Interceptors : Your thoughts

[NeoSamurai]

If I had time to figure the points out, I'd love to do multiple interceptor squads with incinerators. Pop those boys up in front of a gunline and watch things burn. I might have to give it a try during the holidays. partner them up with heavy flamer NDKs, too. that might be loads of fun.

 

now that I'm thinking on it--I think it might work best with primarily an Inquisitor build.

[Something Wycked]

If I had time to figure the points out, I'd love to do multiple interceptor squads with incinerators.

A word of caution- Incinerators are expensive on Interceptors, and be careful that you do not lose too much of your armor-destroying capability. Pointswise, you're looking at 330 points for a fully decked out squad (10 Knights, 2 Incinerators, 1 Hammer, Psybolts) or 160 for a half squad (5 Knights, 1 Incinerator, 1 Hammer).

 

If you have the points to spare and you have plenty of armor-killing weapons in other units, go for it- Interceptors with Incinerators are absolutely deadly to unprotected infantry! :o

 

Sounds good. What is your opinion regarding a squad of Interceptors riding in a SR?

First, I'm not completely against it. But, here it comes ;)

 

Interceptors don't need the mobility that a SR provides- they have plenty of mobility on their own.

Interceptors cannot fire from inside the SR, and shooting is their primary strength.

Interceptors are Jump Infantry and as such you can only fit 6 inside the SR.

Interceptors are not extraordinarily effective assault troops; there are better face-punching choices to put inside a SR.

 

Now, all of that said, there are some very interesting deployment options that become available to you if you use a SR to throw Interceptors around. Flat Out your Stormraven and your Interceptors can disembark anywhere along that pathway that you like with only one ill effect- they will be clustered together and a prime target for blast/template weapons. This can be a very nice way to insert your Interceptors into interesting places on the board without having to use their Shunt movement.

 

I would personally prefer to put Purifers or DCA & Crusaders into a SR, as they really benefit from the SR's transport capacity, Assault Vehicle rule, mobility and protection- and run Interceptors alongside the SR providing fire support.

[NeoSamurai]

A word of caution- Incinerators are expensive on Interceptors, and be careful that you do not lose too much of your armor-destroying capability. Pointswise, you're looking at 330 points for a fully decked out squad (10 Knights, 2 Incinerators, 1 Hammer, Psybolts) or 160 for a half squad (5 Knights, 1 Incinerator, 1 Hammer).

 

definitely one of my concerns.

 

If you have the points to spare and you have plenty of armor-killing weapons in other units, go for it- Interceptors with Incinerators are absolutely deadly to unprotected infantry! :P

 

the trade off in armor-killing is something I didn't really consider. I guess the fill-ins for that could be NDKs. Either way, definitely something to keep aware of.

 

Thanks!

[Lady_Canoness]

I'm going to play the devil's advocate and say that they are rubbish, and are not worth the points invested in them.

 

Yes, they have terrific mobility, can increase the size of your deep-strike denial zone, and can snatch up objectives late game, but that is about it.

 

The unit is an expensive scalpel that does not cut very deeply, and if their first strike fails then they may as well be written off. In other words: they will get there, but don't pack enough power in shooting or assault to deal with anything other than the most delicate of assassination runs unless you send a lot of points in either buffing them up or sending a Dreadknight with them.

 

They are a flanking and harassment unit at best, but in an army with the likes of Paladins and psychic powers that can relocate mulitple units across the table, a unit of harassment troops is not needed.

 

Interceptors are a cool idea, but when they get to where they are going they don't pack the power to realistically deal with any worthwhile threat that the rest of the army can't deal with already.

 

:P

[antique_nova]

That's a remarkably interesting alpha-strike list you've got there. How has it worked out for you?

They work good. Very good, i open the tins cans of armies with all the GK combat units and then bombard them with blast templates. Of course i have sometimes hit my own guys with the techmarine's orbital bombardments and i have come come to losing almost all my interceptors once or twice, but by them i more or less had the game in my favour by a reasonable amount. A lot of people hated it, but once i started playing against them again when they knew my shunt tactic. Things got more interesting and that's where the psyker units and tech marines helped.

I lost more Gk as my opponent's played me more, about usually about halfway through the game, it almost always swung my my favour by a reasonable amount - sometimes there wasn't a clear victor until turn 4 or 5, but most of the time that was due to my own faults of not spotting more game swinging opportunities.

