X Wing Large Player Game – Pilfering Lloyd’s Work

I do a yearly meet up with the friends I grew up with. We rent a bunkhouse which has two large tables. A good setting for boardgames and wargames. I decided to put together a large participation game. The needs of the game were:

• Anywhere from 2 to 12 players.
• No requirement to know the rules beforehand.
• Flexible enough to allow players to drop in and out.
• Expect it to last around 3 hours.

We’d played a large game of Wings of Glory before and that went well. X Wing is similar. I’d never really gone too far with the competitive side of X Wing but I thought the base game was simple and easy to teach.

With the announcement from AMG of the end of the game my mind turned back Lloyd and Killian’s Endor scenario. It looked like a lot of fun and had been at the back of my mind since I first saw it. I really wanted to play it.

https://www.beastsofwar.com/downloads/X-Wing-on-Endor-Scenario-Rules.pdf

Now was the time to see if I could find the bits I needed.

Much as I loved the dense tree terrain in the original scenario, I was going to have to transport this stuff. So I ordered some 2d mouse mat terrain for the trees. Packs down easily and doesn’t move on your table.

https://playmats.eu/neoprene-2d-terrain-set-forrest

I already have a Geek Villain fleece mat:

https://geekvillain.co.uk/collections/fleece-battlemats-6ft-x-4ft/products/wargaming-battle-mat-6×4-grassy-hill

Packs easily in a pretty small bag compared to a mouse mat tube. They can crease a little but I think they work well.

I 3d printed turrets from Syllogy:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/game/xx-10-turbo-laser-tower-for-star-wars-legion

I used resin for the gun barrels and FDM for the rest. I added magnets to the top turret to allow them to turn. Not really necessary but good for posing.

I made cannons of various heights for this and some other tables.

The shield generator was another 3d print using a file from ACE-36:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/game/shield-generator

The landing pad came from Imperial terrain:

https://imperialterrain.com/products/imperial-landing-pad-2-0-digital-stl-files

The bunker was a Cults3d download by Sablebadger:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/game/star-wars-legion-terrain-imperial-endor-bunkers

All printed using FDM.

I used resin to print AT ATs using this stl:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:215574

The pose was not very conducive to gluing the piece to a base. Only two feet had a good contact. Which is a shame as it looks great. The base was a simple rectangle printed in PLA and sized to fit the base image in the Endor scenario pdf.

I resin printed the AT STs as well. I got the file from here:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1239665

Same procedure to make the bases.

I’d been buying up old kits that came with an assortment of dials from all versions of X Wing. There were some differences. I found a script for use with SCAD to generate stls for X Wing dials. I decided to use the 1.0 rules, printed the dials I needed and painted the numerals.

The SCAD script can be found here:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1421725/files

SCAD has a C-like syntax which probably doesn’t look straightforward but it’s not too bad to change and create a dial. I used this to make movement dials for the AT ATs, AT STs and v1 dials for all ships.

My first run out with the scenario was a bit of an eye opener. I played a friend who had a good deal of X Wing experience. The tree mats hadn’t arrived so I just turned over some other mats I had.

The game was a pretty easy win for the rebels. I had a good round of shooting from an AT AT and some turrets that took out the entirety of the A Wing squadron. But that was it. I barely hurt the Y Wings and they only needed a couple of rounds launching torpedoes to finish the shield generator.

Some things I took away from the game.

• Loved the table. Even without the trees the miniatures and the scenery gave a really strong Star Wars vibe.
• I didn’t pay enough attention to the layout. Initially the Rebels were too far off. The Y Wings need to speed across the board but then reduce their stress in order to launch torpedoes.
• The corridors of trees were a bit restrictive. If you don’t have the full 4’ width of the table dog fighting becomes a bit constricted.
• Check the rules and don’t fire the primary and secondary weapons at once. The X Wings wrought havoc with their proton torpedoes and regular shots.
• Liked exploding crits on the turrets and the AT ATs.
• The Imperials seem undergunned. Two Y Wings can take out target in two rounds of shooting. AT AT and turret placement is key.

I needed to pay more attention to how the table was laid out. So here’re the steps I took.
First the rebels beginning position is the length of a range ruler.

From here I measured 3 x length 3 standard templates with ship base inbetween.

From here I used the range ruler to set up the distance to rebel targets. I staggered the Ion Cannon, Lambda Shuttle base and Shield Generator with a view to making the Ion Cannon the early target.

Next up I scattered some forest maps. They’re not as densely packed as before. They’re here to provide some cover for the AT STs and break up line of sight.

Next I placed turrets with a view to the front two having range to the rebels initially. This should allow the rebels a chance to get within their early range limits.

The second two are placed to cover the targets. If the rebels are in range to launch torpedoes the secondary turrets should be able to hit them.

The AT ATs and AT STs fill in between the turrets, layering shots.

The Imperial ships can be placed up to the line of the landing pad. I leave the players to decide how they want to set them up.

I’ll take a little diversion here to describe another scenario I tried – Dagobah Dave’s Trench Run. This was a take on the original trench run from the first movie. It seems Dagobah Dave inspired a few people with his original scenario. The version I used was a free download from Combat Zone scenery.

https://combatzone-scenery.co.uk/Trench-Run-scenario

I bought their trench run mat which was a much better idea than my original plan to print a 4×4 board. They also sell scenery if you can’t 3d print the bits you want.

