Dominion Faction Pack: Cardassian Union

 

A break in the run of XL reviews to cover another of our popular topics - Attack Wing.

An eternity ago we discussed the excellent Starfleet, Vulcan and Klingon packs but were surprised that the Cardassian Union expansion was delayed in the UK. It's finally arrived on our shores and is sure to provide a new level of play to your existing Dominion faction.

Set up in the standard four ship faction box, the Cardassian Union set brings together various aspects of the DS9 storyline. Taking a piece from the Romulan/Cardassian alliance to destroy the Founders, another from Dukat's personal arc and a third that also encompasses TNG and Voyager, there's a lot going on just with the ships.

Providing a second side to your Dominion faction (if you're playing pure), the pack includes two Keldon Class ships, a Galor Class and Gul Dukat's Klingon Bird of Prey models along with 28 new cards and tokens.

The four ships are the standard versions of ships which already exist so we'll skip onto the upgrades. The highest costing ship is the Keldon Class Preloc at 24 points. Offering the same fie Attack, one Defence, four Hull and three Shields as the lower costing Orias, the Preloc increases the number of Attack die of Dominion faction ships within range one by one. The two Keldon Class ships both have options for two Tech, two Weapon and one Crew upgrade as well as Evade, Target Lock, Scan and Battle Stations.

Strange thing is, I would have actually put the Orias as the more expensive of the pair since it gets to field the Cloak and Sensor Echo Actions as well if there are only Romulan or Dominion upgrades attached to it. If a friendly ship within range one cloaks then the Orias itself can do likewise as a free Action. Honestly I'd go with the Orias due to that extra standard Action ability. I only tend to play faction pure so this would be a huge advantage.

The Orias and the Galor Class Vejar both come in at a 22 point cost. The latter loses an Attack die but gains a Shield. Again, the Orias seems a better choice since the Vejar only carries Evade, Target Lock and Scan as standard abilities and four upgrade slots; Tech, Weapon and two Crew. Its Unique Action allows friendly ships up to range two can perform a Free Action from its Action Bar. 

Finally there's Dukat's Bird-of-Prey for a cheaper 17 points. With a four Attack, one Defence, three Hull and three Shields, the captured Klingon ship fields the Cloak and Sensor Echo features as standard as well as Evade and Target Lock. Operating as a dual faction vessel both as the named and generic versions, the Bird-of-Prey gets to either receive a Battle Station, Evade or Battle Station during combat or can increase the Captain Skill by three for that round. 

The Bird-of-Prey is a cool addition to the set and something a bit more curveball. Two Keldon Class could have seen one substituted with some Hideki fighters. If you are looking to reduce costs then the Bird-of-Prey general version comes in at 13 points with a single Tech, Weapon and Crew upgrade. The two generic cards for the Keldon Class both cost 20 points with two Tech, one Crew and one Weapon slot while the Galor Class is 17 points with a single Tech, Weapon and Crew slot. Each of them also loses its Unique Action from the named card and one Shield point. 

As for the Captains, we have four in the set enabling you to field every ship straight out of the box... well almost as for some reason I was missing one base!

Top dog here is Gul Dukat. Oddly there's no benefit to placing him on his own named Bird-of-Prey but he still proves an eight Captain skill plus, rarely, two Elite Action slots. 

He does also provide an enhanced attack feature which more than justifies his five point price tag. While modifying attack dice, an Evade or Scan beside the ship can be spent to convert up to three Battle Stations into two damage each. Now, logically I'd stick Dukat straight onto the Preloc or Orias to max those dice every time and if not, have him on a ship which comes into range of one of those on every turn just to max the hit chances.

Enabran Tain can flip to either Fleet Admiral or Captain with a skill of eight. There are no penalities with him for attaching Romulan upgrades to his vessel and as a second ability, Tain lets you discard a Dominion Crew upgrade to attack with an additional attack die on your primary weapon. It does incur two Time Tokens but could up your fire power to six if you're staying with this pack.

The four point costing Gul Toran also has the Elite Action option and a Captain skill of six. Toran's action unusually gives a bit of added attack and defence for friendly ships within range two. As the Action for the round, he can select a faction and then all friendly ships engaging them will gain an attack and defence die that time round. I like this one because it's rare to get a good defensive option. Just remember it's there if you equip him - and I'd suggest to a support vessel.

