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The Mos Eisley Mafia: SWLCG "Evasive Maneuvers" Force Pack Review
Jun 20 2015 12:00 AM |
Majestaat
in Star Wars
Star Wars LCG Community Review The Mos Eisley Mafia Ion Control Podcast The Smugglers Den Podcast chunkygorillas colsanders doctormungmung RedSquadronK Majestaat
THE REVIEWERS:
-Majestaat, 2014's Chilean champion.
-chunkygorillas, 2014's Canadian champion.
-colsanders, author of the Fearless and Inventive articles.
-doctormungmung, Massachussets' evil genius.
-RedSquadronK, the good old scoundrel hailing from The Smuggler's Den podcast.
THE RATING SYSTEM:
It's to be noted that due to the SW:LCG's unique way of deckbuilding, it's impossible to just pick the stronger cards. You're likely to stick with some undesirable cards no matter what. Hence, the different scores could be seen as:
1 – Poor – Edge fodder. Drops the total value of its objective set.
2 – Bad – Most likely edge fodder. Either too situational or not strong enough for its cost.
3 – Average – Not stellar but does its job decently.
4 – Good – Solid card with guaranteed impact.
5 – Great – Gamechangers you will always be glad to see and play, if able.
* = indicates unique card.
THE BIG DEALS:
Top 5 Cards:
1 – Resupply Depot (Command and Control), with 24 out of 25 possible points.
2 – Hidden from the Empire, with 22 out of 25 possible points.
3 – TIE Fighter Patrol (Training Procedures), with 22 out of 25 possible points.
4 – Vima Da-Boda (Hidden from the Empire), with 21.5 out of 25 possible points.
5 – Harassment (Hidden from the Empire), with 21 out of 25 possible points.
Overall best rated Objective Set:
Hidden from the Empire, with 20 out of 25 possible points.
THE REVIEWS:
Hidden from the Empire (151-1): 22 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - This objective can really screw over the dark side’s first turn, especially if they are playing a swarm deck. But the Jedi affiliation only hurts this objective, since this set would be pretty good in a Jedi deck splashing rebels for desperation.
colsanders (5/5) - Man is that an annoying ability. Super powerful, but also balanced in the fact that it works both ways, and can be turned off. There are a lot of ways to get around this however as the LS, via the Spider, and put into play effects. Off the top of my head cards like the Falcon, Yoda YSY, Secret Guardian, Infiltration all sound like fun. Also a certain main in this set....
doctormungmung (5/5) - This objective can have a huge impact on the first few turns of the game. If it’s in your opening flop, you’ll only be seeing one defender on your turn. LS typically plays two units their first turn anyway, so their start will be about the same. It also doesn’t hurt that Yoda, You Seek Yoda gets around the effect. And if the DS wants to turn off the deployment choke, they have to attack, leaving them down at least one defender. The effect also has a side bonus of slowing down deck cycling, which makes it harder for both players (but DS is impacted more) to find the key cards they need. This objective really hurts TIEs, and totally shuts down troopers, which is sad.
RedSquadronK (4/5) - Can be a very annoying objective, but most of the time will only really punish swarm decks. Maybe years down the road we'll be bemoaning this as the start of some wonky “characterless†Jedi deck, but that day is far, far away.
Majestaat (4/5) - Talk about unfun. This is closer to a 3 for me, but as an avid Navy player , my hate for this card gives it a boost in rank to 4. Sith doesn't hurt too much from this. They got the big drops and events to be threatening with a single unit in play. Scum can also do this to a lesser extent, but the objective really screws with the popular Jawa and Galactic Scum spam.
Navy is simply destroyed by this. TIEs and troopers are swarm decks, while walkers and star destroyers need the resources from officers to get going.
Sure, this can hurt LS as well, but in a Jedi deck it's similar to the effect on Sith: good big units that can work on their own, and in this case with enhancements to make them extremely strong and hard to remove, not to mention a few ways to cheat units into the game.
*Vima Da-Boda (151-2): 21.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3.5/5) - This card is hard to evaluate, if you are consistently getting her out for free then she is a 5/5 but if you are have to actually pay for her then she is less good. Holding on to cards is bad in this game, it can really hurt you in the edge, so it can be hard to hold onto this card in till your opponent plays a big unit. If you don’t draw her at the perfect time she tends to just end up in the edge. She has great icons and shielding, but compared to other 4 drops she just isn’t doing enough.
colsanders (5/5) - Phew, another really harsh Jedi main. Very good stats, considering she will likely be free, and shielding. She is not that good of a force holder though, making her a nice target for Deadly Sight.
doctormungmung (4/5) - Solid stat-line for the cost. Black icons are great, particularly if they include a tactics. And tactics units love shielding, so score! Good health make this a reasonable card for the cost. But you get the opportunity to play the card for free if your opponent drops a big unit (and if they’re only dropping a single unit, they’ll try to maximise as much as they can to get the best impact to board state as possible). Jedi just keep rolling along.
RedSquadronK (5/5) - Only real downside is no Elite. Also can be a target of Deadly Sight, but if they pay three and you paid zero that's still a victory. Really, really strong card.
Majestaat (4/5) – Statwise, her only weakness are those 2 force icons, making her a weak force-holder for that cost, and only a decent edge card when you can't/don't want to play her. Not like you should commit her anyway. With shielding and only black icons she is a very good combatant. Thanks to her reaction, she basically laugh at cheap units, as she will destroy them long-term, and she also laughs at expensive units because she will enter play for free.
Undercover Urchin (151-3): 10 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - This card would be amazing in lots of different card games, but not so much in this game. You’re discard pile will almost always have quite a few cards in it so it will be hard to make it so your opponent has to give you something really good, and because of the objective system you will have cards that just aren’t good at all that your opponent won’t mind giving you.
colsanders (3/5) - Okay, so I thought this dude was going to be super powerful when it was spoiled. Now I've backed off that a bit. He is still potentially really annoying early game though. If I have a Lightsaber Deflection, Seeds of Decay and a Yoda sitting in my discard pile, there isn't really a good option there.
doctormungmung (2/5) - This unit has an interesting effect, and can help if you wind up having to ditch good cards to edge. But with all the card cycling that goes on in this game, your opponent will very quickly be able to choose to give you a card you discarded for a reason. Poor health and needing to focus to use the ability don’t help matters. This card will do well early game, but if you can only deploy one or two units, you’ll want something more potent.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - In something like Thrones this card would be incredible. But the objective set system means there will almost always be something useless in your discard pile. And two cost for one health is pretty bad.
