I'm sat here racking my brains trying to think of a squad to fly at a tournament next month and this just popped in there.

How would you set this up?

I'm thinking it would have to have a big alpha strike so the A's would need missiles but that's as far as I've got.

How many A's? How many X's?

Would you set the X's up so they take all the heat off the A's or let the A's natural evasiveness do the job?

What missiles for the alpha strike?

Sure there are more questions and I don't know if it could work at all but lets give it a go!

A what?

If you want missiles on A's, prockets are the way to go

A what?

If you want missiles on A's, prockets are the way to go

It's from the books my friend, a quick Google search will tell you all you need to know!

As I recall from the Thrawn books, the a-wing slash was basically just a bunch of a-wings closing to point blank range on a capital ship, hitting it for as much damage as possible and then getting back out of range before the targets gunners could respond.

In game I would call several a-wings charging a cr-90 or raider, getting to range 1 and shooting, then getting out of range again as fast as possible an a-wing slash.

The whole "attack and bug out before they can shoot back" is not a tactic that miniature wargames model well. There us almost always an opportunity for the target to shoot back.

Well the pilot would need to wear a catheter, or find a good way to keep atmosphere while EVA...

The A-wing Slash: A line of X-wings approaches an Imperial ship, hiding the A-wings in their exhaust. The X-wings pull up at the last minute, the Imperial interception force moves to follow, and the hidden A-wings zoom forward and unload their missiles into the Imperial target. It's also a move for attacking capital ships, so it's really one for Epic.

Competitive? No, it relies on ordnance and you can't hide information. I have my doubts about it as an in-universe strategy too: it sounds more like Rule of Cool than a viable tactic. But it sounds fun thematically, so what can we do to match it with the game mechanics.

The next part is some theorising on how to do the A-wing Slash with the game's mechanics. I don't recommend it as a competitive tournament move, but I'm going to try and get as much impact out of it as possible.

Part 1: Load the missile tubes. The A-wing Slash involves a missile alpha strike from A-wings, so we're going to want ordnance. Canonically that's Concussion Missiles, but they're a bit, well... eh. If we want to get maximum impact out of our A-wings, we'll want Proton Rockets, which they make excellent use of. The cheapest way to do this is with the Prototype Pilot: Green Squadron Pilot gives you the ability to stick on the Opportunist EPT and gives you the option of PTL for maximum damage, although that means you're looking at a 26 or 29 point A-wing instead of a 20pt one. Personally I'd take the Prototypes because the money you'd spend upgrading them all you could get another Prototype and another five dice for, but you might decide you really want some EPTs for this.

Part 2: Hide the A-wings in your exhaust. To mechanically simulate this, we'll need Biggs: his Range 1 protection bubble can effectively simulate hiding the A-wings. The usual logical strategy with Biggs is to put him behind to maximise protection, but if you want a more accurate thematic fit put him in front. If we've got points (ie: doing this in Epic) to spare we could put in a Rookie X-wing or two in to complete the look, but Biggs is the only functional part.

Part 3: Approach the enemy target, A-wings "hidden" in Biggs' exhaust. Pick the target of your A-wing slash, which, thematically speaking, is likely either a Raider-class Corvette or a VT-49 Decimator. You'll want to go at fairly high speed or the X-wings may be destroyed before you reach the target. If your target is a Raider, come at it from the side to avoid being splatted and get around Reinforce, if it's a VT-49 or Lambda, approach from the front.

Part 4: The Slash! Try to block your target with your X-wings. (Obviously if you're slashing a Raider trying to block it is not the brightest idea). Biggs either drops back to protect the A-wings from being killed before they can shoot or blocks: that's a call you've got to make yourself. The A-wings focus and unload their proton rockets, sinking countless dice into a low agility ship. Against a Raider this will almost definitely break through to the hull, and Hull damage is much harder for it to regen than shields.

Not recommended for a game you're set on winning and almost certainly at its most effective in Epic against a Raider, but it sounds like fun to try and it'd be an awesome moment if you pulled it off and crippled a Raider section with it.

I could see this as an armada technique but very hard to simulate in x-wing

How'd you do it in Armada? Have a bunch of X-wings fly into the enemy fighters to lock them into engagements, then have the A-wings go around (or through if you can, not too familiar with Armada) to hit the capital ships?

I'm not sure A-wings are very effective as capital ship attackers in Armada, it'd be something you'd do with Luke or Y-wings.

Biggs is definitely the best pilot to simulate it with, but even if you just take two X-Wings with two A-Wings behind them the A-Wings can target lock (from Range 3) while the X-Wings, being closer and more powerful, take the brunt of the opening fire. Then the X's block the enemy in while the A's come forward and focus on the next round to deliver their payload.

