Heavy Defence: Ty'Gokor Orbital Platform - The Official Starships Collection Special Issue

For some reason in my head I had it that Ty'Gokor was this station and not the planet beneath it.

But after a few decades the penny finally dropped when I got hold of this, the final platform to be released from the now defunct Eaglemoss Starships Collection.

Featured in the fifth season Deep Space Nine opener Apocalypse Rising, the platform acted as one of the defensive measures around what was announced as the most heavily protected piece of the Klingon Empire. 

The site for the presentation of the Order of the Bat'leth, Ty'Gokor's orbital platforms were a rare chance for viewers to see anything resembling a space station borne from the Klingons. While the Federation versions were high tech and clean-lined, there's something loveable about the harsher, grubbier construction here.

Probably the most striking parts of the platform are the four docking arms. All identical in structure, we actually only ever saw the top three because the fourth was hiding the structural arm to hold the model in shot for the camera.

But anyway, the finish imbues that traditional green/brown Klingon colour scheme which unusually here includes some form of aztecing which is most out of place on anything from this part of the galaxy. It does appear to have scorch markings around those docking bay openings although the interiors remain blank and the level of physical detail is a bit hit and miss. The edges of the panels and feature points all seem to be rounded off and smoothed across the upper and lower surfaces while the openings are a little jagged in places.

Each docking port also carries the instantly recognisable Klingon insignia but that can't draw away from the fact that some of the girder detail is completely lost in it transfer from the screen to the model. Most notably this is in the "baffle" structures either side of the docking ports that should not technically exist.

Tracing the arms back to the central structure, there is again a mixed level of detailing with some less than perfect seams. The alignment of the plastic is less than perfect and the masts on the top of the station seem to have chosen their own angles to point at - in some cases anything other than directly up. To be honest that entire antenna assembly is nothing as it appeared on the original model and this is dramatically backed up once you open the magazine. The CG on the cover is, in regards to this piece, also wholly inaccurate and "distracts" from the truth that it's nowhere near realistic. 

Traversing the structure only highlights more of the inaccuracies between this and the studio  model. While the triangle-forming supporting arms are fairly well implemented, the scaffolding-like structures around the platform's central core are only there thanks to some raised bumps on the surface of the plastic. It's very impressionist when you start looking and disappointing at worst.

But, the central, grilled element of the station is pretty spot on. The lattice is clean in its execution with a decent depth between each of the slats. The lower docking port which sit parallel to the grilled area again shares a lot of the issues of its three higher relatives - blocked scaffold piping, slim detailing, however the worst offence comes around the other side where it's noticeable that the two vertical sections are not quite lined up, leaving the panelling and the horizontal curved grille just out. What you also spot by this point is the near total lack f any metal components in the platform. All the way down to this point we've seen plastic alone and it's only when  we descend below the final docking port to the last piece of the core that we get that distinct cold touch.

Where? Right at the very bottom. In fact it's more or less just a weight to balance the structure and plug the hole in the base. Detail again is middling at best with some nice surface embossing and a few raised panel points. Problem is that everything here seems very indistinct given the strength of its features in the (errored) CG and also the model photographs. I would have expected that the scale would have allowed for some freedom but the more industrial nature of the Klingon orbital platform has worked against it.

Having so many pipe-like elements on the exterior of the model turns this from a very interesting structure into something much more blocky and average. Stick this alongside Spacedock or Regula One and they will easily blow it away. This is tragically an example where the final, original piece is just too much to be scaled precisely for the cost and size of these specials. To (literally) cap it all off the antenae at the base of the station are just as wayward as the ones at the top.

Stand fit is good and stable thanks to that metal base weight if nothing else with a unique clear plastic element to slot it all into above that familiar black stand. It does give that nice "floating" effect but doesn't make up for the other issues we've discussed here.

The magazine is pretty good and while the CG isn't 100% accurate it does offer a much better and more highly detailed render of the orbital platform. Passing through the details over the purpose of the platforms as well as details of the fifth season opener, the article is augmented with images from Apocalypse Rising as well as plan views of the station. Designing the unit only maxes out two pages of which over 50% is pictures - and not all of it of the item itself sadly. Then there's seven pages dedicated to episodes where crew have been disguised/altered into other races from the franchise. All in all that last piece is a bit underwhelming although you can see how they tied it in with the Klingon disguises given to Sisko, Odo and O'Brien to infiltrate Ty'Gokor.

As the very last (to date) special produced and shipped, Ty'Gokor leaves me a little cold. It's not the spectacular piece it could be however it is nice to have something more unusual recreated as part of the series. Tragedy is that this could have been sacrificed so we could have had the Caretaker array but alas that one may never see our shores.

This is one for the Klingon fans without doubt and would ideally go in the middle of that Empire display. For me though it's not one I'll be wanting out all too often but does help to complete this incomplete collection.

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STO Issue 16: AFS Khitomer

With only a slender few issues left in its sadly limited run, the Online Collection is pulling in some excellent editions to round out 20 volumes.

Issue 16 (apologies but the Enterprise-F refit was out of stock so this will be updated with that shortly) is the AFC Khitomer. Aptly named after the location of the infamous peace conference, the first starship to be designed jointly by the Klingons and Federation is a fairly recent addition to the game.

