Author: Jeff Vitous

Introduction

The low strings and bass begin a soft, driving cadence. Mid-crescendo, the brass section signals the coming of the War God himself. The high strings join the cadence, and tensions are raised to a fever pitch. At the apex, a fanfare of trumpets announces the commencement of hostilities, and the battle is joined. The rest of the movement is awash in the ebb and flow of epic conflict.

The piece is called Mars – Bringer of War and is the first movement of British composer Gustav Holst’s symphonic masterpiece, The Planets. The music is the perfect backdrop for a lively game of Avalanche Press’ Imperium – 3rd Millennium. This board game is a struggle reminiscent of the Star Wars saga between an insurgent Terran coalition and the massive, presumably evil, Vilani Empire. The Empire would like to occupy Earth. The Terran player must prevent this event from happening. In between, there is a game involving strategic fleet movement, tactical ship combat, and planetary invasions using ground troops.

Imperial Legacy

Nearly twenty-five years ago, Game Designer’s Workshop (GDW) published the original Imperium. Games were played on a single strategic map and could be set up and completed rather quickly, within two to three hours. Thereafter, a ground combat module was added based on a system used in GDW’s Traveller games.

The Imperial player had a large navy and massive resources, neither of which were guaranteed to be at his disposal at any given time. The Imperial bureaucracy was a constant obstacle, often preventing the Imperial player from delivering a decisive blow when and where required. When the emperor did not interfere, however, games could be discouragingly short for the Terran player. The handicap placed on the Imperial player actually made the game ideal for solitaire play because Imperial options were often quite limited and did not require a thinking opponent to execute.

Imperial Battleship, Cruiser and Carrier

Terran Strike Cruiser, Light Cruiser and Destroyer

Back to the Future

Imperium – 3rd Millennium retains the same basic objective of the original game. The accumulation or denial of “glory points” determines the victor in a single episode of the war or scenario. Eight scenarios are included ranging from small planetary combats, tactical space battles, and the opening shots of the First Interstellar War.

The campaign consists of a series of wars, each lasting no more than ten turns. The campaign ends when the Imperial player controls Sol and Alpha Centauri or when the Terran player occupies Dinger, Gashidda and Ishkur. Between wars, territory is consolidated (unconnected outposts and worlds are removed), and both sides refit and retool for the next round of conflict. During peace, support costs are doubled, which discourages the build-up of forces at a time when the government would logically spend resources elsewhere. However, if the military had been decimated in the previous war, ample room under the maintenance cap would exist to rebuild the fleet to an acceptable level without incurring any added cost.

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