Last up there's Gul Evek. While Tain and Toran are DS9 focuses, Evek actually appeared in TNG, DS9 and Voyager during the mid-90's aboard the Vejar - see it all links!

Skilled with a lowly four and costing a reasonable two points, Evek only operates his Action at range one but does take on all the Auxiliary Power Tokens that might be in play on those ships during the Combat Phase. While potentially incapacitating Evek's command, it may well open up other Action opportunities on more than one ship.

The four Crew for selection also give a broad pass across the DS9 Dominion story arc. The five point Tora Ziyal can act for either the Dominion or Bajoran faction. She targets an attacking ship during the compare results stage and if the enemy is within range one, she can cancel the attack completely and be discarded. Ziyal also allows her own vessel to then perform an attack on that same ship utilising one less dice than a primary weapon if possible. A good card to help live another day or stop that one huge attack that you know is likely to be coming.

Three point Korinas works a little harder out at ranges two and three. Disabled and incurring an Auxilary Power Token, she removes an in play Minefield token. Very subjective and a waste of points unless you know this is something that could be deployed. I'd probably leave this one aside.

Gul Damar (two points) although not a Captain himself is perfect to add to any ship since he ups the Captain skill by two. He also assists with a friendly ship at up to range two in that if they use a Weapon upgrade he can be disabled with two Time Tokens and up to three attack dice can be re-rolled. Very useful although the Weapon upgrades from this pack max out at three dice anyway. Last up is Gul Broca. The final puppet leader of the Cardassian Union during the Dominion War, his Action is another decent one worth considering. Two points for its use as well is very agreeable with him targetting all friendly ships within range two. All of those affected roll an additional attack die that round including the one Broca is equipped to.

As to those Weapon upgrades, the Cardassian Union has some interesting plays to use. Available only for Galor Class ships, Multiple Dorsal Arrays (three points) works at all angles of attack but only if your enemy is using Attack Squadrons (fighters). Disabled with two Time Tokens, it allows your vessel to perform a second attack against the same target. Now I like this because I also love fighters and understand how flipping annoying they can be. This does offer some protection and deterrent at the same time.

The Enhanced Resonance Field Grid is a bit of a sneaky attack for a cost of two points. When using the Primary Weapon and you have an uncancelled Damage result, the card is binned off and that Damage can be put straight onto the Hull rather than the Shields. I'm not sure if this will make much of a difference in the long run unless you use this multiple times to dodge the shields on your opponent. Plus you'll need to remain in range to make it work over several rounds.

Last up is Phase Disruptor Array which can be used on Galor or Keldon Class ships and will cost two points. Activated at ranges one and two, the card incurs three Time Tokens and you will need to spend an active Target Lock to re-roll any number of dice up to two times. Couple of BIG wins here. It's reusable and it's a multi-roll which is better than a standard Target Lock and is only actually costing one more Time Token (depending on if you're using that or Disable tokens). Ideal for close quarter combat, you will need to make sure that your attacking ship lines up with a target in the forward firing arc.

Tech upgrades in the faction pack range from four points down to one. Top price goes to Type-3 Galor Class which adds two points to the Shield value of your ship, making it more defensible than a Keldon Class. Legion Crew Module means you can add another two Crew slots to your ship for a cost of two points and Uridium Alloy (two points) can be disabled during the modifying of attack dice step to convert two Damage into Critical Damage.

Perhaps the most interesting of the four Tech cards though is Sensor Ghost. What looks like a lot of text for a two point price is another useful defence technique. Discarded, Sensor Ghost forces an attacking ship to roll one less attack die and if the attack doesn't destroy your ship then it can perform a "one" Sensor Echo move and get out of the way...hopefully.

Obsidian Order is the most expensive upgrade card in the pack at five points. Usable over all three range marks, it mirrors enemy ships. If they spend a Battle Station, Scan or Evade then you get to equip one. No disable or discard in play here either which means you can certainly use this to your advantage both on attack and defence. Another perfectly sneaky move from the Cardassians.

Interrogation for two points disables a Crew upgrade on an enemy ship at range one during the Planning Phase of the game and locks it out with three Time Tokens. Not a massive fan of this one as it need you to take a chance that your opponent will have something worth locking out for that period of time. Very risky but low cost so you could take a punt.

