ISaW Game, epic style

[The Purist]

I just realised I missed the tech R & D rules and the ComStar rules from "Second Succession War". Both these sections add a lot to the game and require the GM to keep track of who might be getting the upper hand,.... and then bringing in ComStar, ROM,  etc.

But more on that later.     :)

[epic]

I just realised I missed the tech R & D rules and the ComStar rules from "Second Succession War". Both these sections add a lot to the game and require the GM to keep track of who might be getting the upper hand,.... and then bringing in ComStar, ROM,  etc.

But more on that later.     :)

R and D rules definitely add a great element.  From a canon perspective, it's too easy.  A good couple rolls and investments and a Successor House that is able to fund it can be recovered from the Succession Wars in a little over a year, especially the DC and LC.  However, from a game play perspective, attempting to balance a budget with research thrown in works quite well.

Oddly, the extra amount from industrial tech is what makes raids profitable (that and trade, and faction abilities).

There was an article awhile back with basic game play that showed that investing in upgrading worlds is pointless, that you get a better return on your investment to simply collect your interest of 5%

However, most of the factions - if not all (I haven't done the math for the FS) - benefit from upgrading in the long term for rps when factoring for a level 4 industrial tech and trade.

An example, from current campaign.

The Lyran Commonwealth, 3025 era, gets merchants kings +20% on rp income
They have trade with: FS, TC, OA, MoC, FWL and CC for another .+35%  Yes, the FWL trade with each other even though they continue to both be engaged in a raiding war with each other. 
And finally, have gained level 4 industrial tech for another +20% base income.

That's a whopping 75% extra they get out of a minor industrial world. 
in the calculations for the initial feedback at https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=50912.0 for ISaW, everyone (including me) forgot about all the modifiers.  admittedly, second succession war wasn't out yet, so that mod would be gone.  However, the general assumption was that it would take 24 rounds for a return on investment, and still would net less than the interest that would have been generated if it wasn't spent on an upgrade.

However, with that minor world now generating the equivalent of 42/round instead, the LC see a return on investment in 14 months, and the interest rates also go up and accrue accordingly too, so it actually ends up being even less.  It's a long term strategy still, of course, and is dependent on
It also makes raiding (a topic that has been discussed previously in this thread) a viable strategy as the cost of the raiding unit, with a successful raid, is worth the damage inflicted.  It ALSO makes sabotage and terrorism with special ops very, very valuable missions to perform if successful. 

The investment for a Major World isn't beneficial still, admittedly. 

The investment for a Regional Capital, however, is. 

In our campaign, Research for Battletechnology (achieved by the DCMS) has netted them the ability to field LAMs at normal cost, which they have experimented with to some success.   It also minorly increased the combat effectiveness of their troops, which has led to some victories in invasions, though not overwhelming.  Comm and transport tech have not (yet) had an impact on the game.  Actually, in 3025 rules, transport tech can't have an impact, it's for other eras. 

The Comstar rules require more GM intervention.  They've been pretty handy at keeping some game balance, especially at trimming research efforts.  All players know that their research efforts are being attacked and meta-wise, that at least some of it is Comstar (though not by any means all of it). 

We created an extra house-rule for Comstar, as the Research rules don't seem to indicate HOW to reduce a technology level below current levels, even though it clearly occurred in the Succession Wars.  Current sabotage research rules only remove Development Points; which is all the House and Periphery special ops teams can do.
 Comstar special ops teams ALSo destroy development points, but they can also (with a good sabotage roll) if reducing a player below 0 threshold for that level of research, knock that Research back to the next lower level.  This means that players are constantly investing at least a few points in DPs for all types of research, just to make sure that they are above a 0 DP level and don't get "knocked back to the Stone Age" in a certain field of research. 

The Interdiction rules work as intended.  They are exceedingly crippling to a power if it occurs. 

[epic]

Also, post for turns 25-30 coming out shortly (just finishing battle results for turn 30 now).  Phew.  Almost to the beginning of the 4th SW!  That will be...  turn 44 with a canon start.  Let's see if it stays with canon...

[epic]

January 3027.  It's a bad month to be a mercenary.  The Lone Star Regiment, or what remains of it, attempts a daring raid on Tamar.  Bad intel and a serious mad-on by the Lyrans over repeated
raids, has the unit shot down with their dropships, utterly destroying the merc unit.
On the Capellan/Fed front, Nero's Fiddlers, a newer mercenary unit, meets a similar fate over the skies of St Ives at the hands of Capellan defenders. 
A Capellan headhunting sortie and naval engagement also kills the 1894th Light Horse of the Blue Star Irregulars in space after locating their base of operations
and wiping them out on the ground in reprisal for their repeated raids into Capellan space. 
The supplies of Fuchida's Fusiliers are stolen by parties unknown in the FWL, who has to reimburse the merc unit - again.  Their morale suffers as a consequence, and
part of their support staff deserts due to anger over lack of pay while waiting. 
Terrorist and sabotage efforts on Sian damage more key Capellan industries.  Capellan efforts to reconstruct their economy falter. 

Feb 3027
raiding on all fronts, hitting the Capellans again.  The 15th Deneb Light Cavalry are badly damaged by
Capellan defenders, rotating off the front for repairs.



March 3027
Raiding continues to damage Capellan economy.  Raids on other fronts mostly repulsed
though a DMCS raiding campaign into Tamar and Skye continues to cause disruption.

April 3027 the 4th Illican Lancers cease to exist as House Liao strikes back again at the infernal
mercenaries undermining the economy.  in a surprise move, Mcgee's Cutthroats leave DCMS employ and
are hired by the Outworlds Alliance. 
Continuous raiding still on all fronts, except for the FWL/CC front.  A small breather is earned with
the departure of the Cutthroats, but AFFS troops know that the Dragoons will shortly pick up the slack,
along with new units id'd on the border (and proudly displayed by local propaganda) - the Ryuken. 
Heavy raiding and strikes by the DCMS and FWL forces hit a number of Lyran targets in reprisal especially.

May 3027 - raiding continues to damage Capellan economy, but several raids and special ops strike Key Lyran
facilities too.

June 3027 raiding continues amidst Operation Galahad and Thor launching and showcasing multiple training scenarios...
The 9th Illician Lancers dies in a Capellan counterattack, continuing their SOP of destroying
units daring to attack the Confederation.  The Lancers die at the hands of 3 full regiments of the Big MAC, who gleefully split the spoils.

[epic]

turn 31:

DC/FS border.  In an amazing turn of events, the Conroe Training Battalion repulses a
supply raid by Beta Regiment of Wolf's Dragoons. 

Disgusted with their treatment, Vandelay's Valkyries quits DCMS employ.  They are hired
by the Magistracy of Canopus.
Kingston's Caballeros, in Lyran employ, also quit their employer and seek work in the Periphery.

Turn 32
just raiding

Turn 33
contract expiry of ALL mercenary units in the Federated Suns results in the Kell Hounds
and Greenburg's Godzillas leaving for Lyran employ
the rest are re-hired at substantial cost to the economy
A wedding invitation is extended to all Inner Sphere powers as well as Periphery ambassadors to go to
 Terra for the nuptials of Hanse Davion and Melissa Steiner in the following year.

Raiding on the Lyran/FWL front begins to die down.  Similarly, raiding on the FS/CC front
is reduced. The Draconis border still has a number of raids on all sides.

Turn 34 - quiet... too quiet!  a few raids at most, repulsed except at Marduk


Turn 35  Offensive action begins on several fronts.  On the CC/FS front
the Federated Suns begins operations to take back Scituate, taken by the Capellans
almost 3 years previous
The 7th Crucis Lancers and the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers face the 1st St Ives Armored Cavalry.
Oddly, the 5th Syrtis seem to sit back and take easy missions, destroying the militia and providing minimal support while the 7th Crucis Lancers sustain the brunt of the fighting.  The St Ives AC is destroyed in short order by the elite regiment, but artillery barrages and quick strikes destroy several infantry regiments of the 7th before they are crushed. 

