https://assets.infinitythegame.net/downloads/itsrules/season12/en/v1.0/season12.pdf Because it wasn't announced on the english side yet @HellLois
In general, I like how they've removed unnecessary Datatrackers and Liaison Officers. Unfortunately, Highly Classified and Biotechvore are still there. Panic Room seems like a much more interesting take on Biotechvore (as long as you're not a Parachutist)
I like Panic Room a lot in comparison with Biotechvore. Less scambling movement and obvious balance skew towards big Fireteams, more desperate CQB. Not as keen on L&S sticking around and even getting a new friend, though; anti-materiel CC is still painfully restricted in many factions and even the ability to guarantee D-Charges from Panoplies with Specialists is gone. Also a headscratcher: why is Rescue still around? It was an infamously unfun Order hog even before everyone got limited to 15 Troopers.
Add Annihilation to the list of why are these still a thing. I also don't think Quadrant Control and Safe Area both need to be in the game, one could easily be dropped in favour of something more entertaining. Given the option between Highly Classified and Countermeasures I'd rather keep Highly Classified, it's better balanced. Being able to select lists after seeing what classifieds you need to do helps you alot. KHD weirdness not withstanding I like the idea behind Mindwipe, seems cool and creative. Unmasking dropping the datatracker is going to help Vanilla alot with that mission. I like the scoring changes to power pack and armoury, pushes them more towards progressive scoring. They removed the ballbusting difficult terrain exclusion zone. Much easier for troopers to run up and grab people and run away now.
They're in a few missions, and jokes of "CB FAVOURING NOMADS THIS IS BULLSHIT" aside they are a very interesting equaliser for Vanilla players being able to wall off your opponent's sniper tower AROs. The Kamau does not like having his burst chopped in half.
The rugby style bonus points are nice, as well. Whereas before you could lose in the last two or three orders and get nothing, now it's possible to walk away from a loss with one or two points.
Agreed on the QC/SA similarities, but I think Annhilation has its spot- it seems popular as the final scenario of 5-round tournaments, when everyone's feeling a bit drained. Great for introducing newer players to how ITS-style scoring and Classified Objectives work as well, in a familiar and simple mission.
We have slots for TO introduced missions now. Annihilation is so brain dead we don't need to waste document space on it, everyone knows how to play annihilation by now and it's in the core rule book anyway. Use the ITS document for cool concepts like Panic Room or Mind Wipe, even if they start out shitty they can get refined over successive seasons.
I looked through a bunch of factions to see how this actually favours Nomads and I must say I'm honestly a bit impressed how fair the Zero-G and Terrain Total is spread over factions. If this had been Jungle or Aquatic, there would have been a strong favouritism towards certain factions, but Nomads and Yu Jing are not far away from tied when it comes to having Terrain Zero-G or Total while most factions are neck-in-neck (written without actually counting how many of each) It's just that the Terrain (Headache) that the other factions have tend to favour Nomads a bit more seeing how Zero-G is the Nomad Terrain skill's "dump stat" for their assorted human meat shields while the Pan-O meat shields get aquatic or jungle and the Yu Jing meat shields get Dodge +1". So it's all fine, IMO.
What is the point to the Biotechvore Antennas in Panic Room? I don’t see any reference to why I would want to damage them.
Units in base contact are immune to the BTV, so the enemy can use them to protect their units which can't make it into the Panic Room. Taking them out will force the opponent to move troops forward or lose them.
Forum opinions don't match player/TO opinions. In Season 8, Highly Classified was the third most played mission of the whole season. In Season 9, Annihilation was the most played mission of the whole season. In 11 they were noticeably less popular, but still managed 80+ uses. (from https://forum.corvusbelli.com/threads/2019-in-numbers-its-data-analysis.36359/)
You're missing the point. I know it's a popular mission, but I also don't find any need for it to be in the document anymore. The ITS rules now allow TOs to add their own missions, if a group wants to play Annihilation the TO can just add it, and the rules already exist on paper in the core rules. Putting it in the ITS document is just wasting space for more creative ideas now. Reprinting Annihilation for the 11th billionth time is just wasting energy that could be used to signal boost interesting ideas like Mind Wipe.
Somehow I get the idea if the TO's player base wants the plain bread of annihilation so badly they're probably not interested in a custom mission.
Why would you think that? I've often seen it be chosen as a straightforward third mission after two complex button-pushing missions. It's a popular mission, it needs to be in the OTM, what's the issue with it being included in the PDF?
I am assuming CB has a maximum amount of missions they allow for ITS every year for size reasons given that they keep pulling and deleting older ones like Engineering Deck. Annihilation takes up space and really doesn't need to be in there, it's in the book, doesn't need an explanation of how it works or a set up diagram or extra rules explained. CB could easily leave it for the rest of the rules edition in OTM while removing it from the ITS document and it wouldn't matter a damn. Meanwhile we could have other more interesting missions that actually require some explaining. Mindwipe needs explaining, Panic Room needs explaining, another new mission could well use explaining. Annihilation already exists in print and doesn't need to be in the ITS document.