I have just recently purchased Gosric's Skipray and I am very impressed by the model. Well done sir! Now I need to come up with rules for it. My initial thoughts are:
Att: 3 (Ion cannon)
Ag: 2
Hull: 6
Shield: 6
Actions: Focus, Target Lock
Options: System upgrade, Crew, Turret (*), Proton, Proton, Missile, Missile, Modification
* This comes with a turret, and I was thinking of the HLC but limiting it to 3 dice instead of 4 and costing it at 8
Maneuver dial the same as a Y wing
Thoughts?
I would probably just build the turret into the model in the same way it's built into the falcon.
I thought of that, but I was hoping on introducing something slightly different in the game. Fixed main Ion cannons and a turreted HLC felt different enough to me. My source for this data is, of course, wookiepedia.
A turreted HLC is crazy!
While we should realize that the ship's true "primary" weapon is the massive Ion Cannon in this game the primary should probably be 2 dice with a 360 firing arc like you see on the Outer Rim Smuggler. The Ion Cannon would come via a cannon upgrade slot and in addition to the standard Ion Cannon option there could be a "Heavy Ion Cannon" option which rolls more dice but which with additional benefits as well. It would have one missile slot and one torpedo slot and probably should have the systems upgrade slot as well, and maybe even a crew slot.
As far as cost goes this is going to be pretty pricy especially if you give it 6 hull and 6 shield along with 2 agility as that is better than the Firespray gets. Moving it down to a net 10 hit points you could see this starting out at the same price as a Firespray as you've basically cloned it except for taking a 3 die base attack in two arcs and letting it be 2 dice all the way around. You're still paying for upgrades on their own of course.
I have just recently purchased Gosric's Skipray and I am very impressed by the model. Well done sir! Now I need to come up with rules for it. My initial thoughts are:
Att: 3 (Ion cannon)
Ag: 2
Hull: 6
Shield: 6
Actions: Focus, Target Lock
Options: System upgrade, Crew, Turret (*), Proton, Proton, Missile, Missile, Modification
* This comes with a turret, and I was thinking of the HLC but limiting it to 3 dice instead of 4 and costing it at 8
Maneuver dial the same as a Y wing
Thoughts?
We trolls require gameplay pics.
Yeah we do...no pictures means it ain't real.
I have just recently purchased Gosric's Skipray and I am very impressed by the model. Well done sir! Now I need to come up with rules for it. My initial thoughts are:
Att: 3 (Ion cannon)
Ag: 2
Hull: 6
Shield: 6
Actions: Focus, Target Lock
Options: System upgrade, Crew, Turret (*), Proton, Proton, Missile, Missile, Modification
* This comes with a turret, and I was thinking of the HLC but limiting it to 3 dice instead of 4 and costing it at 8
Maneuver dial the same as a Y wing
Thoughts?
Wow, I think I need to call for restraint here.
More hits than a Firespray, I don't think so. Almost as much as super yt1300.
I'm not sure about the system upgrade. Right now it is a very rare upgrade, lots of ships that we would like to have it don't.
Double missile and double torpedoes is a tone of ordnance, more than any other ship.
This is why I posted this here, to get feed back from other more experienced gamers on this. I like Onebit's interpretation, though I would keep the hull at 5 so its the same as a shuttle. So, I am now going to playtest it as:
Pilot: 2
Ok, the Skipray may be a Large ship but unlike the Shuttle or YT-1300 it was designed as a combat starship. It should have a relatively decent dial and could have the same 2 agility that the Firespray somehow gets. I honestly think you could represent the Skipray best just using the Firespray but replacing the 3 attack front/rear primary with a 2 attack turreted primary. May lower the PS and the hull/shield to reduce cost but the rest is pretty much like it should be.
The capital scale Ion Cannon on the Firespray may be what it is best known for but you'll represent that with some kind of "Heavy Ion Cannon" upgrade that may cost a lot but which has some nifty new features.
Reading the ships description, a 360 degree HLC is hard to justify. This ship's primary armament was three forward mounted ion cannons. The turret is pretty small.PS: 2Att: 2 (360 radius)Ag: 1 ( Its maneuvering performance was not as remarkable out of the atmosphere)Hull: 4 (it is smaller than a Firespray)Shield: 6 (shielding caused some registries to designate it as a capital ship itself.)Action Icons: Focus, Target LockUpgrade Icons: System Upgrade (only on higher PS; GAT-12p), Crew, Cannon, Proton, MissileDial: Similar to b-wing with 4 forward being white, 3 k-turn (often relied on swift first-strikes)Points: 30
I think onebit hit pretty close to the target with his proposed stats (and for his stated reasons). However, I would give it the Firespray maneuver dial. In fact, I see the whole thing being a variant on the Firespray, stat and point-wise.
Chris
Yeah we do...no pictures means it ain't real.
Did you see pictures yet? I don't think this thing exists.
Proposed Heavy Ion Cannon (HIC)
Range: 1-3
Attack dice: 3
Note: a successful "hit" results in 1 Damage and 1 Ion token on Capital ships and 2 Damage/2 Ion tokens on others.
Cost: 5-7 points
Chris
Proposed Heavy Ion Cannon (HIC)
Range: 1-3
Attack dice: 3
Note: a successful "hit" results in 1 Damage and 1 Ion token on Capital ships and 2 Damage/2 Ion tokens on others.
