______ ______ ___ ___ __ __ _ __ ____ ______ ____ [ __ \ [ __ \ [ ][ ][ ] [ || || ] / _ | [ __ \ / __ v| |o|__) ) |o|__) ) |o| |o|_/ / |o|| || | /o/_| | |o|__) )( (__\_| | __ < | _/ | | | _/ | || || | | _ | | _/ \__ \ |o| \ \ |o|\ \ |o| |o \ |o|| || | |o| | | |o|\ \ \ \ | | | | | | \ \ | | | |\ \ | || || | | | | | | | \ \ \ \ |o| | | |o| | | |o| |o| \ \ |o|/ |/ / |o| | | |o| | | _ |o| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | / | | | | | | | | | \ | | |o|__/ / |o| | | |o| |o| | | |o / / |o| | | |o| | | | \_/o/ [______/ [___]|__][___][___]|__] |_/|_/ [__|[___][___]|__]||\___/ +- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+ | M A I N R U L E S T O M E | +- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+ Based on a game originally designed by Eric O'Dell and R. Todd Ogrin + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + | Disclaimer | | | | These rules are completely unauthorized, and not sanctioned | | in any way by INTERLEGO AG, TYCO, Ritvik, or any other | | producer of plastic building bricks. | + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + Table of Contents Foreword Chapter 0: Introduction Verse 0.1: Things You Will Need Verse 0.2: BrickSpeak Chapter 1: Timeline of Events That Happened Chapter 2: An Introduction to The SpaceMan Chapter 3: The Armoury Verse 3.1: Arms Verse 3.2: Equipment Chapter 4: Combat Verse 4.1: Ranged Combat and Damage Resolution Verse 4.2: Close Combat and Damage Resolution Verse 4.3: Other Kinds of Damage Chapter 5: Game Sequence Verse 5.1: Pre-Game Verse 5.2: The Game Chapter 6: Physix Verse 6.1: Non-Combat Action Verse 6.2: Minifig Movement Verse 6.3: Objects Chapter 7: Machineries of Destruction Verse 7.1: Building Vehicles Verse 7.1.1: General Vehicle Construction Rules Verse 7.1.2: Troop Transport Vehicles Verse 7.2: Vehicle Movement Verse 7.3: Vehicle Damage Resolution Verse 7.4: Vehicle Arms Verse 7.4.1: Vehicle Weapon Firing Arcs Verse 7.4.2: Hinge and Turret Mountings Verse 7.4.3: Bomb Damage Verse 7.5: Vehicle Collisions Verse 7.5.1: Collisions with Stationary Objects Verse 7.5.2: Collisions with Other Vehicles Chapter 8: Bases and Buildings Verse 8.1: Building a Base Verse 8.2: Attacking Buildings Verse 8.3: Damaging Buildings Epilogue Thanx! ========================================================================== Foreword ======== This game is not my invention. The original creators were "two warped guys sitting in a basement on a boring summer evening," Eric O'Dell and R. Todd Ogrin. They created a glorious game and uploaded it to the Internet, where it gained a small but dedicated following. Eventually its popularity reached the point where an especially zealous legal department started to raise questions of trademark infringement. These lawyers eventually stomped the game off the Internet. It has been in limbo since then. Fortunately, I got my copy before all this happened, and in the down time I've been playing the game and tweaking the rules to suit my tastes. These are the house rules that resulted. Throughout this tome I try to forestall trademark infringement by referring to bricks as Plastic Building Bricks or PBBs rather than by brand name. There are a number of companies that produce PBBs of varying quality; wherever I give examples of specific pieces, it will be pretty obvious which brand I (and all right-thinking people) prefer, but pieces from other systems can easily substitute for the defaults listed here. The rules have been split up into three sections: The Main Rules Tome, The Trooper's Handbook, and The Tables. What you are reading now is the Main Rules Tome; it covers vehicles, buildings, gameplay, and combat rules. The Trooper's HandBook is a document containing all of the troop types available to the PBB Warrior, and all special rules that apply to them. Finally, The Tables simply contains all of the statistics and tables needed to play the game, all in one handy document, so a player won't need to scramble through the entire Main Rules Tome to find a number. It's important to remember that none of these tomes are carved in stone; twist, improve, or ignore them at your leisure. Mike Rayhawk (mjr22@cornell.edu) And I'm sure these two would love to get some mail complaining about my mutilation of their copyrighted material. (These two e-mail addresses are apparently no longer valid.) Eric O'Dell (Z926207@corn.cso.niu.edu) R. Todd Ogrin (xero@camelot.bradley.edu) ========================================================================== Chapter 0: Introduction ======================== This game is the product of many hours of, quite simply, playing with plastic building bricks. Before you jump wholeheartedly into reading the rest of these rules, you should know that BrikWars is a building - intensive game. This, in itself, wouldn't frighten many PBB "maniacs", but the game goes beyond creative construction, and steps into the violent realm of killing things and making things blow up into a thousand pieces which rain down onto a battlefield littered with the corpses of SpaceMen. In short, building with PBB's is fun, and you know that if you ever want to build anything else with those bricks, you will have to disassemble your first creation, so why not disassemble it in a grand fashion by having it blown to smithereens? If you don't like tearing apart things that you've lovingly created, then stop reading, because at some point during the game, it will happen. If you do like doing this, like we do, then you will enjoy this game very much. Verse 0.1: Things You Will Need ------------------------------- Plastic bricks are not the only thing necessary to play this game. Here is a list of some other stuff that will be handy to have around: 1) Dice - You will need quite a few of these. In specific, you will need d20's, d10's, d8's, d6's, and d4's. 2) Paper and Pencil - We have made an effort to get rid of this entirely by getting rid of the "hit point" system used in the 1st Edition rules. However, for larger battles, you may need to write some stuff down to keep from losing your mind. 3) Terrain - Terrain is used as cover and scenery for the battlefield itself. When playtesting, we used simple buildings made from a LOT of bricks. The advantage of using such buildings is that the minifigs can stand up without support; if you were to use a flat gaming surface with no dots, you'd need to tack every minifig to a base plate of some sort so that they'd stand up. What a pain. If you don't have enough bricks or plates to make up some nice terrain, then you could use the type of terrain used for Warhammer 40,000, since the scales are almost identical, or simply use stuff from around the house (books for hills, potted plants for foliage, your dog for a 13-story Googa Monster, etc.) 4) Table - Or some other playing surface, like the floor. The size depends on the size of your battle. If you don't have a table or floor, you could construct one out of PBBs. 5) Tables - The tables document that comes with this game is a necessity, and it is partially responsible for the lesser amount of paper needed for BrikWars. 6) Measuring Device - Preferably something more flexible than a ruler, to bend around corners. Small measuring tapes work well, as well as strings marked off in inches. 7) Another Player - You will need at least one opponent, unless you're really bored and want to play by yourself. If you do not have another player, you could construct one out of PBBs. 8) Some Free Time - You shouldn't play this game at work because you're supposed to be working. Verse 0.2: BrikSpeak --------------------- Since we were small children (we are now big children), we have encountered all sorts of terminology for PBBs. Now, in an effort to make this manual mildly readable, we will now define some terms that we'll use to refer to certain bricks. PBB - A Plastic Building Brick. An acronym employed in cowardice to avoid mentioning any PBB company by name and incurring the wrath of their lawyers. Minifig - A minifig is one of those little people with a smiling, yellow face. They shoot at each other and fight in this game; their sunny expressions are a cunning ploy. Dot - A dot is one of those little circular things on top of most bricks. A minifig has one dot on top of its head. Dots are used as units of measurement in BrikWars (i.e. a 2 x 2 brick refers to a brick with 4 dots on top, in a square). Brik - A brik is the fundamental building block of all PBB creations. It is two or three times thicker than a plank, depending on what brand of PBB you are playing with. Plank - A plank is the "thinnest" PBB piece, and like bricks, they come in many different sizes. Two or three planks stacked on top of each other (depending on whose planks they are) would be the same height as a brick. Flat - A flat is basically a plank, but with no dots on top (they're smooth). Blok - The Blok is the classical 2 x 4 brick. As the most stereotypical PBB, Blox are used as a standard of weight. A Blok's weight is equivalent to 5 armor points. Blox