2

CONTENTS
Introduction 1
Weapon traits 43
Troop classifications 5
ready made units 44
Organizing your troops 10
READY MADE unit points values 47
The turn sequence 13
Building units – The assembly line 48
Snap actions 15
Building units – the workshop 54
Movement 18
unit builder reference 63
The battlefield 21
TYPICAL UNIT SCORES 65
Firing 23
building armies 66
Combat example 28
task force commanders 70
Close combat 29
the scenario 72
Figure destruction 33
campaign rules 76
Morale 34
campaign assets 88
Terror 38
introductory scenario 89
Timing questions 39
play charts 91
Commanders 40
designer notes 92
Heroes 41
CHANGE LOG
Unit traits 42 93
 1

INTRODUCTION
Welcome to LaserStorm, where very small miniatures can fight in very big battles.

LaserStorm is a science fiction game aimed at letting you use your own figures on the tabletop,
playing quickly without being boring or simplistic.

Whether you use an established setting or create your own world, you can use these rules to resolve
anything from moderate battles to epic, sweeping campaigns.

DESIGN GOALS
It always helps to outline the goals and objectives of a system up front.
For LaserStorm, the following were the goals that were set:

* Game play that is simple, without too many fringe cases.

* Play quickly, even with a lot of troops on the table.
* Allow very large amounts of diverse figures on the table at the same time
* Core mechanics can be condensed to a few pages
* No markers, counters, templates or other indicators needed
* No record keeping needed other than your army lists.
* “Blasters and jet packs” scifi, rather than hard military realism.

SCALES AND OTHER BASICS

The game is intended for smaller scales of figures based on “team” bases.
One base holds 4-6 infantry figures, 2-3 light vehicles or a single regular vehicle.
Each such element is referred to as a “stand” in the rules.

Stands represent their actual figures. Hence, each infantry stand is a 4-6 member “fire team”

The rules will work best in 3mm, 6mm or 10mm but could be adapted to others relatively easily.
Players with a lot of space on their gaming table may even wish to use 15mm.

Firing ranges are fairly short, intentionally.

They have been selected based on what would fit an average sized gaming table and should not be
correlated to exact, real-life distances.

A players force may range from 3 small infantry platoons with a few headquarters units leading
them to a full battalion or more on each side.

The rules are intended to play very quickly and with no record keeping, the only limiting factor is
the table size and the time available to play the game.

The typical game can be played on about a 3x3 to 4x4 foot table, but more table space will permit
for bigger and more impressive battles, as well as making movement and deployment more
significant.

Try to adapt your army sizes to the available space and be realistic.
Fitting 50 tanks unto a 3x3 foot table may not give a particularly enjoyable game though at least it'll
be easy to figure out what to shoot at.
 2

FORCE TERMINOLOGY
The following terms are used throughout the rules to organize our troops. They have been collected
here for your convenience.

TERM MEANING
Stand A single model vehicle or a single base containing a few infantry or light vehicle figures.
Represents a single vehicle, one gun and crew or a fire team of soldiers.
Unit A number of stands operating as one coherent formation on the table top. Typically represents a
platoon or equivalent.
Units must remain near each other.
Task Force An organizational level. Used to build armies. A Task Force consists of a number of units and
has a leader, providing it with a trait or ability.
Battle Group A players entire army is broken down into 3 Battle Groups on the table top. Battle Groups
activate at the same time.
Depending on the size of the game, battle groups may be equivalent to anything from companies
to battalions.
Army On the tabletop, the entirety of a players forces is one Army.
In a campaign game, each entity capable of moving on the campaign map is an Army.
Army Group In a campaign, all forces available to a player are divided into 3 Army Groups.
Expeditionary Force The entirety of the forces available to a player in a campaign is termed an Expeditionary Force.

THE FLOW OF THE GAME

The flow of a LaserStorm battle may be a little different from what you are used to.
The “Battle group” activation system allows groups of units to activate together, letting you carry
out combined arms attacks and outflanking moves but without leaving the other player sitting
around for hours, waiting for your turn to finish.

Likewise, the morale system means that units will attack a position, get thrown off the table,
regroup and come back again. This can happen several times, especially for low Morale troops.
This mimics the flow of historical battles where troops get repelled, regrouped and you can come
back for another shot (or a different approach).

This also helps simulate that in reality, troops tend to be much more casualty averse than our model
soldiers. Hence, it can take relatively few casualties to bring even an entire platoon to a halt.
Rather than leaving the incapacitated unit on the table, despite it being unable to act, we simply
remove it from the board and then bring it back later.

ALL IT TAKES IS ONE HIT

Futuristic warfare is unpredictable and the battle field is brimming with high-powered weaponry.

Even the biggest, toughest unit could potentially go down in a single hit. For some, it's not very
likely, but don't be too upset when it happens.
It'll happen to your enemy soon enough.
 3

HEROIC GROUND WARFARE

LaserStorm is a game about futuristic ground warfare, and rather stylized and heroic warfare at that,
not a strafing run simulator.

Many support weapons are represented through abstracted assets and scaled down considerably.
The same goes for artillery fire which is intended to be a nuisance rather than a game-deciding
factor.

We can also assume that in a high-tech setting where grav vehicles are common-place, they will
make more fragile air vehicles relatively obsolete.
Instead, fast gun ships will provide close, mobile fire support.

This is at odds with reality, where air power and artillery can often decide battles before they have
even started, but it is not at odds with fiction where battles are generally won by the heroic actions
of those at the front.

ASSETS AND ON-TABLE RESOURCES

Futuristic, large-scale warfare can involve a lot of fantastic things: Troops teleporting down from
orbit, drop ships, long range weapons firing at targets beyond the horizon and so forth.

The supporting elements behind an army is handled by the Asset systems presented in the scenario
and campaign rules.
Such assets are usually in limited supply and should be utilized to get the most effect at the right
time.
They may be selected by the players, assigned by a scenario or Game Master or even selected
randomly.

GETTING STARTED
To get yourself started, set up two small, relatively similar armies. 9 units, divided into 3 battle
groups is a good start.

Make sure each battle group has 1 or 2 independent command stands to regroup forces.

When you get ready to build your own forces, we provide multiple ways of doing so:

The Assembly Line allows you to pick from a list of basic hull types and then attach weapons from
a list. This lets players customize units without having to go through devising the weapon and
vehicle profiles from scratch.

We have a fully featured unit builder, letting you craft units exactly the way you want them.

Lastly, we also include a selection of ready-made units that can be used “as is” with no work
required at all. Simply pick out some suitable miniatures on your shelf and set up a battle.

THE BOOT CAMP

Each of the longer chapters of the rules will start with a small Boot Camp section.
This gives you the basics of what is going on. It leaves out a lot of special cases and fine details but
will give you a reasonable idea (or reminder) at a glance.
 4

PLAY VARIATIONS
Some chapters of the rules will list suggested variations at the end of the chapter.
These are suggestions to change how the game plays, either to make it more detailed or, frequently,
to speed things up further.

These should be viewed as just that: Variations. Use them if you find them beneficial.
Be warned that while the game engine is quite robust, it has not been developed specifically with
any particular variation in mind.
Therefore things like points values may be slightly off, though nothing should break outright and in
the big picture, things will tend to even out.

In the big picture, these things tend work out okay.

QUESTIONS?
If a rule appears unclear, go back and read over it carefully.
You can usually assume that a literal reading is the correct one.

If that gives you a result that makes no sense, find an answer that matches with the design goals.

Don't be afraid to change things up, to suit your play style. With a near-infinite number of
miniatures, possible unit profiles, terrain features and table sizes, something is bound to come up
that doesn't work quite like you think it should.

You are always welcome to reach out to the author at [email protected] with questions,
suggestions, comments and feedback.

Support can also be obtained at https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/nordicweasel/info

If you wish to create fan-material for LaserStorm, please reach out to me. Provided you follow a
few simple guidelines you are permitted to create such products, as well as sell them commercially.

SPECIAL THANKS TO

*Alexander Wasberg, Javier Herrero and Tim Snoddy Play testing

*Nathaniel Weber, Ralph DeLucia, Andy Skinner General feedback
*Karl Johnson of Legionnaire Games Images
http://www.legionnairegames.com/
*Javier Herrero Images
http://javieratwar.blogspot.com/
*Mathew Hipkin Images
*Paul Lilley Images
*Sean Gewecke Images
http://gamingandshooting.blogspot.com/

Cover image miniatures and terrain by Karl Johnson.

 5

TROOP CLASSIFICATIONS
THE TROOPS
Each stand represents either a single vehicle, 2-3 light vehicles, 1-2 heavy weapons teams or 4-6
infantry or cavalry troopers.

Troop stands are always inclusive of all crew and personnel and cannot be broken up, converted or
otherwise replaced with alternate units.
For example, vehicle and gun crews cannot dismount to act as improvised infantry.
Specific unit rules will dictate any possible exceptions.

BASING
Players may utilize whichever base size is convenient to them. A 20-25mm square is customary and
should fit most miniatures just fine.
Strip bases can be utilized as well for infantry figures.

TROOP CLASS
Each stand will belong to one of the following troops classes.
The troop class has certain effects in game terms, which will be discussed further in the relevant
sections of the rules.

Infantry
Infantry stands typically represent teams of 4-6 infantry soldiers.
The fire power of an infantry team is often an aggregate of the weaponry available to the overall
formation.

Elite or specialist teams may only consist of 3 members per stand.

When building infantry stands, use any number of miniatures that fits your desired look and budget.
In 3mm and 6mm, it's recommended to use the correct number of miniature figures, while 10mm
and 15mm players will likely wish to use slightly fewer.

Matthew Hipkin
 6

Cavalry
Cavalry stands represent 3-5 soldiers on appropriate mounts.
The troops are assumed to mount when moving and dismount when engaging in combat.
At all times, cavalry function as an integrated stand. There is no need to employ separate mounted
and dismounted figures and cavalry may not be converted to infantry during the game, unless a unit
has rules specifically permitting this.

Due to the size of the figures, cavalry stands will often use fewer miniature figures per stand than
infantry.

Field Gun
Field guns represent dedicated heavy weapons teams and their crew. These may be anti-tank
weapons, mortars and other fire support equipment that would not normally be issued to rank and
file infantry.
A single stand may represent 1-3 guns and their crew.

When building your troop stands, a single heavy weapon with 2 crew figures is standard.

Light Vehicle
Light vehicle stands represent 2-3 individual, light vehicles operating as a team.
Light vehicles tend to be more flexible than conventional fighting vehicles but carry very limited
armour or have an exposed crew.
Examples include motor cycles, jet bikes, small drones, automated gun platforms and similar.

Creatures that are larger than man-sized but smaller than a modestly sized vehicle or light tank can
also be represented by this unit class.

Light vehicle stands will have 2-3 miniature figures on the stand.

Vehicle
Any full-sized vehicle is based individually.
A bewildering variety is possible, including tanks, personnel carriers, walkers, support vehicles,
self-propelled artillery pieces and many more.
Large, armoured monsters and alien creatures may also fall into this category.

Vehicles, if mounted on bases, should be based on the smallest base that will fit the vehicle.
Alternatively, use the same standard base size used for infantry.

Super Heavy Vehicle

Vehicles classified as Super Heavy will range from 2-4 times the size of a conventional tank.
They may be oversized tanks, walkers or even large monsters.

They may not be particularly realistic but they are very fun to use.
Figures should be mounted on whatever base size will fit.
 7

Behemoth
The Behemoth class covers anything truly massive, from 4-10 times the size of a conventional tank.
Traditionally reserved for gigantic walking war machines, one could also imagine incredibly
massive tanks, land crawlers and massive monsters eager to destroy cities.

Behemoths inflict Terror on conventional vehicles and infantry.

Base as appropriate.

CLASS MAY ASSAULT MOVES TAKES SNAP MAY BE SAVING

DOUBLE UNIT? AS? FIRE AS? ACTIONS? LOADED ON THROW?
TIME? TRANSPORTS?
Infantry Yes Yes Infantry Infantry Move/Fire Yes / 1 1D6
Cavalry Yes Yes Cavalry Infantry Move No 1D6
Field Gun No No Cavalry Infantry Fire Yes / 2 1D6
Light Yes No Mobility Worst of Move No 1D6
Vehicle type Infantry or
Vehicle
Vehicle Yes Yes Mobility Vehicle Move/Fire No 2D6/1D6
In open type
Super No Crush Mobility Vehicle Move/Fire No 3D6
Heavy type 1 stand only
Vehicle
Behemoth No Crush/Brawl Mobility Vehicle No No 4D6
type

Assault Unit status indicates whether and how the unit enters close combat.
If Transport = Yes, the number after the slash indicates how many transport slots the stand occupies.
Saving Throw indicates the number of dice rolled for weapon hits.
Note that vehicles in assaults only save on 1D6.

INDEPENDENT STANDS
Some stands may be independent.
An independent stand essentially forms a unit on its own, consisting of a single troop stand or
vehicle.

Super heavy and Behemoth vehicles are often independent (though in larger games, even they
might form units), as are some specialist troops.

In game-play, independent stands operate as any other stand might, though they receive some,
limited, protections from ranged fire when nearby other friendly units.

COMMAND STANDS
A Command stand is a distinct type of Independent stand.
Command stands are instrumental in regrouping units that have retreated and pushing them back
into the fray.

As a result, Command stands often operate behind the front lines. Loss of command stands is a
significant cause for concern.
 8

HERO STANDS
Any stand could be designated as a Hero.
Heroic stands represent the finest troops, brilliant battle field leaders and exceptional individuals.
For infantry stands, a Hero stand may be a single character or the character and a few henchmen,
depending on what looks better.
As such, they receive multiple benefits in the game rules.

Hero units should be visibly distinct, whether through a paint job, banner, flag, uniquely marked
base or similar.

Heroes are typically Independent. A Hero can in turn also be a Command stand.

FIGURE STATISTICS
Each stand is rated for:

STATISTIC GAME FUNCTION

Speed Movement rate in inches
Aim Roll this or higher on 1D6 to hit with a ranged shot.
Assault Added to all close combat rolls
Save Roll this or higher on 1-4D6 to avoid destruction by weapons hits
Morale Roll this or higher on a D6 to avoid withdrawing

Stands may have additional traits that provide special advantages or penalties.

WEAPON STATISTICS
Weapons are rated for:

STATISTIC GAME FUNCTION

Type Whether the weapon is Primary or Secondary.
A stand may fire any number of Primary weapons plus one Secondary weapon
per turn.
Mode Whether the weapon is Anti-Infantry, Anti-Tank or General Purpose.
Range The range of the weapon in inches
Shots The number of attack dice rolled
Save penalty The modifier applied to enemy saving throws

Weapons often have traits that provide special advantages or penalties.

Understanding the game:

Weapons are assumed to be an aggregate of performance and available resources, rather than an
exact count of armaments.
In particular, some weapon systems may be too limited to model individually and they are instead
amalgamated into the main weapons of the stand.

Hence, a stand armed only with “Small Arms” or “Machine Guns” (for example) in game terms is
still able to fire (although with very limited effect) at vehicle targets, representing any number of
possibilities, such as armour piercing rounds, a small number of disposable anti-tank weapons,
aiming at weak points and so forth.
 9

Likewise, a stand being destroyed in the game does not inherently mean it was physically
destroyed, only that it is no longer capable of contributing to the battle.
Vehicles may have been immobilized, suffered crew casualties or have malfunctioned or knocked-
out main guns while infantry teams may be bogged down by casualties, demoralized or suppressed
so effectively, they will not carry on fighting.

For simplicity, we remove such vehicles and teams from the table, rather than track them in one of
several possible status effects.

This is important enough to be emphasized again:

A stand is represented on the table if it is capable of moving and fighting in an effective role.
A unit is represented on the table if it is capable of receiving and executing orders effectively.

Whenever a stand would not fit the above requirement, it is removed permanently.
Whenever a unit temporarily does not fit the above requirement, it is removed until it can be
regrouped.

Ineffective and incapable stands or units are never on the table.

Paul Lilley
 10

ORGANIZING YOUR TROOPS

BOOT CAMP

*Your force is divided into exact three roughly equal sized battle groups, which are used for activation purposes.

*Stands in a unit must stick within 2” of each other.

*Each unit consists of stands of the same type (except for units with transport vehicles)

BATTLE GROUPS
Each side must divide their forces up into 3 Battle Groups of reasonably equal size.
Battle Groups do not have to be exactly the same size, but no Battle Group may contain less than
25% of the total number of units in the army.

For example. If the army contains 12 units, no Battle Group could contain less than 3 units.

Count every 3 independent stands as one unit for this purpose.

A player cannot have more or less than 3 Battle Groups.

This can be done based on points (if used) , number of stands or another metric.
If using the army building system of the rules, assign one Task Force to each Battle Group.

Cross attachment:
If a player has more than 3 Task Forces in their army, a single Task Force may be broken up and the
units cross-attached to Battle Groups as needed.

Command stands:
If you are assembling your armies without using the army builder system in the rules, try to ensure
at least one Command stand in every Battle Group.

TASK FORCES
When building an army, it is generally built as a number of Task Forces.
These can comprise a variety of units and are used as building blocks to put together an army.

Task Forces are purely organizational constructs and do not form any sort of tactical influence. For
example, units in the same Task Force are not required to operate together on the table top.

UNIT COHERENCY
The stands that make up a unit must remain near each other.
Units must maintain a coherency distance, linking all the stands together with no gaps larger than
2”.

Members of a Battle Group or Task Force are not required to maintain any particular coherency
distance and units do not have to remain near their Battle Group Command stands.
 11

Broken coherency:
If a unit is not in a valid coherency, whether due to movement or battle field losses, it is considered
to be Broken.
While Broken, the unit will consist of 2 (or more) detachments. Each detachment is any number of
unit members that are in a valid coherency with each other.

When firing, the player may select one detachment in the unit that may fire or carry out close
combat.
The remaining detachments can move but cannot initiate close combat or fire any weapons during
the activation, though they could defend themselves as normal and carry out Snap actions.

