From the Mists - Thoughts on the G1-A Starfighter

Okay I need to say this right off the bat; does anyone else think that the G1-A kind of looks like Baloo's plane from TaleSpin?

Alright on to the important stuff.

Like many of you I read people's thoughts and feedback on this new Wave 8 ship and the general consensus could be summed up as:

Bad
It's the Scum B-Wing
Agility 1 means it dies too fast
It's overcosted

All of this is, of course, untrue. The first was based on no play experience at all and can be immediately discounted. The second one is interesting but deserves a closer look.

G1-A dial is on the left, B-Wing dial is on the right.

There are a lot of similarities. The 1 speed maneuvers are identical and the 2 speed maneuvers almost are as well. The B-Wing gets a 2 speed K-Turn. The three is where things get interesting on the G1-A dial with the G1-A having a green 3 straight as well as 3 speed K-Turn. At speed 4 the G1-A is superior with a white 4 straight and a 4 speed K-turn. In total the G1-A has one more maneuver than the B-Wing as well as an additional green. So the G1-A is better at closing or disengaging if it needs to. The G1-A dial supports my later thoughts about its role but lets also compare the raw stats.

Blue Squadron Pilot (22 pts)

-Pilot Skill 2
-3 Attack Dice
-1 Agility
-3 Hull
-5 Shields
-Focus, Target Lock, Barrel Roll
-System Upgrade, Cannon, x2 Torpedo, Title, Modification slots

versus

Ruthless Freelancer (23 pts)

-Pilot Skill 3
-3 Attack Dice
-1 Agility
-4 Hull
-4 Shields
-Focus, Target Lock, Evade
-Crew, System Upgrade, Illicit, Title Modification slots

They are pretty close with similar stats. The B-Wing has a better kit fighting up close with a strong focus on secondary weapons whereas the G1-A seems to be built for mid/long range attacks designed more for longevity with a splash of support. Also worth noting that the 23 points prevents you from making a GGGGZ list similar to the BBBBZ jousting lists that used to be popular in previous waves.

I can totally see at first glance where the comparison came from but after playing it I have been using it mainly as a mid-range slugger. I do feel that adding Mist Hunter is pretty important as it gives the G1-A Barrel Roll which can be very helpful but the most important thing is its Illicit slot. Because Cloaking Device is a thing.

Even if you get to use it only once the repositioning it gives you is huge and I find it seems to last 2-3 uses on average. In addition I also use it with Stygium Particle Accelerator and Advanced Sensors. This allows me to have turns where I can Decloak at the start of a turn, perform the Decloak move and gain an Evade token. Then I can take an action and perform my maneuver. Which all in all is very flexible. Also if you get in a bad spot you could potentially Decloak, gain an Evade, Advanced Sensors into a Cloak action, gain an Evade and then move hopefully going for a block making you an unattractive target with 3 Agility and 2 Evade tokens.

I feel like 4-LOM and Zuckuss are the two pilots to consider for this ship; the former if you are looking for more of a control element the latter if you are looking for more firepower. I have been leaning towards the latter because this ship wants to hit hard. The last thing to bring up is the Tractor Beam. I have never once shot it but I think the threat of it existing in the game and potentially seeing it makes it valuable (same as Boba...) because taking all low agility ships means you might get punished harshly by it. Especially if its rolling 4 red dice to hit you...

Here are some builds example builds I think are worth taking a look at:

4-LOM the Stressbot (37 pts)

Wired, Tactician, Advanced Sensors and Engine Upgrade

This build is all about getting stress and giving it. This list has the potential to give two different ships a stress token and you can take advantage of Wired because 4-LOM doesn't pass the stress until the End Phase.

Zuckuss the Brawler (37 pts)
Predator, Dengar and Advanced Sensors

This list is all about getting those red dice as consistent as possible with a guaranteed 2 re-rolls but with the chance to get 3 fairly consistently depending on the list you face. It's almost like a constant Target Lock. Just take a Focus and throw 4 red dice like its your job.

Just a couple ideas to look at aside from my build which is:

Zuckuss the Arc-ful Dodger (see what I did there) (36 pts)

Adaptability, Advanced Sensors, Cloaking Device, Mist Hunter, Tractor Beam and Stygium Particle Accelerator

So in summary; I think this ship is being maligned a bit unfairly and it deserves a closer look as a control-brawler which Scum didn't really have before this wave. My advice is to put it in a list where it isn't the biggest threat and fly it like a mid-range brawler (similar to a T-70) in order to see what it can do.

Store Championship Update - Fundamonium

This is going to be a short one just for those watching my progress; 707 Squadron performed with excellence yesterday at the Fundamonium event in Rohnert Park, CA with James taking 1st, myself taking 6th and Brian taking 14th. Amazing day as well as flying by the squad.

I ended up taking:

Poe Dameron w/ Veteran Instincts, R5-P9, Comm Relay and Auto Thrusters
Kyle Katarn w/ Cool Hand, Twin Laser Turret, Jan Ors and Moldy Crow
Biggs Darklighter w/ R7 Astromech and Integrated Astromech

My final score was 4-1 with my only loss coming from the eventual 3rd place winner of the event. I continue to improve my flying and it is with a pang of regret that I say goodbye to Wave 7 and welcome Wave 8 going forward. I am excited to see what it brings and you better bet my next post will cover my last store championship for the year which will also be my (any many people's) first Wave 8 event. I know what I'm taking and I welcome the madness!

Store Championship Report - Forgotten Path Games

Forgotten Path Games
Vacaville, CA
28-Feb-2016

Number of Players: 36 (Confirmed)
My placing at the event: 8th

Finally got my range ruler.

