Hmm I want to bring my Intercepters back to the table. My meta is a lot of two ship list. So I want to swarm as much as possible with my squints. Question is what is going to work best with all the ordinance and bombs in play?

list 1: Alpha Sqadron

5x Alpha Squadron Pilots w/ AutoThrusters

Points 100

List 2: Crack Sabers

4: Saber Squadron Pilots: Crack shot Auto Thrusters 96

or upgrade to RGP's and be at 100

List 3:

Soonter Fel: PTL, RGT, AT, SD

2 Alpha Sq Pilots AT

1 Crack Saber

other thoughts and ideas? I could Mix in basic TIEs but was a bit annoyed with trying to get damage through with just 2 Dice attacks.

I've been toying with the idea of four alphas plus a shuttle with fleet and systems officer and fcs...

What about mixing with Strikers ?

See

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

Hmm I want to bring my Intercepters back to the table. My meta is a lot of two ship list. So I want to swarm as much as possible with my squints. Question is what is going to work best with all the ordinance and bombs in play?

other thoughts and ideas? I could Mix in basic TIEs but was a bit annoyed with trying to get damage through with just 2 Dice attacks.

Yeah - that's kind of why I abandoned my beloved TIE/ln swarm in favour of swarming pointier things with 3 attack dice!

Things to recommend:

• Spend all your points. If taking generic ships at PS4 or less, you might as well assume you're on the wrong end of the pilot skill stick, and that initiative won't matter. At PS6 (royal guard) you may have the edge over Biggs/Lowhhrick squads, or TIE defenders, but that's about it.
• The more ships you have on the board, the more you'll appreciate all being at the same pilot skill so you can chop and change movement order!
• Mixing in basic TIE fighters might not be a bad plan. Academy Pilots remain great blockers, but they're also a credible threat at range 1.

For the squads you've got listed:

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

5x Alpha Squadron Pilots w/ AutoThrusters

I've not tried this myself. But it is an equivalent 'heavy swarm' to my list (5 Scarif Defender Strikers) - you both gain and lose relative to the striker:

• You have a lower minimum speed (2) and higher maximum speed (7) but achieving said maximum speed requires your action (leaving you tokenless, which generally means dead if you're in combat range of the enemy - use for pre-engagement strategic positioning or break-off moves only!).
• You can do tighter slow turns (speed 1) but your maximum turning speed without giving up actions is far lower (speed 3 compared to a striker's effective speed 5)
• You are more fragile close in (3 hull compared to 4) but much, much tougher at range 3 (4 green dice + autothrusters compared to 3 without).
• You are more tolerant of turret fire (autothrusters again), but less able to get your nose around to shoot back (the striker's bank + 1 turn)

Both should work. The fact that 5 alphas with autothrusters never became 'a thing' when the component cards have been around a long time suggests it won't be world-destroying, but I see no reason it can't do well with practice. People consistantly underestimate what 5 3-dice attacks can do to a target, even without stupid expertise/target lock/juke/gunner shenannigans.

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

List 2: Crack Sabers

4: Saber Squadron Pilots: Crack shot Auto Thrusters 96

or upgrade to RGP's and be at 100

If you want to take this list, take Royal Guard Pilots. There is no good reason to be at 96 points when you have a lower pilot skill, whilst 4 PS6 crack shot attacks might well kill something PS5 or less before it can fire.

Alternatively, put one point into each saber and pack Intensity. This gives you the ability to boost and barrel roll and still get your focus/evade tokens, but unlike Push The Limit you're not nailed to your green moves after doing so (indeed you can move, barrel roll into position, focus, attack, and then follow up by Koiogran turning if needs be).

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

List 3:

Soonter Fel: PTL, RGT, AT, SD

2 Alpha Sq Pilots AT

1 Crack Saber

Whilst fitting in Fel is nice, I'd stick with the Autothruster Alpha Squadron Pilots; throwing in one ship that's shootier and more fragile than the other two is likely to just mean it dies first; the other way you know your opponent is firing on an autothruster equipped target, plus Fel has an initiative bid to help you move after the Fenn Raus and the Poe Damerons lurking on the other side of the table.

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

other thoughts and ideas?

I've seen a couple of nasty heavy swarm variations; Autothruster-equipped Alpha Squadron Pilots can be freely exchanged for Unguided Rockets/Lightweight Frame Scimitar Squadron bombers (big, tough 'heavies') or Adaptive Ailerons/Lightweight Frame Scarif Defenders (a more turret-vulnerable but better 'normal' dogfighter equivalent)

One interesting one I saw was 4 Alpha Squadron Pilots without autothrusters - that saves enough points to field a TIE/x7 defender as the fifth ship. I'd be concerned with how flimsy the interceptors might prove, but 4 TIE/in and a TIE/x7 in a single squad is a scary thing to contemplate! Alternatively, a mixed TIE/ln and TIE/in swarm, or TIE/in with a 'buddy' might be nice:

• 5 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters)
• 5 Academy Pilots, 2 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters)
• 3 Academy Pilots, 2 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters), Saber Squadron Pilot (Crack Shot, Autothrusters)
• 4 Alpha Squadron Pilots, Delta Squadron Pilot (TIE/x7)
• 4 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters), Scimitar Squadron Pilot (TIE Shuttle, Fleet Officer, Twin Ion Engines MkII)

My personal favourite is 4 Royal Guard with PTL. Suffers from the Tie fragility of relying on the green dice (and our love/hate relationship with them).

