some time
now. Although I enjoy it very much, it has
always seemed to lack something. The something it lacks of course is the science
fiction aspect. I have been reading
science fiction since I learned to read,
and it is almost a second life for me. So,
needless to say, I think your company is
definitely worth watching.
Norman Apperson, New York, NY
Re TSG: I don't see how you could
really want a game Hugo. As with the other
Hugos, they would be thrown off quite often
by people who don't relaly know what's
going on--the local fringe fans or nonfans. This is especially painful in the
case of the film Hugos, since quite a few
fans themselves don't see a whole lot,
even BNF's (Big Name Fans). And what
with the prices involved. I would suspect
very few fans, even ones that were "into"
the hobby, would get a good idea of all
the games around. Just the well-known
well-advertised one. Why not peer awards
insetad, like the Nebulas of the FAAn
awards? Then you could hit all the way
across the field. Best game (perhaps sf
and fantasy separated for this, too), best
designer, contribution to the field, etc.
(Make the distinction between amateur and
pro, too). Then you would have an award
that would actually mean something about
the game.
I think a problem with many sf games
is that they are merely "conventional"
wargames in spaceman's clothing. An example
which comes to mind readily is STARCRUISER.
The starcruisers and torpedos could just as
easily be aircraft carriers and kamikazi
planes. Perhaps a question the readers
could respond to would be just what makes
an sf game an sf game? Is it having
spaceships and radioactivity-produced
mutations and bug eyed monsters, or is it
having something that can be offered in no
other format? Like if you have a planet
that just sits there in space, you can

l2

change your spaceships into oceangoers

and that planet an island/continent.
But get that planet to orbit around its
sun ... and it's an s-f game without a
doubt.
K. Allen Bjorke, Minneapolis, MN
One bit of advice based on my
experience with your SC rules, I think you
underestimate the value of examples.
Sure, all the information is there but
I have yet to have anybody read the rules
and understand them perfectly. There
seems to be some common misconceptions
that new players fall into that a couple
good examples could help eliminate. For
instance, some new players don't understand that each planet has a separate
economy.
William J. Denholm III, Menlo Park, CA
First, congratulations on your new venture. A magazine is the only way MC can
stave off the demographic monster long
enough to suceed or fade gentee1y. May
it be the former.
The premier TSG prompts a few
thoughts on gaming and MC's direction in
it. The idea of complex board games--1 ike
SC, Pb1itz, or what haveyou--achieving
the respectability of fully balanced
conflict games like chess or go doesn't
seem impossible to me. All you need is
some nicely potty person willing to spend
a few million for organization and prizes.
After seeing how much mileage you can get
out of putting balls in holes, hoops, and
over fences, I'll believe anything. But
baord simulations will never be on the
same level of competition as chess, say,
because the operation of all those little
counters is aesthetically clumsy, and
because the opporunity for great and
dramatic single moves is dissipated by
graduated counters and a continuum of
conflict resu1ts--which, along the map, are
the collective heart of that which we all
enjoy.
As I see it, the quality of competition among boardgamers is a matter of concern for the same folk who buy 1iferafts
in case the polar caps met1 soon and
believe that von Daniken is forthright.
Or perhaps worse, because they are closet
moralists, and words like fun or game
send them racing to the nearest plain
brown wrapper store to get a quick societal
fix. Jeepers! If I can sensitize the
synapses learning the directional system
in Starforce, think what a flash I'd be
after figuring out nine-place logs. But
I don't do that. Even the cutest logarithm
is not thematic, and that is what our kind
of boardgame is all about. Chess is
about a conflict of motion; go involves

a conflict of position; boardgames

involve both, with the addition of an
abstracted putative reality system.
None of t~em are particularly useful.
Nor is an Escher dry point.
Thus we come to it. MC knows it
is in the publishing business. Does it
know it is in the art business? Or
maybe that's not quite right, but let the
question hang for a moment. If you will
reca 11 the ferti 1e six ti es, you may
remember commercial hypes like found art
and assemblage art. Interestingly,
though, there was also an unbound book
which came in a box, so written that
every page was a unit. Read the pages
as they came and you got one story; shuffle
the pages and you got another; shuffle
them again and you got yet another, and
so on. Well, sir, thatis also a boardgame,
or what a boardgame does.
Boardgame stories vary between two
literary forms--the novel and the play,
corresponding roughly to the two-player
and the multi-player structure respectively. likewise, there are opposite
breeds of player which, for the sake of
symmetry, can be called the novelist and
the actor. (Hmm--this has gotten more
extended than I'd like). The novelist
is the fiddler, the solitaire player who
works out his private fantasies by
destroying chips of cardboard with the
effortless malice of an avenging god.
The actor, on the other hand, seizes upon
a portion of the theme of a game and
adopts it as a characterization--thus
the ridiculous accents which flow around
a Diplomacy board. This assumed character
exists to divert attention from the fact
that the purpose of multi-player games is
to provide scope for cruelty. You can
devastate your opponent in a two-player
game; you get to humiliate him in a multiplayer work, because other people see what
happens. (I don't mean to suggest that
people are all one breed or the toher,
but they do have preferences.)
Now there is a one-way street to
consider. The actor can play the
novelist's game, but the novelist cannot
solitaire a multi-player game, particularly where the shift of alliances is
crucial and/or force secrecy rules operate.
SC effectively rules itself out for the
solitaire player. And yet I think there
are many more solitaire players than not,
if only from lack of opportunity to be
otherwise. If you are out of high school
and college, and do not belong to a club,
the chances are ni 11, as you've poi nted
out. That being so, do you have to wonder
further as to why SC has not sold as
well as you thought? Careful reading of
your own advertising sheet convinced me
not to buy it, even though the money is
at my finger-tips. (I do intend to buy
Hymenoptria despite the six-player threat,
because of the unusual subject matter.)
lynn Willis, San Francisco, CA