are often dragged around the playfield to create staircases and walls. They are also useful to lob with catapults or drop on enemy heads. ========================================================================== Chapter 1: Timeline of Events That Happened ============================================ For your convenience, here is a BrikWars Timeline of Events That Happened, which you will undoubtedly refer to frequently during the course of your games. All years in CE (Common Era). CE 1973-74 (approx.) -- Authors are born CE 3450 -- Dr. Farl Piggins is born, and immediately solves the world hunger problem. CE 3480 -- Dr. Piggins makes public his intentions to design a HyperCosmic engine for use on StarShips. The media camps out at his house. CE 3490 -- Dr. Piggins gets married to Fata Blobba. Media gives Mrs. Piggins the affectionate nickname, "Fat Pig". Dr. Piggins clones himself so that he has someone intelligent to talk to. CE 3500 -- Dr. Piggins builds first successful Really Fast Drive, and travels to Pluto in a second. In this same year, Dr. Piggins discovers that the Earth is going to blow up in a couple of years. Dr. Piggins also discovers the secret of ending poverty. All other men and women of science give up their jobs and become barbers and cooks. CE 3502 -- 50 StarShips built, each the size of the moon. Dr. Piggins custom fits each StarShip with a Really Fast Drive. The Earth is evacuated, and the StarShip Civilizations all take off in different directions, destinations unknown. Dr. Piggins disappears mysteriously before the last StarShip takes off. CE 3503 -- The Earth blows up. CE 3504 - 14745 -- The Time When Nobody Saw Anybody Else CE 14746 -- The Civilizations Proxima and Moola meet each other in the Arcturus VIII system, after 11,000 years of no contact with another group of humans. Each of the StarShips has grown in size to almost 2500 times the size of Earth. The Civilizations go to war over Arcturus VIII. CE 14747-89 -- The other 48 Civilizations converge on Arcturus VIII. By the time the last Civilization arrived(the Xeains), Arcturus VIII is a wasteland planet, and 3 StarShip Civilizations had been destroyed utterly. CE 14800 -- The Xeains suggest a less intensive war, and the remaining 47 Civilizations ratify the Let's Not Fight For a While Agreement of 14800. CE 14801 -- The Xeains get bored, so they start a fight with the Moolans. The Civilizations start fighting again. CE 14802 -- In order to preserve themselves, and to plot the downfall of the other Civilizations in peace, the Civilizations break from the intense combat and set up colonies on other planets. CE 14989 -- The Ralans design the first SpaceMen. The most violent and murderous death-dealers the galaxy the world had ever seen went to war against the Aldonans. After a serious butt-kicking, the Ralans returned home victorious. The other 46 Civilizations genetically engineer their own versions of the Ralan SpaceMen. Media coverage is intensive. CE 14990 -- The Ralans sue the other 46 Civilizations for copyright infringement. They settle out of court. CE 14991 -- The Ralans suffer a grievous defeat at the hands of everyone else. CE 14995 -- Dr. Farl Piggins returns, now over 11,000 years old. He sees the current state of affairs and disappears again. Everyone blames everyone else for his second disappearance. The media hounds everyone. CE 14996 -- The Media is attacked by all 47 Civilizations in an unprecedented act of cooperation. The Civilizations take serious losses and retreat. CE 14998 - 15305 -- The Time of Galactic Empires CE 15306 - 16438 -- The Time of No Galactic Empires CE 17250 -- The present day. No Civilization has gained the upper hand over another. Wars and skirmishes are waged over planets, solar systems, even entire arms of galaxies, yet no Civilization dominates for more than a couple hundred years. Now the task of commanding one of these great armies is your mission. To quote 4th Aldonan Guard Commander Thaka Bahding, "The enemy must die, for if he does not, then he won't be dead." ========================================================================== Chapter 2: An Introduction to the SpaceMan =========================================== SpaceMan. The name itself instills a feeling of terror in all who hear it uttered. These proficient warriors of the galaxy have been trained from birth to be nothing but machines of terror and destruction. When they are born, they are immediately fused to a suit of bio-mechanical machinery which alters their physiology to accept the rigors of SpaceMan Training Camp. After being born, they are taken to the SpaceMan Nursery, where nurses constantly monitor their growth, and feed them special gene-altering formula from a bottle. At the age of three, the SpaceMan recruit enters the SpaceMan Daycare School. It is in this school that the SpaceMan forges his first friendships, and draws his first picture. The mornings are spent in the "PlayRoom", where the SpaceKids play with blocks, role-play mother/father relationships, and learn what it is to share. In the afternoon, the SpaceKids take to the shooting range or combat chambers in order to hone their budding combat abilities. At age 5, the SpaceKid becomes a Trainee, enters the SpaceTrooper Training Camp of his Civilization, and spends the next fifteen years in training. At the age of twenty, in a grand ceremony, the freshly initiated SpaceMan is given his first suit of SpaceArmor, which will support him in practically any environment. The SpaceMan is now a full recruit and is eligible for SpaceMen's pensions and the like, when he retires at the age of 150 years (SpaceMen usually live about 200 years, due to their altered physiology). SpaceMen can be assigned to a number of missions. These missions are usually objectives such as ground attacks, boarding parties, sabotage, Flyer strikes, and base protection. A SpaceMan is always loyal to his original civilization, and will never retreat or be routed. +------------------------------------------+ | "My SpaceArmor is exactly like my real | .\ /. | body, only different." | ./\\ //\. | | ./\\\\ ////\. | -- Denraw Soup, describing the | .\\\\\-- .-. --/////. | benefits of his SpaceArmor to | .\____\`- /v\ -'/____/. | a group of Moolan Trainees at the | ' ' \__( )__/ ` ` | Moolan STTC. | __>/ \<__ +------------------------------------------+ ``'\_/`'' In the game of BrikWars, SpaceMen have the following statistics: SpaceMan: Move: 5" Armor Value: 5 Skill: 1d6 Cost: 5 pts. The system that we used for the description of characters, as well as vehicles (described later), is simple enough for a SpaceMan to comprehend. First of all, we give the name of the model, in this case, "SpaceMan". The heading of "Move" refers to how far this model can move during one movement phase, in this case, 5" (if you use a baseplate, such as the one with a crater in it, you can multiply the movement in inches by three, giving you the number of dots that the model can move). Next is "Armor Value" (which will be referred to as simply AV), which refers to the amount of damage that a model can take in one turn, which is, in this case, 5. Sometimes a model will have a random AV, and rolls using this AV are called Armor Rolls. The "Skill" heading is used to determine exactly how skilled the trooper is. This Skill level is used for determining how well the trooper performs in close and ranged combat. The Skill of a SpaceMan is 1d6. Finally there is "Cost", referring to the cost in points for one SpaceMan, in this case, again, is 5. Points are used to be able to judge whether a battle is equally matched or not. If you assign a 500 point limit to your battle, you and your opponent may use up to 500 points of troopers and vehicles in that battle, and so on. SpaceMen *never* retreat. Even if they are the only soldier left on the field, they will still fight until they are dead, unless they fall back for tactical reasons, such as protecting a vital vehicle or installment. Any SpaceMan that retreats is shot on sight. The cost of one trooper does not include weapons, described in the next section. SpaceMen are arranged into squads of three to five men. In this revision of BrikWars, there is little emphasis on squad coherency. The primary coherency rule is that the members of a squad must be deployed near each other (within 3" of another squad member). After the initial deployment, squad members must try to stay in the relative area of other squad members. ========================================================================== Chapter 3: The Armoury ======================= Weapons are what SpaceMen live for. They have nothing, except their unit and their weapons, and without these things, they are nothing. Thus, the SpaceMen are highly dependant on the SpaceSmiths of their Civilization, the men and women who have the know-how, ingenuity, and morbid sense of purpose to construct death-dealing weaponry for their SpaceMen. While SpaceSmiths design new prototypes and refine new ideas, the Mechanix serve to keep these weapons in top fighting condition. While the Mechanix do not have the experience to create new weapons, they are invaluable to the maintenance of them. The SpaceMen depend on the Mechanix and SpaceSmiths to come through and produce the most finely-tuned weapons, so that they do not falter in battle. The SpaceMen, after all, are behind the trigger, and a faulty weapon brings shame unto all. These are the warriors who forge weapons, without which, this game would be pretty darn boring. +------------------------------------------+ | "Honor your weapons with all your heart, | .