A slender design, the Khitomer attempts to meld two design strands together and does manage to pull it off. The front is very Federation and the back is very distinctly Klingon. But we're here to check out the model rather than offer opinions on the in game creation, more how does HeroCollector handle it.

Honestly, it could do with being bigger and would look stunning as an XL - which they also need to do with the Enterprise-F. Just as with the Excelsior and Enterprise-B, the length versus the box space on this one works completely against it with the ship seemingly squashed into a size that doesn't befit it. 

Windows are mere tiny blobs and barely recognisable out on that scythe edge to the front of the saucer and the distinct blue and yellow panelling seems totally lost on such a small canvas. Even the CSN-01 registry looks crunched up on the small primary hull. 

That's not saying that HeroCollector haven't done all they can here because it is still as STO accurate as possible with that unusual brown edging running the whole way round the Khitomer's leading edge. The mix of colours here is interesting too with that as noted brown linking in with the more typical white base of Starfleet to give an unusual starship look. 

Even in its small diecast form, the Khitomer still smells Klingon with that long neck assembly, replete with bridge-style module nestled on the top and those classic low slung dagger-like nacelles which almost look stolen from Discovery. The forked upper assembly is another distinct Klingon assembly and beautifully brings the combined strengths of the two formidable powers together in one shape. 

However, it still feels a bit crinkly. The mottled, pixelled paint job does convey the online nature of the ship nicely but there is still a lot going on. Some of the yellow striping is arrow straight while the curves are slightly wobbly and uneven. Lifeboat hatches and other miscellaneous decals are just too damn small to really take in with the undulating surface of the hull not helping their placement either top or bottom. 

Most of the best paint and decal work here is towards the rear of the Khitomer. The impulse blocks, warp grilles and markings around that winged section are quite precise with the bussard collectors standing out on the engines. Indeed, it's not that bad a result but as I've looked over her more, it's that primary hull/saucer that doesn't seem to be totally up to scratch on this one and mainly on the top. Underneath the detailing is nice and clean with a decent level of decalling that doesn't overcrowd the surface with a flatter finish for the hatches and ship registry. Even the more curved and circular features here are under better control and just sit right. There is a section of brown paint missing (?) from the edge of the primary hull (see pic on the left side) and continuing on, it seems to flake in and out at several points with a distinct white line in some places.

Under a bit more inspection, the ventral side of the Khitomer is it's best. The blocking is conspicuously better although still not perfect. There is some feathering towards the prongs of the back upper unit which again bugs me a little but it's a step up from the other side.

I cannot emphasise how much this really, really needs to be made into an XL. I think STO fans would go mad for it (and the F) if it were in a bigger scale because this just doesn't work. That's a big shame because I can see a lot of game fans looking forward to this one and coming out relatively disappointed because of the finish. There's nothing to quibble on when it comes to the actually build materials and construction, just how it's wrapped up.

Into the issue 16 magazine and we have an overview of the in-universe story behind the abilities of the AFS Khitomer as well as its journey to creation. This is followed with the real world story of its design and build which details how the team behind STO worked to combine elements of the two distinct cultures into the one vessel. Wisely we then complete the issue with ship stats from the game plus a briefing on the nature and history of the alliance between the Klingons and Federation as seen in the late 24th and early 25th Centuries.

The magazine this time rounds out the ship nicely and it feels as though this is a complete Khitomer package with all elements clearly interlinked and related to the featured vessel. As a bundle, great, but when it comes to some of the touches on the starship model itself there is room for improvement.

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You can find out more on the Star Trek Online Official Starships Collection by visiting the Hero Collector website HERE

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Attack Wing: Romulan IRW Haakona, Breen Gor Portas, Klingon IKS Somraw

Another month and thanks to a find via Australia, the Attack Wing collection continues to grow.

This time we're tackling the Klingons, Romulans and Breen with three older expansions. Our jump in point is the IKS Somraw seen in Enterprise and the only Raptor pack offered to date.

An 18 point ship, the model of the Raptor Clas ship is well detailed for its size with clear panelling and an oddly light finish which makes it look a little bleached. I would have hoped for something a bit darker green however the accented red stripes and darker feature blocks do provide good definition. There's some artistic licence here but let's dive into the real meat of the pack.

The Somraw's three point attack is well worthy of the low cost although don't expect much more for your money with one defence point, three Hull and two Shields. As for standard Actions, you'll be piloting a ship without a Cloak or Sensor Echo feature. This one carries Evade, Target Lock and Scan alongside one Tech, one Weapon and one Crew upgrade slot. Fortunately this unusually light Klingon ship does allow you to convert up to two Battle Station results on a Defence roll into Evades. Note that the ship itself only has a single die for Defence meaning you'll be relying on finding a suitable upgrade option to help you out as much as possible.

The generic version loses the Crew upgrade slot as well as a Shield and the Unique Action for 16 points. As for movement, the Somraw maxes out at speed four with full bank and hard turns at speeds two and three. Speed one allows for banking and none of the standard moves aside from the speed three hard about (180 turn) come with the red warning of an Auxiliary Power Token, making this fairly manoeuvrable.

