Well for now the main reason is money. Not a whole lot of people have a couple thousand dollars lying around they can use to buy one of each X-wing product. But yeah the product developing strategy means you will have to get ships from all factions to be competitive from the autothrusters in the Star Viper packs to the PTL in the A-wing packs.

Best plan to go if you are starting on a budget pick a primary faction then see what out of faction expansion packs you will need and use that faction as your secondary.

• Build you primary faction to a competitive 100 points standard list
• Get just enough of your secondary faction to make a 100 point standard list
• Don't worry about the other faction too much unless you need some upgrades and it will become your tertiary faction

Soon as you expand your collection you should have a few competitive lists for your primary faction, a competitive list for your secondary faction and enough to make a fun 100 point standard list for your tertiary faction.

Because Rebels and Scum are dumb and don't have TIEs.

Also cause, you know, it would cost 3 times as much.

Theme.

From the movies as a kid I was always more of a force user wanna be and did not see much past that. Tie Fighter for PC was the first time I cared about anything in star wars that didn't have a lightsaber. I enjoyed the theme of the game so much I honor it by not sullying my collection with scum, rebel or otherwise (this includes IMP Boba). I like having a theme to what I do even if it is not the best or most competitive.

Because loyalty to the Emperor prevents me from piloting ships for rebellious scum, smugglers and pirates.

• Financial - not everyone can afford to purchase every ship from every faction. If you have limited disposable income and want to be able to play 100 point games without fielding the same list every time, focusing on a specific faction is the way to go.

• Easier for beginners - for a new player, the sheer range of ships and combinations can be overwhelming. It's often a better idea to focus on understanding a single faction and how it plays, it's dials, pilots and ships to begin with rather than trying to do everything at once

• Personal preference - some people prefer to fly Rebels; some people prefer to fly Imperials; some prefer Scum. Simple as that really. It might be down to finding a particular faction more aesthetically pleasing or fun to play; it might be down to preferring to play as the heroes or the villains, it might be due to trends in their local gaming group amongst their friends (each player picking their own theme or faction to focus on etc)

Myself? I own a good number of ships from all three factions, but usually focus on Rebels or Scum. Partly because my most regular opponent usually plays Imperials.

PS: Wherefore art thou, Starviper? Soontir needs a real Autothruster and not a proxy!

Probably off in some deep dark hole...trying to figure out why it is so ugly.

How dare you?! The Star Viper is an elegant butterfly of death!

How dare you?! The Star Viper is an elegant butterfly of death!

Agreed. I don't care about the Scum faction, but the StarViper is an awesome looking ship.

Time permitting, there is no reason you can't have both.

Bingo. For those that don't have enough time to do that, they can feel just fine only buying one faction.

I know I don't mind letting people play games with my stuff, especially if it's not the faction I'm currently running on game night. So they could still get in some alternate faction play time if they really want to.

I've got some of everything in my collection of 30 ships. Basically at least one of each of the first few waves with the exception of a shuttle. I still don't see what a damned shuttle is supposed be doing in the middle of a starfighter dogfight.

I don't have, and probably won't get any huge ships. Probably for the same reason as the shuttle. I like the dogfighting game, and huge ships just aren't me.

I will generally buy ships for the value they present. If it comes with some very useful upgrades, then I'll buy it, regardless of faction. When S&V came out, I bought a Most Wanted pack and a couple of M3-As and find the Scum to be an interesting faction. From Wave VII, I've only bothered with the Punisher and K-wing, and that was primarily for the bombs and tokens in those packs. The Hound's Tooth looked like a flying suitcase and didn't appeal to me at all. The same goes for the Kihraxz. And Wave VIII doesn't spin my wheels yet, either. But I'll wait and see what else comes out with it.

I'll play Imperials one game and then swap to Rebels for the next, and if time allows maybe S&V for a third. I harbour no allegiance to any one faction. I like playing them all.

