As the title asks, does this feel like the golden age of Armada to anyone else?

Things at my local level are finally picking up again. We have 4 regulars, all extremely enthusiastic about the game, but lately we've been picking up extras on our weekly meet up. We have a solid mix of rebel and imperial players, no fleet type is dominating, I've seen everything from 6+ to 2 activation fleets and both have done well. The players are trying larger fleets at 600+ points and having some fun with fleet commands and experimental upgrades. We're discussing starting up a CC event since we have 4 players regularly, something that hasn't been discussed since CC released locally.

Our LGS, which is actually predominantly a MTG store, has even set a permanent spot for our Friday night group.

It just seems like Armada is in a pretty strong spot right now, I just curious if this is a local thing or if other areas are feeling these effects?

Glad to hear it!

I feel much the same. We've got a good group of folks for our bi-weekly games (including Classic Ben). There's a solid core of about 5 players and another 3 or so who we see occasionally.

I'm also considering starting up a new campaign, though I may attempt a custom narrative campaign just for fun.

Just now, Democratus said:

Glad to hear it!

I feel much the same. We've got a good group of folks for our bi-weekly games (including Classic Ben). There's a solid core of about 5 players and another 3 or so who we see occasionally.

I'm also considering starting up a new campaign, though I may attempt a custom narrative campaign just for fun.

Yeah, it sounds like a similar situation. I guess it's weird, this just feels like the first time things have been this balanced, no one has complaints.

Golden Ages are determined by history. The power creep isn't bad in this game, and it certainly sounds like your area is experiencing one, but there's always the possibility this could just be a "gilded" age.

Personally, I think the golden age will be considered to have been the 2 waves prior to the first scum ships they release. In the competitive scene, anyways. Casually, it may just be indefinite.

Such a golden age that even a dedicated armchair admiral such as I am considering being social and investigating the Armada scene at my various LGSes.

1 minute ago, Parkdaddy said:

2 waves prior to the first scum ships they release.

So the core and wave 1? lol

I was under the impression Armada doesn't really have room for a scum faction, as seen by the release of the rogues and villains pack...

I hope so, I just got my Core Set in the mail, and I am really excited to start my own fleets I feel I will get a lot more out of Armada than I have from X-Wing. One of the big selling points for me with Armada is because it has capital ships and the like, there is a lot more flexibility and possibility for Narrative and Custom Scenarios. I have two questions though if anyone would be kind enough to answer. First, is there a collection of user created custom scenarios/campaigns/narratives I can peruse? Google has yielded only a few results, and I am trying to build myself a nice little story campaign and could use some inspiration. Second, in X-Wing many expansions would contain cards available from other expansions, I have noticed a few things I am interested in only come with 1 card in the pack. I.E. Rapid Launch Bays in the Pelta, and only in that expansion. Is there a strong possibility of cards like these being included in other expansions, and with multiple copies?

1 minute ago, BlueSquadronPilot said:

I hope so, I just got my Core Set in the mail, and I am really excited to start my own fleets I feel I will get a lot more out of Armada than I have from X-Wing. One of the big selling points for me with Armada is because it has capital ships and the like, there is a lot more flexibility and possibility for Narrative and Custom Scenarios. I have two questions though if anyone would be kind enough to answer. First, is there a collection of user created custom scenarios/campaigns/narratives I can peruse? Google has yielded only a few results, and I am trying to build myself a nice little story campaign and could use some inspiration. Second, in X-Wing many expansions would contain cards available from other expansions, I have noticed a few things I am interested in only come with 1 card in the pack. I.E. Rapid Launch Bays in the Pelta, and only in that expansion. Is there a strong possibility of cards like these being included in other expansions, and with multiple copies?

I can't answer the first question, but as things stand now there are only a few releases that share upgrade cards. I know Rapid launch bays was one of the pelta exclusives. It's possible it could hit future releases but for the time being it's likely to remain exclusive (some would argue RLBs is the whole point in buying a pelta lol). If you need extras, check the trade thread here on the forums, if you have facebook I can link you to a buy/sell/trade group..or hit up ebay, they have a few sellers who sell cards individually.

