Star Wars: Imperial Assault Review
Star Wars: Imperial Assault Review
The Star Wars universe has been the main theme of more than 50 board games, so finding a great adaptation is quite a challenge. Star Wars: Imperial Assault is not only one of the best performances of the theme, but also a great board game in itself!
In this review, we’ll take a look at why Imperial Assault is a game worth choosing, whether you’re a casual or a die-hard Star Wars fan! Read our full Star Wars: Imperial Assault review below.
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Star Wars: Imperial Assault Review (TL; DR)
Star Wars: Imperial Assault is a game for fans of board games who are fans of the Star Wars universe. It’s a pretty complicated game, so I don’t recommend it for complete beginners , but if you and your team understand the main concept of the game, you’ll be able to enjoy hours of intense Rebel vs Empire campaign and have direct confrontations with another player.
A brief overview of Star Wars: The Imperial Attack
Star Wars: The Imperial Attack occurs after the destruction of the Death Star, and the Galactic Empire attacks the rebel base in Yavin 4. To thwart the Empire’s efforts, the rebels send a team of elite operatives.
Imperial Assault is just up to a five-player game that can be described as an asymmetric strategy game with tactical combat.
The campaign sets one player up for a mighty galactic empire, and the rest form a team of rebel heroes. In clashes, two performances collide in a tactical battle.
Star Wars: Imperial Assault is a fairly complex game with lots of rules and mechanics to master. The missions of the campaign last up to two hours and are best experienced with five players, while the fights are shorter and aimed at two players .
Unpacking Star Wars: Imperial Assault
In the box you will find:
- 1 threat and 1 round dial
- 59 Map tiles
- 4-door tokens with plastic stands
- 34 numbers
- 11 Cubes
- 1 Rules Reference and 1 Handbook Learn to play
- 1 Campaign Guide and 1 Conflict Guide
- 6 heroic leaves
- Cards 287
- 1 initiative token
- 8 terminal tokens and 8 box tokens
- 15 condition tokens and 35 strain tokens
- 20 mission tokens, 4 activation tokens
- 20 ID tokens with 60 ID stickers
- 1 entry token
- 12 Ally and Villain chips
- 45 Damage Tokens
- 2 Skirmish Mission Cards
When you lift the lid of the box, you’ll quickly find that there’s a lot to read in Star Wars: Imperial Assault. You need to review a total of four books, all printed on glossy paper in large size and high quality. To get started, you should familiarize yourself with the Learn to Play manual and use the rest as needed.
Also, the box is very tall to accommodate a thick pile of map tiles and 34 numbers hidden under the box divider. 33 units and one 7-piece AT-ST add a lot of value to the game. Although they are made of softer plastic, they are very detailed and ready to paint.
All of the nearly 300 cards in Imperial Assault to the touch look and feel great. They are divided into a dozen categories and are available in mini, standard and large sizes. Strong colors and detailed illustrations are combined with readable text, even on smaller cards.
Pieces of cut cardboard are double-sided, and the map is made modularly to fit multiple mission layouts. The overall design of the components is quite impressive, both in terms of quality and quantity of content received. It’s not uncommon in this price range for the game not to include a mini , so it’s pleasantly surprising to see 34 in the officially licensed Star Wars game.
How to play Star Wars: Imperial Assault
If we review you through all the rules and scenarios, this review would be too long, so I will explain the main concepts that will introduce you to how the game is played.
Game setup
The best way to learn Imperial Assault is to play a training scenario prepared in the Learn to Play manual, but the same rules apply to each mission. To set up the game, assemble the board using the appropriate pieces of map and door.
Put the most experienced Imperial Assault player (or board game player in general) at the head of the Empire, and the rest will act as rebel heroes. Then divide the figures of heroes, leaves, cards and everything else according to the rules.
When turning
In Start Wars: Imperial Assault, heroes can move, attack, participate, rest, and use special abilities. Two actions of rebel heroes are followed by the activation of one Imperial deployment group. Once the Imperial player activates all units in the deployment group, the next rebel can perform his two actions.
Movement
Players can choose to move their hero (or imperial company) as one of their actions. Numbers can move diagonally, but they can’t get through obstacles. The range of movement is shown on the hero list or referral card. The movement can be divided into two phases and applied before and after the second phase.
Interact
Finding, inspecting, and opening doors are the most common ways characters interact with the environment. To interact with an object, it must be in the same room or in an adjacent room of the figure.
Robbery robbery boxes are reserved for heroes. Delivery cards benefit the hero, and a box token rewards players with credit at the end of the mission. The doors act as one-off barriers and can be opened by anyone. There are also special tokens, such as terminal tokens or missions with effects associated with the playback scenario.
Rest
Heroes can rest to recover from the tension or damage they suffered during the mission. Through abilities and excess movement, the heroes accumulate a load and suffer damage in combat. When the hero is at rest, subtract the number of strains from the hero's state of endurance - the excess is used to treat the damage.
fight
The fight is solved from the dice , with the heroes as the only figures who can attack twice during the same introduction. To fight the enemy, the player chooses his target and carries out the attack while the defender defends himself. Subtract the results of the defense from the results of the attack to get the amount of damage done.
