As an imperial player, I'm interested to hear what lists you guys are building to be competitive in the wave xi meta filled with bomblets, bombs, cruise, Nym, high PS alpha strikes, etc.

Put together this list ten minutes ago and though it might be a tool box approach?

Kestal: Predator, Ion Turret, LWF

Quickdraw: Expertise, FCS, LWF, Title

Carnor Jax: PtL, AT

Comes to 100 points. Carnor can mess with deadeye and alpha power, Kestal can control bombers, and QD is just some muscle.

Love to hear your thoughts about this list and any other competitive imperial lists you guys are theorizing or testing. Thanks!

Something I saw someone else post somewhere:

Deathfire: Extra Munitions, Cruise Missiles, mines of choice, LRS.

I want to find time to put this on a table and run it. Should have no trouble getting cruises off at full power on approach, lay mines on the pass (target lock>ability), fire cruises again after the 5k, lay second mines after that. Space things out, support with other ships (/SF with synchronizer for instance) as needed. The TIE bomber is still a dirt-cheap way to put lots of ordnance on the board, and this is mid-20s depending on what mine you use (26 with clusters).

I think short of the opponent going all in on it it should be able to at least unload half the payload easily. Can chip instead of LRS if it has enough support for the TL (like I said, /SF), but it only wants the locks for the cruise missile pass anyways. Also has the advantage of slotting into lists easily. Can do a similar build with Aggressors (but only with chips), the double missile slot is only one more point than missiles+EM if you're trying to alpha stuff (but the bomber gets it done better I think).

As a hypothetical, I'd run that with clusters with the following (give or take - can drop sync to go to quickdraw with a wide open EPT slot, or use Vessery /D configurations, etc).

Backdraft: FCS, Cruise, Sync, Title, LWF

Ryad: PtL, /x7, TIE Mk II

I had been running quickdraw, backdraft, vesserty but tried vessery, countess, deathfire the other night and will be trying that quite a bit more.