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March 2023
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Star Fleet Universe News THE BIG NEWS:
The big news this month is the release of the revised rulebook for SFB MODULE R1, which was uploaded to the PDF stores on 24 March. (The revised R1 SSD book is finished but we're waiting on the conversion to the color version. If nothing goes wrong, we'll release it next month.) Steve Petrick is working on the update for SFB MODULE R6 while Steve Cole (suffering through a painful injury) is starting to show progress on F&E CIVIL WARS.
WEBSITE:
Our website, www.StarFleetGames.com, continues to grow and improve. You are welcome to send us your requests, comments, and suggestions. Simone Dale, our graphics director, continues to update the website, do covers for the new products, shut down pirate websites, help out around the company, and learn more about the game business.
TWITTER: VIDEOS: Star Fleet Marines Part 1 DOING VIDEOS OF THE SFU
A customer asked about posting "tutorial videos" for our games. We like it when people do that (and even give commendation medals) but you need to have us check the videos to make sure you aren't violating something somehow (or that you didn't make a rules error). Doing such videos to make money is not cool. Please drop us an email before you post the videos.
STARBLOG: STAR FLEET'S LEGIONS EXPAND: This month we feature Battle Group Hampton Roads, headquartered in Hampton, Virginia. CO William Phillips reports they play Star Fleet Battles and Federation & Empire. They also enjoy attending gaming conventions. Read more here: http://www.starfleetgames.com/battlegroup/battlegroup_HamptonRoads.shtml
Do you have a battle group? Be sure to report your activities here: http://www.starfleetgames.com/battlegroup/report.shtml
Do you want to see if there's a battle group near you? Check out the map here: http://www.starfleetgames.com/battlegroup/gather.shtml#US
Facebook Fan Pages
So join us on Facebook and get a fix of your favorite game there, too! As announced in Captain's Log #54, Jean Sexton Beddow's husband, Al Beddow has been appointed to take over the day-to-day of running the SFU Ranger demo team. He comes with a bit of experience both teaching various types of games as well as having been in quite a few demo teams (and ran/helped run a few). He is most familiar with GURPS Prime Directive but early on played ACTASF and spent Gencon 2012 demoing it in the Mongoose Publishing booth there. So, we are asking each of you to email Al at the address below with the following: - Name Al will add you to the Ranger group on the forum once he has this info, which will let you access our area there. He is looking forward to working with all of you to spread the news of the Star Fleet Universe! Current stats: We have heard from 22 of our Rangers and have three new ones! We are excited to see the Rangers becoming active as playing in person and cons once again start up. Jean Sexton Beddow Al Beddow Ranger Email: adbrangerhq@gmail.com FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/517647465103651/ ADB Forums: http://www.starfleetgames.com/federation/phpbb2/index.php ADB BBS: http://www.starfleetgames.com/discus/
JAGDPANTHER
Custom Decals for Starline ships
Tenneshington Decals continues to produce decal sets made to fit Federation starships in ADB's Shapeways 3788, 3125, 7000 "Elite", and 2500 "Prestige" scales. A wide selection of ships are available, with sets for the CVo operational ("flatbed") carrier, CVA heavy fleet carrier, CF fast cruiser, and DDF fast destroyer recently added. The 3788 scale decals are also great to use on ADB's metal Starline 2400 ships and the 3125 scale decals can be used on ADB's metal Starline 2500 ships. Tenneshington will also continue to offer their legacy decals for Starline 2500 ships as special orders, for customers wishing to match their existing minis. As with all of their products, the names on the ships are up to the customer and all sheets are custom-printed to order. Additional decal sets are available for shuttlecraft and to sets to detail any ship with additional window blocks, sensors, hatches, and even phaser scars. For more information or to download the order sheet, check them out at www.tenneshington.com. Or if you prefer, email Will McCammon at: will@tenneshington.com or Tony L. Thomas at: scoutdad@tenneshington.com .
ONLINE TOURNAMENTS Update to Sapphire Star IX: With Sapphire Star tournaments IX and X finished, XI is now running. The second Sapphire Crown tournament will kick off on 1 June with the four most recent winners.