Then to attack and defend the results you can also spin the wave to trigger abilities, avoid to cancel the result of overvoltage, avoid to avoid the whole attack, and check the accuracy of the weapon from a distance.
Attacks in close combat can be carried out if the target is next to the figure, while attacks from a distance require a field of vision and must be overturned for accuracy. The combat system is very simple and something you’ve certainly seen before, so don’t worry if you don’t fully understand it now.
Capabilities
Skills can be found on hero lists, classes and referral cards, and at mission briefings. They serve as a means of breaking the boundaries of standard mechanics and performing great feats. Some abilities require the heroes to suffer, and Imperial uses threat tokens to use them.
Tension abilities have already been mentioned as they are tied to combat, but some abilities can be used as special actions, but only once per activation.
End of mission
Missions have a clear set of goals that must be achieved by either side. As soon as one side fulfills its goal, the mission ends. The practice mission is unique, but the campaign will take players into a series of storytelling-driven scenarios.
Your first game Star Wars: Imperial Attack
Although Imperial Assault has four rules, you only need to read the Learn to Play guide to get started. The training mission is ideal to get used to the mechanics, and from there you can go into the whole campaign.
The campaign formula is very easy to follow. Once you solve the first task, you can buy new items, class cards and schedules to strengthen your heroes. Then select the next mission and repeat the cycle. The game ends when you play a top-notch script called “Finale”.
If you play Empire, remember that you can’t win a direct fight with rebels. Instead, look to your goals to see how you can get there without confronting the heroes outright. As a rebel, focus on targets as well as removing numbers when fights are auspicious.
Play the game as if a D&D session with an Imperial player as a DM. They have a lot of power over how the game goes, so it’s important that you’re in the right mindset to enjoy the game properly.
Advantages disadvantages
Advantages:
- Combat mechanics
- Action
- Rules
Let's start the professional section with the main aspect of the game - fighting. At first it may look like a regular dice system, but a modified Drop System and custom dice make any battle exciting and unpredictable. The system is easy to understand and after a few rolls you will get a few things.
The Star Wars license was not used as a marketing ploy - not only did the components reflect the theme of space, but the campaign as well. It’s well-crafted with a story that may not be the best, but it still feels like a Star Wars adventure.
Having four policies may seem like an obvious drawback, but let’s look at them from a different angle. Instead of combining everything into one book or worse, reducing the information, the designers of Fantasy Flight Games decided to separate their rules into separate segments.
Don't want to play fights? You don't need that book. Is the effects of the card being discussed? Read the reference manual. To start playing, you need to read about 10 pages of the book Learn to Play. When it's time for your campaign, you'll follow one page at a time in your campaign book.
Weaknesses:
- Balancing
- Progress of character
Not everyone will like the balanced campaign mode. Some missions clearly favor rebels, while others lean toward empire. This is acceptable to some extent, but a poor side mission can negatively affect rebels early on.
Star Wars: Imperial Assault is advancing, but the ways you can develop your hero are very limited. There are 8 predefined skills per person and that’s it. This is not a problem if you approach the game with the awareness that it is not a D&D or a classic RPG experience , but a more streamlined adventure .
Variations and extensions
Return to Hoth
Released in 2015, Return to Hoth focuses on defending the Hoth rebel base against the forces of the empire. The game has been expanded with new campaign content and clashes.
- Returning to Hoth is another major extension for Imperial Assault
- It represents a new feature-length campaign that will be created after ...
- Rules for four-player clashes and four new clash missions ...
Double shadows
The new mini-campaign has rebels searching for and helping Han Solo on Mos Eisley. This 2015 expansion also adds a new game of combat and two new heroes for the rebels, as well as for the heavy storms and Tuscan invaders for the empire.
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- DOUBLE SHADOWS: New dangers lurk in every shadow and darkened alley ...
Jabba's kingdom
Like other extensions, Jabba’s Realm is expanding the game with a new campaign, combat mode, as well as 16 new plastic figures. The kingdom of Jabba, set on Tatooine, will allow you to relive the iconic scenes from the return of the Jedi.
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Conclusion: a verdict?
Honestly, I’m not a big fan of the Star Wars universe. I loved the originals and I was one of the few who really enjoyed the prequels, but other than that, the universe didn’t interest me anymore.
This allowed me to focus more on the aspect of playing the game while letting my friends help me form an opinion on how well the theme was done. Star Wars: Imperial Assault succeeds on both fronts - as a board game and as a faithful adaptation of the Star Wars universe.
I can safely recommend Star Wars: Imperial Assault to any space lover created by George Lucas. I hope this review helped you decide whether to get Imperial Assault or not, and if you enjoyed it, check out other reviews and find more interesting games!
- WARS UNIVERSE EPIC AGREEMENT GAME: The ...
- STRATEGIC GAME: This game of tactical combat and missions gives you ...
- Enjoy two perfect games: experience an exciting story ...
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