My List

x2 Syndicate Thug w/ Unhinged Astromech, BTL-A4 and Twin Laser Turret
Torkil Mux w/ Blaster Turret and Moldy Crow
x2 Binayre Pirate

I wont go over the blow by blow for this post. I went 3-2 and had a very respectable MoV. I am damned happy that I finally made top 8. Special thanks to 707 Squadron and to the event itself for being one of the best I've attended so far. Aside from a snafu which cost 20 minutes of time in the 5th round to get sorted out it went very well. They gave away game mats during each round which was especially welcome. From a meta perspective I say a TON of bro-bots and x4 TLT Y-Wings. I played both of those lists once. The most interesting lists I saw were x8 Z-95 and x2 Kihrahxz and x3 Z-95 on the top tables. My next post will hopefully be a link to the video of my 3rd round game at Gamescape North.

One last note: all content on the blog has been tournament driven and will remain so until the end of March. After that the main tournament season is over and I will return to regular content.

Store Championship Report - Gamescape North

Gamescape North
San Rafael, CA
20-Feb-2016

Number of Players: 28 (Confirmed)
My placing at the event: 11th

This was the best I've ever done at a tournament and I was very proud of my performance.

My List

x2 Syndicate Thug w/ Unhinged Astromech, BTL-A4 and Twin Laser Turret
Graz the Hunter
N'Dru w/ Lone Wolf, Cluster Missiles and Glitterstim

Round 1
Result - Win (100-50)

Name: Marshall

List

Dash w/ Push the Limit, Heavy Laser Cannon, Kyle Katarn, Outrider and Engine Upgrade
Miranda w/ Twin Laser Turret, C3-PO and Conner Net

Notes: Lost N'dru due to poor flying. Flew Graz okay but was too bold with him and got him dead. It was up to the awesome no-name Y-wing pilots to win the day.

Round 2
Result - Win (100-25)

Name: Bobby

List

Poe w/ Push the Limit, BB-8 and Autothrusters
Wedge w/ Predator, R2-D2 and Integrated Astromech
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ R3-A2, BTL-A4 and Twin Laser Turret

Notes: Flew well but it turned into a straight joust and I came out ahead. Lost N'dru again to poor flying.

Round 3
Result - Loss (62-100)

Name: James
Player Note: He ended up placing 2nd at the event. 707 Squadron represent!

List

Miranda w/ C3-PO and Twin Laser Turret
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ R3-A2, BTL-A4 and Twin Laser Turret
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ Twin Laser Turret
Tala Squadron Pilot

Notes: Had to fly against another member of 707 Squadron. It was a complete slugfest. I made a couple mistakes, one of which was costly but overall it just came down to who could punch harder and he came out ahead. Great game. It was recorded by Trinity Squad Gaming and I will post the video once its up.

Round 4
Result - Win (100-50)
Name: Darryl

List

Poe w/ Veteran Instincts, R5-P9 and Autothrusters
Dutch w/ Twin Laser Turret and Targeting Astromech
Prototype Pilot w/ Chaardan Refit and Autothrusters
Prototype Pilot w/ Chaardan Refit

Notes: Another tough slugfest that almost went to time. Managed an early takedown of Dutch but had to slowly work Poe and the A-Wings down. Flew decently well. Even got to vaporize an A-Wing with N'dru but again he and Graz died after eating way more shots than he should have.

Round 5
Result - Loss (30-100)
Name: Jossle

List

Howlrunner w/ Crack Shot
x3 Black Squadron Pilot w/ Crack Shot
Darth Vader w/ Veteran Instincts, Advanced Targeting Computer, TIE-X1 and Engine Upgrade

Notes: We both flew well and it was a damned tough game. Critical move that cost me the game was the right one but it was stopped by about being a millimeter too close to Vader. That move not working was the loss of the game and kept me from 8th place. Brutal. Still great game and it felt really good to taste the top tables for the first time.

Final Thoughts: I think I underestimated the value of Graz in my Kihraxz article. The fact that he can semi-reliably bounce TLT shots really helped in my games and people had difficulty compensating for him. Consequently he took a lot of shots meant for my Y-Wings and that was very useful. N'dru however was very lackluster and was definitely the weak point of the list. I will not be running him again. Overall a great event and a good venue with the best players. Can't wait to see Drew win it again next year. ;)

Store Championship Report - Great Escape Games

Great Escape Games
Sacramento, CA
6-Feb-2016

Number of Players: 46 (Confirmed)
My placing at the event: 27th
Score: 13 MoV: 556 SoS: 85

My list:

Zeta Leader w/ Crackshot
Howlrunner w/ Crackshot
Mauler Mithel w/ Crackshot
Scourge w/ Crackshot
x2 Academy TIEs

100 pts

Note: I was the only pure TIE swarm at the event.

Round 1
Loss (31 - 100)

His list:

Rear Admiral Chirneau w/ Expert Handling, Papa Palpatine, Rebel Captive and Engine Upgrade
Vader w/ TIE/x1, Veteran Instincts, Advanced Targeting Computer, and Engine Upgrade

Notes: This guy ended up going to the top eight. I got the Decimator down to half  and beat up Vader but I couldn't seal the deal. He flew well and my Evade dice betrayed me.

Round 2
Modified Win (50 - 43)

Her List:

Omicron Pilot w/ Papa Palpatine
Wampa
Vader w/ TIE/x1, Veteran Instincts, Advanced Targeting Computer, and Engine Upgrade
Zeta Leader w/ Wired

Notes: This was a tough list. I liked seeing Wired on Zeta Leader. It was well flown and I barely scraped by with a modified win.

Round 3
Win (100 - 0)

His List

IG88-A w/ Crack Shot, Fire Control System, Heavy Laser Cannon, Glitterstim, IG-2000, and Autothrusters

IG88-B w/ Crack Shot, Fire Control System, Heavy Laser Cannon, Glitterstim, IG-2000, and Autothrusters

Notes: This was my only super stomping of the tournament. I had built the list to give the robots a hard time and when it came around it worked exactly the way it was supposed to and he rolled green dice like I did my first game. It was over in four rounds. Not much to say.

