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Looking to jump into Star Wars: Legion in 2026? Four new Starter Sets provide an easy entry point into the game, complete with units that showcase each faction’s unique style of play. But which one should you choose? I've been hands-on with all of them, so am ready to give you some advice before you hit the battlefield.
Following the launch of the game's second-edition ruleset which streamlined gameplay and fixed some lingering exploits, Star Wars: Legion publisher Atomic Mass Games has been releasing a robust line of new miniatures featuring fresh versions of most units in a hard plastic medium that’s more detailed and easier to build. That also goes for official Starter Sets, which give newcomers an on-ramp into the hobby fdor each of the game's main factions. (A fifth group – the Shadow Collective – can be played separately or as mercenary add-ons to an existing army.)
Each faction has its own style of play, generally themed towards how the various factions fight in other Star Wars mediums (be it the movies, TV shows, or even the best board games). The good news is that Star Wars: Legion is pretty balanced, with no faction standing out among its peers. This means that players can choose their favorite faction without a significant disadvantage. But if you want an army that matches your playstyle, I have a breakdown of how each Starter Set army plays.
Best for flexibility: Rebel Alliance
The Rebel Alliance is a versatile army generally built around strong heroes and special units. Like their movie counterparts, it isn’t a tanky army – their core defense is relatively weak. However, the generic Rebel troopers found in the Starter Set come with the ability to generate dodge tokens, which automatically negate hits. Likewise, the Rebel Commandos automatically add successes to their Cover rolls, providing them with their own way to negate damage.
"That scrappy approach to gameplay is reflected in the excellent model design - there's no set 'uniform' here. Plus, it's the most diverse army in terms of species. However, all this makes it trickier to paint." - Benjamin Abbott, Tabletop & Merch Editor
Of course, the standout of the Rebel Alliance are its heroes. The Starter Set comes with Luke Skywalker, an agile and tanky hero that moves swiftly, can charge into units and make multiple melee attacks, and can reduce Cover thanks to his Sharpshooter ability. Luke is just one of numerous heroes on the Rebel Alliance’s roster, each of which adds their own style of play and strategies to an army.
If you want a flexible army that shines when its individual heroes are moving across the board, the Rebel Alliance is probably the best Star Wars: Legion army for you.
Best defense: Galactic Empire
The Empire’s general gameplay is built around bulky defense and low offense, save for the especially fearsome Darth Vader.
The core Stormtroopers in the Starter Set come equipped with low accuracy rifles, but roll the high Red defense dice when attacked. While they won’t necessarily wipe out enemy units, Stormtroopers will linger on the battlefield for a while.
"If you're intimidated at the thought of painting a whole army or playing a wargame of this scale, the Empire is ideal. They're much easier to paint and are more forgiving in terms of gameplay. This makes them my go-to recommendation for newcomers." - Benjamin Abbott, Tabletop & Merch Editor
The Scout Troopers included in the Starter Set can quickly deploy across the battlefield at the start of a battle, positioning them to snag objectives early or harass enemy units. Although Scout Troopers hit a bit harder, they use weaker white defense dice, which makes them more vulnerable on the battlefield.
Of course, the standout unit in the Starter Set is Darth Vader, a terrifying force that attacks with a whopping 6 red dice and has the Impact 3 and Pierce 3 keywords, both of which negate successful defense rolls. Darth Vader will wreck opposing units on his own and will take a ton of firepower to bring down thanks to a deep pool of wounds and the use of red defense dice.
If you want a straightforward army that can advance up the battlefield and is led by an absolute terror, the Galactic Empire is definitely your speed.
Best horde army: Separatist Alliance
The Separatists serve as the “swarm” style army of Star Wars: Legion, flooding the board with units with low attack and low defense. Another wrinkle to the Separatists is the use of AI, which automatically dictates what a unit does on their first action unless it is ordered to do something otherwise via an order token. B1 Battle Droids have the Coordinate keyword, which allows players to dole out said order tokens to other droid troopers, but it only works on close-by units. Basically, you’ll need to think carefully when maneuvering your army across the battlefield, or your army’s actions will be dictated for you.
Leading the Separatists in the Starter Set is General Grievous, another strong melee unit. Not only is Grievous a Jedi killer with an ability that allows it to deal extra damage to Jedi units, it also swings multiple lightsabers every turn, rolling 8 attack dice with every melee attack. Grievous doesn’t pack quite the same punch as Vader, but he’s still a critical piece of the army, especially as he can also issue Commands that override the AI limitations of Battle Droids.
Best elite army: Galactic Republic
The Galactic Republic is a well-oiled fighting machine that uses superior coordination in battle. The core mechanic of the army is the ability to share various tokens between units, granting players more flexibility during turns. Additionally, Clone Troopers units can be further customized thanks to the use of Leaders, a unique upgrade that adds specific miniatures to a unit that comes with unique abilities. The major downside to the Galactic Republic is that their battleforces will generally be smaller than other armies, which somewhat offsets the level of customization and flexibility the army provides.
Leading the Republic’s forces in the Starter Set is Obi-Wan Kenobi, a defensively minded leader. Obi-Wan’s Guardian 3 ability draws ranged fire from allied units towards Obi-Wan, with Obi-Wan also benefitting from an ability to re-roll defense dice when dealing with Ranged Attacks. Obi-Wan doesn’t have the offensive firepower that other leaders have, but he’s strong enough to tear into weaker units, especially Battle Droids.
The Galactic Republic is the equivalent of an “elite” battleforce, with relatively small units that’s offset by superior tactical power. If you want battlefield flexibility and customization, the Galactic Republic may be the army for you.
Want to try something a bit different? It's worth dropping in on our guide to the best card games, or the best tabletop RPGs.
