3/21/2003 - On 3/13, Robert posted about the future of Turning Point/Fleet Action 2 on the Eclipse Message Board in a couple messages:

"Let me try to address this question.

First, there is no timeline yet. I do not have the financial considerations that put me under a major time/money crunch at AoG. This means I will take all the time I need to get this done properly.

The reprint will also include more material than the original. Much of the material that was originally going to be placed in the Advanced Missions book is going to be incorporated in the core rules. This includes such things as cloaking devices, mine warfare, starbases and so on.

Finally, I am still working out the plans for the reprint and how to handle old customers. There are a number of options I am weighing at this time includin free download, discount on a reprinted book and so on. As I make those decisions I'll let you all know."

In another message Robert adds:

"I also intend on going through another public playtest period so that once the Think Tank is happy, we can see what people think of our decisions."

10/15/2002 - AOG to close its doors after 10/31/2002

The full announcement is available at the B5Wars forums but it is easier to access at The Miniatures Page.)

Basically, AOG will continue to fill orders on current products until October 31st. Turning Point will not support the company in its current form so AOG as we know it today will close.  Eclipse Games will be created to support the Turning Point and Maxim (GROPOS) game systems. Some of these games will be sold mail-order/electronically only. Miniatures will continue to be sold as they are now. FA2 will probably be converted to this new format first with the Advanced Missions material replacing the construction rules and will be available free on the internet for a limited time. Other projects would be Maxim 2 (changing scale to microarmor 6mm and handle combat from WW2 onward), and a new starship skirmish scale (B5Wars style) game. This game will not be B5 Wars 3rd edition but will draw from what was learned from that product. Other games being looked at include a starfighter combat game, a sci-fi miniatures infantry skirmish game, and an ‘epic’ Warmaster-style fantasy miniature game.

4/15/2002 - Robert Glass has posted a proposed schedule for the the release of new Fleet Action products in the Turning Point Universe on b5wars.agentsofgaming.com.  He also mentions the B5 Conversion book would then be released at Origins (Early July):

The release is set up in the following basic manner. First the core rules get shipped. This will include aroun 15 or so classes for each of the EU and UNAN fleets. Next you will see fleet books. These will each contain one complete fleet. I should note that we do not plan, at this time, of doing 'variant' products though that could change depending on demand.

After Fleet books you will see Action Reports. These are similar to Showdown products and will advance the storyline and provide scenarios.

Finally there are the miniatures. In order to cut down the total number of skus yet maintain a large variety of ships, each fleet will have a number of core designs from which all other designs are derived. Refit packs will allow you to add the appropriate pieces to a core design to turn it into a differnt class. The designs are being done around this plan. I'll post to the gallery an example of this sort of modularity so you can see what we are doing shortly.

All races are also going to get a starbase. Detail on those will come later.

3/1/2002 - A draft of the design rules for the Turning Point universe have been posted on AOG's main page.

1/25/2002 - A new version of the playtest rules is up on AOG's main page.  Just the rules this time, no new ship sheets.

1/15/2002 - AOG has posted an updated playtest pack for Fleet Action 2.  It has been split up into 8 separate zip files, most are 8 megs or more so I hope you have a decent internet connection.  The rules are file #8 which is only 576k.  The links are available on AOG's main page.

12/14/2001 - AOG posts a playtest pack for Fleet Action 2 for downloading (9.95MB zip file) plus announced that FA2 will include a comprehensive set of starship construction rules.

Robert Glass posted the following information on the b5wars.agentsofgaming.com forum:

A general announcement to you all, the Fleet Action 2 Playtest pack is available for download. This is the first pack and contains the core rules and the majority of the Earth Alliance fleet. Currently the fighter stats are not provided as I am still working on those. You will find, however, the current version of the new fighter rules within the pack. The link to this pack will be on the site today or you can simply type http://www.agentsofgaming.com/FA2Playtest.zip

Players of FA1 will recognize a number of things in FA2. However, there are a number of definite changes to the system. Ships are not much more flexible in the way they fire their weapons thanks to changes in Fire Control rules. Smaller escorts will serve a much more important role in a fleet than they use to and specialized warships will become highly valuable. EW has been overhauled to deal with balance issues and the fighter rules have been completely revisited (and still are being revisited).

The EA ships provided have been created specifically to allow initial playtesting and do not represent the final versions of these ships. They will likely undergo a number of changes.

Shortly a second pack will also be made available. This pack will have the fighter rules and fighter stats in it.

