Hi guys,

I absolutely love this game. I picked it up just before Xmas and taught my best friend and wife to play (both enjoyed it) and recently got my gaming group involved in my first 5 man- it was awesome. A suggestion came up regarding using the raptors as electronic warfare ships. A possible suggestion is that unmanned or manned, a raptor gives -1 to hit on all vipers in the same area, while manned it would provide -1 to all vipers in area or adjacent areas, and -1 to hit for the BSG itself. Comments?

This idea came up mainly because the raptors seem a bit less useful then the vipers do, which of course have a more visceral appeal. Also, it seems a shame that what I consider to be the best models shipped in the box never make it to the field of active play.

Speaking of models, I have lost a single viper despite what I thought was obsessive care. There's no link in the support section of the website- any idea how I might buy a replacement?

Thanks, and I look forward to the flames.

Many people are unhappy with the way the Raptors are sitting ducks in the hangar bay. Your proposed variant is still the best, less game-altering than the rest. Keep in mind, however, that you need to devise rules as to how these ships interact with Raiders. Will they get attacked by them? (most likely) If yes, what is their to-hit-number?

As for the lost Viper - shame on you! But simply email the nice guys at FFG for replacements. I believe there is someone specific personally doing this stuff, but I don't know him or his email off-hand. Generally, I'd start at the user contact form: http://new.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_atencion.asp

That's unfortunate that you lost a viper. As to that I'm not sure where you could get a viper replacement.

I just played 3 solo games with Starbuck as my main charachter. I Iike to keep her in the viper and use her Epert Pilot ability to use two Launch Scouts per turn. This way I'm virtually rigging the Crisis and Location decks. In this manner by 5-8 distance points they are all my raptors are destroyed. I like to look at the top Crisis card and if it's a card that puts Basestars on the board I put it on the bottom. If I like the Crisis card I put it on the top. Then with her Expert Piloting I use another Launch scout and look at the top of the Location cards.

This is the only way I can see one getting the full use of the Raptors in a game; Using Starbuck's Expert Piloting.

Hmm. Maybe you could use them to transport Humans to and from the Phylon fleet as an optional Rule. Make Galactic's 3-5 oclock space the launch bay for the Pylon fleet.

What's a P(h)ylon fleet?

We chew those Raptors up pretty well, so I'm not about to call them useless. If you want some other ways to use them, you have to consider both sides. All I see so far are ways to give the humans more advantages. Where's the balance for the Cylons? Are you going to let them use Heavy Raiders as EW too?

Thanks for the replies. Please note that I did not call the Raptors useless. I said they are imo less useful then the Vipers. Not getting defensive, just trying to make a point. Looking at the crisis cards is useful, as is the destination deck. Just not as useful, imo, as blowing Raiders out of the sky.

I haven't playtested this idea; I'm using these forums to hammer out the gross, overlooked aspects of this proposal before I do so. Also, I love the game enough that I may never playtest this notion; why muck up near perfection? (Cindy, I'm sorry, that beauty mark has got to go!). That said, I don't think there needs to be a Cylon (why is that so hard for people to spell correctly?) balance; the fact of not having a Raptor to risk when jumping to a tylium moon is balance enough. As for hit numbers, in my envisioning of this idea Raptors have the same to hit as civies; if you get caught naked out there, you're dead. I think that being military they will try to protect the civies; they die first, but maybe with the following caveats;

1) you cannot launch or move a Raptor into a space WITH Raiders, WITHOUT Viper backup.

2) a MANNED Raptor make take the action of looking at all of the civilian ships in the same (maybe adjacent) space, then move 1 civilian ship. <--- just came to me, and here's why; who would want to play a manned Raptor even with the bonuses if you can't "do" stuff? Even having the chance of playing an Executive Order is boring if that's what you HAVE to do every turn to be "active".

Thoughts?

btw. thanks for the tip on getting in touch with FFG. I will contact them to collect my AWOL pilot soonest.

Don

I'd say your rules are balanced if you also rule that a raptor in the same area as raiders is automatically destroyed if there are no vipers in its space. Alternately, you might allow only a single raptor to be activated from command, which will make for some difficult decisions -- activate two vipers now; or one raptor and the vipers later.