I'm deciding how many to put on my pre-order at the moment, but I was hoping the community could help me out with a question that's bugging me.

It just seems to me on paper so inefficient for the amount of firepower it gives- am I missing something? I.e. when do I want an MC80 over an AFmkII considering the points sink/loss of activations, lower speed/maneuverability, and prohibition for gunnery teams? Engine techs can help, yes, but that's another command I'm going to be broadcasting instead of repairing, squadding, or CF'ing. I've seen a lot of posts about how awesome these things are with Ackbar, but isn't an 82 point EA fattieB a better deal in almost every way?

I'm particularly worried about how much practical liability those large bases are giving you especially in terms of how easy it's going to be to force collisions and halt the conga line.

Dur I think your right on all counts. But keep in mind the MC80 can out tank an AFmk2.

One, and then you may only end up using the cards that come with it.

You can always order a second later, but I can't see a double MC80 really becoming a thing.

I think they are great, but doubt I will ever use more than 1.

Home One is a close second to Demolisher for best title in the game.

I've been playing conga lines since the game came out and don't think I've ever had anyone force a collision and jam me up. That's not something I would worry about too much.

Trying a kamikaze Bwing build with one tomorrow. They seem to withstand firepower a lot better than most ships but I usually prefer ships that are good and killing more so than good at not being blown up.

I would also echo no more than one. I look at the MC80 as like an upgrade to the AF2, since it's slightly better in a lot of different areas. I'm also going to try a Raymus/Nav Team duo instead of Engine Techs, since it would let my MC80 make a hard 90 degree turn on each Navigate dial if needed.

The MC80 can withstand several turns of an ISD pounding it up close. The AFII is either going to die or be crippled in a single salvo. Turned several to slag last weekend.

One, and then you may only end up using the cards that come with it.

You can always order a second later, but I can't see a double MC80 really becoming a thing.

I agree, I've got 2 on pre order,but I'll probably get the 2nd for all the upgrade cards mostly...kinda...

I think double MC might be a thing....it's as much of a thing as double ISD at least, and people like that plan. 1 with Home 1, 1 with Defiance....very hard hitting and pretty tough, with points for support.

Not saying it'll be top tier, but it'll be good.

I've used mine a few times, can't imagine adding a second one any time soon. Then again, I've yet to settle on a preferred build for the current one, maybe once I do that some use for more will reveal itself.

I would start with one, I've used mine a few times now and the titles are powerful. The assault version with ackbar, leading shots, enhanced, armament, and defiance can reliably blast a gladiator out of the sky at medium range with a single volley.

One, definitely. Think ahead a wave: you're not going to have Home One, Liberty* and another MC80 in one list are?

*I don't have any more information that anyone else regarding wave 3, I'm just hoping (and expecting, to a large extent)

I'll have 2 purely because I was lucky enough to win one, I have considered cancelling my pre-order for the second but a friend and I have been talking about playing much higher point games and figure that I'll use a second in the bigger scale games.

For 400 hundred points games I can't see myself using a second MC80 at the moment which is a real shame as I love the ships appearance and lore wise.

For me it's a bit different. 400pts is likely to be the smallest game i play, so multiples will certainly get used. I also plan to resurrect my "Historical battles" thread and start planning and playing those....many use a lot more than 2

I think Raymus is really good on the MC80, as he also gives you 6 engineering for three shield repairs, and with nav team, that sounds really good too !!

Get at least one. I think all of the MC80 hate is similar to the AF hate before it came out. People forget 1. How much better a good side arc can be vs a good front arc if you fly properly. 2. How hard it is to get a two arc shot with a VSD/ISD. With the MC80 it isn't that hard. Like was said above a well tooled Ackbar MC80 will vaporize a GSD in one broadside. I also think redundant defense tokens is going to be a lot more important once this wave rolls out.

I have tried an engine tech MC80 yet but I think it could be really good and that one activation might be all that you need. Don't forget it takes even a GSD a couple turns to loop around so that extra boost might get you out of trouble. I usually do a navigate command and take a token round one anyway.

I also have been thinking of taking tractor beams on my MC80 to stiff arm the GSDs and keep them at longer range.

Also the MC80's arc is much wider than the afmkII's and I don't mean the base is wider, cause that is to but the arc is actually different, and is more similar to a neb B's arc and with a base that wide it can cover significant portions of the battlefield.

I tested the list below VS 2x ISDII and a vicII with motti and slaughtered him! didnt loose a ship and he had a half dead ISD left.

