Jukin' with T-70's & good ole' Jan Ors

By davidhaus, in X-Wing Squad Lists

Several weeks ago I was listening to the Mynock Squadron podcast, and they made a quick comment that got me inspired to build a particular list. Juke is just a powerful EPT. If you haven't played with it yet, give it a spin. Not only do you get to do more damage (typically), but you also get some control over your opponent, forcing them to spend focus and making decisions that they didn't want to. Adding Comm Relay to the mix, the new tech upgrade, you just store the evade on the ship, while focusing or target locking for even more damage. Juke + Comm Relay are a beautiful marriage... The problem is that only Tie/fo's can naturally take these two cards together since they have the evade action. The T-70's don't have evade... but that can be fixed with a little help from a good friend: Jan Ors crew. With 3 attack dice on the T-70's, I had to give this a go.
My first go at it looked like this:

JUKIN

100 points

PILOTS

Red Squadron Veteran (33) x 2
T-70 X-Wing (26), Comm Relay (3), Juke (2), Autothrusters (2)

Eaden Vrill (34)
YT-2400 Freighter (32), Jan Ors (2)

Went 1-1 with it at a casual night last night. First impressions: I loved the way Juke messed with the opponent. A Red Vet with focus + evade/Juke hits super hard. I also love the way the T-70's can Tallon Roll or K-Turn and still have some offensive punch the next turn because they keep the evade token. I won the first game without losing a single ship.
In the second game, I lost a Red Vet in the 3rd turn after the Vet missed a range 1 shot at a B-Wing. He then focused fire on the 2nd Red Vet and left Eaden Vrill for the end-game. Quite honestly, that's where I'm stuck. Eaden just does not hit hard enough without some upgrades, but there aren't enough points to do it with. Originally I included Eaden because he's got a lot of shields and hull, and 2 agility, which should help him stay alive longer in case I need Jan Ors later again (after spending an evade token to save a T-70). But in this game he turned out to be a liability. I think the Jan Ors ship needs to hit harder and be more of a threat.
What are your thoughts on the best pairing for 2 T-70's who need Jan Ors? I got to thinking about a couple options last night.
Option 1: Keep the Red Vets as they are, but bring in a K-Wing as the Jan shuttle. I have the points to use the PS4 Guardian Squadron Pilot (that basically has never seen play) with TLT. That will give me 3 ships at PS4 to help against any PS2 Y-Wings or PS3 Obsidian swarms. I like that the K-Wing has 9 health to chew through, and can SLAM away in a pinch.

Red Squadron Veteran (33) x 2
T-70 X-Wing (26), Comm Relay (3), Juke (2), Autothrusters (2)

Guardian Squadron Pilot (33)
K-Wing (25), Twin Laser Turret (6), Jan Ors (2)

Option 2: Upgrade the T-70's to the named aces and go bare-bones with the Jan Ors shuttle, using the PS2 HWK. My only struggle with the list is that it feels weird to take Poe without R2-D2 and VI, but I guess this is a different list all together. Still not crazy about this option, but open to feedback.

Poe Dameron (38)
T-70 X-Wing (31), Comm Relay (3), Juke (2), Autothrusters (2)

Ello Asty (37)
T-70 X-Wing (30), Comm Relay (3), Juke (2), Autothrusters (2)

Rebel Operative (24)
HWK-290 (16), Twin Laser Turret (6), Jan Ors (2)

I'm personally leaning toward option 1 with the K-Wing. And I'm sure there are more options where I keep 1 Red Squad Vet and upgrade the other to Ello or Poe. What do you guys see? Is it even worth pursuing? I have a casual tournament this weekend that I think I'd like to try it out at for fun. But if I'm missing something here, I'd love to hear from you.

I've put thought into similar, but was promptly laughed at.

Personally, I still think it's worth a try.

Try dropping the thrusters and having jan ride with miranda with TLT. That will give you a reliable damage output on your third ship and a hard to kill ride for jan.

Yeah, like I said, I'm still on the fence. It can pack a punch, but it can also hurt badly under focused fire. That's why that 3rd ship with Jan Ors needs to bring some more threat to the opponent as well.

Yeah, like I said, I'm still on the fence. It can pack a punch, but it can also hurt badly under focused fire. That's why that 3rd ship with Jan Ors needs to bring some more threat to the opponent as well.

I would consider Kyle as your third wheel. With his focus pass, on the first turn of shooting, one of your Red Vets could potentially have a target lock, focus, evade and benefit from Juke...

