Some good points made here. I'd lost three games in a row against an opponent fielding Garven Dreis, two Rookie Pilots and Kyle Katarn in the Moldy Crow with a Recon Specialist. In desperation I broke out my basic TIEs with all the named pilots (Howlrunner and Mauler Mither having Adrenaline Rush for those critical K-turns). Result? Four dead Rebs for the loss of Mithel and Backstabber, and it felt sooooo good!

Fielding an all TIE, all named force is a really good squadron. Those high piloting skills are still on some very cheap ships, not to mention that just about every named TIE has a great ability (maybe they are better because they are cheaper, who knows)

Gotta agree with everyone else - Tie Swarms kick arse. Yeah, they can make a slightly boring game, especially a big swarm of cheapies rather than the named pilots (who are pretty cool).

What I forgot to mention earlier is they are also vital to blocking for YOUR OWN ships. Got a shuttle that needs facing? Block him with a tie. You think you might overshoot? Put a tie in the way.

Less useful for many builds that already have high maneuverability but vital to others.