The game features both a campaign mode and a skirmish game, essentially making it two games in one box. We’ll focus on the campaign first. The Rebels will only know their next objective – meaning there will be some surprises waiting for them. The game demands good tactical sensibilities. I’ve seen it go both ways. Using different combinations of figures and Command cards is what generates so much variety and thus replayability of Star Wars: Imperial Assault in Skirmish mode. Yes, there are winners and losers. Imperial Assault, published in 2014 by Fantasy Flight Games, is a huge, heaping dose of tabletop Star Wars action. These cards allow for special actions during the game, and each player starts with three. Imperial Assault puts you in the midst of the Galactic Civil War between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire after the destruction of the Death Star over Yavin 4. It’s usually not lucky command cards or rolls that win games, it’s players that know which order to optimally play their units, how to move them, and when to execute their abilities. The game combines traditional board game elements with miniatures gameplay, not unlike FFG’s earlier offering, Descent 2.0: Journeys in the Dark, from which Imperial Assault’s gameplay is heavily inspired. The campaign pits four rebel players against an Imperial player, functioning as a co-operative dungeon crawler experience, complete with a storyline and character progression. Fortunately, this is an easy fix with super glue (save for if it snaps off completely), and if that’s not good enough, I’ve heard great things about Fantasy Flight’s customer service (I have not gone through them myself). Do you like playing the game because you just like the mechanics? We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. , Reviews. Okay, one of them technically isn’t a rulebook, but still…. Star Wars: Imperial Assault (8 out of 10); Fantasy Flight Games; Ages 14+; 2-5 players; 1-2 hours per game; released December 31, 2014. So Imperial Assault, this is going to be written from the perspective of playing this game for two players. There is a similar mechanic to this in the skirmish game, called command cards. The semi-cooperative, campaign style play is a favorite for our boys as they team up as heroes to take me on as the overlord in a varied series of quests and encounters. It’s a scene that seems all too familiar: Stormtroopers blast through the doorways, as plasma bolts echo through the hall. 4. The only downside in this regard is that many cool figures are sold separately. It’s a Fantasy Flight miniatures game; the expansions were already advertised on a sheet of paper that shipped with the box. For most Star Wars fans, the winter of 2017 is showing a lot of promise. I've been playing through the missions fairly regularly with my friends, and everyone is always genuinely excited to set up each map. The force is strong with this one. With so many tiles, figures, cards and tokens, Star Wars: Imperial Assault may take a while to set up, but once everything is out, it’s super compelling to play multiple battles. Playing with four is also ideal, because if another player joins in unexpectedly, they can simply take control of one of the heroes for that session. You may have seen mentions of the game pop up on our site before now. The phases are repeated until one side achieves their objective and the mission ends. If good strategy in deck building and good tactics on the battlefield can come together in harmony, it’s hard to contend against, and trust me when I say that there’s a LOT to work with in this game. Because of the way the dice are designed, it is, again, rare that there are significant upsets. When I first heard that Fantasy Flight Games was making Imperial Assault, I was super excited for a number of reasons. Now, enough writing, it’s time to dive back into some playing. It is the best '1 vs Many' game that I have played to date. And the last cool thing we’ll mention is the vast array of experiences yet to come. It sounds like the mechanics of this game improve on and offer more options? Imperial Assault is a complicated game, in fact, it doesn’t come with one rulebook, it comes with four. When he's not writing for or managing BGR, Zach might be hanging out with cats, hiking a mountain, spending time with his lovely wife, or writing about video game stuff for Insert Gamer. It makes for some fun twists. When you play with Legends of the Alliance, the app assumes the role of the Imperials, while you and your friends form a team of … The game is designed to prevent runaway leaders. The skirmish ends as soon as one player has accumulated 40 victory points (VPs). Like you suggest, the openness of the fantasy realm is what they love over feeling a bit limited with just SW cannon. It is not a light game – it will take a bit of time to set up and to play, but it’s a blast when it gets rolling. Is it a fun experience? On the flipside, they’re punished hard for their mistakes. These cards come with a slew of abilities, most of them one time uses that you can bust out to enhance your unit’s activation. I would have to deal the lowest possible roll for Vader, and the defender would have to roll the highest possible defense. In this case, the game is won in one of two ways – either by defeating every one of your opponent’s units, or by reaching 40 points. For example, if you want C-3PO or R2-D2, you’ll need to buy their Ally pack. You can check out his (long neglected) gallery here, or follow him on Instagram at @artworkbyzach! Their special