Hey everybody, I am completely new here and completely new to X-Wing. I played one game when a friend brought his X-Wing stuff to a local game meet-up and I finally got to play. I loved it but I was unsure if I was going to get into it. I jumped on the bandwagon when Target just recently had their core sets on clearance for $20 and sometimes even $10! I bought two core sets and now I'm on my way to the expansions. So, here I am!

My question is what are the best ships on each side of the battle? I want some good ships for playing around with my friends even in 2v2 or 3v3 games. But I also want some good ships if I ever want to enter into some local tournaments. What are the best ships for the Rebels and what are the best ships for the Imperials?

Thanks for everyone's help and opinions!

Well, something you'll soon find is that there are no "best ships" in the game. It's extraordinarily well balanced, and we can thank FFG for that. However, there will be some good all-round choices that can work with different play styles. Here's a few tips and combos i can think of to get you started.

Rebels

I don't play rebels but my friends have made some decent tricks:

Ten Numb (B-Wing) + Autoblaster= Combine the autoblaster's ability to negate evade dice against regular hits with Ten's ability to negate them for Crits and you have a recipe for some serious hurt.

Tycho + Push The Limit (you'll see it on this forum abbreviated as PTL a lot) + Concussion Missiles= Target Lock and Focus in a single round, and if you had to do a Kiogran to get into firing position the stress token won't even stop you.

Imperials

Soontir Fel + PTL= gives you all the speed choices you could want with maneuverability to match. His ability gives you a focus token too, so if you were able to get in behind a slow ship like a B-Wing or Y-wing (whose evade dice is only 1) then barring terrible luck on the attack roll your foe's in for a world of hurt.

Night Beast and Dark Curse= These two TIEs can be some of the hardest to hit in the game, especially Night Beast. His PS is only in the middle but the focus and evade token can see him through multiple attackers unscathed. Use Dark Curse to deny your opponent the reroll advantage of their target locks. Just try to make sure that these guys are the "best" shot your opponent has as often as you can.

TIE Bomber + Adrenaline Rush = the only Kiogran the Bombers have is a 5, which can be perfect for racing past the opponent. It's a one-shot trick, but when used with concussion missiles or assault missiles it can potentially turn the tide of a whole battle in one round. Especially if you managed to hit the opponent with a bomb in the same turn.

there, that should be a few simple tricks to get you started.

While "best" is a relative term, there are definitely some well known workhorse ships that it is good to have around when building your collection.

X-Wings and TIE Fighters are good, you have some from the core set but it might not hurt to grab the expansions as well (they come with some extra pilots that are quite useful).

Generally I would recommend buying combat-oriented ships first, then filling in with some more support-style ships later. Or just buy 1 of every expansion and see what ships you like, then buy more of them as you see fit. If you do skip an expansion, I would go with the HWK and maybe the shuttle, at least initially.

Good News. You already own the "best" ships in the game although you may want to pick up the expansions so you also get some of the best pilots to put into them. I'm saying these are "the best" simply because many winning squads have been build around nothing but X-Wings or TIE Fighters.

After these basically every other ship has its strengths and weaknesses. Getting one of each is a good way to experiment but to build a powerful squad quickly I'd look into the Falcon and Firespray.

I'll get to specifics...

You need to get one of the X-Wing Expansions to get Wedge and a 3rd X-Wing.

You need to get at least one of the TIE Fighter Expansions to get the pilots from that set such as Howlrunner. You could get a couple more if you want to do TIE swarms but you might want to wait on that until you get better at flying.

Now you can start branching out a bit.

You may want to get a couple of Y-Wings for fleet diversity and ion attacks.

You may want to get a couple of B-Wings and TIE Bombers for fleet diversity.

Once you are comfortable with movement get some A-Wings and TIE Interceptors for wild maneuvering.

The large ships have some great stuff but you can hold on those for a little bit until you feel comfortable with movement and the game mechanics.

The HWK can be near the bottom of your list.

TIE Advanced should be at the bottom of your list unless you lust for Vader, but only get one.

Well, something you'll soon find is that there are no "best ships" in the game. It's extraordinarily well balanced, and we can thank FFG for that. However, there will be some good all-round choices that can work with different play styles. Here's a few tips and combos i can think of to get you started.

