The Ralph McQuarrie Y-wing - A Custom Ship Tribute

                One of the biggest things that makes Star Wars a memorable film is that it has such a stunning and visually-capturing universe. Whether it's the sleek snap of an S-foil, the surge of the Death Star vaporizing a planet, or the fearsome blankness of a Madalorian helmet, there is something that everyone has connected to when experiencing Star Wars. This vast galaxy of wonder was possible thanks to the concept artists, computer graphic engineers, sculptors, and many others who worked together on this amazing movie. Out of all of these people, I greatly connect with Ralph McQuarrie and his concept art.

               George Lucas told Ralph his vision and the talented artist took it and created it visually with only a few corrections needed. To give tribute to him, as well as to go back to the "roots" of Star Wars, JJ Abrams and the crew producing Episode 7 returned to Ralph's work for inspiration. It is fun to see that the T-70 X-wing actually draws on Ralph's preliminary X-wing designs.

                The BTL-B Bomber created for the Clone Wars cartoon series was also a product that drew inspiration from Ralph McQuarrie's original Y-wing. Honestly the bubble turret says it all, you just need to add some armor plates. I have hope that just like the T-70 X-wing, a "McQuirre Style" Y-wing could appear in Episode 7! In light of this, and to pay my own tribute, I present to you my custom Y-wing for X-wing Miniatures casual play:

                To me the McQuarrie Y-wing feels lighter and yet more fragile than the final versions we see in the Original Trilogy. To reflect this I dropped the Y's hull to 3 and increased its agility to 2. This won't make the ship overpowered because comparatively this means it will last only a little longer in a joust than an X-wing (and with Integrated Astromech the X-wing will last just as long).

                Ralph's artwork shows his Y-wings to have a gunner rather than an astromech. Accordingly, I removed the astromech from the upgrade bar. However, I ran into a problem when I wanted to add a crew slot to the ship. I crunched the numbers and possible combos and found that the crew slot on a Y-wing is really powerful. Therefore, in order to keep the cost low I opted to not include the crew slot and instead make a BTL-S3 Title with a crew. (Still playing around with that one so I won't include it here).

                In my mind this type of Y-wing would be a lot harder to fly, especially when you have to work to give your gunner a good firing angle. To reflect this I drew upon the idea behind ships like the A-wing, Tie Fighter, and Illicit Headhunter. All of these ships are much harder for pilots to handle and it made sense to me that they are always 1 pilot skill lower than other star fighters. So I made my McQuarrie Y-wings have 1 less PS than normal and as an interesting side note it also helped keep the ship's cost low.

                Next was to create the four pilots I would include in my "expansion". I named the lowest generic pilot to be from Shadow Squadron. I felt this was a good carryover of the connection this ship has to the Clone Wars. For the PS 3 I wanted a squad that had that same feel as Shadow Squad but was also unique. After much thought I decided on an appropriate Black Knight Squadron. And also in line with the T-70, I gave the higher PS generic access to the Elite Pilot Talent slot. As for the two named ace pilots, I didn't want to create names that would have no meaning or put Extended Universe pilots in a ship that technically never existed for them. So instead I felt it fitting to give a shout-out to Ralph McQuarrie himself as well as his co-worker Colin Cantwell. I gave Colin a pilot ability similar to the scum Kavil. However, instead of receiving an extra attack die for firing out of arc, Colin gets a free focus. That can help his gunner have the necessary dice modification for better attacks. It also means he can use a Blaster Turret effectively with both a target lock and a focus. Or he can save it for defense because, unlike 1 defense die, 2 agility can use a focus token effectively. And for my final ace I wanted to give Ralph McQuarrie a really good ability. The pilot that bears his name is so good that he can fly and use of his primary guns while his gunner fires as well. Just like with the upcoming Ghost freighter, I wanted a combo that allowed a ship to operate at full capacity.

               

                The final thing I did was price everything. I did my squad point number crunching with the help of the Pilot Generator made by Jason Fuller. (Which at this time I believe is now taken down.) Dropping the Astromech slot, 1 PS, and 2 Hull was more than my increase of 1 Agility and as such the final price was 17 points for the lowest generic. I kept my next generic at just 2 points above because the EPT helps turn 18.5 points into 19. And finally I scaled Colin by an extra point and Ralph by an extra two in addition to their increase in Pilot Skill.

                Have you created any fun, custom cards for your own causal play? And would you fly the McQuarrie Y-wing? Let me know in the comments below. I wanted a custom ship that captured the essence of Ralph McQuarrie's original concept art and I think it came out pretty good. Now I have to work on a good modification for a crew slot as well as come up with what kind of dial I want to have. I hope you enjoyed this fun, creative project. Please give me credit if you repost these, just as I give credit to the artists in my afterwards. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Afterwards:

The two art pieces are from Ralph McQuarrie's concept art. The artwork used on the Shadow Squadron Pilot and Black Knight Jockey also come from Ralph McQuarrie. The pictures used on the Colin and Ralph pilots were taken from the CGI work of Michael Hanson from japetusproductions.com.

