So, this is something of a rant and something of a plea for help.

I'm an experienced war-gamer. I've played a lot of different games, most of them historical, and done well. I feel like I have a solid grip on tactics and strategy. I went into X-Wing thinking this would be the case. A new medium to explore. Challenging in some ways, sure, but eventually my experience would win out and I would begin experiencing victories.

I was wrong.

The first, and most obvious, detriment to my game is that my local meta is a group of absolute cutthroat, hyper-competitive players. That's ok. I'm hyper-competitive and cutthroat too. BUT these guys have all been playing each other practically every weekend (there's almost always a store championship, etc. given the number of hobby stores within an hours drive of me) and these guys are always playing against each other. This year, it's been the same 5-6 people in the top 5 of almost every tournament.

They've all got large collections, a few years of experience (I've only been playing for about 8 months), and all know each others play styles very well. A lot of them won't even play me casually BECAUSE they don't know me, but they see my small collection and just aren't interested. I simply don't offer them a challenge.

I've tried getting out of the game and selling my collection but that has been a complete bust and I've been told by multiple people that I might as well just list the lot on eBay for $0.99 and be happy with anything that I get, since apparently everyone has this stuff. I've tried my hand at local tournaments and my record is abysmal. Out of some 25-26 games, I've won 4 in tournaments. I've won a few casual play games against a few friends, but they were against either other new players like myself or "experimental" lists.

So, since I can't get my money's worth out of it, I'm going to try to find a way to win. However, I work 40hrs a week, go to school, and have family responsibilities, so my free time is valuable and I can't always find a willing opponent in the local community.

That's why I'm here. Are there any ways you helpful people of the Internet can suggest to me to help improve my skills without having a flesh-and-blood opponent sitting in front of me?

Are there any articles or treatises worth reading? An online simulator that is reliable? I want to find a way to win, because as much as I love Star Wars, unless I can find a way to win, I'm not enjoying this game.

Thanks for listening to the rant. Now, my mind is clear. This padawan is ready to learn.

http://xws-bench.github.io/bench/#

Enjoy.

Vassal will probably get mentioned before I hit post. I've only used it once or twice, but people seemed helpful and up for more casual games.

If you'd like to X-Wing from home, Vassal seems like a good thing to get into. It's a tabletop game simulator. You download one program and then download a different module for each game. There is an X-Wing module that is very good and used a lot.

I'd also suggest perusing the links in the pinned thread at the top of the X-Wing forums here titled "Index of Useful Links" or something like that. There is soooo much good information there.

They've all got large collections, a few years of experience (I've only been playing for about 8 months), and all know each others play styles very well. A lot of them won't even play me casually BECAUSE they don't know me, but they see my small collection and just aren't interested. I simply don't offer them a challenge.

To me, this doesn't say you've a problem; but rather this group are a problem. What sort of gaming group doesn't welcome new people, or look to given them games to help them improve? There's competitive; then there's being a pack of ****** bags.

Is there another gaming group you could consider? You know; one that has decent people keen to expand and welcome others to the game?

To answer your thread title: You don't suck; the gaming group your trying to engage with suck.

Side note: sounds like you have a very sh*tty group of people who aren't very fly-casual. That's sad, as it doesn't create a good environment for people like yourself trying to learn, and turns players away from the game.

There are many ways to play X wing. There are those who play hyper-competitive tournament style and like it. This is not for me. Casual X wing is amazingly fun. I suggest you look for another group of people to play. As an ex-wargamer myself, I was amazed at HOW MANY people play X-wing. In my local market its easily 5 times as many X-wing players as Wargamers. Where a Warhammer or Warmarchine tournament may have 20 people, an Xwing tournament has 100. Find new players. Have a good time.

Without knowing what lists you run and what your favored playstyle is, it is literally impossible to diagnose the possible issues.

What lists do you run? Brobots? Palp Aces? Chihuahuas? Or do you need to fly something off the wall like four hawks? Do you like arc dodging or jousting?

Once you give us a bit more on list preference, we can help you build a list to match your skill set and minimize your weaknesses.

Even then, depending on your area, it might be hard to win regularly. There are a lot of great players out there. But I think getting your style discovered and then picking a list to match is the right place to start.

There are many ways to play X wing. There are those who play hyper-competitive tournament style and like it. This is not for me. Casual X wing is amazingly fun. I suggest you look for another group of people to play. As an ex-wargamer myself, I was amazed at HOW MANY people play X-wing. In my local market its easily 5 times as many X-wing players as Wargamers. Where a Warhammer or Warmarchine tournament may have 20 people, an Xwing tournament has 100. Find new players. Have a good time.

I am jealous.

Granted, I live in a somewhat small town, and my FLGS is a small shop, but I know for a fact that there are plenty of people here who buy X-Wing stuff from the FLGS. The stuff sells there, and quite well. But we can never get people to come out to play. It's gotten even worse since two of the most prominent players (one of them a good buddy of mine) moved away in the past couple months. Whereas other games like Warhammer or Heroclix have tons of people showing up, every week .

So, this is something of a rant and something of a plea for help.

I'm an experienced war-gamer. I've played a lot of different games, most of them historical, and done well. I feel like I have a solid grip on tactics and strategy. I went into X-Wing thinking this would be the case. A new medium to explore. Challenging in some ways, sure, but eventually my experience would win out and I would begin experiencing victories.

I was wrong.

The first, and most obvious, detriment to my game is that my local meta is a group of absolute cutthroat, hyper-competitive players. That's ok. I'm hyper-competitive and cutthroat too. BUT these guys have all been playing each other practically every weekend (there's almost always a store championship, etc. given the number of hobby stores within an hours drive of me) and these guys are always playing against each other. This year, it's been the same 5-6 people in the top 5 of almost every tournament.

They've all got large collections, a few years of experience (I've only been playing for about 8 months), and all know each others play styles very well. A lot of them won't even play me casually BECAUSE they don't know me, but they see my small collection and just aren't interested. I simply don't offer them a challenge.

I've tried getting out of the game and selling my collection but that has been a complete bust and I've been told by multiple people that I might as well just list the lot on eBay for $0.99 and be happy with anything that I get, since apparently everyone has this stuff. I've tried my hand at local tournaments and my record is abysmal. Out of some 25-26 games, I've won 4 in tournaments. I've won a few casual play games against a few friends, but they were against either other new players like myself or "experimental" lists.

So, since I can't get my money's worth out of it, I'm going to try to find a way to win. However, I work 40hrs a week, go to school, and have family responsibilities, so my free time is valuable and I can't always find a willing opponent in the local community.

That's why I'm here. Are there any ways you helpful people of the Internet can suggest to me to help improve my skills without having a flesh-and-blood opponent sitting in front of me?

Are there any articles or treatises worth reading? An online simulator that is reliable? I want to find a way to win, because as much as I love Star Wars, unless I can find a way to win, I'm not enjoying this game.

Thanks for listening to the rant. Now, my mind is clear. This padawan is ready to learn.

Because it doesn't really matter how good you are with certain lists, if they can't handle something like Palp Aces or Dengaroo or triple U-Boat you're just going to automatically lose every game.

If the problem is that you're just losing because they have better lists than you, I'm going to give you 3 options for competitive lists, and these lists are also fun to fly:

1.) OGP with Palpatine, FCS

Colonel Vessery with Juke, x7, Stealth Device

Inquisitor with PtL, V1, Autothrusters

2.) IG-88B & D, each with Attanni Mindlink, FCS, HLC, Feedback Array, Autothrusters, IG-2000

3.) Manaroo with PtL, Unhinged Astromech, Engine Upgrade, Gonk, Feedback Array

Dengar with Deadeye, Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Extra Munitions, Zuckuss, Inertial Dampeners, Countermeasures, Overclocked R4.

These squads are pretty powerful and aren't that hard to use.

Your local group could very well be assholes, IDK. That says nothing about the OP's skill level, it's possible he could actually suck at the game while his group could simultaneously be assholes. Just because you're mean, doesn't mean you're wrong.

I think it's more likely that you're just being out-power-listed and that you're getting the wrong impression from that that you're bad at the game. There are players in my area that would equal or exceed my skill at the game if we did a BBBBZ ditto match for example, that I beat anyways because I out-power-listed them with Dengaroo or whatever and they're flying a lesser build.

I find that listening to some of the many great X-wing podcasts help keep you semi-competitive even if you don't often have time to play. While there is no substitute for actual games, being well versed in current meta strategies can make a world of difference. Also, I would recommend seeing if you can drum up some interest in Heroes of the Aturi Cluster. It is a casual format that many competitive players still enjoy.

I have been playing for 2 years, and have won exactly once. This game has a very steep learning curve, IMHO, at least to play well. Luckily for me, I can play and have fun without winning, which is why I probably don't to tournaments, and always play Epic.

Unfortunately, game stores filled with a bunch of arrogant jerks is a separate problem altogether.

Where do you live?!

Curious about your geographic location but don't want to "out" you lol

I'd say step 1 is to find a better local group. I play with some people that play a LOT, and some of them are pretty decent. Plenty of tournament action to be had in the area. But we all make sure we're playing for fun first (ok, simultaneously playing to win, because winning is fun). As a player who came into the game around Wave 6 1/2, it is pretty intimidating not having all the ships/cards/options, not knowing all the rules AND the errata/faq. I'm still learning things, especially what other ships "do". One thing that helped me accelerate my curve immensely (no, i'm not a paid spokesperson) was the dial upgrades. Sticking to 2-3 ship lists meant I had less to worry about in any given game, and the dial upgrades meant that I could see all the maneuvers that the ships could perform when it came time to select a maneuver. My skill in Spacefighting grew in leaps and bounds after picking some of them up.

So, this is something of a rant and something of a plea for help.

I'm an experienced war-gamer. I've played a lot of different games, most of them historical, and done well. I feel like I have a solid grip on tactics and strategy. I went into X-Wing thinking this would be the case. A new medium to explore. Challenging in some ways, sure, but eventually my experience would win out and I would begin experiencing victories.

I was wrong.

The first, and most obvious, detriment to my game is that my local meta is a group of absolute cutthroat, hyper-competitive players. That's ok. I'm hyper-competitive and cutthroat too. BUT these guys have all been playing each other practically every weekend (there's almost always a store championship, etc. given the number of hobby stores within an hours drive of me) and these guys are always playing against each other. This year, it's been the same 5-6 people in the top 5 of almost every tournament.

They've all got large collections, a few years of experience (I've only been playing for about 8 months), and all know each others play styles very well. A lot of them won't even play me casually BECAUSE they don't know me, but they see my small collection and just aren't interested. I simply don't offer them a challenge.

I've tried getting out of the game and selling my collection but that has been a complete bust and I've been told by multiple people that I might as well just list the lot on eBay for $0.99 and be happy with anything that I get, since apparently everyone has this stuff. I've tried my hand at local tournaments and my record is abysmal. Out of some 25-26 games, I've won 4 in tournaments. I've won a few casual play games against a few friends, but they were against either other new players like myself or "experimental" lists.

So, since I can't get my money's worth out of it, I'm going to try to find a way to win. However, I work 40hrs a week, go to school, and have family responsibilities, so my free time is valuable and I can't always find a willing opponent in the local community.

That's why I'm here. Are there any ways you helpful people of the Internet can suggest to me to help improve my skills without having a flesh-and-blood opponent sitting in front of me?

Are there any articles or treatises worth reading? An online simulator that is reliable? I want to find a way to win, because as much as I love Star Wars, unless I can find a way to win, I'm not enjoying this game.

Thanks for listening to the rant. Now, my mind is clear. This padawan is ready to learn.

Because it doesn't really matter how good you are with certain lists, if they can't handle something like Palp Aces or Dengaroo or triple U-Boat you're just going to automatically lose every game.

If the problem is that you're just losing because they have better lists than you, I'm going to give you 3 options for competitive lists, and these lists are also fun to fly:

And, BTW, this is one of the biggest problems with this game. If you play vs. Meta, you'd better fly Meta or you lose. No creativity, no diversity. Fly Meta or die. And if you hate to lose, there is nothing else to do about it.

Sucks the local group doesn't welcome new players. Just keep playing and your flying will get better. We have some top players and getting my butt whooped just makes me better. I dont get frustrated when they outmaneuver me, I pay attention and learn. "Am I that predictable?" "Why did he risk moving over an asteroid at that point in time?" etc. etc.

When I first started I watched a bunch of youtube videos and tried to predict what moves the players would do. Helps alot, seeing what other players will do/have done, what targets they set as priority, how they setup ships, do they slow play or speed out. Find videos of lists you fly to learn strategy, or videos of lists you have a hard time with and see how other players handle them.

I just started playing on Vassal. It's not a substitute for the real thing but it does teach you strengths and weaknesses of lists, and really helps in your first few opening rounds which are critical to success. Keeping the range you want is really important and Vassal helps in that regard.

The reason a lot of us play this game is we love War gaming and we love star wars. A lot of us have come from GW games after they did their best to destroy that genre. I have played in 2 store championships for X wing, been playing for about 9 months. Finished 3rd out of 12 and 10th out of 14. Not a big group here. But I have been playing War Games for over 25 years and have a good grasp on strategy etc. some things just don't roll over IE flying with the templates. I was an asteroid magnet when I first started, now I am a lot better at avoiding them and that's just practice. I have gone ultra nerd sometimes when I am by myself and put out 6 obstacles and give myself a route to fly around. If I touch a rock I reset. Extremely nerdy, but it has helped a lot.

As to your playing group, I would say F*** those guys off and find somewhere else. Guys I have started playing against now have finished high in regionals etc but they are always willing to teach and pass on knowledge. Plus when you get some experience up you might come across these elitist F***s and hand them a new ***.

Good luck. Thus game is about experience more than most. Some people just know where they will be after a 3 bank, the rule of 11 and what move they need to be to get into effective range to unleash the ordnance. Plus list synergy. I can't say that enough. If the list you're running doesn't work well together, that just makes winning all the harder.

Hopefully not TL;DR...

Play against yourself. It helps with fundamentals, it helps design an opening, and it helps recognize good and bad tactical situations a turn or two in advance.

Vassal is great for practice at how lists fly and work. It doesnt help as much for jusding maneuvers on the table, but you can practice that by putting iut a mat with a bunch of asteroids and practicing flying through it.

This topic is a HeyChadwick special, lol.

Vassal is great, but I would suggest finding a better group, as well. The game is meant to be fun and enhance all of our love and respect for the genius behind Star Wars.

Fly casual, my friend and have fun!

...I have gone ultra nerd sometimes when I am by myself and put out 6 obstacles and give myself a route to fly around. If I touch a rock I reset. Extremely nerdy, but it has helped a lot.

That's a nifty idea...

...you could set-up satellite check-points interspersed with obstacles and see how few rounds it takes to complete the course - sort of like a Red Bull aerial race.

Your move template or base must overlap a check-point before you can move onto the next one. If you clip an obstacle, whack yourself with an ion counter in the form of a penalty... less clipping = faster lap-time.

Hmmm, this could even be a fun competitive race - assume everyone has the same PS, and randomly determine activation order after commands are set. Upgrades can be chosen as normal (in secret) and revealed on deployment, but if two players have the same upgrade they both lose it at the start (to avoid everyone just taking PTL and EU).

Good training for setting up blocks as well - though somewhat more predictable given all heading for the same check-points.

Arguably, without further limitation, there wouldn't be much diversity (only 5 straight capable ships?) but you could play with "Speed divisions"... a 5-or-lower race, a 4-or-lower race, etc etc... you never know, someone might think a 4+boost better than a 5-without-boost (if EU too risky to take due to cancellation of duplicates).

Oh, and size divisions... small vs large might be bit tricky... but then again, larger foot-print leads to more clipping which offsets the greater blocking potential a the base-length speed-benefit.

Majorly sounds like you are in a terrible sisutation just because the group that plays near you are filled with A-holes.

I truly am sorry, I see you are from Florida, if you ever find your way by New Orleans, look me up or drop me a line. I'd love to play you. and I too am a historical and other wargamer before I started Xwing.

I wish you luck.

Play more, get good, smack their arses.

Feels good, I'm telling you!

and yes, devise a counter-meta list. Works wonders.
See an Ace-hole filled meta with palp in every other list and rebel regenners in the rest?

Take U666U and whack their arses!

Play more, get good, smack their arses.

Feels good, I'm telling you!

and yes, devise a counter-meta list. Works wonders.

See an Ace-hole filled meta with palp in every other list and rebel regenners in the rest?

Take U666U and whack their arses!

Will they overspend tokens in order to cancel Crackshot?

How will they respond to your fortress?

Will they shoot Dengar and give him an (Advanced Proton Torpedoes) attack, or will they give up a range 1 shot?

Watching people consent to take a second fully modified Advanced Proton Torpedo and annihilate their own ship does not get old.

...I have gone ultra nerd sometimes when I am by myself and put out 6 obstacles and give myself a route to fly around. If I touch a rock I reset. Extremely nerdy, but it has helped a lot.

That's a nifty idea...

...you could set-up satellite check-points interspersed with obstacles and see how few rounds it takes to complete the course - sort of like a Red Bull aerial race....

OT, but have a look at: https://community.fantasyflightgames.com/topic/110638-vidla-crucible-a-space-race-scenario/

...only managed to play it once so far.

Been wondering about getting some of the pod-race and speeder models to try with similar courses