The Saurs

I. Introduction

The Saurs are a heterogeneous race of dinosaur-like beings whose empire reaches deep into the Beta Sector, possibly as far as the galactic core. In the past, they have traded with humans and other races, but only in a limited way. They are wary of other races and do not welcome outsiders into their space. They don't look for excuses to go to war, but if they feel threatened, or if their occasional plans for expansion are thwarted, they react with a savagery that frightens even the Norx.

The Saur army is an anomaly. Some of its soldiers use only their bodies' natural weapons, like the Swarm. Even those that use weapons don't use Saur designs, because there aren't any. Every Saur weapon ever encountered was bought or stolen from another race. They use no vehicles, either. They don't need them; with the largest of the Saurs approaching 45 tons in weight, who needs vehicles? We don't know what they call their various subspecies, so the StarMarines have named them according to the Earth dinosaur they resemble the most.

A Saur attack is centered around the huge plant-eating Saurs, who plod forward, encased in armored suits, stepping on all opposition. Great meat-eating Saurs literally bite enemy soldiers in half; other Saurs smash the enemy with their tails, or charge into vehicles with long, explosive-tipped horns. Flying Saurs drop grenade-like bombs, while fast raptor-like Saurs wreak havoc in the enemy rear. Amidst this carnage, the smaller Saurs add their weapons fire. According to observed Saur tactics, the only enemy who survives the battle is an enemy who retreats out of sight. They show mercy to their prisoners, after a fashion; POW's and wounded are not allowed to suffer, but are quickly killed and consumed by the meat-eaters. They don't like the taste of Victors, apparently; these are killed and stomped into the ground instead. The Saurs' one weakness is that they are a close-combat army, with very few ranged weapons.

The Saurs' base color is light magenta. Their counters differ from other races' in that the pictures are horizontal rather than vertical, and the level-3 formation color (yellow, aqua, or light red) is a band around the picture, rather than the picture's background.

The artwork for the Saurs is not my own. I got it from Barry's Clipart Server, which is at http://www.barrysclipart.com, and am using it in accordance with the site's acceptable-use policy.

The basic specifications of each unit and weapon are listed in tables at the end of this rule book. A general description of the units and weapons, along with specifics about special rules, takes up most of the book.

II. Troop & Vehicle Summary

• Lestes are the basic Saur foot soldier.
• Sittacos carry and use heavy weapons.
• Deinos are the Saurs' light soldiers, fast and deadly.
• Pteros fly above the battlefield, dropping grenades.
• Styros perforate the enemy with their nose horns.
• Paras are combat medics who heal wounds on the battlefield.
• Leaders (Sarges and Looies) provide leadership to the foot soldiers. Every formation bigger than a team must have a leader.
• Ankylos are natural tanks, armored and equipped with strong, knobbed tails.
• Stegos lash the enemy with their spiked tails.
• Tricers are naturally equipped for taking out vehicles.
• Teerexes are the big meat-eaters, the Saurs' super-heavy shock troops.
• Brontos are just plain huge, and almost unstoppable.

III. Saur Soldiers

Saurs are unusually self-reliant in battle. They get a +1 bonus to morale when making separation checks.

Saurs are as happy to kill enemy Healer units as any other enemy unit.

III-a. Forming an Army

Squad must contain 3 teams and at least one Sarge. At least one of the teams must be Lestes, and none of the teams can be the same type, except for Lestes. It can optionally include up to three vehicle-sized Saurs; at least one of these must be an Ankylo or a Stego, and none can be a Bronto. You can also add one or two Paras and a Hero. Sittacos cannot be part of a squad.

Platoon must contain 3 full squads, including at least one team each of Deinos, Pteros, and Styros, plus a team of Sittacos, a Looie, and a Sarge. It can also include unlimited vehicle-types, Paras, and Heroes.

III-b. Soldier Types

Name:	Saur Lestes
Type:	Basic soldier

These small dinosaurs resemble the Ornitholestes of Earth. They are about the height of a human, but much lower in mass. Two Lestes of each team will carry light weapons; the third will usually have a medium weapon.

Name:	Saur Sittaco
Type:	Heavy-weapons soldier

These Psittacosaurus-like Saurs are bigger than Lestes, and this size enables them to carry and use heavy weapons. They move slowly, but that's no handicap for a heavy-weapons soldier. Some carry a Horn-Bomb Pack or a Grenade Pack instead of a heavy weapon, to help other Saurs re-equip themselves on the battlefield. A Sittaco cannot move and fire in the same turn.

