Built on Hope
233 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 26 ratingsA podcast dedicated to competitive Star Wars: Imperial Assault, IACP, and Board Game Psychology.
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Episodes
Episode 032 - Searching For Bobby Skywalker
April 07, 2018 23:33 - 1 hour - 112 MBIt's another brain-buster. In this episode, Kenny has Ben Varnum from Omaha on the podcast. Ben Varnum gives a general introduction, a report on how he's done at some recent regionals, and then launches into his true love, which is apparently combining his two esoteric hobbies (IA and chess) into one MASSIVELY esoteric thought-paradigm. Ben discusses how he thinks certain chess concepts map onto IA and what players can understand about the best game in the universe from one of the better ga...
Episode 031 - I Certainly Ain't No Ernie Pyle
April 06, 2018 05:50 - 34 minutes - 48 MBSKIRMISH BREAKDOWN! In this episode, Kenny does his absolute best to immitate the great war-correspondents of the past as he relays a report from a Worlds Prep skirmish night. Predictably, Kenny fails. He does, however, convince JK and Steven to stick around after a night of skirmishing to give their thoughts on the meta and their lists. Really, though, we just end up talking about Han Rangers. Turns out, that list is pretty super good AS KENNY HAS BEEN SAYING FOR MANY MANY MONTHS. The for...
Episode 030 - My Brain. It Broke.
March 31, 2018 19:31 - 1 hour - 86.2 MBREGIONAL(S) REPORT(S)! I know I say this a lot, and you might think it's hyperbolic, but seriously friends. My brain. It broke. This is a longer episode, but that's because Lucas Davidson marched into town with his Imperial Forces of Darkness to deliver reports on his regional season, INCLUDING THREE REGIONAL WINS. I know. It's insane. Lucas breaks down Vader, eJets, & Co. He talks about his original iteration of the list (with Rule By Fear) and chronicles the evolution to the current flav...
Episode 029 - When The Texans Come To Town
March 28, 2018 05:30 - 37 minutes - 51.6 MBLISTBUILDING EPISODE. As if Robert Stanley wasn't enough Texas for us, Kenny managed to convince ANOTHER Texan to come on the podcast to help us break down the current meta. That Texan is Brandon, and he is a genius. In this episode, Brandon, Robert, and Kenny each discuss a particular list that they're working on in preparation for Worlds. Brandon is wedded to his double eRangers list (because, you know, he won a regionals with it), Robert thinks that AT-DP and Terro are a thing (because h...
Episode 028 - Rebellions Are Built On Hope (That Brett Runs Rebels)!
March 27, 2018 04:13 - 41 minutes - 57.3 MBREGIONAL REPORT! Brett Kelly, the illustrious runner of Rebel raucous-raisers, flies in on his knock-off of the Millenium Falcon to tell us how he did at the recent regional in New Jersey (spoiler alert: ....). The field was INTENSELY competitive--some of the best players in the world were there--and it was a great preview of what we expect to see at Worlds. Brett was running: eRangers, Han Solo, RCPlus, R2, x2 rSmugglers, and RHC. The list was focused on card draw, specifically, hunter car...
Episode 027 - Way Down Yonder In New Orleans, There's A Regional Champion Named Matt
March 21, 2018 15:11 - 47 minutes - 65.4 MBREGIONAL REPORT. Is it just me, or are these titles getting too long? WHO CARES?! In this episode, Matthew Pinckard from New Orleans gives us a regional report from a tournament in southern Mississippi. Because he is awesome and freaking amazing, Matthew triumphed in this tournament. NOW WE NEED THE DETAILS AS TO WHY AND THAT'S WHAT HE'S HERE TO DELIVER. Matt talks about his Scum list, how it fared against the field, and gives some great strategy and tips for running Scum lists without IG...
Episode 026 - The Man Rode Into Town On A Tauntaun
March 20, 2018 03:42 - 1 hour - 83.8 MBREGIONAL REPORT! Ryan Janway, of Tauntaun Rider fame, rides into town to deliver a report from his recent regional in Cary, North Carolina. As expected--because he is amazing--Ryan had an excellent showing. In this episode, Ryan talks about how his FIVE activation list with ZERO ranged units (officers don't count) fared in a meta that is dominated by Imperial forces. Somehow, Ryan manages to pull off win after win (with a few minor exceptions). Don't ask me how he does it. Join us on the S...
Episode 025 - The Gordian Knot Is Severed!
March 17, 2018 20:26 - 1 hour - 92.5 MBNEWS FLASH PEOPLE: THE META IS SOLVED AND WE CAN ALL GO HOME. JUST KIDDING IT'S WIDE OPEN AND WE'RE ALL GOING TO LOSE UNLESS WE GET SERIOUS ABOUT LISTBUILDING. In this episode, JK, Wise-Sam, and Kenny each discuss two lists that they are working on in order to solve particular meta problems. JK discusses Scum Hunters (sans IG) and Terro Troopers, Sam discusses his beloved Rebel Heroes (without LANDO?!) and Vader Palp, and Kenny discusses Ahoska Ko-Tun Rangers and the Lovers Box. The discuss...
Episode 024 - The Death of a (Box) Salesman Under the Warmth of the Southern California Sun
March 13, 2018 06:48 - 37 minutes - 51.4 MBREGIONAL REPORT! You know where I wish I lived? Southern California. But I don’t. So I suffer. I was, however, able to take a work / family vacation and carve out a day to go to the SoCal IA Regional in Brea, California. I was joined by Drew and Grant, two members of Zion’s Finest and two amazing guys. This episode is a bit wonky, because we lost Grant’s audio and I had to edit is as though he doesn’t exist--don’t worry, he does--but it is a good recap of how my precious Box and Drew’s terr...
Episode 023 - BRACE YOUR BRAINS FOR BRETT'S BRILLIANCE!
March 10, 2018 04:36 - 45 minutes - 62.9 MBGuys. Eat your Wheaties and prepare yourselves. Brett Kelly is about to drop some serious knowledge on you. Also, sometimes I like to use alliterations in the titles for the podcast. I know, I know, it might be a problem, I'll see a doctor to have it checked out. In this episode, Brett (who I am going to have on the podcast eight million more times in order to more fully plumb the depths of his knowledge) discusses his Han Luke list that he took to a recent regional (and won). He talks abou...
Episode 022 - Ready Player One?! IT'S VASSAL TOURNAMENT RECAP TIME!
March 09, 2018 04:25 - 32 minutes - 44.7 MBI've heard Ready Player One is a thing. I'm not certain how much of a thing, but my brother told me the book was pretty dumb. I don't know, though, BUT WHAT I DO KNOW IS YOU CAN BE PLAYER ONE IN VASSAL! In this episode, the illustrious Texan Robert Stanley gives a recap of the recent Vassal tournament he was in. In all seriousness, this tournament was a gathering of the best and brightest that IA has to offer. The Worlds champion, several national champions, and a whole bunch of regional wi...
Episode 021 - God Save The Queen! And All Them Brilliant Brits!
March 06, 2018 04:06 - 55 minutes - 76.4 MBNews flash people, I am an ignorant hick from Hoytsville, Utah. Also, I am kind of a crazy Anglophile. In a stroke of absolute luck, I managed to get Sam Whitaker from merry ole England on the podcast to talk about his recent showing at two regionals in the Mother Country. Sam is new to the game but--turns out--he's also pretty dang good at it. He talks about his performances and match-ups running Rebel Jank against a field predominantly occupied by Han and eRangers. Please join us on the ...
Episode 020 - Waiting For Meta-Modernity ... IN ARKANSAS!
