Stayt eteYee (b}stc} = Spat */ panama on te GAME 9 : INTERSTELLAR (WARS: b) 5 PN Pe een ees ore) THE FINAGLE.GIASGO : Ve fee eee) ae eS AND'6 PAGES OF CAPSULESFantasy Reem Me KeN ADE REAL TREASURE For YOUR rood Cael Ne Eph Ey eat ao Ae es freniteraveredl hee co Sisal ‘the local store where 4 Sa SAR See es Coe a aie tial Hise Dior also ea ce RR ee eee ” 3 ng pote ee Cris! Rees iia © ath nag rene pe ee ermen jt = Calamani Pee erates ‘oa Pc with Call of Cthulhu™ Para ers toe errr eee eens oe eee ere aoa nm ees and The Dark Crystal™, and scale vehicles for Cu Woe G Grenadier Models Inc. P.0. Box 305, Springfield, PA 19064DT Tat L =} Nov/Dec 1983 Publisher: Steve Jackson COMPLETE GAMES RT Editor: Christopher Frink Orbit War * Wallace Wang ‘Amtane Gahors: Werren Spector The USA and the USSR battle for control of outer space ...... 16 Plchard Stenbery Shuttlewars * Henry Biancardi ‘Art Director: Pat Muster Shuttlefsatellite combat in outer space 28 ‘Advertsing Manager: Gerald Swiek FICTION Contributing Editors: W.6, Armintrout Wiliam A. Barton ‘The Finagle Fiasco * Don Sakers Fonaa Poty ‘A planet of mathematicians takes on the Monarch of Businoss Manager: Pet Conteen Humanity — and it's no contest ..... 10 Fee ase eo ARTICLES TT! Production Menaper: Moniea Stephens Production: Liana Jehston Aberrations in Cosmic Encounter * Jeffrey Field C. ara Lee Alternate scenarios, races, and rules for Cosmic Encounter... 4 StarWeb: Secrets of the Web * W.G. Armintrout Tips for winning (and having fun) in the PBM StarWeb 12 AMES a Star Trek: The Correspondence Game * W.G. Armintrout Featured review of ECI’s Star Trek PBM game. Es 3 Interstellar Wars * Tony Watson Featured review of Aftactix/Emithil's SF strategy game Capsule Reviews ...... 34 ‘GAMES: Ant Was, Star Fleet Baits Commanders Rulebook. SUPPLEMENTS: ‘Autoduel Champions. PLAY AIDS: Forms and Chars, Car Wars Reference Screen. COMPUTER GAMES: Galactic Adventures, PC Arcade, Reign of the Red Dragon, MINIATURES: Destroyers I, Starline 2000, Star Trek — The Wrath of Khan. PERIODICALS: Adventurers Club, COLUMNS Rr ART IN THIS ISSUE Murphy’s Rules * Ben Sargent ...... wae oe oe Cover: Ross Carnes. Counter Intelligence * Aaron Allston & Chistopher Frink . 31 Line Art: Ross Carnes: 16, 18, 19, 25. Where We're Going * Steve Jackson . . teens +732 in Paul gueys 6 Tower rg, Mon | Letters... sons (Ger 36 Re lr alr, Mish on nat 4 8, Rogar iis: 10. ban a eel Sans fre our ato cen hiesne piss J NOWS Bris... at ‘gies to the artist.) J.D. Webster: 12, 13, Convention Calendar ee Br Pretoaohs and Game Act: tacts) | New & Upcoming Releases .....-.-.-..-. iene ced Emini vie Gones'30-cnoreny ee | BBM Uptate : “ amount Pictures Corp." 2. SSI: 38. Steve “sckson Gamer: 35, Achesttisere INd8x nics vs sone eS oxen or nvenaet v eae tl Most game names are trademarks of the companies publishing those games. In particular: Dungeans & Dragons isa trademark of TSR Hobbies, Ine.z Cosmic Encounter, of Eon Products, Inc. StarWieb, of Fiving Bulala, Inc. Stor Trek: The Correspondence Game, of Parsinount Pletores Corp, ured under license by Entertainment Concepts Ine.;and /nteralar War, of Attoctx/Emithil Use of a tedamark to entity product commantod on in this magezine should not be construed s implying the eponsoreip of the trademark holder {All name of games published by Stove Jackson Games re trademarks of Steve Jackson Games, or used unde ienge by Stave Jackson Gare Us ofthe name for any produet without mention of trademark status should not be construe aya challenge to such status. SPACE GAMER (ISSN 0194-0977, USPS 434-250) is published bi-monthly by Steve Jackson Games, P.O. Box 18957, Aus tin, TX 78760-8967. Second clos postage paid at Austin, TX. POSTMASTER: Send asidres changes to SJ Games, P10. Box 18957, Austin, TX 787608967, ‘All materi is eopyright © 1983 by Steve Jackson Gamer, Allright reserved Printed in USA by Futura Pres, Austin, ‘Subscription rate, effective 6/18/83: In tho United States ~ 6 months (9 isues) $8; one year (6 issues) $13; 2 years (12 Issues] $23. itetime subscription le $200. In Canada, add 608 per ist Yor Noetage and nandling: for sdesets outside te US, ‘add $1 per issue for surface mal. International rates subject to change as postal rater change. Nore: All payments MUST Bein U.S. dollars, made by Intemational Money Order, or checks drawn on U.S, or Canadian bank“Captain's Log, Stardate 4501.1150, Kirk reporting. The Enterprise continues her routine watchdog’ patrol of Klingon Border Quadrant 16, Our patrol of KBGIS was completed early in the ship's day, and the Astrogator om duty has en« tered into the log our course for KBGI6, We are now in the thirty-second day of this. patrol, Commander Scott reports that the problem eausing power losses from the warp engines has been repaired ‘again, but he urges a complete reworking Of the system at our first opportunity 10 power down both engine units. Lt. Come ‘mander Uhura reports that the USS Faragut {sie} made readings of three Kling on battle cruisers on the Klingon side of the border at KBG78, but feels that they are only maintaining their routine border patrols, Kirk out.” So begins one of the adventures in Star Trek ~ The Correspondence Game, fone of the most interesting new games on the play-by-mall scene With their new science fiction PBM, Entertainment Concepts Inc. (BCI) pre: sents players with the opportunity to captain ter own starship — either the Enterprise herself or another comparable Federation heavy cruiser. The game is role-playing in format, based on ECI's eatlier Siberdawn game system, ‘A player begins by signing up for either the Enterprise or another ship (isch e may name), ECI responds with the player kit, which contains: ‘the Ciptain’s Guide, an easy-to-ead 2&page, 84” x 11” booklet explaining the Heavy Cruiser, potenti Starfleet missions, and the mules for submitting orders to ECL a Crew Roster, an 84" x 44” print cout of the 400 crew members on your starship, organized by ship sections. Bach crewman has @ code number, ratings on a scale of 1-10 for is Skill (profession), Strength, Quickness, Endurance and Intuition, and may or may not include similar ratings for Combai, Diplomacy, and General Knowledge. (lames T. Kitk is code 1, Skill 1], Strength 7, Quickness 10, Endurance 8, Intuition 10, Combat 8, Diplomacy 9 and General Knowledge 9 — con my printout, at lees.) * tho Ship's Technical Description, lst ing twenty ship systems (Bridge, Photon Tubes, Life Support) and rating them from '50 to 100 (and_ sometimes over 100... 100s a “model” ship). The num- ber reflects the chances of the system ‘operating under stress situations ‘and your frst tum, « two-page com puter printout consisting of a Captain's Tog, current Starfleet orders, and a Nar- rative presenting the current adventure ‘The staring thing is that Star Trek is a solitaire game! Although there may be scores of other starship eapiains on dozens of Enterprises or other starships, perhaps In the exact same adventure, staships do not have any interaction, Entertain ment Concepts Inc. has taken an old play-by-mail tradition — that PBM games a can easily hold dozens or imndreds of players in the same game ~ and success- fully stood it on its head. AAs for the Narratives themselves, since the same adventure may be played by hundreds of players now and in the future, saying much about what 1 have seen would muin thelr play. Players may be presented with rescue missions, explo ation, investigation, military raids and adventures, planetary defense missions, iplomatic’ and telief expeditions. The printout presents the facts which lead up to the situation (you were on patrol when a signal came in . . . ), lists the known facts, and breaks off when the player has enough to make his decision, “ty fist slammed down on the inter- com button on the arm of the com: ‘mand chair. Scotty! That hunk of debris ‘coming across our bow — get a Reverse. ‘field tractor beam on that thing now! Repel it!" 1 stepped down and placed hand on Pay Chekow’s shoulder, trying to steady my voice as 1 Instructed, ‘Mr. Ghekov, lock phasers again on that chunk and, f the tractor beam doesn't repel it, fire and maintain fire until it is vaporized.’ Then to Sulu I said, ‘Mr. Sulu, put every ounce of impulse power to work and come about ~ try 10 get out of the path of that thing, or at least present the smallest possible target for it’... 1 tumed back to face LCDR Uhura, whose eyes were fixed on the vlewsereen watching that debris heading for our path, “Mr. Uhura, pipe 10 all decks: This is Captain Kirk — damage control, siand by all sections, All decks stand by for possible tmpact. Kirk out.” Kirk out, I thought bitterly. Out of solutions, out of answers, out of time, out of luck.” Karen Rhodes, player orders (as published in Priority One) Players’ orders need not be as clever as those Written by Miss Rhodes, though the games do become more fun as you throw yourself into it, Orders are limited to three toxt pages or 800 words, and are supposed to be divided into four parts Recommended Promotions and Decors tions, Ship Repairs and Maintenance Instrictions, After the Pact Precautions, and Narrative Ordets. (In practice, you will sidom need most parts on the average turn.) Precautions “after the fact” deserve @ few words. Oscasionally, the Gamemaster will take action for you — for instance, sending a landing patty to rescue plague vietims from a. strange world. Players ray give the full orders thet they would have given if they had the chance — in thecase cited, perinaps stating thatthe plague victims were immediately placed in quarantine and that the landing. party wore sealed environment suits. On the frst tum, player must also name any aliens (Vulcans, Andorians, Tellarites and Avians) and, if he does not command the Enteraise, name his Command Officers. Technical Equipment Sheets are pro- vided in case a player desires a piece of equipment not covered in the Captain's Guide — he may submit an outline and hope for Gamemastr approval CI will respond within two to three woeks with anew two-page computer printed. Narrative plus a Siatus Report sheet covering crew injuries and casual ties, ship section efficiency (1-100%) and condition (Green/Yellow/Red), and ‘leet Status. The new material will begin with the same adventure tide, followed by a chapier number indicating how many tums you've spent on this edven ture so ar. This, in a nutshell, is Star Trek — The Correspondence Game. Players. go from adventure to adventure, submitting orders and receiving tums. There are no dead lines, so playess can take as long as they like to decide on their actions. Tho turns alvays cost the same amount, regardless of special actions or predicaments. A simple newssheet, Priority One, provides players with a monthly page of new technical equipment, excerpts from actual player orders, answers to question, contests, and Background information on alien races and cultures “Then the Enterprise made a tight turn and flashed aerass the enemy ship’ course. Precisely timed, the phasers shot out their beams of destructions [sie]. ‘The other ship shuddered from the force of the blow, and the second burst of, phaser fire Broke thea’ The ship lurched off its course and went dark for tr moment before the emergency batteries took over and shone a dim red glow thre fis ports “Kink again went into action. “Trans porter room, get busy om those assault teams?" —Star Trek printout The Star Trek game system cannot be faulted in its performance — the Game- masterwith-computer system seems to cover all problems, and there were no alitehes that T could find. Rules glitches, that is. The only complaint I have is in the way player orders are implemented, Four examples from my experience: ‘Encountering two unknown vessels, ordered two landing parties to bosrd the fone vessel. The other vessel I left alone. ‘The Gamemaster, however, placed a third landing party on the vessel I wanted to leave alone. That landing party later became trapped by hostile aliens. #1 ordered Captain Kirk to beam down with a landing party. He instead remained