X-Wing 2.0 Buying Guide

 

 

Part 2,  A Buying Guide 

Last time we discussed picking which faction to fly for X-Wing The Miniatures Game, Second Edition. Once you’ve made your pick, now it’s time to spend some credits. This guide’s goal is to get you flying in the least expensive way possible, although we’ll cover a few more comprehensive and expensive options too.

Rebels- The ‘One of Each” Approach

Let’s start with what I think will be the simplest and cheapest faction, the Rebels. To start, every single player will need a new core set, msrp $39.95. It comes with the essentials, the damage deck, asteroid and debris tokens, and maneuver templates. These core components will be used in every single game, regardless of faction. The core set also comes with 2 Tie Fighters and 1 T-65 X-wing and unique pilots and upgrades for them. To continue our “One of each” process, you’ll need to grab the solo blisters for the Y-wing and the X-wing, msrp 19.95 each. Now you have 3 models ready to deploy and can easily put viable squads together, much like the one seen in this demo game here. You’ll have access to the heroes of Yavin, with Luke, Wedge, and Dutch ‘Gold Leader” Vander.

But wait a sec, you’ve got 2 extra Tie fighters lying around? Unless you plan on playing the as the Empire too, trading these away is a great option. The core swap is a classic of Fantasy Flight Games product lines. Most recently with Legion, I found a friend who was playing the opposite faction and swapped the appropriate units. It shouldn’t be too hard to find someone at your local game store to trade your 2 extra Ties for their extra X-wing.

So to recap, we now have 3 X-Wings, 1 Y-wing, and everything else you’ll need to jump in and start playing 200 point standard games.
The price- $78.95

The Galactic Empire-The ‘Double Core’ Maneuver

A long standing practice to starting many FFG games is to buy two core sets. This strategy is a bit more costly, but Imperials require larger numbers of ships to field full squadrons. Thanks to how cheap the generic Tie Fighters are, you’ll need to be prepared to spend a few more credits. The single ship blisters cost 19.95, yet the core set has 3 total ships in it and costs 39.95. You are effectively getting the value of a whole ship for free in each core set and provides the best value for amassing your swarm of Ties. With double cores, you’ll have 2 T-65 X-wings to trade to the rebels, along with all of the extra core game components. You won’t need the extra damage deck or maneuver templates, however the extra set of dice will be useful. Hold onto those. After you’re cores, you will still want to purchase one Tie Fighter blister. This solo blisters will have unique pilots from the core set and you’ll want access to them, like Iden Versio possibly?  That just leaves the Tie Advanced, famously flown by Darth Vader, and your Imperial forces are now complete for wave 1. While pricier than the Rebels, who can start with 4 ships, you’ll have access to 9 Ties and Darth Vader to start.
The price-$119.80

Iden’s amazing team focused ability.

Scum and Villainy-The ‘Concordia Credit’ Faceoff

The scum faction is a little trickier because none of their ships come in the core set. Out of the many complaints about the update to 2.0, this is one of the most valid ones. Scum should have their own core set to get cheaper ships and all of the core components, yet sadly they do not have such an option. However, we’ve got a few work arounds. Since many players will go the Double Core route, there will be extra core components out there on the secondary market. Your local game store, facebook swap group, or eBay are all excellent options to hunt down and find dice, maneuver templates, and a damage deck for a nominal price. After that you’ll need a minimum of 2 Mandalorian Protectorate Fighters, $19.95 each, and a Firespray, 29.95. Now the firespray costs more because it is a medium base fighter, a new designation of size in X-wing 2.0. However, it gives you access to Boba Fett and will allow you to put together all Mandalorian Squads for wave 1. Scum may not be as iconic or versatile as the Rebels or Imperials at launch of X-Wing 2.0, but as a fellow Mando, they sure look like a ton of fun to me.
The Price $69.85 + (market value of core components estimated at $10)=79.85

My alter ego is ready to hunt some bounties on the tabletop.

There are a few caveats to all of these approaches however. First, the Tie Reaper and Saw’s Renegade expansions are launching before the release of X-Wing 2.0. These two packs will contain both components to play them in either 1.0 or 2.0. It is not clear yet if these ships or pilots will be legal for wave 1 of 2.0 tournament play. If you’d like the options to add a U-wing or Tie Reaper to your young fleets, they’ll cost $39.95 and $29.95 respectively. Sadly scum does not have a counterpart with these two boxes, at least yet. I wouldn’t put it past FFG to sneakily release content from the Solo film. Many have speculated that we will sooner or later see a scum version of the brand new Millennium Falcon. They have done this with content for both Episodes VII and VIII, but we will just have to wait and see.

Wave 14, the last for 1.0

 

Second, the core set does not come with enough dice. With only 3 attack and defense dice each, you can easily find yourself in situations needing 4 or 5 instead. This is one bonus to the Double Core approach, you’ll get all of the dice you should ever need. You can buy separate dice packs or find them on the secondary market. Veteran players will have plenty to spare, having already bought multiple versions of the 1.0 core. You can always reroll dice if you are short. Also, you can ask to use your opponent’s dice. This is an accepted practice in the X-Wing community and is even allowed in the tournament rules. Third party dice are not allowed in tournament play, as special dice have been prizes for regional and world championships (they are simply differently colored, the sides are all the same). Top placing players take great pride in winning dice with marbled, sparkly, or translucent colors, but don’t be shy in asking to share if you are short some dice for a full attack roll.

Extra Dice Retail Pack

My collection of prize dice

Lastly, these are just the introductory costs of playing X-wing. FFG’s business and distribution model will always be dangling shinny new product for us to greedily consume. Especially with the influx of new Lucasfilm movies, shows, and other source materials, there will be a ton of new X-wing products to come after where 1.0 left off. Budget well young padawan, your purchasing has just begun.

 

Alternative-The ‘The Conversion’ Stratagem

There is one other to option to starting your X-wing collection, 1.0 conversion. While this method would have a much higher initial cost, you can save money in the long run. For existing players, FFG is releasing conversions kits for each faction. These will come with all of the updated cards, dials, cardboard pieces, and tokens needed to convert 1.0 models to 2.0. These kits will roughly convert around 40 models, yet returning players will still need their very own new core set for the damage deck and maneuver templates. The kits will cost $49.95, but come with a tremendous value per ship converted. A 1.0 small blister ship cost $14.95, a full 5 dollars cheaper than the 2.0 version. Thanks to the amount of ships covered in a conversion kit, the cost of purchasing the soon to be obsolete 1.0 ships plus the cost of the 2.0 conversion kit is still less than buying all new 2.0 blisters. Reddit user Xenomech actually did a brilliant job breaking down the contents, comparison, and costs of this strategy for the Rebel faction.

Xenomech’s break down between 1.0 and 2.0 Full thread here

You could save further credits by buying a second hand collection and converting it. Many players are choosing not to convert, or are only converting certain factions, and have large collections of models to unload. You can find real deals from players who are getting out of the game. It’s a shame to lose players, but we can turn it into our gain. Personally, this is how I started playing a second faction. I started as a Rebel player, but managed to get a hold of an Imperial player’s collection for a super affordable cost and I’ve never looked back.

Although, nothing can beat the joy of opening up brand new minis. Buying a second hand collection won’t be for everyone. Not everyone will want to invest that much money on the initial cost of the game. Each new release day feels like a holiday. September 13th is going to feel like Christmas, or even better yet, Life Day.

I hope this guide was helpful and you now have the knowledge to spend your credits wisely.

Until next time,
Cheers and happy hunting.