Upsilon Special Forces Escort

By DarkLordVader192, in X-Wing Squad Lists

So I started throwing together this list and I wanted to get some feedback on it, it is as follows

"Quickdraw" TIE/sf Fighter
29
Once per round, when you lose a shield token, you may perform a primary weapon attack.
Juke
2
Small ship only.
When attacking, if you have an evade token, you may change 1 of the defender's evade results into a focus result.
Collision Detector
0
When performing a boost, barrel roll, or decloak, your ship and maneuver template can overlap obstacles.

When rolling for obstacle damage, ignore all results.
Comm Relay
3
You cannot have more than 1 evade token.

During the End phase, do not remove an unused evade token from your ship.
Special Ops Training
0
TIE/sf only.
When attacking with a primary weapon from your primary firing arc, you may roll 1 additional attack die. If you do not, you may perform an additional attack from your auxiliary firing arc.
Ship Total: 34
"Backdraft" TIE/sf Fighter
27
When attacking a ship inside your auxiliary firing arc, you may add 1 result.
Juke
2
Small ship only.
When attacking, if you have an evade token, you may change 1 of the defender's evade results into a focus result.
Collision Detector
0
When performing a boost, barrel roll, or decloak, your ship and maneuver template can overlap obstacles.

When rolling for obstacle damage, ignore all results.
Comm Relay
3
You cannot have more than 1 evade token.

During the End phase, do not remove an unused evade token from your ship.
Special Ops Training
0
TIE/sf only.
When attacking with a primary weapon from your primary firing arc, you may roll 1 additional attack die. If you do not, you may perform an additional attack from your auxiliary firing arc.
Ship Total: 32
Starkiller Base Pilot Upsilon-class Shuttle
30
Operations Specialist
3
Limited.
After a friendly ship at Range 1-2 performs an attack that does not hit, you may assign 1 focus token to a friendly ship at Range 1-3 of the attacker.
Hyperwave Comm Scanner
1
At the start of the "Place Forces" step, you may choose to treat your pilot skill value as "0," "6," or "12" until the end of the step.

During setup, after another friendly ship is placed at Range 1-2, you may assign 1 focus or evade token to it.
Ship Total: 34
So at the beginning of the game the Upsilon passes an evade to the TIE's, allowing them to use Juke every time they attack, which for Quickdraw could even be 4 times a round. Allowing each TIE to either force a focus to be spent or push an additional hit through. The evade also functions as a sort of assurance policy allowing them to stay alive if need be.

Meh...could be fun. I've tried Juke/Relay on s/f before, but 10 points is too expenzive for my taste. If you're going that way, drop "Quickdraw" and "Backdraft" to Omega Squadron and save 6 points for something like Reb Captive and an upgrade to Lt. Dormitz. Really, any s/f should have Fire Control System stapled to it.

Try this if you want a challenging Upsilon-with-s/f build:

3x Zeta s/f w/ Collision Detectors and Titles: block your deployment zone with debris obstacles and bait your opponent into your backfield, stay in formation (maybe one-and-a-half template widths) and don't be afraid to use red maneuvers while flying over/onto the debris.

Starkiller Base Pilot w/ E Baffle: it's tough to do, but slow rolling with and purposefully bumping with the Upsilon let's you keep it in the backfield, then turn in when you engage with the s/f and Baffle whatever stress to get that 4-die gun on target, Coordinate a s/f to barrel roll, or give it a target lock to boost its attack. Your opponent sees you making the Upsilon weaker by using Baffle and may go after it, keeping your close-in 3/4 die s/f attacks out of the fire a bit longer. Support the s/f trio, use obstacles to obstruct shots on you, and block your opponent's lanes of attack/follow-through/withdrawal.

In many regards, four ships outclass three. Be patient, and fly canny.

Edited by Alekzanter

I have to agree, that's alot of points for 1 evade. I could understand an intensity/comm relay build to carry the evade with you. But once you spend the evade token, it's gone and you can't replenish it. And if you go up against a squad that includes Palob, your strategy is out the door.

I just flew 3 Zeta s/f, each with Title and Collision Detector, and a Starkiller Base Pilot with Electronic Baffle against Keyan Farlander, equipped with E2/Hera, Determination, and Tractor Beam, and 2 Red Squadron Vet T-70s with Trick Shot, R2 Astromech, Pattern Analyzer, Proton Torps, and Chips. My opponent's skill is on par with mine (which is okay, piloting-wise).

