Time for a Big one...

Well, I've updated the squadron following last weeks mission... and felt it was time to add a big ship, so welcome the Lambda Class Shuttle.

I've spent the last however long working with the "little" ships, so this should be a bit of a new challenge as the big bases really do mess with the whole movement thing!

Also, think it's time my TIE bombers actually made it out of the hanger for a mission

The current squadron roster...

1. TIE Bomber -  Gamma Squadron - 18 Points
2. TIE Bomber -  Scimitar Squadron - 16 Points
3. TIE Fighter -  Obsidian Squadron - 13 Points
4. destroyed in last mission - currently blank
5. TIE Advanced  -  Tempest Squadron - 21 Points
6. TIE Fighter -  Academy Pilot - 12 Points (Replacement)
7. TIE Fighter -  Obsidian Squadron ,, - 13 Points (Upgrade)
8. TIE Interceptor -   Alpha Squadron - 18 Points (Replacement)
9. Lambda-Class Shuttle - Omicron Group  Pilot - 21 Points (New Ship)

132 of 135 Pilot points used.

Next game on Friday!

MISSION 4: Den of Thieves

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Sent by the imperial central intelligence section to Vulture Squadron

Because of their fundamental role in the Imperial Navy, Sienar engineers are vital to the Empires hold on the galaxy. Their ceaseless toil is responsible for the most recent star ship prototype, currently in transit to rendezvous with the imperial fleet. Alliance intelligence discovered it only days ago and offered a substantial reward for the prototypes capture. Rebel-aligned smugglers are prepared to ambush the vulnerable shipment, and the modest Imperial excort must safely deliver its precious cargo

A Vulture squadron escort consisting of a TIE Advanced armed with Cluster missiles, four TIE Fighters (a pair of Obsidian Squadron pilots and a couple of Academy pilots) plus the Alpha Squadron TIE interceptor - freshly delivered to the Vultures.

The three Containers the Vulture squadron were escorting were indeed ambushed by rebel scum (the infamous Millennium Falcon and 3 head hunters).

Whilst the falcon escaped with a single head-hunter, the other two were destroyed, and all three containers safely delivered.

Two TIE fighters and the TIE Interceptor were lost, but the mission itself was still a resounding success.

+++END MESSAGE++

Wow - as today, I've caught up!... who knows the next update should be straight after the next game (this Friday 6th March!)

This mission was (as the title suggests) a straight run of "Mission 4: Den of Thieves" from the Millennium Falcon expansion pack, and was played between myself and Adam.

Adam kind of played this all wrong, and took his time in getting to the containers... also, we took the rules as being that the "steal action" was just that - an Action... so I made a point of sitting a TIE in front of the falcon all the time... causing a collision and meaning, yes, no Action for the falcon...

A good game, interesting the more missions played, with different victory conditions, the more you get to think about different tactics, not just dog fights....

A good win for the Vultures, and an extra 10 pilot points...  meaning after the mission the squadron looks like -

1. TIE Bomber - Gamma Squadron      - 18 Points
2. TIE Bomber - Scimitar Squadron     - 16 Points
3. TIE Fighter - Obsidian Squadron     - 13 Points
4. TIE Fighter - Obsidian Squadron     - destroyed
5. TIE Advanced - Tempest Squadron - 21 Points
6. TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot            - destroyed
7. TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot            - 12 Points
8. TIE Interceptor - Alpha Squadron    - destroyed

80 points of 135 points used... time for a new ship and some upgrades...

Looks like a photo opp...

I've finally found a camera, and assembled the current Vulture Squadron...

I'll mock up some other pictures of previous missions and that so... watch this space ...

I don't always win you know...

On the same night as the previous mission, before everyone arrived we had a couple of runs of Mission 2: Asteroid Run... Vulture squadron took part...and didn't cover themselves in glory...

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From the intercepted logs of a rebel ship -
"Whilst scouting the outer Rim, rebel ships came across a hidden

Imperial outpost. Unfortunately before they could contact the rebellion, the imperial facility's ION cannons fired a barrage disabling the communications relay and hyperdrive engine on one of the rebel ships. In desperation, the rebels have fled to a nearby asteroid field while their astromechs attempt to repair the damaged systems. Hopelessly outnumbered the disabled ship must survive  until its systems are back online, and then must flee the battlefield in order to notify Rebel high command."

