militaries of the league 2

101 Pages·2007·4.84 MB·English

MILITARIES OF
THE LEAGUE 2
0
INTRODUCTION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. The Hyach 5. The Torata
Gerontacray Regency
ShotintheDark.........................................2 TheUnwittingMole..................................36
Background..............................................3 Background............................................37
Technology...............................................4 Government...........................................37
Crew Specialties........................................7 Technology.............................................38
Military...................................................12 Military...................................................39
Ships & Fighters......................................12 Ships & Fighters......................................40
2. The Cascor 6. The Grome
Commonwealth Autocracy
Baptism of Fire........................................14 The FinestintheFleet..............................41
Background............................................15 Background............................................41
Technology.............................................16 Government...........................................42
Military...................................................17 Technology.............................................42
Ships & Fighters......................................18 Ships & Fighters......................................45
7. The Hurr
3. The Ipsha
Republic
Baronies
Race in the Dark......................................46
A Deed Unpunished.................................19
Background............................................46
Background............................................19
Government...........................................47
Government...........................................20
Technology.............................................47
Technology.............................................21
Ships & Fighters......................................48
Military...................................................25
Ships & Fighters......................................25
Afterword
4. The Kor-Lyan
ProductCredits........................................44
Kingdoms
Ship Control
The Worm Turns......................................27
Sheets
Background............................................27
Government...........................................28 Hyach Ships............................................51
Technology.............................................28 Cascor Ships...........................................58
Military...................................................33 Ipsha Ships.............................................65
Ships & Fighters......................................34 Kor-Lyan Ships........................................71
Torata Ships............................................78
Grome Ships...........................................84
Hurr Ships..............................................90
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The Hyach and that of every other sub the Hyach had available,
to find and destroy the ship before it made its suicide
Gerontocracy run on the homeworld.
As he had so often, Loran cursed the Dilgar for
theircunning.TheHyachfleetcouldnotaffordtoleave
ShotintheDark thehomeworldtohuntdownthistarget,ortherewould
be nothing to stop the mass drivers. Even if the stealth
The screen remained dark. Loran stared at it in ships found the target, a strike group could not be
silence,waiting. called in quickly enough to eliminate it. The subs were
"Elder,anotherreport,"saidavoicebehindhim. theonlychanceShri-shrabahad.
Ignoring the stiff pain in his weakened spine, he "Elder, energy signatures at nine seventeen," a
turned his head to the sound. "Speak," he commanded scantechcalled,interruptinghiscaptain'sthoughts.
inaraspyvoicethatbetrayedhisageandweariness. Lorantensed.Hisagedmusclesprotested,buthe
"Another tightbeam from the Furor, Elder. The stood,facingthebankofsensordisplaysthatdominated
demons continue to probe the defenses. Two fleets the bridge. On the edge of one, a series of lights
appear to be massing near Shri-shraba. It is unclear glowedweakly."Identify,"heorderedevenly.
as yet if they will combine to punch through our wall, "Weapons fire," another tech answered, but his
orattackindifferentlocationstosplitourforces.” tone betrayed his uncertainty. "Low power, multiple
Lorannodded."Istherenothingfurther?” bursts. Fighters." A bright flare showed suddenly, then
disappeared."Aship,destroyed."
"No,Elder.Wearetocontinueasordered.”
"Very well." With a wave of his hand, Loran A sub, caught in the open. Loran hoped to avoid
such a fate. "Alter course to nine twelve," he said, his
dismissed his underling, who clearly had no idea what
scratchy voice commanding all the authority of his
that final statement meant. There would be no further
advanced age. "We are close. Their fighters screen
communication with the Defense Council, and in all
thetarget.Bewary."
probability no further messages whatsoever. Most of
his people would know nothing of what happened here Nooneresponded,buttheorderwasunderstood.
today. Loran's tired body screamed for rest, but his mind
was clear. In his head, trajectories spun and danced.
That was of no consequence, however. The
If they were moving towards Shri-shraba, and the
millions of lives he saved would more than justify his
patrolwasthere,thentheywouldbehere,hethought.
mission, were he successful. For all his many years,
Butthen,theDilgarwererarelypredictable.
hehadneverfelthislifehadanyrealpurpose.Perhaps
nowhecouldgivehisexistencemeaning. "Signaturesatextremerange."Ascantechpointed
atthetopmostdisplay."Here,andhere."
