Star Wars Academy, Round 1

The date of our first X-Wing Miniatures tournament approaches (it'll take place in Tabletop Kingdom in The Hague on 17th May) so we decided to start testing some flight lists and also train our flight skills... This is the report of our first training session.

And I also got to show off my new GF9 mat... Such a beauty! And great background for the pictures, as you'll see.

The Lists

Beni played the Vader Fist:
Darth Vader with Squad Leader and Stealth Device (34)
Howlrunner with Elusiveness and Stealth Device (23)
Mauler Mithel with Expert Handling and Stealth Device (22)
Night Beast with Stealth Device (18)
Total: 97

JL played the Throwing Daggers:
Dagger Squadron B-Wing with Fire Control System and Heavy Laser Cannon x3 (33x3)
Total: 99


First Battle

The game started with the positioning of the asteroids. I had a bit of an advantage here as I had already played two tournament rounds some weeks ago and had a good idea of what I wanted to create... I wanted to leave one of my corners free of asteroids so that I would be able to take advantage of my Heavy Laser Cannons at range 3 and force the TIEs to approach me straight on without any flanking maneuvers... I placed my three asteroids in the corners of the mat on Beni's side of the board and on his center line... He placed them blocking my left side.

The battle started with both squadrons setting up in opposite corners. I chose my right side as it was free of asteroids. We both tried to keep close formation.

Three B-Wings with Heavy Laser Cannons are scary!

My flying tactic was simple: keep formation as long as possible and try to get all B-Wings to shoot at range 3 during their first approach... Attacking 3 times with 4 dice each can be very destructive.

All TIEs had better pilot skill than my B-Wings and I feared their maneuverability would be a big problem for my slower B-Wings.

Flying in close formation is usually a good idea, though I think I would have used Night Beast or Mauler Mithel to try and flank my B-Wings to make it more difficult for me to focus fire.

The formations approach each other... The setup of the asteroids made it more difficult for Beni to flank my B-Wing squadron.

The B-Wings are great for maneuvering and trying to get the first shot at range 3. As I had to move first I was pretty sure I would not be able to start with a Target Lock and used the Focus action as much as I could. I decided that I would use Barrel Roll if I though that would help me maintain a good distance in the first attack.

Beni's TIEs are hindered by the asteroids... I still think he could have tried to flank with one of the TIEs and make my life a bit more difficult

In the first approach I used the barrel roll action to maintain a good distance from the TIEs and it worked out relatively well

Once the B-Wings are in formation, a good opening fire maneuver is to barrel roll sideways and to the back with the front B-Wing(s) while the one(s) in the back move forward and Focus.

Mauler Mithel got very close to range 1, but Howlrunner crushed against Night Beast... This probably decided this game, as Beni was only able to reroll one of Night Beast's attack dice

The initial engagement was at range 3 (well, Mauler was at range 2) and this was very advantageous for my B-Wings... Still, I only managed to hit Vader (who lost his shields and took 1 damage).

After the initial salvo, the battle goes into dogfight mode

In the ensuing dogfight I got the upper hand. I positioned my B-Wings to prevent any easy K-turn from Beni's TIEs and he ended up with several stressed TIEs going in the wrong direction... Keeping a close eye on the possible maneuvers of the enemy's ships is very important during the dogfight; here again I think I had the slight advantage of having played a couple tournament rounds (in which I was constantly outmaneuvered and learned a lot).

I don't have any more pictures of this first battle (I got too excited and focused in the game)... Neither of us focused fire enough and it was a very close affair, though at the end I won after destroying a couple of the TIEs.

Some ideas after this first battle:

• having ships with the same pilot skill is very helpful, because you can always choose who to move first.
• it's very important to remember who is moving first, so that you know they can block your movement or not and plan accordingly.
• focus fire, focus fire, focus fire... None of us did this in the first game and it hurt both of us.
• asteroid placement is very important and you should adapt it to your army list.

Second Battle

Beni placed the asteroids in the second battle a bit better, though I think he still missed the point that he had better maneuverability and did not place any asteroids in the center of the board... I think this is a must if you are fighting against someone with Heavy Laser Cannons, so that you'll have more opportunities of obstructing the shot.

Beni tries to get this time closer to the asteroids to have the battle there... I think he still did not manage to outflank me

At one point in the game, it seemed I would be able to flank him instead!

This is a good picture, because it shows that not having any asteroid in the center of the mat was an advantage for my longer range weapons

Beni managed to maneuver very well and even did a small flanking attempt...