399 of 400 pts)
Flagship: (172 pts)

• MC80 Assault Cruiser(114 pts)
• Admiral Ackbar (38 pts)
• Home One (7 pts)
• Advanced Projectors (6 pts)
• Electronic Counter Measures (7 pts)

Fleet Ship 1: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 2: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 3: (51 pts)

• CR90 Corvette A(44 pts)
• Turbolaser Reroute Circuits (7 pts) (i actually realised i didnt have the card and took slaved turrets instead)
• Slaved turrets are amazing on a vette!

Squadrons (32 of 133 pts):

• 1x Scurgg H-6 Bomber (16 pts)
• 1x YT-2400 (16 pts)

Objectives:

• Advanced Gunnery
• Hyperspace Assault
• Dangerous Territory

He won initiative and I chose his hyperspace assualt. He was thinking he could use a ISD as the ship but i pounted out it had to be the Vic.

I ran in a tight group with the corvette out front He had no fighters (as i suspected he might) so my two plinked away. he had quad lasers but with 6 hull each they would never have died.

Home one is amazing and that card is alot better than i thought. when you are throwing handfulls of red you always get at least one blank, i locked down brace on every attack.

He hyperspaced behind home one and Ackbar got to say 'its a trap!' the vic shot once long range and was vaped by 2x afII and mc80 next turn out one arc while shooting the first ISD long range out the other (ackbar slash). The fleet then advanced up at speed 2 turning away from him and his ISD's fire blue dice ONCE the whole game!

I could see myself taking a 2nd Mc80 but the 2x AFII were pretty solid. Maybe with 2x Cr90 slaved turrets, that CR90 really dished some pain, shooting 5 red dice per turn. 1 from self, 1 slaved, 2 ackbar, 1focus fire. The CR90 i ran in the old move fast and daring way but with Jianas light added could sit behind my fleet pumping 5 reds per turn.

Also handy if the opponent takes dangerous territory.

I took a pic i'll post later of my attack fleet crossing the T.

I tested the list below VS 2x ISDII and a vicII with motti and slaughtered him! didnt loose a ship and he had a half dead ISD left.

399 of 400 pts)

Flagship: (172 pts)

• MC80 Assault Cruiser(114 pts)
• Admiral Ackbar (38 pts)
• Home One (7 pts)
• Advanced Projectors (6 pts)
• Electronic Counter Measures (7 pts)

Fleet Ship 1: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 2: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 3: (51 pts)

• CR90 Corvette A(44 pts)
• Turbolaser Reroute Circuits (7 pts) (i actually realised i didnt have the card and took slaved turrets instead)
• Slaved turrets are amazing on a vette!

Squadrons (32 of 133 pts):

• 1x Scurgg H-6 Bomber (16 pts)
• 1x YT-2400 (16 pts)

Objectives:

• Advanced Gunnery
• Hyperspace Assault
• Dangerous Territory

He won initiative and I chose his hyperspace assualt. He was thinking he could use a ISD as the ship but i pounted out it had to be the Vic.

I ran in a tight group with the corvette out front He had no fighters (as i suspected he might) so my two plinked away. he had quad lasers but with 6 hull each they would never have died.

Home one is amazing and that card is alot better than i thought. when you are throwing handfulls of red you always get at least one blank, i locked down brace on every attack.

He hyperspaced behind home one and Ackbar got to say 'its a trap!' the vic shot once long range and was vaped by 2x afII and mc80 next turn out one arc while shooting the first ISD long range out the other (ackbar slash). The fleet then advanced up at speed 2 turning away from him and his ISD's fire blue dice ONCE the whole game!

I could see myself taking a 2nd Mc80 but the 2x AFII were pretty solid. Maybe with 2x Cr90 slaved turrets, that CR90 really dished some pain, shooting 5 red dice per turn. 1 from self, 1 slaved, 2 ackbar, 1focus fire. The CR90 i ran in the old move fast and daring way but with Jianas light added could sit behind my fleet pumping 5 reds per turn.

Also handy if the opponent takes dangerous territory.

I took a pic i'll post later of my attack fleet crossing the T.

So, that would be a vote for buying 1 MC80?

I tested the list below VS 2x ISDII and a vicII with motti and slaughtered him! didnt loose a ship and he had a half dead ISD left.

