Space, to boldly go where...uh...hrm...wow those are tiny

[nathan]

That's how I started!

Then I got the Reference Rulebook.

I don't know what more I'm ever going to need to buy as far as rules and scenarios go.  There are so many ship stat cards and scenarios in those free magazine PDFs in Commander's Circle.

I might end up buying a PDF of ship stats at some point, but I have so many ships already for free.

We've been using some old aerotech hex boards for now, but I'm planning on getting a flannel sheet and some dollar store fabric paint and making a 1.5 inch hex sheet.

[sundayhero]

thanks !

I just realize that the game books are available on Wargame Vault ! So if I like the intro rules, I will be able to print and play the complete game for cheap. Since I plan to play with miniatures, I don't need all the material in the complete gamebox, I believe.

I'll see. I'll start playing the intro rules !

[Rhelyk]

Played a demo/refresher game today. Classic match-up: Captain Algren commands the Federation Heavy Cruiser USS Exeter patrolling the edge of the Federation-Klingon border when a Klingon D7 of uknown classification* appears on sensors, weapons ready and unresponsive to all hails.

Turn 1
Algren commands the Exeter to a cautious approach (speed , loading Photon Torpedos and ordering extra power to two of the tubes (2x-overloading) to show the Klingon's he means business! D7 closed at speed 16, launching drones, Algren later launching his own drones targetting the klingon missiles. A few tentative Phaser and Disrupter shots concluded the turn. With power to spare and the Klingons clearly hostile, Algren orderd the crew to overload the remaining torpedos and increase speed...

Turn 2
USS Exeter increased speed (speed 16) as do the Klingons (speed 24). Ships close for a few impulses with no fire exchanged. Drones reach each other and detonate, great thermonuclear explosions adding a little more radiation to a small area of empty space but little else. Klingons launch more drones which Algren dispatched with phaser1s at medium range, having learned from past battles just how these drones can be! The D7 had begun to turn away from the engagement only to open fire with some phasers and Disruptors doing only moderate damage to the fore shield, some of the force bleeding through damage to the engines, nothing significant. Algren orders the crew to hold fire and close. D7 begins to swing around as the Exeter pours extra energy into the engines, bringing the ships into prime range. Exeter fires (two 2x-overloaded Photon Torpedos at range 4 along with four Phaser1s), tearing through the Klingon shields and doing massive damage to the Klingon ship! (28 internals. Internals which just so happened to hit his weapons track twice out of the three damage groups!) Exeter launches drones and closes further, only to have the klingon turn head-on to get his remaining weapons to bear (ending the impulse in the same hex), ADDs disposing of the drones before they can strike. Noses nearly touching, the D7 shots fail to penetrate the fore shield as the remaining weapons strike home on the fresh enemy shield (two 2x-overloaded Photon Torpedoes and a single Phaser1) klingon ship, stripping most of the remaining weapons from the ship (7 internal hits striking...his weapons track!) Apparently Algren's Tactical Officer had taken the initiative and targetted weapons without orders Heavily damaged and practically toothless, the D7 turns and speeds back to Klingon space, Exeter victorious and nearly unharmed.

A victory for the USS Exeter, but even as the crew celebrate Captain Algren worries that this is not the last he has seen of this mysterious and aggressive Klingon captain and next time the Klingons will be so foolish, no doubt. Perhaps this is only the beginning, the start of something terrible...

... something terribly AWESOME! This wound up being a very short game of the "oh yeah, don't get so close to Federation ships with primed Photon torpedos" variety. He's going to reread the rulebook (and I probably will too) and we plan on doing some scenarios next week instead of just dueling over empty space. The little ships were fantastic, even though we only used 1 ship each it let us play a full game using only 4 hex-boards. Really hoping the romulans get here soon.

*(my friend didn't bother to name his ship. Damnit man, that's half the fun!)

[nathan]

Same thing happened to me when I played my first game.  Gorn medium cruiser vs Federation Heavy Cruiser.  I had plasma bolts all loaded up (we weren't yet playing with torpedo/seeking weapon rules) and thought I'd be able to go toe-to-toe with the overloaded photons.  Nope.

Tactical advice for your opponent:  Once a fed player overloads his photons, he's limited to a range of 8.  As soon as that happens, pay the energy needed for acceleration, cancel movement if needed (as cancelled movement counts for turning) and stay out of 8 hexes away.  Make the fed player waste energy holding overloaded photons and never firing them.  Or bite the bullet and eject the photons and begin the loading process over again.

