What is Aetherstream: Interceptor?
Aetherstream: Interceptor is a space fighter skirmish game. The Interceptor Core Box contains everything that is needed to play the game with two or more players: 10 miniatures each from the Terran Commonwealth and Callistonian Empire factions, fighter cards, pilot cards, 20 dice (10 in each faction color), two Maneuver Templates, status tokens, starfield maps, dry erase markers, and the core rulebook.
Interceptor was designed for fast play with easy to learn rules that offer depth when replaying the game. Once familiar with the rules, the average game can be played in 60-90 minutes. The rules are presented in two sections: Basic and Advanced. The Basic rules introduce all of the core concepts of the game, and the Advanced rules are presented individually, able to be added in together or one at a time, or not at all.
Interceptor – How to Play Video 1 introduces the game and goes over basic concepts of setting up:
Maneuvering the fighters is as simple as deciding where you want the fighter to be and using the Maneuver Template to see how difficult that will be. If the maneuver is within the fighter and pilot’s capabilities, the fighter moves to its new position. If it is beyond their capabilities there is always the option to push the drives or risk the pilot passing out to get into a superior position. Fortune favors the bold!
Here in Interceptor How to Play Video #2 follow along as Ross and Andi start moving the fighters around.
Once everyone is done maneuvering their fighters, combat starts. Combat in Interceptor is fast resolving, with a pool of dice being put together for attack based on the pilot’s Gunnery attribute and the fighter’s Firepower at the range to its target. The target gets to try and maneuver out of the way and hope their shields can help out. Anything not defended is a Hit… each Hit is a die roll (d10) and rolling a 10 on a Hit destroys the enemy fighter. Fighters can survive several hits, but their combat performance degrades quickly.
Our finale in the How to Play series between Andi and Ross covers resolving combat.
Once familiar with the rules, the Interceptor Campaign Supplement adds rules for making your own pilots, putting together squadrons and running them through detailed campaigns.
