Published: 2017 Self Published
Designer; Jerason Banes
Artist: N/A
How it's Played
Stellar Armada is a dog fighting micro game. Two players square off in their star ships and spend reactor points to make repairs, perform maneuvers, and attack their opponent. The game ends when one players reactor is destroyed resulting in the death of their ship.
On a players turn they start with 6 reactor points to spend however they wish. If a players reactor is damaged they have less reactor points to spend.
A player starts with three repair systems and spend points up to how many repair systems are still functioning to repair other systems. For example if my engines are damaged and I have two working repair systems I can spend up to two energy to repair two of my three engines.
If a player chooses to attack they can assign reactor points to their weapons. Each player has two types of weapons at their disposal, Energy beams and Missiles. Energy beams offer an infinite supply of ammo but only do 2 points of damage when they hit. Missiles do 5 points of damage on a hit but you have a limited supply at your disposal. When attacking the active player roles a die to hit an opponent you must roll their engine power plus one.
Engines allow you to perform maneuvers, you start with three engines the amount of power you devote to the engines determines how difficult you are to hit. So if all three engines are active your opponent must roll a five or a six to hit.
Each star ship is also equipped with shields. You have five shield points that absorb damage before systems. A player can devote reactor points to repairing shields independent of their repair systems.
After one opponent destroys the other the game ends and another round can begin.
4 Player varient
If you happen to have two copies of Stellar Armada you can play up to 4 players. The same rules apply as the two player game, however you can only attack an opponent that is sitting adjacent to you. Once you have destroyed an adjacent opponent you are then able to target the opponent diagonal to you.
Final Thoughts
Stellar Armada is a fun quick micro game. It's short play time really is it's strength, taking about 10 minutes per round. There is a bit of strategy involved in how to spend your limited reactor points, which balances well with the die rolls for attacking.
The four player variant is fun and the game is inexpensive enough and small enough that it could easily be brought to work or school to be played at lunch. The only minor complaints I have would be the rules were printed on the back of the player boards, making it difficult to quickly check them while playing. This is easily mitigated by taking a picture of them with your phone or just downloading them online.
Some people may get turned off by the luck of rolling the dice for attacking, but honestly the game plays so quickly I don't find this to be an issue.
Over all Stellar Armada is a fun little game that makes a great filler while you're waiting for friends to arrive, or just want to get in a quick game.
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