Pilot Talent - Stay on Target revealed.

[Mr Mystery]

10325

FFG have shown off a spangly new card. And here it is (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_news.asp?eidn=4956)

2 point Elite Pilot Talent. Allows you, upon revealing your disco biscuit, to change the dial to any manouevre of the same speed treating it as a red manouevre..

Pretty tasty. But for me? Somewhat bent. Takes much of the skill and luck out the game, replacing it with a crutch to more or less guarantee your opponent cannot out think you. No sir, I do not like it.

I understand the design ethos behind it, but it just seems like a really, really cheap move to me.

Your mileage may of course vary. Can only discuss my opinion at this stage, as I've not got anyone else's to bounce off!

[interrogator_chaplain]

My plan is to stick that thing on Nera Dantels (Unreleased, Rebel Aces, can perform Torpedo attacks at ships outside the firing arc) with a pair of Advanced Proton Torpedos and go big ship hunting.

Nera Dantels (26)
Advanced Proton Torpedo x2 (12)
B-Wing/E2 (1)
Weapons Engineer (3)
Stay on Target (2)
46 pts.

[Mr Mystery]

Yeah that's pretty bent :p Pretty expensive though, and nicely? No more survivable than your average B-Wing, far as I can tell!

[Patrick Boyle]

FFG have shown off a spangly new card. And here it is (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_news.asp?eidn=4956)

2 point Elite Pilot Talent. Allows you, upon revealing your disco biscuit, to change the dial to any manouevre of the same speed treating it as a red manouevre..

Pretty tasty. But for me? Somewhat bent. Takes much of the skill and luck out the game, replacing it with a crutch to more or less guarantee your opponent cannot out think you. No sir, I do not like it.

I understand the design ethos behind it, but it just seems like a really, really cheap move to me.

Your mileage may of course vary. Can only discuss my opinion at this stage, as I've not got anyone else's to bounce off!

The red manuever aspect is a pretty hefty penalty. For one, when you use it you can't take an action that turn, barring advanced sensors of course. You also, though, can't make use of Stay on Target if you already have a stress token; you're still in effect revealing a red maneuver, and if you do that while already stressed your opponent picks your move. So you can't use it two turns back to back. Likewise, if you're ionized, no Stay on Target for you as you don't reveal a dial. And if you want to be able to act the turn after using it, or open up it's use again, you're taking a green maneuver the turn after you use it. You're unpredictable, to an extent, while unstressed(something we're already needing to get used to with the phantom), but unlike the Advanced Cloaking Device phantom you're only getting your shenanigans every other turn, at best, and become very predictable the turn after using it.

And to do this, you're giving up access to all of the other great elite talents; PtL, Predator, etc. There are, of course, ways to mitigate the stress penalty somewhat; Keyan, Wingman, that shuttle pilot... but then, Keyan aside, you're depending on formation flying with a ship that by definition is going to be flying unpredictably.

There is some rumbling on the FFG forums about potential brokenness combining SoT with the Navigator crew(Say you start with a 2 left bank. SoT you rotate to a 2 turn right, red. Then navigator lets you change again to say, a white 1 turn right when you change speed). I think this isn't going to work, given both cards trigger on "revealing your manuever dial" and both then manipulate the revealed dial, but outside this combo, if it is allowed for some reason, I don't see SoT being particularly broken.

[interrogator_chaplain]

I forgot the Fire Control System, endless target locks! Using Stay on Target would mostly for be getting out of the firing arc of ships trying to take me out. Throw in Roark Garnet to make your Pilot Skill 12 and you get the first shot off in combat every time. (Until Roark goes boom, that is.) Then throw a Targeting Coordinator into the HWK and pass over target locks like its nothing.

[Patrick Boyle]

I forgot the Fire Control System, endless target locks! Using Stay on Target would mostly for be getting out of the firing arc of ships trying to take me out. Throw in Roark Garnet to make your Pilot Skill 12 and you get the first shot off in combat every time. (Until Roark goes boom, that is.) Then throw a Targeting Coordinator into the HWK and pass over target locks like its nothing.

Targeting Coordinator is Huge Ship only; note using it's ability costs energy, which small/large ships don't generate.

