You've got to give it to FFG - They're doing a great job of turning the X-Wing hype-o-meter up to eleven and the recent worldwide Imdaar Alpha event was no exception... There were a number of game stores around my home city of Brighton that were hosting the event, but I decided to combine testing my gaming metal with a visit to a new games store just along the coast... A&B Gaming here we come!
Before setting off, I had a think about what list I'd use in the event. I'd recently been playing with a Kath / Krassis Firespray list and whilst more than a match for most opponents, once the shields had been stripped, it lacked a little momentum in the end game. No, if I wanted to walk away with one of those shiny new Wave 4 ships, I'd need a list with a bit more steel.
Han, Cheewie, buckle up, you're going in...
The Twin Falcon list is as solid as it comes. A pain in the Bossks to take down (major crit negation) and 360 degrees of re-rolled, target lock lovin' firepower. I'd flown this list on a fair few occasions and it had never let me down. Well, only once... but that's another story.
To be honest with you, the Falcon list was the easy part. Assuming I was fortunate enough to make it, I'd actually spent quite a bit more time thinking about lists for the final round. A round in which the players would be required to construct a 100pt list utilising one of the new Wave 4 ships alongside ships from their own collection. Ultimately though, after spending more time crunching lists than paying attention to the wife and kids, I decided it best that fate deal my hand on the day...
Early round action pretty much went to plan. In each of the
games I played, I rolled Han and Cheewie up the board, maintaining a RB1 flight
formation to ensure maximum benefit from 'Swarm Tactics'. As always,
asteroids had to be considered and in each pre-game set up, I took the
opportunity to overload one side of the board with my placement. This provided
a reasonably clear run up the opposite side and ensured a good lane of fire for me to attack oncoming enemy ships.
Opponent wise, the draw saw me only paired against Rebel
lists. A bit of a shame, as I’d loved to have tested my skills against some Imperials... From memory, the lists I did face included a
Falcon and 2 X’s, 2Bs / 2Xs and a mixed Falcon, X and A-Wing combo. The one
list I spotted that I managed to avoid on the day was an alpha strike Assault
Missile packing A-Wing list. This would have been an interesting match up, with Han and Cheewie having to seriously consider breaking their flight formation to avoid the inevitable.
Game wise, Han and Cheewie fared admirably; soaking up incoming fire whilst methodically picking off ship after ship. Both the list and
the tactics had paid off and all my games resulted in a win… bar one. The game
in question was against a player called Richard, an opponent I would later
go on to face again at the top table. Richard’s Falcon and Wedge-Wing combo
had certainly put up a solid fight, but the main reason for the loss was down to the fact that I managed to fly Han off
the board. I know, utterly stupid... It was the difference between choosing a 3 turn and a 3 bank and I made the
wrong choice. At this point, Han was pretty much unscathed, but Cheewie was
running with only one hull left and with Han gone, it was game over...
Above all, I had some great games against some sporting
opponents and when the dust had settled, I’d managed to place 2nd overall. Safe
in the knowledge that I’d secured a spot on the top table, the draw was made
for the final match up. I was placed on Table 1 where I would once again face
Richard in a fight to determine the overall tournament winner. Whilst the players who finished 3rd and 4th would square off on table 2. Next came the important
bit – choice of Wave 4 ship for the final battle. Richard, being a staunch Rebel player, opted for the E-Wing.
This provided me with the opportunity to choose the ship I’d always had my eye on –
the TIE Defender...
With around 10 mins to pull a list together, I opted to keep things simple. Kath Scarlet always proves a solid choice and with the addition of 'Gunner' and 'Marksmanship' to increase her stress causing capabilities, she would be well placed to pin targets for the TIE Defender to finish off. In this regard, Rexler Brath was the other clear choice. The game plan would see Kath attempting to draw the bulk of the enemy to one side of the table whilst Brath would race up the opposite flank and attempt to launch the killing blow from the rear. To this end, Brath was given 'Engine Upgrade' and 'PTL'. Coupled with that infamous White 4 K-Turn, he should prove to be a bit of a nightmare in the opponent's backfield...
My opponent opted for a list made up of Cheewie, Wedge and the E-Wing Blackmoon Squadron pilot. Positioned on opposing flanks, we each rolled our forces up the edge of the table. By round 3, Kath had banked right into the center of the board to meet Richard's forces head on. Meanwhile, through a combination of straight 5's and PTL, Rexler Brath had managed to successfully flank the Rebels and had started to hammer in enough fire power to take Wedge out of the game.
As Kath passed the oncoming Falcon, she flicked the release switch on the seismic charge, ensuring it inflicted maximum damage to the closely packed Rebel formation. The Falcon and the E-Wing emerged from the resulting ball of fire wounded but still in the fight. And they were now out for revenge on Kath, pouring all available fire into the rear of the Bounty Hunter as she attempted to boost out of range.
Through the heat of battle Brath's TIE Defender had remained unscathed and he continued to tail the Rebels unopposed, free to release RB1 fire at will. The Rebel's decision to ignore Brath would eventually lead to their downfall and by the time Round 6 had concluded, the Rebels were down and defeated...
I'd manged to win both the final game and the Imdaar Alpha tournament overall. Great result :). It goes without saying, that my opponent Richard fully deserved to finish on the top table and he'd played a mean game throughout the day. Thanks also to Anna and Bo of A&B Gaming for putting on a well organised and friendly event.
So, overall, an interesting and rewarding tournament. The format worked well and the requirement to build the new Wave 4 ships into final round lists, helped level the playing field and rewarded players with the ability to adapt their game on the fly. With the days battle done, it was time to check out the spoils of war...
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| The special AoIA Bandit Squadron Pilot card and it's standard counterpart... |
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| Now we're talkin. For my money, the TIE Defender is the most striking Imperial ship to date. It looks like a deadly lotus flower of death. It looks like the kind of TIE ship that Audi would design... |
Until next time...