Fast Han - A Economic Alternative For Players On A Budget

                Ever since large base ships entered the X-wing Miniatures World they have been highly favored in the meta. In some ways FFG was too good at capturing the spirit of these ships from the movies. For example, Han has an innate ability in the movies to outmaneuver huge ships as well as outgun small ships and this can be yours to command on the table top. In fact, large base ships are so good that they are actually backwards when it comes to upgrades: instead of becoming overcosted when fully loaded with upgrades, they get more powerful. This has led to an age of "Fat" large ship builds. The most well known Fat builds are the Fat Hans. And the most famous Fat Han is the one made by Paul Heaver that took him to victory in the 2014 Worlds Finals. The design is as such:

Fat Han - 61 points

                Predator

                C-3P0

                R2-D2

                Engine Upgrade

                Millennium Falcon Title

                The ship is quite ingenious: it can get 2 extra evades on a large ship, outmaneuver opponents with an engine upgrade, recharge its shields, and/or reroll between 1 to 4 attack dice depending on the situation. The final's game between Paul Heaver and Morgan Reid was truly amazing and left the viewers nostalgic for Empire Strikes Back as Han outflew a TIE Swarm in an asteroid field. However, it isn't all fun and parties with this build because there is one big disadvantage: it is very expensive. If you want to have this Fat Han build for your squad then you are going to have to pay a pretty penny since both of the crew cards come from the Tantive expansion. And on top of that you need either a Defender or a Kihraxz expansion to get Predator. Now if budget isn't a problem or if you were planning on already buying these ships then you are fine. Have fun flying Fat Han to your heart's content! However, some players might find themselves in a sticky money situation...

                But remember that this is the Poor Grey Pilot: a place where we find creative, alternative solutions to tough problems. My philosophy is that a game with only one way of doing things is a boring game. So after much searching and building I created my very own Fat Han that I find can be almost as powerful when used right. Moreover, this Falcon build requires the Rebel Aces pack which is far cheaper than the Tantive, as well as more likely to already be found in a Rebel player's fleet. So without further ado I proudly present to you the Fast Han build:

Fast Han - 57 points

                Elusiveness

                Nien Nunb

                Kyle Katarn

                Engine Upgrade

                Millennium Falcon Title

                The two function very similar to each other. While Fat Han relies on C-3P0 for an extra evade, the Fast version has the Elusiveness EPT to help prevent a hit from coming in. Next, Fat Han utilizes the boost for movement and the Predator EPT for attacks while Fast Han can both boost and have a free focus token for offense. And though it is true that Fast Han has to rely on self-stressing for his combo to work, the trade-off is still in your favor: Fast Han is much easier on your wallet and he is actually 4 Squad Points cheaper than his counterpart. The only true downside is not being able to recharge your shields. But that can easily be overcome by flying right and not getting shot at! lol. So practice, practice, practice!

                 The name is really reflective of how this ship should be flown. You want to fly Han hard and boost him past the enemy. Ideally you want to outmaneuver enemy ships, engage with your turret, and not receive return fire. But if you do have to exchange fire try to fly so that you are fighting the enemy one ship to one. When the enemy shoots you use Elusiveness to make them reroll a dice. Now normally that isn't that great of a power since you MUST take a stress and there is only a 50% chance the die will be a miss (25% if the enemy ship has a focus token). But it is wonderful in this build because you use the stress to fuel your own action economy. The next turn you do a green maneuver to clear your stress and Kyle Katarn gives you a free focus token. This allows you to use the boost as your main action and still have good dice modification for your attack. And finally we have Nien Nunb. Not only does he raise the number of green maneuvers on the Falcon from 4 to 6, he turns the straight 3 and 4 into green maneuvers as well! This is truly what makes it a FAST build. We have a Falcon that can move up to 9 small-ship bases every turn, even when it is stressed.

                However, maybe Elusiveness isn't really your style. Perhaps consider using Stay on Target instead. This elite talent allows Han to profit from his pilot skill of 9 and escape from a lot of sticky situations. This EPT self-stresses as well and so you can use it with the same crew members. Sadly, because of the timing of when the stress comes into play you have to skip the "Perform an Action" phase and so can't make use of the Engine Upgrade. That is just two ideas of an EPT and there are many more combinations out there!

                The central point I am getting at is this: there are so many ways to create the same type of squad mechanics and it is up to you as the player to find and build the one that fulfills your needs. Please don't get caught in the trap that there is only one way to do a certain thing. If you want a specific mechanic for your squad you don't need to follow someone else's exact build or pay lots of money just to get all the "right" pieces. There is only one thing I want to happen from these articles and that is for you, the readers, to be inspired to create amazing things. What are some of the unique, substitution builds that you have created? Let me know in the comments below! And as always, thank you so much for reading.

Afterwards:

Fast Han & Blues - 100 points

YT-1300 w/ Han - 56 points

                Elusiveness

                Nien Nunb

                Kyle Katarn

                Engine Upgrade

B-wing w/ Blue - 22 points

B-wing w/ Blue - 22 points

                I have flown this build with great results. By dropping the Falcon's title there is enough points to fit in 2 B-wings. The squad flies as such: Han is the bait and flies out on his own. If the enemy aims for Han then the B-wings sweep in for the flank and Han uses his Engine Upgrade and green moves to outmaneuver the enemy. If your opponent decides to instead swarm your B-wings then you slow play your two fighters while Han swings around and blasts at the enemy from behind. Either way you want to cause havoc in the early game. Whether your B-wings die or not doesn't really matter because this squad's strength in the late game is Han's mobility. So you want to keep Han safe so that he can then easily mop up broken formations and fleeing ships. Try it out!

