Inquisitorial TIE Preview Up

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**Azreal13**

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2015/12/31/hunted-by-the-inquisitor/

Each wave of starship expansions for X-Wing™ is designed to expand the ranks of all three factions. So as our last previews focused on the Ghost Expansion Pack and what its ships and crew can offer your budding Rebel forces, it is only natural that we continue our Wave VIII previews with a look at the Imperial expansion pack that features one of the Lothal rebels' greatest adversaries, the Inquisitor.

Along with the Inquisitor's ship card, the Inquisitor's TIE Expansion Pack prominently features its deadly miniature TIE Advanced prototype, sculpted and pre-painted at the game's standard 1/270 scale. You will also find three more ship cards, five upgrades, a maneuver dial, and all the tokens you need to force your opponent to recognize the power of the dark side of the Force.

Relentless Pursuit

In Star Wars Rebels, no matter how many tricks and tactics Hera Syndulla, Kanan Jarrus, and the Lothal rebels tried in order to elude the Empire, The Inquisitor always seemed to find them. Likewise, he enters X-Wing as a formidable pilot in a ship that is almost impossible to shake.

With a maneuver dial that is loaded with green speed "1" turns and banks and an action bar that features both the barrel roll and boost actions, the TIE Advanced prototype is about as capable of navigating the battlefield as any ship in the game. Talented pilots will be able to utilize this fantastic maneuverability to execute hairpin turns and keep their foes in sight, even as they race past. By executing a speed "1" turn and following it up with a boost, your TIE Advanced prototype pilot can claim a shot against a ship that tried to get behind his original position.

This suits The Inquisitor well, as he wants to keep his enemies within his sights. It does not matter if his target is at range "1" or range "3;" so long as he is firing with his ship's primary weapon, you treat the attack as though it were made at range "1," meaning that you add an extra die and your opponent does not gain an extra defense die for range, even at range "3."

Then, when you consider that the TIE Advanced prototype's action bar forsakes the evade action in favor of the acquire target lock action, and when you consider that the expansion comes with the XX-23 S-Thread Tracers upgrade, it becomes increasingly evident that this is a ship designed to hunt down your foes—not simply to survive them.

After all, this is a ship that was, at the time of its launch, technologically superior to just about every fighter around. Despite its meager two hull points, the TIE Advanced prototype outclasses nearly every other TIE variant with its two shields, and if it equips the TIE/v1 Title upgrade, its pilot gains the ability to perform evade actions—for free—after acquiring a target lock.

Of course, elite pilots like Valen Rudor can equip the elite pilot talent Push the Limit for even more actions. With Push the Limit, Valen Rudor could find himself unable to acquire a target lock on his foe, then decide to boost or barrel roll his fighter into Range "3" of an enemy starship. Then, as he is now in position, he could use Push the Limit to acquire a target lock and resolve his free evade action before he takes the stress from Push the Limit.

Alternatively, Valen Rudor could choose not to use Push the Limit during the Activation phase. In this case, Valen can stay free of stress until The Inquisitor or another pilot fires XX-23 S-Thread Tracers and grants him the chance to acquire a target lock. In turn, this allows him to perform an evade action and boost or barrel roll even after all of your opponent's ships have completed their maneuvers and performed all their actions.

Groundbreaking Technology

There is another groundbreaking innovation featured in the Inquisitor's TIE Expansion Pack that plays well with the TIE Advanced prototype, but plays just as well—if not better—with a host of different X-Wing ships. At zero squad points, the Guidance Chips modification costs you nothing more than the opportunity to equip an alternate modification, but it offers immediate and tangible dividends.

Once per round, when you perform an attack with a torpedo or missile, your Guidance Chips allow you to convert any one die result to a hit. Alternatively, if your ship features a primary attack value of "3" or higher, you can instead convert any one die result to a critical hit.

Naturally, as it makes your torpedo and missile volleys far more consistent, the Guidance Chips modification should prompt a re-evaluation of the game's ordnance. After all, by increasing their potency, the Guidance Chips modification favorably adjusts the whole economy of torpedoes and missiles, even as it encourages the development of squadrons capable of assailing their foes with almost impossibly accurate opening volleys.

**streamdragon**

Guidance chips is a nice 0 cost boost to ships using Torps or Missiles... and ALSO not using their mod slot...