\ /. | all your soul, and don't shoot yourself | ./\\ //\. | with them." | ./\\\\ ////\. | -- Lumis Feeben, SpaceSmith of the | .\\\\\-- .-. --/////. | Proximan SmithWorks, giving some | .\____\`- /v\ -'/____/. | sage advice to the wielder of his | ' ' \__( )__/ ` ` | weapons. | __>/ \<__ +------------------------------------------+ ``'\_/`'' Verse 3.1: Arms --------------- These weapons are carried by SpaceMen, or other humans, for use against enemies, in the form of humans or vehicles. A chart follows, giving the stats of each of the weapons. Two- Usage Weapon Handed Pts. Range Rating MovePenalty Damage ------ ------ --- ----- ------ ----------- --------- Gyro Pistol 2 12" 2 0 1d6 Impact Pistol 3 10" 3 0 1d6 + 2 Assault Pistol 4 15" 4 0 1d10 Gyro Rifle 5 20" 3 0 1d6 + 3 Impact Rifle 6 18" 4 0 1d6 + 5 Assault Rifle X 8 25" 5 -1" 2d6 + 2 Death Gun X 10 30" 4 -2" 3d6 + 2 Grenade (E) 3 ** 3 0 1d10 + 3 Hefty Grenade (E) 5 ** 3 0 2d10 + 3 Time Bomb (E) 5 -- 1 0 2d10 + 3 Big Time Bomb (E) 7 -- 1 0 3d10 + 3 Energy Club (C) 3 3" 4 -1" 1d10 + 2 Energy Staff (C) 5 5" 4 -2" 1d10 + 3 Fist * (C) 0 -- 2 0 1d6 - 1 Club (C) 1 -- 2 0 1d6 - 1 Hatchet (C) 1 ** 2 0 1d6 Shortsword (C) 1 -- 3 0 1d6 Cutlass (C) 2 -- 2 0 1d6 Pickaxe (C) X 2 -- 3 0 1d6 + 1 Spear (C) X 2 ** 3 0 1d6 (M) max. 10 Battleaxe (C) X 3 -- 3 -1" 1d6 + 3 Halberd (C) X 4 -- 4 -2" 2d6 Lance (M) 3 -- 3 -1" max. 15 Iron Lance (M) 4 -- 4 -2" max. 20 Bow X 1 5" 2 0 1d6 - 1 Crossbow 2 8" 2 0 1d6 * -- Fists may only be used if the model has no other CC weapons. Fists may not be used as a second counter-attack weapon in Close Combat. ** -- These weapons may be thrown. (E) -- These weapons do Explosion Damage. You may opt to stick colored gems on them and declare them to be 'gas' or 'incendiary' or 'smoke' or 'shaving cream' or whatever you like, as long as you notify your opponents beforehand. If the SpaceMan tries to activate one of these with a roll of 1, it goes off in his hand. (C) -- Close Combat Weapon only. Close combat weapons with a range can make energy discharges up to that range. (M) -- Mounted weapons are only useful when moving full-tilt at your opponent. Damage dealt is the same as in Vehicle Collision, except that the jouster takes no damage, except when common sense dictates that he be dismounted. If the weapon does more damage in one strike than its maximum rating, it breaks. Spears mounted on the front grill of a semi will probably not be used more than once. Each troop-portable weapon is represented by a group of statistics. The first of these statistics is "Two-Handed". If there is an X in this column, then if a model is armed with the weapon, it is the only thing that he or she may carry in hand. "Pts." refers to the cost in points for the weapon. "Range" refers to the maximum distance that the weapon is effective at. An entry of "--" implies that it is a Close Combat weapon only. The "Usage Rating" of a weapon is the relative level of difficulty in actually operating the weapon. A trooper must roll equal to or above this rating with a Skill Roll in order to use his or her weapon successfully. "Move Penalty" represents how much a certain weapon will slow down the wielder. For example, a Death Gun is a hefty piece of machinery, so troopers carrying it will be slowed by 2". The "Damage" column reveals how much damage a certain weapon causes against enemy targets. Rolls made using this Damage Value (DV) are called Damage Rolls. Archaic weapons are not entirely uncommon among the SpaceMen, but are more often seen in use by the less advanced natives of whatever planet they're fighting over. The time bomb is not especially popular among SpaceMen. Their lust for instant violence does not give them the proper disposition for sabotage. However, they sometimes carry time bombs into battle just for the entertainment value of sticking it down an enemy's pants. The time bomb is covered with a special substance called 'Glom,' which is an unbreakable glue. Once the time bomb has been glommed on to something, it will explode two turns later. There is no way to seperate it from the object it's glommed onto; the best hope is to get the object as far away from anything valuable as fast as possible. If successfully used in close combat, the attacker must specify what he has glommed the bomb onto, whether it is one of the defender's weapons or SpaceArmor (which takes a full turn to take off). If the defender is not wearing a helmet, such as a SpaceScout or SpaceWoman, the bomb can be glommed directly onto his or her head. Troop-portable weapons may actually be mounted upon vehicles for the normal movement penalty. No more than 4 of a single troop-portable weapon may be mounted on a vehicle. Troop-portable weapons may be made a part of a base or building as well, for an extra cost of 5 points. Verse 3.2: Equipment -------------------- Next is a list of extra equipment a trooper may carry. A description of the object's function is given, as well. Object Pts. Function ------ ---- ----------------------------------------- CB 0 Allows squads to communicate (1 required/squad) Hi-Pro Ammo 2 +1d4 damage to ranged weapons, +1 UR to weapon (green cylinder) ShootFar Ammo 2 +5" to ranged weapon, +1 UR to weapon (blue cylinder) Stabilizer Scope 2 -1 Usage Rating on any ranged weapon (red cylinder) Normal Shield 1 Adds 2 to armor value Large Shield 2 Adds 4 to armor value Energy Shield 3 Adds 1d4 to Armor Value (1/model) Body Armor 5 Adds 1d6 to Armor Value (-1" Move, 1/Model) Jet Pack 10 Movement x2" Waist Mount 4 Allows a SpaceMan to use a ranged weapon at no movement penalty, or a vehicle weapon at normal movement penalty. Magnetic Parachute 2 Cancels any falling damage. Brain Control Device 12 Allows a SpaceMan to control all Normal People (CB with a within 5". A Normal Person subject to more than switch on it) one Device at a time will suffer Head Explosion Syndrome. *Visored Helmet 5 Adds 1d6 to skill of trooper *Powered Epaulets 7 Adds +2 CC Bonus (1/Model) Subtracts 1" from any movement penalties. *Cape -1 Makes your model easier to hit (+ 1 to Skill of enemy shooting or in CC with the model) * The last three are used if you are playing just with generic SpaceMen. If you start to include other soldier types, these things become decorations to tell one type from the other, and should be ignored. A squad that loses its CB becomes confused and disoriented; they move only once every other turn until they can join up with a better-organized squad. A shield is only effective if it is pointed in the general direction of an attack. A normal or large shield can be destroyed if a single attack does damage of twice the shield's AV or more. Pots, pans, tools, and other random junk may be carried around, especially by Normal People. These cost zero points. Important random objects, like keycards or spare Jaws of Life, can be assigned a point value at the players' discretion. ======================================================================== Chapter 4: Combat ================== SpaceTroopers are taught all sorts of combat styles, depending on the mission at hand, and the Civilization to which the SpaceTrooper belongs. Combat is all that a SpaceTrooper lives for, besides closely guarded rituals. Every SpaceTrooper army of every StarShip Civilization has its own set of closely guarded rituals. +------------------------------------------+ | "I think that fighting and war is one of | .\ /. | the greatest inventions of the human | ./\\ //\. | mind. I mean, it sure would be boring | ./\\\\ ////\. | if we didn't all hate each other. Or | .\\\\\-- .-. --/////. | something." | .