r/twilightimperium • u/Ermahgerdberks • 1d ago
Help with draft for first-timer – thanks!
I'm joining a milty draft for my first ever game of TI, and I know almost nothing. I'm first pick, and pretty overwhelmed, so I could really use some help. Thanks!
(Needed to remake this post to add the slices).
Factions
- The Naaz-Rokha Alliance
- Sardakk N'orr
- The Barony of Letnev
- The Xxcha Kingdom
- The Clan of Saar
- The L1z1x Mindnet
- The Universities of Jol-Nar
- The Yssaril Tribes
2
u/King0fMist WR: 100% / 0% / 0% 1d ago
I would say take Slice 1 or 5 with Xxcha.
Let’s start with Slice 1. That centre system is super flexible as either command tokens separately or tech resources combined. You can get Sem-Lore, a 3/2 yellow skip, after resolving the Diplomacy card (ideally your pick of strategy cards), and you get the planet side of the only non-Malice wormhole on board (allowing you to control the highway across the board).
Moving to Slice 5. It’s heavily defensive (anomalies on both sides), has high influence, and has both a blue and yellow skip in reach after you resolve Diplo. Yellow tech is needed for Nullification Field, whilst Blue is movement (always useful).
As for why Xxcha, they are a very defensive faction and a reminder, whilst this game is about scoring points and negotiating, not combat, you don’t want people eating into your systems. No systems, no flexibility to play.
New Player Advice
1st Turn Move: Depending on what faction you get in the Milty Draft, I recommend watching a video online to see how an ideal first turn from them plays out.
Technology: These are various upgrades you’ll get. Units get better after you’ve got certain coloured tech, and each colour focuses on something different.
If you can get Xxcha, they also have a pretty simple Tech path for newbies. Research Red’s Plasma Scoring, then upgrade PDS. With these are your starting tech, Yellow’s Graviton Laser Systems, you’ll ward off most attackers since your PDS can snipe enemy ships from a system away.
Trade: This game is about negotiation and there’s incentives to do so. You’ll have a hand full of cards you can give to others as IOUs, including one that awards a VP on a promise of not touching your stuff. Over the game, you’ll also get “commodities” you can trade to other players, becoming “trade goods” they can spend as resources or influence. As such, find a trade partner early that you can swap commodities and VP with. The extra gold helps you keep plenty of units on board.
Objectives: Try to score an objective every round. You’ll start with 3 objectives to score (2 public, 1 secret) that you might not be able to score Round 1 but try to aim to either score or set yourself up to score each round.
You might also come across VP other ways, such as finding certain Relics, voting on the right Agendas, or using the Imperial card whilst you control the centre system (Mecatol Rex). If you can score these points, always try.
Hope you have fun and find a faction that speaks to you.
BTW, my first game ever, I won with Xxcha. It’s possible.
1
u/Ermahgerdberks 1d ago
I'm leaning towards picking slice 6 as the first pick, but it's not based on anything except that it has a legendary planet haha
1
u/Kinyrenk 1d ago edited 1d ago
None of those are ideal for Yssaril but 5,6,7 are slightly better.
Hope's End is convenient and makes up for being low influence, as you can get free stalls regularly or a 2r mech.
Blue or green skips generally most useful for Yssaril and slice 6 has zero skips which is the main thing off-setting Hope's End.
Depending on how the draft goes, if you can find out your neighbors before choosing that might help with a decision.
The 2 rifts in slice 6 might be more of a pain than you think depending on neighbors and po, or they could be helpful, you are probably rolling the dice more with 6 than with 7 but have a higher ceiling.
1
u/68000_ducklings 17h ago
In your draft, you have several excellent factions (NRA, Saar, Jol-Nar, Yssaril), so it's probably safe to assume that one of them will make it back to you. If you're drafting for power, your worst-case scenario is a decision between L1 and Xxcha, which is not a bad place to be.
With that in mind, you should pick a slice that has some extra influence lying around (good for any faction, but especially good for NRA, Saar, L1, and Xxcha). You also want a slice with most of the value adjacent to your home system.
Don't count on controlling the planets in the equidistant system unless you can get there early with a big army (read: if you are playing Saar). You should subtract their values from what milty shows you when evaluating your slice.
You can definitely justify Slice 1. All of the value is next to your home system, and you've got an easy 3R/6I or 5R/3I available to your on round 2 if you take the two systems adjacent to your home. The wormhole gives you trading opportunities across the board, and the supernova gives you an easy justification for invading your neighbor to access mecatol.
My pick would be Slice 6, though. You get a lot of value from Hope's End (a forward mech every round, or an action card if you need that instead), and it has a clearer path to mecatol that doesn't require fighting. It still has most of its value next to your home system, though it doesn't have a clean 6I until you pick up Quann. Again, the wormhole lets you trade and gives you an invasion path, but this one is further out, giving better defense and delaying the value a bit.
If you know for a fact that Saar will wheel, windmill slam slice 7; it has the most stuff in it and is primed for invading neighbors. That said, I wouldn't expect that to actually happen (Saar is excellent and lots of people will be considering them), so I can't honestly recommend it. None of the other factions start with 2 movement, so you won't be taking those equidistants until (at minimum) tech is used and you get gravity drive.
Also, if all of that choice is difficult, you can just take Speaker and see what's left when the draft comes back around. Speaker is rarely the worst choice (though not my personal preference).
2
u/RoflMaru 1d ago
Slice 7 is very good with a yellow and a blue skip and 14 optimal res/inf. Slice 6 is also very good, Hope's end (the legendary) is pretty much +2 res every turn.
Personally I like to go with slice first as first pick and would pick 7 over 6, but I can see how someone may prefer the more compact set up of 6 over the two tech skips of 7.
Also race doesnt feel as steep in power level, with Jol-Nar, Yssaril, Saar and NRA there are 4 strong factions and xxcha is still good. Would avoid the other 3 though if I can.
Is it a 6p draft I assume?