I'm hammering out the details of an alternate format for a casual game night. I'd love your input on the lists and on anything in the format that you think I should tweak.

Three to six players will each claim equally spaced starting zones around a standard playing mat. On a side board, there will be around 10 "Aces" builds of a single ship each, with the single ship costing approximately 40 points. One randomly selected player will grab the first Ace, and the players will take turns going clockwise grabbing the next ship in line. The order of the aces will be maintained -- you don't get to pick whichever ship you want but instead you must go in order. Players place their aces in their starting zone and ready their dial.

The game is a free-for-all (FFA), with no formal teams. Everyone tracks kills with only the final kill shot getting the point, and how many times they've been killed. I plan to use poker chips to keep track. When your ace is killed, the ship is returned to the sideboard and you grab the next ship on the list (again, you have to stay in order). Your new ship enters the game at the end of the current round in your start zone. When everyone has had enough or at a predetermined time, each player's score is calculated by subtracting how many times their own ship died from the number of kills they have.

Since a lot of these pilots will be PS 9 or so, I'm trying to make the builds of varying points and deciding initiative based on actual points spent on the build. For example, the 39-point Luke build will move after the 41-point Poe build. I think it will be a greater advantage to move last in this format, but I'm open to input on whether shooting first would be more important. A lot of these aces have post-movement positional adjustment capabilities, and all of the aces are small base forward arc ships.

When putting together the builds, I applied the following philosophy. First, I used only named pilots and tried to use the most iconic, most well known pilots (both to movie-goers and to the game's veterans). Second, I targeted around 40 points because I wanted "fat" aces with interesting card effects. Third, I tried very hard to vary the Elite Talents and other cards used. Occasionally, even if the optimal build might include Push the Limit, I tried to reach for a different Elite Talent just for the sake of variety. Fourth, I tried to spread the picks across all three factions, with three or four ships from each faction. Finally, I decided to use small base forward arc firing ships only. This last part to me just seems to fit the FFA format better than the alternatives.

Some of the builds include one-use items like ordnance or "Hot Shot" Blaster. I'll be implementing an alternate rule where these one-use cards get flipped face down when used, and can be flipped face up via an action.

One of the design intents here is to give me and my local casual gamers a chance to dig into the interesting mechanics involved with a lot of different specialized Ace builds without investing the time required for a normal 100-point dogfight with that Ace. By the end of the night (3-4 hours if everyone is enjoying it) I'm hoping to have flown at least half of the ship builds and get at least a cursory feel for how they fly. I'm hoping some of the new players will go home thinking "I want to build a 100-point list using *that* ace..."

Poe Dameron (31) PS 8, total=41
Push the Limit (3) , BB-8 (2), Comm Relay (3), Autothrusters (2)

Tycho Celchu (26) PS 8, total=38
Push the Limit (3) , Proton Rockets (3), Daredevil (3),
Experimental Interface (3), A-Wing Test Pilot (0)

Wedge Antilles (29) PS 9, total=37
Outmaneuver (3) , R2 Astromech (1) , Shield Upgrade (4)

Luke Skywalker (28) PS 8, total=39
Push the Limit (3) , R2-D2 (4) , Engine Upgrade (4)

Keyan Farlander (29) PS 7, total=40
Push the Limit (3) , Fire-Control System (2) ,Gunner (5) , B-Wing/E2 (1)

Darth Vader (29) PS 9, total=40
Predator (3) , Proton Rockets (3) , ATC (1), Engine Upgrade (4) , TIE/x1 (0)

Soontir Fel (27) PS 9, total=35
Push the Limit (3) , Stealth Device (3) , Autothrusters (2) , Royal Guard TIE (0)

"Whisper" (32) PS 9, total=40
Veteran Instincts (1) , Fire-Control System (2) , Intelligence Agent (1) , ACD (4)

Graz the Hunter (25) PS 6, total=36
Concussion Missiles (4) , "Hot Shot" Blaster (3), Engine Upgrade (4)

Guri (30) PS 5, total=40
Outmaneuver (3) , Sensor Jammer (4) , Autothrusters (2) , Virago (1)

Talonbane Cobra (28) PS 9, total=37

Marksmanship (3), Cloaking Device (2), Engine Upgrade (4)

Pilots listed in Activation Order:

Guri (PS 5, 40pts)

Graz the Hunter (PS 6, 36pts)

Keyan Farlander (PS 7, 40pts)

Poe Dameron (PS 8, 41 pts)