On the FS/DC border, operations begin to take back Kesai IV and New Aberdeen

On Kesai IV, the Davion Light Guards consistently out-maneuver the 9th Sword of Light, fighting a long distance hit and run battle that picks apart the Draconis unit, while the Bryceland Draconis March Militia provides support and defeat the haphazard militia of quislings.  Massed artillery barrages, air strikes and hit and run attacks leave the Sword open to a final charge by the assault mechs of the DMM, who destroy the new command, which had replaced the earlier 8th Sword of Light that had ALSO died on Kesai IV against Davion forces.  It is rumoured that DCMS troops now view Kesai as a cursed world, eager to eat up the best the Dragon has to offer... happy Davion scrounge teams gather up the remnants of the Sword of Light force to
add to their battle order. 

At New Aberdeen, the FS sends the 21st Striker Regiment of the Eridani Light Horse and the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry.  They face the 21st Galedon Regulars.  While the Eridani dealt with the local militia, the 4th outmaneuver the 21st, until air dominance and artillery dominance is achieved.  At that point, a brutal bombardment begins that ends with the Eridani and 4th utterly destroying the 21st on world.  Losses amongst the 4th are moderate, with infantry hardest hit and the loss of a hover battalion. 

On the LC Front, the LC commits 3 regiments to taking back Fort Loudon, also taken almost 3 years previous
At Fort Loudon, the 2nd and 7th Lyran Combat Teams, along with the 19th Arcturan Guard, attack the Green 5th Rasalhague Regulars.  Surprisingly, the 5th make a good show of it, embarassing local Lyran
commanders again and again.  While outnumbered 3:1, the 5th fall back into prepared defences that savage the 2nd LCT, while playing for time.  Their air forces make good on their bravado, and kill twice their weight.
In the end, the Lyrans lose the equivalent of a full mech regiment, 7 infantry regiments and a couple armour battalions to kill a green regiment and defending militia.  The loss of the unit is tempered by the damage they inflicted, and Coordinator Kurita agrees that their colours will not be struck, but instead be rebuilt. 

Saboteurs hit the distant world of Inarcs as well as Donegal, damaging even more Lyran industries.

Meanwhile, the Dragon has counter-attacked 2 worlds most recently taken - Skokie and Moritz.  Mozirje, another world taken by the Lyrans, is not attacked. 

At Moritz, the 5th and 9th Sun Zhang Cadre join with the 1st Ghost Hunters against the 11th Donegal Guards and a local militia. The 12th Donegal put up a surprising fight considering the odds, and sacrifice a light armour regiment to crush the 5th SZAC mech regiment in a stunning ambush.  However, the 1st Ghost, using LAMS and air strikes, begins grinding down the 12th DG after obliterating the local militia, destroying their artillery and air, and then crushing isolated infantry units before preparing final assaults.  In an amazing series of events, while the 11th Donegal are destroyed, they manage to cripple the 5th SZAC, destroy a mech battalion of the 9th, and destroy the medium LAM battalion and a light mech battalion of the 1st Ghost.  The world falls the Combine, who has very little to celebrate considering the cost of the operation. 

At Skokie, the trained up and newly equipped formation the 27th Rasalhague Regulars and the 1st Nightstalkers face off against the 24th Arcturan Guards.
If not for the Veteran Night Stalkers, the 27th would be crushed by superior tank regiments of the 24th.  However, sustained artillery barrages win the day,
cracking and breaking the initial forces of the 24th.  Over-confident, the 27th race in... only to be attacked by a Lyran Wall of Steel.  In a horrific engagement,the 27th survive at the end of the month... minus their entire support detachment and a mech battalion.  The Night Stalkers leave with barely a scratch, and the 24th cease
to exist.  Local militia mostly serve as target practice for the bombing runs of the DCMS and then The Dragon's banner again flies over Skokie. 

Turn 36 (December 3027)

After the struggles of the last month, all powers race to re-arm and repair their forces, except the largely untouched FWL front.  However, the FWL launches a failed raid
with the Iron Guards on New Earth, as well as a damaging raid on Gienah with the elite 21st Centauri Lancers.  The 9th Fieflords are caught in both raids in FWL space as well
as defedning Gienah, and their forces suffer a misjump - while the 21st Centauri rip apart their base.  Lyran quartermasters pledge to assist in rebuilding the unit after
flawed orders caused so much damage to them...

Raids in the Tikonov area are repulsed by a resurgent Capellan Confedration. 

Helmutès Hermits leave the employ of the Draconis Combine, taking work with the Magistracy of Canopus.  This brings the total amount of mercenaries in the employ of the Dragon
to an all-time low.

3027 ends with a whimper, as the shadow of a new 4th Succession War draws closer.  The final tally is that the Combine has lost 1 world to the Lyrans, the borders have
returned to 3025 starts on the Fed Suns fronts, and the FWL has lost 7 worlds to Lyran advances.  The net winner of this micro-period, and end, of the third Succession War is the Lyran Commonwealth! 

[epic]

3028 is the target YEAR for the 4SW in this campaign, with it being able to be kicked off at any point, to leave it nebulous for participants. 

In review, the last 36 turns went quickly and efficiently with economic war and raiding being the order of the day, with sabotage and terror efforts being the other focus of powers. 

As such, the Capellan economy has been ravaged - and in review, with focused efforts by the Lyrans in special ops and the Federated Suns via raiding, the Capellans have struggled to keep a balance sheet that was not near the negatives.  Isolated Capellan counter-attacks to destroy key merc units used for raiding has allowed the Capellan economy to slowly (VERY slowly) to climb.

The Federated Suns also struggled economically for a long time.  Finally in a better place, they had a few key scores of stealing supplies that enabled their economy to recover well.  Several merc units paid the price with their lives for this strategy.  Overall, they kept their Capellan enemy from recovering financially, while keeping the Dragon mostly at bay. 

The Free Worlds League floundered for a long time against their Lyran enemies.  Bad rolls with Parliament alongside the wholesale destruction of the FWL economy due to sabotage by veteran Spec ops teams of the Lyrans made it so that the FWL never was able to muster a substantial response.  When the Lyran counter-attack at the 3rd Battle of Zaniah was a victory, along with a broad offensive that damaged several border units occurred, it took the FWL a long time to recover and repair the damage.  Only now, in 3028, is the FWL starting to be able to look at some offensive operations, beginning new raiding campaigns against the Lyrans.

The Lyran Commonwealth has been a powerhouse this game.  Their economy, followed by successful combat operations with incredible luck initially was tempered by a Draconis counterattack right near the end that destroyed 2 combat teams.  The Lyran economy has absorbed those losses however, and continues to move forward.  The gains on the FWL front are consolidated, but the problem now facing the Commonwealth are roving teams of Special Ops that are crippling the facilities of the Commonwealth; Hesperus II has finally recovered from the raids and operations that had damaged several key factory lines, at least.  The Commonwealth continues to put their best foot forward, however, and have several new mech regiments and combat commands ready to pick up the slack.

The Draconis Combine has had ups and downs.  Their raiding campaigns have crippled the bulk of the border worlds that they face, but their offensive operations have been stymied by incredibly high losses of their forces.  The ability to rebuild lost formations has become an art for the Dragon, whose invasions invariably (due to fanatical damage) cost them large amounts of troops.  In the end the Dragon is still ready to take on all forces, but their merc forces have been diminished substantially, and the Dragoons Contract is almost up...

