Mecha Skirmish Rulebook

Every randomized resolution is a visible die. Hit, location, penetration, damage, initiative and stress are each a die on the table. Modifiers are dice (F2). There are no hidden percentages.

A roster build is a small number of real decisions. There is enough depth for a metagame. The setup is never a large task. The exact number of choices will be reviewed when the part catalog exists (K).

Damage lands on parts, not on a health bar. The size of a part decides where a shot hits. The armor and durability of that part decide the effect. If you lose an arm, you lose a weapon. If you lose the legs, you lose mobility.

A game ends in about twenty minutes. Mechs activate in Initiative order (E2). A round cap applies. Objectives force contact.

Vocabulary

• Roster: your four mechs. Three are fielded. One is the sideboard.
• Kit: a chassis that is sold with a complete default build and a suggested pilot.
• Runner: the sprue sheet of one manufacturer. The five runners have the same names as the five pilot factions.
• Part: anything that you clip from a runner: Chassis, Head, Arm, Legs, Back.
• Mech: six parts plus a pilot.
• Activation: the turn of one mech. Round: all surviving deployed mechs have activated once in Initiative order (E2), then score zones.
• Game: one board, played to a result. Match: one game (BO1) or up to three games (BO3), as selected before setup (I1).

A roster is four mechs. Three mechs are fielded in a game. The fourth mech is the sideboard (I2).

Choose a core box, then a Head, independent Right and Left Arms, Legs, Back, and Pilot. Choose held equipment for each hand, or choose an empty hand. Arms and weapons are separate. A two-handed weapon occupies both hands and counts once. A shield occupies one hand. Back remains one mount. The only hit locations are Head, Right Arm, Left Arm, Core, Back, and Legs.

Weight. Every part has a Weight. Pilots have no Weight. The Weight of a mech is the sum of its parts, with the chassis. It must not be more than the cap of its class. The three fielded mechs together must not be more than the Team Cap. A sideboard swap must keep the team legal. An ammunition load (F12) adds its Weight to the part that carries it.

Class	Mech cap	Note
Light	35	Fast, fragile, cheap
Medium	50	Baseline
Heavy	65	Slow, armored
Team Cap	145	Three full Mediums fit (150 does not). Heavy + Medium + Light fits. Two Heavies never fit.

All limits are hard. A mech cannot exceed its Weight cap. A one-handed item and its load cannot exceed its arm’s Capacity. A two-handed item and its load cannot exceed the sum of both arms’ Capacity. Both arms are required at assembly. There is no overload allowance or overload penalty. The Team Cap is also a hard limit.

Each pilot is unique across the four-mech roster. Parts and equipment have no copy limit. Hard Weight, arm Capacity, and deployed Team Cap still apply.

Kits. Every chassis ships as a kit: all six parts are selected, and a pilot is suggested. A roster of four unchanged kits is legal. It is meant to be viable. You can swap any part for any part of the same slot from any runner. A build with parts from different runners has no penalty.

The sprue is the build screen. Parts hang on their runner by gates. When you clip a part, it snaps to the frame. The physical size of a part on the runner is its Size stat, which is its share of the hit table (F4). Unused parts stay on the runner. The fourth frame sits on the sprue as the visible sideboard.

Open, reviewed 2026-09-06. At 35 parts, the recommendation is to keep seven slots and to make the hangar a start path: a kit, then up to two part swaps, then the full sprue. Kits keep the minimum at four choices. If playtests show that the build is too much work, there are two fallbacks: merge Head into Chassis, or make Back part of the Legs choice.

The Chassis carries the Core and the baseline stats. The Core is the part that you must destroy.

Class	Core Dur	Core Armor	Core Size	Evasion	Speed	Sensors	E-Def	Reactor	Weight
Light	9	4	5	12	5	8	9	5	8
Medium	12	6	6	10	4	8	8	6	12
Heavy	18	7	7	7	3	7	7	8	16
Workhorse (Heavy, Hauer)	17	7	7	8	4	8	7	7	15

Every part has a Size (its share of the hit table), an Armor value (the number that a penetration roll must reach), a Durability (the damage it can take before it is destroyed), a Weight, and the stats that it changes.

Arms have Weight, Capacity, and Handling, as well as body stats. Held weapons and shields have separate Weight and hand requirements. Weapon stats: Range (hexes), Shots per Fire, Acc (added to the hit roll), Pen (added to the penetration die), Damage dice, Heat per Fire, tags, and for Ballistic weapons the loads that it can carry (F12).

Some weapons have multiple forms. The first form uses the printed profile below. Change form with a Quick action under E4. The selected form supplies the weapon profile, Melee dice, Parry cost, Guard, and the weapon skill (F11.10 to F11.14). Hand requirements and Weight stay fixed.

Arm	Runner	Size	Armor	Dur	Wt	Capacity	Handling
Utility arm	Hauer	3	5	6	3	6	0
Braced arm	Hauer	4	5	7	4	10	0
Siege arm	Dioscuri	4	5	7	5	11	0
Duelist arm	Free Salvage Union	3	6	7	4	7	+1
Bulwark arm	Dioscuri	5	9	10	6	9	0
Conduit arm	B&B	3	4	5	3	7	0
Field arm	Hauer	4	5	9	4	7	0
Precision arm	Yutani	2	4	5	2	4	+1
Impact arm	Free Salvage Union	4	6	8	4	8	0
Loader arm	Dioscuri	5	6	9	6	12	0
Stabilized arm	B&B	3	5	7	4	8	0

