The other one i like is this

Rex

Expertise

X7

Stele

Calc

X7

Lockdown

Juke

Com Relay

The other one i like is this

Rex

Expertise

X7

Stele

Calc

X7

Lockdown

Juke

Com Relay

Who tf is lockdown?

Lockdown = Omega Leader

Keeping track of the TIE/fo Fighers names is tricky [Omega/Zeta/Epsilon Ace/Leader] so some people made up callsigns of their own.

Ryad - PTL, TIE MkII, /x7

Vessery - Adaptability, /x7

Carnor Jax - PTL, Autothrusters
(100)

I like lone wolf on vessery to keep him strong if he cant get free target locks.

If i were to run stele, id probably do it this way:

Lambda-Class Shuttle: Omicron Group Pilot (21)

· Emperor Palpatine (8)

TIE Defender: · Countess Ryad (34)

Predator (3)

TIE/x7 (-2)

TIE Defender: · Maarek Stele (35)

Juke (2)

Twin Ion Engine Mk. II (1)

TIE/x7 (-2)

-- TOTAL ------- 100p. --

I like lone wolf on vessery to keep him strong if he cant get free target locks.

Depends what else you are running I guess. I would prefer LW on Maarek since he does not have a built-in source of rerolls. I also prefer to limit LW to 2-ship builds. I am not confident I could maintain the distance from his wingmen in a 3+ ship build.

I use it for emergency not to try and get it all the time. I certainly agree LW is better on 2 ship lists

Problem with Marek Steele is his ability doesn't work with the TIE-D title so you really want to EPT him for consistent crits. But there is a lot of EPTs that do better on him (because they do better on everyone ) so that's out of the question.

I like the design philosophy for Marek Steele, making it a good option to NOT take titles, issue is there are so many other ships that go against it (TIE-SF, ARC-170, and the Scyk once the C-Roc comes out). So much like having a pilot skill >2 without EPT slot is putting that pilot DOA (unless it is Biggs), having a pilot that can't take the available title is also putting that pilot DOA.

Marinealver i think the Tiex 7 title works better.What other ept would you recommend?

Well if I had to put a title on it. If it were the TIEx7 then either Calculating or Marksmanship. Problem with Marksmanship is that it negates the -2 point cost of the title all together. So calculating might just be the better one.

If I had to put the TIE D title on it, well in that case I would go with tractor beam to knock down the ability then marksmanship as it works with both cannon and primary weapon follow up attacks,

But still that leaves you at a rather vulnerable PS 7, and the meta is loaded with 8s and 9s. So VI is still default but you might as well forget about pilot ability then.

I took Maarek to Regionals as part of a 4-ship squad that went 4-2, and am pretty convinced that a bit of better flying on my part would have put me into the top 16. I'm very happy with my choice to take him over Vessery, and his ability helped me win at least two matches that Vessery wouldn't have. I just ran him with Juke and the x7 title. The meta doesn't have nearly as many PS8s and 9s as it used to thanks to the meta shift towards Defenders. Fenn Rau's really the only true arc-dodger still in the meta, and usually with Mindlink over PTL. Soontir has almost completely disappeared again. Of the PS8s, it's basically just Miranda and Omega Leader, with the occasional VI Ventress or VI Vessery to deal with. With all the low-agility, high hull ships out there, Maarek can truly feast.

The key with Maarek's pilot ability is that you cannot force it. The more you build him to specifically try to get his ability to trigger, the less successful you'll be. Just fly him as you would a Glaive, and treat his ability as a fun bonus when it happens that will also murderize all those 0-agility Decimators and VCX-100s.

Problem with Marek Steele is his ability doesn't work with the TIE-D title so you really want to EPT him for consistent crits. But there is a lot of EPTs that do better on him (because they do better on everyone ) so that's out of the question.

I like the design philosophy for Marek Steele, making it a good option to NOT take titles, issue is there are so many other ships that go against it (TIE-SF, ARC-170, and the Scyk once the C-Roc comes out). So much like having a pilot skill >2 without EPT slot is putting that pilot DOA (unless it is Biggs), having a pilot that can't take the available title is also putting that pilot DOA.

Marinealver i think the Tiex 7 title works better.What other ept would you recommend?

Well if I had to put a title on it. If it were the TIEx7 then either Calculating or Marksmanship. Problem with Marksmanship is that it negates the -2 point cost of the title all together. So calculating might just be the better one.

If I had to put the TIE D title on it, well in that case I would go with tractor beam to knock down the ability then marksmanship as it works with both cannon and primary weapon follow up attacks,

But still that leaves you at a rather vulnerable PS 7, and the meta is loaded with 8s and 9s. So VI is still default but you might as well forget about pilot ability then.