[The Purist]

Oooops,.... originally posted this in the wrong thread...    :-[ ;D ::)

Belongs here,.... to be followed by the Comstar rule review.

Technology and Research

For those who have not purchased Second Succession War, or for those who have but have not put much time into the ACS/ISaW parts of the book, Technology and Research is fun bit of extra rules that are easy to use. Note that the costs can be high, stretching the budgets of the player controlled Houses or (in our case) the three GM controlled major Periphery States. As the era in our campaign game is “Late-Succession Wars – Renaissance” R&D is at a low ebb and recovery will prove slow and costly.

Technology covers four basic categories: BattleMech, Communications, Transportation and Industrial technology. For purposes of this discussion they have been shortened to BTech, ComTech, TranTech and IndTech. The higher the tech level in each category the better off a Faction is.

Additions To Faction Abilities and Flaws

Brightest Minds (1) -  This state supports its boffins with money and resources. The cost of DPs is reduced by 10%.

Closed State (0) – The oppressive nature of the regime, while making infiltration difficult, crushes initiative and stifles creativity, hindering free expression of new ideas and thus development. DPs cost an additional 25%

State Run (1) – Too much control of the economy and the watchful eye of the master complicates the spread of fresh ideas except in the cases where the benefits to the state are clear. DPs cost an additional 10%

Like the originals in IO these Abilities and Flaws are cumulative. In the case of the Capellan Confederation it gets hits with a heavy +35% to its R&D costs. This is not as crippling as it may seem as the Capellan economy is quite vibrant if not asked to support a major military campaign, heavy espionage and R&D activities.

The Draconis Combine suffers under “State Control” so it pays an extra 10% for R&D but considering its economy is very strong this is not a major burden

The Federated Suns, being the “Sick Man of the Inner Sphere” in ISaW, was given the “Brightest Minds” Ability bonus so it could afford at least some R&D. Considering the creation of NAIS and the general open nature of the FS State and its general freedom of expression the slight bump in ability does not seem out of line with Uni-lore.

Setup: Starting Technology

The table on page 126 of 2SW has the table for starting tech levels for the 1st SW, 2nd SW and 3025 Era. For the 3025 Era the levels are as follows:

CC: BTech – 3; ComTech – 1; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 3
DC: BTech – 3; ComTech – 1; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 3
FS: BTech – 3; ComTech – 3; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 3
FWL: BTech – 3; ComTech – 1; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 3
LC: BTech – 3; ComTech – 3; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 3
MoC: BTech – 2; ComTech – 2; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 1
OA: BTech – 2; ComTech – 2; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 1
TC: BTech – 2; ComTech – 2; TranTech – 1; IndTech – 1

Note the FS and LC hav 1st generation FAX2 tech. Important where ComStar is concerened.

“Economics and Logistics Phase: Calculating Resource Points” (addition)

The new tech level rules are important as they can make a serious impact in base economy RP calculations, which in turn are used to calculate trade income (and thus final income). This is not an issue if you have an IndTech Lvl of 3 as the modifier is x 1. However, our three Periphery State Houses have an IndTech level of just 1 which means a modifier of x0.6,… and this does make a difference.

Take for example the otherwise wealthy Outworlds Alliance and its economy. The numbers come out like this:

Alpheratz 1643 - Nat Cap + minor ind = 104 RP
Mitchella 1743 – minor ind = 24
Ramora 1843 – minor ind = 24
Other worlds – 34 x 2 RP = 68

Total Base RP = 220

IndTech Lvl 1 x 0.6 = 132
Decentralised State x 0.8 = 105.6

Plus Trade (if permitted):
Cap Con: +5
Drac Com: +10.5
Fed Sun: +10.5
FWL: +5
Lyr Com: +5
MoC: +5
Tar Con: +5

Grand Total of just 151.6 RP per month of which a minimum of 28 are required for basic supply for the military and fixed defences.

This leaves only 123.6 RP for building a pool of cash, R&D, Espionage, Spec Ops, Counter Intelligence (very important for a Periphery State), replacing dead Spec Ops teams and expanding the military or building new forts.

“Economics and Logistics Phase: Research Technology” (addition)

A new step between Infrastructure (factory building) and Supply. Development Points (DP) are purchased using RP based on the era (1:10 in 3025). A Faction may spent 15% of its monthly RP on R&D.

The new DPs are added to a pool in each category to track progress to the next Tech Level. The table on page 127 gives the details but, in brief, going from Lvl 1 to 2 takes 50DP or 500RP, from Lvl 2 to 3 takes another 75 DP (750 RP) and to move from Lvl 3 to Lvl 4 requires 115 DP (1150 RP).

When a Faction reaches the required amount it may attempt to increase its Tech level in that category. For example the CC has 50DP accumulated to go from ComTech Lvl 1 to Lvl 2, it must roll 2D6 with a TN of 8 to succeed in achieving the new level. If it fails, it must add another 10DP on a following turn(s) and then it may try again with a -1 TN modifier. If it fails again it must add another 10DP and can try again with a -2 TN modifier. This process is repeated until the Faction achieves the new level.

However, if a natural 2 is rolled than 25% of the accumulated DP in that category are lost. When a new tech level is achieved the pool for that category is reset to zero DPs.

Allies may help each develop Tech by two methods:

1) when a faction invests in a Tech category every 1DP invested also adds .25 DP to its ally. An ally can gain a maximum of 5DP in this manner (so, the other ally must invest 20 DP).

2) If an ally has a higher level tech than its partner it may transfer DP from its own pool to its ally’s pool. For every 3 DP so transferred the receiving ally rolls 1D6 and adds that number of DPs to its pool. See the example on page 127.

Tech Rating Effects

Factions always gain the benefits of the current Tech level and those of a lower level. If a higher level is achieved certain benefits take effect immediately.

BattleTech: In ISaW a Mech CU can increase its armour value by two or add 1 to each of its damage values. For example, if the MoC raised it BTech rating from 2 to 3 its light Mech battalions could increase their armour from 21 to 23 or its damage values would increase from 6/6/0 to 7/7/1 (s/m/l).

ComTech: A Factions ability to send and receive interstellar messages is effected by its level. The usual goal is to obtain first or second generation FAX2  technology to lessen the reliance on ComStar and the potential effects of a ComStar Interdiction. See the ComStar rules section on page 143 (discussed later).

TransporTech: this effects the ability to build capital weapons, Castle Brians, Jumpships and Warships. If a Factions Transport Tech level drops too much, moving on the ISaW map can be affected. Likewise, increases TranTech can lead to rediscovering Lithium Fusion technologies which increase movement on the ISaW map. Of course, none of this is possible in the 3025 Era.

IndustryTech: IndTech levels effect the amount of RPs generated by the economy each month. The higher the IndTech level the more RPs are produced which can effect trade as well as the economic effects of a ComStar Interdiction.

For example, the Capellan Confederation begins the 3025 Era with an IndTech of 3 so its  base economy of 966 RP is unchanged (x 1). It is then increased by 25% for the State Run trait for a final base of 1207.5 RP. Assuming it is trading with the LC (5%), DC (5%), MoC(5%), OA (5%) and TC (10%) it would gain a further 372 RP for a final monthly income of 1579.5 (fractions?).

If the IndTech Lvl for the CC increases to 4 its economy will gain a further x 1.2 modifier. Those 966 RP are first increased by x 1.2 for IndTech Level 4 to 1159.2 and then increased again for ‘State Run” by x 1.25 to 1449 RP. With the same trade treaties the CC would now net a further 443 RP for a final monthly income of 1882 RP.