Round 4
Loss (0 - 100)

His List:

Han Solo w/ Veteran Instincts, C-3PO, Luke Skywalker, Millennium Falcon, and Engine Upgrade
Poe Dameron w/ Veteran Instincts, R2-D2, and Autothrusters

Notes: This was a long drawn out slog against my natural predator. He flew it well.

Round 5
Loss (35 - 100)

His List:

Soontir Fel w/ Royal Guard TIE, Push the Limit, Autothrusters, and Stealth Device
Omicron Pilot w/ Papa Palpatine
Vader w/ TIE/x1, Veteran Instincts, Advanced Targeting Computer, and Engine Upgrade

Notes: The best I flew all day. I got the shuttle down to one shield so I could have gotten 50 pts with a little bit more luck. Bad evade dice. Awesome flying. Good opponent. Pro tier experience.

Round 6
Win (100 - 18)

His List:

Ten Numb w/ Veteran Instincts, Fire Control System, and Mangler Cannon
Biggs
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ R3-A2 and Ion Cannon Turret
Bandit Squadron Pilot

Still on fire from my last game I used my TIEs and built and inescapable box that he could not fly through or around. Systematically blew him apart. Rolled average. Flew well. Booya.

Overall it was a decent event. Wish the store had provided some secondary support outside of the store kit. Seems a little thin in that regard considering the 15.00 entry cost and number of players. They also started rounds pretty much immediately after posting pairings but it seemed to work out actually so I didn't have a problem with it. But six rounds in a row with no break is brutal. A trial by fire. Special thanks to 707 Squadron.

Store Championship Report - Game Kastle Santa Clara

Tournament Report - UPDATED -

Game Kastle
Santa Clara CA
30-Jan-2016

Number of Players: 51 (Confirmed)
My placing at the event: 36th
Score: 2 2 0 10 389

Three notes before we get to it; as usual I missed taking a few pictures here and there. I only played four rounds of the event and I knew this going in as I had prior commitments and lastly I took the same list I took to Games of Berkeley to this event. I had a lot of fun and it was a taste of the endurance needed to play at a high level.

Round 1

Result: Loss (48 vs 100)

My first opponent was named Eli and he was flying almost a mirror of my list, No Comms Relay on Omega Leader and no VI on Vader but he had EU.

Deployment

Round 1 - no action.

Round 2 - My Vader Rng 3 rolls HHC doing 1 to his Vader. His Vader Rng 1 rolls C on Wampa doing no dmg. My Omega R2 rolls H to Vader doing 0 with Palp. His Omega R2 rolls HH on my Wampa doing 1. My Wampa palps for C for one hull on his Vader. His Wampa R3 at my shuttle doing 1 dmg. My shuttle is out of arc. His shuttle Rng 2 rolls HHC on my shuttle. My shuttle is down by 3 shields. 

Round 3 - his shuttle takes 1 from the rock. I land Vader on a rock doing 1 to me. Note: This is my biggest mistake in the game and it costs me the game most likely. His Vader R1 rolls HHC on my Wampa and I lose Wampa. My Omega R2 rolls HH at his Wampafor 0. His Omega R1 rolls HC on my Omega taking 1. His Wampa rolls C doing 1 to my Omega. My shuttle rolls HHC and he Palps and managed to take 0.

Round 4 - I don't take any rock dmg moving Vader. His Vader on my Vader. Rolls H R2 obstructed. He Palps and ATC to HHC I rolls and Palp to take 1 shield. His Omega H with same modifiers and I evade. His Wampa with another natural C. Vader takes 1 hit. My shuttle range 1 on his shuttle doesn't dmg.

My poor flying leaves me needing to eke out a few pts and survive. He is also starting a string of rolling three natural crits in a row with Wampa but I don't know that yet. 

Round 5 - My Vader misses his shuttle. His Vader R3 rolls H at my Omega doing 0. My Omega does 1 to his Vader. His Omega R2 on my Vader. He Palps to get CC. My Darth evades naturally. My shuttle Palps on his Vader to get CC. He flubs and has no Palp and he gets Direct Hit. His Vader is dead. I'm now ahead! It's unexpected and undeserved but still welcome. 

Round 6 - My Vader goes nuts and with Palp and ATC gets CCC on his shuttle which is now down to hull. While this feels good it was a serious pay mistake in regards to target priority and using Palp too early. His Omega R1 rolls H on my Omega. I can't modify and no Palp so my Omega is down to 1 Hull. His Wampa managed to take out my Vader. Ouch. Quickly my lead is crushed.

Round 7 - His Omega R1 rolls C at my Omega doing 0. His Omega R2 rolls CC at my Omega who rolls blanks so he's gone.

I give him full pts for his MOV and to give me an easy next round. I made 4 mistakes, two huge ones which easily cost me that game. Big learning. But still feeling good. 

---

Round 2

Result: Win (100 vs 15)

My second opponent was named Dan. His list is was 4 Black Sun Aces with Crack Shot and Inertial Dampners. I love playing Scum and playing against them!

Deployment

Round 1 - No action.

Round 2 - No action.

Round 3 - K44 TL my shuttle. Omega TL K44. Vader TL K40 and Evade. Vader on K40 HC with ATC. He evaded. Omega rolls H on K44 doing 1 shield. K44 atk Shuttle R3 with TL 1 H and I evade. K0 R3 obs on Onega for HHC. I palp and evade token and he crack shots to do 1 to Omega. K40 R2 on Vader Rolls HH and he evades. K39 on Vader R3 rolls HH and I burn evade token and he crack shots to do 2 to Vader. Wampa rolls H on K44 R3 no hits. Shuttle R3 on K44 HHC. He takes 2 dmg and 1 Crit. Console Fire.

