Rebel z-95s?

By period3, in X-Wing

Do you use Rebel Z-95s? When they came out, they were continually emphasized as a missile carrier, and not a dogfighter. I've never seen them used as a missile carrier -- only as a dogfighter. It doesn't seem like a very good dogfighter though compared to the tie fighter

Is the only real role for this ship as a filler? the left overs after you've taken 4 B-wings?

Blount with Assault missiles +deadeye is absolutely bonkers good for epic

I was once playing a 2v2 with 2 guys, one put ion missiles on a bandit because he had enough points for it. Half-way through the game, my fire-spray was 1 hit away, and I had to take on his z95 that was 3 hits away. I figure if I just stayed at range 3 and sniped him I could win. At range 3 he fired his ion missiles, getting rid of my range bonus. I had spent my focus on attack (forgetting about the missiles). He rolled 2 hits and I rolled 1 evade. My fire-spray just blew up. They got 2nd or 3rd place I think, and only used the missiles that round. Funny story.

I run Cracken with Cluster Missiles and 2 talas with missile of choice frequently. If done right you can get all three missiles off in the same round with a TL+F on the talas. Going to try it with Blount and Adv HM instead of a 1 Tala next time I get a chance to play. I personally love Zs,seem much more durable than a tie when you have a focus for defense.

Z-95s as missile carriers can be pretty powerful, and give out an almighty alpha strike if properly arrayed. That's really important given the current two-ship meta - the ability to spam massive damage in a single round can kill large base PWTs. Check out this thread for some interesting Z-95 ordnance discussion.

Personally, I'm looking forward to grabbing a K Wing on Thursday so that I can try out this list:

Horton Salm w. TLT

Airen Cracken w. Squad Leader

3x Bandit w. Concussion Missiles

Horton's TLT strips tokens from a Soontir or Vader, or chips away at Corran, Cracken passes actions to the other Z-95s, and the Z's shred any large base ship my opponent might bring.

Z-95 definitely has a role, it's one of my favourite ships. :)

[EDIT]Oh, and just wait until XX-23 Tracers come out in wave 8. Blount with Tracers backed up by 5 concussion missile wielding Z-95s will definitely be a thing - a very scary thing too! :D

Edited by MacchuWA

I don't have any Z's, but getting 1 or 2 this week. With wave7 and adv homing missiles and Blount's ability even if he misses he deals a face up damage card. The only issue is the range 2 on advance homies. But definitely worth the risk of dealing a face up damage to Han, Dash or a Decimator.

I've used Z-95s almost non-stop since I started playing competitively in December 2014. I LOVE a swarm of them. It's my favorite ship. They don't seem as good as the Tie Fighters because they are usually ran with Howlrunner. Sure, they are less agile than Ties, but they are more durable, and thus more pesky. GO Zs!

I've had relatively good success running 6 Bandits alongside Tarn Mison. Lots of bodies means lots of blocking options, and the weight of the dice is enough to do some serious damage. The Z's dial isn't great but it is a lot better than most people give it credit for, IMO. They're good fillers but they're even better in numbers.

I haven't been able to explore Zs as ordnance carriers, but a friend was able to play Gersun's Head Trauma list at the Tacoma regionals this year and he had nothing but good things to say about how he flew it. He attended our local regional with the same list but I didn't get a chance to play him. It would have been an awesome sight to see a dozen Z-95s duking it out on the table.

The Z-95 is one of the most points efficient ships in the game. It doesn't quite have the mobility of the TIE, but is a tiny bit more survivable. The Z-95 is a lot of what makes Fat Han viable. Saying it's "just" filler is doing a bit of disservice to filler. You're eating pasta for the gravy*, but the noodles are the "filler" that makes the dish work.

As far as Z-95s being missile carriers, they can do that roll really well, but you have to build around it. MOV means that- in a tournament- you want at least 1 highly defensive points sink, and that tends to argue against missile builds.

Added to that: missiles tend to be a very situational, so using them at all can be a mistake. Bring an assault missile against a swarm and you're golden. Bring it against a 2 ship list and... You didn't waste

5 points, but you probably could have spent them better. Cluster missiles have the opposite situation.

So that's why people shy away from missiles, thought they can be very powerful, and incredibly effective.

*Yes. Gravy. Red gravy, obviously, not brown gravy. Calling it "gravy" instead of "sauce" is what happens when your ancestors are from southern Italy.

