Here’s the thing. Different people come to SWM wanting different things. Some people just want to play a simple game without too many complex interactions that reminds them of their favorite fandom. Some want to recreate scenes from the movies and other sources. The v-sets tend to cater to people who are more interested in a competitive, strategic game, and less interested in “theme.” These people, of which I am one, are also pretty much exclusively the ones designing the v-sets, so they tend to make a lot of characters and pieces that they think are needed in the competitive game. That doesn’t mean they disregard “flavor,” but it means that making that one piece that will slot perfectly into an existing idea and make it competitive can take precedence over making another “hero.” And yes, the v-sets are complex, and yes, the average figure is more powerful than the average WOTC mini (although the top tier of WOTC minis still have a place at the table).

The people who want the game to be simpler and FEEL more like it did 15 years ago aren’t wrong—they just want something that the v-sets probably aren’t ever going to give them. It’s unfortunate that the bar for entry into the current competitive game has gotten so high, but at the same time, I find the game a lot more interesting now than it was 10 years ago. That’s a testament to the hard work of this community.

The point is, no one’s really wrong to want what they want. There are lots of opportunities for the community to get involved, from design to playtesting to squadbuilding to the “What do you want to see?” threads. I’m not here to defend the v-sets to people who have no interest in them. But I am here to support this community, and I’m really proud of what we’ve accomplished.