Turbulent Times For 1e X Wing

X Wing 1e for us takes many forms.

Recently these have had a bit of a shake up, so here is a little run down of their ever developing “shape”.

Flight School

Flight school is an introductory game, a simplified tournament set and optionally a super compact way of travelling with the game (ships can be substituted with cardboard dial tokens on bases).

• Player A chooses 2 Resistance XT-70 fighters ranging from 48-62 pts total.

• Player B chooses a number of Tie/FO fighters up to the same value or less (can also make init bid). A soft rule of only ships from the same Squadron can also be applied.

• There are no upgrades, just ships and pilots (optionally they can be included, but maybe later, and limited, but try to stick with the concept). BB-8 is there in spirit :).

• The game is played on a very portable 2x2 mat with 0-2 obstacles placed each player.

These two ships with 8 pilot choices each (multiples of the base types, but “Aces” and “Leaders” are unique), represent the core of the game’s concepts in a neat and balanced way, ideal for teaching the game. You have Focus, Lock, S-Loop, Talon Roll, Evade, Boost, K-Turn and Barrel Rolls all covered with tough and forgiving ships with the added bonus of using ships that are not included in any of the other 1e games below. The pilots also bring to the table many of the mechanical realities of the game.

Skeleton Crew

The original nemesis (Lord Vader with his wingman “Back Stabber”) kings of the low upgrade game.

This is the current favourite around here and the closest to “pure” early 1st ed X Wing and first trilogy Star Wars. Squads are 60-120 points and generally kept to theme as much as possible (scenarios are preferred).

• 21 different ships (no duplicates across factions), giving each faction it’s relevant representative(s) of the Interceptor, Fighter, Multi-role/Ordnance platform, Support and Brute roles.

• The Rebels get the A/B/X and Y wings, YT1300, YT2400 and HWK-290. The A-Wing, is king of speed, the B Wing is the only small ship with Systems and Droid/Pilot/Crew team work synergies are strong.

• The Empire get the Tie Interceptor/Fighter/Advanced/Aggressor and Bomber and for bigs, the Lambda and Decimator. The Interceptor is the manoeuvre king, The Decimator is the brutiest brute.

• The Scum get the Head Hunter, Star Viper, Kihraxz, Scurrg, YV-666, FS-31, and JM 5000. The Scum boast the S-Loop and Talon Roll with lots of Illicit tricks., living up to their “slippery” reputation.

• Basic 5 action ships only with stress as the only real negative effect (apart from damage).

• Basic upgrades including relevant Crew (see ships and effects), basic ordnance (no special effects like Ion, Tractor etc), Illicit (no cloak, or EMP devices), Droid (no TFA, Flight Assist or Targeting) and limited Systems.

• All Turrets are limited to R1-2 and no R1 bonus with does much to curb their strength and add some tactics to their deployment.

This is a pretty sparse environment for Actions (3 native Boosts, 5 Evades and even Barrel Rolls are a little thin on the ground), but the ships and pilots with them stand out from the pack, as they should. Action economy rarely goes past 2 layers and effects are kept simple (no Ion, Tractor, Cloak, Jam etc). Pilots are the real heroes, offering the bulk of the “exceptions”, which I love. The idea is to offer a new player (or jaded veteran) enough to create a varied squad, but without overwhelming options. They then fly their squads within the synergies available. The original Star Wars feel is kept intact (with a few ringers from the Expanded Universe).

Basic Bare Bones

This is the original “Bare Bones” format. The balance of ships are added within the same limitations as above, but a few more upgrades and effects are introduced.

• The Rebels gain the Z95, VCX-100, ARC-170, E Wing and Attack Shuttle as well as the Crew that come with them (the “Rebels”) and the Y Wing may now take Bomb Load-out. This increases the Rebel offering considerably and adds some new combinations (Droid-Crew, Droid-Systems, Crew-Systems), plus 2 Rolls and 3 Evades.

• The Empire gains the Tie Punisher, Prototype and Defender. System and Cannon slots are now available on non-large base ships. The Tie Advanced can take Advanced Targeting Comp (only and at 5 pts). The Empire get a couple of Systems options and the only ship with a white K-Turn.

• The Scum get the Fang, GA-1, Aggressor, Y Wing, HWK-290 and Scyk. Scum now have Droids and more Crew. Nym can swap out “Genius” for his Crew slot. The Scum get the most ships and the most variety, which add several manoeuvre actions, a line ship with Salvaged Droids and a Crew-Illicit-Systems build.

• Ion weapons are now in and the twitchy Illicit Cloaking upgrade, but still no other effects like Jam etc.

• Rebel and Imperial squads may optionally take up to 1/3rd of squad points as Scum mercs, bounty hunters etc., but in factions only, with the Empire choosing first and scum may only maix two factions as allies, but may have as many mercs as they want.

This is much the same as Skeleton Crew, but with about double the options. The main restrictions are still the 5 core Actions (although more ships on balance now have them) and limiting of most of the more complicated effects. For example the Rebels go from 2 Rolls and 1 Evade, to 4 and 4 respectively anf Y Wings get Ion Turrets.

Expanded Bare Bones

This is nearly “full noise” 1e X Wing and can feel close enough to it (for better or worse). The only elements missing are EPT’s, generic Titles and Mods, which may seem like a lot, but with named ship Titles, all Actions and some selected Huge ships included, it increases the options enormously without going into late 1e action economy or balancing pain.

• The Rebels get the U and K Wings, Sabine’s Tie, the Sheathipede, GR-75 transport and Auzituck with the upgrades that go with them (no TFA period).

• The Empire gets the Tie Striker, Reaper, Phantom and Gozanti, again with relevant mods. The Empire can now access the S-Loop on two ships.

• The Scum gain the Lancer, Kimogila and C-Roc.

• Huge ships are kept to the three single card models and get Titles, Hard-points, Crew, Teams and Cargo (but no Mods).

• All named Titles are included, but no generic ones. This gives the legendary ships their full capabilities outside of mods, in effect making them even better by contrast and the Huge ships get their pilot equivalent.

• All effects and their upgrades/Actions are now included like Jam, Reload, Cloak, Reinforce etc and all Ordnance get a go.

• Still no EPT’s or Mods, which keeps the ships and pilots pure and curbs action economy layering.

Close to full 1e, but avoiding the things that can so easily break it. Players now have a greater sense of variety and control, special ships are special and the bag of tricks is vastly expanded. Action economy spread is similar to Bare Bones, just with more available.

Nasty at the best of times, but in “Fight Club” they get fully nasty.

Fight Club

This takes a very different tangent and is greatly expanded from the above versions. This is the “all you can eat” 1e, warts and all for those who find it hard to let go of their favourite aces with full empowerment. The control comes from limiting the ship options to four factional representatives (Interceptor, line work horse, superiority and wildcard).

• The Empire get the Tie Advanced (X1), Tie Defender (D or X7), Tie Interceptor (Guard option) and Tie Fighter, all now with EPT’s and Mods. Manoeuvre is still the Imperial “thing”, but the X1 opens up Systems and all ships are substantially better than in any form of above.

• The Rebels get the X Wing (S-Foils included as a free “configuration” mod and the Renegade Refit option), A Wing (Test Pilot and Chardaan), B Wing (no E2 option to exclude Crew entirely) and the E Wing, with all possible Droids as their edge.

• The Scum can field the Kihraxz (Vaksai), Star Viper (mk2 and Virago), Fang Fighter (Concord Dawn Protectorate) and the M3 Scyk (all three configurations). They have Illicit and exotic manoeuvres as their edge.

• All upgrades that these ships can take are available, with some minor factional limitations for flavour.

• Squads are limited to 60pts, which helps keep the madness in check, but still allows 5 basic Tie or Lt Scyk fighters, 4 Chardaan A Wings and 3 Cartel Kihraxz, or Refit X Wings and at least 2 of the rest (making sense of all of their late game point cost cuts).

Action economy reaps the greatest benefit here, opening the door to the best of the late game madness, but the limited choice of ships and smaller squads help keep things in check to some extent. A “perpetual” roster of pilots is used (once “killed” they can no longer be used until the whole thing is re-set, basically when everyone has had a go) and the winning squad has to face off against the next challenger unchanged, but may be swapped out if they win a second time. This allows for a better counter build.

Second Edition

So, you want to play with all the options on all of the ships?

Do your self a favour and go to 2nd Ed. Lets be clear, 1e with no restrictions on upgrades is fundamentally broken. The late game 1e band-aid measures do not fix the core issues, especially in competition games. These go back to the earlier game evolving well past its built-in restraints.

EPT’s, secondary weapons, titles, mods and others are all heavily rationalised in 2e, with much of the later meta integrated into the ships effectively removing the worst EPT and Title offenders. It is overall a better game, if deeper and with more moving parts. The strength of 2e is the ships and pilots, who are ascendant again, upgrades are supplements only, not ship defining. It’s back to you flying well, not necessarily building better based on known winning combos.