Two Academy pilots were despatched to intercept, but were unable to stop the rebel X-wing escaping. Mission failed.

+++END MESSAGE++

I'm using the excuse that it was my first game in ages and thought I could be all cocky with my formation TIE flying... I dallied around the bottom of the board whilst the astromech on the x-wing fixed its engines and it scarpered...

No extra points from this one for the Vultures...

Even For the Imperials...This was pretty Low...

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Whilst the VT-49 Decimator was still in the Sector, members of Vulture Squadron went on a joint mission with it and several other visiting TIE Interceptors lead by Commander Tiller.
News reached us of Rebel sympathetic smuggler activity. The patrol went out and encountered two smuggler vessels (a YT-1300 and YT-2400) along with several other rebel Star fighters.
The ships were challenged and engaged. All Rebel ships were destroyed with no casualties to Vulture Squadron.

+++END MESSAGE++

This was a full house gaming night with Myself, Adam, Mike and Ben. and as well as a couple of quick missions from the core rules, we had a big 4 player, two on each side game. As a social thing this is what I like best about the game. Although it is only "two-sided" (i.e. Rebels vs. Imperials - although Scum & Villainy to come soon!), I like having a 4 player, two on each side game.

We play this as each player having there own "Squadron", but checking and conversing for tactics etc. for the same end goal. Often even those squadrons will be set up to compliment each other.

For instance, the two rebels may have 100 points each, one with a couple of slower attack ships (Y-wings or B-wings, maybe even a Falcon thrown in there) and the other a "Fighter" escort (X or A -wings). In this way each player will be set up slightly differently and will play in a different manner - whilst checking tactics with each other to achieve the same end goal.

In the mission above it was myself and Adam as the Imperials, and Mike and Ben as the Rebel (Scum).

The joy of the social side of gaming, is that this being Mike's first game in a while, he went out especially and bought himself the falcon that afternoon. In knowing he had done this, the agreed tactic of myself and Adam was...Destroy the Falcon.

Now, tactically this would probably be the thing to do, as the YT-1300 is a beast of a ship... but it was nothing to do with that, it was just, I guess the imperial coming out in us. Sorry Mike.

Once the Falcon was gone, Dash Rendars YT-2400 soon followed and the imperials easily mopped up the rest. Adam's Interceptors took a lot of damaged, but the Decimator came through pretty much unscathed along with the rest of Vulture Squadron.

So another 10 points for Vulture Squadron...

My squadron stayed the same as previous, but now using 123 of 135 available points. The reason I'm not rushing to "Spend" my extra points, is to add a bigger ship when I can "afford" it points wise...

SHIP PROFILE: VT-49 Decimator...

As it is my newest "Toy", and as shown in the last mission, and (Spoiler Alert!) the next one... The VT-49 Decimator is pretty awesome.
It's not agile (No evade dice unless through obstacles or at distance), but with a hefty 12 hull points plus 4 Shields, that's 3 more hits than the Falcon can take, add to that missiles, bombs, several crew, 360 primary weapon - it will take a concerted effort to bring one down...

My current Fave ship! - although I have yet to fully come to grips with the TIE Phantom...

Actually, I may work my way through the ships and my thoughts on them as future blogs...

Watch this space!

A Visitor to the Squadron...

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After an enforced period of inactivity in the outer rim region the squadron receive a visit from Rear Admiral Chiraneau and a VT-49 Decimator. On board is Ysanne Isard has information about Rebel activity. Five Ships from Vulture Squadron accompanied the Decimator to intercept the rebels, and all four ships were destroyed.

The following is from the logs of the Decimator

The Imperial Commander stood stock-still upon the bridge of the VT-49 Decimator, hands clasped tightly behind her back, watching through the viewports as two TIE fighters moved to intercept a pair of Rebel ships.

"Perhaps you can explain something to me lieutenant," she said, her icy voice breaking the silence. "Why aren't our batteries firing?"