March 03, 2018 06:03 - 47 minutes - 65.6 MBWait a second. Did Samuel Beckett take over the podcast? Are the postmoderns truly having their way (which is not really a way, since "ways" are merely constructs of the prevalent social order) and is Zion's Finest descending into a morass of existential crisis?! OF COURSE NOT. We do, however, get the ever-brilliant Ryan Stripling from Arkansas to come on the podcast and give two--that's right, two--regionals reports from his forays into the middle of the United States. It is a harrowing t...
Episode 019 - BEHOLD! THE CHAMPION ARISES!
February 24, 2018 10:00 - 26 minutes - 37.3 MBDANIEL. TAYLOR. THAT’S RIGHT. DANIEL. TAYLOR. YOU MIGHT KNOW HIM FROM HIS REPEAT IMPERIAL ASSAULT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS. Was that enough all-caps for you? I tend to overuse them. OR DO I?! In this episode, the one—the only—Daniel Taylor comes on the podcast to talk about his showing at the Seattle Regional (guess how that went). He gives some incredible insights into the dominant meta figures and why he look the list he took to the tournament. He gives some general pointers on dealing with t...
Episode 018 - Battle Reporting from THE CENTER of the FFG Universe!
February 20, 2018 07:20 - 1 hour - 91.9 MBEric from Twin Troopers Podcast--the best North American IA podcast (I'm watching out for you, Boardwars.eu--graces Zion's Finest with an epic summary of his run at the Minnesota Regionals. That's right; the place where all the magic happens (or would happen if FFG would give us some news. COME ON FFG). Eric ran a remix of the new Imperial Trooper swarm that is doing so well, and (spoiler alert) did an incredible job at the tournament. We occasionally wander off into forays about podcasting...
Episode 017 - Paul. Heaver.
February 13, 2018 06:10 - 34 minutes - 47.6 MB... Did I ... did I just talk ... to Paul Heaver? YOU'RE DANG STRAIGHT I DID. Paul is a major player in the FFG competitive game scene. He was a three-peat winner of X-Wing Worlds and has been the runner-up in IA several times. He is brilliant, yet gracious. Paul accepted our invitation to come on the podcast to talk about his take on the state of the meta. Paul discusses his ideas for list-building, specifically, how to think about approaching the major figures in the current meta. He dis...
Episode 016 - A Holy Triumvirate!
February 12, 2018 03:18 - 55 minutes - 76.8 MBI know what you're thinking. No, this episode doesn't feature Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus plotting the downfall of the Roman Republic. IT'S EVEN BETTER! In this episode, JK, Steven, and Kenny each discuss a deployment card. They are eSentries (JK), Clawdites (Steven), and Ahsoka (Kenny, duh). They discuss the strengths of the unit(s), their weaknesses, and good command card and listbuilding combinations. We're going to do more episodes like this in order to highlight figures that are good-...
Episode 015 - The Twin Sieber Shadows Battle Over Reporting On Regionals!
February 05, 2018 03:45 - 55 minutes - 107 MBThey're not actually twins! But the Sieber brothers (Todd and Shane) occasionally demonstrate an eery ability to read the minds of each other and their opponents--thus ensuring their victory! In this episode, Todd and Shane Sieber share their regionals reports from the Utah Regional. Both player did well. Shane was running an IG Hunter list; Todd was running an AT-DP Palp list. Todd made the cut but had to take off early. They talk about their matchups, the strengths and weaknesses of thei...
Episode 014 - Compartmentalizing The Components Of A Crushing (Ch)riumph!
February 02, 2018 05:19 - 54 minutes - 103 MBTHAT'S RIGHT I MISSPELLED A WORD TO SUSTAIN THE ALLITERATION! WHATCHAGONNADOABOUTIT?! In this episode, Scott and Kenny break down the two (maybe three if you're a weirdo who runs Rebel stun or spies) components of successful listbuilding. They focus on (1) dealing and taking damage, (2) control through card manipulation and conditions (for the weirdos who run Rebel stun and spies), and (3) objective control and denial. Specifically, Scott discusses how you need to think about how your list...