Two Rookie Pilots and two Prototype Pilots with Proton Rockets leaves 18 points to play with. Additions that could help:

- Garven Dreis, to hand out a Focus,

- Green Squadron Pilots with Push the Limit,

- Intimidation, either on Greens, Arvel Crynyd or a Red with R2-D6,

- Cluster Missiles, especially on Greens with Push and Intimidation.

The biggest danger is actually an enemy with lower PS blocking you and preventing your A-Wings from focusing, so I'd keep the X-Wings as low as possible (Rookies) while the A-Wings are Greens with Push the Limit and Proton Rockets. The last 8 points would either be R2-D2 and R5-P9 for the X's or various upgrades or unique pilots for the A's.

Edit: In Armada, you'd definitely want the A-Wings engaged while the X-Wings attack ships; the game is too large-scale to track something as minor as distracting point-defense gunners for a second or two. However, in large dogfights it will be important to engage the enemy as efficiently as possible with your squadrons.

If you keep your fighters spread out so that it is difficult for your opponent to engage multiple squadrons, they will have to choose between hitting the X-Wings (who have powerful battery attacks with Bomber, but are also tough and have good Anti-Squadron dice) or the A-Wings (who have the speed to leap over enemy squadrons and engage the trailing Bombers, but who also have Counter). So X-Wings in the lead with A-Wings trailing could be effective against large enemy fighter complements by keeping the A-Wings unengaged as long as possible to preserve their speed advantage.

The separation is crucial, though; if the enemy can engage both X- and A-Wings with a single squadron, they won't trigger the A-Wing's "Counter" because of the X-Wing's "Escort", but will still tie down (no pun intended) your faster squadrons which could have otherwise engaged their "Bomber" squadrons.

X/A ATTACK!

100 points

PILOTS

Prototype Pilot (15) x 3
A-Wing (17), Chardaan Refit (-2)

Jake Farrell (30)
A-Wing (24), Proton Rockets (3), Calculation (1), Autothrusters (2)

Red Squadron Pilot (25)
X-Wing (23), Flechette Torpedoes (2)

This is my suggestion. Jake is your trump card.

So with the 3 proto pilots your going to swarm something (another formation, if your against a two ship meta have them all focus on one.) Make sure turns 1 and 2 they spear head out in in front. also make sure they stay in formation.

Jake is going to hang back a little until the protos have engaged/are engaged. Then he sweeps in and fires his rockets at range one, and hopefully whatever your targeting is dead by this point.

The X-wing runs interference, basically trying to eliminate/destroy/ram whatever comes after jake.

then take whatevers left on the field and mop up whats left!

I realize their are many variations. You could take 2 proto A-wings with proton rockets, but I like having an extra ship on the board, even if I would get 4 extra total attack dice for one turn by running protos on both, having 6 attack dice per turn can add up damage fast.

A-Wing Slash:

The TIE Interceptor jinked sensuously as it raced through the blackness of space, the A-Wing tight on its tail. As the solar panels of the Interceptor reflected the harsh light of the local star, the A-Wing ran its sensors over the surface, taking in every curve and angle as it acquired a target lock, the TIE fixed firmly in its computer. As the red beams of the A-Wing's lasers flew past the Interceptor, the TIE spun through the black with the grace of a ballerina, corkscrewing wildly as it evaded them.

You get the idea, right?

A-Wing Slash:

The TIE Interceptor jinked sensuously as it raced through the blackness of space, the A-Wing tight on its tail. As the solar panels of the Interceptor reflected the harsh light of the local star, the A-Wing ran its sensors over the surface, taking in every curve and angle as it acquired a target lock, the TIE fixed firmly in its computer. As the red beams of the A-Wing's lasers flew past the Interceptor, the TIE spun through the black with the grace of a ballerina, corkscrewing wildly as it evaded them.

You get the idea, right?

This belongs in the erotic subforum

Functionally impossible with the rules as is (ships can't block line of site, non-huge ships don't count as obstructions/obstacles)

Could work in epic with 4 xwings, 4 awings and a transport though.

Transport with Repair Droid, Toryn Farr, EM Emitter, Backup Shield, Shield Projector, Bright Hope and Combat Retrofit

4 rookies

4 prototypes with prockets

Leaves you with 73 points to upgrade fighters or add more stuff.

Opponent pretty much has no choice but to hammer on the transport, which has 15 health and several regen options. Keep the fighters going SLOW behind it, then roar out and drop at least 20 attack dice from Prockets on an enemy capital ship. That will almost certainly cripple the aft section of a raider, and if the x-wings join in can put a lot of hurt on the fore as well.

A what?

If you want missiles on A's, prockets are the way to go

It's from the books my friend, a quick Google search will tell you all you need to know!