Serissu & Laetin - Veterans of the Battle of Tansarii Point Station

                To say that the Scum and Villainy of the galaxy is a faction in the Civil War is somewhat of a misnomer. "Scum" in Star Wars can range from mercenaries to smugglers to crime bosses. With such a diverse range of people - and potitical motives - it can be hard to believe that any of them could be considered in the same category. However, all underworld syndcates share two things: a sense of amorality and a desire for power and money. When looking at the situation from that angle, we can understand why the Empire is correct in lumping the Hutts in with the Black Sun but is wrong in assuming that the Alliance to Restore the Republic is simply more "rebel scum". It also makes sense to us gamers why FFG is justified in making Scum and Villiany its own faction in X-wing Miniatures. Its not rather difficult to believe that any greedy pirate can be put in your fleet for the right number of credits.
                However, today's pilot highlight is actually drawn from a moment where this "faction" was actually divided. The Battle of Tansarii Point is part of the Star Wars Galaxies MMORPG. The young Car'das Smuggler Cartel owned the Tansarii Point Station in the Bright Jewel star system. This station oversaw mining operations and was also the biggest trading post in the sector. And as such the Black Sun Syndicate saw it and wanted it for themselves. After many covert attempts to take the station failed the Black Sun discarded all attempts at stealth and launched a full assault on the facility. In the end the Car'das smugglers were able to hold off the attack (in large part to the playable character of the video game) and were then able to make several key counter strikes against Black Sun facilities. Needless to say it was one of the biggest upsets in the history of scum inter-rivalry. For this reason the title of Tansarii Point Veteran was a big deal and as notable as the Greek's title of Veteran of Marathon.
                These Car'das veterans flew M3-A "Scyk" Interceptors during the battle. The Scyk was created by MadalMotors to be an starfighter that filled a niche. It was to be much more versatile in combat than a Tie Fighter as well as be much more customizable. And on the opposite side it was to be cheaper than other interceptor-class ships. It is the same inside X-wing Miniatures and we benefit the most when we learn this ship's niches. As I talked about in my Scum article, one of them is in being the cheapest cannon ship in the game. Another niche is that it is the only Interceptor in the game with the 1 bank maneuver, thus allowing the ship to slow play. And finally this ship gives us two named pilots with amazing defensive abilities. Let's take a look at these Tansarii Point Veterans.

Laetin A'Shera
                Many people disregard Laetin, claiming that he isn't worth the points. Even Major Juggler stated in his Math Wing analysis that his pilot ability is "easily bypassed". True, if you just throw Laetin into the fray for no reason, he will easily be killed without fulfilling a purpose. But what interceptor wouldn't? In this writers opinion, his pilot ability is actually what gives him so much strength. The easiest way to counter Laetin's ability is to never shoot at him, and that is the best thing you want in an Interceptor.
                In my experience there are two proper ways to fly Laetin. The first is in escort mode. Suppose you fly Laetin on point in a joust and have Boba Fett further back at range 3 of the enemy. If the enemy squad shoots at Laetin then Fett is protected this round and can move unscathed into range 1 next round. And Laetin has a good chance of shirking off the damage with his ability. But if he dies, at least your high priority ship was protected. If the opponent opts to shoot at Fett instead then Laetin is free to blast away at close range. For only 18 points he is a good investment to make sure another ship lives.
                The second way to fly Laetin is in counter mode. Place him in your squad and you can have strong power against certain builds. Give him a stealth device and he is a shield against Twin Laser Turrets, especially since the turret is counted as two attacks. And since the turrets are found on low agility ships, your Scyk's two red dice won't go to waste. Or you can consider picking him to punish 2 Ship builds. When a squad only gets 1-2 shots a round, it isn't efficient to waste one on a cheap, low attack ship that might get stronger from being shot at. That means that Laetin will have more freedom to hunt these ships from the flanks, like an interceptor should. Finally, Laetin punishes the Gunner crew. I know for me that that crew card is really annoying, moreso when it wastes your actions. But Laetin isn't bothered by it: either he gets an extra evade or else the gunner isn't even used.
                Whether its to protect a bigger ally or to counter certain abilities, Laein A'Shera can be just the right fit. Try him out and see if he fits into your squad's needs.

Serissu
                Serissu is a really fun character. She is a Bothan pilot that is your first quest-giver in the Galaxies game. She shares the same Scyk survivablity as Laetin but rather than keeping it for herself she passes it onto others. And what is most interesting about this is that she is a rare exception in Scum philosophy. Instead of benefiting from flying solo, Serissu wants to be in range 1 of allies and adds great squad strength when in formation.
                Just like with Laetin, Serissu is strong at escorting allies. You can add her to a Xizor Headhunter swarm to make it even more tanky. Or perhaps you want to make a stationary turret as suggested in Alex Davy's Scum article. Take Moralo Eval with a Heavy Laser Cannon and an Outlaw Tech and have Serissu accompany him with Wingman and a Steath Device. Our Bothan can use her green 1 bank to make slow circles around your immobile battle station. With her there, Moralo has great chance to get 1 evade on every defense. And if your opponent choose to shoot the supporting Scyk instead then that gives your Hounds Tooth that much more time to blast things out of the sky. A third idea is to run Serissu alongside the Andrasta with Proximity Mines. Attach the Juke card to her and she can mess with enemy's' defenses while giving defensive rerolls to your action-less bomber.
                Of course, you aren't limited to just squad flying. Serissu also makes a wonderful arc-dodger. Give her Veteran Instincts and you have a 21 point ship that can hunt enemy aces for a fraction of the price. With PS 10, as well as the barrel roll action, she can outmaneuver pilots like Fel Turtles or Super Corrans. And after she comes in on a flanking vector she can swoop into the fray at range 1 to provide help to allies in traffic jams. The build possibilities for her are vast and all you need to do is work to find the one that is right for you.

                In closing, these pilots can be just as good in X-wing Miniatures as they were in the Battle of Tansarii Point. Their low attacks and fragile hulls just mean that they need extra care to find the right squad niche and be effective. But that shouldn't be new to us in the X-wing world. So here's to hard work and efficient squad building: may you find the joy of the game therein. And who knows, maybe we'll see a future release of a Scyk/Viper Scum Aces pack. Poor Grey Pilot out.


