With the release of the new X-Wing article today about Imperial Veterans, it got me thinking about the new Tie Bomber Title:

Maybe my brain is just failing me today but can't think of any killer combos that Gunner and/or the Emperor on a Tie Shuttle would bring to the game. Only reason I can think that they would have this restriction is FFG didn't want to have a 16 point Palpmobile. At 6 Hull, I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable bringing him on a Bomber anyways... If that is even the reason then why restrict the crew point cost to 4 and not 5, possibly future proofing for un-announced/un-released crew?

In summary:
1. MathWingers: How does 6 or 7 (with Hull Upgrade) behind 2 agility compare vs. 10 Hitpoints behind 1 agility (i.e. OGP)?
2. Can anybody think of any killer combos I'm missing that would give reason for excluding Gunner from being on a Tie Shuttle?

I am guessing they wanted to avoid the tactician/gunner combo. But I don't really think it was that important to be honest, it is still 23 points and just a control ship that the Imperials are sorely lacking in.

I understand why they didn't want the Emperor on their though. I think part of his opportunity cost was the restriction to the Lambda and the Decimator.

With the release of the new X-Wing article today about Imperial Veterans, it got me thinking about the new Tie Bomber Title:

Maybe my brain is just failing me today but can't think of any killer combos that Gunner and/or the Emperor on a Tie Shuttle would bring to the game. Only reason I can think that they would have this restriction is FFG didn't want to have a 16 point Palpmobile. At 6 Hull, I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable bringing him on a Bomber anyways... If that is even the reason then why restrict the crew point cost to 4 and not 5, possibly future proofing for un-announced/un-released crew?

In summary:

1. MathWingers: How does 6 or 7 (with Hull Upgrade) behind 2 agility compare vs. 10 Hitpoints behind 1 agility (i.e. OGP)?

2. Can anybody think of any killer combos I'm missing that would give reason for excluding Gunner from being on a Tie Shuttle?

I'd happily fly palpatine on a bomber if not for the restriction. You wouldn't be flying it into combat for the 6 hull behind 2 agility to be a big hinderance . You just fly it away while the rest of your list dukes it out with the opponent.

Gunner and tactician on a cheap platform would be killer. Don't need to actually hit (you won't) but double stressing targets of choice is enough.

I guess I could see the cheap Gunner/Tactician being a problem, at 23 points you could field 4 and rain down stress all day. (though that's about all you would be doing)

I've seen people say thematically Emperor on a Tie Shuttle wouldn't make sense but I feel like theme was not the driving force behind this design decision.

With the release of the new X-Wing article today about Imperial Veterans, it got me thinking about the new Tie Bomber Title:

Maybe my brain is just failing me today but can't think of any killer combos that Gunner and/or the Emperor on a Tie Shuttle would bring to the game. Only reason I can think that they would have this restriction is FFG didn't want to have a 16 point Palpmobile. At 6 Hull, I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable bringing him on a Bomber anyways... If that is even the reason then why restrict the crew point cost to 4 and not 5, possibly future proofing for un-announced/un-released crew?

In summary:

1. MathWingers: How does 6 or 7 (with Hull Upgrade) behind 2 agility compare vs. 10 Hitpoints behind 1 agility (i.e. OGP)?

2. Can anybody think of any killer combos I'm missing that would give reason for excluding Gunner from being on a Tie Shuttle?

I'd happily fly palpatine on a bomber if not for the restriction. You wouldn't be flying it into combat for the 6 hull behind 2 agility to be a big hinderance . You just fly it away while the rest of your list dukes it out with the opponent.

Also a good point I hadn't considered, the Bomber is a bit more nimble than the Lambda Shuttle/Decimator making it easier to dance Ol' Palpy around the field.

I assume it's targeted at the Emperor. The TIE shuttle would reduce the cost to field him by 5 points, and the TIE shuttle is much better than the lambda at playing imperial keep-away.

It also future-proofs the card a bit; you can release powerful, expensive crew without wondering how they'd work on a really cheap carrier.

They also might have some crew that we don't know about in wave 9 that would be OP somehow.

Other than old Palpy, I don't see the harm in letting people load up a 6hp shieldless ship with 2 attack dice if that's what they really want to do. Gunner + tactician isn't even that bad--it's cheaper than the stress hog, does less damage, and can be easily Boba-critted away.

What could have been... *sigh*

Soontir Fel (27)

Push the Limit (3)

Stealth Device (3)

Autothrusters (2)

Royal Guard TIE (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)

TIE Shuttle (0)

Emperor Palpatine (8)

"Whisper" (32)

Veteran Instincts (1)

Fire-Control System (2)

Agent Kallus (2)

Advanced Cloaking Device (4)

Total: 100

What could have been... *sigh*

Soontir Fel (27)

Push the Limit (3)

Stealth Device (3)

Autothrusters (2)

Royal Guard TIE (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)

TIE Shuttle (0)

Emperor Palpatine (8)

"Whisper" (32)

Veteran Instincts (1)

Fire-Control System (2)

Agent Kallus (2)

Advanced Cloaking Device (4)

Total: 100

What could have been... *sigh*

Soontir Fel (27)Push the Limit (3)Stealth Device (3)Autothrusters (2)Royal Guard TIE (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)TIE Shuttle (0)Emperor Palpatine (8)

"Whisper" (32)Veteran Instincts (1)Fire-Control System (2)Agent Kallus (2)Advanced Cloaking Device (4)

Total: 100

This is exactly the reason.

Meh, not really any scarier than current palp ace lists IMO.

What could have been... *sigh*

Soontir Fel (27)

Push the Limit (3)

Stealth Device (3)

Autothrusters (2)

Royal Guard TIE (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (16)

TIE Shuttle (0)

Emperor Palpatine (8)

"Whisper" (32)

Veteran Instincts (1)

Fire-Control System (2)

Agent Kallus (2)

Advanced Cloaking Device (4)

Total: 100

This is exactly the reason.

That's a pretty good reason I could see no Tie Shuttle mobiles, doesn't address the Gunner situation but think the aforementioned Gunner Tactician combo might be the reason there(at the Scimitar price point).

Tactician/Gunner and Vader/Gunner seem the two obvious ones to me.

I would so fly a kamikaze bombershuttle with Vader on it if I could.

No gunner combo's

No cheap Palpatine

Futureproofing. This way they can still make 5 point and higher crew without having to worry about the TIE Shuttle overpowering it.

As if "jonus , systems officer, fleet officer, shuttle" + chimp ordnance drones isn't going to be enough to justify it

No Gunner Tactician to stop stresshogbomber spam, and no Palpatine to stop the TIE Shuttle being the new Palpshuttle.

Gunner/Tactician, Gunner/Vader, and Palpatine are all good reasons for the restriction. Doesn't have to be one or the other.

ehhhh i wouldnt put vader in there. Remember that does 2 damage to you, tie bombers only have 6 hp. He can only do that twice without killing himself, assuming he never gets shot at (and he will)

Gunner/Tactician, Gunner/Vader, and Palpatine are all good reasons for the restriction. Doesn't have to be one or the other.

I don't really see a problem with Gunner + Tactician. That would be 23 points and would only occasionally double-stress a target. Stresshog is 3 points more, but double-stresses automatically at range 2-3.

Because the Emperor would be way too good if you could field him for less than 29 points.

Gunner/Tactician, Gunner/Vader, and Palpatine are all good reasons for the restriction. Doesn't have to be one or the other.

I don't really see a problem with Gunner + Tactician. That would be 23 points and would only occasionally double-stress a target. Stresshog is 3 points more, but double-stresses automatically at range 2-3.

Now multiply that single bomber by four, allow them full access to their dial and their actions.

ehhhh i wouldnt put vader in there. Remember that does 2 damage to you, tie bombers only have 6 hp. He can only do that twice without killing himself, assuming he never gets shot at (and he will)

So? Scimitar Squadron with Vader and Gunner still only comes out to 24 points. That's cheaper than Biggs. Either my opponent spends time and energy prioritizing it, which is easy to take advantage of, or I get up to three points of automatic critical damage, which is a guaranteed kill on Fel and a serious threat to almost any ace.

And at 24 points, it's 5 points cheaper than the next-cheapest way to field the combo. So sure, it's a step down in durability, but it's also 5 more points to spend on your aces. Among other fairly scary possibilities, that gives you a fully-loaded 35-point Soontir Fel and Whisper + Veteran Instincts + Fire Control System + Agent Kallus + Advanced Cloaking Device. (You'd be at 100 points, but who cares? Your opponent will be at the wrong initiative for either Soontir or Whisper.)

Gunner/Tactician, Gunner/Vader, and Palpatine are all good reasons for the restriction. Doesn't have to be one or the other.

I don't really see a problem with Gunner + Tactician. That would be 23 points and would only occasionally double-stress a target. Stresshog is 3 points more, but double-stresses automatically at range 2-3.

Now multiply that single bomber by four, allow them full access to their dial and their actions.

Right. If it were a unique combo it might be okay, but cheap, spammable stress control turns into a negative play experience pretty quickly.

They're perfectly fine with a player running 5x Scimitar Squadron Pilot with Tactician, so a fear of multiple stress-granting ships couldn't have driven design decisions around TIE Shuttle that much...

Although it might not be the reason for the restriction, there is also a thematic element to it. The Emperor wouldn't be caught dead in a Tie Shuttle.

The President of the US rides in Air Force One, not a Cessna 172.