Try Federation Commander for FREE!
Go to www.StarFleetGames.com/FC and look (below the pictures) for the download link for
FIRST MISSIONS

This is the free 34-page download demo copy in PDF format. First Missions includes enough of the rules and charts to let you fly the Klingon D7 Battlecruiser and the Federation Heavy Cruiser, and see what all the excitement is about. This download includes a map panel, but any hex-map you have laying around will work just fine. Or you can skip the hexes and use the included tabletop rules for free-form play without hexes, using only speed and bearing.

The download also includes counters you can print out, as well as the ship cards for the two ships.

Learn the secrets of fast-firing Klingon disruptor tactics, and the slow-loading shield-busting photon torpedoes of the Federation Star Fleet.

Learn that there is more than one kind of phaser, and that all of them do the same thing (just more or less of it!).

Learn the value of fire and maneuver, and why you have to shoot in order to move, and move until you find a betterplace to shoot front.

Learn why you want to turn damaged shields away from the enemy before he can hit them a second time.

It's all there, in FIRST MISSIONS!

Some people do not realize that you can download what amounts to a free copy of part of the FEDERATION COMMANDER game (enough to play a few battles). Go to our Legacy site and you will find a lot of stuff you can download. Some of those downloads include:

o The free First Missions packet (demo version of Federation Commander).

o Turn guages and firing arcs for the tabletop rules.

o Sample ship cards.

o Wallpaper of game covers.

o Frequently asked questions.

o Information for Retailers.

o The original theatrical trailer (ok, not that, but it was the original flyer handed out at trade shows).

o Notes from the game designer on what parts of the older game Star Fleet Battles we decided to include in Federation Commander.

But that's just a start. If you join the Commander's Circle, which is free, you can download the monthly Communique which includes scenarios, tactics, and new ships. You can also access a database of Federation Commander players looking for new opponents (you!).

To obtain the free things available to our players, sign up for Commander's Circle. A link to the Commander's Circle can be found on one of the top navigating buttons on our site. www.FederationCommander.com. I believe the link takes you to our Legacy Site, follow the directions and once you've signed up, you will be given access to the "free stuff." Please not that we do not spam members who sign up. Signing up gives you access to Another newsletter and other free materials and products we offer to our players, ONLY.

Federation Commander's release schedule is looking promising this year. Here's what we have on the schedule to date.

February 2007
Federation Commander: Tholian Attack SKU 4103 $29.95
Federation Commander: Squadron Box 13 SKU 4313, Squadron Box 14 SKU 4314 & Squadron Box 15 SKU 4315 $$34.95
Starline 2400: Orion War Destroyer & Double Raider SKU 0818 $14.95
Starline 2400: Seltorian Fleet Box SKU 1500 $39.95

March 2007
Federation Commander: Booster Pack 13 SKU 4213, Booster Pack 14 SKU 4214 & Booster Pack 15 SKU 4215 $9.95

April 2007
Federation Commander: Border Box 5 SKU 4405 $99.95

May 2007
Captain's Log 35 SKU 5735 $18.95

July 2007 ***Origins Releases***
Federation Commander: Squadron Box 16 SKU 4316, Squadron Box 17 SKU 4317 & Squadron Box 18 SKU 4318 $34.95
Federation Commander: Border Box 6 SKU 4406 $99.95

Playing Federation Commander by email is an alternative to playing face-to-face. While there are a few differences (i.e., your opponent isn't sitting across the table from you), it is the same game.
The basic gist of the Federation Commander Play by Email (PBEM) system is that you and your opponent submit your orders for the turn to a moderator via E-Mail. The moderator then processes them, and sends a "Sitrep" (Situation Report) to the players via E-Mail. You receive the results, write up your next set of orders, and then submit your orders once again. The process is repeated until the game is completed. Sounds simple? That's because it IS! It'll take a little getting used to (after all, what doesn't?), but once you've got the hang of it, you'll be lobbing photon torpedoes (or whatever your weapon of choice is) at opponents from all over the world.

Every Federation Commander PBEM game has at least three participants: two or more players and one moderator. The moderator's purpose is to accept orders from the players and carry them out, reporting the results of those orders to all players. While (s)he is not a player, the moderator fulfills a very important role in the game. Good moderators and good players make for a good, enjoyable game of Federation Commander. Moderating a Federation Commander PBEM game is also an excellent way to learn more about the Federation Commander rules.

