Just now, gennataos said:

I think I'm landing on the same conclusion. I'm not giving up on her, though, because it seems like there's end-game potential in her that a fourth beefy ship can't bring.

I am silently hoping that Cova and Kaz can carry that burden just on the strength of wierd manouevring alone. I am probably wrong.

2 minutes ago, GreenDragoon said:

I personally agree that Zizi doesn't fit well with the way I played the list! But keep in mind that early versions of XXXx a year ago were quick to replace Lulo with Greer or Tallie and did well. It's not easy to keep inherent problems of list harmonies and player specific problems apart. It might be the second and I just wish it was the first

It was really apparent to me she's not slotting in with the way I play the list as well

That's the primary reason I am analysing Kaz. He feels like he can slot in as 4th joust or pretend to be an ace depending on match up

2 hours ago, theBitterFig said:

Downside, however, is shooting after Bastian kinda stinks. Or is it... maybe LTB can nap a 2nd lock to set up for next turn?

It definitely is. Having just come of running Cova/Bastian/Jess/Red at LVO, I'm confident that you want all 3 other shots before Bastian in order to maximize his chance of a double mod. Shooting after him will reduce your punch, certainly during the opening engagement and probably at other points in the game as well.

5 hours ago, Flurpy said:

This feels like its not stupid? Tell me how it's stupid.

I don't think Kaz is a stupid idea at all. Fly him a block with the others at first, then his SLAM-and-shoot ability makes him super unpredictable after the opening engagement once things start to break up. Absolutely worth a try.

I have played a few games with Kaz with different loadouts. I think he really needs R4+advanced slam so he can slam+barrel roll on setup and escape turns, and slam+shoot with mods on attack turns. YMMV but he didn't put out much damage slam/shooting with no mods.

Played some games with Kaz. I am loving the Heroic/R5 combo. Feels like he really complements the rest of the list, either slotting in as a jouster of pretending he can flank. So far I use his SLAM like Black One, more of a defensive get out of jail card or abusing the double Hard 1 rotating in place.

So yeah. Finally the list for UK SoS is nailed down.

Pava, Bastian, Heroic Leia/Cova and Heroic R5 Kaz

See you in the UK if anyone is going, Ill be the idiot drunk on Fireball at 11 AM.

28 minutes ago, Flurpy said:

See you in the UK if anyone is going, Ill be the idiot drunk on Fireball at 11 AM.

I hope we get that rematch!

Looks solid. I particularly like the option of 1hards on two ships, allows the whole block to turn and might be helpful for an opening.

1 hour ago, Flurpy said:

So yeah. Finally the list for UK SoS is nailed down.

Pava, Bastian, Heroic Leia/Cova and Heroic R5 Kaz

Just got my Fireball on Friday and this is exactly what I'm planning to try first. Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Got Kaz on the table last night. Initial impression is positive. Pilot ability is crazy good. Definitely feels like a solid option in a 4 ship list.

Yeah. Last game before the SoS. Boba Fenn. I had the worst dice since I started X-Wing. I couldn't roll to save my life and I failed at most decisions I made. I lost 78-76 with needing to take down one hull on Boba to win it with two shots in the last turn.

That's what I love about this list. Even with bad dice and bad decisions it was still a cliff hanger till the end. So much of the list can work without pilot input and Kaz definitely feels like a "fine you idiot I'll do it myself" kind of ship to complement the rest.

Bad news is I can't find Fireball (the Whiskey not the ship) anywhere. Last chance is Heathrow tomorrow.

Good luck at SoS!

Thanks. Ill probably do a small recap here once its over. And I intend to fly Thicc Rey and the Girls on Sunday and will write that up over at the Rey thread.

Put kaz on the table for the first time last night. Feels good to slam again. His ability didn’t trigger at all that game. Had Poe kaz and 2 blue rookies against a 6 ship munitions spam. All opposing ships were i2 and the card I received at set up was flipped into a direct hit. So kaz never got the bonus of his extra dice, but he had the entire swarm chasing him around the board before he went down. As for kaz Is the title a auto include or not?