Name:	Saur Deino
Type:	Light soldier

Few land creatures can move as fast as a Deino. They look and act like Deinonychus, a small raptor-like dinosaur. They carry no weapons, but the claws on their feet are more than deadly enough. Their favorite place on the battlefield is in the enemy rear, carving up heavy-weapons troops and ripping into enemy soldiers from behind.

Name:	Saur Ptero
Type:	Airborne soldier

Pteros are unlike most armies' airborne soldiers in that (a) they cannot land, and (b) they can attack from the air. This attack usually means dropping grenades on the enemy. A Ptero can carry two grenades, and can pick up more if it ends its move next to a Saur with a Grenade Pack. Some Pteros carry a single pistol instead, using both their legs to aim and fire it.

Name:	Saur Styro
Type:	Heavy soldier

The Styro resembles Earth's Styracosaurus, a sort of miniature Tricer with a single horn. It can use a Horn Bomb, and can replace a used Bomb if it ends its move next to a Saur with a Horn-Bomb Pack and does not attack during that turn. It can wear a Head Shield.

Name:	Para
Type:	Doctor

The Para (short for "parasaurolophus" and "paramedic") heals the wounded. Each turn, a Para can turn one Saur in an adjacent hex (but not himself) from Wounded to normal. Paras can carry a hand weapon, and usually do; they also carry Horn-Bomb Packs or Grenade Packs for re-arming other Saurs. They cannot attack and heal in the same turn.

Name:	Sarge
Type:	Low leader

The Sarge is the most common leader. Troops within 3 hexes of a Sarge gain his benefit when facing morale checks. You can buy more Sarges than you need; these "extra" Sarges aren't attached to any formation, but can go wherever their leadership and fighting skills are needed. Like the higher leaders, Sarges are Dilophosaurus-type Saurs and usually carry medium weapons.

Name:	Looie
Type:	Medium leader

A Looie must be part of every platoon. Troops within 5 hexes of a Looie gain his benefit when facing morale checks.

Name:	Sittaco Hero
Type:	Hero

This Saur is fantastically strong for his species. He carries both a Pack and a heavy weapon. He is a Piefsee as well.

Name:	Styro Hero
Type:	Hero

Most Styros move at the same speed as a man, except when charging. This hero is an exception; he is unusually fast. Worse yet, he carries a small Horn-Bomb Pack (which is included in his build-point cost), and can reload his own Horn Bombs just like a Tricer. He can't reload other Saurs, though. He always wears a Head Shield, which is also included in his build-point cost.

Name:	Deino Hero
Type:	Hero

This vicious Deino is an Elite-level Piefsee, and he wears a light armored jacket that helps protect him without slowing him down.

III-c. Soldier Attributes

III-d. Weapons

• Grenades (can carry 1 of these in addition to any other weapon):
• Grenade is a short-ranged fragmentation bomb.

• Hand weapons (can carry two of these):
• Thunder Pistol is a lower-powered version of the Victors' thundergun.

• Light weapons:
• Thundergun is a short-ranged, large-bore slug-thrower, originally built under license from the Victors, and still built even though the Victors revoked the license after the Battle of Trespies III.

• Medium weapons:
• Light Cannon is a small recoilless rifle with fair range and armor-piercing, "borrowed" from a Dran Empire design.
• Flame-Thrower will destroy lightly-armored opponents at close range, but does little or nothing to armored targets and has a very short range. The StarMarines sold this weapon to the Saurs in exchange for medical technology, and have come to regret it.

• Heavy weapons:
• Thunder Cannon is a much-enlarged Victor Thundergun.
• Laser Spear is a long-range energy weapon. It loses destructiveness as the range increases, but its accuracy is phenomenal. If the range is greater than 2, the AP roll is at -1; if the range exceeds 5, the AP is at -2. The Saurs acquired this design from the Dran Empire as part of a peace treaty (what were the Dran thinking?).

