Take Command of the Battlefield

    Your Aerospace fighters have swept away the enemy orbital defenses, opening the way for your transports to begin their landings. High-altitude reconnaissance reveals three regiments of enemy troops dug into fortified positions – the only way to seize control of this star system will be a ground assault. Your DropShip bucks as it hits the atmosphere; wreathed in flames, the massive spacecraft plummets towards the surface, ready to disgorge its deadly cargo. Your warriors await only your command to strike – what are your orders?

     Operational orders set the stage for the combat that is the bread and butter for the FGC campaign. Without a robust operational rules set, combat can break down into a bloody (but boring) battle of attrition; on the other hand, if the rules are too complex, the actual combat takes second place to operational maneuvering. The new FGC campaign tries to strike a balance between these two extremes and incorporates many of the innovative features seen in the Flashpoint 3090 campaign.

• Operational initiative has been clarified and simplified. Additionally, a “special orders” system similar to the critical events has been introduced.
• Many excessively complex orders have been removed or changed into special orders.
• Most orders are limited in scope to one formation vs. one formation, greatly reducing the value of “doom stack” type attacks and encouraging battle types that are more playable.
• Salvage has been integrated into the economic rules and is no longer a standalone rule (more on this to come)
• The operational orders rules now fit on one page – just over 400 words.

    In addition to the operational rules, today’s preview includes some information about the two different tactical doctrines used in the FGC universe. Some of the details, particularly on how unit improvements work, will be in a future preview, but this section still has some good details as to how the various formations are structured. It also contains a little spoiler – a table listing all of the factions in the game.

You can download the preview PDF from this thread on the INTELSER Forums.