Nevertheless he did not follow the flanking attempt. Here you see Mauler slightly to the right of my B-Wings, but instead of trying to flank them, Beni decided to get him closer to Howlrunner for a reroll... Maybe worth it, though I'd prefer to flank the B-Wings; once you get with Mauler behind a B-Wing, it's a matter of time for him to finish them off with his better maneuverability

This time I focused fire my attacks on Howlrunner (being able to reroll attack dice is too dangerous) and was able to destroy him with two Heavy Laser Canon attacks.

 Another decisive moment was the crush of Night Beast and Howlrunner by just a couple millimeters (probably due to the fact that Beni nudged Night Beast the wrong way while placing him)... As a result, Vader also crushed into Howlrunner. Not only did they lose their actions, but they also started the first exchange of fire at a longer distance... This was a decisive moment in the battle.

Howlrunner is toasted!

This time we both maneuvered very well during the dogfight. I focused my fire on Mauler Mithel as the next most dangerous TIE. Beni focused his fire on one of my B-Wings

Here we see Mauler surrounded by B-Wings and being finished off by them... Darth Vader would score some points for his team in the following round (you see him here raining fire just behind a B-Wing)

So, this was another victory for the B-Wings and I think we both played this second game better.


Conclusions

Out of our two games I get the following ideas:

• If you are more maneuverable than the other team, I think you'll be interested in placing asteroids in the middle of the terrain.
• If you are more maneuverable it may be worthwhile to attempt some flanking maneuvers.
• I found the Heavy Laser Cannons very satisfactory... They are a very scary weapon, because a good roll can easily mean the death of a TIE with just one lucky shot (happened twice during our games). I will try other concepts, but this list was fun and powerful to play.
• As for Beni's list, I suggested him to remove the Stealth Device from Night Beast and give Vader some missiles. This has two benefits: firstly, the list would have a bit more punch; secondly, it will make the decision on who to focus fire upon much more difficult for the opponent.
• I love my new mat! The pictures are very beautiful!

The Empire Strikes Back, Mission 2 of the Pirates' Run Campaign

You can find the whole campaign here: Pirates' Run Campaign
And the PDF for the first scenario is here: The Empire Strikes Back

The Story so far

The transponders in the loot captured by the pirates have been followed by the Imperial Nebulon B Escort Frigate Triumphant to the Sarka System, an Outer Rim system near the Perlemian Trade Route, and not too far away from the Wheel.

Imperial intelligence has informed that the hyperspace line accessing the system is monitored by two sensor outposts, each protected with a minefield. If the Imperials are to destroy the Pirate threat, they will have to destroy the Satellites before they can warn the pirates of their presence. Interceptor squadrons Ebon and Iota are dispatched as soon as the fleet emerges from hyperspace, and rush towards the Satellites...

As Ebon squadron approaches its target, they detect an HWK-290 docked to the satellite... a secondary target is added to the mission!

Battle Report

Planning the Ships' list
This scenario was my attempt to recreate the feelings I had while playing an scenario in the computer game X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter, in which you get an assignment as an Imperial pilot to fly through a minefield using an Interceptor... The feeling of constant vulnerability as you flew without shields through the minefield was coupled with the awesome maneuverability and firepower of the Interceptor to create a memorable gaming experience.

As the Pirate I did not have much to consider, as I only had a HWK-290 to build, though there were still two open options: creating a ship to flee or to help defend the satellite. I decided to go the second way.

JL's list, Pirates: (Rebel Operative HWK-290 with 10 upgrade points)

HWK-290, Rebel Operative with Ion Cannon Turret, Intelligence Agent and Engine Upgrade (26)

Beni decided to try Lieutenant Lorrir with his added maneuverability and two Saber Squadron pilots.

Beni's list, Bounty Hunters (65 points for 3 Interceptors, one of them named)
1. Lieutenant Lorrir (23)
2. Saber Squadron Pilot x2 (21x2)

Considering the mission, I would personally have exchanged the Saber pilots for Avenger or even Alpha pilots, to save some points to upgrade Lorrir's Interceptor, because the main enemy here were the mines.

Setup
Covering all the approaching lanes with just 6 mines seemed impossible and at this point I thought there were not enough mines in the mission but decided to give it a try. It would turn out later that the mines could maneuver enough to pose a significant threat. The Interceptors started in the side of the mat with the biggest hole in the minefield.

