solving the "chess" problem

[attacktixrulz]

Since I've started playing attacktix, I've noticed that following the standard rules with only 2 attacks per turn for each side, the game results in me moving my attacktix to strategically place and attack with my jedi's, and determining which jedi's I would sacrifice, leaving my launchers standing around after moving. I usually play about a 500 pt game and use about 4 jedi's. So I've changed the rules a bit to get more involvement with the launchers. Here how it plays out:
1) Team 1 moves all his attacktix, all his jedi's attack immediately.
2) Team 2 moves all his attacktix, all his jedi's attack immediately.
3) Team 1 attacks with 1 of his launchers.
4) Team 2 attacks with 1 of his launchers.
5) Repeat 3) and 4) until all the launchers have attacked.
6) Next turn starts, proceed with 1). Play until game is over.
This elimates the focus on jedi's being the main force when there are several jedi's in one game. It also makes a bigger army more fierce without the fear of wiping out one side in one turn. Try it out and see what you think.

[AWOL]

WOW!! I just posted a message w/ this same concept!!! LOL

[Lord Gravesmythe]

Interesting you should mention "chess."

I don't mean to be rude, rash, harsh, or condescending. I'm not trying to incite a flame war. I merely wish to illustrate my point.[/i]

If you were a chess player, you'd try for fool's mate every game and avoid the quiet lines---and probably even the active lines---that required strategic board position and piece trades.

If you watch football, you see more importance in big plays during high-scoring games than in punts for field position during low-scoring games. (My guess is you like watching the NBA).

If you play Monopoly, you concentrate on owning Boardwalk + Park Place and/or the 4 railroads over owning properties along an entire side and/or corner of the board.

If you play Dungeons and Dragons, you prefer epic battles in dungeons with "Monte Haul" treasures after you defeat each Big Bad Guy of the Week as opposed to role-playing scenarios where you have to find out where the thieve's guild is planning to strike next.

All of that is fine. It's not my own personal cup of tea. I have found that such wide-open play without much---I hesitate to say it---thought (read: strategy), becomes boring and can lead to people abandoning a game because it loses interest quickly.

I only have one team that has any Jedi. It's a Jedi-only, striker-only team. I have two teams that are all shooters. I have four teams that are all shooters except one striker (all non-Jedi strikers, I might add). How would those fare if I played by your rules? By "Jedi," do you mean "striker?" Or, do you really mean that only Jedi-class figures gain these considerations?

Now, if you want a game scenario much like the one you advance without all the rules and exceptions, try this (D&D 3/3.5 Ed. players will recognize it immediately):

First, you establish an "initiative" (order of action) that is like a baseball batting order. Once it is determined which figure goes when, it does not change. If a figure dies, it is removed from the order of initiative (duh). If a figure comes into play from backup or defeated areas, it is added at the bottom of the order.

The initiative can be determined by rolling a d20 (20-sided game die) for each figure. The figure with the highest roll goes first and so on down the line (break ties with roll-offs between figures).

If you have a lot of figures, you might want to jot down their order on a scrap piece of paper to avoid confusion.

Each cycle of the initiative is a "round." Each move/attack action of a figure is a "turn."

Each figure reloads, moves, and attacks (if it can/wants to) on its turn. All special powers must resolve before the next figure's turn begins. A launcher figure can reload to fulfill a special power. Depending on the order that comes up and resolution of special powers, one player may have 2 or 3 figures go in a row. That's just the way the cookie crumbles.

R2-D2 can be used, but his effect is modified. On his turn (and only one R2 may do this per team/per round), declare a figure as the "Hero." This will usually be one that you control, but any figure is a legal target. Spin R2. The number that comes up is the number of attacks the hero gets during the hero's next turn (the hero can only move once during its turn).

Lest you think this unfair, consider that R2 will be a major target---as will the figure you designated as the hero (unless the hero's turn is right after R2's). Also, if you roll a 4 for your hero, and your opponent has an R2 in play, they may also designate *your* hero as their target---they have a 83% chance of lowering the number of attacks your hero will have! (The result isn't added to the first R2's roll, it replaces it.)

Try it this way and see how you like it with a bit more structure and strategy than an all-out "blast-n-bash."

[attacktixrulz]

lol.....(I actually did chuckle at gravesmythe's response). You put way too much thought into that. Your suggestions sound too "role-playing". Attacktix was meant to be blast-n-bash. I just gave suggestions on how someone could get more use out of their launchers when they are reluctant to waste their attacks on a hit-or-miss launcher vs a guaranteed take-down with a striker. I've played several large-scaled battles, and most of the time I did not want to use a launcher when my strikers were cleaning up the opposition once they are within range. That can make for a somewhat boring game when you want to do more launching and less striking. Using the standard 2 attack rule with large-scale battle, I usually win it with a few strikers, which can make for a boring game.

[Lord Gravesmythe]

Attacktix was meant to be blast-n-bash.

I don't agree. Maybe the game was meant to be blast-n-bash, but it is a strategy game. [Note emphasis on the verbs.]

I'll leave it at that or probably get in trouble for something I'm not really doing or intending to do.

Using the standard 2 attack rule with large-scale battle, I usually win it with a few strikers, which can make for a boring game.

To win with that level of play doesn't reflect favorably upon your level of competition.

You put way too much thought into that.

