Star Fleet Battles
Encyclopedia
Military tactics
Military tactics, the science and art of organizing an army or an air force, are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics. In...
board wargame
Board wargame
A board wargame is a wargame with a set playing surface or board, as opposed to being played on a computer, or in a more free-form playing area as in miniatures games. The hobby around this type of game got its start in 1954 with the publication of Tactics, and saw its greatest popularity in the...
set in an offshoot of the Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
setting called the Star Fleet Universe
Star Fleet Universe
The Star Fleet Universe is the variant of the Star Trek fictional universe detailed in the series of Star Fleet Battles games from Amarillo Design Bureau Inc. and used as reference for the Starfleet Command series of computer games...
. Originally created in 1979 by Stephen V. Cole
Stephen V. Cole
Stephen V. Cole is an American game designer and the CEO of Amarillo Design Bureau, Inc. which publishes Star Fleet Battles, Federation and Empire, Federation Commander, Prime Directive, and other wargames set in the Star Fleet Universe.Cole, an engineer and former US Army intelligence officer,...
,
it has had four major editions. The current edition is published by Amarillo Design Bureau Inc.
Amarillo Design Bureau Inc.
Amarillo Design Bureau is a company which specializes in tactical and strategic board wargames. The company is a successor to Task Force Games, and is owned and operated by Steve and Leanna Cole, with partner Steve Petrick, and based in Amarillo, Texas...
as Star Fleet Battles, Captain's Edition. Star Fleet Battles was inducted into the Academy of Adventure Gaming, Arts, & Design Hall of Fame in 2005 where they stated that "Star Fleet Battles literally defined the genre of spaceship combat games in the early 1980s, and was the first game that combined a major license with 'high re-playability'."
In his 2007 essay, Bruce Nesmith stated "No other game in hobby game history so completely captures the feel of ship-to-ship combat in space than Star Fleet Battles. The fact that it does so in the Star Fleet Universe is icing on the cake."
Star Fleet Battles is a ship-to-ship warfare simulation game, which uses cardboard counters
Counter (board wargames)
Boardgame counters are usually small cardboard squares moved around on the map of a wargame to represent armies, military units or individual military personnel. The first modern mass-market wargame, based on cardboard counters and hex-board maps, was Tactics, invented by Charles S. Roberts in 1952...
to represent the ships, shuttles, seeking weapons, terrain, and information on a hexagonal map. It is not simply a game, but rather a detailed game system for two or more players (there are some solitaire scenarios). Typically, a player will have one ship in a game, though he can control an entire fleet, if he can keep track of the paperwork and options involved; multiple players can play as teams, with each team splitting up the work of running a squadron or fleet, or a 'free-for-all' fight can be run. Ships represented in the game are typically starship
Starship
A starship or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel....
s from such classic Star Trek powers as the Federation, Romulan Star Empire, Klingon Empire, or purely Star Fleet Universe creations such as the Hydran Kingdom or Interstellar Concordium.
The game system uses an impulse-based turn system, which is a departure from the traditional I-Go You-Go alternating system used by most wargames. A ship's speed determines how often and when it can move based on a 32 impulse movement chart. Generally, a unit only moves one hex at a time, making 32 the maximum 'speed' in the game. Similar systems are used in games such as Steve Jackson
Steve Jackson (US)
Steve Jackson is an American game designer. After working for many years at Metagaming Concepts designing such games as Ogre and The Fantasy Trip, he left to found Steve Jackson Games in the early 1980s...
's Car Wars
Car Wars
Car Wars is a vehicle combat simulation game developed by Steve Jackson Games. It was first published in late 1980 .-Game play:In Car Wars, players assume control of one or more automobiles, which may include any powered vehicle, from motorcycles to semi trucks. Optional rules include piloting...
(which uses a 5 phase system) and is designed to more realistically simulate unit movement in an environment where the units can move a great distance in the time needed for non-movement functions (like weapons fire) to occur.
Overview
Star Fleet Battles was based on the Star Trek universe as of 1979 and includes elements of Star Trek: The Original SeriesStar Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
and Star Trek: The Animated Series
Star Trek: The Animated Series
Star Trek: The Animated Series is an animated science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe following the events of Star Trek: The Original Series of the 1960s...