l3

WANTADS

Wanted ... Wanted ... Wanted

I would like to contact anyone interested in playing s-f games in the Des
Moines area. Clay Webb, 7604 Wilden
Dr., Urbandale, Iowa 50322 276-8995.

The Space Gamer wants articles and

material for publication. For issue
#3 we are goin9 to a l per word
payment basis rather than the awardby-feedback-rating basis. At your
option, you may take 2 per word in
goods instead. All submissions should
be typed double-spaced with your name
on each sheet. If you have a very
neat printing o.k., but type it if at
all possible.
We need reviews of Star Probe,
Star lord, Tunnels and Trolls, Star
Raider, War of the Worlds II, Battle
of Five Armies, Siege of Minias Tirith,
Battle of Helms Deep, Alien Space,
Sorcerer (when out), and The Ythri
(when published), plus other games
not mentioned. Our desire is to have
full reviews done by readers rather
than staff.
We need narratives of STEllAR CONQUEST games. Concise, descriptive
narratives by players won't be easy,
but we have lots or requests for such
material.
Science fiction gaming strategy,
news, and s-f gaming activities are
all potential areas for publishable
articles.
Unused submissions will be returned
if accompanied by a self-addressed
envelope with sufficient postage.
S-f and s-f conflict art is needed
for our word-heavy pages. We pay up
to $5 for an illustration (for a
cover) or with issues of TSG or credit
toward purchases. Help our appearance and send us some illustrations!

STEllAR CONQUEST Tournament and Match

Game Rating Service--For information,
send $1.00 and SSAE to layout Design
Specialists, P. O. Box 485, Glenview,
Illinois 60025.

Edward Cooper, 6350 Cinnabar Dr.,

Riverside, CA 92509 wants to get in
touch with all STEllAR CONQUEST players in this area. Phone 714-684-7335.
Will moderate STEllAR CONQUEST on nonprofit basis, mu1ti- and two player
9ames. Want. to be sure the ga~e' s
played "straight?" I will be lmpartial. Send stamp for details of PBM
system (and reduced 8 1/2 by 11
turnsheets available). KEllY MOORMAN, Box 7235, Monroe, lA 71201.
3D STAR MAP KITS &plans. Build a
3 in./parsec accurate 3D Star Map
using this complete kit. Everything
you need but a screwdriver. All
stars within 6 parsecs (80 + stars).
A massive 3 ft. square frame supports
the stars which form a sphere of
space below. Stars glow proper
colours by a black light included.
Computer printout of data and the 3D
coordinates included along with front
view key. $30ppd. A map like this
will really help you get the hang of
an interstellar game. Computer data
gives G1iese #, Star Name, Absolute
Magniture, Distance, Spectral Type,
Top View in Polar (G,p) and Rectangular (x.y) coordinates, Front View in
Rectangular-all in Parsec Units.
Six Parsec list only, $3 post paid.
Also available is the entire G1iese
Near Star Catalogue translated as
above, over 1900 stars. Build a
GIANT 3D Star Map! or make one heck
of a game. Complete computer output
only $20. Make Cheques payable to
Theta Enterpri ses, 114 N. McKi nney
~R..:.ic.:..:h~a..:.r_ds:.:on.:...,_T_X_7_5_0_80_.______

-1-

's-r

,,_!_.
I
i
- A'CO
"o]~J

-ivGI

tJ

I
I

-!-.

it

-i-

~.& ~ ~

~n Ii-I.

-j-

_!_

~ ~'

':;;;--00

Wanted: science fiction games and

waregames. A twenty-five game want list.
Send me a list of the games you would
like to sell and your asking price. Also
send a s.s.a.e. to James DeCook, 2877
Bellwood, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.

_ !_

-;-

_!_

I'

-.-

Mark Norton

.r-

-j-

i-

. _!_

_ fI!)I

14

DIVERSION:

