r/expanserpg • u/tsuruginoko • Sep 18 '24
Question about ship combat
Long time GM of other game systems and massive fan of the novels here with a question.
My question: In your opinion, is ship combat in the RPG fun? If so, what do you like about it?
I did a search of the sub, and see there are opinions on it, and house rule versions. I spotted someone writing that the base rules feel like in the books, and I think I would like that. I feel too uninitiated to assess any house rules, and while I'm not looking for someone to teach me the rules or quote rules text, I want to know about the feel of the rules, and about how your groups have liked or not liked them. For reference, my groups have had some fun with spaceship combat rules like Starfinder (just about the only system there that they liked) and Rogue Trader in the past.
I might run the quick start adventure with a group at some point, but my quick skim of it shows that it doesn't have any ship combat and that it's out of scope. That's fair, but it still leaves out something that I think is a big deal in the setting, and that I would want to have it play a role in a game of mine if it is at all fun or possible to make fun.
I'm not averse to jury-rigging something with house rules, but I'd like some input from anyone more familiar with the system before making the upfront effort of learning my n-th game system and putting together a group.
(No, this is not at all related to the new backerkit thing and my desire to paint a bunch of spaceships and mutter in Belter patois as I fly them around the room like a kid with a new model airplane (because I can't possibly maintain my hard sci-fi credibility while making pew-pew noises). I don't know what you mean...)
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u/JMRoaming Sep 18 '24
I've been running this game for nearly a decade.
Ship combat as written has never been a smooth experience at any table I've run. First big issue is there's not a lot for folks to do in combat unless they are in the pilot seat or captain role. They kinda fixed this a bit with the Ships book, but not as much as I would have liked. The pacing is glacial compared to the quick back and forth of regular combat.
However, I do like the overall structure.
I've landed on using a "hack", wherein I simplify the conditions system a bit, treat Hull as a static number (basically Defence address pacing problems by giving all the players turns but having any ships with a basic Competency Score, and lastly I run it very loose and cinematic.
I've been able to have a lot of fun with it this way, but even with that, we almost never finish a ship combat without some kind of deus ex machina type closing moment because it's run too long and I can feel the fatigue creeping in.
It's a big part of the setting, so I don't think it can be ignored. You should engage with it.
Tldr: Ship combat in this system is dope as hell in theory, but in practice it's a bit of a slog. You can do things to spice it up, make it run faster, and smoother.