DV8 and I played some Federation Commander today and had a great time. Looks like my next worthless time (and money) sink. Great time - like Star Fleet Battles but less overhead.
Would you believe that despite my deep love of Trek, I've never played either? :-[
Quote from: Martok on August 24, 2012, 01:15:14 PM
Would you believe that despite my deep love of Trek, I've never played either? :-[
I've played some Star Fleet Battles, but this looks like a more streamlined version. We played the basic game and I couldn't tell the difference. This is starting to look like yet another game I'm going to have to get into. Pushing a bunch of Star Trek pewter around a table might just be as close to heaven as I'm going to get.
Man I would love to get into Fed Commander. Played some SFB back in the day. I loved that game, but most of my friends hated it so it was hard finding opponents.
LB, did you guys use minis in your game or was it the counters that come with the game?
You guys got any pictures of the game or a link to the games site. I found one but I am not sure if its the game you are refering to.
Here ya go-
http://www.starfleetgames.com/federation/
Here's the minis to oogle
http://store.starfleetstore.com/merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=S&Category_Code=FM
Thanks for the links, looks like fun. However, for me it looks to be one of those games I would play if someone else spent the time and money to collect and put on the game but would probably never collect them myself ... until I played it and found out I really liked it. ;D
My problem would be that if I got into I'd need to own every module, expansion, ship pack, etc. Even if I only played it once a year.
Quote from: mirth on August 24, 2012, 04:15:37 PM
My problem would be that if I got into I'd need to own every module, expansion, ship pack, etc. Even if I only played it once a year.
I can understand that.
Quote from: mirth on August 24, 2012, 03:01:45 PM
Man I would love to get into Fed Commander. Played some SFB back in the day. I loved that game, but most of my friends hated it so it was hard finding opponents.
LB, did you guys use minis in your game or was it the counters that come with the game?
First thing: Federation is an easier game than Star Fleet Battles. It might still have too much overhead for their tastes, but it could be worse! ;)
We didn't do pics. This was a shakedown cruise to figure out the base mechanics.
I do have two minis that I bought on a lark several years ago: a Federation heavy cruiser and a Romulan R-type Battlecruiser. They're not painted yet, but it should be short work to do them. Hardest part is figuring out a color scheme for the Romulans - apparently there's a lot of latitude in terms of color schemes.
Quote from: mirth on August 24, 2012, 04:15:37 PM
My problem would be that if I got into I'd need to own every module, expansion, ship pack, etc. Even if I only played it once a year.
I'm not sure Federation Commander has nearly as many as SFB. But the minis...those I can see buying a bunch of...
Are there scenarios with objectives for Federation Commander or do you just "fight to the death" with the ships? I watched my son play some Bridge Commander last night (he's new to Star Trek) and he really seemed to enjoy it. We enjoy playing ASL and Up Front together and I'm thinking that he may like Federation Commander. Doubt we'd ever go the full SFB's route.
Quote from: GJK on August 25, 2012, 01:39:57 PM
Are there scenarios with objectives for Federation Commander or do you just "fight to the death" with the ships? I watched my son play some Bridge Commander last night (he's new to Star Trek) and he really seemed to enjoy it. We enjoy playing ASL and Up Front together and I'm thinking that he may like Federation Commander. Doubt we'd ever go the full SFB's route.
I have only leafed through the free starter rules online so I can't answer that question with certainty.
There are apparently two scales to the game - controlling fleets or controlling ships. I would assume that even if there weren't scenarios you could make them up. I do know that Star Fleet Battles has scenarios, and I suspect that pedigree has been passed along. But you'll have to wait until we get our hands on the full game to know with certainty.
It looks like the two starter sets come with some scenarios. It might be somewhat like ASL where the expansion sets (the "Attack" modules in FC) come with different scenarios.
http://www.federationcommander.com/product_list.shtml
What LB is not telling you is this all started with a $7 acquisition of SFB from the clearance table at our FLGS that he talked me into. I'll make sure to direct my wife to him when she complains about yet another "stupid" game expenditure. ;)
Quote from: DV8 on August 25, 2012, 05:27:37 PM
What LB is not telling you is this all started with a $7 acquisition of SFB from the clearance table at or FLGS that he talked me into. I'll make sure to direct my wife to him when she complains about yet another "stupid" game expenditure. ;)
^ Just ignore him. He gets this way when I'm right.