Episode 013 - Craig Drops Some Hot PHX Heat On Zion
January 29, 2018 05:55 - 26 minutes - 50.7 MBIn this episode, Craig from Phoenix tells us how he did at the recent Utah Regionals. Craig discusses his list, its strengths and weaknesses, his matchups, and where he thinks the meta will go and how he plans to adapt (in short: run more Vader and eJets). Craig braved the winter storms, his sunshine was much appreciated, and his perceptive take on his round-by-rounds is really helpful for knowing how to play similar lists (AT-DP and Troopers) in the current meta. CRAIG IS AMAZING. Please ...
Episode 012 - WE DIDN'T KNOW THE POWER OF THE DARK SIDE!
January 23, 2018 19:45 - 1 hour - 121 MBVADER CONQUERS ALL! In this episode, Kenny and Scott give their regionals reports from the regional tournament held at Blakfyre Games in Pleasant Grove, Utah. Both went 4-0 in Swiss, although Kenny was defeated by Daniel (again) and his FOUR DODGES IN A ROW in Top 8. Scott, however, went on to absolutely crush those who dared to oppose the might of the Empire! They give quick summaries of their matches and then give concluding thoughts on the tournaments and what players need to do in order...
Episode 011 - The Vader Invasion! WHO CAN STOP HIM?!
January 16, 2018 07:36 - 54 minutes - 107 MBVader is invading Zion, as only the domineering Lord of the Sith can! In this episode, Scott and Kenny discuss Vader's anticipated arrival at the Utah Regional Tournament on January 20th. Scott talks about his matchups, what he expects to see from the opposition, and how he expects to crush and defeat his enemies. We focus on Vader vs. (Archetype), including mirror matches, IG-88 (and Scum Hunters), Rebel damage dealers (Han, Chewie, and Luke), and those insane off-the-wall lists like Kenn...
Episode 010 - Roarin' Towards Regionals!
January 08, 2018 07:31 - 53 minutes - 100 MBEPISODE 10! EPISODE 10! We ding dang made it into double digits! In this episode, Steven and Kenny discuss their preparations for the upcoming Regional tournament in Utah on January 20, 2018. They provide a few quick battle reports then launch into what they're thinking about running. Apparently, IG-88 is amazing. Kenny, however, refuses to abandon his beloved Rebel heroes. They then pivot into a discussion concerning what they're expecting to see at the upcoming tournament and discuss ho...
Episode 009 - The Stars At Night! Are Big and Bright! When There's A Regional In Texas!!!
January 02, 2018 17:21 - 40 minutes - 77.2 MBHappy New Year everyone! In this episode, Robert Stanley provides us with a battle report concerning the regionals recently held in Houston, Texas. Robert discusses his matches and gives thoughts on IG-88, Ugnaughts, Vader, and so much more! Following his battle report, Robert schools Kenny in the intricacies of the developing meta and causes Kenny to rethink all his previous notions concerning the relevance of IG, eQuays, and Jabba. The rethinking causes a minor existential crisis, but Ken...
Episode 008 - Command Your Deck! A Beginner's Guide To Deckbuilding!
December 29, 2017 17:29 - 42 minutes - 81.1 MBThis episode is designed to give newer players a crash course in building a competitive command deck. JK and Kenny give a quick overview of the basics for building a solid command deck and discuss command deck staples--cards that are not faction or archetype specific--and then move on to talk about building a command deck for certain archetypes--scum hunters, jedi, etc.--and finally conclude with command cards that correspond with unique figures. Each segment involves classifying cards into...
Episode 007 - Listbuilding - An Overview
December 23, 2017 14:50 - 1 hour - 115 MBMerry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! In this episode, Steven and Kenny discuss list-building concepts for newer players. We talk about what we look for when we're building a list and the discuss how to list-build for each of the factions. Steven is a new but awesome player--as shown from his regional results--and drops some amazing tips for beginners just getting into skirmish. If you're wondering how to approach the gauntlet of list-building in today's competitive meta, this is a ...
