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Blood Sweat & Iron
by A customer [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 02/18/2023 15:49:53

Nice ship cards update with version 1.1 now.

A very enjoyable, and easy-to-learn game system.

Dave S.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Blood Sweat & Iron
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The Last Drifters
by Kevin C. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 09/20/2021 10:17:01

I had a few games of this yesterday, playing it as a race game, and will be having another game or two tonight with more players. It was a lot of fun, and didn't take long to learn. For the initial setting up of my race cars (we had two each) I randomly picked weapons and upgrades by rolling a dice because I didn't really know what did what. I rolled a mini-gun, wow does that do some damage, until it jams :( I then used the same set up for a few games, winning 2 out of 3. After understanding the upgrades and weapons I enjoyed building my cars for tonights game(s) with a plan in mind.

I can see this being great as a party game with 4 or 5 players, each with a car or two each. It would be total carnage, especially when you're all going round the same corner! Even an accidental ram could be devestating.

The rules are simple, and the movement template is genius! One template handles all movement, although you will need a ruler or tape measure for doing long straight lines, like when you activate a Nitrous Oxide to get a headstart, or just to get out of the way of another players weapons.

You can play this game as a destruction derby (not yet tried) which again should be another great party game. You would certainly build your cars differently because armour would be more important than speed.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
The Last Drifters
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Stars & Lasers
by Rafael R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 06/07/2021 03:10:01

Stars&Lasers is a game of Space-borne combat designed by Mac Cross. I was introduced to it while gaming in the South London Warlords, a club known for being the organisers behind the Salute!. If you don't know what Salute is, please, check http://www.salute.co.uk/!!

As said, Mac introduced me to this fantastic game short after my arrival to UK (in the non-pandemic 2017!).

I was looking to use my Battlefleet Gothic (BFG) starships in a game, and he told me that any spaceship could be used for his game! “Nice!” was my answer. And so it began.

He sent me a copy of the basic rules, that in this game, are also the advanced rules. That is the first strong point of the game. Simple, direct rules. After a little explanation on how does the turn for each ship goes, we went straight into a battle. And what a battle! The game plays with the “inertial” mode with a simplified system where your ship has to move all its thrust (logical!) and can accelerate or decelerate for 2’’ of movement BEFORE moving. After that, the only way of “slowing down” is by “zigzagging”, like real naval ships do. Each turn is 2’’ of movement, so be aware of having enough speed! Also, take care of asteroids, as hitting them will mean lots of nasty damage to your hull!

But I forgot to mention on how you get to activate your ships! Each ship gives you a die, and each die from both players go into a bag. That is the “activation bag”. Each time a ship needs to get activated, you draw a dice, the colour indicating which player can activate a ship.

Back to the turn. Once you moved your ship, you can fire, launch your missiles, load new missiles (I call them torpedoes!) and launch starfighters, starbombers or boarding ships (someone said Space Marines?). Shooting is as easy as looking at the stats of your starship, each point of “firepower” is a D20 you can assign to shoot at an enemy ship within arc of fire. Look distance and what you need to hit is… rolling equal or more than that distance! As easy as that. For me, used to the complicated Artillery Table from BFG or from modifiers from other games that was a welcome shock. There are some weapons with different rules, and bombers and starfighters can only shoot as far as 6’’ away (meaning that a 6+ always hit for them), but all of them use this rolling a D20 for hitting rule. Each hit overloads a shield, except torpedoes and bombs, they bypass them. Once you got no shield, you against hull. Each hit that damages the hull, can critical hit the ship… With different and sometimes devastating effects.

Perhaps I miss some special rules for ship to ship boarding and ramming. But perhaps the good thing of this game is the elegancy of its simplicity. I have since introduced also introduced many people to it, and most of them loved it. We are even playing with old BFG ships with this game, as we see it simpler to include into our 40k Narrative campaign.

The game is as easy as this. It gives you a very good grab of spaceborne ship to ship combat, and Mac keeps updating it with new rules, new scenarios and with continuous material. You need to think on how to position your ships regarding your and your opponent speeds and manoeuvrability. Like a chess game, you need to try to think where your enemy will be and where you want to be then to be able to unleash a great volley of firepower on them. It allows for different tactics (for example, I am more of the “herding torpedo volley” while Mac is more on the “point-blank torpedo launch”) and the experience of a big ship being mauled by small, more manoeuvrable ships is sometimes priceless.

