Looking over stats from ATC; the top 10 most used large base ships competitively is something intriguing to survey at this stage in the game. In researching @Brunas 's great resource at http://advancedtargeting.computer/index.html who might provide us with more detail in January for large base ship performance analysis, thought it good to reflect currently on this facet of design. To offer those top 10 and their rank among all ships/pilots in quantity usage for tourneys;
#18 (out of ALL ships used in OP); Lt. Tavson, Upsilon Shuttle; 156 total lists
Winrate 54.1%
Cut 31.4%
Cut winrate 35.4%.
Observation; The most used large base pilot. The low winrate at higher levels of play is to be expected, as top players know how to effectively engage an Ups list with Tavson and minimize risk. While the 4 primary is horrifying to face for opponents, rarely can he provide 3 or more quality attack turns with it in an average game, as most opponents opt to fly around or away from him. One of early second edition's most efficient ships, he's been largely figured out and his future potential might only get murkier. He'll still most likely go up slightly in points in January, however, given his action economy, probably making the anvil of many FO lists less prevalent as the faction overall continues its drift into triple ace / swarm archetype.
#22 Colonel Jendon, Lambda Shuttle; 147 total lists
Winrate 52.1%
Cut 22.4%
Cut winrate 44.8%
Observation; The best Alpha engagement utility in the empire's disposal, Jendon assists many Imperial ship lists; He can give Targeting Computer Soontir and Vader locks out of the gate, or he can enable Hatchetman Vynder to initiate his onslaught of munitions aggro, or he can setup barrage bomber spam, or Redline, the options are tremendous. And then there's always the possibility he shuttles the Emperor to modify every turn. Why is his cutrate so low? Perhaps it's because of higher overall average ship counts---in 1.0 there were much more 2 and 3 ships lists, but now it is fairly common to see 7 ship CIS / Sear murderswarms. And the shuttle just can't lift enough weight in those matchups to stay ahead in the damage race. He's well costed however, and if those banes that threaten his viability go up as predicted in January, he might have a bit more success on extended tables.
#28 Rear Admiral Chiraneau, Decimator; 134 total lists
Winrate 51.6%
Cut 20.1%
Cut winrate 51.2%
Observation; He ain't heavy, he's my RAC! Possibly suffering from the same vulnerabilities as the Lambda (more effective swarms in 2.0) it is interesting to note that he is the highest usage large base pilot to show a cut winrate over 50%--this might be due to the fact that it isn't unusual to find him in a 2 ship list in elite play, flown by experienced players who understand how to best bring the many facets RAC offers to bear effectively. But we are seeing a theme already here; the top 3 large ships competitively used in volume in 2.0 are used mainly for a) their pilot abilities rather than their chassis and b) as ships that rarely are considered to be viable endgame candidates. RAC is certainly costed reasonably...for 8 points over the Patrol Leader he gets a talent slot and Initiative 5. And some could even still argue he and the other Decimators could come down a point or two. But this is unlikely given that the Patrol Leader can't (and shouldn't) go below 67 for fear of 3 Decis in a list. RAC represents a litmus to watch as he is probably the pilot with the best utility to tip the scales competitively with the right combination (I'm looking at you, Minister Tua and Moff Jerjerrod.)
#51 Han Solo, Rebel YT-1300; 79 total lists
Winrate 48.8%
Cut 20.2%
Cut winrate 47.8%
Observation; Our old buddy and pal, considering the top 5 pilots most used in tourney lists are all over 300+ count, (with Obi-Wan and Vader both over 400!) looking at the scoundrel appearing in only 79 lists indicates it's probably mainly out of love for the thematic nature he offers. Handbrake Han had a brief day in the spotlight, but he rightfully had the toys that made him so effective properly curated. The bigger picture here moreso than Han is the large drop in the usage rank; It's a plummet of 23 total spots from RAC for the next large base ship to be represented. Han has and always will be a fixture of the game, even if it is more in casual than OP, but the potential for him to tilt into uber effectiveness is possibly the slightest of margins of all large based ships in the game. That's because of three things; His ability, the double mod slot, and Boost. These represent a perfect storm of challenge in competent hands. Yes, the other iterations of the Falcon also have access to the red boost, but they lack the action economy afforded by a well flown, obstacle skirting, Rebel Han kitted with Engine Upgrade + modification to taste. He's already been priced down once, there's just too much risk in going further, as even a no upgrade Han at 41% of squad value is a tremendous bargain.
#60 Lando Calrissian, Rebel YT-1300; 70 total lists
Winrate 51.8%
Cut 30%
Cut winrate 41.6%
Observation; It should hardly be a surprise to see the dashing future Rebel General as the next large base pilot to be used in volume. He has all of the aforementioned benefits of the Rebel YT-1300 chassis, and the most beneficially versatile method of achieving the stalwart talent of first edition, Push the Limit. Simply put, Lando can do what none of the large ships do above him or in the game can do; He can action himself and then reposition. While this gives him tremendous utility, especially when paired with Nien Nunb, his usefulness in squads extends to providing any friendly ship in the Rebel Alliance with PTL as well. He makes the cut nearly a third of the time, which isn't impressive overall but then as with Han, there's isn't much wiggle room for points decrease. Ask yourself if an additional 6% of your squad budget is worth the uptick from the initiative 1 Outer Rim Smuggler at 69 to get Init 5 conditionally favorable PTL. The answer is most certainly yes, and we are far more likely to see a points decrease on the ORS (but no more than 2 points, as 3 rebel YT-1300s would be incredibly formidable even at Init 1) before we'll ever see one on Lando again. In fact, I'd argue that Lando is undercosted still given his value in a squad, especially one that fields high initiative alpha strike munition carriers.
#65 Rey, Resistance YT-1300; 59 total lists
Winrate 50%
Cut 13.5%
Cut winrate 33.3%
Observation; At this point, it becomes clear that the YT-1300 in any iteration holds the lion's share of representation competitively for large bases. This is skewed heavily by the prequel factions having only one large base total between them and 2 large base ships out of 17 total options across 42% of the 7 factions in the game when including FO. This will loosen up as FFG releases new large base ships for those factions, but for now, we have half of the top 6 being a Falcon of some sort. Rey was a terror in first edition, but she's been slow to join the party here. The cutrate tells the tale; she's just not very good given her surrounding options. Some of this is the discovery of just how awful the scavenged YT-1300 is in a game with higher ship counts and less rounds for time on target. The loss of the one straight blue, the red 4 K, the red rotate and 2 less shields are enormous hurdles to overcome in list-building. And then there is also the issue of her price proportionately to her wingmates. There just isn't a lot of variety to bring other elements to keep the heat off her and the albatross of MOV her destruction gives the opposition. Yet you can't really reduce her price.... why? Those 2 Force Points. They're huge for damage mitigation. (A liberally undercosted Rebel Leia YT-1300 might not be something we want to see too much of, BTW!) But ultimately, it's the challenges of the chassis and the similar maligns the Jumpmaster faces that lead me to offer a controversial solution; Cost illicits more favorably. Much has already been discussed about Scum factionally suffer without their tricks, and the Illicit advantages of Inertial Dampeners and Contraband Cybernetics are surefire ways to help the Resistance YT-1300 (and the JM5K) be more valuable with fire-duty cycles. (Also, who wouldn't mind seeing Old Han on the board for a change?!!!)
#69 Lieutenant Sai, Lambda Shuttle; 49 total lists
Winrate 58.1%
Cut 28.5%
Cut winrate 68.4%
Observation; A bit of a dark horse surprise here, as the highest winrate large base pilot overall with at least 20+ competitive list sampling also boasts the largest cut winrate, just over 2 out of 3. Sai has essentially been lurking at the outer fringes of OP. She's interesting to experiment with, as she provides a degree of action economy for a squad in a manner similar to Lando, but in a faction where such economies are perhaps of even greater benefit for getting their trademark ace lynchpins to the endgame. If she gets 4 quality attacks in during the entirety of a dogfight where the endgame ship (most likely Vader, but possibly Defenders when they and the Lambda come to Hyperspace) still is at full points, I'd wager that the Sai player probably wins, but with an important caveat; She absolutely MUST have the ST-321 title. This gives her 3 die primary a fully modified attack provided she coordinates a focus. That's hella good for scarcely 1/4th of a total squad budget (albeit most likely three total ships, as Imps love their bids) and screams that there's some gold to mine here. The argument can be made given the data that Sai is the BEST large base potentially barring a points increase in January, which there seems little danger of as she isn't a prominent fixture on tables currently for the Empire. But don't be surprised if that changes in the future...
