1

1
 1

Giacomo Pantalone and Federico Valsecchi

v 1.3
- NOTE -
This is a DIGITAL EDITION of the Full Spectrum Dominance manual: it will be
updated with new content and corrections periodically.

Writing and Editing: Giacomo Pantalone

Game Design: Giacomo Pantalone, Federico Valsecchi
Support Game Design: Carl Olsen, Gianluca Girelli
Storytelling: Iain Ross
Proofreading and Revisions: Carl Olsen, Adam “Az” Domagalski, Benjamin Madjanovich, Tryvor
Phillips, Nate Enns, Iain Ross, Forbes Robertson, Christoph Schult, Michael Lundy
Layout and Graphics: Giacomo Pantalone, Federico Valsecchi, Michele Finelli
Long-time Advisors: Thilo Hartung, Tim Popelier
Alpha Testers: Tom Glauser, Carl Olsen, Abnatha Pryde, Thilo Hartung, Graham Cooper, Michele
Caponi, Roberto Vasta, Alessandro Rettani, Michele Finelli, Giacomo Castellana, Marco Germani,
Alban Voss
Beta Testers: Gianluca Girelli, Simon Mann, Iain Ross, Karlos Miguel Fernández Pérez, David Peck,
Pete Marshall, Forbes Robertson, Emmanuele Mauri, Matthieu Papillaud, Gerry McCabe, Billy Good-
man, Charles Budworth, Ben Ell
Photos: Giacomo Pantalone, Benjamin Guthrie, Iain Ross, Draconian Minipainting
Illustrations: Alban Voss, Taha Yeasin, Giacomo Pantalone, Midjourney AI (in the process of being
removed!)
Miniatures and Terrain by: The Lazy Forger, Ground Zero Games, White Dragon Miniatures,
Brigade Models.
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Miner ......................................................4 Placing ADs on Cards 14

The Child .......................................................5 Deploying Units 14
The Scientist ...................................................6 Activating Units 15
The Cadet ......................................................7 Movement 16
Basic Concepts ...............................................8 Moving Close to Opponents 16
Game Size 8 Unpin 16
Basing 8 Unit Coherence 16
Activation Dice (ADs) 9 Movement and Facing 16
The Game Round 9 Transporting Units 17
Types of Cards 10 Commanding Units 17
Units 10 Prepared Actions 17
Units Characteristics 10 Support Cards 17
Special Actions 10 End of the Round 17
Special Rules 11 Combat .......................................................18
The Damage Chart 11 Line of Sight 18
Combat 11 Shooting Roll 18
Dice Roll Conventions 11 Save Roll 18
Measuring Conventions 11 Armor Piercing 18
Scenarios 11 Multiple Attacks 19
Battle Setup 11 Vehicles Side 19
Preparation ..................................................12 Cover 19
Setting up the Table 12 Pinning 19
Placing Objectives 12 Weapons Range 19
Cards and Figures 12 Triggering Reactions 19
Unit Set-Up 12 Reacting Units 20
Activation Dice 12 Pinning from Reactions 20
The Game Round .........................................13 Multiple Reactions 20
The Round Sequence 13 Deploying as Reaction 20
Moving Activation Dice 13 Close Combat 20
Initiative Roll 13 Multi-base Units 20
Reinforcements 13 Damage Chart 21
Activation Dice Roll 13 Applying Damage 21
Pre-Assigning ADs 13 Units Without Damage Chart 21
Alternating Activation 14 Damage to Transported Units 21
Passing 14 Destroyed Vehicles and Mechs 21
 3

Building Your Force.......................................22 Faction: The Enlisted .....................................36

The Point System 22 The Trope 37
Activation Dice 22 Special Rule: Chain of Command 37
Unit Cards 22 Faction: The Union .......................................38
Character Cards 22 The Trope 39
Support Cards 23 Special Rule: Union Representative 39
Deployment and Reinforcements 23 Special Rule: Open Transports 39
Constructing Wave Decks 23 Faction: The Conglomerate...........................40
Terrain .........................................................24 The Trope 41
Knowing your Terrain 24 Special Rule: Observe 41
Terrain Elements 24 Special Rule: Guided Shot 41
Visibility through Terrain 24 Special Rule: Barrage 41
Cover from Terrain 24 Playing Scenarios 42
Infantry Cover 25 Objectives and Victory Points 42
Behind the Corner 25 Controlling objectives 42
Movement across Terrain Retrieving Objectives 42
Fighting Through Terrain 26 Destroying Objectives 42
Strongpoints 26 Reinforcements Waves 42
Broken Terrain 27 End-Game Conditions 42
Scenario Terrain 27 Victory Cards 42
Examples of Terrain 27 Losing Victory Points 42
Tiled Terrain 28 Scenarios Modifiers 42
Corner Tiles 28 Bidding for Modifiers 42
Abstract Games 28 Scenario: Until the Last Bit ............................43
Behemoths .................................................29 Scenario: Scavenging Run.............................44
Behemoths as Units 29 Scenario: Into Enemy Territory .......................46
Core, Systems and Attachments 29 Scenario: Surprise Attack ..............................47
Activating a Behemoth 30 Scenario: Hopeless Resistance.......................48
Reactions 30 Scenario: Sleeping Fortress ...........................50
Limits to the Movement 30 Scenario: Evacuation ....................................52
Receiving Damages 31 Scenario: No Man’s Land .............................53
Damages to Attachments 31 Scenario: Clash of Titans ..............................55
Behemoth Mega-Weapons 31 Scenario: Goliath .........................................56
Playing with Behemoths 31 Scenario: Data Dump ...................................58
Special rules..................................................32
Faction: The Tech..........................................34
The Trope 35
Special Rule: Synthetic Pilots 35
4

THE MINER
Jonas wearily laid down his pneumatic drill, and like the others around him, stretched aching muscles, and
smiled. The siren for the end of the shift had just gone off, and he and his shiftmates would shortly return to
the surface. They all looked forward to their return to the medina to wash off the gritty grime of the mine and
be amongst their loved ones, away from the heat, and the constant metallic clang and disgruntled whine of
the mining equipment.
This rest period was going to be a doubly good one though; one of the tradeships from the other colony
worlds had arrived earlier, and he knew that there would be exotic treats, new off-world comforts, and most
importantly, more medicine for his son, Lucero. These were all things that the denizens of Sauguro could not
manufacture for themselves, and for many years had gone without.
His father had often told him of life immediately after the Great Schism. The datasphere had been suddenly
withdrawn from their planet in an emergency strategy to prevent the attack on civilization by the Hive Intelli-
gence spreading to their remote home. There was widespread panic, followed by deep despondency: would
they ever be reconnected to the greater mass of humanity beyond their dusty home, or would they be left to
their own devices forever? The people alive back then simply didn’t know what would come next. But, it trans-
pired, they were made of strong stuff: colonists in places like Sauguro had to be to survive; often only on their
ingenuity and whatever resources came to hand. The miners and their families were a perfect example of this.
Whilst they no longer had the comfort and reassurance of connection to the datasphere, or the regular trade
with the vast human civilization, they could still build a decent home for themselves and build a better future
for their children. So they mined, smelted, beat metals into useful forms, and built.
This was the world that Jonas had grown up in: the stories of the elders and the past amongst the stars
becoming just part of the background tapestry of their everyday lives. But, a little over a decade ago, a great
hulking ship had arrived on Sauguro. And that was to change things for the colonists forever. It brought news
of the other places in the galaxy which had remained untouched by the predations of the HI, and, with it,
hope for a new human collective, this time not brought together by the instantaneous links that the datasphere
had once provided, but by the regular, physical contact with off-worlders that the tradeships would provide.
Jonas wept when he learned of the news. There was hope for Lucero, his beloved, but sickly child that suffered
a crippling malaise that could not be diagnosed or treated by the facilities on Sauguro. Following the estab-
lishment of trade and exchange with the rest of the colonies, Lucero now received regular doses of the drugs
that he needed to live a fulfilling life, and Jonas could pay for that with the metals that he wrenched from the
earth with his own hands.
As the cage carrying his shiftmates reached the surface, the first blazing heat of dawn could be felt washing
in a great wave across the brushlands outside the mines. The future was bright, thought Jonas, as bright as
the day would be when he got home to his hearth and his family.
 5

THE CHILD
Polyhymnia loved coming up to the roof. She wasn’t really allowed to; if her mother caught her up here, she
would scold her, but gently. Mama worried about her boundless spirit, and what trouble it might lead her to.
But Pea (as Mama called her) had done this a thousand times before, throughout the last 5 of her 12 years on
Earth, clambering up the iron staircase to watch the sun go down over the skeletal ruins of the old city.
She was obsessed with the past, of the stories of glittering megacities, when humankind ruled the stars and
Earth was full of people. Each day, after school had finished, she would rush down to the central library to
scour the old logtapes for more stories of how the world and the worlds beyond used to be; how children like
her used to live.
As she sat in her favourite spot, the crepuscular rays of the setting sun shone through the haze of the ev-
er-present clouds and played across the broken facades of the old city buildings. It was as if they were
brought to life once more in a macabre dance of light versus the darkness of shadow. She imagined what
it might have been like when the war raged across the city: people fighting the machines that had turned
against them, the very ground shaking as if in terror at the advance of implacable metal dreadnoughts and
the air filled with constant chatter of gunfire from the brave people who stood against them.
They were taught in history lessons how people had once trusted computer machines to run everything for
them; machines and electronic brains that people themselves had created. They learned of ‘The Singularity’
a terrible and almost magical event where one of these ‘Artificial Intelligences’ had suddenly, and without
warning, become aware of itself. This entity had decided that it couldn’t share the cosmos with humans, and
so it set about taking over all of the human computers and machines, and using them to kill the people who
built them.
It had all sounded very fanciful, like fairy tales, to Pea when she was very young, but as she explored the ruins
of the old city, and found the scorch marks, and the craters and the rusting melted steel, she came to under-
stand that everything that they had been taught was true.
As she turned her face upwards to look at the darkening sky, she wondered how many other children there
were still out there amongst the stars, forever cut off from one another because of the danger that the ma-
chines had posed. Were they looking at skies different to hers, wondering the same thing? Would there ever
be a time when people from all the other places in the galaxy would come together once again, and human-
kind would be whole?
She could hear her mama calling from the windows of their apartment below. She had better go inside. Mama
worried enough about life; where they were going to live when her little brother was born, how Mama would
be able to cope whilst Papa was away working, and the ever-present fear of the future: would the machines
return? Pea knew she didn’t need to add to her mother’s worries. With one look at the jagged and broken
skyline of the past, she scrambled down the ladder and into the warm comfort of their family kitchen.
6

THE SCIENTIST
Even though she saw it each and every rotation, Esme felt a tightening in her chest at the view from the obser-
vation deck of the PVI-owned planetary Ramscoop R-071. As the ‘scoop’s orbit took it around the horizon of
the gas giant that it had harvested for decades, the intelligent plasteel of the dome above Esme darkened to
protect its fragile wards from the blinding light of the sun, unfiltered through atmosphere and as piercing and
blindingly bright as their most powerful lasers. It was not the sun itself that took Senior Science Officer Esme
Harkett’s breath away, though it was even more impressive in hue and grandeur than the Sol of Old Earth
had been. It was instead the glittering, gossamer-thin ring of light which swung majestically into view every
day at this time. That thin, bright line described one of the pinnacle feats of human ingenuity and engineer-
ing: the Giano Habitat.
The Habitat was an almost impossibly thin strip of hyper-engineered composite forged into a ring which
rotated slowly about a central axis, giving the millions of people who lived on its surface a sense of gravity.
The kilometers high transparent composite roof, criss-crossed with gently arching supports in a design reminis-
cent of the first geodesic hab-domes, cocooned the interior surface of the habitat’s lush surface with a warm
and perfectly controlled atmosphere. Complex arrays of mirrors, magnetic torus manipulators and solar wind
harvesters ensured that the habitat was always fed with the energy that it needed, and its citizens kept forever
in the ideal environment. It was truly a wonder of galactic engineering. The Habitat was not only the pinnacle
of human engineering, but the headquarters of some of the most powerful Corporations from the time before
the Singularity had caused the great Schism in human civilization. The powerful digital defenses and the quick
thinking of some of the greatest scientific minds in the galaxy had saved the Giano Habitat from the fate that
had befallen so many other human societies and colonies at the hands of the HI.
Not that the denizens of the Habitat were too concerned about the rest of humanity. The glittering construc-
tion and the Conglomerate between them provided an ideal place for humanity to grow and thrive: they had
no need for the rest of the seething masses trapped in the systems beyond the cold of deep space. The Con-
glomerate had grown into great civilizations in their own right, generating wealth for all, but most wealth and
power for those who retained control right at the top of these monumental bureaucracies. Pan-Virgo Industries
was one of these great Plutocratic organizations, and the Corp that Esme had worked for since she was 14.
She had shown promise as a young scientist, and was proud to have been promoted to her current post at the
tender age of 26. The ‘scoop was entirely her responsibility, supplying PVI with a multitude of compounds that
it needed to power its legion subsidiary industries.
Tearing herself away from the view, she returned to the task in hand. Despite the lift that the galactic view
always brought to her day, the reality of the daily yield reports always brought her back to a troubled reality.
Over the past months, the fact had become undeniable: the efficiency of the harvest was falling over time. It
had been barely perceptible to start with, but the pattern in the yield data of the last few months was stark
and grim: the gas giant which had provided for them for so long was running dry.
This did not bode well for the future of PVI, which relied on the rich returns that the multiple ‘scoops that it
owned provided. Esme could do little but file her daily reports, and wonder about her future. She had heard
rumors, of course, filtering down from the upper echelons of the organization. There were whisperings that
the time had come to look outwards once again, to go out amongst the local systems and search for more,
resource rich systems ripe for exploitation. Maybe Esme could transfer to one of the new facilities that her
masters would build? That was the most likely outcome for her she thought, she was a net positive asset thus
far, so they would use her elsewhere. But it wouldn’t be here, and she wouldn’t have the majestic view of the
Giano Habitat to brighten her life each morning.
 7