Maximum Technologies

Tech levels are finite and certain eras limit the maximum tech levels that can be achieved by the Houses. For example, a Faction in the 3025 Era cannot rebuilt its tech levels to match the Star League. For 3025 the maximum tech levels are 4/4/4/4 for Inner Sphere Factions and 3/3/4/4 for the Periphery States. 1st SW maximums are 5/5/9/8 (no battle armour folks), 2nd SW are 5/5/6/6 and 4/4/3/4 respectively.

As with the Espionage Rules discussed many pages ago these rules are a lot of fun and add some very nice touches to the game. Tech levels and Espionage do make a difference. We made only one change to the Tech rules due to the planned duration of our game. Since we are in Oct 3020 and plan on pushing the 3rd SW to its conclusion somewhere around 3025, I (as GM) found Tech would advance too quickly with even modest investments. All factions could probably reach their era max by the game’s end.

To counter this I limited R&D (for now) to once per quarter, or 1/3 the normal rate. This has maintained a more ‘slow but steady’ rate on investments.

I also added three ComStar ROM Teams who’s job it is to do their best to block technological advancement. The ROM Teams are elite Spec Ops teams who target well advanced Tech Research with an additional -1 to their TN. If they succeed they do the usual damage to DP pools in the attacked category. If they fail they have 97% chance of placing the blame on another Faction.

Thus far they have almost started a war between the OA and Draconis Combine. Thinking the OA was responsible for both Terrorism and IndTech Sabotage on Luthien, Combine Spec Ops have already damage two of three OA factories. ComStar has also soured relations between the Magistracy and Capellans in much the same way but over ComTech espionage.

[epic]

BattleTech: In ISaW a Mech CU can increase its armour value by two or add 1 to each of its damage values. For example, if the MoC raised it BTech rating from 2 to 3 its light Mech battalions could increase their armour from 21 to 23 or its damage values would increase from 6/6/0 to 7/7/1 (s/m/l).

A point in regards to your comment about MoC and gaining values.  From what I understand, using Combat Operations lists as the baseline, the forces for 3025 are built in there based on having tech level 3 battletechnology.  So beginning Periphery forces actually suffer a loss of 2 pts of armour or 1pt of damage per cu until they achieve battletechnology level 3. 

[epic]

IndustryTech: IndTech levels effect the amount of RPs generated by the economy each month. The higher the IndTech level the more RPs are produced which can effect trade as well as the economic effects of a ComStar Interdiction.

For example, the Capellan Confederation begins the 3025 Era with an IndTech of 3 so its  base economy of 966 RP is unchanged (x 1). It is then increased by 25% for the State Run trait for a final base of 1207.5 RP. Assuming it is trading with the LC (5%), DC (5%), MoC(5%), OA (5%) and TC (10%) it would gain a further 372 RP for a final monthly income of 1579.5 (fractions?).

If the IndTech Lvl for the CC increases to 4 its economy will gain a further x 1.2 modifier. Those 966 RP are first increased by x 1.2 for IndTech Level 4 to 1159.2 and then increased again for ‘State Run” by x 1.25 to 1449 RP. With the same trade treaties the CC would now net a further 443 RP for a final monthly income of 1882 RP.

Interesting.  We are doing our RP quite differently from you.
Instead of multiples and then multiplying the multiples, we are adding all multiples together, and then doing the sum.

To use your example, with the CC having 30% trade, 25% for state run, and then having industrial tech of 20% bonus...
Using yours, you get 1882 rp

With us, adding the multiples and then multiplying by the base rp of the economy (966), we get... 966*1.75= 1690.5 rp (rounding to 1691).  As you can see, less income to play with.  This may also be why the CC is struggling so much in our campaign, for instance.  Admittedly, everyone is struggling for finances currently.

So... which is the correct method; to multiply each individual trait/trade/industrial tech, or add up all multipliers/penalties (such as the FWL Parliamentary Chaos) and then multiply?  Question to ask in the rules forum, I think.

[The Purist]

We went with the wording in 2nd SW where the Ind Tech is a base multiplier, then the Trait multiplier is factored in. in truth, you should not get a difference if you multiply 966 x 1.2 x 1.25 or 966 x 1.25 x 1.2. The both equal 1449. Trade is calculated after the final industry output is calculated and then added to the total. With a base of 1449 and only one trading partner with a common border the trade treaties need to be calculated separately. The TC will net 10% or 144.9.

All other treaties will net 5% or 72.45 RPs.

[epic]

turn 37
Mostly quiet again - almost as though everyone were building up to a war?
Some raids on the Lyran/FWL border
In a headhunting attack, the Blackhearts mercenary unit in Lyran employ raid and destroy the 5th Amphigean
Light Assault Group for their repeated raids on Sudeten, Tamar and Twycross. 

Turn 38
the quiet before the storm... still building. 

turn 39

quiet

April, 3028

The contract with the Lyran Commonwealth expires for Caesar's Cohorts and the 9th Fieflords, who are
both hired on in the Magistracy of Canopus. 
The contract expires with Wolf's Dragoons, who are attacked by Draconis Combine forces before leaving for their
contract with the Federated Suns...

The Battle of Misery commences.  One one side: the entirety of Wolf's Dragoons
On the Draconis side: the 10th Sword of Light, the 12th and 21st Galedon Regulars and all 5 Ryuken regiments
under the command of Legendary Commander Minobu Tetsuhara. 
Losses are heavy on both sides, but in the end, the Dragoons prove victorious.
(canonically, no aero occurred in Misery, instead chasing dependents - in this, air fights occurred)

Results: the 5th Ryuken were utterly destroyed by the Dragoons - with Minobu Tetsuhara captured, and then later committing seppuku.
  Otherwise, the Dragoons destroyed 11 mech battalions (incl the 5th), 11 infantry regments, 5 air wings, 7 armor regiments and 8 artillery battalions.
Losses were especially heavy amongst the 10th Sword of Light on the Draconis side, whose fanaticism made them easy targets.  The Dragoons worst
losses were with Gamma Regiment and Zeta battalion. 

In exchange, they lost 7 mech battalions, 3 infantry regiments, 3 armor battalions, 3 air wings and 3 artillery battalions - effectively destroying half of the Dragoons.

Sabotage on New Samarkand and Terrorists striking Galedon point to Federated Suns involvement but operatives on the outworlds alliance border find also some evidence suggesting
that the Periphery power has chosen to try and gain agents...

The Waco Rangers leave Federated Suns service for the Lyran Commonwealth.

May 3028

Seeking to save face, the Dragon invades Mozirje, in an attempt to regain all lost worlds to their foes.  Attacking Mozirje with the 5th Rasalhague Regulars, the
1st Night Stalkers, the 9th Sun Zhang Academy Cadre, and the 1st and 2nd Ghost Hunters, they face the veteran 1st Lyran Regulars, and their support unit, the 3rd Lyran
Regulars. 

Seeking to outmaneuver their foes, the Ghost LAMs recon and destroy a few light units, but are unable to prevent the 5th from blundering straight into the teeth of the
1st Lyran Regulars, who demolish most of the unit in a few short days of fighting.
The 1st Lyran Regulars continue to push their advantage while the Night Stalkers harass them.  Artillery strikes repeatedly hammer the Lyran lines, but through sheer force of
will they push on, breaking the 9th to a single battalion.  Not to be outdone, the 3rd Lyrans attack straight thru the 2nd Ghost Hunters, and in a week of fighting, destroy that unit as well.
Next up, the Night Stalkers also feel the pain, as they are hounded by a medium battalion that traps them... to be hit from the side by the 3rd.  Repeated air strikes finally
break the 3rd Lyrans, who are overrun and destroyed...
The 1st Ghost, already veterans of fights at Moritz, plus numerous raids into the Commonwealth, use the remainder of the month to simply air strike the Lyran Regulars to near death while
evading them, then closing for the kill.  Even the kill costs the Ghosts 2 armor regiments before the Lyrans are finally brought down and the world can truly be said
to be secured.  At the cost of 3 mech regiments and the near destruction of the 9th Sun Zhang... the Dragon's honour is restored.  The survivors of the 9th Sun Zhang Academy Cadre, having seen so
much action both here and after defending Dieron against numerous Lyran raids, are now rated as Veteran.  They are incorporated into the survivors of the Night Stalkers, and form a new Night Stalkers
command.  The 1st Ghost absorb the survivors of the 2nd Ghost as well (which wasn't much... just their artillery).

