Got bored and I have a league tomorrow with a 6-8 PS meta, any thoughts?
Vader
Major Rhymer
Black Squadron Pilot
You have way too much ammunition on Rhymer. He's good, but you've got six shots worth of ordinance there - the odds of you actually using it all in one game are almost nil, and that's if he survives. I'd recommend advanced homing missiles and plasma torpedoes, although if you don't have those concussion missiles and cluster missiles are probably fine. You probably want to swap the cluster mines out for an action-independent bomb (ion bombs or proton bombs are good choices), as he usually wants to focus so he can fire his ordnance. I like the idea of fully loading a bomber but in reality your opponent is going to focus fire on it and if it dies you've lost a good chunk of your squad - bombers don't have enough hull to justify dropping 40 points on one.
Cutting down on the ordinance on Rhymer would let you field a fourth ship or upgrade the black squadron pilot. Rather than swarm tactics on Vader, I might recommend squad leader - letting Rhymer take a target lock with his missiles / torps will make him hit even harder than he already does (although if you're certain the meta will be ps 6-8, it's not a bad choice). If you have it, proton rockets are probably a better choice than cluster missiles. Vader's not nearly as powerful without the TIE/x1 title and Advanced Targeting Computer (I'm going to guess you don't have them since you aren't running them), but he's still a decent arc dodger.
Rhymer will cost you the game
If you want to have a ship that shoots all the missiles/ordinance Rhymer should probably just be a 38 point or so Redline. You've got way too many points into Rhymer
Edited by IronLichRichMuch as I love using Rhymer, I have to agree. He's too many points in one egg. He'll get focused down in the first exchange and then you'll be fighting from way behind.
If you can't beg/borrow/steal the TIE x1 and ATC for Vader you're probably better off with a different ace. He's at his happiest with x1/ATC and EU to do his thing.
If you want the Black Squadron to be a blocker you'll probably be disappointed. PS4 is almost too high for that job.
How about this?
Vader, a Bomber and some Blockers (100)
Darth Vader (35) - TIE Advanced
Veteran Instincts (1), TIE/x1 (0), Engine Upgrade (4), Advanced Targeting Computer (5)
Major Rhymer (41) - TIE Bomber
Deadeye (1), Assault Missiles (5), Thermal Detonators (3), Extra Munitions (2), Proton Torpedoes (4), Guidance Chips (0)
Academy Pilot (12) - TIE Fighter
Academy Pilot (12) - TIE Fighter
I ran this last night and it was quite brutal against my opponents.
Darth Vader (29)
Veteran Instincts (1)
Advanced Targeting Computer (1)
Engine Upgrade (4)
TIE/x1 (0)
Black Eight Squadron Pilot (23)
Fire-Control System (2)
Plasma Torpedoes (3)
Cluster Missiles (4)
Guidance Chips (0)
Black Eight Squadron Pilot (23)
Fire-Control System (2)
Plasma Torpedoes (3)
Cluster Missiles (4)
Guidance Chips (0)
Total: 99
View in Yet Another Squad Builder
It is very thematic due to the fact that Vader hand picked the Black Eight Squadron but with guidance chips this is quite awesome.
I lost only 1 game and that was due to a mistake on my part. I will run this again for sure and I think it just might be one of my favourite builds.
Just modified the build a bit and called it "Crit Happens"
Darth Vader (29)
Adaptability (0)
Advanced Targeting Computer (1)
Engine Upgrade (4)
TIE/x1 (0)
Black Eight Squadron Pilot (23)
Fire-Control System (2)
Proton Torpedoes (4)
Cluster Missiles (4)
Guidance Chips (0)
Black Eight Squadron Pilot (23)
Fire-Control System (2)
Proton Torpedoes (4)
Cluster Missiles (4)
Guidance Chips (0)
Total: 100
View in Yet Another Squad Builder
Dropped VI for Adaptability on Vader and upgraded the Plasma torps to Proton Torps hence the name "Crit Happens"
I played against a very similar list recently and it was horrible (in a good way!). Those Punisher can take a kicking and with the right positioning can really put in some hurt.
Question, how does that Duel card work?
Adaptability is a card that you decide which side to flip up and leave up at the start of the game when you are deploying your ships.
With Vader I will always be using the side that increases the ps by 1 making him a ps10.
Proper use of ordnance requires one thing:
Admitting that it will only get two shots off while it's still alive.
Oh, it may get more off later, but loading up a ship with 8 shots of ordnance is insanely optimistic. Even four is too much for me unless the last two shots are el cheapo flechette torps.
All those extra slots are just traps with Extra Munitions available.