While there are some disadvantages to PBEM (it does take longer to finish a game), there are advantages as well. You can play against people in other parts of the world (how often to you get to Australia anyway?), you can play multiple games at once, and you can have large multi-player games (without worrying about running out of chips and soda).
For more information about playing Federation Commander PBEM, please visit the Play-by-Email section of ADB Inc.'s website at www.starfleetgames.com/pbemgames .

Federation Commander On-Line is a service which is part of the SFB On-Line service that allows players to play Federation Commander across the Internet. The client that allows this to happen is written in Java so that it can be used on any operating system that currently supports a 1.4.x or greater Java Runtime Environment...

To grab the client go to Client Download...

If you select "Online (Demo Account)" and enter what callsign you want, you can login for FREE. That is right, it will cost you nothing to try out FC Online. With the free Demo account, you can:..

Chat with other players
Watch any game
Play games against anybody flying any ship. (You are limited to playing either the Federation CA (Fleet or Squadron Version) or the Klingon D7 (Fleet or Squadron Version))

For those who don't already have the Java Runtime Environment available on your computer there is an option to have it included in the download.

If you want a subscription, it only cost $39.95 per year or $10.00 for a 3 month subscription.

Welcome to the STAR FLEET UNIVERSE, where thousands of people boldly explore new worlds and new situations every day.

As is readily apparent, the STAR FLEET UNIVERSE is based on The Original Series of Star Trek, and is produced under contracts with Paramount and with Franz Joseph Designs. While not necessarily "canon trek", the STAR FLEET UNIVERSE is a rich and vast playground, and is more consistent than the literary equivalents. It has to be, since the STAR FLEET UNIVERSE is home to a number of game systems, and gamers tend to get upset if we change the rules, history, background, and technology every time a fiction writer needs a new plot device. We do, by the way, publish a lot of fiction in our CAPTAIN'S LOG series, some of which is regarded as among the best published for this genre.

The STAR FLEET UNIVERSE includes the Federation at its center, flanked by the Klingons and Kzintis to the "west", by the Tholians to the "south", and by the Romulans and Gorns to the "east". Beyond the Romulans and Gorns is the Inter-Stellar Concordium (to be seen in a future product). Beyond the Klingons and Kzintis are the Lyrans and Hydrans (to be seen in the future product Distant Kingdoms), along with the WYN Star Cluster and the Lyran Democratic Republic. The Orion Pirates will steal from anybody, and the Andromedans (extra-galactic invaders seen in a future product) attack everybody.

When we began publishing (back in 1979), Star Trek was a half-forgotten old television show popular as an afternoon re-run in college towns. (That's how this all started. The original game designer was playing a naval combat game while watching Star Trek re-runs between engineering school and supper time.) We produced much new material before the franchise returned to life, and have continued to be one of the two largest producers of new history, starships, characters, and technology (the other being Paramount itself). As Paramount began producing new materials, the Star Trek Universe and STAR FLEET UNIVERSE began to diverge, but remained strongly linked. We did not change our games to match their later productions, and they did not change their television series to match our games, but the driving force behind the genre continued to keep the two universes very close indeed. We have no Cardassians or Breen or Dominion (these were created after our contract was signed), but we do have Andromedans and Hydrans and Lyrans. Our Klingons have smooth foreheads, and remain based (as the original Klingons were) on the ruthless Soviets or Nazis rather than becoming mystical Ninja warriors. Romulans have cloaking devices (as do some of the Orion Pirates) but the Klingons do not. Romulans use some Klingon-built warships, but mostly build their own superbly-crafted starships. The Gorns (seen in only one original episode) have become friends with the Federation, while the Tholians remain fiercely neutral (in that they won't allow anybody) into their territory.

The point of a "gaming universe".. is, obviously, the games! Here is a quick summary:

FEDERATION COMMANDER is the new full-color fast-playing game of starship combat.

For a fast-playing full-color card game of starship combat, check out STAR FLEET BATTLE FORCE. The game can be taught in 10 minutes and played in an hour.

For a more detailed look at the universe, the PRIME DIRECTIVE series of Role-Playing Books provides a wealth of background (maps, governments, religions, legal systems, and everything else) about dozens of new civilizations, plus the option to actually explore the universe as an adventurer, researcher, pirate, or military officer. You can read the books for the background, or use the role-playing rules to explore strange new worlds.

No exploration of the Star Fleet Universe would be complete without starships. We offer a full range of pewter starships in 1/3788 scale (most are two or three inches long) both as individual Starline 2400 ships, in Squadron Boxes of five ships, and in Border Boxes of 24 ships.