Along with a generic captain there's Somraw Commander who rides in with a Captain Skill of five at a cost of three points. His long range attack is a blessing which keeps his ship out of trouble and allows for maximum damage as if attacking at range one. He adds a further die to your strike at the cost of an Auxiliary Power Token. This can only be used if one of said tokens is not already in play on the ship. 

The sole Weapon addition is the standard Photon Torpedoes (three point cost) card providing fire fore and aft at ranges two and three. As with the earlier sets it comes with the Disable feature once Target Lock has been utilised and one Battle Station result can be converted over to Critical Damage. 

Surprisingly there's only one Crew upgrade card in here with Bu'Kah. Costing four points you can ditch her off to repair two Hull points as long as you've performed a Green Maneuver. A large cost but one that will extend your ship's life in the game.

Tactical Sensors is the higher priced Tech upgrade (four points) which can be disabled to place a Scan and a Battle Station token besides your Raptor (and only a Raptor). Certainly one to up the defensive capabilities of the Somraw it'll work well in conjunction with the ship's own inbuilt Unique Ability to convert a Battle Station to an Evade if necessary.

The less expensive Shockwave for two points is a discard that would get you out of a sticky situation to perform a speed one reverse  instead of your chosen move. A good one if you have a high captain skill and can see where you may want to get out of danger rather than plunging further in. Good tosee this one isn't limited to use on the Somraw or a Raptor.

Last up for upgrades is the Elite Action, Klingon Honor. Tragically using the explosion from The Undiscovered Country as its backdrop, the five point price is worth it for the reusable nature of the text. Disabling the card adds one Attack die to your roll as well as converting a Damage into a Critical Damage. Sounds good - but the price on the other side is the loss of all defensive capability for the round which then aligns with the picture - it's a suicide tactic that makes sure you go out in a blaze of Klingon glory. Expensive but one fun way to end your appearance on the table!

The Somraw's mission is Escape the Gas Giant and sees a Federation player taking on the Klingons with 80 points apiece. Moving near the Gas Giant (represented by the large planet token) will incur additional damage as the two sides fight it out and even at range three there's still some effect on players' ships. Ultimately the goal is to escape with at least one ship in tact after defeating your opponent while enduring the stresses of the star. A cool twist on the standard two player game but nothing super exciting here.

Only my second D'Deridex Warbird, the IRW Haakona seems to hold some form of legendary status within the Attack Wing fold. A 30 point starship, the model is a repeat from the Starter Set although it would take 12 waves before reappearing. While the three point Attack and two point Defence are nothing to write home about especially if you compare to the Somraw above, the Warbird rocks it out on Hull and Shields with six and four points respectively. She might not be a hard hitter but the Haakona may take a while to take down. She also packs in three Crew and two Weapon slots plus a standard set (for Romulans) of Evade, Target Lock, Cloak and Sensor Echo. A large fleet is also super-beneficial as the Haakona gains an additional Primary Weapon die for every additional Romulan ship in your fleet when attacking cloaked. There's an upper limit of four but for a faction pure game she's a massive advantage.

The generic D'Deridex is reduced by a Shield, one Crew slot and the Unique Action to cost 28 points - but it severely loses the attraction over the hefty onslaught of the Haakona. Compared to the Somraw, it's exactly as manoeuvrable but instead of a speed three come about there's a speed one reverse that will incur an Auxiliary Power Token. High Weapons and good to move - what else could you want?

There are three skilled Captain options in here too with Mendak (six point cost), Taris (four points) and Centurion (two points) all adding something to the mix. With a skill of six, Mendak also offers an Elite Action slot. He targets a friendly ship at a maximum of range two and then can place a Battle Station onto it as long as one isn't already in place, nor can the target ship use that Action this turn. Taris might be more useful with a lower skill of five but costing the same. She allows you to discard a Crew upgrade from your ship to declare a target outside your forward firing arc. No need for Target Lock or torpedoes here which is a benefit and easily reusable as long as you have a number of Crew. Centurion is skilled to two and allows players to re-roll one Battle Station result. Fairly decent card here at low price  that might offer a better hit ratio.

There are three Crew card options in here with Romulan Security Officer upping your Captain skill by one point dependent on how many of this card are equipped to your ship up to a maximum of four. There are three in the pack which reduces your options with the Haakona since there are the same number of cards in total regardless of duplicates.

Romulan Security Officer can also be disabled to re-roll a blank result during defending so it has decent dual use in the game for its two point cost.

Romulan Helmsman can be disabled if you play a Red Maneuver to treat it as though it's a White Maneuver for two points. Finally there's Romulan Sub Lieutenant who costs four points. 

His ability is somewhat more complex. Discarding the card targets a ship at a maximum of range two and if that vessel has a Hull value of six or more then it has to disable two active Shields. If the Shield value is less than six it only disables one. This greatly reduces the number of hits required to take out an opponent and could ideally be comboed with something that would offer up a straight attack afterwards.

A trio of Weapons upgrades all have a cost of five points a piece. Disruptor Pulse hits with three Attack dice at a maximum of range two. Understandably a disabled card to complete the attack, every target in the forward firing arc and in range is hit with a separate three die shot. This is a powerful attack to have in one card and to be reusable is even better.