Loran sighed. He was tired, so very tired. It had
been many years since his last service aboard a Loran'swrinkledbrowfurrowedashestudiedthe
stealth cruiser, and he had almost forgotten how tense newtrack.Fivedots,withasixthtrailingslightlybehind.
and nerve-wracking it was. The Lightning, a sub of The last was obviously the target, its escorts keeping
the Alichi Kav class, had been designed to penetrate their distance from its dangerous cargo. According to
enemy territory and avoid detection. With no jump Intelligence, the ship's crew had been killed by the
drive on its stealthy frame, it was easy prey for any plague the vessel now carried. It was on automatic,
fighter patrols that chanced upon it, and of course so maneuvering it would be difficult. It should be an
the closer it moved to its target, the more likely easy shot, if the Lightning could just get close enough.
discovery became. Yet, if properly used, its weapons "Alter course to ten fourteen, and slow to point two,"
couldbedeadly. he ordered. Perhaps, if all went well, he could drop in
behinditasitpassed.
The ship's designers had not expected the stealth
cruiser to be used directly from the homeworld. It was Hiscrewcomplied,andhewatchedwithmounting
supposed to be attached to a fleet, as a forward nervousness as the six blips moved slowly off the long
scouting element for a squadron jumping into enemy range screen and into the proximity display. They
space. The Dilgar invasion had given it a new mission, would pass close by, he saw, but not closely enough.
h o w e v e r, a s a d e f e n s i v e u n i t . More specks of light had appeared, the marks of
fighters on patrol, and one was dangerously close. He
Somewhere in the home system, the Hyach had
would have to turn away, and try to catch the target
learned, was a Dilgar "medical ship" bound for the
frombehind.
home planet of Shri-shraba. According to intelligence,
this ship carried a plague so virulent the Dilgar "Alter course to-" he began, then stopped as a
themselves feared it. This in itself was proof of the evil new flare appeared on the screen, nearly opposite
the Dilgar represented, for only true demons would his own position. Another ship, probably a sub, had
employ such weapons. It was the Lightning's mission, firedfromlongrange.
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"Definitely a spinal laser, probable miss," a tech Background
announced. More flashes appeared. "Secondary laser
fire. Heat flares on primary target, multiple weapon
hits." TheHyachareamongtheoldestoftheLeague
Loranfrowned.Thesubhadtakenitsshot,but races, and have been in space longer than even
failed to score a kill. Perhaps it would survive for a the Abbai. Their civilization is over 7,000 years old
second shot, he hoped, but quickly realized this was
and is steeped in tradition and a rich history. Rituals,
folly. The enemy fighters near his own ship veered
for example, cover almost every facet of Hyach life,
off, heading to intercept the sub. The ships in the lead
and are carefully followed at all times. Their lives
of the formation also slowed. The screen registered
are guided by the Rules of Order, which number in
more weapons fire, this time from their location. More
thethousands.
fighter blips appeared, converging on the stealth ship's
position. Hyach society is led by the Grand Council of
It was amazing how fast they reacted, Loran Elders, a group of over a thousand representatives
thought grimly. The demons were nothing if not skillful from towns, cities, and regions across Shri-shraba,
in dealing death. He wanted to look away, but could the Hyach homeworld. The government is a
not. A ship full of Hyach died in a series of dull flashes gerontocracy, where age is the primary
on a screen. He did not know their names, or the consideration for leadership. Despite their inherent
identity of the ship that had just perished. As the
respect for their elders, the Hyach are still known to
signature light on the screen went dark, so too did
have occasional power struggles, though these are
theirlives.
usuallylocalizedinsmallareas.
