Battle Report: Creepy Crawlies (Part 2)

Continued from Part 1.

Events of Turn 3 (DDC@6):
I seize one of Stevenik's stations.

Tom: 42 points.
Me: 24 points.
Stevenik: 21 points.









Events of Turn 4 (DDC@4):
Tom destroys my yellow frame.

Tom: 42 points.
Stevenik: 21 points.
Me: 21 points.









Events of Turn 5 (DDC@2):
Tom destroys Stevenik's green frame.
Tom seizes Stevenik's other station.
Tom destroys my orange frame.
The Doomsday Clock ticks down to zero.

Tom: 48 points.  (5 frames & 3 stations)
Me: 18 points.  (3 frames & 3 stations)
Stevenik: 7 points.  (1 frame)

Thoughts & Observations:

• If you're aiming to be the Primary Attacker, as I was, bring more guns.
• As the Primary Attacker, I should have been more daring with placing my frames during set-up.
• My stations were remarkably unthreatened through the entire game.
• I'm really looking forward to our next game.

Battle Report: Creepy Crawlies (Part 1)

After a month off, the usual suspects managed to find some free time and get together for a game of MFZ:RA.  I'm calling this the "Creepy Crawlies" game because it 1) occurred in October, and 2) we all fielded multi-leg frames.

The point totals for the beginning of the game we as follows:
Stevenik (5 frames & 19 systems) = (7 points per asset) * (7 assets) = 49 Points.
Tom (5 frames & 20 systems) = (6 points per asset) * (7 assets) = 42 points.
myself (7 frames & 27 systems) = (3 points per asset) * (9 assets) = 27 points.

Here are pictures of the start of the game.










Events of Turn 1 (DDC@11):
Stevenik targets my Point Frame, the red one, and destroys it.
Tom targets my white frame and destroys it.

Stevenik: 49 points.
Tom: 42 points.
Me: 21 points.

The remains of two of my Crab Mecha.

Events of Turn 2 (DDC@9):
Stevenik's tan frame is destroyed.
Stevenik's blue frame is destroyed.
Stevenik's orange frame is destroyed.
We actually destroyed terrain!

Tom: 42 points.
Stevenik: 28 points.
Me: 21 points.

The battle for a rooftop.

To Be Continued...

Purity: A3370 Star Trek Kelvin Review

There was one more Star Trek small scale ship that I missed out on in the first set of reviews.  Here it is.

Package.  MSRP is $4.99.  Which gives us a Price per Piece of $0.15.  Not good.

Instructions and stickers.

Parts 1.  Hey, another light brick I will never use!
I've always liked the Trans-Blue Kre-O pieces.

Parts 2.  Another giant base I will

have to find a use for in the future.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  The set, as built to the instructions, falls inside the Cruiser length limit for IO.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Above.  (-10) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes, but not very many.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: B- (-5).  Like all of the small scale Star Trek ship sets, this one gets hamstrung by the cost.

Review: 30241 Mandalorian Fighter Polybag

Let's finish up the week with a Lego polybag.

Bag.  $4.99 for 49 pieces leaves us with a Price per Piece of $0.10.

Instructions.

Pieces.  Mostly plates and tiles.  I do see a Lampholder and a couple of the new, small brackets.  There's also that funky Double Pin w/Pin Holder Technic piece on the middle left of the picture.  All in all, not really a lot of exceedingly useful parts.

Creation.  I came up with a Scouting

Frame.  MFZ Stats: 2Y/1Gd8/2W.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  At.  (0)
(The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: B+ (+5).  This one's a little sparse but does have some useful pieces.

Purity: 3743 Speedy Racecar Idea Builders Set

The last review of the new Mega Bloks Idea Builders sets.

Bag.  I paid $3.00 at Target for this.  The Price per Piece is $0.09.

Instructions.

Parts.  Yay, wheels.  Mostly plates, tiles, and slopes -- studless and
inverted -- in this set.  The "T" shaped plate is really interesting because
it has that half stud offset that you usually only get with Jumper Plates.

Build.  Okay, I know, another IO frigate.  What

can I say, they're easy with these kinds of sets.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  A Frigate for MFZ:IO, again.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Below.  (+5) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: A- (+10).  This one's a little sparse but does have some useful pieces.

Random Mechs 9

Here's another set of mechs for your enjoyment.

Heavy Assault Drone "นาค" by MijeW. The Brothers Brick beat me to this one.  It looks like something from District 9.

Kabutops by Invader_Quirk.  I'm not sure why I haven't blogged

this before now.  The ankle connections look a little dicey though.

Infantry Drones by Ordo.  These would make a good "multiple units to a plate" frame.  Especially as the ankle and shoulder connections look a little flimsy for game play.

