“Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

–Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars: A New Hope

Command the massed forces of the Galactic Empire in Imperial Assault, an upcoming miniatures game of Star Wars adventure and combat for two to five players. When you play as the Imperial player, you must crush the upstart Rebellion that plagues the galaxy, and to do that, you can hire the galaxy’s least savory beings to finish the job.

Imperial Assault invites you to experience your battles and adventures in two complete games. The campaign game allows you to explore an expanding story, weaving an engaging narrative with story missions and side missions as every character gains new skills and abilities. The skirmish game, on the other hand, offers two players the chance to muster unique armies before doing battle over conflicting objectives in a test of tactical acumen.

In past previews, we’ve looked at the might of the Empire in the campaign game. We previewed the Imperial figures and we explored the threat, Class cards, and agendas that the Imperial player can take advantage of. Today, we turn to those who will fight alongside the Empire if the price is right – the Mercenary figures in Imperial Assault!

Deadly Hunters

The Mercenaries of Imperial Assault find skilled fighters in the Trandoshan Hunters. Trandoshans are specially gifted as bounty hunters and brawlers, and many campaign missions find them fighting alongside Stormtroopers and other soldiers of the Empire.

Trandoshan Hunters feature a variety of surge abilities that can be triggered during combat. Like the nexu, they can spend a surge to inflict the Bleeding condition on the target of their attack, and they can also use surges to pierce their opponent’s armor and ignore blocks rolled against their attack. Elite Trandoshan Hunters are well-accustomed to the hunt, and they can spend a surge to become Focused, granting an extra green die to their next attack.

The Trandoshan Hunters’ other abilities reflect their preference for close combat. The Relentless ability lets them inflict a strain when they attack any figure within three spaces, giving you a way to reduce the heroes’ options for movement and triggering special abilities. Trandoshan Hunters are also equipped with Scatterguns. This ability allows them to apply an additional damage when they attack an adjacent figure. Elite Trandoshan Hunters feature an improved version of this ability with the ACP Scattergun, which applies two extra damage to attacks against adjacent figures.

Ferocious Monsters

Native to the planet Cholganna, the nexu is one of the most feared carnivores in the galaxy. With razor claws, a whipping tail, spines running down its back, and a mouth filled with fangs, the nexu is the consummate predator. In the Imperial Assault campaign game, some of these deadly creatures have been tamed by the Mercenary faction, and they are now used as attack beasts, defending key locations from Rebel spies or other intruders.

In battle, nexu are fast and deadly melee combatants with an array of keywords and abilities. All nexu share the Mobile keyword, reflecting their natural agility and familiarity with the wilderness. The Mobile keyword enables a nexu to bypass the movement restrictions of terrain, including allowing entrance to impassible or blocking terrain and ignoring extra movement costs from difficult terrain or spaces containing hostile figures. Nexu also bear the Bleed keyword, meaning that whenever a nexu’s attack causes damage, it inflicts the Bleeding condition. As long as a figure is Bleeding, he must suffer one strain after resolving an action until he uses an action to remove the condition. Nexu also have a variety of ways to increase the amount of damage they deal. They can spend surges to pierce armor or increase damage, and they also have the capability to cleave other targets. If you use the Cleave ability, you may deal the listed amount of damage to another figure adjacent to the nexu. Elite nexu can even cleave two damage without spending a surge!

Nexu also offer a variety of special abilities that can be triggered outside of combat. The Pounce ability allows you to place the nexu in any empty space within three spaces and immediately perform an attack. This ability gives you tremendous power to traverse the battlefield and suddenly attack a Rebel hero who may have thought himself safe from harm. Nexu are also difficult to pin down with an attack. The Cunning ability grants them an extra block for each evade result they roll on the defense die. Since a nexu rolls the white defense die, it will gain an extra block on half of the attacks made against it. Finally, although nexu are dangerous in combat, they are not truly sentient. The Non-Sentient ability prevents a nexu from interacting with terminals, doors, or other objects in any mission, inviting you to focus them completely on rending your opponents apart.

A Mechanical Foe

In Imperial Assault, the Trandoshan Hunters and the nexu are joined by a Droid even more dangerous than them – IG-88, an Assassin Droid. IG-88 is one of the galaxy’s most feared bounty hunters, and any Rebel unfortunate enough to face this Droid in a mission may simply choose to turn and flee.

In battle, IG-88 possesses a variety of unique surge abilities provided by his armor, weapons, and programming. First, he applies a constant additional block to every defense and two additional accuracy to every attack, allowing him to shake off more damage and make successful attacks from further away. He can also spend a surge to recover three damage as his internal machinery repairs any damage. Finally, he can unleash the full power of his specialized weaponry by spending a surge to deal two additional damage.

IG-88 also offers a variety of powerful abilities in combat. IG-88 can choose any combination of two attack dice for his attack pool with the Arsenal ability. This ability offers IG-88 the opportunity to specifically alter his attack pool based on how close his target is. Two blue dice gives an attack maximum possible range, but you may choose to use two red dice against closer targets to cause the maximum amount of possible damage. IG-88 also bears the Relentless ability, like the Trandoshan Hunters. With this ability, IG-88 will inflict a strain on his target whenever he declares an attack against a nearby figure. Finally, IG-88 has the Assault ability, which lets him make multiple attacks during each activation. Most of the Imperial player’s figures are limited to one attack per activation, but when you command IG-88, you can unleash an unending hail of destruction against your foes.

Hire the Mercenaries

No matter what mission you command the Mercenaries of the galaxy in, they’ll undoubtedly prove to be a potent asset for the Imperial player. Gather your best hunters, and prepare to exterminate the Rebels forever!

In our previews so far, we’ve focused exclusively on the Imperial Assault campaign game. In our next preview, however, we turn to the tense, tactical missions that make up the skirmish game. Check back for our first preview of the Imperial Assault skirmish game and pre-order Imperial Assault at your local retailer today!