As I said, it is the game I always use now for spaceship combat, giving you what is for me a nice balance of “realism” (we are talking about spaceships!) and complexity. And for the most… You can use any spaceship model you want!!!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers
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Stars & Lasers - The Ships That Never Were...
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 01/29/2021 10:56:36

This is a great addition to the Stars & Lasers line of expansions ... a range of experiemntal, prototype and shipwrights cheese-dream warships, complete with all the rules pertinent to them & a good suuply of ship data sheets that only require printing and laminating )or pouches) to get straight into play.

Each of the ship designs presented in this expansion are unique in some way, but all are 'improvements' upon the standard ship types commonly used in the game. But, as well as being faster, or better armed, or 'special' in some way, each of the ships comes with design flaws, technical faults or other (often serious) issues that can cause not end of problems (and a great deal of hilarity and fun) for their users & their opponents!

As with all the other Stars & Lasers rules & expansions, this rule book is clearly and concisely presented, with a clean layout that covers each ship type in sequence (rather than scattering the rules throughout the rulebook), and with an index to aid finding things in a hurry. The artwork is suitable and simple too.

Stars & Lasers - the main rules & all the expansions - is setting agnostic, and any miniatures by any manufacturer can be used with these rules without difficulty.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers - The Ships That Never Were...
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Stars & Lasers Solo Games
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 01/27/2021 14:27:52

A few games are written with some vague suggestions as to how they can be played solo, but it's not common for these solo play rules to be much more than well meaning 'guidelines, hints & helpful suggestions' rather than a fully written yet simple system of solo play. Yet, as gamers, we all have days when no-one else is around to roll dice with us ...

However, the solo play rules presented here are a simple and clear means of handling typical games using writers own rules set - Stars & Lasers - but they could easily be used with other similar (or even not quite so similar) games without any major changes. These simple rules work by setting the behaviour of the opposition at 1 of 3 levels of aggression, and then providing tactical guidance as how to handle their units in play bearing in mind their level of aggression - as with many solo play systems a little bit of common sense is required to get the most from them, but they work fine and are easy to use and there's no requirement for endless & onerous dice rolls to make decisions randomly.

To prevent the oppositions behavious from getting too predictable, the writer also provides rules for some occasional and sudden changes in the oppositions aggression level, which in turn will change their behaviour in the game - this can mean that that enemy you were beating into running away might just turn round and counter-attack you without warning! Additional rules allow for other unpredictable (and sometimes alarming) events to occur, all of which cold very well change the games dynamic suddenly.

Using these will allow those of us who can't find a regular opponent (or are currently locked down and unable to meet old friends) to play against an opponent who can be rather unpredictable but not unbeatable!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers Solo Games
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Stars & Lasers - Even More Lasers...
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 04/17/2020 13:50:29

Even More Lasers adds further depth and options to your games of Stars & Lasers. With additional ships types (the enormous Leviathan super dreadnought and the anti-fighter/missile Flak Boats) and some new weapons (the deadly Nova Bomb launcher, guided missiles & tactical mines) AND rules to alter your ships shielding type to reduce the threat from ships armed with missiles, rockets and combat cannons, Even More Lasers is a good addition to the Star & Lasers range and combines very well with the previous expansions.

These rules are highly recommended in expanding your Stars & Lasers game options even further.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers - Even More Lasers...
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Blood Sweat & Iron
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 04/17/2020 13:44:23

This is an awesome set of simple fast play ACW Ironclad rules! Although I'm no longer a naval wargamer, after I read through these rules I really liked them & found myself debating the merits of buying some suitable ACW miniatures for me to play them with. And as an introduction to this style & era of naval wargaming, they are absolutely brilliant.

These rule have a lot going for them:

  1. They are cleanly and clearly written
  2. The presentation is simple & understated yet appropriate for the game & setting
  3. The rules themselves very easy to learn & equally quick to play
  4. All you need to play the game (apart from dice and another player perhaps!) is included the rulebook - turning cards, ironclad data cards
  5. A large number of interesting ironclad types are provided on ready to print 'n' laminate 'n' play data cards
  6. Six scenarios are also provided, allowing you to get straight into playing

That said, if you are after a 'count the rivets & them thar beans!' type of player then these rules are probably not for you - they will provide a fast & fun game, but they are NOT a super-mega-highly detailed simulation of early ironclad warfare!

But if they were, I doubt they'd be half as much fun to play ...