Titan YL by Si-Mocs. These look to be in

scale and have some great sticker use.

Ares by Max.  This looks like it would be excellent for 4P scale.  I wonder if it could actually be built in those colors?

Review: 30301 Batwing Polybag

Here's a review of the second Lego polybag from the Hallowe'en seasonal section in Target for this year.

Bag.  Purchased for $3.99.  That gives us a Price per Piece of $0.09.

Instructions.

Parts.  Lots of plates in this one, mostly of the wedge variety.  We have some slopes w/no studs of the 2x2 and 1x4 variety, along with some Cheese Slopes in opaque and translucent.  Some axle  holders, technic bits, a cone, a mudguard plate, a modified bracket, and a flame piece round out the selection.  The only piece out of this set that I can never have enough of is the translucent 2x2 studless slope.  They make great cockpit pieces.

Creation.  A Frigate for MFZ:IO, for the Nth time.  I call it the

Bat-Frigate, which has the following stats, 2Ra+d8/1G/2W.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Below.  (+5) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: A- (+10).  No minifig is a good starting point but beyond that I'm not seeing a lot to recommend this set.

Terrain & Scenery 3

Here's another set of interesting creations to make your gaming table pop.

Ambuscade by n7mereel.  Forget the minifig, look at that tree!

On the Tarmac at CGAS Kodiak.

More awesomeness from Matt Bace.

IMG_1555 by Christian Benito.  This is a great little diorama.

Micro ZIŁ 135 by [Maks].  I'm not sure what scale

this truck is at but it features a working suspension.

Container Truck by Wami Delthorn.  A nice sci-fi truck in 4P scale or so.

Purity: 3742 Offshore Racer Idea Builders Set

Another Idea Builders set.  Next to last of the four sets I bought.

Bag.  I paid $3.00 at Target for this.  The Price per Piece is $0.08.

Instructions.

Parts.  There are a lot of plates and inverted slopes in this set.  The pieces that most intrigue me are the two black ones in the lower left corner, 1x2 multi-slope bricks with studs on all three faces.  Those pieces look to be great for SNOT work.

Creation.  Another IO Frigate.

Stats: 2Ra+d8/1Y/1G/2W.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  A Frigate for MFZ:IO, again.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Below.  (+5) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: A- (+10).  These sets look to be a lot of fun.  No minifigs and some interesting pieces make these a great bargain.

Purity: 3744 Stunt Plane Idea Builders Set

Another of the new Mega Bloks Idea Builder polybags.

Bag.  I paid $3.00 at Target for this.  The Price per Piece is $0.08.

Instructions.

Parts.  A lot of plates and wedge plates.  Two of those funky "T" plates, two 1x5 stud plates, and a weird 2x4 Jumper Plate stand out from the plates.  Four bent bars, a short 2x2 cone, a 1x2 Studded Slope, and a Bar/Pin piece stand out for "regular" parts.










Creation.  Another IO Frigate.  They're a lot easier to create from small limited sets than frames.  Stats: 2Ra+d8 (wing guns) /1B (ECM spikes) /1G/2W

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  A Frigate for MFZ:IO is an easy creation.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Below.  (+5) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: A- (+10).  These sets look to be a lot of fun.  No minifigs and some interesting pieces make these a great bargain.

Purity: 3745 Battleship Idea Builders Set

The Mega Bloks site doesn't seem to have a listing for this line.  Well, it does have an Idea Builders line but it only has two sets and both of them are bigger than polybags.

Bag.  I paid $3.00 at Target for this.  The Price per Piece is $0.08.

Instructions.

Pieces.  We've got a couple of SNOT pieces here, a bunch of slopes including a 1x3 Double Inverted Slope and one 1x1 curved slope brick.  A few Bar Claws, one 1x1 Round Plate w/Bar, a T piece, a tiny antenna, a Modified Tile w/Bar, and a 1x2 Modified Slope all make for some interesting greebling.  Not to mention the majority of parts are in either Battleship Grey or Silver.  There is a 1x8 Plate missing from this picture though.  I discovered it while writing this review.







Creation.  Another Frigate for MFZ:IO.  Lets go with 2Ra/2Rs/1Y/1G/2W for stats.

The Questions:
Can you build a frame, or frames, right away?  Yes.  A Frigate for MFZ:IO is an easy creation.  (+5)
Is it below, at, or above the golden ratio?  Below.  (+5) (The Golden Ratio is $0.10 per part.)
If you can't build a frame right away, or choose not to, does it have parts you should be able to put into use right away?  Yes.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: A- (+10).  These sets look to be a lot of fun.  No minifigs and some interesting pieces make these a great bargain.