After a ban, Boba Fett returns to the Star Wars: Unlimited TCG in a new form this March

Star Wars: Unlimited, the brisk battler taking on the likes of trading card games like Magic: The Gathering and Disney Lorcana, navigated its first big controversy last month when it banned Boba Fett (Collecting the Bounty) from the game. Now the bounty hunter is slated to return in March with its next set, titled Jump to Lightspeed, which will take the action more fully into space. Polygon sat down with lead designer Danny Schaefer on Wednesday to learn more.

Fantasy Flight Games’ newest TCG had an excellent launch in 2024. Its introductory set, titled Spark of Rebellion, set the mood with classic characters like Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. Follow-on sets Shadows of the Galaxy and Twilight of the Republic added new mechanics, like the latter’s massed ground battles. The key new mechanic in Jump to Lightspeed is called piloting, and it will allow individual characters to board and fight from inside starships.

“You can either play them on the ground as a normal ground unit, or you can pay – usually a cheaper cost – to attach them as an upgrade to one of your ships [or] vehicles in play,” Schaefer told Polygon. “Then that vehicle is going to get extra stats and extra abilities from that pilot.”

Chewbacca, for instance, straight up prevents a ship from being defeated or otherwise returned to your hand. Meanwhile, other pilots might not be so resilient in the cockpit.

“[It’s about making the decision to field] one big unit, instead of multiple small units,” Schaefer said. “It’s really going to be about reading your opponent, knowing what’s in your opponent’s deck, and what kind of answers they might have. […] Maybe that’s when you decide, Hey, my pilot’s going to be safer on the ground. I’ll diversify my threats a little bit.”

Another big change coming to Star Wars: Unlimited will be to how preconstructed decks are sold. The first three sets of cards’ lead products were all two-player starter sets, which helped to provide a baseline and build out the community. Moving forward, preconstructed decks will also be sold individually in so-called Spotlight Decks. The first two will feature Han Solo and Boba Fett.

“These Spotlight Decks are going to be a bit more powerful,” Schaefer said. “There’s going to be some more rare cards in them, a little more complexity to figuring out the ideal strategy to play with them. [Spotlight Decks will] show you the new mechanics [in Jump to Lightspeed], and you can take it right out of the box and bring it maybe to a weekly play event at your local store and do pretty well.”

Star Wars: Unlimited – Jump to Lightspeed arrives in stores beginning March 2025. It will be followed by Legends of the Force and Secrets of Power, sets that Schaefer said will “take the game in an exciting new direction” as well.