For decades, children have stood by their bedroom windows, looked out upon the stars, and imagined they could see the distant lights of a war waging in a galaxy far, far away. Of course, that war was a long time ago, but light only travels to us so fast. We see the past when we look at the stars. And we relive a piece of our childhood when we watch the original Star Wars trilogy.

For some, the wait for a return to that galaxy has been excruciatingly long. But tabletop gamers have been reveling in the classic Star Wars universe for several years now thanks to a resurgence of board games and pen and paper RPGs. For those with a hankering for dice rolls, the warm memory of the greatest science fiction trilogy of all time can still be felt.

Board game newbie? Check out IGN's 5 Best Board Games for Beginners.

If you’d like to know that feeling again, to thrill at shooting first and gritting your teeth in the midst of an X-Wing dogfight, check out these modern Star Wars tabletop games. There’s a little something for everyone. So, find your something and use the Force to outduel your friends. Just don’t get cocky, kid.

Star Wars: Armada

A Star Destroyer chases down a Corellian Corvette. This is the first image of Star Wars - the opening scene that introduced us to a new galaxy of possibilities. Though the war we saw through those first three films was more personal, often fought with small ships or ground troops, the few moments of massive ship combat were impressive, most impressive. Star Wars: Armada, a miniatures combat game coming out any moment now, gives fans a chance to experience large scale big ship combat in the Star Wars universe.

Armada might seem a bit overwhelming (and a bit too geeky) at first. You use a plastic stick with a series of joints to plot the course of your ships. There are shields to consider on each side of your big ships, with dials to turn as you take damage. Do you want to use an action to transfer shields from starboard to the bow? Is it time to brace and minimize damage from a frontal attack? Should you use your special action token to improve your yaw for one turn? It’s a lot to take in, but it will start to feel natural (and cool) in no time.

Get past the chintzy plastic maneuver tool and the cardboard fire range stick and you have one of the most refreshing tabletop Star Wars experiences in a long while. These are epic two-hour battles that feel like part of a large-scale war. And though the big ships included (a Star Destroyer, a Corellian Corvette, and a frigate) are the stars of the base set, there are squadrons of X-Wings and Tie Fighters to command as well.

Who should get this: If you love big space battles and have at least some experience with tabletop gaming, then Star Wars: Armada is probably for you.

Buy Star Wars Armada

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Star Wars: X-Wing

Before there was Armada, there was Star Wars: X-Wing. Similar in many ways, X-Wing focuses on the tighter dogfights that amazed us as kids. Tie Fighters and X-Wings clash, as do just about every other ship in the Star Wars universe.

Unlike Armada, which is meant to show large-scale battles, X-Wing is about the fight in the galactic trenches. It plays similarly to Armada, but with rules more suited for single- and two-man fighters, not enormous, heavily shielded ships with loads of firepower.

X-Wing’s weakness is its lackluster base set - it provides enough content for two people to play, but it’s a real bore. Only after investing in some additional expansion ships does this excellent skirmish game come to life.

Who should get this: If you want to pit the Millennium Falcon against Slave-1, look no further.

Buy Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Game Core Set

X-Wing or Armada?

Here’s a tough question. You can only afford one Star Wars spaceship miniatures combat game, so which one do you choose – X-Wing or Armada? Though X-Wing has been around for a while and grows into a great game with expansions, it’s just not as good as Armada.

Armada builds on what X-Wing started. It improves on the design of the minis and refines the combat. Though it’s a hefty price to buy the Armada core set ($99 USD), you get a lot for your money. Not just in terms of ships, but in improved production quality, and more interesting gameplay thanks to new objective cards and the addition of high-value targets. These improvements lead to more varied options every time you play.

Of course if you have the money and the desire... get both!

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Star Wars: Imperial Assault

The Death Star has been destroyed and the Empire has been dealt a major blow, but the war is far from over. In retaliation the Empire has enacted a plot. One that may just bring the Rebellion to its knees. You and three friends must play a series of missions with the hope of stopping the Empire. But one additional player is involved, and she plays for the Empire, doing whatever she can to stop the Rebels and ensure victory for Vader and the Emperor.

Imperial Assault is based off the very popular dungeon crawler Descent 2nd Edition. What’s a dungeon crawler in tabletop terms? Each mission is set on a map made of modular pieces (sort of like puzzle pieces), meaning that no two scenarios will have the same layout. You move miniatures on the map, roll dice to fight the Imperials standing in your way, and attempt to accomplish the goal of the mission. It might be to kill an important Imperial or to stop a beacon signal or keeping critical intel out of the hands of the Empire.

Whether you succeed or fail, the campaign continues. If the Imperials win a mission, though, the next scenario will likely play in their favor. The tide of this war will shift over the course of more than a half-dozen missions. Each time you finish a mission, you earn experience points to buy upgrades for your character, improving his abilities. But the Imperial player does the same. As you complete side missions, you’ll have the chance to recruit famous Star Wars allies, including Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. Of course, the Imperial player can recruit Darth Vader, bounty hunter IG-88 and others. Oh, and deploy AT-STs into missions, which can really turn a battle in her favor. And is just awesome. Like, seriously. You’re stomping Rebels with an AT-ST. That is cool.