I like it, but have to admit, with no point values printed, regularly changing values, the 200pt squad and the depth of each ship alone, even without upgrades, 2e has not yet allowed me to unleash my enthusiasm fully. The clean simplicity of 1e still calls, just heavily re-cleaned.

Flight School allows players to experience the full range of, manoeuvres, pilot skills and the yin-yang of ship types.

Skeleton Crew is all about squad and pilot synergy and player flying skill, with upgrades adding variety, but not effecting that base line greatly. It hopefully captures the feel of the original movies (with extras).

Bare Bones slightly expands that by adding Ion weapons and more ships and pilots. Otherwise the Keep It Simple Stupid approach of above is intact.

Expanded starts to creep into 1e full noise, but is still restrained in the most important game defining area, Action economy. The main changes come from added Action options and ship Titles (named only).

Fight Club is the 1e, no holds barred version with the major exception of the number of ships included. It is a little bit of self indulgent retrospective madness, focussing on the ships that benefitted most, effectively playing them as their later 2e versions.

The later game meta became Action economy obsessed. The game is one of positioning and Actions, but that can come in too many layers. Skeleton Crew has one layer with exceptions, BB has a few layers, Expanded has many more, Fight Club the most, but the shackles are never completely released. The difference is in play style, feel and player pay-in.

Experienced 1e tournament players often had a very short list at any one time of the winning combinations (it changed regularly as new products and resulting nerfs came out), often meaning tournaments had the same pilots and squads playing off against each other and these were most often not the ships (or pilots) we all know and love, nor did they fundamentally make much sense.

The Future Guided By The Past

When I got into Armada, it was, I felt, for two good reasons (maybe justifications is closer, but bare with me).

First, it allowed me to enter the “Prequel” Star Wars story stream in a cheaper and more comprehensive fashion than through X Wing (I felt at the time).

Secondly, it allowed a “contained” route into Armada, offering a new game and style of play but a limited upgrade path (again, at the time).

Both good, sensible reasons. A sound plan.

Logic rules.

Of course I know me, but I forget what I know about me.

I often manage that it seems.

Armada grew into a more “comprehensive” build, now boasting (ah, he boasts, the sad fool!) two almost complete and well balanced Imperial and Rebel fleets as well as two (much smaller now) Separatist and Republic ones.

A small showing by comparison to my later period fleets, but still a full game with options. I kept some clear bases for this mat, a Deep Cut 4x4 Orbital, the rest are space black.

Here is the rub.

Asmodee have unofficially scrapped future Armada releases with quite a lot still missing from the prequel period and no mention of TFA period ships, so even if I wanted to continue my prequel fleets, there is no more variety I can add (2 more starters maybe for depth?). On one hand going into the main period now makes more sense, but………

If I had actually just bought the prequel X Wing fleets, I would be done by now and at half the cost and have the ships that will never now come to Armada.

Lesson to be learned here and one I often preach, is to aim for where you are going to go and go there only. Go straight, do not take a circuitous route, because you will only end up diluting the process, spending more (time/money) and end up there anyway.

Three times this has cost me big time;

1. Buying Old School Tactical and several games from the Lock N Load Tactical series instead of Heroes of Normandie, which I now have a full collection of. It took longer and cost more and LnL and OST fell away in the mean time as it was too large a commitment on top of so many other choices. I did also dabble in Combat Commander, which I will keep, but LnL and OST it turned out, were a wonderful waste of resources for me.

2. Buying Star Trek Attack Wing instead of X Wing, then going into X Wing anyway during the 1e>2e transition period. This doubly hurt, because I actually prefer 1e, but largely missed that boat as well. Attack Wing is fine, but not the same intensity as X Wing (and the models are not even in the same galaxy). I also have to remember that I have a lot of ADB stuff that covers 4 (!) different Star Trek games at once. X Wing 1e, with early movie fleets only would have done.

3. Buying into Armada prequel fleets to avoid prequel X Wing, then getting comprehensive fleets anyway, then regretting (with Asmodee’s current direction) going into the prequels at all. Armada main period fleets or no Armada and instead Prequel X Wing, both would have worked and cost considerably less.

Hindsight is not often a friend, but lessons can be learned. Main one is to call enough for now. I have more than I will ever play (Full collections of Sails of Glory, Wings of Glory WW1&2 and a huge Fed Commander list also), so now it is time to finish things and play more, not continue to collect.

As for blogging, there is much to explore and share.

My main aim is to finish my WW2 20mm rules that have been an on-again off-again project for many years now.

A Perfect Union?

After a seemingly endless wait (‘cos I clearly have the worlds troubles on my shoulders :) ), 13th Age Glorantha arrived yesterday and with some excitement, mixed with a little trepidation, I gave it a quick glance.

Glorantha is more than a little weird, a reality that had put me off it in the past. Initially I thought it was Bronze Age Greco-Persian influence, then maybe an Indo-Persian one, then American Indian-Persian, then Celtic….Persian?. It looks like it’s actually all that and more, so jumping in on the strength of the 13th Age window alone may seem strange.

13th Age is also a little weird in a kind of awesome way. It took the relatively ancient D&D rules set and, before 5e was even launched and offered us a play style that two of the designers of the game use to play their own games, which it turns out is quite different to the way they designed their “other” games (3e and 4e). It strips back, fleshes out and generally shakes up the old game, making it equal parts “old friend” and “new age” indie style game.

You know that feeling you get when you just want some of those annoying clunky rules mechanics to not be there anymore. Well they did just that and it works. House rules rule.

Join these two forces together with the style that 13th Age oozes (conversational designers notes and empowered creative license) and you have, for me, the perfect, possibly the only palatable launch platform into this particular gaming world.

Bonkers-gonzo weird meets bonkers-gonzo, a little over the top with a big smattering of “you can do it your way”.

My first inkling I was in for a good ride with this came quickly. Randomly opening the book I came across the Troll Warrior. That entry alone set the scene. Open, revealing, original and more than a little hilarious (these guys eat their own equipment, or friends even if pushed).

Broo, the original Beastmen. Love the pencil style drawings.

One of the things that makes 13A so accessible to me is the game refuses to take itself too seriously. I doubt I could take either D&D or Glorantha in a more serious, drier form after this.

This is the best of both worlds, creating a super-additive formula resulting in an opinionated, vibrant and flexible gaming experience.

Presentation is interesting. It looks like the book is done to the new standards of Chaosiums offerings, using semi gloss pages of a slightly lighter weight than 13A’s standard high gloss and heavier than usual-weight and the font and layout make for a more mainstream looking product. It is likely closer to Call of Cthulhu 7e (I have not seen yet) or D&D 5e (that I had) than vanilla 13A, but the content is still light and open in mood.

The less tight looking 13A layout. No preference, just different.

The illustrations are mostly from the Chaosium Glorantha archive with a few by the standard 13A artists. All good and the cross-over is seamless.

The differences in presentation and feel are fine, helping set the scene for the two worlds. It is, if anything, a little denser, tighter and more mature looking.

My plans of lifting from this for my normal 13A campaign have possibly gone out the window, because to be honest I think I want to play this world as it is.

The Strangest Thing........

So, dogs.

Love ‘em to death.

They sometimes chew things. Sometimes a shoe (never the pair, just one of each), maybe the odd furniture corner, occasionally a John Sexton Book (not a favourite, but it turns out it would cost $300+ to replace!).

Scheming? Likely not.

Today Lucy, who in her defence has been given the odd X Wing and Armada counter surround to chew, was gifted two open doors to the mother load and decided to chew 7 (!) Armada ship tokens, which oddly named as they are, are the cardboard base panels for the ships (kinda mandatory for accurate play and you only get one!).

Butchers bill;

• Both ISD tokens pretty much munted, with warping, chunks missing and puncture marks all over.

• Onager, same but not as bad (stripped corner) I may cut it off or colour it in with black pen.

• Both Gozanti’s, my only Raider and my Munificent, were slightly damaged, but mostly whole.

• 1 stand, usable, but not pretty (plenty of these, although a medium, so less common).

Things were said.

Chance to count my blessings?

You bet.

The (currently) irreplaceable and far too expensive at the time Raider model and super fragile Munificent were both on the floor undamaged and at least another half dozen ships were within reach, but it was apparently only the cardboard she wanted.

Ok, so on the net I go. Not only is it nearly impossible to find any tokens, sans ship that is, but even getting an accurate, ship-less image I can print out seems impossible. Photoshop? Likely, but to be honest pushing my skill set.

Ring at the door.

Chimaera expansion arrives.

Enthusiasm a little reduced considering, but oh well, new toy.

I open the box, consoling myself that there is at least one presentable ISD base panel in my collection and one I can likely copy and PS.

Punching out the cardboard I spy another sheet with another base panel! This is the only time I have ever received 2 in a box. I assumed FFG decided you may want to upgrade more than one of your ISD’s to refits? I go tell my wife the good news and of course she arranged a parade, cancels disaster relief, arranges a press release etc :). Well, maybe not, but she was happy the mini disaster was partially averted.

