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It should be noted that StarSIEGE is dedicated to Gary Gygax. As far as the rules, mechanics, and playability go, I think that Mr. Chewning and TLG would have made Mr. Gygax proud.
The Physical Product
StarSIEGE: Event Horizon (hereafter referred to as SS) is a boxed set. I’ll argue for a moment the merits of this. C&C was released as two hardback books, replicating the feel and style of old-school D&D. A look at old-school TSR sci-fi games brings to mind the box sets of the ‘80’s: Star Frontiers, Space Master, and Gamma World. Each of these contained multiple rule and setting books, along with dice and other play aids; they were also known for their attractive and catchy box art. I understand and wholeheartedly agree with TLG’s decision to release SS as a box set.
The set consists of a box, four copies of the Field Manual (the Player’s Handbook, essentially), one copy of the Operations Manual (analogous to the DMG), one copy of the setting book (Victory 2442), and one copy each (on heavy cardstock) of essential record sheets for the game. The game also comes with two d20’s—although I’m told that the initial print run left out the dice, my order was deliberately delayed so that the dice could be included. The entire package just feels like an old-school box set—great job, in theory, of replicating the old-school feel. (Although I don’t get a wax crayon to color in my dice).
So how does StarSIEGE stack up?
The box top is just amazing. The entire top is a field of colorful stars and a large blue planet, all serving as a backdrop for a stylized starship. It’s attractive and eye-catching.
Unfortunately, the rest of the package is very disappointing. On my copy, the back of the box is covered with large ripples, as there are many air bubbles in between the printed paper and the cardboard; the paper has come off in several places (this is happening on the box top too). I am amazed that this passed TLG’s quality control. I know that games sometimes don’t get put together right, but someone over at TLG put this product—which clearly had some major defects—into a box and mailed it to me for full price. If this came from a fulfillment house or Amazon, I would not hold it against the product in a review. But as this came directly from the publisher, I can’t help but feel somewhat cheated. It's been stated on the forums here that the first printing of any TLG product should be avoided--although I didn't find this to be true with Castles & Crusades. Packaging is so simple and elementary, though. Why not do it right the first time?
Hey waiter! There’s a hair in my Field Manual!
The physical rulebooks have similar errors. There appear to be ripples on the glossy covers of each of my rulebooks—almost as if there was a very long, curly hair in between the paper and the ink. The poor assembly of the box bottom and the odd ripples on the cover of each of my rulebooks are puzzling and disappointing. For a publisher of TLG’s reputation and quality, this is clearly a subpar effort.
Interior Layout, Art, and Organization
The artwork, aside from the box cover, is all black and white. The art, while sparse in places, is of good to excellent quality, and it does a great job of capturing the sci-fi feel. There is an illustration of a female character that is clearly a sci-fi re-working of a female adventurer illustration from C&C; I found this to be a nice touch. All in all, the artwork is very good—on the same par with C&C.
The rulebook covers, by the way, do not utilize art; instead, they are printed to appear as technical manuals, with only the SIEGE engine logo to decorate them. I don’t see this as a plus or minus, merely a stylistic decision.
The layout of the books has been criticized on the forums here. I did not find the layout to be a problem (critics have accurately pointed out that the text is arrayed in small columns and is not always easy to read). While not necessarily easy on the eyes, this layout did not interfere with my reading. In fact, much like C&C, SS’s layout took me back to the days when I read my Star Frontiers, Space Master, and Gamma World rulebooks with relish. There is a small list of errata being compiled on TLG's forum, but I have only found one minor error so far-not bad at all.
The interior organization of the rules mimics the old-school look that SS is trying to emulate. Unfortunately, the organization is slightly worse than these old-school games. Neither the Operations or Field Manuals have a table of contents or an index. The Field Manual is a concise introduction; however, which lays out the basics in a clear and accessible manner. The pages appear overly packed with text, and this can be daunting, but by the end of the first page, I know exactly what the box set is about. I should mention that there is little to no fluff text or background in the rules—all of this sort of writing is saved for the setting book (“Victory 2442”). So if I don’t like the setting, I can just port the rules over and create my own. (This system is presented as a toolkit, anyway, so I feel that the inclusion of a setting book is actually a huge bonus—it’s like a book-long example of what you could do with this toolkit. Included inside are lots of goodies you can plunder for your own setting).
The Rules: SIEGE iiiiiiiin spaaaaaaaace!
The entire game is based around the SIEGE engine (the name of which is almost longer than the text it takes to explain the mechanic!). Basically, roll a d20 to beat a target number (“Challenge Base”)—12 if the challenge falls within one of your PC’s skill bundles; 18 if not. There are other modifiers that come from attributes, equipment, situational difficulties, etc, but the entire game runs around this one roll. The Operations Manual gives the SE quite a bit more detail about how to use this one roll in a variety of situations, but the roll stays the same for interaction, skill use, combat, psionics, and everything else.