ability is “aim,” which gives them an attack bonus if they haven’t left their square during that activation. Players gain VPs by defeating figures and through card and mission effects. Having lost their ultimate weapon, the Empire scrambles to recover in the face of this crushing defeat. But Campaign mode is more fun with more players.). And we’ll cover each ever so briefly. If they don’t level their characters well or take best advantage of their actions, they will become Imperial cannon fodder.To say that the Rebels are favored is not to say that a good imperial player can’t win; in my first campaign the empire completely steamrolled the Rebels. And players don’t even have to choose different sides in a skirmish. In a skirmish, players build their own personalized armies to lead into battle. A skirmish map. If they take full advantage of this by creating expert loadouts and maximizing their action utility, the Rebels can usually pull the win. The figure packs are released more regularly, but the boxed expansions are packed with much more content. There’s the Learn to Play book, which teaches the basics, the Rules Reference Guide, which is kind of the rule encyclopedia, the Skirmish guide, which teaches skirmish basics, and the campaign guide. Star Wars in of itself has great visual design all over the board, and that absolutely carries over in this game. And of course, there are 50 double-sided, interlocking map tiles of various shapes that can be put together to make a seemingly endless variety of Star Wars environments. Legends of the Alliance is a companion app for the Star Wars: Imperial Assault board game, a scenario-based game of tactical combat. When the last figure in a group is defeated, the corresponding Deployment card is returned to the Imperial player’s hand. Every single mission has a different map and objectives. I think it’d be great it a lot more games did this; it makes the game a lot less intimidating for someone who doesn’t have a fellow player to teach them. In skirmish mode, a player can bring 15 cards to the table, hand chosen by them. These concepts are at the heart of everything else in Imperial Assault. Tom Vasel and Sam Healey take a look at this game based on the Star Wars universe from Fantasy Flight Games. From the very first days of the Imperial Assault Core Set, players have been launched into the Star Wars galaxy, playing out the thrilling missions of the game’s narrative campaigns. Fortunately, the game compensates for this by packing in its wonderful skirmish mode. Their abilities are like superpowers, their health is high, and they have the ability to heal (which Imperial units can’t do). The campaign can be played with up to five players – one Imperial player, and four Rebel players. It offers the gameplay mechanics, and none of the randomness of the campaign. The game has a line of sight system that dictates which units are capable of seeing (and thus attacking) each other. All the while, the smuggler dashes ahead to destroy a nearby terminal while the Jedi deflects the shots surrounding her. Is there a sense of variety and balance? But in Imperial Assault one Rebel player takes a turn, then the Empire player activates one of his troop groups, then another Rebel player goes, then a different Empire group activates, etc. And let’s not forget the Skirmish mode. That brings us to campaign events. When first playing the game, it will take a while to get familiar with which cards are which. That player will set up each mission. There are a lot of decisions to make in Imperial Assault, which means that there are tons of tactical possibilities and strategic variations to try out. And it’s a blast to play! If you want to upgrade those tokens to figures, you can, but you’ll have to buy them separately. In fact, two skirmish players that know what they’re doing can duke out a session in less than an hour. To say that the Rebels are favored is not to say that a good imperial player can’t win; in my first campaign the empire completely steamrolled the Rebels. The truth, however, is that not all players will pick up on these things, and if they can’t learn how to deal with these events, it may sour the game for them. Since we have a lot of experience in this type of game play because of Descent, the Tutorial was very helpful because it allowed us to learn the differences between the two games. Thank you for reading! There may also be some End of Round effects that will trigger – depending on the Skirmish mission. One more is drawn every round, and more can be drawn if players decide to secure terminals around the map. No matter what you’re doing, you’re moving units around on a grid that each have their own abilities and limitations. This game provides an experience, and it resonated well with my group because of this. These are the guys you see in the first shots of A New Hope, you know, those poor guys trying to defend the Tantive IV from Vader. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! Our rebel heroes duck behind cover, dodging blaster fire, seizing opportune moments to strike back. But we don’t have time and space to go into all of them. By playing that, you get a quick feel for how the game works, and then the rest of the learning is just taking in all of the smaller details. And now it’s time to dive into it. The game is very visual, which makes your actions feel tangible rather than abstract – if you want your character to move to the end of the hall, you’ll move them to the end of the hall. Knowing Fantasy Flight Games as well as being familiar with these type of games, it was obvious from the very start that a bunch of expansions would follow. The group, surprisingly, jumped right in and we were having fun in no time – even the one who’s not a Star Wars fan found himself eager to play every time he came over. I found Imperial Assault to be extremely accessible, which is part of what made it so fun. Unique to the campaign is also a sense of progression. Like the campaign, it is arranged according to a premade layout. In Descent, hero players would all take their turns and then the overlord would activate every group of monsters. For examples of what the minis look like unpainted, please refer to Fantasy Flight Games’ official site. ‘Star Wars: Imperial Assault’ Review By Bryan Young on December 6, 2014 in Reviews Star Wars Tabletop Games. There are also 12 Ally and Villain tokens. Skirmishes play quicker than campaign missions. I would advise anyone who purchases this game to explain to the rebel players the nature of the campaign, and this will mitigate a lot of potential frustration. Just like when we play a Descent campaign, once a campaign begins, the game remains on the table for days or weeks so it’s easier to sit down and play the next encounter when we get the chance. In this mode, there is no story or progression, and it is limited to two players. Add-ons come in the form of figure packs and boxed expansions. The game packs a punch visually, and delivers the Star Wars theme in spades. The bottom line: Star Wars: Imperial Assault is fantastic. It is very, very intimidating to casual players who have never played such a game before. I’ve seen it go both ways. 5. It’s just a fact. Egg Shen replied the topic: #244584 27 Feb 2017 09:52. Imperial Assault (Review) Posted by Chris Van Dyke on June 27, 2016 July 12, 2016 Someone at Fantasy Fight must have been spent some time tapping my brain back when I was 12 years old, because “Imperial Assault” is the answer to all my teenage fantasies (at least, those that didn’t involve Jim Lee era Psylocke). How much interaction is there between the players? Review | Star Wars: Imperial Assault. The Status Phase also has a few differences. First of all, Fantasy Flight makes amazing games. It’s fantastic for two, and there’s not much more to be said. Most of the campaign missions put the rebels on a time limit, requiring them to win within a specified number of rounds. Furthermore, every unit has one or more special abilities that differ all across the board. Mini-Review. One thing I admired in particular was the tutorial mission. The horizontal ones in the corner are skirmish missions. With Skirmish mode available, if there are only two of us wanting to play, we can! In addition, players have opportunity to purchase new Item cards, Class cards, and Agenda cards that will help them in the rest of the missions of the campaign. If you can accept this and aren’t prone to blaming the dice, you’ll love the game. 2. They’re top notch in the quality of both the components as well as the game play. I said it earlier, but I’ll say it again: The campaign is an experience first, and a board game second. This means that enemies, unknown to the Rebels, might appear suddenly behind doors that they open, or that reinforcements might arrive when they’re least expecting it. The Imperial Assault core game contains hours and hours of Star Wars adventures, so expansions probably won't really be necessary for most players for a long time to come. As you can see, the Activation Phase is where all the action takes place. A great Design That’s not to say it doesn’t happen. 1. The figure packs make up the majority of extra content, and are aimed primarily at skirmish players, though campaign players will still find a lot to love. It’s time to head into a galaxy far, far away! There are traps for them, and things that will set them back. When a figure has suffered damage equal to its Health, it is defeated. Notice the “STOP!” on the bottom right of the left page that urges readers to play the tutorial, and then learn the rest of the rules after they’ve played a simple game. Sometimes emergency reinforcements appear out of nowhere, or doors slam shut without warning. Since I can’t really write the different symbols in text format, you’ll have to just check out the photos. If so, the skirmish is perfect for you. The probe droid stands on three tiny thin legs, and one of my droids had two already disconnected from the base when it shipped. As of the time of this review. The core game is a lavish box filled with models, tiles … Suffice it to say that your characters will get better and the battles more intense as you go through a full campaign. These boxes add a boatload of content. You want to move around Wookiees and Jedi and Stormtroopers, but don’t care for random surprises, sweeping storylines, or complicated objectives? I'm in the middle of a three-player campaign of this game, and so far we really like it. Of course the first noticeable cool thing about Imperial Assault is the fantastic components and awesome miniatures. While many of these cards can be played on any unit, a great deal of them apply only to specific units, or unit types. When any Imperial figure is defeated, it’s removed from the map. Stormtroopers, for example, can re-roll attack dice if they’re near each other. There will be expansion packs, new campaigns, new miniatures, new heroes, on and on. With Star Wars: The Force Awakens hitting movie theaters this week, we couldn’t wait any longer to post our review of Star Wars: Imperial Assault. If runaway leader