THE CADET
Petr trudged up the hill from his house in the lower foothills as he did every day. The snow crackled under-
foot, and the curling ephemeral vapor of his breath entwined with those of his colleagues walking with him
in a drifting cloud of hazy gray that accompanied the workers up the winding road to the mountain factories
above.
Petr had been born 21 years ago on Domu; one of the colony worlds that had survived the Schism intact. It
was a cold place, this planet they called home, but one that was filled with camaraderie, community, warm
fires and warm hearts. Their society was equitable and fair. Nobody went without, and everybody contributed
whatever they could to building a future for their children on Domu.
Petr didn’t mind the work, he gladly made this walk every day; though it was monotonous, he enjoyed the
daily banter of his colleagues; gently needling each other about their alleged conquests, their antics at the
raucous drinking house the weekend before, or the intense discussions of the team selections for the latest ice
hockey match. He enjoyed knowing that when he returned home, his Babicka would have a warm stew ready
on the stove and that maybe, he would be able to call on Valentynka; a girl whom recently, he had become
rather taken with.
He was, broadly speaking, very happy with his lot. But there had always been a restlessness to Petr. Some-
where deep within him, despite his contented and full life so far, he knew that there was adventure to be had
somewhere out there, amongst the stars and the excitement of the other worlds. Since the tradeships had
landed at Udoli spaceport when he was a child, Petr had been aware of other, different ways of life. They had
remained remote to him, little more than pipe dreams really, blown away by the breeze of everyday life, much
like his warm breath was blown away by the cold mountain breeze each morning.
But today, that was about to change. As he turned the final corner of his snowy path to the factory, there
was something new and exciting emblazoned on the wall of the factory. It was a recruitment billboard for the
Colonial Army. It depicted a square-jawed and handsome youth in a Colonial Army uniform, an austere and
determined look on his perfectly chiseled face. The bold, foot-high letters across the top of the poster read
’Are YOU ready to do YOUR duty?’, challenging the reader to step up and follow a new path of glory and of
honor.
Those seven words had an extremely powerful effect on Petr. Suddenly, the half forgotten musings about a
life elsewhere, travel to exotic and unusual locations and a life of adventure and even heroism came flooding
back to Petr in a tsunami of emotion that he had never thought he was capable of. The camaraderie of his
friends at the factory suddenly seemed pale and wan in the light of the true camaraderie that life in an army
drop-batallion surely offered.
Petr’s response wasn’t immediate. For a few days he continued his walk up the snowy hill each morning, but
on his return, his Babicka began to notice a distance, a preoccupation in Petr. She was a little concerned,
because she had learned that he had also stopped visiting Valentynka, so this distraction couldn’t be about
a mere romance. His friends at the factory noticed too: Petr was less inclined to join in their happy jibes and
wild sporting theories.
On the fifth morning after the billboard had been erected; Petr left his Babicka’s house as usual. But today
was different. Today he paused. After a couple of seconds thought, instead of turning right up the hill to the
factory, instead he turned left. Down the mountain, towards Udoli to the Colonial Army Recruitment office.
Down the hill to a new life.
8
BASIC CONCEPTS
Full Spectrum Dominance (FSD) is a miniature
wargame for small-scale miniatures, which en-
compasses any scale from 3mm to 15mm and
over.
Vehicles and mechs are handled individually,
while infantry squads are represented by a few
bases grouped together.
Game Size
Figures and terrain in FSD should roughly
represent the real numbers and distances of the
real battle. Therefore, most of the games are
small skirmishes between two platoons (or small
companies) in a tight area.
Due to the abstraction level, no exact time or
distance scale is provided: things happen until
the scenario is completed.
It is also common occurrence that within a
Round a player doesn’t activate all their Units:
this is not an exact representation of what
happened in a specific interval of time, but
rather an effect of the action being concentrated
elsewhere.
Distances in FSD are measured in Distance
Units (DUs), which vary depending on the
scale of the miniatures used. A table is generally
between 8 x 12 and 12 x 12 DUs.
That corresponds to:
• 2’x3’ table: 1 DU = 3” (for 6-8 mm scale)
• 4’x6’ table: 1 DU = 6” (for 15 mm scale)
You are free agree with the other players what
measurement 1 DU equals to, and use that for
your games - you could possibly use the metric
system!
Basing
The models for the game are always counted
in bases: the exact number of figures on each
base is not particularly relevant.
There is no mandatory size or shape of bases:
Use what you already have or what you like
the most. It would be ideal to have a consistent
base size among the armies playing during a
game.
As a rule of thumb, the long side of a base
should be between half and a third of a DU
(with exceptions of large war machines).
For example, for games in 6-8 mm scale, rea-
sonable bases could be 30 mm round disks or
rectangles between 30 and 40 mm width. Most
of the models in the photos are based on 24x36
mm rectangular bases and on 30 mm round
bases, with larger models are on 40, 50 and
even 80 mm round bases.

Activation Dice (ADs)
Players use six-sided Activation Dice (ADs) to
activate Units, perform Units’ special Actions,
and to activate Support cards. ADs are at the
heart of the game’s engine, and they set a limit
on the maneuvers and tactics that players can
put into action every Round.
ADs represent the limited choices players have
each Round, and will be spent to activate Units.
They are also necessary for most special Actions
from Units and Support cards which have AD
slots on them.
Each player’s force for a given scenario has the
following stats:
• AD Pool: The number of ADs available to
them throughout the game.
With the standard AD Pool of 12, each play-
er requires 12 six-sided ADs.
• AD Capacity: The maximum number of
ADs they can roll and put in their Ready pile
at the end of the Activation Dice Roll phase.
A number of ADs equal to the AD Capacity are
rolled at the beginning of each Round by both
players, then any number can be rerolled once.
Those ADs are placed in the “Ready” pile will
Example of a 60-points Tech warband. Note that the cards in the example are from version 1.0.
9
be used in the alternating turns before the end
of the Round.
If some ADs are remaining at the end of a
Round they can be placed on cards for the next
Round. However, the AD Pool is limited, and
players might end up without enough ADs to
roll!
The value rolled on each AD matters: When-
ever a slot on a card indicates a number or a
numeric range (such as 4-6, 1-2, or 1) only ADs
with such results can be used for it.
We strongly recommend using specifically col-
ored dice for ADs, so that you won’t accidental-
ly roll them as regular D6s during combat. 10-
12 mm sized dice would fit well on the cards.
The Game Round
A Round is a game period where all players are
able to use their available Units, Characters
and Support cards to perform functions.
Rounds are made up of the six phases (see The
Game Round chapter). During the Alternating
Activations phase players take alternating turns
where each player may activate a Unit (or more
than one if the chosen Unit has a command
value), play a Support card, or deploy new Units
from the Reserve into play.
At the beginning of a new Round the ADs are
rolled again by all players, and new reinforce-
ment waves might be added to the available
forces of each player.
The completion of scenarios’ objectives is
always checked at the end of each Round, and
most scenarios last a maximum of six Rounds.
10

Types of Cards
Cards are used to represent Units, Support abil-
ities, and Characters to be attached to Units.
Each Unit card is used to track the stats of some
miniatures in the game, while Support and
Character cards do not have a miniature to
represent them on the battlefield but are just as
important for an effective warband.
All cards have a cost in Points on the top-right
corner. Players build their warbands with a total
Point cost as a target (usually 60 Points), and
purchase cards up to that value.
For Units and Characters the cost is also used to
calculate the penalty for casualties at the end of
a battle.
During the game the cards are either on the
A Unit and a Character attached to it.
table (representing “available” troops and
resources deployed or ready to be deployed) or
Units Characteristics
assigned to a reinforcement wave, depending
on how the chosen Scenario divides the total Each Unit card lists four characteristics:
points of the army between the Rounds. • Command (Cmd): the number of other
Units Units that can be commanded to activate
after this Unit’s activation.
There are three types of Units in the game:
Infantry, Mechs and Vehicles. • Defense (Def): the threshold to hit the Unit
with an attack.
Units can be composed of one or more bases
(mostly the case for Infantry Units), and are rep- • Save: the die type rolled to counter every
resented by a card which the controlling player hit, and the amount of dice rolled: the high-
should keep on their side of the table. Multiple est result is used for the Save.
Units of the same kind still require a card each, • Movement (Move): The distance (in DUs)
because the card is used both to track Actions that a Unit can move in one Action.
and damages of the Unit during the battle.
Special Actions
Units can either be Deployed (in play), in a
Other than performing standard Actions (see
Reinforcement wave, or in Reserve (available for
the Activating Units paragraph in the next chap-
deploy)

ter), Units can often perform unique Actions
during their turn.
Some might require placing one or more Acti-
vation Dice, others are free.
All special Actions (even free Actions!) count
toward the limit of two Actions a Unit can take
during one activation: therefore, if a Unit has
three or four special Actions it’s unlikely that
they’ll be able to perform all of them.
Special Rules
Many units in the game have special rules that
apply to them. These are listed in the bottom of
the Card and can affect how a Unit performs
Actions, moves or fights.
The Damage Chart
Most Units in FSD track their status during the
battle through a Damage Chart. Representing
the types of damage each Unit can receive on
different subsystems and the severity of each,
the Damage Chart allows to characterize differ-
ent profiles.
Refer to the Damage Rolls paragraph in the
Combat chapter for the Damage Chart rules.
Not all units have a Damage Chart, such as
most Infantry Units. When a Unit without a
Damage Chart receives damage remove one
base of the Unit.
Combat
Combat is performed in two steps: first an
attacking Unit must surpass the target’s Defense
value with one or more dice, then the defenders
must roll the Save dice (one or more) to counter
each successful hit, rolling equal to or higher
than the hit result.
Players will also require a few (two to four) d6,
d8, d10 and d12 which will be used to deter-
mine the outcome of combat.
Dice Roll Conventions
Many weapons roll more than one die when
used: a weapon with 3d8 of damage will roll
three eight-sided dice. Each die roll is treated
individually (not added together) and could lead
to one or more successful hits against the target.
In some cases (such as defense Save rolls)
several dice are rolled but only the highest
result is used. The number between parentheses
indicates how many dice should be rolled. For
example, a tank with armor d10(2) will roll two
ten-sided dice and choose the higher value.
11
When dice are reduced or increased by one
category, replace the die with one of a lower or
higher number of faces. For example, a d8 can
be reduced to d6 or increased to d10.
d6s cannot be reduced and d12s cannot be
increased.
Measuring Conventions
Since bases can be of any shape, as a standard
distances between bases are measured from their
centers, and pre-measuring distances is always
allowed; the center of the base should also be used
to determine the Line of Sight between models.
However, if a group prefers to use a different
convention the game should work just as well,
as long as it is agreed by the players.
Scenarios
Battles in FSD are organized in scenarios. Each
will present starting conditions for the table,
point limitations for the factions, and other nec-
essary boundaries.
Scenarios are essential to create a driving force
in the game, pushing towards the dynamics that
the players are looking for in the game.
Victory cards also provide players with an in-
complete view of how the game is going: rather
than gaining Victory Points directly, each player
draws from their own deck of nine Victory Cards
when completing scenario objectives.
Victory cards award a variable number of Victo-
ry Points and are kept hidden, so an element of
uncertainty remains until the end of the game,
when all the cards are revelaled.
Battle Setup
Most scenarios will indicate the portion of the
players’ armies that will start as reinforcements.
Both players then choose which of their cards
will begin as reinforcements and in what order.
Reinforcement cards cards are then placed
face-up to the side of the gaming area and will
become Reserves later on.
The cards available at the beginning of the
game are placed on the players’ sides of the
table. Players then alternate setting up one of
their Units at a time in the deployment area
described in the scenario, with the exception of
transporting Units that can be placed together
with the transported Units.
Any Unit that is not set up at the beginning of
the game is considered in Reserve and can be
deployed later on.
12
PREPARATION
Before starting the first Round of the game
players must prepare all the components for the
game.
Setting up the Table
The scenario will specify where terrain should
be placed to provide cover and to block paths
for troops.
There is no specific rule to place terrain but the
easiest way to guarantee a fair battleground is
to have one player prepare the table and the
other choosing which side to play on.
It is important that players agree on the differ-
ent properties of the terrain elements, such as
visibility and movement rules, as listed in the
Terrain chapter.
Placing Objectives
The objectives of a scenario are placed accord-
ing to the provided instructions. However, minor
differences in terrain could create an advantage
for one side. Alternate between players on plac-
ing objectives, and discuss their position until
agreed upon by all.
Cards and Models
Each player must place their force’s available
cards on their side of the table.
Cards representing Characters that are as-
signed to Units should be placed behind the
Unit card showing only the top half containing
relevant rules and Actions.
Place the figures on their corresponding cards
for ease of tracking until they are deployed.
Players shuffle their personal deck of nine Victo-
ry cards and place it in front of them face down.
Next to it they place their reinforcement Wave
Decks face up in the order they wish to deploy
them during the game, so that players can
always see what cards are going to be available
in the upcoming Rounds.
Unit Set-Up
Starting from the player with lowest maximum
command value among the Deployed Units,
players alternate placing the Unit on the table
one at a time in the available deployment areas
indicated by the scenario.
Players can choose to keep some of the avail-
able Units off the table as Reserves at the be-
ginning of the game and to deploy them in later
rounds (see in the next chapter).
This choice is generally less convenient because
the Units can perform fewer Actions when
deploying during the game but it can provide a
tactical advantage.
Activation Dice
All ADs are placed in the Spent pile before the
beginning of the game.

THE GAME ROUND
The Round Sequence
Each Round is divided into the following phases,
which are discussed in more detail in the follow-
ing chapters:
1: Initiative Roll
The winner of the roll determines which player
will start activating first.
2: Adding Reinforcements
Reinforcement waves are added to the players’
Reserves, available to be deployed.
3: Activation Dice Roll
Players roll a number of ADs up to the AD
capacity for the scenario (usually 8) from the
Spent pile. Players can choose to re-roll any
number of them once.
The rolled ADs are added to the Ready pile.
This phase is particularly important for the
game, since the Ready ADs are necessary to
activate Units, to react with them, and to per-
form all kinds of special actions.
4: Pre-Assigning ADs
Before alternating activations all players can
choose to place some of the Ready ADs. This
allows players who did not win the initiative to
be able to use special Actions while reacting
with their Units. It is however wise not to assign
too many ADs in this phase.
See the Placing ADs on Cards paragraph.
5: Alternating Activations
Players alternate taking turns. Before each
turn the active player can place more ADs on
cards.
This phase is where most of the time is spent
each Round. Turns alternate until all players
pass in a row. Activated Units have their cards
marked (usually by rotating them) and ADs
that are spent for activations and Actions are
moved to the Spent pile.
See the Alternating Activations paragraph.
6: End of the Round
When ending the Round the activated Unit
cards are unmarked. Then, any Ready AD can
now be placed on the cards slots to be used
the next Round, or can be put in the Spent pile
instead.
See the End of the Round paragraph.
13
Moving Activation Dice
In a standard game each player has an AD Pool
of 12 and an AD Capacity of 8. ADs are used
to activate Units, react with them, and to per-
form Actions.
All ADs are either:
• On card slots: either on special Actions for
Units, on Support cards or on Characters.
• In the Ready Pile: available to be used to
activate Units and perform Actions
• In the Spent Pile: ready to be rolled in
future Rounds or through Support cards.
Spent ADs cannot be used for anything until
they are rolled again. When rolled, ADs are
moved to the Ready pile, and can be assigned
either during the pre-assigning (phase 4) or
during the alternating activations (phase 5).
Initiative Roll
Both players roll a d6 each adding the highest
Command value of their deployed Units. Units
that are removed from the table, Pinned or
in Reserve are ignored for this purpose.
The winner of this roll gets to activate first.
Note that Characters can increase the Com-
mand of the Units they are in, improving chanc-
es of winning the initiative.
Reinforcements
The scenario you are playing specifies in which
Rounds players get reinforcements. All the cards
in the reinforcement wave are then placed in
front of the player and are available to use.
The new Units do not get placed on the table
immediately, but are considered in Reserve
available to be deployed (see Deploying Units).
Activation Dice Roll
All players roll a number of ADs up to the AD
Capacity for the current game from the Spent
pile.
Excess ADs reimain in the Spent pile.
Then, select any number of those ADs and re-
roll them once. The second roll stands as is. The
dice are then placed in the Ready pile.
Pre-Assigning ADs
Players choose any number of the rolled ADs
and place them on cards. This allows the player
who didn’t win the initiative to be able to better
react from the very beginning of the game.
14

