I suppose the big news was that I got to see the GR-75 Rebel Transport first hand last night but Im sure other blogs are doing unpacking reviews and perhaps have even played a game or two with them so I won't rehash that here. I did find out what lists won the event I attended two weeks ago and thought it was interesting. It was a tie for first place. Here are the lists:
Note: If there are any inaccuracies please let me know and I will correct them. Thank you.
List 1:
Ibitsam
Luke Skywalker
Chewbacca
Note: I do not know how, or if, they spent the 2 points which are unaccounted for in this list
List 2:
Blue Squadron Pilot with Advanced Sensors
Dutch Vander with Ion Cannon Turret
Garven Dreis
Rookie Pilot
The first list stuck out to me initially as I wasn't sure I saw the synergy but then I realized that all three of those ships are very tough in their own way. Chewbacca is obvious and is a well known tank in Rebel three ship lists. Luke's ability increases his survivability and he is more difficult to kill than one would expect from a lone X-Wing. Ibitsam's ability works for offensive and defensive rolls. So as long as she has a stress token she can re-roll her single Agility die and that can add up over time.
The second list is very consistent in terms of firepower as well as board control with the ion cannon. The action economy provided by Dutch and Garven is nice and the combination of 6/2 Pilot Skill should help a bit in maneuvering. I've seen this list flown and it is flown in a very tight windmill formation that does not leave obvious choices in target priority and insures that everyone gets to shoot. The B-Wing rides in the back while Garven and Dutch go in the middle and the Rookie leads.
75x75 Micro-Swarm 75 points
Bounty Hunter with Recon Specialist
x3 Obsidian Squadron Pilot
This is simply a shrunk down version of the standard Firespray-31 mini-swarm list. It combines the firepower and health of the Firespray with a trio of TIE fighters. If one were so inclined they could take Academy TIEs instead of Obsidian Squadron and spend three more points elsewhere but I feel that having everyone at Pilot Skill 3 is useful both for maneuvering as well as having an edge against lower Pilot Skill lists which I expect there will be many of at the event.
See you all on Thursday!
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Firespray-31 Teardown
Note: User feedback has suggested that I add links to cards and ships in order for newer players to more easily follow what I am rambling on about. I am giving it a try in this article. Let me know what you think.
Slave-1. This is what the Firespray-31 model is painted to look like and invariably it is the name that springs to mind when this distinctive ship appears on the field. However this model of ship while not as numerous as other ships was used by many nefarious and cunning types. I would like to review the ship and the available pilots to try and find some interesting ways to use this ship.
Starting with the stats; it has 10 combined points of health which so far matches with the other medium base (I am reserving large base for the larger ships coming out) model which is the Lambda Shuttle. 3 Attack Dice is also on par with the Lambda as well as having Target Lock and Focus. That is where the similarities end. Assuming a base cost of 21 points for the Omicron Pilot and 33 points for the Bounty Hunter this is what that 12 points buys you. +1 point of Pilot Skill, +1 Agility Die, the Evade Action, a rear facing firing arc, and the ability to Equip Missiles, Mines, and/or Torpedoes. Also it is very important to note that the Firespray-31 is vastly more maneuverable than its Lambda counterpart.
As the rear facing firing arc is the closest thing the Imperials have to a turret that makes it especially valuable to take for any list which needs to threaten a greater area along a flank or outside a formation. In my opinion the Firespray makes the Mini-Swarm build for the Imperials a real threat. While the Lambda can also form the foundation of Mini-Swarm as well it cannot keep up with Imperial Fighters, only threatens the front, and cannot K-Turn. All of the following builds assume a Mini-Swarm build around it though I have seen strong lists containing nothing but Firespray-31s and/or Shuttles as well.
Note: A Mini-Swarm is the addition of 4 or more TIE-type fighters in order to round out a list containing a single Firespray-31.
Bounty Hunter with Recon Specialist and Seismic Charges
This build comes in at 37 points. The Recon Specialist increases the reliability of the offensive output as well as usually leaving a Focus token left over for defense. The Seismic Charges makes the rear arc of this model even more threatening and at the right time could be used to yield some automatic damage with no dice rolling. Very useful for getting the last point on a hard to kill ship or for forcing your opponent to reconsider flying in tight formation.
Note: Two of these and a Lambda with Vader makes for a very decent list.
Krassis Trelix with Heavy Laser Cannon
This build comes in at 43 points. Krassis was made for the Heavy Laser Cannon with his ability to reroll an Attack Die when using a secondary weapon he has a much greater chance of hanging onto a Focus token or perhaps getting more mileage from one and it means he has somewhat less reliance on Target Lock. This build is always attacking with 4 Attack Dice in the front arc regardless of range and that makes it a serious threat which is needs to be at that points level.
Kath Scarlett with Mercenary Copilot
This build comes in at 40 points. Kath's ability to potentially cause stress is very powerful. For two more points while at Range 3 you can guarantee a Crit if you can score at least one Hit result. Another idea would be taking Marksmanship for 1 point more since Kath is an Elite Pilot but I personally prefer keeping her Action free as she has lots of good options to choose from.