I took Maarek to Regionals as part of a 4-ship squad that went 4-2, and am pretty convinced that a bit of better flying on my part would have put me into the top 16. I'm very happy with my choice to take him over Vessery, and his ability helped me win at least two matches that Vessery wouldn't have. I just ran him with Juke and the x7 title. The meta doesn't have nearly as many PS8s and 9s as it used to thanks to the meta shift towards Defenders. Fenn Rau's really the only true arc-dodger still in the meta, and usually with Mindlink over PTL. Soontir has almost completely disappeared again. Of the PS8s, it's basically just Miranda and Omega Leader, with the occasional VI Ventress or VI Vessery to deal with. With all the low-agility, high hull ships out there, Maarek can truly feast.

The key with Maarek's pilot ability is that you cannot force it. The more you build him to specifically try to get his ability to trigger, the less successful you'll be. Just fly him as you would a Glaive, and treat his ability as a fun bonus when it happens that will also murderize all those 0-agility Decimators and VCX-100s.

Good points here. With the lower ps being popular now with defenders i had thought to run a Glaive pilot with the X/7 title and either predator or some other ept with Maarek.

Problem with Marek Steele is his ability doesn't work with the TIE-D title so you really want to EPT him for consistent crits. But there is a lot of EPTs that do better on him (because they do better on everyone ) so that's out of the question.

I like the design philosophy for Marek Steele, making it a good option to NOT take titles, issue is there are so many other ships that go against it (TIE-SF, ARC-170, and the Scyk once the C-Roc comes out). So much like having a pilot skill >2 without EPT slot is putting that pilot DOA (unless it is Biggs), having a pilot that can't take the available title is also putting that pilot DOA.

Marinealver i think the Tiex 7 title works better.What other ept would you recommend?

Well if I had to put a title on it. If it were the TIEx7 then either Calculating or Marksmanship. Problem with Marksmanship is that it negates the -2 point cost of the title all together. So calculating might just be the better one.

If I had to put the TIE D title on it, well in that case I would go with tractor beam to knock down the ability then marksmanship as it works with both cannon and primary weapon follow up attacks,

But still that leaves you at a rather vulnerable PS 7, and the meta is loaded with 8s and 9s. So VI is still default but you might as well forget about pilot ability then.

...

The key with Maarek's pilot ability is that you cannot force it. The more you build him to specifically try to get his ability to trigger, the less successful you'll be. Just fly him as you would a Glaive, and treat his ability as a fun bonus when it happens that will also murderize all those 0-agility Decimators and VCX-100s.

Yeah, that's true. Not to mention that crits don't have the bite that they used to so using Marek-Steele's pilot ability is not really that effective. The new damage deck with the TFA core set was supposed to fix that however FFG's distribution policy on it had the reverse effect where players were able to chose their damage deck. It sort of made it possible that you could chose your own critical effect. Well not much like that but you get the point. Generics and Swarms will use the old deck while Dash and Aces would use the new.

Problem with Marek Steele is his ability doesn't work with the TIE-D title so you really want to EPT him for consistent crits. But there is a lot of EPTs that do better on him (because they do better on everyone ) so that's out of the question.

I like the design philosophy for Marek Steele, making it a good option to NOT take titles, issue is there are so many other ships that go against it (TIE-SF, ARC-170, and the Scyk once the C-Roc comes out). So much like having a pilot skill >2 without EPT slot is putting that pilot DOA (unless it is Biggs), having a pilot that can't take the available title is also putting that pilot DOA.

Marinealver i think the Tiex 7 title works better.What other ept would you recommend?

Well if I had to put a title on it. If it were the TIEx7 then either Calculating or Marksmanship. Problem with Marksmanship is that it negates the -2 point cost of the title all together. So calculating might just be the better one.

If I had to put the TIE D title on it, well in that case I would go with tractor beam to knock down the ability then marksmanship as it works with both cannon and primary weapon follow up attacks,

But still that leaves you at a rather vulnerable PS 7, and the meta is loaded with 8s and 9s. So VI is still default but you might as well forget about pilot ability then.

...

The key with Maarek's pilot ability is that you cannot force it. The more you build him to specifically try to get his ability to trigger, the less successful you'll be. Just fly him as you would a Glaive, and treat his ability as a fun bonus when it happens that will also murderize all those 0-agility Decimators and VCX-100s.

Yeah, that's true. Not to mention that crits don't have the bite that they used to so using Marek-Steele's pilot ability is not really that effective. The new damage deck with the TFA core set was supposed to fix that however FFG's distribution policy on it had the reverse effect where players were able to chose their damage deck. It sort of made it possible that you could chose your own critical effect. Well not much like that but you get the point. Generics and Swarms will use the old deck while Dash and Aces would use the new.

Oh, no, his pilot ability is still devastating. In one game, he was able to replace what would have been a Direct Hit on a stressed VCX with a Thrust Control Fire. That was huge, because the VCX would have been able to do a green maneuver behind me and use drop Cluster Mines (with Sabine crew) on me. The second stress prevented my opponent from taking the action needed to drop the mines.

In another game, Maarek was able to fish a Blinded Pilot crit on a nasty DeciVader Oicunn, preventing him from shooting back for a full round while I poured all my firepower into him.

Not all of the crits in the new deck are tamer than the old ones. Blinded Pilot, Major Hull Breach, and Major Explosion are all much more potent than the original versions.

A lot of the crits are "only okay" in a vacuum, but end up being very important in specific situations. They become pretty useful with Maarek because you only pick them if you're in a good situation for them.

Oh, no, his pilot ability is still devastating. In one game, he was able to replace what would have been a Direct Hit on a stressed VCX with a Thrust Control Fire. That was huge, because the VCX would have been able to do a green maneuver behind me and use drop Cluster Mines (with Sabine crew) on me. The second stress prevented my opponent from taking the action needed to drop the mines.

Yeah, that's true. Not to mention that crits don't have the bite that they used to so using Marek-Steele's pilot ability is not really that effective. The new damage deck with the TFA core set was supposed to fix that however FFG's distribution policy on it had the reverse effect where players were able to chose their damage deck. It sort of made it possible that you could chose your own critical effect. Well not much like that but you get the point. Generics and Swarms will use the old deck while Dash and Aces would use the new.

In another game, Maarek was able to fish a Blinded Pilot crit on a nasty DeciVader Oicunn, preventing him from shooting back for a full round while I poured all my firepower into him.

Not all of the crits in the new deck are tamer than the old ones. Blinded Pilot, Major Hull Breach, and Major Explosion are all much more potent than the original versions.

Well no not all the new crits are easier. Which is why you still have a lot of players that use the old deck. I'm just saying now that players can choose the deck the selection of crits overall will have a lesser effects. Then again Marek Steele could make sure that it is not the case (such as dropping injured pilot from a gold/thug in favor of a direct hit). BUt as you said earlier Marrek Crits are too inconsistent to really take into planning as simply building for them would take more away then it would give.

I was running Steele with Lone Wolf X7 along side Chirpy, with Palp, Rebel Captive, Engine and Pred for a while. The Deci did tend to go down but Marek would just not die. And boy oh boy did he just devour large base ships.

Try Vessery with expertise. It's nice! Also chenge palp for Omega Leader!

I'm thinking of putting him in with my two Wired Glaives, but I'm not totally sure what EPT would be best. I only have two copies of Wired, so I'm trying to think of something else.

Last casual tournament (14 strong), I ran this;

Stele + Juke + X7 + TIEmk2

OL + Juke + Comm Relay + Hull

Omicron + Palp + Sensor Jammer + APL

went 3-1 in swiss and finished 2nd, won my top 4 and we're yet to play the finals. It's vs the same guy who beat me in R2.

R1 - Miranda + Norra list with missiles and bombs, win 100-0

R2 - Ryad, Vessery (both std) and Backdraft + VI + FCS + title + some mod I don't remember, loss killed 1ship 30ish points-100

R3 - Omicron Palp, Ryad, Vessery standard, win 100-17

R4 - Asajj Dengar, win 100-17

top4 - Fenn, Zuckuss, Kavil, all at ps9: win 100-17

Highlights: I think Stele's ability triggered a total of 7 times during the tourney and it was always useful. It clinched the game vs Asajj with a blinded pilot, Gave me 2 rounds of double crits passing through a blocked Dengar during 2 turns in a row which let me reduce him down to ps0 and reduce his agility to secure the kill during a next round. It was a thing of beauty.

The list definitely feels it doesn't go toe to toe in terms of punching firepower and you can't meet head on a lot of lists, but sometimes I think you have no choice. Thinking back on my R2 loss and considering I have to play him in the finals when we get a chance to meet (or on vassal), perhaps the strategy is to joust with all 3 ships, accept that palp might get trounced a bit but then force token expenditure with juke so that Sensor Jammer does its magic. All in the name of maximizing the training of my guns towards the enemy.