Custom Format Rules: What Would You Bring?

By ZealuxMyr, in X-Wing Squad Lists

Custom Format for an Event in Southern Maine (date TBD):

1. Each player will choose one faction with which to construct one Extended Format 150 point squadron .

2. Each player will also select any other faction with which to construct one Extended format 75 point squadron that may not consist of more than 1 ship; this squadron MUST feature a minimum build of 68 squadron points. (If your 150 point squadron is Imperial, your 75 point squadron may not be imperial, etc. etc. etc.)

3. When building both squadrons, treat them as one squadron in terms of limited cards (For Example: a player's 150 point list may not contain Resistance Chewbacca if Rebel Chewbacca is in the 75 point squadron, etc. etc. etc.).

4. Before each game begins players will use their 150 point squadron point total to determine initiative. Immediately after initiative is determined, and before any setup begins, the player with initiative will then roll one attack die. On a hit or critical hit result players will exchange 75 point squadron components for the duration of the game. On a blank or focus result players will field their own 75 point squadron components for the duration of the game.

This will result in a combined 225 point squadron cap per player and shenanigans.

Edited by ZealuxMyr
Title Misleading.

Ooh those are some fun rules.

150 points gets me the core of my disruptive 4 ship scum list.

4-LOM (49)
Crack Shot (1)
Advanced Sensors (10)
Mist Hunter (2)

Ship total: 62 Half Points: 31 Threshold: 5

Old Teroch (56)
Predator (2)

Ship total: 58 Half Points: 29 Threshold: 2

Captain Seevor (30)
Ship total: 30 Half Points: 15 Threshold: 2


Total: 150

Maybe toss in Garven because if I play against him my disruption can neuter his ability, while playing with him lets me get all the upsides.

Garven Dreis (X-Wing) (47)
Outmaneuver (6)
Plasma Torpedoes (9)
R2-D2 (5)
Shield Upgrade (6)
Servomotor S-Foils (0)

Ship total: 73 Half Points: 37 Threshold: 4

Alternatively: Chopper on Plo gives me a ship I can disrupt the ability of if given away, and gives me another disrupter if I get to play it.

Plo Koon (44)
Sense (5)
C1-10P (7)
Delta-7B (19)

Ship total: 75 Half Points: 38 Threshold: 3

Major Vermeil would be a strong fit for my list, but a little more annoying to fight.

Major Vermeil (49)
Intimidation (3)
Darth Vader (14)
Agent Kallus (5)
Shield Upgrade (4)

Ship total: 75 Half Points: 38 Threshold: 5

Edited by Cerebrawl

Fun rules to play around with, how about Boba Obi?

Boba Fett (85)
Maul (12)
Proximity Mines (6)
Deadman's Switch (2)
Hull Upgrade (5)
Slave I (2)

Ship total: 112 Half Points: 56 Threshold: 6

Mining Guild Surveyor (25)
Intimidation (3)

Ship total: 28 Half Points: 14 Threshold: 2


Total: 140

Obi-Wan Kenobi (47)
Brilliant Evasion (3)
R2 Astromech (6)
Delta-7B (19)

Ship total: 75 Half Points: 38 Threshold: 3


Total: 75

Hrm.

I missed the "maybe swap" part of the format at first read-through. That changes things.

My first impression was just grab the best 75 point ship you can think of: like a strong, independent ace. Fairly well built Obi, Luke, or Fenn Rau are near the top for me. But maybe that's not the right plan. Luke or Obi will probably slot into any opponent's squad pretty well. Fenn maybe works better, because Fangs are an odd duck--easily squishy and needing the right level of aggression.

Now, I'm pondering synergies that could easily not work for an opponent. You obviously don't want to sabotage yourself since you'll win the flip sometimes, but having a half-synergy might work.

