Updated Errata & FAQ

[TJHairball]

OK, so I've spotted exactly one change to Klingons since the last errata document; the D7 has lost the "Points Cost: 170" line that it had in the previous errata, and has therefore crept back up to 175, with the D7C creeping back up to 205?

 

[Red-24]

OK, so I've spotted exactly one change to Klingons since the last errata document; the D7 has lost the "Points Cost: 170" line that it had in the previous errata, and has therefore crept back up to 175, with the D7C creeping back up to 205?

That's the only one that I can see as well.

I had cut and temporarily pasted all the previous errata changes into my book. Here are the changes in this Errata (since the February Errata):

• Federation DWD: +10 points
• Federation BCJ: +0 points. New Photons are a separate weapon system
• Klingon D7: back to cost 175 (but other changes still apply)
• Klingon D7C: back to cost 205 (but other changes still apply)
• Romulan FastHawk: F,P and F,S Phaser-1s to 3 AD (but it says A,P and A,S)
• Gorn Megalosaurus: F,P and F,S Phaser-1s to 1AD
• Gorn Albertosaurus: Now has no changes (did have Command+1 and point increase)
• Kzinti Frigate: PH and SH Phaser-3s 1 AD
• Kzinti Heavy Battlecruiser: Add Command +1, cost to 260 pts

That's it. So if you've already applied previous changes to your ship record sheets, you can just edit them with these further changes.

Off to do that now...

 

[Totenkopf]

Wow...so not only did the D7 get worse but it still costs the same?

 

[McKinstry]

Fleet Lists
If I have a ship with lots of Attack Dice of Drones (such as a Kirov Battlecruiser), what happens when I roll a 1 for the Anti-Drone trait when I use the Combined Drone Rack rule?
For the rest of the game, you lose 1 Attack Dice of Drones for every 1 you roll on the Anti-Drone trait. So, if someone throws a bunch of Drones at your Kirov, and you roll 1, 4, 4, 6, you will halt four Attack Dice of Drones as normal (remember, a 1 stops a Drone just as well as anything else!) but you will be reduced to Anti-Drone 3 immediately and will only have 3 Attack Dice of Drones in the next turn.

So, it is a permanant reduction, or only for the next turn?

Permanent.

"May need to alter the FAQ text (heh) but no, once 'converted,' Federation drone racks are _no_ different to ADD and use exactly the same rules. So, if any of the ADD dice roll a 1, you just lose 1 ADD/drone"

Matt said this at 2:32 pm today on page 5 of the "rules according to Matt" thread.

 

[TJHairball]

Wow...so not only did the D7 get worse but it still costs the same?

I wouldn't say worse per se.

You lose a 6 AD fore bore shot and one AD of forward phasers in exchange for having better phaser coverage in the APS arcs. The trade is more phaser arc in a worse position. Better for defensive fire, since most enemies will want to concentrate on your flanks, worse for lining up an offensive shot.

I will say, the base model D7 isn't very attractive compared to the D5, but the D7C is still worth taking at 205 points as a command ship.

 

[Totenkopf]

Wow...so not only did the D7 get worse but it still costs the same?

I wouldn't say worse per se.

You lose a 6 AD fore bore shot and one AD of forward phasers in exchange for having better phaser coverage in the APS arcs. The trade is more phaser arc in a worse position. Better for defensive fire, since most enemies will want to concentrate on your flanks, worse for lining up an offensive shot.

I will say, the base model D7 isn't very attractive compared to the D5, but the D7C is still worth taking at 205 points as a command ship.

Overpriced bait (D7C)...or in the light, perhaps it is priced just right.

 

[Nissei]

So what is the benefit of using the combined drone trait vs. using the advanced rule were a drone takes out a drone.

The most any one can hit my ship with is 4 AD.
If I have a Kirov with 4AD of drones, I can use my drones under the advanced rule and take out the 4 AD inbound and not run the risk of losing AD by rolling a 1.

If I use the drones as ADD, I take out the drones, but run the risk of losing drone AD if I roll a one.

Am I wrong in saying that the Fed combined drone rack trait is only worth-while if I have less than 4AD of drones, or when I have more drones inbound than I have drone ADs?

 

[Herkimer]

Permanent.

"May need to alter the FAQ text (heh) but no, once 'converted,' Federation drone racks are _no_ different to ADD and use exactly the same rules. So, if any of the ADD dice roll a 1, you just lose 1 ADD/drone"

Matt said this at 2:32 pm today on page 5 of the "rules according to Matt" thread.

That seems.....silly to me. I understand it is a balance thing but assuming the Fed drones can be set as either Regular or A/D, it seems odd they are the only ones to run out.

 

[gord314]

@Herkimer I usually just assume that when used in a ADD capacity they fire at a much higher rate. A rate which wouldn't be possible for offensive use since the ship needs to control each drone to the target and they are in flight much longer when used offensively. I realize this doesn't entirely fit the SFU background, but it works for me.