Majestaat (2/5) – Won't give it a 1 because the Urchin will actually net you something decent once every several games, and in the worst case scenario, it should still give you an extra icon for the edge. Realistically, you won't want to play this because it will get instantly choked or retrieve a 1-icon card, which the Urchin is in the first place. No need to waste 2 resources for that.
Hidden in the Shadows (151-4&5): 20 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - Super solid, it can stop Force Lightning, what is one of the best cards for dealing with Jedi mains. Having two of this card in the set makes it a hard set to double up on though.
colsanders (5/5) - Take that Sith! For one cost, you no longer have to worry about those Chokes and Lightning Bolts. You also can play this on Non Jedi units. Han I'm looking at you. Remember though, it stops targeting events. Aggression and Hand of the Emperor still get around this enhancement.
doctormungmung (5/5) - Look at that, Jedi get some more event protection. At least this one is in the open (like 3PO), so you don’t wind up wasting the event in the process (like against Counterstroke). And with the increased amount of event hate that DS has access to, it’s not so bad. But still, this card is great. Deadly Sight/Force Lightning/Force Choke/Capture/etc etc are now only good as edge vs a “Hidden†character. And it only costs one (zero with In You Must Go out)! And you get two! At least it has a low edge count, and is limited to characters (although that last one isn’t much of a limitation).
RedSquadronK (2/5) - This would be a 3 if there was only one copy in the set. You'll likely only have two targets for this sort of enhancement a game and who knows if you'll have the money and tempo to afford the preemptive measure. Also is much better against Sith than the other factions, though also somewhat useful against Scum.
Majestaat (4/5) – It's powerful because Sith are still the go to DS faction. Scum and Navy don't care much about this card. My wishful thinking leads me to believe that once we get to a point where all factions are good, this card and its miserable single edge icon will become just an average 3/5, if not less. It does work well with the objective though. You don't need more than one unit when that one unit does it all and is basically unkillable.
Harassment (151-6): 21 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - This is a great card to play on your opponents first turn, it can really be annoying. The card is less good as the game goes on for the most point, but it has two force icons so it’s also always good in the edge.
colsanders (4/5) - Rounding out a super annoying set, is a very annoying free event. Combined with Rash Action, this event is irritating on so many levels. Boy does the DS need some consistent way to cancel events.
doctormungmung (3/5) - I’m torn on this one. I really like messing with the DS deployment options, but if the objective is out, they are likely not using all their resources for their unit (the first turn, at any rate), diminishing the effect of the event. Late game, your opponent will have all of their resources out, meaning they can likely eat the extra cost. Where the event really shines in mid game, before the DS has their resource engine going, and after they’ve shut off the objective. Although if the objective isn’t out, this card can do wonders in the early game.
RedSquadronK (5/5) - Especially first turn this will be pretty awful. I'm sort of dreading this with Rash Action shutting down entire deployment turns. Not a big fan.
Majestaat (5/5) – A free, super playable event with 2 edge icons for when it's somehow not that playable. Obviously, it's strongest early on, but even when DS has more resources lying around, you can prevent it from playing both units and its crucial events like Aggression, Death from Above, etc, in the same turn.
Overall: 20 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - The set is a really great 1 of in mono Jedi, but since it has two of the enhancement and the Urchin is not very good it will be hard to run two copies of this set in a deck.
colsanders (4/5) - So far the standout of the pack, kind of a bummer that its Jedi again. It doesn't get that perfect score though, getting two of the enhancement kind of prevents it as a two of in my eyes. But I could change my mind after using it more and more.
doctormungmung (4/5) - This set has a tremendous amount of ability to slow down the DS’s early turns. On top of that, it provides a potentially free character with good stats, and ways to keep Yoda/Luke causing trouble longer. Doubling up on Hidden in the Shadows means this set is probably better as a one-of, but that just means it pairs well with Ballance Obi’s set. The two things holding it back are the relatively low edge count (particularly for Jedi), and the chud who I don’t see as having much of an impact.
RedSquadronK (4/5) - A solid support set it most Jedi decks, it also opens up some interesting strategy possibilities for enhancement heavy decks. Likely only a one-of with its lack of real units, and doesn't quite fit into the current aggressive Jedi decks, but it might pop up to support more control oriented decks.
Majestaat (4/5) – As annoying as some things in this set are, I for one think it's pretty balanced, being overrated because of Hidden in the Shadows's strength against Sith. That card can become pretty useless depending on meta, the Urchin will likely always be bad, and the objective is essentially a double-edged blade, even if it hurts DS more than LS, so this set can easily become forgetable given the right circumstances. The question is, will those circumstances be given? The waiting game continues.
Command and Control (152-1): 17.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3.5/5) - This objective will just be blank off the opening flop and probably for the first couple turns, but after you do destroy an objective this will be a great effect and since rebels often have a tough time with edge battles, having an extra card can really help.
colsanders (4/5) - I like this. A simple, not crazy effect that rewards you for getting closer to your goal. Rebels are always wanting for more cards as well.
doctormungmung (4/5) - I’m on the fence between a 3 and a 4 for this objective. Anything that increases your reserve value is good. But with Command and Control, the benefit comes as you are getting closer to your win condition. As such, it’s kind of a “win more†ability. Although things can get tight in the end game, and getting some extra help could help tip you over the edge. But Rebel capital ships are still a bit tricky to run, so I’d rather have seen this objective ability be reversed, and give you a bonus if your victory pile had zero or maybe one objective in it.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - It's a perfectly fine objective. Often it's better to load damage up on objectives and take them all out in one turn, but this can also be nice for Rebels who have the capability of blowing something up turn one.
