The Punisher TIE, really named TIE Interdictor, is a model designed for the strategy game "Galactic Battlegrounds" so it's design does not have a highly developed logical, and is really unoriginal. It's just a simplistic rehash of the TIE Bomber.

FFG could have launched the most acclaimed and popular model, XG-1 Assault Gunboat, instead of a marginal model, only seen in a videogame.

I don't understand how a TIE Bomber with extra pods is unoriginal, but a Lambda with extra wings isn't.

Side missile pods.

Different engine configuration.

Different laser/ion configuration.

Wings at a different angle.

Different colour giving it a more armoured appearance.

Different cockpit shape.

The TIE Interdictor / Punisher is literally only a bomber with a load more bomb pods, for better or worse.

In the sense that the Lambda is a Space-Van, the Gunboat is a mini-van

Hmmm... I guess I can accept that particular analogy... *narrows eyes*

...so long as it is a gun and missile-filled mini van of DEATH.

I'm out of likes. darn.

Since OP set the tone, I'll follow it. Gunboat is ugly, looks like something a bored 6th grader in the 90s doodled over a picture of a Lambda Shuttle. "Ooh I'll put missile pods here, and more fins here, and some lasers here, and some cool red stripes on the wings..."

Ooh, it's a Lambda with moar wings and moar dakka glued on, so much awesome, such grimdark coolness.

I don't understand how people can love the Assault Gunboat (even the name completely lacks creativity) and hate the K-Wing and Interdictor.

Since OP set the tone, I'll follow it. Gunboat is ugly, looks like something a bored 6th grader in the 90s doodled over a picture of a Lambda Shuttle.

Ooh, it's a Lambda with moar wings and moar dakka glued on, so much awesome, such grimdark coolness.

I don't understand how people can love the Assault Gunboat (even the name completely lacks creativity) and hate the K-Wing and Interdictor.

Fairly sure I just explained my reasons. They are pretty solid.

Since OP set the tone, I'll follow it.

This seems appropriate.

The TIE Avenger and Assault Gunboat are definitely the two I am looking forward to the most.

To me both ships represent a time period of Star Wars cultural supremacy, the pre-prequel area where lucasarts could do no wrong.

GBG doesn't do this.

So your argument is that there is a finite time period where ships can be drawn from aiming the game at a market of those living in nostalgia of that time probably a time defined by when they personally grew up and invested in the culture,

I disagree, the miniatures game adds to that cultural narrative today in the same way that any of those games listed did in their time, arguing against the inclusion of a ship because it isn't sufficiently supported by the lore is the equivalent of a playtester for rebellion arguing against including a tie defender because it wasn't in the movies or the canon they were familiar with in the 80's.

I've more or less given up on the avenger, as I can't find a place for it in terms of gameplay. I'd like to see it almost to the same level of the XG-1 but cant' justify it.

With the SLAM entering the game i'd expect to see the rarer missile boat enter play, unless the XG-1 absorbs the folio of the missile boat (maybe an XG-2 Assault / Missileboat hybrid?)

I'd like to also point out that the YT2400 comes from the same golden age of EU star wars as the Defender, XG-1, HWK290 and Phantom above.

I think FFG thinks gameplay first, then draws from the universe to match. Not the other way around.

So, if FFG says "the imps need a heavy bomber", the Tie Punisher is the best fit, as the scimitar and missile are both in a similar class to the Tie Bomber (same atk, same def, similar hp), and the gunboat isn't a bomber (it is heavy assault like X-wing).

That's fair, and makes sense.

Gives me hope that the gunboat will appear later.

Don't forget the Assault Gunboat was first mentioned as far back as around 1987 or 1988. It wasn't until X-Wing it was given form. The Gunboat is an assault ship and a bomber, it was considered the Imperial equal of a B-Wing in the old X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

Of course, if you think this bad boy looks like a mini van, then I dread to think what your courier's uniforms are like

now THAT is a pretty ship. Or a pretty image at least.

That's fair, and makes sense.

Gives me hope that the gunboat will appear later.

To me, the Tie Interdictor will always be better than the Gunboat and Missile Boat (although the Gunboat isn't ugly, I just don't like it), because I remember playing GBG (I still play it to this day), therefore, to see a nod to one of my favorite SW games of all time (maybe even favorite games in general) really means something to me.

That's fair, and makes sense.

Gives me hope that the gunboat will appear later.

To me, the Tie Interdictor will always be better than the Gunboat and Missile Boat (although the Gunboat isn't ugly, I just don't like it), because I remember playing GBG (I still play it to this day), therefore, to see a nod to one of my favorite SW games of all time (maybe even favorite games in general) really means something to me.

You just explained to me why I like the gunboat just so much. I was always a heuge fan of the x-wing series of games, where the gunboat was quite prevalent.

Don't forget the Assault Gunboat was first mentioned as far back as around 1987 or 1988. It wasn't until X-Wing it was given form. The Gunboat is an assault ship and a bomber, it was considered the Imperial equal of a B-Wing in the old X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

I thought that was the Skipray Blastboat?

You just explained to me why I like the gunboat just so much. I was always a heuge fan of the x-wing series of games, where the gunboat was quite prevalent.

I loved the development arc and backstory the XG-1 was given throughout the X-Wing games.

The Rebels were using their hyperdrive capable ships to perform hit-and-fade operations on Imperial installations, supply lines and targets of opportunity. The Imperials struggled to cope because the TIE series (at the time) had such a limited range - they needed to operate from a base of operations - a space station or a capital ship.

The XG-1 changed all that. The Imperials were capable of mounting their own hit-and-run raids and long range operations without needing capital ship support. Suddenly the Imperials started using the Rebel's own tactics against them.

I remember the first time I saw these bad boys turn up in the campaign. I vividly remember thinking "what the hell is that?" then "Oh sh-" as missiles started flying everywhere. You could joust against TIEs in an X-Wing, not so against these bad boys.

That and at one point, when TIE Bombers stopped being things that you had to kill for your VIP to survive, when bombers and gunboats started missile spamming you the game really changed for the harder.

Of course.... I am also a DX9 fanboy.

Don't forget the Assault Gunboat was first mentioned as far back as around 1987 or 1988. It wasn't until X-Wing it was given form. The Gunboat is an assault ship and a bomber, it was considered the Imperial equal of a B-Wing in the old X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

I thought that was the Skipray Blastboat?

Skipray actually had a drawing for it at the time, I think that was in the Imperial Sourcebook. If not sometime around there, 89 or 90 it happened. Well before the Gunboat design in X-Wing came along. The Assault Gunboat was mentioned in the RPG game, it wasn't called an XG-1 I think until X-Wing or even have a design other than just mentioned by name.

Don't forget the Assault Gunboat was first mentioned as far back as around 1987 or 1988. It wasn't until X-Wing it was given form. The Gunboat is an assault ship and a bomber, it was considered the Imperial equal of a B-Wing in the old X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

I thought that was the Skipray Blastboat?

Skipray actually had a drawing for it at the time, I think that was in the Imperial Sourcebook. If not sometime around there, 89 or 90 it happened. Well before the Gunboat design in X-Wing came along. The Assault Gunboat was mentioned in the RPG game, it wasn't called an XG-1 I think until X-Wing or even have a design other than just mentioned by name.

Huh. I'd love to see the source for this, not for any attempt to disprove you, rather to show an alternative origin to a favourite ship of mine - for people to stop saying "bleh it was only in the games".

You know what bugs me most about the Punisher? One more pod and they could have called it the TIE Revolver.

I too think the Punisher looks a bit silly, and would have loved the Gunboat.

But, maybe they needed a TIE variant so they could include the Twin Ion Engine upgrade card that only applies to TIE models?

May be, may be.

Disagree - I think that the Punisher is uber sexy. Native boost, sensor slot and all those munitions slots? Three shields and six hull? Most expensive pilot is 27 points?

Sorry, I am all about that bass and that ship is one beautiful big girl.

Good points. Except the one about sexyness. I only see lack of orginality.

"Only seen in a videogame"

Couldn't you level the exact same complaint against the Assault Gunboat not to mention a plethora of other ships in the game? the moldy crow hardly has a huge list of apperances

Moldy Crow never was one of my favourites. Its design is directly related to game graphics technology in the 90's. Enormous polygons with textures, and copy paste engines, an easy and simplistic design. Although the ship has a certain charm, years later, like a piece of an old space tecnology.

Alpha-class Xg-1 Star Wing aka "Assault Gunboat", yes, mainly appeared in the X-Wing / TIE Fighter videogame series, but we were fighting them and piloting them (TIE Fighter, 1994) for more than six years and beyond as we continue playing these games. As starfighter is little more than a well armed missile platform, but slow and poorly armored. I think its not a very good fighter, but it remains in our memory with tons of explosive fun.

Gunboats are extremely ugly IMO, would much rather have the Interdictor.

You deserve ejection from Empire, lol.

If FFG had made the expansion but changed the miniature into a Re-paint of the TIE/sa Bomber, even one with just two stripes as a difference, I would have been ecstatic.

This thing.... though......

Loaded up, even with extra munitions, it can easily become a heavy point-sink (pun intended )

And it doesn´t have barrel roll! (admittedly that would look hillarious! )

And it doesn´t have barrel roll! (admittedly that would look hillarious! )

I'm amused by the idea of it barrel rolling, firing off missiles from each of it's pods as it does so...