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/ 32
it SPACE. CAMER
MAY—JUNE
1978
G.E.V. a designer's introduction
Steve Jackson .... 5
CHITIN: 1 another look
David Norwood .. end
ENCOUNTERS of an UNLIKELY KIND
Mike Crane .... 1B
ADJUSTED ORC RULES
Paul C Wagner .
ADDITIONAL UNITS FOR IMPERIUM
Rich Bartucci . .
MODIFIED RULES for IMPERIUM
Walter peat cae 7,
LUCKY LADY
Ted Butler . a3)
GONDOR and SAURON: a review
David James Ritct
COLUMNS:
WHERE WE'RE GOING ....
NEWS & PLUGS .. ;
BOOKS
DESIGNER'S NOTEBOOK ...
LETTERS . 29
ART IN THIS ISSUE:
Winchell Chung 6,7,8,9,10
C. Ben Ostrander eee ear
ne a as
Paul Jaquays ..- 14,20,30
Howard Thompson Murray Lindsay . 16
puree John Karp. 18
Karol Sandberg Robert Manns . 24,2627
‘copy editor Pat Hidy . 2B
Steve Jackson THE SPACE GAMER is publithed sx ies 4
contributing editor ‘ear by Metagsming 3100-4 Indus Teneo,
Bec ieee aan)
yes Tetetnge, fo. noc isi Aue, 18
78731. All material copyright©’ 1978 by THE
SPACE GAMER. All rights reserved for mate:
Hal accopted for publication unless initlly
‘Specified and agreed otherwise. News item
thd produet announcements subject Yo editorial
him.» SUBSRIPTIONS: six isucs, $8; twelve
Htsues, $15. Bose sate for unsolicited manusce
Tommye Thompson
subscriptions
COVER by Dean Morrissey
NUMBER 17
Sif one cont per word; they must bo typed,
Aouble spaced, ana contain return postage. base
rate for artis 320 per average pag size interior
Art shouldbe black ink on heavy white paper.
‘Application to mail at scennd class rats fe pon
ding at Austin, Texas
THE
LasT
WORD
‘As the above title indicates, this col
tumn will be the last thing put into each
issue of TSG. It will, hopefully, contain
the most current info for you, the reader.
As editor, | hope you will look forward
10 reading it, and that you will find it in-
formative
Let me begin by expressing my sincere
apology to Mr. Tony Van Liew for the
error in the spelling of his name from
TSG No. 16. 1 am completely responsible
for the mistake, and hope he will pardon
my blunder. His review (INVASION
AMERICA), was very informative, and |
hope most readers found it as enjoyable
a5 | did. Again, | apologize for this error.
Current back issue info: Each week,
many letters ask about back issues. The
‘most recent TSGs are all available; 13, 14,
15, and 16. If you want any of these,
suggast you order soon. Many stores and
individuals are grabbing them up like the
proverbial ‘hot cake’. Material for all
issues has been selected for its ability to
be useful for along time. Although some
content is dated, we think the greater
part of each issue will help the average
gamer for many years.
Upcoming issues of TSG will feature
reviews of PROFESSIONAL WRES—
TLING, SUPERHERO 44, and OBJEC—
TIVE: MOSCOW, some excellent fiction
by Brian McCue, and more game variants
Remember, TSG needs articles. You are
in the driver's seat, and if that clever idea
you have stays with you, nobody can find
ut just how clever it is. Send those art
cle submissions to me, the editor. | will
respond as rapidly 3s possible on use. In
the future, look to this column for writ
rs information,
For all those people in the Evansville,
Indiana area, | suggest you make plans
to attend the MicroGamo tournament to
bbe held there August 26. It looks like
loads of fun. Check News & Plugs for
complete information.
‘Any clubs who would like to be listed
in News & Plugs should send all informa.
tion to Robert Taylor in care of Meta
gaming, P.O. Box 15346, Austin, TX
78761. He is doing a fine job of compil:
ing all the listings, but he needs you to
send him legible, coherent data. He will
be very happy to list you, so send us your
club into.
Please send all your mail to our Post
Office box. We have lost some very
important material by having it addressed
Incorrectly. The new, higher rates that
we have just knuckled under make it very
important that everyone gets it right the
first time,
“Til next issue, good gaming!
-C. Ben Ostrander CHANGING HORSES
There are two things you can do when
you stick your neck out and come up
short. You can keep on and make it
worse, oF cut your loss.
‘Around the first of the year Metagam-
Jing expected to be able to accomplish
{8 number of things by the time Origins
rolled around. Not that Origins is @ cru
cial date, itis @ convenient date to shoot
for. We'd hoped to be able to introduce
THE FANTASY TRIP: IN THE LABY—
RINTH, STELLAR CONQUEST, and
GODSFIRE in a boxed format. We were
well into planning to produce metal mit
ature figures, Frankly, it looked really
great on paper.
But.....
By May first, the miniatures effort
was totally dead, after tying up some
Useful money and wasting several hun-
dred hours of work. By May 15, the cost
estimate of doing the boxed games had
‘crept up from a barely acceptable unit
cost by 65%, When I look at those box
‘estimates, mounted me, estimates and
full die-cut counter estimates, | wonder
how Avalon Hill manages to ever make
a profit. Metagaming can make TWO
MicroGames for what a box alone costs,
sheoesh,
So, we ain’t gonna introduce boxed
games and miniatures at. this year's
Origins. 1 feel like | often do in a game
where my die rolls never, ever seem to
come up. There is a possibility that
TFT: LABYRINTH will be ready in
another format by Origins. At this time
Vd have to say the chances are against
it. TFT: LABYRINTH will not come
‘out until it is right. We view it as the
next evolutionary step in fantasy role
‘gaming and it isn't something that should
be rushed. What Metagaring will do over
the next year is make our MicroGames
effort even more successful. We've found
2 market niche with a lot of potential.
TSG'S NEW FORMAT js doing very
well. A number of retail outlets took
‘more copies than usual and sold them out
in short order. It looks as if our paid
Circulation target of 8,000+ by year end
‘won't be a problem.
Telling you that TSG is doing well is
the time to remind everyone that most
WHERE WE'RE GOING
of what we print is written by you, the
reader. Keep those articles coming. One
thing I've noticed is that the reader
participation rate has gradually dropped.
We get no more letters of comment and
article submissions from 5,000 readers
than we did from 800, two years ago.
Why? TSG’s amateur format of the past
may have encouraged more reader partici-
pation than our new, slick look. Those
who've read our pages for all that time
can’t help but noticing that the articles
we run now are, on average, not much
different than before. The layout, look
and editing has gotten better.
