With current events as they are, and a huge lack of in-person gaming going on, I’m going to attempt to compile a list of retailers associated with the hobby, and how you can buy from them or at the very least, follow them.
If you have a store you frequent or can absolutely recommend, feel free to either leave their name in comments or get in touch on Facebook. This will be an evolving post as and when I get store details from the community.
As all who follow the X-Wing scene will know, aside from the official accessories offered by Fantasy Flight Games for X-Wing, either for purchase or through Organised Play kits available to stores or event organisers, through to being sold by FFG themselves, there are a large number of Third Party suppliers of tokens, templates, organisational solutions, template trays, and many other things. If you can think it, somebody, somewhere will either already make it, or be able to work with you to make your idea a reality.
One of those Third Party suppliers is Buy The Same Token. I’ve linked the X-Wing 2.0 section of their store, but they do cover other games as well. Some may remember I have mentioned them before either in a fairly short post or just as a shout out after receiving some supplies. Now, however, I’m going into a bit more detail, showcase a lot of what I have received, and tie in how not only this company, but these products have helped to improve a game system I really enjoy.
Templates and Trays:
Template Trays from Buy The Same Token come in two sizes. The first are designed to fit in KR Mulitcase storage/transport solutions, and consist of a single (double thickness) layer template tray with topper/lid, while the second size fits into a Feldherr case the size of one of their half-size trays, and consists of two (double thickness) layers to hold templates and range rulers and has space for a selection of tokens, with a topper/lid (single thickness). Sold separately is a dedicated layer for storing/transporting tokens to a game night or event, cutting down on what you need to carry with you.
One of the first products I chose was a Rebel Alliance template set and trays to organise them.
Being happy with how these turned out, I had aspirations to collect a template tray for each faction I play, as I love being able to correctly coordinate what I’m using on the table with accessories on and off the table. Therefore, I set to saving for a set to match my Republic Faction. Seeing as Mace Windu is my favourite Jedi, I set my sights on Purple to represent the faction, with gold highlights because it stands out nicely.
Next on my purchase list, will be the TIE Pilot templates and tray for my Empire faction, which rounds things out nicely.
My daughter was desperate for her own, unique template set, and, after a lot of back and forth, including much help from the guys there, as you can see, her dream became a reality. While her trays are a different colour to her templates, she wanted the pink to really pop while they were stored instead of blending in.
Damage Deck Holders:
Buy The Same Token produce two different sizes of Damage Deck Holder to account for the original Promotional full-size damage deck available with a pre-order of the new 2.0 core set, as well as a Standard size holder for the mini-sized cards included. The great thing about the Promotional size deck holder is that it also fits the faction specific decks Fantasy Flight Games released.
As you can see, I have linked the Acrylic colour with my Faction and Sleeve colours (all full-sized cards use Dragon Shield sleeves, for reference). I have also attempted to tie the faction-specific symbols and paint schemes with the current/future damage decks. This is my Republic holder.
My Rebel Alliance holder matches the template colours perfectly and compliments the sleeve colour in a perfect manner too.
As mentioned previously, this is the TIE Pilot holder for my Empire faction. I need to source some Black sleeves for my Empire, in order to complete the look, these are the matte Petrol colour currently. It takes nearly two boxes of 100 for each faction.
In order to keep things together, my daughter received this Damage Deck Holder for her birthday, and she was beyond thrilled with the fact it is not only “her” unicorn, but matches her templates too.
Arc ID Markers, Ship ID Markers, Lock Tokens:
After releasing a small range of varying sized Arc/Ship ID markers and tokens, and a separate set of Lock Tokens, Buy The Same Token released a complete set of 8/4 Arc/Ship ID tokens and markers, which included a matching set of Lock tokens
As you can see, these are my Republic markers and tokens. Cut from the same Acrylic colour as my templates, tray lid, and Deck holder, the colour matches perfectly. Currently, I’ve found the best way to keep these organised and stored is in the small baggies they arrived in, or, in the short term, those in use stay o the ship bases they are being used with.
Yes, you’ve guessed it, as part of her birthday present, my daughter received a set of these too. So far, she has only taken the backing film off the ones she has used, and, as games are few and far between currently, mainly due to my health issues, and partly wider health concerns, the majority of hers still have the protective layers on them.