Boba Fett with Expert Handling and Navigator
This build comes in at 44 points. This build takes advantage of Boba's ability to change bearings combined with the Navigator to essentially become highly unpredictable on the field. The ability to change your move to compensate for battlefield conditions is useful though that usefulness is slightly reduced by Boba's high Pilot Skill of 8. In addition being able to Barrel Roll on a medium base model is very powerful. This should keep the board open as well as preventing collisions and or potential bumps.
In conclusion I am really glad to see this model on the table more. I think it is strong in the current meta and if used correctly presents a serious threat that can divert some firepower away from your TIE fighters long enough not to miss those lost attack dice from just taking one of the TIE swarm flavors.
75x75 - 3 Headed Whelp
Biggs Darklighter with Hull Upgrade and R5-D8
x2 Rookie Pilot with R2 Astromech
This list comes in at 75 points. A variant of the 3 Headed Dragon list scaled down for use at 75 points. I have found three X-Wings can still be a threat at 100 points when properly tooled and the effect works just as well scaling down. Using Biggs to soak damage and possibly regenerate 1 or 2 health while your Rookies do some work in applying the hurt. I feel that R5-D8 is a little underused though this should change now that Hull Upgrade is out and has had some time to propagate. I am more of a fan of this rather then the Stealth build on Biggs (Stealth Device and R2-F2) because Stealth Device is negated as soon as you take a hit and R2-F2 requires you to use your Action on him as much as possible to be effective whereas R5-D8 doesn't need to be used until after your Shields are gone thus freeing up Biggs for a turn or two of using Focus or Target Lock.
See you all next week!
Slave-1. This is what the Firespray-31 model is painted to look like and invariably it is the name that springs to mind when this distinctive ship appears on the field. However this model of ship while not as numerous as other ships was used by many nefarious and cunning types. I would like to review the ship and the available pilots to try and find some interesting ways to use this ship.
Starting with the stats; it has 10 combined points of health which so far matches with the other medium base (I am reserving large base for the larger ships coming out) model which is the Lambda Shuttle. 3 Attack Dice is also on par with the Lambda as well as having Target Lock and Focus. That is where the similarities end. Assuming a base cost of 21 points for the Omicron Pilot and 33 points for the Bounty Hunter this is what that 12 points buys you. +1 point of Pilot Skill, +1 Agility Die, the Evade Action, a rear facing firing arc, and the ability to Equip Missiles, Mines, and/or Torpedoes. Also it is very important to note that the Firespray-31 is vastly more maneuverable than its Lambda counterpart.
(read in George Takei's voice) Oh my
As the rear facing firing arc is the closest thing the Imperials have to a turret that makes it especially valuable to take for any list which needs to threaten a greater area along a flank or outside a formation. In my opinion the Firespray makes the Mini-Swarm build for the Imperials a real threat. While the Lambda can also form the foundation of Mini-Swarm as well it cannot keep up with Imperial Fighters, only threatens the front, and cannot K-Turn. All of the following builds assume a Mini-Swarm build around it though I have seen strong lists containing nothing but Firespray-31s and/or Shuttles as well.
Note: A Mini-Swarm is the addition of 4 or more TIE-type fighters in order to round out a list containing a single Firespray-31.
This build comes in at 37 points. The Recon Specialist increases the reliability of the offensive output as well as usually leaving a Focus token left over for defense. The Seismic Charges makes the rear arc of this model even more threatening and at the right time could be used to yield some automatic damage with no dice rolling. Very useful for getting the last point on a hard to kill ship or for forcing your opponent to reconsider flying in tight formation.
Note: Two of these and a Lambda with Vader makes for a very decent list.
Krassis Trelix with Heavy Laser Cannon
This build comes in at 43 points. Krassis was made for the Heavy Laser Cannon with his ability to reroll an Attack Die when using a secondary weapon he has a much greater chance of hanging onto a Focus token or perhaps getting more mileage from one and it means he has somewhat less reliance on Target Lock. This build is always attacking with 4 Attack Dice in the front arc regardless of range and that makes it a serious threat which is needs to be at that points level.
Kath Scarlett with Mercenary Copilot
This build comes in at 40 points. Kath's ability to potentially cause stress is very powerful. For two more points while at Range 3 you can guarantee a Crit if you can score at least one Hit result. Another idea would be taking Marksmanship for 1 point more since Kath is an Elite Pilot but I personally prefer keeping her Action free as she has lots of good options to choose from.
Boba Fett with Expert Handling and Navigator
This build comes in at 44 points. This build takes advantage of Boba's ability to change bearings combined with the Navigator to essentially become highly unpredictable on the field. The ability to change your move to compensate for battlefield conditions is useful though that usefulness is slightly reduced by Boba's high Pilot Skill of 8. In addition being able to Barrel Roll on a medium base model is very powerful. This should keep the board open as well as preventing collisions and or potential bumps.
