X Wing - Darth Vader Re-Paint

Don't know about you, but I always thought Vader's TIE Advanced always looked a bit boring. Of course, as a Dark Lord of the Sith, he probably had more pressing issues to deal with than thinking about pimping his ride...

Still, had Vader found himself on the Imperial throne one day, reading his copy of Max Power, maybe he would have felt inspired to get the boyz down at the Sienar Custom Shop to do a spot of modding... Starting with a re-spray in his colour of choice. Black...

The re-paint for Vader's ship was inspired by the big man's iconic armour; The persistent blackness broken up by areas of both matt finish and high gloss sheen...

"'Back in black, I hit the sack. I been to long I'm glad to be back..."

Vader reliably informs me that he loves the look of his new ride and that Rebel scum everywhere are even more terrified when they catch sight of him in their wing mirrors. Good on ya Darth!

"....Yes, I think you might!"

 Until next time ;)

Star Wars: Armada - Initial Impressions

"Hey there FFG fellas... What Star Wars related schnizz you been up to?"

"Oh, this and that, ya know..."  "We've been getting Rebel Aces and Wave 5 ready for the boat. We've also done some work on our 'Age of Rebellion' role-playing game..."

"That all sounds super fly..."

"Fa reel...Oh, and we've only gone and announced 'STAR WARS mudder funkin ARMADA'!!!"

You've got to admit, this looks rather awesome. 'Epic' scale is a logical progression from the dog-fighting fun of X-Wing and I wouldn't be surprised if we ultimately see the release of ground / planetary assault level rules to complete the pantheon in the not too distant future...

Some annoying ne'er-do-wells on the FFG Forums are voicing concerns as to whether Armada will be able to successfully 'co-exist' alongside our beloved X-Wing. Certainly, the fact FFG are successfully steam rolling their way through our wallets like nobodies business, is beginning to cause an issue ;)

But no. That's just ridiculous talk. This release will have it's detractors, sure, but I think ultimately it won't divide the X-Wing community. I'm pretty confident the majority of people will play both systems, happily switching between the two as and when suits. And those that don't, well, that's their prerogative.

Ever since I first started gaming all those years ago, I admired systems that catered for and rewarded players seeking an immersive experience; The ability to create epic, linked story lines, be that through small skirmishes right through to epic global conflicts.

For one magical period in time, Games Workshop delivered this gaming utopia in spades - From 'Kill Team' to 'WH40k' through to 'Epic 40k', ably supported by games like 'Battlefleet Gothic', 'Inquisitor', 'Necromunda' and 'Aeronautica Imperialis' - If the creative gamer wanted to zoom in and out of gaming systems at will, all tied together within an epic universe, he had the tools at his disposal.

And when it comes to epic universes, it doesn't get any bigger than Star Wars...

But what can we glean from the press release?

Overview: 
- You are the Fleet Admiral, issuing tactical commands to your capital ships and waves of supporting star fighter squadrons
- Aside from directing your fleet's movement and coordinating it's fire, you'll also need to sustain it's defenses and ensure you remain focused on achieving your overall battle objective
- Games of Armada are fought over six rounds, each of which is broken into four phases: 1) 'Command Phase': Players secretly assign commands to their ships 2) 'Ship Phase': Capital ship movement and combat 3) 'Squadron Phase': Fighters are activated to move and attack 4) 'Status Phase': Players ready their exhausted defense cards and flip the initiative token, then the player with the initiative increases the round count

Movement: 
- Like X-Wing, strategic movement is critical and understanding your ship's capabilities and limitations when navigating, will play an important role
- Guided by your ship card's movement chart, the maneuver tool is used to determine both the available distance a ship can move and the degree of lateral movement it can make as it traverses this distance. The angle of sideways movement is defined by the number of 'clicks' the maneuver tool is turned at the corresponding joint
- Importantly, capital ships fire before they move. So when you set your ship's course you are looking to set yourself up with a good shot in the next round

Command:
- Each capital ship has a command value. At set up, players build there initial 'command stack', planning several moves ahead based on four available commands at their disposal: 1) 'Navigate': Your ship's speed and maneuvering  2) 'Squadron': Order nearby squadrons to move and attack early 3) 'Repair': Recover shields and repair hull 4) 'Concentrate Fire': Increase the firepower of a single attack
- Larger, more powerful ships, have higher command values but are therefore required to plan up to two or more turns ahead. This may also mean they are potentially slower to react to the ebb and flow of the battle around them...

