That, according to Alex Davy, the HWK would have been okay with two attack dice comes up a lot. And it got me thinking, the HWK wouldn't have just been okay. It would have been great.

The thing about HWKs is that their strength lies in their support abilities, and that gives them two problems. If they equip a turret they start expensive for a X-wing durability shuttle maneuverability support craft, if they don't their firepower might as well be zero. Autoblaster Turret's been added as a cheap option, but the HWK's not really equipped to take advantage of Range 1 the way Unhinged Y-wings can.

And I figured, the only time the HWK's weak attack really matters that much is when it doesn't have a turret: that pointless Range 3 shot nonwithstanding you'll always use the turret. So I figured, how useful would a HWK only turret upgrade that increased the primary weapon value by 1 at 0 points be? Certainly not autoinclude, but gives the HWK that cheap option it probably should have had from the start.

I agree. I'd fly a lot more hawks if they had 2 dice.

Auto-blaster turret. 2 points and problem solved.

Auto-blaster turret. 2 points and problem solved.

Isn't that range one only?

Auto-blaster turret. 2 points and problem solved.

Already addressed that in the post itself.

I'm not convinced that making the hawk a two attack ship would make it see more play. You still have whats probably one of the worst dial's in the game to deal with. It does have so nice support abilities if there were upgrades that made it more maneuverable so that it could keep up with the ships its trying to support that might be nice.

The hawk's firepower could have been addressed in most wanted as well but oh well maybe we'll see it in a ravens claw expansion.

They are a nice support ship in epic games and when you have a lot of points to spend so you can add an ion turret

two attack innate would be nice

two attack ala filling the turret slot would be worthless

being a B-wing with no k-turn does not lend the HWK to utilizing its firing arc at all effectively and it would still absolutely need a turret to justify itself

not that it's all bad, imo, apart from some horrible munition failures. Moldy Crow does everything possible to mitigate the crappiness of the ship so you can focus on the awesomeness of the pilots such as Mux and especially Palob by turning the crap durability into a more respectable Luke Skywalker tier of ship and removing some of the impact of getting blocked. The S&V Moldy Crow Mux and Palob are more than worth inclusion in 100 point games, but obviously only one at a time because moldy crow is unique.

Mux and Palob also further extend durability from Moldy Crow through their pilot abilities, Mux by shooting first and potentially crippling/killing enemeies before they shoot him and Palob by removing offensive focus or yoinking an evade token or just forcing opponents not to take focus actions (which is fine, because with moldy he should have a little stash of focus, anyway). The moldy + recon + blaster package turns them both into very surprisingly potent offensive assets, especially Palob given his ability to remove key defensive tokens and worry less about keeping focus on him so he can afford to take a target-lock.

First, moldy crow is so good that a title wouldn't ever get used.

Second, scum Hawks are DAMNED powerful in that range 2 bubble. Insane power, debuffs, and accuracy. Making them better might be gamd breaking.

Third, rebel Hawks with nien nunb are pretty fast. Suddenly, it's keeping pace with x-wings.

two attack innate would be nice

two attack ala filling the turret slot would be worthless

Thing is, if you fill the turret slot with a turret you don't need the primary. The point would be running the HWK without a turret at base cost.

The attack of 1 is just silly for sure. I'd rather see a more effective fix for the HWK though, as that dial is going to keep it from ever being able to use its firing arc all that often.

What about a title card that increases the range of its equipped turret by 1 (to a maximum of 3)?

I am surprised and disappointed that Most Wanted did not do anything to help the Rebel HWK. Made me feel like FFG had given up on this ship. The new S&V pilots are interesting and I look forward to trying them out in play.

I think the main problem with the HWK is not its attack value or dial, it's the durability or lack thereof. They can be very easy to take off the table fairly quickly. Especially the scum HWKs who you kind of want in the thick of things. Even with Moldy crow and Rec Spec, if you don't roll well with your evades, your HWK is dead fast. It also doesn't help that there is a lot more upgrades throwing crits around. I feel like it should have had at least 2 shields from the start. That way it gives you a little bit more buffer from crits.

But I do agree with the OP. It should of had 2 attack dice and an upgrade giving that would be pretty nice. No ship should only have 1 attack.

Rebel Aces was as much a HWK boost as it was B-wing boost. And boosting the attack is not going to change anything. It would still have to compete with the cheaper Z-95, A-wing, and Scyk for the cheap dog fighter role, which it can't due to it's dial. It isn't wrong that the HWK has to relay on a turret for offense.

The purpose was not to make it a competent swarmer, it'll never be that. The thinking was more making including it for its support ability more viable: currently you either have to choose between effectively no attack or forking out for a turret, which makes the ship somewhat less attractive as a support piece due to the added cost.

With two dice it could potentially do some damage, one die might as well be zero. It's a HWK, it'll never be a heavy lifter, but there's a difference between a TIE/A-wing level attack and 18 to 25 points on a pilot ability with hit points.

And yet, the HWK seems to do fine at 40+ pts. Just because it isn't what you want it to be, doesn't make it bad.

thing about S&V hwks is that you can't just think about them as support, they're also very solid offensive threats with the blaster turret. It'd be like thinking of E'athn A'baht as a support ship when really he's a badass that just happens to support your squad, only worse because the HWKs actively debuff your opponents which indirectly support your squadron and directly support the HWKs themselves.

Palob especially has proven to be a deadly bastard, and between mangler Seri + 3 Z-95s he's actually been pulling most of the weight.

And yet, the HWK seems to do fine at 40+ pts. Just because it isn't what you want it to be, doesn't make it bad.

40+ !?

I love the scum HWKs and all but I'd never go above 30 after the blaster/recon/crow package

I would be okay with more turret options.

Something in-between the Autoblaster Turret and Blaster Turret. Maybe a Laser Turret: 2 dice at range 1-3 for 3 or 4 points?

Then you might see some Rebel Operative and Spice Runners in play

I am surprised and disappointed that Most Wanted did not do anything to help the Rebel HWK. Made me feel like FFG had given up on this ship. The new S&V pilots are interesting and I look forward to trying them out in play.

I have a hard time being disappointed in much of anything FFG has been doing with the game. If anything they simply generated a lot more interest in the HWK than what there was previously. The Y-Wing is by far the more iconic ship and has been in need of a fix since wave 1.

Honestly I believe it's threads like these that help give FFG the feedback they need before they commit resources to address an issue. If enough people show enough interest in something theY have proven that they will address it at some stage.

And yet, the HWK seems to do fine at 40+ pts. Just because it isn't what you want it to be, doesn't make it bad.

Which +40 point Hwk seems fine? Do tell...

First, moldy crow is so good that a title wouldn't ever get used.

Second, scum Hawks are DAMNED powerful in that range 2 bubble. Insane power, debuffs, and accuracy. Making them better might be gamd breaking.

Third, rebel Hawks with nien nunb are pretty fast. Suddenly, it's keeping pace with x-wings.

I barely ever use Moldy Crow unless it's the 40pt Stealthhawk or Focus Factory. It's hardly autoinclude. In addition, I said turret slot, not title slot.

That Range 2 bubble is powerful because of the turret, and if it's firing the turret it's not firing the primary. And if it doesn't have a turret, it can't use a turret anyway.

Not sure on the relevance of the third.

I'd rather see a more effective fix for the HWK

A two dice primary isn't a fix, it just gives it the turretless option for when you want to run the HWK for its ability. No, it's not powerful, but it's only 18 points for the cheapest named pilot: it's not going to be a powerhouse.

And yet, the HWK seems to do fine at 40+ pts. Just because it isn't what you want it to be, doesn't make it bad.

Did I ever say it was bad? Yes, you can make a 40pt Stealthawk Jan but that only works in specific circumstances: when going for it means not going for the Fat Falcon it's escorting.

I am surprised and disappointed that Most Wanted did not do anything to help the Rebel HWK.

It had Autoblaster Turret but that forces a Rebel HWK to get right into the fray, where it really doesn't want to be.

Pretty happy with the way it works - the HWK isn't the kind of ship I'd like to see a squadron of on the table. Or even two. A single ship with an escort, that's how it looks best in my opinion (in the same way that two Falcons simply don't look right). As it turns out, the rules manage to encourage just that.

My upgrade-

Superior targeting turret.

7 points

Range: 1-3 Attack: Roll no dice. Deal 1 damage to targeted ship

My upgrade-

Superior targeting turret.

7 points

Range: 1-3 Attack: Roll no dice. Deal 1 damage to targeted ship

Even at 7 points, that would be OP like crazy. It also would make the game kind of dumb. What's the point of me taking my arc-dodging Interceptor when you are just going to hit him anyway?

The HWK's just fine if you're willing to splash out on it, the problem is by doing so it's got less stuff to support. Less of an issue in Epic but at lower point limits when you're having to spend anything from B-wing to Soontir Fel points on it just to get a functional weapon it starts to look less and less appealing compared to another 3 dice ship or multiple two dicers, all with less crippling dials. You can kit it out to fight for its place, but then it becomes a juicy target.

I think Alex Davey is right. You still wouldn't see anyone seriously trying to put a bunch into a squad relying on their primaries alone, as they are still not points efficient in a joust and will not have positional advantage against about anything out there.

However you wouldn't be pressured into spending points on the turret to avoid having zero offensive presence when the real reason why people want to bring hwks are the abilities.