Subtopic	Posts		Updated
	Archive through January 16, 2003	25		01/16 08:19am
	Archive through December 06, 2010	25		01/22 11:13am

Yeah, that's true - would need to be a restriction on that of some kind. Just seems the game is so well suited to it, I'm pretty much always playing it with 4 or 5 people.

Certain mechanics make a lot of sense in that environment, that in a 2-player game are...less balanced.

By Xander Fulton (Dderidex) on Monday, December 06, 2010 - 07:28 pm: Edit

One point, though, Terry - keep in mind to reflect on the card's use in context of the other cards.

For example, the 'Legendary Captain' card, using the current rules, is only 'in play' for one event. So it basically does what you suggest - he can be used in an attack, a defense, a repair...but that's it, card is used and discarded.

He's certainly more powerful using the 'Legendary Officers' play deck, proposed above. However, keep in mind what some of the others would do in the same place!

- Legendary Engineer. Every turn, no matter how much damage a ship has, one ship can be instantly repaired. Every turn

- Expert Helmsman (CL42). Another formation change in a turn. This lets a ship - say, a heavy dreadnought - come out of the immune-to-attack reserve, strike a target and annihilate it, and then return to can't-get-me reserve. Again, every turn. At least with the Legendary Captain, he's a prime target (even in a two-player game). The 'expert helmsman' is immune from attack until basically every single other ship is destroyed, and the last of the reserves is forced into the 'screen'.

The proposed rule allows almost all of the legendary officers to suddenly become REAL disruptive...and all players start with one. (Another suggestion would be to allow players to discard a legendary officer. This could be useful if they draw a 'reinforcements' card or something, and know they are about to get a new ship, and want to try trading the officer they have out for something more useful for their current hand)

It's certainly meant to change the overall flavor of the game, by having another resource to manage (keep your legendary officers safe!)

By Xander Fulton (Dderidex) on Friday, January 21, 2011 - 01:25 pm: Edit

Planets
As a possible alternative - again, the idea here is a separate deck of cards...a new 'resource' to manage for the players (in addition to the 'action cards' or 'ship cards'). [Plus, I'd love to see Ted Geibel's new planet art on some cards!]

There would be a few dozen planets in the game, in their own deck. Each, if controlled by a player (placed in front of him), offers some slight bonus. All players start with one planet dealt from the 'planets' deck. Bonuses would be things like:

• Phaser-quality gas mining world: +1 damage on any turn phaser attacks are used in attack
• Weapons-grade plasma mining world: +1 damage to any plasma weapon attack
• Targeting crystals mining world: +1 damage on any defensive use of phasers
• Warp coil mineral world: Each one additional formation change every three turns...can only have up to one bonus formation change at a time. (To use this, place three tokens on the world, every turn, during your formation step, remove one. Once all three are removed, you can take a bonus formation change during a turn. When you do that, put three tokens back on the planet, and you start earning your next formation change.)
• Duranium alloy resource world: +1 hull box repaired on all ships, every turn (ONLY hull damage is repaired)
• University world: Any legengary officer card can be used twice before needing to be discarded.
• Lush supply planet: One additional ship (up to 3 total) may be kept in 'reserve' status in your main fleet body.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Saturday, January 22, 2011 - 10:34 am: Edit

We already have planets.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Saturday, January 22, 2011 - 11:13 am: Edit

How about "Ketrick's Cat" card. As long as the card is under the ship, it cannot be destroyed by the last hit point. Remove card when used to save the ship and reutrn to the deck.


I still wish for a few more Ph1/Ph2 cards.


Maybe a "Duel" card. Play the card and the player places one ship in the center of the table and chooses and enemy ship to "Duel". Each side, starting with the attacker, plays one weapon card. Then the defender plays one weapon card. Damage is resolved on both ships. Then the attacker plays another weapon card and so on until each side has no weapon cards or one ship is destroyed. Defense cards can be played normally as attacks happen. Weapon cards that the ship cannot use normally can be used as a Ph-3. You must track weapons as you cannot use more weapons than the ship has. It is possible that in a Duel the two ships return only damaged with neither destroyed.
Dreadnauts can only duel other Dreadnauts. Carriers cannot duel.
Can only duel front line ships.

Maybe have a Disengage card too? Can be used to disengage from a duel (at any point) or fall back from a normal attack (move ship to rear line when it can still be attacked within the normal limits).