Afterwards:             
                This squad offers a powerful ace as well as a strong escort force. Kath is the heavy hitter, being able to shoot with 4 attack dice in either the forward or auxiliary arc. Serissu wants to stick close to Kath to keep her alive. She can use her Juke to have an evade for both offense and defense. And finally the 2 Headhunters can be versatile support. You can put them in front for cover, have them sweep on a flank from the side or even slow play behind your aces to catch enemy arc-dodgers.

Truant Squad - 100 Points
Firespray w/ Kath Scarlet - 51 Points
                Predator
                HLC
                Recon Specialist
Scyk w/ Serissu - 25 Points
                Juke
                Stealth Device
Headhunter w/ Binayre Pirate - 12 Points
Headhunter w/ Binayre Pirate - 12 Points

Please Pardon the Dust - A Poor Grey Pilot Blog Update

                Hi readers. You probably have noticed a few changes on the blog. Please note that I plan on continually updating and making changes and I apologize in advance for that. Like Utah Highway Construction, changes will be constant but for your benefit. Or to make a more appropriate analogy, I want my blog to be living and change just as much as the X-wing Miniature game breathes and grows.

                One of the big things I am working on is creating a better comment system. Right now my Blogger template doesn't offer a "Write a Comment" button at the end of posts. (At least from what I've tried to find). All it has is the generic "Comments" button. I am researching a smoother mechanic but until I get it, please know that to comment on a post you need to click the button that either says "No comments" or "X Comments". For any blessed soul out there who know more about Blogger than I do, please comment and let me know what works for you!

                Finally, this is a perfect time to get some feedback. What kinds of things do you want to see more of on the Poor Grey Pilot? Rethinking and creating viable builds from supposedly useless pieces of the X-wing game? Spotlights on less used and underappreciated pilots? More fun custom creations? Or something else? I have put up a poll that will run for the rest of the month. Please leave your feedback as to what you'd like to see! And if you have any ideas or topics you'd like to share, leave me a comment. (See above for comment instructions, lol).

                Thanks for the help and for your continued reading! Have a great day out there in the universe.

Decoy Flares and Medical Droids - A Delve Into X-wing Miniatures Custom Card Making

                Good day, PGP fans! Today I am in quite a good mood and it is because two great things happened this weekend. The first was being able to hear the words of modern Prophets at the LDS General Conference. The second was that I discovered a wonderful program named Strange Eons.

                When it comes to a diverse game like X-wing Miniatures there are many different aspects that appeal to people. Previously I said that my favorite part of the game was being able to create squadrons and then see how they fared out on the playing field. But I think that there might be a new challenger in my favorites now that I have had a taste of creating my own custom X-wing cards. It was refreshing to take a momentary step back from number and strategy crunching and to just play in the sandbox of possible ifs. So for this week's article I eagerly present to you a look into the more creative part of my mind and into custom card making.

                For those of you who don't know, Strange Eons is free software that was created by and offered to enthusiasts of card games. You download the program and then it asks you which "plug-ins" you wish to attach. These plug-ins are the files for specific games and I was delighted to see that X-wing Miniatures is one of them. Once you've downloaded the plug-in then you can start creating X-wing cards to your heart's content!

                I got the program, jumped right in, and started playing with ideas I've had. So here is a look at what I have been working on. And of course, I have included all of my thoughts, ideas, and musings as to why I made the choices I did.

Decoy Flares & Counter Missiles

                FFG has worked hard to make Ordnance a viable part of the game and in return we, the gamers, have been working hard to learn the valuable skill of Ordnance use. However, I had an idea of another route we could possibly take to make sure that ordnance upgrade slots are used: Defensive Ordnance Loadouts. I have recently started re-reading the Honor Harrington series and I love the dynamic action sequences in the books. So drawing some inspiration there, here are my two defensive ordnances: Decoy Flares and Counter Missiles.

                Imagine for a second that you are a pilot about to shoot at a Star Viper. You have the ship locked in but before you can pull the trigger the Viper shoots off a pair of Decoy Flares. Your computer is now totally screwed up and confused trying to track 3 targets but you yourself can clearly see which is the real ship. So you have to forget your targeting computer and just focus to make your manual shot come through. Or think of another example, you have fired your Cluster Missiles at a vulnerable Tie Bomber. However, the Bomber fires a volley of counter missiles intent on intercepting your ordnance. Since you've already fired there is no way for you to just focus your shot past. You have to rely on the guidance systems of your missiles and hope that they can overcome the guidance systems of the counter missiles.

                Let's take a look at my reasoning for these upgrades. I chose small ship only because large base ships already have the Countermeasures upgrade. And it makes sense to me, lore-wise, because large ships are too big to have flares fool targeting computers. Instead they just toss tons of flares and pray for the best. I chose to make these upgrades ordnance slots instead of modifications because then a ship can take both. Moreover, ordnance platforms now don't have to either run naked or overcosted with upgrades. They can take a mix of offensive and defensive ordnance and have better survivability. I feel that they aren't overpowered because they are one-shot items. I made Decoy Flares 1 point since they are quick and won't last very long against sustained attack. The low cost also means that X-wings, E-wings, or even Heavy Sycks can make use of their usually-empty torpedo slot. And I decided on 3 points for Counter Missiles because it is an investment on your part to attempt to waste your enemy's squad points. Let me know your thoughts about these.

Medical Droid

                I am a fan of having strong ships that can last longer than the opponent rather than powerful ships that just blow things up. For that reason I have always enjoyed the Determination upgrade. It is exhilarating to be in the middle of a battle and be able to absorb a critical damage! However, I have felt that the card was too limited: only Elite pilots can take it. I wanted to capture the essence of Determination but have it more accessible.

