***
Closing Thoughts
Empire
The top of turn 4 was truly the make or break point in
the game. If the reeling Independence did not finish off the mortally
wounded Executor, it is likely that the Super Star Destroyer would have
killed Independence (a 685 point swing!) and also heavily damaged both Home
One and Profundity. Probably not enough for the win, as Executor
was too far gone to save by that point.
I needed to move my ISDs up very quickly. The SSD starts
out so far ahead of the rest of the fleet that the poor front arc is basically
fighting it’s own battle, far from support. The slow VSDs could be left in the
dust as the ISDs race forward to the SSD’s bow to slug it out. That might cause
a deadly traffic jam in the hordes of Rebel ships found up there. Chimaera
rocketed forward at speed 3 (right into a buzzsaw, as it happened), but Devastator
inched along at speed 1, allowing the Rebels to divide and conquer. Going slow
also helped allow Devastator to be shot in the rear arc at least 5
times.
As for the pregame plan, the VSDs barely moved and the
Arquitens cruisers did not help with flank protection. A whole host of fast
Rebel ships were in the Imperial backfield by Turn 3. The Raiders went forward
fast, but were basically ignored until the end and didn’t do too much. I
suspect the Arquitens need to be closer to the ISDs to effectively protect the
rear; not sure what the Raiders should do. Perhaps a bigger dose of
anti-squadron operations.
I was also not happy with my usage (or lack thereof) of
the squadrons held within Stronghold and Executor. I envisioned
letting them get a safe ride deep into enemy territory, but that really didn’t
materialize. It would probably have been better to overwhelm the Rebels with
sheer numbers right from the outset. The nature and placement of fighter
screens is still something I am thinking about. As an engaged squadron can’t
usually choose to attack a ship, even if they’re in range, I suppose there is
no need to send the screen fighters across the board. They could hover in a
mass, close around the ship they’re protecting, ready to engage approaching
bombers.
I was pleased with the concept and operation of the Lambda-class
shuttles (with Relay) when paired with Boosted Comms. That really
allowed for a very wide-ranging squadron game. The results might have been
poor, however, as the spread out Imperial squadrons took a ferocious beating
early on. I am still debating as to whether it was a good thing to “set the
line” for the squadron fight so far out in front of the ships. On the good side, few if any B-wings got to tee off against a capitial ship! Conversely, I don't think my TIE Bombers got any great massed shots in, either. Perhaps having
the fighter screen closer in would be best.
TIE interceptors were fun to fly fast and far across the
board. The Snipe ability of Saber Squadron picked off a B-wing squadron
for the game’s first kill.
Rebels
I’m not sure things could have worked out better! A
decisive victory against bigger, scarier ships. Wave after wave of damage
belted into the Executor’s front arc: ten ships plus a number of
squadrons over the 2nd through 4th turns. Add to that at
least three more attacks by ships in Executor’s other arcs and you have
a murderous situation. Liberty paid dearly for leading the way against
the SSD, as I suspected she would.
As we all know, Rebel squadrons are made of tougher stuff
than those flimsy TIE fighters. I was very pleased with the performance of all
Rebel fighters. Perhaps the stars of the squadron game were the X-wings,
equally adept at protecting Y- or B-wings (with Escort) as they were at
fighting ships in a pinch (with Bomber). They excelled against TIE/ln
squadrons, as we’d expect. The A-wings were great fun for engaging TIE bombers
way back behind enemy lines, daring them to shoot the A-wings on their turn, as
Counter 2 was waiting for the reply.
Going exactly to plan was the action of the pride of Mon
Cala, the Profundity, Independence, Liberty, and Home
One. Each of these heavy hitters dealt a boatload of damage to the
Imperials. Liberty died doing what she loved, and Independence
was not far from the same glorious fate.
More than just honorable mentions for the excellent
MC30cs, the fast CR90s, and the versatile Nebulon-Bs. Can’t say I was upset
with the performances from the Hammerheads or the Peltas, either. Both seem
like compromise ships, and both were slow, but they were also tough.
***
I am surprised the final points turned out so lopsided. I was thinking it was a close-run affair throughout most of the game. I am eager to digest this game a bit more (and brush up on the two pages of notes about what I did wrong, rules-wise, throughout this marathon game), then dive into playing some more at a more reasonable points total.