By Terry O'Carroll (Terryoc) on Saturday, January 22, 2011 - 05:54 pm: Edit

Disengage is already in there. Very annoying when you launch a massive attack and your opponent just plays the Disengage card.

By Xander Fulton (Dderidex) on Saturday, January 22, 2011 - 06:59 pm: Edit

---

Quote:

We already have planets.

---

By Kenneth Thomas (Ohssurvivor) on Tuesday, May 10, 2011 - 01:36 pm: Edit

this might have been proposed already but here goes an idea:

If a Player A uses a carrier to launch its fighters at Player B's ship and Player B throws a drone in defense, Player A is allowed 1 ph-3 card fired defensively from the fighter squad in an attempt to reduce the damage from the drone, but reduces the overall effectiveness of the die roll (minimum 1 point of damage) by that much on the main target, then damage resolution continues as normal.

By Matt Mello (Damelloman888) on Wednesday, October 01, 2014 - 05:07 pm: Edit

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum, but I want to let you know of a new way my son and I play that makes this game a lot more fun and interesting. All of these ideas are taken from other great games I have played but we figured out how to integrate them into this game. The general idea is to add "power" into the game by having to make a choice of how much energy you put into maneuvering. If you are at a maneuver disadvantage then your attack capabilities are weakened.
The game also adds an element of planning and the "we-go" system.... please read on.
Each turn you:
1) Select a hidden "maneuver speed" by hiding the dice behind your hand. This is revealed at the same time.
2) Subtract the high dice from the low dice -- this is your "maneuver advantage".
3) The player with the "maneuver advantage" gets to make one "90 degree turn" of an enemy ship for each "maneuver advantage" he has.
NOTE:
--ships that are "broadside disadvantaged" (90 degrees) cannot use their heavies.
-- ships that are "backwards disadvanteaged" (180 degrees) cannot use their heavies and their phaser damage is halved (rounded down).
-- the most "disadvantage" a ship can be is "backwards disadvantaged"
NOTE:
-- the player with the "maneuver advantage" must use it to turn ALL of his ships facing forward BEFORE creating a disadvantage ("boradside" then "bakwards")
4) Players collect cards. The number of cards you receive is 7 - "maneuver speed".
5) The player with the lower "maneuver speed" declares his firing ship and target.
6) The player with the higher "maneuver speed" declares his firing ship and target.
7) The players then put down four to five cards (face down) from left to right. These cards can come from this turns collection or from reserve power. If they have more than 4 cards they can choose to put the extra cards into reserve power.
NOTE: you may not have enough cards for each round.
NOTE: reserve power has a maximum of two cards.
NOTE: there are five rounds of play per turn -- the last round is an optional play if you have the cards.
8) Play is then resolved by turing over the first card on the left. Play is resovled "simultaniously" for each round in this order:
-- defense
-- offense
-- repair
-- maneuver (any card you are NOT capable of every playing AT ANY TIME is a maneuver card)
EXAMPLE: Remember these carde are ALL pre-played... combat takes place simultaniously!
Round 1: Player 1 playes "Shield 1" while Player 1 Plays "Phaser 1 2 damage"
result: no damage done (1 shield left)
Round 2: Player 1 plays "Photon (maneuver because his ship does not have them)" while Player 2 Plays "Photon 4 (he has a Photon)"
result: 3 damage done to Player 1
Player 2s ship is turned 90 degrees
Round 3: Player 1 playes "Phaser 1 3 damage" Player 2 playes "Photon 4"
result: no damage done to Player 1 (the manuever worked from last round so the photons can no long fire, and overload would have worked though!)
3 damage to Player 2
Round 4: Player 1 plays "Phaser 2 2 damage" while Player to plays "ECM 3"
result: no damage to Player 2 (ECM works first)
Round 5: Player 1 has no cards left to play, Player 2 Plays "Photon 3" (but is out of Photons)
result: no damage to Player 1 and NO maneuver (Player 2 is capable of playing a "Photon" card -- it would a have been a better strategy to put this card in reserve)

NOTE: Figheters attack in Round 3 -- it takes them time to get there.

Hopefully you give it a try -- it makes the game even more fun in my opinion. Let me know what you think. Thank you.... Matt

By Michael Baker (Mcb1968) on Monday, July 11, 2016 - 12:13 am: Edit

How about making fighters avaialbe for defense of their carrier. Useful against fighters, PF, Drone, Plasma.