™

HEROES OF THE ATURI CLUSTER

A Fully Cooperative Rebel Campaign for X-Wing

Ground Assault Expansion

RuleBook
 Ground Assault Expansion V 2.07.05

CONTENTS
COMPONENTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
WALKERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
SPECIAL RULES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
MOVEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
SWERVING. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
NEW TERRAIN & RULES. . . . . . . . . 6
TERRAIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
SPECIAL CAMPAIN RULES . . . . . . . 6
DESIGNER'S NOTES. . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Foreword by
The legacy of Heroes of the Aturi Cluster is simply astounding. That a fan-made supplement from 2015
could accrue nearly half a million downloads, and continue to thrive a half-decade later through an active
online community, is testament to its quality and ingenuity. The cooperative “HotAC” experience clearly fills
a void in the X-Wing game that is both pressing and timeless.
With that enduring success in mind, it seemed long overdue to put together a formal expansion. We hope
that these new rules and missions feel familiar and intuitive, while breathing fresh air and excitement into
your campaigns.
This project was a true team effort. Shaun Tiernan updated Josh’s orginal work to Second Edition, and
ensured that these rules were balanced and true to the original game. Justin Gan produced the beautiful
new AI tables based on the work of Claes Sörensson,as well as many of the other components in this
expansion. Through it all, original HotAC creator Josh Derksen shared guidance, feedback, rules, and art
to ensure that this would be a product worthy of the HotAC title. Many more people than can be mentioned
here contributed to playtesting, components, graphics, and other aspects of the final product. Thank you all
for your contributions, and for making this possible.
COMPONENTS
This campaign assumes that the player group has
all the components required for Heroes of the
No Survivors
Lair of the Beast:
part IV
Aturi Cluster. This campaign also introduces a page
7
Mission Deck
number of new components you will need to print
starting mission
Drop Intercept
These cards are
before you can play the game: used to track page
Lair of the Beast: part I

4
Bunker Assault
the campaign’s Lair of the Beast: part III

REQUIRED X-WING COMPONENTS progress and page

6 RAL TERR
NEUT ITORY
randomize which 1O TURNS

All missions in the campaign take place on the standard missions are played.
Intercept Imperial pilots
trying to flee the plane
3x3’ or 90x90cm play area. While any 3x3’ mat will t.

12 !
work for game play purposes, using something ground- NEUTRAL TERRITORY TURNS
Disca rt

Bring down a Gozanti@ Discart

themed (rather than the standard starfield mat) will add to capture valuable
Requi
intel.
HOSTILEres: DENSE x3,
TERRITO
to the aesthetics of the game. Simple green or brown RY , ,4
12 TURNSÌ
! + “Clear Fly
the Way”
down the
felt is an affordable option, or even a bare wooden @ Return to deck destroy
twinsting canyon to
and shuffle
an Imperial bunker.

tabletop surface of the appropriate dimensions. ! Rebel

4 Victory
Requires: Dense x2, Ix1-2
Point,Ì
+ “No Survivors”
For Rebel forces you will need 1 U-Wing and 1 Z-95 @ Imperial Victory Point
Headhunter per player (dials and components will be V TIE REAPER Requires: Elevated x6, , , V, Tx1-2 Ì
used to represent T-47 Air speeders). For Imperial e f o j
forces you will need 2 TIE Strikers, 1 TIE Reaper, and R TIE Advanced V1
Basic
a Gozanti Class Cruiser. All other enemy ships are
Phase, enemy ships
1 W Death Troopers: During the Activation
at range 0-1 cannot remove Stress
tokens
f e l r>f b>f
included as token components, making it possible to fly Elite
3 S Advance Sensors:
3 W Tactical o replaces o in the Select Action step.
missions right after printing. Do not Officer:
skip Action Selection after a
collision with a ship or obstacle,
or after executing a red

Imperial Pilot Cards

maneuver.