on the bridge. ‘Going into battle, I gave orders 10 fight at long range with photon torpedoes (oy best-rated weapon), Instead, the Enterprise closed to short range and used phaser fire. The portion of the enemy ship I ordered targeted for special de- stcuction was instead left untouched. AC the end of one adventure, Kirk was given the opportunity to obtain a secret weapon in return for violating Star- fleet orders. Rather than presenting me with the decision, the printout merely informed me that my Kirk had agreed to the violation, Some of the problems ean perhaps be explained, The extra landing party led to further developments in the adventure which I might otherwise have missed. The altered fighting orders allowed me fo capture an enemy vessel virtually intact. Kirk’s decision which was made for me was the decision I would probably hhave made, if I had been given the oppor- tunity. As for Captain Kitk remaining con the bridge, I imagine that the come puter program did not have my option programmed into it Nevertheless, the gamemastering prob- lems in Star Trek mar an otherwise excel Tent game. I felt boxed in st times, and at olher times wondered if my orders really counted. It was stil fun, but less of real game. Yet Star Trek — The Correspondence Game is also a pioneering effort that may lead to an entirely new type of play-by- mail game — the solitsire role-playing adventure. Such @ game is easier to run than a multiplayer geme, more efficient since the same adventore can be used repeatedly, and has the potential to be a fiction-quality experience. When play-by rail games finally break into the play by-computer (play-by-telephone) market, such games 2s Star Trek may be leading the way Unfortunately, Star Trek needs tinker- {ng with in ordes to reach is full potential Stor Trek ~ The Correspondence Game is by Batertainent Concepts Ine, 6923 Pleasant Drive, Charlotte, NC 28211, wn der exclusive leense from Paramount. Player ht, $6. Tums, 4 each. Adiionatstastips, sa cach, — SG GALAC-TAC a galactic scale space conquest PBM game © Design all ships that make up your star fleet © Move some, none, or all of your units in a single turn © Full color maps © Reports are color enhanced © Form alliances, negotiate deals (and break them!) @ Moderated by computer AND humans! BASIC GAME Set-up and pre-move. . .7.00 Pulebook............10.00 First move Each move thereafter 8.00 3.00 TO GET STARTED, SEND $20 TO: i CAPPS & CAPPS PO. Box 280237 ¢ Dallas, TX 75228aberration (abera-shen), m2 deviation from a standerd or ordinary type; abnormal stmture or development, Coumie Encounter is a game_of chance, strategy, diplomaey, and, most of ll, contu: sion. Yet amid expansion setsand backstabbing furmol, the game retains its playablity, This ‘he mark of a ame that will ever di. ‘Hoth of the following variants work best with these or more players, though they are playable with two opponents. These variants ‘wll refer to game components such as moons, Tucte, or Kickers from the Expansion Sets. This does not necessarily imply that a given st is rege for play oF the variant system. Galactic Expansion ‘This variant represents the spread of the tien raoes hen cach was sill young and unde ‘eloped, These ate expanding faces, and every= fone betins the game es an expanding player. Eventually, each race wil dovslop to ts full potential and become established. The pace of this growth varies, and the necesary site to becoming established are detaled below, Game Preparation: Each player begins the game as an expanding player, He gets system hex and var die, which should be placed in ee Se the system shite se up; it wil be fipped ‘when the player becomes established. Moons fre sor up bat not locked ai, even by the player who owns thems they will be revealed normally wher accupied. Fach player stars the {nme with sx fire, but no income, Once those {5x luce are gone, the player is broke until he ‘becomes established, Eight tokens of cach player are placed amongst any four planets in the player's eystem. Finally, allen powers are etormined In the usual mannes, but each is set aside, not used while the player is sill ex panding. We found the Hidden Power variation Seserbed In the rues to be expecially fn with thisvariant ‘The Play: Each player Is dealt a gevencard hand and play occurs almost normally. Expand ing players do not get hucre income and may rot wre their allen powers. The major exseption {0 standard play 13 the Expansion Rule, which ‘symbolizes the young and poor races’ suscep= Ubiity to high warfaze costs and the accessibility fof planets to inferior Warp drives. The Expa% Son Rule deers tat asan offensive challenger, the expanding phyer must attack @ planet on which the defensive ployer, a indicated by the Gostiny ple, has a base, unless his own color fame up in the destiny pl, and uniess the “offensive expanding player plays an attack card fof 15 or greater, in which ease he may attack 4. Aberrations in COSMIC ENCOUNTER any planet or moon in the system. As play proceeds, each time a player wins a challenge as tain player, whether offensive o: defensive, he ‘may bring one of {wo of his offboard tokens {nto play. These tokens are placed anywhere the player has a base, ‘An expanding player cannot win the game. ‘The winnar isthe player to hovomeesielished snd thon full game victory conditions. An fvtablished player ins player who has all eight ‘ffboard tokens in play and has bases on all five of hi systems planeit ~ Le, to become cevtblised, a player must win at least four tallenges ‘and have bases on all of his home planets, Once established, «player fips his star ‘ine over. At this point Be may (1) 100K atthe ‘moons in his system, (2) gain a standard acre Income, (3) reveal and Use is allen power (abject to standard ries), and (6) ignore the Expansion Rule, ance he is now a fully deve ‘oped power and thveat to the Cosmos. Onee a player is established, he temains $0, even ff he loses his home planets Bigotry “This Cosme Encounter variant is a direct reveral of the standard sume. Rather than at- Tempting to gain five bases outside of hs system and thus spread across the universe, tach player 4 trying fo 1d his beloved system fof entvoaching races. Phyers set up by dstib- ‘tng ton of thet tokens among aay of their ‘oppostion’s planets, with at least two tokens per sysiom, After ail players have distibuted Their ten tokens, ach places his remaining ten ‘on ay planets he wishes in his home system, ‘The game is then carted out normally, with 4 simple enange of the vletory condition. The ‘winner Is the player who Bes sis his system, including moons, of all other players tokens. ‘This ie regardless of the number of external ‘asus player may have. ‘Do ot use this variant with the Dictator, the Will, oF other powers that lgnore the destiny pileOther Alterations ‘A simple variation whieh changes the same deamateally i to require the winner to have inot only five external bases, but bases on all five of his home planets as wel, This role is sre than just an application of the Scizoid's power, for It alters play greatly. Defense be- Comes more important and the Rebisth edict a ‘ery useful commodity. This variation tends to lengthen gime time and, consequently, makes the game mare bloodthirsty Tho vasiants desezibed above can be com: bined with each other and the standard roles to cyeato a large varity” of unique games, For Instance, one could ad tho fvehome-plnots Win conditon to the Galactic Expansion Variant. Or combine Galactic Expansion and Bigotry, requzing players to win as per Bigotry ‘once they have become established, ‘A sventh-player variant i possible wth the advent of the Cosme Encoumer Expansion Set 7. Instead of using the Zilch or Shark, as Geserbed in Expansion Set 4, a seventh player ould be the Warpish, x ra6e whieh sets up round the Warp rather than on a planet hex. ‘This, however, calls for an atonal token st ‘Token and dice ets are avaiable from Eon for 1.50, bue will have to be spray-painted 1 dit {erent color (goss black looks nice) before the tokens aze punched ont, Other eames have sete similar to. the Commie Encounter tokens: ‘Avalon Hil's Dune has nearly Henical eoanters. Or, one ean make the tokens by hand; washers make good templates for cuting New Powers, Fisher — You have the power tomer. At the start of your challenge, you may ask a player fora type of card (edit, Tae, kicker, Zedict, attack, oF compromise). He must then show Yyou all such cards ne asin his hand. Yeu then ‘hoos one of thes cards for your own. When asking for attack cards, you must specify a numeri range with a spread of no greater than five (ie, "Attack cards from 11 20 16"). Do not use a rworplayer game. Ghoul — "You have the power to plunder. \When you are involved in s challenge asa main player ot ally and your sido wins, you gain a bonis for each token (player or aly, fiend oF Toe) that went to the warp (or void) during the challenge for whatever reason, The bonus takes the form of sear from the deck, a ten rom the warp, ora lure from the box, ‘Spore — You have the power of comeyance At the start of each players tun if you have tokens in the warp, you may attempt 0 make that player your carer host. You declare the attempt and ply is suspended while challenge js cared out between you and the posable ‘cures. You cach play a challenge card; your tokens in the warp are totaled into your stack, ‘but your oppenott doesnot got this bonus, NO alles ae allowed, IP you win, the host must release one of your tokens (rether than hisoxn) at the start of his challenge, Your taken thon ‘aeompanies: him imo the challenge. If your Carrier hae no tokens in the warp, he stl z- Teaser on of your, Tn addition to those new powers, I have listed some notes concerning Steve Jackson's article "New Characters fr Cosme Encounter in Space Gamer 87, 1982. Diplomat — Diplomat stould te renamed Turneoat 10 avoid confusion with the Eon power of that name from Expansion Set 2. Do ot use ina two-player game Teleport ~ Do not usa in s game with the Dietaior or the Wil, lade — Do not use in e gsme with efter the Magnet or the Crystal. Card Addendum Galactic. Zap: The Cosmic Pneounter rules. sty that Cosmic Zap stops the se of powers, and powers clone. Revenily, Expansion Set 8 was released; it included the Plarecap, fan edict used to stop the use of flares. This Ives moons and other edicts uncovered (ah though there Is 8 Moonzap moon). Thus, we present the Galactic Zap. This edict s played fo prevent the use of moon or the pny of nother edict, If used on 2 moon all tokens on that moon mast be transferred to other bass. used on an edit, both cards are discarded ‘An alternate method to the Galactic Zap is to create a Moonzap edict which, when played, prevents a moon power from being used and Catees all tokens to be relocated off of that ‘con, To provent the use of edits, a new tine of edicts It created, the Zadicts, Fach new ‘ead is played on an edie, both cards are dis carded. All 2ap cards are covered by the Unzap, sn on edict ftom Expansion Set 8. The Unzap should be classed as a Z-edict and itis sug- fested that you make another Unzap fo bal nce the pow 2aps, “And what stops the use of 1 Zeedix?™ you as, Wey, an Unzip, of cours. TheZedins: “Antidote — A serum which combats The Plague afore the evil diseate spreads 100 at, Certificate of Merit ~ What promised 10 be al ear ie revealed as hollow and empty ‘Victory Boon i worthles ‘Conviction ~ Stzong bliss overside any jttempt at Emotion Control, Famine — The invaders rape of he land causes the new Rebirth settlements to stave snd fal. ‘lusion — ‘The soughtfor card Is Just a ‘figment in the imagination of the Finder. ‘Macroscope — The intimidating confusion of the Cosmos destroys Sanity, Overload — Weak fuses cause the Force Fed to collapse, Paradox ~ Some say time is 2 cycle and events cannot be changed; thus, Timegash is eels, Rush Hour ~ The mad dash of panicky tokens from the warp jams the Mobius Tubes and Warp Break while they are open. Siove — Cupoed hands make a poor vese; the cards of the Keeper dribble through is Finger. ‘The Brownian Card: This isa wild ead and loos not ft under any category ~ itis not sus ceptible 10 the Plage or Fisher power, With Its Fandom ways, the Brownian Card can serve os any of the following cards: Cosmic Zap/Unzap, Emotion ContralConvition, Force Fielé(Orer: load, Mobius. Tubes/Rush Hour, The Plague) Antidote, Stellar Gas/Halogens, Rebirtn/Fur in, imezash/Paradox, Victory Boon Certiieats ‘of esi, Finder/llusion, Keeper/Sive, Sanity)Macroscope, Warp Break, Flarezap, Moonzap, Galactic Za9, a Kicks? 