Salvage Run

The rebel's Light Bringer meet the Imperial's Cerberus in the first battle at Drall. 

The summary 

Along with two wrecked A Wings, Admiral Akbar’s escape pod was recovered shortly after a salvage run from the Imperials. The great sorrow of losing a Mon Calamari Cruiser was matched by the immense joy of destroying an Imperial Star Destroyer. Admiral Sloane’s escape pod was certainly recovered by their peers, next to two worn-out tie fighters and a busted tie phantom.

That was, it seems, the closest battle I have ever fought: 178 Imperial credits worth of junk floating in space against 182 of rebel material wasted. Then, you add the easy imperial salvage run and the now known “GRemlin” incident (see below for details). The epic tale to be was transformed in a hard-fought battle in favour of the Siths, nearly as costly in terms of refitting on both sides. Final score for the rebels remain 178 while the Imperials gather 287 victory points, the equivalent of a 7-4 tournament win for the dark side. 

The GRemlin Incident 

A GR75 combat retrofit was destroyed by a twisted turn of faith … or was it? An already escaped Admiral Sloane (from the destroyed ISD) used her competencies after fleeing the battle. This should not have happened. A swarm of squadrons hit the remaining ships, spending their defence tokens one after the other. The “GRemlin” did not survive. How many times was it executed exactly? Uncertain.

Of course, cheating was not in case here. My adversary is too proud to use such filthy ways. No, it was only excitement. The improbable destruction of the ISD was too fresh. It was acknowledged on both sides that it was an honest mistake. Maybe the “GRemlin” would have been overwhelmed anyway by the remaining swarm of imperial squadrons, maybe it could have escaped them. No reparations were given. It was too late. 

Strategy Recap 

The rebel strategy was to concentrate fire on the giant of the other side. It worked very well. Only one more damage point and the exchange would have ended very differently. Instead, the shieldless ISD survived one more turn, giving a last blow on the MC80 before kicking the bucket. One more damage on the preceding attack and this would have been prevented. A winning recipe that just fell short by one point.

The imperial strategy was an old one, seen again and again. They activated squadron after squadron, using their Lamba ships to reach them almost anywhere in the skies. Every ship, at every activation called on their aid. It worked with moderation. Half of the ten squadron attacks were distracted by only two A Wings (scared) and Corran Horn (now veteran). The good side of it, for the rebels, they were too busy to repair anything and that cost them a big ship. 

Lessons Learned

Safe Passage: The rebels thought it might be a good idea to head directly in the debris cemetery with the MC80. It paid off because it managed to be a great help in destroying the ISD. The downside was that the path was so narrow, it was directed into a straight line with very limited turning options, giving away its next move, or taking damage by breaking the obvious route. In he future, such routes will mean more scrutiny over their worthiness.

Heroes of the day: Both antagonists forgot to update the veteran status of their heroes. They had to recall who killed who at the end of the battle. From now on, a kill is something to pause for. Think of what it means, other than one less evil being to think about.

Read more, read less: From the “GRemlin” incident, next time a ship or squadron goes down, flip its card. If you can’t read it, you can’t use it.

Peter Plan