Example:
A unit of 3 tanks have become separated from each other. 2 tanks are within 2” of each other, while
the third tank is 4” away, making the unit Broken.

When firing with this unit, the two tanks next to each other will form one detachment while the
isolated tank will form another detachment.
Only one of these groups could fire.

UNIT CLASSES
Each unit must belong entirely to one class of stands and may not contain alternate types.
For example, a vehicle unit could not contain any field guns or cavalry.

The exception is that infantry or field guns may include vehicles that have transport capacity.
Such units are considered “Mechanized” and must still obey all unit coherency rules to function.
Infantry and field gun units may contain vehicles only if they have transport capability and may
only contain enough vehicles to mobilize the entire unit.

Field guns require 2 transport “slots” per stand.

For example, a transport with a capacity of 2 could transport 2 infantry stands or one gun stand.

DITCHING TROOPS
Any unit may “Ditch” troop stands during the game.
Simply remove the Ditched stands from the table. Such removed stands do not count as casualties
and do not force Morale checks.
In campaign games, they are considered to have been destroyed.

Units can only Ditch troop stands while the unit is active.

They cannot be recovered or restored at any time.

Ditching stands is rarely used but may be of benefit to mechanized units that are short on
transportation due to battlefield losses.
 12

DETACHING TROOPS
Units that consist of two different types of unit (infantry/field gun and vehicles) may be detached
when activated.
The vehicles will become a new unit, separate and distinct from their parent unit, for all intents and
purposes.

The detached vehicles will remain part of the same battle group and cannot later be reattached.

Only mixed units (mechanized infantry typically) can detach, and they can only detach by unit
class.

EXAMPLE
My army for a small game consists of 4 units of infantry, 2 units of tanks, 1 super heavy tank and 1
behemoth.
This gives me a total of 8 units to break into battle groups.

25% of 8 is 2, so I need to allocate at least 2 units to each of the battle groups, and I need to form 3
exactly.

I decide to create a “Heavy” battle group, consisting of the super heavy tank and behemoth, a tank
battle group consisting of the two tank units and an infantry battle group, consisting of the 4
infantry units.

I then allocate my command stands to the three battle groups as I see fit, to make sure each have
commanders on hand to regroup them.

Sean Gewecke
 13

THE TURN SEQUENCE

BOOT CAMP

*Shuffle a deck of cards. 1 card for every battle group plus any extra cards added.

*When a card is drawn, that battle group acts with all units.

*When the last battle group card has been drawn, all remaining cards are discarded.

TURN SEQUENCE
Each battle group (for each player) is represented by a card. Shuffle all the cards together into one
deck.
A plain deck of playing cards can be used. Select a suit for each player and pick out three cards,
corresponding to the three battle groups.
Players may wish to use the designations matching the cards for flavour and ease of remembering.

Example:
If my cards are the Jack, Queen and King, I may name my battle groups “Queen Force, King Force
and Jack Force”.
If I have the numbers 3, 4 and 7, it may simply be “3rd company, 4th company and 7th company”.

At the beginning of the turn, draw one card from the deck. The indicated battle group activates.
Once the battle group has carried out all desired actions, it finishes and the next card is drawn.

Proceed until all cards have been drawn, then reshuffle the deck and begin again.

DECK VARIATIONS
In Game-Mastered scenarios, a “GM” card may be added to the deck. Any GM-controlled actions
take place here and any neutral or third party forces will activate here.

If the scenario has events happening after a specific number of turns, add a “Time” card to the deck.
Whenever the Time card is drawn, increase the Time count by one.

Groups using any type of random event table or similar can add a “Event” card to the deck. When
drawn, roll 1D6 with a 5-6 indicating a random event.
If a GM card is in the deck, check for random events on the GM's card.

ENDING THE TURN

When the last Battle Group card (The sixth in a two player game) is drawn, the turn ends after that
battle group has finished activating, even if any cards remain in the deck.
This means that special (non-battle group) cards are not guaranteed to be resolved every turn.
 14

ACTIVATING THE BATTLE GROUP

When a battle group is active, every unit in the battle group that is currently on the table, may act.

Select one unit.

Carry out any movement the unit needs to do, then conduct any combat actions.
Each stand may fire or fight in close combat, but not both.

When all activities for a unit have finished, move on the next unit.

Each unit must be activated and finished in turn. A player may not move back and forth between
units.

A unit is not required to act but cannot save up any actions.

Once all units have acted, the battle group is finished and another card is drawn.

Sean Gewecke
 15

SNAP ACTIONS

BOOT CAMP

*When a Snap action card is drawn, put it aside.

*Next battle group card draw, give all Snap actions drawn to the other player.

*Each snap action allows one unit (or single super heavy stand) to move or fire.

*Guns can only fire, cavalry and light vehicles can only move.

*No Behemoths or Heroes.

THE TURN SEQUENCE

The battle field is an unpredictable and chaotic place, with commanders constantly trying to seize
the initiative, interfere with enemy actions and block deployments.

This is represented by adding a number of Snap Action cards to the card deck.
Snap Actions represent a local officer seeing an opening or opportunity, getting the drop on an
unprepared enemy or otherwise making the most of the situation.

The card deck:

The number of Snap Action cards to be added into the deck will depend on the game size, as well as
the desired level of unpredictability.

Add from 1 to 6 cards depending on how large of a factor you wish them to be.
As there are always 6 Battle Group cards in the deck (3 per player), the number of Snap Action
cards will determine how often you can expect Snap Actions to occur.

As a baseline, add 3 cards to the deck.

If using conventional playing cards, select a card suit that is not used by either player or use jokers
or similar.

Drawing the card:

When a Snap Action card is drawn, put it to one side, next to the card deck, and draw again.
This can happen multiple times in a row.

When a Battle Group card is drawn, that player is now the Active player, while the other player is
Passive.
The passive player picks up all Snap Action cards that have been put to the side and may now carry
out one Snap Action for each card drawn.

The passive player is not required to use all the available cards. If so, place any unused cards back
next to the card deck. These are then available later.

Snap Actions that are used are discarded and removed completely.
When the turn ends, all discarded (used) Snap Action cards are shuffled back into the deck.
 16

End of turn:
When the turn ends (after the last Battle Group card has been drawn and resolved) any remaining
Snap Actions that have either been set aside or which remain in the deck are discarded and
everything is shuffled back together for the next turn.

SNAP ACTIONS
Each Snap Action card permits one Snap Action to be taken.
All Snap Actions are carried out immediately, BEFORE the battle group activates.
This allows units to potentially activate more than once during a game turn.

The number of stands that can be affected can be found below, along with the permitted actions:

TROOP CLASS SNAP ACTION ELIGIBILITY

Infantry, Vehicle 1 unit may all move or all fire
Field gun 1 unit may all fire
Light vehicle, Cavalry 1 unit may all move
Super Heavy vehicle 1 stand may move or fire
Behemoth May not carry out Snap Actions

The Snap Action affects all stands in a unit unless used on a Super Heavy vehicle (in which case
only one stand is affected).
Behemoths cannot take Snap Actions.

Hero units can never be issued a Snap Action.

When the Snap Action is issued, the unit may either move or fire, as indicated by the table above.
Infantry and Vehicle units may select either option but cannot combine both. Either all stands fire or
all stands move.

Snap movement:
Moving on a Snap Action permits a normal turn of movement.
Snap movement does not permit double-timing or any other form of enhanced or increased
movement from traits or special abilities.
The stands must move at their basic movement Speed.

Snap moving units may enter close combat, if they are normally capable of doing so.

Snap fire:
Firing on a Snap action permits a normal turn of firing.
When Snap firing, units are treated as having an Aim score of 5+, regardless of the actual score.
Any modifiers will still apply as normal.

Commanders and Snap Actions:

If a Snap Action is issued to a Command stand, they may make one attempt to attempt to regroup a
unit in reserve instead of moving or firing.

Heroes and Snap Actions:

Heroes may NOT be issued Snap Actions. Their improved performance already takes into account
their superior skill, experience and luck.
 17

Understanding the game:

Snap Actions serve as an alternative to having a dedicated reaction/overwatch system.
Essentially, you know what units are about to activate, but you don't know their intended actions
yet.
This can be used to move troops into defensive positions, get in a few early shots or otherwise set
yourself up better.
Even something as simple as moving a threatening unit into a new position can serve to make your
opponent second-guess themselves. Be creative!

PLAY VARIATIONS

*Require that Snap Actions are spent in reaction to an enemy moving or firing in sight.

*Require that Snap Actions are spent only after an active unit has acted. One Snap Action may be
spent after every unit activation.

*Do not use Snap Action cards. Instead, every unit activation, one enemy in sight may activate
(under the Snap Action limitations) by rolling a 6 on 1D6.

Karl Johnson
 18

MOVEMENT
BOOT CAMP

*When active, each stand moves in turn.

*No penalty for turns.

*See terrain chart for movement penalties.

*Can move through non-vehicle units.

*If any moving stand touches an enemy, unit has launched an assault.

*Can double-time. Test morale if unit does not reach assault.

MOVEMENT
When active, each stand in a unit may move up to their full Speed.
Each stand carries out and finishes any movement before the next stand moves.

Stands may turn as often as desired. All stands may move through friendly infantry, cavalry, field
guns and light vehicles but may not end their movement overlapping another stand, even if that
stand intends to move later in the turn.

No stands may move through vehicle, super heavy or behemoth stands.

Exceptions:
*Grav vehicles may move over any other troops.
*Super heavy and Behemoth walkers may move over troops that are not super heavy or Behemoth
sized.

Transports:
Infantry may embark on a transport vehicle by moving into contact and expending 1” of movement.

An active transport may disembark carried troops during its movement.

The cost is 1” per infantry stand disembarked. Place all stands within 1” of the transport.

Infantry may embark on transports from another battle group but remember that the troops embark
on the infantry activation and disembark on the vehicle activation.

Guns and transportation:

Field guns may embark on transports, however, each gun takes up 2 slots of transport capacity.
Therefore, a gun cannot be transported in a vehicle with a capacity of 1.

A transport with a capacity of 1 may be indicated as “Gun Only”. This allows 1 gun stand to be
transported but no infantry.
 19

Foot mobility:
Use the table below to determine how non-vehicle troops perform in terrain features.
Field guns move as cavalry.

TROOP ENTER OR EXIT CROSS

CLASS TERRAIN OBSTACLE
Infantry 1” 2”
Cavalry 2” 4”

Vehicle mobility:
Use the table below to determine how different vehicle types perform in terrain features.
Vehicles use the mobility type regardless of their class and size.

MOBILITY ENTER OR EXIT TERRAIN CROSS OBSTACLE SPECIAL

Walker 1” 2”
Tracked 2” 4”
Wheeled 3” NA +3” road bonus
Grav 0 0 Ignore terrain

The Wheeled vehicle road bonus applies if the vehicle begins its activation on a road.

Walker – Any form of vehicles on legs. May resemble humanoid robots or walking tanks. Giant robots use
this mobility type as well.
Tracked – Vehicles with tracks, similar to present-day tanks. Half-tracked vehicles and wheeled vehicles
with particularly large, rugged wheels also use this category.
Wheeled – Any vehicle with conventional wheels, intended for use in relatively even terrain.
Grav – Any vehicle capable of floating or hovering. This also includes helicopter type vehicles.

Minimum Movement:
Grav vehicles may have a minimum movement score.
Units with minimum movement must move at least this many inches from their initial position IF
they move at all.

A unit with minimum movement is not required to move (it may be landed) but if it does move, it
must end its movement at least that many inches from its initial position.

For units built using the Unit Builder chapter, minimum movement is always half of maximum
movement speed.

MOVING TO ASSAULT
If any stand in a moving unit contacts an enemy stand in base-to-base contact as it moves, the unit is
assumed to have launched an assault.
Assaulting units cannot fire any weapons later in the turn.

Only walker vehicles may assault troops in terrain features.

Regular vehicles may only assault infantry, cavalry and light vehicles unless the vehicle posses the
Assault Vehicle trait.
Super heavy vehicles may assault regular vehicles.
Behemoth vehicles may assault all vehicles (including super heavies and behemoths).
 20

DOUBLE TIME IT
Infantry, Cavalry, light vehicles and regular vehicle units may elect to Double-Time it.
This allows them to take two moves in a row.

Double-timing is primarily used to enter assault combat for infantry or cavalry, over-running enemy
positions.
It may also be used to push troops faster but this runs the risk of making them combat ineffective.

After the unit finishes its standard move, the player declares if it will fire or double-time.

If the unit double-times, move every stand a second time.

If at least one stand makes base-to-base contact with an enemy, the unit will be engaged in an
assault.

If a unit makes contact with an enemy during the initial move, it may double-time any remaining
stands that failed to make contact, to bring them into contact as well.

Exhaustion:
After making the second move, make a Morale test for the unit.
Roll 1D6. If the roll is lower than the unit Morale score, remove one stand of the owning players
choice.
If a 1 is rolled, remove a stand and test Morale again until a result other than a 1 is rolled.

Stands that do not make contact with an enemy are prohibited from firing during this activation.

Understanding the game:

The basic movement rates in the game are assumed to be the rate the troops can move at for an
extended period of time.
Double-timing means that there's a risk of vehicle break downs, teams getting lost, the unit being
strung out over a stretch of road or arriving in a disorganized manner.

It also introduces a nice risk-taking element to the game. You can get lucky and pull off a daring
flanking move. Or you can forced-march your flanking force to pieces.
 21

THE BATTLEFIELD
BOOT CAMP

*Terrain features are built by assigning a number of characteristics to them.

*Default examples are given, but players may interpret terrain features as they find appropriate for their gaming table.

TERRAIN
Each terrain feature can have any of the following characteristics:

CHARACTERISTIC GAME FUNCTION

Concealment Any fire that passes into or through the feature will provide concealment to target
Cover Any stands inside the feature receive cover
Dense The feature may be fired into and out of, but not through
Obscuring Only stands at the edge may fire or be fired upon
Slow going Any stand that spends any time during a move in the feature must deduct 1” of movement.
Dangerous Roll 1D6 for each stand entering. On a 1, the figure must take an unmodified saving throw.
Fortified Any stands become immune to Push Backs from incoming fire
Solid Only infantry may enter the feature.

Examples of terrain features:

CHARACTERISTIC GAME FUNCTION

Ruins Solid. Cover. Dense
Light woods Concealment. Dense
Heavy woods Concealment. Obscuring
Jungle Concealment. Obscuring. Slow going
Swamp Concealment. Dangerous
Trench Cover
Building Solid. Cover. Dense. Obscuring. Fortified

MOVING IN TERRAIN
All terrain features are either Area features or Linear obstacles.
Area features should be clearly delineated with boundaries on the tabletop.

Entering or exiting a terrain feature has a movement penalty, indicated in the movement section.
A stand that begins its activation inside a terrain feature must pay the cost to “enter” the feature if it
intends to move at all. It does not pay the cost if it intends to remain stationary.
 22

Linear obstacles:
A linear obstacle is too narrow for an infantry figure to stand on but low enough to be crossed.

Obstacles can have the same traits as area features.

If they provide cover or concealment, they only provide the benefit to troops directly behind (and
touching) the obstacle.

Movement costs for obstacles occur when crossing the obstacle. See the mobility types in the
movement chapter for more details.

Partial entrance:
If a stand has enough movement to reach a terrain feature and pay the cost to enter, it is placed
entirely within the terrain feature, even if it has no additional, remaining movement.
Regular sized stands can never be partially in and partially outside of a terrain feature.

Big targets:
Super heavy and Behemoth sized vehicles can be partially overlapping a terrain feature. They do
not receive any type of concealment or protection from terrain features, unless the feature is
physically as tall as the vehicle.

FIRING FROM TERRAIN FEATURES

If a feature is Obscuring, only troops at the edge may fire or be fired upon. This limits the number
of firing stands to the number that can be physically placed along the edge.

For non-Obscuring features, any stands inside the feature may fire out and be fired upon subject to
the normal line of sight rules.

Matthew Hipkin
 23

FIRING
BOOT CAMP

*Every stand fires. Weapon systems must direct all shots at the same target unit but can fire each weapon system at a
different target.

*Roll equal or over Aim score to hit. Roll over against concealed targets.

*Hits force saving throws (1D6 for light troops, 2D6 for vehicles, 3D6 for super heavy, 4D6 for behemoths).

*Failed saves are removed. Troops in cover get an additional unmodified 5+ save on 1D6.

*Every 1 on firing dice cause closest target to be pushed back 3”.

FIRE ELIGIBILITY
Units that have entered an assault or double-timed are not able to fire.

Each stand may fire any number of Primary weapon systems and up to one Selectable weapon
system.
A stand is never required to fire, is not required to fire all weapons systems and is not required to
fire the full number of shots a weapon system is capable of.

SELECTING A TARGET
A stand may fire at any target unit in sight.
Targets may be pre-measured.

Independent, individual stands within 3” of a section of the same troop type may not be fired upon
separately.

Example:
An independent infantry stand within 3” of an infantry unit could not be fired upon but the same
independent infantry stand within 3” of a vehicle unit or another independent infantry stand could.

FIRING
Infantry, cavalry and light vehicles may not trace their lines of fire through any other stand.
Non-light vehicles and field guns may fire over friendly infantry stands.
Super heavy vehicles may fire over any non-vehicle target.
Behemoths may fire over anything smaller than themselves.

Allocating fire:
Units may fire against multiple target units.
A stand with multiple weapons systems capable of firing could allocate each weapons system
against a different target unit, but the shots from one weapon system cannot be divided across
multiple units.

If a target unit consists of stands of a different type or saving throw (typically infantry with their
transports) the firer must treat them as two distinct units for firing purposes.
All fire allocation takes place before any fire is resolved for the unit.
Example:
 24

If I have 6 shots to fire at a unit of mechanized infantry, I may allocate 4 shots to their infantry and
2 to their vehicles.

Stationary firers:
Some weapons or troops that receive special bonuses or benefits when stationary.
This is always assessed on an individual figure basis, not by section.