If you do not have the ships or components listed for a m Hull Upgrade: Increase your hull
F Hate: After4youEsuffer
If ! Initiative is at 3+ add
value by 1.
Shot: { 2 ? 2

mission, feel free to either play another mission, proxy many h.

Snap 1 or more damage, recover
a maneuver, you may perform
After an enemy ship executes that
attack.
When deploying an
this attack against it, as a bonus
ATTACK: Your dice cannot be
modified.
Imperial ship, draw
the missing ships/pieces, or substitute another ship If ! Force is at 3 add
4 F Supernatural Reflexes: h1 If ! Initiative is at 4+ add one of these to
with the same base size and similar stats. However, 5 m” with
During the Select Action step, replace While you obstruct an enemy ship's

determine its type

Tactical Scrambler:
all instances of
"b or r>f “b>r>f 1 additional defense die.
attack, the defender rolls
or r>b>f”
be aware that substitution may affect the mission’s ! Initiative is at 5+ add and any upgrades.
! Force is atIf4 add
intended difficulty.
If
5 m Shield Upgrade:
6E Elusive: g1
Increase
you may spend 1g to reroll
your shield value by 1. 1 defense
When defending,
red maneuver, recover 1g
die. After you fully execute a

PRINT AND PLAY COMPONENTS

If Force is at 5+ add
6 y Grand Inquisitor (Offence): h1
While you perform an attack against
a defender at attack
*2
range 2-3, you may spend 1h
^1
to apply the range 1 bonus.
{3 &6
• Mission Deck • Terrain Tiles
• Imperial Pilot Cards • Reference Cards {2 ^3 &3 *2 h 1`
• A.I. Ship Statcards
These components are available as separate downloads.

A.I. Ship Statcards

V TIE Reaper Imperial ships use special
e f o j Statcards to determine their
movement, actions and
R4+

R3/R2+Fleeing
attack targets.
6 38
System Phase 1- 5 2 8 56 3 9 R2+Closing/R1
1- 4 3 9
If not Stressed use Adaptive
Ailerons. Execute the
maneuver that brings you
3- 6 2 8 35 29
closest to an enemy ship. If 12 1 8 1- 4 1 9
the maneuver would take you
off the board, skip this step

56 1 8 56 1 9 4- 6 2 9
1 . Select Target 4 23 34 1 6 56 29 1- 3 1 9
a . Nearest Enemy in { 3 21 12 1 2 34 1 9
1 2 05 2 26
b . Nearest Enemy 1 16
} 4- 6 1 9
23 1 6
2 . Select Maneuver 1 12
Check Target’s range and
direction, roll on matching
table 56 1 9
2- 4 1 6
1 12
3 . Select Action 56 29
a . c Resolve 56 23 34 1 9
34 21 12 1 6
b . o nearest Elite friendly 12 1 2 4- 6 2 9
ship at range 0 -2 1- 3 1 9
c . j nearest Enemy at
range 0 -1 or range 2 in
56 29
bullseye 2- 4 1 9
1 13
GALACTIC EMPIRE V 7.2

d .f if in enemy arc
e . e
3- 6 2 9
12 1 9
% Atack Target
a . Nearest Enemy

New Terrain Tiles and Ships

ADAPTIVE AILERONS: A variety of new terrain types and enemy
Stressed,
Before you reveal your dial, if you are not
you must execute a white17, 8 or 9 maneuver
. ships to print or mount on cardstock.
The complete terrain set is designed to
{3 ^1 &6 *2
mount on the reverse sides of existing
Gas Cloud terrain.

