First X-Wing tournament

On the 17th May (one week ago) I participated in my first complete X-Wing tournament!

Well, it was not really my first, because in March I had played two rounds in another tournament in the same shop... I made so many mistakes in my first games, constantly bumping into any asteroid that came into my pilots' view... On the other hand, I learned a lot about maneuvering!

The shop the tournament took place in was Tabletop Kingdom in The Hague, a great place with plenty of space to play!

The shop was quite busy during the tournament!

There were 4 standard battles in the tournament, and I was really happy with my performance. My list was interesting and fun to play and it proved to be quite deadly. I lost my first game, but then I won the next 3 games with a complete victory 100-0 (I destroyed all other ships without having any of mine destroyed). I finished third out of 14 (I think) participants, tied with the second player (he ended second because he lost his last game in the final, something I could not reach because of losing my first game).

my list, Ten's Friends:
Ten Numb with Heavy Laser Cannon and Marksmanship (41)
Garven Dreis
Biggs Darklighter with R2-D2 and Shield Upgrade
Total: 100


The basic strategy of this list is protecting Biggs so that he does not die too quickly and use Ten Numb and Garven Dreis to destroy the opposition.


And here come the battle reports:

First Battle
In my first game I met Oliver (I think). He played a very nice list with two Interceptors of 9 Pilot Skill and 3 Academy TIEs. The Interceptors were extremely maneuverable and very dangerous attacking, while the Academy TIEs provided some extra firepower while offering the possibility of blocking any easy movement of the opponent.

The game started with the squadrons in opposite corners of the board. The approach was not easy for any of us (I think we both placed the asteroids quite well).
 

We started in opposite corners and then approached each other through the asteroid field

All is quite in the space at the moment

Then a catastrophe happened to my squadron and I lost Biggs in the first shots exchange. My opponent managed to score 6 hits with just 7 dice (actually, 5 hits and a Direct Hit critical)... Not a good way to start the battle...

The Interceptors' lightning movement placed them at ranges 1 and 2 from Biggs. I rolled very poorly my defense dice and as a result lost Biggs in the first fire exchange.

I managed to destroy one of the Interceptors and damage two of the TIEs, and at some point it looked like I could maybe turn back the tide of battle, but Garven Dreis was quickly dispatched and that left Ten Numb completely alone against 4 Imperial spaceships

Soontir Fel prepares himself for a new hunt...

During the last part of the battle I lost all my gambles and my opponent outmaneuvered me most of the rounds. As a result, I could not destroy any of the damaged TIEs and lost by a big margin.

Second Battle
In the second game I met Laura. She played another interesting list, similar to the one I had fought before, though this one had two agile Interceptors and two good TIEs. I saw a weak point in her list: she had one of the Interceptors (I think Carnor Jax) without any modification to add an extra Hull or shield point, and it seemed quite weak.

She started the battle with an Interceptor and a TIE in front of me and the other two spaceships in the opposite corner... I decided to go full throttle and try to get to the ships in front of me before her flanking party arrived... Unexpectedly (or probably because of this being one of her first tournament games), her first movement for the group in front of me was to move 5 forward, so that I had to fight only half of her force before the flanking group arrived and had a big advantage throughout the game.

Also, because she never was able to concentrate enough firepower on Biggs, I kept shrugging damage with R2-D2 and, protected by Biggs, my other two ships scored plenty of hits on the beleaguered Imperial forces.

The flanking party looks helpless as battle starts in the other side of the board

My squadron blasted one of Laura's TIEs in the first exchange of shots, leaving her Interceptor alone against a lot of danger

After dealing with the force in front of me, I veered my ships to receive the incoming flanking party

In the dogfight... I love how I managed to position my three ships so that they cover a lot of space, and Biggs is near them all and must be shot at first

Hunting the last two ships proved quite difficult with lots of maneuvering

Ten gets really close to the last Interceptor... And I still love the pictures taken with my LG G2!

Third Battle
In the third game I met Vas (I think). He had a Rebel list with Biggs and R2-F2, two Dagger B-Wings and a Prototype A-Wing... We met head on and I was luckier than him with the rolls. I managed to destroy his Biggs in the first two combat rounds, and then it was a matter of time for me to mop up the rest of his squadron while he tried to destroy my Biggs without any chance.

