I now have had an opportunity to play all of the named TIE Interceptor pilots. Here are my thoughts on each one.
"Fel's Wrath" - Everyone's favorite zombie pilot. He is difficult to use well in my opinion. His ability essentially insures he will get to take his attack before exploding but I have yet to see an instance where it has made a significant difference in a game. He is also not an Elite Pilot thus further limiting him. But you could use him as a budget tank to soak fire knowing that you will always have an opportunity to attack with him. In my opinion he pays 1 point to lose 1 point of Pilot Skill in exchange for a Pilot Ability which is a positive trade in my opinion.
Summary Opinion: Worth it only if you are already taking Royal Guard Pilots and you do not need the Elite Pilot Skill.
Lt. Lorrir - His ability is powerful but very situational. Also the cost of a stress token is a tough price to pay. But he can be unpredictable and I am a fan of any ability on an Interceptor that increases its movement options. He is not an Elite Pilot but I don't feel he really needs it. Like "Fels Wrath" I feel he is paying 1 point to lose 1 point of Pilot Skill in exchange for a Pilot Ability which is a positive trade in my opinion.
Summary Opinion: Worth it only if you are already taking Royal Guard Pilots and you do not need the Elite Pilot Skill or are a big fan of unpredictable movement.
Kir Kanos - His ability will work often if you are careful to plan for it. I like Evade tokens and the fact he is Pilot Skill 6 actually helps him with his ability. He can wait to see what higher pilot skill pilots are going to do then he can choose to burn his token or to keep it if he feels he will need it. I also believe his ability is one of the only automatic hits in the game. The ability to simply insure you will do 1 damage is tremendously reliable. He lacks an Elite Pilot ability but I don't feel needs it.
Summary Opinion: Worth taking if you want reliable damage and you are reasonably sure you will be facing high Pilot skill models.
Tetran Cowell - His ability is interesting. Like "Fels Wrath" I believe he is hard to use well. But his ability is much more proactive and you do get an element of unpredictability from him. Also his Pilot Skill is 7 which is significant. Also he an Elite Pilot which is never a bad thing especially given the maneuver friendly Elite Pilot Skills which exist.
Summary Opinion: Worth taking if you are big fan of unpredictable movement. Has possible synergy with Lt. Lorrir.
Turr Phennir - Amazeballs. Easily my favorite of the named TIE Interceptor pilots. For starters he has Pilot Skill 7 as well as being an Elite Pilot. Then he has one of the only abilities in the game which allows him to move after shooting. Which lets him do drivebys. He can close to near point blank range, attack with 4 Attack dice, and then Boost or Barrel Roll out of opposing enemies arcs. I am not a fan of giving him any Action based Elite Pilot Skill and think he is well served by taking Veteran Instincts or Opportunist as both of these abilities are passive and leave his actions free,
Summary Opinion: Amazing. If you are looking for a late game Interceptor this should definitely be on your short list.
Carnor Jax - Very interesting but I have never seen him used effectively. While keeping your opponent from getting the value from certain actions does sound great in execution it is hard to get an appropriate amount of milage from this ability in the sense that you must be within Range 1 to use it and Interceptors aren't meant to knife fight. They are meant to make single passes with long sweeps and flank. So the ability is useful but runs counter to one of the core Interceptor play philosophies and is far too expensive for a suicide run.
Summary Opinion: Not sure where he fits in and so I would prefer to take Turr or Soontir who are in the same price range.
Soontir Fel - Second favorite and definitely one of the most popular choices. Both he and Turr are late game closers who can realistically take on whats left of your opponents force after the decisive mid game turns have played out. His ability adds a great deal of consistency and with the appearance of Hobbie and R3-A2 seems to have even more of an edge in countering some of the new Stress tech in the meta.
Summary Opinion: For your late game Interceptor you should consider Soontir very carefully among your available options.
75x75 - TIE Swarm (75 points)
x3 Academy Pilot
x1 Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
x1 Mauler Mithel with Swarm Tactics
This is pretty much a perfect Imperial list for the event and has a great combination of bodies as well as firepower. Also it should outnumber almost every other list there. I fukly expect to see at least one person run this on Saturday.
See you again on Thursday when I preview the custom painted A-Wing in the prize pool on Saturdays event.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Rolling Blanks Tournament Prize Reveal 1 of 2 & Tournament Philosophy
So next Saturday is the big event so as it draws near I wanted to preview one of the two custom painted models that will be in the prize pool. The first is a crimson TIE fighter.
Next week I will also preview the custom painted A-Wing.
Now I wanted to talk a little bit about why I chose 75 points for my tournament. I know its not a standard total and that is actually part of the reason. I wanted to shake up conventional thinking and make people think outside the box a little. Also 75 point games go a little faster and also tend to favor smaller ships to an extent. Lastly it is a little easier for newer players to round up the requisite number of ships in order to participate. This design philosophy called out to me as beneficial. We will see how it works in execution.