. Federation elements were heavily based on concepts from The Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual
The Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual
The Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual is a fiction reference book by Franz Joseph Schnaubelt, about the workings of Starfleet, a military, exploratory, and diplomatic organization featured in the television series, Star Trek.Although it is fiction, the book is presented as an in-universe...
. Unlike the mainstream Star Trek universe, Star Fleet Battles seems to consider some, but not all of The Animated Series
Star Trek: The Animated Series
Star Trek: The Animated Series is an animated science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe following the events of Star Trek: The Original Series of the 1960s...
, as being a canon
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
material source, thus leading to the inclusion of aliens such as the Kzinti.
Since the first publication of the game, Star Fleet Battles and the Star Trek universe have diverged considerably as the authors of the game and those of the film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s and television series have basically ignored each other. The resulting divergent world of Star Fleet Battles is known as the "Star Fleet Universe
Star Fleet Universe
The Star Fleet Universe is the variant of the Star Trek fictional universe detailed in the series of Star Fleet Battles games from Amarillo Design Bureau Inc. and used as reference for the Starfleet Command series of computer games...
".
There are several notable games set in this universe, including the computer game series Starfleet Command
Star Trek: Starfleet Command
Star Trek: Starfleet Command is a computer game based on the table-top wargame Star Fleet Battles. It simulates starship operations, and ship-to-ship combat and fleet warfare in the Star Trek universe....
(which combines parts of SFU with parts of canon Star Trek), the role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
setting
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
Prime Directive
Prime Directive (role-playing game)
Prime Directive is a role-playing game set in the Star Trek-derived Star Fleet Universe. The game has gone through two different incarnations.-Prime Directive RPG:...
, (currently available for the GURPS
GURPS
The Generic Universal RolePlaying System, or GURPS, is a tabletop role-playing game system designed to allow for play in any game setting...
and d20 system
D20 System
The d20 System is a role-playing game system published in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast originally developed for the third edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
s), the card game
Card game
A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...
Star Fleet Battle Force
Star Fleet Battle Force
Star Fleet Battle Force is a card-based starship combat game system, produced and developed by Amarillo Design Bureau Inc. It allows fast-paced multiplayer combat between vessels of various factions in the Star Fleet Universe, such as the Federation, the Klingon and Romulan Empires, the Gorn...
, and the strategy game Federation and Empire
Federation and Empire
Federation and Empire is a strategic-level board wargame set in the fictional Star Fleet Universe spinoff of Star Trek, currently published by Amarillo Design Bureau Inc....
, as well as the recently-released Federation Commander
Federation Commander
Federation Commander is a tactical starship combat board wargame system, produced and developed by Amarillo Design Bureau Inc. It is designed to represent combat between vessels of various factions in the Star Fleet Universe, such as the United Federation of Planets and the Klingon Empire...
.
While not set within the Star Fleet Universe, the Master of Orion
Master of Orion
Master of Orion is a turn-based, 4X science fiction computer strategy game released in 1993 by MicroProse on the MS-DOS and Mac OS operating systems. The purpose of the game is to lead one of ten races to dominate the galaxy through a combination of diplomacy and conquest while developing...
series of computer games were partially inspired by the Star Fleet Universe. Master of Orion was largely a combination of concepts from Sid Meier's Civilization and the Star Fleet Universe. Many computer games, most obviously games such as Rules of Engagement and Renegade Legion: Interceptor, were influenced by Star Fleet Battles.
The Star Fleet Universe has also had its impact on the TV series. There is an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
, Peak Performance
Peak Performance (TNG episode)
"Peak Performance" is an episode from the second season of Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Plot:The USS Enterprise-D is ordered by Starfleet Command to take part in a combat practice simulation in preparation for the Borg threat...
, that is a thinly veiled tribute to Star Fleet Battles. The plot of the episode is based on the SFB scenario "Practice, Practice, and Then What?". There are several references, some subtle and others not, to Star Fleet Battles including a "master strategist" named Kolrami in a not so subtle reference to SFB's designer. The episode ends with Captain Picard mentioning "Star Fleet Battles" in his final comments.
