Friday Night Fights - special Tuesday edition

Someone (named "aroninphilosopher") on the THW boards has been talking about his fights which prompted me to dust off my copy of Friday Night Fights (special Tuesday edition I guess). The game is pretty entertaining and there is a bit of strategy so it works in all respects. Plus, I didn’t have to clean up the last game since it doesn’t take up too much room. It didn’t take long to get back into the ‘swing’ of things (best pun ever).

As before, the challenger is Jacob “Mac” McGrath, a 5’8” 162 lb Middleweight with decent boxing skills (level 4) and is fairly aggressive (level 3), but his real advantage is his Quick Reflexes. [Taken directly from the Promo sheet]

Jacob has been working hard and has managed to increase his power which should help him when he gets a chance to go in for the KO punch!

Since the first five bouts can be 4 rounds, we’ll have a short one before the big times. Randel West comes in as a decent boxer which great stamina. Can the challenger take him down!

Unlike last time, I didn’t do a round by round write up. It was more of a summary of events. Let me know which one is better.

Here is my setup for the fights (Stock photo Courtesy of 12/12/2008).

Round 1: Jacob connects early with a series of punches in the center of the ring until broke up. The round ends with both boxers in the center of the ring and evenly matched.

Round 2: Early in the round, another flurry of punches by Jacob while Randel is on the ropes. Randel cuts off the ring, but the boxers are evenly match and the round ends.

Round 3: Both are squaring off in the center of the ring, but no one can get the advantage. Late in the round Randel is pushed in to the ropes, but no true victor can be determined.

Round 4: Both boxers are putting everything they can in to the fight to win the match, but nothing comes of it in the beginning of the round. Late in the round, Jacob gets put into the ropes, but comes out in an array of punches putting Randel in the corner, looks like Jacob has a chance to put Randel to the canvas, but can’t seal the deal. The referee steps in and the round ends…

Winner by Unanimous Decision, Jacob McGrath (40 to 37)! Crowd goes wild.
This win gains me 1 fame point (up to 13), but a 5 - 0 - 2KOs record. I manage to get a +1 to my quickness. With the quick reflexes, I’m becoming a terror on the Clinch Table.

Now that I have 5 bouts under me, I start moving to the big time arenas. Of course that means that I’ll have to survive 10 rounds. Next up is Stuart “Stu” Smith, an aggressive boxer with good boxing skills, but known for his slippery defense. Will the pressure be too much for the challenger?

Round 1: Stu hits the canvas late in the round, but manages to shake it off.
Round 2: Jacob continues to keep control of the match.
Round 3: Jacob gets Stu to the KO table, but fails to score the knockdown blow! Stu finally scores points.
Round 4: A quick round, but Jacob get a couple solid punches – looks like they’re judge this in his favor.
Round 5: Jacob covers up to get out of the round with minimal work.
Round 6: Jacob pushes Stu to the ropes, but a sudden uppercut catches him unaware! Stu just didn’t have the power behind the punch to knock Jacob to the mat. – Jacob clearly loses his first round (at this point both boxers have 4 Bonus Dice remaining).
Round 7: Jacob puts Stu back on the canvas, but Stu recovers
Round 8: Jacob can’t capitalize on the now tired Stu.
Round 9: Jacob covers up twice after being backed into the ropes (from the stalking table).
Round 10: Jacob and Stu just hammer each other, but no fighter hits the canvas.

Winner by Unanimous Decision, Jacob McGrath (99 to 91)! Another fame point and in a crazy mental moment, I try to increase boxing. I first roll a 1 & 5 which allows me a second chance. The dice come up 5 &5 and I increase boxing to 5! Now 6 - 0 - 2KOs and 14 fame.

The next match is going to be a 10 round match against Tim Withers a boxer not known for his aggression or his speed (slow attribute).

Round 1: Jacob clearly has the advantage with the higher boxing skill against the slower Tim. If Tim doesn’t win the stalking table, he immediately covers up!
Round 2: Time hits the canvas from a strong hook from Jacob, but is only stunned and the match continues.
Round 3: No real excitement as it’s clear that Jacob out classes the slower Tim.
Round 4: Tim punches Jacob into the ropes, but neither boxer can gain ground (on the clinch table)
Round 5 to 7: Tim just can’t seem to get into a favorable position and covers up through most of these rounds, but spending a lot of his reserves in the process (Tim is running quickly out of bonus dice).
Round 8: Tim is in a world of hurt from the beating Jacob is giving him, but Jacob can’t seem to knock Tim to the mat (Tim is in the corner with no boxing dice remaining).
Round 9: Jacob finally knocks Tim to the canvas. The referee calls a TKO!