Majestaat (3/5) – What I like is it feeling super balanced. It's a universally strong effect, particularly in a faction with weak edge and an objective that can eat your cards to reduce the cost of your units. What I don't like is rebels getting two objectives in a row that are essentially blank for a good part of the game. I mean, I guess they are so powerful in their effects that they just needed such restrictions, but doesn't it feel boring when you can't constantly interact with your deck?
Hope you can break throug the DS defense to destroy an objective quick and get the juicy bonus from this objective.
*Independence (152-2): 20.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4.5/5) - Rebel doesn’t have a lot of units with 3 or more blast icons so Independence is a pretty great card for them to get. Plus you get the cost reduction on other capital ships, what can help get home one out easier, and shielding! (and a resource icon what you will probably almost never use…) Hopefully some more good capital ships come out in the future to help make this card better.
colsanders (4/5) - Value. That is the best way to sum up Independence. For only four, you get 4 offensive combat icons, shielding which is huge for Rebels, and a random resource. Getting Home Run cheaper is a bonus really. Not to mention some other capitol ships...
doctormungmung (4/5) - Again, I want to give this card both a 3 and a 4 (and I don’t believe in fractions). The Independence is a jack of all trades unit. It’s got solid combat icons with the potential for three blast, which is huge. It’s got a resource, so can be used to help build board state. The ability goes along with that, making the rest of your capitals cheaper. And it’s got shielding, so it can work on both offense and defense. Considering all that it can do, it’s cost of four is a bargain. Although for a board accelerator of large units, that’s a rather hefty price to pay. And to work in that role, you want to see it early. Two force icons is decent, although it feels like most four cost units should have three icons.
RedSquadronK (4/5) - Lots of health, shielding, tons of objective damage, nice ability; the only thing missing is elite. Just a very cool, fun unit that makes me excited to build a deck around it.
Majestaat (4/5) – If you could put Captain Needa on steroids and make him defect to the Rebel Alliance, you would get Independence. Not only is this ship a powerful economic engine that is hard to shut down, it's also a very heavy hitter that is fortunately (balance wise) dependant on edge to be really threatening on offense.
Solid as it may be, Independence, like any permanent cost reducer (capital ships in this case, which is niche), is a card you want to see early to get the most out of it. At least it can more than stand on its own even if it appears late.
Corellian Corvette (152-3&4): 16 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - Two black blast is really good for Rebels, and drawing a card is also super amazing for rebels since it can help them replenish their hand after using Defense of Yavin 4. This unit is pretty pricey though, but getting it for 3 when you have Independence out is pretty amazing.
colsanders (4/5) - I am just staring at those black icons. Getting two black blast is just huge for the LS. The ship also fills your hand back up, making edge battles a little easier for the Rebels. Not sure if I like two copies of them just yet, but time will tell.
doctormungmung (3/5) - Unlike the Independence, I feel that the Corvettes are slightly over costed (at least in relation to other capital ships). For the same cost as the Independance, you get one fewer blast (but gain edge enabled immunity), lose a resource, shielding, a force icon, and replace an accelerator for hand management. Getting a card is nice, but it’s not the big bang you get for the other generic Corvette, the Blockade Runner, which has the same stats, but can bypass a chunk of your opponent's defenders.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - This whole set reminds me of why Armada is so much fun: big spaceships! I wish it had another icon of some kind, but the reaction is solid and it doesn't care about edge. I do worry about Snoova though, he's going to really ruin some of these capital ships.
Majestaat (3/5) – They feel somewhat overcosted, but Independence and Defense of Yavin IV can help with that. In fact, with that objective out you can think of these as 3 cost units without text. Does that seem better?
They could have really used one extra force icon for when they're not a good play. In any case, they can take a good beating and still hit hard without caring about edge. They're fine.
Resupply Depot (152-5): 24 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (5/5) - This is amazing, it can give you a tactics icon, what rebel vehicle decks desperately need more of, or I can give you that last point of blast damage to destroy an objective. Super powerful and versatile card.
colsanders (5/5) - Possibly the best card in the entire pack. A free enhancement that gives ANY combat icon is just scary. Not sure why there are any force icons on this card, because I am always going to play it when I see it. The combat math can get pretty stupid if this and Echo Caverns are both out...
doctormungmung (4/5) - Free enhancements that can get you more mileage from your units are great. The cost is reasonable (effectively once per turn discarding a card), and the impact can be huge. Lock down an extra defender, get the extra blast to blow up the objecting, get the extra unit damage to break through the shield, etc. The cost of the card doesn’t synergize all that well with some rebel vehicles, though, which run a lot of edge dependant icons. So saving a card for an extra icon vs using the card in the edge battle to turn on other icons is a bit of a six of one, half dozen of the other. Still, with the likes of Home One, Independence, or, more happily, Rogue Squadron X-Wings with Hobbie, you can get some real impact out of this.
RedSquadronK (5/5) - Remember when I said I wished the Corvette had another icon? Well here it is! If you've been playing since the beginning you'll remember how bonkers Echo Caverns was when it first came out, or more recently you'll remember the World Championship was won in part by Asteroid Base. Well here is another way to give icons and ANY icon, even tactics. Discarding a card from hand isn't that bad a price either, as Rebels often don't care about edge. Very, VERY strong card.
Majestaat (5/5) – YES! It's free to put in play, it's got 2 force icons, it triggers as an action, giving you freedom of use. Then you stumble upon the real cost: discarding cards. That's fair, the effect is pretty strong and versatile, likely granting you much needed tactics to control troublesome units, but an extra gun to dispatch that lone defender or more blast to finish an objective are great alternatives as well. Furthermore, between the objective, the corvettes and Rogue Squadron Assault you should have enough cards to play stuff and feed Resupply Station anyway.
