I am just starting out playing and wanted to get some advice on beginner lists for Imperials and Rebels. I was thinking of 100 point lists. Also, the imperial player is my son ... 8 years old. So, any advice on an imperial list that doesn't require complicated synergies and timing?
Thanks in advance.
Well, nothing is less complicated than a triple Firespray list.
Firespray and some TIE fighters. The firespray has a decent dial, two firing arcs and room for toys (good way to start introducing more complex aspects of the game). TIE fighters are fairly straightforward to fly and they start to introduce the concept of flying in formation or using flanking tactics with multiple ships. With the firespray taking up a decent chunk of points you will only be able to fit in maybe 4 TIES which is pretty manageable.
Honestly I think Rebels are more forgiving for new players since their ships are tougher and they tend to have more vanilla maneuver dials
Vader and Ties have moderate synergy between them and you can point them out in the trench run scene and be like "see those 3? you're controlling them."
Fel is pretty much stand alone and is fast maneuverable.
not the super competitive, but from a learning the game standpoint should be perfect.
for the un-link-able:
Vader - Squad Leader
Mauler Mithel - DTF
Backstabber
Sootnir Fel - PTL, RGT - Targeting, Stealth
Thanks for the feedback. Quite surprisingly, my son didn't want to play rebels. He likes the imperials, so ... for him, the choice is limited.
Eh. The Imperials are the good guys anyway. At least Grand Admiral Thrawn is.
For an 8 year old, I would build lists that were not too complex and were easy to fly. Imperial lists can be tricky to fly. For list building it is helpful to know what ships you have.
List 1:
B.H. x 3
List 2:
Tie Fighter Academy pilot x 8
List 3:
Tie Interceptor Avenger x 5
List 4:
Tie Interceptor Saber with Shield upgrade x 4
Trying to build Empire lists without complicated strategies or interactions is one of the hard parts of building Empire lists. Its actually a common complaint vs a rebel list.
I would go for multiple ships for the Empire, with upgrades like hull or shield upgrades, to keep it simple on the interaction side of it.
For the Empire, I have 6 Tie Fighters and 1 of every other ship.
@Sergovan - I was thinking passives might be helpful.
Also, is there a named pilots that have a lower learning curve than others? He would prefer to play the named pilots than generic pilots.
Thanks again!
Edited by Raensleyar2 falcons is very easy to fly, and is very forgiving.
My wife who is not good at strategy games just about wins with this list each time she plays it.
Han and Chewie is 88 points and you have room for upgrades.
Edited by CubanboyAnother thought buy two starter (3 with both an x-wing and tie expand if you have the money's) play x-wings vs ties with your son.
There is a reason they come with the start box and are outstanding ships.
Edited by CubanboyPassive upgrades... Modifications, Titles, Sensors, Crew, bombs, Canons
Stealth device, Hull upgrade, Shield upgrade, Engine upgrade (modifications); ST-321, Slave 0 (titles); Advanced Sensors, FCS, Sensor Jammer (Sensors) Reconc Spec, Gunner, Weapons engineer,(crew). Seismics, Proton, Proximity mines (bombs); HLC, Ion cannon.
Empirepilots with unique, easy abilities. Krassis comes to mind as well as Kath for firesprays;
Mauler Mithel, Backstabber, Dark Curse, Night Beast, for tie fighters;
Fel's Wrath for interceptors unless you have the Imperial aces then you'll have Tetran Cowell and Lt Lorrir.
Major Rhymer (but only if you want to include ordinance)
Vader, Marek Steel
Off of this I would go with Krassis with HLC, With Mauler and stealth, Backstabber and stealh, and Dark curse 98 points. Throw a seismic onto Krassis if you want to add to the learning curve.
*corrected point squad total. Removed E.U. due to costing.
Edited by Sergovan@Cubanboy. awesome thanks.
Which reminds me, for the rebels I have: 2 falcons, 5 X wings, 2 A Wings, 1 B Wing, 1 Y Wing.
Sergovan - excellent. Thanks! I think you list there is perfect. He loves his backstabber and Mauler, so that will great. Thanks again!
Edited by RaensleyarFor the Empire, I have 6 Tie Fighters and 1 of every other ship.
@Sergovan - I was thinking passives might be helpful.
Also, is there a named pilots that have a lower learning curve than others? He would prefer to play the named pilots than generic pilots.
Thanks again!
From the world torny winning 2-xwings and 2-Bwings to 4- shuttles you really can't go wrong. There is a post on this forum about winning lists from different tonrys, you will see it really comes down to what you like.
Oh and welcome to the community! I hope you get many hours of fun from this with your son.
Ps sorry about the edits my English is terrible.
Edited by Cubanboyhttp://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/105107-2014-regionals-results/
This is the link for all the worlds results it shows you many examples of what people from around the world fly and might have some good ideas for you.
What is the goal of your beginner list? Do you want them to win games right away, or are they trying to learn the game and get better?
For an 8 year old, it is hard to beat big ships with big guns. It appeals to the mindset of kids that age (bigger=better). Two Falcons will make him happy, and keep him rolling red dice (pew, pew, pew) for the duration of the game. I am sure he will enjoy them, and have some success, but that is not the ideal ship for learning to play the game well.
For beginners trying to learn the game, not much is better than an 8 TIE swarm. Lots of ships, lots of opportunities to make mistakes and/or great decisions, landing any particular ship on an asteroid won't be so devastating. It can win some games, and will give them a ton of practice maneuvering every time they play.
For slightly more advanced games, try a mini-swarm + Anchor. This lets them practice maneuvering mixed Pilot Skills and ship types, the large base vs. small base interaction is a pretty big deal. Try this one (suggested in another thread as well).
Howlrunner (Swarm Tactics)
Mauler Mithel (Swarm Tactics)
Academy TIE
Academy TIE
Shuttle with whatever upgrades they want to flavor it with.
After that, they can start to practice with the more powerful but smaller ship count Rebel lists. I would save those for last, because while each individual ship is less vulnerable to mistakes, the smaller ship count means that messing up even once can easily cost you the game. The Rebels also have much more complicated synergies (Kyle+Garven+Dutch for example).
Good luck.
I just picked up the game and I've not yet played even one game. I've been watching a lot of youtube videos and reading about strategy. I have the following:
Carnor Jax (Opportunist)
Howlrunner (Determination)
Night Beast
Winged Gundark
Sabre Squadron Pilot
I have Core + TIE Expansion + Imperial Aces. I picked up an Advanced TIE as well after watching a Youtube video about Vader being a great flanker, but I figure the Interceptor Aces can handle that role for me. I'll likely return the un-opened TIE Advanced but I'm not sure whether to get another TIE Fighter, a TIE Interceptor, or invest towards something else.
Thoughts?
I just picked up the game and I've not yet played even one game. I've been watching a lot of youtube videos and reading about strategy. I have the following:
Carnor Jax (Opportunist)
Howlrunner (Determination)
Night Beast
Winged Gundark
Sabre Squadron Pilot
I have Core + TIE Expansion + Imperial Aces. I picked up an Advanced TIE as well after watching a Youtube video about Vader being a great flanker, but I figure the Interceptor Aces can handle that role for me. I'll likely return the un-opened TIE Advanced but I'm not sure whether to get another TIE Fighter, a TIE Interceptor, or invest towards something else.
Thoughts?
I'd rather have the interceptor pack over the advanced. Soontir is THE imperial ace. Serious fun. But if and you gaming group are allowing proxies I'd skip the interceptor pack and probably pick up the slave 1. It's a really nice ship that can fit in a ton of either tie or interceptor support builds. The advance won't every really hit the table.