I love the TIE Interceptor. It's been my favorite ship from the Star Wars universe ever since I saw it fly across the screen when I was a kid. I fell in love with them in X-wing 1.0 as well, until I was constantly blown up, but even then, Carnor Jax would see some table-time being the jerk he is to negate green tokens and actions (focus and evade). Now Interceptors are back and I'm happy as a pig in $#!+, though they work better as the flanking arm of a combined force, which is what their battlefield role is, so...AWESOME!

Now Wave 2 will be coming up soon and I have a strong suspicion that my favorite Squints will see a reprint at that time. The Interceptor had a bunch of pilots from the two expansions they appeared in and I'm sure those pilots and maybe more will be cropping up. But, there are a couple things that cropped up in my overactive imagination: will we have more than one Interceptor expansion and will one of those be Force-specific? The TIE Advanced Prototype (V1) showed that FFG is willing to let us play generic force users (Inquisitors) with named Force users in the same ship (7th Sis and Grand Inky). Could we see a Royal Guard TIE Interceptor pack with a red Squint adorned with the extra wingy-thingies, featuring a a 1-Force point, In4 to match the Saber Squadron pilot? Kir Kanos? Carnor Jax? Maybe more? It could be worthy of its own expansion, but I'd hate to wait for it. Alternatively, these same pilots could appear in a generic Squint expansion and I'b be fine with that too.

On the idea of Force using Interceptors, I feel a Royal Guard pilot would run 48 pts. That's 8 pts more than a Saber, akin to the 6 pt premium you pay for an Inquisitor over a Baron. I gave it the extra 2 pts because Supernatural Reflexes and Heightened Perception are even more powerful on an Interceptor simply because of the 3 reds it throws. And it's pointier. All my favorite ships seem to be pointy. Then there's Carnor Jax. I'm thinking 58-60 pts, In5, 2 Force points. Ability: You may spend a Force point to perform a Jam action and may perform up to two Jam actions total. This covers the effect of his old ability in many ways but uses an existing mechanic. It becomes a bit more powerful in that it can then remove target locks as well, but is more limited against ships like the Moldy Crow or someone with a Perceptive Copilot.

So, these thoughts have been rattling around for a while and I figured I'd regurgitate them on all of you. Thoughts? who else loves Squints?

Well, even if I doubt it, your idea that they may release a "imperial guard tie/in" expansion next to the "tie/in" is not crazy. As you said, the model has 4 more little winglets, and so should not be just painted red. There is a reason to give a force token to generics ( even if I am not sure this was Canon) . So, I am interested in your idea!

I just want Carnor Jax back.

2 minutes ago, TasteTheRainbow said:

I just want Carnor Jax back.

Right? It's so sad when some of our favorite pilots don't appear to be returning.

**** Thanos.

11 minutes ago, TasteTheRainbow said:

I just want Carnor Jax back.

8 minutes ago, ObiWonka said:

Right? It's so sad when some of our favorite pilots don't appear to be returning.

**** Thanos.

Fel's Wrath...

I'm hoping we get all the old pilots back plus one or two new ones, hopefully Cienna Ree if Armada is anything to go by.

I was really, really hoping Lt. Lorrir would make it back, but seeing how Microthusters is a ship ability on StarVipers, I think I've given up hope. So sad.

I'm wondering what's going to be in the expacs. Squints have 2 mods slots and right there isn't a mod that looks good even if you squint. I feel like there's going to be some killer mods in the expac to take full advantage of the Interceptors slots.

4 minutes ago, DXCrazytrain said:

I'm wondering what's going to be in the expacs. Squints have 2 mods slots and right there isn't a mod that looks good even if you squint. I feel like there's going to be some killer mods in the expac to take full advantage of the Interceptors slots.

Could be. But remember, 8 points for shield upgrade is equivalent to 1.0 cost of 4 points, so that upgrade didn't get proportionally more expensive. It's just that we have other options that we'd rather spend our points on - like a support ship that's worth it's weight in plastic. There are some stellar support ships for TIE interceptors! I think I like the Lambda best.

Anyway, I think I'd still pay 8 points for a Shield Upgrade on Soontir Fel, as long as I'm confident I can deal a commensurate amount of damage to the enemy squad. While a cheaper modification sounds good, I'm afraid of potential power creep. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

3 hours ago, Gilarius said:

Fel's Wrath...

RIP. After the End phase, anyway.

3 hours ago, Parakitor said:

I was really, really hoping Lt. Lorrir would make it back, but seeing how Microthusters is a ship ability on StarVipers, I think I've given up hope. So sad.

