Lost Patrol is a two-player mini-game by Games Workshop, with one player taking the role of humanity's scout-marines and the other, the alien 'Lurkers'. In the game's first edition, Marine Scouts were represented using 28mm high Games Workshop Warhammer 40,000 miniatures while the Lurkers were just cardboard tokens. The second edition release provided both Scout and Genestealer miniatures and saw some material changes to the rules.
Easily the game's most recognisable element is the board, which is created using 2D hexagon 'Jungle Tiles'. as the game progresses, more tiles are laid down and revealed, resulting in a jungle that twists and divides into many sections. The scout's objective is simple: stay alive long enough to reveal and reach the final 'drop ship' Tile and make their escape. As for their adversaries, their goal is even simpler: eat the scouts before they escape.
The game is notorious for being absolutely punishing when playing the scouts - many players will swear they've never actually won the game as the scouts! A game that is so unbalanced quickly loses its appeal: sure you might win playing the scouts, but it would almost certainly be due to an unhealthy dose of luck rather than skill - which is unfortunate because it's small, compact, quick to set-up and pack-away and the manner in which the jungle is revealed... I might even suggest that it's one of the first 'dungeon crawl' type games which have had something of a resurgence in recent years.
These alternate rules are intended to even the balance some when playing the game. There are a number of subtle and not subtle changes to the mechanics, rule clarifications, and the game also provides for varying levels of play for humanity's finest, allowing the game's difficulty to be calibrated to the players. I can now enjoy a game or two using Space Marines over my lunchbreak without too much fuss; and if I want to play with my kids, they can take the role of Terminators or I can challenge myself using Scout Marines without sacrificing my enjoyment of the game and its tactics.
Another great thing about having the different levels of play means you've got an excuse to paint up some additional units for your collection. I also play Space Hulk (2nd Edition of course!) and I love using my Terminators and Genestealers in Lost Patrol, not to mention making use of some Imperial Guard when I am feeling particularly suicidal.
What's on the horizon? Well, I've got two or three metal Space Marine Scouts, so once I track down some more (I think I need a Sergeant and Specialist) I'll paint them up as well. I've been slowly amassing Tyranid Hormagaunts to complement my Genestealers and I've also been painting up my Tyranid Warriors, hence their inclusion in these rules. I've also been drafting some solo rules for the game, but given that I've presently got plenty of mates who are willing to roll some dice, that side project can wait a while before it sees the light of day.