399 of 400 pts)

Flagship: (172 pts)

• MC80 Assault Cruiser(114 pts)
• Admiral Ackbar (38 pts)
• Home One (7 pts)
• Advanced Projectors (6 pts)
• Electronic Counter Measures (7 pts)

Fleet Ship 1: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 2: (72 pts)

• Assault Frigate Mark II B(72 pts)

Fleet Ship 3: (51 pts)

• CR90 Corvette A(44 pts)
• Turbolaser Reroute Circuits (7 pts) (i actually realised i didnt have the card and took slaved turrets instead)
• Slaved turrets are amazing on a vette!

Squadrons (32 of 133 pts):

• 1x Scurgg H-6 Bomber (16 pts)
• 1x YT-2400 (16 pts)

Objectives:

• Advanced Gunnery
• Hyperspace Assault
• Dangerous Territory

He won initiative and I chose his hyperspace assualt. He was thinking he could use a ISD as the ship but i pounted out it had to be the Vic.

I ran in a tight group with the corvette out front He had no fighters (as i suspected he might) so my two plinked away. he had quad lasers but with 6 hull each they would never have died.

Home one is amazing and that card is alot better than i thought. when you are throwing handfulls of red you always get at least one blank, i locked down brace on every attack.

He hyperspaced behind home one and Ackbar got to say 'its a trap!' the vic shot once long range and was vaped by 2x afII and mc80 next turn out one arc while shooting the first ISD long range out the other (ackbar slash). The fleet then advanced up at speed 2 turning away from him and his ISD's fire blue dice ONCE the whole game!

I could see myself taking a 2nd Mc80 but the 2x AFII were pretty solid. Maybe with 2x Cr90 slaved turrets, that CR90 really dished some pain, shooting 5 red dice per turn. 1 from self, 1 slaved, 2 ackbar, 1focus fire. The CR90 i ran in the old move fast and daring way but with Jianas light added could sit behind my fleet pumping 5 reds per turn.

Also handy if the opponent takes dangerous territory.

I took a pic i'll post later of my attack fleet crossing the T.

So, that would be a vote for buying 1 MC80?

No, Its a vote for buying 2!

Although the conga line wasnt possible in this game i ran line abreast wich makes for an interesting puzzle when decidng who to move shoot first.

I must be the only one contemplating running 3 of these babies then

3X Command Cruisers, Leading Shots, and Slaved Turrets on each and then Ackbar and Home One, With the spare points maybe I would bump one up to EA instead of slaved turrets in case Advanced Gunnery comes up.

#FeartheFish (Okay not really It certainly has its weakness like no squadron defense and activation order hurts but you still have tremendous firepower)

Crossing the T on two Isd's

I must be the only one contemplating running 3 of these babies then

3X Command Cruisers, Leading Shots, and Slaved Turrets on each and then Ackbar and Home One, With the spare points maybe I would bump one up to EA instead of slaved turrets in case Advanced Gunnery comes up.

#FeartheFish (Okay not really It certainly has its weakness like no squadron defense and activation order hurts but you still have tremendous firepower)

I can see why Home One is important in this list, but consider you could have taken 3 guppies with gunnery teams for your two slash-only MC80's. Ackbar scales up with number of ships/attacks, so you're looking at 3 boosts per turn (6 max if you do the impossible slash) vs 4-7 boosts per turn in a much easier to maneuver configuration.

I actually bought two because my group uses my collection, and so I tend to buy extras for mirror matches and higher poiny total games.

so, the MC-80 to the Afmk2 is basically the classic fat ship v normal ship conondrum

it goes as such:

point per point, you get better stats out of X points of the smaller ship rather than X points of Mon Cal

i.t.o upgrades, the larger and more durable Mon Cal should (in theory) give you far greater returns on any points you invest in it

For Armada specifically, you get imo two huge things with the Mon Cal

1.) big ass activations

Imagine a Command Cruiser with 4 Silly bombers. That's 6 dice out the side and 8 out the squadrons, in a single activation. That'll kill something hard probably before it even gets to activate!

2.) dem titles

as said, Home One is ridiculous. It's a massive force multiplier with every other ship you field

Defiance is also ridiculous. A mere 5 points for any die of your color (note, no round or target limitation so you could benefit from Defiance twice in a turn) is ridiculous value.

Independence is imo a load of spunk, but if you love B-wings it can make them actually useful against opposing AFmk2s and such by getting them into position faster than the fatties can run. Personally, though, I'd rather spend the points upgrading B-wings into Sillies.