Web of Webhead - Building the Squad

Building the Squad: Luke and Han as Stormtroopers…

Attacktix Series 3 brought us two of my favorite characters in the game, Luke and Hand disguised as Stormtroopers. These characters taken together are unique in the game, the only figures with effects, special powers, AND normal attacks. On top of that, their effects and specials do an extraordinary job of conveying the flavor of the characters…they are out to rescue the Princess, so as long as she is in play, they attack for free. Plus, once you crack their armor, they have a chance as coming back as their normal versions. Lets take a look at building a squad around these two characters…Using both Luke and Han as a starting point, we’ve tied up a total of 40 points already, but to really use them to their fullest, we need to pick a Princess Leia to go with them. Neither version of the Princess is well respected for her attacking power…and most would consider the newer, cheaper version to be the better of the two. Both have about a fifty percent chance of her special going off…and it’s an important distinction to make between the two. Keep in mind, both Luke and Han have Recruit powers to bring in alternate versions of themselves, so obviously, we’ll be stocking the Backups with the two of them. In my mind, this makes the Recruit version, though more expensive, the better choice. That would leave 30 points to work with. Now…let’s consider that we are getting two free attacks to start with, and Leia is a third attack. In my mind, it makes the most sense to have another launcher, as you’ll be able to attack with four figures a turn from turn one, every time. As luck would have it, launcher Chewbacca fills in the curve nicely, and adds a large missle to the mix. One quick point, keep in mind Chewbacca’s special only works if Han Solo is in play, not just any Han…so he only has a chance at recovering if you’ve already recruited Han Solo off of Has Disguised or Leia.

Speaking of recruiting, let’s look at our backup configuration. While the new starter “Force Blast” Luke is a legal target for recruiting, it’s clear we want both Luke and Han. Luckily, both have a 20 and 30 point version to choose from. We can eliminate the new Han (his Recruit Chewbacca power doesn’t help us any) and go with the original Han (whose Attackback for Chewbacca could serve us well), and this decision pushes us into the 20 point Luke, whose Attackback for Rebels would benefit anyone on the team as well. Let’s review:

Squad: Rescue the Princess 100 pts.

Luke as Stormtrooper (SW/28)3) x 1 = 20 pts.

Han Solo as Stormtrooper (SW/28)3) x 1 = 20 pts.

Princess Leia (SW/14)2) x 1 = 30 pts.

Chewbacca (SW/23)2) x 1 = 30 pts.

Backups: 50 pts.

Luke Skywalker (SW/29)2) x 1 = 20 pts.

Han Solo (SW/28)2) x 1 = 30 pts.

Playing the Squad:

The whole squad revolves around having four launcher attacks per turn…so use them. Let your opponents strikers come to you, and let Leia hang back a little, because she’s the key to your extra attacks. You’ll need to rely on your Specials to stretch your four man squad out to six, but chances are good you’ll get at least one of your backups into play in an average game. In particular, this squad should have a good chance against Jedi Knight swarm teams, as the raw number of attacks should give you a chance.

In the end, I’m sure you’ll enjoy playing this theme squad that ends up packing quite a punch.
- Brett