Third in the group of Elite Actions is Supreme Tribunal. One point is a good price if you need to fill up some points. It does incur a four Time Token penalty and the only result is that an enemy ship within range two receives an Auxiliary Power Token. Nice point filler to reuse if you have a gap.

The final upgrade card is Kanar which can be equipped on any ship without an upgrade slot. For one point it's a nice option to have as you perform your Action before moving with the penalty being twofold. First you have to reveal your manoeuvre face up and also take on two Time Tokens. However, very useful if you realise you're in an early tactical advantage before moving!

Two missions are also packed into the Cardassian Union box. The Simpler Times sees the Klingons chasing down Gul Dukat and his captured Bird-of-Prey on a straight forward seek and destroy. The Secret of the Orias Sector takes its lead from DS9's Defiant in that a Federation ship must escape from the Cardassians after completing scans of the sector. Its 60 points versus 40 points but more dicey for the Federation player who has a mission to finish before getting away.

This may well be my favourite faction pack to date. It's exciting, varied, sneaky, defensive and loaded with four ships that really do gel well as a force right out of the box. The upgrades here are exemplary and mixed in with the Jem'Hadar faction pack from a couple of years back, I can see this being one of the strongest armadas available.

The Keldon Class ships alone are worth the price and I'm looking forward to joining them up with the Dreadnought missile or even a Hideki fighter wing in combat. Definitely a must have pack that really could re-ignite a lot of passion for the game with its brilliant cards. Absolutely first class.

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

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To Boldly Go: Attack Wing's Federation Faction Pack

It feels like an eternity since the Vulcan, Klingon, Cardassian and Federation expansions plus the seemingly sold out Alliance were announced but at last...they're here!

With a universal sigh of relief there's some new packs for us tabletop gamers to chow down on and over the next few weeks we'll be looking at them each in depth.

First up on the schedule is To Boldly Go. Not exactly the most original name for a set but with it containing four Federation starships it does seem at least somewhat apt.

Longtime players will already have all of the ships in the pack; Galaxy, Akira, Miranda and Defiant although this time they're all spruced up in a nice silver finish. The detailing is fairly precise if basic but since none of these are new I'll refer you to the relevant reviews of the existing/original items to refamiliarise. 

Opening up my pack I was a wee bit disgruntled to discover that the Galaxy Class model had come battle damaged and was missing a nacelle. Not to worry though since there's another three in the collection but if you were buying this as part of your first steps into playing it would royally p**s you off.

One thing to note too is that this pack is heavily influenced by DS9 and some of its key moments. Point in case for that is the USS Odyssey as featured and as destroyed in season two's finale, The Jem'Hadar.

The picture on the card isn't the best but the stats are more important so we'll let that one slide for the minute. Sporting the average Galaxy Class 4 Attack, 1 Defence, 5 Hull and 3 Shields, the Odyssey can also take 3 Crew, 1 Weapon and 1 Tech upgrade for a 26 point cost. As you would expect and is standard across all 4 of the pack vessels, each comes with standard Actions of Evade, Target Lock, Scan and Battle Stations. Movement cards for each of the classes is also identical to existing packs so again we'll skip past!

As the Odyssey's free action you can place an Auxiliary Power Token on this vessel and then target a friendly ship within range 2 and with a Hull Value of 3 or less to provide it with 2 additional defence dice and the chance to convert a blank result into a Battle Station on that round. One for actioning on support craft but very selective as to when that can be used and would need a particular fleet dynamic to work perfectly. Both the Tian Na Men and Sao Paulo in this set would be eligible.

Just as notable a vessel as the Odyssey is the USS Sao Paulo. This, only the third named Defiant Class in the franchise, would be renamed Defiant after the original's destruction at the hands of the Breen. Coming without the cloaking device of its predecessor, the Sao Paulo attacks with 3, defends with 2 and has a Hull of 3 and 4 Shields. Her slots allow for 2 Crew, 2 Weapon and a Tech upgrade for a cost of 20 points. Her Unique Action sees you claiming a Battle Station token in play when you spend one. Not a stellar ability but one that might pay off in defence. Also, shame the card doesn't show the Sao Paulo but then we never actually saw her named that way in the show.

