Legacy Review #19: Southern Cross

Written by: Kevin Siembieda

Release Date: 1987

Catalogue Number: 553

GENERAL

We dive into what was originally presented as the "Second Generation" for most North American anime viewers. As this is essentially a discrete generational book, it COULD be played with little to no reference to the original ROBOTECH RPG, but much of the original RDF overlaps with Southern Cross. Going by the 'completed' novel series, there is a fair number of novels where a mix of mecha is presented. Realistically, it would take some significant time for this military force to come into its own and be in a position to fight back against extraterrestrial threats. This isn't something presented in the RPG, but the McKinney Novels series (Legacy Review: ROBOTECH Novelization) provides the reader, GM and/or Player with a plethora of adventure ideas and ways to overlap the two RPGs.

SECTIONS

Character Creation. As a ‘discrete’ game, we start with the character generation rules with much the same system as you would expect from any Palladium Books product. The one major difference with the ROBOTECH RPG is the use of education MOS and the O.C.C.s based on their task-tailored role. The Classes are much more specific to their specialty:

• Global Military Police. Investigative/ covert troops. Don’t train on mecha but can use battloids, which strangely includes E.B.S.I.S. models.

• Tactical Corps (T.C.). Main ground troops that can train with battloids; specifically use their own Tactical Corps battloid.

• Tactical Air Force (T.A.F.). Main air force troops; air jockeys.

• Tactical Air Space Corps (T.A.S.C.). Expert Veritech pilots exclusively trained for employing the AJACS and Logans.

• Alpha Tactical Armored Corps (A.T.A.C.). Super elite Veritech Hover Tank pilots. You want to play alongside Dana Sterling? These are your guys.

• Recon Escort Patrol (R.E.P.). Specialized ground and air recon troops sent to locate, identify, and neutralize the enemy.

• Cosmic Unit (C.U.). Also uses AJACS; primarily  experts in orbital operations.

• Civil Defense Units (C.D.U.). Civil Defense ground troops; urban specialists.

• Civil Defense Flying Corps (C.D.F.C.). Civil Defense air troops; specialize in reconnaissance, observation, action and speed.

• Cold Weather Offensive Squad (C.W.O.S.). Specialized in arctic operations.

• Humid Climate Offensive Squad (H.W.O.S.). Specialized in subtropical and swamp conditions.

• Mountain Offensive Squad (M.O.S.). Specialized in climbing and mountaineering techniques.

• Desert Squad (D.S.). Patrol the vast desert wastelands.

• Jungle Squad (J.S.). Expert in jungle survival, specifically commando and guerilla operations.

• Sea Squad (S.S.). Specialists in sub-surface combat and exploration.

Earth Mecha. There are a series of new models of Veritech and Battloid models.

• The Logan – 2nd Generation Veritech. Transforms from jet to Guardian modes only. A much more compact version than the original Veritech Fighters. Packs a rather anemic weapon package, compounded with what I would call a “less robust” ability to absorb damage. That EU-11 Gun Pod though….

• AJACS Veritech Helicopter. Specifically designed for space combat but capable in air/land operations. Has an equally limited weapon loadout to the Logan. I found it ironic that the "helicopter" model was designed for space combat.

  

• Veritech Hover Tank. A robust, if limited to ground operations mecha. Has an extremely robust ability to absorb damage, with a powerful weapons package. Of course the anime and novelization demonstrates that you can find various ways to make a tanker and their tanks a viable option for extra-terrestrial operations.

Non-Transformable Battloids. These single mode mecha are giant extensions of the pilot, making them much more intuitive to use.

• G.M.P. Multi-Purpose Battloid. The most heavily armored of the lot, with forearm shields akin to the VHT. Not a bad model.

• T.C. Recon Battloid. A little odd that the main infantry force would use a ‘recon’ battloid, implying it not be as heavily armored as expected. Expectations, meet reality. Bizarre.

• C.U. Space Battloid. Specifically designed to function in space.