Luke Skywalker (PS 8, 39 pts)

Tycho Celchu (PS 8, 38 pts)

"Whisper" (PS 9, 40 pts)

Darth Vader (PS 9, 40 pts)

Talonbane Cobra (PS 9, 37pts)

Wedge Antilles (PS 9, 37 pts)

Soontir Fel (PS 9, 35 pts)

Current Issues/Concerns:

1. There are still too many Push the Limit cards in use... viable alternatives? Or is PTL just too important for these aces because of the action economy?
2. The Scum do not seem to be very well represented. The PS 5 and 6 Kihraxz and StarViper don't look to have very good odds... additions or alternatives? Do I dare slap a large base in there?
3. I'm heavy on Rebel and light on Imperial and Scum.

TL;DR: Help me balance these small base forward arc ace ships, while keeping them as varied as possible!

Imp ace without PTL: Turr Phennir with VI!

Could throw in Lone Wolf N'Dru or even Kavil with an EU, turret of your choosing, and either VI or Determination. Heck, my old standy Dace Bonearm with EU, K4, and VI wouldn't be hopeless here. Laetin with HLC and SD could be workable.

Carnor Jax is noticeably absent, as is Echo on the Imperial side. Major Rhymer could make for a very interesting addition with Extra Munitions. Could also throw in Juno Eclipse and Maarek Stele, who are both bonafide aces in my book.

Graz wants (DEMANDS!) Glitterstim in my experience. Considering that turrets aren't in though I'm not sure if their ability will come into play much.

Edit: I think Graz might be an FFG original and thus should probably be using female pronouns.

This is a pretty neat idea, but the pedant in me wants to yell.

Poe is not an iconic pilot. It takes significant time and cultural exposure to gain iconic status. He hasn't even appeared in a released film yet.

This is a pretty neat idea, but the pedant in me wants to yell.

Poe is not an iconic pilot. It takes significant time and cultural exposure to gain iconic status. He hasn't even appeared in a released film yet.

Completely true! Pedantic, but true! Poe is on the bubble for me as to whether he'll make a showing at this event. In Poe's defense, he's got a very interesting combination of abilities that would be interesting to see on the table. I also could have gone with R5-P9 (if that's the shield regen one) but I'm concerned about having too much shield regen in this format.

You won't learn very much thinking about it and talking about it.

You need to PLAYTEST it.

The sooner you playtest, the sooner you'll realize how important it was to playtest.

How about switching Keyan up to Stay on Target, Advanced Sensors, and Intelligence Agent? Drops him to 36 points, and gets more maneuverable.

This is a pretty neat idea, but the pedant in me wants to yell.

Poe is not an iconic pilot. It takes significant time and cultural exposure to gain iconic status. He hasn't even appeared in a released film yet.

Completely true! Pedantic, but true! Poe is on the bubble for me as to whether he'll make a showing at this event. In Poe's defense, he's got a very interesting combination of abilities that would be interesting to see on the table. I also could have gone with R5-P9 (if that's the shield regen one) but I'm concerned about having too much shield regen in this format.

How about:

[40] Horton Salm , BTL-A4 Y-Wing , Twin Laser Turret, Proton Torpedoes, R2 Astromech, Engine Upgrade

How about switching Keyan up to Stay on Target, Advanced Sensors, and Intelligence Agent? Drops him to 36 points, and gets more maneuverable.

It would be cool to see Stay on Target get played! He will be one of the first pilots to activate in this format, so the Intelligence Agent combo with SoT and Keyan's stress eating is pretty sweet.

Is there a better pilot to switch into the Buzzsaw build I originally had on Keyan? How about Echo?

You won't learn very much thinking about it and talking about it.

You need to PLAYTEST it.

The sooner you playtest, the sooner you'll realize how important it was to playtest.

I understand the value of play testing. But I'd be wasting my friends' time if I didn't put some forethought into this. I'll theorycraft now, then I'll likely heavily adjust after the first tryout.

If you cut Poe, give PTL and BB8 to Wedge, along with Engine Upgrade. Otherwise, switch Wedge to Predator and maybe give him a Plasma or Flechette Torpedo to fill the 3 points.

Scum needs Kavil and Xizor in there over the Hunter. Maybe even Dace Bonearm.

Poe Dameron (31) PS 8, total=41

Push the Limit (3) , BB-8 (2), Comm Relay (3), Autothrusters (2)

Why does Poe have Comm Relay? He doesn't have any native way to generate evade tokens.

