A while back I got bitten by the X-Wing Miniatures tabletop game something fierce. I dumped several hundred dollars into the game, and hadn't even had the opportunity to play a single game. This post was originally a response to a Reddit thread, where I felt I had quite a bit of knowledge to share on the subject. As someone who got invested in the hobby very quickly with nobody else to share my new passion with, my entire exposure to the game up to this point is getting people I know interested in playing with me. These are the lessons I have learned on how to go about doing that intelligently. Not all of these may apply directly to your specific circumstances, but I sincerely believe there is solid advice to be gleaned from all the following lessons.
Lesson 1) "Political Escort"
The Core Rules book has a mission called "Political Escort" where the Rebels pilot a single X-Wing Fighter attempting to defend an unarmed Shuttle against a pair of Imperial TIE Fighters. You should be familiar with it. You probably played this as your first game; it is very possible that you played it against yourself. When introducing a friend to the game this is an excellent place to start since It provides a clean introduction to the fundamentals of maneuvering, performing actions, and combat. It gives both players a simple, clearly defined goal within the constraints of these rules they are attempting to learn, and it plays quick. You will eventually get sick of repeating this mission over and over again, but there really is no better place to start when trying to encourage a new player. You will be doing them and yourself a great disservice by playing any other scenario first.
Lesson 2) Keep It Simple Stupid!
The most important lesson: keep it simple, especially for the first couple games. Each squadron should have at most a single named pilot and absolutely no upgrades. The logic here is pretty simple. You want to present a game to your 'victims' that is interesting, yet simple to grasp on their first play through. How many times have you and your friends pulled out a board game and then spend half an hour reading out the rules? How long does it take for someone's eyes to gloss over and throw their drink and shout "Lets just play the first round already! We'll pick it up as we go along!" X-Wing Miniatures has a marvelously elegant rules system that can be explained within five or ten minute tops, but the moment you add pilot abilities and upgrades, it very quickly gets overwhelming.
If your victim has to keep track of three special pilot abilities plus a number of upgrade cards each with their own conditional or event-driven rule, they will find it hard to keep track of the handful of things they really need to and will end the game having completely forgotten about something they could have done and felt they lost the game because it was too much information to keep track of beyond the basic rules for maneuvers, actions and combat. On the other hand, if they have a single special pilot ability, it is easier to keep track of that single rule and gives them something fun and strategic to do that you cannot do.
The 'keep it simple' suggestion goes doubly for Secondary Weapons, as they now have to realize that not only that secondary weapons might have different ranges and firing arcs, but that they don't get the extra damage or dodge dice for ranges 1 and 3 respectively. Firing your weapons is a key mechanic in the game that you don't want them to get confused about. You don't want them to blame the game itself for being too confusing or complex when it really isn't, and that will effect how they feel about investing their time and money into the game.
Remember, just because you are familiar with the rules and want to play with all sorts of complex squadron designs, you cannot assume your victims are at the same level.
Only add additional named pilots and upgrade cards once they are comfortable with it. Do not pressure them, even if they handily wiped your ass in your first game.
Note: Although most X-Wing miniatures games are 100 points a side, if your fleet cannot support enough common pilots to reach that 100 point mark, play a 50 or 75 point game instead of artificially inflating your squadrons points by adding more complex rules. Simplicity is paramount early on.
Lesson 3) Keep It Star Wars!
Do your best to harbor a 'cinematic' environment that your victim can relate to. Pair up Vader against Luke, or Han against Fett if you have the YT-1300 and Firespray-31. Or Han and Luke and R2 against an endless swarm of nameless TIEs. This might help fans of the Star Wars franchise really get excited about their pilots doing exciting things. If you can develop a degree of narrative in the events taking place on the table rather than just playing a game to win or lose, both players come out ahead. Also, try to keep to the theme of the Imperials of a larger number of nimble but fragile ships. The TIE Defender and TIE Phantoms are great ships and fun to play with, but have shields and therefore feel more like rebel ships in some ways.
Lesson 4) Equality Between Friends
Keep both faction's lists beginner friendly. Since the Rebels are the heroes of the franchise, and Imperials are arguably a little harder to play, your victims will probably want to play with the rebels first. However, you do want to keep the option open of swapping factions after the first game so that they can try a squad with a slightly different feel.
