And arguably better than ever!

Perusing the results of the first batch of Regional matches, it seems everyone's favourite mustachioed X-Wing jockey is back in play in a big way. The Phantom decloak change seems like a positive boon for the Biggs bubble, and he may make a surprise comeback at Nationals and Worlds.

How are people flying him nowadays? What do you think is a superior take on the Biggs list? Has Wave VI made a significant impact, or was it just the Phantom keeping Biggs at bay?

Inspired by Paul Heaver's W.Va list that threw Biggs and Panic Attack into a blender, I'd like to try out the following:

Biggs Darklighter (25)

Blue Squadron Pilot (22)

—Fire-Control System (2)

—B-Wing E/2 (1)

—Tactician (2)

Gold Squadron Pilot (18)

—Ion Cannon Turret (5)

—BTL-A4 title (0)

—R2 Astromech (1)

Gold Squadron Pilot (18)

—Ion Cannon Turret (5)

—BTL-A4 title (0)

—R2 Astromech (1)

The major issue I had been having with Warthog Ys in general had been their overwhelming preponderance to being focus-fired on their way into the fray, before being able to block/control a target and take advantage of their damage output and ion attacks. The B-Wing can hopefully add a stress after a target has been ionized, and also takes advantage of the Biggs bubble on the approach. As ever with Rebel Control, the first approach and target priority are huge factors, but I think this setup has some merit! Damage output and overall health feel pretty solid. Any criticism is appreciated of course!

Against highly maneuverable ships I see it struggling. Straight jousts it will work good but anything coming it at the sides will give you major trouble aka iggys with their segnor and high agility plus needing 2 ion tokens. But in general any ship that can get into a side position you will have trouble with since your ion turrets won't work being locked forward.

Against highly maneuverable ships I see it struggling. Straight jousts it will work good but anything coming it at the sides will give you major trouble aka iggys with their segnor and high agility plus needing 2 ion tokens. But in general any ship that can get into a side position you will have trouble with since your ion turrets won't work being locked forward.

Edit: also Predator, Predator would be a significant problem. Gotta burn down Chiraneau, Han, or Chewie pretty quick! Coincidentally I think other control/cannon lists would cause trouble, especially a line of Ion Blues or Ion Scyks.

Against highly maneuverable ships I see it struggling. Straight jousts it will work good but anything coming it at the sides will give you major trouble aka iggys with their segnor and high agility plus needing 2 ion tokens. But in general any ship that can get into a side position you will have trouble with since your ion turrets won't work being locked forward.

Precisely, hence the Tactician and R2 Astros. Definitely not afraid to K-Turn! But at the same time, yes, there's going to have to be a lot of forethought going against Fel and dual Aggressors; who goes where when, what hits can I make, how can I block, etc etc. But they can all slow-play at the start quite well, and with the three small rocks I think waiting to commit to a lane will help if the opponent is trying to flank. Thanks for the insight!

Edit: also Predator, Predator would be a significant problem. Gotta burn down Chiraneau, Han, or Chewie pretty quick! Coincidentally I think other control/cannon lists would cause trouble, especially a line of Ion Blues or Ion Scyks.

Ya exactly, I think if it was me I would just take one of the golds and take the btl off of it to give yourself an option if you don't guess your opponents move correctly and he does indeed come in at the side. That way you can excel at straight on jousts but also have something in case you can't. Just my 2 cents.

Thanks again! I can see the advantage of what you're describing. In an ideal world, I'd be able to test it both ways before Regionals!

I played through store championship season with a panic attack variant that subbed one of the blues for Roark with ion cannon turret and nein nunb. Post phantom Nerf I haven't found Roark as effective, ive thought about Biggs but I like being able to spread my ships out a little bit in order to help get the initial exchange right and dump stress on somone. I keep the Ys turret unlocked so he can pile up stress all day without worrying about getting his shots. Biggs is definitely worth a playtest though.

I almost won a local tournament with a Biggs list. Took second in swiss and second overall. Caught every one off guard it did. Believe it or not it burned down swarms effectively. I played 3 swarms that day against 2 separate people. Beating the same guy a second time in top 4 did much to convince myself it wasn't just luck but a pretty sweet squad. Not sure I want to give up all my secrets but I took Biggs, Kyle Katarn, and Dutch Vander.

I was honestly surprised at it's effectiveness. Neutralized a Soontir/Chirpy list by walking Chirps off the board. Its a tough match-up on Bro-bots though. My 2 losses that day were against IG4000. Once to my good friend who knows my tricks. He took down Kyle on the last turn because I forgot he had inertial dampeners. The other was in the last match to last year's regional champ but it was a close game. If it weren't for s-loops and autothrusters... I'll have to make a song about it some day.

Nice, congrats on second place! Definitely not a bad way to go. I think 3-4 ship Rebel builds are going to be a real solid choice again, and there's a lot of variety in there. Biggs helps a ton with durability (even in the face of swarms!), and now that Phantoms aren't just going to react to your entire squad, you've got a much more solid chance of taking them on head-to-head.