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Raptors- why so popular?


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Ever since the new Chaos codex came out, I've seen a resurgence of Raptors in people's Chaos lists. Now, I don't think Raptors are a bad unit at all, but I'm puzzled by this sudden resurgence, firstly, because in the old codex, Raptors never tended to feature so much, and secondly, because the Raptors in the current codex aren't NEARLY as good as they were in the old one (Hit and run being the awesome rule that it was).

 

I'm no Chaos player, so clearly I'm missing something....

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Ever since the new Chaos codex came out, I've seen a resurgence of Raptors in people's Chaos lists. Now, I don't think Raptors are a bad unit at all, but I'm puzzled by this sudden resurgence, firstly, because in the old codex, Raptors never tended to feature so much, and secondly, because the Raptors in the current codex aren't NEARLY as good as they were in the old one (Hit and run being the awesome rule that it was).

 

I'm no Chaos player, so clearly I'm missing something....

Did you take the lower price into account ?

They now cost 9 points less per model and are no longer restricted, so the 'Legions' can now field them as well - under Codex: Spiky Marines. :FA:

They're just like Assault Marines but two points cheaper. They don't have ATSKNF, but they do have one higher leadership. In addition, they can take Meltas, which is awesome. The new raptors no longer pay too much for a pair of neat, but ultimately insufficient abilities. Now they are nuch cheaper and just about as effective as they were before.

 

Raptors should be more popular now than they were. They're just better.

well considering your unit costs more then 4 sm +chappy it would really suck[suck like well repentia or something] , if you didnt wipe a unit thats less then you .

 

Nope its less, i dont have the angels codex on me, but the termies are 160 pts for 4, the interrogator chaplin is at least 100 points with terminator armour if i remember... so its a total of 260, (possibly more, depending on the armour's cost).

 

My unit weighed in at 260 pts for Aspiring champ, fist, 8 men, Icon of Khorne, Melta and flamer.

How often can you get a unit of 20 marines 12" a turn across the field of battle? The only unit capable of doing that would be Raptors.

 

A side note, the icons that make raptors flexible along side the two special weapons would put them on par with genestealers in some cases, perhaps even giving them an edge over most jump-pack marines would have for roughly the same cost per marine vs their comparison.

They now cost 9 points less per model and are no longer restricted, so the 'Legions' can now field them as well - under Codex: Spiky Marines. -_-
I'd almost spend the 9 points to get hit and run... if any unit in any codex should have hit and run it should be Raptors.

 

Yeah, the extra Raptors you can now afford for the group probably makes up for it, but I still dislike the loss of fluff here. I guess it also helps balance the field and make bikers more attractive, but if bikers aren't attractive, shouldn't they adjust bikers rather than Raptors?

Yeah, the extra Raptors you can now afford for the group probably makes up for it, but I still dislike the loss of fluff here. I guess it also helps balance the field and make bikers more attractive, but if bikers aren't attractive, shouldn't they adjust bikers rather than Raptors?

Fluffnote- those of us who played CSMs who turned to Chaos after the heresy would've had the normal contingents of assault marines, Storm Bolter rhinos, and the like. So having 0-1 Raptors didn't exactly make sense. Just like the dreadnoughts going nuts all of a sudden- it was like when they went to chaos someone decided to dump a barrel of spiders inside each one.

 

And how the heck are we supposed to get new Rubric marines anyway? Or is it just a case of some new host putting on the pants and having them run off with him inside them?

Why are Raptors popular?

 

1. Mobility is key, nowadays. If you want to get to assault, you need to do it fast. Berzerkers and footslogging CSM are simply too slow to reliably reach combat.

 

2. Cheaper than before, and cheaper than their Imperial counterparts. This speaks for itself.

 

3. They can take special weapons in addition to their BP+CCW. Hooray for a free extra attack!

 

4. They can be given any Icon of Chaos.

 

One of their biggest benefits, I find, is the ability to take objectives quickly and easily. However, come v5 this may no longer be the case, since only Troops choice infantry units will be able to take objectives, so we might see a reduction in the number of Raptor-heavy armies out there.

Conversion options. Some people do stuff just because it looks cool, then they find out later if it actually works in a game. I tend to fall into that category. I got more ideas than opportunities to play and playtest. I hope to do more, but my time is always going to be limited and I should be studying right now...

1) Adding Marks to make the unit customizeable to the army was a real boon, that more than makes up for Hit & Run (IMO).

 

2) Raptors were the "almost good enough to take" unit of 3.5. They were just too expensive versus their survivability. Basically, the reason no-one really takes bikes. Nice, but you need a big squad for them to work, and big squads are too expensive. You'll pay that price for termies, because they have 2+/5+ and powerweapons all around. Not for a unit that's just CSM- that can charge in addition to moving 12".

 

Now they're affordable.

 

3) Well, really, you shouldn't need 3, 1 and 2 cover it. They were too expensive for their survivability before, now they're priced right- oh, and they're upgradeable with Marks? That's no-brainer. They're assault marines, but better.

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