First off I apologize how crude this list and/or explanation is, I am brand new to this game. I have spent some time researching lists, watching youtube videos and playing around with the core game to begin learning and understanding the game. I have a basic understand of how the game operates. Having played both IA and the RPG the dice system is very simple and a lot of the key terms are similar. I've got a casual quarterly kit tournament coming up at my LGS in a few weeks so I still have more time to learn. I want to build a list that is competitive but affordable and most importantly - really simple so that I can use this as a learning experience. My goal is to keep it under $100 Canadian ($77 American). Right now I am at TFA Core = $40, K-Wing = $20 and A-Wing = $15 for $75 US total or $98 Canadian with our horrible health care weighed down taxes taking me to just under $110.

=== Newb ====

Cheap list to learn the game

100 points

Pilots

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Miranda Doni (35) K-Wing (29), Twin Laser Turret (6)

Poe Dameron (PS8 Version) (38) T-70 X-Wing (31), BB-8 (2), Weapons Guidance (2), Push the Limit (3)

Tycho Celchu (27) A-Wing (26), Wired (1)

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This list only requires me to buy 2 additional ships to my Force Awakens core. From my research it seems like Miranda is a great cheap option in her K-Ship equipped with TLT (seems to be on most Regionals lists I can find) for Rebel pilots. I bought the A-Wing to get Push the Limit for Poe, then had enough points left over to fly a higher skilled pilot with that ship as well. Weapons Guidance on him seems like a bit of a waste though since you generally want to keep that focus for defense, and he attacks first in most cases? Or I guess that is part of the game, figuring out when you need to spend it.. my understanding of this is that since he has the token he can turn one focus icon into a damage, then discard the token to also add a damage through Weapons Guidance, correct? This seemed useful in the right situation to finish off an enemy ship. I think right now my biggest weakness is that Miranda is pretty light on the upgrades and might be a bit of a liability out there for 35 points. Would it be better to drop the A-Wing and Push the Limit and pick up a different pack with more upgrades for both Miranda and Poe?

I don't expect to win this tournament, but I do expect to learn from it. I think I can learn the game just as good with a cheap list as I could if I spent $200-$300 with all these extra add ons that just make things more confusing.. am I wrong?

It's a good place to start. Weapons guidance doesn't do a lot for Poe because his ability works only if he holds onto the focus. Take those two points off and give Tycho push the limit as well (most people will be fine with you only having one copy of it unless it's a tournament. In that case I'm sure someone will let you borrow a copy).

20 minutes ago, FrogTrigger said:

my understanding of this is that since he has the token he can turn one focus icon into a damage, then discard the token to also add a damage through Wired, correct

I'm also not sure you have the right understanding of Wired, which states "when attacking or defending, if you are stressed, you may reroll one or more of your focus results."

that card only applies to Tycho. Poe can't draw off that ability. Poe can keep his focus to turn one focus to a hit. Odds are you won't roll more than one focus on a three-dice roll. If you do, spend the token to turn both (or all three) into hits. Always take the assurance and what will land you the most hits. Also don't forget to add integrated astromech to Poe.

Also proxy chardaan refit for any a-wings, it's a 2 point deduction and most people will let you have it even without the card

7 minutes ago, jwilliamson12 said:

I'm also not sure you have the right understanding of Wired, which states "when attacking or defending, if you are stressed, you may reroll one or more of your focus results."

that card only applies to Tycho. Poe can't draw off that ability. Poe can keep his focus to turn one focus to a hit. Odds are you won't roll more than one focus on a three-dice roll. If you do, spend the token to turn both (or all three) into hits. Always take the assurance and what will land you the most hits. Also don't forget to add integrated astromech to Poe.

Yes sorry I mixed up Wired and Weapons Guidance there.

2 minutes ago, J Viz said:

Also proxy chardaan refit for any a-wings, it's a 2 point deduction and most people will let you have it even without the card

That is a nice upgrade.. this is a quarterly kit with prizes so I am not sure how the playerbase would respond to proxies, but I suppose I could ask the TO ahead of time to make sure, and if that is the case I can get both this and Integrated Astromech added for no extra financial cost.

Thanks for the tips!

Odds are, if this is a casual group, even if it is a 'Tournament" someone would be willing to loan you a few upgrade cards, ask around before hand.

Obviously, play what you are comfortable with, but as a suggestion (if you can get the cards to make it work) I would recommend trying something like this.

Beginner (98)

Miranda Doni (41) - K-Wing

Twin Laser Turret (6), Extra Munitions (2), Concussion Missiles (4)

Poe Dameron (36) - T-70 X-Wing PS8

Push The Limit (3), BB-8 (2), Integrated Astromech (0)

Green Squadron Pilot (21) - A-Wing

Wired (1), Chardaan Refit (-2), A-Wing Test Pilot (0), Push The Limit (3)

So, several factors. 1) on the first pass you can TL and try a 5 dice concussion from Miranda (homing missle for an extra point is better, but you have this one from A-wing) after that try and keep her on the fringe of battle, The TLT is always best if you can keep range 3, makng the opponent chase Miranda is best. 2) use the A to block, wired PTL A is kinda tough to take down and makes for a decent blocker (takes practice to get good at blocking, but start practicing now) 3) Poe should have TL, focus on most turns (unless you boost for position) if you can manage it for consistant damage, he is best if you can use him to flank with all his movement options with this set-up.

GOOD LUCK!! HAVE FUN!!

Oh yeah, if it's a tourney proxies are a no no but most people will have a refit and I'd recommend rebel aces anyway if only for Jake Farrell.

alao not sure if you have clocked this but with PTL BB8 you can reveal a green manoeuvre, barrel roll with BB8 and PTL (let's say for a focus) then execute the green manoeuvre clear the stress and do another action (maybe a TL). It's great fun

First off, welcome to the plastic crack that is X-Wing. This is an appropriate time for chanting from the wings of "One of us!"

As for the list? With the expansions that you have, I'd definitely go with what the others are saying. A cheap A-wing blocker, Miranda with a TlT staying near the fringes, and then keep Poe cheap. Otherwise it makes him a massive target, as he is already very tanky.

But most of all, fly casual, and have fun. Don't expect to win, or even come near placing; just expect to learn and have fun, and if you win something, that's a bonus. And if, as everyone else has said, you ask around the game store between now and the tournament, somebody is bound to be willing to lend you the cards you need.

As said before take it easy. This is a quite big game, many interactions and people with ample experience. X Wing 101 is quite easy to learn. Simply play with sportmanship and good mood. Learn from others players and you will be surprised.

Your list is not bad to start. Be patient and good luck

Awesome thanks for the encouragement, for the record the only thing I actually own right now is the TFA Core, the rest of the list is just me looking at what comes in at a budget price for the most use.. and that seems to be Miranda to a tee, for Rebels anyway. I am hoping to get in a few games before the actual tournament to work out any kinks I have in understanding the rules. So far I have just been practicing with me core and watching youtube videos, lots of great resources out there if not a little over whelming.. thus my cautious approach to list building.

Also, if the list doesn't work, don't give up/abandon it right away. It takes time to fully understand how to fly each ship, and even how you fly them depends on how you have them equipped. The more you fly each ship, the better you will pick up on how to best use them.

13 hours ago, FrogTrigger said:

Awesome thanks for the encouragement, for the record the only thing I actually own right now is the TFA Core, the rest of the list is just me looking at what comes in at a budget price for the most use.. and that seems to be Miranda to a tee, for Rebels anyway. I am hoping to get in a few games before the actual tournament to work out any kinks I have in understanding the rules. So far I have just been practicing with me core and watching youtube videos, lots of great resources out there if not a little over whelming.. thus my cautious approach to list building.

Since you haven't picked up the expansions and the fact you want to fly an A, I might suggest splurging a little for the rebel aces instead of the A-wing only. You will get an A, and several of the cards to make it fly well, then grab an A expansion down the road. Not trying to spend your money for you, but if end up flying the cheaper A as a blocker you don't yet care about the A-wing pilots. Just a thought, but again, if the budget can't handle it, no worries. Another thought.....If you aren't set on the A-wing, get a Y-wing instead and you can run 2 TLT's (you will have more meat and more consistent damage)

This is a very, very good game to run on a tight budget. Investing 80-90 $, less if you sell the Ties or X wing you will not fly short term, full 100 pts list.

I always say the same...buy models not cards. Proxy that little pieces of cardboard or simply print from a Squad builder. You can own only 3 models and play one hundred games with good and varied configurations. Play and enjoy.

Ya so I plan to proxy the attachments for my warm up games and see if I can get away with it during tourney or at least borrow. Can anyone recommend some good K-Wing matches I can watch to get an idea of how to fly this ship? Or some good examples of 'blocking' with the A-Wing?

I can't think of any particular videos to help. I would say practice is the best way to learn. At the beginning of a match, before you set your first dial, make a general strategy in your head and do your best to stick to it! Changing game plans mid battle is usually a quick way to lose! The easiest things to think about as you set your pilot dials is this: 1) Blocking is as easy as sending the A to where you don't want your opponent to put a ship. First, that's is probably where he want's to be and second, if he doesn't go there and you miss the block there is a good chance he is out of position anyway. If you get to the end of a move with the A and aren't where you want to be, try to boost, if you are where you want to be token up. If you want to K-turn and slip in behind only take the evade, otherwise use PTL for evade, focus for solid defense and wired You will be hard to hit, but close enough that they will want to use that range one on the A instead of rg 2-3 on your aces. 2) Poe is your hammer, you want to try and keep him out of arcs so he doesn't get focused down early and I would fly him conservatively at first and try to take advantage of targets with no tokes that the A blocked. Poe is always wanting that A to create a cluster **** of ships he can pick on and stick to longer ranges unless you are going in for a rng1 kill shot and its worth the risk. 3) Miranda wants to line up front arc at rng3 on the first pass at the scariest or point heaviest target that you plan to take down first and take a TL and try to send a 5 dice missile, though she may take a lot of damage even at range 3 if the opponent focuses on her first and has PS9's and PS8's with initiative. If she does, her next move will probably be to withdraw maybe with a Slam, though, any ships that don't end up in the Furball around the A hopefully chase miranda. She likes keeping that Rng3 with the TLT's. She gets an extra green die, but the opponent does not. She will probably be losing one red on one of the tlt shots to regen a shield.

It'll be a tricky list, but one that most opponents won't be expecting with a pre-planned strategy, so the trick will be to catch them by surprise early with a block and a combined missile & Poe shot early

I would say watching Super Miranda and Corran Horn together could give you some ideas, but that is a fairly different list! Particularly Miranda is set up to bomb

Hope that helps!

EDIT: Might be a good idea to just practice flying the three around the mat and get a feel for how they can move and still work together since they have very different dials

On 2/20/2017 at 11:37 AM, jwilliamson12 said:

It's a good place to start. Weapons guidance doesn't do a lot for Poe because his ability works only if he holds onto the focus. Take those two points off and give Tycho push the limit as well (most people will be fine with you only having one copy of it unless it's a tournament. In that case I'm sure someone will let you borrow a copy).

If you choose to apply Poe's ability first you can then apply Weapons Guidance (or Sensor Cluster).

Make sure you can actually GET a K-wing before you make these big plans. They have been selling out online and at a lot of brick and mortar stores lately.

Yea so I learned that yesterday, went into my LGS and they were sold out.. so I bought the A-Wing for now because I figure no matter what build I do I will want PTL on Poe. The tournament is in two weeks, if they don't come out by next Wednesday (LGS delivery day) then I will switch my plan. I was thinking Heroes of the Resistance would be a safe bet, that would allow me to fly Rey and Poe in a fairly newb friendly build?

======= Rey-Poe =======

100 points

Pilots

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Rey (59) YT-1300 (45), Snap Shot (2), Homing Missiles (5), Finn (5), Millennium Falcon (Segnor's Loop Version) (1), Smuggling Compartment (0), Burnout Slam (1)

Poe Dameron (PS9 Version) (41) T-70 X-Wing (33), Black One (1), BB-8 (2), Weapons Guidance (2), Push the Limit (3)

Essentially just trying to use every upgrade I have at my disposal with only the TFA core, HotR and the A-Wing. This adds an extra 25 bucks to my cost, but it seems like the heroes expansion is something I would buy soon anyway?

First, I think the Heroes of the Resistance is probably your best bang for the buck as a new Rebel player. You can field a decent, fun Rey/Poe list with just that expansion. Now, if you're going to have PtL on Poe, definitely use Pattern Analyzer. The way those two work, you can do a green maneuver and take your regular action plus your PtL action, get the stress from PtL, THEN clear the stress from PtL afterwards because now you're in the "Check Stress" part of maneuver execution.

So I definitely won't have access to a K-Wing for this tournament, my LGS is back ordered as is everyone else and my ability to borrow one has not come through, so that means I definitely can't run the Miranda list I wanted. I guess my second best bet is to go with the Heroes of the resistance expansion?

That puts me into the game for about 100 USD, which is the max I wanted to invest before my first tournament. This would allow me to run Rey and Poe like I listed above with some limited upgrades.. but would still be a good learning experience. Are big ships tough to start with? Would you guys recommend I try flying a few more Y-Wings or something smaller instead? From the research I have done so far it just doesn't seem like the Falcon is a viable ship.. even Poe doesn't really show up often. The list from the Regional here a month or so ago didn't have one Rey or Poe on it either, mostly running the Dangaroo or Miranda K-Wings.. I understand I am going to lose as I am brand new, but will it just be beyond frustrating playing against these lists with limited resources?

If you let it, it'll be frustrating no matter what you bring. I recommend showing up and trying to fly whatever you bring in interesting and non typical fashion to try and throw the opponent off their game. I have limited experience at tournament level, but the thing that always fuzzes me up the most is being completely unable to guess where my opponent will be flying. That being said, Rey & Poe can be tough to fight, it's all about you pushing more damage faster on one target to stay out in front. Big ships can be a bit tougher, but the Falcon is one of the most maneuverable.

You really won't know until you show up and see what people are playing. Hopefully you'll meet some nice people and just have fun playing the game. I think even hardcore players tend to bring more "fun" lists to a store kit tournament.

As far as what you'll have available to fly, I think you're at a good spot, and honestly...I wish I'd have stayed at about the spot you are now for a while longer. Given what you own, this is what I'd fly.

Rey (45)
Wired (1)
Finn (5)
Hotshot Co-pilot (4)
Burnout SLAM (1)
Smuggling Compartment (0)
Millennium Falcon (TFA) (1)

Poe Dameron (PS9) (33)
Push the Limit (3)
BB-8 (2)
Pattern Analyzer (2)
Integrated Astromech (0)
Black One (1)

Total: 98

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

My suggestion for Rey is a good deal different than yours. I took off the Homing missiles because there aren't a lot of Rebel ships that I like having ordnance...it's often very costly for little damage. I also took off Snap Shot because it's complete and total luck what you come up with, since you have no way to modify your attack dice nor modify opposing defense dice. I put Wired on her so she'll get plenty of re-rolls when she does K-turns or sloops (with the title). If she's maintaining arc, she'll get to re-roll two blanks (one gained from Finn crew) and all focuses even while stressed, which isn't too bad. I put Hotshot Co-pilot on her because a lot of folks run lower PS pilots, so you might be able to strip focus tokens off opposing ships before they can use them for offense. The rest I kept the same.

The only thing I did on Poe is swap out Weapons Guidance for Pattern Analyzer and added Integrated Astromech. With BB-8, Push the Limit and Pattern Anaylyzer, Poe can end up in a crazy amount of places when performing a green action with a lot of action flexibility.

• Reveal a green maneuver
  • BB-8 gives you a barrel roll
    • Push the Limit for another action
      • Gain a stress
  • Execute green maneuver
  • Check Pilot Stress step: Clear stress from green maneuver
  • Perform your regular action

Or...

• Reveal a green maneuver
  • BB-8 gives you a barrel roll
  • Execute green maneuver
    • Move Check Pilot Stress step after Perform Action step (due to Pattern Analyzer)
  • Perform your regular action
    • Push the Limit for another action
      • Gain a stress
  • Check Pilot Stress step: Clear stress from green maneuver

There looks to be no difference between these two, but there could be subtle differences. Maybe you want to Target Lock a ship before you execute your maneuver and will be out of range for the Target Lock? Maybe you want to perform a boost directly after your barrel roll but before your maneuver? Or visa versa?

You can also do the "basic" Pattern Analyzer move...

• Reveal a green maneuver
  • Don't use BB-8 barrel roll
  • Execute green maneuver
    • Move Check Pilot Stress step after Perform Action step (due to Pattern Analyzer)
  • Perform your regular action
    • Push the Limit for another action
      • Gain a stress
  • Check Pilot Stress step: Clear stress from green maneuver

Also, don't forget that Pattern Analyzer allows you to get an action after a K-turn or T-roll

• Reveal a red maneuver
  • Execute red maneuver
    • Move Check Pilot Stress step after Perform Action step (due to Pattern Analyzer)
  • Perform your regular action
  • Check Pilot Stress step: gain stress from red maneuver

Lastly, and this isn't usually recommended, but you could get two actions off of a red action with Pattern Analyzer, but that will leave you without an action on your next turn and likely out of the fight for the next couple turns. It might be useful as a way to get a T-Roll with focus and Target Lock to finish someone off, though!

• Reveal a red maneuver
  • Execute red maneuver
    • Move Check Pilot Stress step after Perform Action step (due to Pattern Analyzer)
  • Perform your regular action
    • Push the Limit for another action
      • Gain a stress
  • Check Pilot Stress step: gain second stress from red maneuver

I hope I didn't overwhelm you. Poe can be a TON of fun and I think it's a small travesty that he's not a more viable high-end pilot. Feel free to ask any questions you might have! While I don't fly Rey and Poe together very often, they're two of my top three favorite pilots!

Wow that is incredible, I will practice these maneuvers and orders so I have them down, Pattern Analyzer brings a ton of utility. OK now this has me excited about this list, lol. Thanks very much for the response. I will absorb this.

Heroes of the resistance is an awesome beginner pack. A lot of good stuff for your x wing as well as rey who is strong out of the pack.

On 2/20/2017 at 5:21 PM, FrogTrigger said:

Miranda Doni (35) K-Wing (29), Twin Laser Turret (6)

Poe Dameron (PS8 Version) (38) T-70 X-Wing (31), BB-8 (2), Weapons Guidance (2), Push the Limit (3)

Tycho Celchu (27) A-Wing (26), Wired (1)

I looks pretty solid and simple as starting list. It cries for Autthrusters but hey whatever

What i would change ( proxies ofc, but any casual tournament even for kit should be fine with them)

PtL on Tycho - you really want it over wired as you can double action and then you dont care about doing green maneuver. And refit of course.

Miranda is fine - just regen gunboat version.

Poe is also fine. If you can proxy things get rid of weapons guidance (you have ptl - you can tl) and get autos on either him or tycho.