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 Ground Assault Expansion V 2.07.05

GROUND UNITS
The term “Walker” applies to some ships in Dice step, a number of d results are canceled equal
Ground Assault. Walkers are identified as Small, to the Defender’s Armor value. Note that c are not
Medium or Large, and are treated as having canceled in this way, nor is any damage from sources
the corresponding base size for rules purposes. that do not allow the defender to roll defense dice
Walkers operate in the same manner as normal (such as bombs).
ships, with the exceptions described below. Any
ship that is not a Walker may be referred to as MOVEMENT
a “Flyer.” Special rules for Walker movement are presented
below. Note that Walkers overlap other ships as
normal - this represents the Walker lurching to a halt
SPECIAL RULES to avoid colliding with another ground unit or a low-flying
aircraft!.
ION TOKENS WALKER OVERLAPPING TERRAIN
An ionized Walker executes a 0 5 maneuver
Walkers may never end their move overlapping terrain.
instead of a 18 maneuver.
They must always swerve to avoid any terrain as though
TRACTOR TOKENS it were a board edge, using the rules on page 8.
A tractored Walker cannot perform boosts or
FLYER OVERLAPPING WALKER
barrel rolls.
If a Flyer would end its maneuver overlapping a Walker,
CRITICAL DAMAGE Partially Execute the maneuver and then slide the Flyer
Walkers have well-protected critical systems. straight forward until it clears the Walker, ending at
If a Walker would suffer the effect of a face up range 0. The Flyer is then given one Disarm Token and
damage card with the Ship trait, immediately skips its Perform Action step. If this would cause an
repair it instead. AI ship to flee the table, instead swerve to avoid the
Walker as though it were a table edge.
ARMOR If this ending position would overlap another ship or
Walkers have an Armor value which is used Dense terrain, continue sliding the ship forward until it
to reduce damage from enemy attacks. When can be placed and give it a Stress Token in addition to
a Walker defends, after the Modify Attack the Disarm Token.

The X-Wing reveals its dial, and The X-Wing Partially Executes the The X-Wing is then moved the
would end its move overlapping maneuver as normal. minimum straight distance to clear
the Walker. the Walker, ending at range 0. It is
then assigned a disarm token.

5
GROUND UNITS
RECTANGULAR BASES
Walkers with rectangular bases use the Huge Ship movement tool for all maneuvers. When placing the maneuver
tool, the bank maneuver symbols on the Walker’s base will help remind you where to place the tool to start the
maneuver.

Straight Maneuvers 0-Speed Bank Maneuvers

For straight maneuvers, align the 0 line of the tool with For 0-speed bank maneuvers, align the angled corner of
the rear of the Walker’s base. Then move the model the tool with the rear of the Walker’s base. Then pivot
forward until the rear of the base aligns with the number the model until the front of the base aligns with the 0
corresponding with the speed of the executed maneuver. line on the tool.

28 07

2-Speed Forward Maneuver 0-Speed Bank Maneuver

Forward Bank Maneuvers Reverse Bank Maneuvers

For forward bank maneuvers, align the angled corner of For reverse bank maneuvers, align the angled corner of
the tool with the rear of the Walker’s base. Then move the tool with the front of the Walker’s base. Then move
the model forward until the front of the base aligns the model backward until the rear of the base aligns
with the number corresponding with the speed of the with the number corresponding with the speed of the
executed maneuver. executed maneuver.

27 1
7

2-Speed Left Bank Maneuver 1 Speed Reverse Bank Maneuver

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 Ground Assault Expansion V 2.07.05

ROUND BASES
Whenever a Walker with a round base executes a maneuver, it is first pivoted to face the nearest point on its Target’s
base. The Walker then executes the maneuver, aligning the movement template with the front or rear hash marks.

The Walker begins facing away from the target The Walker pivots to face the nearest point on the
X-Wing targets base

The Walker then executes the maneuver, aligning the movement template with the front or rear hash marks.

05 18
8
1

The Walker executes a Speed 0 The Walker executes a 1 Forward The Walker executes a 1 Reverse
maneuver, remaining stationary maneuver, approaching the target maneuver, retreating from the target

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GROUND UNITS

SWERVING
Regardless of base shape, if there is no maneuver a Walker could execute that would prevent it from fleeing the
board or overlapping terrain when swerving, it instead executes the slowest straight reverse maneuver available
to it (unless it is using the Flee AI, in which case it may flee as normal).

RECTANGULAR BASE
Walkers on rectangular bases swerve as normal.