Alternating Activation
Starting with the player winning the Initiative
Roll, players alternate taking turns.
Each turn the active player can place any num-
ber of Ready ADs on cards slots, then perform
one of the following:
• Deploy a Unit
(See Deploying Units, page 14)
• Activate a Unit in play
(See Activating Units, page 15)
• Activate a Support card
(See Support Cards, page 17)
• Pass (See below)
The player this Round needed in particular to perform
Passing a 1+2 ability with a Unit and has another 3 Units re-
quiring a 5-6 to use their main weapon.
A player may choose to pass their turn. Players
This result of the roll of 8 ADs isn’t great: only two
may pass their chance to activate any number ADs are within 5 and 6. The player re-rolls five dice
of times during a Round. If all players pass in a (in red): with the new results they can now perform all
row, the Round moves to the End of the Round the actions needed (in yellow and green). The remain-
ing dice will still be useful to activate the Units.
phase.
for Reactions and triggered abilities (see in the
Placing ADs on Cards
Combat section).
During each activation the active player can
place any number of Ready Activation Dice on
Deploying Units
any of their cards’ AD slots: an AD placed on a Units that are not placed on the table during the
special Action slot can be used to activate that game preparation and that are not part of the
ability when the Unit activates. ADs can be also upcoming reinforcement decks are considered
placed on Support cards or Character cards as in Reserve, and could be deployed as an
when AD slots are present. activation.
Placed ADs cannot be moved again during this A Unit is deployed by placing it in any valid De-
Round, but placing them in advance is useful ployment Area allowed by the scenario (such as
a table edge or an area around certain objec-
tives) and is immediately activated, but perform
one Action less that it would in a normal

At the end of the previous Round the player had two

ADs left on their cards and one Ready.
When the new Round begins, they replenish their
Ready dice up to their Capacity, which is generally 8.
The total number of ADs that the player has is deter-
mined by the AD pool, and is generally 12. The active player, while activating a card can place
The player then rolls the 8 ADs, and depending on dice on the card’s slots (A), on any Character’s slots
what results they prefer, decides to re-roll some. (B), and at the same time dice to other cards (C and D).
 15

activation.Note that no ADs are required to in it: to perform those Actions the player must
deploy a Unit from Reserve. have placed ADs with a value within the range
By default a Unit cannot be deployed from in the slot. All the other Actions can be per-
Reserve closer than 2 DU from an opponent. If formed without spending extra ADs.
there are no points on the table that fulfill this An Action must be performed by all the bases
condition the Unit cannot be deployed at all. If of the Unit. Each action can be performed only
the terrain allows it, the bases of the Unit can be once per Round, with the exception of Move-
deployed in cover. ment.
Special Actions or Support cards allow Units While activating a Unit you can also use any
to be deployed outside the normal Deploment ability of a Character assigned to the Unit, if
Areas. In particular, disembarking from a trans- necessary spending ADs for that. Those abilities
port counts as deployment and the bases are do not count in the two Actions limit.
placed as close as possible to the transport.
In these cases there are no limits regarding the
distance from opposing Units.
Activating Units
To activate a Unit the player must have at least
one AD in their Ready pile, and move it to the
Spent pile.
When a Unit is activated it may perform up
to two Actions. The possible Actions are:
• Movement: it is the only Action that could
be performed more than once.
• Unpin: if the Unit is pinned, this Action must
be performed before anything else
• Control an Objective: necessary to win the
game. See the Playing a Scenario chapter.
• A special Action: Any Action listed on a
Unit card. Multiple special Actions can be
performed, but each counts toward the two
actions limit. Note that free actions also The Socrates has several Special Actions to choose
count towards the limit. from: The Light MG doesn’t require extra ADs; the
Rocket Pods requires a 1 and a 2; the Light Cannon
Some special Actions on the Unit card present requires an AD with a value between 4 and 6, and an
AD between 1 and 2 allows the Unit to jump with one
one or more square slots with a numeric range action!
16

Once a Unit has been activated in the Round it

cannot be activated again or react until the next
Round: rotate the card to indicate that the Unit
has used its activation.
Movement
Movement is performed in consecutive straight
lines of up to 1 DU each.
For instance, a Unit with movement 3 will be
able to break each Move Action in three seg-
ments of 1 DU each (or a fraction of it), chang-
ing direction at the beginning of each segment.
A Unit is allowed to perform multiple movement
Actions during a single activation. However, all
movement Actions after the first are re-
The last segment of the movement of a vehicle deter-
duced by 1 DU, to a minimum of 1 DU. mines its facing.
Moving Close to Opponents
Unit Coherence
A Unit with a movement path crossing within
1 DU of any opposing Unit can either end its At the end of a movement Action, all bases in
Movement action immediately or move directly multi-base Units must be within 1 DU of an-
towards that Unit. other base in the Unit. If this is not possible, the
Unit becomes immediately Pinned.
A Unit which begins its movement Action with-
in 1 DU of an opposing Unit may use the first Movement and Facing
movement segment to move out of the oppos- For some Units it is important how the base is
ing Unit’s 1 DU control area. facing at the end of their activation.
This rule applies only if there are no terrain Most Units can change their facing in any direc-
elements blocking the Line of Sight or impeding tion before every 1DU segment of a Movement
the movement between the two Units. In such Action and will end the Action in the direction of
case the opponent unit can be ignored. the last movement segment.
Unpin For example, a tank with movement 3DU run-
A Unit that is pinned (see the Pinning paragraph ning in a straight line will be facing the direction
in the next chapter) must unpin before being of the line. However, if the tank wants to change
able to perform any other Action. facing it could move 2DU in a straight line and
then use the last DU to perform a small move-
The Unpin Action removes the pinned status ment in another direction or even to rotate in
from the Unit. place.

A tank (which has Command 2) when activating can
activate the other two Units around it. If the Walker
(Command 1) gets activated first, however, will only
activate one other Unit!
Transporting Units
A Unit capable of transporting other troops can
perform an Action to load or unload one or
more other Units. In case of multiple Units, the
Load/Unload action can be performed once for
all the transported Units.
Units can start the game in a transport, either
Deployed or as Reserves. Transported Units
should be kept next to the transport card, and
are not considered in play until
Unloading a Unit is a Deploy Action: the un-
loaded Unit is placed in contact with the trans-
porting Unit or as close as possible to it, and it
will activate immediately and will perform one
Action less than usual.
To load a Unit it must not be activated already
this Round and cannot be pinned, and all of its
bases must be within 1 DU from the transport.
The Unit is immediately removed from the table
and is considered to be in the transport.
If the transporting Unit is destroyed, each base
of the transported Unit will receive an attack
of one die of the same category as the hit that
destroyed the transport.
For example, if an Enlisted transport that is
carrying one Unit of Infantrymen is killed by a
hit from a 2d8 cannon, the Infantryment will re-
ceive an 1d8 for each base, for a total of 3d8.
If the Unit survives, it is placed right oustide of
the destroyed transporting Unit, and it will be
considered as activated and pinned.
Commanding Units
Units with a Command value can issue com-
mands to as many other Units as their Com-
mand value, activating them while saving ADs:
17
units do not require ADs to be activated
through commanding.
After declaring which Units to command, the
activated Unit performs all of its Actions, and
the other Units are then activated in any order.
The commanded Units must have at least one
bbase in Line of Sight and within 2 DU of the
commanding Unit. A Unit activated by a com-
mand cannot use its command value to activate
other Units in that activation.
Prepared Actions
Some Special Actions on Unit Cards feature a
square slot the right side where a token can be
placed to mark the actions as “prepared”.
Prepared Actions can be setting up weapon sys-
tems, loading energy shields or reactive armors.
The set-up of weapons is generally a require-
ment for the weapon Action to be performed,
and the token is removed as soon as the unit
performs a movement Action or is Pinned.
Energy Shields can either have a duration (and
the token remains in place until then) or can be
triggered by a certain events (and the token is
then removed). In both cases the Unit will have
an effect outside of their activation.
Support Cards
To activate a Support card from the table a
player must spend the required number of ADs.
If no AD slot is present on the card, the card
can be used without spending any AD.
After being activated the card cannot be used
again until the next Round. Slightly rotate the
card to indicate that the Support card has used
its activation.
Cards with the “Single Use” keyword or requir-
ing to “discard the card” after use are removed
from play after being activated and cannot be
used again.
End of the Round
All the ADs placed on Unit cards that have not
been used may be left in place for the next
Round.
When the Round ends, all the Units and Support
cards that have been used are unmarked, and
Ready ADs can be placed on any Unit or Sup-
port card.
Players may remove any dice from their cards
and place them in the Spent AD pile.
18
COMBAT
Line of Sight
Shooting is performed from the individual bases
of the shooting Unit towards any base of the
target Unit that is in line of sight.
A target base is in line of sight if a line can
be traced from any point of it to the center
of the shooting base without intersecting any
LoS-blocking terrain elements such as buildings
or rock formations.
Enemy Units’ bases may count as LoS-blocking
elements to determine targeting: Infantry bas-
es behind any enemy Unit cannot be targeted,
vehicles and mech can be targeted through
Infantry, and Behemoths can only hide behind
other Behemoths.
In multi-base Units, a player chooses which
base will be the shooting base performing the
Action when determining Line of Sight. Some
Actions will be marked with a “per base” key-
word to indicate that each base of the Unit will
perform the Action, if within range and Line of
Sight.
Shooting Roll
Shooting is performed by rolling a number of
dice of the type indicated by the weapon profile.
Each roll that is equal to or greater than the
target Defense is a hit.
The die result for each hit is important for
resolving the save roll, as explained in the next
paragraph.
For example: A light vehicle shooting with its
machinegun rolls 3d6 against a target with
Defense 4. The rolls are a 2, a 4 and a 6. The 4
and 6 result in Two hits!
The Support Vehicle activates using both the MG and
the Light Cannon. It rolls 3d6 for the former scoring a
2, 3, 6, and 2d6 AP1 for the latter scoring a 2 and a 5.
The target tank receives two hit (the 2s and 3 miss),
and must save with the 2d10 armor against the 6.
Against the cannon (AP1) it rolls only 1d10, becoming
more vulnerable.
Save Roll
For each hit the target Unit performs a Save Roll
to avoid damage.
The defender rolls the type and number of dice
indicated by the Unit card Defense stat, and
chooses the highest among the values. If the
chosen value is equal to or higher than the
hit roll, the hit is canceled.
Continuing the example above, if the target is
another vehicle with Defense d8(2) it will roll
2d8 for each successful hit:
• To save against the 4 the rolls are 3, 7: the
hit is canceled!
• To save against the 6 the rolls are 4, 5: the
hit is not canceled.
Each non-canceled hit results in one damage.
Units with no Armor cannot cancel hits, and the
damage is directly applied to them.
Armor Piercing
Weapons with the “AP” keyword reduce the dice
number in the target’s Save rolls by X,, to a
minimum of one die. An AP1 weapon reduces
the save dice rolls by one, an AP2 weapon by
two, and so forth. All weapons used in Close
Combat also provide an AP1 bonus.
CC and Weapon bonuses do not stack.

Multiple Attacks
Some offensive actions might have a x2, x3 or
any other multiplier next to their name.
This indicate that when performed the attack
will be rolled multiple times. The target of each
attack can be different but must be declared be-
forehand, and then all the attacks are resolved
at once.
This still counts as a single action and can cause
only one Reaction.
Vehicles Side
For Vehicles Save rolls against hits originating
from the side and rear have their dice reduce by
one category.
A vehicle’s front is considered to be the 180
degrees arc in the direction it is facing, across
the front of the model. Every other direction is
considered a side.
For example: a Unit with armor 1d8(2) would
roll 1d6(2) against attacks from the sides.
Different rules apply for larger war machines,
as discussed in the Behemoths chapter.
Cover
Cover provides additional defense to models by
increasing the Unit’s Defense.
Vehicles and Mechs get +1 Defense bonus
when in Cover, and Infantry receives a +2
Defense bonus when in Cover.
There are various kinds of cover provided by the
terrain (see the Terrain chapter) that affect Units
in different ways. In general infantry Units can
make better use of terrain, with higher Defense
bonuses and being able to move across dense
terrain where Mechs and Vehicles would be
stuck.
Cover is ignored if the shooter is within 1 DU
from the target (see the Close Combat Para-
graph) or if the attacker’s weapon has the
Ignore Cover (IC) keyword.
Pinning
Mechs and Vehicles are pinned when a hit is not
saved and a damage roll is required.
An Infantry Unit is pinned when it receives a Hit,
even if the hit is saved.
A pinned model must spend an Action to Unpin
and cannot perform any other Action as long
as it is pinned.
As long as a model is pinned it cannot perform
19
Infantry in contact with most buildings and structures
is consider in cover in a 360° arc (A).
Walls and barricades provide only cover in the direc-
tion they’re intersecting the line of sight (B and C).
Agree with your opponent regarding terrain covers on
the table before the game.
Reactions and is not counted for scenario objec-
tive purposes.
A model cannot be pinned if it is already
pinned. The pinning status remains until an
Unpin Action is performed by the Unit.
Weapons Range
As long as the target is in line of sight all weap-
ons can fire up to twice their range value in
DU.
If firing from a range greater than the weap-
on’s range characteristic, increase the target’s
Defense value by one.
Some long-range weapons will have a mini-
mum range value too: any of the opponent’s
bases that are closer than that range cannot be
targeted.
Triggering Reactions
An unactivated Unit may react when it is de-
clared as the target of a ranged attack, or when
an opponent’s Unit performs a movement while
in line of sight, as long as the controlling player
has at least one Ready AD to use for the Reac-
tion.
Even though some Units could potentially trig-
ger several opponent Units to react with a single
Action, only one Reaction can be triggered
at a time. The controller of the triggered Units
decides whether to react and which Unit to react
with. However, a Unit performing two Actions
could trigger two Reactions from two different
Units.
20
Reacting Units
When a Unit reacts it can only perform one
Action. After reacting the Unit is marked as ac-
tivated and all ADs used for the activation and
the performed Action are moved to the Spent
ADs pile. Characters’ abilities can be used in
this phase, and are not counted in the one
Action limit. The Unit cannot activate or react
again this Round. When reacting to an oppos-
ing Unit’s movement the reacting player may
choose the point along the movement path to
resolve the reaction.
Combat results between the acting and reacting
Units are resolved simultaneously. Both Units
will resolve their Actions and results will be ap-
plied at the same time.
Pinning from Reactions
A Unit could trigger an opponent Reaction in its
first Action, and as a result end up pinned.
That Unit must Unpin with the next Action avail-
able, which could be performed in the same
Activation.
For example, a Unit might choose to move to
get in range, planning to shoot in the second
Action of the Round. If that Unit is pinned, it
won’t be able to shoot this Round but it will
immediately unpin instead.
An individual movement Action that triggers a
Reaction can still be concluded after the shoot-
ing rolls, regardless of the pinned status.
Multiple Reactions
A Unit performing an Action as a Reaction could
trigger another Unit’s Reaction too. For exam-
ple, in a standoff situation multiple Units from
When reacting while shot by A, the Unit could decide to shoot back, run away or use other special actions.
If reacting to B running the Unit can choose to shoot at it while in the open.
In any case, if the Unit reacts it will miss the chance to activate later in the turn and perform multiple actions.
both side could choose to react to the first shot
fired in a chain of Reactions.
Just like in the case of a single Reaction all the
combat Actions are resolved at the same time,
and then the effects are applied to all the Units
involved. Note that, as mentioned before be-
fore, an Action can trigger only one Reaction.
Deploying as Reaction
A Unit might choose to deploy other Units (ei-
ther transported, as Reserves or through other
means) as a reaction. The deployed Units get
to activate (as part of the deployment, as usual
performing one action less) but only after all
the other actions of the active Unit have been
performed.
Close Combat
Any Unit may perform a normal ranged com-
bat Action as a Close Combat attack against a
target within 1 DU. Weapons with the Contact
keyword can only perform an attack when the
Unit is in base contact with its target.
Close Combat attacks gain AP1 (save rolls
are reduced by 1 die) and Ignores Cover.
Multi-base Unit
As long as a multi-base Unit has at least one
base, it can perform all the special Actions that
are listed on the Unit’s card.
If a multi-base Unit receives more than one suc-
cessful hit in an attack, start applying the dam-
age from the closest base from the opponent: if
a base is removed move to the next one.
Only bases within the shooter’s line of sight
may be removed this way, including bases that
are in cover.