Another note is that the license Star Fleet Battles operates under does not allow for direct reference to the characters and detailed events of the Original Series. As such, official material does not include references to Kirk
James T. Kirk
James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. Kirk was first played by William Shatner as the principal lead character in the original Star Trek series. Shatner voiced Kirk in the animated Star Trek series and appeared in the first seven Star Trek movies...
, Spock
Spock
Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by Leonard Nimoy in the original Star Trek series, Spock also appears in the animated Star Trek series, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation, seven of the Star Trek feature films, and numerous Star Trek...
or use the USS Enterprise
Starship Enterprise
The Enterprise or USS Enterprise is the name of several fictional starships, some of which are the focal point for various television series and films in the Star Trek franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. It is considered a name of legacy in the fleet...
directly, though the latter is included in ship listings. This has not prevented oblique references, such as a comment about the first Gorn
Gorn
In Star Trek, the Gorn are humanoid reptiles from the Gorn Hegemony.-Fictional history:The Gorn had contact with the Orion Syndicate as early as 2154...
-Federation meeting as involving “two young captains who fired first, and faced embarrassing questions later.” Other references are monster scenarios loosely based on the planet killer from The Doomsday Machine and the space amoeba from The Immunity Syndrome.
The divergences have included races in each that are not in the other, and also the general tone of the universes. The writers of the films and television series wanted to stay close to Gene Roddenberry
Gene Roddenberry
Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer and futurist, best known for creating the American science fiction series Star Trek. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer...
's optimistic view of the future in which differences between groups could ultimately be resolved peacefully. Conversely, peace is not useful in a military wargame so the universe of Star Fleet Battles is one of constant conflict and warfare.
Pocket Edition
Star Fleet Battles was originally published as a 'pocket-game'Microgame
A microgame is a board game or wargame packaged in a small set. Microgames enjoyed popularity during the 1980s...
in a ziplock bag as "Task Force Game #4" by Task Force Games
Task Force Games
Task Force Games was a game company started in 1979 by Allen Eldridge and Stephen Cole. Mr. Cole left the company in the early 1980's, but continued to design the company's best selling Star Fleet Battles game. Mr. Eldridge sold the company to New World Computing in 1988...
in 1979. Steve Cole later recalled:
The design of Star Fleet Battles began during 1975... Jim Brown... and I were playing a lot of JutlandJutland (game)Jutland is a wargame designed by Jim Dunnigan and published by Avalon Hill Game Company in 1967. The game covers the Battle of Jutland, fought in May and June 1916 between the British Grand Fleet and the German High Seas Fleet off the Jutland coast of Denmark.The game is unusual for an Avalon Hill...
.... One afternoon I was studying the Jutland battle that was in progress on my floor (left from the previous evening) when the [Star Trek] re-run of the day came on. I began to consider the possibility of doing a space game on the Jutland system. JagdPanther was in operation at the time, and I had vague thoughts that I could somehow get a license for the game.
By the time Jim came by to collect me for dinner, I had a Federation CA and a Klingon D7 fighting it out. In the brief space of an hour long re-run, I had two SSD's, the proportional movement system, and the charts for phasers and disruptor bolts. All were to change drastically within a week and were to continue evolving for five years, but the start was made.
The company JagdPanther closed down before SFB was finished, but the game was not forgotten, and when Steve Cole and Allen Eldridge decided to start a new company (Task Force Games) Star Fleet Battles was one of several half-finished designs proposed to be published by them.
While the initial format was small, and the number of ships limited, the game was still not simple. This was dictated in part by a desire to do the "definitive Star Fleet game". This meant that it included as much detail as possible from all the source material available. In the mid-70s, this meant the original two series and a number of fan publications. Except for The Original Series itself, none of these materials are considered canon today, but at the time, they were all considered fairly authoritative, especially the Star Fleet Technical Manual by Franz Joseph
Franz Joseph (artist)
Franz Joseph was an artist and author loosely associated with the 1960’s American television show Star Trek. Joseph is perhaps best known for his 1973 Star Trek Blueprints , to date the only set of blueprints of the original Starship Enterprise ever officially endorsed by...
, which had originally been blessed by Gene Roddenberry, and from which Steve Cole got the license to do a Star Trek game.
Elements of these almost forgotten fan productions shaped many aspects of the game. The Technical Manual itself decided the main functions of the Federation Heavy Cruiser, and what other Federation ships looked like. A set of blueprints (probably those drawn by Michael McMaster in 1975) showed the Klingon D7 as having more phasers than the Heavy Cruiser, and disruptors mounted on the engines. The latter became a common feature of Klingon shipbuilding, and the former led to the idea of less powerful phasers for the Klingons. The same blueprints also stated that an older, slightly inferior version of the D7, the D6, was what was sold to the Romulans, and the D7/D6 dichotomy has been at the heart of the Klingon fleet in the game ever since. Two of the novels gave mention of a phaser being mounted on shuttlecraft. This was included, as much to give a reason to use shuttles as anything else. This proved to be the wedge that allowed the introduction of fighters to the game; a feature popular with many players, but also led many to believe that Star Fleet Battles was no longer Star Trek.
Designer's Edition
Later in 1979, Star Fleet Battles was re-released in a boxed set known as the Designer's Edition. The original plan had been to produce "three interlocking games, all to be published in the 'pocket' format. When 'completed' this trilogy would cover the entire system."However, the real reason for this plan was that it had been impossible to acquire boxes at an affordable price. When a source of boxes was found, it was decided to do a revised, expanded version instead. The box contained about twice as many ships and scenarios as the original Pocket Edition, and was expanded upon itself by three expansions in the same zip-lock format as the original (named, imaginatively enough, Expansion #1, Expansion #2, and Expansion #3).
These expansions rapidly added many new ships and concepts to the system which are parts of it to this day: The Hydrans, Andromedans and Lyrans were introduced as new empires. 'War cruisers', cheap ships almost, but not quite, as powerful as the heavy cruisers the game was based on. 'Pseudo-fighters' (later renamed 'fast patrol' ships; but retaining the 'PF' designation) were designed to be about as small as a ship could be and still fit in the system. 'X-ships' or 'up-rated cruisers', which were based on the new versions of the Enterprise and Klingon ships seen in Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a 1979 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the first film based on the Star Trek television series. The film is set in the twenty-third century, when a mysterious and immensely powerful alien cloud called V'Ger approaches the Earth,...
. However, many things were being re-written, and each expansion included new elements that impacted how previous rules worked, making the entire system something of a jumble. "It was clear that issuing yet another 'expansion kit' that devoted half of its space to correcting previous products was not the answer."
Commander's Edition
Most of the material (including the new empires) from the Expansions was reorganized and released as Volume II. The bulk of the fighter rules were in Supplement #1, X-ships (now redone not to be based on ST:TMP) were in Supplement #2, and PFs (now renamed as Fast Patrol ships) were in Supplement #3.
From there, Commander's Edition came out with new products for the next half-decade or so. Two Reinforcements packs allowed the purchase of extra counters. Volume III added the Interstellar Concordium and the Neo-Tholians, as well as new ships and new concepts (such as heavy fighters). Nexus magazine was launched as a house organ
House organ
A house organ is a magazine or periodical published by a company for its customers or its employees...
for Task Force Games, and featured a regular SFB section.
Of lasting importance was the launch of Captain's Log, a continuing semi-periodical journal
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
dedicated to Star Fleet Battles that is still running today. Also, the 'Commander's SSD' was introduced. SSDs had just been a half-sheet diagram of the ship's systems. The new style (which did not appear in Volume I or II), took a full sheet and included extra record-keeping information, such as tracks for drone ammo and shuttles, and firing charts for all the weapons on the ship. A line of nine Commander's SSD Books were produced, the first few of which were mostly involved presenting new-style SSDs for the older ships, the last several of which had all new material.
During this entire period, there had been a constant stream of Errata, and later Addenda (which amounted to the same thing). For a long time, the vast majority of the mail received was from the top few fanatical SFB players, who constantly campaigned for new rules, rules fixes, and rules changes. This became a source of discontent for most of the rest of the players, who did not appreciate a game that changed every few months, and needed a sheaf of notes along with the voluminous rules. However, it was generally believed nearly impossible to repair the damage by properly re-writing and re-integrating such a large and complex system into a new edition before doomsday
End times
The end time, end times, or end of days is a time period described in the eschatological writings in the three Abrahamic religions and in doomsday scenarios in various other non-Abrahamic religions...
