CHAS COMMENTARY ON LANTERN BATTLES
I predicted that I would narrowly lose my first game as Good, and win my second as Evil. That's what happened in the main, although the first game was much shorter than anticipated (or than the second game). But as usual, things did not go as expected! K. bet on me to win both games, but that did not happen. I'm sorry the photos did not come out, since we tried to take some very colorful and interesting ones, even taking more time than usual to take them. But we did get to use six out of the eight colored Lantern factions (or parts of them).
[BGame One:[/B]
In both games, I moved my two armies toward each other to meet on the central hill. In the first game this was accomplished. Figuring that TW would charge ahead, I planned to Violet Lantern his first advancing figure, but he got on the hill with OL Larfleeze, and hit me first. On one round he took out my VL (Uncommon). I was still able to gang up on him, but had to take out "my own VL" first, as he turned her into an Orange Construct (we used an orange Classic Fire Demon as proxy). However, because of multipe bad attack rolls, I took many more casualties than expected. When K.'s Arkillo flew up on the hilltop, it took almost everything I had left to deal with it, and soon Luthor came up as well.
I had an interesting time trying to manage all of the Green Constructs. I planned to use the Decoy for Kyle and the two Shields for Killowog. But the Decoy charged ahead to pin down two advancing units, and Kyle did not get a chance to protect it. One Shield did help out Killowog, the other was never materialized. The GLs went down much faster than anyone expected. I don't like to give up power battery tokens, but was ready to do it if a character was threatened with death. However, I never got the chance. Had I been able to carry out my plan of eliminating TW's first OL quickly as per Plan TW, things would have gone better, but it didn't happen.
In addition, the non C3G Blue Lantern (Barry Allen) synergized in a very interesting way with Star Sapphire (Carol Ferris). Using a BL OM to activate him, SS then sacrificed a power battery to go before him, but got to take a battery back thanks to another of his powers before using one up to do so! I did this several times, which should have taken out my targets faster, but I had some unlucky attack die luck, as stated. Still, it was lots of fun to try, and see the odd things that can happen when different designer's cards are juxtaposed!
I'll be trying out a double sized GL team for my next game to further learn about GL management!
Game Two:
Once again I planned to engage TW before K. could come up. This time, however, TW moved up his whole army together. His Captain Marvel engaged with all of the slow Black Lanterns before they could get to the hill. We finished him off finally, but it cost us many power batteries to do so. Then up came Booster Gold right away, and this time we barely managed to take him out. I was able to follow the double teaming plan against TW in that I was able to get one Dalek over to that flank to fire on BG and later TW's last Batman figure, who came right in after BG bought the farm. Only one Black Lantern made it up to the central hill, and eventually joined in the fight against K.
A3n, the Daleks designer (custom Dr. Who villains) said they were tough, and their enemy needed long range characters to beat them. Unfortunately for K. he had none. His Firefly flew over and got one, but the others took him out. Then K. was ambushing and pulling back with Deathstroke effectively.
However, having destroyed TW before K.'s army could come up, I was now free to use the Daleks plus the last Black Lantern to fight in the center against K., using both sets of order markers. This is my usual "wargamy" strategy when playing teams. Of course, when you're running both teams (Sherman Davies not being present that day), coordination is pretty easy to accomplish.
The Daleks shot down all of K.'s characters except Cyborg, while I had nothing left but a mauled Black Lantern and the Dalek Sec (leader). Since we had realized I was ahead on points remaining on the board, it had been looking good for me to win, but now it was close again. However, after the Black Lantern died and the final Tenth Round came up, we realized that not only was I still ahead on points, but my once a game escape power would allow me to evade Cyborg and survive for the win, at which point we called the game in my favor. But boy, it was much closer than we had expected.
Black Lanterns and Daleks; now that some scary Evilness on the table...
***
Later out at the local pub for dinner, we discussed team tactics among other things, and whether it made more sense to bore right in or wait for your partner to come up; each of my former adversaries advocating for a different tack. I suggested that both team mates had to take timing into account, since trying to coordinate with a partner is very different than either a one on one tournament game or a free for all.
(EDIT): Looking back on that second game, my weakness was that all my units were a slow Movement of 4 (except the head Black Lantern). But although I didn't get everyone together on the central hill this time, I did get to cross one Dalek over to deal with TWs assault by making a distance attack from the hilltop on that flank. Of course, its good to vary your tactics, so the enemy cannot just figure out what you're going to do all the time.
The next group game in about a week next Wednesday will be a free for all, with Taeblewalker Scape and the Heroes of Fiction. I've picked my team, but like to keep it secret while SD is still choosing, and K. still completing his...