ELDON TANNISH

(El don is a rapi dly deve 1opi ng novi ce

competing in NORCON, the annual North
Ameri can tournament of The Game. "The
Game" is a super-sophisticated realistic
computer simulation of the not too
distant future. Eldon has survived
second round qualifying and next completes with ten other highly-rated
players. The computer generates a
different scenario for each game
played. The only constant is six ho~rs
of intense interaction with the termlnal,
trying to master a new situation: ,Wide
knowledge, intelligence, and dec1s1veness are all that's needed to win.)
An hour-old sun cast morning shadows
over Eldon's calm form. Slow, three per
minute breathing was barely perceptible
as he stretched on a hotel balcony
lounge. Ten minutes of Alpha.meditation
cleared his mind before startlng the
dual-hemisphere theta induction exercises. Eldon wasn't a cognicept ad~pt,
but he was proficient in focused brain
exercises. The night's emotional
releases had fully de-cathected his egostates, leaving minimal sub-conscious
disturbance. Thirty minutes later he
was fully clothed and ready to start
a steak, egg, and avocado breakfast. ,
High energy and high living, but mornlng
was his time and he knew to make the
best of it for competition.
"That's a bit much even for a wonderboy, don't you think," intruded ?n,his
morning calm. "With luck maybe lt 11
put you to sleep by eleven," continued
Bulmar Denholt.
"Ah, Master Denholt," Eldon said as
he rose deferentially, "a pleasure to see
you." Bulmar was noted for his gratlng
personality, but it was u~eless.to
,
respond in kind. That he d be ln today s
game with Eldon was of interest to both.
"Just wanted to see if you'd checked
the computer assignments mix-up," said
Bulmar, standing. "No doubt you'd guessed
the error."
"Error?" queried Eldon, "not sure I
follow."
.
"Oh, you were over-matched, being 1n
with us. I'm sure it's been corrected
now." Bulmar grinned, daring the issue.
"we novices do occasionally move-up,
you know," Eldon said. "Even if it'sjust
to keep the masters anxious about thelr
ratings." Bulmar knew Eldon wouldn't fall
for it, but he'd tried anyway. No harm
done either way, but it did show ln~lf
ferent aggression consistent with h1S
reputati on.
.
'" As I recall, you fa i red badly Wl th
me last NORCDN," said Bulmar, an understatement considering he'd done most to
knock Eldon out of the tournament.
"I haven't forgotten such a valuab~e
lesson," Eldon said as Bulmar was nodd1ng

and leaving. Eldon had learned to be

far more specific in defining game
alliances. Bulmar had done exactly as
promised and still managed to get Eldon
taken out. You couldn't be too careful.
Early crowds were already moving
into the spectator areas. Today's attendance would be maximum for the first games
of master level competition. Eldon had
finished breakfast, watching from an
upper level walkway where ~e was.likely
to meet a few gamers. Solltude 1mmediately before a game gave him an optimal
mental set by the time he went to the
cubicle for the fifteen minute scenario
bri efi ng.
**************

Eldon stood and stretched while the

computer processed his latest input
decisions. He slowly paced three
cramped steps in the space.behind his.
chair while watching the vldeo sltuat10n
display. Too many people, just too many
in the game, to be able to.feel safe control of any situation. Despite th~ fact
he was doing better than expected ln
barely holding his own, he felt uncomfortable at the mercy of continued negotiations and shifting alliances.
It was a one planet game scenario with
each player controlling a co~porate state
fighting for developmental r1ghts. The
struggle was quasi-economic ~ith le~s
than full-scale military actlon. W1th the
game two-thirds gone, Eldon's full ability
and some luck had left him in the mlddle
of the pack. He'd ~ecome a major supporter of one of the strongest players,
helping take the edge off hi~ loner's.v~l
nerability, but the diplomatlc necess1tles
chaffed.
Pressure was building on his oceanfarming/resort complex. BUlma~ was.surely
behind the change in weather w1th h1S
orbital energy satellites. Cooler cloud
cover hurt the resorts as well as algae
production rates. His patron ally seemed
to be exerting less than full effort to
back Bulmar off. His patron, a truly
gifted master at the Game, wouldn't let
him be crippled, but he would try to keep
Eldon from being more than a dependent
ally.
Cold weather, was there an advantage?
The exploration data of the computersimulated planet so far revealed generally
earth-like ecological systems. On earth
cold upwelling water near Antarctica supported high populations of krill, a small,
high-protein, shrimpish crustacean. The
upwelling brought nutrients to the warmer
upper water levels where the krill could
survive. The cooler weather spawned by
Bulmar's satellites was killing the
tropical algae strains, but it might
create excellent conditions for some other
kind of edible sea life.
Eldon already had a thermal power
plant for his food processing/resort
comp 1ex that functi oned on the temperature

di fference between warm tropi cal surface

water and cool deeper water. The present
plant didn't bring up water from a deep
enough level to get a significant upwelling of bottom, mineral-heavy water.
But, it could be done even if it meant
reduced net electrical output from the
power plant.
Eldon quit pacing and sat. He began
working rapioly on his personal computer,
setting up decisions for the next turn.
Each player had his own computer that
supported personally developed analytical
programs and i nforma ti on. The persona 1
computers were each player's tool in the
yame. The better you were in using your
computer, the more you could do in the
game.
Early resul ts from the previ ous turn
were coming back, but Eldon's furious concentration ignored them. More money for
immediate research into suitable oceanic
life-forms. Cost estimates for a temporary 1,000 foot downward extention of
the power plant's huge intake ducts. A
check into the simulated off-world commodity market to see how deep his opponents had bought into algae food futures in
expectation that his poor crop would drive
prices up. A feasibility study on available mercenary groups who might disrupt
8ulmar's surface energy reception stations
to reduce his energy available for
weather control. Eldon checked detail
after detail to build a plan of action
that would make him look helpless, but
turn the tables at the last minute with
large, unexpected supplies of fish protein.
His opponents were helping by already anticipating their success in the commodity
markets. Their buy-up of algae futures at
low prices was perfect. There would be a
fooo algae shortage, but a surplus of fish
protein would keep algae prices at normal
rates since it was a preferable substitute.
The initial analysis looked good enough for
Eldon to begin selling his own company's
stock short; its price would drop in the
simulated stock market when news of the
weather problem became known to all
players. He a 1so began buyi ng up hi ghpriced fish protein futures since he would
be able to deliver at much lower prices
later.
Minor military action against Bulmar
was called for and his own security teams
needed more hovercraft and patrol boats.
Submarine attack on the power plant would
be likely. The extra force could also
step up the level of clandestine pirate
raids on coastwise shipping at the nearest
continent. That would make it seem like
his response to the current threat would
be military. A military move would please
his opponents since they knew he was too
weak to succeed.
The results of last turn were now in.
Cooler weather, weakening stock prices,
more guerilla attacks on farm teams, and
fewer tourists dropped him from fifth in