Third up is the Akira Class USS Spector. Costing 24 points you're expecting more for your money and you do get that with a 4 Attack, 2 Defence, 5 Hull and 3 Shield. She also punches a little more than the Sao Paulo with 3 Weapon slots, 1 Crew and 1 Tech. All of the Weapon upgrades utilised on her also cost one point less each. The Spector is a quality craft also packing a Unique Action that sees guaranteed Shield damage as long as there is an active Shield when using the Photon Torpedoes upgrade.

Last in the box is the USS Tian An Men which would likely play a supporting role in any operations. A low 14 point cost comes with 2 Attack, 2 Defence, 3 Hull and 3 Shield. She also has only 4 upgrade slots with 2 Crew, 1 Weapon and 1 Tech option.  Its Unique Action also suggests that supporting role as a friendly ship within range 2 can be assisted. If that ship has an Auxiliary Power Token in play then the Tian An Men adds 2 Time Tokens to one of its Crew upgrades and that vessel can still perform an Action. It's one of those very specific events and would ensure the fleet does have full operational ability.

To Boldly Go manages to include a hefty 5 Captain cards. There's yet another Benjamin Sisko (skill 8) but this one works especially well against Dominion forces. In fact during Attack he'll automatically gain a Critical Damage result and during the End Phase he'll clean off an Auxiliary Power Token. If you're playing any form of Dominion War campaign this is the Fed captain to have in play.

Importantly, all 5 Captains have the ability to field an Elite Action although I tend to find I barely touch them - probably something I should look to change.

The second CO in the chair is the Odyssey's Captain Keogh. Bearing a skill of 7 for a cost of 4 points, Keogh's Action can only be used at up to range 2. He's very specific too with the ship he's commanding needing to have an enemy attacking another Federation ship in its forward firing arc (read that back slowly and it should make sense). As part of that Attack, one of the Damage results can be turned to a blank. Does seem a lot to save a single point!

Jadzia Dax can finally be added to the Captain ranks with her 6 skill and 4 point cost. Cleverly Dax can field a Klingon Unique Action without a faction penalty which would open a lot of different strategies - best get hold of the Klingon Faction Pack!

But aside from that benefit, she only allows your ship to perform a bank 1 left or right during the Activation Phase. Hmmmm.

The 86th Worf card made for the game is dual faction, allowing him either to play on a Federation or a Klingon fleet. His Action, for once in this pack, isn't a one in a million chance as spending a Battle Station will allow you to convert all your blank results into Damage. Have to admit, quite excited by this prospect as I have a notable ability for throwing rubbish attacks. Note too - no disable or Time Tokens for use here so it's usable every round.

Last up is the Captain/Admiral card of Leyton. Featured in Homefront and Paradise Lost attempting a military coup on Earth, Leyton skills up at 6 with the equally familiar cost of 4 points.He's all about the delaying tactics, forcing a ship at a maximum of range 2 to attack last in the round. Leyton himself incurs 2 Time Tokens but that's a decent price for a tactical advantage, especially if that ship has a higher Captain skill than your own.

Five Captains get 5 Crew and not necessarily who you might expect. The ever-reliable Kira Nerys costs 3 points and disables a Tech upgrade on an enemy ship within range one. She then rolls an Attack die and if there's a Damage or Critical Damage result, that target ship loses a Crew upgrade as well. Tough luck but she does have to receive 3 Time Tokens for this shattering blow. I am surprised with the choice not to make Kira dual faction when both Worf and one other card in the deck have this functionality.

Second we have Julian Bashir. Operating at range 1, the good doctor costs 2 points and can target a Crew upgrade during the Activation Phase. Note that it's any Crew upgrade since Bashir affects either friend or foe. If it's one of your own then he'll remove either 2 Time Tokens or a Disabled Token while if it's on the opposing team, the ship it's on rolls 1 less attack dice that round. Bonus note - he's reusable every round since the Bashir card itself doesn't get disabled or discarded.

Ezri Dax is your typical sacrificial card to take Damage for others. At least she adds a Crew upgrade to your ship and then will also mean that Captain or Crew cards will receive one less Time Token when their feature is activated.

Sarita Carson, again a 2 point Crew card, might leave you stumped where she's from. Featured in only Starship Down from DS9's 4th season, Carson allows you to move during Combat either 1 or 2 forward at the cost of 2 Time Tokens - which is precisely where you could combo it with Ezri Dax. Finally there's the tragic Enrique Muniz from Rocks and Shoals. 

