X-Wing 2.0 Upgrade Guide- Weapon (Cannons, Missiles, Torpedoes and Turrets)

Last Update: 02/02/2019 with 2.0 Wave 2 and Points Update 1.1

X-wing 2.0 launches with a wide variety of upgrades carrying over from 1.0. Similar to the guides we did for 1.0, we’re going to start looking at making sense of all of the new upgrades and how they will function in 2.0:

• Ranking– We’re going to rank each card within an upgrade slot. This is an imperfect ranking as the usefulness of any card is mostly determined by how and where you use it. But it’s an easy number to grasp and can serve as a starting point when trying to pick your upgrades.
• Comments- Some general thoughts about how to use this upgrade. If this upgrade had an equivalent in 1.0, we’ll give a few notes about how it plays differently
• Combos– If there are any noteworthy cards this upgrade combos with it will be noted here. Not all cards have this section.

Other Guides

1. Personnel
   1. Astromechs (Coming Soon)
   2. Crew
      1. Rebel
      2. Resistance (Coming Soon)
      3. Imperial
      4. First Order (Coming Soon)
      5. Scum
      6. Generic
   3. Gunners (Coming Soon)
2. Pilot Upgrades
   1. Force Powers
   2. Talents
3. Ship Upgrades
   1. Devices (Coming Soon)
   2. Illicit (Coming Soon)
   3. Modifications (Coming Soon)
   4. Sensor (Coming Soon)
   5. Tech (Coming Soon)
4. Weapon Systems
   1. Cannons
   2. Missiles
   3. Torpedoes
   4. Turrets

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Cannons

Cannons saw a small change in 2.0 with the introduction of range bonuses. This makes them much more appealing on ships with native three dice attack.

There are five cannons that, currently, did not make it into 2.0: ARC Caster, Autoblaster, Flechette, Linked Battery, Mangler.

Ships with Cannon Slots

• Rebel
  • B-Wing (two)
• Imperial
  • Alpha Class Starwing (with Title)
  • Lambda Shuttle
  • TIE Defender
• Scum
  • Aggressor (two)
  • Firespray-31
  • G-1A (with Title)
  • M3-A Scyk
  • YV-666

Ranked List 

1. Heavy Laser Cannon
2. Ion Cannon
3. Tractor Beam
4. Jamming Beam

Cannons (listed alphabetically)

Heavy Laser Cannon (Wave 1 Empire Conversion Kit)

Cost: 4 points

Attack: Bullseye Arc, Dice 4, Range 2-3

After the Modify Attack Dice step, change all Crit results to Hit results.

• Ranking- 1
• Comments
  • These are hard to judge. On one hand, they are half the cost of their 1.0 version. On the other, Bullseye arc can be quite difficult to achieve consistently.
  • Interesting note, you change Crits to Hits after the modify step. Which means now, if you have a pilot ability, or spend a lock to reroll dice, your Crits are still going to turn to Hits. In 1.0, dice rerolled into Crits stayed.
• Combos
  • I originally said Predator but like Crackshot, it’s primary weapon only. So none of the Bullseye arc Talents do anything for HLC.

Ion Cannon (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 5 points

Attack: Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 1-3

If this attack hits, spend 1 Hit or Crit result to cause the defender to suffer 1 Hit damage. All remaining Hit/Crit results inflict ion tokens instead of damage.

• Ranking- 2
• Comments
  • Overall, ion weapons lost some value with 2.0. No longer does one single hit getting through result in a ship taking damage and being ioned. Now you need to get at least two damage through, upwards of four total hits if you want to ion a large ship. On the plus side, with the bonus die at range one, it’s now possible to get four hits. Unfortunately, there are only a few cases where you’re okay giving up three damage in order to see a ship ioned.
• Combos
  • IG-88/B-Wing. With double cannon slots, these ships can take this and Tractor Beam just for the options when the perfect set up comes. You take them merely to limit your opponent’s choices, only using it when they make a mistake you can exploit.

Jamming Beam (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 0 points

Attack: Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 1-2

If this attack hits, all Hit/Crit results inflict Jam tokens instead of damage.

