Terrain Costs Chart for EFS

By Richard Wein, last updated 25-Aug-97

The movement point cost for entering a hex depends on the terrain in the hex, the type of planet, and the type of unit. Given that a hex can contain up to 4 terrain types, the calculation is not a simple one. The following chart presents a simplified view of terrain costs, which will suffice for most purposes.

Terrain

Symbols

Movement point cost for each type of land unit

Foot

Wheel

Tread

Hover

Crawler

Grass

2

2

2

2

2

Arid Grass

Concrete

Desert

2

3

2

2

2

Tundra

Swamp

Crust

Ice

3

4

3

2

3

Hill

3

3

3

3

3

Mountain

3

4

4

3

4

Trees

2

5

4

4

2

River

3

3

3

2

2

Delta

Barren Ocean

2

3

2

2

3

Jungle

3

8

6

3

2

Urban Sprawl

2

3

3

3

2

Tower

3

6

6

5

4

Road

1

1

1

1

1

Ocean

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A


Notes

  1. "Barren ocean" represents the dried-up ocean bed found on barren planets. Land units can enter but, oddly, spaceships cannot land there.
  2. Road hexes cost one movement point to enter regardless of other terrain in the hex, and regardless of whether the unit enters the hex along the road.
  3. This chart does not reflect the full complexity of the terrain cost calculation. In particular, it does not enable you to calculate the cost of entering a hex containing multiple terrain types. For example, a hill/trees hex costs 5 movement points for a tread unit.
  4. A unit can always move at least one hex per turn, even if the cost to enter the hex exceeds its movement allowance.
  5. Air units pay one movement point per hex, regardless of terrain.
  6. Naval units pay one movement point per ocean hex.