@Nissei against only 4 drones, or at long range that is true. If a kirov faces 3 waves of 4 drones each while it has no targets in phaser range, it probably wants to just shoot them down with a combination of phasers and its drones used to shoot down the incoming drones 1 for 1. If there are targets in phaser range, it might want to reserve its phasers for them and just use its drones to take care of all three waves of incoming drones automatically. Also, if it is using its phasers to provide defensive fire for the rest of the fleet, it might want to use its drones as ADD to protect itself and save its phasers to protect squishier ships.

 

[Red-24]

Am I wrong in saying that the Fed combined drone rack trait is only worth-while if I have less than 4AD of drones, or when I have more drones inbound than I have drone ADs?

It's always a risk, but if the Fed switches to ADD 4 on the first attack of the turn, then it can now survive up to three waves (new maximum) of drones coming at it that turn. Except for when it loses all drones to 1's, it will automatically survive 3 swarms of drones against it. Given a Kzinti Dreadnought plus two more Kzinti, that could be 16 drones!

If it gets attacked by 4 drones and just uses the 1 to 1 drone attacks, it has now used it's drone defense for the rest of the turn and must rely on phasers for defense. Given the Kzinit ships above, if the Dreadnought didn't fire first, that's 10 AD of drones left to shoot down with phasers!

I don't have any experience with Kzinti yet, but with Feds, the combined drone racks on the Kirov were pretty indestructible ADD.

I think also, you really have to think twice about switching to ADD mode with any Fed ship now. It's much more of a risk than an automatic good idea. On the ships with 1 AD of drones, its great against a drone using enemy, but only for a short bit. On the Kirov and Federation, it's probably worth using as ADD if you need to because they should last for several turns of defense, leaving Phasers for damage.

This is actually what I love about this game. So many options, many risks, and no guarantees.

 

[Herkimer]

Gord,

I had this long post all typed out about how lame I found it and how it made the Fed combo racks pointless until I realized that Anti-Drone is used at every drone attack made at you. So Nissei has a point about using it against low drone attacks. Still makes me wonder why the Feds don't stock up on whatever bag of holding type device the Kzintis use for their drones on the FFs.

Too bad about no wild weasels though, but it probably means we won't see scatterpacks either.

 

[TJHairball]

Wow...so not only did the D7 get worse but it still costs the same?

I wouldn't say worse per se.

You lose a 6 AD fore bore shot and one AD of forward phasers in exchange for having better phaser coverage in the APS arcs. The trade is more phaser arc in a worse position. Better for defensive fire, since most enemies will want to concentrate on your flanks, worse for lining up an offensive shot.

I will say, the base model D7 isn't very attractive compared to the D5, but the D7C is still worth taking at 205 points as a command ship.

Overpriced bait (D7C)...or in the light, perhaps it is priced just right.

The D7C without command would be comparable to the D5W - a little worse, but easily worth paying 180 points for.

Command+1 gives you a 62% chance of winning initiative if all else is equal. In a game where damage is resolved sequentially, I'd say that's often worth paying 25 points for.

Bait? Well, yes, command ships are attractive targets. Learn to cope with it. I find that what with its superior agility, the D7C is more likely to survive a match than the C8.

 

[Digger]

Hi Matt,

I have been going through the new errata and I am sorry but it I believe it is quite confusing. Would it be possible to adhere to the following concepts:

1. Please can the changes from previous errata be highlighted in some way.

2. If a ship cost changes, please can the new cost be shown at the end in brackets.

That way when you get a change in the errata that states for example 'DWD Variant is + 10 points' there can be no mistake if it was highlighted we would know it was a knew change and the new points value was 120.

Otherwise we are forced to wade through each line and judge if the change is new or an old change missed last time. I don't think the above is beyond the wit of anyone at Mongoose is it?

 

[Da Boss]

I wish there was more consistancy to the changes:

• Federation DWD: +10 points - ok thats fine
• Federation BCJ: +0 points. New Photons are a separate weapon system - Ok thats fine
• Klingon D7: back to cost 175 (but other changes still apply) why no points reduction - its already a suboptimal choice
• Klingon D7C: back to cost 205 (but other changes still apply) ditto
• Romulan FastHawk: F,P and F,S Phaser-1s to 3 AD (but it says A,P and A,S) free extra phasers - why!!! - the free bit not the extra guns
• Gorn Megalosaurus: F,P and F,S Phaser-1s to 1AD - why no points reduction
• Gorn Albertosaurus: Now has no changes (did have Command+1 and point increase)
• Kzinti Frigate: PH and SH Phaser-3s 1 AD
• Kzinti Heavy Battlecruiser: Add Command +1, cost to 260 pts

 

[Captain Jonah]

Gord,

I had this long post all typed out about how lame I found it and how it made the Fed combo racks pointless until I realized that Anti-Drone is used at every drone attack made at you. So Nissei has a point about using it against low drone attacks. Still makes me wonder why the Feds don't stock up on whatever bag of holding type device the Kzintis use for their drones on the FFs.

Too bad about no wild weasels though, but it probably means we won't see scatterpacks either.

Its not a matter of Kzinti Drone stores. All ships mount probably 10-15 Drones for every launcher. Enough to go through a full 8-10 turn battle and still have some left for another battle or that run home to re supply.

