Detailed Ground Combat
A Draft Proposal for the 3DG
By Andrew St. John
Copyright 2003 Starfire 3rd Edition Design Group
This will eventually be a draft proposal for Chapter 21 (Planetary Combat) of Starfire 3rdR-URD (3USF). Right now it is just a collection of my notes, and can only be charitably described as “half-baked”. A lot of the concepts still need to have numbers attached to them.
The primary goal is to make ground combat more viable in Starfire. The PCF as defined in SF 3rdR is hideously vulnerable to orbital bombardment and is totally impotent to attack hostile spacecraft. Therefore I have tried to concentrate on making bombardment more problematic and giving the PCF’s more options than just being targets.
PCF Your standard infantry unit
PCFa Air-mobile PCF
PCFv Vehicular PCF. Can carry more equipment, but harder to transport.
PCFc Commandoes
PCFt Armored - higher combat factor, expensive, hard to transport.
PCFz Zoot - powered armor infantry. Expensive form of PCFa.
SEC Security unit.
A single PCF is assumed to correspond to a company of soldiers, roughly 100 men.
Table showing cost, CFP, transport requirments, and mounting capacity goes here. These may be adjusted slightly from 3rdR, as I think the 3rdR rules assume a certain level of mechanization in the higher TL PCFs, and we will be breaking out vehciles as a separate PCF type.
The PCFz is the only one I see requiring development of additional tech. The fiction implies something around TL 9-10 for powered combat armor.
I do not want to have a page-long list of different PCF types, especially types which would only be relevant for two Ind2 nations slugging it out. Many modern units would be of no consideration to a HT invader; and I don’t want to clutter up the game with them.
A regiment is a collection of PCF. In ground combat, the function unit corresponding to a starship in space combat is really the regiment. The individual PCF are more akin to ship systems than ships.
Any number of PCF can be collected into a regiment. I am endeavoring to make the combat system favor appropriately sized regiments rather than swarms of tiny ones or monolithic hordes.
Regiments may mount ship’s systems in addition to PCF. Each PCF in a regiment contributes a little to its carrying capacity, as follows:
PI 0 hs per PCF
Ind1: 0 hs
Ind2: 0.25 hs / PCF
HT: TL/3 hs per PCF
TL/2 hs per PCFv
Only PCF, PCFa, and PCFv may mount systems. PCFa cannot be airmobile if they are lugging a bunch of vehciles or towed weapons. SEC are not designed to trained for operating heavy weapons; if they were, they would not be SEC.
So, consider an air-defense regiment of HT 6 PCFv. This is a vehicle mounted, but not armored, unit carrying D, Dc, and possibly a few W just in case. Each PCF can mount up to 3 hs of equipment.
15th AAD Regiment, Terran Imperial Army
DD(PCFv-6)D(PCFv-6)DD(PCFv-6)D(PCFv-6)Dc(PCFv-6)W(PCFv-6)W(PCFv-6)
ZM5MgMg(PCFv-6)
This gives us 4 companies mount a total of 6 D, one company with a Dc, two vehcile mounted standard missile launchers, and an HQ company with the datalink, multiplex, and ammo trucks. As a zero space system, datalink could be installed at the PCF level if you feel like paying for it.
Although a company of vehicles can consist of upwards of 20-25 vehicles in the 21st century, we must also remember the size of the shipboard weapons and ammunition. Using the example of the W above, the launch mechanism itself fills one very large vehicle, there is another with cranes for loading missiles, a couple more with power generators, another with fire-control and targeting, and 1-3 more with all the people needed to work this, their gear, tools, spares,etc. This is 6-8 vehicles, each probably the size of one of those big rigs the Soviets used for their SS-20 missiles.
Shipping requirements for a regiment are the same as for its component PCF, plus the “prefab” equivalent of any mounted systems. Regiments may mount any systems except those listed below, but some may not work in vacc and/or atmosphere.
Regiments may not mount shields, engines of any type, boat bays, shipyards. (More as determined later.) If they mount weapons, they may be restricted by the type of planet they are on. Only PCFa may mount armor. Armor is divided evenly among all of the PCF in the PCFa, so the control sheet will look a little different from that of a ship or PDC. Regiments do not need to mount holds for monthly maintenance - this is included in the PCF system.
Regiments use CFP to compute ground combat odds, as if they were PDC’s.
