Hypermobility in the age of Wave 5

By DraconPyrothayan, in X-Wing

Had a spot of a revelation in reviewing the Wave 5 ships for my local crew.

"Stay on Target" + "Navigator" = 5 Points (Crew + EPT)

When you reveal your maneuver dial, perform any maneuver from that dial. If that maneuver was a different bearing than what you revealed, treat it as red.

That means you can conceivably use it on the following ships:

B-Wing (/E2, for 1 more point)

HWK-290

YT-1300

YT-2400

Firespray-31

TIE Phantom

VT-49 Decimator

Possibly some of the Scum and Villany fighters as well.

Of these, the most synergistic pilot that I can see is Keyan Farlander.

  • He can remove the stress he accrues, so he may do this every turn
  • Quite a lot of his dial is red anyway, so he doesn't feel the negative sting as hard
  • He doesn't lose the action in the same way others would, as he turns the stress into an offensive focus.
  • He can equip Advanced Sensors or Fire-Control System to ACTUALLY not lose the action
  • With Adv S, he natively has a Barrel-Roll, adding to more insanity,

Yes, he still suffers from having only 1 agility in an 8 hp body, but he's still insane.

Thoughts?

I'm not sure it's terribly effective on the Phantom, because (a) it locks out their EPT and crew slots, which are both extraordinarily valuable on that ship, and (b) they already have so much flexibility in positioning that additional flexibility is sort of beyond the point of diminishing returns.

I particularly like it on the Decimator, though. It's generally effective, but I think it's particularly good on Oicunn (although not with the Dauntless title), because it really opens up his options to ram low-PS ships, and on Chiraneau, whose ability means he cares much less than most about lost actions.

But I do think you're right that B-wings are the most effective users. It really opens up their movement, and Keyan and Ibtisam are both reasonably well positioned to become stressed without being crippled by it.

I'm not sure it's terribly effective on the Phantom, because (a) it locks out their EPT and crew slots, which are both extraordinarily valuable on that ship, and (b) they already have so much flexibility in positioning that additional flexibility is sort of beyond the point of diminishing returns.

Totally agree, but I would add:

C) having stress cripples the all-important ACD, so it would really only be useful when the opponent has successfully boxed the phantom in with its available decloaks and assigned maneuver. A get out of jail free card in desperate times.

And d) because a phantom cannot afford to be stressed for long, it is nearly guaranteed to be doing a green maneuver the following turn with no decloak. That makes it incredibly easy to predict, block, and or focus on.

SoTNav might be a good combo to save its ghostly bacon in times of great need but not nearly often enough to justify the slots and points.

I'm not sure it's terribly effective on the Phantom, because (a) it locks out their EPT and crew slots, which are both extraordinarily valuable on that ship, and (b) they already have so much flexibility in positioning that additional flexibility is sort of beyond the point of diminishing returns.

I particularly like it on the Decimator, though. It's generally effective, but I think it's particularly good on Oicunn (although not with the Dauntless title), because it really opens up his options to ram low-PS ships, and on Chiraneau, whose ability means he cares much less than most about lost actions.

But I do think you're right that B-wings are the most effective users. It really opens up their movement, and Keyan and Ibtisam are both reasonably well positioned to become stressed without being crippled by it.

Frankly, the Phantom's a terrible choice for it, as it has the fewest number of actual maneuvers on its dial, and is forced to decloak before choosing one.

It's just technically possible for it to use one.

I kind of think you dont need the Navigtor with Keyan, I think Advanced sensors is a more useful and I am weary of overloading him as he is still just a Bwing that can go down quick if focus fired upon. I think AS Barrel role and selecting a 2 speed maneuver (so including the K-turn) gives you all the movement options you are likely to need, and AS can also be used to bolster attack through TL if you dont need the barrel role.

Interesting rules question, if you select 2 forward and end up wanting that move, can it still be a red move? First thought is no, as you are not changing the dial, but its kind of like how he can spend the stress token even if there are no eyeballs, it can count as changing the dial (and getting stress) even if you dont actually move it? Wadayathhink? If not then I can you would be selecting the move you definately dont want just to get the stress.

Edited by berusplants

Interesting rules question, if you select 2 forward and end up wanting that move, can it still be a red move? First thought is no, as you are not changing the dial, but its kind of like how he can spend the stress token even if there are no eyeballs, it can count as changing the dial (and getting stress) even if you dont actually move it? Wadayathhink? If not then I can you would be selecting the move you definately dont want just to get the stress.

No you can't make it red. But you CAN just select the K-Turn every time and then worst case you don't change it and get stressed anyway.

The B-Wing has a Red Maneuver at every speed you can start off selected.

Edited by Hida77

... rotate your dial to another maneuver ...