Attack!:
- Capital ships are divided into four sections, each with it's own fire arc, shield raring and attack value
- Ships can perform up to two attacks, either directed against the same target or against two different targets. However attacks must originate from two different hull sections and within their relative fire arcs and range bands

Defense:
- Each section of your capital ship has a hull rating, defining how much punishment it can take before it starts taking damage
- Protecting the hull are banks of shields, helping to deflect incoming enemy fire. These shields must be carefully managed through the allocation of defense tokens

Fighter Squadrons:
- Fighter squadrons operate to their own set of movement and combat rules and provide fleet commanders with the ability to quickly deploy forces to exploit weaknesses in the enemy line
- Capital ships don't use their primary weapons when attacking fighters, instead they have to use their anti-squadron armament, which is typically much less effective
- Fighter Squadrons have a 360-degree arc of fire
- Fighter Squadrons can be led by skilled pilots such as Luke Skywalker, who provide the squadron with added benefits, such as the ability to bypass capital ship shields...

Objectives: 
- The core set comes with twelve different objective cards, one used per game
- These objectives help define the narrative of the battle and ensure that it's not just the enemy fleet that commanders need to be mindful of

The Miniatures
- The core set comes with three pre-painted capital ships; A Nebulon-B Escort Frigate and a CR90 Corvette for the Rebels and a Victory-class Star Destroyer for the Imperials
- The set also includes ten unpainted fighter squadrons; four X-Wing and six TIE Fighter

So, expect the next few months to be a-buzz with fan chatter on everything from 'Scale rage!!!' through to 'When can we expect to see the Death Star?!'

The game certainly presents some interesting considerations and possibilities. At an RRP of around $99 / £60, it's on the more expensive side when compared to the X-Wing core set. But to be fair, Star Wars: Armada looks like it's packing quite a bit of resin and a large quantity of gaming components.

We can obliviously expect future expansions to bring us more capital ships, with a Mon Calamari Cruiser and the larger Imperial-class Star Destroyer likely to be on the cards. And like X-Wing's 'gotta collect em' all' ship releases, where upgrade cards are interchangeable across the factions, this is where Star Wars: Armada will ultimately demonstrate how much longevity it may have as a game system...

Let's not mention the Executor-class...

It will be interesting to see how many different types of fighter squadrons are released and how these may be bundled up. How will B-Wings, TIE Bombers and A-Wings effect the game for example? Equally, can we expect to see ships like the Millennium Falcon, Imperial Shuttles and Firesprays? I'm pretty sure, we'll also see in game 'scenery' beyond the usual asteroid fields; Space Stations for example or even celestial phenomena...

Obviously, at this early stage of the announcement, there are a load more questions than answers (some more sensible than others...):


- How big will the play area be? I'm guessing it will be the same as X-Wing's 3 x 3 so as to not piss off anyone that has already bought a game mat! But this size would also seem to tally up with the size of the Armada range rulers... (I play games of X-Wing on both 3 x 3 and 6 x 4 so anything goes would be good)

- Fleet Point Limits? The VSD comes in at 85pts. This would suggest the point limit is higher than X-Wing's standard 100pts per side, to allow players to pick additional capital ships, fighter squadrons and upgrades etc. 300pts may be a likely starting point then?

- How many core sets should I purchase? Er... I think this all depends on value for money and overall game experience. For example, X-Wing's core set is cheaper by comparison and for the beginner, plays better with the additional ships a second core set provides. I think we'll also have to consider what the expansions bring to the game i.e. will FFG release expansions of the ships found in the Armada core set, but with different upgrade cards?

- Additional Factions? It was gonna come up at some point ;) I very much doubt it though, certainly not until the game has been up and running long enough for FFG to really know the game's commercial stability. And even then, I still doubt it.... Hutt fleet anyone? Prince Xizor and his Black Sun fleet...?!

- Linking X-Wing and Armada? The fan boyz will all ready be considering this, but will FFG release some sort of 'campaign level' rules / PDF that will provide players with a formal way of linking the two game systems?

- The Jump to Hyperspace? It will be interesting to see if Armada operates a 'reserves' rule, where ships can be held back to come onto the table in later rounds of play. This would provide an additional layer of tactical consideration and is one many table-top game systems operate to great effect.


We could go on...


Ultimately, FFG will drip feed more information to the screaming masses over the coming months, starting with Armada's premiere at this week's Gencon.

Until then, get some overtime in, take the missus out for dinner in an attempt to soften the impending blow and stock up on some additional card sleeves... Including those x-large tarot size ones for your ship cards.


Cheers ;)

Dark Future - Sanctioned Op: Lone Wolf

There's something about the long hot summer that calls to the road warrior. It was around this time last year that I painted up the Renegade car belonging to those desert doom mongers, the Maniax...

Left unchecked and unopposed, the Maniax have run riot, sowing fear and death across great swathes of the Painted Desert. But now, as the sun begins to set, a sharp wind blows from the north and a lone predator watches from the horizon. Little do the Maniax know, but a day of reckoning is coming. A reckoning driven by the roar of a V12 and the fire from a smoking barrel. The Wolf prepares to strike...