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Blood Sweat & Iron
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Blood Sweat & Iron
by Chris R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 04/10/2020 10:36:07

As a new product, I thought Blood Sweat and Iron deserved a review. I normally prefer to use the Ironclads rules modified for miniatures, so my preference is for more complex sets of rules, but I have thoroughly enjoyed many simpler sets, and some are more appropriate, indeed necessary, for club play. I am a bit of a sucker for looking out for new ideas and innovations in other rulesets, so got these to see what they were like.

The rules are indeed simple, although they have the usual panoply of movement, gunnery, ramming, morale attributes for rules of this period. The activation system is to draw a token one at a time, and depending on its colour that side gets to move and fire one ship of their choice until all are done.

The movement rules are very simple, and each vessel has a speed of 8, 10 or 12. This is a poor discrimination between the widely-variable speeds of the time, and there are some howling inaccuracies – for example the ironclad CSS Georgia that ended up being a floating battery due to its weak engines is given a speed of 8. Thus, historically slower vessels are greatly advantaged.

Weapons are divided into three classes: Light, Medium or Heavy. They all have the same range. There is no differentiation between rifled and smoothbore weapons.

Armour is similarly in three classes: wooden vessels (8), tinclads (12) and armoured vessels (18). Thus again there is no discrimination between different levels of armour, and USS Cairo is treated the same as CSS Columbia or CSS Texas.

These simplifications lead to the ships feeling much the same. Even the mini data cards have the same overhead pictorial, so there is no segregation by even generic class (monitor, casemate ironclad, wooden vessel etc).

The one area where the game is poor is in the vessel data. It is littered with simple errors. For example:

  • CSS Manassas has a Heavy weapon
  • USS Puriton [sic] has 4 guns
  • USS Roanake [sic] with two turrets

There are a large number of spelling errors in the ship's names. For example:

  • CSS Arblemarle
  • USS Onandaga
  • USS Layfayette

And for those of you for whom these things are irritating, the apostrophe police would have a field day.

I acknowledge the intent of the rules to have a simple, fun game of ACW naval warfare. But it is too simple, and too badly produced to really achieve its aim. It feels rushed, as if someone wanted to play with a new set of models and didn’t really care whether the rules and data made sense. I was left wondering: who would like it; who is it aimed at? Someone who understands ACW would get frustrated, so it may work as a GAME that happens to have models or counters with ACW ships names on them. There are lots of other, better, rulesets that meet the intent of this one and deliver it in a far better fashion.

But to end on a positive, I did think the combined gunnery arc and turning aid is neat.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
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Creator Reply:
Hi Chris, Thanks for the review it is always good to get feedback. Blood Sweat & Iron is not meant to be a historical simulation it’s not that type of game, it is meant to be fun but still give a feel for the battles of the era ( if only slightly ) I didn’t want all the different type of guns of the time on these ships or all the different classes of armour nor even all the different speeds of these ships, if I had added all those it wouldn’t have been a simple game. I have taken note of the three typos you pointed out and I will put up some new ships datasheets to correct these on my site, thank you for that. You are correct the USS Puritan did only have two 20-inch (508 mm) smoothbores Dahlgren guns, again I will correct that, thank you. And I will be adding an extra turret to the USS Roanoke for the extra two guns that have been missed. But my research found that the CSS Manassas had one 64-pounder Dahlgren, later replaced by one 32-pounder, so I believe that is correct. So again thank you for your review and the feedback. I am sorry Blood Sweat & Iron is not the game for you. Mac
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Stars & Lasers Colony Spaceships
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 09/21/2019 06:31:21

This expansion for Stars & Lasers is awesome and represents a huge amount of new material for the Stars & Lasers rules.

In the basic rules set players are provided with eight pages of colour ship data cards covering both one 'fleet' Human ships and one of Bio-Alien ships. The Colony Spaceships expansion adds no less than thirteen pages of new full colour ship data cards to the game - a full FIVE new Human fleets are added to the game, the fleets of the Zeta, Epsilon, Omicron, Iota & Centaurus colonies. Each new fleet has a different approach to waging war in space, so each fleet and its ships have advantages and disadvantages and bring new ways of doing things to the tabletop.

Two new weapon systems are introduced, the Heavy Combat Cannon and the Centaurus colonys' Rocket Banks. Two new scenarios are also provided that use the ships in this expansion. As well as the five new fleets a new class of cruiser, the Rhino Ram-Cruiser is included, and three types of a new ship class, the heavily armed but slow Gunboat.

The expansion and all the ship data cards are full colour, and again are clearly presented and concise, with pleasing artwork.