15

the current standing to a bare sixth. It

would look worse for the next few game
months but with a bit of luck on timing,
it should break his way close enough to
game end to prevent effective counter
moves. He began feeding his new decision
values to the computer early to leave as
much time as possible for negotiating.
His weakening position would make some
happy but others might help. Not help from
commaraderie, but the tougher his decline
was for Bulmar and his friends, the less
time they had to worry about others.
Others would help Eldon fight their
battles and the surprise he had in store
would be too late for them to realize
tney'd been aiding a real threat, not a
floundering player barely able to stay in
the game. Eldon could finish fourth of
eleven and third wasn't out of reach. Not
bad when at least four of the others
clearly out-rated him
.

NOTICE:

NAME FOR HYMENOPTRIA

We recei ved many well thought out suggesti ons for a name with some pi zazz for
Hymenoptria. If we eventually select a
name from those sent, the lucky subscriber
will get a copy of the game free, plus an
additional six issues on his/her TSG subscription. They will also get special
mention and notice, ta ta, in TSG. If we
go with Jack Vance's THE DRAGON MASTERS
for a name, thanks to everyone and hope
you buy the game.

STELLAR CONQUEST UPDATE

With comments from several hundred
gamers now in hand, it's apparent which
aspects of STELLAR CONQUEST are giving
most trouble. Many who've become experienced have suggested a number of variations and extensions that add greatly to
your enjoyment. But, some others are
having problems. The commentary below
should be taken as a general help and
guide where needed. If you've adapted
the game to your own likes and enjoyment,
so much the better.
PLAY BALANCE
STELLAR CONQUEST is best for four.
The total game resources are in balance
with the game system when four players
have a 40-60 year game. If there are two
players, only half the board should be
used to achieve an equivalent balance of
time, space, and resources. If two players
use the whole board, too much time is given
for development and production. Too many
years will pass before players are in a
posi tion to contact and combat each other.
Each player will then likely have a large
industrial base and most of the technological developments which destroys the
production/expansion/technology/conflict
balance You aren't supposed to be able
to achieve everything available during the
game. The closeness of opponents should
force you to choose only a few things to do
in a four player game. If you use only
half the map in a two player game, the
basic balance is sustained and your opponent again becomes a major problem.
Three player games are probably the
hardest to balance. Using the whole map
provides a bit too much maneuver-room, but
it is still playable. Starting points
should be 1, 2, and the map edge hex near
Mizar or 3, 4, and the map edge hex near
Zosca. The gas clouds around Mizar and
Zosca should be ignored when those hexes
are used in starting. A three player
game using only half the map with the
third player starting in the middle has
provided competitive play in some brief
testing we've done. A three player, halfboard game using the short scenario (des'cribed below) with the third player
starting at Draconis provided an active,
short game that ~eemed to maintain excellent balance. If you're short a fourth
player and some time, it's worth investigating.
When developing your own variations,
keep the concept of balance uppermost.
The game design is a good base for adding
changes, but balance is the key to a competitive variant. Two things that will
tip you to poor balance arelack of interaction between players and achievement
of too many technological developments.
Player's strategies may lead to the same
symptoms. If there's too much productive

wealth in a four player game, it means

players are missing opportunities to
capture colonies and aren't keeping
each other off balance.