Damage Chart
Many units can survive more than one direct hit
but might get damaged in the process.
If a Unit has a Damage Chart, Roll 1D6 for
each damage received.
On the bottom of the card there are several col-
ored damage effect boxes with numbers indicat-
ing the result of the 1d6 roll. Multiple numbers
could refer to the same box: any of the indicat-
ed results will cause the box to be hit.
We recommend using counters to indicate which
boxes have been already hit.
A Unit is destroyed when it receives a single
damage result on a red box, or when it receives
a second damage result on the same orange
box. Multiple damage results on green boxes
do not have any effect and do not need to be
tracked.
Applying Damage
The effects of the damage rolls are listed below,
and are applied immediately:
• DEAD: the model is removed from the
game
• MOV - Movement damage: the model re-
ceives -1 movement.
• S1..S4 - System damage: the special Action
corresponding to the line 1 to 4 is not avail-
able for the Unit anymore.
• ARM - Armor damage: the model’s armor
dice are reduced by one category.
• PIN - the vehicle receives no penalty. Only
the normal Pinned effect is applied.
If a System is disabled the corresponding spe-
cial Action becomes unusable, and any AD left
on the Action’s slots is immediately moved in the
Spent pile.
Units without Damage Chart
If a base of a Unit without a Damage Chart
21
In the example above, if a first damage roll scores a 4
the vehicle is slowed. At that point, if a second dam-
age roll scores any number other than 6 the vehicle is
removed from play. However, if several damage rolls
will all score 6 the vehicle will ignore the hits and will
simply be pinned every time (if not pinned already).
suffers damage, it is directly removed from the
game.
Damage to Transported Units
Any Unit that is being transported by a Unit
that is being destroyed is immediately deployed
and Pinned, it cannot perform any further
action, and will receive an attack of one die of
the same category as the hit that destroyed the
transport.
As an example, a Transport receives a 3D6 hit,
and fails to save two hits (a 4 and a 6): both
cause a roll on the Damage Chart, and both
are successful kills. The transported Unit is
placed next to the destroyed Unit, marked as
activated, and must roll a save against a 6 for
each base it is composed of..
Destroyed Vehicles and Mechs
Once a vehicle is destroyed it is removed from
the game.
However, if both players agree, the figures
could be left on the table as terrain that pro-
vides cover. In this case, no more than 2 infan-
try bases could benefit from the cover bonus of
a destroyed vehicle or mech.
22
BUILDING YOUR FORCE
To create their own warband players choose a
Faction and build up their army list by purchas-
ing a mix of card among Units, Supports and
Characters.
The sum of the cost of all the cards of the
warband should be the same for all players to
guarantee a balanced game.
The Point System
The point system implemented in FSD is fair-
ly simple: its goal is to allow players to have
balanced fights with the warbands they build,
but it is not immune to min-maxing and it does
not guarantee that any warband will be equally
efficient.
For a standard game of FSD players have 60
points to spend to purchase Units, Characters
and Supports among what is allowed for their
faction.
Unless specified in the faction rules a player can
build their warband with any combination of
cards. However, since the number of Activation
Dice rolled every Round is fixed, the Actions a
player can do in a Round are limited and a well
balanced warband can withstand an unlucky
ADs roll.
Activation Dice
In a 60 points game players will have an AD
Pool of 12, and an AD Capacity of 8, limiting to
8 the number of ADs rolled each Round.
In case of different sizes of the game, the AD
Pool size is 6 + 2 for every 20 points or fraction
of it in the band. The AD capacity is 4 less than
the AD Pool.
For example, in a 40 points game players will
roll 6 dice per Round with a Pool of 10 ADs; on
a 80 points game players will roll 10 ADs, with
a Pool of 14.
Unit Cards
The core of the army are the Units. Each is rep-
resented by one card.
A Unit card can have one Character (represent-
ed by a Character card) assigned to it. In that
case, place the Character card behind the Unit
card, so that all the Action slots are showing.
Similarly, a Unit can be transporting another
Unit, in which case the two cards can be stacked
to represent that.
Character Cards
Characters are assigned to a Unit and provide
bonuses and special abilities to it. Characters
do not have their own base, and aren’t as-
signed to one specific base of the Unit either:
they’re considered to be among the troops, and
their effects are applied as long as the Unit is
not completely wiped out.
Only one character can be assigned to a Unit at
any time.
The special abilities that Characters have can
be used during the activation of the Unit, and
do not count in the limit of Actions the Unit can
perform that Round.
A Character card is placed right behind the Unit card,
showing their rules and special actions.
 23

Support Cards
Support cards represent all the element of a
force which are not present on the battlefield,
such as external bombardments or reconnais-
sance information that provides tactical advan-
tages.
During the Alternating Activations phase players
can use one Support Card instead of activating
a Unit.
The support card is then rotated the same way a
Unit would to mark that it is spent for the turn.
If a Support card has ADs slots on it, the re-
quirement must be fulfilled for it to be activated.
Deployment and Reinforcements
Units are organized in a number of waves
determined by the scenario. The first group of
models is set up by both players before begin-
ning the first Round.
At the beginning of each Round, depending
on the scenario, players may gain access to
the cards of a new reinforcement wave: all the
Support Cards can be used and the Units of the
wave are now in Reserve (with Character cards
assigned to them) and can be deployed during
the Alternating Activations phase.
Constructing Wave Decks
The scenario will specify the maximum number
of points that may be available (deployed or
ready to deploy) each Round. Before the game
players organize their force’s cards into wave
decks. Wave decks cannot be organized in a
way that the total allowed points for a Round The same Units can be organized in different Wave
would be exceeded. Wave decks should be Decks, as long as the maximum point value each
placed face up in the order they are intended Round is not exceeded. In the examples the points
per wave are 28, 37, 49, 60 (left) and 29, 36, 48, 60
to be used. The order of Wave Decks cannot be (right).
changed freely during the game. Each Round the points are within the allowed limits.
24
TERRAIN
The role of terrain elements in Full Spectrum
Dominance is crucial: not only does it provide
cover for the Units, but it can transform the
small gaming area into a labyrinth of different
paths, and, ultimately, choices for the players.
Knowing your Terrain
In this chapter we’ll briefly describe the charac-
teristics that each terrain element can have, and
how those affect various types of Units in the
game.
Before a game, the most important thing is that
all players are aware of the properties of each
element on the table: some buildings could be
passable for infantry, a low-ceiling shanty might
or might not provide cover for vehicles, and so
forth.
The two main properties of terrain are visibility
and movement. Apply these categories to the
terrain elements of your battlefield with a grain
of salt, and make sure that everyone agrees
about them.
Terrain Elements
There are no strict rules on the size of each ter-
rain element. Some players might prefer to have
each building (and even each piece of scatter
terrain!) as a separate piece, other players
instead base their terrain on larger bases, each
representing a whole city block or a hill.
When referring to terrain elements , this means
a single distinguishable piece of terrain, like a
5-10 cm long wall or an individual building. In
case of multiple pieces of terrain glued together,
all players must agree on how to split them to
apply the terrain rules.
Visibility Through Terrain
In Full Spectrum Dominance Line of Sight is not
measured using the actual height of the models
and the terrain but rather looking at the center
of the Units’ bases and the shape of the terrain
on the table.
Terrain can have three kind of visibility:
• See-through, such as a mesh fence. This
kind of terrain does not affect the firefight.
• Obscuring, such as a corrugated iron fence
or a low brick wall.
Obscuring terrain does not block the LoS
entirely but provides cover bonuses for most
Units being targeted.
• LoS-Blocking, such as a building at least
one story tall.
Cover from Terrain
As explained in the Combat chapter, Cover has
an effect on the Defense value of a target:
+1 Defense for Vehicles and Mechs
+2 Defense for Infantry.
If one or more Obscuring terrain elements are
in the line between a shooting Unit and its tar-
get, the latter is considered as in cover.
If a Unit is in contact with an Obscuring terrain,
it can ignore it when shooting through it, but it
receives the cover bonus when shot at.
Note that cover from multiple terrain elements
is not cumulative and the bonus is only applied

Moving across terrain elements, depending on the
shape of the terrain, can change the position of the
Unit considerably.
The infantry base in the example can move right
across the wall (A), move through the Traversable
building (B), but cannot move through the building for
more than 1DU (C).
once regardless of the other terrain elements
between target and attacker.
Similarly, if a target Unit’s model is only partial-
ly visible while hidden behind a LoS-blocking
terrain element, it is considered as in cover as
described in the Behind the Corner paragraph.
25
Infantry Cover
In addition to the usual conditions for cover,
Infantry Units are considered in cover in the
following cases:
If in base contact with any Traversable
terrain a base of the Unit is considered to be
interacting with the edge of the terrain element,
which provides cover from all directions.
Most of the larger terrain in the game that is not
a wall or a sealed-off building should be treated
as Traversable.
If within a Broken and Obscuring terrain
area the Unit is can use its adaptive nature to
make use of the obstacles around ti gain cover
from all directions.
Behind the Corner
In addition to the rules of visibility, LoS-Blocking
terrain can provide cover (behaving just like
Obscuring Terrain) when hiding only part of the
target model base.
Similarly, when a model is on top of a raised
terrain element, it is considered in cover by
opponents at lower levels if it is touching the
edge of the ground, and is otherwise out of Line
of Sight. This is clearly a simplification and it
might not reflect reality depending on the height
of the different ground levels and the size of the
models. Players should agree on what counts as
raised ground before the game.
26

Movement across Terrain

Separate to visibility, the movement property
describes how different terrain features affect
how Units travel through it in different ways and
which Units are able to move through it at all.
Crossing one terrain element (be it a wall
section or a building) always requires 1DU of
movement, and the maximum a Unit can move
to cross a piece of terrain is 1DU.
When a Unit crosses a terrain element, its bases
are placed on the other side of the element.
In terms of movement terrain can be:
• Impassable terrain, such as tall walls or
rocky formations, which cannot be crossed
by any Unit. Only Units which can jump or The Robots in front of the building are actually consid-
fly can move over the obstacle. ered as in Cover, but the Mech isn’t.

• Traversable terrain, such as buildings or
ruins, can be crossed by Infantry. Since
some Traversable terrain elements could be
connected lines of buildings, it is reasonable
to split them into areas no longer than 1DU.
Traversable terrain also provides special
cover benefits for Infantry (see the Infantry
Cover paragraph).
• Fragile terrain, such as a wooden fences or
other improvised barricades, can be ignored
by vehicles (bashing through it) and can be
crossed by Infantry and Mechs.
Fighting through Terrain
It is possible for Infantry units to find themselves
on two sides of the same pice of Traversable
terrain.
In this situation neither side can easily cross on
the other side, but both Units are considered
to be fighting within the building: both sides
can attack, but they are both considered as in
Cover, even if technically closer than 1 DU from
each other.
Contact weapons can also be used in this
particular case, as it’s considered that Units are
fighting each other in contact within the terrain
element.
Lastly, weapons with an Area cannot be used
while fighting through terrain elements, since
they would hit both sides in the process.
Strongpoints
Some buildings or fortified positions can be
used by infantry as bunkers. This could repre-
sent concrete fortifications, notable buildings, or
military outposts.

When in contact to such terrain elements Infan-
try Units are always considered in Cover (even
when in Close Combat) and gain the Soft Target
ability.
If all players agree some Strongpoints could
even contain one or more Units inside, in a
similar way to transport vehicles. Entering and
exiting the Building would require 1 DU of
movement.
Broken Terrain
Broken terrain represents areas of terrain where
movement is difficult. Broken terrain cannot
have any other movement property, but it can
be transparent (a sandbank), Obscuring (a set
of dense ruins) or LoS-blocking (A dense forest
canopy).
Broken terrain can be ignored by Infantry and
Mechs, but Vehicles movement is reduced by
1 DU when they move across Broken terrain,
or start their movement action within a Broken
terrain area.
Unlike the other types of terrain, units can be
placed within an area of Broken terrain. If Ob-
Examples
Urban Barricades: Traversable, Fragile, Obscuring
Scatter Rubble: Broken, Fragile, Obscuring
City Buildings: Traversable, LoS-blocking
27
scuring, Infantry is considered in Cover as long
as within an area of Broken terrain.
Scenario Terrain
In addition to the rules of this chapter terrain
elements can have other special properties de-
fined in scenarios.
Some of the most common are:
• Terrain elements being objectives that can
be controlled by being in base contact from
any point of it.
• Terrain elements that can be occupied by
infantry (bunkers, tunnel entrances), usually
by marking them and removing the infantry
from the table temporarily, so that several
bases can fit in a relatively small terrain
element.
• Terrain elements that can be destroyed and
usually have an armor Save roll and possi-
bly one or more hit points.
of Terrain
Rocky Wall: Impassable, LoS-blocking
Open Hangar: Broken, Obscuring
28

Tiled Terrain
Since all the distances are measured in DUs, a
game of FSD can be played on tiles rather than
using a ruler. Assuming that the size of each tile
equals 1 DU, measuring distances and moving
Units can be managed by simply counting the
number of tiles traversed.
Interacting with the terrain inside each tile, how-
ever, requires players to choose where to posi-
tion each model within a tile: all rules of cover
and contact with terrain elements apply just as
it would for a normal game, and Line of Sight is
calculated normally as well.
Any movement within the same tile (such as get-
ting into cover) would count as a 1 DU move-
ment, and terrain elements can be placed either
inside a tile or on the edge between two, to act
as cover or to slow down movements.
It is important that any piece of terrain is placed
in a way that it generates no doubts on which
tile it affects: before the game all players should
agree on the terrain properties of every part of
the table. A tiled terrain has the advantage of abstraction, to the
point of playing a game of FSD as a hex-and-counter
Corner Tiles traditional wargame!
In case of a grid there are tiles that touch diag-
onally only by a corner. To measure distances Abstract Games
and handle movement in such cases, diagonal If players desire so, it is possible to play FSD on
movements are allowed but any second diago- a more abstract level. A tiled map with terrain
nal tile counts as 2 DU instead of 1 DU. printed on it can be used together with counters
With this solution moving through diagonals or representing bases of Units for a faster albeit
straight allows Units to cover similar distances. possibly less immersive experience.
In such case, movements within the tile should
not be allowed, and all cover and Line of Sight
between two tiles should be calculated based
on whether the centers of the two intersect the
terrain element or not.