Round 4 - K44 K40 and K0 TL shuttle. Omega R2 K39 rolls H he evades. K0 R2 on shuttle gets HHH and I evade so he does 2. K40 at shuttle R3 gets HHH and I evade 1 so he does 2. K44 R2 on shuttle. HHC thanks to all the TL. Gets hit and Weapons Failure. R39 R3 on shuttle gets C and I evade.  Wampa R1 at K39 whiffs so I palp a Crit for a dmg card. Shuttle R2 at K44 rolls H which is dodged.

I remembered his console fire Crit which he now rolled. It killed K44. So we retracted one hit and one Crit on the shuttle.

Round 5 - K0 k turns through a rock and takes one dmg. Vader TL K40. Vader at K40 R3 obs HC. And he evades. Omega Palps a HHC on K39 and he evades down to 1 shield of dmg. K0 whiffs R1 shuttle. K40 R1 shuttle and whiffs again. WTF! Wampa R2 on K39 and he evades. Shuttle HHHC at R1 into K39 and blows him up.

Round 6 - K40 and K0 TL shuttle.Vader on K40 R1 and with palp and ATC get HHCC and get major explosion and Dirext hit. Boom! Omega R1 into K0 and gets 2 hits. No evades. K0 on the shuttle R2 HHC and get 1 evade. 1 hit and a Damaged Engine Crit. Shuttle is so bad it don't care! Wampa R3 at K0, 1 evade 1 hit.

Round 7 - I predict his inertial Dampeners almost perfectly. I use Wampa for insurance and Vader R1 seals the deal. 

---

Round 3

Result: Win (100 vs 59)

Chris game 3 he is running Poe with VI, AT, R2-D2. Stresshog, TLT Y wing, and a Bandit Z-95.

Round 1 - No action.

Round 2 - No action.

Round 3 - Vader on Poe R3 obs HHC and only gets 1 evade. 2 dmg shields down. Poe R1 Wampa HHC and I roll 1 evade and take 1 dmg and Direct Hit! On man. Wampa down! Two TLT shots at Vader from Y0 and with Palp no dmg on Vader.

Round 4 - Stresshog rocks for no dmg. Omega TL Poe. Vader R1 Poe and with Palp and ATC I get HCCC. Poe is vaporized. Omega C on Y0 for 1 shield. Stresshog R2 on Vader rolling no dmg but 1 stress then TLT and I lose a shield. Z95 does R1 1 to Vader. Shields down. Y0 TLT Vader and 1 dmg goes through. Shuttle HH on the Z-95 and both go through.

Round 5 - Omega on Y0 R1 does HC and it goes through. Y0 TLTd Vader down. All the blanks! Stresshog TLT into Omega for no dmg. Z95 R1 Shuttle rolls H and I palp an evade. Shuttle R3 at Y0 1 C and gets Thrust Control Fire.

Round 6 - Omega into Y0 R1 HHC with Palp and get 2 through with 1 hit and a Damaged Sensor Array. Shuttle R2 on Stresshog and get HC taking 2 shields off.

Round 7 - Omega R1 into Y0 rolling HHH killing Y0. Stresshog R2 obs fires primary rolling HH which I evade and take a stress. Then TLT stresses and does no dmg with Palp and Evade Token. Shuttle R3 at Stresshog getting HC and he evades 1. Shields down on Stresshog.

Round 8 - Y0 at Omega R1 Primary rolls H no dmg. Z at Omega R3 rolls C  and no dmg. Shuttle R3 at Stresshog Palps for HC and gets a hit an a Direct hit!

Round 9 - Only shot is R1 shuttle against the Z. With TL and Palp got HHHC and wiped the Z out.

Round 10 - Stresshog fires into Lambda R1 HH and 1 hull. Down to 4. Shuttle uses TL and Palp for HHCC and the hog is dead.

---

Round 4

Result: Loss (15 vs 100)

This was my toughest round my far and this person went to take second at the event. His name was David and he was running; Vader w/ Crack Shot, ATC, Title. Zeta Leader w/ Crack Shot. Howlrunner w/ Crack Shot. BSP w/ Crackshot. Wampa

Round 1 - No action.

Round 2 - My Vader at BSP R2 and had to burn TL to get HH and 1 got through. His Vader R2 at Omega and he HHC with ATC and I burn evade and he Crack shots to get te shield off. Omega at BSP and I palp for HCC and one Crit goes through Dorect Hit killing BSP. Zeta at Omega 1 using Zeta and his ability and Howl is HHHH. I managed to evade but he crack shots and takes him out. Wampa R1 whiffs His Vader. His Wampa R3 Vader HH with Howl and I still take 1. Those blanks!

Round 3 - Vader R1 into Howl HCC with Palp another Direct Hit! His Vader gets HCC. Doing 3 shields. Howlrunner R2 into Shuttle HC down to hull on Shuttle. Zeta into Shuttle CC Direct Hit and Console Fore! Ow. Wampa R1 into shuttle and gets 3 hits. Shuttle goes down.

Round 4 - Vader into Howl R2 H evades by Howl. My Wampa R1 into Zeta and whiffs. His Wampa into mine rolls a natural Crit and does 1 to my Wampa.

Round 5 - His Vader R2 obs at my Wampa. Rolls C which is evaded. Zeta whiffs R2 on Wampa. My Wampa does HH and gets a shield off his Vader. His Wampa rolls natural Crit at R1 and does 1 to my Wampa.

Round 6 - Zeta on Wampa for HHHH which wipes out Wampa. His Wampa rolls HC at R2 on Vader doing 1 through shields.

Round 7 - My Vader R1 HC on Zeta which is evades. His Vader R2 obs on my Vader CCC which I evade. Howl R1 on my Vader HH which does 2 after crack shot. Vader down to 1 Zeta wraps it up at R1 HHCC. 

