Zions Finest - A Star Wars: Shatterpoint Podcast

Welcome to Episode 111! In this episode, Matt and Scott interview Plummer from AMG regarding the patch. We try and take a bit of a different approach with this so that we are not covering similar ground to what other brothers will query when they meet with Plummer, and Plummer as always brings the goods.

It's a great episode and you will enjoy it. We hope everyone is loving on the new patch!

That's right! I got our reigning world champion, Matt Bronson (also known as zeusjeus and Danger Mike (iykyk)) to come on the podcast and break down his list, the meta, and some larger takeaways from Adepticon.

We focus on the major takeaways from the largest tournament of this most long-lasting meta, and Bronson does an excellent job at raising some meta observations that will be slightly longer lasting.

Really, this is an opportunity for me to pick Bronson's brain, and it gets sweaty, but he refuses to leave me with less than stellar content every time, so how can I refuse.

Welcome to Episode 108! In this episode, Kenny and Scott discuss lists, Adepticon preparation, and thinking through matchups. It's about as sweaty as we get, and it's useful to hear Scott's insights on Delta and how to approach dealing with the multifaceted Cassian lists. You will enjoy.

WE ARE SORRY FOR OUR UNJUSTIFIED DELAY IN RELEASING EPISODES! WE HAVE NO EXCUSE! WE ARE THE WORST!

In this episode, Kenny is joined by Matt Bronson to discuss power creep, understanding structural features of Shatterpoint and their relation to the meta, and many other topics besides. Matt is a genius, and his genius is on full display here. You will love this episode.

Welcome to episode 104! In this episode, JK, Matt, and Sammy Kaye discuss the recent spoilers from AMG's Ministrav. While the details were sparse, the brothers give excellent thoughts on the impact of what was spoiled and things to watch out for in the future.

I apologize for the delay in getting this out the door. I have been swamped at work and raising so many babies and didn't have time to get it edited before tonight, but the absence of additional relevant disclosures makes this just as timely as the day it was recorded--SO ENJOY!!!

Hello and welcome to Episode 103! In this episode, Sammy, Scott, and Kenny give an overview of their matchups and give extended thoughts on the meta. It's pretty crunch, but we try to avoid play-by-plays and instead focus on meta-relevant considerations for players as they are navigating the meta pre-Adepticon 2026.

Skip to 1:15:44(ish) to get straight to the meta talk and avoid the tournament summaries.

Hello and welcome to Episode 101!!!

In this episode, we are joined by the Purist of Christophers to discuss four units (Jyn, Riff, Boss, and Kam) and to offer commentary on whether or not you should run that unit in a competitive list and what to think about in bringing that unit as part of your squad. These units are all good--it is a question of playstyle and understanding the role of these primaries and their typical lists that we think crucial to getting the most out of them.

Hello and welcome to Episode 100! We made it! Finally! In this episode, the brothers gather round the board to conclude the tiering of the units of Shatterpoint. Hot takes (and undoubtedly wrong takes) abound, but this will be a joy to listen to.

Welcome to another sweaty meta chat brought to you by the most recent winner of NOVA ... SAMMY KAYE! Sam ran a Cassian Core list at the event and was able to go undefeated with extremely tight competition. A really incredible performance. We talk about his list and its strengths, the meta, and many other things that you will love listening to.

Two things: first, we did not want this to be episode 100, so we are instead releasing it as a bonus episode (and who knows how many subsections episode 99.5 will ultimately have).

Second, Ezra Pound said to "make it new" (to which I have always added "again"), in reference to the modernist literary movement, and I think about our boy Ezra when we talk about the advent of a "new" meta. As we will discuss in this episode, it could be that the "new" meta is really just the same kind of meta we have faced before (strong supports defining power level), just with new faces.

Regardless, you will love and enjoy this episode.

Good luck to everyone at NOVA.

I am an idiot. Sam had this edited and ready to go on Monday, but I forgot to ship it in any kind of timely manner and for that I apologize.

ENJOY IT! Part 2 of our tier list episode in which the brothers discuss Secondaries. There's lots to digest here but it's a really fun discussion.

Hello and welcome to Episode 99! In this episode, Kenny and Sam discuss the Jyn Erso box, with a particular focus on competitive play and how they think this box fits. Really, this episode is about how Bodhi is the best 3-cost secondary in the game, and how Baze and Chirrut are among the best supports in the game (and Kenny argues that they are the best).

Hello and welcome to Episode 98! In this extremely-long-and-I-am-so-sorry-it-is-so-long episode, the brothers gather to rank ALL primaries currently released in the game of Shatterpoint. We fight, and agree, and equivocate about the primaries and discuss how they have fared since the patch. Get yourself a diet coke, go into the shade of your favorite tree, and get ready for over three hours of ranking goodness.