TSG js always on the look out for new
articles and ideas. TSG even pays a pen-
ny @ word for general submissions. If
you have something to say on SF&F
gaming, why not write it up and send it
in, If you find it interesting, the chances
are many others will also. Just remember
to submit material typed and double
spaced. Game articles are preferred to
fiction
‘A number of you noted that we forgot
to put the TSG subscriber price on the
DEATH TEST ad in TSG No. 15. Reg-
ular price for DEATH TEST is $2.95,
TSG subscriber price is $2.50. Some
‘thought that this was the first sign that
subscriber privileges were going to be
curtailed. TSG subseribers will always
‘get some special treatment.
BAD NEWS does come from the post
office. The postal service is hitting us
with huge new rate increases. Some third
and fourth class rates will be up by 40%
10 90%, These huge increases are going to
‘cause some changes in the mail order side
of gaming. Firms that are heavily depen:
dent on mail order will have to cover
the cost increase in some manner. The
Postage cost is one of the biggest mail
order costs. When it rises by such unreal
amounts, the cost structure of business
is altered
‘About 40% of our business is mail
‘order. The new rates make this part of
‘our business only marginally profitable,
The cost of postage, envelopes, and hand:
ling are now more than the cost of the
games. This even takes into account
some recent inflation in printing cost.
Two alternatives are being evaluated to
meet the postage burden. One alterne-
tive, the hard one, is to drop our mail
order business. The other alternative is
to put a 50 cents postage and handling
charge on each order. The 50 cent
charge won't cover the inerease in postage
fon large orders, but the handling charge
‘on those orders is proportionally smaller.
We tend to favor the 60 cents per mail
‘order charge at this time.
(One thing that will be done is to shift
‘as much of our mail to UPS as possible
UPS rates will increase with the postal’s
increase, but not by as much. The other
thing we can do is to agitate with our
congressmen to delete the postal mono:
poly on all mail classes. The average
postal employee with seven years service
now makes almost $18,000 annually with
their new pay increases, That's what we
are paying for and they give bed, slow,
inaccurate service.
‘Our readership is changing The Mi
croGames are bringing a younger group
of readers to THE SPACE GAMER The
slick format will give us broader store
distribution and bring in many who have
‘been primarily store buyers. Advertising
in science and science fiction publications
hhas kept a steady stream of sf oriented
readers coming. There is less distinction
between gamer’s and science fiction fans
in gaming than there has been in the past.
‘Our mail shows progressively more accep:
tance of gaming by s fans, particulary
the younger fans. Gamers also. show
‘more willingness to have TSG run mater
ial that would appeal mostly to s- fans.
There is a rise of science fiction gaming as
an identifiable sub-culture.
THE SPACE GAMER seems to be
playing a leading role in the development
‘of sf gaming. Consistent attempts to
blend a variety of material in our pages
is working. TSG still need better and
more varied articles to accomplish our
goal. TSG wants to be the voice and
source publication for science fiction
gaming By appealing to a variety of
interests and improving quality we'll
make it. From the letters we got it
appears we are most of the way there
already.
Despite some delays caused by trying
10 get miniatures and boxed games out,
the computer related projects are stil
coming. We will be able to offer Micro-
Game subscriptions before the end of the
year. There will be a computer game up
and running before the end of the year.
My chaotic accounting and record keep-
ing system will be in order by the end of
the year. The computer projects will be
done even if it means delays to some
game projects. The computer is the key:
stone of future growth. It needs to come
.» Howard Thompson Avalon didn’t want to fight.
ae
But that didn’t mean it is
couldn’t. As the Terran ag
Empire found out — the a
hard way — when it tried
to invade... Y T H 4 ]
They had underestimated THE
THE YTHRI is based on Poul Anderson’s Hugo Award-
nominated novel, The People of the Wind.
THE YTHRI is a game of invasion from space and planetary
combat for two to four players. It can turn any science fiction fan
into a wargamer — and vice versa.
Includes: Rule booklet / 14 x 17’ space map / 17 x 18”’ Avalon
map / 242 perforated counters / combat results tables
THE YTHRI sells for $8,
oF $7 10 TSG subscribers
METAGAMING
P.O, Box 15346
Austin, TX 78761 G.E.U.
. ,
a designer's,
‘The hovercraft jumped and bucked
‘a it made the transition from river
surface to shore. Then it was off, speed
ing across the grassland at better than
a hundred kilometers per hour. To the
west was river and dark forest; to the
east, the sun was just coming up, dim
and. red in an unnaturally dusty sky.
To the north, closer every minute, was
the target area: depots, communication
centers, bridges-still dreaming in the
red morning.
Asleep, yet waking fast. To the
north, alarms buzzed, orders were given,
machines growled to life. In a buried
command center, an officer cursed and
ordered @ cal for reinforcements
G.E.V. is the sequel to OGRE. In
2 way, it's a game of OGRE, without
the Ogres. . . . a straight infantry/armor
game, set in the future. In terms of
complexity, it’s a step up. The map is
bigger; more counters are involved
fon each side; movement is considerably
more complicated. But anyone who's
played OGRE will recognize the game.
I've wanted to do a game like this
ever since OGRE came out. | enjoy
OGRE-but it only covers one type of
situation. The idea of interactions
between the “little stuff” fascinated
me: are GEVs good against anything
except an Ogre? Are infantry good for
anything at all except sacrifices? What's
the best defensive “line” you can put
together with OGRE units?
Working out the answers was fun-
and, in the process, a new game was
designed. As I'd hoped, the addition
of terrain effects and detailed overrun
i
Steve Jackson
rules made @ big difference. G.E.V.
allows both players 2 wide choice
fof tactics-and. the system is flexible
enough to fit all kinds of sconarios. One
‘thing didn’t change, though. G.E.V.,
like OGRE, has a role-playing element.
‘As the attacker, you get to smash, pillage,
and burn-but’ you have to conserve
your force. As. the defender, you're
trying to hold the line with a grossly
inadequate force . . . but the reinforce-
ments are on their way...
Even inside the howitzer’s cabin, the
sound was deafening. Outside? It didn't
bear thinking about. Captain Vanetti
returned his attention to. the screens.
He had ten attacking units to deal with
five of which were concentrated on his
‘own position-and that was just too
many. Sword One wat not only a worth:
while target in its own right; it was the
keystone of the line the attacking units
‘were trying to breach. Venetti reflected
that he really ought to be frightened,
The gun’s thunder let up momentarily.
In the sudden silence, Vanetti’s gunner
grinned. "Two down-ten to gol
“Nake that nine,” replied Vanetti. Un-
less his screen lied, one of the attacking
hovercraft had just gone to e fiery death
and the nuclear shells that killed it
could only have come from one place.
“You got another one!”
But, the Combine units were reform
ing and coming in. '“Sword One to Shield
One. Pull in a bit; they're coming back.””
