With the option to command vehicle units like the AT-ST walkers and land speeders as well as standard foot soldiers, Star Wars fans will want for nothing if they get their hands on a copy of Legion and a good supply of paints - as well as a friend to play with, of course. You know what isn’t good? The Death Star. Especially not when it comes to being a free loving Rebel just trying to make a living. Star Wars: Dark Side Rising is a co-op board game that most certainly understands this perspective, as its entire premise is built around stopping the Death Star from being constructed. In the campaign game, Imperial Assault invites you to play through a cinematic tale set in the Star Wars universe. One player commands the seemingly limitless armies of the Galactic Empire, threatening to extinguish the flame of the Rebellion forever. Up to four other players become heroes of the Rebel Alliance, engaging in covert operations to undermine the Empire’s schemes. Over the course of the campaign, both the Imperial player and the Rebel heroes gain new experience and skills, allowing characters to evolve as the story unfolds.

In X-Wing players can choose from a variety of Rebel and Imperial vessels, including X-Wings (obviously) and TIE Fighters, before engaging in a head-to-head dogfight with their opponent - apparently in the middle of an enormous space battle, according to the game’s description. Each turn players secretly select a speed and manoeuvre to perform, with the aim of catching their opponent’s ship off-guard and successfully landing a shot. Every ship’s piloting dial, which is what players use to determine speed and manoeuvre, is different, with unique advantages and disadvantages to each one.Let’s finish this list with a new take on an old classic, Risk: Star Wars Edition. You can’t really go wrong with Risk, it’s a classic beginner board game that’s a fantastic introduction to some pretty standard tabletop mechanics - area control, dice rolling and card playing, but to name a few. There’s a reason why the Risk series has remained such a staple of the board game industry in the over 50 years since the original released: it’s easy to learn and still (mostly) fun to play.

Star Wars: Imperial Assault is a strategy board game of tactical combat and missions for two to five players, offering two distinct games of battle and adventure in the Star Wars universe!Three resources contribute to the sense of progression between missions. Both the Empire and Rebel players will receive XP for completing missions. Beyond that, Rebel players will receive Credits and the Imperial player will receive Influence. While all three are awarded after every mission, the rewards for the side that reached their goal in the mission will receive more numerous rewards. Players may also receive Reward cards for specific mission victories. Although the franchise has always revolved around battles between good and evil, Star Wars usually focuses on the characters at the center of it all. Not so with Legion. Although major heroes and villains are featured, this is a miniatures wargame like Warhammer or The Elder Scrolls: Call to Arms. That means it emphasises rank-and-file troopers. Star Wars: Age of Rebellion is an TRPG in which players become Rebel soldiers fighting during the height of the Galactic Civil War. The roleplaying system allows players to really experience what being the underdog is like, as the Empire looms over the galaxy and the Rebel Alliance desperately attempt to pull-off missions to undermine their power.

In Dark Side Rising two to four players must work together to thwart the evil machinations of plastic Darth Vader - his disembodied torso perches in the middle of the game board - as he attempts to build his ultimate weapon. Each player assumes control over a different Rebel cell - intelligence, leadership, support or tactical - as well as their own base of operations: Tatooine, Alderaan, Yavin 4 or Lothal. With resources and allies at their disposal, these players must strategically coordinate their efforts to defeat enough Imperial agents before it’s too late. As new threats arise, players will also be able to call on iconic Rebel allies like Leia Organa and Luke Skywalker for help. How about taking your Star Wars immersion a little further by playing one the tabletop roleplaying games based on the franchise? There are a selection of Star Wars Roleplaying titles to choose from - including a The Force Awakens starter set designed for beginners - but our money is on the two RPGs that focus on the quintessential elements of the Star Wars experience: Age of Rebellion and Force and Destiny. After each scenario, both sides get rewards to help them level up and acquire new skills. The winners, of course, get additional rewards. The Rebel side gets to use their XP and money to acquire new skills, weapons, armor, and other gadgets, and the Imperial side uses their XP to acquire new cards of doom that can be seriously annoying (I’ve primarily been a Rebel player so far).Outer Rim shakes things up by sidestepping the war between Rebels and Empire; rather, it's about getting famous. You see, this particular Star Wars board game revolves around scoundrels like Lando Calrissian and Boba Fett. As is befitting for such self-interested rogues, you're aiming to become the best-known mercenary in the galaxy. What makes Rebellion so good is that it’s more than just a game about starship combat - although that element is certainly excellent enough. It’s also about depicting exactly what goes into fighting a war of this scale - from covert missions across the galaxy to searching for a hidden Rebel base.

Despite the inordinate amount of trash that populates the Star Wars board game galaxy like a drifting asteroid field, there are actually quite a few decent - nay! - even excellent examples of tabletop experiences set in the classic sci-fi universe. Whether you’re looking for a co-op board game filling in the gaps between Episode IV and V or a storytelling RPG where players can become powerful Jedi, here are the ten best Star Wars board games to play this Star Wars Day. Best Star Wars board games Imperial Assault also has another issue of, frankly, being massive. There are dozens of small character expansions and a few larger ones. This is a completionist’s nightmare. I’m not the kind of person to criticize business models like this if the base game is enjoyable by itself (I’ll just ignore the extras), but even I think this is excessive. It feels like microtransactions in board gaming.

What Curators Say

Star Wars games tend to focus on the epic struggle or the details of one battle. Outer Rim fills the wide gap between with a strategic story of the lives of the scum and villains who ply their trade on the galaxy's edge. Except since they're your scum and villains, it's up to you how villainous you want them to be.