• C.D.C. Heavy Battloid. Mostly issued to officers or strike units. Forearm shields are more robust, but the Main Body remains rather weak to be considered “heavy.”

• C.D.C. Light Battloid. Most soldiers in the C.D.C. would be issued this model. Has a very low Main Body compared to the others (100 M.D.C. instead of the normal 150 M.D.C.)

Macross Generation Mecha. A note on these rarities as most have become “obsolete,” or taken aboard the SDF-3. Apparently next to none of the RDF models remain in this timeline. It notes less than two-dozen Vertiech Fighters remain across the globe, with maybe double that amount for MAC-IIs. You might be more able to find a Raider-X or Gladiator, but that’s it. A quick sojourn through the Jack McKinney novelization, specifically the Sentinels series, provides some background. If you don't have access to these resources, no worries. As the GM, you can always provide a very limited access to them, stressing the rarity and the difficulty to repair those models of mecha.

Zentraedi. While most of the world believes them extinct on Earth, this is far from the case. Of particular note are the South American and African Sectors. Most remaining in service are either rogue/pirate bands. This is particularly best depicted in the Jack McKinney novelization for Book #19: Zentraedi Rebellion (see Legacy Review #14).

E.B.S.I.S. Despite several military losses, the Soviet Bloc gained huge influence in the background of the end of the RDF influence over the Earth. Those military losses are explored, which sacked most of their Zentraedi and RDF mecha reserves; provides the overall numbers for remaining units. As such, they developed their own series of Battloids. Compared to Southern Cross models, they are more robust but field weapons of less consequence. Most are armed with the comically defined AKG-47 Gun Pod.

• Soldier Battloid. A heavier mecha design that demonstrates a few critical flaws if damaged.

• Juggernaut. A frontline mecha unit; powerful plasma cannon.

• Recon Destroyer. Seek and destroy unit with a surprising amount of missiles.

G.M.P. Security Robot. An oddly defined autonomous robot (no pilot) that any Battloid pilot should be able to handle with ease. Can take some damage and sports the GU-11 Gun Pod.

Ground Vehicles. We get a series of military and civilian styled vehicles.

Air Vehicles. A number of human-designed aircraft, including interceptors, shuttles and the like.

Weapons & Equipment. A series of body armor entries, kit and equipment, and hand-held weapons of the Southern Cross.

Robotech Masters. The protagonists of the Second Generation, they have a surprisingly light page count. A bit of the history for context, and the NPC entry for a typical Robotech Master, and several other readily identifiable classes or characters from the anime series. The part most are likely concerned with are the Bioroids.

• Bioroid Worker (Grey). Unarmed and used for repair, recovery and general labor.

• Combat Bioroid (Blue). Agile and ‘tough,’ as it is described.

• Standard Bioroid (Green). A little more agile, a little tougher than the Blue Bioroids they would lead; effectively squad leaders.

• Combat Bioroid (Red). The most formidable of the bunch, typically piloted by a very experienced clone warrior (6th level or higher).

• Bioroid Invid Fighter (Triumvirates). Designed and deployed to function in groups of three.

• Bioroid Hovercraft. An assault platform that basically provides the Bioroids an aerial chariot to charge into combat with. Comes armed with a very potent weapon.

• Robotech Assault Carrier. An aerial combat APC able to deliver 24-36 Bioroids into the thick of things and support with some heavy weapons.

• Bioroid Terminator. A suit of armor for Bioroid clones. A light armor with only a rifle for armament.

Robotech Masters Mothership. A massive construct that arrived at Earth after the finale of the Zentraedi orbital bombardment and Human response. Forward third of the ship sports a middling capacity to absorb damage (LMAO, just kidding, it’s a measly 600,000 M.D.C.). Main weapon is identical to the SDF-1, comically pointed out as inflicting a cool, casual 4D6 x 1 MILLION M.D. against a planet; how much M.D.C. a GM supposed to give to a planet is beyond me. Oddly enough, includes random encounter tables for inside the Mothership. So I guess Players could eventually expect to find themselves here. Much like the novelization, don't expect a road map or deck plan to provide you any insights. GM, it's a wide open sandbox, make it yours!

