Hey all,
I'll be using this space to record my thoughts with new lists in this new meta. For background, I'm a huge fan of the B-Wing and typically like 4+ ships in a list, or a Falcon with wing-men.
Here are my starting lists:
EXTENDED:
-Cassian
w/ Leia and Pivot Wing
(58)
-Braylen (52)
-Blade Squadron Veteran
w/ Selfless
(45)
-Blade Squadron Veteran
w/ Selfless
(45)
Notes:
Nothing too shocking, here. Discounts to Blade Squadron make them very good Selfless carriers.
HYPERSPACE:
-Lando
w/ Nien Numb, Leia, Ion Missiles, and Millenium Falcon Title
(98)
-Braylen (52)
-Ten Numb
w/ S-Foils
(50)
Notes:
Pretty simple Rebel efficiency list. Lots of modifiers on this one.
On Wednesday, I was able to get 3 Extended games and 1 Hyperspace:
Game 1 (Extended) - 75 Min - Win:
My opponent took Dengar, Manaroo, and Fenn. Dengar had Punishing One, Autoblasters, Contraband Cybernetics, and Han Solo (Gunner). Manaroo had Autoblasters and Unkar Plutt. Fenn was nakey.
Rocks made a double-arc through the table like:
((
I deployed in my usual way for B-Wings against high initiative opponents: Cassian on a 45* angle in the right corner, both Blade Sqds on Cass' left pointed straight up, and Braylen on the left of the formation and pointed to the left for flank security. Manaroo and Dengar were stacked with each other in the upper-right corner, and Fenn was threatening the flank on the upper-left.
I did my usual wall crawl, while Braylen stayed further to the left just to keep Fenn from getting too adventurous. I didn't commit Cassian to one direction or the other, instead opting to bump him into the rear of one of the Blade Sqds. On my opponent's side, Manaroo and Dengar committed to coming down on the right, while Fenn burned hard down the left side of the board. This prompted me to peel off one of the Blade Sqds to the left to provide more arc coverage on Fenn.
Initial engagement was between the Blade Sqd on the right, Cassian, and Manaroo. My B-Wing took two damage and so did Manaroo. On the left, Braylen and the other Blade pushed forward and cast a wide net for Fenn, but Fenn opted to turn away. This was a good idea on my opponent's part, as he knew I would have to pull Braylen back toward the right to benefit from Cassian.
The main engagement went well for me. I think my opponent committing to the right board edge was a mistake, as I had arcs on and caused multiple bumps to him. Manaroo took a pounding but lived, and Dengar got Panicked Pilot. Fenn took a shield off Braylen with a Range 3 shot. I burned Leia pretty early to keep arcs on Manaroo the Jumpmasters, but it worked well for me.
The rest of the game was basically clean-up. A Range 2 shot on Fenn was a lucky Direct Hit, which halved him. Manaroo popped, and then Dengar. I lost one Blade Squadron pilot. Opponent conceded.
Game 2 (Extended) - 75 Min - Win:
My opponent was a new player and we worked together to make his first 200pt list. This was a very good and fun learning game for both of us, and taking things a bit looser resulted in a 123-100 final score which was a good hook for him. Looking forward to playing him again. Not much to take away from this game for competitive purposes.
Game 3 (Extended) - 75 Min - Win:
Opponent brought Kylo, Scorch w/ Fanatical, and 2x Zeta Sqd w/ SF Gunner.
Rocks made a triangle:
/l
I deployed as described before. He put Kylo directly opposite me, Scorch in the center, and the TIE/sfs on the right.
Kylo turned to the right and rolled back, giving him plenty of options. I wall crawled up. Scorch and Zetas came down around/through the rocks. Seeing how my opponent wanted to engage, I slow rolled another turn, before turning in with Braylen and both B-Wings, while Cassian stared up in Kylo's direction. The Zetas engaged in a non-ideal way, as they were in a line instead of abreast. Scorch managed to get arc on Braylen. Kylo surprised me by coming down on the B-Wings' flanks and right into Cassian's sights. He rolled a lot of crits, resulting in damage being spread around my squad. I think I halved both Zetas, or outright destroyed one.
Next turn had more surprises, as Kylo opted to turn into the furball instead of turn out. I had multiple Range 1 modified shots on the surviving Zeta and Scorch, but took this opportunity to try and hurt Kylo. I managed to half Kylo here, but took a lot of damage, again spread around.
At this point, the game was basically lost for my opponent. I think I triggered Leia here and cleaned up Scorch and the Zeta, leaving just Kylo. I think I lost one of the Blade Squadrons here.
Kylo ran, and I chased. Eventually he turned in and that was the end of him. Very solid game for me, with little mistakes, good dice, and anticipating my opponent's moves.
Takeaways:
This list is
solid.
It can really soak some hits and dish it right back out. I'm looking forward to getting more experience with it. Keeping at least one Blade Sqd with Cassian is a must, both for arc coverage and Selfless. Compared to old Beef, the lost of initiative is a hindrance, but spreading damage is very potent. As always, Braylen and Cassian are an incredibly strong combo.
Game 4 (Hyperspace) - 75 Min - Loss:
I played against the FO player again, playing the same list. We didn't have a lot of time for this one, as the store was closing soon.
I had a poor initial engagement due to positioning Lando poorly. I also felt the limitations of Braylen without Cassian, as he becomes much more predictable. We got about 30-35 minutes for this game, and I destroyed one Zeta and halved another, but Lando was on 3HP with Kylo behind him and Ten Numb and Braylen had two shields left, each. I'm pretty sure this is a win for my opponent, as I would be hard pressed to half or finish Kylo.
Takeaways:
I don't like how predictable Braylen is without Cassian. Lando is very, very good with the point reductions to himself and Millenium Falcon (Title). However, I don't think Lando is a good partner to B-Wings. I'm going to put Lando on the back burner while I figure out wing-men for him. Instead, my next Hyperspace list will be:
Luke
Thane
2x Blade Sqd. w/ Selfless
With the idea of delivering Luke to the end-game.
Thanks for reading!