Here is a summary of game play starting with Character Creation through the Post Battle Activities that comprise a single campaign turn.
Character CreationThis step is pretty similar to many other wargames. You have your choice of humans, aliens and robots for crew members. You start with six crew members and I went through my collection of Okumarts Extrastellar miniatures and picked out four humans, one alien, and a robot to make up my crew. Each type has baseline stats that are then modified with rolls on Background, Motivation and Class tables. Then you make rolls on equipment tables to equip the team. All equipment is common and can be assigned to any crew member as needs arise.
You also roll on tables to create your ship (and determine how much debt you carry on it) and to add flavor to your crew.
All rolls are optional, you can pick from the lists instead to make the most reasonable outcome. I stuck with the rolls as they came out just to see how things came out.
Campaigns
With your crew of six, you can decide to field four, five or six members on the field at the same time.
Now you begin with what I call the "World Steps".
Create you starting worldYou roll for your starting world's characteristics.
Upkeep and ship repairsEach turn you have to pay to maintain your crew (room and board, entertainment, etc.)
If you have any injured crew members, you deal with medical issues now.
You also have to deal with your ship's debt which rises each turn.
If the ship is damaged, you deal with this now also.
Crew tasksEach turn your crew is assigned to one of a list of tasks that need to be rolled up on tables. These tasks are:
- Find a Patron (and a job offer)
- Train
- Trade
- Recruit
- Explore
- Track down Rivals
- Repair Equipment
- Decoy Rivals
Job offersBased on any Patrons you found in the Tasks step, you now roll up job offers to choose from. Each job results in a battle of some type with a variety of rewards for successful completion.
Assign equipmentNow you can assign or re-assign equipment to your crew. You probably got some new equipment either in the Trade or Explore tasks, so you need to make sure the right equipment is assigned to the right crew member who can make the best use of it.
Resolve rumorsThe Rumor step links up with the possibility of following a quest. At some point you have collected enough rumors to roll yourself into a quest. The details of the quest are up to you to create as you link up all of your encounters to tell a story.
Choose your battleNow you choose what your battle is going to be. First you have to see if any of your rivals (if you have any yet) decide to attack you. If not you have a choice of accepting a Patron job, embark on a Quest, or attempt an Opportunity mission (the default if nothing else has presented itself). Another option is an Invasion battle, but these are triggered by post battle activities at some point (I haven't gotten that yet).
Regardless of your choice, a battle is the result. If your rival has attacked, you know who you are facing. If not, you roll up your opponent in a series of tables that tell you what type of opponent you face (Criminals, Muscle, Interested Parties, and Roving Threats), any deployment conditions, and the objective of the battle. Along with the type of opponent, you roll to determine the specific opponent class as well as their weapons.
Each class of opponent has a specific AI type that determines how they deploy and how they act on the field of battle.
Now onto the Battle.You set up an appropriate table of terrain to battle on. The minimum size if 2' by 2'. The maximum is 3' by 3'. There are some guidelines for terrain, but you are really only limited by what you have available. Remember that this is a skirmish wargame, so block line of sight is critical. The more scatter the better.
Your crew starts up on one side and the opponent sets up on the opposite side. Each battle is broken into rounds and each round consists of:
Reaction RollYou roll against your crew member's reaction value to determine when they activate.
Quick ActionsIf any of your rolls are successful, these members act in the quick action phase. Each action is made up movement then combat. Always in this order, although you can choose to do one and not the other.
Enemy ActionsNow all enemy figures act. Their actions are governed by the AI type (Cautious, Aggressive, Tactical, Rampaging, Defensive, Beast, and Guardian). This takes some getting used to, but you are playing solo, so mistakes are really just learning opportunities.
Slow ActionsThe rest of your crew acts, just like in the Quick phase.
End PhaseOnce you meet the mission' parameters, the battle is over. There are various win conditions to make each battle somewhat different.
Once the battle is over, there is a list of
Post Battle Activities to complete.
Rival StatusDid the opponent become a Rival? This is based on a simple roll and if so, they might come up again for a rematch.
Patron StatusDid you satisfy the Patron? If so, there might be a follow up job offer. If not, you might not be able to use them ever again.
Quest ProgressIf you battle was a Quest battle, it helps you progress toward finishing a quest.
Get PaidYou roll to determine what your pay is and this is modified by any conditions on the job determined when the job offer was rolled up.
Battlefield FindsYou roll to see what (if anything) you were able to scavenge on the battlefield.
Check for InvasionIt is possible that you battle clues you into an imminent invasion that will add flavor to the next turn.
LootDid your opponents leave anything of value on the field? Loot and finds are slightly different and you get both.
Resolve any injuriesIf any crew members were injured, you determine their fate.
Experience and UpgradesEach crew member gets XP based on performance in the battle and can then use total XP to upgrade stats.
Advanced TrainingThis is the opportunity to pay for training to upgrade abilities. The possible options are Pilot Training, Mechanic Training, Medical School, Security Training, Broker Training, and Bot Technician.
Purchase ItemsIf you have enough credits to buy that Plasma Rifle, now is the time!
Campaign EventsYou roll to see if anything special has now occurred to impact your overall campaign.
Character EventsYou roll to see if something has occurred to one of your crew.
Galactic WarYou roll to see if the Galactic War is getting closer to you.
Now you start over again.
Do you stay on this planet? Maybe you have too many rivals here and want a fresh start. There is whole section on travel activities along with the potential for ship board battles.
If you stay put, you start with upkeep and go from there.
There is a list of possible campaign durations based on number of turns, number of quests, number of battles, etc. My current campaign is based on completing 20 turns.
This is a really long post, and I am sure I left out some items, but I think this gives you a good idea of how this game works. If you have questions, I am happy to try to answer them.