2, an Attack 30, a9 ‘Attack 3, 02a Compromise car, New Moons In Expansion Set S, The Moons, Eon has left five out of thelr 100 moons Blank and called” them New Moons, What docs a. game fovmer do with those moons! Here are some {dea Hin the Banks. 96. Entropy (I): The players) with the yeatest number of external bass fose(s) one Of thom (his choice). Tokens are transferred to other bases. 97. Moon Dance (C): Treat this moon like the Moon Wraith (#87), except tokens on the itimized planet are placed on the moon and thismoon ean be attacked while on a planet. 98. Snare (S): You may not voluntsrily remove your base fiom this moon. You must ontaue to occupy it until you lose it to an Ssttacker orate removed by some pover. 99. Axis (C): While this moon fs occupied, challenges wil be “tated.” When the cards are sevealed, the numbers on the attack card(s) axe added, Ifthe reat is cron, the challenge is played normally, However, ifthe total Is odd, the attack cone rotates 180 desees and any Tokens inthe offensive end are spewed into the warp. To il thie vacaum, all tokens on the sttacked planet aro sieked into the offensive ‘nd and they besina change widh the orginal ‘efensive player as main player. Defensive aly fokens remain on the rotating cone, Dead this moon after the is rotation overs. 4100, Peatly Gates (C): While this moon is ‘ceupied any tokens normally sent to the warp (6r void) are insted sipped to reveal the white fide and placed on the cenval hex outside the Warp. At the start of his tur, eaeh player may Toad the attack cone with one or {WO ensel tokens in addition to his vsul Fores. Losing angel tokens go 10 the warp (or void) and-enter normal play. Those on a planet tid the current efensve player. Angel tokens do not assume fen powers such as Macron oc Vitus and are ‘neutral towards gare victory conditions Flare Interpolation ‘The following Mares axe for alien powers from various sources that sere not published with fate posers, The fist two are from the seventh and eighth player powers from Expan- slon Set 4, most ar from Stove Jackson (asain, Space Gamer $7), and the last tres are from this arti “ich — Power to Kibite. Wild: you are not involved in a challenge as main player oF aly, you may look at the hands of the main players and suugst 2 play to one of then. Super: Nove ‘Shark — Power of Hunger. Wilt: Before your fist chullenge of a tur, you may exchange ‘one pune factor (tokens, power, hand, moons, Ite) with another player. Super: None. ‘Apostle — Power to Convert. Wild: You ‘may fake one token of another player into the attace cone with you. This token must come from a planet on witch you both share a base and isnot considered an ally. Taking it may not Strip him of a base. Super: At the start of your tur, you may eonvert all tokens on a planet at once, subject fo normal estretions “Tumcoat ~ Power to Shift Wil: Ifyou ate an ally on the losing side of a challenge, you ‘ay save tokens from the warp by alow the ‘winning main player to draw a catd from your Jhand for each token fo be saved. Super: When you join an alliance and your side loses, you ‘may ‘convert all tokens on a planet at once, fubjet € normal restric tons, ‘Swarm — Power of Synergy. Wild: Yous tokens are each worth 1% mes their number (round down), Thus, one token fs worth 1, and four ae worth 6. Super: You may use any fr all of your ally’ powers during 2 challenge NOW! ~ REALISTIC SPACES THE ONLY PLAN SYSTEM FOR THE DISCRIMINATING FAP GAMER TWITH WATURAL CAVES & CAVERNS AS WELL AS DUNGEONS ENDLESS PLAN (DUNGEONS AND CAVES) ‘Twit — Power to Annoy, Wild: You may vetbally fame payers is the game by mimick> ‘ng thor, brageing about your playing, et, Ina high, nasl voi. If any player responds new tively he lees a foken tothe warp (his choice). Super You may enter any challenge asa ally, ‘aninited, and nothing except Flarezap can prevent you. ‘Angel ~ Power of Love. Wild: Whenever you play a compromise caid ina challenge, the {est isa compromise and you must make 3 eal, regardless of your opponent's play. Super: If both you and your opponent play compro- smjp cards (you must veal yours) iti counted 484 winning attack for you, no deals are made, Fog. Power to Conceal. Wild: You nocd not abide revealing powers, such as the Mind, the Finder edict, othe Moonburst moon (#62). Super: Your power to conceal applies when you are attacking as well as defending. Berserker ~ Power of Fear. Wild: Ase main player ine challenge, you may frighten one token of your opponent’ alles away. Super Tn their berserk nage, cach of your tokens counts as two in offensive challenges ‘Wizard ~ Power of Musion. Will: You may increase oe decrease the value of your oppor rents attack eard by 5, Super: You may create Hlusory frees. For each token you have aa ofensWe player ina challenge, you may add fnother from other bases or the warp. Though ‘counted in the challenge, these iusary tokens are not affected by the outcome; they are afterward roturnod te thelr oni. Teleport — Power to Evade. Wild: If you are challenged on planet which has exhee play: crs bases, you may make your challenger attack one of the eters his chole) by diseard- Inga card. Super: When you evade, rather than token going to the warp it goes tothe system to which your opponent was sent you do not have a base i tis system, then the token is Tost to the warp, ‘Stone — Power {0 Endure. Wild: As losing defensive player ina ehalienge, if you had more ‘han one foKen on the fost base You may leave ‘one token on that bate. Super: Your endurance power applies to offensive challenges asp, and When sending half your tokens to dhe warp, round dav instead afup, ‘Blade — Power to Divide, Wild: The value of your opponent's attack card is divided by 2 Super: After cards are played but before they are revealed, you may, asa main player, declare“one on one.” This divides Doth sides Foros ‘The attack total foreach side is divided by the rnumber of tokens. (acluding alot) on that sido (round up). This spit tack i then used {o determine the challenge outsome, vit ~ Power to Confuse, Wild: IC you are not involved ina challenge you may, just befare fads are played, ‘ena the attack cone to ‘other systom ai determined by the destiny pile, but the same player is attacked there, IT the defending player dacs not have a base inthe new system, another die is turned, You lose ‘one coken for each destiny dise med Beyond the first. Super: Whon you ate offerive player, you may, after alle are chosen but before ards ate played, atack a different base on the same planet Fishor ~ Powor to Net. Wid: At the start of your challenge, you may draw a card from the hhand of any one player, Super: At the stact of your turn, you may reveal the top card of the feck. Each player mist then gre you ome card from his hund of the same type, It you reveal an attack card, pool a rang of $ in which {at card fits, The reveded card & then die ‘eared unused Ghoul ~ Power to Plunder. Wild: If you are involved on the winning side of a chullenge vou say draw one eatd from the losing player's dhand for every token you had in the challenge. ‘Super: If You are the winning main paver, take fn additonal bonus from any players on Tosing side for each token you had in the chal lenge (folsns can be taken from the warp of fiom a tokersicaling power Uke the Voi ‘Spore ~ Power of Conveyance, Wik: It you sive one or more attack cards to the offensive ployer in a challenge, he must accept one of your tokens foreach card given as alle. Super: I you gain a earier host, you may ad up to ‘ho okons from basok into the actack cone. Aljsstopping powers or Force Field eannot stop yo. AL hog Mares and new Z-odiots wil egulre you to make cards before play. Blank cards ‘hich ean be typed on (yes, the Hare descripe tions wil it typo singlespace with an elite typewriter) are available from Eon for 20 cents each, Cards and tokan and de wis (pec alot) can be ordered from Eon Product, ln, RFD 2, Sheldon Ra. Barre, Ma 01005, neice 52,00 for sipping; Massachusetts residents add 5K) A cheaper but more complicated process am be used forthe flare cards. Bevin by assign ing a specific card from the regular deck to a catdless flare power ("Attack 12 isthe Ghoul Fez"). Shuffle these cards into the flare ‘and deal out flares normally. to. determine player powers. Then, using flares thae were fealt ott, replace the regular cards tha Were (Now the Zombie Mare ix the Ghow! fare ‘A Tit of iow conversions should be clearly posted where eveevone can clerly we it ~ we fan't hive Tob trying to use the Plant wid ‘ato witen sts relly the Trt fare These flares and the regular eards used before are shutTled into the playing deck and the same proceeds normally (OF 38 notmal a a Cosmic Encounter ‘umecan be), aberration (abe-reshen), n. 3. temporary mental disorder hans fo the Hand Payrectes: Adan icons Ken Dar tne Prenton re canbe" Creer, SOB Feudal Lords The frst pom game of. ccoriomie development, itary conquest, and ‘medieval inirtque FEUDAL LORDS is a computer- moderated correspondence game in which up to 15 players vie to become King of Arthurian England You, as head of a flefitom, have 30 types of military, economic, and diplomatic orders available. = You provide for your knights, townspeople and peasats = You may make an assortment of investments to build your economic and milvary base, = You con acquire vassals and influence through force or diplomacy You can sey on other flefdoms. CAN YOU BECOME THE NEXT KING? GRAAF SIMULATIONS 27530 Harper St. Clair Shores, MI 48081 ENTRY: $10200 forthe rulebook, stp, and fst duce turns, §2.50 per turn, RULEBOOK only: $2.50 Bre 7 ‘Star Trok is trademark of Paramount Pietures Corporation and is used under exclusive license. Copyright ©1982 Paramount Pictures Corporation. All sights reserved, FASA Corporation P.O, Box 6930 Chicago IL 60680.Featured Review Interstellar Wars is the first science fletion offering from @ new adventure game publisher: Attactix/Emithill, a Brit. ish company, The game's high physical quality and relatively good distribution reflect how far the British game industry has come: the $20 prive tag indicates how expensive imports can be Interstellar Wars is a two-player strategic game of galactic empires in conflict. The map depicts the Akiri Empire, divided into soven provinces, and portions of four provinces of the Sende Empire, The two empires are clashing cover the control of forty star systems connected by a web of transit routes, Exch player folds a fleet of starships, including scouts, fighters, stellar cruisers and galactic cruisers. A main feature of the game is the relatively detailed set of rules for handling fleet battles. While I found the game's components to not quite justify the substantial asking price, they are frstaate. The mapboards fare mounted and backed (like Avalon Fill boards used 10 be) and measure 16” by 2314" when butted together. Each of the Star systems bears name and factors for defense and refueling capacity. The game's one hundred counters are equally attractive, They are largesized (5/8” square) and bear attack and defense factors, a stylized ship symbol denoting INTERSTELLAR NARS ‘one of the four classes of ships in the game, an identification number, and (in the case of command ships)’ stacking value and stacking/combat bonus, The counters are back-printed to denote an uunfueled status when using the more advanced rules. A single counter serves as, ‘a marker to indicate in which star system a battle is taking place ‘The components are rounded out with fan cight-page rules booklet, which is divided