Plasma Torpedoes spend a Target Lock and hit with five Attack dice with any blank results rerolled. Operable from forward and reverse arcs, the torpedoes can hit at up to range two. Last up is Disruptor Beams which can have an effect from ranges one to three. Again a disabled card, it carries an increased possibility of damage. For every hit suffered another Attack die is rolled and if you roll at least one Damage or Critical Damage then the target receives another hit. The Haakona has a storming set of Weapon upgrades here that are essential to any self-respecting Romulan fleet.

Finally and with probably the longest script ever is Make Them See Us!. It's also very reliant on a very very specific set of circumstances and costs five points. In this case you need to remove a Target Lock from a ship you have already selected and be overlapping with either your own ship's base or manoeuvre template. Both ships take damage up to four hits determined equal to your speed in that manoeuvre. The captain with the higher Skill rolls the number of defence dice equal to the difference between the Captain Skill levels and deducts any evades from the result. 

Yes... it's a big one with a big hit reward but could backfire and cause you major issues. I'd say this is one of those last gasp moves to ensure you take something with you at the very end.

Based loosely around the episode of the same name, Contagion is the Haakona's special mission. Placing one Federation ship against a D'Deridex Warbird, the scenario sees the two ships attempting to download Iconian data while also tackling crippling malfunctions caused by orbiting probes. First they'll take down upgrades before hitting Shields and Hull so it's a race to recover the information - but there's a twist - because players will need to work together to remove the malfunctions from their ships and escape. This is a brilliant concept and very much foreshadows Alliance which has expanded on that co-op scenario. Definitely looking forward to trying this one out!

Last up and actually one of the very first expansions released is the Gor Portas. The lone Breen entry to the game, the ship is allocated to the Dominion meaning it'll be lining up with Cardassian and Jem'Hadar ships if you're staying faction pure.

Weighing in at 26 points, the Breen starship attacks with three dice, defends with two and has four Hull and four Shield points. Heavily armed, the Gor Portas offers four Weapon upgrade slots and just one Crew slot with standard Evade, Target Lock and Scan Actions. As for its Unique Action, the ship does need to have a Target Lock in play to fire torpedoes but you don't discard it once used. Not that's a bit nifty.

The model itself is quite impressive too with a black base coat accented with almost pink highlights to draw out the detail. Bit of a shame this was its only appearance in the game as a later wave could have redone the paintwork and offered some more Breen alternatives. Sadly we only have this one.

It's generic version loses a Shield, a Weapon slot and the Unique Action to cost 24 points. While it's well armed, the movement for the Gor Portas is a different matter. With red arrows on sharp three turns and the Come About, the ship is manoeuvrable at lower speeds which might make it seem like an easy, slow moving target until you get close. We'll come to it's Weapon abilities in a minute...!

Given the slots for upgrades, Thot Gor is your de facto Captain unless you're thinking of something radically different. With a Skill of six and a cost of four points, the Breen commander reduces the cost of each Weapon upgrade equipped by a point meaning you can take full advantage of those slots. Sar isn't too bad with a one point cost and a Skill of two. He also makes the generic version with no ability sort of redundant since he provides an extra defence die unconditionally.

What is bizarre with the Gor Portas is the lack of cards in the pack. Four Weapon slots is massive and there are just two upgrades with the Breen warship. One is the five point and very expected Photon Torpedoes which utilises Target Lock as standard with five Attack dice while Energy Dissipator provides damage but only at very close range.

A further disabling card, if the attack hits then the target ship receives one Energy Dampening Token and then you can immediately attack again with another Weapon. For the effects you then have to refer to the accompanying reference card which shows that the target ship loses Shields and cloak if applicable. Nor can it attack and during the subsequent Planning Phase it can't move and in the Activation Phase it then moves at speed one forward. Once all this is complete then the ship returns to its normal sequence of events. 

As it's a close range attack (one), this certainly means that any second or third bombardment onto the enemy ship is likely to incur some heavy damage. Only for Breen use, I'd be equipping this.

The only Crew upgrade in the set is Breen Aide who allows you to convert a blank Attack die roll into a Damage point as long as you have a Scan token in play. Not even needing to disable to use, this is only two points but adds a bit of kick to your attacks.

The Gor Portas mission is unusual in that it's a three player game rather than the standard two person set-up. The Breen have to manoeuvre by two Mission Tokens out in the field before heading to a third representing Cardassia Prime and therefore escape. 

This is The Fall Back to Cardassia Prime and "alliance" players are there to stop the Breen from getting to their safe haven. Both Federation alliance players have just 35 points while the Breen Battle Cruiser has slightly better odds with a 50 point payload.

I'm fairly pleased with the turnout on these three packs with the Haakona just beating the Gor Portas in my preferences here. The Breen ship is horribly light on upgrades and even the captains don't have Elite Action slots. The mission is nice but as a pack, the Warbird is an absolute storm of a set and highly powered. I didn't expect that to be the stronger pack but it does push me now towards the Vulcans, Dominion and Romulans as my top three factions of choice in the game.

Next up on Attack Wing
- the Dominion Faction Pack: Cardassian Union 

You can check out all our Attack Wing reviews over on the Gaming Section!

