If I might note: in the games defending an objective was usually all about interception, either of strike craft or their warheads.
What about playing on a 3*6 long and preventing the enemy strike craft getting into warhead range of free - double damage -w arheads?That way it could be like a double escort with one side escorting strikers and another escorting the VIP Corvette/raider/GR75/Gozanti/Frigate/BFF/your mom.
I'll expand a further idea.
Anti cap warheads.
Agi4 hull 1.
Range SPECIAL.
May aquire lock at range 5.
Each warhead moves 4 forward/3 light turn and then boosts. When it hits the cap ship it deals X damage.
If I might note: in the games defending an objective was usually all about interception, either of strike craft or their warheads.
What about playing on a 3*6 long and preventing the enemy strike craft getting into warhead range of free - double damage -w arheads?That way it could be like a double escort with one side escorting strikers and another escorting the VIP Corvette/raider/GR75/Gozanti/Frigate/BFF/your mom.
See Attack Run
This mission is still a little problematic in terms of SRS, but there are layers built into the mission to make it interesting: Dedicated escorts, hardened target, minefield, enemy reinforcements closing from behind.
I've used similar missions before. it's iffy with SRS, but every escort mission i've ever tried is.
A different kind of strike mission that I've been meaning to write up:
'Wild Weasels'
Attacking force is split into 2-3 flight groups. Dedicated Escorts (no bonuses), Bombers (free ordnance or extra budget for ordnance), and Jammers. Jammers have access to a special action that can assign stress to targets, like the huge ship action.
Defenders have a large Defense squad, and several turrets. In order to fire, the turrets need to spend a target lock (so they need to acquire one each turn, and they're vulnerable to jamming).
Attackers need to move in, Jam the enemy turrets and/or destroy them, and then take down the target, a hardened target that needs to be taken down with ordnance. Defenders can focus down Jamming squad to free their turrets, or focus down the Bombers to keep their hardened target alive.
I also considered replacing the bombers with a Huge ship, whose primary armament or turbolasers were the only attacks that could damage the target effectively. Defenders would have to engage the huge ship directly or the jammers so the turrets can engage the huge ship.
Another possibility is including power generators that provide the turrets with power for their weapons/can power the hardened target's shields.
It's way too complicated for a tournament scene, but it might be a pretty cool strike-style mission.
You can't have a standard mission to be used in competitive play that gives anything away for free. No free ordnance. Of course, the missions might make you want to ordnance, but you get nothing free.
I also think they should be on 3x3 tables, like normal.
Yeah, Wild Weasels wouldn't be a mission for tournament-style play; it would be a 3x6 foot game with about 300 points per side, etc. etc. But it could be balanced and still have 'free' ordnance under certain conditions. An extra budget for ordnance is probably the better option, though.
For tournaments, I think everything should work off of 100 point lists, with no extreme advantages to any specific type of build.
For tournaments, I think everything should work off of 100 point lists, with no extreme advantages to any specific type of build.
I think one of the ways to prevent any type of advantage to one type of build is to have other scenarios that screw that build. So...maybe Token Grab is great for Swarms, but Swarms suck at another scenario. So....whoever takes a True Swarm will never make the top tables.