Does FA Starter rulebook override 2012 Starter?

By patox, in X-Wing

It seems there are some nuances in the new Force Awakens Core set that differ from the original rulebook.

Are the changes that drastic? (I haven't gone through the entire thread talking about the differences)

And does the rulebook state that the FA rules override the old ones?

My guess would be that the rulebook made available for download on the website, and the FAQ, will be updated quickly to reflect any changes that were made.

Are the changes that drastic?

No. The new rulebook cleans up some things that needed cleaning, but in most cases leaves gameplay completely intact.

And does the rulebook state that the FA rules override the old ones?

The only statement I know of that addresses that point says (on Page 2) "This guide is the definitive source for all X-wing rules." There is no explicit statement that the Rules Reference overrides the old Core Rulebook.

I haven't gone through the entire thread talking about the differences

Unless you are interested in the forum drama you should be good with just checking the first post in that thread. Forgottenlore has been updating that post with all of the relevant information from the thread.

I think that whatever FFG has available for download on the main X-Wing website is the version of the rules that people will be referencing in situations where the difference matters unless something else was decided (like a league or a casual tournament that wants to use the new rules).

There is enough stuff in the current FAQ that depends on the old rules and contradicts the new that you really can't use the FAQ with the new rules.

Vorpal, I think the use of the word "definitive" pretty much means the rules from the new core set supersede the rules from the original.

Vorpal, I think the use of the word "definitive" pretty much means the rules from the new core set supersede the rules from the original.

One would hope, and personally I think using the rulebook that was published later and as an explicit revision/clarification of the previous rulebook makes a lot of sense. But the "definitive" language is at least mirrored in the Armada rulebook, so I'm not sure I should interpret it the way you suggest.

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

Well if it doesn't maybe we should send Frank and Alex a good dictionary. ;-)

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

The official rules of the game are always what ever is listed here in the support section:

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/x-wing/

So it looks like we have an incompatible FAQ and rule book on the website now.

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

Good job noticing that. Definitely makes it look like the new rulebooks outweigh the old ones.

So it looks like we have an incompatible FAQ and rule book on the website now.

Why would they be incompatible?

Edited by Danthrax

EDIT nevermind

Edited by imprezagoatee

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

Good job noticing that. Definitely makes it look like the new rulebooks outweigh the old ones.

So it looks like we have an incompatible FAQ and rule book on the website now.

Why would they be incompatible?

The FAQ on Dark Curse, Night Beast and Dauntless are the examples that spring to mind:

“Dark Curse”
“Dark Curse” cannot be the target of a
secondary weapon attack that requires the
attacker to spend a focus token.
In the new rules you spend the token before Dark Curse becomes the defender.
Dauntless
If a ship equipped with the Dauntless title executes
a green maneuver and overlaps another ship, it can
perform a free action, receive a stress token, then
remove the stress token during the “Check Pilot
Stress” step.
“Night Beast”
If “Night Beast” is stressed before he
executes a green maneuver, he cannot
perform a free focus action since the free
action is granted before the stress is
removed during the “Check Pilot Stress” step.

For both of these "Check Pilot Stress" step is now nested inside of "Execute Maneuver". By the time that either Dauntless's or Night Beasts's effects trigger you are already past "Check Pilot Stress".

The FAQ and the new Rules also contradict when it comes to overlapping multiple obstacles during a maneuver.

The FAQ says:

Q: After a ship moves through or overlaps more than one
obstacle, does the ship suffer the effect of each obstacle?
A: No. His opponent chooses one of those obstacles; the ship suffers the
effects of the chosen obstacle.
The new rules say:

• If a ship moves through or overlaps more than
one obstacle, it suffers the effects of each
obstacle, starting with the obstacle that was
closest to the ship in its starting position and
proceeding outward.

Guys, they wrote the in article that they will release info about that in the next days.

How many official tournaments do you plan to play with the new box until that?

I think its **** fast that they already are up to date with the rulebook download. Give them a few days they are also just humans working for a company.

Edited by CaineHoA

I think its **** fast that they already are up to date with the rulebook download. Give them a few days they are also just humans working for a company.

I think you underestimate how difficult it is to upload a file and publish it to a site. I do agree that it would be prudent to wait and see how any new modifications to the rules affect the overall game.

Guys, they wrote the in article that they will release info about that in the next days.

How many official tournaments do you plan to play with the new box until that?

I think its **** fast that they already are up to date with the rulebook download. Give them a few days they are also just humans working for a company.

Why should we be impressed that a company managed to get the PDF of a rulebook that was sent to the printers months ago on to their website at the same time as their product hit stores? It's not like someone at FFG showed up to work yesterday and was told, "Oh hey, we've got a new product that is going to be available at midnight. Do you think you can whip us up some rules and a FAQ to go with that?".