FFA games are terrible, they come down to 100% politics and kingmaking. It's always the player in second that wins. Just play a large epic game and divide up points evenly between the players.

Whisper, Soontir Fel, and Vader with your loadouts along with perhaps Poe are clearly the best ones. I say you ditch named pilots altogether and have everyone build a squadron with generics only. I think you'd see more variety and balance. PS matters a little less when the ship moving after you can't boost and barrel roll and focus in one turn. I'd rather see Avenger Squadrons dancing with Sigma Squadrons than your typical power upgrade ace fest.

If you cut Poe, give PTL and BB8 to Wedge, along with Engine Upgrade. Otherwise, switch Wedge to Predator and maybe give him a Plasma or Flechette Torpedo to fill the 3 points.

Scum needs Kavil and Xizor in there over the Hunter. Maybe even Dace Bonearm.

I think I'll drop Poe and buff Wedge like you recommend, but I do get some thematic dissonance putting BB-8 on Wedge.

As for the Scum fellas, would Kavil with a BTL-A4 Ion Cannon make sense? I'm trying to make everyone fly with firing arcs. I'm not sure Xizor's skill fits into a FFA format where he has no "allies" to shunt his damage. I'm still wondering if maybe some large base ships with arcs (IG or Firespray) might work in this format.

Poe Dameron (31) PS 8, total=41

Push the Limit (3) , BB-8 (2), Comm Relay (3), Autothrusters (2)

Why does Poe have Comm Relay? He doesn't have any native way to generate evade tokens.

You're right. I got over zealous with the new toys and filling up the slots.

As for the Scum fellas, would Kavil with a BTL-A4 Ion Cannon make sense? I'm trying to make everyone fly with firing arcs. I'm not sure Xizor's skill fits into a FFA format where he has no "allies" to shunt his damage. I'm still wondering if maybe some large base ships with arcs (IG or Firespray) might work in this format.

Kavil's basically useless with the title.

Consider the following:

[39] Colonel Vessery, Ruthlessness, TIE Mk.II

Vessery's ability doesn't need friendly TLs, just "red target lock token", and Ruthlessness can't hit him.

This is a pretty neat idea, but the pedant in me wants to yell.

Poe is not an iconic pilot. It takes significant time and cultural exposure to gain iconic status. He hasn't even appeared in a released film yet.

Sorry, but are Talonbane and Whisper iconic?

If we go by pilots named in movies, then the number of pilots used drop dramatically.

This is a pretty neat idea, but the pedant in me wants to yell.

Poe is not an iconic pilot. It takes significant time and cultural exposure to gain iconic status. He hasn't even appeared in a released film yet.

Sorry, but are Talonbane and Whisper iconic?

If we go by pilots named in movies, then the number of pilots used drop dramatically.

Still more iconic than a poor-man's-Orlando-Bloom~

FFA games are terrible, they come down to 100% politics and kingmaking. It's always the player in second that wins. Just play a large epic game and divide up points evenly between the players.

Whisper, Soontir Fel, and Vader with your loadouts along with perhaps Poe are clearly the best ones. I say you ditch named pilots altogether and have everyone build a squadron with generics only. I think you'd see more variety and balance. PS matters a little less when the ship moving after you can't boost and barrel roll and focus in one turn. I'd rather see Avenger Squadrons dancing with Sigma Squadrons than your typical power upgrade ace fest.

First, thank you for your input. As for the kingmaker element, I think that is lessened because the format I'm using isn't an elimination format. I'm hoping each player rotates through several ships and has their chance at Whisper, Soontir, and Vader. And when someone has one of those hot ships, they're bound to gather extra attention from the others. Plus there will be plenty of beer involved and you may be overestimating my crowd's flying skills and competitiveness.

As for generics vs. named pilots, I'm the type of guy who loves flying as many of the same ship as possible. I'm trying to branch out here!

As for the Scum fellas, would Kavil with a BTL-A4 Ion Cannon make sense? I'm trying to make everyone fly with firing arcs. I'm not sure Xizor's skill fits into a FFA format where he has no "allies" to shunt his damage. I'm still wondering if maybe some large base ships with arcs (IG or Firespray) might work in this format.

Kavil's basically useless with the title.

Consider the following:

[39] Colonel Vessery, Ruthlessness, TIE Mk.II

Vessery's ability doesn't need friendly TLs, just "red target lock token", and Ruthlessness can't hit him.