\____\`- /v\ -'/____/. | -- Jill Gurps, sociologist of the | ' ' \__( )__/ ` ` | Antauran Civilization. | __>/ \<__ +------------------------------------------+ ``'\_/`'' There are two types of combat in BrikWars, and they are ranged combat and close combat. Ranged combat, obviously, takes place over long distances using guns, missiles, rocks, decapitated heads, etc. Close combat is when things get personal, and troopers take it upon themselves to engage each other one-on-one with hand weapons, fists, teeth, head-butting, elbowing, kneeing, kicking, and sitting on the enemy for an extended period of time. Verse 4.1: Ranged Combat and Damage Resolution ----------------------------------------------- Ranged combat occurs during the combat phase of a player's turn. The players make rolls in order to determine if the firer actually hit his target, and, if so, whether or not the shot caused any damage. To determine if the firer hit the target, the firing player must make a Skill roll against the Usage Rating of the weapon being fired. Each trooper has a unique Skill level, and so players should keep abreast of who is firing and where their Skill level stands. If the attacking player rolls equal to or greater than the Usage Rating of the weapon using his Skill dice, then the shot has found its mark, and damage resolution takes place. If the shot missed, then no further action is taken, and the next firer tries to pick off one of the bad guys. If the shot was successful, then both players must roll to determine if the target was killed by the shot. The firer now rolls the Damage Value dice of the weapon which he was firing. The defender rolls his Armor Value dice, which can be found in the Trooper's Handbook. If the defender rolls higher, or if it is a tie, then the target survives the weapon blast. If the attacker rolls higher, then the target dies. His body can be removed from play entirely, knocked over to simulate a body, or ripped to pieces and sprinkled liberally over the surrounding area, to simulate appropriate carnage. In the case of an "automatic death", the attacker still must roll Damage dice. If the roll comes up one (or all ones), then the target lives anyway. For example, if a SpaceMan were hit by an Impact Rifle, (1d6 + 5 Damage), he should be killed automatically, but the attacker must roll Damage dice anyway; if he rolls a one on the 1d6, then the target lives. By positioning a model behind some sort of cover, players can get the benefit of some minor protection. Shots made at models behind cover (any cover, no distinction is made between hard and soft cover) is made at a -1 Skill of the firer. No To-Hit roll is automatic. Rather, a roll which will most definitely be above the UR of the weapon being used (i.e a UR of 2 and a Skill of 2d10) still has the possibility of missing. A roll of one (or ones, if multiple dice are rolled) means that the shot has missed, just like the "automatic death" rule described above. If the attacker is at "Ridiculously Close Range" (i.e. less than an inch from his target), then he hits automatically. If players still want to roll dice, the attacker is considered to have a +2d20 Skill at that range only. A minifig can also throw objects at targets. A thrown weapon's range in inches is equal to a minifig's Skill minus the object's Move Penalty (if it's a weapon or piece of equipment) or its weight in Blox (Armor Value divided by five). Its usage rating is three. If the minifig misses, the object lands as many inches away from the target as the roll was missed by, within the range of the throw, as chosen by the defender. A thrown Close Combat weapon does normal damage, most other thrown equipment does as much damage as a punch. A dropped object (ie, a boulder off a cliff) has a usage rating of one, but its horizontal range is only 1" per story fallen, maximum of 3". If there are explosive weapons lying around, they can be shot at. This includes dud grenades, missiles mounted on vehicles, bombs in a base armory, a time bomb glommed to an enemy's head, etc. Attacks are at -2 due to the small size of the target, -3 if it's on a moving vehicle. The weapon's Armor Value is its Mk times 1d6 (a Mk1 missile has an AV of 1d6, a Mk2 bomb has an AV of 2d6, etc.), with grenades and time bombs assumed to be Mk1. If the explosive weapon loses, it goes off, damaging everything nearby. Note that both the rolls of the attacker and defender may be modified by the use of special equipment, such as extra armor or special targeting attachments for weapons. Verse 4.2: Close Combat and Damage Resolution ---------------------------------------------- Close combat is similar to ranged combat in that the damage resolution is carried out identically. However, for every turn that two minifigs are locked in close combat, BOTH of them get to try and whack the head, arms, legs, or torso off the other. First, the attacker makes his to-hit and any necessary damage rolls. If the defender is still standing, he then gets to make a counter-attack, and follows the same process. This is done once per game turn, until one of the combatants falls, or until one of the combatants breaks off combat. A model with two Close Combat weapons may make attacks (or counter attacks) with both weapons. Imagine two SpaceMen locked in battle, both armed with a Big Knife and Energy Club. The attacking SpaceMan would most likely strike first with his Energy Club (it has the best chance of blasting his enemy). The defender would then roll a counter attack with his Energy Club. The attacker would then attack with his Big Knife, and then the defender would counter attack with his Big Knife. Note that a defender gets only as many counter attacks as his attacker has attacks (i.e. if the attacker has one weapon, and the defender has two, then the defender only gets one counter attack). Fists do not count as a weapon, unless the model carries no other Close Combat weapons. A group may use gang-up tactics on a single model to try and bring him down. In this case, the first attacker is treated normally as described above; he attacks the target, and the target gets a counter- attack against this first attacker. If subsequent attackers hit the defender, the target takes a -2 Armor Value penalty, AND a -2 Skill penalty. For example, Champion Oogtar is being attacked by 4 SpaceWomen. The first SpaceWoman makes her attack. She misses. Champion Oogtar makes his counter attack and lops her head off with his Cutlass. The second SpaceWoman makes her attack. She hits, and Oogtar has to make an Armor Roll at a -2 penalty against the SpaceWoman's Damage Roll. He succeeds and is left standing. He may make a counter attack at -2 Skill against this second SpaceWoman. The third and fourth SpaceWomen continue the attack, and if they hit, Oogtar has to take a -4 Armor penalty and a -4 Skill penalty for his counter attack, and then a -6 Armor and Skill penalty. The penalties accrue no matter if the attacker hits or not. No more than 4 troopers may gang up on another. All that pushing and shoving to get the killing blow... what a pain! If a trooper wishes to break from close combat, he or she may do so, but the attacker gets one free attack with a single weapon as the trooper breaks off. If there are multiple attackers to break off from, then they ALL get a free attack. The trooper breaking away gets no counter attacks. If the breaker survives the free attack, then he or she may move normally. Breaking from close combat takes place in the Movement phase. Some troops have Close Combat bonuses. These bonuses are valid only when the trooper is in close combat, and never at range. Therefore, although an Energy Staff and an Energy Club are close combat weapons, the bonus is only valid when they are used as close combat weapons, and not as ranged ones. Close combat bonuses are added to the to-hit roll of the weapon when the trooper is trying to chop off his enemy's limbs, and if he does manage to hit him, the bonus is also added to his Damage Value. So, if a Matey was trying to hit someone, his To-Hit Dice would effectively be 1d6+4, which means he hits on anything except a one. He rolls a 3, which makes his To-Hit total come out to 7. This is greater than 3, which is the UR of the Shortsword he is using, so he hits. He now rolls 1d6 + 2, instead of the normal 1d6, because of his close combat bonus. As you can see, this makes SpacePirates pretty mean up close. Vehicles other than Flyers may be engaged in Close Combat. If the Driver is exposed (i.e. not in an enclosed cockpit), then the attacker can attack the Driver at a -1 Skill modifier. If the Driver is enclosed, then the attacker must try to cause damage versus the armor value of the vehicle itself. If the Driver is killed, the vehicle cannot move or fire (unless it has gunners inside, or another trooper takes the place of the driver). Verse 4.3: Other Kinds of Damage -------------------------------- There are a number of ways a minifig, vehicle or object can take damage without being the direct target of an attack. The first is secondary explosion damage. Grenades, bombs, and missiles cause large explosions around their target. Anything within one inch of the target also takes full damage. Anything within 2" takes normal damage minus 1d10, within 4" takes damage minus 2d10, within 6" minus 3d10, etc., until there are no d10's left in the damage rating. Explosive force can be blocked by walls, as long as the walls themselves aren't destroyed by it. Even if a minifig (or vehicle, or any object that is not nailed down) survives a direct hit, it may still be knocked back by the concussion. Most of the time, you can just use common sense. A trooper whose shield saves him from the shock wave at the edge of a bomb explosion will probably be knocked over. A SpaceLimo will probably get knocked an inch or two