Deck ID: 16641

Author: Hartman "Moff Hart" Andersen

Title: Death Star II—Operational As Planned

Side: Dark

Date Published: 2001-06-10

Description:
Fairly balanced Post-Tatooine DS II deck that deals Deadly Direct Damage throughout the galaxy, wherever it goes, sucking up any ships with tractor beams and using Admirals for extra battle destinies. Very fun to play

Rating:
4.5

Cards:

'Starting (5)

Endor

Operational As Planned

Moff Jerjerrod (in hand)

Death Star II (in hand)

Imperial Arrest Order (in hand)


Locations (7)

Death Star II DB

Death Star II Coolant Shaft

Death Star II Capacitors

Death Star II Reactor Core

Tatooine

Tatooine Docking Bay 94

Spaceport Docking Bay


Characters (14)

Admiral Piett

Grand Admiral Thrawn

Admiral Chiraneau

Captain Lennox

Commander Merrejk

Darth Vader with Lightsaber x2

Darth Maul x2

Emperor Palpatine x2

Janus Greejatus

Mara Jade, the Emperor’s Hand

Prince Xizor


Starships (6)

Tyrant

Chimaera

Avenger

Devastator

Executor

Death Squadron Star Destroyer


Weapons/Devices (6)

Tractor Beam x3

Superlaser Mark II

Maul’s Lightsaber

Mara Jade’s Lightsaber


Epic Event (1)

That Thing’s Operational


Admiral’s Orders (2)

We’re In Attack Position Now

Battle Deployment


Interrupts (17)

They’ve Shut Down The Main Reactor

In Range x3

Our First Catch of the Day x2

Flawless Marksmanship x2

Force Lightning

Imperial Command x4

Weapon Levitation

Twi’lek Advisor x3


Effects (2)

We Shall Double Our Efforts

Secret Plans '

Strategy: '

**********Updates.......

If you are really worried about the death star being blown up, put in 2 cards Set for Stun x2. You can track a good destiny and set for stun a matching pilot on an invading ship trying to blow up the DSII. When their pilot returns to their hand, they won’t be able to deploy back to the pilotless starfighter and their ship will be stranded in the sector, ha ha ha.


If you’re up against RST Podracing, you might have a hard time against major Light Side retrieval and damage for you when they blow up the bunker and win the podrace. You might have to come down in force with Dark Jedi’s at the bunker. Add Sebulba’s podracer to force the light side to rush the race (to win without having much to retrieve), or even give you a chance (maybe small) to win it. You could have luck and pull some big destinies for the race.


.........End of Update.........


Strategy (Please read, especially if you have never built the DS II)

I just played this deck yesterday at a local tournament (6 games) and knew that not many would be expecting it. It went 2 and 1, losing once only because I couldn’t find the Death Star II DB first turn and stupidly deployed Jerjerrod to the Tatooine Docking bay instead (bad mistake, as he deployed Lando with Vibro Ax on his first turn and killed the Moff—not worth it and it cost me the game).


I wanted to make a deck with huge direct damage that could definitely hold space and maybe one or two ground locations. This deck is the result.


First Turn Activate 3 + anything they give you. Deploy the Imperial Arrest Order, pull and deploy DSII DB and deploy Jerjerrod there (spies can’t deploy there now, only Jar Jar—don’t deloy Jerjerrod first turn if they start with Brisky Morning Munchen and have). Use Jerjerrod’s text to deploy the DSII Coolant Shaft. If you have an Imperial Command, you can pull Admiral Piett.


2nd Turn Activate 7 + anything they give you. Pull another Docking Bay and the DSII Capacitors. If you have Piett, deploy him to the DS II DB, then use him to pull Merrejk, who can pull Tatooine. If they deployed ships and moved to the DSII on their first turn, you should try to deploy a Star Destroyer, maybe a tractor beam, and then shuttle up the Moff and any others already deployed to the DB to the ship. This way, they can’t force drain you for 5 on the first turn. If you can’t deploy yet, you’ll have to draw up and eat a drain of 5. No matter for concern, just lose from hand.


3rd Turn Activate at least 9. Pull and deploy the DSII Reactor Core, another docking bay, That Thing’s Operational (using the reactor core’s text) and hopefully a Star Destroyer with tractor beam and/or admirals to the DSII. Use Twi’lek Advisor to deploy We Shall Double our Efforts. You should have out Tatooine by now and should have some good tractor beam interrupts in your hand. Move the DSII to Tatooine, or if they are playing Bespin, go there.


4th Turn If the DSII is orbiting Tatooine, and you occupy the system with a ship or two, they lose at least 2 from That Thing’s Operational. If We Shall Double our Efforts, they lose 3. If you control, they lose a force drain of 1 or 2 (with Chiraneau). Deploy Superlaser Mark II (using Jerjerrod’s text) on DSII.


Rest of the Game

You must suck up or destroy any ship that tries to take you off Tatooine (or any other system DSII is orbiting). Space is key. If they are draining at Kessel for three, go and kick them off, then continue your DSII Operations. This is what the tractor beams, interrupts, imperial commands, and Superlaser are for. You can easily hit Home One with the Superlaser Mark II. You also get an extra battle destiny at Tatooine (DSII Capacitor text). With just battle destinies alone, you can clear space (Grand Admiral Thrawn + star destroyer + Imperial command + the extra destiny because DSII is orbiting = 4 battle destinies). Your battle destinies aren’t too bad, with all of the destiny 4s, 5s and 6s recirculating in your deck.