Supporting Fire (152-6): 14 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - Usually I really like this card, but it is less good in rebels since they have way less 3+ force icon cards that work best with this card.
colsanders (4/5) - This is one of my favorite fate cards for Rebels. They can really be screwed by a Twist of Fate, and this can help play around this a tad. Cards are always at a premium in a Rebel players hand.
doctormungmung (3/5) - Supporting Fire is a decent edge card, and I think it’s better than most people give it credit for. Going with the theme of big units, having the option of waiting to see if you should throw Home One into the edge is great. And running big units, you’re more likely to have a bigger hand, and thus get more mileage from SF. It’s also a great hedge against a Twist. Still, Rebels aren’t particularly good with edge, so you’re not going to be able to swing things as much as with another faction (like Jedi). In the end, I’d rather have seen either a Target or a Seeds here, but I’ll take the Supporting Fire and not be unhappy.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - I think this is the worst fate card out there. I always cringe a little when I have to put it in my decks.
Majestaat (3/5) – Man I love this fate card. It's not too hot here though. No edge powercards and the Corvettes don't need to win edge to blow stuff up. Still works like a charm against Twist and can potentially bluff your way out of a key edge battle.
Overall: 17.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3.5/5) - This set has a lot of expensive units in it what makes it hard to double up on. Also right now there isn’t enough capital ship synergy to really make this set work really well.
colsanders (4/5) - Great as a one of, but I could easily see this being a two of in a capitol ship deck, if that becomes a thing. It also packs one of the best enhancements in the game with the Resupply Depot. LS is two for two in this pack.
doctormungmung (3/5) - This one is on the edge of being a 4, but right now I don’t feel like there are enough options out there for a Rebel (or LS in general) capital ship deck. As such, some of the utility you get from this set is reduced. Resupply Depot is a great card, and the set is certainly splashable, although it’s on the expensive side with low force count, making it suboptimal in that roll. Still, if you can find a way to get through the DS defenses, there is an awful lot of blast in the set….
RedSquadronK (4/5) - Really excited to use this set. It has a ton of internal synergy while also fitting in well with the Rebel strategy in general. It's on the expensive side, but Rebels actually don't have a ton of problems with that. And again, Resupply Depot will be crazy.
Majestaat (3/5) – Tough one. No bad cards in this set, and in fact, Resupply Station is crazy strong. Thing is, all the units are very expensive, going against the usual Rebel swarm style. If you're opening with Defense of Yavin IV, this set becomes a very solid 4. If we receive more capital ship support, all the more reason to give it that score, but my body isn't ready yet.
The Questioning (153-1): 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - The Sith Affiliation only is a big hindrance for this set, since it restricts its use, and the lack luster ability does not make up for it. If we ever get more discard effects this objective will get better though.
colsanders (4/5) - A very cool reaction to a decktype that is slowly gaining more sets. Making your Interroation Droids and any other discard effects basically cost 1 less is very nice. The only downside is that it is Sith only, but if support for discard continues, that will be fine.
doctormungmung (2/5) - There currently aren’t that many ways for Sith to make the LS discard cards from hand, and they all reside in two sets (one being this one). That rather limits the usefulness of this ability. When it does go off, it can help open up resources for other Sith events that the LS wasn’t expecting, and it effectively makes the Interrogation Droids cost two. That just about makes this effect worth it right there. Still, I think until there are more ways to induce hand discard, this objective’s ability is going to be rather lackluster. Being limited to Sith affiliation doesn’t help with making general “hand hate†decks, since you’re probably want to include Xizor in with that, but he’s limited to Scum.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - If more cards come out that discard from your opponent in the deployment phase, this objective's stock will rise. As is it really only helps Interrogation Droids. All the other discard abilities occur at times when it isn't usually as useful to get back a resource.
Majestaat (2/5) – Nice synergy with Cruel Interrogations but not much else going on here. Can easily become real good when we receive more discard support. No limit on the reaction means you can keep triggering it if you have enough ways to force discard.
*Antinnis Tremayne (153-2): 19.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3.5/5) - This unit has really good icons for blocking, 3 health, elite and four force icons, what is awesome! Way better than Sariss… but the ability is pretty bad, and expect if you get lucky and hit one of their best cards and they don’t end up just redrawing another good card, it really isn’t doing that much… Still he is a solid body for defense, and his ability may come in handy to at least disrupt opponent’s plans.
colsanders (5/5) - Antinnis is one heck of a defensive unit. He has all the right combat icons for it, 3 health and 3 force pips, plus the always wanted Elite keyword for committed units. The reaction is where he can just truly punish the LS though. If your opponent is planning on any kind of shenannigans, be that Falcon drops, Fate cards, Events, whatever, he completely changes them. Combining him with the objective can free up resources for your tricks as well. A key unit that the darkside has desperately needed lately.
doctormungmung (3/5) - Antinnis is almost a good unit. He’s got good health and force icons for the cost. The combat icons are a bit lacking, although having a black tactics is very nice. Elite is good for using the force icons towards the force struggle while still being a good defender. But the ability is very hit or miss. Being tied to striking, you aren’t messing with the edge battle that you just fought (which is likely the more important one). And any future edge battles you might actually be helping your opponent more than hurting. You can just as easily make them pitch a Bogwing as a Yoda. If milling decks ever become a thing, Antinnis’ stock will go up. Or in conjunction with hand knowledge, so using him with Imperial Intelligence Officers, or Jabba’s Orders isn’t a bad call.
RedSquadronK (4/5) - Elite and black tactics already make him pretty solid. The ability is very cool, but a little risky. On one hand it can stop cold tricks like Twist of Fate or looping Yodas. On the other hand you can make their awful edge hand become amazing. It'll definitely take some practice and game sense to know when you want to use it, but it can be quite good.
Majestaat (4/5) – This is what balanced mains look like. Solid statline with an appropiate cost. Antinnis is a good addition to Sith's defend and control playstyle. I just wish his set was more playable. That reaction is very interesting and hard to grasp. Will you destroy your opponent's edge hand or give him just what he was looking for?
