"Solitaire Rules for playing FASA STSTCS games?" Topic

Has anyone who is interested in playing the Star Trek Starship Tactical Comabat Sysyem by FASA ever developed a set of solitaire rules for the game?

These days, I just haven't got time at present to get together with anyone who is interested in the system. So something that would allow me playing against another side with some form of random yet tactical gameplay wouldn't go amiss.

I've tried asking on Brad Torgersens STSTCS site, but people haven't managed to get back to me on the subject yet.

link

Or is there anything in other starship combat games that could be adapted that people could point me in the direction of?

There's a set of maneuver charts for X-Wing solo play, that could probably be adapted fairly easily.

Add in aggressive, balanced, and cautious tactics with that, for your "opponents", and it shouldn't be too difficult to do.

I think the solo play rules were mentioned here on TMP, but if not, they are either on the Boardgamegeek website, or in the FFG forums.

I haven't seen any. It's tricky with the power allocation rules, but I suppose you could randomize a side's priorities (weapons, shields, maneuver) each turn and allocate accordingly. Oh, and I guess you'll have to randomize or otherwise determine which shields get powered to what level.

I always hated the power allocation rules, assuming the chief engineer should handle that.

Still, it does add some tactical nuances to the game.

IIRC Star Fleet Battles had solitaire rules, and those could probably be easily adopted to STSCS. You could probably get a rough estimate of how they work from the Star Fleet Battles forums over on the Task Force Games website.

Go way back to Fasas Star trek the role playing game,there is a very usable table to NPC a ship opponent.It will raise shields,power weapons and move-although some aspects could have been more developed..like awareness of opponent location etc.

I always hated the power allocation rules, assuming the chief engineer should handle that.

Still, it does add some tactical nuances to the game.

Of course, as part of the original RPG, it allowed several people to play various stations on a single ship, so it WAS taken care of by the chief engineer. ;->=

And, in the main, it WASN'T SFB…

@OF And, that wasn't an snide aside to you. Just noticed your comment.

Doug

Given that I allow alot more RPG elements in my house rules, it would be like playing chess against yourself; hidden strategies simply don't work.

The more complex and nuanced the system, the harder it gets to produce a solo opponent you can play against with reasonable effort.

If you are Ok with a bit more simulation/roleplaying rather than playing only one side actively you can do the following:
-Pick 1-2 traits for each ship that tells you about its captain and the decisions that are made. Like "Very aggressive", "defensive", "opportunistic", "prefers close range fighting", etc. This informs the tactics each captain will follow each turn.
-You can also do this with an overall commander or appoint one captain as C-in-C. His traits will inform a simple strategy at the start of the game. Write 2-3 down of every side like "focus on the Constitution" and randomly pick one.

I found such methodds more rewarding than just playing both sides is I often get lost in micro optimising each individual move, power allocation, etc instead of enjoying the game.