I just picked up the game and I've not yet played even one game. I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading about strategy. I have the following:

Carnor Jax (Opportunist)

Howlrunner (Determination)

Night Beast

Winged Gundark

Sabre Squadron Pilot

I have Core + TIE Expansion + Imperial Aces. I picked up an Advanced TIE as well after watching a YouTube video about Vader being a great flanker, but I figure the Interceptor Aces can handle that role for me. I'll likely return the un-opened TIE Advanced but I'm not sure whether to get another TIE Fighter, a TIE Interceptor, or invest towards something else.

Thoughts?

Alright, welcome to the game.

You certainly have an interesting start and a tough one, but if you stick with it, you'll quickly become an incredible pilot. The problem with TIE Interceptors is that they are fragile. Super fragile. That means that the quickest way to lose is to end up in firing arc or to bump something (asteroid, enemy ship, friendly ship, space sheep, etc) and lose your action. A single die roll from an attacker can make a TIE Interceptor vanish in a puff of wasted points and lost potential.

That isn't to say you shouldn't run Interceptors. They are great craft, but know that you will have to learn how to pilot well, predict your opponent,and learn how to mentally picture where different maneuvers will cause you to end up. And you will have to learn these fast, or loss after loss could make you bitter.

Now, one of the upgrades you should probably consider is Push the Limit. It allows you two actions at the cost of a stress. This allows brilliant arc dancing maneuvers, like boost and barrel roll or vice versa.

Unless you are on a tight budget, I would keep the TIE Advanced, though it is one of the worse ships. If you do return it, I would exchange it for another ship. A-Wings are fun, though you are solidly Imperial right now (it's fun to play both and Rebel Aces is going to make the A-Wing a true equivalent to the Interceptor).

Still, welcome and let me know if you have specific questions.

I would aim to pick up a second core set which would give you five TIE fighters to play with. In the meantime, you could play around with something like this:

Vader

Interceptor

Interceptor

Alternatively you could try:

Vader

Interceptor

3x TIE Academy Pilots

Sable's advice is sound by the way.

I would keep the Advanced. It's a good idea to have one of each ship, that way you have access to all the upgrades. Vader comes with Squad leader, which is a fantastic card on him, Jan Ors, and a few other specific ships. One of the Z-95 pilots looks to be killer with it for passing out actions.

Beyond that, Vader is fun to fly even if the other Advanced pilots are pretty meh. Give Vader an Engine upgrade and Daredevil. Watch people try to chase him down.

I would vote return advance and either get another core for the 2 ties and extra dice. Or get the slave 1. Great ship. Forgiving and can be the center point of many imp list. The advance just does not get used. Swarm tactics and squad leader are nice, but at that point I'd want more ships that I will fly now and further down the road.

If you are strapped for cash, you could return the Advanced. If not, its a rather! fun ship to fly. Sometimes also you want something a little overcosted if you're playing against a newer friend or something.

Since you're playing interceptors, I'd echo that Push the Limit is amazing.

Also, don't feel down about luck. You are playing a list that gets swatted down by bad rolls and bad flying more than most. But if you can shrug off the losses and have fun and improve, you'll likely end up much better than most.

Again, its only statistics! You'll get better luck.