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-s_Lb6h2CVBg/VEFKerILlYI/AAAAAAAAFYY/rHkuUQgwMCU/s1600/1286.jpg

Part 2: Hide the A-wings in your exhaust. To mechanically simulate this, we'll need Biggs: his Range 1 protection bubble can effectively simulate hiding the A-wings. The usual logical strategy with Biggs is to put him behind to maximise protection, but if you want a more accurate thematic fit put him in front. If we've got points (ie: doing this in Epic) to spare we could put in a Rookie X-wing or two in to complete the look, but Biggs is the only functional part.

Nice thematic representation, TIE Pilot! To this Part 2 I think I'd add Luke & Jek with Draw Their Fire, or at least a Red Sqd Pilot with R2-D6 & Draw Their Fire. It adds visually to the X-wing screen while helping keep Biggs alive so he can continue to "screen" the A-wings--in essence absorbing the damage on all your x-wings & keeping the a-wings safe, which is what the A-wing Slash is about!

Very cool brainstorming, everyone. I dig this kind of stuff.

Thematically, TIE Pilot has done a great job.

I threw some of it into a list builder.

http://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Rebel%20Alliance&d=v3!s!4:-1,-1:-1:-1:;31:18,73:-1:-1:;31:18,73:-1:-1:;31:18,73:-1:-1:

You could also trade one of the A-Wings for a Red Squadron X-Wing with R2-D6 and Draw Their Fire if you were concerned about losing the A-Wings before delivery. The nice thing about everything being 25 points is that it is sort of modular. Plug-and-play something else in as you wish.

http://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Rebel%20Alliance&d=v3!s!4:-1,-1:-1:-1:;31:18,73:-1:-1:;31:18,73:-1:-1:;2:-1,70,30:-1:-1:

Another variant worth exploring would swap the Proton Rockets for Cluster Missiles; more dice, but perhaps less overall damage, depending on how you roll. This has the advantage of the ordnance not being restricted to Range 1; when moving at PS3, that can sometimes be a challenge.

http://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Rebel%20Alliance&d=v3!s!4:-1,-1:-1:-1:;31:18,14:-1:-1:;31:18,14:-1:-1:;2:-1,-1:-1:-1:

By the "letter" of the maneuver, Biggs should be in front; however, for the purposes of trying to translate it on to the table, I would park him right behind the A-Wings.

Bring a list with 4 X-Wings. Fly them all in a single row towards the enemy. When you get to range 1, put 5 Prototype Pilots on the table right behind your X-Wings and yell "Suprise! They were there the whole time!"

If you want a real list, 5 Prototypes with Prockets is considered a viable list, and you could call that an A-Wing slash. You won't be able to build anything super-competitive that involves X-Wings and A-Wings, just an example of how literary mechanics don't always translate into the game.

If anyone's got any other tactics from lore I'll love to have a crack at adapting more of them.

Thanks guys really appreciate the help with this.

I like the look of SeaRaptors 2nd list.

Good posts. I played a 3 A-Wing aces with Proton Rockets. The key is not get jammed and only fire the Prockets if you have target lock. Leaving a Decimator with only one hull after one volley is a bit on the fun side. Never found A-Wings great on damage after the Prockets but survivors.

Thanks guys really appreciate the help with this.

I like the look of SeaRaptors 2nd list.

Try it out and let us know how it goes. Part of me agrees with TVboy in that it likely won't be all that great, but I've seen people do some pretty entertaining things with lists that I just can't figure out.

The fact that everyone thinks it's a crazy move means nobody'll expect you to do it, which can be an advantage in of itself. Some squads work best when only one person is playing them.

Man, this would be fun to lay into a Raider...

============
A-wing Slash
============
Epic Maneuvers

203 points

Pilots
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Luke Skywalker [R2-D2, Draw Their Fire, Shield Upgrade] (37)
Jek Porkins [R5-P9, Draw Their Fire, Shield Upgrade] (34)
Biggs Darklighter [R2-F2, Shield Upgrade] (32)

Green Squadron Pilot [Proton Rockets, Push the Limit] (25) x 4

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View: http://xwing-builder.co.uk/view/240231/a-wing-slash
Tweak: http://xwing-builder.co.uk/build/240231

Add flavor to fill to 300 points - Transport, more X's & A's, whatever.

Thematic games sound like so much fun. I'd love for FFG to release a campaign expansion sometime in the future.

A maneuver like this would actually fit into an epic game far better, either to throw a huge volley of Assault Missiles at an oncoming swarm,or to flip a boatload of Proton Rockets at a big target (like the Raider). The trouble is that getting that many A-Wings into Range 1 of a Raider without getting all blocked up and shot to pieces would be a challenge.

That's the point of the X-wings. The hard part of the maneuver is getting the A-wings to Range 1 after the Raider moves without them getting splatted, especially as the Raider'll be actively trying to splat them. Cracken or the Dodonna's Pride could potentially be useful here, as could the GR-75.