into basic, intermediate, and advanced rules, illustrated with examples of play, and contains the orders of battle for the various scenarios. The game also includes a six-sided die. All of the above materials come in a game box, flashily ‘lustrated with a montage of starships in combat and the rather stern visage of a space-suited figure. From its transit routes (ump lines) to its fleet lines of battle, Interstellar Wars in many ways wems modeled after Imperium, the classic science fiction game from GDW, What remains to be sen is whether this game can also bring together the elements of strategic movement, tactical fleet combat, stellar economics, and contextual considerations in a grand strategic game, The spacecraft represented in the game are divided into four classes: scouts, fighters, stellar cruisers and galactie a cruisers, The frst two types are referred to as “light” units and may move farther ‘than heavy units (the two cruiser classes) and engage in skirmish fighting. during fleet battles. As one may expect, light units generally have both lower attack and defense factors than cruisers Tn the movement phase, starships move along transit routes from star to star; light units may move two star, heavy units only one, In the basic rules, movement is as simple as that, but under the lntermediste rules the complication of refueling is added, After movement, Ships must refuel in the system to which they have moved, using that system’s refueling capacity’ (which is. ineasured in dhe number of ships that may refuel per turn in that system), However, a system must be controlled 10 use its refueling capacity, necessitating that the attacker be vietorious in order to refuel The interconnecting web of star systems ives some systoms key strategic impor- {ance, acting as choke points and/or hubs for movement purposes, while the fuel rules force the players to plan their offensives carefully In the basic game, ships may only stack three per aystem (for some inad- equately justified reason) making for rather stall engagements. Ths is rectified fn the later rules by the use of eommand ships — ships within each class that, in addition to their normal combat and ‘movement capabilities, can increase the stacking capacity of a system consider ably, up to eight or nine ships. Fleets are formed around these command ships, which, in addition to their increased stacking ability, have a bonus that can be used to further increase stacking of adjust die rolls in the combat phase. The inop: portune loss of & command ship during « battle can tip the scalos decisively and often blunt any offensive. It is clear, however, that the most interesting, feature of Interstellar Wars, and that section to which the uncredited designe(s) have devoted the greater part of their energies, is the body of rules dealing with fleet combat. It seems that the intent was to create a combat pro- cedure fora strategic game that retained a tactical flavor and gave the players the impression of grest lines of starships coming together and exchanging salvos of missles and energy weapons fire ‘When ships of the opposing players ere in the same system, the combat procedure is initiated. This begins with a process of skirmish combat, Light and heavy units ae differentiated in the game not only by their combat values, but by the roles they play dusing combat. Only light units participate in skirmish combat, formingskirmish lines and exchanging fire. The player with the fewest units places them in a line, and then the opposing player pairs his units with ths line, placing any extra ships in a second line, Combat then takes place with each of the ships in a pair fring at one another. A die roll is ‘made for each ship, adding its combat factor 10 the result; if the total exceeds the defense factor ‘of the target, it is destroyed. Both vessels may fire before any losses are taken. Ships in the second line fire and are fired upon with a favor able die modifier. Skirmish combat rounds continue until one side or the other disengiges, by either retiring on its battlefleet (any heavy units in the system) or withdrawing from the system entirely. If light uits fall back on their fleet cruisers, then battlelines are formed ‘once again, this time with the big ships participating in the combat. In ‘the “intermediate and advanced games, this combat provess is modified by requiting ships to line up in the order of their identification number, ensuring that like units fire at one another. The fleet engagements are considerably more interesting in these later sets of rules due to the fact that command ships allow larger stacks of ships, and thus bigger bat- tles, and their combat bonus adds a useful option to the combet process. The advanced rules offer a truly innovative set of guidelines on combat tactics. Using this optional mule, each participant in 4 battle chooses fiom a list of combat tactics, either conventional attack and rapid advance (For the attacker) oF con: ventional defense, counterattack, end delay (for the defender). The interscetion of the two options determines the nature of the battle, such as die modifiers for combat, retreats, when and if battle- fleet lines are formed. Conversely, economic aspects of str tegic space warfare are glossed over There is no production per se, but instead a rather simple system of replacement. In the basic game, the players may replace & destroyed unit for every provincial capital they control. While 2 bit simplistic, this method at least tis the replacement of ships to the control of star systems, ‘ostensibly the prizes to be won in the conflict. The intermediate game substi- tutes a die roll to determine the number of units that may be replaced per tum; capitals serve only as staging areas forthe ‘incoming units, The replacement system works out all right in play, but it’s unfor- tunate that economics couldn't be worked {nto the game in a more meaningful way. Victory conditions in interstellar Wars depend on the scenario being played. Since all of the scenarios postulate an attack by the Sonde Empire on the ‘Akiri Empire, territory and the destrue- ‘tion of enemy units figure prominently in determining victory. Most of the ter- ritory on the board is Akin, the few Sende systems serving mainly as the jumping off points for the attack, and the battle is usually for control of the Akiri Empite’s systems. Provincial capitals are the usual determinants of victory, though 4 sudden-death loss ean occur if a player nas 100 many eliminated units. Interstellar Wars isnt without chrome, In the intermediate and advanced games, star systems have intrinsic defense and attack factors and must be assaulied by the attacker to gain control. Other rules include the Pirates of Hamcinon, who serve as either impediments to movement through their system or, optionally, as contributors to the controlling player's forces. Inthe intermediate game, the beleaguered kisi player can call in the reserves, in the form of a Strategic Patrol Fotee, should the situation be dire enough. On the whole, however, Jaterstllar Wars seems t0 lack something. One pos- sible answer isthe absence of background to the situation. We are told that the Sende Empire is invading the Akiri Empire, but that’s about all we know. We can assume that greed and territory are the motives, but a little more background on the origins of the war would have been appreciated. This lack of contextual information made it dificult for me ta get very interested in the situation or the sides involved: Perhaps a more important problem is the fact thet most of the rules serve as rather insubstantial supports to the fleet combat system. This aspect ofthe game is certsinly the most interesting and repre- sents significant development in this area of game mechanics. The skirmish and baitleline combats give the feal ofa tac- tical engagement, but this is not enough. Interstellar Wars isa strategic game, in the final analysis, and in this capacity itis professional but colorless, playable but less than exciting, Considering the cost, ‘there are more intriguing and interesting ssames to spend 20 bucks on. ‘As a first SF game from a new com- pany, Interstellar Wars is adequate, but not outstanding. It certainly avoids the appellation of “turkey” — but t hits wide of the “classic” mark as wel Interstelar Wars (Artactix): $20.00. No designer sted. Components include aan eight-page rules book, a 16” x 2316” full-color, mounted mapboard In two sections, 100 die-cut counters, ome die, boxed. Two players; two 10 three hou, Pubihed 198 SG 9 ‘SO YA THINK YOU'RE FAST, “Fast? You bet! Your gaming software Js shloped within 24 noure. Orders ro ‘ceived by 3 pm are shipped same day ‘Nobody beste KID LIGHTNING!” List oun APPLE IW/IIt Disk PRICE PRICE BRODEREUND DaTamosT fea Tamale of Apanal MUSE SOFTWARE eueveleney = Bg 7a ATARI 400/800 Disk MICROCOMPUTER GAMES CPS Sorceress" 38.00 38.28 weer ee ETRaTeci MULaTions ieee eee Reve, BH ‘Spacty machine and dick or caste, ‘Ac §2.00 tor nostaps and hancling Ste check ar money orser payable to MicroGami “Tan ‘om KID LIGHTNING Seve ya” [Dept.S_P.0. Box 59701 Das TX 7522Yes, [remember the Murphy episode OF course, T was not Grand Master of Euler at the time — 1 was only Assistant Christensen Professor of Topology. Stil, T don't suppose anyone will ever forget that time, when the Math Institute here fon Euler’ was ll that stood between the Galaxy and total domination by @ sadistic megalomaniac. What's that? Oh, yes, I know the Psychology Institute has “done penance for allowing Khar-Devii to take over. And T understand that they say it ean never happen agnin, Well, wonder — psychology Js not of cousse an exact discipline, like math Eh? Yes, the Murphy episode. As 1 recal, it was shortly aftr the spring term had began, T had trouble with some of my displays; the Twenty-Dimension Sin lator had developed a singularity, and simply would not accept fields with more than elghty operations. Maintenance told me that the entire system would have to te shut down for reprogramming, and 1 went to the Grand Master for approval She was conversing on the hyperwave, 1 waited until she was done. In due time she opened the privacy hood and smiled fat me, “Ab, Professor Yagwn. How are “Fine, Madam, And yourself” She sighed, “T could be better, Yagwn You've heard of this KharDavii, who calls himself the Conqueror? Well, it appears that he has taken over the Galac- tie Council and killed the Co-ordinator. He has proclaimed himself Monarch of Humanity, and the inhabited works are falling all over their own foct to surrender to him.” {recalled hearing something about the matter on tho news. “Are his weapons that formidable?” “Apparently so. Euler is the only planet that has not yielded. Twas just talking with the outlying Galactic Traffic station — Khar-Davii's fleet is even now heading toward this world.” She glanced at a data soreen on her desk. “Ah, excuse tne. The fleet has arrived. We are sur- rounded.” I had_no opportunity to voice an opinion, There was a bright flash of light, and suddenly the image of a corpulent human man appeared in the center of the Grand Master’s office. Behind him were ‘banks of machinery tended by warriors in full battle dress “I am Khat-Davil, the Conqueror, Your miserable planet has refused 10 accept my rule, You will surtender to me now or [will destroy yous world.” I suppressed a grin; the Grand Master id not bother to hide her amusement. “1 hardly think it is a miserable world. 