Basic Strategy 101

Extinct is the Dodo

This is an outline of some basic strategies that can work well in the game play element of tournament competition. There is no one strategy that will win you all your games, every squad wins or loses differently in the context of game play. However there are some basic fundamentals that are true in most games played of SWM. Learning these concepts and manipulating them can be the key to victory.

Countering Tempo:

When playing against a squad running General Dodonna or San Hill you generally know that the squad is using them for tempo control. Another method for gaining tempo control is to just straight up outnumber the opposition. There a few main reasons someone runs tempo control in a squad.

The squad they are playing may run tempo control to help mitigate a low activation squad’s tempo disadvantage. In this case you want to go after General Dodonna as soon as you can safely do so. Chances are good in this scenario the other figs are heavy cost and hard to kill. Pick off the low hanging fruit. Be very careful doing this, don’t over expose yourself to their big guns in the process. Most players jealously protect their Dodo.

Another reason someone runs tempo control is to facilitate Opportunist attacks (Can anyone say IG-86 Assassin Droid?) or Swap mechanics (Grand Admiral Thrawn, Captain Panaka, or K-3PO.) In this scenario I find it best to pick off as many low cost figs as possible as soon as possible. Negate the tempo advantage by killing their Ugnaught Demolitionists and other low cost figs as fast as possible. If they don’t out activate you, say good bye to Opportunist and end of the round swaps that can create huge play advantages for Thrawn squads who also have Initiative Control.

In Summary if your opponent is running Tempo control he’s doing it for a reason. Stop the tempo control and break his synergy. Kill off as many (quantity, not quality) of his figs as possible early in the first 2 rounds. Those who strafe and the galloper of the game are very good in this role.

Some current metagame squads that use or rely on Tempo control are:

1. B&B Thrawn squads and variations on that theme
2. General Grievous, Droid Army Commander IG-86 opportunist squads
3. Han Solo, Smuggler Cannon Squads (this is the only one I might Kill Han before the other activations if possible.)

Door lock outs win games, not friends

If you are playing a squad with Override, and your opponent does not have any door control, on a lot of the maps, you should Win. Period. Now someone is screaming (aren’t they always?) that isn’t fun, or nice, or friendly. Indeed they are totally right. I don’t describe how to make friends and influence people, in fact I’m the last person you’d want to take advice on that from… Besides I think someone else already wrote that book. I want you to win games.

Using Door lockouts to your advantage can be tricky at times, and very rewarding. There are a great number of ways this can be done. I’ll give some quick examples, but be sure to think in terms of the concepts and not the examples so that you can apply them to any game instance, and be aware when your opponent is trying to apply them.

Any time Gambit reaches into a room that can be sealed off with a single door override, winning can be as simple as getting rid of their door control, gaining a minor points lead and locking yourself into a room with gambit to win.

Another great use for override is to take free shots at your opponent. Often you can put some damage on an opponent’s figures then simply lock a door preventing them from returning fire that round. Be aware if they have means to open doors nearby (an ugnaught within 6 squares, or shatter beam)

Gaming Gambit

In tournament competition Gambit is one of the most important factors of game play. Gambit was added to competition to prevent pure lock out strategies from being as effective. In order to be effective in tournaments gambit must always be in your head. You have to know the score, and the amount of time left in the game at all times. If you let this lapse you will find yourself losing close matchups, you could have won.

Gambit is scored by being within the gambit area of a map at the end of a complete round, after both players have activated all their figs. Each round, you accumulate a total of 5 points if you have any figs in this area. This gambit score is then added to the score you have reached by killing figs, to determine your total score. Know your total score at all times.

The final score at the end of regulation time for a match determines the winner. Don’t get stuck in the “kill em’ all” mentality that comes from playing non-timed casual games. In order to use gambit effectively you must practice with it in timed games.

Running away can win you a game if you have the score advantage near the end of time. Gaining the lead then protecting your figs is a great way to win matches where you might not be able to beat them in a straight up test of fire power. Someone is going to say that’s not fair or friendly again, you are probably beating them so learn to enjoy their whining. :)

Some great abilities for safely holding gambit are Stealth, Super stealth, Invisibility, Cloaked, Advantageous Cover, and Diplomat.

As always please give me any and all feedback that comes to mind. I’m very open to discussing ways to improve these and any other strategies. Just think if everyone gave me their 2 cents I’d be rich!

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