X-Wing: Fixing the T-65
It’s sad that X-Wings aren’t often seen in X-Wing – Here’s what FFG needs to fix:
FFG has a clear winner on thier hands with the meteoric rise of X-wing. It’s just unfortunate that the game’s namesake has been been left behind by 8 waves of newer ships.
The humble T-65 looks like this and is most readily compared to it’s episode VII counterpart the T-70. Look at the difference in these two ships to see the problem:
The Original T-65
New and Improved T-70
For three points, the T-70 gives you:
- 1 extra shield
- Boost action
- Tech upgrade slot
- Green forward 3 move
- Red Speed 3 Tallon Rolls (particularly useful)
Thus the cry out for something to be done to give the workhorse T-65 an update to keep it in the game. Now FFG designers have done a fantastic job of going back and tweaking ships that were underpowered to bring them roaring back into the meta:
Here are just a handful of fixes:
A-Wing
Chardaan Refit’s -2 point cost adjustment did the trick on the overcosted A-Wing
Y-Wing
The BTL-A4 title turned the Y-Wing into a feared dual weapon jouster!
TIE Advanced
The X1 title turned the over-costed Advanced into a high-tech platform with a bunch of tricks up it’s sleeve.
TIE Bomber
The upcoming Imperial Veterans set even tackles the ignored TIE Bomber with the combination of Long-Range Scanners and the TIE Shuttle title card.
How to Fix the T-65?
Which brings us back to the original question. It is clear that FFG has tackled things in a variety of ways, from lowering cost (A-Wing), to handing out free upgrade cards (TIE Advanced), to adding unique abilities (Y-Wing), so almost anything is on the table.
Initial thoughts on the T-65 include:
- Lowered cost (2-3 points)
- Enhanced speed option (a Title card, that added Boost, or SLAM for example)
- A set of new Astromechs to give them new options
- An T-65 version of the A-Wing’s Test Pilot card to allow pilot upgrade cards – representing the experience level of the entire Rebel T-65 pilot corps.
In any case, I think the T-65 needs just a nudge of perhaps a couple points to bring it back into the game in a big way. I’m always one for giving each ship something special, so I would probably swing towards the options for extra speed or the T-65 Test Pilot card to give players more options for combos and new styles of play. FFG loves to put out mirrored releases (Imperial Aces – Rebel Aces) for the various factions. That tells me that with the Imperial Veterans set just announced, there is probably a Rebel Veterans set just around the corner. And that gives me high hopes for the T-65’s future!
~The T-65 is the backbone the entire game was built upon. It deserves it’s day in the sun!
