After play testing all of the new ace ships I would like to let you know my findings.

First off the list Carnor Jax. While his ability is great on paper it made flying him predictably aggressive. He would drop early to mid game causing only minor interference with enemy ships. Against any blaster turrets or apt it's s great ship to have but hard to keep alive.

Next Kir Kanos. After giving him some hate myself I found he was consistent on damage at range 2/3. Since carnor was a bigger threat Kanos could just put the damage on as needed. He is a great sniper and if flown correctly can help keep the game in your favor.

Tetran Kowall, what a dissapointment. While his ability of a 1 kturn is impressive I never found myself changing the K maneuver I chose. If you plan correctly you too well find his ability lackluster.

Lt. Lorrir amazed me. Just play with him and you will be amazed with all he can do. At the cost of a stress almost every turn I was maneuvering outside of a firing arc. Lorrir is by far the best ace to come out of the imperial aces expansion. It takes a few games to get used to flying with him but he is a high tier fighter and in the right hands, nearly unstoppable.

Flying stock here is where I rate all interceptors currently.

1. Turr

2. Lorrir

3. S Fel

4. Carnor

5. Kanos

6. Royal Guard/Saber Squadron (ept)

7. Avenger

8. Alpha

9. Wrath

10. Kowell

Let me know your thoughts but I hope this helps players with some insight.

I have found on avg Jax prevents 2/3 and gains you 2/3 DMG per game. He's for sure no hand grenade so don't send him up the center trying to get him at 1 as fast as possible. Fly him like a normal Int and wait till you can boost to a 6 at range one.

I'd estimate Tetran Cowall a little better than that. I was able to use him effectively the other day to do something that most TIEs cannot do, chase Wedge (or any higher skill pilot). After the initial engagement Tetran and Wedge were directly facing each other. I chose a K-turn with Tetran and got myself behind Wedge; spending my Adrenaline Rush along the way and scored a solid hit as Wedge just flew forward 2 easy (he had R2D2 and was healing shields). I was right on his tail. Normally, all Wedge has to do in this situation is take a 1 easy and the TIE will overshoot him because the shortest straight maneuver they can do is a 2. So I chose a K-turn again the next round and upon reveal chose the 1 distance, bumped the back end of Wedge so I didn't turn around and stayed behind him as he flew 1 forward anticipating an overshoot and kept my range 1 attack; denied Wedge a target and lit his shields up like a Christmas tree. I'd say that is worth a bit.

I've found that the 4 RGP+PtL list is incredibly flexible. In my experience thus far, it has fared well against a number of lists, including turrets. I agree that Lorrir is the gem of the set from an ability point of view, but his middling pilot skill and lack of EPT make him weaker than he deserves. Tetran on paper seemed like a gem, but I agree and feel that it is difficult to get good use from his ability. I plan to use Carnor Jax often, too, as he is a REALLY great flanker against a swarm. I'm not sure why you seem to think he is so fragile, as the only time I've lost him was against a Falcon. Play him like you would Soontir or really any other PtL interceptor, and he should never be in front arc to take any hits. Kanos is kind of the odd man out, as his ability makes him more part of a swarmlet. Using usual interceptor tactics simply don't work with him, as he can't arc dodge very well. I have seen him fare well in a swarmlet next to a Howlrunner with Squad Leader, though. He always gets at least 1 hit, but the other dice are unmodified and unreliable. Therefore, it helps to hand him a focus, as well. Therefore, he has a focus for attack or defense, and the evade for attack.

My thoughts on the set after playing with it and against it several times since release in a competitive league.

I think for Carnor you just need to be willing to forego shots early on. Focus on keeping him alive and overshoot the enemy formation so as to deny some actions while distracting them so your other ships can thin the herd. Then he can really go in for the kill, since interceptors are great for the late game.

I think for Carnor you just need to be willing to forego shots early on. Focus on keeping him alive and overshoot the enemy formation so as to deny some actions while distracting them so your other ships can thin the herd. Then he can really go in for the kill, since interceptors are great for the late game.

I agree. The issue with this approach is with a 3-4 interceptor squad, it can be very detrimental to give up an attack. But, his ability is quite powerful against a TIE swarm. It is very easy to stay behind a group of ships that rely on formation maneuvers. And if they surprise you with a K-turn, it is quite easy to get outside of arc if needed and forego an attack.

I wrote this up in another thread. It should stir the pot a little from my experiences with Imperial Aces thus far.

The only thing good to come out of the Imperial Aces box was two nicely painted ships, Carnor Jax and the Royal Guard Tie. From a competitive standpoint of course.

Royal Guard Tie is PS6 and is literally 1 point more than the Saber built in with Veteran Instincts but still retains its EPT slot. This means you can easily fit in PTL on top of it being PS6. I'm going to stress this again, but PS6 is huge. It allows you to clear Biggs' PS5, outshoots Daggers and gives you first choice against anything under 6. This includes a LOT of different targets in the meta; including most Ties minus Howl herself, Biggs Walks the Dogs, Red Daggers, 3x BH lists..etc. It's only outpaced by more elite lists.