Imperial Enforcers (153-3&4): 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - These guys aren’t horrible, but they have no synergy and having two in the set makes this set hard to run two copies of, since you really don’t want 4 of these guys in your deck….
colsanders (3/5) - I actually like these guys in this pod. Since Antinnis and the Interrogation Droids, which you will more than likely be using, lack blast damage, it's nice to see some make it into your deck. Having two of them is actually okay, DS is going to have to attack a little more often these days.
doctormungmung (2/5) - These guys make for an interesting addition to a trooper deck. They bring blast (and black, at that) to the table, which is something troopers are decidedly lacking. Too bad Hidden from the Empire makes playing troopers rather a liability (they were sooo close to being viable). Still, cheap blast isn’t bad, although as DS (and Sith more importantly), I’d like to see more unit damage over objective damage.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - Some aggressive troopers. Pretty average and I kinda wish there weren't two of them, but could be worse.
Majestaat (2/5) – Would rate it a 3 if there was only one copy here. At two, having absolutely no synergy with the set, it just weights too much. At least that black blast will help deactivate "while undamaged" LS objectives, and maybe stack some damage in the long run.
*Citadel Inquisitorius (153-5): 9.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (1/5) - I can’t really see ever paying three resources for this… the effect is minimal, and if you want to use the effect you can’t even use the resource.
colsanders (3.5/5) - I really want to make this a 4 of 5 card, but that 3 cost keeps getting me. The resource is there just for show, since it will normally be focused to discard a card from your opponents hand. The two force icons help a lot since it's unique and sometimes won't hit play because of the cost. It can still cause some problems for your opponent on his defensive turns, leaving you able to win edge battles a little easier as the attacker.
doctormungmung (2/5) - I love the effect of this card, but you have to jump through so many hoops to get to it. Primarily there’s the cost. Three resources for a once per turn hand discard is very steep. It’s nice that it has a resource, but if you’re going to use the resource, you’re not getting the discard, and vice versa. And being limited to the force phase (and the action window is after the force struggle, so no messing with that) is not an ideal time. Still, you might be able to make them pitch the Rebel Assault they were going to use during their refresh phase, or the key unit they were holding on to to deploy. If you’re disciplined, you can wait for the LS force phase to mess with their defensive edge hand, although there’s a chance they’ve dumped their hand already, and there isn’t a card to force them to pitch. Hand removal should be difficult, but if you make it too difficult, no-one will play it. At least it’s a decent edge card.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - Repeatable discard is very strong. But in this case it's pretty expensive and comes at a lackluster time. I think it'll be best in your opponent's Force phase to decrease their ability to win edge on your turn. If DS had more ways to remove focus from it perhaps there's a decent mill engine there, but I doubt it.
Majestaat (1/5) – The cost, lack of resources (let's be honest, you're not playing this for the resource) and restriction to Force Phase hurt it too much. It's also one of those effects that's stronger the earlier you see it, but you would basically have to sacrifice a turn to play this. Personally, it's only redeeming quality are those 2 force icons, and make it all the more tempting to just dump it in an edge battle.
Put to the Question (153-6): 10 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - There are so few things this card can cancel, but it is event cancel and maybe one day this card will have a play if the Dark Side gets more enhancements and the Light Side gets more events that this could cancel. Right now though this card really does not do much….
colsanders (1/5) - Yuck. It's zero cost, so it has that going for it, but that's it. It is so conditional that I will almost never be keeping this in my hand for when the time to use it actually happens. Compounding the matter is the fact its only 1 force icon.
doctormungmung (2/5) - Hey, Sith get’s an event cancel! Unfortunately like the enhancement in this set, it’s very limited. There isn’t that much enhancement hate on the LS, so there’s not much that needs protecting in that arena. And as is being currently discovered, besides vehicles, there aren’t all that many unit enhancements for the DS, so finding a target to protect there is tricky as well. On top of that, it only protects vs targeting effect, so things like My Ally is the Force will still get around this. At least Sith have their lightsabers, so in the right circumstances, you can get some use out of this card.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - A 0 cost cancel is pretty sweet for the DS, they really need some situational cancels like this. Unfortunately this one doesn't do a whole lot other than protect from Saboteurs. Maybe there's something there with filling up on lightsabers (or a bunch of Boba Fett's), but I think it's pretty limited.
Majestaat (2/5) – Why do you do this FFG? Give us a lightsaber to make this useful. Heck, one more edge icon would be nice if we can't have said lightsaber. Vader's and Mara's pods don't really work too well with this one outside of this potential cancel. On the bright side, it's free. Thank the Dark Lords.
Overall: 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - It’s a shame that there is a decent main trapped in this terrible set. Maybe if there was one less Imperial Enforcer and was replaced by a cheap friendly character enhancement this set might be slightly better, but as it sits now it’s just a garbage set.
colsanders (3/5) - The objective and Antinnis have a lot going for them, and the troopers are wanted for some offensive options. But the nearly useless event and rough cost of the enhancement knock the set to a 3 instead of a 4.
doctormungmung (2/5) - This set has an interesting concept, but there are so many restrictions piled onto that that it’s effectiveness is very diminished. Not having any cards in hand on a consistent basis can definitely lead to a “non-pleasurable experienceâ€, and thus it shouldn’t be easy to do. But it also shouldn’t be too hard, either. Take Vader’s Fist: you get immediate reward, but the LS can shut it down fairly easily. Speaking of Vader’s Fist, if either it or this set came with a resource (I don’t count the one in this set), they’d go very well together. The troopers here seem out of place as well. I want to like this set, but it’s working pretty hard against me in that respect.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - It's a very niche set that will be pretty cool when it works, but you really have to build around it. I am very excited to use it though and it seems like a lot of fun. Ideas include: full hand control with Cruel Interrogation, Trooper hand control with Vader's Fist, and Boba cancel with Boba Fett enhancements.
Majestaat (2/5) – Even if we do get more discard support, I'm not convinced. The objective should become much better, while Antinnis is already a solid character. The rest will always leave me scratching my head. Don't expect Sith to deviate from the Core's sets anytime soon.
