Space Fighters!

Fredonia System, Groucho Sector

Intel sources indicate a high potential for military aggression by the Hishen into the sector, and long range sensors have detected FTL entry of several craft to the system.  Due to sunspot activity, sensors are currently unable to identify the craft, so Freedonian PDF has ordered a flight of Bee class light fighters to identify the craft, with a flight of Sabre class bombers on station for a strike mission.

Pre-mission intel was good, but current sunspot activity (I rolled a cosmic storm) is preventing the use of sensors.  Another pre-mission surprise was the unfortunate roll that the flights will be facing Unexpected Resistance, doubling the number of Possible Enemy Forces.  Since this becomes six PEFs, I placed one in each of the six possible sectors.

Turn 1:  Fredonia 3 / PEF 6.
I rolled a die and the fighters enter the table from sector 3.  I chose to have them enter on afterburner to get things rockin'.  The PEF A resolved as, "Just a case of nerves" and is removed.

Turn 2:  Fredonia 6 / PEF 1.
PEF B moves away from and to the starboard of Bee Flight.
PEF C does the same.
PEF D moves toward Bee flight, but turns out to be nothing.  This raises the Enemy Investment Level to 5.
PEF E moves toward Bee flight, but is still outside visual range.

PEF F remains stationary.

Turn 3: Fredonia 2 / PEF 5
Bee flight heads towards PEF E on afterburner and reaches visual range.  PEF E resolves as two Vulture fighters moving towards PEF F.  Bee flight notifies Sabre flight, who enters the board in the randomly determined sector 3.  Because he's on afterburners (and the White Knight attribute) Bee flight leader holds fire for now.

Turn 4: Fredonia 5 / Hishen 3
PEF B moves 8" toward Bee flight, ending just outside visual range.
PEF C remains stationary.
PEF F moves 8" away from Bee flight.
Vulture Flight:  My dice love a good story just as much as they hate me.  Since Bee flight was outside Vulture flight's forward arc, I rolled on PEF movement to see where they'd go.  Being what they are, my dice rolled, "move 8 inches directly towards the enemy".  Since 8 is faster than a Vulture's maximum speed, I rolled to determine Vulture flight's current speed and I rolled a "1".  So the Vultures accelerated at their maximum to engage Bee flight.

As a result of the In-Sight test, both ships of Vulture flight fire.  Vulture Leader's first rocket struck the canopy of Bee Leader's cockpit; stunning Bee Leader.  The second rocket hit Bee Leader's IFF transponder, putting him at risk of being targeted by friendly pilots.  Vulture Leader missed with his mass drivers.  Vulture 2 hit with one rocket on Bee Leader's cockpit, wounding Bee Leader.  Finally Vulture 2 hit Bee Leader with one mass driver, which once again struck the disabled IFF transponder.  This second hit on the same area means the ship was destroyed.  Being stunned by the rocket fire, Bee Leader was unable to eject.

Seeing Bee Leader take multiple hits, Bee 2 jerked his ship to starboard and punched afterburners, as randomly determined by the Leader Down test plus a little die roll to see by how much he'd change heading.  My dice decided that Bee 2 would head straight toward PEF C, which naturally resolved into a flight of Reaver medium fighters, and Bee 2 ended within Reaver flight's visual detection range and arc.

Both ships of Reaver flight reacted to Bee 2 with the Dead Man's Turn, including a crash stop, which meant Bee 2 was dead ahead only 2" from Reaver flight.  Only the randomly determined facing or Reaver flight away from Bee 2 kept him alive.

Turn 4:  Fredonia 3 / Hishen 6
Bee 2 bugged out on afterburner, leaving Sabre flight alone with four Hishen fighters.  With the last report from Bee 2 being that Bee Leader was dead and the remaining light fighter was disengaging from disastrous odds, Saber flight chose to live to fight another day.