The article they posted last night gave me the impression that they already have the article on how the new core affects organized play ready to go and they are just waiting to release it.

A quick update to the tournament rules is all it would take to let most people know how they should handle things over the next couple of weeks. The "sky is falling" crowd wouldn't be appeased (they never are) but the people who are TOing and attending tournaments in the next few weeks will at least know what to expect..

The FAQ and the new Rules also contradict when it comes to overlapping multiple obstacles during a maneuver.

The FAQ says:

Q: After a ship moves through or overlaps more than one

obstacle, does the ship suffer the effect of each obstacle?

A: No. His opponent chooses one of those obstacles; the ship suffers the

effects of the chosen obstacle.

I always thought the rules for obstacles was a little strange. If you stopped on a rock you roll for damage. You also roll for damage if your template over laps the rock when you move off BUT you only roll once if you hit two rocks in one move. For a great game with good rules there is the occasional head scratcher.

The new rules say:• If a ship moves through or overlaps more than

one obstacle, it suffers the effects of each

obstacle, starting with the obstacle that was

closest to the ship in its starting position and

proceeding outward.

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

Good job noticing that. Definitely makes it look like the new rulebooks outweigh the old ones.

So it looks like we have an incompatible FAQ and rule book on the website now.

Why would they be incompatible?

The FAQ on Dark Curse, Night Beast and Dauntless are the examples that spring to mind:

“Dark Curse”
“Dark Curse” cannot be the target of a
secondary weapon attack that requires the
attacker to spend a focus token.
In the new rules you spend the token before Dark Curse becomes the defender.
Dauntless
If a ship equipped with the Dauntless title executes
a green maneuver and overlaps another ship, it can
perform a free action, receive a stress token, then
remove the stress token during the “Check Pilot
Stress” step.
“Night Beast”
If “Night Beast” is stressed before he
executes a green maneuver, he cannot
perform a free focus action since the free
action is granted before the stress is
removed during the “Check Pilot Stress” step.

For both of these "Check Pilot Stress" step is now nested inside of "Execute Maneuver". By the time that either Dauntless's or Night Beasts's effects trigger you are already past "Check Pilot Stress".

The FAQ and the new Rules also contradict when it comes to overlapping multiple obstacles during a maneuver.

The FAQ says:

Q: After a ship moves through or overlaps more than one
obstacle, does the ship suffer the effect of each obstacle?
A: No. His opponent chooses one of those obstacles; the ship suffers the
effects of the chosen obstacle.
The new rules say:

• If a ship moves through or overlaps more than
one obstacle, it suffers the effects of each
obstacle, starting with the obstacle that was
closest to the ship in its starting position and
proceeding outward.

Yeesh. Thanks guys. I've also seen posts elsewhere talking about the new rules conflicting with how Biggs works — you theoretically can get around him now by choosing a weapon that isn't able to target Biggs (like a Y-Wing choosing its primary weapon to shoot at an enemy in its firing arc when it has a turret that could shoot at a just-out-of-arc Biggs).

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

So how do we download the new damage deck?

The new rulebook is now the only version available from download on the FFG X-Wing Product page... so I'd say yep.

So how do we download the new damage deck?

If you bought the new Core Set, you already have one. If you bought two or more Core Sets, for a little while it would be nice to lend one to your opponent.

If you didn't buy the new Core Set, the original damage deck is still completely legal for you to use. So there's no problem.

Edited by Vorpal Sword

Yeesh. Thanks guys. I've also seen posts elsewhere talking about the new rules conflicting with how Biggs works — you theoretically can get around him now...

No, you can't. Biggs works exactly the same way under the new rules as he did under the old rules. If the active ship could target Biggs, he eliminates ships friendly to him at Range 1 from the list of valid targets. And his ability doesn't suddenly turn on once you've chosen a weapon, which means the determination of whether the active ship could target Biggs is made prior to weapon selection.

[biggs works exactly the same way under the new rules as he did under the old rules. If the active ship could target Biggs, he eliminates ships friendly to him at Range 1 from the list of valid targets. And his ability doesn't suddenly turn on once you've chosen a weapon, which means the determination of whether the active ship could target Biggs is made prior to weapon selection.

And even if that weren't the case (which it is), the FAQ entry for Biggs remains valid and specifies that you can't circumvent his ability with clever weapon choice.

Enemy ships at range 1 of Biggs are not valid targets for any weapon.

Enemy ships at range 1 of Biggs are not valid targets for any weapon...

... if the Attacker has a weapon for which Biggs is a legal target.

Edited by WWHSD