“His future is uncertain” –QGJ
The State of the Game

September 10, 2009

 

There is a lot going on right now and I thought it was time to make sure everyone is on the same page.  I really think we are hitting an important cross roads for Star Wars minis.  Now this will be a bit long, so either sit back and prepare for a long read, or figure out how to use your bookmark function on your computer. J

 

Let’s start with one of the most controversial topics to hit the game since its inception –General Obi-Wan Kenobi.  This piece came along and everyone was happy.  Finally, we had not only a strong melee piece that could withstand the massive shooters, but it was also a great representation of Kenobi from episode 3.  Then the playing began.  Some said he was too over-powered.  Some loved the fact he not only stood up to the shooters, but also brought some uber-powered followers, like Aurra sing sitting in cover with a 29 DEF.   Either way, it was obvious that the meta was stood on its head.  The same old/same old was no longer going to work.

 

After lots of discussion, it was decided that GOWK was to be banned post regionals and pre-Gencon.  Those that know me from the boards know my position, so I will not go into that here.  The results for Gencon I will discuss in my next section, but needless to say, the banning of GOWK left people with a map pack that was now completely worthless and the loss of a figure that was still spot on to the character.  However, there is light on the horizon for Obi-Wan lovers.  I can’t say when, but in the near future, GOWK will be returning to DCI legality with a few changes.  The first change will be the editing of Soresu Style Mastery.  Instead of stopping all damage it will now only stop the first 20 DAM.  Power Shooters can still over power his defenses, but the fact he will stop a ton of damage before he goes down (unless you roll saves like me) means he will still be tough.  The second change will be that he will lose Master of the Force 2.  Now that seems like a lot to lose, but he still can stop 20 DAM, and he still has one reroll with mettle, needing a 7 or better.  I like these changes as it makes Obi still a beast (minus my save rolls), yet he should not rewrite the meta as he had.

 

 

The second thing I want to discuss is Gencon and the post Gencon 150pt meta (or post GOWK meta as it were).  Once the game grew past the first three to four sets, it became clear that this was a game to be dominated by power shooters.  Melee has had a hard time keeping up with the shooter power curve.  We started seeing better pieces after awhile, but melee hasn’t really seen an increased, consistent climb up the power curve.  Love or hate GOWK, he at least changed the meta to something new and different.  Post GOWK, however, the meta reverted to the same state it was in over one year ago.  It is a meta dominated by power cannons, namely Rebels.  It was either 6 or 7 squads out of the top 8 ended up being rebel based.  I was one of the few people that saw this coming a mile away with the removal of GOWK.  This is not a pro-GOWK article.  This is a fact.  The rebels have WAY too many weapons.  Not only do they have them, they have them in spades and cheaply costed spades at that.  They have more effective twin than any other faction.  They have tempo control in Dodonna, speed with the landspeeder or snowspeeder, override, and abusive commanders such as Princess Leia and especially Rieekan.  I don’t think any of these are bad, but the fact that they are all in the rebels, not in the other factions and really cheap makes rebel abuse rampant right now.  It seems as if the other factions start to catch up, and then we get the Rebel/Imperial focused set and the rebels shoot past everyone else again.  Granted this time it only took one piece, Rieekan, to unbalance them.  Some have said this is because they also had some maps that really favored them.  I agree that this is true, but with both the hardback starship board and the deathstar maps being legal, I don’t think it was that big of a factor.

 

150pts has always been a meta where tech that breaks the game rules has ruled.  There is talk (and I stress it is TALK at this point only) that the championship format may switch to 200pts.  I like this and would love to see it happen.  Many more factions and builds can compete at this level than at 150, but some are concerned that it would take too long to finish games.  In the end there is only one way to find out – do it.  I would love to see this tried.  If it is too problematic we can always switch back, but I really do think it would be better for the game.

 

Now, we get to what could be the most interesting news out there.  We have two key people that are no longer with Wizards.  The most recent departure is that of Sarah.  For those who do not know Sarah, she was a product manager towards the top of the food chain.  Where she set herself apart was she actually took the time to listen and talk with the fan base.  In a game that has often struggled to find answers, it was always a blessing when someone would finally sit down with us on the boards.  Sarah loved the game and the community and it showed.  She will be missed.

 

The second loss was a loss that apparently happened in April, but is just now coming to light as of Gencon.  Rob W, the big cheese (lead game designer), is gone as of April.  This brings a lot of feelings to the surface.  He loved the game and the community, but was often muzzled by corporate leash handlers, much to the community’s dismay.  From that point of view, he was awesome and will be missed.

 

I am going to commit a bit of sacrilegious heresy here and say that it may not be a bad thing that he is gone.  One thing has been clear from the beginning of the game.  Rob has been subject to creating things according to his whim instead of what is best for the game and game balance.  Early examples of this are him boosting stormtrooper stats because he thought they should be better than most other 5pt pieces.  For the first few sets this caused small problems.  R2 astro, on the other hand, was something that caused major problems early.  There was no effective counter to him until Universe’s Lobot, and nothing truly counter-able until the release of the ugnaughts.  More current design flaws would be examples of the above, GOWK’s over powering presence and the abusive nature that seems to cling to the rebels.  Rieekan given to the OR or Mandos or something would not have been a problem in the least, but given to the Rebels, Rieekan is a damn near broken piece.  Overall, I think this game has done a fairly good job at keeping power creep low, but it is things like these that make it look as if Rob did not have a clear connect to the actual game play and what is needed or shouldn’t be made.

 

The good news is that we have a new creator named Peter.  The bad news is that he was given control over the D&D line, six months before they tanked it, but the good news is that the work he has done has impressed many of those who know his work.  Overall, his reviews are favorable.  He hasn’t really introduced himself to the online SWM community yet, but hopefully he will shortly.  May he be receptive to what we have to say.  It takes a year to turn out a set for this game, so I don’t know that he has had any influence in the game yet, but the set we get before April might have some of his touch, while anything after will be all his.  Here is hoping that both Sarah and Rob’s replacements will be good for the game and the community.

 

Still with me? LOL, this should be about it.  I guess my final thought is this.  Star Wars minis seem to be at a crossroads of sorts.  It is a middle-aged game that has been going for 5 years, give or take, and 13 sets plus theme packs.  There are problems in SWM to be sure, but it is still a good, strong game; However, we have lost a couple very good people at the top of the corporate ladder, and the game license is coming due shortly.  While Hasbro (WotC parent company and lead chain puller) has just expanded their Star Wars license by another few years, that doesn’t mean that this game will be protected.  Then again, the new people could take this game in a new and better direction.  Right now we just do not know.  It seems like its about this time frame where a game either proves it has the mettle to keep going (Magic, Yugioh, or Pokemon) or withers and dies.  I can promise you this, though.  It will be determined in large part by us buying the game and running events and whether or not we decide to give up on it.  Our game has been seen as a game that sells itself, so it never gets the corporate attention that we feel it deserves.  The best parts of SWM have all been fan based, from Gencon to local events and new characters that Rob has made specifically because we asked for them.  Only time will tell.

 

As usual if anyone has any questions or comments, feel free to email me at Sithdragon13@yahoo.com and I will answer them by email or with the next Ask the Dragon article.