Episode 006 - I Swear We're Almost Done With (Denver) Regionals!
December 19, 2017 06:32 - 36 minutes - 64.6 MBFriends. Comrades. Compatriots. I swear that we are going to slow down with our publishing schedule one of these days ... BUT NOT TODAY! In this episode, Steven Butler returns to the pod to give us his regionals report from Denver Colorado. He describes his list--a very creative Scum Spy Hunter list--and talks about his race to the near-top! Steven is a newer player, but very awesome. Listen and learn and, maybe, one day you can get his awesome skilllllzzzzzz. Please leave us ...
Episode 005 - Save Us (From) Lord Vader!
December 18, 2017 08:52 - 1 hour - 129 MBScott and Kenny discuss several recent regionals in the far-flung reaches of the globe (neither of which they attended, because they are suckers) and highlight the growing dominance of Lord Vader and his thoroughly rotten master, Sheev Palpatine. They discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the list (Vader, Palp, 2 eJets, 2 rOfficers), and Scott focuses on particular iterations with which he has been experimenting. The Lords of the Sith® list (THAT'S RIGHT, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE CALLING IT! ...
Episode 004 - St. Matthew Goes To Denver - AND OBLITERATES THE OPPOSITION
December 14, 2017 06:05 - 45 minutes - 87.2 MBIn this Special Regional Report, St. Matthew tells us about his amazingly successful run at the Denver, Colorado Regional at Wizard's Chest Games. Spoiler alert: he did great, and he's going to give us all the minute details that leave us hungering for MORE IA! Matthew is an amazing player. He is a long-standing tyrant of the local meta--he plays all factions, all command cards, and all combinations in order to ensure his victory! Thank you for listening. Please consider leaving us a...
Episode 003 - JK Burninates the Countryside! And Denver!
December 10, 2017 19:10 - 56 minutes - 111 MBJK (Jarom Moore) introduces himself and delivers a report concerning his amazing showing at the Denver, Colorado IA Regional Event. The event, hosted by the Wizard's Chest (an AMAZING hobby and board game store), was a thorough-going success. JK made Top 8 playing a very unique list, the details of which he shall provide for our eager consumption! JK is an awesome player and a dedicated member of the IA community. He is sure to be a listener favorite!
Episode 002 - Bringing Zion To Denver!
December 06, 2017 05:01 - 24 minutes - 46.7 MBKenny delivers a report of an excellent showing by the members of Zion's Finest at the Denver, Colorado IA Regional Event. The event, hosted by the Wizard's Chest (an AMAZING hobby and board game store), was a thorough-going success. Many sets of shiny dice were obtained and one of Zion's Finest was present for the final game. Kenny delivers a short summary of his games and discusses how the Ahsoka MHD Box fared, as well as some general thoughts on the meta going forward. Kenny's strateg...
Episode 001 - Steven and Kenny Are Our Only Hope!
November 26, 2017 22:01 - 1 hour - 107 MBWelcome to the (actual) first episode of Zion's Finest Podcast, a podcast dedicated to Fantasy Flight Game's Star Wars: Imperial Assault skirmish and campaign play! In this episode, Steven and Kenny discuss recent battle reports, various aspects of the current meta--including their prognostications concerning wither or whither the Ugnaught Swarm and what impact certain figures from Heart of the Empire will have--and what they expect to see in regional tournaments. This episode makes clear ...
Episode 000 - Kenny Solos the Intro
November 26, 2017 21:52 - 25 minutes - 26.7 MBWelcome to the (unofficially) first episode of Zion's Finest Podcast, a podcast dedicated to Fantasy Flight Game's Star Wars: Imperial Assault skirmish and campaign play. In this episode, Kenny lays out the groundwork for future episodes and delivers a stirring monologue concerning the MHD Smuggler Box that will go down in the annals of history as one of the greatest lectures ever. Winston Churchill, eat your heart out.