Unless a rule indicates otherwise, there is no bonus or penalty for moving or being stationary.

Multiple weapons:
When a stand carries multiple weapons systems, each will be indicated as either a Primary (P)
weapon or a Selectable (S) weapon.

A stand may fire any number of Primary weapons and may fire one Selectable weapon when
activated.
Players may resolve all Primary fire before deciding and resolving Selectable weapons fire.

ROLLING TO HIT
Roll 1D6 per shot.
If the target is in the open, roll equal or higher than the Aim score of the stand to hit.
If the target is obscured or concealed in a terrain feature, roll higher than the Aim score to hit.

TARGET POSITION ROLL REQUIRED

Target in the open => Aim
Target is concealed > Aim

Some attack types will ignore the Aim score and always have a fixed to-hit number. These will be
clearly indicated in the rules.

Cover vs concealment:
Troops are in cover, if they are in a terrain feature that provides physical protection, such as a
building, ruins, behind a barricade or in a trench.
Cover does not affect the to-hit roll but does provide a saving throw as described later.

Concealment obscures a unit and makes it harder to visually identify them. Examples of features
that provide concealment are woods, jungles and swamps.

Mixed targets:
If the target unit has some stands in concealment and some in the open, the firer must select whether
they will target the troops in the open or the entire unit.

If the firer restricts their fire to only stands in the open, no hits may be allocated to stands in
concealment.
If the firer elects to target the entire unit, all stands may be hit but all shots will be counted as
against concealed targets.

Target types:
 25

All weapon systems have a target mode.

This can be Anti-Infantry (AI), Anti-Tank (AT) or General Purpose (GP).

TARGET MODE GAME FUNCTION

Anti-Infantry When firing at conventional, super-heavy or behemoth vehicles, fire is Inaccurate
Anti-Tank When firing at infantry, cavalry and field guns, fire is Inaccurate
General Purpose Fire is never Inaccurate against any target

When fire is Inaccurate, a 6 must be rolled to hit and no Aim or trait bonuses apply.
Inaccurate status takes precedent over any other modifications to the firing roll. In other words,
inaccurate shots always hit on 6 with no exceptions.

Weapons are never Inaccurate against light vehicles due to their exposed crew.

SAVING THROWS
Each figure that is hit must take a saving throw.
Roll the indicated number of dice, add them together and apply the save modifier of the firing
weapons system as a penalty.

If the modified total is lower than the saving throw score of the target, the target is destroyed.

Modifiers may cause a saving throw to be impossible.

Some units may have saving throws so low that without modifiers they cannot fail.

UNIT CLASS DICE

Infantry, cavalry, light vehicle, field gun 1D6
Conventional vehicle 2D6
Super heavy vehicle 3D6
Behemoth 4D6

Example:
A stand has a 3+ saving throw and takes a hit with a -5 modifier.
It needs an 8+ to save.
If the stand is an infantry stand, it would be unable to do so and is removed.
If it is a vehicle, it must roll 8+ on 2D6. Risky but not unlikely.
If it is a super heavy vehicle, it must roll 8+ on 3D6. Expected but some risk.
If it is a massive Behemoth, it must roll 8+ on 4D6. Quite likely to survive unscathed.

Hit allocation:
Once all saving throws have been taken, remove one stand for every failed save. Begin with the
closest, visible stand to the firer and work your way back.

Stands that are not in sight or range of any of the firing stands cannot be selected as targets.

Cover:
 26

Figures in cover roll 5+ on 1D6 to deflect each hit.

Figures must be in a terrain feature that has the Cover trait or immediately behind (and touching) a
linear obstacle to receive cover.

Cover-saves are taken after hit allocation has taken place. Hence, a stand in cover in the rear of a
unit will only make saving throws if enough hits are inflicted to “reach” it.

Overkill:
If the number of failed non-cover saving throws exceed the number of stands in the target unit, it's
normally wiped out.

If any stands have additional saving throws (due to cover or unit traits), resolve as follows:

*Allocate one “kill' to every stand. Remove any stands that do not have additional saves. Take
additional saves for the figures that have them.
*Go through and repeat the “Kill” allocation a second time. Take additional saves again.
*Continue until all kills have been allocated.

Example:
I have 4 infantry stands and take a total of 7 hits, of which I fail 5 saving throws.
Two of my stands are in cover, two are in the open.

I begin by allocating one Kill to every stand.

The two stands in the open are removed and I now take two cover saves, passing both.
Since I still have Kills left, I need to do another round of allocation. I allocate the one remaining
Kill to the closest stand to the firers (now) and take another saving throw. I fail, and remove that
stand.

Infantry in transports:
If a transport vehicle is destroyed, each infantry stand carried must take a saving throw at a -1
modifier.
No hits inflicted on the transports are ever carried over to the transported troops and a firing unit
may not “hold back” shots to aim at any emerging infantry.
Place the infantry stands within 1” of the transport.

PUSH BACK
Every 1 on the firing dice (1-2 when firing indirectly) causes a Push Back unless the weapon was
Inaccurate against the target type.

After removing all destroyed stands, allocate Push Backs.

Each Push Back forces the closest stand to withdraw 3” directly away from the nearest firer.

Push Backs are resolved one at a time. The same stand may be pushed multiple times if it is still the
closest after resolving a Push Back.
Super-Heavy and Behemoth vehicles do not suffer Push Back.

INDIRECT FIRE
 27

Weapon systems with the Indirect Fire trait may be fired at unobserved targets.
This represents a relatively short fire of opportunity, not a long, sustained bombardment over time.

To fire at a target, any friendly stand must have a line of sight to it.
Normal rules apply when attempting to target Independent stands near other units.

Indirect fire attacks will hit on a roll of 6, regardless of other factors.

Aim bonuses do not apply to indirect fire. The target cannot be within 10” of the firer.

Indirect fire will Push Back on a firing roll of 1 or 2.

Forward observer:
If the target is within 12” of a friendly infantry unit with line of sight to the target, any indirect fire
directed towards the target will use the normal Aim scores and any applicable bonuses.

UNDERSTANDING FIRING ODDS

When firing at anything bigger than infantry, the saving throws function on a bell curve.
Since rolling multiple dice are much more likely to roll results in the middle of that curve, you can
predict whether an attack has a realistic chance of succeeding fairly easily.

While lucky (and unpredictable) shots can happen, you can easily spend all day firing at a
Behemoth with light weaponry, hoping in vain for that lucky hit.

A saving throw on multiple dice can be expected to roll in the following range most of the time:

DICE EXPECTED RESULT

2D6 6-8
3D6 10-12
4D6 13-15

If the required saving throw, with the save modifier applied is lower than the score above, the
chance of a kill will be low.

The odds of getting hits to begin with are a lot easier. Generally, over time you can expect half your
shots to hit on a 4+, a third to hit on a 5+ and a sixth to hit on a 6+.

Of course, that is the average you would see over hundreds of rolls. If you pick up 4 dice and roll to
hit, you may see all 4 shots hit and you may see all of them fail.

PLAY VARIATIONS
*Do not permit one unit to fire at multiple enemy units unless super-heavy or behemoth.

*Do not permit moving units to fire more than one weapon system.

*Do not permit Inaccurate shots to be taken (AI can only fire at soft targets, AT can only fire at hard targets)

*Do not permit pre-measuring.

*Require indirect fire units to be stationary.

 28

COMBAT EXAMPLE
It is my turn and a platoon of 3 tanks is getting ready to open up on the enemy.
Each tank has the following weapon profiles:

WEAPON SYSTEM TYPE MODE RANGE SHOTS SAVE

Laser cannon P AT 40” 1 -5
Grenade launcher S GP 10” 1 -1
Tank MG S AI 20” 1 0

As my unit came around a corner, they have spotted an enemy unit of walkers, 15”” away.

When firing, I can fire all primary weapons, which is my laser cannon, so I set aside 3 dice for them
(1 shot for each tank).
I have to select one of my Selectable (S) weapons, but since the grenade launchers are out of range,
I will be firing the tank machine guns, giving me 3 extra dice. I pick up 3 dice in a distinct colour,
so I can roll them all at the same time.

My tanks have an Aim score of 4+, which is what my lasers will need to hit. The walkers are in the
open, so any roll that equals or beats my Aim is a hit.

The dice come up 2, 4, 5. Two hits!

The walkers must now take their saving throws. They have a saving throw of 4+ and will save on
2D6, being vehicles.
The opposing player rolls a 7 and a 9. With a saving throw penalty of -5, they need a 9 or better to
avoid destruction, causing the closest walker to be destroyed.

Next up we have the machine guns. Being Anti-Infantry (AI) weapons, they will only hit a vehicle
target on a 6, representing lucky hits with armour-piercing rounds or maybe damage to the legs or
sensors.
My three dice come up 1, 4, 6 giving me a hit.
Since there is no save modifier, the walkers only have to get a 4+ on 2D6. They roll a 7, easily
shrugging off the bullets.

However, the 1 on the firing dice means a Push Back was inflicted. The closest surviving walker is
moved back 3” as the crew starts to feel the heat.

Finally, the walker unit must test Morale. They have a 4+ Morale score and roll a 5 on 1D6.
The unit remains in place and my tank unit has finished its activation.
 29

CLOSE COMBAT
BOOT CAMP

*Stands in direct contact fight.

*Roll 1D6 each, plus Assault score. Loser takes save on 1D6 with difference as a penalty, then retreats 3”.
On a draw, both sides save unmodified and retreat.

*Super Heavy and Behemoth units do not assault. They crush.

Each stand contacted will fight assault round. If smaller unit wins, inflict a single weapons hit, then retreat.

THE ASSAULT
Most units may assault enemy positions.
An assault can range from tanks running through and shattering infantry, closer quarter fire fights
and gun duels to straight-up melee combat, depending on the circumstances.

The process differ slightly based on the unit type:

ENTERING ASSAULT
Any unit that has at least one stand make base-to-base contact with an enemy during their
movement has launched an assault and must fight close combat, instead of firing.

Infantry and cavalry may initiate assaults through their regular or double-time movement.

Wheeled, tracked and grav vehicles cannot enter assaults in terrain features.

Field guns and light vehicles cannot enter assaults at all, though they may themselves be assaulted.

Regular vehicles may not assault other non-light vehicles.

Super heavies and behemoths may attempt to crush non-super heavy, non-behemoth units.

Note that since assaults also include close-range firing, grav vehicles have no particular immunity
to being assaulted.

UNIT TYPE MAY ENTER ASSAULTS

Infantry, Cavalry Always
Vehicle If target is not in terrain feature
Light vehicle, Field gun Never
Super heavy May crush non-super heavy, non-behemoth units
Behemoth May crush non-super heavy, non-behemoth units. May enter titanic brawl with
behemoth units

Who fights:
Stands that are in physical contact with an enemy stand will fight in close combat.
Stands not in contact will not fight and may not fire.
They are assumed to be hunkering down, taking care of casualties from the assault or providing
limited suppressing fire as their comrades go in.
 30

CLOSE COMBAT
All close combats are opposed rolls.
The active player selects the order close combats are resolved in.

Roll 1D6 for each stand, adding the Assault score.

The loser must take a saving throw with a penalty equal to the difference in modified scores.

If the losing stand survives, it will retreat 3” away from the attacker.
All retreats are handled before the next close combat is resolved.

Pitched battle:
If an assault ends in a draw (equal scores for both stands), both stands take a saving throw and then
retreat. The attacker retreats first, followed by the defender.

Metal coffin:
Vehicles take all close combat saving throws on 1D6, not 2D6 as when being fired upon.

Repeat assaults:
If multiple stands are in contact with the same enemy, the combats are resolved one at a time.
The outnumbering side may select the order.

Resolve each assault in turn. For every additional stand in contact with the enemy at the time the
close combat is resolved, add +1 to the Assault score.

Desperation:
If a close combat combatant rolls a 6 on their assault die, but this fails to win the close combat, they
may roll 1D6 again, adding the score to their close combat total.

Units that win by desperation must make an unmodified saving throw or be destroyed.

Follow on combat:
Once all close combats a unit is involved in has been resolved and all retreats have taken place,
check for Follow On Combat.

Any stands from the attacking unit that destroyed their enemies may Follow On by moving 1” in
any direction.

Any victorious defending stands may now Follow On, if they were not already contacted by the
attackers Follow On moves.

Once all Follow On moves are resolved, carry out any Close Combats that have ensued.
Stands are not required to enter a new Close Combat with their Follow On move.
 31

THE CRUSH
Super heavy units and Behemoths do not engage in close combat in the same way lesser units do.
Instead, they simply crush their way through enemy lines, using a mixture of point-defence systems
and straight up trampling or crushing lesser units beneath their tread.

While moving, any enemy non-super heavy, non-behemoth stand that is contacted by a super heavy
or behemoth will be attempted Crushed.
Super heavies and behemoths cannot be engaged in assaults by any units, even other units of their
own class.

Resolve this as a normal assault as you would for a normal assault:

Roll 1D6 and add the Assault score of the super heavy/Behemoth.
The unit being crushed rolls 1D6 and adds its Assault score as normal.

If the stand being Crushed loses, it must take a saving throw as per a normal assault, modified by
the difference in assault scores and will retreat 3” if it survives.

If the stand wins, it will inflict one hit, with any one weapon system carried.
Take saving throws as normal.
Only one hit is inflicted regardless of the number of shots normally fired, and no to-hit roll is
required.
If this hit fails to stop the super heavy or behemoth, the stand must retreat 3” as if it had lost the
assault.

Once the combat is resolved, the moving super heavy/behemoth will continue its movement,
potentially engaging multiple units as it moves.
Note that crushing does not prevent the unit from firing weapons as normal.

Titanic brawls:
Behemoth units may enter assaults against each other.
This is resolved as a normal assault, but the saving throw modifier is the Assault modifier of the
winning behemoth, rather than the difference in dice rolls.
For example, a Behemoth with a +6 Assault score would inflict brawling hits with a -6 modifier to
saving throws.
A Behemoth entering a titanic brawl cannot fire any weapons.
 32

PANIC
If a retreating stand is unable to do so, because it is surrounded and cannot retreat without
contacting an enemy stand, it must carry out a Panic Assault.

Move into contact with an enemy stand and resolve an assault immediately.
The panicked stand must roll 2D6, picking the worse die for its close combat score.

If the stand wins, it is not required to retreat any further.

A stand that cannot retreat without contacting a Super Heavy or Behemoth unit is removed as a
casualty.

Understanding the game:

On a wildly unpredictable battle field containing conventional infantry, flying tanks, giant robots
and skittering aliens, “Assaults” can mean a wide range of possible encounters.
An assault might mean a pitched melee battle, a close ranged fire fight, throwing of grenades, a duel
between opposing champions or a soldier trying to sneak up on a tank to dump a grenade down the
hatch.

As always, we're concerned with the end result of an encounter, not the exact detail of how we got
there.

Imaginative players will no doubt come up with all sorts of explanations for what takes place on
their table, which is part of the fun.

Sean Gewecke
 33

FIGURE DESTRUCTION
Normally, when stands are destroyed, they are simply removed from the table.
Players who prefer more detail can use the following rules.

This section should be considered optional.

UNIT TYPE GAME EFFECT

Infantry Remove. If destroyed by indirect fire, weapon with frag trait or at least -3 save modifier, roll 1D6.
Cavalry On a 6, place a crater in the position the stand occupied.
Field gun Craters are Slow Going and provide Cover (but not concealment) to infantry and guns.
Light vehicle
Vehicle Becomes a wreck. Blocks line of fire and provides Cover to stands in contact.
A vehicle, super heavy or behemoth moving through the wreck will remove it from play.
Super heavy Becomes a wreck. Blocks all lines of fire and cannot be removed.
Behemoth Stands within 2” take a hit with a -1 save modifier when destroyed. Area occupied by base becomes
impassable and cannot be fired through.

Karl Johnson
 34

MORALE
BOOT CAMP

*After each battle group finishes, all units that took casualties (2+ casualties if current strength is 5+) must test morale.

*Roll 1D6. If lower than Morale score, remove unit from table and place in reserve.

*Units may roll again but failure cause removal of a stand.

*When battle group activates, each commander can roll to regroup unit.

TIMING
When all units in a Battle Group have finished activating, all Morale tests required are taken.

The order Morale tests are taken in will generally not matter but if in doubt, the player that was in-
active tests first, in any order they choose.
Once all in-active units have tested, all active units that are required to test (typically from close
combat casualties) do so, in any order the active player chooses.

MORALE
The criteria for morale tests depends on unit size:

CURRENT STRENGTH
5+ Test if 2+ casualties are sustained during one battle group activation
2-4 Test if any casualties are sustained

Roll 1D6 and compare to the Morale score of the unit.

If the roll is lower than the Morale score, the unit is removed from the table and placed in reserve.

When units go in reserve, set them aside. They may be regrouped and brought back later in the
game.

Stand and die:

Units may be ordered to Stand and Die.
Remove one figure (owning players choice) and take the Morale test again.
Only one additional attempt is permitted. If the test fails again, the unit still goes into reserve.

Leadership:
In some instances, a unit may have stands with different Morale scores.
Use the best (lowest) Morale score of any surviving troopers when testing.

Follow me:
If a Command stand is within 2” of a unit that failed a Morale test, the player may declare that the
Commander is taking charge.
Roll the Morale test again, using the Morale of the Commander. If the roll fails, the Commander is
placed in Reserve along with the unit.
 35

Single figure units:

If a unit consists of a single figure, it does not generally test for Morale as any casualties would
mean the destruction of the unit.
Such units still have Morale scores assigned for the purpose of other rules that may depend on it.

Fearless units:
If a unit has a final Morale score (modified or natural) of 1+, it will pass automatically.

Voluntary withdraw:
Before testing Morale, a unit may elect to voluntarily withdraw.
Declare that the unit is withdrawing and place it in Reserve.

Units can only withdraw when a Morale test is required and the decision is made before any dice
are rolled.

REGROUPING
When each battle group card is drawn, every Commander in the battle group may attempt to bring
on troops from reserve. Select one unit for each Commander.

