As many of you probably know, I wrote a ton of official scenarios for the Star Wars Miniatures game during its run. Scenarios are a different way of playing the game, and creating them demands a lot of attention to play and squad balance. Large scale scenrios were difficult to do, as they required a lot more time to test and many more pieces than the casual fan might have. Some were successful as multiple scenarios at built on each other. As such, I wasn't ever able to create and test a large scale battle.
With the KC Game Fair approaching, I decided to finally run a big battle. But what to do? Well before the Star Wars Minis days, I played in a Battle of Endor game at GenCon years ago. That one had a ton of players, but individual balance was a problem - my few pieces were ambushed by ewoks and wiped out with a lucky hit very early, leaving me with little to do but watch the battle. Eventually, they gave me some reinforcements, but I mostly remember standing around waiting to get to do something. I did receive a metal Bantha WEG mini as a prize for patience. Yoda would be proud.
Hoth is the obvious choice, given that the minis game covers the Hoth battle well, with the walkers, turrets and troops. As such, it is also by far the most common...actaully, I can't think of a large scale battle I've seen that wasn't Hoth. I observed part of one of these games a few years ago at GenCon, where minis designer Rob Watkins was a player. I didn't have time to play that or any of the others I've run across since. Another problem with Hoth is that, like every minis player, I'm limited by the pieces I own. It demands a scale I can't quite achieve without it looking like Hoth Light. Yes, it's mostly the lack of AT-ATs. Even so, Hoth has been done a lot, and I'd rather try something else.
I also wanted to provide some new minis content for this site. I generally don't have the time to work new scenarios right now, so I'm combining several ideas into one event:
Assault on Intran
There are two parts to this event. The main part is the large scale battle for 8 players at KC Game Fair. However, prior to the convention, people may participate in the Brak Sector Skirmishes at their own homes or stores, and send the results to me. Those results will influence aspects of the battle, which will be announced prior to play or revealed during the battle, depending on the result.
You can find more information on both parts here.
The Skirmishes have been available for a few weeks, and I've received some reports. If you want to participate, I'll need the results by November 1. The KC Game Fair runs November 4-7, and the actual Assault on Intran game will be on November 7, 2010.
Sometime after the event (days or weeks, hopefully), I plan to make the rules and setup I used available for free here on the site.
So remember, if you want to participate, get the results to me by November 1. Good luck.