                So I made the Medial Droid. Yes, I made it more expensive than determination but it makes sense. The Medical Droid can be taken by ANY pilot with a crew slot, not just Elite pilots. Furthermore, Elite pilots with crews are now free to use their EPT for something else. And even though 2 points still seems cheap, remember that it only activates on Pilot Criticals and takes up a crew slot. So it is a risk/reward type of play, it might help you or it actually might do nothing. I was going to limit it to Large ships but felt I didn't need to because it really is just common sense. You want a Medical Droid on your Decimator or Hounds Tooth, not on your B-wing or Phantom. And finally it was more fitting to lore, in my opinion, for the Medical Droid to take effect during the End Phase. But with that it means that a Pilot Critical on your last hull can kill you before the droid can take effect. I also made it Limited so that, just like with the Tactician, you can't stack the ability.

The Dogfighter Y-wing

                This custom upgrade is actually one of Major Juggler's House Rules. However, I felt it was more exciting as a Title rather than a turret refit. Honestly, it doesn't matter since this upgrade wouldn't conflict with the BTL-A4 Title because there is no more turret to work with! It adds a fun and new dynamic twist to the Y-wing: a jousting ship that trades high attack power for high hit points and low cost. This means you could field a swarm of 6 Dogfighter Golds and still have 4 points left over for Astromechs or Decoy Flares.

The Poor Grey Pilot

                I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself! While the rest of my ideas on this article are actual attempts at making viable upgrades, this card is just simple fun. The Poor Grey Pilot is a named pilot with PS 4, an EPT, and a unique ability. Yes, his pilot ability is actually overpowered. But that's what your opponent gets for flying overused, meta pilots! Ha! lol. It was just too perfect for me not to use. For those who are curious, the 2014 Worlds Top 16 included: Airen, Backstabber, Biggs, Chewy, Corran, Dark Curse, Han, Howlrunner, Jan, Soontir, Wedge, and Whisper.

                 I really hope you enjoyed this little excursion of creativity. Even though these custom cards won't be usable in tournaments, I will still have tons of fun using them in causal play. Feel free to use these upgrade cards for your own personal use. But if you post them online at all please give me credit, just as I give credit to the artists in my afterwards. And again, feel free to leave comments and discuss. Thanks for reading!

Afterwards:
Picture Credits: The Decoy Flares picture was taken from the Tie Fighter Short Film (the film uses red missiles but they look a lot like flares!) The Medical Droid picture was taken from "The Hunt for Warlord Sarkasey" Star Wars Role Playing Game forum thread. The Dogfighter Y-wing picture belongs to FFG. The Poor Grey Pilot Y-wing picture belongs to me.

My Third X-wing Miniatures Modification - The E-wing & Hot Shot Blaster

                     So here's the thing. I actually started my E-wing mod long before my Starspeeder. As much as I love the E-wing I have never liked the dorsal cannon. I understand that the ship is supposed to be next-gen but that gun always looked out of place to me.

                Using a little pressure I was able to work the dorsal cannon out of its slot. Yes, you do need to work carefully when modding miniatures but I honestly found that they are surprisingly elastic and resistant. However, once I got the gun out I really had no idea what to do. Anything I tired didn't look any better to me than the original. And so I sat on it for a few weeks.

                Finally, after enough simmering on the back burner I came to my conclusion. I thought the look of the new Kihraxz was pretty slick and so I just filled in the hole where the cannon had been. It was a simple solution but I like it.

                What about the leftover cannon? I couldn't let it go to waste. So I looked around at my other ships to see if anyone needed an extra gun. And I finally found my answer in the "Hot Shot" Blaster. I cut off the extra plastic and glued the gun onto the side of one of my Black Sun Headhunter.

                When I did my analysis of the new Scum Faction I included a look at the Illicit upgrade slot. At the time I didn't include the Hot Shot Blaster because I honestly couldn't find anything "inhumane" about the weapon. But when I attached my own Hot Shot onto my Headhunter I finally realized why it is an illicit weapon. It is installed and hidden inside the hull of the ship...the same place where vital ship systems are supposed to be housed. What had to be removed to make room for this one-shot turret? Life Support? Long Range Scanners? These poor saps have to fly breathless or blind because the guys up the chain of command want some extra firepower in the fleet. But hey, that is just another day in the life of the Scum of the galaxy.

                Anyways, by no means are these the neatest mods but I sure do like them! And I hope you will too.

Continuously Progressing - A Poor Grey Pilot Strategy Update

                The strategies that I create and discuss here on this blog are subject to a present and ever-changing game. Because of this it is only natural that ideas can get outdated as things progress. However it is human nature to not enjoy change and so it can be easy to not agree with updates to a diverse game like X-wing. On online forums I have seen many instances of players learning about a change and then taking the easy way out by no longer using what they think is now unviable. But I believe a better course is to take a step back and actually try to understand why Fantasy Flight made the changes in the first place. FFG is a master at making games and so I believe them when they say that this is how they want X-wing Miniatures to run. With that being said, let's jump into this strat update.

The K-wing

                When I say that ideas get outdated I usually mean that they slowly creep out of existence as the game moves along. But sometimes things can change, or even flip, in an instant and that was the case of the K-wing. Barely a week had gone by with my Bomber article up when the SLAM got nerfed on bombs. (Sorry Leebo, I'll try again with you...) Now whether this was a production mistake on FFG's part or a ploy to sell more K-wings, it doesn't matter. Players need to stop worrying about the loss of SLAM-bombs. What is ironic is that the number of people claiming the K-wing is no longer viable and therefore won't fly it only serve to prove the fact of how overpowered SLAM-bombs were. Everyone apparently was going to fly that build and only because it was easy.

