I have purchased 3 defenders so have tried to make a workable, not a tourney list but a list that will win some casual games, list using only defenders.

So far I have had the list ripped apart by my opponent its not just my poor skills either as we've switched lists and played the opposite side and the defenders still get hammered.

Has anyone had any success with a defender only list I know there not amazingly point efficient but I do enjoy trying to get some success with the less used ships.

I've used two onyx defenders and a mercenary firespray with recon specialist to great effect PS3 all.

For a defender list you want to play 150 points then you can use the named pilots and own, in 100 points i haven't tried 3 defenders.

3x Deltas with Ion

Very fun to fly in a non-comp environment.

This is the list that immediately springs to mind and I will be trying out.

Col. Vessery, VI (36)

Onyx Squadron Pilot (32)

Onyx Squadron Pilot (32)

The Onyx pilots can supply TL's for Vessery.

The low PS on the Onyx is a concern.

I think I'd try Rexler with Push the Limit, with two Deltas.

3 with stealth can be pretty good

This is the list that immediately springs to mind and I will be trying out.

Col. Vessery, VI (36)

Onyx Squadron Pilot (32)

Onyx Squadron Pilot (32)

The Onyx pilots can supply TL's for Vessery.

The low PS on the Onyx is a concern.

That could work though i faced coran horn at ps8 a b-wing at ps4 and a pair of headhunters at 4, everything shot before my PS3 guys and i still came out the winner.

3 deltas with a hull upgrade each

Pray you don't get matched up against Phantoms or Interceptors.

Interceptors aren't that common now.

Phantoms are less common than Falcons, which you'll do great against.

I think you'd be better off with 2 Defenders and a support ship of some sort. 90 points for the 3 base Defenders doesn't leave you with enough to play with.

I second the 2x Delta, Rex + upgrades build.

I ran 3 Deltas with Ions against my wife once. Once I locked down the Bwings it was over. Its brutal, but you have to survive to lock them down.

Recently I have been running:

Brath + Predator

Vessery + Opportunist

Tempest Squadron Pilot (I know!)

Works like a charm. Brath racks 'em up, Vessery knocks 'em down. Tempest cleans up. Seriously. No one goes after it, because everyone "knows" it sucks. Ive got four games in with this list, won all of them, and the Tempest has more kills than Brath.

List works one of two ways.

1) Have Brath light up a target, they spend tokens to avoid his sneaky crits. Then have Vessery tear into it, hyper accurately, rocking both focus and a TL, with Opportunist.

2) Have the Tempest charge in, TLing and setting up a block. Brath shoots at whatever is a big offensive threat thats still holding focus. Vessery then can choose the bumped target or Brath's softened target.

The stress of Opportunist on Vessery isnt bad. He can make K-Turns, and with the Tempest being his TL caddy, he can get buy very well without actions.

Yeah its a month on i don't get why some still insist they suck that's clearly not true, my mate hates mine because i use the defender alot my favourite ship and it wrecks things hard core, unless i anger the dice gods of course which happens every so often.

I think I'd try Rexler with Push the Limit, with two Deltas.

PTL doesn't work well on Defenders. Their dial is pretty bad for clearing stress. Run Predator on Brath it was made for him. You can get a TL lite with predator and re-roll to save your focus to flip crits or use on defense.

Brath + two deltas could be good. Use the Deltas to block and have Brath blast ships with no tokens.

3 Defenders will suffer against numbers and slippery ships, but will do pretty good against other lists of 3 ships or less.

I also like Vessery w/ Outmaneuver + an Onyx and Delta. Send Vessery on the flank, if he does turn into Vessery he will have two Defenders on his tail.

Yeah its a month on i don't get why some still insist they suck that's clearly not true, my mate hates mine because i use the defender alot my favourite ship and it wrecks things hard core, unless i anger the dice gods of course which happens every so often.

You too? I dont know what I do to those gods! Thursday we are having a tournament and I am going to slaughter a baby goat in their name and wash my dice in its blood. That should appease them.

Best part about having 3 defenders is you get 3x Predator and 3x outmaneuver.

Yeah its a month on i don't get why some still insist they suck that's clearly not true, my mate hates mine because i use the defender alot my favourite ship and it wrecks things hard core, unless i anger the dice gods of course which happens every so often.

You too? I dont know what I do to those gods! Thursday we are having a tournament and I am going to slaughter a baby goat in their name and wash my dice in its blood. That should appease them.

two weeks ago i roll 8 blank green dice in a single turn, last week two games i didn't lose a single ship, they are fickle creatures.

While I have had success with the defender and think it is a better ship than it's gotten credit for, I'd imagine that three is a bit of an uphill battle, especially as I like them for their use with an HLC. That said, I think the options above with a unique+2 are solid.

I think I'd try Rexler with Push the Limit, with two Deltas.

PTL doesn't work well on Defenders. Their dial is pretty bad for clearing stress. Run Predator on Brath it was made for him. You can get a TL lite with predator and re-roll to save your focus to flip crits or use on defense.

Brath + two deltas could be good. Use the Deltas to block and have Brath blast ships with no tokens.

3 Defenders will suffer against numbers and slippery ships, but will do pretty good against other lists of 3 ships or less.

I also like Vessery w/ Outmaneuver + an Onyx and Delta. Send Vessery on the flank, if he does turn into Vessery he will have two Defenders on his tail.

Stress really isn't a big deal on defenders. If you're far away from your opponent, do a 1 straight and you're fine. If you're closer, you can do a 5 straight and shoot past them. Or you can ignore it all together and do a K-Turn. Most ships when stressed can only move in a tiny area, but will most likely still have a shot. The Defender is really good at getting out of Dodge when stressed.

Sure, your opponent KNOWS you're going to go straight if you need to de-stress, but chances are they can't block an entire 5 range band.

I'm also not a big fan of Predator on Defenders. You're most often only re-rolling 1 die out of 3 or 4. I'd rather pick Outmaneuver or PTL. Outmaneuver just wrecks large ships and PTL really helps with action economy.

I think I'd try Rexler with Push the Limit, with two Deltas.

PTL doesn't work well on Defenders. Their dial is pretty bad for clearing stress. Run Predator on Brath it was made for him. You can get a TL lite with predator and re-roll to save your focus to flip crits or use on defense. Brath + two deltas could be good. Use the Deltas to block and have Brath blast ships with no tokens. 3 Defenders will suffer against numbers and slippery ships, but will do pretty good against other lists of 3 ships or less. I also like Vessery w/ Outmaneuver + an Onyx and Delta. Send Vessery on the flank, if he does turn into Vessery he will have two Defenders on his tail.

Stress really isn't a big deal on defenders. If you're far away from your opponent, do a 1 straight and you're fine. If you're closer, you can do a 5 straight and shoot past them. Or you can ignore it all together and do a K-Turn. Most ships when stressed can only move in a tiny area, but will most likely still have a shot. The Defender is really good at getting out of Dodge when stressed.Sure, your opponent KNOWS you're going to go straight if you need to de-stress, but chances are they can't block an entire 5 range band.I'm also not a big fan of Predator on Defenders. You're most often only re-rolling 1 die out of 3 or 4. I'd rather pick Outmaneuver or PTL. Outmaneuver just wrecks large ships and PTL really helps with action economy.

I have had a defender in every list for the past 8 games and have not lost a single one. I came really close a couple times but usually they still have all their hull left at the end.

I must be flying them wrong or the god of dice don't like my defenders tried similar builds the 3 deltas with Ion cannon sounds great on paper but just wasn't effective, couldn't really capitalize on the Ships I Ioned due to low pilot skill.

I ran 3 Deltas with Ions against my wife once. Once I locked down the Bwings it was over. Its brutal, but you have to survive to lock them down.

Recently I have been running:

Brath + Predator

Vessery + Opportunist

Tempest Squadron Pilot (I know!)

Works like a charm. Brath racks 'em up, Vessery knocks 'em down. Tempest cleans up. Seriously. No one goes after it, because everyone "knows" it sucks. Ive got four games in with this list, won all of them, and the Tempest has more kills than Brath.

List works one of two ways.

1) Have Brath light up a target, they spend tokens to avoid his sneaky crits. Then have Vessery tear into it, hyper accurately, rocking both focus and a TL, with Opportunist.

2) Have the Tempest charge in, TLing and setting up a block. Brath shoots at whatever is a big offensive threat thats still holding focus. Vessery then can choose the bumped target or Brath's softened target.

The stress of Opportunist on Vessery isnt bad. He can make K-Turns, and with the Tempest being his TL caddy, he can get buy very well without actions.

The 2 defenders and tempest sounds like a laugh might give that a go

I must be flying them wrong or the god of dice don't like my defenders tried similar builds the 3 deltas with Ion cannon sounds great on paper but just wasn't effective, couldn't really capitalize on the Ships I Ioned due to low pilot skill.

The thing with Defenders (especially when armed with cannons) is that you really want to stay far away from what you're shooting at. It's much easier to keep ships in arc at range 3, your opponent doesn't get an extra evade when you have a cannon, but you do.

Defenders work so much better when you have some ships blocking for them. 1 Defender plus some TIEs, a shuttle or bounty hunter just works so much better than 3 Defenders.

My favorite list recently has been the 150 point squad of three Onyx with Shields and Echo with VI, ACD, FCS and Rebel Captive. I'm in the camp that Defender don't really need anything to make them better; higher PS and EPTs are always a plus, but I don't feel like they *require* a cannon or missile. So I just give them a bit more durability and call it a day.

I think the three Defender 100 point can work, but that's why I like the freedom of 150 points: you can get the three Defenders, AND a nice buddy or two to help out.

A friend suggested a good combo recently:

Rexler Brath + Predator + HLC

Jonus

Night Beast

Dark Curse

With proper flying Brath can reroll up to 3 of the 4 dice for HLC, then spend his Focus to flip the damage cards.

EDIT: Oops, sorry, I forgot the title of the thread while reading the other posts, and offered a 1 Defender list only. Haven't tried 3 Defenders.

I had some fun with this one recently:

Cpt. Jonnus + Determination

Delta + HLC x2

Rerolling HLC shots almost every combat phase was super fun and destructive :-D

I had fun flying and won with those 2 lists:

3x Delta with Ion Cannon

or

Rexler Brath with Predator

2x Delta

Either way, I avoided flying in formation and used the Defender movement to its fullest.

I prefer the Delta over the Onyx. The white k-turn can be easy to block if you move after some of your opponent's ships so, moving first at PS 1 assure you that you'll be able to use the maneuver.