Southern Cross and the World. Several pages provide the world building context a GM and Players may need to better set themselves in the mind space for this Generation’s conflict. There are several hot zones that remain, and various regional hegemonies are vying for control, despite the efforts of the Armies of the Southern Cross to provide global stability and peace.

Robotech Characters

• Dana Sterling. Officer Commanding the 15th A.T.A.C. Sqn

• Bowie Grant. Soldier of the 15th A.T.A.C. Sqn

• Angelo Dante. Sergeant of the 15th A.T.A.C.  Sqn

• Nova Satori. The G.M.P.  Officer of the bunch

• Zor Prime. Leader and Battloid Pilot

IMPRESSIONS

Initial Review (7/10). When I originally played adventures from this book (**way** back in the day), we did not own much of the remainder of the ROBOTECH RPG catalogue; we snagged Sentinels and Invid Invasion, that was it. To be honest, there was a significant shock to the vibe of Southern Cross, and found it disassociated from the First Generation’s war and the RDF. Essentially, the RDF folded into the REF and left with the SDF-3, leaving behind the Armies of the Southern Cross to battle the Robotech Masters. We never really noted the geopolitical aspects of the setting, or the tie-ins that could be done with the remnants of the RDF. So we spent our time battling the Robotech Masters and blowing up a slew of Bioroids. We found the Logan to be almost ineffective as a combat unit, myself much preferring the AJACs over the VHT or any of the Battloids, that specifically lacked any “look cool factor” at the time. They also resembled the E.B.S.I.S. models, and at the time I was still a base brat in a pre-U.S.S.R. collapse dynamic. My one critique at the time would have been the repetitive nature of the conflict mostly revolving around Bioroids, more Bioroids, and hey look, even more Bioroids. I would have liked to have seen a more diverse direction given to GMs for what they could have worked into the adventures.

Current Review (8/10). Looking back over this book, specifically in the context of the other ROBOTECH RPG releases available, I firmly believe that Southern Cross is a sleeper game that has a metric ton of adventure opportunity. It is limited by the presentation of the anime to a very specific point of the conflict, revolving almost exclusively around Dana Sterling or the results of her actions, but there is so much more than can be done. The MOS and O.C.C. character creation rules allow Players to really dive into their character’s background and how they want to play them, more so than I find the Robotech RPG allowed for.

You'll notice likely one of two things within my review of the book's contents. First, it only really presents Bioroids as the key protagonists in the conflict. This is in line with the anime, but I found so much more could have been made available. It benefits from being more grounded in real-world geo-politics as a source for adventures and campaign ideas than the Robotech RPG ever did. Sure, Southern Cross mecha are less snazzy or robust than their RDF predecessors, but there is a much greater variety in missions a GM could exploit. That's the second aspect of this book, and something of a relic of its time; I look specifically at the follow-on titles. There is next to nothing in there for the GM in terms of creating adventures and plot elements to work with other than combatting Bioroids, or taking on a Robotech Masters Mothership; no small task for the GM or the Players.

That all said, the artwork provides a different vibe than previous RDF entries. Peter Simon’s stunning artwork beautifully rendering mecha, body armor, vehicles and weapons in a stark contrast to the cleaner lines and implied reflective surfaces presented by Kevin Long. I think out of all the ‘Generations’ to play, this one visually grabbed my attention the most, but left me struggling the hardest to make work in terms of adventures and encounter generation. We had a blast playing it, and current resources definitely make things easier.

Addendum: Something of note for anyone looking to get more into the history of the Southern Cross from a novelization perspective, the Jack McKinnley ROBOTECH Book 19 (See Legacy Review #14: The Zentraedi Rebellion) and the associated ROBOTECH RPG product (See Legacy Review #10: Zentraedi Breakout) provide some crucial backstory and context any GM could really sink their teeth into. Certainly not required, but a source worth mentioning.

Return to All Posts

Please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE!