Director Orson Krennic has landed in Star Wars: Shatterpoint. Supporting him are his Death Troopers and Shoretroopers, providing more reinforcements for the Galactic Empire. Much like his portrayal in Rogue One and Andor, Krennic prefers to pull the strings from a distance and let others get their hands dirty (sandy?) for his own gains. The troopers play aggressively, but pushing them hard my cost you. Let's see if Krennic and his minions choke on their aspirations in this latest expansion!
Unboxing
The whole squad comes on a single sprue and includes two sets of four bases, which gives you a couple of extra bases and options to chose from for building. Like all of the latest AMG expansions, there are four sets of cards, each for the four languages (English, French, German, and Spanish). I usually save my extras for the inevitable card update and use them as backers for my print-and-play cards.
Assembly
In general, Shatterpoint expansion assembly is pretty easy and the instructions are straightforward. For me, the QR code on the included sheet wasn't pulling up the right page, so I Googled it and found the right link:
There are some very small gaps on the sides of the Shoretroopers and Death Troopers. If you want to fill them, a simple plastic gap filler, like Tamiya or Sprue Goo, is an easy way to fill gaps. There are mold lines throughout the models, which are easy to remove. These are pretty minor so paint may be just fine to cover them up, depending on how you built them.
BIG KRENNIC - The Elephant in the Room
One of the obvious and most mentioned/discussed/lamented aspects of this Squad Pack is the scale. Fortunately, all of the figures in the pack are to scale with each other. Unfortunately, they're all much larger than the other expansion packs. Krennic looks like he should really be playing for the Empire's basketball team and not be running the ISB. This is Krennic next to Cassian and Jyn from the All the Way and This is Rogue One expansions. Even with just their heads, Krennic is definitely not to scale. He towers over them, which is cool thematically, but it's not artistically or visually appropriate. Seems like it could have been an export or conversion issue when it went to production, because the box art even seems off (Krennic seems smaller than the others).
Big Krennic
The figures assemble pretty quickly, and I got them all assembled, the gaps filled, the mold lines removed, and everything ready for priming within 20 minutes.
As I do with my with all of my other Shatterpoint miniatures, I prime and paint the figures separately from the bases. I use double sided tape and affix them to extras bases. This allows me to quickly and freely paint the bases separately, assembling the model to the base once both are done.
Cards & Abilities
Director Krennic
With 9 SP and 2 Force, Director Krennic has a lot to offer the Galactic Empire, and he clearly has a lot of ambition on his card. Whoever he brings along, his 'Deploy the Garrison' and 'We Stand Here Amidst My Achievement' abilities give him some nice move and attack abilities to, potentially, wound or put down an enemy unit as a follow up attack. 'Your Concerns Are Hardly Warranted' gives Krennic the benefit of letting other units take the beating to reduce the amount of momentum your opponent gains. Being mindful of his stance gives you some options for his 'Peace and Security for the Galaxy' ability to either take control of a contested objective and prevent it being taken or to reduce his force usage. High Aspirations stance boasts an 8-die ranged attack, with a lot of effects from successes, especially for such a short tree. Arrogance stance has a lot more options for the tree, and his defense provides a little more survivability. While he's not going to be a main attacker, he's going to support those pieces that are and, thematically, swoop in for the killing point.
Death Trooper Specialist
This is the second time Death Troopers have appeared in Shatterpoint, with the first release being in the You Have Something I Want Squad Pack. The Death Trooper Specialist brings a lot for 5 PC. His combat tree gives him a lot of effects for the limited options, and he's rolling 7 dice from range or up close. 'Unrelenting Assault' is a nice second attack against another unit, giving the Specialist benefits for multiple targets. The 'Elite Conditioning' gives him some survival options, which, when paired with 'Imperial Brutality' can result in just the enemy character gaining Exposed(!). Adding that to the Strained token given through the 'Oppression' ability, and there are suddenly a lot of passive effects handed out that can weaken an enemy and stack up quickly, potentially exposing them to big heavy hit from another unit or squad (you know, like a Darth Vader).
Death Troopers
The first option in this pack for a Supporting Unit are the Death Troopers. At 4 PC, they are a good option for a squad, as they perform better with movement and can also provide some support to a Galactic Empire Primary. 'Tactical Advance' and 'Supporting Fire: Dash' allow for them to move in to support an ally, especially a Primary with the 'Protective Detail' that grants a Primary Cover(1). 'Elite Training' gives them a boost for melee combat and damage reduction, which works well with the Death Trooper's Specialist's 'Imperial Brutality.' As a Stormtrooper unit, they have one less stamina, but they're packing a little bit more of a punch with their combat tree and dice conversion. Overall, a decent Galactic Empire supporting unit to fit the need of some movement and attack.
Shore Troopers
The second option for the Supporting Unit are the Shoretroopers. At 4 PC, the Shoretroopers are similar to their Stormtrooper counterparts from the Fear and Dead Men Squad Pack, sharing both 'For the Empire' and 'Only Imperial Stormtroopers Are So Precise' abilities. While they do have one less stamina, they are meant to be a little more defensive than the Death Troopers. They want to have a Hunker token, which they can gain from 'Defensive Maneuver,' so that they can get an extra die when attacking using 'Garrison Force.' Additionally, they want to be contesting an objective, so really, they are meant to go an objective and hold it for the game. Or at least until the Death Star blasts Scarif.
It's a clever and good game design feature to have each of the Imperial troopers be considered 'Stormtroopers.' This future-proofs game development and, from a lore perspective, makes sense as each of them are troopers just with different specialties. So, they have some shared abilities, but then each get some abilities that align closer with their on-screen appearance.
Star Wars: Shatterpoint Deploy the Garrison Squad Pack
Great
Director Krennic offers some interesting abilities to help motivate/manipulate the Imperial troopers. The Death Trooper Specialist comes across as a nice secondary leader to help support other Galactic Empire units, while also being able to provide some lethality to the game. While the box is definitely solid, you will want to get another Galactic Empire-themed Squad pack to maximize the potential of these units. Despite their weirdly large scale, this is a great box for Empire players!
Pros
- Iconic Rogue One villains
- More options for Galactic Empire squads
- Two supporting unit options
- Easy to build
Cons
- Big Krennic
- Very minor side gaps and mold lines, but overall well hidden with armor and the cape
This review is based on a retail copy provided by the publisher.
The Deploy The Garrison Squad Pack is available now! Rogue One turns 10 years old this year, and now you can recreate the epic battle of Scarif on tabletop with this Star Wars: Shatterpoint expansion.
Follow Gaming Trend for more Star Wars: Shatterpoint articles and don't forget to check out the the second part of this review where we show you how to paint it up these pieces!
