This is what we use:

Make a pilot check at the beginning of your turn. (Leadership for silhouette 5+ ships). Difficulty based on relative speed to opponent:

2+ faster: (0 difficulty dice)

1 faster: (1 difficulty die)

Even: (2 difficulty dice)

1 slower: (3 difficulty dice)

2+ slower: (4 difficulty dice)

Do not track current speed--just use the ship’s speed rating. (Note there are ways to boost speed rating of a vehicle and that is powerful and impacts the choice in the table above.)

Environment obstacles upgrade half silhouette (rounded up) and add setback dice per Table 7-8.

Handling applies boost or setback dice.

Remember Skilled Jockey.

If you fail you can only take normal maneuvers.

On success pilot may pick one advanced maneuver. Silhouette 4- can spend 2 Advantage or Triumph to pick a second advanced maneuver (at the normal cost of doing 2 pilot only maneuvers).

Pilot must take one Pilot Only (*) maneuver. Silhouette 4- can pick a second pilot only maneuver (pilot must use action or take 2 strain, and also costs the ship 2 system strain).

Can spend advantage and triumphs (for boost dice, other cool stuff).

Threats and despair have consequences (system strain, collision [p. 242], etc. as they apply).

Each Pilot Only (*) maneuver can only be taken once per round.

Defender picks targeted facing if silhouette 4- unless otherwise indicated.

Moving between close and medium costs 1 range band if speed is 4+.

Turbolasers against silhouette 4- upgrade twice.

Capital ship gunners are sometimes minions.

Note some pilot talents apply to the existing piloting rules. In general anything that applies to "Gain the Advantage” applies to “Advanced Maneuvers” instead.

Dogfight is considered engaged for attacking into (hitting friendly).

Advanced Maneuvers:

Evade* (silhouette 4-): Pick target, increase range band by one relative to target, attacks from and against add setback dice equal to Pilot skill until beginning of pilot’s next turn.

Pursue* (all): Pick target, decrease range band by one relative to target.

Punch It* (silhouette 4-, speed 4+): Pick target, change range band by one relative to target. Costs 1 system strain if target is trying to escape or catch and target has higher speed.

Dogfight* (silhouette 4-): Only if Close. Pick one silhouette 4- target not in dogfight or you are dogfighting with, attacks from and against add setback dice equal to Pilot skill until beginning of pilot’s next turn. Once in a dogfight may only choose Dogfight, Hard Bank, Scissor, Line Up, or Pilot Craft.

Hard Bank* (silhouette 4-): Only in dogfight. Exit dogfight.

Scissor* (silhouette 4-): Only in dogfight. Pick facing of target.

Line Up* (all): Negate your vehicle’s attack penalty for one maneuver (such as Evade and Dogfight and Heavy Maneuvers and Evasive Maneuvers).

Heavy Maneuvers* (all): Pick one silhouette 5+ target, attacks from and against add setback dice equal to Pilot skill or Leadership skill (if silhouette 5+) until beginning of pilot’s/commander’s next turn.

Lose ‘em* (all): Only if circumstances provide opportunity. Only at Long or Extreme range (GM’s call). End encounter.

Normal Maneuvers:

Pilot Craft* (all): At a minimum must take this maneuver.

Push Engines* (all): Pick target, change range band by one relative to target. Costs 1 system strain if target is trying to escape or catch.

Full Burn* (silhouette 4-, speed 5+): Pick target, change range band by one relative to target. Costs 1 system strain.

Evasive Maneuvers* (silhouette 4-, speed 3+): As rulebook.

Stay on Target* (silhouette 4-, speed 3+): As rulebook.

Angle Deflector Shield (all): As rulebook.

Actions:

Damage Control (all): As rulebook.

Additional Ship and Vehicle Actions (all): As rulebook.

Perform a Combat Check (all): As rulebook.

Maneuvers and Actions removed from game:

Accelerate/decelerate*: No speed tracking.

Punch it*: No speed tracking.

Gain the Advantage: Replaced with Advanced Maneuvers.

Honestly looks like a horrible mess, not anywhere near as well crafted as the other custom dogfighting rules pdf I've taken a look at, which attempts to convert some of the SAGA style dogfighting maneuvers (opposed piloting checks) to the rules.

Would be helpful if you included some reasoning as to why or how you came to conclusions that this is somehow better.

Thanks for replying. We've had fun with them. Some of the problems I had with the existing rules:

Tracking speed takes too much bookkeeping for an abstract system.

Pilot skill needs to matter more. Too easy for a pilot 4 to get taken out compared to what we see in the movies.

Pilot with no skill can get as much defense as a pilot 5.

It makes no sense that you can't move as far in a round when you accelerate as in a round where you maintain speed.

Gain the advantage adds extra rounds/time/bookeeping to the encounter and advantage on advantage etc. is a bit much.

If you are in a good pilot's sights you should be a good pilot to get out of them.

Basically I wanted the pilot skill to matter as much as ship stats. Just sharing in case someone is interested. It's slightly tactical but not that difficult to implement.

A houserule I'm considering using is that a starship that has "Gained the Advantage" not only gets to pick which zone he targets, but gets to pick his relative facing to the ship, and thus could say he's attacking from behind where non-turret weapons could not hit him. Pilot skill seems to matter a lot with gain the advantage.

In the Krayt Fang Gain the Advantage is a waste because RAW it only negates the pilot's penalty and you should have gunners taking the shots.

In a starfighter it's better to take two attacks over two rounds considering the low difficulties rather than giving up one attack.

Going by RAW, PCs have the Krayt Fang against some TIEs:

By far the best starship action is Full Throttle.

In our experience the best first round action is Full Throttle. This is best done when the gunners have passed the pilot boost dice, and spending a destiny point on this, and getting the copilot to do Assist twice. Follow this by the Punch It maneuver and you are moving 5. Spend the system strain and personal strain on Evasive Maneuvers and take your lumps for one round.

From then on the pilot moves two maneuvers each round. That means the TIEs following need to move two maneuvers each round to get to close range. If they are minions then they can take no action (can't spend strain on the second maneuver and must use an action to take it) and your gunners can pick them off with double aim and no return fire for a few rounds.

PCs spam Damage Control to lower the system strain you are accumulating from two pilot-only maneuvers.

Even if the TIE pilots are not minions then they have to spend two system strain and two personal strain to do two pilot-only maneuvers and also attack. And the attack is without aiming. And they can only do this 4 times (8 system strain) and that is if their personal strain does not wear out first.

PCs take the Full Throttle action a few rounds before it wears off to get a few cracks at keeping it active. Spend advantage galore. There is no rule that says you cannot take the Full Throttle action if you are under its benefits (I house ruled that out, btw).

Either way it's a horrible mess for the TIEs.