Because the infantry screon was throe
kilometers in front of his howitzer,
hhe was still here-but, it was time to
draw them in, The terrain here was
introduction
better for GEVs than infantry; the
patches of woods were small and far
apart. But his men were holding-so
far.
"Shield One to Sword One. Pullback
accomplished.” Good. The infantry
couldn't chase hovereraft-but they
could wait under the umbrella of howit:
zat fire, making @ rush impossible. The
GEVs could hit them-but only by com:
ing within howitzer range. Twice they'd
probed at his position and at Sword
Two to the west. They'd killed some
infantrymen . . . but their own losses
had been higher.
Then, the thunder began again, and
‘more shells sought the foe. Vanettis eyes
went back to the screen, He hed eight
Squads left, ranged in a semicircle around
his own position. Sword Two had only
six-but Sword Two was a mobile unit.
Its range was less, but It could move
toward-or away from-the action. Vanetti
and Sword One would have to sit still
for whatever the Combine could dish
out,
The Combine units were doing their
best. Nine globes of light-estimated
enemy positions-moved toward the
defensive line, Two... three... . suddenly
shrank to pinpoints-confirmed sightings.
One of his own screening points died,
then, and the enemy points slowly
diffused again. One suddenly winked
‘out, and another began to blink. Good!
Vanetti shot a look “westward” at
the lights representing Sword Two's
area. He blinked. Then, suddenly,
he understood . . . and sweat trickled
down his forehead. While his own
Units had stopped their side of the
attack, Two had not beon so lucky.
Only two squads of infantry were still reporting. Two was intact and pulling
back-but there was no way it could
escape, At least four enemy GEVs were
alive over there, and looking for blood.
His own position was better-for
the moment. Two active enemy units on
his side of the map, one more crippled.
‘And they weren't maving fast enough to
escape. Vanetti barked orders into his
mike, sending his remaining infantry
into action-toward the enemy hovers.
"Sword One to Sword Two. Get
back this way.” Even as he said it, he
knew the order was futile-tracks were
just too slow. But it was worth a try.
“Leave ours to the iron men. Help
Two," he told the gunner.
It almost worked. The “iron men”
of Shield One climbed all over their
three hovers. Sword Two hit one of its
own attackers. Sword One crippled
another. And three other Combine
hovers closed on Sword Two, blew
it into superheated gas, and buzzed off
toward the north. Seconds lator, the
cripple" followed them.
“Sword One to Shield One and Shiold
Two. Get back here. Form up for
defense, centerline 240. They might
bbe back.” Then, switching frequencies:
"Sword One to Alpha. They're past
Us. Sword Two bought it. At least
four live ones, coming your way. Good
luck.”
Then, his duty done, he slumped in
his chair. Sword One had accounted
for three enemy GEVs and come through
lunseratched. But, it couldn't follow
the battle. Even if the hovers turned
south again, they wouldn't come this
way-not with an open spot just to the
Vanetti began to allow himself to
hope. He just might live to see tomor-
Vanetti was VERY lucky. The scen:
ario could have been Breakthrough or
Raid-each starts out with a force of
Combine GEVs moving north-but, either
way, the defending sereon is in docp
trouble.
There's really no way to build 2
secure defensive line with a handful of
armor and 20 points of infantry. But,
it’s intresting to try. One of the best
ways is the one just described-a couple
of howitzers or mobile howitzers, sit:
uated to take advantage of streams and
forests, with the infantry in front. The
invading GEVs can’t get within firing
range of the howitzers without over:
running the infantry. They can’t go
around the infantry without taking
unacceptable losses from the howitzers
And they can't snipe at the infantry
Uunhindered; the howitzers’ range is too
Jong. What they do, of course, is concen:
trate on one point, overload the defenses
locally, and break through-but it takes
a while, during which time reinforcements
will keep coming.
Of course, the armor in the screen
doesn't have to be howitzers. Either
heavy or missile tanks will work-and you
get twice as many units. However,
it becomes absolutely vital to make
good use of terrain in setting up your
defensive line-otherwise, the GEVs will
get in the first shot and cripple you.
TERRAIN
The treatment of terrain in GEV.
is abstract-though certainly not more
so than most wargames. Terrain affects
both movement and combat in a fairly
standard fashion. GEVs are the most
strongly affected by torrain; favorable
terrain (roads or water) speeds them even
(woods or
‘them drastically and
more, while bad
swamp) slows
can even disable.
To allow Ogres to be used in G.EV.
scenarios, terrain effects for Ogres aro
given. For the most part, Ogres ignore
terrain. Swamp, however, is anathema
to Ogres; they can get STUCK. Heavy
Tanks have most of the same movement
abilities as do Ogres-reasonable, sinco
the Ogre is just a highly-evolved Heavy.
One provision-the ability of Ogres and
Heavies to totally ignore woods and
streams-Is definitely unrealistic. There
would be some effect, even though
“woods” is taken to mean fairly light
forest, and streams are small. However,
heavy and supercheavy armor ought to
be able to treat such obstacles fairly
lightly-and, for game purposes, the
best way to show that proved to be the
simplest. As a result, heavy tanks~
(and Ogres, if you have them) are most
effective behind streams and in woods,
which is just where the GEVs are
least usoful-which can have a number
Of interesting tactical ramifications.
Towns slow movement but provide
defensive bonuses for all units. Demol
ished town hexes (and there are a lot of
those, especially in the Raid scenarios)
have the same effects on both movement
‘and combat-another inaccuracy in the
interest_of simplicity. Actually, en
area of demolished buildings should
provide slightly less cover (for armor,
anyway) and impede movement more.
The added complexity didn’t seem
worth it,
terrain
INFANTRY
One of the most depressing features
of OGRE (realistic, but depressing) was
the way the infantry units died, and died, and died. Sometimes they made all the
difference (to me, one of the marks of
a good OGRE player is the way he
handles his infantry), but even when they
saved the day, they were cannon fodder.
It doesn’t work that way in GEV.
The reason? Simple. In OGRE, the in:
fantry were in a very bad position-terrain
with few hiding places, and a very thick:
skinned opponent covered with AP guns.
G.ELV. gives the infantry the benefit of
some “traditional” infantry abilities. To
me, this makes sense. A lot of things
will change in a hundred years .. . but if
we're still using infantry, we'll still be
using them to take and hold ground. In-
fantry aren't fast; they don’t have long:
range weapons. But, they can go nearly
anywhere, and they're hard to kill.
GEV. simulates. this in two ways
First, the infantry can enter absolutely
any terrain on the map. . . even water,
‘though they can’t fight while “swim:
ming’ in their suits. Furthermore, they
get the best defensive bonus for terrain
doubled defense in wood: or swamp, and
tripled in towns.
