About Rogue One ...

Go see it.

To analogize: If the original Star Wars movie* was The Dam Busters, then Rogue One is The Dirty Dozen. While the morality in original trilogy might have been black-and-white, in this joint it's very, very, gray.

I liked it better than The Force Awakens. Compared to that film, Rogue One doesn't feel like it's trying so hard to be a Star Wars movie. From a wargaming perspective, I'm sure you'll get plenty of scenario ideas from the many battles.

Like I said, go see it.

*A New Hope to all you kids who should get off my lawn!

Loot from MillenniumCon

As always, part of the fun of going to a game convention is getting stuff: Buying new products, receiving prizes for playing in games, and scoring bargains at the flea market. MillenniumCon was no different:

For playing an introductory game of Frostgrave, I received these playing aids, a couple of figures, and some terrain. More importantly, I met some local players who have a weekly game at Dragon's Lair:

From a vendor with tables stacked high with old Citadel Minis, I tracked down some additions to my Oldhammer skellies and some Halfling mercenaries to join my Bretonnians:

 

At Ed the THW Guy's table, I bought a couple of rules to try out, and for inspiration in my own designs:

At the flea market on Sunday, I couldn't resist this Star Wars diecast spaceship for one buck:

Also at the flea market, I found some more Bretonnians for my Oldhammer project, as well as Kings of War (and other games):

The same guy also had some movement trays, templates, and tokens:

Finally, another flea market vendor had some Warhammer 5th edition sourcebooks, which will provide inspiration:

Lots to keep me busy over the next few months.

A long time ago ...

... back in 1977, Marvel Comics published a monthly Star Wars comic book, beginning with a six-issue adaptation of the movie, that ran for 107 issues before ending in 1986. 

In 2002, Dark Horse Comics started reprinting the series in trade paperback format. Reading through my collection in anticipation of the new movie coming out next month, I found a few interesting artifacts from the adaptation of the original movie (before it was ever referred to as Episode IV).

For one thing, the comic that made it onto newsstands contains scenes that didn't make it into the theatrical release, such as Luke witnessing the opening space battle between the Rebel blockade runner and the Imperial cruiser from the surface of Tatooine.

There's also the hero's encounter with his friend Biggs before the latter departs the desert planet to be seen again in the attack on the Death Star. In addition, the comic contained a much different version of Jabba the Hutt--humanoid, not slugg-like--in an encounter with Han Solo.

There are other minor differences in dialogue and terminology between the print and screen versions, but no big changes in the plot. I did find it interesting that the Rebels referred to the X-wing pilots as Blue Squadron instead of the Red Squadron familiar to moviegoers.

The first six issues were a fun start to a series that had some great writers and artists over the years, back before there was an Expanded Universe or any continuity other than the blockbuster movie called Star Wars.

Test-flying the Rebel transport

I had a chance to play the X-Wing miniatures game last weekend, too.  I got out my Rebel transport, and we tried one of the scenarios from the rules for that ship.  The freighter was supposed to hold out for eight turns, while the Imperials' goal was to destroy it.  I took my Alphabet Soup squadron (A-wing, B-wing, X-wing, Y-wing) to escort the massive ship.

My opponents, Mike and Ted, took a pair of interceptors and a TIE advanced and a trio of TIE fighters, respectively.

What started out promising for me soon turned nasty.  The first turn, my A-wing fired proton torpedoes (with a target lock) at the TIE advanced, but failed to take it out.  My X-wing missed against one of the interceptors.

The next turn, the Empire was in range, and they quickly stripped the lumbering space whale of its shields.  By the third turn, the transport was a rapidly expanding cloud of debris.

Fun game, but I need to learn how to use the transport properly.  Hell, I still need to learn how to use all my other ships properly.  Maybe next time ...

Again, my wife is awesome

Got home from work Friday, and my wife surprised me with some X-Wing miniatures.  It's a thank-you gift for having to put up with a longer commute.  These are three of the Wave 4 ships, including the Rebel E-Wing and Z-95 Headhunter, along with a TIE Defender.  I look forward to gaming with these--if only I could have a real one to fly over all the freeway congestion!  Did I mention that my wife is awesome?

The first transport ...

... has arrived at my house.  Now I need to find a place for it, since this ship is pretty sizeable:

I recently received this expansion to the X-Wing game from my brother as a Christmas gift (whether it should be considered very belated or extremely early I will leave as an exercise for the reader)--so thanks, bro! 

The Rebel Transport is a huge ship, and it comes with some new rules and even a series of campaign scenarios.  It also includes another X-Wing model, along with some new pilot cards.  I can't wait to play some games with this, even if I still haven't figured out where I'm gonna store it.

May the Fourth ...

