I haven't picked up the game yet, but I've noticed that the core set seems like quite the deal compared the expansions. Especially when you consider the dice, templates and such.

So my question is this, when do you hit diminishing returns on the core sets? I know there are some pieces in the expansions that don't come in the core sets, but I'm still thinking maybe 3 core sets, plus whatever expansions end up fitting my play style.

MechaBri.Zilla said:

You can safely get 3 core sets. That'll give you 6 TIEs and 3 X-Wings. Then you can get 1 or 2 TIE expansions for the extra pilots and 1 X-Wing expansion for the same reason. Get as many Y-Wings and TIE Advanced as you want but I wouldn't get more than 2 of each.

Then you'll be all set until the next wave comes out.

2 cores is great starting point, but 3 is a better deal to save your budget for the “number games” for miniatures and specific cards. As to expansions it is really a preference above 1 of each for what cards you are going to fill your needs. I grabbed 2 of each to keep options open for games and some leeway as to not always have to use the same formula for each game. Just a reminder to go ahead and keep the damage decks separate as to not accidently make a group pile of cards that never will be in your favor no matter how much they are shuffled.

get 2 core sets 1st. Then decide which side you want to play

Rebels:

get x2 Xwings x2 Ywings. Both comes with unique upgrades and pilots you would really want to use, eg. R2 astromech from Ywing is great when paired up with expert handling from Xwing and R5 astromech from Xwings help the Ywings ward of critical effects, and the Ywing also has unique astromechs that are pretty awesome on either ship. I recommend 2 Ywing although honestly only 1 is needed. you may or may not want to buy 1 TIEadvanced just for the squad leader skill upgrade, depending on your budget.

Imperials:

get 1 more core set, then get 1x TIE 1x TIE adv. This will give you everything you need for the lowest cost. Then depending on your playstyle, you could opt for either one more TIE to go the full 8 TIE build, or another TIE adv for builds more similar in style to the rebels

Both:

get 3 core sets in total, get 1 of each expansion. you should now have everything you need. then buy specific stuff for specific needs, eg. additional Y wing or TIE to up the numbers, maybe 1 more TIE adv so both sides can use squad leader etc

EDIT: sure is irritating that i cant post on this forum with my phone

I've bought 3 core sets; this gives plenty of dice, damage cards, asteroids, markers etc to expand the game to include large battles. It also gives 3 X-Wings and 6 Tie-Fighters and enough basic pilots.

However, I would still buy some of the expansions because of the unique pilots and upgrades/enhancements as well as the ships. Even if you already have 3 X-Wings from the core set, its still worthwhile to buy the X-Wing Expansion.

In any case, like most miniature wargames, having more miniatures is always good and gives more Squad building options.

I'm thinking of going Imperial. So it sounds like three sets is the way to go.

I'm not a math major, so I'm going to ask a stupid follow up question. What's the problem with mixing the damage decks together? Don't the ratios all stay the same with the additional decks?

Simply put: Not really.

While you have the same percentage of cards in the deck, the order changes now. You could possibly draw more of one type of damage in a game than would be possible, skewing the odds. If there are only two types of X damage in the deck, now you have ability to draw it four times.

MechaBri.Zilla said:

it's just the rules for tournaments. You are not supposed to alter the deck of 33 cards in any way. that's all. and if you are playing 100 point squads vs 100pt squads, both sides should be using a deck of 33 cards each

Well, yes and no. The full deck of 33 cards has exactly the same odds of drawing a specific single card as a deck of 66 cards. However, once you start drawing actual cards the odds are no longer the same, since the deck of 66 cards will have twice the amount of one specific card. So if you draw exactly one card, the odds are no longer the same for all remaining cards.

On the other hand, normal damage is drawn face-down so the exact type of damage card is not known to either player so from a player perspective once there is a damage card drawn face-down (which will most likely be the majority of damage) the exact odds can no longer be calculated (should you be interested in this) by the players.

For non-tournament play having a 66 card damage deck simply means there is, even for larger battles, no need to reshuffle the damage deck which saves a bit of a hastle. For larger battles, it might be advisable to get a deck of 66 cards.

marcelvdpol said:

How large a battle are you playing where you need more than 33 cards per side?

magadizer said:

For real. The most damage that can be on ships at one time is only 20 and that is by running 5 Y-Wings that each only have 1 hull point left with no direct hit crits.

Never played a 200 point game?

marcelvdpol said:

I assigned damage counters for normal hits and cards from the deck are drawn only for criticals. prevents anybody's stuff from getting mixed up in the confusion, so we only use 1 deck per side. Never had a game where 1 person has 200 points worth of stuff though.

alternatively, each player bring his own deck and is responsible for his own squad. ie. all the stress evade focus tokens etc.

I give the same one word answer to this question as the one who asked how many shios do you really need?……MORE

I mean, why stop at 200?

marcelvdpol said:

Lack of ships. I can get to 200 with the Imperials but that means using every ship I own (8 TIEs, 2 TIE/ad), fielding terrible pilots (Maarek Stele and Winged Gundark), and using too many upgrade cards.

If I had 15 TIEs, I would definitely do it, though.