‘Second, of course, is the overrun rul
This cuts ‘two ways, and both are good
for infantry. Ina defensive role, the it
fantry can spread out in a line to stop
enemy movement; any unit which tries
to move through (overrun) that hex will
be fired on before it can fire. In an offen:
sive role, two or three squads of infantry
‘can move onto a single enemy atmor unit;
‘the enemy unit will fire first and get some
of the infantry, but the infantry will
almost certainly finish off the armor unit
(unless it’s @ Heavy Tank) when they fire
«and since overrun fire takes place dur
ing the movement, the attacking infantry
will get @ second chance to fire, after
wards. In EITHER case, the attack
strength of infantry units is doubled in
overrun attacks, reflecting the increased
utility of infantry weapons at close range.
We toyed with the idea of increasing
‘the range on infantry weapons-allowing
the infantry to fire on all non-Ogre units
at a twohex range, while retaining the
fone-hex range against enemy Ogres.
However (though this satisfied everyone
who enjoyed seeing the infantry clobber
tanks), it took some of the flavor out of
‘the game. With the present rules, infan:
try has to keep to cover and do its fight:
ing at close range. When it does, it’s
deadly.
(One other rule that didn’t make it into
the final G.E.V. package was “special
ist” infantry: engineer units and heavy-
weapon teams. The engineers would
have had the ability to blow bridges
(or construct pontoon bridges) at need;
‘the heavy-weapon teams would probably
hhave had the ability to act (once) like
missila tanks, as far as attack ability
‘went, after which they would be replaced
by regular infantry counters. Either type
would also have the ability to take over
enemy installations under certain circum:
stances (though, if a heavy weapon unit,
which has expended its missiles is re:
placed by a regular counter, it shouldn't
lose its special knowledge! Small pro
lem.) However, we simply couldn't
work the special infantry types into the
‘counter mix without taking out too many
of the other units-so this idea was
knocked out fairly early. It may surface
‘again, in an expansion sot,
‘THE NEW UNITS
Three new unit types are presented in
G.E.V.: the Light Tank, the Mobile
Howitzer, and the Ogre, Mark IV.
The Light Tank was originally devel
oped for OGRE. It didn’t survive the
first few rounds of playtesting, though
it proved to be the least useful unit type,
and there were enough different kinds
ff units without it. However, by cutting
down its defense slightly and making it
cost only half as much as the other tank
types, it became a viable unit for G.EV.
The Light Tank has a movement of 3-
the same as a Heavy. In all other ways,
it ie like a GEV: its attack strength,
‘and range are 2. However, a player can
take two light tanks instead of one
“armor unit.” Thus, the strategies,
based on large number of relatively
cheap units, become possible.
The Mobile Howitzer was definitely
2 case of “popular demand."” Practically
everyone who wrote to comment on
OGRE suggested adding a long-range
unit with some movement ability. As
first playtested, the MHWZ had the same
defense (D1) as the howitzer. After play:
‘testing, its defense was increased to 2.
Since the MHWZ gives flexibility to @
defense, and can be used in an attacking
role if necessary, it is generally more use-
fule than the regular HWNZ; the two cost
the same. Occasionally, its two extra
hexes of range make the regular howitzer the better choice-such as when enough
‘other units are available to guard the
howitzer’s own position.
The Ogre Mark IV specifications are
listed in G.E.V. Rules for playing Ogres
are NOT iven, except where they inter-
act with new rules (such as terrain)
Thus, G.E.V. does NOT duplicate OGRE,
‘but builds on it. However, if you already
have OGRE, and use Ogres in G.ELV.,
‘the Mark IV’specification given will make
sense 10 you.
‘The Mark 1V is a “raider” type unit.
‘A mark IV, though fully as expensive
a8 a Mark V would not be able to stand
up to the V in a slugging match. The IV's
advantages Iie in speed (it starts with Ma
‘movernent) and range (it carries 20
missiles, fired from “missile racks."
“Okay, Beautiful. Do your stuff.”
“Beautiful’-more formally known as
Unit 11, 22nd. armored, Thicd Army
Paneuropean-didn’t respond. Heavy
tanks don’t talk. Her commander had
never quite seemed aware of that
Nobody was likely to criticize him,
‘though. A man who had been through an
even dozen firefights without serious in-
jury was a man deserving respect. The
fourteen silhouttes in a neat row on the
turret elevated him to near-godhood.
Even if he di talk to the damn tank.
“All right. Get us behind that wall.”
He was addressing the driver, now.
Corporal Paskos didn’t question the
command. If the commander thought
that little wall would help, he could have
it
“Are they in range yet?”
“Not yet,” replied the gunner, “visual
any second, unless these are ghosts here
NO! Commander!”
But it was too late. The two GEVs
bounding madly over the top of the hill
had been firing for a full halt-second be:
fore they cleared the crest. Certain of the
tank’s position to within a hundred yards,
they sprayed the entiro area with death.
Standard operating procedure. Out of a
dozen shells, one was _well-aimed.
Beautiful disappeared in a gout of red
fire
(On board the lead GEV, eyes and
machines reported the same news. Dé
nite visual contact with an enemy heavy.
Then, a fireball. The two hovercraft
fed down the hill, their paths diver
ing slightly. The lead gunner turned his
scope on the spot where the heavy had
been, to see if a mopup was required,
‘Aboard Beautiful, the gunner's ery
hhad been the last word spoken. Then the
fenemy shell had hit-not the tank itself,
but the wall in front. Two meters isn’t
much... but the difference between a
contact nuclear blast and one two meters
away was enough. Beautiful’s BPC hide
was blast-burned and rock-pelted, but un-
broached. Her erew, though
Inside, no one moved. BPC armor and
cast circuitry can take more punishment
than aman. A long time (to the tank)
‘went by with no new orders from any of
the three crewmen . . . no perceivable
action at all. A second after the shell hit,
{an orange button lit by each of the three
men. None of them punched it. None
of them did anything at all.
With tho mechanical equivalent of 2
shrug, Beautiful took matters into her
‘own hands. A pressurized tank jutted
stimulants into the ventilation system.
‘As for the situation outside
Seventeen units were within sensor
range; an additional twenty-three were
Included in the latest date pulse from CP
Beta, Eleven were known hostiles. Two
of those were immediate targets; Beta’s
pulse listed them as hostiles, they were
within mutual firing range, end they
didn’t respond to Beautiful’s own |FF.
They were, in fact, the two attacking
GEVs.