When using SoT you have to change your maneuver to a different one.

stay-on-target.png

... rotate your dial to another maneuver ...

When using SoT you have to change your maneuver to a different one.

stay-on-target.png

SoT changes the bearing, and not the speed.

Navigator changes the speed, and not the bearing.

Put 'em together and what've you got?

Bibbidity Bobbidity Boo

... rotate your dial to another maneuver ...

When using SoT you have to change your maneuver to a different one.

stay-on-target.png

'May' not have to, only may

Are you guys sure you can use both SoT and Navigator together?

Based on the wording, I'm not sure if they stack. To me, it's like going down two different path, and revealing your dial is the fork in the road.

Nevermind....I guess Boba Fett is the precedent for this.

Interesting rules question, if you select 2 forward and end up wanting that move, can it still be a red move? First thought is no, as you are not changing the dial, but its kind of like how he can spend the stress token even if there are no eyeballs, it can count as changing the dial (and getting stress) even if you dont actually move it? Wadayathhink? If not then I can you would be selecting the move you definately dont want just to get the stress.

No you can't make it red. But you CAN just select the K-Turn every time and then worst case you don't change it and get stressed anyway.

The B-Wing has a Red Maneuver at every speed you can start off selected.

Would that really work? Navigator allows you to change your maneuver to any with the same bearing and the B-Wing only has 1 speed 2 K-turn. Selecting K-Turn every time would allow a player to select any speed 2 maneuver with stay on target (which granted, is a lot on the B-Wing), but I don't think it would allow a player to exploit the full range (and would make navigator useless).

You can combine them but the maneuver will be red if you use Stay. That's in the FAQ.

Had a spot of a revelation in reviewing the Wave 5 ships for my local crew.

"Stay on Target" + "Navigator" = 5 Points (Crew + EPT)

When you reveal your maneuver dial, perform any maneuver from that dial. If that maneuver was a different bearing than what you revealed, treat it as red.

That means you can conceivably use it on the following ships:

B-Wing (/E2, for 1 more point)

HWK-290

YT-1300

YT-2400

Firespray-31

TIE Phantom

VT-49 Decimator

Possibly some of the Scum and Villany fighters as well.

Of these, the most synergistic pilot that I can see is Keyan Farlander.

  • He can remove the stress he accrues, so he may do this every turn
  • Quite a lot of his dial is red anyway, so he doesn't feel the negative sting as hard
  • He doesn't lose the action in the same way others would, as he turns the stress into an offensive focus.
  • He can equip Advanced Sensors or Fire-Control System to ACTUALLY not lose the action
  • With Adv S, he natively has a Barrel-Roll, adding to more insanity,

Yes, he still suffers from having only 1 agility in an 8 hp body, but he's still insane.

Thoughts?

Are you guys sure you can use both SoT and Navigator together?

Based on the wording, I'm not sure if they stack. To me, it's like going down two different path, and revealing your dial is the fork in the road.

Nevermind....I guess Boba Fett is the precedent for this.

They absolutely stack, but the maneuver is ALWAYS red if you changed the bearing. It's detailed in the new FAQ. SoT has also been Errata'ed before its even released. It now says treat YOUR maneuver as red, not Treat THAT maneuver as red.

... rotate your dial to another maneuver ...

When using SoT you have to change your maneuver to a different one.

stay-on-target.png

'May' not have to, only may

The rulebook explains the meaning of the word "may" on page 19:

Unless a card ability uses the word “may” or has the “action:” or “attack:” headers, then the ability is mandatory and must be followed.

For SoT this means when you reveal your maneuver dial your are entitled, not forced, to execute the rest of the card.

If you decide to execute the rest of the card, you rotate your dial to another maneuver. That excludes the maneuver you revealed. You cannot treat the maneuver you revealed as red. That's what my previous post was about. A reply to the question in post 5.

Edited by dvor

How does this work with Tetran Cowall ... treat a maneuver as 1, 3, or 5 - then any other bearing at 1, 3, or 5 - which is like - the whole dial for the most part.

How does this work with Tetran Cowall ... treat a maneuver as 1, 3, or 5 - then any other bearing at 1, 3, or 5 - which is like - the whole dial for the most part.

At first blush it seems like you can use his ability or Stay on Target in either order because of the trigger event of revealing your maneuver dial, but you'd probably want to use his ability first. I'd bet that if you reveal a 3-K, you could use his ability to switch to 5-K, then SoT to a 5-Straight, and finish by taking a stress token.

Arguably, you could also reveal a 3-Straight, use SoT to rotate to a 3-K, then swap to either a 1-K or 5-K, but I don't know if the dial rotation from SoT would qualify as "revealing" a maneuver per the wording on Cowall's card.

