I'm going to be getting into Armada shortly (see my post in the Armada on a budget thready), and I had a random thought:

What if you don't quite have the space to do a 6x3 play area?

The idea I have is to use an X-Wing playmat which is 3x3 and use that instead. Is that a feasible alternative? Granted, I KNOW it's not suitable for OP, but for just casual play, would it work?

Thanks guys!

There is a thread linked below. It has adaptations of the objectives for smaller space and lots of other tips.

I just tried that a few days ago and found that more maneuverable fleets were at a disadvantage because of the limited room.

I won't lie to you, it's not ideal playing in constrained spaces. It really impacts some of the dynamics, limiting maneuver options and making stand-and-fight type builds disproportionately more powerful. It's certainly not unplayable, you'll just find it to be a bit of a different experience than the 6x3 play space.

Depending on the nature of your space constraint, you might consider building a table topper. I didn't have a table large enough to play on at home, so I made a 4x6 collapsible tabletop. All told it probably cost me on the order of $50-100 (I had a lot of the materials on hand so hard to say exactly).

I'm also not a particularly handy person, and it came out really nice--so, pretty easy to get a good product.

Reduce the build coat down to 200 yo 250 max and you be ok im a 3 by 3 year, heck even at 400 we general on play on one side

4 hours ago, Ardaedhel said:

I won't lie to you, it's not ideal playing in constrained spaces. It really impacts some of the dynamics, limiting maneuver options and making stand-and-fight type builds disproportionately more powerful. It's certainly not unplayable, you'll just find it to be a bit of a different experience than the 6x3 play space.

Depending on the nature of your space constraint, you might consider building a table topper. I didn't have a table large enough to play on at home, so I made a 4x6 collapsible tabletop. All told it probably cost me on the order of $50-100 (I had a lot of the materials on hand so hard to say exactly).

I'm also not a particularly handy person, and it came out really nice--so, pretty easy to get a good product.

I need to remember this. I don't have a table it's relevant for at the moment, but Lord only knows what my living situation/furniture assortment will look like in a year or two.

Lot of great ideas already. Thanks a lot everyone!

I know it's not the IDEAL route to go....if/when I CAN go the full 6x3 (one alternative is getting a 2nd X-wing map and just dropping those suckers on the floor!), I definitely will.....it's just good to know that it's at least feasible. It doesn't have to set the world on fire, it just has to work!

Ignore the haters. You can comfortably play a full game on a 3x3 table, and frequently you'll find yourself mostly playing on only half of a 6x3 table anyway (or at least an area that can be easily condensed to that space).

I'd you think you might need more room, you can also play on a 4x4 instead. The primary setup and play area of the normal game, where nearly all the action happens, is a 4x3 rectangle. That's a lot smaller than 6x3! Those extra two feet are there so you can have support ships and wounded squadrons scurry off from the fight.

I very rarely see games span 6 feet. I think 3x4 is plenty of space, with 5x3 in being useful in some cases. A lot of games I play are 3x3, so I don't think you need the entire 6x3 to play the game. I'd suggest getting a single 3x3 mat and then putting it on a 4x3 board so you can set that on a table. 6 in on either side, in case you feel the need to fly off that way or deploy at the edge.

I built a foldable table for Myself. 6x4, so i can use It for mutiple games, and for armada It has plenty space on the Long sides for the acessories.

As a frequent multiple-Interdictor player and a fan of Grav Well Projectors, I heartily endorse making the board shorter!

while you can do it, i do not suggest it at 400pts.

I have found the game swings very heavily into imperial favor as they prefer the joust game and that smaller table size really helps enable that. IF you are going to play on a 3x3 play 200pts or less. You said you are new to the game? you should start there anyway until you really understand some of the core concepts and principles.

we had 2 locals jump into Armada hard, decide that they didn't like playing on a 6x3 non space mat, so they played on a 3x4. The imperial player won 5 or 6 in a row against his buddy playing rebels and shortly after the rebel player quit the game saying its unbalanced. He did refuse to play myself or the other armada players to experience a real game but the negative play experience can be real on a 3x3 if your list is based on trying to avoid ISD front arcs.

On 8/5/2017 at 5:28 PM, deogg said:

I'm going to be getting into Armada shortly (see my post in the Armada on a budget thready), and I had a random thought:

What if you don't quite have the space to do a 6x3 play area?

The idea I have is to use an X-Wing playmat which is 3x3 and use that instead. Is that a feasible alternative? Granted, I KNOW it's not suitable for OP, but for just casual play, would it work?

Thanks guys!

In all honesty it's worth investing in a area that fits the 6x3... a pair of wooden 24" x 72" folding tables will run you just about $150 and they're perfect for armada.

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBD_enUS755US755&biw=1238&bih=695&tbm=shop&q=FOLDING+TABLES+24+BY+72&oq=FOLDING+TABLES+24+BY+72&gs_l=psy-ab.3...57323.60794.0.61057.9.9.0.0.0.0.197.804.7j2.9.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.1.134...0.oPQoZfKrtIQ#spd=12922129705546948972


My friend, who's house we played at for almost 2 years had the hardest time getting rebel fleets to work because the table was only 5' by 3'. Now that we play on proper tables he's finally learning how to use his ships correctly.