Note that commanders are not tied to a specific battle group and may regroup troops from other
battle groups.

Make a Morale test for the unit, if it succeeds, it is placed back on the table, according to the rules
below
No other actions are possible.

A 1 on the Morale test causes 1 stand to be removed from the unit as a casualty.

Reserve placement process:

When placing units back on the table from the reserve, they are placed according to the following
rules:

All bases in the unit must be set up at least 8” from the commander.
Every stand must be at least as far from all enemy stands as the commander.
Every stand must be closer to the friendly table edge than the enemy table edge.

These guidelines allow troops to be placed strategically, but without huge armies suddenly
appearing in the middle of the firing line.
When placing reserves, players are encouraged to look for tactically advantageous locations, for
example to fill a gap or exploit an opening.

Place all stands in a unit with no more than 2” separating the stands.

Take command:
The battle group that regroups a unit takes control of it. It is now considered to be part of that battle
group for the remainder of the battle (or until placed in reserve and regrouped again).
 36

Desperation rally:
After all Commanders have attempted to regroup units, any units can be subject to a Desperation
Rally.
Roll a Morale test. If it succeeds, the unit can be brought on as above.
If the test fails, for every point the test failed by, remove one figure from the unit.

Regroup limits:
A given unit may only be subject to one Commander regroup attempt and one Desperation rally in
one turn.

Self-rally:
Command stands are not subject to Morale checks of any kind, however, they may be placed in
reserve if they attempt to provide leadership to a regular unit.
If a Command stand is in reserve, it may be regrouped automatically with no dice roll, on any battle
group activation.

It is placed in accordance to the above rules but may choose whether to become part of the active
battle group or remain in its original battle group.

DELIBERATE RESERVE STATUS

Units may be placed in reserve deliberately when setting up.
Units in reserve are not required to be regrouped in any particular turn.
A commander is not required to attempt to regroup a unit on their activation.

PERSISTENT UNITS (OPTIONAL RULE)

For players desiring a battle where less troops have to be regrouped, apply the following optional
rule:

Failing a Morale test causes the unit to retreat 12”.

Retreating units are repositioned 12” behind their current position, towards their own initial table
edge or deployment area.
Take the stand that is currently closest to that sides table edge, move it 12” backwards, then position
the remaining stands in a legal coherency from that.
The remaining stands cannot be further unto the table than the first stand repositioned.

All infantry and field guns must be embarked on transports where possible.

If the unit cannot retreat without being placed within 6” of enemy stands, it must be placed in
reserve as normal.

Routing:
Rolling a 1 on the Morale test requires a second Morale test to be taken.
If the second test is failed, the unit is removed and placed in Reserve.
 37

HORDE MORALE
Alien troops (or suitably brainwashed fanatics) may be subject to Horde Morale.

If a unit with Horde morale fails a Morale test, the player owning the unit removes a stand of their
choice and takes the Morale test again.
Continue rolling and removing stands until the unit either passes the test or is completely destroyed.

In effect this is a perpetual, repeated Stand or Die effect.

It is recommended that units with Horde morale are made larger than conventional infantry units,
especially if they have light armour.

Understanding the game:

In keeping with the general philosophy of LaserStorm, we only portray units on the tabletop when
they are capable of fighting effectively.

A unit that fails a morale check might be pinned down, confused, withdrawing slowly or completely
routed.
In all of those cases, they are no longer contributing to the battle and are unlikely to draw much
enemy attention either.

As such, we remove them from the table until they can be restored to fighting condition and sent
back in.
This can lead to troops being removed and replaced several times during a battle, and creates a sort
of uncertain ebb and flow that is quite unique.
Despite LaserStorm being very unrealistic in many ways, this creates a pretty decent view of just
how few of your troops you can really directly command at a particular moment, especially once all
hell has erupted around you.
 38

TERROR
TERROR ON THE BATTLE FIELD
While the battle field can be a frightening place, some things are so extraordinary that they can send
even hardened warriors into retreat.

In game terms, we call this effect Terror.

Common for big monsters and alien creatures, Terror will be indicated as a unit Trait followed by a
number.
The number is the amount of Terror dice the unit has.

Behemoth class units always receive 6 Terror dice, in addition to any bestowed by Traits.

Inflicting Terror:
Terror is caused at the end of the units activation, once it has finished all movement and combat, if
enemies remain within 8”.
Roll a number of D6 equal to the Terror score of the unit.

For every score of 5+, one enemy stand within 8” must withdraw 3” away from the Terror causing
unit.
Terror retreats work like push backs from weapons fire: Retreat the closest stand. If additional dice
scored a 5+, then retreat whichever stand is now closest.

If no stands remain within 8”, excess results are discarded.

Terror immunity:
The following units are immune to Terror:

*Any unit that causes Terror (including all Behemoth class units)

*Super Heavy units

*Hero and Commander units

*Any unit with a Morale score of 1+

 39

TIMING QUESTIONS
Having a clear understanding of the timing of actions can help the game flow better.

These timing lists are essentially check-lists showing the exact order things happen in.
Don't be too put off by the formal nature of them or their length. They simply account for every
possibility and will be second nature after a few turns.

UNIT ACTIVATION
*Select unit to be activated
*Carry out all movement and inf/cav double-time moves.
*Declare if the unit will fire or has entered close combat
*Assign all firing targets
*Carry out all firing
*Carry out all close combats
*Attacker takes Follow On Combat moves
*Defender takes Follow On Combat moves
*Apply Terror effects.
*Unit activation ends

At each step, the active player selects the exact order each stand is resolved in.

BATTLE GROUP ACTIVATION

*Roll for Commander regroup and self-rally attempts
*Carry out unit activations one unit at a time
*Resolve all combat as each unit activates
*Inactive player takes Morale tests
*Active player takes Morale tests
*Carry out any desired desperation rallies
*Activation ends

At each step, the active player selects the exact order units are resolved in.

Exact time and position:

LaserStorm uses what I call “exact time and position”.
In short, this means that whenever an action takes place, every figure on the gaming table is
assumed to be in the exact position it occupies at that particular moment in time.

Understanding the game:

Exact timing is not often that important, but if a dispute arises, reading this section carefully will
often help answer your question.
 40

COMMANDERS
COMMANDERS ON THE TABLE
Each army will include a number of stands designated as Commanders.

Each battle group will typically contain at least 1 Commander.

These may represent the actual top of the chain of command or lower ranked leaders taking charge
of a situation.
During game play they act as a rallying force.

While Commanders are typically infantry, other possibilities can be found.

Field guns and Behemoths may not be Commanders.

ADDING COMMANDERS TO YOUR ARMY

When building an army using the points system, all Commanders must be paid for, at the
appropriate points value.

THE TURN SEQUENCE

Commanders activate as part of their battle groups.
When the battle group activates, each Commander may attempt to regroup one unit in reserve.

Regrouped units do not have to be from the same battle group but upon being successfully
regrouped, they will belong to the battle group that regrouped them.

COMMANDERS IN COMBAT
Command stands move and fight as regular stands of their type for almost all purposes.
They must always be independent stands.

Any aides, entourage and support staff are considered to be part of the Command stand and are not
represented separately.

Morale:
While independent stands rarely test Morale, in the event a Morale test is required, Commanders are
always assumed to pass automatically.
This applies even if the Morale test would normally be subject to a penalty or modifier.

Unit profile:
Armies may have unique Command stands or any regular stand may be upgraded to a command
stand.
 41

HEROES
Any stand could be designated as a Hero.
Heroes are always individual, independent stands and do not form units.

Hero figures should always be clearly marked.

ADDING HEROES TO YOUR ARMY

When building an army using the points system, all Heroes must be paid for, at the appropriate
points values.

THE TURN SEQUENCE

Heroes activate as part of their battle group.
They may never be issued Snap Actions.

MOVEMENT
Heroes move at double the normal speed at all times.
They must pay the normal terrain costs for their mobility and unit types.

Heroes can enter assaults as part of their move or may fire after finishing their move.

DICE BONUSES
When firing, fighting in an assault or taking saving throws, for every 1 scored on the dice, an
additional die may be rolled and applied immediately.
1's scored on the additional dice will trigger further dice to be added.

Firing:
For every 1 scored, apply a Push Back as normal, then resolve any additional shots.

Assaults and saving throws:

If a 1 is rolled, roll again and add all dice together.

SPITE
If a Hero stand loses an assault and is slain, all enemy stands in contact must take an unmodified
saving throw immediately.

MADE OF STERNER STUF

Hero units are never subject to Terror or Push Back.

Infantry, cavalry and light vehicle heroes may choose to retreat 3” immediately if a Super-Heavy or
Behemoth class vehicle attempts to crush them, rather than attempting to engage the vehicle.
 42

UNIT TRAITS
Futuristic and alien battle fields can hold all manner of strange, fantastical and unusual troop types.
Whether due to alien characteristics, special training, unique equipment or mystical powers, troops
that stand apart from the conventional rules are represented through Traits.

A Trait is a specific benefit or quality that applies to the unit at all times.
The sample units presented later in these rules tend to use fairly few of these traits.
They are intended as a spring board to unit builders and creative individuals, to get their games up
and running.

Traits and mechanics:

Traits are always in effect.
A unit cannot elect to not apply a trait, if the conditions that trigger it apply, but is not forced to take
any action affected by the trait.

For example, a unit with the Tank Hunter trait is not required to fire at an enemy tank, but if a 6 was
rolled, it would be required to take the additional shot.

What's in a name?
When creating your own units, don't be too hung up on the specific name. Pick Traits for the game
effect they provide and then rename them as appropriate, to fit your setting, alien race or unit.

TRAIT GAME FUNCTION

Tank hunters +1 to hit when firing at regular/super heavy vehicles. +1 to assault against regular/super heavy
vehicles.
Precise fire Aim reduced by 1 (+1 to hit) when unit is stationary.
Stealth When fired upon, roll 1D6 and add to the range.
If this increases the range beyond the weapon system maximum, the shots miss automatically.
Charge +1 to Assault rolls if unit initiated the combat.
Move out +3” movement if the unit does not fire any weapons or enter assault.
Scouts Move 0-6” move after all forces have deployed.
Jump troops Ignore terrain if moving in a straight line.
Tactical deployment +1 to regrouping rolls when in Reserve.
Melee weapons Re roll 1's in assaults.
Guard When attacked in assault or crush, may fire one weapon system un-aimed at the attacker.
All shots must be directed at stands in contact.
Infest +1 to Assault rolls and immune to push back while in terrain feature.
Neither ability applies outside of terrain features.
Active defences Receive a 5+ unmodified saving throw against weapons hits, even if the unit is not in cover.
Does not apply if already in cover, and does not affect assault combat.
Terror Inflicts 2 Terror dice. This trait can be taken multiple times, adding the dice together.
Inspiration When units within 2” fail a Morale test, the stand may issue a “Follow Me” order, as if it was a
Command stand. This does not confer any other Command abilities (such as regrouping).
Stubborn Not subject to push back.
Horde The unit is subject to Horde Morale.
 43

WEAPON TRAITS
Just like units can have Traits, so can weapon systems.

These can be used to build weapons for a wide variety of units, alien or otherwise.

As with the unit Traits, focus on the game effects, rather than the specific names. If you need a Trait
but the name doesn't fit your setting or concept, just rename it.

Traits and mechanics:

Weapon traits always apply and cannot be ignored or omitted when firing.

TRAIT GAME FUNCTION

Heavy Must be stationary to fire.
Aim +1 to hit rolls.
Frag When firing at infantry, field gun, cavalry or light vehicle targets, the save modifier is always
considered to be -1.
Burst Roll once to hit. If a hit is scored, the target unit takes 3 hits. No single stand can take more than
one hit from one burst however.
Indirect May fire over terrain features and units. Target must be in sight of a friendly figure and must be
over 10” range
Indirect fire is always considered to be Inaccurate.
Rapid fire +1shot when stationary.
Flame Hit one target in range on 3+ (Regardless of Aim and position). If the initial shot hits, roll 3+ to
hit each stand within 1” of the target stand as well.
No modifiers apply to Flame attacks, under any circumstances.
Repeating fire Every 6 rolled to hit allows an additional shot to be fired.

Matthew Hipkin
 44

READY MADE UNITS

UNIT PROFILES

Unit Class Speed Aim Assault Save Morale Traits Weapon Systems Type Mode Range Shots Save Traits
Regular infantry Inf 4 5+ 0 5+ 4+ Small arms AI S 20” 1 0
Buzzbomb AT S 10” 1 -3
Support section Inf 4 5+ 0 5+ 4+ MG AI P 20” 2 0
Heavy laser AT P 40” 1 -3 Heavy
, Aim
Star Marines Inf 4 4+ +2 4+ 3+ Gauss rifles GP P 20” 1 -1
Plasma rifle GP P 10” 1 -2
Marine Inf 5 3+ +3 4+ 3+ Storm rifles AI P 20” 2 0
Commandos Fusion gun AT P 10” 1 -4
Marine Storm Inf 4 4+ +3 3+ 3+ Storm rifles AI P 20” 2 0
suits Chain gun AI P 20” 2 -1
Alien Warriors Inf 5 5+ +1 5+ 4+ Auto blasters AI P 10” 2 0
Warrior Assault Inf 6 5+ +3 4+ 3+ Blast pistols AI P 10” 1 -1
troops
Colonial militia Inf 5 5+ 0 6+ 5+ Small arms AI P 20” 1 0
Bug Swarm Inf 6 5+ +4 5+ 2+ Horde Acid GP P 10” 1 -2
Moral
e
Auto cannon FG 4 4+ 0 4+ 4+ Auto cannon GP P 30” 3 -2 Heavy
mount
Infiltrators Inf 6 3+ 0 5+ 3+ Precision arms AI P 30” 1 -1
Mortar team FG 4 5+ 0 5+ 4+ Mortar AI P 30” 2 -1 Indire
ct
Heavy

Inf – Infantry
FG – Field gun
AT – Anti-tank
AI – Anti-infantry
GP – General Purpose
P – Primary weapon
S – Selectable weapon
 45

Unit Class Speed Aim Assault Save Morale Traits Weapon Systems Type Mode Range Shots Save Traits

Speeder bike LV 15 5+ +1 5+ 5+ Vehicle MG P AI 20” 1 0

Grav

Hunter LV 10 3+ 0 6+ 1+ Light laser P AT 40” 1 -4 Aim

Grav
Drones
Scout Jeep LV 12 5+ 0 5+ 5+ Tran Vehicle MG P AI 20” 1 0
Whl
sport
1
APC V 12 5+ 0 6+ 4+ Tran Tank MG P AI 20” 1 0
Track
sport
2
Scout walker V 8 5+ +2 4+ 6+ Tank MG P AI 20” 1 0
Walk
Auto cannon P GP 30” 2 -2
Assault V 6 5+ +4 4+ 4+ Chain gun S AI 20” 2 -1
Walk
walker Light laser S AT 40” 1 -4 Aim
Light tank V 12 5+ 0 4+ 4+ Light AT gun P GP 30” 1 -3 Frag
Track
Tank MG P AI 20” 1 0
Medium tank V 10 4+ +1 3+ 3+ Medium AT P GP 40” 1 -5 Frag
Track
2xTank MG P AI 20” 2 0
MBT V 8 4+ +2 2+ 3+ Heavy AT P GP 40” 1 -6 Frag
Track
2xTank MG P AI 20” 2 0

SP Gun V 8 5+ 0 6+ 4+ Howitzer P GP 50” 2 -2 Frag

Track
Indir
ect
Ravager SHV 8 5+ +8 5+ 3+ Acid S GP 10” 1 -7 Aim
Walk
Swarm Beast Spines S GP 20” 3 -3
Spores P AI 10” 4 -1
Super heavy SHV 6 4+ +2 3+ 2+ Siege cannon S GP 30” 1 -8 Burst
Track
tank Pulse laser S GP 30” 2 -3
4xTank MG P AI 20” 4 0
Paladin BV 6 4+ +8 4+ 2+ Plasma cannon P GP 20” 1 -6 Burst
Walk
warstrider Pulse laser P GP 30” 2 -3
Hailstorm P GP 20” 5 -1
Rail cannon P AT 40” 1 -8

LV – Light Vehicle
V – Vehicle
SHV – Super Heavy Vehicle
BV – Behemoth Vehicle
AT – Anti-tank
AI – Anti-infantry
GP – General Purpose
P – Primary weapon
S – Selectable weapon

Paladins select from 2-4 weapon systems, depending on size. Systems may be duplicated (i.e. a
“Light” paladin might have two Hailstorm guns.
 46

WEAPON TRAITS:

Heavy May not move and fire in the same activation, unless vehicle mounted
Accurate +1 to hit
Anti-Tank Only hits on a 6 when targeting infantry, regardless of Aim
Anti-Infantry Only hits on a 6 when targeting vehicles, regardless of Aim
Frag When firing at infantry targets, save modifier is always -1.
Burst Roll once to hit. If on target, the target unit takes 3 hits.
Rapid fire +1 shot when stationary.
Indirect May fire over terrain features and units. Target must be in sight of a friendly figure and must be over half
weapon range.
Hits on a 6, regardless of Aim.
Flame Hit one target in range on 3+ (regardless of Aim and position). If initial shot hits, roll 3+ to hit each figure
within 1” of target as well.
 47

READY MADE UNIT POINTS VALUES

These sample costs do not currently take any traits into account. They are intended for test purposes
only.
To get a Command stand, take a regular stand and increase the cost by 50%.

STAND UNIT SIZE STAND COST UNIT COST

Regular infantry 6 10 60
Support section 6 22 155
Star marines 6 20 120
Marine commandos 6 23 140
Marine storm suits 6 20 120
Alien warriors 6 4 25
Warrior assault troops 6 8 50
Colonial militia 6 4 25
Bug swarm 6 16 100
Infiltrators 6 14 85
Autocannon mount 3 28 85
Mortar team 3 16 50

Speeder bike 4 12 50
Hunter drones 4 27 110
Scout jeep 4 7 30
APC 3 28 85
Scout walker 3 52 160
Assault walker 3 62 190
Light tank 3 46 140
Medium tank 3 68 205
MBT 3 74 225
SP Gun 3 54 165

Ravager 1 175
Super heavy tank 1 210

Paladin warstrider 1 145 + guns 440 (all guns)

Plasma cannon 80
Pulse laser 65
Hailstorm 60
Rail cannon 90
 48

BUILDING UNITS
THE ASSEMBLY LINE
LaserStorm provides two different ways to build units, discussed in this and the following chapter.