Both squadrons met straight on

All my pilots had a higher pilot skill than the opponent's. Maybe this played a roll in me getting through his Biggs before he could damage anything

Fourth Battle
My last battle was against Sven. He had yet another list with two Interceptors and three TIEs. During the battle he tried to flank me several times, but his maneuvers and gambles were never successful and his ships attacked mine almost one by one, so it was relatively easy for me to shoot them down (two X-Wings and one B-Wing shooting the same target can and do make a lot of damage).

The usual setup in opposite corners of the board

Sven placed very well the asteroids, as you can see in this image, because he could use them to protect his advance, but would not have them blocking his movement if he crossed my ships.

The battle is about to start in earnest!

Turr Phennir manages to shoot and get out of the way, but the second Interceptor was attacked by my three ships in the same turn and was destroyed

As you can see in this photo, again Sven's ships were not fighting in unison. Here I managed to destroy one of his TIEs, but could not attack Turr Phennir for the second time in a row, and decided I would leave him for the last.

Again, this photo shows that Sven was always in numerical disadvantage, because he kept on attacking my squadron with only 1 or 2 ships

Finishing the last TIE with Turr Phennir behind... After destroying the TIE, it was a matter of 3-4 more turns before I was able to hunt down Turr Phennir

Conclusions
I was very happy with my list. It's quite robust, because if the opponent cannot destroy Biggs in the first few rounds of fire, it'll be almost impossible to do it later: not only is Biggs recovering Shields, but Ten Numb and Garven Dreis hit very hard and will make the opponent lose some ships.

Garven Dreis is a character that works very well with Biggs, because he can give Biggs a second Focus token and improve his survival chances.

So, I hope I'll be able to join another tournament soon... this was real fun!


May the Force be whith you all!

Star Wars Academy, Round 2

Some days have passed since I last posted in the blog, but life has been hectic lately. Also, I finally played a full tournament! (I'll write about the experience in my next post).

Before the tournament, Beni and I could play a second training session, although we only played one game:

About the GF9 mat, I'm still extremely happy with it. It's soft to the touch but has the exact amount of friction that makes it difficult to move the minis too much when you nudge them by accident. The quality of the materials is very good and the art beautiful, as you can see in the photos.

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 Ten's Friends:
Ten Numb with Heavy Laser Cannon and Marksmanship (41)
Garven Dreis
Biggs Darklighter with R2-D2 and Shield Upgrade
Total: 100



In my list, the main focus is in having Biggs survive as long as possible. Ten should be able to kill almost any Imperial just by himself; Garven can help finish off a damaged enemy and with a bit of luck use its Focus token and give it to Biggs.
As for Biggs himself, I decided to make him a bit more durable with an extra shield. R2-D2 on Biggs means that you need to focus a lot of fire on him to kill him. If you don't do it in the first exchanges of fire, the chaos of the dogfight will make it very difficult for just one pilot to finish him off.

Battle Report

This time I had more trouble with the asteroids that Beni played. My conclusion is that you want to have the asteroids in such a position that they will be in the way of the opponent after the first exchange of fire.

Darth Vader starts to one side of the board, ready to flank the Rebel squadron

Darth Vader keeps looking for a flanking position while the Rebels try to position themselves so that the asteroids will be in Darth Vader´s path

Vader speeds through the asteroid field while his escorts advance in compact formation

Vader decides to turn to the Rebel squadron before being able to fllank properly

I managed to keep flying in formation and this is very important in the first exchange of fire: all my ships could focus target on one ship and with Ten's combo, few ships will be able to survive the first fire exchange

The dogfight started, and Darth Vader was not able to flank the B-Wing force

The Rebel pilots focus fire on focused fire of the Rebel squadron

This time it will be Night Beasts turn to lose his TIE

The Rebel squad starts hunting Vader down

Vader maneuvers in close quarters, but even him is no match against 3 experienced ships

We decided to stop the battle here. I am very happy with my list, as I think Biggs is very durable and will take the brunt of the enemies attacks while Ten and Garven may easily kill one guy in a turn.

As for the battle tactics, Darth Vader did not flank the Rebel squadron and this gave me a big advantage because I was always able to keep a tight formation almost until the end. Focusing fire is very important for the Rebel in this configuration: an enemy destroyed is one less attack on Biggs Darklight.

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!