I could see Lt. Lorrir getting mandatoey banking barrel rolls. Or at the very least, the option to eat a stress token in order to turn them into a bank.

5 hours ago, TasteTheRainbow said:

I just want Carnor Jax back.

One like isn’t enough.

Yeah, I want this ship back. I joined these boards mostly to figure out why I couldn't seem to make this ship work in 1.0, only to discover it was Fel or nothing.

Getting the "meh" feedback on the 2.0 version of this ship is one reason I wouldn't bother going Imperial. I've been living on TAPs and Silencers since the Squint was always not so hot.

Seeing it down to 4 pilots in 2.0 is a bummer, too.

10 hours ago, Parakitor said:

I was really, really hoping Lt. Lorrir would make it back, but seeing how Microthusters is a ship ability on StarVipers, I think I've given up hope. So sad.

I said it in another thread, that I was hoping he'd be back and 'fixed,' but since this is the new and "improved" version of the game, he'll probably only be able to proc his banked barrel rolls if an enemy is in his bullseye arc, it'll cost one unrecoverable charge, and it'll deal out a stress. So I'm not sure if I want him to come back or not.

4 hours ago, Darth Meanie said:

Yeah, I want this ship back. I joined these boards mostly to figure out why I couldn't seem to make this ship work in 1.0, only to discover it was Fel or nothing.

Getting the "meh" feedback on the 2.0 version of this ship is one reason I wouldn't bother going Imperial. I've been living on TAPs and Silencers since the Squint was always not so hot.

Seeing it down to 4 pilots in 2.0 is a bummer, too.

I hope that we only got 4 pilots, because the Squints are likely to be one of the earlier expansions for Imps.

I'm hoping for a 'Ceptor Defender double whammy for wave 2 imps. Both ships have ample presence in rebels, so I suspect we will get pilots from the show, as well as maybe Cienna Ree for the interceptor.

Imps also lack an IN6 pilot. #FingersCrossed for Vult Skerris, IN6 Defender Elite pilot.

5 hours ago, Darth Meanie said:

Yeah, I want this ship back. I joined these boards mostly to figure out why I couldn't seem to make this ship work in 1.0, only to discover it was Fel or nothing.

Getting the "meh" feedback on the 2.0 version of this ship is one reason I wouldn't bother going Imperial. I've been living on TAPs and Silencers since the Squint was always not so hot.

Seeing it down to 4 pilots in 2.0 is a bummer, too.

There will be 2 more named pilots, at least, in the standalone expansion.

Meanwhile, I'm going to try out 5 Sabre Squadron Aces. And then Soontir plus 4 Interceptors. And then see if I need to swap any out. I think they're going to be pretty good in 2.0.

No one for Kir Kanos ?

I expect to see Cienna Ree (remember they said we will have her after Armada for Xwing) and Vult Skarris has new pilots for the tie interceptor.

I would also like too see the royal guard title again

Gives Lock
+1 shield
Cannon slot

And we could get a TIE only cannon

Chin cannons

Range 1-2

Bullseye

2 dice

After you perform an attack, you may perform this attack as a bonus attack.

:The Dream:

7 hours ago, Darth Meanie said:

Getting the "meh" feedback on the 2.0 version of this ship is one reason I wouldn't bother going Imperial. I've been living on TAPs and Silencers since the Squint was always not so hot.

Really? I've faced against them a couple of times and they were pretty mean. Friend had 2 generic guys with Stealth Device. Flew them as 2 Flankers with a Tie Punisher slow rolling the middle. Made it a tough choice. Their built in PTL still made them pretty tough. I had Homing Missiles, but couldn't get them in arc of the one ship that had them.

It's important to flank and don't fly directly at someone.

1 hour ago, Gilarius said:

Meanwhile, I'm going to try out 5 Sabre Squadron Aces. And then Soontir plus 4 Interceptors. And then see if I need to swap any out. I think they're going to be pretty good in 2.0.

I'm not sure on a whole list of Interceptors will work. If you fly right at someone it won't go so well. Maybe if you baited with some, but don't joust.

I don't know if we'll see an actual ship difference with the Royal Guard TIE (if there is one) as the addition of a Force token is significant as is. If they added anything like "chin cannons" it would likely be +1 die in bullseye at rng 1 as a config card or something similar.

Kir Kanos! I'd love to see him back, with a talent/force slot (he had no talent slot before). He was never used because, well, he was a pain and there were better pilots available. Now, he'd be one of the few ships that can crank out 4 reds consistently. An Interceptor hitting hard at range is an oddity and something that could work well as a nasty surprise.

