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Off-Topic Discussion => Gaming Discussion => Topic started by: Scotty on December 14, 2015, 07:57:08 pm

Title: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 14, 2015, 07:57:08 pm
How the hell do we not have a thread about this already?  This game is the ****.  Have you ever wanted to have a game where you dogfight with iconic ships from the Star Wars universe?  This is your game.  With three different factions and easily two dozen ships ranging from X-wings to TIE Fighters, to the Millennium Falcon and Slave I, all the way to Correlian Corvettes and Imperial Carriers, there's no shortage of ways to enjoy the game.

(http://i.imgur.com/I70LFK1.jpg)

This is the original Core Set, the starter box for the whole game.  It comes with an X-wing, two TIE Fighters, a number of pilots (both unique, like Luke Skywalker and Biggs Darklighter, and generic, like Academy Pilots for TIE Fighters), upgrades you can use to improve your ships like Proton Torpedoes, Astromech Droids, and Elite Pilot Talents representing extraordinary talent behind the controls, and a full set of dice, maneuvering templates, all the tokens needed to play the game (and a bunch more besides), and the included ships' maneuvering dials.

Every ship has its own unique stats and maneuvers, durability, agility, and offensive firepower.  X-wings are dripping in firepower, while TIE Fighters are faster and more maneuverable, but lack shields to protect them.

Between Rebel, Imperial, and Scum (a relatively new faction), there are a couple dozen different ships to fly, including damn near everything that ever had even ten seconds of screen time, and a bunch of stuff that only existed in the Expanded Universe.

Rebel Ships:

Imperial Ships:

Scum and Villainy Ships:


And a whole ****load of pilots and upgrades for all of those ships.  Pilots are locked to the ships they pilot, but upgrades can be added to ships that totally change they way they're played, making squadron building a very real, very interesting part of the game.

Everything comes pre-painted and to-scale with one another, so it's pretty damn close to being able to drop a few bucks, pull out a flat surface, and start pushing your tiny plastic spaceships around a table.  It's also addictive as hell, but priced well enough that jumping in won't break the bank.  The Core Sets (both of them) are $40 each, small ships like X-wings, Y-wings, and TIE Fighters are typically $15 MSRP, while large ships like the Millennium Falcon and Slave I typically run around $30.  Huge ships are ****ing huge and gorgeous, but typically run $70-$90.  Worth it, if you ask me.  Just look at this thing:

(http://doodlebot.net/redoubt/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/tmp_20140523_1902271961228214.jpg)

It's also a damn good game in terms of rules.  They're pretty airtight, and FFG will periodically release a FAQ guide that makes definitive rulings on questionable interactions between cards or pilots, or ambiguous card text.  If there's one downside to the game, it's that new ships will typically come with new upgrades, and those new upgrades will only be available in those ships, meaning that to use them in a tournament environment you need to buy the new ships, too.  In a casual environment that's not a huge deal (proxy what you want, yo).

I know the good General Battuta plays, and I obviously do.  Anybody else?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: StarSlayer on December 14, 2015, 08:46:05 pm
Dónde están los Feos? :wtf:

What kind of scum and villainy doesn't have the Uglies?  No Die-Wings?  No X-TIEs? :(
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on December 14, 2015, 09:42:59 pm
Uglies are ugly so I don't think they're willing to risk a bunch of money on producing and selling them. It would be kind of cool to have them though
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: StarSlayer on December 14, 2015, 10:04:32 pm
Does this play something similar to Blue Max or Canvas Eagles?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Akalabeth Angel on December 14, 2015, 10:05:43 pm
Forget uglies, why does no game ever use the Imperial Gunboats?

(http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080714051235/starwars/images/2/2c/XWA-Xg1-3d-new.jpg)

Such a huge part of two of most celebrated games in the star wars universe and there seems to be very little proliferation of the design afterwards.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on December 14, 2015, 10:38:01 pm
Quote from: StarSlayer on December 14, 2015, 10:04:32 pm
Does this play something similar to Blue Max or Canvas Eagles?

I don't know but it plays really well! It's intuitive, fast, easy to teach, and really deep - with lots of cool design space and a high skill ceiling. It's a hell of a piece of design.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: StarSlayer on December 14, 2015, 11:09:28 pm
(http://webpages.charter.net/dervel/Blue%20Max%20Game.jpg)


Blue Max is turn based and uses a grid plus collapsible stands to model position and altitude.  Certain maneuvers can be executed based on the situation and attack/defense phase is determined with dice throws.  Obviously there is a distinct lack of capital ships in the skies above the trenches though.

Anyway are the minis pre painted in this X-Wing game?

Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Akalabeth Angel on December 14, 2015, 11:34:37 pm
I think they're all pre-painted and also all not so cheap. There's also Star Wars armada for the people like me who prefer ships over fighters:


(http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/163745/star-wars-armada)


(http://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic2203480_md.jpg)
(http://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic2656136.jpg)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on December 14, 2015, 11:50:19 pm
Minis are pre-painted, very high quality, and gorgeous (nicer than any other Star Wars toy of similar scale I've seen). The game is purely 2D and doesn't require any kind of mat or grid beyond for a flat open space. There's a spatial reasoning/skill component in that you are never allowed to premeasure your moves, so you need to eyeball where you'll end up to avoid collisions and stay in formation.

You can also buy into Armada which is the capship version, but unfortunately it's much longer, slower, and more finicky — and I don't think it's much fun yet (not to mention it's expensive compared to X-Wing).
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on December 15, 2015, 02:44:51 am
Love X Wing. Spent way, way to much money on that game, can't wait for the SW:Rebels ships in the new wave. I mostly play Rebels - Z-95s and Y Wings are my goto ships. Of course, I'm not particularly good at it - came dead last at league night last night (out of 10). But in my defence, I was trying a new list! :)

Slowly converting family and friends over to the game as well - it's not difficult to do. :)

What are you guy s running at the moment? My list last night was:
Tarn Mison (T-65 X Wing) with R7 Astromech
Lt Blount (Z-95 Headhunter) with Ion Pulse missiles and Deadeye.
Gold Squadron Pilot (Y Wing) with R3-A2, Twin Laser Turret and the BTL-A4 title.
Jake Farrell (A Wing) with Push the Limit, Wired, Chardaan Refit, A Wing Test Pilot and Autothrusters.

I think its going to be pretty powerful - once I learn to fly it correctly.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 05:21:02 am
I am the stuntman prodigy, following in the steps of the Xtreme and the one true prophet, XXX.

Wedge Antilles (29)
Opportunist (4)
R2 Astromech (1)

Wes Jansen (29)
Veteran Instincts (1)

Luke Skywalker (28)
Veteran Instincts (1)
R2-D2 (4)

Total: 97

Living life on the edge with a monster initiative bid and no pilot lower than skill 9.  Wes shoots first to take away tokens.  Luke shoots next to take away more and begin dealing damage.  Then Wedge lets loose, a howling tempest of red dice against no tokens and reduced agility.

It's worked pretty well so far.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: NGTM-1R on December 15, 2015, 01:20:57 pm
Quote from: General Battuta on December 14, 2015, 11:50:19 pm
You can also buy into Armada which is the capship version, but unfortunately it's much longer, slower, and more finicky — and I don't think it's much fun yet (not to mention it's expensive compared to X-Wing).

Armada has more to recommend it mechanically than X-Wing does in my experience, but the significantly higher price point and the fact that the minis are prepainted except the fiddly bits and lastly that you actually get less in the box relatively make it seem like they were trying to sabotage it.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on December 15, 2015, 02:00:49 pm
Any advice on how to get into the game? What to buy (besides the starter set)? Best sites on which to learn up on the game?

Thanks!
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 02:23:30 pm
After the starter set, buy what you think looks cool!  There are actually two starter sets, one for classic X-wings and TIE Fighters, and one for Episode VII ships.  If you prefer Rebels, I recommend an X-wing and Rebel Aces to give you a few good options to start out with when it comes to building lists.  If you prefer Imperials, a TIE Fighter, TIE Interceptor, and Imperial Aces will give you a great selection of TIE pilots and most of the tools to run some pretty sweet ace Interceptor pilots.

But seriously though, get what you think looks cool.  I've got a couple Defenders that I absolutely love the looks of and periodically fly, even though they're pretty sub-class ships in the tournament meta right now (but look like they'll be coming into their own again with a new pack coming out early next year).
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Aesaar on December 15, 2015, 02:48:33 pm
TIE/IN coolest fighter.  I don't care how good it is ingame, it's got the highest cool factor.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on December 15, 2015, 02:51:32 pm
I hate the TIE/ln and TIE/IN confusion, but assuming you mean the interceptor, it's really good if flown by ace pilots. High-skill Interceptors are one of the landmarks in the metagame.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Aesaar on December 15, 2015, 02:58:06 pm
Definitely mean the interceptor.  That's good to know.  I'm gonna need to start playing this and find people to play it with.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 03:45:27 pm
If you love Interceptors, you need the core set (I'd recommend the 2nd core set for the damage deck included - they're different!) for the maneuver templates and damage deck, the Interceptor individual ship (which includes Soontir Fel as a pilot, arguably the best pilot in the game in terms of ability), and the Imperial Aces pack.  That'll give you three Interceptors, every pilot for them, and a whole bunch of cool upgrades to use with them.  You'll be missing out on some of the really high-meta cards like Autothrusters (in the Star Viper, also a cool goddamn ship) and Stealth Devices (Slave I, M3-A Scyk Interceptor), but all the basic pieces are there.

fake edit: X-wing supremacy forever (even though one on one an Interceptor will generally murder the **** out of an X-wing due to how movement and actions work).
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on December 15, 2015, 05:13:45 pm
Thanks Scotty. I'd be playing Rebels; what are their most notable ships/etc.?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 05:56:24 pm
The full list that Rebels have access to is in the OP.  Most notable?  As above, I'm partial to three X-wings as my squadron builds.  That's definitely not all that works, though.  Some ships that show up in tournaments a lot (which is a good idea to see what's good/notable, if not a good idea to see what you should play [which is whatever you want, **** the meta]):

Han Solo - YT1300.  This guy is arguably one of the best ships in the game, due to his ability and combining him with certain upgrade cards (Gunner, Predator, Engine Upgrade) and the 360 degree turret all YTs have..  A Han loaded down with a bunch of upgrades is known colloquially as a "Fat Han".  I don't actually own one of these because I hate flying big ships.

Dash Rendar - YT2400.  Also ridiculously good, due to the Outrider title that lets him put cannons on a turret and give no ****s about anything in the way.  Cannons are secondary weapons, so they have the handy effect of taking away extra defense bonuses from long range shots.  Stupidly mobile with the right upgrades, colloquially called "Epic Dash".  Also comes with a bunch of cool upgrades.  I don't catually own one of these either, for the same reason.

Corran Horn - E-wing.  Can shoot twice in a turn, in exchange for not shooting the next turn.  The only E-wing pilot worth using.  Pairs very well with either Fat Han or Epic Dash as part of a two-ship squadron list.  For a long time, two ship lists were the dominant part of the entire meta.  Recent releases have changed that pretty significantly, but they were good for a reason, and they're still good even if they're not outright the best anymore.

Keyan Farlander - B-wing.  Can spend stress (removing it) as a focus token while attacking.  Stress normally sucks really hard, so that's a pretty awesome ability.  Held back a little bit by the pilot skill in a world full of aces (PS 7, in an odd middle ground in the game where you're higher than generic pilots (and paying for it) but not high enough to consistently beat aces unless you grab Veteran Instincts, which makes it more difficult to get stress tokens through that upgrade slot).  Pilot ability generally makes up for it, and the B-wing's maneuver dial has a good deal of red to help out with that.  B-wings are also pretty tanky, with five shield points and three hull points.

Blue Squadron Pilot - B-wing.  Generic, PS 2 B-wing.  Cheap, durable, painful, not particularly dodgy, restricted dial.  Four of these guys and a Z-95 make up probably the best, most realiable jousting list in the game, at the cost of limited maneuver options to keep guns on target after the merge.

Jake Farrel - A-wing.  When assigned a focus token, he can perform a boost or barrel roll, making him the single most mobile small ship on the entire Rebel side.  Same PS as Keyan, but A-wings get to take two of them with the upgrades in Rebel Aces (which is where you get Jake in the first place) which makes it a bit easier to keep him competitive with other aces.

Green Squadron Pilot - A-Wing.  Relatively cheap generic fighter that is pretty good at staying out of arcs.  Comes with an Elite Pilot Talent (the lowest pilot skill ship in the game with an EPT at PS 3), and can get another with upgrades out of Rebel Aces.  Along with Jake, arguably needs Autothrusters (found in the Star Viper) to truly come into its own against ships with turrets.

Wedge Antilles - X-wing.  One of exactly five pilots in the game with native PS 9 (along with Han Solo, Darth Vader, Soontir Fel, and Talonbane Cobra).  Expensive, and X-wings have serious difficulty in modern games due to lack of after-maneuver reposition options like barrel roll and boost.  Still an awesome pilot, and will lay down the goddamn hurt on whatever you point him at.  Helped by...

Wes Jansen - X-wing.  Not as high PS as Wedge (PS 8), but with a pilot ability arguably better.  When he shoots at someone, they lose a token, either a focus, evade, or target lock.  You pick.  Really, really, really good at setting up shots for the rest of your group.  Put Veteran Instincts on him to get him to PS 10 and unleash him on a target you want to focus fire against.

Poe Dameron - T-70 X-wing.  Sublime.  T-70s kick serious ass, and Poe's ability is basically Luke's ability, with a few of the little details changed.  High skill (PS 8) and a boost action means he's maneuverable as hell, and adding upgrades like BB-8 (Astromech) and Push the Limit means that he can pull of maneuvers and actions in such an order that he can effectively get 5-speed banks and 7-speed forward maneuvers, which are normally impossible.  Everybody else has to do those reposition options after the maneuver, but Poe has the unique ability to do them both before he actually moves.

Gold Squadron Pilot - Y-wing.  Low cost, PS 2 pilot that is suddenly all the rage because Twin Laser Turrets kick ass, and you can fit four of these guys into a tournament list with them.  Sturdy, not very shooty (without turrets), not very dodgy, not very zippy.  This is why they're cheap.

Bandit Squadron Pilot - Z-95.  If the Y-wing is cheap, the Z-95 is dirt.  A Gold Squad Y-wing costs 18 points, a Bandit Squad Z-95 costs 12, equivalent to a TIE Fighter.  You can fit eight of them in a tournament list, which is expensive (in real dollars) and has some serious trouble with arc dodgers like Soontir (big in the meta) and Vader (also big).  Point and shoot.

