Call Out Notes for Captain's Log #52 is closed.

Call Out Notes submitted after this point will be considered for Captain's Log #53.

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Saturday, May 04, 2019 - 05:44 pm: Edit

Call Out Notes posted after this date will be considered for Captain's Log #54.

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Wednesday, August 12, 2020 - 02:47 pm: Edit

Call Out Notes submissions for Captain's Log #54 are closed.

Conquest Notes posted after this date will be considered for Captain's Log #55.

By Tony L. Thomas (Scoutdad) on Thursday, November 12, 2020 - 09:30 am: Edit

Cast a Wide Net… err, Web!
Tony L. Thomas
USS Tennessee

Neo-Tholian web casters are great for setting up a web network at a distance. But they come with severe restrictions that seem to limit their effectiveness.
• The webs have a maximum length of six inches.
• Multiple cast web segments cannot be linked together.
• A single anchor cannot be used to anchor two segments.
Despite these limitations, it is possible – with a little forethought to overcome these limits.

You, as a wily Tholian commander are aware of these limits and use them to your advantage. By using your other ships (or a conveniently situated asteroid or two) as anchors you can establish multiple six-inch web segments. If a cast web segment is anchored to an asteroid and another Tholian ship (with a web generator) it will become a normal web the instant it solidifies between the two anchors. That ship can then activate and use its internal web generator and the Lay Tholian Web special action to extend the previously cast web. If there are multiple, valid, normal webs (that had been cast), this ship can extend the web it is an anchor for and possibly connect them into a single, longer web.

Example 1: If a Neo-Tholian cruiser uses its two web casters to cast 1 web between itself and an asteroid six-inches away (to the Port side for example) and the second to cast a web between an asteroid 6 inches on the other (starboard) side of the NCA and a Tholian PC that was four inches away – the PC could activate and use the Lay Tholian Web special action to extend the web it is part of to the NCA and suddenly, there is a 12-inch long web where previously there was none.

Example 2: The same NCA from the previous example is looking at a 14-inch wide gap between asteroids (14 inches away from the NCA) but in the path of an oncoming enemy force.
On Turn 1, two Patrol Cruisers rush forward to position themselves in the gap.
On Turn 2, the NCA casts two webs (each four inches long) and each connecting one PC to an asteroid on each side of the gap.
One PC then activates and uses the Lay Tholian Web special action to move six inches and connect the webs into a single segment.
The Second PC then uses the Reinforce Tholian Web to increase the strength of the web.

The possibilities for combining cast webs and web generating ships are endless.

By Tony L. Thomas (Scoutdad) on Thursday, November 12, 2020 - 09:32 am: Edit

Web Design – Tholian Style
Tony L. Thomas
USS Tennessee

The Lay Tholian Web special action (Page 14, ACTASF Book 2) details the process a Tholian player must use to lay webs during a scenario. While at first glance , it seems a slow, arduous procedure limited to only six inches of web per turn; it is possible to speed the process. With proper, prior planning, the length of web that can be laid is limited only by the number of ships available to lay web (and by the 36-inch maximum strand length). By using your movement allowance on turn 1 to pre-position all web capable ships six inches from each other, you can then activate them in sequence and begin.

Ship one moves 6 inches to end in base-to-base contact with ship two, laying web all the way. Once in contact, ship 2 assumes web anchor status and activates next.
Ship two moves six inches to end in base-to-base contact with ship three (who assumes web anchor status).
Ship three activates…

Continue this process for as many ships as you choose. Each ship will be able to lay three segments (six inches) of web. With just three Patrol Cruisers (210 points), you can lay 18 inches of web in a single turn, then reinforce it the following turn. Or over two turns, you can lay the maximum length (36 inches) web!

By Mark Lurz (Markalurz) on Monday, November 30, 2020 - 02:33 pm: Edit

The Sting of the Hydran Stinger
Mark Lurz
USS New York

During multiple play test games for ACTASF, I have found that Hydran Stingers can have a lasting impact on your game, both as the Hydran player and their foe. In ACTASF, Stingers, well all fighters, move up to 8” per turn, they move last, and most importantly they also fire last. This is where the need to be tactical and practical with their use, for the Stingers to be truly effective (devastatingly so) the Hydran player must be able to get the Stingers in close and I mean really close, inside 4” of the intended target, but in doing so it puts the stingers in explosion damage radius should the target or another ship close by explode due to excessive damage. If the Stingers get inside the 4” range, it puts the Stinger carried Fusion into both the Kill zone and point blank, and if you have enough Stingers (and good die rolls) the target will not survive the Stingers firing phase, which puts them into the potential for an explosion radius.
So, unless you, as the Hydran player can get your opponent to move where you want them to, the next best thing is to use the Stingers as a deterrent to keep a wandering enemy from trying to circle around to your aft side.

By Stewart Frazier (Frazikar3) on Monday, November 30, 2020 - 05:31 pm: Edit

Or one could split them up so that when fired, they wreck the ship instead of blowing it up (and the fighters) which might allow them to move out of the way ...

