Well, everyone else seems to be doing it, but, seemingly as usual, I have a slightly different take on some of the units. So, I thought I would do my own version of how I score the units.
ADDED: I'm going to make some commentary on types of lists in Part Three, also including where I think GW screwed up on the fluff with units.
ADDED: I'm going to make some commentary on types of lists in Part Three, also including where I think GW screwed up on the fluff with units.
Since I'm being a bit different, I'm going to start at the back and work forwards, so first, the Heavy Support choices:
- Doomsday Ark - Not a bad little unit for the price, it has its place in certain lists. Better as a pair or triple as usual for this type of unit. The standard AV11 all around plus Quantum Shielding (QS). It has a pair of Gauss Flayer Arrays and all of its weapons can be independently targeted. The big deal is the Doomsday Cannon, which allows the unit to set up with its arse to the board edge near the center and hammer the entire board with its S9 AP1 Heavy 1 Large Blast. The downside, it isn't considered a Barrage weapon so it must have LOS to shoot and that can be problematic on some boards. Moving it isn't too shabby, but the DC falls to a S7 AP4 Heavy 1 Blast.
- Annihilation Barge - This is the prize of the HS slot. Cheap, with decent gun, QS and skimmer movement. The Tesla Destructor is a potential two edged weapon with its arcing ability (heh, the first one I heard of being deployed managed the bad luck of missing the first shots with no arc, then missing again with the second shots, but scoring one arc hit... on the Overlord in CC with a squad of Wolf Guard... killing him with six hits). OTOH, I'm used to dealing with twenty Blast shots in some games, so it isn't any worse than that IMO. No matter what else you take, try and fill out your HS slots with these. I prefer the Gauss Cannon underneath. Yes, I lose the Tesla Effect and one S, but gains AP3 (MEQ killing) plus the ability to glance anything. Although I don't really have much use either way, I've only gotten a very few shots off with the underslung gun of this and the Command Barge. Moving too much.
- Monolith - I weep over this one. Just about totally worthless. Between this and the Destroyers, it is practically direct proof that part of GW's plan for "balance" in new codices includes nerfing the crap out of former spam units. Let's see, what did we gain... The ability to fiddle with reserves by sucking units through that failed their reserve rolls and the ability to do the Roomba effect, but only at an average range of 3.5" and only as a "shooting" attack. In return what got nerfed was: Melta/Chainfist/etc. protection (which we all knew as going anyway), the practical ability to Deep Strike at all since it no longer forces units out of its way when it lands, instead it gets a mishap (and if you reserve it, it must DS). The ability to fire both the Particle Whip and the Gauss Flux Arc guns at the same time (because PW is Ordnance and therefore takes all the "crew" to fire it). The ability to suck units out of CC and redeploy them (which I would have left on the Monolith, even if I agree with the Veil of Darkness (VoD) losing it.). If GW FAQs the PW/Flux Arc issue so the Monolith can fire all weapons, all the time, then maybe, just maybe, I might deploy one for 150 points. Otherwise, fugedaboutit.
- Doom Scythe - Lacks QS, but gets Aerial Assault and Supersonic. Plus the Death Ray! As a unit, this one is a little iffy. Mainly because we have no clue about the model and there is a question about how the Death Ray works (every model under the line or every model in a unit under the line). If it is a huge flyer, it is less useful in many ways, but it does represent a key element in one of the specialist lists, including the only one I really think can do MSU well for the Necrons. It is the mass Tesla Destructor flyer list with six Night Scythes and three Doom Scythes. Nine AV11 targets, but we are talking about target saturation here. Otherwise too fragile and I wouldn't bother with one of these for now, just go with the Annihilation Barge.
- Canoptek Spyder - This is a fun little unit and although not as cheap as the Annihilation Barge, it has some uses that cover a great many of its deficiencies. MC, ability to be in a squad, ability for an extra 25 points to play full wound allocation games and although it is pricy, they can be equipped with a decent little S6 AP5 Heavy 1 Blast weapon for 25 points. Which means you could have a squad of three for 250 points that you can allocate wounds on and throw three Blast templates (that can reroll the scatter if you don't like it). Of course, their primary purpose is to feed the Scarab swarms and follow them into the enemy. I've had success with them hitting vehicles with lowered AV and smaller squads of troops. In both cases their MC status and T6 help the Spyders be effective at CC.