75x75 - XXA 75 points
x2 Red Squadron Pilot with R2 Astromech
A very straight forward list with better than average Pilot Skill, survivability, and firepower. Tycho is the star of this list and should attempt to flank and harass as much as possible while staying out of enemy fire arcs. With Refit he is only 3 more points than his X-Wing counterparts and with good flying should be able to be a serious thorn in the side of your opponent.
See you all next week!
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Event Summary - Game Kastle Fremont 05/05/14
I had the good luck of participating in the X-Wing Tournament at Game Kastle Fremont on Sunday. It was a very well run event and I really appreciated everything happening on time. I went 1-2 and the list I ran was 100 points:
Krassis with Heavy Laser Cannon, Recon Specialist, and Seismic Charges
x4 Obsidian Squadron Pilots
My first opponent had a list at 99 points:
x2 Alpha Squadron Pilot
x2 Academy TIE
Mauler Mithel with Swarm Tactics
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
It was a strong list. I only managed to take out the Interceptors and bring Howlrunner down to 1 Hull before time was called. He had managed to kill everything but a single Obsidian TIE on my side. Nothing was out of my favor in terms of dice luck but I was a bit aggressive with my Firespray and he ended up with a pair of Direct Hits on him which ended his attack run a turn sooner than I had expected. Also Howlrunner shot out an Obsidian TIE in a single shot which was pretty rough.
My second opponent was a friend of mine who I have played many times. It was my only win. His list was 100 points:
Chewbacca
Dagger Squadron Pilot with Advanced Sensors
Ibitsam with Push the Limit
It was an extremely close game. He had managed to knock down three Obsidian TIEs and I only took out Chewbacca. I won by 3 points. No major mistakes this game though I could have been a bit more aggressive with my Firespray but I was still gun shy after the first game.
My final opponent had a list which was 99 points:
x3 Bounty Hunter
He ended up with initiative and the rock placement was pretty aggressive for both of us. However in the end I could not summon enough dice to take out more than one Firespray. I did have another down to 4 Hull but he had taken out Krassis as well as an Obsidian TIE.
Overall I felt I have improved a bit over my last tournament showing. However my list was not very strong in execution and I did make some mistakes which further hindered me. Krassis is okay but honestly I don't think the HLC or his ability are very good on the Firespray chassis. Most battles end up as close range knife fights anyway. A Bounty Hunter with a Recon Specialist would have done as well in my opinion. Furthermore the Seismic Chartges were entirely useless. I also did not get as much mileage out of my Obsidian TIEs as I had hoped. It only became relevant in one game and that was the first one. I believe I could have gotten the same performance from Academy TIES.
In retrospect I missed Howlrunner and should have adjusted things in order to take her. Based on what I saw at the tournament this is what I should have taken at 99 points:
x2 Academy TIE
Bounty Hunter with Recon Specialist
Mauler Mithel with Swarm Tactics
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
This has just about the same amount of firepower but now has pilots who are able to fire at Pilot Skill 8 and 7. Mauler is very dangerous at Range 1 and you keep the Firespray for support and hit points.
75x75 - Mini Elite Wing (75 points)
Backstabber
Howlrunner with Hull Upgrade and Swarm Tactics
Night Beast
Mauler Mithel with Expose
This list has a nice range of higher than average Pilot Skills in conjunction with Howlrunner to let Night Beast fire at above his pay grade. Hull Upgrade also should buy her a little bit of time as she is commonly focused first. Mauler is deadly at Range 1 especially with Expose and poses a threat to one shot an unlucky ship. Backstabber is also no slouch. I like the combination of threats that this list poses.
See you all on Thursday!
Krassis with Heavy Laser Cannon, Recon Specialist, and Seismic Charges
x4 Obsidian Squadron Pilots
My first opponent had a list at 99 points:
x2 Alpha Squadron Pilot
x2 Academy TIE
Mauler Mithel with Swarm Tactics
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
It was a strong list. I only managed to take out the Interceptors and bring Howlrunner down to 1 Hull before time was called. He had managed to kill everything but a single Obsidian TIE on my side. Nothing was out of my favor in terms of dice luck but I was a bit aggressive with my Firespray and he ended up with a pair of Direct Hits on him which ended his attack run a turn sooner than I had expected. Also Howlrunner shot out an Obsidian TIE in a single shot which was pretty rough.
My second opponent was a friend of mine who I have played many times. It was my only win. His list was 100 points:
Chewbacca
Dagger Squadron Pilot with Advanced Sensors
Ibitsam with Push the Limit
It was an extremely close game. He had managed to knock down three Obsidian TIEs and I only took out Chewbacca. I won by 3 points. No major mistakes this game though I could have been a bit more aggressive with my Firespray but I was still gun shy after the first game.