sideways when it gets T-boned by a SpaceHumvee. When the SpaceHumvee goes on to plow through a gang of SpaceBikers, you can be sure SpaceCycles will be flying everywhere. Every now and then, it will be important to know exactly how far something gets knocked back. You and your opponent might disagree as to whether a particular missile blast knocked your Champion to the edge of the crater, or sent him screaming into the pit of molten lava below. Roll damage vs. armor a second time. Subtract half the armor roll from the damage roll. This is the number of inches the target is knocked backwards. Minifigs do not land on their feet. If the two rolls are equal, the defender is not knocked back, but if it is a minifig it still falls over. A minifig can attempt to shove things around, like an overturned truck blocking a road. His damage roll, for pushing purposes, is equal to twice his skill. The last type of damage is gravitational damage. Any time an object is dropped onto another, both objects must save vs. the Armor Value of the dropped object times the number of levels it has fallen. For instance, if a SpaceMan on a five-story tower drops a Blok on a large vehicle parked below, the large vehicle would have to save against 5 (effective AV of the Blok) times 5, or 25. The Blok would not have to roll versus damage because Blox are indestructible. If the large vehicle survives and shoots the SpaceMan, knocking him off his tower to fall onto a Champion on the other side of the tower, both would have to save against 5 (the AV of the SpaceMan) times 5, or 25. ========================================================================== Chapter 5 - Game Sequence ========================= This Chapter covers the order of battle in a typical BrikWars game. Follow these guidelines and everything should go smoothly. Verse 5.1: Pregame ------------------ STEP 1: You and your opponent should find a table or some other suitable flat surface on which to play the game. Ping-pong tables or large sheets of plywood make excellent playing surfaces. You may want to use the floor for particularly huge battles. STEP 2: Players will then need to set up some sort of terrain for the game to be played on. Terrain can range from fancy modelled trees and mountains, to the simple PBB trees and a stack of books for a hill or two. It is perfectly acceptable to use whatever you have at hand for gaming terrain. Heck, build a whole darn city out of bricks, for all we care... (We did it, that's how we playtested this game) STEP 3: Players roll 1d6. The player with the highest roll can either choose to have the first turn, or choose which table edge he wishes to play from. After this decision has been made, the person who lost the die roll then sets up his troops. After all troops have been set up, the player who lost the initiative roll may swap the positions of any two units. All troops must be set up within 6" of the table edge. Verse 5.2: The Game ------------------- Repeat these steps until one side is wiped out, one side retreats or concedes, or until the players decide that they can't live any longer if they don't have some New York Cherry Ice Cream and make a mad dash for the local grocery. MOVEMENT: Using the movement rates of the models, the player whose turn it is moves all his squads or vehicles their allotted distances. In the case of flyers dropping bombs, damage from bomb hits is applied during the movement phase, right when the player announces it. Vehicle collision damage is also determined at this time; the rules for vehicle collision damage is covered in the vehicle section. COMBAT: The player then fires the weapons of one vehicle or squad at the target he chooses, checking to make sure the target is in range. He then makes the appropriate ToHit roll according to his Skill and the UR of the weapon being used. If he hits, a Damage Roll must be made, and the target must try and save on his Armor Roll. The player continues until every unit that is conducting close or ranged combat has done so. DESTRUCTION: Destroyed vehicles are ripped apart as soon as they are destroyed. Scatter the pieces over the area that it was destroyed in and remove half of the pieces from the playing area, leaving realistic debris behind. When a squad of men is destroyed, simply sprinkle their bodies over the area they died in. You may choose to employ other forms of destruction. For instance, a SpaceMan hit by a missile would not leave a body, but a pile of component body parts. A flyer hit by the experimental Annihilation Ray would simply disappear. The players alternate between themselves for the duration of the game (i.e. Player 1 moves and shoots, Player 2 moves and shoots, Player 1 moves and shoots...etc.). ========================================================================== Chapter 6: Physix ================== Almost any miniatures wargame gives you the chance to advance tiny soldiers through hails of projectiles and seas of blood for the chance to gut other tiny soldiers on the other end of the battlefield. What sets BrikWars apart is the way that the tiny soldiers can interact with the environment while advancing through hails of projectiles and seas of blood. Verse 6.1: Non-Combat Action ---------------------------- Most of this special interaction goes under the heading of non-combat actions, which take place during the Movement Phase. Normal People will hold conversations and go to their dreary jobs. SpaceMenials will traipse around picking up debris. Medix will attend to the vivisection of the dying. Wild animals will run off with the Champions' breakfasts. Somewhere far away, birds will sing. And SpaceMan Nelson will set the time bomb on the Moolan fuel reserve silo, which they foolishly placed in the middle of their explosive ammunition depot. Most non-combat actions cost 1" of movement. Things like pulling a lever, opening a door, standing up or sitting down, and picking up or dropping objects fit in this category. Other actions might take a whole turn, such as operating a computer, taking off a pair of pants, or yelling at an errant SpaceMenial. Almost anything a normal person could be expected to do, the SpaceMen can do. Verse 6.2: Minifig Movement --------------------------- Not all battles are fought on enormous asphalt plains. In fact, SpaceMen very rarely have any interest in conquering bare asphalt plains. This is because there are no trees, animals, or innocent bystanders to take stray bullets and get caught in explosions. As such, they often find themselves dealing with rough terrain. These are the movement modifiers. 1. Minifigs moving uphill have a -1" movement modifier. Minifigs moving downhill have a +1" movement modifier. 2. Minifigs moving in, into, or out of water move at half speed. 3. Minifigs can hop over any obstacle less than 1" tall at no penalty. Obstacles 1"-2" tall must be climbed over, and incur a -2" movement modifier. Obstacles higher than 2" are impassible. 4. Vertical climbing of ropes, trees, ladders, etc. is done at half speed. 5. In general, minifigs can jump 1" high and 2" away. This is considered part of normal movement. Verse 6.3: Objects ------------------ SpaceMen also have the ability to modify their terrain. Usually this involves blasting huge craters in it or littering it with smoking debris, but occasionally their efforts are more constructive. Loose Blox can be collected to pile into staircases and walls (these are considered to be unmortared stone walls with AV 1d10). Spare debris from crashed vehicles can be collected and built into new vehicles. Human remains can be dragged around and sewn together to create temporary vivisect zombies. A minifig can pick up or put down any object up to his own AV in weight for a -1" movement penalty. An object up to twice the minifig's AV in weight will cost -2". While carrying any object his own weight or greater, the minifig has a -1" movement penalty. Larger objects can be shoved or dragged around. An object up to four times the minifig's weight can be moved at one quarter speed, or one half speed if it has wheels. A minifig can throw objects it is carrying. The rules for throwing objects are the same as for throwing weapons, as described in Verse 4.1. ========================================================================== Chapter 7: Machineries of Destruction ====================================== The vehicles of the SpaceMen are driven by dedicated and violent men known as the SpaceDrivers. They have only one goal in their lives, and that is to destroy as much enemy property as possible while not getting their own vehicle shot out from under them. They are fiercely devoted to their vehicles, often naming them endearing terms, such as "The Spreader of Sanguinity" or "LifeSnatcher". As with the SpaceMen and their weapons, the SpaceDrivers spend hours a day performing rituals dedicated to their vehicles. +------------------------------------------+ | "Attempt to prolong the life of your | .