In addition, I would like the take this opportunity to announce the inclusion of a comprehensive set of starship construction rules. This rules set will be included in the Fleet Action 2 core rule book. It is not a plug and play type construction system. Instead, players will have full control over every aspect of their ship. The basic process is as follows:
1) Weapon Design
Players will be able to design every aspect of their weapons. Variables they have control of include damage die, # of dice, range, rate-of-fire, type, special characteristics and so on.
2) Hull Design
During this step players design the basic skeletal hull of their starships. This is done by first choosign a size category then adding or deleteing hard points (where weapons and some equipment gets placed). The more hard points, the larger the ship's structure rating but the poorer its maneuvering.
3) Assembly
Finally players assemble the various weapons and equipment on the various hulls they have created. In addition, they can add special features such of sleeker hull (lowers the defensive rating), stealth and so on.

Overall players should be able to design pretty much any starship they should wish. When this is posted I want as many of you to break the system as best you can (and I'm certain you will find problems - a system this comprehensive is going to have them).

Anyway, have a look if you wish.

Robert

12/7/2001 - The AOG Report for the period ending December 7th has been posted.  Get your orders in soon to get then my Christmas.  For minis, the FA Cronos, Apollo, and Delphi, four new Support Squadron boxes, the Drazi and Brakiri squadron box ship next week and should be in stores by the 19th.

11/22/2001 - Just a note to let you know about Robert's Fleet Action page.   A source for fan created conversions of the rest of the B5 League races, play aids, and modifications for other backgrounds like Star Trek, Leviathan and Robotech.

11/2/2001 - A clarification from agent1 was posted on b5wars.agentsofgaming.com since some people still have some questions:

"Okay, let me try to explain FA2 as simply as I can. But first, some terms.

"Turning Point" is the title of the new universe we are creating. It is not a game, it is a background. In the Turning Point Universe (TPU), Man has conquered the solar system, but the old nations are still around. The United States, European Union, Nippon Empire, Russian Federation, and other groups control resources and colonies in the system, and fight one another for dominance.

"Fleet Action 2" refers to the game itself. It will be very much like FA1, but without the Babylon 5 connection. It will use a new type of unit datacards, and a more generic set of rules that will theoretically work in any number of space-based backgrounds, such as TPU and B5, or anything else we choose to pursue a license for.

The plan at the moment is to publish FA2 in the Spring. The TPU backstory will be included in the book but will be separate from the mechanics. Simultaneously with this release, we also plan to publish a Babylon 5 supplement for FA2 that includes all the races and as many ship stats as we can stuff into a single book. There will also be further B5 supplements as needed, based on demand, the number of miniatures we have to make ships to match, and other factors. In addition, further TPU supplements will be created that advance the TPU storyline, provide new units and rules, and so forth. It is probable that the initial rulebook will not include ships and data for every race in the TPU, simply for lack of space, but that these will appear in the supplements to follow.

FA1, as it now stands, will not have any more books made for it, but we will continue to support it online, with ship sheets, rules and races. And, of course, the miniatures will continue to appear as they have been doing (i.e., we will still make Babylon 5 FA miniatures). We will continue to sell books and miniatures for FA1 as best we can.

Babylon 5 Wars is still going strong and will continue to do so. We are still making rulebooks (hey, two more just went to press this week), and this will continue. While we have stopped making new full-scale minis, existing ones will continue to be available, and of course you can use FA-scale minis in your B5W games, as the vast majority of our players aleady do.

GROPOS will continue to be supported. We intend to produce Maxim-based ground rules for the TPU as well.

I think that just about covers it all. --A1"

10/19/2001 - The AOG Report for the week ending October 19th has been posted.  It includes a few more questions and answers about the Fleet Action 2 and Full Scale miniatures announcements.  Minis shipping this week are the Hyach Squadron Box and the Shadow/Vorlon Squadron Box.

10/14/2001 - In the just released issue #6 of Babcom, a Babylon 5, Fleet Action, and Gropos magazine produced by fans for fans, AOG finally announces the future of Fleet Action.  Read the issue of Babcom for the full details, but in summary, the fan produced Compendium fell through, so to address this and to protect themselves from any licensing issues (though they still have the B5 license and no plans to cancel it) Fleet Action 2 is being worked on for a Spring release.  FA2 will use a modified version of the current FA game engine but all B5 specific rules will be removed making it a more generic product.  The base universe for he game is called 'Turning Point' and takes place 200 years from now.  Since the game will be more generic in nature, supplements for other universes will be easier to do, and the first supplement for FA2 will be Babylon 5 and should include all the ships from FA1 and plans are to release the B5 supplement at the same time the rulebook is releasesd.  More info will follow from AOG in the future.