B5 ACTA 3-player campaign questions

[Anbar]

Hi folks,

we're starting a campaign with 3 players and are struggling to determine the proper series of events *what happens when" and so forth, thus looking for a bit of help.
Players are A,B,C. Fleets are 5 war points each.

We rolled for Initiative: A 'wins' initiative, B second, C third.

We then resolved what scenarios were to be played

1) A selects StratTarget-1, B also attempts to take it - 5FP Battle Carrier Clash

2) B selects Trade-Route, (A got first choice and decided not to do anything) C will also attempt this - 9 war point ACTA is resulting scenario

3) C selects StratTarget-2, A will attempt this also - 6FP skirmish Recon Run

What were trying to determine is if
a) we got the above stuff correct.
b) If Scenario 1 is played, can surviving ships that fought in Scenario 1 be used in Scenario 2 or 3?
c) If player 1 arrives at Scenario 1, but on seeing what the opponent has bought to the table, declines to fight the battle (so his ships never fought a battle), can he then use those ships in a different scenario this campaign turn?

Ultimately: IF a ship has been drawn from the fleet to fight in one scenario, can it then be used latter in the campaign turn for another scenario?
Or if you are fighting in 3 scenarios then you must split your fleet up into 3 fleets for each scenario and treat them as completely independent battles, whether or not you actually get on to the table and start shooting things?

 

[Da Boss]

We normally played that the scenarios were simutanenous so one fleet can only be in one location per turn

 

[AdrianH]

a) Not quite. There is only one trade route in a system - by targetting the trade route, you're trying to take control of all trade in the system, which won't work if there's an alternative route. Any strategic target may only be attacked once per campaign turn. So scenario 2 is player B trying to take control of the trade route and player C trying to stop him, and scenario 3 is illegal.

b) No. As Da Boss says, any ships involved in one battle can not be used again in another battle the same campaign turn. The campaign rules specifically warn you against overstretching yourself for just this reason.

c) The rules do say that you're allowed to refuse to fight, losing the battle (and strategic target if you're defending) by default, with nobody gaining XP. But the rules are not totally clear at which point the ships are committed to that scenario and thus unavailable for other scenarios the same turn. You're really supposed to pick your ships blind, i.e. before you know what the other player is fielding, so you should not know what you're facing until your own ships are ready to go on the table; I would therefore say that at that point the ships are committed whether or not you actually fight the battle, and can not be used again this turn. Regardless of whether they fight or turn and run at the first sight of the enemy, the ships are there and so can not also be in another battle elsewhere in the system. (A ship which has been sent to Jupiter can not also be sent to Mercury, even if when it gets within scanner range of Jupiter it sees half the enemy fleet and wishes it was at Mercury!) That goes for the other player too, so you could put a single Patrol ship on the table, hope he puts down his full 5 Battle allocation, run away and laugh at him in the next scenario.

All of which means that if you are fighting 3 scenarios, you need 3 separate fleets. Or you can decline to fight one scenario so that you have more ships available for the other 2. Once the ships are on the table, or even on their way to the table, they're committed.

 

[Mean Mutton]

Hi folks,

we're starting a campaign with 3 players and are struggling to determine the proper series of events *what happens when" and so forth, thus looking for a bit of help.
Players are A,B,C. Fleets are 5 war points each.

We rolled for Initiative: A 'wins' initiative, B second, C third.

We then resolved what scenarios were to be played

1) A selects StratTarget-1, B also attempts to take it - 5FP Battle Carrier Clash

2) B selects Trade-Route, (A got first choice and decided not to do anything) C will also attempt this - 9 war point ACTA is resulting scenario

3) C selects StratTarget-2, A will attempt this also - 6FP skirmish Recon Run

What were trying to determine is if
a) we got the above stuff correct.
b) If Scenario 1 is played, can surviving ships that fought in Scenario 1 be used in Scenario 2 or 3?
c) If player 1 arrives at Scenario 1, but on seeing what the opponent has bought to the table, declines to fight the battle (so his ships never fought a battle), can he then use those ships in a different scenario this campaign turn?

Ultimately: IF a ship has been drawn from the fleet to fight in one scenario, can it then be used latter in the campaign turn for another scenario?
Or if you are fighting in 3 scenarios then you must split your fleet up into 3 fleets for each scenario and treat them as completely independent battles, whether or not you actually get on to the table and start shooting things?

My understanding is if you choose to intercept an opponent when they're trying to take a strategic objective, you don't get to take a second one. Rereading the rules, that might be wrong.

Either way, usually, the first couple turns go very quickly. Say you have 9 strategic objectives plus trade routes -- the first three turns, there generally aren't any fights. After all, if two of you are fighting, you both lose ships and only one gets an objective, leaving the third opponent stronger. If you fight a very large fight, both of you will end up crippled and win or lose the scenario, the third opponent is likely in a dominant position.

Can ships be used in multiple scenarios? No. Page 81 of the main rule book states: "Before you start planning your star-spanning offensive, however, there is one golden rule to bear in mind. Every ship on your fleet roster may only take part in one battle during every Campaign Turn. Once you have used it in one battle it may not be used in another during this same turn. This means as the campaign draws on and your casualties increase, you will have to be very careful about who you fight and with what."

Can ships be reallocated from a fight that never took place? The rules aren't clear on this. However, page 81 does say "Players choose ships from their fleet roster to use in the scenario but may not take a fleet that has a greater value than the total rolled for." under the heading "Generate Scenario". It seems that this occurs before the actual battle is fought. Personally, we've always assumed that those ships were allocated to fight the battle that never was -- they knew the fight was coming, had to get in position to defend / conquer and just because there was no resistance doesn't mean that they weren't required to be in that spot to defend / take the objective.