The Assembly Line method is very straight-forward: Pick from a list of basic troop types and
vehicle hulls, attach the weapons you want to use and optionally calculate the points values by
adding it all up.

This has less flexibility than creating everything from scratch but allows you to get playing pretty
quickly, while still having some customization elements.
It's recommended that players use the Assembly Line for their first few games, before diving into
the full build process.

Of course, since every method is completely compatible, one player may design their own units
from scratch, another may assemble them all and a third might assemble them and then tweak a few
details here and there.

Players can also feel free to add their own designs into the Assembly process, creating their own
army, gaming group, species or campaign specific assemblies.

They all look pretty human:

At the moment, the Assembly Line only has blueprints for relatively human troop types, though
they could still be represented by bug-eyed alien miniatures.

Over time, more blueprints will hopefully be added.

What's in a name?
Don't be too attached to the specific names provided.
If an item provides the numbers you want for your vehicle, pick it and call it whatever you would
like.

This is especially true for alien forces.

Keep it simple:
The Assembly Line uses relatively few unit and weapon traits, in order to serve as a tool for
beginners.

Weapon systems:
The profile costs assume one weapon system. Units with multiple systems may be an additional cost
per weapon system added after the first.
This will be listed after a /
For example a cost of 6/+1 means the base unit cost is 6 points with one weapon system. Add +1
point per additional weapon system after the first.
 49

BUILDING INFANTRY
To build an infantry stand, select a Training Class and any number of armaments.
Typically, infantry stands will only have 1 or 2 weapon systems, which act as an amalgamation of
the available weaponry.
For example, a team where one soldier has an under-barrel grenade launcher would just be
subsumed into the main weapon of the team, rather than accounted for separately.

Select training:
The second cost factor is for each weapon slot beyond the first.
SPEED AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE COST
Light infantry 4 5+ +0 5+ 4+ 3
Militia 5 5+ +0 6+ 5+ 2
Hardened veteran 4 4+ +1 5+ 3+ 6 / +1
Special forces 6 3+ +3 4+ 2+ 11 / +2
Armoured infantry 4 4+ +2 4+ 3+ 7 / +1

Select armaments:
These weapons are calculated for infantry and light vehicle units. If fitted to a regular size vehicle,
use double the points cost.

TYPE RANGE SHOTS SAVE TRAITS COST

Small arms AI 20” 1 0 2
Buzzbomb AT 10” 1 -3 6
Machine gun AI 20” 2 0 3
Gauss rifles GP 20” 1 -1 6
Fusion gun AT 10” 1 -4 8
Plasma rifle GP 10” 1 -2 6
Infantry laser AT 40” 1 -3 Heavy, Aim 16

Typically, infantry teams treat all weapons as Primary (P type).

If a team has 2 more or weapon systems classified as Selectable (S type), reduce the cost of all such
systems by 20%.

BUILDING GUNS
Field guns all use a single standard profile and may have one weapon system added.

Standard profile:
Field guns only have one option for the basic unit, listed below:

SPEED AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE COST

Field gun 4 5+ +0 5+ 4+ 2 / 6 if mounting Light Laser

Select ordnance:
Field guns may have one weapon system mounted only.
Note that the points discount for field guns (in the full design rules) is included in the gun cost
below.
 50

TYPE RANGE SHOTS SAVE TRAITS COST

Mortar AI 30” 2 -1 Indirect, Heavy 13
Auto cannon GP 30” 3 -2 Heavy 16
Light laser AT 40” 1 -4 Aim, Heavy 18
Light AT gun GP 30” 1 -3 Frag, Heavy 13

BUILDING LIGHT VEHICLES

Select one hull and one weapon system.
“Heavy” light vehicles could justify two weapon systems, typically if they are intended for use
specifically as a gun platform.

Select hull:

SPEED MOBILITY AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE TRANSPORT COST

Motorcycle 12 Wheel 5+ +1 5+ 5+ - 5
Speeder bike 15 Grav 5+ +1 5+ 5+ - 10
Jeep 12 Wheel 5+ 0 5+ 5+ 1 5
Drone 10 Grav 3+ 0 6+ 1+ - 15 / +4

Select armaments:
Light vehicles may select one weapon mount in most cases.
If two are selected, they must both be designated as S type. Reduce the cost of the weapons by 20%.

MODE RANGE SHOTS SAVE TRAITS COST

Vehicle MG AI 20” 1 0 2
Side arms AI 10” 1 0 1
Light laser AT 40” 1 -4 Aim 19

BUILDING VEHICLES
The majority of a force will typically be vehicles. Select a hull from the list below and any weapons
systems required.
Typically, vehicles will feature one main weapon and 1-3 secondary armaments. In most cases, a
vehicle that is technically carrying multiple machine guns can have them abstracted into a single
entry.

Select hull:
All vehicle hulls provide a saving throw on 2D6.
Any tracked hull could be wheeled at the same cost.
 51

SPEED MOBILITY AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE TRANSPORT COST

Light 12 Track 5+ +0 4+ 4+ - 24
APC 12 Track 5+ +0 6+ 4+ 2 24
Medium 10 Track 5+ +1 3+ 3+ - 30
Front line 8 Track 4+ +2 2+ 3+ - 34 / +2
Heavy 8 Track 4+ +2 1+ 2+ - 38 / +2
Siege 6 Track 4+ +3 2+ 2+ - 36 / +2
Light walker 8 Walker 5+ +2 6+ 4+ - 24
Heavy walker 6 Walker 5+ +3 4+ 3+ - 32
Light grav 10 Grav 5+ +0 5+ 4+ - 29
Heavy grav 8 Grav 4+ +1 4+ 3+ - 39 / +2

Select armaments:
Note that these costs include the points multiplier that applies to vehicle weapons.
The cost after the / is used when fitted to a super heavy vehicle.

MODE RANGE SHOTS SAVE TRAITS COST

Tank MG AI 20” 1 0 4/6
Auto cannon GP 30” 2 -2 24 / 36
Chain gun AI 20” 2 -1 12 / 18
Light laser AT 40” 1 -4 Aim 25 / 38
Heavy laser AT 40” 1 -7 Aim 41 / 62
Light AT gun GP 30” 1 -3 Frag 18 / 27
Medium AT GP 40” 1 -5 Frag 28 / 42
Heavy AT GP 40” 1 -6 Frag 32 / 47
Howitzer GP 50” 2 -2 Frag. Indirect. Heavy 36 / 54
Guided rocket AT 40” 1 -5 Heavy 26 / 39

Vehicles with 2 or more weapons may designate 2 or more as S type.

Reduce the cost of S type weapons by 20%.

BUILDING SUPER HEAVIES

Super heavies tend to bristle with guns. 1-3 main weapon systems and a similar number of light,
defensive weapons would be typical.

There is no specific weapon list for super heavies. Use the regular vehicle weapons list or pick a
single weapon from the Behemoth weapon list.

The options below can also be used, with name changes, for giant alien bug monsters.
 52

Select hull:
The listed super heavies are assumed to be Tracked. Add +6 points for walkers and +12 points for
grav.

SPEED AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE COST

Alpha Class 8 5+ +4 5+ 3+ 66
Delta Class 6 4+ +2 3+ 2+ 68 / +3
Epsilon Class 4 4+ +1 2+ 2+ 68 / +3

BUILDING BEHEMOTHS
Behemoths will tend to utilize their own giant-sized weapon systems. Up to 4 such weapons can be
fitted.

The Behemoth profiles are also suitable for giant monsters.

All Behemoth class units will Crush troops instead of assaulting and inflict 6 Terror dice.

Select hull:
These hulls are assumed to be walkers.

SPEED AIM ASSAULT SAVE MORALE COST

Stalwart Class 6 4+ +8 4+ 2+ 126 / +4
Courageous Class 4 3+ +6 2+ 2+ 132 / +8
Unflinching Class 8 4+ +10 6+ 2+ 124 / +4

Select armaments:
These weapon costs include the multipliers used for behemoth units. Use the lower cost after the
slash for super heavy units.

If two or more weapon systems are selected as S type, reduce their cost by 20%.

MODE RANGE SHOTS SAVE TRAITS COST

Siege Cannon GP 30” 1 -8 Burst 120 / 90
Pulse laser GP 30” 2 -3 59 / 45
Plasma cannon GP 20” 1 -6 Burst 77 / 58
Hailstorm GP 20” 5 -1 58 / 44
Rail cannon AT 40” 1 -8 88 / 66
Defensive guns AI 10” 4 -1 30 / 23
Hell Torch GP 10” 1 -7 Aim 84 / 63
 53

FINALIZING YOUR UNIT

Add up all weapon and hull costs and round up any fractions.

To form a unit, total up the cost of each stand and round the cost up to the nearest 5 points.

To create hero, command and independent units, apply the cost modifiers below:

INDEPENDENT INDEPENDENT HERO COMMAND HERO COMMANDER

Regular size +30% +55% +50% +75%
Super Heavy 0 +25% +20% +45%
Behemoth 0 +25% +20% +45%

Matthew Hipkin
 54

BUILDING UNITS
THE WORKSHOP
Any war game needs troops to fight our battles.
These rules provide a wide range of ready-to-play units that can be used to stand in for any number
of common futuristic forces, and setting-specific army books is not an impossibility.

However, many players enjoy creating their own units, to suit their own miniatures collection.

This chapter covers how to build your own forces as well as calculate the points values if you need
them.

PHILOSOPHY
Points systems can be fiendishly complex or extremely simple.
These rules aim for somewhere in the middle but leaning towards the simpler side of things.

This of course means that many factors may not be captured accurately or completely, but in
practice, it tends to work out okay.

For example, the same weapon fitted to a lightly armoured tank is effectively less valuable than if it
was fitted to a heavily armoured tank, because the heavy tank is likely to get more shots during the
game.
Likewise, a fast unit gets more value from its speed, if it's either well armed or good in close
combat.

These factors are difficult to capture without extensive special cases and multipliers. As such,
LaserStorm opts for a simpler approach of simply adding factors together in most cases.

Likewise, a simple points system can experience problems at the extreme ends of things (very cheap
units and very expensive ones).
If you elect to field something that is outside the average expectations, it is on you to make
appropriate tweaks if things happen to break.

FRACTIONS
Any partial points are kept throughout the process.
If at the end, the unit ends up having a points cost that is not a whole number, round it up to the
nearest whole number.

DESIGNING THE STAND

Unit design starts by designing the basic stand you wish to use.
All stands use the same basic profile and process.

Each step is discussed in detail below and summarized in a table at the end.

Begin with a base cost of 0 points.

 55

Fundamental choices:
Decide the unit class (Infantry, cavalry, light vehicle, field gun, vehicle, super heavy vehicle or
behemoth) and the general role you want to fit the unit into.

Are you modifying an existing unit (for example, to represent different armaments or an upgraded
hull) or working from scratch?

Make sure the unit will fit into the general tactical role of your army and the setting you are
working in.

Speed:
Stands receive a basic Speed of 4” for free.
Each additional point of Speed adds 0.25 to the cost.

Cavalry receive a basic Speed of 8” for free instead.

Walker vehicles add +2 to the total cost.

Grav vehicles add +4 to the total cost.

Grav vehicles may have a minimum move distance. This is always half the maximum movement
speed and modifies the cost by -1.

MOVEMENT RELATED TRAITS

Move Out Any +0.5
Scouts Any +1
Jump Troops Infantry only +1

Transport capability:
Any vehicle may be given transport capability at a cost of 1.5 points per stand it can carried.
Gun stands count as 2 infantry stands.

A vehicle with a capacity of 1 may be indicated to be Gun Only. This permits one gun stand to be
carried for 1 point, however such a vehicle cannot transport infantry.

Aim and weapon slots:

Each stand capable of ranged attacks has at least one weapon slot.
Every slot permits a distinct weapon system with a unique profile to be added.

Weapon slots have a cost of 0 points, if the Aim is 5+.

For every point of Aim below that, add +2 to the cost for every weapon slot. (+1 for Infantry)
A weapon slot capable of firing with a -4 save modifier or stronger is +4 points UNLESS the range
is 10” or less.

FIRING RELATED TRAITS

Tank Hunters Any +1
Precise Fire Any +1
 56

Assault:
Stands receive a basic Assault of 0 for free.
Each additional point of Assault adds +0.5 to the cost.

If Assault Scores exceed +3, add an additional +1 to the total cost.

ASSAULT COST ASSAULT COST

+0 0 +4 +3
+1 +0.5 +5 +3.5
+2 +1 +6 +4
+3 +1.5 +7 +4.5

ASSAULT RELATED TRAITS

Charge Must be infantry or cavalry +0.5
Melee Weapons Must be infantry or cavalry +0.5
Guard Any +1
Infest Must be infantry +1
Terror Any +1 per 2 dice

Save:
Stands receive a basic Save for free indicated on the table below.
Each “pip” below that adds +1 to the cost.

SAVE BASE UNIT MINIMUM SAVE

1D6 6+ Light vehicle/Gun/Infantry/Cavalry 3+
2D6 10+ Vehicle 2+
3D6 18+ Super heavy 1+
4D6 24+ Behemoth

Example:
A tank with a 4+ save would cost 10 minus 4 = 6 points extra.

DEFENCE RELATED TRAITS

Stealth Cannot be Super Heavy or Behemoth +2
Active Defences Any +3
 57

Morale:
Stands receive a basic Morale of 6+ for free.
Each “pip” below that adds +1 to the cost.

If Morale is improved below 4+, add an additional +1 to the total cost.

MORALE COST MORALE COST

6+ +0 3+ +4
5+ +1 2+ +5
4+ +2 1+ +6

MORALE RELATED TRAITS

Tactical Deployment Any +1
Inspiration Any +3
Stubborn Any +1
Horde Any +1

Minimum cost:
A stand cannot cost less than 1 point. If it would, raise the cost to 1.

Any fractions left at this stage are rounded up. For example, if a stand would cost 4.5 points, it is
rounded up to 5 points.

You may wish to write down or save the cost of the stand, so you can fit new weapons systems to it
easier in the future.

Typical units:
Use the ready-made units as a yardstick but don't be afraid to experiment.
Some players will prefer units with a wide range of weaponry, each represented individually while
others will prefer each to have only a single weapons system, amalgamating all the arms of the
vehicle or troop stand.

In general, Assault scores should not exceed +3 unless the unit is specially suited and equipped for
close quarter fighting, while Morale scores should generally be in the 3+ to 5+ range.

Players may establish house rules for unit design to fit their games, for example to speed up game
play or maintain certain expectations.
Likewise, groups may establish additional costs for particular unit features, depending on their
gaming tables and overall situation.
 58

WEAPONS
Each weapon system is calculated independently. If a player is designing their own army, they may
wish to keep a list of pre-made weapons that can easily be fitted to units as needed.

Base cost is 0.

Range:
Range is always factored in increments of 10”.
The cost is determined as follows:

RANGE COST RANGE COST

10” +0 30” +5
20” +2 40” +10

TARGETING RELATED TRAITS

Heavy Any -1
Indirect Any +3

Save:
Every point of save modifier adds +2 points to the cost.

If the total save modifier exceeds -6, increase cost by an additional +2 points.
If the total save modifier exceeds -10, increase cost by an additional +5 points (in addition to the
above modifier)

SAVE COST SAVE COST SAVE COST

0 +0 -5 +10 / 7.5 -11 +27 / 20.25
-1 +2 -6 +12 / 9 -12 +29 / 21.75
-2 +4 / 3 -7 +16 / 12 -13 +31 / 23.25
-3 +6 / 4.5 -9 +18 / 13.5 -14 +33 / 24.75
-4 +8 / 6 -10 +20 / 15 -15 +35 / 26.25

For convenience, the costs after the slash are for weapons with the Frag trait.

IMPACT RELATED TRAITS

Frag Any weapon with Save better than -1 Reduce save cost by 25%
Burst Any +4 + Save Modifier.
Flame Weapon cannot be Anti-Tank +6

Shots:
If the weapon fires more than 1 shot per activation, add 50% of the combined cost of Range and
Save for each additional shot.
 59

SHOT RELATED TRAITS

Repeating Fire Any +0.5 per shot
Aim Only on units with more than one +0.5
weapon system

Mode:
No additional costs are incurred for Anti-Infantry and Anti-Tank weapons.
General Purpose weapons must add 50% to the cost indicated above.

Type:
Primary weapons do not have any cost modifications.
Selectable weapons have their cost reduced by 20%.

Weapons may only be designated as Selectable if the unit features at least 2 weapons designated as
such.

Field gun discount:

Field gun class units with only one weapon slot apply a -1 point discount to their weapon cost.

Minimum cost:
The smallest possible cost for a weapon is 1 point per shot.

TOTAL STAND COST

Add up the cost of the stand itself with all weapon systems assigned to it.

Multiplier:
Total up the scores above and multiply them as indicated below, based on unit class.

UNIT CLASS MULTIPLIER

Vehicle x2
Super Heavy x3
Behemoth x4

If the final cost is not a whole number, round up to the nearest whole number.

Example:
A stand that ends up costing 17.5 points will be rounded up to 18, once all factors have been
included for the unit and its weaponry.

FORMING UNITS
To determine the cost of a unit, simply add up the costs of each stand in the unit.
It is assumed that units consist of identical stands, unless players agree otherwise.

Different unit classes may not be combined in the same unit, unless one class is infantry or field
guns and the other class is a vehicle with transport capability.
Such a unit is considered mechanized.

In a mechanized unit, the number of vehicles permitted is the smallest number of vehicles required
to transport all infantry or gun stands in the unit.
 60

For example, if the unit has 6 infantry stands, it could contain 6 vehicles with a transport capacity of
1, 3 vehicles with transport capacity of 2 or 2 vehicles with a capacity of 3.

Default sizes:
Unless otherwise agreed, units must adhere to the following unit sizes:

UNIT SIZE UNIT SIZE

Infantry 6 Vehicle 3
Cavalry or Light vehicle 4 Super heavy 1
Field gun 3 Behemoth 1

Non standard sizes:

Players may always create larger units than what is indicated above.
Smaller units are subject to a 10% premium, added to the total cost of the unit.

Unless the stand is Super Heavy or Behemoth class, the smallest unit size is 2.

INDEPENDENT AND COMMAND STANDS

Any stand that will operate independently must add a 30% premium to its total value.
Do not apply both this and the non-standard size penalty indicated above.

Super heavy and Behemoth units do not pay this premium.

Upgrading a stand to a Command stand will raise the premium to 50% (20% for Super Heavy and
Behemoth stands).

INDEPENDENT INDEPENDENT HERO COMMAND HERO COMMANDER

Regular size +30% +55% +50% +75%
Super Heavy 0 +25% +20% +45%
Behemoth 0 +25% +20% +45%

HEROES
Any hero unit must add 25% to its total cost, on top of the cost increase for being independent
and/or command.

FINAL COST
Apply any cost modifiers to the unit and round up to the nearest 5 points.

Example:
A unit that ends up cost 138 points would be rounded up to 140 points.
A unit that ends up costing 141 points would be rounded up to 145 points.

BEING EFFICIENT
Rather than calculating every unit and every stand from scratch every time, keep good notes.
Over time, you'll accumulate a collection of ready-to-play custom units that you can pick from
when you sit down to fight a battle.
 61

HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS

As discussed in the introduction, any points system is going to have limitations due to the balance
between simplicity and thoroughness.

As such, there are some pitfalls that can lead to unhappy gaming:

*By and large, characteristic costs are not dependent on each other. In practice, for example,
increasing the speed of a unit with a good assault capability is worth more than increasing the speed
by the same amount on a non-assault unit.

*The points difference of adding or removing a trait or a +1 to a unit, especially infantry, is

relatively small. Meticulous optimizers can spend much time tweaking these factors to get the
biggest gain for the smallest expense.

To some extent, this is intentional as such small bonuses will rarely be decisive in a moderate-to-
large battle.

*In some instances, extremely high characteristics could be problematic, as the points values are
generally linear in progression.
Use the provided unit examples as a guideline to what is reasonable.
If someone wants to bring their infantry with a +12 Assault factor, feel free to demand they buy the
beer and pizza for the game.

*Units can often not be viewed in isolation.

The classic example is a personnel carrier vehicle. On its own, it will of course be worth very little,
compared to the value of a tank platoon.
However, since the carrier permits infantry to be deployed quickly to an objective or important
terrain feature, it has value exceeding what its points value would indicate in a “straight up fight”.

Units that can draw significant amounts of attention often have similar advantages, such as a super
heavies and behemoth vehicles.
 62

DESIGNING A TANK

We want to create a fast tank-destroyer type of Weapon range:

vehicle. The vehicle has a single weapon slot.
It is going to have modest armour, good firepower We want a decent range to enable it to engage enemy
and good mobility. armour so we pick a 30” range for +5 points.

We’ll compensate for those qualities by giving it Save modifier:

somewhat limited defences against infantry assault. We’d like a good chance to punch through heavy
armour and even worry any super heavies, so we opt
Speed: for a -6 save modifier.
We want a speed of 12”, letting it quickly get into This costs a healthy +12 points.
firing positions.
The base speed is 4, so we must increase it by 8 Shots:
“pips”. (+2 points). Our gun costs 17 points. If we wanted two shots per
turn, we’d have to increase the cost by 50%, but we
It will be tracked, which does not affect the cost any opt for a single shot.
further and we do not wish for any mobility traits.
Mode and Type:
Transport: This is an Anti-Tank weapon, adding no additional
Our tank destroyer cannot transport any stands. cost.
Making the weapon general purpose would add 50%
Aim and weapon slots: at this stage.
The vehicle will have an Aim of 4+ and a single Mounting only a single gun, we can ignore Type, but
weapon slot. if we had two weapon slots, we could make them
This would cost 2 points, but we wish to be able to both Selectable for a 20% discount.
field a weapon with a large save modifier, raising the
cost to 6 points. Finishing up:
We want the vehicle to be a tank hunter, raising the Our design costs 33 points but we must now apply
total cost to 7 points. the Vehicle multiplier, bringing the final cost to 66
points.
Assault: Not bad.
Lacking close in defences, we will give the tank
hunter an Assault score of +0, which costs no points. If we want to field a unit of 3 of them, they’ll cost
It will have no assault traits. 196 points which must be rounded up to 200.

Save: We title the vehicle the “Desert Serpent” and pick

Vehicles begin with a 10+ save. We’ll reduce that to out a suitable miniature from our collection to
5+ which requires buying 5 “pips” for +5 points. represent it on the tabletop.

Morale:
It’s tempting to give “ambush” type of units a 5+ but
in the end we decide for a 4+, costing us +2 points.

Hull cost:
Adding all these values together gives us a cost of 16
points for the hull.
If we had any fractions, they would now be rounded
up.
 63

UNIT BUILDER REFERENCE

MOVEMENT FACTORS
Characteristic Base Cost per increase Notes
Speed 4 +0.25
Cavalry Speed 8 +0.25
Walker +2
Grav vehicle +4
Grav vehicle w/ minimum +3
Move Out +0.5
Scout +1
Jump Troop +1 Infantry only
Transport +1.5 per slot Vehicle only
Gun Only transport +1 Capacity 1 only

FIRING FACTORS
Characteristic Base Cost per increase Notes
Aim 5+ +1 (inf) / +2 (all other) / +4 (-4 save over 10”) Cost is per weapon slot
Tank Hunters +1
Precise Fire +1

ASSAULT FACTORS
Characteristic Base Cost per increase Notes
Assault +0 +0.5
Assault exceeding +3 +1 In addition to normal cost
Charge +0.5 Must be infantry or cavalry
Melee Weapons +0.5 Must be infantry or cavalry
Guard +1
Infest +1 Must be infantry
Terror +1 Per 2 dice

DEFENCE FACTORS
Characteristic Base Cost per increase Notes
Saving throw Inf/Cav/Light/Gun 6+ +1 Minimum of 3+
Saving throw 10+ +1 Minimum of 2+
Vehicle
Saving throw 18+ +1 Minimum of 1+
Super-Heavy
Saving throw 24+ +1 Minimum of 1+
Behemoth
Stealth +2 Cannot be Super Heavy or Behemoth
Active Defences +3
 64

MORALE FACTORS
Characteristic Base Cost per increase Notes
Morale 6+ +1
Morale below 4+ +1 One-time premium
Tactical Deployment +1
Inspiration +3
Stubborn +1
Horde +1

TARGETING FACTORS
Characteristic Cost Notes
10”/20”/30”/40” range +0/+2/+5/+10
Heavy -1 Any
Indirect +3 Any

IMPACT FACTORS
Characteristic Cost Notes
Save modifier +2 per pip
Save mod exceeds -6 +2 extra One time premium
Save mod exceeds -10 +5 extra One time premium in addition to above
Frag -25% Must have save of -2 or better
Burst +4+Save Any
Flame +6 Cannot be anti-tank

SHOT FACTORS
Characteristic Cost Notes
Per shot after 1 +50% of range+save cost
Repeating fire +0.5 per shot Any
Aim +0.5 Must have more than one weapon system

ADDITIONAL FACTORS
Mode Cost Type Cost Field gun Unit multiplier Cost
Anti-tank or - Primary - -1 if only one weapon system Vehicle X2
Anti-infantry
General Purpose +50% Selectable -20% Super heavy X3
Behemoth X4
 65

TYPICAL UNIT SCORES

This chapter helps set norms for what are typical for a unit of a given class.
You can also use the pre-generated units as inspiration.

SPEED
Human infantry will move 4” though elite or lightly equipped troops could go as fast as 6”.
Field guns will be set at 4” mostly for playability. Trailing across the table one or two inches at
a time is a waste of time.

Vehicle movement can range from 6”-8” for heavier tracked vehicles up to 12” for light, quick
scout vehicles or light tanks.

AIM
Typical Aim is 5+.
Units with good targeting systems or superior training receive a 4+.
This is typically the case for most main battle tanks.
Reserve a 3+ score for elite units of exceptional quality.

ASSAULT
Infantry will range from 0 for standard light troops with rifles and machine guns up to +4 for
the absolute best equipped and trained human troops or a “typical” bug swarm with big, nasty
claws.
Decent assault troops will fall inbetween.

Tanks typically receive only a +1 or +2 if they are particularly difficult to assault, for example
due to thickness of armour or close-in defences.
Light vehicles typically receive a 0.

Super heavies are treated as tanks unless they are capable of physically fighting, such as many
walkers, in which case scores up to +8 might be appropriate.

SAVE
Infantry saving throws will range from 5+ to 3+ in most cases, representing the range from
“helmet and flak jacket” to “hard suits” to “powered armour”.
Light vehicles will typically have 5+ saves if they can endure some scattered small arms fire.

Lighter walkers, one-man “assault armour” suits and similar are best classified as light
vehicles with a 3+ or 4+ saving throw.
Such units are resilient but not impervious to small arms fire and are typically unable to stand
up to dedicated anti-tank weapons.

Fully armoured vehicles will range from 6+ for very thinly armoured vehicles (such as
personnel carriers) to 2+ for a main battle tank.

MORALE
4+ for regular troops, 3+ for elites and confident units while light or scouting units should be
one grade worse.
 66

BUILDING ARMIES
Army building can be done in a number of ways, depending on the group play style and
preferences. A few are outlined below:

SCENARIO DRIVEN
In a scenario driven game, one player comes up with a scenario in advance, which details the
objectives for each side as well as what forces they will each use.

Some scenarios may be very specific, while others may provide rough guidelines as to the forces
used.

Scenario driven games can often be between highly unequal forces, as the scenario objectives and
special conditions can compensate for such imbalances.
For example, a numerically stronger force is balanced out by having to attack into dense, easily
defended terrain.

This works well for a group with a Game Master that is responsible for “running” the game.

CONSENSUS DRIVEN
A consensus game relies on players being on roughly the same pace.
The players may set up in advance roughly how large a game they want to fight and any particular
conditions or limitations they wish to set.
Each player prepares an army of the troops they wish to use.

Once the armies are created, take a look at the forces on each side and see if it seems it would be a
fair fight.
If not, adjust a little here and there, adding, removing, changing or upgrading units until both
players feel they have a decent shot at winning.

You can tweak things by the placement of objectives and scenario rules as well.
This style works well for groups that are on the same pace and are not too competitive.
The adjustment process can also be done by a neutral third party.

POINTS DRIVEN
In a Points driven game, you use the points system to build an army.
While no points system is 100% waterproof, the resulting armies should come out reasonably close
to each other in performance and each have a decent chance of winning the game.

Points driven games and “balance” is something that can be discussed endlessly and the results will
always differ.
Player skill, familiarity with certain unit types or play styles, terrain usage and density, table sizes
and more will all influence your sense of balance.

Played on a small table with very dense terrain, heavy weapons troops will seem too expensive,
while fast assault troops will seem too cheap.
The exact same forces on a large, desert table will seem reversed.
As such, gaming groups that have established a particular style should be prepared to adjust points
values to fit their specific situation.
 67

THE ARMY BUILDING PROCESS

If using the points system, you can simply purchase units to go in your army but it is recommended
you use the Army Building process outlined here.
It will help provide more structure to your forces.

Building an army goes through the following steps:

Steps marked with * are not required.

Select a Task Force

Select a Task Force commander
Select Core units
Select Specialist stands*
Select Command units
Select Support units*

TASK FORCE
An army is comprised of a number of Task Forces.
The rules use the term Task Force to indicate a large formation of troops that can make up a battle
force.

In your particular setting, a Task Force may be named something different for a given army, faction
or alien species.
Some players may prefer to use real-life military terms, such as companies and battalions.

A Task Force is essentially a structure that units can be attached to. Each Task Force will consist of
a number of units , usually assigned as a whole to one Battle Group, though in some cases, they
may be broken down and distributed out. This is called cross attachment.

In a smaller game, the entire army may consist of a single Task Force.

Task Forces are ultimately organizational entities for army-building, though over time, players will
no doubt develop their favourite Task Forces that have seen countless hard battles.

Task Force options:

The rules provide a number of sample Task Force structures to act as examples.
Players may devise their own to fit their own settings and game worlds.

Each Task Force will provide a number of unit slots, each of which may be filled with one unit of
the indicated type.
Each unit type will be listed as a range (for example 0-2 or 1-3). The lowest number in the range is
a required number of units.

Example: A Task Force that allows 1-3 vehicle units is required to have at least one vehicle unit and
may have up to three.
 68

Disclaimer:
The unit ranges are intentionally given to provide as much freedom as possible to players, while
still establishing some structure.
This means that you may end up with, for example, an infantry Task Force that has less infantry
than it does vehicles. Feel free to rename them or come up with your own explanations for why that
may be the case.

INFANTRY LIGHT VEHICLE SUPER BEHEMOTH FIELD GUN CAVALRY

VEHICLE HEAVY
Infantry 3-5 0-1 0-1 0 0 0-1 0-1
Armour 0-1 0-2 3-5 0-1 0 0 0
Combined Arms 1-3 0-1 1-3 0-1 0 0 0
Line Breaker 0-1 0 0-1 1-3 0-2 0 0
Recon 0-1 2-3 0 0 0 0 0-3
Heavy 0-1 0 0 0-3 0-3 1-3 0

TASK FORCE COMMANDER

Each Task Force is led by a Commander.
This is distinct from the Commander stands we employ on the gaming table. As such, the
abbreviation TFC (Task Force Commander) is applied.

The TFC is assumed to be directing operations from behind the front lines and provide general
command and control. In essence, this is what permits us to give orders to our troops directly and
without delay.

TFC's have their own tactical approaches and fighting styles, which is reflected in their Tactical
Assets.
Each TFC may provide a number of Assets which may be employed either during deployment or
during the game itself to provide an advantage.
In a typical game, 1 Asset is provided per TFC but a particularly renowned or skilled commander
could provide more.

SELECT CORE UNITS

The units permitted by the Task Force are considered to be the Core units.
You may now select units for each Task Force, provided they fit into any open slot.

SELECT SPECIALIST STANDS

Every Core unit permits up to one independent stand to be added of the same class.
For example, if a Task Force has 3 infantry units, they could include up to 3 Independent infantry
stands as well.

SELECT COMMAND UNITS

At this point, add any Command elements desired. The type is not dependent on the Task Force
type.
Only one Command stand may be included for every 2 Core units in the Task Force
 69

SELECT SUPPORT UNITS

Each Task Force may have up to 3 additional units attached to them, regardless of slot availability.
These additional units are assumed to be cross-attached from other formations or from higher levels
in the military hierarchy.

A 10% premium cost must be paid for the inclusion of any support units.

This premium is added to the total, final cost of the unit.

Round the modified support unit cost up to the nearest 5 points

Example:
My Armour Task Force has 1 unit of infantry already but I wish to add another.
The unit I want to add costs 180 points.
I must pay a premium of 18 points, which brings the cost to 198 points. The final value will be 200
points.

PLAY VARIATIONS

*Specify the maximum number of Task Forces each player may select.

*Limit the types of support units that may be selected.

*Limit certain Task Force types in number or require players to select one of each type before
doubling up.

Paul Lilley
 70

TASK FORCE COMMANDERS

While our troops are defined primarily by their training, quality, morale and weaponry, they are also
shaped by their commanders.
The leader of a Task Force is assumed to emphasize certain aspects tactically, granting tangible
benefits and options during game play.

When establishing a Task Force, select a Tactical Asset from the list provided.
In campaigns, it is recommended to create your own, unique Assets for specific Task Force
Commanders that have prevailed in battles.
Likewise, alien armies may have their own Asset lists that reflect the way they fight.

It is recommended that players prepare cards for their Assets, to help track them.
Alternatively, place a nicely painted miniature of your Task Force Commander adjacent to the table
edge, and put them away when their Asset has been employed.
As this is a game marker, rather than an in-game unit, this figure could be out of scale. For example,
a 6mm army may use a nice, 28mm character figure to represent the Task Force Commander.

In an introductory scenario, Assets may be omitted for simplicity.

Note that Assets are provided by Task Force Commanders, not on-table Command stands.

ASSETS IN THE GAME

An Asset is defined as an ability to do something not normally permitted by the game rules, on a
unit-wide basis.

Players are encouraged to use their imaginations when playing Assets. Drop troops may land from a
craft, teleport into place, pop out of underground tunnels, navigate using stealth cloaks or any
number of other options.
Be creative and have fun.

Asset employment:
Asset usage is subject to the following rules:

Unless otherwise is stated, an Asset affects a single unit, once.

Assets affecting friendly units must be used on units in the commanders Task Force.

Assets affecting enemy units or objectives must be used on targets in sight of a stand in the
commanders Task Force.

Assets do not affect Super Heavy and Behemoth class units.

Assets will specify at what time they may be utilized.

Deployment Assets are used when the Task Force is set up.
Activation Assets may be used when the Battle Group card for that Task Force is drawn.
Reinforcement Assets may be used when a Battle Group arrives as reinforcements.
 71

LARGE BATTLES
If both players have 5 or more Task Forces, the battle is considered a Large Battle.

If the game is Large, for every 4 TFC, one may be designated as a Senior TFC.

Senior TFC may affect up to three units or a single Super Heavy or Behemoth stand when using an
Asset.

EPIC BATTLES
If both players have 10 or more Task Forces, the battle is considered to be Epic.

For every 8 TFC, one may be designated as a Lord. The Lord may affect up to three Super Heavy or
Behemoth units with their Asset, when utilized.