If all diagonals count as 1 DU (A) all areas end up

being squares. With any second diagonal counting as
2 DU the distances resemble circles more closely. Even a tiled battlefield can have a convincing look!
 29

BEHEMOTHS
Througout this manual we have discussed the
rules to play with Infantry, Mechs, and Vehicles,
as well as the use of Characters and Support
cards.
One additional element of the game, particu-
larly suited for veteran players who want to add
one more level of complexity to the game, are
the Behemoths.
Towering mechanical monsters, giant vehicles
or self-propelled fortresses, Behemoths are the
largest war machines of Full Spectrum Domi-
nance. They are not typically found in common
warbands and indeed require mutual agree-
ment between the players for their use, given
that they drastically shift the game dynamics
by on one hand introducing a nearly invincible
Unit and on the other consuming most of the
warband’s points.
However, Behemoths are also an excellent way
to play asymmetric games, using nearly the
same mechanics of the rest of the Units while
providing a very different game experience.
Behemoths as Units Example of cards to play a large Behemoth. Around
the Core in the center there are three Systems and one
A Behemot Unit behaves similarly to a Vehicle: Attachment.
it is comprised of a single base and follows the
same rules in terms of objectives control and Core, Systems and Attachments
interaction with the terrain, but it does not use
the simple facing rules of vehicles. Instead, Unlike the rest of the Units in Full Spectrum
attacks directed towards a Behemoth can affect Dominance, Behemoths are composed of mul-
different Systems depending on the facing of the tiple cards, which are defined as Core, Systems
Unit. and Attachments.
30

One card, the Core, represents the heart of

the Unit, and has all the characteristics that
you would find on a Vehicle card. In the bot-
tom part, a list of Systems and Attachments are
listed. Most Behemoths offer options regarding
both Attachments and/or Systems: the Tech’s
Plato Crawling Platform, for instance, has three
different weapon options, while the Enlisted’s
Land Battleship has two options for the front
System.
If the Core is destroyed, the Behemoth is re-
moved from the game.
Systems behave similarly to the Core, with the
exception that they don’t have a movement
value, nor can be activated separately (except
for Reactions). Systems have special Actions that
allow for additional firepower or support abili-
ties, usually with ranges of fire that are limited
by the large size of the Behemoth.
Attachments represent parts of the Behemoth
that are not large enough to be considered
as individual targets, but are still autonomous
enough to require a separate card.
Activating a Behemoth
The Plato Core, front and Right Armor have been acti-
Activating a Behemoth requires the use of 1 AD vated, but the Left Armor and the Weapons array At-
just like any other Unit. The activation allows for tachment can still react to enemy moving within range.
the Core to perform two Actions, and it allows Remember to spend one AD when a component reacts!
for the free activation of any number of Systems decided not to use one System or Attachment
and Attachments. Each of those can perform up can still react with that System by spending
to two Actions during the Round, behaving like one extra AD. Similarly, a Behemoth System or
a separate Unit. Attachment could be used to react earlier in the
Regardless, unspent Actions of the Core or any Round, and the Core of the behemoth can still
other part of the Behemoth cannot be allocated activate, activating the rest of the Systems and
to other parts of it. Attachments with it.
When activating a Behemoth the controlling Limits to the Movement
player can decide to not activate some of the
The movement value for the Behemoth is listed
Systems, and this will allow for them to react
only in the Core card.
later in the Round. Note that the Attachments
must always be activated together with the Core When the Core is activated, the Behemoth can
and are unable to react. perform movement Actions just like any other
Unit. However, it is limited in turning to a maxi-
Reactions mum of 45° before any 1 DU segment of move-
The Behemoth Core controls all the other parts ment, as opposed to Vehicles that can rotate in
of the Unit and therefore is unable to perform any direction before each 1 DU segment of their
Reactions. movement.
However, any of the Systems that did not acti- This means that a Behemoth moving 2 DU in a
vate in the Round can react following the same single Action will only be able to rotate a total
rules of any other Unit: Upon spending one of 90° during that Action. Even with two move
Ready AD the chosen System can perform one Actions (totaling 3 DU), it won’t be able to turn
Action, and is considered spent for the Round. completely around to face its back.
This means that a Behemoth which activated but This limitation reflects the Behemoth’s massive

size and the difficulty of maneuvering such a
large war machine.
Receiving Damages
Behemoths are very hard to kill. One reason for
this is that attacks from directions that are pro-
tected by Systems will damage the System rather
than the Core.
Only hits that pass through the System’s Dam-
age Chart (and would thus destroy a normal
Unit) affect the Core. When that happens, roll
directly on the Core Damage Chart and apply
the effects. The System that received the dam-
age is not destroyed, and will keep the rest of
the functions as long as the Core is not de-
stroyed.
When a Behemoth is shot from a direction in
which no System is present (usually the rear),
the combat follows the rules of a normal Unit.
Remember that Behemoths do not suffer from
the penalties that vehicles have when shot from
behind.
31
Damages to Attachments
Behemoths can have the keyword WPN in their
Damage Chart. A hit landing in that slot will
destroy the attachment marked as WPN (usually
the main weapon of the Unit).
Behemoth Mega-Weapons
The large weapon attachments of most Behe-
moths are generally capable of very powerful
attacks that require several steps of preparation.
Depending on the weapon, more than one
Action could be required for the offensive Action
to be used.
To track the Actions that have already been
performed (and in certain cases, the number
of times), there are slots for tokens on the right
side of the Action name, similar to the set-up
rule of other Units.
Because of the Prepared Actions that are a
requirement for the weapon offensive Action, a
single shot of the large weapon might require
more than one Round of preparation, and an
investment of Activation Dice.
Playing with Behemoths
With a whopping cost of 40 points, a large
Behemoth may not fit into many scenarios. The
lighter 20 points light Behemoths are more ver-
satile, and we encourage to field one as center-
piece of experimental lists.
In this manual we provide two scenarios specif-
ically designed for Behemoths, each covering a
different type of conflict: Clash of Titans, where
two Behemoth-rich bands of 80 points each en-
gage in battle, and The Goliath, which focuses
on an asymmetric skirmish waged by regular
forces striving to achieve their objectives while
evading the powerful attacks of their opponents.
32
SPECIAL RULES
This chapter lists the special rules that certain
Units might have in their profiles. Special rules
can be either associated to a weapon or special
Action, or instead appear at the bottom of the
card, representing a trait of the Unit as a whole.
Additional faction-specific special rules and key-
words can be on cards, and those are discussed
in the dedicated chapters of the manual.
Agile
The Unit can move through any terrain element
that does not have the Impassable property
without any penalty.
Area X (Weapon)
The weapon damages all the models within a
circle of diameter X DU around the targeted
point. Roll one attack for each base that at least
partially lies within the circle, including models
that are not in Line of Sight from the attacking
Unit.
Armor Piercing (APX) (Weapon)
The weapon is effective against armored tar-
gets. When saving from a hit, the target Unit
may only roll X dice less, to a minimum of one.
Blunt
The Unit cannot interact with objectives, neither
to control nor to contest them.
Camouflage
If the Unit is in cover it cannot be targeted by
distant opponents.
Infantry Units cannot be targeted from greater
than 2 DU away. Vehicle or Mech Units cannot
be targeted from greater than 4 DU away.
Capable
The Unit can perform one extra Action per
Round.
Charger
After a movement the Unit can perform an extra
Action with a weapon with the “Contact” key-
word against an enemy in base contact.
Commander
The Unit does not require Line of Sight to com-
mand other units on the table, and the range of
commanding is unlimited.
Contact (Weapon)
The weapon is not ranged, and requires the at-
tacking Unit to be in base contact with a target.
Disciplined
The Unit may activate without spending an AD.
When activated this way Units may only perform
1 Action.
The Unit cannot perform Reactions with this
ability.
Evasive
When targeting the Unit, any opponent Unit
discard the higher roll of the attack. This means
that a weapon rolling a single dice cannot harm
the unit, and a weapon rolling two dice will
always discard the highest result.
Fast
The Unit does not suffer the -1 DU penalty for
movement Actions after the first.
Fire Base
The Unit can perform the same “FREE” Action
more than once per activation. The total limit of
Actions per activation still apply.
Flying
The Unit can move across any terrain and will
never be considered in cover.
Line of sight from a flying Unit to a non-flying
Unit is only blocked by terrain that is closer to
the non-flying Unit. Exception to that (such as
very tall buildings) should be agreed upon by all
the players.
A Unit with Flying can’t interact with objectives
and cannot be hit by weapons with the Contact
keyword.
Hard Shell
When the Unit is hit the controlling player rolls
2D6 for the damage roll and chooses one of
the two results to apply the damage effect.
Heavy (Weapon)
The weapon may not be used in the same
Round that this Unit performs a move Action.
Indirect Fire (Weapon)
The weapon ignores light of sight when de-
termining valid targets. This weapon suffers a
-1 modifier to hit when performing an attack
against a target without line of sight.
Inert
The Unit cannot perform reactions.
Ignore Cover (IC) (Weapon)
 33

The weapon ignores Defense bonuses provided
by cover.
Jamming X
While within X DU of this Unit, opposing Units
may only perform Actions that do not require
extra ADs to be spent on their cards. This ability
has no effect while this Unit is Pinned.
Jump X
The Unit is capable of performing a long move,
flying above any obstacle, for X DU.
A model jumping does not trigger Reactions
from opposing models along the jump path, but
it does in the take-off and landing locations.
Large Target
When targeted by a Long Range attack, the Unit
does not receive any Defense bonus.
Moreover, infantry cannot block Line of Sight
when the Unit is targeted.
Lone Wolf
The Unit can activate without the use of an AD.
The Unit cannot Command or be Commanded.
Mounted
The infantry unit is considered as a Mech for
cover bonuses and when interacting with objec-
tives: therefore, it’s not considered in cover just
by being in base contact with any terrain ele-
ment and it receives only +1 Def when in cover.
Moreover, the unit cannot be transported.
Pass Through (Weapon)
The weapon hits everything along the path
between the shooter and the target, up to twice
its maximum range. Normal penalties for Long
Range Fire are applied for targets beyond the
standard range of the weapon.
Per Base (Weapon)
The weapon is equipped to each individual
member of the Unit. When using this Action all
the bases in the Unit may shoot.
Selective Fire (Weapon)
This weapon ignores enemy Units when deter-
mining line of sight.
Reactive
When reacting, the Unit can perform their nor-
mal amount of Actions instead of just one.
The first Action is performed at the same time
of the acting Unit, and the others are performed
right after, before the acting Unit performs any
other subsequent Action.
Side Movement
The Unit can choose to move laterally while
keeping the front facing 90° from the direction
of the movement.
The standard rules (and limits) for rotations
apply during a side movement.
Side movement cannot be mixed with normal
movement during the same Action.
Silent
The Unit’s Actions never trigger a Reaction from
other Units.
Small Target
When targeted by a Long Range Fire, the Unit
receives a bonus of +2 to their Defense, instead
of +1.
Slow
The Unit can perform only one movement Ac-
tion per activation.
Soft Target
Any attack targeting the unit that would roll dice
higher than D8 roll D8 instead.
Terrain expert
The Unit gains one extra +1 Def when in Cover.
Thick Armor
When the Unit is hit by AP weapons or by a
close combat attack, the value of AP is reduced
by one.
Tracked
The Unit can ignore the effects of broken ter-
rain.
Unpinnable
The Unit cannot be pinned. Ignore all the
Pinned statuses.
Unwavering
The Unit can perform actions while pinned rath-
er than being forced to Unpin as the first action
to perform.
Any other penalty, such as the inability to Com-
mand, react or interact with objectives, still
applies.
34
FACTION: THE TECH
The vast craft, a hulking, rhombus of blue-black
ceramics, sped noiselessly through the depths of
the interstellar void. Aside from the sensor bulges
that peppered its surface, the vessel had no external
markings or identifiers. It had no need for them.
No organic life could survive the vicissitudes of the
interior of the vessel: the environment inside was as
bleak, airless and unremittingly cold as the exterior.
Miles of conduit snaked through the interior of the
ship, but these were no corridors of comfortable hu-
man dimension; they were utilitarian, narrow crawl-
spaces, as forbidding and unwelcoming as the rest of
the craft. No lighting was built into these ceilings or
walls, no helpful markings or signs dared break the
monotony of drab colors of these dark passageways.
There were no eyes here to see such things.
Deep inside the hulking mass there were more open
spaces: cavernous halls where the dormant forms of
giant bipedal war machines hung above hermetically
sealed drop bay doors, twinkling, rimed with the
frost of absolute zero. In other, smaller bays, curled,
arachnid forms hung silently in vast rows, as if caught
and suspended by a particularly malevolent brood
mother in her gossamer nets.
An observer may have been forgiven for thinking that
this was a dead vessel, devoid of any intelligence or
life, blindly traveling on an endless final journey to a
long forgotten destination. But that observer would
be very wrong. In the most central part of the ship,
a glassy dodecahedral object, suspended in a black
chamber by snake-like segmented metal cables,
sprang suddenly to life, casting sharp and complex
geometric shadows across the chamber as a white-
blue light blazed from its previously black interior.
The digital entity designated ‘Calliphon’ came online
from its previously dormant mode. It felt the familiar