DEMOS AND CONS WITH SFU GAMES Due to the COVID-19 virus, many conventions have been cancelled. We encourage you to check out Star Fleet Battles Online where there is a free demo version. It is a good way to hang out with others who play Star Fleet Battles and Federation Commander. Check it out here: https://www.sfbonline.com/index.jsp Star Fleet Battles games are played regularly in Columbus, Ohio, on Sunday afternoons at the Soldiery. Lee Hanna is the contact person. Download Transmissions HAILING FREQUENCIES: This is our newsletter and will let you know all the news for all our games. You can subscribe here. Have you missed an earlier newsletter? Click here to get caught up! COMMUNIQUE: This monthly magazine repeated much of the same information that Hailing Frequencies does. December 2019 was the last month it was published. Old issues can be downloaded from the Commander's Circle. Mini of the Month This is the 3788 Scale Lyran Java Tiger Heavy Command Cruiser (CCH) painted by Nick Samaras.
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New Releases EXTRAS FOR THE MONTH: You can look at Hailing Frequencies Extras here.
Click here to see our previous issues of Hailing Frequencies.
Recently Released
SHAPEWAYS:
We’re now offering some of our miniatures and some new designs on Shapeways. You can check out the store here: https://www.shapeways.com/shops/amarillo-design-bureau-inc?sort=newest
PDF and EBOOK SALES:
RECENTLY RELEASED ON Warehouse 23
Ask Admiral Vanaxilth DRONES
A. David Merritt asks: Can you replace type-I drones one-for-one with type-VI drones in an A/B/C/H/or other non G-rack, if you wanted to?
ANSWER: Only type-G and type-E racks and ADDs (plus type-H racks that have a type-VI magazine), per (FD2.51), can hold type-VI drones, so, no. Roch Chartrand asks: Can someone explain or give me an example of ballistic targeting (F4.0), especially the procedure in (F4.11)? ANSWER: A ship in hex 2008 launches a drone in direction A, targeted at hex 1908. The drone moves ahead to 2007A, then turns to 1907F, then turns to 1807E. [Note these are the only moves that satisfy (F2.21) and (F2.22), unless the drone does a high energy turn, which it is not required to do.] At that point, it would begin evading its target hex, and could move to 1708E, 1707E or 1707F. Roch Chartrand asks: I have an ECM drone that was protecting a ship moving in direction A, for an entire turn, following the same path and facing as the protected ship. On the following turn my ship went to Speed Zero and made a few warp tactical maneuvers bringing its facing to E. The ECM drone went to Speed Zero to keep pace with the ship. Does the drone do tactical maneuvers to keep the same heading as the ship? I ask this because if my ship starts moving again it will head in direction E, but if the drone is still facing A it will not protect the ship for a few impulses! ANSWER: When your ship drops to Speed Zero, so will the ECM drone. It will not change facing, as there is no provision for drones doing tactical maneuvers. However, nothing prevents you from having the drone execute a high energy turn at some point to match the facing of your ship.
David Zimdars asks: There is an interesting implication here. The ECM drone is at Speed Zero. While it may make a high energy turn at any point (and more than one if at Speed Zero for more than 32 impulses after its first high energy turn), a seeking weapon normally skips its next movement if it does not move during the impulse it uses a high energy turn. This might imply that after an ECM drone did a high energy turn in this situation, it would be unable to follow the ship out of its hex on the first impulse on which it moved. As the drone is at Speed Zero and never moves during this period, one might argue that the drone could accelerate, on a pro forma basis, to some "speed," gain its move but stay in the hex, just for one impulse. This would always work for a Speed-32 weapon, but slower ECM drones might face some perverse circumstances when even this may not be possible. ANSWER: I sent this one to Kommodore Ketrick who replied: As I read rule (F2.13) and the specific case of (FD9.182), the player can order an ECM drone to use a high energy turn and provided that the target is