Bringing out the big guns!... Starting the point of No Return campaign with the CR90

We finally have now the time to open the CR90 box and play the full campaign! The first scenario of the campaign, Mistaken Identity, is very well designed, as it will help you learn the basics and some of the weaknesses and strengths of the CR90.

Rebels (128 points) (played by JL)
- CR90 Corvette Fore with 2 Single Turbolasers, Gunnery Team and Sensor Team (74 points)
- CR90 Corvette Aft with Quad Laser Cannons, Engineering Team and Tibanna Gas Supplies (54 points)

Imperials (89 points) (played by Beni)
- Howlrunner with Determination (19 points)
- 5x Black Squadron TIE Fighters (5x14 = 70 points)

The goal for the Imperials is to cripple one section of the Corvette in 6 rounds.

Unfortunately, with the excitement I forgot to switch off the automatic flash from my smartphone and the Corvette has lost some of its details... That won't happen again in the next scenario.

Setup and first maneuvers

The scenario uses the standard 90x90 cm map with 6 asteroids. Beni decided to accumulate his asteroids in the same region of space, something I think worked in my favour because it made maneuvering with the Corvette much easier and denied him the opportunity of using the asteroids to gain some extra cover.

A TIE Fighter squadron hails the Corvette and orders it to stop

The Corvette model looks amazing, specially with the nice GF9 map as background

First Blood

Beni feared 6 rounds were not enough to allow him to circle around the Corvette and try to attack it from the back. He decided to move full throttle toward the Corvette.

The Corvette's primary weapon is very scary. With just 1 Energy you get an enormous 5 dice attack! Combine it with a Target Lock and things can get very nasty if you are not far enough... Its disadvantage is that it cannot target anything at ranges 1 or 2.

Unfortunately for the Imperials, one of the TIEs was just in range 3 of the Corvette

A very lucky first shot after using the Target Lock to reroll...

ANd one of the TIEs explodes!

Melee

The obvious weakness of the Corvette is that it has very little punch power at ranges 1 and 2, so getting to that distance is a must; on the other hand, being squashed by the gargantuan ship if you are so close is a real risk.

The TIE Fighter swarm closes the gap with the Corvette

Brilliant positioning by Beni this time; also, Howlrunner situation allowed many rerolls, but unfortunately for the Imperials, all hits were absorbed by the Corvette's Reinforcement action

This risk became a reality when one of the Black Squadron TIEs blocked Howlrunner's movement and she was rammed by the Corvette.

Out of the way and into the cold dark space!

The CR90 is surrounded by the TIEs, but only two of them have a shot on her

Even a close range, the CR90 still has its Quad Laser Cannons... another lucky shot and another TIE bursts into pieces

With only three TIEs remaining and with full shields, the CR90 is almost sure to survive

One of the TIEs moves to range 3 from the fore part of the CR20 and is shot down

The other two TIEs look helplessly as the majestic CR90 plots through the asteroid field

The two remaining TIEs deal out some damage to the CR90, but it was all blocked by the Corvette's shields

One of the TIE fighters dodges the CR90 by millimeters

But the second one was gunned down by the Corvette's Quad Laser Cannon

Summary

The scenario finished with 5 TIEs destroyed and the Corvette suffering only minor damage to the shields. Attacking the Corvette head on did not work very well for Beni, but we don't know if the scenario gives enough time to fly around the CR90 and hit it from the back... As we plan to play again the campaign switching roles, I'll have a chance to try.

 A very positive point is that Huge ships like the Corvette and the Transport add a lot of variety and fun factor to an already great game... I hope we'll have enough time to play many more scenarios with Huge ships!

Escape from Sarka, Mission 3 of the Pirates' Run Campaign

You can find the whole campaign here: Pirates' Run Campaign
And the PDF for the first scenario is here: Escape from Sarka

The Story so far

The Imperials launch a furious surprise assault on the Insurrection Privateers base. In the ensuing
mayhem, some pirates, including their leader Chiko Yidrath, escape in their spaceships with several
Imperials hot on their heels.
 