Equipment	Runner	Hands	Wt	Range	Shots	Acc	Pen	Dmg	Heat	Melee dice	Parry cost	Tags
Rifle	Hauer	1	4	8	2	+5	2	1d6	1	—	—	Ballistic
Autocannon	Hauer	1	6	6	3	+4	1	1d6	2	—	—	Burst, Ballistic
Cannon	Dioscuri	1	8	8	3	+3	4	1d6	3	—	—	Heavy, Ballistic
Blade	Free Salvage Union	1	4	melee	1	+2	3	2d6+2	0	2	1	Melee
Shield	Dioscuri	1	5	—	—	—	—	—	—	2	—	Guard
Pulse	B&B	1	3	6	2	+5	0	1d3	1	—	—	Energy. Each hit adds 1d3 Heat to the target. Overdrive: Pen 2, 1d6, each hit adds 1d6 Heat, +2 Heat
Flak	Hauer	1	5	5	4	+5	0	1d3+1	2	—	—	Burst, Ballistic
Spike	Yutani	1	3	melee	1	+2	2	2d6	0	3	1	Melee
Ram	Free Salvage Union	1	5	melee	1	+1	4	1d6+3	1	2	2	Melee
Rotary cannon	Dioscuri	1	8	8	3	+3	2	1d6+1	3	—	—	Burst, Heavy, Ballistic
Lance	B&B	1	5	8	2	+5	3	1d6+1	2	—	—	Energy. Overdrive: Pen 5, Shots 3, 1d6, +2 Heat
Executioner greatblade	Free Salvage Union	2	10	melee	1	0	5	3d6+2	1	2	2	Melee, Heavy
Surveyor long sword	Hauer	1	6	melee	1	+4	2	2d6	0	2	1	Melee
Courier shortblade	Yutani	1	3	melee	1	+3	2	1d6+2	0	2	1	Melee
Scrapper paired knife	Free Salvage Union	1	2	melee	1	+2	1	1d6+1	0	3	1	Melee
Pile-driver hammer	Dioscuri	2	11	melee	1	0	6	3d6	1	1	2	Melee, Heavy
Bulwark guard lance	Hauer	2	9	melee	1	+2	3	2d6	0	2	1	Melee, Guard
Breach gunlance	Dioscuri	2	11	melee	1	+2	3	2d6	0	2	1	Melee, Guard
Breaker switch axe	Free Salvage Union	2	9	melee	1	+1	4	2d6+2	0	2	2	Melee
Capacitor charge blade	B&B	2	10	melee	1	+2	3	2d6	0	2	1	Melee, Energy, Guard
Relay insect glaive	Yutani	2	8	melee	1	+3	2	2d6	0	3	1	Melee
Patrol light bowgun	Yutani	1	4	8	3	+4	1	1d3+1	1	—	—	Ballistic
Siege heavy bowgun	Dioscuri	2	12	10	2	+3	5	1d6+1	3	—	—	Ballistic, Heavy
Arc bow	B&B	2	8	9	2	+5	2	1d6	1	—	—	Energy. Overdrive: Pen 4, Shots 3, 1d6+1, +3 Heat

Alternate weapon forms use these prototype profiles. A dash means the form supplies no dedicated melee dice or Guard.

Equipment	Form	Range	Shots	Acc	Pen	Damage	Heat	Melee dice	Parry cost	Guard
Breach gunlance	Shell	5	2	+3	4	1d6	2	—	—	—
Breaker switch axe	Sword	melee	1	+2	2	1d6+2	1	4	1	—
Capacitor charge blade	Axe	melee	1	+1	5	3d6	1	1	2	—
Relay insect glaive	Drone	6	2	+4	0	1d3	1	—	—	—

Shell uses Ballistic and Heavy. Sword uses Melee and Energy. The charge blade Axe form uses Melee, Energy, and Heavy. Drone uses Energy. Each Drone hit adds 1d3 Heat to the target. The printed gunlance and charge blade forms have Guard. Their alternate forms do not.

The charge blade stores Charge in its Blade form and spends it in its Axe form (F11.10). It uses a selected form rather than a separate melee Overdrive declaration.

Tags: Burst: the shots resolve one at a time. Heavy: 1[−] if the attacker moved this activation. Melee: used in the Full melee exchange; rolls Piloting upfront and selects the target part (F11). Guard: enables the Guard action (E5) and the melee rules for shields (F11.6). Ballistic: can carry one ammunition load (F12). Energy: takes no loads.

Loads (F12). A Ballistic weapon can carry one alternate load. The Weight of the load is added to the arm or back that carries it. A dash keeps the printed value.

Weapon	Load	Wt	Pen	Shots	Dmg	Other
Rifle	Armor-piercing	2	4	2	1d3+1
Autocannon	Armor-piercing	2	4	—	1d3+1
Autocannon	Flechette	1	0	4	1d3+1
Cannon	Armor-piercing	3	6	3	1d6
Cannon	High-explosive	2	2	4	1d6	Limited 2
Flak	Armor-piercing	2	3	—	1d3+1
Rotary cannon	Armor-piercing	2	4	—	1d3+2
Rotary cannon	Flechette	1	0	4	1d3+1
Patrol light bowgun	Armor-piercing	2	3	2	1d6
Siege heavy bowgun	Armor-piercing	3	7	2	1d6
Siege heavy bowgun	High-explosive	2	2	4	1d6	Limited 2
Missile rack	High-explosive	2	0	4	1d6	Limited 2
Missile rack	Incendiary	1	1	—	—	Each hit adds 1d3 Heat to the target

Legs

Legs	Speed	Evasion	Size	Armor	Dur	Wt	Note
Standard legs	0	0	5	5	9	9
Light legs	+1	+1	4	4	7	6
Heavy legs	−1	−1	6	7	11	13	Raises the class cap by 10
Jump legs	0	0	5	4	7	10	Ignore the elevation surcharge while functional; pay only destination terrain entry (H3)
Tracked legs	0	−1	5	6	10	10	Raises the class cap by 5
Sprint legs	+2	+1	4	3	6	5

Heads

Head	Size	Armor	Dur	Wt	Modifies
Standard head	1	4	3	2
Targeting head	2	3	3	3	Acc +1 on all attacks
Armored head	1	6	4	4
Sensor head	1	3	2	2	Sensors +3, E-Def +1
Scout head	1	3	2	1	Sensors +2
Brawler head	2	6	5	4	E-Def +1

Backs

Back	Size	Armor	Dur	Wt	Effect
Missile rack	2	4	4	8	Weapon: Range 10, Shots 2, Acc +4, Pen 2, 1d6+1, Heat 2. Indirect: can fire at a Locked target without LOS, at 1[−]. Ballistic: loads in C3 (F12)
Reactor booster	2	4	4	5	Reactor Cap +3
Sensor mast	2	3	3	4	Sensors +2. Lock On is a free action once per activation
Smoke launcher	2	4	4	5	Quick, 2 clouds per game: put a 3-hex smoke cloud on passable ground within 6 hexes. Soft cover (H5). Three smoke hexes on a line block sight (H4). The cloud lifts at the end of the next round
Bare back	1	4	2	0	No effect
Decoy pod	4	3	6	3	No effect
Bulwark plate	3	8	8	7	Reactor Cap +1
Jammer mast	2	3	3	4	Sensors +1, E-Def +2

A back with no effect still changes the mech, because its Size is a band of the hit table (F4): the small Bare back keeps that band narrow, and the large Decoy pod takes hits that would land on another part.

