Talk:TIE Phantom Expansion Pack/@comment-30247763-20161220183438/@comment-454133-20161220195943

Gunner   is a couple more points than the typical 3-point crew on a phantom, but the big problem is defense. TIE Phantoms are bad at surviving.

Because of this, I usually see TIE Phantoms taking a crew that improves their defense, often by making them a less enticing target, or giving them more focus tokens. Rebel Captive is good at making the foe think twice about shooting at you trivially, as they'll have to eat a stress token. Recon Specialist is good for the threat of being focus-fired by swarms. You could even use Navigator to change your maneuver at activation time to respond to what your opponents did, thus positioning yourself better to dodge arcs and get into range 1, and hopefully avoiding a collision (which could deny you your defensive or offensive focus token). (this is not a complete list BTW)

Though as he says, Gunner does work nicely with FCS and 4 attack dice. You can pick a target of opportunity (not necessarily the guy you targeted last time), fire unmodified, and if you don't score a hit, fire again with more impact from the lock. If you're not locking or focusing the attack, 4 or 5 attack dice can fail to hit, especially against an agile/evasive target, so gunner could play a useful role. The trouble is, that's a lot of points on an ultra-delicate frame.

For one point cheaper, you could have Advanced Sensors and either Rebel Captive or one of the other common 3-point options, and have a longer-lasting ship. You're only saving a point, but you'd survive more shots. Advanced Sensors helps you get your action in even if you're going to bump (e.g. focus or barrel roll), or if you absolutely must K-Turn and you want to cloak first.

Another crazy combo to try is Hot Shot Co-Pilot + Sensor Jammer. You deny the very focus token they need to overcome Sensor Jammer. That said, it's an 8 point investment that doesn't do much to swarms (though Hot Shot could go on another PS9+ ally, allowing you to put something else on Whisper).

So it's worth trying some options to see what works best. Gunner + FCS is designed to take out targets faster, while other options will let you survive attacks and get more rounds in, while possibly also freeing up points for your other ships.