I love flying 4z with Tarn, and a stress bot, Btl ywing

Good times are to be had

I've had relatively good success running 6 Bandits alongside Tarn Mison. Lots of bodies means lots of blocking options, and the weight of the dice is enough to do some serious damage. The Z's dial isn't great but it is a lot better than most people give it credit for, IMO. They're good fillers but they're even better in numbers.

Yeah, the Tarnation build was what won me a tourney. It's a great swarm build. Jake is good with them as well. I imagine Miranda will be good as well.

I wish the Zs had a 1 green bank like the X-Wings; other than that they are great for me.

The Z-95 is one of the most points efficient ships in the game. It doesn't quite have the mobility of the TIE, but is a tiny bit more survivable. The Z-95 is a lot of what makes Fat Han viable. Saying it's "just" filler is doing a bit of disservice to filler. You're eating pasta for the gravy*, but the noodles are the "filler" that makes the dish work.

I understand the analogy but I have to disagree. I love pasta and would eat it sauceless... But I digress...

The Z-95 is a great ship, and a filler it may be, it still can do damage. The same can be said for Academy TIEs, everyone forgets those guys may have been first in their class. I had an Academy tie drop the first volley and put the finishing touches on a fat han last game. He for sure got promoted to Black Squadron. Z's have ruffled my feathers a few times, I'd never count them out.

The Z-95 is a great ship, and a filler it may be, it still can do damage. The same can be said for Academy TIEs, everyone forgets those guys may have been first in their class. I had an Academy tie drop the first volley and put the finishing touches on a fat han last game. He for sure got promoted to Black Squadron. Z's have ruffled my feathers a few times, I'd never count them out.

The TIE swarm is still good, though.

The Z-95 is as good 1 on 1. The biggest difference is the lack of a Z-95 Howlrunner that can buff an entire Z-95 swarm. Such a ship would be awesome, but maybe a bit disgusting. :)

Other than Blount's missile abilities and Cracken's shenanigans, I've never had much luck with Z-95s as a filler. If I have 12-14 points left over, I seem to have better luck buying additional upgrades or ordnance.

I've had some luck with Z-swarms or lists built around Z-95s, but never with them tacked-on to a list.

Blount with Assault missiles +deadeye is absolutely bonkers good for epic

Is it better than VI? I have seen Blount (and N'dru for that matter) explode before his missile shot at PS7, but PS9 improves his odds of a TL and allows him to fire before a greater range of opponents.

I plan to sneak Blount into Rebel lists as much as possible going forward. Not only can he dish out a free crit with the new missile, but if I want to beat Soontir and IG's and the like, he is an easy way to strip those Stealth Devices 100% guaranteed. I think for the cost, a free crit and a little added assurance against Stealth pilots is worth it.

I don't use Frito banditos enough but I should, I think they're superior to the TIE fighter and every time I use them I get good mileage out of them. The 1 straight makes them good blockers, I've pinned a firespray to the same spot for three turns with one.

Blount is only a 'free' crit if you've managed to land

  1. a target lock,
  2. get the target in arc,
  3. at precisely range 2.

This on a PS7 (9 with VI, granted) ship with no repositional abilities. Soontir can dance Dash's donut hole; Blounts eighty degree arc is nothing to him, and Han is little more scared himself.

I think I'll wait till Tracers are out - let Blount get the shot 'at all'; leave it to fanned out Z95s to deliver the pain-shots.

While Z-95 Headhunter is the cheapest missile carrier options they serve much better as a 12 point filler ship instead of a 15 point missile delivery ship. Take two of those for 24-26 points and they serve as the perfect escort to your 70 point flying fortress Han solo ship.

But if you were hinting on how they are not a swarm ship much like the TIE-fighter is I would agree with you that TIE Fighters make better Swarms than Headhunters.

I'm not a fan of the z-95. I have three for my fat Han. All they do is serve as a distraction for a couple of turns, and are torn to shreds. Not that that isn't useful, but I'm trying to figure out something to replace them with that is a little more durable.

I use the scum equivalent for epic. The last game that I played, they were ignored and managed to sneak up on a Raider to cripple its forward section. Cheap and expendable meat shields :)

Give me Headhunters over an X-wing any day,granted they can be a little glass-hammer like,but with basically two for every one X-Wing,you have the numbers on your side. I have six of them at the moment,with plans for at least another two.

A bunch of us think the Z is the best ship in the game.

Every wave I buy a bunch of ships- and go back to lists with Zs.

Currently:

Cracken VI, hull, and Cluster

Blount VI, hull, and Ion Pulse

3x Tala w/PRockets

2 ship lists don't scare me. Other swarms are tougher.

I would just fly A wings.