#70 Ketsu Onyo, Lancer Pursuit Craft; 48 total lists
Winrate 41.5%
Cut 18.7%
Cut winrate 14.2%
Observation; Our first Scum pilot to be represented in this list in a faction that has the most large base options, Ketsu has probably arrived here due to one undeniable factor; Her offense. There's no two ways about it, she hits any poor ship she runs into at range 0-1 HARD. Augmented by her ability, the Shadow Caster title, and Fearless, she can deliver a painful blow to any fragile ace hovering at her advantageous assigned initiative 5. Quite simply, she can pick many a 4 health ship off the table in one go. The issue? It's within the dial---this is a chassis that with it's large base gives up a lot of space once it clears the Alpha, with its predilections for 3+ speed maneuvers. While many lament the reduction of the turret primary to a 2 attack value, it most likely is for the best as Ketsu would be very hard to pin down later without getting hurt in return. How is she played in the competitive scene is probably as the hammer she is meant to be, and 38% with the prior mentioned of a squad base cost she is a pretty decent return on investment. But the low cut representation and performance is undeniable, and tells us that in a galaxy of the current swarm and ace meta archetypes she just doesn't have the stamina to hold up. She's just too much MOV to afford to give up, but a price drop on the Lancer chassis of 2-3 points might just be enough for her to creep into what she might be best at; as a third ship in a 3 ship list that can win the game for you if played without error.
#79 Captain Oicunn, Decimator; 42 total lists
Winrate 43.2%
Cut 7.1%
Cut winrate 0%
Observation; Our 9th large base pilot in this list of 10 has us continuing to scrape the bottom of the cut barrel. Sure, Oicunn has gotten a modicum of play, but it hasn't turned out well. The reason? Most likely the irresistible temptation to make an Initiative 3 zero agility ship nearly half of an imperial squads list, which is what happens once one tacks on Intimidation and the Dauntless title. The reality is at that point it becomes hard to not resist putting some sort of crew on him, maybe even two because hey, there's two slots, and before you know it, poof! That monkey of points on your back has turned into a gorilla, and not a very competitive one at that. The deficiency of options Oicunn allows for filling out a squad works against the very things that make the Empire so good; The tools at their disposal. Sure, you could drop a couple of Gunboats in a list with him and try to pincer, or go for the traditional two ship Decimator approach whether it is RAC or an Ace, but the indisputable truth is that Oicunn just can't hang with all of the varied threats in the competitive scene. The game has changed, and maybe even passed him by. He's a relic of an approach that worked fine in the 1.0 game, with only 3 factions and insane combos and that invaluable Engine Upgrade, but here in 2.0 at that lofty price point and easy to hit broadside, it puts him more as a novelty for casual play and perhaps Epic. He might be the best candidate on this entire list for a sizable point drop but then again, there's that pesky Patrol Leader threshold of 68 to consider. How low can he go, if at all?
#83 Darth Maul, Sith Infiltrator; 39 total lists
Winrate 46.7%
Cut 12.8%
Cut winrate 0%
Observation; How the mighty have fallen! In what was FFG's quickest re-calibration on a large base pilot's viability aside from the Voldemorting intent given to Tripsilon (and the accompanying Dormitz/Hyperspace Tracking Data builds) and Shotgun Dash, Maul rides on the faintest of winds, propelled by the briefest of past glories, to do one thing and that is ATTACK. The only new faction pilot to make the top 10, he currently suffers through from being in a faction that currently just isn't designed to carry him; Swarm heavy ace hunters that can also still melt high HP ships in a couple of turns if all goes right for them and wrong for him. While the Dooku/Maul list was quite a beast to contend with, the prospect of seeing his own faction doing what it does best on the other side of the table once Servants of Strife was released was probably the nail in the coffin for him competitively. That, and the base adjusted pricing of Hate. (Unrelated, is fellow Infiltrator pilot 0-66 really so bad as to only get into 9 lists competitively? Seems like he should have gotten the Networked Calculations ability, that would have been neat.) Maul's no joke ability to double tap, combined with a great dial as far as large bases are concerned, are what obviously make him alluring. But until Relays are reduced a bit in cost, and CIS gets a true cheap shuttle ship to help coordinate his barrel rolls to keep him having that gun focused on his prey, Maul will stay in the Salt Mines.
Some final assessments;
1) Despite getting some mostly favorable repricings, large bases have still generally struggled to be better options than having an additional small base ship in second edition
2) Large base Pilots seeing play aren't really tearing it up competitively, and this might be reflective of less combo-wing than before in 1.0
3) Large bases are fairly cost prohibitive right now, and with half points on all ships being a thing, for top level players it's better to spread out MOV, count on their better sense of target prioritization and do the math
4) Recent 2.0 large base releases like the VCX-100 and the Jumpmaster are non factors in OP so far and probably paying for past sins of 1.0
My above sentiments are by no means authoritative or comprehensive. Just my own limited observations on how large bases are currently functioning in the game from a competitive standpoint. Thought it was worth sharing and presenting for forum dialogue as we head into 2020 and the next round of points adjusts. Cheers!
Edited by Cloaker
