CONTROLLING TROOPERS

For the most part trooper units are controlled just like vehicles - they can move, shoot and fight as described already. The difference with troopers is that you don't control just one at a time, but a squad.

A squad is made up of four different troopers who you can control at the same time, so that when you control a squad all four troopers can move, shoot and fight together. You still have to move them one at a time and roll to shoot for each one, but when you pick to control one you get to use the other three also before your opponent's go.

A squad of troopers does not have to stay near one another, and if you have several different kinds of trooper in the same squad then they will be moving at different speeds. This is fine, as your squad can be as spread out or as close together as you want, but don't forget which troopers belong to each squad!

Troopers move with the speed of 1 step per 1 RESOURCE point. They can climb over obstacles with the halved speed. Just measuer the hieght of the obstacle (round up to the nearest full step) - to overpass this obstacle trooper should spend twice more his RESOURCE points. Ladders allow troopers to climb faster, as they do on flat surface.

Just like with other units, troopers are only allowed to shoot with a single weapon once during a turn. As each trooper is only armed with one weapon they are only allowed to make a single shot when they are activated.

HOW TO MAKE A SQUAD

When creating a squad you can have it made up of whatever troopers you like, so long as the squad isn't more than four models. You can have just three or even two models in your squad, and even just one trooper on his own. It's useful to paint or mark all the members of a single squad in the same way so that you can easily identify them on the battlefield.

If a pilot from a destroyed vehicle joins a squad it is okay for that squad to be more than four models. If you have several pilots try to spread them out amongst your squads as best you can.

HOW TROOPERS FIGHT

A trooper who is moved into base contact with an enemy trooper can fight him in hand to hand combat, punching, kicking and using their rifles as weapons. Troopers aren't able to fight vehicle units, so don't try!

To work out what happens in the fight both players need to work out the fight power of their troopers. This is done just like working out a unit's ram power. To work out the trooper's fight power roll a dice and add the trooper's armour value to the result.

Whoever gets the highest total wins the fight. The losing trooper then takes damage equal to the difference between their powers. If the fight happens to be a draw then both troopers receive 1 point of damage.

A Protectorate Bomber is fighting an Empire Sniper. To find out who wins the fight both troopers need to work out their fight power. For the Bomber a 5 is rolled on a D6, and added to his armour of 3, his fight power is 8 (5+3). For the Sniper a 5 is also rolled, but his armour is only 1, so his fight power is 6 (5+1). Because the Sniper lost he takes damage equalling the difference between the two fight powers which is 2 (8-6). The Sniper is destroyed.

Remember, a trooper involved in a fight cannot use his shooting weapon because he is in base contact with an enemy. If you want to break off from the fight you can do so when it is your trooper's next go. Move your trooper directly away from the enemy unit with the normal rules. After this it can do nothing else that turn.

THE GOLDEN RULE...

At some point in a game it's likely that you and your opponent are going to disagree about something. It might be that you think that one of your units can't be seen by the unit your opponent wants to shoot with or any number of other things. If something like this happens in one of your games, to save getting into an argument, use the golden rule.

Both you and your opponent roll a dice, if you get highest then you're right, if your opponent gets highest then he or she is. If you both get the same number, roll again. Remember, the reason for playing is to have fun!