Training Procedures (154-1): 16 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - Almost a 5/5 but the Navy affiliation only hurts this since there is good Sith fighter sets. The ability helps you get more use out of your pilots what is awesome.
colsanders (4/5) - This is a great too for TIE pilot decks. Being able to swap Baron Fel onto any TIE as an action can really mess with your opponents head, and keep him on the board possibly. Getting the matching Pilot to their Ship is a great option as well.
doctormungmung (3/5) - With pilots starting to be prolific enough, you’re likely to have a few options for using this objectives effect. You can hop Fel around, making sure he’s not going to get destroyed, while keeping his bonuses in play. Specifically, you can move him from a TIE Fighter Patrol after combat to a 181st TIE Interceptor to help take the force. You do have to choose between using the resource or the effect though, which in most cases, I’m thinking that you’re likely to just want to use the resource.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - More Navy Only TIE sets. Not a fan. The ability is pretty situational and expensive. You're already trying to just flood the board and out-activate your opponent in TIE decks, so you don't usually have extra resources for this sort of finesse play.
Majestaat (3/5) – I don't think it's particularly good because most pilots are rather expendable and there's Stay on Target to recover them anyway. Some protection for Fel is nice though, and if pilot Vader can work in mono-Navy TIE builds, this objective will help him as well.
Would be great -and it would make sense- if this worked like the upcoming "That Bucket o' Bolts" smuggler objective.
Academy Pilot (154-2&3): 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - This card isn’t as bad as it looks at first, it’s an extra body and blast damage for one cost what mght help blow up an objective, it can sit on a vehicle that’s ability needs a pilot to work, or you can stick it on the Tie Fighters that come in this set for zero and give them an extra blast. They also help against desperation.
colsanders (3/5) - Basically free enhancements to turn on your ship abilities. Or if you you have a little board control, you can just drop them as units to get some more cheap damage in. Not too shabby.
doctormungmung (2/5) - Navy gets their version of Hobbie: ie a free pilot that doesn’t do anything. Not being immortal like Hobbie, you get two Academy pilots in the set. Having a white blast means they can still help rush even if they can’t find a ship to pilot. Unfortunately, there’s only one ship type (up to four in a deck) that they’ll currently do anything on, namely the TIE Fighter Patrol. As a unit, they’re a very basic offensive chud, but really they’re a combo card for the Patrol that provides a single edge enabled blast. You can sneak that in with Stay on Target, at least. Otherwise, pretty meh. They will save your ships from Desperation, though.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - Even if it's zero cost, I don't think there's enough Pilot synergy to make this worthwhile.
Majestaat (3/5) – Likely overrating them, as they're objectively very poor, so take my words with a grain of salt (everyone should know by now that I'm a Navy fanboy). So what do I like? Cheap (free with Flight Academy) blast that contributes to the mono-Navy TIE swarm build. Numbers are everything there. They're also free enhancements for your vehicles, which is pretty cool when Desperation is so relevant. What I dislike is them being plain boring. Would it be too imbalanced if they added one white blast to the enhanced vehicle? For one extra resource the Black Squadron Pilot gives black blast and black unit damage. With the poor edge in this set, extra white blast wouldn't have been near gamebreaking.
TIE Fighter Patrol (154-4&5): 22 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (4/5) - Probably one of the best cheap TIE fighters we’ve seen so far. Pretty much any of the pilots can add a lot to these guys for cheap. Putting Baron Fel onto these guys makes them an amazing defender.
colsanders (5/5) - I love these TIES. For their cost they have fair stats for 2. But the fact that they can get a ridiculous amount of icons, ranging from Baron Fel's spread, or the upcoming Vader and Boba, it is an insane deal. Marrek Steele is pretty frightening on one of these things as well. The fact you get two of them makes this a great set to run as a one of.
doctormungmung (4/5) - These guys have a lot of potential, and will only get better the more pilots that come out. As it currently stands, they have anywhere from one to three unit damage, one to three blast damage, and zero to one tactics. Presuming pilot Vader keeps his normal combat icons, you can get a three unit damage, three blast damage unit for the cost of two plus (potentially discounted) pilot cost! That’s pretty great. Or, put Fel on one, and Talon Roll tactics ‘til the cows come home. This unit is what you want to see in terms of pilot vehicle interaction. My only real complaint is that they are a bit fragile for what you want to accomplish with them. But other than that, even without a pilot, they’re worth their cost (if not flashy).
RedSquadronK (4/5) - This I like. Especially with someone like Fel giving it an interesting stat line, these guys can become powerhouses and are fine even unpiloted. Confusing art though, thought the DS got a YT-1300 for a minute.
Majestaat (5/5) – More realistically a 4, as they need extra cards to put that absurd ability to some use. And I'll just repeat myself: that ability is absurd. The patrols will give the LS some nasty surprises when coupled with Stay on Target. An Academy Pilot will make them fairly threatening on offense, while big guys like Fel and Vader will make them all around very strong. Fingers crossed for more great pilots in Imperial Entanglements and future packs.
Koiogran Turn (154-6): 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - This isn’t too great, since your opponent just gets to pick a new target and the effect isn’t actually cancelled. Most of the times this card is just ending up in the edge.
colsanders (3/5) - Not a bad counter for a TIE deck. It's zero and also has two force icons, so I'm not really worried about it clogging my hand at all. Great little addition for the fighters.
doctormungmung (2/5) - In a way, this is like a reverse Entangled for vehicles, but instead of being the target of a strike, it temporarily protects from being the target of an effect. It’s actually a bit better than Entangled, because while there’s usually enough striking units to not make much of a difference, card effects tend to be a more “one and doneâ€. Still, it has to be a targeting effect, so Desperation, and My Ally is the Force will still take out whatever you’re trying to protect. It will protect a key vehicle from things like Heroic Sacrifice, though, which is seeing a bit more play these days. In the end, I don’t see this card being that much use, but at least it’s decent edge fodder.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - I wish it was a cancel, or at least didn't have the “if able†clause so it could cancel without another eligible target. As is it can be nice to save your beefed up Fighter Patrol from some Shien Training or Rebel Assaults, but still pretty mediocre.
Majestaat (3/5) – Given those 2 edge icons and the amount miserable units mono-Navy TIEs put out, it's not too hard to save more valuable targets like TIE Attack Squadron. Overall a poor trick, but if any build can make use of it, it's Navy fighters, where it's actually rather decent.
