X-Wing is dead. At least locally, which is a shame, but the sleeping giant that was 40k awoke and strangled all competitors. So for the moment I can't justify further investment and have decided to clear some shelf space by sending my collection into basement-hibernation. However I do want to keep some X-Wing around in case that I do find a game or want to attend an event (they do happen, just only 3 times per year and 1.5h north of me).

My solution is having one list for each faction in the gaming shelf. These lists contain some of my favourite ships and interactions, combined with some powerful elements, which still means they are godawful competetively. I'd like some second opinions on how powerful they are in total and in relation to each other.

Rebels:

Tarn Mison (23)
M9-G8 (3)
Integrated Astromech (0)

Norra Wexley (29)
Push the Limit (3)
Tail Gunner (2)
R2-D2 (4)
Vectored Thrusters (2)
Alliance Overhaul (0)

Lowhhrick (28)
Selflessness (1)
C-3PO (3)
Rey (2)

Total: 100

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M9 Tarn is my favourite rebel ship. Norra is my favourite late game threat. They are both made of paper, so Lowhhrick stands in for Biggs with the upside of consuming more points.

Imperials:

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)
Extra Munitions (2)
Cluster Mines (4)
Lightweight Frame (2)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)
Extra Munitions (2)
Cluster Mines (4)
Lightweight Frame (2)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)
Extra Munitions (2)
Cluster Mines (4)
Lightweight Frame (2)

Nu Squadron Pilot (18)
Heavy Laser Cannon (7)
Linked Battery (2)
Long-Range Scanners (0)
XG-1 Assault Configuration (1)

Total: 100

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Few things look as cool as a group of TIE Bombers. Additionaly I have always loved action-bombing and have done it since wave 5, using TIE Bombers and only later on K-Wings. But the empire has another really cool ship that I want to use, so only 3/4 Bombers will be allowed to see sunlight.

Scum:

Guri (30)
Attanni Mindlink (1)
Advanced Sensors (3)
Inertial Dampeners (1)
Autothrusters (2)
StarViper Mk. II (-3)
Virago (1)

Manaroo (27)
Attanni Mindlink (1)
Dengar (3)
Rigged Cargo Chute (1)
Anti-Pursuit Lasers (2)
Punishing One (12)

Jakku Gunrunner (15)
Courier Droid (0)
Pattern Analyzer (2)
Spacetug Tractor Array (2)

Total: 100

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At this point my least favourite faction, but I've always liked Guri and Gunrunners. Didn't put much effort into this one, if you have more fun Guri lists that ideally contain a tugboat, please share them!

Thanks for reading, I'll put my own assessment of the lists into the next post if you want to read it.

Okay, so the rebel list can be pretty strong by virtue of containing Lowhhrick and a strong late game regen ship. However of those, Norra is the weakest. Tarn is decent, but no game winner by himself. Capable of holding its ground, but not for long. In a 30 person SC I'd expect something like a 3-2 in swiss.

The imperial list is bad because of the Bombers durability, but it can take people that underestimate it by suprise (3 Clusters/turn is no joke). Damage is very swingy without a bomb buff like Cad Bane or Sabine. In a 30 person SC, maybe 2-3 on a good day, worse is more likely.

The scum list looks pretty good, but Manaroo is a bit too fat on points. I'd still value a third die on her higher than a random Z-95. Again 3-2 territory, but not as confident. Maybe if Manaroo gets Countermeasures instead of Cargo/APL, but Cargo is too cool.

To make my arbitrary 30 person SC rating make more sense: I usually run tier 1.5-2 stuff (3 mine K-Wings, rebel alpha, panic attack variants in its day...) in events like those and rarely go something other than 4-1 with bad MoV (undefeated with K-Wings, 3-2 with Dash/Lothal on final salvo, when I actually would have made the cut otherwise for once).

Edit: Forgot matchups! Rebels look like they can take on both scum because of Lowhhrick and the empire because of the ability to block bombing space behind the core ships. Not overwhelming, but slight advantage in both matchups. The empire has better chances because they can in theory ignore Lowhhrick, but then again...2 dice primaries versus reinforce don't sound fun.

Scum vs. empire looks relatively close. 3 dice Manaroo really screws with the bombers, but on the other hand the bombers really screw with Guri.

My local meta seems to be going the same direction yours has gone. If I wanted to drive an hour more south, during rush hour, on a week night, I could get tons of regular games.

I can only speak to your Scum list, really. I *love* 'Vipers, and Guri is the strongest of them all. I want to love the tugboat just as much, but their extreme squishiness stops me in my tracks. That said, I reckon I would use Guri, but drop Mindlink and Dampeners, replacing with either Predator or PtL (it's actually quite effective) for 36 pts - or Lone Wolf for 35 pts. The Gunrunner gets the Tractor Array, Pattern Analyzer, Vizago, an Illicit Cloak to start - and here are some choices - either a bomb and a Scavenger Crane swapped in, or just swap in a Rigged Cargo Chute to save points (or Feedback Array?) - for 21 to a maximum 27 pts (because Proton Bombs are so good). The third ship is, for me, always the difficult one. The Tug just dies without a suitable escort. It needs something that moves slow enough to stay with that slow dial and protect it, something scary enough to draw fire away from it. That generally ends up meaning Y-Wings, especially Kavil. But. If the Gunrunner were bumped up to Sarco or Zuvio and given Mindlink, maybe a non-Punishing Manaroo could put in some work....

Still maybe not totally competitive, but it would be fun. Guri flanks and is your endgame piece. If your opponent chases her, the other two can move in and make their lives hard. If they go for the annoying ships, Guri flanks and wrecks them.

Rebels - Tarn is meh, but the other two are pretty close to what you'd be proud to fly into any tournament. By far the strongest thing here.

Scum - two overloaded but fundamentally decent ships with strong action economy & stats. And a Quadjumper. I think they probably compare quite well with the Rebels, but will consistently lose due to regen/reinforce.

Empire - basically awful, I think. As much as anything it's really really linear in plan so every time you dig it out for a game it's going to be the same thing. I like the Nu Squadron dude, but it's a bit of a shame to shelve Imperials and not have a speedy ace of some description in the mix, no? I think I would keep the Nu, play a Deathfire to keep the Bomber element on the table, then after you've paid for those you should have approx. 45pts left. A Silencer? Two Strikers?

2 hours ago, Stay On The Leader said:

Empire - basically awful, I think. As much as anything it's really really linear in plan so every time you dig it out for a game it's going to be the same thing. I like the Nu Squadron dude, but it's a bit of a shame to shelve Imperials and not have a speedy ace of some description in the mix, no? I think I would keep the Nu, play a Deathfire to keep the Bomber element on the table, then after you've paid for those you should have approx. 45pts left. A Silencer? Two Strikers?

I have actually never been a fan of the reactionary movement type of ship typicaly associted with the imperial faction, but now that you mention it, I did use the Inquisitor quite a bit back in the day, would be a shame to put him away.

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)
Extra Munitions (2)
Proximity Mines (3)
Lightweight Frame (2)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)
Extra Munitions (2)
Proximity Mines (3)
Lightweight Frame (2)

Nu Squadron Pilot (18)
Harpoon Missiles (4)
Long-Range Scanners (0)

The Inquisitor (25)
Push the Limit (3)
Autothrusters (2)
TIE/v1 (1)

Total: 99

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So actually this is more to my liking. I acknowledge it is still pretty bad because of the Bombers, but they are my favourites and need to stay. It also isn't a bad idea to be able to handicap myself against less experienced players.