Databank Download: Kalani, Super Tactical Droid, and B1 Battle Droids

SWP01Kalani, Super Tactical Droid, and B1 Battle Droids

Sent to succeed where others have failed, today’s Star Wars™: Shatterpoint Unit preview takes a look at Kalani, Super Tactical Droid, and the B1 Battle Droids!

Rather than use flesh-and-blood warriors, the Separatists prefer mindlessly loyal soldiers that are easily controlled. Early in the Clone Wars, the Separatist droid army was often led into war by analytically minded tactical droids. Before long, the Republic was able to outmaneuver the tactical droids. Super tactical droids, like Kalani, are an improvement over the standard tactical droid. Kalani’s advanced processors and robust frame make him a threat to be reckoned with. B1 Battle droids are dim-witted and no match for clone troopers or Jedi, but they weren’t designed to be smart – they were designed to overwhelm their Republic adversaries through sheer numbers, something they do very effectively. Kalani leads the droids under his command with shocking tactical acumen against any enemy of the Separatists bold enough to face him. It is only a matter of time before they are all eliminated.

Kalani, Super Tactical Droid comes to the battlefield with an abundance of powerful support abilities that maximize the effectiveness of nearby allied Battle Droid characters. At the start of his activation, Kalani’s Roger, Roger ability offers a free dash to all allied Battle Droid Supporting characters within range 4. Then, for a single Force, he can use Tactical Network on a nearby allied Battle Droid to move them, bolster their defenses, or even allow them to attack!

Kalani’s tactics are harsh and uncompromising, but undeniably effective. His Innate ability, Target, Concentrate all Firepower, provides an extra attack die to allied Battle Droid characters that are sticking together and Complete Analysis allows him to be reserved using fewer resources than other characters to make sure his activation happens at the best possible time. His Stance, Cold Logic, provides a lot of ranged punch. His Expertise Chart for ranged attacks is extremely consistent, capping out at 2 expertise results to add a critical and 2 strikes. His Combat Tree is extremely versatile, dishing out damage, Shoves, conditions, a reposition, and even an Active ability trigger to follow up with Tactical Network after the attack. All this power doesn’t come for free, though, evident in Kalani’s point cost of 5. Kalani fits best with Primary Units that provide 8 or more squad points.

The core of the Separatist army is made up of B1 Battle Droids. Incapable of making complex decisions on their own, all of this Unit’s abilities are Innate – so will always be in play until the Unit is Defeated. Combat A.I. Protocols provides the Unit with some pre-programmed battle tactics and allows them to dole out conditions against the targets of their attacks as long as all characters in the B1 Battle Droid Unit are within range 4 of the defender.

Sometimes a lone soldier finds themselves in a situation where they need to take up the mantle of leadership for the good of the cause. Well, I Guess I’m in Charge, Now represents these droids making their ineffective attempts at seizing the initiative and allows the player to place this Unit’s Order Card at the bottom of their Order Deck when the B1s are placed in reserve. This Unit will likely account for a good portion of any strike team’s characters, so taking advantage of this ability is often a trade of early battlefield presence for a more effective later activation. When these droids do reach and contest an Active objective, they benefit from Protection to give them a little more staying power on account of their last Innate ability, I Hate This Job.

What the B1 Battle Droids lack in advanced processing power, they make up for in sheer numbers. This Unit’s Stance, Countless, reflects the immense numbers of droids that the Separatists can bring to bear in any conflict. With an early Reposition in the Combat Tree, B1 Battle Droids are extremely mobile when they attack. If the attacking character can manage to gain enough successes to run their entire Combat Tree, they can put out an impressive amount of damage – but their middling Expertise Charts don’t offer much in the way of consistency. Smart positioning and use of the reserve mechanic can mean the difference between victory or defeat for these rank-and-file droids. While the B1’s may not seem like the most hardened combatants, with a low point cost of 3 they can be easily fit into most squads, leaving room for more powerful Secondary Unit options.

That’s all for our first look at Kalani and the B1 Battle Droids!

Make sure to check back for our next Star Wars: Shatterpoint Unit preview, where we give you a first look at how your favorite characters from the Star Wars galaxy translate into the gameplay of Star Wars: Shatterpoint. Pre-order your own copy of the Star Wars: Shatterpoint Core Set at your local game store or through the webstore today.

Until next time, Atomic Mass Transmissions, signing off!