We have the wave 2 ships pretty well figured out. Just have to wait for them to be delivered but what do you think the wave 3 ships will be?

Rebels

B-wing

B-wing/E (rear facing gunner)

Imperials

TIE Defender

TIE Aggressor (rear facing gunner)

Lambda-class T-4a shuttle

YT2400 Light Frieghter

I'm expecting Wave 3 to be:

B-Wing

TIE Bomber

Lambda Class Shuttle

YT-2400 Outrider

I expect these for the simple reason that they are the last four ships from the original trilogy that fit the scale/purpose of the game that were actually shown on film (granted the Outrider appearance was only a cameo). I could definitely be way off but those are the ones I think are most likely.

Jim

Emrico said:

Pretty much what I figure, also. The fact it appears in the Special Edition sorta legitimizes it alongside the others. I don't think the speculation on Wave 3 is much more than reasonable deduction based on the obvious precedent established in Wave 1 and 2. The real question is what Wave 4 will be. Waves 1-3 are all about giving us the obvious staples of the franchise. Wave 4 will probably be very difficult to predict.

I agree. I think Wave 4 will be both tough to predict and very telling about the direction FFG will turn towards. Whether they move fully into EU ship territory to remain in the Galactic Civil War era or choose to continue with ships that have onscreen appearances, thus moving into the Clone Wars era.

Personally I'm hoping they dive into the Clone Wars era at that point. I like the look of a lot of the fighters from they era for one. And I expect that ships that were actually in the movies or the Clone Wars cartoon would sell better than EU ships to the more general Star Wars fan. I like the EU as a whole but it isn't nearly as mainstream (even among Star Wars fans) as the prequels.

Jim

Emrico said:

My hope is that they proceed forward through the timeline with X-Wing and actually do Star Wars 'Tactics' for Clone Wars. The only problem I see with proceeding forward into the EU with X-Wing is the serious disparity in new ships for the Rebels. You'd probably get one or two waves at most before you ran out of anything worthwhile for the Alliance. That being said, Wave 4 is the one I anticipate most, because of what you said: It's going to let us know where this game is going. I think what I want the most from this game after Wave 3, though, would just be new pilots you can buy in a deck.

We are assuming Wave 3 will include 4 ships, simply becauase W1 and W2 did.

Also, looking at the suggestions, alot of people are suggesting 3 imperial ships (bomber, outrider, Lambda shuttle) and 1 rebel ship (b-wing)

I would actually like to see: 2 ships (b-wing and bomber) and 1 missions pack with a collection of missions (including some bombing missions) or maybe 3 ships (add the Lambda - which has 2 unique and 2 generic pilots for EACH side and can be used by either)

godofcheese said:

Outrider was used by Dash Rendar, who fought against the Empire. He is a Rebel just as much as Han is prior to Ep. 5.

I'm hoping they expand in both directions. Do the EU first, then delve into other factions

godofcheese said:

The Outrider isn't an Imperial ship.

Jim

godofcheese said:

godofcheese said:

I've considered the 'dual loyalty' of ships, and while I think it would have been a great idea, they could have done that with the Firespray. Not ruling it out, and not ruling out that Wave 3 will not fit the template. Speculation is always ambiguous, but I suppose it's enticing to a lot of us.

Emrico said:

These three are on my most desired list as well, followed closely by the Skipray Blastboat and the Sentinel Transport.

Stormtrooper721 said:

My most desired (aka favourite ships) are the Assault Gunboat (for the empire) and A-wing (which we get in wave 2)

Emrico said:

No it isn't, but I don't think you could justify putting it into the rebel catagory, just the same as Slave 1 isn't an imperial ship.

Stormtrooper721 said:

Stormtrooper721 said:

i really think those three ships are a pretty reasonable expectation. The YT-2400 is the most iffy. If the RPG is designed to mesh easily with X-Wing, I would not be surprised to see the Ghtroc Freighter as the fourth ship since I heard that it, the YT-1300 and Firespray are the three possible ships that the players can start with.

I do agree that it's not certain to be four ships in the wave but it seems a reasonable enough premise to base speculation on.

Jim

If they go with the old X-WIng and TIE Fighter video games, there's still a lot they can add.

I think B-Wing and TIE Bomber are probably the most likely for next ships.

Might be kinda neat to see a Z95 for the Rebels as a "cheap" ship option, and I think either the Lambda or (more likely IMO) Assault Gunboat will make an appearance eventually.

We've had some discussion of this before, and in descending order from "virtual certainty" it's pretty much assumed we'll get the B-Wing, TIE bomber & Lambda. It's that #4 that's the perplexing issue, since by this time EVERY OT ship that would "work" is accounted for (by this I mean, no, a Corellian Corvette won't work). I've already gone out on a limb and guessed… the Ghtroc light freighter. Yep, the turtleship. WTF, you say? Well….

1. FFG seems to try and maintain balance in their releases. Two rebel, two Imperial; and generally equivalent strength. The B-Wing is a tougher customer than the TIE bomber, so it stands to reason the opposite number of the Lambda should be weaker. Outrider is a little tough.

2. The minis game is not FFG's only Star Wars property; they also have the RPG, Edge of the Empire. One can expect FFG ships will do "double-duty" in the RPG. For Player Characters, they can currently start with one of three ships: a YT-1300 (covered), a Firespray (covered), or… a Ghtroc (NOT covered).

SO, I'm gambling on that long shot!