1 rather Uke it. Conqueror, your plan of conquest would interfere with our spring term, and I'm sure that the commotion would upset many of our scholars.” Khae-Davii narrowed his brows, “As | was told — you are totaly out of touch with the real universe. Mathematicians and philosophers — not a practical being in the bunch.” The Grand Master lost her smile. One thing that always bothered her wes the accusation that Euler was out of touch with reality. To her, math was the highest form of reality. She stood and faced Khar- Davi “My dear Conqueror, I will not allow you to bother Euler. If you wish to attack, then do so — but let me show you -10- fiction a Don Sakers something of our defenses first.” She touched a button, and a sereen behind her showed the image of a great cannon, I drow in my breath sharply atthe sight. “And what is that machine, Grand Master?” Khar-Davii asked with a smile “Will i¢ shoot strings of mumbers at us?” ‘The Grand Master answered with another smile, “No doubt, Conqueror, a man with your military background has heard of the Murphy Jaws? That which ean go wrong, will go wrong. Here we hhave them formulated as a theorem, and ‘implemented as a weapon.” “And this is your defense?” She spread her hands and regarded him as though he were @ simpleton — which seemed readily apparent. “Long ago we investigated the Murphy Laws complete: ly, This Machine amplifies their effects. If you attack us, your guns will fail 10 fire, your ships ‘will suffer instrament breakdowns, your most trusted officers will trip and accidentally sound recall orders. You could never beat us.” Khar-Davii dissolved in 2 fit of langh- ter. "My fleet has been listening to this ‘conversation — now they know what ‘terrible weapon’ Euler will use against them.” He stopped chuckling, “Grand Master, prepare for your death. Fleet — Attack!”‘The attack did not last long. Since I had a little time to spare, I watched it on the viewscreens from the Grand Master's office. After twenty minutes or s0, only the Conqueror’s flagship was left in fighting condition. It was not too long afterward that KharDavii's image reappeared in the office. The Conqueror was harried and bedraggled, and there was fear in his eyes ‘Can 1 help you, Conqueror?” the Grand Master asked, “Enough, Enough, Tum off that machine. We will sue for peace, I will not attack your planet any more. “Fine.” She pressed another button “Your treaty has been logged. We have other weapons that we can use against you, should you try to break your ward | will thank you now to take the rem nants of your fleet away without bother ingus .. . we have important work to do.” “You will not try to prevent me from ruling the Galaxy? Your Murphy Machine is a more formidable weapon than any 1 possess,” She smiled. “Poor, poor Conqueror, You should have taken’ more mathematies classes, Deductive reasoning would have helped you, The Murphy Machine worked perfectly — as soon as it was turned on, things started to go wrong. The first problem that developed was the failure of the Machine itself.” “Failure 2” “Yes.” She laughed. “It was the super- stition of your crews that defeated you, Khar Davii, They believed that they could not win, and so they did not.” KharDavii snarled, and his image vanished. Viewscreens showed his ships limping away from Euler. We shall have no more trouble from him. The memory of his defeat and his fear of 2 recumence will prevent him from retuming. He will attempt to rule the Galaxy and will forget about Euler.” She shook her head, “What can I do for you, Yagwn?” reed permission to shut down the Twenty-Dimension Simulator for repro ramming. "Very well, I will make the neces sary notifications.” “Thank you.” I turned to paused at the door. “About the Machine, Grand Master. Do you think it was kind to lie to him so?” "Kinder than letting him know what a terrible power he is really up against, He thinks the Machine unworkable.” She shrugged. “Let him figure out why his ennpiedislves 0 quicky.” 5G Dismissing me, she bent her hhead back to her work, HOW LONG CAN YOU TREAD HISTORY? 4 year, a decade, a lifetime... at The Court of Kings ‘A PBM game of Medieval Intrigue in which, * Players steer a family, church or tribe through years of history * Bach game yeer is a one time event in our chronicles * The only victory condition is SURVIVAL, Fot FREE INFORMATION write to: ‘THE ROUND Box 263 Cornish, Maine 04020 Or send $10.00 for rules, set-up. Please specify Royal, Noble, Church or Tribal BLE ical aSTARWEB Ive heard a disturbing rumor. Some time ago, in Space Gamer 45 (November, 1981) I presented six tricks for improving your Starweb play. As some of you may recall, those six glorious nuggets were ‘Expand Fest! Get the Homeworld Producing! ‘sind a Partner! ‘Watch the Point Scores! ‘= Backstab When Called For! ‘eMake a Game-Plan! Well, concrete results are coming in now, Those of you who zead that article and took its advice to heart have now finished your first games. I've litle doubt that you've been successful, and T'm proud of you! What? No, don’t say that! You can't ‘mean it ~ did you say... boring? Boring! How dare you say that about a game like Starweb, a venerable old war- horse of PEM, a miracle and my passion! Why, if I had anything to say about it, Rick Loomis would be inducted into the Hall of Fame! How can you... ‘Actually, you might have @ point. In Starweb, Winning and Having A Good ‘Time are not necessarily the same thing! ‘The things which bring points — like haul- ing raw materials, converting population, of dropping Planet Buster Bombs on fiiendly worlds — are not necessarily fun. (Fun, as we all know secretly in our hearts, lics in tromping on enemy star fleets and actually destroying some other player!) ‘Therefore T've gone back into my Star web archives to gather together another set of tips — five in all, this time, master- ful tips designed to let you win and still have fun in spite of it, So here they are: SECRET #1 Grab It When You Can (Or, always take advantage of the rookies.) Let's face it. Once you know what ‘you're doing in the game, half the fun lies in ripping off all the people who don’t know what they're doing Example: I was in a game once as tan empire builder, neighboring @ second ‘empire builder named BAKUFU. BAKU. FU and I had been squabbling over our border and ownership of the worlds where we both showed up at the same time, Then, out of the blue, I received a Diplomatic’ Message from him: He was declaring me an “ally” asa friendly gesture. T suppose that, if Thad been truly civilized, T would have sent him a DM gently rebuffing him. (I didn't want him for an ally!) Instead, like the heathen I am, 1 took the opportunity to slip a scout fleet across his border and locate his home- world. Later, my real ally used that in- formation 10 talk another player into attacking BAKUPU for us! (Fortunately, the invasion of BAKUFU forestalled BAKUFU's own long-planned attack on me.) 1 suppose that the moral of this story fs that it's a lot of fun (o exploit other people's mistakes. Another example: In that same game, that scout fleot escaped BAKUFU’s wrath, but found itself stranded with no way to -12- Secrets of the Web by W.G. @rmintroat get home. A poor “lost fleet.” Therefore T got in contact with BAKUFU's neigh bor, another empire builder named ZERD, Could I, I esked, save my fleet by bringing ithome by way of her empire? Being kind-hearted, she said “yes.” She too was a first-time player. So my scout fleet, on its way home, managed to make one or two “probes” of her empire before it returned to my bosom, Located her homeworld, too. Which was useful, later, when my allies and I decided to conquer it. With a Web so full of kinéhearted people, I've considered deliberately “los ing” 2 few fleets in my next games SECRET #2 ‘The Sins of Omission (Or, Don't Say It If You Don’t Have To) If the truth be known, I don't tike to tie. Pm not sure what the ethics are of lying in a game as opposed to lying in real life. I know that having a few, good- hearted tricksters in a game always makes it more fun, but it’s not something I can easily bring myself to do. Character flaw, T suppose Fortunately, [ can get almost as much mileage out of merely “forgetting” 10 ‘mention certain important facts to the other players . Example: Kindness fs a weapon. Referring back again to one of my favorito games, there was a merchant named GREGOR who was under attack from an empire builder named SPARTA. We made GREGOR a deal ~ we'd protect him from SPARTA, if he'd haul RMs for our four homeworlds and gift his homeworld over tous. He did so, and we conquered SPARTA. GREGOR was very pleased on the phone one time, and he happened to mention to me just how pleased he was ‘with his fastrising score. He gave me all the details, ‘Therefore I reported to my allies, and we rubbed the merchant out!We had two things going for us — we didn't make any promises we didn't have to (we had no deal with GREGOR — we had protected him from SPARTA), and by being friendly to him we provided the opportunity for GREGOR to make a fatal assumption ‘Another example: Back to ZERD, previously mentioned, who came undet attack ftom a pirate called DENARK. Because | liked ZERD — she used to call up and we'd talk about the rigors of her chemistry courses in college — I prevent- ed my colleagues from devouring her empire. (Thats the flip side of being friendly — sometimes you get caught ‘in your own snare.) Well, T got hold of ZERD and pro- posed an interesting plan. It seemed that I owned, at the time, a corridor of worlds eading from ZERD's realm straight to DENARK’s stars. I gave her the route, declared her “ally,” and provided her with a gift fleet to sweeten the deal Therefore, ZERD sent the majority of her force on a sweep deep into DENARK’s home territory ‘And, when her forces were t00 deeply committed to pull back, my allies end I hit her with our gathered fleets nd seized every world she had... . except that she PRB'd her homeworld first. Reactions of misled players vary. GREGOR stopped spesking to me. On the other hand, ZERD took it all in stride = we went onto collaborate agoinst DENARK with her remaining fleets. SECRET #3 Never Submit Gracefully Sometimes, in Starweb, you end up being fore into something you. don't want to do, ‘Toke DENARK, The reason he was able to attack ZERD was because [let him through a few of my worlds, The reason [let him through was due, a8 they fay, to “an offer 1 couldn't refuse.” DENARK ‘was hemmed in by allies. He wanted to attack ZERD. I stood in his path, IF dida’t get out of his way « well, then it would be me instead of ZERD in the frying pan, So I found myst in what might be called a “forced™ alliance, 1's not an uncommon occurence in Starweb People hate it. “The secret, of course, i to find some safe way 10 take it out on the player that’s got you by the short hairs In DENARK’s case, I was the perfect servant — I mapped out the route, gave him clearance, advised him exactly as to her forees and their Iocations, Except that I inflated my estimates of her fleot strength. ‘And then I tipped ZERD to run, And then I helped ZERD.counter- attack just as I had helped DENARK attack in the first place. ‘And then T attacked DENARK, (Just as I was attacking ZERD, in fact.) They say that reputation means @ lot in Starweb. Well, my reputation as a trustworthy ally fs second to none bat my “unwilling cooperation” leaves 1 great deal to be desired, SECRET #4 Without Warning (Or, if you're going to do something rotten there's no sense in letting everyone somewhere useful... but that'll take several tums and only be marginally helpful, or (b) Have some fun and give a rough time to the guy who let you go. Hacking back to GREGOR, the mer- chant whose demise I've already deserib- ed, I suppose that in some ways our assault, without warning, was really the ‘merciful thing. Our combined ambush/ capture/shoot-out lasted two turns, and there was nothing GREGOR could do, Wasn't thet far better than officially notifying him that we were after him, and then spending who-knowshow-many- ‘tums, chasing his fleets about the Web? A waste of his time, and ours, ‘That's why I perfer to strike, when 1 have to Without Warning, know about it beforehand.) T used to be just as stupid as most people. In my very frst game, playing an ‘empire builder position, I found myself teking on the RMhauling services of a ‘merchant called GED. GED was like most merchants I've met — friendly, talkative, areal nice fellow. Unfortunately, he began to make 740 points per tum, And it was only tum 14! ‘And it was still ising! Being naive, I politely informed him that Ino longer needed his