The intro…
Hello and welcome to this week’s blog!
You will be glad to know things are (well, should, it’s early yet!) be somewhat back to normal today.
My life has been somewhat taken over by the decorating we started about 10 days ago. We are finally making progress but the house is still chaos and evenings are fully consumed by painting, sanding, cutting, caulking or some other thing. I REALLY hope it’s done soon for the sake of our sanity!
In other news it would be remiss of me not to mention the upcoming tournament in Sin City Comics & Gaming Newport!
It’s on Saturday the 23rd of November, tickets are £10 and you can get hold of yours here.
Patreon Update…
Well, reasonably normal! With the extra few days tacked on for any new signups (plus the ongoing/never ending decorating!), I have yet to get the opportunity to do this quarter’s giveaway draw yet so nothing has been posted yet. I will get to it soon!
The batrep… (JARGON ALERT!!)
Yes, that’s right, I’m talking about a game!
You might remember me mentioning last week that due to the aforementioned work on the house that I didn’t get to play X-Wing.
BUT I did get to play the week before that! I did get a bit of stick last week for not talking about this game though I always intended to do so!
Now I was running the list I’ve been flying the previous few weeks. I’m still undecided whether I’ll take it to the Newport tournament at the end of the month. If I am going to change it needs to be soon as I’m running out of time!
Here’s the list:
Wullffwarro – Auzituck Gunship (4)
Bo-Katan Kryze (Rebel/Scum) (4)
Ship Cost: 4 Loadout: (4/4) Half Points: 2 Damage Threshold: 4
Miranda Doni – BTL-S8 K-wing (5)
Bistan (12)
Concussion Bombs (5)
Advanced SLAM (3)
Ship Cost: 5 Loadout: (20/20) Half Points: 2 Damage Threshold: 4
Jan Ors – HWK-290 Light Freighter (5)
Moldy Crow (0)
Ship Cost: 5 Loadout: (0/0) Half Points: 2 Damage Threshold: 2
“Leebo” (YLF) – YT-2400 Light Freighter (6)
C-3PO (7)
Ship Cost: 6 Loadout: (7/7) Half Points: 3 Damage Threshold: 5
Total: 20
View in YASB: https://yasb.app/?f=Rebel%20Alliance&d=v9ZbZ20Z58XW426WY17XWW77WW355WW104Y46XWWWWWW156Y651XWW18WWW&sn=Unsaved%20Squadron&obs=
It’s basically got a lot of red and while it’s a little (ok, a lot) reliant on dice variance, it can hurt you.
Josh was flying a slight tweak of list he played against me a few weeks prior:
“Recoil” – TIE/vn Silencer (5)
Marksmanship (2)
Proton Rockets (6)
Ship Cost: 5 Loadout: (8/9) Half Points: 2 Damage Threshold: 3
Kylo Ren – TIE/vn Silencer (6)
Brilliant Evasion (2)
Predator (3)
Sensor Scramblers (1)
Ship Cost: 6 Loadout: (6/8) Half Points: 3 Damage Threshold: 3
“Blackout” – TIE/vn Silencer (6)
Daredevil (4)
Sensor Scramblers (1)
Pattern Analyzer (5)
Proton Rockets (6)
Ship Cost: 6 Loadout: (16/17) Half Points: 3 Damage Threshold: 3
“Static” – TIE/fo Fighter (3)
Marksmanship (2)
Heavy Laser Cannon (5)
Ship Cost: 3 Loadout: (7/8) Half Points: 1 Damage Threshold: 2
Total: 20
It’s fast, it’s got punch and lots of agility. Yuck.
Let’s get the Pre-Flight checks:
Scenario – Scramble the Transmission
Target/Objective Priority – Ummm, don’t die? My low initiative and Josh’s big hits could be a problem. Kill what I can I guess!
Obstacles – A reasonably tight cluster helps me I think. Leebo wants the obstruction and to kite around so tight together helps.
Deployment – This is the part I’m still struggling with to be honest. Let’s just look at what I did…
We place objectives, obstacles and ships and we’re ready to go.
Turn 1
I have an immediate problem here. Since the game I’ve had time to think and I should definitely have placed my ships in the middle of the board, not to one side. To one side allows Josh to do what I already knew he wanted to do – zoom in and face punch me. Going in the middle puts rocks in the way.
Anyway, I stop with Wulfwarro while Leebo and Miranda will hard turn. I set JAn to 1 bank right. Yes, that’s a mistake…
ROAD 1st Player – Josh
I drop a bomb with Miranda to hit Wulfwarro and switch on the ability. Leebo does a 2 hard turn and really I should have done a 3 to get the extra distance to left left because that’s going to bite me in the butt soon.