\ /. | vehicle, for you are in it, and if | ./\\ //\. | it is destroyed, a few of the effects | ./\\\\ ////\. | of death may be observed." | .\\\\\-- .-. --/////. | -- Xereve Grungt, | .\____\`- /v\ -'/____/. | SpaceDriver Elite, | ' ' \__( )__/ ` ` | Hesperan Guard | __>/ \<__ +------------------------------------------+ ``'\_/`'' Verse 7.1: Building Vehicles ---------------------------- Vehicles are classified by the size of their chassis, or the base plate on which they built. This refers to the plate that the designer of the vehicle started to build with. The following chart classifies all of the most popular sizes of chassis: Weapon Class Size(area) Speed Mounts Armor Value ----- ---------- ----- ------ ----------- Ground -- 1 - One-Piece -- 16" - 1d10 + 4 2 - Small 30 14" - 2d10 + 4 3 - Medium 110 12" 2" 3d10 + 4 4 - Large 225 10" 4" 4d10 + 4 Flyers -- 1 - One-Piece -- 22" - 1d6 + 2 2 - Small 30 20" - 1d10 + 2 3 - Medium 90 18" - 2d10 + 2 4 - Large 200 16" - 3d10 + 2 * -- Mk 3 weapons are the biggest a Flyer can carry. Flyers can only have three weapons maximum. Verse 7.1.1: General Vehicle Construction Rules ------------ To determine the base cost of your vehicle, you must first compute the area (in dots) of the vehicle. If you have a one-piece vehicle, such as a motorcycle, robohorse, or flying surfboard, consider the area to be ten. Otherwise, take the length of the vehicle and multiply it by the width of the vehicle. Items which to not contribute to the area of a vehicle include: * Wheels / Jets / Motive devices * Weapon barrels extending beyond the chassis * The portion of the wings of a Flyer that do not contain any mounted weapons. Using this area, divide it by 10 (round fractions up), and this is the base cost of the chassis. If you are building a Flyer, add 5 points times the vehicle's Class Number. If you are building a Hover Flyer (ie a helicopter or hovercraft), add 10 points times the vehicle's Class Number. Depending on the area of the chassis, the vehicle comes equipped with a motive device and possibly weapon mounts. Weapon mounts are special mountings on the vehicle for weapons. Normally a weapon mounted on a vehicle incurs a movement penalty because of the weight of the weapon. However, vehicles with weapon mounts may add weapons at no movement penalty until the mounts are used up, and then weapons incur the normal penalty. For example, imagine a Medium ground vehicle was being built, and it had 3 Mk2 Lasers mounted on it. The first two laser would cause no penalty, because they could be mounted on the weapons mounts, but the third laser would incur a penalty of -1", because all of the mounts are used already, giving the vehicle a speed of 11". There must be some sort of propulsion device somewhere on the model of the vehicle. Propulsion devices include wheels and treads for land vehicles, and propellers or jets for Flyers. No differentiation is made between the behavior of any motive type, besides ground, air, and hover vehicles. Vehicles must be at least three-fourths of the length of any barrel or missile mounted on it. For example, a Mk 5 Missile could not be mounted upon the chassis of a small vehicle. One-piece vehicles are limited to a maximum of two Mk 2 weapons. A flyer is represented on the playing area as a small vehicle with wings, propellers, etc., which is supported about six inches from the table by a stand, constructed of a flat 1x8 stuck into a base. The base does not represent anything on the table except the shadow of the Flyer, which has no effect on the game. However, due to Flyers' speed and due to the fact that they fly above the table, there is a -1 modifier To-Hit, since it's harder to target. Since Flyers fly, they do not need to take movement penalties, or circumvent buildings. They may fly directly over anything. Flyers may mount up to 4 weapons. To take off and land, flyers need a minimum length of clear terrain, road, or airstrip. A base can halve minimum runway length on landings by building a tripwire or net on their landing strip. If the tripwire or net is used by a Large flyer, it will work once but break in the process. A tripwire costs 5 points. size runway ---- ------ One-Piece 6" Small 12" Medium 24" Large 36" Except when taking off or landing, a Flyer on the ground taxis around at 4" per turn. Outstanding vehicular modifications can be added to a vehicle. Both players should agree on the point cost, minimum 5, of the OVM. Common modifications would be cranes, robotic arms, storage bins, and bulldozer blades. Uncommon modifications would be ejector seats, hydraulic jump springs, extra loud sound systems, jacuzzis, etc. A vehicle's minimum movement after all weapon and equipment additions must be at least 4". Vehicles of lesser speed are not allowed. Unless they have Hover capability, Flyers must be able to move at least 10" per turn. Only Flyers may be equipped with bombs, for obvious reasons. SpaceDrivers are goofy, but not *that* goofy. All vehicles must be equipped with controls, which can be steering wheels, or flightsticks, or anything else that the players deem as worthy of controldom. Vehicles with no controls can only move straight. Vehicles without drivers are stupid things to make, so don't do it. Verse 7.1.2: Troop Transport Vehicles ------------------------------------- Vehicles may also carry up to ten SpaceMen, provided they can fit on or in the vehicle. Only medium and large vehicles may carry extra men. Troop transports are possible. For every five extra SpaceMen carried, a 3" movement penalty is applied. For ease of play, the men do not actually have to be inside of the vehicle. You can hold them outside, and place them on the board when they are deployed by the vehicle. However, the men you claim are being carried by the vehicle must be able to fit in it. Your opponent may, if he wants to, challenge you to show him that they all actually do fit in the vehicle. If the men do not, all of the men claimed to be in the vehicle are stricken by a rare disintegrative disease and are immediately removed from play. A vehicle may not move during the same turn that it drops off troops. Riders in an open-topped vehicle (or a vehicle with windows or gun slits) may make Ranged attacks at -1 Skill. Riders may make Close Combat attacks if the vehicle is open-topped at -1 Skill. Verse 7.2: Vehicle Movement --------------------------- Vehicles may turn as much as they'd like during any single turn. Vehicles move very easily over the terrain in BrikWars. The rules are as follows: 1) A vehicle moving over an obstacle less than one inch (two and a half bricks) tall moves at half rate. Moving into obstacles which are taller than one inch is a vehicle collision. 2) A vehicle moving up hill has a -2" movement modifier. 3) A vehicle moving downhill moves an extra 2". 4) Vehicles moving in, into, or out of water move at half rate. Verse 7.3: Vehicle Damage Resolution ------------------------------------ Note that vehicles have an Armor Value, just like normal troopers do. This Armor Value is used exactly as the Armor Value for troopers is; that is, if a vehicle is hit by an enemy weapons blast, then the attacker rolls his Damage Value dice, and the defender rolls his Armor Value dice. If the defender rolls higher, then the vehicle's armor repelled the blast with no damage, except for perhaps a little bit of charred and flaked paint. If the attacker rolls higher, then the attacker rolls on the following table to determine the effects of the weapons fire on the vehicle. The attacker adds the difference between his Damage roll and the Armor roll of the defender. _______________ Vehicle Ker-Pow! Table ________________________________ Roll Effect 1d20 + (Damage-AV) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- any time a 1 is rolled, regardless of bonus - In a flash of revelation as the weapons blast hits, the driver of the vehicle realizes that his destiny in life is to become a hero of great renown. --> The driver of the vehicle gets one Stupendous Feat per turn for the rest of the game. 3 - The engine is hit lightly and begins to smoke. --> The vehicle is at a -2 Skill to be hit by enemies. 4 - The driver spends some time ranting at how badly the other drivers on the battle field are driving. --> The vehicle continues in a straight line at max speed, for one turn. 5 - The driver gets a bruised elbow. --> -1 Skill modifier. 6 - The driver gets lost and has to ask directions. --> The vehicle cannot move or fire for one turn. A flyer maintains a holding pattern. 7 - The shot hits the weapons systems, and a weapon falls off. --> One weapon of defender's choice falls off. If it is explosive, roll to see if it goes off. 8 - The shot hits the weapons systems, and a weapon falls off. --> One weapon of the attacker's choice falls off. If it is explosive, roll to see if it goes off. 9 - The driver stops to heed nature's call. --> The vehicle may not move of fire for one turn, except to reach a tree within 6". A flyer finds a space to land as quickly as possible. The driver must then step out of the vehicle for one turn before getting back to business. 