Star Fleet Warlord Rules (Updated) - Play By E-Mail

of choice) and phasers come to bear on the enemy. Romulans also employ powerful nuclear space mines and enjoy an
advantage when using mines on the defensive. Tactics to avoid are sniping attacks and the directed damage defense.
Romulan ships are not the best to use In battle, but that cloaking device is a powerful advantage. There's nothing
quite like invading enemy territory and remaining invisible to his scans, thus making retribution all but impossible! The
cloak brings a heavy price, however. The ship itself is slightly weaker in combat, and you must sacrifice one of your
valuable movement points in order to use it. Plus, it doesn't work in certain terrains or if your ship makes a scan. Still, if
stealth is your goal, the Romulans are the ones to buy your ships from.
5.7 The Kzinti Hegemony (Z)
The Kzintis were originally an enemy of the Federation, and fought several wars with them (but lost each one).
When the General War began, however, the Federation joined on the side of the Kzintis and Gorns, the three of them
forming what became known as the Grand Alliance.
Kzinti ships are fairly well balanced, although they lack the high combat factors of the Klingons. What they lack in
firepower, though, they make up in drone capabilities. Almost all Kzinti ships can carry heavy drones, and some can carry
a phenomenal number of them. In addition, Kzinti ships are so adept at long-range bombardment that they earn a range
bonus when using the BOMB order, as described in Chapter Six.
Kzinti ships can afford to be careful, launching their drones and letting the enemy deal with them as they see fit.
The cautious attack is thus preferred, as is a directed defense against critical enemy ships. Kzintis should avoid echelon
formations (the explosions of the lead ships will take out your own drone waves) and minelaying defenses (which, again,
interfere with your drones).
If you are going to play Kzinti ships, you may as well commit yourself to purchasing large numbers of heavy
drones. A drone, having an AF and DF of 1, is like paying one economic point for one AF/DF point, perhaps the best such
buy in the game! But drones are used up quickly, and constantly need replacing, especially if you plan to make any longrange
bombardments. Keep this in mind.
5.8 The Gorn Confederation (G)
The Gorns have been allies of the Federation almost from their first meeting (except for a brief battle that both
sides immediately regretted). Well before that alliance, however, the Gorns were enemies of the Romulans.
Gorns are large, powerful reptilian creatures. This tough physical structure gives them advantages in hand- tohand
battles, such as during ground combat. The Gorns know this, of course, and specialize in commando squads.
Almost all Gorn ships carry at least a few commandos, and every single Gorn vessel has a 25% bonus to its attack factor
when attacking a site. Gorn troop transports earn this bonus twice!
Gorn ships are designed to take advantage of the ballet tactic, firing their plasma torpedoes from moderate
ranges for both attack and defense. With their notorious lack of transporters, the minelaying attack is usually poor, and like
the Romulans, they do not like directed damage defenses.
Possibly the only problem with the Gorns is their lack of different ship designs (considering that they are a major
race). The ships they do have are very well balanced, however. Gorns are also the only race which can carry commandos
in large quantities, so if you plan to attack a well-fortified enemy, their ships are an excellent choice.
5.9 The Tholian Holdfast (T)
The Tholians came to this galaxy over a century ago, and set up shop between the Klingons, Romulans and
Federation. Only because of their superior defensive abilities (and web technology) did they manage to survive in such a
precarious position.
The fabric of space where the Tholians settled is somewhat weak, and they had to make certain adjustments to
survive in that region. As a result, all Tholian ships are immune to the effects of weak space terrain. If you find a site in
weak space, you'll want to use a Tholian ship to conquer it, and if your enemy puts a base in such terrain, you may need a
whole fleet of Tholians to take it out!
The web that Tholians use is best when anchored to a solid, single mass that comes in great quantities- asteroids
are obviously the preferred terrain for this race. If Tholian ships are ever attacked in an asteroid field, they will receive a
25% bonus to their defense factor (not hit points, however).
The web caster is a device only the Neo-Tholians (a sub-race of Tholians who did not arrive until late in the
General War) utilize. Uses of the web caster are described in Appendix F in the W-variant section..
Tholians thrive on caution, putting up webs and remaining behind them as much as possible. Cautious attacks
and “circle the wagon” defenses are thus preferred, while overruns are to be avoided.
While Tholians have an excellent defense factor and usually have very good shields, their attack factors are quite
weak. Tholian ships are therefore unremarkable in combat, unless they are defending in asteroids. They are best used in
support roles, or to attack areas of weak space.
Revised 30 June 2010 Page 30