Rate my Kessel run list!

By Clancampbell, in X-Wing

So I'll be running the rebels for the Kessel run.

Gold Squadron w/Ion cannon (x3)

Luke Skywalker w/R2-F2

I wanted to do a 4 ship build, and really like the Y-wings. Sure X-wings may hit harder, but I love the Y's ability to take hits. Coupled with the ion's 360 feild of fire, I'm sold. I added Luke with R2-F2, for that offensive punch of the X-wing and the defensive capabilites of Luke and F2. I thought of doing Wedge instead of Luke, but I really like the defensiveness Luke brings to the party. That, and the force is strong with him! (Lol)

So what do you guys (and gals) think?

Edited by Clancampbell

I think a multiple-Y-wing build is asking for trouble in a competitive environment, honestly.

Your major advantage is the control offered by the ion cannons. A TIE you hit is probably going to have trouble targeting you on the next round, and will be easy pickings for Luke's guns. Your opponent will have to fly carefully--or aim for deliberate collisions--in order to beat you.

But there are a lot of disadvantages, all of which center on the fact that the Y-wing is as maneuverable as a fully loaded river barge. In a mirror match you'll have X-wings attacking with 3 dice against your 1; Imperials don't hit as had, but they'll outnumber you, and your low agility will magnify their advantage.

To put it another way, your Y-wings can take a lot of hits… but they'll have to take a lot of hits. A TIE with Focus has an 80% chance to hit you, meaning that focused fire from 6 of them likely to cripple or kill a Y-wing every round, meaning you have a very small number of rounds to inflict as much damage as you can--keeping in mind that you're relying mostly on your ion cannons, which can't crit and deal a max of 1 damage.

Against an Imperial list, I'd predict an end-game of at least 4 TIEs, probably including Vader, against Luke alone. That would be tough for the Imperials to actually finish off, but they won't have to, because in a tournament format you'll be far more than 33 points behind when time is called. Against a Rebel list, I'd expect to see your Y-wings drop even more quickly. (Think about a Y-wing taking a hit from Wedge's torpedo, unable to even roll a die in its own defense.)

I would highly recommend swapping at least one of your Y-wings for a Rookie Pilot with an R2 Astromech… but theorycraft is no substitute for getting your list on the table and in combat. Find someone to try it out against, and let me know how wrong I was!

Hi Clan! I like the Y wings too, but they get eaten alive by an Imp swarm. I may run one in a 4 ship build, but no more than that. They are mostly just support ships used to set up easy focus fire for your X wings to take advantage of. Of course that's just my outlook on the y wings. I'm a rookie yet! See you at the tourney!

In one of my solo matches against myself (still not a ton of opponents :( ), I tried 4x Y-Wings (gold) with Ion cannons against an Imperial fighter swarm (4x Academy pilots, 4x Obsidian pilots).

The Rebels managed to win in an asteroid field but only barely- one Y-Wing left after a pitched battle which included several TIE losses to rocks.

The rematch battle in open space was no contest. Aside from some ion fun, the Imperials wiped the floor with the Y-Wings with no casualties.