16

SHORT GAME VARIATIONS

The length of STELLAR CONQUEST isn't
so much a problem but a matter of
preference for many, especially experienced, players. Slow development
increases variety in each player's position
and gives more control over differing
approaches. The game achieves that goal
but it is hard to play in one sitting
unless you really know the rules and .
don't have players who dither and dally
to the nth degree over each miniscule
decision. One thing we've used in post
play testing is a time limit on turns
according to whether its a Production
Year or not. The time 1imit effect puts
a realistic decision making pressure on
players and avoids the problems of slowing
down the game with attempts at optimizing
each and every minor aspect of play. SC
is a strategic game that should be won and
lost at that level. Society leaders don't
try to control minor details in an optimal
fashion, they set general policy and
control the larger movements. A player
who isn't doing a good job on strategy
stands little chance of winning anyway.
A workable short game scenario cuts
the time between production years to
three turns and starts each player off with
a colony already established on a Terran
Planet. All the G class star cards with
either 60 or 80 million population limit
Terran type planet are shuffled together
and each player in the game is dealt one.
Players then choose a star from the ones
listed. Four player games use Scorpii,
Bootis, Ceti, and Canis. Three player
games can use Diphda, Aurigae, and Tauri
or any other combination of three that
gives reasonable development chances to
each player. Two player games use Ceti and
Canis or Scorpii and Bootis and ignore the
other half of the board. Each player
should start with a colony of 40 mi 11 ion,
lIT, 3!'1A, ATK, 6 ESC, 10 CT, and 6 SCT.
Each of the colonies initially inhabited
by a player should be considered to have
a population limit of 80 million, even in
those cases where 60 million is the limit
shown on the Star Card.
The short scenario will cut about 25%
from the game time and even more if players
want to drop one production year and
shorten the game all the way to 27 years.
The scenario will still be reasonably
balanced within the framework of the
ori gi na 1 rul es though the deve 1opmenta1
aspect is compacted.
THE RIU, NM, PFS HASSLE
The nearest thing to a functional
weakness in STELLAR CONQUEST relates to
the interaction of Robotic Industrial

Units, Planetary Force Screens, and habitable Natural Metallization planets. If a

player is fortunate enough to find one of
the few habitable NM planets early in
the game, he can dump all his population
on the plaNet and concentrate on building
up industry. The doubling of output
effect combined with no need for Controlled
Environment Technology results in an
industrial build up other players can't
match. If the player also develops RIU's
his industrial base becomes entirely
freed from population constraints. If
PFS is also acquired, the planet becomes
an unconquerable base.
We've had a number of letters about
this and most players have devised various
strategms for resolving the issue. Use
of NM inhabitable planets is a problem,
but with four experienced players it's
hard to get away with. The other players
gang up on you if they decide that's what
you're doing. It's more a problem if there
are less than four experienced players.
For ex amp 1e, i f t\% P1aye rs use the whole
star map, the first one to find a NM
habitable planet does have an advantage
because he has no i mmedi ate th rea t. As ide
from that, the information in some letters
leads us to believe that part of the problem lies in actually playing the game
wrong. When someone speaks of having 30
or 40 ON's by the 24th year, it's hard
to see how that is possible. Maybe some
are having production every year instead
of every fourth year.
While learning the game it may be
best to playas if habitable planets
don't have NM. We have begun to play
with only the MT planets habitable since
the ST habitables offer even more advantage. That way there's less worry about
the whole game being distorted by one
factor. If you are familiar with the
game and playing balanced scenarios, it
isn't too hard to off-set a player who
looks as if he's gone for a habitable NM.
Constant probes force him to divert production for defense. His population
>lOn't grm'i radpily, so he can be confined
to the one colony. And, if you play it
right, you can conquer the habitable NM
before production is diverted for defense.
If a player begins putting up PFS's he
may be hurting himself. PFS can't be
built for a colony with less than 20 IU's
of output and they aren't cheap to
develop or build. Few of our players
even bother much with them any more except
in longer games. The PFS fallacy sinks
home fully when you have a powerful
colony with PFS and a weak fleet and it
becomes neutral i zed. A fai rly strong
fl eet can dri ve off your weak cover then
leave a single warship to neutralize the
whole colony. The colony can't launch a
ship or attack the warship with missles
for as long as it remains in the star hex.
A PFS has its uses, but the research and

17

production cost to get it may just leave

you in an expensive cage.
Many have written in with extensions
of the technological sequences. There's
much interest in anti-PFS developments and
new planetary missles, beams, and such
that can actively attack warships in a
star hex instead of waiting to be attacked.
When SC was designed we deliberately
avoided optional rules and scenarios. All
the effort went into a clean basic game.
We had a hunch that gamers would devise
their own variations and do a better
job of it than we had time for. That's
turning out to be the case, which
encourages us to stick to basic game
d"igo.

~.:
,

~0i\:",

.-

-~~T
Sivad Chung

Notice----Notice
Designers who want us to evaluate
their games for possible publication
should:
l. Have the rules notarized as
the product of your effort.
2. Send the game as certified
mai l.
3. Have the rules typed doublespaced.
4. Include all components, counters, maps, play-aids, etc. in
a complete ready-to-play form.
(i.e. counters cut out, etc.)
5. Hand-drawn and lettered components are acceptable, but be
neat. If it can't be read, it
can't be evaluated.
6. Include self-addressed return
envelope with sufficient postage.
We will try to return your game
within 60 days with aninitial statement of our interest. Games of
interest will most likely be returned
for suggested revision. If a game
has no chance of making our publishing
schedule, we will so state with suggestions for possible alternative
publishers. All submissions are
eligible for the game design contest
awards. We will publish games byoutside designers in 1976. Here's your
chance for fame and fortune--well,
maybe a few bucks anyway.