Tetran... I had forgotten about him. This pilot suddenly opens up interesting possibilities.

How does this work with Tetran Cowall ... treat a maneuver as 1, 3, or 5 - then any other bearing at 1, 3, or 5 - which is like - the whole dial for the most part.

At first blush it seems like you can use his ability or Stay on Target in either order because of the trigger event of revealing your maneuver dial, but you'd probably want to use his ability first. I'd bet that if you reveal a 3-K, you could use his ability to switch to 5-K, then SoT to a 5-Straight, and finish by taking a stress token.

Arguably, you could also reveal a 3-Straight, use SoT to rotate to a 3-K, then swap to either a 1-K or 5-K, but I don't know if the dial rotation from SoT would qualify as "revealing" a maneuver per the wording on Cowall's card.

Simultaneous triggers, mate. Same way that it works with Navigator, if they both happen upon revealing an X.

Of course, he says when revealing a Koiogran, so you'd have to start with one of those, then pull a 1, 3, 4 (This is the koiogran you actually revealed) or 5 speed maneuver.

I kind of think you dont need the Navigtor with Keyan, I think Advanced sensors is a more useful and I am weary of overloading him as he is still just a Bwing that can go down quick if focus fired upon. I think AS Barrel role and selecting a 2 speed maneuver (so including the K-turn) gives you all the movement options you are likely to need, and AS can also be used to bolster attack through TL if you dont need the barrel role.

Edited by Sekac

Thing about wave 5 is Outriders and Decimators don't care about your mobility at all.

Edited by AtomicFryingPan

Thing about wave 5 is Outriders and Decimators don't care about your mobility at all.

Outriders and decimators (like all turreted ships) are at their best when they are shooting but not being shot. Having a ship that can give chase regardless of where they go is something they should care about. If they don't, so much the better.

How does stay-on-target work with stressed pilots? Can they still use it?

My understanding is that if a pilot is stressed, he's unable to execute a red maneuver, so that would mean that he wouldn't be able to use stay-on-target, right? (I'm thinking of Tycho, but I think that even his ability doesn't allow him to do red maneuvers if he has stress tokens)

How does stay-on-target work with stressed pilots? Can they still use it?

My understanding is that if a pilot is stressed, he's unable to execute a red maneuver, so that would mean that he wouldn't be able to use stay-on-target, right? (I'm thinking of Tycho, but I think that even his ability doesn't allow him to do red maneuvers if he has stress tokens)

You can still use it on a stressed pilot, but after you change your maneuver to the red one you will hand your opponent your dial and watch in horror as he either flies you off the board or puts you at range 1 of his heaviest guns.

Edited by DR4CO

How does stay-on-target work with stressed pilots? Can they still use it?

My understanding is that if a pilot is stressed, he's unable to execute a red maneuver, so that would mean that he wouldn't be able to use stay-on-target, right? (I'm thinking of Tycho, but I think that even his ability doesn't allow him to do red maneuvers if he has stress tokens)

You can still use it on a stressed pilot, but after you change your maneuver to the red one you will hand your opponent your dial and watch in horror as he either flies you off the board or puts you at range 1 of his heaviest guns.

And that might, repeat might, be better than the maneuver you revealed.

How does this work with Tetran Cowall ... treat a maneuver as 1, 3, or 5 - then any other bearing at 1, 3, or 5 - which is like - the whole dial for the most part.

At first blush it seems like you can use his ability or Stay on Target in either order because of the trigger event of revealing your maneuver dial, but you'd probably want to use his ability first. I'd bet that if you reveal a 3-K, you could use his ability to switch to 5-K, then SoT to a 5-Straight, and finish by taking a stress token.

Arguably, you could also reveal a 3-Straight, use SoT to rotate to a 3-K, then swap to either a 1-K or 5-K, but I don't know if the dial rotation from SoT would qualify as "revealing" a maneuver per the wording on Cowall's card.

Simultaneous triggers, mate. Same way that it works with Navigator, if they both happen upon revealing an X.

Of course, he says when revealing a Koiogran, so you'd have to start with one of those, then pull a 1, 3, 4 (This is the koiogran you actually revealed) or 5 speed maneuver.

Cowall revealing a 4 K-turn? That's news to me. Did I miss anything in the FAQ?

Can Cowall execute maneuvers not on his maneuver dial? Hs obviously can. Mainly a 1 K-turn. With SoT, he can choose a 3 K-turn, then switch to any speed 1, 3 or 5 maneuver. That's 6 maneuvers at speed 1, 6 at speed 3 and 2 (no bank or turn) at speed 5. That makes Cowall/SoT the only interceptor with 1 straight and 1 bank maneuvers.

Edited by dvor