SPACE ARK
A downloadable game
SPACE ARK is a miniature-agnostic skirmish wargame of space naval combat, pitting force against force in a war of attrition for command of the frontier.
Players alternate activation through 5 key turn phases, navigating their 3-10 ship forces through the depths of space, issuing gunnery orders, managing crew stress, and repairing the massive amounts of damage the come so easily at the other end of kinetic weapons in zero gravity.
Game mechanics are crunchy, but quickly learnable, attempting to straddle the line between the deep simulation complexity of Battletech and the immediacy of contemporary games like Bolt Action.
SPACE ARK is designed to be highly customizable and expandable. Complete rules are provided for ship design, along with a detailed armory for weapon and equipment selection. Narrative campaign rules and a basic solo ruleset are also provided.
The game is designed for hex maps but measurement-based play is also possible.
The 53-page rulebook contains:
- Core rules complete with rules for command and control, inertial movement, damage control, and a key Stress mechanic that forces players to choose their actions wisely
- Customizable ship design toolkit
- Pre-built scenarios
- Narrative campaign ruleset with advancement system
- Optional rules for solo play
- Optional rules for measurement-based play
Downloads include:
- Rulebook in single page and spread formats
- 3-page quick reference sheet
- Ship Hangar supplement with 14 pre-built ships
- Blank stat sheet in print-ready and PDF form-fillable formats
- Ship design worksheet
Custom ship builders available! Web App, Google Sheets
Print copies are available at Etsy. Last print run is sold out! Comment below if you'd like a print copy so I can gauge interest for a new run.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Feel free to expand on the game as you see fit and publish your expansions. Expand the armory, add scenarios, create optional rules, or even modify existing core mechanics. The universe of Space Ark belongs just as much to the players as it does to its original creator.
Status | Released |
Category | Physical game |
Rating | Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars (6 total ratings) |
Author | Ryan LaLiberty |
Tags | miniatures, naval, Sci-fi, skirmish, solo-wargame, Space, wargame |
Purchase
In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $1 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Development log
- Game updates and ship builder app!45 days ago
- Coming Soon - Space Ark Constructor, Errata53 days ago
Comments
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Do you plan on expanding Space Ark beyond space to include sea, land, and evenair, Ryan, and to include mechs, vehicles, etc too? What about monsters for machine versus monster battles?
If I had all the time in the world, that sounds like a ton of fun, but alas I'll likely stick to space for now. I made Space Ark because I didn't feel like any existing space capital ship games were giving me what I wanted. For mechs, Battletech (Classic and Alpha) are both fantastic rulesets. For Naval, I love Victory at Sea...so no real gap to fill there! That said, the "monster" angle sounds pretty interesting... maybe a supplement of large, living "ships" is possible. Something to think about!
Was thinking of making a mod for far future submarine combat. Trying to figure out grounding and breaching(I figured a world requiring only subs would have to reason for no surface ships y logic deadly kill sats or maybe Europa.) meaning ramming and dodging would be important. Would add a tactical depth. I was thinking of using the water depth from Battletech(1-4 using a d4 to mark depth) going to a five would mean grounded and a 0 breach.
I don't know how I missed this comment, but I love that! Good thinking on the Battletech depths. That could be a very cool "stress" mechanic as well, where if it goes too deep the hull can rupture.
After some solo games, I like the balance of crunchiness and simplification compared to other space combat titles, and that ship builder is tickling my classic Car Wars love! I know I'll probably spend tons of time designing ships just for the sake of designing ships.
The ship builder is probably my favorite part as well. Please suggest new equipment, weapons, etc! I would love to release an expanded supplement.