No one is expecting tractor beams also. It is VERY easy to suck up any ship you want (other than mon calamari cruisers—in this case, shoot those out of the air with the Superlaser). For example, let’s say they have the millenium falcon with Captain Han on the ship and maybe 2 other ships with matching pilots. Captain Han adds 2 to maneuver of the ship, making it a maneuver of 6. You initiate battle and use In Range to target the falcon with your tractor beam for free during the weapons phase. This adds 2 to the tractor beam total. You also play Flawless Marksmanship to add 2, and Our First Catch of the Day to add 2. You already add 6 to the destiny and you need to draw a 1 to capture the ship Captain Han is completely out of the battle now Or, if they have Corran Horn to add an additional 2 to maneuver, then use the lost version of Flawless Marksmanship (add 4 to destiny). This is only for a ship with high maneuver. Usually, the ships with matching pilots have a maneuver of 3 or 4. After they have lost from attrition, you can then spend 2 force to use the Tractor Beam text to suck up another ship. Once you have tractor beamed a couple of their ships, they are going to be very scared of you in space and will probably have lost big from battle damage.


After you dominate Tatooine and control it with a couple star destroyers with at least one tractor beam, you can focus on controlling/occupying 1 or two of the DBs with you Dark Jedi’s. You should have enough to at least control 1 ground site, no matter how tough they are on the ground. If you do, you are making them lose huge damage. For example (and this happened yesterday in the tourny I went to), if you control Tatooine with Chiraneau and occupy and control two Tatooine sites with We Shall Double our Efforts on table, you will make them lose 5 direct damage, plus your force drains (2+1+1+any force drain bonuses with lightsabers). That’s about 8-11 force loss near the mid to end of the game, every turn The light side usually can’t compete with that, especially after you beat them up in space with admirals and tractor beams.


Calculated Risk They still can blow up the Death Star II, making you lose 24 force, ouch But, they have to have the right ships with matching pilots and high maneuver. It usually takes them 4 turns to make it to the reactor core and by then you have demolished them with force drains and direct damage. Here’s a trick if they try to invade the death star deploy in force to the DSII system and demolish them before they can move from the system to the first sector. You can also use They’ve Shut Down the Main Reactor to prevent one of them to move, then you beat down on them hard.


Card Choices

I originally started with Endor Operations for more activation, but couldn’t spare the room with all the tractor beaming and stronger ground forces. I do know that Strike Planning could screw with my activation on Endor. If you know of some cards to take out and trade so I can use the objective, let me know. I know that I can’t take out any tractor beaming cards. It would mess up the efficiency.


6 Star Destroyers Might not sound like enough, but you only need one at the beginning of the game with one tractor beam.


Captain Lennox Allows you to tractor beam during your control phase.


Tyrant Adds one to tractor beam destinies.


Admiral’s Orders Use We’re In Attack Position Now at the beginning of the game for immunity to attrition for your ships, and cheap pilot deploy. Use Battle Deployment in the mid-end game so your opponent only gets 1 battle destiny on the ground during battles.


They’ve Shut Down the Main Reactor Huge for beat downs and stopping a ship in their tracks


We Shall Double Our Efforts This is a No-Brainer. It Adds 1 to X for more direct damage, and subtracts 5 from their maneuver if they invade the DSII sectors. Also, if they actually make it to the Reactor Core, it subtracts 2 from their total when trying to blow away the Death Star II.


Imperial Arrest Order Start with this so that you can get the DSII DB out first turn, for Jerjerrod’s deployment. I don’t start with Desperate Counter because I don’t pack Combat Response. If I did, I would have to pack Scythe 1 and 3, their matching pilots and 2 SFS L-s7.2 TIE Cannons, and would mess up the efficiency of the tractor beaming or scimp more on the ground forces. If you are really worried about them blowing up your DSII, then pack the Scythes package and Desperate Counter, to make their maneuver even less. (I wish I had room for the Scythes, they are awesome).


Matchups

EBO – If they are doing Non-Uniques, you will have to tractor beam as best you can and use the Imperial Commands. If they are doing matching pilots, you can wreck them with tractor beaming and extra battle destinies.


Hidden Mains – Space should not be a problem, but deploy wisely on the ground and come down in force. Use your lightsabers and Force Lightning well. Secret Plans will hurt their retrieval and your direct damage will do them in.


Hidden Base (space draining) – You should dominate space again and direct damage will smart for the light side.


Profit – Don’t start with any aliens in the Audience Chamber. Stick to your game plan and you both will cause each other direct damage.


Agents In The Court—Stick to your guns


Podracing—You won’t lose much if you lose the podrace. Direct Damage will rule.


Quiet Mining Colony—Occupy the Bespin System with DSII and kick them out of space with tractor beams and imperial command. They might have some tricks up their sleeves for space, (Intruder Missile, Ten Numb, and Power Pivot). The key here is for you to deploy and initiate the battle and tractor beam the Ten Numb’s ship first. With space in your hands, move in slowly on the CC sites and direct damage will rule.


Against others? Stick to your plan.


Sorry about the lengthy strategy section. I think you’ll find that this is fun and pretty tournament viable. '