Strategic Battleforce author

[Mostro Joe]

Someone knows Who has written the Strategic Battleforce rules? At least its core?

I wanted to make him a few questions 🙂

[Alexander Knight]

That would be me.  What are your questions?

[Mostro Joe]

Hello! And first of all, congrats for your system. It can be strange, but I found it just a few weeks ago. I ever thought that in IO - Battleforce there would only Battleforce (I have the original boxed edition too) and ISaW.

The SBF has been a pleasure to read and I really appreciate Scaled SBF. Two really interesting systems that, in my humble opinion, should be the backbone of the real "map-based campaign system".
In these weeks I converted any custom merc units I ever created in the years and I converted a custom regiment of regular forces too. It's been fun.

Ok, on with the questions:

I would convert some drones for using them with the Strategic Battleforce system. The rule in pag. 265 says:

"Drones are not part of standard SBF Formations and are always played as individual Units. Drones are converted with one Drone Element equaling one SBF Drone Unit."

It means that a formation of (say) 4 drones could not be used in a normal formation? If a Drone Carrier is in a formation, its drones must be in an entirely different formation?
And if yes, these drones cannot be grouped in a unit, but everyone of them it's a unit per se? So 3 NapFind hover drones, for an exemple, form a formation of 3 units, everyone of these units formed by just one hover drone? They cannot form a single unit formed by 3 drones?

There are no sample scenarios in the SBF, not even idea hooks, it is possible to see the system have  more space or supplements in future?

The rules to fight in a building hex can be confusing, I had to read them 2 or 3 times to understand that to fight in a building hex is not the same as to be INSIDE a building. That said, once inside a building a unit can be fired at but if it is an infantry formation you can only shoot the building. If it is a non-infantry unit you can target the formation but the building absorbs anyway the damage. It is correct?

If a unit is shooted on when inside a building, infantry or not, it seems the attacker enjoys a to-hit bonus as when it's firing to an immobile target. That to-hit bonus is not listed anywhere! I supposed a -4 like in Battletech, I guessed right?

There are no repair and manteinance rules in the SBF, That's a pity because I wanted to use the rules in CO, or at least I wanted to use SBF for a campaign.
Can you give some advice on how manage repairs to the formations? And how the damage can be converted on elements?

It is said in CO (a flawed book in my opinion, but that is too long to discuss here) that after every scenario a company accumulates fatigue. But in SBF a formation fights more than one "scenario" during a game. Can you give some advice for fatigue in SBF? I have some ideas, but I want to read your thoughts first.

Thanks for now! I have for sure other questions. 

[Alexander Knight]

Give me a little while to process most of those questions.

I can say that I would love to see more Battleforce support, but I'm not the one who makes those decisions.

[Mostro Joe]

Give me a little while to process most of those questions.

I can say that I would love to see more Battleforce support, but I'm not the one who makes those decisions.

I await then  thank you

[Moonsword]

Moving to the appropriate board.

[IronmanV2]

There are no sample scenarios in the SBF, not even idea hooks, it is possible to see the system have  more space or supplements in future?

There are seven SBF scenarios in the Battle for Tukayyid Supplemental. They also include seven SBF maps as well as the formations for the Comstar and Clan combatants.  However, those are missing crucial information like Tactics and Morale. Those can be calculated with the conversion rules but it would be more approachable if those pre-filled out sheets had those included. I posted about those missing in the errata thread so maybe they will be updated one day.

I took the maps to a local printer and had two of them printed out in full color (Robyn's Crossing and Lake Losiije). I ran the Robyn's Crossing scenario 3 times solo and once with a friend. I am not sure how the Clans are supposed to win that one. While the Falcon Guard wreck Comstar's face and shake, break, and rout their units, I cannot push enough of them away from the crossings by turn 7 to get even one engineering point (let alone four points by turn 12...). Still, a very fun game but we could definitely use an SBF quick reference sheet with the main tables included.
 

[Mostro Joe]

There are seven SBF scenarios in the Battle for Tukayyid Supplemental. They also include seven SBF maps as well as the formations for the Comstar and Clan combatants.  However, those are missing crucial information like Tactics and Morale. Those can be calculated w

Will check taht book. I don't have it and I'm happy to know there are there scenarios for SBF.

happy to talk with you about SBF rules and implementations, I find it the system to go for map-based campaigns and it is a pity that BF and the SBF will not be supported in the near future (if what has been said at the adepticon is true).

[Zematus737]

Though probably true that the strategic scales are not very good at increasing revenue, but so long as Alpha Strike continues to get attention this can only sustain or preserve them, leaving the chance for them to possibly grow.  All the Source Books lend themselves to the higher scales, having all the Combat Command information handed to you on a silver platter, and especially so with the The Succession Wars Combat Commands, which have the weight of each included and saves you the time of guesswork or random rolls from the Military Organization and Personalities details.  As things currently stand, most fans content themselves swimming with floaties on the surface while so many treasures lie deep beneath in all the source books, which are only played reasonably through the higher scales.

