silky_octopus's review
3.0
Available in electronic format only, this was the fourth in a new series of faction-specific publications intended to accompany the main Star League-era sourcebooks and focuses on the state of the Free Worlds League Military (FWLM) as of 2765. The book is written from an in-universe point of view, presented in the first instance as a report from the Star League Intelligence Command (SLIC) to the Commanding-General of the SLDF, with an additional introduction written three hundred years later by a Brigadier working within the Republic Armed Forces HQ, providing the original report as a contextual document for study by RAF units in an effort to better understand the history and character of the FWLM.
In common with the other books in this series, this book begins with a general overview of the state of the FWLM and the Free Worlds League, giving strategic and logistical updates on the state of the military incorporating details on the various military academies scattered around the realm, the role of mercenaries and the underlying infrastucture. The main portion of the book is a breakdown of the various brigades of the FWLM via a series of one-page entries plus another page on the Free Worlds League Navy (FWLN). This is followed by a brief rules annex, including random assignment tables, and a single Technical Readout-style entry for a new WarShip, the League-class destroyer, followed by a deployment map before finishing with record sheets for the new WarShip. Other than the record sheets and some illustrations the book is in colour throughout, with illustrations of the unit insignia for each Brigade, plus the League.
This Field Report is a bit of a mixed bag; the entries on the various brigades are well-written, and while only one brigade is completely new - the Bolan Defenders - the Field Report also has pages on two formations that have received little attention due to their destruction in the Fourth Succession War or the Andurien Secession, the Marik Guard and the Defenders of Andurien. Some units get specific mentions within each writeup, and many have nicknames included, but the level of personalisation of each is less than that in other Field Reports such as those dedicated to the AFFS or CCAF.
The Free Worlds League Navy page is somewhat lacking; it's interesting, but lacks the detailed breakdown of WarShips within the FWLN by class found in other Field Reports, although it does state what the core of each major fleet is comprised of and details the makeup of the largest of the five fleets.
This Field Report is also one of only two in the series to introduce just a single new WarShip (the other being Field Report 2765: LCAF) although the League is an interesting WarShip from a historical point of view.
Field Report 2765: FWLM is more interesting than Field Report 2765: DCMS, but not as complete as the better Field Reports in the series.
In common with the other books in this series, this book begins with a general overview of the state of the FWLM and the Free Worlds League, giving strategic and logistical updates on the state of the military incorporating details on the various military academies scattered around the realm, the role of mercenaries and the underlying infrastucture. The main portion of the book is a breakdown of the various brigades of the FWLM via a series of one-page entries plus another page on the Free Worlds League Navy (FWLN). This is followed by a brief rules annex, including random assignment tables, and a single Technical Readout-style entry for a new WarShip, the League-class destroyer, followed by a deployment map before finishing with record sheets for the new WarShip. Other than the record sheets and some illustrations the book is in colour throughout, with illustrations of the unit insignia for each Brigade, plus the League.
This Field Report is a bit of a mixed bag; the entries on the various brigades are well-written, and while only one brigade is completely new - the Bolan Defenders - the Field Report also has pages on two formations that have received little attention due to their destruction in the Fourth Succession War or the Andurien Secession, the Marik Guard and the Defenders of Andurien. Some units get specific mentions within each writeup, and many have nicknames included, but the level of personalisation of each is less than that in other Field Reports such as those dedicated to the AFFS or CCAF.
The Free Worlds League Navy page is somewhat lacking; it's interesting, but lacks the detailed breakdown of WarShips within the FWLN by class found in other Field Reports, although it does state what the core of each major fleet is comprised of and details the makeup of the largest of the five fleets.
This Field Report is also one of only two in the series to introduce just a single new WarShip (the other being Field Report 2765: LCAF) although the League is an interesting WarShip from a historical point of view.
Field Report 2765: FWLM is more interesting than Field Report 2765: DCMS, but not as complete as the better Field Reports in the series.
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