Oh how wrong you are!

The only good rebel {scum} ship is one that is now space dust!

But you were mostly right about Baron Fel and NightBeast. I also think the shuttle (or as it is also known: the great white space bus/bison/whale/narwhal/bovine/hipposhuttlemas/...).

The best ship in the game is clearly the Bebop, and it just so happens to come with the best crew member as well, Ein the Wonder Dog.

The best ship in the game is clearly the Bebop, and it just so happens to come with the best crew member as well, Ein the Wonder Dog.

Wrong timeline. We're playing in a setting a long, long time ago, and that's clearly a few hundred years from now.

The best ship in the game is clearly the Bebop, and it just so happens to come with the best crew member as well, Ein the Wonder Dog.

Wrong timeline. We're playing in a setting a long, long time ago, and that's clearly a few hundred years from now.

Not if you view time as a circle. Actually, from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint, it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly... timey-wimey... stuff.

The best ship in the game is clearly the Bebop, and it just so happens to come with the best crew member as well, Ein the Wonder Dog.

Wrong timeline. We're playing in a setting a long, long time ago, and that's clearly a few hundred years from now.

Not if you view time as a circle. Actually, from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint, it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly... timey-wimey... stuff.

Great Scot!!!!

The best ship in the game is clearly the Bebop, and it just so happens to come with the best crew member as well, Ein the Wonder Dog.

Wrong timeline. We're playing in a setting a long, long time ago, and that's clearly a few hundred years from now.

Not if you view time as a circle. Actually, from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint, it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly... timey-wimey... stuff.

Nice Doctor Who quote! David Tenant was my favorite.

There are so many pilots that it's difficult to say 'best'. However, I'd say (for imperials at least) that once you get good with it, the (numerous) interceptor pilots are generally amongst the best.

Basically,

Whatever works for you is probably the best, unless it's a HWK, Tie Advanced or A-Wing. Those are very situational and are best thought of as support, because if they dominate a list, you will probably die horribly.

Mind you, I still plan to get and use them all.

What ship you rate as the best is your opinion totally. Rebel players would probably say the x-wing or perhaps B-Wing although there are a few who would say the A-Wing but they would be in the minority. For imperials Tie-Fighters are the backbone but some players would say the intercepter is the best ship. There are a number of Slave1 players out there that would call that the best ship - with its high durability and 3 attack dice, they can make a good argument.

Best pilot, best upgrade on that pilot and best ship you want head-to-head are different ways to answer this question as well.

For me personally the best ship in the game is the Lambda Shuttle - seriously. It wasnt the best ship for the longest time, getting overlooked and misrepresented quite a bit but it grew on me and now has me playing imperials more than ever (i used to play mostly rebels).

TIE Bomber + Adrenaline Rush = the only Kiogran the Bombers have is a 5, which can be perfect for racing past the opponent. It's a one-shot trick, but when used with concussion missiles or assault missiles it can potentially turn the tide of a whole battle in one round. Especially if you managed to hit the opponent with a bomb in the same turn.

This would be true if the bombers actually had an EPT. You don't want to do this with Jonus - and you want to have PTL with Rhymer, because you don't want you use him for a one-shot trick.

Okay, great! Thank you everyone for your suggestions! Keep 'em coming if you have them.

Here's what I'll be getting from a trade I am doing for a guy's small collection (besides the 2 core sets I already have):

-1 Core Set

-1 TIE Fighter

-2 TIE Interceptors

-2 Millennium Falcons

-2 Slave I's

I think what I'm going to do is definitely get:

-Another X-Wing (for pilots)

-1 or 2 TIE Bombers

-1 TIE Advanced (specifically for Vader for casual friends to get a kick out of)

-And then I'm trying to decide between an A-, B-, or Y-Wing.

Two more questions...1.) Is there any point to me having 2 Falcons or 2 Slaves from this guys trade? Or could I sell one of each of those? And 2.) If I can only get one, should I get the A-, B-, or Y-Wing for my Rebel fleet? Thanks again for everyone's help, I really appreciate it!

My favorite rebel ship is the B wing. This is because of the cannon option. I like to load them up with Heavy Laser Canons, but those canons come in other ship packs, so if you want that specific combination you'll have to branch out a bit. HLC's come with the Slave 1, and the Lambda if I remember correctly.

The X-Wing itself is also probably the most overall good rebel ship due to being well rounded.

For imperials, it's a toss up. The interceptor is probably the best ship, but it's more expensive, especially if you get Soontir Fel with Push the Limit. One of the most common setups is for Imperials to go with a TIE Swarm. Lots of ships because the basic TIE's are cheap. But in order to do this you really need Howlrunner, who comes in the basic TIE expansion.

So best ships? I'd easily say that you need to buy the basic X-Wing expansion, and/or the basic TIE expansion first and foremost, as they have THE most important cards overall. Wedge for X-Wings, and Howlrunner for TIEs. This then you'll have 3 TIE's and 2 X-Wings. After that you can branch out to slightly more expensive ships, maybe a Y wing or a B wing for rebels, and maybe an Interceptor, or Bomber for Imperials.

I second The_Roan_Bomber. My absolute favorite ship in this game is the Lamdba shuttle. However, it's not great out of the box and requires experience to fly well. It requires upgrades from both other large craft to excel. In the right hooves, it's an unrelenting beast of doom.

As for the 2 Falcons and 2 Firesprays, yes keep them. There are some solid Twin Falcon lists that are simply daunting. Two Firesprays can be great in several different lists. I wouldn't rush off an sell them.

I disagree with many posts above suggesting that you should wait on playing the large craft. Yes, they can be tough to fly, but you learn to maneuver a lot better. They can be easier to visualize and when you get good at piloting them, you'll be far better with the small craft. Two falcons can be tons of fun. Even 3 Firespray lists can be devastating.

Okay, great! Thank you everyone for your suggestions! Keep 'em coming if you have them.

Here's what I'll be getting from a trade I am doing for a guy's small collection (besides the 2 core sets I already have):

-1 Core Set

-1 TIE Fighter

-2 TIE Interceptors

-2 Millennium Falcons

-2 Slave I's

I think what I'm going to do is definitely get:

-Another X-Wing (for pilots)

-1 or 2 TIE Bombers

-1 TIE Advanced (specifically for Vader for casual friends to get a kick out of)

-And then I'm trying to decide between an A-, B-, or Y-Wing.

Two more questions...1.) Is there any point to me having 2 Falcons or 2 Slaves from this guys trade? Or could I sell one of each of those? And 2.) If I can only get one, should I get the A-, B-, or Y-Wing for my Rebel fleet? Thanks again for everyone's help, I really appreciate it!

If you are doing a TRADE, make SURE you get all the cards that come with each ship. Google each ship, find all the cards that come with each, and make sure. I'm not even talking about pilots, but also upgrade cards. For example, The falcon comes with 2x Shield Upgrade, and the Slave 1 comes with 2x Stealth Device... very important upgrades for many builds. Also I previously mentioned the amazing Heavy Laser Cannon that comes with the slave 1. As you grow in your collection, you may very well find yourself buying a second slave 1 not only for the ship, but for more of the upgrade cards.... so you are absolutely going to want to make 100% sure you get every. single. card.

Okay, great! Thank you everyone for your suggestions! Keep 'em coming if you have them.

Here's what I'll be getting from a trade I am doing for a guy's small collection (besides the 2 core sets I already have):

-1 Core Set

-1 TIE Fighter

-2 TIE Interceptors

-2 Millennium Falcons

-2 Slave I's

I think what I'm going to do is definitely get:

-Another X-Wing (for pilots)

-1 or 2 TIE Bombers

-1 TIE Advanced (specifically for Vader for casual friends to get a kick out of)

-And then I'm trying to decide between an A-, B-, or Y-Wing.

Two more questions...1.) Is there any point to me having 2 Falcons or 2 Slaves from this guys trade? Or could I sell one of each of those? And 2.) If I can only get one, should I get the A-, B-, or Y-Wing for my Rebel fleet? Thanks again for everyone's help, I really appreciate it!