Overall: 15.5 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3.5/5) - I think this set will be a pretty decent one of in many Navy TIE fighter decks. It has the same problem as many TIE fighter sets though, what is that is has an extremely low edge count.
colsanders (4/5) - This is a really nice addition to any fighter deck. You get free pilots to activate your unique ship effects, and really fantastic Patrols. The set is perfectly fine as a 1 of.
doctormungmung (3/5) - While the TIE Fighter Patrols raise this set up, the pilots and event bring it back down again. Still, it’s a decent objective set that will combo very well with other TIE sets that have pilots. It is a little limited in that area though by being Navy only, so splashing in some Sith Black Squadron sets will be challenging.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - I think TIE fighter decks are still a ways off from being competitive and this set does little to change that opinion.
Majestaat (3/5) – Good in mono-Navy TIE super rush decks, likely terrible in any other build. The low edge count is unjustified and so does the restriction to Navy affiliation. I'm still waiting for that set that will make me think "Thank goodness this is Navy only".
The Eater of Luck (155-1): 12 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - If this effect worked on defense it might be better, but only as the attacker it really sucks. You really don’t want to lose the edge battle as the attacker just to capture the top card, since if you lose the edge your attack probably won’t do very much.
colsanders (3/5) - WHY! This would have been such a cool reaction if it worked BOTH on offense and defense. It could have possibly made your opponent rethink that edge battle if he knew what he was going to lose. For example after he played Rhan's Guidance. Does he really want to lose that Seeds or Lightsaber Deflection? I really don't think that it would have been too strong if it was both ways.
doctormungmung (2/5) - This objective is almost really good. If only the word “attacker†wasn’t in the effect text. Scum don’t have that much trouble losing edge battles, so capturing cards off of that would be great. But making the Scum attack and lose edge battles is more of a losing cause. A lot of Scum doesn’t like to go aggro, and if they do, it’s already vs a locked down board, so it becomes very hard to lose an edge battle. And if it’s not a locked down board, a lost edge battle on offense will likely result in a few Jawa’s back to hand, and the attackers getting locked down. Getting to capture a card for that is a bit like throwing a bone to a sick dog. It’s something, but not going to make it feel better in the long run.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - Mediocre ability, AWESOME name. If it wasn't limited to only the attacker it'd be substantially better. As is, it will occasionally buy you an unopposed on attacks that aren't too threatening. Also a slight bonus for it being a Tatooine objective.
Majestaat (2/5) – In the past, when LS didn't have so many tactics available, this would have been decent. Send a Jawa to annoy the neighborhood, focus someone down or capture a card. In the current environment, that win-win situation becomes a lose-lose situation, mostly. Is it really strong enough for it to work only when attacking? Can't think of it going overboard if it captured on defense as well, as long as it required you to assign at least one defender.
In any case, Scum have better capture engines, and capturing isn't a problem anymore, but getting to gain any significant bonus from all the capture.
*Dannik Jerriko (155-2): 14 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - Same problem as the objective… if this worked on defense as well it would be pretty good, but as Scum you typically want to be defending more than attacking.
colsanders (3/5) - Dannik was one of the cooler mercs in the old Decipher CCG, I was really hoping that he would be just as good in this game. Unfortunately he is just kind of, meh. Three cost with three health is pretty solid, two force pips is okay, and he has one of each combat icon. His passive kind of makes up for the fact they are all edge enabled, but that still makes him a poo-poo defender if you have a bad edge hand. Even though you always get your icons attacking, your still going to attack second if you lose, which means he can just be tactics down. Now if he would have read, "You are considered to have the Edge while attacking.", that would have been much better.
doctormungmung (3/5) - Again, more odd “losing edge on offense†abilities. At least this one takes away one of the big downsides of losing edge. Getting to use all your icons, edge enabled or not, can really help alleviate things. Still, you need to survive that first strike, which can be tricky with all the tactics floating around out there. He’s reasonably costed and has decent health and force icons though. Still, I’d like something a bit less wonky for Dannik, who is an old favorite of mine from the original CCG days.
RedSquadronK (3/5) - Good stat line and a solid ability. Might open up some even more aggressive Scum decks. At three cost I'm willing to give him a try.
Majestaat (3/5) – He's got good numbers and an extremely strong ability on paper. When put to practice, however, Dannik will get focused when attacking or you simply won't have the necessary units to make his ability worthwhile. Attacking with him and three Galactic Scum is neat to abuse those tactics, no doubt. With all that effort I might as well put the Executor on the table.
Advozse Mercenary (155-3&4): 5 (6, legally) out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (1/5) - This set has a recurring problem… these guys are awful, with one health they die super easy to many Light Side cards and they have to be attacking, and right now I don’t think there is much of a spot for this set in an aggressive Scum deck.
colsanders (0/5) - Holy cow, these guys are bad. Worse, you get two of them in this set. They are just a Han or Lightsaber Deflection away from off the board, and they cost 2. Getting edge enabled unit damage only attacking is NOT worth that two cost. These are the reason nobody will run this set.
doctormungmung (2/5) - Black blast goes with the whole “be offensive†theme the set is going with, but one health really hurts. Particularly if you lose the edge, because just about anything can kill one of these guys. Getting a white gun for each attacker (again, while attacking) is ok, but not great. Going in en-mass, you’re not leaving much in the way of defenders, and in a race vs the LS, Scum is going to lose. Unless you have Dannik with you, losing edge gets you none of those guns. Having poor force icons and getting two in the set just add to the pain that are these guys.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - Two cost for one health means you really have to bring it elsewhere. If he triggered off himself to at least have one unit damage while attacking alone I'd be okay with it, but as is I just find him pretty awful. And why'd there have to be two of them?!
Majestaat (1/5) – I don't even know how much I've bashed these guys in the forums already. I will recognize them the merit of standing in the podium of the worst units in the game, along with the likes of Communications Officer and Jawa Trading Crawler. They're bad, they're terrible, and there's two of them! If I ever lose a game as LS against one of these guys, I will burn all my cards and hang myself. Better that than live with the shame. Seriously, they're that bad.
