IMPERIAL TIE BOMBER
The TIE Bomber is one of the most anticipated ships in wave 3 and completed the Original Trilogy's TIE family.
With the TIE Bomber the Empire now has a heavy attack craft in the vane of the Y-Wing and to an extent, the B-Wing. The Empire now have a good attack craft to take on the YT-1300s of the world. It's inclusion also opens up a lot of scenario possibilities.
Behind the Scenes
The TIE Bomber first appeared in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Stirkes Back. For a ship that had a very limited amount of screen time the TIE Bomber is very iconic and popular among Star Wars fans.
The Filming model history is very interesting. While the bomber continues the ILM tradition of kit bashing off the shelf models for details this ship is interesting as it used off the shelf Star Wars model parts from a new hope. The Solar Panel wings are actually from the MPC Darth Vader TIE Fighter model. Saturn V rocket parts are also liberally used.
The Model
The FFG model is extremely faithful to the original filming model. Of the Wave 3 ships I feel this is the best model. (While I prefer the B-Wing as a design there are a few minor drawbacks with that model). The Detail, paint and weathering are perfect.
Ship and Game Stats
Attack: 2
Defense: 2
Hull: 6
Shields: 0
Focus, Barrel Roll, Target Lock
2 Torpedo Slots, 2 Missile Slots, 1 Bomb slot
The Stats are good. While I have some issue with the TIE Bomber being Agility 2 (same as an X Wing) when the B and Y Wings are both stuck with an terrible Agility 1. While you could argue that a TIE Bomber should be slightly more maneuverable then a Y Wing I think most would agree that it should not be as maneuverable as an X Wing. (Old LucasArts X Wing players can back me on this)
this isn't a knock against the TIE Bomber itself, just the narrow range of numbers that FFG locked themselves into with an Agility 1-3 scale.
Other Stats are good and capture the flavor of the bomber without being overwhelming.
The Pilots
Major Rhymer - Pilot Skill 7 - cost 26
When attacking with a secondary weapon you may increase or decrease the weapon range by 1 to a limit of 1-3
The most expensive TIE Bomber of the bunch. This Pilot's skill seems tailor made to go with Advanced Proton Torpedoes.
Captain Jonus - Pilot Skill 6 - Cost 22
When another friendly ship at Range 1 Attacks with a secondary weapon it may reroll up to 2 attack dice.
This guy is a team player and my favorite Bomber pilot so far. I can see him making bomber swarms extra deadly and at 22 points is not bad at all.
Gamma Squadron Pilot - Pilot Skill 4 - Cost 18
The best of the "unnamed pilots" at pilot skill 4. Nothing special here.
Scimitar Squadron Pilot - Pilot Skill Level 2 - Cost 16
the cheapest of the cheap. At 16 points you could take 5 of these bad boys with Proton torpedoes for a cool 100 points.
Equipment and Upgrades
A cheap and useful upgrade that allows you to squeeze a little more maneuverability out of your bomber.
A face up damage card to everyone at Range 1, even if you have shields. Want to one shot a A Wing? Possible if you get the right damage card.
Seismic Charges: another mine option first seen with the Slave 1. Not bad but inferior to the Proton bomb.
Conclusions
This is a great expansion for the X Wing game.
The TIE Bomber is an interesting and welcome addition to the Imperial fleet. Finally the Empire has access to a Bomber of their own to act as a counterpart to the Rebel Y Wing. Imperial players that want to use Missiles are no longer restricted to the TIE Advanced and also gives the ability to finally get some Torpedoes in an Empire list.
the model itself is top notch and a looks fantastic. I usually like re-painting or touching up my X Wing ships but I honestly see nothing on this bomber that I could improve.
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