Damage to regiments is taken left to right. I have considered allowing for “precision” hits on the individual PCF if the bombarding units have friendly PCF on the ground to act as spotters.
Beam weapons may count for computing close combat value only in an atmosphere. This would also apply to starships and small craft in atmosphere. Anything that can throw a beam out to the moon and do damage ought to have some effect if the range is close enough.
Combat resolved as per 3rdR, one ground combat phase is resolved after each space interception turn has passed.
Unit grade comes into play during force point calculation, and does not affect resolution die rolls. This is mainly because the various PCF involved will all be of different grades.
Construction while Blockaded: We need to at least clarify/formalize rules for building units while under threat of bombardment. We need to know when units being constructed are detectable, and hence bombardable. This would imply rules to allow concealed/hidden construction at increased cost.
I recommend tracking grades at the regimental level. Unit grade effects computed CFP as per 3rdR.
Bombardment is conducted in space tac turns unless there are ground units from both sides present, in which case bombardment is conducted in ground combat turns. The rationale for this is that it takes time to coordinate between the ground and orbital units.
There will be a penalty for firing missiles into a contested facing on a space tac turn basis rather than a ground combat turn basis. Details TBD, but it will probably involve greatly increased collateral damages, including the chance to hit friendly forces.
The collateral damage rules from 3rdR are OK, but should probably be rewritten for clarity.
Missile hits on PCF and PDC do no extra damage for the target being either DF down or within an atmosphere, due to the dispersed nature of the units. Grounded ships do take extra damage for both these states.
Friendly PCF may spot for bombardment in their facing, reducing the chance of collateral damage. The amount of this effect is to be determined, but the current rate of collateral damage to PU/IU from missile attacks on military targets is 10%. It would seem reasonable to reduce this to 5% if the bombarding units have one firendly PCF per bombarding ship in the same planetary facing. There could be some risk to the spotting units from friendly fire.
Smaller populations are harder to bombard, and as the bombardment continues, they get even harder to eliminate, as those who are left are the ones with the best shelter.. Large pops and up lose 1 PU for each point of bombardment damage. Medium pops lose 1 PU for each 2 pts. Small=3, Settlement=4, Colony=5, Outpost=10. A population reduced 1 PU may only be eliminated with a 100 point bombardment or by PCF’s. It is argueable that no population can be completely wiped out, any population bombed below 1 PTU (50K persons) will be of no consequence economically. It should be noted, however, that some intel could be available, even from “wiped out” populations.
A new type of munition is needed to allow non-nuclear fire support. Such munitions would allow units in orbit to support friendly PCF attacking hostile PCF on the surface w/o risk of collateral damage. As an initial proposal, I would suggest that having one launcher firing this munition for each enemy PCF give a 10% CFP penalty to the units being attacked. Two launchers per unit would give them an additional -10%, etc, up to a maximum of -50%.
Primary beams could do the same thing in an atmosphere. Other beams could do the same thing in vaccuum.
PCF’s attacking HT populations run a small risk of being eliminated. I seem to recall this in ISF, but have not turned it up yet. We may wish to key this to militancy, but then again some high militancy races already get bonus for the creation of PCF.
We need to know the allocation of PU and IU among the planetary facings. They are divided evenly unless the player has decided otherwise.
Each hex side can hold up to 600 PU. IU cannot be more that half of PU on any given facing.
The decision between even allocation and tracking individual hex sides must be made while the owning player has undisputed control of the system.
Ground units may be concealed or hidden. Concealed units are difficult to detect from orbit. Hidden units are impossible to detect from orbit, but can be tracked down by ground forces unless they reveal themselves.
Hidden units are not revealed to the opposing player at all. Concealed units are revealed to the opposiong player only as to the count; i.e. “There are 3 concealed units on this planetary facing.”, but nothing further is revealed.
Hidden units cannot be bombarded. Concealed units can be bombarded, but have only a 50% chance of being hit in any given ground combat phase, regardless of the number of missiles fired. For example, a BCR fires 5 CM at a concealed PCF.
Concealed/hidden status must be designated at construction time for PDC's. Once detected they cannot hide again from the same race, unless there are special circumastances which prevent the detecting units from communicating with their fellows.
PCF can be designated as hidden or concealed at any time until enemy forces are withing sensor range of the planet. If enemy forces are within range, they must make a concealment roll of 3 or less on d10, modified by grade, +/- TL difference (max 2), +1 penalty if PCFv/PCFa, -1 bonus for PCFc. Once a PCF is concealed, it must make another concealment roll at a +1 penalty to become Hidden.