, especially without bringing the product line to a halt while only new versions of old products were released.
Doomsday
The long gestation, however, did give us time to plan an all-new edition. The publisher insisted that we should reorganize the game system into entirely new products. This was necessary to present the material to an entirely new generation of gamers in a more logical format (and to make dealers notice that it was a new edition).
The changes were sweeping. There were two boxed sets (in a smaller format than former boxes), the first of which, Basic Set, was roughly the same as Volume I. The second, Advanced Missions was different in that it only introduced new rules and ship types (more ships than any other single product in fact), but stayed with the same selection of basic empires as the first box. Nearly everything else is labeled Module x, where x is a letter (and number, in a series), along with a name, and comes as a booklet of rules and a booklet of SSDs, with a sheet of counters and a color wrapper as the cover. The new empires of Volume II and III were presented in Module C1 and C2.
Captain's Log #8 spent a decent amount of room explaining exactly what the new edition meant, and how the new products would work. The release of 'Doomsday' was split into five phases:
- Phase I was the
- Phase II included
- Phase III was
- Phase IV updated the
- Phase V was a promise to continue developing new products once the transition to
And the biggest change was: "We'll explain everything, but we won't change anything!" Doomsday promised an end to addenda. Loopholes might be closed, new things might still be added, but no previous rule would change as a result.
Interregnum
The new edition was a success, but could not stop the march of time. Wargaming as a whole had been on the decline since about 1980, and Task Force Games joined the list of established gaming companies that did not survive the '90s. The decline of TFG was gradual, and SFB suffered long before the company actually folded:Ultimately, however, the publisher was battered by market forces, a few bad decisions, and perhaps a lack of focus. The game system more or less disappeared from the market by the end of 1996 when ADB was unable to design new games without being paid for the previous ones. Two years of tedious negotiations were completed in January 1999 and Amarillo Design Bureau, Inc. was born.
Since very early on, the publishing duties and design duties had actually been split, with the Amarillo Design Bureau (ADB) handling all of the product design, while TFG had published, and indicated what they wanted to produce. The end of TFG put everything under one house again, and ADB, Inc. spent some time picking up the pieces of nearly three years without SFB. The first order of business, in fact, was to reprint Basic Set and Advanced Missions which had been out of stock for about three years at this point. While they were at it, all the errata and questions were evaluated, and many sections of the rules were re-written in an effort to make the game clearer. These editions featured new cover colors and a '1999' legend at the bottom of the cover to show when they were printed.
The time period between the last products from TFG, and ADB's announcement that they had re-secured the rights to the system were not entirely without new material. Bruce Graw published Star Fleet Times as an SFB newsletter about ten times a year, mostly during what was afterward called 'The Interregnum'. Its run ended with issue 50 in 2000, as it was considered that the internet served the same purpose (a regular way for the fans to keep in touch) much more efficiently.
SFBOL and Print On Demand
Since then, ADB, Inc. has gotten everything back in print, released a number of new products, and has seen the number of SFB players slowly grow again. This is in part due to the fact that it has a strong on-line community, encouraged by the company forum, and the existence of SFBOL.Star Fleet Battles On-Line is a software client that allows a person to play SFB against other people on the internet. While it does still require a personal understanding of the rules to play, the client does contain all the record-keeping functions of the game, and provides for some easier handling of places that require 'simultaneous' decisions (which have always been difficult in normal face-to-face play).
Star Fleet Battles On-Line was originally developed by Online Game Systems and is currently maintained and supported by Symbiotic Games
In the meantime, ADB continues to try to serve the SFB community with new products, and new ways to do products. Currently, they only have to go to a regular printing company for counters and color covers. These are then stockpiled, and when an order comes in, in-house (black-and-white) printers run the interiors, and other in-house machines do the binding and trimming. This 'print on demand
Print on demand
Print on demand , sometimes called, in error, publish on demand, is a printing technology and business process in which new copies of a book are not printed until an order has been received...
' process allows greater freedom in product releases, and warehouse storage, and all recent products use this system.