48 minutes ago, battlestarbill said:

Put kaz on the table for the first time last night. Feels good to slam again. His ability didn’t trigger at all that game. Had Poe kaz and 2 blue rookies against a 6 ship munitions spam. All opposing ships were i2 and the card I received at set up was flipped into a direct hit. So kaz never got the bonus of his extra dice, but he had the entire swarm chasing him around the board before he went down. As for kaz Is the title a auto include or not?

Depends how you build him.

If you give him an R5 astro to get rid of the damage card on the first few rounds, making it a moot point what damage card you picked. He also gets extra dice against In 1-7(Null) until he starts taking damage. This shuts down the Fireball ability to get rid of disarm though, at least early game.

R1-J5 likes having the title, have some tricks by choosing direct hit and deciding to use the ship ability to flip it and have R1 repair the damage card right away.

I like the title cause it gives you a choice of what card to pick and know how it hurts you should you flip it. Otherwise it becomes a gamble. Like what happens if you flip a panicked pilot?

3 hours ago, KiraYamatoSF said:

Depends how you build him.

If you give him an R5 astro to get rid of the damage card on the first few rounds, making it a moot point what damage card you picked. He also gets extra dice against In 1-7(Null) until he starts taking damage. This shuts down the Fireball ability to get rid of disarm though, at least early game.

R1-J5 likes having the title, have some tricks by choosing direct hit and deciding to use the ship ability to flip it and have R1 repair the damage card right away.

I like the title cause it gives you a choice of what card to pick and know how it hurts you should you flip it. Otherwise it becomes a gamble. Like what happens if you flip a panicked pilot?

This was the list for reference:

(68) Poe Dameron [T-70 X-wing]
(2) R4 Astromech
(0) Integrated S-foils
(1) Heroic
Points: 71

(40) Kazuda Xiono [Fireball]
(4) R5 Astromech
(1) Heroic
Points: 45

(42) Blue Squadron Rookie [T-70 X-wing]
(0) Integrated S-foils
Points: 42

(42) Blue Squadron Rookie [T-70 X-wing]
(0) Integrated S-foils
Points: 42

Total points: 200

I had the R5 Astro and turn 1 slammed and flipped the damage to remove the token to get some early shots on the flank but that first card was direct hit. Against an all I2 list meant no extra dice for me. For next time i will take the first turn to remove the damage. Im more curious if it would be better to drop the R5 for the title instead and maybe an R4.

Can’t say for sure yet, but a big part of me thinks slam-and-shoot will turn out to be a trap/gimmick. The value of Kaz will turn out to mostly be as a cheap I4 with a great ability that can SLAM out of trouble. <shrug> Time will tell.

Right, right, right. Short summary now, long report later.

Wonderful tournament, the most fun I had in a long time playing X-Wing. The Hyperspace meta is fresh, fun, diverse and feels like everyone has a chance.

The list overperformed all my expectations, as did my rolls, I went on such a hot streak that "sorry for the dice" was spoken to every single opponent I played against.

Kaz, just like Zizi, is incredibly valuable for his points, but fits the rest of the list perfectly. The SLAM was definitely a trap, I used it twice to run away on Saturday, and over both days only once did I remove the disarm.

As for the results I went 6:0, 2nd overall in Swiss and then crashed immediately in top32 after getting a bye in Top64.

I have officially upgraded from "getting slapped around in precut" to "getting slapped around in cut"

Progress.

17 minutes ago, Flurpy said:

Right, right, right. Short summary now, long report later.

What was the list?

1 minute ago, Rettere said:

What was the list?

Heroic R5 Kaz, Heroic Leia Cova, Pava, Bastian.

13 hours ago, Flurpy said:

As for the results I went 6:0, 2nd overall in Swiss and then crashed immediately in top32 after getting a bye in Top64.