The entirety of contracts come up for the Lyran Commonwealth, who spend a vast sum to retain them.  A few mercs change over to the FWL or to Taurian Concordat, but most remain
in Lyran space.

June 3028

The Inner Sphere teeters over the edge of war, though no one knows it as of yet.  Sabotage strikes
hit the Capellan Confederation at Sian, St Ives, Capella, Betelgeuse, Grand Base, Indicass,
and Ares, crippling the Confederation economy.  Other strikes hit Irian, Keystone, Asuncion and Bernardo.

The Outworlds Alliance, sick to death of Draconis attitudes, ends their trade agreement with the DC, though the
DC threatens war in retaliation...

As the marriage of Melissa Steiner and Hanse Davion concludes, the reception announces the fateful words:
"I give you... the Capellan Confederation."  to the surprise of many, expecting it to be the Combine that would
feel the power of the alliance.

An ill-fated deep raid dies against the defences of Hesperus II from the FWL. 

DCMS troops continue to rebuild after losses of previous months.  FWL troops raise up several new Federal regiments.

[epic]

This last cycle was particularly exciting, as we head into the 4th SW.  Having crafted the scenario, I set the "trigger" of the 4th SW as being when the Dragoons left DC employ, and had created a scenario rule that each month of 3028, the chance of leaving employ would go up 1 pt on 2d6.
So, January, it was a 2 on 2d6, 3 or less on 2d6 for feb, 4 or less in march...
It happened to fall in april, which was the canonical date, so it was perfect.  At that point, the Ryuken and all units within 2 jumps of the Dragoons that were not assigned other duties HAD to proceed to Misery to fight the Dragoons.

The effects of the battle were interesting, as they came remarkably close to the canonical outcome for that fight.  We ended up giving a higher LR for one Ryuken unit, to represent Minobu Tetsuhara.  If that had NOT been done, it's doubtful that the Dragoons would have taken as much damage as they did.  Shifting between Ryuken commands twice, eventually it was destroyed and captured, with units being broken on the field and being granted honours of war by the exhausted Dragoons. 

It should be noted that ALL dragoons units with the exception of Zeta battalion were Heroic status at the time of the fight, to account for their massive raiding activity on the FS border.   The bonus of 4 to hit meant that they rarely if ever would miss, and could use either Defensive or Agressive tactics whenever needed, while consistantly outmaneuvering DCMS forces with engagements.  While only 1 combat command was actually destroyed (the 5th Ryuken), the savaging that was inflicted on all units was horrible.

It was with great amusement that Zeta battalion ended with exactly 1 armor point left in their mech battalion, with infantry and armor gone otherwise. 

Like The Purist, we are using a rule that a miss is a miss, not 80% damage.  Otherwise, this battle probably would have gone a totally different route, with the death of the Dragoons.   

[epic]

Other points to the scenario - I left it up to the players who to attack, whether it would be a full gang up attack on House Kurita, or going for the FWL or the CC.

Until this point, there was a scenario rule that no more than 4 worlds per round could have an active OFFENSIVE campaign on them, or else the extras would have the "uncoordinated attack" penalty.  Once the Fourth Succession War is declared, however, all gloves are now off. 

at this point, some feedback:

Overall, the Lyran Commonwealth is the powerhouse in this game.  Having vast quantities of troops in reserve, their economy is actually in rougher shape due to repeated raiding and sabotage strikes.  As a for instance... Tamar and Skye both will not generate any revenue for another 11 months and 8 months respectively.  Gienah is another world that won't generate revenue for some time. 
Losing the veteran 1st Lyran Regulars will possibly impact the Lyrans; it's tough to say.  The Inferior Doctrine penalty basically makes all Lyran units 1 step less in experience, though the effect is less pronounced with veteran/elite units. Oddly, the loss of damage from inferior doctrine is offset by the fanatical doctrine of the DCMS, so Lyran units still do "regular" damage at least.  Fights against the FWL have been more limited but in their one big offensive against the FWL, the Lyrans were usually out-fought unless they brought significant numbers. 

The FWL has struggled for many turns, only finding its stride recently with its economy and being able to produce some units, as well as make good on losses.  Sabotage strikes all over as well as rampant terrorism (courtesy of Loki, mostly) have slowed the FWL substantially.   They are finally in a place where they may just be able to reclaim lost worlds from the Lyrans. 

The CC has struggled financially.  The necessity of defending worlds constantly from raids as well as constantly being under blockades and requiring combat supply for Patrol missions, not to mention successful raids and sabotage efforts over the last 40 turns have meant that MANY turns, the CC was at a dangerous point with their RPs... often not able to afford to supply more than half their troops while maintaining a positive balance. 

The FS has found itself able to muster a substantial attack finally; by slowly growing a bank of RPs.  However, this was then endangered with a bad roll that resulted in having to renew all the Merc contracts in the Fed Suns, which lost the FS a few units, though they managed to re-hire most of them.   Altogether, it will be interesting to see what happens now.

The DC has had the economy to experiment with units.  The only power to create specialized units, they had 2 (now 1) LAM dedicated units for raiding, the Ryuken who now replace the lost merc units for patrols/commerce raiding, and have churned out new Sun Zhang Academy Cadres and An Ting Legions that fill out holes in service as they are trained up at Training Centres.  They mercilessly used their merc units until they either died or left service, with only a few left in Combine service at the dawn of the 4th SW.  In comparison, the Fed Suns tried keeping their merc units in good shape, which forced the CC to hunt them down and kill them to prevent additional raids.  The DC did much the same, whenever a unit raided across the border, they typically would spend espionage to locate it, then hunt it down and kill it in punishment. 

I've found the game well-balanced so far, though less-so for the CC in this era.  However, they've also had some bad luck, whereas Lyran luck has been surprisingly good.  Seriously.  Lyran rolls have typically been great, and even when they've lost, such as at Mozirje, the other guy had it worse.  Only early in the game when the Lyrans lost Zaniah and fought 3 attacks there that failed did the Lyrans have anything resembling bad luck.

[The Purist]

Interstellar Communications (ISaW)

Another gem in the crown that is 2nd Succession War are the rules around Interstellar Communications. These comms rule will work best with a GM as a number of developments need to be monitored. Players also need to realize that Tech R&D need not only be geared toward immediate returns but are also needed to stave off the worst of a ComStar Interdiction.

The basis of the rules is that all communications are sent via HPG Networks operated by ComStar. This places the communications in the hands of the “interstellar service provider” or “ISP” (a clever bit of word play) who’s staff (the GM) gets to see all orders transmitted by a Faction. As in the Uni-lore, ComStar could interfere with orders or block them entirely from the network. HGP networks cannot be capture.


ComTech and ISaW


ComStar provides what is the equivalent of ComTech Level 7 (see table page 144 of 2SW). This allows normal operations of the economy, transportation and the transmitting of orders and resources, especially to espionage Agents and Spec Ops teams. If a Faction loses its HPG network service it must fall back on its own ComTech Level. Orders sent by Factions with a ComTech Level of 0-2 arrive two turns later. With a ComTech Level  3-5 orders are received one turn later. A ComTech Level of 6 has the orders arrive the same turn but any movements to attack worlds from more than one system see the ‘Uncoordinated Attack’ values reduce by one (1), to a minium of one (1). ComTech Levels of 7 or higher are not affected by a lack of an ISP.

