Battle Report: Three Way Dance

This past weekend I got together with my kung fu brothers Stevenik and Narbey for another game of MFZ.

Stevenik (4 Frames & 16 Systems) = (7 Points per Asset) * (6 assets) = 42 points.
Narbey (5 Frames & 20 Systems) = (5 Points per Asset) * (7 assets) = 35 points.
Me (7 Frames & 28 Systems) = (3 Points per Asset) * (9 assets) = 27 points.

Events of Turn 1 (DDC@11):
Stevenik seizes my unguarded Station.  I make a push towards the closer of his two Stations.

Stevenik: 49 points.

Narbey: 35 points.

Me: 24 points.

Events of Turn 2 (DDC@9):
Narbey starts to move towards Stevenik and destroyshis green Frame.  I regain the Station Stevenik captured.  I also seize Narbey's undefended Station.

Stevenik: 35 points.

Narbey: 30 points.

Me: 30 points.

Events of Turn 3 (DDC@7):
I destroy Stevenik's tan Frame and seize the Station it's guarding.  This vaults me into the lead.  Narbey retreats a Frame back to cover his one remaining Station.

Me: 33 points.

Narbey: 30 points.

Stevenik: 21 points.

Events of Turn 4 (DDC@4):
Narbey destroys two of my Frames and takes over the lead.  I start moving a lone Frame towards Narbey's remaining Station.

Narbey: 30 points.

Me: 27 points.

Stevenik: 21 points.

Events of Turn 5 (DDC@2):
Narbey destroys another of my Frames.  I destroy Narbey's HtH Frame after Stevenik puts a big Spot on it.  I attempt to seize one of Narbey's Stations and fall short after he reinforces it with a second Frame.  Narbey ticks the Doomsday Clock down to 0 to end the game.

Narbey: 25 points.

Me: 24 points.

Stevenik: 21 points.

Thoughts & Observations:

• I did not have any of Tom's record sheets for this game and my notes are a jumbled mess.
• Tom's record sheets really come in handy and I really need to get the file from him for those.
• Narbey wins again!
• Big Purple, my Mega-Beetle squad, really needs to be updated from the SSC load-out that I've had them in since they were created.
• I should have made a play for Narbey's second Station on Turn 3.  I may have manged to get inside the range of the Artillery Frame defending it on Turns 4 and 5.
• There was one squad from each of the major building block brands on the table, Kre-O, Mega Bloks, and Lego.

Purity: B0949 Bumblebee Disc Demolisher Review

This is one of the "new" 2015 Kre-O Transformers sets that hasn't been released in the U.S. yet.

Box.  MSRP is $19.99, which gives us a $0.11 Price per Piece.  I picked this up for $9.99 at Marshall's.  Which is a $0.06 Price per Piece.

Instructions.

Stickers.

Kreons.  For once we have some interesting parts here.  A Kre-O Octagonal Bar Plate, and their version of Robot Arms are really interesting.  Along with the fact that two of the Kreons have no hands.

Parts 1.  Lots of Plates, Tiles, Bricks, Slopes and a couple of Wedge Plates here.  Along with a few Kre-O versions of Technic Bricks and Liftarms.

Parts 2.  Plenty of Slopes in this parts bag, along with a few more Plates, rubber Tires, Wheels, Minifig Guns, Technic Bricks & Liftarms, a Disc Launcher, and a Minifig "coffin".

Parts 3.  Now we start seeing the small, fiddly bits we love.  Round Plates, Plates, Tiles, Grille Tiles, a variety of Slopes, 1x2 Brick w/Studs on one side, 3L & 2L Technic Pins, Technic Pin w/Axle, 1/2 Bushings, and we even have rubber bands!  The two blue rings in the upper right are the eponymous discs.

Build.  I managed to build two IO Cruisers and a Frigate from this

set.  I haven't tried to make any attachments for them but I still have plenty of leftover parts.  I could possibly make a HVA but I wouldn't have a base for it.

The Questions:
Can you build something -- a frame, station, or starship -- right away?  Yes.  (+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.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  Yes.  (+5)
Score: +5 (B+).  This is a decent set at the regular price point.  It's really good if you can get it at the same price I did.

The Friction of Fiction

Anytime I upload a picture of a build to Flickr I struggle with writing some snappy patter to go along with it.  I'm sure other people have this problem.  We throw together a combination of parts that makes us go, oooooohh, and then find that we have no idea how it might fit into the little gaming universes we've created for ourselves.

On top of that, there's trying to create stories set in your own little corner of the MFZ Solar Calendar to deepen the sense of immersion for the players.  Fabricating these out of whole-cloth can be difficult.  Myself and the other moderators on the Hangar would like to see more posted. I can understand though how putting words down on paper might be more than what some people are interested in while playing this game.  I'd like to point out a few that have been posted on the Hangar within recent months that I really like.

Unity by Atavism.

Planet Hansen by djmor.

Why We Wait by CmdrRook.

Purity: A6951 Transformers Cell Block Breakout Review

Let's finish out the week with something interesting.

Box.  MSRP of $16.99 gives us a $0.13 Price per Piece.

Instructions.

Stickers.

Kreons.  The usual.





Parts 1.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do with those heads.  The mylar wings might be good for terrain, the Trans-Clear pieces too.



Parts 2.  Those "X" shaped pieces in the lower left have my attention.


