High Guard: Aslan

[MongooseMatt]

High Guard: Aslan is a supplement for High Guard, bringing the mighty ships of the Aslan to your campaign.

You can grab your own copy here: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/201298/High-Guard-Aslan?affiliate_id=7242

Despite outward appearances, Aslan ships use much the same technology as human vessels, and either race can readily utilise ships belonging to the other with a minimum of difficulty. However, Aslan do display a slightly different approach towards ships and this is reflected in their design.

High Guard: Aslan provides all the rules you need to build and operate an Aslan ship in space, along with full specifications and deck plans for fifteen Aslan ships, from humble Scouts and Messengers to lethal Cruisers.

Note: These rules and ships will also be presented in the forthcoming Pirates of Drinax mega-campaign set.

 

[allanimal]

So, everything in here will be in the Pirates of Drinax update?

When will that be coming out???

 

[MongooseMatt]

When will that be coming out???

It is a big project, so may be a while - in printed format, likely Summer next year.

This is why we wanted to get these ships to you chaps - they were all done, and it seemed a shame to just sit on them for a few months!

 

[EldritchFire]

Is there any new ship-design rules in this? Or is it more 'this is how aliens make ships'?

And if there is anything new, can you let us know what it is? It'll help purchasers make informed decisions.

 

[MongooseMatt]

Aslan ships are not dissimilar to those of the Imperium, so you won't find new drive types and the like (though Aslan do have Shrines in their ships). The rules information is based more on how the ships are used (such as how crew positions are filled - quite a bit different to the Imperium, and different between military and trading vessels). The bulk of the book by page count introduces specific Aslan ships in the High Guard format.

 

[Condottiere]

 

[MongooseMatt]

That's the idea. Aslan ships are a lot like that.

 

[EldritchFire]

Aslan ships are not dissimilar to those of the Imperium, so you won't find new drive types and the like (though Aslan do have Shrines in their ships). The rules information is based more on how the ships are used (such as how crew positions are filled - quite a bit different to the Imperium, and different between military and trading vessels). The bulk of the book by page count introduces specific Aslan ships in the High Guard format.

Awesome, thanks.

As I'm (hopefully soon) going to be working on my own setting, I'm more interested in new mechanics than new 3I-specific stuff.

 

[GarethL]

Without wishing to look a gift-horse in the mouth, is this booklet print friendly at all?

The black background and white text have made stat blocks very tricky to print in the past (this applies to creature stat blocks in your adventures too) - the choices being either to turn off the backgrounds and lose the stat blocks entirely (white text on a white background) or keep them and burn through ink at a frightening pace (esp. as there's a full page light-grey background as well on every page)!

Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but whilst I can read a pdf, I much prefer to have a physical book in front of me for play...

If this isn't something possible for this product, maybe it's something you could consider in the future for other products in this line? It'd help with usability.

 

[gandalf_t_black]

Without wishing to look a gift-horse in the mouth, is this booklet print friendly at all?

The black background and white text have made stat blocks very tricky to print in the past (this applies to creature stat blocks in your adventures too) - the choices being either to turn off the backgrounds and lose the stat blocks entirely (white text on a white background) or keep them and burn through ink at a frightening pace (esp. as there's a full page light-grey background as well on every page)!

Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but whilst I can read a pdf, I much prefer to have a physical book in front of me for play...

If this isn't something possible for this product, maybe it's something you could consider in the future for other products in this line? It'd help with usability.

I 100% hope the same. I really like the other PDF books that have come out so far but this one and the Shuttles book would be really nice in a R/L book for ease of use on game nights, and a printer friendly version like the other core books so far would be fantastic. 8)

 

[MongooseMatt]

I'll see if we can look into a print friendly version when we get back from the break!

 

[GarethL]

I'll see if we can look into a print friendly version when we get back from the break!

Many thanks Matt,

 

[Annatar Giftbringer]

Oh, what's this? A new wonderful book, and just in time for Christmas too! The perfect last-minute gift from me to myself

No fighter included, but I suppose the light fighter from high guard can function perfectly as an Aslan vessel.

