SST Classic Question - Climbing

[Xintao]

When models climb do you have to "pay" for the vertical movement?

Thanks, Xin

 

[MaxSteiner]

Hmmm, well to be honest the climb trait is a bit weak normally... (Though in the words of Roah 'any tool is useful if you know how to use it...')

Consider for example a warrior bug may move over terrain up to 2 inches for free, by taking a ready you effectivly gain another 4 inches movement and an attack, normally at the cost of having most of the squad annihilated....
For that reason, I tend to allow alot of leway with climb. As long as the distance measured is within the climb value (No matter how its measured) I'd let it slide.

Actually to be completly honest, even with that I find Im generally better off attacking the terrain rather than climbing it

 

[tneva82]

Hmmm, well to be honest the climb trait is a bit weak normally... (Though in the words of Roah 'any tool is useful if you know how to use it...')

I suppose that's matter of what sort of terrain you play in...

If there's lots of 6"+ height differences available that climbing skill could come handy

 

[Xintao]

I built my table with layers of 1" pink board. So I have level 5 and 6 terrain.

 

[Goldwyrm]

Hey Xin, Are you asking about this for the game on the 16th?

 

[Xintao]

Ya.

 

[BuShips]

When models climb do you have to "pay" for the vertical movement?

Thanks, Xin

As long as all of your topography levels are at the 1" thickness, it can be ignored because there are no Size 0 units in the game. The terrain rules state that "A model's move distance is halved by any difficult terrain it moves through that is larger than its Size characteristic."

So Size 1 models would not be slowed down by a Size 1 terrain level change. Now if those topography differences were say 2" then as the rulebook on page 30 says regarding Difficult Terrain, Size 1 MI troopers would be limited to 2" per turn (halved movement) but Size 2 Warrior Bugs would not slow down.

 

[BuShips]

My answer above is as to the rules. As long as all players are informed and agree, with your board as-built you could play it where moving over level changes cost 1" of additional movement. It would be an announced house rule, but would take your board topography into good account and make use of it.

 

[JoseDominguez]

When models climb do you have to "pay" for the vertical movement?

Thanks, Xin

As long as all of your topography levels are at the 1" thickness, it can be ignored because there are no Size 0 units in the game. The terrain rules state that "A model's move distance is halved by any difficult terrain it moves through that is larger than its Size characteristic."

So Size 1 models would not be slowed down by a Size 1 terrain level change. Now if those topography differences were say 2" then as the rulebook on page 30 says regarding Difficult Terrain, Size 1 MI troopers would be limited to 2" per turn (halved movement) but Size 2 Warrior Bugs would not slow down.

Those are the rules for difficult terrain...... woods, swamps etc... which you wouldn't be climbing anyway, just moving through at half rate. Climbing is for impassable terrain, which you can only try and move through if it's smaller than you. So a size one cliff face would be impassable to a CAP trooper, but a warrior could try to move through it using a close combat dice.
Unless I've missed an update.
FOr climbing you do pay for the vertical movement, so a 5" cliff face costs 5" of move to climb up.
As Buships says, easiest way is to assume your elevation changes are hills and therefore cost no vertical move or do what we've done..... call them 'difficult ground' size 2 and make them rocky, so CAP troopers have to slow down to scramble up them (costs 4" to climb it), bugs just ignore them and run straight up.
Anyway, how often do CAPS walk anyhere?

 

[BuShips]

JoseDominguez, you are correct. By the rules as written it is indeed Impassible. I had forgotten that the same Size terrain as the model will block movement. So the MI either need some of the vertical layers sculpted down to allow them to pass (aka chokepoints, lol) or they just bound over them, as you said.

As an aside, I always thought that the Climb/X trait should also be limited by the rules for moving through Impassible Terrain and not treated as clear.

 

[JoseDominguez]

I always found the rules on terrain a little muddy, e.g. six foot tall hedges, bushes and undergrowth are size one, so you can ignore them. A forest is half rate, even though the trees are easier to move around than dense bush, but as they are height two or more, CAPS are slowed.
We always used house rules anyway, specific to our actual terrain.

 

[BuShips]

I always found the rules on terrain a little muddy, e.g. six foot tall hedges, bushes and undergrowth are size one, so you can ignore them. A forest is half rate, even though the trees are easier to move around than dense bush, but as they are height two or more, CAPS are slowed.
We always used house rules anyway, specific to our actual terrain.

I've always found that terrain is muddy especially after a good rainfall :wink:. Well, it will be interesting to see what the new rules will look like. Let's hope that there is a bit more detail on terrain rules.

 

[JoseDominguez]

Pun intended

Yup, terrain and cover were our main sticking points (particularly when muddy).