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Me and my friend(he's on dakka as the big goblin) will be starting this game once our 40k armies are finished(sometime this year)but before I hop in my Tie fighter(for the not a god,Emperor!)I have one question:When you buy another ship does it feel like your getting your moneys worth?

If you've ever bought a Games Workshop kit, it's worth it.

Obviously, it depends how much you play. Buying five of every ship when you only ever play 40K is probably unnecessary. If you play three games every night, compare the cost--per-hour to a movie and you'll be laughing to the bank.

The exception, I think, is the new large models. I object to paying huge amounts for a single model generally... Although with the Rebel Transport at 10%-20% off for online retailers, with the price of the included X-Wing subtracted, makes it look like a bargain.

Generally, my advice is if you only buy one or two ships at a time, you can wait until you feel comfortable to buy more.

100 points is the equivalent of 2k in 40k. If you're playing Empire (And not being a filthy Terrorist ) you'll have anywhere from 3-8 models on the board at 100 points. Rebel can get anywhere from 2-5 models, but they are a bit beefier and a bit more hurty on average.

Big ships (Firespray, Falcon, Lambda) run $30, small ships are $15. and the core set (With an X-wing and two ties, plus all your templates and dice) is $40. Imperial Aces, an expansion that comes with more goodies for the TIE Interceptor and two alternate paint job Interceptors

That being said, it's just like 40k (or any game) where you will feel you get your money's worth if what you're buying fits your playstyle.

I personally don't like Big Ships because I like having Swarms of TIE Fighters or Elite Squads of TIE Interceptors. I like the models of the TIEs more than the Falcon, Firespray or the Lambda.

So When I bought the Falcon and the Firespray for some of the upgrades I wanted, they felt like a waste of money compared to the $120 I spent on preordering Imperial Aces( I wanted a 4 man squad of both Paint Scheme.) Because I'll never play Rebel(no Falcon) and I just don't see me flying the Firespray any time soon, but I'll run Interceptors all day long.

It's definitely worth it to me. I'm tired of building and painting and just wanted a fun game out of the box. The games are quicker than GW games, and you can meet more people at a tournament because you cycle quicker. You can adjust your list easily with the cards and if your in a fun loving group you can download the cards offline and print them out instead of buying multiple sets.

I have no connection to miniaturemarket.com, they just moved to a mile away from my house, but do 33% off the price. I'm sure with you in Ireland that the shipping might be harsh, but if you figure a big GW kit or army compared to a x-wing army your set . Especially with a friend if you split the armies(you imperial and him rebel)

Thanks guys.Now for a barrage of questions:
Can I field TIE advanced without taking vader?
Is mareek steel in the game?
Is Vader + his wingmen(mauler mithral and someone else)an effective force(and whatevers needed to make it 100pts)a decent force?

 Da krimson barun wrote:
Can I field TIE advanced without taking vader?

Yes. Each ship has generic pilots (with no special abilities) and unique characters (with their own unique abilities).

Is mareek steel in the game?

Yes, flying a TIE advanced. Unfortunately he's pretty bad, mostly because the TIE advanced is a weak ship.

Is Vader + his wingmen(mauler mithral and someone else)an effective force(and whatevers needed to make it 100pts)a decent force?

Not really, it's kind of in the awkward middle ground where you aren't flying an elite list that can take advantage of high-end pilots, but you don't have enough ships to make it a viable swarm (which basic TIEs need to be effective). Vader is good (his incredibly powerful special ability makes up for his weak ship), and the named TIEs are decent but not all that exciting. But there isn't really any synergy between them, you're effectively taking two separate lists that happen to be on the same table. You'll also need to add some extra ships to make a 100 point list.

1:Yay!
2:Errrrr..(screw it he's mareek,saved the Emperor,Stele I'm bringing him anyway!)
3:Curse the rebel terrorists!Fantasy flight games...wait a second....The rebels are there!

How balanced is the starter set?
And can someone show a picture of a TIE fighter beside either an ork or spess marine?I want to better understand the size of the models.

The game including the starter is well balanced out of the box, but you have 25pts a side or so from the box with no upgrades, so you'll need/want two starters at least to start, that will also provide you with templates for both players and enough dice so your not having to reroll.

At work so I can't take pictures right now.

 Da krimson barun wrote:
How balanced is the starter set?

Not very. In theory the points are equal, but because you only have one ship against two the starter game is too vulnerable to luck. Normally even spectacularly bad rolling that costs you a ship isn't the end of the game because you still have other ships left, but with such low numbers it's extremely unforgiving. You'll very often either suffer humiliating defeat or utterly demolish your opponent based on a single key roll. Even if you each win exactly 50% of the games it's not going to be fun for very long. I'd use the starter set to learn the basic mechanics and see if you're interested in playing more, but that's it. If you like it buy the extra ships and play normal 100 point games.