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wej Duj: Lower Decks S02 E09

After labelling last week's Lower Decks as a landmark I'll take a second breath in.

This one surpassed it.

The first episode ever to be titled in Klingon (even on screen), wej Duj marked another step outside of the bounds that confine regular series but can be easily accomplished through animation.

Instead of just isolating this week's story to a single spot, the Cerritos, Lower Decks has branched out to show us life on a Klingon vessel and a Vulcan science ship with spectacular results.

But wej Duj is much, much more clever than you initially give it credit because not only does it spike off into different tales but it also ties into established storylines from the series and make a heck of a lot of sense.

What this episode succeeds at doing is expanding the Lower Decks corner of the Star Trek universe. It feels as though the series has become more than just one ship. There's still that nudge and wink formula, the in jokes and action but this episode feels alive with growth and not an over reliance on the background easter eggs. I appreciated the story more, found that I connected with the characters and was more engrossed than before because the important points were kept to the front of the screen and I wasn't trying to focus massively on the backgrounds. This felt like a more rounded entry to the series and one where the main plot captured my attention from the start. Unusually I may have to go back and watch wej Duj a second time to pick up on all the hidden "nods" that I missed on first viewing.

The choice of characters aboard the Klingon and Vulcan ships help make this a top level episode. Aboard the Klingon Bird of Prey Che'Ta' we have aspiring captain Ma'ah who is given all the dog-awful (and I mean that sincerely) tasks on the ship; disposing of the old dead captain and walking the targ being just two. Over on the Vulcan Sh'Vaal, T'Lynn is stepping outside the bounds of logic and starting to do her own thing which is, frustratingly, illogical. 

The story on the Cerritos, focusing on Boimler attempting to find himself a senior officer best friend doesn't seem to be going anywhere however it's more important seeing how the other members of the lead Lower Decks quartet spend their time while waiting for the ship to reach its destination. Over the 12 hour trip T'Ana and Tendi go rock climbing, Rutherford joins Shaxs at a pottery class and Mariner puts in some mum time.  Note the chunk of references to Star Trek V in here - once again seems that McMahan and co really like to nod to that movie!

wej Duj works in not only broadening the vision of the series but also continuing the running Pakled story which seems to be an undercurrent of both seasons one and two. While not an overpowering element of the show it's interesting to see this pop up again and again.

What is also super successful is in the execution of the Vulcan and Klingon scenes. The animation and backgrounds aside, the practicalities aboard the two ships are just as you would hope and expect. Yes, there is a Lower Decks slant in terms of humour but the two craft run almost diametrically opposite to each other; order and chaos if you will; but with both somehow maintaining structure. 

Overall a good episode for the series with lots to get stuck into in terms of characters and stories. Both the lead Klingon (Ma'ah) and lead Vulcan (T'Lynn) thoroughly deserve to turn up again in future episodes and it might even be a suggestion to focus an episode on each of them and away from the Cerritos? 

Definitely a season highlight and one that didn't overindulge in fan service for the sake of it.  

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Blood Oath: Attack Wing's Klingon Faction Pack

Packing in a Negh’Var, two K’T'Inga and a B’Rel Class, the latest Klingon faction pack delivers a weighty punch.

With slight updates paint jobs, the four ships provide a full balanced fleet with a stack of new cards to provide that one stop shop to kick off a while faction in one go. As with the Federation’s To Boldly Go was more centred around the exploits of DS9, this set also latches on to the space station spin-off. This time it’s all about Blood Oath, the second season instalment that saw the return of the 3 TOS Klingons Kor, Koloth and Kang united on a quest for vengeance.

We’ll get to them in a second but as usual let’s examine those four ships and the cards that bring them into play. The obvious gripe that could be levelled against the pack is that there’s no Vor’Cha cruiser and seeing as there’s a new Negh’Var class it’s a valid point. Did we need more D7/K’T'Inga’s? Probably not but that might change when we take a look at what they’re toting. If you're looking for reviews of the ship models, check out the full set of Attack Wing expansions I've discussed HERE.

The IKS Devwl takes its name from Star Trek Online and is the pack’s clear capital ship. A 28 point cost is validated with 5 attack, 1 defence, 6 Hull and 3 shield points. Standard Actions of Evade, Target Lock as well as Cloak and Sensor Echo are available on all four craft here with the Devwl providing further upgrade slots to maximise its abilities. 

Players can add up to 3 Crew, 1 Weapon and 1 Tech card here and you’d be foolish not to boost those defensive capabilities. Disabling one of those Crew upgrades when attacking and Cloaked will stop you from decloaking and also gain a Battlestation token for the remainder of the round. 

The generic version costs 24 points losing the Unique Action, a Hull point and 1 Crew slot but that’s fair for the price. The IKS K’Tanco and IKS T’Acog both cost 21 points as K’T’Inga Class ships but each has a slightly different spin. Both operate a 4 attack, 1 defence, 4 Hull and 3 shield basic but the K’Tanco allows for 2 Crew and 2 Weapon upgrades while the T’Acog has 2 Crew, 1 Weapon and 1 Tech. Both are also very good contenders in your fleet with the K’Tanco allowing a free 4 point or less Tech upgrade to be equipped even if it exceeds restrictions while the T’Acog can perform a Sensor Echo as a free action even while cloaked. If it is cloaked it can Echo using a 3 move template rather than just a 1 or 2. These are insane Actions to have on such ships and do tempt me into using the Klingons more often!

