When I first starting playing (around IE) my favorite faction was the Mandalorians. I liked them because I could build a squad pretty cheaply (with the non-uniques) and their gameplan was pretty simple. Stay in cover shoot whatever you can see. Mandalorians as I soon found out had one of the highest damage potiential squads if not the highest in the game, which I thought was pretty cool.

As I soon found out, damage potiential and what actually happens in a game are two very differant things. After a few months into the game I stopped playing them. They quickly became the shoot em up faction that I'd go to if I didn't feel like building a new squad. As I look at the game today I'm really wondering what this faction is missing.

Mandalorians still have a very high damage output and shooter defence. What they don't have is the HP to stand up to enemy fire once they get closed in on. So the counter to this is as some will say, just play Jaster and get the deathshots. While it's a good strategy it just doesn't jump off the page to me as exciting (maybe its just me). Then there are squads that use Jaina, while they are interesting again theres something missing.

So I guess I'm just wondering what they are missing. What is it about this faction that just isn't all there? Set 3 will help with this I'm sure.

What do you guys think they need to go from ho-hum to oh-cool?

Or am I just way off and they are amazing?

Depending on the conditions of the attack in relation to abilities like cunning or opportunist and Commander Effects a lot of the Mandalorian gameplay is luck. Just happening to roll high enough to hit, because the damage output as you have said, is certainly already on track.

A lot of the problem is that most the generic Mandos have high damage capability, so minor buffs or extra abilities can drastically change their effectiveness. So here is my possibly solution to help them.

I'd have to say that they could use lower cost commanders with high effect CE's or ranged synergy abilities. Say like a 15 point commander with basic generic stats but a killer CE to help the faction. Someone who can't shoot well, but can lead well. I think giving the Mandos various unfair advantage type CE's or synergies to enhance already existing abilities would be a nice help.

These examples are meant to reflect their affinity for technology in the battlefield, which is one of their best advantages to begin with against most opponents. Commander effects that make their time on the battlefield more valuable and heroic in an RP sense. Lets them be the force that has been feared across the galaxy in tons of battles and wars.

Mando followers with gain an extra 2 squares for purposes of range on Grenade and Flamethrower abilities.
Mando followers get +1 attack when performing the second attack as part of the twin attack special ability
Mando followers who evade damage get to make an immediate attack at +1 attack

This stuff is some serious flavor and gives the Mandos that unfair advantage you might expect of such a notorious people. I think effects like these can do wonders for some of the existing pieces without creating new soldier types.

Maybe in the fourth set give a focus on a few commanders. Something like 3 commanders, 2 uniques, and one or two deathwatch pieces to help out with Vizsla. Stuff to help solidify the faction, and not let it get watered down.

to be honest i think they nedd something similar to what the seps need. They need some kind of movement breaker, or a commander effect that allows for similar effects. Also they could become better if you could have a mid cost commander give extra attack (40-50) It would allow you to bring in some different squads, maybe make some old pieces more playable, and not allow for heavy combos like with boba fett MC so they wont get that.


that being said i think jaster mereel was a great add to the faction. with having such a broad access to twin, a death shot was great. i think it gave them a good shove towards competitiveness.

I was totally thinking along the same lines. They're kinda like Rebels with the low HP. The Rebels have synergy and high damage potential to help balance that (tho they've fallen as of late). The Mandos don't have that balancing factor (damage output alone doesn't do it because every faction is getting in on that action now). A nice fit w/Mandos would be their single mindedness when it comes to battle - they are a warrior race/people who constantly fight. And when they're not fighting, they're training for the next fight...heck even they're women and children are devastating foes! They don't get distracted....or disrupted.....and don't forget their orders after walking away from their Commanders. That, IMO, should be reflected in their faction.

I like that anti-disruptive/anti-battle meditation for Mandos as well. I don't like the idea of a hard counter to Bastila that much, but if it's in one faction, and makes people play Mandos, then it's probably sweet.

I don't actually know much about Mandos at all - I've only ever played against them in one 3-way casual game, and in that game Bastila just nerfed all their stuff. So it would be cool to see them actually being played.

Yeah thats why I suggested cheaper commanders with nice CE's or synergies. Special Abilities like what the Vong have to help buff themselves, but I'd like to see cool effects like I suggested in an earlier post as well, not flat damage and attack increases... thats just boring and overdone at this point. They need flavor the most regardless of anything that is done. I don't care for things being homogenized by giving them straight up capabilities that other factions have. New stuff!!

maybe we needed an Armorsmith, not a Gunsmith

so a commander who grants another commander immunity to cancellation?

yeah thats a pretty cool one. I like it.

I like the idea of this, because then you get to chose which CE you consider important enough to not let be cancelled, or even risk spending the points on a couple of these guys to make sure both or all your CEs can't be cancelled. I like it.

The simplest way to do it would be to make it a Special Ability that grants Battle Resolve anyway, in the way that Ooglith Masquer grants Stealth. That way there wouldn't be a question at all about how it works with Bastila, and there's already precedent for it to work that way.

I'm pretty hesitant about giving Mandos the ability to be undisruptable, but giving that to a Unique would be ok, I think. They only get one instance of it that way to keep it in check.

I think a better way to improve them would be what Sithborg mentioned; a Gungan Shieldbearer type of character. Or maybe a commander that gives non-unique followers Molecular Shielding (the shields from the X-1 Viper Droid). That would be quite powerful so it would have to be cost correctly, but I think that would be cool. Giving out Parry or Lightsaber Resistance/Duelist would be good too, since they already have alright ranged defense (with most of them having Stealth, Cloaked, or Evade).