Miranda Doni - K-wing.  The highest skill offering for the K-wing (PS 8), her ability is impressive.  Once per round, Miranda may choose to either roll one fewer attack die in order to regenerate a shield (there are exactly four ways to regenerate shields in X-wing.  All four of them are for Rebels only, two of them are Astromechs [and therefore restricted to X-wings, Y-wings, and E-wings only], one of them is a crew upgrade [and therefore limited to the YT-1300, YT-2400, HWK-290, and B-wing (with upgrades)] with a downside.), or spend a shield to roll an additional attack die.  Obviously that's pretty sweet and flexible, and Miranda herself sees a lot of play next to Corran or a Fat Han/Epic Dash in a two ship build.

Jan Ors - HWK-290.  Hawks are support ships, plain and simple.  Jan is high skill (PS 8), but you don't take her for that, you take her for the pilot ability.  If a friendly ship is nearby , you can take a stress token on Jan in order to have that ship roll an additional attack die.  Attack dice are huge in this game.  More of them is almost always great, especially if it doesn't take actions to do.  Downsides: Fragile, slow, really really ****ty on offense.

There are probably a bunch more of them that I missed, but those are the ones I see on the field most often on the Rebel side.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on December 15, 2015, 07:06:26 pm
Ookay, thanks! If I do get the game, I'll actually have some idea of what all that means! :p
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 07:19:13 pm
The new Core Set comes with an excellent rules reference to look up definitions of the more precise terms.  A much better reference than the original Core, at least!
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on December 15, 2015, 08:17:44 pm
Re what to buy when just starting out, there are two big questions to consider:
1. Will you be playing with other people who have their own copies of the game (i.e. tournaments, league nights etc. in an established local community) or will you mainly be supplying your copy of the game to play with friends?

and

2. Are you willing/able to proxy cards? (i.e. use a card you don't own a physical copy of by printing it out from the internet or whatever).

Those two will pretty much determine what you need to buy, but they're also kind of linked together. For example, if you're just playing with your mates using your gear, proxying cards is entirely fine, but you need to buy more physical ships so you have at least two lists. If you're playing in tournaments and leagues, it's going to depend, but sometimes proxying is frowned upon, and it's definitely not permitted if you want to play in any of the FFG sanctioned events like a store championship, regional etc.

My firm advice would be to buy at least enough ships for one Rebel and one Imperial or Scum list. This has dual advantages in that you'll both be able to play games with mates even if they've never even heard of the game before and you'll also be able to buy upgrade cards that come in specific packs from one faction or the other without then having a completely useless ship.

For example, One good way to start is a core set, Rebel Aces and Imperial Aces. This is a good combo even for a rebel player because it means you end up with an X wing (T-70 or T-65 depending on which core you buy) an A Wing and a B Wing, which is a good start, as well as two TIE fighters (Or First Order TIEs, again, depending on the core) and two interceptors - a roughly even matchup with your rebel squad. However, you also get two copies of the "Push the Limit" upgrade in Imperial Aces, which is basically mandatory on Jake Farrell, the best A Wing pilot in the Rebel Aces pack, and almost as useful on Keyan Farlander to generate stress for his ability.

If you decide you want to go past that basic intro buy, your options open right up. Some good buys might be:

 - Y Wing (One of my favourite ships, although you'll probably want a "Most Wanted" Box to make them competitive in a tournament setting, and that's quite a big buy, and of limited use when starting out if you're not playing Scum. That said, even straight out of the box, an Ion Turret equipped Y Wing is a great little ship - tanky and super annoying to your opponent)
 - TIE Defender (Very solid Imperial ship, great for beginners and about to become probably one of the dominant ships in the game when the "Imperial Veterans" box is released - even as a rebel player, it'll net you copies of Predator and Outmanoeuver EPTs - both great, especially Outmanoeuvre (which can be paired with PtL for a fantastic Jake Farrell build)).
 - K Wing (Miranda Doni is really powerful, and very prominent in the metagame right now, and you can build her almost up to tournament spec straight out of the box, plus she pairs well with Kyle Katarn crew from the Rebel Aces pack).
 - Millennium Falcon (It's the Millennium Falcon! :D And it has some cool crew (Chewbaccan and Nien Numb, both of which are really good), the engine upgrade modification (which is useful and somewhat  hard to get) and it's a fantastic ship for a beginner learning the game - it has a turret, so it doesn't have the subtle repositioning stuff that a dogfighting game is kind of about, but it's still fun to play. And again, it's the goddam Falcon!)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 15, 2015, 08:24:08 pm
Store Championship season should be starting up in about a month.  If you're serious about playing, take a list (with all the cards, though you can probably ask to borrow some if you make friends at the stores you'll be playing) to some of them.  They're all-day affairs, usually starting around 10 or 11 am and running until 6 pm (five 75 minute rounds, with a few minutes of breaks between, plus usually a lunch break) unless you break to the Top 8 players in that tournament, where you'll play another couple rounds of single elimination.

The first Store Championship I went to I took two X-wings, a Y-wing, and an A-wing.  It was a bad list, I didn't do well.  But I learned a damn lot!  And had a lot of fun along the way (to going 0-5 and dead last).
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on December 15, 2015, 10:11:53 pm
Okay, all this information is admittedly dizzying. But still, thanks for the advice.

I'd be playing at my FLGS, so everyone will have their own copies of the game. Store tournaments sound interesting, so I guess I'll avoid proxies for right now.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Mongoose on December 15, 2015, 11:09:29 pm
Man if I had any interest at all in tabletop gaming I'd be all over this.  Hell if I had money to burn I'd still consider it just for the awesome models.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on December 15, 2015, 11:37:42 pm
The game sounds a bit technical from the outside, but it's actually a pretty simple and elegant design.

You have a ship with a pilot and a dial (a set of maneuvers the ship can attempt). Maneuvers are green, white, or red. Greens calm you down, reds stress you out. You can't do a red if you're stressed out already.

After you maneuver, you take an action (unless you're stressed). The basics are focusing, barrel rolling, evading, and locking up a target. Focus is the only confusing one - it makes your dice more likely to score hits or evades.

Then you shoot by rolling red dice, hoping to roll hits. If you're shot at, you roll green dice, trying to roll evades. One evade cancels one hit.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 16, 2015, 11:14:38 am
Barrel Rolls move you laterally (and a little bit forward or back, depending on how you want to put down the templates).  There is also a Boost action that lets you perform a 1-speed forward or bank maneuver.  Combined with Barrel Roll (for example, on the Interceptor), these two actions are very good at keeping you unpredictable.  Maneuver dials must be set before anyone else moves, but post-maneuver actions happen after you've already seen where people are going to end up.

Each ship has a shields value and a hull value.  Both are parts of the ship's total durability, but shields absorb one hit regardless of what kind of hit it is and take just one point per hit.  Critical hits that hit shields do nothing extra, but critical hits that strike the hull flip a damage card face-up, and come with some pretty nasty effects.  Unless specified by card text somewhere (Autoblaster, Autoblaster Turret), always cancel regular hits with evades before you cancel critical hits, and always apply any remaining hits after evades to shields or hull before you apply crits.  That's one of the things I see new players not quite get all the time.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on December 29, 2015, 04:03:51 pm
How did I overlook this topic? I've been playing X-Wing for two years, including competetive play...