**Lord Corellia**

Punishing One comes with 2 copies of the guidance chips too, it looks like.

**Grey Knight Luke**

Guidance chips on missile z95s is going to be money.

**streamdragon**

Grey Knight Luke wrote:
Guidance chips on missile z95s is going to be money.

It could make Missile Zs a thing again, but most people are using Zs to add a body with those last 12 points, not really for missile platforms.

I was thinking it's a nice boost for Redline, the TIE Punisher.

**Grey Knight Luke**

streamdragon wrote:
Grey Knight Luke wrote:
Guidance chips on missile z95s is going to be money.

It could make Missile Zs a thing again, but most people are using Zs to add a body with those last 12 points, not really for missile platforms.

I was thinking it's a nice boost for Redline, the TIE Punisher.

sure. just thinking about other options. This is doubly true since my meta is moving back to tie/fo swarm heavy lists.

**Azreal13**

Blue Squadron with Extra Munitions, FCS, Cluster Missiles and Guidance Chips?

NVM, in my head I had Bs with one of each, not 2xTorps.

**Crazy_Carnifex**

Overall very nice. Seeing hard-1 greens is cool, both named pilots have good-looking abilities, and Guidance chips look great. Generics are pretty cheap as well, at only 17 points with the title, so should see some use.

**streamdragon**

Azreal13 wrote:
Blue Squadron with Extra Munitions, FCS, Cluster Missiles and Guidance Chips?

B-Wings don't have missile slots. Could do Proton Torpedos though. Turn 1 eyeball to a crit thanks to the Proton Torpedos, then any other die to a ~~hit~~ crit for the Guidance Chips.

edit: B-Wings are Primary weapon 3, so Guidance Chips gives them a crit, not a hit.

**Azreal13**

I beat you by 10 seconds!

**statu**

My first thought looking at that dial is, whack PTL, title and TIE MKII on the Inquistor, and you can reliably get three actions a turn, and then shed stress like a boss.

Not sure about Valen Rudor, seems like he's either going to flip flop on how useful his ability will be

**Crazyterran**

Rudor seems like someone you don't want to stick PTL on, and instead just use it to barrel roll right out of everyones Arcs when you get shot at.

**streamdragon**

Azreal13 wrote:
I beat you by 10 seconds!

*shakes fist* Next time Gadget!

Redline - FCS, Extra Munitions, Cluster Missiles, Plasma Torpedos, Guidance Chips

38 points of "who needs a primary weapon?" You have Cluster Missiles for ranges 1-2 and plasma torpedos for ranges 2-3. You get 2 Target Locks when you lock on, spend 1 to fire, 1 to reroll whatever dice, if any, you need to. Get free hits, get 2 Target Locks back.

**DanielBeaver**

Crazyterran wrote:
Rudor seems like someone you don't want to stick PTL on, and instead just use it to barrel roll right out of everyones Arcs when you get shot at.

Maybe Daredevil? Gives him one more potential action to perform. Or even Expose (since he doesn't actually have to trigger it until after he defends against an enemy ace)

The dial is super good, and seems more geared towards knife fighting. Lots of green 1 maneuvers. Too bad it doesn't have a 1 straight, that would make it a beast.

**Peregrine**

Well this preview is certainly interesting...

Dial: wow. Not only does it get green 90* turns (a pretty extreme rarity), it gets green 1-turns. You're not going to be going anywhere very quickly if you have to clear stress, but it's going to be a pretty amazing knife fighter. And you still have those straight greens to add just a bit of unpredictability when stressed. It looks like, like the interceptor, PTL is probably going to be mandatory here.

Inquisitor: we've seen the card, but now we understand the rest of his cards. The dial supports PTL nicely, giving you 2-3 actions each turn with a 3-dice gun regardless of range. All that matters is keeping arc on a target, the Inquisitor is happy to hang back with a 1-turn and take a "range 3" shot at you.

Valen Rudor: pretty good ability, but firepower isn't going to be enough. You don't get your free action until you've survived a shot, but a boost or barrel roll after everyone else has moved is really nice. PS 6 is a liability, but one that you can probably work around. The biggest issue is the 2-dice gun, the reason a-wings see so little use. You have one missile shot and that's it, you're barely out-shooting an academy pilot at double the price.