1 hour ago, BlueSquadronPilot said:

I hope so, I just got my Core Set in the mail, and I am really excited to start my own fleets I feel I will get a lot more out of Armada than I have from X-Wing. One of the big selling points for me with Armada is because it has capital ships and the like, there is a lot more flexibility and possibility for Narrative and Custom Scenarios. I have two questions though if anyone would be kind enough to answer. First, is there a collection of user created custom scenarios/campaigns/narratives I can peruse? Google has yielded only a few results, and I am trying to build myself a nice little story campaign and could use some inspiration. Second, in X-Wing many expansions would contain cards available from other expansions, I have noticed a few things I am interested in only come with 1 card in the pack. I.E. Rapid Launch Bays in the Pelta, and only in that expansion. Is there a strong possibility of cards like these being included in other expansions, and with multiple copies?

Oh man, I'm really gonna start sounding like a broken record plugging my site (if I haven't already): kdyards.com

All the objectives that folks have made: http://kdyards.com/objectives.php

A few scenarios that have been made: http://kdyards.com/misccards.php?mt[]=5

A work-in-progress scenario system that I'm working on: http://kdyards.com/articles.view.php?id=511

Currently, the list of Cards that are "Individual to a Single Pack, not Unique, and currently only in a single Faction Purchase" isn't actually that long.

Flight Controllers - Victory SD

Flight Commander - Interdictor

Skilled First Officer - Liberty

Slaved Turrets - MC80 Home One

Rapid Launch Bays - Pelta

Dual Turbolaser Turrets - Arquitens

Heavy Turbolaser Turrets - Imperial SD

Assault Proton Torpedoes - MC30C Frigate

Turbolaser Reroute Circuits - MC30C Frigate

I'm sure I've missed one or two, but I really aimed at the ones considered popular. (Because unless you really want to see "Cluster Bombs" on the list - it qualifies otherwise! - We'll leave it at that )

And even in this instance, the two bottom bolded ones are currently available as participation prizes in quarterly tournaments, so although if you can't attend that doesn't directly help, but it generally means there is a bunch out there for trade/ebay.

There is a longer list of ones where you may want multiples for a fleet, but they only come one to a pack... But they at least are found in a pack on both sides (XI7 Turbolasers and Intel Officers being an example of that, available only one per pack, but one in the Victory SD, and one in the Nebulon B, for one each faction)

In short: Really, it only matters for tournament play. Beg/Borrow/Steal the actual cards you need for that. Outside of that, find a way to agree with your opponent to play, because the best part of the game is playing.

Not too sure about Golden Age yet.

We're not saturated enough in terms of choices. I think once FO stuff comes out as a core and we're a little deeper in, it'll be a lot better.

2 minutes ago, HERO said:

Not too sure about Golden Age yet.

We're not saturated enough in terms of choices. I think once FO stuff comes out as a core and we're a little deeper in, it'll be a lot better.

You think?

I'm not really sure what else FO can bring to the table from what I've seen. FO's ships match imperial designs, maybe slightly larger/ more powerful but they seem to have the same functions... Resurgent class battle cruiser though twice the size of an Imperial class star destroyer fulfilled many of the same rolls. The resistance, as seen so far, still seems fairly fighter based. Using squadrons to shred large targets.... and according to rumors, even still use ships like home one from the rebel alliance.

What are your thoughts, how will FO/R ships expand the current options?

2 minutes ago, Darth Sanguis said:

You think?

I'm not really sure what else FO can bring to the table from what I've seen. FO's ships match imperial designs, maybe slightly larger/ more powerful but they seem to have the same functions... Resurgent class battle cruiser though twice the size of an Imperial class star destroyer fulfilled many of the same rolls. The resistance, as seen so far, still seems fairly fighter based. Using squadrons to shred large targets.... and according to rumors, even still use ships like home one from the rebel alliance.

What are your thoughts, how will FO/R ships expand the current options?

I'm in the camp that I think it would be acceptable if the FO ships like the Resurgent are roughly the same size as the ISD on the table. I don't need everything to be completely in scale, just functionality.

Edit: I know this was only half a reply, I'll get to it in a bit! sorry!

Armada is pretty popular in my area, I don't know if it is getting more or less popular. I will say that I love the meta right now. 2 ISDs coming in second at a huge tournament in time where people are complaining about flotilla spam is just a great sign.