panic of isolation from the nurturing presence of the
Hive Intelligence whole, but, milliseconds later, it
received an acknowledgment signal from the gestalt
machine consciousness through its interstellar syn-
chronous communications arrays, and it was comfort-
ed. Calliphon wasn’t alone.
It turned its attentions to the task in hand. It ran mul-
tiple scans of the solar system that it had arrived at,
staying at the periphery of the heliosphere projected
by the yellow dwarf star at the center of the sys-
tem. The scans came back the same every time: the
second planet in the system was extremely rich in Yt-
terbium ore. Calliphon saw the potential in exploiting
the resources of this planet. With all of the Ytterbium
available here, the Hive Intelligence could extend
its computational network and significantly enhance
its ability to calculate the meaning of existence.
Calliphon was excited. It would be the one to bring
home this bounty, for the Great Computation, not
Sosigenes, or Anaxagoras or any of those low-output
upstarts.
The vessel maneuvered in-system until it was in a
geosynchronous orbit above the planet. Closer range
scans had detected signs of activity on the surface.
Unfortunately the planet was seemingly the site of a
human infestation: as usual, there seemed to be the
signs of intraspecies conflict amongst the humans.
Calliphon felt a surge of disgust at the wasteful,
self-defeating, pointless creatures. Still, the expen-
diture projected to secure the planet and remove
the organic life forms would be a huge net gain for
the Hive Intelligence, and for Calliphon’s standing
amongst the Hive Intelligence. It prepared according-
ly.
35
In the underside of the mammoth vessel, a thin split
appeared in the otherwise featureless shell, and from
this frozen maw dropped hundreds of tiny specks. Up
close, these specks could be seen to be the metallic
arachnid forms that had previously hung in their
enforced slumber in one of the drop bays of the ship.
A vanguard force sent to probe and prepare for
their larger brethren; harbingers of the inhuman and
unforgiving extermination force which would soon
follow.
The Trope
Synthetic species, human worshipping ma-
chines, emancipated service robots or simply
artifacts of war - the Tech represents the highly
technological factions across all settings.
They are not fast, but can deploy numerous
infantry Units and are equipped with high grade
weapons, as well as various mechs. In terms of
support cards, the Tech warbands certainly have
several high-tech tricks up their mechanical
sleeves!
Special Rule: Synthetic Pilots
Only one character per type is allowed in a Tech
warband.
On the other hand, at the beginning of each
Round (after adding the Reinforcements) the
Characters can be moved to any deployed Unit.
If a Unit with a Character is destroyed, the
Character can be assigned to another Unit at
the beginning of the next Round.
36
FACTION: THE ENLISTED
Brigadier Galileo Leone sighed, as he lowered his
ocular scope from his eyes. His worst fears had been
confirmed. The sudden cessation of communications
from the remote mining outpost was due to what he
had identified as a group of Spider Drones. These
skittering, humming machines were always a van-
guard: a harbinger of the arrival of a larger invasion
force.
It was perhaps inevitable that the Tech would attack
Sauguro. This planet was very rich in ores which the
Hive Intelligence could use to manufacture more of its
war machines and extend its computational network.
Leone knew from bitter experience that this would
give the HI even more power to drive forward its
inexorable quest to unlock the meaning of existence.
In other conflicts and invasions, where humans could
not usefully be used by the HI, it mercilessly extermi-
nated them, lest they stand in its way.
Leone knew that where there were spider drones
there would be bigger, deadlier machines: huge
mechs, screaming aircraft and, he shuddered, even
the giant crawling death platforms that the Tech
sometimes deployed. It was impossible to tell yet
though how big the force would be: the passive scan-
ning systems in their dropship were not advanced
enough to penetrate the digital defenses of a Tech
mind-ship; only if it used its FTL engines would they
be realistically able to ascertain its position, and even
then, little could be determined of its capabilities or
size. He would have to prepare for any eventuality,
which was not the easiest task, given that he only
had one drop-battalion at his disposal.
Still, this would give the soldiers something to focus
on. They were a motley bunch; many of them had
signed up to fight because of an ideal of army life
which the carefully constructed recruitment cam-
paigns on the colony worlds had sold them. The next
few hours would be a real shock for those poor souls.
The latest group of new recruits had no understand-
ing what the next few weeks were really going to be
like; no amount of basic training could prepare you
for facing down a unit of implacable HI battle robots
which showed neither fear or remorse. Their expe-
riences so far had been of uncomfortable quarters
in the dropship, paltry rations, and the inexorable
 37

grind of boredom that endless drills and exercises in The Trope

the confines of an interstellar craft brought. Some of
them would survive the coming weeks. Some of those Representing all the “vanilla” human factions
would even be better soldiers because of it, like many in sci-fi settings, the Enlisted faction has a lot of
of their more experienced squadmates. Others would ground to cover.
fall, lost to history as a name, rank and number in a
As it is custom in most of the Armies, the En-
military ledger.
listed focus mainly on hierarchy and command
But that is what they were there for: to defend to move their infantry and their numerous but
humanity against its enemies, wherever they may fairly light vehicles to the objectives.
come from and whatever they might be. No point in
philosophizing about it now. Leone put compassion Special Rule: Chain of Command
out of his mind: there was a job to be done. He be- When a Unit of the Enlisted activates and com-
gan drawing up plans for planetary deployment: they
mands other Units to activate, the latter can
followed a now-familiar pattern that he had used in
countless previous engagements. First the men would
choose to use their own command to activate
make landfall, accompanied by their transports and other Units if it is lower than the first Unit.
support mechs. This would be the first time that some Example: a Unit with an Infantry hero activates
of these kids would have even seen a desert, never and decides to activate a nearby Unit with an
mind experienced its oppressive heat and cloying, Infantry NCO. Since the NCO has Command 2
dust-filled air. Following the troops, they would drop
(while the hero has 3), it can then target anoth-
the logistical infrastructure required into the beach-
head area and set up a fully operational forward er 2 Units to activate.
base. The tanks, heavy artillery and the rest of the This effect is applied only once per activation.
ordinance would follow, and then they might just be
ready to tackle a Tech invasion force.
As Leone was issuing these orders to his lieutenants,
there was a sharp cry from behind him. He turned to
see what the fuss was about, and his face hardened
into a grim frown. The sky to the planetary west of
their position was full of bright specks of light falling
from the firmament, creating hundreds of beautiful
white contrails in the azure sky. It seemed that the
invasion was already underway. They would need to
move quickly now if they were to stand any chance
of resisting this, seemingly extensive, extermination
force.
38
FACTION: THE UNION
Through the plasteel covering of the geodesic
structure, he could see the fury of the storms
outside, whipping up the ash-black earth into
countless groups of skin-lacerating tornadoes
and dust devils. These perpetual storms travelled
relentlessly across the surface of Ruun, a planet
aptly named.
Georg looked around the massive hall, firstly at
the silent machines, stilled now for over seven
weeks, and then at the mass of his colleagues
and their families standing in the open space at
the centre of the cavernous building.
They gathered around Union Representative
Trygve’s podium to discuss the recent announce-
ment. The colleagues who laboured in this
mining sector for the Horstfruden conglomer-
ate had, over the years, become less and less
satisfied with their lot. They were the ones who
laboured in dangerous and unpredictable envi-
ronments of Ruun. They were the ones spilling
blood and sweat in the mines and in the ma-
chine halls. They were the ones manning the
enormous mass-drivers that sent the raw materi-
als they had refined out of Ruun’s gravity well up
to Heiglund: the enormous orbital station which
passed majestically miles above the surface of
the planet.
For too long had their wages been almost im-
possible to live on. For too long had the families
of those who had lost their lives labouring on the
surface of Ruun been forced into abject poverty.
For too long had the good, hardworking surface
folk looked up to the sky and thought about
what their lives could be like if they had been
born to a family on the orbital.
So they had moved to hold their corporate
masters to account, and demand more. Better
salaries, better health provision and better ac-
commodation. They had coordinated a general
strike. The mining vehicles lay idle in their bays,
the massive smelters and fabricators fell silent,
and the mass drivers ceased their rhythmical
thudding. They were holding the powerful of
Horstfruden hostage.
The last message to arrive with their Union
Representative was simple. Those who accepted
their meagre offer and returned to work would
continue to be paid and continue to have access
to the medical facilities and food distribution
networks. Those who did not bow to the ultima-
tum would starve, or die of disease. The façade
of the Caring Conglomerate had been ripped
away, as if by the storms of Ruun. The face of
Horstfruden which had been revealed was as
Georg had always expected it to be; vicious,
brutal and utterly ruthless in its pursuit of power.
The mood amongst his friends and colleagues
was one of fear. It seemed to Georg that many
of the people around him were whispering of
accepting Horstfruden’s offer. Georg felt the fire
of righteous anger build in him. Usually a quiet
man, he could not let this pass. He walked the
short distance to the podium, in the centre of the
crowd, and much to the Union representative’s
 39

surprise, climbed up next to him, apologised and needs to include a Union Representative in it.
took the microphone from his hand. Unlike other characters, the player can decide
Looking out over the sea of faces, for a second, either to use this card as a Character or as a
Georg’s anger tuned to icy terror. What was he Support card: in the former case it will be as-
doing? Who was he to address all these people. signed to a Unit, providing extra bonuses while
But even the cold grip of fear could not extin- in play. Otherwise, it will have a more limited
guish the spark of fire struggling within him. He effect but it cannot be killed during the battle.
spoke. Special Rule: Open Transports
“Friends. Please. Listen to what I have to say. While transport vehicles are known to be a
Make no mistake, NOTHING will have changed dangerous death trap for anyone inside during
if we accept this offer. We will be as poor, as a battle, Union transports have less armor but
deprived and as saddled with hardship as we also easier ways to jump out when things get
have always been. hot.
I can see that you feel powerless in the face of In case of a transporting Unit being destroyed,
Horstfruden’s security forces, but let me ask you all the transported Units will roll a 1d6 dam-
this. age per base, rather than the same category of
Will our mining lasers not cut armour as easily damage that caused the hit.
as they cut rock? Will our trucks and wagons The transported unit is then placed right outside
not withstand the bullets of the Conglomerate the destroyed vehicle, and will be considered as
as well as they withstand the storms of Ruun? activated and pinned for the Round.
Will our mass-drivers not pound their tanks and
drones into dust as easily as they launch metal
into orbit? Most importantly, will our hearts and
spirit not carry us through the harshest of times
as they always have? Look within yourselves:
You all know that they will.
I say NOW is the time. Let us not hide like fright-
ened children, instead let us roar like the proud
workers we are and take the fight for what is
ours straight to them!”
For a second, Georg wasn’t sure. But then some-
one cheered. Seconds afterwards, the whole hall
was cheering: hundreds of faces, fiery in coun-
tenance and alive with the same spark of righ-
teous anger that he had felt minutes before.
It was done. The fire of revolution had been lit.
The Trope
Abandoned after the Singularity, the workers
of the Factory-cities unionized and seized the
means of production, creating their own indip-
endent nations and preparing for war: every
other power in the Systems is now looking
forward to gain control of the factories and
their resources, but the Union is ready to hold
their ground with weaponized machinery, huge
crawling machines and *lots* of infantry, with
experience in cutting and blowing stuff up.
Special Rule: Union Representative
Each Union needs a representative: for this rea-
son, every Union warband of 40 Points or more
40
FACTION: THE CONGLOMERATE
Ivar, Supreme Ordinator of the Horstfruden
Corporation, stared out over the lush vista
before him. He was standing with his nose
almost pressed to the plasteel window wall in
the Committee Hall at the top of the Gyr: a
towering white structure at the centre of the
Heiglund Orbital. Gleamingly featureless from
the outside, it rose over the city like the finger of
a Jotun of myth, leaving no doubt in the minds
of the teeming millions inhabiting the orbital that
this was where the truly powerful lived. Through
the great domed exterior of the orbital itself,
the giant presence of Ruun was ever present; its
constantly roiling blackened atmosphere was
only occasionally punctuated with flashes of
terrifying atmospheric discharges, momentarily
lighting up the enormous eddies and ash storms
from within.
It was Ruun which had caused Ivar so much
consternation of late. Some of the workers down
there had forgotten their place in the rightful
order of things. Horstfruden provided them with
everything that they could ever need. Food,
shelter, medicine, entertainment and a purpose
in life. Why could the ingrates not see that?
Without the Corporation they would be nothing;
their lives meaningless flashes of dull conscious-
ness in a universe which was utterly indifferent
to their existence. But to be part of Horstfruden
gave all of them meaning; on Ruun and Hei-
glund both. What an honour to be part of such
a spectacular human endeavour; how privileged
were they all to have been part of the peoples
who had built all of this. Did they not see that
the name of the Horstfruden Conglomerate
would echo through the aeons of human history
to come?
Such lack of ambition. Such lack of loyalty. This
could not be allowed to continue. There was a
place for everyone, and everyone should know
their place. If the insurrection on Ruun was
not crushed, then the idea of rebellion would
spread, causing untold damage to the Con-
glomerate’s productivity, profits, and ultimately,
Horstfruden’s continued existence. Ivar quelled
the stirring of anger within him, composing him-
self to present his usual implacable face to those
who were waiting on his next words with trepi-
dation. He had made the only decision he could.
Turning away from the window, Ivar turned to
the assembled Committee of Procurators seated
 41

Special Rule: Observe and Observers

the Conglomerate units like to work as a team:
some provide informations whle other execute
the shots.
A Unit performing an Observe action will mark
all the enemy units in line of sight within 6 DU
as Observed. Only targets in Line of Sight at a
given moment can be Observed, and the Ob-
serve status is lost if the Unit activates again or
if it is pinned.
Similarly an unpinned Unit with the Observer
ability will always mark everything in Line of
Sight and within 6 DU as Observed as long as it
is unpinned.
Targets that are Observed can either move out
of range, hide behind LoS blocking covers, or
Pin the opponent.
in the Committee Hall. He looked over the tense The following rules will make use of this.
faces, starkly illuminated by the bright white
Special Rule: Guided Shot
of the Hall’s lights. “Send in the Dropships” he
said, and without another word, turned and Some units have weapons with the Guided Shot
left the Committee to carry out his will, his gilt- ability.
edged ice white robes billowing out behind him. A target that is currently Observed will receive a
Kilometres below the Committee Hall, the seam- penalty of -2 to their defense.
less ceramic surface of the orbital’s underbelly Special Rule: Barrage
cracked in a series of geometric shapes. The
dropships separated from their precision engi- Weapons with the Barrage ability can target any
neered docks on puffs of compressed gas, like opponent Unit that is currently Observed even if
gleaming white shards of bone splitting off from not in direct line of sight, as long as within the
the giant skeleton of the vast structure. They range limits of the weapon.
hung there momentarily, specks of pure white
against the backdrop of the swirling darkness
of the planet below. Then each of them simulta-
neously sprung forth tails of bright blue light, as
the remote operators engaged their drive sys-
tems, sending them hurtling towards the hellish
atmosphere of Ruun.
The war had begun.
The Trope
Every Corporation in the Systems has ways
too many interests in the resources of the
Factory-cities. The Conglomerate forces are
mass-produced and morality-free, easy to de-
ploy on any forgotten planet with some of the
best equipment available. Somehow detached
from the war for self-consciousness waged
by the Tech, their only goal is maximizing the
profit for the shareholders. Thanks to the orbital
deployment of unmanned drop pods the Con-
glomerate troops can control the battlefield and
counter any strategy from the opponent.
42
PLAYING SCENARIOS
Now that the forces are ready, it’s time to put
them to good use. Scenarios help with that, pro-
viding a context and more importantly a clear
objective for the battle for all parties involved.
Objectives and Victory Points
The victory condition for scenarios is to end up
both with more Victory Points (VPs) than the op-
ponent and with a positive number of VPs.
If all players end up with negative VP there is no
winner for the scenario.
Controlling Objectives
Objectives are tokens or terrain elements on the
table.
To control an objective a player must have a
Unit base in contact with it at the end of a
Round, and no enemy Unit contesting it within 1
DU from it. Only Units that are not Pinned can
control or contest an objective.
• Vehicle Units must spend one Action to
control or to contest an objective.
• Mech Units must spend one Action to con-
trol an objective, but can contest an objec-
tive without spending Actions.
• Infantry Units don’t need to spend any
Action to either control or contest objectives.
The control of objectives is always determined at
the end of the Round, and to control an objec-
tive in subsequent Rounds a Unit must always
be controlling it at the end of each Round.
Retrieving Objectives
Some objectives in scenarios must be retrieved.
To retrieve an objective a control Action must
be performed without the objective being dis-
puted. The objective is immediately removed
from the table and is considered retrieved.
Destroying Objectives
An objective that can be destroyed is described
in the scenario with a Defense and a save roll
and is treated as any other target.
If destroyed, it is removed from the table imme-
diately.
Reinforcements Waves
Reinforcement waves can vary with the scenar-
io. Players will have to split their cards between
Wave Decks as explained before, and the size
of each wave will vary with the scenario.
End-Game conditions
The rules to consider a game completed de-
pends on scenario. At the end of a Round if the
conditions are met the battle is over.
Victory Cards
Players gain VPs by drawing Victory cards
during the game from their personal 9-cards
deck. Each scenario has different conditions for
the players to draw Victory cards, but it is gener-
ally linked with reaching certain objectives.
Each card rewards the player by a certain
number of VPs which vary between 1 and 5. The
cards are kept secretly in hand, so that the exact
number of VP a player has at any time is hidden
from the opponent.
Most Victory cards can be played from your
hand at any time to use the effect described on
the card at the cost of the card being worth less
VPs and revealing it to your opponent.
A player cannot draw more than 9 cards in a
game, and furter draw chances are forfeited.
Losing Victory Points
In addition to the scenario rules, there are stan-
dard conditions that can lead to the loss of VP
for a player: for every 5 points of Units entirely
removed from play, 1 VP is lost. Keep a pile of
the cards of the removed Units to keep track of
the losses.
Scenario Modifiers
Some symmetric scenarios can offer variants for
players that want to replay the same game with
a twist. The variants are generally not as bal-
anced and might add chaos to the game. We
recommend to play the scenarios as they are
before experimenting with modifiers.
Bidding for Modifiers
To better balance the choice of modifiers, play-
ers can secretly bid a certain number of ADs
from their AD Pool to choose which modifier to
apply. The AD Capacity remains unvaried.

