Best pilot card in each faction with no modifications ?

By Lazyshisno, in X-Wing

Just as the title says, I am looking to get opinions on the best pilot card in each faction for the points spent with no additional points. (This is also taking into consideration the movement dial options associated with the pilot) I realize that best is a relative term, but I am leaving it open to individual play styles.

please and thank you

-Shisno

Scum: Imo Dengar. Boba is good here too, as well as talonbane cobra.

Rebel: Wedge? Don't play rebels much.

Inperial: Tough one, but Vader comes to mind. Inquistor good too, and I'm sure there are others

so...you mean no "upgrades" right? because modifications are a very specific upgrade-type that many pilots can actually do well without

and the answer is probably the Tie Fighter, specifically the Academy Tie. If you can add Howlrunner with no upgrades, so much the better, otherwise just run 8 of them

with no upgrades, you're basically just looking at raw cost efficiency and the tie fighter is the gold standard

then it's z-95s over in rebel and crappier z-95s over in scum, but the Special-Ks at least have a PS 2 to beat out Ties and match Zs

Edited by ficklegreendice

Although I don't often play Rebels, I'd have to say that the B-wing is a tank. It would brawl with the best of them if you played a game with no additional cards.

so...you mean no "upgrades" right? because modifications are a very specific upgrade-type that many pilots can actually do well without

and the answer is probably the Tie Fighter, specifically the Academy Tie. If you can add Howlrunner with no upgrades, so much the better, otherwise just run 8 of them

with no upgrades, you're basically just looking at raw cost efficiency and the tie fighter is the gold standard

then it's z-95s over in rebel and crappier z-95s over in scum, but the Special-Ks at least have a PS 2 to beat out Ties and match Zs

yes, thank you. no additional upgrades.. or extra cards :-)

Empire: If we're talking about the pilot by themselves, Backstabber is a great Interceptor-Lite for a mere 16pts. No upgrade required. If we're talking about building a list with this card in mind, Howlrunner, as previously recognized in this thread.

Rebels: Biggs. No one would ever run him naked, because IA and the damage soaking droid give him so much more value for a single point, but before IA existed, Biggs could still see play naked because of how solid his ability is. Don't waste additionally points on upgrades, 'cause he was born to die anyway. Gonna give an honorable mention to the rarely seen Zeb in an Attack Shuttle. 3 attack dice and re-positioning tool at PS3 for a mere 18pts is not to be ignored. It's not the best thing ever, but as naked ships go, Zeb gives you a lot of bang for your buck.

Scum: Not really many scum ships that are worth their points naked. I guess if I were told that I HAD to fly one Scum ship naked, it'd be a YV-666. The large base makes it useful for blocking, the body is bulky enough to take some damage, and the three attack dice make it a semi-reasonable threat for 29pts. Obviously it's a zillion times better with 5 points worth of crew, but it still might be the best value as far as naked scum ships go. Honorable mention to a naked Contracted Scout as a blocker against aces and a low damage plinker vs. low agility ships like Decimators and Ghosts. (If you're wondering about K-Fighters and Z-95s, I think they're so poor in the current meta that I'd opt for naked YV-666s and Scouts over them, in terms of value per point).

Edited by CBMarkham

Scum: Guri is solid, action efficient and only needs to be in range 1, ship by itself is a bit over expensive but it holds together. N'dru is pretty self sufficient too for her points.

Rebels: Keyan Farlander can move red and just use it to attack harder, not a bad pilot at all. Same with Ezra in an attack shuttle and Wes in an Xwing, all great pilots.

Imps: Carnor is annoying regardless of upgrades and Vessery rocks everyone's socks. HARD.

Assuming you mean naked, there are two schools of thought: efficiency v potency. The Academy Pilot wins the first almost certainly, while the second is a hugely variable set that changes drastically based on taste and circumstance.

Assuming you mean naked, there are two schools of thought: efficiency v potency. The Academy Pilot wins the first almost certainly, while the second is a hugely variable set that changes drastically based on taste and circumstance.

I am looking more for potency

Assuming you mean naked, there are two schools of thought: efficiency v potency. The Academy Pilot wins the first almost certainly, while the second is a hugely variable set that changes drastically based on taste and circumstance.

i dont really want to break it into sub categories, but ill take any 3 pilots with any justification that works for you.

Such a subjective question, I find it hard you'll get a satisfactory answer here. There's the matter if the rest of the squad is also naked, how many points are acceptable into your naked choice, synergy with a specific mindset, etc...

But...

Rebels: Biggs Darklighter

Even naked, he can be the backbone of any squad worth its salt. Of course, for one extra point (and two cards), he's extra solid. So there you have it.

Imperials: Academy Pilot

8 of these completely naked are still the base of a swarm archetype, although not the most efficient one right now. Trouble is, by itself, it doesn't accomplish much. For that matter, "Wampa" is always flown naked and, given the proper squad, is highly efficient.

Scum: N'Dru Suhlak / IG88-C

Hard to decide here. N'Dru doesn't really need anything to work efficiently, but is highly dependent on squad composition (mainly being able to be left alone). For 17 pts, you get a cheaper X-Wing with one less shield (the same 4 pts a Shield Upgrade costs). IG-C flies a marvelous ship and has a sustainable effect but high-cost/large-base presents its own set of problems.