Talk:Initiative/@comment-211.30.252.159-20151207054935/@comment-25999489-20151207151935

I think that initiative is either a boon or a disadvantage based on your list, and your play style. I personally fly a lot of interceptors, so I stay as far from initiative as I can for a couple of reasons. First, moving second is roughly the equivalent to having higher PS. If I am flying a PS 9 interceptor, and a PS 9 foe moves to engage, I have a passable chance of being able to duck out of arc before shots are fired, which is a massive bonus. Additionally, shooting second can be an advantage depending on circumstances. Let's say that I have Fel and the Emperor is on the board. Fel has a focus token and an evade token, and is staring down a PS 9 enemy (I couldn't arc dodge, or it's Han). If my opponent shoots first, I know exactly how many resources I have to commit to evading the attack. I know if the evade token will do it alone, or if I will need to use Palpatine or the focus token. I get to have this information before I shoot, and devote all of the rest of my resources to attacking the enemy ship. That is great information to have, and it's not something that you get if you have a higher PS or have initiative.

Having said that, there are certain, more specific areas where taking initiative is advantageous. Certain ships (Phantoms and Turr Phennir immediately come to mind) have important effects that trigger when they shoot. Having initiative allows phantoms to recloak, and Phennir to barrel roll/boost his way to victory. Certain critical hits can also effect shooting, and come into play immediately. Having Talonbane Cobra close to range one of an enemy, and then getting plastered with a "Blinded Pilot" crit by an enemy PS 9 ship is the pits. Weapon malfunction is also unfortunate.

Overall, if you have the ability to adjust your ship placement (boost or barrel roll), or you expect to have multiple ways to modify defensive and offensive dice (multiple tokens and/or Palpatine-esque effects) then initiative is usually a bad thing. If you don't expect to be boosting/barrel rolling, and you have fewer defensive options, then shooting first is often slightly advantageous. I tend to avoid initiative like the plague, but some players prefer it.