2.7: Capturing Capital Ships

A common method of acquiring prisoners and starships is to simply capture them. With Ion cannons, this has become a task of simply ionizing all aspects of ship operation to zero and maintaining the ionization once disabled. Other methods include destroying or damaging the engines and using tractor beams to secure a smaller ship inside a large one (as in the Tantive IV in the opening moments of A New Hope), and intimidating a crew into surrender.

Without ion cannons, it is virtually impossible to capture a ship without having a vastly superior vessel without damaging engines or maneuvering systems. Even if a ship is secured by tractor beams, there may still be resistance inside as SpecForces Marines, Stormtroopers, Naval Troopers, and even Army troops are used to secure vessels above and beyond the crew. If a ship resists, there will be some sort of personal combat. Consider each ship to have a certain number of "marine points" as determined by the number of troops and their type. The Marine Point Value Table below shows the value, in marine points, of each type of trooper.

The GM may, using this table as a base, extrapolate the marine point value for any heroes on a starship. Keep in mind that the higher value for SpecForces Marines and Spacetroopers involves not only their equipment and combat skills, but their training in boarding and counter-boarding operations. We recommend that a PC or NPC have a marine point value of between 2 and 4, depending on skills.

Combat is simple once the number of marine points have been determined. Roll 2D, multiply this by the ratio of friendly forces to unfriendly forces, and subtract the result from the enemy. These rolls are made simultaneously in the record keeping phase.

For example, a force of 20 Spacetroopers has boarded a Rebel Corellian Gunship. The Gunship has no marine detachment, but does have a full crew. The Gunship has a crew of 35 with no passnegers for 35*0.25=8.75 Marine Points. The Spacetroopers rate at 20*5=100 Marine Points. The Rebel player rolls 7, multiplied by .09 gives an astounding .6. The Imperial player has lost 1 marine point of effectiveness. The Imperial player rolls a 4, multiplied by 11.42 gives 46 marine points lost for the Rebel player. Looks like the crew just got wiped out and the Empire controls that ship.

Spacetroopers/Power Armor Special Rules

Spacetroopers and certain Rebel SpecForce Marine units have power armor that can be used to launch an assault on a starship while it is in motion. The requirement is that the shuttle carrying the troopers matches heading and speed with the vessel to be boarded while in the same unit of space, and the troopers make a Difficult power suit operations roll to attempt to board the vessel in the record keeping phase. Beginning on the next round's record keeping phase, roll for the boarding casualties. If the marines miss their target they move in squads of 10 with a Move of 1 and enough fuel for 100 moves. If they match heading and speed with another vessel (usually the shuttle that deployed them in the first place), they may attempt to board it with another Difficult roll. Note that most Star Destroyers will have a platoon of 40 Spacetroopers aboard and will attempt to use them if at all possible. Generally the best way to deal with power armor equipped marines is to destroy their shuttle (usually a Gamma-class Assault Shuttle) before they can deploy.

To Capital Ship Combat?. To Crew Loss. To CapShipFighter Wings.