Star Fleet Universe
One of the notable things about Star Fleet Battles is that it has always endeavored to keep a consistent background that all the ships and empires come from. This started out as the distillation of current Star Trek lore, but soon started adding its own touches as gaps were perceived in structure. With the rebirth of Star Trek as an active film franchise, the 'SFU' started diverging sharply from canon Star Trek, as the producers ignored anything from fan productions, and SFBs own licence did not allow them to use the new material. Due to several factors, the SFU has re-interpreted several things, and in some places only bears a passing resemblance to the show that gave it birth.However, the structure of the history itself is sound, as most things are added with an eye to how it fits in with everything that is already known. As a result, the SFU has a history that covers (in various products) a span of about 130 years. Thanks to the fact Steve Cole has been the guiding influence from start to finish, the SFU has far fewer inconsistencies than the canon Star Trek universe.
Settings
While everything published for the SFU takes place in the same continuityContinuity (fiction)
In fiction, continuity is consistency of the characteristics of persons, plot, objects, places and events seen by the reader or viewer over some period of time...
(discounting some alternate timeline scenarios), there are several separate areas that have been presented that have little to no contact in the known timeline. The vast majority of products published for Star Fleet Battles is set in the 'Alpha-Octant' (sometimes called 'Alpha-Sector', but that is actually just a part of the area covered), which includes all the races known from The Original Series. Other settings include:
- The Early Years - The era covering the emergence of the various Alpha Octant empires in the dawn of tactical warp starships, including two races (mostly) exclusive to this era, the Carnivons and Paravians. Other settings have subsequently included equivalent Early Years data, such as that seen for the Magellanic races.
- Omega (generally called 'Omega Sector', more properly 'Omega-Octant'): an area just as large as the Alpha-Octant in the Milky Way Galaxy, but with a more varied history, and separated from Alpha by a large void.
- Magellanics: The Small Magellanic Cloud, long known as the place that the Andromedans staged their invasion of the galaxy from, the recently released Module C5 presents the history of the indigenous races of the SMC and the initial Andromedan conquest of them.
- Triangulum: an entirely new area, the Triangulum GalaxyTriangulum GalaxyThe Triangulum Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 3 million light years from Earth in the constellation Triangulum. It is catalogued as Messier 33 or NGC 598, and is sometimes informally referred to as the Pinwheel Galaxy, a nickname it shares with Messier 101...
, which has only been featured in the Module E2 playtest pack so far.
Gameplay and mechanics
The Star Fleet Battles game system rests on several fundamental ideas, out of which the rest of the system grows. Part of the perceived difficulty of the game is that all of these are more complicated to explain than to use.First, the movement system (and turn structure with it) departs from the traditional 'everyone takes a turn in order' structure used in the vast majority of games. Instead, a proportional movement system is used, where a little bit of the total movement for all players is resolved at a time, so that each can see what is happening and respond to it. This avoids the usual problems with moving long distances without any fire or reactions happening, and keeps in mind that everything is moving at the same time.
Second, it is assumed that while faster than light starships produce prodigious amounts of energy just for the needs of propulsion, there is not enough energy available to perform every possible function simultaneously. Therefore, each ship has to fill out an Energy Allocation form at the beginning of a turn, and 'pay' for all the functions (such as movement, shields and weapons) that it can then use during the turn.
Fourth, it differs from many wargames
Wargaming
A wargame is a strategy game that deals with military operations of various types, real or fictional. Wargaming is the hobby dedicated to the play of such games, which can also be called conflict simulations, or consims for short. When used professionally to study warfare, it is generally known as...
, in that each unit is not simply a set of offensive and defensive numerical ratings; rather, each ship has a variety of individual weapons and resources, each employing their own tactics and counter-tactics. Thus players are able to utilize, e.g., boarding parties, shuttles, tractor beams, electronic counter-measures, etc., and use many more tactics than in the average wargame, requiring much more documentation. It is this which allows the game to become a science-fiction experience, and puts it in concert with many literary elements of Star Trek.
