Hey X-Wing Players-

Earlier this month, I attended the Fresno X-Wing Regional at Crazy Squirrel Games. Last year was a great event, so I was eager to attend again.

I was struggling with what I wanted run and decided, “hey, who cares how I do…why not just run a Firespray?!?”

So I did!

The List

Kath Scarlet 53 Points

Crack Shot

Homing Missile

Dengar

Engine Upgrade

Glitterstim

Slave One (doesn’t actually do anything, but it’s free 😉 )

Bossk 47 Points

Crack Shot

Homing Missile

4-LOM

K4 Security Droid

Unkar Plutt

Burnout SLAM

Guidance Chips

If you want to see how I did, check out this video below. Or, if you’d rather read about it, keep scrolling!

The reason for this list, besides just “wanting” to run a Firespray, was having a list to give Defenders (like Triple or Commonwealth Defenders) something to sweat about. The Homing Missile + Crack Shot combo is key in the opening engagement. Since most Defender lists cap out at PS6, having two PS7 ships makes it easy to get missiles off. If I set up to joust, Defenders can 5-straight twice in a row and get within Range 1, so I’ll need to set up sideways or at a distance so I can get to that jousting lane at the right time.

With Bossk + Crack Shot + Homing Missile + 4-LOM, I can do some very heavy damage to a Defender. The focus and evade tokens will be useless. K4 + focus action + Guidance Chips means I have a good chance of getting 4 hits, one of them guaranteed to be a crit. Even if a Defender rolls 3 natural evades, I’d be able to burn off the shields. Kath would likely pop her Glitterstim at this point, so with that, the Dengar rerolls, and the Homing Missile TL (since you don’t have to spend it) I again have a pretty good shot of getting 4 more hits. While the Defender has access to a focus now, they have to roll perfect again to survive. However, during most tests, I’m PS-killing a Defender

Then, the following turn, I can turn one of their strengths into a liability. If they go for the K-Turn, they’ll have a hard time dodging Bossk’s arc. Additionally, Kath’s Auxiliary arc makes it awkward for them; with her ability, she’s even more dangerous if they get behind her. Not K-turning, however, means they’re slow-rolling and not getting the free evade, or they’ve disengaged and are out of arc.

Even when not going against Defenders, two Homing Missiles is one hell of an alpha strike and the two ships make for an interesting toolbox. Kath’s ability is amazing, especially while being chased, so it’s somewhat easier for her to control the engagement, especially with Engine Upgrade.

Fresno X-Wing Regional: Day 1

So, after the slugfest that went on into the wee hours of the morning last year, they decided to make this a two day event. Awesome, that’s what I like to hear. Day 2 was going to be Mario Kart day, so on the drive up (I stayed at my parent’s house an hour north of Fres-yes!) I was pondering a Mario Kart list. TIE Strikers, with their free boost/maneuver-thing, seemed like they were worth considering. I mean, besides, I was using a Firespray. No way would I make the cut to single elimination rounds. Like last time, I was getting pumped by jamming to 103.7 The Beat! The Valley’s Greatest Throwbacks!

We had 68 attendees, which put us two players short of a Top 16 cut, which was disappointing. Last year, during game 6, fellow Mynock Joe Desmond and I were battling over a slot for the bottom of the Top 16 (which he firmly destroyed me).

Cruising around, I didn’t see any other Firesprays, but I did see some Defenders (yessss….yesssss), lot of Paratanni and variants, some Upsilon Shuttles, and some other misc lists. Lots of diversity; it seemed like it was shaping up for a good tournament!

Game 1

vs Luis with Night Beast, Kylo-Palp Upsilon, Darth Vader w/ Cluster Missiles

I was tempted to joust (as I was confident I could wipe Vader) but since he had Cluster Missiles and 4 attack dice on the shuttle, I was a little too nervous to go for it right off the bat.

It was great to see Night Beast back on the table. I forgot his ability (free focus after a green move) and had to be reminded of it. With VI, he was PS8, so that caused a little trouble for me.

Simultaneously jukin’ the Upsilon while trying to pin down Vader was tough and led to Vader launching his cluster missiles into Bossk, but I was ultimately able to pull out a win. Whew!

Record: 1-0

Game 2

vs Nick with Mindlink’ed Manaroo and Ventress, VI + Cluster Missile N’Dru

Ventress and Manaroo started off on one side of the board, while N’Dru was on the other. With VI, he wasn’t able to take advantage of Mindlink shenanigans, so I had a hard time figuring out my approach. Manaroo and Ventress started with an aggressive disposition, but then broke off, which confused me. N’Dru started off moving fast down the board edge; it should have been obvious, but I hadn’t seen a Z-95 on the table for a while so my muscle memory was a little weak. Then it hit me…he’s going for the 8 dice cluster missile shot!

