Hey guys, so I recently got into this game, and have started to get the itch of wanting to buy everything! But in all seriousness I'm having a hard time knowing how to build a list. There's just so much to consider, and my lack of experience I know definitely plays a big part of me being overwhelmed at the combinations. I was hoping someone could give some pointers on what to think about and how to go about building a list.

If it helps, the current stock I have are:

2x Core

1x Tie Fighter

1x Tie Interceptor

1x Firespray

1x X-Wing

1x Y-Wing

1x B-Wing

Also any recommendations of what to get next (trying to get even Imperial and Rebel so I can play with the wife). I think with the Firespray, I'm going to be light on the rebel side, but don't want to pick up the Falcon yet. Thanks guy for the help in advance!

More ships > Upgraded ships.

3 X-Wings will usually lose to 4 X-wings, regardless of the pilot skill disparity. Similarly, don't fall into the trap of having a fully upgrded Han Solo and 1 other ship.

Have a plan when you pick upgrades

Picking upgrades willy-nilly because you have the space to do so is generally a terrible idea

A plan of attack is a must. If you plan to use Dutch you can pair him with other ships that can really benefit from a TL (A-wings benefit less from a TL than a ship with 3+ attack dice)

If you want to use wedge do you plan to fly him with Biggs to help him live longer? Or with some ion turrets so you can predict where they will end up? Or with Dutch/Garven so he can TL and focus in 1 turn?

Try not to give your opponent an obvious target - or of you do, make sure it has support to keep it from getting destroyed on the first attack.

Taking an upgrade just 'cuz is sound like a fun upgrade is usually a mistake (for tournament lists). That being said you should do exactly that for each of the upgrades to find out for yourself how they are to play. But in general upgrades are usually only worth their points if you can get some synergy out of them. Biggs and Wedge (though not really upgrades) are a great example. Wedge kills stuff and Biggs keeps Wedge alive. As you choose upgrades for these you might want to consider upgrades that will help them do their job. Or maybe you want an upgrade to fill a whole in a ships capabilities. Engine Upgrades on a Shuttle is a great example. The Shuttle by itself has real trouble maneuvering, but add engine upgrades and it does much better.

I always like to look back afterwards and say what would it take to get another ship in this list? and then figure out what I'd have to cut, and determine whether I think an additional ship would be worth that. I also try to stay away from putting multiple actions on a single ship. For example, on a YT, I would try not to put Marksmanship, Sabetour, Engine Upgrade, and MF title... since each one of those requires an action and on any given turn, I can only use one of them.

http://xwing-builder.co.uk/build#

This should help as well.

Building a list you need to figure out what you want and how many points it takes. As mentioned the number of ships usually trumps adding upgrades. Now looking at your ships I have a couple squadron thoughts:

Imperials:

Turr Phennir (generally for use as a flanker)

Bounty Hunter (tough ship that can deliver some hurt)

Howlrunner (Boosts the nearby ships and especially the...)

Academy Pilot x2 (The fill that also give you a micro-swarm)

This uses most of your Imperial ships although you could use the other two T/F (and mix them up a bit) instead of one of the two beaters.

With your Rebels I think you could do fine with any four fighters although I may favor an XXXY build. You could try a three ship build but four are more forgiving.

With the future release of the rebel aces, I'm hesitant to buy more than 1 B-wing right now, do you guys think 3 b wing lists will still be viable in the future? If I pick one up now I can run xxbby or something like that and maybe run a bbby or something later when rebel aces release.

edit*** brain fart, had to reword to make sense.

I am pretty new as well, but I can say having someone in the house to play with is a huge advantage. you can play a bunch of games and decide how you want to play.

do you want to go more quality or quantity? which upgrades are really fun? So far I am finding that I favor a mix of quantity and quality for a useful list. Just play lots of games with what you have and buy what looks fun.