Iron Curtain and Rogue Stars

Well due to being snowed in for a couple of days - the move of the gaming stuff to the study (games room) was completed (apart from the actual sorting out of stuff properly... Some things were just shoved of shelves and the table needs a rub down and paint, but that will have to wait until dryer weather so it can be done outside!). 

So I decided to do a little christening/trial run for the room and Steedo braved the elements to play a few games of Iron Curtain and Rogue Stars. 

Iron Curtain

This was the first play of this 2 player game, based on the Cold War. It is an area control game which you place cards and follow the actions on the card or gain influence (cubes). The cards are either flagged US or USSR and are continent based - but it's more subtle than that as the if you are the US player, USSR player (and vice versa) gets to play the action on the card before you can get the influence - so then your card placement involves minimising the benefits to your opponent.

The game is scored by moving a counter along a track until it reaches either the Soviet or US end - the game end when the counter reaches one end. Movement along this track can be from actions on cards or scored when a continent is completed or in the final scoring phase (which we only did in the final game). 

Pictures with early placements at the top - bottom left the Soviets (Steedo) winnings the Cold War - bottle right the first hands for the last game (I was the USSR and all 5 cards in my hand were US, Steedo had 4 Soviet cards!). 

Our games played fast, with Steedo winning the first as the USSR, me winning the second with a crushing US victory, before a tight (until the final scoring phase) last game win for the US (Steedo). 

This is a really good little game - thanks to DK for getting it!

To get my revenge we moved on to Rogue Stars. We have played this before (sometime last year - enjoyed it but found the damage rules a little odd, mainly due to us not playing them correctly as we found out this game). 

We used the same squads as we did in original the play through (mainly because they were already pointed out) - Steedo taking the Starship Troopers (militia) and myself with the Star Wars Bounty Hunters crew. Steedo took the tactical doctrine allowing 5 rerolls of missed ranged attacks and I took hard to kill - my squad could shake off 3 wounds. 

We made up a quick rescue/kidnap a downed pilot scenario - and went for it! Quickly discovering that reading the rules before a game would massively speed up play!

A few moves to get into position - after my leader face planted trying to run across difficult ground. Steedo got a critical hit on my marksman - we managed to do this combat incorrectly, as we put my marksman Out Of Action (OOA) - meaning that I had to take a morale check, and my Wookie ran away. 

Things were not looking good only 3 characters left versus Steedo's 5. But opening fire (and playing the rules properly I managed to PIN one of Steedo's troopers and put OOA his leader. This meant that he had to take morale checks, which he helpfully failed - no one ran away but he was accumulating PIN markers. Now PIN markers are a right pain if you get them as they are difficult to get rid of (a 20 on a morale check is needed), but each one is a deduction on shooting and a plus for you opponent when trying to take the initiative....

Top - Steedo's initial advance (my Wookie is still on the table -just). Bottom left - Steedo's leader down and him collecting PINNED markers - so without the red stress markers I had a +4 to steel the initiative (with the Stress markers it was +8 in that picture). Bottom right - my gunslinger putting Steedo's final trooper OOA after he had collected 11 or so PINNED markers from hits and failed morale checks. 

So a win to me!

I did enjoy the game - it plays small and with the understanding of the ranged combat rules with the addition of PINs a game where your squad can degrade quickly - Steedo felt that this could be a problem, but roll higher dice. We probably need a house rule on the number of PINs a character can take. Need to make mini character cards to keep markers off the table. 

There is an element of Role Playing with this game in home you can develop you squad. The Starship Troopers make excellent grunts/minions for an anonymous Corporation or Government. 

Anyway Steedo has borrowed the book to see he can make up a Squad from his Star Wars collection. 

Morts