---

Overall a great event and an excellent opportunity for learning. I wish I could have stayed longer and gone to all the rounds. I will be going to the Sacramento event this upcoming Saturday and I have no idea what I'm going to take. I will be experimenting with a couple lists tonight but I don't expect much from them. 

Tournament Report

Games of Berkeley
Berkeley CA
23-Jan-2016

Number of Players: 10

I return triumphant. I have just won my first official X-Wing event. I remembered to take some pictures and battle summaries this time. But first how I'll share how it began...

It started in a dream. I was brought before a dark imposing throne where a wretched evil creature sat. I knew the creature. It was Emperor Palpatine. He looked me over.

"You play Scum. *evil cackle* Weak and sad. You have no place among the Sith!"

"Hey you geriatric prick! I've gotten some wins..." I replied defensively.

"Ohhhh my apologies. Was it Bro-Bots are TLT Thug spam?" His eyes twinkled with amusement.

"Neither." Mumbling now. "Some different builds..." I trailed off weakly.

The creature on the throne cackled with laughter. "I'm sure they were quite... competitive."

I looked down. The creature knew. I couldn't lie to it. Its power was undeniable.

It said in a booming voice "Take my apprentice and myself into the field of battle. You will taste real power and become one with the dark side!"

"No! I'm committed. I'm working on a Kavil list! I, uh... " I stammered unsure of where to go.

"I'm sure you are." it cooed "If you want to lose all season I'm sure they will interview you at Worlds. What was it like taking the weirdest list in the tournament? You did so well not to place last." It laughed again.

I dropped to my knees "I must... fly... casual." My hands hit the floor "cannot give in... to... evil...."

Palpatine laughed for an eternity. Finally it rose and looked at me directly.

"I see potential in you. But you must go to the dark side. You must take Darth Vader and myself and two other very strong Imperial pilots. You must practice. With those things the dark side will give you victory. A shiny medal. A river of plastic extra munitions tokens. Endless alternative art Gunner cards!" It roared triumphant.

Weakly from the floor I raised an arm

"Okay Palpatine. I give in. I will do these things. I must taste victory."

It smiled, eyes obscured by its cloak. "Good. Gooooood." It began to laugh again and I slipped into unconsciousness.

That is exactly how it happened.

My list

100 pts representing my take on the now quite well known "Palpmobile" list. 

Note: I did not manage to remember to take pictures after every single round, I only started with picture once the action was heating up and pictures were usually taken after the round was done. 

Round 1

Result: Win (69 vs 40)

My opponents name was named Greg. His list was: 

Captain Yorr w/ Emperor Palpatine

Darth Vader w/ Veteran Instincts, Title, Advanced Targeting Computer and Engine Upgrade

Omega Leader w/ Comms Relay, Stealth Device and Juke

Nearly a mirror match and my hardest game of the tournament. Round 3 saw Yorr with 2 crits sitting at only 3 hull remaining. I was completely untouched at that point and feeling saucy. 

Round 4 I managed to take Yorr out. A victory! Now only I would use the dark side... But he was far from out. My Omega Leader was down to 2 hull. But so was his

Round 5 had me make a bad move with my Omega Leader and I lost him. I also did no damage that round. 

Round 6 I managed to tap into the dark side and avoid any damage on Vader while Wampa did 2 hits on his Vader, 1 of them critical. A direct hit! Woo!

Round 7 had his Vader be extra slippery and he went and stayed out of arc keeping himself alive with 1 hull remaining. No damage this round. 

Round 8 had Vader continuing to slip away. My Omicron Pilot got mad and took out his Omega Leader. The game ended and Vader had slipped through my fingers... 

Round 2

Result: Win (100 vs 14)

My opponents name was named Chase. He was the awesome TO of the tournament. His list was: 

Boba Fett w/ Veteran Instincts, Tactician, Glitterstim, Seismic Charges and Engine Upgrade

Moralo Eval w/ Bossk, Gunner, Tactician and Heavy Laser Cannon

It was so good to play against Scum. Big ships as well! Loved seeing it on the table. I'd also like to mention that the mine was used and it did score a point of damage on Omega Leader and Vader. Sadly it also got Moralo. Boba don't have no friends! 

The pain started early on Round 2 with me putting a few points of damage on Boba and in return he got 1 on Wampa from Moralo and Wampa returned the favor putting a point on Moralo.

 Round 3 continued the damage trading. Moralo did a point on Vader. Boba did 2 to the Omicron. Vader retaliated with 1 point back on Moralo. 

Round 4 saw Wampa being hit for another point. 1 hull remaining. So he knocked another shield off Moralo. Boba gottagged hard and lost the rest of his shields. 

Round 5 saw the death of Wampa. 1 hit on Omega Leader from Moralo. 1 hit and 1 crit to Moralo from Vader. Also 1 hit and 1 crit on Boba. Both his big ships were dripping with damage and I was now safe from his arcs. 

Round 6 sealed the deal as Boba was taken out with a double Direct Hit! You could just imagine him punching the hyperspace button to get out of there so he could fight again another day. No damage in reply this round. 

Round 7 finished it up with Vader rolling 4 dice at range 1 into Moralo and scoring 2 hit and 2 crits. It was all over.

Round 3

Result: Win (100 vs 26)

My final opponents name was named Jon. His list was: 

Whisper w/ Veteran Instincts, Agent Kallus, Fire Control System and Advanced Cloaking Device

Soontir Fel w/ Royal Guard TIE, Push the Limit, Targeting Computer and Autothrusters

Omega Leader w/ Veteran Instincts and Comm Relay

He and I bantered a bit and it was a tremendously fun game. 

First blood went to me in Round 3 (after much positioning) with Darth doing a point to his Omega Leader. Wampa scored a point on Soontir. His Whisper and Omega both hit my Omega Leader for 1 each. So close to dead...

