X-Wing: Fat Wedge

Luke June 20, 2017 Leave a Comment

For those who don’t know, Star Wars X-Wing is a model based, tabletop battle/skirmish game based in the Star Wars universe, and published by Fantasy Flight. In it the player takes control of one of three factions (Rebel, Scum, and The Empire), building their fleet and choosing their army lists, to fight friends (or foes) with opposing fleets. Games can last anywhere from 30 minutes to 5 hours, and can have any number of ships on the table from two upwards.

Personally, I am a Rebel player. This is because my name is Luke and Luke Skywalker is awesome. Mark Hamill is even more awesome. He voiced the Joker. The Joker is awesome. Batman is awesome. That’s four convoluted reasons to play as the Rebels…

To balance the game, players are given a point limit. We, like a lot of players, choose 100pts as it means (on average) a 90 minute game. Those points can be made out of ships and upgrades.

With that in mind, there are a few tactics available to the player. I know a few players who play swarm tactics, something the Empire is great at, having as many small ships as possible. A few play medium ships and use them as missile platforms, something the Rebels are good at. Some go for the coolest looking ships, something the Scum are ace at. A lot of players, however, choose the “Fat” tactic. This is where you take one ship and beef it up like it is going out of business. It is the “I am determined to play a badass” tactic.

Who you take depends on the player. Most Rebel players try “Fat Han”, with most Empire players trying “Fat Vader”. There are all kinds of “Fat” players out there. Personally, I like “Fat Wedge”.

So, to understand “Fat Wedge”, there is one thing you need to know. I am a stickler for the Original Trilogy. I love the canon, I love the original cast, and I love the ships. I don’t see the point in playing a ship I have never seen on-screen or that was in the background of one episode of the Clone Wars. As such, this has left me in the dust more than once, as I have to keep coming up with new tactics to try and stay up to speed. Thus led to the creation and love of “Fat Wedge”. Now I try and use him whenever I can, namely because it means Empire players begin to have a bad day whenever he goes onto the field.

What is Fat Wedge?

Fat Wedge (I’m going to stop using inverted commas now) is a fairly simple character. For those who don’t know who Wedge is – his full name is Wedge Antilles, from the original Star Wars films. He is one of the X-Wing pilots who flies with Luke on numerous occasions.

In the game, Wedge is the crack classic X-Wing pilot. He has a Pilot Skill of 9, Attack of 3, Dodge of 2, and Hull of 3. Bar the Pilot Skill, that is fairly average; however, it can become so much more.

Wedge’s ability states: When attacking, reduce the defender’s agility value by 1. This means it is easier for Wedge to attack other ships, and helps counteract how difficult the Tie Fighters can be. Wedge is 29pts.

With Wedge, I then like to pair:

R2D2 (4pts)
Marksman (3pts)
Proton Torpedoes (4pts)
Integrated Astromech (0pts)

It’s a bit of a strange mix. Lots of people pair R2D2 up with Wedge; however, the others not so much, so why use them?

First, Marksman allows for an instant focus when attacking. It allows for one focus to be changed to a critical hit, and all others to a regular hit. It is especially useful, and when paired up with Proton Torpedos, which allow for a focus to be changed to a critical, you can guarantee a pretty devastating couple of rounds. These, along with Wedge’s ability, can cause a lot of pain to the opposition. Deal damage and reduce their agility while you’re at it.

R2D2 and the Integrated Astromech are defensive measures. R2D2 heals 1 shield after every green manoeuvre. This means that, if Wedge is ever badly damaged, all you need to do is fly straight (and out of the enemy’s reach) and you can keep him alive, helping him towards a potential full recovery.

Integrated Astromech, on the other hand, is a card every X-Wing pilot should have. It’s free and it can be used by anyone with an Astromech. Namely, if all else fails, jettison your Astromech and discount a hit. In other words, sacrifice your droid for an extra hull. It’s brutal, but it is a good last resort.

What Then?

All of these upgrades bring Wedge to 40pts, which usually offers a load more scope for other characters. I have seen a couple of good, but different, Fat Han and Fat Wedge lists. Alternatively, it is still possible to swarm with a group of Headhunters. The possibilities are endless.

Despite all this, I don’t know a lot about X-Wing. I lose way more games than I win, but what I do know is that Fat Wedge can cause some serious damage, as well as be really difficult to take down. I would love to see him on more lists.