Originally released in 1976 as a box game, STARFIRE is an original game of starship combat and interstellar empire building. In many ways, STARFIRE is two games wrapped into a single package.

STARFIRE's unique d10-based fleet-level tactical combat system uses a single line of letter codes to represent each starship. Damage is applied left-to-right until every system is destroyed. Design your ships, manuever them on the hex map, and destroy the enemy's units. STARFIRE's tactical combat is simple and fast, allowing for the annihilation of large fleets in a few hours of gameplay; but is still loaded with enough subtle complexities to satisfy your inner Admiral.

STARFIRE's strategic system is one of the first, if not the very first, dynamic 4X-style (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate) space strategy game. Each player is the emperor of an alien race launching into space from their homeworld, making decisions over every facet of their budding space empire: survey and exploration, colonization, economics and world building, ship construction, research and development, diplomacy, military action, and more. Each player uses that empire to build and control fleets of starships to explore and conquer a galaxy full of other player and non-player races alike. Combat is resolved using STARFIRE's tactical combat rules.

The full history of the STARFIRE gaming system can be found in the Introduction to STARFIRE. Or follow the links below to find out more about the Starfire game products.

STARFIRE Wargame - Current Edition

Other Starfire Editions and Products