Tutorial — version 1.12.0
The title card opens on the six actions in the order they happened. Pick one, choose which side you will command and who the other commander is — a cadet, a staff officer, a fleet officer, or another player at the same screen — then take the plot. The Long History fights all six as one war. Free action draws two squadrons to a point purse on a board nobody has fought over.
One hex is a light-second; one turn is six seconds. Both commanders write in secret, then the sheets are read together and resolved in this order: plot → energy → sensors → movement → fire → seekers → ship’s work → damage control.
Speed is bought in hexes out of the drive channel and spread over the six impulses. A reaction drive takes one mark per impulse cell — port, straight or starboard — applied before that impulse moves, and pays energy for every turn of the helm. A Rhylsh hull turns for nothing but pays dearly for speed. A Drove gravitic hull writes an absolute bearing per impulse and never comes about.
One point of weapons energy charges one barrel, one barrel per mount per turn. A mount fires everything it is holding or holds it for a better second. Every shot is rolled before any damage lands. Screens rebuild weakest-arc-first and a hit strikes the arc it came through.
| Mount | Arc | Reach | Hits on | Per charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BM Beam battery | all round | 8 | 7 or less | 2 |
| HB Heavy beam | fore | 10 | 7 or less | 2 |
| PL Pulse projector | all round | 10 | 6 or less | 3 |
| LA Gravitic lance | fore | 6 | 7 or less | 4 |
| FX Flux projector | all round | 5 | 8 or less | 3 |
| WB Web caster | all round | — | jams | — |
| LB Light beam | all round | 4 | 7 or less | 1 |
Attrition actions go to whoever holds the greater share of the force he brought; a gap under five per cent is a draw. The convoy is won outright by three holds through the passage, and the two siege actions by whether the objective still stands when the clock runs out.
The same conditions read the other way. A hull driven off the edge of the plot is gone for good, and counts as lost — except a loaded freighter leaving by the eastern edge, which has delivered.
The action in hand is written to browser storage after every turn and offered again as Resume on the title card, hot seat and war position included. Finishing an action clears it. New action returns to the title card at any time. If storage is unavailable the game plays on without saving.
Select one of your ships and choose Weapon arcs, or press V. The plot shades every hex that at least one intact weapon can reach and bear on. Darker coverage means more mounts can bear. Forward-only weapons follow the ship’s current heading.
Press X or choose Threat map to shade the potential weapon coverage of enemy contacts whose hull class you have firmly identified. The map uses the contact's current held position and heading, but it does not reveal hidden damage, weapon charge, or orders. Darker red shading means more identified enemy mounts could potentially bear there. Weapon arcs and the threat map are mutually exclusive so the plot stays readable.
Press D or choose Fleet status to open a commander-wide readiness board. It shows friendly frame, screens, plant, drive, sensors, surviving mounts and stores. Choose an active hull in the report to return to the plot centered on her.
Press L or choose Battle log to open the complete action timeline. Use the filters to isolate fire, damage and repair, or warnings. Export text saves the retained record for an after-action review.
Press O or choose Orders review to see every friendly order sheet on one board. The review shows power use, speed, course, targets, ship’s work and any problems that still need attention. Choose a hull to jump straight back to that sheet.
Turn archive: Press H during an action to review the orders you wrote on previous turns. In two-player hot-seat games each commander sees only their own archive.
Press I during play to open the consolidated contact board. It shows every enemy contact your side has actually recorded, separating current holds from last-known positions. Firmly identified hulls show their published class and armament, but never hidden damage, power, weapon charge, or written orders. With one of your ships selected, choose a held contact to assign its mounts and return to the plot.