Hey all! Thought I'd jot down some notes and thoughts from my weekend while they're still fresh. I hope y'all find them useful! Thank you to everyone for the games and camaraderie!
I flew: Wedge, Braylen, Ten Numb w/ Elusive, and Cassian w/ Leia -- Jamming Beams, for me, are a distraction not worth taking. I have been flying this list for the past 6 or so weeks and I really enjoy it. Before this, my Extended list was Double Sigmas w/ Juke, Stealth Device, and Vader/7th Sister; Valen Rudor w/ Squad Leader; and Del Meeko. I really enjoy creating, "ambushes," as I call them, and winning on the initial exchange where possible.
I'm going to use Green's format for reports. The opponent's side of the board is, "North," and mine is, "South." Left is, "West," and right is, "East." Board edges are the gutters.
GAME 1: Derrick (?) w/ Chopper VCX, AP-1 (or is 5?), Jake, and Phoenix A-Wing w/ Ion Missiles
Set-Up: Obstacles made a wedge that was narrow in the North-East corner and expanded South and West. He set up his list to come down the East gutter. I set up my list in the middle, facing East.
Game-Play: I pushed North to control the board center and put the obstacles between me and him. He came down the East Gutter. I turned my ships in and attacked while he rounded the obstacle in the South-East corner. He burned Leia early to 4K the VCX into the South-East corner, but ended up bumping, which put him badly out of position. My Bs flit through the obstacles and ate AP, then the Phoenix. Jake took a Weapons Failure from Wedge. At that point is what pretty much over and he conceded the game once Jake was gone. Rough turn of events for my opponent, but it happens. 200-0
GAME 2 (Streamed by GSP): Joel Kingsworth w/ Hatchetman (Fat Vynder, Vader, Jendon)
Set-Up: Obstacles made a partial ring in the center, with gas clouds pushed to the outer boundaries. Aces benefit way more from clouds than I do, and I don't want them to be part of the fight. He set up Vader and Jendon facing down the East-Gutter, while Vynder was out to the North-West. I deployed in the middle, facing West.
Game-Play: I saw an opportunity to isolate Vynder and force him out of the fight, so I pushed fast into the middle, facing North. He slow-rolled down with all his ships. Next turn, I pushed hard again and caught Vynder, did two damage, and forced him away. He spent Jendon to double-lock Wedge. He turned Jendon into the center, while Vader was forced to go the long way. Vynder attempted to flee, but I put another two damage into him (lucky!). Wedge 3-Banks in behind my formation to make sure he doesn't suicide Vynder into my squad to take Wedge.
Vynder is now forced to flee and Vader is still in a bad spot. I turn my attention on the isolated Shuttle and start punching it. I think I do four damage here. Next turn, Wedge flies in and he and a B kill Jendon. Vader puts some damage on Braylen, I think, who I posted on flank security. Around here, I turn some ships in to kill Vader, should he bank into the middle. Instead, Vader dips out with a 2-Hard South. Vynder is coming back into the fight. Also, this turn or the last, I make a mistake with Cassian and Ten. Ten had bumped Cassian, putting him at Range 0, thus I could not use Cassian to clear his stress. Thankfully, it's an easy fix and the judge has us reset Ten's barrel-row.
I also make a pretty painful mistake, here. My B-Wing dial is next to Vader's and I pick up the wrong one while talking to Joel. I look for the 1-Talon and realize my mistake. I throw down the dial and apologize to Joel. He's pretty annoyed (I would be), I offer to call over a judge and explain I didn't see his planned maneuver. He's gracious and continues the game. I flip Braylen's dial to let him know I'll be 1-Talon'ing, as it's only fair and I feel pretty bad. From here on, it's pretty much a scrum in the middle, and I manage to take it. I think Wedge was the one to kill Vynder, but I'm not sure.
Joel flew his Vader like a champion and I hardly scratched him. Fun game and a close one! I think he got Braylen and half of Cassian and Wedge, while I got Vynder and Jendon (?) I'm not sure.
GAME 3: Corey out of Atlanta w/ Quad Phantoms
Set-Up: Made a wedge with the obstacles, starting wide in the South and going into the North-East corner. He deployed in the center, with lots of open space. I deployed in the South-East corner, facing in.
Game-Play:
Corey is a super conservative player and was content to slow-roll in open space. To engage him there was a clear death sentence for my list. So, I slow-rolled up the East Gutter, waiting him out. I got my wish when he decloaked forward and went for an attack on my Bs. However, I was able to dodge his arcs and put two modified shots into his forward Phantom. I stripped it of tokens and did one damage. The rest of my list surged up behind the Bs and I went for the full engagement. I traded Ten for a Phantom and then some. Braylen and Wedge went into the scrum and I took down another Phantom at the expense of damage on Braylen. At the end, I had half health Wedge, Braylen, and Cassian against two shield-less Phantoms. Unfortunately, I went a little too fast with Wedge and he bumped, losing his shot, and Braylen and Cassian couldn't get the last damage in on one Phantom. Braylen exploded (I think) and that was game. It was extremely close. Like, twenty point differential (maybe Braylen didn’t explode?) and I was only one damage away from the win. Darn.
