I've been flying a lot of warthogs lately--Y-wings with Ion Cannon Turret and the BTL-A4 title. They're cheap, tough, nasty little ships that block effectively, screw up formations with the occasional ion shots, and roll so many red dice that they can get a point or two of damage through to practically anything.
Their major flaw, though, is that they're terrible finishers. Anything with a better dial (that is, nearly everything), access to either barrel roll or boost (nearly everything), and better PS (again, basically everything that isn't a swarm) can outfly them. So I've been noodling around, trying to figure out what to fly with them. It needs to be something that presents such an unappealing target that opponents feel obliged to kill the warthogs first. And that's a challenge because warthogs are, as advertised above, both cheap and tough. No one wants to dig through 8 hit points for 23 lousy points, especially if there's anything that looks sexier or more dangerous on the table.
So I started off thinking about a defensive Chewbacca. He's not an appealing target, and if he slow-plays his approach sufficiently, opponents will at least take some potshots at the Gold Squadron Pilots before they attempt to kill the Wookiee:
Gold Squadron Pilot (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Gold Squadron Pilot (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Chewbacca (42)
Predator (3)
Gunner (5)
C-3PO (3)
Millennium Falcon (1)
Total: 100
But the prevailing logic against "Han Shot First"-style lists these days is to kill the Falcon while you can, so that may not fit my criterion.
What if the escort ships are a slow-rolling B-wing and Tarn Mison, who no one ever wants to shoot?
Gold Squadron Pilot (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Gold Squadron Pilot (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Tarn Mison (23)
R7 Astromech (2)
Blue Squadron Pilot (22)
Heavy Laser Cannon (7)
Total: 100
I think this works better, but I'm not sure how much value the HLC adds. It gives me a reason to keep that ship back, slowrolling and trying to maintain the longest possible range, but it may be too much encouragement for my opponents to rush the back rank and take it out. I could swap the HLC out for Flechette Cannon + Tactician, for a control variant, but that's likely to draw even more ire from my opponent.
Both of those builds also have a weakness to Whisper, Fel, or both. The usual pieces for killing them aren't good fits, because (e.g.) Corran + VI + Engine Upgrade has a crunchy shell but is worth so many points that opponents will chase him anyway. But maybe a Scum list with Xizor will work--nobody wants to shoot Xizor while his escorts are around, right?
Syndicate Thug (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Syndicate Thug (18)
Ion Cannon Turret (5)
BTL-A4 Y-Wing (0)
Binayre Pirate (12)
Feedback Array (2)
Prince Xizor (31)
Veteran Instincts (1)
Advanced Sensors (3)
"Hot Shot" Blaster (3)
Virago (1)
Total: 99
That has a bug-zapper, two warthogs (which in Scum I think should be called honey badgers, although it's not catching on), PS9 Xizor, and an initiative bid. I could swap out that Xizor with VI + Fire Control System + Inertial Dampeners + Stealth Device, for even more disincentive (although slightly less utility against Whisper).
Thoughts? Comments? What did I miss, what looks great, and which of these is likely to work best on the table?