Working at up to range 2, Muniz gains 2 Time Tokens so that the ship he is stationed on can utilise an Evade, Battle Stations or Scan token from the target ship as if it was on Muniz's ship.

To Boldly Go offers four different Weapon options for your fleet. Phaser Cannons allows for a double attack. Disabled with 3 Time Tokens, this card pumps 4 attack dice at an enemy followed by your standard Primary Weapon roll. Double trouble and no doubt wth a bit of digging there's the chance to increase that even more. It can only be equipped on a Defiant Class and to the forward firing arc. 

Offering a Weapon upgrade solely for the Akira Class is Dorsal Torpedo Pod. No need to disable or discard again since this one enhances your Photons allowing them to be fired through a full 360 arc. It does mean sacrificing a Tech slot to enhance another feature but counter to that it does provide full attack possibilities.

Experimental Torpedo Bay is a stroke of genius and one you'll definitely be wanting to put into play as much as possible. Costing just 2 points you can hide a Torpedo (doesn't specify Quantum or Photon) under this card until the Combat Phase and equip it. The Experimental Torpedo Bay is discarded but suddenly you have a five point card fitted that might take you over your points limit. Dead useful and very cost effective.

Finishing up the Weapons, To Boldly Go has two Photon Torpedo cards. These operate at ranges 2 and 3 and with an additional die to the ship's Primary Weapon. Working as standard, players spend a Target Lock, the card is disabled and all blank results can be switched to Battle Stations. Unusual to return to disabling rather than Time Tokens but it does mean they can be pulled back into action a lot quicker.

With three cards, Tech can certainly assist and Ablative Armour is a good choice to start with. Adding a defence die to your overall roll against attacks it also converts ALL Critical Damage to Damage reducing the risk of a crippling effect on your vessel. At a cost of 2 this is more than reasonable and it's about now you start to realise that the pricing on these cards is well under previous expansions. You can get a lot for your buck in the Faction Pack. Another way to strengthen that defence is with Advanced Shields. Only for use with ships of a hull value of 5 or more, it adds 2 Shield points on and when discarded repairs up to 3 Shield points. It's a bt more expensive than the armour, coming in at 4 points but for a larger capital ship this is a must for an extended lifespan.

Last up is the Metaphasic Sweep to allow a ship to perform a Target Lock as a free Action even if there's a Cloak token in play on the TARGET ship. Might not seem a lot but against an invisible enemy we all know how important it is to maximise that attack since the defensive roll adds a ton of dice to the equation. For a 1 shot card, the 1 point cost is insignificant but can't be underestimated.

As mentioned though, the massive new feature arriving with the latest Faction Packs is Ambassadors. Each fleet can only field one Ambassador and negotiations start from the beginning of the game. If accepted then the ship on which the Ambassador is equipped and a chosen opposing vessel there is an effect covering both ships. If negotiations are denied then the enemy ship receives a detrimental effect from the off.

In the case of Lwaxana Troi (3 points), whenever her ship moves within range 1 of the opposing target ship both the Captain of her ship and either the Captain or a Crew upgrade on the enemy are disabled. Should negotiations be denied with Troi then the opposing chosen ship has 3 Time Tokens and a Disabled Token placed on its Captain or Crew upgrade. 

Sarek - who can be either used for Federation or Vulcan factions (3 points) stops two ships from attacking each other if they are within range 3 or less unless there's nothing else to shoot at. If negotiations are denied with Sarek then all the opponent ship Weapon upgrades get 3 Time Tokens dropped on them. Of the two, Sarek is the more harsh option given his lengthy effect on Weapon upgrades. Game changer? Absolutely. Best start stocking up on cards that reduce the number of Time Tokens assigned to your ship just in case he comes calling.

To keep you nicely occupied with the new pack, To Boldly Go includes two scenarios; Insurrection! and Operation: Rescue. Both are 2 player missions utilising the ships from the set to help kick off your involvement with the game and for those of us who are a little more logical, it's the structure we love!

