Boarding VP's if 0 damage

[mollari_uk]

Do you get double VP's if you destroy a ship while it's boarded and at the same time reduce it to 0 crew?

We played a game recently and the boarding troops scored a critical hit on the ship and inadvertently reduced both the damage and crew to 0 at the same time.

I would say no because it doesn't make sense, but you could read the rules like you do.

 

[Joe_Dracos]

well I would say no cause the ship isn't functional, its not valuable if it has no hull left.

 

[Harry Lonsdale]

As long as when it is reduced to 0 damage it isn't reduced beyond Running Adrift on the damage table, I'd say that you should get double VPs for it (since a Running Adrift ship can still be boarded).

 

[LaranosTZ]

Well, the difference between a decrewed ship and a ship reduced to 0 hull is that a decrewed ship is still functional. A ship at 0 hull is not, and thus I don't think you can even board the ship.

 

[mollari_uk]

Well, the difference between a decrewed ship and a ship reduced to 0 hull is that a decrewed ship is still functional. A ship at 0 hull is not, and thus I don't think you can even board the ship.

The ship was boarded in a previous turn. It was in a later turn (rolling on the boarding effects table) that they scored a critical that destroyed the ship and reduced it to 0 crew at the same time.

 

[Iain McGhee]

Then it's destroyed, not captured and you only get the points for killing it.


Harry, you can't capture a ship that has less than 1 point of damage left, adrift or otherwise. It's probably just a bunch of large chunks floating in the same general direction !

 

[Harry Lonsdale]

It's only destroyed if it is reduced to 0 damage and the result of the damage table is 7 or higher. 1-6 means it is running adrift, in which case it can still be boarded (though it may no longer be attacked).

 

[Ripple]

Don't have a rulebook in front of me, but doesn't that also mean you would not score victory points for 'destroying' a ship until it hit -7? I thought the VP chart talked about 'destroyed' ships not ships reduced to 0 damage.

Not saying I agree, for me once you roll on the table it is destroyed to me. Decrewed was always different because you did not roll on the table.

(side not - I hate the table. I don't see any reason a ship is more likely to explode if I hit it harder, or blow more holes in it, or worse punch it full of holes one turn and hit it lightly later. Just seems to me the damage table should be separate from the damage done, and it should be called something else.)

Ripple

 

[Iain McGhee]

It's only destroyed if it is reduced to 0 damage and the result of the damage table is 7 or higher. 1-6 means it is running adrift, in which case it can still be boarded (though it may no longer be attacked).

I didn't mean destroyed as on the damage table, I meant out of the game. As in Stricken in ACTA parlance (read that description). A ship at 0 damage can't be boarded or recovered and repaired after the game. Once you roll on the damage table for going to 0 or less damage then the ship is dead. Defunct. Ceased-to-be. An ex-ship

 

[Taran]

It's only destroyed if it is reduced to 0 damage and the result of the damage table is 7 or higher. 1-6 means it is running adrift, in which case it can still be boarded (though it may no longer be attacked).

I didn't mean destroyed as on the damage table, I meant out of the game. As in Stricken in ACTA parlance (read that description). A ship at 0 damage can't be boarded or recovered and repaired after the game. Once you roll on the damage table for going to 0 or less damage then the ship is dead. Defunct. Ceased-to-be. An ex-ship

"It's just takin' a bit of a nap."

 

[Harry Lonsdale]

I didn't mean destroyed as on the damage table, I meant out of the game. As in Stricken in ACTA parlance (read that description). A ship at 0 damage can't be boarded or recovered and repaired after the game. Once you roll on the damage table for going to 0 or less damage then the ship is dead. Defunct. Ceased-to-be. An ex-ship

Yes, it can be boarded at 0 damage, if it is Running Adrift.

When a ship's Damage score is reduced to 0, it is considered destroyed, but the opposing player must roll 1d6 on the chart below [Damage Table]...Once a ship has rolled on this table it may not be attacked again

On the Damage Table, a roll of 1-6 means it is Running Adrift:

...will count as destroyed for victory purposes, but may still be boarded.

To my interpretation, this means that if it is Stricken but not Destroyed (per the Damage Table), one will still get double VPs for capturing it.

I think the problem is that the description of Running Adrift is written assuming that the ship is at 0 crew, when that is not the only way to be reduced to Running Adrift. It may be that the designers' intent was for the Damage Table reference to Running Adrift to mean only that the ship moves as described, but as written that's not the case.

 

[Burger]

When you kill the last of the crew, all troops are killed. Yours included. So if it was boarded before, it isn't any more!

Actually, that means it is impossible to capture ships unless you board them after the crew is all killed. Whoops.

 

[Iain McGhee]

When you kill the last of the crew, all troops are killed. Yours included. So if it was boarded before, it isn't any more!

Actually, that means it is impossible to capture ships unless you board them after the crew is all killed. Whoops.

Do your marines all commit suicide or something ?

 

[Harry Lonsdale]

When you kill the last of the crew, all troops are killed. Yours included. So if it was boarded before, it isn't any more!

Actually, that means it is impossible to capture ships unless you board them after the crew is all killed. Whoops.

That's very odd. Correct as the rules are written, but very odd. So you board the ship, kill all the crew (and your own troops with them), then need to throw 1 more troop on to actually capture it.

Yeah, these rules need a little clarification. :?

 

[Iain McGhee]

You can't kill your own troops. Under the "casualties" section at the end of the boarding rules it states that enemy troops on a ship don't take damage from critical effects or from the ship being skeleton crewed (and by extension from being decrewed). If the ship went to 0 damage you'd lose the troops along with the ship however.

Harry, I see what you mean after re-reading the damage table and the Running Adrift description, but I think the rule that you can still board only applies if the ship is at 0 crew and positive damage and the "see above" only refers to moving the ship for the rest of the game. According to the Stricken description a ship at 0 damage can't be attacked again, and I'd include boarding in that even if you still think a ship at -6 damage is a viable candidate for capture.

 

[Harry Lonsdale]

You shouldn't be able to kill your own troops, and that's probably what is intended. I think they just left out under "casualties" that you also don't suffer troop casualties if the crew is reduced to 0.

I think the rule that you can still board only applies if the ship is at 0 crew and positive damage and the "see above" only refers to moving the ship for the rest of the game.

Ah. That certainly does make more logical sense.

 

[Triggy]

You shouldn't be able to kill your own troops, and that's probably what is intended. I think they just left out under "casualties" that you also don't suffer troop casualties if the crew is reduced to 0.

I think the rule that you can still board only applies if the ship is at 0 crew and positive damage and the "see above" only refers to moving the ship for the rest of the game.

Ah. That certainly does make more logical sense.

I can assure you from my point of view at least that this is the intention of the rule. I don't actually have my rulebooks with me so I can't check on the precise wording though.