First game of the Chocolate League — and what a way to kick things off!
After a week of feeling under the weather, it was nice to get back on the virtual table again. Huge thanks to Zog (Andrew Preyer) for staying up late to play; our nine-hour time difference made scheduling a bit of a puzzle, but we made it work.
And yes, the result: 10-1 win, 475–98 (MoV 377).
But don’t let the numbers fool you — this wasn’t an easy stroll through the park.
The Setup
Zog had the bid (399 to my 400) and took first player, choosing my Intel Sweep.
Probably the right choice on both counts. Though I must say, I feel Intel Sweep is somewhat underrated these days.
Anyway. That told me what kind of game we were going to have: fast, direct, and bloody.
Zog’s Fleet — “Romodi Drone Strike” (399 pts)
Gladiator II (Insidious): Romodi, Minister Tua, Ordnance Experts, Engine Techs, Rapid Reload, ECM
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Gladiator II (Demolisher): Kallus, Ordnance Experts, Engine Techs, Flechette Torpedoes
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Gozanti Assault Carriers: Munitions Resupply
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Gozanti Assault Carriers: Munitions Resupply
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Squadrons (133): Darth Vader (TIE/D), Morna Kee, Boba Fett, Tel Trevura, VT-49 Decimator, Firespray-31
A potent mix of flak-happy Gladiator IIs backing up a brutal 133-point rogue ball: let the rogues bomb everything into dust while the GSDs keep the skies clear and pick off anything that dares to come close.
General Romodi commanded from an Insidious loaded to the gills, with Demolisher prowling nearby like a predator. Add in Vader, Morna, Boba, a Decimator, a Firespray, and Tel Trevura, and you’ve got a squad ball that can eat most ships alive.
Zog said the list was “crowd-funded” — a community effort of sorts — but don't let that fool you: that rogue ball can eat anything, and fast.
My Fleet — “Krushya Liberty” (400 pts)
MC80 Star Cruiser (Liberty): Kyrsta Agate, Intel Officer, Caitken & Shollan, Engine Techs, Ion Cannon Batteries, XI7, XX-9
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Assault Frigate Mk II B (Gallant Haven): Ahsoka Tano, Flight Controllers, ECM
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GR-75 (Bright Hope): Toryn Farr
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GR-75: Hondo Ohnaka, Comms Net
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Squadrons (98): Fenn Rau, Jan Ors, Shara Bey, Tycho Celchu, 2× A-Wing Squadrons
Between Gallant Haven, Jan Ors, and Fenn Rau, I’d hoped to keep my A-wings alive long enough to make a difference. But against that rogue death ball? Yeah, no — this was never going to be a “sit back and escort” kind of game.
Deployment & Plan
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| Setup/R1 |
The Assault Frigate (the “potato”) went out as my Intel Sweep ship, circling the field to collect tokens while staying out of immediate danger.
Meanwhile, Liberty took the flank, ready to sweep up and around to put pressure on the enemy fleet, with the GR-75s offering token support and backup flak.
My general idea was simple:
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Engage the rogues early, before they could pick targets freely.
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Focus fire on whichever GSD presented itself first.
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Pray that Liberty’s Agate defense stack could tank through the counterpunch.
The Battle
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| Start R2 |
I made the first aggressive move in Round 2, throwing in my squadrons late in the round to tie some of Zog’s rogues and kill Morna Kee outright.
From there, the battlefield fractured.
He sent part of his squad ball after Liberty, while the rest hung back to protect his Gladiators.
Good news: fewer rogues to deal with at once.
Bad news: they were already bombing my flagship.
The key moment came in round 3 when Liberty lined up a medium-range shot on Demolisher — a beautiful salvo that almost finished the job.
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| Mid R3, Demo remains in place after ramming the Goz |
If I’d had one more CF die or Spinal Armament instead of XX-9s, it would’ve been a clean kill. Instead, Demo limped away on one hull… only to die the following turn.
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| Mid R4, Demo is gone |
Endgame
Zog wasn’t done yet.
His Insidious, supported by a VT-49 Decimator and Vader, made a fierce push on Liberty (even getting an Insidious butt-shot at medium range), hoping to finish her off before she could escape.
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| Start R6 |
But the math caught up with him — every point of hull he risked brought him closer to a tabling.
And in the end, that’s exactly what happened.
Insidious went down, securing the table, and I claimed three Intel tokens to his none.
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| End state |
Final Score
475–98 (MoV 377) — 10-1 Win
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400 from the table
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75 from Intel Sweep
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Lost all my squadrons (98 points), as expected
After-Action Thoughts
This was one of those games that looks lopsided in the results but was much closer in feel.
My Liberty barely held together; if she’d gone down, it could easily have been a 6-5 the other way.
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Gallant Haven and Toryn Farr didn’t pull their weight this time — not their fault, just not the kind of battle where they shine.
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Ion Cannon Batteries + XX-9 turned out to be redundant (and the one time Ion Cannon could have mattered, I forgot to trigger it…).
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XX-9 alone was solid, but with no Dodonna, I’d much rather have TRCs or Spinals next time.
My squadrons performed decently. I knew they were on borrowed time against that many rogues, and they bought me what I needed: time and breathing room. Tycho should have lived longer (user error), but the rest did their jobs.
Zog’s squad play was very good — losing Morna early hurt, but she absorbed my entire alpha strike, so arguably a fair trade.
And his use of the Gladiators was clever; Romodi + GSDs isn’t a combo you see often, but it definitely has legs.
Closing Thoughts
A great opening round. The fleet felt fun — not flawless, but fun — and that’s what the Chocolate League is all about.
Next up: Round 2.
Let’s see if Liberty can stay sweet, or if she’s about to melt under pressure.
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