Their sacrifice would not be in vain, he swore to
Despite the age and advancement of their
himself. They had drawn off the fighters, and the way
civilization, the Hyach are a race in decline. For
to the target was clear. All he had to do was give the
manyyearstheirbirthrateshavebeenslowlyfalling,
order. A turn, a brief acceleration, and his ship would
beinrange. so that now more of them die every year than are
Yet the order caught in his throat. Something born. The reason for this is a secret known only to
nagged at the edge of his brain, something not quite their Elders. Once there were two races on Shri-
right."Replaylastsequence!"heorderedsuddenly. shraba, the other referred to as Hyach-doh in the
The dots reset themselves and the brief battle ancient texts. Over the centuries, these were slowly
wasdisplayedagain.Thesubfired,thefightersturned, purged by Hyach religious pogroms until no more
theothershipsslowedandattacked.
wereleft,andthenallrecordsoftheirexistencewere
Allbutone.
erased. Unfortunately, what the Elders did not know
Loran pointed vigorously. "That one! Shift all
was that part of their genetic structure depended
weapons towards that target and set an intercept
on occasional interbreeding with the Hyach-doh.
course.Lockonandfireastargetbears!"
Unless something is done to restore that missing
The briefest hesitation overcame his crew, but
element,theHyachwilleventuallydieout.
then they too saw what he had discovered. The crafty
The Hyach are not aggressive and have no
Dilgar had set a decoy in the midst of their fleet. The
true target was one of the escorts-the only one that interest in conquest, but fight well if forced to do
hadfailedtoreacttotheothersub'sattack. so. Their ships are surprisingly advanced among
Loranutteredasilentprayerofthankstothesouls League races, and were some of the best available
of those who had given their lives to show him the at the time of the Dilgar War. In addition to their
way. formidable ships and weapons, their tacticians are
His sub turned and accelerated towards the brilliant, and Hyach military training is unequaled
target. Lights dimmed as power shunted to thrusters among the League. As the Hyach are very advanced
and heavy guns. Moments later, the weapons fired. in the area of computers, robotics, and
Somewhere ahead, in the darkness of space, the
communications, their ships tend to reflect these
plagueshipexploded.
advantages, with better fire controls, enhanced
Evenashedied,Loranknewhislifehadmeaning
sensors,andefficientconstruction.
atlast.
TheHyachhavehadinterstellarflightcapability
for centuries, but because of their falling birth rate,
they are not interested in exploration or traveling.
While they have no colonies as such, they operate
outposts on a few planets, mostly for research and
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mining. One of these, in the Yonog system, had no category can be more than two. For example, a
nearly reached colony status when it was attacked ship with three BFCPs could apply one point to each
and destroyed by the Dilgar during the early years category, or two to one and one to another.
of the Invasion, and they quickly abandoned their However, note that these bonuses are ship-wide,
other outposts and retreated under their andcannotbesetforindividualweapons.
homeworld's defense grid. Though they were Any desired change to BFCP allocation should
outnumbered, their technology was better than be made during the EW Allocation Step of the
anything the Dilgar could put into the field, so they Sequence of Play (if not changed at this point, it
were able to fight off Dilgar attacks thereafter. Once remains as it was during the previous turn). The
Shri-shraba was finally freed from its blockade, allocation of BFCPs is secret, revealed only when
Hyachshipswereawelcomeadditiontothegrowing weapons fire is announced. For this reason it should
Leaguearmada. be covered or hidden on the control sheet, then
After the war, the Hyach joined the League of revealed as weapons are fired, to avoid any illegal
last-secondchanges.
Non-Aligned Worlds and remained members until
BFCPs are not electronic warfare, but are
the time of the Shadow War, when the Shadows
considered part of each weapon’s inherent fire
convinced the Vree and Ipsha to attack them in
control system. They are not affected by anything
several systems. Rather than fight offensively, the
that would diminish or eliminate EW, such as
Hyach instead withdrew and rode out the storm.
disruptive ELINT functions, jammers, stealth,
Though they feel their trust was broken during this
nebulas, and so on. Similarly, a BFCP point can
period, they have joined the Interstellar Alliance in
not be used for a lock-on, nor does it need to be
thehopesthatsuchathingwillneverhappenagain.
appliedtoaspecificenemyunit.