My final opponent had a list which was 99 points:
x3 Bounty Hunter
He ended up with initiative and the rock placement was pretty aggressive for both of us. However in the end I could not summon enough dice to take out more than one Firespray. I did have another down to 4 Hull but he had taken out Krassis as well as an Obsidian TIE.
Overall I felt I have improved a bit over my last tournament showing. However my list was not very strong in execution and I did make some mistakes which further hindered me. Krassis is okay but honestly I don't think the HLC or his ability are very good on the Firespray chassis. Most battles end up as close range knife fights anyway. A Bounty Hunter with a Recon Specialist would have done as well in my opinion. Furthermore the Seismic Chartges were entirely useless. I also did not get as much mileage out of my Obsidian TIEs as I had hoped. It only became relevant in one game and that was the first one. I believe I could have gotten the same performance from Academy TIES.
In retrospect I missed Howlrunner and should have adjusted things in order to take her. Based on what I saw at the tournament this is what I should have taken at 99 points:
x2 Academy TIE
Bounty Hunter with Recon Specialist
Mauler Mithel with Swarm Tactics
Howlrunner with Swarm Tactics
This has just about the same amount of firepower but now has pilots who are able to fire at Pilot Skill 8 and 7. Mauler is very dangerous at Range 1 and you keep the Firespray for support and hit points.
75x75 - Mini Elite Wing (75 points)
Backstabber
Howlrunner with Hull Upgrade and Swarm Tactics
Night Beast
Mauler Mithel with Expose
This list has a nice range of higher than average Pilot Skills in conjunction with Howlrunner to let Night Beast fire at above his pay grade. Hull Upgrade also should buy her a little bit of time as she is commonly focused first. Mauler is deadly at Range 1 especially with Expose and poses a threat to one shot an unlucky ship. Backstabber is also no slouch. I like the combination of threats that this list poses.
See you all on Thursday!
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Countering Soontir Fel
Soontir Fel. I have played with him and against him. He can be a very dangerous model to face especially in the late game as his opposition decreases. As his appearance seems to be increasing in the meta I think it might be a good time to talk counters.
Rebel
Turrets are the obvious answer. If he can't stay out of range of opposing fire arcs much of what makes him strong is lost. Anyone taking the Millennium Falcon is already is already countering him thanks to the large ships ample base size and 360 degree fire arc. In the same vein an Ion Cannon can also ruin his day. Robbing him of the flexibility of his maneuverability is critical. If you manage to get an ion token while stressed, which is common thanks to people using Push the Limit to take synergize with his Pilot Ability, then he is pretty much neutered at that point. Lastly you could consider taking Tycho Celchu with Veteran Instincts and Push the Limit or Daredevil in order to try and counter him in a dogfighting sense. In that configuration the A-Wing can almost keep up with the TIE Interceptors maneuvers and has a higher pilot skill. Lastly Tycho, like Soontir, is not dissuaded from being Stressed.
Playtest Addendum
After play testing the most cost efficient way to shut him down is the following at 23 points.
Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
Combined with a target lock you should with a little planning be able to ruin his day. The threat of the ion turret either keeps him from being stressed, thus neutralizing his pilot ability, or forces him to stay at range 3 of the Y-Wing who can fly in the center of your formation and wait patiently. It is a cheap addition to any list and has uses outside of countering Soontir.
Empire
Due to the Empire's lack of turrets they must approach it from a different perspective. Going with the big ship option; a pair of Bounty Hunters can cover a lot of area with their twin fire arcs. Soontir might still be able to find a gap but you can greatly diminish his chances with staggered formations and careful maneuvering. Also taking Carnor Jax with Veteran Instincts might work as you can move to stay near Soontir and keep him from using Focus or Evade as well as potentially getting the drop on him thanks to having a higher Pilot Skill. Lastly the obvious dogfighting option is to take your own Soontir Fel. You will have to outplay your opponent and hope the dice stay with you but at least you know you will shoot at the same time and you both have the same tricks. A game might very well devolve into a mirror match with a pair of Soontirs dancing around waiting for a opening in that case.
In the event of the mirror match it might be prudent to design your list to conserve points as much as possible. Tying up some points in a tanky shuttle build might make be the difference that denies those points to your opponent and possibly forces him to compromise his position so that your Soontir Fel can get the drop on his doppleganger. Here is an example of a list that might take advantage of that.