  • A loaded General Grievous with Outmaneuver, Soulless One, Impervium, and Kraken, paired with IG-88s. An opponent probably won't have the calculates, so Kraken is mostly wasted.
    • Resistance Chewbacca (with C-3PO for unlimited range coordinate) could also work paired with calculate stuff, maybe a big swarm Vultures and Hyenas.
    • Guri could be folks to pair with the above Grievous; being able to start the game with a pre-loaded calculate would be amazing. Maybe 4-LOM, maybe an L3-37 escape craft and giant bid.
  • Generic Synergy Strategies. Main list could easily be something like 6 Energy Shell Vultures, 4 Optics TIE/sf (leaves a nice 6 point bid if someone's 75-pointer is high-init), 3 Crack Shot Black T-70, 2 TIE Defenders. Bring a 75-pointer who has generic-specific synergies
    • Kath Scarlett can't take a lot of toys, but she'll gain more from having a bunch of cheap stuff in the scrum.
    • An overloaded Drea Renthal seems like a lot more of a liability (a nearly 75 point Y-Wing probably dies too easy), but could really add solid output to a swarm that an opponent might not be able to use.
    • A Starkiller Base with Hux and Advanced Sensors could be a nasty little monkey wrench. Pair with oooh... three Nu gunboats with Passive Sensors and Proton Torpedoes. That's some pain right there. Or 3 104th ARCs with Hull and R5, for a tonne of health.
    • Resistance Chewbacca or Avenger would both work fairly well with a high ship count that an opponent might not have.
    • Howlrunner, Iden Versio, and three Academy Pilots would be a solid 150 point core. That'd be a nasty mini-swarm to pair with most anything else.
  • A lot of stress-tricks are probably fairly neatly confined.
    • Sloane Swarm with a Lambda, 2 Strikers, and Wampa, plus Koshka Frost (without stress tools on her own, so maybe her ability is blank text).
    • Maybe Koshka and 4-LOM fairly well stacked, but some 3rd ship who does stress tricks. Patrol Leader with Death Troopers?
    • Taking Sloane as the 68-75 point ship seems like it could easily backfire if your opponent gets it, however.

Alternatively, go maximum brass dice: 150 point Han or Dash.

I like Sinker as the 75 point ship (3PO, upgrades to taste). You can take a vulture swarm (6 separatist drones with struts, 3 with discord, one with esc or switch 2 of them for sear with TA-175 and title) or 3 bsa starvipers with crackshot. Both lists are primarily I3, don’t have built it TL economy, and can still melt sinker pretty quickly if necessary. The wide area of effect lets you fly loosely and still get the rerolls for the droids or starvipers.

8 hours ago, theBitterFig said:
  • A lot of stress-tricks are probably fairly neatly confined.
    • Sloane Swarm with a Lambda, 2 Strikers, and Wampa, plus Koshka Frost (without stress tools on her own, so maybe her ability is blank text).
    • Maybe Koshka and 4-LOM fairly well stacked, but some 3rd ship who does stress tricks. Patrol Leader with Death Troopers?
    • Taking Sloane as the 68-75 point ship seems like it could easily backfire if your opponent gets it, however.

Alternatively, go maximum brass dice: 150 point Han or Dash.

Go Rebels with ships that thrive on being stressed, bring Sloane.

You can just fit: Ten Numb, Braylen Stramm, Cassian Andor (helps fix stress for the ship you get from opposing list)

PS: 150 Han or Dash is not allowed, the 150 points still has to be a legal extended list: in other words at least two ships.

Edited by Cerebrawl

Touche on Han/Dash.

1 hour ago, Cerebrawl said:

Go Rebels with ships that thrive on being stressed, bring Sloane.

You can just fit: Ten Numb, Braylen Stramm, Cassian Andor (helps fix stress for the ship you get from opposing list)

As to fighting against Sloane, this is the issue: if you swap ships, you're giving your opponent all the free rerolls against you pretty much all the time. Ten and Braylen will be stressed every round if they're using their potential. Suppose you hand Sloane over to, like, Jedi Aces. Those Jedi will have red dice rerolls without locks, freeing up their actions a lot. I'm not sure I want to do that.