Quote from: DV8 on August 25, 2012, 05:27:37 PM
What LB is not telling you is this all started with a $7 acquisition of SFB from the clearance table at our FLGS that he talked me into. I'll make sure to direct my wife to him when she complains about yet another "stupid" game expenditure. ;)
LOL- ain't that the truth!
FLGS? F&*king Local Game Store?
Quote from: Bison on August 25, 2012, 07:25:25 PM
FLGS? F&*king Local Game Store?
That would depend on which one, but mostly we haunt the
friendly
local
game
store since they aren't !#$%^&*.
You have two? I'd be happy with one that sells something with hexes and counters.
There is a fully sanctioned online version similar to VASSAL. It's not free though. We need GJK to get addicted to the game so he can develop a VASSAL mod for the it. :P
http://www.sfbonline.com/fc.jsp
Quote from: DV8 on August 25, 2012, 07:41:31 PM
There is a fully sanctioned online version similar to VASSAL. It's not free though. We need GJK to get addicted to the game so he can develop a VASSAL mod for the it. :P
http://www.sfbonline.com/fc.jsp
Heh. Sounds like a plan.
Quote from: DV8 on August 25, 2012, 07:41:31 PM
There is a fully sanctioned online version similar to VASSAL. It's not free though. We need GJK to get addicted to the game so he can develop a VASSAL mod for the it. :P
http://www.sfbonline.com/fc.jsp
He may need a couple of days to do it right - look at the list of ships: http://www.sfbonline.com/ships.jsp
Whoa!! That's a lot of ships! Federation Commander wouldn't be so bad to do though it doesn't look like. I may grab a copy of the Klingon Border intro game set and if I do I'm sure I'd whip up a little VASSAL module for it. The map would be easy to redraw at least! ;)
Mongoose Publishing has partnered with ADB and has just released a whole bunch of sexy new minis. Unpainted - w00t!
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/miniatures/ctastarfleet.html
This is going to kick @$$!
Quote from: LongBlade on August 27, 2012, 10:07:37 PM
Mongoose Publishing has partnered with ADB and has just released a whole bunch of sexy new minis. Unpainted - w00t!
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/miniatures/ctastarfleet.html
This is going to kick @$$!
Very excited!
Quote from: DV8 on August 28, 2012, 04:52:02 AM
Quote from: LongBlade on August 27, 2012, 10:07:37 PM
Mongoose Publishing has partnered with ADB and has just released a whole bunch of sexy new minis. Unpainted - w00t!
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/miniatures/ctastarfleet.html
This is going to kick @$$!
Very excited!
Chatted with Shane - they can get the minis at our LGS. He's looking into getting the rules for Federation Commander from ADB. If not, I'll order it through Amazon.
Those minis look great! But man they are expensive.... :-[
I played SFB to death back in the days when I had no other resposibilities... have been looking at Fed Commander series with interest.
Maybe if I get some minis and Fed Commander I can get my gaming group to come back to the game table..... just don't tell my wife the cost!! :o
Quote from: Barthheart on August 28, 2012, 07:52:35 AM
Those minis look great! But man they are expensive.... :-[
I played SFB to death back in the days when I had no other resposibilities... have been looking at Fed Commander series with interest.
Maybe if I get some minis and Fed Commander I can get my gaming group to come back to the game table..... just don't tell my wife the cost!! :o
They do seem a bit pricey.
Try the ones from ADB. I think they're a bit more reasonable and the selection is broader: http://store.starfleetstore.com/merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=S&Category_Code=14
They also come with hex bases.
I just got back into town and look what the kind folks from Amazon brought me.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2Fc1b27c06.jpg&hash=05de7821209001567cc156498d92e1d4fe96b96e)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F902f2c25.jpg&hash=69c9b6d66b6c2a0b8060d21344a2bc7021854891)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2Ff6fe19bc.jpg&hash=733bda4a81d5328a5f83318e6a59858c1007f715)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F074d9c8a.jpg&hash=e70e7eee4d8b470b27e6a2a98a482d8e628639b4)
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Damn that's some hot game porn
Sweet!
