I am, rather obviously, primarily an Imperial player. Squints are my favorite class of ship and I have been a proponent of the Defender since day one. Despite this, when building lists I find myself returning again and again to Wes Janson, the most interesting pilot in the game.

Wes's ability to remove "1 focus, evade, or blue target lock token from the defender" after his attack is beautifully designed. It is powerful, but not as overwhelmingly so as, for example, Keyan Farlander. It does not make Wes a one man wrecking machine, but instead softens up the target for his allies. This is both perfectly thematic and incredibly fun.

Drawing on the lore, it makes a lot sense that Wes helps his squadmates out. In Rogue Squadron he was always the consumate wingman, flying to aid his squadmates instead of claiming the glory. His power captures this, allowing him to set up shots for more powerful allies (Wedge, Corran, Keyan). He was later reassigned as a flight instructor and then veteran aid to Wraith Squadron. In this role, we can imagine his power representing the advice and intel he provides the less skilled pilots in the squadron.

Mechanically, Wes provides some relatively rare squad synergy. Each of his attacks simultaneously a.) functions as a strong 3+ dice attack and b.) amplifies the effect of all later attacks. Other ships provide similar synergy, of course, but Wes's ability to strip tokens feels more fun that Garven's ability to pass around an extra focus.

Wes's greatest triumphs, of course, occur in tandem with Opportunist. His ability to set up a target for multiple 4-dice attacks is incredible, especially in the age of Fat Falcons. In the three person Rebel ship thread, Wes seems to almost single handedly make these builds competetive.

Consider Red Squadron

Wes Janson + VI

Wedge Antilles + R2 + Opportunist

Luke Skywalker + R2-D2 + Opportunist

or Training Run

Wes Janson + Predator

Keyan Farlander + Opportunist + Advanced Sensors

Ibitsam + Opportunist

I've also begun to wonder some other uses for his ability:

Wes and the Greenhorns

Wes Janson + Engine Upgrade + Predator + R4-D6

Green Squadron Pilot + Chardaan Refit + Opportunist

Green Squadron Pilot + Chardaan Refit + Opportunist

Green Squadron Pilot + Chardaan Refit + Opportunist

These lists are just scratching the surface. Even without Opportunist, Wes is a force multiplier. He can even, we so often forget, shut down enemy ordinance by removing their target locks. I have played a game where Wes failed to earn his points and find myself wishing that the Imperials had more ships that play as nicely with others as Major Janson.

How do you usually use Wes? What combos have I missed? What are some ways to move him beyond elite three ship builds?

I agree with you he shows that while the x wing isn't the best ship it has Wes , Wedge, Luke,Biggs and so on that have the best pilot ability's.

Wes is a surprisingly good support piece, if an expensive one. I don't think I'd give him anything but Swarm Tactics.

I've run Wes + VI, Luke + Draw Their Fire + R2-D2, and 3x Bandits. It was fun and worked fine, but didn't really grab me. People often shot at Luke first, which meant DTF was wasted and R2-D2's movement restriction was inconvenient. What I'd like to do next is try the same list, but with Luke + Predator + R5-P9; for my money that's an even nastier combo, which means your opponent still has to target him early--but he's much better equipped to be reasonably durable while contributing more on offense, and therefore actually sets Wes up for the endgame more effectively.

Wes, R3-A2 (or Flechettes), VI

He can set up for other ships and it only costs 3 points in upgrades.

Edit: oh yes, most importantly, prevents Phantom recloak.

Wes VI

Corran VI

Wedge Opportunist r2

I agree with everything you've said. Wes Janson is an amazing pilot. Personally, VI seems like a must on him to me. This way, he can strip tokens before they can be used to attack his squadmates.

Um... On second thought, have you read Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor?

I think that's where flechette torps originally came from.

Try pairing Wes with Jan and Farlander together. Give Farlander a HLC and oppertunist, then buff him with Jan. Pretty fun!

Try pairing Wes with Jan and Farlander together. Give Farlander a HLC and oppertunist, then buff him with Jan. Pretty fun!

I've been running Ibby with Opportunist and an HLC in this list. Very effective.

I've run Wes + VI, Luke + Draw Their Fire + R2-D2, and 3x Bandits. It was fun and worked fine, but didn't really grab me. People often shot at Luke first, which meant DTF was wasted and R2-D2's movement restriction was inconvenient. What I'd like to do next is try the same list, but with Luke + Predator + R5-P9; for my money that's an even nastier combo, which means your opponent still has to target him early--but he's much better equipped to be reasonably durable while contributing more on offense, and therefore actually sets Wes up for the endgame more effectively.

Do we want to set up Wes for the end game? I love him, but the whole point of skill is to boost other players. Solo Wes is just an expensive PS8 X-Wing.

I might run this as Wes + Predator, Luke + R5D9, and 3 Bandits. Luke is still tough, but now Wes is doing extra damage (while setting up Luke) and hopefully drawing some heat to keep Luke around until the end. I dunno. Just shooting from the hip here.

Wes, R3-A2 (or Flechettes), VI

He can set up for other ships and it only costs 3 points in upgrades.

Edit: oh yes, most importantly, prevents Phantom recloak.

Yes, this is nasty. I have a hard time putting R3-A2 on anybody but Hobbie, but I do love that it lets Wes completely shut down a Phantom. Fortunately, they aren't popular in my meta so I haven't had to worry about them as much.

I agree with everything you've said. Wes Janson is an amazing pilot. Personally, VI seems like a must on him to me. This way, he can strip tokens before they can be used to attack his squadmates.

Um... On second thought, have you read Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor?

I think that's where flechette torps originally came from.

I have not. Should I? VI is great, but only really for Wedge. PS8 gets him over most of his squadmates and there are a lot of other great EPT.

Try pairing Wes with Jan and Farlander together. Give Farlander a HLC and oppertunist, then buff him with Jan. Pretty fun!

Love it on paper, but is it too one trick pony? Ie. How do you survive after they focus down Farlander? I guess I don't really trust Jan to earn back her points.

If you're running Wes 'n Wedge, you need to give Wes VI and Wedge Opportunist. The two of them together are just freaking nasty to run up against.

If you think you're up against Phantoms, give each of 'em an engine upgrade, so they can react to where the Phantoms will end up.

Just for fun, add R5P9 to Wes, and run Garvin along with the pack. The reason why is left as an exercise.