Star Wars: X-Wing Xi-Class Shuttle Preview
The First Order is getting a new ship and we’re taking a closer look at the new Xi-Class Shuttle!
Star Wars: X-Wing has a new wave on the way and today we’re taking a look at the First Order’s latest ship joining the fight. It’s the Xi-Class Light Shuttle and it’s got some tricks up it’s metal sleeves wings.
“The First Order is but a shadow of the former Empire. Its starfighters may resemble their Imperial predecessors, but they enter combat in a galaxy where the balance of power has shifted. To effectively combat the Resistance and reclaim its former glory, then, First Order squadrons must adapt to this shift, and nowhere is this willingness to adapt more clear than the Xi-class Light Shuttle.
Effective at both boosting friendly fighters and disrupting the enemy, the Xi-class Light Shuttle also gives some of the First Order’s most ruthless operatives a platform to unleash havoc on opposing forces.”
The Pilots
Let’s meet the Pilots of this shuttle and take a closer look at the basics stats.
First up is the basic First Order Courier. 2 Fire Power, 2 Agility, 5 hull and 2 shields – it’s a pretty straight forward ship at first glance. But check out that action bar. This is a shuttle that is primed for some teamwork shenanigans. It’s a support ship for sure. But more on that below…
Next up, we have Agent Terex. Notice that this pilot has some Setup and tricks with upgrades. This is a fantastic way to customize your squadron’s upgrades to get them where you think they will do the most good. It’s rare we get to see a ship that allows for extra customization before a game beings. I’d love to take a look at the tournament data once this ship starts making the rounds…
Gideon Hask is here inside the Shuttle and he’s pumping up the damage. Again, this is a nice support ability that allows you to take an extra strain to roll another damage die. This could be useful for getting some extra damage at longer ranges.
The final pilot preview is for Commander Malarus. She adds some menace to the table for sure with her ability to force a re-roll for blanks for friendly ships. While this might not change your damage potential, it does make your shots more effective at the cost of strain.
Additional Upgrades
Agent Terex has a couple of ways he can be fielded – not just as a pilot but also a crew:
Over the course of the game, Terex can reveal himself to be a Cyborg – SURPRISE! And both versions have ways to pass tokens.
Just note that the Cyborg version doesn’t have the “friendly” ship restriction for passing tokens…time to pump out the “Jams” if you catch my drift.
Commander Pyre is another intimidating presence for the First Order. Drop some stress on an enemy at the start of the game and as the situation gets more stressful for the enemy, also gain some defensive re-rolls. Seems pretty solid to me!
Additionally, we have a few other upgrades that are coming with the shuttle:
Sensor Buoy Suite can be dropped during setup to kick some extra range for your locks. This seems randomly useful and if you place the buoys correctly, you could really cover some pivotal real estate – in space!
So this one is a little funky but it’s neat. Basically you have to shoot the closest valid defender. When you make an attack, if you miss, this card gets a calculate token. Later on you can then remove the token from this card to gain it for the ship. This could combo nicely with all the other token swapping from the pilots above.
Xi-class Light Shuttle Expansion Pack $29.95
The Xi-Class Light Shuttle is due out September 25th. It’s got the 4 ship cards and 14 upgrade cards that are going to be perfect for any aspiring First Order commanders out there.
The First Order is getting some versatile support. What do you think of this new Xi-Class Light Shuttle?