Alderaan was a tragedy, The peace moon's deep core mining laser was never meant to destroy the planet, only retrieve valuable unobtanium from the planets core, revitalizing Alderaans Economy.

That's false. There's an actual definition of the word "terrorism" that can be applied to acts to determine of those are acts of terrorism or not. People who engage in acts of terrorism are terrorists.

There is a concerted effort in modern western political discourse to turn the meaning of "terrorist" into something amorphous that can be influenced by opinion or self-applied labels or depends on the perspective of the speaker. I think that's harmful, since we currently excuse atrocities like torture or civilian casualties, or accept more benign things like submitting to government surveillance if done in the name of "fighting terrorism."

I find both the K-Wing and the T70s interesting, but not enough to get out of my "what am I going to fly today" queue.

You guys are going to get my thread locked.

I fly Rebel and Scum. I have all the things. I just don't like any of the Imperial ships...except maybe the Punisher, I get a kick out of that thing.

I fly Rebels and Scum as well but I have no Imp ships because none of the Imp ships I like a lot have appeared in game.

I think you just have problems with authority.

Best plan to go if you are starting on a budget pick a primary faction then see what out of faction expansion packs you will need and use that faction as your secondary.

• Build you primary faction to a competitive 100 points standard list
• Get just enough of your secondary faction to make a 100 point standard list
• Don't worry about the other faction too much unless you need some upgrades and it will become your tertiary faction

Soon as you expand your collection you should have a few competitive lists for your primary faction, a competitive list for your secondary faction and enough to make a fun 100 point standard list for your tertiary faction.

This looks like a pretty reasonable plan to me.

but the X-wing distribution model lends itself to a complete game rather than selective collection.

No. No it doesn't.

Just because you can get a complete collection of X-Wing ships for a couple thousand dollars as opposed to tens of thousands of dollars like 40k doesn't make it reasonable to expect people to want to spend a couple thousand dollars on a game.

I didn't say that you have to own everything. My point is that the game is designed to function when you own pieces from all of the factions. Stepping away from the competitive perspective, I think Fantasy Flight envisions a player sharing his collection with his friends (who do not at a weekly game night. A traditional miniatures game is not at all friendly to such a collection.

Alderaan was a tragedy, The peace moon's deep core mining laser was never meant to destroy the planet, only retrieve valuable unobtanium from the planets core, revitalizing Alderaans Economy.

Alderaan was a tragedy, The peace moon's deep core mining laser was never meant to destroy the planet, only retrieve valuable unobtanium from the planets core, revitalizing Alderaans Economy.

True dat.

If it had been Naboo, no-one would have cared...

I play scum with some rebels

1) most of the people I know either play imperials exclusively or so often as to not make much of a difference.

2) I like scum and rebels as factions more than the imperials anyway

3) money. it was easier to get 1 of everything way back in the early days, but now with a third faction, all these new big ships, 2 new sub factions, and wanting multiples of certain ships both for list building purposes and for flavor the game is starting to hit peak cost for me. I used to buy imperial stuff just to have it and any cards they came with but I just can't afford to do that any more. Thank goodness for the upgrade card secondary market.

Alderaan was a tragedy, The peace moon's deep core mining laser was never meant to destroy the planet, only retrieve valuable unobtanium from the planets core, revitalizing Alderaans Economy.

True dat.

If it had been Naboo, no-one would have cared...

Luke: I care.

Jar Jar Binks: weesa all gonna die?

Luke: on second thought, no, I don't care.

I didn't say that you have to own everything.

Well, when you say "complete" in opposition to "selective collection" it gives the impression that you mean a complete collection of everything.

X-Wing is my guilty pleasure. Even though Imperial Assault and Armada are quite fun, I stuck just with X-Wing so I wouldn't have to limit my options. That, and I've amassed a group of friends who love to play but haven't invested in the game themselves. So, if I want to play X-Wing in all its glory, I must provide all the options. It's been worth it, I really enjoy this game, and so do my friends. We've been dabbling in Epic lately, and I've been impressed with how FFG integrated in huge ships. We usually randomly draw for factions and teams, so I'm one of those generalists. I haven't mastered any list or faction, but know something about them all. I can definitely see the draw to specializing, especially if you're going to be competing at the tournament level. I would merely be a speed bump on your drive to victory at that level.