Static goes 5 straight and focuses. Here we go I guess!
Miranda hard turns and it’s at this point I realise that Jan is going to bump ingot the back of her. Balls. Should have stopped. Or just put Jan elsewhere. Idiot.
Miranda SLAMs a 2 straight and uses Advaned SLAM to reload the bomb. Wulfwarro, very wary of being obliterated without shooting in the last matchup, stops.
Josh’s Silencers now approach with Kylo and Blackout having decloaked to get a 2 forward advantage. With the benefit of knowing where my ships are, both go 5 straight and spot a nice juicy K-Wing to target as they boost to their right.
Recoil follows up behind with a boost as well.
Jan 1 banks right and focuses.
This goes kind of how you think it might have. But only kind of.
Thankfully Recoil missed arc so while Static, Blackout and Kylo unload into Miranda (and Blackout with Prockets (JARGON ALERT!!), she lives on 2 hull. Phew!
Sadly though, she can’t shoot because of the SLAM. Boooo.
Leebo and Jan take shots at Blackout and Josh’s green dice aren’t quite up to scratch and I take shields and 1 hull, halving the Silencer.
No scoring so on to the next turn!
Turn 2
This is not ideal. Miranda will move before Blackout and Kylo and 50/50 for moving before the other ships. Ideally I’d like to push past Josh’s forces to maybe drop a bomb the following turn and perhaps disengage to tag an objective. That feels rather optimistic at this point though. I set her a 2 bank.
If Leebo had done the 3 hard instead of 2 I’d be a lot more confident of going faster this turn but it’s got to be a 1 straight from him. Wulwarro will jump into the fight with a 3 straight to clear the stress from the stop (and the strain from taking the bomb face down) while Jan will just 1 straight into the fray.
ROAD 1st player – me
Leebo starts with a 1 straight and calculates, then Wulfwarro takes his 3 straight. I debate taking the reinforce but I chose violence and focus instead. Miranda’s 2 bank right bumps into Blackout and she takes a red focus.
Josh’s Silencers switch up target, focusing in on the Auzituck and confident that Static can finish off Miranda on his own.
Kyo bumps into the back of Recoil. Could that be important?
By the way, yes Josh switched out Blackout’s Silencer for a diplomatic shuttle. Looks nice, don’t you think?
I start off strong as Jan fires at the diplom-uh, Blackout and, somewhat startlingly, rolls 4 crits out of hand. Brutal!
He dodges 2 but takes 2 crits and with a Direct Hit in the mix the Silencer dies. Oof.
Josh’s response is equally brutal as he puts 3 shots into Wulfwarro and the single modded Prockets from Recoil come up all paint.
The Auzituck dies. Crucially, though, NOT at i5. The Wookiee will shoot.
He does so into Kylo, depletes his Force and with follow up shots from Miranda and Leebo he’s lost shields and taken 2 damage to hull.
Miranda’s double tap with Bistan means a range 1 shot into Static who dodges it and then finishes off the K-Wing.
Big ouch.
End of turn score: 6 (me) – 9 (Josh)
Turn 3
Oof. Ok. Two ships down. I’ve taken one of Josh’s off the board and at least the two Prockets are used now.
Leebo isn’t in a great spot. I wonder if a 2 straight will fit but I may have to just accept a rock for him. The question is, where is Josh going?
I set Leebo a 3 straight while Jan will pootle 1 forwards.
ROAD 1st player – me
Leebo moves 3 straight and of course lands on the rock. The worst part? I checked and a 2 straight would have landed PERFECTLY between the rocks. Should have trusted by gut there. Balls.
He takes 1 and rolls and takes a second from the rock. Big sigh.
Recoil hard turns, claims the objective (first one of the game!) and links to a boost right. Static also hard turns and claims. Jan goes 1 straight and while I consider claiming the objective I opt for a focus and rotate (I add the stress token after the picture).
Kylo blasts over the top with a 3 bank (I think?!) and boosts right.
Only 2 ships can fire this turn – Jan and Recoil. Jan goes first and rolls fire AGAIN, spending the focus for 2 hits and a crit at Static who kindly obliges by rolling no evades. Shield gone and the crit is a Loose Stabiliser. Niiiice.
Recoil goes next and being at range 3 and obstructed of Leebo takes his last 2 shields.
Could have been worse but Josh now having 2 objective while I’ve got none is going to be an issue.
