There are already many games based on the Pandemic mechanics. We were able to play in ancient times in The Fall of Rome , move to Azeroth in World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King , and close the gates in Pandemic: Age of Cthulhu . The latest offer in this series is Star Wars: The Clone Wars , where during the game, as the title indicates, we will have to fight in a distant galaxy.
Lightsabers in hand
However, before we draw our lightsabers, we need to prepare for the game. Place the board in the center of the table, and place the markers on the starting spaces of the invasion and threat tracks on it. We choose a villain, take its components and follow the instructions on the selected sheet, then place the droids on the planets randomly indicated by the invasion cards. Everyone chooses their Jedi Knight and begins the game at the location shown on the character card. Players also receive a hand of cards from the troop pile, depending on the number of players. The final stage of preparation is to create the mission deck and draw two starting missions to mark them with tokens on the game board.
A turn consists of four stages. First, we prepare the cards used in the previous move for reuse. Then we perform up to four actions in any configuration and order:
– Flight – movement up to two steps;
– Call for reinforcements – drawing 1 squad card;
– Attack – dealing damage to an opponent on the same planet based on the roll of the dice and cards, and receiving wounds;
– Accepting a mission – completing a mission card if you meet its requirements.
The third stage is the villain’s move. We reveal the top card of his pile and resolve it. After that, the invasion takes place, i.e. we add more droids to the planets indicated by the invasion deck. Players take turns until all missions are completed and the villain is defeated (win) or the marker on the threat track is moved to the last space (lose).
Droids are not afraid of us
Star Wars: The Clone Wars is a co-op game that isn’t too difficult. Thanks to this, young fans of the Jedi Knights will also be able to sit down at the table and try to defeat the droid army with Maul or Count Dooku at the helm. Each of them affects the situation in the galaxy differently, so the games will differ depending on who will be our main opponent.
The good side of the Force can also use various skills. Each Jedi has a card that describes an additional free action. The key is to use it at the right moment and consult it with others, because there are abilities that affect fellow players.
The games are quite atmospheric thanks to the graphics, nice figures and a good connection of mechanics with the theme. It will be a great proposition for fans of Star Wars . In my case, the known license outweighed the fact that I don’t like cooperative games. During the game, everyone ultimately decides about their character, so we are not threatened by the presence of the “alpha player”, who often takes over the reins in cooperation and wants to control the movements of all co-players. Of the three different versions I’ve had the opportunity to play, this one is my favourite. It could be a bit more difficult, but it’s still a good representative of the whole series.