Cad Cassian is here and ladies and gentlemen it is not jank. In this episode, JK and Sam talk through the latest list that they have been jamming like crazy and you better believe it involves Boushh and you better believe that she's not so bad here.

This is a fantastic discussion and it is a list that really looks to take your opponent by surprise with its insane damage and incredible force economy. If you haven't given it a try, you are missing out.

One day I will quit making fun of the Aussies when I write phonetically, but that is not this day.

This is a fantastic discussion with Michael Watson (Red Mando 2) about his list that he took to a 5-0 finish at the recent Australian GT, but with a heavy focus on Republic listbuilding, the faction's strengths and weaknesses, and how to approach it from a competitive standpoint. Michael has only good points here and I know you will love what he has to say.

Welcome to Episode 95! In this episode, we give our takes on the obvious winners and losers of the patch, and the sneaky winners and losers of the patch. We have played a bunch, but we are also only three dudes with very limited meta horizons so take our observations with a grain of salt.

Welcome to Episode 94! In this episode, Sammy K. and I are back to old form discussing a list! We talk about Anakin and Kam, why they work well together, and the lists strengths and weaknesses. We think this list is the bees' knees, and if you haven't given it a run, you should, and we think you will enjoy it.

What AMG giveth, AMG taketh away. In this episode, we discuss the changes that AMG made to Asajj, Jango, and Magnas. As you can imagine, Sam and I are pretty distressed over the nerfs to Magnas, but we lead with discussions of Asajj (she is awesome), and then follow up with Jango (we totally approve of the changes). It gets a little dour at the end when we turn to the Magnas, but they really kicked our boys when they are down and we struggle to see a place for them in the next meta.

Thank you for listening! Please give us a rating and review on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Youtube!

Welcome to Episode 92! We are continuing our survey of the updates from the patch, this time with a focus on Rebels--which means a focus on Ewoks. JK was thrilled that his murder bears got updated, and he talks with Scott about where he thinks they land. You will enjoy it. We will have our Separatist and Bounty Hunter episodes coming out soon.

We love you all!

Welcome to Episode 91! In this episode, Kenny and Sam are joined by Michael Plummer from AMG to talk about AMG's design process and the recent balance patch. We tried to focus on systemic questions of design for Plummer and how those principles were manifest in the recent patch update. It's not a unit-by-unit analysis, but much more a conversation at thirty thousand feet regarding concepts at work. Plummer loves his food metaphors, and those really wafted through the conversation.

You will love it.

Kenny, Sam, & Matt review the changes to Galactic Republic Units in the May 12, 2025 balance update for Star Wars: Shatterpoint.

Whew boy did AMG have at the top-performing units in the Empire, and some (most (nearly all)) of us couldn't be happier. AMG absolutely nailed the changes to Gideon Hask, ISFs, and Dark Troopers, while also giving a huge lift to Inquisitors.

Welcome to Episode 88! In this episode, Titus Kosloff (the recent winner of the Tablebound Open in Ontario, Canada), joins the podcast to talk about his Cassian-Core List, with Cassian/Lobit(!)/Fifth + Moff/Ezra/Darks + Han Box + PL/K2/Bar2. It is an incredibly unique list that went 6-1 at one of the most competitive events of the year. Titus discusses Cassian, and there's a big focus on this list's matchup into Republic Jedi (which we both expect to be strong post-patch).

Welcome to Episode 87! Like the previous episode, JK and Sam are back reviewing units, this time Director Krennic! Is his design AMG's greatest achievement? Let us know what you think of him in the comments!

Welcome to Episode 86! In this episode, JK and Sam dive into the oceans of Star Wars to deliver a unit review of the Requesting Your Surrender Box. We break down the key abilities of each unit and discuss whether they will make waves in the meta. Let us know how you think our aquatic jedi friend performs in the comments!

Welcome to Episode 85! In this episode, Matt Bronson of Bombad Tactics and many other avenues of fame joins Kenny to give a preliminary take on expected winners and losers of the next meta. Matt and Kenny use Matt's recent tournament win at the Wet Coast GT in British Columbia to frame their discussion as to what they think thrives and struggles in light of what AMG has told us regarding incoming nerfs. It's a great discussion and as always Matt has the best insights.

Welcome to Episode 84! This episode is a kind of high-level discussion analyzing Shatterpoint units through the frame of the online MOBA DotA. We discuss carries, supports, and offlane/tanks and how they function (or are supposed to function) and how that affects our understanding and analysis of a unit's quality. All of this is very likely to go up in smoke come the May Rebalance (TM), but for now it's a fun interim discussion that we know you will enjoy.

Welcome to Episode 83 of Zion's Finest! This one is a bit of a sweaty episode, as Kenny provides an overview of the Top 8 from Adepticon and Sam gives an incredible review of "meta share," meaning how units were represented in progressive stages of the cut from swiss to the final match between Scott B. and Matt B. It's an amazing discussion that you will love.

Welcome to Episode 82! In this episode, Sammy Kaye and Kenny talk about the Adepticon meta and run down the matchups that they expect to be heavily prevalent during the tournament.

I think you will enjoy our discussion, and it's a great listen as you are traveling to the event.

Welcome to Episode 81! This episode is all about competitive tournament etiquette, with a specific focus on how to handle what might be termed a little-too-opportunistic-play on the part of your opponent (specifically, opponents changing dice, mis-measuring, slow-playing, or otherwise riding that gray line of what is acceptable).

It's a great episode in time for Adepticon, and we wish all of the success in the world to those attending Worlds.

Welcome to Episode 79!

Welcome to Episode 78!

Everyone once in a while, we record and release something really special on ZiFi, and it generally involves Sammy Sweets talking about something that has been stuck in his brain. This is one for the ages. Sammy and Matt get together to talk about design, agency, and a myriad other aspects of gaming that you will find interesting on both abstract and instantiated levels. They talk about how and why certain Shatterpoint units feel strong, what comes up short, and offer different frames for analyzing and thinking through units and lists. You will love it.

Hello and welcome to Episode 77! In this episode, Sean and Kyle talk about their 4-1 runs at the Torchlight GT that happened in Ontario, Canada last month. Rather than giving play-by-plays, they focus on matchups and thoughts regarding how lists performed against each other. It's a part of our drive to move away from minute descriptions of games to talk more about how lists are and should be performing. It's a great discussion and Sean and Kyle are as always full of incredible insights.

Welcome to Episode 76! In this episode, Kenny and Sammy talk about the recent CanCon tournament that happened in Australia and give some meta observations. They talk about the seeming mismatch between Iden's swiss WR and her power level.

Welcome to Episode 75! In this episode, Scott and Kenny discuss the LVO tournament, with a particular focus on more high-level analysis of the matchups from their run through the tournament. There is less of a focus on play-by-play analysis (as in, we tried to avoid it entirely), and more a discussion on how their lists (Iden Moff and Kanan Hera) played into the respective field. They close with a discussion on matchups generally, and why Iden feels so strong right now.

Scott and Kenny took first and second respectively at the tournament, so at least you know you are not getting the worst advice from ZiFi ... we normally give pretty bad advice.

Welcome to Episode 74! We will have our LVO episodes start releasing on Monday, January 27, but this episode was recorded right after LVO and was an opportunity for Ken and Dan to ask and answer rapid-fire questions from the community.

This is just a straight-up fun episode. We talk about the competitive meta, surviving cons, etc., with a series of community-generated questions.

Best of luck to those playing at CanCon and Torchlight this weekend. Another round of amazingly competitive tournaments.

Welcome to Episode 73! This is a continuation of our LVO prep series and is focused on the Rebel faction. Specifically, we are looking at constructing and piloting Rebels at a competitive tournament.

Sammy Kaye and Jesse are experts at rebelling, and they have incredible insights in terms of thinking about running Rebels as one part or all of your premier list. This is an awesome discussion, and we think you will enjoy it.

Welcome to Episode 70! In this episode, Kenny and Dyz break down the Mando list. This is the first of a series of pseudo LVO-prep episodes where we discuss list construction, piloting, and strategy with an eye towards preparing to fight with or against this list. You will enjoy Dyz's scorching hot takes here.

It's short, but sweet. In this episode, Sammy Kay and Kenny discuss the Bo update and, specifically, how they think the all Mando list now works. What does Bo and CK add to the Mando + Armorer Box package? Does it take it to the next level? What should you be thinking about when playing this list? How does it match up into the opposition?

All this and more in this episode!

T.S. Eliot I aint.

In this episode, Scott and Kenny discuss the ZiFi Invi. Scott went 5-0 on the day running Iden-Moff and Kanan-Hera. We discuss matchups, how lists felt into each other, and then close with (preliminary) thoughts on the new stuff that has released over the past few weeks.

Welcome to Episode 65! Matt headlined this episode, wanting to talk about how to help potential players to know (1) if they would like Shatterpoint and (2) how to approach buying for Shatterpoint.

While this is mostly for new players, I think everyone would enjoy this episode and we would really love feedback with respect to our buyer's guide as we discuss the factions.