I didn't say that you have to own everything.

Well, when you say "complete" in opposition to "selective collection" it gives the impression that you mean a complete collection of everything.

Would you prefer "holistic?" I agree that the vocabulary is ambiguous, and I changed that sentence more than a couple of times before posting it. Ultimately, I am counting on the context of the discussion to help make my point.

That's false. There's an actual definition of the word "terrorism" that can be applied to acts to determine of those are acts of terrorism or not. People who engage in acts of terrorism are terrorists.

There is a concerted effort in modern western political discourse to turn the meaning of "terrorist" into something amorphous that can be influenced by opinion or self-applied labels or depends on the perspective of the speaker. I think that's harmful, since we currently excuse atrocities like torture or civilian casualties, or accept more benign things like submitting to government surveillance if done in the name of "fighting terrorism."

I find both the K-Wing and the T70s interesting, but not enough to get out of my "what am I going to fly today" queue.

You guys are going to get my thread locked.

Sorry.

Maybe a year and a half ago @geordan and I sat down and calculated out the retail prices of the top 8 of either USA Nationals or Worlds the year prior, and they were all in the $120 to $250 MSRP range.

This year's Nationals winner was:

Dash Rendar (36)

Lone Wolf (2)

Heavy Laser Cannon (7)

R2-D2 (Crew) (4)

Blue Squadron Pilot (22)

Blue Squadron Pilot (22)

Total: 93

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Which is about $150, not counting a core set. A friend got into the game with a Brobots list for about the same amount. He's placed decently in tournaments with just the one list.

So the claim that you have to shell out $1k to play the game is flat-out false. Obviously there isn't really an upper bound, but the lower bound is about $200 and a shoebox to get into tournament play.

I only play empire and this is for several reasons

1. Money.. I only have so much.

2. Playtime... miniatures are not my only/main hobby.

3. Theme I enjoy fighting against the terrorist scum.

4. My fellows in the house collect the other 2 factions and we keep separate collections (i don't use their cards they don't use mine)

At the end of the day I am an RPG player first and for most. Our hobby club plays RPGS 6 weeks out of 8 so that leaves 2 weeks club time for miniature games. I have to split that between 4 games BT, Dystopian wars, Planetfall and x-wing, and that does not even include anything someone wants me to try.

Now I do also get kitchen table time with minis and x-wing is the most likely at that. Likewise as Roleplayers we stick to our factions I still refer to friends as inner sphere scum from battletech rivalries 20 years old.

Yeah I do a lot of tabletop RP along with wargaming as well.

i hate the trend towards calling any armed rebellion a terrorist movement especially in Star Wars where it ignores the Empire's long tradition of engaging in state sponsored terrorism. Probably why I so rarely play Imperials in any Star Wars system.

As a newbie, I'm just gonna concentrate on Rebels for now because of cost. With so many different ships for each faction, you can stick with one and still have a good variety.

Because loyalty to the Emperor prevents me from piloting ships for rebellious scum, smugglers and pirates.

You need to check out the updated imperial manual...I believe it to be anthology 3, book 7, section 4, subsection 91a...there are a number of requisition forms for you to sign (in triplicate) to obtain permission to pilot scum and terrorist ships for military training purposes and the strategic value of knowing thine enemy. Of course you must be of sufficient rank, submit to regular inspections, retraining programs, and keep meticulous records. But hey, you were doing those things already.