Luckily, I was far enough way to execute a Range 3 plink to Range 1 block and denied N’Dru the shot. Bossk’s full stop and Kath’s Engine were really helpful for that move. I managed to take him out, but still had the other two to deal with.

Ventress never had much trouble hitting me, so with the Shadow Caster title, she was always getting tractor beams. With Ketsu crew, it dropped my low agility to near zero (even if I skirted off to Range 3). Luckily, I was able to force Nick to split his fire and limped away with a win.

Record: 2-0

Game 3

vs Ryan “Tackle” Farmer running Starkiller Base Pilot, Backdraft, Lockdown

Boooooo…..BOOOOOOO! Mynock on Mynock hate?!? By Round 3? Either way, Mynock loses in this situation (even if we tied, we’d have to salvo). Ryan said he was afraid of my list, but his list wasn’t a pushover, either.

This game was streamed, so if you want to see it, you can go here or look it up manually by going to https://twitch.tv/crazysquirrelgames. It is the 5 hour video (haha, multiple games) and starts around the 3 hour 20 minute mark.

I knew I had to take out Lockdown ASAP (Omega Leader to you non-Mynock followers), but also not engage in front of the shuttle if I could avoid it. Ryan knew this too, so he sent in the shuttle first while Lockdown and Backdraft flanked a bit. He knew I would save the Homing barrage for one of those pilots and made sure to keep Lockdown at a distance and Backdraft with his rear arc on me.

I moved too slow with Bossk and was caught with the shuttle on my tail. Good thing I had that Burnout SLAM! I executed it and performed a 3-Turn, putting me mere millimeters from the board edge. In reality, I knew Ryan appreciates reckless maneuvers near the board edge (he luuuuuuvs his “baller” Whisper k-turns) so I really did it for his enjoyment and leisure. I wasn’t…uh…terrified of his shuttle or anything…not…*ahem*…not at all.

Backdraft and Bossk went down, then I made a tactical error. With his dying shuttle in Kath’s rear arc, I thought “meh, shuttle’s out. If it comes back around I’ll just PS kill it. Let’s focus on Lockdown.” Of course, I failed to take into account Palpatine. Palp, Lockdown’s ability, and the evade from Comm relay makes her nigh unhittable. I had a couple great rolls (for being unmodified, at least) that WOULD have hit if it wasn’t for stupid Palp. Meanwhile, thanks to Juke, Kath was getting worn down.

I ended up taking out the shuttle a few turns later and then fled around the board edge, trying to keep Lockdown in that rear arc. But every time, Lockdown would plink a couple off, then I’d miss. Over and over.

On the last round, with Kath down to one hull and in a corner (like a stupid dummy! Stay out of the corners!) I was luckily able to turn and boost of out Lockdown’s arc. I couldn’t finish her off so it came down to…yup…Final Salvo!

So, Ryan and I needed to brush up on our Salvo rules. We almost rolled his 8 dice to my 6, but that only applies when EVERYTHING has been killed. Instead, we were supposed roll Kath vs Lockdown, so his 2 to my 3. Luckily…PHEW! I rolled 3 natural hits for the win, but damn if I didn’t feel lousy after that. I made some mistakes and Ryan definitely outplayed me, yet I still managed a win. One more turn and I’m sure he would have won. Not only that, but I gave my buddy and fellow Mynock his first loss of the day and that never feels good 🙁 sorry buddy

Record: 3-0

Game 4

vs Jeff running Paratanni (Manaroo, Ventress, Fenn with Mindlink)

*face smack!* Get your head back in the game, Campbell! If you’re gonna give your homie a loss, at least have the courtesy to keep winning!

So, here comes Jeff with the first standard Paratanni list of the day. Most Paratanni players were doing well, so I figured I’d keep running into them. Jeff put his Fenn Rau on the opposite end of the table from his Ventress and Manaroo. I purposely placed off-center a bit with the intention of slow-rolling. That way, I could see Fenn Rau’s approach; I needed him dead first. If he acts a bait and I fall for it, I’m going to expose my flank and get wrecked. If he comes in fast and I’m not there to greet him at Range 2, well, that’s a loss for me a well.

So he screams down the edge and I move my ships toward him. Ventress and Manaroo also come in hot to support him, but I was able to get lucky on an obstructed shot and take him out early. We start slugging it out and Kath goes down, which is bad news for me. Bossk is cool, but if anyone gets behind him, he’s toast. At one point, Manaroo was at 3 hull and Ventress at 1 (!!!!!). Bossk does a green move (to trigger K4) and has shots on both at R2. I choose an obstructed shot on Ventress, who has focus, evade, then a stress on me.

