First Impressions: Star Wars Legion

Ah yes, time for another review/first impression of a game that Jeremy bought into and wanted me to try. So here we are with Star Wars Legion!

We did the starter scenario laid on in the rulebook, albeit with a few small changes to add special weapons into the mix with our squads. I opted to take on the role of the Empire, and Jeremy ran the rebels. The special weapons taken were a single Ion Blaster in one Rebel Trooper squad, the other had a Z6. The two squads of Stormtroopers each had a DLT-19 heavy blaster and an HH-12 Rocket launcher. It's a good thing I never fired said rocket launchers since those weapon loadouts are totally illegal (Stormtroopers can only take one special weapon). We also had more terrain on the table than the book suggests, mostly left over from the Heavy Gear game we had just played (which I took no pictures of since my models weren't painted).

The forces are deployed

Now you might be wondering why I'm not doing a full review of this, and the answer is pretty simply that I don't think we played enough, or deep enough, to really give a legit review. Also the rulebook is free on Fantasy Flight's website, so you can absolutely take a look for yourself if you're really interested in something more in depth (or hit up YouTube, I'm sure there are several reviews up).

A Rebel AT-RT takes up the flank

I will admit that I've had my trepidations about Legion. I'm a big Star Wars fan, enjoy the movies (well, five of them at least) and I tend to find myself looking at the books anytime I go Barnes & Noble. It's been a part of my life for a long time, and I have lots of fond memories tied to it. I used to play X-Wing back before Fantasy Flight decided that it needed a second edition overhaul that invalidated all the cards I had. Anyway, my concerns about Legion. It needs a lot of models. In a standard 800 point game you need at least 13 models, and that's barely going to scratch the surface. In a 28mm scale game (or maybe closer to 32mm?) that's more models than I care to have to paint. 

I'm also not, generally speaking, a big fan of licensed miniatures games. They tend to be a little pricier because of licensing issues, and they feel more narrow in scope since the creator of the game can't just make new stuff and when it comes to painting it feels really narrow if you wanna avoid people bitching about "you didn't paint it right!"

Okay, on to the actual game. Sorry, just needed to get those out there.

Stormtroopers prepare to move

Mechanically I actually enjoy quite a bit about this game. First thing I want to note is the turn priority. Using command cards from a hand of seven, trying to outplay the opponent to play the card with the lowest number of pips while also making sure you can get enough units orders that you wanted right from the get go. It adds an extra sense of outsmarting the enemy, and I know that commander and operative specific command cards can also have extra special effects on them. 

The order system is pretty neat as well. As I mentioned command cards will let you place order tokens on a certain number of units (and sometimes on specific types if I recall). So what happens with the units you can't issue orders to? Those tokens get shuffled up and put into a stack that you can draw from, essentially giving you a random activation order. This is one of my favorite mechanics in wargaming, so I was stoked to see it in some capacity here as well. When it's your turn to activate a unit you can either pick a unit on the board with an order, or pull from your stack depending on what you want to do.

The Speeder Bikes down a guy in a single salvo

Movement is one of the nicer things about this game as well. Each unit can move using a predetermined measuring tool (because FFG is apparently morally opposed to things like tape measures and not milking you for every cent you have with peripherals), with speeds of one, two or three. What makes it so nice is that you just move the unit leader, then place the rest of the models within move one of them. This speeds up movement immensely, and I like the idea that you can shuffle guys around to suit what your goal is. It adds a lot of flexibility and some tactical depth to positioning your forces.

Imperial Stormtroopers unleash a hail of blaster fire

 Combat is pretty simple, really, although it can seem clunky when trying to read it as written in the book. It does, of course, require special dice because it's a Fantasy Flight game, but I'm a little less hostile towards this than other folks. I will say, however, that it's bullshit to only give three of each dice when a basic squad of four Stormtroopers without any special weapons will need to roll four white attack dice. At the very least they could have included enough dice to preform a basic attack in the start box.

The trickiest part with combat, that we found, was figuring out defense and how many dice defenders got. It's not that it's actually complicated (you get to roll a die per hit rolled by your opponent), but the rulebook is laid out pretty terribly and we found ourselves having to flip through multiple pages to find some pretty basic information. In fact, the layout of the rules is one of the biggest gripes we had with the game. Some stuff just seemed to be in weird places, and it seems like it could have used another pair of eyes to point stuff out. It's not the worst book I've ever seen, but it isn't great by any means.

Darth Vader wants to play, too

I'll say this: I enjoyed most aspects of the game. It has those classic Fantasy Flight touches that can be a bit annoying (specialty tools for everything, several shipping containers worth of tokens, more cards than a desperate businessman), but overall it's a fairly solid game. Mechanically everything seems to work pretty well, and nothing seemed overly complicated but also not super easy and dumbed down (although I'm sure someone will argue that point with me).

The things that bother me most are the rulebook layout, the number of models required (honestly, the moment I need more than a dozen guys I want it to be 15mm), Fantasy Flight's seemingly inability to keep anything in stock (how long have B2 Battle Droids and Phase 2 Clone Troopers been out of stock now?) and the starter sets.

Wait, what's wrong with the starter sets? They seem a great deal! Sure, if you like both armies that come in them. If you don't, then they're sort of a pain in the dick. I know, I know, the idea is to trade with others or simply sell the models you don't want, but selling stuff can be a hassle and you might have stuff taking up space for a while. The trading argument really riles me up because this isn't a god damned card game, I shouldn't have to go around asking people for trades. I wish Fantasy Flight just did faction specific starter sets. Just take the models from the two player sets, maybe a different commander to entice people further, slap them in a box with some upgrades and get them on the shelves. It just seems so odd that they chose not to do this, and it bugs the hell out of me because that's just sort of what you do with a miniatures game. 

Luke Skywalker waltzes into the fray

Overall, I actually do like the game. Despite my issues with it, it is a solid game with some strong mechanics. Everything flows pretty smoothly, and there's a deceptive amount of depth here that one might miss by a quick glance. The Rebels and the Empire have tons of options and playstyles available, and it looks like the CIS and Republic are slowly getting there as well. The models are pretty nice as well, despite some wonky bases (seriously, they're like five inches tall). This is a good game, and if you're a Star Wars fan who loves land battles it's worth checking out. I don't see myself diving headlong into it right now, but it may well be on my list of future investments.

Hope you folks enjoyed this little look into Legion, and I'll hopefully have some hobby stuff done in the near future to show off along with more battle reports.