Been having fun with this and is also surprisingly effective

Moralo Eval (34)
Heavy Laser Cannon (7)
K4 Security Droid (3)
Outlaw Tech (2)
Tactician (2)
Feedback Array (2)

Tansarii Point Veteran (17)
Predator (3)
Ion Cannon (3)
"Heavy Scyk" Interceptor (Cannon) (2)

Tansarii Point Veteran (17)
Predator (3)
Ion Cannon (3)
"Heavy Scyk" Interceptor (Cannon) (2)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

I like the M3 as a Ion and Flechette cannon ship. Until FFG releases a "fix" I don't want to put a lot of points into them

With crackshot taking over the title of "best 1-point upgrade" you can turn this little fighter into a potent alpha strike machine, which can actually be sustained with a little luck on the opening volleys. It's pilot skill can mean that you end up destroying a Y-wing before the TLT attacks come raining down, which means if you've brought two of these guys, they can kill both in one turn.

So what do you do on the 2nd turn after the other 3 blow up both Scyks?

With crackshot taking over the title of "best 1-point upgrade" you can turn this little fighter into a potent alpha strike machine, which can actually be sustained with a little luck on the opening volleys. It's pilot skill can mean that you end up destroying a Y-wing before the TLT attacks come raining down, which means if you've brought two of these guys, they can kill both in one turn.

So what do you do on the 2nd turn after the other 3 blow up both Scyks?

Concede obviously, come to think of it that should be your first move if your bring Scyks and your opponent brings TLTs.

So what do you do on the 2nd turn after the other 3 blow up both Scyks?

They can't - they can only kill one - since even though 3 can do 6 damage - they have to hit the same target. So 2 can take out one scyk- and the third can damage the second scyk. But that's also assuming that all of the damage gets through. TLTs can certainly hit 3 AGI - but if you happen to be facing Quad TLT's - you're not seeing all 8 shots with modified dice - unless they are running the HWK instead. - So there's a good chance they'll need all their firepower for the second Scyk on the following round.

This means the rest of your list is free to run loose - and that's the trick to the counter - go after the low AGI high HP ship and get torn apart by the HLCs - go after the Scyks - and it becomes a damage race. Now - most builds are not going to run 4 TLTs - and not many will run 3 - most will splash one or two - if it's a single TLT - the HLC scyks hopefully take it out early - and can continue to earn value by surviving and firing - and take the TLT pressure off of the rest of the squad.

I'm a big Scyk fan. they can be pesky to deal with in the right build, but to get the best out of them you need to

a: not be afraid to invest points into a fragile ship,

b: not be afraid to fly defensively

c: give your opponent some tough target priority decisions

By flying defensively, I mean you want to protect them. Try and keep them at range 3 at all times (especially if you've equipped them with cannons). Slow roll them behind another threat. Use the evade action if you think they're going to be targeted, or Barrel Roll if you can realistically arc dodge. Don't be afraid to K-turn if it means you might get a shot but your opponent won't. They have a great dial - that white 1 turn can be invaluable.

Potential builds, starting with my favourite:

Cartel Spacer - Heavy Scyk, Mangler Cannon - 20 points.

Packs a punch and is cheap as chips. Makes a great flanker, and works really well paired with Cartel Marauders as part of a 5 ship list. For a slightly cheaper option:

Cartel Spacer - Heavy Scyk, Flechette Cannon - 18 points.

Another great flanker. With cannon damage capped at 1, your opponent may well ignore this in favour of targeting beefier ships. Then you start laying the stress down, and it becomes a pest. 18 points is not bad for a quasi-Tactician platform which works effectively at any range.

Tansarii Point Veteran - Heavy Scyk, Mangler Cannon, Stealth Device - 26 points

I prefer this to the Heavy Laser Cannon version. Again, you'll want to try and stay at range 3 as much as humanly possible, where dropping an Evade token on this ship will give you a psychological edge - protected by (up to) five dice and an evade token, it can be frustrating to aatack, and unless your opponent is able to bring multiple shots to bear they may well opt to shoot at a different target instead. Scyks love being ignored, and the high PS also helps you arc dodge with Barrel Roll. Add a cheap 1 point EPT like, oh, say Crackshot, or maybe even Veteran Instincts. You could even drop Lone Wolf on one and use as a dedicated flanker away from the rest of your list. Or, if you want to be REALLY annoying...

Laetin A'shera - Heavy Scyk, Mangler Cannon, Stealth Device - 27 points

All the above applies. Flank. Stay at range 3 as much as possible. Focus or Evade for your action. Be as pesky as you can, and dare your opponent to try and shoot Laetin. Watch their face fall as those Evade tokens stack up. Drop the cannon to a Flechette if you want to be really aggravating (or are short on points).

Serissu - Juke, Stealth Device - 25 points

You know where we're going here. Take the Evade action every single time, and pair with a TPV or another high evade ships. Scyk swarms aren't going to be a thing, but her defensive buff can help protect a pesky flanker (such as one of the other builds above). Adding a cannon may be going a bit too far, but Juke can help force through damage, or at worst strip focus tokens from lower PS ships, further assisting your own defense.

If anyone here watched the FCB twitch stream last night, you'd have seen my HLC cracksycks dismantle a super dash y/b list. Didn't lose a ship, though Iggy b did lose his shields.

It works exactly the way Ravncat says.

You either chase the strong, very good ship, while heavy lasers rain down on you, or you chase the sycks, which will still likely kill a ship, and the big baddy in my list is free to do as he wishes.

You either chase the strong, very good ship, while heavy lasers rain down on you, or you chase the sycks, which will still likely kill a ship, and the big baddy in my list is free to do as he wishes.

This is absolutely the key to using Scyks effectively. They're currently the cheapest cannon platforms in the game, which allows you field some hard-hitting ships while still spending the bulk of your points other powerful threats, forcing your opponent into difficult decisions.

Focus on the Scyks? They might be low health, but flown defensively, they can still be tricky to take down and you risk facing a powerful ship at full health in the end game. Focus on the other threat first? Then the Scyks are free to hammer away at you with heavy weapons.

I tried this list a while back and was happy with how it performed.

TPV Mangler, Title, Predator X2

Hired Gun BTL, Autoblaster, Unhinged.

Drea, BTL Autobalster, unhinged

won 2, lost 2, one of the losses came down to Boba and a Syck just having on hull left before Boba won. Really that was my mistake for chasing Boba instead of breaking and going to range when I had the opportunity.

I managed to take down an 8 TIE swarm losing just Drea.

The key point is that the Sycks are not great targets at range, especially since everyone wants to take out the Ys before they close the range gap. Sycks are fragile and require synergy and easier targets on their side, but they punch like nothing else for their cost.

I think Juke could be an extremely effective alternative to Crack Shot. Scyks love the evade action anyway. I don't think it's enough to make a naked TPV viable but it will help.

M3-A could be useful if we had seen a couple changes.

Flechette Cannon- Every so often, I think about this cheap little cannon and wonder why it never sees the table. Then I read the dern thing "if the defender is not stressed, it also receives 1 stress token." What. The. Heck. One stress is not control. That one line ruins this card which is a shame.

Laetin- "The Professor" would be a lovely little TLT killer if he had a stinking EPT slot. Grah! Juke, PTL, all kinds of fun options but no...

Title- As has been brought up over and again, the title should probably be free.

I hope tractor beam ends up being wonderful. Would love to see a Scyk only Mod that adds 2 shields for whatever the math says it needs to be to make the Scyk reasonable.

You either chase the strong, very good ship, while heavy lasers rain down on you, or you chase the sycks, which will still likely kill a ship, and the big baddy in my list is free to do as he wishes.

This is absolutely the key to using Scyks effectively. They're currently the cheapest cannon platforms in the game, which allows you field some hard-hitting ships while still spending the bulk of your points other powerful threats, forcing your opponent into difficult decisions.

Focus on the Scyks? They might be low health, but flown defensively, they can still be tricky to take down and you risk facing a powerful ship at full health in the end game. Focus on the other threat first? Then the Scyks are free to hammer away at you with heavy weapons.

I agree with this idea. You always need something that's a bigger threat. I've seen a successful Kath Scarlet with EU and 3 Scyks (2 with Manglers) do very well. Who do you go for? Kath or the Scyks. Even the first generic Scyk can be used as a bumper or that people forget one doesn't have a cannon.

Khiraxz mixed with Mangler Scyks is a good list, as well. People tend to fire at the Khiraxz and leaves the Manglers to fire last.

Have people used generics without Heavy title? I think they can do well with other threats. The ability to bump, be ignored, and get in close with a TL and Focus is great.

Have people used generics without Heavy title? I think they can do well with other threats. The ability to bump, be ignored, and get in close with a TL and Focus is great.

I've used it some. If you're decent at predicting your opponent, that barrel roll makes them much better blockers than the Z-95, as does the option to K-turn at speed 5 if you need to. The damage output is a bit of a problem, but mostly I'm just sad about 3 hp.