So to commemorate Star Wars Day today, here's a quick batrep from a couple of games on Saturday.  I went over to Steven's for some Warhammer 40,000, but other players never showed, so my host and I played two matches of X-Wing.

The first game was the scenario that comes with the Imperial shuttle rules, where the Empire player has to recover personnel stuck on disabled spaceships.  Instead of using the counters for the incapacitated vessels, I grabbed some of my other minis that were a good fit size-wise to serve as the objective markers.  I also brought my scratchbuilt escape pods to keep track of the people recovered, as this seemed better than using a sensor token from the game.  I was doing fine as the Empire, until my opponent blew up my shuttle, effectively ending the scenario in his favor.

The second game was a straight 100-point squad contest, using asteroids (with my own space rocks on top of the markers that come with the game).  My host stayed with the Rebels for this game.  It turned into a real furball, with the asteroids forcing my foe to fly around a bit, taking some damage from the floating debris.  However, the Rebel went on to eliminate my ships one-by-one, until Vader was the only remaining fighter, taken out by Luke Skywalker and friends.  An enjoyable time, and I think I have a new X-Wing convert!

X-Winging it

Since Saturday's dungeon craw was abbreviated thanks to low player turnout (i.e., one), Rickey and I played a couple of games of X-Wing to finish out the afternoon. Since he'd never played before, we did a quick game of two TIE fighters against one X-Wing so he could pick up the basics.  He took the two Imperials, while I played the lone Rebel.  The game had a lot of maneuvering back and forth, as we wore each other down. 

After I eliminated one of his ships, we flew around with one hull point each, until I was able to get him in my sights and destroy his remaining craft.  We then decided to play another game, this time with around 60 or so points.  He added two ships, an Interceptor and a Bomber, and I also took on more vessels, a Y-wing and a HWK-290.

This game didn't go as well for me.  The X-wing fell to some good shooting and flying from one of the TIEs.  And for the other two, flying in formation near a bomb blast wasn't a good idea. In the end, he had all his ships, with only the TIE bomber damaged.  This was his first time to play the game, and by his second match, he was flying like an ace!

X-Wing: Now with asteroids

I played another game of X-Wing last weekend, and at my friend's suggestion we placed asteroids on the map.  It was my first time playing the game with space debris, and I (playing the Rebels) only hit a space rock one time.  My opponent, who slammed a TIE fighter into one of the floating obstacles, remarked that it was true to the genre, as The Empire Strikes Back showed us that you should never take TIEs into an asteroid field.  These objects add tactical variety to the game, as you can use them to avoid opponents or to channel your foes a certain direction. 

My opponent flew a shuttle, Vader's advanced TIE, and three named TIE fighter pilots.  I ended up winning with my Alphabet Soup squad (A-wing, B-wing, X-wing, and Y-wing).  The game was fun overall, with both of us losing ships by carelessly planning maneuvers that took X-wing and his shuttle off the edge of the map.  I ended up winning with just my Y-wing and A-wing left.

I have the game mechanics down pretty good, so it's time to start playing some scenarios from the rules.

X-Wing batrep

On Super Bowl Sunday, I had a chance to play a little X-Wing before the football game at the starbase of Maj. Diz Aster (who posted his own account on his blog, Starbase Ares).  Since he'd never played the game before, we did a quick intro game with his two TIE fighters taking on my X-wing fighter.  Since  I had the experience of several games under my belt, I was able to take out his two ships fairly quickly.

With the first game out of the way, we brought out more fighters for a larger match.  He took one of his regular TIEs and an Interceptor, and borrowed my TIE bomber and TIE advanced (i.e., Vader's ship).  I took an alphabet soup squad: A-wing, B-wing, X-wing, and Y-wing.

The game quickly evolved into a furball as our fighters jockeyed for shots. The Sith lord was a tempting target that got taken out quickly (for plot purposes, we agreed he was able to eject from his ship to survive and fight another day), but served the Imperials by distracting me from shooting at the rest of his fleet.

However, after that, the Empire began to pay back the Rebels for the loss of their leader.  First the X-wing fell to the lasers of the various TIE craft. 

The battle wore on, and then the A-wing died.  Finally, the B-wing could take no more damage and erupted in a fireball as well.

At that point, my opponent still had three ships on the table, to my lone Y-wing.  It would have been pointless to continue, so with the kickoff taking place, it was time for me to concede.  It was a great game, and my thanks to the Major for having me over.  Let's do it again soon!

So what did everybody get?

Under the tree this year, I found a pair of ships for the X-Wing miniatures game, courtesy of my wife.  Representing the Dark Side was Darth Vader's TIE fighter (officially the TIE Advanced).  On the Rebels' side, the HWK-290 (a.k.a. the Mouldy Crow, originally appearing in a computer game). 