‘As the BEV’s gunner focused on the
blackened Heavy, he muttered under his.
breath. The armor looked intact. Better
put a couple of rounds into it, just to be
safe. As his hand tightened on his firing
control, he realized that the “dead”
‘tank’s main gun was tracking him
‘The other GEV skewed to the side
2s its companion fireballed. None of the
‘crew had seen what happened, but the
enemy heavy was once again putting out
‘a whole spectrum of jamming. The
GEV's side gun opened up and her turret,
swung around,
Beautiful rolled to the side. Her short-
range radar showed an obstruction to
the left; she was programmed to take
advantage. Her jamming devices went
fon and off in random patterns, sending
messages and images designed to fool
‘every type of sensor up to and including
the human eye.
The surviving GEV was in full flight
now. Whether its gun was being con-
trolled by human, computer, or both, it
wasn't hitting. Shells exploded in all
directions, but none came within twenty
meters. Even the humans inside could
hhave taken that, Beautiful hardly noticed.
Her own gun came to bear, fired, fired
again
Inside Beautiful, the commander woke
and shook his head. “Paskos! Ferguson!"
He looked at his sereens, and shook his
hhead again. No enemy units within six
Klicks?““Paskos, make for 1412. We may
still be able to do some good.” He hit
switches to transfer gun control to his
‘own position; Ferguson had a concussion,
Back at base, he would order the main-
‘tenance men to put the new kill-silhou:
ettes in a new column, just as though the
tank had had a different commander.
Beautiful had gotten those two on her
STACKING AND OVERRUNS
One of the basic simplifications (read:
shortcuts) in OGRE is the one-unit-per
hex rule. | felt (and still fee!) that this
is justifiable, especially on a nuclear bat- tleground. However, it’s not physically
impossible to get units closer together .
‘and each hex on the G.E.V. map repre:
sonts considerably more area. So stacking
fs allowed-up to five units per hex-wivh
the provision that, if one unit in the hex
is fired on, other units in that hex also
suffer an attack at reduced strength and
effect. I's not illegal to stack-but it's
often unwise, If you have to concentrate
Yyour force into a small area you'll do so-
but, just like @ real field commander,
‘you'll be biting your nails at the thought
of what @ concentration of nukes could
do to your units.
Of course, if you can stack with
friendly units, you ought to be able to
move in on enemy ones. | threw out the
OGRE concept of “ramming” here, thus
cccssioning the only real discrepancy
between the games. (Everything else in
OGRE can be taken as « special case of
the G.E.V. rules.) The result was a some:
what complex, but realistic, set of over:
run rules. (However, if you think they re
complicated, you should have seen the
FIRST draft! Alexander Epstein, one of
the playtesters, suggested a better way to
do it; the final rules are a eross between
his suggestion and Lynn Willis’ Close
Assault rules from OLYMPICA, with
further simplifications.)
Basically, any units can move onto
any other units, thus oceasioning an over-
run attack. Combat occurs immediately.
All defenders fire once; all surviving
attackers then fire back . . . and so on,
Luntil only one side remains. Because of
the deadiiar nature of close-range combat,
all "D"" results count as “"X"" (no units
are disabled, they're destroyed instead)
and both infantry and Ogre weapons
fire at double strenath.
Overrun combat has one further
aspect-which I'm really pleased with,
because it adds another science fiction
element to the game. If an already:
abled unit is overrun, it is NOT auto:
matically eliminated; it attacks at half
strength and defends normally. This is
because EVERY vehicle is assumed to
have an on-board computer. Not intel
gent, not en Ogre, not smart enough to
maneuver or fire over long distances
‘without a human commander. But, smart
enough to take control of the vehicle
and attempt to defend itself while the
crow is out of commission. (I imagine
that the tank designers of 2085 would
tout all their armor as being capable of
“fully automatic", unmanned operation:
1 also expect that, under combat condi
tions, relatively inexpensive computer
“brains” would perform only about as
well as the rules reflect. Ifa /ittle compu:
ter could replace a_man, there'd be
nothing out there but Ogres.)
John DeVries was no soldier, but his
reflexes were excellent. When he heard
the explosions behind him, he pulled the
car off the road, slewed it around, and
killed the motor almost without thinking.
‘Then he curses himself bitterly. "Cease
fire," indeed, He had probably just
gotten himself killed-and his family, too,
From the back seat came a chorus ct
questions. “What's happening, Papa?
Are we there yet?” His wife, white-faced,
soothed the children.
Then @ plume of dust appeared on the
road-moving the way they had been
traveling, and growing. “Look! A Con:
voy!” cried the older DeVries boy, ex:
cited, Military convoys were great fun
to the eight-year-old; sometimes the
soldiers were friendly,
The “convoy” whipped past, ignoring
the little civilian vehicle canted on the
roadside. Six hovereraft, with Combine
markings. It wasn’t a terror-raid, though,
fr they would have fired on the car
Minutes passed
Then the sky lit to the north, toward
town, and DeVries understood why the
GEVs hadn't bothered to shoot at them.
They had had bigger game in mind.
"Quick, love, get the kids out of the
car. We'll head for those trees over
there.”
She stared at him, uncomprehending.
Leave the car?
“They'll be back.”
PLAYTESTING
G.EV. underwent the most thorough
pre-publication playtesting of any Meta-
gaming game to date. In addition to the
local (Austin) group of playtesters,
copies were sent to about twenty in-
dividuals or groups around the country
for “blindtesting’-that is, playtesting
without the (dubious) benefit of per
sonal contact and discussion with the
designer. Most of these were people
who had_written articles or comments
about OGRE, of such 2 nature that we
thought they. could make worthwhile
‘contributions to anew game in the genre.
The playtesters, almost without ex
ception, did an excellent job. They had
been given a mass of material to work
with and examine (the first packet
sent out contained a complete dratt of
the game; a supplementary packet about
‘a month later contained changes, ad:
ditions, corrections, and suggestions of
the playtesters themselves). | was pleased
(and relieved) when the letters began
to come back in, and it became clear
that most of the rules were being read the
way | had intended. In some cases,
of course, they weren’t-and_ that
dicated where to rewrite.
However, the playtesters did more
‘than just point out the weak spots
in the writing. They were also quite
up-front whenever they felt something
ought to be changed. Quite often, |
found myself in agreement. (Occasion:
ally, of course, | thought they were
ruts.)
On the whole, though, this experience
left me sold on the merits of detailed 10
playtesting. Certainly, the playtesting
‘added to the time and expense of finish-
ing the game. On the whole, though,
I think it was worth it; the efforts of
the playtest groups made G.EV. a
faster, clearer, and more realistic game.
| appreciate it.
SCENARIOS
G.E.V. includes four scenarios, each
with several variants (including Ogre
variants, naturally!) Each of the four is
different.