• Ranking- 4
• Comments
  • Well, these are nice and cheap. That’s positive. However, in 2.0, Jam tokens clear at the end of the round. With fewer ships having the ability to gain multiple tokens, putting multiple jams on a target in a single round has limited value.
  • Unlike Ion, this does inflict Jam with just a single hit.
  • Update 1.1- Now its zero points but still sucks.
• Combos
  • Serissu (M3-A). At Init 5, you fire before most ships so the Jam can be effective in reducing their offense and defense. It also allows the rest of your squad to take advantage of it. Serissu is already aiding the squad with her ability so giving up her attack to further aid their offense isn’t terrible.
  • ISB Slicer (Crew) + Lambda Shuttle. The ISB Slicers prevent your enemy from removing the Jam tokens during the End phase. Which means, if you can score 2-3 tokens, your target has to deal with them as long as you can keep at range 1-2. This plays well into your shuttle’s role as a support ship.  Combo is only 48pts.
  • Aggressors- If you want to run three IG-88’s, you now can. You can only take Jamming Beam to use with IG-88B’s cannon ability though.

Tractor Beam (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 2 points

Attack: Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 1-3

If this attack hits, all Hit/Crit results inflict Tractor tokens instead of damage.

• Ranking- 3
  • Similar to Jamming Beam, this also inflicts a token with just a single hit. And one is often all you need to throw a ship onto a rock.
  • Tractoring large/medium ships is now possible so gaining multiple tokens has slightly more value than multiple jam tokens.
• Comments
  • High Initiative pilot can use this to prevent another ship from getting a shot if you can throw them on a rock.
  • Pilot with equal or higher initiative to the rest of the squad can use this to pull a target closer to give them better shots.
  • IG-88/B-Wing. With double cannon slots, these ships can take this and Ion Cannon just for the options when the perfect set up comes. You take them merely to limit your opponent’s choices, only using it when they make a mistake you can exploit.

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Missiles

Missiles in 2.0 feel more distinct than they did in 1.0. Now, missiles generally don’t hit as hard but come with more charges. This makes them more valuable to throw on 2-dice ships because you’re not paying points for a single attack, but rather upgrading their attack potentially, multiple times.

There are six missiles that, so far, didn’t make the transition to 2.0: Advanced Homing Missiles, Assault Missiles, Cruise Missiles, Harpoon Missiles, Scrambler Missiles, XX-23 Threadtracers.

Ships with Missile Slots

• Rebel
  • A-Wing
  • K-Wing (two)
  • YT-1300
  • YT-2400
  • Z-95
• Imperial
  • Alpha Class Starwing (two w/ Title)
  • TIE Advanced
  • TIE Advanced Prototype
  • TIE Aggressor
  • TIE Bomber (two)
  • TIE Defender
  • TIE Punisher (two)
• Scum
  • Firespray-31
  • Kihraxz
  • M-12L Kimogila
  • M3-A Scyk
  • YV-666
  • Z-95

Ranked List 

1. Homing Missile
2. Proton Rockets
3. Barrage Rockets
4. Concussion Missile
5. Cluster Missile
6. Ion Missile

Missiles (listed alphabetically)

Barrage Rockets (Wave 1 Empire Conversion Kit)

Cost: 7 points, Double Missile Slot

Attack (Focus): Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 2-3, Charge 5

Spend 1 charge. If the defender is in your Bullseye Arc, you may spend 1 or more Charge to reroll that many attack dice.

• Ranking- 3
• Comments
  • These were called Unguided Rockets in 1.0. This version is slightly better, as you can still modify your dice normally. But also slightly worse in that you are limited to five shots, max. But they can still be reloaded so there’s that.
  • These work great on ships with two dice primary attack, giving them a third die at every range. All they need is a focus which almost any ship can get.
  • Should be noted that droid pilots can’t fire these unless they can get focus from somewhere else. Currently, no ship with two missile slots has a droid pilot but I’m curious how Separatist droid ships will handle this.
• Combos
  • K-Wings. With their double turret arc set to the side, you can 270-degree arc coverage with missiles out the front. These are plenty cheap and allow for lots of shots.
  • Saturation Salvo (Talent)- While generally intended to use this as your primary weapon during a game, combining them with Saturation Salvo for some early alpha strike also work. Saturation spends a charge to force defense dice rerolls. With five charges you can get two effective shots off messing with their defense.