Bossk shoots, full results, including a crit! I take my second Ion token to lock up the evade. Time is running out, so I think I have this in the bag. Jeff rolls his defense…Evade Blank Focus. Spend the focus. Use Latts to spend the Stress, add a third evade.

Shit. Bossk misses. Shoulda gone for Manaroo, who would have been tokenless if I 4-LOM’ed her focus…

Jeff is an excellent player. With time running out he dances around Bossk and takes full advantage of me being Ion’ed, denying me shots. I SLAM, to do a 1 bank…big whoop. Like a dummy, I forgot I can K4 off of this, but it wouldn’t have mattered. I end up with Ventress at Range 3 obstructed for the last round of firing, but can’t get her. 1/2 Ventress + 1/2 Manaroo > 1/2 Bossk. Jeff wins. Not only that, but the dude gets super lucky on a raffle and wins a plastic T-70/TIE/FO promo card! Congrats, buddy!

Record: 3-1

Game 5

vs Caleb with Lothal Rebel, Ahsoka, Miranda

Right off the bat, Caleb hooked it up with this awesome token that he made himself. It’s the same icon as Boba Fett’s chest armor. Dope.

So, had a bit of a target priority dilemma here. Miranda was definitely the main threat, but with her Regen ability and SLAM, I had to wait for the right time to strike. I’ve laid traps for Miranda plenty of times, only for her to boogie and regain all of the damage I dished out.

VCX’s also can’t be underestimated. With only the primary arc and the Range one Unblockable Donut Hole of Doom, it’s not that difficult to avoid with full stops and boosts. However, if I take too many risks and focus on Miranda at the wrong time, those 4 dice from the VCX will chew me up. Ahsoka had Rey crew onboard, so could stock up focuses and give the VCX actions, even while stressed.

I got Miranda into several traps, but as she tends to do, she would just SLAM her way out of ’em, forcing a bump or dodging arcs. I made sure to do my due diligence on the VCX and grind it down, rather than risk pot-shots on Miranda. Ahsoka proved to be too tempting of a target and I was able to take her out first. Against her higher PS (she had Adaptability), the combo of K4 Security Droid and Unkar Plutt proved valuable. If she was close enough, rather than perform a full stop (and take stress), I could do a green move into her, bump, get a TL from K4, and if I wanted, take a damage for a focus. If she didn’t bump back, I would be getting a fully modified shot from an arc that’s difficult for her to avoid.

I eventually caught Miranda and finished her off with the Homing Missiles, but ended up losing Bossk in the process. Then, during the last round, Kath was able to take out the Lothal for a full win!

Record: 4-1

Game 6

vs Michael using Paratanni

(sorry, didn’t get a good pic!)

Uh oh…having flashbacks! Last year I was also 4-1, vying for a spot above the cut. At least this time it wasn’t against Joe Des…wait…what’s that? You and Michael know each other? You guys collaborated with this list?!? Paratanni, the only list I lost to all day?!?!

Ugh…OK…keep it together. I came close to beating Jeff, all I had to do was remember what I learned, and Fly Better. The game started out similarly, with Fenn Rau coming in hot. I brought Kath and Bossk to smoke him, but I moved Kath a bit too quickly and ended up on an asteroid (the tiny moustache!). Luckily, Kath didn’t take too much heat and I was able to put some damage onto Fenn Rau with Bossk.

Ventress and Manaroo came into close range and with 4 big bases, didn’t give Fenn a lot of room to maneuver. At one point, Manaroo blanked out vs a Range 1 shot from Kath’s rear arc for 5 damage, putting her dangerously close to death. Manaroo was able to consistently negate 4-LOM, so when taking her out became a possibility, I had to take it.

Bossk got lucky and killed her, while Kath managed to catch Fenn in the rear arc and finish him off. Bossk didn’t last long against Ventress, but I didn’t need him to. After stripping her shields, I was in prime position with Kath. Fleeing around the board edge (and remembering to cut corners of the board) put Ventress in an awkward position. I was ahead on points so she had to chase Kath, but doing so gave me the advantage on attack dice. Not only that, but Kath could boost as need to re-aim the arc or avoid Ventress’s, keeping her stress-free.

Michael got some bad crits on Ventress and I was able to seal the deal! Whew!

Record: 5-1!!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Top 8, Baby!!!!!!!!!!! I MADE IT!!!!!!

