Official Balance Committee Rulings for (2022) competitive tournament play.

Simple Version
• Diplomats do not score gambit.
• You cannot “stack” Save modifiers.
• You cannot “stack” Reinforcements.
• Blast Bug is halved to 10 damage.
• Characters without Hitpoints cannot protect Diplomats.
• Diplomats cannot block enemy movement.
• Rigged Detonators does not work on Attacks.
• All allies must be Hutt Cartel to benefit from Jabba DT’s CEs.
• Bib’s CE moves each character only once per phase.
• Daala remains banned for now.

Official Version
FLOOR RULES ADDENDUM:
Gambit: First sentence 622.2) is changed to: 2) Occupy the map center: TEN points are scored each round that a player ends a round with a model without Diplomat that costs TEN points or more within four squares of the center of the map; ignore low objects and walls when determining this area. *Note: (Characters with Aggressive Negotiations score gambit after losing Diplomat. That includes most all higher Cost AN characters and any granted "Diplomat" via A.N.)

Numbered Save Modifiers: A character may only benefit from one numbered save modifier via itself or its allies at a time. Choose a source prior to the Save roll. A character may only be affected by one numbered save modifier via enemy characters at a time. The enemy chooses the source. (e.g. Mettle still stacks with itself but you cannot Mettle with an Adorable Porg.)

Reinforcements (Do Not "Stack") During setup, after seeing your opponent's squad, you may only add characters via one chosen character’s Reinforcements Special Ability. (e.g. no lowering the Cost of both Lobot and Jabba and getting 40 points of reinforcements (only 20).

GLOSSARY CHANGES:
Blast Bug [Replaces Attacks, range 6: deal 10 damage to target enemy; this damage cannot be prevented]

Diplomat: If an enemy with a hitpoint rating and without Diplomat is in line of sight of the acting character, that character cannot target or attack an enemy with Diplomat, even one that is adjacent. If an enemy without Diplomat is in line of sight and the only adjacent enemy has Diplomat, no legal target is available. Characters with Diplomat do not block the movement of enemy characters.
*Note: (Characters without a Hit Point number/ratings do not count for the purposes of allies' Diplomat special ability. (E.g. Force Spirits, Holocrons, Holograms, Keeper of the Whills, etc.)
*Note: (Characters may move through enemies with Diplomat but still trigger Attacks of Opportunity.)

Rigged Detonators: Characters, enemies, and allies alike, who occupy a square in or adjacent to low objects automatically fail saves against this character’s Grenades, Mines, and Missiles special abilities.

CARD ERRATA:
Mira of Nar Shaddaa - Zam Wessel, Bounty Hunter
· Errata Rigged Detonators: [Characters in or adjacent to a square with low objects automatically fail saves against this character's Grenades, Mines, and Missiles special abilities]

Warrior Caste Subcommander
· Errata Blast Bug [Replaces Attacks, range 6: deal 10 damage to target enemy; this damage cannot be prevented]

Jabba Desilijic Tiure
· Errata: (remove “Fringe”) Commander Effect: If all allies are Hutt Cartel this character gains the following commander effects:

Bib Fortuna, Majordomo
· Errata: Commander Effect: If a Hutt Cartel ally doesn't move on its turn, a Medium or smaller Hutt Cartel ally adjacent to it can move up to its speed. Each character may only be moved once per phase via this effect.

TEMPORARY BAN:
Admiral Daala (Virtual Set 6 Command of the Galaxy #27) remains banned from competitive events. We will revisit this during the 2023 Balance Committee session.

We will continue to discuss and monitor issues with characters, gambit, and tournament scoring throughout the 2022 tournament season. – Balance Committee

Balance committee creep is a bigger problem than power creep at the moment IMO. Several of the issues addressed were not major enough to warrant another change not on the card to remember.

I understand and agree with weakening Jabba, and Bib to a lesser extent. The Diplomat/gambit change seems like overkill. I think using Diplomats to block movement was a legitimate part of the game, so I don't agree with that change either. Same with stacking save bonuses higher than +4 or lowering enemy saves. I don't see Blast Bugs as enough of a problem to warrant another nerf- and if they are, the original cost increase errata should be removed unless an errata card was released.

Overall, my biggest gripe is not about any of the individual changes but how many they are. It seems to me that the recent tendency of the committee has been to over-manage the game. I know that there have been people like TimmerB who have been asking for more changes and others who have been favourable, but I think the correct path to improve the experience of squadbuilding and playing is to keep these changes we have to remember as few as possible. It's not as big of an issue if most players check bloomilk for these kinds of things and are aware of them, but I can see this potentially causing bigger problems than it solves for NZ events where rules might be played very inconsistently.