Faction that have been reduced to an area smaller than 7 hexes in diameter are considered to have a ComTech two levels higher than their actual level. If a Faction is reduced to just 3 hexes in diameter the ComTech level is treated 3 levels higher than the actual rating.

As can be seen by the effects table on page 145 the need to invest in ComTech, or prevent one’s neighbour from doing so, is an important aspect of the game’s strategy.

Interdiction

The ISP (ComStar for want of a better term) services can be withdrawn if the ISP feels the Faction has committed infractions of its neutrality by attacking the ISP’s resources, their protectorates or even regular clients. An Interdiction withdraws regular services with a number of impacts to the economy, transportation costs and Espionage TN modifiers (see table on page 144).

**NB – would a Spec Ops Sabotage or Black Ops mission also be affected by the “Espionage” TH modifiers? We went with yes as Spec/Black Ops orders follow the same rules for execution we figured the same problems arising with ‘Espionage’ from the Interdiction would apply – ie: receiving order, money, resources, etc.

Once an Interdiction is in place orders can only be sent via ”Pony Express” or “FAX2” methods described below. There are a few examples of interdiction effects on page 145 but the overall affects are serious to any war making plans a Faction may have.

For example: It is 3021 and the Draconis Combine, with ComTech of 1, incurs the rath of ComStar by conquering most of the Davion Draconis March and the District Capital of Robinson. The Draconis Combine will lose 30% of its industrial base (also affecting trade), the cost of movement will increase by 30% per interstellar hex and all Espionage/Spec/BO Ops TNs will receive a +6 modifier. Orders to Commands, Agents and Spec Ops teams could only be sent via “Pony Express”. Said orders arriving only after transiting from the Capital to the units involved at a rate of 4 interstellar hexes per turn.

If the DC had developed its ComTech level to the era maximum of Level 4 the the loss in income would only be 15%, transport costs increased by 15% and +3 to Espionage TNs. As 1st Generation FAX2 technology would be available the DC could send orders with only a one turn delay in receipt.

Triggering Interdiction

As noted on page 145 ComStar uses interdiction to punish those Faction who might show too much independence from its influence or become too powerful and perhaps threaten a run at becoming the new leader of a revived Star League, a role ComStar seeks to obtain.

During each End Phase the GM (ComStar) will check a series of ‘triggers’ to see if a Faction warrants an Interdiction. These triggers include:

-   Capturing a Regional or National Capital
-   Capture of a Major or Hyper Industrial world
-   Capture 10 worlds from a single Faction in one turn
-   Capture 15+ worlds from a single Faction in the past 3 turns
-   A Faction occupies any one world controlled by the ISP (ie: Terra)
-   Any associated actions in smaller-scale games (BT to ACS)

The Primus,… er, GM, rolls 2D6 for each listed infraction achieved on that turn. If the result is an 8+ the Interdiction is put in place during the next Orders Writing Phase.

**NB – as written above the phrase “achieved on that turn” is important. We understand this to mean that those same events from a previous turn that did not trigger an Interdiction will no longer be applicable.

For example: if the FWL captures 10 LC worlds in one turn but an Interdiction is not triggered then the following turn those 10 worlds would no longer count towards an Interdiction trigger.

Duration of Interdictions

An Interdiction will only be lifted when the ISP has been mollified. This can be done in a number of ways:

-   Offering a 100 RP gift. More than one such gift can be made each turn.
-   If the Interdiction is triggered by the capture of a Capital world it must returned to the original Faction owner (note the infrastructure need not be intact). The world must be evacuated by the interdicted Faction before the attempt to lift the interdiction is made.
-   Return 10 worlds that can trace a valid supply line to original owner’s other worlds. As above, these worlds must be evacuated before the attempt to lift the interdiction is made.

During the End Phase the GM will roll 2D6 for each separate “act of appeasement”. If the result is an 8 or more the Interdiction is lifted. Note that an Interdiction will not be lifted if the world belonging to the ISP is occupied.

Other Communication Methods

If the ISP interdicts a Factions interstellar communications, that Faction has other methods of sending orders. These are not as efficient and are generally expensive and slower than via HGP networks.

Pony Express

Orders are sent via dropships and jumpships at a rate of 4 interstellar hexes per turn and at a cost of 2RP for each hex transited. The end point is the location of the Command who is to receive the order. Once the order arrives at the destination it may be executed the following turn.

Starting point for such orders are the Regional or National Capitals (Faction-wide interdiction) or the closest non-interdicted hex if the interdiction is local or specific to a unit or area.

**NB – we assumed the orders are moved in the movement phase along with Commands. This would mean that even if the last hexes of the path were less than four hexes those orders could not be acted upon until the next Orders Writing Phase.

Standing Orders

Standing orders can be given in advance of an interdiction and the fore will continue to carry out those orders until new orders arrive. These orders may be conditional.

As orders may be conditional we have figured that the more specific the orders are the more likely they will be followed as per the intent of the high command. The example on page 146 gives a good idea of the intent of standing orders.

FAX Communications (Black Boxes)

Orders transmitted by first generation FAX will arrive for use the following turn. Orders sent by second generation FAX will arrive the same turn but any ‘Uncoordinated Attack’ values should be reduced by one (1). As an example, a force led by a veteran command would only be allowed to use forces from 2 systems with a maximum of 5 Commands instead of drawing forces from 3 systems with a total of 6 Commands (see tables on page 367 of IO).

Further, FAX transmissions are non-directional so another faction that also has FAX technology may benefit from security leaks. When FAX orders are sent the GM will roll 1D6 and the resulting number will generate points that may be used by the opposing side of the FAX user for ACS/ISaW TN modifiers, positive or negative. As per the example on page 146 these modifiers cannot be used for combat or against other factions.

**NB – this raised a question as to how are these points to be used when orders have already been sent and the GM is executing them all “simultaneously”.  We see two options –

1)   that the recipient of the points would need to be notified of the pool gained and he would then modify his Espionage, Spec/Black Ops and Counter-Intelligence orders accordingly.

Or,

2)   in the case of 1st generation FAX the points received could be used during the following turn’s Intel Ops Phase.

The rule does not mention an expiration time for using the points or whether the points can be accumulated from one turn to the next. An open ended use or ability to pile up such points could open the rule to abuse.

We assumed the points had to be used within the next turn or lost (information becomes stale), so no accumulating points would be allowed. 


The Tech R&D, Intelligence Operations and Interstellar Communication rules are a well designed expansion set and add a lot of character to the ACS/ISaW campaign system. They add some serious depth to the game and help move the system beyond a strictly military 'move and shoot' model.


The fact that they are also fun only increases their value.

[worktroll]

Awww, shucks  :-[

For example: if the FWL captures 10 LC worlds in one turn but an Interdiction is not triggered then the following turn those 10 worlds would no longer count towards an Interdiction trigger.

They should still count as to the "15 worlds in the last 3 turns" trigger, for the three turns. Straws, camel's back, etc

**NB – we assumed the orders are moved in the movement phase along with Commands. This would mean that even if the last hexes of the path were less than four hexes those orders could not be acted upon until the next Orders Writing Phase.

Yep.

2)   in the case of 1st generation FAX the points received could be used during the following turn’s Intel Ops Phase.

The rule does not mention an expiration time for using the points or whether the points can be accumulated from one turn to the next. An open ended use or ability to pile up such points could open the rule abuse.

Option 2 is what was intended. As per duration ... I'd personally lean towards no expiry dates, but that might add too many complications and opportunities for abuse (eg. "I add -37 to the TN!"). For simplicity, and to avoid abuse, assume they must be used in that next turn, or get wasted. Tactical intelligence.