In conclusion I am really glad to see this model on the table more. I think it is strong in the current meta and if used correctly presents a serious threat that can divert some firepower away from your TIE fighters long enough not to miss those lost attack dice from just taking one of the TIE swarm flavors.
75x75 - 3 Headed Whelp
Biggs Darklighter with Hull Upgrade and R5-D8
x2 Rookie Pilot with R2 Astromech
This list comes in at 75 points. A variant of the 3 Headed Dragon list scaled down for use at 75 points. I have found three X-Wings can still be a threat at 100 points when properly tooled and the effect works just as well scaling down. Using Biggs to soak damage and possibly regenerate 1 or 2 health while your Rookies do some work in applying the hurt. I feel that R5-D8 is a little underused though this should change now that Hull Upgrade is out and has had some time to propagate. I am more of a fan of this rather then the Stealth build on Biggs (Stealth Device and R2-F2) because Stealth Device is negated as soon as you take a hit and R2-F2 requires you to use your Action on him as much as possible to be effective whereas R5-D8 doesn't need to be used until after your Shields are gone thus freeing up Biggs for a turn or two of using Focus or Target Lock.
See you all next week!
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Event Summary - Game Kastle Santa Clara 04/19/14
I had the fortune to participate in the store tournament at Game Kastle in Santa Clara last week. It was a huge event with over 32 players showing up which I suspect is more than the store was expecting. They managed to get 16 tables together but things started a bit late. Here is a summary of the match ups I remember. If you were there and I made any mistakes please let me know.
The list I brought was 100 points.
Dutch Vander with Ion Cannon Turret
Garven Dreis
Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
Rookie Pilot
Round 1 - My first opponents list looked something like this. I believe it was 100 points.
Blue Squadron Pilot with Advanced Sensors
Garven Dreis
Lando Calrissian with Millenium Falcon Title, Nein Nunb, and Weapons Engineer
The opening went well for me with the destruction of the B-Wing and all my ships remaining intact. I then managed to get Garven down to 1 Hull. However I spent three turns trying to finish Garven off so I could focus on controlling Lando with my Y-Wings but it wasn't meant to be. He picked off my ships one by one and at the end I had a single Y-Wing left. I gave him full points for his tie breakers and moved on to my next round.
Round 2 - I believe my opponents list was 100 points.
Academy Pilot
Bounty Hunter
Dark Curse
Mauler Mithel
Royal Guard Pilot
My opponent played this mixed swarm list pretty effectively and the only ship I managed to take out was Dark Curse. I did have the Bounty Hunter down to 2 Hull but nothing else was destroyed. He only managed to take out Garven after some heroic evading by the Rookie Pilot so in the end he won by 10 points. I have him full points for his tie breakers.
Summary
My list was very conservative and a bit too control heavy in my opinion. One Ion Cannon Turret would have been useful but two was overkill. Dutch's ability was decent and had synergy with Garven's ability for action efficiency but it wasn't enough to overcome the low firepower of the list. Additionally I made some maneuvering mistakes my first game that cost me some shooting by K-Turning too late.
I saw many different lists there and there was a great deal of diversity which was really great to see. I am not sure who placed at the event and what they took but it anyone knows it would be great to be able to post that information here. Overall it was a good time and I'd like to give a big thank you to Game Kastle for providing the space and TO for the tournament.
75x75 - A-Wing Swarm
x5 Prototype Pilot with Chaardan Refit
I believe this might be a lot of fun to run at this event as it is rare to get to use an unreleased card outside of friendly games. It takes on the TIE swarm approach and in the limited format may be quite strong especially as the list has more hit points than a regular TIE swarm. I know that at least one person is going to run this list and I am very excited to see it on the field.
On Thursday we post the Firespray-31 Teardown. See you then!
The list I brought was 100 points.
Dutch Vander with Ion Cannon Turret
Garven Dreis
Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
Rookie Pilot
Round 1 - My first opponents list looked something like this. I believe it was 100 points.
Blue Squadron Pilot with Advanced Sensors
Garven Dreis
Lando Calrissian with Millenium Falcon Title, Nein Nunb, and Weapons Engineer
The opening went well for me with the destruction of the B-Wing and all my ships remaining intact. I then managed to get Garven down to 1 Hull. However I spent three turns trying to finish Garven off so I could focus on controlling Lando with my Y-Wings but it wasn't meant to be. He picked off my ships one by one and at the end I had a single Y-Wing left. I gave him full points for his tie breakers and moved on to my next round.
Round 2 - I believe my opponents list was 100 points.
Academy Pilot
Bounty Hunter
Dark Curse
Mauler Mithel
Royal Guard Pilot
My opponent played this mixed swarm list pretty effectively and the only ship I managed to take out was Dark Curse. I did have the Bounty Hunter down to 2 Hull but nothing else was destroyed. He only managed to take out Garven after some heroic evading by the Rookie Pilot so in the end he won by 10 points. I have him full points for his tie breakers.