[Mostro Joe]

As things currently stand, most fans content themselves swimming with floaties on the surface while so many treasures lie deep beneath in all the source books

That's true, that's why the new iteration of the rules seems to concentrate on mechs only.

[Alexander Knight]

It means that a formation of (say) 4 drones could not be used in a normal formation? If a Drone Carrier is in a formation, its drones must be in an entirely different formation?
And if yes, these drones cannot be grouped in a unit, but everyone of them it's a unit per se? So 3 NapFind hover drones, for an exemple, form a formation of 3 units, everyone of these units formed by just one hover drone? They cannot form a single unit formed by 3 drones?

A Drone Carrier + 3 NapFind Hover drones would become a SBF formation of Tracked Lance [Drone Carrier] + 3 Hover Lances [1 NapFind each].  The Drone Carrier's lance could have up to five more Elements in it, so long as none of them were Drones.  You could not add more Drones to this formation because of the 4 Unit limit.

The rules to fight in a building hex can be confusing, I had to read them 2 or 3 times to understand that to fight in a building hex is not the same as to be INSIDE a building. That said, once inside a building a unit can be fired at but if it is an infantry formation you can only shoot the building. If it is a non-infantry unit you can target the formation but the building absorbs anyway the damage. It is correct?

Urban hexes are complex.  When entering an Urban hex you declare if you are moving past the buildings or *through* the buildings, hence the two different movement costs.  When shooting at a non-Infantry Formation inside buildings you can choose to shoot the buildings, in which case they take all of the damage, or at the Formation, in which case the building takes SOME of the damage.  (Example.  Shooting a 'mech Lance in a Heavy Building for 5 damage.  You can either do 5 to the building, or 4 to the building and 1 to the Lance)

If a unit is shooted on when inside a building, infantry or not, it seems the attacker enjoys a to-hit bonus as when it's firing to an immobile target. That to-hit bonus is not listed anywhere! I supposed a -4 like in Battletech, I guessed right?

The immobile target bonus ONLY applies when shooting the building (or the Infantry formation hiding in the building)

There are no repair and manteinance rules in the SBF, That's a pity because I wanted to use the rules in CO, or at least I wanted to use SBF for a campaign.
Can you give some advice on how manage repairs to the formations? And how the damage can be converted on elements?

For converting the damage down to the Elements, I would randomly assign each point of damage the Unit suffered to one of the component Elements.  (Example.  My Strike Lance took 3 damage.  I roll 1d4 three times and Element 2 gets hit twice while Element 3 gets hit once).
Next I multiply that damage by 3 to get the Alpha Strike damage levels, and use the Alpha Strike repair rules

[Mostro Joe]

Thank you so much for the answers 

A Drone Carrier + 3 NapFind Hover drones would become a SBF formation of Tracked Lance [Drone Carrier] + 3 Hover Lances [1 NapFind each].  The Drone Carrier's lance could have up to five more Elements in it, so long as none of them were Drones.  You could not add more Drones to this formation because of the 4 Unit limit.

Ok, so each single drone is a lance, I had understood it right! I suppose I can detach the drones per the advanced rules at pag.198 of IO:Battleforce.

Urban hexes are complex.  When entering an Urban hex you declare if you are moving past the buildings or *through* the buildings, hence the two different movement costs.  When shooting at a non-Infantry Formation inside buildings you can choose to shoot the buildings, in which case they take all of the damage, or at the Formation, in which case the building takes SOME of the damage.  (Example.  Shooting a 'mech Lance in a Heavy Building for 5 damage.  You can either do 5 to the building, or 4 to the building and 1 to the Lance)

The immobile target bonus ONLY applies when shooting the building (or the Infantry formation hiding in the building)

Ok then, it's clear. And the modifier to shoot at an immobile target is -4?

Another question about buildings: if two enemy units are in the same urban hex, and they have both declared to be inside buldings, they still have to make manouver rolls during an engagement? In other words they "move" inside the building while they fight?

For converting the damage down to the Elements, I would randomly assign each point of damage the Unit suffered to one of the component Elements.  (Example.  My Strike Lance took 3 damage.  I roll 1d4 three times and Element 2 gets hit twice while Element 3 gets hit once).
Next I multiply that damage by 3 to get the Alpha Strike damage levels, and use the Alpha Strike repair rules

Ok thank you very much. That way a unit can be destroyed, but I think I can roll a dice to see if it is salvageable.
Those rules seem to be in the Alpha Strike Companion book.

[Zematus737]

There are no repair and manteinance rules in the SBF, That's a pity because I wanted to use the rules in CO, or at least I wanted to use SBF for a campaign.
Can you give some advice on how manage repairs to the formations? And how the damage can be converted on elements?

The repair and maintenance rules for Battleforce campaigns is actually found in Battleforce 2 manual page 108-109 under Scavenging and Repair.  There are rules for salvage as well, where points for salvage and kills are banked in a pool used for future repairs.  There's a lot of good stuff in there you can borrow that isn't touched in other rule books unless you do the conversions down and then back up.