Reading the latest FFG blog on the Wave VII Chimaera linked me to the essay of the creation of the Admiral Thrawn Card, which has a fleet build that I can’t make sense of.

“Grand Admiral Thrawn - Fantasy Flight Games”

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2017/11/27/grand-admiral-thrawn/

At the end, the 2016 World Champion proposes a robust example fleet which has the squadrons:

• TIE Defender x2
• Valen Rudor
• Mauler Mithel

How do you get any benefit from Mauler Mithel in this fleet? Am I playing wrong, and an engaged squadron can move, so long as engagement is maintained?

Otherwise, why not instead have TIE Fighter x2 for more squadrons and still have a one point bid?

4 minutes ago, ShoutingMan said:

Reading the latest FFG blog on the Wave VII Chimaera linked me to the essay of the creation of the Admiral Thrawn Card, which has a fleet build that I can’t make sense of.

“Grand Admiral Thrawn - Fantasy Flight Games”

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2017/11/27/grand-admiral-thrawn/

At the end, the 2016 World Champion proposes a robust example fleet which has the squadrons:

• TIE Defender x2
• Valen Rudor
• Mauler Mithel

How do you get any benefit from Mauler Mithel in this fleet? Am I playing wrong, and an engaged squadron can move, so long as engagement is maintained?

Otherwise, why not instead have TIE Fighter x2 for more squadrons and still have a one point bid?

Initial damage on movement in... Then Scatter makes the survival difference, basically.

@JJs Juggernaut may be able to give some first hand insight

15 minutes ago, ShoutingMan said:

Reading the latest FFG blog on the Wave VII Chimaera linked me to the essay of the creation of the Admiral Thrawn Card, which has a fleet build that I can’t make sense of.

“Grand Admiral Thrawn - Fantasy Flight Games”

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2017/11/27/grand-admiral-thrawn/

At the end, the 2016 World Champion proposes a robust example fleet which has the squadrons:

• TIE Defender x2
• Valen Rudor
• Mauler Mithel

How do you get any benefit from Mauler Mithel in this fleet? Am I playing wrong, and an engaged squadron can move, so long as engagement is maintained?

Otherwise, why not instead have TIE Fighter x2 for more squadrons and still have a one point bid?

You're not playing it wrong.

Mauler is worth his points in many scenarios even without Intel/Chiraneau: his AOE damage is dealt when he becomes engaged, so if you catch enough targets in that one move, he can put out some pretty insane amounts of damage (albeit distributed, not targeted). Also works if you can manage to drop him in the middle of a bunch of heavy squadrons, or break engagement other ways like overlapping with a ship or moving an obstacle in with Navigational Hazards. Most of the time, though, you're only going to get that initial drop. Still works well if your plan for dealing with enemy squadrons is mostly flak, which is also large amounts of distributed damage.

Alternatively, you can run Mauler so he hits one or two squads, use the TIE/d and Valen to mop up, freeing Mauler for the next round. If he stays locked in, try to kill whatever is holding him down with the other squads and then move him in again.

Alt-Alternatively, run an ISD-II with Kallus and H9s - you're practically guaranteeing 1 damage to every squadron you shoot at, especially if it's an ace. "Bring those 3 Hull Scatter Aces down to `1 health with this one trick they won't tell you about!"

Thanks! It didn’t click his damage happens with squads he’s doesn’t start engaged with.

Indeed. As both Ard and Dras mentioned, the idea is about initial damage, followed by flight controller powered defenders. You should be able to take down several squads with that alpha. The scatter on Mauler helps him live longer, and he tends to draw fire, which means your harder hitting defenders get more time to continue to punch through their squads. In the case Mauler is surviving, you can then activate the defenders first the next round and hopefully finish off the squads Mauler was engaged with, then move Mauler to new targets. The idea is to use the 60ish points of squads to at least earn their points back in opponent's squads.

Disclaimer: I've never tried this fleet, so maybe it's just bad...

Got it. I see now how this works with the Quasar to be a first-strike squadron group.