I returned to my unpacking and lo-and-behold, there was a third! Go FFG. I now have all three ISD’s properly based even if I have to ignore some of the printed info. Just means I have to use the ship cards, not the bases, for basic ship info except for the much needed fire arcs, that are thankfully the same for all the ISD’s.

Not a big adjustment process and I guess FFG could even have designed them like that in another universe, so all good.

The rest of the bases are being pressed flat under some books, then maybe a slight trim if needed, but are otherwise not too bad. I paint my bases black, so if I trim the munted ones, then use a black marker to finish them off, they may look like I meant it.

From initial fears of an expensive and inconvenient (hobby based = minor) disaster, almost all was salvaged.

Weird how things work out, and they usually do.

More Armada

More Armada!

I felt that three CR-90’s would be fun and mixes up the 2/2/2 evenness of my small ship Rebel fleet, and because I like to keep a balance to things, a third Gladiator also.

“Wolf packs” comes to mind in both case, one a hit and run, the other a close quarters mauler.

Is it just me or does everyone get a little spend-happy in Spring?

I resisted the two MC-80’s, because I still struggle with their scaling and look. The Starhawk, Nebulon, MC-75 and Assault Frigate all share the hanging Jowls or cocktail sausage look the MC-80’s lack and are all in acceptable looking scale to each other. I also have the upgrade cards (Admirals etc), so nothing really missed.

The upgrade card pack is still the single best purchase for Armada. No matter your ships, you get the entire updated upgrade range in one go. Print out the ship cards from Cannotgetyourshipout or similar and proxy the ships and any fleet is possible.

I have also bought some more fighters, because I feel I need some “spares” for paint trialling. I am struggling. I want them to be much the same quality as the bigger ships, but that is vexing. I have felt a little stressed painting the ones I have, so some extras to practice some ideas on will help (and some more would be nice anyway).

The Other Skeleton Crew Killer Squads

Aces are Aces, god love ‘em. All speedy and lethal or tanky and….lethal (just lethal really), but in Skeleton Crew, an Ace only has so many edges to load up with.

The other killer squad is the humble base model deployed-en masse. The formula below is pretty simple. The offensive dice x ships - defensive points (agility + hull + shields) and Ordnance x ships (#)

Catch me if you can.

Rebel

Y Wings x5 10-45 5 Grey Sqd pilots with Autoblaster Turrets (10)

Y Wings x5 10-45 5 Gold Squadron Pilots

X Wings x4 12-28 Rookies + a HWK 1-6 Rebel Operative blocker

B Wings x3 9-27 Blue Sq Pilots + A Wings x2 4-14 Prototype Pilots

A Wings x5 10-35 with Proton Rockets (25) Prototype Pilots.

Imperial

Interceptors x5 15-30 5 Avenger Sq Pilots or 4 Alphas and Carnor or 2 Alphas and 3 Sabres

Tie Fighters x8 16-40 Academy pilots with a Black Sq or an Ace of some sort

Bombers x3 6-24 3 Scimitars with Plasma Torps (9) and Seismic charges (*) + Aggressors x2 4-14 Seinar with Dorsal Turrets (4-6)

Aggressors x5 10-35 Sienar Specialists, Dorsal Turrets or 2 Onyx Escorts + 3 Sienar, Unguided Rockets (6).

Obviously, with so many cheap Tie’s the Empire can mix this up quite a bit.

Scum

Kihraxz x5 15-35 Cartel Marauders.

Star Viper x3 9-24 Blacksun Enforcers + Head Hunters x2 4-12 Blacksun Soldier, Binayre Pirate.

Head Hunter x8 16-48 Binayre Pirates with 4 points of Illicit or Missile upgrades sprinkled through them.

Scurrg Bomber x4 12-44 Karthakk Pirates Bomblet Generator and Bombardier for 1.

Headhunters make great fillers for most squads.

Anyway, you get the idea, the swarm is back!

D&D 5e And "The Second Wave" OF D20 Expansionism

A few years a go, well maybe more than that, but time does fly, WoTC (I think it was at the time) gave us the d20 D&D open licence. This allowed any game to be adapted to the basic parameters of ubiquitous D&D 3e rules.

It was a clever move, empowering smaller companies to release new systems (Pathfinder, Conan) or duplicate existing games (Traveller, Call of Cthulhu), or just pay into the bigger 3e monster with support materiel and help keep d20 as the dominant RPG form. Even some fully realised core game systems came out with a d20 version (GURPS), further empowering their own demise (GURPS).

Win-win?

I , like many at the time did pay into the insurmountable wave of content, heavily. My general dislike for the d20 game is well documented here, based on some valid issues dating back to the dawn of RPG’s as we know them, but sometimes the offering was just too tempting for a rampant collector with little control. Most of it is gone now (Iron Heroes a 3e murmur of the yet unreleased 13A style of “Epic” game is the exception, not sure why!?).

Many of the ones I wanted to like were the poorest iterations of the system, some fatally flawed (see Iron Heroes above), but the massive community presence acted as a buoy for any doubters. That is until D&D moved on, leaving most of us in a sort of developmental limbo, only exacerbated by the complete re-build each iteration of D&D seems to require (another reason I like d100 games-consistency of basic principals).

So, to the heading above.

We are seeing the dawn of a second wave of shared d20 mechanics, through multiple sources, but in a more controlled, mature and logical way.

5e, even from the perspective of a confirmed disliker (recently traded my core books for some X Wing ships), is far better than the versions that came before. The system is clean, well balanced (for D&D, in its own unique way) and closer to a realistic gaming experience than maybe any except 3e with the 6th level limit option (called E6, a genuine thing for a while).

I have a foot in here in the form of Adventures in Middle Earth, which marries the oldest RPG to one of the pillars of RPG inspiration and I like it. The original system (The One Ring) is elegant, innovative and very thematically pure, but it is a little “rail-roady” for my liking. It forces you to play the way the designers feel you should in this creative space, but leaves too little room for a more open play style.

AIME is, I feel, superior for two reasons.

Firstly it is more cohesive as a realised system. Coming out second, it did not suffer the continuity issues of two core sets and the need for a follow up “Players Companion” to complete the game.

Secondly, it avoids the railroading issues of the original by applying the principals of The One Ring to the more generic 5e system, meeting it basically half way and championing the best of both. 5e is better (for me) for the elements added and for those omitted. AIME is all the better for the versatility 5e adds. You should play as the feel of the game empowers you to, but within that, the systems and processes are less of an imperative, more of a solid, thematic frame work.

You actually cannot stray too far from the source materiel unless you deliberately introduce foreign elements, like D&D Magic users etc, which is of course, entirely your call, but one would have to ask why you bought AIME at all. Another cool element of this is all you need for AIME is the “How to play” chapter of the free 5e starter guide. Everything else is covered by the new system.

This brings us to the topic of the post…finally :).

Two of my favourite worlds are going to be “5e’d”.

Symbaroum, a world I find fascinating and compelling and The Iron Kingdoms (one of the ones that also got the earlier 3e treatment). The publishers of Symbaroum are also going to release TOR and AIME in second editions , further adding to my vexations.

This means I can re-delve into these worlds in a more mainstream way than their own systems offer and further empower a more palatable version of 5e (for me). Less system crunch, fewer hats to wear and some little issues like miniatures or clunky mechanics are avoided.

But………

I have some massive and quite new tomes for IK and they are compatible with the actual war game (2nd ed) which I also have, including far too many minis.

Symbaroum is tougher. The second ed rules are out, but I actually think I would rather take some inspiration from the Martin Grip art in particular and do a d100 Legend/Mythras version anyway. The magic systems from Mythras, Animism in particular seems ideal for an ancient Fey meets a hard, soulless civilisation style game.

So, what was the question again?

If I am reducing my RPG’s not adding to them, is there a valid argument to sell off sizeable, often reasonably new systems to replace them with the same-but-different 5e version? This is really just to rationalise my learning/teaching curve to only d20 and d100 systems. Further, is it a good thing to take away the available versatility of different systems, each with their own virtues? Iron Kingdoms in particular is directly tied/fully compatible with, second edition Warmachine and Hordes, a game that I also own in some quantity.

Following on from that thought, the original systems (TOR, IK etc) were the original brainchildren of the designers, the 5e clones are really just their “make more money and increases the company profile” alternate faces, no matter how good they are.

Boiling it down; Do I chase completion, simplicity and these new, pretty books or allow my own pre-stated desire to work within a more “home-spun” creative world of d100 games actually take hold? This is probably a test delivered at the right time. Making a compelling world is after all, the hobby behind the hobby for many role players. In reality, browsing some art on the net often gets the creative juices flowing more than reading an entire system front to back.

The Logic Of Stripping A Game Back Down To Its Roots

I have written far too much on the subject of Bare Bones X Wing or similar, but there is a reason for that.

