I think Mauler's utility comes down entirely to how many mofos he can engage at once. How many are likely to be on the table at the first place, how many are likely to get clustered into a big furball for you to exploit, and how likely is your opponent to see what you've got cooking up (and try to target Mauler heavily, before you can pull it off)?

Me, I just feel like auto-damage, and auto-damage to more than one target, at least makes him worth bringing up. When you're specifically talking about just wanting your squadrons to wipe out enemy squadrons, I figure it doesn't hurt to make him part of the conversation.

I completely agree. I have included Mithel in the current iteration of the list, but I don't know how I could possibly squeeze in Chiraneau as well, or if he's worth in in this particular list. Especially since after Mithel gets focused down, you've got 10 points of Chiraneau sitting there not contributing nearly as much as it did while Mithel was still kickin'.

I think a well-positioned Dengar more than makes up for the lack of Chiraneau. Chiraneau allows you to move, but only at speed 2. Dengar allows you to move at whatever speed you like, as long as he's within distance 1 of whatever ship would have been stopping you. And, bearing in mind that that means he can move himself pretty much whenever he likes, you can always shift him to a more convenient location in order to free up the fighter you want to move.

Another thing to be aware of (which I only found out the other day when I got absolutely tabled at our local store... never been so resoundingly beaten...) is that, if all your ships get destroyed, your opponent wins the game outright. Any squadrons you have left are presumed to be unable to operate without a capital ship, so the game ends and your fleet is considered to be destroyed. Which means that, the more you invest in squadrons, the fewer ships your opponent has to get through to defeat you, and the more points are invested in units that could be rendered meaningless. You could win the squadron battle hands down, and find that victory to be entirely meaningless.

I think we're past the point of people deeming that to mean that squadrons are pointless, and taking an all-ship build. In any good set-up, you need at least a token number of squadrons, to at least blunt a nasty surprise such as a big Rhymerball or a scary number of B-wings, and not least because they feel "in the spirit" of the game. But it's made me realise that, with squadrons it's all or nothing. You either take a carrier fleet that is aiming to use it's squadrons as a primary weapon against both squadrons and capital ships, and therefore take upgrades and squadrons to reflect that. Or you take the minimum combination of squadrons to be able to effectively hold up any enemy fighters and bombers, and take upgrades that allow the capital ships to do their job of hitting enemy capital ships.

Just dotting to point out one aspect of the whole squadron game thing that seems missing in this thread so far: activations! I found out (the hard way) that when planning to bring a token squadron force with the objective of shredding enemy squadrons as imperials, you want to alpha strike them using your (generally) superior range, and for that you need a timely activation, even better if you have first player.

I actually made a similar thread a while ago, but since then the meta has changed: however, one setup I still think it's quite viable is Mithel, Fel, Dengar and Vader. It's quite costly sitting at 74 points, but it has so much potential: all are very tough due to defense tokens, it's only an ISD activation worth and it's 2 aoe auto damage per turn plus the actual shooting and the counter from Dengar

Just dotting to point out one aspect of the whole squadron game thing that seems missing in this thread so far: activations! I found out (the hard way) that when planning to bring a token squadron force with the objective of shredding enemy squadrons as imperials, you want to alpha strike them using your (generally) superior range, and for that you need a timely activation, even better if you have first player.

I actually made a similar thread a while ago, but since then the meta has changed: however, one setup I still think it's quite viable is Mithel, Fel, Dengar and Vader. It's quite costly sitting at 74 points, but it has so much potential: all are very tough due to defense tokens, it's only an ISD activation worth and it's 2 aoe auto damage per turn plus the actual shooting and the counter from Dengar

Truth. Having a couple squadrons with Rogues is cool and all, but the points are not the only "cost" with these guys. Generally, you aren't going to activate them until the squadron phase. if you don't have initiative...that's potentially a lot of points tied up in squadrons that can never do their thing (move AND shoot). They are either already engaged (on your opponents terms, no less), or their opportunity to do their thing (attack enemy squadrons or ships, get in range for a properly applied escort, or intel, or Jan's defenses, etc.) has passed.