Lt Lorrir was another underused pilot that I think would thrive in this new environment. We're back to flying ships well! Lorrir was pulling Starviper nonsense before we even needed Autothrusters. He's the OG of the banking barrel roll. How about In 4, "you may perform barrel rolls using the 1 bank template", 44 pts and we call it a day? Not good enough? 46 pts. Forget the stress or the charges or whatever - keep it simple and give us a reason to use him!

Of course, there could be so many pilots we could be in danger of "diluting the brand", but on the other hand, wouldn't it be amazing to show up to tournaments and see different Squint pilots in every list? I think this is feasible! I know some pilots can overshadow others, like right now the Inferno TIE pilots are the bee's knees, but I actually favor Mauler and Scourge and they run 32 pts each! They're not lesser pilots, just less synergistic (which feels too warm and fuzzy and Rebel scummy to me - give me cold, hard, calculated Imperial death machines any day). So, if FFG play their cards right, we could have a variety of pilots that fulfill different roles within the Interceptor niche. Kanos is a hard-hitter at range while Lorrir is the ultimate outmaneuvering knife fighter. Fel is the double repositioning ace, while Phennir is the faux-jouster and trickshot king. Jax is...annoying - lol - he's the disruptor, while Fel's Wrath is the insurance. And then there's the awesome generics! In 4 generics are awesome and are a great fallback if you don't have points for specialized aces.

Who did I miss? And can you categorize them into a niche?

Personally, I don't care about the old pilots.

I just want Ciena Ree.

16 hours ago, TasteTheRainbow said:

I just want Carnor Jax back.

1 hour ago, Arkanta974 said:

No one for Kir Kanos ?

1 hour ago, Commander Kaine said:

I would also like too see the royal guard title again

I actually really hope they don't bother with any of the Royal Guard stuff this time.

It was never really an actual thing. It was an over the top quest reward from a Star Wars Galaxies expansion that came out long after SWG had lost the plot. It got referenced in (I think) one of the Saga Edition RPG books (often thought of as the worst of the three Star Wars RPG systems) and that was it.

Kir Kanos flew an X-Wing, A Skipray Blastboat and a Scimitar Assault Bomber, but never once flew an Interceptor in any of his appearances. Carnor Jax was never seen to fly anything . They were just convenient names to put into a convenient repaint to sell the aces pack.

The thing that always bugged me about 1e was that, outside of the Alpha and Avenger generics, there weren't any normal TIE Interceptor pilots in the whole game.

Fel, Phennir and Fel's Wrath were all 181st, and had the stripes. Tetran Cowall was an actor pretending to be Fel in a fake 181st. Lt. Lorrir claimed he had once flown in the 181st, but was never actually seen flying anything other than a shuttle in his only appearance. And Kir Kanos and Carnor Jax were, of course, Royal Guards.

Not one named, normal TIE Interceptor pilot. In 2e we have a chance to get Ciena Ree to finally fill that role, but even Vult Skerris gets the ****ing stripes on his TIE in Rebels.

Personally, I'd like to Erisi Dlarit get a spin. She's one of the most developed characters known to fly an Interceptor, she's an X-Wing series main character (putting her on the same level as Gavin Darklighter, who's made his debut in 2e) and she's one of the only pilots to go from being a Rebel to an Imperial, rather than the other way around.

7 minutes ago, GuacCousteau said:

I actually really hope they don't bother with any of the Royal Guard stuff this time.

It was never really an actual thing. It was an over the top quest reward from a Star Wars Galaxies expansion that came out long after SWG had lost the plot. It got referenced in (I think) one of the Saga Edition RPG books (often thought of as the worst of the three Star Wars RPG systems) and that was it.

Kir Kanos flew an X-Wing, A Skipray Blastboat and a Scimitar Assault Bomber, but never once flew an Interceptor in any of his appearances. Carnor Jax was never seen to fly anything . They were just convenient names to put into a convenient repaint to sell the aces pack.

The thing that always bugged me about 1e was that, outside of the Alpha and Avenger generics, there weren't any normal TIE Interceptor pilots in the whole game.

Fel, Phennir and Fel's Wrath were all 181st, and had the stripes. Tetran Cowall was an actor pretending to be Fel in a fake 181st. Lt. Lorrir claimed he had once flown in the 181st, but was never actually seen flying anything other than a shuttle in his only appearance. And Kir Kanos and Carnor Jax were, of course, Royal Guards.