Imperial Assault is going to have upgrades galore over time, expanding to new campaigns. The first set of expansions, Ally and Villain packs, just came out and add new characters into the mix, including a certain Wookie with a bowcaster.

Who should get this: If you want that feeling of Han and Leia battling to reach the shield generator on Endor and want a more lightweight dungeon crawling experience, this is the game for you. You will not be disappointed.

Buy Star Wars - Imperial Assault

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Star Wars: The Card Game

The pull of the Dark Side and the struggle to restore balance to the Force is a key theme to Star Wars. And Star Wars: The Card Game puts that center stage. This asymmetrical two-player game has one player on the Light Side, the other Dark Side as they battle to see which side of the Force will win out in the end. Sadly, it’s often not the Light Side that comes out victorious.

Each round, players place cards representing ships or Rebel heroes and then attack one of three opposing objectives. The Light Side player must destroy three objectives to win. The Dark Side just has to bide time for the Death Star (a fun little counter token shaped like the not-a-moon space station) to ready itself. If it does, well, say goodbye to all those warm and fuzzy childhood memories. Luke never finds out the truth about his father, Leah dies thinking she’s found her soulmate not her brother, and Chewbacca fails to get the last roar.

Fortune favors the Dark Side here. At the end of the Dark Side player’s turn, the Death Star counter always moves forward. And if the balance of the Force is in the Dark Side’s favor, the counter ticks up a second time each turn. As long as the Dark Side can protect its objectives, the Light Side will have a hard time finding victory. No one said the struggle to defeat the Empire would be an easy one.

Who should get this: If you loved Magic: The Gathering back in the day and you really want a breezy 30-minute card battle, Star Wars: The Card Game may be for you. This is arguably the weakest of the modern tabletop Star Wars offerings, but also the most affordable, and is still a solid Living Card Game experience.

Buy Star Wars: The Card Game

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Star Wars: Edge of the Empire Role-Playing Game

If combat-focused miniatures gaming or card battles just aren’t enough for you, there’s still hope. Star Wars: Edge of the Empire is a pen and paper RPG, like Dungeons & Dragons, set between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. But this is not a game about being Luke Skywalker or destroying the Empire.

You get to explore the larger Star Wars universe and create your own adventures in a system that is fairly rules light. Edge of the Empire and its sequel, Age of Rebellion, use a narrative-driven system that’s less about direct results and more about creatively deciding what a “bad result” actually means in a given situation.

There are numerous sourcebooks providing rich details on the galaxy we’ve all dreamed about exploring. And as with the movies, the existence of Jedi is limited to, well, this one guy who blew up the Death Star, his absentee father, and his wrinkly old “uncle.” As you start buying more and more sourcebooks Force sensitive characters begin to emerge. But this is a game far more about the Han Solos of the galaxy navigating through the underworld of scum and villainy. With, of course, the influence of the Empire encroaching on everyone’s activities.

If you want to be more involved in the Rebellion, you can jump straight to Star Wars: Age of Rebellion, the second core rulebook in the series. While compatible with Edge of the Empire, it also works as a standalone book focused on the Rebel’s fight against the Empire.

Of course, you might be thinking, “Star Wars ain’t Star Wars without Jedi.” If so, you can go a bit more full Force with the upcoming third rulebook Force & Destiny. You are one of the rare Force sensitives in the galaxy, with the potential to shift the balance of the Force in favor of the Light Side. Though the rulebook is still being worked on, it should be out this year.

Who should get this: If you have fond memories of D&D or you’ve always been into RPGs, this is the Star Wars path you should take. And if you don’t want to get too bogged down with Star Wars mythos, you can easily convert this into a Spaceballs campaign. Seriously. It’s been done.

Buy Edge of the Empire Beginner Game

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A Galaxy of Choices

There are loads of Star Wars options out there. If you love the ships, you have X-Wing and Armada. If you miss the corridor shooting of A New Hope or the Endor forest storming of Return of the Jedi, there’s Imperial Assault. You can also dig into the Card Game or go deep with the Edge of the Empire RPG. Or you could just go nuts and buy everything. No one’s judging.

The good news is that each choice is quality. If one intrigues you, go for it. Fantasy Flight’s production quality is top notch and the game design for each is solid. Just be ready to spend some money once you get hooked. Each of these games either has or will soon have expansions. Meaning the core sets are just the beginning. And it’s hard to resist continuing these experiences.

Games that connect us with who we were and the dreams we had are hard to come by, and worth latching onto. Star Wars is about hope, destiny, and inadvertently making out with your sister. These games bring a bit of that back, and it’s awesome.

Hilary Goldstein plays lots of board games. And then he talks about him on the Dog and Thimble podcast. You can follow him on Twitter or watch him play board games on his YouTube channel.