If you are doing a TRADE, make SURE you get all the cards that come with each ship. Google each ship, find all the cards that come with each, and make sure. I'm not even talking about pilots, but also upgrade cards. For example, The falcon comes with 2x Shield Upgrade, and the Slave 1 comes with 2x Stealth Device... very important upgrades for many builds. Also I previously mentioned the amazing Heavy Laser Cannon that comes with the slave 1. As you grow in your collection, you may very well find yourself buying a second slave 1 not only for the ship, but for more of the upgrade cards.... so you are absolutely going to want to make 100% sure you get every. single. card.

Thanks for the concern. I did make sure all of his opened stuff was complete. He said it was so now it just comes to trusting that he'll deliver on his promise. Here's to hope

So what do people think? Should I invest in an A-Wing, B-Wing or Y-Wing?

I appreciate any and all input, so thanks!

A-wing is the only way you'll get the all important Push the Limits card which you'll find invaluable for the TIE interceptors, but if you think you'll probably focus more on Rebels then go with the B-wing

Should you buy (invest is such a strong word) an A-Wing, B-Wing, or Y-Wing? The answer is almost certainly YES, assuming you want to play rebels. In that case they all have their uses so which one to get is harder to answer. If you're an Imperial player the Y-Wing is pretty much useless to you but the A-Wing has the Push the Limits upgrade in it which is useful in MANY ships and the B-Wing also has a few upgrades you may find useful.

When asking about keeping two Falcons or Slaves I'd definitely say YES to the Firesprays but I wouldn't be as enthusiastic about the YT-1300s. While the can be devastating there aren't many two Falcon builds and when used they rarely leave room for other things. I guess you may find uses for four Engine Upgrades but generally four Shield upgrades aren't used or at the least aren't an essential part of a squad. With the Firespray there are a number of builds that can use two of them in various ways; you're also more likely to find use for four Stealth Devices and the "extra" Heavy Laser Cannons could go one those B-Wings people seem to like using but which don't come with them.

It's not out yet but you may want to set sights on the Imperial Aces two-pack expansion.

• a tie-fighter expansion should be your priority (howlrunner is a key pilot for imperial squads - i used to find it hard NOT to play howlrunner in every squad - she is that good!)
• imho u need a minimum of 6 tie-fighter models to play imperials swarms at close to full power. swarm squads typically have howlrunner (but not always) and another 5-7 tie-fighters or use a combination of tie-fighters and intercepters (or even bombers).
• i agree a single tie-advanced is a good idea - playing Darth Vader is lots of fun - he has been relegated to the 'casual players' list by many but i still think he is a nice option (ive run him with 2x Bounty Hunters before, he can be used with 4-5 tie-fighters, 2 intercepters etc)
• once u have 4 x-wings, 6+ tie-fighters, 1 tie-advanced you small ship selections have a nice base to build from.
• next id recommend getting TWO of these craft: B-Wing, Tie-Intercepter, Y-Wing, A-Wing then id go for 1-2 Lamda Shuttle (it has the Advanced Sensors upgrade which will make ur B-Wngs better AND its a nice versatile ship in its own right with upgrade slots for two crew, system upgrade and cannon).
• Lastly id go into a few bombers - they are perhaps the second least played small fighter after the tie-advanced and are still really looking for a home but their upgrade options are off the charts as they can take 2x torps, 2x missiles and bomb/charge each!

The actual order u get things in is totally up to u. it will depend on your budget and which faction you prefer to play most. If u want to build each faction evenly then buy 1-2 ships for each faction each time.

Welcome to the addiction

Fly Casual, especially if you're flying a shuttle

Should I invest in an A-Wing, B-Wing or Y-Wing?

D. All of the above.

Me, I'm a big fan of Y-wings. I try to throw one in every list. The Y-wing expansion doesn't come with a ton of pilots, but it comes with extras like ion turret and R2 Astromech. Those babies are great! The named pilots in the y-wing let you help you other ships by dishin out target locks or re-rolling dice at range 2-3.

D. All of the above, after the y-wing.

Where the idea of good piloting and superior play is always on the forefront of being successful in the game, one can't overlook some of the better pilots in the game.

Wedge, Luke, Biggs, Han Solo, Chewbacca..etc

Dark Curse, Howlrunner, Soontir Fel, Turr Phennir..etc

There's a reason why these named pilots see play more than others.