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Alliance and Empire Preview 2Trandoshan Mercenary and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Spirit | ||||||
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In May, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Star Wars saga, Wizards of the Coast is releasing Alliance and Empire, the next great set for the Star Wars Miniatures Game. Today, we'll continue our previews of the new minis with a look at the Trandoshan Mercenary and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Spirit. Trandoshan Mercenary
Trandoshan mercenaries are very common in almost any era, and they were particularly active during the Clone Wars. For example, Delta Squad (Republic Commandos Boss, Fixer, Scorch, and Sev) ran afoul of Trandoshan mercenaries that had captured the Prosecutor, an Acclamator-class assault ship, and later found them supporting Separatist operations on Kashyyyk. While most Trandoshan mercenaries have no trouble finding work, it's not uncommon to find some who turn to slaving as a means of supplementing their income. In the Star Wars Miniatures Game, the Trandoshan Mercenary is a relatively low-cost figure that is useful as "filler" to absorb attacks and provide activations. However, he's not a heavy hitter, and his role as a door-opener for more powerful characters is limited by the Mercenary ability, which restricts his movements. Still, the Trandoshan Mercenary is fairly effective against other low-cost pieces. Given its 20 hit points and Regeneration 10, your opponent has to divert a mid- to high-damage attack or multiple low-damage attacks to take out this character. Damage 10 isn't enough by itself, and if the Trandoshan Mercenary isn't defeated, he'll be back at full strength the next time he activates. Furthermore, since he has Damage 20, he can take out most low-cost figures in one hit. The combination of Double Claw Attack and Rend +10 is potent against mid-value pieces. However, the Trandoshan's restricted movement will prevent that combination from coming into play unless you set it up properly. Star Wars Miniatures Stat Card Preview Faction: Fringe Star Wars Roleplaying Game: Saga Edition Statistics
Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Spirit
"If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." With a mighty slash of his red blade, Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith, finally struck down his former master turned nemesis, Obi-Wan Kenobi. But suddenly, Kenobi completely disappeared, vanishing in the blink of an eye and the swing of a lightsaber. Was this some new Jedi trick? Did Vader's eyes deceive him? The Dark Lord poked disbelievingly at the master's clothing and lightsaber -- all that remained of the Jedi. What had Kenobi said about becoming more powerful than Vader could possibly imagine? There was much to consider -- later. First, the Rebels had to be dealt with, once Kenobi's friends were allowed to escape the Death Star. In the Star Wars Miniatures Game, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Spirit is truly a unique piece. It has no stats other than Cost and three abilities, and its Light Spirit ability dictates its use on the battle grid. As a Light Spirit, this piece ignores all terrain. It can't open doors, be damaged in any way, or provide cover. It doesn't count as a legal target. At the start of the game, you choose a Unique allied character with a Force rating. When Obi-Wan is within four squares, the selected character gains the special abilities Force Renewal 1 and Mettle. However, the Jedi Spirit is not invulnerable and can be defeated in two ways. One is to defeat the beneficiary of the Light Spirit ability. The other is to defeat the Spirit directly by spending a Force point expressly for this purpose while within six squares (replaces attacks), provided the Spirit fails a save of 11. With a speed of only 2, Obi-Wan will often lag behind the beneficiary of Light Spirit. Maneuvering is key when they engage enemy Force-users in melee combat. Bringing Obi-Wan into range for Light Spirit to be effective also brings him into range for the enemy to attempt to defeat him outright, assuming the foe has the Force points to spend. Star Wars Miniatures Game Stat Card Preview Faction: Rebel Star Wars Roleplaying Game: Saga Edition Statistics
About the AuthorsSterling Hershey is an architect and freelance game designer. He regularly creates Star Wars Miniatures and Starship Battles scenarios and previews for the Wizards of the Coast website. He also wrote the Scenario Book for the Attack on Endor Scenario Pack. Previously, he authored and contributed to many Star Wars The Roleplaying Game products from West End Games, as well as Star Wars Gamer Magazine. Gaming in a galaxy far, far away is the focus of his starwars.com blog, Delusions of Grandeur. Sterling lives in the Midwest with his wife, Mary. Gary M. Sarli is a freelance writer and editor whose credits include the Saga Edition Rulebook and Ultimate Adversaries (Star Wars Roleplaying Game), and Power of Faerūn and Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells (Dungeons & Dragons). He also moderates on the Wizards.COMmunity message boards as WizO the Hutt, cheerfully feeding Code of Conduct violators to the Sarlacc. Gary recently opened GMSarli Games, an online retailer specializing in non-random miniatures packs designed for the Star Wars Roleplaying Game. | ||||||
The reptilian Trandoshans are known for their great strength and warlike natures, so it's no surprise that many of them take up careers as bounty hunters or mercenaries. The physical traits of Trandoshans make them natural warriors. Their supersensitive eyes can see into the infrared spectrum, allowing nighttime operations without relying on equipment whose energy signature might be detected by enemy sensors. Their tough scales make them particularly resistant to attacks, and their natural ability to regenerate lost limbs ensures that they can avoid early retirement if a mission goes bad. Finally, their great strength makes them brutal in close quarters.
"Surely he must be dead by now."