18
THE INTANGIBLES HEADACHE
About the most frustrating proliem
a game designer faces is trying 10 sim-ulate intangible factors. You're o. k.
in abstracting combat factors to represent unit strengths even though the
effectivene s s of combat units would
realistically vary in different situations. Various type s of movement
rules over abstracted maps are, again, not very realistic, but are acceptable representation of reality.
The problem is in simulating the often crucial morale and Olotivation
factors.
Morale and motivation, or whatever other terminology you prefer,
are often the most important factor in
a conflict-:-For example, anyone familiar with Civil War battles can
point to numerous examples of morale
dominating all other factors. Some
games use morale indexes which reduce combat strengths or otherwise
reduce combat effectiveness of a
player's forces when certain conditions
occur. Usually these indexes are related to loss levels or terrain lost or
gained. A morale index is a fair attempt at simulating the effect of a
change in morale, but it can be grossly
unrealistic.
For example, getting back to the
Civil War, relative troop losses often
played little part in morale of oPjDsing
forces. A case could even be made
that, in certain conditions, the more
desperate the situation became, the
better some troops fought. In other
battles, inexperienced forces, who
might be expected to be less reliable,
often turned the tide of battle in favor
of their side. You could simulate such
vagarie s by suitably random table s of
various outcomes, but to do so separates the gamer from control of his
situation. This isn't to say a game
should be predictable in outcome.
But, a game that has too many random
factors becomes too much a g arne of
chance.
In real life we know that something
accounted for some green troops breaking under little pressure, while others
fought stubbornly. That "something"
probably wasn't randomly beyond the
control of real-life leaders. We can
even conjecture that we lost the Vietnam War because of the stubborn

morale and effectiveness of the

Communist cadre system. Asian
Communist societies have an im.portant nucleus of loyal, dedicated political cadres that control/motivate the
rest of the society in war. The North
Vietnamese cadres prosecuted the
political nature of war far beyond our
ability to endure, despite the fact that
their society absorbed all the material
damage.
A conflict game puts you in the
role of leader of certain forces in conflict. In a game you try to maximize
the material strength of your po sition
and weaken your enemy' 5 with minimal loss to yourself. The game is
structured such that increasing your
numerical advantage and winning are
almost synonymous. In real life we
might not emphasize the same things.
If the Vietnam War has a lasting afJiect
on our world view, we might place
prime emphasis on developing a fanatically dedicated, highly cohesive core
of capable people to support our effort.
Such a core of support can keep alive
the opportunity for victory almost regardless of material status. The only
effective weapon against such a group
is an equally dedicated, highly motivated opposition. In this view, it is
the dedication and capability of the
core group that brings victory more
than differences in material strength.
Given the formulation of morale's
importance, what can a game designer
do? At this point in time, the answer
seems to be lI no t much. II James
Dunnigan of SPI developed the use of
leader units that vary a player's control over units not under control of a
leadership unit. Morale-type indexes,
as mentioned, come in several varieties. The weakness of leader units ani
morale indexes is their random effect
on unit control and the threshold effect
on combat effectiveness. As a leader
you are left in the position of knowing
your control may be subject to randanness, but unable to do anything about
it.
In strategic games with a time span
sufficient to allow evolution of ba sic
factors, a player should have some
chance at improving the morale and
dedication of his forces. In the area
of social factors, the society leader
ha s options to improve a society's
committment and effort. The game

19
design problem is abstracting moticational factors into meaning ful rules
mechanics. The problem cannot be
attacked without making some assurrptions about how loyally motivated cadre
groups are created. The assumptions
selected will vary according to diJerent value systems.
A capitalist/democratic value system will say people are motivated by
freedom to acquire material rewards.
A communist value system might say

people are motivated by right thinl<ing

and action to advance the advent of
the true democratic communist state ..
Whether people are better motivated
by individually enjoyed material rewards or gratified idealism in the service of principle is an open question,
but it leaves game designers with a
big headache. It may be best to avoid
assessing different value judgements
of various social systems. Maybe
what's important is how much people
believe in their system and how their
belief is strengthened, regardless of
what the belief is. The closest thing
I can think of to the A sian Commmist
cadre dedication in the U. S. are
fundamentalist religious groups.
Characterizing the drive of corrrnunist cadres as !"eligious-like fervor
may seem far -fetched, but the analogy holds up pretty well. Both groups
are characte rized by unshakable belief, submergence of personal self in
that belief, and willingness to sacrifice and strive to advance that belief.
What comparative motivation
seems to be boiling down to is stI'E!{!;th
of a shared belief. The more stronglya group believes in a shared principle, the more effectively it mobilizes for action. A capitalist/democratic group shares the belief of personal advancement, but suffers lower
cohesion as a consequence .. Itls interesting to note that in Vietnam the
South Vietnamese group to most successfully resist intrusion by Communist cadres was the Cao Dai, an intensely cohesive religious sect. With
a formulation of motivation as ftrffgth
of shared belief, the designer of ~
is free to develop a game containing
different socia-economic systems in
competition without valuing which
system is the most effective utilizer
of people. Productivity of labor
could then be made a function of per

capita labor capitalization and motivation of work force thus sidestepping

issues of which system is inherently
most productive. Each player can
then select the socio-economic system he desires for his society and
know the game is still in competitive
balance.
The subject is obviously larger
than a few pages, but hopefully this
will serve to set those interested in
game design to thinking. The designer who first develops a game with
a viable abstraction of motivation related intangibles is sure to be imitatEd.
He will probably cause conflict gaming
to rise to a new evolutionary plateau.
If he keeps his wits about him, he may
even make some moneyp while the
rest of us designers keep taking
aspirin for our headache.