Something like:

2 Red Vets w/ juke & comm relay = 31 x 2

Kyle w/ twin laser turret, Jan Ors & moldy crow = 32

94

The last 6 points can be used for so many different things, its tough to say what to take. Juke on Kyle is tempting, since it works on both of his shots and would not be hard to get an evade on all 3 ships in time for the first round of shooting, with slow rolling. Or if you don't want to triple up on Juke, any 1 point EPT would be useful on Kyle...

Targeting Astros + integrated astro are nice on the Red Vets for even greater action economy on red moves, but then again autothrusters would also be nice.

Alternatively, predator works quite well with twin laser turret, leaving enough room for perhaps R2 + integrated astro on each Red Vet...

The only problem with this list though is the fact that Kyle becomes the lynchpin and he is not that durable. If he died quick, you might lose the ability to activate Juke and then struggle in the end game depending on the matchup.

Another alternative is to replace one of the Red Vets with Red Ace who can generate his own evades if need be:

Red Vet w/ juke & comm relay = 31

Red Ace w/ R2-D6, juke, comm relay & integrated astro = 35

Kyle w/ twin laser, Jan & moldy crow = 32

98

The last 2 points could be a 1 pt Ept on Kyle + R2 & integrated Astro on Red Vet, or Juke on Kyle...

@blade_mercurial

That's great feedback. I hadn't considered Kyle, but that does help for a hard-hitting alpha-strike. Do you think the Moldy Crow title is worth the points without Recon Spec? I just can't see Kyle ever having un-used focus between sharing it with an X-wing, using it for 2 attacks with TLT, or needing it for defense.

I'd probably stay with Autothrusters on the x-wings. But that still leaves some points to play with.

And oh man, how I would LOVE to bring Red Ace into the mix. He's perfect for this list. I don't own the Rebel Transport, which includes R2-D6. I've been considering buying the transport with all the upgrades I need from that expansion. I just wish Red Ace had a natural EPT spot. His ability is perfect for Juke, and it makes the Jan Ors crew a little less crucial for the end game.

It's such a roundabout gimmick on already horribly inefficient ships

May as well cut out the middle man and run ptl As

Or join the glorious FO. Our pilots arent a bunch of hand holding ninnies that can't evade without mommy oars nearby :P

Edited by ficklegreendice

And oh man, how I would LOVE to bring Red Ace into the mix. He's perfect for this list. I don't own the Rebel Transport, which includes R2-D6. I've been considering buying the transport with all the upgrades I need from that expansion. I just wish Red Ace had a natural EPT spot. His ability is perfect for Juke, and it makes the Jan Ors crew a little less crucial for the end game.

Well, if you 'know a guy', you can always borrow R2-D6 (I admit to doing this on occasion, since I also don't have the transport...).

Edited by blade_mercurial

Targeting Astros + integrated astro are nice on the Red Vets for even greater action economy on red moves, ...

This was going to be my suggestion. With Integrated Astro, you have one more thing standing between death and spending your evade.

I like the list, agree that the Kyle solution isn't that durable, but here's another variation, which might be a bit less glassy and still retains some focus synergy.

Red Squadron Veteran (26)

Juke (2)

R5 Astromech (1)

Comm Relay (3)

Integrated Astromech (0)

Red Squadron Veteran (26)

Juke (2)

R5 Astromech (1)

Comm Relay (3)

Integrated Astromech (0)

Esege Tuketu (28)

Twin Laser Turret (6)

Jan Ors (2)

Total: 100

Swap R5s for R2s if you intend to be trolling with the Xs.

Hey just wanted to update everyone who commented! I went with option #1 list (2 Red Vets + Autothrusters + Juke + Comm Relay, & 1 Guardian Squadron Pilot [PS4 Kwing] with TLT and Jan Ors) at the tournament this past weekend.

Match 1 vs. David with PalpShuttle w/ RAC & Academy Pilot TIE

Even though Juke didn't really matter against a 0 agility Decimator, I made sure to take RAC out as quickly as possible. He had a couple good blocks with the Academy Tie, but in the 2nd or 3rd round I managed to roll 3 crits with one of the X-wings. He got 2 of the crits that give him a damage if he ends up bumping into a ship or obstacle the next turn. Well, he was surrounded by my ships, so I was able to block every move, forcing him to bump me and kill his Decimator. After that, it was just cleaning up the Shuttle and then the Tie Fighter.