Thread tracers: still a niche-role "weapon", but the guidance chip might make it a nice niche if it's enough to make missile z-95s viable. Blount auto-hits, which turns into four missile shots with focus + missile dice modification (if any) + chip. That's a pretty nasty alpha strike.

TIE/v1: auto-take. Turning focus + evade into focus + target lock + evade is really powerful. Giving that for a mere 1 point is something FFG usually only does when they're trying to fix a broken ship, not as a standard upgrade. I'd struggle to think of any situation where you aren't using this and getting way more than 1 point of value out of it.

Guidance chips: this is certainly unexpected. Speculation was that it was going to be banned from ships with a 3+ dice primary weapon, but it actually gets better on those ships. The problem, I think, is going to be figuring out where to put it. Aces are already committed to other modifications, and I'm not convinced that there's a good generic missile/torp carrier. It's going to do nasty things with Redline though.

**Crazy_Carnifex**

Peregrine wrote:

Valen Rudor: pretty good ability, but firepower isn't going to be enough. You don't get your free action until you've survived a shot, but a boost or barrel roll after everyone else has moved is really nice. PS 6 is a liability, but one that you can probably work around. The biggest issue is the 2-dice gun, the reason a-wings see so little use. You have one missile shot and that's it, you're barely out-shooting an academy pilot at double the price.

I see Rudors ability being very defensive in nature. It'll be hard to focus fire on him, with boost and barrel roll, and you will get focus after spending your evade token defending, meaning you can modify two rolls if needed. Also, against higher-PS Aces, you can potentially overcome the dice problem is you are good at setting up the right range- Take a shot from one range band, then boost into a closer one, or Barrel roll to hit an Arc-Dodger. Maybe keep him cheap and invest in Crack Shot, although Proton Rockets are also going to be pretty good. I could see him being a pilot who you chuck into a Furball, get off one good Proton Rocket+Crack Shot attack on something valuable, and then use his ability to slip out of arc of massed return fire.

Guidance chips: this is certainly unexpected. Speculation was that it was going to be banned from ships with a 3+ dice primary weapon, but it actually gets better on those ships. The problem, I think, is going to be figuring out where to put it. Aces are already committed to other modifications, and I'm not convinced that there's a good generic missile/torp carrier. It's going to do nasty things with Redline though.

I can see this thing really boosting boosting Bomber/Punisher Aces. I could also see it being used on the new Gamma Aces with Deadeye to create the Imperial answer to Stressbot. Grab Ion Pulse Missiles and Flechette torps (and Extra Munitions). It's around the same cost, and trades the double stress for the ability to choose to ionize stuff instead. It also makes spending a couple extra points on S-threads/Ion Pulse Missiles/Flechette Torps on random generics a lot more attractive.

So I can see both of these being good, it'll just take a little bit of figuring out to do so.

**Peregrine**

Crazy_Carnifex wrote:
I see Rudors ability being very defensive in nature. It'll be hard to focus fire on him, with boost and barrel roll, and you will get focus after spending your evade token defending, meaning you can modify two rolls if needed. Also, against higher-PS Aces, you can potentially overcome the dice problem is you are good at setting up the right range- Take a shot from one range band, then boost into a closer one, or Barrel roll to hit an Arc-Dodger. Maybe keep him cheap and invest in Crack Shot, although Proton Rockets are also going to be pretty good. I could see him being a pilot who you chuck into a Furball, get off one good Proton Rocket+Crack Shot attack on something valuable, and then use his ability to slip out of arc of massed return fire.

These are good points, but they're the same kind of points that are made about various a-wing options. And what we've seen there is that they have some nice tricks, but the lack of firepower (other than a single procket shot) is a major problem.

I can see this thing really boosting boosting Bomber/Punisher Aces.

It will, if such a thing exists. Right now Redline is the closest thing to a viable ace, and even that's not really considered a top-tier option. But who else? Rhymer is stupidly overpriced, y-wings are better with turrets, k-wings are better with bombs and turrets, and Nera Dantels gets expensive fast for a PS 5 ship with one green die.

I could also see it being used on the new Gamma Aces with Deadeye to create the Imperial answer to Stressbot. Grab Ion Pulse Missiles and Flechette torps (and Extra Munitions). It's around the same cost, and trades the double stress for the ability to choose to ionize stuff instead.