It is also very important that you design squadrons that appear balanced to people unfamiliar with the rules. If they understand that balance wise a single X-Wing is equal in power to two TIE Fighters, that is a concept they can easily grok. But if they see you flying three named pilots against their squadron of 6 rookie pilots and you're pulling complex shit on them, they'll just get frustrated even though it could be argued your squadrons are 'balanced' points wise.
Lesson 5) Learn To "Newb"
Keep your play at a beginners level when trying to lure in your 'victims'. Even if you are a beginner, you will have picked up a few subtleties they don't yet know, but especially if you think yourself a skilled pilot, learn to play at their level.
What I absolutely do not mean is let them win outright, constantly pulling bad maneuvers, or 'forgetting' to shoot. Nobody likes a patronizing prick.
What I do mean is don't fly your TIE Fighters in a tight formation while they spend three turns trying to get their single B-wing facing the right direction. Don't go guns blazing on their best pilot right out the gate, give them an opportunity to have a hero moment before they die. Perhaps just assign yourself the 'challenge' of killing their ships in increasing order of their pilot skill.
Lesson 6) It's About The Game
Remember you want them to get excited about the game, not how clever you are, or what tricks you can surprise them with. Your goal here is not to win. The goal isn't to lose either, but to educate your victim about how fun the game itself is, and give them a sneak peek at the greater, more glorious depths that await their discovery.
Lesson 7) Don't Go Crazy
I made a mistake and bought almost $700 worth of models within a year and played less than a dozen games in that time frame. Now when I try playing with my friends I feel obligated to just tell them they shouldn't buy any ships of their own, they can after all just use mine. However; since they are my models and I have possession of all the cards, it is really hard for them to put any meaningful effort into planning out squadrons on their own time, and they are much less likely to buy their own fleet since mine is fully capable of supporting two person play. They also see my 34 ships and don't think they can compete with me and give up before starting. This puts them in a very awkward position of liking the game, but not wanting to put the time or money into it.
So, if you plan on primarily playing with your friends, do everything you can to keep your purchases to a minimum until they've started to get invested.
Lesson 8) Come Prepared
Having squads designed well in advance and pre-sorted in a baggy is invaluable. If you take fifteen minutes pulling ships, cards, and tokens out of a massive tackle box and doing math before the first turn, your 'victim' will be seeing all this prep work and thinking he's gotten in over his head. Your primary goal is to not intimidate your victim at this stage.
Lesson 9) Finding Their Own Way
Don't underestimate the intelligence of your victim. If they understand the three basic rules of the game, they should be able to figure out what most pilot abilities and upgrades do. If they want to try something silly, don't shut them down and tell them the 'right' way to do it. People learn from their mistakes, and in a game like this, sometimes those mistakes can be hilarious.
Lesson 10) Don't Be A Dick
Ser Wheaton's universal rule applies here just as well as for life in general.
Sample Squadrons
Using the basic thought processes outlined above, I came up with a handful of 100 point squadrons you might want to try fielding in some early games with a new player, depending on how comfortable with the rules they are.
Rebels:
- Luke Skywalker (X-Wing), 2x Red Squadron Pilot (X-Wing), Dagger Squadron Pilot (B-Wing)[98 points, simple rules and iconic pilots and ships]
- Han Solo (YT-1300), 2x Red Squadron Pilots with Proton Torpedoes (X-Wing)[100 points, Everyone loves Solo, and an introduction to secondary weapons/upgrades that once used they can forget about]
- 2x Gray Squadron Leader with Ion Cannon Turret (Y-Wing), 2x Dagger Squadron Pilot (B-Wing)[98 points, I love this build for new players because the turrets on the Y-wings are very forgiving and can interfere with their opponents (your) maneuverability. This is great for new players who are unable to predict their opponents moves and keep their targets in front of them]
Imperials
- Darth Vader (TIE Advanced), 2x Obsidian Squadron Pilot (TIE Fighter), 2x Royal Guard Pilot (TIE Interceptor)[99 points, simple rules and iconic pilots and ships]
- Boba Fett with Autoblaster (Firespray-31), 4x Black Squadron Pilot (TIE Fighter)[100 points, Boba should feel pretty badass, especially up close]
- "Echo" with Marksmanship (TIE Phantom), Shadow Squadron Pilot (TIE Phantom), 3x Obsidian Squadron Pilot (TIE Fighter)[99 points, the Phantoms might be a great tool for a new player because they can protect themselves with stealth, as well as gives them additional maneuverability, all while being very deadly, but this could be a mean squad to play against a new player]
- Once Again Forgotten
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