By Stewart Frazier (Frazikar3) on Monday, November 30, 2020 - 05:33 pm: Edit

Or one could split the Stingers up so that each flight can wreck their target ship so it doesn't blow up (taking the fighters with it), and give them a chance to move out of the way (possibly reloading for another try) ...

By Tony L. Thomas (Scoutdad) on Tuesday, December 01, 2020 - 11:25 am: Edit

That's the trick...
Since they move and fire last...
You have a good idea how much damaged is needed to kill a ship without over-killing it.
That enables you to adjust your fire accordingly, but since those units have already moved... you may not have any auxiliary targets for those units not needing to fire at the primary target.

But... that's what makes this a game with strategy and tactics!!!

By Mark Lurz (Markalurz) on Sunday, December 06, 2020 - 01:44 pm: Edit

Escorts, the new must have in a fleet battle
Mark Lurz
USS New York

During last night’s play test game for ACTASF, I was playtesting several new ship types as the FEDERATION, the CVS, DE and CLE. The use of escort ships to protect a vessel of higher importance has been around since the first sea going battles took place, in our last game this was no different, keeping my two escorts within the kill zone of their phaser-G’s of the CVS and each other provided the benefit ot the ESCORT trait, no -1 to hit when shooting in defense of an allied ship. The FED DE is the perfect Escort, with 2 PH-1’s and a pair of PH-Gs on the port and starboard side, this ship can handle almost anything seeking weapon related as it stopped over 40 drones from hitting the intended targets during the entire game,
So keep an escort handy and close by an important ship that you done want to lose, and maybe as the game goes on, they might just see that Escort as another DD and take a pass on shooting it while attempting to hit a move valuable target

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, December 06, 2020 - 05:20 pm: Edit

Mark: That needs to be rewritten in more scholarly terms.

ESCORTS: THE NEW MUST HAVE
By Mark Lurz, USS New York

ACTA strategy is purchase strategy. What you buy defines how you will fight. The newly introduced aegis escorts can play a critical role in protecting more important ships from mass attacks by seeking weapons (although they would provide no protection from direct-fire weapons).

But with that in mind, think beyond "this escort destroyer protects this dreadnought, that escort frigate protects that cruiser." Properly deployed, an aegis escort protects the entire fleet. Drones (and sometimes plasma torpedoes) end up on the board at the end of one turn and strike their targets during the next turn). A properly positioned aegis escort says "You cannot park your drone stack in this area." To be sure, any ship can fire at the inter-turn drone stack, but escorts have nothing but anti-drone weapons while a regular warship cannot use its heavy weapons against the drones. Therefore, an escort will be more effective against a drone stack while a regular warship needs to keep its phasers for use in a combined volley including its heavy weapons against an enemy ship.

By Tony L. Thomas (Scoutdad) on Wednesday, June 02, 2021 - 05:12 pm: Edit

Double Down, ACTASF style!
Tony L. Thomas
USS Tennessee

With the release of full scout rules in ACTASF, many people are debating the inclusion of a large scout or a small scout. Well, the actual answer should be, take two small scouts. For just a few more points, you more than double your flexibility.

With one scout ,you have only one scout. It's easy for your opponent to position some of his key units where you do not have line of sight, you can get too far from your own units to use scout functions, and if your opponent takes out your scout... that's all she wrote. You have no more scouts.

With two smaller scouts, you can maneuver them to opposing flanks. This makes it harder to prevent line of sight, you can cover your own forces more easily, and if your opponent destroys one of the scouts... you still have another scout.

This double down technique also works for any and all of the special ships and traits. There are big advantages to having two ships with the Command trait or the Fast trait.

By Tony L. Thomas (Scoutdad) on Wednesday, June 02, 2021 - 05:13 pm: Edit

Targets of Opportunity!
Tony L. Thomas
USS Tennessee

Many theories have been presented regarding target selection. Some are proponents of the biggest and baddest unit first, some are proponents of the "one most likely to damage you" first, some advocate concentration of fire, and some advocate spreading your fire to cripple multiple targets. Now it’s time for a new targeting theory - Targets of Opportunity.
• If you're facing an opponent who only has a single scout... target that. Once it's gone, he no longer has the benefits of a scout.
• If he only has one ship with the Command trait, target that. Once he loses that trait, his entire fleet suffers from an initiative loss.
• If he has only one ship with drones... target that ship. Once those are gone, he no longer has a 24-inch range weapon.
• And so on… X-Ships, Maulers, Carriers, etc.
If you can remove one leg of your opponent’s attack strategy, you may find he’s no longer as big a threat as he once was.

By Mark Lurz (Markalurz) on Sunday, March 27, 2022 - 07:20 am: Edit

END PHASE

Mark Lurz
U.S.S. New York

Completing every step of the end phase is important especially if you have a unit that has rolled on the stricken ship chart, even though the unit cannot be fired upon again, it may have critical hits that are in escalation. Always roll to see if these escalate further, it could mean the difference in the fate of the unit, where as a unit that would have just imploded and have no further effect on the game could run adrift and explode next turn, or even cause it to explode immediately causing damage to any unit within 4 inches.