GAME 4: Ryan Moore (?) out of Seattle with Kylo, Starkiller, and Tavison (however it’s spelled)
Set-Up:
Ryan brought all gas clouds, which I shoved out to the edges, while he spread my rocks/debris. We ended up with a very loose obstacle set-up, which was not good for me. Tav and Starkiller set to bump in the middle, while Kylo takes the North-West corner. I take the South-West Corner, facing in.
Game-Play:
Standard baiting from Kylo and bumping on the Upsilons. I slowly go up the West Gutter, while keeping a pair of arcs inward to dissuade a Kylo attack. Eventually, the Upsilons come down, Starkiller down the middle and Tav down the East Gutter. Kylo comes up from the South-East. I engage Starkiller and put some hurt into it. I think he punched for Cassian, first, and the U-Wing took five damage from one four-die attack. We go into the scrum and it’s a mess. I take out the Starkiller pretty quickly, but I get the bejesus whacked out of my ships. Then I was behind Tav and I had a much happier time. At the end, I had Tav on half, Starkiller dead, and Kylo dead (he went all in to initiative kill Ten, but the little guy lived on 1 HP and blew up Kylo in return). I forget what I had left, but it wasn’t a lot. Narrow win for me. Ryan was great and really knew how to take this list in an aggressive way.
GAME 5: Joel out of Seattle with Kylo, Starkiller, and Tavison
Okay, so this game is unique, right, but it’s also pretty close to the game I just played with Ryan. He had the same priorities: spread obstacles, bait Kylo, shove Tav in my face. I had the same answer: slow-roll up, avoid Tav, punch the Starkiller and then take concentrated shots on Tav or Kylo. Another narrow win for me, again coming down to a damaged Kylo going one-on-one with a B-Wing.
GAME 6: Jim Frank, of Denver, with Grand Inquisitor, Echo, Omicron Group Pilot, and Initiative 1 TIE/Interceptor
Set-Up:
Jim is an awesome player and fellow local (though more deserving of that description than me), so we were able to chat while we set up. Obstacles came to be a wedge: wide in the North and narrowing to the South-East. He put the Shuttle and Interceptor in the North-West, Inquisitor and Echo in the middle. I put everything in the South-East, facing in.
Game-Play:
I slow rolled up the West Gutter, while keeping my arcs pointed in via self-bumping with Cassian and 1-Bank and B-Roll with the Bs. Wedge played flank security and remained facing in. Jim shoved his Interceptor down the West Gutter and the Shuttle slowly (slowly) moved to the center. Likewise, the Inquisitor moved cautiously while Echo bounced around. It was surprising to see, but also cool to watch him deliver his ships where he wanted them. I’m pretty sure it was calculated. Jim is cagey. Anyways, initial engagement went to Wedge taking on an over-extended Interceptor. I had Focus/TL and rolled 1H2F, chose to spend the lock and re-rolled the 2F for 1B1F -- whoops! Jim rolled natty evades. Then it was the Bs against Echo or the Inquisitor at Range 3. My Bs are pretty happy to have two fully modified defence dice at Range 3 and I don’t think anything came of it (maybe one damage). Then, his Interceptor rolled two hits and Wedge rolled two blanks. Ugh!
Next turn I burned Leia to protect Wedge and to deliver all my ships for an attack on his Shuttle. His shuttle complied by moving further into the center, while his Interceptor 5-Straight for a block on Cassian. However, I saw it coming and 2-Banked in with Cassian, aiming him at the Shuttle and dodging the Interceptor. My B-Wings banked into the center. Braylen got his double mods, while I 3-Banked a stressed Ten Numb over a rock. Unfortunately, he bumped into Echo, who decloaked into what I thought, and think, is the most disadvantageous spot -- sandwiched between obstacles and facing dead-on South. I wasn’t expecting that. Wedge Tallon-Rolled South, out of the Shuttle’s arc and focused. Grand Inquisitor was stuck on the outside (East) of the obstacles and had to reposition to get a shot on Braylen. Braylen tanked the shot like a champ. Wedge put 1H1C into the Interceptor, resulting in Panicked Pilot. Echo and the Shuttle punched Cassian, and Cassian and Braylen… Punched the Shuttle, I think (it may have been Echo). Anyways, I had a great turn here, as I effectively eliminated the Interceptor as a threat, had great positioning in the center, and had Echo and the Shuttle in a bad way. From here it was basically a clean up. Wedge turns in, the Bs 1-Straight and Focus-B-Roll for double-mods, and Cassian slowly moves up to avoid a bump on the Shuttle (This is actually really important -- Echo was in such a position that if he chose to decloak, there was only one spot he could go and it would cause the Shuttle to bump). That’s pretty much it. The Shuttle goes down, Cassian flees, the Bs take the center, and Wedge covers Cassian. Grand Inquisitor takes down Cassian in the West Gutter, but his run soon ends with Wedge and Braylen shooting him at Range 2. Great game that really became mine in the middle or so. Sucked having to go against another Denver native, but we both made Top 32 and Jim is always a great opponent and fun to play. Highlight: Him screaming, “But you’re going to crash!” as Ten 3-Banks over the rock and into Echo
MADE THE CUT!!!!!!! Fast-forward 12 hours…
GAME 7 (Streamed by GSP): Nate, of Ohio, Vader w/ Afterburners and 3 Imdaar Test Pilots
Set-Up:
Partial wedge, wide up North and narrowing to the South-East, with one obstacle out on its lonesome to the West. Imdaars together in the North-East corner and Vader in the North-West corner. I plop my list in the middle (don’t remember the facings, sorry)
Game-Play:
Vader plays bait, while the Imdaars jet down the East Gutter. I keep an arc or two facing center to dissuade Vader from coming in and slow-roll the rest into the center. Round three or four is when I turn hard to the East and ambush the Imdaars. It ends up being all four of my ships against his three Imdaars. More so, I’m able to initiative kill an Imdaar, which is pretty lucky! Unfortunate for Nate, Vader is still a round away from contributing to the fight, and his two Phantoms take a whalloping from my list. At this point, the game is more-or-less decided. I really admire Nate for playing this game out, as he had a steep hill to climb to come back from this one.