It is something I do feel strongly about and here are a few reasons that I think rationalise this desire to strip back the games I love.

Sometimes, even Legends have to be sidelined for a cleaner experience.

Story fidelity.

I like to simulate what I see in the source material, to connect with the thing that got me interested in the first place. I do like sandbox style games, in fact with historical minis, I tend towards “representative” forces and original scenarios, within a tight historical context. In other words, I don’t do Gettysburg, but I like to simulate small parts with similar scenarios. With that in mind, these “representative” forces are accurate and used thematically. X Wing, Armada etc are the same for me in that I want forces that make sense, playing out scenarios that….well, make sense.

I also believe in the empowerment of a simulation to allow the possibility of sequence of events that mimic the original story, but also allow for other, equally compelling outcomes. As with above, I dislike railroading play into mimicking preconceived or limited results.

So, simulate reality, worts and all.

A game is either a game in its own right or a simulation, but the typical game, working within set parameters rarely does both well.

Take for example X Wing 1e (the case in point). I feel the designers did a very good job of creating a simulation of space combat, with a nice Star Wars style. You have a ship, beautifully presented and in its basic form, pretty much on the money capabilities wise, especially in comparison to the other ships represented by the game. It looks right, feels right and takes me tho the place I want to go.

Then you have a pilot, with a relative pilot skill level and if a character, an ability that is again pretty much spot on with my take on the pilots role in the universe, expressed in game terms (as far as it can). Vader gets two actions and Luke defends better naturally, both abilities grant “Force” like abilities in game terms and I feel, pretty accurately to story precedents.

Upgrades like a Droid and some Ordnance all fit perfectly in both relevance and application, just like in the movies. R2-D2 can repair your shields, which again, within the limits of game mechanics makes him relatively powerful and relevant and in context to his movie role.

Simulation successful.

Now you add the ability to give the hero of the story another ability that they did not necessarily have or worse, one that a main character has natively, but is now potentially given to any other character in the game with an EPT slot. Some are harmless, even logical, so they could have been absorbed into the above (Deadeye for Luke for example), others are at odds with the simulation, being made purely for game play.

Next are Modification upgrades. Mods do what EPT’s do, making a ship better than it was originally depicted. Just like EPT’s a unique feature of a ship is now open to any and all (within limits), diluting the relevance of that ship and it’s role. Want a full action bar? A well chosen EPT and Mod may be able to provide. What makes an Interceptor special, if it can be matched by a lesser modified ship. Sure the Interceptor can take a mod, but that is where the problems lay. Everything raises a notch, so allowances are made to make dis-empowered ships better again, and the cycle continues. If the core ship is left alone, the game plays in a balanced way, sticks to story fidelity and is easier to grasp for the majority of players.

As X Wing grew, new ideas emerged and FFG applied what options they had to try to retro fit them in like class based Titles where a base ship is permanently “upgraded”, fundamentally changing it for game balance alone. Who would fly a Tie Advanced without X1 Title or a mark 1 Star Viper? In 2e, most of these changes were fully integrated, proving that they were needed, but also that they were jammed into 1e..

The X Wing itself was the major beneficiary with several Droid, Mod and Title options opened up to it by the end of the games run.

The Tie Interceptor, king of jinking by contrast lost its uniqueness, as it can now be matched by lesser ships with the right upgrades. Sometimes things that a pilot and ship already champion are exaggerated even more by adding more of the same as if the basic concept is lost on us (Concord Dawn, Lone Wolf).

For a game, this is all fine. It adds in the tactical sub-game that is squad building. As a simulation, it takes too much artistic license and puts it in the players hands. No harm done, after all it is a game, but for me desiring a simulation, it has now gone past that into the realm of “what if”.

As the game grows, as all competitive enterprises do, more and more options/balances/mitigations are introduced, stretching the known into the unknown (for many of us) and sometimes even to the purely speculative. This then snow balls with more and more combinations creating an environment that not only shifts away from the simulation roots of the original, but starts to lose all resemblance to its own original form.

By wave 10+ of X Wing 1e, the ships worth flying were not the ones you signed up for at the start.

Does this matter?

That is up to you. If it bothers you, then fix it or move on. If not then business as usual I guess.

For me, a late comer to the game, I felt I had arrived not when the car came off the production line, nor even after a few mods and different models had been produced. I felt I arrived when the original car had been relegated to the “pimp my ride” or die category, or dumped all together.

I wanted to fly Luke with R2, in an X Wing and not be blasted off the table. I could always play him of course, but cutting through the chaff required to get back to the core of the game (to give him a chance) became a hobby in itself. Bare Bones, Skeleton Crew and all of the other cut-back version that have been created, have done nothing to the game except shift the expectations of realistic play back to a place closer to the original designers’ intent.

I cannot help but feel they (the designers) would approve on some level. You constantly see in their designs, attempts to accurately represent the story, only to have their intent trashed by the tournament circuit. Ships, upgrades and pilots are pressed into service as a kind of Frankenstein’s monster of tourney winning combinations.

A part of me wishes the designers had made the game deeper and more flexible (separate Pilots for one, Droids with multiple capabilities etc), so they could stick closer to the original offerings, but allow more options within that range. I love the game, but feel saddened and slightly repelled by the competitive circuit and its complete of lack of care for the provenance of the materiel (2e is making real efforts to empower all ships equally).

If this was the only form of the game available to me I would either be the guy that always comes last, playing “straight” squads made up of logical pilot and ship combinations or I would more likely have dropped away or abstained long ago.

Stripped down X Wing 1e saved me.

This is not the only system I like a little plainer.

Armada has so far been played without Titles. All other mods make sense to me, but Titles are more a representation, an indication of where a good ship could/will get, not where it should be. I would prefer a ship grow a reputation, not be gifted one.

More Fun With X Wing 1e Experiments

I recently started to teach a friend X Wing 1e, a non gamer but self described “Star Wars Fan Adjacent” type. She insisted on making her own squad from the get go, but even Skeleton Crew was a bit much to start with.

Just a token image to remind myself I need to take some fresh ones.

The parameters were just too wide with 21 different ships and 80 odd pilots to chose from. I put the ships alone in front of her and she quickly succumbed to analysis paralysis.

I could have supplied a squad list, but that was really not what she wanted.

She wanted choice and control.

So, what to do?

Welcome “Flight School”, a further reduced game, but one with enough to (1) show the basics of squad building and basic game play and (2) show the factional differences, strengths and benefits.

The Basics;

• Each faction has 3 iconic, faction defining ships on offer.

• Squads are 60 points maximum.

• Most other “complications” are overcome simply by being removed.

The Empire gets the Tie Fighter, Tie Interceptor and Tie Advanced. Their upgrade options are limited to Missiles only for the Advanced. Their strengths are pilot choice (31), with the most aces* (10), the best range of manoeuvres, combined with the option of fielding sheer numbers. All their ships have Agility 3, Evade, Roll and speed 5, but they have the only two ships with no Shields or TL.

The Empire will teach you to fly aggressively.

The Rebels get the A, B and X Wings. This gives them the widest range of upgrades with System, Cannon, Droid, Torpedo, Missile and all their ships have at least one Ordnance option. The points structure of the Rebels helps a little here to. They have plenty of ships with points to burn. The Rebels have 8 aces* over 22 pilots(the middle ground) and the strongest Shields of the three factions, so they are physically robust. For manoeuvring, the are a mixed bag. The A Wing is a star, the X Wing workman-like and the B Wing, a bit of a close quarters wild card.

The Rebels will teach you the value of team work.

The Scum (Black Sun Cartel) get the Star Viper, Kihraxz and Z95 Head Hunter. Their edge is the Illicit slot, available on more than half their ships, with all ships capable of taking either Missiles or Torps for hitting power. They have the smallest choice of pilots (16), with only 4 aces*, tend to favour a less efficient Hull over Shields ratio and top out at speed 4. They do tend to have well priced ships/pilots and the exclusive S-Loop and Talon Roll.

The Scum will teach you to be unpredictable (and maybe a little mean).

Upgrades are limited to a good solid range;

Illicit (6) Z95, Kihraxz; Slicer Tools, Contraband Cybernetics, Glitterstim, Hotshot Blaster, Inertial Dampeners, Deadman’s Switch.

Droids (13) X Wing; All except FAA, Targeting, TFA period or R2-D6.

Systems (5) B Wing; FCS, Advanced Sensors, Collision Detector, Accuracy Corrector, Thrust Corrector.

Missiles (6) A Wing, Adv, Kihraxz, Z 95; Concussion, Cluster, Assault, Proton, Cruise, Homing.

Torpedoes (3) X/B Wing, Viper; Plasma, Proton, Adv. Proton.

Cannon (2) B Wing; Heavy Laser, Autoblaster.

So, we have 9 ships with 47 unique pilot talents representing pretty much every rule exception type in the game and all common actions and manoeuvres are available to one faction at least. Each faction gets their flavour fully evolved (Droids, Illicit’s, Manoeuvres) and the most common Ordnance is represented.

