I'm feeling a lot of analysis paralysis now actually trying to figure out what a strong squad is. Is the game now so balanced that its actually just playstyle driven?

It actaully makes me feel depressed because I feel like I can almost play any style or ship very well. And well... Maybe I'm getting bored or overly confused.

No such thing

The ships are all quite distinct and serve different functions outside superficial statline similarities

I'll post a bigger thread about FO v TAPs later, but they're nowhere even close to similar. (Tldr; the FO is elite fodder with a crazy jousting dial; TAPs is an ace platform with action economy + boost + thrusters)

Seeing such distinction between ships that, at first glance, seem identicle really let's you appreciate how deep the game is

Variety is a good thing

How nice if the game ends up more player style driven than quick analyst driven copy paste lists. The options are a bit overwhelming right now, but that is a good thing. I play a new list everytime I game and enjoy the versatility a Lot.

My problem is knowing/remembering what goes with what.

Someone's diversity is another's complication.

Haha not to discredit the OP but it's just so funny how much people don't know what they want, at one end people hated the idea a small meta, but then the designers work hard to calm us and give us a lot of competitive variety and diversity, then we start to complain we have too many options lol

No offense, just laughing at how silly we can all be

But yeah I like the diversity, I say bring it on even more!

Yes. Complete brick wall of list-building because there is so much that is so good.

Blasphemy

I think it's great that there is so much diversity, although there are some that say boostwing/acewing still rule. PWTs and TLTs are still here, but so are crack swarms, wierd stuff like doom shuttle and Biggs, Poe as a super jouster (don't be fooled, he's no arc dodger), HWKs (!) for rebs and scum, anything besides Brobots for scum is welcome really, IA making rookies about equal with Bs, TIE Advanced fix ushering in Vader's return as well as giving the generics a chance to shine, FFG has done a great job. Worlds even showed us 2 Att blockers are key to add control elements.

Can't wait for Imperial vets so my defenders and bombers can join the fun! Stele X1 vs Stele /D and both being legit is awesome!

No such thing as to many options. Keep bring them FFG.

I don't think there's too many options, but the game is definitely starting to feel bloated, which is definitely a put-off for newer players, especially when many of the 'mandatory' upgrades are hidden inside seemingly random ship packs.

We're getting closer and closer to an X Wing 2.0, imo.

Goes to show how great this game is when we get topics complaining that there is too much awesome to choose from.

Just pick what looks cool or sounds fun. Don't worry about it being the best.

Nah, variety is the spice of life. I think the only "problem" to arise will be ships/pilots simply getting overlooked or written off. Already happens plenty on this board, lots of "X isn't Y, so don't even bother trying X".

Which I think is a poor mentality, and that part of the real joy of X-Wing is the creativity that comes with list building and experimenting. More pilots, more upgrades, and more ships just mean more possibilities. If you ever get overwhelmed, just start with a basic concept and build around that. I wanted to fly Bossk as a threat at a tournament, so I built around that. I've run a scary list before with Dace Bonearm based purely on the idea of getting Dace on the table. Next goal will be to bring "Blue Ace" with me (though Bossk ain't going anywhere!) You start with one piece and the rest builds around it.

At least that's how I do my list building. One thing to watch out for is to avoid the kind of synergy that'll cause your entire team to collapse the moment a ship gets shot down, so when I say "start somewhere and build around it" I don't mean "make sure this is the absolute crux of your list upon all hopes of victory revolve". Like, a list where Kyle Katarn helps out by offering away his Focus tokens? Good! A list where the rest of your ships are hopeless the moment Kyle gets shot down because they were completely dependent on his survival? Not good!

But don't get me wrong, I'm not rallying against the meta here. Stuff like Soontir Fel, Poe, Vader, Bro-Bots, ect, are widely flown for good reason. I just personally wouldn't have as much fun if all I ever did was run Palmobile + Vader + Fel or ye old Corran-Dash. And if that's what you enjoy, hey, more power to you.

New direction in 'sky is falling' threads. Now the sky falls sideways, open doors and lurks in the closet for surprise attacks.

I like variety. More options means I can tweak and try different things.

we can talk about "enough" once I have my Tie/Avengers and Gunboats in my hands

Too much? Is that a thing?

You can never have too many options!

More choice is more longevity overall.

Wait wait wait... Am I reading into this that FFG has "ruined the game" by leveling the field and that they've done a fairly decent job of shattering whatever meta-builds are out there?

What's next? Dogs and cats living together?

In some ways I would say "yes" yet in others "no" because it depends on what options you are looking at.

I do believe it is possible to have too many options for things. While it may seem like a blessing it is also a paralyzing curse as you start trying to figure out what is exactly the best for you. It's one thing to have a cheap A, a mid priced B, and a more expensive C as choices when you can clearly see the differences between each and ideally have the prices reflect that difference. Thing are far harder when you have a half dozen choices for B that all cost around the same.

Now I do like having all the various ship types as a collector. Also having several options for a B ship may mean that I don't need to purchase as many of any given type provided that I am willing to substitute one B for another if my squadron is calling for a number of type B ships.

Now if you want to look at archetypes I'd like to see about five or so with similar costs that can play like R-P-L-S-S. That is they win some match and lose some matches yet a different choice can still win against the same thing yet now lose to something different.

The later you get into the game, the more daunting it is coming to grips with the myriad choices. But if that's the only issue I have then, BRING IT ONNNN!

It is a feeling that I never really understood from competitive oriented players. That a meta can be "too" open, and that you have the possibility to lose to random "jank".

Sure, having sooo many different options I want to try can be annoying. But, that is a good problem to have.

Come on Brah...

I think many of you are exaggerating the OP's opinion.

It is a bit overwhelming to have so many options. not a bad problem to have.

Yes and no.

I think it's very healthy that 36 points of Defender, TIE Interceptor, TIE Fighter, or TIE Advanced will get me 4 _very_ different builds that are also very good.

I think it's detrimental to the game that I need to know that Marksmanship, Opportunist, and Expose are terrible.

I've tried coming up with "new player buying advice", and at this point there are so many specialty upgrades that it's a tiny bit daunting.

I actually do think the game is in the best state it's been in a long time, and I'm excited to see where it goes next.

Wait wait wait... Am I reading into this that FFG has "ruined the game" by leveling the field and that they've done a fairly decent job of shattering whatever meta-builds are out there?

What's next? Dogs and cats living together?

Have they really? Reading the forum, I get the impression that the only modification in existence are Autothrusters and the only imperial pilots are Fel and Vadel...