Since I started writing full time for Wargamer in 2022, the miniature wargame that has left the biggest impression on me is Star Wars: Shatterpoint - a game that bucks many conventions of wargame design while delivering an incredibly authentic and cinematic Star Wars experience. It doesn't have anywhere near the profile I think it deserves - but if you want to give it a try, you can get the starter set at a whopping $66 discount right now on Miniature Market.
I actually first spotted the Star Wars: Shatterpoint starter set going for $108.99 on Amazon Prime, which is already a good price. But I checked the other stores that Wargamer affiliates with in case there was a better deal, and lo and behold, Miniature Market had it for $98.99, a 39% saving.
I could wax lyrical about why Shatterpoint is so great, but you're better off reading my Shatterpoint review to find that out. Instead, I'll explain why it's stuck with me.
Partly, it's because I never expected to like it. Shatterpoint has a lot of things that I associate with undisciplined game design: it uses custom dice, custom measuring sticks, and each unit has rules that cover two cards with a mixture of text and symbology. I find that those rarely add enough to a game to justify the break from genre conventions.
It won me over. Not only do those elements make a genuine contribution to the game, they enable it to do things I haven't seen in another wargame. It is one of very few genuine evolutions in miniature wargaming I've experienced since I've been part of the hobby.
Shatterpoint has an amazing blend of luck and control. Mission scoring is very tight and precise and relies on holding objectives, which requires getting more hale and healthy bodies on that point than your opponent. How close you are to claiming or holding an objective is transparent - players alternate activations, and claiming an objective is just a matter of moving one of your troops onto it, pushing an enemy off of it, or wounding that enemy so it doesn't contest the objective.
But the order you activate units is (mostly) determined randomly. And while half of the abilities each unit has are written out on the unit's card, another half of its capabilities are unknowable. It's all about how the game handles combat.
When a unit attacks or shoots, you and your opponent will roll a bunch of dice, counting hits and blocks - naturally you want more hits than blocks. But this doesn't turn straight into damage.
Instead, each successful hit gives you one move through your unit's branching combat tree. This contains damage dealing effects, of course, but it could also contain debuffs for your target, healing effects, pushes that shove the enemy backwards and advance you up, movement actions that range from a short dash to jumping to another terrain level, and even the chance to activate some of the other abilities on your card.
Those custom dice also contain expertise symbols, which trigger further effects on your combat card and the defender's combat card. While these are mostly damage or defense, there can be movement abilities in there too.
Resolving a single attack roll feels like a flurry of blows or an exchange of blaster fire, as characters are pushed backwards, pinned, dash around, before making a leap to safety or onto an objective. By adding movement to the possible outcomes of combat, the game creates novel tactical choices - do I risk making my attack before I move to try and get that dash? - and pushes the balance of the game away from meticulous planning and towards seizing opportunities when they arrive.
The Shatterpoint Starter set comes with four Squad Packs of warriors, enough for two players to field a complete Strike Teams each, plus a set of very good quality plastic terrain, and all the tokens, dice, and cards needed to play. Be aware that the rules cards for some of these units have received errata, which you can download for free from the AMG website. I noted when I reviewed the set that the regular price was fair given the contents but still high - but at this reduced price I have no qualms calling it a good deal.
If you hop on board with Shatterpoint, come and let me know in the official Wargamer Discord community!
Want a different kind of one-box Star Wars experience? Check out our guide to the best Star Wars board games. And for more Star Wars deals, we've found some excellent deals on Lego sets in the Amazon Prime Day sales.