Bonus fire control points are produced by the
Technology
ship’s computer (a new icon type on the control
sheet), and are lost if the system is destroyed. The
Hyachtechnologyissomewhatmoreadvanced
computerhasnocriticalhits,butitsBFCPproduction
that of other League races, and nowhere was
is reduced proportionally to its damage. The boxes
this more apparent than during the Dilgar Invasion.
in any computer icon are arranged in groups, so
Today, many of the races have caught up with them
that when all the boxes of a given group are lost,
as far as most weapons are concerned, but lack
one BFCP is lost. The player is required to mark all
the advanced miniaturization techniques that make
the boxes in one group before beginning on the
their ships so tough, as well as the computers that
next. Note that these are not critical hits and cannot
maketheirfirecontrolsystemssoformidable.
be restored by repairs that cancel the effect of
criticals.
Construction
ThisruleisnotusedonHyachfighters,butthey
Hyach ships are very well constructed, with are noted to have higher offensive bonuses than
mostsystemsminiaturizedsotheyoccupylessspace thoseofotherraces.
on the ship. This is represented by larger structure
blocks, as well as extra damage boxes on other Sensors
systems. This is indicative of the added bracings
Hyachshipshaveexcellentsensorsystemsand
and non-ablative armor available for use in resisting
are capable of producing large swings in EW. In
damage.
addition, they operate a good number of ELINT
vessels, which is rare among League races. One
Computerized Fire Control
example of Hyach advancement in sensor
The weapons on Hyach ships are tied into an technology is that of stealth ships, which are unique
advancedcentralcomputersystemthattracksenemy withintheLeague.
unitsfasterthananymindcan.Thisproducesoneore Hyach sensors are resistant to damage, and
more bonus fire control points (BFCPs) every shrug off critical hits more easily. Instead of adding
turn. The Hyach player is free to distribute these +1 to the critical sensor roll for every point of
points as desired among the three fire control damage, they add +1 only for every two boxes of
categories (capital ships/heavy combat vessels, damage (drop fractions). This rule applies only to
medium ships, and fighters/shuttles) each turn, but sensorarrays,notothersystemsontheship.
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Stealth Ships bases, it is almost impossible to sneak a sub within
firing range of one with out some kind of assistance
The Hyach operate a few stealth designs that
fromterrain.
operate as the spacegoing equivalent of submarines
If, after the end of the Movement Step of the
(and are usually referred to as subs). Such vessels,
Combat Sequence, a stealth ship is withing the
are expensive to build and maintain, requiring about
detection range of any enemy unit that has line-of-
25% more resources to construct and support than
sight,itbecomesinvisibleonthemapanditscounter
other ships of their size. This should be reflected in
or miniature must be placed on the board. Once it
the rules for any campaign in which stealth ships
is revealed, a stealth ship cannot become hidden
are used, applying a 25% economic penalty to their
again during a scenario so long as at least one
buildcost.
enemy unit has line-of-sight to it thereafter. Should
Subs are difficult to target due to built-in non-
this condition no longer be met, it can disappear
reflective hulls, as indicated by their relatively low
again. A sub can also recover its hidden status if it
defense ratings (in some cases approaching those
disengages and scenario rules allow to return to
of fighters). Some of this is also due to automated
play in some manner (e.g. following a friendly unit
defensive EW systems that are tied into the sensors
through a jump point and then re-emerging
andcomputer.Ifeitherthesensorarrayorcomputer
elsewhereonthemapatalatertime).
system is destroyed, the defense ratings of stealth
A stealth ship is also revealed if it fires any
ship are increased by 3 in all directions. This
weapon, locks onto any enemy unit, or uses any
hardwired defensive EW cannot be altered by
ELINT ability. Of course, its lock-on (and presence)
playersandisnotaffectedbycriticalhits.
will not be announced until after the enemy has
Themainadvantageofstealthships,however,
allocated his own EW, giving the sub a full turn to
is their ability to move and strike unseen. This is not
strikewiththeelementofsurprise.