Summary
My list was very conservative and a bit too control heavy in my opinion. One Ion Cannon Turret would have been useful but two was overkill. Dutch's ability was decent and had synergy with Garven's ability for action efficiency but it wasn't enough to overcome the low firepower of the list. Additionally I made some maneuvering mistakes my first game that cost me some shooting by K-Turning too late.
I saw many different lists there and there was a great deal of diversity which was really great to see. I am not sure who placed at the event and what they took but it anyone knows it would be great to be able to post that information here. Overall it was a good time and I'd like to give a big thank you to Game Kastle for providing the space and TO for the tournament.
75x75 - A-Wing Swarm
x5 Prototype Pilot with Chaardan Refit
I believe this might be a lot of fun to run at this event as it is rare to get to use an unreleased card outside of friendly games. It takes on the TIE swarm approach and in the limited format may be quite strong especially as the list has more hit points than a regular TIE swarm. I know that at least one person is going to run this list and I am very excited to see it on the field.
On Thursday we post the Firespray-31 Teardown. See you then!
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Local Meta
The other night I got to hear about and experience some interesting lists that I thought were worth sharing. The first is 100 points.
This is pretty straight forward. Five TIE bombers and the ability to time an attack run to ruin someones day with 5 damage. This can one-shot a lot of ships which should keep people from tailing you. Otherwise it is just five TIE Bombers which Ive talked about in other articles. This could be considered a defensive alpha strike list. In the same vein is another list at 100 points.
x5 Scimitar Squadron
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
This is TIE Bomber swarm. It needs Howlrunner to provide dice consistency but it is a lot of meat to chew through and is six TIE fighters worth of firepower. A potential drawback I see in this list is formation flying Bombers with Howlrunner might be challenging. Also she is pretty vital to the list and is she goes down this list loses a lot of its punch in my opinion.
x4 Grey Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
This list is 100 points and provides a lot of control in the form of the ion cannons but is limited by the maneuver dial of Y-Wing a bit. I do like how tough it is and the damage is consistent ifa little less bursty than people tend to like.
x2 Bounty Hunters w/ Recon Specialist & Seismic Charge
Omicron Shuttle with Darth Vader
This is a list I like a lot. It is 100 points. I've played against it and with it and found it to be tough and able to dish out damage like clockwork. It is vulnerable to hostile asteroid placement in a big way so that has to be considered and I would advise practice in formation with flying big ships. A hint: You actually don't mind if your shuttle bumps every turn in order to keep it moving along with the group.
75x75 - Mixed Swarm
x2 Alpha Squadron Pilot
x3 Obsidian Squadron Pilot
This list is 75 points and brings fives TIEs to the table. It has a decent blend of firepower and hit points and the Obsidian Squadron pilot skill bump may give you an edge against Academy TIEs. Also you can easily fly in two groups which may help if anyone brings Assault Missiles. The slight edge on firepower with the TIE Interceptors may give you what you need to overcome a TIE swarm mirror match.
See you all again next week!
x5 Gamma Squadron Pilots with Seismic Charge
This is pretty straight forward. Five TIE bombers and the ability to time an attack run to ruin someones day with 5 damage. This can one-shot a lot of ships which should keep people from tailing you. Otherwise it is just five TIE Bombers which Ive talked about in other articles. This could be considered a defensive alpha strike list. In the same vein is another list at 100 points.
x5 Scimitar Squadron
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
This is TIE Bomber swarm. It needs Howlrunner to provide dice consistency but it is a lot of meat to chew through and is six TIE fighters worth of firepower. A potential drawback I see in this list is formation flying Bombers with Howlrunner might be challenging. Also she is pretty vital to the list and is she goes down this list loses a lot of its punch in my opinion.
x4 Grey Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
This list is 100 points and provides a lot of control in the form of the ion cannons but is limited by the maneuver dial of Y-Wing a bit. I do like how tough it is and the damage is consistent ifa little less bursty than people tend to like.
x2 Bounty Hunters w/ Recon Specialist & Seismic Charge
Omicron Shuttle with Darth Vader
This is a list I like a lot. It is 100 points. I've played against it and with it and found it to be tough and able to dish out damage like clockwork. It is vulnerable to hostile asteroid placement in a big way so that has to be considered and I would advise practice in formation with flying big ships. A hint: You actually don't mind if your shuttle bumps every turn in order to keep it moving along with the group.
75x75 - Mixed Swarm
x2 Alpha Squadron Pilot
x3 Obsidian Squadron Pilot
This list is 75 points and brings fives TIEs to the table. It has a decent blend of firepower and hit points and the Obsidian Squadron pilot skill bump may give you an edge against Academy TIEs. Also you can easily fly in two groups which may help if anyone brings Assault Missiles. The slight edge on firepower with the TIE Interceptors may give you what you need to overcome a TIE swarm mirror match.
See you all again next week!
