In Star Wars Rebels, there are a lot of medium-sized ships carrying around smaller ships.

Is this a prelude for things to come in X-Wing Miniatures? Does the future hold carrier-type abilities and mechanics for upcoming ships? Or at least epic? Maybe even a 3rd Epic Rebel ship?

It's easy to dismiss this idea by arguing that a X-Wing dogfight is too short a time span for any carrier operations to occur. That a true X-Wing dogfight would last just seconds. But X-Wing the Miniatures Game is an abstract representation for space dogfights, not a second-by-second simulator. The most obvious of this abstract is that it's a 2D game for a 3D situation. The battle area also occurs on an 810 feet x 810 feet area. About 3 football fields across. Are we really to believe that these ships that can travel nearly the speed of light will fight over this postage stamp of an area?

Carrier operations might make things pretty interesting.

I get the feeling that Armada fills this niche far better than it could be filled in a standard game of X-wing. What I think we will see, is a few crazy people playing Armada and then resolving starfighter battles with X-wing matches.

Particularly with the scale variance between Small and Huge ships, I don't think they'll see this as viable.

I dont really see what this could add to the game. X-Wing games are so fast paced that losing use of your fighters for a turn or two due to docking/whatever would be an enormous deal. The potential benefits would have to be MASSIVE to make it worthwhile, and that suggest other issues.

Leave carrier stuff to Armada IMO.

Carrier operations might make things pretty interesting.

How?

This idea has been floated before, and the prime sticking point remains "What would a carrier mechanic bring to the game? Of what use is it?"

Lol no.

Carrier operations might make things pretty interesting.

How?

This idea has been floated before, and the prime sticking point remains "What would a carrier mechanic bring to the game? Of what use is it?"

I've been thinking about this myself - the only thing I can think of is some kind of "bring on reinforcements" mechanic which allows you to place additional ships within a certain range of your carrier once you have lost ships from your main fleet

- but if the reinforcements are costed the same as your regular ships, what would be the point? wouldn't you just include them in your main fleet from the start?

It might be useful as a way to get around the maximum-12-of-any-one-type-of-ship rule that Epic has - but that was hardly a dealbreaker in the first place.

Of course I'm not a game designer so the fact that I can't think of anything doesn't say a great deal about whether FFG couldn't come up with a way to make this interesting.

I find the idea interresting. The Gonzanti could have supporting effects like the Rebel Transport. Projected shields or whatever, make those academy ties last a bit longer. Maybe revise the rules for the Rebel Transport to, so it could be used in standard games to, for the same kind of effect. This could be a game effects that some like and others don't, luckily x-wing is so balanced and full of diversity, that no one type of build is guaranteed a victory.

Particularly with the scale variance between Small and Huge ships, I don't think they'll see this as viable.

That part doesn't concern me too much considering the scale variance between Huge Ships and Huge ships - The CR-90 and the GR-75 are not to the same scale as each other.

So a Gonzanti that came out around the same size as a CR-90 wouldn't bother me too much

I remember an old fighter game for Battle Star Galatica. They had docking and repair/rearm and it was solely a hex based dog-fighting game.

[Edit] found it: Battlestar Galactica

I could see it being in epic play but not standard. A gonzanti like cruiser that supports ships like the transport.

I think if it could hold any two small based ships and as an action the ships can be deployed at range 1 from the cruiser. That way you could try to protect key fighters by not having them in combat...but if the huge ship is destroyed everything goes with it

Maybe the Gozanti could act as a moveable deplyment zone. You drop the Gozanti in the normal deplayment zone, with ties equipped, you speed ahead and can release ties in all directions.

I'm going to polish up my resume just in case one of the deciders at FFG ever thinks it's a good idea to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on design, tooling, printing, warehousing, and shipping costs to bring us, the players, a reinforcement mechanic and expanded Epic game mode for Xwing. Armada sure, but if they release it for Xwing I'll just go ahead and assume someone has hit their head and a job opening is imminent.

Each turn in X Wing is only a second or two. Docking makes absolutely no sense in the time frame of the game.

Neither does being limited to a square playing area in space; 2d movement in 3d space; the inability to build up speed then rotate and fire backward moving in the opposite direction; and we could go on.

But this is a game and it's fun. Who said rule of cool?

I agree with the above, It's far better served by armada, but If you must have something for the gozanti, you could preload it with ties up 4 at a discount. Say 32 points for 4 academy ties, then spend an action to dispense them. (I have no idea if this is balanced.) or spend energy to dispense them.

OR

Have a upgrade for the goznati

Limited, gozanti only

Hanger Bay. 30 points

card energy limit 4

Spend 2 energy to deploy 1 academy tie adjacent to your ship. (base must be touching your gozanti upon deployment)

this forces you to spend a lot of points and energy to crank out a tie fighter every round. the question is, will you get more than 3 ties out before you go down? Also, if you had deployed these ties in the standard way before hand, they would already be contributing to the fight. This card sort of handicapps the gozanti offensively in exchange for the ability to crank out a "theoretically" unlimited number of ties. It also makes it a priority target for your opponent. the longer it lives, the more ties it produces.

I still think a docking mechanic does not work very well for this game overall, but this might find it's place in a full on epic game. I will leave the balancing to others. the points costs and energy cost may need to be refined. It's just an idea I have floated around before when the subject has come up.

I think it would be fun to try as a scenario with a GR-75 cranking out A-wings or something. I think there is even an objective card in armada where a transport is a fighter carrier in disguise. I could see one being retroffited to carry a few small craft, and I love the support options baked in to it already.

Scenario: Moby ****, or slay the Narwhal

Neither does being limited to a square playing area in space; 2d movement in 3d space; the inability to build up speed then rotate and fire backward moving in the opposite direction; and we could go on.

But this is a game and it's fun. Who said rule of cool?

To play a game meant for two people or more requires pre agreed on rules. The play area is a very common example. However you can play any board size if both players agree, so I fail to see your point in regard to the time frame a turn takes.

Playing a 3d game on a 2d plain is a result of gravity. While a three axis gimbal for every fighter world be great, it might have a negative impact on the cost of the game.

X Wing is based on WW1 and WW2 dogfights. The lack of Newtonian physics is actually being true to the source material. Though if you want to put together a Babylon 5 flight path mod I would love to play it!

Do we have any scenarios or anything where ships come in late ("reinforcements" or something like that), at this point? If there were rules for that sort of thing -- deploying from somewhere besides your initial table edge, later in the game -- then maybe I could see some rules for deploying from a larger vessel, also.

I can't imagine rules for re-docking with that larger vessel, or why that would come up (except as a scenario objective, maybe?)...but if there was a bunch of deployment options, it wouldn't be impossible for one of those optional deployments to be a couple TIEs swooping out of the base of an Imperial Raider, or something, I guess.

Do we have any scenarios or anything where ships come in late ("reinforcements" or something like that), at this point?

It is actually fairly common in the dozen or so scenarios FFG has published for one side or the other to get a generic pilot reinforcement the turn after a ship is destroyed.

The problem with a carrier that's not a spawner is you've no incentive to use it. Yeah, you can dock your TIE on the Gozanti. But why? Why would you want to remove one of your ships from the field, meaning it no longer draws fire from your other ships or can itself attack?

So a Gonzanti that came out around the same size as a CR-90 wouldn't bother me too much

The Gozanti's actual size is about GR-75ish.

Even as a spawner it lacks a purpose. It would be better to start with everything deployed so all firepower and abilities are available.

Where I do see carriers having a place would be in a campaign in which preserving fighters means they can show up in a later mission.

Carrier operations are very important in Star Wars. A good number of TIE variants is not equipped with a hyperdrive. Therefore carriers are essential, even if the Empire has no dedicated carrier ship.

A dogfighting game like X-Wing has no place for carriers.

The problem with a carrier that's not a spawner is you've no incentive to use it. Yeah, you can dock your TIE on the Gozanti. But why? Why would you want to remove one of your ships from the field, meaning it no longer draws fire from your other ships or can itself attack?

The dock serves as a repair bay. For a certain energy cost, the ship that docked re-emerges with fully restored hull/shields on the following round.

Or do it as a munitions reload.

Maybe an additional cost is that a unique pilot cannot re-emerge, but must be replaced by a lowest-PS ship of that type.

I think carriers would be fun in epic play.

EDIT: I fully recognize each round of play represents only a few seconds of battle time.

If you were going to do something like what I was talking about, you would have to make it cheap enough to be worth the gamble. If suppose it was only 12 points, and cost 2 energy, who wouldn't do that to generate an AP each round?

At 30 points? I'm not sure if it's a good value or not. Probably depends on your overall strategy, points in the game, size of the field, etc.

Suppose we designed a scenario to use the GR-75 this way just to try it out. How much should our upgrade cost? how much energy to deploy a ship? Being rebel, what ship should it deploy?

If you were going to do something like what I was talking about, you would have to make it cheap enough to be worth the gamble. If suppose it was only 12 points, and cost 2 energy, who wouldn't do that to generate an AP each round?

At 30 points? I'm not sure if it's a good value or not. Probably depends on your overall strategy, points in the game, size of the field, etc.

Suppose we designed a scenario to use the GR-75 this way just to try it out. How much should our upgrade cost? how much energy to deploy a ship? Being rebel, what ship should it deploy?

Have the upgrade cost the same as the ship it deploys.

Academy pilot: The upgrade costs 12. Rookie pilot: The upgrade costs 21. Prototype pilot (chardaan): The upgrade costs 15.