So, I am seeing two major ways of building this fighter screen:

1. Counter synergies

-Howlrunner

-Dengar

-Multiple TIE Interceptors / Soontir Fel if you have the points

2. Free Damage ticks

-Mauler Mithel

-Soontir Fel

-Vader / Multiple TIE Advanced

-Dengar / Admiral Chiraneau

There's also part of me saying why not do this:

3. The "Blend"

-Howlrunner

-Dengar

-Multiple TIE Interceptors

-Mauler Mithel (Because Dengar enables this already)

Each of these strategies has it's own strengths and weaknesses. Just from a cursory glance, I can see that the counter synergy list lacks an escort, and therefore a stubborn opponent could focus down Howlrunner and Dengar if they have enough squadrons to throw into the Counter 4 web.
The free damage list relies more heavily on squadron commands (especially if using Chiraneau rather than Dengar), where the Howlrunner list can simply use one squadron command to block the path, and then rely on Counter to make up for activation advantage while the capital ship does its thing.

Both of these lists (ignore the "blend" for a moment), on paper, appear to shred a group of enemy bombers. However, when presented with an opposing fighter screen, I wonder which one fares better. I don't have any hands-on experience with heavy fighter-on-fighter games. Does anyone have any anecdotal information that may help me decide which of these lists to take for a more "good against the field" squadron list? Are either of these strategies inherently bad against another popular strategy?

EDIT: We also haven't discussed the possibility of adding Major Rhymer to one of these lists as a hedge in case the opponent brings next to no or no squadrons, which would turn the interceptors into semi-decent damage dealers against ships.

Or you could try these 2 things. I tried the first one and obliterated Rebel fighters. People are not going to like it though.

1st Option I used 6 Tie Bombers, and 2 Gladiator II's with Ruthless Strategist. I also had 2 Vics but that doesn't matter for the anti rebel fighter screen.

Ya they got a couple of shots off because bombers cannot "tie" anything up, but they were dead by the 2nd round of shooting, and I only lost 1 bomber. I won that game 7-3.

And if they come with a fleet with no squadrons...you are laughing.

the 2nd option i'm going to try, especially If I use VSD's, is the Gladiators with Ruthless Strategist and 4+ YV-666's.

Ya they got a couple of shots off because bombers cannot "tie" anything up

Pun intended?

You present a neat idea with the Ruthless Strategists, but that seems more tailored to your ship composition. I don't ever want to be without Demolisher on my side of the table, so I would probably not use 2 Gladiator-IIs. I could see switching this for a Raider-I or two with RS upgrades and trying this "whole 'lotta hull points" plan.

Ya they got a couple of shots off because bombers cannot "tie" anything up

Pun intended?

You present a neat idea with the Ruthless Strategists, but that seems more tailored to your ship composition. I don't ever want to be without Demolisher on my side of the table, so I would probably not use 2 Gladiator-IIs. I could see switching this for a Raider-I or two with RS upgrades and trying this "whole 'lotta hull points" plan.

You could be right. I think that is really what made it work because they were so worried I had demolisher...and I didn't. I flew a true wedge with 2 Vics in front and two glads guarding the flanks. They flew straight at the vics because they were worried about the gladiators. They couldn't believe I was flying Glads in the back at speed 1.

It needs some tweaking but, man was it a lot of fun. The guy I played now thinks Ruthless Strategist is BS.

I've played it twice, and I beat a squadron fleet and a no squadron fleet.

Ya they got a couple of shots off because bombers cannot "tie" anything up

Pun intended?

You present a neat idea with the Ruthless Strategists, but that seems more tailored to your ship composition. I don't ever want to be without Demolisher on my side of the table, so I would probably not use 2 Gladiator-IIs. I could see switching this for a Raider-I or two with RS upgrades and trying this "whole 'lotta hull points" plan.

The problem with the raider is they throw black dice for anti-squadron. The key to ruthless strategist is the 2 blues. For me anyway. I could stay back to shoot fighters and I could still shoot across the vics if I had to. and the glads are a big enough threat for people to be worried about them.

My fighter screen currently is Dengar, an Advance, and two Agressors. The Agressors have rogue, good damage output, and a good chunk of health to survive more than one or two volleys. Paired with a gladiator 2 along with 2 AS dice, they are a mean force.

I've been doing just fine with a core of 4-6 TIE Fighters + a Raider-I with Ordnance Experts (...or two of those). You need to coordinate the TIEs with the Raiders but the upside is if your opponent doesn't bring a lot of squadrons, the Raiders happily chase after ships or squadrons and are more multi-role than the TIEs.