10 - The driver of the vehicle becomes so enraged that someone blasted the paint job of his vehicle that he swears a Personal Death Vendetta against the trooper or vehicle that hit him. --> The vehicle must do everything in its power to destroy the trooper or vehicle that made the shot. 11 - The steering wheel becomes disconnected. --> The vehicle moves at maximum speed for every turn following, and the players alternate steering (straight lines only). 12 - The back wheels (or treads, jets, thrusters) of the vehicle get shot off. --> The vehicle may only move at 1/2 rate. 13 - The stick shift gets stuck in reverse. --> The vehicle may only move backwards at 1/2 rate. A plane stalls and has one turn to attempt an emergency landing. 14 - The driver can no longer take the stress of combat, and finds solace in his bottle of Arsenic Vineyards '76. --> -1d6 to all Skill rolls. 15 - The motive systems (wheels, treads, etc.) fall off. --> Vehicle operates normally, except now it can't move. If it is a flyer, the pilot has enough time for an emergency landing if he can pull it off within the next turn. 16 - The engine shoots out of the vehicle. --> The vehicle can no longer move. Weapons fire is allowed. A flyer has one turn to attempt an emergency landing. 17 - A cunning enemy causes critical damage to the vehicle. --> All weapons on the vehicle are destroyed. 18 - The vehicle's crew is killed. --> All troopers in the vehicle are killed. The vehicle is still intact. Flyers continue moving at maximum velocity. 19 - The driver blows up. The vehicle flips over and crashes. If the vehicle has an open top, everyone inside is thrown clear as many inches as the vehicle's maximum velocity. If not, everyone inside is beaten into a homogenous liquid mass. --> The vehicle is useless until enough minifigs get together to turn it right-side-up again. A flyer does a nosedive into the spot immediately below it and explodes. * 20+ The engine blows up in a tremendous plume of fire. Everyone cheers at the beautiful sight. --> Vehicle explodes. * * Any vehicle explosion does Explosion Damage equal to the AV of the vehicle. It is possible, although unlikely, that the driver and/or some of the passengers might survive the blast and be tossed free of the wreckage. Verse 7.4: Vehicle Arms ----------------------- Vehicle weapons are described on the following table: Usage Damage Weapon Pts. Range Rating -Move Value Size ------ ---- ----- ------ ----- ----------- ---- Missiles -- Mk1 14 20" 2 -1" 1d10 + 1d6 4 Mk2 19 25" 3 -1" 1d10 + 2d6 6 Mk3 23 30" 4 -2" 2d10 + 1d6 10 Mk4 31 35" 4 -3" 3d10 + 1d6 13 Mk5 39 40" 5 -4" 4d10 + 1d6 16 Lasers -- Mk1 14 20" 2 -1" 1d10 + 4 1LasPiece (4) Mk2 20 20" 3 -1" 2d10 + 4 2LasPiece (6) Mk3 26 20" 4 -1" 3d10 + 4 3Laspiece (10) Ballistic -- Mk1 23 40" 4 -2" 1d20 6 Mk2 27 35" 5 -3" 1d20 + 1d6 12 Mk3 35 30" 5 -4" 2d20 18 Mk4 39 25" 5 -5" 2d20 + 1d6 24 Bombs -- Mk1 14 -- 4 -2" 2d10 1 Cylinder Mk2 20 -- 4 -3" 3d10 2 Cylinders Nearly all of the statistics used to represent a vehicular weapon are identical to the statistics used for troop-portable weapons, except for the "Size" column. The size column of the chart designates how long a weapon should be. These values are given in dots, so it may be handy to make a "key" of sizes out of PBBs, so you can quickly measure the sizes of various weapons, without having to always count the dots. Lasers have a different approach to sizes. Instead of using only barrel sizes, we decided to use the pieces that look like this: || || ||-------|| || () () || +---------+ ...for each individual laser. For example, a vehicle with one Mk 3 Laser on it would have to have three of the above pieces ("LasPiece") placed somewhere on the vehicle, and all facing in the same direction and, if on a turret, all on the same turret, and same direction. Antennas also make good lasers, as do miniature 2x2 radar dishes, etc. There is also the option of using landing-gear pieces to construct some sort of laser weapon, or whatever. This is also acceptable, and the barrel lengths should conform to the values to the right of the "LasPiece" word in the Size column of the weapon chart. Whatever you choose to represent your lasers, make sure your opponents know so no one gets confused. Bombs are represented by the small 1 x 1 round "cylinders". A Mk1 Bomb uses a single cylinder, and a Mk2 Bomb must have two cylinders mounted on the underside of the Flyer carrying it. Verse 7.4.1: Vehicle Weapon Firing Arcs --------------------------------------- Vehicles with fixed-mounted weapons (i.e. weapons not mounted on turrets, see 7.4.2) can only shoot in a 45 degree angle firing arc, extending from the center of the vehicle in the direction the weapon faces. Verse 7.4.2: Hinge and Turret Mountings --------------------------------------- When weapons are placed on a vehicle, with no turret or hinges, that weapon can only fire in the direction that it is facing. In other words, it is fixed in one position, and must be aimed by moving the vehicle. If a weapon is mounted on a turret, however, it has a full 360 degree arc of fire. Turrets cost 10 points. The addition of a hinge gives a special range bonus to Ballistic and Missile weapons. If a Ballistic or Missile weapon is mounted on a hinge, then the range is increased by 6". Hinges cost 10 points. Verse 7.4.3: Bomb Damage ------------------------ Bombs have no range. When a player announces that he is dropping a bomb during the movement phase, the bombs jets are fired, propelling the bomb straight downward at tremendous speeds. and hits are resolved immediately. If the player fails the Skill roll, the bomb is considered a dud and drills itself into the ground, not harming any surrounding targets. Verse 7.5: Vehicle Collisions ----------------------------- Vehicle collisions fall under two categories: collisions with stationary objects and collisions with units or vehicles. Note that if flyers ever crash into anything, they are destroyed automatically in a climactic explosion. A vehicle must move at least 4" to cause any sort of damage to anything. Verse 7.5.1: Collisions with Stationary Objects ----------------------------------------------- If a vehicle collides with a stationary object (i.e. mountain, forest, residence hall), then the player driving rolls the Armor Value of the vehicle plus the Armor Value of the object that was hit. If the object has no defined Armor Value, assume that it is 3d10. He then must make an Armor save versus this value. So, if a Small Vehicle lost control and smashed into a mountain then the Small Vehicle would have to roll 2d10 + 4 + 3d10 against an Armor Value of 2d10 + 4. Nice driving, Ace. Good luck with that mountain. The object which was hit takes damage as well. The players should use their faculty of common sense to help in this process. If the obstacle was a mountain, then a mountain wouldn't care if a truck smashed into it, so the mountain goes about its daily business without a thought to the foolish driver that crashed into it. If it is a set of trees, then some of the trees get knocked over. If the vehicle crashes into a base or building with a defined Armor Value, then the building must make the same Damage Roll as the vehicle does, that is, the Armor Value of the vehicle plus the Armor Value of the object itself. Troopers are considered stationary objects in terms of collisions, but the vehicles do not need to make an Armor Roll; that is, vehicles take no damage from running people over. Ah, if only it were so in real life... Verse 7.5.2: Collisions with Other Vehicles. -------------------------------------------- If two vehicles collide head on, add the two Armor Values of the vehicles; both vehicles must save against this value to avoid serious damage. "Serious damage" implying, "No more funny little trucks driving around." If the collision was a t-bone, both vehicles must save against the other's Armor Value. For example, if a Small Vehicle crashed into a Large one, the Large would have to make an Armor save against the 2d10 + 4 AV of the Small, and the Small would have to save against the AV of the Large, or 4d10 + 4. The driver of the Small vehicle had a bad idea. If the collision was a rear-ender, then both vehicles must make an Armor save using the lower AV of the two vehicles as the Damage Value to beat. Must have been those slippery roads. ========================================================================== Chapter 8: Bases & Buildings ============================= There are numerous emplacements of troops from all 47 of the starship-civilizations, which are usually housed within giant bases. Many are several levels high, and many more levels deep. Within these bases are the facilities for vehicle maintenance, weapon reparations, and dorms for the SpaceMen. The bases are usually armed with heavy weaponry; weapons such as Mk 4 Missiles are not uncommon. Most walls are made of fortified StrongCrete, and are capable of standing up to an incredible amount of punishment from those that would do it ill. The base is the SpaceMan's home, which he is willing to protect at all costs, and to which his life is dedicated. +------------------------------------------+ | "Our base is our home. We live there. | .