                The bottom line is that FFG rewards hard work in the game. An HLC Outrider may seem easy but it is a very expensive ship and requires a lot of practice to be flown correctly. Torpedoes and ordnance are some of the hardest game-mechanics to pull off properly but they are also some of the most rewarding. There is a reason why the game makers haven't yet given a "quick hot-fix" to ordnance despite years of players begging for one. That reason is that we, the majority of the X-wing gaming community, have yet to actually put forth the effort to learn and master the use of ordnance.

                It is the exact same way with the K-wing. FFG wants us to develop powerful and creative builds for this ship rather than just play a "must-do" easy build. So get to work! The K-wing is the only ship still with the SLAM action. It is the only heavy-ordnance platform with both a turret and crew slot. And that is just the beginning. Let me know in the comments how you plan to fly the K-wing.

The X-wing

                 Now I could look at the new changes to the X-wing and say that it makes my Barrel Roll Refit article old and worthless. But if you actually believe I feel that way then you still haven't learned much about me. I am actually super thrilled about the new advances of the X-wing. The point of why I wrote that article was that there did need to be a fix and one option that I really liked was the BR action. Sure, the new T-70s don't have the barrel roll but they did get the boost! Moreover any X-wing (and E or Y for that matter) can now have the barrel roll action with the nifty combo of the BB-8 Astromech! No, there's no emotion for me but sheer excitement.

                But it gets even better with the Integrated Astromech modification. It is such a perfect and creative fit that it really is mind-boggling for me. FFG, you've done it again! This upgrade ties together two truths about the X-wing miniature: it almost always needs an Astromech to be viable and it is often too fragile with only 5 HP and 2 Agility. For the great price of 0 points you can turn your droid into a reserve shield. If your X-wing is about to die then you can sacrifice your droid in order to discard a damage card, even a face-up one! Now Rebel players have a reason to shout "I've lost R2!" lol. And the final reason why I love this upgrade is because it fits so well with the Lore. The X-wing in the Extended Universe was known to require an Astromech to be at full capacity. More than that, Astromechs were known to grow accustomed to the X-wing they rode in and would integrate themselves with it. The most notable example of this is R2-D2. So here's to Wave 8 that is coming out at Christmastime! I know I can't wait.

Lore

                Talking about the lore of the X-wing/Astromech relationship actually brings me to my last topic of this strat update. I recently received feedback (and in some cases open ridicule) from people telling me that the heavy use of Lore in my analyses was irrelevant and did not add to the arguments I make. To those people who may feel this way I wish to say that you are missing something quite obvious. Claiming that me using the Lore is irrelevant is just as fallible as claiming that FFG doesn't use the Lore as reference points for their game. It is from the movies and extended universe that all of these ships and properties come and so it is actually smart to look at the source material to try to understand what it was that FFG meant to create. In this context the Lore is actually Propaganda War Videos that we can study to learn, just as Ender studied the Human/Formic Wars to attempt to understand the Buggers. Continuing this analogy, all the other Battle School commanders watched the videos too but they couldn't figure out why it was important. It was only Ender who learned anything because he knew what to look for.

                Sure you can call me a geek but I would take it as a compliment. I love getting lost in the alternate universes of stories but my love of it goes deeper than just being entertained. Stories are meant to be learned from and I believe this life is about learning and progressing into something better. And therefore I apply lessons from stories to my life to make me a better gamer as well as a better person. So why do you play X-wing miniatures? Pure entertainment? A need to win and build your ego? Or something more? The choice is up to you. PGP out.

The Sub-Light Acceleration Motor - A Truly Unique In-Game X-wing Miniatures Mechanic

                One of the greatest things I enjoy about Fantasy Flight Games is their ability to accurately capture attributes in game mechanics. The Y-wing has always been my favorite ship and that didn't change an ounce when I started playing X-wing Miniatures. 

                Now when they announced the K-wing I was quite curious to see how they would pull off the SLAM. In the Extended Universe the SLAM is a non-hyperdrive engine that greatly increased the speed of ships in normal space. While the Hyperdrive is a delicate and genius piece of engineering, the SLAM is nothing more than just a really, really big engine. It is similar to comparing Warp and Impulse drives in Star Trek. Installing a SLAM on the K-wing made it one of the fastest ships for its size in normal space.

                So when I first got my K-wing I started experimenting. I wanted to see if FFG held up to their standard of capturing the essence of ships in the game. And the results are quite impressive. For my comparison I took ships right out of the box without any upgrades. Measurements were taken in units of small ship bases.

                The first thing I did was compare a straight forward race. In this context the SLAM beat out most competitors. But in the end there wasn't a clear winner. The SLAM tied with the A-wing, Tie Interceptor, and the Outrider. (The Falcon wasn't a contender because it gets most of its movement speed by applying its large base to the Engine Upgrade). All 4 contending ships came in at 9 base units when they moved forward and utilized their maneuver action. Yes, you could argue that an Interceptor with Push the Limit would beat the SLAM and you would be correct. But the K-wing can just as easily take the Advanced SLAM with Leebo and still match pace. (Although I would not recommend this, haha).