Parts 3.  Here's the meat of the set.  A bunch of ball joints, the Large Claw pieces I like so much, a bunch of Grille Tiles, 1x1 Round Plates, a couple Double Sided 1x1 Round Plates, a bunch of Small Claws, and a Kre-O Bar Claw.

Build 1.  Frame.

Build 2.  Frame.

Build 3.  Station.

The Questions:
Can you build something -- a frame, station, or starship -- right away?  Yes.  (+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.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  Yes.  (+5)
Score: +5 (B+).  Not a bad little set.  I've found it for $14.98 at TRU which might be a little easier to swallow.

Review: 30305 Spider-Man Super Jumper Polybag

Another old set I had lying around for a while..

Bag.  $3.99 MSRP which gives us a $0.11 Price per Piece.

Instructions.

Minifig.  It's Spider-Man!

Parts.  Several Robot Arms and Large Barbs, a few Trans-Light Blue Radar Dishes, and no more than two of everything else.  The Trans-Clear part in the lower right is the Super-Jumper.  It's meant to fling a minifig.  I'm not sure I can find a use for it.  Other wise, not too bad.

Build.  It's a simple SNOT variation on the
actual build.  MFZ Stats: 2Rd/1B/1G/1Y/2W.

The Questions:

Can you build something -- a frame, station, or starship -- right away?  Yes.  (+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.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  No.  (-5)
Score: -5 (B-).  This was a "free" giveaway at the Lego store but that doesn't make it any better.

Terrain & Scenery 6

Time for a new installment of neat stuff to have on your game table!

Lego 6927 All Terrain Vehicle by Billyburg.  This looks like it could be 6P
or 7P scale.  It's pretty greebly and has some nice techniques for the chassis.

Mobile Drilling Unit - Blip Operator by Peter Reid.  This would be great sitting

in the middle of a Sci-Fi mine battle zone.  It's tall enough to act as cover too.

Tokamak Reactor by c0d3monk33.  How did I miss this?
Built specifically for MFZ so you know it's to scale.  Awesome.

Wilderness Cabin by cmaddison.  Those trees are fantastic.  If you want

your mecha to be towering monsters, then this is the perfect scale for you.

Lego Blade Runner Spinner by _tiler.  Blade Runner, a seminal
science fiction film, and this is the signature vehicle from that film.

Review: 30185 Fierce Flyer Polybag

I finally dug this out of my "To Be Reviewed" pile.

Bag.  MSRP was $3.99 I believe, that gives us a $0.08 Price per Piece.

Instructions.

Parts.  Not a lot here but a good range of pieces.  Two Plate Mod. w/Bar (open ends), two 1x4 Hinge Plates, two Plate Mod. w/Bar (closed ends), a bunch of regular plates, some Tooth Plates, Clip Plates, several Flower Petal 1x1 Round Plates, some Cheese Slopes, and Clip Tiles too.

Build. A Frame of some sort, no attachments though.

The Questions:
Can you build something -- a frame, station, or starship -- 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: +10 (A-).  More than likely it's really hard to get, but worth it if you see it.

Sales Alert

Walmart has joined Target in the Clearance Crazy Zone.  I saw the following sets on Clearance at one of my local Walmarts.

31031 Rainforest Animals, was $14.97 now $11.00.
31034 Future Flyers, was $24.97 now $19.00.
31027 Blue Racer, was $4.97 now $4.00.
10695 Creative Building Box, was ??? , now $30.00.
75040 General Grievous Wheel Bike, was $24.97 now $19.00.
75053 The Ghost, was $89.97 now $64.00.
70224 Tiger's Mobile Command, was $79.97 now $59.00.
70749 Enter the Serpent, was $59.97 now $45.00.
70817 Batman & Super Angry Kitty Attack, was $9.97 now $7.00.
70818 Double Decker Couch, was $14.97 now $11.00.
70807 MetalBeard's Duel, was $34.97 now $25.00.
76028 Darkseid Invasion, was $69.97 now $49.00.

That;s just a smattering of the sets I saw marked down.  Good hunting!

Purity: CNC78 Mega Bloks Despicable Me Jelly Lab Review

I'd been eyeing this set ever since it hit the shelf.  I finally got a coupon that lowered the Price per Piece to an acceptable level.  I thought it had some interesting pieces, let's find out.

Box.  MSRP is $9.99,which yields a $0.12 Price per Piece.

Instructions.

Minion.  The arms and legs end in ball joints.

Parts 1.  We have an oddly layered and

angled Plate, two translucent Hoses, a

number of translucent Disks, Round Bricks,

Round Plates, and a Cone, plus a number 

of other pieces designed to plug into those 

Hoses.  And let's not forget the Antenna.

Parts 2.  A number of translucent Half-Spheres in different sizes, a bunch of Double Female-sided 1x2 Plates, some 1x2 Slope Bricks w/Internal Bar, more translucent Disks and 1x1 Round Bricks, a  translucent Connector of some sort, and a bunch of Bar Connectors.

Build. It's a Station. I didn't use all of

the half-spheres, just the red ones. It may

be a little tall but it doesn't go much outside

the 4 stud x 4 stud limitations.

The Questions:

Can you build something -- a frame, station, or starship -- right away?  Yes.  (+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.  (+5)
Does it have more than a handful of immediately useful parts?  Yes.  (+5)
Score: +5 (B+).  As long as you get this on sale, it can be a good set for fun, greebly parts.