 

I haven't lost with them yet, but i did come close to drawing a few times and a very times almost lost because i unleashed my interceptors too early! or committed too many in one area. XD

 

They will suffer against necrons heavily, because all necron vehicles have a minimum of AV11 everywhere, which means my storm bolters can do almost nothing and have to rely on psycannons far too much. My necron list spams AV13 skimmers everywhere with AV11 rear armour of course, but even that's damn hard to break through with 10 or even 20 psycannons. The chances of getting pens are ridiculously low.

 

thanks

antique_nova

[Something Wycked]

The unit is an expensive scalpel that does not cut very deeply, and if their first strike fails then they may as well be written off.

Doesn't cut very deeply? :P

 

I know how much we loathe mathhammer, but... bear with me.

 

A unit of my pattern of Interceptors (10 Knights, 2 Psycannons, 1 Hammer, Psybolts) goes hunting and finds itself a 10 man Devastator squad. The initial shooting kills 3.5 Devs (I'll round down to 3) and the assault kills 5 (without Hammerhand; I'm assuming Warp Quake was used; the 5 was rounded down from 5.083).

 

I'll assume that the Devs have a Fist on the Sergeant and through wound allocation choose to let him live to strike at I1. The Devs (all 7 shooting survivors rolling) kill .778 Interceptors, which I'll round up to 1. The Devs (all 2 of them remaining!) lose the combat by 4 and now have to test at Ld5; should they fail, and get caught, the two remaining models now have to make 2 armor saves each.

 

Regardless of the result on the No Retreat! wounds, that is a destroyed Devastator unit from one turn's actions from a single Interceptor squad. :huh: Any unit that can wipe a unit of MEQ off the table in a single turn will require your opponent to be very wary of them, especially if they are as mobile as Interceptors.

 

Are they going to have trouble with units that can out-assault them? Heck yes. (Don't you dare assault Interceptors into Howling Banshees or DCAs or Purifiers/Terminators/Paladins with Halberds *shudder*)

 

In other words: they will get there, but don't pack enough power in shooting or assault

3.5 average unsaved wounds on MEQ in a single shooting phase is nothing to sneeze at ;)

 

or sending a Dreadknight with them.

This is absolutely the best way to use them; I pair up at least one unit of Interceptors with a PT/GS/HI Dreadknight even at the smallest point games. This is my hammer and anvil; the DK can handle anything the Interceptors cannot and the Interceptors can protect the DK from mobs of infantry and open transports for the DK to assault the squishy insides. There are very few things that can easily handle a paired Interceptor/DK unit.

 

They are a flanking and harassment unit at best, but in an army with the likes of Paladins and psychic powers that can relocate mulitple units across the table, a unit of harassment troops is not needed.

What if you don't bring Paladins or a Libby, for various reasons? What if these Paladins and Libbies are facing armies like DE or Valkyrie/Vendetta-heavy IG who have the mobility to stay out of foot-slogging Paladins' range and pound them with S8/AP2 or better weapons for 4 turns, until its time to take the objectives out from underneath them?

 

Properly used, mobility is the king of warfare :)

 

Interceptors are a cool idea, but when they get to where they are going they don't pack the power to realistically deal with any worthwhile threat that the rest of the army can't deal with already.

True, "worthwhile" threats are things that they need to group together and take care of in medium to large groups, maybe even the whole army's worth. But if your opponent is bringing a target that's this hard, then the rest of their army is going to suffer. In more ways than one- the rest of the army won't be as numerous, tough, or deadly, and a smart tactic is to destroy the rest of the army around the deathstar, ignoring it completely until its the only remaining threat on the board.

 

Its very realistic to say that Interceptors cannot easily handle every threat they will face; potentially assaulting with a S10 Hammer is not enough to guarantee that they can handle AV14 or Walkers, and even with Dreadknight support they won't be up to the task of taking down Hammernators quickly (but then what does destroy Hammernators quickly, outside of DCAs? *cough* My dice love to kill Hammernators- when they're my own unit. Damned 1's... :tu: )

[the jeske]

A unit of my pattern of Interceptors (10 Knights, 2 Psycannons, 1 Hammer, Psybolts) goes hunting and finds itself a 10 man Devastator squad.

which no one in their right mind should be playing .

 

The initial shooting kills 3.5 Devs (I'll round down to 3) and the assault kills 5 (without Hammerhand; I'm assuming Warp Quake was used; the 5 was rounded down from 5.083).

that is not that simple because you cant in a single turn get from the place they were deployed in to 6" or lower of an enemy unit [unless it moved . moving devastators . well not going to happen offten]. this means if used alone a unit of interceptors takes a turn of shoting or gets counter assaulted .

