I really had high hopes that the Tie Bomber would be at least playable, at our game night this evening many people used Tie Bombers with different loadouts and our discussion afterwards made it quite obvious that the ship still stinks, a Bomber should not cost 16 points because your not getting anything useful at that cost, you need to add around 6-10 points just to make it useable and at that cost you may as well take Omega Leader or an Interceptor, and the Shuttle title is near useless because it only has like 2 decent crew choices, unfortunetly the Defender got everything good out of Imp Veterans and the Bomber got very little.

Tie Bombers are the best (only?) tool boxy/utility peice the Imps have.

Tactician shuttles are great (tactician anything is great, but the bomber is about the best platform in the imp faction), the buff crew is all nice.

I literally couldn't disagree more with your point.

Bottom line, a shuttle scimitar is cheap. Properly cheap. And reasonably tough, tough enough for around 20pts anyway. It's not supposed to single handedly one shot Poe at range 3. It supposed to be helpful in supporting your ace in one shotting Poe at range 3.

The new defenders are like a beautiful leg of lamb, lovingly prepared by you mum on a special Sunday. They are moist, juicy and few things are as awesome. The Tie Bombers are the mint sauce. Sure, you could do without. That awesome lamb doesn't really need the mint, it's great without. But you still really want to put the mint on it, because mint makes meat better.

Fact.

Your friends probably used bad builds - that can easily happen. The trick is to not use anything but Homing Missiles unless you really need the points (at which point you probably should just run Crackshot TIEs). 27 points for U-Boat damage at PS5 is excellent and I have been pretty successfull so far.

Here is the all out spam list I have used extensively so far. Its prety nasty, but it also shows me that i really need to work on my range controll. I won 3 games so far and I made some pretty dumb mistakes, but the squad carried me anyways:

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27) x 2
TIE Bomber (19), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27)
TIE Bomber (19), Crack Shot (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Long Range Scanners (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (19)
TIE Bomber (16), TIE Shuttle (0), Fleet Officer (3)

If I were to enter a tournament, I'd probably use another list, though, because its just too sad not to use the Inquisitor with his through the roof efficiency at such a reasonable price:

The Inquisitor (31)
TIE Advanced Prototype (25), Push the Limit (3), TIE/v1 (1), Autothrusters (2)

Black Squadron Pilot (15)
TIE Fighter (14), Crack Shot (1)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27) x 2
TIE Bomber (19), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

With some flexibility as to wether or not I want one of the Bombers to be LRS/Crackshot.

Seriously, Homing Missiles, they are good.

It takes more practice and understanding of them to see how good the new Bomber toys are. The Defenders are obviously good, the Bombers are a bit more subtle.

Bombers are fine, ordnance is still iffy and poorly costed.

I'm loving the TIE shuttle. As others have already said it makes for an excellent cheap support or control ship and will only get better as more imperial crew are released.

Deathfire is also great as a cheap conor net delivery system. He can be game changing if left alone and if not, he was only 23 points and your opponent had to shoot him 2-3 times to remove him from play and that was 2-3 shots they weren't shooting at your higher value ships.

I'm not really sold on the bombers as ordnance platforms. It's not really the bomber's fault, or even that they aren't any good (the gammas with homing missiles are actually pretty decent) it's more that they aren't jumpmaster good at shooting their ordnance and so they seem lacklustre by comparison. This is less that the bombers aren't any good and more that jumpmasters are just a little too good at the same thing. I think if contracted scouts hadn't been so ridiculously efficient as torpedo platforms that bombers would be looking much more appealing these days as missile or torpedo platforms.

Guys, Bombers can use ordnance in the exact same way as scouts now. Homing Missile substitutes for R4, has 4 dice and its a build in 4-LOM without downside versus token stakers. Veterans can use Deadeye with it, so they are as flexible. Guidance Chips work the same way. That means you have at least the same (usualy slightly better) damage as Boats at PS5. They aren't as tanky, but they also are about 6 points cheaper, which is huge for squadbuilding.

And that ignores the configuration where you use Crackshot and LRS and do a lot more damage at the price of more predictability, which doesn't even really matter when you use that to herd your opponent.

You don't have to have a bomber swarm. But one in your list can screw up enemy strategies

Nah man.

At 16 points, naked bombers are nearly as efficient as academy pilots, the golden standard against which all ships are judged.

This has been true since they came out, and now they can roll into combat with a target lock AND focus for free (LRS)

OMG not a fully modified 2 dice attack

4 Bombers will smash any U Boat list, it sounds like your group is playing them wrong.

Against Aces stay at long range to increase fire arc at range 3. If it takes 4 Plasma torpedoes to kill Sontir I would be OK with that. Bombers are great, you fly them like Interceptors or TIE Fighters they are not great. Stay in formation, lock and shoot, there is the shuttle for handing out Foci and Locks, use Jonus to reroll your ordnance, the options are endless.

Nah man.

At 16 points, naked bombers are nearly as efficient as academy pilots, the golden standard against which all ships are judged.

This has been true since they came out, and now they can roll into combat with a target lock AND focus for free (LRS)

In a perverse way, that was one of their weaknesses.

You had a ship that was thematically supposed to be a heavy hitting ordnance carrier, but it only really worked naked as a 2 dice primary jouster, so no-one used it for what it was supposed to used for.

It wasn't really the Bomber's fault - it was down to the fact that ordnance was next to useless on low PS generics

And this thread is 100% dud... give it a fecking week or two; can we fly the ships a few times first?

Deathfire isnt bad at 23 points with Conner Net and Extra Munitions on him if you like to drop bombs and control movement. Tomax Bren with concussion missles and Extra Munitions with guidance chips and crackshot can be fun at 31 points as well.

would you take Tomax at 30 over the Inquisitor at 31?

Yes, if i need to breach a palped up Soontir Fel, i would maybe even give him Homing missiles. This either damages soontir or at least creates a gigantic no fly zone for him. And imp aces really lack the damage to reliably kill the bomber before it does its thing!

Deathfire isnt bad at 23 points with Conner Net and Extra Munitions on him if you like to drop bombs and control movement. Tomax Bren with concussion missles and Extra Munitions with guidance chips and crackshot can be fun at 31 points as well.

would you take Tomax at 30 over the Inquisitor at 31?

Yes, if i need to breach a palped up Soontir Fel, i would maybe even give him Homing missiles. This either damages soontir or at least creates a gigantic no fly zone for him. And imp aces really lack the damage to reliably kill the bomber before it does its thing!

I can confirm I got completely wrecked by a crackshot homing missile Tomax last week. The guy is absolutely a threat on the same level as the Inquisitor. He will kill aces dead, and how.

Also Deathfire is terrifying and probably my new favorite pilot. His connor nets are always on point, and a fantastic counter to just about everything above him in PS (which is most things). Also unlike Deathrain, he's cheap. Really cheap. And he can take long range scanners to provide a TL for Vessery.

I've also had good success with fleet/system officer shuttles. It makes for a very solid support ship.

from what I've seen, the bomber's greatest failing is people just not knowing how to build it

i.e Homing Missiles

don't bother with other ordnance, folks

There was no tie bomber in vets, it was a tie shuttle and its the awesome support ship imps have been waiting for.

There was no tie bomber in vets, it was a tie shuttle and its the awesome support ship imps have been waiting for.

The lambda was wave 3, dude

There was no tie bomber in vets, it was a tie shuttle and its the awesome support ship imps have been waiting for.

But Gamma Vets are so much fun!

There was no tie bomber in vets, it was a tie shuttle and its the awesome support ship imps have been waiting for.

The lambda was wave 3, dude

Nah I stand by what I said, shuttle handles like a legless hog, but that tie shuttle can actually turn.

Well it's the problem with a bomber craft in a dogfight. Bombs are very hard to use good since they are more for bombing stationary targets and not fast moving fighters.

Missiles is good but you must have a decent ps to aquire a target lock on you target.

However if you face ghost or falcon list a couple of bombers with torps or missiles will be pretty nice to have. But if you face a normal fighter squadron why would you want bombers in universe or game?,

You can make a Deadeye Veteran bomber that gets around the target lock issue.

But the best description I've seen is that they're glass cannons, and so inherently a bit iffy - if you pay for the points to add the cannon part of glass cannon you're always going to risk losing it to the glass part.

IMHO the problem for the whole of Imperial Vets (Bombers AND Defenders) is that to fly the ships right you need to spend 30+ points, and the Imperials already have so many great options for that cost that the Defenders and Bombers fall short.

You can make a Deadeye Veteran bomber that gets around the target lock issue.

But the best description I've seen is that they're glass cannons, and so inherently a bit iffy - if you pay for the points to add the cannon part of glass cannon you're always going to risk losing it to the glass part.

IMHO the problem for the whole of Imperial Vets (Bombers AND Defenders) is that to fly the ships right you need to spend 30+ points, and the Imperials already have so many great options for that cost that the Defenders and Bombers fall short.

27 max on Bombers and that is the deluxe Veteran. You only break 30 with Tomax.

27 max on Bombers and that is the deluxe Veteran. You only break 30 with Tomax.

Probably fair. I was running my Vets at 30 with Protons, which was probably overspending.

Guys, Bombers can use ordnance in the exact same way as scouts now. Homing Missile substitutes for R4, has 4 dice and its a build in 4-LOM without downside versus token stakers. Veterans can use Deadeye with it, so they are as flexible. Guidance Chips work the same way. That means you have at least the same (usualy slightly better) damage as Boats at PS5. They aren't as tanky, but they also are about 6 points cheaper, which is huge for squadbuilding.

And that ignores the configuration where you use Crackshot and LRS and do a lot more damage at the price of more predictability, which doesn't even really matter when you use that to herd your opponent.

.

And this thread is 100% dud... give it a fecking week or two; can we fly the ships a few times first?

We've been flying them for 3-4 months, sorry if you're so slow.

I am willing to try:

“Omega Leader” (26), Comm Relay (3), Juke (2)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (19), TIE Shuttle (0), Darth Vader (3)

99 pts. Seems legit.

Your friends probably used bad builds - that can easily happen. The trick is to not use anything but Homing Missiles unless you really need the points (at which point you probably should just run Crackshot TIEs). 27 points for U-Boat damage at PS5 is excellent and I have been pretty successfull so far.

Here is the all out spam list I have used extensively so far. Its prety nasty, but it also shows me that i really need to work on my range controll. I won 3 games so far and I made some pretty dumb mistakes, but the squad carried me anyways:

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27) x 2

TIE Bomber (19), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27)

TIE Bomber (19), Crack Shot (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Long Range Scanners (0)

Scimitar Squadron Pilot (19)

TIE Bomber (16), TIE Shuttle (0), Fleet Officer (3)

If I were to enter a tournament, I'd probably use another list, though, because its just too sad not to use the Inquisitor with his through the roof efficiency at such a reasonable price:

The Inquisitor (31)

TIE Advanced Prototype (25), Push the Limit (3), TIE/v1 (1), Autothrusters (2)

Black Squadron Pilot (15)

TIE Fighter (14), Crack Shot (1)

Gamma Squadron Veteran (27) x 2

TIE Bomber (19), Deadeye (1), Extra Munitions (2), Homing Missiles (5), Guidance Chips (0)

With some flexibility as to wether or not I want one of the Bombers to be LRS/Crackshot.

Seriously, Homing Missiles, they are good.

It takes more practice and understanding of them to see how good the new Bomber toys are. The Defenders are obviously good, the Bombers are a bit more subtle.

Yep, that 27 point Gamma Vet is a great ship. I try to run it alongside something that presents a threat to the opponent (for now it's been 34 point Vader, but there are quite a few things that can work) so that the Gammas are less likely to be focused down or my opponent pays for going after them.

I've been running Tomax with Homing and Crackshot with great success in 100pt games.

In Epic, I'm running a Gozanti filled with Gamma squadron Veterans. With PS13 activation and "choose your maneuver" given by deploy rules, along with the extended range given by the Gozanti's maneuver, you can deploy them pretty much anywhere on the battlefield. I'm currently running 4, 2 PtLs and 2 Opportunists (I'll write an article on how I use the Opportunist ordnance to great effect in Epic).