Derived mech stats

• Evasion = Chassis Evasion + Legs Evasion + Pilot Piloting
• Speed = Chassis Speed + Legs Speed
• Sensors = Chassis + Head + Back Sensors
• E-Def = Chassis + Head E-Def + Back E-Def + Pilot Systems
• Reactor Cap = Chassis Reactor + Back Reactor
• Accuracy of an attack = Pilot Gunnery + weapon Acc + Head Acc
• Hull = the sum of the Durability of all six parts (display only; a mech dies when its Core is destroyed, F7)
• Hit table = the Sizes of the six parts, scaled to 20 bands (F4)

Example kits (the weight includes the chassis; the card stats do not include pilot modifiers)

Kit	Class · Runner	Parts	Wt	Eva	Spd	Sens	E-Def	Reactor	Hull	Pilot
Courier	Light · Yutani	Light legs, Utility arm, Conduit arm, Sensor head, Sensor mast, Rifle, Pulse	33	13	6	13	10	5	32	Vex Adair
Foreman	Medium · Hauer	Standard legs, Braced arm, Utility arm, Standard head, Missile rack, Autocannon, Rifle	48	10	4	8	8	6	41	Ilse Brandt
Reaver	Medium · Free Salvage Union	Jump legs, Braced arm, Duelist arm, Targeting head, Smoke launcher, Autocannon, Blade	48	10	4	8	8	6	40	Ruko Han
Bastion	Heavy · Dioscuri	Heavy legs, Siege arm, Bulwark arm, Armored head, Reactor booster, Cannon, Shield	62	6	2	7	7	11	54	Sato Ren
Lantern	Medium · B&B	Standard legs, Stabilized arm, Conduit arm, Sensor head, Jammer mast, Lance, Pulse	42	10	4	12	11	6	38	Q
Drayman	Heavy · Hauer	Tracked legs, Braced arm, Utility arm, Standard head, Missile rack, Autocannon, Rifle	52	7	4	8	7	7	47	Ilse Brandt

A Team Cap of 145 fits Courier + Foreman + Reaver (129). It fits Bastion + one Medium + Courier (143). It does not fit Bastion + two Mediums (158).

A pilot has four stats, each from 0 to 3: Gunnery (attacks), Piloting (Evasion), Systems (E-Def, Lock On), Initiative (the Initiative roll at game start, which sets the activation order for the whole game, E2). Pilots are pre-built.

Every pilot has a Faction and a Specialty. The Factions are Hauer Group, Yutani Logistics Unlimited, Free Salvage Union, Dioscuri Heavy Industries, and Bartels & Basinger Ltd. The Specialties are Striker, Vanguard, Marksman, Operator, Engineer, and Scout. The current catalog has fifteen pilots, three per Faction. Each Faction has three different Specialties. Each Specialty appears at least twice.

Additional Ability. Each pilot has one passive Ability. It is active only if at least one other fielded pilot has the same Faction or the same Specialty.

Bonds. While two bonded mechs are within 2 hexes of each other, each gets 1[+] on attacks. A bonded pilot who is Prepared (E6) can use the Backup Fire reaction: when your bond partner attacks a target that is in the range and LOS of one of your weapons, fire one shot from that weapon at 1[−].

Decorations are cosmetic only: kill marks on the mech, medals on the pilot card. No stat of a pilot changes between matches.

Example pilots (Gunnery / Piloting / Systems / Initiative)

Pilot	Faction · Specialty	G/P/S/I	Ability	Bond
Ruko Han	Free Salvage Union · Striker	2/1/0/2	After a move of 3 or more hexes, your first attack this activation gets 1[+]	Marrow
Marrow	Free Salvage Union · Vanguard	1/2/0/2	When a hostile ends a move adjacent to you, reaction: one melee attack at 1[−]	Ruko Han
Vex Adair	Yutani Logistics Unlimited · Scout	0/2/1/2	At the start of a round, allies within 3 hexes get +1 Speed for this round	Ilse Brandt
Ilse Brandt	Hauer Group · Engineer	1/0/2/2	Stabilize also restores 1d6 Durability to one part that is not destroyed	Vex Adair
Sato Ren	Dioscuri Heavy Industries · Marksman	3/0/1/1	Aimed Shot has no 1[−]	Q
Q	Bartels & Basinger Ltd · Operator	0/1/3/1	A target that you Lock On also gets 1[−] on its own attacks until the end of the round	Sato Ren
Anja Dorn	Hauer Group · Marksman	2/1/1/1	Aimed Shot has no 1[−]	Tavi Sen
Bram Holt	Hauer Group · Vanguard	2/1/0/2	When a hostile ends a move adjacent to you, reaction: one melee attack at 1[−]	Dara Voss
Mika Rell	Yutani Logistics Unlimited · Striker	1/2/0/2	After moving 3 or more hexes, your first attack this activation gains 1[+]	Sera Quill
Tavi Sen	Yutani Logistics Unlimited · Operator	1/0/2/1	A target you Lock On also suffers 1[−] on its own attacks until the end of the round	Anja Dorn
Dara Voss	Dioscuri Heavy Industries · Engineer	1/1/1/2	Stabilize also restores 1d6 Durability to one part that is not destroyed	Bram Holt
Idris Kade	Dioscuri Heavy Industries · Vanguard	0/3/0/1	When a hostile ends a move adjacent to you, reaction: one melee attack at 1[−]	Rivet
Sera Quill	Bartels & Basinger Ltd · Marksman	2/0/2/1	Aimed Shot has no 1[−]	Mika Rell
Len Oris	Bartels & Basinger Ltd · Scout	1/1/1/2	At round start, allies within 3 hexes gain +1 Speed this round	None
Rivet	Free Salvage Union · Engineer	0/1/2/2	Stabilize also restores 1d6 Durability to one part that is not destroyed	Idris Kade

If you field Ruko, Marrow and Vex, the Abilities of Ruko and Marrow are active (same Faction). The Ability of Vex is not active. If you swap Marrow for Q, no Ability is active. This calculation is the roster puzzle.