After the amount of times I’ve made it to the KO table, but can’t get the knockdown, I try to increase my power. I roll a 2 & 4, but my second roll is a 5 & 5 which succeeds!

Jacob McGrath is now 7 – 0 with 3 KOs and 15 fame. He is a very skilled boxer (boxing skill 5) with solid power (level 4) and decent quickness (level 3, but has the quick reflexes attribute); a moderate aggression (level 3) and good stamina (level 4) rounds out his abilities. It looks like he has the ability to go real far!

After playing a couple of full bouts, the game is pretty entertaining. If you are playing solo, the first couple of rounds can make or break you if you can take control of the match. Of course, you use too many bonus dice and you will be hurting once it goes to the middle rounds.

The final match was kind of sad. Jacob would normally win the stalking roll (it’s 8 to 6 dice) so Tim would cover up once it went to the boxing table (5 + 1 for him being slow vs. 4). Most often than not, Tim would be forced into the ropes/corner and Jacob would use him as a punching bag. There was the shot in the 4th that Tim on the ropes was able to win by 3 dice and had a chance to knock Jacob to the mat, but with a power of 1, it just wasn’t meant to be.

Friday Night Fights on Pay per View!

In honor of the first thing that I have painted in a very long time (months probably), I wanted to get them used in a game as quick as possible, These boxers are from U-Play Sports (a division of Two Hour Wargames – THW for short) for use in their new (to me anyway) boxing game called Friday Night Fights. The price was right and even though they aren’t in the normal 28mm scale that I play, I picked 5 boxers up. They painted up pretty nicely all things considered.

Here are my 5 boxers all ready to go!

So I decided what better time than to have some boxing matches then on Friday night! Convenient, eh? I played a couple of face to face games with the system and even though it’s a lot of dice rolling, it’s fairly entertaining and you can get through an 8 to 10 round match in about 30 to 45 minutes. In classic THW style, there are rules to play solo and I had a couple hours to kill, so why not build a boxer and see how I do in a couple of warm-up matches? Since your first few bouts can be short 4 round matches, I figured I could get in 3 or 4 games before I needed to finish up. There are even boxers with ranks and the like in the back to make this process even easier.

So without further ado:

Enter Jacob “Mac” McGrath, a 5’8” 162 lb Middleweight with decent boxing skills (level 4) and is fairly aggressive (level 3), but his real advantage is his Quick Reflexes.
…And in this corner weighing in at 158 pounds, Lamar Hart. His key ability is his resilience. Can the new comer had down this vet who is currently 10-4?

Round 1: The boxers move about the ring, but neither boxer gains any advantage. The move in and Lamar scores a flurry of punches which Jacob answers back with a flurry of his own. Lamar seeing an opening lands a series of quick jabs, but Jacob again answers with a series of body blows before the referee steps in. Late in the round… Both boxers stay away from the ropes. Jacob hits with a quick strike to which Lamar covers and the referee steps in. *Ding* It looks like Jacob has won this round.

Round 2: Jacob cuts off the ring and lands a solid punch. It looks like both boxers are reaching into their reserves and Jacob tries to take control (both boxers use bonus dice), but Lamar covers up and the referee splits them apart. Late in the round… Again both boxers can’t seem to force their opponent into the ropes and after a couple landed quick jabs, Lamar covers and the referee steps in. *Ding*
Another round goes in favor of Jacob.

Round 3: Both boxer step and move, but can gain no advantage and the referee finally pulls them apart. Late in the round… Lamar manages a flurry of jabs… a second set of body blows and a third… and a fourth set of punches followed by a solid uppercut. Jacob looks to be digging deep into his reserves to get himself out of the corner, but another shot for Lamar and Jacob holds on and finally the referee stops the onslaught (Jacob rolled 3 successes on 3 dice and Lamar got 3 successes on 5 dice)! *Ding* Definitely a round won by Lamar.