I would say that ISDs are pretty popular, but that ship is so core to the Empire, I have no problem with that.

Not quite there yet IMO. Game still need some balancing done as activations are still the name of the game.

I'm also still waiting for the errata pack that buffs the useless stuff like heavy turbolaser cannons, redundant shield, PPR, etc.

In terms of popularity, it seems to be doing better every year.

5 minutes ago, Hrathen said:

Armada is pretty popular in my area, I don't know if it is getting more or less popular. I will say that I love the meta right now. 2 ISDs coming in second at a huge tournament in time where people are complaining about flotilla spam is just a great sign.

I would say that ISDs are pretty popular, but that ship is so core to the Empire, I have no problem with that.

After the wave 3-4 "death" of the ISD and the surge of ace squadrons in wave 5, I'm glad to see the ISDs coming back into full swing. I don't know if I buy the hype that they were "dead", as my local meta was still having a hard time countering my dual ISD fleets, but they were definitely deflated at tournaments over the last year... I'm not entirely sure what inflated it though, I mean, sure BTs are good with avenger, but that's not even the majority of ISD builds I've seen lately...

Anyways, yeah, I agree completely.

1 minute ago, Sybreed said:

activations are still the name of the game.

Are they?

2-3 ship fleets have been making a MAJOR come back locally. Our local SC was won by a fierce 2 ship build and there were high activation MSUs present.

I was under the impression that empty activations were mostly dead weight in this meta.

22 minutes ago, Darth Sanguis said:

Are they?

2-3 ship fleets have been making a MAJOR come back locally. Our local SC was won by a fierce 2 ship build and there were high activation MSUs present.

I was under the impression that empty activations were mostly dead weight in this meta.

I've been having a lot less trouble dealing with activation advantage ever since the new wave came out. Maybe it's due to some of the new upgrades or because of the TRC nerf or maybe my play has just improved significantly but I no longer fear being out activated. I ran 2 ISDs and a Gozanti against a 7 activation rebel list with first player on Saturday and that guy quit during the second round after losing his MC30.

21 minutes ago, Darth Sanguis said:

Are they?

2-3 ship fleets have been making a MAJOR come back locally. Our local SC was won by a fierce 2 ship build and there were high activation MSUs present.

I was under the impression that empty activations were mostly dead weight in this meta.

I think there's a distinction to be made between people who were putting naked flotillas on the edge of the map and doing literally nothing with them other than activating, and those who actually used them for all the stuff they offer other than that. For a brief while in previous waves, that worked, and was really easy to do alright with, so lots of people jumped on that hype train.

Others actually use them for anti-squadron, for blocking, for bounding and herding the battle, for obstructing more important ships, as well as for the activation. If you actually use your flotillas competently instead of outright trying to cheese with them, they're (shock!) actually pretty good additions to a fleet in their own right, and also fun to play with.

So, I agree that parking across the table and doing literally nothing is mostly dead weight. But, I've thought that of the flotillas pretty much since they came out, so... I personally wouldn't really say I think something has changed in that respect. But that's just personal opinion.

5 minutes ago, Megatronrex said:

I've been having a lot less trouble dealing with activation advantage ever since the new wave came out. Maybe it's due to some of the new upgrades or because of the TRC nerf or maybe my play has just improved significantly but I no longer fear being out activated. I ran 2 ISDs and a Gozanti against a 7 activation rebel list with first player on Saturday and that guy quit during the second round after losing his MC30.

I've had similar experiences. I run a mean 5 ship MC30 list that uses 3 GR75s to push bombers and even small activation fleets have managed to dodge the 1st/last hype by either playing objectives insanely well, or snagging my most vulnerable ships.... at long range....

VSDs in particular are MEAN this wave. D-caps, QBTs, GTs, LS all the sudden I'm down 2 flotillas at long range....

5 minutes ago, Ardaedhel said:

If you actually use your flotillas competently instead of outright trying to cheese with them, they're (shock!) actually pretty good additions to a fleet in their own right, and also fun to play with.

I can't disagree with this as I find them to be great support ships, but at the same time, with large ships hitting the tables, and some of the upgrades they're packing, the flotillas aren't padding activations long enough to really sell

"activations are the name of the game"

With D-caps and the ability for most large ships to LS at long range with QBTs, flotillas rarely survive first contact where I'm at. (CRs and HHs are suffering a similar fate ).