Every pilot now has two Faction partners. All three pilots in a Faction can activate their Abilities together. A partner in reserve activates no Ability. Six of the seven reciprocal bonds cross Factions. Len Oris has no bond.

A game has 7 normal rounds, plus one complete bonus round only if score and Hull tie (I5). Seven is the initial prototype value; scenario experiments may change it. Each round: activate every surviving mech once in Initiative order (E2), then score zones (I4).

Activation order (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-110). At game start, after deployment, every mech rolls Initiative. Each mech rolls d20, adds its pilot’s Initiative (D1), and subtracts its Weight divided by 10, rounded down. Mechs activate in descending order of that total. Both sides are mixed in one order. The order stays the same every round. A destroyed mech leaves the order. Ties go to the lighter mech, then to the higher pilot Initiative. Each mech that is still tied rolls a d6, and the higher roll activates first. Reroll a tied d6. Every roll here is a visible die (A1). One side can activate several mechs in a row. This is part of the design. After all surviving mechs have activated, score zones (I4). Refresh each mech’s Reaction at this scoring boundary, before the next activation (E6). Other status durations keep their written expiry (Q016). This replaces the continuous alternation of the 2026-09-08 decision (TASK-036).

Activation. Spend up to Speed in movement points. You can split the movement around your actions. Do two Quick actions or one Full action. Free actions have no limit. You have one Reaction per round. Every reaction except Overwatch must be Prepared first (E4, E6).

Quick actions

• Fire: attack with one arm or with the Back weapon (F). Add its Heat. Once per activation. Barrage is the only way to shoot twice. A Ballistic weapon declares Standard rounds or its carried load before the roll (F12).
• Shelling: a Breach gunlance attack in Lance form, at range 1 to 2 (F11.12).
• Boost: move up to Speed again.
• Change weapon form: select another listed form of one usable held weapon. Spend one Quick action. Keep the form until you change it again. You cannot change form during a melee exchange or pending reaction. The free change that spends Charge is the one exception (F11.9). That change is part of declaring the strike, and the form it enters lasts for that exchange only. Changing form does not change Charge (F11.9). A destroyed or jammed weapon cannot change form. A two-handed weapon needs at least one usable arm. Selecting the current form does not spend an action.
• Lock On: select a hostile within Sensors range and LOS. Roll d20 + Systems. If the total is equal to or more than the E-Def of the target, the target is Locked until the end of the round. Every attacker gets 1[+] against a Locked target. Indirect weapons can fire at a Locked target without LOS.
• Brace: all your parts get +1 Armor until your next activation. You cannot Boost in this activation.
• Vent: remove 1d6 Heat.
• Throw: while grappled, a contest to make the other mech Prone (F11.5).
• Prepare: arm your Reaction until your next activation (E6). Without Prepare, you can only react with Overwatch. Prepare ends at your next activation, used or not. Choose the eligible reaction and its legal weapon when the trigger occurs; Prepare does not reserve a reaction type or weapon. Overwatch keeps the weapon named when it was set (E5).

Full actions

• Barrage: Fire two different weapons. Add +1 Heat to their costs.
• Aimed Shot: Fire one ranged weapon’s full volley at one selected location band. Every projectile uses that chosen band without a location roll, at 1[−] to hit (Deadeye removes this penalty). Each projectile still rolls hit, penetration and damage independently. Pay weapon Heat and expend a Limited load once for the whole volley. If an earlier projectile destroys the selected part, later hits transfer to Core normally; hard cover still absorbs hits aimed at Legs before that transfer. This uses a Full action.
• Overwatch: name one ranged weapon and aim toward a map hex. Watch a fixed cone at that hex’s elevation. The local prototype uses a provisional 60° cone, with its origin at the watching mech and its reach at the weapon’s long range. The owner selected a cone in Q034; this exact geometry remains a follow-up choice. The origin, direction and elevation stay fixed until the owning mech’s next activation. Both players can see the area. When a hostile declares movement through it, choose an eligible firing point along that path or pass the remaining movement. Check current range, LOS and weapon usability at the chosen point. Resolve there before the mover continues. Declining spends nothing and preserves Overwatch until its normal expiry. After any reaction at a later point, earlier points are no longer available. The cone is an aimed action area, not mech facing (E8).
• Melee: start an interactive exchange with an adjacent enemy (F11.1).
• Charge: move, then start a melee exchange for +1 Heat (F11.3).
• Wyvern's Fire: a Breach gunlance attack at 3 Charge, at range 1 to 2 (F11.12).
• Grapple / Break: start or end a grapple (F11.5).
• Stabilize: Heat to 0. Remove one crit effect. Stand up if Prone.
• Guard (held shield): one adjacent ally gets hard cover against attacks from your side of the ally, until your next activation. A shot comes from your side when the shooter is closer to you than to the ally. Melee ignores Guard (F11.6). A separate shield needs its own intact arm. An integrated two-handed guard needs either usable arm and a form with Guard.

Reactions (Locked 2026-09-05; Prepare added the same day). Each mech has one Reaction per round. After all surviving mechs have activated, score zones and refresh each mech’s Reaction before the next activation (owner confirmation, 2026-09-08). Refreshing this budget does not grant Prepared or Overwatch. Every reaction except the Overwatch shot needs a Prepared mech: the Quick action Prepare (E4) arms your Reaction until your next activation. A reaction clears Prepared. Overwatch arms itself, because it cost a Full action. Reaction attacks get 1[−], except Overwatch. A Prone mech cannot react. A reaction is always optional. Declining spends no Reaction and preserves Prepared or Overwatch until its normal expiry. This includes declining an Overwatch shot and waiting for a later eligible move (owner confirmation, 2026-09-08). If several friendly mechs can react to the same event, their player chooses the order. Resolve one reaction, then let the player decide whether another eligible mech reacts. Check eligibility again after each result. Each reacting mech spends its own Reaction. After reactions resolve, the surviving mover continues its declared path if still able. Destruction or a disabling effect prevents any remaining movement or follow-up action it makes illegal. Reaction attacks cannot trigger further reactions.