Carnor Jax is there because he will change the meta, especially when it comes to Imperial vs. Imperial lists. Most of you know that Ties live and die by their ability to Focus/Evade and benefit from Howlrunner. By taking away their ability to Focus at Range 1, you're literally cutting their the durability and shooting capacity of the list without affecting your list in anyway. If you're running 3 ship elite Imperials like myself, you're going to bring Jax in every list because he gives you jousting advantage on top of being a trump card vs. mirrors.

Oh, I guess on the shortstick, there's Targeting Computer for Fel. He's the only one who can really use it because of his stress-induced free focus. It will drastically improve his ability to shoot at long range and give him something to do at longer ranges when he's outside firing arcs while still preserving his defense (stacked Focus and Evade).

Interceptors will never be a mainstream competitive ship. Ever. They are simply too unforgiving when they can (and regularly do) explode from a single 3 hit shot. When you start considering that late round (and higher level) tournament play inevitably is against people who know enough to account for the interceptor's speed and repositioning abilities, they will simply die as fast as regular TIE fighters (for much more cost).

Imperial Aces adds a few more tools to the toolbox, but there is nothing in there that really makes me rethink this belief. Do I think 4 royal guards with PTL will be hella fun to play? Absolutely, win or lose. But in a tournament, against skilled players with vastly better ships... maybe in a flanker role, but certainly not an Interceptor-focused list. I could be the best Interceptor pilot in the world and would still think this is a bad idea.

I would rank them more like so:

1/2- Fel and Turr

3- Jax

4- Cowall

5- Royal

6- Lorrir

7- Saber

8-Kanos

9- alpha

10- Avenger

11- Wrath

Cowall paid nothing for his ability. He's a Royal guard with VI baked in, a free EPT, and a situationally useful ability. He's a big value even if you don't use his ability. Turr/Fel can go 1-2... Turr is more defensive and saves you a few points and is more rewarding to fly, Fel is a machine. Jax can be strong, I might have put him too high. Lorrir on the flank is great and cheap. Kir just doesn't fit right now. Wrath is the worst.

Yeah, well I'm really going to run Carnor as a single int with a group of Ties. Looking for good places to use Lorrir, but haven't figured it out yet. I guess what's good about the Aces, or at least Mr. Jax, is giving Imperials some other things to put with a smaller group of ties than a Firespray or shuttle.

1. Turr

2. Lorrir

3. S Fel

4. Carnor

5. Kanos

6. Royal Guard/Saber Squadron (ept)

7. Avenger

8. Alpha

9. Wrath

10. Kowell

Agreement.

I find Turr to be my fav Interceptor. He eats babies and poops rainbows everytime he comes out to play.

On a serious thought. Since I started playing X-wing I have fallen in love with Turr. I think the extra movement after shooting is so strong. In fact I would say move then anything else extra movement is the different between being shot and not. I know that sounds silly but it removes the need to even have to roll defense dice which is huge. Also right now with the Royal Guard upgrade you can can give him both shield and hull with PTL, and in q2 I plan on rocking wingman on another ship so Turr can get two moves and 1 action. Yea that's going to wreck people.

So I agree Turr is the best.

On a serious thought. Since I started playing X-wing I have fallen in love with Turr. I think the extra movement after shooting is so strong. In fact I would say move then anything else extra movement is the different between being shot and not. I know that sounds silly but it removes the need to even have to roll defense dice which is huge. Also right now with the Royal Guard upgrade you can can give him both shield and hull with PTL, and in q2 I plan on rocking wingman on another ship so Turr can get two moves and 1 action. Yea that's going to wreck people.

So I agree Turr is the best.

On a serious thought. Since I started playing X-wing I have fallen in love with Turr. I think the extra movement after shooting is so strong. In fact I would say move then anything else extra movement is the different between being shot and not. I know that sounds silly but it removes the need to even have to roll defense dice which is huge. Also right now with the Royal Guard upgrade you can can give him both shield and hull with PTL, and in q2 I plan on rocking wingman on another ship so Turr can get two moves and 1 action. Yea that's going to wreck people.

So I agree Turr is the best.

Wingman gives him four possible actions with PTL unless I'm missing something. Move, Take two actions with PTL, Wingman to clear stress, shoot, roll/boost activate PTL again...

You can only use PtL once per turn. But, you can still use PtL to do two actions, get stress, remove it at the start of the combat phase, do your free action after you shoot. So that's still really good.

On a serious thought. Since I started playing X-wing I have fallen in love with Turr. I think the extra movement after shooting is so strong. In fact I would say move then anything else extra movement is the different between being shot and not. I know that sounds silly but it removes the need to even have to roll defense dice which is huge. Also right now with the Royal Guard upgrade you can can give him both shield and hull with PTL, and in q2 I plan on rocking wingman on another ship so Turr can get two moves and 1 action. Yea that's going to wreck people.

