first game of Eden

[Berf]

The Preparation phase can be troublesome for new players, that's for sure.
I'll cover the different steps for better understanding :
Step 1 : easy enough, you unvail your troop for your opponent to check that you're not playing with more points than required or unautorized combinations.
Step 2 : still easy, calculating SP is no challenge
Step 3 : OK, the bidding in itself is not hard to understand. You bid more than the other, you get to choose who will be First player. Be careful though, if you have to determine the First player with a dice roll, the winner of the roll cannot choose whether or not he is the First player : he must be. For the rest of the phase, the First player stays the same, that is also important.
Step 4 : each player, starting with the First player, chooses a Leader among his fighters. Usually, it will be the one with the highest PSI stat, in order to have enough Tactical cards. But sometimes, it's better to have someone able to survive easily, someone with a good SPD stat or a good fighter. For example, Sigujana is not a good choice as a Leader, because his SPD stat is average and he cannot fight when his life depends on it. Never appoint him as Leader when playing against the Jokers, his survival against ranged attacks are very slim !
Step 5 : each player, starting with the First player, chooses a Mission card (reveals if necessary) and sets everything required by his Mission (except for Sacred hunt, the NPF are set during the Step 6a, but that's no big deal). As you cannot set objective markers closer than 5 cm/2 in of each other, choosing his Mission first can prevent your opponent from playing certain Missions. Easy at first glance, but the next steps will show you what is at stake here.
Step 6 : another harmless step you might think, but setting the scenery elements is also crucial. You cannot set them closer than 5cm/2 in from any objective markers (or any other pieces ofscenery), that's true, but you can make it hard to reach them for your opponent. Which brings us to...
(Step 6a : ok, this one we'll skip for now)
Step 7 : oh yeah, the step that looks like a piece of cake. But there is a very special feature about this one : the First player must deploy his troop first, but he also gets to choose on which side ! You didn't think we were playing on a square field for nothing, did you You realise what it means, I am sure. Some Missions, especially the Stuff (Jokers) and Sacred hunt (Bamaka), are waaaay easier if you are the First player, because you can set everything at your convenience, knowing you will choose your side of the Field. Try playing the Stuff when you're not First player and you'll see it can be extremely hard. On the other hand, when you're second player, you can play a good old killing Mission with less risks, as you will see where your opponent is deployed and ambush him efficiently (especially with an Ambush type of Deployment). Note that it is possible to be deployed in contact with an opponent (or a NPF) if you want (if both players have an Ambush type deployment and deployed some fighters exactly on the limit of their half of the Field).
Step 8 : now that you see how the game is set, what you're up against, and know (or guess) your opponent's Mission, you can choose your Tactical cards accordingly. ISC drones usually have enough Tactical cards to cover all kind of situation, but for the other Factions, concentrate on what you must do and how better to survive. Stigma type troops must keep in mind that they will rarely play more than two or three cards, even less if some fighters require SP in order to use Special abilities.
Step 9 : every fighters get AP and they're ready to rumble !
Also, keep in mind that as long as a fighter is not on the Field, he cannot use any of his Special abilities, unless the opposite is clearly stated on his card.
I hope that clarifies things