• Overwatch shot: Fire the named weapon at an eligible point where the hostile moves into or within the fixed watch area at its selected elevation. Resolve before the mover continues (E5). Declining leaves Overwatch armed.
• Backup Fire (D4): when your bond partner attacks a target in the range and LOS of one of your weapons, one shot from that weapon.
• Disengage strike: just before an adjacent hostile leaves adjacency, one melee attack against its current hex (F11.8). Resolve before the departing step; continue only if the mover is still able.
• Pilot reactions: the riposte of Marrow, a melee attack when a hostile ends a move adjacent to him (D6).

Engaged. Adjacent hostiles are Engaged. An Engaged mech gets 1[−] on ranged attacks. Melee ignores Engaged.

Facing: none (Locked 2026-09-05). Mechs have no facing. Position, range, elevation and cover are the only geometry. Cover and zones express flanking. Mechs have no facing arcs. Overwatch has its own aimed area (E5).

Enraged — permanent offensive rule, adopted 2026-09-09. When an enemy destroys an allied mech, each surviving ally becomes eligible for Enraged for the rest of this game, beginning on its next own activation. Enemy-inflicted Heat and enemy pushes that cause the death count; self-inflicted Heat and environmental deaths do not. An ally already taking its activation waits until its next activation. Both teams can acquire Enraged; the benefit does not depend on being outnumbered.

• At the start of that next activation and every later own activation, add 2 to ordinary movement allowance, not to Speed. Boost and Charge do not receive this bonus. Normal movement restrictions still apply.
• Refresh one failed offensive die reroll shared across that activation. The prototype automatically rerolls the first eligible failed ranged hit die, or the first failed non-defense-only opportunity die in a melee exchange this mech initiates. Keep the replacement result and reuse the already rolled modifier dice. No extra choice prompt appears. A second attack or exchange does not refresh the reroll.
• Reactions, the defender's melee pool, shield/parry-only dice, penetration, location, and damage dice do not use this reroll. A pending benefit cannot be spent early. The active movement bonus and any unused reroll expire at activation end; the surviving mech receives fresh benefits at its next own activation. Nothing carries into reactions between activations.
• Further allied losses do not stack movement, add rerolls, or refill a spent reroll during the current activation. Permanent eligibility ends when the mech is destroyed or the game ends.
• New games use permanent offensive Enraged. Saved games retain their embedded temporary or permanent rules. Temporary duration, disabled Enraged, and defensive rerolls remain explicit comparison options; they are not the current default.

Launch platform, optional prototype. Each side can add one unarmed Cooling Tender beside its three deployed mechs. The aircraft is separate from the fourth roster mech. Both sides use the same initial profile. It costs no roster Weight.

• The Cooling Tender has 18 Durability, 10 Evasion, 4 Armor, and 6 movement. It flies two levels above the highest terrain. It can share a ground unit's hex. Measure all range in horizontal hexes. Aircraft movement ignores terrain costs.
• At each allied mech's activation start, remove 1 Heat if it is within 3 hexes of the surviving aircraft. Heat cannot fall below zero. The aura ignores height and LOS. Apply cooling before that activation's actions.
• Reposition the allied aircraft once per round, during an allied mech's activation. Move up to 6 hexes within the board. This spends no mech action. Resolve pending melee and reactions first. Movement does not apply cooling again. Its new position affects later activations.
• An enemy can use ordinary ranged Fire against the aircraft. This spends one Quick action and the activation's Fire. Aircraft attack lines are unobstructed. Aircraft have no cover. Normal range limits, weapon Accuracy, penetration, glances, loads, Overdrive, and weapon Heat apply.
• Aircraft use one Durability pool. Skip location rolls and part critical effects. Critical penetration deals full damage. Aircraft have no Heat pool. On-hit Heat does not affect them. They cannot receive melee, Aimed Shot, Lock On, Barrage, or reaction attacks.
• Destruction ends the aura immediately. Aircraft never take mech activations or control zones. They add no kill points or Hull. Their loss does not trigger Enraged. An aircraft cannot prevent a mech wipe.
• The aura-only diagnostic keeps support and repositioning but prevents aircraft attacks. Ordinary scenarios can omit aircraft. Saved games retain their aircraft definitions and mode.

Declare. Select a weapon and a target. You must have LOS to the target (H4), and the target must be in range. Optimal range is up to the Range of the weapon. Long range is up to 1.5 × Range, rounded down. Beyond long range there is no shot. Melee needs an adjacent target.

Modifier dice. Collect every [+] and every [−] that applies. Each [+] cancels one [−]. Roll the dice that remain as d6. Take the single highest die. Add it for [+]. Subtract it for [−]. Roll once per Fire action and apply the result to every shot of that action.

Accuracy [+]	Difficulty [−]
Attacker at least 1 level above the target	Soft cover: 1
Target is Locked	Hard cover: 2
Bond partner within 2 hexes	Target Boosted, or moved 5 or more hexes, in its last activation: 1
Target did not move in its last activation	Attacker is Engaged and fires a ranged weapon: 1
Pilot abilities (D6)	Heavy weapon after a move: 1 · Aimed Shot: 1 · Indirect fire: 1

Hit. For each shot, roll d20 + Gunnery + weapon Acc + Head Acc ± the modifier result. The shot hits if the total is equal to or more than the Evasion of the target. A natural 20 always hits and adds +1 to the penetration roll of that shot. A natural 1 always misses.

Location. For each hit, roll d20 on the silhouette of the target. The Sizes of the six parts are scaled to 20 bands by largest-remainder rounding. A standard Medium reads Head 1, Right Arm 2–4, Left Arm 5–7, Core 8–13, Back 14–15, Legs 16–20. A Bastion (sizes 1/4/5/7/2/6, sum 25) scales to Head 1, Cannon 2–4, Shield 5–8, Core 9–14, Back 15, Legs 16–20.