ROUND BASE
To swerve, execute the Walker’s maneuver with the Walker ending at range 0 of the terrain or board edge,
bringing the ship as close to its target as possible.

The AT-ST’s 1-speed move would overlap Instead, it executes the maneuver so that it
the terrain, so it swerves to avoid it. is placed at range 0 of the terrain.

If it is not possible to place the Walker at range 0 of terrain with the chosen template because it overshoots it,
instead execute the maneuver with the template placed at range 0 of the terrain, bringing the ship as close to
the target as possible.

The AT-ST’s 2-speed maneuver When swerving, the AT-ST moves If an Incomplete Maneuver would
would overlap the terrain, so it past the terrain. In this case, the force a Walker to overlap terrain,
swerves to avoid it. template (not the ship) is placed place it as close as possible to its
at range 0 of the terrain. intended position at range 0 of
the terrain.

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Ground Assault Expansion V 2.07.05

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 NEW TERRAIN & RULES
TERRAIN
ELEVATED
Raised areas of terrain that have no effect on the Flyers above
them, such as plateaus or ground installations. Daring pilots
may dive down and skim the surface behind elevated terrain,
taking advantage of cover but risking lethal collisions with walls.
Elevated terrain has no effect on ships that are not
Skimming. Before revealing its dial, any ship may
choose to be assigned a Skim Token. Skim Tokens are
removed during the end phase like all round tokens.
Template or Ship Overlap:
If the ship has a Skim Token, it is dealt a damage card and
loses its Skim Token.
Line of Sight:
A ship within range 1 of and obstructed by Elevated terrain
cannot be chosen as the target of an attack if the Attacker or
Defender has a Skim Token.
AI Logic:
Flyers do not swerve. AI ships may never be assigned Skim
Tokens unless mission rules state otherwise.

DENSE
Thick stands of terrain that only the most foolhardy pilot
would risk passing through, such as towering forests, pillars
of stone, or clusters of urban spires. To stay effective, low-
altitude assault craft must hug the ground and fly around these
obstacles.
Template or Ship Overlap:
Execute the maneuver using the rules for Flyer Overlapping Walker
See page 8.
A ship’s base may never overlap Dense terrain, regardless of
abilities or upgrades such as Collision Detector, and ships will
always resolve an incomplete maneuver before sliding forward
to clear the terrain.
After a ship’s maneuver template or base overlaps Dense
terrain, it is dealt a damage card.
Line of Sight:
If an attack is obstructed by a Dense terrain, the Defender
rolls 1 additional Defense die, and may change 1 blank result
to an e result.
A.I. Logic:
Flyers swerve to avoid as though the Dense Terrain was a
board edge.

CAMPAIGN SPECIAL RULES

GRAVITY WELL
Ships cannot jump to hyperspace, and must escape from
designated board edges. All Mines automatically detonate at
the end of the Activation Phase, regardless of whether or not
they are overlapped.

BOMBER RETROFITS
All Rebel ships that do not already have a slot gain one for this
mission. For any ship that gains a slot in this manner, their
bombs and mines have no effect on Flyers – only on Walkers,
emplacements, and terrain (where applicable).
Experienced bombers, like Y-Wing pilots, can detonate devices
mid-air to damage both ground targets and Flyers as normal.
Remember that the benefits of Armor only trigger when rolling
defense dice, so damage from bombs will bypass it.

FORTIFICATIONS
All station modules, such as Rebel and Imperial bases, are
Elevated and cannot be targeted by Walkers if obstructed by
other Elevated terrain.