\ /. | It's nice." | ./\\ //\. | -- A rousing excerpt from Commander | ./\\\\ ////\. | Hallen's (17th LeCroix Corps) | .\\\\\-- .-. --/////. | speech to his troops upon being | .\____\`- /v\ -'/____/. | attacked by elements of the 8th | ' ' \__( )__/ ` ` | Aldonan Guard. | __>/ \<__ +------------------------------------------+ ``'\_/`'' Verse 8.1: Building a Base -------------------------- The first order of business in creating a base or a building is to compute the base cost. To do this, measure the building from corner to corner. There may be several ways to measure from "corner to corner", but you should choose the largest of all possible measurements. Multiply this measurement by 10 to get the base cost. Note that in the case of buildings with multiple floors or levels, the base cost is the sum of the base costs of the individual floors. Imagine that we had a building with the following floor outline: A****E ****** F**************D ************* ************* ************* B***********C Assume that it has two floors (note that catwalks or battlements do not count as another floor). We would measure the largest corner to corner distance (A to C), and multiply this by ten, and then by two for the second floor. Note that we cannot count measurements from F to E or B to D as our base measurement. Alternatively, a player may choose to build walls at random, to give cover to weapon mounts or hamper movement. For every five inches of length and one inch of height, the base cost is one point. Bases, buildings, and walls have five Armor Value levels possible, and they are summarized on the following chart: ___________________ Building Armor Value Ratings ____________________ Rating Armor Value Equivalent to: Points (base cost x) --------------------------------------------------------------------- I 1d10 Wooden shacks, huts 1 II 2d10 Synthesized plastic 2 III 3d10 Concrete and stone 4 IV 4d10 Goodcrete 8 V 5d10 Strongcrete 12 --------------------------------------------------------------------- When a base is built, there is one regular, free door, placed wherever the player wants it. The base is one level high. Extra doors cost 5 points, while unique doors are classified under Outstanding Architectural Features (see below). A computer bank should be located somewhere in the base. This is free, but there should be one in the base somewhere. Backup computer banks can be built for 5 points apiece. Computer security is very loose, since SpaceMen aren't particularly bright and often get killed faster than they can learn new passwords. It takes one turn to take control of a computer bank. If one side gains control of all of a base's computer banks, the base belongs to them. If they miss even one, the original owners still have full control. Computers have AV's of 1d10. If all of a base's computer banks have been destroyed, all of the base's weapons fire at -3 Skill, and all the doors open. The lights all go out, the TVs are stuck on the Weather Channel, and the showers only run cold water. Vehicles may be housed in the bases, as long as they can get in and out of the doors, otherwise they may only drive around inside. Flyers will require landing pads or runways; these do not cost any points, they only require that some SpaceMenials create some clear land near the base. Vehicle weapons may be built into the building or mounted in the wilderness for an extra cost of 12 points. Note that weapons built into the building only fire in one direction unless it is installed with a turret, at the vehicle turret cost. Weapons must be manned by at least one trooper. Hinges are also acceptable, and have the same effects as the vehicle hinges. One base weapon not available to vehicles is the Mass Driver. Usage Usage Maximum Damage Weapon Pts. Range Rating Payload Value Size ------ ---- ----- ------ ------------- ------------ ---- Mass Drivers -- Mk1 40 20" 7 1 Blok / Small 1d10 x AV 10 Mk2 50 30" 8 2 Blox / Small (1d10+4) x AV 15 Mk3 60 40" 9 2 Blox / Medium 2d10 x AV 20 Mass drivers are tremendously entertaining weapons. Normally a large-scale magnetic accelerator elevated by a hinge, these stats also work for catapults, trebuchets, mangonels, etc. Mass Drivers are not terribly accurate. With its high usage ratings, the gunners of mass drivers usually miss their roll. It doesn't matter; the mass driver fires anyway. The number the gunner missed his roll by is the number of inches away from the target the payload landed. The exact location is the defender's choice, within the range or the mass driver. The Maximum Payload is measured either in Blox or in vehicle class. A MkI mass driver can launch one magnetic paratrooper (mass one Blok) twenty inches or a Small Flyer into flight. It could conceivably launch a Small ground vehicle as well, although the vehicle would probably not survive impact. The damage value is multiplied by the armor rating of the payload. Consequently, the mass driver has the potential to deliver massive amounts of damage. Both the target and the payload roll against this damage. Launching your own troops around is not a good idea unless they have magnetic parachutes or you are fond of large-scale splatter painting. Tying up enemy troops and using them as ammunition is both economical and entertaining. There are also such things as Outstanding Architectural Features (mentioned to henceforth as OAFs) which increase the value of a base. OAFs are things such as sliding doors, roll up doors, launch pads, elevators, and other things along the same lines. OAFs are at least 10 points, and should be discussed by both players to see if they agree on whether something is or isn't an OAF, and whether or not the price should be increased. Verse 8.2: Attacking Buildings ------------------------------ When attacking a building, troopers may shoot at either a specific target on the building, or just at the building in general. When shooting at the building in general, troopers get a +3 Skill for attack purposes only, because buildings are big and they don't move around when you try to shoot them. However, attackers must try to cause damage against the normal Armor Value of the building, which can be as high as 5d10! However, troopers may also fire at a specific target on the building, such as a door, a turreted weapon, a window, a radar dish, or anything. In this case, the trooper shoots at normal Skill, but if he hits, the Armor Value of the building will be modified by -2d10, with a minimum of a 1d10 Armor Value. Verse 8.3: Damaging Buildings ----------------------------- When a building is penetrated by an attack, then just bust off a good hunk of the building. Maybe knock down a wall. Just make it look like something bad happened to the building, but don't destroy the whole thing. Understandably, this is a vague and somewhat ambiguous rule. We considered a number of systems to simulate building damage, but they were too bulky, too stupid, or too deadly. So, we ask you, the player, to make some nice explosion sound effects, and rip off a chunk of the building. Any troopers who were located in or on the portion of the building that got blasted are considered dead. ========================================================================== Epilogue ======== Well, that just about does it for the BrikWars Main Rules Tome. All we ask of you is that you have fun with these rules. And we know that a lot of rules can get to be a drag, so if you find a particular rule tiresome and annoying, ditch it and play it your way. In fact, if you think the "Official Rules" could use an "Official Change", drop us a line at one of the e-mail addresses below, and we'll consider your suggestions. Really we will! We have nothing better to do! Honest! We also ask that you honor the disclaimer printed at the beginning of this file. We like the people at the PPB companies, and we don't want any trouble. Besides, if they sued us, they wouldn't get any money anyway, and it's not because we're legal experts. It's because we don't HAVE any money! Haha! So, have fun, be good, and don't stay out too late. And a "thank you" for everyone who wrote to show their support of our wonderful little game. Eric O'Dell R. Todd Ogrin ========================================================================== Thanx! ====== Thanks go to Scott Ogrin for helping us build some vehicles and stuff for play-testing. Thanks to the NUMEROUS people who have written us via e-mail expressing their interest in the game, and giving us some ideas. It all helps! And, of course, thanks to our favorite PBB company for making their construction bricks for the past several years. Without them, this file would be about using various kitchen implements and household appliances for miniature scale warfare.