This is a game I put a lot of work into at one point, but I set it aside for one of my other more promising (and more easily testable) projects. So I figured I could at least give an overview here and see if y'all find any merit in it.
Mechanical Overview:
For movement, the game uses templates similar to what you would see in X-Wing. You determine this movement ahead of time with a dial (again, similar to X-wing). However, you are limited in your choices on the dial, dependent upon your choice on the previous turn, so you actually stack the dials much like you do actions in Armada.
Each player chooses a Wingframe, a Pilot, and a couple of possible upgrades. This is dependent on the match restrictions. Every choice has a resource cost and a rating, and you may not exceed either restriction. So if you are playing a 30 point B-class game, you could only spend 30 points loading out your kit and could only choose options that were B-class or below.
Every Wingframe and Pilot has a selection of stats that determine how it performs on the track.
Wingframe Stat Examples: Speed, Weight, Drift, Acceleration, Maneuverability
Pilot Examples: Focus, Stamina, Reflexes
Wingframe stats affect the game in a variety of ways, but many have to do with your Maneuver and Speed dials. Maneuverability dictates how far across the dial you can move your choice from one dial to the next, Acceleration is how much you can adjust your Speed in a single turn, etc.
Pilot stats affect the game in a variety of other ways, primarily in handling the Wingframe and interactions with each other. For example, certain maneuvers at certain speeds cause G-strain and cause damage against a Pilot's stamina. If they exceed their Stamina value, they pass out for a time.
When a Wingframe takes damage, damage cards determine which stat the damage affects. Damage reduces stats, and if any stat hits 0...kaboom.
League Overview:
What I thought was going to be one of the more fun aspects was being able to have a Solar Cup, which basically amounts to an ongoing league. Basically, progress would carry over from event to event and rankings would influence certain game aspects (like starting position). Also, conditions would change throughout the cup, primarily by simply increasing. So for the first event you would have like a 20 point C-class limit then go to say 30 points of C-class, to 30 points B-Class, all the way to 50 points of S-class.
As far as the track goes, yes it's interactive, and yes there are weapons. Think like a mix of the Extreme-G and Split Second video games, if you've played those.
GENERAL MECHANICS:
Each round players choose a maneuver on their maneuver dial and place it on the bottom of the Maneuver Stack. Once all players have placed their dials, players determine the Initiative Order and resolve the top dial from their Maneuver Stack in that Order. When a Pilot reveals his maneuver to resolve it, they may adjust their Speed (within the parameters of their Acceleration and Brakes) before executing the maneuver.
When determining Initiative Order, each player adds their Pilot's Initiative with their current Standing in the race (Initiative 8 + 5th place= 13). The player with the highest total activates first and so on down the line. If there are any ties, they are broken by Focus, Reflexes, Luck in that order.
If a Wingframe overlaps another Wingframe or terrain during its movement, this results in a Collision. Collisions can be Major, Minor, or Grazing. Collisions inflict damage depending on their severity, and can affect the upcoming maneuver dials of the Wingframes involved. Unfortunately, this is the primary point on which my memory is a bit hazy. It's probably the most complicated process in the game, and one for which I was juggling multiple possibilities until some real playtesting could get done.
When constructing the Track, players place a number of Power Spaces. When a Wingframe passes through these spaces they roll a die and gain a Power card based on the result (the options and odds of the different options change from track to track). Power Cards can be Weapons, Boosts, or Countermeasures (or in some cases trigger a track effect instead). For example, Player Fellow's Wingframe enters a green Power Space and he rolls an 8. Since they're racing on Praxia, this results in a Weapon Card (according to the Track's table). Player Fellow then draws a Weapon from the Weapon deck. Players can only hold 4 Power Cards in hand, and only 2 of one type.
Generally, I expect the games to go 3 laps or so. Each time you pass the starting line you regain some/all Shields and Energy. First player to complete all the laps wins. In the unlikely event you get completely destroyed, you start back at the beginning of your current lap with 50% Durability, full Shields and Energy.
All Wingframes had front, rear, and side arcs. And all Pilots also had a Faction Ability in addition to their own special ability. Praxians don't have to spend Energy to deploy Weapons, Aurelians have their own Power Deck,Dustborn may always use Reflexes for saves and can have an additional Countermeasures card in hand, Progeny are integrated with their Wingframes and do not receive Strain, and Cartel can include an extra upgrade that ignores restrictions.
WINGFRAME STATS:
Acceleration, Top Speed, Brakes, Maneuverability, Drift, and set aside in a different grouping Durability, Shields, Energy, Weight.
Acceleration determines how much you can increase your Speed by in a single turn, and Brakes determine how much you can decrease it.
Maneuverability determines how much you can adjust your movement dial from your last move to your current one, and Drift determines how much you can rotate your model at the end of the move.
Top Speed is...well...pretty self-explanatory, ha.
Shields absorb any incoming damage until depleted. These can be regained through various cards or by spending Energy when in a Recharge Zone on the track.
Durability is the amount of damage the Wingframe can absorb before the damage begins to affect its stats.
Energy is the maximum amount of energy the Wingframe can bank for use. Energy is used to activate Power Cards, regain Shields, and various other game effects.
Weight helps determine the nature of collisions and their results.
PILOT STATS:
Fortitude, Reflexes, Focus, Luck, Initiative
Fortitude determines how much Strain the Pilot can take before they Black Out.
Reflexes and Focus are used to determine how Pilots interact with each other and the environment. Reflexes generally are used to avoid the negative effects of attacks or events. Focus is usuallly used to attempt to achieve some sort of benefit.
Luck is the number of re-rolls available to the Pilot in a game. Once expended, Luck cannot be regained. Luck can be used on any die roll the Pilot is directly involved in.
Initiative is used to determine the order in which Pilots activate each round.
BUILDING A WINGFRAME
When building a Wingframe for a race, you are limited to spending an amount of Kudos (resources, preliminary term) determined by the race, and you may not choose any components with a higher rating than that of the race (Class C, B, A, or S). Your available components are the Wingframe itself, a Pilot, an Upgrade, and a Modification. Wingframes and Pilots have been pretty well covered. Modifications are changes to the base stats of your Wingframe (such as Armor Plating: +2 Durability, -1 Top Speed). Upgrades change some aspect of the way the game is played (like Inertial Compensator: The first time you receive Strain each round, reduce the Strain received by 1).
STRAIN:
Strain is incurred through difficult maneuvers, generally at high speeds or tight turns. The amount of Strain received depends on the Maneuver and Speed performed. When Pilots receive Strain beyond their Fortitude value, any additional Strain reduces their Reflexes and/or Focus values. If either of these values reaches 0, the Pilot Blacks Out. While Pilots are Blacked Out, their Wingframe automatically reverts to Autopilot to try to protect them from crashing. When in Autopilot mode, the player is required to slow their Speed by as much as possible each round until they reach 1. They do not resolve Maneuvers from the Maneuver Stack. Instead they must choose a maneuver that will not overlap any obstacles, walls, or other Wingframes, if possible. If not, they must choose the maneuver which keeps them closest to the middle of the track.
BOOST & SHIFT
When a Wingframe reveals its maneuver while it has a Boost Token, it must complete its Maneuver as if it was moving at a Speed 2 higher than what is on its speed dial. Boost Tokens are generally assigned by resolving Power Cards from the Boost Deck.
When a Wingframe performs a Shift action, place a straight 1-Speed maneuver template against one side of the Wingframe. Then pick up the Wingframe and replace it at the other end of the template along its opposite side. Wingframes with a Weight higher than 4 cannot Shift.
I figure that's enough to share for now. Any initial thoughts on where I'm going with this?
