Star Wars Miniatures

Every few months, I review one of my favorite games.  This month, we take a look at Star Wars Miniatures, which is a Collectible Miniatures Game. What, exactly, is that?
Let's start with the easy part- "Star Wars" is the theme of the game. Everything about it- characters, settings, etc.- is something that can be found in the Star Wars universe, be it in the movies, TV, comics, video games, or books. Thus, while the game can appeal to all, it perhaps will be enjoyed more by those who hold a certain fondness for this particular universe.

Moving on- what are miniatures? As the name implies, miniatures are scaled-down versions of the real thing- in this case, Star Wars characters, creatures, and vehicles.  Each miniature has an accompanying stat card which lists its cost to play, attributes and abilities.

A miniature with its associated statistics card

Finally- what makes it collectible? In a normal game, you buy one package that contains all the pieces you need to play. There's no need to buy more and the game stays static- the rules are neither altered, nor are the number of miniatures increased, as time goes on. A collectible game, on the other hand, is "living." You can’t purchase the entire game in one package. You need to buy a starter pack (containing rules, some miniatures to begin, and maps/dice/counters as necessary), and booster packs (containing random miniatures, which are unknown to you beforehand). You build up your collection by purchasing more of these packs. From your collection of miniatures, you then build a squad to field against your opponent. In this aspect, it's similar to baseball card collecting, or collectible card games like Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, or Pokemon.

The Object

In Star Wars Miniatures, you make a team of miniatures- called a squad- and place them on a map to battle against miniatures on the opposing squad(s) by using abilities described on each mini's associated statistics card. There are many such miniatures games- Dungeons & Dragons, Axis & Allies, and Warhammer, to name a few- and all have the same basic premise.  The object of the game is to destroy your opponent's squad by eliminating each miniature in that squad, which occurs when the damage you do to a given miniature exceeds its hit points (an attribute on the stat card).

Building a Squad

Before the game, you and your opponent agree upon the total cost of each squad beforehand- common values are 100, 150, or 200 points- and then you build a squad using miniatures that add up to that value (on each figure's associated statistics card, the cost to field that figure is listed). More powerful miniatures generally have a higher cost- for example, Boba Fett costs 50 points, but a stormtrooper costs only 5. You pick a squad based on several factors- figures that synergize well, the faction you're using (every miniature has a faction- Rebel, Imperial, etc, and you can’t mix them in your squad. Your squad can consist only of figures from your chosen faction and 'Fringe' figures- the neutral characters), strategy you’re employing, and your personal preferences.

The Gameplay

After the squads are chosen, you and your opponent agree on a map. The game has more than a dozen maps; all feature Star Wars locations (like Hoth, Endor, and Tatooine). Maps consist of buildings, rooms, pits, towers, etc, and have small squares superimposed over these features- squares in which you place and move your figures. The map you choose has different room layouts and leads to different options.

An example map

Now that you have squads and a map, you both place characters on the map in squares of your choosing (in accordance with game rules), make sure you have their corresponding stat cards nearby, and you’re ready to begin! You take turns (who goes first is determined by a die roll).  On your turn, you choose two figures and use them ("activate" them) one at a time by moving and/or attacking with them.  Then your opponent activates two, and you alternate accordingly until every figure has activated in a given round. Then, a new round begins, and the characters may all activate again. This process continues until one squad is completely defeated. Characters can do damage to each other by attacking and using their abilities. Once a character's received damage exceeds its Hit Points, it is defeated and removed from the map.

A game at the start

A game in progress

The Expansions

This game ran from 2004-2010, and during that time, featured a decent number of expansions:

Rebel Storm: original trilogy (OT) characters; introduced Rebel, Imperial, and Fringe factions
Clone Strike: prequel trilogy (PT) characters; introduced Republic and Separatist factions
Revenge of the Sith: focused on Episode III
Universe: Expanded Universe (EU) characters and others from PT and OT; the first set with 'huge' miniatures; introduced New Republic and Yuuzhan Vong factions
Champions of the Force: characters from all eras; introduced Old Republic and Sith factions
Bounty Hunters: all eras, but focused on bounty hunters/fringe characters; another expansion with 'huge' miniatures; introduced Mandalorian faction
Alliance and Empire: OT characters; had square bases (rather than standard circles)
The Force Unleashed: EU characters from the video game; another expansion with 'huge' miniatures
Legacy of the Force: EU characters from Legacy and Legacy of the Force comics and books
Knights of the Old Republic: EU characters from the video game and comic series
The Clone Wars: prequel-era characters from the TV shows
Imperial Entanglements: original-era and EU characters
Jedi Academy: all eras, but focused on force users
Galaxy at War: prequel-era characters from the Clone Wars TV show
Dark Times: original-era and EU characters from the comic series
Masters of the Force: all eras, focused on force users

Thoughts on the Game

The only collectible game I've played for its entire run, I certainly enjoyed Star Wars Miniatures- I even played in two tournaments while living in Germany.  Like anything else, it had its share of good and bad.

The good:
- It was Star Wars!!
- No chance element from card draws (like in card games); it was more about how you chose and played your squad
- The variety of characters and maps provided good replay value- no game was ever the same
- The rules were (relatively) simple and fun- once you got the hang of them- and yet it was tough to master

The bad:
- The chance element here was rolling die- the best squad could suffer from poor rolling
- There was an initial learning curve that put some people off
- There were no range restrictions on 'ranged' weapons (like guns)- If a character was a legal target, you could shoot at it from across the board and have the same odds of a hit as being very close to it.
- Games could drag on if the squads were too large (over 150pts) or too numerous (more than 1 on 1 got rough)

I've kept a decent collection from this game, and hope to play it for years to come with my friends and children.  It's not perfect, but it is fun.

Rating: A-