I'm starting a weekly campaign at my LGS that is open to anyone so we don't have to wait for everyone to be available to play. To allow for the maximum number of players possible so I won't have to turn anyone away, I'm considering allowing the rebels to use the skirmish deployment card of an unused hero (none of the actual allies like Han or Luke) as an ally, with normal ally rules, although I'm probably going to give them a flat +3 hp bonus since they can't rest and don't have a wounded side.

And also give them their skirmish command card as a single-use upgrade. You would just need to errata Mak's command card to "Imperial class cards".

Has anyone else tried this method for adding hero players? I know about the 2-player empire method, but I like having another option if nobody wants to share the Empire or if somehow 6 other players show up to play on one night.

I have not tried this. Balance is a razors edge in this game, so its hard to eyeball stuff. Most of the skirmish level heroes are only worth about 5 points, so they are gonna get wrecked pretty quick.

Personally, I would consider letting them play a regular hero and just adding a flat +2 to the campaign threat level across the board as a compensator. I have no data to back up the suggestion, just an old GMs gut feeling.

How are you planning on running the carryover? Are the heroes the same every time and the players rotate? How do you handle important decisions that carry over? (item purchases, side mission selection, skill choices?)

If your group is so fluid you can't tell how many players there will be then I'm not sure the value of playing campaign. You may be better off doing skirmish and splitting up deployment cards on both sides. You can play 2 games per map with people switching sides.

We have an IA fb group and I was thinking of using polls between each night to let everyone upgrade the heroes as a group. That or just have the upgrade stage before the mission each night so the people present are the ones choosing their upgrades. Maybe I let people undo the xp that someone else bought the previous week if they strongly disagree.

The value of playing campaign this way is that I spent a lot of money on this game to host campaigns and waiting for the same 4 people to be available on the night I don't have work or class means months go by between play sessions and it takes forever to finish a campaign. We have skirmish every week and tournaments on the weekend, our community doesn't need more skirmish.

I have not tried this. Balance is a razors edge in this game, so its hard to eyeball stuff. Most of the skirmish level heroes are only worth about 5 points, so they are gonna get wrecked pretty quick.

Personally, I would consider letting them play a regular hero and just adding a flat +2 to the campaign threat level across the board as a compensator. I have no data to back up the suggestion, just an old GMs gut feeling.

How are you planning on running the carryover? Are the heroes the same every time and the players rotate? How do you handle important decisions that carry over? (item purchases, side mission selection, skill choices?)

You might have to add optional deployments as well. Some missions you can quickly exhaust all your optional deployments, and then all the threat in the world won't help you slow down a fifth hero.

I have not tried this. Balance is a razors edge in this game, so its hard to eyeball stuff. Most of the skirmish level heroes are only worth about 5 points, so they are gonna get wrecked pretty quick.

Personally, I would consider letting them play a regular hero and just adding a flat +2 to the campaign threat level across the board as a compensator. I have no data to back up the suggestion, just an old GMs gut feeling.

How are you planning on running the carryover? Are the heroes the same every time and the players rotate? How do you handle important decisions that carry over? (item purchases, side mission selection, skill choices?)

You might have to add optional deployments as well. Some missions you can quickly exhaust all your optional deployments, and then all the threat in the world won't help you slow down a fifth hero.

If there is a conversion like that, then its simply a matter of having the hero deploy as a sliding-scale ally with appropriate value based on power, and follow the established Ally rules.

I'll look at this tonight when I get home as well.

Will have to take into consideration credit spending values as well.