I'll add Vessery. Ruthlessness will be fun to see and I am curious how much TIE Mk II helps their dueling.

Our play group plays at 33 points and it works pretty well, we haven't found anything to be overpowered. You won't get some of the fancier pilots but again oh well that's a price we are willing to pay

Our play group plays at 33 points and it works pretty well, we haven't found anything to be overpowered. You won't get some of the fancier pilots but again oh well that's a price we are willing to pay

33-35 points is generally what my group has found to work the best as well. We have a ban on lone wolf for the time being and are debating adding shield regeneration to that list as well, but at the point limit it hasn't been to much of an issue.

Hm, sounds like 33-35 has worked for others. I'm also concerned about shield regen. I am interested in seeing what these small fatties at 40 points play like and will let the community know.

Not get into the "Iconic Ace" debate, but for this type of format I would suggest a few things:

-Include some underutilized pilots (as suggested by others). Truly iconic characters are limited, but there are a lot of "Aces" and they should be the focus. I wouldn't worry about the iconic part.

-Reduce the point level a little bit for a single ship. You would be surprised the cool builds you can make at 35-37 points. This would also allow folks to utilize their SHIP and PILOT ABILITY more than the upgrades that are attached (Less PTLs and Engine Upgrades).

-Limit upgrade cards. If providing the ships yourself with pre-built aces, try not to duplicate any upgrade cards (go with two at the most). This makes each Ace feel more unique and further reduces PTLs and Engines. It also spreads out the PS a bit by limiting Veteran Instincts.

-Choose upgrade cards thematically. Luke with R2-D2, Deadeye, and Proton Torpedoes comes to mind.

-Create a banned upgrade card list (and if the format ever changes for people to bring their own, certain pilots might need to be added to this list).

-Build up to other FFA events with different rules. I have had good success with FFA/team games where each player has 60 points. This could be one huge loaded out ship, or an Ace with his/her wingman. Lots of flexibility here and you can pre-build all of the lists for people to choose from before they start or if you advertise it out they can bring their own.

-Consider two ship aces for TIEs, TIE/fo, Z-95s, etc. Mauler Mithel with Backstabber or Airen Cracken with Blount make for some interesting combos. This might go against the direction you want for THIS game, but it gets more aces involved, which is cool.

-Solidify respawn rules for FFA. If possible, test game with and without respawning rules. In a casual setting where you are introducing the game to a large number of new players, respawning is a great mechanic to have. I usually have it spawn the round after being destroyed at a randomized spawning point (from predetermined marked points around the edge of the board). If you have more experienced players playing for fun, consider not having respawn rules because players might play more recklessly and make choices they would not otherwise.

-Explore alternate or secondary scoring methods. Achievements or points could be awarded for fancy flying (landing within millimeters of a ship w/o bumping) or fully evading an attack when you only have one hull left.

-Explore alternate objectives. This is sort of in line with the above suggestion because there is more to X-Wing than a huge deathmatch. Maybe using some of the mission tokens and concepts to create 4 or 5 objectives that players draw in secret that they try to accomplish throughout the game. Player 1 might need to disable a comm relay while player 2 would need to activate an inactive proximity mine. Destroying ships could still lead to the most points, but having alternate objectives adds more thought into how you are playing the game.

-Consider alternate ways certain pilot abilities work. Take Xizor, for example. His ability is pointless in a single ship FFA game, so you could alter his ability to shuck damage off, once per turn, to a nearby enemy ship.

-Tackle specific problems with special rules. For example, a simple rule to limit shield regeneration is to not allow shields to be regenerated two turns in a row. Still very powerful in the format and worth the points on the ships, but makes other upgrades and play styles more competitive.

Some other Ace options:

Salm

Farrell

Ten Numb

Corran Horn

Miranda Doni

Stele

Rhymer

Redline

Deathrain

Dace

Xizor

Kavil

Some could be bombers or ordinance carriers, others try to take control through ions or superior maneuvering.

*Edit* I forgot to address your pilot order list. If you take into consideration some of my suggestions above, there should be a larger overall PS spread, which makes the order easier. In the case of ties, like you said, use the points as the discriminating factor. If there is still a tie, they can roll off. Regardless, the key here is to make players sit around the table in PS order so it is clear who's turn it is next. This saves a ton of time with novices and veterans alike.

I'm liking the suggestions for cutting the points back a bit if at least to get rid of a few engine upgrades, which will also help mitigate the PS order issues (PS matters less if you can't reposition). I'll be revising the list and re-posting.