Yes, I know the tournament isn't for 2 more weeks. I wanted to get the topic started because I want to do this one differently. I want to write up the battle reports as a narrative. I did this a few years ago when rekkon had his Galactic Civil War rpg campaign. That thread is on boardgamegeek, here.

A little bit of background: I hadn't played a single game since Worlds 2015, up until March 7th when a friend of mine came into town and we played a game at the LGS. That was when I found out that my LGS Store Championship (Mayhem Games, Clive, Iowa) was that coming Saturday. Since I am working on a LEGO® X-wing squad tray design, I wanted to test it out in a tournament setting.

So I brought a pure Wave 1 TIE Swarm:

Howlrunner
Backstabber
Dark Curse
X2 Obsidian
X2 Academy Pilot

I ended up going 7-0 on the day and bringing home the Championship plaque.

But I think coming up in Coralville at the Campaign Against Cancer Tournament on April 9th I'm going to change it up a little. And if you are planning on going but haven't pre-registered, what are you waiting for!!?! Prizes are doled out based upon registration numbers. So sign up today!

Anyway, as I was saying, I want to write up this tournament report as a narrative, so I am beginning the narrative with the story that happens before the tournament starts. Enjoy!
Comments and criticism are welcome. I'm mainly doing this because it's fun to think and write up stories like this.

Episode IX III/IV

The Shark Awakens

It is a light time for the Empire. After her stunning victories in the Clive system, Cive Rashon, call sign "Howlrunner" was awarded a certificate of leave and a commemorative plaque by the Imperial Navy.

But while she was enjoying her leave, more threats to the order in the galaxy arose. She was reassigned to a new unit, and given orders to protect the Imperial interests in the Coralville system.

She accepted her new orders and reported to her new duty station, where she finds a familiar face awaiting her commands…

Coralville System

Imperial Star Destroyers are ships that never sleep. Life aboard the Stalker was no exception. As Howlrunner expertly landed her TIE Fighter in the hangar bay, she could see techs, mechanics, pilots, and servicemen of all kinds hastily attending to their tasks. As she shut down her fighter, the hatch opened and she climbed out. She was met by a TIE Fighter Pilot wearing his black flight suit and helmet snapping to attention and saluting.

"Welcome aboard, ma'am," came the mouthpiece filtered voice.

No amount of filtering could stop her from recognizing that voice. As she walked by him, she barked,"Fall in and report, 3."

The pilot, DS-61-3, obeyed her command. "Captain Akal Zed is awaiting your arrival on the bridge. Early report says our mission is to keep anything from getting to the surface of planet Coralville. There are some top secret operations taking place at Geek City, their capital."

"Do you know what kind of operations, 3?" she inquired.

"Negative ma'am, that data is classified, but Captain Zed may fill you in when you see him."

"Have you heard anything about the rest of the squadron?"

"Affirmative. Mostly veterans this time, ma'am. No greenies."

"That will be a welcome change, if they can follow orders. The trouble with the Cadets is they think they know more than they do, and for some reason I always get stuck flying with them. But the trouble with veterans is they think they know better than I do how to fly a TIE Fighter. We'll see how these ones fly."

"As long as they stay out of my line of sights, I won't have any trouble with them," DS-61-3 replied.

Howlrunner chuckled, "We will see what these jockeys are made of. Get some rest, and I'll see you at the briefing tomorrow," she said.

"Yes ma'am," DS-61-3 replied.

"And Backstabber, it's good to be flying with you again."

"You too, ma'am," replied Backstabber as he walked into a different elevator than Howlrunner.

Akal Zed, Captain of the Imperial Star Destroyer Stalker, was a strict follower of Imperial Regulations. Howlrunner had done a little homework on him after receiving her assignment, so she knew what to expect from him. She normally followed Imperial Protocol as well, but sometimes her speech and attitudes were more relaxed if the situation called for it. On the elevator ride to the bridge, she was trying to remember all of the obscure regulations that she had studied all those years ago on Carida. She didn't want her first impression to be a bad one.

