(Saving) Throw: Roll 2 dice (sometimes more or less)
Die Modifiers (DM) are applied to the die roll.
Semi-hexadecimal used for numbers.
Strength Dexterity Endurance Intelligence Education Social Standing
2d6 for initial generation but can be modified from 1-15 (bk1 p8)
Universal Personality Profile (UPP) lists characteristics compactly: 785B38
Prior-Careers (bk1 p9)
Skills (bk1 p10, p17)
Skill start at level 1. Level 0 means untrained and can do ordinary activities but not dangerous. (bk1 p23) Weapon Combat and Blade Combat require picking a specific weapon. e.g. Rifle-1. (bk1 p16)
Leaving a service (mustering out or retirement) gives benefits. (bk1 p14)
Throw of 8+ to hit. (bk 1, p30)
DMs:
Each round is 15 seconds.
No initiative, declare actions and resolve simultaneously.
Each round: 1st. Movement. All simultaneously. 2nd. Targets and attacks. 3rd. Wounds and morale.
Ranges. Each in bands of 25m.
Four movement options, declared at top of round: (bk1 p33)
Can move 25 (walking) or 50m (running) per round.
Hits cause wounds to Strength, Dexterity, and Endurance.
Each hit must be applied to the same stat.
First wound in a combat is applied to a random stat.
Damage be split by dice. 2D roll a 3 and 4, can 3 go to STR and 4 go to DEX. But all of each die must go to a stat.
Wounding to 0. (bk1 p34)
Combat blows (bk1 p35)
Endurance limits the number of combat blow per combat. Excludes endurance damage from this combat but not prior combats.
Morale check at 25% of side unconscious/killed, throw 7+ with modifiers (+1 if leader, +1 is leader has tactics, -2 is leader is killed, -2 is casualties more than 50%). (bk1 p36)
Combat tables from page 44 for each weapon.
Self-improvement to improve stats or skills. Typically take a year or longer though some benefits can accrue right away (book 2 p42)
Parsec = 3.25 light years.
Jump drives travel 1-6 parsecs in a week.
Drive failure: Each week throw 13+, +1 for unrefined fuel, +1 per missing engineer, +1 per month past annual maintenance. Throw 7+ for jump, maneuver, and power plant to find failures, (bk 2 p6)
Misjump: Each jump, throw 13+ for misjump. +1 if unrefined fuel, +5 within 100 planetary diameters, +15 if within 10. (bk 2, p6). (1981 rules: If 16+ the ship is destroyed). Jumps 1Dx1D hexes (one die to determine how many die), in a random (1D) direction, taking 1D weeks. (bk 2 p6)
Commercial starship schedule: (typical) Week 1. Jump to system A Week 2. In system A, travel to local world, refuel, sell cargo, shore leave, travel out to jump point Week 3. Jump to system B Week 4. In system B...
Passage: (bk 2, p4)
Loan: 20% down and monthly 1/240th of price for 480 months. Economic/business plan required for loan. (bk 2, p 7)
Starship revenue: (bk 2, p 8)
Starship expenses: (bk 2, p 7)
Small craft: under 100 tons. Ship: 100+ tons. Starship: Ship with Jump Drive.
Orbit-to-world shuttles: typical in class A, B, and C starports. Cr10 per ton, Cr20-Cr120 per passenger. (bk 2, p 9)
Chartered non-starships for Cr1 per ton per hour, 12-hour min. (bk 2, p 9)
Chartered starships in 2-week blocks, Cr900 per ton of cargo hold plus Cr9k per high passage and Cr900 per low passage. (bk 2, p 9)
Interplanetary travel times table in book 2, p 10. Typical distances on p11.
Standard Ship designs are cheaper. Used ships may be available. (bk 2, p 12)
Ton is volume of one ton of liquid hydrogen. Space of two 1.5m squares or two 5'x5' squares. (bk 2, p 13)
Power plant fuel allows routine operations and maneuver for four weeks (bk 2, p 15)
Jump fuel uses 0.1 * Tonnage * Jump Number tons. (bk 2, p 15)
Crews: (bk 2, p 10, 16)
Computers have a capacity. Number of concurrent programs runnable and stored (e.g. 2/4 is 2 concurrent programs with room for 4 others). (bk 2 p38, p41)
The Generate program is used to map the jump location. Without it, single-use jump cassettes can be bought for Cr10k to worlds within jump range for which space lanes exist. (bk2 p40, '77 bk 2 p32)
Distances 1:100,000,000 so 1mm equals 100km. (bk 2, p26)
Detection: Starships can detect about around one-half light second or 1,500mm (1,500,000km). Military/Scout about 2 light-seconds 6,000mm (6,000,000km). Complete silence means half that. Once detected, tracking occurs up to 3 light-seconds or 9,000mm (9,000,000km) (bk2, p32)
Ship Combat sequence (bk2 p31)
Each turn every ship will travel along it's vector for a specific distance. Ship can accelerate 100mm (10,000km, 10gm) times their maneuver drive rating per turn. Gravity can change this. (bk 2, p 28)
Attack and Defending DMs. (bk2 p30)
Hit locations have different effects. (bk2 p30)
Launcher ammo: each turret has three missiles/canisters. Reloading takes one turn per turret by the gunner (gunner cannot fire other weaponry) (bk2 p32)
Ordnance does 1D hits, each location separately (bk 2, p 32)
Use of a Computer can malfunction. Throw 1+ to see if it can operate. Malfunctioning effectively paralyses the ship.
