"Evacuate? In our moment of triumph? I think you overestimate their chances!"

–Grand Moff Tarkin, Star Wars: A New Hope

Few carry more weight on their shoulders than those fighting on the front lines of the galaxy. The legacy of soldiers and commanders has widespread effects throughout the galaxy, a single command can influence the course of a war, and a soldier’s actions can echo throughout the galaxy, changing the shape of things to come.

These soldiers use advanced tactics to defeat any who stand in their way, and today, we’ll show you some of those tactics by previewing the Red Heroes and Villains of Star Wars™: Destiny Legacies, available for pre-order from your local retailer or our website!

Taking a Stand

When FN-2187 landed on Jakku in search of the map to the location of Luke Skywalker, he had no idea that his life would change forever. By helping Poe Dameron escape the clutches of the First Order, this Stormtrooper learned to forge his own path. FN-2187 became Finn, Soldier of Necessity (Legacies, 39). This new version of Finn hearkens to the soldier he was trained to be, with three of his die sides dealing damage. His special ability also invites you to move damage from one card to another—healing one of your Heroes while damaging an opponent, or even moving damage off of a support onto a character. At twelve points for a normal version or sixteen for an elite, Finn can team up with an elite Han Solo, Savvy Smuggler (Legacies, 46) to make a team that's heavily focused on ranged damage.

Finn’s special ability can also be used to prolong the usage of Suppression Field (Legacies, 115), a new upgrade that can save your characters from taking serious damage. Suppression Field almost acts as a guardian, protecting your characters from dangerous damage dice. Of course, your Suppression Field will eventually take damage and collapse—but you can prolong its lifespan with the new Red event Mend (Legacies, 112). If you can maintain the Suppression Field on the battlefield, it can be quite difficult for an opponent to break damage through to your characters.

Red Heroes often rely on powerful supports to overwhelm their foes, and those supports need a solid mechanic to keep them functional. This is where Rose, Skilled Mechanic (Legacies, 40) comes into play. Making her debut in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Rose also enters Star Wars: Destiny as an eight-point character, or eleven for an elite. Rose’s special ability also allows you to gain one resource and remove a damage from a support. This special ability, combined with her low point cost, makes Rose a great supporting character for higher-cost Heroes like Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Master (Legacies, 32).

Heroes like Finn and Rose give everything they have to their cause, and in dire circumstances, they would be ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for what they believe in. That's part of what makes them the heroes they are. Final Moment (Legacies, 110) is a powerful event that readies every character you control as you make your last stand against those who oppose you. While readying all of your characters can obviously give you a huge boost in damage potential, you have to make the most of it; at the end of the action phase, you will lose the game. Final Moment is a high-risk, high-reward card, but the heroes of the Star Wars galaxy have never accomplished anything great without risk.

As You Command

A Red Villain’s legacy is one of cunning tactics, brutal efficiency, and destruction. Whether they are serving the Separatists, the Emperor, or the First Order, Red Villains have a job to do, and they do it well.

One of the most famous Red Villains is Grand Moff Tarkin (Legacies, 12). While overseeing the Death Star, Tarkin was responsible for both the destruction of Alderaan and the discovery of the hidden rebel base on Yavin 4. Tarkin is a strategist, and commands one of the deadliest weapons in the galaxy in the form of the dreaded Death Star. That’s why, as a Power Action, you can remove two of your dice showing the same symbol to deal four indirect damage to an opponent. With two focus sides on his own die, Tarkin can also manipulate your pool to make two dice show the same symbol before blasting your opponent with a bevy of indirect damage. At thirteen points for a normal version or sixteen for an elite, Tarkin can pair with an elite Seventh Sister (Empire at War, 10)… who also gives you an additional die to target with Tarkin’s ability!

Through loyalty to the Empire, Tarkin earned the rank of Grand Moff (Legacies, 16), and this title pairs well with him in Star Wars: Destiny. Not only does Grand Moff provide multiple focus symbols to manipulate your dice on the field, it also lets you use the Claim ability on the battlefield or switch the battlefield completely as a Power Action. Battlefields have powerful abilities, and being able to use one and then continue your turn is a major advantage. Furthermore, denying an opponent their battlefield and switching it with your own can swing the game in your favor, especially if your opponent’s game plan is heavily dependent on claiming their own battlefield.

Tarkin worked with many agents during his time with the Empire, but few were as persistent and efficient as Kallus, Agent of the Empire (Legacies, 10). Well versed in the art of combat, Kallus’s die features four sides showing damage, and as a Power Action, Kallus can rotate his die from a side showing ranged damage to melee damage, or vice versa. This dual fighting style makes Kallus an extremely flexible character who is a natural fit for any damage-modifying upgrade—whether it specializes in ranged or melee damage. At fourteen points for a normal version or eighteen for an elite, Kallus can team up with Boba Fett (Legacies, 19) for both mixed damage and access to Boba Fett’s special ability, which combos well with Kallus's Power Action.

Red Villains are known for their effective tactics—for getting into their enemy’s head and always being Three Steps Ahead (Legacies, 90). Appropriately, Three Steps Ahead gives you three additional actions, perhaps allowing you to activate two characters and resolve their dice, or play a bevy of cards from your hand before your opponent even knows what hit them.

With the introduction of indirect damage, players may choose to spread damage out among their characters. This tactic, while understandable, just plays into the hands of Red characters, who now have access to powerful cards like Crackdown (Legacies, 136), which allows you to gain a resource if all of your opponent’s characters have at least one damage. When facing down Red characters, players will have to be cautious on how they choose to disperse their indirect damage.

A Legacy of War

Few have impacted the saga of Star Wars like the soldiers and tacticians who fight on the frontlines of the galaxy. Whether they are fighting for freedom or order, Red characters do battle with an efficiency that is difficult to match. Will you fall into their ranks?