Tokens:
The mainstay of many X-Wing players, tokens for various actions, abilities, game-states, and even changeable configurations. Tokens are varied, with several different types or series (words, transparent, black, “Love Hearts”), whatever your token preference, if they don’t stock it, they may be able to work with you to get what you are after.
Part of the “Love Hearts” range, these Shield tokens have a standard Shield logo on one side and a movie quote, in red, on the other.
Part of the Transparent range, these Charges show active and inactive on either side.
And finally, a selection of other tokens available from Buy The Same Token, as an idea of what you can get. One great thing about using a single company for your accessory needs is you are more likely to, not only retain a consistency of colour amongst your accessories, but, they are far more likely to interact with each other in a beneficial way, such as storing tokens in a template tray for a specific list/event.
There we have an overview of one of the companies offering a very comprehensive range of products to enhance and organise your X-Wing experience. Don’t just take my word for it. I’ve negotiated a very generous 10% limited time discount code for you to use on their Etsy site. TYDIRIUM, valid until 11:59pm on December 31st 2020 on all X-Wing Acrylic. Just to mention, this isn’t a commission deal, I don’t earn through referrals. I am a firm believer in spreading the word when a company stands out as excellent, even more if it is a small business.
Like many others, I coveted acrylic accessories because they are far more durable than their cardboard counterparts, no matter how well made. Yet, acrylic is also light enough to transport well, so not adding more to your burden. I will add that I didn’t purchase my first set until The Second Edition of X-Wing had been released, which ensured I could get maximum usage out of my purchases.
One thing I really like about using acrylic tokens is their thickness compared to their cardboard counterparts. Another aspect is that they are, for me, far more noticeable than the card ones, they are less likely to get lost on the game mat, especially using the transparent series and their coloured acrylic. A final improvement on acrylic over cardboard is customisation. A browse of the Buy The Same Token Etsy store (linked above) will show all the small, but fun customisations they have come up with.
Sorry to say, there’s no frilly images or insightful pondering happing currently. But, I do have time for a small update.
So, while I am chipping away at finishing the upcoming TIE Interceptor article featuring the new pilots from the Skystrike Academy expansion and rewriting how those upgrades may effect older pilots, I am also working on figuring out the other new expansions FFG/AMG have released that I don’t yet have access to.
Added to that, I am slowly building a Galactic Republic Legion force up a unit at a time, learning how to play Keyforge (tonight at 4tK in Colchester), and preparing myself for a new adventure at a game store opening in my home town soon, where I have secured a position, and taken the daunting step towards trying to expand X-Wing right here at home! That said, I can see myself still travelling to Colchester, work and funds permitting, because they are a great group to play with!
So, that’s where I am currently, I’m hoping to finish what needs finishing soon though. Take care of yourself, and Fly Casual!
With the of the Skystrike Academy expansion pack for X-Wing, new life has been breathed into both the TIE/d Defender and the TIE Interceptor. Below we are going to go over the new additions and some old favourites.
First up is the Standardised (if equipped to one ship, it must be equipped to all {the other}) TIE Defender Elite Configuration. You become a far more offence-orientated ship using the TIE Defender Elite Configuration, swapping out Full Throttle for Advanced Fire Control, and increasing the difficulty of your Koiogran Tun manoeuvres in order to decrease the difficulty of your Turn manoeuvres.
Personally, I am finding it difficult to justify equipping that upgrade, though, using two weapons per round does seem advantageous, I do feel it’s more of a trap to try and reduce the longevity of the TIE Defender.
The new Talent, Interloper Turn seems to be trying to force the TIE Defender into a more of a knife-fighter role, engaging at very short range with a Stress Token but with some flexibility in manoeuvrability. For the life of me, I can only see this being situationally useful, and rarely at that, as you almost always want your actions. That said, we haven’t had Structures released, revealed, or otherwise hinted until this pack was released, so, who knows, maybe this Talent is more of a gem than a hunk of rock?
Delta Squadron Pilot
The Delta Squadron Pilot is a very interesting choice here. I can see one hidden in a pack of Academy Pilots or escorting a Limited pilot of some type. Maybe it’s a fire-magnet to give your other ships a chance at getting some action in because players have been conditioned to hurl many red dice at any TIE/d Defender they encounter because they know the hurt it can put out. This is a pilot I still have yet to get around to actually trying.
Captain Dobbs
Captain Dobbs comes to us from the Skystrike Academy Expansion, and at Initiative 3, gives us a Limited pilot on the lower end of average, with a very interesting ability of gaining an Ion Token to cancel a Hit damage from an ally when not ionised and in the attack arc.