It would have been interesting to see one or two examples of larger ships too, such as cruisers or even battleships, but I guess we can't have everything at once And besides, some of the larger high guard ships could work as Aslan ships with just a few minor tweaks, right?

Huh, I just realized that between the 10 ton fighter, the 50 ton deployment shuttle and the Aslan standard squadron/hangar size appearing to be 5 craft/50 ton, all ships with hangars could if necessary swap the fighters for a single deployment shuttle each if they need to! Or heavy fighters, cutters, the choices are nearly endless

Two minor things though: the Ihateisho scout seems to have gotten the wrong description, and there seems to be a deck missing on the assault carrier, I don't see the barracks anywhere?

Oh, and finally: will these craft get 2d deckplans too? I've come to love the new iso-style plans, but the classic ones are easier to read, and often have more details. Sure, the coloring and graphics help to identify most components, but there are usually more detailed descriptions on the 2d plans.

 

[MongooseMatt]

We'll add 2D plans in the new year!

 

[Annatar Giftbringer]

We'll add 2D plans in the new year!

Awesome, you guys are the best!

Merry Christmas, season's greetings and all that

 

[Subzero001]

is the "Bulk Hauler (Oukhaha class)" in this book with Fuel is stored in long fin-shaped tanks that can be collapsed and withdrawn into the central spine when empty, to make it easier for shuttles to access the cargo pods.

If so I'm curious how they fixed this in Aslan HG2?

thx, just curious...

 

[Annatar Giftbringer]

The 2D deckplans are here! They do, unfortunately, confirm that the Assault Carrier lacks barracks space on the deckplan, and there's one more issue with the Assault Carrier, but more of an in-universe design issue. The new loadout for the Sakhai makes it a terrifying opponent, but at a cost. The larger fusion bay and the huge reactor needed to power it means there's virtually no space for cargo. This means no supplies or vehicles for the troops... Granted, the ship itself will provide all the fire support they might need, but unless Aslan warrior standard fighting gear includes grav belts I sure hope they enjoy running (they're quite good at it, with their bursts of speed!)...

This is interesting from a fleet composition perspective - it means that Assault Carriers must also rely more heavily on tenders, like the cruiser and escort. An obvious downside to this is of course that the tenders are only equipped with a jump-2 drive, slowing the entire fleet down.

But wait! There's a solution! The Halaheike class pocket warship - jack of all trades but master of none. Bullied by ship book authors since time immemorial

The design is known for maintenance issues and jump drive failures, but the vessel’s main problem is that it tries to do too much in one package, requiring the most advanced Aslan technology just to function. The Halaheike might be a carrier, assault cruiser, system defence boat and troop carrier all in one, but is sub-par in all those roles

I say let's add another role to its already long list! Assign one Halaheike to each Sakhai, and fill the cargo hold with tanks, ATVs, supplies and everything else invading forces might need. Sure, the Halaheike has also lost some cargo space compared to 1st edition, but 65 dtons is a lot more than the Sakhai's 6

Another benefit of this partnership is that the pocket warship has light fighters that can protect the ground troops and provide CAS, plus the ship itself is heavily armed and armoured - and it has the same class jump drive as the Sakhai!

is the "Bulk Hauler (Oukhaha class)" in this book with Fuel is stored in long fin-shaped tanks that can be collapsed and withdrawn into the central spine when empty, to make it easier for shuttles to access the cargo pods.

If so I'm curious how they fixed this in Aslan HG2?

thx, just curious...

The Oukhaha is not included in High Guard:Aslan, so I guess you can say they solved the fuel-fin and shuttle issue by deleting the ship (Just guessing, I don't know the reason for it's lack of appearance)

 

[paltrysum]

Sorry to dig up an old thread, but it might be nice to keep the questions in one place.

The Aslan ship designs in this book (duplicated now in Pirates of Drinax, Book 3) don't look as rounded as the ones depicted in the MegaTraveller Solomani & Aslan book. Was that intentional? Was it intended to reflect a regional variation that occurs in the Trojan Reach?