Calculated Wager (155-5): 9 out of 25 possibe points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - This card is pretty good, especially if you are trying to lose the edge battle. Especially to get good fate cards back, but you do have to lose the edge battle for this card to work and most of the time you don’t actually want to lose the edge battle…
colsanders (1/5) - This might as well be a blank fate card. I would rather just put this into the edge battle and win, than lose and get a card back.
coctormungmung (2/5) - I don’t really understand this card. If you are trying to lose edge battles, why are you putting in a card to the edge stack? And if you aren’t trying to lose edge battles, why are you holding back a two pip card in case you do? It just seems very counter productive to whatever you’re trying to do. About the only thing it’s good for is getting multiple uses out of Fate Cards, although a twisted away edge battle isn’t lost, so you can’t pull anything back from that one.
RedSquadronK (2/5) - I do like getting potentially more use out of The Prince's Scheme or other fate cards, but more often than not you'll probably just throw this in the edge battle to try and win it in the first place.
Majestaat (1/5) – Wanted to give it a 2 because at least it has two edge icons. Ultimately, its promotion of bad play angers me so much that I just lost all objectivity and gave it the worst possible rating. This set is getting to me...
Supporting Fire (155-6): 13 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (3/5) - Not a bad fate card, and in this set it can help you decide if you want to lose the edge battle or actually win it.
colsanders (4/5) - This is the best card in the set. Nothing much else needs to be said here.
doctormungmung (2/5) Again this set is working against itself. Supporting Fire is supposed to let you not overcommit to an edge battle, but still have a chance at winning it. This set wants you to lose edge battles. Although I suppose it’s still good for its intended use on defense. It can combo a bit with Calculated Wager, letting you decide if you need to use it for winning edge vs using its ability. Still, I’m not all that keen on it in this set.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - Still a terrible fate card, though it has slightly more synergy with this set.
Majestaat (3/5) – I still like Supporting Fire. Too bad one of my favorite toys got thrown in here. I'm confused... Am I supposed to win edge battles or lose them?
Overall: 8 out of 25 possible points.
chunkygorillas (2/5) - This set is just bad, you have to be doing things you don’t want to actually do, lose edge battles and attack, if you actually want anything in it to work… I hope Scum sets don’t go back to being this level of bad.
colsanders (2/5) - The two mercs and the event make this set completely unplayable to me. The idea is neat, but it should have been handled better to make it worthwhile. The changes to Dannik and the objective wouldn't be too overpowered IMO.
doctormungmung (2/5) - I like that FFG is trying to develop Scum into the “messing with edge battles†faction, but man, this set doesn’t know if it’s coming or going. I feel like there was a lot of potential in what they were trying to do, but someone just dropped the ball. Which is too bad, because it could have been very interesting. Soup must be eaten, just not by Dannik, apparently.
RedSquadronK (1/5) - The problem with not caring about wining edge on offense for DS is the huge amount of tactics Jedi currently pack. So when you lose that edge as the attacker you A ) get your attackers focused out before they can strike B ) get the units you wanted to defend with next turn focused out or C ) all of the above. Maybe there's some aggressive Scum deck that this works wonders for, but I'm just not seeing it.
Majestaat (1/5) – I like Dannik, I like Supporting Fire, I kinda like the objective. Just don't get me started on the other cards again. I don't think I would ever play this set, and I would highly recommend the readers to never play it. Whoever proves me wrong and wins with this should earn a medal.
FINAL WORDS:
My deepest apologies to everybody -readers and reviewers- for the delay. This was suppposed to be finished and uploaded last week. Unexpected circumstances messed up my schedule and so I'm bringing this just now. Hope the read was enjoyable nonetheless. As compensation, I'll try my very best to have the Attack Run review done sooner than usual.
Thanks to the reviewers who make this work possible and the readers who motivate us to keep it up. Also want to thank the people for giving this nameless band a proper name: The Mos Eisley Mafia!
As always, you're all invited to comment below or in our forum thread, agreeing or disagreeing with the reviewers. Suggestions and criticism are welcome.
May the Force be with you all!
- yodaman and Thaliak like this
10 Comments
Not sure, but there may be a limit to how many images an article can have? Will try to contact the admin and confirm. For now, I hope it won't be too much of a hassle to click on the links for the images that don't show.
I really like the Rebel set and I think it does open some new possibilities. It's just that it's a very balanced pod, and simply won't hold on its own agains the most powerful ones.
The Sith and Scum sets are the big letdowns here. They're outright bad. I can't stress how surprised and mad I'll be if FFG does release a worse pod than The Eater of Luck.
What about running Eater of Luck with Jabba? Do his ability to bring in those garbage 2 cost units? Is there any form of good that can come of that?
I agree with the overall sentiment that the set is trash but just wondering of any good that can come out of that horrible set.
Any 2-cost unit is arguably more playable with Jabba in play. Thing is, those two sets have no real synergy between them, and you could use Jabba to drop better 2-cost units anyway.
If the Mercs gained unit damage while defending as well, I could see a case there. Enemy attacks and you suddenly surprise him with a cheapo who can instantly kill mains. But no, the ability only works while attacking.
I don't understand why a unit that is already cost-ineffective must also be super restrictive on its ability. The same happens with Jawa Trading Crawler and the Kihraxz Assault Fighter. Curiously enough, these are all Scum units.
Hmm good point. I was just curious to see if any good can come of this set. Seems like this set is straight to binder. Sucks because I like to at least play with the new sets but this one doesn't seem even viable or worth it to do so.
Oh well!
I fed the Eater of Luck set to my guinea pigs....
Scum is still in need of lots of help, and sets like that make me really sad... at least the next Scum set with Boba looks really good!
"RedSquadronK (1/5) - Still a terrible fate card, though it has slightly more synergy with this set."
I love that card! Only fate card I like more is I have you now.
@Gamer257 - We're glad you enjoyed the review and provided the name
@Letux - Yeah, I was kind of surprised. Some people dislike Supporting Fire, but I think RedSquadronK is the first person who hates it so.
We'll see how I Have You Know does in our next review. At first I thought it was borderline OP. Obviously, I'm a retard, so time has taught me that's it's actually quite balanced. I'm eager to see what each reviewer thinks of it.