I have a challenge for anyone who is interested. Develop a rebel build that can field four or five named pilots with fantastic pilot abilities that keep your opponent from hitting you or evading your attacks. It would be nice to also have the room for upgrades like Juke, Crack Shot, or Electronic Jammer. Finally, try to keep it under 100 points for a possible initiative bid. Can you make one of those? Yeah, neither can I.

This game is getting less fun as each new expansion rolls out. The Gozanti expansion released several new TIE pilots with magical powers that seem to make them bullet proof as well as experts marksmen. The upcoming Imperial Veterans expansion gives ridiculous titles to ships that are already overpowered. The Imperial Raider expansion gave the TIE Advanced the ability to add an automatic critical hit in addition to its primary attack. What Rebel upgrade has an equivalent answer to that? There isn't one. The Imperial side can easily field five or six named pilots with a few upgrades and still have room to spare.

The Imperial side isn't the only one that has received undue favor. Just look at the scum side. What Rebel pilot has the equivalent of changing a crit into two hits like Bossk? This gives Bossk the ability to one-shot an A-Wing even if the A-Wing rolls three evades. Compare Kavil to Horton Salm. Horton can reroll blank dice at range two or three, but Kavil can fire an extra die outside of his arc. An extra die gives more chances for a hit than does a reroll, especially if Kavil already has a target lock. Furthermore, Kavil can take an EPT, but Horton cannot without spending extra points for a droid. This is in spite of the fact that Horton's PS is 8, while Kavil's is only 7.

Let's talk TIEs, Sycks, and Z-95s. TIEs can take a 1 point mod upgrade to make all bank maneuvers green, while the Sycks can take a 0 point title to equip an HLC or Mangler Cannon. What can the Zs do? Maybe take a Munitions Failsafe, but only if the list has enough points for a missile.

What about the latest wave? The VCX-100 is certainly one of the best Rebel ships yet released. But it is also one of the most expensive, in more ways than one. Hera comes in at 40 points, but she only has a PS of 7. Furthermore, an EPT is not offered as an upgrade on the VCX or the shuttle for any pilot. The Inquisitor comes in at only 25 points, PS 8, with an available EPT, plus he can fire a range one shot out to range three while at the same time negating range agility bonus and autothrusters. What Rebel pilot can do that? Meanwhile, Dengar is a PS 9 with an EPT slot and can also take one of those ridiculous Illicit upgrades. I could go on.

The game has gotten to the point where you must take named pilots to counteract the shenanigans that your opponent's pilots can throw at you. This is fine for Imperials and somewhat for Scum. But the Rebel faction is simply too expensive to field all named pilots, unless you only take three ships, which usually loses to a swarm of five or six named TIE pilots.

The only way I can see for Rebel player to cope with this meta is to take as many low skilled pilots as possible and try to get some dice through, or take three named named pilots and hope that the list doesn't fall apart. Either way, it is not an effective answer to the meta in the Imperial or Scum factions. I understand that the Rebels are supposed to be a bit tankier than other factions. That's fine. The problem is that the Imperial and Scum factions have received pilots and ships that effectively counteract the inherent advantages of the Rebels, while the Rebels have received a mere pittance in return.

It seems to me that FFG is causing that galaxy far, far away to fall into Imperial and Scum hands.

just to warn u u have some things wrong in your post ill name a few.

1-boosk cant one shot an a-wing that gets 3 evades 4 attack dice minus 3 make it one then boosk changes that one to two damage thats only two shields. not a one shot a-wing

2- the sycks title is 2pts

3-3 of the 4 shuttle pilots have EPTs and its a good thing the vcx-100 dosent have an ept or it would be op. (think most people can agree on that one)

u must not play rebels a whole lot cause didnt they get 1st and 2nd in last years worlds? dont think there doing as bad as u think. just cause u cant take 5-6 named pilots dosent mean the games broken or no fun play epic? rebel ships are better then imperial stat wise thats why there more points.

think u should step back and relook at the game and u might find it really not as bad as u think stay away from the sky is falling thinking and u will be fine.

so i cant take you serious cause u dont read the cards or even look on a list builder or u would know some of the basics of each ships.

Ii feel your pain, I do, but you have to remember this game thrives on being that farm boy barreling down the trench, the bounty hunter lurking in the trash, the wingman of the dark lord. Generic pilots are, well, generic. We have the named pilots and their ridiculous skills precisely because they are powerful and they do extraordinary things. Can we find a balance? That is where skill, blind luck, and the fun comes in. Anything else and you.might as well pick up a controller and connect online. Then you only have a xouple of weapons to choose from. Maybe you won't find a poque that is cheating. But I doubt it. Seriously, I get it. Try objectives for a bit. Maybe build a trench run or escort some transports. Maybe that will liven up the cockpit for you.

I'm not sure how Mango Bossk one-shots an A-Wing through three evades given that he generates a maximum of two crits and two hits. One crit and two hits are cancled, leaving a single crit to splash off a shield. Sans mango at range one a perfect four crit roll still doesn't do it, although it takes off both shields rather than just one.

I think you are biased and overreacting.

If you honestly think that Defenders and Bombers are op at present,you might even be delusional.

Besiddes Rebels do more than ok at tournaments.

Yeah totally Rebels have it the worst! Just ask Paul Heaver. He'll be happy to tell you all about how crappy 4-ship Rebel builds are.

You seem to have blinders on for all of the things that Rebels have going for them that the other factions would love to have in their toolbox. You should probably switch things up for a little while and I think you'll either find that you have been taking for granted what Rebels have access to or you'll find that playing Rebels isn't really your bag becuase you'd really rather have the toys that one of the other factions get.

Rebels have the best options for regen in the game, they have the most ways to deal double stress, they have more ways to grant actions, they can do extra damage with bombs, and they've got more options for PWTs and secondary Turret Carriers than any of the other factions do.

I've gone through similar reactionary pains myself, so I empathize.

But the topic is misleading; it should be "Game balance is turning against Rebels" not "The game isn't fun any more". And you're asking for 4+ named Rebel pilots with ace level ability in one squad, which has never at ANY point been possible.

I feel like it was just yesterday that the prevailing vintage of whine was "Rebels have all the tools" (tourney data still indicates heavy Rebel slant btw). Imperials needed a bump at the times you're referencing, and Scum even more so.

Sometimes your favorite toys get relatively weakened, and you just have to adapt. Texx suffered through Waves 4 and 6 (Whisper and IG-88 are murder on TIEs), but I think he did okay (understatement) through those environments.

I'm not sure how Mango Bossk one-shots an A-Wing through three evades given that he generates a maximum of two crits and two hits. One crit and two hits are cancled, leaving a single crit to splash off a shield. Sans mango at range one a perfect four crit roll still doesn't do it, although it takes off both shields rather than just one.

Not even that. You don't get to change a crit to 2 hits until after you actually HIT with the attack. 3 crits on a mangler (or 2 hits and a crit), against 3 evades ont he evade dice means the attack misses and does 0 damage.

I feel like this is a troll thread.

I feel like this is a troll thread.

I feel you are correct.

Everyone, can we just let this idiotic thread die the ignominious death it deserves?

After looking through the OPs post history, he does have a habit of complaining about a lack of Rebel stuff. But I'd suggest he actually try the new stuff we just received before complaining about it.

Just leave the 100 point tournament snoozefest behind. I find the game much more enjoyable at 150 points, and doubly so when we incorporate objectives other than "kill the other guy".

Experiment with some different point values, try some of the scenarios included in the larger ships, play HotAC, and remember that tournament games are only one small facet of the game.

Rebels have just got two great new ships in wave 8, where absolutely none of the pilots are in the "Won't ever use" pile.

In wave 7, they got a great new ship with both great generics and unique pilots, that made to the top 4 in Worlds and are seen continuously in tournaments.

In The Force Awakes wave, they got another great ship with great unique pilots like Poe Dameron or Red Ace.

The theme with Rebels is that they always fly outnumbered (as opposed to the Empire), with tankier ships.

You are basically complaining about unique pilots and ships that came out in the first 3 waves of the game, before the designers had got enough experience balancing everything out. So your topic's title should be more like "The game didn't use to be fun before" from your Rebel standpoint.

just to warn u u have some things wrong in your post ill name a few.

1-boosk cant one shot an a-wing that gets 3 evades 4 attack dice minus 3 make it one then boosk changes that one to two damage thats only two shields. not a one shot a-wing

2- the sycks title is 2pts

3-3 of the 4 shuttle pilots have EPTs and its a good thing the vcx-100 dosent have an ept or it would be op. (think most people can agree on that one)

u must not play rebels a whole lot cause didnt they get 1st and 2nd in last years worlds? dont think there doing as bad as u think. just cause u cant take 5-6 named pilots dosent mean the games broken or no fun play epic? rebel ships are better then imperial stat wise thats why there more points.

think u should step back and relook at the game and u might find it really not as bad as u think stay away from the sky is falling thinking and u will be fine.

so i cant take you serious cause u dont read the cards or even look on a list builder or u would know some of the basics of each ships.

You are correct, Scyk titles are 2 points. Still it's pretty cheap upgrade for some powerful weapons, especially on a cheap ship. The shuttle can take an EPT for three of the four pilots. If Bossk rolls four crits at range one, he can turn that into 8 hits. With three eveades, its still enough to one shot an A-wing with one hit to spare.

I usually do play Rebels, thank you for asking. Which is why I'm posting this because the Rebel faction is severely disadvantaged.

After looking through the OPs post history, he does have a habit of complaining about a lack of Rebel stuff. But I'd suggest he actually try the new stuff we just received before complaining about it.

I have tried the new stuff and found the Rebels wanting.

Lets see we got Soontir, Dart Vader, and Emperor Palpatine. But yeah the whole point is that 5 named pilots is too expensive. In the lore of plot armor it is the few named pilots that take on the masses of unnamed pilots. If you want more named pilots than play epic or escalation.

THERE WAS NEVER A LIST WITH 5 UNIQUE PILOTS THAT IS LESS THAN 100 SQUADRON POINTS!

(exception being named TIE Swarm but most players just go for the generic 7-8 unnamed pilot mass)

Yes, Scum and Imperials can do stuff, Rebels can't. And that's fine! That's even the whole idea about the game. How boring would it be if every faction would play the same?

And if anyone can complain, it's Scum and Imperials. I just say: Stresshog!

If Bossk rolls four crits at range one, he can turn that into 8 hits. With three eveades, its still enough to one shot an A-wing with one hit to spare.

Err... no. You are totally reading that card wrong, mate.

Bossk can turn ONE crit into two hits after the Compare Results steps. That means that 3 Evades from the A-Wing will cancel out the three crits from Bossk, and Bossk will have no crit to work with after the Compare Results step. He will deal 0 damage.

If Bossk still got 3 crits and the A-Wing got 2 evades, Bossk could turn the uncancelled crit into two hits, and remove the shields off the A-Wing.

If Bossk still got 3 crits and the A-Wing got just 1 evade. Then Bossk could turn ONE of the crits (not both of them) into two hits, dealing 2 damage and 1 critical damage to the A-Wing, potentially killing it if it comes a Direct Hit.

Now, all of this is assuming that Bossk happily gets 3 crits on a roll. The chance of that is lower than 0.2%.

Just leave the 100 point tournament snoozefest behind. I find the game much more enjoyable at 150 points, and doubly so when we incorporate objectives other than "kill the other guy".

Experiment with some different point values, try some of the scenarios included in the larger ships, play HotAC, and remember that tournament games are only one small facet of the game.

That might be useful, but where can I find players that play at 150 points? Not in my area anyway.

I'm not sure how Mango Bossk one-shots an A-Wing through three evades given that he generates a maximum of two crits and two hits. One crit and two hits are cancled, leaving a single crit to splash off a shield. Sans mango at range one a perfect four crit roll still doesn't do it, although it takes off both shields rather than just one.

Not even that. You don't get to change a crit to 2 hits until after you actually HIT with the attack. 3 crits on a mangler (or 2 hits and a crit), against 3 evades ont he evade dice means the attack misses and does 0 damage.

No Bossk changes the crits to hits before they are ever canceled. I've lost quite a few ships to Bossk that way.

I'm not sure how Mango Bossk one-shots an A-Wing through three evades given that he generates a maximum of two crits and two hits. One crit and two hits are cancled, leaving a single crit to splash off a shield. Sans mango at range one a perfect four crit roll still doesn't do it, although it takes off both shields rather than just one.

Not even that. You don't get to change a crit to 2 hits until after you actually HIT with the attack. 3 crits on a mangler (or 2 hits and a crit), against 3 evades ont he evade dice means the attack misses and does 0 damage.

No Bossk changes the crits to hits before they are ever canceled. I've lost quite a few ships to Bossk that way.

No. The card says before dealing damage.

Combat Phase:

Step 6: Compare Results (where results cancel each other)

Step 7: Deal Damage (when damage is actually dealt)

Bossk worsk between steps 6 and 7, when results have been already cancelled.

Whats that, a rebel whining thread? Have we gone full circle?

Play the other factions a bit and your view will become a bit more differentiated. No one would ever quote the Scyck as an advantage scum has over rebels if they have played it, for example. Sticking to one faction in theory is absolutely fine, but it makes it harder to talk about the game state as a whole in my opinion.

I'm not sure how Mango Bossk one-shots an A-Wing through three evades given that he generates a maximum of two crits and two hits. One crit and two hits are cancled, leaving a single crit to splash off a shield. Sans mango at range one a perfect four crit roll still doesn't do it, although it takes off both shields rather than just one.

Not even that. You don't get to change a crit to 2 hits until after you actually HIT with the attack. 3 crits on a mangler (or 2 hits and a crit), against 3 evades ont he evade dice means the attack misses and does 0 damage.

No Bossk changes the crits to hits before they are ever canceled. I've lost quite a few ships to Bossk that way.

It seems that you are doing it wrong, do as the card says:

When you perform an attack that hits, before dealing damage,

That is AFTER the defender did roll his dice, after the dice modification of both players, right before you would actually deal damage you may trade one crit for hits with a 1 for 2 ratio. You only hit if you have more hit/crits than your enemy has evades. It does not get more clear than that.

If Bossk rolls four crits at range one, he can turn that into 8 hits. With three eveades, its still enough to one shot an A-wing with one hit to spare.

Err... no. You are totally reading that card wrong, mate.

Bossk can turn ONE crit into two hits after the Compare Results steps. That means that 3 Evades from the A-Wing will cancel out the three crits from Bossk, and Bossk will have no crit to work with after the Compare Results step. He will deal 0 damage.

If Bossk still got 3 crits and the A-Wing got 2 evades, Bossk could turn the uncancelled crit into two hits, and remove the shields off the A-Wing.

If Bossk still got 3 crits and the A-Wing got just 1 evade. Then Bossk could turn ONE of the crits (not both of them) into two hits, dealing 2 damage and 1 critical damage to the A-Wing, potentially killing it if it comes a Direct Hit.

Now, all of this is assuming that Bossk happily gets 3 crits on a roll. The chance of that is lower than 0.2%.

Are you kidding me? In that case, I've been cheated again. That's now the third time I was lied to in a game (several games actually) over an ability. I've lost ships to Bossk more than once because all crits were changed to hits instead of just one. I guess that serves me right for not knowing the rules, but I hate being cheated against. But thanks for letting me know.