X-Wing – More Fun than a Barrel of Jawas

Every since I saw Will Wheaton play X-Wing on Tabletop, I was hooked! I went out, bought a box, asked my local gaming store when they play and I was off to the races.

This is an account of my story and my mystical journey behind the controls of an Imperial TIE Fighter in the X-Wing Miniatures Game.

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#1 – X-Wing: First Impressions

First off, let me say that the game system is simple; a few pages of rules, the rest are on the pilot card and on the cards that you get in the expansion packs.  Second, you will have a blast coming up with interesting combination to tackle your opponent with.  After a couple of games behind the wheel of Slave 1 and my TIE Interceptor I began to understand the mechanics.

X-Wing is fast – really fast – and not to mention sneaky.

• Both players in secret turn a dial to determine which way and how fast their ship will fly. (An interesting and fun mechanic, adds chaos and a little luck)
• Both players then flip their dials according to the lowest pilot skill; this gives veteran pilots a chance to see what their less elite counter parts would do.  (Sort of like stalking a prey and watching for the first mistake)
• Then the shooting begins, veteran pilots shoot first. (Especially Han Solo)

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#2 – My First Game

My first game was against a fourteen-year-old girl and I have to say it was a blast, Y-Wings were flying every which way and slamming into each other.

I had Slave 1 and my Tie fully kitted out with Proton bombs, Veteran Instincts, Advance Proton Missiles and Stealth Devices (I like playing to the Elite, but you can defiantly go swarm if you wish).

My expert flying would not save me however, as with in most games, you have to pray to the dice god. They did not favor me.

• Shooting is simple; you use as many red dice as the red number on your card. (With modifiers) You also have to see if they are within your firing arc and in range.  (Which is provided in the base game).
• The person being shot at gets as many green dice as the number on their card. (Also with modifiers, I had a whooping six green dice at one point, base 3, Stealth Device, Range band 3 and shooting through an Asteroid!).
• Then damage is done, Shields (Blue) first, then Armor (Yellow).

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#3 – Conclusion

I lost my first game, but that didn’t make it not fun. It was mad fun! The chaos of flying around and attempting to get your shots in, dropping proton bombs and blasting at people with autoblasters… it really is a rush of excitement.

I plan to keep on playing and get some new stuff as well. All in all, I had a fun experience and in the end, that is what gaming is all about.

Next time I will see if they can shake Vader…