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 Ground Assault Expansion V 2.07.05

Credits and Acknowledgments

Heroes of the Aturi Cluster, Design and Creation by Josh Derksen.
Ground Assault, Design and Creation by Peter Dolan.
Playtesting by the X-Wing Community.
Many thanks to Lucasfilm Ltd. and the other talented artists
whose work has been used without permission.
And finally, Fantasy Flight Games, for making such an incredible
game that captures the essence of starfighter battles in the Star
Wars Universe.
This unofficial fanmade campaign is not affiliated with, nor
endorsed by, Fantasy Flight Games.
 DESIGNER’S NOTES
The rules presented in this document are based trees on the provided Forest terrain tokens during
intended to provide a “sandbox” environment that games. This quick and easy technique provides the visual
opens new doors for players to design their own appeal of a towering forest, but allows you to move trees
ships and missions. We hope that players use the aside and place templates as needed if ships overlap the
rules provided as a starting point for designing terrain.
their own ground environments, walkers, and The rules for Dense terrain are intended to be universally
scenarios. What follows is completely optional suitable for any terrain model that does not allow models
to be placed on top. Large shield generators on Hoth,
guidance for players seeking to expand the
towering stone pillars on Geonosis, or lava-geysers on
Ground Assault experience. We advise you play
Mustafar are all modeling opportunities that can use the
several games with the standard components provided rules for Dense terrain.
and are comfortable with the core rules before
exploring this section. ELEVATED TERRAIN
Plateaus representing elevated terrain are easy to make
from 1” insulation foam, sand, glue, paint, and modelling
flock. We recommend making your Plateau models to
USING MODELS exactly match the footprint of the provided Elevated
While the Ground Assault components make it possible terrain tokens. During games, place the tokens as normal
to fly missions right after printing, many players will and then place the matching model Plateaus on top.
prefer the visual immersion that comes with having Whenever a ship would overlap a Plateau, remove the
physical models on the table. The use of “leapfrog” Plateau model for ease of ship and template placement.
mechanics to prevent overlap with walkers and Dense Once no ships are overlapping the terrain token, the
terrain was specifically implemented to allow players to model terrain can be replaced for aesthetic purposes.
use models if they wish. The guidance below will help you For a more immersive experience, you may wish to leave
incorporate models into your campaign. model plateaus in place even when ships fly over them.
This can lead to some fiddly moments, but can also lend
SHIPS: an additional air of unpredictability around canyon flying
Many toys and model kits are available to serve as that some groups will enjoy. If everyone playing agrees,
suitable Ground Assault miniatures. The following you may implement the following rules:
dimensions are roughly 1/270th scale, the same as
most X-Wing miniatures: •M
 ovement templates that overlap plateaus should be
placed on the plateau model, using a top-down view
• AT-AT: 3.26 inches tall ( 8.3cm ) to align with ship nubs as closely as possible when
• AT-ST: 1.3 inches tall ( 3.3cm) ship models are on the ground level.
• Snowspeeder: 0.8inches long ( 2.0cm)
• If a ship’s final position would be on the edge of a
plateau where it cannot be placed without falling,
move it the minimum distance possible to place in a
stable manner without changing its facing. This may
be either onto or off the plateau, depending on the
ship’s position. In either case, once the ship is placed
in a stable position, for all purposes that is treated as
its final position.
• If a ship Partially Executes a maneuver, but placing
it in a stable position takes it out of Range 0 of the
ship it over- lapped, it skips its perform action step
as usual. Moving forward it is treated as being in
its new position for all purposes - this may mean
that the ships are at Range 1 of each other in the
engagement step and can shoot as normal.

COMPETITIVE PLAY
While Ground Assault is designed to be a cooperative
experience, some gaming groups may wish to utilize
parts of its rules in friendly competitive games. Having
the Skimming rules in effect adds an exciting cat-and-
mouse aspect to dogfights, and the simulated element of
altitude is both strategically and thematically exciting for
Using models instead of tokens dramatically improves experienced players.
the atmosphere of a game. In that case, we recommend the following adjustments:
•T  o prevent players from having to re-write their
squads, Bombs and Mines act as normal (ignoring the
DENSE TERRAIN: typical Ground Assault rules).
The easiest way to implement Dense terrain is to mount • All terrain is treated as obstacles for rules purposes
model railroad trees on individual bases, and place those (such as Trick Shot and Seismic Charges).

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