Formations
Formation defines mission and command arrangement. Support spacing is a separate declaration, determined by where the ships actually are.
Line
Concentration of force and coordinated batteries, while retaining maneuver options.
Close Screen
Protect designated vessels with immediate cover where the screen has actual reach.
Distant Screen
Forward scouting/picket and early warning, not automatic close-range defense.
Independent
Detached assignment, without assumed immediate support from the parent force.
Hybrid mutual support
Close support
Near enough for mutually applicable point defense, coordinated screening, direct assistance and immediate action. Requires suitable equipment, fire arcs and readiness.
Extended support
Sensor/contact sharing, coordinated long-range fire when feasible, interception and reinforcement after an appropriate interval. Does not extend point defense automatically.
Detached
Independent action; no automatic shared PD, escort cover or instantaneous reinforcement. Messages and long-range support require real conditions.
Formation integrity
Intact / Strained / Disrupted. Separation, evasive maneuvers, damage, jamming or contradictory orders can break coordination. GM establishes consequences without arbitrary modifier stacking.
Contact bands
Standoff (3): observation, tracking, distant communications and feasible long-range weapons. Long (2): long-range interception and weapon employment. Medium (1): principal fleet combat and maneuver. Close (0): close approach, assault, immediate escort and local defensive coverage.
Bands represent relative engagement opportunity, not a universal distance or movement-per-turn. Range to another fleet is independent from spacing among your own ships. Detection → track → classification → identification are separate information steps.
Emissions control
EMCON I — Silent: passive sensors; no routine external transmission or active emissions.
EMCON II — Restricted: passive search, controlled communications and limited emissions if specifically ordered.
EMCON III — Active: routine traffic and active sensors permitted.
EMCON IV — Unrestricted: full active sensors, communications, targeting and EW emissions.
Sensor and communication orders may be set separately, subject to recorded exceptions and credible technical ability. Passive operation reduces disclosure but is not invisibility; active search and deception jamming can reveal emitters. Internal/local coordination does not inherently disclose a force to a distant observer.
ALCS — Acceleration Load Compensation System
ALCS reduces acceleration loads experienced by occupants inside designated protected volumes; it does not generate force, change trajectory, increase thrust, raise MV or affect vortex timing.
Localized envelope
Bridge/critical watchstations; inexpensive, small protected volume.
Distributed envelope
Principal crew stations across a vessel; greater mass and continuous power cost.
Reinforced high-G envelope
Critical stations during sustained extreme maneuver and overboost; high cost and limited protection.
Habitation segment
Protects up to 20 habitation units of occupied space per segment. Supplements, not replaces, a primary crew ALCS.
Routine: unaffected. High-G: unprotected crew risk operational strain under sustained maneuvers. Extreme/overboost: substantial crew risk if compensation is insufficient. Failures expose the protected volume to residual loads, potentially causing interrupted operations/casualties; no automatic HI damage. Normally no second dice roll.
All MU/CP/PU values are provisional Alpha prices. Crewed ships without ALCS remain valid and capable of normal maneuvering. The protected envelope must actually cover the people relevant to the claimed benefit.
Sensor information: four distinct stages
Detection establishes that a contact exists. Tracking establishes a usable bearing, movement and possibly count. Classification determines broad vessel function or type. Identification determines a specific vessel, affiliation or identity when supported by evidence.
One sensor adjudication can establish more than one stage; there is no mandatory roll per stage and a strong track does not automatically identify the contact. The GM determines the highest defensible stage based on observed signals, sensor quality, EMCON, range and result. Read the full sensor adjudication procedure.
Scenario-specific rulings
The GM determines detectable drive signatures, masking capabilities, communication exposure and contact resolution privately for each scenario. Public doctrine never confirms secret faction positions, travel intentions, emissions limitations, or intelligence acquired by particular forces. Hails and observations alone do not interrupt a vortex clock.