Rogue star ,osprey sci fi skirmish rules

[DivisMal]

Thanks, Hobgoblin!

That all reads very tasty and I might just jump onto this one to make use of my very extensive 15mm SF collection.

[Malebolgia]

And how does the game compare to the recent Void Pirates? Both seem to deliver the same kind of game...any comparisons?

[zemjw]

Or you could do what I do- I went to talk to my bank and opened a separate account I named my "Hobby Account" (it actually says that on the card). That is the only account I use for online or over-the-telephone purchases, including amazon, and my paypal account also gets filled from it.
I transfer money into it manually only when I want to buy something, so that if someone did ever hack it, they would only get a limited amount and would not be able to access my main bank account.

I do the same thing, and still try to limit its use to the absolute minimum (paranoid, me ). Someone did manage to put through a test transaction for about £10 one time. When I phoned the bank they told me that it had been followed by an attempt to buy about £300 of mobile phones. As there was only about £30 in the account at the time the crooks failed. However, I then had to get a new card issued etc.

Upping the paranoia, even though it's not my main account, it still links me back to the bank where I do have my main account. I have thought about getting a pre-paid credit card from another provider, but have never followed through.

[vodkafan]

I do the same thing, and still try to limit its use to the absolute minimum (paranoid, me ). Someone did manage to put through a test transaction for about £10 one time. When I phoned the bank they told me that it had been followed by an attempt to buy about £300 of mobile phones. As there was only about £30 in the account at the time the crooks failed. However, I then had to get a new card issued etc.

Upping the paranoia, even though it's not my main account, it still links me back to the bank where I do have my main account. I have thought about getting a pre-paid credit card from another provider, but have never followed through.

Yeah these people are out there. You can only try to protect yourself as best you can. My Hobbies account is the simplest type of account with no overdraft, and is a debit card. No-one can take out what's not in there. I don't have a credit card as I don't like paying interest.

[Andrew Rae]

And how does the game compare to the recent Void Pirates? Both seem to deliver the same kind of game...any comparisons?

With a not-actually-played-either caveat, they look at be at different ends of the grittiness scale. For example, Rogue Stars has hit locations (neatly integrated into the attack role), drawing and holstering weapons and off-hand shots. I'd image once you're up to speed they'd play equally quick, but Void Pirates might be quicker to learn.

[Kamandi]

My copy is still in the mail but I'm dubious hearing these comments. I was hoping for something along the lines of SOBH with a Necromunda-like campaign system. Talk of holstering, hit locations etc. suggests a level of crunchiness that can lead to confusion and/or tedium. Most RPGs don't even both with those details anymore.

Then again, if anybody can present this in a playable manner it's Andrea Sfiligoi.  I like to support Andrea and I like the price point of this Osprey series. I don't feel too bad spending $18 even if I don't use the rules much. I do wish the books were better organized, indexed and included better reference sheets and rosters. I suppose it's too much to ask for a booklet that costs under $20.

We will see when it turns up.

[Torben]

As far as I can tell, from reading - not actually playing - most of it is just for the flavour. The only reason why it might be relevant to note down the model's off-hand would be if its main-hand was wounded during the game.

I'm sure that you can skip most of it (I'm going to at any rate), which leaves me questioning why it was added in the first place...

[Hobgoblin]

The hit locations aren't the impediment they seem. They're a result of a single attack roll (how much you succeed by determines where you hit: you get to choose in some circumstances). I think they'll become intuitive pretty quickly.

I think the small figure count is intrinsically linked to the detail. Having things like drawing and dropping weapons and being "winged" by being shot in the arm adds a lot of cinematic detail that would be pointless with 20 a side but works fine with 4. So, in my try-out last night, a jammed gun and a dropped gun (because of a wounded arm) became major plot points. That makes a shootout game much more interesting.

The low rate of movement - or rather, the small units of time represented by a turn - are also part of this. It's a moment-by-moment game in which every small action matters.

In that regard, you can see why drawing a sword or holstering a gun matters. It's not just for flavour. If your gun gets shot out of your hand, you'll need to spend some actions getting to it and picking it up. And every action creates the potential for a reaction (including your getting shot). If you drop your rifle to draw your force-sword and then, following the melee, have to duck behind a building for cover, your rifle will still be lying there.

And if you get shot in your good arm, you'll have to shoot with your off-hand - which imposes a significant penalty.

Obviously, this is far too much detail for a bigger game. But - on the basis of reading and a quick play-through - it seems to work really well for a full-flavour firefight with fewer figures.

[eilif]

I think it's been fairly clear all along that it was a far more detailed system than SOBH.  Months ago we knew that it was a d20 system and tailored for around 3 minis per player.

I was also originally looking for a necromunda'ish experience, but I like the NCE edition of necromunda plenty and after playing Tales of Blades and Heroes, the idea of a very-low-model-count by Andrea seems really cool even if it's quite a bit different.  So I bought into the nickstarter.

My copy is still in the mail but I'm dubious hearing these comments. I was hoping for something along the lines of SOBH with a Necromunda-like campaign system. Talk of holstering, hit locations etc. suggests a level of crunchiness that can lead to confusion and/or tedium. Most RPGs don't even both with those details anymore.

Then again, if anybody can present this in a playable manner it's Andrea Sfiligoi.  I like to support Andrea and I like the price point of this Osprey series. I don't feel too bad spending $18 even if I don't use the rules much. I do wish the books were better organized, indexed and included better reference sheets and rosters. I suppose it's too much to ask for a booklet that costs under $20.

We will see when it turns up.

[Hummster]

I can personally enjoy having a game with that level of detail, but there are plenty of other sets of rules if that is not what you are looking for.

[has.been]

We have been playing this 'level of detail' for years with our Western Gunfight games. They have always been great fun & had that 'Cinematic' feel. If it is your team/gang you soon get to know them e.g. Marks left arm is artificial he won't feel a thing, or Jake is right handed, so if he fires his rifle from that corner of the building he will not be able to claim much cover etc. etc.

I am looking forward to going through my lead mountain, for suitable teams. Even non Sci-Fi will not be safe as a blaster holster or scratch built laser rifle can easily be added to just about any figure. That is my Christmas break sorted.

[nozza_uk]

I can personally enjoy having a game with that level of detail, but there are plenty of other sets of rules if that is not what you are looking for.

Completely agree. The number of modifiers required is leaving me cold at the moment (until I actually try a game), but (IMHO) the scenario & campaign generation is worth the price of the book.

[Admiral Benbow]

Received my copy yesterday and, although it looks fine with all those very nice color plates, I'm a bit disappointed:
No rules summaries pages! Unbelievable for a complex system like that.
No rooster sheets! Do we need to design them ourselves, or would we have to buy them later?
Already an Errata list. 
Sorry folks, but I'll check an alternative rules set ...

P.S.: Love the minis! Quality work as usual from Mike Owen and Marc Copplestone!

[Juan]

I have received my copy today and I like it a lot. A detailed SF skirmish level ruleset with the scums of earth in place of super-marines as fighting force... I need to prepare a game ASAP!

About the erratas, they can be easily fixed, and there are only a pair of them.

[Hummster]

I can personally enjoy having a game with that level of detail, but there are plenty of other sets of rules if that is not what you are looking for.

I kind of feel in comparison to say Two Hour Wargames Chain Reaction which is aimed at a similar number of models on the table Rogue Stars is like comparing Dungeons & Dragons to Runequest, one is more abstract and quicker playing, but loses some of the cinematic qualities that the greater detail of the other gives.

Just having scanned the rules quickly I like them so far, particularly the activation/reaction system and the scenario generator and the accompanying minis are very appealing.