There should be some cost to the defender for initial placment hidden or concealed units. I am rather arbitrarily suggesting charging them double maintenance on the theory that it is harder to get them their supplies if they are trying to hide, plus expenditures for camo netting, secure concealed comm cables, etc, but we could also use a flat up-front cost for simplicity.
Ships with Xr/Xrs have a chance to detect either a hidden (10%) or a concealed (20%) unit each ground combat phase, with a bonus (10%) for having a friendly PCF spotting for that ship. Ships without Xr have to enter the atmosphere or have the assistance of friendly ground forces. PCF can search for hidden units on their own (5%). PDC cannot search for hidden/concealed units. The defending player chooses which units are revealed. PCF assisting or searching for concealed units cannot attack, and they cannot search if they are attacked in current phase.
Concealed units may not attack, change hexsides, intercept missiles, etc. If they do any of those things they are automatically revealed. They may spot for bombarding units, or search for concealed enemy units. Concealed units may search for enemy concealed/hidden, but will reveal themselves if they find anything.
Hidden units may do nothing. They are automatically revealed if they do anything, even something that a Concealed unit could do. The only thing they can do is revert to Concealed status.
Commandos will be an optional rule, as they are complex and chancy and not all players will want to be bothered. PCFc are upgraded from BG+1 or better PCFa. Expensive, but they have a much greater chance of succeeding at their mission. Except where otherwise specified, PCFc are treated as PCFa.
PCFc are highly motivated and hard to stop. When deployed as jump troops, each sled destroyed has a 5% chance of eliminating the unit, but if all 10 are eliminated, the unit is eliminated.
Commandoes are no fun unless they have commando missions to go on. Commando missions are resolved differently from regular PCF combat; they will typically involve multiple rounds of combat, and they will typically involve only a portion of the units in the current facing.
Here are a few off the top of my head.
Raid
A raid is an attempt by a commando unit to eliminate a unit on the ground before other units can come to its aid. The attacker may select one unit. The commandos can land via small craft, ast drop, or drop capsule, facing defensive fire as appropriate. They make attacks against the designated target at 3x normal CFP.
The target of the raid makes an activation roll on the first turn, per WP assault rules. If they cannot activate, they fight at ½ their normal CFP, so the attack could theoretically be made at an effective 6x CFP.
On the second round of combat, the attacked unit makes its activation roll at +1, if necessary, the commandoes fight at 2x their CFP, and the defender may roll actiavtion for 1d10/2 (0-5) additional mobile units to respond to the attack.
On the third round of combat, commandoes fight at normal CFP, all actiavtions increase by +1, and an additional 1d10 units may attempt activation.
Obviously, the commandoes will attempt to get it done quickly and bug out.
Forward Observer
The commandoes land and attempt to gain Concealed status, then use their position to direct orbital bombardment against ground targets. Each time they use their bonus to directing fire in this manner, they risk discovery, but they will reduce the amount of collateral damage and/or allow the bombarders to use non-nuclear munitions.
Gather Intelligence
Commandoes drop in muck around a bit, and pull out. This can gain either rolls on the intelligence table or prisoners for use in establishing communications.
Destroy Infrastructure
This is intended to simulate an attack on dams, industrial targets, etc, but it is simulated as an attack on PU/IU.
Support Ground Attack
Commandoes may be assigned to drop on a target in concert with a conventional ground attack. Actual amount to be determined, but it would probably gain an “odds column shift” for the attacker.
Attack Logistics
Attacks on the enemies logistical network could interrupt supplies, causing units to be “out of maintenance” for the next turn, could inflict a flat loss in MCr as a proportion of their current maintenance, or something along those lines.
The main problem with any commando mission is getting the commandoes back out again. This will require the commandoes to disengage from their victims, and then use small craft to leave the planet. The best way to do this is to drop the commandoes from ast for the mission, then have the ast land at some point presumably near the target. Other methods of insertion, such as boarding sleds, may have bonuses to get through defenses, but will require a separate flight of shuttles for extraction.
Certain missions, such as support ground attack, may make extraction moot, so long as their side wins!
Escape overland may be possible if there are PCF friendly to the commandoes on the surface.
Disengagement: A unique ability of the commando unit, it allows them to execute the “run” phase of the hit and run action. Each side in the combat rolls d10, modified by grade, leader grade, etc. If the commandoes roll higher, they manage to disengage and get back to their (presumably grounded) shuttles.