Chargen: We can build him; we have the rules
Chargen is easy and straightforward: Attributes, Species, Skill Bundles & Specialties, etc. Unlike C&C, there are no classes; this is a skill-based system. You can essentially go from concept to character without being tied down by a class. This might be seen as a pro by some and a con by others. My experience is that when you throw d20-ified classes into sci-fi, the setting suddenly gets very restrictive—so I was pleased to note the lack of classes. You get a number of Nova Points, which are essentially like hero points, action points, or Force points, giving PCs an extra edge in a critical situation, letting them survive an otherwise deadly experience, etc.
F-R-E-E that spells ‘Free,’ credit report dot com baby!
One interesting decision is the inclusion of a credit score. This replaces what would be “starting gp” in a standard fantasy RPG. I’ve heard some people just howl with rage over something like a “wealth score;” I think this is different than a “roll to see if you can afford to buy sunglasses” kind of system. Here, your Credit Score just determines what equipment you select at character creation. I like the Credit Score—it just seems a lot more “futuristic” than keeping a roll of C-Bills wadded up in your sock. Besides, I think it would be exciting to roleplay actually being able to do something about your credit score!
Universe-Building: Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy!
There are several decisions to be made regarding campaign options—Cyber Score, PSI Score, Taint Score, and Tech Score. Each of these scores has two dimensions—for example, Cyber Score Base refers to the availability of Cybernetics in the campaign, while the PC’s Cyber Score refers to his individual level of tolerance of cybernetics. I would have put these in the operations manual myself, as it seems like something that should be determined by the SIEGE engineer (hereafter referred to as, “SE”). Hidden in the text, though, is the specification that these scores are set by the SE and the players. SS being a toolkit, I do understand and appreciate the collaborative nature of the creative process. (It also helps the SE with the daunting task of creating a universe).
I can’t help but feel that this parallels the group world-building process I’ve heard about in Burning Empires (although I’m sure it’s not nearly as rules-intensive). The players get some input to make sure that the SE creates a universe they actually want to play in. The SE gets some help creating a system that is engaging. This group universe creation ought to be a huge selling point for SS.
Combat: You made me bleed my own blood!
Combat works much the same way as it does in C&C, which is itself derived from d20. There are a few differences, notably damage tracks (with the addition of a Stress damage track for mental damage), and armor as damage reduction. The inclusion of these damage tracks, along with Nova points, makes combat a little more exciting than in C&C; I’d say it’s an improvement on the SIEGE engine in general. Combat is meant to be quick and lethal, but if you want your PCs to be able to take more damage, SS offers a simple option that doesn’t unbalance the game. Combat between other entities—vehicles, starships, even planets, is just as easy as a simple gunfight. There is a thorough sample combat that even shows how to include your non-fighting PCs. The sample combat is a battle between two starships with a simultaneous boarding action, and it illustrates just how easy it is to handle the two.
Making it all your own
SS has lots of rule options if you want to add or subtract levels of complexity or abstraction. There are also optional rules to replace things you just might not like. If you don’t like the Credit Score system, there is a more traditional wealth alternative. Also, if you want to do paired weapons in combat, SS offers two ways to do this. These are just several examples among many. The rules options do not seem to unbalance the game at all; they are just more riffs on the application of the SIEGE engine mechanic.
SS bills itself as a toolkit, that allows you to do any genre of sci-fi (hard sci-fi to space opera) with any style of play (gritty to cinematic). So far, I have created a character or two, run a couple of combats, and made some trappings. I haven’t found any hiccups in the mechanics yet, and the process became second nature after I ran through it a couple of times. I could very easily see these rules being used for any existing genre of sci-fi, from anime to Aliens to the “post-apocalyptic over-the-top setting for which I’m not allowed to do online conversions.”
Trappings: Yes, we can have an Illudium PU-36 Explosive Space Modulator!
StarSIEGE (in the Operations Manual) gives a simple system for creating your own “Trappings” for your universe. A Trapping is, basically, anything—guns, armor, starships, psionic powers, equipment, disease, aliens, planets—you name it, you can make it, and it all follows the same build rules. The setting book contains several great examples of trappings.
A word on balance: some people love to play in settings where characters are not balanced with each other. SS does show you how you can easily create a character that is a grizzled veteran, a superhuman vampire slayer, a Clan Elemental, an Eternal Champion, or is in other ways just better than your average character. I like the different ways that these character concepts can be integrated, while at the same time it's still fun to play a "normal."
The verdict is unanimous, Jor-El!
StarSIEGE claims to be a toolkit for creating and roleplaying in any style and genre of science fiction—a goal at which it succeeds admirably. Mr. Chewning is to be commended for a job well done. However, the presentation of the rules leaves much to be desired. Specifically, a lack of a ToC or index hampers quick access to the rules. Even worse, physical defects in the product itself tend to sour the buying experience. Once you know the rules; however, you’ll probably have a lot of fun making a universe and playing StarSIEGE with a like-minded gaming group.
I’m reminded of William Shatner in Star Trek II: it's rumored he was wearing a girdle, a hairpiece, and a uniform full of safety pins, but despite the poor packaging, he was still the best!
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