The Ebon squadron approaches the minefield at full speed.

Round 1
Beni decided to go toward the Satellite following an almost straight line, going full 5 straight then taking a 1 bank turn boost toward the satellite. I started maneuvering the mines in position to block their direct line of approach to the Satellite.

The Lorrir's Demons decide to take the riskier but faster approach... If their aim is true and they are able to destroy some mines, they'll get to the Satellite in no time

Lorrir destroys the second nearest mine, but his Saber escorts fail to destroy the closest mine...
trouble in the horizon for Ebon squadron!

Round 2
One of my mines had luckily survived the fire barrage from the Interceptors and was in a perfect position to detonate against one of the Interceptors, the other ones I decided to move into the path flight of the other Interceptors.

One of the mines rams into one of the Saber Interceptors and blows it to pieces!

The HWK-290 crew works desperately to finish the Satellite repairs

In his eagerness to get as quickly as possible to the Satellite, Beni miscalculated the end position of the mines and flew Lorrir right into one of them!

Lorrir is destroyed by a direct mine hit, but one of his wingmen passes through the minefield!
The Saber pilot manages to take a shot at the Satellite at range 3!

Round 3
I tried to block the Interceptor with my HWK-290 as well as I could, but the Interceptor's much better maneuverability allowed it to get an unobstructed final shot at the Satellite.

Lorrir's Demons have fulfilled their main mission, though it seems none of them will survive the engagement...
The HWK-290 ionizes the last surviving Interceptor while the 3 surviving mines close in...

Round 4
The last Interceptor advanced at a snail's pace thanks to the ion turret of the HWK-290. Another shot from the HWK-290 and one last hit from the mines destroyed the last of the Lorrir's demons.

Mission accomplished, Lord Vader!

Conclusion
The mission worked as expected. A fast and furious extremely dangerous mission for both sides... This is the exhilarating advantage of playing a mission in which all sides have glass cannons. The mission plays also quite short (around 30 minutes) so it is a good one to teach a new player the game.

I initially thought that only 6 mines would probably not be enough of a threat, but decided to leave this part of the mission untouched. I only reduced the amount of rounds needed by the Interceptors to destroy the Satellite, because the original 6 for major victory and 8 for minor victory seemed too easy for them.

We also had time to review the possible strategies and repeat a bit the mission to see whether it made sense.

The Imperial player has basically three approaches to the mission:

1. Take the highest risk to the safety of the Interceptors but get as fast as possible  to the Satellite. This was Beni's approach in our test game. This gets the Interceptors in round 2 at range 3 from the Satellite, so good chances of destroying it, if they survive.

2. Go straight and fast following one edge of the map to avoid the mines, then take a turn toward the satellite... This would make the Interceptors arrive in round 3 to range 3 of the Satellite. The HWK-290 would be able to act and the chances of destroying the Satellite quickly are lessened, but the Interceptors have more chances of surviving.

3. Pick the mines at long range and approach the minefield after destroying 2 or 3 of them... This again increases the survival rate of the Interceptors but at the risk of not getting to the Satellite in time if the dice don't fall the Imperial's way.


So, we'll take a break now to "train" for an official tournament that will take place in The Hague... stay tuned for my next report!

An Unexpected Visit, Mission 1 of my new Pirates' Run Campaign

We finally had time to start testing the new campaign. I wanted to create a narrative and to keep learning the game by trying out as many ships as possible, so I will add some "mission creation" comments to the battle reports featuring the missions I designed.

You can find the whole campaign here: Pirates' Run Campaign
And the PDF for the first scenario is here: An Unexpected Visit

The Story so far

The Perlemian Trade Route is one of the oldest and most well-traveled hyperlanes in the galaxy. One of the major trading posts along the Perlemian is The Wheel, an enormous, circular hub- and spoke style space station near the outer edge of the Mid Rim. The Wheel holds a special status in the Empire, as it holds no formal Imperial presence. This makes The Wheel not only a major tourist destination, with popular casinos and entertainment zones, but also a meeting point for smugglers and pirates and their fences.

Usually, the Empire is glad to leave those smugglers and pirates alone, as the apparent neutrality of The Wheel makes it a worthwhile asset for Imperial Intelligence. Lately, though, a band of pirates calling themselves the Insurrection Privateers have become so bold, that their criminal acts can no longer be tolerated. Imperial Intelligence has found out that the profits of the Insurrection Privateers is being funneled to fund the burgeoning Rebel Alliance.

