Darth Vader, Sith Lord is the Unique character who has been used in the least number of squads on Bloo Milk (4 squads, at the time of this writing). I have a theory that, with very few exceptions, every single character in SWM has something to offer a squad that no other comparable character has. It's pretty easy to figure out why Darth Vader, Sith Lord doesn't see much play in favor of other Vaders. So I'm going to focus on what makes this Vader special.
- DVSL is the cheapest character available to an Imperial squad with +16 Attack. In fact, he is one of only 16 characters in the game with an Attack this high.
- DVSL is the cheapest Vader with Triple Attack. The only cheaper Vader able to put out comparable attack damage is Darth Vader, Scourge of the Jedi if he attacks a Jedi--but Scourge's stats are way lower than DVSL's. There are some cheaper Triple Attacking options available to an Imperial squad (Emperor Roan Fel, Felucian Warrior on Rancor, Kreia), but DVSL's stats far surpass all of them.
- DVSL is the cheapest follower Vader with Lightsaber Sweep, and the only cheaper character with Sweep is Aurra Sing (who has less Force points, and generally is better off shooting anyway).
So I guess that's it. Basically, with high stats, Triple Attack, and Lightsaber Sweep, DVSL does best when he is right up in your opponent's face. He can often go toe-to-toe with the biggest beatsticks in the game, and Sweep helps him deal with smaller threats.
Looking at Synergy Providers for DVSL, only a few seem very useful. Options that allow him to move and still Triple Attack are great (Lift, Heavy Lift, Thrawn swap, even Dominate potentially). Moff Nyna Calixte's CE gives him +10 Damage vs Stealth, and anything that boost damage works extra well with Triple Attack. Boosting Vader's top notch Defense even further with Jolee Bindo's Force Valor is also appealing.
So here's the Outside the Box challenge: Create three squads (100, 150, and 200 points) using Darth Vader, Sith Lord and try to make them as competitive as possible. For a guideline as to what is "competitive", try to beat Darth Bane and 6 Ugnaughts at 100 points. Yoda on Kybuck, Rex, and Panaka at 150. And a Grievous Droid squad at 200 (probably with IG-86s and a Lancer).
Here are my squads:
60 Darth Vader, Sith Lord
21 GenoHaradan Assassin
8 Probe Droid
5 Caamasi Noble
6 Ugnaught Demolitionist x2
(100pts. 6 activations)
Basically, you can use the Cloaked GenoHaradan Assassin and the Caamasi Noble (mobile cover for the Assassin) to gain gambit and force your opponent to come to you. That's when Vader can move out into base with them. The Probe Droid helps you win initiative, so you can Triple Attack more easily, and so the Assassin gets Cunning Attacks more often.
It's an uphill battle against Bane, since Bane is specifically designed to kill big Force-users like DVSL. If you get some Cunning Poisoned Blade hits in with the Assassin, you might be able to pull it out. Especially if things work out so you can Triple Attack Bane twice with Vader (need to win 2 big inits after they come into base).
60 Darth Vader, Sith Lord
37 Grand Admiral Thrawn
27 Lobot
10 Jagged Fel
8 Mas Amedda
5 Stormtrooper
3 Ugnaught Demolitionist
Lobot:
20 Massiff x2
(150pts. 9 activations)
Advance Vader, Jagged, the 2 Massiffs, and the Stormtrooper. Thrawn's swapping and Master Tactician allow Vader to Triple Attack more often. Don't just try to keep Vader back until you swap, because he needs to be up front absorbing some damage for the squad to work.
Against a Yoda on Kybuck/Rex/Panaka squad, Jagged and the Massiffs are swappers that have enough HP to not be decimated by a Galloping Attack--and an AoO from a Massiff could be painful. The major advantage against this squad is Vader's high defense. Rex and Panaka will need 11s to hit him (15s if he's in cover). So if you can get Vader into the commanders area, he should be able to wreak some havoc.
60 Darth Vader, Sith Lord
37 Grand Admiral Thrawn
23 Emperor's Shadow Guard
18 Moff Nyna Calixte
17 Storm Commando
26 Kel Dor Bounty Hunter x2
8 Mas Amedda
5 Caamasi Noble
6 Ugnaught Demolitionist x2
(200pts. 11 activations)
Super Stealth swappers this time. This time, keep Vader hidden until it's time to swap, since the swappers should be pretty safe against most squads.
Against a Grievous Droid squad, the Kel Dors can provide some protection against a Lancer Strafe Attack (because if they get attacked, they can blow up and deal 40 to the Lancer). The Droids will have a really hard time hitting anything, because they don't have a good way to deal with super Stealth (or even regular Stealth, in case Nyna dies). I went with an Emperor's Shadow Guard instead of a Noghri Commando for several reasons. He can survive an Opportunist Twin Attack from an IG-86. Since I'll be running him up to swap in Vader, the lack of Double Attack won't be too important. Also, losing Poison +10 doesn't matter against Droids. Although he'll need high rolls (12s in cover), the Storm Commando can take out an IG-86 in a single activation. Vader can also kill an IG-86 with a Triple Attack.
So anyway, those are my squads for this Outside the Box challenge. Feel free to take the challenge. Any squads built using Darth Vader, Sith Lord will be featured here on this page.