Two generic versions cost 16 points losing the Unique Actions plus a shield with one offering each upgrade slot while the other has 2 Weapon and and 1 Crew space. 

Finally there’s the IKS Kos’Kari; the Albino’s Bird of Prey. Unusually it’s dual faction with players able to use it either as a Klingon or Independent and with a 16 point cost it’s an attractive proposition. Only dropping a Hull point versus the K’T’Inga's, the B’Rel class stands firm with 4 Attack, 1 defence, 3 Hull and 3 Shields. This ship genuinely excites me as it’s designed to be taking on bigger vessels. Her Unique Action offers two possibilities. There’s either to steal an Evade, Battle Station or Scan from the target ship (Hull of 4 or more) and put it on your own OR when attacking a Klingon ship or a ship with a Klingon captain you can add a damage point to your roll. While it is a well balanced and priced scout class, the Unique Action targeting one particular faction does make it less attractive but only slightly since the reworking of the cost system. 

With the 4 ships you get five Captain cards; the Dahar Masters Kor, Koloth and Kang (TOS and DS9 versions) and The Albino. Aside from TOS Kang, all of the captains skill up to 7 and cost 4 points to equip. 

Kor can have the Dahar Master Elite Action equipped for free and draws fire from enemy ships. Taking on an Auxiliary Power Token, Kor’s ship then takes on all the red Target Locks from friendly craft. Koloth allows his ship to perform a speed of 2 as an extra manoeuvre if he’s within range 2 of an opposing ship. Kang targets a specific opposing captain and if an attack is launched on that individual then he can be discarded to add to extra Critical Damage results. Interesting that two of these captains are self-sacrificing. Then there's The Albino. Massively useful if you're up against Klingon foes because his attacking nature and ability to add a die to your roll. 

If that attack lands (and I'm guessing that means as a whole not just that one die), once per game he can also remove an opponent Crew upgrade from the target ship. Add into that a once-per-game ability to move last and you have quite a decent and reasonably priced Captain given specific circumstances.

The younger Kang sports a skill of 8 and a cost of 5 to represent his slightly more prime abilities. He forces an opponent to reroll their attack through spending his own Target Lock. I'd probably be wanting his older version in all honesty.

Five captains and appropriately 5 Crew to go with them. Yeto, a Klingon mercenary from Invasive Procedures, classes as both Klingon and Independent for 4 points. A hefty price to pay but when within range 2 of an unshielded enemy ship he can disable and/or steal a Crew upgrade. As a discard it's a good action to have available if there's a tasty upgrade to be had.

Ch'Targh (3 points) cloaks your ship and removes an Auxiliary Power Token in the End Phase. There's also no specific to say that you have to do both of these things so she could effectively be a "late" Free Action to play it safe. Kolana (2 points) cuts down your susceptibility to Time Tokens on Weapons. As a good Klingon ship usually has some Photon Torpedoes in stock, she reduces the number of tokens placed by one, If the ship is Cloaked then she negates 2 tokens.

The Klingon Gunner (2 points) adds a Damage result to your attack and is discarded and finally there's Kang's wife, Mara (2 points). Perfect for running alongside Kang since she can be discarded instead of the captain, she also adds a Scan ability to the ship she is assigned to. 

The Blood Oath pack does contact a couple of duplicates to allow for multiple ships to carry the same items. One of these is Concussive Charges. A 2 point Weapon, this one operates up to range 2 and can be fired fore or aft with the same number of dice as the ship's primary weapon. Players spend their Cloak token, raise shields and slap on 2 Time Tokens before targeting an opponent. If equipped to a K'T'Inga Class ship its effectiveness shoots up with an additional attack die in play plus the chance to remove tokens from beside the enemy dependent on how many Damage or Critical Damage results are left uncancelled.

Waylay can only be equipped to ships with a Hull of 3 or less and again costs 2 points. Only useable in the forward firing arc and up to range 2, it does have more than a few similarities to Concussive Charges. Hitting with the same number of dice as a primary weapon, Waylay receives 2 Time Tokens upon activation during Attack. If it's aboard a B'Rel Class then the defending ship also receives an Auxiliary Power Token as a bonus effect. Not enough? Then it keeps on giving as the ship on which this is placed then gets to perform a 1 bank left or right plus gets an Evade token in play. That's a ton of stuff to benefit from on one very cheap card.

There's a lone Tech upgrade too with Science Station. Adding a Tech slot to the ship, this 4 pointer works up to range 3 and only when Cloaked. Receiving 2 Time Tokens, this Free Action sees your ship gain a Scan token and if you have an enemy in the forward firing arc you can put a Target Lock into play. No specifics if this is an either/or card so I'd take it you can perform both if they apply. 

There are also 4 Elite Action cards here although three are duplicates of the Dahar Master. Linking perfectly with the set and the episode, Dahar Master can only be equipped to Kor, Koloth or Kang and increases the skill of the captain it is assigned to by 1. For each copy of this Elite Action in play, there is a further increase of 1 skill point. Added extra here in that it also allows your ship to Cloak or Target Lock as a freebie - and we all love a freebie. Definitely one to pull out whatever version of these captains you use - TOS, DS9 or even TAS!