Rules
Since the introduction of Commander's Edition the rules have been organized with lettered major chapters, followed by a number to indicate a major rule. Then follows a decimal, and a series of numbers indicating the breakdown into subsections. (For instance, (D6.683) is the third subsection of (D6.68) Disrupted Fire Control, which is the eighth subsection of (D6.6) Active Fire Control, which is the sixth section of (D6.0) Fire Control Systems, which is the sixth rule in (D0.0) Combat.) Chapter R is an exception; as it is a listing of every ship type in the game, the number after the decimal is a sequental number identifier. e.g., (R2.12) is the Police Cutter, the eleventh Federation ship in the game (as (R2.1) is background information). Occasionally, a chapter might have sub-chapters, which are indicated with two letters.All of this may seem (and is) complicated, but is a consequence of the exceptionally wide ranging nature of the rules, and the need to identify exactly what will happen under usually-obscure circumstances. To aid in this, a fair amount of the rules are actually dedicated to cross-referencing other rules sections. As it is, the designers made an effort to ensure that there isn't any 'unaddressed interactions' between different rules, if there is a possible interaction, it is covered. The result is that many newer players can be intimidated by the sheer bulk of the rulebook.
As all the rules numbers were kept strictly intact from Commander's to Captain's Edition SFB, the presentation of rules numbers occasionally jump around in current products, as they are presented in the products that make the most sense, rather than in the order in which they were introduced in Commander's Edition.
Modules
This is a list of all products released for Captain's Edition SFB, including a few permanently out-of-print ones, but excluding ones that have been replaced by later products, with the dates of all revisions of the product.
- Basic Set (1990) (1994) (1999) (2005) (SSD Book 2011): Needed for all other sets. Boxed set. Basic and intermediate rules, with a few advanced concepts. Has Federation, Klingons, Romulans, Kzintis, Gorns, Tholians, and Orion Pirates.
- Advanced Missions (1990) (1999): Introduces various advanced rules, and ships for all empires in Basic Set. Boxed set.
- Module A+: Captain's Yeoman: Play aids. Originally Module A: Battlecards, published slightly before 'Doomsday'.
- Module B: Maps with pre-printed terrain on them (asteroid fields, gas giants...). Out of print.
- Module C1: New Worlds I (1991) (1994) (1999): Rules and ships for three empires from previous editions: Hydrans, Lyrans, and WYN.
- Module C2: New Worlds II (1991) (1994) (1999): Rules and ships for three empires from previous editions: Andromedans, ISC, and Neo-Tholians.
- Module C3: New Worlds III (1993) (2004): Rules and ships for new empires: Andromedans (bases), WYN ('fish' ships), Seltorians, and LDR.
- Module C3A: Andromedan Threat File (2011): Speculations of the Andromedan capabilities by the various Galactic intelligence agencies.
- Module C4: Fleet Training Centers (1995): Rules and ships for 'simulator empires'. These have no part in actual SFU history, but were published for new tactical challenges.
- Module C5: The Magellanic Cloud (2006): A new setting with new empires for SFB, all based in the Small Magellanic Cloud.
- Module D3: Booms and Saucers (1993): SSDs for separated Federation saucers and Klingon booms.
- Module E2: Triangulum Galaxy: Playtest/preview pack for a new setting with new empires.
- Module F1: The Jindarians (1995) (2005): Presents a single new Alpha-octant empire.
- Module F2: The Vudar Enclave (2005): Presents a single new Alpha-octant empire.
- Module G3: Master Annexes (2009): All the annexes (listings that give miscellaneous ship capabilities), updated for all products through the end of 2008, and contains some BPV adjustments.
- Module G3A: Supplementary Annexes (2009): Additional annexes not in Module G3.
- Module H1: Megahex (2005): Color 1" ship counters. The first two sheets are the same sheets that come with Federation Commander: Klingon Attack, Klingon Border, Romulan Attack and Romulan Border.
- Module J: Fighters (1991) (1994): Rules that detail the use of fighters, particularly in combat against other fighters.
- Module J2: Advanced Fighters (2002): Presents new carrier types, and several advanced options for use with fighters.
- Module K: Fast Patrol Ships (1991) (2000): All the rules needed for the operations of PFs, short-range, diminutive ships and their tenders.
- Module M: Marines (1995) (2008): Advanced boarding party and ground combat rules. Presented all as one perfect-bound book. 2008 edition features separate rule and diagram books.
- Module P: Galactic Smorgasbord (1995): A medley of preview/playtest scenarios from planned upcoming modules.
