Federation Commander

Point-of-Turn / Point-of-Slip One Marker Method

Summary: This is a way to use only one counter to show both Point-Of-Turn and Point-Of-Slip. Use only the POT counter. The number of hexes between the POT counter and the ship counts towards the turn mode just as in the normal procedure. The slip mode can be determined by looking to see if the POT counter is in the same hex row as the ship. If the POT counter is in the same hex row, the slip mode has been fulfilled and the ship can slip. If the POT counter is not in the same hex row, the slip mode has not been fulfilled and the ship cannot slip.

Procedure: When a ship makes a sideslip leave its Point-Of-Turn counter where it is. This leaves the POT counter in a different hex row to the ship. When the POT counter is in a different hex row than its ship the ship needs to move forward to fulfill its slip mode.

When the ship moves forward move the POT counter obliquely back and into the same hex row as its ship. A ship can sideslip if it is in the same hex row as its POT counter. The number of hexes between a ship and its POT counter will be the number of hexes moved that count toward fulfilling the turn mode for that ship.

Deceleration: When decelerating move the POT counter directly backwards one hex but keep it in the same hex row as the ship. A deceleration counts as one hex toward the turn mode, but has no influence on the slip mode.

Sticky Situation: If a ship is Stopped or if it decelerates immediately after making a turn its next move must be forward (because the turn mode and the slip mode are both zero). The first move made in this situation must be forward because slip mode cannot be fulfilled with decelerations. Place the POT counter upside-down under the ship counter. Having the POT counter in the same hex as the ship counter indicates the ship has not fulfilled any movement toward its turn mode. Placing the POT counter upside-down indicates the ship has not fulfilled its slip mode.

Alternate Method: With the sticky situation in mind one might wonder, Why not simply flip the POT counter upside-down to indicate a slip mode has not been fulfilled instead of moving it obliquely back? This can be done instead of moving the POT counter and works just as well. Some players may find that they prefer flipping the POT counter instead of moving it obliquely back.

One way I've done Turn counters is to use a 6 sided die.

Each ship card has a die on it. Every time you move or decelerate, increase the die by 1. The "six" means the turn mode has been reset to 0 (stopped, decel, HET, etc). For example...

Ship begins with a reset turn mode (6)
Move (1)
Decel (2)
Move (3)
Turn (1)
Move (2)
etc.
etc.

5 was always the max. Never played with a ship that required 6 hexes, but not sure what the battleships require.

for fun maneuverability
try a vulture speed 24 and evasive
turn mode 7 i believe
once had to emergency decel to avoid map edge

WOW! You're right, and I've even seen it, but since I've been using turn counters for awhile I hadn't paid attention to a dice not being enough anymore.

I suppose available space was one of the reasons for not including it, but I've always wondered about putting a turn mode track and a slip mode track (more like a checkbox) on the ship cards. Another reason for not doing it would be that anyone can look at the map and see the turn and slip markers at any time without bothering anybody else.