a “cloaking device,” as the unit does not actually
vanish. Instead, it is simply impossible to detect at Even after they have been detected, subs
long ranges, and is therefore invisible amongst the cannot be lock-onto due to their stealth capabilities,
normal background radiation of space. While unless the enemy unit is 12 or fewer hexes away (4
moving invisibly, the player is required to keep a or fewer hexes in the case of fighters or shuttles, 24
secret written record of its location (or use the or fewer hexes for an enormous base). This uses
assistance of an impartial moderator), in much the the same rules as jammers and the stealth on
same way a Dark Knife is used by the Torvalus of Centauri Rutarian strike fighters. (If an opposing
theAncients. ship applied offensive EW to a sub and then
Stealth ships will be detected by any unit with manages to get within appropriate range after
activesensorsonceitmovesintothatunit’sdetection movement is completed, it would earn a lock-on at
rangeasshownonthechartbelow. that point.) This stealth ability is lost if the sub uses
any ELINT functions, although it is permitted to use
UnitType DetectionRange offensive and defensive EW for the usual purposes
Base 5xSensorRating withoutdisruptingitsstealthbenefits.
ELINTShip 3xSensorRating Although subs sound impressive, in practice
OtherShip 2xSensorRating theygainasinglefirststrikeafterwhichtheyareeasy
Fighter OffensiveBonus prey to marauding enemy fighters. In practice, they
avoid combat except when absolutely necessary,
Thesevaluesarecalculatedusingthedetecting or when they locate as easy target such as an
ship’s base sensor rating as modified by unguardedconvoy.Theyarebestputtouseasspies,
enhancements, crew or officers, extra power where they can scout enemy movements from the
applied, and so on. It does not matter what the darkness of space. In fleet actions, they often hang
sensor’sEWisactuallyusedforontheturn. back until the battle is joined, then provide a sneak
An ELINT ship can also allocate EW to Stealth attack against a vulnerable enemy. Once
Detection, which adds +2 to its detection range discovered, they should be protected by fighters, or
for each point so allocated, but those points will be considerjumpingoutwiththeaidofafriendlyship.
unavailableforanyotherpurposesonthatturn.Note
that because of the huge sensor arrays available to
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Theirstealthyconstructionprohibitstheuseof Maser
jump drives on any sub. The Hyach have tried a
Class: Laser Mode: Standard
variety of miniaturization techniques in an attempt
Thisisamicrowavevariantoftheclassiclaser.
to create a jump-capable version, but so far any
It is a relatively weak weapon that delivers a burst
attempt to place Quantium-40 on a sub renders its
of hard radiation instead of the usual cutting beam.
stealthtechnologyuseless.
The intent is to short out or disable systems without
necessarily destroying them. This would allow an
Spinal Laser
attacker to realize his error in attacking the Hyach
Class: Laser Mode: Raking and retreat, before the Hyach were forced to kill
The gigantic laser cannon is so large, and them.
requires such an extensive coolant system, that only The maser does not penetrate armor well. All
the Hyach (with their advanced miniaturization armor values are doubled against maser attacks.
technology) could ever hope to use it. Th Earth In addition, any overkill caused by a maser is lost,
Alliance could produce one only be wrapping an so it can affect no more than one system in any
entire ship around a single cannon, making volley.
maintenance and repairs so expensive as to be Ifamaserstrikesansystem,thatsystemmust
unaffordable.(Theprototypeshiponwhichtheytried roll a critical hit at the end of the turn (even if it
thismayappearinafutureproduct.) takes no actual damage from the attack, due to
The spinal laser is very powerful, especially in armor or a low damage roll). Any damage the maser
the hands of the Hyach, who rarely miss. Its main actually scored counts double towards the bonus
problems are a slow rate of fire and an extremely roll on the die. For example, if a maser hits a sensor
fixed firing arc (there is simply no way to mount this array and scores 3 points of damage to it (after
weapon on any sort of turret). Due to the immense armor), the critical roll would have a +6 bonus.
cooling struts needed for the device, only one This rule applies only to damage scored on the
appears on any ship, and then only on the largest current turn; if the same sensor were hit later in the
Hyach vessels (or those designed specifically around scenario (even by the same maser), the doubling
theweapon,suchastheheavysub). effect would not be applied to any damage recorded
onanearlierturn.