I have played with the idea of adding the E Wing, Fang Fighter and Defender, especially as they miss out in Skeleton Crew, but that is probably best kept for later.

*An ace is any pilot with PS 7+

Armada Fleet Composition And Applications; Rebels

Three ships arrived today (2 to come), including the massive Nadiri Starhawk. I like it even more than I thought I would! Even though it is bigger looking than an ISD, the Imperials retain their menace through predatory looks in serious numbers (3 ISD’s and one Onager). The Starhawk, is almost like “The Swede” in Heartbreak Ridge. Big, impressive and seemingly unstoppable….

What a hassle. First I had to take a shuttle from the surface to a waiting Neb, then the interminable trip to the monster itself, then paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. Hope she is worth it, oh and the running costs!

Ok, so looking at my Rebel fleet, where am I now? This is based on what I have researched so far ‘cos I have not played Armada enough at all yet. I am not going to go into detail, because to be honest I don’t know enough about these ships, but the handful of good blogs out there are more than helpful (you know who you are). Please note, the only upgrades I am not using (yet), for reasons eluded to previously are the Titles. I think a ship should earn a reputation and learn it’s own tricks, not be gifted them.

Extra Large Ships

Starhawk; This is the campaign closer, the turning of the tide or arrival of the great hope. Apparently it can be awesome, or it can be expensive scrap depending on many factors. It has lots of resilience and plenty of punch, but it is a whale of a thing and the least responsive ship in the game. It looks like a giant Nebulon-B and acts a little like one. A bigger hammer without an anvil? All your eggs in one giant basket? Maybe a bit of both, but the promise of a bit of sweet revenge may be possible for all of those David vs Goliath fights you had to go through to get here.

Large Ships

MC-75; This was for me a logical choice as the line/flag ship and it looks like it may be just that. I like the look of it (scales better for me than the other big Rebel ships) and has that odd cigar shape with bits attached that many Rebel ships have (kinda like a Prosciutto wrapped sausage with tooth pick through it-to be kind). On the table, it is a true all rounder, but has no defined specialty. Ordnance platform, carrier, tank, gunship, command ship, raider, it can be built for any of these roles.

Medium Ships

Assault Frigate; The AF is the tough little “mini Home One” broadside specialist with the same shields as an ISD, but half the hull. It is a good backbone/flag/support ship for a small raiding fleet or as a flank guard for something bigger. This was going to be my token “big” in the Rebel fleet, but it felt a little one dimensional.

Big Small Ships

Nebulon-B (2); The rifleman of the fleet, the Neb is all good to the front at range, but not much good at any other facing, or in close. Every fleet can find a use for one or more, just support it and use it properly.

MC-30; This mean little ship is a favourite. Like the A/F it is a flank specialist, but unlike the A/F it likes to get in close. I see this as the point of a fast strike force spearhead. I like the scout version best.

Pelta; I like this ship, but few review it well. It needs a Title to be anything and I won’t give it that buff at this point, so I will field it just for the Fleet Command slot. If well positioned in a battle fleet, maybe as a reserve/escort brawler, fighter coordinator and small fleet command it may come in handy, or optionally just to add a tanky rear guard for a raiding fleet. This thing is versatile and can be useful, but it can also be an overpriced under performer, a bit like the Victory SD. For a scenario or campaign player, it is a needed ship. In competition it would likely not be as efficient.

Small Ships

CR-90 (3); Possibly the best ship in the game point for point and one of the easiest to fly, the CR-90 is a good sniper, flanker or raider. Each fleet should have one, but as I have 3 and so much to do, there will have to be some prioritising.

Hammerhead (4): With Titles available, these work best in groups, but without them, I think the Torpedo model will be most used, likely still in a pair or three, possibly with the MC-30, as the “bulk” of a raiding or strike force or as flanking surprise strikers in a main battle fleet. I am guessing that one of their main weapons is being ignored, until it’s too late.

Transports (3-6); These will be used both as scenario objectives and for fleet support and fighter control. They are also pegged for an escape from Hoth scenario.

Fighters

Fighters (lots); These are the reason I got into Armada. Odd? The reality is, in the movies the capitol ships are just the backdrop. Plenty of heavy lifting is done by the fighters, who can take out anything on the table if not countered. These include of course the little big ships like the Falcon or Scurrg. Squadrons are dangerous and will often decide things. The Rebels are also more than capable of running them well, be it through Transports, a Pelta Command or any other decent sized ship. Probably the biggest differentiator between the two factions (in my fleets) is the ability to control fighters.

Sans fighters, a rag-tag mob with purpose. Two more Hammerheads have been ordered after my Dogtastrophe forced me to hunt down another medium base (a Victory) and I stumbled on these at the same time.

Role Playing Rationalisations And Realities

Recently, I decided to switch my limited Roleplaying to d100 system games (various) only.

Ebay was tasked with selling my comprehensive collection of 13th Age, Warmachine, Savage Worlds and several other systems.

Ebay failed, mostly because I was not willing to ship the weighty books or split any sets. The pricing was fair (about 30% of new, for near new/mint condition), but the market is small in my part of the world and I am not part of a large or active group.

So, apart from some groaning shelves, what do I have?

13th Age is one of those games that comes and goes with me. If someone said “I would like to try D & D” or a fantasy role playing game in general, or if I just want a fix of level/d20/class based gaming, I would happily put it forward as a player and GM friendly option of the old warhorse. With its happy blend of old and new ideas. This one is a keeper for when the mood arises, it is also a good read, very stimulating and fun and is up to this point, complete (more books looming). The pending 13G (Glorantha) is also a perfect fit for this game. OTT enough for Glorantha, but also light and flexible enough for me to dip my toe.

Warmachine RPG is problematic. I like the system, but struggle with the strong push for using miniatures. Ironically, I have those miniatures (just not the inclination to paint them) and can always make do without as others have said they have. I have a vast collection of Warmachine the table top game, but it is my “guilt” system, sitting, mostly unused and unpainted and is now an edition out of date, but maybe one day…….

Savage Worlds is excess to my needs and fallen well out of favour. I have long ago grown tired of it’s ideas and sick of waiting for the new books to be released, many replacing the ones I have already, but thats the way of things. This is one of those heart breakers. It never really grabbed me and when it did, something always came along to block me. To me it is the “anti d100” system, geometrically opposed to my ideal game.

AIME, as a more palatable application of D&D 5e and may be re-adopted with the new version coming from a new publisher, or left as a one off, near complete with plenty to work with.

The marriage of the latest version of the oldest RPG in the world and the pillar fiction work that inspired it in the first place. This is likely going to be replaced by a second edition with new “edgy” art and feel, but will likely be fully compatible. For me, now, this one will do. I do not have all that made publication, but I do have two full campaigns and several support works. Tons to go on with.

The One Ring. Love it, may never use it. I like AIME as a game more (?!) as I find it less formulaic, but still find it hard to part with simply for it’s beauty. My feeling is, the materiel will be used as the base for a d100 game. The eye candy, story lines and character gen system are a good guide for a d100 system (probably Legend, maybe Mythras).

Much of the art and the adventures are identical to AIME and the system is very intent on policing the intent, even railroading play to an extent, and the rules are less cohesive than the later AIME system, so overall probably not my first choice, but lush aren’t they.

Traveller (Mongoose 1/2e). I really think that this is going to be pushed aside by several excellent d100 games (M-Space, Frontier Space etc).

Now for d100 games.

Mythras/Legend System is the future for many d100 paths. Really looking forward to the new Destined for supers, which I think fit it’s focus perfectly. Seasons of Death for post apocalyptic, M-Space, most historical, especially the Imperative based systems are all good tools. Each book I add, provides layers to a robust and consistent generic system. It does not fit every theme or mood, when it does, it really does.

BRP is more of a retro-low immersion version of the above, allowing more themes to be explored and lighter systems to be applied. Lots to like, lots to mine and still my go to for many games, but Mythras is generally considered the “new age” version of the same ideas. Simply put, if I want the character centric granularity of hit locations etc, then Mythras, if not, then BRP.

DwD or D00 lite is a good outlier and does what it does well. Really like The Art of Wuxia and the ability to cross-pollinate the systems.

OpenQuest is light Legend, but I feel it is also a valid d100 different system option. OQ3 has gone in a good direction for me mechanically and artistically and has a couple of the elements I like from classic RuneQuest, without the weighty legacy (Ducks!). This family of games also includes the Clockwork series by Cakebread and Walton, a favourite since release.

Warhammer 4e is a great looking system let down by some rules ambiguity, so as much as I intend to use it in some form, I will play it with a modified (simplified) systems and an open mind (hypocritical of me not to).

Warhammer 1e, worts and all is a great retro game with even more character than the new version, so it maybe it will get a go also.

