Hi,

So I am building a Xizor list and I have (optimally) 1 point left to use on an elite pilot talent, but I am finding it a difficult choice, and have little luck finding other posts dealing with this topic, so here goes:

In this list Xixor is the damage dealer (without virago, but with "back-up"= other friendly ships health to burn), so I am not (too much) concerned about him being a glass-cannon.

Ofcourse the best elite pilot talent would be predator (3pt), but with only 1 point left, whats the best alternative? I have narrowed it down to the following choices:

Veteran Instincts: Always good, but I am flying in a major Palpmobile/Vader+Vi/Sontir meta, so..

Crack-shot: This might be interesting as the constant threat of +1 damage, might cause Vader/Sontir to burn off an evade/focus-token just to be on the +1 defence dice side of things, leaving them open to my non-aces, or to simply push a crit/hit result through. It is one-time use tho..

Lightning-reflexes: Cool ability and adds unpredictability, but again in my meta the advantage may be limited, also seems a waste on the StarViper, with its 3-segnors and very capable dial.

Wired: This might also be interesting as using the 3-segnors often leaves you stressed alot (without the virago+adv. sensors), and I did some calculations showing that for the StarViper, the 3 attack-dice damage potential goes from 1.5 hit (unfocused) to 1.875 hits pr shot, which is not to shabby, and with 3 evade-dice from 1.125 (unfocused) to 1.4 evade per attack, which is not bad if you are attacked multple times.

I could potentially use 2pt elite pilot talent instead, but I am having a hard time finde a good one to fit.

What are your thoughts? Have I missed a talent, or which is best in your mind?

Hi! Well, palp & aces often maxes out their list points, so a 98pt build should see you shiny. And seeing how you have two points for an ept, if you take VI, you only have to save one point from somewhere to let you choose initiative. Moving afterr vader and soontir is the best possible use of your ept, in my opinion.

Good luck, and make the prince proud!

Thanks! That is certainly a super-idea and very possible with my list!

It will not be of any use against Wader+VI, and the question is, if it is viable against a fully turtled-up Sontir with Palp-backup, probably not.. and thats what had me thinking about Wired.

However, with some clever blocking with my "minions", Sontir could be caught tokenless only with Palpatine backup..

I would take VI and try to get 99p squad to secure that you have chance to attack first with Xizor. I like Xizor with predator and advanced sensors, not big fan of fire-control system unless we are talking about IG88B, then it is pretty awesome!!

VI. It is a tie with Soontir and that is good for you.

I don't know what the rest of your list is, but I get the feeling that you might be going about list building in the wrong way. Don't misunderstand----you should always fly what you enjoy and try to have fun, but if you goal is to play in tournaments or to make a list that is strong against a variety of different lists, the first thing you should consider (after deciding what ships/pilots you really want to fly) is what things you should be taking to counter the things that you are most worried about.

For example, you mention palp shuttle + 2 aces as a possible concern----in that case, have you taken things in your list to help you deal with those threats or at least, make it really difficult for them to deal with your list? A cheap way to 'counter' Soontir for example would be to take a flechette torpedo on Xizor (this is good against a variety of different threats too, particularly aggressors and PTL dash who tend to be popular).

But of course, you might already have something elsewhere in your list for dealing with soontir so I could be off-base here. My point though is not to deal specifically with Fel, but to just have options in your list that give you an edge over those ships that typically give you the most problems when you've played against them

Thanks for all the answers, most votes seem to point towards VI and 99pt, interesting...

@blade_mercurial:

You are quite right, the full squad, as well as ALL possible threats should be assessed, and thanks for reminding me!

I have been playing this FANTASTIC game for 5 months now (and have already spent way to much money ;-D), participated in one Major European tournament, and 2 other regional tournaments, where I have ended up in the mid range, so I am not completely stupid when it comes to squad building (;-D), but of course still lots to learn.

I have mostly played Galactic Empire, but now it is time for Scum to shine ;-D

I have several options for the full list, one could be:

Xizor (31pt)

2x Thug with Twin-Laser-Turret+Unhinged Astromech (50pt)

Pirate+Assault missile (17pt)

Thought behind the list:

1) Love the StarViper and Xizor! (counter towards aces).

2) Thugs are the backbone, with lots of health, and reliable 360-arc damage (counter for large-ship/aces, potential threats are aces in range 1 donout hole, and swarms).

3) Pirate carries assault missile against swarms, blocker, and health for Xizor.

Xizor (31pt)

2x Thug with Twin-Laser-Turret+Unhinged Astromech (50pt)

Pirate+Assault missile (17pt)

Thought behind the list:

1) Love the StarViper and Xizor! (counter towards aces).

2) Thugs are the backbone, with lots of health, and reliable 360-arc damage (counter for large-ship/aces, potential threats are aces in range 1 donout hole, and swarms).

3) Pirate carries assault missile against swarms, blocker, and health for Xizor.

Cool. Personally, I would much rather put as many points into Xizor as possible. He's your closer and you absolutely never want him to die. Ever. That's how you'll win

Here are my thoughts:

2 twin lasers are powerful, but in my experience they are effective vs. low agility targets (and sometimes high agility, low hull targets, but only if you get 'lucky'). So that means they are best against things that cannot re-position well and against opponents who are unable to get out of their R2/3 kill zone (which is pretty big, admittedly). Therefore I find they are best against engineless pancakes and jousting ships of all kinds that do not have some form of damage mitigation (like sensor jammer, focus+evade stacking, regeneration, etc).

So with those two guys alongside Xizor, I would say you've got swarms and pancakes covered and therefore, the assault missile isn't really necessary. One thing you do not have anything to beat up on is high PS aces with autothrusters. Two twin lasers will not bother them, especially against good players who are patient enough to get the favourable exchanges (they can reposition whereas your y-wings cannot).

Another problem opponent for you will be 4 twin laser turrets. Or even 3. If your opponent brings more twin lasers than your 2, he will kill your y-wings faster and possibly win unless Xizor can carry the day.

My fave Xizor build at the moment is Virago, push the limit, advanced sensors & autothrusters = 40. It is extremely effective against low PS ships and turrets of all kinds because you have great repositional power, and when you want it, you have a nasty TL+focus attack. If I have points available, I try to add the flechette torpedo because without it, 1vs1, Xizor struggles against Soontir.

A lot of people like veteran instincts + FCS to give better chances against Soontir, but honestly, it doesn't actually give better chances unless you take the flechette torpedo. VI + FCS also makes you far more vulnerable to turrets and massed fire because you have no way of getting the hell out to safety when you need to (assuming the rest of your ships are dead). You are also vulnerable to blocking, whereas advanced sensors gives you some immunity to that (a common way for high PS aces to die).

So at the very least, I would suggest dropping the assault missiles to buff up Xizor. My preference would be:

Xizor w/ virago, PTL, sensors & autos = 40

2 thugs w/ TLT = 24 x 2

1 pirate = 12

100

But I realize not everyone sees the value in PTL on a viper, so this could also work:

Xizor w/ virago, VI, FCS, autos & flechette torp = 39

2 thugs w/ TLT = 24 x 2

1 pirate = 12

99

Of course you're not me, and you know your meta better, so go with what you feel works best!

A lot of people like veteran instincts + FCS to give better chances against Soontir, but honestly, it doesn't actually give better chances unless you take the flechette torpedo. VI + FCS also makes you far more vulnerable to turrets and massed fire because you have no way of getting the hell out to safety when you need to (assuming the rest of your ships are dead). You are also vulnerable to blocking, whereas advanced sensors gives you some immunity to that (a common way for high PS aces to die).

I like the VI, FCS, and Flechette Torp. build. It's not just vs. Soontir, but also BroBots and a host of other ships. I find it the best build for a damage dealer. I like FCS as it allows for using your action for repositioning or a Focus (wish he had Evade). I don't like PTL when I don't think he has enough green...or, not enough good green.

If you aren't going with PS 9 Xizor, you might as well just take Guri and get the free Focus from being close.

I have also found Flechette to be fantastic for a lot of different builds, especially Bro Bots. I'd think it would work against those stress aces, as well. Double stress Soontir and he's easier to figure out where he will end up (and with less tokens).

VI, virago, FCS, thrusters makes for an incredibly flexible Xizor for a variety of engagements

havn't tried Flechette, but that sounds like a right pain in the arse

been using a Blacksun ace with Crackshot + stims to help Xizor gun-down annoying targets, instead

Thanks for the suggestions, all of you!

Initially I was concerned about sinking to many points into one Ace (that has burned me on the imperial side), but I actually like your two Xizor builds, blade_mercurial, as it makes it difficult for the opponent to select between going for Xizor or the thugs; with the "plain" pirate as a great blocker. I am going to experiment with both sets of Xizor builds, and see what happens.

been using a Blacksun ace with Crackshot + stims to help Xizor gun-down annoying targets, instead

I want to really like the Khiraxz, but it has stiff competition in its point range. For example, that blacksun ace build is exactly the same as a thug w/ TLT + R4. That extra health is really nice to have alongside Xizor in particular (but even in a list without the prince), and while Blacksun ace gets a potent shot with stim + TL (crack if you need it), TLT behind 8 hitpoints can potentially deal more damage over a game...

Not as much as you'd hope

The tlt thug wants nothing to do with the "I don't give a flying ****" engagements xizor loves to take part of. Unlike the stim ace, it is also far more likely to get drowned in red dice.

An ace hanging on the outskirts and assassinating any late game competition is just swanky for Xizor, and it also helps him gun down generics with PS < 5

The tlt thug with r4 is sexy and has its own place, just not really with Xizor

So what are you guys flying with Xizor? I like two Ion BTL Y-wings with R4 and a Z. Xizor got VI, FCS ATs and inertial dampeners(You can skip this for a initiative bid). Fun list to fly but I'm looking to try something new with the prince.

5 pirates are a solid call, makes it really easy to always have someone to take the shot, 4 Soldiers with Feedback Array are also fun. I also ran 3 Autoblaster Turret Y-Wings in the past, that was pretty strong, too. TIEs of all kinds hate that turret (except for maybe Punishers).

Z-95s are basically perfect for him i.t.o ablative health

5 pirates are nice, if a bit boring

4 blacksuns with feedback are hilarious, but potentially not very cost efficient

personal favorite is 3 pirates and a blacksun ace w/crackshot + stims striking a nice balance between jousting and anti-ace

My 5 Pirates list got called "Prince and the New Power Generation". I would've placed at my Regionals if my dice had been better in the last game. Well...and not been pared vs that Phantom in another game!