Stellar Conquest
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Stellar Conquest is a board game designed by Howard Thompson that has achieved minor cult status since its initial release in 1974. This science fiction game, originally rejected by the Avalon Hill Company in 1973,[citation needed] and published the following year as the first title from Metagaming Concepts, was eventually published by Avalon Hill in 1984. It is an archetype for the 4X strategy game genre, with counters that represent various interstellar ship types to move populations around the universe, populate planets, and ultimately defeat your opponents by slowly increasing your technological, movement and offensive capabilities.
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[edit] The board
The board is a hex grid map, with certain hexes containing stars of varying colors, which may have planets that are fit for population. Also, star nurseries or stars undergoing accretion are featured in blue, which impedes movement through those hexes.
[edit] Basic rules
Players each start in a corner of the board. Their units differ in type. A military unit is one that may attack. These include Escorts, Attacks and Dreadnoughts. Attacks and Dreadnoughts must be researched to be purchased. A military unit, as well as CT's (population carrying spacecraft), if you have not purchased certain upgrades, may not move more than 8 hexes away from a populated planet. When the game first begins, the corner square counts as a populated planet for the first four turns. All units may move two spaces, and may purchase movement upgrades. Units must follow the quickest path to a nominated destination and may not change this destination unless they have stopped on a star. A non-military unit unaccompanied by a military unit landing in a star must roll a d6 (standard six-sided die), and is destroyed on a roll of one.
When a piece of yours lands on a star its ability to sustain life is randomly determined, the chances of which depend upon the colour of the star. Certain upgrades may improve the planets ability to sustain life.
Every four turns a 'production phase' occurs in which planets have their populations increase (by the current population over five), you may move populations of planets into CT's, and earn Industrial Unit Output(IUO), the currency with which you purchase upgrades, extra ships and the like.
The amount of ships you begin with depends upon the amount of players, the scenario, and of course the preferences of the players.
[edit] Alternate building options
In addition to offensive spacecrafts used offworld, players can opt to build stationary Missile Bases (MBs) and Advanced Missile Bases (AMBs). Essentially acting in the same manner as a mobile ship (that is, with particular combat statistics) it is immobile, and remains on the planet it was built on. It remains an economic defense option, however.