"Our fighters are engaging the enemy Commander. We have no clear shot."

"I have heard you praise the accuracy of your gunnery teams on numerous occasions. I hope it was more than idle boasting. Commence firing!"

+++END MESSAGE++

This was a straight play of the Mission from the VT-49 Decimator pack, with the two TIE's being from Vulture Squadron (Mission 11: INTERDICTION) played between myself and Mike. As mentioned above, a stunning victory for the Imperials!
The reason I specifically wanted to include the blurb from the mission, was that it really summed up how the game played out. The rules from the Mission stipulate that the imperials have the Ruthlessness card which read -
"Imperial Only. After you perform an attack that hits, you must choose 1 other ship at Range 1 of the defender (other than yourself). That ship suffers 1 damage."
Now this is great when attacking a group of Rebel ships in tight formation...but in this instance, the accuracy of the imperial gunners was idle boasting. I complete destroyed one of my own TIE fighters, and helped destroy the other.
Oh well, a wins a win!

Other than that, I know I kind of bent my own set rules by fielding a ship not currently part of Vulture Squadron, but hey, It was a "Guest" ship, and was oh so shiny and new...
On a serious note, the Decimator is kind of awesome... as shown in the next big mission...(ahem, breaking my own rules again!)

As to updating the squadron... added 10 "pilot" points, replaced the two destroyed Academy Pilots with two fresh recruits from the Academy, and added a basic TIE interceptor (Alpha Squadron).

The re-numbered list looks like -

1. TIE Bomber - Gamma Squadron      - 18 Points
2. TIE Bomber - Scimitar Squadron     - 16 Points
3. TIE Fighter - Obsidian Squadron     - 13 Points
4. TIE Fighter - Obsidian Squadron     - 13 Points
5. TIE Advanced - Tempest Squadron - 21 Points
6. TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot            - 12 Points
7. TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot            - 12 Points
8. TIE Interceptor - Alpha Squadron    - 18 Points

A total of 123 Points from a possible 125 point

A Second Outing for Vulture Squadron

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Four members of Vulture Squadron were on a routine patrol when they happened across a smuggler running weapons for the rebel alliance. This ship had an X-wing escort. Although some casualties were taken by Vulture Squadron and the smuggler managed to evade us, the x-wing escort was destroyed and the smugglers run disrupted.

++END MESSAGE++


So, what happened? The ships out were

3) Scimitar Squadron - TIE Bomber     - Lost 
5) Academy Pilot - TIE Fighter             - Returned to Base
6) Academy Pilot - TIE Fighter             - Lost
7) Tempest Squadron - TIE Advanced - Lost

A limited success, so 5 additional pilot points.
New squadron layout -

1.    TIE Bomber –  Gamma Squadron         18 points
2.    TIE Bomber – Scimitar Squadron          16 points
3.    Lost
4.    TIE Fighter – Obsidian Squadron          13 points (Upgrade)
5.    TIE Fighter – Obsidian Squadron          13 points (Upgrade)
6.    Lost
7.    Lost
8.    TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot                  12 points (NEW)
9.    TIE Fighter - Academy Pilot                  12 points (NEW)
10.   TIE Advanced - Tempest Squadron     21 points (NEW)

using 105 of the available 115 Pilot points....

Although I've added the new ships on the end, I'll start to fill the gaps when I next add any pilots...

The First Engagement...

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Three members of Vulture squadron were part of a joint patrol that happened across a rebel alliance transport and it’s X-wing escort. All rebel ships were destroyed. There were several imperial ships lost (including the loss of a fire spray) but all vulture squadron pilots safely returned.

++END MESSAGE++


So,  what happened... game wise, I picked a hundred point squadron, and flew with Ben, a mission against Adam's rebels.
Pilot wise my hundred points was restricted to the pilots/ ships already detailed as being in Vulture squadron. I then made up the additional points in add-ons/ missiles/ bombs etc.
We flew the against the rebel ships (including the rebel transport), and came away successful . I added 10 additional pilot points, and updated Vulture squadron as below -

1.       TIE Bomber –  Gamma Squadron              18 points (UPGRADE)
2.       TIE Bomber – Scimitar Squadron                16 points
3.       TIE Bomber – Scimitar Squadron                16 points
4.       TIE Fighter – Academy Pilot                         12 points
5.       TIE Fighter – Academy Pilot                         12 points
6.       TIE Fighter – Academy Pilot                         12 points
7.       TIE Advanced – Tempest Squadron         21 Points (NEW SHIP)

using 105 of the available 110 Pilot points....