And also completely off the topic of Stay On Target, I prefer something like this for Nera

B-wing/E2
Recon Specialist
Deadeye
Advanced Sensors
Advanced Proton Torpedo
*whatever other torpedo you want*

Recon Spec + Deadeye lets you fire a torpedo without a target lock, and therefore at any target of opportunity, as well as leaving you a focus token to modify the die roll. Advanced Sensors ensures that even if she bumps in her move, she was able to act and get her two focus tokens. At least one APT is an obvious choice(especially with Recon Spec + Deadeye, you're getting at least 3 hits and a fair chance at 5), but I feel like a lot of the time taking a second is just going to be too expensive. I'd personally probably take a Flechette in the second tube.

[interrogator_chaplain]

Whoops, X-Wing Squadron builder failed me there.

I like the look of that build, definitely going to have to give that a shot and add in a ship that allows Jan Ors would probably be extra insurance to make sure you can get those shots off.

[Mr Mystery]

Stop!!!!!!


CARRY ON!

I've just had an amazeballs idea.

Stay On Target = GET OFF MY ARSE YOU!

Consider the humble HWK-290. Bless, it's not up to much, except making it's squad mates much more effective. Can't otherwise fight for toffee. But....whack on Stay On Target, and suddenly it can become a slippery customer, nipping out of firing arcs when it needs to, keeping it in the fight longer.

Thoughts? (still not that experienced at X-Wing, so no idea what combos this might prevent by taking up the Elite Talent slot!)

[Patrick Boyle]

Stop!!!!!!


CARRY ON!

I've just had an amazeballs idea.

Stay On Target = GET OFF MY ARSE YOU!

Consider the humble HWK-290. Bless, it's not up to much, except making it's squad mates much more effective. Can't otherwise fight for toffee. But....whack on Stay On Target, and suddenly it can become a slippery customer, nipping out of firing arcs when it needs to, keeping it in the fight longer.

Thoughts? (still not that experienced at X-Wing, so no idea what combos this might prevent by taking up the Elite Talent slot!)

Well, the first thing is to consider that SoT mainly benefits higher PS pilots; who cares if you can pick whatever X-speed maneuver you like if you're still moving before the people that are going to shoot you?

The second consideration is the HWK's dial. Firstly, it doesn't have many options, with only 3 speed 1s and 3s. To get the most flexibility out of SoT, you're going speed 2, and your opponent will know that. Secondly, it's pretty poor at losing stress. This becomes a big problem when it comes to the HWK's supporting roll.

So with those to considerations in mind, I don't think SoT works for the HWK. On Kyle, his PS puts him right in the middle of the pack. If you come up against TIE swarm, XXBB, Z-95 swarm, and probably the upcoming A-wing swarms, sure, you're moving after. If you come up against Han, Wedge, Soontir, VI'd named Phantoms, etc. then it's wasted points and a wasted slot. And even when you do use it, while he can still pass tokens, he's not able to generate more to replace the ones he's passing.

On Jan, while her PS makes her more likely to be able to use SoT, doing so is even worse for her. Since it's a red maunever and causes stress, she can't use her card text, the entire reason you're paying the points for her in the first place, after she uses SoT. On top of that, using her ability gives her stress, and going the other way you can't use SoT while stressed, unless you want your opponent to pick her maneuver. So it's doubly bad for her; not only does using it prevent the use of her ability, using her ability prevents the use of SoT.

[Brenlak]

I haven't played the game much so I tend to group cards as either offensive or defensive, passive or active. Offensively this card is only good if you have a target lock already. Defensively It's just like Mr. Mystery said (Get off my ***!) but either way it's only going to be very effective on ships with a high pilot skill. And like Mr. Boyle said that stress token is pretty major, I mean Luke didn't stay on target; he used focus, just like he used to shooting all those wamp rats in his T-16! ( basing this on the artwork). Guess I'm just a dumb redneck like him because I don't know enough of the pilot cards to see how this card is cheap. It boggles my mind grapes. If I am playing a person who knows enough about the cards (not to mention owns them), to make this card cheap then my hat goes off to you Sir or Madam; you are truly a cunning opponent.

[Daredhnu]

Well, the first thing is to consider that SoT mainly benefits higher PS pilots; who cares if you can pick whatever X-speed maneuver you like if you're still moving before the people that are going to shoot you?

as Patrick says, this card is only worth it on a pilot who already has a high pilot skill and even then the loss of your action is a major inconvenience, besides you're making an already expensive pilot even more expensive, some of the pilots i see this being good on is Tycho Celchu or Soontir Fel, pilots who mitigate stress tokens a little, i don't see this being game breaking on other pilots who don't have those benefits.