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Fight the Power Word, Kill

no we're not the same 'cause we don't know the game

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Looking at Laserburn (part 1)

 

This is LASERBURN, a set of 'sci. fi. combat rules' by Bryan Ansell. 

It was published in 1980 via Tabletop Games. Bryan Ansell was at that time already running Citadel Miniatures (and indeed one of the miniatures made by Citadel gets a mention in the book as a vehicle you might use in this game) in partnership with Games Workshop, but this is before the two companies merged. 

Elements and influences from Laserburn are apparent in Warhammer, which Ansell co-designed in 1983, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader (the game's first edition) and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. So while Bryan Ansell has never been exactly the most popular figure in Warhammer/Oldhammer fandom or even production (see the infamous contents page of White Dwarf issue 77), if that's the sort of thing you're interested in, you might find this interesting. 

Power gloves: a more slender design than the massive space-hulk-bulkhead-ripping gauntlets the world will come to know and love. 

 

 

The book sometimes spells the game's name with a Z. 

 

A precursor to WFRP's hit location chart. WFRP presumably inherited its concern with armour being on different parts of the body from here, as it doesn't feature in WFB or Rogue Trader. 

 

 

The sungun blast area: a forerunner to the much-loved 40K flamer template. The sungun gets renamed through back-formation from 'handflamer' to 'flamer'. 

 

Some familiar items found in 40K: conversion beams and the armour types: flak, mesh, power, dreadnought. And distortion fields. 

 

To be continued....

 

 

 

 

 

 

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