Round 4 saw Soontir blowing up Omega Leader with 3 crits on his end and all blanks on mine! Ahhhhh! Wampa got mad and did another point to Soontir. My shuttle got mad and blew up his Omega leader in reply. Woo! Whisper decided to take up real estate sales and landed gently on a nearby asteroid. No damage though. 

Round 5 Whisper decides the market isn't doing so hot in rock sales and she fly away. Unfortunately a pebble hit her windshield and she takes a damage. Vader, pissed at seeing Omega Leader, ruined Soontir and blows him to pieces. No return damage. 

Round 6 was all positioning. Shuttle hits a rock and doesn't get damaged. No damage this round. 

Round 7 sealed the deal with Vader once again blowing Whisper apart. 

I won the whole event which represents my first official X-Wing tournament win. Which is awesome. Its a shame it wasn't with Scum but someday. In the meantime though I know who I really owe my victory to...

Tournament Report

Randy's House of Games
Sacramento CA
17-Jan-2016

This was an event I attended with another local player to a location neither one of us had ever been to. Our understanding was that it was going to be mostly newer players and so both of us resolved to take something other than our usual tournament style lists in order to have a slower pace of game and go a little easier on the newer folks as it were. On arrival it was about 70% new player and the rest had some or extensive experience. My travelling companion decided to play his regular tournament list consisting of Miranda, a TLT Y-Wing, a Stresshog, and a Z-95. He is practicing quite a bit with this build in order to prep for the more challenging store tournaments. I, on the other hand, rather than take Bro-bots decided to play something a bit more fun which was.

Latts Razzi w/ Weapons Engineer, K4 Security Droid and Tactical Jammer
x2 Syndicate Thugs w/ Twin Laser Turret
Binayre Pirate

This list is 100 pts as a bid isn't needed for it. You use the YV-666 in a support roll passing out target locks which get used to make sure your TLTs do what they need to do. It's slow but consistent damage and overall is a pretty tanky list. The downside is it can be difficult to insure damage output from Latts and to get use of the Jammer you have to fly in a somewhat awkward formation. But it did see uses, especially in the last two games.

Round 1

x3 Trandoshan Slavers w/ Feedback Array and Tactician

Result: Loss (50 vs 60)

Not only was the list completely out of left field from what I was used to but there were 2 people (out of 18) at the event running it. So crazy! I also flew against the better of the two pilots (based on standings at the end of Round 3) as he knew precisely how to keep them able to cover each other and mostly managed to keep at least 2 able to fire at all times. I managed to burn down one and do significant damage to the other but I didn't have what it took to come out ahead. Good pilot who made very few mistakes with a very strange list. Was happy to see him at the top tables towards the end of the event.

Round 2

x4 TIE/fo (Omega Ace, Epsilon Leader, x2 Omega Squadron Pilot with lots of upgrades)

Result: Win (100 vs 20)

Here was one of the aforementioned new players who seemed to already have had a hard game previous and wasn't at his best from a flying perspective. It was a short game with him taking 6 HP off of Latts and a couple HP scattered elsewhere. He admitted to me after the game that he usually flew something else and that this list was a last minute change of mind before his first tournament (tournament jitters!) and I let him know that I completely sympathized. I have done that to myself a few times and it has NEVER worked out for me either. We talked lists for a while and I wished him luck.

Round 3

Miranda Doni w/ Twin Laser Turret and C-3PO
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ BTL-A4 Title, R3-A2 and Twin Laser Turret
Gold Squadron Pilot w/ Twin Laser Turret
Bandit Squadron Pilot

Result: Loss (12 vs 100)

Of course I got paired up with the person I came with. We had done this exact match up before and at least I didn't repeat my same mistakes this time around. But the outcome was known before the models were put into deployment zones. He had an amazing turn dishing out 8 to Latts in a single round. So you know what kind of game this was. I got Miranda down to half, the shields off the Y-Wings and I did manage to exact revenge on the Bandit Squadron Pilot who thinks he is Poe Dameron and rolls nothing but crits like its his job by shooting him to one HP and watching him blow himself up on rock. With a crit. Justice is served. :)

Cool Stuff I Saw: I saw some nicely painted models on a few tables which was always welcome. I also saw a Scum list trying to make Talonbane and a Black Sun Ace with Bodyguard work which is not something I ever thought of. So props to him. Might have worked better with Graz the Hunter...

Conclusion: This was a fun event and it was cool to see a different local meta and meet some great new X-Wing players. Thanks to the people running the event and to the venue for hosting it.

Okay I can't let it go. Here is a list that doesn't work and is a terrible idea. Never run it and please forgive me for making it but my brain wouldn't let me rest until I did.

Graz the Hunter w/ Stealth Device
Black Sun Ace w/ Bodyguard
Syndicate Thug with Twin Laser Turret and Unhinged Astromech
Spice Runner with Twin Laser Turret

Okay I'm done now. Just a note; until the new ships are released for Scum I will be playing Imperials as I cannot afford the handicap against the cutthroats I'm expecting to engage in combat with.

M3-A Interceptor Review

This is part one of a series where I'm going to break down all the available options for Scum and give my thoughts on them. I'm going to begin with the M3-A "Scyk" Interceptor.

M3-A Interceptor Pilots

Cartel Spacer [14]
Tansarii Point Veteran [17]
Laetin A'shera [18]
Serissu [20]



As you can see that despite sharing a name and an action bar with other interceptors it does not get the same dial. It is missing the 3-turns, the distinctive 5 straight and has half the green as compared to the other interceptor dials. It does get 1 banks but that is no trade for the manuevers it loses. I think that its safe to say that it may not be ideal in this role.

But I tend to think of it as more of a psuedo TIE fighter myself and when you compare the dials you can start to see what I mean.



