Fast Attack
Night Scythe - Previously seen as the most cost-efficient flyer in the game once 6th Edition was released given that it was both a Dedicated Transport and had a relatively measly 100 point price tag, the Night Scythe remains a premier flyer choice if only because of how it is still so absurdly inexpensive. Its firepower remains almost identical while its special rules have been generally buffed with 7th Edition, though compared to 6th Edition most armies now have far more tools for dealing with these overall. The Night Scythe as a whole is mostly unchanged for a hefty but expected points increase that still leaves it is a well priced flying dedicated transport option, while its unique Invasion Beams remain as awesome as ever. This is still one of the best flyers around and every competitive Necron army should feature at least one or preferably two, even if just for their anti-flyer ranged capabilities and ability to drop units almost anywhere on the battlefield to take objectives. Overall, it remains far superior to its 5th Edition incarnation but it isn't quite as ridiculous as it was in 6th Edition which isn't a bad thing at all.
Change? Weaker.
Competitive? Yes.
Ghost Ark - One of my favourite Necron units and one of the more under-rated gems of the army, the latest codex gave the Ghost Ark a huge albeit subtle boost for its competitive usage with the points increase to Night Scythes indirectly increasing the ground transports' value. That is before one considers that it is generally more difficult to destroy in 7th Edition with the changes to the Vehicle Damage Chart, though admittedly it must now sacrifice its firepower to benefit from an otherwise improved 4+ Jink save that it previously gained just by moving. The new Living Metal isn't quite as good as it was but is improved if the Ghost Ark is part of a Decurion Detachment, while a nice 10 point increase highlights the Ghost Arks' positive changes. It still repairs Necron Warriors and becomes almost ridiculous in the unique Necron army list with all the boosts to Reanimation Protocols around and is just generally a tough, mobile and damaging transport at a good price. The biggest buff to the Ghost Ark though is undoubtedly the introduction of Salvo to its two Gauss Flayer Arrays, meaning it will always fire 10 shots per array at any range as it is Relentless due to being a vehicle. Much like most things in the codex, this was a good unit that managed to get both cheaper and better; what more could a player want?
Change? Stronger.
Competitive? Yes.
Canoptek Wraiths - While most other Necron squads have been bumped up to a competitive place with the new codex or slightly improved or weakened to ensure they remain strong overall, Wraiths are one squad that probably didn't need to be buffed like it was. Wraiths were already a top-tier Necron unit and a stand-out assault squad in 7th Edition because they provided a perfect mix of mobility, damage output and survivability - the three key elements any good assault unit needs now - as well as the Fearless special rule. Increasing the unit to Toughness 5 makes killing them via small arms fire much more difficult than before while Instant Death attacks are barely an option now, especially considering they remained identical in every other aspect of the profile save for a slight points increase per model. While I'm all for making every unit in a codex good or great, I fail to see the logic behind boosting the Wraiths' durability like this when they were already pretty terrifying before. Of course, this degrades into outright insanity when the Decurion Detachment and Canoptek Harvest formation are both present; Reanimation Protocols for Wraiths that they pass on a 4+ when they have two wounds per model and a 3+ invulnerable save? Ugh, at least the range of that particular ability is limited and the Tomb Spyder much slower than the Wraiths it affects. The internet has already gone wild over Canoptek Wraiths for numerous reasons and I feel I've added enough to it just with these miniature impressions, so I'll stop here as you can probably already surmise how good this unit is anyway.
Change? Stronger.
Competitive? Yes.
