So... JumpMasters. Yep. That's sure is a thing. I decided to be part of the problem and scampered around Tucson on St. Patrick's Day to find stores that had actually received their Punishing One shipments. My usual store did not, so I showed up to play X-Wing, then left for an hour's shopping excursion, then returned and built this very original list that I totally came up with all by myself:
3x Contracted Scout
- Deadeye
- Plasma Torpedoes
- Extra Munitions
- R4 Agromech
- Guidance Chips
1x Boba Fett crew on one of the ships. I wasn't sure what to do with the last point, so I just thought I'd try out Boba and see how he did.
I've been calling it "18.29 meters," after the Triple Jump world record. Most people are calling them U-boats or Wolfpack or Triple Scout or "oh, that crap."
I got four games in on Thursday night:
- Lost to Brobots (because I killed B first and A regenerated twice to end the game on 2 hit points)
- Beat regenerating Poe list
- Beat Wedge/Biggs
- Beat a mirror match (because I had initiative and Boba'd the Deadeye right off a dying ship so it couldn't torpedo back)
I learned how important initiative is in the mirror and I learned to kill the defensive Brobot first, because B is not as scary as he usually is with only two unmodified defense dice on my side.
I made the drive up from Tucson to Phoenix. There were three other Tucsonans in attendance: Sean Farley running Brobots (who I had lost to Thursday night), Joel Stabiston running a TIE swarm (who I've played once, in the Tucson Games & Gadgets Store Championship), and Tiffer Hill (who played the mirror with me on Thursday night and is nipping at my heels in the TGG league).
Notably absent from Tucson was Chris LIttle, who made the finals in three previous Arizona Store Championships, winning one, and then went on an extended business trip to Texas where we won two more Store Championships. He usually wins our TGG league and was in first place when he got called away. I think he's still in 5th or 6th just on his points from the first half of the season. It was nice to know I would not have to face him today.
We have 49 people for the biggest event of the X-Wing season in Arizona. There will be six rounds with a cut to top 8.
Round 1, I get the bye.
...and then a straggler wanders in.
The TO asks if I want to play or just keep my bye. I'd rather play as I really want to get experience with the new squad, and I'd hate to send some poor guy home for being a couple minutes late, so I say "let's play" and we go to the last table.
Round 1 again: Alan with a TIE assortment
Alan is new, having just come over from Star Trek Attack Wing. His Fel's Wrath, TIE/fo, TIE/fo, Bomber list is rough around the edges and not ready to face the sledgehammer that is three Contracted Scouts. Fel's Wrath makes a critical approach error and dies to one torpedo. We then focus down Rhymer and clean up the /fo's. Late in the game, I inform Alan of the half-points rule with one of my ships a point away from giving up 17 points so he can at least get something out of the match.
Win 100-17. (1-0 183 MoV; 0 Boba uses)
Round 2 vs Sean Farley with BoothBots (A&B with Crack Shot, FCS, HLC, Autothrusters, Glitterstim)
Sean beat me Thursday night, but I'm confident going after A first will flip this in my favor. A goes down on turn 2 with one scout clogging up the approach so the other two can get torpedoes out. B lasts two turns more.
Win 100-0 (2-0 MoV 383; 0 Bobas)
Round 3 vs Ron Olson with Chiraneau (VI-Vader-Gunner) and Echo (Decoy, Sensor Jammer, RecSpec, ACD)
We go after Chiraneau first, figuring the Torpedoes will devastate the decimator. This is true, but leaves us with only two-dice turrets to chase Phantom. Chiraneau dies on turn 3, and Echo dies about an hour later when she rolls 4 blanks on a three-hit turret attack (having lost a shield about 40 shots prior).
Win 100-32 (3-0 551 MoV; 0 Bobas)
Round 4 vs Chris Markham with Chiraneau (Predator, Ysanne, Palpatine, Engine) and Vader (VI-ATC-Engine)
I liked Chris's similar Kenkirk build at the Empire Games Store Championship that I copied it for league play during January. I try to block Chiraneau on the approach with a 4K right in front of him, but he does a 4 straight and clears by millimeters. He lasts a turn longer than last game's Chiraneau, but Vader proves to be much harder to track down than Echo. Vader chips away, taking out a couple of scouts and gaining a 66-65 point lead. He then spends the last half hour of the game trying to dodge away. I finally line up my last Plasma torpedo on shieldless Vader, get 4 hits, and watch helplessly as he rolls three evades and uses his evade token to escape once again. We run out of time and I pick up my first loss of the day. 99-points of MoV should help a lot, though.
Loss 65-66 (3-1 650 MoV; 0 Bobas)
Round 5 vs Iain Hamp with A-Wing Crack Swarm (5x Green Squad with Adaptability, Crack Shot, Chardaan, Autothrusters)
Iain has been plotting ways to deal with Scouts, and had come up with a fun A-Wing swarm. On the approach, he focuses down my lead scout, using only 2 Crack Shots to kill him before he can fire. I manage to get three A-Wings with some surprise white S-Loops, but the A-Wings take me out for my second loss of the day.
Loss 60-100 (3-2 MoV 710; 0 Boba uses!)
Before the final round, the TO announces that maybe 3 players will get into the top 8 with a 4-2 record. My second-loss despair is replaced with optimism at the fact that I still got 159 MoV points out of those two games.
Round 6: Jon Bushman with BoothBots
This goes much like my round 2 game. A is down on turn three after taking two torpedoes and two turret shots. B gets a scout and half of another before succumbing to the torpedo+blocker combo.
Win 100-49 (4-2 861 MoV; 0 Boba uses!)
With 45 minutes left in the round, it's now time for the waiting. I get a coffee and Clif Bar in case I make the cut. After the other games finish, the TO hands out some random door prizes and starts giving out the alt-art 3POs, starting at 32nd place and working his way up. I know Tiffer and another guy are into the top 8 with 5-1 records with Scouts. Another list went 3-3 for 20th place. He announces 10th place and it's not me. Then he says that "David" is in 9th place and then there's a bit of drama as he realizes a different David is in 8th. Tough time to be named David. However, I'm not, so I know I've made 7th or better. I am indeed the 7 seed and will face Iain's A-Wings in the first knockout round.
Top 8 vs Iain Hamp with A-Wing Crack Swarm
I manage the merge much better this time and the first exchange of fire is at range two. Two torpedoes take out one A-Wing, and then I get a block for the next round and a Torpedo plus two turrets take out another. This is looking much better and I slowly work down the autothrusting little Chihuahuas and pull of some actual blocks to get my revenge!
Win 100-something. 0 Boba uses
Top 4 vs Bob Wilkins with a variety pack of Scouts. One with double Proton, one with Plasma+Flechette, and one with Plasma+Feedback Array.
We both know that this one is probably going to come down to initiative. Bob wins the initiative and also manages to not bump himself on the approach! I guess I was more tired than I thought. This turn, we pick three JumpMasters up off the table. Two of mina and one of his. Then his Feedback blocker goes to work while the other loops around me. Bob wins and goes on to win the tournament, taking out Chris Markham (who beat me with Vader) in the finale.
The top 8 had three Triple Scout lists, and all of them advanced to make 3 of the top 4.
I feel like all of my losses came down to errors I made. Amazingly, at the end of a day where Triple Scouts won the day and put 3 of 4 lists at the event into the top 4, I feel like it can be even better. Bob's list had some interesting meta-utility choices and it won the day. Everyone was still new learning how to position themselves in different situations. On the bright side, 15 to 30-minute X-Wing games leave you plenty of time to relax and chat...
on to the Albuquerque Regionals in three weeks!
Edited by skotothalamos