Han: "We're caught in a tractor beam! It's pulling us in!"

Folks, where is the tractor beam?

My idea (formulation could of course be better ):

Tractor beam (3-4 points, either as modification or as "tractor beam crew", illicit, or as action icon or with action header.)

Large ships only

"Before you execute a maneuver, choose a friendly (small) ship in range 1 which has not yet revealed its maneuver dial. This ship can immediatly perform the same maneuver (treat that maneuver as a white maneuver) (then skip (small) ships originally chosen maneuver)."

It would be very strategic when you can bluff with a maneuver dial. Additionally you can have a guard ship that could follow your large ship without falling back. Also ideal against ion cannons or to pull pilots with higher pilot skill to or away from combat zone. Even maybe for k-turn without stress for the second ship.

Any other ideas concerning tractor beam? Looking forward for some comments and maybe other ideas or refinements

I would make the tractor beam function like an inhibitor, so you'd spend an action or an attack to put one ship (of a size class equal or lesser than your own. No tractoring Corvettes with Interceptors) and then make it so they can't turn (banks ok) and can't choose a speed higher than two.

WE do NOT want it. You do. So please do not post misleading topic titles.

;-p

To be completely honest if tractor beams come to past and some how give my opponets the ability to choose my movement for me in a dogfight game I am out of here.

WE do NOT want it. You do. So please do not post misleading topic titles.

;-p

Agreed. There is no compelling need for tractor beams in a tactical, dogfighting game.

There is no compelling need for tractor beams in a tactical, dogfighting game.

Well, there isn't a need for it, but it does have a place. Tractor beams make it easier to hit agile targets.

EDIT: How about a tractor beam that instead of manipulating maneuvers cuts the targets agility in half, rounded down?

There is no compelling need for tractor beams in a tactical, dogfighting game.

Well, there isn't a need for it, but it does have a place. Tractor beams make it easier to hit agile targets.

EDIT: How about a tractor beam that instead of manipulating maneuvers cuts the targets agility in half, rounded down?

Short of finding a way to include the Death Star, or the Executor, I just don't think you really have a case.

There is no compelling need for tractor beams in a tactical, dogfighting game.

Well, there isn't a need for it, but it does have a place. Tractor beams make it easier to hit agile targets.

EDIT: How about a tractor beam that instead of manipulating maneuvers cuts the targets agility in half, rounded down?

Short of finding a way to include the Death Star, or the Executor, I just don't think you really have a case.

Huh? What do I need to make a case for? The TIE Defender was capable of using a tractor beam. Tractor beams on small ships were used for different purposes than the big ones used on huge ships.

I've always liked the "turns are now red" idea. And for those claiming that tractor beams don't have a place in this game, that's because you never played TIE fighter(and shame on you for that ).

If we were going to get it we'd likely have had it already as the tractor beam was a feature of the Tie Defender.

I haven't yet heard of a tractor beam mechanic that sounds like a fun addition to the game.

Allow them to move a single asteroid one straight or bank in any direction instead of attacking.

I think manipulating opponent ships would not be a good idea, it would ruin the game. It should be something affecting a friendly ship (like mentioned in the original post). It would also not have too much impact as you have to either perform an action for that or replace your engine upgrade to insert the tractor beam.

PS: I htink every second original idea from FFG would be attacked here and claimed if posted here prior official publication (and not because they are not good),

Tractor Beam. Cannon. 2 points. When you make an attack, you may choose up to 2 defensive dice. The defender must reroll those dice.

Look, green dice already suck, the game is built that way. It's so the game does not last forever, I get that.

Most here that want tractor beams are targeting the green dice. There is no need, they already suck.

Tractor Beam

Slot Cannon

Cost 5

Range 1

Attack 3.

If this attack hits, the defender receives 1 Stress and 1 Ion Tokes. Then cancel all dice results.

Action: choose an opponent ship inside your firing arc within range 3. The distance modifier applied to any allied ship tafgeting this enemy is one range shorter to a minimum of one.

Basically, range 1-2 you gain a red die. Range 3 unmodified. It sums up it's easier to shoot.

Edit: wording

I like the idea of tractor beams taking a cannon slot. Most of the ships that I would imagine having a tractor beam already have the cannon slot.

There are also two types of beam weapons, as I recall: tractor beams and jamming beams.

I think we could work a way for tractor beams to be in the game but not too powerful. And if they were underpowered, I really don't think anyone would complain. Like this:

Tractor Beam: Attack. If this attack hits, assign a tractor beam token to the target. Then cancel all dice.Attack value 5. Range 1-2.

Tractor Beam token: A ship that has been assigned a tractor beam token must choose a straight maneuver on their turn. This maneuver is treated as white maneuver. After performing a maneuver, discard the tractor beam token.

In this iteration, the tractor beam is basically a poor-man's ion cannon. I'm not sure what it would cost. The trade-off is that it is more likely to hit than an ion cannon, but you don't deal damage and you don't know exactly how far forward they are going to move. Also, it's never a guarantee that you would actually get them in your beam trajectory. Do you remember using tractor beams in TIE Fighter? Sometimes you'd beam somebody but their vector was such that you couldn't keep them in your beam for more than a second before they shot out of range. That's why the beam functions like an attack -- it's possible for the target to escape.

Jamming beams could also be fun. I think it would function much like the tractor beam with it's own token. The card associated with the tractor beam would say:

Jamming Beam token: A ship that has been assigned a jamming beam token rolls one fewer attack die during all attacks. Discard this token during the end phase.

I'm really not sold on this one yet. I like the effect, but I'm not sure how long to make it last. If it goes away during the end phase, this is pretty much restricted to higher PS pilots firing on lower PS pilots. An alternative is to make the token go away after the assigned ship's PS has been passed during the combat phase. This makes it so the ship will always go through at least one round with the decreased attack value. Note that this would apply to both primary and secondary weapons.

As I've been writing this, though, Ivlerlin and Nynox have posted two pretty neat ideas as well. I like the idea of assigning one stress and one ion token without damage because it doesn't introduce new mechanics (like my ideas that require new tokens. Ugh!).

Nynox, your idea is nice, but what if you're low PS? The target you choose during the perform action step may not be there by time the Combat phase rolls around.

Imps need beam weapons for our defenders avengers and gunboats!

5A and R1-2 is a lot of dice being thrown in a large area. Maybe if it was Attack: [Target Lock]. Or like Accuracy Corrector where it cannot be modified.

I think manipulating opponent ships would not be a good idea, it would ruin the game. It should be something affecting a friendly ship (like mentioned in the original post). It would also not have too much impact as you have to either perform an action for that or replace your engine upgrade to insert the tractor beam.

PS: I htink every second original idea from FFG would be attacked here and claimed if posted here prior official publication (and not because they are not good),

It's all in the implementation.

For example, stress and ion manipulate opposing ships, but nobody (maybe Phantom players?) complain about that ruining the game.

I posted this ages ago, but what if beam weapons were a phase break?

They'd trigger at some point during the activation phase, but require a TL on the targeted ship(iirc all small/large ships that could/should have beams have the TL action), so you'd have to telegraph a bit.

For tractor beams, I was thinking they could increase the difficulty (green>white>red) of the target's maneuver by one step. Not game-breaking, it still leaves the target plenty of choice (since they'll already have the TL and see it coming, and it doesn't CHANGE the maneuver unless they chose a red), but it prevents a stress shed.

Jamming beam has a lot more options mechanically, but the spend-TL-during-activation structure has merit, I think.

I like the idea of tractor beams taking a cannon slot. Most of the ships that I would imagine having a tractor beam already have the cannon slot.

There are also two types of beam weapons, as I recall: tractor beams and jamming beams.

I think we could work a way for tractor beams to be in the game but not too powerful. And if they were underpowered, I really don't think anyone would complain. Like this:

Tractor Beam: Attack. If this attack hits, assign a tractor beam token to the target. Then cancel all dice.Attack value 5. Range 1-2.

Tractor Beam token: A ship that has been assigned a tractor beam token must choose a straight maneuver on their turn. This maneuver is treated as white maneuver. After performing a maneuver, discard the tractor beam token.

In this iteration, the tractor beam is basically a poor-man's ion cannon. I'm not sure what it would cost. The trade-off is that it is more likely to hit than an ion cannon, but you don't deal damage and you don't know exactly how far forward they are going to move. Also, it's never a guarantee that you would actually get them in your beam trajectory. Do you remember using tractor beams in TIE Fighter? Sometimes you'd beam somebody but their vector was such that you couldn't keep them in your beam for more than a second before they shot out of range. That's why the beam functions like an attack -- it's possible for the target to escape.

Jamming beams could also be fun. I think it would function much like the tractor beam with it's own token. The card associated with the tractor beam would say:

Jamming Beam token: A ship that has been assigned a jamming beam token rolls one fewer attack die during all attacks. Discard this token during the end phase.

I'm really not sold on this one yet. I like the effect, but I'm not sure how long to make it last. If it goes away during the end phase, this is pretty much restricted to higher PS pilots firing on lower PS pilots. An alternative is to make the token go away after the assigned ship's PS has been passed during the combat phase. This makes it so the ship will always go through at least one round with the decreased attack value. Note that this would apply to both primary and secondary weapons.

As I've been writing this, though, Ivlerlin and Nynox have posted two pretty neat ideas as well. I like the idea of assigning one stress and one ion token without damage because it doesn't introduce new mechanics (like my ideas that require new tokens. Ugh!).

Nynox, your idea is nice, but what if you're low PS? The target you choose during the perform action step may not be there by time the Combat phase rolls around.

Cannon Slot 3pts

Range 2-3

Can only be used once per turn.

During the activation phase if you would land on an asteroid you may move your ship backwards along your movement template as if you had overlapped a ship. If you do so you receive one stress token but do not roll for damage.

At the start of the combat phase chose 1 enemy ship inside your firing arc that ship rolls 1 evade die on a blank result that ship counts as being 1 range closer to your ship for the remainder of the combat phase.

This is IMHO the fairest way to make them viable use full and not break the game or screw with peoples maneuvers etc.

I really like the idea of a Cannon Upgrade that doesn't actually function as a secondary weapon (no Attack attached to it).

I also think that attackers modifying defense dice is a part of the design space that pretty much has't been touched (conversely, the defender modifying attack dice is limited, but does have a couple of cards that do it - Sensor Jammer, R7 Astromech, etc.).

The Tractor Beam should be a great candidate for both of these things.

Tractor Beam: Attack. If this attack hits, assign a tractor beam token to the target. Then cancel all dice.Attack value 5. Range 1-2.

Tractor Beam token: A ship that has been assigned a tractor beam token must choose a straight maneuver on their turn. This maneuver is treated as white maneuver. After performing a maneuver, discard the tractor beam token.

Super OP. Put it on a shuttle and 1 forward for 3 turns while forcing an X-wing to fly straight off the board with a very small chance of ever being able to avoid it (5 Red vs 2 Green requires a minor miracle to save). Any ship that gets close in any way shape or form to a board edge is going to be auto hit and fly straight off the edge with nothing they can do.

Ion is always 1 forward, which many ships cannot do naturally, which is why it is balanced. It is also 3 dice.

Cannon Slot 3pts

Range 2-3

Can only be used once per turn.

During the activation phase if you would land on an asteroid you may move your ship backwards along your movement template as if you had overlapped a ship. If you do so you receive one stress token but do not roll for damage.

At the start of the combat phase chose 1 enemy ship inside your firing arc that ship rolls 1 evade die on a blank result that ship counts as being 1 range closer to your ship for the remainder of the combat phase.

This is IMHO the fairest way to make them viable use full and not break the game or screw with peoples maneuvers etc.

I like it, but it is too much text. It has to fit on an upgrade card, and they are pretty tiny with moderate size text.