NoSoup4you wrote: ↑Mon Jan 17, 2022 1:59 pm
Thanks all. I would be interested in trying 1E with the normal ruleset, but I don't really know where to begin. The strategy articles are more about specific decks than things like who to send on early missions, what random skills are in demand for surviving dilemmas, etc.
Yeah, I will echo the "when in doubt, attempt early" sentiment. In 1E, dilemmas can be really devastating. Sometimes you'll lose an entire ship or Away Team. But when that happens, you've learned something. The worst thing you can do is not attempt missions, because then you don't learn anything.
The
Affiliation HQ pages list top 10 dilemmas, so that's a good place to start for what dilemmas to expect. Note that for
Chula: The Game,
Experience Bij! and
Friendly Fire, there is a slim chance of actually overcoming them, so it's really about hitting them as soon as you can so that they expire as soon as possible.
My personal strategy is that on turn 2 (or 3 at the very latest), I look at who I have in play, determine if there is anyone I need to hold back and protect, then send everyone else at a mission. The personnel I protect are typically:
Anyone needed to power my plays or draws. If I'm planning on drawing using
Deyos or an Anthropology personnel at a
Duck Blind, I don't send them to face unknown dilemmas.
One
personnel if I don't have any left in my hand. If I need a second ship, I want to be able to staff it right away.
Anyone with a particularly rare skill. For example, when playing Federation, I've been more protective of Treachery personnel since Feds don't have a lot, and Treachery has been useful lately.
If you want, you can also borrow a deck for one of our tournaments. That's what I did for my first constructed tournament (...since the 90s...). I basically always have extra decks with me, like my
TNG Fed deck. Or if you ask in the tournament planning thread, I'm sure other players would be glad to bring an extra deck or two.