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I've come up with a particularly potent load out for the TIE Punisher, I'd used it a few times now and thus far I've been exceedingly happy with it:

Redline
Fire Control System
Cluster Missiles
Proton Torpedos
Extra Munitions

The Fire Control System more or less allows the Punisher to maintain a target lock from turn to turn, even if the craft is stressed out. This combined with Cluster Missiles for CQB and Proton Torpedoes for longer range fighting allows it to put out a lot of fire consistently, as well as majorly improving it's chances of using up all it's ammunition (thus assuring that no points are wasted.) Being Redline, the extra Target Lock makes all shots far more accurate.

So thus far this is the most effective load out I have put together for the Punisher, and being a fanboy of the craft this makes me extremely happy. So thoughts on the above?

That's generally the standard loadout for the punisher. The problem I've been having with mine (and I run exactly the same thing you do) is that it just dies too easily. Gets focussed down, and really has problems early game.

I've found to keep the punisher outside of the fight, by slowly inching forward until you can really make use of his damage. R3 doesn't matter when you use missiles and torpedoes.

Couple him with some blockers, harrassers, or durable brawlers and let him rain death from afar.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
One thing I do in this situation as well is take the munitions failsafe. It's like 1 point, and gives you a fallback in case your 4 torps/missiles miss.

Yeah, my first thought was "that's more or less how I've seen Redline played and played it myself."

If you want to avoid the early game fur ball, don't forget you can deploy facing left or right and fly along you back line for a turn or three!

Mr ghoti wrote:
That's generally the standard loadout for the punisher. The problem I've been having with mine (and I run exactly the same thing you do) is that it just dies too easily. Gets focussed down, and really has problems early game.

This, pretty much. The problem with the punisher is that it's a ship with one green die. Almost every time something shoots at it you'll be taking damage, so you have a ticking clock before your ship is dead. Normally that means keeping it cheap and efficient (b-wing or TLT y-wing spam, for example) so that you do enough damage to justify their modest point cost before they die, but once you start loading a punisher with enough weapons to make it useful "cheap and efficient" becomes an unrealistic goal and you build a ship that costs as much as Soontir Fel/Vader/etc but can't duplicate their insane endgame ability.

The one exception I've found to this rule is Deathrain. Because bombs happen before any shooting it's a lot easier to get off multiple "shots" before your clock expires. And bombs also have a lot fewer failure points because they don't depend on dice luck. If you hit a ship with a conner net or proton bomb it's going to take damage no matter how many green dice or evade tokens it has.

One thing I do in this situation as well is take the munitions failsafe. It's like 1 point, and gives you a fallback in case your 4 torps/missiles miss.

Honestly, this is just a wasted point. You're rarely going to get 5+ turns of shooting with Redline so munitions failsafe just lets you die with more unused weapons equipped. Take the TIE mkII engine for extra green maneuvers instead, if you take a modification at all.

 Peregrine wrote:

One thing I do in this situation as well is take the munitions failsafe. It's like 1 point, and gives you a fallback in case your 4 torps/missiles miss.

Honestly, this is just a wasted point. You're rarely going to get 5+ turns of shooting with Redline so munitions failsafe just lets you die with more unused weapons equipped. Take the TIE mkII engine for extra green maneuvers instead, if you take a modification at all.

Yeah. I don't plan on ever giving my punisher a modification until Guidance Chips arrives.

 Crazy_Carnifex wrote:
Yeah. I don't plan on ever giving my punisher a modification until Guidance Chips arrives.

Oh yeah, I forgot to add this. Once guidance chips are officially released they're an auto-take on any missile/torpedo ship.

Certainly on Redline, anyway. I still think there's some argument for Long Range Scanners if you're only packing a single missile volley, but for a 'proper' bomber with several pieces of ordnance aboard and the means to get target locks reliably, Guidance Chips are amazing.

And yes, That's probably the best loadout for Redline.
To be honest, he'll probably go down with something unfired with even with just 4 missiles aboard; his potential damage output is such that he is an incredibly high priority target - much like cannon-armed, unique B-wings, but given how much damage potential he loses without missiles, it's worth stocking him up.

What are you looking at supporting him with? If looking to save points, and depending what else you have access to, Flechette rather than Proton Torpedoes can be good - less damage potential, but that stress token can be as lethal or more lethal than the extra hit or so if capitalized on.

locarno24 wrote:
I still think there's some argument for Long Range Scanners if you're only packing a single missile volley

I think that's a pretty big "if". Is there really any ship that can take long range scanners and is viable with only a single shot? I'd take a single shot on a z-95 because they're only 16-18 points total, but you're paying at least 21 points for a LRS bomber with one "good" missile.

locarno24 wrote:
Certainly on Redline, anyway. I still think there's some argument for Long Range Scanners if you're only packing a single missile volley, but for a 'proper' bomber with several pieces of ordnance aboard and the means to get target locks reliably, Guidance Chips are amazing.

Maybe, but that's the only application I could think of. For the Punisher in particular, Long Range Scanners will prevent you from acquiring a lock with Fire Control System unless you're in that range 3 sweet spot (and I'm not confident that I can fly well enough to reliably do that).

For the two games I ran it I was using two Academy Pilot TIE Fighters and a TIE Defender alongside it, the TIE Fighters primarily serving as annoying fodder and the Defender acting as a serious attacker.

Also I know the Defender as it currently stands is not terribly good, I just really wanted to field it! (It's another one of those craft that I remember fondly from all the old games...)

For future squadrons I was considering running it with three Interceptors, I have the Imperial Aces pack so that makes for some interesting options.

 Cothonian wrote:
Also I know the Defender as it currently stands is not terribly good, I just really wanted to field it! (It's another one of those craft that I remember fondly from all the old games...)

In a few months, you'll be a happy camper.

 DanielBeaver wrote:

 Cothonian wrote:
Also I know the Defender as it currently stands is not terribly good, I just really wanted to field it! (It's another one of those craft that I remember fondly from all the old games...)

In a few months, you'll be a happy camper.

This. Don't bother with the defender now, unless you can proxy the new title cards. It's a pretty bad ship right now and you'll be spending a lot of time thinking "I wish I had the title card here". But once Imperial Veterans comes out it's going to be getting a major power boost.