Example:
We are playing a huge game with 12 TFC on each side.
This would result in 3 Senior TFC, 1 Lord and consequently 8 remaining regular TFC.

ASSET USE EFFECT

Infiltration Deployment The unit may set up in any terrain feature within 10” of the deployment area.
Forward deployment Deployment The unit may be deployed up to 6” forward of the normal deployment area.
Entrenchments Deployment The unit may set up in entrenchments. These do not block line of sight but
provide cover from fire. Each entrenchment is exactly the size of the stand
placed in it. Entrenchments may be abandoned and occupied by other units.
Reserves Deployment The unit may arrive from the friendly table edge during the battle groups first
activation or may be placed in reserve at that time.
Deception Deployment After all forces have been deployed, the unit may be redeployed anywhere that
would be a valid deployment location.
Camouflage Deployment The unit may not be targeted by pre-game bombardment fire.
It is not considered to be the nearest target for any enemy command stand
during the bombardment phase.
Follow on forces Activation One unit that was regrouped may be placed within 4” of any objective
currently controlled.
No stands may be placed within 8” of enemy forces.
Fire support Activation One stand in the unit may target any enemy unit in sight.
Roll 8 attack dice, hitting on a 4+, with a -2 saving throw modifier or 3 shots
with a -6 saving throw modifier.
Area denial Activation Select an objective. All enemy stands within 8” must retreat 3” towards their
own table edge.
Rallying point Activation One unit may be regrouped automatically.
Wave attack Activation After finishing the unit movement, for every stand that reached close combat,
all remaining stands may move an additional 1”.
Drop troops Reinforcements The unit may drop anywhere on the table that is at least 8” from enemy forces,
but may not take any actions this turn.
Flank attack Reinforcements The unit may arrive from either of the “neutral” table edges, from any point up
to half way across the table.

Deployment – The asset is used during the deployment of your forces.

Activation – The asset may be used when a battle group card for your side is drawn.
Reinforcements – The asset is used when the battle group held as reinforcements has its card drawn.
 72

THE SCENARIO
LaserStorm can accommodate custom scenarios and setting up unique victory conditions for your
armies can be a lot of fun, especially if you have been playing a series of games with the same
armies.
Personal rivalries, feared units and unlucky heroes will start to populate your games. Go ahead and
give them the rules and scenarios they deserve.
LaserStorm is a pretty hard game to break so don't be afraid to experiment.

For quick, pick-up games, we present the following standard battle rules.

SCENARIO CHECK LIST

Set up table Set up as desired.

Place objective markers 2-6 objective markers at least 8” apart
Select Tactical Assets 1 Asset per Task Force Commander
Determine Setup Areas 2D6+20” apart
Establish Battle Groups Each force must be broken into three Battle Groups, each containing no less than 25% of
the army
Deploy your forces Draw Battle Group cards and deploy in order
Pre Game Bombardment Alternate firing indirect fire weapons. Must target closest enemy visible to a command
stand
Begin game Get it on!

SET UP THE TABLE

The best gaming tables are often set up cooperatively, with the players placing terrain features
together. It's a good idea to have a theme for the table, selecting and placing features to fit that
theme.
If you are playing in a campaign, match the table set up to the campaign region you are fighting in.

As a general rule, try to cover at least 25-35% of the table in terrain features and more does not hurt
at all.

PLACE OBJECTIVE MARKERS

Battles are fought to capture and control vital locations on the table.
Looking at the gaming table, specific locations may suggest themselves to you: Important buildings,
cross-roads, high points etc.

If nothing obvious suggests itself, don't fear. Even if a given position is not obviously valuable to
the grunts on the field, it may be of great import to the overall war effort.

Depending on the size of gaming table, place 2-6 objective markers on the table.
Markers should be spaced out roughly evenly. If a marker is placed closer to one side than the other,
try to ensure that another marker is offset to the opposite side by roughly the same amount.

Objectives should never be closer than 8” apart and ideally 10-12” apart. Adjust for table size. If
you find that your objectives are getting too crowded, remove one or two.
 73

Optionally, let one player place the markers and then letting the other player rearrange half the
markers (rounded up) as they see fit.

Bear in mind that markers are placed before the players know which side they will approach from.

SELECT TACTICAL ASSETS

Each side receives one tactical asset for every Task Force Commander they have.

DETERMINE SETUP AREAS

Roll 2D6+20. The result is the gap in inches that must be observed between the two forces. Mark
off an equal amount of space on each side of the table to deploy in.

Particularly large battles may benefit from more neutral space, to facilitate large armoured
movements. At 1500 points and for every 500 points beyond that, add an additional 1D6”.

Roll randomly to determine who sets up on which side of the table.

ESTABLISH BATTLE GROUPS

Each player now breaks their forces out into three Battle Groups, if they have not done so already.
Each Battle Group should be reasonably close in size (stands or points value) unless players have
agreed otherwise.

If using the army building system, assign one Task Force to each Battle Group.
If more than three Task Forces are used, one may be broken up and cross-attached.

DEPLOY YOUR FORCES

Shuffle the battle group cards from each player together and draw a card at random.
The indicated battle group is now set up anywhere in the players deployment area.

Battle group units do not have to be set up near each other or in any particular proximity.

Once all units from that battle group have set up, draw another card and set up that battle group.

Once a player has set up two battle groups, the third battle group will be set aside to arrive as
reinforcements.

PRE GAME BOMBARDMENT

Once all forces have been set up, each player may carry out pre-game bombardments.
The player with the most indirect fire capable units fires first and players then alternate until all
units have fired.
On a tie, decide at random who fires first.

Each unit must direct all its fire at one target unit.
All bombardments must be directed by a Command stand and be targeted against the closest enemy
unit in sight.
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BEGIN THE GAME

When all forces have been deployed or set aside as reinforcements and all bombardments have
finished, shuffle the Battle Group cards and draw the first card to begin the game.

REINFORCEMENTS
Reinforcements are distinct from the reserve that units are placed in, when they fail Morale tests.

When the card for a reinforcement Battle Group is drawn, the units will move on to the table from
that players table edge.
Any units may be left behind and not deployed at that time. If so, the unit is moved into reserve and
must be deployed using the standard regroup rules in the Morale chapter.

CONTROLLING OBJECTIVES
To capture an objective, a figure must be within 4” and there must be no enemy troops within the
same distance.

If both sides have troops within 4”, the objective is contested and is not in either players control.

Objectives must be perpetually held. If abandoned, they revert to neutrality.

ENDING AND WINNING THE GAME

The scenario functions on a “Sudden Death” basis.

At the end of each turn, after the last Battle Group card is drawn, count how many objectives are
held by each side.
Award 1 victory point for every objective held.
If the total accumulated victory points reaches the sudden death total for the game, the game ends in
a victory for the player that reached it.

The score required to win is found below:

OBJECTIVE COUNT STANDARD GAME EXTENDED GAME LONG GAME

2 4 5 6
3 6 8 9
4 8 10 12
5 10 13 15
6 12 15 18

Last gasp efforts:

In the event 2 (or more) forces reach or exceed their victory point goals in the same turn, use the
following process:

In a multi-player game, any force that did not reach its victory point goal is removed from the game.
The remaining forces will play one additional turn.

At the conclusion of the additional turn, the side with the highest total victory points wins the game.
 75

TOTAL WAR
In the default scenario, the loss of troops is not a factor in winning the encounter.

The Morale rules will force troops off the table if they are placed in situations where they
accumulate repeated losses and in a campaign game, the player should be well motivated to act
cautiously.

In a one-off scenario, feel encouraged to send your troopers to a horrible fate if it will help win the
day.

Sean Gewecke
 76

CAMPAIGN RULES
THE WARGAMES CAMPAIGN
Campaign games can be one of the most enjoyable ways to play a war game.
It gives you a chance to establish the sort of sweeping narrative we get from a book, and it opens up
the chance for uneven battles that we'd normally avoid in a pick-up game.

Campaigns can be run in a number of ways, from simply chaining together the background story for
your battles to the fully featured campaign system provided in this chapter.
Don't feel you have to confine your campaigns to only be played in one, specific manner.

It should be noted that campaign play DOES involve record keeping, and often a fair bit of it. Good
organization will go a long way towards making everything run smoothly.

BUILDING CAMPAIGN ARMIES

The LaserStorm campaign is about huge armies, sweeping across the land.

As such, the first step is to create a huge army!

The entirety of a players forces in a campaign is known as an Expeditionary Force, though players
may elect a different term to fit their particular setting or campaign world.

Campaigns can be played in any number of game sizes. For the overall Expeditionary Force, select
a points total from 5000 to 30.000 points.

You will use this total to build a series of independent field Armies, each of which will operate on
the campaign map as a single entity.

You are free to construct your armies as you see fit. For example, you may have some small, scout
forces, a number of strike forces and a few big, heavy hitting armies.

Note that losing armies will impact your overall victory conditions, so avoid producing a mass of
very tiny “ant” armies. Likewise, putting too many troops into a single army will prevent you from
being able to contest the objectives of the campaign.

Do note that there is absolutely no reason a campaign must be only 2 players. Multiple players can
participate, whether on two teams, a three (or four) sided war or whatever else you can come up
with.
Improvise as needed, for unusual situations.

Logistics:
Each army will need a clear name, letter or number designation that can be marked on the campaign
map, as well as an army list indicating clearly all troops and equipment that make up the army.
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ARMY GROUPS
As with a regular table-top force, your armies will be broken into exactly three Army Groups. Total
up your armies and split them between the three army groups.

The army groups do not have to be identical sized, but each should contain no less than 25% of the
total armies in your campaign force.

For example, if the overall force has 12 armies, each army group must have at least 3 armies in it.
A split of 3,4,5 would be acceptable.

Logistics:
Each army group must be clearly named or labelled and a card deck must be prepared with one card
representing each army group in the campaign.
The player must have an easy-to-read list indicating what Armies belong with what Army Group.
Shuffle all army group cards together into one deck of cards.

THE CARD DECK

As with regular tabletop battles, the campaign will have its own card deck.
This consists of the following cards:

CARD GAME FUNCTION

Battle Group Cards Every Battle Group has one card in the deck.
Forced March Place one Forced March card in the deck for every 3 Battle Groups in the campaign. This number
can be varied up and down as desired.
Organization Place one Organization card in the deck.
GM cards If the Game Master running the campaign wishes to have third party forces, random events or
similar, add cards as appropriate to the deck. Typically, one GM card can be added and when
drawn, the GM evaluates all such options.

THE MAP
A campaign needs a map to fight over, divided into squares (optionally, you can use hexes or even
oddly shaped map spaces).
Mark off appropriate terrain on the map so it looks interesting and visually appealing.

One option is use a real-world map and impose a grid over it, though a player with an artistic bent
could create a cool, elaborate custom map for the campaign as well.

Make sure the map has a variety of terrain types, towns, population centres and similar objects of
interest.

Map size:
The map size will depend on the size of your campaign.
A 5000 point campaign could be played comfortable on a 15x15 map grid, while an epic 30.000
point maelstrom may need 40x40 or even 40x60.

As a rule of thumb, make the map about 3 spaces wide and 3-4 spaces deep for every army group in
the larger army.

For example, if one player has 10 army groups and the other has 12, use a grid that is 36 spaces
wide and 36-48 spaces deep as a starting point.
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CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES
Campaigns are fought for objectives that transcend the life and death of an individual trooper.
They may be locations of political importance, valuable resources, population centres or even
symbols of religious and national value.

The number of campaign objectives will depend on the size of the campaign and its length.

A good rule of thumb is 1 objective for every 2000 points worth of armies. So a 20.000 point
campaign would have 10 markers scattered around the map.

You can assign these in any fashion you want. Try to look for terrain that makes a natural focus,
such as bridges, towns, high ground or cross roads.
Try to spread them out, though it can be fun to create a “high value” area near the middle of the
board, where 2 or 3 markers are within a few spaces of each other.

If all else fails, have one player mark the objectives, while the other gets to choose where to deploy
in the next step.

PRIORITY OBJECTIVES
For each objective marker, roll 1D6 and consult below.

ROLL OBJECTIVE VALUE

1-4 Standard objective Worth 1 Victory Point per turn.
5 High priority Worth 2 Victory Points per turn.
6 Urgent priority Worth 1 Victory Point per turn. Awards 1 bonus Victory Point to the first army to capture
it.

Indicate all High and Urgent objectives in an appropriate fashion on the map.

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES
Optionally, the players may place up to half again as many Secondary Objective markers.

These are worth a single Victory Point when captured and are then removed from the campaign
map.

DEPLOYING ARMIES
Determine randomly which player sets up on which side of the map.
Optionally, if one player positioned all the objective markers, the other player picks first.

To find the depth of the deployment area, divide the depth of the map (in map spaces) into four.
Each player receives a fourth of the map to deploy on.

For example, if the map was 40 spaces deep, your deployment space would extent 10 spaces into
the map, from your edge.

From the deck of Army Group cards, draw one card at a time and set up all Armies belonging to the
Army Group, anywhere within the deployment area.
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THE ARMY ON THE MAP

An army must always occupy a single map space and be clearly indicated with a name, letter,
number or other designation that is visible to all players and does not change.

All army lists are kept secret, unless subject to scouting and may not be inspected during campaign
play.

When an army takes the field in a battle, all units can be revealed and players may inspect the army
lists as normal.
A campaign with a referee or Game Master may prohibit inspection of army lists, letting players
reveal unit capabilities as they come up in a game.

THE CAMPAIGN TURN

Each Campaign turn, shuffle all cards in the deck and draw one at a time.

Whenever an Army Group is drawn, each Army in that Group may be moved and engage in combat.

When Forced March cards are drawn, set them aside and draw again.
When an Army Group is drawn, before any actions can take place, the opposing player takes the
Forced March cards and may immediately play them.

FORCED MARCH
When a Forced March card becomes available for play, as indicated above, the player given the card
may immediately select any one Army under their command and move it one space on the map.

This move takes place regardless of terrain features, unless the map space is impassable. It can be
used to enter combat.

MOVING FORCES
When an Army Group is activated, all Armies comprising it may move.

Moving is not required.

Armies may move in any order but each Army must finish its movement before another Army
begins moving.

Movement rates:
Movement speeds in the campaign environment are based more on tactical doctrines and supply
concerns. As such they are based off unit types, rather than individual movement speeds on the table
top.

An Army must move at the slowest rate of all troops making up the army. Transport vehicles may of
course transport infantry and guns as normal.
Wheeled and Tracked regular vehicles may also hitch a ride to any infantry in force though this is
obviously inadequate for proper mechanization.
For every 2 such vehicles, 1 infantry stand may be considered to be transported.
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The following modifiers apply:

UNIT MOVE
Infantry or gun 1 Vehicle with Grav mobility type +1

Cavalry 2 Infantry with Scout unit trait 2

Light vehicle 3
Regular vehicle 2
Super heavy vehicle 2
Behemoth 1

Unused movement points are discarded and have no effect. For simplicity, each player should
indicate the Army movement rate clearly on their army rosters and check after any encounter or
reorganization, to make sure it's kept accurate.

CARRYING OUT MOVEMENT

When moving, an Army may move into any adjacent map space. When playing on a square grid, no
additional penalty applies when moving diagonal.

Any map space that is considered to be “Difficult” terrain requires a terrain roll upon entering the
space.
Roll 1D6. On a 1-2, the Army loses 1 point of any remaining movement this turn.
If the Army entered the Difficult terrain with its last movement point this turn, there is no need to
roll.

Map spaces are difficult in the following circumstances:

*Space contains urban area, forest, marsh or broken ground

*Space contains campaign objective
*Space is adjacent to an enemy army
*Space contains friendly army

Only one roll is made, regardless of the number of conditions that apply.

MAKING CONTACT
Friendly Armies can occupy the same map space but must treat the space as Difficult ground upon
entering.

ENCOUNTERS
Any Army that enters a map space containing enemy Armies must cease all remaining movement
immediately.
If an Army from the active Army Group is contacted by a Forced March before it can activate, it is
prevented from moving during this activation.

It is possible for multiple Armies to engage one enemy Army though remember that all map spaces
adjacent to an enemy Army are considered difficult terrain.

All movements for an Army Group are finished, before any battles are resolved.
If multiple battles are taking place, the active player selects the first battle to be resolved, then the
opposing player selects and so forth, taking turns selecting until all battles have been resolved.
 81

Note that in a large campaign, several encounters may be taking place. To avoid losing track, keep
clear notes of what battles have been resolved and what battles still remain.

REORGANIZING
When the Organization card is drawn, both sides may reorganize their armies. This allows the
following options to be carried out:

*Armies may be split and new Armies created from the component units.
Place the newly formed Armies in the same map space.
*Armies in the same map space may transfer units between each other or merge into one Army.
*Units within an Army may be consolidated into new units, provided the units obey all regular
organizational rules.

Any newly formed armies must belong to the same Army Group as the parent Army.
If two Armies merge into one, they may belong to either parent Army Group.

In addition, each player may re-assign one Army to a different Army Group. Any such changes must
be clearly voiced and indicated.

DISSOLUTION OF UNITS AND ARMIES

Whether through losses or reorganization, a unit or an entire army could cease to exist.
If this is the case, it is removed from existence completely.

All experience upgrades cease to exist.

A dissolved unit or army cannot be re-established to claim an in-game benefit associated with the
original unit.
A new unit or army created under the same name is legal but is considered a brand new, distinct unit
for all intents and purposes.

SCOUTING
An Army that ends its move without entering an encounter with an enemy Army may attempt to
send out scouting parties.

Armies are given a Scout range, based on the most capable scouting unit in the force.

UNIT SCOUT RANGE

Light vehicle or Cavalry 3
Infantry with Scout trait 3
Infantry 2
All other units 1

If an Army ends its move not engaged in an encounter, it may send out a scout party.
Select a unit that qualifies for the Scout range you wish to use.
Select one enemy Army within range. The range may not be drawn through any enemy-occupied
map spaces but ignores all terrain and movement considerations otherwise.