To Boldly Go has been, frankly a long, LONG, LONG time coming and a welcome return for Attack Wing. The reduction in costs for upgrades means you'll get a lot more on your ship and potentially fully equip every slot on every craft to maximise your battle opportunities. The ships themselves are nothing new - as none of the ships in the four most recent expansions are -  although each has some new Actions the price for them remains oddly the same. There's a decent mix of Disabled, Discard and Time Token use within the set which makes a pleasant change although it does suggest some disorganisation c. Wave 15/16 when Time became a factor over Disabling upgrades. At least now there's a mix of uses to liven things up. Ambassadors is a neat spin to each side although I can't see them getting a lot of love as they will hand tie a lot of players after they've spent an age selecting the right combos for the situation.

Have to say, great to have Attack Wing back and in good shape - at least better shape than my USS Odyssey model at the least...!

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

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Flick to Victory! Wizkids Battle in the Neutral Zone

Who thought that flicking segments of wood across a gameboard could get so competitive?

Not me for one but that was until I was sent a copy of Wizkids Conflick in the Neutral Zone. Combining Star Trek, gaming and a sprinkling of galactic combat, their latest offering is a little different to the usual HeroClix and Attack Wing materials produced in recent years.

Here”s the breakdown.  Pitting the Federation against the Klingons you are in charge of a fleet of ships with the aim to collect dilithium crystals by landing ships (by flicking) onto one of the yellow planets or command points (which will ultimately win you the game) by landing on the larger purple planet.   

Each player starts off with four ships; two hexagonal attack ships and two circular collector ships.  These are the starting ships and are the basic fleet to begin the game. Collectors can only collect and attackers can only destroy enemy ships so just remember that OK? This can get fairly tactical but there’s more to it than that. 

Initial set up is pretty straight forward with only the need to sticker up your playing pieces when unbagging and then getting the board set up as you would normally which takes just a few minutes. 

Each player’s turn consists of six parts. At first you can recall ships from the board back to your fleet before collecting your resources. This depends on how the opposing player(s) turn went. At a minimum you receive a dilithium crystal for starting your move but you can also collect from the planets and also during the round if one of your ships has a special feature which gives you more crystals.     

Following this accumulation of interplanetary wealth you can then purchase a new ship for your fleet and launch it immediately - but you can only launch one attacker and one collector per round.    

Now, even if you are starting out as a Federation player you can purchase whatever ship you want and that includes an array of Klingon and Neutral vessels. Costs range from one to five dilithium crystals and are determined by its abilities and paralleled through an increased size of playing piece. 

There are some inconsistencies with three point ships on both big and small pieces and the choice of ships for particular pieces or actions. Ships are purchased from a selection that is drawn from the ship deck. Four ships are offered up at one time with any purchased ship being replaced by another from the shuffled starship deck.  

Features include the chance to place a finger on top of a ship to stop it being moved when under attack, gaining extra dilithium or Command points when collecting or even getting a second shot at survival. In all honesty the ships could be named anything but there's a certain satisfaction about purchasing the Enterprise-E or the Negh'Var. 

Watch out for Bioship Alpha too because it might bring about a quicker win! Once you've moved you can reposition or place one of the cuboid asteroids anywhere on the board (but not within a range ruler width of a ship). The main advantage here is to block attacks and secure your position for the following round’s points tot up. With your asteroid placed you can then return any destroyed ships to your fleet ready for the next cycle. 

Dependant on whether two, three or four players are involved will determine how often this sequence returns to you but you will need to be prepared to get very tactical. Conflick is easy to grasp after the first couple of rounds. A two player game can be fairly brisk with lots of ship purchasing, a lot of ships KO’d and all over and done in half an hour. Accuracy comes into play a lot with the likelihood that you'll overshoot a planet, miss a target or manage to knock yourself off a collecting planet. 

To be fair that's half the fun and for once more cooks make it that touch crazier than Neelix cooking Plomeek soup. One challenge is that with three or four players - or even when you start buying ships to up your fleet you will need to keep a focus on which ships you've used, which are in play and which ones are yours since you're more than likely to have a mix of blue Federation, red Klingon and cream Neutral ships.

More players means there’s more targets and tactical play needed to overcome the larger amount of opponents. Certainly there will be more of a dash to secure the larger playing piece represented ships early on but that can be down to the luck of the draw. 

For me Conflick in the Neutral Zone is the quick alternative to setting up an extensive game of Attack Wing. Its challenging, simple to set up and something a bit outside of the box. The age range says 14+ but my seven year old has helped test and won two games 10-4 (yes, I got slaughtered) and 10-7 so it's not that complex to pick up. 

