So yesterday I played an alternate game type with a friend based on football. The concept is simple. Chose up you fleet (we used standard 100 pts but feel free to adjust that). The. A Cloak token is placed in the center of the mat. The object is to get the "ball", this is done by being within range 1 and using an action to tractor beam it in. Once possession is obtained the objective is to fly off the opponent side of the mat. This counts as a single score. The first team to three scores (or to eliminate all his opponents ships) wins. Gameplay rules are the same with these exceptions. Going off the map works the same unless you are carrying the ball in which case instead of your ship dying it's a score for your team. The scoring ship is then placed in a legal spot for initial set up. The ball is then given to any opponent ship on his side of the mat. If he has no ships on his side the ball is placed anywhere he chooses on his side. If a ship carrying the ball is destroyed it "fumbles" the ball immediately where it was destroyed. As an optional rule you can add "passing". Two allied ships within range 2 who have line of sight may spend their actions to tractor beam the ball between ships. Any opponent ship with range 1 of the pass may attempt to intercept.

* Full credit for this idea belongs to Blail Blerg as it was his idea and we colaborated on rules*

So a low Ps stealth device just streaks across the map?

Once you pick up the ball you are a target and you don't necessarily fly for arc dodging or shots. It seems like a good idea but in our game the fast Phantom didn't work so well.

I imagine the ball-handling part of the game is dominated by A-Wings and TIE Interceptors with PTL.

Would love to see the Decimator or the Millennium Falcon running as a blocker. The "fridge" has got nothing on Chewbacca.

I like the concept. Seems like the objective would still be to destroy all ships though. How was your experience? Did the winner get three scores or table the other guy?

Alt rule ideas.

1. If a ship is destroyed it is instead placed in your deployment zone with half health, rounded up.

2. A ship carrying the ball moves one less than the revealed maneuver to a minimum of 1.

3. A large based ship may not pick up the ball, but if it is in range one, the opposing team must roll a hit on a red die to pick it up.

In our game we ran out of time before a final score was reached. However it is likely that I would have been tabled before 3 pts was reached.

The tricky part for the fast fragile ships is that your opponent pretty much knows where you want to go and can set up for that.

Idea: When you're the ball carrier, you can choose to drop the ball to add 1 evade result to your defense roll. This way, each player doesn't have to commit a ship to either score or die.

This scenario is used with my campaign rules:

You keep a fleet of ships and you gain points for each mission to help you buy back losses.

you can also intentionally flee off the board and save yourself.

When you die, roll an eject die, on a hit or crit, you can buy back that ship (no upgrades) for the higher half cost.

Anyway:

$10 for participating.

$20 for each score.

With fleeing and ejecting, you are going to get more from scoring than from deathballing.

--

However one should note that its a very tricky balance. You tend to fight each other for a while and take the ball at opportune moments. We spent 3 turns maneuvering for position, engaged. Then where we thought at first that he would take the ball first, instead I looped around and was able to take it. He then shifted most of his ships to grab a flank. The game went on. I cowarded out the ship and fumbled. He picked it up and ran it to a goal.

I had to leave, so we called the game at 1-0. He won $30 pts, lost only 1 non-ejecting academy. I lost 0 ships but scored nothing.

I like the concept. Seems like the objective would still be to destroy all ships though. How was your experience? Did the winner get three scores or table the other guy?

Alt rule ideas.

1. If a ship is destroyed it is instead placed in your deployment zone with half health, rounded up.

2. A ship carrying the ball moves one less than the revealed maneuver to a minimum of 1.

3. A large based ship may not pick up the ball, but if it is in range one, the opposing team must roll a hit on a red die to pick it up.

Okay, so I've gone over this with charlesanakin and we've done extensive casual playtesting of campaigns and motive and game balance stuff (we have about 15 games of different scenarios now tested, including this one).

1. Good idea.

2. NOT A GOOD IDEA. Play and you'll see why.

3. Not necessary. Ball carrier is an effing target. Just blow up Fat Han and be done with it.

You could simply say large ships cant take the ball. I think that's fine.

Here's a main reasoning: The less rules the better.

The less you have to remember. Less complicated. More play. Less talk.

Might consider rules for how to steal possession while on defense.

At Range 1 of carrier, perform tractor beam action, roll a red die: steal possession on a hit result?

each time you take a hit you have a chance to fumble? defender rolls a green die, on a blank it is fumbled?

Guys. We've tested it already. Don't add rules until you've tried it.

There's a mental rules and real play rules limit. Too many rules and you really don't have any real game anymore.

Your ships are also on really capable of certain things. Acrobatics requirements tend to backfire. Simple.

How does the offside rule work?

Oh ... you meant *that* football... the one not played with your feet or with a football

In all seriousness, kudos to puttingout another fun way to play.

I'd love it if more people could see past 100/6

Its not perchance a game style that appeals to me but the fact its fun an different and it will appeal to a lot of people make it super cool to me.

Battleball?

Out of interest, would a seismic charge token not make a better 'ball' as it actualy looks like a cannister of some sort?

I mean, you can use anything you want.

We used a Cloak token cuz its oblong and my phantom was using an acrylic double sided token, so it was never confused.

Cool mission! I run something similar with my capture the flag scenario (land on a focus token to claim it, most tokens at the end wins). Definitely KISS with the rules.

Oh ... you meant *that* football... the one not played with your feet or with a football

Yeah, the boring one where they need a break every 10 seconds...

Cool mission! I run something similar with my capture the flag scenario (land on a focus token to claim it, most tokens at the end wins). Definitely KISS with the rules.

Oh ... you meant *that* football... the one not played with your feet or with a football

Yeah, the boring one where they need a break every 10 seconds...

As opposed to the exciting one where they end in a 0-0 tie and have to go to aggregate. Or the majesty of the star player who has his jersey grazed only to launch himself onto the pitch in a five minute histrionic fit that the most spoiled two year old would be proud of. All the while holding the "wrong" leg and not so subtlety peeking over at the referee to see if his performance is convincing enough. Finally when it's all sorted and the ref calls for the stretcher and the medical team brings out what must be Jesus spray because inevitably that leg which was surely bound to be amputated gets a quick Jesus spray and the lame can not only walk but they're back to full speed.