Desperate to avoid the Imperials and gain time to power up their hyperdrives, the pirates rush to a
nearby asteroid field.

Battle Report

Planning the Ships' list
This scenario was my attempt to recreate the famous Han Solo escape through an asteroid field while being pursued by several TIE Fighters.

As the Pirate I decided to give the YT-1300 the Engine Upgrade (I wanted to try if it would be too easy for him to escape, which turned out to be so) and accompanied him with a Y-Wing+Ion Turret to screen his escape and a couple Z-95s to make diversions.

JL's list, Pirates:

- Chewbacca YT-1300 (as Pirate leader Chiko Yidrath) with Elusiveness and Engine Upgrade (48)

- Grey Squadron Y-Wing with R7 Astromech and Ion Turret (27)

- Tala Z-95 (13)

- Bandit Z-95 (12)

Beni went this time for numbers and created two swarms!

Beni's list, Imperials
- Ebon Squadron: Royal Guard Interceptor and 3 Saber Squadron Interceptors (85)
- Alpha Squadron: Backstabber with Engine Upgrade and 5 Obsidian TIE Fighters (85)

Setup
I decided to use the Y-Wing to cover Chiko's escape and to place the two Z-95s in another side of the board as a diversion in case Beni would attack Chiko with all his ships.

The pirates start their mad rush through the asteroid field

Chiko is well ahead while the Y-Wing tries to block the pursuit

Two of the Interceptors move easily behind the Z-95s and start firing at them; one of the Interceptors went through a moving asteroid and lost some time

Meanwhile, the Royal Guard and the third interceptor go after Chiko who is well ahead

The Triumphant launches a wave of TIE Fighters to help the Interceptors

The TIE swarm enters the asteroid field!

Chiko maneuvers perfectly between two asteroids

Chiko is well ahead of the Imperials while the other Pirate ships are hunted down

The first Z-95 is destroyed

The Y-Wing becomes surrounded by the TIE swarm

A general view of the asteroid field

One of the Interceptors that had been damaged by Chiko crashes against an asteroid!

Chiko prepares to enter hyperspace while the other pirate ships are in big trouble

The last Z-95 is hunted down by the remaining Interceptors

Summary and changing the design of the scenario
I was very happy with how the asteroid field worked. That some of the asteroids can move a bit just after the Planning phase made movement exciting and dangerous, but it was not fiddly. Also, losing speed if you overlap an asteroid means you cannot simply race straight through them.

Another advantage is that the scenario was fast and took us a bit less than 90 minutes. I think the changes I made will probably add another 30 minutes. Considering the amount of action and possibilities, 2 hours looks a correct amount of time for the scenario.

On the other hand, escaping with the YT-1300 was too easy if it has an Engine Upgrade. I decided to change the scenario so that the YT-1300's upgrades are fixed.

At the same time, it was too easy for the Imperials to destroy the other 3 ships as the difference in points was too big. I decided to give the Rebels 20 extra points and force them to use 4 ships; that way the screen will be stronger (also because the YT-1300 will shoot more) and the scenario will probably be more exciting.

Now we only have the fourth scenario to try! It's an epic one, so we'll have to find two other friends to play with us. The problem will be finding a good time for 4 players, because the scenario will probably need 3-4 hours to be played.

Dogfight: E-Wing vs. Firespray-31

Dogfight: E-Wing vs. Firespray-31

This time I wanted to try the new E-Wing ship. The ship looks tough and is very maneuverable, but it also has a high cost, so I was unsure about its potential. I decided to go wild and try Corran Horn, the top E-Wing pilot. Its ability (being able to attack twice from the same position), would go very well with an Upgrade I also wanted to try: Outmaneuver. I decided to give it even more maneuverability with Advanced Sensors and an Engine Upgrade, and to increase its toughness with R2-D2 (being so expensive, I think it makes sense to make the E-Wing as tough as you can). As wingmen, I chose two Y-Wings with Ion Cannon Turrets to try and fix enemy positions to help Corran. I had some extra points left and decided to also test some Astromechs, the R5-K6 and the R7-T1.

