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https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/fasagames/aetherstream-leviathan?ref=ksr_email_mktg_auto_user_watched_project_launchedAetherstream: Leviathan

Following on from Interceptor another of FASA's old games is getting a relaunch (although no longer using the original TOG terran overlord government space roman empire setting)

Leviathan is for capital ship combat with the fate of whole star systems hanging in the balance.

For capital ships, power is king. No ship ever has enough. Power allocation between ship systems such as Maneuver, Weapons, Shields and Point Defense is key to the game. Spend too much power to line up the perfect shot and you may not have enough left to energize your weapons, much less your shields against any incoming fire. Using concepts from FASA's earlier games, including the Star Trek Starship Combat Simulator and lessons learned designing the Virtual World Entertainment cockpit simulators, Levithan uses a quick token-based system of power allocation as it is needed through the course of a round. This helps make for quick game play and tactical decision making.

Combat is similar to the system used in Interceptor; dice pools are created from ship's stats and circumstances to roll for success, both for attack and defense. Damage flies but these ships are built to take a beating.

The Ships
The Leviathan ships are injection molded plastic. The are ready to play right out of the box. The stand base is designed to align with our starfield hex grids and have reference marks to help determine arcs of fire and which hex is targeted. A unique feature is that the bases are removable and are held securely in place with small but powerful magnets. This makes storage easy and allows the model to be removed from the base during play for those situations where congestion on the hex grid makes moving ships a challenge.

But, most importantly, we think the ships look great. From the wedge and fins of the Terran Commonwealth to the Callistonian Empire spindles, each ship is unique and are a great addition to anyone's collection. They range in size from the two hex cutters to the massive 8 hex Leviathan.

All ships will be produced in their faction colors and come unpainted. The bases will be clear. Both will be fully assembled and ready to play right out of the box. The Javelin Scout measures roughly three inches long and the Leviathan Class measures roughly 13 inches long.

Click on the ship name to see our on-line shop product page for more images and information and then follow the link right back here to our Campaign page.







I'm probably not going to go for this personally as i enjoyed the older versions of the games too much and think the gameplay (and background) is weaker in these newer versions, but it might appeal to some, and even if not for the game for the plastic spaceships (presumably the same material as battletech) which you can also order separately (although more expensively than in the game)

The Leviathan measures 12 3/4 inches long.

Tell me you don't know how to make a space game without telling me you don't know how to make a space game.

 OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote:
A unique feature is that the bases are removable and are held securely in place with small but powerful magnets. This makes storage easy and allows the model to be removed from the base during play for those situations where congestion on the hex grid makes moving ships a challenge.

It would also help with congestion to not make models 12" long, 60% of which overhangs the base

 lord_blackfang wrote:

The Leviathan measures 12 3/4 inches long.

Tell me you don't know how to make a space game without telling me you don't know how to make a space game.

They're not making a new space game. This is a reissue of game rules that date back decades. They're changing the setting (presumably because of rights issues), and adding miniatures. But the rules have been around for a very long time.

Eumerin wrote:

 lord_blackfang wrote:

The Leviathan measures 12 3/4 inches long.

Tell me you don't know how to make a space game without telling me you don't know how to make a space game.

They're not making a new space game. This is a reissue of game rules that date back decades. They're changing the setting (presumably because of rights issues), and adding miniatures. But the rules have been around for a very long time.

So the rules stated 30 years ago that if a model for a 4 hex long ship is ever to get made, it needs to be 12 hexes long? Remarkable.

if a "feature" is you can easily remove models from the bases for game play the models are too large or the hex grid is too small

and a game to be played on presumably a normal tabletop with one model over a foot long, presuming of course that model moves and isn't the frame of reference has that model being way too large to be practical

some of the Star Wars Armada models were getting silly, this is flat out ridiculous even if its basically one on one duels

why not have models small enough to fit into their hex footprint?

I've no problem with a game called "Leviathan" having big spaceship models. Kind of feels very fitting for it.

My issue is more that for a 12inch leviathan model its very plain. Indeed all the designs are very plain. Now granted part of that ( a big part ) is likely having them work as a single part injection moulded spaceship to keep the costs down.

I'm sure as game items they work well, but for me I just don't see the designs and detailing having enough interesting parts to make them viable at that size.
In part they almost feel like they were designed much smaller and were then upscaled

they are upscaled compared to the original renegade legion versions cardboard box ships... wonder if they started off that size?


image borrowed from an ebay auction

they are quite plain models, suspect a decent paint job would do wonders (some of the battletech models are the same, plain but can be made to look amazing)

it comes down to the practicalities of the game though, its space combat, if the ship isn't considered to be a single point you are talking very close, as in WW2 dogfighting, ranges which works for hollywood but causes other issues

go with how naval games do it, the model is much larger than the thing it represents, its larger so you can see it and have a nice model - but then the "correct" size is "big enough to tell them apart and be easy to handle but not so big they get in the way"

the fact craft are multi-hex tends to suggest there is likely some weird scale issue here anyway

At the prices listed I'd be looking for multi part premium models, not whatever this is.