• If the band belongs to a destroyed part, the hit transfers to the Core (penetration against the Core Armor).
• If the band belongs to a part behind hard cover (H5), the shot hits the cover. The shot ends.
• Aimed Shot selects one band for every projectile in that weapon’s volley. Melee can reroll the location die once.

Penetration. For each hit, roll d6 + weapon Pen (+1 on a natural 20 hit). Compare the total with the Armor of the struck part (Brace adds +1).

Result	Effect
Below Armor	Glance: half damage, rounded down
Armor or more	Full damage
Armor + 4 or more	Full damage and a crit: roll d6 on the crit table of the part (F8)
Natural 6 on the die	Always at least Full

With these numbers, a Rifle (Pen 2) gets Full damage on a Medium arm (Armor 5) two rolls in three. It gets Full damage on a Heavy core (Armor 7) one roll in three. Only the Cannon and the armor-piercing loads (F12) do better than even odds against a Heavy core. The crit margin was 3 in the first draft. The simulator showed the Cannon (Pen 4) with a crit on 53% of its hits, so the margin moved to 4 (decided 2026-09-05).

Damage. Roll the damage dice of the weapon. Subtract the total from the Durability of the struck part. Damage above 0 carries into the Core, with no second penetration roll. A part at 0 is destroyed (F7).

Part destruction

Part destroyed	Effect
Head	No Lock On. 1[−] on all your attacks. The Head modifiers are lost
Arm	Its one-handed equipment is unusable. Guard ends. A two-handed weapon can still be used with one arm at −1 Pen and −2 Accuracy on fresh rolls
Legs	Speed is halved, rounded down. Evasion −2. No Boost. Further Legs hits transfer to the Core
Back	Its weapon or effect is gone. A loss of Reactor Cap can put you over the cap immediately (G2)
Core	The mech is destroyed and removed. The pilot survives (cosmetic)

Crit tables (Locked for v0; tune by simulation). Roll one d6 per crit. An effect lasts until Stabilize removes it.

d6	Arm	Legs	Head	Back	Core
1–2	Jammed: cannot Fire in the next activation	Gyro hit: Prone	Sensors scrambled: no Lock On	Offline until Stabilize	Reactor breach: +1d6 Heat now
3–4	Actuator: 1[−] with this arm	Actuator: Speed −2	Optics: 1[−] on all attacks	Offline until Stabilize	Structure: Core Armor −1 for the game
5–6	Ammo cook-off: the arm takes +1d6	Knockdown: Prone, movement ends	Pilot shaken: lose one Quick action in the next activation	Destroyed	Ammo cook-off: the Core takes +2d6

Prone. Evasion −3. To stand up costs your whole Move. Stabilize stands you up for free. Melee exchange strikes still select their body location.

Order of shots. Resolve each shot fully before the next shot. The attacker cannot change the target between shots.

Melee exchange (prototype 2026-09-08). Initiating melee costs a Full action. Keep the normal movement allowance. The defender keeps its activation and normal reaction availability. Each new action rolls fresh pools for both mechs, including a defender attacked earlier this round. This sequence replaces Quick Strike and melee Fire.