She saw that the bridge deck was approaching on the elevator level counter. She took a deep breath, straightened her back, and did her best to present a poster-model appearance of an Imperial TIE Fighter Pilot. "Helmet in the left hand, visor forward, right hand straight down at my side, fingers pointed down..." The elevator door opened.

"Sir! OS-72-1 reporting for duty! Permission to enter the bridge!" she stated boldly.

Captain Zed turned in his chair, inspecting her closely. "After you've fixed your gig line, Obsidian Leader," he replied.

She looked down at her waist. "Sithspit!" she thought. She straightened her belt and came back to attention.

"Permission granted, OS-72-1," he continued. "Ensign Robles, give OS-72-1 her data card."

"Yes sir," replied Ensign Robles. He reached into a nearby file and pulled out a holodisk marked "OS-72-1. Classified." He handed the disk to Howlrunner.

"This is your data card, It contains everything you need to know about your mission on board my ship. Your pilots will report to you, and you will report to me after every mission. Understood?"

"Yes sir!" she replied.

"Good. I expect you to know everything contained on that data card. But there are things that aren't on there that you need to know as well," he added. "What's happening in Geek City is on a need-to-know basis, and you don't need to know, so get that out of your head right now. Understood?" he asked.

"Yes sir!" She replied. In conversations like these, saying as little as possible was always the best course of action.

"But what you do need to know is that Intel has intercepted 10 transmissions from spies within the city. Those spies have been dealt with appropriately, but for every spy we catch, there are 2 more that we don't. The word is out, and there are Rebels, Cartels, and even some Imperials, that want to get through our blockade and down to the surface of that city. Your job is to ensure no one," he paused and came face to face with Howlrunner. He looked her steely in the eyes, then continued, "no one, gets to the surface of that planet. Understood?"

"Yes sir!"

"The rest of your squadron is on board. You will find their files on that data card. You come highly recommended, OS-72-1. Do not fail me." He paused, then continued, " Mission briefing is at 1100 hours tomorrow morning in the Flight Room. Dismissed."

Howlrunner turned a perfect about face, headed back into the elevator, performed another about face and pushed the button to Deck 2. She had to go find her bunk and get to reading the holodisk before tomorrow morning.

After what seemed like hours, Howlrunner finally found her assigned rack and locker. She started unpacking her gear. She knew that time was precious between now and the mission briefing, but she found that organizing her gear was a bit of a brainless relaxation technique. By now, she had gotten pretty good at knowing what would fit where, so she stowed everything fairly quickly. And the extra time was good for her to unwind a bit before she had to focus on her holodisk.

She got out the holodisk and placed her right index finger on the security device that was blinking red. The color changed to a solid green, and the holodisk came to life.

"Welcome aboard OS-72-"

Skip. She'd seen this part enough times. Blah blah the is the best Star Destroyer ever. Blah blah.

"Your mission is to enforce the Imperial blockade of the planet Coralville, ensuring that no ships land successfully on the surface of the planet. You have been assigned 5 pilots that will comprise your squadron, code name "Evolved Shark."

"Your second in command of the squadron is DS-61-2. He was a member of Darth Vader's Black Squadron, known as Black 2. He specializes in close-range combat, and is a highly decorated veteran of the Imperial Navy."

"Also under your command is Trel Skutu. He is a veteran Imperial flight leader with a significant number of kills, and he specializes in finishing off ships that have been previously damaged."

"Also under your command is DS-61-3. He was a member of Darth Vader's Black Squadron, known as Black 3. He is an imperial veteran that specializes in getting into his opponent's blind spot to finish them off."

"Also under your command is Black 11, an escort pilot of Darth Vader's shuttle. He was awarded "Top Marksman" in his Academy class due to having the most kills during training. His icy precision during combat usually means that he can often damage ships, even if the pilots are flying evasively."

"The last member of your squadron is named Cartha, a relative of the renowned TIE pilot Turr Phennir. He was a member of Black Eight Squadron under Juno Eclipse. He has received high praise as an excellent wingman, despite his relatively low kill count."

