So lost in the hype of yesterday's preview (I think) appears to be rapid reload. Although not officially highlighted yesterday, the card did make an appearance on the promo art for "Here they come" back in April, and the same image appeared yesterday. For those not familiar, the card is an 8-point ordinance upgrade modification, that adds one black battery die to each side arc.

At just 8 points, it seems this modification is worth strong consideration. It's obviously competing with ACMs, which costs 1 point less and offers +2 damage on a black crit to two other hull zones. It's hard to move past some guaranteed damage, but coupled with Ordnance Experts, Rapid Reload actually offers a chance for the same damage output (25% chance at +2 damage if you land a hit-crit on the extra die).

The disadvantage is that the +2 damage from Rapid Reload is going into your damage pool (and thus can be braced, evaded, or redirected). The trade-off is that whatever damage does get through is going into the same hull zone, instead of being dissipated by other hull zones (may or may not be an advantage, depending on what you're trying to do and what your target is). On a Glad, Rapid Reload does nothing for a second attack from your front hull zone (whereas ACMs could trigger for +2 damage), but would favor Glads that run gunnery teams (much like what enhanced armaments + gunnery teams do for AFIIs, only at a reduced range), or Glads that want to test their luck running through the middle of a densely-packed fleet--probably suicidal against most Rebel lists (especially with Ackbar), but could be a thing in mirror matches where the opponent has multiple ISDs/VSDs, which makes for a brutal approach but has lots of exposed side arcs once you get past the front arcs' kill zone. With a CF command, that's eleven black dice (5 + 5 + 1) on a Glad I if you attack from both side arcs, or ten dice if you attack from a Glad I's front and side arcs (4 + 5 + 1), instead of the current 9 (4 + 4 + 1), with up to eleven re-rolls if you have Ordnance Experts and shoot out the sides (plus up to another eleven re-rolls if you have Vader and are willing to spend an evade token, plus one more reroll if you have a CF token). That's an awful lot of selective dice modification to up your damage total.

I'm not sure I'd like this upgrade at 10 points (like most modifications), but at 8 points, it seems like this might be worth an ordinance slot. So... are there situations where RR might be more useful than ACMs? On certain types of ships? Other synergies to exploit?

ACMs are amazing with the Imperials. It is not as great with the Rebels. Even though one can use Ordinance Experts, you can not garentee that damage though like the Imperials can.

However, for 1 more point I can run in with 4 red dice (Akbar), and 4 black dice. This is more power at twice the speed than the VSD and more dice than a GSD.

Go MC30!

ACMs are amazing with the Imperials. It is not as great with the Rebels. Even though one can use Ordinance Experts, you can not garentee that damage though like the Imperials can.

However, for 1 more point I can run in with 4 red dice (Akbar), and 4 black dice. This is more power at twice the speed than the ISD and more dice than a GSD.

Go MC30!

I hadn't considered the question from the Rebel's side, mostly because (I believe) Rebs currently can't run ACMs due to the lack of an ordinance slot. The MC-30 should change a lot of things.

I'm assuming you mean twice the speed of a VSD (unless the MC-30 has some game-breaking double-engine-tech-upgrade, it shouldn't double-up an ISD in a race), but the firepower comparison is spot-on. In any event, this thing has comparable dice to an ISD's front arc, at less cost. Of course, it won't last nearly as long in its optimal range as an ISD...

I'm wondering if the blue dice variant would prove more deadly with RR + Ordinance Experts + Ackbar (4 black, 2 blue, 2 red). You have lower peak damage (fewer double-hit chances on red dice), but a higher chance of accuracies (for brace, redirect), and a reduced number of blanks you could roll (4 faces instead of 8 on your red dice). If the MC-30 has an ion upgrade slot, you could add SW-7s to hedge your bets, allowing you to consistently top-out damage, if you wished.

My autocorrect kicks me in the bum again

The MC30 is faster and hopefully agile (possibly the reverse of the Raider). I doubt it will jump into side arc of the ISD, VSD, or even the GSD and wreck house. It was built as a cap ship killer and I think will live up to that

We knew about this one for a while

We knew about this one for a while

We knew about this one for a while

This is true, though there was always the outside chance that the card would change between the initial spoiler (in April) and release (hopefully in the next two months). Since they actually included the same image in the official preview, I think that's a good indication that the card is not going to change. Hence, I feel more comfortable theorycrafting about it.

Good for the MC30, not so much the Raider, I'll take the AMC (With Screed) for a minumum 4 from the side and probable 2-5 more from the front.

With luck, this card will come with the MC30 as well.

Good for the MC30, not so much the Raider, I'll take the AMC (With Screed) for a minumum 4 from the side and probable 2-5 more from the front.

With luck, this card will come with the MC30 as well.

Rapid Reload is in the MC30c preview

Good for the MC30, not so much the Raider, I'll take the AMC (With Screed) for a minumum 4 from the side and probable 2-5 more from the front.

With luck, this card will come with the MC30 as well.

Exactly. Sadly FFG has made a few cards that are currently much better for the Imperial side of the game. Those are the new Quad lasers and the ACMs. Both are amazing for Imperials and only marginally useful for the Rebels. Likely this will change in future waves but it is how it is for now

Good for the MC30, not so much the Raider, I'll take the AMC (With Screed) for a minumum 4 from the side and probable 2-5 more from the front.

With luck, this card will come with the MC30 as well.

