Saint-Laurent Open 2025
26 Oct 2025
Rosco
10 min
Two days. Six rounds. Twenty-two Commanders. The Saint-Laurent Open 2025 was a weekend of fancy wild fleet manoeuvers, big dice pools, and even bigger explosions at L’Abyss Game Pub in Montreal. I brought my trusty CIS Mar Tuuk five-ship fleet out for what might be its final run, and after a marathon of close games, cinematic moments, and amazing opponents, I managed to snag 3rd place overall. Here’s the full battle report, round by round.
G’day Everyone! It’s been a hot minute after a busy couple of months of work, travel and life stuff. But now I’m back and I’ve finally got some Armada content for you once again… Enjoy!
What of the Rebel Fleet mustering at Montreal…?
I’m certainly no stranger to early AM ops briefings…
The Saint-Laurent Open wasn’t just another tournament; it was two days of furious space combat, tactical fleet actions, and community spirit at its finest. Over the weekend of 18-19th October 2025, I had the incredible opportunity to compete in the Saint-Laurent Open Star Wars: Armada Championship, held at the fantastic L'Abyss Game Pub in Montreal, Quebec. Sponsored by ARC and Star Wars Armada Quebec, the event brought together 22 passionate players from across the region to battle it out over six intense rounds with no cut… meaning every match counted.
The Competition and Faction Breakdown
The event drew 22 players across every faction: eight Imperial, six Rebel, four Republic, and four CIS fleets. Nine were squadless, eight ran light squadron screens, and four leaned heavily into fighter/bomber wings. It made for an unpredictable and strategic weekend of play.
The full set of fleets can be found on T4 here.
The Venue – L'Abyss Game Pub
L'Abyss truly set the perfect stage for a weekend of Armada. It is a full-service Friendly Local Game Store (FLGS) combined with a bar, kitchen, and board game café, featuring a spacious basement dedicated entirely to tabletop gaming. The atmosphere was ideal for a long, competitive weekend.
The food was excellent! Fresh, tasty, and perfectly timed thanks to the pre-order option for lunch and dinner. Meals were ready during breaks, which kept the rounds flowing smoothly without unnecessary downtime. The staff even offered table service during games downstairs, which was incredibly convenient and made for a genuinely comfortable experience.
With great food, smooth scheduling, and six rounds to play through, it was time to lock in and focus. Every match would matter, and playing cautiously simply wasn’t an option.
My Fleet
Once again, and probably for the last time, I brought my beautifully painted pride and joy: a CIS Mar Tuuk squadless five-ship fleet, now featuring ARC’s new Quarren Gunship (Q30). My strategy was simple: use the raw damage output from Invincible and Patriot Fist to overwhelm and destroy my opponent’s key units, pushing for large wins.
The Q30 was a major upgrade, replacing the Hardcell from my previous iteration with some better shots from a faster, more resilient platform. Those three ships, together with the two Gozanti flotillas fitted with High-Capacity Ion Turbines (HCIT), meant I could send a lot of firepower downrange at any one time if anything dared to approach.
The main weakness was squadron defence, for which I hoped the Gozantis and Patriot Fist could help. What could possibly go wrong?
The objectives I chose were Most Wanted (points pińatas!), Hyperspace Assault (Q30 drop), and Hyperspace Migration (farming Gozantis).
Day 1
Game 1 - Taylor (Republic, Anakin)
Objective: Volatile Deposits
Result: 10-1 Win (420–60)
My first opponent on day 1 was Taylor, a great bloke and a Montreal local. He chose to be player two, and we played his Volatile Deposits objective.
Taylor brought an Anakin-led GAR squadless MSU fleet, which had me a bit worried. His long-range firepower meant I needed to close the distance quickly and trap his ships before they could whittle me down.
During deployment, I managed to pinch two asteroid obstacles and placed them behind an obscuring dust cloud on my side, forming a volatile deposits rock mine with a Gozanti. (Did I hear a “Rock and Stone!”?) The rest of my deployment was a little spread out but centred on the board.
