Simple combo, not making a huge splash, but it might be a nice way to repurpose an old pilot:

(16 pts) Night Beast + TIE mk. II

adds two more green maneuvers to his dial, both 3 banks, which is actually a pretty nice green maneuver. Just seems like 1 point to boost his ability's usefulness isn't a terrible price. Plus, a 3 maneuver could be just the order of the day to get in close against an opponent, especially given the prevalence of slower, more predictable turret-using ships. I'd like to hear what people think of it.

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens. But in practice it doesn't do all that much. Once you get in a scrum, the TIE wants to turn, not bank or go straight. Having that promise of a free focus can lead you to choose the wrong maneuver in some situations. I find that he gets that free focus on the approach and very rarely after that.

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens. But in practice it doesn't do all that much. Once you get in a scrum, the TIE wants to turn, not bank or go straight. Having that promise of a free focus can lead you to choose the wrong maneuver in some situations. I find that he gets that free focus on the approach and very rarely after that.

I'd say PTL Major Rhymer comes before Night Beast in benefiting. It's made him as close to viable as he's been since... ever.

Yep, played him recently and he is still my favorite Tie Pilot. It doesn't always make a big impact but I have flown Nightbeast enough that in the last game I used him I was able to pull greens on nearly every turn except for K-Turns. He is a very plucky little guy with F+E every turn. He is just small enough for people to not want to take him seriously but he can get in close and have a decent chance to make it unscathed.

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens. But in practice it doesn't do all that much. Once you get in a scrum, the TIE wants to turn, not bank or go straight. Having that promise of a free focus can lead you to choose the wrong maneuver in some situations. I find that he gets that free focus on the approach and very rarely after that.

I'd say PTL Major Rhymer comes before Night Beast in benefiting. It's made him as close to viable as he's been since... ever.

Which, unfortunately, is still miles, miles, miles away. And with guidance chip filling the same slot, still think we will never see him competitively. He was the one pilot I would have been okay with a re-release with a lowered PS, but, that opportunity seems to have been missed with Imp Vets.

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens. But in practice it doesn't do all that much. Once you get in a scrum, the TIE wants to turn, not bank or go straight. Having that promise of a free focus can lead you to choose the wrong maneuver in some situations. I find that he gets that free focus on the approach and very rarely after that.

Ok, I see what you're saying. Makes sense. However, I'll say that for my particular play style, I like to arbitrarily change targets sometimes. I've found it very helpful if you've dogged a target for 2 turns, to suddenly go a completely different direction with 2 or more ships and go after another target. It does defy the conventional wisdom of reducing net firepower ASAP, but I've found that more often than not it makes up for it by suddenly having ships that normally aren't famed for arc dodging suddenly being somewhere totally different and out of arc or at range 3 when my adversary was expecting multiple range 1 shots. I feel that a 3-bank is a good choice for that. It covers very good range thanks to its speed and the angle with which it changes your facing.

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens.

Maybe, but I'd say Juno Eclipse benefits most. Give her Advanced Targetting Computer and Push the Limit, and just set her to a 2-speed maneuver. No matter what you change it to, it'll still be green so you'll always be able to clear her stress!

Of course. Besides the Defender, he's the one TIE that benefits the most from those two extra greens.

Maybe, but I'd say Juno Eclipse benefits most. Give her Advanced Targetting Computer and Push the Limit, and just set her to a 2-speed maneuver. No matter what you change it to, it'll still be green so you'll always be able to clear her stress!

That's true, but this isn't supposed to be an 'optimize the engine' thread, it's about a specific combo. I'm sure mk. II discussions can be and have been hashed out elsewhere.