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
Elite Wing
One of my favorite Imperial lists right now is one that I have been calling Elite Wing. It consists of all six of the named TIE fighter pilots with 3 points to spare. My most common build is the following:
Howlrunner with Stealth Device
Mauler Mithel
Backstabber
Dark Curse
Night Beast
Winged Gundark
The advantages of this list are:
Reasonably high Pilot Skill (5, 5, 6, 6, 7, 8 respectively)
A range of special abilities
Six models
3 Evade on all models
The disadvantages are:
Potential traffic jams from having six models.
Only 2 Attack Dice base
No Shields
Models that can die in one hit reasonably easily.
I prefer to take a Stealth Device on Howlrunner as she is a common target and because of the way I run her. I usually form my TIE's into two groups. One group consists of Howlrunner, Mauler, and Winged Gundark. The second group is Backstabber, Dark Curse, and Nightbeast. I generally set the first group in a position to rush straight forward into the waiting jaws of my enemy. This is because all three have abilities that maximize shooting and I really want to be at Range 1 when I do so. So of the three targets shooting at Howlrunner usually makes the most sense. Hence the Stealth Device in order to survive a turn of eating volleys.
I keep a little distance with the second group as they have more defensive abilities with the exception of Backstabber who loves to go after people from outside their firing arc if at all possible. Backstabber is also the lone operator in the group and sometimes I will send him off alone on a flank to prowl for the right opening. I tend to do strafing passes letting one group rest outside of arc while the other three perform their attack passes. This means I should have no less than three models attacking at any given time. This also helps reduce my exposure during turns where I lose two or more models.
I think this list is strong but it is not very tolerant of mistakes and requires some finesse to get the most out of. Extreme diligence is required during the movement phase in order to prevent self sabotage. Strict focus fire is also a necessity. Prioritize your targets and insure their destruction. I have also found that I Evade quite often in order to help survive being destroyed in one volley. However even with this I generally lose one model a turn starting on turn 2 so keep attrition in mind when calculating future turns.
To wrap things up here is my ranking of the six named TIE pilots based on personal experience.
Howlrunner
Mauler Mithel
Backstabber
Winged Gundark
Night Beast
Dark Curse
Howlrunner is a AoE re-roll attached to Pilot Skill 8 for 18 points. Being useful and a bargain is how you end up on top of the ranking. Mauler comes second with his still very respectable Pilot Skill of 7 and ability which adds an attack die at Range 1. Helping to shore up a weakness of the TIE platform is huge so for 17 points he is second. For the same reasons as Mauler but with a condition attached Backstabber comes third. Winged Gundark has a damage buff and for TIE fighters I rank any form of damage increase over defense so he comes fourth. Night Beast is fifth. His ability is useful but you wont always get to use due the necessity of K-Turns during attack runs. I am not a big fan of defense buffs on TIEs in general. So Dark Curse comes last because his ability is solely defensive and situational.
Until the tournament for The Wookie Won we are going showcase ideas for 75 point lists as that is the tournament's point level. Here is a list that has been playtested successfully already It is 73 points.
75x75 - Big Beef
x2 Blue Squadron with Advanced Sensors
x1 Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
This list is very tanky for starters with 24 total hit points. A pair of B-Wings is never a bad thing to base a list off of and the Y-Wing, though not very maneuverable, does not care thanks to its turret weapon. All the models have Pilot Skill 2 which makes activation go a little easier and you will hit before Academy TIEs. Lastly you have the Ion Cannon Turret which lets you control single models (like Soontir Fel) and help slow down targets so that the B-Wings can pivot and destroy them. There are 2 points open for upgrades like an R2 Astromech on the Y-Wing or you can leave them unspent if you simply want to guarantee initiative.
Howlrunner with Stealth Device
Mauler Mithel
Backstabber
Dark Curse
Night Beast
Winged Gundark
The advantages of this list are:
Reasonably high Pilot Skill (5, 5, 6, 6, 7, 8 respectively)
A range of special abilities
Six models
3 Evade on all models
The disadvantages are:
Potential traffic jams from having six models.
Only 2 Attack Dice base
No Shields
Models that can die in one hit reasonably easily.
I prefer to take a Stealth Device on Howlrunner as she is a common target and because of the way I run her. I usually form my TIE's into two groups. One group consists of Howlrunner, Mauler, and Winged Gundark. The second group is Backstabber, Dark Curse, and Nightbeast. I generally set the first group in a position to rush straight forward into the waiting jaws of my enemy. This is because all three have abilities that maximize shooting and I really want to be at Range 1 when I do so. So of the three targets shooting at Howlrunner usually makes the most sense. Hence the Stealth Device in order to survive a turn of eating volleys.
I keep a little distance with the second group as they have more defensive abilities with the exception of Backstabber who loves to go after people from outside their firing arc if at all possible. Backstabber is also the lone operator in the group and sometimes I will send him off alone on a flank to prowl for the right opening. I tend to do strafing passes letting one group rest outside of arc while the other three perform their attack passes. This means I should have no less than three models attacking at any given time. This also helps reduce my exposure during turns where I lose two or more models.