I only invest more into fighter squadrons when I'm not bringing any Raiders. At that point I go as high as 8 TIE Fighter squadrons, although I'll sub out 2 squadrons for aces (Howlrunner, Maulter Mithel, etc.) on occasion there too. I don't tend to rate Imperial combo engines too highly - they can do a **** fine job at their fighter-clearing role but they don't match up versus non-squadron lists well and they don't buy you a lot of delaying deployments like raw TIEs (sometimes supported by aces) do.

I put the following list together trying to stay close to your list. Squadrons came in at 90 points and I removed instigator from the raider.

If you want to do anti-squadron you want to bring as much anti-squadron dice as possible and you want to kill anything with intel first. Intel allows your opponent to basically to ignore your squadrons. The squadrons I included with flight controllers to add as much dice as possible for that first punch. with your squadron command your hope is to go after either dengar or jan ors first. 1.) Howlrunner (4dice) 2.) mauler (5 dice) to do auto damage. 3.) soontir (6 dice) 4.) dengar (5 dice). I would hope after the above 4 attacked that you vanquished the squadron with escort and intel. If not follow up with IG-88 that ignores escort and counter. Then you pretty much can do what you want. Good luck.

Commander: Darth Vader

Assault Objective: Advanced Gunnery
Defense Objective: Hyperspace Assault
Navigation Objective: Superior Positions

[ flagship ] Imperial II-Class Star Destroyer (120 points)
- Darth Vader ( 36 points)
- Relentless ( 3 points)
- Flight Controllers ( 6 points)
- Electronic Countermeasures ( 7 points)
- XI7 Turbolasers ( 6 points)
- SW 7 Ion Batteries ( 5 points)

Gladiator I-Class Star Destroyer (56 points)
- Demolisher ( 10 points)
- Ordnance Experts ( 4 points)
- Engine Techs ( 8 points)
- Assault Proton Torpedoes ( 5 points)

Raider-I Class Corvette (44 points)

1 IG-88 ( 21 points)
1 Dengar ( 20 points)
1 Soontir Fel ( 18 points)
1 "Mauler" Mithel ( 15 points)
1 "Howlrunner" ( 16 points)

I have been using

Darth Vader

Boba Fett

Rhymer

3-4 interceptors

Both Vader and Boba Fett are effective vs fighters and ships alike, especially with Rhymer. I usually bring flight controllers to support the interceptors.

I put the following list together trying to stay close to your list. Squadrons came in at 90 points and I removed instigator from the raider.

If you want to do anti-squadron you want to bring as much anti-squadron dice as possible and you want to kill anything with intel first. Intel allows your opponent to basically to ignore your squadrons. The squadrons I included with flight controllers to add as much dice as possible for that first punch. with your squadron command your hope is to go after either dengar or jan ors first. 1.) Howlrunner (4dice) 2.) mauler (5 dice) to do auto damage. 3.) soontir (6 dice) 4.) dengar (5 dice). I would hope after the above 4 attacked that you vanquished the squadron with escort and intel. If not follow up with IG-88 that ignores escort and counter. Then you pretty much can do what you want. Good luck.

Commander: Darth Vader

Assault Objective: Advanced Gunnery

Defense Objective: Hyperspace Assault

Navigation Objective: Superior Positions

[ flagship ] Imperial II-Class Star Destroyer (120 points)

- Darth Vader ( 36 points)

- Relentless ( 3 points)

- Flight Controllers ( 6 points)

- Electronic Countermeasures ( 7 points)

- XI7 Turbolasers ( 6 points)

- SW 7 Ion Batteries ( 5 points)

Gladiator I-Class Star Destroyer (56 points)

- Demolisher ( 10 points)

- Ordnance Experts ( 4 points)

- Engine Techs ( 8 points)

- Assault Proton Torpedoes ( 5 points)

Raider-I Class Corvette (44 points)

1 IG-88 ( 21 points)

1 Dengar ( 20 points)

1 Soontir Fel ( 18 points)

1 "Mauler" Mithel ( 15 points)

1 "Howlrunner" ( 16 points)

If we're dropping the Instigator title, would it not be better to spend those 44 points on say, Intel Officers and another squadron or two? How much is a naked Raider-I without Ordnance Experts going to affect the board? I can see the upside of having one more activation, but it's only going to be mediocre at fighting squadrons and also pretty average against ships.

If we're dropping the Instigator title, would it not be better to spend those 44 points on say, Intel Officers and another squadron or two? How much is a naked Raider-I without Ordnance Experts going to affect the board? I can see the upside of having one more activation, but it's only going to be mediocre at fighting squadrons and also pretty average against ships.

In my humble opinion, you need a third ship. A two-ship fleet can work, but only really with something like a pair of ISDs. There simply isn't enough hull between an ISD and Gladiator to last the game, even if you had put Motti in as admiral. In addition, you're likely to find that you hand the flexibility to your opponent - any fleet with three or more ships can just wait for your two to move before moving their own.

I think the key problem with your earlier proposed fleet is simply that you've invested too much in upgrades. You've got 27 points spent on a 56 point ship, and whilst it makes for a beautiful Devastator, it does make it an attractively easy way for your opponent to rack up points by knocking it off the board. It only has 5 hull points, and it's a ship that needs to get in close to make a mark - it's going to take a bruising! You've also got Darth Vader, who, as the most expensive admiral, feels a little bit counterproductive - if you're intent on taking a small number of heavily upgraded ships, then you're going to need your defense tokens for defending, not for re-rolls.

So in my view, I think you need to significantly cut down on upgrades and invest in something like a Raider, not more squadrons. You can always put ordnance experts on the Raider (which gives it decent anti-ship ability and a wicked anti-squadron armament), but even without upgrades, it just gives you that extra activation that keeps your opponent guessing, and gives them more hull to get through to win.

So in my view, I think you need to significantly cut down on upgrades and invest in something like a Raider , not more squadrons.

A second raider? The list already includes a single Raider-I. I'm a bit unclear on what you're suggesting.

It sounds like he missed your first Raider.

For what it's worth I do think you go too heavy on the upgrades (except I admit to also loving upgraded Gladiators - they're pretty lackluster without Ordnance Experts, Engine Techs, and preferably some kind of Ordnance upgrade + Demolisher of course).

84 points on anti-squadron squadrons (your list on page 1) is also an extreme expenditure, especially with a Raider in the fleet. It might help to prioritize your goal as "how do I handle enemy bomber squadrons in a cost-effective way?" rather than "how do I create a combo engine of doom that wins the squadron minigame?" Winning the squadron minigame is not a bad goal, but if you overspend and/or mis-spend on the squadron minigame you will suffer in the base game (due to having less points for handling enemy ships, which is at its core what Armada is about), especially with the task-oriented Imperial squadrons.

It sounds like he missed your first Raider.

For what it's worth I do think you go too heavy on the upgrades (except I admit to also loving upgraded Gladiators - they're pretty lackluster without Ordnance Experts, Engine Techs, and preferably some kind of Ordnance upgrade + Demolisher of course).

84 points on anti-squadron squadrons (your list on page 1) is also an extreme expenditure, especially with a Raider in the fleet. It might help to prioritize your goal as "how do I handle enemy bomber squadrons in a cost-effective way?" rather than "how do I create a combo engine of doom that wins the squadron minigame?" Winning the squadron minigame is not a bad goal, but if you overspend and/or mis-spend on the squadron minigame you will suffer in the base game (due to having less points for handling enemy ships, which is at its core what Armada is about), especially with the task-oriented Imperial squadrons.

If I were to cut something off the Demolisher, I think I'd get rid of Engine Techs. You can generally get what you need out of a raider without ET, it just requires you to be careful with your nav commands. Also when you're rolling Vader out, you can risk not having reroll upgrade cards. So Demolisher could ditch Ordnance Experts so that Raider could pick up APT or Title. This also makes Demolisher less of a threat/target, which can be used to your advantage.

I'm also not really sure why you're rolling Dengar when you have no bombers (maybe I need to read several posts back?). For Mauler's pounce ability to kick in? No matter where you end up with Dengar, if your opponent has fast squadrons, (A Wing, Ties, Interceptors), he's going to be able to get one in such a way that he engages Mauler but avoids Dengar. It costs you 35 pts for that trick and anyone who knows how to play will shut it down....not a good investment. If you're just looking to maximize anti-squadron capability, I'd ditch Dengar and pick up 2 ties and the Instigator title. That also gets you 3 deployment drops, instead of 2, which allows you to stall out a little bit.

I would never ever EVER field a Gladiator without Engine Techs. The versatility they offer and the ability to more easily set up double-arc shots on enemy ships is unparalleled. Plus in wave two, simply not being in a really bad arc is the best way to keep Gladiators alive - in wave one they could handle one solid shot and still do okay but nowadays they will get melted by ISDs and MC80s if you're not careful.

Also given this thread is mostly about Imperial squadrons/fighters, it might be best to take any actual fleet composition advice to the thread devoted to it.

I'm also not really sure why you're rolling Dengar when you have no bombers (maybe I need to read several posts back?). For Mauler's pounce ability to kick in? No matter where you end up with Dengar, if your opponent has fast squadrons, (A Wing, Ties, Interceptors), he's going to be able to get one in such a way that he engages Mauler but avoids Dengar. It costs you 35 pts for that trick and anyone who knows how to play will shut it down....not a good investment. If you're just looking to maximize anti-squadron capability, I'd ditch Dengar and pick up 2 ties and the Instigator title. That also gets you 3 deployment drops, instead of 2, which allows you to stall out a little bit.

Dengar was there to enable Mauler while also giving all the Interceptors a ridiculous counter value.

Dropping Dengar and Mauler for cheaper units, and swapping Interceptors for regular TIE Fighters is something I could consider. I haven't played many games though, so I wasn't sure if that was sufficient to stop enemy bombers. In the last game I played, I brought 3 TIE Interceptors, Soontir Fel, and 1 TIE Advanced. Those had a hard time dealing with 5 X-wings and the Moldy Crow, and the 2 H6 Bombers and Dash Rendar my opponent had were able to get around to threaten Relentless until the Instigator stopped them in their tracks. My five fighters simply weren't numerous enough to stop everything.

Also given this thread is mostly about Imperial squadrons/fighters, it might be best to take any actual fleet composition advice to the thread devoted to it.

I have created a thread in the fleet builds section that specifically discusses my list, if anyone wants to give advice about the ships themselves. The reason I included my list in the OP was for background information so readers would know why I was asking the question I was asking, which is still "What is(are) the best way(s) to build an Imperial fighter screen that keeps your ships alive, without totally warping your list into a fighter list?"

So far, the answer seems to be one of the following:

1. Howlrunner + Dengar heavy counter

2. "Aces" with Dengar, Vader, Mauler, and Soontir

3. Instigator and a light spattering of TIE Fighters/Interceptors // yes, this isn't strictly squadrons, but it's still relevant

The reason I still keep asking questions about these on this thread is that I am curious which of these is actually the best (if any), or at least what their strengths and weaknesses (regardless of the ship composition of the rest of the fleet) are.

I'm also not really sure why you're rolling Dengar when you have no bombers (maybe I need to read several posts back?). For Mauler's pounce ability to kick in? No matter where you end up with Dengar, if your opponent has fast squadrons, (A Wing, Ties, Interceptors), he's going to be able to get one in such a way that he engages Mauler but avoids Dengar. It costs you 35 pts for that trick and anyone who knows how to play will shut it down....not a good investment. If you're just looking to maximize anti-squadron capability, I'd ditch Dengar and pick up 2 ties and the Instigator title. That also gets you 3 deployment drops, instead of 2, which allows you to stall out a little bit.

Dengar was there to enable Mauler while also giving all the Interceptors a ridiculous counter value.

Dropping Dengar and Mauler for cheaper units, and swapping Interceptors for regular TIE Fighters is something I could consider. I haven't played many games though, so I wasn't sure if that was sufficient to stop enemy bombers. In the last game I played, I brought 3 TIE Interceptors, Soontir Fel, and 1 TIE Advanced. Those had a hard time dealing with 5 X-wings and the Moldy Crow, and the 2 H6 Bombers and Dash Rendar my opponent had were able to get around to threaten Relentless until the Instigator stopped them in their tracks. My five fighters simply weren't numerous enough to stop everything.

Assuming your report is correct, and assuming a 400 pt game, your opponent had an illegal list. 5 x wings, Moldy Crow, 2 Scurgg bombers and Dash come in at 140 pts of squadrons (6 pts over the max amount).

But let's assume the point of "maximum possible squadron deployment". if someone goes all in like this, there is nothing you are going to be able to do about it (unless you are also "all in"). In this scenario, you need to practice good target priority ASAP. Yavaris must go down fast, for example.

I'm also not really sure why you're rolling Dengar when you have no bombers (maybe I need to read several posts back?). For Mauler's pounce ability to kick in? No matter where you end up with Dengar, if your opponent has fast squadrons, (A Wing, Ties, Interceptors), he's going to be able to get one in such a way that he engages Mauler but avoids Dengar. It costs you 35 pts for that trick and anyone who knows how to play will shut it down....not a good investment. If you're just looking to maximize anti-squadron capability, I'd ditch Dengar and pick up 2 ties and the Instigator title. That also gets you 3 deployment drops, instead of 2, which allows you to stall out a little bit.

Dengar was there to enable Mauler while also giving all the Interceptors a ridiculous counter value.

Dropping Dengar and Mauler for cheaper units, and swapping Interceptors for regular TIE Fighters is something I could consider. I haven't played many games though, so I wasn't sure if that was sufficient to stop enemy bombers. In the last game I played, I brought 3 TIE Interceptors, Soontir Fel, and 1 TIE Advanced. Those had a hard time dealing with 5 X-wings and the Moldy Crow, and the 2 H6 Bombers and Dash Rendar my opponent had were able to get around to threaten Relentless until the Instigator stopped them in their tracks. My five fighters simply weren't numerous enough to stop everything.

My personal rule of thumb is that, if you build it well, 60-70 points of dedicated anti-squadron is generally sufficient to be competitive in the squadron game. This includes upgrades like Flight Controllers, and you have to guesstimate how much of, say, a B-wing or Instigator (with strong anti-squadron and anti-ship capabilities) to count toward that in your own personal calculus, but it's a decent reference point in my experience.

Also given this thread is mostly about Imperial squadrons/fighters, it might be best to take any actual fleet composition advice to the thread devoted to it.

I have created a thread in the fleet builds section that specifically discusses my list, if anyone wants to give advice about the ships themselves. The reason I included my list in the OP was for background information so readers would know why I was asking the question I was asking, which is still "What is(are) the best way(s) to build an Imperial fighter screen that keeps your ships alive, without totally warping your list into a fighter list?"

So far, the answer seems to be one of the following:

1. Howlrunner + Dengar heavy counter

2. "Aces" with Dengar, Vader, Mauler, and Soontir

3. Instigator and a light spattering of TIE Fighters/Interceptors // yes, this isn't strictly squadrons, but it's still relevant

The reason I still keep asking questions about these on this thread is that I am curious which of these is actually the best (if any), or at least what their strengths and weaknesses (regardless of the ship composition of the rest of the fleet) are.

The important thing to realize about the squadron minigame is you can "lose" the squadron minigame provided you still win the main game. If you face a list with 5 X-Wings + Jan + 2 Scurrgs (Rocmistro is correct that Dash brings it over the limit, which is illegal, so let's leave Dash off for now), that player has almost completely maxed out their squadron points when he could have invested them in, say, an MC80, or two smaller ships (Nebulons/CR90s). If you can spend less points than the squadron blob but limit the effectiveness of the cloud of squadrons, then you came out net ahead. That doesn't mean you need to destroy all of them, just inconvenience them enough to the point where they don't make a meaningful difference in your game relative to their cost.

Or to put it another way, a general rule of fleet-building I subscribe to is:

If you spend more than half of your possible squadron points (so more than 1/6 of the points cost of the game) on squadrons, then you need a plan for how squadrons are going to help you win the real game rather than just the squadron minigame. If you've spent that many points only one keeping your ships safe from enemy bombers, then you overspent your points because once the skies are clear your TIEs are pretty lackluster anti-ship assets.

If you spend less than half of your possible squadron points then your goal should be primarily keeping yourself safe from enemy squadrons. This doesn't require you to wipe them all out, just to keep them honest.

So with that said if you're trying to come up with a squadron build that is good against the blob of doom you encountered earlier but keeps your points spent effectively, you need to recognize the limitations of what you encountered:

1. Jan Ors can only spend 2 of her Braces per turn before she starts to lose them for good.
2. X-Wings are great for keeping Jan Ors safe but will only do 2 damage on average per attack so will need to gang up on TIE Fighters if they choose to attack them back. They're not very cost-effective bombers.
3. Scurrgs are counting on Intel + Grit to sneak through your defenses.
4. The entire blob is speed 3.

Therefore you'll want an approach that seeks to counter these benefits by:

1. The more 2+ damage attacks you can get in per individual turn, the better. You especially want to be generating 3+ of these kinds of attacks per turn. Jan will want to spend Braces to bring 2+ damage down by at least 1. Throwing in TIEs piecemeal helps her here. You want your squadrons to pour on the attacks once they decide to commit. Meaningful flak from Raiders (which can hit numerous X-Wings at once) or other instant-damage effects like Soontir Fel or Mauler Mithel are also helpful.
2. Place your squadrons in such a way that they gang up on X-Wings with minimal other X-Wings engaging them back. A TIE at 1 HP is still alive, as is an Aggressor at 3 (and then 1). Your opponent will need to issue squadron commands to move reserve X-Wings up and attack TIEs rather than going right on by towards your ships.
3. Simply having a lot of squadrons can help you gang up on Scurrgs who land outside the Intel bubble. This will require Jan Ors to come help, which means she isn't helping the blob push forward into your ships. Scurggs should be your priority target if you can get a bead on them - they're the cost-effective bombers that the X-Wing+Jan cloud is trying to push towards your ships.
4. You want speed 4+ squadrons so you can get the alpha strike on a speed 3 squadron cloud.

So with all that said, I'd recommend something like the following:

Fleet points:

Raider-I

+Ordnance Experts (you can reroll the black flak dice, which nearly always results in 2 damage per squadron you're attacking)

+Instigator

The important thing to note about Raiders is they're flexible ships. In games where squadrons aren't a big deal they're happy to hunt enemy ships once you get the hang of piloting them. Therefore the points spent on Raiders aren't strictly anti-squadron points.

Squadron points (keeping to 67 or less per my advice above):

Howlrunner (16)

4 TIE Fighters (32)

Mauler Mithel (15)

For a total of 63 - you can also get a very workable mob of 8 TIE Fighters for 64 points, but that tends to work better with 2 ISDs (to command them all in one turn).

Usage: Try to determine where the enemy squadron blob is going to go. You can do this by deploying one of your other ships first and then waiting it out until your enemy starts deploying squadrons. Try to deploy your squadrons and Raider opposite. Be cagey with your TIEs and don't commit them until the Rebel squadron blob is within striking distance, preferably close enough for Instigator to flak within the next turn. Command your TIEs to engage the weakest elements available to you. Gang up on stragglers at the edges of the blob. Keep commanding your TIEs for as long as you expect them to live. Flak with the Raider if possible.

I don't guarantee that you'll win the squadron minigame but with good use you should give your opponent's squadron cloud a pretty bloody lip and keep them from meaningfully endangering the rest of your fleet. The important thing to remember with TIEs is you need to do everything in your power to ensure they get the alpha strike, gang up on enemy squadrons, and minimize enemies who can attack them back. This means you should be pretty cagey with them and keep them near/behind your ships until it's go time. Simply flying them straight at the enemy is going to result in disappointment.

Assuming your report is correct, and assuming a 400 pt game, your opponent had an illegal list. 5 x wings, Moldy Crow, 2 Scurgg bombers and Dash come in at 140 pts of squadrons (6 pts over the max amount).

But let's assume the point of "maximum possible squadron deployment". if someone goes all in like this, there is nothing you are going to be able to do about it (unless you are also "all in"). In this scenario, you need to practice good target priority ASAP. Yavaris must go down fast, for example.

It's more likely that I was misremembering on the number of X-wings than my opponent brought an illegal list. There were probably only 4 X-wings. I just remember that there were a fair few of them.

EDIT: I found the list he used. He told me he was pressed for time that evening, and had just borrowed this one from Armada Warlords:

Rebel Bombers

Author: pchappel

Faction: Rebel Alliance

Points: 400/400

Commander: Mon Mothma

Assault Objective: Most Wanted

Defense Objective: Fire Lanes

Navigation Objective: Dangerous Territory

[ flagship ] Assault Frigate Mark II B (72 points)

- Mon Mothma ( 30 points)

- Gunnery Team ( 7 points)

- Electronic Countermeasures ( 7 points)

- XI7 Turbolasers ( 6 points)

MC30c Scout Frigate (69 points)

- Foresight ( 8 points)

- Redundant Shields ( 8 points)

- XI7 Turbolasers ( 6 points)

CR90 Corvette A (44 points)

- Jainas Light ( 2 points)

- Electronic Countermeasures ( 7 points)

- Turbolaser Reroute Circuits ( 7 points)

2 Scurrg H-6 Bombers ( 32 points)

4 X-Wing Squadrons ( 52 points)

1 Jan Ors ( 19 points)

1 Dash Rendar ( 24 points)

So he did, in fact, have only 4 X-Wings.