And by converse reasoning....

Nevermind.

[greyelephant]

I usually win it with a few strikers, which can make for a boring game.

I understand your point here.

Alot of times anymore I make groups of figures that are not necessarily going to win as much as I am just going to have fun playing with them. This helps alleviate this problem. Right now I am trying with everything I have to Capture someone. Every time Boba or Bossk get knocked down they are black with the exception of one time with Boba when it didn't matter seems how I didn't
have a Specialist in play.

To win with that level of play doesn't reflect favorably upon your level of competition.

I only have a certain pool of competition I can pull from. It's not my fault that I am double the age of most of my opponents. I still gloat when I win though.

To make it more competitive I let both of my nephews gang up on me. At least that way it's a little harder for me to win.

[malform]

Im struggling to understand this one (like Lord Gravesmythe, none of this is meant to be rude). You seem to make it sound like all the time, right from the beginning; your strikers do all the attacking. I don’t see how this is really possible. Most games it seems you have to go at least 2 turns before a striker is even close enough to attack. So, the first couple of rounds you HAVE to use shooters to attack. So maybe you are playing on an area that is too small?

And if you feel your not utilizing a certain figure enough during game play then why even have that figure on your team? Why not just go all strikers? Why play with 500 point games? From my experience, a 200 point game gives a very good amount of points to build a good mixed army, without getting crazy.

From the game play being suggested:

1. team 1 move all attacktix, all jedi attack
2. team 2 move all attacktix, all jedi attack (do you only play with jedi?)
3. team 1 all shooters attack
4. team 2 all shooters attack
5. repeat 3 and 4 until all shooters have attacked
6. repeat from 1

It would seem to me you are making additional rules to thin out the extra figures you have just to meet your 500 point quota. I think you may find it more fun to play with less figures, less carpet bombong and with more strategy.

[MasterTiMothee]

I tend to be a strategist in every game I play, and---with Attacktix---I still find that there are enough (apparently) random events to cause even "the best-laid schemes" to "gang aft a-gley."

Regardless of your skill level, there are ...
... random bounces of Force Blasts,
... the effect of flying corpses caused by strong hits from Sidious or Vader or Fisto,
... the fact that---even if you're a dead shot with such shooters as Gree and Bly---you simply can't always hit exactly where you're aiming.
... and many, many others.

This differs radically from chess, in which every event and potential outcome can be precisely predicted based on the moves made.

If it still seems predictable, try the three-person battle board that my daughter and I made (timothypauljones.tripod.com/timothyslife/AttacktixBoardThreePerson2.gif)---that really changes things up. I still haven't gotten the hang of starting the game at angles from each other.

[attacktixrulz]

Not to beat a dead horse, but I play on a table that's roughly 7'x4'. I use 9 launchers, my AT-RT, the Emperor, and 4 strikers. The reason so many? They're too cool not to play all. But, as I found, the launchers are only used until my strikers infiltrate the equally formidable opponent. Then it's just a matter of manuevering my strikers against my opponent's attacktix(usually facing other strikers). Once I take out his strikers, I then systematically take out his launchers. The problem is, I want to create a game that combines the use of all launchers and all strikers that keep the natural "toughness" of strikers, and yet allows for a massive onslaught of missle attacks without decimating the opponent in 1 turn. The bottom line: my opponent and I want to use all of our attacktix (cuz they are cool) each turn, and yet keep a fair game. We haven't actually played it this way, but we are confident it will be a blast. Maybe this weekend we will have a major Star Wars battle. I encourage any of you to try it this way and see how it works out for you. If it doesn't work, don't play it that way. The point is to have cool attacktix and have fun playing with them.

[attacktixrulz]

One more thing, just a small correction. I mistakenly referred to the strikers as jedi's in my first post. The reason is that my strikers are jedi's. So when I was using the word "jedi", I meant "striker".

[anton]

You know, I think we've struck a balance at our house. As a typical father, I'm a stickler for the rules - but I have been known to miss quite a bit on "accident" - and good sportsmanship when things don't quite work out the way it was planned. My sons, well, they're into blast-and-bash-bend-the-rules-line-'em-all-up-and-fire fun.

What we've done that works the best for us is scenarios. We'll take a scene from one of the movies, pick sides and have at it. That way we're not as concerned with the amount of points each side has, so I can handicap myself as needed. They will always pick the side that has more figs and since there's two of them, they get two attacks to my one, so they get the extra firings they desire.

It does help that we have a bunch of other toys and scenery to create battlefields as well. We once set up the Thomas/Brio/generic wooden train tracks and had levels similar to the epic Maul/Obi-Wan/Qui-Gon battle in episode one. We were clicking all up and down the three levels of track we set up. (used Agen Kolar at the time for Qui-Gon)

[attacktixrulz]

Just to give an update, my brother and I play a game this weekend with 15 attacktix each using our "house" rules. It was GREAT!! Even though I lost, I was very impressed with the way the game played. The more attacktix we can cram onto a 7'x4' table, the better. Let the buying begin. (hopefully series 2 will be in our area soon. ).

[copes]

jaws and my brother played a 60 on 60 on the pool table. I don't really like huge games, but i played as jaws' "strategic support." I even made my own strategic support theme song. Anyways, jaws' medic droids were key, but he still was demolished by my bro's cloud of strikers.