Last time I went out competively I ran:

Maarek Steele - TIE Advanced
Predator
TIE X1
Advanced Targeting Computer

Juno Eclipse - TIE Advanced
Push the Limit
TIE X1
Advanced Targeting Computer

Colonel Vessery - TIE Defender
Veteran Instincts
Twin Ion Engine Mk II

Straight 100 points with 8, 8 and 7´. The T/A never have to give up their trageting locks so Vessery can Focus every turn. Vessery shoots first with TL to strip shields, Juno takes out the last shields and Steele does is thing with letting you choose which of the first 3 cards in the damage deck your opponent has to resolve.
Came up 4th place in my last tournament (went two Swiss Rounds with 0-100; then got beaten by the 2nd (Vader and AC T/As) and 3rd ("Super Dash") placed players).

And be glad that you are getting in the game now: there was been a sort of wasteland of builds for some time but that is breaking up since Spring this year and now it is a "brave new meta" (though the shadow of the Twin Linked Laser Turret hangs over all) ....



Re: Armada

Armada is a different beast all together and for different player base. X-Wing is fast and responsive while Armada is for the players who delight in planning... but Armada only recently came into it's own with both side recieving iconic ships like the ISD and Home One.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 04:15:59 pm
Integrated Astromech is a gift from X-wing God himself and I'm loving the hell out of it.  I've swapped around my upgrades to give Wedge Predator, an R5, and Integrated Astro, Luke VI with R2-D2 and Integrated Astro, and then Wes with VI, R3-A2, Integrated Astro, and Flechette Torpedo.  Wes moves at PS 10, and then shoots a flechette torpedo at whoever I don't like at that moment to strip a token and dump two stress on them.

That looks like a pretty good list, though (much like my own) I'd be concerned about the fragility of it.  How do you deal with swarms or tanky two ship builds?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on December 29, 2015, 04:46:19 pm
Quote from: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 04:15:59 pm
How do you deal with swarms or tanky two ship builds?

I am not a rebel player, so I don't have their full reportoire at my fingertips, so I might miss one or two solutions...

Swarms usually revolve around a key ship, like Howlrunner in the T/F, Serissu in the M3-A or Epsilon Leader in the T/FO, that ship usually defines most moves of your opponent as it's effect is what they want to use most. It is this ship you have to take out at earliest opportunity but not to the point that you don't take their ships of the board.
And since Swarms have a rather good board control with their many ships and spread out firing arcs, it is best to avoid concentrated fire and see that you can split them up, so no single ship of yours is ever in all enemy firing arcs at once. Most swarm ships (T/F, Z-95 etc) have only 2 dice when it primary firepower, so keeping your focus for defense might be advisable and try not to get caught in Range 1.

Two Tank Ships (we are talking Brobots*, by any chance?) are very tricky cause there are many permutations of those to which not one solution applies. But with an opponent with a low ship count, blocking is a useful tool; Blocking is purposefully putting one of your ships into a position where you anticipate your opponent to move a ship to before they move, Swarms excell with at this due to their in-build redudancy and low pilots skills. Since you have a low ship count and high pilot skills yourself that is not feasable for you.
If blocking can't be done, remember that the golden rule is "not being shoot at > shooting yourself", try to maneuver and position yourself out of the firing arc of ships that can only use their primary arc to fire. If you are dealing with ships with turrets it depends on the kind of turret: Primary Turrets (YT-1300, YT-2400, VT-49) can be held at bay by staying away, while Secondary Turrets (Y-Wings) must be taken out at close range to maximize your primary weapon dice.  In any chase you should try to maximize your defense dice through the use of obstacles and range (if applicable).
YV-66 and the Firespray are a different kind of animal all togethee: with YV-666 you will most likely face a more stationary vessel as it can do the speed 0 move and that way maximize it's board coverage but that makes it predictable and slow. The Firespray is one of the hardest ships to "arc dodge" (= staying out of the enemy firing arc by maneuvering) since it has only 90° blind spot at either side but that is usually just a matter of training to get that right.

*Brobots = 2x IG-88 in any combination with the IG-2000 title

EDIT: Another tip: Use the rules to mix and match your obstacles, if you are so inclined - in competive play you register 3 obstacles of your choice along with your list for an event, which you have to use in every game (giving you a total of 6 when your opponent brings 3 of their own). This allows you to pick 3 obstacles that work best for your list or hinder a combination of ships you have problems with.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 04:58:47 pm
I meant, specifically, how does your list deal with swarms, since it's a three ship Imperial without nearly the ability to arc dodge like typical three ship Imp Aces and abilities that don't really enhance your defense a whole lot.  My list's general strategy is to just **** out more red dice faster and take ships out of play before they shoot and I end up on even numbers with PS advantage.  Yours, while still doing fairly well on the offense thanks to ATCs, doesn't really have the sustained "**** you" levels of firepower that 3 red dice ships tend to have.  I'm coming up on my third tournament season in the game, so I've got a pretty good handle on ship archetypes. :P

(Firing arcs are only 80 degrees, so the blind spot on each side is actually 100 degrees, not 90. :warp:)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on December 29, 2015, 05:46:58 pm
Quote from: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 04:58:47 pm
I meant, specifically, how does your list deal with swarms, since it's a three ship Imperial without nearly the ability to arc dodge like typical three ship Imp Aces and abilities that don't really enhance your defense a whole lot. 

Firstly, there is my personal skill... as I said I've been playing for two years and gotten quite good at the spacial reasoning portion of the game. My previous lists included 4x T/I and TIE Swarms which is really good training regiment for arc dodging and action economy as well as use of space and angeled deployments (No offense, but many Rebel Players I encountered were kinda untrained in that regard ... I blame primary turrets).

Also you underestimate this lists firepower and defense: Vessery usually has TL+Focus going putting him right there with 3 hits on 3 dice or giving him his defenisve use of focus. Juno is very good at sheeding stress (dial green 1 bank, do green 2 bank instead) while arcdodging with the barrel roll, and then has an action left for focus or evade. Mareek doesn't need to roll any hits as long as he as target lock and Vessery&Juno took care of the shields - he simply does his ATC crit and then I get to choose a crit that applies to my benefit (thought I had to learn the hard way that double damage is not always the best choice)-, so I can choose between evade and focus at my hearts content.

Lastly, unlike most imperial lists my list can actually "do slow" which can psyche out a lot of players. Same goes from bringing the T/D to competetive event - the ship is not exactly the best you can have, well rounded sure but also a points sink and prior to the TIE Mk II upgrade its stress management was .... distrubing(ly bad); that's why it is rarely seen competetively and always gets people on the wrong foot. (I really love the moment an opponent first sees the white 4-K Turn come up).

Quote from: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 04:58:47 pm
(Firing arcs are only 80 degrees, so the blind spot on each side is actually 100 degrees, not 90. :warp:)

There is some error in the prints ... which even leads to non-symetrical firing arcs ... but since the printed arcs are legal as they are per the rules it is easier to assume 90° across the board.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on December 29, 2015, 05:48:55 pm
Nope. :P  The printed arc is 80 degrees; it does not actually cross the corner of the plastic base if you draw the line past the edge of the base, it is not a full 90 degrees.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on January 18, 2016, 05:20:02 pm
I won my first game!  :D Against another total newb, but a win is a win. :p


I've come up with this weird list, to take to my FLGS. Any opinions?