Blast Laser
Light Blast Laser
Class: Laser Mode: Standard
The Streib made several forays into known Class: Laser Mode: Standard
space (in the most recent, they were put down by a This is a fighter-sized laser weapon. Lasers
combined Earth/Minbari force). During one earlier havealwaysprovendifficulttomountonfightersdue
case,theytriedattackingtheHyach,butweredriven totheirsizeandcoolingproblems,noneofwhichwere
off. Examining the records of this battle, the Hyach difficult issues for the Hyach to solve. It is still
later managed to reproduce one of the Streib somewhatlargeforafighterweapon,butitsstrength
weapons,theblastlaser. means only on is really required. Its main
When a blast laser strikes its target, roll once disadvantage against ships lies in the fact that its is
for hit location, treating any Primary hit as a hit on a raking weapon, so much of its effect is often
the facing structure (or primary structure in the case mitigated by armor. Against fighters, of course, this
of medium ships or ships with their side structures is not a problem, making Hyach fighters excellent
blow off). Overkill is treated normally from that againstenemysmallcraft.
point. Against fighters, there is no special damage
allocationprocedure. Interdictor
Class: Particle Mode: Special
This defensive device was created to provide
Haych ships with at least some sort of interception
ability, which lasers notoriously lack. The interdictor
is and excellent defensive weapon, though it lacks
any sort of offensive firepower. It operates by firing
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a widely dispersed field of particles at an enemy (3)Therearethreetypeofspecialistsavailable:
shot. In coordination with Hyach computers, the Hardware, Software and Command. Hardware
device is highly effective in this role. However, specialists deal strictly in physical objects, providing
interdictors do not have a cumulative effect (even their abilities through hands-on work. Software
against ballistic weapons), so if more than one is specialists operate entirely by interfacing with the
used against a single incoming shot, only one will ship’s computerized systems. Finally, command
function. specialistsaretiedintointheship’spersonnelthrough
Interdictors can also defend nearby friendly the C&C, operating directly in support of other
ships, in much the same way as the guardian array crewman. A ship must divide its specialists between
does, but with fewer restrictions. In order to block a these three categories as best it can ib a slot by
shot aimed at a different unit, the following must slot basis. For example, a ship with four specialists
betrue: available can have one hardware, one software
(1) The enemy ship and the target ship must and one command specialist, plus a fourth of any
bothbeintheinterdictor’sfiringarc. type. If the hardware specialist uses two slots,
(2) The target ship must be no farther than 5 however, the other two must consist of one
hexesawayfromtheinterdictingship. command and one software, or a single two-slot
(3) No other interdictor may be used against specialistofeithertype.
thatsameincomingshot. There are certain features common to all
As long as these conditions are met, the specialists. Unless otherwise noted, a specialist
interdictor can attempt to knock aside the incoming provides his bonus or ability just once per scenario.
weapon fire. Note that this is different from the Any such benefit will last no longer than one turn,
guardian array, which must be between the firing unless the description says otherwise. The intention
shipandthetarget. to use a specialist’s ability or abilities can be made
at the point in the Combat Sequence listed in the
Crew descriptions, sometimes ignoring the normal
sequenceofevents.
Specialists Theabilitiesofspecialistscanbecombinedwith
those of elite officers or crew, should those optional
Some Hyach crewman receive special training rules be in use. Specialists operate only on ships,
as specialists. In addition to their usual functions notfighters,unlessotherwisenoted.
at their posts, they can provide their singular Specialists are located in specific ship systems
expertise at key moments in battle. In nearly every as listed in their descriptions. They can be disabled
case, specialists are “plugged into” the ship’s or killed in the same manner as elite officers. They
computer via special implants, allowing them to act can transfer to other systems in the ship (or to the
swiftly and at the sped of thought. Thus, their primary structure) but provide their abilities only if
abilities cannot but duplicated by other races, no located in their appropriate location. They can
matterhowintensetheirtrainingmethodsmightbe. transfer toanothershipduringa scenario, butunlike
Most Hyach ships have at least one specialist elite officers will not provide any abilities to that
assignedtothem.Thenumberofspecialistsappears shipduringascenario.
on the control sheet in the Special Notes box. With Players can feel free to experiment with
some restrictions, the Hyach player is free to select specialistsoftheirowndesign,subjecttolocalhouse
which specialists are assigned to any given ship. rules. Keep in mind that their abilities should be
Theserestrictionsareasfollows: simple and not overly powerful. Optionally, players
(1) No two specialists on a given ship may be may wish to experiment with specialists for races
thesame. other than the Hyach. In such cases, allow them as
(2) Some specialists count as two or more for an optional ship improvement costing 5% of the
purposes of assignment, and cannot appear on a ship’s point cost per specialist slot. One can appear
ship that permits only one to be present. For for every 400 full Combat Points in ship base value,
example,ashipthatcancarrythreespecialistscould so a ship that cost less than 400 would have none,
have three one-slot specialists, one two-slot and 400-799 could have one, 800-1199 two, and so
oneone-slot,oronethree-slot. on.