[Daryk]

*snip*
Option 2 is what was intended. As per duration ... I'd personally lean towards no expiry dates, but that might add too many complications and opportunities for abuse (eg. "I add -37 to the TN!"). For simplicity, and to avoid abuse, assume they must be used in that next turn, or get wasted. Tactical intelligence.

Another option would be to say that only a certain percentage (or even something like "a maximum of one point per turn") could be retained to represent "Strategic Intelligence"...

[The Purist]

Another option would be to say that only a certain percentage (or even something like "a maximum of one point per turn") could be retained to represent "Strategic Intelligence"...

I see what you mean but if an interdiction last six or seven turns we are still faced with a pool of negative modifiers. A year later a entire regions major factories suddenly explode.  :o    Most military intelligence that can be exploited in the manner used in the game tends to be 'transitory' and becomes stale very quickly.

I could see one point (total) being able to be retained but it would be easier to treat leaked intel more than one turn old as 'stale dated'.

Just my opinion.

[The Purist]

Now here is something that just came to mind regarding delayed orders.

If a command (or commands) were on a (District) Capital, could it receive an order immediately and execute them as there is no need for the HPG network.

This could be treated as a standing order and the troops are sent out by dropships to execute them whenever they arrive at their target. Or, the Command(s) might use a "command circuit" to race down to a jump off system (1 order and 1 IMP) then "aslt move" (1 order and 1 IMP) and "Attack" (1 order).

From the move orders on page 355 of IO this appears to be legal. After this initial turn the commands would have to rely of standing orders, FAX or 'pony express'

Command Circuits are expensive as hell but ...   ;)

[epic]

Whoa.  Okay, The_Purist, my hat is off to you.  Finally getting into an actual war rather than raiding campaigns sure slows it down.

Whereas we were able to keep a pace of 5 or 6 rounds a week typically before, the 4th Succession War has ground that down so that the first wave of Operation Rat and Gotterdammerung took all week for us to have all the battles done.

The Federated Suns went with a canonical invasion, emulating Operation Rat with almost complete similar results.  A few surprises were had, but 9 worlds fell to the FS

The Lyran Commonwealth went with a non-canonical invasion.  Certainly, many of the targets were the same, but they coupled this with heavy raiding on a few FWL assets, and added a few more worlds to the list.  In the end, 25 worlds were attacked by the LC in their assault, killing 6 Combine units.  Of those attacks, 1 was repulsed, 8 are ongoing, and 16 worlds fell to the LC.  2 of the 8 ongoing fights are surprising; at Buckminster, the 2nd Sword of Light is winning after using highly enhanced extra aircraft and additional support units to have the 3rd Royal Guards on the run.  The 2nd SoL used their militia as bait to lead the Royals into a trap and have been pounding them slowly ever since.

On Mozirje, the 1st Ghost Hunters Regiment, the Combine's experiment with LAMs, has tied down 2 Heavy Lyran Combat Commands, and has led them on a merry chase that has cost the Lyrans air superiority, all of their artillery, and isolated tank battalions and a light mech battalion.  While the Ghosts had to sacrifice their infantry to keep mobility, they have slowly worn down and exhausted 2 entire combat commands... albeit at the loss of one of their own precious LAM battalions.  The remaining 2 light mech battalions and 1 light LAM battalion fight on, supported by a light tank regiment. 

The most amusing anecdote of the Lyran offensive was when 3 entirely new Heavy Regiments and combat support troops - totaling 3 mech regiments, 15 tank regiments, 7 air wings, 22 infantry regiments and 3 artillery batteries, landed on Skokie expecting combat... and finding 2 infantry regiments and 2 armor battalions there from militia troops, and that's it.  The militia lasted less than 2 hours before surrendering.  Spending a couple weeks searching for a hidden enemy (suspecting they had gone to ground) they eventually give up, realizing that their expected enemy was elsewhere.  Apparently, intel was utterly wrong on this world...

The Lyrans lost the 7th Star Guards, which were utterly destroyed on Ko by the Dieron Regulars, before they were themselves destroyed by the (now) Elite 3rd Star Guards.  Several other Lyran units were heavily damaged in the offensive. 

[epic]

Notes about mercs again:

With proper intel, a merc unit CAN conquer a world... defended by a weak militia.  A strong militia can, however, delay and/or defeat a mercenary invasion, which lacks the proper forces to win a battle of attrition. 

Against a full Combat Command, a militia dies so quickly that there is barely even a fight usually.  Only on the strongest worlds are they able to at least sometimes slow down a proper Combat Command. 

However, a different note; an elite or veteran merc unit can tie down and/or wear down a green or regular House Command.  It's tough, and requires some luck, but can be done.  The Gray Death Legion is currently tying down a Dieron Regulars command, and has had some luck in whittling them down slowly, though it requires patience (as of 1 full ACS month, the GDL has taken some damage to all units, but killed the DR artillery, 2 infantry regiments, a tank battalion and a mech battalion).  If the GDL gets caught by the entirety of the DR forces, they'll die; no argument.  However, so far they've been able to keep their fighting isolated to a couple CUs at a time.  It helps that in the Fog of war, the enemy doesn't know what they are facing and could be encountering far greater foes if they're not careful.  The Kurita player consistently thought they were facing a full Combat Command AND the GDL until the last round of ACS combat.  Now that they know differently, the combat will probably become more dangerous for the GDL.

On the other end of the spectrum, however, this does NOT work with anything less than a veteran rated merc unit.  Really, it should only be attempted by Elite units or better, I think.  (we gave the GDL an LR of 6, rather than the 4 for veteran, to account for leadership)

Example; the Waco Rangers (regular) attempted a similar feat, and were squashed by the Rasalhague Regulars for their troubles.  A lone mech battalion escaped Hyperion, with all the rest abandoned as salvage and loot to the local Draconis forces. 

[Welshman]

Hello, all.

I'm just getting to reading this thread. Been away from the forums for a long while due to a punishing travel schedule. From the little I've read so far, some comments.

- Thanks for Worktroll jumping in and making comments. He was a key person in helping ISW come about.
- Thanks for the play by play. As WT said, it's hard to play test something like this.
- We know there are issues: As mentioned, over in the ACS thread, there were some late changes to the scope and content that were not fully understood. Because of that, we have gaps and holes in the rules that were not there in the earlier drafts.


Thanks,
Joel "Welshman"
ISW, ACS, SBF lead developer

[The Purist]

No worries Welshman. I've never known a war game to be perfect in its first iteration and as has been explained, there were issues of time, space and budget.   

I've started posting the questions regarding ISaW up in the game rules forums (Strategic Combat). We can use that space to start adding some muscle to the rules where the bones are showing through.  :thumbsup:

I think most of the questions will actually be request for clarifications or additional scope better explain a rule or how it is intended to work.

Cheers.

[epic]

As the 4th SW rolls into the 2nd month, and the number of combats is high, a couple other notes:

1.  Strategic Initiative is key.  The Purist talked about this with the double steamroller offensive on the Fed Suns in his campaign.  In our 4th SW, canon is being recreated because the Lyrans and FS are getting to do the attacking.  By choosing the targets, the FC Alliance is choosing when to overwhelm a local militia, or with an attack on a target that they can send additional numbers to ensure the likely defeat of said Combat Command.  By often pitting numbers of 3:1 against defenders, they minimize casualties while obliterating the force they oppose.  Economically, as has been pointed out in other topics, the FC are out-matched if their foes can bring their might to bear.  The question is, they have to find the opponent to do so (via espionage or recon raids).  Destroying or damaging units is far more important than taking some "other" world that won't even contribute to your economy for several rounds, and even then, is worth less than what it took to capture it for years. 