I am very disappointed in these changes. I have spent countless hours trying to learn things and learning the meta and everything else that goes with trying to re-enter the game. These changes mess with all of that. Jabba was a powerhouse, Porgs were a powerhouse, diplomats were used well, etc. What was the data driven argument for these changes? I, as a player that puts in a lot of time trying to do the best I can, would like to know.

Listening to the first half of SHNN which I missed live, and this was brought up. Thought I should clarify- when I said remove the cost increase, I was referring only to the Subcommander who gives out Blast Bug. Removing the errata for the Domain Lah Warrior didn't cross my mind, which is why I didn't specify which one. Bryan is right when he says the Domain Lah Warrior is probably still undercosted in comparison to other Warriors.

Bryan also pointed out that I was advocating for another change here as well as complaining that the BC was making too many changes- I think this is a little different since on his card and even on bloomilk, the Subcommander has still been listed as cost 19 this whole time (at least on the card I've seen- I don't know if an errata card was printed). So I don't think it will be too hard to remember a simple revert to the initial cost.

My 2 cents:

* I'm fine with diplomats not scoring gambit. I didn't see a lot of it in tournaments but it seems to be a reasonable thing to risk a piece of some value, power, and vulnerability to gain gambit.

* I didn't see this abused. I'd be interested in seeing some examples of abuse. Personally, this change isn't a big deal to me either.

* Other than Lobot and Jabba, I never saw this work in tournaments, but it was fun back in the day to see how many you could get. If the Lobot and Jabba combo was that disruptive, I guess I'm ok with it. I'm a casual tournament player now and I thought my annoyance with Bib/Jabba squads was my own. Maybe not.

* I'm biased. I HATE Vong squads, so I like this. My only unbiased arguement for this change is that I think that Jedi should be the most powerful characters in this game, not a bunch of nonunique purple people eaters.

* Not a huge deal, but I'm fine with it. I'm assuming this means force ghosts and that Keeper of the Whils character.

* I disagree. Diplomats should do SOMETHING. Of course, since I prefer shooter squads I recognize this as personal bias in my dissention.

* Although I have loved using Mira since she won me a regional in New York in 2013, I think this ruling is spot on and I fully agree with it. Good job.

* I don't play enough tournaments to see how widespread this ability was abused. I could be swayed either way. I don't make these squads since I like Talon, so again I have bias.

* See immediately above.

* I see Daala in the same light as Vong... that nonunique combos shouldn't be more powerful than Jedi.


Overall, from from a former competitor and Balance Committee member to a now casual tournament player, I like the changes and applaud the Committee. I recognize that my current approach to the game gives me a bias that tournament players may not have and that their opinions are more useful than mine.

• You cannot “stack” Save modifiers.

• You cannot “stack” Reinforcements.

This is the biggest bunch of I don't get what you are talking about, that I have every seen!!

So stacking in these two instances is bad; +4 from RDE +4 and +2 from Porg = bad for the game.
Stacking NR/Rebel Reinforcements with Fringe Reinforcements = bad for the game

Because ??? IDK Potato I guess??

However stacking

Cunning Attack or Opportunist +4 Att +10 Dmg
Assassin +4 Att +10 Dmg
Talon or Jabba or Maul CE +4 Att +10 Dmg
Prideful +4 Att +10 Dmg = Play Ball?

Not to mention Gregarious, Merciless, Deadeye, Deceptive, Squad Assault/Firepower/Cover, Synergy and any other I may have missed.

And define "save modifier" So Beskar 6 can't get a boost? VCA 6/2? Advanced Shields? Mettle, if it generates from a save roll? If multiple characters have defender, does that work?

Because?? Yep Potato again?

So a non-Unique Nightsister that can be boosted to 20 Att and 40 Damage Twin, with a save Modifier, Can Attack Ani/Obi the, arguably, most Iconic and powerful duo in the Galaxy needing a 1 to hit and that is ok, but if Ani/Obi gets a boost on their save, it somehow warps the game?

I don't see it?

Again, the BALANCE team is about balance. It does not matter if people like something or not.
If that is the case just rename the committee and redefine its purpose.

None of these changes were actually needed as far as balance goes. (the only exception is possibly Jabba, but tbh I think Talzin is the most powerful of all).

So I will just take the balance team to mean "make changes that people complain about" team and I will be fine.


Here is a complaint. OLD REPUBLIC IS A VERY FUN FACTION WITH TONS OF FUN CHARACTERS, MAKE IT PLAYABLE.


Here is how to do that very easily. Lift the Rival for Bastila on Malak, Jedi General. Boom done. Old Republic is good to go.

to understand this correctly, is the not allowing stacking of reinforcements affecting reinforcement abilities of the same name from not stacking (aka 2 characters with Fringe Reinforcements 20)? or does it prevent you from stacking reinforcements from seperately named reinforcement abilities (aka NR reinforcements 20 + fringe reinforcements 20)

bumped for GenCon tomorrow.