The early rounds were a cautious dance as I searched for the right moment to push my main ships forward while my Goz quietly mined in the corner. Taylor’s Venator chased after the Goz, drawing it away from the main fight. His Arquitens cruisers (GARqs) came in straight, perhaps a bit too aggressively, and that gave me the opening I needed.
Once Invincible and PatFist surged forward, they tore into the GARqs while my speed-zero Goz waited for the Venator to clear the dust field. The Goz was incredibly lucky, slowly building speed, then scattering a close-range shot from the Venator, slipping past it and escaping unharmed.
With the Goz holding the rocks for 120 objective points and my main ships cleaning house, the final score was 420 to 60 — a 10–1 victory. After the game, Taylor and I had a great chat about the rock-mining tactic, and I reassured him that the broadside “conga line” formation for GARqs works and recommended he stick to it for the next few games.
Game 2 - Simon [@CptAwesomer] (Rebels, Agate)
Objective: Superior Positions
Result: 6-5 Win (415-405)
Next up was Montreal local legend (and one of our illustrious TOs), Simon Girard. He also chose player two, and we played his Superior Positions objective.
Simon's Assault Frigate (AF) flagship was going to be tough to bring down with Agate onboard, and his powerful squadrons were certainly a worry for me, not to mention their capacity for farming objective points from my ships.
I deployed all of my ships first, and he deployed on the adjacent side of the battlefield, ready to skirt around my ships while the squadrons picked away at me. He did precisely that in the opening rounds, with my ships turning hard at speed to close in as quickly as possible, while his squads approached to start bombing. As he slowly turned his ships in, he kept closing that distance to within striking range, and I started engaging him. PatFist, being my vanguard on that right flank and a huge threat, copped most of the shots from the squads, eventually succumbing to the weight of bombing power with support from Adar Tallon in a Bomber Command Centre GR75 flotilla, leaving the other ships to pick up the slack. Invincible managed to blunt his bombers slightly by downing those GR75s and then commenced taking down the Flagship as well with the help of some Boarding Troopers. With just the two CR90s left, Invincible, the Q30 and the two battle gozzies managed to chase them down and finish them both, though not before also losing Invincible to the bomber ball. With a very close game at hand leading into the final round, Simon commenced farming more tokens from my remaining ships' rear hull zones while I contemplated ways to destroy them quickly to prevent it!
One more dice change and an objective token certainly would've swung it the other way, but we ended up with a super close 415-405 for a 6-5 to me. Awesome game!
Game 3 - Paul [@PT106] (Empire, Motti)
Objective: Contested Outpost
Result: 8-3 Win (460-252)
After lunch, my next opponent was Paul from Boston, USA. We'd played each other once or twice online in Vassal/TTS tourneys, but never in person, so it was good to meet at an IRL table finally. He chose to be the second player, and we played his Contested Outpost objective.
The play for this one was quite simple, with both of us pointing our five gun ships at each other across the table and rolling a heap of dice by round 2… except he had a Combat(?!) Interdictor to help repair stuff.
I played my typical death blossom formation, and he dropped his ISD on the far flank and near the station, forcing me to cross some open crossfire territory to get into close range with Invincible. I did exactly that, but not in the most efficient way, missing the double-arc on the ISD as I landed. For his particular list of five long-to medium-range shooters, he chose the second one correctly and waited for me. Invincible weathered a hail of fire from the ISD and Interdictor for a couple of rounds and eventually went down, but not before delivering significant damage in return to both.
PatFist, mainly having ignored the Arquitens for now, closed in to finish the Interdictor and then began working on the ISD, taking it down with just enough damage right before it escaped. That left the Arquitens to close into range of PatFist next to go down with the exact amount of damage required, also preventing it from finishing off my Q30 (which I had so foolishly flown into range of him).
A very bloody battle in the end, with a score of 460-252 for an 8-3 to me. Exceptionally well played by Paul, who is so meticulous in his actions and placement. Another great game!