Rounding out the regular expectation of cards is A Death Worthy of Sto-Vo-Kor. Not too highly priced - it's 4 points which is this pack's most expensive card(s). It comes with a certain amount of baggage as it's a discard that also takes a Crew card with it. It then causes the opposing ship (within range 2) to lose an upgrade and if that costs more than the Crew upgrade discarded from your own ship then you add an extra attack die for that round. Long winded but useful if you couple it with some of the other attacking cards in this pack. 

The big addition for the recent faction packs as a whole are the Ambassador cards. Kamarag (ambassador from The Voyage Home and The Undiscovered Country) forces two ships to attack each other if negotiations are accepted while if declined the enemy ship rolls 3 less dice to attack on its next attempt. Korrd (The FInal Frontier) steps in to force an enemy ship to plan its manoeuvres face up until it receives any form of damage while declining it means that you get to choose its next move as either a green or white manoeuvre and strictly within the playing field.

These Ambassadors are an interesting take especially since there seems, with the Klingons, to be no benefit to the enemy ship. At least with the Federation - and you would hope with the Vulcans - there's some form of reciprocation. Sadly the Klingons are all out for whatever they can get and with these two options saying "Yes" is probably just as bad as saying "No."!

Blood Oath, the included mission is a straight 2,3 or 4 player game with the Albino being hunted down by the Dahar Masters. With a fixed number of rounds it's a game of survival for the Independent player who can win if he's still standing at the end. Difficulty can be changed by altering the number of rounds. Then there's The Way of the Warrior which seems to be missing a whole lot of details about how to win the game. It appear to simulate the Klingon attack on Deep Space Nine from the fourth season feature premiere with the Federation holding off a Klingon pure offensive but tragically the cards seem to be missing half the info!

The Blood Oath pack is absolutely brimming with upgrades and ships to truly max out a new player while also fleshing out a few missing options that more seasoned Attack Wing veterans might have been missing (young Kang for instance). The changes in pricing also make a lot of these newer options a lot more palatable with the ability to use more of your available slots, fill out a ship completely and use everything you can to take a win. 

The models in this one aren't the best. The Negh'Var has wonky pods underneath and the paint jobs are a bit over-bling for me.  The K'T'Ingas also aren't totally straight suggesting the mould itself isn't aligned but at least the bridge and engines are now the right way round. That said, don't let the plastic put you off what is a quality faction pack with affordable options.

You can check out all our Attack Wing reviews over on the Gaming Section!

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Battlecruiser Heaven: The Online Official Starships Collection Issues 9 and 10

The redesigns from Discovery keep on coming with the latest being the Europa Class.

Based on the Nimitz Class USS Europa destroyed at the Battle of the Binary Stars, this leap forward had that distinct STO paint job contrasting the base white against the dark grey highlights. 

It works on screen and also in reality providing the Europa with a striking silhouette. The shape and form are very reminiscent of the Reliant and therefore the Miranda Class Take those two upper nacelles off and it's the spitting image if not updated. There's even a pair of numbered shuttlebays at the back of the hull if you're in any doubt.

What they have done is stretch the saucer out a little more elliptically to the front and set the bridge module back a little more. This in turn provides more surface space for escape pods and sensor emplacements. The hull itself is a lot more complex with more raised structures than the old Reliant again featuring more escape pods.

The classic rollbar/mission pod piece now sweeps backwards and is set a little more forward and almost over the bridge. The paint and decals around the ship and especially here are definitely one of the more precise results from Eaglemoss but there are a few spots where the paint doesn't quite line up the edge of its area most notably on this raised section.

The centrepiece there does contain a notable decal which is, so the magazine explains, the Structural Integrity Field (SIF) Linkage. This piece of cool Online tech means that the Europa can take away the damage inflicted by weapons fire on allied ships. Also there's a Starfleet pennant  which is almost too small to make out but is clearly indicated by two very fine stripes. The rollbar also features the "double neck" which is a distinguishing feature of the Enterprise-F providing additional support to the centre pod. Reliant could have definitely used that. 

The four warp engines are a real piece of digital design mastery. With notched warp vents across the tops (and bottoms!) of all four, there's a stunning impression of depth across the nacelles. Each nacelles is cleanly tipped with a translucent bussard collector and some lovely decalling along the sides. The pennants are sharp as ever with ship registries and also tiny, tiny United Federation of Planets legends. Look at how they're connected to the hull with each bolted on to an extra-wide pylon and that's not something you see on every Starfleet vessel.

The decalling right across this model is really impressive and straight where it matters - which is precisely everywhere. Even on the ventral surfaces the markings are crystal clear with even red trimming and the standard ship registries in place.

The underside of that single hull carries even more detail and a lot more colour even if it is grey, black, white and brown. There are a lot more lifeboat hatches for one but there's also differing surface levels, grilles and a quite impressive lower sensor dome. Inspection of this lower section does raise your awareness of the pixellated paint effect that crops up towards the rear and also on the notched warp engine surfaces. The engines appear to have the pattern mirrored but behind the sensor dome it's more unique and doesn't follow the centre-line repeat which is most unusual.