8 hours ago, Des Darklighter said:

I like Sinker as the 75 point ship (3PO, upgrades to taste). You can take a vulture swarm (6 separatist drones with struts, 3 with discord, one with esc or switch 2 of them for sear with TA-175 and title) or 3 bsa starvipers with crackshot. Both lists are primarily I3, don’t have built it TL economy, and can still melt sinker pretty quickly if necessary. The wide area of effect lets you fly loosely and still get the rerolls for the droids or starvipers.

My thing with Sinker: half the time, you'll hand Sinker to your opponent. Then you won't probably have the rerolls (swarm without bonus dice mods gets pretty sad), and they will.

Sinker seems almost like the worst possible 75 point ship to me.

  • He's integral to your list's functioning, and half the time you won't have him in your list.
  • He's easily used by any opponent's list, due to the fairly wide areas for his reroll buff. Pretty much everything from ace to swarm can do OK with a Sinker tossed in.
  • He's really expensive, relative to his standard cost. There's 20 points of extras in Sinker, and likewise easy enough for an opponent to kill when he's on your side.

Contrast:

Sinker in the main squad, Ric (R2) and 2 Gold Troopers is 150 points. Whatever extra ship you get from an opponent will probably be handy. An ace, something beefy like a firespray, something more support-like, it all probably fits in.

A few things I could think of, I'm not promising they're good:

  • Droids + Palob (can't steal calculates!)
  • 2 IGs + 1 IG
  • Medium / large ships + Ketsu (makes tractor ability irrelevant)
  • Medium / large ships + Latts Razzi (likewise)
  • Ships with devices + Cat+VTG+Paige (but no devices)
3 hours ago, Ysenhal said:
  • Ships with devices + Cat+VTG+Paige (but no devices)

On that note: bringing Sabine Wren (crew), but no bombs on that ship.

Bounty Hunter (64)
Proton Bombs (5)
Deadman's Switch (2)

Ship total: 71 Half Points: 36 Threshold: 5

Unkar Plutt (33)
Proton Bombs (5)
Deadman's Switch (2)

Ship total: 40 Half Points: 20 Threshold: 3

Jakku Gunrunner (32)
Proton Bombs (5)
Deadman's Switch (2)

Ship total: 39 Half Points: 20 Threshold: 3


Total: 150

Heff Tobber (45)
Intimidation (3)
Advanced Sensors (10)
Sabine Wren (3)
Tactical Officer (6)
Shield Upgrade (6)
Pivot Wing (0)

Ship total: 73 Half Points: 37 Threshold: 5

I wound up flying four Zeta Survivor TIE/sf with Advanced Optics, a 6 point bid, and Outmaneuver Fenn Rau as a buddy. Never wound up switching, but I figure I had rear-facing-turrets and could deal with a Fenn if I had too.

I wound up least successful of the 2-1 players at the small event. Only 2 out of 9 games had the swap actually happen, which is unfortunate. In no particular order:

  • Corran and Y-Wings & Battle Meditation Plo. Coordinate some Torps on those Ys, maybe steal Corran's disarm token.
  • Dooku + Discord Vultures & 4-LOM. Triple Calculate as a battery for Networked Calculations is sweet
  • First Order generics & Vennie, so almost surely a wasted ship, if swapped.
  • Goji and bomber Y-Wings & Nym. Have you seen 1-agility ships run up to and sometimes would otherwise exceed the 6 dice hard cap? Because now I have. Sweet as all get out, but overall puts in a lot of work for results which aren't particularly spectacular. But all those 6 green dice defenses were sweet.
  • Mixed Scum & Loaded Norra Wexley. I never got too close a look.
  • Winner: Vader/Soontir & General Grievous: a third ace, but an ace which would probably lose hard to Vader/Soontir.
    • Here, the bid came out to 7 points... one more than my 6. In our match Fenn Rau got sniped with crits at Range 3 twice. Range 1? Completely safe (Forget it, Jake. It's Fenn Rau.). Range 3? Yikes.

Overall, a really fun afternoon.

Edited by theBitterFig