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In a campaign, any Hyach ship built using the other weapons fire is announced. The usual
normal rules will begin play with specialists of the restrictions on the allocation of bonus fire control
owner’s choice. These cannot be changed later, pointsmustbeobserved.
but could be swapped around between ships
Defense Specialist
between scenarios so long as all other limits and
restrictionsare obeyed.If ashipwindsupwithmore Type: Software Location: C&C
specialists than it can normally employ, however,
Onceperscenario,thisspecialistincreasesthe
anyextras(presumablykept as“spares”)wouldnot Intercept Rating of all weapons on the ship by 2,
functionduringascenario,evenifasimilarspecialist provided those weapons already had an intercept
were lost in battle. Additional specialists can be ratingof1ormore(e.g.,aspinallaserwouldreceive
acquired for 25 Combat Points per slot, to be held no benefit, but an interdictor would be increased
in reserve, though the Hyach would rarely assign to 6). This ability can be activated upon learning
backupstotheirshipsduetotheirrelativerarity. that an opponent is firing at the ship, but will not
affect any attack rolls already made and recorded.
Breaching Specialist For example, if a player chooses not to use this
ability and several attacks thereafter are very near
Type: Hardware Location: Hangar
hits(+1and+0abovetheirrequiredto-hitnumbers),
Special: Requires Two Slots
itistoolatetoactivatethisspecialist.
Thisspecialistcanchangeasinglenormal(not
Note: If using this ability on non-Hyach ships,
armed) shuttle into a makeshift breaching pod at
only the Intercept Rating of a weapon will be
no extra cost. This pod looks and operates like any
increased. For example, Earth ships will no improve
other normal shuttle (and cannot be identified
theirenergywebsusingsuchaspecialist.
otherwise until it makes and attack), except that it
can carry Marines and attach to enemy units like a
ELINT Specialist
regular breaching pod. The free pod counts against
the ship’s normal limit of breaching pods. Any Type: Software Location: Sensors
Marines the pod uses must come from those This specialist increases the effectiveness of a
normally assigned to the ship or purchased through scout’s ELINT functions (he is of no use on a non-
theusualoptionalitemrules. ELINTship).Onceduringthescenario,thisspecialist
If using the optional rule that permits this canuseONEofthefollowingabilities:
specialist to appear on a non-Hyach ship, the (1)OffensiveELINTwillbeprovidedona3for
breaching pod will be of that race’s standard low- 2 basis instead of 2 for 1, e.g., if 6 points of OEW
end, unarmed type. For example, a Narn pod would are applied to a target, any friendly unit locked-
betheunarmedT’Rakh,notthearmedmodel. ontowillreceive4pointsofOEW.
(2)DefensiveELINTwillbeprovidedona3for
Called Shot Specialist 2basisasabove.
(3)DisruptionELINTwillbeprovidedona2for
Type: Software Location: Weapon
1 basis, e.g., if 8 points of disruption ELINT are
Special: Requires 1-2 Slots
applied against a target, 4 of its OEW or CCEW
The specialist is assigned to a specific weapon
willbeeliminated.
on the ship. Once per scenario, he allows that
(4) Blanket Protection will be provided on a 3
weapon to make a called shot with no penalty. If
for 1 basis, e.g., if 9 points of blanket protection
used on a spinal laser or other 5-turn arming
are purchased, all friendly units are defended by 3
weapon,herequirestwoslots.
pointsofDEW.
(5) Identification: The ship can positively
Computer Specialist
identify three enemy units with no roll necessary, up
Type: Software Location: Computer to75hexesdistance.