syndrome is happening in your game, don’t be afraid to make some house rules to counter it out; it’s more important for the whole group to enjoy the game. The manchild inside of me gets giddy with excitement every time I see all of my painted minis on the table; it’s as if Star Wars jumped out of my TV screen and into my living room. It almost goes without saying that Imperial Assault is based on the vast Star Wars universe of characters, locations, and adventures. For a game that has such a high asking price, I can say with absolute confidence that it is worth every penny. It’s up to you to decide if the dice are too prone to luck swings, but after countless hours of playing the game, I assert that they aren’t. In short, the game’s extra content is practically endless. This is, of course, a drastic example, but the point is that it can and it will happen, so don’t play the game believing that luck won’t play a role. Smart Rebels will open doors at the beginning of a round, so they won’t be off guard to whatever is behind them. Even though there are only ten missions in any given campaign, there are more than 30 of them packed into the box – the missions played in each campaign change depending on the actions of the players. I think Matt (who you know from the podcast) put it best: Fantasy Fight’s Descent 2nd Edition is a fun game despite itself. There is a storyline here, and it branches depending on who wins the missions; this is also what allows the campaign to be different every time. Army building has players not only choose the figures in their armies, but also which Command cards they wish to use. There are only so many actions available to you, and gaining the most utility out of each one is very important, especially in campaign missions where many missions are timed (eg, the Rebels have six rounds to complete a mission). November 15, 2017. , 2:31 am. Prepare to grab some popcorn if you want to play Imperial Assault, because. Still, the ally and villain packs are a whole lot of fun, and do bring some exciting new adventures to both modes of play. Darth Vader and Diala Passil both have lightsabers, and it’s not uncommon for them to arrive with their lightsabers slightly bent. There is no limit to the number of Command cards a player can have in hand. These are the cards that indicate the abilities of each figure. Posts in discussion: Star Wars: Imperial Assault Review. The game, of course, still looks wonderful even without a paint job. We highly recommend playing it. This money is used to improve and further build the site. At the start of a skirmish, each player also creates a deck of exactly 15 Command cards and the total cost of the Command cards must be 15 or fewer (number on the bottom left of the Command card). Is the game aesthetically pleasing? Sure enough, within the first year of Imperial Assault being out, there are already a couple of expansions available. Rebels who try to stand around and fight every enemy lose to the time limit. Think ‘Hero Quest’ or ‘Descent’ with plucky rebels fighting Stormtroopers and you’ve pretty much got the gist. Unlike X-Wing and Armada, which practically demand that you immediately start buying, this core set can last you hundreds of hours. You could play a hundred times and still not exhaust every possible squad combination, which is really quite remarkable for a miniatures game, which games are usually designed to quickly and efficiently suck your wallet dry. In the example above, Fenn Signis (the rebel up top with the rifle and helmet) is positioned in such a way where he can see the stormtroopers, but they can’t see him. (Click for more info). When the last figure of a group is defeated, the opposing player scores VPs equal to that group’s deployment cost. The defending player rolls defense dice (also listed on their card or sheet). If each mission lasted an average of two hours, that’s at least twenty hours of playtime per campaign (and I can pretty much guarantee it would be more), and with multiple campaigns, that is more than enough to justify the asking price. The myriad combinations of figures and Command cards also leads to a lot of “let’s play again” moments. The campaign and skirmish offer two completely different experiences, and won’t leave players wanting. The white die is for nimble characters; it hardly blocks damage but the character is more likely to dodge an attack. Dungeon crawling is just a fun genre. The introduction goes as follows: “Victory! There’s no denying it – this game can be replayed over and over and over and over. Overall, if you’re a Star Wars fan, or even just a board game fan looking to add something bombastic to your collection, Imperial Assault is a no brainer. Imperial Assault review – The Gamer in me GL-14. Each of these comes into play during different parts of the adventures. */. There’s also an Introductory Skirmish listed in the rules to help new players become familiar with the rounds in a skirmish mission. Star Wars: Imperial Assault is a strategy board game of tactical combat and missions for two to five players, offering two distinct games of battle and adventure in the Star Wars universe! They also prefer games with less components and things to learn. Unfortunately, consistent wins over and over can cause a snowballing effect for the victor. The Nexu (big cat thing) can’t currently attack anybody, but its special ability will allow him to get all the way to Fenn in one turn. This is the first glimpse that opponents will have of one another’s armies.
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