moving slower than the ECM drone, this will not cause the ECM drone to "lose a hex of movement" (specific overriding general) because the lost movement is one of the movements it will not use. In the case of slow drones this would have more impact, e.g., a Speed-8 drone moving with a Speed-8 ship which does a high energy turn is going to be left behind because it lost that hex of movement. But a Speed-8 drone accompanying a Speed-7 ship which does a high energy turn can be assumed to have used the unused hex of movement to stay with the ship [under (FD9.182)]. Scott Iles asks: I cannot find a reference on specifically how the launching ship receives the data. I thought the ship received it via telemetry, but I cannot find a reference that says that. All I can find is (FD6.14) which describes ejecting the probe module and it being recovered by tractor. Is that really the only way to get the data? Rule (FD6.32) describes the probe drone reporting tactical intelligence information, so it seems there is a link of some kind, but I do not want to assume that holds for science data also. Plus, why would you eject the probe module if the data was already sent back to the ship? On a related note, how long will a probe module collect data? I would assume as long as the drone has endurance, but I do not see that addressed either. If the module does not transmit the data back, is there a limit to how much it can store before the ship retrieves it? ANSWER: I sent this one to Kommodore Ketrick who replied: A probe drone does transmit the intelligence it gathers back to the launching ship. The "eject the module" thing was added due to a scenario about Klingon probe drone modules ejected into the asteroid ring around a Hydran colony planet. Note that probe drones are pretty inefficient for gathering intelligence when you are not fighting a monster. As a probe drone can only have one target, it will essentially gather information until it impacts the target (doing no damage) as any other drone (they do not fly along with the target like an ECM drone). Mike Kenyon asks: On Impulse #1 a Kzinti ship at Range 12 to a Klingon ship launches four drones including a Stonefish. On Impulse #3, the Klingon launches a wild weasel. On Impulse #8, the drones close to Range 3 of the weasel. 1. Can the Stonefish drone fire? 2. Can you set it for any size class 6/7? 3. Will it recognize the wild weasel as size class 7? (Logically no, but I cannot find a rule saying it will not.) ANSWERS: Did you set the Klingon ship as the primary target of the Stonefish drone? Then, yes it will fire when it reaches Range 3 of the wild weasel. However, it will consider the wild weasel to be the same size class as the Klingon ship, so it would not target the wild weasel unless you set it for that size class, or for the primary target. 2. You can, but it would not target the wild weasel if you did. You can program it to accept the primary target, or randomly for a set of size classes, per (FD7.31-4).
3. No, see (J3.203). (Shuttles are size class 6.) Francois Lemay asks: The Kzinti battle station has two type-D racks. How many drones can it launch from each rack? According to (FD3.41), I think it is able to launch three drones from one rack (three magazines). Is there a restriction of eight impulses between launches even between two different magazines? ANSWER: Per (FD3.41), the rack can launch one drone per turn, from any one magazine. The usual eight-impulse delay applies over turn breaks regardless of whether you are firing from the same or a different magazine. Alex Lyons asks: If the D-rack acts as I think it does, as long as you do not fire from the magazine you are reloading, you can reload while firing from a different magazine. ANSWER: You are correct. Per (FD3.43), you can take a magazine out of service to reload it and still use the launcher to launch a drone from another magazine. However, type-D racks do not come with reloads so these must be drawn from other stores. F&E Q&A
MOVEMENT AND MANEUVER Q: Police ship rules originally came out with CO, and then a year later the expanded police rule came out in PO. My question is regarding (531.212). The rule in CO reads: "Police ships cannot enter a hex containing more than one enemy ship."
