I need some advice. I have a couple of these cruisers and I just don’t know how to use them. I get that they are best as flankers but beyond that I don’t know.

What other ships do they pair up best with? What upgrades are must haves for them?

I ask because my fleet building is in a rut. I stick with ISDs, Gladiators and Raiders because they seem the best for the points. I have an Interdictor, a Quasar and some Victories but they get almost no game time. What’s the best use for them? I’m primarily interested in the Arquitens but I’d like to make use of all my plastic triangles.

Thanks in advance.

Vader? Or another Admiral like JJ.

Cymoon with IF or an ISD with Chimera and IF.
Arquitens to taste.
Squadrons?

I personally don't see them play competitively much. However I see some shenanigans online.

Command Cruiser with Engine Techs and Quad Battery Turrets. It is expensive yet can always get that blue dice and stay mobile.

Brunson is also good on them. I however find the price a bit high for the swingy dice which is why I don't play with them much. They are fragile outside of long range and you need ways to increase the reliability of the side arcs for them to be really effective. I find myself using them with dual turbolaser turrets or slaved turrets.

Also their maneuver chart is a selfie stick.

29 minutes ago, Karneck said:

Cymoon with IF or an ISD with Chimera and IF.
Arquitens to taste.

This. I ran a pair with a Chimaera ISDK with IF and really enjoyed that. The squad group needs to be reasonably durable as well as self reliant though.

I know JJ makes them better.

Their nav chart is terrible.

Thanks, folks. I see your having the same problems. Although, I will try Tallgiraffe’s suggestions.

Every time I think of taking them, I can’t get over that I could take a pair of raiders, that are faster and far more maneuverable and be able to do fast fly by attacks that can cause major damage. Slow them down to speed three and put a gladiator with them, and I have a major flanking force that can wreck face. With. Cymoon out there herding in from the other side I have some nice anvil and hammer action going. But, as I said, I’m tired of running that every time.

Tall and Alter, what type of fighter screen did you run? Any special objectives you suggest?

Paging @Thrindal, I believe, to regale us with tales of the Tarquitens fleet.

Otherwise, Arquitens really need a "fixer" commander. They have unreliable damage and a weird nav chart and they need someone who can help them fix at least one of those things. Moff Jerry, Vader, and Tarkin can do that. Most Imperial commanders really can't. I need to spruce up the article for them a little bit, but most of what I wrote back in wave 5/6 still holds true:

http://cannotgetyourshipout.blogspot.com/2017/05/imperial-ship-review-arquitens-light.html

Jerry and TRCs. Alternatively you can include IF! on an ISD and run them naked. The things Arqs really have going for them are A. They’re super maneuverable under Jerry, B. You can keep a reasonable distance from many targets, and C. They can hit targets reliably (if not terribly hard.) If you include other consistent hitters (like an ISD-C or an HIE Raider,) you can go for a “quantity of attacks” approach. Eating long-range shots every round from multiple Arqs adds up fast.

Vader on cymoon + 2 Kittens with Intel Officer and/or TRC, DTT, QBT, Slaved or Enhanced.

They can reliably throw 3-6 damage per turn at long range. Against Raiders and MC30Ts it's great. The enemy is half dead before it reaches you. Just don't forget to use them in pairs!

You should consider them as pocket AFMK2s and use them accordingly. Light on upgrades, dedicated role, never in the middle of the party.

First time I used them it didn’t go well. They certainly move oddly.

Pair them with an ISD with IF. Add TRC and you can guarantee 3 damage.

I play the others light with just dual turbolaser turrets.

I love them. The only reason I don't take them is when I'm doing something else with my list.

My favorite archetype is taking three ARQ-CLs, each with Slaved Turrets and an Intel officer. Vader is the commander on one of them. Season with a couple of flotillas and a fighter group dedicated to protecting Jonus, and we're getting somewhere. The idea is to navigate for the first two turns to get a token and/or navigate into position, then concentrate fire to pummel your enemies with five red dice, accuracy guarantee, Intel Officer on backup, and Vader for re-rolls. Fighters mess up any fighter rushes trying to stop you and shield Jonus. Nearly topped a few tournaments with this list going all out.

If you're not dedicated to scaling up ARQ firepower as I have, I find ARQs are good pressure units. They can maintain their distance while still being effective (what other Imperial ship can say that? Ok, maybe the interdictor...). If you're taking one, Giraffe's suggestions are good, though I'd take Needa with TRCs instead to use as a sniper.

If you want a barebones ARQ my recommendation is a CL with DTTs or QBTs. DTTs are designed to help you sift out bad die results, so that can at least give you a better way to control the three reds. QBTs work by adding a blue if you're hanging around at speed 1, shooting at most targets. Take this one ship and go flanking with it, maybe start at speed 3 and then when it's in position drop to 2 and concentrate fire.

The Navigation chart is really designed for circle-strafing around speed 2. This is probably where you want your ARQs, unless a fast enemy is coming in and you need to maintain your distance. An ARQ's biggest vulnerability (apart from no brace) is that wide rear arc. Still, in exchange the firing on the sides is pretty good for catching most enemies as you II click turn at the end of your movement.

@Crabbok loves his arquitens, he has a few videos on them and usually has some interesting view points and builds worth looking into

I like them with jejjerod, dual turbos and cluster bombs of all things. My meta is pretty squad heavy but last time i ran two of them with an isd2 and 2 gozantis and a couple of ties. Worked really well. Just remember their damage is very swingy so they are there to add continuous supporting damage while the isd does the killing. Dont rely on them as the main hitters.

Intel officers and TRCs in a Vader Kitten fleet can be fun. They do a surprising amount of damage and with IOs they'll almost never brace.

I run mine with slaved turrets and skilled first officers in a Vader fleet, they pump out a surprising amount of damage, and skilled first officers help if you need a timely nav command to avoid traffic jams

I once used two of them with Thrawn so they can spam maneuver and Thrawn gave them concentrate fire when most needed. Also an ISD Cymoon with Intensify Firepower, both Arquitens with Enhanced Armament and I added Captain Jonus to help further with bad rolls although I played badly the squadron game and didn't get to use it. But it was a solid fleet and I liked very much playing it, when I have the chance I'll use it again

Arquitens are THE best ship in the game. Period.

Vader + 6 Arquitens, give 4 of them Enhanced Armament. Fly them in a line. Someone tries to get in front of you? Split up, half go left, half to right, roast everyone. Unlimited power.

Quote

Arquitens are THE best ship in the game. Period.

Vader + 6 Arquitens, give 4 of them Enhanced Armament. Fly them in a line. Someone tries to get in front of you? Split up, half go left, half to right, roast everyone. Unlimited power.

Opening Salvo?

The first Kitten I take in a list is always Arquitens CL, Needa & TRC.

The second Arquitens in a list is usually just Arquitens CL & DTT. Add RBDs if you put your admiral on board but otherwise keep it cheap. SFOs are good to alternate Nav and CF commands. When using Vader as your admiral then Slaved Turrets can be a better option but you loose the double arc possibility (usually made with the flank & rear rather than the more risky flank & front arcs).

I thought about a design to get another TRC in the fleet using Arquitens CL, TRC & Brunson. A little more expensive but as long as you are near an obstacle you can get the effect of an evade (even better in closer ranges) while still using your evade for TRC duty.

Hand of Justice is a nice title if using a Double ISD + Arquitens + small/moderate fighters list. Centicore is almost the same as the pre FAQ Relay rule but with flotillas not counting for tabling anymore and the Arquitens probably not wanting to get too close to the thick of the action I'm not keen.

QBTs seem a great weapon but sadly a slow Arquitens is usually a dead Arquitens. Their yaw options make them predictable at the best of times but if they are slow on top of that - things can go poorly. The exception is if you just want to overload the enemy quickly in a long range Red & blue dice fury. As soon as I can buy another 2 models from the FLGS I'm going to try this list.

400/400, Opening Salvo, Contested Outpost, Solar Corona
ISD-Cymoon, Vader, Gunnery Teams, QBTs 160
Arquitens CL, Needa, TRC 63
Arquitens CL, QBTs 59
Arquitens CL, QBTs 59
Arquitens CL, QBTs 59
Squadrons 0

Run the Cymoon slow with a pair of Kittens on each flank, keeping close formation and trying to double arc aggressively with the front & flank arcs. 34 dice at long range without concentrating fire and if the enemy decide to slow to speed 1 to avoid the QBTs then so much the better.

2 hours ago, Mad Cat said:

The first Kitten I take in a list is always Arquitens CL, Needa & TRC.

What that 'CL" stands for?

1 minute ago, Norell said:

What that 'CL" stands for?

It is navy term for Light Cruiser.

CA originally was for Armored Cruiser, but was repurposed for Heavy Cruiser.

I take it people view a second Evade token as more valuable paired with TRC's, due to engagement range? or is there another reason to have Needa?

16 hours ago, Snipafist said:

Paging @Thrindal, I believe, to regale us with tales of the Tarquitens fleet.

Otherwise, Arquitens really need a "fixer" commander. They have unreliable damage and a weird nav chart and they need someone who can help them fix at least one of those things. Moff Jerry, Vader, and Tarkin can do that. Most Imperial commanders really can't. I need to spruce up the article for them a little bit, but most of what I wrote back in wave 5/6 still holds true:

http://cannotgetyourshipout.blogspot.com/2017/05/imperial-ship-review-arquitens-light.html

I'll answer the page... I won't go into details on my lists as that has been done elsewhere but Arquitens can be competitive. Others have mentioned the best commanders for them. I prefer Tarkin and Jerjerrod, Vader also helps with the Red dice but he doesn't help with Navigation.

My favorite way to fly them is 2 Command Cruisers with ET, a Cymoon with IF, a Gozanti, and a small fighter contingent with Tarkin as the commander. Fly the Arquitens in the front Arc of the Cymoon and use their side arcs to cover the Cymoon side Arcs while the Cymoon front arc covers the Arquitens. Use Tarkin and Sovereign to give tokens, Cymoon CF, Arquitens Nav, and Gozanti Squad. Then C.F. dials on the Arc, IF helps mitigate red dice a little, I like QBT on the Arquitens but TRC or DTT are also solid choices.

Jerjerrod also works with 2-3 Light Cruisers and a Cymoon. In this case you can either do IF or Sheilds to Maximum. If you go Sheilds to Max you should be making every use out of JJ. Arquitens are super maneuverable in this build and you should be trying to get them behind your enemy.

Just make sure you are staying at long range no matter your build, Arquitens evaporate in close combat. Fly them like Demo and you will not do well. They need a different thought process. Kite like crazy and kill from long range.

3 hours ago, TheEasternKing said:

I take it people view a second Evade token as more valuable paired with TRC's, due to engagement range? or is there another reason to have Needa?

No that is exactly the reason, although you can make TRC work without Needa he makes your choice much easier. Of course if you fly multiple only one can have Needa. Personally I consider Needa a crutch and don't use him much in my Arquitens builds.