I’ve only played the game for a couple of months and have been thinking about how to introduce new players to the game without overwhelming them. Yes, I can run them through the “X-Wing vs. 2 TIE’s” match. But as a step two or three, I’m hoping to present the new player with a subset of cards with which they can safely build their own squads to play without getting overwhelmed or overly stung by bad card and bad ship choices.

Here are my design objectives:

1) Shrink the upgrades deck to some key cards that vary the game play but do not present the new player with point traps that will leave them feeling stung. If I were to grab a number out of the air just to drive the conversation, I’d say the goal is to keep the upgrades deck to around 20 cards.

2) Keep the ship options within the canon that most new players are familiar (Episodes IV through VI, no EU).

3) Reduce the Pilot options to just a few easily understood and easily remembered unique pilot skills and lean more toward generic pilots. (With new players including myself, I’ve found the unique pilot talents to be the easiest thing to forget to do while playing.)

4) Through shrinking the upgrade deck, the ship selection, and the pilot list, present a new player with a familiar, balanced, and easily understood sandbox for introductory squad building.

I am sticking with a casual format. I plan to proxy any cards I don’t have if they make the 20-card cut. I do plan to include the TIE x1 card to avoid right from the start having to tell a new player, “Don’t play the Advanced, it sucks.” This leads right into (2) and (3) in that I plan to have the TIE Advanced ship on the short list along with Vader as one of the few unique pilots available. And of course with Vader on the table, Luke must be an option as well! Maybe those two should be the only unique pilot options… or maybe one unique pilot per ship type?

Looking at (2), here’s a possible starting list:

Rebel Ships: A, B, X, Y

Imperial Ships: Fighter, Advanced, Int’s…. Bomber?

Most of my games have been with my kids. We play slowly and find that the length of a 100 point game is about as long as we can go and not lose interest. So 90, 75, 60, and even 30-some point games are pretty common. Honestly, often I just help them build a list that they think is fun without worrying about points and then I build a list for the same points that is a poor counter (you can keep their interest better if they win, of course!).

I was very eager to test out the Falcon because it is such an icon, but the one game we played with it was much more boring than the thrilling dogfights we’ve had before and since. So at the moment, I’m leaning toward excluding the large base ships. Feel free to comment on and persuade this decision, but please let’s not make this a Fat Han/primary turrets thread. I’m also leaving Scum out for now and sticking with Rebs vs. Empire both for familiarity purposes and because I simply haven’t bought S&V ships yet.

Proton torpedoes are, of course, another iconic element from the original movies. As my kids have experimented with squad building, they have a natural tendency to pile on the ordnance. I’ve read many threads talking about how ordnance needs a buff, and I’ve also noted in our own amateur matches that a lot of ordnance goes unused. But I’ve also read at least one poster’s thoughts that proton torpedoes worked during the early waves and only became broken as other options superseded them. Would a subset of upgrade cards help make proton torpedoes a viable build option, or would I need to throw in a house rule to help them out?

I’m most interested in everyone’s input on how to whittle down the upgrade deck to 20 or so cards, because I suspect that will be a lively conversation.

Think of this as an exercise on building a theoretical all-inclusive “Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Beginner’s Box”. (Please, no need to inform me it’ll never happen. I know.)

I welcome your input!

You may find this helpful. I have not updated for wave 6 yet.

https://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/131310-new-player-quick-start-list-guide/

I think one unique pilot per ship is a decent rule, and I agree that if you're going for a strong Original Trilogy theme you can't leave out Luke or Vader.

As for Imperial ships, I'd strongly encourage you to include the Firespray. It has a completely different playstyle from the Millennium Falcon, and it's a very recognizable OT ship.

And the other thing is Proton Torpedoes: I left well enough alone when I saw the same post saying ordnance used to be good, but that's not true. Ordnance has always had precisely the same problems it does now, and in fact the problem was worse at the game's inception because there wasn't even any situationally good ordnance.

I'd recommend leaving torpedoes and missiles out of your upgrade list entirely, honestly. They're not always bad, but finding the right time and place to use them is one of the more difficult list-building tasks in the game right now.

You may find this helpful. I have not updated for wave 6 yet.

https://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/131310-new-player-quick-start-list-guide/

Thanks, MajorJuggler. I've spent hours reading through your build lists and your compilation of useful articles. Maybe a side project from this "Beginner's Box" theoretical exercise could be a "Beginner's Strategy Guide".

OP:

I'm a similar position and yet a totally different one.

I just got into the game.

I'm teaching my adult friends to play the game.

I need them to come over since our family just went from H+W to H+W+C.... and said child takes up time.

So I started out with a few short objectives.

• Teach my friends how to play the game with competition in the background (I hope that someday I take a friend or two and take them to a tournament using figures I'm not using)
• Give them a feel for the Star Wars universe
• Showcase a ship with an upgrade card or two to show them how ships can become vastly different (I use competitive synergy)
• Give them a feel for how rebels vs imperials fly
• Teach one or two elements at the most at each session.
• lead them to making their own squads

How I did it.

I first used a 50 point squad using Luke + r2d2 and a prototype pilot + Hull upgrade + refit (A wing) vs Carnor Jax + 2 academy ties.

We used tournament setup rules and went into play. I stream star wars music while playing.

Second time we used some other 50 point ships with one each on a secondary weapon

Third game we used turrets on large ships

Fourth game assisted squadron building

Fifth game has not occurred due to time.

I've also taught two other adults playing a four person (2 teams of two) game where each person was given 2 ships of about 50 points to play.

So far so good.

OP:

I'm a similar position and yet a totally different one.

I just got into the game.

I'm teaching my adult friends to play the game.

I need them to come over since our family just went from H+W to H+W+C.... and said child takes up time.

So I started out with a few short objectives.

• Teach my friends how to play the game with competition in the background (I hope that someday I take a friend or two and take them to a tournament using figures I'm not using)
• Give them a feel for the Star Wars universe
• Showcase a ship with an upgrade card or two to show them how ships can become vastly different (I use competitive synergy)
• Give them a feel for how rebels vs imperials fly
• Teach one or two elements at the most at each session.
• lead them to making their own squads

How I did it.

I first used a 50 point squad using Luke + r2d2 and a prototype pilot + Hull upgrade + refit (A wing) vs Carnor Jax + 2 academy ties.

We used tournament setup rules and went into play. I stream star wars music while playing.

Second time we used some other 50 point ships with one each on a secondary weapon

Third game we used turrets on large ships

Fourth game assisted squadron building

Fifth game has not occurred due to time.

I've also taught two other adults playing a four person (2 teams of two) game where each person was given 2 ships of about 50 points to play.

So far so good.

Thanks, ctsparky! I think there are plenty of similarities in our stories. The learning curve for my kids has included probably half a dozen games following a progression similar to yours.

One step past assisted squad building, I'd like to give my new players a sandbox of options that remain internally consistent and balanced. I know in particular my adult friend who has played with me really doesn't want me holding his hand but at the same time knows that I've spent far more time reading online about the builds and he cannot go toe to toe with that. No, I wouldn't pull the gloves off and crush him, but he also doesn't want me to hold back. Also, if there's a manageable subset of cards that he can leaf through and be familiar with in short order, then we can independently build our lists and reintroduce the element of surprise that is missing when I help build his list.

Ive gone a bit hog wild buying expansions, and now the upgrade deck is well over 4" tall. Which cards should make the cut when bringing this stack down to around 20-ish cards?

Named Tie Pilot: Howlrunner

Generic Ties: Academy Pilot

The 8 Tie Swarm is fun, thematic, and powerful. I also find that it requires a lot more mental work than I want to put a new player through. But a pair of APs + Howl for a 3 Tie flight? That's a fun way to spend the first 42 points of a squad.

Named Tie Advanced: Darth (duh)

Generic: Tempest Squadron Pilot

Give Darth the Advanced Targeting Computer, and the Generic gets accuracy corrector. Put them on the board together, and it's a great lesson in the different implications of high and low PS.

Named Tie Interceptor: Soontir Fel

Generic Squint: Royal Guard Pilot

They'd both get Push the Limit and Autothrusters. Fel also gets a Hull Upgrade, and the RGP might also.

Squints are _hard_ to use properly, and require a bit more thought than many other ships, but if you can arc dodge, they are super fun. When a Squint player gets good enough, they can graduate from Fel to Turr Phennir (same build). His ability is a bit wonky, but he can be the most maddening arc dodger in the game. The key with him is remembering that PTL can trigger off the post-attack action.

Named Tie Bomber:

Generic Tie Bomber

Know what? I'm gonna take a pass on this whole ship. They're good, but I have zero experience.

Named Lambda: Captain Kagi

Generic Lambda: Omicron Group Pilot

Your friends will laugh, and then they'll get religion.

Kagi is the tank, so give him Rebel Captive, an Engine Upgrade, and maybe a Sensor Jammer if you don't like the people flying against Kagi. They'll have to lock onto Kagi, and the first person to actually fire on him takes stress. The Sensor Jammer forces the use of a focus token, and so weakens the defense of higher PS opponent ships. But Kagi will go down first, so the extra 4 points are not always well spent.

The Generic should be fitted out with a gunner and a Fire Control System. Probably also an Engine Upgrade, just to help it get around.

For added fun: Crew!Vader alone on an OGP. Just remember that you can't have Crew!Vader and Pilot!Vader on the same list.

Named Firespray 31: Boba Fett

Generic Firespray 31: Bounty Hunter.

Boba gets Stay On Target, Navigator, and Slave 1 title. I'm not saying it's a good build, but it is a _fun_ build. Note that Slave 1 adds nothing to this build, but its zero points, and it's Boba's ship, so he gets the title.

Bounty Hunter gets Andrasta title and 3 Prox mines.

And as far as I can tell, that's all the Imperial movie ships, with 1 generic and 1 named pilot. I think I'll do another post with my Rebel suggestions.

I think one unique pilot per ship is a decent rule, and I agree that if you're going for a strong Original Trilogy theme you can't leave out Luke or Vader.

As for Imperial ships, I'd strongly encourage you to include the Firespray. It has a completely different playstyle from the Millennium Falcon, and it's a very recognizable OT ship.

And the other thing is Proton Torpedoes: I left well enough alone when I saw the same post saying ordnance used to be good, but that's not true. Ordnance has always had precisely the same problems it does now, and in fact the problem was worse at the game's inception because there wasn't even any situationally good ordnance.

I'd recommend leaving torpedoes and missiles out of your upgrade list entirely, honestly. They're not always bad, but finding the right time and place to use them is one of the more difficult list-building tasks in the game right now.

I haven't flown the Firespray yet, but you're right that it's a highly recognizable OT ship. My thoughts are heading toward a layered approach where the large ships are brought in a little later. If I just kept certain cards (like maybe C-3PO) out of this Beginner's Game, would the Falcon fit in or is it simply the gameplay of a primary turret that takes the wind out of the sails?

I agree with you regarding just keeping ordnance out of it... At least until the bomber fix is leaked! One exception I might make is Prockets as an option for A-Wings and TIE Advanced.

Named X-Wing Pilot: Luke Skywalker

Generic X-Wing Pilot: Rookie Pilot

Not much to say here. I'd make the R2 unit, R2D2, R7, R3P9 and R3A2 available.

On Luke, I like R3P9 and Predator, as it makes his whole dial available when he's maneuvering, gives him a bit of action independence on offense, and makes it more likely that he'll have that focus token at the end of the combat phase, when he can spend it on a shield token.

On a Rookie, I might take a standard R2 Unit, as it gives a lot of post K-Turn options.

Named Y-Wing Pilot: Horton Salm.

Generic Y-Wing Pilot: Gold Squad Pilot

Same Astromech options as above, save that you might want R2-D6 for Horton. If so, pairing him with Push the Limit can be fun.

For turrets, the Ion turret is my go-to. Read the Ion rules a couple times, as _everyone_ gets them wrong at first.

The Y-Wing has a lot more Red on its dial, so a standard R2 Unit is a good buy.

Torpedoes are not a good buy.

The BTL-A4 title turns the Rebel Y-Wing into a monster. Highly recommend.

Named A-Wing Pilot: Tycho Celchu

Generic A-Wing Pilot: Green Squadron Pilot

Just assume every A-Wing you run has Chardaan Refit on it. There are a couple good missiles, but let's not confuse things. Take the 2 extra points, and spend them elsewhere.

Similarly: assume every A-Wing that isn't a prototype has A-Wing Test Pilot. Even if the slot goes unused, it's still a good idea to attach the free title.

Tycho "Stress Master" Celchu gets Push the Limit and Outmaneuver. Probably gets Autothrusters as well. That's an expensive ship, but handled well it can get a lot of milage.

As for the Greenie, I'll be honest: I'm bad with A-Wings, and so my advice is bound to be bad. A lot of people actually run Prototypes with Chardaan, and use them to gum up higher PS opponents.

Named B-Wing Pilot: Keyan Farlander

Generic B-Wing Pilot: Blue Squadron Pilot

Farlander eats stress and poops offensive focus. What's not to love? Giving him Push the Limit makes him incredibly potent. I might also put advanced sensors on him, with the warning that PTL + Advance Sensors runs the risk of pulling a red maneuver right after you've stressed yourself. *ahem* Not that I've ever done that. For super shenanigans, you could put the B-Wing/E2 mod + C3P0 on Farlander.

He is a magnet for enemy attacks, so running him lean is a good idea. It's tempting to load all the aforementioned upgrades on Farlander, but doing so costs over 1/3 of your list. Be careful!

One of my favorite builds on the Blue Squad is Fire Control System + E2 + Gunner. Buzzsaw B-Wings are terrifying to run into, and rely on some solid arc dodging to survive.

And that's my suggestions for Rebel Pilots. Next, I'll make a list of some good, common Elite Pilot Talents, System Upgrades, and Modifications. You can probably guess what many of those will be.

So! I hope you've found this helpful so far.

Elite Pilot Talents. These are some highly situational cards that have only a few really good options.

Veteran Instincts:

Use it when: you've got a ship at PS 7, 8, or 9 that you need to be the first ship to fire, and/or the last to move.

Don't use it when: your ship is below PS 7, and/or you've got an EPT that makes your ship or squad much more effective.

Lone Wolf

Use it when: if you can reliably get 1 ship beyond range 2 of all your other ships, this is a great EPT.

Don't use it when: the more ships you field, the harder it is to get 1 of them alone for a few rounds. A 2 ship build benefits greatly from Lone Wolf. A 7 Tie Swarm should probably not put this card on Howlrunner.

Squad Leader

Use it when: you've got 2 ships staying in tight formation where the lead ship won't mind missing an action. So, for instance: Darth Vader, or a PTL Tycho.

Don't use it when: most of the time, higher PS ships will want to be the supported ships, not the ones doing the support. Your offensive powerhouse should not be regularly giving away their ability to augment their attacks, or augment their defense.

Outmanuver

Use it when: if you've got a dedicated flanker, one that can reliably get behind opponents, this is a great option. Have an Outmaneuver A-Wing fire at Fat Han (from out of Han's arc), and watch the frustration of the Han player as they roll zero dice, and don't trigger C3P0.

Don't use it when: if your ship is a jouster, and not a flanker, outmaneuver is not going to trigger often. I would love to put this card on Wedge, for instance, but X-Wings rarely get the drop on their opponents. Sad, frustrating, and too true.

Predator

When to use it: I adore this card! Action independent rerolls free high PS ships to Focus, Evade, Barrelroll, or provide some insurance against getting blocked.

When not to use it: Predator is not great on ships with 2 attack, and there are usually better options for 2 attack ships. That's the only case I can ever make against Predator, to be honest, if some other EPT is even better.

Push the Limit

When to use it: this is _the_ EPT for arc dodging and flanking. Certain ships are highly action dependent, and this makes the most out of them. The more actions on an action bar, and the more green on the dial, the more PTL becomes an auto include.

When not to use: Ships with very little green, and/or few actions on the bar should not take this card. An X-Wing with an R2 Unit has 8 Green manuvers- 1 more than a Tie Interceptor- but the 2 actions available to it make this ship not a great candidate for PTL. A StarViper has 4 actions, but only 5 green moves to shed stress. That's kind of borderline. And let me LoL at the idea of Pilot!JanOrs with Push the Limit!

Opportunist

When to use it: This is an almost-great card. It is best used on a mid or lower PS pilot that doesn't mind stress, and preferably has a good pilot ability. Ideally, Opportunist will cause your opponent to hold onto a token in fear of what you'll do to them. You may never actually trigger it, but it may still pay for itself by making your opponent weaker overall.

Ok that's my favorite EPTs. Next up: the Modifications!

Modifications:

I'll leave out any ship specific mods or moduals. I think I covered them in previous entries.

Munitions Failsafe

I don't love most munitions, but if you're running them, think _hard_ about taking this modification. I'd say the only time you shouldn't run this card is when you are instead taking engine upgrade, or the pilot is Blount.

Autothrusters

Just staple this card and PTL to your Tie Interceptors. It's also good on A-Wings, but not _as_ good. Just remember: if you're not facing a turret, stay at range 3 and snipe.

Targeting Computer

Autothruster + TC on squints is a terrible but fun build. Sadly, every other ship it can be put on has another- much better- option.

Experimental Interface

This card is very similar to PTL, but not quite as good. There are some upgrades that require the use of an action, but those upgrades aren't as good as any stock action. That's what EI is for. Squad Leader is less punishing when it only costs stress. Expose isn't as good at hitting your opponent as either Target Lock or Focus (not to mention leaving you vulnerable), but having it not cost your action takes a lot of the sting out. Expose + EI turns a Decimator into a 360 HLC. At the same cost. With no range 1 hole.

Hull/Shield Upgrade

Covered together because they're very similar. You want more hull? More shield? Here you go! Note that these "increase the {Hull/shield} value by 1." The "hull/shield value" does not change when a ship is damaged, merely it's current amount of hull or shield. So if you have a way to regenerate shields, you can go all the way up to the starting value + 1. And for Flechette torpedoes: if you add a Hull Upgrade to a HWK, they don't get stressed by flechette torpedoes. If they have a hull upgrade, and get hit a bunch of times, and are just barely hanging on, the Flechette torpedoes still won't stress them. That's how the upgrade works.

Stealth Device

It tends to block roughly as much damage as a hull upgrade, costs the same, and is more fun. So the question is: do you feel lucky, punk? Well, do you? Note that this pairs amazingly well with autothrusters.

Engine Upgrade

Adds boost to your action bar. It's possibly the best upgrade in the game. In X-Wing, we don't paint things red, we add an engine upgrade. Comes on Han's ship. 'Nuff said.

And... I think I'm done. Anything not make sense? Does anyone have any disagreements? Did I miss any best upgrades of the game?

Thanks Punning Pundit for all of this input! I'm working on some lists of your recommendations to see how many cards this sums up to. Here's a couple of lists showing the pilots and listing them in order of pilot skill:

Pilot                 Ship Pilot       Skill 
Academy Pilot         TIE Fighter        1 
Storm Squadron Pilot  TIE Advanced       4 
Royal Guard Pilot     TIE Interceptor    6 
Howlrunner            TIE Fighter        8 
Darth Vader           TIE Advanced       9 
Soontir Fel           TIE Interceptor    9

Pilot                 Ship Pilot       Skill 
Gold Squadron Pilot   Y-Wing             2 
Blue Squadron Pilot   B-Wing             2 
Green Squadron Pilot  A-Wing             3 
Red Squadron Pilot    X-Wing             4 
Keyan Farlander       B-Wing             7 
Luke Skywalker        X-Wing             8 
Horton Salm           Y-Wing             8 
Tycho Celchu          A-Wing             8

I made two changes from your recommendations. First, I switched from a Tempest Squadron Pilot to a Storm Squadron Pilot and from a Rookie Pilot to a Red Squadron Pilot in order to create a little more diversity to the Pilot Skills. Without this change, almost everyone was either PS 1, 2, 8, or 9. I wanted to get a few 4's in there.

Also, I'm thinking of possibly leaving the TIE Bomber out of the "Beginner Box" for now simply because nearly everything on its upgrades bar won't be included anyway. I know naked Bombers are decent though...

Anyone have thoughts on including Bombers, or on diversifying the pilots because of all the PS 8's and 9's? How about dropping Soontir for Turr, to get a PS 7 on the Imperial list?

I've been working on a Beginner's Squad Building Worksheet. The objective is to be able to hand this (possibly laminated) sheet to my 12-year-old and let him easily build a small squadron that is mostly viable and hopefully fun to play.

Here's my first draft for an Empire player. Looking it over, I've already spotted things I'm going to change, like adding Munitions Failsafe to the available Modifications for the Advanced.

I'd love some feedback on lots of items:

1) Does anyone really ever add Modifications to an Academy TIE?

2) Are there other common-wisdom EPT's for Howlrunner?

3) Really for any of the pilots below, any additions or subtractions of EPT's?

I was also contemplating boldfacing certain upgrades for certain ships, like PTL on the Interceptor.