I'm going to a Blood Red Skies Tournament on February 2nd in York. I'm only down as the sub in case we have odd numbers, so probably wont get a game, which is fine. But I still need to take a squadron "just in case", and the choices are driving me mad.
Originally I was planning to take a fairly standard 5 plane list of La5FNs. They're a solid choice at 31 points each and for a 500 point list I could get an Ace and a couple of reasonably skilled pilots, with the odd Rookie to make up the numbers. I also love La5s as I said before here "The WW2 plane I love best is.... Then doubt and "meta" happened. Building a list for any sort of game brings out the worse in me, and many others. I try to work out what the optimum choice will be. Is it better to take fewer planes and get better pilots, or more planes and poor pilots? At the moment there is no maximum number of planes allowed - but that is going to change with Air Strike to cap Squadron size to eight - and having a lot of planes brings advantages in resilience. Last year at a similar event I met a swarm of Rookie Hurricanes and they scared the bejesus out of me! On the other hand can a well handled small squadron hold its own against a "swarm" of less skilled opponents?
The other problem is the tyranny of the internet. Everyone has their own opinion of what constitutes a good list - and they're happy to tell the world. The problem is some people don't just offer this as an opinion or suggestion, they insist it is the one true word and everyone else is deluded. What I suspect is these prophecies are self fulfilling - if you use "x" like this then you will win. So people try it and some do, and they too become prophets of "x" when of course there is always "y" that will beat "x" - and then "y" is the next thing and so it goes. Luckily BRS isn't there yet, and I suspect with so many variables it will never really get there. Hopefully
So I decided to do something a bit more "fun" and run Squadron of MiG3s. MiG3s are a bit rubbish to be honest. Actually they're quite a lot rubbish because they have the "Sluggish" Trait. I rambled on about it a while ago here One Trick Pony . On the other hand, they are simple to play, because you don't have so many choices, and MiGs are very cheap at only 14 points each, so I can afford to take a full six and still have plenty of points to get good pilots, which counts for a lot in BRS. So I decided to give it a go. I'm taking Pokryshkin as an Ace, and I can take the rest as pilot skill 4 (Vets) and 3 (Experienced). Pokryshkin is one of the Aces who rather than being that good himself, he can assist other pilots within 6" when they attack, and he is also one of the few Aces that can negate the "Sluggish" Trait - so he can out manoeuvre opponents. To cap it off (pun intended) I will be using the Low Altitude Performance Doctrine, which hopefully will allow my MiGs to get themselves back in the fight quickly, and Bad Weather, so I can get plenty of clouds to hide in (!), plus it inflicts one "Boom" chit on both sides before the game starts, so with what I am hoping is a numerical advantage it will have a greater impact on my opponents rather than me. Lastly I am taking the "Drop tanks" equipment card. I'm not 100% comfortable with this as I cant find any reference to MiGs using them, bit some other Soviet fighters did have something similar, so ...... it's a competition not a history lesson. Drop tanks allow squadrons to negate some starting disadvantages, at a cost of performance on turn 1.
So that's it. List building can be agony for me - and the urge to squeeze the maximum out of the 500 points is a curse. But in truth, the exercise in itself is interesting. I also enjoy the games - playing against different people with different ideas is always interesting, even if I sometimes get my arse handed to me.
I will report back on what happens after the event - assuming I have a shred of confidence left, but on the off chance you are anywhere near York on February 2nd why not drop by Vapnartak, (link) take in the show, which is excellent, and maybe drop by the BRS Tournament and say Hi!
Cheers
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