I have officially upgraded from "getting slapped around in precut" to "getting slapped around in cut"

Progress.

Amazing work to go 6-0 at that level of competition! Congrats on a great run. I'm also in the "getting slapped around in the cut" stage, so welcome to the club.

1 minute ago, Mistborn_Jedi said:

Amazing work to go 6-0 at that level of competition! Congrats on a great run. I'm also in the "getting slapped around in the cut" stage, so welcome to the club.

If we work hard enough, one day we will get to be slapped around on a final table on stream. I believe in us

By the way Flurpy, what did you lose to in the top 32 game?

9 minutes ago, Mistborn_Jedi said:

By the way Flurpy, what did you lose to in the top 32 game?

7 Grapling Vultures and a Hyena. Now a disclaimer. He flew better, and I had enough luck the other games that I am now legally not allowed to complain about dice. Thaaaat being said.

I was kinda annoyed we literally played 7 rounds. I just couldn't do enough damage in time. I lost by one hull. He then lost to FOcho in top16 63 to 64. I don't think I would have won against FOcho so its fine.

Plus I had a wonderful time with Rey on Sunday and meet some super cool dudes.

Kaz and Cova take the world by storm then die by a swarm.

I finally remembered to take pictures of a tournament so let’s all rejoice in some blurry X-Wing.

The List

Discussed to death right in this thread, let’s see it one more time:

Kazuda Xiono + Heroic + R5 Astromech
Cova Nell + Heroic + Leia Organa
Jessika Pava + Integrated S-foils
Lieutenant Bastian + Integrated S-foils

How it flies you can see over the last two pages, the only thing I found interesting is that going over

https://listfortress.com/tournaments/1563

nobody brought anything similar. Only one other Bastian and Pava across all lists submitted, only two other Covas and two other Kaz’s, with only one other Kaz of them all making the cut. I don’t get it. Do I see something in this list that others don’t, am I an idiot savant, am I an idiot, did I go against the meta? All of this and many more will not be answered here since I got mad dice to roll and lucked my way across the tournament. So, let’s go:

Round One (James Leeds with Blackout, Kylo, and Muse):

The first game was a good indicator of how the day went. I make a square in one corner, X in front, Cova on the inner corner, Kaz on the outer and I pick a place where I am OK with a first engagement. I fly there and adjust along the way. What I was not expecting at all that all 6 (SIX) Swiss games, the opponent will accept the joust and fight me. Again I don’t get it. This list has 12 mostly double modified red dice, 9 green dice, and 28(29 with regen) health. Why? Why would you joust me?

Anyway Blackout, Muse and Kylo meet me head to head in that triangle of obstacles in the center of his deployment. Even if dice didn’t go my way that’s an extremely uphill battle for his list. But the dice did go my way, aggressively. We were the first match slip to be submitted. I lost half of Kaz. He went out to smoke with a parting “I have never been beaten so thoroughly before”. I apologized for my dice.

200-23

Round Two(Paul Dane with 6 vultures and Sith Infiltrator)

Great a swarm, the one thing I had the least experience with. Oh Well, as taught by previous experiences, if you don’t know what to do, joust it and hope for dice.

I forgot to take a picture of the beginning, so here’s the moment Paul runs out of damage cards in his deck. I started in the right corner, him in the left corner in a 2*4 formation. The game was decided when he turned into the center of the board with a hard 1 on all ships and his 2*4 formation turned into a 4*2 formation while I was still in my square, so the first 2 engagements were his 4 front ships against my 4.That was never going to end well. Turns out I can joust swarms, I just need to hope my opponent makes a mistake. Big brain strategy

200-103

Round Three(Gary Bailey with Ten, Gina, Jake, and Porkins)

Efficiency against efficiency. Unlike my efficiency, his was 3 ships and a flanker, something I wrote about here and my dislike of that idea and of replacing Kaz/Red with Zizi. This meant that if I rush the engagement before Jake flanks its a 4 vs 3 fight.