A Nebulon B Frigate, the Triumphant has been sent to the nearby systems with its full battle complement; its mission: to track and destroy the pirate group. The commander of the Frigate, a promising young officer called Captain Gilad Pellaeon, has devised a ruse to capture the pirates. His technicians have inserted special tracking codes in the program of several droids. Several droid shipments with the tampered droids have been sent along the Perlemian Trade Route, following the side lanes where the pirates have been known to attack. The Imperial spies under Pellaeon's command have been busy selling information in The Wheel about these shipments' routes.

Soon enough, the information reaches the pirates, one of the shipments is attacked by the Insurrection Privateers, and the Triumphant's hunt commences...

 

Scenario 1: An Unexpected Visit

The pirates have ambushed one the freighter convoys in a nebula cloud near the Roche system. This section of the Roche system is one of the favourite ambushing spots of the pirates, as the electrical and magnetic jolts of the nebula can play havoc on a ship's helm and engine systems.

Unbeknownst to both the Pirates and Captain Pellaeon, a third party has been tracking this group of pirates, and his intentions may disrupt not only the Pirates' attack but also Captain Pellaeon's well prepared plans. 

The Pirates spring their ambush on the Imperial convoy; in the image, two Y-Wings race toward the Shuttle

The HWK-290 and a B-Wing try to close the gap with the Shuttle

Battle Report

Planning the Ships' list
I was going to play the Pirates this time and had many interesting choices to contemplate. I think this is an important aspect when creating a new mission; you have to try to give the players enough choices so that the planning is interesting and not obvious or too constrained. At the same time, I wanted to force players to play certain configurations to be able to try as many ships as possible.

In my case I could go for two basic configurations: a 5 Ship list with few torpedoes or a 4 Ship list with a lot of torpedoes. I decided to go for the second list because I wanted to bite quickly through the Shuttle's shields to be able to disable it.

JL's list, Pirates: (100 points on B-Wings and Y-Wings plus Rebel Operative HWK-290 with 10 upgrade points, ion weapons cost one less point).

1. HWK-290, Rebel Operative with Ion Cannon Turret, Recon Specialist and Hull Upgrade (27)
2. Dagger Squadron B-Wing with Fire Control System, Ion Cannon and two Proton Torpedoes (37)
3. Two Grey Squadron Y-Wings with Ion Cannon Turret and two Proton Torpedoes (33x2)
Total: 130 total points

Beni then came with his list and we decided to increase the points given to the Bounty Hunters so that he again would have some flexibility in their design.

Beni's list, Imperial convoy (60 points with one Omicron Group Shuttle)

1. Omicron Group Pilot with Recon Specialist (24)
2. 2 Black Squadron TIEs with Draw Their Fire and Hull Upgrade (18x2)

 Beni's list, Bounty Hunters (80 points with one Firespray, ion weapons cost one less point)

1. Bounty Hunter with Ion cannon (36)
2. Two Grey Squadron Y-Wings with Ion Cannon Turrets (25x2)
Total: 86 (3 points more than expected, but I decided on the 80 points after our test game)

The Bounty Hunter stalks its prey, who are busy attacking the convoy

Setup
I wanted to give both the Imperial and the Pirate player the possibility to complete their major objectives. They should both be hard but possible. My main concern was that the Shuttle would speed as fast as possible towards its fleeing edge, and that's why I considered adding the Nebula effects to the scenario: it was interesting from the thematic point of view and it would force players to maneuver around the Nebula tokens. The initial rules were not enough in my opinion, so I finally decided to add a speed reduction rule that would also work well with the asteroids of mission 3.

The Bounty Hunters should arrive on time to annoy the Pirates but not so early as to make their mission impossible. I think placing them on the board at the start of round 2 is a good solution (at least in our test game it worked well).






Round 1
I started dividing my forces so as not to give Beni an easy choice. I also placed my Nebula tokens so as to prevent him from going straight towards his fleeing edge... he would need to do some maneuvering.

Beni decided to veer his Shuttle towards the Y-Wings, probably considering to put more pressure on my HWK-290 and to make it more difficult for me to complete my major objective.

The Shuttle turns toward the Y-Wings while avoiding the Nebula tokens

The HWK-290 and the B-Wing race toward the fleeing Shuttle... It seems it will easily escape!

I then used the Proton Torpedoes in one of my Y-Wings to batter the Shuttle's shields (yes, my strategy was working!) while hitting the Shuttle with the Ion turret of the second Y-Wing.