Construction on this model is excellent and its design represents the more military and robust style path chosen by the Online format. The bold colouring works beautifully for the game but as with all the previous entries it's quite jarring on a physical piece and does step a little way from the canon franchise.

The weight is all to the front although the stand sit is also surprisingly stable. What is becoming increasingly annoying is that the pegs don't seem to fit into the black bases unless you do a fair bit of sanding on the plastic.

The magazine does go a long way to explaining the special features of the Europa including the SIF and as to how the vessel and limited number of its class were designed to be vanguards and capital ships for Starfleet. This is very different to the science mission directive of the Miranda Class but I guess times change. It also recounts the link between this design and the "lost" ships of Yard 39 which is Online's way of building Discovery's vessels into the game. 

Fortunately the plan views do note the key technologies of the Europa including the grilled Command and Control Communications Suite (grey square front of saucer) as well as the location for the EM Phase Conditioner Intakes (end of the black strips, top of saucer). It means, for once, the model does show important into rather than it al being hidden away inside. 

The design section does lean towards how this ship differs from its Discovery predecessor and also from the Miranda Class as well as the reasoning for its existence. The Europa acts as a battle cruiser again revealing the more action-based nature of the online experience. The graphics here to accompany the visually journey are good to have and go even further to establish the fleet lineage.

Finally the issue explains and dissects the nature of Starfleet Operations from the 22nd Century through its evolution to the organisation as it stands in Online. Specifically the article pinpoints key events in the 2400's that have influenced its form.

Klingon fans won't be too upset to see the IKS Mogh make an appearance as our second ship of the Empire in this collection.

Just as deadly, chunky and heavy as the Bortasqu' the Mogh sits in parallel to the Europa as a Klingon battlecruiser. She, like that Starfleet ship, also bears the key distinctions of her race's history but with that Online spin.

A rather heavy, squat model, the Mogh ticks all the right boxes - long neck with command module, raised engine unit to the rear and drop down warp nacelles. It can ONLY be Klingon.

The detailing on her is crazy. The painting distinction between the grey raised panels and the base green coat is spot on. No bleed, no paint echo and it just looks glorious. 

The correct choice was made to paint the windows on around the mid-section of the Mogh with the yellow used sitting just right in alignment. From the nose to the back the battlescruiser has a fine network of panel lines that are visible on the base layer and on the raised hull pieces.

As notable features go, right at the front is a fin-like section sitting between the front forks. Painted and outlined, it clearly shows the main torpedo port from which the battlecruiser launches its innovative, protected projectile weapons.

That whole upper section and out to the wings is a single meta piece with a clip in bottom. Note too that the Mogh has metal nacelles - a major rarity in the starships line as these tend to be glued on plastic separates accommodating translucent grilles and collectors. 

The sharp, bladed nacelles here don’t have any inserts but do have bustard highlights along the tops and continued panel detail. The fact that they are part of that upper hull mould also means that there’s no join lines around the Mogh’s wing shoulders allowing for a smooth transition down to the engines. 

What Eaglemoss have done is build around that central metal element. The stepped-up housing to the back and also the forward bridge module are a separate plastic piece dropped onto the top of the ship. It’s almost indistinguishable from the metal hull apart from the sound it makes and also because there’s a negative space gap just behind the bridge module that would otherwise be impossible. 

Underneath you can make out the slotted in insert segment which is cleverly disguised by the placement of two smaller warp engines beneath the wings. These manage to conceal the gap at the nacelle edges and there’s no deterioration in quality. The panelling and element distinction is first class all the way here.

The speckling of white lights across the ventral surfaces bring a bit of life to the Mogh but the big winner is just how well the hull is defined and the precision of the colour blocks all the way round. Funny thing with both this AND the Europa is that the belly of both crafts have the most to look at!

In the issue 10 magazine the pictures truly make you appreciate the precision of the model to what was realised in the game. Covering the reasons behind its development ‘in universe’, the initial overview of the Mogh extrapolates on its groundbreaking Dynamic Defence Deployment System (DDDS) inspired by the Cardassian Dreadnought weapon. 

The plan views thereafter note this and other key elements of the ship including its significant armour plating plus the location of the impulse engines which all line up with the weighty diecast model.

Designed as a counterpart to the USS Avenger in Online, the Mogh story relates how it had to remain distinctly Klingon but still manage to push the design forward and includes photos to help visualise the process from page to pixels. This is a fascinating read that shows the care and attention given to the universe of Star Trek even online. 

Keeping on the theme, the final entry ahead of the usual ship stats block covers the rise of J’Mpok to power in the Empire along with the challenges he faced on that path. It also includes the reasoning behind the resumption of hostilities with the Federation as well as the threats posed to the Klingons during a pivotal time in their history. The path, as we discover, is not as clean cut as might be expected with differing pressures bringing about change. 

Two magnificent STO ships this month. I mean, the detail is mindblowing and both demonstrate the incredible detail available from the digital ship files. Construction and finishing quality on both is first class. A brilliant pair for the series.

Check out all our Online Starships posts HERE

You can find out more on the Star Trek Online Official Starships Collection by visiting the Hero Collector website HERE

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