It took me a while, but here's a massively overhauled version of the XQ-series platforms:

https://armadashipyards.wordpress.com/2015/09/09/xq-series-platform/

After much head-scratching I figured out the best way to make these work without new rules was to make them 400 points overcosted, with the title cards costing -400. This makes it mandatory to choose one of the titles, all of which forbid the unit from moving.

It sounds convoluted, but it's necessary because the rules (or at least the FAQ) prohibit setting the speed dial at 0 during deployment. So it needs to be at speed 1, which in turn requires that it be forbidden from moving in some other way. On the flip side, having a speed of 1 means defense tokens work just fine, which is essential to making these units viable.

Of course, costing them is essentially a matter of guesswork, as it's hard to know precisely how much of a disadvantage it is to be immobile. A huge one, yes, but how many points is that? Thus, YMMV, and as usual feedback and playtesting would be massively appreciated.

I am liking the idea of how to keep it from being abused or broken with the 400 pts limit. I will have to try one in my game ASAP.

It took me a while, but here's a massively overhauled version of the XQ-series platforms:

https://armadashipyards.wordpress.com/2015/09/09/xq-series-platform/

After much head-scratching I figured out the best way to make these work without new rules was to make them 400 points overcosted, with the title cards costing -400. This makes it mandatory to choose one of the titles, all of which forbid the unit from moving.

It sounds convoluted, but it's necessary because the rules (or at least the FAQ) prohibit setting the speed dial at 0 during deployment. So it needs to be at speed 1, which in turn requires that it be forbidden from moving in some other way. On the flip side, having a speed of 1 means defense tokens work just fine, which is essential to making these units viable.

Of course, costing them is essentially a matter of guesswork, as it's hard to know precisely how much of a disadvantage it is to be immobile. A huge one, yes, but how many points is that? Thus, YMMV, and as usual feedback and playtesting would be massively appreciated.

But they only have 3 sides, so I feel you have them all wrong

Now that we have a better idea of what Wave II brings in terms of upgrades and designs I think we can start the discussion of what customs are going to benefit too well and which ones are simply under powered or poor combinations of stats.

Now that we have a better idea of what Wave II brings in terms of upgrades and designs I think we can start the discussion of what customs are going to benefit too well and which ones are simply under powered or poor combinations of stats.

Well, we can start the elimination game, mostly the upgrade slots need to be reviewed mor than the stats on most. Wave 2 reinforces that the Dreadnaught, and AF MKI are spot on, or at least **** close. The smaller ships seem mostly OK, unless we want to revisit the inclusion of "Tiny" base ships.

Argh. I'm really undecided. The Light Cruiser card at the moment feels horribly overpowered for such a small ship: Red-Red-Blue-Black is the same broadside as a Dreadnaught (!). But remove one red die from each side arc, and suddenly the Arquitens becomes worse than a CR90-A (slower, less maneuverable, less well-armed and barely more survivable). There's just so little room between ships! :/

Maybe hull 5 is the way to go after all:

The Cruiser version packs a lot less punch than a GSD (as it should), though the broadsides are still Dread-esque. The Communications version lacks missiles, but has a defensive upgrade slot and command 1, which is neat for a ship this size.

I hope these get made into official ships. XD

Argh. I'm really undecided. The Light Cruiser card at the moment feels horribly overpowered for such a small ship: Red-Red-Blue-Black is the same broadside as a Dreadnaught (!). But remove one red die from each side arc, and suddenly the Arquitens becomes worse than a CR90-A (slower, less maneuverable, less well-armed and barely more survivable). There's just so little room between ships! :/

Maybe hull 5 is the way to go after all:

The Cruiser version packs a lot less punch than a GSD (as it should), though the broadsides are still Dread-esque. The Communications version lacks missiles, but has a defensive upgrade slot and command 1, which is neat for a ship this size.

I hope these get made into official ships. XD

I am guessing Wave 3, a Rebels/Force Awakens bundle wave, much like x-wing.

Now that we have a better idea of what Wave II brings in terms of upgrades and designs I think we can start the discussion of what customs are going to benefit too well and which ones are simply under powered or poor combinations of stats.

Yeah, I guess we have our work cut out for us. Where do we start? A priori, none of the new upgrade cards seem like the kind of game-changer that can single-handedly make a ship broken or obsolete. On the other hand, the custom titles (which is where I'd expect most problems) are the least affected by the new material.

Should we do it ship-by-ship? Or in groups (say, by navy)?

Either way, and in no particular order, these are the ships I propose we look at first:

Nebulon-B2 ( Rebel and Imperial ), Dreadnaught ( Rebel and Imperial ), Arquitens ( Imperial ), Venator ( Imperial ), Assault Frigate MkI ( Rebel ), DP20 Frigate ( Rebel ).

Escort carriers next?

That's near the top on my to-do list (next to the Strike Cruiser), but I'd rather not work on new ships until the current ones have been revised for wave 2 compliance

None of the Wave 2 cards leap out at me as unbalancing any particular ship, although I also haven't sat down for any gimmick plotting with the new cards and custom ships. An approach navy by navy is probably best. The only card/ship which might, I think, be seriously affected by Wave 2 is the Venator. Once I get my Imperial-class and MC80, I'll run some experiments to see if large or medium better suits it, since by hull points it could be argued a large, but by size it's ever so slightly closer to medium.

PS Diablo I should have those blurbs for your site finished by the end of the weekend.

Well one thing I wanted to point out about Wave 2 is the addition of ships that have more then one of the same type of upgrade slot. This may be a good way to reinforce some of the ships we had no way of making tougher or more powerful before without using additional attack dice/hull/shields.

Alright, with some time to check out the DP20 on the table, along with the new Raider expansion giving us a more accurate cost this is what we have found in our home games:

At speed 4 this thing seems a little too awesome. It can still turn on a dime at fast speed, and doesn't seem to reflect the other smaller ships in the game in that regard. The current small ships that fast at least can't turn at the first notch on the move tool. It essentially can spend its whole life a speed 4 and not suffer any drawback for doing so. Anyway, it seems to be a no brainer over the corellian corvette, which is not an ideal place for a custom ship. This is IMO though.

On another note, between the playtest and the new revealed Raider, seems that 52 pts may be over costed. With one less attack the raider and also 1 less shield, the only real reason it shoud even cost near the same is due to the red dice. This ship will now find itself in the same role as the MC30 with half of the attack dice and half the shielding. In general we think 48 pts may make it a more reasonable purchase from a game perspective.

Next off the line for tests is the Immobilizer 418. Although I have a feeling some of its titles are going to be reworked as tractor beam has similar effects.

Finally got my order in, so if all goes as planned, my order will ship on the 5th. Hopefully I'll remember to post pics as I paint.

Almost forgot, the E-wing Squadron has played out very well with no negative feedback from the users or their opponents. The Assault Gunboat has also been well recieved.

I have both republic fighter packs on order, so I will start on those when they arive, along with a Venator & Acclamator. I have a feeling the Acclamator will out GSD the GSD, especially if I load it with EA, EL, & Overload Pulse with the Aken title.

Awesome! Looking forward to hearing how that goes. Yes, the Aken title has the potential to turn the Acclamator into a faux-Demolisher. Though I think its main main advantage is to let you line up a double arc shot. Let me know if it turns out to be overpowered despite the cost.

BTW aren't EA and EL both Modifications? Plus the Acclamator doesn't have an Ion upgrade icon...

Awesome! Looking forward to hearing how that goes. Yes, the Aken title has the potential to turn the Acclamator into a faux-Demolisher. Though I think its main main advantage is to let you line up a double arc shot. Let me know if it turns out to be overpowered despite the cost.BTW aren't EA and EL both Modifications? Plus the Acclamator doesn't have an Ion upgrade icon...

And that would be why I cant equip ships from memory, or not enlarge pictures on my tablet.

Added the Strike Cruiser (finally!), including two unique titles. It's basically a smaller and more fragile version of the AFMK2:

Also tidied up the wording on the Harpy and Osprey title cards for the Nebulon-B2 Frigate .

**** you! I haven't ordered from Utar yet, and now I really want to run "Ion Storm"! Card guy costing me money, grumble grumble.

Seriously though, looks great!

I am really looking forward to running one of these as a long range flanker!

Looks good Diablo. That new Rogues and Villains reveal gives us a lot of flex room for new ideas in the squadron game. I am thinking the Ghost may have to get re-worked. I will get on it.

Added the Strike Cruiser (finally!), including two unique titles. It's basically a smaller and more fragile version of the AFMK2:

Also tidied up the wording on the Harpy and Osprey title cards for the Nebulon-B2 Frigate .

I really would like to see some other types, as it is decribed as a modular ship (more hangars, more weapons pods ect....).

Isnt 8 points a bit much for a bonus you only get on speed 1-?

I figured the defensive and offensive retrofit slots gave it sufficient modularity. Perhaps I could give it a second offensive slot.

As for Havoc... it allows you to turn the ship into a tanky supercarrier in defensive engagements. The two equivalent upgrades (Engineering Team and Expanded Hangars) cost 9 points separately, and take up two slots. This is cheaper and takes up neither (only the title slot, which is less valuable), so if you're planning to hang back and support your VSDs it's absolutely worth it. But yes, it's situational.

My feedback:

I'd remove 1 red die from the rear arc and give it an additional blue (or red) die to its front arc, as 2 red dice from its front arc is rather weak for a ship known to boast firepower heavier than its class. I'd also be tempted to give it only 4 hull (I wish they had a bit more spread between the hull values, as a 150 meter Raider having only 1 less hullpoint than a 500 meter Gladiator makes so little sense) as its less massive than the Gladiator and is known for its structural weakness due to the ship consisting of several attached premade modular parts, in which case it would warrant a price reduction as atm it is just as expensive as a Gladiator-II for 2 less overall firepower, 1 less anti squadron die and no Brace, while in exchange it only has 1 extra shield, 1 extra click at speed 2 and an extra redirect.

My feedback:

I'd remove 1 red die from the rear arc and give it an additional blue die to its front arc, as 2 red dice from its front arc is rather weak for a ship known to boast firepower heavier than its class. I'd also be tempted to give it only 4 hull (I wish they had a bit more spread between the hull values, as a 150 meter Raider having only 1 less hullpoint than a 500 meter Gladiator makes so little sense) as its less massive than the Gladiator and is known for its structural weakness due to the ship consisting of several attached premade modular parts, in which case it would warrant a price reduction as atm it is just as expensive as a Gladiator-II for 2 less overall firepower, 1 less anti squadron die and no Brace, while in exchange it only has 1 extra shield, 1 extra click at speed 2 and an extra redirect.

It does have firepower heavier than its class, though: it has the exact same number of dice as an AFMk2, only losing a little range on the broadsides. The GSD has more dice, but much shorter range, which severely limits its value (compare the cost of a CR90A and a CR90B). I could always shift dice around without changing the overall count, but I also don't want to make double-arc shots completely devastating.

As for the hull, I considered going down to 4 but instead decided to just not give it a Brace (let alone Contain), which makes it substantially weaker once the shields are down and the Redirects become useless. It's both longer and bulkier than a Nebulon, so less than 5 would feel weird.

Perhaps adding redundant upgrade slots (Offensive and Defensive? or Offensive and Turbolaser?) will make it feel more "modular" and better value for points?