Jake took the long way around and arrived when Porkins was already dead. With a ship up after the initial engagement, it was a matter of time before the game was over. Insane dice from my side made it faster than it needed to be.

200-106

Round 4 (Rob Carr with Duchess, RAC, and Maarek)

It’s on stream. I dislike how I opened and allowed him the kill box even though I knew it was coming, I was counting on a decent first exchange and then spreading out to catch them when they turn. It worked, but it won’t work next time. I got lucky. I managed to not finish on time by killing Duchess with the very last shot.

200-144

Round 5 (Craig Merrit with Gree, Rose, Snap, Blue Rookie, Blue Rookie)

Fellow Resistance player, a marvelous person, and a self-proclaimed casual player.

I have such a talent for photography. Craig spread out his ships a little too much which meant I got to have my first engagement in the center of a board with a 4 against 3 situation. Rose was too slow, Greer was too flanky. Helped along with some dice being hot, I went up in the damage race and never came back down again. The only game that went to time on Saturday, Craig put up a great fight for a casual player on the cusp of the cut. I am delighted to say he won his last match and made the cut.

144 -98

Round Six(Ewan Ferr with Blackout and two Test Pilots)

I made the cut, and proceed to have some celebratory drinks while waiting for game six. Might have had a bit too much, and arrived at the table a tiny bit tipsy. Ewan was a great sport about it and ignored me bumping models all over the place. That being said he jousted me. The same exact situation as round one.

200-45

That was day one. I wished I had more to write about my tactics but all I did was move my block into the center of the board and wait for the joust. The surprising part was people opting into the joust.

Top 64 (A McDonald’s review)

Having finished with a 6:0 record, I got to eat a greasy breakfast while the others played. I have a habit of ranking all countries by the quality of their McDonalds. Congratulations UK, you are somewhere around level France, much better than the USA, but far faaar away from the reigning champion Hungary.

Top 32 (Greg Hillson with 7 Vultures and a Kraken Hyena)

You stupid stupid person. You spent the entirety of Saturday focusing on getting the first engagement right, and then decide to experiment in the cut. Why? Because you see the two droids on the right alone and yours for the taking, so you get greedy, you break formation, you rush in for the kill. You misjudge the range, you don’t get the kill in and now every single droid is at range 3 of Bastian. You fall behind in the damage race, and there is no time. 8 ships means a total of 7 rounds. Greg deserved it, he outflew you.

135 - 144

And that’s it. One of the best tournaments I have ever attended, every single opponent was a great to play against, the organization was perfect and I look forward to coming back next year. Off I go writing up the World Qualifier report in the Rey Thread.

Great reports man, will definitely watch that game above. I almost took some Cova-based squad but opted for 5A in the end.

I have no idea why everyone went head-to-head with you, but nice work!

You may remember I took Cova/Jess/Bastian/Red to LVO and did well with it. I've been looking at Kaz as a replacement for the Red, like @Flurpy 's UK list. Only a few games in but I think he's strictly better and improve the list.

My question to the group: what's the right Astromech to run? Here are the 3 I've tried.

1. R5/Heroic -- Maximize the time Kaz's ability procs. Turns off the SLAM fun until later in the round, but the extra dice are more valuable.

2. R1J5 -- Bucket is the fluff choice of course, and the ability to discard a damage completely via double repair seems good. It hasn't come into play on the table for me yet, but it could. One downside is losing the 1 point bid.

3. R4/Advanced SLAM -- The Fireball has limited blues, which makes the turn after your Tallon predictable. R4 gives you 6 more blue maneuvers and really opens up flying him. And who doesn't want to do a 3 straight, SLAM use Leia to make the Tallon SLAM white , dump the Weapons Disabled and then get an action! There's room for Heroic on here too if you don't want the bid.

I'm leaning towards R4 based on the way they've felt on the table so far.