Revenge of the Non-Avenger

Avengers...assemble?

In keeping with our theme of fleet building in the new 1.5 meta, we're going to take a slight tangent this time, and look at lesser used ship titles for the mainstay of Imperial fleets, ISDs.  Avenger was the king of ISD titles, particularly when it was matched with Sloane or Boarding Teams.  With the change in 1.5, the title has been reduced in potency, making it situational at best.

The title is now more like a "lite" version of Mon Karren where you can only limit the defender to using one exhausted defense token instead of any exhausted tokens like the Avenger of old.  So now that Avenger is likely to take a backseat, what other named ISDs can move into the spotlight and how to we build a fleet around them?  

Chimaera

Grand Admiral Thrawn's flagship (and the only Imperial ship ever allowed to have markings), Chimaera, gives the non-Cymoon ISDs access to fleet commands.  However, unlike the Cymoons, Chimaera lets you flip out the fleet command mid-game (more than once) giving you the flexibility to take Evasion Action in the early rounds and then Intensify Firepower when you engage in combat.  All that and only four points makes this a very attractive title.  

Fleet commands are very helpful if fleet is built around a certain command (like squadrons or regeneration) or if you are lacking in a certain department (navigation or dice modification).  Fleet commands are also more effective when you are taking several ships, spreading the value of the potentially 10 point investment (4 for Chimaera, plus 5-6 for the Fleet Command).  Chimaera works best in a fleet with a single ISD and then multiple smaller ships that can benefit from the Fleet Command.

Imperial II (120)
• Chimaera (4)
• Entrapment Formation! (5)
= 129 Points

Arquitens Light Cruiser (54)
= 54 Points

Arquitens Light Cruiser (54)
= 54 Points

Arquitens Light Cruiser (54)
= 54 Points

Gozanti Cruisers (23)
• Comms Net (2)
= 25 Points

In the above example, the ISD II Chimaera would start the game with Entrapment Formation, relying on the Gozanti to provide tokens to power the Fleet Command.  The ability to position the ISD II and Arquitens in the early rounds (with or without navigation commands) sets up a potential "kill box." The ISD can then change out for Intensify Firepower in the later rounds and guarantee extra damage from those fickle red dice. You just need to make sure you have that token before going into the round you need it for the fleet command; once you toss the card, Chimaera can't get it, or any other fleet command, back.

Devastator

 

Sometimes, the best defense is a good offensive.  Devastator allows you to have both; or at least situationally.  The personal flagship of Lord Vader, Devastator works well with that Admiral's carefree, defense token tossin' style. Basically, every time you lose a defense token--from spending exhausted tokens or some other effect--you get another blue die for your front arc (and only your front arc).  This could potentially lead you to rolling 12 dice out of your front; although this is highly situational and you would be very vulnerable to blowing up.  

Devastator can be a very reactionary upgrade if Vader isn't getting rid of your tokens.  Is your local meta filled with Sloane, Intel Officers, or commander Palpatine (ok, maybe not that last one)? Then maybe Devastator is the right kind of counter.  If nothing else, it might discourage your opponent from trying to dump your tokens if it makes your ISD's offense more potent or helps you activate an ion upgrade (HIEs, NK-7s, etc.).  Speaking of, the Devastator/Vader combo does allow your ISD's Ion Cannon slot more flexibility since you aren't relying on the most common ion upgrade, Leading Shots, for the reroll.

Imperial I (110)
• Darth Vader (36)
• Intel Officer (7)
• Weapons Battery Techs (5)
• Heavy Ion Emplacements (9)
• Devastator (10)
= 177 Points

This (very expensive) use of Devastator is built on trying to guarantee that HIEs go off by adding a blue die to the front arc and still have a reroll.  After you roll your normal attack pool, use Intel Officer to target your contain (yes, you can target your own defense tokens), have Vader spend the token for the reroll (thus discarding it), and add your extra blue die before the reroll.  If you don't get any blue crits, you can use the Weapons Battery Techs to change an accuracy (which you probably have by now) to a crit for the HIE.  That said, this is a pretty pricey build for an effect that could be done for cheaper. In the end, Devastator has limited utility unless you are going for the all or nothing alpha strike.  If you're that kinda of Admiral, here's the Devastator build for you:

ISD Kuat Refit (112)
• Darth Vader (36)
• Intel Officer (7)
• Fire-Control Team (2)
• Heavy Ion Emplacements (9)
• Assault Concussion Missiles (5)
• Devastator (10)
= 181 Points

Relentless

Relentless is the ultimate reactionary title for ISDs, making your three command ship as flexible as a cruiser or torp boat.  The flagship of Admiral Konstantine, Relentless is typically an afterthought in building out your ISD (oh, I have three points left and don't need a bid kinda thing).  However, Relentless can be very useful for fleets that need to have the right command at the right time.