CEASEFIRE COLLAPSE is a
straight slugging match. The players
have equal forces; the objective is
simply to do as much damage as pos-
sible to the enemy. This game could
easily be adapted to a much bigger map-
say, a Panzerblitz or Strategy | hexsheet-
or a dorityourself terrain map. This is
a good scenario for sharpening your
‘general tactical ability.
THE TRAIN is also a slugtest; typ-
ically, it starts with an incredible ham-
mer-blow attack against a heavy defense,
and the rest of the game is mopping
up by one side or the other. Since
the important question is the survival
of the train, though, neither player
can afford to spend too much attention
on the wholly military objective of de-
stroying enemy armor. The attacker
needs a good balance between heavy
units (to smash the defender’s combat
capability) and GEVs (to harass the
train, cut the track, or both). The
defender needs to be everywhere at
‘once; if he is willing to accept heavy
losses, he can win,
RAID got the most playtesting here
in Austin-probably because it’s a lot of
fun. Originally, this one was titled “Atri
city.” The name's changed; the game is
the same. Basically, a force of GEVs
comes on the bottom of the map. Their
objectives: destruction of bridges, town
hexes, command posts, and any enemy
Units that get in their way. The de-
fending force is pathetically weak
but reinforcements come in every turn
Typically, 2 RAID game goes through
the following stages:
(1) Tho attacking units enter the
board, pick up a few easy targets,
and begin probing assaults against
the defending screen,
(2) The defending screen is bypassed,
for collapses, or both, taking
a few GEVs with it More town
hexes get blown away. If the
attacker handled his units well
enough, he can retire at this
point with a marginal victory-but
usually, greed will overcome pru
dence,
(3) The defender begins to organize
his reinforcements. Since both
the type of unit and the place
are randomly determined, he
ever gets what he wants-but
sometimes, as the song goes,
he gets what he needs. You may
wind up with a few infantry
Units far away from the action-
but, once in a while, you'll
get @ missile tank in just the right
place to waste a GEV that was
miles away from any other de-
fender. It evens out.
(4) At least half the attacking units
are gone; the defender has whip.
ed his random reinforcements
into some kind of shape. The
GEVs ate going after a major
town complex somewhere on the
board, and the defender is sweat:
ing blood.
(6) All of a sudden, thore are only
a few attackers left. They still
have superior mobility (unless the
defender picked up and kept @
number of GEVs himself), but
to attack any futher targets is
to court destruction. This is the
point where a wise attacker runs
for it
RAID scenarios are the longest, but
probably the most challenging,
BREAKTHROUGH js an interesting
situation. The attackers’ objective is not
combat-it is simply to get as many units
a: possible through the enemy lines and
off the board to the north, as quickly
as possible. Thus, the attacker can win
by avoiding combat. This is a good game
because it teaches an important lesson:
a military operation does not necessarily
call for immediate, bloody confrontation.
It's important to be able to pick your
time and place-which is what BREAK—
THROUGH is all about.
If you have two game boards (or take
careful notes about what units leave the
map and when) you can combine
BREAKTHROUGH and RAID. Use the
RAID victory conditions only. Use
the BREAKTHROUGH setup with 16
GEVs; GEVs [and defending units)
leaving the map to the north immediately
enter the RAID scenario, The RAID
defense is set up as for the 12GEV
game, and reinforcements do not begin
fon the RAID map until turn 8. Thus,
the sooner the attacker can get his units
‘onto the northern map, the more damage
he'll be able to do. The maps should be
arranged so that one is directly to the
north of the other, with the roads con:
necting. The river will not connect;
no matter. The BREAKTHROUGH de-
fensive setup is placed on the southern
board, and the RAID defensive setup
fon the northern one. All units may move
freely between boards. Defenders may
escape from the N, E, or W side of the
northern board. Attackers may escape
only from the S side of the southern
board.
Of course, any number of other sce
narios can be concocted. One letter |
received suggested a scenario in which
a damaged Ogre is moving slowly back
toward friendly lines; a relief force is
‘coming out to escort it in, and an enemy
force is coming to finish it off. That can
be interesting. We also had fun with a
RAID varient using Heavy Tanks, instead
fof GEVs, A force of Heavies makes 2
bad enemy, grinding across and through
the streams and forests toward your
vulnerable areas. Interestingly, where
the best tactic or a GEV group is to
bunch up and hit one weak area, a Heavy
Tank force seers to do best by coming
in along a broad front and smashing
everything in its way. Look out for
infantry, though; a Heavy ean sometimes
live through an overrun, but it can’t
dodge it. Hit the infantry, before it hits
you! CHITIN: 1, the simulation of the bat-
tle between two small hives for the Varo
(food) harvest, evolved from the tactical
development of the strategic level game,
HYMENOPTERA. — When Howard
Thompson decided against combining
strategie and tactical formats, it became
Microgame no. 2. (I guess he figured
“Why waste good brain power?")
One of the CHITIN player's main
problems is Basics, and the problem with
Basics is Plunges. The minimum of
Plunges (in existing scenarios) is 8
strength points. Basics have a defense of
1. Add that Plunges can quickly and eas-
ily reach the basics with their Megahex
movement, and you've got trouble, Dur-
ing a few of my earlier games, both my
‘opponent and myself would destroy each
other's Basics, and end up fighting the
battle with completely disrupted forces
(which allows for litte, if any fighting)
With Basics, there are three options, basi
cally (no pun intended. . . Woll...)
One, they can be left in the open, in
which case you can write off the game.
Second, Warrior units can be sot in hexes
adjacent to the Basic. This works well
against Plunges, but later, in the end
‘game, the mobility of your forces is re-
stricted. And, unless you completely
surround your Basic (a losing proposi:
tion), @ couple of Tetmagants or Renders
can easily get to the hole and do the Basic
in. The third alternative, the one | have
had greatest success with, Is to stack
twounit Phianxes and Gantuas and the
Basics. This gives Basics a good defense,
doesn’t restrict the speed and mobility
(of your forces, and allows one to commit
the Basics’ combat potential with less
tisk. Also, with the Basics actively invol:
ved in the battle, there is tess chance
Of units needing to go outside command
control. The commanding unit goes with
them, It could be argued that this arr-
angement will restrict the Gantuas and
CHITIN: I
another took
David Norwood
Phlanxes when making 2 charge attack.
However, as far as movement goes, there
are few instances (at least in my case)
Of the need for a charge attack at six
hhexes distance. Most of the battle (and
therefore, charge attacks) take place in
the center of the map, with the forces
in close proximity. But, if itis necessary
to move six hexes (or, in any case, si
‘movement points) distance to perform a
charge attack, it is a simple matter to
break up a Termagant mandule and have
the two Termagants provide temporary
cover for the Basic until the Gantuas can
‘again provide more substantial cover (that
is, if the Gantuas are still around when
your opponent finishes with them).