An ADD is dealing with an incoming FTL Drone that is being guided, non ballistic and probably working hard to avoid being hit so you don't fire 1 ADD round, you fire 4 or 6 at where you think it will be to bracket it.

The races that use separate small sprint mode ADDs have a separate magazine for them, yes they may have two or three times as many ADDs as Drones but a Drone is fired, is in flight for several minutes and hits or is knocked out then the launcher fires another. The ADD will fire several to bracket, if they all miss it fires several more.

The Dice roll on the ADD simulates (to me anyway) how many shots the ADD takes. If it takes only a few rounds to take out the Drone you have plenty of ammo left. If you fire several salvos to take out that one incoming Drone your magazines run out very fast.

In the case of the feds they are not firing the smaller ADD round but rather they are firing all up anti shipping Drones with a higher tech Sprint mode allowing them to function as ADDs. The fed Magazines with 12-15 Full sized Drones per launcher have plenty to last an entire battle but if it takes 3 or 4 of them to stop one incoming Drone then a salvo of 4 Drones could empty an entire Drone launchers magazine in one go.

For the Feds it may be a higher tech, takes less space leaving more room for those comfy crew luxuries solution but it does leave them more vulnerable when compared to the Klingon’s who allocate space to both Drones and separate ADDs and stack the crew four high in bunks because its a war ship and luxury is for the captain or for Fed sissies :lol:

 

[billclo]

Wow...so not only did the D7 get worse but it still costs the same?

I wouldn't say worse per se.

You lose a 6 AD fore bore shot and one AD of forward phasers in exchange for having better phaser coverage in the APS arcs. The trade is more phaser arc in a worse position. Better for defensive fire, since most enemies will want to concentrate on your flanks, worse for lining up an offensive shot.

I will say, the base model D7 isn't very attractive compared to the D5, but the D7C is still worth taking at 205 points as a command ship.

Don't forget that if you use the RX arc tactic, under some circumstances you can line up the enemy right on the line between F and P/S arc and get those waist phasers in as well. And return fire from the target ship is on your Fore shield. As long as the enemy can't get in behind that line and hit your flank it's a useful tactic.

As for the ADD/Drone combined launcher...a brief foray into SFB-Land:

The G-rack holds 4 "spaces" of drones/ADD. Each ADD takes a half space, and the launcher can fire one ADD per impulse (ie, if the rack has 8 ADD, it can fire up to 8 in a turn). The launcher normally carries one reload set, or in the later years 2 reload sets.

Usually on the Klingon/Kzin frontier I'd expect a mix of defensive ADD and offensive drone loaded into the launcher. On the Rom frontier, most likely 3 drones and a couple ADD to take care of suicide shuttles.

If the rack fires a drone, it cannot fire any ADD for the rest of the turn.

 

[TJHairball]

Don't forget that if you use the RX arc tactic, under some circumstances you can line up the enemy right on the line between F and P/S arc and get those waist phasers in as well. And return fire from the target ship is on your Fore shield. As long as the enemy can't get in behind that line and hit your flank it's a useful tactic.

I'm not forgetting! But you're still two phaser-2s short of the alpha strike with the old layout, which is - for whatever bizarre reason - still present on the FD7 and KRC. You are definitely losing a little bit of offensive capability.

I will say it gets a little confusing when my regular D7 and command D7 need to line up at the 10:30 mark while my FD7 needs to line up at high noon - I had my opponent ask me why I was checking to make sure I had a 45 degree off-bore lined up on my target with my FD7. I'd rather they were all the same, even if the FD7's offensive phaser alpha strike drops a couple points as a result - just looks more elegant that way. I'm a little puzzled as to why the FD7 and KRC weren't errata'd along with the D7.

 

[Digger]

Are we sure the D7 is now 175? I still show it as being 170!

See, there is confusion - Please can the new cost of ships please be shown in brackets! :x

Can someone confirm the new cost of the D7 please!

 

[billclo]

Don't forget that if you use the RX arc tactic, under some circumstances you can line up the enemy right on the line between F and P/S arc and get those waist phasers in as well. And return fire from the target ship is on your Fore shield. As long as the enemy can't get in behind that line and hit your flank it's a useful tactic.

I'm not forgetting! But you're still two phaser-2s short of the alpha strike with the old layout, which is - for whatever bizarre reason - still present on the FD7 and KRC. You are definitely losing a little bit of offensive capability.

I will say it gets a little confusing when my regular D7 and command D7 need to line up at the 10:30 mark while my FD7 needs to line up at high noon - I had my opponent ask me why I was checking to make sure I had a 45 degree off-bore lined up on my target with my FD7. I'd rather they were all the same, even if the FD7's offensive phaser alpha strike drops a couple points as a result - just looks more elegant that way. I'm a little puzzled as to why the FD7 and KRC weren't errata'd along with the D7.

They should have been changed in the same manner.

 

[Totenkopf]

yeah...but I would be returning a lot of models if they *blank* the FD7 over like they did the D7s.