Imperial II (120)
• Admiral Konstantine (23)
• Commander Vanto (7)
• Gunnery Team (7)
• Expanded Hangar Bay (5)
• Electronic Countermeasures (7)
• Relentless (3)
= 172 Points

Here's an Relentless ISD II that is able to make use of all the commands to react and change quickly to the situation.  Since you only need to plan two turns ahead, you can properly time the five squadron activation, when you need to fire twice out of the front arc, or play defensively.  Vanto allows for even more flexibility by giving you a Concentrate Fire token after your squadrons weaken those two small ships in your front arc.  Konstantine works somewhat well with Relentless, slowing or speeding up enemy ships around him and using the smaller command stack to quickly set up attacks or navigate out of dangerous arcs.  That said, Relentless works well with any Imperial Commander and is often a good investment for three points.

Sovereign

Sovereign is sitting high in Armada 1.5.  Token management is key to making sure you can refresh or use those key upgrade cards in your fleet.  The point reduction in Grand Moff Tarkin makes him riding on his flagship the most economical choice for token tossing in this new meta.  Sovereign is very effective in medium sized fleets, about three ships, that have upgrades that need tokens or need high flexibility in commands to constantly adjust to the battle.

Imperial I (110)
• Grand Moff Tarkin (28)
• Wulff Yularen (7)
• Sovereign (4)
= 149 Points

Gladiator I (56)
• Engine Techs (8)
• Demolisher (10)
= 74 Points

Gladiator I (56)
• Engine Techs (8)
• Insidious (3)
= 67 Points

Gladiators, especially ones with engine techs, want to be navigating most of the game.  However, there is always that one turn where you need that extra black die to finish off an opponent.  Here, Takrin/Sovereign gives all three ship the flexibility to navigate into position (Demo to set up a front and then side attack, Insidious to swing around the back, and the ISD I to plow forward), but have a CF token handy for rerolls.  Then, once in combat, the Gladiators can feel free to take CF commands, but still have a navigation token to escape dangerous arcs with engine techs.  The best part is that although Tarkin requires them to all take the same token, Sovereign gives some independence to the ships, letting Insidious continue maneuvering, while Demo leans into an attack.  Alternatively, you could set Tarkin/Sovereign up much like the Relentless example in the previous section, gain and switching out tokens as needed. 

Seventh Fleet Star Destroyer

The final ISDish title was designed in the same vein with the Hammerhead titles, allowing you to exhaust a copy of the title on a nearby ship (so you'll have to have at least two in your fleet) for some effect on the currently defending ship.  In this case, the effect allows your Star Destroyer, if being attacked in the front hull zone, to reduce the incoming damage by one.

You'll notice I'm using the term "Star Destroyer" rather than ISD.  This is because Seventh Fleet can be used by any ship with Star Destroyer in the title: Imperial, Gladiator, Victory, and the Onager Star Destroyer (not the test bed version).  The most effective use of this title will require you to fly several of these ships in the same fleet, in relative close formation, with their front arcs pointed at the enemy.  The amount of restrictions and opportunity costs of this title make it worse than Avenger, but there are outside cases where it could be situationally useful.

ISD Kuat Refit (112)
• Seventh Fleet Star Destroyer (5)
= 122 Points

Victory I (73)
• Seventh Fleet Star Destroyer (5)
= 83 Points

Victory I (73)
• Seventh Fleet Star Destroyer (5)
= 83 Points

Here, you have three Star Destroyers that all need their front arcs to be in close range to maximize their damage potential, and if we fly in close formation, we can meet the requirement of Seventh Fleet.  What is the return on this large investment?  We can shun a damage off each one, assuming all three are attacked in the front by our opponent.  Unfortunately, this title is unlikely to leave your card binder outside of a campaign or goofy list game.

Final Thoughts

So which title is the best for your ISD fleet in the 1.5 meta?  That ultimately depends on what you want to do with your fleet, what your objectives are, and what you think you'll encounter across the table.  All things being even, a Sovereign/Tarkin combo or Relentless will probably provide you with the most flexibility at a reasonable cost for their abilities.  Devastator and Seventh Fleet lean more towards very, very specific fleet builds and may not be worth the points if the game doesn't favor those abilities.  Chimaera is a solid choice for fleets that can take advantage of the fleet commands it brings.

Thanks for reading through and I hope to see you across the table soon (once it is safe to play in-person again).