I've got the primer on my two minis. Tried to hand brush some white on the heavy cruiser but it was terrible, so I washed it off. I'll have to break out the airbrush and see if I can get a better coat on it.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FGrogHeads%2FStarTrekMinisPrimed.jpg&hash=88b8f86b359346bdc69a882f528b286ebf9fdee5)
Excellent. I'm going give the rules a good read during the holiday.
You guys are killing me. I so want some Starship combat love.
mirth,
Where are you located?
Portland, Maine. A little out of your neighborhood I think ;)
Just a bit. We'll have to give Federation Commander Online a try in the future.
http://www.sfbonline.com/fc.jsp
Would love too.
Quote from: mirth on August 30, 2012, 05:59:12 PM
Damn that's some hot game porn
Seconded. I think I just came.
Well, Jim and I got our first real game in this afternoon. What a hoot! I'll post the pics and Jim can do the commentary.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F6a60dd0d.jpg&hash=9a4a97728c26e3230d4ff990958c12eab49a836a)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F9e6c9814.jpg&hash=448cc78f248bd589d442d6c01700ec926ccdc0e0)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F12e3dfd3.jpg&hash=c8c4dc3ce623be0b8a32e0354d890e721683ab97)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F55ca842b.jpg&hash=18299e3d218f826428edf5373202d721723c2066)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F33c964be.jpg&hash=8cb60e69dc716665813e343776cd85732b5e780e)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F8fe33ce4.jpg&hash=c306b728c798887b684e3ddcd60088e753b37934)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F73d9da7c.jpg&hash=b048ff92b232ea20856199ff353fa593b85dfd9c)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F8296672d.jpg&hash=25a006141d4670c51712229393cec0ec6b5633e5)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F4425ee72.jpg&hash=3119776d4f66238506664c336d943331fc23114c)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2Fdd8b8371.jpg&hash=a9cfb2a5d951584e31f645ae3e467b965da3df5f)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1245.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fgg600%2Fmcyeatman%2F6d39ee65.jpg&hash=2bc541b22e493fd5e421caa2bc8634d65fe8d15d)
^Looks like fun, looking forward to the commentary.
Btw, you avatar scares the crap out of me.
This was a ton of fun today.
I was running a Romulan War Eagle, DV8 was running a War Destroyer from the Federation - we used the Heavy Cruiser mini because that's all we have right now.
This was our first run at the edit: full Federation Commander rules, and for the sake of simplicity we were using the Fleet Scale as it still provides plenty of realism without tons of overhead.
We tangled for three turns with his War Destroyer gradually blasting away at my shields. Here you can see the damage done as I've checked off the shields and then the internal damage. Fortunately nothing critical was destroyed, although I did take some damage to my warp engines on both sides.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FWarEagleDamage.jpg&hash=70c944b915875340cb9f9934483d499dd488599d)
In that shot you can see him slowly turning to starboard at the end of Turn 2. On turn three my plasma torpedoes are finally fully armed and ready to go, and he is close. I'm stoked as this is my turn for payback.
However, he knows it's coming and diverts all power to engines, maxing out his speed and pouring excess power into extra movement to get as far away from my plasma torp as he can get.
He does successfully outrun it by the end of the turn but it was a hoot watching him sweating bullets about the middle of the turn.
At the end of the turn you can see how much distance he's put between me and him...and my plasma torpedo.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FPlasmaTorp.jpg&hash=14adc878de3b5a0314311a9421c1d960ac0fddde)
Quote from: TheCommandTent on September 02, 2012, 07:53:39 PM
Btw, you avatar scares the crap out of me.
I know. It's freaking me out so much that I might have to change it.
"Time for Teletubbies bye-bye..."
Quote from: LongBlade on September 02, 2012, 08:28:06 PM
In that shot you can see him slowly turning to starboard at the end of Turn 2. On turn three my plasma torpedoes are finally fully armed and ready to go, and he is close. I'm stoked as this is my turn for payback.
However, he knows it's coming and diverts all power to engines, maxing out his speed and pouring excess power into extra movement to get as far away from my plasma torp as he can get.