Dash Rendar + Outrider + Heavy Laser Cannon + Lone Wolf

Poe Dameron + R2-D2

Prototype Pilot (A-Wing, PS 1) + Chardaan Refit [lowers point cost by 2]
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on January 18, 2016, 05:45:47 pm
I played last night and saw R2D2 on Poe twice, but I doing think I'd play him that way. There's no synergy unless you put a stress causing EPT our something on Poe to make green manoeuvres more attractive. Poe always wants to focus, and keep that focus, so why not R5-P9?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on January 18, 2016, 11:54:26 pm
God damn I am sick of stress hogs + regen Rebels.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on January 19, 2016, 01:50:31 am
Quote from: General Battuta on January 18, 2016, 11:54:26 pm
God damn I am sick of stress hogs + regen Rebels.

I am guilty of this, but feel like it is slightly less frustrating for my opponents because I am still just flying three X-Wings.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on January 19, 2016, 03:04:10 am
Quote from: Lepanto on January 18, 2016, 05:20:02 pm
Dash Rendar + Outrider + Heavy Laser Cannon + Lone Wolf

Poe Dameron + R2-D2

Prototype Pilot (A-Wing, PS 1) + Chardaan Refit [lowers point cost by 2]

Spoiler:
Dash Rendar (36)
Lone Wolf (2)
"Mangler" Cannon (4)
Outrider (5)

Prototype Pilot (17)
Chardaan Refit (-2)

Poe Dameron (31)
Veteran Instincts (1)
R2-D2 (4)

Total: 98
View in Yet Another Squad Builder (http://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Rebel%20Alliance&d=v3!s!95:98,110,-1,-1:14:-1:;32:72:-1:-1:;175:27,-1,3,-1:-1:-1:&sn=Unnamed%20Squadron)



R2-D2 on Poe is the same as R2-D2 on Corran Horn, keeping the ship around - and shield reg is pretty evil (I can live with discarding damage cards and canceling results, but please let me have my ciritcal hit-results)

As for stress hogs, only 6-9 months until the Delta Squadron Ion T/D (34) and the Glaive Squadron Tractor T/D (3X+2) enter the meta - "screw your maneuvers I want you THERE!" :D
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on January 19, 2016, 08:22:36 am
I think guidance chimps are gonna **** up regen lists by putting a lot of cheap alpha strike damage into the meta.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on January 19, 2016, 11:40:34 am
I am more sceptical about Guidance Chips ... you can still avoid a lot of missiles and torps by knowing your maneuver tricks (I forget the exact number -11?- all the time but there is a set number of ship lenghts/1-straight maneuver templates to get into combat distance by turn two) by which you can stay out of the target lock (thankfully Long Range Scanners and Cuidance Chips are mutually exclusive)...

But we will see ... every new wave shakes the meta, this won't be any different
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on January 19, 2016, 02:00:36 pm
Knowing maneuver tricks doesn't stop your opponent from outguessing you.  You're correct that it's 11 combined ship lengths (or 27.5 cm for the metric inclined) to get into combat range if you start directly opposite and fly straight toward each other.  That doesn't mean your opponent will politely go along with the speed you expect him or her to go at, and I'd be very impressed if you memorized the relative ship lengths covered by banks and hard turns and extrapolated them into the speed you'd have to go to completely remove the possibility of ending up at range 2-3.

I'll be using Guidance Chips on Wedge with Proton Torpedoes and Predator when they're release.  With Wes at PS 9 (Adaptability) firing and stripping tokens before Wedge (also at PS 9) fires for an average of 2.25 crits and 1.75 hits on his torpedo against between 1 and 2 fewer defense dice (since secondary weapons ignore range bonuses), it's probably a dead regen ace.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on January 19, 2016, 05:56:40 pm
I've been waiting for XX-23 thread tracers to get my concussion missile Tala swarm out of mothballs. Guidance Chips are just going to be ocing on that cake. :)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on January 20, 2016, 03:38:02 am
You can't prevent your opponent from outguessing you, but you can make it harder - using missiles/torps makes it easier because if you use them you are adding another item onto your priorities list. The more priorities you have per turn complicates what you have to do, making you more predictable for the early game. Now, Target Locks are easy enough to make - and Black Wolf rightly points out that the XX-23 card is going to be a thing for Alpha Strike lists - but they also cost you precious actions, you will then not have to maneuver or for defensive boosts. On top of that, unless you are fielding Nera Dantels (we will see if she comes back or not), most missiles/torps require you to use your front arc, even if you are target locked, so that is another exploit if you just know how.

But I always welcome the option that I am wrong about such things ...
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on January 20, 2016, 12:54:07 pm
The T-70 X-wing is pretty good about getting off ordnance.  It has a good enough combination of green dice and hull/shield points to soak an attack or two without any real damage, and the triple threat options of 4k and Tallon Rolls to either side is enormously more useful than they initially seem.  I get off torpedoes with my T-70s (when I fly them) with very little difficulty.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 01, 2016, 09:52:45 pm
If you fly Omega Leader next to a TIE-D Colonel Vessery with Ion Cannon, holy ****, you are having fun. Omega Leader sits there with comm relay/juke/a target lock, picking away, and meanwhile Vessery is double-tapping with a target lock on each shot and a focus and he's ionizing that asshole so you know exactly where he'll be next turn.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 01, 2016, 10:56:22 pm
Ion Cannon in general is annoying as **** no matter who's running it.  My opinion is almost certainly influenced by my proclivity for running X-wings which on a good roll from the cannon shooter are literally incapable of dodging it.

Speaking of X-wings, I ran four T-70s tonight ("Blues Brothers" with alternating three Blue Squad Novices and Blue Ace, and four Blue Squad Novices with astromechs and Integrated Astromch).  Went 2-2 against some very good players, and the two games I lost were on the razor's edge of going either way.  I'm not used to losing the pilot skill battle quite as hard as that, but there's a **** load of health to burn through on four T-70s and I love it.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 01, 2016, 10:58:06 pm
What do you do if Soontir shows up. Just try to keep your guys covering each other?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 01, 2016, 11:01:15 pm
Pretty much.  I have been flying X-wings for going on three years now, so I have a very good handle on their dial and maneuvering capabilities.  Getting a good shot on Soontir is a matter of getting overlapping fields of fire, and using aggressive maneuvers to block advantageous positions.  Once Interceptors have completed the merge most players rely on two speed maneuvers almost exclusively, and it's relatively easy to exploit that with X-wings especially if you've got the pilot skill advantage (which I'm very used to having).  Without the pilot skill advantage, it's nearly always worth having one ship (or even two or three) not shoot if it means denying an arc-dodger actions and having one or two guns on target.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 01, 2016, 11:05:22 pm
I've got the option between running:

Soontir + PTL + Autothrusters + (something cheap)
Vessery + VI + TIE/D + Ion Cannon + TIE MK2
Omega Leader + Comm Relay + Juke

Or doing a full Soontir with Autothrusters + Stealth Device but losing the VI on Vessery.