I was expecting the Empire ship, since I saw that when my wife and I were Christmas shopping.  She noticed me eyeing the toy, and asked if I wanted it as a holiday present.  I said yes, realizing that she would insist on wrapping it and not actually give it to me until Christmas, which I was fine with.  The other mini, however, came as a surprise. 

My spouse told me she was at Barnes & Noble and noticed a shelf full of various X-Wing expansions.  She didn't want to buy me a duplicate of  something in my collection, so she checked this blog to make sure she bought me something I didn't already own!  Very clever and thoughtful gift selection from my wife. 

These were the only gaming gifts I received this year, and I can't wait to try them out on the gaming table.  Did anyone else received wargaming or roleplaying loot this Christmas?

More games of X-Wing

I've been somewhat a DIY gamer for some time, never using minis that can be tied to any specific franchise, so I'm kind of surprised that I've gotten into the X-Wing minis game.  My brother bought it for me, and over Thanksgiving we sat down for a couple of games on his dining table. 

Another bout of X-Wing

I'm late in posting about some recent X-Wing battles at my house (Holdfast beat me to the punch a nearly two weeks ago), but I wanted to rave about this little minis game.  A couple of weekends ago, I hosted Holdfast and local gamer Kerstan for some fighter-on-fighter action.

There's some definite strategy to these rules--because players select their movement at the same time using maneuver dials, without knowing what their opponent will do, you need to learn to anticipate where you want to be and where your enemy will be.

The core set comes with two regular TIEs and one X-wing; but I had picked up an expansion ship, the TIE Interceptor.  Because the ships and their upgrades all have points values, we were able to make it an even match of the X-wing versus one standard TIE and the interceptor.

With three of us playing, we rotated fighters after every game.  We were able to get in several matches that afternoon, and the Rebel ship was destroyed in one game but prevailed in the other two.  The game is fast and addictive, and I want to play it again!

First game of X-Wing

My brother was kind enough to buy me the X-Wing miniatures game from Fantasy Flight Games.  Over the weekend, we took it out of its box and played the introductory scenario, which only used some of the rules.

My brother took the X-wing with a rookie pilot, and I had the pair of TIE fighters, with one Academy pilot and one Obsidian Squadron pilot.

The Battle of Hoth

I saw this game at last year's MillenniumCon, but I didn't get an opportunity to play in it at the time.  So when Coach said he and his son were bringing the game here, I was excited, especially since they're retiring it to run other scenarios.  The setup is pretty huge: three 6x3 boards, plus additional scenery, as well as the various vehicles, including walkers and spaceships.

There were only four players--me, Der Kommandant, and the Coach and his son.  The board included some great details, like the Rebel command center--complete with working viewscreen (actually an old phone playing a clip of a Star Wars videogame taken from Youtube).

Just like in The Empire Strikes Back, the Rebels in this game were outgunned on the snowfields of Hoth.  Most of the figures, including the AT-ATs and gun turrets, came from the Star Wars minis game.

The Alliance spacecraft included AMC kits (the Millennium Falcon and Luke's X-wing) and an old Kenner action figure storage case (the transport).

True to life (or the movie, at any rate), the Imperial forces made short work of Alliance defenses.  My crappy activation rolls on behalf of the Rebels didn't help.  These figures drew several onlookers into the room, attendees at a charity function taking place across the hall.

The walkers needed to get close to knock out the shield generator.  The poor Rebels in the trenches weren't able to slow them down.

Meanwhile, Han and Chewie were having trouble getting the Falcon flightworthy.  Note the lighting in the hangar.  They had the entire setup wired for lights.

Maybe the snowspeeders, led by Luke and Wedge, could hold back the Imperials for a while.

No such luck.  An AT-AT took out the generator, collapsing the tunnel leading to the transport (and incidentally leaving Threepio and Artoo and the medical droid buried under tons of ice).  Fortunately, Leia and the general  made it out ahead of the blockage.

The Force was not with Luke (in the speeder at left), who took an Imperial blaster, and crashed off-board and out of the game.  Wedge died when his speeder was destroyed by another walker.

Imperial troops have entered the base! Imperia*******

Darth Vader and his elite snowtroopers headed toward the Falcon, which still hadn't been fixed.  Chewie was shot as he finished the last repair, allowing Han to escape.

Overall, it was a big victory for the Empire.  The Rebels lost five heroes, while the Imperials achieved most of their objectives.  However, in my script, Luke wanders back to the base after the battle, digs out the droids, and gets the medbot to revive Chewbacca.  So there.  :)

My thanks to Coach Kropp and his son for running this game, and Der Kommandant for playing in it.  See y'all at MillCon!