Cluster Missile (Wave 1)

Cost: 5 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 1-2, Charge 4

Spend 1 charge. After this attack, you may perform this attack as a bonus attack against a different target at range 0-1 of the defender, ignoring the Lock requirement.

• Ranking- 5
• Comments
  • This is your anti-swarm missile. If you can engage at range two, you have the potential to destroy or at least damage, two ships in the group.
• Combos
  • Concussion Missiles. Use Clusters to get damage on multiple ships in a swarm then follow that up with Concussion to flip those damage cards face up.

Concussion Missile (Wave 1)

Cost: 6 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 2-3, Charge 3

Spend 1 charge. After this attack hits, each ship at range 0-1 of the defender exposes 1 of its damage cards.

• Ranking- 4
• Comments
  • These don’t feel very exciting. At first, 3 charges looked great. 6 points for three shots. It may be worth it on a Z-95 swarm. But it’s not as appealing as some of the other missiles.
  • These aren’t alpha-strike weapons, but rather to be used later to cause some mayhem once ships have damage cards.

Homing Missile (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 5 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 4, Range 2-3, Charge 2

Spend 1 charge. After you declare the defender, the defender may choose to suffer 1 Hit damage. If it does, skip the Attack and Defense Dice steps and the attack is treated as hitting.

• Ranking- 1
• Comments
  • These are incredibly appealing. Only 3pts 5pts (we’ll see if this rises if they become abused. They were never abused but they did go up in price) for an almost guaranteed damage. Almost any ship is going to choose one damage over the potential for more.
  • This feels like the 2.0 version of Crackshot (yes, I know we have Crackshot in 2.0 but this feels more like it).
• Combos
  • Swarms. 6-7 A-Wings or Z-95’s all bearing these could be pretty scary. If three of them can manage to Lock an Interceptor its just dead.

Ion Missile (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 4 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 3, Range 2-3, Charge 3

Spend 1 charge. If this attack hits, spend 1 Hit or Crit result to cause the defender to suffer 1 Hit damage. All remaining Hit/Crit results inflict ion tokens instead of damage.

• Ranking- 6
• Comments
  • Very similar to their 1.0 version just with the changes to how Ion effects are applied. Cheaper though so worth considering to add some board control as an option.

Proton Rockets (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 7 points

Attack (Focus): Bullseye Arc, Dice 5, Range 1-2, Charge 1

Spend 1 charge. 

• Ranking- 2
• Comments
  • Compared to 1.0, these are far more versatile. Range 1-2 and not tied to agility value means any ship with a missile slot can get use out of them, as opposed to just things like A-Wings and TIE Advanceds.
  • The Bullseye arc is limiting and the price is high. But, for a potential five dice shot, it’s worth taking as a way of really punishing your opponent when he gets in there.
  • Should be noted that droid pilots can’t fire these unless they can get focus from somewhere else. Only effects Leebo currently.

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Torpedoes

One of the biggest changes to 2.0 is a complete rework of how secondary weapons work. Gone are the days of worthless torpedoes that cost a lot of points for one shot that isn’t very accurate. Now, all these torpedoes can benefit from dice rerolls off the Lock. And most have built-in Extra Munitions.

Only three actual torpedoes didn’t make the cut to 2.0: Flechette, Plasma, and Seismic.

Ships with Torpedoes

• Rebels
  • ARC-170
  • B-Wing
  • E-Wing
  • K-Wing
  • X-Wing
  • Y-Wing
• Imperials
  • Alpha Class Starwing (two w/ Title)
  • TIE Bomber
  • TIE Punisher
  • VT-49 Decimator
• Scum
  • Fang Fighter
  • Firespray-31 (w/ Title)
  • Jumpmaster 5000
  • M-12L Kimogila (two w/Title)
  • Starviper
  • Y-Wing

Ranked List 

1. Proton Torpedoes
2. Advanced Proton Torpedoes
3. Ion Torpedoes

Torpedoes (listed alphabetically)

Advanced Proton Torpedo (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 6 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 5, Range 1, Charge 1

Spend 1 charge. Change 1 hit result to a crit result.

