Finally beat Capture Officer this morning with my three-ship solo team of Boogie, Potshot, and Swivel. They're all PS 7 now and have a ton of cool upgrades, but the mission still was one turn away from disaster. I think a big part of what makes this mission challenging is that the Elite TIE Advanced that shows up on turn 2 can be absurdly hard to kill. The one I faced today had Sensor Jammer, a Shield Upgrade, AND Elusiveness. Once it blew up, though, the remaining TIE Fighters and TIE Bomber were mopped up pretty easily.

My friend and I got to start a campaign and play two games today. It was fantastic despite that both bit the bullet in the second mission. The AI was excellent and challenging.

Couple questions.

1) Does damage that you inflict with bombs give you experience?

2) Do munitions (missiles, torps, bombs, etc) and other discard to use cards response for next mission?

Sorry if I have missed these answers in forum or rule book.

Number two has been answered. Yes, the card gives you access to the munition for each mission.

Just wanted to say thanks for sharing this!

Two friends and I started are starting a campaign together. The first night, we built our characters and did first two missions. Found the AI to be surprisingly reasonable. I was initially doubtful it would work, but those doubts are gone now. It somehow balances ideal moves, with slightly less ideal moves and maintains a healthy dose of unpredictability. Good work on that!

We somehow missed that the XP for damaging ships was per turn. We played that it was only per mission. As a result, we ended up with very few XP to spend, and since two of our ships ended up ejecting, it was a very dismal showing on our part. I am glad that further reading has cleared this up. Because of this, we will be starting over again.

On that note, applause for the well made manual. One thing that I wanted in the manual, but wasn't there, was an index at the end with key words/phrases. Have you considered including one in future versions? It would help with locating random rules.

My friend and I got to start a campaign and play two games today. It was fantastic despite that both bit the bullet in the second mission. The AI was excellent and challenging.

Couple questions.

1) Does damage that you inflict with bombs give you experience?

2) Do munitions (missiles, torps, bombs, etc) and other discard to use cards response for next mission?

Sorry if I have missed these answers in forum or rule book.

1) Unless your bomb destroys a ship or emplacement, the damage it deals falls under the "[Each turn] Deal at least 1 damage to one or more enemy ships = 1XP" rule.

2) Yes, this is in the v0.7 book on p12 as well.

Just wanted to say thanks for sharing this!

Two friends and I started are starting a campaign together. The first night, we built our characters and did first two missions. Found the AI to be surprisingly reasonable. I was initially doubtful it would work, but those doubts are gone now. It somehow balances ideal moves, with slightly less ideal moves and maintains a healthy dose of unpredictability. Good work on that!

We somehow missed that the XP for damaging ships was per turn. We played that it was only per mission. As a result, we ended up with very few XP to spend, and since two of our ships ended up ejecting, it was a very dismal showing on our part. I am glad that further reading has cleared this up. Because of this, we will be starting over again.

On that note, applause for the well made manual. One thing that I wanted in the manual, but wasn't there, was an index at the end with key words/phrases. Have you considered including one in future versions? It would help with locating random rules.

Thanks!

I have plans to do an Index of keywords/concepts on the back cover, but it's a big job. It will probably be part of v0.8, but I don't have an ETA on that yet.

Thanks for clearing my questions up. The bomb experience confused me because you XP chart header is Combat Phase only so bombs dropped in other phases would technically not fall under that.

Thanks for clearing my questions up. The bomb experience confused me because you XP chart header is Combat Phase only so bombs dropped in other phases would technically not fall under that.

That's a very good point. I should probably remove the "combat phase" part, because bombs aren't the only effects (obstacles, board edges, etc) that can cause a ship to be killed and XP to be awarded outside of the combat phase.

If you'd like to see what the game looks like in it's glory when printed, check it out here:

http://dockingbay416.com/hotac-printed-components/

If you've enjoyed the game, throw Josh a well deserved tip here:

https://www.paypal.me/JoshDerksen

The first minefield mission, we realized about halfway through we werent clearing enough mines, our pretty flying be damned. So we switched gears and began a mad rush to kill as many as we could.

On the last turn, one X-wing, still at full health, did a 3 hard through 2 mines, taking 4 damage, and setting up a range one shot to another mine. He blew it up on the first try.

I don't think the game was designed for kamikaze runs like that, but it was amazing to watch.

The first minefield mission, we realized about halfway through we werent clearing enough mines, our pretty flying be damned. So we switched gears and began a mad rush to kill as many as we could.

On the last turn, one X-wing, still at full health, did a 3 hard through 2 mines, taking 4 damage, and setting up a range one shot to another mine. He blew it up on the first try.

I don't think the game was designed for kamikaze runs like that, but it was amazing to watch.

It does get results at the cost of XP and possibly also pilot well-being

We did disable sensor net last night. Figured we could outpace the spawn and shoot down the beacons in a couple turns. TL+focus 4 dice shots whiffed a couple times. This was the result just before we won. 11 enemies on board, 7 of them interceptors vs the 3 of us.