- Canoptek Wraiths - These are potentially fun units. IMO, the best of the new Necron high priced units. Why? Because for the price of a Terminator each you get six Wraiths with three carrying whips to reduce opponents to I1. 240 for the squad. You can price it upwards and give them S6 AP5 pistols fairly cheaply. They have a 3++ save, ignore difficult/dangerous terrain and their attacks are Rending. This unit could hurt anyone's day. Unfortunately, they are a bit weak by themselves and their best partner unit are the equally pricy Praetorians, especially if accompanied by a Destroyer Lord with a Rez Orb. Of course, like all the Canoptek units, they do not have reanimation protocols so don't benefit from this.
- Canoptek Scarabs - Everyone's favorite unit. 19-24" assault range and Entropic Strike. Yes, the Swarm rule hurts them, as does their T3, but no army that depends on vehicles can dare to ignore them. With an abundance of cover on the table, especially BLOS terrain that they don't actually have to enter, but can move around with their speed, plus the ability to be reinforced from Spyders within 6" and the cover provided by Night Fighting, they are deadly. Not so great against heavier troops with WS2 and S3, but the same troops will find them hard to kill also. Besides the mass Scarab/Spyder lists, they are useful even as a distraction unit, drawing enemy fire while the rest of the army closes up. I've had good success with eight to ten Scarabs and a pair of Spyders. Even if the enemy concentrates his high S weapons on them, I haven't yet failed to get some licks in on enemy armor. The game where they were ignored mostly saw a declining swarm ripping through MSU blocking squads and scoring some AV reduction on vehicles which were then bypassed and left for the follow on Spyders and Immortals weapons that the vehicles were now vulnerable to.
- Tomb Blades - No models for these yet, but they look like a bit of fun and fairly cheap. I get the feeling these will see more play once we get models for them. They will make another good high mobility threat unit for the Necrons.
- Necron Destroyers - The other big nerfed unit choice. Yes, the price on them dropped, but they went from jetbikes to jump infantry. Really, really big jump infantry. The regular Gauss cannon dropped from the old 36" S6 AP4 Heavy 3 to 24" S5 AP3 Assault 2. Okay, it is a MEQ killer now with one less shot and 12" less range. You can still get five of them in a squad, but... the FOC is shared with Heavy Destroyers (which got made cheaper and kept the same gun except it is Assault 1 instead of Heavy 1 in keeping with their new unit type). So no more mass Destroyer lists with fifteen Destroyers and nine Heavy Destroyers screaming around doing a bunch of 36" shooting. Given the tendency for the new codex to reward big units, these little tiny ones are just waiting to be eliminated.
- Deathmarks - Fairly interesting unit, but you need more than one to make it work right so that several enemy units can get "marked". Not too expensive with an Immortal's stat line. Haven't used them yet, but I just don't see a way to work them in. If Ghost Arks could carry them (not a DT, not to rebuild them, but just fly them around), then I'd be a lot more interested.
- Lychguards - Lord stat line, Terminator pricing, the ability to get the funny shield, I2. Too expensive since you really, really need to put an Orb in this squad since it costs so much already. I'd prefer to have more Immortals or Warriors for the same price.
- Triarch Praetorians - Please. Nice staff, but only 6" range. Only 1 attack, I2. They would be great led by a Destroyer Lord with Orb and partnered with a Canoptek Wraith squad, but why am I working so hard to get CC going in this army?
- C'Tan Shard - Expensive, but they have some nice tricks they can pull and our only consistent I4 unit. You could build an army about them.
- Flayed One Pack - Don't bother. No rending, Warrior stat line, a waste of time and points.
- Triarch Stalker - QS, Walker. This one could be fun, although in contradiction with most people, I don't look at the big double melta shots. I like paying for a TL Heavy Gauss Cannon and keeping the range open. That way, you shoot first with your Stalker, score a hit and then the entire army gets considered to be Twin Linked for the rest of the list.
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