“To coordinate at the end of the activation phase is a power only one has achieved, but, if we work together, I know we can discover the secret.”
— AP-5, Revenge of the Sith (2005)
If the Death Star existed in X-Wing, I would fly it. I wouldn’t care if its dial stunk and you could only shoot out of a bullseye firing arc after four rounds of charging. I just love the idea of a superweapon.
So I fly the Ghost—or I did. Despite never watching a single episode of Rebels, I’ve enjoyed flying all three named pilots in a variety of Twin Laser Turret-spamming lists: Kanan/Biggs, Kanan/Lowhrick, Chopper/Biggs, Heragator, etc.
But TLT is lame. I didn’t buy the Ghost because I wanted the experience of flying four Y-wings while only setting half the number of dials. I bought the Ghost because I was drunk at Barnes and Noble and thought it looked cool. In that spirit, I’m determined to make a list which docks the new Phantom II—by far the cooler-looking of the two attack shuttles.
The original Phantom title, which allows the Ghost to shoot twice, is hard to beat. A VCX-100 with the Sheathipede-Class Transport Shuttle attached, however, has two advantages over its predecessor:
- Cost: Twin Laser Turret costs six points and the Attack Shuttle driven by “Zeb” costs 18. Without the need to attach a turret, Ghost 2.0 can build around its oft-neglected four-dice primary weapon. Since the cheapest Sheathipede pilot is AP-5 at 15 points, that’s already savings of nine points—12 when Kanan can be ditched for the generic “Lothal Rebel.”
- Coordinate: The coordinate action hasn’t been fully explored in the 100-point format because the Upsilon-class Shuttle never really caught on. Maybe the biggest problem with the Upsilon is the cost, and here I am proposing an even more expensive support ship. But if the shuttle had a rear arc and a K-turn, I think it’d see more play. And the ability to coordinate after everyone has moved seems powerful.
I’ve got two ideas on how to leverage these virtues. One is to create a jousting list that uses coordinate for efficiency. Coordinating an evade onto Kanan seems like an interesting substitute for Lowhhrick’s reinforce:
Lothal Rebel — VCX-100 | 35 |
Fire-Control System | 2 |
Tactician | 2 |
Hera Syndulla | 1 |
Ghost (Phantom II) | 0 |
Ship Total: 40, | |
AP-5 — Sheathipede-class Shuttle | 15 |
Phantom II | 0 |
Ship Total: 15 | |
Kanan Jarrus — VCX-100 | 38 |
Fire-Control System | 2 |
Recon Specialist | 3 |
Rey | 2 |
Ship Total: 45 |
Come time for shooting, both ships have evade tokens and Kanan should have three focuses to blunt shots. I don’t like the aesthetics of flying two VCXs, though. And this build doesn’t take advantage of the best part of the free coordinate action: it comes at the end of the combat phase, giving an ace one last chance to reposition. So here’s my idea for the Ghost purely as a support ship, in a list I call Pogo (get it?):
Lothal Rebel — VCX-100 | 35 |
Fire-Control System | 2 |
Autoblaster Turret | 2 |
Jan Ors | 2 |
Inspiring Recruit | 1 |
Ghost (Phantom II) | 0 |
Ship Total: 42 | |
AP-5 — Sheathipede-class Shuttle | 15 |
Phantom II | 0 |
Ship Total: 15 | |
Poe Dameron (PS9) — T-70 X-Wing | 33 |
Veteran Instincts | 1 |
R2-D2 | 4 |
Advanced Optics | 2 |
Autothrusters | 2 |
Black One | 1 |
Ship Total: 43 |
Jan and Advanced Optics allow Poe to potentially have a focus, evade, and blue target lock token every turn at PS 11. And if you want to live dangerously and use BB-8, he has the potential to shed two enemy target locks and still token up.
Have I completely lost my mind? Maybe, but imagine dropping a focus on Intensity Jake Farrell after every ship has moved. And there are less-maneuverable ships in the rebel faction that want more actions too (hint: wookiees).
Another possible use of the Sheathipede worth discussing—one suggested in FFG’s preview article for the pack—is to dock the Phantom and fly the Phantom II alongside the Ghost. Stressbot AP-5 and Captain Rex could be an interesting Lowhhrick replacement. Everyone else will be doing it, morphing their three-ship rebel lists into even more evil four-ship builds.
But I’m sick of trying to keep the Ghost alive at any cost. My opponents can light the Ghost up, but they’re just leaving a shield-regenerating ace and his little PS 1 blocker/coordinating buddy for the end game.
I’m pretty committed to making the Phantom II title work, so feel free to sound off with your own ideas that I can steal. Or if you work for FFG and are reading this post, feel free to release a three-dice A-Wing and eight-point General Leia Organa crew that validates this whole quixotic endeavor.
[…] a single ship that takes up all the points, like a defensive Fat Han with Rey and C3PO. Or I could take my own advice and run a coordinate Ghost and cede 40 points to my opponent. I don’t particularly like […]