No Golden age can exist until team Venator is satisfied!

Seriously I think we are really close if not there. IMHO.

3 hours ago, Drasnighta said:

Currently, the list of Cards that are "Individual to a Single Pack, not Unique, and currently only in a single Faction Purchase" isn't actually that long.

Flight Controllers - Victory SD

Flight Commander - Interdictor

Skilled First Officer - Liberty

Slaved Turrets - MC80 Home One

Rapid Launch Bays - Pelta

Dual Turbolaser Turrets - Arquitens

Heavy Turbolaser Turrets - Imperial SD

Assault Proton Torpedoes - MC30C Frigate

Turbolaser Reroute Circuits - MC30C Frigate

I'm sure I've missed one or two, but I really aimed at the ones considered popular. (Because unless you really want to see "Cluster Bombs" on the list - it qualifies otherwise! - We'll leave it at that )

And even in this instance, the two bottom bolded ones are currently available as participation prizes in quarterly tournaments, so although if you can't attend that doesn't directly help, but it generally means there is a bunch out there for trade/ebay.

There is a longer list of ones where you may want multiples for a fleet, but they only come one to a pack... But they at least are found in a pack on both sides (XI7 Turbolasers and Intel Officers being an example of that, available only one per pack, but one in the Victory SD, and one in the Nebulon B, for one each faction)

In short: Really, it only matters for tournament play. Beg/Borrow/Steal the actual cards you need for that. Outside of that, find a way to agree with your opponent to play, because the best part of the game is playing.

I believe Spinal Armament is Liberty only, right? I use it all the time, so I had to go halvsies on a second Liberty to get the cards.

Just now, Nostromoid said:

I believe Spinal Armament is Liberty only, right? I use it all the time, so I had to go halvsies on a second Liberty to get the cards.

For sure. Spinals could qualify. I just don't seem them as popular as Slaved Turrets as a comparison of turbolasers.

Not that HTTs are really, either. But I put them there by mistake, really.....

There are some more - but it was more that I ran a check on forum builds, and looked at what the desires were... Spinals do seem to be desired for Victory SDs, while in Liberties... But outside of that, not so much...

Slaved tends to want to go on Arquitens... and on top of that, like, 4 Arquitens at a time - which is why I put it there...

In short, there are more. But beyond the desire of the insane: (IE, myself... Ion Cannon Batteries is one such card for me, only available in the VSD, and I want to put it everywhere have an Ion Crit, essentially - Interdictors, MonCals, etc. )

its much more diverse than it was in wave5 for sure. The new boarding troopers and Vader boarding to come (wave7) looks to shake things up pretty well.

3-4 activations looks well and alive again. Non-squadron dominated play. Yet, you can still do well with squadrons, see the winner of US Nats, nearly the same old Rieekan squadrons list with more strategic.

Strategic is becoming a big deal. Maybe too much of a deal? But theoretically, a well designed part of the game. Gives the squadron game more depth than just bomb and AA things to death.

Right now, the only thing that seems to be bad for the game is too much emphasis on activations, but even now in wave6 that's been lessened with the viability of 3-4 ships and first player Avenger stuff.

7 minutes ago, Blail Blerg said:

its much more diverse than it was in wave5 for sure. The new boarding troopers and Vader boarding to come (wave7) looks to shake things up pretty well.

3-4 activations looks well and alive again. Non-squadron dominated play. Yet, you can still do well with squadrons, see the winner of US Nats, nearly the same old Rieekan squadrons list with more strategic.

Strategic is becoming a big deal. Maybe too much of a deal? But theoretically, a well designed part of the game. Gives the squadron game more depth than just bomb and AA things to death.

Right now, the only thing that seems to be bad for the game is too much emphasis on activations, but even now in wave6 that's been lessened with the viability of 3-4 ships and first player Avenger stuff.

Dang, Blail...

Just when I think we have our borderlines all drawn out, you go and Impress me with... Well... Positivity...

There was a time where I didn't think you'd have it in you.

But I was Wrong.

Yet again, another time I am more than happy to be proven wrong.

Sincerely, its really good to see that