I actually run a Black Squadron List (Vader and his squad) with some success.

Vader with Squad Leader, Mauler Mithel with Veteran Instinct, Backstabber, Dark Curse, and Howlrunner (ok she's Obsidian, but she's too good to not have)


Peregrine is right though, That list doesn't have the firepower of a Swarm and everyone's roles are too different.

i would suggest getting the second starter just for the number of ships. Its alot of fun and the game isnt over once you lose an xwing.

oh yes it is

unlike 40k you can play this in an hour. set up, play & packed away

the ships are alittle expensive for what they are but isn't all miniatures nowadays (plus there ready painted)

the games great ,easy to play & lots ,lots of fun

worth getting 2 starter sets for the extra miniatures ,dice & templates then move on to the add-on blisters
& the best of all your dog fighting with tie fighters

I've found it pretty good value so far! It's not just the mini you get for your money. Each ship comes with more tokens, pilot cards, upgrade cards, and the larger boxes have special scenarios in them too. I bought two starter sets and had a few games. Loved it so much that I bought the falcon, fire spray, extra x wing and tie, tie advanced and y wing. I also have another four ships on back order. I don't think I've enjoyed a game so much since necromunda! I had my first game with the big ships tonight. They seemed a bit unwieldy but that was probably due to my inexperience. The falcon spent a good bit of time crashing into asteroids...

My advice would be as above. Get a starter and see what you think. If you enjoy it, get another starter, and whatever takes your fancy. The starter may not be too balanced, but the wider game seems to be.

the big ships take abit of getting used to

my best advise is .what ever you choose to do add +2 in your mind & that's roughly where you end up (as the base's are so massive)

The plus side is with me crashing the falcon repeatedly, I felt like a Jedi jinking the smaller ships around.

To be fair, the gaming area was pretty crowded with 11 ships, two of them large, and 6 asteroids. I think next time, I'll use a larger playing area, or just skip the obstacles until I get to grips with the larger bases.

200 total points on a 3x3 table gets a bit crowded... my friend and I typically play on my 4x4, and things feel a little better. I'm getting a TableWar/Frontline Gaming 6x4 here in April... that'll be truly epic and I'm planning on playing a 250 on 250 point game with him when it gets here!

Pretty much, this game is an extremely nice change of pace from 40k in my experiance. Pretty much Fantasy Flight nailed it:

Comparing 40k to X-Wing:

-Expensive to start up? Nope (starter+XWing+Falcon gets you a competive army for ~$70 including the starter)

-Hard to remember all the rules? Nope (only have to play like one game to grasp the mechanics, and there are FFG youtube videos to help get you going).

-Large time investment to get the army ready? Nope (already built and well painted)

-Tedious to track all the stats? Nope (free army builders online, rules are free with the starter, all rules are available online if needed, not to mention the rules are released early)

-Takes too long to play? Nope (standard games are in an hour, although setup/cleanup can take extra)

-Too much power creep? Nope (XWings and Tie Frighters are still the best ships in the tournament scene after 3 waves and counting)

-Need a big table with terrain? Nope (3ft by 3ft, have carboard asteroids in the box to keep 'terrain' balanced. Can spice it up by adding lava rocks on top)

-Is there problems with internal/external balance? Not really (Tie advanced is viewed as costing 1 or 2 more points than it should, but bar competitive play it can do some neat stuff)

-Are you limited to one or two types of playstyles? Nope (can go from super elite 2 big ships (ala Deathwing) to 8 ship Tie swarm (ala Imperial Guard) at 100pts.

-Does a single model have only one set of stats? Nope (can use the same XWing model as a rookie at 21pts, or as Ace Wedge fully loaded at say ~37pts). Lets you change lists multiple ways without having to buy another squad box.

There are some more reasons, but I think you catch my drift. Besides, you won't have to spend more than a Riptide to get a full list. I was skeptical at first, but now I'm totally into it (and I can collector both factions since its cheap enough).

To what Texx said... I'll add:
The details on the models are good enough that you can really do amazing things if you want to repaint.

Deathstar Tables also grant amazing possibilities if you want to model terrain.

Great game. If you have the gaming bone within you, you'll definitely like it and end up buying all of their products.

I started out buying two starter sets on clearance at Target two months ago. I now own every ship. It'll only be time until I start buying multiples.

If you have kids, it's easy for them to learn and play with you. My 11 year old son plays with me often.