Beni's choice of upgrade for the TIEs (Draw Their Fire) was perfect and he cancelled some hits, but was not able to cancel all the Ion hits... I would have chosen a different Modification for the TIEs (even give the points to the Shuttle) but they proved to be a good choice to increase the TIEs durability.

The Y-Wings start battering the Shuttle while the TIEs try to protect it

Round 2
The Bounty Hunters started racing toward the Pirates... The Firespray was quick enough, but the Y-Wings suffered a bit of strain from such high speeds.

The Bounty Hunters fly full throttle towards the convoy

Meanwhile, the Y-Wings entered a dogfight with the Imperial convoy with may interesting close maneuvers!

The TIEs try to protect the Shuttle, but it gets a second Ion token and its engines slow down

The HWK-290 and the B-Wing keep pushing as fast as they can

Round 3
The Y-Wings manage to keep ionizing the Shuttle with the Firespray hot on their heels. The B-Wing risked going over the Nebula trusting on the Pirate ships shielding... but a double Hit roll on the Nebula attack dice meant it would get a random maneuver in the following round.

The Y-Wings keep stopping the Shuttle while the B-Wing shoots on the TIEs ionizing one of them

Round 4
The Y-Wings finally manage to disable the Shuttle, but one of them is so damaged (he suffered damage from the Firespray and other TIE attacks) that it's finished off by one of the TIEs.

Mission accomplished! The Shuttle is disabled!

Rounds 5 and 6
The HWK-290 tries to approach the disabled Shuttle without getting too much fire from the TIEs. Meanwhile, the B-Wing's random maneuver placed it in a collision course with the Firespray...

The Shuttle was disabled just shy of escaping!

The B-Wing managed to avoid the Firespray and get at his back, but one of the TIEs went right into the HWK-290 (poor piloting there) and its hull burst in million pieces...

In the close dogfight, the Y-Wing tries to protect the HWK-290 with its Ion turret and one of the TIEs is destroyed in a collision

Rounds 7 and 8
The already heavily damaged HWK-290 boards the Shuttle, but the Bounty Hunters are too close and they disable it without too much problem.

The Firespray approaches the HWK-290 for the final blow, escorted by a Bounty Hunter Y-Wing

There was also lots of maneuvering and running into Nebula tokens, and several of the ships had the risk of quitting the battle before its end.

The surviving TIE fighter had to play a risky maneuver after an encounter with the Nebula put him with a bad facing near the edge

Rounds 9 and 10
The battle ended with a exchange of fire between the B-Wing and the Firespray, which was finally destroyed... Beni almost managed to disable my surviving Y-Wing, but a bit of luck on my part and some evasive maneuvers allowed me to keep him alive

The HWK-290 is captured just before leaving the disabled Shuttle

While the last Y-Wing pirate ship is pursued by the TIE and the Firespray, the B-Wing manages to come back to the battle just in time for a final assault on the Firespray

In the last round of the battle, the Firespray was destroyed and the Y-Wing escapes into hyperspace with 1 Hull point remaining!

Conclusion
The mission ended with 1 Campaign Point for the Imperials (disabling the HWK-290) vs. 2 Campaign Points for the Pirates (disabling the Shuttle, destroying one Bounty Hunter ship).

The battle was exciting, both sides had a chance of completing their major objectives and there were many exciting dogfights and close call situations... I think the original design of the mission worked, but I decided to tweak some things:

1. I augmented the build points of the Bounty Hunters from 75 to 80, so that they would have some design choices.
2. I tweaked the rules for attacking ships boarding other ships to make them much simpler. Basically, the first hit on a boarding ship is cancelled and that's it. I also allow now the boarding ship to choose facing when performing the boarding action.
3. The Nebula tokens will now reduce the speed of a Ship affected by them. I did this to prevent the Shuttle from barging through the Nebula tokens no matter what. In the mission, Beni played it thematically and tried to avoid the Nebula tokens from the beginning, but with the original rules I think it would have been easy to escape with a Shuttle outfitted with the Boost action.

So, very few changes to be done for a Mission that turned to be quite complex and eventful... The first turns were a blast, exciting and complex. The good thing with the mission is that, as time progresses and one becomes more tired, there will be less ships to worry about and the last rounds took less time than the first ones, so the end result was satisfactory.

We have already tested the 2nd mission of the campaign, quite a different beast from this one I must say... I'll post the battle report in one or two days...