The Helix Effect

A game of Firestorm Planetfall is played using what we call Battle Groups. In turn a Battle Group is made up of Helixes, and at the heart of each Battle Group is what we call the CORE HELIX. It is this Core Helix that you can then wrap other Helixes around, and these are known as Attached Helixes. Different Attached Helixes include:

• Aerial Helix
• Heavy Helix
• Assault Helix
• Recon Helix
• Strike Helix (the Helix which will contain Leviathans)
• Support Helix

A Basic Battle Group is composed of ONE Core Helix to which a Commander can attach up to SIX Attached Helixes, ONE of each of the listed options. In its simplest form this Basic Battle Group is as simple as it gets to field a Force in Firestorm Planetfall.

NOTE 1: A Force is assembled using a Maximum Force Value (MFV) and this will dictate the number of models inside a Helix and, depending upon the MFV chosen by players, the number of Helixes that can be attached to the Core Helix.

NOTE 2: The Core Helix is an important part of any Force, and as such it is one of the most flexible Helixes you will have access to. Inside the Battle for Proteus Prime Boxed Set is the equivalent of ‘half’ an Aquan and ‘half’ a Directorate Core Helix. You could therefore take TWO Battle Boxes and combine them, allowing both Commanders to field a FULL Core Helix of each of the two races.

Optionally, when the Aquan Prime and Directorate Core Helix Boxed Sets come out in our Wave 2 Release they can be added to the contents of a single Proteus Prime Boxed Set to again turn the supplied into FULL Core Helixes, for each respective Force.

FLEXIBILITY

But as we all know, building armies is never that simple AND can also much more fun when you inject mechanics that make Commanders think about what they are trying to achieve from their Force.

Step forward Adaptive Battle Groups. A capable Commander does not always want to follow the doctrine of Basic Battle Group creation, preferring instead to adapt their Force to better suit the strategic challenges presented, and to perhaps complement their tactical approach. This is achieved through a process of substitution within the Battle Group and is known as an Adaptive Battle Group.

Should a player wish to add a second Attached Helix of the same type it may only be done at the expense of a Helix that is directly opposite on the Helix Map. See the diagram below:

In this example of an Adaptive Battle Group, the Commander is making a number of choices, deciding to forgo Assault, Heavy and Aerial Helixes for access to 2x Recon Helixes, 2x Strike Helixes and 2x Support Helixes! Clearly this is going to be a large engagement and the Commander wishes to have a some heavy hitting Leviathans coupled with an array of fast moving forces supported by elements such as Command Barges and Field Guns to help win the day.

Next up in our Blog Series will be looking at how you create Battle Groups using Allied Helixes, allowing such forces as Works Raptor, Terquai, Hawker Industries, RSN, Ba’Kash and Veydreth to be added.

Spartan Games 

10mm Scale Adobe Buildings from Laser Craft Art

Our New 10mm Scale Adobe buildings now available on our website.

Adobe Buildings

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Planetfall Release

Spartan Games is hugely excited to announce the much-anticipated launch of Planetfall – a fast-paced, action packed game of massed 10mm armoured and infantry conflict set in the Firestorm Armada galaxy.

Devastating tanks, sleek aerial units, crushing artillery, orbital drop-ships and elite infantry forces fight over objectives, each side seeking to achieve their key objectives at the expense of the other. Planetfall uses an ugo-igo system, with an activation mechanism based around Helixes – the building blocks of every force. Games are tactical, combat is ferocious, and the gameplay engine is built around Spartan Games’ established Exploding D6 mechanic, making it fast and intuitive.

We’re launching Planetfall with 5 products to start with:

(1) Battle For Proteus Prime: is a 2-player battle box that contains over 34 stunningly detailed gaming models, full colour rulebook, campaign book, scenery, and so much more. The plot for this Boxed Set  sparks off a major offensive in the Storm Zone, and in time will itself fuel an exciting Firestorm Armada 2-player boxed set.

On the surface of Proteus Prime, Aquan Prime and Directorate forces have turned this desolate planet into a raging warzone. There is a deadly secret on this world, and the Directorate want it all costs, and the Aquans want it kept buried. Drawn into the conflict are two Alliance Races, the Terquai and Works Raptor.

