So a while ago on another thread (can't remember which one) I made the point that despite the game being nice and balanced -- which I totally believe it is -- there was a severe lack of upgrade options for the Imperials that a Rebel squadron has free reign with, namely with astromechs and the unbelievable amount of Rebel-only crew cards.

And while this is true for the most part, the fact is that two common complaints were subsequently squashed with the announcement of Wave 5 (lack of Imperial-only crew and turrets).

I recently came to a realization. Someone asked me whether or not X-Wing was a good game to get into at the moment, and if so what was a good way to get a strong Imperial squadron. I took the opportunity to explain each Imperial ship, short and sweet. The realization I came to was this: while the Rebels have a lot of versatility in terms of upgrade options and group synergy, the Empire excels with extreme abilities. Such as? Well, the Empire has...

...the only ship in the game with a "0" maneuver.

...the only ship in the game with 4 attack dice.

...the only ship in the game that can cloak.

...the only ship in the game with a white k-turn.

...the only ship in the game with 16 hp (also the only with zero agility).

...the only ships in the game with the bomb upgrade slot.

There may be others, but as you can see when it is written out as a list, it seems quite impressive.

Yes, the Rebels have shields on everything and astromechs and turrets everywhere, but they don't have ships that have such distinct personality. Personally, I don't think the Empire is behind the curve here in any way.

Four of those things you listed haven't even hit store shelves yet.

So the time frame it takes to get into your hand invalidates the point?

....the cheapest ships in the game, the most manueverable ships in the game, the only ship in the game with both front AND rear arcs...

Your list isn't invalid, but those things don't address peoples' complaints for the past what, three waves? That having been said, I think Imperials were fine beforehand, so people griping didn't have much of a leg to stand on in the first place.

....the cheapest ships in the game, the most manueverable ships in the game, the only ship in the game with both front AND rear arcs...

I would have mentioned those, however the Z-95 is just as cheap as any TIE Fighter, the A-Wing is just as maneuverable as a TIE Interceptor, and you can't really point at a front/rear arc as anything THAT special when I can point at three...sorry, now four Rebel ships that have a front/rear arc coupled with a side/side arc, also called a 360* turret. Granted two of those four use it as a secondary weapon, but a weapon nonetheless.

The front/rear arc is merely unique.

The Interceptor is more maneuvrable than a A-Wing since it has both boost and barrel roll, which plays a lot when maneuvring to get out of sight, flanking or into an asteroid field.

The Interceptor is more maneuvrable than a A-Wing since it has both boost and barrel roll, which plays a lot when maneuvring to get out of sight, flanking or into an asteroid field.

You're right, I was just thinking of the dial.

And a ship that comes equipped with a front back firing arch is something no rebel ship has.

They have one that comes equipped with a they.

The secondary turret is also limited to range 1-2

I think it is very special.

Plus the ship with front back arch can also drop bombs

Plus it has Boba Fett!

That's something the rebels will never have

List building is... more dynamic with rebels I feel. If you want to try a new ship, its usually accompanied by a mini-swarm and/or shuttle. This is probably due to the fact the empire has the most powerful support ship in the game and it's hard to list build away from her.

The Interceptor is more maneuvrable than a A-Wing since it has both boost and barrel roll, which plays a lot when maneuvring to get out of sight, flanking or into an asteroid field.

You're right, I was just thinking of the dial.

That extra red die makes a huge difference too, as does relative PS and EPTs. In short, two very different ships.

The Imperials are the only faction which can force choke a pilot to death from inside their own ship.

Whenever I see Vader used, I always imagine him hanging out the door, wheezing and grasping his fist in the direction of a passing X-Wing...

Like I said above, I was just thinking of the dial. I was mistaken. For some reason I wasn't thinking about the boost/barrel roll combo or anything on the action bar.

Whenever I see Vader used, I always imagine him hanging out the door, wheezing and grasping his fist in the direction of a passing X-Wing...

Alright, that's the funniest image.

Thank you for that.

In fact, whenever anyone in my group of friends uses Vader, whenever we want to activate his ability we just glare across the table at our opponent, wheeze loudly and make a gripping, squeezing motion with our hand...

...I've learned that this behaviour doesn't always go down too well at tournaments, though.

4 out of 9 rebel ships can use turrets. Most of your points are completely invalidated by ships that can tank and only need to worry about avoiding asteroids (one of those ships doesn't even need to do that).

4 out of 9 rebel ships can use turrets. Most of your points are completely invalidated by ships that can tank and only need to worry about avoiding asteroids (one of those ships doesn't even need to do that).

Yeah... 2 of those ships are merely average and only one has a natural 3 attack. Meaning only one is usable without upgrades.

Well, the initial Wave 5 announcement has likely quashed some of the complaints. Or, at least until the other 2 pilots in Rebel Aces are revealed, and we can start the sky is falling all over again.

Who are these whining imperials? They are clearly traitors to the Emperor for suggesting the that Empire is weaker than the rebellion.

They should be shot and sent to the Kathol Sector.

Imperial ships and lists are doing fine in the club I play at and in the competitive tournament scene. True Imperials lack some of the fancier cards and upgrades but that is slowly changing. What imperials do have is quantity over quality which has it's own charm- plus it's fun to play the good guys.

Wait the sky isn't falling according to the imperials?!

Does this mean Lebron isn't crying again?

In all honesty, each side brings something different to the table and allows for the player to choose what they want to play....you want to be an ordnance monkey, have at it......want to be the next Porkins, here ya go (just avoid the Y Wing eject button buddy )

The game brings variety and allows for each players personality to flow into the game in a way that doesnt make it ridiculous and curb stomping people

Both factions represent 2divergent theories on how to win a war.

1) rebel/American theory is all about quality.

2) empire/Soviet is all about quantity

As stated these doctrines roughly match United States and Soviet military doctrine of the Cold War when the genre was created. The newest ships begin to allow cross doctrine builds. But quality vs quantity has always been the choice.

3 out of the top 4 lists at our regionals were Imperial. I think they're doing fine.

The Imperials have some quality of their own. When it comes to maneuvers the imperials are undefeated.

The rebels have to use sturdier ships for 2 reasons. One they are cheaper economically to the sleek tie fighters at the cost of aerial acrobatic abilities which any veteran pilot will tell you it is not your fighter but how you fly it. Two is that they do not have the same number of pilots as the imperium so not only do they need more sturdy fighters that are cheaper to afford but also suffer wear and tear better.

Wait the sky isn't falling according to the imperials?!

Does this mean Lebron isn't crying again?

In all honesty, each side brings something different to the table and allows for the player to choose what they want to play....you want to be an ordnance monkey, have at it......want to be the next Porkins, here ya go (just avoid the Y Wing eject button buddy )

The game brings variety and allows for each players personality to flow into the game in a way that doesnt make it ridiculous and curb stomping people

and that is why I like X-Wing.