End of turn score: 0 – 2
Total score: 6 – 11
Turn 4
Ok, this is getting interesting now. Leebo will go 1 straight which will get me away from Recoil, give me cover from Kylo and maybe get me a shot into Static who now HAS to go straight. The question is, what about Jan? Go fast to shoot Static but keep the stress? Or go slow, clear the stress and maybe claim?
I need to kill a ship so I go for 3 bank. I can hopefully claim the next turn. Hopefully.
ROAD 1st player – Josh
Leebo goes 1 straight and calculates. Static goes 5 straight and while Josh considers rolling (to get more room to go straight next turn), he evades instead, betting on a 2 straight fitting.
Recoil hard turns right and focus/boosts to point where he’s expecting Jan.
Kylo hard turns and boosts, neatly landing past the rock.
Jan takes the 3 bank, leaving her range 2 of Recoil with no tokens.
As if to prove a point, Jan once again rolls well and Josh blanks out. Static dies.
Recoil takes revenge but can only take 1 shield from the HWK and Kylo fails to do anything to Leebo.
Not the worst turn for me.
End of turn score: 3 – 2
Total score: 9 – 13
Turn 5
Right, so Jan is stressed and has someone chasing her. She’ll go 1 straight, clear the stress and focus. Leebo’s in a decent position though, a 2 hard right for him.
ROAD 1st player – Josh
Leebo turns and calculates. Recoil banks left, bumps into the back of Jan and takes a red focus.
Kylo 2 banks right and claims the middle. Balls.
Jan 1 banks left, clears the stress and while I’m sorely tempted to claim, takes a focus. I hope it’s worth it.
Annoyingly I forgot to take a picture here. Sorry.
Kylo shoots at Leebo and deals a Wounded Pilot crit. Not the worst. Jan shoots from teh turret at Recoil but misses. Recoil does the same back.
Leebo shoots at Kylo and with an extra die for range 3 and another from Jan. It’s obstructed so I get to turn an evade to an eyeball and it’s enough to take him off the board.
I’m back in the game!
End of turn score: 6 – 3
Total score: 15 – 16
Turn 6
Two ships left to his one ship. I’m being outscored on objectives though. Can I catch this up?
Leebo will hard turn but Jan has to go straight to avoid self bumping.
ROAD 1st player – Josh
Leebo hard turns and calculates, Jan goes 1 straight and claims.
Recoil ahs now fully circumnavigated the rock and is heading towards the bottom objective to head off Leebo from claiming it. He rolls to dodge Leebo’s arc.
Jan has Recoil in arc though and nicks his shields.
End of turn score: 1 – 2
Total score: 16 – 18
Turn 7
This is pretty tight!
Looking at the board I need to take another objective. My best shot is the middle so I dial Leebo a 3 hard. Jan will also hard turn.
ROAD 1st player – me
Leebo hard turns and claims. Recoil hard turns to his left focuses and boosts left. Balls.
Jan hard turns and lands right in front of the rock.
No shots here.
Just. So. Tight.
End of turn score: 2 – 1
Total score: 18 – 19
Turn 8
I don’t think I can still win this, however. Jan will hard turn but is stressed meaning she can’t claim back when Recoil inevitably does. leebo will also hard turn and maybe get a shot. I can’t take a Silencer down from 4 hull can I?
ROAD 1st player – Josh
Leebo turns and calculates. Recoil turns, claims and, having been caught at range 3 before, boosts.
Jan hard turns, takes a damage from the rock (but doesn’t take a second) but can’t take an action as she’s still stressed.
Jan shoots range 1 into Recoil and does 1 damage. Recoil fires back and does the same.
Can Leebo do 3 damage with 3 single modded red dice into 3 unmodded green dice?
No, he can’t. Recoil lives and Josh takes the win
End of turn score: 1 – 2
Final result: 19 – 21
The conclusion…
Wow, that was wild!
The big disadvantage my list has is the low initiative and Josh leveraged that well. Thankfully a number of my shots counted and kept me in touch but once Josh started picking up objectives I really struggled to keep up.
Still, considering I took quite the beating last time against this list I think this was an improvement. It’s probably also worth mentioning that Josh went to the Cornish Nationals recently and finished second in swiss with this list. Not bad!
Is this a top tier list? No, not really. It’s got clear weaknesses and while I can mitigate for some, high initiative will win out more often than not. It’s really fun though. I miss flying Dash and Leebo is a decent close second. It’s just such a great dial for a big base ship!
That’s about it from me for today. Remember to pick up a ticket for Newport if you can make it, it’d be great to see you!
The outro…
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