“We’ll have to destroy them ship to ship”
-Darth Vader
TIE/D “Defender” Multi-Role Starfighter
Beloved by fans of the TIE Fighter series of flight sim games, the TIE Defender is found on page 271 of Age of Rebellion. The TIE Defender offers players and GMs a well rounded and powerful starfigher that can can go toe to toe with the best ships the Rebel Alliance can offer.
The Defender has remarkably similar stats to the T-65 X Wing, trading out a point of top speed and customization hard point, for improved handling and a more powerful weapons load out. Fans of the monster that was the TIE Defender in the old TIE Fighter Series* may see this a downgrade in capabilities to a ship that had been capable of destroying entire fighter squadrons single handed, but I prefer the current feel of the ship as it feels much more realistic.
*Sidenote: If GMs want to keep the old super powerful feel of the Defender then I recommend they write off the current stats as belonging to the pre-production X7 prototypes and amend the maximum speed to 5. This reflects the installation of the SFS P-sz9.7 Twin Ion Engines that were the hallmark of the production TIE/D model. Although this is not strictly necessary, it does somewhat help the the Defender live up to its reputation as arguably the most advanced starfighter of the Galactic Civil War.
Even with speed 4 the Defender is a extremely capable craft, and one that is not to be lightly overlooked. Its heavy weapons package and surprisingly durable space frame, coupled with its hyperdrive help to make the Defender a dangerously unpredictable opponent. Much like the XG-1 from my previous article, the Defender is able to act independently from a command ship and so makes an excellent raider or can serve as a key element to a rapid reaction force.
In addition, The Defender is a very useful tool for GMs wishing to run a campaign with their players portraying Imperial characters. The Defender’s robustness compared to the vast majority of Imperial starfighters is undoubtedly an asset. Though players may find the concept of playing “disposable heroes” entertaining, very often they will quickly tire of being blown out of the sky in a single blow with their TIE/LNs. Putting them in TIE Defenders also helps to differentiate the players as being a cut above the faceless masses of TIE pilots, they are obviously the “best of the best” and have the gear to prove it.
Due to the Defender’s similarities to X Wings it is very easy to simply swap out challenges meant for Rebel pilots and replace them with your PCs flying Imperial craft. This simple ‘pallet swapping” technique can be further explored if a GM wants to run a campaign more closely tied to the history of the Tie Defender.
Much of the combat history of the Defender was related to the treasonous Admiral Zaarin, who used his position as head of star fighter research to attempt a coup against the Emperor. This largely unknown conflict saw a furious battle between Zaarin and Loyalist forces to secure the handful of TIE Defender prototypes and so gain a serious technological advantage. Both sides engaged in industrial warfare in order to degrade the other sides ability to produce advance starfighters.
PCs could very well play the role of a handful of elite pilots charged by non other than Darth Vader himself to crush the insurrection and destroy any rogue prototypes. This campaign arc would allow the PCs to roleplay as “Good” Imperials as they are engaged in hunting down and destroying a traitor solely fuelled solely by his own ambition. However the nature of the conflict could also lead to the moral quandaries that make an Imperial campaign so interesting. Perhaps the party are assigned an ISB agent as a minder, there to ensure that they remain ideologically pure. As the demands for the party to demonstrate their loyalty grow more vicious, they may begin to question their own roles in the Empire.
Because the Defender is invariably piloted by the very best pilots in the Imperial navy, there is also a great opportunity to introduce memorable NPCs as opposition for your PCs. As the elite of the elite, it makes sense for the crews of these fighters to be as unique as their craft. A squadron of TIE Defenders operates with relative autonomy from the rest of the Imperial Navy, and as its pilots are all extremely competent combat veterans with a high level of prestige. A regular TIE/LN Pilot might not have much freedom to personalize their fighter, but a Defender ace with two dozen kills and a chest full of ribbons could very well paint their fighters in all manner of garish colours to suit their own tastes.
Despite its excellent capabilities the TIE Defender has something of a poor reputation with the Imperial Navy, forever tainted by the involvement of the traitor Admiral Zaarin in its development and a combat history that saw it fighting other Imperial craft as often as it did Rebel starfighters. This makes a squadron of Defenders the perfect dumping ground for talented but eccentric Imperial pilots. Aces who have skills the Empire desires, but are unable to adequately bow to convention as demanded by their superiors.
To represent this sort of screwball collection of aces I present the 86th Independent Fighter Squadron. On long term deployment to the outer Rim, the 86th boasts a collective total of over 200 kills, and nearly that many disciplinary infractions. After scoring their first kill with the squadron, each pilot paints they craft in a manner of their choosing. With the enormous talent of the pilots which make up the squadron, this means that when the squadron dives into attack it more closely resembles a shoal of brightly coloured predatory fish as an elite fighter squadron. The unusual paint jobs and unfamiliarity with the relatively rare TIE Defender leads many opponents to underestimate this squadron, a mistake few live to make twice.
This squadron is of course informed by such colourful formations as Von Richtofen’s flying circus during the First World War, and is the perfect place to insert some of the more outlandish behaviour of some of those early “knights of the air.” Perhaps some members of this squadron are bound by an odd sense of honour, never targeting a disabled craft for destruction. Others might prefer to only engage with lasers, feeling that using their ordnance launchers is unsporting. It is these sort of small flourishes that can really bring an NPC to life,and making memorable moments around that table are one of the key elements of any good game.
Brett Bambridge
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- HoloNet Uplink – Nebulon B-2 Frigate (Guest Edition) - February 14, 2019
“With the enormous talent of the pilots which make up the squadron, this means that when the squadron dives into attack it more closely resembles a shoal of brightly colored predatory fish as an elite fighter squadron.” – GREAT sentence! Good article… I never thought to play EotE as an Imperial… I would like to try that sometime.