so ive got a local tournament coming and the list I will be running is

kath scarlet-mangler cannon, VI, recon spec

4xacademy pilots

this leaves six points do I bump an AP to howl runner or is EU a must for the firespray?

My thoughts; with VI, why have it unless you want to have the option to reposition after seeing where everyone else ends up? EU for me.

Drop VI for Calculation and upgrade to Howl.

Unfortunately I don't own calculation

Personally i put EU on my large ships every time, but thats because i like manuverability. With that build though i think howlrunner would give you more bang for buck

You won't want Recon with EU unless you're running a PtL Firespray. You'll end up having the either-or problem. If you run a Scum Firespray with Recon, PtL, & EU then you can do both reliably.

Just my experience.

I'd need to agree with HarryFel's point about Recon Specialist and Engine Upgrade both fighting for the Firespray's action.

either is fine. all are good upgrades: howl for damage, EU for extra life and control.

IF you have Mangler, then you probably dont need calc. However, if you dont fear PS9, you can drop mangler for calc, and then have 10 points for howl and EU both.

Either RecSpec or EU is fine, but I strongly advise against using them together. VI with EU will let you arc-dodge some shots anyway.

Replace the RecSpec with Rebel Captive. The best way to take advantage of the stress that Mangler Kath hands out is to dish out even more stress. Anything that tries to take her on 1v1 won't be using an action for a long long time...

I would also suggest considering Outmaneuver over VI with those spare 2 points. It will give Kath an upgrade in offense without diminishing her maneuverability and will make her that much harder to ignore. PS 9 can be handy, but I find a lot of the PS8 ships you'd be facing take VI themselves these days to beat Soontir.

outmanoeuvre is interesting, unfortunately this will be my first competitive game so im not certain as to what the meta will be

outmanoeuvre is interesting, unfortunately this will be my first competitive game so im not certain as to what the meta will be

Outmaneuver is fantastic on a Firespray. With two arcs to choose from, you're almost guaranteed to have someone on the board that you've outmaneuvered.