@R2-EQ

I haven't read the whole thread but did download your campaign and it looks like a ton of fun. Will be playing it once disc golf season is over, and maybe at my Wednesday night league...

But have you considered incorporating Imperial Assault in some way? Because the way you set it up with mission cards is sorta how IA works (maybe that's where you got the idea?) I'd think you could tie the two together fairly easily.

Also Armada is something that may be cool getting the same kind of treatment.

Some sort of grand, Fleet, Fighter, and Ground campaign is something I'd really love to see.

Oh, and on pg50 in the briefing we found a typo- Stating area instead of staging area.

We did disable sensor net last night. Figured we could outpace the spawn and shoot down the beacons in a couple turns. TL+focus 4 dice shots whiffed a couple times. This was the result just before we won. 11 enemies on board, 7 of them interceptors vs the 3 of us.

Yep, that looks familiar. I love how out-of-hand that mission can get while still being possible to pull off a win.

@R2-EQ

I haven't read the whole thread but did download your campaign and it looks like a ton of fun. Will be playing it once disc golf season is over, and maybe at my Wednesday night league...

But have you considered incorporating Imperial Assault in some way? Because the way you set it up with mission cards is sorta how IA works (maybe that's where you got the idea?) I'd think you could tie the two together fairly easily.

Also Armada is something that may be cool getting the same kind of treatment.

Some sort of grand, Fleet, Fighter, and Ground campaign is something I'd really love to see.

I think we talked about it very briefly in passing, but it's not something we've spent any cycles on. I don't own/play Imperial Assault either, so there's that.

Oh, and on pg50 in the briefing we found a typo- Stating area instead of staging area.

Thanks!

I think we talked about it very briefly in passing, but it's not something we've spent any cycles on. I don't own/play Imperial Assault either, so there's that.

Wow, because the system you came up with is fairly similar to IA. If you're interested in some ideas how to do it I'd be happy to offer them.

My local squadron just finished their first campaign. Now comes Nightmare Mode. All TIE Fighters are TIE/FOs, 1 Elite per mission, all random shuttles are now replaced with decimators, and all Interceptors are 2 PS above the average.

All pilots keep their ships and EPTs/Abilties, and E-Wings, K-Wings, T-70s, are available now. Ships from the original game gain an illicit slot, and you can elect to play as a Mercenary contracted to the Alliance and use Scum Ships.

Just FYI, i didnt get into their last campaign. They were 10 missions in by the time i got interested. So while they're all PS8/PS9 with fully upgraded ships, i'm a PS2 in a stock X-Wing.

Help.

My local squadron just finished their first campaign. Now comes Nightmare Mode. All TIE Fighters are TIE/FOs, 1 Elite per mission, all random shuttles are now replaced with decimators, and all Interceptors are 2 PS above the average.

All pilots keep their ships and EPTs/Abilties, and E-Wings, K-Wings, T-70s, are available now. Ships from the original game gain an illicit slot, and you can elect to play as a Mercenary contracted to the Alliance and use Scum Ships.

Just FYI, i didnt get into their last campaign. They were 10 missions in by the time i got interested. So while they're all PS8/PS9 with fully upgraded ships, i'm a PS2 in a stock X-Wing.

Help.

That sounds awesome, and I'd be curious to know how those Nightmare Mode rules balance the difficulty level (I suspect it doesn't do that much).

Great username reference btw.

My local squadron just finished their first campaign. Now comes Nightmare Mode. All TIE Fighters are TIE/FOs,

Share the AI charts you use for the TIE FO. Or are you just going to reuse the TIE one?

My local squadron just finished their first campaign. Now comes Nightmare Mode. All TIE Fighters are TIE/FOs,

Share the AI charts you use for the TIE FO. Or are you just going to reuse the TIE one?

We're making new ones, i'll post them when we have them ready.

Also, i completely forgot something. Something way more awesome than Nightmare mode.

We're doing a Battlestar Galactica reskin of this campaign. All new missions, Vipers of the Mk.2 and Mk.7 variety with all new stats, dials, and abilities, custom-designed upgrades exclusive to this campaign, a custom-made Battlestar landing pod, Raiders and Heavy Raiders...

Here, have some pictures.

Those are my Vipers. We're starting in Mk.IIs and after Mission 3 or so we unlock the ability to purchase Mk.VIIs. Those Pilot cards i also made, there are about 6-7 different pictures for Mk.IIs and Mk.VIIs, but those two are my personal favorites.

Have some upgrades i designed.

Mk. II native upgrade: Once per round, when an enemy within range 1 performs a focus action, you may place an evade token next to your ship.

2 Points- Systems- Advanced Avionics: All 1 speed maneuvers are green.

1 Point- Systems- Encrypted Communications: Once per round, if you are at range 1 of at least 1 friendly ship, you may select one enemy ship or squadron. You may select one maneuver that they may not execute.