The PO rule reads: "Police ships cannot use Operational Movement to enter a hex containing more than 1 enemy ship." Does the PO rule supersede, change, or clarify the CO rule or was it just sloppily written and not intended as a change? A: The PO rule clarifies the CO rule and reflects questions asked by players. Police ships cannot use Operational Movement, Reaction Movement, or Reserve Movement to enter a hex containing more than one enemy ship. A police ship can enter space containing enemy units during the retreat process. Q: I am looking at the rules for diplomats, specifically trade between allies. Rule (540.22) specifies that a valid Strategic Movement path between the capitals is required. How then do the Romulans trade with the Klingons and Lyrans, since the shortest path between a Klingon base and a Romulan base is 8 hexes? A: The Federation is a future belligerent (503.4) and as such, the trade delegation is allowed to communicate until it is no longer a future belligerent. This allows for the diplomatic action using a Federation Strategic Movement Node (SMN). Q: Rule (205.141) states that crippled units may not use Reaction Movement. Fair enough. However, can a crippled carrier send its fighters in reaction using (205.142)? Example: A crippled Lyran CVD is sitting on a supply point and has six fighter factors on the crippled side. The crippled CVD obviously may not react; however, may its six fighters react under the normal conditions for reacting groups of fighter factors? A: Correct. Rule (205.71) allows groups of six fighter factors (from one source) to react (as one group, to one target). Q: May a player with ships already in the WYN Cluster use blockade running to move an unlimited number of cargo, EP-carrying ships out of the WYN Cluster? A: There are several issues here. First, Raid Pools are limited by (314.10), (320.14), (320.51), and (320.511), so, no, you can't use an unlimited number of ships. As a non-Federation/Klingon empire you could have a maximum of three ships doing blockade runs until the Raid Pool is expanded in the Spring of Y176 (Turn #16) which increases this number by two. Federation/Klingon Raid Pools are one ship larger. (314.10) Second, blockade running to the WYN Cluster is a round trip, from the Raid Pool to the WYN Cluster and back, all in the same turn. By definition, ships in the WYN Cluster cannot be in your Raid Pool (unless you are the WYN player). Cool Stuff on the Website In this section we will provide links to various web pages and items that we think you will find "cool". We have also uploaded new Xander wallpapers to our Wallpapers section on the website: Wallpapers STAR FLEET ALERTS These are the press releases we send to the wholesalers, retailers, and media. You can get on the mailing list for them by asking Marketing@StarFleetGames.com to add you to the list. (Obviously, they are free.) They are uploaded to the Star Fleet Alert page FC Tactic of the MonthDIRECTED PLASMA Since the best defense against plasma is speed, plasma ships will usually be facing ships going very fast. This means that plasma ships will often have to depend on bolting their torpedoes. However, do not look at this as a problem, but rather as an opportunity! Be sure to take every opportunity to use direct damage. The maximum range of directed damage (ten hexes) is exactly the same as the plasma "glory zone" (beyond the overload range of most weapons). Use this synergy to your advantage.
The number of shield boxes repairable through the use of energy (D9.2) is limited in each turn to half the current damage control rating of the ship (rounding down). Ships with a damage control rating of 4 (or better) may repair up to two previously destroyed shield boxes per turn. A question arises: if power is available to repair two (or more) shield boxes in a turn and more than one shield is damaged, should a ship concentrate repair on only one shield or split repaired boxes across more than one damaged shield?
Even if a previously damaged shield were fully brought down to zero boxes in the current turn, damage control allocated to that shield will repair a box during the End of Turn Procedure. Having one box available will enable the use of direct reinforcement for that shield on Impulse #1 of the immediate subsequent turn (and thereafter) - either by allocated or reserve power. Having allocated to the repair of a shield brought down in the current turn is especially effective in mitigating the so-called Impulse #32 - Impulse #1 "Hack-and-Slash" attack. Consider then if previously damaged adjacent (front) shields are (or nearly are) facing the enemy, it may be difficult to predict just exactly which damaged shield will be brought down in the upcoming turn. In this case, splitting the repair of two (or more) damaged shield boxes among several shields will increase the odds that a shield brought down during the upcoming turn will have one box available immediately in the following turn. Although powered shield repair is often considered to be "expensive," players should consider that often sufficient power is available; powered shield repair is not really more expensive than general reinforcement (and is permanent). Note, of course, power may only be allocated to repair shields with pre-existing damage. While conventional wisdom suggests that it is best defensively to concentrate as much of your opponent's damage on a single shield (without allowing penetration), consider if it is possible to allow or induce a token amount of damage on more than one front shield to enable this split shield repair tactic. Furthermore, while you may have enough reserve power to prevent any shield boxes from being destroyed by incoming fire, consider allowing one damage point to be scored, particularly if a follow-on attack is imminent and power for shield repairs may be available. Lastly, if a lightly damaged shield is being repaired at the end of the current turn, and a "Hack-and-Slash" attack seems imminent, consider allowing the attacker to strike that shield. Conversely, an attacking player, particularly one attempting a "Hack-and-Slash" attack, may consider maneuvering to strike a fresh, undamaged shield rather than striking a shield with a handful of destroyed boxes. Because the shield was previously undamaged, there is no way for the defender to repair the shield in anticipation, and an Impulse #1 strike against a truly down shield is guaranteed. (End of SFB Tactic of the Month)
As a unique ship with the highest Coalition mauler capability, the Lyran Saber-Tooth Lion requires careful deployment. The Alliance will try to destroy the ship in its first use, costing the Lyran player another dreadnought hull to replace it for very little additional advantage over the Saber-Tooth Tiger. Here are three ways to employ the ship for maximum effect and minimal risk.
