There have been some different ideas gathered from these forums and some from my head regarding how to use generic bombers once Imperial Veterans hits. Since the Defender has been turning the most heads I think it's time to pay some attention to the (seemingly) lowly generic bomber.

The build that has been tossed around here for a little while now.

Gamma Squadron Veteran - 19

Crackshot - 1

Homing Missiles - 5

Long Range Scanners - 0

Total - 25

Very potent heavy hitting bomber with decent PS level that makes Aces shake and hulking ships mildly uncomfortable. Comes in at 25 points meaning you could put 4 in a list and call it a day, 2 plus a heavy ace or mini-swarm, or just sprinkle 1 into any list for decent burst damage.

I propose another variation for your consideration

Scimitar Squadron Pilot - 16

Plasma Torpedoes - 3

Long Range Scanners - 0

Total - 19

For a dirt cheap 19 points you get a potent shield stripping for the first round of combat. You can fit 3 of them leaving 43 points to play with. The biggest worry is their PS level is 2 meaning they're going to be last to fire. Bumping them up to the Gamma Squadron Pilot puts them at 21 points which is also not bad with 3 of them leaving 37 points to play with.

Of course the big comparison right now is the triple U-Boats and there are vast differences. As far as offense goes the bombers are just short since they are not using Guidance Chimps but they do get a Target Lock+Focus for the torp attack. The bombers also do not have turrets so are not nearly as effective once the torps are gone. Defensively the bombers have fewer HP and no shields but their agility value is the same. The trade off then is that the bombers cost a fraction of the price of a U-Boat coming in at 19 or 21 points depending on the pilot you use. It allows for 3 of them plus a powerful ace. 3 plasma torp bombers and a post veteran Vessery anybody?

What other generic bomber builds have you thought of that might pull some weight in the competitive scene?

I would argue that you want the Veterans carrying the plasma or at least some Gamma Squadron pilots. I flew 4 Gamma Squadron pilots with plasma + guidance chips + extra munitions + seismic charges against a two Lothal Rebel ghost build. Having the plasma strip off shields is well worth it. If you put plasma on the lower squad you run the risk of getting the ships blown up before they even get a chance to fire.

What will really help is including a Tie Shuttle with Fleet Officer in the list to help give you focus tokens when you need it for your attack.

https://geordanr.github.io/xwing/?f=Galactic%20Empire&d=v4!s!190:151,-1,-1,-1,-1,-1:35:-1:u.95,u.-1;50:126,-1,13,-1,-1:-1:24:;50:126,-1,13,-1,-1:-1:24:;50:126,-1,13,-1,-1:-1:24:&sn=Unnamed%20Squadron

Tomax

Cool Hand

Title

Fleet Officer

x3 Gamma Squad

EM

Concussion Missiles

LRS

or you can mix it up with 1 Plasma Torp 1 Conc missile 1 Homing Missile Plasma shoot firs to strip shields, then conc to finish

I am looking forward to Gamma Vets with Deadeye, Homing Missiles, EM and GCs. Those sound brutal and beat all other massed ordnance carriers in PS. I'll run two of them with the Inquisitor and a Crackshot TIE.

I can't build a Tie Bomber without Extra Muntions. It's so cheap, why not?

Without Guidance Chip, I'd probably want to go with either Concussion Missiles, Proton Torpedoes, or Homing Missiles for the ability to modify the dice.

Scimitar Pilot w/ EM, LRS, Homing Missile, and Seismic Charge for 25 pts

Gamma w/ EM, LRS, Homing Missile for 25 pts

Gamma Vet w/ Deadeye or Crack Shot, EM, GC or LRS, and Proton Torpedoes for 26 pts. You can go with Plasma for 25.

Tomas Brex w/ Crack Shot, EM, GC, Proton Torpedo, and Seismic Charges for 33 pts

I like the Crackshot Vets. Its a pretty brutal Alpha Stike.

Alternatively I also like:

Gamma Squadron Veteran (19)
Adrenaline Rush (1)
Extra Munitions (2)
Homing Missiles (5)
Seismic Charges (2)
Long-Range Scanners (0)

Total: 29

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Drop a Bomb. 5 k-turn, TL, be ready to fire the 2nd missile.

I can't build a Tie Bomber without Extra Muntions. It's so cheap, why not?

Without Guidance Chip, I'd probably want to go with either Concussion Missiles, Proton Torpedoes, or Homing Missiles for the ability to modify the dice.

Scimitar Pilot w/ EM, LRS, Homing Missile, and Seismic Charge for 25 pts

Gamma w/ EM, LRS, Homing Missile for 25 pts

Gamma Vet w/ Deadeye or Crack Shot, EM, GC or LRS, and Proton Torpedoes for 26 pts. You can go with Plasma for 25.

Tomas Brex w/ Crack Shot, EM, GC, Proton Torpedo, and Seismic Charges for 33 pts

Go with concussions! Sadly, they're better than proton torpedoes. But since you have LRS, you shouldn't have a problem getting a TL prior to the engagement, meaning that you'll be able to take a F for the actual attack. And since PTs already turn an eye to a crit, the focus token only helps if you roll multiple eyes. Whereas the blank -> hit from concussions means that as long as you don't roll 2 blanks, you'll end up with 4 hits.

Long range scanners. Do you think they will telegraph your intent too much? Could the TL'd ship just fly around out of range at its end of the board forcing the bombers to reacquire TL on another ship? We all know that focus fire is extremely important, but would it be better to TL multiple ships with LRS? I am wondering if LRS could be easily avoided and I wish that guidance chips were on board instead.

Long range scanners. Do you think they will telegraph your intent too much? Could the TL'd ship just fly around out of range at its end of the board forcing the bombers to reacquire TL on another ship? We all know that focus fire is extremely important, but would it be better to TL multiple ships with LRS? I am wondering if LRS could be easily avoided and I wish that guidance chips were on board instead.

This can work to your advantage, though. For starters, how many ships are sitting with a TL on that one ship? As long as all your ships aren't doing it, then it's only a matter of the worth of keeping that one ship out of the fight for so many turns. If you have one Bomber keeping a Soontir Fel out of the fight, then that's worth it in my book. Just let the rest of your list fight his list.

There is also the bait and switch. If you really think your opponent is going to just stay away with the ship you really want to target, then spend that round putting a TL on another ship. Oh, you don't get the TL + Focus, but you just caused one of his ships to sit useless for at least a turn and now you can fire all shots at the rest of his list.

Long range scanners. Do you think they will telegraph your intent too much? Could the TL'd ship just fly around out of range at its end of the board forcing the bombers to reacquire TL on another ship? We all know that focus fire is extremely important, but would it be better to TL multiple ships with LRS? I am wondering if LRS could be easily avoided and I wish that guidance chips were on board instead.

For the first half of the store championship season, I was running Ten w/ a Mangler (and VI). Most of the Fel's of the world were basically taking themselves out of the fight doing everything possible to not let Ten get a shot. I had several games where I never actually got to shoot Fel with Ten, but he kept him out of the fight for so long that I was able to destroy all of the escorts and leave myself in relatively healthy shape to chase down Fel at the end of the game.

What I worry about most is range bands, so as much as I want to use extra munitions, my fun but probably not all that competitive bomber list idea is this: http://xwing-builder.co.uk/view/467331/jonus-and-friends
Could potentially drop something to put Mara on Jonus too so he's a bit more irritating.

The idea of pairing the Gamma Squad Veterans with some Tie Advanced though does sound appealing. Like maybe this just for fun: http://xwing-builder.co.uk/view/467343/in-valens-name

What I worry about most is range bands, so as much as I want to use extra munitions, my fun but probably not all that competitive bomber list idea is this: http://xwing-builder.co.uk/view/467331/jonus-and-friends

Could potentially drop something to put Mara on Jonus too so he's a bit more irritating.

Ahhhh....maybe? I hate to see a Bomber out there not firing ordnance in a turn. Not saying it won't work, though.

Pre Vets dropping .. I had a lot of fun with Seismics. I find it hard to not have them in my lists still.