IMO the "imperial stressbot" is going to be the TIE shuttle with a tactician. 18 points is just dirt cheap for a control option, and more expensive control options start to raise the awkward question of why you don't spend a few more points and bring a second tactician shuttle.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
Actually, now that I think about it, a mini-swarm of z-95s might not be bad. Three Talas with concussion missiles and guidance chips is 51 points. That's enough to consistently remove a TLT or stressbot from the table before it can shoot, and still leaves 49 points free for Corran/Poe/Miranda/whatever. I'm going to have to test a list with PTL Corran as the ace, it seems like it might be a good option in the current metagame.

**Crazy_Carnifex**

Peregrine wrote:
Crazy_Carnifex wrote:
I see Rudors ability being very defensive in nature. It'll be hard to focus fire on him, with boost and barrel roll, and you will get focus after spending your evade token defending, meaning you can modify two rolls if needed. Also, against higher-PS Aces, you can potentially overcome the dice problem is you are good at setting up the right range- Take a shot from one range band, then boost into a closer one, or Barrel roll to hit an Arc-Dodger. Maybe keep him cheap and invest in Crack Shot, although Proton Rockets are also going to be pretty good. I could see him being a pilot who you chuck into a Furball, get off one good Proton Rocket+Crack Shot attack on something valuable, and then use his ability to slip out of arc of massed return fire.

These are good points, but they're the same kind of points that are made about various a-wing options. And what we've seen there is that they have some nice tricks, but the lack of firepower (other than a single procket shot) is a major problem.

Big difference is that Rudor is a good 5 points cheaper than any of the good A-wing Pilots, plus his ability allows him to pretend to be much higher PS. So, I feel that he may be someone who finds his way into lists.

I can see this thing really boosting boosting Bomber/Punisher Aces.

It will, if such a thing exists. Right now Redline is the closest thing to a viable ace, and even that's not really considered a top-tier option. But who else? Rhymer is stupidly overpriced, y-wings are better with turrets, k-wings are better with bombs and turrets, and Nera Dantels gets expensive fast for a PS 5 ship with one green die.

Tomax Bren (The new PS 8 Bomber), with Crack shot, Extra munitions, and two pieces of ordinance hits around 35pt, and sounds like he would have an intimidating alpha-strike with this thing. Non-stop Crack shot means his offensive power isn't terrible (not good, but still present) after his first four shots or at range 1.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
Actually, now that I think about it, a mini-swarm of z-95s might not be bad. Three Talas with concussion missiles and guidance chips is 51 points. That's enough to consistently remove a TLT or stressbot from the table before it can shoot, and still leaves 49 points free for Corran/Poe/Miranda/whatever. I'm going to have to test a list with PTL Corran as the ace, it seems like it might be a good option in the current metagame.

Indeed- this is one of the avenues that would need investigating. Scum could replace Corran with some sort of Vet instincts Boba for a similar list.

**Peregrine**

Crazy_Carnifex wrote:
Big difference is that Rudor is a good 5 points cheaper than any of the good A-wing Pilots, plus his ability allows him to pretend to be much higher PS. So, I feel that he may be someone who finds his way into lists.

Maybe. I'm not convinced that 5 points is a big deal when you're talking about spending 30ish points already, especially since he's much less capable than those a-wing aces. And when you compare him to Gemmer (22 points) or Arvel (23) you're not even getting a point reduction. He's only cheaper than the high-end aces (Jake, Tycho), and he falls well short of what they can do.

Tomax Bren (The new PS 8 Bomber), with Crack shot, Extra munitions, and two pieces of ordinance hits around 35pt, and sounds like he would have an intimidating alpha-strike with this thing. Non-stop Crack shot means his offensive power isn't terrible (not good, but still present) after his first four shots or at range 1.

IMO the problem there is that it gets expensive very quickly for a bomber, and starts to suffer from the same problem as x-wing aces. Two green dice on a mid-HP ship just isn't durable enough to invest a lot of points into it. It's the same reason you don't see Wedge very often, even though his shooting is pretty impressive. I think the way to use Tomax Bren is going to be keeping him cheap. Crack shot and a tactician is only 28 points and is a pretty amazing bargain.

**Anpu-adom**

I'm amazed at the cheapness of the inquisitor. He'll be a pretty cheap ace. Throw him in a list with Vader and a palp shuttle for some laughs, or with a pretty full mini-swarm.