Strong feelings either way? I like having OL and Vessery both at 8 for maneuvering options, but...
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 01, 2016, 11:17:23 pm
I've seen Soontir with Stealth Device a million times, but there was a guy running Soontir with a Targeting Computer that won a Store Championship up in Bellevue two weeks ago.  Autothrusters is a must-include, but after that it comes down to what you want out of him.  Having him with TC would help Vessery out on offense if you don't spend it on the attack, and give Vessery a good chance at high offense without committing to a single target during your activation.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 01, 2016, 11:36:57 pm
Yeah I'm running TC right now. I find myself really missing that extra die sometimes...it's hard to say.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on February 02, 2016, 01:35:20 pm
My suggestion would be:

"Omega Leader" (21)
Juke (2)
Comm Relay (3)

Colonel Vessery (35)
Adaptability (+1) (0)
Ion Cannon (3)
Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)
TIE/D (0)

Soontir Fel (27)
Push the Limit (3)
Autothrusters (2)
Stealth Device (3)
Royal Guard TIE (0)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder (https://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Galactic%20Empire&d=v3!s!187:152,153:-1:-1:;70:170,22,-1:34:17:;28:18:5:15:M.1&sn=Unnamed%20Squadron)

Gives you 7-8-9 for maneuvering purposes and let's you have the Stealth Device...

(since you can play the unreleased cards from the Imperial Veterans, I figure those from the Mist Hunter won't be a problem)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 02, 2016, 01:53:26 pm
That's a real good idea.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 02, 2016, 02:23:00 pm
Adaptability is going to be a lot of fun.  I think that when it finally hits, I'm going to proxy up a few to use in a 5x Green Squadron A-Wing list.  Push the Limit, Adaptability, Chardaan Refit.  Comes to 20 points even.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 02, 2016, 04:40:34 pm
X-wing Spring Tournament Kit got revealed today.  Comes with acrylic ion tokens (meh), alt art IG-88C (I don't play scum, but cool I guess), and alt art VI (oh thank ****).

Stoked. (https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2016/2/2/order-spring-2016-tournament-kits-5/)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on February 18, 2016, 03:01:36 am
After the last preview, I wanted to go back to basics:

"Youngster" (15)
Rage (1)

"Epsilon Leader" (19)
Comm Relay (3)

Black Squadron Pilot (14)
Wired (1)

Black Squadron Pilot (14)
Wired (1)

Black Squadron Pilot (14)
Wired (1)

Black Squadron Pilot (14)
Wired (1)

Total: 98

View in Yet Another Squad Builder (https://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Galactic%20Empire&d=v4!s!152:175:-1:-1:;180:153:-1:-1:;12:150:-1:-1:;12:150:-1:-1:;12:150:-1:-1:;12:150:-1:-1:&sn=Unnamed%20Squadron)

I don't plan on this list performing super high marks .... its just a "how much tokens can I put on the table" kind of deal...

What do you think?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 19, 2016, 12:37:12 pm
That's pretty cool. Youngster's gonna get shot to pieces, though, can you find a way to keep him alive any longer?

I guess the question is whether you'd be better off just running Crack Shot on all the Black Squadrons.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on February 19, 2016, 08:14:32 pm
Wired is good in case you absolutely, positively need to make a non green manoeuvre after raging.

TBH, I just got utterly curbstomped by an Omega Squadron/Juke/Comm Relay miniswarm the other day, so I can't look at a TIE Swarm without just imagining how much better those are than any other TIE fighters on the table. So, if you can work a couple of them in, I'd do it in a heartbeat!
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on February 21, 2016, 08:21:39 am
Quote from: General Battuta on February 19, 2016, 12:37:12 pm
That's pretty cool. Youngster's gonna get shot to pieces, though, can you find a way to keep him alive any longer?

It is really fun if put to the table as it turns out ....

Youngster is really too fragile - one game I was up against a Corran Horn-build and he didn't last the first shooting phase - but against slower craft it was really funny how much cat-and-mouse you can play if the enemy is so fixed on taking him

I found that you can mitigate the problem by using up to 2 of the Black Squadrons away from Epsilon Leader to try and make the approach more difficult (Wired comes really handy at that point because you are not that peanlized by carrying stress from one turn into another) - it will not solve Youngsters fragility but you can at least carry him into another turn when the enemy redshirts have to spend their focus on defense or have to opt out of TLs if they can't risk tanking that round

Another thing is to remember that Youngster only has to be in R1-3 of friendly TIE Fighters, so you can actually pull him away if the threat becomes to great - the remaining Black Squadrons can still rage as long as Youngster is on the board and nearby
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 21, 2016, 01:27:06 pm
May I suggest Draw Their Fire instead of Wired on a couple of those Blacks?  You could double up each on Wingman and Draw Their Fire.  Since Rage gives you effectively target lock on whatever you shoot anyway, Wired isn't a big help except on defense (which is where this list is obviously not focused anyway).  Youngster remains a primary target, so anything you can do to keep hits off of him will prolong the longevity of the entire list.  Wingman takes care of some stress (obviously not all, and you could probably swap to Crack Shot if you wanted more immediate offense), and you can either pop Rage every other turn on the whole formation, or every turn on the two with Draw Their Fire and every other turn on the two with Wingman, but be restricted to green maneuvers throughout.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 21, 2016, 01:48:00 pm
I'm really feeling Crack Shot here...you've got your Rage guaranteeing hits, so the ability to cancel evades is giving you *more* hits.

But I dunno, it'd be super cool to see Draw Their Fire in play.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scourge of Ages on February 27, 2016, 05:20:38 pm
A friend just got this game, and I'm learning it like right now. Any advice on how to thoroughly destroy my opponents?
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Lepanto on February 27, 2016, 05:52:30 pm
Lose, lose more, lose in new and interesting ways against all the crazy meta lists that players with years more experience have to throw at you.

And maybe, eventually, win. Haven't gotten there yet myself.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 27, 2016, 06:18:49 pm
Quote from: Scourge of Ages on February 27, 2016, 05:20:38 pm
A friend just got this game, and I'm learning it like right now. Any advice on how to thoroughly destroy my opponents?

Focus a lot, don't bump into other ships or asteroids.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scourge of Ages on February 27, 2016, 07:21:18 pm
Quote from: General Battuta on February 27, 2016, 06:18:49 pm
Focus a lot, don't bump into other ships or asteroids.

Focus does seem to be super useful, though evade saved my bacon just enough to take out an x-wing before getting vaped. And I've seen enough collisions in just our learning game to get that :D
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on February 27, 2016, 10:38:10 pm
Quote from: Scourge of Ages on February 27, 2016, 05:20:38 pm
A friend just got this game, and I'm learning it like right now. Any advice on how to thoroughly destroy my opponents?

Always pick a target and try to focus your fire on that one target. Can't always do it with every ship every turn, but the worst thing to do is to get a ship close to death, and then get distracted by a different target.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Mammothtank on February 27, 2016, 10:39:58 pm
How good is this game? I was going to purchase some models for this game but my local store that sells stuff like this closed down last year.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 27, 2016, 10:44:35 pm
It's very good.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Mammothtank on February 27, 2016, 10:48:35 pm
It was thinking of getting into wh40k after playing a small game of it for the first time but its common knowledge their prices are absurd. So I looked at a few other games like this, Heavy Gear, Battletech and several others.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on February 27, 2016, 11:01:10 pm
BattleTech is 100% my ****, but X-wing has a significantly (by orders of magnitude) larger playerbase.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Mammothtank on February 28, 2016, 12:13:39 am
I went with my friend to check out the hobbystore before it closed down and they had some sort of special edition Atlas there on sale. But I didn't have any cash on me.

I've been interested in getting into Heavy Gear but apparently right now the rules suck.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on February 28, 2016, 01:47:49 am
Quote from: Lepanto on February 27, 2016, 05:52:30 pm
Lose, lose more, lose in new

Seconded...

