Much Ado About Jedi

When I started this blog, I promised to someday post on more than just Territory Battles and the occasional FYI. Well, that day has come. If you're like me, you've put more than a little thought into developing effective squads for the Squad Arena, Galactic War, and so forth. I'd like to talk about Light Side squads today, specifically the Jedi. I think the Jedi need a rework across the board, akin to how Obi-Wan Kenobi (Old Ben) was recently updated.

If you haven't figured it out by now, your average squad of Jedi will get destroyed in short order by your average squad of Rebels that use the old standby trifecta of Wedge, Biggs, and Princess Leia. They won't fair much better against an Empire squad, let alone a squad of Sith that tends to use Darth Maul, who, not coincidentally, absolutely murders Jedi with double damage. At almost every turn, a squad of Jedi will drop like a brick against their given opponent. That is, if they aren't matched against these poor Nightsisters who, by the way, need a rework of their own:

At the start of each encounter, Qui-Gon Ginny McGinface gains Gimlet Up for 3 turns

There are exceptions to the general ineffectiveness of Jedi, of course. There are some very effective Jedi squads, indeed. For example, Qui-Gon Jinn's Agility Training (Leader) ability, when at Level 8 Zeta, is absolutely nasty:

Jedi allies have +30 Speed, gain Offense equal to 3 times their Speed, and gain Foresight for 2 turns at the start of each encounter and whenever any unit is defeated.

Ahem. Add Grand Master Flash -- oops, I mean Grand Master Yoda! -- for support, along with three attackers like Kit Fisto, Luminara Unduli, and the newer Ezra Bridger, and you've got a formidable squad that doesn't require the very rare General Kenobi to prove super effective, especially if Yoda's Battle Meditation (Special) is at Level 8 Zeta as well. Unfortunately, however, this Jinn / Yoda pairing is one of very, very few options for a powerful Jedi squad. Generally speaking, Jedi don't particularly synergize well with one another, at least compared to newer Hero squads like those Phoenix folks, which makes little sense to me.

Jedi in GoH were developed upon the premise of group healing and defense, while, on the other hand, Sith were developed upon the premise of individual health stealing and offense. The reasons for this are obvious, of course, and this traditional logic falls squarely in line with other Star Wars games, in fact. So, rather than suggest the reinvention of this logic, I've come up with a few ideas for a Jedi rework. These old model Jedi are fairly meh when compared to newer Heroes, such as Chirrut Imwe, Ahsoka Tano (Fulcrum), and even the often overlooked Sith Assassin. Here are three useful rework suggestions for any given Jedi taken from the Heroes I list above. As you'll note, current Jedi abilities at Level 8 tend to pale in comparison:

1. Chirrut Imwe
As the Force Wills (Special): All allies have their current Health percentages equalized. Dispel all debuffs from all allies and grant them a Heal Over Time effect for 4 turns for each effect dispelled. Allies that were not debuffed gain Tenacity Up for 3 turns.  

2. Ahsoka Tano (Fulcrum)
Balanced Strike (Basic): Gain Protection Up (40%) for 2 turns, and grant Protection Up (40%) to a random ally that doesn't have it for 2 turns. 

3. Sith Assassin
Dark Shroud (Special): Dispel all debuffs from Sith Assassin and gain Stealth and Foresight for 2 turns. If she already had Stealth, gain Speed Up and Tenacity Up for 2 turns. Sith Allies gain 12% Turn Meter for each buff on her.

All of these abilities are generally defensive in nature, and granting versions of these abilities to reworked Jedi would begin to balance the scales. As a Healer, Barriss Offee would do well with a version of Fulcrum's Balanced Strike, for example. Another Healer, the infamously useless Jedi Consular, would do well with a version of Sith Assassin's Dark Shroud, especially if he could dispel all debuffs from all allies, rather than just himself. The lovable but also generally inept Plo Koon would do well with a version of Chirrut's As the Force Wills, especially if combined in some form with his current Take Charge (Special) ability.

There is, of course, the offensive side of the sad Jedi story to consider. Most Jedi don't hit very hard, at least when compared to Rebels like Wedge Antilles or Princess Leia. The newer Jedi who are also Phoenix, such as Ezra Bridger, also significantly overshadow the damage done by a comparably leveled and modded Jedi. Granted, Bridger's ability to not only Attack Again, but also to stack his Offense up to 40% makes him a beast. But shouldn't Kit Fisto, for example, hit approximately as hard? Even Ginny McGinface could use a little bump.

But perhaps not, folks. Thinking creatively along the logic already outlined by GoH, why not add Jedi synergies across the board for calling Jedi allies to Assist with Basic Attacks, along the lines of Qui-Gon's Harmonious Assault (Special) ability? If, by default, every Jedi had a 25% chance to Assist an attacking Jedi ally, plus a 5% chance for each buff, suddenly a Jedi squad becomes potentially deadly. Or, in a different way, a rework of Ima-Gun Di's Jedi Strategist (Leader) ability could make for a formidable squad. Here it is as it stands now at Level 8:

All allies gain 30 Defense and Jedi allies gain 35% Counter Chance and 25% Counter Damage.

Compare this to Commander Luke Skywalker's Rebel Maneuvers (Leader) ability at the same level:

Rebel allies have +50% Counter Chance, +50% Defense, and +50% Offense. Whenever an enemy Resists a detrimental effect, Rebel allies gain 5% Turn Meter.

Say what now? I realize this Skywalker is a rare hero and, thus, there should be incentives for players to invest in the character. But, c'mon. Comparatively, the Jedi are getting the proverbial shaft here, especially considering that even an old school Rebel squad (Wedge, Biggs, Leia, Ackbar, and Stormtrooper Han) can make relatively quick work of an equally leveled Jedi squad. Swap Stormtrooper Han for Commander Luke Skywalker, then put Luke in as Leader, and these old school Rebels would mop the floor with just about any Jedi squad I could field.

So, in terms of Offense, why not rework a Hero like Ima-Gun Di? If I had my way, his Jedi Strategist (Leader) ability would read:

At the start of each encounter all allies gain Defense Up for 3 turns, and all Jedi allies gain Protection Up (25%) for 3 turns. Jedi allies have +50% Counter Chance, +5% for each buff. Jedi allies also have +25% Offense.

I don't know about you, but this sounds like a great leader ability to me, one which actually draws inspiration from Cassian Andor's Groundwork (Unique). By itself such a reworked leader ability begins to level the playing field when it comes to Jedi squads. It also allows me, as a player, some flexibility. Right now, if I want a truly effective Jedi squad, then I pretty much have to use Qui-Gon with his Leader ability at Level 8 Zeta.

So what do you think? Do Jedi deserve a rework? Let me know in the comments below! And for my next post, I'll give an example of a fully reworked Jedi. Which one, you ask? Well, I've picked arguably the most useless Jedi around, Eeth Koth. Truth be told, his obvious ineptitudes actually make the job of reworking him much simpler! And trust me, when I'm done with Koth, he'll be a well-balanced, usefully effective member of any squad.