Why a Bare Bones style X Wing game? There are a few reasons, many of which have been covered by others, but maybe some more case specific clarity is needed.
The goal is to calm down the game, defuse the meta and make early game entry easier, then continued growth and enjoyment through a better supported structure in both semi competitive casual and scenario based or themed play.
I am on record as saying I like (prefer) non game mechanic dominated play. The feel of the game is all. FFG felt strongly enough about this they were compelled to re-invent the game. Editions after the first are not uncommon. Many of the most famous games in history have editions syndrome (DnD, Warhammer etc). Even Chess has evolved over the centuries. After coming to X Wing late, I was impressed by the support it had, but quickly tired of the “best build” forum bashing and min/maxing. So quickly the game could have soured for me. I found myself scouring the web for the rare “fly for fun”, “fly what you like”, or even rarer “stick to canon” posts. This fix has headed off the time and money wasting bogeyman of game fatigue.
The reality though is, sometimes, something that needs fixing sometimes needs fully breaking down and re-building, rather than just applying more and more bandaid measures.
Removing these “Bandaid” fixes are the point of Bare Bones with the hope of making or returning to a simpler, more naturally balanced game, much like the 2e re-build.
Why? Because I like 1e, have had little chance to get to know it. 2e has supplied a better path for the later ideas to be fully realised. Almost all of the things I dislike about 1e are seamlessly absorbed or cleanly cut out of 2e, but the classic simplicity of 1e is still relevant in it’s own right.
The core game was brilliant. The gradual growth of the game took on a predictable pattern. A new wave comes out, new builds dominate, nerf’s are released to re-balance, (ironically often taking the fun out of the new ship or upgrade), a new wave comes out…. . Second edition even has a built-in nerfer, with it’s floating, adjustable points system, so they can fix what is likely to happen again.
No Starviper II, leaves Thweek or Dalan with S-Loop and their own unique skills. The Vaksai title could turn a Kihraxz into almost any ship, But Viktor Hel and friends still add tricks that fit. The Headhunter has a great cost to punch ratio, quantity and dirty trick on it’s side.
The base issue is upgrade synergy. Nearly limitless, it is the core of the game and potentially it’s nemesis. On one hand you have a mini game in it’s own right with squad building, but on the other hand this often leads to casual players being unable to mix with serious or tournament players as a little knowledge goes a long way. This is not like Chess, where tactical knowledge is based on the same pieces with set moves, where being used better by one player leads to victory. It is more like a game of Chess where you can constantly swap out pieces, or change their very role (a Rook moving diagonally is a Bishop by another name), making them act, well, not like they should.
Bare Bones removes the upgrades that are most responsible for either under or over balancing the game. It also removes the upgrades that (I feel) are more game play based, not theme supported.
What is Removed
Elite Pilot Talents.
Almost always filling the bulk of top ten upgrade lists, EPT’s allow pilots already with their own unique and themed ability, to have another, sometimes even two. You could argue that this is reflective of a tactic, a frame of mind or a pre-meditated adaption, but in play it tends to strip away the Pilots uniqueness, often giving several pilots in a squad the same ability. It is also not very logical sometimes, with contradictory or nullifying talents bought for style defined pilots.
This layer of the “synergy onion” is often the one that makes those impossible to beat combinations. The one layer too many, that makes some builds famous/infamous. I think FFG made good use of the inherent pilot abilities, giving each pilot a role to play that suits their back story, so why strip it away with a contradictory or exaggerating second or third talent. Lets face it, there are plenty of pilots out there to pick from if the massive fleets available can be better balanced.
Ship Modifications
This upgrade goes even further to “breaking” both the game and my personal belief in the story and simulation over the game. Want a ship to act like another (removing the unique nature of the other ship), then add a mod. These then became predictable, effectively nullifying the slot. They were often made to balance ships that underperformed either on table or were too dear points wise.
Aside from rare mods added in extended universe plot lines, most ships were as packaged through their careers. The reality is though, in the stories and movies, an X Wing was an X Wing more often than not. Mods were just not really a thing. The game did move on, leaving some ships looking a bit boring and limited, but take out the Mod upgrade option and things tend to settle back (regress?) well enough. An X Wing is a fairly boring brawler, a Y Wing the same but exaggerated, the Interceptor rules as the most nimble, the A wing the fastest and the Star Viper the quirkiest. Add in mods and each ship starts to look like the other. In reality the dynamic is the same just muted. The intent is to use the ships within a reality and story telling envelope, not a min/max dynamic.
Ship Titles.
Much like Mods, Titles, especially generic or class based ones, tended to either fix perceived issues* (Star Viper II, Vaksai, X Wing S-Foils), exaggerate already available abilities (Concord Dawn Protector, A Wing Test Pilot), or irrevocably change ships into totally different beasts (Heavy/Light Scyk, Tie/D or 7x) that then cause mass extinction of their original forms. Ships like the Defender or E Wing in BB are still expensive, but also very powerful in this form of the game.
Named titles are a slightly different matter, but after much thought were dropped, as again they tend to exaggerate what is already there. The un-nerfed JM500 is powerful enough without the Punishing One upgrade. The Falcon is a less “Fat Han”, the Starviper does not have a Virago identity, but Guri and Xisor still work as a team as intended. These can be re-added seamlessly into the game, making for an “advanced” option, but so far, no need.
Tech
BB does not have TFA era ships or ships from the later movies, sticking to the theme and feel of the early movies and expanded universe (and game on release), so Tech is not included.
This leaves us with;
Core ship and pilot synergies, often leading naturally to faction preferred tactics and style.
Ordnance in all it’s forms (where would we be without our Proton Torps)
Crew, both generic and faction limited. The Rebels excel here.
Points of Difference;
Systems as a rare upgrade shared by the more advanced (expensive) ships in each faction.
Illicit and Salvaged Droids as Scum only advantages.
Droids as a Rebel only advantage.
Unique ship actions, such as Cloaking or re-load.
*Also removed are the Ordnance upgrades that act like Titles or Mods, such as Bomb Load-out, various refits etc. These are identified again as bandaid fixes or game re-freshers, not wanted in this purer game.
Upgrades that are clearly linked to the later movies are also removed for consistency, unless they do no harm (Unkar Plutt and Rey-out, Inspiring Recruit-in).