It's very important.

Check craigslist, local rummage sales, or even second hand stores.

A decent used folding table from a church tends to be cheap. Another idea is a used kitchen table. When I got married, I inherited a kitchen table from my parents. My grandmother died a couple years later and we inherited a nicer kitchen table. Then we found a very nice used table and set of chairs on craigslist for $150. We use that one, and the two older ones are downstairs and used for gaming. But space!!! Yeah, but both of the older tables can be torn down by removing the legs with a wrench and 5 minutes of effort. The entire thing can fit in the back of a closet then.

A quick search found some new folding tables that are 36 by 72 for under $100.

the rubbermade or whatever folding tables work great and are easy to clean in case you spill your be.....soda.

If all else fails try to cut a piece of plywood to 3x6 and play on the bed.

So, I dabble in woodworking. I'm designing my fold away 6'x4' table, and an interesting thing that I thought of was....what is a comfortable height? If I plan on standing at it while playing, what would be comfortable to reach across and play? My inclination originally is somewhere around 40-42" from the floor to the top. Thoughts?

21 minutes ago, moodswing5537 said:

So, I dabble in woodworking. I'm designing my fold away 6'x4' table, and an interesting thing that I thought of was....what is a comfortable height? If I plan on standing at it while playing, what would be comfortable to reach across and play? My inclination originally is somewhere around 40-42" from the floor to the top. Thoughts?

it depends on the persons height. i am 6'4" if you are 5'4" then the comfortable will be different.

IIRC 38-42 is kind of the sweet spot for most things.

the real answer is, make it adjustable.

Just now, BergerFett said:

it depends on the persons height. i am 6'4" if you are 5'4" then the comfortable will be different.

IIRC 38-42 is kind of the sweet spot for most things.

the real answer is, make it adjustable.

I thought about adjustable, but with fold out legs, that increases the design difficulty a great deal. I have thought about pre-made adjustable legs, but those are way more expensive than the 2x4's I already own....lol.

It's really easy to build a table from scratch using pine lumber. I made a semi-rustic dining room table that is 8 feet long, but 6 or 7 feet is totally do-able. It's a great entry level woodworking project with minimal tools required. 30" is actually a very comfortable height for sitting or standing while playing I find.

Just now, moodswing5537 said:

I thought about adjustable, but with fold out legs, that increases the design difficulty a great deal. I have thought about pre-made adjustable legs, but those are way more expensive than the 2x4's I already own....lol.

it will require quiet a bit of science but what about magnets. big ones. electro ones so depending on what power level you set the legs too is how high it will be off the ground.......

honestly best bet go play games at various LGSs measure the height and see how your back feels after. That being said a second pair of legs for card game/board game height for everyone sitting in chairs is not a bad idea.

Oh, I'm going to work on a solution so that I can play here at Casa de Deogg on a full 6x3 area; that's gonna happen no matter what. A random thought was our dining room table......it's WIDE enough, I just don't know about the length (break out the tape measure!). At least until we DO find a 6x3 solution, there's an alternative for in the meantime. It's the plan B until plan A comes into focus.

Another option is your basic "straight outta WWE" table. Yeah, I know they're long enough (your standard table is an 8 footer), but are they wide enough?

EDIT: 2 3x3 card tables side by side would also work. A playmat across the whole shebang would just seal the deal!

On 8/7/2017 at 6:59 AM, BergerFett said:

while you can do it, i do not suggest it at 400pts.

I have found the game swings very heavily into imperial favor as they prefer the joust game and that smaller table size really helps enable that. IF you are going to play on a 3x3 play 200pts or less. You said you are new to the game? you should start there anyway until you really understand some of the core concepts and principles.

we had 2 locals jump into Armada hard, decide that they didn't like playing on a 6x3 non space mat, so they played on a 3x4. The imperial player won 5 or 6 in a row against his buddy playing rebels and shortly after the rebel player quit the game saying its unbalanced. He did refuse to play myself or the other armada players to experience a real game but the negative play experience can be real on a 3x3 if your list is based on trying to avoid ISD front arcs.

I make an analogy useful to X-Wing players (since that is where many are coming over from).

Playing Armada on 3' x 3' is a lot like playing X-Wing without obstacles. Can you do it? Sure. But it's really not balanced like the full game at all...many lists become vastly more powerful, while others become much weaker.

I nailed 2x4s to the back of some old closet doors and mounted some collapsible legs under it. Gives just enough room on either side of the mats for cards. Cost me about $7.

18 minutes ago, Megatronrex said:

I nailed 2x4s to the back of some old closet doors and mounted some collapsible legs under it. Gives just enough room on either side of the mats for cards. Cost me about $7.

This was my next idea. Thrift store HERE I COME!

5 minutes ago, moodswing5537 said:

This was my next idea. Thrift store HERE I COME!

I got lucky with the doors and picked them up down the street from me where they were tearing down some old mill houses.

The legs came off of a much smaller card table I got for $3 at Miracle Hill.