Being able to reuse pieces after elimination keeps everyone involved to the very end and it can get very, very close. The build quality of the pieces, the replacement set of extra stickers and even the thought given to the layout of the plastic tray in the game box are unexpectedly brilliant. It’s a ton of fun to play and doesn’t really rely on an exhaustive knowledge of the Star Trek franchise to play which makes it easily more accessible from the moment it’s unboxed.

It would be great to see expansion packs to offer up more opponent forces rather than just the Neutral selection and perhaps involve some form of missions in the future however its straightforward and easy to dive into nature make it extremely accessible.

Wizkids Conflick in the Neutral Zone is available now c.£35.00 from gaming stockists. You can find your nearest by checking HERE

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Well Settled: Star Trek Catan

Catan isn't a new game, it's not a mind-blowing revelation but for us Star Trek fans the reissue is more than welcome.

In simple terms the objective is to reach a ten point target by building the longest supply route, the most outposts/starbases while wisely trading and collecting to make the most of your expansion opportunities.

Ideally played with four, the Stoke on Trent Star Trek Club were willing volunteers, fielding four teams of two for a 90 minute session on the classic board game.

The layout of the board can change with every game since the 19 hexagons (planet tiles) can be rearranged into any formation within the six border pieces. Each of the 18 planets receives a number which, indicated by the font size, indicates the larger likelihood of that being rolled.

Each player in turn gets to pick where their two ships and outposts get to start, are provided with a number of resources from where their second (of two) base is placed and you're off. Each ship needs to be linked to another and another to create a chain along which you can then use collected resources to build bases or get development cards allowing you extra flexibility and opportunity during the game to dominate the sector.

Players take turns to rolls two die which indicates a particular planet and any players with an outpost or starbase located next to said planet receive the appropriate resource be it dilithium, tritanium, water, oxygen or food. But beware, roll a seven and that player gets to send in the Klingons and steal resources and you can always play one of the crew cards each player can select to activate a bonus action that can turn the tide of the game in a second. Different combinations of the resources allow you to invest in different things.

The key is to keep control of the rounds so ideally get one person to keep track of where you're at and ensure that all trades and builds are kept to the end of the round or it gets confusing. It's a lot of fun and player trades with four commanders is a lot better since you aren't restricted to trading 4:1 and can genuinely barter for items. You will no doubt be short of something in the initial few rounds when you're restricted to just the two outposts and are scrabbling round to build one ship and extend your trade route. Making friends early will be a big benefit later!

Now since the initial club game I've played this game a lot and every time it's come out differently in not just score but the way that the board evolves over time and the length it can take to get started properly let alone win. I'm more cautious as a player, choosing to expand slowly, collect and build bases as I go whereas I've seen others go for a long supply line then work on establishing bases further on.

There's a ton of ways to attack the game and it can get very strategic to block another
player's route off to strike out further from your own staging point. 

From a presentation perspective the game looks fantastic in its box and is themed around the classic movie era with Kirk and crew in their monster maroon uniforms. Each of the ships from the four colours - red, orange, white and blue - is modelled on the refit Constitution Class with the starbases resembling Space Dock when in their upgraded forms. The quality of the playing pieces, the cards and the game board is all excellent with minimal assembly required that you can do during your first run through. You also get a reassuringly thin rules book that also carries a quick start layout and a reference guide to all the terms in the game. The rules are fairly straight forward but there might be a few terms you need clarity on which this second book will help with and I keep to hand during any games.

I guarantee a lot of very entertaining and competitive evenings with Star Trek Catan. Yes it is basically the original game and might not gel too well with any of the Catan expansions for the original but for pure enjoyment based around your favourite franchise it's worth the price. Be prepared for this to last for at least an hour if you're playing a full four colour game. Variety is superb and every time there's something new; heck, I had a game last week where every other roll seemed to send the Klingons to another system. Another time I had more dilithium than I knew what to do with but no tritanium (wow, if only life were this easy...) - so you can't plan a solid strategy that will work for all situations. Just deal with what you've got and go from there!

Star Trek Catan is available now from all good games retailers. Check the Asmodee website for further details of stockists local to you!

You can also find out about the Stoke on Trent Star Trek Club (and follow them!) via their Facebook page.

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