There is one other plan that | have seen at
various times in TSG. It involves placing
your Basies in the woods and thus halve
the attack strength of enemy Plunges.
But again, there is no defense against land
Units and actually, very little against
Plunges. A full Plunge force will still get
(at least) a 4 to 1 attack, and that's
enough to do the job on a lone Basic.
‘And what happens if you need command
control in a hex whose forest hexes are
not readily aocessible?
On the subject of Plunges there is one
general rule, get as many as you are al:
lowed. ‘The player with the most Plungas
will begin the game with an advantage
in air superiority. 1 will go into the rea-
sons that this is such a problom later.
This question of air superiority is also
the reason a player should never separate
Plunge forces into separate Megahexes. If
done, your opponent can move his
Plunges into the Megahex with the
smaller force and wipe them out (or hurt
them some). This may give him the
aforementioned advantage in air forces,
and with that advantage (and the im:
proved combat odds that come with it)
he can erode your Plunges away. This
‘can be quite a problem, With the basics
or
now reasonably secure from Plunges, the
Plunges’ main mission is no longer one of
Basie suppression. (No longer may they
rey upon the practically defenseless
Basic. Now, thoy earn an honest living)
‘They are _more concerned with main:
taining air superiority; covering important
Megahexes from enemy Plunge attack
(such as the ones through witich workers
are traveling), along with a minor skir
mish or two in @ heavy battle. Thus it
‘can be seen that without Plunges, workers
are prey to the enemy Fliers. At the
same time, his workers have practically
frea run of the field, Keeping Plunges
Unified will maintain the combat odds
at 1 to 1, and neither you nor your oppo-
rent will attack unless you feel lucky . .
(or desperate,
About the best strategy in CHITIN: 1
Is to win the initial die roll (to determine
who goos first and from which side). If
by chance (or whatever method you use)
you do win, pick first move. This will
allow you to be the first to reach the ‘A’
chit, regardless of approach side. Using
Termagants will enable you to reach the
chit in two tums if lucky, three if not.
(Being lucky would be starting from the
side bordered by the ‘2000" hexes. For
those with the second edition, this would
be the side with the CRT.) This side is
best because there are fewer River and
Rough Terrain hoxes between you and
‘the center of the field, But if your oppo-
nent has played a few times (or reads
this article), don’t count on starting
there. Even if you start from the other
side, you will be adjacent to the ‘A’ chit
in two turns and your ZOC will prevent
your opponent from gaining control of it.
‘Sometimes you lose the die roll. (Too
Often it seems to me.) If you do lose the
throw, and find yourself moving second,
choose the side bordered by the "2000"
exes. This will allow you to get your
forces into the battle more quickly. With 12
some luck, you can get a retreat result
against the covering units, and gain con:
‘ol of the coveted ‘A’ chit. A good tac:
tic would be to split up your forces and
attack your opponent from two sides. To
cover his workers approach, he will have
10 set up a three-sided defense and he'll
be spreading himself thin. Of course,
there's no law that says you have to go
after the ‘A chit. If you soe your oppo:
nent is committing most of his forces
+0 gaining the ‘A’ chit, you can maneuver,
to the side and go after one of the three
chits on his side. This will put you ahead
by ten points and if you escape without
too many casualties, you'll be okay.
‘At one time I tried a strategy similar
to the GEV strategy in OGRE. That of
using primarily one type of unit. Some:
how it didn’t work out quite as well as
in OGRE. The only one that partly
worked was the _all-Termagant/Low
Render strategy. The way | had it fig
ured, the Termagants and Renders could
advance at top speed, get into my oppo:
nent’s territory, and tie up his Warriors
ong enough to give my workers a chance
to grab the harvest. My entire force
would then make a hasty “advance to the
rear”. Flawless, huh? What | failed to
consider was the high attrition rate my
forces would undergo. The strategy
worked the way I planned, but the heavy
casualties my opponent inflicted nearly
negated the lead | had.
The all-Gantua/Phlanx strategy is a
whole ‘nother story. With this strategy,
| chose one mandule of Termagants in
addition to the Phlanxes and Gantuas.
| figured the Termagants could cover the
'A chit while the slower units moved
up. knew the Termagants were going to
get slaughtered, but | figured they would
last until my Gantuas and Phlanxes got
there. They would then, with a few well-
timed charges, go through my opponents
smaller forces like a juggernaut, and leave
his smaller force of Phlanxes and Gantuas
overmatched. ‘Sigh* Again, things didn't
work out the way | planned. Remember
those Termagants that were supposed to
last until the Gantuas arrive? They
didn’t. They were wiped out in the first
attack. By the time my Gantuas arrived
‘and got through my opponents front line
forces, his workers had the chit and were
gone. The main reason for my Terma
sgant’s short life span was that there was
nothing protecting their flanks. My op:
ponent was able to bring to bear a large
force of Termagants and Renders and se:
cure @ 5 to 1 attack (automatic elimin:
ation for the defender). Usually | would
have other forces on the covering unit's
flanks thus forcing my opponent to
spreed his forces over a larger area.
This proves, 1 guess, that general
imix of forces is best in CHITIN: 1. You
need fest (although weak) units to give
you a quick (but temporary) control
Of the area in question, and strong (yet
slow) units to back up and reinforce your
foothold. Then you need the Plunges to
give you control of the air, Workers to
do the {get this, now) work, and your
Basics to keep everybody organized
Of course, whatever method you use
to get your Workers in control of the har
vest, there still ramains the problem of
getting them safely away with it. The
main headache is the Termagants. and
Ronders who can, unless blocked, easily
run down the slower Workers and put
thom to the sword, so to speak. An effec:
tive tactic arises from the fact that by the
time you're about to run, the battle has
broken up into three main skirmishes,
‘those being over the A, C, and F chits.
In order to cover my Workers’ retreat, |
extend the flanks of my three forces and
form a solid line. The whole line then re:
treats in front of my Workers. Admitted:
ly, the line is relatively weak and will
suffer casualties, but it usually will
serve the purpose of giving the Workers
‘time to escape with the Harvest.
I'd like to say a few words about the
second edition of CHITIN: 1, Both the
map and rulebook have been changed
somewhat. One is the color of the map.
Ithas gone from the cream-color and blue
map of old to a sort of . .. uh... green.
This, in itself isn't too bad, but the CRT
‘and adds table have both been shrunken.
This, ‘combined with the darker color,
make them harder to read than the ori
ginal map. The CRT, adds table, and
CHITIN: 1 logo have been removed from
cone side, also. “But David,” you may
ask, “with one CRT shrunken and the
‘other removed, what has been done with
all that space?” Our friends at Meta
gaming have (bless them!) enlarged the
individual hexes. No longer must you
fight to position your forces. You just
Zip them right in there. (In the process
Of enlarging the hexes, a row of hexes
hhas been knocked off of either side,
Other than this, however, the terrain is
unchanged.)