I only play empire and this is for several reasons

1. Money.. I only have so much.

2. Playtime... miniatures are not my only/main hobby.

3. Theme I enjoy fighting against the terrorist scum.

4. My fellows in the house collect the other 2 factions and we keep separate collections (i don't use their cards they don't use mine)

At the end of the day I am an RPG player first and for most. Our hobby club plays RPGS 6 weeks out of 8 so that leaves 2 weeks club time for miniature games. I have to split that between 4 games BT, Dystopian wars, Planetfall and x-wing, and that does not even include anything someone wants me to try.

Now I do also get kitchen table time with minis and x-wing is the most likely at that. Likewise as Roleplayers we stick to our factions I still refer to friends as inner sphere scum from battletech rivalries 20 years old.

Yeah I do a lot of tabletop RP along with wargaming as well.

i hate the trend towards calling any armed rebellion a terrorist movement especially in Star Wars where it ignores the Empire's long tradition of engaging in state sponsored terrorism. Probably why I so rarely play Imperials in any Star Wars system.

You can ignore the glory of the Empire at your own peril, all you would like, but any armed and violent rebellion against the state will be met with similar force. Don't let the terrorist propaganda films of yore (not to be confused with Yorr) tear down the cornerstones of peace and order.

That's false. There's an actual definition of the word "terrorism" that can be applied to acts to determine of those are acts of terrorism or not. People who engage in acts of terrorism are terrorists.There is a concerted effort in modern western political discourse to turn the meaning of "terrorist" into something amorphous that can be influenced by opinion or self-applied labels or depends on the perspective of the speaker. I think that's harmful, since we currently excuse atrocities like torture or civilian casualties, or accept more benign things like submitting to government surveillance if done in the name of "fighting terrorism." I find both the K-Wing and the T70s interesting, but not enough to get out of my "what am I going to fly today" queue.

You guys are going to get my thread locked.

Sorry.Maybe a year and a half ago @geordan and I sat down and calculated out the retail prices of the top 8 of either USA Nationals or Worlds the year prior, and they were all in the $120 to $250 MSRP range.This year's Nationals winner was:Dash Rendar (36)Lone Wolf (2)Heavy Laser Cannon (7)R2-D2 (Crew) (4)Blue Squadron Pilot (22)Blue Squadron Pilot (22)Total: 93View in Yet Another Squad BuilderWhich is about $150, not counting a core set. A friend got into the game with a Brobots list for about the same amount. He's placed decently in tournaments with just the one list.So the claim that you have to shell out $1k to play the game is flat-out false. Obviously there isn't really an upper bound, but the lower bound is about $200 and a shoebox to get into tournament play.

That lists forgot outrider title and anti pursuit lasers. It doesn't change the price but I had already started typing when I realized that.

I own 1 of everything and have flown exactly 1 tournament as rebels and 1 as scum. Everything else for day one is imperials. Fly what feels right.

You can ignore the glory of the Empire at your own peril, all you would like, but any armed and violent rebellion against the state will be met with similar force. Don't let the terrorist propaganda films of yore (not to be confused with Yorr) tear down the cornerstones of peace and order.

They have fallen for Lucas' propaganda and are too far gone good sir. They will simply need to be destroyed once they are found.

I fly Rebel and Scum. I have all the things. I just don't like any of the Imperial ships...except maybe the Punisher, I get a kick out of that thing.

exactly this. deathrain tickle my fancy, but i don't give much of a hoot about the rest of the empire's line up.

Not interested in the scum faction though I will end up with a few ships for their upgrade cards. Might sell them naked on ebay or keep a bare minimum to run a scum list.

I like the Rebels individuality and finding synergy in pairing their abilities. The Empire is raw power and ruthlessness which are great characterisitics if you are playing to destroy the other list and not just win on MOV points. Both are fun to play but if I was forced to pick a favourite (not big on favorites) it would be the Rebels. Just something about winning with the underdog and kicking against the pricks appeals to me.

Money is definitely a concern. I can't conscience spending the money on the epic ships. With enough money available I would buy a dozen of everything but realistic practicality rules the spending in my world bar next weeks lottery win...