Practice your special reasoning. Remember that the faces of the dice (its not just the symbols that are different). Avoid the arc, so you don't get hit, pilot. If you opponent is not a total social idiot during the game, stay a while and discuss the game - let them point out your mistakes and admit when you didn't know what to do - they might be suprisingly helpful.

Also play a list that you know have a known drawback once in a while (see my "Youngster is Outraged" list a few posts back), not all experience is transferable between lists but a lot is.

Quote from: Mammothtank on February 27, 2016, 10:48:35 pm
It was thinking of getting into wh40k after playing a small game of it for the first time but its common knowledge their prices are absurd. So I looked at a few other games like this, Heavy Gear, Battletech and several others.

A friend of my brothers once said "40k is like the McDonalds of tabletop wargaming. You will get it everywhere at a consistent quality but it doesn't mean it is good in any way". 40k used to be the "entry game" into the hobby but it is fair to say that is has been disposed by X-Wing, which has a broader player-base and rules that don't require you to carry a dictonary with at all times.

First make up your mind what kind of scale you want to play on (= model count) and then check out a system based on that. X-Wing has the advantage of low model count (2-8), it is reasonably fast paced and of mild complexity but there are other games which might suit you wishes more: e.g. Corvus Belli's Infinity has been my love for last years because it has a nice blend of scale (skirmish, 10-20 models) and complexity (too much for some) along with reaction-mechanics that don't allow for a dull moment.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on February 28, 2016, 10:29:55 pm
You have inspired me, Scotty.

League night tonight, going for:
Wes Janson with VI, R7-T1 and Integrated Astromech.
Wedge Antilles, Opportunist, R2-D2 and IA.
Gold Squadron Pilot, R3-A2, TLT, Extra Munitions, Bomb Loadout, Seismic Charge.

May swap the droids around, originally Wedge had Expert handling, so R2 D2 made more sense, but now R7-T1 might be better, let him get in to range 1 and roll 5 target locked dice.

In any case, I'll resort back with my results.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on February 28, 2016, 11:28:41 pm
Don't play Warhammer, don't give Games Workshop money, they're an awful company making an awful game with awful conduct towards their players.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Mammothtank on February 28, 2016, 11:30:58 pm
Too late. I bought a Battle for Macragge set that I never finished when I was younger.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Black Wolf on March 08, 2016, 04:23:09 am
Quote from: Black Wolf on February 28, 2016, 10:29:55 pm
You have inspired me, Scotty.

League night tonight, going for:
Wes Janson with VI, R7-T1 and Integrated Astromech.
Wedge Antilles, Opportunist, R2-D2 and IA.
Gold Squadron Pilot, R3-A2, TLT, Extra Munitions, Bomb Loadout, Seismic Charge.

May swap the droids around, originally Wedge had Expert handling, so R2 D2 made more sense, but now R7-T1 might be better, let him get in to range 1 and roll 5 target locked dice.

In any case, I'll resort back with my results.

Forgot to report on this.

It went... ok, but kind of poorly. I did end up swapping the droids around, so Wes had IA and Wedge had R7-T1. I think that that was the right call, but it kind of failed out on me. I don't rmember all the details, so no full batreps, but this is basically what went down.

First game was against a twin falcon list, VI Han with Gunner, and Chewie with something or other. I don't precisely remember, but a pair of heavy 3 dice turrets (especially with possibly the only ship in the entire store that night that out PSed my Janson)is not what my list wanted, but the player was kind of new so I thought I had a shot. I set up in the corner and slow rolled to start off, drawing him into the roids which I had deliberately placed pretty close together on my side. I knew Han was a priority target, and got a bit lucky by getting him stressed fairly early on at range 3 - eventually I managed to lay enough stress on Han to ensure he wouldn't get any more actions for the rest of the game. Then I got super lucky when my opponent landed him on a few roids here and there - he ended up not shooting with Han twice and taking damage both times, and Chewie once (but no damage).

With him not shooting much, and positioning myself on the wrong side of asteroids, I managed to kill his Han at about the halfway mark, then put two stress on Chewie before he killed my Stresshog. Then, I made the mistake of leaving Janson within range 1 of Chewie - he rolled 4 natural hits and Janson blanked out, and, having not fully regenerated his hits from the battle with Han, was wiped out. With just Wedge on the board vs a not quite full heqlth Chewie, I thought I was more or less done for, but suddenly my dice woke up, and his fell asleep, and we had a few turns of Wedge chasing Chewie around the board, plinking off shields and hull at a decent clip. Wedges ability started to make a difference, and I eventually got Chewie down to 4 hull, but wedge was on fumes, down to one hull and IA. I was in with a chance!

Time is called, we're halfway through the last round. Chewie moves and target locks me, giving me a chance to trigger opportunist. I move Wedge into Chewie's arc at range 2. I could have taken the 4 dice shot, but I know I need Chewie dead before he shoots, or Wedge will probably die, so I seize my opportunity and trigger R7-T1 to target lock and boost into Range 1. I now have 5 Target Locked red dice (3 from Wedge + R1 bonus + Opportunist), and he has no green dice to roll. I need four hits. I roll my five dice... 1 hit. ****. Not to worry, I have a target lock! I reroll 4 dice... 1 hit. Two puny hits get through, Chewie shrugs it off, and shoots back, rolls 3 natural hits and a crit, and my dice blank out on me. Game loss.

Quite a frustrating one, actually, because I'd forgotten Wedges ability a time or two, I'd forgotten IA on Janson and I'd completely forgotten to use the bombs on the Stresshog. As tight as it ended up, I think one more round of shooting with Janson could have made the difference. I chalk it up as a learning experience and move on.

Game two was against a kitted out VI Gunner FCS Whisper and a miniswarm with Howlrunner, Epsilon Leader and Backstabber (I think). He sets up with his swarm in one corner and Whisper in the other, I decide I'm going to joust with the swarm and then try to deal with the phantom. This time, I'm determined to remember all my abilities, and although it starts off badly for me, with no kills in the first round of combat, it gets better quickly. Epsilon leader is down by the end of the second, Howrunner goes down next to a well placed Seismic charge. But then whisper gets involved, and things start to go wrong. Janson takes a big hit from Whisper and has to run off behind a roid to heal up, but I fail to get the tight K turn I wanted to execute with Wedge to work, and he just barely bumps Janson, leaving him stressed and facing the wrong way. Worse yet, the stresshog is also out of position, so I have no shots this round. Its ugly, with Backstabber hurting the stresshog pretty badly, but Wedge gets lucky and takes only one hit from Whisper, avoding gunner. With no  option to K turn, I opt to take Wedge out of the fight for a couple of turns to throw off his decision making - it works, and Wedge avoids taking fire this round, but the stresshog isn't so lucky, dropping its last bomb to good effect (taking health off the Phantom and Backstabber), but getting PS killed by backstabber before he can shoot at the Phantom

Next turn, Wes finally gets back into the action, taking out the depleted backstabber while Wedge clears his stress. But the Phantom has arc dodged too well, and he gets a massive shot off at Janson, wiping him out despite the regenned shields and remembering IA - it was brutal. Ultimately, it was Wedge Vs. the phantom, with I think two turns of manoeuvring through roids where nobody had a shot then one final round, again past time, where I had a shot on him and he'd chosen to focus rather than cloak. Wedge fires, with three red dice vs hisone green, and... one hit, one crit. He blanks out, loses a shield and draws the crit... I'm on the edge of my seat - a direct hit wins me the game. But it's not a direct hit. He survives on one hull with a crit, shoots at wedge, gets one damage through and Wedge survives. I get a modified loss on points.