Alternately, 4 Saber with Juke and AT should have a solid punch as well.

27 minutes ago, talker13 said:

Suffers from the Tie fragility of relying on the green dice (and our love/hate relationship with them).

True, but against non-turret-ey opponents the option to boost and barrel roll is often worth it.

I'm not so much of a fan of juke on low PS ships:

• To use it, you must be doing the evade action unless you get free evades (which they don't)
• This means no focus tokens, which probably drops your attack damage by as much as you'd increase it by
• It only matters if you haven't spent your evade by the time your turn to attack rolls round
• It only slightly helps a single attacker (barring omega leader), more the subsequent ones, since it really just works like a cheap version of hotshot copilot, forcing them to spend their focus.

That said, it's got to be worth a try! Being able to evade and still contribute something offensively might well be good (it works for TIE advanced aces, after all!).

13 hours ago, Magnus Grendel said:

5 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters)

• 5 Academy Pilots, 2 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters)
• 3 Academy Pilots, 2 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters), Saber Squadron Pilot (Crack Shot, Autothrusters)
• 4 Alpha Squadron Pilots, Delta Squadron Pilot (TIE/x7)
• 4 Alpha Squadron Pilots (Autothrusters), Scimitar Squadron Pilot (TIE Shuttle, Fleet Officer, Twin Ion Engines MkII)

Some interesting ideas here. Which also gets me thinking Aggressors.

If you want 5 ships I'd go for 4 Alphas and a Adv Prototype with Tracers so you can give them all a target lock and nuke something.

7 minutes ago, Dave Grant said:

If you want 5 ships I'd go for 4 Alphas and a Adv Prototype with Tracers so you can give them all a target lock and nuke something.

An interesting thought, good for an Alpha as long as the TAP doesn't go down first. Perhaps a pair?

5 hours ago, Ronu said:

An interesting thought, good for an Alpha as long as the TAP doesn't go down first. Perhaps a pair?

I'm not sure. When you've only got 5 ship 'slots' dedicating more than one of them (i.e. 40% of your squad!) to support ship(s) is pushing it. Advanced prototypes are like TIE/fo fighters - on a par with interceptors for survivability, but they do lack punch.

I dunno. Taking two, you should garuantee yourself at least one turn of target-locked fire, which is nice.

I'd say take a Seinar Test Pilot with XX-23 S-Thread Tracers and Autothrusters: if you take guidance chips you become much more accurate but also massively easier to hit than the rest of the squad - a bad idea when it's the obvious first target. With autothrusters, combined with his extra hit point, the test pilot should be easier to get a shot off with.

On 8/23/2017 at 3:24 AM, Ronu said:

5x Alpha Squadron Pilots w/ AutoThrusters

I took that to a store championship, mostly for fun.

Fun was had, but it also went pretty good. Way better than I had expected:

http://lists.starwarsclubhouse.com/get_tourney_details?tourney_id=3310

If you're OK dropping Autothrusters on the Alphas, you could go with Zertik Strom + VI + Tracers + Title + AC. PS 8 and 5 health is a lot harder to alpha strike than PS 2 and 4 health.

10 hours ago, MrAndersson said:

I took that to a store championship, mostly for fun.

Fun was had, but it also went pretty good. Way better than I had expected:

http://lists.starwarsclubhouse.com/get_tourney_details?tourney_id=3310

Well done! Any particular recommendations? Memorable games? Tactics? Cautions on key match-ups?

I've done okay with 5 scarif defenders, which are similar but a bit tougher and less evasive, so always happy to pick up advice...

I think people have got so used to 2-ship lists that a lot of them freak out a bit when confronted by 5 3-dice arcs, especially at short range....

2 hours ago, Magnus Grendel said:

Well done! Any particular recommendations? Memorable games? Tactics? Cautions on key match-ups?

Match-ups are important, of course, which is why I don't think it will stand a chance at higher level events.

I was lucky to not face any bombs or Dengar, both of which would have been really hard to handle. I did, however, face a number of imperial alpha strike lists, and was surprised at how well it did there.

I did not face any FSR either, but I had a strategy in store for them if I had, and that was to fly extremely cautiously and only engaging if I got an advantageous opening. In worst case, I get to roll 15 dice against their 11 in final salvo.

2 hours ago, Magnus Grendel said:

I think people have got so used to 2-ship lists that a lot of them freak out a bit when confronted by 5 3-dice arcs, especially at short range....

That is part of its success, I think. Many opponents don't know how to handle a list that differs so greatly from everything else they face.