Supers games are a tough area for me generally. I once trie to get all I could, and collected plenty, but the reality is, I really only like street level, supernatural, gritty and realistic themes (Batman, Dare Devil etc), so the more four coloured systems have never really appealed. Destined, Super World and other d100 games fit this well (the BGB alone can handle it), as does the d10 based Wild Talents, so most of my other games, except Hero system 3e and DC Heroes have been moved on (this was one area Savage Worlds had a small window, but only because it handles this power level better than high ones and meshed Sci Fi in well).

Skeleton Crew; Who Rules This Space

Ok, who are the real killers and likely survivors in this tight format?

All things are relative, but better does still float to the top, without, in this form of the game, becoming effectively untouchable. Soontir is the top flyer, but without Mods (Auto Thrusters, Stealth Device), Title (Royal Tie) and EPT’s (PTL), he can still be tagged by anyone. With fewer mods and ship choices, the player has to look more at the squad synergies available. With more points to spend, players may well find some workable combos that rarely see table time now.

Wedge. PS 9 and the powerful ability to strip a target of 1 Agility. He has Torpedoes for the killer blow and can take a Droid (R2-D2/F2 or R7-T1). With few mitigating options for an opponent like Stealth Device, Auto Thrusters, Cloaking, Vectored Thrusters or an EPT, Wedge is a solid predator.

Wes. PS 8 and the ability to strip a token is almost as brutal as Wedge, if you already have Wedge that is.

Tycho. PS 8 and the ability to ignore stress. This only really means K-Turning with no penalty in this form of the game or ignoring some other combat effects like Mara, Tactician, some Ordnance. Great for delivering Prockets or Cruise Missiles on the flip.

Any B Wing Ace. PS 6-8, with Advanced Sensors or Fire Control Systems (unique in SC for a small ship), lots of Shields, double Torps, tight turns and all Pilots sporting a decent offensive buff. This is the Rebels best jouster, a true superiority fighter for the SC environment.

Han. PS 9. Top prize for tanky brute goes to Han with Assault or Cluster Missiles, C3-PO and Chewie for durability or Luke for offence.

Lando. PS 7 best support, goes to Lando with Nein and Leia or Han.

Jan. PS 8 Jan with Kyle can buff friends and loves the stress they take. Add TLT for some real bite. Optionally replace Kyle with Mercenary Co-Pilot or Tail Gunner for more Turret value.

Imperials

Darth Vader. PS 9 and 2 Actions. Add Missiles and he is the best at getting into position to use them or flipping out of trouble (the Dark Side of The Force is with him).

Soontir Fell. PS 9 and stress accrued comes with a bonus Focus. The best action bar in the game and some reward for pushing hard is a shadow of the full noise, maximum upgrade version in full 1e, but he was basically an un-killable monster, nearly a game breaking one. Palpatine in a shuttle or Decimator or a Systems/Fleet Officer can provide more power including the missing Lock.

Any other Interceptor Ace. PS 5-8, with the best action bar in this game and cheap for it. Add in Fleet Officer for support and they get free focus, or Systems Officer for a Lock making their Action bar complete.

Rr Admiral Chiraneau. PS 8, is a strong pilot for the toughest ship in this game. His ability re-empowers the nerfed Turret Primary and he generally fires first, so with 3 Crew slots to fill, he is a safe ride for Palpatine or others. Ysanne as an example adds an Evade option to this otherwise ponderous ship.

Cmdr Kenkirk. PS 6, to increase the life span for the Decimator, just add Ysanne, Mara Jade and/or Moff Jerjerrod (coincidentally the three crew in its expansion) to make it very tanky.

Villains

Talonbane Cobra. PS 9, 5d base attack at range 1 and 4d defence at range 3. Add Missiles (Homing, Assault or Cluster) for range 2 impact and an Illicit slot for real unpredictability (Inertial Dampeners, Hotshot Blaster or maybe Glitterstim). He can Yo-Yo in and out of range until he gets the job done and low the ordnance if caught in the middle ground.

Dengar. PS 9, with free counter attacks. The Jumpmaster is also the only Scum ship that can take a Salvaged Droid so it can counter attack, force defensive re-rolls, take all green 3 moves etc. Throw in a crew member like Intelligence Agent and it’s incredible dial can shine or Weapons Techs for its Torps.

Kath Scarlett. PS 7, with Tail Gunner makes fly-throughs lethal (4-5 attacking die, vs -1 Agility).

Boba Fett. PS 8, with attacking re-rolls if enemies are near. Add Tail Gunner, K4’s or Outlaw Tech, maybe Bossk for when you miss or Dengar for more re-rolls.

Guri. PS 5, armed with Advanced Proton Torps at range 1 is a handful and range 1 is always a possibility with the slipperiest dial in SC. Free Focus, Lock and another Focus.

Moralo Eval. PS 6 can use the Heavy Laser Cannon over a 90 degree arc, with Hotshot blaster, Dengar for re-rolls and Jabba to use the Hotshot again.

Bossk. PS 7, can also use the same Heavy Laser Cannon and add 2 hits for one (wasted) crit rolled with Dengar for re-rolls.

Some rules applied to this format.

• A squad should not be made up of more than 2 types of ship unless Scum.

• Squads will be from 60-120 points and have turn limit optionally applied.

• Rebel and Imperial squads may optionally have up to 1/3 of their points spent on a single Scum mercenary, as an ally or bounty hunter. Scum then Imperials pick first.

• Games should be based a scenario as often as possible.

• Primary Turrets are limited to range 1-2 and have no range mods.

Armada Growth Directions

Armada.

The gift that just keeps giving, or is that taking as my wallet just took another hit.

The monstrous Starhawk and a “balancing” ISD are on the way (not fully balanced, but I need room for the rare small Imperials). I am not sure if there are businesses getting jittery about stock or if I am just getting occasionally quite lucky, but the Starhawk was (relatively) dirt cheap and the ISD definitely fell within my acceptable range at the RRP of a VSD.

The ISD sits well with my thinking. I can now have two plain wrap ISD’s, as well as the Chimaera. Very “climactic final scene”.

So, I am an Armada 3 ISD fleet owner.

Big timer.

Go me……

The Starhawk? Just love the giant Nebulon-B vibe it has and obsessive me can now account for every possible upgrade card in the new update pack (except the ships I do not want or cannot get-yet).

The Starhawk gives the Rebels three very different dynamics;

• The rag-tag scrapper fleet taking on the big slow Imperial brutes (the original idea).

• The more balanced MC75/AF2 line fleet (Rogue One inspired) for face to face fights.

• The “tide turns” fleet (Starhawk led finishing fleet vs the Onager and multiple ISD’s).

So, the Rebels can now play underdog, go head to head or play roles reversed.

Over? Probably not, but that depends on the reprints AMG have promised (Imp Lt Cruiser, Raider).

Now I just need to use the holidays to paint my fighters.

Skeleton Crew Overview; Manoeuvring

Still looking at SC format and the range of tactical options available to the player.

The kings of dodge and weave in SC.

Movement, both by dial and the exceptions.

Rebels

The Rebels are a pretty sedate bunch except for the A Wing, which has the only green 5 in SC and Boost, making it the speed king of this game. Ok, lets face it, A Wing aside they are the most mundane faction to fly, with slim shafts of brightness in the YT 2400 and B Wing. No S-Loops, no Talon Rolls, few Rolls, one Boost and too many reds. Lets see if they have any other answers.

• Dash can ignore obstacles.

• Arvel may attack a bumped ship so coming in fast has its benefits.

• Dash (crew) can ignore obstacles (see a pattern here).

• Nien Nunb (crew) makes all straight moves green.

• Leia (crew) allows one turn of all red moves turned to white moves.

• R5-X3 can be discarded to avoid obstacles (yep, a real Rebel thing).

• R2’s can make 1 & 2 moves green, a popular choice for Y Wings.

Imperials

The Imperials main claim to fame is speed and manoeuvrability overall, then they add the odd other trick.

• Juno Eclipse can change speed after revealing.

• Tetran Cowell can choose one of 3 different K-Turn speeds.

• Captain Oicunn may damage a ship he bumps, making some use of the clumsy Decimator dial.

Scum

Scum have some real tricks here. They do not have the raw speed of the Imperials, but can access S-Loops and Talon Rolls, both exclusive to this faction. Outside of that, they boast a full gamut of movers and shakers from the sluggish YV to the surprisingly spry Jump Master. One trend common to Scum ships (Kihraxz, Scyk) are K-Turns that are actually faster than their straight top speed. We call this the Scum slide.

• Inertial Dampeners allow a single “0” move, the only full stop in SC.

• Jabba allows you to use Inertial Dampeners twice.

• Unhinged Mech makes speed 3 moves green.

Generics

• Navigator allows for a speed change on reveal.

• Intelligence Agent allows a peek at an opponents dial (I think it fits here).

• Collision Detector may avoid or mitigate the effects of obstacles.

• Cruise Missiles like to be launched fast.

Skeleton Crew Overview; Primary Stats

After looking at the Actions available to the Skeleton Crew factions, a couple of things are obvious.