• Saur-specific weapons:
• Horn Bomb is a small shaped-charge explosive that fits on the horns of Styros and Tricers, or the tail spikes of Stegos. It adds to the attack roll and to the damage done, and can be used only once. A Saur can use only one Horn Bomb at a time, no matter how many horns it may have. If you start your Saurs without Horn Bombs, they can pick them up later from a Horn-Bomb Pack, if the tactical situation allows it.
• Head Shield is only for Styros and Tricers. It increases the Saur's armor when attacked from the front.
• Body Shield is for Brontos only. It increases the Bronto's armor.
• Horn-Bomb Pack is a backpack full of Horn Bombs. Saurs that can use such bombs can replace used ones from the Pack, according to the rules for the individual Saur.
• Grenade Pack is a backpack full of grenades. Any Saur who can use a grenade can get a new one by ending its move next to a Saur who is wearing a Pack, but its main purpose is to keep the Pteros armed.
• Howdah is a platform that fits on the back of a Bronto. The Howdah can carry a leader and either a team of Lestes (which can dismount and remount at will), or a team of Sittacos (which must remain on the Howdah as long as the Bronto lives), as well as a leader unit. All can fire from the Howdah at no penalty. When attacking soldiers that are riding a Howdah, the attacker suffers a -1 penalty on his attack roll. Unlike most personnel carriers, the passengers are not harmed if the Bronto is wounded or killed -- they can jump off safely as the Bronto falls, landing in adjacent empty hexes, or temporarily stacked with friendly Saurs if no empty hexes are nearby. If all adjacent hexes are filled with enemy units, the riders of a Howdah will stay stacked in the hex with the late Bronto. Such stacked units must unstack as soon as they are able.

III-e. Vehicles

Name:	Saur Ankylo
Type:	Small ground vehicle (walker)

An Ankylo is naturally armored from head to tail, and suffers no penalty when shot at from behind. In fact, "behind" is a dangerous place to be when dealing with an Ankylo, because an Ankylo's clubbed tail is its weapon. Unlike most other soldiers, the Ankylo attacks enemies in the three hexes behind itself, not in front. It cannot walk backwards, so it must get into position and then turn around to attack. A favorite tactic among some Saur bands is for an Ankylo to follow a Bronto into battle, guarding the bigger Saur's rear. Treat them as small walkers for weapons immunities. They can move only one hex per turn if they intend to attack in that turn.

Name:	Saur Stego
Type:	Small ground vehicle (walker)

Like the Ankylo, the Stego can only attack enemies who are behind it. It lacks the Ankylo's armor, but its long tail is tipped with spikes that can rip through armor. It can use Horn Bombs on its tail, subject to the same rules as the Styro. It can move backwards at one hex per turn. Stegos are stupid (they have a brain the size of a walnut), and cannot move unless within the leadership range of a leader. This stupidity has an up side, however; the Stego is too dim to recognize danger, and will almost never fail its morale checks. Treat them as small walkers for weapons immunities. They can move only one hex per turn if they intend to attack in that turn.

Name:	Saur Tricer
Type:	Large ground vehicle (walker)

Everyone knows what a triceratops looks like, but not everyone has seen a triceratops ram head-first into a main battle tank. Tricers serve the Saurs as living tank-destroyers. They always use Horn Bombs on their horns. If they carry an optional Horn-Bomb Pack, or end their move adjacent to a Saur with a Horn-Bomb Pack, they can replace a used Horn Bomb if they spend one turn not attacking. They can wear Head Shields. A favorite Tricer maneuver is to charge through enemy ranks, making overrun attacks on anyone who can't get out of the way, and then slam into a vehicle at the end of its charge. Their attack-roll penalty when shot from behind is -2, not the usual -1, because they have no armor aside from their bony head. Treat them as small walkers for weapons immunities.

Name:	Saur Teerex
Type:	Large ground vehicle (walker)

There's something about being attacked by a T-rex that other armies just don't like. Maybe it's the eight-inch-long teeth. Teerexes ignore vehicles and tear up enemy soldiers, moving surprizingly fast for something that big. Unlike the other Saur "large vehicles," they cannot make overrun attacks. They carry no weapons or armor. Treat them as small walkers for weapons immunities.

Name:	Saur Bronto
Type:	Large ground vehicle (walker)

The Bronto is the biggest living thing on the battlefield. A Bronto has no attack aside from an overrun attack, but its sheer bulk makes it hard to harm, especially if it is wearing a Body Shield. A Bronto can also wear a Howdah, turning it into a living personnel carrier. The drawback to a Bronto is that it is very dim, and cannot move unless within the leadership range of a leader. Like the Stego, this stupidity translates into very high morale. It moves one hex per turn on odd-numbered turns, and two hexes on even-numbered turns.

IV. Game Tables