Rebels (100 points) (played by JL)
- Corran Horn, E-Wing, with R2-D2, Advanced Sensors, Outmaneuver and Engine Upgrade (49 points)
- Gold Squadron Y-Wing with R7-T1 and Ion Cannon Turret (26 points)
- Gold Squadron Y-Wing with R5-K6 and Ion Cannon Turret (25 points)

Beni wanted to test the Firespray-31. I think the Tactician Upgrade combines very well with the Firespray-21, thanks to its double firing arc. The Ion Cannon is a good addition for Krassis Trelix. I'm not so convinced about the missiles, though; my experience with large ships is that you have so many things to do that you hardly ever use them... As wingmen, he chose two TIE Advanced with Engine Upgrades. They are always nice, but I don't see any combo with Krassis, so maybe one could have chosen something more powerful as wingmen.

Imperials (100 points) (played by Beni)
- Krassis Trelix, Firespray-31, with Cluster Missiles, Ion Cannon, Tactician and Munitions Failsafe (46 points)
- 2x Storm Squadron TIE Advanced with Engine Upgrade (2x27 = 54 points)

Setup and first maneuvers

I won the initiative and decided to populate the center of the map with asteroids. Beni added his asteroids in my side, which suited me well, because my intention was to maneuver with the Y-Wings around the asteroids while annoying him with my Ion Cannons and Corran's maneuverability.

The asteroids protect my initial movement

I advanced slowly and Beni had plenty of space for the Firespray-31

Beni's squadron goes full throttle and the E-Wing sees his first prey

First Blood

With the maneuverability of the E-Wing I was able to position myself behind the asteroid with an Evade action... I had more chances than Beni to cause some damage, and on top of that I was very lucky to score two hits in my first attack!

Behold Corran's marksmanship!

Dogfight in the Asteroid Field

After the approach phase, the battle turned into a duel of guessing, maneuvering and positioning... Beni gained the advantage in the first part of the engagement, but quickly lost one of his TIE Advanced when it was ionized and left the battle.

Corran is unable to use his Outmaneuver advantage against Krassis, who decides to focus fire on the closest Y-Wing to try and ionize it

The Y-Wing is ionized and will crush into the closest asteroid!
Meanwhile, both Y-Wings focus fire on the TIE Advanced at the top to try and force him to abandon the battlefield

I was surprised both by the maneuverability of the Firespray-31 and its great capability to deal out fire using his double firing arc... In the first rounds of combat I did not maneuver with Corran properly and even ended on one asteroid!

One Y-Wing crushes into the asteroid while the other positions itself in front of Krassis, who dodges the whole mess and uses his back firing arc to his advantage...
Corran uses Outmaneuver for the first time but scores no hits on the second TIE Advanced, that starts pursuing the damaged Y-Wing.
Luckily for me, the ionized Y-Wing survived the crush into the asteroids and the shots from Krassis and his wingman

Meanwhile, the first TIE-Advanced cannot avoid going out of the battle.

Back in the Open

Out of the asteroid field I started having more chances, as I was able to use the R7-T1 astromech and Corran's maneuverability much easier.

And I maneuver Corran onto an asteroid! The position of Krassis and his second wingman was also not too good and they could not focus fire on the damaged Y-Wing

Here I used the R7-T1 to get my Y-Wing in a good position to avoid being shot at by Krassis. The TIE Advanced maneuvered nimbly behind my Y-Wing...

... but the Y-Wing pilot saved the day with an amazing Evade!

The Y-Wing then ionized the TIE Advanced and left it as a clear target for Corran

Corran easily maneuvers into position behind the TIE Advanced...