Howlrunner shut down the holodisk and laid in her bunk thinking, "So, there you have it. Backstabber I can keep in check. The rest sound like a bunch of conceited jockeys with heads so big they have to wear special helmets. It's a far cry from training the usual greenies that I get. This is a bunch of Black squadron pilots, though, so they know their stuff. Maybe I'll recalibrate my voice modulator so they can hear my breathing and give me a nice low voice. That might put them at ease."

**Saved for Flight Room scene**

Coralville System

Evolved Shark was responding to the new contacts.

"I've got three Jumpmaster 5K's on my scopes," informed Chaser. "They're staying tight together on our port side."

"Alright boys, Chaser, Wampa, you're with me. The rest of you will flank from our starboard side," ordered Howlrunner.

Just then, a heavily accented voice came over their comms systems. "Evolved Shaaahk, this is Boba Fett."

"He sounds like a clone trooper," said Wampa.

"Silence Wampa."

Fett continued,"I have business on the planet. Let us through your blockade, or be destroyed. Your choice."

"That transmission is coming from the portside 5K," informed Chaser.

"That's a negative, Fett," replied Howlrunner. "We have our orders. Turn back now or we will open fire."

"So be it, Fett out."

The Jumpmasters continued forward. The TIEs spread out to meet them.

Howlrunner commanded,"We will focus on the starboard 5K. They are loaded with torps. If we can knock one out before it fires its torps, we stand a better chance of completing our mission. Wampa? Where are you going?"

Wampa replied,"Fett is in the port 5K. I'm going after that one."

"Wampa!" Howlrunner knew that if they didn't focus down one of them, it could come back to bite them in the end. And Fett's 5K was out of range of the flanking group. "You're out of position, Wampa. You better damage it for the rest of us later. The rest of us, focus on the Starboard 5K. Chaser, you're up first."

Chaser, Howlrunner, and Mauler all fired at the starboard 5K. "I heard you were a crack shot, Mauler," said Scourge."Wish you would've given me a hole in his hull for me to open up wider."

Mauler replied,"I'll open him up later, when I have a better shot."

"That was close range! How much better of a shot do you get?" replied Scourge.

Scourge and Backstabber both laid into the starboard 5K, but didn't destroy it. It was hurt pretty badly, though.

When the 5K's returned fire, Mauler took a hit on his wing, but the rest of the shots were evaded by the nimble TIEs.

"Break left!" Howlrunner ordered. "We won't be able to finish off the starboard 5K, so let's focus on the leader in the back. Chaser, stay with us!"

Chaser zoomed ahead, forcing the leader to avoid him, although it didn't give Chaser a shot.

"Chaser, what are you doing? Stay with us!" said Howlrunner, but it was too late. Focused close range shots from the 2 scouts was too much for Chaser, and he ejected as his TIE exploded.

The TIEs chased after the 5K leader, transponder listed that ship as belonging to Manaroo. As they were chasing Manaroo, though, the hurt 5K spun around and fired a torp at Scourge. The torp was a direct hit, and Scourge's TIE was instantly vaporized. Now not killing that 5K was really coming back to haunt the squad. Howlrunner knew that if they survived this encounter, she was going to have a lot of discussion points with this crew.

The remaining TIEs were able to focus down Manaroo, at the cost of Mauler's ship.

"Stabber, Wampa, let's form up and finish off the hurt one," said Howlrunner. Things were looking bleak for the Evolved Shark's first combat together.

The 3 TIEs managed to finish off the hurt 5K, but Fett's 5K only had some weakened shields. One by one, Fett's 5K finished of the 3 remaining TIEs, taking some hull damage in return. And with that, Howlrunner's squad had failed their first mission together.

Somehow, while the TIE pilots were EV waiting for the shuttle to come get them, Fett managed to hack into their helmet comms.

"Nice flying, Evolved Shaahk, but I told you, I have business on the planet. No one keeps me from completing my jobs. I expect you to let me out when I'm ready, or you will suffer the same fate again. Fett out."

Howlrunner knew this was going to be a long wait for the shuttle, and she wasn't looking forward to giving Captain Zed the mission report.

Reserved.

Coralville System

"All right boys, let's see if we can work together this time and not get blown up, shall we?" asked Howlrunner.

"We've got 3 marks at 40 degrees on our starboard side. Two T-70's and an A-wing," reported Chaser.