                However, I didn't put much merit into this part of the test because, honestly, there are very few applications of the straight forward speed in actual X-wing matches. What is more applicable is turning power. This is especially true when the K-wing relies so much on position for ordnance and A-wings and Interceptors must be pointed the right direction to shoot out of their forward firing arcs. In this category there really was no contest. The A-wing and Tie Interceptor get most of their speed from forward movements and have the small boost action to help with turning. But this isn't enough when compared to the turning power of the SLAM. The K-wing can take sweeping, evasive maneuvers and still match the forward speed of an Interceptor. Next, the SLAM always beats the boost when it comes to banking. And finally, the K-wing wins in a full out U-turn. The A-wing and Interceptor need the Daredevil upgrade to squeak out that last part of the turn. In fact, the only ship that can match a 2 speed U-turn is the Blue Ace T-70 X-wing.

                 My conclusion from these results is this: The K-wing is the fastest ship in the game when it comes to maneuverability power on the playing mat. But what does that mean for us, the players? It means that the K-wing's SLAM provides a unique in-game mechanic that we can learn, master, and utilize when we fly. However, that is easier said than done. I know for me, I seriously stunk at flying the K-wing when I first cracked it open from its box. I felt like I was a beginner again and my ship maneuvers were completely uncoordinated. And in several of my first games my K-wing didn't quite make it to the right place during bombing runs and was easily blown up. But just like with any new part of a game or new skill, it just takes practice. I got some good play time under my belt and I feel now that I have enough of a grasp on the SLAM to have it help me in games. It can really be a game changer if you can utilize this brand new game mechanic and your opponent can't. So get out there and SLAM away!


Afterwards:
Pardon my photography skills. I'm a analyzer and writer, not a snap-shooter. lol

Also, did you know that the the Imperial Missile Boat also had the SLAM? So keep your fingers crossed!

Eaden Vrill - The Big Game Hunter

         With delight I present to you the next pilot in my series of pilot spotlights. It has been far too long. Today's limelight will be literally green as we discuss the Nautolan Eaden Vrill. When I highlighted Eaden in my last Battle Report I promised that I would have an article dedicated just to him. So without the delay of a more glittery introduction, lets get right in to learning about this pilot.

                Eaden lived and loved the life as a smuggler. He was partner and best friend to Dash Rendar and as such was a native to the Outrider. However, what really sets Eaden apart from the rest of the 'respectable merchants' was his non-occupational hobbies. He was part of a hidden organization that trained heavily in hand-to-hand combat, specially to be used in close-quarter combat against force users. Eaden became an expert and was even slightly force-sensitive himself. 

                For those who played the Shadow of the Empire game you may be wondering why Dash appears alone with Leebo aboard the Outrider. Sadly, Eaden died before Episode 4 even began. He and Dash were hired to protect and escort a client who had gotten herself on the wrong end of several underworld syndicates. Things went well until an assassin was sent to kill the client and Eaden went head to head with him. Even though he was killed, Eaden's fight allowed the others to escape and the mission was successful.

                But there is no need to despair because there is a silver lining. Just like with Biggs and Nera, when you are put into the X-wing Miniatures World you get to live again. Its time for Eaden's legacy to be celebrated and we will start by learning how to use him in the X-wing game.
                The first and biggest difference between Eaden and the other Outrider pilots is that he can't use the Title card effectively. His pilot ability uses the primary attack and so is lost if you use the Title. And if you do equip it then you have just paid 2 points to gain 1 PS above the Wild Space Fringer, which is a terrible purchase. I think most people see this and are turned off from using him. But Eaden is not a useless pilot! Else he would not have made it into the Outrider expansion nor into my pilot spotlight.

                The point of the Outrider was to have a ship that had a low attack value but could have unique builds in order to make it a heavy hitter. Eaden's purpose is exactly the same but he goes about it in a much different fashion. While the other pilots use the Outrider Title to terrorize all enemy ships, Eaden specifically terrorizes stressed ships. This can be a bit tricky, needing enemies to be stressed in order to gain attack power. But while Eaden's ability is harder to pull off, it is much more rewarding. Here's why.
                The main, major cost of any ship in X-wing Miniatures comes in the form of its attack value. To illustrate this I give you the cross examination of the X-wing vs Y-wing. You could say that the Y-wing is cheaper than the X because it has lower agility. But this is not true because the lower agility is balanced out by the increased HP, just like the B-wing. And it is definitely not the upgrades because the Y has better upgrade slots than the X! The reason why the Y-wing has better upgrade slots and is still 3 points cheaper is because it is has one less attack dice. Red dice are very powerful and grow exponentially in power when you add more to your attack pool. To put the statistics in colloquial terms: 1 attack die is pathetic, 2 is great, 3 is amazing, and 4 is ridiculously insane! As such, attack dice are very cost heavy when determining the point cost of a ship.
                And the cost is even more expensive when it comes to upgrade cards! The Opportunist talent costs a heavy 4 points, gives yourself a stress, and even then still requires that the enemy doesn't have an action token. Another clear example is the new Mangler Cannon. You can get criticals in much cheaper ways, like with the Marksmanship upgrade. But the Mangler Cannon is more expensive because it adds an extra attack dice to the Outrider, coming in at a total of 9 points. And finally, I refer to the new Punishing One in Wave 8. If Dengar wants to raise the attack value of his ship with his Title card he has to pay a whopping 12 points!
                So the question is this: how much does Eaden have to pay to get his extra attack dice? The answer is zero points. Do I have your attention? Eaden is the exception to Outrider builds and powerful attack builds because all he needs to get that extra, expensive die is for the enemy to be stressed. Now it is going to require a lot of work to make sure those stress tokens are there, much more work than just slapping on an HLC. But if a player can create a good, stressful environment then they can capitalize off of a ridiculously cheap and powerful 3 attack turret. Moreover, Eaden's stress shots are much more powerful than a Mangler or HLC turret because they receives yet another attack dice at range 1!
                Let's start applying how to have good stress. First off, you want squad synergy. It is inefficient to put a Flechette Cannon on Eaden and have him go solo. He will stress the enemy but then he has already attacked that round. So you wait till next round but the enemy does a green move and clears the stress. So you shoot again and the dance goes on and on. However, the FC only shoots forward and that leaves Eaden wide opened to get outmaneuvered. It is the same with low PS support ships. 1 and 2 skill pilots that give stress will not help because they fire last and the enemy now has a whole other turn before worrying about Eaden's ability. The exception to this, of course, is if your whole squad gives stress and you can overwhelm an enemy ship. So consider pairing Eaden with Tactician B-wings and/or R3-A2.
                Next, we need to utilize Eaden's pilot skill. A PS of 3 may look like a disadvantage but it really is a better fit. It means that there are far more pilots who can be used as stress support in your squad. It also means that the high and mighty ships that Eaden hunts will have more likely used their action tokens. And most importantly, a PS 3 is not threatening to the enemy. You can play great mind games with your opponent by using Eaden as bait while the rest of your squad hits hard. If the enemy ignores Eaden then you can start utilizing his ability and hit hard as well with him. Now your opponent has a hard choice and is torn in what to do.
                The third and final thing that one needs to learn about Eaden is his ability to crowd control. This one is, in my opinion, the most important. By just being on the board Eaden restricts your enemy. You can do lots of things for your squad to have synergy but it is so much easier and more fun when you let your enemy do the work for you! Any time an enemy ship uses a self-stressing ability they become a target. Any time the enemy K-turns, S-loops, or T-rolls they then become a target. And since debris is now legal to bring to tournaments, all you need to do is place 3 debris field and force your opponent to ride the lanes or take a stress and become a target. The possibilities are only limited by the number of ways a ship can get stress in the game!
                So get going. There's tons to explore with Eaden and I can say that he is one of the most gratifying pilots I have utilized in a squad. If used right he can hit as hard as a Falcon, even without any upgrades attached to him. And he doesn't have the same weaknesses as other Outrider builds in the meta. Though he does require more work, he gives far more reward. Get to know Eaden and add him to your list of under-estimated pilots. Have fun! Let me know in the comments how things goes for you.


