So I haven't played since wave 5 or 6, and have long since sold my small collection (TIE swarm, Interceptors, Phantoms) to make room for other hobbies. My LGS has weekly X-Wing days and monthly tournaments, and I thought I might make a return and catch up on what I've missed. I've done quite a bit of reading and got myself up to speed on the TLTs, Ghost Fenn, Dash, etc. squads everyone seems to despise. It seems to me that Rebels have a lot up their sleeves in terms of consistent and forgiving performance.

I'm not particularly interested in Scum, but since I was used to playing the Empire, what might be their more "consistent and forgiving" builds to play with as one gets back into the game? A cursory glance says Defenders with Quickdraw for good measure, but I'd like to hear others' thoughts.

I have at least the new core set under my belt, so that's a start.

I play a lot of defenders and /sfs. They stand their ground and are quite consistent.

Other very consistent and somewhat forgiving ships are the decimator, the inquisitor and I guess (hlc) gunboats.

TIE Defenders with the X7 title from the Imperial Veterans expansion box are, far and away, probably the most straightforward and reliable ship in the game, excellent for new and returning players.

They have a white K-Turn and they get a free Evade token every round (for the most part), so they basically fly themselves and are consistent on defense.

Something like:

Ryad + PTL + TIE MkII + X7 Title
Vessery + Juke + X7 Title
+ season to taste


Enjoy and welcome back!

My top 4 would be TIE Defenders, TIE/sfs, TAP, and TIE Silencers.

Defenders, tie/sf, tie advance prototypes, Darth Vader (other advanced are ok but Vader is just better).

I also really like com relay + juke on tie/fo's

But honestly a list with one defender, one tie sf and one tie advanced prototype is pretty solid and fun. Both quickdraw and backdraft are good, for defenders I like vesery or ryad and for tie advanced prototypes they are all solid.

Example:

TIE/SF Fighter: •"Quickdraw" (35)
Lightweight Frame (2)
Special Ops Training (0)
Adaptability (+1) (0)
Fire-Control System (2)
Pattern Analyzer (2)

TIE Defender: •Colonel Vessery (34)
TIE/x7 (-2)
Veteran Instincts (1)

TIE Adv. Prototype: •The Inquisitor (31)
Autothrusters (2)
TIE/v1 (1)
Push the Limit (3)

Total: 100/100

Silencer, much more so than its baby brother the interceptor, Kylo can deal with a little mistake, soontir cannot

Any decimator with Isard and eithe PTL/EU or Expert Handling/EI

Tons of health and once you take a Damage card you can outmaneuver even the best Fenn boosted team or ace.

Also echoing Defenders as another solid option.

Pretty much repeating what everyone else has said.

TIE Defenders are a very forgiving ship to fly - 3 shields, 3 health, 3 agility and with the x7 title a free evade if they move fast. The TIE SF is similar, with less native agility but the flexibility of an auxillary firing arc, the TIE Silencer is probably the ultimate arcdodger with enough health to stick around for a while and make the most of it.

Other notables go to the Gunboat - tough, hard-hitting and cheap enough as filler, the TIE Advanced (mainly Vader with the TIE/x1 title and a missile of choice) and the Inquisitor in the TIE Advanced Prototype. Then there's the Decimator which is tough, fast with Engine Upgrade and has a turret.

TIE Defender x7's, and TIE/sf's I 1000% agree with as consistent and forgiving ships to fly. I also like Vader (w/ title).

I'm not sure if I would put The Inquisitor in the "forgiving" category. If you bump, he folds like paper, and a single Proton Bomb during your first run in with Crimson Specialist can take him off the board.

Inqy doesn't do well with mistakes. Awesome ship and pilot, though.

7 minutes ago, FTS Gecko said:

Pretty much repeating what everyone else has said.

TIE Defenders are a very forgiving ship to fly - 3 shields, 3 health, 3 agility and with the x7 title a free evade if they move fast. The TIE SF is similar, with less native agility but the flexibility of an auxillary firing arc, the TIE Silencer is probably the ultimate arcdodger with enough health to stick around for a while and make the most of it.

Other notables go to the Gunboat - tough, hard-hitting and cheap enough as filler, the TIE Advanced (mainly Vader with the TIE/x1 title and a missile of choice) and the Inquisitor in the TIE Advanced Prototype. Then there's the Decimator which is tough, fast with Engine Upgrade and has a turret.

Eh...not sure I'd describe the Gunboat or TAP as "forgiving", though. I mean, they are good ships, but they have issues that I think are challenging for a new/returning player. Specifically, the TAP can die... easily . Notably, if you bump into range 1 of an autoblaster Ghost, it just deletes your ship outright - no dice even needed on either side, just a one-shot (well, one-turn anyway) auto-kill. Or a proton bomb? Again, likely one-shot-kill. It can be very unforgiving of mistakes.

The Gunboat has a different problem, in that while it's definitely tanky ...it can't turn to save its life - if you ever want to bring your bearing around you have to give up shooting entirely on that turn (at least, without buying into the titles and starting the make the thing somewhat dangerously-expensive). And that turn is WIDE, which can be a problem in various spots of the map. I mean, I like the thing a lot , but again - I'm not sure I'd describe it as "forgiving".

57 minutes ago, Aristo_ said:

So I haven't played since wave 5 or 6, and have long since sold my small collection (TIE swarm, Interceptors, Phantoms) to make room for other hobbies. My LGS has weekly X-Wing days and monthly tournaments, and I thought I might make a return and catch up on what I've missed. I've done quite a bit of reading and got myself up to speed on the TLTs, Ghost Fenn, Dash, etc. squads everyone seems to despise. It seems to me that Rebels have a lot up their sleeves in terms of consistent and forgiving performance.

