SW Armada: Lets Get Some Last Jedi Ships Already!
What might we expect on the tabletop from a wave based around the Sequel Trilogy?
+++Warning: Very Minor The Last Jedi Spoilers+++
Among a great number of changes the Last Jedi Introduced a number of new capital ships in to the Star Wars canon. It would be a pretty obvious move for FFG to add some of these into Armada. Lets take a look at the new ship classes in Star Wars, and if they might make it into the game.
Raddus (MC85 Star Cruiser)
The flagship of the Resistance fleet is an MC85 Star Cruiser. The MC85 is a longer (3 1/2 KM long!) Mon Cal Crusier, that was a staple of the New Republic Fleet. These massive ships seem very similar in role and design to the classic MC80, only bigger and more powerful. Equipped with some very powerful shields, hangers, and some good engines they are a solid all around ship.
Nebulon-C escort frigate
Similar in design and role to the older Nebulon-B, this ship is another one used by both the New Republic and Resistance. Larger than the older version, it comes with a pretty heavy armament, with about half the armament of an MC85. We know some of these ships were give extra armor upgrades and at least one was converted to be a medical ship.
Free Virgillia-class Bunkerbuster
This ship continues the trend of being a larger version of an old Rebel ship. In this case they seem to be based around the CR90 with lots of extra bits. Rough twice the size of a CR90 the Virgillia seems to act as some sort of bombardment ship, carrying heavy plasma bombs and other ordnance. It’s unclear if these are meant to attack large ships or planets, but it seems fairly unique among capital ships so far. If it it is for hitting capital ships, I like the idea.
Vakbear-class cargo frigate
The Vakbear is defiantly one of the cooler looking ships. Sadly, despite looking like a cross between a MC30 and Rebel Assault Frigate it doesn’t actually have any guns. Instead this ship acts like a MUCH larger GR75.
Mega-class Star Dreadnought
More of a mobile space station that a ship, this 60 KM long vessel acts not only as the First Order HQ, but also a mobile factory. Deadly and terrifying, this thing is truly massive on the Star Wars super-weapon scale. It seems like it may be a bit unwieldy in a fight however.
Mandator IV-class Siege Dreadnought
Resurgent-class Star Destroyer
The replacement to the old Imperial Class, the Resurgent is the mainstay ship of the First Order Fleet. At just shy of 3 KM long and covered in thousands of heavy weapons this ship is a true terror. Capable of carrying hordes of TIE fighters and ground troops it is true to the old Empire.
What Might The Wave Hold?
So now that we’ve got a quick look at the ships, lets ask what might come in an Episode 7-8 wave. I think off the bat we can discount both the Mandator IV and Mega-class. Both of them are simply too large. At that point FFG might as well bring in the more popular SSD or Death Star. While the Rebel ships are more manageable, aside from the Raddus none of them make a very big impact. The Vakbear while a very cool design is unarmed and that doesn’t seem like a great choice. The Nebulon-C is kind of goofy looking, and would just be a bigger better Neb-B. The Virgillia, could fill a cool role, but is again a bit odd looking and seems like it could make for a weak and delicate model with the thin front struts.
It seems that the best bet would be a wave based on the Resurgent-class and the MC85. These are pretty stand out ships in the sequels and would make a good pair. Sure it would be a lot like Wave 2, with basically a rematch of the ISD And MC80, but on a bigger scale, but that would be true of most sequel stuff. You could also add in some fighters. Give the Resistance the MC85, the T-70 X-wing and the B/SF-17 heavy bomber. To counter that give the First Order the Resurgent class and the TIE-FO and than either the TIE-Silencer and we’ve got a wave right there.
Which ships from the sequels do you want to see in Armada? Let us know down in the comments!