First up, special is special.

• Pilot abilities pretty much cover all the missing EPT’s, but are of course unique and without EPT’s are without peer in this dynamic.

• As important, are ship capabilities not available to others such as rare, moves Actions or Upgrades. These are standouts and all the more attractive for it.

• Ships are defined within clearer parameters, with each filling a role, but not each other’s roles making sound squad synergies paramount.

Play them as you see them.

After looking at the Actions available to the ships, lets turn now to the primary stat lines of those ships and the game elements that effect them.

Rebels

The Rebel base line ships tend to be middle of the road. They range from the only 1 primary up to solid 3’s and a couple of turreted large base ships, but only have one native 3 Agility ship. Where they do shine however is in shields. They have on average more shields to hull than their Scum equivalents and both have more than the bulk of the Empire’s ships.

• Wedge reduces a target’s Agility.

• Gemmer Sojan gains 1 Agility at Range 1 of an enemy.

• Eaden Vrill gains 1 Attack dice against a stressed target.

• R2-F2 increases Agility by 1 as an Action.

Empire

The Empire flies the flag for speed and manoeuvrability over robustness, that is until they decide to bring the muscle, then they tend to go wholly the other way having the only Hull 12/0 Agility brick. Boasting the most, 3 agility ships (3), their “mass” is adroit. The biggest weakness for the Empire is their, on average, low primary weapon values.

• Mauler Mithel rolls an extra Attack die at range 1.

• Back Stabber rolls an extra Attack die if flanking.

• Cmdr Kenkirk gains 1 Agility when damaged.

Scum

The Scum have solid stats, but no real standouts. They tend to be similar to Rebels in health, but lean more on slightly inferior hull than shields. They are also similar to the Rebels in Agility, with only a single 3.

• Kath Scarlett gains 1 Attack die in her rear arc.

• Graz gains an Agility dice if his attacker is in his own arc (likes to play chicken).

• Talonbane gets +1 Attack die at R1 and +1 Agility die at R3, making him one of the stronger aces (except at range 2!).

• Latts Razzi (crew) may trade a Lock to reduce enemy Agility (sucker punch).

Generic

• Tail Gunner reduces enemy Agility if in rear arc.

• Proton Rockets like to be launched by high Agility ships.

Mods to actual ship stats and abilities are rare in SC, so yet again, their usefulness is exaggerated by the sparse offerings, but extremes of near unplayable combinations are also reduced. Situationally Gemmer can pull 4 Agility and Talonbane 5 Attack and 5 Defence, but these are the extremes.

Skeleton Crew Actions: Rolls, Boosts and Evades

The most enjoyable actions in X Wing are surely the Boost and Barrel Roll and the less obvious, but real life saver is the Evade. They do something that ties directly into flying, rather than endowing the ships with a “readiness” state token.

The Evasion kings, Imperial fighters need to use them to make up for a lack of shields.

First, a reminder of the Pilots or other elements that effect all or most actions in general;

• Vader gets 2 actions with no strings!

• Tycho gets actions even when stressed.

• Lando gives a free action out after a green move.

• Wes can strip tokens from his targets.

• Advanced Sensors System upgrade changes the action/move order.

• Dark Curse strips attackers of mods.

• Emperor Palpatine allows any one dice to be modified per turn.

• Contraband Cybernetics allow s you to take a stress for an action after a red move.

• Manaroo allows token sharing with a friend.

• Auto-blaster Cannons and Turrets ignore defence effects.

Now to Boosts, Rolls and Evades.

Rebels

In SC, the Rebels are weak in native Rolls (B-Wing & YT2400) and Boost/Evade capable ships (A Wing), but do have a couple of other options.

• Jake Farrell gets a free Boost or Roll after spending a Focus (a true dare devil).

• Luke can swap a focus for an Evade, guaranteeing the real benefit (his Force ability?).

• R7-T1 gives a free Boost (and Lock).

• R3’s can swap an unused Lock for an Evade, basically a “super Focus”.

• C3-P0 can “guess aloud” how many Evades are rolled and add +1 if right (a “0” is always 1).

• Jan (crew) can upgrade a friends Focus to an Evade.

• Lando (crew) can roll 2 defence die and take any Evades.

Imperial

The Imperials are the real stars here, with only their two large base ships unable to access Barrel Rolls and the Interceptor also having Boost. Interceptors also feature predominantly below.

• Juno Eclipse can change move speed after reveal, then Roll.

• Turr Phennir can Roll or Boost after an attack.

• Lt Lorrir gets banking moves with Roll.

• Carnor Jax strips enemy of 1 Evade

• Kir Karnos may spend Evade for an extra hit.

• Ysanne Isard offers a limited Evade.

• Agent Kallus can gain Evade against pre-chosen enemy

Scum

The Scum share with the Empire the only ship with both a native Boost and Roll, the Star Viper. The Viper also has the S-Loop and with Dalan, Talon Roll options as well making it the most interesting ship to fly (and look at?). The Scurrg and Jump Master may also Roll, matching the Tie Bomber and YT 2400 respectively. Their only other ship of note is the Firespray with an evade.

• Kaat’o may steal a “friends” Evade.

• So can Palob.

• Latts Razzi strips enemy stress to add Evade to self (that minx).

Generic

• Thrust Corrector can cancel 1 of your targets Evade.

• Homing Missiles ignore Evades.

Skeleton Crew Actions; Target Lock

The next Action we will look at in the stripped down form of X Wing that is Skeleton Crew, is the Target Lock.

The brains trust of the Rebel fleet.

All ships except for the Tie Fighter and Interceptor, who take a trade off a TL for better manoeuvre Actions, at reasonable cost, have access to Target Lock Actions. Locks are a better offensive option than Focus and are the only Action that does not drop off at turns end, but lack the option of being switched to defence (with some exceptions) and they are generally mandatory for launching Torpedoes and Missiles (again there are exceptions).

First, the other elements that effect all or most actions in general;

• Vader gets 2 actions with no strings!

• Tycho gets actions even when stressed.

• Lando gives a free action out after a green move.

• Wes can strip tokens from his targets.

• Advanced Sensors System upgrade changes the action/move order.

• Dark Curse strips all attackers of mods.

• Emperor Palpatine allows any one dice to be modified per turn.

• Contraband Cybernetics allow s you to take a stress for an action after a red move.

• Manaroo allows token sharing with a friend.

• Auto-blaster Cannons and Turrets ignore defence effects.

Now to TL’s.

Rebel

Rebels with any TL effects in SC are limited mostly to Y and X Wing Pilot and Droid combo’s, but can often combine these.

• R7’s can spend theirs to force an enemy attack re-roll, so they act like a better Focus option.

• R7-T1 grants a free TL with a bonus Boost after.

• R5-K6 allows a re-roll to try to regain a spent TL.

• Tarn Mison gets a free one on his attacker.

• Hobbie clears stress if he gains one.

• Dutch Vander can share his.

• Han (crew) can spend his TL to turn all Focus to hits.

Imperials

The Empire are the only faction with ships lacking a native TL option in SC. The Fighter and Interceptor are “fly by the seat of your pants” bare bones fighters with good speed and Action bars, but lack a TL. Otherwise the Imperials are pretty normal users of TL effects.

• Cmdr Alozen gets a free one at range 1.

• Lt Colzet may spend one to flip a damage card.

• Col Jendon can share one (including giving them to non TL capable ships).

• Capt Kagi can draw an enemy TL off a friend.

• Systems Officer can share one with a friend.

• Rebel Captive forces stress on a Rebel attacker if they gain a lock.

Scum

The Scum run similarly to the Empire again, using their Lock’s for more nefarious things.

• Latts Razzi may trade Lock to reduce enemy Agility (sucker punch).

• R4 -B11 can spend theirs to force target re-roll.

• R4 Agromech may trade up focus to a Lock.

• K4 Security Droids grant a free one after a green move.

• Bossk (crew) gains one after a missed attack.

Generic

• Fire Control Systems give an automatic free Lock on the same target after an attack.

• Weapons Engineer grants 2 at once.

Target Locks have fewer buffs than Focus actions, which is to be expected I guess as they are more powerful, if less versatile.

Next up, Barrel Rolls, Evades and Boosts.

Skeleton Crew Actions; Focus

Action availability in SC is a slim resource and I feel, rightfully so.

A game originally based on the duel mechanics of (1) outguessing your opponent’s move selection then applying an action after and (2) leveraging the fundamental differences between the ships and pilots in squad synergies, became a game of multiple Action stacking and sharing.

Good old fashioned dog fighting. Minimal counters on the mat and easy to pick up even for a beginner.

It follows that in comparison to other forms of X Wing Actions are rare and therefore more powerful on balance. This makes the Pilots shine here especially. Almost all EPT abilities are represented by even this small roster of Pilot abilities, but rather than being available to many, they are bespoke, iconic even and thanks to FFG’s attention to story fidelity, often defining. Wedge is your Predator type, N’dru your Lone Wolf etc.

