“I do not want the Emperor’s prize damaged.”

- Darth Vader, The Empire Strikes Back

In this article, you will witness the power of the dark side, and the rewards it offers to those who embrace it. Darth Vader™ has imposed his will upon the 2017 X-Wing™ System Open Series prizes, so read on to see what is at stake!

Main Tournament Prizes

Participation

Every participant in a System Open main tournament will receive two incredible prizes simply for participating: an alternate art Darth Vader crew card, and a damage deck from the new core set featuring an exclusive alternate back!

Left: Alternate-art Aurebesh™ Darth Vader Crew

Right: Alternate Back Damage Deck (English cards)

You may have noticed that Darth Vader has his rules printed in Aurebesh™, the language of Star Wars™. For those too timid to have flown a ship carrying the Dark Lord of the Sith, here is the original card in English.

The crew version of the Sith Lord is a powerful addition that will get results, if you’re willing to take some collateral damage for it.

Limited Playmats

At each of the System Open events, a very limited quantity of commemorative playmats featuring an image of the planet of that event will be available.

Each System Open event organizer will determine how to distribute these playmats. Some possible methods include offering it as a reward for early registration, awarding some playmats based on specific achievements, utilizing a separate registration tier, or even distributing them randomly during a specific round of the tournament. Be sure to check with the organizer as more details are shared to find out how you can obtain one of these limited prizes.

Initial Day Performance

2017 System Open Target Lock Tokens

After seven rounds of competition, players with a winning record of four or more victories will be rewarded with a unique pair of target lock tokens that are exclusive to the System Open Series! Each victory beyond the fourth will earn that player another pair of target lock tokens featuring a different design. Each is assigned to a certain number of victories, making the seven-victory target lock pair a coveted prize indeed.

Advance to Final Day

Players with five or more victories after the initial day of seven rounds will advance to the final day of competition. Many Opens will offer a Hangar Bay side tournament at the same time as the final day of the main tournament. Therefore, each of these competitors will receive the undefeated prize from a Hangar Bay side tournament, which you can read more about later in this article.

Final Day Performance

The final day begins with two additional rounds, or three rounds if there are more than 320 total participants in the initial day(s) of an Open. Players that win one of these rounds will receive ten acrylic shield tokens featuring the black and red motif of Lord Vader and his lightsaber. Players that win two or more of these rounds will receive a total of twenty acrylic shields tokens!

2017 System Open Shield Tokens

Top 8

After the final day’s additional rounds, the top eight players are seeded for single-elimination play. Each can follow the path of the dark side with these black and red maneuver templates.

2017 System Open Maneuver Templates

Darth Vader’s power is felt here as well. There is no better way to display your prowess than by flying your squad around the battlefield with these trophies of your accomplishment.

Top 4

2017 System Open Range Rulers

Players that survive the first round of single-elimination will find themselves rewarded for their efforts. Each will gain a powerful tool in measuring accurately, with a set of three sizes of range rulers.

These range rulers are extremely useful in measuring precisely in tight spaces. Additionally, they are incredibly convenient during initial set-up and obstacle placement. Darth Vader would be pleased.

Finalist and Winner

The players that advance to the finals will each leave with something to commemorate this achievement. The finalist and winner will receive a plaque or trophy, respectively, featuring the planet of the Open they won.

Additionally, the winner of each Open will receive the grand prize: travel and hotel accommodations to the Coruscant Invitational at Star Wars Celebration Orlando! More news about what awaits those competitors at that incredible event will be coming soon!

Hangar Bay Side Tournament Prizes

Make sure you read about the Hangar Bay variant in the 2017 Open Briefing! Once you have both of your squads ready to deploy, take a look at the prizes you could win:

Left: Full-art Aurebesh "Lothal Rebel"

Right: Full-art Aurebesh "Baron of the Empire"

The two cards are actually one card, while also being two prizes! This double-sided full art card allows us to show off some of the beautiful art that X-Wing features. On one side, you’ll find the VCX-100 pilot “Lothal Rebel.” On the other side is the TIE Adv. Prototype pilot “Baron of the Empire.”

During each Hangar Bay side tournament, each participant will receive a copy of this card. Players that earn at least two victories during these three rounds will receive an additional copy.

To cap it off, undefeated players through all three rounds will win a visually stunning plastic version of the card as well. Spot glossing highlights the ships and other parts of the cards in the same way that this prize highlights a perfect record.

Fly On

Be sure to read up on the structure of the System Open events in the 2017 Open Briefing so you know what your mission is to capture these prizes! If you prepare and hone your skills, you might find yourself flying against the best pilots the galaxy has to offer at the Coruscant Invitational!