Captain Rex - Unit Guide

CT-7567, otherwise known as "Rex" is one of the greatest characters that has come out of Star Wars. He was first introduced in the Clone Wars movie and has since made an appearance in almost all CW-era media since. Star Wars fans, like myself, tend to be very opinionated about what they like and dislike, but I don't think I've ever met someone who didn't like Rex. My only complaint is that I wish he'd show up more in different media.

Rex in Shatterpoint is just as badass as he is on screen. He is pivotal to the success of many lists, mostly Clone-centric Galactic Republic lists. I am going to try and cover why he is so good today.

• 4 Points Cost
• 0 Force
• 9 Stamina / 2 Durability
• Secondary | 501st - Clone Trooper - Galactic Republic

Rex is sitting exactly where I expect, and hope, all Clone Secondaries to be. 4 Points is, right now, the most flexible spot to be in for list building. Rex can fit solidly into nearly any list, but he shines with other Republic heroes. His abilities allow him to work effectively alongside any other Republic Primary or Secondary unit. He especially loves working alongside Jedi. He is really at his best when he is helping a Jedi, doesn't matter who, get into the fight. Anakin, Obi, or Vader are particularly fond of Rex, especially when you add Padawan Ahsoka to the mix.

He is surprisingly durable. 9/2 for only 18 effective HP sounds low, but when you consider his defenses, abilities, and hunker tokens it starts to add up quickly. This is not to say that you should run him in where ever you want a can expect him to live, but he'll surprise both you and your opponent frequently. He's quite happy with what he's got and it lends him to sit mid/mid-back board on an objective and ideally in range to support everyone else in your list.

Thus far, his Tags do not do much for him outside of Galactic Republic. I am sure we will see something in the future for 501st and Clone Trooper secondaries specifically. That said, Galactic Republic is the tag to have. It will get you very far in many games from stuff like Obi's Knowledge and Defense or Ani's This is Where the Fun Begins.

Get a Move On, Soldier! - This ability is huge. This is what makes him really shine with Jedi. This ability is great for two pretty major reasons. First of all, and I cannot stress this enough, FREE. MOVES. ARE. GOOD. I know I say this a lot, maybe too much, but it's just something that I really feel is critical to success in this game. Shatterpoint is all about positioning, you win and lose by the millimeter. Use every chance you can to adjust and improve your unit's locations. Not only is this ability great as a free reposition, but it is also quite good to help your Jedi get into the fight in a more effective manner. If you use this ability and Ahsoka's Tactic on Anakin before he activates, you will be able to essentially get him 2/3 of the way across the board before still getting to attack. The next great part is that in addition to the free dash, the unit that you use this ability on gains a free Hunker. This is particularly good with Jedi who do not otherwise have any hunker-producing abilities. It gets even better if he's hanging with his good buddy Obi-Wan.

Defensive Maneuver - This is an ability that every Clone unit has so far (unless you count the Wolfpack clones who we've seen do not have it, but won't be out for a few more months). This is a really solid ability, especially within the context of Republic lists. I think the force cost is almost always worth it to pay on Rex. Extra moves are good. What really makes this ability worth it is that hunker token. This is an easy way for him or any other clone who has it, to generate movement and hunker without using up an action. In a game where most units are only getting 4-6 actions, using actions to just gain a hunker does not feel good most of the time. This is also an easy way to take advantage of Obi's abilities and keep Rex alive and happy for as long as possible.

I'm Always First, Kid - Let me start by saying this ability is one that I have used exactly twice. I have not found it to be bad, nor have I found it to be particularly effective. It is a neat ability and I like the design space a lot, but I just don't think it is worth the Force cost most of the time. It takes a little bit of setup, needing Rex to be within 3 of a Clone Support who is making a combat action. Unfortunately, from what I've found, this positioning requirement is counterproductive to how Rex and Clone Supports want to play. Rex likes to be in the fight, supporting his Jedi buddies and killing a bunch of shit, while Clone Supports much prefer sitting on backline objectives while shooting from a distance. Most of the time this means that Rex is at least range 4+ away from the supports while they're making combat actions. Even if all of this was easy to set up and put you in an effective position in the long run, I probably still would not pay the Force cost 85% of the time.

Bring it on, Clankers! - I really love this ability. With all of the Hunkers going around and dealing with relatively low-health units, a few extra heals here and there is clutch. I tend not to get much use out of this for anyone but Rex, but if I find myself in a position where my Supports are close enough I like clearing a pesky condition if I can. Once again, this ability is sorta counterproductive to the general positioning I try to achieve with my clones lists. You might ask me, "Mitch, if your supports are close enough to use this ability why not also try to proc I'm Always First, Kid?" and to that I say because it's too damn expensive. In a perfect world, you can use Defensive Maneavuer with your Supports to get them near Rex with a Hunker -> Heal for free if you need it -> Shoot -> Follow-up with Rex. On paper, this is seemingly pretty potent, but all of that costs 2 Force, and then if you want to do it again costs another 2 Force. Add in Rex's own Defensive Maneuver and you're up to 5 out of your 6-7 Force used up by meh attacks and gaining hunker tokens. With all of that said, there are still a few good instances to try and use either of these abilities, but I think it's very dependent on the board state.

Brothers in Arms - It's an Innate Ability that is always on as long as Rex has a hunker. Very easy to use and very helpful. He will most likely always have at least one hunker on him anyway. This will help him stay on Objectives for a longer period of time. This gives you even more of a reason to justify spending the 1 Force for Rex's Defensive Maneuver.

Tactical Supremacy

This is Rex's one and only stance and it is very good. This stance is one of my favorites in the game so far. I am a huge fan of the fact that he is given the flexibility to be a ranged or melee unit depending on what you need. There is no difference between his ranged or melee attack dice, defense dice, or expertise and he has no abilities that promote one over the other. Normally, I would separate all of these things by ranged or melee, but since they are identical I will combine them for ease.

7 Attack dice is a really solid amount for a Secondary with no abilities. If he focuses he gets 8 which puts him in a very nice spot. 8 Dice is giving him an average of 1 Crit, 3 Strikes, 2 Expertise, and 2 Fails. 2 Expertise becomes 2 strikes so he nets 1 Crti and 5 Strikes on average with a focus. Now, I don't usually focus all that often with him but even without it he is still a really good offensive piece. His expertise is solid. I wish the 5+ section was less similar to the others, but it's still good.

His Combat Tree is also quite excellent. He caps out at a max of 7 damage from 5 successes. He also has a whole bunch of abilities that he can take advantage of on both the top and bottom portions. If you need just raw damage, the top half is superior. If you need Heals or Shoves, the bottom is amazing. One of the best parts about playing "Light Side" units is the insane amount of healing they can do. I mean, Rex alone can help up to 4 times in one activation if you really need to (Defensive Maneuver, Take Cover, Shoot with 3 successes on the bottom). Shoves, Pin, Expose, and Reposition all being on there also help out a ton. All of those abilities have their place, especially if you're able to get a coordinate fire Pin or Expose off from a nearby Clone Support. That will give the target the condition and potentially add 1 extra damage to the pool.

His defenses are also pretty good. He's rolling 5 defense dice at range and in melee, but since he'll have at least one hunker most of the time it's 6. With 6 dice he'll average 2 of each icon which nets him only 3 blocks. That's... not the best, but it could be worse. He really relies on the healing abilities of himself and his allies to stay relevant and unwounded. His base defense can get the job done but don't expect him to run into the hellfire and come out unscathed.

Squad and Strike Team Ideas

Before I wrap up today's article, I am just going to cover a few different Squads and Strike Teams I have tried, I recommend trying, or I think could be good.

Pure Clones

• General Obi-Wan Kenobi
  • Commander Cody
  • 212th Clones
• General Anakin Skywalker
  • Captain Rex
  • 501st Clones

Rex is a damn MVP in this list. Giving Anakin or Obi that extra dash and hunker when they need it is glorious. It's almost so good that I would consider using my first deck Shatterpoint card on Rex just to give out free moves and hunkers.

The Bad Ending

• General Obi-Wan Kenobi
  • Padawan Ahsoka
  • 212th Clones
• Darth Vader, Jedi Hunter
  • Captain Rex
  • 501st Clones

This is a list that is fairly similar to the one above, but this one has two changes. It's Anakin becomes Vader and Cody becomes Ahsoka. With Ahsoka and Rex's Tactic abilities being able to move Vader he can just fly across the board. Add in Vader's ability that gives him an advance and he is in your opponent's deployment zone by turn 1.

Defensive Gunline

• General Obi-Wan Kenobi
  • Commander Cody
  • 212th Clones
• Luminara Unduli
  • Captain Rex
  • Clone Commandos

This list is designed to get as much out of your clones as possible. Through Rex's heals from hunkers and on his combat tree, your Clones are going to stink around. Add all that in with Lumi's heals, Obi's Hunker abilities, and Cody's Support Rerolls and you have a very tanky gunline that hits like a truck.

That's all I have on Rex! I think he is one of the best units in the game and has a place in every Republic list there is. He is a versatile monster who can sit back and heal or run up and cause a ruckus. I don't think I will be going to the table without him for quite some time.

Let me know what you think of this Unit Guide! Thank you for reading!