- Module R1: Bases & Auxiliaries (1992): Extra ships, and player reference.
- Module R2: Federation, Kzinti, Andro, Orion (1992): Extra ships from previous editions.
- Module R3: Klingon, Hydran, Lyran, WYN (1992) (2000): Extra ships from previous editions.
- Module R4: Romulan, Gorn, Tholian, ISC (1992) (2001) (2002) (SSD Book 2010): Extra ships from previous editions.
- Module R5: Battleships (1992) (1994): New heavy ships for most empires. First all-new Captain's product.
- Module R6: The Fast Warships (1995) (2000): New ship types for most empires.
- Module R7: Dreadnoughts at War (1999): New ship types for most empires.
- Module R8: System Defense Command (2004): Old ship types upgraded to newer technology for local defense.
- Module R9: The Ships That Never Were (2004): (And a few that were that shouldn't have been.)
- Module R10: The New Cruisers (2003): Variants for all the New Heavy Cruisers.
- Module R11: Support Ships (2007): Mostly non-front line, or 'support echelon' ships, but with a good number of combat ships as well.
- Module R12: Unusual Ships (2010): Over 100 ships. The good, the bad, and the just plain weird.
- Module S1: Scenario Book One (1992): Book full of scenarios, mostly adapted from earlier editions. Contains asteroid map from Module B.
- Module S2: Scenario Book Two (1994): Book full of scenarios, generally all-new. Contains 'Asteroid field' map from Module B.
- Module T: Tournament Battles (2000): Contains a guide to running sanctioned tournaments, which rules are used in tournaments, and SSDs for the balanced tournament cruisers.
- Module TR: Tournament Reference (2001): Gives all of the empire, weapon, and technology rules needed strictly for tournament play. (Also requires Basic set.)
- Module W: Space Battle Maps (2001): Large map with 1.25" hexes, and color cutouts for use as terrain.
- Module X1: X-Ships (1994): Rules for late-era advanced ships.
- Module X1R: X-Ship Reinforcements (2008): More X-Ships and associated support vessels.
- Module Y1: The Early Years (2000): Rules for early era ships from the dawn of tactical warp drive.
- Module Y2: Early Years Reinforcements (2008): Additional rules and ships from the dawn of tactical warp drive.
- Module Y3: The Early Years III (2010): Still more rules and ships from the Early Years Era.
- Module YG3: Early Years Annexes (2010): Annexes for the Early Years modules (Y1, Y2, and Y3).
- Module Ω1: The Omega Sector (1999): First in a series detailing a separate setting for SFB.
- Module Ω2: Omega Reinforcements (2000)
- Module Ω3: The Omega Wars (2000)
- Module Ω4: The Omega Rebellion (2002)
- Module Ω5: Omega Flotillas (2008)
- Omega Master Rulebook (2007): Compete, updated combined rulebook containing all the rules from Omega Modules one through four. Also included all material from Captain's Logs as well as new material including a complete and updated Sequence of Play.
- Tactics Manual (1991) (2000): Discussions on how to play the game well, covering general concepts and tactics for individual empires.
- Campaign Designer's Handbook: A 'how to' book for setting up a campaign system for SFB.
Master Rule Book
Recently, ADB has started releasing a set of 'Master' products. These are intended as a compilation of all the system into a single source, instead of needing to either constantly refer to different products, or tear them apart to integrate them by hand. Existing products are:- Master Rule Book (2004): Has all the rules from Basic Set, Advanced Missions, C1, C2, C3, J, J2, K, M, X, and Y1. It is the most up-to-date and comprehensive version of the rules available, but does not include ship descriptions, scenarios or annexes. Until the rest of the system is available, this is not suitable for a new player unless he has a friend who has those things available already. Replacement pages are occasionally made available, and the set is currently (April 2006) on Revision B. As this is a print on demand item, new orders are new printings with all available updates.
- Module G3: Master Annexes (2009): This module contains annexes with info for all Alpha-Octant empires in every product published through the end of 2008 (including Captain's Logs).
Also planned are the Master Ship Book, a compilation of all the Alpha-Octant ship listings; the Master SSD Book(s); and the Master Scenario Book. A full set of all these products should provided everything needed other than maps and counters.