He does successfully outrun it by the end of the turn but it was a hoot watching him sweating bullets about the middle of the turn.
At the end of the turn you can see how much distance he's put between me and him...and my plasma torpedo.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FPlasmaTorp.jpg&hash=14adc878de3b5a0314311a9421c1d960ac0fddde)
That weapon scares the snot out of me. Had we played on a fixed map I would have been crushed by that weapon.
"He's dead Jim"
Quote from: DV8 on September 03, 2012, 04:36:15 AM
Quote from: TheCommandTent on September 02, 2012, 07:53:39 PM
Btw, you avatar scares the crap out of me.
I know. It's freaking me out so much that I might have to change it.
"Time for Teletubbies bye-bye..."
If that's the Tubbies then I'm afraid of what Nunu the Vacuum Cleaner would look like... some kind of cyborg tyrranid? :o
Thanks for the game pics and comments guys. It looks like a lot of fun. Even unpainted, the Constitution Class Heavy Cruiser looks good.
Quote from: mirth on September 03, 2012, 10:14:20 AM
Thanks for the game pics and comments guys. It looks like a lot of fun. Even unpainted, the Constitution Class Heavy Cruiser looks good.
It's so small I'm thinking of just putting another layer of primer - this time white - on it and be done. No sense in breaking out the airbrush for such a small job.
The War Bird was supposed to have the starting stages of a feather pattern on it, but my hands weren't up to the task. I intend to revisit it at some point, with a gold outline and purple feathers. But for now, it doesn't look too bad.
The mini is made by Lou Zocchi's outfit and the window ports aren't evenly spaced or even the same size, so they don't look so snappy. Even so I cannot express how fun it is to push some TOS ships around a map. It is mad fun.
Quote from: DV8 on September 03, 2012, 04:41:26 AM
That weapon scares the snot out of me. Had we played on a fixed map I would have been crushed by that weapon.
"He's dead Jim"
I don't know. Playing the Romulans is going to require a decent wargaming brain. There is a lot of forethought, planning, and bluff required to get them at the right spot and the right time. The fact that it takes three turns to fully arm them means that it's behind the curve in terms of either Federation or Klingon ships. The cloaking device is also something I'll need to figure out how to use optimally. I took quite a beating from DV8 before it came online. Although I scared him off, he certainly got the better of that exchange. A fixed map probably wouldn't give me too much room to stay back until the plasma torp comes online.
Also curious is the map itself. If you play with cardboard cutouts the map hexes are less than half the size; the minis map has larger hexes and therefore is smaller. That in itself changes the game if we're using a "fixed" map. So we'll need to come up with some understanding as to what we mean by "fixed."
Regardless of these minor issues the game is a blast. I can't wait to get the rules nailed and get more folks involved. We've already got at least two more guys at the LGS interested, and I suspect more will get there with some momentum.
I like the colors you picked for the War Bird, LB. I'd love to see it with the feather pattern. Your little battle immediately made me think of the "Balance of Terror" ST episode. That's one of my all time favorites.
Quote from: mirth on September 03, 2012, 12:48:07 PM
I like the colors you picked for the War Bird, LB. I'd love to see it with the feather pattern. Your little battle immediately made me think of the "Balance of Terror" ST episode. That's one of my all time favorites.
Romulan tactics are clearly designed for head-to-head engagements. In addition to shields they also boast some frontal armor. Catching any ship head-on with the plasma torp at reasonably close range is ideal. They track targets and can chase them. They're fast and very powerful at close range. I just need to figure out how to convince DV8 he wants to charge into me directly on Turn 3.
Those tactics will probably work best when you have multiple ships where you can used uncloaked ships to draw the Feds into a position that the cloaked ships can take advantage of.
Quote from: mirth on September 03, 2012, 01:03:36 PM
Those tactics will probably work best when you have multiple ships where you can used uncloaked ships to draw the Feds into a position that the cloaked ships can take advantage of.
We tried a game of multiple ships yesterday. DV8 had two against my one Romulan Dreadnought. Point value was close enough (I had 10 points more).