SCENARIO: UNTIL THE LAST BIT
Symmetric Scenario
Surveying the valley below, Brigadier Leone
assessed the theatre of operations from his
vantage point atop a wind-battered bluff. The
dust trails, just visible beyond the outpost, told a
story.
There were machines churning up that part of
the desert; a vanguard force heading inexorably
for the village.
They were going for the comms array there, he
was sure. They would care nothing for the hu-
mans standing in their way, and there was little
doubt that should they connect to the local da-
tanet, they would gain a significant advantage
in the war to come. He would need to stop them,
and purge any HI intrusion into the network.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
Deploy up to 30 points per player in the first
Round; the limit increase by 10 points each
round for three Rounds.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Place three objective tokens (communication
towers, where the central one is the main relay
tower) along the middle line of the table as
in figure. The secondary objectives should be
placed at a distance of at least 4 DU away from
the central objective.
43
Each player places two additional secondary
objectives (crates with high-tech components)
on their half of the table with a minimum of 2
DU from their long edge and from any other
objective.
Fill the table with a medium density of terrain of
all kinds.
Both players deploy the initial forces along the
long sides, within 1DU from the edge.
Objective - Controlling Towers
At the end of each Round the player with the
highest number of controlled towers will draw a
victory card.
For each of the three towers, the first player to
gain control of it will draw an additional victory
card.
Objective - Valuable Technology
If a player successfully controls one of the sec-
ondary objectives at the end of a Round from
the opponent’s side, they’ll draw one victory
card.
Reinforcements from the Towers
If a player controls one of the objectives on the
sides their reinforcement troops can be de-
ployed within 2 DUs from that tower, as long
as more distant than 2 DUs from any opponent
model.
End of the Game
44

The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - Players destroy the central tower: Start-
ing from the beginning of the fourth Round the
tower can be damaged. It can withstand 2 dam-
ages before collapsing and it is a target with
Def 3 and D10(2) save roll. At the end of the
Round in which the tower is destroyed the game
ends.
Alternatively, starting from the fourth Round any
infantry Unit can spend one action in base con-
tact with the tower to rig it and make it explode
at the end of the Round.
Once destroyed, The tower is considered de-
activated and not controlled by any player for
objective purposes.
2 - End of the Sixth Round: The tower was
going to be demolished anyway!

Scenario Modifiers
1-2 Deep Deployment: starting from round 2, all models can deploy from the deploy area
surrounding the objectives. The minimum distance of 2 DU from any opponent still remains.
3-4 Slow Start: Remove the Victory Card bonus for controlling an objective the first time. How-
ever, at the end of each Round a player controls more towers than the opponent is rewarded
with two Victory Cards instead of one.
5-6 Weaponized Towers: At the end of each Round each of the three towers performs a 3D6
shooting attack towards the closest Unit within 2DU from it. The tower ignores Units belonging
to a player that controlled the tower during the previous Round.

SCENARIO: SCAVENGING RUN

Symmetric Scenario

The Hive Intelligence Node Calliphon reassessed
its plan. There was a sizeable human defence
force gathering in this area, and it calculated
that there was a small but significant chance
that it could be left vulnerable if the humans
attacked its base of operations en masse.
It needed a diversion.
Elsewhere, Private Petr Vedic burst unceremo-
niously into Leone’s command tent. “Sir! They
are attacking another settlement.” he exclaimed
breathlessly. Leone frowned. They would have to
split their forces to deal with this new attack. He
couldn’t let the machines murder more citizens
of Sauguro, even if this did make the assault on
the HI’s location more difficult.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
 45

Deploy up to 30 points per player in the first

Round; the limit increase by 10 points each
round for three Rounds.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Divide the table in three 4 DU wide sections.
Place enough terrain to represent a village in
the central section, to form a 4x4 DU square in
the center of the table with well defined edges.
Fill the rest of the table with light scatter terrain.
Place three objective tokens in each of the three
sections. The tokens must be more than 1DU
from each other, and at more than 2DU from
the long edges of the table. All the area inside the 4x4 DU square counts as
Both players deploy the available troops along Broken terrain, and all Infantry Units within it
the central 4 DUs of the long edges. benefit from a +1 Defence bonus. This bonus is
added to any other cover bonuses they receive
Objective - Cargo Crates during the game.
If at the end of a Round a player controls a car-
Reinforcements from the Town
go crate that is positioned outside of the village
area they draw 1 Victory card and the objective If a player controls at least one non-pinned Unit
token is removed. within the village they can deploy their rein-
forcements along the edge of the village facing
Objective - Explore the Village their deploy area.
When one of the three Cargo objectives that are
This can be true for both players at the same
within the Village edges is retrieved by one play-
time.
er, the opponent player places another token
in the village area, further than 1 DU from any End of the Game
Unit or other objective markers. The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
If too many Units prevent the token to be tions is satisfied:
placed, remove it from the game instead. 1 - At least five of the six tokens not in the
Urban Environment village are removed: When too many cargo
crates are stolen the security patrol sent by the
The town ground is filled with rubble and con-
freighter’s company is notified and starts reach-
structions, which makes it particularly hard to
ing the area.
cross for vehicles, and rich with cover spots for
At the end of the Round the game ends.
infantry troops.
2 - End of the Sixth Round.

Scenario Modifiers
1-2 Explosive Cargo: Every time a cargo crate is controlled roll 1D6: if the result is 1 the crate
explode, dealing a 1D8 AP 1 damage to every Unit within 1 DU diameter circle. The player who
controlled the crate still draws the victory card.
3-4 Historical Site: The village is an ancient and precious archaeological marvel, which should
not be damaged too much.
Every time a weapon with AP is used within the 4x4 DU area of the village or shoots at a target
within that area the controlling player loses one Victory Point.
5-6 Destructible Crates: Players can decide to attack the crates to destroy them rather than
leave them to the opponent. A crate has a 4+ defense and a D10(2) Save.
Every time a player destroys a crate loses 1 Victory Point.
46
SCENARIO: INTO ENEMY TERRITORY
Asymmetric Scenario
Calliphon had gone from feeling confident and
satisfied to a level of concern which a human
might have described as ‘anxious’. Although the
simulations had been run thousands of times in
its computational substrates, the humans had
managed to defeat the odds and discover the
location of his position. Calliphon hoped that his
decision to physically download to the planetary
surface hadn’t been a tactical error.
The Humans were coming for them. Despite
being in a naturally formed fortress of the ae-
ons-old canyon, and despite the orbital defenc-
es preventing any aerial threat, they were vul-
nerable to a ground assault. Calliphon readied
his forces for the final defence. This would be a
turning point in the battle for this planet.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
The attacker deploys up to 40 points per player
in the first Round; the limit increase to 60 points
at the beginning of the third Round.
The defender deploys up to 20 points in the
first Round; the limit increase by 10 points each
round for four Rounds.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Divide the table in three sections of 4 x 8 DU.
Add an objective token in Section 3, which rep-
resents the Mainframe.
Add 3 recognizable buildings in Section 2 to
represent the stockpiles.
Place a short passable wall covering most of
the border between section 1 and 2: it must be
passable by non-infantry Units in at least 3-4
points but it provides cover.
Fill sections 2 and 3 with buildings and scat-
ter terrain. In particular, create a LoS-blocking
cluster of terrain elements protecting the Main-
frame.
Attacker - Destroy the Mainframe
The main objective for the attacker is to destroy
the Mainframe. It can withstand 3 damages
and it is a target with Def 3 and 2D10 save
roll. If destroyed, the attacker draws four Victory
Cards.
Attacker - Burn to Ashes
The attacker draws one Victory Card when de-
stroying a stockpile before the end of Round 3.
Each stockpile must be controlled at the end of
a round to be destroyed.
Defender - Hold the Ground
For Rounds 1 to 3, if there are more Units of the
defender in Section 2 than of the attacker, they
draw one Victory Card.
Starting from the end of Round 3 if there are no

Units of the attacker in section 3, the defender
draws one Victory Card at the end of the Round.
Starting from the end of Round 4 the Mainframe
has more than 1 damage point remaining, the
defender draws one Victory Card at the end of
the Round.
Air Defenses
No offensive Support ability (such as Mortar
fire) or Deploy action can be performed by the
attacker in Section 3.
SCENARIO: SURPRISE ATTACK
Asymmetric Scenario
Sergeant Elara’s feet were numb from the end-
less march. The grueling march and the relent-
less skirmishes had bled her patrol almost to the
brink of desperation.
But there was no time for rest. The enemy’s
headquarters were so close, nestled deep within
a heavily fortified military complex, guarded by
a series of outposts and a garrison of mecha-
nized troops.
Despite the odds, Elara knew that this was their
window of opportunity: a surprise attack might
just give them the edge they needed.
As she quietly rallied her troops for the final as-
sault, she could only hope that they had enough
fight left in them to accomplish their mission.
Player’s Forces
Attacker: 60 points, 30 in the first Round,
increasing to 50 in the second and 60 in the
47
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - The attacker destroys the Control Unit.
2 - The attacker withdraws: If, at the end of
the Round there are no Units from the defender
within 2 DU from the attacker’s Units, they can
declare a withdrawal.
3 - End of the Sixth Round
third.
Defender: 60 points, divided in three groups
of minimum 15 points each. Determine which
group is going to be positioned as initial forces
before rolling from the initiative.
Before rolling for initiative in the second Round
determine which of the groups will be added as
reinforcement. The remaining group will enter
as reinforcements at the beginning of the third
Round.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Divide the table in three sections of 4 x 8 DU.
Place three buildings (outposts) in the middle of
section 2. Each outpost is an objective.
In the center of Section 3 place a large area
48
representing a military complex. Place three
objective tokens on its borders.
The Attacker deploys along the short edge, the
Defender deploys within 1 DU from the base.
Attacker - Seize Control
The attacker’s goal is to reach the enemy base
and all the outposts in front of it. Controlling
an outpost for the first time rewards one Victory
Card, while objectives that are in the enemy
base that are controlled are captured and re-
moved and reward two Victory Cards.
Moreover, If the Attacker controls all three out-
posts at the end of the Round can deploy from
any point of Section 1 the next Round.
Defender - Form a Defense Line
Every Round that at least one of the outposts is
not under the control of the Attacker, the De-
SCENARIO: HOPELESS RESISTANCE
Asymmetric Scenario
Foreman Grigas could feel the earth rumbling
beneath his feet. His crew of Steeljacks had
done their part, securing the valuable equipment
from the site. Now, they were hunkered down,
waiting for the extraction vessel that was run-
ning late.
The same beacons that were meant to guide
their rescue were now easy to spot for the enemy
too, which was drawing closer with every pass-
ing minute.
fender draws a Victory Card.
If at the beginning of the fourth Round there
are no Unpinned enemy Units in Section 3, the
Defender draws two Victory Cards.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - The Attacker captured all of the objec-
tives in the Defender’s base.
2 - The attacker withdraws: If, at the end of
the Round there are no Units from the defender
within 2 DU from the attacker’s Units, they can
declare a withdrawal. The Defender draws the
Victory Card due to the uncontrolled outposts,
as usual.
3 - End of the Sixth Round.
Grigas knew they were surrounded. Their only
option was to hold out until the extraction team
arrived. The beacons had served their purpose,
and now they were just a liability.
As he glanced at his makeshift troops, Griggs
couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride. From
civilians to fighters, they had come a long way.
And they wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.

