Kicking off a new article series, “What Makes It Tick”, these articles will be about the mechanics and strategies of selected games. Now I will say up front here that I’m hardly an expert of these topics, but there are many games that have subtle “facts” about them that, when I discovered, gave me that “AHA!” moment. That moment of clarity where strategy and approach start to make more sense, in particular if you are new to the game.

Today’s topic, the overwhelmingly popular Star Wars X-Wing!

More and more players are joining the ranks of Star Wars X-Wing miniatures game, which at this point is so big it’s practically a self-contained hobby itself. If your new and you can’t wait to start pushing miniatures around, you will very much benefit from this article which to experience players might be very obvious but god do I wish I knew these things on day one.

Measurements
A base of a standard ship is exactly the same size as a 1 increment movement and because movement is measured from front to back, when you move 1 increment, you actually end up touching with your front the distance of a 3 measurement ruler, effectively moving the distance of a 2 measurement ruler. The picture illustrates this better than words, but one of the most common problems you will have when starting with X-Wing is making distance judgements, knowing this simple little fact should help a great deal with visualization.

The Curves & Formation Flying
Formation flying is a pivotal element of the game, ships that move together and stay together can concentrate on the same targets, giving them an edge and making them far more lethal than out of formation, in particular during the initial stages of the game before chaos ensues. Understanding how the angles apply to movement in formation is critical to avoid self-inflicted overlapping between your own ship, a very basic, but critical skill for all X-Wing players.

The sharp turn is a 90 degree turn and the normal turn is 45 degree’s. This is an important concept to get down very early in the game, in particular how to blend different turns and sharp turns.

Note how in a 90 degree turn, while the position shifts, the ships remain in formation and do not bump each other. This is because both are the same range of 2 and both are perfect 90 degree angles.

Try to do the same thing with a 45 degree turn and the results are an overlap, a situation you never want to be in because it prevents your ships from taking an action and is largely self inflicted.

This is a very basic but important thing to understand.  Sharp turns can match speeds and you will always end up in formation, even with multiple ships of the same size, but with normal turns (45 degree’s) you can’t match speed, you need to alternate with lower speeds on the inside.  For example a 1 speed on the inside and 2 speed on the outside works fine.

There is so much more to this, but I think while extremely basic that information with a bit of experimentation for new players will definitely turn some lights on.  I may do more advanced stuff on angles and speeds for X-Wing in the future.