Last round, I draw my brother. He has 2 PS5 Khiraxs with Predator and two TLT Y Wings, without the title. We set up, and get into it, essentially jousting down one side of the board. It quickly becomes a slaughter. He's rolling in quickly, so we're in combat by round two, and by round 5, we're both down to one ship - my Stresshog (which has already dropped both bombs) vs one of his Y Wings. It was one of the nastiest displays of dice lopsidedness I've ever seen - just about every red rolled a hit (or was rerolled or otherwise modified into a hit), and just about every green failed. Janson and Wedge took out a Khiraxz early on, but then Janson went down almost immediately to the two Y Wings and the other Khiraxz. The second Khiraxzwent, then Wedge, and then he made a critical error and put one of his Y Wings on a rock. Prior to that, it'd been my stresshog vs his 2 TLT Y Wings, and I was toast. But his mistake meant he took a hit going on and coming off, and I got to shoot him with all three shots from the Hog. Down he went, and it was one on one in no time. Complete carnage.

The last few rounds were more or less me following him and keeping us both stressed, while he plinked away at me with his TLT. Then I made my error, misreading his intent and getting him out of arc. He gets me down to two hull. Final round, I get him back in arc and kill him, but since its PS2 vs PS2, the simultaneous attack rule kicked in, and he got to shoot back. First TLT shot, two hits, I lose a hull. Second TLT shot. One hit. I have one veade die. And evade wins me the game, a blank and we end it on a 100 all tie. In my heart of hearts, I was hoping for a blank, because the entire game up to this point had taken bout 25 minutes, and I thought a 100 all draw in <30 minutes was, well, hilarious. But, it wasn't to be. I roll the one evade I need and survive, winning 100-70, my only win for the night.

Overall, there was lots to like about the list. Any time I get to fly T-65s I enjoy it, and it was fun to fly at a high PS for a change. The bombs on the Stresshog were definitely worth it (I'm considerfing trying to find some points for proton bombs, but that becomes one hell of a pricey Stresshog at 33 points (with Extra Munitions)). And the synergy between Wedge with R7-T1, Opportunist and Janson with VI is fantastic. But when I walked out on Monday night, I didn't think this list was for me. Without more arc dodging or better damage mitigation, high priced X Wings are just too vulnerable to those big king hits. It's weird - essentially 6 HP behind 2 dice seems fine, but I think I lost X-Wings too cheaply in every game. I might still be able to find a place for Wedge, possibly with Expert Handling and R2-D2, but only if I can pair him up with some ships that'll stay alive for awhile. Still, all my games were close, and I could very well have come away with a very different attitude had a few small things gone my way, or I'd remembered to use all my abilities in the first game, and the outcome had been different. At the very least, it was fun and somewhat competetive, if not quite top tier.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on March 12, 2016, 11:36:32 pm
Flew my XXX list (with VI and a 98 point bid) at a 50-person Store Championship today.  Ended up going 4-2 with one modified win, and took 14th overall.

That modified win was in the 3rd game, and ended up being probably the most intense finish to a game of X-wing I have ever played.  I was down to Wes Jansen, one hull point, Integrated Astromech already used.  One point left to give, period.  Opposing me, Omega Leader, one hull point left.  Omega Leader had a target lock on Jansen.  Jansen had a target lock and a focus.

The final turn, time is called just before the combat phase starts.  We end up in range 1, lined up exactly.  The perfect joust.  I'm PS 10, I shoot first.  Hit, hit, blank, blank.  I curse under my breath.  Defense dice roll.  Evade, evade, blank.  No damage.  Jansen strips the target lock.  It's all down to this.  He shoots.  Hit, hit, focus.  ****.  Two hits coming my way.  Everyone standing around the table (a good dozen) stops talking.

I roll the dice.

Evade, focus.  I triumphantly tilt the focus to an evade result, and the crowd goes wild.  Jansen was 32 points.  Omega Leader was 26.  With initiative bids, I win by 7 points.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on March 15, 2016, 01:31:34 pm
New FAQ (https://images-cdn.fantasyflightgames.com/filer_public/3a/d1/3ad18ffb-443d-45d1-837e-b542bc1ffe2f/x-wing_faq_v411.pdf) - and it is the first time I need an english native speaker to translate a ruling to me, which concerns the Omega Leader ruleing (which then turned out just to be complicated and not confusing)

The ruleing on R3-A2 in regards to TLT is nice (Triple-Stress-Hog-Y-Wing, we hardly knew you :D ) just as the Tractor Beam+Ruthlessness one
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on March 15, 2016, 05:10:02 pm
R3-A2 is explicit.  It's when you declare the target.  TLTs were FAQ'd a while back to work like Cluster Missiles: two attacks, skip the second declare target step.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: General Battuta on March 16, 2016, 12:13:37 am
XXX is so tough but I feel so good whenever I get a win! Scotty I saw your latest XXX, really like the ion torps on Wedge...but I can't give up that proton torpedo crit kicker...

Are you cool with going full 100 points? Don't feel the need for an initiative bid?

Here's me right now:

Quote
XXX TORPS

99 points

PILOTS

Wedge Antilles (38)
X-Wing (29), BB-8 (2), Proton Torpedoes (4), Predator (3), Guidance Chips (0)

Wes Janson (35)
X-Wing (29), R3-A2 (2), Proton Torpedoes (4), Guidance Chips (0)

Biggs Darklighter (26)
X-Wing (25), R4-D6 (1), Integrated Astromech (0)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on March 16, 2016, 12:36:47 am
The SC I went to over the weekend was full to bursting of PS 9 and PS 8, but higher than that was sparse.  I counted, among all  lists that I played with, against, and adjacent to, a grand total of two other PS 10s (Poe, Boba) and one PS 11 (Vader).

I'm confident enough in my skill as a player to deal with PS matchups that I was willing to sacrifice the PS advantage and initiative bid (to being "merely" 9/9/9) in order to bring an answer for the last list metatype I had difficulty dealing with.

Using Predator and Chips is almost mandatory though.  You'll still average enough hits to punch through most anything, with the possible exception of a turtled up Soontir at range 3.

I like the double torps you've got going.  I prefer Flechette on Wes, if only for the utter dick move of double stressing and then ripping off between one and three tokens depending on rolls and target.  I also toyed with the idea of flying Tarn instead of Luke, and launching the torp at whoever chose poorly in the combat phase.
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: 0rph3u5 on April 26, 2016, 11:37:08 am
Colonel Vessery (35)
Adaptability (0)
Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)
TIE/x7 (-2)

Maarek Stele (TIE Defender) (35)
Adaptability (0)
Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)
TIE/x7 (-2)

Countess Ryad (34)
Adaptability (0)
TIE/x7 (-2)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder (https://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Galactic%20Empire&d=v4!s!70:170,-1,-1:33:17:;193:170,-1,-1:33:17:;195:170,-1,-1:33:-1:&sn=Unnamed%20Squadron)

this might be fun :)
Title: Re: X-Wing by Fantasy Flight Games
Post by: Scotty on June 10, 2016, 07:34:42 pm
My XXX list has now logged three consecutive 100-0 victories against online opponents.  I'm really liking how it's turning out.