GRAV-BALL® RULES REVISIONS

PURPOSE: FASA’s Grav-Ball, introduced in 1980, has long been disregarded by some gamers for its apparent clumsiness of play. I feel that this "clumsiness" stems from the way the phase-based play is set up, which often results in team members remaining dormant because it’s their phase to act and all the action is happening at the other end of the board.

By and large, the Grav-Ball system plays well, if simply, as is. This rules revision proposes to speed and enhance play by refining the way in which phases are handled, and to simplify the costs of various actions a team member can take. I feel this will make the game more dynamic, with less downtime, and add more strategy.

All rules not covered in this revision should be considered to stand as they appear in the original FASA rules booklet. From this point on, the term "player" refers to a member of a Grav-Ball team, i.e. a playing piece. The term "manager" refers to the person playing the game Grav-Ball.

PHASES

A game of Grav-Ball is played in three periods of six turns each. Each turn is further broken down into twelve action phases, six for each team. In a given phase, a single player may take any number of actions as long as he has the Action points to do so.

A "phase" begins when a phasing player takes his first action and ends when one of the following occurs:

The player elects to end his turn by stopping movement.

The player stops movement after passing or shooting the ball.

The player is checked and disrupted and cannot reorient.

The player is checked and is stunned.

The player executes a body throw.

The player is incapacitated by any means.
In the original rules, each player had a single phase assigned to him. That is, there was a Forward phase, two Halfback phases, two Fullback phases, and the never-quite-used "Goalie phase." The following rule revision is designed to replace this.

Any player can act in any number of action phases per turn provided he has the requisite number of action points available to him. The player can act in sequential or non-sequential phases, as the manager deems.

EXAMPLE: The Maulers are playing the Bleeders. At the face-off, the Maulers come down with the ball. The Maulers’ manager declares the forward is moving. The forward backs up one space, hands off to a fullback, then moves four spaces down Volume. He stops, ending the first phase. In the Bleeders’ first phase, their forward starts into Mauler territory. He gets two spaces in and is checked by a halfback and stunned. Phase ends.

In Phase two, the Maulers halfback with the ball moves two spaces to open a clear passing lane and passes to the forward. The forward catches the ball and the phase ends. In the Bleeders’ second phase, a halfback charges over for a check. He hits the forward, who is disrupted. The halfback backs off a space for defense, and the Phase ends.

In Phase three, THE MAULERS FORWARD ACTS AGAIN. (In the original rules, he could not, having already phased) He reorients (see revised point costs) and, as his phasing action, shoots.

A manager can willingly "burn" a phase at any time by crossing off the next phase without moving a player. This does not preclude another player from acting later in the turn. It more closely represents the team watching the other team’s next move, or preparing to switch to defense.

OPTIONAL RULE—BREATHERS: A manager may elect to burn a phase to let ONE player take a "breather" and recover three action points. As an opportunity move, an opposing player may attempt to check a player taking a breather. The check js resolved normally. If successful, roll for damage as usual; in addition, the phasing player’s breather is interrupted. He does not get the points back, and the phase is burnt regardless.

A manager may burn as many phases for breathers as he wishes.

ACTION POINT COSTS
To speed things up, the slightly arcane and somewhat arbitrary point cost system from the original rules is here being simplified into 1, 2, 3, and 4 point costs. Most common, simple actions cost 1; stronger offensive moves, including penalties, are now 2; reorienting and all-out offensive moves, such as body checks and throws are 3; a very few maneuvers, including the now-optionally used assault, are 4. These changes are included because under the old system players tended to run out of points too fast to support the new phasing system. With the lower costs and the restructured phasing, it will probably be less common to see a single player charge down volume, checking and avoiding checks to get to a point where he could shoot—this scheme then being repeated with every other player on the team.

Replace the original point cost chart with the following:
ONE POINT

Move 1

Pass 1

Hand/foot check 1

Suicide Save 1
TWO POINTS

Move & Evade 2

Shoot 2

Block 2

Save 2

Strike w/ball 2

Strike w/elbow 2
THREE POINTS

Reorient 3

Super catch 3
FOUR POINTS

Body check 4

Body Throw 4 ends turn
FIVE POINTS

Volume check 5 ends turn

Assault (now optional) 5 ends turn

OPTIONAL ADDITIONS TO CHECKING

Move and Check: As an opportunity move, a non-phasing player may move one square and deliver a hand/foot check for 2 points, but the check roll is made at an additional –1. (Thus, -2 if in an adjacent square)

"Volume" Check: The Volume Check is a body check against the solid walls of the arena. It costs one extra point and the roll is made at +1. A Volume check effectively ends a phasing player’s turn.