So for the past couple of weeks i have been theory crafting this idea and i think i have it fairly narrowed down but i need some outside insight. So here is what i have got;

I-3 Rho Squadron Pilot (Alpha-class) [Total 54]

-Saturation Salvo

-Passive Sensors

-Ion Missiles

-Adv. Proton Torpedoes

-Os-1 Arsenal Loadout

I-3 Rho Squadron Pilot (Alpha-class) [Total 54]

-Saturation Salvo

-Passive Sensors

-Ion Missiles

-Adv. Proton Torpedoes

-Os-1 Arsenal Loadout

I-4 Captain Jonus (Tie Bomber) [Total 48]

-Proton Bombs

I-5 Duchess (Tie Striker) [Total 44]

-Predator

I did have other combinations with this list but i found i liked this one. The goal is to hit them from at least 2/3rd of range 2 for the ion missiles. You should never miss that shot because Jonus gives you two dice to reroll and Salvo will let you force opponent to reroll some. If they are at that sweet spot of 2/3rds range 2 or farther you both do 1 straights (them not by choice) and then you have an easy 5 dice attack with the Torpedoes with two rerolls from Jonus again. He drops a bomb to force them to go fast to pass it or turn off. This should give you time to spin around unless they eat the bomb. Duchess is a Striker.... they can do whatever they want because they do that well. Idk, What do you guys think about this list? Where is it weakest? what is the best counter? Where is it strongest? What changes would you make?

Probably just a list to throw away then.

I'd say it seems strong but you have to absolutely nail that initial alpha strike. The gunboats are fairly sturdy but they need to stay in formation with Jonus for his ability and assuming you ion something in in the initial engagement, use saturation salvo (because it will only work with the ion missiles) and then hit that target with the advanced proton torps in round 2, you are out of ordinance. The Rhos will need to slam to get away to reload, but without advanced slam they can't do both simultaneously. When they do that, Jonus probably will not be able to keep up and the formation will have to split apart. But Jonus might not even by alive at that point, because if it were me, and I decided to just joust it, he's my first target and I try to take him off the board in the initial engagement, as that denies you free rerolls and clears up my path to turn around and gives my ioned a ship a snowballs chance of not dying. I'd say as an alpha strike, if you can line it up it's terrifying, but it's what comes after that is the question marks.

Put it on the table and give it a go!

I've flown Star Wings more than any other ship, I believe, so I know their capabilities fairly well.

While I haven't tried them in the way you have them built out, I think they benefit so much from FCS and Advanced SLAM. It lets them have a wide range of movement and can still follow up with a Target Lock. You have to learn when to Adv SLAM and when not to based on the limited blues on the dial. But it's an excellent ship at learning how to gauge opening engagements. So, if I'm building out a Rho, I'd aim for something like this. There's some debate on Plasmas and if . they're worth it. If you're not a fan, you can probably drop Adv. SLAM and upgrade to Protons without over-investing.

Rho Squadron Pilot (35)
Fire-Control System (2)
Plasma Torpedoes (9)
Advanced SLAM (3)
Os-1 Arsenal Loadout (0)
Adv. Proton Torpedoes (6)

Ship total: 55 Half Points: 28 Threshold: 4
https://raithos.github.io/?f=Galactic Empire&d=v8ZsZ200Z163XW113W234WW104W139W134W&sn=Unnamed Squadron&obs=

Regardless of what you choose to go with, if it's a ship you haven't put on the table yet, you're probably going to have a tough first few games. I went 0-4 in a tournament right after they came out in 1.0. But I've learned so much more about when and how to SLAM and it's made a huge difference in my overall skill as a player

Well, there might be room for it, if changing it up a bit. The Advanced Proton Torpedoes + Ion tricks seem like fun.

Main thing, Saturation Salvo is just bad (very expensive, only works on the Ion Missiles since APT are one charge, often doesn't improve things since you must pick 2 dice and will often have to include blank or eye results in the reroll). Cut it, and probably drop the Rhos to Nus. That's 18 points more to play with in the list, which is massive.

Second, if running Jonus, add Barrage Rockets, even if you cut bombs to get them. Barrage turns Jonus from single-mod 2 dice into double-mod 3 dice, and that's a huge improvement.

For the gunboats, there are a few options:

• Nu (Passive Sensors, OS-1, Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Ion Missiles) 45 - just a lot cheaper, and nearly as effective.
• Nu (Passive Sensors, OS-1, Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Ion Torpedoes) 47 - Seems cheap enough that going up to 4 dice Ion Torps would be nice, and remove a lot of doubt in getting ion effects. Would pair well with Jonus, since it'd be really easy to save the lock, between his rerolls and having an extra die. That would mean you don't have to relock to shoot the APT... even Passive Sensors might be good... calculate or lock someone new if the first target is out of range or dead or such.
• Nu (XG-1, Ion Cannon, Advanced Proton Torpedoes, Advanced SLAM) 46 - The unlimited charges and flexibility of the Cannon could be nice, too. ASLAM keeps them zipping about with focus, but the range 3 attacks are a little weaker due to range bonuses. For this gunboat, Jonus should be cut for a different ship.

For the rest, two of these three:

• Soontir Fel (Predator) 55 - I like him more than Duchess, but he is more expensive
• Duchess (Predator or Crack Shot) - 43-44. Depending on points, maybe add a bomb or a Shield Upgrade
• Jonus (Barrage Rockets) 51.