Not one named, normal TIE Interceptor pilot. In 2e we have a chance to get Ciena Ree to finally fill that role, but even Vult Skerris gets the ****ing stripes on his TIE in Rebels.

Personally, I'd like to Erisi Dlarit get a spin. She's one of the most developed characters known to fly an Interceptor, she's an X-Wing series main character (putting her on the same level as Gavin Darklighter, who's made his debut in 2e) and she's one of the only pilots to go from being a Rebel to an Imperial, rather than the other way around.

Uh, actually Carnor Jax and Kir Kanos are from the Crimson Empire comic book series. The story revolves around them. That said, I don't know if he actually flies a ship anywhere in the series, but there's a lot more history to those characters.

I have no problem with "standard" Squint aces, but there's a romanticism with special paint jobs on fighters, making them stand out. I would love to see Ciena Ree as a Squint ace (In5 or 6?) with a version of her crew ability working on herself (b-roll/boost, gain stress, turn 90 degrees - so she can single or double stress with crazy repositioning nonsense). I really like the sound of Erisi Dlarit - what niche would she fill? What's she known for, if anything?

13 minutes ago, Bad Idea Comics said:

Uh, actually Carnor Jax and Kir Kanos are from the Crimson Empire comic book series. The story revolves around them. That said, I don't know if he actually flies a ship anywhere in the series, but there's a lot more history to those characters.

Yyyyyess.... I know that. That's why I said with some confidence that Kir flew an X-Wing, a Skipray and a Scimitar while Carnor flew nothing, because that was what happened in the comics. I was quite specifically referring to Crimson Empire when I said that.

I never said the characters weren't featured anywhere, just that they were never seen flying an Interceptor.

It was the red Royal Guard TIE itself I was referring to when I said it only appeared in a later SWG expansion and got referenced by one sourcebook for the notorious 'middle child' RPG system.

19 minutes ago, Bad Idea Comics said:

I have no problem with "standard" Squint aces, but there's a romanticism with special paint jobs on fighters, making them stand out.

Yeah, but when everyone stands out, no one does. It just made the 181st and Royal Guards feel a little less special to me when all the named pilots were 181st or Royal Guards.

I just want a named pilot I can actually use with my basic blue Interceptor.

21 minutes ago, Bad Idea Comics said:

I really like the sound of Erisi Dlarit - what niche would she fill? What's she known for, if anything? 

Hmm, hadn't really thought that far, tbh.

Erisi is introduced as one of the pilots in the reformed Rogue Squadron after Endor. She appears to develop a bit of a thing for X-Wing series protagonist Corran Horn, but is secretly a mole for the main villain, Ysanne Isard. Corran realises there's a spy, but is convinced it's Tycho Celchu. He tells Erisi he plans to find the spy, not realising it's her. To protect herself from being found out, she gives Isard the codes to Corran's fighter, and he is captured in a way that makes everyone think he was killed.

Eventually, Isard flees Coruscant and Erisi realises her cover is about be blown anyway, so she fakes (not very well) being captured by Isard's ship and goes with her to become the leader of her starfighter squadrons. Corran escapes, having figured out during his captivity who the traitor was and by the time he's back with the Rogues, Wedge has also figured it out so they confirm each other's suspicions.

So she's basically a rival to Corran Horn. Corran's the one most ****ed off about the betrayal, because they were pretty close; Corran's the one Erisi goads during the big final battle and Corran's the one who eventually shoots Eriri down.

How you spin all that into a pilot ability, I'm not sure. I was trying to think if there was something that could sort of counter Corran's ability, but nothing comes to mind that isn't insanely powerful. I'm thinking maybe something that still references the bullseye arc, to sort of mirror Corran and make use of the Interceptor's amazing repositioning, while also giving her a defensive bonus that works better against low Init attacks. Something like

"While you perform an attack in your [bullseye arc], you may spend one [eye result] to gain one evade token."

Put her at something like IN 3, and it means Juke is a great choice on her, and she gets extra defence against an IN 0 bonus attack if, by some interesting chance, she and Corran just happen to be staring straight at each other.

2 hours ago, heychadwick said:

Really?

Eh, just what I've read here. Of course, take that with a grain of salt lick.

1 hour ago, GuacCousteau said:

I actually really hope they don't bother with any of the Royal Guard stuff this time.

It was never really an actual thing.

So, like, none of this is really an actual thing.

But I do agree with you that FFG should be better at selecting named pilots.

And I disagree that Royal Guards shouldn't be a thing. But ya, know, that's cuz I always want narrative.