**locarno24**

Agreed. The Inquisitor is a very impressive ace - doubly so bexause he excells at hunting autothruster-equipped squints.

Guidance chips also means that dengar seems doubly tempting as a torpedo boat.

**Zathras**

Anpu-adom wrote:
I'm amazed at the cheapness of the inquisitor. He'll be a pretty cheap ace. Throw him in a list with Vader and a palp shuttle for some laughs, or with a pretty full mini-swarm.

Or a third option. Replace the Palpmobile with the Inquisitor as I'm planning to try:

Vader with Veteran Instincts, Stealth Device, Title & Advanced Targeting Computer (34)
Soontir with Push The Limit, Title, Stealth Device & Autothrusters (35)
The Inquisitor with Push The Limit, Title & Autothrusters (31)

Total: 100

I don't know how competitive this will be but it's going to be fun to find out.

**Azreal13**

IME Vader needs EU to really shine, I'd prob run that instead of VI and SD

**Crazy_Carnifex**

Azreal13 wrote:
IME Vader needs EU to really shine, I'd prob run that instead of VI and SD

Yeah. Vader can make do without an EPT when points demand (as they do now). Other thing may be give the Inquisitor Lone wolf, and hang back as a long-ranged sniper.

**Zathras**

Crazy_Carnifex wrote:
Azreal13 wrote:
IME Vader needs EU to really shine, I'd prob run that instead of VI and SD

Yeah. Vader can make do without an EPT when points demand (as they do now). Other thing may be give the Inquisitor Lone wolf, and hang back as a long-ranged sniper.

All viable options to be sure. I've never tried Lone Wolf. I'm not a fan of being out of support range of my other ships required for Lone Wolf to work. However, using the Grand Inquisitor as a sniper does make sense considering his ability. I'll give that a try first and see where it goes from there. As for Vader and VI? The local meta dictates having a PS 11 pilot to combat the plethora of PS 10's that are in use here so Vader will continue to be "going to 11".

So the revised list is as follows:

Darth Vader with Veteran Instincts, Engine Upgrade, Title & Advanced Targeting Computer (35)
Baron Soontir Fel with Push The Limit, Stealth Device, Title & Autothrusters (35)
The Grand Inquisitor with Lone Wolf, Title & Autothrusters (30)

Total: 100

**Riquende**

I run Fel with Targeting Computer which means I have the spare point for Vader's VI and PtL on the Inquisitor, so that's how I'm rolling.

I don't think there's a point to be shaved for an Initiative bid unless your meta allows a PS 9 Vader.

**Anpu-adom**

Fel doesn't need Targeting Computer. He's using his actions to get into and out of arcs... you need to fly him more patiently.

**krodarklorr**

Rudor looks like a ton of fun, personally.

**Riquende**

Anpu-adom wrote:
Fel doesn't need Targeting Computer. He's using his actions to get into and out of arcs... you need to fly him more patiently.

I've got a substantial win percentage with Fel (but then who doesn't?) so I don't need lecturing on how 'I need' to fly him, thanks. I used to run SD constantly, but kept finding myself out of arcs after my first action. Focus as a second action seemed a waste given I'd get a further token anyway, so I started trying out TC, and it worked very well. Maybe you just need to learn to fly him better so you don't need to use both maneuvering actions? Probably best keep subsequent musings to yourself as it's a bit off topic.

I like Rudor, but I wonder how well his ability is going to work at his PS.

**Crazy_Carnifex**

Riquende wrote:
Anpu-adom wrote:
Fel doesn't need Targeting Computer. He's using his actions to get into and out of arcs... you need to fly him more patiently.

I've got a substantial win percentage with Fel (but then who doesn't?) so I don't need lecturing on how 'I need' to fly him, thanks. I used to run SD constantly, but kept finding myself out of arcs after my first action. Focus as a second action seemed a waste given I'd get a further token anyway, so I started trying out TC, and it worked very well. Maybe you just need to learn to fly him better so you don't need to use both maneuvering actions? Probably best keep subsequent musings to yourself as it's a bit off topic.

I like Rudor, but I wonder how well his ability is going to work at his PS.

Targeting computer is a good upgrade for Fel- it's just weaker than giving him agility four. Like EPT-less Vader, it's something that you can do if you have to.