Killing or crippling a Combat Command that was defending it?  That, on the other hand, is worth far more than the value of the world. 

2.  A suitable reserve.  This bears into Operation Rat then, as well as all borders.  The Lyrans built up a sizeable reserve force of Combat Commands for their portion; the Fed Suns began with a larger force that they are able to leverage into reserves for trouble areas.
The Dragon begins oddly with some reserves, but faces the most dangerous opponents and thus has to choose where to sling those reserves.  Happily, the DC has the economy to build more reserves, which they have (and just in time).  Unhappily, due to scenario rules, they are also losing valuable troops to being killed by the Wolf's Dragoons.  Still, the Lyran border is - while daunting - something that the Dragon seems able to contain while even launching attacks into the FS. 
The CC and FWL lacked the ability to build substantial reserves in the early game, though the FWL is finally able to begin that now. 

The Purist spoke about bringing in relief troops for garrisons, which is exactly what we are also seeing in our game; an initial assault wave, reserves brought in for garrisons and to resolve contested worlds, while troops rest/repair for the next wave.  The Capellans don't have this capacity as they are in a sheer struggle for survival. I suspect the FWL will have this ability, though they've had some bad luck with their economy rolls right when the war started.

As the war progresses, I'll be very curious as to how well the FWL and DC offensives (into the LC and FS respectively) progress, especially as the DC tries to handle the LC as well. 

It's also rather amazing how quickly all that saved up treasury is dwindling ... and the war has just started!

[epic]

In August, the war begins everywhere, not just the FS/CC front and the LC/DC front.
The FWL begins cautiously, sending out a number of raids on 5 different targets on the Lyran border.
A daring special ops mission takes out Capellan comms in sector (aka hex) 2426
The CC is out-generalled by the FS.  While the 1st Wave of Operation Rat was exactly the same 9 worlds as
in canon, this time, several different worlds are attacked... and Tikonov fortifies in expectation of an
attack that never arrives.  Instead, Ronel, Tigress, Tybalt and Azha are attacked, plus several other
worlds.  All fall to the Suns, though the Screaming Eagles take serious damage on New Canton.  Laurel's Legion accepts employment and garrison duty on their homeworld
of Tigress, rather than internment. 
The LC and DC front has reinforcements arrive on both sides over the disputed worlds.  The Lyrans send a reserve force of 5 Regiments, the Dragon
sending 3. 
Finally, the Dragon locates part of the Wolf's Dragoons and the Veteran 8th Galedon Regulars are dispatched to
attack them.  They are bogged down immediately. 
The attack on Weingarten continues to bog down, as both sides struggle to find supplies.  A few
other worlds fall to Lyran attacks, the main and biggest being Buckminster, when the 2nd Federated Commonwealth Combat
Team lands to reinforce the 3rd Lyran Royal Guard, trapping the 2nd Sword of Light in a pincer.  While the SoL has air superiority,
it runs afoul of a lack of supplies and is caught in a close assault that crushes the Sword utterly.
Meanwhile, on Sabik, Barret's Fusiliers are destroyed by the local militia, who then go on to hold off the 1st FCCT until
relieved by the newly constituted 37th Dieron Regulars.  The 1st FCCT now faces a dangerous militia,
with a full Combat Command as well backing it up, and air superiority by the Dragon.  Lyran High Command winces at the losses. 
The Grey Death Legion are relieved by reinforcements on Shionoha that destroy the Regulars there. 

A few Capellan units never arrive back at their fallback positions; parts of the 1st and 4th Confederation Reserve Cavalry.  It's a mystery where they
ended up...

[The Purist]

 :popcorn:

Fresh Coke in the fridge (beer illegal over here   :()

One GM adder I came up were a series of historicalevent 'cards'. These included:

Anton Marik Rebellion (Control of Rebel forces,.. played by Liao in our case but the FS gave it a good try)
Archon Katrina's Peace Proposal (Played by the LC to effect the balance of power)
"Hanse and Melissa" (LC and FS Alliance,.... or not?)
Tikonov Republic (control over the TR forces)
"The Madness of the King" <St Ives Seccession> (St Ives withdraws from the CC)
Andurien Seccession (control of Andurien/MoC invasion of the CC)
Isle of Skye Seccession (Isle of Skye Rebellion)
Free Rasalhauge Republic (Establish Free Rasalhague Republic; "enemy" controls Ronin commands)
Coming of the Clans (still thinking this one through,... maybe change the change the entry area of the first wave of Clan Invasions. That could be nasty   :brew:  )

Each card has (had) a time frame they are (were) active for and a TN of 8. Each also possesses certain "triggers" that lower the TN by 1 or 2. They can be played by any Faction although the historical player(s) have first crack and in some cases a Faction may actually have TN penalty.

To be honest, I don't see the FWL playing the Andurien Succession against itself. Maybe to get out of the 4th SW? 

[Daryk]

You mean "secession", right?

[worktroll]

I like the idea, but you have to take it further.

1) Have official subdivisions into provinces
2) Track combat units as provincial or federal
3) Have more leaders, some of which are just place-holders, a few who offer advantages
4) Expand the intel rules to cover affecting loyalty, and subversion, of leaders as well as assassination.

Then the historical cards become slightly less specific. Each should require pre-conditions to be met, and shouldn't be trivial, eg


Civil war!
Requirements:
- Leader of province with -3 loyalty, in province
- More provincial units in province than non-provincial
- More combat strength in province than 25% of all other combat units
- Three successful propaganda ops against the nation in the last 3 turns

Provincial leader, all provincial units (regardless of location) become independant (either NPC, or new player entity). Merc units in the province join the secessionists on 7+, roll per mercenary command. Federal player loses all RP from the province, or captured worlds adjacent to it.


This way, you can get the Marik Civil War, St ives succession, or alternative outcomes like Capellan March secession, or the Raslehaguians going their own way early.

You can, however, imagine how much additional detail suddenly has to be tracked ...

W.

[epic]

I like the idea, but you have to take it further.

1) Have official subdivisions into provinces
2) Track combat units as provincial or federal
3) Have more leaders, some of which are just place-holders, a few who offer advantages
4) Expand the intel rules to cover affecting loyalty, and subversion, of leaders as well as assassination.

Then the historical cards become slightly less specific. Each should require pre-conditions to be met, and shouldn't be trivial, eg


Civil war!
Requirements:
- Leader of province with -3 loyalty, in province
- More provincial units in province than non-provincial
- More combat strength in province than 25% of all other combat units
- Three successful propaganda ops against the nation in the last 3 turns

Provincial leader, all provincial units (regardless of location) become independant (either NPC, or new player entity). Merc units in the province join the secessionists on 7+, roll per mercenary command. Federal player loses all RP from the province, or captured worlds adjacent to it.


This way, you can get the Marik Civil War, St ives succession, or alternative outcomes like Capellan March secession, or the Raslehaguians going their own way early.

You can, however, imagine how much additional detail suddenly has to be tracked ...

W.

Yeesh.  And I thought I was bad for creating a rule for Federal and Provincial troops for the FWL. 

:P

[The Purist]

You mean "secession", right?

Did I ever mention how much I hate Android devices and their bloody auto correct.  My fault for not proof reading later.

I normally edit posts as I find typos even if weeks and months after the original date

[The Purist]

I like the idea, but you have to take it further...<snip>

 ;D. Yaaaa, about that,... I was leaning more toward "keep it simple" to avoid too much paperwork but for those who have the desire,  your direction would be fine.   :thumbsup:

I do wonder about abuse if not properly tested.  Players may change their focus from stompiness and conquest to political manipulation.  Still,...ya know,... the more one thinks about it (thinking hard)