Now, before I gloat too much, I do have to say that X-Wing makes me a nervous wreck and can make me feel real shitty. There’s so many good people who play X-Wing, and I don’t just mean skilled players. I’m talking about people who are smart, friendly, funny, and just generally of great value. Like, “world-is-ending-and-only-certain-people-are-qualified-for-our-bunker” kind of people. Success comes at the cost of breaking hearts; having been on the receiving end of this plenty of times, I know how it feels and it’s one of the things that makes me uncomfortable with the game. Why couldn’t all of my opponents just be a bunch of jerks? =P

This was the best I’ve ever done. I mean, I’ve won small tournaments before, but never made the cut at a regional! For my efforts, I received a set of transparent, sparkly dice, which are the most valuable X-Wing promo I current have.

Not only that, but these dice were destined for me. While prepping for Worlds last year, I noticed one of the dice in my kit has an unpainted pip, which I call “Ghost Evade”

Well…upon closer examination of my brand new shiny dice…

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Haha, what are the chances of that?!? So, to be honest, I might try to get it replaced by FFG since it is much harder to see than the regular one. But still, pretty amazing, right?!?!

Day 2: Game 1 of Single Elimination

vs Jacob with Quickdraw, TIE/D Vessery, Pure Sabacc

Round One of the Single Elimination rounds! I was pumped to be here, and seeing a Defender on the other side of the table made me salivate…THIS is what I tech’ed against. I took a closer look at his list and…

Oh…wait…VI? TIE/D? Oh geez…not only will these guys be shooting before me, but they also have the option of using repositioning actions after I’ve moved. I can deal with one High PS ace, but 3? This isn’t what I planned for. Especially with those blind spots on my ships, this is not good.

Shit.

Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit!

It’s ok, though. I have an advantage of high HP ships. Bossk might take some heat, but with 12, I’m sure I’d be able to get the missile off. Just have to survive the initial engagements, then Kath can run, stay at range, and use that rear arc.

I set up able to joust, but I really didn’t want to. With the Homing Missile, Vessery’s two attacks, as well as Sabacc, I felt like I was on the losing end of that. I knew I’d have to take some heat before I could attack, but if I could force Jacob’s ships to reposition or to move through obstacles, the shots wouldn’t be as accurate.

During the first engagement, with Quickdraw and Vessery together and Sabacc on the flank, I made a bad move. There was an open lane to Bossk, so I anticipated QD and Vess would enter it. I put Kath behind an asteroid with her rear arc covering that lane. I slow rolled Bossk, hoping to stay out of range and get a free shot. Instead, QD and Vess turn in toward the asteroid and put arcs on her, while Sabacc has to barrel roll to stay out of Bossk’s arc. So, no shots for me, Kath will take three (two from Vess) obstructed, Bossk takes one unmodified from Sabacc, Range three obstructed. Ok…I can deal with this…

Haha, Kath loses all shields, Bossk loses 4. Damn it, haha stupid dice. Next turn, Kath is now out of position and Jacob descends on Bossk. I get set up for the Homing Missile by doing a green move and focus action…Bossk can survive with 8 HP…right?

So, QD clips the rock and gets no action. Phew…vs an unmodified shot, Bossk can probably–

QD: *HIT HIT CRIT*

Vessery: *HIT HIT HIT HIT HIT HIT HIT HIT*

Sabacc: *CRITCRITCRITCRITCRITCRITBOOMOMGWTFBBQ”

Bossk: yarrrrgggghhhh…

So…yeah…Bossk failed to survive the onslaught and never fired. To quickly sum up the rest, Sabacc swings in toward Kath, uses repositioning to avoid arc, plinking her again. The final turn, a dying Kath says “YOLO”, and double stresses herself to K-Turn and use Glitterstim. She still had Dengar, so at least I’d get two rerolls and the focuses. Here is a picture of the attack dice I rolled….

Yup…shaaaaaaaaaaame was brought to the houses of GeekADD and Mynock…shaaaaaaaaaaaaaame!

Now, I want to be careful; I’m NOT saying “boo boo bee boo, Jacob didn’t beat me, his dice did…” because he made the right calls and took the right risks to set him up for success. Sure, the dice swung a bit, but hey, remember the Mynock Motto…Fly Better!

I shouldn’t of put Kath in the corner, I knew better than that. I should have just banked in to face QD & Vess, then slow rolled, knowing I could get them next turn in the rear arc. I mean, I probably still would have gotten smoked, but hey, at least I could have rolled some red dice. Enjoy your blood soaked templates, Jacob… 😉

Evil nemesis Jeff made it to the Top 4, but was knocked out by Dan from Trinity Squadron Gaming, who went on to win the whole thing!

So, I was a bit bummed that my best run ever is paired to my worst game ever, but hey, I took jank, had fun, got dice. Dope. Dope Dope Dope! I love this game. Thanks, Crazy Squirrel Games, can’t wait for the next Fresno X-Wing Regional!