... and shoots him twice to assure its demise!

In the final round after the 1 hour mark, Krassis finally manages to blow up the first Y-Wing with a 3-hit shot!

And victory was for the Rebels with a 54-26 point count... Corran was also in a perfect position to keep harassing Krassis, so the Bounty Hunter will have to wait for another occasion to capture the nimble E-Wing pilot!

Conclussion

This was a very interesting dogfight in which correct planning of the maneuvers was much more important than in other fights... I think we both have now enough experience to appreciate more and more the subtleties of this great game!

I won the encounter thanks to the early ionization of one of Beni's TIE Advanced and a bit of luck for one of my Y-Wings (he threw everything at that ship and he still survived until the last turn). In the second part of the encounter I was able to use Corran's maneuverability to its fullest extent.

A Day at the Races

(this is a play of the first scenario of DagobahDave's: X-Wing racing)


Team 1 (Mario):
Shadow Squadron TIE Phantom with Mara Jade, Sensor Jammer and Advanced Cloaking Device (38 points)
(moves last, shoots first)

Team 2 (JL):
Blackmoon Squadron E-Wing with R2-D2, Flechette Torpedo and Engine Upgrade (39 points)
(moves first, shoots second)
 
Team 3 (Beni):
Onyx Squadron TIE Defender with Ion Cannon and Engine Upgrade (39 points)
(moves second, shoots last)

(The scene starts with a deafening roar by a huge crowd)

Commentator: And welcome once more to X-Wing Race-3, where some of the youngest pilots of the galaxy will race for a chance to compete in the X-Wing Race-2 competition.

The Ships warm up their thrusters!

And the race is on! Weapon restrictors are on... Beni's Defender tries to overtake JL's E-Wing while Mara Jade causes Stress to both of them

Beni miscalculated a bit his maneuver but it seems he'll be able to round the first beacon without crashing against the asteroid. Meanwhile, Mario's Phantom starts gaining a bit...

All pilots round the first beacon without any problem... Sirens wail in the stadium! The weapon restrictors are about to be released!

Aaand Mario takes the lead while Beni and JL decide to fall back and try to shoot Mario down... Mario's shields are blown away, and the daring pìlot feels the heat... Destruction seems too close

Mario keeps the lead while JL maneuvers to try to prevent Beni from staying at his 6... Beni shoots Mario again but the shot goes wild!

 (here both the E-Wing and the TIE Defender moved just to the right of the TIE Phantom so that Mario was not able to decloak to his right in order to round the 2nd beacon)

Beni and JL prevent Mario from decloaking on time to round the second beacon and he goes wildly past the asteroid! It seems the Ghost ship has trouble keeping a good position

Both Beni and JL take the 2nd beacon curve at full throttle! JL miscalculates his boost and his ship crushes against the public!... Do not worry, folks, that was the Gungan area of the stadium, so we won't lose much gray matter.

Mario carries out a K-turn maneuver to try to get back into the race while Beni rounds the 2nd beacon... He almost crushes in the same spot JL did!

Beni has a big lead, but Mario's Phantom pulls an amazing stunt - boy, are these Phantoms maneuverable! - and rounds the 2nd beacon in big style

Beni and Mario rush towards the 3rd beacon

Mario pulls a shot on Beni and takes down one of his shields... it seems too little too late, as Beni's Defender rounds the 3rd beacon

TIE Defenders are known for advancing fast in a straight line but having trouble with hard turns, so Beni decides to move in a straight line to get away from Mario's firing arc

And there's a final sprint to the end line in which Beni has a big advantage

Both ships approach the end line at full speed

And Beni finishes first comfortably, although Mario also crosses the line in the same round

Commentator: And that was all for today, folks. Stay tuned for future races and the incoming X-Race 1!

(disclaimer) in the making of this photoshoot only some Gungans were damaged... they seem to be recovering well from their ordeal: the advantage of having thick skulls and little gray matter.