X-Wing Campaign - It's a Trap!

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"Ok pilots, we are going on a patrol mission. We've got the Empire pinned back but we need to ensure we don't lose the ground we have gained. One Flight will take the lead to Nav Point One. Three Flight will lead into Nav Point Three and Two Flight will lead back to base. Keep a tight patrol, watch out for any Imperial presence in each sector and report back. Major Rakeene out."

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In the 'rest' week of our Shifting Loyalties Campaign, I joined the local X-Wing players on their penultimate mission of a narrative campaign. Having missed almost the entirety of the campaign, I was flying a brand-new Y-Wing as the plucky Rebel pilot 'Case' with a Pilot Skill of 1.



With limited funds, I also only had access to two Flechette Torpedoes, which would make my 'Secret Mission' somewhat difficult:

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"Case, this is Major Rakeene. I used to pilot one of those tug boats, and hate to see the reputation it gets out there with those X-Wing jockeys. Show them the Y-Wing at its best out there and I'll make sure you get justly rewarded. Rakeene out."

(Gain the most points in kills on this mission and receive a 100XP boost)

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After choosing my ship, getting a secret mission and meeting the others (codenames Dansk, Cipher and Ironsides), we received another message:

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You've been hit by an Empion mine, a powerful electronic pulse blast designed to pull small craft out of hyperspace. Your engines are shorted and you need to make a cold start in the vacuum of space. It's only a matter of time before those who lay the trap come for their prey.

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We deployed grouped together in an asteroid field, and frantically tried to get moving (needing to roll three Hits on three Attack Dice, keeping the Hits from turn to turn)



Both Case's Y-Wing and Dansk's X-Wing got going quickly, but were soon set upon by two Tie Defenders:



Dansk's X-Wing K-turned to engage the Defenders while Case made for cover behind an asteroid, target locking a Defender to prepare for a flechette torpedo on the next turn:



Meanwhile, a swarm of Tie Fighters appeared, led by Howlrunner... as well as Tie Bomber and a Decimator flown by the fearsome Commander Kenkirk:



Glad to be on the other side of the engagement to the Decimator, Case launched a flechette torpedo at the closest Defender, doing nothing but causing it to take a stress marker:



Some clever flying by Ironsides in the A-Wing and Dansk took them behind the Tie swarm, taking one out, while Case managed to get a sneaky Range 1 attack off on a Defender. Unfortunately for Cipher, a near-miss of an asteroid left him in front of the rest of the swarm, and Howlrunner took him out:



Granted a single respawn, explained away by prototype short-range emergency hyperdrive jump capabilities, Cipher flew back on towards the Decimator while Case and Ironsides took a hammering:



Howlrunner then claimed Dansk as their second victim, while Case tried to re-enact the Independence Day finale, yet failing to take down Commander Kenkirk. A respawn was granted to both Case and Dansk for fairness (balance is hard!):



Case, Dansk and Cipher, freshly respawned, hammered away at the Decimator, while Ironsides finally kicked the bucket. Last to respawn, Ironsides flew in for the kill with their Proton Rockets, rolling a ridiculous amount of dice but leaving the Decimator on a single Hull Point - which Case snapped up, finishing his Secret Mission!



Having destroyed the Decimator and severed the head of the snake, the Rebels fled the swarm, having 'survived' the trap..!

This was the first time I had played an X-Wing game of this size, and it was great fun. One of the problems I had with 100 point games of X-Wing was that it would usually have only a few ships - especially when the larger ships were involved. Another was that there was little customisation available - e.g. making your own pilots. I had never thought of using X-Wing as a narrative medium, but it worked really well. If you have a large X-Wing collection (as most X-Wing players end up with..), I recommend giving it a try with some friends! You can find the rules here.

If you want to read up on more of this narrative campaign, 'Ironsides' (also known as Ben) has a blog at https://forgotmytea.wordpress.com/ - with plenty of Malifaux content too!