This ability could be useful to keep a different pilot alive longer or to bait a kill-box trap for the following round as your opponent will know exactly where you’ll end up.
Onyx Squadron Ace
The Onyx Squadron Ace gives you a Talent slot and an average Initiative value for a non-Limited pilot. This is, perhaps, the ideal wingman for Darth Vader or any of the other named TIE/d Defender pilots available. The Onyx Squadron Ace can pack a similar load out and has the same manoeuvrability so they should rarely be parted.
Countess Ryad
Countess Ryad is a very fun pilot to fly, changing up the usual predicatability of the TIE/d Defender by allowing a Kiogran Turn at any forward speed, in exchange for it being treated as white instead of blue. There are several uses for this ability, chiefly, the ability to slow-block an opposing Ace with a speed 1 Kiogran Turn, or slamming away fast and spinning around with a speed 5.
At Initiative 4, Countess Ryad works well with either Colonel Vessery or an Onyx Squadron Ace, or with other Initiative 4 pilots available to the Galactic Empire. Countess Ryad is a strong pilot in a strong ship which means you can’t go wrong.
Colonel Vessery
Colonel Vessery is the second Limited, Initiative 4 pilot up for grabs. This can make list building an interesting challenge as you want wingmen who can Lock to set up an ability trigger, while at the same time being careful not to base your entire strategy on the ability.
Vult Skerris comes to us from the Skystrike Academy expansion. Now, we have a new (to me) icon on his Charge count, which looks like the charge depletes itself, and I’m guessing here as the Rules Reference hasn’t been much help, during the end phase when recurring charges recover. If that’s the case, then this does make for an interesting ability.
Being able to perform an action after spending a Charge means Skerris could double reposition. Something new for the TIE/d Defender, or even go equipped to the fight with a Lock, Focus, and Evade, if not upgraded with the TIE Defender Elite configuration. It’s important to note, that, using his ability every turn after the first will result in a Strain token, which reduces the agility by one until either a Blue manoeuvre or Skerris Defends. All in all, I think I can get behind having Vult Skerris on the table, maybe with some Interceptors or even bulk standard TIE/ln Figters to box opponents in quickly.
Rexler Brath
Rexler Brath makes his appearance here now. Rexler is strengthened by attacking ships that either are unshielded or already damaged, with the Full Throttle ship ability instead of the TIE Defender Elite configuration being equipped. This is an ideal situation though. If you are equipping the configuration, I highly suggest leaving Rexler at home, as there are better uses for your post-move action than Evading.
All that in mind, Rexler Brath is a great hunter. Pouncing on wounded enemies, getting close and dealing devastating damage, or herding opposing ships for a higher-initiative wingman.
It has happened. One of the scariest combinations imaginable, Darth Vader in a TIE/d Defender. Now, the design of this card is so much better than it could have been. The pilot ability of the TIE Advanced X1 has been replaced (phew!), and Vader has been prevented from spending Force anywhere except when attacking which allows him to spend (only!) 1 force to change one Blank to a Hit result. Nasty, but, not overpowered.
This does mean, though, no force power-based shenanigans, but more passive abilities may be useful. Let’s take a look at what powers could be used:
Power:
Situation
Instinctive Aim
Using a secondary weapon with action requirements.
Predictive Shot
Target in Bullseye arc and has the potential to roll more defence dice than you have hits or cries.
Hate
Useful for fast regeneration of Force charges.
Sense
Only if you are trying to see where an enemy at range 0-1 is planning on going.
As you can see, Vader still has a healthy amount of Force powers to choose from, depending on how much you want to invest in this already pricey pilot.
Rexler Brath chases down Lando Clarissian, hoping to catch and destroy him before Wedge Antilies catches up.
There we have it. Perhaps my favourite Imperial ship has been updated and refreshed by AMG/FFG for 2021 with some new pilots and upgrades. While it has certainly become more versatile and less predicable, it may also get more fragile, good news for those facing them, not so much for Imperial fliers.
Kicking off our much-improved RZ-1 A-Wing article is the new (introduced with the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack) Vectored Cannons Configuration. An important point to note here is that the Vectored Cannons Upgrade is a Standardised Upgrade, meaning, if you want it on one RZ-1 A-Wing, you have it on all!
Vectored Cannons replaces your Vectored Thrusters ship ability to, not only give you a front/back turret indicator, but also give you the option of during the System Phase, you may either perform a Red Boost or Red Rotate actions. Great options if you aren’t planning a red manoeuvre and one that can/will clear the incurred stress if you have planned correctly.
Starbird Slash is a Talent upgrade also included with the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack. This allows you to Strain an enemy ship you have moved through, for free if you aren’t in their firing arc, otherwise, you also take a Strain too. So, watch those arcs if using this.
The humble Initiative 1 Phoenix Squadron Pilot is a great filler ship, or can make a menacing squadron as they are fast, agile, and often difficult to hit. The fact that even at Initiative 1 they have a Talent slot and the new configuration available means they can become rather vexing to opponents not used to their new abilities. Used to block higher-initiative pilots and remove their actions they can cause quite a snarl up. It’s worth remembering that they do only have 4 health in total, so focused fire power is their downfall, especially without tokens around to assist.
The Green Squadron Pilot is well placed in the list of RZ-1 A-Wings as it is the first port of call for two Talent slots (no, you can’t double up on the same Talent) for a modest increase. This means they can stand fairly well against equivalent opposing ships and are still available to block higher initiative pilots. Again, they do lack the staying power of other ships if they are focused on, but can still cause quite the annoyance.
Arvel Crynyd is a well-costed pilot with a great pair of abilities, but using one of them will leave them tokenless, so, it’s worthwhile considering your options. The ability to perform primary attacks at Range 0 is a strong one, especially as the majority of ships won’t be able to return fire. A staple when fielding Arvel is Intimidation to further hamper opposing ships by reducing defensive dice. The addition of a second talent slot opens up some interesting combination opportunities, like Marksmanship for an extra Critical result.
I can see the deliberately failing a boost to get Arvel out of a position of being shot by what he would be at Range 0 of, providing it is of lower initiative. Arvel may be one of the few RZ-1 A-Wing pilots not to benefit greatly from the new Vectored Cannons upgrade, as the focus/boost of Vectored Thrusters may be more useful.
Sabine Wren is a newer RZ-1 A-Wing pilot, introduced in the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack. Her ability is similar to the Concordia Face-off of the Fang Fighter. This makes her a great jouster who is guaranteed to reduce incoming damage by a minimum of 1 for every ship facing her and firing. Not forgetting to get at least 1 Hit result under the same conditions.
With Vectored Cannons, Sabine can benefit from both parts of her ability as long as she has guns on target. Either way, it makes her a moderate threat to anything trying a front arc shot.
Jake Farrell is another pilot who may not always benefit from Vectored Cannons, as the Focus./Boost of Vectored Thrusters will allow Focus Action passing. Though, a Systems Phase Boost/Focus-Pass could be incredibly useful depending on your plan and formation flying.
While Jake is usually used as a support pilot more than anything, it is important to remember he does have offensive output that can be improved and could make all the difference.
Share Bey is another new pilot for the RZ-1 A-Wing, keeping the ability that makes her useful in an Arc-170 Starfighter, The ability to add a Focus result to your dice pool for either offence or defence means Shara is going to be burning through tokens. This is a maximum of 6 Green dice or 4 red dice under ideal circumstances for you to modify should you have the Focus token to accompany your Lock.
If you’ve seen Rebels, you’ll have met a young Wedge Antilles. Keeping his pilot ability from his T-65 appearance, Wedge does drop two points of initiative to account for his younger age. Coupled with Outmanoeuvre and Star Bird Slash, Wedge could give even (sneak peek) Darth Vader in a TIE/d Defender a bad day. Wedge is definitely a pilot I wouldn’t invest any points into missiles for, while every other A-Wing would have a solid case.
Ahsoka Tano is the next RZ-1 A-Wing to come from the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack. Ahsoka comes with two Force Power slots instead of Talent slots, and on a personal note, I am stapling Brilliant Evasion to her as it’s such a great power for the cost, and on an A-Wing, fairly invaluable. That means I would hazard a guess it may because Agility based at some point in the future. Ahsoka’s ability to spend 2 Force tokens to allow an ally at Range 1-2 to perform an action, even when stressed makes her a great booster pilot, who can handle herself well should she need. I have yet to experiement with a second Force power for her yet, but I have been thinking that Extreme Manoeuvres might be a wonderful fit on this frame, to make it even more kinky and to come about fast without a stress.
As a side note for this article, my last game running Ahsoka had her facing off against two TIE/d Defenders and a TIE Interceptor… Neither ship could land anything telling on her, she was just avoiding everything that came her way.
Hera Syndulla, like her A/SF-01 B-Wing ability, allows her to transfer tokens during the Modify Dice step to allies at Range 1-2. Hera is the final pilot added by the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack. Hera’s ability is great for passing off tokens she no-longer needs to allies who may be in immediate need of them, but, it’s worth mentioning that you have to pick the right time to transfer, otherwise Hera will become a priority target, especially if she is without a token herself.
I can see Hera leading an A-Wing squadron quite nicely, though the composition is very open as each other pilot needs to be balanced and useful, or a flood of generic pilots hoping to overcome the enemy with sheer numbers.
To round off this article, above you can see my attempts to represent Hera (leftt), Sabine (middle), and Ahsoka (right) in their RZ-1 A-Wings. I do have to say that I was the happiest with how Ahsoka came out, but am very pleased with all three, and am now working to putting together a list that utilises all three of them to see how well they can do.
I have to say, FFG/Atomic Mass Games did a bang up job with the Phoenix Cell Squadron Pack, bringing us some great pilots and much-needed love for this nifty fighter. The RZ-1 A-Wing has been a favourite of mine since First Edition, even if it is still a shame we haven’t got Tycho Celchu back yet.
I’m going to avoid promising what the next article will be, as I’m not totally sure just yet.
The B-Wing’s Stabilised S-Foils were first released in the Hotshots and Aces upgrade pack and later added to the Phoenix Cell expansion pack. The S-Foils give the B-Wing a Barrel Roll linked to Red Lock action when open, or a Reload and Barrel Roll linked Red Evade when Closed. The limitations are in play if you are critically damaged, but otherwise give you some great additional effects when open, by allowing you to spend your lock after your initial attack to perform a bonus attack with an unfired Cannon upgrade.
The Limited B6 Blade Wing Prototype Title upgrade for the A/SF-01 B-Wing gives you the ability to add a Gunner upgrade to a single B-Wing in play. Rather useful for some interesting shenanigans and gives you the opportunity to recreate some of the Rebels mischief for fun.
Kicking off the A/SF-01 B-Wing article is the Blue Squadron Pilot. At initiative 2, the Blue Squadron Pilot would benefit from the Stabilised S-Foils configuration, by allowing it to barrel roll into a lock if you have either a cannon or special weapon like Torpedoes equipped. With 8 total health, the Blue Squadron Pilot may tend to stick around longer than other low-initiative pilots in other ships, meaning they should get the chance to use their secondary weapons.
Next up, we have the Blade Squadron Veteran. Slightly more expensive, but with a Talent slot, to either drive damage home or increase your defenses slightly.
When you add in the S-Foils, the Blade Squadron Veteran opens up some interesting shenanigans, but still suffers somewhat from its relatively low initiative. With that in mind, if you need a tanky distraction piece that puts out some respectable damage there are worse choices unless you allow your opponent to focus their fire on it.
Netrem Pollard has a very interesting ability with a niche situational timing. the ability to perform, in essence, a barrel roll K-turn while passing the stress to an unstressed friendly ship at Range 0-1 could allow Netrem to get around in very peculiar ways. Though, on a ship that can Tallon Roll on a 1 template or even K-Turn on a 2 template, I wonder how much use that ability will get. Though, saying that, it comes to mind that being able to roll, flip direction, lock, and fire some torpedoes up the back end of an enemy who isn’t expecting it could change the game, but, that’s a lot of points to invest in somebody with low initiative, and a single defensive die.
Braylen Stramm, as one of the original B-Wing pilots, needs little introduction. The addition of the S-Foils gives him more opportunities to gain the stress he like for his attack modification. It is important to remember that he doesn’t spend the stress, but, needs it to be on him for his ability.
I can see two different roles for Braylen Stramm in a list. Firstly, he’s a hunter, potentially equipped with Outmanoeuvre and making use of the ability to stress and reroll while attacking from out of arc. Secondly, he could be used to control opponents for lower-initiative squamates depending on equipped weapons. Either way, Bralyen is likely to be a medium to high priority target for your opponent.
Ten Numb is another B-Wing pilot who loves to be stressed going into the engagement phase. Spending Stress as though it’s a Focus Token. Can’t argue with that. Especially if using a default Focus/Barrel Roll action.
Like with Braylen Stramm, Ten Numb has two options, hunting targets from behind or firing out a combination of torpedoes and cannon shots. Again, the addition of S-Foils really gives Ten Numb some excellent options which will increase his output while making him a higher priority target.
Gina Moonsong, introduced in the Hotshots and Aces upgrade pack, doesn’t like to be stressed at all. She MUST transfer any stress tokens to a friendly ship at range 0-2. Great if you are Ten Numb… not so great for others depending on your plans.
With that in mind, she could benefit from being a Lone Wolf, and dealing with her own stress, or as a feeder for pilots such as Ten Numb or Braylen Stramm. At Initiative 5, Gina can tangle with most foes on an equal footing, and the addition of S-Foils could be beneficial for lower initiative squadmates, again, depending on loadout.
Should read: “…defends or performs an attack, during a Modify Dice step, you may transfer…”
(Replaced “…defends or performs an attack you may transfer…”).
Atomic Mass Games (effective 04 May 2021
With Hera in a B-Wing (finally), and her ability to pass around Focus, Evade or Lock tokens as required, she is a great support piece for allied ships.
With the support in mind, Hera can also act as a good source of damage, and passes whatever tokens she may have around after her attack(s) have been resolved.
The A/SF-01 B-Wing (or B6 Blade Wing Prototype) has received some decent upgrades and additional pilots since the beginning of X-Wing 2.0, and feels like a much more viable ship to fly.
In a recent (at time of writing) game, I had great fun flying two of them with a pair of A-Wings. They kinda folded, but, that was on me making a mistake and my opponent capitalising. Still, I learned a lot from that.
Now the LAAT/i Gunship has been around for a week or two, I felt it was time to have a much closer look at this new ship for the Galactic Republic.
Hawk
At Initiative 4, “Hawk” is the highest-rated pilot for the LAAT/i, with a great ability that allows you a measure of unpredictability if you are moving fast that turn by allowing you to perform a Boost or Barrel Roll action (assuming you haven’t already) at the beginning of the End Phase at the cost of a Strain Token. A pretty decent trade off.
It’s worth looking at the ship ability here. Allowing rerolls without a target lock is a great boost to low-attack ships like the Jedi Aethersprites or even the more solid Arc-170 Starfighters, if using low-initiative pilots who struggle to acquire Locks as a matter of course.
Where he fits in in a list is going to be interesting to find out, with this list, I’m thinking it might be useful and allow Ahsoka some table-time, as her Initiative is usually a precluding factor, some backup might be interesting.
Warthog
“Warthog” is a very interesting pilot for mini-swarm flying, protecting your low-Initiative generic or “Non-Limited” ships and giving them a chance to attack when they would otherwise have been destroyed.
I’ve actually used this list a couple of times so far, and, it is incredibly fun, very effective, and, rather surprising considering what it is built around and the majority of low-Initiative pilots in the list. Managing to get “Warthog’s” ability to trigger wasn’t difficult until I nearly ran out of Torrents, but, it certainly seemed worth the effort and investment.
Hound
“Hound” has a very different ability, designed to support those who may be intentionally Depleting or Straining themselves to the benefit of squadron mates who are, in turn, benefitting others or themselves.
I’m almost at a loss as to how to use “Hound” currently, whether a solid line including Arc-170 Starfighters with Dedicated or a Dedicated group of missile-toting Torrents would be the best use of this frame.
212th Battalion Pilot
We round out the LAAT/i In-depth Look with the 212th Battalion Pilot as the only non-limited pilot for this ship. While I have been somewhat relucant to take advantage of all available slots on the named pilots in order to gather more ships on the board, maybe running two of these with some upgrades and escorting V-19 Torrents as shown here could be of some benefit.
That isn’t a list I have the ability to try yet, as I only have one LAAT/i model available. But, when/if I do get a second, it is a possibility that I will definitely look at. Maybe swapping out some of the upgrades for missiles on the LAAT/i ships might do better.
What do you think?
So, that’s my take away from the LAAT/i. All in all, it looks like a decent support ship for the Republic, isn’t overly burdened with too high a base cost, and certainly offers some interesting customisation ideas.
Have you had any games using this model yet? If so, how did you build yours? Leave a comment and share your ideas.