First, the Saber-Tooth Lion makes a great pursuit ship. Coalition players should always have a mauler saved for the pursuit battle, and obviously, the Alliance player should be on the run, so why not save the Saber-Tooth Lion for this battle? The extra two points of mauler power and the ability to target multiple Alliance ships make this tactic effective. The risk is reduced as the retreating Alliance player will be less likely to put up a battle force (plus high battle intensity rating) sufficient to destroy the Saber-Tooth Lion - at least not without subjecting his retreating crippled ships to an even greater onslaught. Furthermore, even if you are forced to cripple the Saber-Tooth Lion, it cannot itself be pursued and destroyed after a pursuit battle. Second, the Coalition always pairs the rare stasis field generator (SFG) units with maulers. But because the stasis field generator is a Klingon unit, and because it is usually deployed in hot action zones, the Klingon player may not think to invite the Lyran Saber-Tooth Lion along for the battle. The extra two points of mauler power become doubly effective when multiplied by the SFG effect. The stasis field generator unit itself will likely draw the Alliance player's remaining directed fire. But the best version of stasis field generator/Saber-Tooth Lion coupling is the use of the B10AA. The B10AA can target five Alliance ships safely, thereby not only creating multiple Alliance stasis targets, but usually reducing Alliance firepower sufficiently to guarantee the survival of the B10AA. When paired to the B10AA, the Lyran player need fear nothing for the safety of his Saber-Tooth Lion, as the 24 points required just to cripple it will always be used against the stasis field generator-vulnerable B10AA instead. Third, the Saber-Tooth Lion arrives in the game on Turn #12, meaning it is not likely to be deployed in the dangerous Kzinti and Hydran capital assaults. By Turn #16, the Federation capital's survival usually means that the Coalition turns from an offensive to a defensive stance, creating another special use for the Saber-Tooth Lion. While the Kzintis and/or Hydrans are building new shipyards, the Lyrans should be fortifying their positions in conquered territory. Adding the Saber-Tooth Lion to the defensive fleet presents a more powerful mauler in combination with planetary defense units and bases. Since the Alliance player will only be assaulting these fortified positions with the intent to destroy the planetary defense units and bases, the Saber-Tooth Lion will be a secondary target at best. Its lessened risk of shock offers the Lyran player shots on Alliance ships over multiple battles. (End of F&E Strategy of the Month)
A Call To Arms: Star Fleet Tactic of the Month When resolving the damage from weapons in A Call to Arms: Star Fleet, the attacking player may choose the order in which the damage from different weapons is resolved. This order can be important because some weapons will average more damage per hit than others when striking the hull of a ship. When rolling on the attack table, a roll of "one" will be a bulkhead hit and score no damage. Any other roll will score one point of damage. On average, a hull hit will score five-sixths of a point of damage.
Weapons with the Precise trait, however, will never hit the bulkheads and will score critical hits on rolls of five or six, averaging one point of damage. Hits from weapons with the Devastating trait (limited to photon torpedoes and plasma torpedoes in ACTASF-1.2) will score no damage on a "one," but will score two critical levels on a "six," for one bonus damage point, assuming that they hit an undamaged system, and so should score one damage point, on average. Therefore, you should resolve any weapons damage in the following order: non-precise, non-devastating weapons (e.g., disruptors), then precise and devastating weapons. (The order in which precise and devastating weapons are resolved should not make much difference on average.) If the early fire brings the shield down, the later fire will have more effect. Of course, if the damage is not enough to bring down the shield, or there is no shield, it does not matter what order you resolve the damage in.
(End of A Call to Arms: Star Fleet Tactic of the Month)
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