5

I have often considered using the optional rule of a sabotage run on a War Sun, but have always decided it would be a waste of fighters. I was wondering if there exists a situation when you might want to do a sabotage run?

Quoted from the rule book:

Game option: Sabotage Runs

Although the mighty War Sun unit is the undisputed king of space, history has shown that such hubris of creation often hides a fatal flaw that can be exploited by the smallest of spacecraft.

When using this game option, Fighter units have adesperate chance of a pre-Space Battle strike at an enemy War Sun in the contested system. This desperate attack is called the “sabotage run.”

Announce the Run
A sabotage run takes place before an actual Space Battle begins, immediately after any Destroyer Anti-Fighter Barrage.

Both players (attacker first) may announce that they are making a Sabotage run against an enemy War Sun in the battle (if no War Sun is present among the enemy units, a player cannot undertake a sabotage run).

If both players have War Suns, the attacker should resolve his sabotage run first, followed by the defender.

After announcing a sabotage run, a player must commit a number of Fighter units to the dangerous task. After a number of Fighters have been committed, the sabotage run is executed over two rounds of die rolls.

1) The Outer Defenses
Roll a die for every Fighter committed to the sabotage run. On an unmodified result of 9 or 10, the Fighter makes it through the outer defenses of the War Sun. All other results destroy the Fighter unit, which receives no return fire.

2) The Inner Defenses
For every Fighter unit that made it past the outer defenses of the War Sun, roll another die (one at a time). If the fighter rolls an unmodified result of 10, the sabotage run is successful and the War Sun is immediately destroyed. Such a destroyed War Sun receives no return fire. All other die results instantly destroy the Fighter unit, which receives no return fire.

Surviving Fighter units are able to participate in the subsequent Space Battle. An unharmed War Sun is able to participate in the Space Battle with no ill effects.

Should an opponent have two War Sun units, a player is allowed to make a sabotage run against both units by dividing his committed Fighters into two separate pools. With each of these pools attacking one specific War Sun, simply resolve each separate sabotage run, one at a time

Improve this question

5 Answers 5

Reset to default
12

Situation:

Hostile force: 1 carrier, 10 fighters, 4 cruisers, 1 war sun, 1 ground force

Defending force: 1 carrier, 6 fighters, 1 cruiser, with 3 ground forces defending the planet.

The planet in question is highly valuable, and this is the final turn (or losing it will cost you the ability to gain VPs this turn).

In this situation, you are unable to destroy the war sun in straight combat, and if it lives to the end of the battle, it will single-handedly destroy all defending ground forces while keeping the lone ground force secure for the invasion. On the flip side, should the war sun be destroyed, then the invasion will be unsuccessful this turn (1v3 odds) excepting extreme luck bias. Therefore, the #1 priority for this battle is the destruction of the war sun - the other massive segment of the fleet is irrelevant.

Strafing run, GO!

Improve this answer
1
  • This is actually a very good point. The sabotage run allows you to specifically target the War Sun.
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 29, 2012 at 6:45
2

Maybe it helps if you imagine how hard you will laugh when one actually gets through!

Not doing the most logical/sensible action can be a lot of fun, even if it costs some fighters (Which are cheap anyway).

Isn't there a technology upgrade that increases the chances of a successful sabotage run?

Improve this answer
2

It's pretty unlikely that a sabotage run will ever be the most strategically sensible thing to do.

However, there could be several occasions when it'd be a fun thing to do. Given how it's a blatant Star Wars reference, it's a good opportunity to throw around movie quotes. (In case anyone didn't realise: the War Sun is an Expy of the Death Star.)

And in the one time in 50 that it works, then it'll make for a very memorable occasion, which is a great part of a fun gaming experience.

Improve this answer
1

Actually, there is an (unlikely) situation when the sabotage run is strategically sensible: When the fighters are of no value to you, you might as well throw them away on the off-chance. This could happen if you're definitely about to lose the carriers/fighter bases, or if the war sun's about to do something that will lose you the game - you might as well go for the long shot. (Never seen a situation where it makes sense happen though. But we always allow the optional rule. Many Star Wars fans in our group.)

Improve this answer
2
  • Don't you have a higher chance of just scoring two hits on the warsun? (I didn't do the math)
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 3, 2010 at 14:35
  • @Matthijs: Not if you only have one fighter, you don't. Also, the sabotage run, if successful, will stop the war sun from firing at all - hypothetically this might be better, although it's hard to imagine a likely scenario where that's more important than better odds of destroying it.
    – Tynam
    Mar 21, 2011 at 15:54
1

Any time when you are likely to just get smoked in combat. Say you have a carrier with just a couple of fighters vs the force mentioned above. You will be lucky indeed to even kill all of the cannon fodder to start to damage the Warsun. And you would also have to count on unlucky rolls from the opposing fleet to get to that point as well.

You have a 2% chance on the sabotage run per committed fighter which may be better odds than surviving enough rounds of combat to kill his fleet and score 2 hits on the Warsun.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .