I like to try to use some bombers in my builds, what is a good build for them?

I don't believe there is a best build.

I do love bombers and I do enjoy their synergies with the Lambda Shuttle and Colonel Jendon, allowing to having already filled up your TLs before the first round of combat.

Play around with bombs and proximity mines - they are challenging to get right, and often overlooked for the more expensive ordonance, but lovely when you get them right on the enemy.

My most recent love is combining them with another Colonel, Vessery, in the TIE Defender.

Thank You! I tried all bomber list that doesn't appear to work. I try put is a Tie Defender!

The best spot to fill on a Bomber, if you can only choose 1, is the Bomb slot.

5 Gammas + Seismic Charges is an EXCELLENT list.

Moreover, bombers with no upgrades whatsoever are still excellent jousters. They're so tanky!

Now, for the regular Ordnance side of things.

Chose 1, or at most 2 of the cheaper ones. Don't go with 10 or more points of missile/torpedo: The ordnance will deal less damage than the Academy Pilot you sacrificed to squeeze them in.

Flechette Torpedoes and Ion Pulse Missiles may be an exception to this.

Munitions Failsafe is a steal at 1 point. Unlike Deadeye, which is another 1 point upgrade which is useless once you have no more shootables, MF will let you do stuff if you miss, potentially going nuts with Flechette Torpedoes, who stress regardless of Hitting their opponent ;-)

Cluster Missiles eat ships with low agility. If you fly against B-Wings, Falcons, and Lambdas, prepare for trouble. They're utter rubbish against ships with high agility, so don't use them against Howlrunner if there's a better target.

Moreover, they also get more bonus from Capt. Jonus than any other piece of ordnance, as he gets to modify 4 dice for one missile card!

Assault Missiles are the source of the single greatest damage potential for an attack in the game.

In a 100 point game, Adv Proton Torpedoes might deal 5 damage, Cluster Missiles might deal 6 damage. but Assault Missiles might deal 11!

Proton Torpedoes, Adv Proton Torpedoes, and Homing Missiles are on the "Do Not Use" list.

Concussion Missiles are only slightly worse than Protons when you don't have a damage modifier, and substantially better if you do.

Adv. Proton Torpedoes are the most difficult ordnance to use in the game. Tellingly, the missile equivalent (Proton Rockets) will be able to shoot for the same number of dice, at the same range, but without the 3 blank-to-focus rule. It will cost 1/2 the points.

Homing Missiles... just no.

If you're using any of these en masse (one on each bomber, with lots of bombers), use Captain Jonus. He is the Howlrunner of secondaries, but supplies 2 dice worth of action-free re-rolling deliciousness.

Ive used an 4 bomber list extensively and have had success with it. (It got to round of 16 of one of the vassal tournaments and the game i lost was the closest game ive ever had)

It was

Jonus w ptl, assault

2x Gamma w cluster

Gamma w cluster and proton torp.

The alpha strike potential was amazing.

That said, wave 4 is death to this squad, it is weak against higher PS ships with the boost action (and BR to a lesser degree). It will be toothless vs phantoms.

Post wave 4, the best use for bombers will be as TL support for Vessery, as well as howlrunner bomber swarm will still be good.

When I fly the bombers with Jonus, I usually give them Cluster Missiles. When going without, Flechette Torpedo is your best friend since they are so cheap.

Scimitar Squadron Pilot + Flechette Torpedo + Flechette Torpedo + Seismic Charges (22pts)

You could also replace one Flechette Torpedo for a Ion Missile for more control if used in pair.

Scimitar Squadron Pilot + Flechette Torpedo + Ion Missile + Seismic Charges (23pts)

One ship shoot the Flechette to give stress, the other a Ion missile for a Ion Token. K-turn 5, shoot in his back while he clear the Ion token but not the stress. Do a green straight and TL for your second missile pass. Hear your opponent yell: Son of a !@%!

Adding to Dragon's already excellent walk-through of the different ordonance, I generally try to have at least one Cluster and one Assault Missile (for the reasons already mentioned) when playing in tournaments, where you are likely to need one or the other in different matches.

Also if you do include Cpt Jonus and you also have Colonel Jendon for target locks (which might be more likely in matches with more than the regular 100 pts), then don't forget that Cpt. Jonus rerolls for secondary weapons also apply to cannons. Ion cannons are not that expensive and it means that the Lambda can do more than just pass TLs and absorb enemy attention; it can also reliable ionize and line up the enemy exactly where you want them for your incoming bombers.

Which cues in to the most challenging bits of flying bombers getting the timing and distance spot on during the first round of contact with the enemy, as your ordonance is so dependent on it. If you haven't heard of it then google X-wing+rule of 11 for some thoughts on getting range right in the first round of bomber contact.

Did I already mention how much I love bombers? I loooove TIE bombers!

BTW, it seems TIE bomber lists can completely shrug off one of the new nasties on the block: flechettes.

If I didn't already love the Bomber....

+1 to 5 Gammas with Seismic, tanky with 10 points of ordnance that either works or keeps opposing squads out of an arc you can't handle them being in.

Flechette torpedos, and again, flechette torpedos.

They are, for now, the best Ordnance in the game. Tied with Assault Missiles(sort of) Assault missiles have the best damage potential but are expensive and innacurate. Flechettes are cheap and play Mwrry Hell with most lists.

Bombs are also good, but takr some getting used to.

I personally wouldn't run a full Bomber list. Maybe 3 Bombers and Vessery... But a single Scimitar with a Flechette torpedo can do amazing things. Scimitars are great even without ordnance. They're tough, cheap, and adaptable.

I have used 3x Gamma with Flachette Torps and Proton Bombs and 1x Royal Guard Pilot with ptl with great success, the bombs are really worth the points if you use them right! especially if you can stress ships into range of them!

I've had some success with this list that I call "Warning shot in the head":

Captain Jonus

- Squad Leader

- Seismic Charges

2x Gamma Squadron Pilot

- Seismic Charges

- Assault Missiles

Scimitar Squadron Pilot

- Seismic Charges

- Assault Missiles

I always hold them back at first to have the alpha strike from Range 3. Having Gamma Squadron pilots helps to get the needed target locks. The Scimitar pilot gets his target lock from Jonus' Squad Leader.

Depending on the opponent's squad I usually swap one or two of the Assault Missiles with Cluster Missiles. After the first strike I break up the formation and make use of the bombs. People still tend to forget those and one time I even annihilated a fully loaded Soontir that had maneuvered into range of 3 of the bombs. The list worked against most combinations so far and is great against swarms. If you fly against Han plus Y-Wings I recommend to take out Han first, otherwise it won't work. The only list I couldn't crack with this bomber squadron was Han and 2 B-Wings.

If you don't have enough bombers you can always squeeze a Tie Advanced in and fly it at the front to eat some of the return fire. I've also tried combinations with Shuttle pilots but that didn't work well enough for my taste.

Thank you all, very great and sound advice!

I love Bombers, i'm just trying to get them to work. :-)

Jonus with Squad Leader and 3 Gamma Squadrons make a potent list after adding the remaining 22 points in as ordnance. For example, 4 seismic charges, a cluster missile, a concussion missile, an ion pulse misisle, and a flechette torpedo makes a nice 99 point setup. Each bomber gets a seismic charge, the two forward ones carry the cluster and conc missiles, and the one next to jonus in the back carries the IPM/FT combo. First round of engagement you hit with the clusters, the IPM, and a focused conc missile, the next turn you hit with the torpedo and a bunch of basic attacks, the next you drop bombs and 5k. There probably won't be much left of the opponent after that

Cluster Missiles are utter rubbish.

Fixed. The only time they are worth using is if you can modify both rolls, which basically means alongside Jonus. Even against low agility ships, statistically you expect more damage from a Concussion Missile.

I ran the below at MN Regionals. Placed 13 of I think 77.

Captain Jonus + Seismic Charges

2x Scimitar Squadron Pilots + Seismic Charges + Flachette Torpedoes

2x Scimitar Squadron Pilots + Flachette Torpedoes

I enjoyed running,

Jonus

Howlrunner

3x - Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Cluster Missiles (damage output is 18 first turn shooting)

Right at 100 points and just wrecks lists.

I wonder if this could work.

3x- Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Proton bombs

1x- Delta with Ion Canon, ion Pulse Missiles, Munitions Failsafe

I wonder if this could work.

3x- Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Proton bombs

1x- Delta with Ion Canon, ion Pulse Missiles, Munitions Failsafe

I ask only, why double up on the ion on the delta? why not feed that missile to one of the scimitars, so that you might ion a falcon/big ship AND a small ship into your proton bomb horde the following turn?

I wonder if this could work.

3x- Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Proton bombs

1x- Delta with Ion Canon, ion Pulse Missiles, Munitions Failsafe

I ask only, why double up on the ion on the delta? why not feed that missile to one of the scimitars, so that you might ion a falcon/big ship AND a small ship into your proton bomb horde the following turn?

It creates more of threat in peoples minds and more force of others leaving your bombers alone.

I wouldn't say that Cluster Missiles are rubbish. With Jonus in the squad they can be really nasty against everything that has only one green dice. Cluster Missiles made me win several times against Han shoots first lists.

No, they are still rubbish. Your anecdote only indicates that they did not lose the game(s) for you. In stock situations concussion missiles deal more damage and are more likely to hit, regardless of the target's agility, and we now have much better muntions than we did in Waves 1 and 2.

http://teamcovenant.com/vorpalsword/2013/02/02/cluster-missiles/

That is even before you consider Range. Concussions reach out to 3, and deny the target an extra green die when they do. Everything that can carry a missile will get 3+ dice at Range 1, and giving up your action for a second unmodified attack is not worth the 4 point tax you paid to do it. Rhymer gets around this, but he is points-inefficient on his own.

Jonus makes cluster worthwhile, yes, but he is also a giant, obvious weakness in your squad and makes your list less flexible. You are banking on getting getting the first exchange alpha strike. If the opponent prevents that or kills Jonus before the other bombers get to fire, the value of your squad has dropped disproportionately.

Some other combos like Vader with Marksmanship can also be effective, but you are piling on points to overcome a card's inefficiency, rather than taking things that are effective on their own and synergize well with others. Cluster probably expects more damage against agility 0 targets, but even when the Decimator arrives, how often will you be facing those? In a tournament setting you certainly cannot rely on that all day.

Cluster Missiles are not good on their own, and to make them good you have to give up other aspects of your squad instead of balancing or reinforcing those facets. Rubbish. And to make matters worse, what makes them rubbish is not particularly obvious, so they become a trap for casual players.

Cluster missiles + Jonus re-rolls = dead X-wing or B-wing in one round of firing. Almost every time I use my Bomber build that is what happens.

I use Jonus and two Gamma's each with cluster missiles.

I fly bombers alot. Got the idea in this forum.

I flew 5x Gammas with seismic charges in Florida Regionals. They do well due to the hull values, HOWEVER, you need to understand seizmic charges do not bypass shields. Therefore this list is great against Imperials and ok vs rebels.

B-wing with HLCs wreck havok on bombers.

I do like the following:

4X scimitar bombers with proton bombs and Eng Upgrd....gives the bombers some pazzaz after they drop the bombs. The bombs are also affective against Rebels alot better.

4X gammas with proton bombs.

Proton bombs are alot better than Seismic charges in every respect.

Next, overload a bomber and you risk loosing alot of points when it gets hit. One crit can kill the secondary weapons, and you are exposed to crits

I wonder if this could work.

3x- Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Proton bombs

1x- Delta with Ion Canon, ion Pulse Missiles, Munitions Failsafe

I'm gonna have to try this list.