First, the other elements that effect all or most actions generally;

• Vader gets 2 actions with no strings!

• Tycho gets actions even when stressed.

• Lando gives a free action out after a green move.

• Wes can strip tokens from his targets.

• Advanced Sensors System upgrade changes the action/move order.

• Dark Curse strips all attackers of mods.

• Emperor Palpatine allows any one dice to be modified per turn.

• Contraband Cybernetics allow s you to take a stress for an action after a red move.

• Manaroo allows token sharing with a friend.

• Auto-blaster Cannons and Turrets ignore defence effects.

Focus

Every ship in SC (and the X Wing game generally) has access to Focus. Not the most reliable of actions, but more flexible than any other. Taking Focus and then Focus stacking can be a powerful weapon when used well, but in the later 1e game, Focus stacking tended to be squad defining, even game breaking. It is still possible to stack some in this game, but the main culprits are nerfed.

The Rebels

The Rebel emphasis is on sharing and assisting, occasionally buffing defences, or attacking.

• R5-P9 can trade an unused focus for a shield regen.

• R3 series can trade a focus for a straight Evade.

• Luke can swap one out for an Evade (using the Force we assume).

• Garvin gets to share spent ones with a friend.

• Keyan can convert them to hits.

• Jake gets a free Boost or Roll when a focus is spent (making him the only Rebel daredevil with both).

• Kyle can share then with an ally.

• Luke (crew) can convert a focus to a hit.

• Jan (crew) can upgrade a friend’s focus to an Evade.

• Kyle (crew) gains a focus automatically if stressed (the perfect synergy of Jan/Kyle or Kyle/Jan and Moldy Crow Title is lost, but they still punch hard).

The Empire

Imperial Pilots and crew tend to switch from supporting to a more aggressive use of Focus.

Pilots;

• Nightbeast gains a focus after a green move.

• Chaser can mimic a spent Focus off a friend.

• Carnor Jax strips then from his targets.

• Soontir Fell gains a focus when stressed.

• Lt Kestal cancels them.

• Rr Admimal Chiraneau can convert them to a critical.

• Fleet Officer can give 1 to 2 friends.

• Agent Kallus can give some pain to a pre-chosen enemy by spending one.

Scum and Villainy

Like the Imperials, Scum tend to use focus aggressively, even selfishly.

• Glitterstim gives you one round of dual application (att+def) focus for a stress

• Overclocked R4 lets you trade a stress for a focus

• R4 Agromech allows you to upgrade a focus to a Target Lock

• Palob Godalhi may steal Focus tokens from an ally.

• Kaat’o Leeachos may do the same.

• Guri gets a free Focus when at range 1 of an enemy.

• Outlaw Tech grants a free Focus after a red move.

• Bossk (crew) gains a Focus if he misses an attack (much like Raging).

Generic

• Advanced Photon Torps change 3 blanks to Focus results (so Focus when you fire them).

• Proton Torps turn one Focus to a critical hit.

• Recon Specialist gives you a 2 for 1 deal.

• Hot-shot Co-pilot strips one from a target.

• Ops Specialist awards one to a friend who misses their attack.

• Flight Instructor allows Focus re-rolls (without using a Focus token).

Next up we will look at Target Locks.

13G Pending, Excitement Rising

Oh what a difference a month can make.

About five weeks ago, 13th Age (along with several others) was on the way out. Not entirely sure what I was thinking, but let’s blame the mid winter funk.

No sale, phase one complete.

Soooo glad I still have it (not so much the other systems, but oh well).

I could lift an image of 13G, but I will wait until it is here.

Phase two of this odd journey came to its full flowering with my out of character ordering of 13th Age Glorantha. Ordering another RPG book is not out of character, but this one was.

I have and have played Runequest and derivatives, but only systemically, only by name, not thematically, not Glorantha. I have had no interest in that venerable old world, which, to give it it’s due, is one of the oldest and most original RPG settings ever widely supported.

On top of that I am a self confessed d100 fan, almost to the exclusion of all other systems. These started with Runequest!

The acceptance, the need even, for 13th Age, as a direct foil to my preferred d100 style systems, has opened the door to 13G. So, a d20 D&D system and Glorantha combined. A heady mix for a simulation-ist gamer with no love of all things d20.

I feel, and some others seem to think the same, that 13A is possibly a better vessel for the over the top game style needed for a high-saga game world like Glorantha. It is a zany place, needing a very free and open style of game that scales effortlessly.

Come on in 13th Age.

Ironically the makers of the world itself have sometimes struggled to fit the world into d100 “realist” mechanics. The reality is, a character limited to the logical d100 game will really need to be a hero on a Heroquest, because they are up against the wall from the get go. Survival for these characters is going to be genuinely legendary, because of how unlikely it is. One unlucky hit and off goes an arm or even a head. Not un-heroic, but unlikely to spawn winners in proportion to grizzly deaths.

This prompted the creators to write Heroquest, a more story-driven style game, set as a looser power structure to allow the intrinsic RQ Heroquests to be accomplished more (less?) realistically.

13A takes the “squishier” D&D abstract mechanics and adds the needed story telling elements that will bring Glorantha alive. Unlike the new RQG set that is very heavy in crunch and finely controlled fidelity to the vast history it represents, 13G may actually be able to tap into the equally valid early 80’s feel of free flowing fun and explorative adventure many old players of Glorantha miss.

Using a new and more streamlined game system, 13A can empower players without being too weighed down by that massive legacy, but also be open enough to allow any player of any Gloranthan experience level to enjoy it at the level they need. For this 13G is a departure and a welcome one.

It got me in.

I am also intending to lift what I want to regular 13A, which is officially sanctioned by the writers who consider it a resource book for any world and maybe even try a cross-over (ancient pre 13A, ancient Age?).

Genuinely excited now, I was only an interested completist when I ordered it a few days ago.

It is a great big beautiful world out there, especially if you open your mind to new possibilities.

Armada; On Sadness And Moving Forward

Armada does look to be on the funeral pyre. Well the pyre is erected and the game is taking the long walk. The reality is, nothing survives forced hibernation except animals with an evolutionary imperative to, certainly not in retail anyway.

AMG barely bothered to recognise its existence in their “mini-stravaganza” (probably better titled “Marvel-Stravaganza”) and X Wing or Legion did not get much time in the spotlight either (little past the already leaked Razor Spine, with some outlines for the future-at least it has one). They did announce some rules amendments and campaign ideas, that have mixed (read apathetic) responses. Bit hard to lay down “the law”, when there is a suspicion you don’t care about or even fully understand it.

AMG have the distinction of effectively killing a miniatures game that has managed to be in most top five lists for most meaningful measures for the bulk of its short life. Another company could possibly survive on this game alone, but AMG seems to have no interest.

Shame.

The dedicated will talk and play it for a good while, possibly longer than most would believe and some ships and even a few cards will become semi collectors items. Maybe this will be the ideal experiment for a “self sustaining game community functioning in a creative vacuum”.

I bought another Venator, because my GAR fleet just felt a little thin, especially against a huge swarm of separatist fighters and two large base opponents (these things deploy in battle lines and they are a little short of being full ISD style intimidators).

I may even get another GAR Pelta, again to balance the points disparity (although at a pinch I have my Rebel one), but I am really trying to resist building up the fleets to a similar size to my Imperial and Rebel ones, because there is just not the variety available. So no duplication of the two base sets…..yet.

I lament the lost opportunities for both prequel factions, especially the fighters and small ships that did not make the launch window and maybe an earlier CR-90, but most characters are represented in what is for me a less well known universe. Job done well enough I guess.

Ironically I first bought into the prequel factions to avoid doing them in X Wing. I tried to kill two birds, but ended up getting the earlier period Armada stuff anyway, because I really like the game. For the amount I eventually spent on Armada, I could have easily covered both factions in X Wing including the LAAT/i, Eta-2, Nimbus and Sith Infiltrator, that they are not now doing for Armada. Hindsight is a bitch.

Armada was always the aloof one, hiding in the corner, loved deeply, but only by a few who bothered to look.

TFA era fleets? Would have been nice.

The game is of course, not dead and never will be as long as people keep playing it (see the grand experiment above). I had decided I was cool with what I had anyway, but the thought of future scarcities did make me grab a couple of bits, especially as I have the lovely updated cards (Chimaera, Profundity, the second Venator and lastly the Interdictor, oh and that Starhawk was just added….and maybe another CR-90…. and a Gladiator…….). I will keep an eye out for the promised “re-prints”, because I would like another Raider or pair of Aquitens.

Despite gloomy forecasts, my own Armada interest is again healthy and still relatively fresh, so no real harm done, but it leaves me with similar feelings to those I had after the Olympus change of hands. I feel that I will likely move in another direction at some point, but milk what I have for as long as I can.

Maybe things will change. Maybe AMG will sell Armada to someone who (a) cares, (b) knows what they have and (c) knows what to do with it.

Maybe.