Once per scenario, this specialist adds 1 point (6) The range of all the ship’s ELINT functions
to the ship’s bonus fire control points and allows canbeincreasedby50%.
these points to be reshuffled to any desired values. This ability must be announced during the
ThisabilityisactivatedduringtheFireDetermination Electronic Warfare Segment of the Combat
Segment and must be announced at the same time Sequence.
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B5W League-2 Babylon 5, Babylon 5 Wars TM & © Warner Bros.
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THE HYACH
Engine Specialist rules. The player then announces the activation of
this specialist. After learning the fire allocations of
Type: Hardware Location: Engine
all opponents, he may then determine his own ship’s
Onceduringascenario,thisspecialistprovides
weapon fire. Note that all other friendly ships in
a25%increaseinfreethrust(roundanyfractionup).
the scenario are required to follow their plotted fire
This extra thrust must be used all at once, i.e.,
allocations––only the one with the specialist may
itcannotbedividedamongseveralturns.Thisability
makechanges.
can be activated at any time a maneuver (including
acceleration or deceleration) calls for more thrust
Navigation Specialist
thanashiphasavailable.
Type: Command Location: C&C
Flight Specialist Special: Requires Two Slots
Thisspecialistallowstheshiptomakeasingle
Type: Command Location: One Fighter
turn of up to 120 degrees with no turn cost or delay,
This specialist is assigned to a single flight of
and no thrust or engine requirements. The turn is
fightersorshuttles,andmustbedesignatedasbeing
made during the Movement Step of the Combat
on a specific unit (though this can be kept secret
Sequence; it cannot, for example, be made after
fromtheopponent).Hisabilitiesarelostifthefighter
weapons fire determinations are made. A ship
dropsoutorisdestroyed,orifheiskilledordisabled
whose engine has been destroyed or reduced to
by a critical hit under the optional fighter critical
zerofreethrustbycriticalscanstillmakeaturnusing
hitsrule.
thisspecialist,butonly60degreesineitherdirection.
Onceduringthescenario,theflightcanignore
any drop-out rolls and pivot to any desired facing.
Piercing Specialist
This ability is activated during the Fire Resolution
Step after fighter-drop rolls are made. The player Type: Software Location: Weapon
can choose to use this ability even if no fighters are This specialist allows a weapon not normally
eligible for drop-out, presumably to arrange for a capable of firing in piercing mode to use that mode
shot against a different target than the flight is once during a scenario. The specialist must be in
currentlyfacing. the weapon system to be used. Piercing mode
cannotbesuedatthesametimeasanyotherspecial
Hangar Specialist firing mode (such as sustained or flash) and will
override any special abilities of such modes. A
Type: Hardware Location: Hangar
Piercing Specialist cannot be used on ballistic
This specialist can arm a standard shuttle with
weapons or any weapon with a rate of fire greater
a single light blast laser identical to that found on
thanoneperfourturns,suchasaspinallaser.
the Dartha. This effectively transforms the shuttle
SincetheHyachpresentlyusnoweaponswith
into an armed variant at no cost. The gun can be
piercing mode capabilities, this specialist provides
added only to a normal shuttle, not a fighter, assault
therm with their only means to employ this special
shuttle,orothervariant.
firing mode on an opponent. The Hyach almost
If using the optional rule that permits this
alwaysemploythesespecialistonmediumlasers.
expert to appear on a non-Hyach ship, the armed
shuttlewillbeofthethatrace’sstandardtype,andwill
Psi Specialist
include any missiles or other ordinance normally
foundonthatshuttleatnoadditionalcost. Type: Software Location: C&C
Special: Requires Two Slots
Intelligence Specialist Thisspecialistcanbeusedtogainonepieceof
vitalinformationduringascenario.ThePsiSpecialist
Type: Command Location: C&C
reachesintothemindoftheenemyfleetcommander
Thisspecialistcananticipateenemyintentions.
and withdraws the required data. This allows the
Once per scenario, the ship can wait to determine
Hyach player to ask one question of his opponent,
its weapon fire allocation until after learning the
which must be answered immediately and correctly.
intentions of all enemy units. To resolve this,
This can be done at any time during the scenario,
everyone records firing intentions through the usual
evenduringgamesetup.
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Babylon 5, Babylon 5 Wars TM & © Warner Bros. B5W Wars League-2
Rev. 1