In my mind, I’ve broken this down into two comparison metrics. First is the assertion that a given Scum unit is better than any like-costed Rebel/Imperial Unit. For instance, Elite Weequays at 7 points are better than Elite Jet Troopers or Obi-Wan Kenobi. Looking at the statistics of these figures, I may be inclined to agree. Taking into account surges, health, and dice pool, there’s no doubt that Elite Weequays are a very good deployment group. Moreover, I would agree that in certain circumstance, they are also the superior deployment group over their Rebel and Imperial contemporaries.

However, this is typically where my agreement with this assertion ends, as it misses that sometimes the correct analysis isn’t that a unit is better or worse, but rather that the unit is different. And really, that is the case in the example I gave above. Sure we can compare stats of the figures as mentioned, but these fail to inform us of the value of the abilities that make these figures unique. Is Alter Mind better than Raider? Fly By? These aren’t questions that have objective answers, because the answer depends on the circumstances of a particular situation. Offense is a specialty of Weequay Pirates and I regularly hear that other figures can’t compete with them on that front. Well, they aren't supposed to compete on that front. Offense isn't their particular advantage. If you’re using the 7-point Rebel or Imperial deployment groups to match the offense of Weequay Pirates, I regret to inform you that you're making a mistake. Function matters for every figure in Imperial Assault (same goes for Command cards). Offense is the simplest metric when it comes to value in this game, but it’s not the only metric and players need to utilize their figures accordingly. Thus, I’m very resistant to any grand statement regarding the superiority of a figure in a generalized manner relying on offense as the only measure of its value.

The second assertion that I often hear is the superiority of a certain faction over the others – as with the first, it’s the superiority of Scum Hunters. I’ll admit that I’m in a bit of an academic corner when it comes to denying this argument, as there’s a decent amount of evidence that Scum Hunter lists tend to win tournaments over the other factions. I won’t deny that fact. I won’t deny that it’s a strong list. However, I’ve also seen other factions succeed against Scum Hunters. I’ve personally beaten it many times with Imperials. I have a multitude of explanations why we see it win so many tournaments (player preference, small set of test cases, cheap to purchase). All that combined leads me to believe that the supremacy of the faction is likely overstated, despite its winning record.