Exactly. Sadly FFG has made a few cards that are currently much better for the Imperial side of the game. Those are the new Quad lasers and the ACMs. Both are amazing for Imperials and only marginally useful for the Rebels. Likely this will change in future waves but it is how it is for now

Just out of curiosity, why would Quad Lasers be more useful for the empire than rebels (I understand your point about the ACMs)? It seems to me that putting them on an MC-80 (the command variant) could be a useful addition for five points. With Ackbar, you're probably only shooting once as-is, due to lack of gunnery teams, while everything will be shooting at you. The chance to shoot back at squadrons (which we all expect will be buffed, as well) is a chance for free damage, it seems.

That's my initial impression, at least. Whether that's better than another offensive retrofit upgrade (tractor beams, for instance), is of course another question.

Same could be argued with all the missile upgrades in wave one, same with all the defensive upgrades.

So Quad Lasers work only in Distance 1 when a squadron is attacking that ship. Well the Empire has Rhymer. They can attack at close range and medium range and ignore your quad lasers all game.

So Quad Lasers work only in Distance 1 when a squadron is attacking that ship. Well the Empire has Rhymer. They can attack at close range and medium range and ignore your quad lasers all game.

Ah, thank you, that is a valid point. So then I see where Cluster Bombs might be desirable.

But then again, the idea of your ship attacking back against all squadrons with more point defense guns is cooler than just a use and discard effect that could be very powerful, or fail with a poor roll and wasted.

So Quad Lasers work only in Distance 1 when a squadron is attacking that ship. Well the Empire has Rhymer. They can attack at close range and medium range and ignore your quad lasers all game.

Got it. So you would want these on something fast with lots of anti-squadron fire, that can close on Rhymer and force squadrons to attack it... kind of like a Raider, actually...

Yeah, I get your point. This is far more useful for the Empire. Partly because of what it does, partly because of a great platform for it, and partly because of a lack of Rebel counter.

Rapid Reload won't be very popular on Imperial Vessels for the simple reason that they're Front focused firepower-wise. Even the Gladiator, which is technically even on its 3 primary arcs, wants to focus on a single vessel using it's front and a side. The Rebels suffer from having only one ship that actually uses Black dice the MC-30, which also happens to be a broadside fighter. You'll see RR on Shrimps, but not on much else, simply because it doesn't synergize well with any of the Imperial vessels.

I think ACM's is still the better choice for MC30's. Cheaper and crits guarantee damage. If you are running a 30 with Dodonna, then you want the RR, because you'll be normal crit-fishing. As far as using Ackbar on the blue die 30, am I correct in that the 30 still can't attack at long range because the rid dice get added to the pool of what it can already shoot at? IE since it has blue dice on the card, med range is the best it can shoot at, even if you are adding red dice?

I think ACM's is still the better choice for MC30's. Cheaper and crits guarantee damage. If you are running a 30 with Dodonna, then you want the RR, because you'll be normal crit-fishing. As far as using Ackbar on the blue die 30, am I correct in that the 30 still can't attack at long range because the rid dice get added to the pool of what it can already shoot at? IE since it has blue dice on the card, med range is the best it can shoot at, even if you are adding red dice?

I'm not sure if that's how it works or not, actually, even after looking at the card (which deals with both "Before a friendly ship's Attack Step" and adding dice to your "attack pool"). I think the most straightforward reading of the card is that if, at the beginning of your attack step, you choose to only attack with left and right, those two batteries get two red dice in their attack pool [at the beginning of that ship's Attack Step]. This would be different from changing dice pool in the modify dice stage, I would think, and thus not require that your printed initial battery (in this case, four blacks and two blues) be collectable against a long range target. But that's just how I read it. Whether that's actually correct or not is a good question...

Either way, I think the goal would be to be in close range for eight dice, not long range for two dice. At medium/close range, I don't think there's any question that you would get the +2 dice from Ackbar when shooting a broadside.

I was more asking to see if you would actually get a couple long ranged attacks while you closed, that's all.

Using the example of a CR90b, you would not be able to declare an attack at long range to get the 2 red dice to add to your dice pool.

I was more asking to see if you would actually get a couple long ranged attacks while you closed, that's all.

I would think so, but that's just based on how I read the card. I could see an argument for it either way, though.

You can't get a long range attack.

What happens kind this is in the latest FAQ) is that you declare your attack, the attack has no dice in the attack pool so it is canceled.

Well let's look at it, the MC30 tosses 3 black dice. That means on average you get less than 1 hit/crit. Rebels have no way of making that into a garentee hit/crit or of having the chances of getting the hit/crit like the GSD 1 can.

I was more asking to see if you would actually get a couple long ranged attacks while you closed, that's all.

As others have stated, the FAQ and Attack Step 2 (collect dice in the attacking hull's battery armament) in the RR will not allow you to use Ackbar's card to create a long range attack. Had his card stated, "Your left and right battery armaments are increased by two red dice" you would be able to. But when a card states "add 2 red dice to the attack pool" it is a dice modification (Modifying Dice in RR) and is applied in Attack Step 3. This was a good question as it is easy to think adding dice to the attack pool would allow you to use those dice in your hull's battery armament in Step 2.

I was more asking to see if you would actually get a couple long ranged attacks while you closed, that's all.

As others have stated, the FAQ and Attack Step 2 (collect dice in the attacking hull's battery armament) in the RR will not allow you to use Ackbar's card to create a long range attack. Had his card stated, "Your left and right battery armaments are increased by two red dice" you would be able to. But when a card states "add 2 red dice to the attack pool" it is a dice modification (Modifying Dice in RR) and is applied in Attack Step 3. This was a good question as it is easy to think adding dice to the attack pool would allow you to use those dice in your hull's battery armament in Step 2.

After looking at it more closely this evening, I believe you are right. The "Before the start of the Attack Stage" threw me off at first, but the "battery armament" in step 2, along with the language about resolving card effects in step 3, seems to settle it, at least for me.