ORDER PROBLEM?
If your order has not reached you
within six weeks, please notify us with
the details (including if your check has
been cleared). We want to give prompt,
efficient service to you, so let us known
your complaint. We do make errors, but
will be happy to rectify them quickly.

TSG #2 READER FEEDBACK

20

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SOON the stars will be ours. Most

early pioneers face harsh deaths under
alien suns. Some hardy breeds will
found great empires. shaping man's
future history. Leadership is the crucial
factor. The future will be chronicles of
bold men for all seasons struggling
against nature and man's implacable
enemy ~ man.

STELLAR CONQUEST formulates

these struggles into a sophisticated,
multi-factor game format. YOU control
a complete interstellar society. You
direct exploration for Terran type
planets. You guide research, spur
industrialization,
command
spacefleets in battle. You play the 'SoldierKing' role for a future stellar nation.
Genius isn't needed to master the rules.
It does take decisive confidence to win.
And, leading nations is always more
challenging than a mere battle.
Letters from numerous happy fans tell
us that STELLAR CONQUEST is
something special. Comments like
these are gratifying:

STELLA/i
CONQUEST

);M110
S:81i.1O NM

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I

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""1lr1"-fllllIJll

$:Ml.wl NV

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__Editorial
__Where We're Going
_TSG #1 Feedback
__D&D Review: Tim Waddell
_D&D Review: Andy Pudewa
__SF /F Game Ratings
_Wantads
__Letters
__SF Gaming News/Plugs
_SC Up-date
__Eldon Tannish #2
__Issue #2 Over-all

The game idea I'd most like to see

you publish
_

Any comments, complaints about

our publication'_

Please rate these suggested names

for Hymenoptera on a scale of I to 9
as you did the articles. Additional
suggestions still accepted:
_

_ _War of the Hives

__Weapon Nests
__Dragon Lords
__Spawn of Chitin
Swarm Mutants
Death Hives
_ _Hymenoptera~'

::;

::;

<J

':MI.IO

. . .. .. ..... .... .... ...... ..... .. .. ...

~ .. . ..
r-

Please rate each of the following

articles on a scale from 1 (low) to 9
(high). Each article is to be rated independently, so several may have the
same score. A s a rating guideline,
1
112 ' would mean I'didn't like article,"
l'SIt would mean "generally acceptable,ll
and 1'8'1 would mean "liked article
very much. 11

21

If

._ ...
..
: .
~ .':'~

The TSG improvement I'd like most

to see
_

,~

.,

..

..-

~'Raymond

Pouliot pointed out our

misspelling of this word, but too late
for us to correct it in the body of the
text. This is the proper spelling.

"I would like to tell you that I have

really enjoyed playing the game
and find it a mentally stimulating
pastime. The first weekend I had
it, I played 3 games."
D. Carter
Ontario, Canada
. rather advanced compared
to some of the simple-minded
science fiction games on the
market today."
F. E. Stolper
New Jersey

BUT, CAN YOU DO IT?

Let's be honest. STELLAR CONQUEST isn't for the head-on 'let's fight
- roll the dice', garners! Immature
gamers who only relish the fight get
lost in the strategic interplay. 5C is for
the subtle generalist, the thinker whose
victories seem lucky to the persistent
loser. So be frank. if you're saying,
"whadda they mean", to yourself right
now then DON'T BUY STELLAR
CONQUEST, You'll only be confused.
We like sales but feel it only fair to warn
plodders.

IN A NUTSHELL ...
. that's it. An absorbing challenge in
space conflict for mature, intelligent
gamers. If you like strategy or have any
other strategic space game you'll
always regret missing this.
Send name, address, zip code and $ 9
(SOrt extra for 1st class return) to:

us

mETRGRmmG COnCEPTS
Box 15346
Austin, Texas 78761

Satisfaction or refund policy.

Now with cover sheet

by Kelly Freas.

Enter the number of hours you play the game in an average session.
Rate the other three categories shown on a scale of zero (low) to .
ten (high), similar to the TSG article ratings. Rate only those games
you own or have played.
Components
Hours
Complexity Quality
Over-all
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
STAR PROBE
LENSMAN
STAR LORD
TRIPLANETARY
ALIEN SPACE
STAR FORCE
BATTLE OF HELMS DEEP
4000A.D.
GORGAMELLA
SPACE CENTURIONS
RIGELLIAN WARS
SIEGE OF MINIAS TIRITH
BATTLE OF FIVE ARMIES
STARSHlP COMBAT
STELLAR CONQUEST
This page and the order form on back may be cut from the magazine for
return mailing. Information may also be entered on a separate sheet of
paper. A full listing of games we sell will be included on a separate brochure with TSG #3.