1. I agree with the 2 and 2 conclusion, as that's an obvious pattern, but I wholeheartedly disaree with the 'balance', otherwise we wouldn't have a fairly certain agreement about 3 Rebels vs 8 TIE Fighters.("Howlrunner" equals a Gold Squadron Pilot) There is also, apparently, a bit of disparity between the Firesprays and YT-1300s. The game is balanced, but not on a ship-to-ship ratio.

2. I have thought this wise, and also taken notice that the only unreleased starter vessel is the Ghtroc. I would not be surprised to see that ship make a debut at some point, but I'm not sure product-synergy will win out just yet. The fact is, while the Outrider may not have the notoriety of the current releases, the Ghtroc is very much unknown. While I'm not entirely betting on the Outrider, it's presence in the Special Edition and a popular game makes a strong case for it. So far we know that they've peeled from the XvT series and Galaxies, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them pull from one more. The Ghtroc has always felt like filler for me, and it's also not a very appealing design.

Really? An unimpressive Turtle ship? Does anyone actually like this thing and prefer it over the YT-1300?

I would rather see something differnent than yet-another smuggler transport. No Ghtroc, no YT-2400s, the YT-1300 already fills that role.

I wouldn't be surprised if Wave 3 was only three ships and the Lambda was dual-allegiance, actually. If ship stats can be different between pilots, why not allegiance cards and ship tokens? It doesn't seem too hard and the shuttle can go both ways.

I also desire to see more EU ships before taking the plunge into the prequel series. I still believe the Prequels will be introduced with a new core set and stand apart like WWII does for Wings of War, but the engine remains the same and players could cross-connect them if they desired (like the Trek TOS deckbuilder). I'm hoping for the TIE defender and Assault Gunboat before turning to the Prequels.

The Outrider YT2400 would sell. I really think that's the one key element that's been neglected in the whole discussion, and probably the most important. I can't see many people being excited about the Ghtroc.

CaptainRook said:

Completly agree…..just not a sexy design

For the purposes of symmetry I can see the Ghtroc 720 being made available alongside the Lambda T-4a shuttle. Both serve a similar purpose as a heavily armored cargo vessel. However, both vessels are on a slightly larger scale than even the Falcon/Slave I. According to Wookiepedia, the Ghtroc 720 is large enough that Luke was able to store his X-Wing on-board. I don't know if FFG wants to have a ship that large in the game as it is right now.

The YT-2400 could make more sense as a heavily modifiable mid-sized ship. It would be an upgrade from the YT-1300 and still fit the flavor of a smuggler vessel. If that is done, then I wonder if the Imperials will get something more Bounty Hunter related than the Lambda T-4a. I don't know that they would go with something as interesting as the IG-2000, though it would be cool to see some extreme maneuvers from a ship that has no organic pilot (perhaps a 1 and 2 speed Koiogran turn even).

What's most exciting as has been pointed out, is where does FFG go after Wave 3? What does Wave 4 have in store for the game? Does FFG take the game to the surface battles with walkers and speeders? Do they increase the scale of the game with Capital-Class ships and move from the 3'x3' table to the 4'x6' table? Maybe they go back to Episodes 1-3 and bring in the Nubian and Trade Federation ships. Maybe Clone Wars? Maybe Expanded Universe? The possibilities seem pretty hopeful.

Alamoth said:

No Capital ships, No Walkers. This is a tactical dogfighting game. If terrestrial warfare is represented, and I hope some day it is, I'd prefer it be a separate game enirely.

Yah, I totally agree that the most intriguing question of all is "what's next?" I myself would like to see some EU for the current game before anything else. Whether they do the Ghtroc or not, I'd like to see at a minimum a YT-2400, a Z-95 Headhunter, a TIE Defender and an E-Wing. A Skipray blastboat would be awesome too. And, then there's the option of "destructable terrain."

I'd LOVE a ground-war game. If FFG did one though, it's pretty much a given that it'd be a new game, and have nothing to do with X-Wing.

I'm sure the prequels/Clone Wars will come eventually, but I agree it's likely to be initiated with a whole new Starter, and I'd like to see current EU first.

So, here's a thought:

we know there have been tons of different entities that have created ships in this universe, whether they be books, video games, comics, etc. Who's to say that FFG can't create their own ships for this game? I guess I haven't looked at their license agreement, and it would likely have to go through Leland Chee or somebody, but would that be a possibility?

I mean, say they exhaust all possible ships that have been previously created for the Rebels and the Empire (without going down the Fringe/Pirate road), why can't they make a M-wing in the shape of a Mickey Mouse head or something? (…quickly checks wookieepediea to make sure it doesn't already exist…well, there is the M-class starfighter, which would look kinda cool, but it's not officially an "M-wing." Maybe call it the Mouse-wing or something.) They could make up pilots and abilities, maybe talk to LucasArts about making a new 3D X-wing game with those pilots. The possibilities are endless…

Let's think outside the box here people! (while we're thinking about what will be inside the box…)

We're discussing Waves 3 and beyond, when Wave 2 has been delayed. It sorta makes you wonder how far along the design process for Wave 3 is. I'd assume they've started, but I could be wrong. Wouldn't it be hilarious if they've been waiting to announce Wave 3 after Wave 2 was out of the distributor's doors and now it's just sitting there waiting, instead.

I keep seeing alot of talk about the EU (Expanded universe?). I think there are a fair amount of players like myself, that only really know the movies so if you are going off of things from the books and other stuff out there it may not sell as well as what is know. Just my 2 cents, it is worth what you paid for it.