services. ‘Whereupon he got sore and stole two of my worlds. (Which he had given tome in the first place, however.) He stl won the game, although my defection cost him four extra tums of play. ‘Therefore T have precious litte sym- pathy for people who say things like, “confront your rotten ally and officially dissolve the alliance.” Bosh! T mean, just look at the case from a merchant's point of view. If the alliance is dissolved, he'll have a few fleets stuck in the middle of someone else's empire. What are his options? (a) Take them =e (Or, the PreEmptive Backstab. A subject of some controversy.) If an alliance is breaking up, don’t be left holding the bag. I leamed that by experience. Once upon a time, I was the empire builder in an alliance — with a berserker and a pirate — that was wine ning a game, Our scores were rising in ‘The pirate became greedy. I had been gifting worlds to him. Now, he began to {ake them. Hisscore climbed dramatically, To keep even, the berserker PBB'G ‘more worlds and rushed his attack on an apostle. I speeded my conquest of an empire builder. We both wrote flery letters to the picate But, since I had no fleets in my home zealm I couldn't stop him, ‘The pirate won the game. I took third, ‘but my rating wasn’t what I fad beon looking for. Therefore, I am now a bit more pre- pared in case an ally goes rotten.Example: I, the aposile BRIGAM, bordered three players — the pirate BAL” ROG, the pirate RAIDER, and the m chant’ VANRIN. Because of the cylin- deal shape of the WEB pattem, I had a ‘ery long frontier with BALROG ~ there fore, we allied, As for RAIDER, his small enipre was a buffer zone between myseif and the berserker ARKITE — therefore, we, too, allied. TRAIDER stacked VANRIN the mer chant, In retumn for converts, 1 was providing the pirate with RMs from my largor empire. RAIDER took half of VANRIN’s werlds VANRIN gifted his homeworld to BALROG, RAIDER, fecling he had eared it, demanded the HW from BAL- ROG. BALROG refused. RAIDER at- tacked BALROG. Thad never before had two alles fight ing cach other. Besides that, I thought the whole thing was ridiculous — RAIDER deserved the homeworld, and BALROG was too paranoid about the other pirate. Figuring that the best way to stop the fighting would be to fore it into. deed- lock, I escalated my RM shipments to RAIDER until his forces were even with BALROG's. (Of course, 1 didn't tell BALROG this. Meanwhile, RAIDER was gifting me all of his worlds except his hhomeworld to pay for the RMs) It didn’t work, BALROG was too stubbom to back down, and RAIDER ‘was too devoted to teaching his enemy a lesson. BALROG diverted fleets from his other conquests in order to block the invasion. RAIDER built more. In desperation, BALROG gave me an ultimatum — attack RAIDER myself, for he would attack me, That was 2 real threat, since there was no way I could protect my entire border. T seized RAIDER’s last world, his homeworld, Just at that moment, I noticed somes thing. BALROG had revoked my “ally” status — he was ambushing my fleets at ‘8 world I had given him! Then came the news from PEGLEG, another pirate Out of the blue, he came to me with the tale at BALROG had contacted him about a joint attack against my empire! ‘Therefore, having already betrayed one ally, I betrayed the other. T gave BALROG’s map to PEGLEG, and PEG. LEG attacked, Fortunately, RAIDER ‘wasn't sore about losing his homeworld ~ he had planned on giving it to me anyway — s0 we patched things up and he com tinued his attack on BALROG, And I, although bereft of allies, was within tums of winning the game! ‘Until PEGLEG tumed on me, taking the fleets and worlds I had given him and using them against me, It tured out that he had homswogsled me . . . BALROG had never talked invasion with him, and T sold my aly out for nothing 1 still might have won, but ARKITE the Berserker dropped # wiole squadron of PBB's at once and broke the victory level by almost two thousand excess points. Which left me, although in second place, with a rather miserable rating for that game. (But whet realy hurt was knowing that ARKITE, in real life a designer for Milton Bradley Eleetronies, actually read this magazine, He told me so. He men tioned how helpful he'd feund my article ‘on Starweb strategy ...) Summing up, I'd have to say this: Winning is a finetion of the six strat- ‘ey tips mentioned back in my last aticle Having Fun, on the other hand, is @ function of style — a contest of wits, of wheeling and dealing, of friendships made and alliances cemented. There’s only one thing that bothers ‘me, If what J. Eric Holmes said in Pay chology Today about Dungeons and Dragons is also true about Starweb — namely, that it's “sort of a giant Ror schach test.” — well... I wonder what ry passion for wheeling and deang sys about me? SG The First and the Best! TRAVELER Traveller has stood the test of time — a steadi- ly maturing role-playing system with a broader selection of adventures and supporting material than you will ind anywhere else. And now there is a Starter Edition Traveller. Starter Traveller isn’t a chopped down version of the basic rules; it’s the complete Traveller game reformatted for ease of play. It has everything you need to start playing right away. Starship design and combat, trade and com- merce, psionics, world generation, weapons, skills, prior careers, and much more. In addition, ‘two complete adventures are included to get you started. And at $10.00 you won't find a better value anywhere. ‘To support Traveller campaigns, we publish The Journal of the Travellers! Aid Society. It’s won the H.G. Wells award for best role-playing magazine for three years running. Articles covering alien races, new adventures, equipment, GM techniques and product reviews, keep the Traveller player upto-date on every aspect of the game. Subscribe today!! Game Designers’ Workshop P.O, Box 1646, Bloomington, Illinois 61701 Free catalog on request. admor CONTEST RESULTS In SG 61, we announced a “Write a table for generating something useless” contest. We got quite a few responses and printed the best of them in Fantasy Gamer ‘Areturan Lasagna Ingredient Table Bubbling sauce Contains small, green squishy thines Subtable B: Color of Noodles 1) Red 6) Pumle 2) Orange 1) Black 3) Yellow 8) White 4) Gren 9) Brown 5) Blue 10) Gray, Darell Byford of Allen, Texas, con- tributed the following miscellany: Sack Lunch Generation Table 1) Sandwich only 2) Vegetable only 3) Enut only 4) Groen eggs and ham 5) Sandwich, apple and cupcake 6) Two allbeet patties, special sauce, lettuce, pind he tet often lay Gener Coe Poole aineeten we decided to let ‘em loose, These secon- 4). Bouncing noodles on dary winners will each get two issues add- __$)Alfborme noodles Sp mien uh een babi of Mele NPC A ea 7) 1-4 noodles teleport about each turn Runs Past Adventurers Generation Table Jim Simons of Littleton, Colorado, y of gravity ee aan »« nna die! You're gonna die!” couldn't stand the thought of not know- 9) ‘The material coheres in an amorphous blob 2) “You're all doomed! Doomed I say!” Ce er er eae 3 eyenasreat cara eae fame yey ue Rll IDI we or Re ae te ines youre a), denise sate a Shape of Nodes ees cae gad shane of nc, ol ange ly Pe ee oe ee ee sa yeaa aaa cee a Ce a, ie sea aiamims epee tee i 2 ae a ma Seecomiety, Bea 5) ea Sj te (MEARE S 2S aaa Quest of the Great Jewels ‘The third War of the Great Jewels is over, having ended with the intervention of the Powers-That-Be, but not before most of Zorplia was laid waste and the greater part of its inhabitants destroyed. The Powers-That-Be have sealed the Great Jewels (talismans of immense power) and many of the lesser talismans in the Forbidden Cities and set enchanted armies to guard them. Only scattered remnants of the four peoples remain. Dragons and other terrors roam the land. Can you marshall your forces and come forth to be the sole ruler of Zorplia? Quest of the Great Jewels is our newest computer moderated play-by-mail fantasy (|. wargame. You assume the role of one of 4 types of being: the Azoni — builders of great citadels; the Rilris — hoarders of wealth and magical talismans; the Quntag — former emperors of Zorplia’s vast provinces; and the Slenth — destroyers and ravagers of the land. Turn fees are $2.50 initially and increase to a maximum of $3.50 in later turns (after turn 20). Please send for our rules book ($2.50) before entering. Zorph, Enterprises 3646 Gibsonia Rd. Gibsonia, PA 15044 LET p (pee ET a POE: alee: NL pEWee eG es KTntroduetion Map Countess Game-Tumn Sequence ‘Movement Stacking Combat Missiles Mines Earth-Launched Rockets Orbit-Launched Rockets Supplies Special Forces Infantry Shuttles Early Warning Reconnais- sance Satellites 0. Communications Jamming Satelites Orbital Weapons Platforms Suicide Satellites Nuclear Warheads Earth Reinforcements Preparation for Play Victory Conditions Scenarios 1,0 INTRODUCTION Orbit War is a simulation of satelite warfare in outer space. Players control the forces of the United States and the Soviet Union, Each player attempts to destroy the enemy player’s satellites in ‘onder to control space 2.0 MAP ‘The map represents a region of tov dimensional space surrounding the Earth. AA rogular series of lines, called Orbit Lines, fare overlaid across the hexes, 2.1 Orbit Lines, Orbit Lines regulate Orbital Movement, Each Orbit Line has a number from 1/3 to 4, The num ber of am Orbit Line determines how many hexes a satellite must move dur- {ing Orbital Movement, In the case of fractions, the frst number determines the umber of hexes a satellite will move and the second number indicates how many tums must elapse before Orbitel Movement takes place for that particular Orbit Line, Example: 1/2 means the satellite moves every other turn, 2.2 Combat Results Table, The Combat Results Table (CRT) is printed on the map for the convenience of the players. To determine the combat differential for any given combat, subtract the defense strength from the attack strength, Example: A strength of 5 attacking a defense of 2 is a differen- tial of 3 23 Game-Turn Track, The Game-Turn ‘Track is printed on the map. The Game-Turn Track is used to keep track ‘of game tums and to remind players when specifie actions take place, su as Earth rotation and Orbital Move- ment for the outer Orbit Lines 2 Force Boxes, These boxes hold rein forcements, rockets launched from Earth, and rockets striking Earth for each player. 3.0 COUNTERS The counters in Orbit War are divided into two categories: satellites and pay. Joads, All satellite counters have five prin ed values: Unit Type, Identification Num ber, Attack Strength, Defense Strength, and Movement Allowances, Counters repre: enting payloeds do not have all five val ues; some (ie, Nukes) have no printed values at all 1 Satelite rypes include: 3.11 Barly Warning Reconnaissance satellite (EWR), This counter represents 4 typical “spy” satelite equipped with ‘cameras and infrared sensors. 3.12 Communteations Jamming satel- lize (CIS). This counter represents satelite equipped with a variety of electronic countermeasure equip- ment. 3.13 Orbital Weapons Platform satel lite (OWB). This counter representsf satelite armed with long-range missiles, mines, and 2 short-range laser, 3,14 Hunter-Killer satelite (HK), This counter represents a heavily armed and armored satellite equipped with high intensity lasers, designed to destroy other satellites, 3.5 Speclal Forces Infantry (SF), ‘This counter represents a squad of elite commandos specially trained to fightin space. 3.16 Shuttle (S). This counter sepre- sents a reusable space vehicle able to launch and return to Earth, 3.17 Earth-Launched Rocket (ELR), ‘This counter represents a typical large payload-cartying rocket 3.18 Orbit-Launched Rocker (OLR), This counter representsasmallrock- ct launched from orbit. 3.2. Payload counters include: 3.21 Mine, This counter represents an explosive charge with small thrust- er rockets and a simple computer “brain.” 3.22 Supply. This counter represents ‘2 packaged load of mines and mis- siles to resupply OWP satellites and Space Shuttles 3.23 Nuke. This counter represents @ single nuclear warhead. 