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Stalling for Time

by Will Hawkins

Whenever I play my Maquis deck, in all its incarnations, I always find myself needing a few more turns to set up my strategy. Whether it is mission solving, battling, or just good old Maquis annoyance, it seems I fall a bit short. Now, I can stall for all the time I need. This event is economical to play at zero cost. With this card you can remove an opponent's personnel for at least a turn. The requirement to have three [Fed][Maq] is easily met with many costing only two.

Alone, this card can pack a wallop. Simply name Odo, Data, or Lore and your opponent is likely out a good number of counters. For a more complex strategy, try sending command stars back to their hand to strand a ship. Tackle those annoying personnel like Garak, Klingon Riker, or the new Fractured Time Worf. Watch out for personnel that give an opponent a boost each time they play them such as Jean Luc Picard, Vintner.

Since no card exists in a vacuum, it is always good to consider how a card like this will work with other cards. I have found that this one combos very nicely with some of the other cards found in the Maquis arsenal. Follow up playing Stalling for Time with Shankar, Maquis Soldier to stick those personnel back into the draw deck. Alternately, hit them with an Organized Terrorist Activities to not only bury the named card and all other cards in hand as well, but to then remove the named card from the game.

Do I think that this card alone will make the Maquis Tier 1 powerful? No. Do I think it will make them more annoying? Yes. That is what I like about the Maquis. They are not your traditional mission-solving affiliation. They must rely on every trick up their sleeves to make them successful. I think Stalling For Time is an excellent trick to add to their repertoire.

December 2, 2004