Hit impacts. (bk 2, p32)
Select program allows firing player to select the hit location on 3+ on 1D. (bk 2, p33)
Decompression - Ships depressurize before combat and crew wear vacc suits for safety and comfort which takes one turn. No vacc suit requires Throwing Dexterity or less with double DMs of vacc suit skill or killed (bk 2, p33)
Detection: ordinary or commercial can detect other ships to a range of 1-half light-second (1,500mm / 150,000km). Military can detect 6,000mm (600,000km). (bk2, p32)
Ships can be repaired during combat or afterward until fixed at a starport. (bk2 p34)
Hit Locations Table ('77) (bk2 p34)
| Dice | Starship | Small Craft |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Power plant | Drive |
| 3 | Maneuver | Drive |
| 4 | Jump | Drive |
| 5 | Computer | Drive |
| 6 | Hull | Drive |
| 7 | Hull | Cabin |
| 8 | Hold | Cabin |
| 9 | Fuel | Cabin |
| 10 | Turret | Weaponry |
| 11 | Turret | Weaponry |
| 12 | Turret | Weaponry |
Starcharts are 1 parsec per hex (3.26 light years)
50% chance to have a world and stellar system per hex. (bk 3 p4)
One major world per system typically, infrequent interplanetary travel. The world can be a satellite or asteroid belt, not just a planet. (bk 3 p6)
World creation creates the main world only. Other bodies can exist. (bk 3 p4)
Starports are coded by letter based on their quality and services offered. (bk 3 p4, p10)
Starports can be a downport (on planet) and/or highport (in orbit).
Gas giants allow for streamlined ships to refuel with unrefined fuel by skimming. Travel and process takes about a week. (bk 3 p5)
1977: Worlds are linked by space lanes, where commercial starships travel. Travel on other lanes requires owning/controlling a starship and using the Generate program (bk 3, p1)
Law levels prohibit weapons of the world's law level and below. (bk3 p7)
Universal Planetary Profile (UPP): code of the area and worlds' characteristics (bk 3 p6)
Name HEX Starport, World size, Atmosphere, Hydrographic percentage, Population, Government, Law - Tech Level, Bases, Trade codes
Speer 0108 C432430 - 8 S Poor. Non-industrial
Trade Codes: A - Agricultural: large portion of economy for agriculture. NA - Non-Agricultural: imports most foodstuffs, might make synthetic locally. P - Poor: undeveloped, backwaters R - Rich: good climates, desirable living places I - Industrial: large production and manufacturing bases NI - Non-industrial: imports most finished goods.
Other Codes: Wa - Water: water world covered by seas and oceans. De - Desert: no standing water Va - Vacuum: no atmosphere As - Asteroid belts: accumulations of small planetoids in a belt Ic - Ice-capped: water only in polar ice caps, mostly vacuum
Tech level example table in bk 3, p14.
Speculative cargo is bought and sold at the base price times a 2D percentage (see table) (bk2 p46)
Speculative cargo available is combination of a d6 (DM +1 if world pop is 9+) and a d6 (DM -1 if world pop is 5-) resulting in a d66. (bk2 p46)
Speculative cargo is checked once per week. (bk2 p46)
Speculative cargo lots may be split or partially purchased for a 1% handling fee. (bk2 p47)
Selling Brokers: add a DM of +1 per 5% commission (up to +4) when selling an item. Their commission must be paid (bk2 p46)
Selling Skills: add DMs for bribery or admin when selling. Limit one skill and one person. (bk2 p46)
Some cargo might be illegal (weapons).
Cargo is rolled at each starport. (bk 2 p8)
Cargo is worth Cr1,000 per ton (bk 2 p9)
Cargo cannot be subdivided. (bk 2 p8)
Passengers are rolled at each starport (bk2 p9)
Price and weight assume production at TL 10-15. Can be bulkier and more expensive at lower TLs. (bk3 p17)
Meal is Cr10 per day (ordinary). (bk 3 p19)
Long-term subsistence (bk 3, p19):
Checks:
Animal types: herbivore, omnivore, carnivore, and scavenger (bk3 p28)