Is this starting to make sense...
Next post, will be the next mission...

So, What are the Requirements...

Remember this whole squadron thing is very much for my own amusement, and bearing in mind it's in relation to a game (as good as that game may be!), I didn't want to create something onerous and overly complicated which may restrict play and enjoyment.

But some rules were needed...

• You start with 100 Pilot points (not to be confused with points used when building a team for a specific mission)
• These points are only used on pilot cards
• When selecting for a mission you select your pilots from your "squadron" and then add any additional stuff based on the points for the mission
• You can only start with the lowest pilot skills
• As you play missions, if you win, you get an extra 10 pilot points (5 points for a partial success)
• Between missions you can upgrade your pilots/ ships
• If a ship is destroyed during a game that ship/ pilot is gone and you have to go back to the lowest pilot skill.
• If a ship goes off the board he has "run away" rather than be destroyed (No good for the rest of that mission  but back to the squadron)
• If a named pilot is destroyed, then he is destroyed...so sometimes worth running away...

Doesn't seem as simple written down as it does in my head (!) so maybe an example would help...

 Initial hundred pilot points for Vulture Squadron was spent on - 3*Scimitar Squadron TIE Bombers at 16 points each and 3* Academy Pilots TIE Fighters at 12 points, giving a total spend from my "Pilot Points" of 84 points

...Did I say you had to use all the pilot points?... you don't - maybe you're saving up for a big upgrade or new ship...

Anyway, in the first mission I played was a 100 pointer. I selected my 3 TIE bombers, and 2 Academy Pilots - 72 points... the remaining 28 points were spent on bombs and missiles as needed for the mission.

Does that make sense... I suppose what you really want to know is how did the first outing of Vulture squadron pan out...

A little bit of Squadron History...

So here's the deal. We all between us played the game when we had chance, and although we planned big grandiose campaigns and full days and weekends immersing ourselves in all things Star Wars, we never really got round to it...
So I thought, if I just try and tie all my games together in a semi linear fashion, to try and add a bit of a back story, to help keep it interesting...The obvious answer was a squadron I could build up over days / weeks/ months, adding to it after each game, and hopefully each success. I could use the squadron in the set missions that come with the game, missions we write ourselves (more of that to come!) or just in a dog fight...
An added bonus was it made me start small and simple, and gradually build up what I play with. By that, I mean that although I've got pretty much all the ships, and read lots of tips and advise on best set-ups and combos of cards, pilots and special skills, doing it this way means I can really learn about the ships, how they fly and interact, and gradually build up the "other stuff" without getting buried in the detail.
So, the plan was a squadron, and obviously(!) it had to be Imperial, and I started with a stack of basic TIE fighters and a couple of TIE Bombers. To add some atmosphere before the first game I played with the newly christened Vulture Squadron and wrote the following blurb with my two boys... Now if you could picture it in the classic Star Wars screen scrawl that would be great....

Episode III (and a half): VULTURE SQUADRON

After an initial period of relative stability under the rule of Emperor Palpatine, the rise of the rebel alliance is seeing an increased need for new imperial navy squadrons to be assembled.

One of these is Vulture Squadron. Drawn together from new raw recruits fresh from the academy, with all the might of the empires war machine behind it, the squadron has the dual purpose of keeping the varied systems in place with their TIE bombers whilst always being ready to meet the rebels in ship to ship action with a wing of TIE fighters.

The new pilots must be ready to carry out the emperors will at a moment’s notice. Let battle commence…

Right I intended to get a bit more info up here - specifically about my very own Vulture Squadron...but that will have to wait!
Game night tomorrow, hopefully all four of us - I'll put up some pictures and stuff over the weekend!