Out of my main x-wing gaming group of about 10 people, 2 of us used this forum (with only me being a regular). My mate I play with on a weekly basis, do events with, and has been collecting as long as me (3rd wave of 1st ed) never used it. And based on a LOT of posts from the big FB groups, most people either left here ages ago or never came here in the first place lol I love this place, but saying it going away = the game dying off is silly at best, massively egotistical at worst.

Stores that aren't specialised for games/miniatures often do this when THEY see sales drop-offs. It just means no one is going to THAT company to buy the product, not that it isn't selling at all. A year ago Forbidden Planet in London fire-saled all their Batman Miniatures Game stock and don't sell it anymore. But that's because it was a random, weird amount of stock, the only game of the type they sold AND they over-RRP'd the prices. Wasn't anything to do with the sales of the game overall. I wouldn't see the B&N sales/no stock as anything major.

This close to Christmas I won't be pre-ordering as usual, but will wait a week or so. But I'm looking to grab: 2 ETAs 3 V-Wings 1 Slave 1 and then maybe 2 Tri-Fighters if i want to jump into CIS already.

No problem, just that when giving advice/solutions, we need to be aware of the difference between something happening once or twice in one game vs it happening over and over in multiple games across multiple lists and players. For example, yes 4-Lom can get rid of a stress at the end of the turn to (hopefully) help against Sloane. However, to do so he would have had a stress for some of if not the entire turn. Which means against a good Sloane player that's a whole turn of shots from 4+ ships with rerolls against your 1 Agility, not that beefy 4-Lom. I love 4-Lom, but I would not feel that confident about taking him against a Sloane list just because he can dump 1 stress token a turn (within certain triggers). Both Sloane and 4-Lom have existed in their current states since 2nd ed started. Over all that time, 4-Lom has not become known as some sort of "Sloane Killer", and I feel like with the amount of players and games over the last 2 years, if he was that 'solution', he'd have been known as such by now.

This is the issue, especially right now. Most player bases are smaller right now and weird home metas start creeping into people's view of the game.

Yeah if you have the points, it'll come down to playstyle.

Yeah Rampage wants M-Assist in nearly all builds anyway, as he wants to get in close, so the better 3-moves are great on him.

At least FFG still sends stuff to FLGS at all. Knight Models kinda just stopped near the start of the year/end of last year lol

Slave 1 will be the first time I buy "out of faction" to get cards. Luckily all through this game until the Prequel factions I got everything anyway. Now CIS is the only faction I don't have, but Slave 1 will be my first purchase for them. Mostly to get cards for other factions, but it will be the start of collecting the CIS in the new year.

MMP is only Calc or Lock to fire, so no Focus and MMP for Bombers. They have to get the lock first, fire them, use WSO to get the lock back. Not, for me, worth it.

One whole less ship with the current build is great. Still a strong list, but 1 whole less ship shooting at you and one whole less ship to try and get to half/dead.

I was thinking of getting CIS soon to be fair, and so this may now have to be my first ship in that faction, just to get the cards for the others. Love the cards, both CIS and not. Some great new tools for Scum, and the other factions. Redline will love the WSO too. Action, free lock, fire, spend lock, gain lock.

But it's also annoying as those who don't collect CIS want these cards.

When they do though I bet it will be a TONNE of stuff that gets changed, instead of the normal amount.

It's lucky this is a game with changeable points then isn't it!

Well places in the UK will be shipping tomorrow for 30th deliveries. Maybe FFG switch release dates for when they ship.

Oh it can be, I just don't know when you'd prefer to over letting it be what it's designed to be. Especially when with Independent Calcs, you don't HAVE to get use out of Networked.

Only if you stay near your other ships, and how often do interceptor-style ships stay in range 1 formations?

I like that Thread Tracers are limited to 2 per list though. Like the Calculations card, it's a good way for the game to go iMO

Some cool cards and abilities (even one, 347, that I came up with for a Squadrons character to have if we ever get them) And these join the HMP as the only two ships I want from CIS.

I still think a lot of it is people coming from games like 40k and not wanting to play stuff that large, drawn out and time consuming anymore. i know it's why I don't like Epic. I've played twice, and both times I was with people i like, doing a team game, and basing it on very themed battles in the films. But both times, like my last 40k game, I'm bored by turn 2 and wish I was just playing a faster-paced game. You can do whatever you want around Epic, and suggestions in here are good for it, but it is still too long a game format with too many models for me. Just isn't the sort of game I like anymore, and I think a lot of people feel the same.

There's another thread where a few of us had ideas for the pilots, including making the U-Wing and Reaper pilots have similar abilities to some of these in here. I had the U-Wing giving out a reinforce and the Reaper recovering charges or removing locks. We might get upgrades, but I think we are more likely to just get the pilots.

1) All the pilots from Squadrons 2) FO Bomber 3) Razorcrest

Oh wow @Darth Meanie those are amazing! Thank you so much for doing all that work!

I like the idea of taking 3+ V-Wings with EPTs (Shadow Squad hopefully), and only equipping 1 with Esk and Marksmanship. That way you always shoot last with the Esk ship, and can decide then whether to use the ion or not. If they ship is small base and has a bunch of health left, you won't be able to finish it off. but you can ion it to help finish it next turn. If you didn't get the bullseye, or it only has 1-2 hull left after the others attacked, you can just go regular primary and try and kill them. It's something I've seen (and used) a lot on Squadrons this last week. Having a squad of 5 ships with 1-2 people carrying ion missiles. You may not always be the one to kill the ship you ion'ed, but boy does it make them easier for SOMEONE to kill. That's how I'd use the Esk config, 1 ship out of a squad with a semi-support weapon.