game. For those who don't know, its adding campaign style play to Armada. You and up to five other companions will fight battles at different strategic spots in the Star Wars universe. It is also adding though a whole mess of new squadrons that have some great twists on the original squadron. I've got some early thoughts on each of the so far spoiled squadrons and what its going to mean for the Tournament Meta prior to the release of the next wave of ships. |
| A very nice overview of what we've got from Armada forum member Captain Weather |
Imperials:
Black Squadron-TIE Fighter Squadron
The suicide squad has arrived! The Black Squadron is here to take the heat of of someone, most likely for just one exchange of fire. For a point more than your typical TIE you'll forgo Swarm to get Counter 1 and Escort. I'm not really certain where Black Squadron will show up though. Fighters with Escort you're really always hoping to trade for your more valuable squads to do their work. With just 3 hull, and most rebel fighters pumping at least four attack dice, Black Squadrom might sheer off at best a pair of attacks. They might see some play hanging out as a secondary escort gighter for the Imperial killer Aces (Howl, Mauler, Vader, Dengar and Soontir) to keep opponents from just jumping over Vader to pick off one of the others in the ball, but Most folks would probably rather just have an extra Tie Advanced that might soak up 3 or more attacks.Valen Rudor-TIE Fighter Squadron
This guy just has the biggest grin on his face, and for good reason. He is going to simply murder generic fighters. The 3 black anti squadron dice average 2.25 damage per attack (bumped up to 2.67 with Swarm to give a re-roll), and he has extreme staying power with a Brace and a Scatter as defense dice. He will most likely be paired with Howlrunner to give him either a bit of extra damage, or a chance at an accuracy to put the hurt on named squadrons. And at just 13 points, he will be right at home in a big group of TIE fighters, or TIE bombers with Flight Controllers to have some real staying power and provide a lot of plink damage to counteract all the braces on the rebel side. I have also seen some talk that Vale accompanying Instigator will be worth examining to drive right into enemy squadrons and deliver pure punishement. Honestly Valen might be the best Imperial pilot to get added.Gamma Squadron-TIE Bomber
A nice add in bomber. For only a point you lose Heavy and add Grit. Likely going to be added to most bomber centric builds as a bomber that still move after your Intel ships have been plucked off. Also makes a nice addition for just tossing in a bomber squadron since it wont require deciated Intel.Captain Jonus- TIE Bomber Squadron
Ah, a bomber unique now that will give an opportunity to use someone besides Major Rhymer in bomber centric lists. His ability to aid ships by allowing you to swap a die for an accuracy in attacks is going to really help diversify the Imperial carrier force as well, with the ability for longer strikng Gladiator-II to see some play. Ive also always felt you really needed to go whole hog with Rhymer to really utilize his ability. Jonus though could be a smaller splash of bombers that I remember using much more during Waves 1-2. I don't think we will see Jonus and Rhymer together though so much, since that's now 32 points for a pair of bombers, and that their abilities really work against each other.Ciena Rae-TIE Interceptor Squadron
Ciena is a standard TIE Interceptor, with some extra staying power thanks to the fact that all attacks against her are obstructed. This is very nice against a lot of the currently used capital ships that have just a single AA die, as well as providing her with a pretty good chance of being able to use her Brace since any accuracies are likely going to her Scatter. She;s a little pricey, but she and Valen Rudor could make a nice pair as well since she's likely to survive an encounter or two. She also could see time with Bomber builds as an Anti-Squad roll and then survive the AA later on to help add damage with her single blue die.Saber Squadron-TIE Interceptor Squadron
I saved Saber for the last Imperial Squad because I think it will be the best Imperial squadron added, and it might be right next to Rhymer in terms of usage going forward. For 12 points, you lose the Counter ability but you gain possibly the most game changing ability we will see in this box and next wave: Snipe. The ability to move in late and stay un-engaged to possibly eliminate Jan Ors is going to be huge going forward. You maintain Swarm, so you can get something heavier in there to engage and get your re-roll as well to improve those odds. Several folks on the Armada forums don't seem to think that you will be able to use Howlrunner to add a die to the attack, but I think that will get FAQ'd to Work. It might also work with Flight Coordinators, giving a possibly 6 dice attack that ignores Counter and Escort is going to be awesome. It is also the only Imperial with the ability it looks like into the next wave.Rebels
Rogue Sqadron-X-Wing Squadron
Rogue Squadron removes Escort from the X WIng, and gives it Rogue for a point more than the standard. Its going to be a popular pick for a lot of folks, especially in a Riekan aces style of list where you might not need so much Escort to keep some key guys alive. Its going to be a nice addition, but its not game changing really for a lot of Rebel players that are running Jan Ors-Xwing groups or YT-2400s.Biggs Darklighter-X-Wing Squadron
Biggs comes in at just 19 points, and is going to be an interesting play. His damage shuffle ability is going to make Rebel squads that much harder to kill, especially when you already consider that he will likely fly next to Jan Ors and a few other X Wings, or possibly in with some YT-1300s to take advantage of their large store of hull points. I like Biggs a lot at his price point, and think he;s going to be a solid contributor.Ten Numb-B-Wing Squadron
Ten is going to be one of the squadrons I feel like Im going to need to play a lot with to get a good feeling for. He trades a blue for a black Anti-Squad, and by spending a blue critical die he will do 1 splash damage to opponent's squads. B-Wings though at speed 2 are not really so great for engaging squadrons, but he will certainly be a deterrence to Rhymer balls and Ors balls making their way towards a capital ship.Shara Bey-A-Wing Squadron
Shara is going to be someone that you have to shoot at some point, but you're going to hope AA fire can bring her down. Being able to count the criticals on to a counter attack makes her a pretty attractive squad to really run into the middle of dog fights and dare someone to try to killer her. She's competing with Tycho Celchu, but I think her damage spike and the proliferation of Intel based ships is going to see her at the table very oftenSo overall, what are the thoughts? I think of the so far spoiled fighters (still awaiting Generic A wings, B-Wings, Y-Wings, generic and Named, and the TIE Advanced updates) the Rebels got some very interesting tools, but that the Imperial Squadrons have given them far more firepower and flexibility.