"Resistance," replied Howlrunner. "And they're going to be good pilots, too. They don't send that few if they aren't veterans. Wampa, Chaser, you two flank from our port side, I'll go with the other 3 and hit them head on."

"Coming into range. Incoming fire." commented Chaser.

"Nicely evaded, Mauler. We'll focus on the starboard T-70. Long range shots, but see if we can do something to him. Chaser, you're up first," commanded Howlrunner.

The ships all exchanged long range fire, doing only minor shield damage to the starboard T-70. The on board astromech replenished the shields shortly thereafter.

"Let's close in on that T-70 and see if we can finish him off," said Howlrunner. With Wampa and Chaser still flanking, Backstabber came at it from the side, Mauler did a koiogran turn to get directly behind it, and Scourge and Howlrunner both had close range shots on it.

"The A-wing is breaking off," commented Chaser.

"Good, that's less shots coming back at us," replied Howlrunner. The lead T-70 was busy trying to avoid Mauler's move, so he took a quick pot shot that missed. With the A-wing disengaging, that left the TIEs to focus on the starboard T-70.

"Stabber, wait for my shot, then Mauler and Scourge can hit him after you," commanded Howlrunner.

With those four TIEs all at close range, the T-70 pilot didn't stand a chance. He was vaped before he could even shoot back. Wampa and Chaser put some shots into the second T-70, with Wampa getting past its shields and hitting the hull, while Chaser stripped some shields.

"Nice shooting boys. With the A-wing disengaged, let's focus down the other T-70," said Howlrunner. But the A-wing pilot had different ideas, having seen his squadmate's ship destroyed.

"Leader, the A-wing isn't disengaged, he's on my 6," replied Wampa. The T-70 shot by the TIEs to safety, although it wasn't in position to attack the Imperials. The A-wing shot at Wampa.

"He damaged my engine, Leader, but I'm still flying," reported Wampa.

"Do you have another shot on the T-70, Wampa?" asked Howlrunner.

"Affirmative, taking the shot," replied Wampa. Another shot got by the shields and hit directly onto the hull of the lead T-70.

The black and orange T-70 continued to run, but its efforts were futile. It was soon finished off by Mauler, which left Scourge stripping the shields off of the A-wing.

"He's still on me!" said Wampa.

"Just fly evasively, we'll finish him off," responded Howlrunner.

The A-wing pilot shot at Wampa, going for the kill shot, but missed. Backstabber finished off the A-wing. And with that, the engagement was over.

Wampa's TIE was heavily damaged, but still flyable. The other 5 TIEs were unscathed.

"Now that's the way we do it, boys. Nice job. Way to work together," commended Howlrunner.

Howlrunner allowed herself a smile inside her helmet. "Now this mission report was going to go much more smoothly," she thought. She was looking forward to filing this one.

"So you took 6 out, and brought 6 back, with one of them damaged?" asked Captain Zed.

"Affirmative, sir," replied Howlrunner.

"Well, you'll just have to do a little better next time, then."

"Sheesh, some guys are just too hard to please," thought Howlrunner, as she tried to contain her eye-roll by trying harder to stare straight forward.

"I have news for you, as well. Chaser has been re-assigned. He's no longer a part of your squadron," said Captain Zed.

"Despite his performance in the group's first outing, his most recent performance was exemplary," commented Howlrunner.

"Nevertheless, he is being replaced. Your new graduate will be arriving on board shortly," continued Zed.

Howlrunner couldn't hide the look on her face this time. "A cadet?! Ugh, here we go again," she thought. "Yes, sir," was all she could muster. Her reaction was not lost on Zed.

"I'm not real happy with the assignment, either. I have a planet to blockade, but I know you fly with new graduates often. Train this one well, and keep being successful. You needed a better agitator anyway. Dismissed."

"Yes, sir," she replied, and marched to the bridge's elevator. "Great. Now not only do I have to keep the old dogs in check, I have to keep a tight leash on the new dog, too."

"Howlrunner," interrupted Zed.

"Yes, sir?" she replied.

"No hazing."

"Yes sir." And with that, the elevator door closed.