GAME 8: Andrew, from Seattle, with Kylo, Tav, and Starkiller -- EDITED in Andrew's name
LOL
Not much to get into this one. The same slow-rolling, cagey approach by both myself and he. Then, the damage race with Starkiller, and then chasing Tav or Kylo. Absolutely awesome player and I feel really guilty about not being so confident with his name. We both took a bit longer to play this one out, with long planning phases from both of us. I lost Wedge early on, which was a huge set-back (died to a Range 3 unmodified Tav and a Range 2 Focused Starkiller), but the Starkiller was soon gone, too. Cassian, who had taken a lot of punishment, was able to flee and keep his points and Leia safe, which were huge for me. I was down and took a long-shot on a Force-less, stressed Kylo through a Debris Field and managed to put two or three hits into him. Then, I killed him, and that was pretty much it. I think. Definitely forgetting some details on this one.
I really do think it’s the Upsilons that win or lose for this list archetype. You absolutely CANNOT shoot Tav unless you have multiple arcs on him, you have to split the Upsilons up, and you have to get behind them. I truly believe that I only won because I managed to accomplish the above three in my match-ups.
From the opposite side, I can’t help but feel that the Upsilons facing in on each other is a mistake. Yes, it allows you to delay and react to your opponent’s approach, but it also delays your approach and your ability to stagger the Upsilons. They need to watch each other’s backs, block K-Turns, and be able to fan their arcs (ie. Upsilons should never ever be parallel with each other)
GAME 9 (Streamed by GSP): Mitch with Quickdraw and two generic Silencers
Set-Up:
Managed to get a partial wedge, wide in the North and tapering to the South-East (are you noticing a trend?). He deployed Center-West. I deployed South-East Corner, facing in.
Game-Play:
I did my usual inward facing slow-roll up the board, not telegraphing which side of the wedge I intended to go up. Once he split off Quickdraw, I burned Leia to pounce his lone Silencer in the North-East corner. Unfortunately, I made a mistake here: I coordinated a B-Roll to Braylen, instead of a Focus-B-Roll. Oh well. The two Bs are only able to do one damage to the Silencer. Now we know where the fight is, and everyone rushes in. I put some more damage into the Silencer, but not enough. It becomes a furball in this corner, with Mitch having to come through a rock and debris to engage. This is great for me. Unfortunately, this game slips away from me on the dice rolls. In a round that should have seen two Silencers pop, both survive on one hull and I lose Cassian (expected) and Braylen (unexpected). Now, Wedge is forced into the 4K to clear a Silencer, leaving him open to Quickdraw, while Ten turns North to attempt to chase the other Silencer. I down the first Silencer, but not before Quickdraw puts four damage into Wedge out of her butt gun. Next turn, I close the foils, clear stress, and Focus-Boost behind a rock to protect myself. I’m barely out of arc on the Silencer. Ten Numb is pushing his little B-Wing as fast as he can back into the middle.
Last turn?
This:
https://clips.twitch.tv/BoldTransparentSnailEleGiggle?fbclid=IwAR20nG0pax8eWDmRbEPJxWq35evupcvvt_C0r-rDieF3l41_mGFgSt7LMd8
And that’s game for me. I flew it to my best, but it wasn’t mine to win. Big thanks to Mitch for an awesome game. He’s a super friendly dude and I like to think we flew a really clean match. Even bigger thanks to Andrew Nuckols for avenging me in the final lol
Seriously though, I had an absolutely great time and I’m very thankful to be part of such a positive and creative community. Thank you to everyone who came and played, thank you to the judges for putting up your dice and range rulers to officiate, and thank you to my friends for all the practice! I can’t wait to see y’all again!
I was mistaken on an opponent's name