Like the rest of the X-Wing community, I’ve been really missing the occasional times where I could get to a gaming store either for a pickup game or an arranged game. That said, I was overjoyed to have somebody reach out for a game, and one was duly arranged. Oliver is fairly local to 4tK so booked a table through their current system.
Now, I forgot to get the first turns’ worth of photos, but it was pretty standard early game movement.
Instead of giving a turn-by-turn account, I will explain the game-state of the images I have managed to remember to get. This is partially because I am not great when it comes to writing detailed and interesting battle reports, and partly because there are other bloggers who do write great battle reports.
End of Turn Two
At the end of turn two, there was some long range sniping with little effect other than the occasional shield lost, aside from poor Jessika Pava being focused down hard and losing her ship, but positions were gained ready for a larger engagement.
End of Turn Three
Turn three saw damage cards applied to both sides, with Arc number 3 coming off worst but hanging in there. Luck would have it that Kaz in his Fireball landed on an Asteroid, avoided damage but, lost his chance to shoot.
Engagement Phase Turn Four
The turn four engagement phase sees disaster for Wolffe as he is hit with a Blinded Pilot, then rolls three focus results. Thanks Cova!
End of Turn Four
At the end of turn four, we have one of the Squad Seven Veterans down, finally, more shields lost, and preparations made for the next turn with each player trying to predict what the manoeuvres will be. However, Lieutenant Bastian falls to the guns of the Republict his round and Kaz succumbs to his damage too.
End of Turn Five
Turn five sees Cova either evade a huge amount of incoming fire or failures on the part of the Republic gunners, while continuing to punish Wolffe, who comes out of this engagement one health above half points.
End of Turn Six
The end of turn six sees Wolffe preserve his health with a cheeky, desperate barrel roll and Plo loses his shield with no damage in return.
As the end of the game arrived, we had an extremely close (even if the points don’t indicate it) game that could have gone any way a number of times. Plo rolling three natural evades at key times, the Arcs actually being able to avoid incoming fire was surprising, proving the adage that, if you roll enough dice, some of them will eventually be good. If T-70’s hadn’t gone down when they had (man, they can take some serious punishment) the result would have been very different!
Over all, an incredible real life match after a break that was far too long, versus a wonderful opponent who gave as great a game as I could hope he received!
On a final note, with some new releases on the horizon, I do hope to get back to analysing these ships for the factions I collect, and there is potential to have a guest writer cover, at the very least, the Resistance, once I have asked him about it.
To round out the factions I have access to, I’m going to take a look at the Scum and Villainy, and see where their strengths lie in Hyperspace.
List One:
This first list I settled on is one that is a glass cannon in operation, yet can pack enough of a punch to deal with most Hyperspace situations you may come across.
The idea is pretty simple. Hit hard, hit fast, and hit from the front. In an ideal situation, you will be Initiative killing swarms, and mitigating damage Aces put out if you stay at Range 1. Possible deployment options include flying in pairs to ensure killing a target the first time around or a block that is more vulnerable to being outmanoeuvred by higher Initiative pilots.
List Two:
This second list came as something of a surprise to me, not in the least that you could get a fairly large number of 2 attack 3 defend ships in a list at 200 points where Critical Damage cannot be countered.
Having six Tansarii Point Veterans with Autoblasters gives you exactly that. With the 8 points left over, you could potentially jiggle the pilots around a bit, or add a talent or two depending on your personal preference. The list struck me as something that could potentially face off against TIE/ln or Droid swarms, while being quite devilish to aces with the ability to push critical damage through regardless of evade dice/defense boosts.
While the desire for natural rolls of Critical Hits is there, it’s great to remember that you can still use primary weapons if you aren’t quite lined up correctly, and for every defense die to force an opponent to roll, to more chances you make for them to fail.
List Three:
The final list in this series is one that really should work out well, but perhaps won’t. However, to counter some of the weak points, perhaps an upgrade can help.
Ideally, Dengar would begin on the Right edge of the deployment zone, meaning any turns would be to the left, and thus favoured, but, the addition of Contraband Cybernetics should help mitigate that issue.
Running Boba too gives you hit utility and survivability while seismic charges can make things easier for Dengar/more dangerous for obstacle-hugging enemies.
As with the other factions, it appears that low-initiative, high numbers of non-limted pilots could be the way to go. While the JumpMaster 5,000 is a far cry from the powerhouse is used to be, I believe there is still a place for it in Scum and Villainy squadrons, but finding the load-out is going to be the key.