‘The rulebook has undergone the same
sort of superficial change. The content
has remained the same, but the package
is different. Where 1 was somewhat
critical of the map, I can only praise the
rulebook. The paper it is printed on is
the slick type, like WarpWar and subse
quent MicroGames. The cover painting
is of a Plunge poking a Gantua’s eye out,
while the Gantua makes a futile attempt
to grasp and crush the slender form of
the Plunge. (You may recognize this as
Paul Jaquay’s cover from TSG no. 14.)
The inside front cover {also by Jaquays)
shows the inside of a hive as a group of
Flyers {not Plunges, though) launch
themselves for a raid. A train of bugs
climb a winding staircase to the opening
in the roof while two of the Flyers settle
a minor dispute. The original front cover
(that of one bug Warrior slitting the
Throat of another) is now on the inside
back cover. Date: 4/18/2132
Location: Somewhere in the Middle East
(possibly Israbie).
TBUTiny Bopper 1): TB1 reporting to
BCPC (Bopper Control & Production
Complex). Acknowledge contact.
BCPC: Contact acknowledge. Proceed
‘with scouting reporting.
TBI: Southern area barren except for an
abnormally large object moving at
high speed in a northerly direction.
Advise of further actions.
BCPC: Close to determine type and in-
tention,
Have closed to within 6 kilometers.
GLUT (Great, Large Unidentified Tri
via) appears to be a much larger ver~
sion of a BB (Big Bopper). GLUT still
advancing in a northerly direction at
high speed. Advise of further action,
18
BCPC: Close in closer to further de-
seribe.
TBI: Have closed to within 4 kilo:
meters. GLUT appears to have 2 large
batteries, 6 smaller batteries, 12 bat
twries even smaller, and 6 missiles
GLUT has proceeded with hostilities
by opening fire upon me. Advise of
further actions
BCPC(To all units except TB1): Report
‘to BCPC for re-programming immedi
ately,
BCPC(To TB1): Continue observation.
TB1: Am hit, am hit, am hit, am hit
static
BCPC(To newly programmed units): Go
‘out and destroy your assigned piece
of armanent.
Units then advance toward GLUT and
are wiped out faster than BCPC can build
new ones. The BCPC, seeing the GLUT
cut through his units like a knife through
butter, orders them to fall back and de-
fend the BCPC. The BCPC then comes
under fire and seeing that the situation is
useless, gives out its last command: “de.
fend to the death, to the death, to the
death .. static
For all you confused people out there,
the GLUT was an Ogre Mark V. Know:
ing this, you can construct many hypo:
thetical situations by combining OGRE
and RIVETS into one game. To com.
bine the two games you need the follow:
ing:
Rule Changes For ORATS (OGRE,
RIVETS, and Trivia Spliced)
‘Changes to OGRE:
2.016 Mise. Terrain. The map used is the
RIVETS map and some changes are
needed: Swamp & Forest are con.
sidered craters to the Ogre, and rivets
are treated as clear to the Ogre.
a3
ENCOUNTERS
GNLIKELY KIND
Mike Crane
4,02 Turns. The turn sequence is now:
Ogre Moves
Osre Fires
Control Factor Chock
Move Missites/Units
Builds
Now Programming
Combat (By RIVETS)
6.02.03 Unit Strengths. All RIVETS
Units use RIVETS rules for strengths.
6.05 Ogre Movement Points. Due to the
‘change in scale, the Ogre’s movement
hhas been changed as reflected by the
revised Ogre record sheet (10.0).
6.101 Antipersonnel. Antipersonnel may
also be used against the BCPC,
10.0 Ogre Record Sheet. Movement and
‘weapon ranges have been revised to
reflect the change in scale,
6 missiles (6/8; 03) 000000
2 main battery (4/5; D4) 00
6 secondary battery (3/3; D3) 000000
12 antipersonnel (1/2-only against BCPC; D1)
‘000000000000
‘60 movement
(00000 00000 (movement drops to MS)
(00000 00000 (movement drops to M4)
(00000 00000 (movement drops to M3)
(00000 00000 (movement drops to M2)
(00000 00000 (movement drops to M1)
(00000 00000 (movement drops to MO)
ules Changes in RIVETS
5.00 Turns.
es.
See 4.02 in Ogre rule chan-
8,01 & Missiles. Movement romains the
same but AM and AA types are elim:
inated. AG missiles now have a
strength of 3 attack points. Note’
Ogre weapon systems count as a sep
arate unit for Rivet programming pur:
poses. This means that each Rivet
type must be reprogrammed from at
tacking Rivet units (of which there are
no enemy rivets) to attacking one
Ogre weapon system (missiles, main
and secondary batteries, antipersonnel,
and movement).
To play out Close Encounters of the
Unlikely Kind do the following
‘The RIVETS player starts out on the
northern board section, and has a su:
perior complex and 15 starting units, one
‘of which must be a TB and 10 of which
‘must start on the southern board aden.
None may start inside the BCPC.
‘The Ogre player has a Mark V, and
starts off the southern board edge. Vie:
tory conditions can be determined by the
players, but a basic set of vietory condi
tions a
Complete Ogre Victory: Oare de-
stroys BCPC and escapes off map edge
Ogre Victory: Ogre destroys the
BCPC and is destroyed.
Rivet’s Victory: BCPC survives, Ogre
destroyed, and 15+ units survive.
Ugg this as a basic: system, many
scenarios can be devised. What’ would
have happened if a force of Rivets at-
tacked @ human CP? What would have
happened if some units had survived and
had tried to take over a BCPC, maybe
‘even with the help of an Ogre or a rival
BCPC? The possibilities are endless. 1a
ADJUSTED ORC
RULES
Paul C. Wagner
Anyone reading the article entitled
“Ores and Their Weapons” in No. 15,
probably discovered that the Ores were
given quite a number of advantages with
nothing lost in return. Unfortunately,
this made Ores rather overpowering oppo.
nents and turned them into frustrating
rather than challenging opponents. to
fight. The author of the aforementioned
article should be brought to justice for
this, and I'd like the chance to turn my:
self in and explain. | truly wanted the
Ores to be worthy opponents, but | now
think that some rules were overdone and
others not thoroughly explained. If the
editor would please give me space, 1'l
rectity the errors
‘ORC MAIL (armor)
Drop it. This stuff is just too powerful,
and there's no way to adjust it for a really
decent solution, | was trying to give the
Lesser Ores a break, as they soem con
stantly to be whipped by man oppo:
nents, However, outfitting Greatar Ores
in this same armor makes them horren: