New to X Wing and want to know what people think of these lists. I haven't played before in person, just been playing these lists in squadron benchmark with some pretty good success. I want to bring any or all them to my local game store. Would they be competitive at all? Strengths? Weaknesses? Any other thoughts?

2 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with Autothrusters and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with FCS

2 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with R2 Astromech and Integrated Astromech and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with Advanced Sensors

4 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with R2 Astromech and Integrated Astromech

Thanks

Sorry I'm new but what's with "pending approval" for my post? Am I missing something? Thanks

It should be through now! When you start a new user, it takes some hours before you can post yourself, if memory serves correct!

About the lists:

Both ships are tanky and heavy hitters (B-wings with FCS even more so), but the X-wing is a more agile ship.
If you are new to the game, consider bringing the same ship, and get familiar with it before making a rebel swarm of two different ships.

You could consider flying 3x Blue novice with R2 and IA + Jess Pava (If you have her, otherwise just go for the BSNx4).

Blue Squadron Novice (24)
R2 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Blue Squadron Novice (24)
R2 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Jess Pava (25)

Blue Squadron Novice (24)
R2 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

It gives you a lot of hull, a lot of red dice, and a cool pilot ability in Jess that rewards formation flying.
The strength of most swarmy lists are exactly this. Blow your opponent to pieces before they can make use of their nasty synergies and abilities.
It is in many ways the core of X-wing right there. The weakness is therefore the opposite. If you do not hit hard and kill more than your opponent, you will in many cases have a hard time ahead of you, since none of your ships will be extremely good in the later stages of the game.

Just a fair warning; All lists take practise to learn, and swarms are not an easy arch-type to master.
That being said, lists like this has seen good succes competitively (With 3 b wings, 1 x wing and a Z-95 getting far in tournaments).

21 hours ago, Darli328 said:

New to X Wing and want to know what people think of these lists. I haven't played before in person, just been playing these lists in squadron benchmark with some pretty good success. I want to bring any or all them to my local game store. Would they be competitive at all? Strengths? Weaknesses? Any other thoughts?

2 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with Autothrusters and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with FCS

2 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with R2 Astromech and Integrated Astromech and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with Advanced Sensors

4 Blue Squadron Novice T-70's with R2 Astromech and Integrated Astromech

Thanks

These seeme like good lists for learning to play the game however in regards to squadron benchmark for your opponents use enemies in the "top" section also if your using standard benchmark switch to "Ynot Squadron Benchamark" its run by Ynot here on the forums me he does a pretty decent job at updating the game. Definitely make use of integrated astromech for X-Wings it's adds a lot of value to the table, best of luck in your games ^^

I would go for 4 T-70s in this day and age, as much as it saddens me. T-70s are tougher (assuming IA), faster, and with a much better dial. Ever had a B-wing stuck to a big ship because you can't 2-K behind it? T-70s have the Talon roll which has the lateral movement to avoid that, while keeping the distance close like that short K-turn. B-wings are heavier hitters (assuming FCS) if they can land shots on the same target turn after turn, but that's not always easy.

As for astromechs, I would consider R5 astros over R2. R2s are a great utility piece that make a good dial even better. But I find T-70s to have good enough greens that clearing stress isn't that hard. A 1 bank, followed by a 1 bank boost isn't that much different than a green 2 turn.

R5s are nice because there are 7 relevant crits which means 14 out of 33 (42.42%) cards effect you differently. 12 of those 14 cards require an action to flip down, the 2 copies of damaged engine (turns are red), which can never be flipped, being the exception. 6 of the remaining 12 cards can be simply flipped at the cost of the action, while the remaining 6 cards cost an action for a 50% chance to flip it down. We're talking saboteur levels of reliability here! Ugh.

However, if you have an R5 astro equipped 10 of those 14 cards will never, ever effect you. No damaged engines, damaged sensor arrays, or cursed console fires! The other 4 being two copies each of weapons failure (-1 red) or structural damage (-1 green). They'll effect you for the remainder of this turn, but never again.

So with an R5 astromech on board 30% of the damage deck is just 1 damage, with no side effects, while roughly 12% more having limited impact. And you've got an spring loaded droid you can jettison if you take one of the remaining 58% of nasty cards!

Seka makes some good points regarding R5 vs R2.

I love the addition of Jess but she would be priority number one obviously. If you drop one droid you can put in Biggs. His dial is slightly worse, but that only matters until he dies.

Thus:

T-70 X-Wing: · Jess Pava (25)
R5 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)
T-70 X-Wing: Blue Squadron Novice (24)
T-70 X-Wing: Blue Squadron Novice (24)
X-Wing: · Biggs Darklighter (25)
· R4-D6 (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)
-- TOTAL ------- 100p. --

24 minutes ago, crossvoicing said:

Seka makes some good points regarding R5 vs R2.

I love the addition of Jess but she would be priority number one obviously. If you drop one droid you can put in Biggs. His dial is slightly worse, but that only matters until he dies.

Thus:

T-70 X-Wing: · Jess Pava (25)
R5 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)
T-70 X-Wing: Blue Squadron Novice (24)
T-70 X-Wing: Blue Squadron Novice (24)
X-Wing: · Biggs Darklighter (25)
· R4-D6 (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)
-- TOTAL ------- 100p. --

If you're going this route I'd do 2 FCS B-Wings over the X-wings. Without IA they have similar durability, but FCS Bs will hit much harder, and aren't taking fire until Biggs is down.

2 hours ago, RampancyTW said:

If you're going this route I'd do 2 FCS B-Wings over the X-wings. Without IA they have similar durability, but FCS Bs will hit much harder, and aren't taking fire until Biggs is down.

Good point. I wasn't seeing the whole picture.

Great feedback, I like the idea of adding Jess and or Biggs and good points on R5 vs R2. Only question on that is, is it still a somewhat stress heavy meta? If so then wouldn't R2 be better? I'm not sure if "panic attack" type lists are still a thing.

5 hours ago, Sekac said:

I would go for 4 T-70s in this day and age, as much as it saddens me. T-70s are tougher (assuming IA), faster, and with a much better dial. Ever had a B-wing stuck to a big ship because you can't 2-K behind it? T-70s have the Talon roll which has the lateral movement to avoid that, while keeping the distance close like that short K-turn. B-wings are heavier hitters (assuming FCS) if they can land shots on the same target turn after turn, but that's not always easy.

As for astromechs, I would consider R5 astros over R2. R2s are a great utility piece that make a good dial even better. But I find T-70s to have good enough greens that clearing stress isn't that hard. A 1 bank, followed by a 1 bank boost isn't that much different than a green 2 turn.

R5s are nice because there are 7 relevant crits which means 14 out of 33 (42.42%) cards effect you differently. 12 of those 14 cards require an action to flip down, the 2 copies of damaged engine (turns are red), which can never be flipped, being the exception. 6 of the remaining 12 cards can be simply flipped at the cost of the action, while the remaining 6 cards cost an action for a 50% chance to flip it down. We're talking saboteur levels of reliability here! Ugh.

However, if you have an R5 astro equipped 10 of those 14 cards will never, ever effect you. No damaged engines, damaged sensor arrays, or cursed console fires! The other 4 being two copies each of weapons failure (-1 red) or structural damage (-1 green). They'll effect you for the remainder of this turn, but never again.

So with an R5 astromech on board 30% of the damage deck is just 1 damage, with no side effects, while roughly 12% more having limited impact. And you've got an spring loaded droid you can jettison if you take one of the remaining 58% of nasty cards!

Meant to quote in my last post, sorry new...

45 minutes ago, Darli328 said:

Great feedback, I like the idea of adding Jess and or Biggs and good points on R5 vs R2. Only question on that is, is it still a somewhat stress heavy meta? If so then wouldn't R2 be better? I'm not sure if "panic attack" type lists are still a thing.

Stress is on the rise again, so your concern is warranted. However, people don't often bring multiple stress dealers like the Panic Attack of Olde. Usually it'll be from a single source like Asajj or a stresshog, so they won't have the same impact on a squadron of 4 as they do against a more common 2 or 3 ship build.

I don't think either droid is necessarily better than the other, it's just that R2 is usually the default choice and I think R5 is worth considering too. Better dial, or more resilient to crits? You decide.

Blue Squadron Novice (24)
R2 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Jess Pava (25)
R2 Astromech (1)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Sabine Wren (21)
Veteran Instincts (1)
Chewbacca (4)

Rookie Pilot (21)
R3-A2 (2)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Kind of a mix of ships similar to T-70. Standard blue squadron. Jess being a monster in formations. Sabine w/ Chewie+VI is essentially a 3/2/3/3 at PS7 with an awesome pilot ability. And the rookie Xwing with stressbot will act like your biggs in the list for the most part and is your cheapest ship, so bonus for that! I dont think you necessarily need biggs because all the ships are practically the same. If they want Sabine dead first, they leave stressbot and Jess. Take Jess out, and she is hard to take out with 3 friendlies around.

But if you really just want four t-70s, I would go 3 blues and Jess.

I like the idea of adding Jess to a list of 4 ships but I remember reading somewhere she's not worth the points or her ability isn't worth building a list around. Is this the case? The example was her ability isn't as good as Howlrunner's.

Jess and 3 Blue Squadron Novices sounds great but there's only 3 points left to fill out the list.

Jess, Blue Squadron Novice, and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings gives you 7 points left over for more upgrades.