3.24 3-MIRV. This counter represents three nuclear watheads, 3.25. 7-MIRV. This counter represents seven nuclear warheads, 3.26 Blank, Blank counters can be Used as decoys or as replacements for lost pieces. 4.0 GAME-TURN SEQUENCE Players alternate who moves fist every other turn (.e,, on all odd numbered tums player A moves frst, then player B; fon all even numbered tums player B ‘moves first, then player A). ‘The game sequence proceeds as follows: L. Cheek for Earth rotation, The Earth rotates at the beginning of every fourth tum (see Section 4.4). ML The first player for this Game-Turn may launch rockets and shuttles from the Earth, He may also launch rockets from orbiting Shuttles and OWPs, The second player for this Game-Turn re- peats the above procedure, MIL, Move all counters by Orbital Move ‘ment, IV, The first player for this Game-Turn ay take Optional Movement, moving satellites in any direction up to their maximum movement allowances, Shut- tes and OWPs may lay mines, V. The second player may now take Optional Movement and lay mines with his Shuttles and OWPs, VI. Resolve all mine combat, Announce ‘all missile attacks, Check for possible missile jamming due to enemy CISs, ‘Resolve all missle combat (see Section 72), VIL,” Resolve all combat between oppos- ing foroes occupying the same hex. Combat is simultaneous, VIII. Award victory points (VP) for re ‘connaissance and for destroyed satel- lites. Deep space reinforcements enter duting this step in Tum 4 or later OWP satellites and Space Shuttles are resupplied at this time TX, Move the Game-Turn marker one box. Counter Diagram Defense Strength Movement Allowance Attack Strength 2-1-2 Unit Silhouette ‘4.1 Game-Turn Track. The Game-Turn marker is placed in the first box of the Game-Turn Track, Fach box has @ number in the upper right-hand cor ner, representing the game turn being played, When the marker reaches the fend of the track, retum the marker to the first box. Each tum represents ap- proximately one hour, 4.2 First Player of Fach Came-Turn, Fach | ““bex on the Game-Turn Track has two Ietters, A and B, representing players A and B respectively. On all odd num- bered tums player A is the first player and on all even numbered turns player Bis the first player | 43 Orbie Line Reminders. The numbers 1/2 and 1/3 appear in the lower left comer of certain boxes on the Game- ‘Turn Track, This is to remind players that units on the 1/2 and 1/3 Orbit Lines take Orbital Movement, moving fone nex, during those turns only. Units onthe 1/2 lines take Orbital Movement every other turn; units on the 1/3 line take Orbital Movement every third turn, Note that on Tums 6 and 12, units on both the 1/2 and the 1/3 lines move. 4.4 Barth Rotation, In certain boxes on the Game-Turn Track an R appears in the lower rightshand comer. This is a reminder that the Farth counter should be rotated, at the beginning of ‘that particular turn, one hexside coun- ter-clockwise, 5.0 MOVEMENT ‘A satellite can move in two ways: Or bital Movement and Optional Movement, ‘A payload without azocket can only move by Orbital Movement, 5.1. Orbital Movement. Orbital Movement {s inherent movement due to a coun- ter’s position on an Orbit Line. All units must move counter-clock wise the ‘number of hexes corresponding to the Orbit Line number printed on the map. (In the case of fractional Orbit Line’ numbers, Orbital Movement oc- ‘curs every second or third tur.) 5.2 Optional Movement, Bach satelite ‘has its Movement Allowance printed in the upper right-hand comer of the counter, The Movement Allowance 1ep- resents the maximum number of hexes a satellite may move in one tum after Orbital Movement, Movement Allow: ance may not be exceeded, saved from fone turn to another, or transferred be- ‘ween satellites, 5.21 Gravitational Acceleration. AU satellites may move one hex to- wards the Earth at no extra cost. ‘This bonus movement is known as ‘gravitational acesleration, Satelites may gravitationally accelerate at any time during optional movement only. (A satellite may gravitational- ly accelerate before movement, after ‘movement, or not at all,) Gravita- tional acceleration is optional. Non satellites may not take gravitational acceleration, 5.3 Movement Restrictions, No satellite ‘may move onto the Earth counter, Any satellite which does is considered to have bummed up in the atmosphere and removed from play, awarding the opposing player victory’ points for the satellite's destruction, Exceptions: Special Forces Infantry, Space Shut= ties, suicide setelites, and rockets with nuclear warheads may move onto the Earth counter, 5,31 Zones of Control, There are no “cones of control” in Orbit War. Satelites are free to move in or out of, but not through, enemy-oceupied exes, 6.0 STACKING ‘Any number of units of any type may be stacked together in the same hex. 7.0. COMBAT ‘There are three forms of combat: Mine Combat, Missile Combat, and Normal Combat, “SEee 2 7.1 Mine Combat, Mine Combatis always resolved before Missile Combat. Each rine counter hasan attack strength of 6, Mines may attack all, some, or none bbut may not attack units outside thei hex, When multiple targets are attack- (ed, each attack is rolled separately TA1 Mine Attack Strength, The at- tacking strength of the mine (6) is divided by the number of defending satellites in the same hex, rounding fractions up. This number is the at- tack strength of the mine against each satellite, The minimum attack strength of each mine counter is 2 Mines aze removed from play im= mediately after an attack, 7.2 Missile Combat. Missile Combat is al ways resolved after all Mine Combat but bafore Normal Combat. There are no missle counters in the game. Fach missile may attack any one unit (at- tacking player’s choice) up to two hhoxes away from the launching OWP, Shuttle, or country. Missiles have an attack Strength of S. Each missile at- tacks separately; missile attacks may not be combined, 7.3 Normal Combat, Normal Combat ov- curs when opposing units occupy the same hex, Units do not have to attack. ‘The values for the attack stsensth and the defense strength, printed on the counters, are used ‘to calculate the ‘odds differential for combat resolution. 14 Combat Rerolution. Combat is 7 solved by comparing the attack strength of the attacking unit(s) with the defense strength of the defending unit. The defense strengihissubtracted from the attack strength to determine 1 combet differential, as shown on the Combat Results Table (CRT), No sat= ellite may attack more than once per tum, Exceptions: Missile and mine combat are considered separate from Normal Combat, Suicide satellites may self-destruct for a second attack (see Section 18.1). 78 Mudtiple Attacks, Any number of sat- ellites may combine into one attack, ‘but only one satelite may be the tax: get of each attack (in other words, de- fense strengths may not be combined), ‘A player may make several attacks in series, against the same or different tar- gets, observing the result of each before making the next, (Missle attacks are an exception to this. The target of each missle attack in a hex must be announced before any attack isrolled.) 7.6 Combat Results. Roll two dice for ach attack. The target is destroyed if the attacker rolls the number indicated fon the CRT, ot higher. 5,0 MISSILES ‘There are no missle counters in the game, Missiles detonate the turn they are launched, Missiles may only be launched from OWD satellites, Space Shuttles, or Earth, Missiles have @ maximum range of two exes and an attack strength of 5. BLL Missiles and Mines. If @ missile’s path must take it through an enemy mine hhex, the enemy player may attack it with e mine, Both mine and missile are lost, This also holds true if the target hhex is mined; the mine(s) may inter cept the incoming missiles), one mine counter per missile. 9.0 MINES Mines may only be cared by OWP satellites, Shuttles, or rockets, Mines may begin the game “laid” in orbit, 9.1 Mine Laying. Space Shuttles and OWP satelites may lay mines anytime be- fore, during, or after Optional Move- ment, Mines are placed in the unit's ‘own hex or any adjacent ex. (It is perfectly legal to lay a mine in an en- emy-occupied hex.) Mines may also be carried by rockets launched from OWP satellites, Space Shuttles, or Earth. All imines laid by rockets aro placed in the hhex where the rocket discharges them | Gee Section 10.4). Mines may not at- | tack om the turn they are Iai. | 9.2 Mine Attacks. A mine may attack | “any enemy unit in the hex with it at the end of both players’ Optional Movement. A mine may also attack during the enemy player's Optional Movement if an enemy satellite moves through a hex containing it. This may ‘occur either because the enemy wishes to detonate the mine, or because the enemy has no choice but to pass through that hex. If more than one en- ‘emy unit pass through the same mined hex, the mine's attack strength may bbe divided between them (see Sec- tion 7.1). All mine attacks are at the option ‘of the owning player. A mine may at tack any, all, or none of the enemy counters in its hex. 9.3 Attacks Against Mines. Mines may be attacked by missiles during the Missile Combat phase. This may oceur if the missiles entered a mined Rex but the rine was newly Iaid (or the mine-ows- ing player chose not to detonate it). Each mine counter must be attecked separately, ‘Mines may also be attacked-by en- cemy satellites during the Normal Com bat phase — but, again, this will not happen unless the mine-owning player chose not to detonate it, or it was just Jaid and therefore was not able to det onate. 10.0 EARTH-LAUNCHED ROCKETS ELRs may only be launched fromEarth, [An ELR may carry one mine, one type of. nuclear warhead (a Nuke, a 3MIRY, or a T-MIRV), one sitelite, of one Supply counter as @ payload, Rockets may nor ‘carry other rockets or Space Shuttles. 10.1 Launck, To launch a rocket, place jt face-up in the Jaunching players “Launch” box. This box is used to pre- vent @ pile of counters from appearing fon Earth each tum, The rocket must move away from Earth (up to three hhexes) during Optional Movement. 10.2 Payload, Any unit (a satellite or payload) carried by a rocket is placed Upside down beneath the rocket coun- ter and is moved with the rocket unt it is discharged.10,3 Combat Status. Any unit being car- ied by a rocket is considered to be in- side the rocket, If attacked, only the rocket’s defense strength is used. If the rocket is destroyed, its payload is also considered destroyed. 10.4 Discharging Contents, The owning Player of a rocket may, at any time be- fore, during, of after Optional Move- ment, announce that it is discharging its contents, The rocket counter is re ‘moved and its payload (the counter beneath it) is Mipped right-side up. Satellites may nor move or attack the tum they are discharged from @ rocket or shuttle, Exception: Special Forces (SF) may move and attack the tum they are discharged, 10.5 Launch Limitation, Bach player may jaunch a maximum of three ELRs from Earth each turn, 10.6 Dummy Payloads. If a rocket is Tounched with # blank (decoy) coun- ter, that rocket is carrying a dummy payload to distract the enemy and make him waste missles, A dummy payload may never be “dropped.” When a rocket with a dummy payload. is destroyed, the fact that it was 2 Gummy is revealed, 11.0 ORBIT-LAUNCHED ROCKETS OLRs may be launched only from space — cither from Orbital Weapons Platforms or from a Space Shuttle. An ‘OLR consists of little more than a maneu- voring engine and some tracking hardware therefore, any OWP is assumed to have an infinite number of OLRs available, at no cost. OLRs may not be used to place any unit in orbit from Earth — they are far too weak! 1.1 Launch, To launch a rocket, place it face-up on top of the Shuttle or OWP that is launching it, It will move with the launching satellite during Orbital Movement, and may move away dur- ing Optional Movement. 