Their scenario is good fun and had a lot more dog fighting than the Endor table. It uses a system where no more than 3 of the rebels can take runs at shooting the exhaust port. They need to roll a crit on two dice to make the shot. I guess the idea is the rebels will make 2-3 runs to make the shot. But there’s a chance they could fluke it in 1. The rest of the rebels can attempt to destroy power nodes around the map to push back the end of the game.

4×4 is a nicer size for a larger battle like this IMHO. This mission convinced me to open up the forest table. I went for Endor instead of this mainly because the trench run used more special characters and abilities. Endor was simpler. But this is still a very fun game and uses all the big characters from the original film.

I’d scheduled in another practise game but it got cancelled. So I had to settle on some changes now.

The plan was still to make it a game for up to 12 players. This time each side scores points. Not so strong narratively but it gives individual players small goals to aim at.

I’m adding in a couple more objectives for the rebels: an Ion Cannon and an Imperial Shuttle. Hopefully this will split them up a bit and add a bit more risk. I’ve also subbed in a second Tie Advanced for the Imperials.

The rebels now have 4 ways to score:

1, destroy the shield generator. 5pts

2, intercept and destroy an Imperial shuttle. Late rebel intel confirms a high ranking Imperial officer has taken refuge and is within his shuttle. 5pts

3, destroy the Ion Cannon. The Imperials have an Ion Cannon pumping shots into space. 2pts

4, destroy either Tie Advanced. 2pts each

The Imperials score like so:

1, destroy a rebel ship. 1pt

2, destroy a wave of rebel ships. 1pt (there are 4 waves of 3 ships each)

3, each round the Ion Cannon is active it fires a shot into space. Roll one attack dice. On any kind of hit they get a point.

On paper the Imperials can score more but frankly the Rebels dominated too much in the previous game. This is an incentive for the Rebels to take out the Ion Cannon quickly; dragging them away from the real targets. Also the Imperials struggled to kill much in my last practise session.

Some other tweaks included:

Rebels:

• Torpedoes fired on their initiative step, but didn’t hit until all primary weapons had been fired. This gave the turrets and ground units a chance to get their shots out.
• All the Rebels came in on turn 1. It was easier to manage.

Imperials

• One of the Tie Interceptors was switched to a Tie Advanced. Not the Lambda Shuttle guard.
• The Imperial reinforcements were just the two Tie Interceptors guarding the Lambda Shuttle.

The Table

• I made the woods less threatening. No line of sight through the trees. If your full base is in the woods, roll a red dice. On any kind of hit you take 1 damage.

This’ll be very swingy. Really wish I’d got another practise game in.

The first new objective for the Rebels. The Empire has an Ion Cannon that is pumping shots at the fleet in space and poitentially scoring them points. It’s not worth many points to the Rebels and is there to give them an awkward decision.

The Ion Cannon was another print, stl here:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4912958

Another objective for the Rebels. I couldn’t source the Lambda shuttle so I printed something. It’s a bit rough so I’d recommend you source your own print.

The plan for the shuttle is that it contains an important dignitary whose death will greatly benefit the Rebels. The shuttle remains on the landing pad till turn 4 when it will take off and make a run for it. The two escorts it has will engage the Rebels if they get within firing distance. This gives the Rebels another choice. The shuttle scores a lot of points if destroyed but attacking it allows it’s escort to enter the fight.

The weather on the weekend was blisteringly hot and the bunkhouse we stayed in warmed up uncomfortably. So my idea for the game to be something people could drop in and out of worked well.

It turned into a 6 player session with cameos. The game ran pretty smoothly over 5 hours though we all stopped for heat breaks.

We split the forces like so:

• Imperials had two players and split ships and land forces depending on their board side.
• Rebels had 4 players with each taking a wave.

The two wings of Y Wings went for the Ion Cannon and the Shield Generator. The X Wings made a bee line for the shuttle. The A Wings patrolled looking trying to protect the other wings.

Early Imperial land ordnance took out an X Wing and a Y Wing heading to the Ion Cannon.

The Ion Cannon lasted 4 rounds, scoring 2 points.

The AT ATs had powerful shots but lacked wide firing arcs. After the Rebel ships passed the AT ATs turned inwards to catch dogfighters.

The shuttle was easy meat in the end. The X Wings targeted it with proton torpedoes followed up by the A Wings. It didn’t last long.

The Imperial fight back started here. Rebel ships had been taking blows and now the coup de gras was applied. Between their forces the Imperials finished off three waves leaving just two Y Wings heading for the shield generator.

But the final Rebel player exposed the flaw in my scenario. Being able to cover his base in the woods allowed him to hop his ships toward the generator taking small hits without facing the larger barrage.

Also, the Tie Advanced ships had been tailing this wave of Y Wings but hadn’t engaged to a significant degree. The Y Wings finally broke cover and burst towards the Shield Generator.

The first two torpedoes did a lot of damage but another round was needed. The Imperial response was furious. One Y Wing destroyed but both got their final shots away. Dice rolled and … the Shield Generator was destroyed!

I really enjoyed playing the game and the excitement of the final roll. Technically the Imperials won on points but the Rebels won the moral victory. That needs work. But I like the points side of things. I’ll have to restore the original rules for flying in the forest.

I’d like to say a big thanks to Lloyd and Killian for all the ideas. Their first table was the inspiration for this project. Now it’s time to think of the game for next year.