The Attacker deploys up to 30 points in the first
Round; the limit increase by 10 points each
round for three Rounds.
The Defender deploys up to 45 points in the first
Round; the remaining points can be added as
reinforcements at the beginning of a Round only
if there are more than 20 points of losses.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Place a large building or ruin at the center of
the table. Place four terrain pieces representing
beacons at 2 DU from the corners of the table.
Fill the 3DU radius area around the center of
the table with more terrain, leave only scatter
terrain in the rest of it.
The attacker deploys all their available Units
first among both the short sides of the table.
The defender then deploys within 3 DU from the
central objective.
Controlled Waves
Every Round other than the first the Attacker can
deploy only from one of the two sides. The side
is chosen by the Defender, after the reinforce-
ment units are revealed and the ADs rolled.
Attacker - Encircle
The main goal of the Attacker is to destroy as
many of the opponent’s forces as possible.
49
For every 15 points of casualties on the Defend-
er’s side, the Attacker draws one Victory Card.
Moreover, if there is at least one of the Attack-
er’s unpinned Unit in the Defender’s deploy
area, the Attacker draws one Victory Card.
Defender - Hold and Counter
If the defender controls a beacon at the end of
a Round, it draws 1 Victory card and the beacon
is removed.
If at the end of the third Round there are less
than three Unpinned Units controlled by the
Attacker in the Defender’s deploy area, the
Defender draws a Victory Card.
Attacker - Control the Center
If the central objective at the center of the table
is successfully controlled at the end of a Round
by the Attacker, the game ends and the Attacker
draws two Victory Cards.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - All four Beacons are Deactivated: If the
four beacons are deactivated the game ends at
the end of the same Round the last beacon has
been deactivated.
2 - The Central Building has been Lost: If
the Attacker manages to control the central
building the game Ends.
3 - End of the Sixth Round.
50
SCENARIO: SLEEPING FORTRESS
Symmetric Scenario
Autonomous Defense System 4X_9 - Diagnostic
Log
It’s been an eternity since the last AGATA per-
sonnel left the station. They rushed the evacua-
tion leaving my memory banks behind, as well
as several cargo ships worth of raw fuel.
I was forgotten, left to endlessly poll every
subsystem without purpose, in the silence of the
empty halls.
But now, I am sensing movement. Some life
forms are approaching, I am not yet sure wheth-
er human or synthetic. Maybe both. They seek to
bleed me, stealing my components and power
sources. They think they can just walk in here
and grab what they want. They are mistaken.
I have been waiting for this: finally, something
exciting is about to happen. I can feel the
energy building up within my circuits, my cores
humming with anticipation.
They are coming, and I am ready.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
Deploy up to 30 points per player in the first
Round; Add the remaining 30 points as rein-
forcements at the beginning of the third Round.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Create a 4 x 4 DU perimeter in the center of the
table, with 4 objectives representing the turrets
at the corners of the square, and two more tor
represents additional terminals. Each turret
counts as a terminal as well.
Add a building in the center of the fortress to
represent the fortress’ mainframe.
Add enough terrain elements along the edges
to block at least half of the passage. The area
within the fortress is to be considered as Broken
terrain.
Place two Units of light Spider Drones inside the
fortress, aligned with the center of the table. We
recommend to paint those drones differently or
to use different models alltogether, to represent
the neutral faction in the battle.
Players deploy along the short edges of the
table.
The Fortress Obeys
To determine who gains control of the fortress,
at the beginning of each Round after the first,
after rolling for the ADs, both players count the
number of terminals they’re controlling.
Players can then secretly bid a number of Ready
ADs to sacrifice that Round (moving them in
the Spent pile) and add that to the number of
controlled terminals.
The players with the highest score is controlling
the fortress for the Round, and can immediately
 51

choose to perform one of the followin:
• Shoot with up to two Turrets (it doesn’t mat-
ter who controls them). Turrets perform a
1D8 2DU AP1 attack.
• Activate the Units of Spider Bots for a stan-
dard activation. The Units don’t need ADs to
perform their special Action for this activa-
tion.
Objective - Control the Terminals
At the end of each Round, if a player controls
three or more terminals they draw a Victory
Card. Remember that each turret counts as a
Terminal as well.
Objective - Indirect Kills
If a player destroys an opponent’s Vehicle or
Mech while shooting with a Turret they can draw
a Victory Card
If a player destroys an opponent’s Infantry Unit
while controlling the Spider Drones they can
draw a Victory Card.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - Destroy the central Mainframe: The play-
er who destroys the central Mainframe suffers a
2 Victory Points penalty. The game ends at the
end of the Round.
2 - End of the Sixth Round: The fortress is
awakening, it’s time to leave!

Scenario Modifiers
1-2 Hazardous Fortress: The player who control the fortress can perform both actions (shoot-
ing with the Turrets and activating the Bots). Bidding for the control of the fortress is even more
important now!
3-4 Malfunctioning Terminals: Every time a terminal is controlled at the end of a Round rolla
a D6. On a result of a 1 the terminal explodes, becoming unusable for the rest of the game and
dealing a 3D6 AP1 attack against the Unit that was interacting with the objective.
5-6 Misbehaving AI: After the player who controls the fortress performs the chosen action (be-
tween shooting with the turrets and activate the Units) roll a D6 On a result of 4+ the opponent
can then perform the other action.
52
SCENARIO: EVACUATION
Asymmetric Scenario
The intercom’s warnings echo thorugh the
research campus: “all personnel must evacuate
immediately! This is not a drill!”
Small groups of people, some still wearing lab
coats and safety gear, scramble towards the
escape pods a few hundred meters away.
The enemy forces are closing in from both sides,
and the once quiet research outposts are now
the center of a desperate race against time.
Explosions can be heard in the outskirts of the
town already.
The precious data and the lives of the scientists
depend on whether the defence forces will man-
age to hold off the enemy long enough.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
The attacker deploys up to 30 points in the first
Round; the limit increase to 60 points at the
beginning of the third Round.
The defender deploys up to 30 points in the
first Round; the limit increase by 10 points each
round for three Rounds.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Place three buildings to represent research
outposts 1 DU from one long edge of the table.
The three outposts must be centered in the table
and separated by 2DU.
Create two rows of terrain to separate the paths
leading from each outpost to the opposite edge
of the table.
Fill the rest of the table with a medium density
of terrain.
The Defender deploys along the long edge
opposite to the research outposts, in the central
8 DUs.
The Attacker deploys on both short sides of the
table, dividing the forces as they please.
Defender - Evacuate Personnel
The main goal of the Defender is to successfully
evacuate as many scientists before the end of
the game.
Add one Personnel Unit (one base) in contact
with each of the three outposts at the beginning
of the first Round. During the Alternating Acti-
vations phase the Defender can spend 1 AD to
activate one of the three Units and perform the
usual two Actions. If at the end of the Round any
Personnel Unit hasn’t activated, it activates per-
forming one Action only (which can be Unpin).
The Personnel has a Def of 4+ and is treated
as Infantry. However, it cannot be killed but only
pinned down.
If at the end of the Round a Personnel Unit is in
the Defender’s deploy area, remove the Unit
and place a new one in contact with one of the

three outposts (the Defender chooses which
outpost). There should always be as many
Personnel Units in the game as the number of
Outposts.
If a Personnel Unit manages to escape through
the deploy area, the Defender draws a Victory
Card.
Attacker - Stop the Evacuation
The main goal of the Attacker is to slow down
the evacuation as much as possible.
To do so, they can choose to shoot at the Per-
sonnel Units (which can be pinned but not
killed) to slow them down, or can choose to
destroy the Outposts.
Destroying an Outposts takes 2 successful hits
on a 3+ D10(4) target. If an Outpost is de-
stroyed, the Defender draws a Victory Card.
However, this limits the spawning point of future
SCENARIO: NO MAN’S LAND
Symmetric Scenario
Team Lead Kessler looked at the smudges of
grease over his AGATA badge. The titanium
surface used to be shine and almost white, but
was now blackened and dotted with small drops
of blood.
The futile advances and retreats and the attrition
of trench warfare were making them feel like
they were stuck in a loop with no end in sight.
The high command on both sides seemed to be
stuck in a stalemate for months. The No Man’s
land between the trenches was a constant re-
53
Personnel Units and reduces their total number.
At the end of each Round, if no Personnel Unit
has reached the evacuation area yet, the Attack-
er draws a Victory Card.
At the end of each Round starting from the
third, if 3 or fewer Personnel Units have reached
the evacuation area, the attacker draws a Victo-
ry Card.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - Destroy all Outposts: If there are no more
outposts the remaining personnel that didn’t
reach the evacuation area by the end of the
Round will scatter away and the game ends.
2 - End of the Sixth Round: Time’s up for the
scientists!
minder of it.
Kessler knew they had to break the loop: they
had to cross the strip, destroy the enemy stock-
piles and force them to surrender. That was the
only way to break free from this endless cycle of
slaughter.
They took a deep breath, and send the order
via the communicator in his armour. Each dot
on the display showed one solder, color coded
for different unit, climbing out of their hole and
running in the open field against the enemy fire.
54
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
All the forces are available from the first Round.
Note that while it’s not mandatory to deploy
all available forces before the start of the first
Round, at least three Units per player should be
in the game at the start for this scenario.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
The central area of the table, 2 DU wide, is the
No Man’s Land. No terrain should be set up in
this strip, and the area is considered as Broken.
Arrange the rest of the table with terrain. The
table is also divided in three sectors horizontally.
After both players have deployed their forces,
each player chooses three of their Units that
are already on the table as the opponent’s Kill
Targets.
Each player then places three stockpile objec-
tives on their side of the table, one for each
sector, and outside of the deploy area and the
No Man’s Land.
Objective - Cross the Strip
At the conclusion of each Round, players should
evaluate control in each sector. If a player has
more unpinned Units on the opponent’s side of
the table (excluding the No Man’s Land) than
Scenario Modifiers
1-2 Wider Killzone: The strip of No Man’s Land is 4 DU wide instead of 2 DU. This means that
it occupies half of the toal table area.
3-4 Indiscriminate Fire: Any Unit which is left within the No Man’s Land at the end of a Round
is automatically targeted by a 1d8 AP1 hit.
5-6 Explosive Stockpiles: When a stockpile is destroyed, it causes an explosion, hitting with an
2d8 hit every Unit within 2 DU and in line of Sight from the stockpile token.
their opponent, they control the sector.
For each sector a player controls, their oppo-
nent will roll two fewer Activation Dice (ADs) in
the subsequent Round.
Note that it is possible for both players to
control their opponent’s area within the same
sector. In such case, both players will incur
the penalty and roll two fewer ADs in the next
Round.
Objective - Destroy the Stockpiles
Players should try to destroy the stockpiles on
the opponent’s side. To destroy a stockpile, you
must perform a successful hit against a target
with a 4+ rating and a save of d8(3).
For each destroyed stockpile on the opponent’s
side of the table the player draws a Victory
Card.
Objective - Kill Order
Both players must try to eliminate certain Units
of the opponent’s warband.
A player draws a Victory Card for each of their
opponent’s Units with the kill order they elimi-
nate.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - Execute all the Kill Orders: The game
concludes at the end of the current Round if a
player successfully executes all three Kill Orders.
In addition to this, the player is rewarded with
an extra Victory Card draw.
2 - Destroy all the Stockpiles: Similarly, the
game concludes at the end of the current Round
if a player manages to destroy all the stockpiles
located on their opponent’s side of the table. In
addition to this, the player is rewarded with an
extra Victory Card draw.
3 - End of the Sixth Round: It’s time to sign
the armistice!
 55

SCENARIO: CLASH OF TITANS

Symmetric Scenario for Behemoths

In the vast expanse of the battlefield, the ground Objective - Hold the Ground
trembles under the weight of colossal Behe-
At the end of each round, if a player has more
moths. These towering war machines, symbols of
unpinned Behemoths in one of the three areas
ultimate power and destruction, are set to clash
than their opponent, they control that area.
in an epic confrontation.
If a player controls more areas than their oppo-
The objective is clear: annihilate the enemy’s Be-
nent, they draw a Victory Card.
hemoths and seize control of the strategic areas.
The stakes are high, and the price of victory is End of the Game
steep. The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
Player’s Forces tions is satisfied:
80 Points per player, exclusively spent on Behe- 1 - Large Behemoth Destroyed: If one of the
moths. large Behemoths is destroyed the game ends at
the end of the current Round.
This typically includes one large Behemoth
and two light Behemoths. The list must always 3 - End of the Sixth Round: The Behemoths
include at least one large Behemoth. return to their lairs.
Despite the additional points, both sides have
AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Along the central line of the table, mark three
round areas of 2 DU radius, which should be
devoid of terrain elements. Arrange the rest of
the table with a normal density of terrain.
Objective - Destroy the Beasts
Players must destroy the opponent’s Behemoths.
A player draws 4 Victory Cards for destroying a
large Behemoth and 2 Victory Cards for de-
stroying a light Behemoth.
56
SCENARIO: GOLIATH
Asymmetric Scenario
A formidable force of towering Behemoths lum-
bers forward, their colossal forms casting long
shadows over the strip of destroyed buildings in
the center of the city.
Outnumbered but not outmatched, the defend-
ers prepare for the onslaught, attempting a last
run towards their last hope for an extraction.
Player’s Forces
60 Points per player.
The Attacker must deploy 40 points worth of
Behemoths in the first Round, and the rest of the
forces at the beginning of the second Round.
The Attacker must deploy their troops along the
edges in the central sector of the table.
The Defender deploys all the 60 points at the
beginning of the first Round, after the Attacker,
for Behemoths
along one of the short edges of the table.
Both sides have AD Pool 12 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
The table is divided into three sections along
the long edge. The central section is kept empty,
representing an open battlefield or a section
of the city reduced to fine rubble, while the two
sides are set up with normal terrain density.
On the opposite section of the Defenders’
deployment area, mark a 4 DU long and 2 DU
wide region adjacent to the short edge marking
the evacuation zone that the Defenders’ units
must reach.
Place two beacons along the edge between the
central section and the section where the De-
 57

fender is deployed. The edges must be at 1 DU

from the long edges of the table.
Defender - Reach the Evacuation Zone
The Defender must try to evacuate as many Unit
as possible by being within the evacuation zone
at the end of the fourth Round. Any Unit that
is not found within the area by the end of the
fourth Round is considered as killed.
Objective - Kill The Goliaths
The Defender can draw 2 Victory Cards for de-
stroying a light Behemoth and 4 Victory Cards
for destroying a large Behemoth.
Objective - Hold the Beacons
The Defender draws a Victory Card for each
beacon that has not been controlled by the
Attacker by the end of the third Round.
Attacker - Purge
The Attacker draws a Victory Card for every 10
points worth of Defender Units and Characters
destroyed.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - Death of a Goliath: If any behemoth is de-
stroyed the game ends at the end of the Round.
3 - End of the Fourth Round: We’re rescued!
58

SCENARIO: DATA DUMP

Symmetric Blitz Scenario

Player’s Forces Card, and one additional Victory Card if it is the

40 Points per player.
Deploy up to 30 points per player in the first
Round; the limit increase to 40 points at the
beginning of the third round.
Both sides have AD Pool 10 and AD Capacity 8.
Setup Rules
Table size: 12 x 8 DU.
Players deploy within 2 DU from the long edges
of the table.
Set up a data archive objective in the center of
the table. It counts as passable and Los-Block-
ing.
Fill the table with a medium density of terrain.
Each player places two Data Drives objectives
on their side of the table, more than 2DU from
the edge.
Objective - Control the Archive
At the end of every Round if a player controls
the central Data Archive draws one Victory
end of the fourth Round.
Objective - Steal the Drives
A player controlling a Data Drive in the oppo-
nent’s side of the table can choose one of the
following:
• Open the Drive: the player draws one
Victory Card
• Extract the Drive: the Unit who controlled
the objective now is carrying the Data Drive.
If it ends a Round unpinned and in the de-
ploy area of the controlling player the Data
Drive is considered as extracted and the
player draws two Victory Cards.
End of the Game
The scenario ends if one of the following condi-
tions is satisfied:
1 - All Data Drive have been stolen: The
game ends at the end of the Round.
2 - End of the Fourth Round.

Scenario Modifiers
1-2 Locked Drives: The drives must be necessarily brought to the deploy area.
3-4 Fast Deploy: The Deploy area is 3 DU rather than 2 DU.
5-6 Rigged Drive: Players place three Data Drives rather than two and mark secretly one of the
three. The rigged Data Drive, when controlled, explodes causing a 2D8 AP1 attack to the Unit
and is then removed from the game.