I remember this one match against Vader, Quickdraw and The Inquisitor. His Vader only got to do actions on the first turn. After that, I blocked him every single turn except one (when he did a K-turn). He never got his TL, so couldn't fire cruise missiles and ATC never triggered. Basically, he became a very expensive Tempest Squadron Pilot.

Some general tips:

Use mobility to get the first engagements on your terms. Range 3 is your friend, especially against low agility ships, where you still have a god chance of doing damage but Autothrusters make you very resilient. Also, it give you perfect setup for blocking next turn.

Block every chance you get that doesn't put yourself in a bad position.

Formation flying is handy for easy maneuvering early on, but don't be afraid to break formation when it is needed. There is no Howlrunner who needs everyone to stay together.

Spread incoming fire as much as you can. If one of your ships take 2 damage (which is very common), use that one to block. Against a 2 ship list, a blocker is usually pretty safe, especially with an evade token.

35 minutes ago, MrAndersson said:

Range 3 is your friend, especially against low agility ships, where you still have a god chance of doing damage but Autothrusters make you very resilient.

I think this is the biggest edge of Interceptors over Strikers in a heavy swarm - Scarif Defenders do get their extra hit point, so they're a touch tougher at range 1-2, but at range 3 there's no touching the durability of the squints; with just a focus token - or even without one - 4 green dice and autothrusters is a heck of an ask to get through to hurt a 20 point ship!

38 minutes ago, MrAndersson said:

Also, it give you perfect setup for blocking next turn.

Block every chance you get that doesn't put yourself in a bad position.

Again, the ability to fly slow is probably your friend here! Speed 1 turn and barrel roll is very good for tight spots compared to the effective minimum speed 3 of the TIE striker.

By comparison, the striker does best at medium range, where it has space to use its nasty signature tricks - bank speed 1 followed by turn speed 1, either in the same direction (to come about 3/4) or the other direction (to pull away then turn back - useful when chasing).

I should probably have a try with the Interceptor Swarm as well - and the TIE bomber swarm too (unguided rockets/lightweight frame) - I suspect each of them will be interesting to fly for its own reasons.

Just going to leave that there. So much fun playing this. And Apparently my green dice approved of this group.

try 3x alpha 3x epsilon

I blame @Magnus Grendel for this......

4x Saber Squadron: AT's, Snap Shot

100 PTs

went through a 4 player matchup didn't lose a ship, which means trying it in a regular game is required.

7 hours ago, Ronu said:

I blame @Magnus Grendel for this......

4x Saber Squadron: AT's, Snap Shot

100 PTs

went through a 4 player matchup didn't lose a ship, which means trying it in a regular game is required.

Mwa Ha Ha.

Interesting build. If you can line it up right, the firepower of that lot at range 1 must be ridiculous, but it's actually got individual unit survivability at range 3, and enough pilot skill to get the drop on stuff like jumpmasters.

Any especially interesting parts to the game?

@Magnus Grendel Really the interesting part is the adjustment to flying I was trying to make. I was trying not to block to maximize the snap shots vs the usual block and then dogpile when I could. Very much dead on with the fire power. A pair got snap shots and range one on a y-wing, that ended with a dead Y-wing. Also found myself taking focus more often than evades or even boost and barrel rolls again trying to capitalize on being range one and not blocking. A TLT HWK was on the table and really did little thanks to the AT's. Overall a different type of game happened with the squints vs what might be expected. They could work together or separated very easily and were monsters either way.

8 hours ago, Ronu said:

@Magnus Grendel Really the interesting part is the adjustment to flying I was trying to make. I was trying not to block to maximize the snap shots vs the usual block and then dogpile when I could. Very much dead on with the fire power. A pair got snap shots and range one on a y-wing, that ended with a dead Y-wing. Also found myself taking focus more often than evades or even boost and barrel rolls again trying to capitalize on being range one and not blocking. A TLT HWK was on the table and really did little thanks to the AT's. Overall a different type of game happened with the squints vs what might be expected. They could work together or separated very easily and were monsters either way.

I'm definitely loving snap shot as a tool to up the firepower of generics. I was thinking of TIE fighters (Mauler Mithel & 5 x Black Squadron Pilot, all Snap Shot) or TIE/fo fighters (5 x Omega Squadron Pilot, Snap Shot/Primed Thrusters) but the squints are a fourth option - much more capable if you don't get the snap shots off , which is a key consideration; snap shot is all well and good but relying on your opponent flying into it is unwise.

Fun when it happens, though. Had a try last night with the first option; someone using the "OMG OP NYM CANNOT DEFEND" autoblaster turret/accuracy corrector/bomblet generator/genius combination but not.....exactly appreciating that just copying a list of the internet does not make it work.

Nym did that one thing Nym does, and zoomed in with a speed 3 bank to autoblaster/bomb the swarm. Placing him at range 1 of the entire swarm. Since I had initiative, I interrupted him placing his bomblet and pointed out my snap shot trigger(s) came first.

At this point the conversation went:

"What does snap shot do again?"

"What, all of them?"

"Bugger."