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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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What are your thoughts on the newest maps from Christopher West?
I had just one play on Mining Colony Ground Floor but I really liked it. It played really well with a good balance of doors and hallways. None of the orbital docking station maps look promising nor the roof or sublevel. I didn't get a chance to play on the second floor yet.
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Rank: Advanced Bloo Milk Member Groups: Member
Joined: 10/17/2010 Posts: 3,682 Location: Beggers Canyon Tatooine
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looked better for scenarios/RPG's than skirmish. BTW..... anyone wanna buy my mystery map? $11 with free shipping
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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Definitely for the majority of the map pack (including both sides of the mystery map). Did you get to try the Ground Level or Upper Level? They look like the only ones with a chance for restricted. On my first look I didn't give Ground Level a chance but I liked it after playing on it. Jonny pointed out that they have three squares in the corners where you could put a commander and he could only be attacked by someone with Force Phase. Those would need to be ruled or errataed as illegal squares.
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Rank: Vornskr Groups: Member
Joined: 12/25/2009 Posts: 27
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there are also the special doors. I am guessing these were looked at before hand? is there a reason why Chris doesn't make small changes so they can be RPG and Minis maps. I am not trying to be rude but it doesn't make sense not to play both sides. To be honest I didnt buy the maps because in my mind they are only RPG maps. I don't really play star wars RPG in person anymore.
@TJ its jonny
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Rank: Advanced Bloo Milk Member Groups: Member
Joined: 6/17/2009 Posts: 489
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Have you asked him? I assume he will tell you why he designed it the way he did. I don't know, so this is just a blind ass guess. I don't think the SWM community is Chris's biggest clients. Maybe I am wrong. So maybe he designs it to suit the needs of the majority of the people that buy his stuff.
I have all the new maps, but have not had a chance to look at them yet.
I was talking with him about one and he had made a cool shooting line but somebody told him it wouldn't work because of how beveled corners work when they meet corner to corner.
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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I spoke to Chris about it. The special doors (red squares) were designed to be doors that could not be opened normally. They could only be opened with a special ability (e.g. Satchel Charge/Override). That's not a rule that is likely to be adopted, though, so they are just normal doors for our purposes. (He also has 'double doors' on some maps. Two doors along the same edge that can be affected separately. Those are treated as a single door for normal skirmishes.)
The beveled corner ruling is one of the most confusing rules in the game, and it predates my entry into the game. The only thing a beveled corner does is allow diagonal movement across it. Other than that, it's treated as if the lines go all the way to the corner, which means you can't get a line of sight past the beveled corner. And if you have two beveled corners coming together at a point from opposite directions, you can move past them but you don't even have adjacency between those two squares. On Mining Colony Sublevel, there are a couple of squares near the center (but not in gambit) that you only get to through opposing beveled corners like that. Consequently, a character on one of those 2 squares cannot be attacked at all. I guess you would count distance to the square, though, so Force Repulse or something like that would get him.
I'd be all for changing the rules on beveled corners to make more sense, but I think I heard they were already changed before. Maybe ruling it another way makes it even weirder for some reason I'm not seeing. (?) In any case, those two squares make it really hard to consider Sublevel for the Restricted list while beveled corners work like this. (The Teth Monastery wouldn't really be considered for Restricted anyway, but there are a couple squares like this on that map, too.)
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Rank: Advanced Bloo Milk Member Groups: Member
Joined: 1/5/2009 Posts: 2,240 Location: Akron Ohio, just south of dantooine.
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leshippy wrote:Have you asked him? I assume he will tell you why he designed it the way he did. I don't know, so this is just a blind ass guess. I don't think the SWM community is Chris's biggest clients. Maybe I am wrong. So maybe he designs it to suit the needs of the majority of the people that buy his stuff.
I have all the new maps, but have not had a chance to look at them yet.
I was talking with him about one and he had made a cool shooting line but somebody told him it wouldn't work because of how beveled corners work when they meet corner to corner.
Had a target lined up with those corners. Then realized couldn't do it.
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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On SHNN, Jim mentioned that he liked a couple maps for the Restricted lists. Which ones?
I got a 2nd play on Ground Floor and I still like it a lot. But it still has those 3 squares at each corner.
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Rank: Advanced Bloo Milk Member Groups: Member
Joined: 1/5/2009 Posts: 2,240 Location: Akron Ohio, just south of dantooine.
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Is another set of 4 maps coming out? There is a reference to another side of the mining facility. Looks to be great for role-playing.
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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I didn't hear about the Mining Facility, but I did hear about another level of the Orbital Docking Station. I don't know if I read that somewhere or if Chris mentioned it when I visited his booth, but it's in the works. Can't say for sure that it will see the light of day any time soon, though. He posted the sketches for the Orbital Docking Station probably 3 years ago.
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Rank: Advanced Bloo Milk Member Groups: Member
Joined: 2/19/2009 Posts: 286
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Did these get mailed yet
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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I picked mine up at GenCon, but according to his facebook page he was mailing the others out as soon as he got home. If you kickstarted it, you should have it by now.
(Facebook is also where Chris mentioned another level of the orbital docking facility. To be coming out eventually...
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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Looks like I was wrong about that. According to the latest update, he's still in the process of mailing them out and plans to finish them by the end of the month.
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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Any other thoughts about Distant Outpost maps?
Without errata that rules the corners are invalid squares, I don't think any of the mining colony maps are viable. With that errata, I like Mining Colony - Ground Level for the Restricted List. Some of the others might be viable, but that one is my favorite.
From the Orbital Docking Station, I'm not sure that I'd vote for any of them for the Restricted List, but of all of them the Administration Quadrant looks like the best bet.
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Rank: Moderator Groups: Member
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Joined: 5/26/2009 Posts: 8,428
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Summary on these maps is pretty short.
Orbital Docking Station: None of these maps have enough approaches and enough protection in gambit for the Restricted List. Administration Quadrant comes closest, with more protection and with 3 approaches. But the 3 approaches are far apart, so you'd probably only ever use the one anyway.
Mining Colony: Roof - Not enough doors. Mining Colony: Sublevel - Two unattackable squares near gambit will confuse everyone. Out.
Mining Colony: Ground Level - LOVE this map (so far). But 3 squares in each corner are 'legal' and untouchable. Needs errata or a ruling to be considered for Restricted list.
Mining Colony: Upper Level - Can't believe I just noticed this. On this map, the 3 squares in each corner are of course *pits*. So you can't go there anyway! Those squares kind of disqualify Ground Level, but this map is still viable. I really like this map - not as much as Ground Floor, but I do like it. Everyone play on this map this week. I think it could be a contender for the Restricted List.
I was hoping The Vault could be printed in time for Regionals, but that isn't going to happen. If a majority thinks Mining Colony: Upper Level is good, though, it looks like the only chance to get anything new into the Restricted List this year.
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