While still missing the 3 turns and the straight 5 its core is nearly identical even maintaining the same green maneuvers. Also I feel that the 5 K-turn is very welcome on a jouster including this one so I see that as a plus over the TIE dial. The TIE/Scyk comparison is where the points start to make sense. If you take a basic Academy TIE and compare it to the Cartel Spacer its cost matches up. If you call the dial a wash the Cartel Spacer gets: +1 Pilot Skill, Target Lock, and exchanges a Hull for a Shield. To me that is worth the 2 points. Its not the height of efficiency that an Academy TIE is but its not over costed in my opinion.

I don't feel the same way about the Tansarii Point Veteran as I do about the Cartel Spacer. 3 points buys you +3 Pilot Skill and an Elite Pilot Talent. To me that isn't great value especially if you consider that a Black Squadron Pilot gets +2 Pilot Skill and an Elite Pilot Talent for 14 points and I would much rather have that then be forced to pay a 1 point premium for extra pilot skill I don't really need or want. I consider this ship to be 1 point over costed.

Laetin A'shera is interesting. Pilot skill 6 is a weird place for any pilot to be. Lofty above the rabble (but 5 would be as well) but below most of the aces which start to come around at Pilot Skill 7. But for only 1 point over the Tansarii Point Veteran combined with her pilot ability I consider it fair. Her pilot ability is just okay because it really requires investing in a Stealth Device which makes her 21 points which is just too much for a defensive 2 attack die ship. Also she lacks an Elite Pilot Talent which is just too much to overcome. She desperately wants Lone Wolf or Juke and she can never have it. Without more survivability she should never be taken.

Serissu is Pilot Skill 8 and has one of the few squad buffs available for Scum. I have heard him called the anti-Howlrunner and it sort of rings true. Especially consider that both are unaffected by their own pilot abilities. Except defense dice are less powerful than attack dice. So he is a downgrade especially if you consider that Howlrunner comes in at 18 pts. He costs 2 more and has nothing to show for it except Target Lock. So as far as I'm concerned he is over costed by 2 pts. That doesn't make him a non-starter but considering that he operating outside the usual style of Scum I have yet to find a way to make him fit.

So we have one potentially viable option; the Cartel Spacer. Theoretically it could be used as a low cost heavy weapon (Heavy "Scyk" Title + Flechette Cannon) which would bring its points cost to 17. Seems high to me for a control oriented psuedo TIE fighter that then can't really be used as a blocker. For 14 pts you can get the base model and try to use it as a blocker. However it is actually hurt by its Pilot Skill of 2 in that case and compared to the bargain which is the Z-95 it doesn't seem to have role there either. Which leaves the M3-A without a home in most lists.

Lastly the Title card and lack of an illicit slot is a source of much contention. While theoretically good as it adds a choice of missile, torpedo, or cannon the only real option in the current meta is the cannon. As the Title is +2 points and the cheapest cannon is +2 points it simply costs too much to be effective in its role. In the future with the release of the Tractor Beam or Guidance Chips this could change. I haven't figured out why it didn't come with an illicit slot as it would make sense both thematically and in the game itself.

The breakdown is; the M3-A dial prevents it from competing against other interceptors because of its dial. It may be a cost effective swarm option though the Z-95 also being available makes it a much less viable choice. It is hurt by its title which costs points and its lack of an illicit slot. I've seen fixes proposed online and my favorite one's involve either a new title or a modification which opens up new slots. I hope that they release some new content for this ship in the future as I look forward to having it as an option in my lists.

Future Speak: I am adding this section because the Tractor Beam was recently spoiled and I've seen some discussion about using the M3-A as a low cost control piece. I don't believe that the new Tractor Beam makes any of the M3-A pilots viable but there might be something there and I'm reluctant to entirely dismiss it outright. I feel that there needs to be a lot of play testing and experimentation on all fronts and I feel safe saying that the Tractor Beam will change X-Wing forever. Moving on...

Help Me Obi-Wan!

I've been asked by a commenter here at Rolling Blanks to provide some assistance with Kath. As they didn't specify the Imperial or Scum versions I will do both:

Imperial Kath

Kath with Calculation, Mangler Cannon, Tactician and Engine Upgrade (48)

This build insure's that she is doing what she does best which is hand out stress as much as possible. Calculation opens the possibility of adding more stress from the rear arc and I feel that as long as you can stay in Range 2 you should be reliably passing two stress per attack to your targets. Fun! Note that this build leaves you enough points for a mini swarm to accompany her.

Scum Kath

Kath with Daredevil, Gunner and Engine Upgrade (50)

This build is all about mobility. You want as many opportunities to keep that rear arc on your enemies and Boost or having the opportunity to do a 1 turn as an action does just that. Gunner helps insure that all those dice do something. You could also add Glitterstim or Hot Shot Blaster you had the points and were so inclined.

That's all for now. See us next time as we pick apart the Kihraxz Fighter!

A Return from the Dead

Over half a year has passed and I've decided to resurrect my blog and bring it new life and direction. I am slightly better at the game now and feel like I have a better idea of why something works and why it doesn't. Rather then content that isn't very useful like before the blog will now focus on three things;

1) My thoughts and learning on the Scum faction of the X-Wing miniatures game by Fantasy Flight Games. I feel like the Rebel and Imperial factions get plenty of discussion but the same is not true about the Scum faction and as they are my main force I wish to rectify that a bit.

2) My progress in the game of upgrading from complete scrub to scruffy nerf herder.

3) My repaints of the models.

I think with that focus in mind I can add some value to the community. This will not update on a regular basis as the releases and meta shifts are slower that week to week but I will certainly not let it lapse the way I did again. I feel like I have learned a lot and I really want to bring that knowledge to the forefront.