Game 4 - Derek [@Crewgar] (Empire, Sloane)
Objective: Hyperspace Assault
Result: 10-1 Win (400-100)
Last up was Derek from Ottawa, whom I hadn’t met at CTC earlier this year in May, so it was good to meet another Ottawa local. Naturally, with Sloane, he chose first player, and we played my Hyperspace Assault.
He had me very well out-deployed with his squadrons and my Q30 set aside 'in hyperspace', but he still deployed his ISD and Quasar opposite me, likely confident in his squadrons' ability to tear down my big shooter before they could do any real damage. Pretty fair assessment, to be honest! That said, his decision to deploy the Quasar on the opposite side of my PatFist may also have significantly contributed to the overall outcome.
As we closed in during the opening rounds, I knew I had to get in fast, and I even dropped my Q30 really early at the top of round 2, blocking his Quasar with a kamikaze-style mission double-arc and forcing him to focus on that with his ships and squads, rather than Invincible. I was INCREDIBLY lucky with the Q30 as the bombers and Quasar were unable to destroy it before it activated and left it on one hull point, resulting in the Quasar being trapped and my Q30 having a close-range double-bite of the cherry before spectacularly exploding with a ram into it… leaving his carrier heavily damaged. I then moved Invincible into close range of the ISD with a double-arc, setting up the big punch for round 3. At the top of round 3, his ISD was able to activate and put some serious damage into Invincible. Still, the return fire with boarding troopers, a double-arc, and the external racks was enough to take it down, leaving the Quasar one last activation, blocked in with a Gozanti before PatFist finished it off with a long-range shot.
A fast and furious game! The result was 400-100 for a 10-1 to me. Quick game's a good game, I always say… then we both went and got a beer to finish up the day. Derek mentioned to me after the game that my placement of the Q30 and Gozanti in front of his Quasar, exactly in the right spot, kept it in danger and forced him to redirect assets to those targets instead of my big shooters. Yet another good game with a great bloke. After that, it was time to pack up for the evening and then come back fresh the next morning for day two!
Day 2
Game 5 – Sébastien [@DadVader] (Empire, Ozzel)
Objective: Contested Outpost
Result: 4–7 Loss (110–310)
The first game on day two was a big one - Top table against Sébastien, a local legend and all-around great guy who came into the round undefeated (and with a bounty on his head from the TOs!). With tied fleet points, I won the roll-off and took first player, then we ended up playing his Contested Outpost.
He deployed in a tight formation opposite me, aiming towards the flank, with his ISD guarding the flank and his Demolisher, Goz and squads on the inside. It was immediately clear he wasn’t interested in fighting for the station. Instead, he wanted to create a kill box and force me to come through it. With Mar Tuuk and my squadless approach, I didn’t really have a choice; if I hesitated, he’d start racking up Outpost points uncontested and get around behind me.
The first couple of rounds saw him make some cagey moves. I moved in at speed, trying to angle Invincible toward the centre while PatFist angled in hard to the centre, the Gozantis up to support Invincible, and the Q30 protecting the flank. Sébastien’s Ozzel navigation mastery came through, enabling him to carefully manage his approach to best leverage the squadrons’ reach.
By round three, the fight was on. Invincible was taking some serious bombs while trying to wait out the ISD, but Demo was also repositioning and waiting to pounce hungrily as soon as the opportunity presented itself. It quickly became clear that Invincible and the Q30 were in a very untenable situation, placed so close to the ISD’s arcs and a fully unchecked bomber ball.
They both fell quickly in the next round, followed by both flotillas, leaving PatFist to try to limit the damage by collecting as many points as possible from the abandoned station, his Goz and any stray squadrons in range of its flak.
Sébastien played an excellent positional game; patient, clinical, and perfectly suited to Ozzel’s hit-and-run flexibility. The final score was 310–110, giving him a solid 7–4 win and me my first loss of the tournament. His bounty was safe once again. A tough but rewarding match against a top-class opponent.