If the shuttles have not grounded, the commandoes will have to either remained disengaged until they can land, or reenter combat, and will obviously be in a lot of trouble.
Extraction is very difficult if the defenders are able to engage small craft, as the shuttles must land instead of making an airdrop. May be trivial if the defenders cannot do this.
PCFa/PCFc may use boarding sleds operating from boat bays to land directly on a planet. Each PCF requires 1 bbp of launch capacity and 10 sleds to land.
Boarding sleds are also available as a decoy model which is cheaper but looks like a regular sled. Has 1/3 the cost and launch requirments of the regular sled.
For each sled destroyed, the PCFa has a 10% chance of elimination, and a PCFc has a 5% chance.
Boarding sleds are harder to shoot down than ast, but do not provide the commandoes with any way to get back.
Surprise can occur when PCFa or PCFc are airdropped or sleddropped into a facing. Units in the facing roll for activation per a WP assault.
Surprise can only occur when the entire invading force is “dropped” in.
PCF dropped entirely by sleds give a penalty of 1 to the defender’s activation rolls.
If not surprised, roll activations for all other units in the hexside per a WP assault, starting on the second round. Units not attacked my join the battle the round AFTER they activate. Units surprised fight at half strength.
Each strategic turn, total the number of damage points inflicted by nuclear weapons on the planet.
(We will use this to compute the chance of environmental damage, probably something like roll under damage divided by 10 on d100 for there to be permanent environmental effects.)
The number of hits is not cumulative - reset the count to zero after the chance is checked.
Damage is tracked, as follows. Each planet will have a level of Taint. It is normally zero (untainted), but goes up from there as environmental damage accumulates.
A Taint of 1 means that the palnet is considered Harsh by all races, regardless of HI. At Taint 2, the planet is considered Hostile, as breathing apparatus is always required. Taint 3 is Desolate, Taint 4 is Extreme, and Taint 5 is Toxic.
The lower levels of taint may be irrelevant to some races, depending on their HI, but they will accumulate quickly.
Environmental damage is repairable under the rules for the repair of EVM damage in ISF. Essentially, the planet must be built up from its bombed PU level to the PU level necessary to support the maximum population allowed by the next lower level of Taint. The PU must be “repaired” by PI, at the cost listed in ISF chapter 21. Each point of PU repaired used one point of Planetary Industry Capacity.
Example:
The Benign world of Alderaan has been bombed until it is Taint-3 Desolate. The owner ships in a Desolate world colony of 50 PTU after the war is over. In order to repair the world to Taint-2 (Hostile), the colony needs to repair PU up from the bombed level (0) to the max level for Hostile (150). They can do this at a rate of 50 per turn, and a cost of XXX per turn. When they are done, Alderaan is a Hostile world, with 50 PU on it. It can now take colonists up to 150 PU. To repair the next level of Taint, they will need to repair from 150 PU to 800 PU. Repeat as needed.
Taint 5(Toxic) worlds can be repaired, even though they cannot support a population. Establishing a station or base will be required. The systems required could include Q, H, Tf, (MS), CHS, etc. Details to be determined. Each such station base woould provide 1 point of repair capacity per strategic turn.
Each PU destroyed on the planet reduces the max population allowed on that planet by 1 PU. This is deducted from the maximum benign population. This means that a planet which is Hostile would need to be bombed from 3200 PU down to 150 PU before its value to the race in question would deteriorate.
The rationale for this is that the nuclear bombardment creates craters, fallout areas, etc, and makes a certain quantity of real estate uninhabitable.
This damage can be repaired as per the PU repair rules above.
Those who feel the planet should be a little more robust could track the damage in PTU rather than PU.
(Silo) and silo missile control system (SCS).
Types are Silo-BM, Silo-SM, Silo-CM, Silo-SBM, etc. No sprint missiles. Warhead per regular missile techs. Silo missiles are a munition similar to a buoy or an SBMHAWK, and must be constructed rather than coming from the missile fund. No maint req. They are larger and more expensive that regular missiles. They count as PDC launched missiles for range purposes. SCS can launch in salvoes of 50(? 100?), similar to DCS/MCS. Silo missiles count as hidden and can only be engaged units which can detect and engage hidden targets.