3 Points- Systems- Patched Guidance System: Gain the Swerve option.

4 Points- Systems and Modification- Advanced Strike Viper Sensors: Strike Viper Only. You may perform target locks outside of Range 3.

3 Points- Modification- Pressurized G-Suit: You do not receive stress from red maneuvers. After executing a red maneuver, roll an attack die. If it is a hit or crit result, flip this card face down.

2 Points- Modification- Self-sealing Fuel Tanks: When you place a faceup damage card with the Ship: header on your ship, you may flip that card facedown without resolving its effect. Then flip this card face down.

2 Points- Modification- Overhauled Afterburners: You may use the 2 forward and 2 bank maneuver templates on your boost action.

5 Points- Viper Mk. VIIE “Strike Viper” Title: Add an additional Missile upgrade icon to your upgrade bar. Decrease your attack and agility by 1, and increase your hull by 2. You may not execute 1–speed tallon rolls, and 3-speed hard turns are now red. You get a free Targeting Computer upgrade.

2 Points- Modification: Over pressurized Ammunition: When attacking at range 3, roll an additional attack die. You do not receive range combat bonuses when attacking at range 1.

2 Points- Modification: Focused RCS Nozzles: You may use the 1 bank template when barrel rolling.

1 Point- Modification: Countermeasures: When defending, you may turn one crit result to a hit.

3 Points- Systems: Networked Systems: Action: When attacking or defending this round, you may turn all blank results to hits or evades. At the beginning of the next round, reduce your agility by 2. Then flip this card face down.

Mk. VII native upgrade: You may have 2 target locks. They must be on two different ships.

The Vipers are seriously ridiculous. White K-Turns at every straight speed it has, 1, 2, and 3 speed Tallon Rolls, every action in the game, and a free boost or barrel roll every turn. We designed it to be very much balanced to 3:1 raider-to-viper ratios. Raiders simply are using TIE Fighter stats and AI Cards, and Elite Raiders get Interceptor stats and AI Cards. We also have an injury system where if you're shot down, you roll one attack die. A blank means youre fine, a focus make you lose half of all banked XP, a crit kills your pilot instantly, and a hit takes you to a table of injuries. You roll 2 d6, and one is the tens number, the other is the ones number. You then go down this chart of injuries which can range from "You must perform a barrel roll every turn" to what is basically a permanent Expose, and whatever you get stays with your pilot for the entire game until they die.

Strike Vipers are from Diaspora, a freeware Freespace 2 BSG mod(Everyone should play that game, it's absolutely wonderful). They're basically heavy ordinance throwers, with one less gun than normal Mk.VIIs, lots more armor, and a powerful targeting pod. Here's a pilot card for the Strike Viper. Oh, and for reference, Targeting Computers give you one free target lock a turn in our campaign.

Thoughts? We're still developing and play testing the thing, so ideas are valued right now.

anyone out there with the skills that can post K-wing and E-wing sheets?

Here's an E-Wing sheet, don't have a K-Wing one yet, i'll make one soon, possibly tonight.

armoredgear7,

I am getting ready to have your campaign printed out soon. But before I do, I just was wondering if you can give me an idea of when v0.8 will be released (if ever)? I don't need an exact time by any means, but if you are thinking a couple weeks, I'll just wait. If it is probably going to be months or longer or you have no idea, I'll go ahead and print now.

Thank you

I havent cleaned this up one bit, but just take it anyways. My short attention span can't focus on it anymore tonight.

armoredgear7,

I am getting ready to have your campaign printed out soon. But before I do, I just was wondering if you can give me an idea of when v0.8 will be released (if ever)? I don't need an exact time by any means, but if you are thinking a couple weeks, I'll just wait. If it is probably going to be months or longer or you have no idea, I'll go ahead and print now.

Thank you

I'm doing some testing on a few things for v0.8, but here's a shortlist of what you can expect to change:

- Squad Leader will get a custom reference card, and modified text that affects allies of the same or lower pilot skill. From talking with a number of playgroups, the official Squad Leader EPT is kind of a waste because everyone levels up at roughly the same rate, and then the Squad Leader never ends up actually using that action.

- Quick-reference Index on the back cover of the book.

- Minor balance/scaling tweaks for some of the part-3 missions, and possibly Capture Officer.

- I'm currently testing a streamlined Assists suggestion from TheRulesLawyer. It might make it into v0.8

Not sure on the timeline for the v0.8 release though; likely in the new year as I have gotten busy with other projects.

Im starting th think about how AI Scum should work. I think scum might have multiple dials ber ship based on tactics- thst is, a scyk might have something close ti a tie fighter dial, bur a HEAVY scyk would be weighted toward slow rolling and staying out of closing engagements. A z95 with a feedback array flies different than a z95 with glit/missiles.