I'm not sure what would be better in a competitive sense. Obviously Jess and 3 Novices would have the better dial and easier on formation flying but 7 vs 3 remaining points seem like a lot to me. Or am I wrong?

For example

2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with FCS is 48 points, add Jess and a T-70 Novice you're at the same 97 points with Jess and 3 T-70 novices. With Jess and 3 T-70's she's the number one target every time. But, with 2 FCS B-Wings, Jess, and a T-70 Novice I would guess the 2 B-Wings become the primary target over Jess. I'm not sure which list could handle a wider range of opponents and/or be more competitive.

However the B-Wing dial does seem bad at times in squadron benchmark...

Jess is absolutely worth the points. If you intend to formation fly, she has built-in mods for both offense and defense, and has 1 PS over the generic for just one point more. She's amazing. I think the Biggs/Jess/FCS Bs build would be a really solid jousting setup.

B-wings have a... limited dial, but I wouldn't say it's bad. They're one of my favorite ships to fly. Biggest issue is inability to clear large base ships with K-turns.

10 hours ago, RampancyTW said:

Jess is absolutely worth the points. If you intend to formation fly, she has built-in mods for both offense and defense, and has 1 PS over the generic for just one point more. She's amazing. I think the Biggs/Jess/FCS Bs build would be a really solid jousting setup.

B-wings have a... limited dial, but I wouldn't say it's bad. They're one of my favorite ships to fly. Biggest issue is inability to clear large base ships with K-turns.

I like the idea of 3 X-Wings and 1 B-Wing, thanks

So I've been trying M9-G8 with Jess and it's working surprisingly well.

Jess with M9-G8 and Integrated Astromech, Blue Squadron Novice T-70, and 2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with FCS.

I am surprised how well M9-G8 works. I've only played this list in squadron benchmark but I don't feel like I miss having R2 Astromech much and/or Autothrusters. I'm guessing this list is weaker against panic attacks without R2 and weaker against turrets without autothrusters. But, by how much? Think M9-G8 is worth the trade offs and is more competitive? Other thoughts?

M9-G8 is good, very flexible as well. Took ages for me to choose an Astromech for Jess but I'm pretty sure it's the best one.

Nice to see most post ideas without Biggs; praise for them! Looks like you want to run four ships, which keeps you in the generic category, but gives you the most flexibility and flying experience, good for you. However, when you want to go Elite Pilots like Dantels, let us know, he's sooooooo torpedo-y and kick butt-ery fun! Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

As far as B-Wings, they are the most flexible, tough, Rebel ship there is. Yeah, the dial is limited, but if you play a squad right, they are amazingly good against most every list. And you don't need no stinking Biggs. Blue Squadron Pilot is where you can have fun in squad building; you can assemble a diverse quad that synergizes with each other, or support a pair of AI T-70 generics.

Just a Blue: No upgrades.

Classic Buzzsaw: Fire Control System, B-Wing/E2, Gunner (8 points). Hits consistent and hard; expect this guy to get focus fire.

Solid Control: Ion Cannon, FCS (5 points). Ion tokens in arc at range 1-3, sets up your wingman for a powerful range 1 attack, or you to strike with your main guns on turn two.

Stress Control: B-Wing/E2, Tactician (3 points). Simple, stress on enemy ships; and they fly better and hit harder than the boring (yawn) yet classic Y-Wing Stresshog.

Sitting Duck Artisan: Ion Cannon, B-Wing/E2, Tactician (6 points). Hit any ship at range 2, and it gets no actions the following turn.

Cannon Fodder: Heavy Laser Cannon (7 points). 4 attack dice at all ranges, but these be expensive if you tag them with FCS as most do.

Torpedo Assault: Extra Munitions, Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Fire Control System (10 points). I have this one added because of my occasional OCD in listing things. It really is hard to pull of on a low pilot skill ship, but it hits like a truck when it works. I'd probably hold of on this build till you can put it on the 360 missile master Dantels, he makes it easy to pull of and whack the player off the mat.

........as for T-70s, IDK. I haven't flushed them out as much as other maters on this forum. I'm still trying to get a handle on being good at Wave 1-4 ships, haha.

Thanks again for all the input. Figured I'd give a little battle report. Played my first and only game today with

2 Blue Squadron Novice T-70s with Autothrusters

2 Blue Squadron B-Wings with FCS

I chose to run this list since it's all the same pilot skill level and easier upgrade cards to remember (admiditaly I forgot FCS a few times). After I play this a while I may add Jess and M9-G8

I played against Jan Ors, an ARC-170, and Sabine's TIE. I couldn't tell you all the upgrades they had since I'm pretty new. But, I ended up wining with 2 ships remaining. I would of had 3 remaining but I took a chance and passes through a rock with one of my ships that only had one hull left and took damage. Would of been a range on 1 shot so I was willing to take the risk since he only had 1 ship left at the time. Anyway, tanks again for all the tips.