11.2 Payloads, An OLR may carry (a) @ ‘warhead (any kind); (b) 2 mine coun- ter;or (c) a dummy payload as per 10.6 above. It may not carry a satellite, 11.3 Combat Status. The cargo of an OLR is carried inside the OLR, and only the OLR’s defense strength is used (as for Barth-Launched Rockets), If the rock- ot is destroyed, its payload is lost 114 Discharging’ Payloads. A payload may be discharged at any time before, during, or after the OLR’s Optional Movement, Mines may not attack on the tum they are discharged 11.8 Launch Limitation. Back player may launch a maximum ofthree OLRs from each Orbital Weapons Platform per tum, No OWP may launch more than one warhead-carrying OLR per tum, OLRs may not begin the game in orbit 12.0 SUPPLIES ‘The contents of a Supply counter con- sist of any combination of mines, missiles, fr nuclear warheads not exceeding ren. A MIRY counts a a single unit. The con- tents of a supply counter are taken from the arsenal of mines, missiles, and nuclear warheads designated in 223, step 4 as starting the game on Earth, Supplies may only be used to replenish a Space Shuttle or an OWP's arsenal, Supplies may never attack enemy units on their own. Supply counters may only be carried by rockets for Space Shuttles. Players must keep tack, on a separaie piece of paper, of exactly what is being carried by 2 Supply counter 12.1. Resupplying. To resupply a Space ‘Shuttle or an OWP satelite, the rock- et or Space Shuttle carrying the Sup- ply counter is placed in the same hex as the satellite to be resupplied, If the resupplying rocket or Space Shuttle is destroyed, the supplies are considered destroyed. A satellite being resupplied may not attack (engage in either Missile or Normal Combat) the turn it is being resupplied. A Space Shuttle may not attack (engage in either Missile or Normal Combat) the tum itis resupplying an OWP satellite cr another Space Shuttle, Resupplying satellites and satelites being resupplied defend against all attacks normally. A resupplying rocket counter is removed from play at the end of the tum it re- supplies a satelite, 13.0 SPECIAL FORCES INFANTRY (SF) 13.1 Endurance, Special Forces counters ‘may remain in space for 2 maximum of twelve Game-Tums, after which they must retum to Earth by moving the Special Forces counter onto the owning. player's country on the Earth counter. Any Special Forees counters which fal to return in time are removed from play and the opposing player gains victory points for the Special Fotees’ destruc- tion. After spending three tums on Earth, the Special Forces counter may retum to play via a rocket or a Space Shuttle, 13.2. Discharging from Rocketsand Space ‘Shuttles, Special Forces may move and attack the tum they are discharged from either a rocket or Space Shuttle, 14.0 SHUTTLES (S) ‘The USA player has five Space Shuttles available, The USSR player has two Space Shuttles available, Shuttles launch in the same way rockets do (see Section 10.1) 14,1 Movement, A Space Shuttle can launch from Earth without a rocket, ‘Thus, in one turn a Space Shuttle can launch from Earth and attack in the same tum, (Remember: Satellites dis charged from rockets may not attack the tur they are discharged.) 14.2 Cargo Hold. A Space Shuttle may hhold sny combination of missles and ‘mines not exceeding six, Alternative- ly, it may carry one OLR and one nu- clear warhead (a Nuke, a }MIRV, of a 7MIRV), one Supply counter, or one satellite of any type, in addition to a combination of missiles and mines not exceeding two, Exceptions: A Space Shuttle may not carry an ELR or an- ‘other Space Shuttle. 143 Discharging Cargo. Space Shuttle ‘may discharge its cargo (a rocket with a nuclear warhead, a Supply counter, or a satellite) in ts ownhex atany time before, during, or after Optional Move- ment. Satellites may nor move or at- tack the turn they are discharged. £x- ception: Special Forces may move and attack the tum they are discharged,14.4 Retwming to Earth. & Space Shute tle which returns to Earth is removed from play. A Space Shuttle may return to Earth by moving the Shuttle coun ter onto the owning player’s country con the Earth counter, The opposing Player does not gain victory points for the Shuttles retura to Earth, A Shut- tle which returns to Barth may not re- tum to play and is effectively out of the game. 14.5. Transferring Weapons. Space Shut- ‘les may Greely give mines, missiles, or nuclear warheads to other Space Shut tles or OWPs occupying the same hex. ‘Treat a weapons transfer according 10 the rules for resupplying (see Section 12.) 15.0 EARLY WARNING RECONNAIS- SANCE SATELLITES (EWR) An EWR satelite may detect enemy rocket launchings if it is in the enemy country's spotting cone. Therefore, an EWR satellite gains 1 victory point (1'VP) each turn it is in the enemy country’s spotting con 15 Spotting Cone, Printed on the Earth ‘courtter are the two countries: USA and USSR. The shaded regions repre- sent the spotting cone which must be extended outward to the edge of the map to fully define the complete spot- ting cone. 2 Reconnaissance, Each turn an EWR satelite isin the enemy country’s spot- ting cone, the owning player is award- ed 1 victory point (1 VP), Each EWR satellite in the enemy country’s spot: ting cone exins 1 VP, 20 if there are five EWR satellites in the spotting cone, $ VPs are awarded at the end of the tum, 16.0 COMMUNICATIONS JAMMING ‘SATELLITES (CJS) ACIS contains a vast array ofelectron- {ic jamming equipment, 16.1. Radius of Effectiveness, A CIS's 1 ‘ius of effectiveness extends two hexes, Overlapping radii of effectiveness from friendly CJSs each take effect separ ately! A radius of effectiveness may ex- tend info the Earth hex, but never through it. Overlapping radii of effec tiveness between opposing CISs do not affect one another, 16.2. Missile Jamming. Missiles fired from ‘or at a unit within an enemy CJS's a dius of effectiveness may be jammed, Roll one die, A missle which passes through the fadius of effectiveness is jammed on a roll of 1-3, Jammed mis siles are considered destroyed and do not attack, Friondly missiles are never jammed by friendly CISs. 16.3 Increased Defense. The defense ‘Strength of any unit within a friendly CIS" sphere of effectiveness, including. the CIS itself, is increased by one. 16.4 Jamming. An enemy EWR satellite is automatically jammed if it ends the tum in a CJS's radius of effectiveness, Jammed EWRs do not gain VPs. 165 Destruction, It a CTS is destroyed, its effects continue until the end of that tum’s combat. 17.0 ORBITAL WEAPONS PLATFORM SATELLITES (OWP) COWP satellites may be launched with, and carry, any combination of mines, mis- siles, and nuclear warheads not exceeding ten (10), OW? satellites contain an untim ited number of orbital launch rockets for ‘the purpose of the game. OWP satellites may no# hold other satellites. 17,1. Combat, OWP satellites may launch ‘any umber or combination of mines and missles in one tum (see Tum Se- quence), An OWP may not lay mines for fire missles on a tum it launches rockets (whatever their contents). Only fone nuclear warhead may be launched per turn, An OWP may use rockets to lay mines, OWPS must use rockets to launch nuclear warheads, 18,0 SUICIDE SATELLITES ‘Normal satellites may be designated as nuclear suicide satelites by expending an additional point (Je., a HunterKiller sat- clit in orbit may be converted into a sui- cide satelite at a total cost of four points) Special Forces and Space Shutties may znot be converted into suicide satellites Suicide satellites need not be revealed until detonation 18.1 Combat. Suicide satellites may det- ‘onate at any time, at the owning pla ers diseretion, Thus, a suicide satelite may attack with its regular weapons and then self-destruct for a second at- tack, of it may elect to self-destruct before being attacked. Any suicide at- tack, regardless of satelite type, has an attack strength of 5 against all units, friendly or enemy, in the hex. A sui cide satellite which detonates & re- moved from pley and the opposing player is awarded victory points for its destruction, 18.2. Rocket-Borne Nuke, A warhead (any kind) carried by a rocket (either kind) may attack as a suicide satelite. How- ever, no warhead may begin the game in space, except aboard a Shuttle, an OWP, ora suicide satelite 18.3 Barth Attack. A suicide satelite has ‘he option, during the owning player's Optional Movement step, to move om- to the enemy country. Place it in the enemy “rocket strike” box and proceed as in 19.3, below. The opposing player gains victory points for the satellite's destruction, 19.0 NUCLEAR WARHEADS Nuclear warheads come in three vari ties: Nuke, $MIRV, and 7-MIRV. A Nuke roprosenis a single nuclear warhead, a 3-MIRV represents a cluster of three nu+ clear warheads, and a 7-MIRV reprownts ister of seven nuclear warheads, 19.1 Launch, Nuclear warheads may only ibe used when built into a suicide satel- lite (Gee above) or when carried by an ELR or OLR, Nuke counters never ap- pear separately, 19.2 Combat, If @ rocket carrying a war hhead is attacked, its defense strength is 1. A rocket or missile carrying a w: hhead may attack as a suicide satellite (Gee Section 18, above. 19.3. Striking Earth, When a rocket coun- ter with a warhead is moved through the enemy spotting cone onto the Earth hex, this constitutes @ nuclear attack. ‘The rocket, with payload underneath, is placed in ‘the enemy country’s “roc et strike" box, The enemy player will have a chanco to intercept Barthired rockets during the missile phase. If he does not try fo intercept, or if the in- tercepting missile misses, the rocket strikes Earth, Dummy payloads have no effect; nuclear warheads score vie~ tory points. 19.4 Incerception. During the missile launch phase, each player may attempt to intereept the enemy rackets in his “rocket strike” box. (The purpose of this box and the launch boxes, of course, is t0 avoid a huge pile of coun ters on Earth.) These attacks are ci ried out like any other missile attack; the defense strength of a rocket is 1, and the defense strength of a suicide satellite is equal to that of the satelite ‘carrying it, The intercepting player rust designate which (numbered) roc ets are being attacked, since often most rockets in an attacking wave will have dummy payloads. 19.5. Set-up Limization, Nucleat warheads ‘cannot begin the game in space unless carried by an OWP or Shuttle, or as part of a suicide satellite. continued on page 25UNIVERSE Ill Pesca ace Rea ee Pe Ses ae ey Poe er natn ae ee Coa een tsa cera aaa with other players and unknown hazards! Each time Dr Ou me dL) ee Re Oe Rae ted moves, and sends you a printout showing the current status Ce eee ena cS It “meet” other players, you can send them messages ~ to ER osama Maren Cm a eet Why is UNIVERSE III the “state-of-the-art” in play-by-mail games? ie eee ae tell us in plain English what you want to do and we send Pan eestd NO WAITING TO ENTER ~ Entries are processed on receipt. You'll be ina game within two weeks or your egos NO WAITING TO PLAY - Our tum system lets you move every week if you like — or take as long as you want eee eee ae Pee eat el RO OE eC nee eee Pe) eee enn en ec ene eee ee eee ees Re en sae eae eee ESE) Ree earn eter men acces Beal CS ca ee eee Oe a assigned as soon as you send your name, address, and ea CENTRAL TEXAS COMPUTING 710-S SOUTHWEST TOWER, AUSTIN, TX 78701‘enaeane | 09484 SVXAL ‘'NILSNY fee 1- 29681 x08 oan SaN\v9 NOSHOVr SASLS "aaeNs| aS aagH INdO-07 aOVId1s inthis issue (or if you want a cheap gift fora friend), we will send you a copy of Shustlewars, with a com} ‘Shuttlewers / Orbit War counters, for $1.00 plus $f postage and handling, This offer expires February 28, Please send me Space Gamer, Fantasy Gamer, Fire & Movement, andfor Autoduet Quarterly for (circle applicable rate and magazine): Bisues issues Gissues ——Bissues. ©The «——_—ifetime Space Gamer $8 fe S13 ala $23 $200 Fantasy Gamer $8 fa 813 na SB $200 Fire & Movement 88 fa si3 nia 323 5250 Autoduel Quarterly n/a si0 nla $20 330 $100 Dicheek here if th All subscriptions start with the next issue published. 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