• Stress Control hasn't really gone away.
• Lots of folks are trying out the new hotnesses: low-PS generic X-Wings (maybe U-Wings, too), and PS 1 Jamming Reapers.
  • Predator against Scarif Base Pilots goes the extra mile: it both gets the second reroll, as well as plays around Jam tokens.
• It just seems like Predator's stock has gone up a bit relative to Expertise. Not that Expertise is unplayable, but that they're closer to each other these days.
  • If X-Wing Swarms force out some of the Fenn/Lothal lists, needing specifically Expertise to get around specifically Sensor Jammer is probably less critical. If there are fewer SJs, dice mods are dice mods, and the type doesn't matter so much.
  • It's still a bit cheaper, and still is a lot harder to shut down.

Can confirm that Predator Wedge is pretty potent. It's forgiving with the added Talon Roll, jamming, low PS and blocking that is out there.

Superstress lists I suspect will be coming back as more and more options exist for ignoring the 'penalty' of R3A2 (and of course, they're all Rebel lists).

So maybe Predator starts winning over Expertise - but the big things with the comparison is that rerolls are generally easier to come by in synergy/combo lists, with Rey pilot, M9G8, FCS, now Magva, Saw pilot, etc etc etc, whereas focus modding is harder, more costly, and often unique and/or token reliant.

In short, it's a lot easier and more effective to use your EPT on focuses than rerolls.

At the moment.

I think.

2 minutes ago, thespaceinvader said:

Superstress lists I suspect will be coming back as more and more options exist for ignoring the 'penalty' of R3A2 (and of course, they're all Rebel lists).

So maybe Predator starts winning over Expertise - but the big things with the comparison is that rerolls are generally easier to come by in synergy/combo lists, with Rey pilot, M9G8, FCS, now Magva, Saw pilot, etc etc etc, whereas focus modding is harder, more costly, and often unique and/or token reliant.

In short, it's a lot easier and more effective to use your EPT on focuses than rerolls.

At the moment.

I think.

I can kinda see that. There are more reroll-based crew and pilot abilities, and most of the focus-based ones are token and action based (Recon Specialist, Rey crew, Poe, etc.). A lot of what prompted this was thinking about a semi-Ace version of Vermiel with Predator, Rebel Captive, ISB Slicer, AA, and LWF. I guess Krennic does it, but reroll crew weren't really a thing for Imperials (System Officer, kinda, but that's always been hard to use). As such, Predator just seemed better than Expertise.

8 minutes ago, theBitterFig said:

I can kinda see that. There are more reroll-based crew and pilot abilities, and most of the focus-based ones are token and action based (Recon Specialist, Rey crew, Poe, etc.). A lot of what prompted this was thinking about a semi-Ace version of Vermiel with Predator, Rebel Captive, ISB Slicer, AA, and LWF. I guess Krennic does it, but reroll crew weren't really a thing for Imperials (System Officer, kinda, but that's always been hard to use). As such, Predator just seemed better than Expertise.

Vermeil would probably be better with expertise. His ability deals with the blanks better than a reroll can, and a focus does it even better. But he's super tough to get high enough PS AND focus/expertise AND Jam someone to keep their tokens off. SO he probably works best with an equal or higher-PS HotCoP, so maybe the hotshot gunner Deci build might come back.

It's a tough thing to call.

Honestly, I've yet to be convinced any of the Reaper aces are worth the points. Feroph is way too hard to get to trigger, and Vermeil winds up packing way too much into a fragile chassis which needs to use all three of its actions to work but can only take one of them, and wants VI to work as well, but wants other EPTs to mod dice with.

13 minutes ago, thespaceinvader said:

Honestly, I've yet to be convinced any of the Reaper aces are worth the points. Feroph is way too hard to get to trigger, and Vermeil winds up packing way too much into a fragile chassis which needs to use all three of its actions to work but can only take one of them, and wants VI to work as well, but wants other EPTs to mod dice with.  

In 1.0 or 2.0?

In 1.0 if you have Krennic and your OP ship is shooting ahead of Vermeil for the TL, he's super potent. He was consistently doing 3 damage to things that had no tokens and a shield or two stripped off of it already. Slap VI on him and call it a day.

In 1, of course.

I have absolutely no idea of what things cost in 2, so how would I know what was worth bringing?

My experience with Vermeil in 1.0 is that if you aren't an idiot, he can absolutely drop the hammer on things with just his ability. He has built in guidance chips. I ran a Quiz, Soontir and Vermeil. Krennic drew almost all aggro because he is a damage deal, token denying pestilence. I was routinely OP'ing Fel and tried keeping him close to Vermeil for that TL goodness.

2 minutes ago, viedit said:

My experience with Vermeil in 1.0 is that if you aren't an idiot, he can absolutely drop the hammer on things with just his ability. He has built in guidance chips. I ran a Quiz, Soontir and Vermeil. Krennic drew almost all aggro because he is a damage deal, token denying pestilence. I was routinely OP'ing Fel and tried keeping him close to Vermeil for that TL goodness.

If they don't have tokens, yes, which isn't always going to be true, and when they do, he's a lot less threatening.

Not to mention that he's still extremely fragile. He hits like a truck but he's not that tough and you're throwing a lot of points at him.

A predator, FAA PS-1 X-Wing is only 23 points.

Nah, the trailer looks rubbish.

1 hour ago, HanScottFirst said:

A predator, FAA PS-1 X-Wing is only 23 points.

I'm intrigued by the possibility of "Lowie's Angels": 3 of those with a lean Lowhhrick (Selflessness + Wookiee Commandos).

Low can protect the X's from being PS-killed before they can fire (a common weakness for heavy swarms) while offering decent offence himself to soften up a target for 3 strongly-modified attacks from the Xs.

Predator is in the same boat as outmaneuver: a great ability, but if you invest 3 pt there is already push the limit. For 1 more pt there is expertise and for 1 fewer there is lone wolf. The opportunity cost is too high for most ships.

Also, given that the Vassal meta is largely jam and X wings, token stackers and arc-dodgers are having a blast, which further the argument for Ptl (especially with advanced sensors Kylo's madness or Soontir's shenanigans) or Vessery x7 or optics Quickdraw (wait, I started the turn with a jam? Lol, no).