Currently the Scum faction's top table meta sits somewhere like:

Bro-Bots.
x2 IG-88 w/ Heavy Laser Cannon, Autothrusters, Title Card, and other stuff
(3rd place finish at Worlds 2015)

Twin Laser Thugs (if that's not an original name, let me know)
x4 Syndicate Thugs w/ Twin Laser Turret and Unhinged Astromech
(7th place finish at Worlds 2015)

You don't see a different Scum list until 21'st place and it's a variant of Twin Laser Thugs replacing the Unhinged with R4 Agromechs (for a more defensive build) and dropping a Thug for a Cartel Marauder with Feedback Array. Which is an interesting choice and probably says more about the person's local meta than anything else. It would be a place my brain would go if I were dealing with a lot of high pilot skill arc-dodgers like Whisper.

I bring this up because I want to show the stagnation in list design for Scum. Which as near as I can tell has a couple causes; firstly we are the newest faction with the least number of pilots of and ships to choose from. FFG is doing the best they can at catch up by dropping two Scum releases at a time instead of just one which is really appreciated. The second reason is because Scum isn't Rebel or Imperials and thusly is less popular and harder to pin down quickly. Allow me to explain that last part.

What I mean by hard to pin down is that is Rebels have a theme which currently is regeneration. They have many options and builds which allow them to return back to fighting condition (or never leave it) and that gives them a theme to build off of. Imperial's have ace pilots. They have more aces than anyone else to pick from and with those come some AoE buff abilities like Howlrunner and Jonus. Scum isn't either of those things and trying to play them or build them like that isn't going to be fruitful.

So what is Scum then? They are a toolbox of stuff to pick from. They require that you pick and pull each piece as needed with the understanding that it must stand alone and succeed in its individual role. A list, in my opinion, should try to have ways to deal with all of the following:

1) Arc dodgers like Soontir Fel and Whisper
2) Poe Dameron/Stressbot
3) Swarms
4) Fat Han/Fat Dash/Chiraneau and friend

In Rebel and Imperial lists you have some clear options. Like playing a counter list (swarm counters stressbot, etc) or playing one of the main archetypes well. Obviously Scum doesn't have this option, but it isn't without tools to work with.

Arc dodgers - In a real sense we only have three tools which are reliable against these threats which are defined by their high agility, high pilot skill, and ability to stay out of arc. The tools available to us are:

A high PS pilot in a decent ship (honestly only Talonbane or Xizor)
Mux
Autoblaster
Feedback Array

Arc Dodgers: The goal is shoot first before they can. Talonbane can with VI. Xizor can with VI and a point bid. You need to build your entire list around them but both can seal the deal. Mux is much harder to use but is multi-purpose and a distinct threat. The ability to turn someone you don't like into Pilot Skill 0 is very powerful. Unfortunately he is in a HWK-290. Autoblaster is okay, if you can make a Y-Wing or a HWK-290 chassis work for you. I've had only mixed success in my own games. Feedback Array is another weird one. If you can get any part of your ship in range 1 and don't mind the downside, a guaranteed point of damage might be just what you need.

Stressbot: Swarms are the direct counter to this. But if you can't or won't run a swarm than I would strongly recommend you build lists of 4 or more ships and don't put all your eggs in one basket (like a Bossk) so that you are easily shut down. The nice thing about Talonbane is that his ability is still relevant even if he is stressed. Though his maneuvering goes right out the window.  Xizor's ability works too but he needs his action(s) in order to get the most out of the Starviper, arguably Scum's only arc dodger, and losing it makes him pretty tough to use. Guri could overcome it a bit better but as she is only Pilot Skill 5, she should not be having lists build around her.

Swarms: Consistent damage. Things like Twin Laser Turret come in handy here. Also having a blocker can help break up formations. These are tough matchups for any build and is still the efficiency standard in which many lists are judged and tested against. A swarm list placed 13th at Worlds 2015 so it's still a thing.

Fat-Whoever: A control element is often the easiest way to bring down a big ship. Stress or ions. We don't have much in the way of either but we are not devoid of options. Usually a tough match up for me as we don't have explicit shutdown tech.

So an example variant of a list I've been playing a lot of:

Talonbane Cobra w/ Veteran Instincts, Glitterstim and Engine Upgrade (35)
Torkhil Mux w/ Ion Cannon Turret, Intelligence Agent and Moldy Crow (28)
Syndicate Thug w/ Twin Laser Turret and Unhinged Astromech (25)
Binayre Pirate (12)

100 pts

My reasoning behind the list is as follows:

Talonbane plays an important role in both being an efficient jouster as well as being able to shut down threats like Fel, Whisper, Vader, or Poe. He shoots before all of them and can have an explosive Range 1 burst turn with Glitterstim backing him up. But he is still a jouster and so its important to remember that his movement is predictable and he is not as robust as even a T-65 X-wing in either dial or stat line though his pilot ability does go a long way in making him worth taking.

Mux is a threat to whatever single threat you want to manage. This is a very control oriented build that wants to stay in range 2 as much as possible. It can drop an change an enemy pilot of Pilot Skill 0, look at a dial, and potentially drop an ion token down on something every turn it can stay at range. The downside is that Mux has a giant taget painted on his ship which is a HWK-290 with all the downsides associated with that chassis. He needs protection and other threats to draw attention away from him.

The Syndicate Thug with Twin Laser Turret and Unhinged Astromech is a staple in Scum lists. 25 pts gets you a reliable 2 damage per turn output on a tough to kill chassis as long as you stay out on the fringes of the battle. A Y-Wing might be tough but it can be burned down by anyone dedicated enough to put a decent ship on that duty for a turn or two.

Binayre Pirate is a blocker pure and simple and is another ship at 12 points. I feel a list should try to have at least four ships and while it is not a superstar it is an average star which is often ignored by my opponent allowing it to do its job of being a pest.

As I said before it is a mixed bag of different ships all of which require practice and expertise. But it also demands the same from people you play. I feel it is crucial to practice as much as possible just to make sure you have a complete understanding of all the moving pieces.

I will close by saying it feels good to be back and I hope I can provide some insight into Scum and help in some way to make them both more competitive as choice and more popular as well. Have fun and fly casual.