The 'Lone Wolf' is the V12 Interceptor of Sanctioned Op, Arden Adams. And whilst licensed, Adams isn't directly affiliated to any one specific Corporation, instead preferring to freelance his services to the highest bidder. A man of strong morals and few words, Adam's originally hailed from the wilds of north Montana. His work however, has seen him increasingly venture south, down through the Rocky Mountains and eventually settling within the fortified walls of Salt Lake City. From here, his contracts have brought him into increased contact with the Maniax Gang...

With over seventeen successful contracts to date and a kill ratio to be feared, Adam's is fast becoming the Op of choice for many a private contractor and the hero of the prime time cable news networks...

Until next time...

X-Wing - Assault on Imdaar Alpha: Event Review

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...

The special AoIA Bandit Squadron Pilot card and it's standard counterpart...

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...

With the TIE Defender now safely in the Imperial hangar bay, I better put an order in for the rest of the Wave 4 ships ;)

Until next time...

X-Wing - ULTIMATE HOBBY SHOWCASE

Like many X-Wing hobby nuts, I've long admired the many and varied re-paints, conversions and scratch builds that the community, right across the world, have been inspired to create. I've also thought how wonderful it would be if these individual pieces of artistic greatness could be brought together and showcased in one place. A (Jedi) Master Gallery if you will, of the finest examples of X-Wing minis on the web-o-sphere.

And then I stopped thinking about it and started doing something about it.

I drew up a list of twenty or so ‘artists’. Each of whom, I believed, brought something unique and inspiring to the table; Be that artisan levels of painting, expert modelling and conversion skills or just out right sheer inventiveness in terms of breaking the X-Wing hobby mould.

I then contacted them all:

Hi

I'm Dan (a.k.a. TUZ) and run the blog Hobby Before I Die!

I'm hoping to do a post that celebrates and brings together images from around the web of the very best X-Wing re-paints and conversions - And yours are, without question, some of the best!

To this end, I'm seeking your approval to re-post some images of your work, all of which will be rightly and appropriately attributed and copyrighted to you as the artist.

Let me know if you're OK with the proposed post and thanks for your consideration :)

Cheers, Dan.

I couldn't have hoped for a better response. Every artist I contacted was gracious, enthusiastic and wholly supportive of the idea. From some, I even received admiration for my own work (Too kind guys, too kind ;)). Above all, I had some great conversations with like minded hobbyists who all shared a mutual passion for both the X-Wing game and the hobby in general.

Note: At the end of this gallery you will find details of all the featured artists, along with links to their blogs or forum pages. Please respect the copyright of their work and take the time to show your appreciation by checking out their other fantastic work. You will not be disappointed.

And so, here we are. What follows isn't exhaustive by any means. I know there are many other examples of X-Wing hobby greatness out there, that for differing reasons, I couldn't include in this showcase. Maybe, in the future, there will be opportunity for a second gallery?

In the meantime, sit back, pour yourself a fine glass of Double-Dip Outer Rim Rumdrop and marvel at the artistry of the X-Wing hobby community…

Contributing Artists:

ROB JEDI – robjedi.blogspot.com.au  /  FFG Forum: Rob Jedi

RODENT MASTERMIND – FFG Forum: Rodent Mastermind  

BULLDOG UK - tanksandtrolls.co.uk  /  FFG Forum: BulldogUK

ZOMBIEHEDGEHOG - twitter.com/ZH_Customs  /  FFG Forum: Zombiehedgehog

IMMATERIUM PRESS - immaterium.wordpress.com

MAJOR TOM 11 - dakkadakka.com  /  coolminiornot.com

TROY RAMSEY - Flickr  /  FFG Forum: TRamsey

BILL BELANGER - trbelanger

VICEROY BOLDA - photobucket  /  FFG Forum: Viceroy Bolda

DARKFATHER - FFG Forum: DarkFather

JEFF DUNFORD - Board Game Geek

PETE JAMES - Inquisitor James 

PAUL LA RUE - exiles.ca  /  FFG Forum: PLR

MILLENNIUM FALSEHOOD - FFG Forum: Millennium Falsehood

ICAREANE - rule37-ica.blogspot.fr  /  FFG Forum: Icareane

KEFFISCH - FFG Forum: Keffisch

AGIS NEUGEBAUER - adpublishing.de 

JAE YOUNG - paintbrushdestruction.blogspot.co.uk

SARGE - Mos Eisley Space Port

ALEXIE ZACHARIADES - dakkadakka.com

ONLY WARLOCK - FFG Forum: Only Warlock

TUZ - Hobby Before I Die!  /  FFG Forum: TUZ

All work featured is copyright of the respective owner