I look forward to this list, feels dangerous but is still mostly just a "for fun" list.

Glaive Squadron Pilot (34)
TIE/x7 (-2)

Glaive Squadron Pilot (34)
TIE/x7 (-2)

Countess Ryad (34)
Adaptability (0)
Tractor Beam (1)
Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)
TIE/D (0)

Total: 100

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

And here's a weird one. Could be fun.

Colonel Vessery (35)
Veteran Instincts (1)
Tractor Beam (1)
XX-23 S-Thread Tracers (1)
Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)
TIE/D (0)

Omega Squadron Pilot (17)
Outmaneuver (3)

Omega Squadron Pilot (17)
Outmaneuver (3)

Omega Squadron Pilot (17)
Outmaneuver (3)

Total: 99

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

I'm curious about Opportunist Ryad. Obviously it's not a loadout you can just drop into any squad, but consider:

Colonel Vessery (35)

Juke (2)

TIE/x7 (-2)

Countess Ryad (34)

Opportunist (4)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

TIE/x7 (-2)

"Omega Leader" (21)

Juke (2)

Comm Relay (3)

Total: 98

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Feels like the opponent is going to have some tough choices about who to go after first. Vessery's got action economy, but Ryad's got a big hammer, and unless you're saving your tokens, she gets to use it pretty much every round.

I'm curious about Opportunist Ryad. Obviously it's not a loadout you can just drop into any squad, but consider:

Colonel Vessery (35)

Juke (2)

TIE/x7 (-2)

Countess Ryad (34)

Opportunist (4)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

TIE/x7 (-2)

"Omega Leader" (21)

Juke (2)

Comm Relay (3)

Total: 98

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Feels like the opponent is going to have some tough choices about who to go after first. Vessery's got action economy, but Ryad's got a big hammer, and unless you're saving your tokens, she gets to use it pretty much every round.

I think I sorta like the synergy of Opp and Mk. II on Ryad. Her zippiness and loopiness will be good fun indeed, and her k-turns will mean she can get the drop on many ships at close range. Looks like fun. And speaking of fun...

Maarek Stele (TIE Defender) (35)

Calculation (1)

Ion Cannon (3)

Ion Pulse Missiles (3)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

TIE/D (0)

Royal Guard Pilot (22)

Outmaneuver (3)

Autothrusters (2)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

Royal Guard TIE (0)

Royal Guard Pilot (22)

Outmaneuver (3)

Autothrusters (2)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

Royal Guard TIE (0)

Total: 99

View in Yet Another Squad Builder

I'm curious about Opportunist Ryad. Obviously it's not a loadout you can just drop into any squad, but consider:Colonel Vessery (35)Juke (2)TIE/x7 (-2)Countess Ryad (34)Opportunist (4)Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)TIE/x7 (-2)"Omega Leader" (21)Juke (2)Comm Relay (3)Total: 98View in Yet Another Squad BuilderFeels like the opponent is going to have some tough choices about who to go after first. Vessery's got action economy, but Ryad's got a big hammer, and unless you're saving your tokens, she gets to use it pretty much every round.

I think I sorta like the synergy of Opp and Mk. II on Ryad. Her zippiness and loopiness will be good fun indeed, and her k-turns will mean she can get the drop on many ships at close range. Looks like fun. And speaking of fun... Maarek Stele (TIE Defender) (35)Calculation (1)Ion Cannon (3)Ion Pulse Missiles (3)Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)TIE/D (0)Royal Guard Pilot (22)Outmaneuver (3)Autothrusters (2)Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)Royal Guard TIE (0)Royal Guard Pilot (22)Outmaneuver (3)Autothrusters (2)Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)Royal Guard TIE (0)Total: 99View in Yet Another Squad Builder

Take those IPM's off of Maarek and replace Calculation with Marksmanship. Marksmanship isn't spent when used, so it can modify both his cannon and Primary shot.

Yeah with maarek it's calculation with x7 and marksmanship with /D both work well it just depends on how much you have to spend.

So what are peoples thoughts about Ruthlessness on a couple of tie/d With either double tractor beam or tractor and ion. 4 free* damage to another ship that you didn't even shoot at.

*still need to hit of course

I took Vessery and Rex for a spin with 2x Ruthlessness. Fun list, you just need to plan ahead.

Rex had TB, allowing repositioning (and avoiding that R1 hit on own ships), Vessery with Ions. I used Backstabber as filler.

Yeah with maarek it's calculation with x7 and marksmanship with /D both work well it just depends on how much you have to spend.

I wouldn't go for X7 and Calculation. Marksmanship synergizes with the double tap, but I'd rather have VI or Lone Wolf or Predator with X7.

IMO you shouldn't go out of your way to get Maarek's ability to trigger. Also, Palpatine gives you easy mode crit generation, so Calculation carries with it some significant opportunity cost.

Take those IPM's off of Maarek and replace Calculation with Marksmanship.

No.

But all cheekiness aside, I proposed those two lists simply as things that I think would be fun to fly. There is nothing more than a passing attempt at synergy or tactics beyond what you use on the table. Trust me, if I propose a serious list, I'll make it clear.

So many lists with named pilots... I almost always look at generics while list building.

I've tried this list out once now, but I'm definitely excited to run more of it:

3x Delta Squadron w/ x7

1x Epsilon Squadron w/ Mk II Ion Engines (because 1 point)

Three defenders plus an FO for blocking.

So many lists with named pilots... I almost always look at generics while list building.

I've tried this list out once now, but I'm definitely excited to run more of it:

3x Delta Squadron w/ x7

1x Epsilon Squadron w/ Mk II Ion Engines (because 1 point)

Three defenders plus an FO for blocking.

I look forward to running some Glaives and Gammas.

Take those IPM's off of Maarek and replace Calculation with Marksmanship.

No.

But all cheekiness aside, I proposed those two lists simply as things that I think would be fun to fly. There is nothing more than a passing attempt at synergy or tactics beyond what you use on the table. Trust me, if I propose a serious list, I'll make it clear.

This is a thread about Defenders in the meta.

If you're not metabating, get out.

If you're not metabating, get out.

Yeah you're right. I guess instead of thinking about odd ways to try a ship out I should just take the totally original route of cramming Palpatine into the list. No one will see that coming.

So many lists with named pilots... I almost always look at generics while list building.

I've tried this list out once now, but I'm definitely excited to run more of it:

3x Delta Squadron w/ x7

1x Epsilon Squadron w/ Mk II Ion Engines (because 1 point)

Three defenders plus an FO for blocking.

I've been waiting to try out triple Deltas with Wampa; I feel like he's got some versatility to him even without Palpatine around.

I got utterly mauled last night by an x7 Delta backed by Carnor and Fel. I even tried to focus down the Defender just to get it off the board, the best I could do was get its shields down.

As a competative player, it was disheartening. As a Defender fanboy, it was awe-inspiring.

I got utterly mauled last night by an x7 Delta backed by Carnor and Fel. I even tried to focus down the Defender just to get it off the board, the best I could do was get its shields down.

As a competative player, it was disheartening. As a Defender fanboy, it was awe-inspiring.

What were you flying?

The FLGS was going to close before we could get a full game in tonight, and so we did a 37pt 2v2 thing.

I took Ryad/x7, Lone Wolf, Stealth Device. There was still an ion Y and the white T-Roll T70 up when my opponent's ship fell to focus fire. I took one point of damage (and only because I spent my focus token to keep my evade, and then rolled evade-eye-eye-eye on the next shot). We had to call it when it was down to just me an the T70.

Ryad was a lot of fun, since if you are careful, you can set up mid PS blocks, take a target lock, get no shots, then go back to your regularly scheduled k-turns and be up on your action economy even more. It's a fun ship.

Tsiegtiez, on 25 May 2016 - 5:41 PM, said:

Gearlok, on 25 May 2016 - 4:01 PM, said:

So many lists with named pilots... I almost always look at generics while list building.

I've tried this list out once now, but I'm definitely excited to run more of it:

3x Delta Squadron w/ x7

1x Epsilon Squadron w/ Mk II Ion Engines (because 1 point)

Three defenders plus an FO for blocking.

I've been waiting to try out triple Deltas with Wampa; I feel like he's got some versatility to him even without Palpatine around.

I was thinking about that as well! That leaves 2 points leftover, so you could toss a Targeting Computer on Wampa to fish for crits.

My main beef with the unnamed pilots is theyre always either insanely bad PS or are really **** close in price to the guys with a pilot skill.

Take Ryad for instance. Shes 4pts more than the utter barebone shmuck defender, which gives her a lot better PS, EPT, and a pilot skill. That is a LOT of bonuses for 4pts.

I always feel like the PS1-3 guys should be really, really cheap because they attack last, have no EPT (f' you Uboats you shouldnt have that slot), and no pilot ability. Yet theyre usually (again, f' you uboats) barely cheaper.

I agree that Ryad comes with a lot of bonuses for 4 points, however once you've invested those extra points on a better pilot you typically want to spend even more on them to make them even better. Suddenly those 4 extra points becomes 6-10 extra points, and by that time you can often fit a whole other ship into the list. Sometimes an extra ship is great, sometimes not.

The "bad" pilot skill is a tough one. On one hand, it's nice to be able to shoot first and to react to where the opponent has moved. On the other hand, it's nice to be able to block the opponent and know exactly where you can and can't move on any given turn. I think what I'm liking about Defenders is that they are tough enough to suffer through shooting last.

I got utterly mauled last night by an x7 Delta backed by Carnor and Fel. I even tried to focus down the Defender just to get it off the board, the best I could do was get its shields down.

As a competative player, it was disheartening. As a Defender fanboy, it was awe-inspiring.

What were you flying?

Two Lothals with FCS and AB Turets, one with Chopper and an Engine Upgrade, the other with Hera and Dash Rendar, plus a Proto.

My opponent did a masterful job of staying out of AB range from my Lothals with his aces, and just settling for range 2-3 shots to whittle me down. He also had several turns where he surprised me by actually taking speed 3 maneuvers with his x7 to crash or hit debris, knowing that he'd always have that evade token to protect him.

My main beef with the unnamed pilots is theyre always either insanely bad PS or are really **** close in price to the guys with a pilot skill.

Take Ryad for instance. Shes 4pts more than the utter barebone shmuck defender, which gives her a lot better PS, EPT, and a pilot skill. That is a LOT of bonuses for 4pts.

I always feel like the PS1-3 guys should be really, really cheap because they attack last, have no EPT (f' you Uboats you shouldnt have that slot), and no pilot ability. Yet theyre usually (again, f' you uboats) barely cheaper.

I really like PS1 these days due to good blocking opportunities, and blade_mercurial made a good argument for PS3 Defenders upthread a few pages. One shouldn't forget that points matter, even one or two make a difference.

That aside, I've been messing around mostly with 2 Defenders and a blocker, but I'm looking pretty hard at either:

Delta, Ion Cannon, TIE/D = 33

Delta, Ion Cannon, TIE/D = 33

True that it can be difficult to not want to dump only 2-6 more points to make them even better, but just remember, pretty much any pilot with a skill and no upgrades is better than a shmuck with no ability and some minor upgrade. In most cases, im sure theres a few where im wrong.

I wouldnt take Vessery over the shmuck unless i was kitting him out, or Brath. Their abilities are pretty bleh if not abused.

A tractor beam on a PS1 ship is almost useless. If you want to keep it, swap it around so that it's on Ryad, that way your entire squad gets the benefit of the tractor beamed ship having -1 agility.

Oh i beg to differ.

I ran basic shmuck palpmobile with a tractorbeam to a local tourney. That thing did a lot of aggravation just by pushing people around lol. If i wasnt range1, or hitting a large ship, i tractored and forced you into an odd place. Caused a Y-wing to crash into a rock for 3 turns (initial hit, template was still over the rock, tractored him right back onto another one).

Best thing? That was the main guy that gave me flak for a tractorbeam on a PS2 ship lol. Ironic that he was the one that suffered the most from it.