This one expansion to the main game expands it enormously, making it great value for the price. I'd rate it 6 out of 5 if I could!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers Colony Spaceships
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Stars & Lasers "Reformers"
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 09/21/2019 06:14:47

This addition to the Star & Lasers rules brings a strange and potent new threat to your Stars & Lasesr games - a new alien race, the Reformers.

The Reformers are unlike any of the other races seen so far in Stars & Lasers, with their ability to 'reform' their biggest ships during battle, along with such weapons as the powerful Meta-Disruptor and the Micro Pulse Laser, the Reformers expansion brings a new playing experience (and a deadly new enemy) to the Stars & Lasers game. Along with the rules this expansion has the required coloured tokens (for tracking the effects of the Meta-Disruptor weapon) and three pages of new full colour ship data cards.

As with the main rules and other expansions, the rules are presented in a clear & concise fashion, with neat art in the form of pictures of miniatures that doesn't overwhelm the rules themselves.

If you want a new and very alien force for your Stars & Lasers games, this expansion is recommended.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers "Reformers"
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Stars & Lasers supplement two "Pirates in space"
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 09/21/2019 06:04:52

This expansion brings a new force to your games of Stars & Lasers - Space Pirates!

Featuring new rules covering the pirates use of converted merchant ships, new weapons such as grapples and anti-ship torpedo packs, a new Pirate themed scenario and three pages of new full colour ship data cards, Pirates in Space is a great add-on to the Stars & Lasers rules & provides both new challenges and enjoyment.

Like the main rules (and the other expansions) it is clearly and concisely laid out, with a nice selection of suitable pictures that add to rather than detract from the rules themselves.

The Pirates in Space addition to the Star & Lasers rules is well worth it's price.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers supplement two "Pirates in space"
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Stars & Lasers Supplement One
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 09/21/2019 05:55:53

This addition to the Stars & Lasers game provides several additional ship types, including the much larger Escort Carrier, two types of escort and alien corvettes, some new rules for boarding actions and some troop carrying assault ships to use them with, new weapons & equipment with which to customise your fleet, and ten new scenarios for the game such as 'Fighters at 12 O'clock High' - an epic carrier vs carrier duel, & 'We are on our Own!!' - an assault upon an Andromeda space station.

As with the main rules the presentation is clear & concise, and the simple artwork adds to whole without overwhelming it.

There's a lot of useful content in this expansion.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers Supplement One
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Stars & Lasers
by Victor D. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 12/29/2017 15:06:09

Of the many space combat games I've owned and played Stars & Lasers is great addition to my collection. The rules are neat and tidy, with crisp and clear text/layout, in colour but not overwhelmed by said colour. A selection of full colour missile, fighter, strike fighter and turn templates are provided, along with a large array of full colour pre-prepared ship record sheets ready for printing and laminating, allowing for instant gameplay, which was nice.

  • Initiative is handled very neatly (all sides use different coloured dice/tokens, these are placed into a dice bag and then randomly drawn - the side whose coloured dice/token is drawn gets to activate 1 of its ships, once the activation is finished the dice/token is placed by the now activated ship to show its been activated) and another dice/token is drawn.
  • Ranged combat = roll 1d20, get equal to/greater than range in inches (rounded up) to hit. Shields stop laser hits 1 for 1 but then collapse until restored. Each hit that penetrates any shields then strikes any armour. Once armour is gone the ships hull takes damage 1 for 1. Each 1 hull damage gives a chance for a critical hit effect (some of which can cause moer hull damage and further critical rolls ...)
  • Missiles are on-table markers/counters. Missiles that contact ships detonate and cause damage, ignoring shields. However, missiles can be shot down by the ships points defenses before they impact a ship.
  • Fighters and Strike Fighters (bombers) are useful and able units without being vastly overpowered.

Theres a good selection of scenarios included, and the advanced rules allow for some modification of ship weaponry.

There are a few minor of issues:

  • You cannot design your own ships yet - the writer is preparing supplemental material to cover this.
  • There's a minor omission in the rules concerning Damage Control/Repairs - it's easy to work out what was intended though and behave accordingly.
  • The sample fleets provided and generic in that my BB will be the same as your BB - not really an issue for me but some might dislike it.

The writer provides his contact details at the back, allowing players to email queries directly. I did so and received a very quick and helpful reply, which was nice. Friendly too =) As I said, the writer is currently working on a supplement to cover minor gaps, provide new ship types and scenarios - I'm looking forwards to it.

Stars & Lasers is a good little ruleset that provides what it says on the tin - a quick, easy and enjoyably fun game.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stars & Lasers
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