A trio of debris obstacles were clustered on my right, just outside my deployment zone, with two medium-sized asteroids to my middle and left, and a smaller asteroid far out on my right. I deployed the Upsilon quite near the back edge of my deployment zone, facing right, its rear range 2 from my left. The Zetas were deployed facing forward, the first butted against the Upsi and clear back, the next one and one-half template widths to the right and half way forward of the rear deployment edge, and the last spaced the same and all the way forward in the deployment zone.

Turn 1, the Upsi bumps (1 forward), and all Zetas move 2 right turn. Turn 2, the Upsi bumps (1 forward), and the Zetas move 3 forward. By then, aggressive movement by my opponent will have them engaging in earnest by turn 3. Turn 3, the Upsi moves 1 left turn, Baffles, Coordinates one of the Zetas (target lock), and the Zetas bank 1 left into the gap between the far right debris and the right edge with overlapping arcs of fire to receive an over-aggressive Keyan and a T-70. The second T-70 banks around to my left trying to flank the Upsi. The Upsi is out of range from the right T-70, so combined fire brings 1 Zeta down to 1 hull. I concentrate (much-unmodified) fire from three Zetas on Keyan, bringing him to 2 hull.

Turn 4, the Upsi sits tight (red 0 stop), Baffles, and coordinates the far right Zeta (barrel roll from behind debris), which then moves 1 forward and target locks Keyan. The middle (with only 1 hull) moves 2 forward, focuses, and ends up blocking Keyan's 3 left bank. The left Zeta turns hard right 2, back toward the left-side T-70 and target locks her. Keyan shoots my far right Zeta, range 1, gets 3 hits, and I evade 2 of them. The T-70 on my left Proton Torps the Upsilon, 1 hit and 2 crits, and I evade 1, losing 2 shields. Return fire from my far right Zeta, range 1, burns Keyan down. Turn 5, the right T-70 K-turns into my far right backfield, and then right banks and boosts back out tue following turn, away from my deployment zone and out of range/arc of my Zetas, but takes a range 3 from the Upsi; four naked dice, 3 hits, 2 evades. Turn 6, I zero stop the Upsi, Baffle, Coordinate far right Zeta (target lock on right T-70), then slow roll mid and right Zetas, trying to catch the right T-70, but he moves perfectly alongside both, range 1 of both, out of arc of both. I bring the left Zeta into my backfield with a 3 left s-loop, resetting my squadron to receives the second engagement. At this point, the Upsilon is down 5 shields. My opponent has zero points in trade for his 33.

The Upsi gets torpedoed during the next engagement, losing its last shield and 2 hull. I maneuver the middle Zeta in front of it, and next turn bump (moving forward maybe a cm) and Coordinate the left Zeta (focus for full mod attack on left T-70). I strip its 2 remainging shields, but not before she strips mine, and it flees again. The T-70s keep coming in from either flank, making me split my focus, and I get a bit impatient with this; I send my full-health Zeta around to the right to harass the right T-70, and send the two wounded ones out to chase the one on the left. Dumb. I lose one Zeta (the one with 1 hull), and in my absence the left T-70 sneaks into range 2, half on a debris obstacle, and it puts 4 hits onto my 2-hull Upsilon. Boom! 54 to 33, opponent's favor.

The next half dozen turns see feints, switchbacks, arc dodging, and we're both feeling the pressure. That's when my opponent begins to take very aggressive risks, but it pays off for me when I finally pop the left T-70. But, he keeps up with the aggression, sweeps into range one behind both Zetas, boosts out of one arc, and goes for my wounded one (its at 1 shield, 3 hull); he rolls hit, crit, crit! I evade one, take 2 crits...pilot skill 0, and take 1 stress then flip down. I survived the attack with 1 hull! The return shot: I roll hit, hit, crit, he rolls a blank and a focus, and that ends the game.

No time limit, just casual, but if we'd both stayed patient it could have gone either way. As it was, I think he was fed up with vying for snipes against my pair of Zetas and went balls out.

Fun game, when all and done.

Edited by Alekzanter