Looks like X Wing is on a steep and inevitable decline. Asmode have sidelined Armada completely, relegated X Wing and Legion to “oh and we also do this” behind Crisis Protocol and the blogs I so enjoy have mostly hit ROAD rules changes (Random Order After Dials), leading to a terminal encounter with a game killing wall on that very same ROAD.
My last thoughts before I happily just play 1st edition-original movie and 2nd edition-late movie games, is to use one of the other proposed options, Alternaing Initiative Order (AIO?) or just stick to bids. For competitive games, the only down side to AIO seems to be overly defensive play, which is an issue generally in competiton (called “turtling”), but for scenario based or casual games, I like it.
It introdues a fair and equitable rhythm. One that will give pilots who happen to be engaged with each other and have the same initiative (not an ever present issue) to have to play to their good turns to go first or to go second as suits, which I think only adds to tactical depth. The reality is, the situations it will matter will be fewer than many think, especially with 1st ed (more levels of init), but pre-planning for the turn that suits, will be hard enough to add a semi random element, especially for my group. What others do is up to them, as long as they keep playing.
So, who has initiative guys?
Rather than have a totally predictable order, based on bidding with all that ensues, or throw the whole thing in the hands of the gods of randomness, it makes a players tatical options, especially with support ships, that much more interesting.
Generally, I am saddened by the state of both X Wing and Armada. I find it incredible that two games that regulalry sat in the top five games of their type, would be basically given up on through ignorance or a lack of interest. They will live on for many, but any game that has “lost official support”:, will wither and die in the main stream, meaning no new players will come into the fold.
I will be keeping an eye out for the inevitable shedding of rare 1st ed ships I missed in completely or quantity (Alpha Star Wing, Tie Aggressor), but have stopped chasing anything new as it is either irrelevant to my periods (factions) of interest, or simply not needed or of interest (Mandalorians).
Part of me was interested in doing all things Scum as a period cross-over in-fighting faction covering the early period and Mandalorian (I have done Solo’s Falcon) through to later, but I have already more than 100 ships, hundreds of cards, thousands of counters and little prospect of using them to destruction through play. Maybe, maybe not.
I am more resigned to the fate of Armada, just a little hacked off that the needed next wave of Clone Wars ships, especially the fighters, will not be coming. I actually did this period first in Armada in lieu of doing the same factions in X Wing. If only I knew. Armada can be played solo and is more of a “grown up” war game.
In both cases (X Wing and Armada), I should have just stuck to the original trilogy ships and characters and called it with 1st ed X Wing. This is where my heart lies, but as with anything new, you get hooked, follow the treads and see where you get to. I actually only entered X Wing becasue the TFA starters were being cleared super cheap and I got 5 for a little over $100au (first sign of cracks showing?).
I thought I could stop there, but got some Scum, a few “softly justified” cross-over ships, then the clearances of early period ships started and I was going down the obsession drain. A little knowledge would have helped, knowledge that would have come from getting in on the ground floor.
The fact that I did basically the same thing with Armada just makes me laugh at myself.
Ironically, I bought a ton of even less consistent Star Trek Attack Wing, Federation Commander (and spin-offs), Wings of Glory WW1&2 and Sails of Glory, all in vain attempts to avoid the Star Wars trap in the first place.
Know thy self.
I really love original X Wing, pared down to a form of Bare Bones (various) and Armada first trilogy. I could, if there were any point, sell my vast collection of 2e X Wing and Clones Wars Armada and feel no real pain, but cannot bring myslef to, so soon after getting them.
On one hand, I am glad the collecting is over, I just wish there was some love for the game.