I think this list is strong but it is not very tolerant of mistakes and requires some finesse to get the most out of. Extreme diligence is required during the movement phase in order to prevent self sabotage. Strict focus fire is also a necessity. Prioritize your targets and insure their destruction. I have also found that I Evade quite often in order to help survive being destroyed in one volley. However even with this I generally lose one model a turn starting on turn 2 so keep attrition in mind when calculating future turns.
To wrap things up here is my ranking of the six named TIE pilots based on personal experience.
Howlrunner
Mauler Mithel
Backstabber
Winged Gundark
Night Beast
Dark Curse
Howlrunner is a AoE re-roll attached to Pilot Skill 8 for 18 points. Being useful and a bargain is how you end up on top of the ranking. Mauler comes second with his still very respectable Pilot Skill of 7 and ability which adds an attack die at Range 1. Helping to shore up a weakness of the TIE platform is huge so for 17 points he is second. For the same reasons as Mauler but with a condition attached Backstabber comes third. Winged Gundark has a damage buff and for TIE fighters I rank any form of damage increase over defense so he comes fourth. Night Beast is fifth. His ability is useful but you wont always get to use due the necessity of K-Turns during attack runs. I am not a big fan of defense buffs on TIEs in general. So Dark Curse comes last because his ability is solely defensive and situational.
Until the tournament for The Wookie Won we are going showcase ideas for 75 point lists as that is the tournament's point level. Here is a list that has been playtested successfully already It is 73 points.
75x75 - Big Beef
x2 Blue Squadron with Advanced Sensors
x1 Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
This list is very tanky for starters with 24 total hit points. A pair of B-Wings is never a bad thing to base a list off of and the Y-Wing, though not very maneuverable, does not care thanks to its turret weapon. All the models have Pilot Skill 2 which makes activation go a little easier and you will hit before Academy TIEs. Lastly you have the Ion Cannon Turret which lets you control single models (like Soontir Fel) and help slow down targets so that the B-Wings can pivot and destroy them. There are 2 points open for upgrades like an R2 Astromech on the Y-Wing or you can leave them unspent if you simply want to guarantee initiative.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
75x75 Tournament
We are sponsoring a tournament!
Date & Time: May 17th @ Noon
Location: Game Kastle
1350 Coleman Ave, Santa Clara, CA (map)
Phone: (408) 243-4263
Points: 75 points
Round Time Limit: 75 minutes
Entry Fee: $5.00
Rules:
Players bring one set of models to play for the entire duration of the tournament and it cannot be changed between rounds. Before the first round the tournament organizer will take a note of each players list in order to insure compliance.
When time is called the current round will finish in order to insure all models have had a chance to act. This is to insure fairness and to not discriminate against lower pilot skill models in the Combat Phase.
In the event of an uneven number of players the bye will be randomly assigned. That individual will play the tournament organizer and regardless of the games outcome will receive a Win with 38 points for the purposes of determining the next matchup.
When time is called the current round will finish in order to insure all models have had a chance to act. This is to insure fairness and to not discriminate against lower pilot skill models in the Combat Phase.
In the event of an uneven number of players the bye will be randomly assigned. That individual will play the tournament organizer and regardless of the games outcome will receive a Win with 38 points for the purposes of determining the next matchup.
All currently available expansions are allowed (i.e. Imperial Aces, etc) This means if you can buy it, you can play it.
Rebel Players may proxy the Chardaan Refit card in their lists.
This means they may use the ability listed on this card without possessing the physical card. All other cards must be present per the standard rules and no other proxy cards or unreleased cards are permitted. Printouts of this card can be provided by the tournament organizer if needed for your opponent.
Note: All lists and pictures of the games will be published on the blog. Please expect this.
Prizes: Game Kastle Gift Cards, Star Wars mini lego sets, and a custom TIE fighter repaint which will be previewed on the blog. There will be a 1st place, 2nd place, 3rd place, and Last Place (Best of the Worst) Prize.
Note: If you own regulation size game mats we would appreciate them being brought for use during the tournament.
Sign up today by emailing thetrickybuddha@gmail.com
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
A-Wing Teardown
The A-wing is one of my favorite ships in Star Wars but in regards to X-Wing I notice that among the people I talk to there doesn't seem to be much respect for it. I have spent a lot of time and many games trying to figure out the best use for it. I'm aware there is a card being released in Rebel Aces that will reduce its cost by 2 points and while I think that is welcome I do not factor it into this article.
When I look over the A-Wing my first thought was where is barrel roll? Boost is a great ability but I honestly expected it to have barrel roll. My second thought is damn this thing is maneuverable. It has the most green maneuvers of any dial in the game as 50% of its maneuvers are green. It is identical to the TIE Interceptor with the only difference being that the 5 straight maneuver for the A-Wing is green where as it is white for the TIE Interceptor. Some highlights of the dial are its two K-Turns at 3 and 5, a straight green 5, and every maneuver at 2 being green.