My favorite thing about FC is that it makes the miniatures each feel valuable and important.  In my last game my little frigate ended up being the hero and took down a Gorn medium cruiser after it's shields got knocked out by another craft.

I'm just at the point where we're going to be doing scenarios rather than dueling as well.

[javelin98]

Hi!  I'm the designer of those little ships and I'm glad that someone's enjoying them!  I wanted to let everyone know that I've released a few more of those items, so here is the current available line:

TOS-Style Coalition:


TMP-Style Coalition:


TNG-Style Coalition:


Space Mongols:


Praetorians:


Kzouti:


Leerans:


Webbians:


AstroGators:


Starbases:


And here is a non-Trek fleet, the retro-pulp Atomizers:


I'm currently working on some more factions, including the Tridrans, CuBorgs, Cardashians, Do'Minions, and a fleet of cargo and non-combatant vessels for use as objectives and maguffins. 

As Nathan said, I'm pretty open to custom orders, so feel free to PM me if there's a specific mix you'd like!

So yes, if you skip the base they should be cheaper to print but they will be cheaper to buy only if the designer wants to pass this onto the clients.

True, but since my standard markup on every product is generally a single dollar, any reduction in volume of material used should translate into at least some price reduction for the buyer.

Thanks, all!  I'm excited to hear what else folks are interested in seeing.

~Andreas (a.k.a. javelin98)

[Rhelyk]

I absolutely recommend these awesome things, I have a full fleet of Federation (TOS coalition), klingon (mongol) and Romulan 9Preatorean) fleets. I plan to pick up the other main 3 too, but for now I have more than I ever want to field with just those 3 main fleets and some spacestations. They work wonderfully well with the smaller hex maps included in the FedCom game

Honestly, the biggest thing that kept me away from the new ships is that they lack an indentation underneath the base to put a magnet. Possibly this is due to the custom model I had Javelin98 make me(to include the extras I was missing), and I can hardly complain about that! But unfortunately it means that 90% of my figs have magnets underneath and 10% don't and are too difficult to include, and that was enough to move my ADD/OCD butt on to other projects

It DOES mean I'm now playing Infinity, which I LOVE! Go-go-gadget-complicatedrulesets!

[sundayhero]

Great minis !

A nice addition would be civilian starships, like cargo ships, penitenciary starbase, factories, mines, etc... TO make nice scenarios and objective markers.

[javelin98]

Well, I do have a few designs along those lines!  Below you can see three cargo ships, a hospital ship, a science vessel, two smugglers, and a luxury cruise liner.  I'll probably make up a few more before that pack goes up for sale.

[sean_68333]

Nice designs.  Makes me want to start a new scale for my fleet gaming.

But for now I'm just tempted...... for now.

[The_Beast]

So, if I end up with a bucket load in hand...

 

Doug

Edit: And, I can't let the Fhloston Paradise pass without mentioning that sound you heard was the drop of my jaw.

[sean_68333]

So, if I end up with a bucket load in hand...

 

Doug

I would be happy to join you in a game using said bucket.

[javelin98]

Nice designs.  Makes me want to start a new scale for my fleet gaming.

But for now I'm just tempted...... for now.

In that case, allow me to introduce a gateway drug:  the Skirmish Pack!  

http://shpws.me/ESDf

This pack features 15 starships (five each from the Coalition (TOS-style), Space Mongols, and Praetorians), and includes a Kay-7 deep space outpost for them to fight over.  All for about the price of a coffee date at Starbucks (assuming you let your date get a scone with her hand-crafted coffee beverage)!

Thanks!
jav98

[javelin98]

Edit: And, I can't let the Fhloston Paradise pass without mentioning that sound you heard was the drop of my jaw.

I was wondering if anyone would recognize that.  Well done, sir!

Here is is next to a US quarter and a £1 coin:

[sundayhero]

Nice skirmish pack !

Are the cheaper "regular" white plastic good enough for these ?

What is the usual shipping cost for this kind of 3d printing services ?

[The_Beast]

Nice skirmish pack !

Are the cheaper "regular" white plastic good enough for these ?

What is the usual shipping cost for this kind of 3d printing services ?

You can use the shopping cart and see.

"All other EU countries, Switzerland, Norway, San Marino, Vatican, Andorra, Liechtenstein
$9.50"

"
Est. Shipping
€10.08

Pre-VAT is €8.4
"

Compared to a lot of carts, this one is pretty up front, and without actually signing your life away. Much easier than the last time I gave it a shot.

Doug

Edit: On the other hand, since I used it long ago and far away, it won't let me log on as a guest. 'We don't want your money unless you go through the whole request/reset your password.'