22
23

ORDER FORM
For each item(s) you wish to purchase, enter the appropriate price on the line
provided at the right. All items are mailed third class unless you add the first
class mailing charge for an item. If the item does not have a first class mailing
charge indicated, it will be mailed third class only. The numbers in parenthises
after each item indicate in order the non-TSG subscriber price, the TSG subscriber price, and the first class mailing charge (if applicable). Be sure to take
your discount if you're a subscriber. This order form and the feedback questionnaire on back can be cut from the magazine for your convenience.
THE YTHRI ($8/ $ 6. 80/500 The two player game that recreates the Terran
Empire's invasion of Avalon, horne of the bi- racial Ythri /Human society.
Based on Hugo-nominated novel THE PEOPLE OF THE WIND by Poul Anderson,
the game's fairly simple format and fast action is ideal for novices or beer and
pretzel play by experts. Two maps, 288 counters, rules booklet and record
sheets.
STELLAR CONQUEST ($9/$8/500 Now in zip-Ioc plastic baggie with a fantastic
cover illustration by Kelly Freas. This society-level game for 2-4 players has
technological research, exploration, demographics, industries, colonies, and
space fleet combat. You lead a complete society in what is already a classic
s-f game. Six-color plastic star map, 400 ship counters, rules folder, star
cards, record sheets, data sheets.
THE SPACE GAMER, six-issue subscription (no more than six, please).
$ 3. Start with #
TSG, #2, 80~. (#1, sold out)
RECORD SHEETS for STELLAR CONQUEST, $1 for 20.
STAR PROBE ($6/$5.10/500 (TSR) The game of space exploration in detail.
The first booklet available in the $6 price covers exploration, combat, alien
races, etc. Later supplements will be offered by TSG and will expand on the
empire, inter-player contact aspect. Low interaction among players makes
this the best solitaire s-f game around. 2000 star map in black and white, 36page rules booklet in a zip-Ioc baggie.
DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS ($10/$8.50/--) (TSR) The fantasy game of sword and
sorcery adventure for many players. Played with miniatures or paper and pen.
Three rules booklets, boxed.
GREYHAWK ($5/4.25/300 (TSR) Supplement I for DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS.
. You need D&D to use the supplement.
WAR OF WIZARDS ($7.50/$6.40/--) (TSR) Board game of magic dueling between
wizards. Boxed.
DUNGEON! ($12.50/$10.75/- -) (TSR) Another fantasy adventure in boardgame
version, boxed.
EMPIRE OF THE PETAL THRONE ($25/$21. 25/--) The long-awaited fantasy
adventure game by Prof. M. A. R. Barker. The fabulously detailed world of
Tekumel is depicted in three full-color maps, 8 1/2" by 11" rules book, and
boxed.
SHI:? TO: NAME
ADDRESS
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ZIP

Total Amount

Texas residents
add 40/0 sale s tax

_
TOTAL DUE

Make check for the TOTAL

amount payable to the SF &F
games people .

mETAGAmmG COnCEPTS
1'.0. Ho.\ 15.146-th
Auslin. Tc.'(us 7~752

THE

"HRI

The Terran Empirels invasion of the

Human/Ythri society of Avalon, based
on the Hugo -nominated novel THE
PEOPLE OF THE WIND by
Poul Anderson.

When the ..L"crran Lr.1pire decides to lladjust 11 its border with the Domain of
Ythri, Avalon is a prime objective. Home of the successful bi-racial Human/
Ythri culture, Avalon becomes the pivotal battle of the war. Now the novel by
Poul Anderson is translated into a game scenario by Metagaming Concepts.
Abstraction is a basic premise of the game. THE YTHRI does not attempt to
follow the book blow by blow, but extracts the basic situation into a system in
which each player can win. The game system is significantly less complex than
Stellar Conquest, making a faster-playing, easier to learn game.
THE YTHRI utilizes a space map with Avalon's moon Morgana and space
forts in orbit. All space ship movement and combat occurs on the space board.
A second map of Avalon is designed to facilitate planetary/space combat interactions. The Avalon lnap has a ltmegahex" grid for atmospheric movement and
cDmbat super-imposed on a standard small hex grid for combat. Movement and
combat are kept simple and attrition of forces will be substantial as play
progresses.

The three basic types of units are space ships, atmospheric craft, and
1
ll
"bounce ! troops. All "bounce troops are actually airborne with anti-gravity units or self-powered Ythri units. Because the "boW1ce ll units are much less mobile than atmospheric units and operate at lower altitudes, they function much
like ground troops but with greater mobility.
The Terran Empire player has to sweep the smaller Ythri fleet quickly out
of the way, disembark planetary combat units, and neutralize Avalonian ground
installations. THE YTHRI player uses his limited space and planetary force to
impose maximum delay in the invasion to allow time for help to arrive. Victory
conditions allow either player a clear-cut win, unlike the novel.
The combat system smoothly integrates the different types of forces into a
unified interaction of two players. It is unlike any existing historical Or space
game simulation, being created uniquely for THE YTHRI. Gamel's who revise
games for their own enjoyment may even find it provides a single planet combat
addition for strategic, multi-star games like Stellar Conquest.
Comp.onents include
*planetary space map
"'288 half die-cut space ship and
*full-color map of Avalon
planetary combat counters
*sample record sheets
*example-oriented rules booklet
Available for shipping on 10/15/75.
$8.00, unboxed ($6.80 discount
price for TSG subscribers). Send
your name, address, and zip code
to the SF&F games people ...

ffiETA6Affim6 COnCEPTS
Box 15346 --TH
Austin, Texas 78761