Silo missiles must be constructed in place, and cannot be moved once constructed. Launching the missile effectively destroys the launcher and it must be replaced. (This would likely reuse the existing silo w/ new electronics, etc. Although destroyed, someone who came by later would likely notice the empty silos.) Cost TBD, but I see this as a relatively powerful, hence expensive, item. Perhaps MCr 50@, plus missile cost.
Silo tech is Ind2, cost TBD. Designers note: I thought about doing these as a missile mod (like -LT), but these are really more like a DSB that a missile, so I took the other route.
I have also considered doing the range differently, by giving each missile the range of the next-higher TL missile. This would let the Silo-BM fire to SM range, the Silo-SM to CM range, etc. This prevents the situation where the invader stands off and pounds the defender with impunity.
Mothballed PCF: Must be reactivated to be used, but cheaper than building new ones. This would represent equipment placed in storage until used, thus explaining its reduced TL.
Reserve PCF: (Optional) Cheaper to maintain, but not build, compared to regular PCF. If, however, they are deployed away from their world of origin for more that 6 turns, they must be converted to regular PCF. Typically, they are used for the initial invasion and then replaced with SEC and rotated back to their homeworlds. Only available to races with an RM of <70. (?) A world may support reserve PCF numbering up to 1/4 (?) of the PU on the world. Reserve PCF cannot be used as replacements for regular PCF; they must be converted first.
PCF are destroyed by one hit, but Regiments may be repaired. This can be done in a manner similar to ships, or can be done by reorganizing them, as equipment and personnel from one unit are transferred to another one. The only requirement is that the resulting PCF be legal wrt its mounted equipment, etc.
Reogranization may affect grade, in that if the replacments are of a lower grade than the receiving unit, and number more than 33% of the remaining original PCF (not counting systems), the grade of the resulting PCF is lowered by 1.
PCF can be repaired normally on any world you control where it can receive maintenance. The repair cost of a PCF is they same as for any other system of its cost.
Ogre/Bolo or Battlemech type units are designable under these rules. That being said, there would be little difference between such units and spacecraft operating in atmosphere, but the spacecraft would be more flexible, so no one will bother to build such units. You are more likely to see such units in non-DF universes, where it would be harder for spacecraft to operate in a gravity/atmosphere environment.
You could, however, implement a race using such gear as an SM "special". An example would be an HT race which "missed" the development of the DF, and has to rely on reaction drives for space travel.
PDC and PCF can make bombadrment attacks (non-sprint missiles) against units in adjacent facings. Sprint attacks against units in same facing only, due to LOS.. PCF get free datalink when defending, but not when attacking. Missile with HAWK tech can attack units in ANY planetary facing.
Q: Is the automatic datalink accorded to PDC's disrupted by ?j, or does it benefit from land lines that protect it from jamming.
One could create the effect of more detailed maps by breaking out each planetary facing as a group of multiple hexes, and adjusting movement rates et. al. accordingly. You could probably get down to a map where each facing was a group of hexes 12 across without significantly impacting the combat system.
This will be essentially the same as SM2, but expanded to include the effect of garrisoning PDC’s et al. I wanted to work the chart off of the CFP as a simple way to do this, but that does not really fit the stated purpose of the garrison rules, where the number of bodies manning guard posts is more important than their combat ability.
Probably will count each missile launcher, usable beam weapon, fighter, ast, etc as a PCF of the same TL as the conquering (or conquered?) race for occupation purposes, up to %50 of the minimum garrison.
I also plan for a simplified system for garrisoning asteroid belts and moons, where I suspect a few PCF with ast would go a long way.
Having similar attributes to the graded admirals, graded leaders give the ground units more options.
Ground leaders must be stacked with a ground unit (PCF, regiment, PDC). If this unit has a CiC, that side gains the benefit of the CiC in this planetary facing.
Ground leaders face similar risks to space leaders when the units the are accompanying are destroyed.
Ground leaders can apply their bonus to the initiative roll, or as a percentage bonus to the combat resolution roll.
Ground leaders may also attempt to conduct a war of manuever. If either side wishes to maneuver, both sides roll 1d10, adding the leader grade, CiC init bonus, and possibly other modifiers TBD, and with an additional +1 for any race defending its homeworld due to terrain familiarity. The side with the higher roll has won the manuever. The difference in the rolls, times 5%, is the percentage of the losing sides PCF/regiment’s CFP that has been “out-manuevered”, and is unable to participate in the current combat resolution.