M-Space Extended Conflict for Mass Combat?

[PoppySeed45]

So, as part of my home project of maybe using M-Space for Pirates of Drinax, I've got this notion to use Extended Conflicts for Mass Combat (to be honest, the Extended Conflict rules remind me of Mouse Guard or Torchbearer, which is when the light went off in my head). Has anyone done it (or even just used them for the super-simplified combat; I'm eyeing that too)? What skills would you use for it? Thoughts?

[clarence]

That’s an excellent idea! I haven’t tried it though. I would use Pilot (Starship) and Gunnery as usual, and add a Knowledge skill for strategy and tactics, replacing Pilot in some cases. 

What I have found out in my own large-scale battles is that weapons need to be quite powerful to have any effect. As a start, combining ten cannons into one works quite well, calculating damage as 1d6 x10 for example. Having 5-10% of a capital ship’s Modules as weaponry has provided a good balance. 

Also, letting ships of roughly the same Size Rating attack each other adds a bit structure to the chaos. That way, the PCs can engage in dogfighting with small ships, while bigger vessels take out each other above (or below) their heads. 

For quicker resolution, a single Gunnery roll can be made for all cannons on a ship - as long as they target the same opponent. 

I would also recommend a malfunction table for big ships. Hit Locations are a lot of fun (with some cool Star Trek-style damage like taking out an entire deck), but might be too slow if there are many ships. With a unified Hit Point score and a fairly detailed malfunction table, you can get quite cinematic results. 

Have you tried Extended Conflicts for combat?

[clarence]

Or you could make it really simple. The example below is for starship battles, but should be easy to use with small changes for ground forces as well. 

 

Skill

Assign a Combat Value from 1 to 100 to each fleet. This reflects their combined combat training. Add +5% for each hero joining a fleet. 

Sloppy: 30%

Regular: 50%

Veteran: 70%

Elite: 85%

 

Conflict Pool

Calculate the Conflict Pool of each side from the size of their forces. 

For starship fleets, add all Size Ratings of the ships together to get a single value. Then, if needed, divide both by 2, 5, 10 or any other number (always divide with the same number for both, however), so the biggest Conflict Pool ends up below 40. 

If the Conditions of the ships are poor, multiply the Conflict Pool by Condition. For each Tech Level lower than an opponent, divide the Pool in two. 

 

Armour and Shields

For any armour and shields, use values between 1 to 6:

1-2. Weak

3-4. Mid

5-6. Strong

 

How to Play

With all values set, run the battle as a regular Extended Conflict. 

Both sides make Opposing Rolls. Highest successful roll wins and deals 1d6 damage to the opponent’s Conflict Pool, after subtracting any armour and shields from the damage. 

Whenever a fleet’s Conflict Pool is halved, they are given a chance to withdraw or surrender. With a Conflict Pool at zero, only scattered remains of the fleet manages to escape and the battle ends. Any heroes either escape, are missing (but alive) or are held captive. 

If both fleets are reduced below one third of their Conflict Pools, casualties are considered high. Both sides can call a cease-fire and enter into negotiations. 

[PoppySeed45]

4 minutes ago, clarence said:

Or you could make it really simple. The example below is for starship battles, but should be easy to use with small changes for ground forces as well. 

 

Skill

Assign a Combat Value from 1 to 100 to each fleet. This reflects their combined combat training. Add +5% for each hero joining a fleet. 

Sloppy: 30%

Regular: 50%

Veteran: 70%

Elite: 85%

 

Conflict Pool

Calculate the Conflict Pool of each side from the size of their forces. 

For starship fleets, add all Size Ratings of the ships together to get a single value. Then, if needed, divide both by 2, 5, 10 or any other number (always divide with the same number for both, however), so the biggest Conflict Pool ends up below 40. 

If the Conditions of the ships are poor, multiply the Conflict Pool by Condition. For each Tech Level lower than an opponent, divide the Pool in two. 

 

Armour and Shields

For any armour and shields, use values between 1 to 6:

1-2. Weak

3-4. Mid

5-6. Strong

 

How to Play

With all values set, run the battle as a regular Extended Conflict. 

Both sides make Opposing Rolls. Highest successful roll wins and deals 1d6 damage to the opponent’s Conflict Pool, after subtracting any armour and shields from the damage. 

Whenever a fleet’s Conflict Pool is halved, they are given a chance to withdraw or surrender. With a Conflict Pool at zero, only scattered remains of the fleet manages to escape and the battle ends. Any heroes either escape, are missing (but alive) or are held captive. 

If both fleets are reduced below one third of their Conflict Pools, casualties are considered high. Both sides can call a cease-fire and enter into negotiations. 

That's great stuff! Bravo! Maybe you could include something like this in the Companion? Because you've already got a customer for it in me; I'd love something like this there. Thanks a lot!

And to answer you earlier - no, I haven't used any of the rules yet; this will be the first time running Mythras, or M-Space for that matter. 

[clarence]

Thanks, I’m happy you like it! 

It will not make it into the Companion though. The book is almost ready to release. But I can put the rules in a PDF that you can download from my website. They need a bit of play testing first, however. 

[Pentallion]

I love these rules.  One of the things I'm working on is a major campaign about the colonization of a new planet.  In the opening chapters, their colony fleet is attacked on the way to their new world.  As they have escort ships with them, it turns into a major battle that the PCs have the ability to affect.  I could use those rules to run the scene.

Edited May 30, 2020 by Pentallion

[clarence]

It sounds like a perfect match!