The problem is that it is another order of complexity taking care of the status of two ships, and when they start switching places on the map he inadvertently lost track of them. It might help if we had unique minis (he was using cardboard counters for ships). I can easily see how that could happen and can see how easily I could do it. We're just going to need to be diligent as we do it. Hopefully we'll get better with practice. Considering I'm dyslexic, I suspect it will be a lifelong challenge not to mix them up...
Quote from: LongBlade on September 03, 2012, 12:36:33 PM
Quote from: DV8 on September 03, 2012, 04:41:26 AM
That weapon scares the snot out of me. Had we played on a fixed map I would have been crushed by that weapon.
"He's dead Jim"
Also curious is the map itself. If you play with cardboard cutouts the map hexes are less than half the size; the minis map has larger hexes and therefore is smaller. That in itself changes the game if we're using a "fixed" map. So we'll need to come up with some understanding as to what we mean by "fixed."
I was reading a few of the scenarios and they have provisions for the different map sizes so they are effectively the same size map either way. You just use more of the larger hex map panels to make a defined map.
That's what I was thinking we should do.
Quote from: mirth on September 03, 2012, 12:48:07 PM
I like the colors you picked for the War Bird, LB. I'd love to see it with the feather pattern.
OK, my first attempt at getting a feather pattern. Considering this ship is about the size of a Quarter I'm thinking it's not too bad, though I wish I had more artistic talent.
The top of the ship (I think I'm going to go back and touch up the gold outline just a bit):
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FIMAG0588.jpg&hash=73839e14caa5b31b5be2c148b8b5eb50dcdda71b)
The bottom of the ship:
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FIMAG0589.jpg&hash=aaaf89be7ae9236df4d4c956883bad26d743de80)
Very cool! That is sure to strike terror in the heart of your Federation opponents. Thanks for posting the pics.
That looks awesome LB!
Quote from: TheCommandTent on September 04, 2012, 07:35:36 AM
That looks awesome LB!
You guys are too kind. I think it needs to be more uniform.
I was sitting around last night contemplating how to get a more uniform appearance and I think I may have figure it out. I'm thinking of sanding down a toothpick at an angle. That should give me a nice oblong print that is consistent. A brush doesn't lay down paint uniformly. I also want to add a bit more color for depth. So this is still a bit of a work in progress. But I think I may be on to something.
If you guys take anymore game pics, I'd love to see them.
Quote from: mirth on September 08, 2012, 02:08:27 PM
If you guys take anymore game pics, I'd love to see them.
I have some from earlier this week. Not much, just the final encounter, which turns out to be all of it.
I was planning on writing it up for the front page.
In fact, the fam just headed out for the mall. So that gives me some time to compile my thoughts and put something down. Thanks for the ping :)
Our last game was played with counters so I don't have any starship pr0n. However, I'll compensate you by taking a photo of my Constellation class Heavy Cruiser. It's not finished yet but is coming along nicely.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FGrogHeads%2FEnterprise-Orbits-Mars.jpg&hash=8a26b9821c430580025529be363633fa51d33b27)
I took a couple more but haven't had the chance to look them over and crop them. Gotta run now. Will try to post more later tonight.
Quote from: LongBlade on September 08, 2012, 06:20:43 PM
Our last game was played with counters so I don't have any starship pr0n. However, I'll compensate you by taking a photo of my Constellation class Heavy Cruiser. It's not finished yet but is coming along nicely.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FGrogHeads%2FEnterprise-Orbits-Mars.jpg&hash=8a26b9821c430580025529be363633fa51d33b27)
I took a couple more but haven't had the chance to look them over and crop them. Gotta run now. Will try to post more later tonight.
Awesome shot! Thanks for posting.
You're welcome.
Unfortunately the other images are all blurry. I may have to shoot some more later.
Quote from: LongBlade on September 08, 2012, 06:20:43 PM
Our last game was played with counters so I don't have any starship pr0n. However, I'll compensate you by taking a photo of my Constellation class Heavy Cruiser. It's not finished yet but is coming along nicely.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1081.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj349%2Flongblade%2FGrogHeads%2FEnterprise-Orbits-Mars.jpg&hash=8a26b9821c430580025529be363633fa51d33b27)
I took a couple more but haven't had the chance to look them over and crop them. Gotta run now. Will try to post more later tonight.
Ooh, pretty!
Seriously,
LB, she looks good. 8)