Afterwards:
Here is a squad that offers amazing synergy and allows you to be very flexible.

Sword & Dagger Squad - 100 Points
Hawk w/ Jan - 36 Points
                Veteran Instincts
                Twin Laser Turret
                Engine Upgrade
B-wing w/ Dagger - 29 Points
                Flechette Cannon
                Advanced Sensors
Outrider w/ Eaden - 35 Points
                Recon Specialist

                The build is centered around creating powerful combos. Jan can give an extra attack die to either Eaden or the Dagger, depending on who is receiving the aggro from the enemy. Jan's build uses her high PS and EU to prevent other aces from hitting her blindspot. She also can use a target lock to measure to see if an enemy is at range 3. If they aren't in range then the target lock fails and she can then boost into range. The Dagger is the wild card here. For just one point more I've turned my AIS B-wing into a stressing ship with 2 more PS. I call this version the RAS - Red Advanced Strafe - for the red of the stress token. (As you can guess, I couldn't call it the Advanced Stress Strafe! lol.) The RAS Dagger can switch between stressing targets for Eaden and hitting hard with its own 3 attack dice. Either way, if you set things up correctly you can hit with a hard 5 dice attack from the Dagger or Eaden at range 1. Hence the name of the squad. It's a great combo and is just right on points. If you want you can take out the RS and put Kyle Katarn on the Hawk. That allows Jan to have a focus for defense even if she boosts or locks.

My Second X-wing Miniatures Modification - The Star Tours Starspeeder 1000

                Welcome back, PGP fans. Before I went off to Disneyland I promised I had something in store for you. I am now happy to present to you my second X-wing miniature modification. When I set plans for a vacation at "The Happiest Place On Earth" I knew that I would be able to purchase Star Tours memorabilia at the souvenir shop. Sadly, upon going I was told that they had discontinued their line of model Starspeeders. However, they did still carry the toy version. The toy Starspeeders are approximately 2.5 inches long and have little wheels like a Hot Wheels car. So they are a bit unproportional when compared to X-wing miniatures but honestly they still fit in rather nicely.

                The first part of the modification was quite simple. I used a small Philips screwdriver to remove the screws in the bottom and took out the wheels. It was the second part where it got hard. If I owned a drill, I could have easily drilled through the bottom piece to create a mounting hole for the pegs. That is the recommended course of action. But since I didn't have a drill I had to be a bit creative. I took a small nail and carefully heated the tip. And with cautious precision I drove the nail through the plastic like an awl through leather. Did I mention that I took every precaution while doing this? Once I had the hole, I placed a peg inside with glue. I got the angle right and set in down for the night to dry. The next day was just simply putting the screws back in and mounting it on the stand.

                I plan on using my Starspeeder to replace the 2D Senator Shuttle in the first mission: Political Escort. Now I just need some icy comets to replace my asteroids and I can reenact the original Star Tours adventure! As for casual Standard play, I'm still working out all the details. I like keeping the shuttle's stats of 2 Agility and 6 HP. And because the Starspeeder has forward lasers I am giving it a 2 Attack Foward Firing Arc. This now sounds a lot like a bare Tie Bomber but the upgrades would be different. It makes sense for the Starspeeder to have the Astromech and Crew Slot and possibly even a Systems suite. There is still lots of play-testing to be done.

                I don't plan on painting the model, I really like the Star Tours orange. Let me know in the comments below what you would give a Starspeeder for stats, point cost, and maneuver dial. I took a photo with an X-wing in order to compare size. Thanks for reading!