Canoptek Scarabs - I have a surprisingly positive opinion on this unit as 7th Edition certainly improved the usefulness of Swarms, especially Fearless ones with no actual drawback to that rule such as Daemonic Instability or Instinctive Behaviour. Their usefulness against Super Heavy Vehicles dwindled with the latest rulebook changes while the new codex has also dramatically altered the way that Entropic Strike functions, even if the end result will generally be the same anyway. As I have covered in a previous article, Entropic Strike is better for larger units of Canoptek Scarabs as they are far more likely to outright destroy vehicles on the charge, but it is worse if their numbers are reduced or you are otherwise forced to rely on further shooting to eliminate the target. For more heavily armoured vehicles such as Land Raiders, the new Entropic Strike is much better as you don't need nearly as many different elements and attacks to neutralize one enemy unit as would have been necessary prior to this codex. Additionally, that Entropic Strike actually works against Super Heavy Vehicles now and allows Scarabs to wound Toughness 7 and higher opponents despite being only Strength 3 makes them a better combat unit overall, not to mention that it even lets them tear buildings to shreds with ease. The points increase for each individual Swarm and reduced armour save help to balance out the general improvement to Entropic Strike, while the addition of scoring and potentially massive buffs from a Decurion Detachment or the Canoptek Harvest formation see this unit in a better position than it was. I'm sure many initially thought Scarabs were worse-off but it is difficult to really agree with that view-point once put into practice, something that I was genuinely encouraged by. As to whether the unit is actually any good, I do rate Canoptek Scarabs even just as cheap scoring units that are easily hidden while they can defend themselves quite well against almost anything short of a monstrous creature.
Change? Stronger.
Competitive? Yes.
Tomb Blades - Bemusement at a seemingly obvious ploy to sell an under-performing kit aside, the much needed boosts to this unit come not with their stats or abilities but rather in significant points reductions across the board. These were a decent unit in the previous edition if only because Jetbikes with Necron weaponry are always going to be handy in some way, though they were never really a top tier choice because their near-mandatory upgrades were just prohibitively expensive. The points reduction to the unit itself is seemingly minor at first glance, but made most telling when you save upwards of ten points total once those additional wargear choices are accounted for. A mere 20 points gets you an extremely durable Jetbike model with a 3+ armour save, Toughness 5 and a 5+ (4+ in the Decurion Detachment) Reanimation Protocol roll on top of some really strong generalist firepower. My preferred load-out with Tomb Blades are the basic twin-linked Gauss Blasters because they can threaten literally everything, though the optional Particle Beamers are a cheap avenue for increasing the units' damage output against clustered infantry units. It helps that their other upgrades now have highly improved effects such as providing Ignores Cover or a boosted Jink save, making them a devastating objective-taker with their superb mobility and shooting.
Change? Stronger.
Competitive? Yes.
Destroyers - Unlike most other units in the codex, this particular squad improved out of sight mostly because of the change to its unit type and the addition of an extra wound to bring them more in line with Canoptek Wraiths. Destroyers have been an iconic part of the Necron army for several editions running, though their actual competitive usage has often been questionable because of their high cost versus their actual capabilities. While they are still just as expensive as they were in the previous codex, the addition of an extra wound on top of the changes to Reanimation Protocols make them almost three times as survivable as they were in most cases. 6th Edition gave them a huge buff with Preferred Enemy working with shooting rather than just combat, whereas making them Jet Pack infantry is a positive adjustment for a few reasons. Strictly speaking a Jet Pack unit moves further than a Jump Infantry unit in one turn provided neither charges, while being able to move after shooting allows Destroyers to reposition as necessary based on how the Shooting Phase proceeds. Some general applications of this second move include jumping out of cover, shooting, then jumping back into cover to reduce incoming fire, or even moving out of range of enemy units' shooting or combat while keeping the Destroyers in firing range. The buff to Gauss also allows them to wound Toughness 9 and Toughness 10 models with their standard weaponry, and simultaneously they are a better combat unit because Reanimation Protocols now acts as a Feel No Pain roll. This unit basically acts as the Necron equivalent of Tau Crisis Teams and does a fairly good job of representing them, while they - like everything else in the codex - get some insane buffs from the Decurion Detachment and their own Destroyer Cult formation. AP3 firepower is usually quite rare in a Necron army and Destroyers are a worthwhile option now because of that, especially as they are almost entirely immune to small arms fire now.
Change? Stronger.
Competitive? Yes.
The dead rise, the living shall fall. Awakening the Destroyer Cult has proven most beneficial to the process of Reclamation, as was the implementation of the Decurion Protocol. They shall serve as the instrument of your will, defiling and destroying all before them.
No comments:
Post a Comment