Neuroshima Hex! Strategy: June 2012

Las Vegas: Defeating

Playing defense is a little different against Vegas. Any unit next to your base could become your enemy, so consider avoiding any defensive soldiers at all.If you want to wall off your base try using modules.
Avoid putting ranged damage that could be turned to attack your own base as well.
Kill those damn command modules before they are moved and take over more of your stuff. When all 3 of them are dead you can start playing more normal defense again.
Keep in mind they have Push-Backs, so try to position your melee units where they can't be pushed or where they can still be useful after being pushed.

Las Vegas: Strategy

The units that allow you to command enemy units are by far your most valuable pieces. When placing them, consider not only what you can take over but also the fact that enemies cannot place anything in the spot those modules face. It is possible to control multiple spots with just this one unit and that’s good for both offense and defense.
Try to avoid discarding any of you soldiers. These units are second in importance after the Control modules.
Mine placement can have a big effect. Putting it two spots off your base lets you potentially push units into the mine. Putting it next to an enemy base means that they cannot put a piece their to attack you with. It also allows you to shoot over that mine.
Always look for opportunities. You will probably get a lot of moves, rotates, pushes and castles. When combined with three Command modules and the base bonus, you are going to have a lot of opportunities to alter the situation on the board. Make sure you are aware of your options.

“What’s placed around Vegas, stays part of Vegas!” Not as catchy as that commercial, but potentially more true. Vegas specialize in covering their ass with their bribery, manipulation and computer programming talents that allow them to command enemy units as their own. They also have an incredible amount of flexibility, with Moves, Castles, and Rotates. However, this all spells out that they have very few offensive units of their own, which can be very frustrating. Actually it’s almost guaranteed that either you or an opponent will be very frustrated if you are playing as Vegas. In general, I see Vegas as a very defensive team that can execute one or two powerful attacks on their enemies, and then protecting their own ass for the victory.

Smart: Defeating

Netting their base will throw a monkey wrench into the Smart machine.
Like when playing against Outpost, making a point to kill of their soldiers will pay off in the long run.
If your team gets Push-Backs, see if you can push the base away from soldiers it may be touching.
Repeatedly killing the Biodroid could work in your favor. While it will regenerate and keep getting placed, the end result will limit how many of their tiles can be drawn. If you're lucky then Smart will not be able to draw valuable pieces.
Vegas: when you take over a piece, you get all of that piece’s abilities. Their Mobile Armor piece has the substitution ability where it can be replaced for a friendly piece. This is rarely effective for Smart but Vegas could use to permanently kill that unit while occupying that space with a friendly piece.

Smart: Strategy

Remember that you don’t have too many units are try to protect the ones you draw.
The soldier that returns to your hand has a downside. Every time he returns to your hand that means there is one less tile you will draw. By constantly having that unit die and return you are deciding that there are tiles you will not get to draw in this game.
Terrors tend to maintain the status quo. If you are winning, then playing a terror makes it hard for your opponent to change that. If you are losing, however, it might be more beneficial to just place another tile in offense.
Whenever possible, keep all soldiers touching your base for the mobility bonus. Modules should be also touching your base for defense, or one space off the base, which would add their bonus to a mobile soldier and avoid taking up room that could be used for offense.
Remember that those mobile shields have two potential moves if they are touching your base.

Smart: Overview

Smart are a faction of the Moloch that became mutated when it was lost in the Neo Jungle. There remains some strong similarity between the two teams; they both have a lot of ranged damage and some defensive shielding, and the power of the gauss gun. However the main difference is that Smart’s base provides the mobility that Moloch are sorely lacking. When they’re doing well, Smart are basically a spinning death machine. When things are rough, Smart can feel rather fragile due to their relative shortage of soldiers and units with toughness. In addition, their added mobility bonus makes this team a forgiving option for beginners who might make a mistake and want to change their mind.

Neo Jungle: Defeating

The motherland is nothing without modules. Trim away at initiative modules and the Neo soldiers will be easily dealt with. If you have Bombs or Snipers, always go after a module.
Avoid being poisoned. Remember that if you Medic a poison attack, then the poison is negated.
Ranged damage can be very difficult for Neo to deal with.
Netting their base can totally derail the Neo Jungle. If the net is blocked in, it can be impossible for Neo to kill because they don’t have any ranged units.

Neo Jungle: Overview

How deadly does a mutated jungle sound? If you answered ‘really deadly’ then you are correct! Neo Jungle’s motherland specialty basically means that they will be underpowered right until they become completely overwhelming. The experience of playing Neo is frequently frustrating because you will frequently be cut down before the Motherland really gets rolling. Neo also has another huge factor against them: they have NO RANGED UNITS. However, if you can play a patient game, the crushing victories that are possible make playing Neo Jungle totally worth the occasional loss.

Neo Jungle: Strategy

All units should always be added to the Motherland. Always.
Except for Poisons. These should always be used to attack enemy bases whenever that’s possible. If that’s not possible, throw them in the Motherland!
It’s also debatable that Nets can be used advantageously when not in the Motherland. This is possible, but they should probably be added to the Motherland. Remember they can be castled around later for great results.
Base positioning is very important, especially in games with multiple opponents. Try to stay in a corner that’s out of the line of any ranged-oriented bases.
You want to occupy all of the spaces next to your base so you cannot be netted. Being netted sucks for any team, but is especially crushing to Neo. Because of this I purposefully avoid placing Medics next to my base. If the Medic is attached to the Motherland, it will activate when any unit is attacked, and this will leave an opening next to your base.
In general, it seems most helpful to place Roots two spaces away from enemy bases, in the direction of your base. This allows you to use Motherland bonus to either attack the enemy base of the defenses around the base, where the Motherland is most difficult to maintain.

New York: Defeating

If you have an opportunity to do damage, take it immediately. It might be a long time until you get that chance again.
Gauss guns are great for picking apart New York’s defenses. You can damage their tough units and the base at the same time.
If you have Push-Backs, try to keep at least one unit next to NY's defenses at all times, even if it's not attacking. This way Push-Backs can more often be taken advantage of.
If you have a Ranged Damage module, make use of it. Being able to kill NY pieces at range with one hit will make the fight much easier.

New York: Strategy

In a 1v1 game, consider placing your base in the center. It’s really nice to be give health to 6 possible units at a time. Also this strategy makes it likely that your Rocket Launcher will be very useful. In games with multiple opponents, always place your base in a corner and try to keep up defenses it the 3 vulnerable spots whenever possible.
It’s totally possible to win games by only doing damage with your Snipers. Unless they are guaranteed to be killed before they attack, always place Snipers in spots that attack enemy bases.
The Pusher is probably the best defensive unit in the game. Unless you have a really great offensive opportunity for him, then use him defensively.
If you have an advantage in health, then refuse to play a battle if you know that a unit defending your base will be killed. If you use this strategy it will be extremely difficult to do any damage to your base.

New York: Overview

A 1984-esque police state. This team is more focused on defense than offense, and that is reflected in their base bonus and their units. When New York places their base in a corner then can put up the toughest defense of any of the teams. The downsides to this team is that their base bonus rarely helps a player do damage to an enemy, and the fact that many of their soldiers only have 2 initiative. With the variety of soldiers available, playing New York can be one of the most fun Hex experiences, but their lack of consistent offense can make New York frustrating. Keeping in mind a few tips will help make the experience more enjoyable.

Borgo: Defeating

Don’t let your base get netted!
DON’T LET YOUR BASE GET NETTED!
If you are netted, then get un-netted ASAP. Also you probably don’t want to leave that job to just one soldier. Odds are it won’t be too hard for them to stop that one soldier’s attack because of Borgo’s high initiative.
Kill their ranged units ASAP.
As long as you avoid getting your base netted, and you remove any melee damage modules around your base, then it will be difficult for Borgo to puts large amounts of damage on your base in a single battle.

Borgo: Strategy

You only have two ranged units, and they’re great. Try to keep them alive as long as possible.
Your Net Fighters are awesome. If you cannot place them on your opponent’s base, consider placing them defensively. Or save the unit if you believe a spot could open up within a turn.
Your modules, and especially your damage modules, are more valuable than your rank-and-file soldiers that can only do 1 melee damage.
Placing your modules within one space of your opponent’s base forces them to either attack modules or remain vulnerable.
If you’re playing against a ranged damage oriented team, placing a soldier or two attacking spots next to your opponent’s base can limit the damage their team will do in the long run.

Borgo: Overview

As a giant, growing swarm of mutants controlled by a single mind, the Borgo are not a complicated people. They’re basically zombies, and there are a lot of them. They mostly do melee damage and attack in a lot of directions. It’s a pretty simple strategy, and honestly it’s pretty damn effective. They do well when their base is close to their opponent’s, but that isn’t necessary for them to succeed. Borgo are probably the best team for beginners because it’s pretty hard to screw things up with them. In addition, Borgo are probably the most dominant team in 1v1 games, though when they start to lose it can sometimes be difficult for Borgo to catch up in damage.

Hegemony: Defeating

Keep your base the hell away from your base!
Try to prevent them from netting your base by either keeping the spots by your base occupied or under attack.
Don’t let them keep their modules in play. Especially the Transport.
Hedge has relatively little Ranged capabilities, meaning that walling off the base will make it difficult for Hedge to damage you.

Hegemony: Strategy

You probably have the best modules in the game. Think carefully about where to place them. Quartermaster and the Mobility Center in particular can be game changers. Also, in my opinion the Quartermaster is designed for your ranged-and-melee soldiers.
Net Master is a great unit in a lot of situations. Offensively nets are always great. Defensively, Net Master can protect three spots around your base from melee attacks. My personal favorite is putting N.M. on the Mobility Center and turning him into a spinning net of awesomeness.
Avoid using runners to attack enemy bases unless you really need the extra damage or two. Runners are a lot more effective if they stay alive and chip at whatever defense or ranged damage your opponent might have set up.
If you get off to a bad start, don’t get afraid and move your base farther away from your opponent. Odds are if you stay within melee striking distance, things will eventually turn in your favor.