I'm not particularly interested in Scum, but since I was used to playing the Empire, what might be their more "consistent and forgiving" builds to play with as one gets back into the game? A cursory glance says Defenders with Quickshot for good measure, but I'd like to hear others' thoughts.

I have at least the new core set under my belt, so that's a start.

In the current meta, I think the Silencer with Optics, ATs, and FCS is the best option of those listed if you have the points for them over generic defenders. Otherwise, I think defenders are the next best option as they are a bit cheaper (but the fact that their are cheaper comes at the cost of maneuverability and offensive capabilities). Gunboats are also pretty fun and have a lot of health to chew through but they can go pop when out-classed.

In terms of specific lists I think one of the most user friendly lists for imperials to run right now is Quickdraw, Vessery, and Omega Leader. A lot of synergy with some control options. Point and shoot.

Only really forgiving imperial ship in general around now is the x7 Defender. If you don't bump you're looking at 3 dice with evade/focus and the white 4k helps keep shots on target. The Silencer with advanced sensors and PtL is also incredibly forgiving if you are higher pilot skill than your opponent and they are running arced ships because you can dial in an array of maneuvers and figure it out later, and the 4 hull/2 shields is enough to get you out of a bad turn usually. Lower PS silencers aren't as forgiving but with optics for a permanent focus are nice. Finally, the TIE/sf with lightweight frame is about as defensive as a silencer and has the rear arc plus the ability to carry missiles, but aside from Quickdraw and his really great offensive ability aren't seen all that much.

Thanks for the suggestions! I think, all things considering, the Imperial Veterans set and a Defender for Vessery are next on my buying list. Maybe a TIE/sf afterwards. I do like the idea of a strong jousting/point 'n click Defender squadron, maybe with a TIE/sf, whose auxiliary arc seems like it could be a neat trick.

its also worth it to mention Countdown (can) also be forgiving. The closest thing imperials are going to get to (pre-nerf) Biggs.

The tie strikers pre-movement might take a game or two to nail down, though.

you’re going to need to buy at least one for light weight frames anyway, might as well try the ship out.

1 hour ago, Aristo_ said:

So I haven't played since wave 5 or 6, and have long since sold my small collection (TIE swarm, Interceptors, Phantoms) to make room for other hobbies. My LGS has weekly X-Wing days and monthly tournaments, and I thought I might make a return and catch up on what I've missed. I've done quite a bit of reading and got myself up to speed on the TLTs, Ghost Fenn, Dash, etc. squads everyone seems to despise. It seems to me that Rebels have a lot up their sleeves in terms of consistent and forgiving performance.

I'm not particularly interested in Scum, but since I was used to playing the Empire, what might be their more "consistent and forgiving" builds to play with as one gets back into the game? A cursory glance says Defenders with Quickshot for good measure, but I'd like to hear others' thoughts.

I have at least the new core set under my belt, so that's a start.

If you are use to soontir, give PTL kylo a go. 45/47pts but you get 6 health, insane dial, and a "get out of green dice **** free card" in the title that lets you reroll your putrid greens that you just blanked out on.

PTL Ryad is another ship I would probably swing you towards (maybe even paired with kylo? as she is the most maneuverable of the defenders, so its less of a learning curve. People think defenders are easy to fly, but not so much anymore. Bumps,blocks,stress all end your evades real quick.

x7 Defenders.

Fly with Twin Ion Engine in case someone tries to stress you, and just hope they don't double stress you.

Went to my first tournament since Wave 3 with two x7 Defenders with Twin Ion Engines and two TIE Advanced with Autocorrectors. It was a super forgiving list that let me focus on flying in the right direction and taking Evade tokens! The ships are pretty resilient and forgiving of mistakes for sure - good thing too!

1 hour ago, Phlyk said:

Went to my first tournament since Wave 3 with two x7 Defenders with Twin Ion Engines and two TIE Advanced with Autocorrectors. It was a super forgiving list that let me focus on flying in the right direction and taking Evade tokens! The ships are pretty resilient and forgiving of mistakes for sure - good thing too!

Huh. That's actually an interesting list. Tanky as heck, and still does okay damage. Back in the day, I used to run 4x Accuracy Corrector Advanced with hull upgrades just because my dice were so...awful. (The popular alternative at the time was AC/DC - 4x AC Advanced with Dark Curse - but I soured on that the first time I tried it. Enemy took a range 3 shot at an evading Dark Curse, who you'll recall has the ability to prevent the enemy spending focus or rerolling on attack, and they rolled...3 crits, native. I blank out on evades. Instant kill. Like...what was the point in bringing him? Who cares if the enemy can't mod their dice if they never need to....)

Anyway, I think I like your idea better!

Absolutely 2,000% agree with anyone recommending the silencer

While the SF (quickdraw) is obviously excellent and the x7 incredibly undervalued, they're not forgiving because they simply do not posses the slew of action independent modifiers native to "forgiving ships"

The adv sensor PTL silencer (thrusters, optics, first order vanguard AND sensors, which takes action loss due to overlap completely out of the equation) is the most forgiving ship you can fly (short of kylo ren Cheri of course, not much thought required there)

The silencer is also nice in that it's forgiving but engaging as it requires quite a bit of thought given the sheer array of options it presents its player

Those ships most "forgiving" are quite pricey points-wise, as well- no need to re-learn swarm formations or to buy heaps of stuff.