Written by Matt Evans
Who can be a Linebacker?
So who is a linebacker? If you unfamiliar, here is a quick breakdown of potential linebacker units, there may be others that aren't mentioned but lets take a look at 3 particular types:
Melee Centered Troopers
These units are great to run 1-2 of and help prevent getting your squishy stuff into melee.
There are several melee central special forces and support units available that fit the bill. Wookiee Warriors, Royal Guard, Magna Guard, BX-Commandos and Dewback Riders.
Non-Charging Melee Characters
This is a smaller group and not every faction may have one of these. Some notable operatives/commanders may have melee weapons and capability but you may not want to dive them into melee like a force user.
Instead you may choose to hold of the enemy advance with them instead. Some of these include: Sabine Wren (w/Darksaber), Chewbacca, and Bossk.
Close Range Deterrents
Timing and planning are everything. This is the most niche group and requires a bit of skill. If your opponent comes charging at you sometimes thing to do is to wave a big stick and make a lot of noise.
Instead of possessing melee attacks this group wants to use damage saturation, immobilization and other tactics to stop or deter the opponents advance. Some of these include:
Immobilization Whips (Magnaguard, Boba Fett, Sabine, Pykes)
Damage Saturation (Call Me Captain, Fire Support, And Now.... You Will Die)
Area Deterrent (Saboteurs, Explosions!)
What is a Linebacker?
What's a linebacker and what does that have to do with Star Wars: Legion? Great question, internal monologue Matt.
Well since you asked so nicely, a linebacker is a unit that is used to attack, deter, or stop your opponent from diving in, keeping your "squishier" units safe.
A linebacker's role is very simple: guard your stuff from potential high-damage melee threats and keep your soldiers breathing (or computing, in the case of droids). This can look very different from list to list.
Why do You Need a Linebacker?
Why is this important and why do you need one?
Star Wars: Legion has always seemingly had a "META" surrounding certain commonly taken units. In the past, we have seen lists using Tauntauns, Shoretrooper/Deathtrooper gunlines, Clone trooper spam and many others be considered the "META" at that given point in time.
However good Kalani/Spiders may be, we are in a much more fluid time for list building than any point in Legion's history. When you show up to an event, tournament or even for casual play, you have no way to anticipate what you might see.
The sky is the limit with list building, which means you have to be prepared for anything and everything. Whether you want to run a Clone Trooper centric army and Fire Support every activation or use the new Separatist Invasion Battle Force with 8 B1 Battle Droids, you're going to need an answer if your ranged fire power suddenly ends up in melee sooner than you'd like.
Without a linebacker, ranged units that you love so dearly could end up being quickly picked up off a table with a Son of Skywalker or may end up halfway across the map after an opposing Vader's Might. How can you keep your squishies safe without taking a Force User yourself?
When do you need the Linebacker?
So when is the moment in a game of legion that you will need a linebacker?
"Dive Teams" are a very dangerous threat and are one of the main reason why you need an answer to melee. These lists consist of numerous melee focused units that are shoved in your face, forcing you to kill them all or get stampeded in the process. (3-4 tauntauns, 3 dews, you get the picture).
Ranged gunlines are great... until two or more angry Wookiees get engaged. So, when you build a list, you may have to ask the question: How much melee can this handle?
A Force User getting engaged is bad enough, but having them accompanied with several other squads is very different. What's your plan to counter it? This is a great question to ponder when spending time in Tabletop Admiral or LegionHQ.
So while running a linebacker you don't want them to run straight at your opponent. Instead, you want to skirt around your army in order to predict when/where a dive may come in to prevent your opponent from diving in themself.
This is the key to a good linebacker. You need to evaluate:
Where did they deploy their dive piece(s)?
Did you deploy in a way to counter to those piece(s) effectively? (quickly and without getting shot much)
Lists with a single linebacker unit often like using ranged firepower in accordance with the linebacker to tear into their opponent's army. While your ranged threats receive returning fire, your linebacker can safely approach and wait for the dive.
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