Hegemony: Overview

Existing in a Mad Max style, lawless post apocalypse society, the Hegemony are an awesome and quite diverse team. FYI, the term Hegemony refers to a system of control where the dominant maintain control through implied power, rather than a direct system of force. That should give you an idea of why all these outlaws are fighting together. Anyways, as a team Hedge has a little of everything, being decently mobile, possessing a little ranged capability, a couple melee units that attack multiple directions, having a few push backs, and very importantly they posses a few nets. Nets are awesome. In addition, if their base is placed within a space of the enemy’s base, Hedge will almost certainly have an advantage against any team other than Borgo. Overall, one of the best teams in most situations.

Moloch: Defeating

If you have ranged units, try using them to attack Moloch’s base from a different direction then your base. Doing this will ensure that Moloch cannot both address this unit and attack your base at the same time. Also, if the Moloch use a soldier to attack this unit, odds are they will never get a move to turn that soldier onto your base.
Remember that moving away from Moloch units will likely make that unit kind of worthless. Also remember that pushing Moloch units can accomplish the same thing.
Avoid clustering your units if possible. They have a freakin’ airstrike.
Never just leave the Gauss gun pointed on your base. Address it.

Moloch: Strategy

You have relatively few battles to play, so you can’t rely on drawing a battle whenever you have damage lined up on an enemy. This means that you should do damage when you can, as long as your doing more than you’re taking. It also means you should be planning on playing a lot of defense.
Keep in mind that your opponent is probably more mobile than you are. You don’t want to line up 10 ranged damage on your opponent’s base and then have move out of all of it. To avoid this from happening, line up ranged damage from different directions and consider lining up ranged damage on spots adjacent to the base. Also remember that melee units, blockers and modules can be used to restrict your opponent’s mobility.
Many of your soldiers attack in many directions. If possible, find ways for a single unit to add to both your offense and defense.
Don’t fall in love with the airstrike. The airstrike is an incredible piece if you’re not doing that well and there are a lot of enemy units of the board. However it doesn’t do damage to enemy bases. Don’t be afraid to discard the airstrike if things are going well for you and other units could do some base-damage.

Moloch: Overview

Moloch are my favorite team, and definitely one of the best. These are the killer robots that destroy humanity in 2020, so obviously they’re not gonna suck. With lots of great ranged units, a few great melee units, shields, push backs and a freakin’ airstrike, the Moloch have a lot of options at their disposal. The only downside to this team is that they only have a single move tile, which means you should plan ahead when placing units. Moloch should keep their base away from their opponent’s, while keeping them lined up for ranged damage. Overall, Moloch are easy to learn and the airstrike tile makes them a fairly forgiving team for beginners. However, there is a level of complexity to the team and it will take some strategy to master them.

Outpost: Defeating

Make it a priority to address their soldiers as soon as possible. Any Outpost soldier could be useful to their offense because of all the moves they get.
Netting Outpost’s base is especially effective, as they cannot move their base away from harm and cannot use their base bonus to throw down mad damage on your base.
Keep a unit or two placed in a defensive wall between your base and any line shared with the Outpost base.
Units that attack in multiple directions can trim down Outpost's units if its put two spaces away from the Outpost base. It can also prevent Outpost from taking bigger offensive action.

Outpost: Strategy

The more tiles you have on the board, the more options you have whenever you draw a move tile. By preserving your soldiers you ensure that you will have more options when you draw a move.
Outpost have relatively fewer units in comparison to other teams, so try to maximize the utility of each soldier you place. Commandos (3,1,R) with their high initiative should handle the front lines, while slower and more damaging units should be protected. Placing Commandos against enemy bases ensures nothing can block their attack and allows friendly units to shoot through to the base as well.
Modules have a few uses. Placing modules next to your base can work as a wall. Also, placing them in line with an enemy base makes it more difficult for them to block your ranged damage.
Keeping your damage module within a spot of your base is highly recommended. Combining both of those bonuses can lead to some serious damage.
For huge style points, try leaving a medic one space away from an enemy’s base. Then, if the gods of tile drawing smile upon you, your Mobile Armor (or “Boss Man” as I like to call him…) can potentially do 4 damage with his melee attacks and survive the battle.

Outpost: Overview

These are the good guys, the human military trying to cleanse the world of the evils that terrorize the land. When utilizing their base bonus, Outpost are capable of doing massive amounts of damage in a single battle, sometimes with only a single unit. They specialize in mobility but lack any serious defensive units. Their military background also hints at their lack of diversity; most of their units are simple, one directional ranged units. When I’m on a losing streak I like to choose Outpost because as a team they’re an underdog but have huge potential. In general Outpost are not a complicated team, and their potential can be maximized with the help of just a few key points.