Updated September 2024
His name is Luke Skywalker. He’s here to rescue your strike team! OK, he won’t hard carry games for you, but Luke can certainly be a solid contributing member of a good squad.
Luke Skywalker, Daring Hero is available in the This is Some Rescue squad box.
Luke is the first rebel 3pc secondary. As such, he opens up new squad building opportunities, especially for 7pc characters like Leia Organa, Freedom Fighter, to take 4pc supports.
Seven stamina is not a whole lot. Luke will be kind of squishy. That’s what you get sometimes for being a 3pc secondary.
I’m Here to Rescue You is essentially the same as Boushh’s Fan Out ability, which is one of the better parts of her kit. A full reposition is a lot of movement, though the Spy tag is a bit limited. Luckily, Luke can use this on himself even if there are no other spies in the list.
Grappling Hook is a funky version of Defensive Maneuver. The possible verticality is awesome, but if you’re engaged with a non-wounded enemy character then this won’t do anything for you. An easy way to gain a hunker is handy for Luke’s next ability.
He’s the Brains, Sweetheart is similar to Commander Cody’s Bring it Down! ability in that it allows friendly hunkered units to reroll ranged attack dice if they are close enough to Luke. Unlike Cody, Luke’s aura can affect any rebel or spy, not just supports. However, it is only range three. Rebels have some decent hunker generation, but not quite as prevalent as the Republic. Once again, though, Luke can use this on himself and even that is decent value. Poor Cody.
Oh, the Uniform allows Luke to hold onto his own hunker tokens. This jives well with his other abilities and gives him a needed defensive boost as well.
This combat tree is pretty much what I would expect for a 3pc character. Luke has decent expertise, but only six dice is kind of meh, those he may not need to use a move action on his turn, potentially getting seven dice if he takes a focus. No shove until spot #3 isn’t ideal, but three expertise does give an expertise shove, which is quite handy. Shoves from expertise bypass Steadfast, which is a powerful defensive keyword. Luke’s defensive profile is nothing special, but with a hunker and maybe terrain cover he could get up to 6/5, which isn’t awful. Even so, his lacklustre expertise and small health pool mean he is a prime candidate to be one-shot by opposing units.
| + Pros | – Cons |
| Lots of movement abilities for a 3pc | Squishy |
| Brings some hunker synergy to Rebels (and spies) | Can be lacklustre offensively |
It used to be that 3pc secondaries had no self-movement abilities (think Ponds, Stormtrooper Sergeant, and Greef). Luke breaks the mould there. He can get a reposition and a climb without using any actions, making him quite fast when he wants to be. Rebels have some decent hunker generation, but not much to do with them. Luke helps there with potential rerolls. Add in his decent attack and you’ve got a solid 3pc unit.
One unit I love to run with Luke is Rebel Commandos. They are often generating a hunker on their turn and already have a strong ranged attack. With two rerolls they can hit like a truck. Slap Luke and Commandos under Endor Leia and she’ll be feeling great. Of course, Luke also synergizes well with the other two units in his box. Maybe there’s a list where he can fit with Imperial spies, Kallus, and ISB, but I haven’t seen anything I’ve loved yet.
Luke is much more mobile than a typical 3pc. He is well-rounded but squishy. He’ll perform well for the cost, but he’s not so good that I’d usually take him over 4pc options if I have the points available. I am left with only one question: isn’t this article a little short for a secondary?
Copyright © 2024 The Fifth Trooper. All Rights Reserved.