• F11.1 Pools. Roll both pools of d20s before either player makes a decision. Each melee weapon supplies its printed Melee dice, plus its arm’s Handling. Add 2 dice for a Light chassis, 1 for Medium, or 0 for Heavy. Add one die per two points of Piloting. Distribute these bonus dice across equipped melee weapons in Right-to-Left order. Each die retains its weapon source. Add Piloting, Head Accuracy and weapon Accuracy to each die. The target number is 10, plus the current Evasion of the opponent, minus its Evasion from C7 (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-107). Every modifier that changes current Evasion moves the target number. Prone and a destroyed Legs part are examples. A fresh, standing opponent has a target number of 10. The Bastion of the worked example (J) has Evasion 6 from C7. It stands undamaged, so its current Evasion is 6 and its target number is 10. Prone makes its current Evasion 3 and its target number 7. A total at least equal to the target number succeeds. Natural 1 fails; natural 20 succeeds. Roll condition dice for a destroyed Head, damaged Optics, arm Actuator, or Scramble once per weapon pool before its d20s. Apply that modifier to each die in that pool. Positional hit modifiers do not apply to exchanges. Display all results. Only successes can be spent. The other numerical values are prototype defaults.
• F11.2 Strike and response. Higher Piloting strikes first. Ties go to the initiator. Choose one successful attack die and any body part, including Core. Spend the die. The defender now chooses whether to parry. A parry spends the printed Parry cost from the defender’s remaining successful dice and cancels the strike. Otherwise use the existing penetration, damage, overflow, critical and heat rules. Do not reroll the hit or roll a location die. A natural 20 still adds 1 Pen. Mass adds 1 Pen per class step above the target. Switch striker after each response. Skip a striker with no attack dice. Continue when the other pool is exhausted. End when neither side has an attack die or either mech is destroyed. Unused defense-only dice do not prolong an exchange.
• F11.3 Charge (Full). Move up to Speed, at least one hex, and end adjacent to an enemy. Gain 1 Heat, then start an exchange. Movement reactions still apply. Destruction or Prone before arrival cancels the exchange. Prototype Charge has no extra hit dice, push, or leg recoil.
• F11.4 Damage during an exchange. Losing an arm removes its remaining weapon opportunities. A two-handed item can still use its original pool while one arm works. It has −1 Pen, and −2 Accuracy when rolling a fresh pool. With both arms disabled it cannot attack. Weapons have no hit locations. Destruction of an already targeted part transfers the hit to Core, as in F6. Exchange hits do not cause automatic class-based knockdown. Brace still adds Armor.
• F11.5 Grapple, Throw, and Break keep their existing contests. A Grappled mech cannot move or Boost. A Full Grapple uses d20 + Piloting + 1 per full 10 Weight above the opponent, with the acting mech winning ties. On success both are Grappled. A Quick Throw repeats the contest and makes the opponent Prone in a free adjacent hex on success, ending the grapple. Full Break repeats the contest and ends the grapple on success. Destruction or Prone also ends a grapple. A grappled mech can initiate an exchange.
• F11.6 Shields. A held shield adds 2 defense-only dice. Roll each with Piloting against 8. A natural 1 fails; a natural 20 succeeds. A shield reduces the cost to parry by 1, minimum 1. These dice share the pool but cannot attack. A separate shield needs its own intact arm. An integrated two-handed guard needs either usable arm and a selected form with Guard. It contributes one shield source, not one per arm. The shield does not impose extra hit penalties in an exchange. Guard cover does not apply to melee.
• F11.7 Improvised attacks. Without a usable dedicated melee weapon, generate 2 improvised dice, then add class and pilot bonus dice. Punch if an arm works; otherwise kick if Legs work. Existing class profiles apply: Light punch Pen 1, 1d6; kick Pen 1, 1d6+2. Medium punch Pen 2, 1d6+2; kick Pen 2, 2d6. Heavy punch Pen 3, 2d6; kick Pen 3, 2d6+2. Punches use Accuracy 0; kicks use Accuracy −1. All use Heat 0. A shield punch adds 1 Pen. Guns never fire inside an exchange, including Backup Fire. Both equipped melee weapons can contribute to one exchange. Fire, Aimed Shot, Barrage, and Overwatch use ranged weapons.
• F11.8 Other reactions. Disengage and riposte remain single reaction attacks under E6, with their existing hit/location rolls, shield difficulty and heavier-class knockdown. They do not initiate Full exchanges. Normal reaction limits do not restrict participation in a melee exchange.
• F11.9 Charge (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; the numbers in F11.9 to F11.14 are provisional). Each mech has one Charge track. Charge runs from 0 to 3. The Charge action of F11.3 is a different rule, and it adds no Charge by itself. A weapon skill adds Charge and spends Charge. Charge above 3 is lost. Charge stays through activations, rounds and exchanges. Charge is not Heat. It triggers no stress check. A strike is accepted when the defender does not parry it (F11.2). Changing weapon form does not change Charge (E4). A form change that spends Charge is free, and it is part of declaring the strike (F11.10, F11.11). The transformation is the attack. A spend form entered that way lasts for that exchange only. Discharge, then revert. Charge resets to 0 when the weapon that owns the track is destroyed. Weapons have no hit locations (F11.4), so a one-handed weapon is lost with its arm, and a two-handed weapon is lost when both arms are disabled (F7). Every weapon with a skill is two-handed, so a mech holds at most one Charge weapon.
• F11.10 Phial Discharge, charge blade (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; numbers provisional). The Capacitor charge blade selects Blade form or Axe form (E4). In Blade form, each accepted strike you land adds 1 Charge (F11.9). In Axe form, one strike spends all Charge. Declare the spend when you choose the attack die (F11.2). That strike gets +1 Pen and +1d6 damage for each Charge spent. A parry cancels the strike, and the Charge is still spent. The change to Axe form is free when it spends Charge. In Blade form with Charge above 0, declare a strike as the Axe form. The weapon changes form as part of that declaration, at no action cost. Every other form change still costs the Quick action of E4. An Axe form entered by the free change lasts for that exchange only. When the exchange ends, the weapon returns to Blade form at no action cost. An Axe form entered by a paid Quick action change persists, as any form does (E4). The Discharge axe form is removed.
• F11.11 Amp, switch axe (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; numbers provisional). The Breaker switch axe selects Axe form or Sword form (E4). In Axe form, each accepted strike you land adds 1 Charge (F11.9). In Sword form, the weapon gets +1 Melee die while Charge is 1 or more. Check Charge when you roll the pool (F11.1). In Sword form, a strike spends 1 Charge when you declare it, as in F11.10. That strike adds +2 damage. A parry cancels the strike, and the Charge is still spent. A strike at 0 Charge spends nothing and adds no damage. The change to Sword form is free when it spends Charge. In Axe form with Charge above 0, declare a strike as the Sword form. The weapon changes form as part of that declaration, at no action cost. Every other form change still costs the Quick action of E4. A Sword form entered by the free change lasts for that exchange only. When the exchange ends, the weapon returns to Axe form at no action cost. A Sword form entered by a paid Quick action change persists, as any form does (E4).
• F11.12 Shelling and Wyvern's Fire, gunlance (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; numbers provisional). The Breach gunlance keeps its Lance form and its Shell form (E4). In Lance form, Shelling is a Quick action ranged attack (E4). Its range is 1 to 2 hexes. Roll to hit and roll the location as normal (F3, F4). Skip the penetration roll. Shelling always penetrates, whatever the Armor of the struck part. Brace adds no Armor against Shelling. It deals 2d6 damage (F6). It never crits (F8). It adds 2 Heat. Use Shelling once per activation. In Lance form, each parry you make adds 1 Charge (F11.6, F11.9). At 3 Charge, Wyvern's Fire is a Full action attack (E5). Its range is 1 to 2 hexes. It has Pen 6 and deals 3d6 damage. It spends all Charge.
• F11.13 Extracts, insect glaive (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; numbers provisional). The Relay insect glaive keeps its Glaive form and its Drone form (E4). In Drone form, each hit harvests one extract from the location it strikes (F4). A Head hit gives +1 Accuracy. A Core hit or an arm hit gives +1 Melee die. A Legs hit gives +1 Speed. A Back hit harvests nothing. Each extract lasts until the end of the next round. The same extract does not stack. A later hit on the same extract renews its duration. Extracts use no Charge.
• F11.14 Counter, guard lance (adopted 2026-09-15, owner decision, TASK-111; numbers provisional). The Bulwark guard lance has one form. When a parry of yours cancels a strike, make one free strike at the attacker immediately (F11.2). Resolve the free strike before the exchange continues. Counter rolls to hit. Roll one fresh d20 as a melee opportunity roll (F11.1). Use the modifiers and the current target number of that rule. This roll spends no die from your pool. A miss ends the counter. On a hit, the attacker can parry the free strike. The free strike uses the printed profile of the guard lance. A free strike cannot trigger another Counter. Counter spends no Reaction (E6). Counter uses no Charge.