Round 4: Jacob connects with a solid uppercut and Lamar is backed into the ropes, but the referee steps in before Jacob can capitalize. Late in the round… Jacob cuts off the ring and scores a combo putting Lamar in the corner, but Lamar holds on and even manages to score a jab before the referee can split the boxers. *Ding*

Winner by Unanimous Decision, Jacob McGrath (39 to 37)! Crowd goes wild.
My first win gains me 6 fame points and a 1-0 record. I don’t get any stat increases so we move to the second match.
…And in this corner weighing in at 154 lbs, Edgar Garcia. He’s known for his decent boxing skill and his slipperiness in the ring. Can Jacob stay undefeated?

Round 1: Both boxers dance about the ring, but Jacob scores a decent combo forcing Edgar into the corner. Using some of his inner strength, Edgar holds on and the referee pulls them apart. Late in the round… Edgar stalks Jacob and gets two full sets of punches in before Jacob covers up and the referee steps in. *Ding* Round won by Jacob.

Round 2: Jacob comes out swinging backing Edgar to the ropes, but Edgar holds out and the referee steps in. Late in the round… Again Jacob sees an opening pushing Edgar to the ropes, but fails to land any solid punches. Referee pulls them apart. *Ding* Round is tied!

Round 3: Coming out striking, but boxers and evenly matched and the referee resets them. Late in the round… Jacob pushes Edgar to the ropes and scores a solid left hook... followed by a right hook! Edgar holds on and Jacob gets in another hit before the referee pulls them apart! *Ding* Round won by Jacob!

Round 4: The actions stays in the center of the ring where Edgar gets in a solid uppercut forcing Jacob to the ropes, but the referee steps in before Edgar can mount much of an offensive. Late in the round… Both boxers dance in the center of the ring and the round ends with them evenly matched *Ding* Round goes to Edgar.

Winner by Unanimous Decision, Jacob McGrath (39 to 38)! I get 3 more Fame Points bringing me to 9 and a 2-0 record.

Edgar wants a rematch so the stage is already set! The boxers smack gloves and the bell rings!

Round 1: Edgar gets sent to the ropes, but they are evenly matched so the referee finally steps in. Late in the round… Boxers move about in the center of the ring, but no telling blows and the round comes to the close *Ding* Tied round.

Round 2: Boxers stay in the center of the ring, Jacob connects with a flurry of punches and Edgar retaliates with a set of his own. Jacob lands a solid left hook and manages to take control using his inner fire (Jacob uses 3 bonus dice). Edgar’s in real trouble in the corner (on the KO table, but Edgar doesn’t add any bonus dice)… Edgar is knocked to the canvas and doesn’t get back up. Jacob scores his first KO of his career!

You can see my FNF setup here. The left container are the rolls for Boxer 1 and the right one is for Boxer 2. The KO of Edgar Garcia in the second round!

Since this is my third win, I can try to raise a stat and I pick Power. With two failures, I manage to increase my Power to 3.

I did get a fourth bout in, but I’m not going to detail the entire bout. It ended with a TKO against Chris Scorch in the fourth round and I failed to add to my Quickness stat. Here is a part of that fourth bout.

Round 1 (early): Jacob scores a solid left hook (2pts) after pushing Chris to the ropes, followed by a solid right hook (2pts) pushing him to the corner. Chris covers dipping into his reserve (adds 2 bonus dice), but a third solid hook connects (3pts). Chris is in real trouble (KO table and add 2 bonus dice), but no knock down (3pts). By this time, the only dice Chris is rolling is his bonus dice having lost all 3 boxing dice and losing the aggression/quickness dice due to being in the corner. Jacob pours it on scoring a combo (3pts) followed by a solid left hook (3pts). Chris is again in trouble but manages to hold on (3pts). Jacob fights him off with a set of punches (3pts) and an upper cut (3pts). Again Chris is in trouble, but holds on (3pts). Jacob scores another combo (3pts) and a solid body blow (3pts) and Chris is back in peril, but holds on (3pts). Jacob scores a combo (3pts) and a solid punch (3pts) and Chris is in trouble, but holds on (3pts). Finally the referee steps in (2pts)…

Yep, I scored 55 points in the first part of the round. Now against a real person, this shouldn’t happen since you could throw enough bonus dice to break the cycle (in theory), but I was rolling 8 dice on both the Taking Control and the Clinch table against zero dice from my opponent from early on and it was a beating. This cycle happened again in the fourth round, but I managed to get the needed successes on the KO table to have him hit the canvas.

So after 4 bouts, Jacob McGrath is 4-0 with 2 KOs and a fame of 12.