At first my thinking was to use it as a cheap missile platform but with the Z-95 Headhunter coming out it will make no sense in that role. If you are going to use a cheap A-Wing then use it to obstruct and confuse enemy movement. A Prototype A-Wing makes for a good bumper car. It isn't an Academy TIE but it is the second most economically priced model in the Rebel fleet behind the HWK-290 at least until the Headhunter shows up.
The bumper car concept is to get it out there to be as big a thorn in your opponents side as you can. Conveniently you will likely be at range 1 most the time. While not quite as durable as an X-Wing you are close and with 3 Agility you should be able to weather a couple volleys. Which also means more important ships aren't getting shot at. A bumper car can find a home in many lists due to its low cost and high utility but I prefer to use an A-Wing as an elite flanker. Until Jake Farrell comes out my preferred A-Wing build is below. It costs 30 points.
Full Commitment A-Wing
Tycho Celchu with Opportunist
Now why did I choose this? Because he is the best A-Wing pilot in my opinion with the only ability in the game that lets you ignore stress tokens except for maneuvering. My temptation was to give him Expert Handling and get access to Barrel Roll but I have decided after play testing that he can survive without it. Instead Opportunist shores up a big weakness of the A-Wing in general which is its 2 Attack dice. Opportunist isn't a no brainer for every pilot but for the only pilot in the game who minimize the impact of stress it seems to work well.
With Opportunist and a willingness to get up close and personal you could be rolling up to 4 Attack dice. That is an X-Wing level attack and should force people to reconsider their attack priorities. True its nearly a third of your build total but he could potentially dish out as much as an X-Wing and with the ability to Boost after your maneuver you should be able to minimize return fire. Like a TIE fighter it is very important to stay out of arc as much as possible.
Here is an example list which I have play tested. It costs 99 points.
x2 Rookie Pilots
x1 Dagger Squadron with Advanced Sensors
Tycho Celchu with Opportunist
Now all of this comes with a caveat which is that an A-Wing needs to be with at least three other models to be effective. I don't believe that it can stand up to the scrutiny (read: Combat Phase) of being one of three targets. But as one of four it should lower its priority enough to allow it to do its thing which is control a flank, harass movement options, and get in close range shots. Some other list options not covered that spring to mind are YYXA, BBXA, and YBXA.
Another build that my friend came up with is the following for 26 points.
Green Squadron Pilot with Expose and Stealth Device
With this you can safely use Expose for a turn or two while maintaining three Evade dice. I also think this can work well with Opportunist. You can keep your action to Evade as well as the 4 Evade dice until you are hit though it is more situational.
Here is a list utilizing the above build minus the Stealth Devices on the A-Wings for those who actually own three A-Wings.
x3 Green Squadron Pilot with Expose
Biggs Darklighter with R2-F2 and Stealth Device
This is is designed to have Biggs tank while your A-Wings do their thing without fear of being shot at with reduced Agility. Biggs can (and should) have 5 Evade dice base so he can soak fire. The list is vulnerable to AoE damage effects like Assault Missiles and is a bit predictable due to the need to stay close to Biggs but it is interesting nonetheless.
Don't be afraid to field an A-Wing. With practice you may surprise people who underestimate what you can do and you will only like it more when Rebel Aces comes out and it grows in popularity thanks to its lowered cost and the great cards coming out to support it.
For this weeks The Wookie Won here is a three X-Wing list that I created that should prove fun to field. I did not name it as most of theses lists are just variants of the original concept called 3 Headed Dragon. The list is 100 points.
Wedge Antilles with Expose and Hull Upgrade
Luke Skywalker with Draw Their Fire and R2-D2
Biggs Darklighter with R2-F2 and Stealth Device
This is a pretty rough list. As long as you keep Biggs the target for the opening salvos he should have 5 Agility which should soak some fire. Then Luke has his own ability combined with the ability to take a critical hit off of Biggs then heal the shield with R2-D2. Lastly Wedge has a chance to risk using Expose for a turn or two while Biggs is alive so that he can worry less about only having 1 Agility.
When I look over the A-Wing my first thought was where is barrel roll? Boost is a great ability but I honestly expected it to have barrel roll. My second thought is damn this thing is maneuverable. It has the most green maneuvers of any dial in the game as 50% of its maneuvers are green. It is identical to the TIE Interceptor with the only difference being that the 5 straight maneuver for the A-Wing is green where as it is white for the TIE Interceptor. Some highlights of the dial are its two K-Turns at 3 and 5, a straight green 5, and every maneuver at 2 being green.
At first my thinking was to use it as a cheap missile platform but with the Z-95 Headhunter coming out it will make no sense in that role. If you are going to use a cheap A-Wing then use it to obstruct and confuse enemy movement. A Prototype A-Wing makes for a good bumper car. It isn't an Academy TIE but it is the second most economically priced model in the Rebel fleet behind the HWK-290 at least until the Headhunter shows up.