Cost: 5-7 points
Chris
I'd probably give it 4 attack dice, restrict it to Range 2-3, have a successful attack result in one damage and ionization token plus an additional point of damage and ionization token for each additional critical (or hit/crit if you want to be really powerful) that should go through. Using 4 dice makes it MUCH more effective at hitting things but then having additional function for any crits rolled would be gravy. I'd probably price it at 7 points just like the HLC because while the HCL converts crits to hits this turn crits into more Ionizing damage.
Edited by StevenO
Proposed Heavy Ion Cannon (HIC)
Range: 1-3
Attack dice: 3
Note: a successful "hit" results in 1 Damage and 1 Ion token on Capital ships and 2 Damage/2 Ion tokens on others.
Cost: 5-7 points
Chris
I'd probably give it 4 attack dice, restrict it to Range 2-4, have a successful attack result in one damage and ionization token plus an additional point of damage and ionization token for each additional critical (or hit/crit if you want to be really powerful) that should go through. Using 4 dice makes it MUCH more effective at hitting things but then having additional function for any crits rolled would be gravy. I'd probably price it at 7 points just like the HLC because while the HCL converts crits to hits this turn crits into more Ionizing damage.
I was contemplating some of the very things you mention but opted out for several reasons. I based my version on the capital ship Ion Cannon rules mentioned in another article on this forum (re: integrating ISD and MC80 as board edge pieces). I thought that maybe the author had an insight as to what FFG was going to do with capital ship weapons when the Tantive IV and Rebel Transport expansions eventually come out. Pretty sure that range 4 is not going to happen (unless you know something I don't). Nor do I think it will have more dice than Heavy Laser Cannons.
Chris
Oops. Finger hit the wrong button and it should have only been range 2-3 and NOT 2-4. If it gets 4 dice the hypothetical Heavy Ion Cannon wouldn't have any more dice than the HLC so that is realistic for a HIC. I know I would NOT do 3 dice but if you get a hit you get to do 2 damage as that is just WRONG; if an attack is going to deal 2 damage it should need to HIT with two dice and/or deal a critical to the ship.
I'm not sure what they'll do with the capital ship's weapons but I could see Range 4 as a possibility for things like Turbolasers assuming they have any meaningful range. I could also see some long range missile of sorts that ignores a range 3 maximum although balancing those could be a delicate operation.
And it does indeed exist *L*
Cool blastboat! Nice pics. I've never noticed this before. What are we looking at? I hope you don't mind that I posted this image.
Cool blastboat! Nice pics. I've never noticed this before. What are we looking at? I hope you don't mind that I posted this image.
Klingon Bird of Prey with the wings in the center position?
Yes. It was something that i was toying with making since it seemed to be in the right size range to be feasible. But later pics have made me hesitant as it is a bit iffy from the top view
N-N-N-Necro! I've just seen this model and I'm sorely tempted to pick it up myself, even though I'd much prefer to wait for an "official" version (mind you, I'd probably just end up buying that as well anyway, knowing me).
I like the idea of a ship with an Ion Cannon as a primary weapon, it's quite thematic for this vessel and I think it would fill a unique niche. Here's my take:
So, my thoughts, take them or leave them:
Whenever home-brewing a unit for a game, try and make the unit adhere to as many existing precedents as possible. This is partly to limit OP new rules, and also to make the rules seem more familiar and, thus, acceptable to other players who might not be as invested in home-brewing. You should only stray from existing precedents, IMO, where there is not a current rule for the desired effect (cf, the Missile Boat reload action I developed) and where you do invent new rules you have to expect them to be fundamentally game shaking and so consider how to limit them.
Sticking to precedents also helps you stay within the aesthetic of the game. FFG may, in future waves, diverge from their own aesthetic, but, IMO, it's their aesthetic to play with. Games are artistic and mechanical, and we have a duty to work within the mechanics of a system as developed. Again, I reiterate, this is just my opinion, but it reflects my ethos on the issue.
Therefore, having looked up stats, and such, I propose the base for this ship should be the Firespray. Looking at the stats, you can barely get a cigarette paper between the numbers, especially since the Blastboats seem to have similar sensor and jamming suites to Firesprays (RE: an evade roll that is more generous than Y-Wings or B-Wings) (this is especially true if we consider the versions we see in Empire At War FoC, even if those are in the hands of pirates)
The Skipray is marginally faster, so I'd perhaps consider having the same dial as the Firespray but with the 3 white forward green instead to represent that slight edge in cruising speed. (I think it was 90 MGLT compared to 80).
Onto the primary weapon though, I think it should have a 2 attack with the Falcon turret. Firstly, that's a known quantity in the game. Secondly, primary weapons are lasers in this game, and ions are always cannons or turrets. Thirdly, the wider cannon repeatedly states that ion cannons are hard to maintain, and so ships don't always fly with them. Fourthly, it prevents you having to contrive an 'ion attack' special rule that is not a known quantity.
I'd go for target lock and focus actions.
For upgrades, I'd go for cannon, missile, torpedo, crew.
I'd leave of systems upgrades, since it's in danger of becoming too ubiquitous. The Blastboat isn't particularly 'new' as well, and sys upgrade seems to be going to newer, higher-tech ships like the B-Wing and E-Wing.
If tractor beams every gain... traction (har har har), I'd give it a tractor slot. Although the Firespray and Tie Defender would need a retrofit for one of each too.
No idea about points, but that's partly because I don't play enough to trust my gut on that. Ballpark it around the same price as a Bounty Hunter at equiv. pilot skill, maybe a point or two more for the extra speed and the turret attack?
EDIT: Just realised that the shuttle has systems upgrade as well, which perhaps counters my argument about 'new-ness' Still tempted to leave it off the Skipray, but not sure. I could go either way on that.
Edited by KtanKtan,
I like the way you think!