Chief Chirpa & Ewok Hunters Preview

For this preview we’re returning to the moon of Endor to talk about the growing arsenal of potent Ewok leaders and warriors of Bright Tree Village, featuring the great Chief Chirpa and his Ewok Hunters.

Bright Tree Village is a beautiful and fascinating place, perched high amid the trees of the forest moon and offering its inhabitants security amid a world whose wilds are filled with larger and extremely hostile creatures. Chief Chirpa has risen to a leadership position over his tribe, joining other elders in making sometimes difficult decisions to safeguard his people not only from wilderness beasts, but the encroaching soldiers of the Galactic Empire. The fate of Chief Chirpa and his tribe was significantly impacted by the arrival of prominent Rebels, including Leia Organa. Initially the chief agreed with Shaman Logray’s idea to sacrifice these newcomers, but he was persuaded by a demonstration of the Force by Luke Skywalker to at least hear their story. Chief Chirpa was quickly persuaded to accept the Rebels, even inviting them to become honorary members of the tribe, cementing an alliance that would lead to their mutual victory in the Battle of Endor.

Like all Ewoks, Chief Chirpa is of diminutive stature, but should not be underestimated as he is counted among the strongest and most shrewd warriors of his people. He has considerable combat experience facing the perils of his homeland and is highly respected by both the elders and subordinate warriors of Bright Tree. He can Mobilize the Village, augmenting the attack rolls of any Ewoks in his vicinity. His bond with his people is strong and he is acknowledged as a Bright Tree Defender. This Identity Ability allows him to react immediately to the wounding of fellow Ewoks, allowing him to bravely Reposition and strike at an adversary, or to more cautiously Dash to a better position and Heal, possibly mitigating harm done to an ally or recovering in preparation of an organized counterattack.

Chief Chirpa is a force to be reckoned with in melee, wielding his spear with skilled and deadly accuracy. This Sharp Stick provides Impact [2], giving an additional two dice to melee attacks benefitting from the focus action and depriving his target of any Protection they may benefit from. Like any wise Ewok, he chooses his targets carefully and is skilled at ambush and the diversionary tactics required to overcome larger or more technologically advanced enemies. Whenever possible he makes a Stealthy Approach, Dashing quietly ahead and hunkering down to mitigate incoming fire before striking an enemy unawares, harnessing the augmented focus action of his Sharp Stick. If an enemy is just out of his reach or if he intends to assist subordinate warriors, he may instead make a Bola Toss to tangle up a nearby adversary, leaving them Pinned or Exposed.

Whether Chief Chirpa is engaging the enemy with due caution or is entering a no-holds-barred brawl is reflected in his choice of Stances. He can embody the Fury of the Forest when his wrath is roused, maximizing his Melee Attack stats and drawing on a Melee Attack Expertise Chart with a high likelihood of granting extra criticals. The Combat Tree of this Stance can pack a serious wallop with high potential damage, but also bringing very useful tactical benefits. Even when maximizing damage, this tree can also inflict Pinned and Disarmed on the foe. Alternately, a small amount of damage can be traded for inflicting Strained, and either a Shove and Reposition, or opting to Expose the foe and Heal. The versatility of this Stance makes it very useful whenever melee is committed in earnest.

With the Bright Tree Elder Stance he chooses to fight with wary caution, balancing his Attack and Defense Melee stats and gaining a slightly stronger Stoic Guardian Defense Expertise Chart which can convert incoming criticals into failures. Worth noting this Stance is still strong for his own attacks and does not give up much for augmented defenses. The Stance’s Melee Attack Expertise Chart offers slightly fewer criticals but compensates with bonus damage. Its simpler Combat Tree is useful when trying to dislodge enemies from an objective, offering up to two early Shoves, or a Shove and Disarm, and the option higher up the tree to inflict Strained and possibly allow Chirpa to use one of his Active Abilities (such as making a Bola Toss).

Chief Chirpa is often accompanied by Ewok Hunters, being the slightly more numerous Ewok warriors found in the tribe alongside the previously discussed Trappers. Where Trappers are most comfortable in melee with their spears, Hunters prefer to attack at range with their bows, though all Ewok warriors can skirmish and be effective both at range or in melee.

Ewok Hunters make use of Coordinated Fire to augment their potent ranged attacks, a Reactive Ability that lets them inflict Pinned on a nearby enemy that other Ewoks are already attacking. Hunters can gain the benefits of making a Stealthy Approach, an Active Ability that lets them Dash and then gain a hunker token or make a focus action. They are also versed in the use of Camouflage, gaining a hunker token at the end of Setup. Also shared with other Ewok warriors is the preference to exploit Strength in Numbers, increasing the effectiveness of attacks when their target is already engaged with other allied Ewoks.

The different strengths and roles of Ewok Hunters vs. Trappers can be easily grasped by examining their respective Stances. Hunters employ the Walkabout Stance, which emphasizes attacking at range over melee with higher Ranged Attack and Defense stats, though they are certainly effective at both. Their Ranged Attack Expertise Chart offers good criticals and a chance of added damage, but their Melee Expertise Chart is quite decent. Combining this Stance’s Combat Tree with the Attack Expertise Charts demonstrates Hunters can be quite deadly, delivering substantial and consistent damage. The tree also offers an early infliction of Pinned, with a later option of either Shoving a foe or Climbing to a different position, and higher up the tree inflicting Exposed. Between this tree and the Coordinated Fire ability, Hunters are experts in Pinning adversaries in place, which can effectively thwart or slow the enemy advance.

Altogether there’s no denying that Chief Chirpa and the Ewok warriors are formidable combatants, a fact that has been proven in multiple battles Chirpa and his tribe have faced to win victory over allegedly superior foes. And in turn there are few things more satisfying or entertaining than playing an army of cute furry little Ewoks hunting down Stormtroopers or other Imperials to poke them with sharp sticks or turn them into arrow pincushions.

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Until next time, Atomic Mass Transmissions, signing off!