The bumper car concept is to get it out there to be as big a thorn in your opponents side as you can. Conveniently you will likely be at range 1 most the time. While not quite as durable as an X-Wing you are close and with 3 Agility you should be able to weather a couple volleys. Which also means more important ships aren't getting shot at. A bumper car can find a home in many lists due to its low cost and high utility but I prefer to use an A-Wing as an elite flanker. Until Jake Farrell comes out my preferred A-Wing build is below. It costs 30 points.
Full Commitment A-Wing
Tycho Celchu with Opportunist
Now why did I choose this? Because he is the best A-Wing pilot in my opinion with the only ability in the game that lets you ignore stress tokens except for maneuvering. My temptation was to give him Expert Handling and get access to Barrel Roll but I have decided after play testing that he can survive without it. Instead Opportunist shores up a big weakness of the A-Wing in general which is its 2 Attack dice. Opportunist isn't a no brainer for every pilot but for the only pilot in the game who minimize the impact of stress it seems to work well.
With Opportunist and a willingness to get up close and personal you could be rolling up to 4 Attack dice. That is an X-Wing level attack and should force people to reconsider their attack priorities. True its nearly a third of your build total but he could potentially dish out as much as an X-Wing and with the ability to Boost after your maneuver you should be able to minimize return fire. Like a TIE fighter it is very important to stay out of arc as much as possible.
Here is an example list which I have play tested. It costs 99 points.
x2 Rookie Pilots
x1 Dagger Squadron with Advanced Sensors
Tycho Celchu with Opportunist
Now all of this comes with a caveat which is that an A-Wing needs to be with at least three other models to be effective. I don't believe that it can stand up to the scrutiny (read: Combat Phase) of being one of three targets. But as one of four it should lower its priority enough to allow it to do its thing which is control a flank, harass movement options, and get in close range shots. Some other list options not covered that spring to mind are YYXA, BBXA, and YBXA.
Another build that my friend came up with is the following for 26 points.
Green Squadron Pilot with Expose and Stealth Device
With this you can safely use Expose for a turn or two while maintaining three Evade dice. I also think this can work well with Opportunist. You can keep your action to Evade as well as the 4 Evade dice until you are hit though it is more situational.
Here is a list utilizing the above build minus the Stealth Devices on the A-Wings for those who actually own three A-Wings.
x3 Green Squadron Pilot with Expose
Biggs Darklighter with R2-F2 and Stealth Device
This is is designed to have Biggs tank while your A-Wings do their thing without fear of being shot at with reduced Agility. Biggs can (and should) have 5 Evade dice base so he can soak fire. The list is vulnerable to AoE damage effects like Assault Missiles and is a bit predictable due to the need to stay close to Biggs but it is interesting nonetheless.
Don't be afraid to field an A-Wing. With practice you may surprise people who underestimate what you can do and you will only like it more when Rebel Aces comes out and it grows in popularity thanks to its lowered cost and the great cards coming out to support it.
For this weeks The Wookie Won here is a three X-Wing list that I created that should prove fun to field. I did not name it as most of theses lists are just variants of the original concept called 3 Headed Dragon. The list is 100 points.
Wedge Antilles with Expose and Hull Upgrade
Luke Skywalker with Draw Their Fire and R2-D2
Biggs Darklighter with R2-F2 and Stealth Device
This is a pretty rough list. As long as you keep Biggs the target for the opening salvos he should have 5 Agility which should soak some fire. Then Luke has his own ability combined with the ability to take a critical hit off of Biggs then heal the shield with R2-D2. Lastly Wedge has a chance to risk using Expose for a turn or two while Biggs is alive so that he can worry less about only having 1 Agility.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Hobby Sector - TIE Fighter Repaint
So in this new segment I will be showing modifications and repaints that I have done or that I run into that I think are worth sharing. I have started with my TIE fighter repaints. I know that the Empire wasn't big on custom paint jobs but I wanted a way to easily distinguish my TIEs from my opponents and I wanted them to still be interesting looking without being overly flashy. I think this was a good balance.
We will return on Tuesday.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Boba the Fett
Just for fun next time you play at 75 points consider taking the most expensive build in the game.
Boba Fett - Big Spender 75 points
Boba Fett with Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Gunner, Homing Missiles, Heavy Laser Cannon,
Opportunist, Proton Bombs, and Shield Upgrade
Roll deep with the baddest hired gun in the galaxy! You will be sure to conquer all of the enemies. Much win. Fear nothing (except for Lightning Guns and Saarlac Pits) and get fat paid! Only one ship? No problem for Boba who packs an one extra shield because that's all he needs. Missiles and torpedoes say other big ships can suck it. Use your Gunner and Heavy Laser Cannon to vaporize TIE fighters in a single shot. Of course Boba has Opportunist. He is the only character who should be able to take it. If you look in the dictionary for the definition of Opportunist you will see his face. Also next to the word awesome and the word baller as hell. Which is three words but Boba Fett doesn't play by the rules!
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