Roll 1D6 and consult the Scout table below:

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ROLL SCOUT RESULT

1 Ambush. Roll 1D6 for every stand in the scout unit. On a 1-2, the stand is destroyed.
2-3 No information gained. One Scout stand lost on 1D6 roll of 1.
4 Learn total number of stands. Learn if any super heavy or behemoth vehicles are included.
5 Learn number of stands of each group: Light units (infantry, gun, cavalry, light vehicle), Medium units
(vehicles), Heavy units (Super heavy and Behemoth units)
6 Learn number of stands of each unit type (Infantry, cavalry, gun, light vehicle, vehicle, super heavy,
behemoth)

ENTRENCHING
An Army that does not move may dig in. Place a suitable marker by the unit on the campaign map.

If attacked while dug in, all non-super heavy, non-behemoth, non-grav troops that set up in the
regular deployment area may set up in entrenchments, providing cover and concealment.

Entrenchments are lost when a unit moves and the entire Army loses Entrenchment status after
fighting a battle or moving.

Entrenched armies cannot send out Scout parties.

This is a slight abstraction to indicate that the Army is in a defensive posture and not offensively
minded.

REVEAL FORCE STRENGTH

Before setting up the battle, each player reveals their total number of light stands (infantry, guns,
cavalry, light vehicles), vehicles and heavy units (super heavy and behemoth stands).

Each player then writes down if they wish to disengage from the encounter.

DISENGAGING FROM BATTLE

When a battle takes place, either player may declare that they will try to disengage.
Note that entrenched armies must stand and fight, they cannot disengage.

To disengage, roll 1D6, with a 5-6 indicating that the army has managed to disengage.
Add +1 if the disengaging army has higher army movement speed than the attacker.

Disengaging carries significant risk. On a roll of 1, not only the army fail to disengage but it must
test for losses.
Roll 1D6 for every unit making up the army. On a 1, a stand is removed and the unit must roll
again, removing stands until it fails to score a 1.

Note that behemoth and super heavy units are just as susceptible to this as regular infantry. With
limited mobility and a near-complete inability to hide, such units are highly vulnerable during a
retreat situation.
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FIGHTING THE BATTLE

If the neither side manages to disengage, the battle will be resolved on the table top.

Set up as a conventional battle, however, campaign battles do not use the objective system, unless
the players agree to do so.

Instead, the battle carries on until one side has been destroyed, one side has all surviving troops in
reserve or one side has retreated off the table.

If at any time, only one player has forces on the table, then they are assuming to hold the field,
ending the battle.
The defeated army must retreat, as detailed in the Retreat section below.

Players may move off their own table edge to withdraw units voluntarily. Such units may not be
returned to the battle.
Units withdrawing off the side table edges have withdrawn, but must roll 1D6 for each stand, with a
1 indicating it is lost in action and removed from the army roster.

Ceasefire:
The two players may agree on a ceasefire at any time. In such a case, the army that initiated the
encounter is moved back into the last map space it occupied before the encounter.
Neither side suffer retreat losses in this case.

RETREAT
The defeated army must retreat after the battle ends. Armies retreat based on their current army
movement rate +1.
Make sure that retreat rates are recalculated based on losses taken. For example, an army may have
lost transport vehicles, reducing its mobility.

A player may elect to ditch any stands or units at this point. They are assumed to dissolve as
stragglers or remain as sacrificial rearguards.
Ditch any units before movement rates are calculated.

The player owning the retreating army may move them as desired, but if any of the following
conditions are violated, a retreat loss check must be made:

*A retreating army may not move adjacent to an enemy army.

*A retreating army may not move closer to the enemy campaign map edge.
*A retreating army may not move less than the full retreat movement rate.

Retreat loss check:

Any army that retreats must make a loss check. For each of the above conditions that are violated
on a single movement space, an additional loss check is taken.
Note that players may elect to violate the conditions deliberately to retreat an army into an
advantageous position, but runs the risk of unit loss.

For every loss check, roll 1D6 per unit in the army. A 1 indicates one stand is lost and another roll is
made for that unit.
As with losses from disengagements, behemoth units are just as vulnerable to this as infantry units
are.
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TROOP RECOVERY
Wrecked vehicles may be restored to functionality and scattered infantry formations may be rallied
and regrouped.

For every stand that was destroyed or lost in action, roll 1D6 below.
Note that ditched stands, retreat losses and disengagement losses cannot be regrouped, only battle-
losses.

If the die roll is equal or above the number indicated, the stand is recovered.
Stands that fail to recover are removed from the army lists.

REGULAR UNIT COMMAND OR HERO SUPER HEAVY OR BEHEMOTH

Retreating unit 5+ 4+ 6+
Held the field 4+ 3+ 5+
Ceasefire 4+ 3+ 5+

TROOP EXPERIENCE
After a battle ends, there is a chance of gaining experience.
This is handled by rolling a number of Experience Dice (D6), with each 6 indicating one experience
upgrade earned.

The number of dice rolled is based on the number of enemy units you encountered.
Count each enemy unit with at least 3 stands at the beginning of the battle.
Each Super Heavy stand counts as a unit and each Behemoth stand counts as 2 units.

OUTCOME RATIO
Battle was won 100%
Ceasefire 75%
Battle was lost 50%

Round any fractions up. For example, if the enemy fielded 13 units and I lost the battle, I would
receive 7 experience dice.

Roll the dice in one big pool and count the number of 6's.
For each 6, roll on the experience table below and select a unit to receive the upgrade.
Super Heavy and Behemoth units cannot gain upgrades.
Upgrades must be given to units without existing upgrades where possible. Once all units in an
army have been upgraded, any future upgrades can be issued to any units desired.

ROLL UPGRADE GAME FUNCTION

1 Fighting ability Reduce Aim target number by 1 or increase Assault by +1
2 Quality Reduce Morale or Saving Throw target number by 1
3 Weapons Increase range by +5” or improve Save Modifier by -1 for one weapon system
4 Fire power Increase number of Shots by 1 or change type to GP for one weapon system
5 Tactical asset When fielded with more than 1 stand, receive 1 additional tactical asset
6 Replacements Up to 2 destroyed vehicles or 3 infantry, cavalry, light vehicle or gun stands may be
replaced. Replacements take on any upgrades the unit has
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Applying upgrades:
Once applied to a unit, the upgrade applies to all stands in the unit, including any brought in as
replacements through the upgrade table above.
However, this does not transfer to any other stands that are merged into the unit, even if they are of
the same basic type.

The player may choose which of the indicated options to use but each unit can only ever have the
same bonus applied once. For example, a unit cannot receive a +2 bonus to saving throws over
time.

If a unit ceases to exist, even if it is later restored, all upgrades are lost and cannot be restored
though they can be earned again.
A unit has ceased to exist if at any time, it has no stands.

Commander experience:
If a force wins a battle and the enemy had at least half as many units as the winner (counting each
Super Heavy as a unit and each Behemoth as two units), roll 1D6 for each Task Force Commander.
On a 6, they have improved their talents and may now provide 2 tactical assets per battle.

OBJECTIVES AND VICTORY

At the conclusion of each campaign turn, each player checks to determine which objectives they
have captured.

An objective is captured if an army has moved into the map space containing the objective.

Once captured, mark the objective as appropriate. It will remain in that players control until it is
either contested or captured by the opposing side.

Opening moves:
In the first two turns of the campaign, no Victory Points are awarded for objectives, with the
exception of one-time awards.

Contested:
An objective becomes Contested if an enemy moves into an adjacent map space. It remains
Contested until recaptured.

Tallying victory points:

After determining which objectives are currently captured by each side, tally up victory points for
each player.

OBJECTIVE VALUE CONDITIONS

Standard or Urgent objective +1 Victory Point Not in turn 1 or 2
High priority objective +2 Victory Points Not in turn 1 or 2

Some objectives provide a one-time award:

OBJECTIVE VALUE CONDITIONS

Urgent objective +1 Victory Point Becomes Standard objective after awarding
Secondary objective +1 Victory Point Remove after awarding
 86

The destruction of enemy troops can also provide additional victory points.
When a battle encounter ends in victory for one player (not a ceasefire), they may check for Victory
Point gains.
If the enemy force consisted of at least 5 units and had at least 50% of the winning army's strength
in units (count each super heavy stand as one unit and each behemoth as two. Ignore independent
stands and any unit smaller than 3 stands), roll 1D6.

ROLL RESULT
1-4 Just another day
5-6 +1 Victory Point

The campaign goal:

The players may set the goal to win at any number they feel comfortable with.
To determine the number, look at the number of campaign objectives. A good goal is 5 points for
every 2 objectives on the map, but this can be varied up or down as needed.

A low points goal will increase the emphasis on securing objectives quickly, while a higher goal
will produce more of a protracted fight.

NUMBER OF SUGGESTED NUMBER OF SUGGESTED

NON-SECONDARY POINTS GOAL NON-SECONDARY POINTS GOAL
OBJECTIVES OBJECTIVES
4 10 7 18
5 13 8 20
6 15 9 23

CAMPAIGN ASSETS
Just like conventional tabletop warfare provides the players with assets they can utilize, campaigns
have their own assets.

These are utilized whenever it is a players turn. Assets may be written down or players may prefer
cards to reflect them.
During any Army Group turn, the player may utilize any campaign assets they wish.

Starting assets:
The number of assets can be varied. A good starting point is one asset for every 3000 points of total
army size.

Asset gains:
At the beginning of every turn, each player receives 1 new campaign asset.

Assets are not a required part of the game and can be omitted if desired.
Assets can be selected by the players or rolled randomly. This is left to player discretion. Make all
such decisions before the campaign begins.

Assets do not have to be used at once. They can be saved for any number of turns. Multiple assets
can be used at the same time, even on the same target Army.
 87

Counter-measures:
Whenever an enemy uses an asset, the opposing player may roll 1D6. On a 6, they immediately
receive a random asset and may use it themselves immediately.

VARIATIONS
Any number of variations is possible.
A few are suggested below:

One side begins with more forces but the other side will receive reinforcements at scheduled intervals.
Capturing objectives provides bonus army points.
Each side has a number of famous leaders. If they are killed, the enemy receives a bonus Victory Point.
Each turn has a chance of being bad weather, slowing down movement on the campaign map.
The winner can roll to recover destroyed enemy vehicles after a battle. 1 in 6 chance.
Objectives placed in cities have neutral defence forces that will resist armies attempting to occupy them.
Schedule reinforcements for both sides or create a reinforcement table.
The referee provides each player with special objectives to accomplish.
Part way through the campaign, a third force invades.
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CAMPAIGN ASSETS
Campaign Assets are similar to Tactical Assets in that they allow the player to take actions that
would not normally be possible.

Players may select assets based on what fits their army best, the particular setting they are playing
in or their strategic utility.

In a home-made setting, players may also devise their own assets to fit particular generals, alien
races or military units.

Numbers are listed, so assets can be rolled randomly on 1D10.

ROLL ASSET GAME FUNCTION

1 Reinforcements Player receives points equal to 1% of total campaign points value.
Spend on any units desired and add to any friendly army.
2 Raid Select an enemy army that may not move when its army group is next active.
3 Interdiction Select 3 adjacent map spaces. They cannot be entered during the next enemy battle
group activation.
Interdicted ground must be within 8 map spaces of an army in your army group.
4 Local recruitment Select an army and roll 1D6 for every infantry stand missing. Every 5-6 allows one
stand to be restored.
5 Bombardment Select an enemy army within 4 map spaces.
Player must roll 1D6 for every non-super heavy, non-behemoth unit. For every 1,
remove a stand and roll again.
6 Redeployment One army may be repositioned anywhere within 2 map spaces. It cannot currently be
adjacent to an enemy army and cannot be placed adjacent to an enemy army.
7 Salvage operation Select an army and roll 1D6 for every regular vehicle casualty. Every 5-6 allows one
vehicle to be restored.
8 Fortified zone One army may assume Entrenched status after moving.
9 Vital ground Select one objective currently held with no enemies within 3 map spaces.
Receive 1 Victory Point.
10 Rapid movement One army may move an additional 2 map spaces this turn.
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INTRODUCTORY SCENARIO

This scenario is intended to be playable with almost any scifi figures you may have sitting on your
shelf.
For that matter, historical figures can easily be pressed into service as well.

The unit types are selected to be as generic as possible, with both forces being identical. The
purpose of this scenario is purely as an introductory encounter, not as a full show case of all the
capabilities inherent in the LaserStorm system.

The battle is played using the normal objective marker system but does not use any tactical assets.
For this battle, all forces must be set up on the table at the beginning of the game. No units may be
held in reserve voluntarily.

FIGURES NEEDED
To play the scenario as written, you will need a total of 18 infantry stands and 13 vehicles on each
side.

The scenario can easily be scaled up and you will get a better feeling of a combined-arms battle by
adding a third unit of each type.

THE TERRAIN
Aim to cover about a quarter of the table in terrain features, spreading the features out with roughly
equal spacing.

At least half the terrain features should be ones that can be entered by ground troops, such as
woods, ruins or buildings.

SETTING UP THE TABLE

Measure out how wide your table is and divide the width in four.

Place two objective markers across the middle line of your table.
One marker is placed one quarter of the table width from the left hand side, the other marker is
placed one quarter of the table width from the right hand side.

THE OPPOSING FORCES

Each side receives the following troops. The forces can be organized into battle groups of 2 units
each.

3 command vehicles (individual stands)

2 platoons of mechanized infantry (4 stands and 2 APC each)

2 tank platoons (3 tanks each)

2 platoons of heavy infantry (5 stands each)

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Unit Class Speed Aim Assault Save Morale Weapons Type Mode Range Shots Save Traits
Command vehicle Veh 8 5+ +1 6+ 4+ Tank MG P AI 20” 1 0
Infantry Inf 4 5+ +1 5+ 4+ Rifles P AI 20” 1 0
APC Veh 12 5+ +0 6+ 4+ Autocannon P GP 30” 2 -2
Tank Veh 10 4+ +1 3+ 3+ Cannon P GP 30” 1 -5 Frag
Tank MG AI 20” 1 0
Heavy infantry Inf 4 5+ +0 5+ 4+ HMG S AI 20” 2 -1
Laser S AT 20” 1 -3 Aim

*APC can hold 2 stands.

*Command vehicles are Command stands for in-game purposes.

*All vehicles are tracked or wheeled at the players discretion. Use whatever matches your models.

DEPLOYING TO BATTLE
Measure 12 inches on both sides of the middle line. This marks the forward edge of each players
deployment zone.
This means there will be exactly 24” between the deployment zones, with the objectives located the
same distance from both.

Roll 1D6 each, with the lowest roll setting up one of their battle groups first and then alternating
between the players until all troops have been deployed.

Units in a battle group are not required to set up near each other.
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PLAY CHARTS
UNIT ACTIVATION BATTLE GROUP ACTIVATION
*Select unit to be activated *Roll for Commander regroup and self-rally attempts
*Carry out all movement *Carry out unit activations
*Declare if the unit will fire or has entered close combat *Resolve all combat as each unit activates
*Assign all firing targets *Inactive player takes Morale tests
*Carry out all firing *Active player takes Morale tests
*Carry out all close combats *Carry out any desired desperation rallies
*Attacker takes Follow On Combat moves *Activation ends
*Defender takes Follow On Combat moves
*Unit activation ends

CLASS MAY ASSAULT MOVES TAKES SNAP MAY BE SAVING

DOUBLE UNIT? AS? FIRE AS? ACTIONS? LOADED ON THROW?
TIME? TRANSPORTS?
Infantry Yes Yes Infantry Infantry Move/Fire Yes / 1 1D6
Cavalry Yes Yes Cavalry Infantry Move No 1D6
Field Gun No No Cavalry Infantry Fire Yes / 2 1D6
Light No No Mobility Worst of Move No 1D6
Infantry or
Vehicle type Vehicle

Vehicle No Yes Mobility Vehicle Move/Fire No 2D6/1D6

In open type
Super No Crush Mobility Vehicle Move/Fire No 3D6
Heavy type 1 stand only
Vehicle
Behemoth No Crush/Brawl Mobility Vehicle No No 4D6
type

TROOP CLASS ENTER OR EXIT TERRAIN CROSS OBSTACLE

Infantry 1” 2”
Cavalry 2” 4”

MOBILITY ENTER OR EXIT TERRAIN CROSS OBSTACLE SPECIAL

Walker 1” 2”
Tracked 2” 4”
Wheeled 3” NA +3” road bonus
Grav 0 0 Ignore terrain

TO-HIT ASSAULT
In the open => Aim score Roll 1D6 + Assault score.
Loser takes saving throw with difference as penalty and retreats.
Concealed or > Aim score Small units being crushed by Super-Heavy/Behemoth inflict 1 weapon hit
obscured if winning and then retreats.
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DESIGNER NOTES
I believe every game begins with a very simple thought or purpose, then expands from there.

For LaserStorm, that thought was “A lot of toys on the table”. When I sat about exploring how to
achieve that and explore my own experiences with large games, the proliferation of counters and
markers stood out to me.

“Easy enough, remove all those markers then!”. Easier said than done though. How should morale
work then? What about suppression? What about reaction fire? What about giant robots?

When you start deviating from the basic assumptions of what a game design can do, things start
getting pretty radical.

The result is a game that, I hope, plays both in ways that are familiar and easy to understand: (Roll
to hit, roll to save, remove the gits that failed) and in ways that are unlike anything out there: (Units
leave the table when they become combat-ineffective and return in new positions as commanders
rally them).

It's always nerve-wracking to write a game that aims at an established niche.

6mm has always been a little bit of a side-genre compared to 15mm platoon games and 25/28mm
skirmish games but it has some very clever, solid and well-practiced designs holding it up.
Games like Space Marine/Epic, Dirtside and Strike Legion.

Stepping into a genre that is so well-covered by great games and where one game (Epic) has largely
built up our expectations is a tremendous challenge, and one I feel quite nervous about it.

I think LaserStorm offers a distinct experience that can stand alongside the established titles and do
its own thing without directly intruding on them.

What is your campaign going to be about?

Best wishes
Ivan Sorensen
[email protected]