My Ally Is the Force

"Judge me by my size, do you? Hmm? Hmm. And well you should not. For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is."
     –Yoda

It is the power that binds the galaxy together. It flows through all things and gives the Jedi his power—even as it powers the Sith. Those who have the means to draw upon its strength can use it to perform incredible feats—augment their strength, levitate objects, sense emotions, influence others' minds, and call lightning to hurl at their foes…

This mysterious and mystical energy is, of course, the Force, and it is arguably the greatest power in the Star Wars galaxy.

Now you can bring more of this mystical power to your games of Imperial Assault with the three new Ally and Villain Packs now available at retailers everywhere!

• Maul Villain Pack
• Emperor Palpatine Villain Pack
• Ahsoka Tano Ally Pack

To Be a Force User

Each of these new Ally and Villain Packs introduces a sculpted plastic figure, a deployment card, and a handful of command cards.

The figures give Maul, Ahsoka, and the Emperor new depth and dimension. They replace the ally and villain tokens from Heart of the Empire and enhance the characters' presence in your campaign and skirmish games.

The deployment and command cards, however, do something else entirely. They bring the Force to your tabletop and allow you to wield it against your opponents.

In Imperial Assault, each unit's talents are represented in terms of attack dice, defense dice, hit points, and abilities. And they come with traits that connect them to a number of different abilities they can access via your command deck. For the game's Force Users, these abilities can often influence the game in dramatic and surprising ways.

Like Maul and Ahsoka Tano, most Imperial Assault Force Users feature abilities that relate to their weapon of choice—the lightsaber. For Maul , this ability is his Dual-Blade Fury, and for Ahsoka , it's her Twin Sabers. These abilities relate to the characters' individual fighting styles, but their mastery of the lightsaber is further reflected in their surge abilities. Both of them boast the Pierce 3 surge ability that's common to nearly every character who wields a lightsaber.

The Emperor , on the other hand, comes with abilities that better reflect his use of the Force to manipulate others and electrocute his foes with Force Lightning. These abilities guarantee the Sith Master is never unarmed, and they pair well with the command cards from his Villain Pack to make your skirmish games feel like more than figures and dice. They evoke the Star Wars source material that inspired them.

As an example, you might reinforce the Emperor's Force Lightning by playing the Force Lightning command card from the Core Set. Unleashing the Emperor's full fury, this combination can deal a whopping six damage to a single figure, plus three damage to each figure adjacent to it, and if the Emperor's primary target survives, that figure will still be Stunned and Weakened. Add in the Corrupting Force command card from the Emperor Palpatine Villain Pack, and you might deal as much as eight damage to one figure, five to each figure adjacent to it, and two to everyone else… Talk about showing your rival the true power of the dark side!

The theme of sudden surges in movement runs through another significant portion of the game's Force User command cards, and you'll find this theme given additional support in the form of Dark Energy , Force Push , and Force Jump . The first of these appears in the Emperor's Villain Pack; the latter two appear in Ahsoka's Ally Pack.

While it's always advantageous to have as much movement available to you as possible, it's not always advantageous to have all your movement listed on your deployment card. If you've ever played a skirmish with Obi-Wan Kenobi in your list, you've probably wished he could cover more than four spaces with a single move action. But his limitations—as shown on his deployment card—are open information and available to your opponent while he or she is planning the next round's activations.

What he or she doesn't know is how much movement Obi-Wan, or your other Force User, is about to gain from the command cards in your hand. If the expectation is that Obi-Wan can only cover four spaces before attacking, your opponent might not be ready for the Jedi to Force Jump five spaces—straight over normally impassable terrain—and ignite his lightsaber.

These kinds of surprises—as well as those that come from watching Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker (Jedi) Deflect a blaster or two—are what make the Force such an intriguing part of an Imperial Assault skirmish. It flows through the whole game, preventing it from becoming too obvious—keeping it mysterious. The hidden information is central.

Even with the surge for a bonus point of accuracy and the two points of accuracy from its Charged Shot ability, the Sentry Droid's shot misses when Ahsoka's Deflection reduces the accuracy from seven to five.

Figures Full of Surprises

"The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force."
     –Darth Vader

Wield more of the Force. Fill your skirmishes with surprises. Inspire the Rebels and Imperials in your campaigns to new heights.

Three of the galaxy's most notable Force users are now available for your games of Imperial Assault.

Head to your local retailer today to pick up your copies of the Maul Villain Pack (SWI47), Emperor Palpatine Villain Pack (SWI48), and Ahsoka Tano Ally Pack (SWI49)!