|
Beer and pretzels! Beer and pretzels! You are not
going to see many variant rules from me, and only a few new units. That's
because I'd like Ogre on Mars to be straight forward to play for any Ogre fan.
So no Martian storms, light gravity effects, or terraforming. Of course,
you can create your own house rules, and I'd like to hear about any variations
that have worked well for you.
Terrain
 Clear
terrain - treat just like the clear green terrain on the GEV map.
All units move normally.
 Roads
- just like their Terran counterparts. Roads can be targeted and destroyed
just like GEV.
Crevices - treat exactly like
streams in GEV. Crevices are bridged when a road crosses them.
Bridges can be targeted in the usual manner.
Mountains/Rough - treat the same
as forest. These are your GEV stopping friends.
 Martian
Base - treat exactly as you would cities in GEV. They can be
destroyed and rubblized (if you use that rule).
Cliffs - this is the only
departure from the norm. Cliffs are impassible to almost all units.
Units cannot go over/up a cliff, they must detour around them. Therefore
cliffs will have major tactical implications in planning your combat.
 The only
units that can cross cliffs are infantry and Ogres. Infantry can climb
a cliff at a penalty of 1 MP. Thus an infantry unit can climb a cliff
and move to the adjacent hex (total cost 2 MP). Infantry can descend a
cliff at no penalty to their movement.
Ogres can descend cliffs and incur a 1 MP penalty.
Thus an Ogre can descend a cliff and move to the adjacent hex for a total cost
of 2 MP. Ogres will be damaged by driving off a cliff as per GEV 8.041
(Ogre on river bridge when it is destroyed). Ogres cannot climb up a
cliff face. So cliffs are impassable to Ogres in at least 1 direction.
New Units
There's a few units I've always wanted to play that have been
included with the GameBox. This is especially true of the controversial Spitze.
Ogres tended to be smaller on Mars due to
limited resources, but this lead to some interesting variations (see
below). Note that the counters are
displayed on this page are 80x80 pixels. They are larger, more detailed
versions of the 40x40 pixel counters that are in the Ogre on Mars gamebox.
The counters are smaller in the gamebox purely for gameplay reasons (so that the
map is not too big to see on your screen. The bigger the counters, the
bigger the map has got to be.).
 
LAD (Light Artillery Drone).
Not really a new unit, but a new counter. LADs are an Ogre miniature unit,
the rules for them are
here.
LADs are good anti-GEV artillery but are a bit weak against heavy tanks and
Ogres.
GEV-COMMAND. A modified
version of the tried and true GEV-PC. Provides room for a commander and 4
or 5 support members in cramped quarters to monitor the battlefront far closer
than any fixed CP would ever allow.
Spitze Cybertank Destroyer.
I've been fascinated by this unit ever since I read about it
here.
The inspiration of this unit is all David Morse's, and I've only given it a
slight twist below. The Spitze is
basically a gigantic high powered railgun mounted on a tracked platform.
It was available in limited numbers to specialized Paneuropean formations.
The much-feared Spitze always makes an impact whenever it is deployed.
The cantankerous railgun affects the unit in several important ways.
-
The cumbersome nature of an enormous gun
on tracked chassis affects this unit's mobility. During any turn,
the Spitze may move or fire, but not both.
-
There is no spillover effect on units
stacked with the target.
-
Limitations in the fire control system
mean that the Spitze is limited to range 6 when firing on it's own. It
must combine fire with another unit to reach it's maximum range of 10.
-
The Spitze is moves like a missile tank (MSL)
when determining terrain effects on movement.
-
The Spitze is valued at 15 VP (2.5 armor
units).
Ogre Mark I.
This is not a new unit but I have made an updated counter with the
correct silhouette.
Ogre Mark I - Havoc. A
deadly revision of the smallest Ogre. The turret of the Mark I is removed
and the Ogre conning tower is moved to the front of the hull. The rear
deck is then loaded with six (6) single shot Ogre missiles. The result is
potent first strike weapon. It can be used to spearhead an assault and
clear the way for a column of advancing armor. The Havoc is also very
effective in an anti-Ogre role. The
point value of the unit is 60 VP.
Ogre Mark II. Once again
this is not a new unit, but check out the revised silhouette!
Ogre Mark II - M. The M
version of the Mark II was built to give the cybertank a little more long range
power. The secondary batteries were removed and replaced by a single
missile rack with a 5 missile rotary magazine. This is the exact same
launcher and magazine used on the Ogre Mark IV.
This Ogre is worth 60 points.
Mark II - Heavy. An
upgunned version of the Mark II. The turret was enlarged to hold a pair of
main batteries. This gives the unit significantly more firepower.
Additionally, a single Ogre missile was installed in an external launcher behind
the rear engine compartment. The missile fires forward between the
secondaries and over the turret. The
Mark II - H is worth 75 VPs.
 Katzbalger. A late model
Paneuropean cybertank of advanced design. The Kat was considerably smaller
than the earlier Fencer and designed as a light, fast raider. The Kat was
the fastest Paneuropean cybertank ever built, rivaling the Combine Ogre Mark IV.
The Katzbalger's primary weapon are two (2) missile racks
located in the rear. It can hold 10 missiles internally. A secondary
battery and 4 AP units round out it's armament. It starts the game with 32
tread units. The Katzbalger is worth 80
VPs and rams for 1d6 damage.
The Katzbalger was named after a
medieval short sword. |