Game 6 – Étienne (Rebel, Mon Mothma)
Objective: Most Wanted
Result: 6–5 Win (192–140)
The final round of the Saint-Laurent Open brought me up against Étienne, another Montreal player and one of the nicest opponents you could hope for in the last game of a long event. His fleet was a classic Mon Mothma dodgy MSU (new and improved ARC version!) with a Jaina’s Light CR90 and two MC30s - lots of evades, lots of movement tricks, and the kind of list that can frustrate a heavy CIS gunline like mine if I don’t close the trap fast enough.
He (rightly) chose to go first, picking my Most Wanted objective. I marked one of his MC30s as my target and one of my Gozzies as his. Right away, I knew this would come down to positioning: if I could bait his MC30 into close range of Invincible or in range of PatFist, I could delete it and potentially swing the game hard in my favour.
The first two turns were all maneuvering. Étienne weaved his ships beautifully, skirting out of range bands, while his flotilla managed some squad manoeuvres. I advanced in formation and pivoted toward his line of advance, slow and steady, forcing him to come to me to score Most Wanted points.
By round three, the MC30 finally made its move — a daring speed-4 dive across my front line. It landed a punishing side shot into PatFist, but that put it right into the kill zone of Invincible. My flagship responded with a full broadside and Boarding Troopers activation that stripped its tokens and tore it apart. Unfortunately, that left Invincible exposed to concentrated fire from two CR90s, and she barely survived the return volley.
The rest of the game was a scramble to pick up what points I could while keeping my remaining ships alive. Étienne managed to finish off one of my Gozantis, but the clock ran out before his CR90s could swing around for another pass. When the dust settled, I had just edged him out, 192–140. A narrow 6–5 win that felt like the perfect, hard-fought end to the event.
Reflections and Conclusion
And that was the Saint-Laurent Open! Six rounds of non-stop Armada action over two awesome days. I wrapped things up with five wins (including 1 VERY close win) and one loss, which was good enough for 3rd place overall by MoV. I was absolutely stoked with that finish, especially given the level of competition in the room. There were some great prizes on offer, including a full ARC prize pack from Admiral Tater’s Ship Shop and beautiful alt-art cards from Chris McWilliam. A huge congrats to James [@Maturin] from Vancouver for taking 2nd, and even bigger congrats to the overall champion, Sébastien, for an incredibly well-earned top spot.
Looking back, I’m really happy with how the fleet performed. The Mar Tuuk five-ship build still delivers brutal firepower and can bully just about anything when the approach is clean. The Quarren Gunship proved its worth a dozen times over. That thing’s speed, durability, and flexibility were game-changers, especially for the Hyperspace Assault drop. It’s probably the final form of this list, and if this was indeed its last tournament outing, it definitely went out with a bang. Here are some of my previous exploits with Marty’s Fleet, including Worlds 2025 and CTC:
That said, the fleet’s biggest weakness is still the lack of squadron cover. Every time I faced bombers or multi-activation lists, I had to push hard and end fights fast before attrition set in. It’s a knife-edge playstyle (very CIS-like) and it makes every game feel like a cinematic slugfest where you’re either dealing devastating double-arcs or desperately holding the line.
But honestly, what made the weekend wasn’t just the dice or the ships, it was the people. Every opponent I faced was top-notch: friendly, sharp, and up for a laugh even in the heat of battle. The community up here in Quebec (and the folks who travelled in) made the event what it was: competitive, relaxed, and full of great vibes.
Huge thanks to TOs Simon and Maxim, ARC, Star Wars Armada Quebec, and the team at L’Abyss Game Pub for running such a smooth, well-organised event. The venue, food, drinks, and service were all spot on — couldn’t have asked for a better setting for a weekend of angry triangles and plastic spaceship pew-pews.
I wish I could say I’ll do it all again next year, but this was likely my last foray into the Armada tourney circuit in North America, as I move back to Australia in January.
So this was definitely a great way to finish up! Thanks to everyone for a fantastic time. The community is as amazing as ever, and I’ll catch you again, either online or when I rock up over here sometime in the future.
For another take on the weekend’s action, James Chen (@Maturin) has also started a great write-up on the Armada Ruleset Collective Blog. Take a look at the report on how his Sato fleet performed.
Cheers and keeping rolling dice,
Rosco 🥃