Soontir Denial 100 points
Academy Pilot
Dark Curse
Night Beast
Omicron Group Pilot with Darth Vader and Recon Specialist
Soontir Fel with Push the Limit
The purpose of this list is to try and deny points and so you take the two most survivable TIE pilots to try and eat volleys that do nothing. Evade tokens are going to be a popular action in this list. The shuttle has the Recon Specialist to increase dice odds when defending and Vader to insure damage on unshielded models if they ever stumble into your fire arc. Lastly the list is rounded out with an extra Academy TIE because the points were available but this could easily become more upgrades for the shuttle or a Stealth Device or Hull Upgrade on Soontir and the TIEs which might tip you over the edge in a mirror match.
75x75 - Imperial Tank 75 points
Omicron Group Pilot with Advanced Sensors and Recon Specialist
x3 Scimitar Squadron Pilot
If you are willing to give up maneuverability then you too can have a points denial list which brings 28 hit points to the table. Everyone is at Pilot Skill 2 which helps for maneuvering (in straight lines) and shooting before Pilot Skill 1. The shuttle will be taking a Focus action every turn and benefitting from it offensively and defensively. The bombers are simply less maneuverable TIE fighters for the purposes of this list. It is effectively a micro-swarm based around the shuttle instead of the Firespray-31. Short of three shuttles it is the most hit points you can bring to the table at this points level.
See you all again on Tuesday!
Rebel
Turrets are the obvious answer. If he can't stay out of range of opposing fire arcs much of what makes him strong is lost. Anyone taking the Millennium Falcon is already is already countering him thanks to the large ships ample base size and 360 degree fire arc. In the same vein an Ion Cannon can also ruin his day. Robbing him of the flexibility of his maneuverability is critical. If you manage to get an ion token while stressed, which is common thanks to people using Push the Limit to take synergize with his Pilot Ability, then he is pretty much neutered at that point. Lastly you could consider taking Tycho Celchu with Veteran Instincts and Push the Limit or Daredevil in order to try and counter him in a dogfighting sense. In that configuration the A-Wing can almost keep up with the TIE Interceptors maneuvers and has a higher pilot skill. Lastly Tycho, like Soontir, is not dissuaded from being Stressed.
Playtest Addendum
After play testing the most cost efficient way to shut him down is the following at 23 points.
Gold Squadron with Ion Cannon Turret
Combined with a target lock you should with a little planning be able to ruin his day. The threat of the ion turret either keeps him from being stressed, thus neutralizing his pilot ability, or forces him to stay at range 3 of the Y-Wing who can fly in the center of your formation and wait patiently. It is a cheap addition to any list and has uses outside of countering Soontir.
Empire
Due to the Empire's lack of turrets they must approach it from a different perspective. Going with the big ship option; a pair of Bounty Hunters can cover a lot of area with their twin fire arcs. Soontir might still be able to find a gap but you can greatly diminish his chances with staggered formations and careful maneuvering. Also taking Carnor Jax with Veteran Instincts might work as you can move to stay near Soontir and keep him from using Focus or Evade as well as potentially getting the drop on him thanks to having a higher Pilot Skill. Lastly the obvious dogfighting option is to take your own Soontir Fel. You will have to outplay your opponent and hope the dice stay with you but at least you know you will shoot at the same time and you both have the same tricks. A game might very well devolve into a mirror match with a pair of Soontirs dancing around waiting for a opening in that case.
In the event of the mirror match it might be prudent to design your list to conserve points as much as possible. Tying up some points in a tanky shuttle build might make be the difference that denies those points to your opponent and possibly forces him to compromise his position so that your Soontir Fel can get the drop on his doppleganger. Here is an example of a list that might take advantage of that.
Soontir Denial 100 points
Academy Pilot
Dark Curse
Night Beast
Omicron Group Pilot with Darth Vader and Recon Specialist
Soontir Fel with Push the Limit
The purpose of this list is to try and deny points and so you take the two most survivable TIE pilots to try and eat volleys that do nothing. Evade tokens are going to be a popular action in this list. The shuttle has the Recon Specialist to increase dice odds when defending and Vader to insure damage on unshielded models if they ever stumble into your fire arc. Lastly the list is rounded out with an extra Academy TIE because the points were available but this could easily become more upgrades for the shuttle or a Stealth Device or Hull Upgrade on Soontir and the TIEs which might tip you over the edge in a mirror match.
75x75 - Imperial Tank 75 points
Omicron Group Pilot with Advanced Sensors and Recon Specialist
x3 Scimitar Squadron Pilot
If you are willing to give up maneuverability then you too can have a points denial list which brings 28 hit points to the table. Everyone is at Pilot Skill 2 which helps for maneuvering (in straight lines) and shooting before Pilot Skill 1. The shuttle will be taking a Focus action every turn and benefitting from it offensively and defensively. The bombers are simply less maneuverable TIE fighters for the purposes of this list. It is effectively a micro-swarm based around the shuttle instead of the Firespray-31. Short of three shuttles it is the most hit points you can bring to the table at this points level.
See you all again on Tuesday!
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