Box contents include:

Aquan Core Helix
1 x ‘Sedna’ Heavy Skimmer Tank
3 x ‘Lamana’ Medium Skimmer Tanks
4 x ‘Imzani’ Light Recon Skimmer Tanks
1 x ‘Sirsir’ Medium Skimmer Designator Tank
2 x ‘Votari’ Crystal Nodes
2 x ‘Votari’ Anti-Air Batteries
5 x Bases of Aquan ‘Khitari’ Infantry (mix of scenic bases with 3-4 minis on each)

Directorate Core Helix
1 x ‘Desolator’ Heavy Battle Crawler Tank
3 x ‘Retaliator’ Medium Battle Crawlers Tanks
5 x ‘Informer’ Light Recon Buggies
2 x ‘Trojan’ Cyber Warfare Tanks
1 x ‘Intruder’ Combat Personnel Carrier
5 x Bases of Directorate ‘Patriot’ Shock Infantry (mix of scenic bases with 3-4 minis on each)

Plus:
1 x Full Colour Rulebook
2 x Planetfall TAC Decks
1 x 64-page ‘The Battle of Proteus Prime’ A5 Campaign Book (including Statistics for all Aquan and Directorate Forces in the set)
2 x Medium Bunkers
3 x Small Buildings
1 x A5 pre-printed Crashed Shuttle Sheet
A5 Token and Template Sheets
Dice

The ideal way to plunge yourself into Planetfall ground warfare in the Firestorm Galaxy!

Click here (Link no longer working) to get your hands on Planetfall’s Battle For Proteus Prime!

(2) and (3) TWO Allied Expansion Helixes: These expansion Helixes (up to TWO per core force can be added) instantly allow players to expand the Directorate and Aquan forces found in the Proteus Prime Battle Box.

Terquai Allied Recon Helix
The Terquai are close allies of the Aquan Prime, and this Recon Helix is intended to aid Aquan forces in harassing their opponents. The Iopphon Heavy Gunship lays down devastating fire, while itself soaking up enemy attacks, and can be used to deploy Temporal Portals onto a battlefield. The flexibility of this Helix though comes from the two cadres of Nabis Heavy Infantry Drones which can use the Temporal Portals to be transported instantaneously into battle zones.

1 x Iophon Heavy Gunship
10 x Bases of Nabis Heavy Infantry (2 Full Cadres)
2 x Temporal Portals (60mm x 40mm scenic base)
To purchase your Terquai Allied Recon Helix click here Link no longer working

Works Raptor Allied Recon Helix
Works Raptor ground forces are, like their space fleets, all about stabbing the enemy in the heart. The GX-74 ‘Witch‘ Heavy Interceptors are sleek, fast and deadly, and a match for any aerial foe. The LR-6 Recon Tanks are all about capturing strategic objectives, and then having the fighting prowess to hold on to it. Also included in the Helix is a crashed Works Raptor Escape Pod which can be used as part of a narrative driven scenario, or simply as a Strategic Objective.

3 x GX-74 ‘Witch’ Heavy Interceptor
5 x LR-6 Recon Tank
1 x Crashed Escape Pod (60mm x 40mm scenic base)

To get your Works Raptor Allied Recon Helix click here. Link no longer working

(4) Full colour rulebook: Building your army with Helixes gives an enormous flexibility to Commanders as they assemble their Planetfall forces, and is designed to let Commanders mobilise their forces onto the tabletop quickly. Key features of the rules include:

• Flexible Army Lists
• TAC Card Deck used to deliver thematic gameplay
• Established Spartan Games dice mechanics
• Intuitive and Easy to Master
• Rules for capturing and holding Battlefield Objectives

And much more…

To buy your Planetfall Rulebook click here. Link no longer working

(5) Pre-printed Terrain Box: made from acrylic and pre-printed laminated card for the ideal balance of quality and weight, these can drop straight into a battlefield. You get 11 terrain pieces – the largest is 193mm long!

Click here (Link no longer working) to grab your pre-printed terrain!

BUT WAIT….THERE’S MORE!

TWO-PLAYER BOX SPECIAL OFFER

For the first month following launch the Battle for Proteus Prime boxed set will come with not one but TWO fantastic free gifts:

Gift 1: A superb multi-part, highly detailed resin model of a Terquai Crashed Shuttle. See the attached picture to see how cool this model is!

Note: The Terquai Shuttle will fit together, and inside the Battle for Proteus Prime Boxed Set is a pre-printed A5 image gamers can use as a battlefield objective. The resin model is designed to sit on top of this, or can be spread about a battlefield.

Gift 2: We loved the cover art so much we commissioned the artist to create two more Battle Scenes from Proteus Prime: The same scene, but from the two Commanders’ separate viewpoints – one Aquan, one Directorate. Delivered as high quality prints that gamers can frame.

Note: All models you see digitally painted in the Planetfall release have been done using the actual 3D files used to create the models you will be able to buy. All models come unpainted and unassembled.

AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW! Link no longer working

Spartan Games