• Ranking- 2
• Comments
  • In 1.0, if you could get these off properly, you were almost guaranteed five hits. Now, they get the Lock for rerolls but no changing blanks to focuses. So less accurate but they also cost far fewer points.
  • These work well as a good range one denial weapon.
• Combos
  • Fire Control System. Gain the lock early and use FCS for your rerolls. Your opponent has to fear getting into range one of you.

Ion Torpedoes (Wave 1)

Cost: 6 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 4, Range 2-3, Charge 2

Spend 1 charge. If this attack hits, spend 1 Hit or Crit result to cause the defender to suffer 1  damage. All remaining Hit/Crit results inflict ion tokens instead of damage.

• Ranking– 3
• Comments
  • These are quite different from their 1.0 counterparts. Those were AOE weapons. These are single target. Those did all their damage as damage. These do a maximum of one damage.
  • These cost the same as an Ion Cannon Turret, which can change arc and be used infinite number of times, rather than just two.
  • These can be used at range 2-3 but often times ion is more useful at close range. You want to ion a ship and then flip around behind them so they can’t shoot you while you shoot them.

Proton Torpedo (Wave 1)

Cost: 12 points

Attack (Lock): Front Arc, Dice 4, Range 2-3, Charge 2

Spend 1 charge. Change 1 hit result to a crit result.

• Ranking– 1
• Comments
  • These are a nice upgrade over 1.0. You can now modify dice with your Lock. Can now fire them more than once. All the deficiencies 1.0 Protons had are gone. They do lose some built-in mod, no longer changing a Focus to a Crit but that’s not unreasonable.
  • 12 points is a little high for an efficiency squad.
• Combos
  • Works best on high Initiative aces. That allows them to get the lock for the alpha strike.
  • Or E-wings with their special long range target lock.

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Turrets

Turrets took a big hit in 2.0. They lost their 360 coverage. But that makes them more fun.  There are also only two to choose from now. A few ships also had their turret slot converted to a primary weapon (K-Wing, HWK-290). They do benefit from a range one attack bonus though.

Majority of turrets didn’t make the cut into 2.0: Autoblaster, Blaster, Synced Turret, Twin-Laser Turret.

I predict TLT will return, but as a double arc turret that works much like Dorsal turret.

Ships with a Turret slot

• Rebel
  • Attack Shuttle
  • VCX-100
  • Y-Wing
• Imperial
  • TIE Aggressor
•  Scum
  • Scurrg H-6 Bomber
  • Y-Wing

Ranked List 

1. Ion Cannon Turret
2. Dorsal Turret

Turrets (in alphabetical order)

Dorsal Turret (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 2 points

Attack: Single Turret Arc, Dice 2, Range 1-2

Add white Rotate Arc Action

• Ranking- 2
• Comments
  • Works very similarly to the 1.0 version. However, all turrets benefit from the bonus die at range one. This means the Dorsal Turret has only one thing going for it, price. At only four points, if you have a turret slot, it’s worth taking just to give yourself an additional arc.

Ion Cannon Turret (Wave 1 Conversion Kits)

Cost: 4 points

Attack: Single Turret Arc, Dice 3, Range 1-2

If this attack hits, spend 1 Hit or Crit result to cause the defender to suffer 1 Hit damage. All remaining Hit/Crit results inflict ion tokens instead of damage.

Add white Rotate Arc Action

• Ranking- 1
• Comments
  • Overall, ion weapons lost some value with 2.0. No longer does one single hit getting through result in a ship taking damage and being ioned. Now you need to get at least two damage through, upwards of four total hits if you want to ion a large ship. On the plus side, with the bonus die at range one, it’s now possible to get four hits. Unfortunately, there are only a few cases where you’re okay giving up three damage in order to see a ship ioned.