Ammunition (Locked 2026-09-05). Weapons with the Ballistic tag fire Standard rounds. In roster building, a Ballistic weapon can carry one alternate load from its list (C3). The Weight of the load is added to the part that carries it. It counts against the class cap and the Team Cap (B3). When you Fire, Barrage or Aimed Shot with that weapon, declare Standard rounds or the load before the roll. The load replaces the printed Pen, Shots, Damage or on-hit Heat, as listed. A Limited load can be declared that many times in a game. Reaction shots (E6) fire Standard rounds. Weapons with the Energy tag take no loads. They can fire in Overdrive instead: declare it before the roll, apply the Overdrive profile of the weapon (C3), and add its extra Heat to the Fire. Overdrive is always available and never Limited. The reactor is the limit. A weapon with multiple forms can carry a load only if every form supports that same load and profile. Ranged Overdrive requires a printed Overdrive profile. The charge blade spends Charge in its Axe form instead (F11.10).

Heat comes from Fire (the Heat of the weapon), Barrage (+1), Charge (+1), Pulse hits (1d3 each), and Reactor breach crits. Vertical movement adds no Heat. Heat does not decrease by itself. Heat leaves through Vent, Stabilize, or a Stress roll. Selected melee forms pay their listed Heat for each strike that the defender does not parry. The optional Cooling Tender also removes Heat under E10.

Stress. When Heat becomes more than the Reactor Cap, roll d6. In every case, Heat then resets to 0.

d6	Result
5–6	Emergency vent. Lose one Quick action in your next activation
2–4	Exposed. Every part has Armor 0 until the end of your next activation
1	Meltdown. The Core takes 2d6, and Armor does not apply. You are Exposed

Retired. Overcharge is removed. It does not grant an extra action or add Heat.

The board is 32 hexes long and 20 hexes deep. The deployment zones are the three rows at each short end. The fronts are 26 hexes apart. A Medium reaches the middle in round 2. Every map must have exact 180° rotational symmetry across terrain, elevations, deployment areas and complete objective footprints. A large variant is 40×24 with elevation up to 4.

Elevation is 0–3 per hex. A mech stands at the level of its hex. A mech is one level tall in every class. Eye height = level + 1.

Terrain and movement

Hex	Cost	Sight	Note
Open	1	clear
Rubble	2	clear
Foliage	2	soft cover	Sight through three or more foliage or smoke hexes is blocked
Smoke	1	soft cover	Temporary (C6)
Low wall	—	hard cover	Impassable obstacle, one level above its neighbours
Building	1 (roof)	blocks	Two or more levels tall. Its roof is a hex at ground + height. A mech stands on it and fights from it
Change elevation	+1 per level		Add the absolute elevation difference. Working Jump legs ignore this surcharge in either direction

Each step costs the destination hex's terrain entry plus 1 movement point per elevation level changed. Ordinary legs can climb any adjacent height they can afford. Working Jump legs pay only destination terrain entry across elevation changes in either direction, at any height; destroyed Jump legs use ordinary-leg costs. Jump movement adds no Heat. A drop, including a forced drop, deals no fall damage and does not by itself cause Prone or end movement. Other rules can still cause Prone or end movement when they say so. New games use these rules. Existing saves retain their embedded legacy vertical-movement behavior.

Line of sight. Draw the hex line from the attacker to the target. Interpolate a sight height from the eye of the attacker to the eye of the target. A hex between them blocks LOS if its top is higher than the sight height at that hex. A top that is exactly at the sight height does not block. If that hex is adjacent to the target, it gives hard cover.

Cover. Hard: the target is adjacent to an obstacle that is one level above its ground, and the obstacle is between the attacker and the target. The attacker gets 2[−], and a Legs band hits the cover. Hard cover does not apply if the attacker is two or more levels above the target. Soft: the target is in foliage or smoke, or the line passes through foliage or smoke. The attacker gets 1[−]. Only the best single cover applies. Guard (E5) gives hard cover from the side of the shield-bearer.

High ground. An attacker at least one level above the target gets 1[+].

Zones. Quarry, Foundry and Causeway each have four non-overlapping zones, arranged in rotational pairs. Flat is an open control map with no zones. Each zone is a complete 7-hex flower. You control a zone at the end of a round if at least one of your mechs is in it and no enemy mech is in it. Hold zones are the v0 objective. Other objective types (capture and carry, escort, timed relays) are expected later. Maps will be made by hand around them.

Deployment. Both players roll a d6. Reroll ties. The winner selects an end. The loser places one mech first. Then the players alternate, one mech at a time, in their deployment rows. After deployment, every mech rolls Initiative for the activation order (E2). In local matches, select and confirm each hex before passing placement to the other player. Scenario trials can use automatic placement.

Open. Deferred to v2: geometric partial cover, class height against cover, multi-hex Heavies, additional objective types.

Choose BO1 or BO3. Lock both four-mech rosters at match start. Select the deployed three privately and reveal both teams together before deployment. Shuffle the three maps with the match seed, without replacement. In BO3, stop at two game wins or after three games. A draw uses a game slot. After three games, the side with more game wins wins the match; equal wins draw the match.

Sideboard. Show the next map. Each player privately chooses one reserve swap or stand pat. Legal ammunition changes are also allowed. Parts and pilots stay locked. Reveal both decisions at deployment. All builds must meet hard limits; the deployed three must meet Team Cap.

If you destroy all three enemy mechs, you win immediately. Otherwise compare score after the normal round cap, then Hull percentage. Apply the single bonus-round exception in I5.

Score: 3 for each enemy mech destroyed, 1 for each zone controlled at the end of a round. With three deployed mechs and non-overlapping zones, a team can control at most three zones per scoring round: at most 21 zone points over seven normal rounds. The four zones allow at most 28 zone points across both teams combined over those rounds. These are theoretical ceilings that ignore travel and contestation; Flat permits none. A wipe is 9 points.

If score ties, compare remaining team Hull percentage: remaining body Durability on surviving deployed mechs divided by the original deployed team’s starting body Durability. Destroyed mechs contribute zero; the reserve does not count. If both score and Hull tie, play one complete bonus round and score its zones normally. Compare score, then Hull again. A second tie is a draw.

The local prototype has no countdown. Optional observed decision time is playtest data. Competitive clocks and remote play are outside this prototype phase.