After adding The Mandalorian‘s Baby Yoda last month and a massive update earlier this month, EA Motive Studios have announced that Star Wars Squadrons will receive two more free content updates.

The first will arrive next week on 25 November 2020, adding a new Fostar Haven map to multiplayer, while the second will arrive sometime in the middle of December 2020, adding two new iconic starships; the B-Wing and the Tie Defender.

Star Wars Squadrons November Update

The first update will arrive on 25 November 2020 as part of Update 3.0. With it, there will be additional fixes, balancing changes, and tuning. Full details will be provided in its release notes, but the highlights are a new map and components, which are further detailed below.

New Fostar Haven Map

The Fostar Haven map is from the game’s first prologue mission, which will be added to Fleet Battles and the Dogfight mode.

Set in a remote, lawless area of space under the light of twin stars, this map has been updated from its story mode counterpart to provide a new experience that should fit well with the other six maps.

In the Prologue of Star Wars Squadrons, which is set at the height of the Galactic Civil War, Fostar Haven was an isolated trading station that welcomed smugglers and pirates. Helix Squadron was sent there to search the cargo docks for Alderaanian refugees.

Now, four years later, the denizens of Fostar Haven have made a few upgrades to their station, trusting neither the Empire nor the New Republic. You’ll have the chance to weave through the crowded dockyards or take the fight to open space.

New Components

With this first update will come four new components. For Fighters and Bombers, you’ll be able to use the Boost Extension Kit, a component that, when used, gives your starfighter a full boost. It’ll then recharge over time and can be used again. This will help these starfighters be able to change the pace of the battle in a new way, such as by giving them the ability to change the tide of dogfights or to get out of engagements with flagships if used wisely.

Interceptors and Fighters are getting Ion Rockets, which will be great for hit-and-run attacks to strip enemy shields. These rockets move at half the speed of standard rockets, but they can be used at the same time as other components, including their non-ion counterparts. Time them well for the best results.

Bombers and Fighters (the latter with half the ammo count) will also be receiving the Prototype Piercing Torpedoes, providing these two ships with a new tactic for taking on capital ships. Though these torpedoes do less overall damage than others of their class, they have the ability to bypass capital ship and flagship shields, making them very well-suited for striking enemy flagship subsystems before shields have been taken down.

Meanwhile, the U-wing and TIE reaper e will get a new way to support their allies when taking on enemy capital ships and flagships with the Anti-Material Rocket Turret. Though this turret doesn’t target enemy starfighters, it’s very well poised to take on flagship subsystems, capital ships, and even turrets and other deployables from enemy support ships.

Star Wars Squadrons December Update

December will bring some of the most requested content to date via Update 4.0.

Two New Starfighters; B-Wing & Tie Defender

Two new starfighters will be added, one for the New Republic and another for the Galactic Empire each to round out your squadron.

A cosmetic variant of the B-wing as seen in Star Wars Episode VI Return Of The Jedi will also be available.

Designed as the “Blade Wing” prototype by Mon Calamari engineer Quarrie and finely tuned under General Hera Syndulla’s guidance, the A/SF-01 B-wing starfighter makes its way into the New Republic’s fleet in this update.

Naturally, there’s a fitting counterpart for it going to the opposing faction, too. From the mind of the brilliant military tactician Grand Admiral Thrawn and Sienar Fleet Systems, the TIE/d “Defender” multi-role starfighter will join the Imperial Navy as well.

These two starfighters are as powerful as they are iconic, though understandably balanced out for the purposes of the game.

The B-wing will be categorized as a Bomber-class starfighter and the TIE defender will be a Fighter, each being able to use the components relevant to their faction and class, but they’ll also come with their own unique aspects in line with what you’d expect from them, such as the B-wing with its gyro-cockpit and swivelling wings and the TIE defender with its shields.

These functions and a couple of unique components will help them differentiate themselves from the other starfighters in their classes and factions, but we’ve also made sure they aren’t outright better by default. There’s still going to be good reasons to pick a Y-wing over a B-wing or a TIE fighter over a TIE defender and vice versa. It’ll depend on your playstyle and what the situation calls for.

Custom Matches

This update will also add Custom Matches, which will allow one to five players per side across two teams to play on any of the (now) seven maps in both Dogfight and Fleet Battles. There will also be some additional restrictions and modifiers that you can change.

These include things like hull/shield/damage modifiers, changing capital ship health, restricting certain starfighters, and other tools to help you change how you play.

With this, there will also be a custom matches server browser for you to search through private matches made by your friends as well as public ones made by strangers.

True Star Wars fans will understand what a big deal it is that the developers have added the B-Wing. It’s probably the most requested ship since even before the game was launched.

In the meantime, you can check out my review of Star Wars Squadrons here, or head on over here for a full in-depth guide on how to be the best pilot in the galaxy.