Having forced the Rebels to evacuate their primary base on Endor (in the previous game), the Empire are planning to send a small occupation force in to take control of the abandoned facility, seeing it as a vital strategic objective.
The Rebels are determined to stop this from happening, and are mounting a counterattack to force the Empire out of the area, and hopefully allow them to reoccupy the base.
THE PATROL PHASE
Both sides entered the table in the eastern sector, and slowly advanced their patrols towards the landing pad. The Rebels managed to place a Jump-Off Point close enough to allow deployment onto it, with two more placed in the woods and hills nearby. This was expected by the Empire, who spread out their JoPs to surround the Pad.
Disappointingly, both sides ignored the western half of the table, despite the availability of toilet facilities in the barracks.
FORCE SUPPORT
The Empire brought a couple of Probe Droids with them, hoping to push back or remove some of the Rebel JoPs. However, these were not deployed.
Both sides decided to deploy a Forward Observer and Barrage. The umpire was therefore expecting a long game, as both sides sat in smoke wondering what was happening.
OBJECTIVE
To win a victory, one side must force his opponent to withdraw from the table, either voluntarily or due to a reduction in his Force Morale, whilst keeping his own Force Morale at 3 or greater. Nothing too difficult there.
With both sides having the same starting Force Morale the Rebels were selected as the active player in the first Phase of the game.
BATTLE REPORT
As expected, the Rebels deployed a squad of Troopers on to each level of the Landing Pad, Luke joining the Troopers on the lower level, with a Forward Observer deployed on the nearby hill.
The Empire responded, deploying Stormtroopers on the east edge of the board, and in the cacti, west of the Pad. The Rebels tried to bring down a barrage on the Stormtroopers in the east, but their ranging shot was way off target, landing on the Pad. Luckily no one was hurt.
Two separate firefights had now broken out. One between the Rebels on the upper level of the Pad and the Stormtroopers in the east. And one between the Rebels on the lower level platform, which they elevated to improve their LoS, and Stormtroopers to the west, which had advanced towards the Pad. These were reinforced with another squad of Stormtroopers and Darth Vader. The Rebels on the west of the Pad took considerable casualties, with the remaining 3 Troopers breaking and abandoning the Pad. A couple of shots would have hit Luke had he not been able to deflect them using his lightsabre.
The Empire also took some casualties, with the Stormtroopers in the east becoming pinned. A squad of Shoretroopers, armed with a light mortar, deployed into the wood to provide additional firepower. The Empire also deployed their own Forward Observer. Which side would manage to call in a barrage first?
The answer is the Empire!
The Rebels took several more casualties; their morale was steadily dropping. Under cover of the barrage, Luke and the remaining Rebels on the Pad decided the time had come to abandon it and “head for the woods!”. More Rebel Troopers were deployed in the nearby woods and on the hill. The battle was becoming more balanced. Or was it?
The Rebels continued their advance into the woods. Unfortunately, one team, pinned in the open by the barrage, was abandoned by their comrades. Not very “Rebely”.
The Empire started to move their barrage towards the woods that were now refuge for Luke and most of his force. The Rebel barrage eventually arrived, resulting in most of the battlefield now being shrouded in smoke.
The Empire, having acquired a CoC dice, decided to end the turn, removing both barrages. The centre of the battlefield now looked rather empty, apart from several trampled dead Rebels.
Long range firefights commenced, with the Rebels taking the worst of it, with more squads taking losses or breaking. Luke was again forced to rely on his lightsabre for protection, this time managing to deflect a shot, taking out the shooter.
The Empire were also taking casualties, with their morale quickly dropping to 4. Could victory slip from their hands? No. The Rebel’s morale was dropping even faster, and soon hit zero. Game over. Another Empire victory. (Play music).
ANALYSIS
The Rebel’s decision to deploy on the Landing Pad didn’t really work for them. Despite the hard cover it provided, they were quickly outgunned by the Empire and started to take heavy losses. Maybe they should have deployed more units on it to take full advantage of its central fortified position. However, that would have potentially made the Empire’s early barrage much more decisive. One big game changer was the Empire’s repeated rolls of double 6’s on their Command dice, giving them 2 or 3 consecutive turns. This they used to good effect and was the key to them ejecting the Rebels from the Pad. Once on the run in the open the Rebel’s advantage was lost. Although both sides had selected a barrage, the Rebels failed to deploy theirs early enough in the game, and paid the penalty.
This could be the first game of Star Wars CoC that we have actually completed. This is probably a combination of better familiarity with the variances of the game, reduced Platoon sizes, simplified unit stats, and of course, lucky dice rolling by the Empire.
“All Hail The Emperor!”
Rob
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