So I agree Turr is the best.

Wingman gives him four possible actions with PTL unless I'm missing something. Move, Take two actions with PTL, Wingman to clear stress, shoot, roll/boost activate PTL again...

You can only use PtL once per turn. But, you can still use PtL to do two actions, get stress, remove it at the start of the combat phase, do your free action after you shoot. So that's still really good.

Yeah, I forgot about the once per round.

1. Fel

2. Jax

3. Turr

4. Lorrir

5. Royal Guard

6. Kanos

7. Saber

8. Avenger

9. Alpha

10. Cowell

11. Wrath

That's my list. The biggest difference between any two is between 7th and 8th imo.

The question I have with Turr is this. Can he boost as his normal action, then boost again after shooting, then PTL to barrel roll after the boost?

The question I have with Turr is this. Can he boost as his normal action, then boost again after shooting, then PTL to barrel roll after the boost?

No. You can not boost (or preform any other action) twice in one turn.

you can however take a second action (say he is still in a firing arc) take an evade token after you barrel roll.

Also the ability to move into an arc of a ship that has already fired to elude other arcs is big as well, I agree Turr is an awesome pilot, and I like Lorrir as well... Fel is good also, but I'll choose Turr and Lorrir over Fel.. unless I use the 3 of them in a build.

imo the best pilots to come out of Aces are the Royal Guard, at PS 6 and EPT for 22 points i just don't see why i would ever take a Saber pilot anymore, i also like Lorrir but the lack of EPT and PS5 really turns me away, i've tried Kanos and was meh, and haven't tried Jax yet but i will, Cowal however really disappointed me and i never had a good opportunity to use his ability.

Cowell, could be great, but it's very circumstantial with his ability, and I haven't been able to really get much out of it. I still think Lorrir is the belle of the ball for the Aces.. team him with Turr and a couple RGPs maybe.. if the points work...

Cowell, could be great, but it's very circumstantial with his ability, and I haven't been able to really get much out of it. I still think Lorrir is the belle of the ball for the Aces.. team him with Turr and a couple RGPs maybe.. if the points work...

I'm going to need to see Lorrir be that good without PTL. The upside is he is cheap.

I think that's the nice thing about Cowell, too, whether or not you use his ability, but you get the high PS and an EPT.

Still, Jax is easily my favorite. I know some like him, but there are some that are discounting him or thinking he won't survive, and I think that's dead wrong and a shame. Any pilot with a passive AOE ability has a place in this competitive meta of this game and I doubt he will be any different.

1/2- Fel and Turr

3- Jax

4- Lorrir

5- Royal

6- Cowall

7- Saber

8- alpha

9- Avenger

10- Wrath

That's how I am ranking them right now. Wrath is rubbish (now if he could take an EPT for VI then I might take him from time to time). Avengers are generally worthless (unless only fielding 1 Interceptor), but Alphas make great fillers for single Elite Squint-only builds. Sabers still have their place, but Royals are better if you have the points. Cowall I wouldn't really buy for the ability, but as has been brought up he pays almost nothing for it, which is great.

Lorrir capitalizes on the one maneuver that I see Interceptors use the least: their green four straight. He can 4-straight, then Tokyo Drift barrel roll so he can shoot behind him still. He is also pretty good unupgraded. Jax is a boss. Turr and Fel are both great, for different reasons. Fel is a beastly tank; Turr is a silent ninja. It all depends on what you are looking for.

EDIT: I haven't done much with Kanos yet, but I am determined to make him shine.

My ranks, for what it's worth:

1- Fel

2- Turr

3- Carnor

4- Lorrir

5- Royal

6- Saber

7- Cowell

8- Kir

9- Alpha

10- Wrath

11- Avenger

Fel has simply won me far more games than Turr. I run the two together pretty much all the time, and both do great, but Fel runs slightly better.

I'd estimate Tetran Cowall a little better than that. I was able to use him effectively the other day to do something that most TIEs cannot do, chase Wedge (or any higher skill pilot). After the initial engagement Tetran and Wedge were directly facing each other. I chose a K-turn with Tetran and got myself behind Wedge; spending my Adrenaline Rush along the way and scored a solid hit as Wedge just flew forward 2 easy (he had R2D2 and was healing shields). I was right on his tail. Normally, all Wedge has to do in this situation is take a 1 easy and the TIE will overshoot him because the shortest straight maneuver they can do is a 2. So I chose a K-turn again the next round and upon reveal chose the 1 distance, bumped the back end of Wedge so I didn't turn around and stayed behind him as he flew 1 forward anticipating an overshoot and kept my range 1 attack; denied Wedge a target and lit his shields up like a Christmas tree. I'd say that is worth a bit.

I sure hope you didn't shoot Wedge in the same turn you bumped him.