What do you think? Can the JumpMaster 5,000 find a place? Do you have a preferred Scum and Villainy Hyperspace squadron? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.
Going forward, as new ships are released for the factions I cover, I will write articles based on those, or as new things enter X-Wing I will endeavour to take a look. I’m in two minds over expansions like the card packs, but will have a think. Is there any content not covered elsewhere you would like in Blog-form? Once again, get in touch. I’d like to provide what the community is after.
I’ve looked at the Rebel Alliance, the Galactic Empire, and now it’s time to visit the Republic. I was initially dismayed by the removal of Delta-7B from the rotation, alongside Mace Windu (my favourite Jedi). However, I set myself a goal of finding at least one list I could enjoy.
List One:
The first list is something that seems to be poor on paper, but has some surprises to it that are interesting.
What was, initially an unfinished list, because I couldn’t decide whether I wanted anything else on the Arc-170s, ended up performing fairly well.
The idea is to have the three Arc-170s flying in a loose formation with Wolffe central and the two Squad Seven Veterans flanking him, and Plo Koon out on the farther edge to either draw ships away from the Arcs, or flank in and catch an unwary opponent out. Dedicated helps keep Wolffe alive if he blanks out while the Veteran Tail Gunner, if it triggers, gives you maximum use from Wolffe.
In a strange twist, I used this list last night in a game against an extended Resistance list of 2 T-70s and a Fireball. Suffice to say, by the time the game ended at time, I’d given up one Squad Seven Veteran and half on the other, for half on both T-70s. An out and out draw, which my opponent was confident, had we more time, I would have won. Poe doesn’t like 3 stress tokens. Granted, I self-bumped once or twice, but, I pulled off some great blocks, triggered Veteran Tail Gunner, and avoided damage on Plo and Wolffe (aside from a single shield). More practice with it, and practice moving those medium bases in formation is required, and I might be able to bring opponents down faster, and easier. Side note – the Fireball is incredibly funny, being able to get across the board in a single turn for a fairly devastating opening salvo, watch out for it in extended.
List Two:
The next list is something I have wanted to try, but have been unsure about two attack dice ships. That said, TIE/ln fighter and Separatist Alliance Droids seem to usually do well, so maybe it’s time to try it.
The idea here is a similar one to Plo Koon and the Wolffe Pack. Keep the Naboo Royal N-1 Starfighters together, and send Obi-Wan out to bait or flank as required. The Handmaidens either draw fire or mitigate damage targeted to Padmé while pouring fire onto her targets too.
I’ve only simulated this list on Fly Casual against a few random lists, notably the 5 T-65 X-Wings and a TIE-x1 swarm, and it came off better during each engagement than I could have hoped, even after ending up at Range 1 of opposing ships after blocks didn’t quite work out. The Decoyed Condition on Padmé and Obi-Wan is actually quite strong.
Don’t discount the effectiveness of two attack dice ships. It may not always go your way, but, I feel it certainly merits further investigation.
List Three:
This final list requires me to purchase 3 more ships to be able to field it. It’s an attempt to deal with the swarms that are appearing.
The idea here is to have the four Red Squadron Bombers alternating their deployment so you have two pairs and R2-D2 slightly away from the formations, the Red Squadron bombers should have one Ion Bomb and one Proton Bomb in each group, to allow you staggered device deployment in order to maximise the catch with both bomb types.
I have a feeling this could be quite difficult to pull off correctly, and you’d have to correctly anticipate the locations of the opposing ships, while making sure yours can avoid the worst of your devices. That said, it doesn’t drastically matter if you allow your BTL-B4 Y-Wings to eat an Ion or Proton Bomb to catch the opponent because you have shields (and they don’t hopefully).
I suspect this is the weakest of my suggested lists, which is a shame as it would be nice to see more Bombs or Mines being deployed. Perhaps there is a case to replace the Proton Bombs with Cluster Mines or Conner Nets, just without the splash damage.
Well, there are my offerings for the Republic. I might try my hand at the Scum and Villainy for Hyperspace next, as I usually help my daughter write her lists, but, she rarely plays Hyperspace because her favourite ships aren’t in the format for now.
Have you had any luck with the Republic in Hyperspace? Got a list you’d like to share? Leave a comment and start the discussion.
Yes, More X-Wing 
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