Win 100-0

Match 2 vs. Gordon with Crackshot Tie Swarm + Howlrunner

I was super nervous going into this matchup. Interestingly enough, we both had all ships at PS4 (except Howlrunner of course), which is extremely rare. I was at 99 points, so I chose to give him initiative. Even though I knew he would be able to potentially force me to bump, I wanted him to move first so I could have the option of boosting with my X-wings and SLAMming with my K-Wing. It ended up being the best decision because I could react to everything he did. I have to say, this was one of my most favorite games I've ever played. Gordon is a great player with tons of experience in big tournaments. The one thing that helped me win was I made the decision to split up my 3 ships so he'd be forced to swarm at one ship and I could flank with the other two. He chose to swarm after the K-Wing, which allowed me to do some good damage with the 2 Red Vets. This is where him having initiative and firing first turned out to be GREAT for me, because he'd often have to spend his focus token on the Black Squadron Pilots to push damage through, leaving him vulnerable to JUKE when I attacked him. Juke was definitely the card of the match. He killed the K-Wing, and I managed to kill everything except his last TIE/fo w/ Crackshot when time was called.

Win 82-33

Match 3 vs. Mike with 4 rebel Y-Wings with TLT & BTL-A4 title (One with R3-A2 as Stressbot, Two with R2 Astromech)

Another match where jousting would definitely not be an option! I've played against Mike with this list before. Last time was a nail-biter in the top 4 of a tournament that I barely snuck out with the win after my Poe had 8 stress on him. I knew this would be tough.

Similar to my last match, I determined in my head that I had to get him to go through the thick asteroid field and potentially separate his firing arcs (since he was using the title on all Y-Wings). I did the same thing as I did against the Crackshot Tie Swarm... split up my ships but try to still focus fire. It took us probably 5 rounds before we even started shooting. Neither of us wanted to give up on our gameplan. However, a couple boosts put me in a perfect position to focus fire on his stressbot with all 3 of my ships. My 3 ships being PS4 against his PS2 Y-wing was really big, because I managed to kill the stressbot before he even had a chance to shoot once at my Red Vet. (If I didn't kill it, it would have been a much different game). After that round he had to split up his firing arcs a bit and I managed to get in the donut hole of a couple Y-Wings. He was able to kill one of my X-wings, but my other 2 ships were able to kill the last couple Y-wings without too much issue.

Win 100-33

Match 4 vs. Joseph with RAC Decimator + Vader (EU, ATC, Title, VI)

Joseph is a good friend of mine, and we've played more X-wing games together than I can count. We know each other almost too well, and we're very evenly matched. I love playing him because he makes me better every time. I think he had a little fire in him this match because he has beaten me in casual games this month, but I've beaten him in the last 3 tournament matches we've played :) He was ready to get some revenge!

He knew my last well, so he flew in with RAC and boosted in before I had the chance to get an evade token on my 2nd Red Vet. (I just wish Jan Ors wasn't limited to one ship per turn). I got a few damage through on RAC while he lit into the K-wing. I had a chance to force a bump with my K-Wing on the 2nd turn, which would have landed the Decimator on an asteroid and given my 2 Red Vets range 1 modified shots... BUT I missed it by centimeters. I was so upset with myself. Meanwhile RAC and Vader focused fire on the K-Wing while he ran away with RAC. In the next 2 rounds he very successfully arc-dodged with both of his ships while my K-Wing went down fast. There was one turn where I had both Xwing guns on RAC at range 2 and 3 and only managed to get ONE damage through. Lame. Thankfully on the next turn he barely clipped a rock that allowed the Red Vets to get great shots on him while Vader was struggling to catch up without hitting some obstacles. I managed to kill the Decimator while he took out a Red Vet with Vader. So, here we are with 10 minutes left... He's killed the K-wing and a Red Vet. I've killed RAC. I start to joust my Red Vet against his Vader. I have the advantage because my Red Vet still has the evade token from the beginning of the game for Juke, plus a Target Lock, and eventually focus. He has focus + evade, but a range 1 shot helps me strip Vader of all shields plus one hull. He decides at that point that he just can't compete with my firepower and starts running with his 5 forward, Engine Upgrade boost, plus barrel roll. I simply can't keep up with him. Time is called and the score is 66-65... Joseph wins by 1 point with 1 hull left on Vader. ARGH.

Loss 65-66

Final Record: 3-1

After the final round nobody is left undefeated but based on MOV, I sneak out with 1st place out of 10 people! I was pretty happy, especially after playing a list that I believed would be fun, but not super competitive. JUKE may be my new favorite card!

Thanks for all the feedback!

Sounds like a pretty strong list to make such easy work of tlts, swarms and decimators alike. Too bad Vader got away, lol. Those losses are crushing when it goes to time. I can't believe how vividly you remember each match and how they unfolded. I forget the first round by the end of the second, haha. Looks fun for when I get another T70 and I guess some FO ties.