Pilots Confirmed

FFG confirmed via a website post, social media feeds and a live stream that pilots are indeed coming to SWU.

The pilots will take two forms, units that have the option of being deployed either to the ground arena or to a vehicle as a pilot. The second and more anticipated is a similar optional deployment mechanic on leaders.

Came very close to predicting this as one of the leader options in the Jump to Lightspeed speculation post a few weeks ago.

At least one leader could have the option of deploying to the ground arena as a stand alone unit with some amount of stats, or as a pilot upgrade on a specific type of ship. In fact “Pilot” as a keyword could be related to any standard ground unit such that it could be deployed as the ground unit or as an upgrade to a ship giving some bonus. “Pilot, 1” could give a +1/+1 bump, “Pilot, 2” a +2/+2, etc. There could also be a “Pilot, shield” which grants a shield token on deploy.

Not exactly how the new piloting mechanism will work, but certainly in the right ballpark.

The new Chewbacca unit is a great example of the first case. Five resource cost for a 5/6 might be just ok. However it’s the pilot option that will likely shine. Imagine deploying an A-Wing on turn one, following it up with Chewie piloting on turn two. That A-Wing is now a 4/6 with Raid 2. Oh and by the way, it gains the “can’t be defeated or returned to hand by enemy card abilities” from Chewie. Waylay? Nope. Power of the Dark Side? Nope.

Another fun example is the new Boba Fett leader. Think about deploying the original Spark of Rebellion Fett’s Firespray on turn five, then slapping this leader on it. That Firespray is now a 9/10 readied unit. Oh and you also just did 4 points of damage divided between any number of units.

Piloting seems like it will be a great mechanic. Having options is a good thing. The decision making will add another level of complexity to deck building and playing.

Now if only there is an R2 Pilot leader spoiler coming soon…?