 

 

What if you don't bring Paladins or a Libby, for various reasons?

why would anyone do that , other then maybe because of not having the cash to buy them ?

What if these Paladins and Libbies are facing armies like DE or Valkyrie/Vendetta-heavy IG who have the mobility to stay out of foot-slogging Paladins' range and pound them with S8/AP2 or better weapons for 4 turns, until its time to take the objectives out from underneath them?

a unit of paladins due to multi wounds draigo eating dark lance shots survives longer then a unit or considering the points cost 2 of interceptors . the outflanking and last turn caping is also tricky . first some games have random turn lengh and if you dont go second , you may never get to chance to use those .

 

also as 4 turns of shoting goes . A paladins have enough support units [or rather psycannnon platforms] to make the life or non av14 armies realy hard . the very fact means that after 4 turns they never is the same number of vendettas/venoms/ravagers as there was on turn 1 . now on the other hand a GK army that hides a unit of interecptors or pushes it back in reservs using communion , shots less downs/stuns/shakes fewer such units so takes more damgage .

 

 

Any unit that can wipe a unit of MEQ off the table in a single turn will require your opponent to be very wary of them, especially if they are as mobile as Interceptors.

a meq unit no one uses and before you go "but those could be tacs holding an objective" rememeber that the interceptors have to pop their rhino first . thats another turn of taking hits or being counter assaulted .

what cannones says is right . interceptors alone are a bad unit , unit per unit wise taking paladins or purifires works better. The only time they realy work is one uses a NDK , because most armies dont have to fire power to kill a NDK and 10 meq on a single turn [and by dont have I mean without shoting them with the whole army what would probably work , but mean the rest of the GK army is untouched for a turn].

 

3.5 average unsaved wounds on MEQ in a single shooting phase is nothing to sneeze at

only any GK unit with 10 dudes can do the same and all of them have either better rules/options[puris] are cheaper[GK] tougher[pally squad ] etc

 

 

 

 

Properly used, mobility is the king of warfare

not in w40k . most armies that win a lot are not zipping around 18" per turn around the tables . high movment is of course important , but it is less important then the number of cheap shoting attacks you can do from range .

To make an example nids are all about movment . infiltratre , beast , deep strike , pods and they still get out classes because they dont hit hard enough .

[Archon_77]

Somewhat struggling here with the idea of putting a psycannon in there... they are best used in their heavy 4 (re: TERMINATORS) and not their Assault 2 function in my humble opinion. I'd rather save the points, as I can use the mobility for rear armor shots with stormbolters and hammers for higher armor targets.

 

The comparisons to Vanilla Assault marines are valid I think, and herein lies a good comparison: Assault marines are NOT your anti armor. As with vanilla marines, if you NEED them to fill that role, something has gone horribly horribly wrong. Rather, Cannoness's scapel approach is correct (though she underestimates them I think) in that they are best used as highly mobile assassins.

 

They are perfect for devastators, but I can see them being effective counters to Long fangs, Zoanthropes, Enemy Libbies, etc. as well. Any other counters?

[Something Wycked]

@ Archon_77:

Psycannons are not at their full potential on Interceptors, true. But the Interceptors need them to pop transports, kill MC's, etc outside of the assault phase. If just using a Hammer works for you, good on you! :) I'm primarily a shooting player though, so Psycannons are the right choice for me.

 

As for effective counters, anything less than a MEQ dedicated assault unit will fall to Interceptors. ;)

 

A unit of my pattern of Interceptors (10 Knights, 2 Psycannons, 1 Hammer, Psybolts) goes hunting and finds itself a 10 man Devastator squad.

which no one in their right mind should be playing .

First of all, this is irrelevant to the discussion. Second of all, apparently I'm insane because I have 9 different full 10 man Devastator squads. :tu:

 

that is not that simple because you cant in a single turn get from the place they were deployed in to 6" or lower of an enemy unit [unless it moved . moving devastators . well not going to happen offten]. this means if used alone a unit of interceptors takes a turn of shoting or gets counter assaulted .

I didn't state this was a first turn event, did I? No, no I don't think I did.

 

What if you don't bring Paladins or a Libby, for various reasons?

why would anyone do that , other then maybe because of not having the cash to buy them ?

1) The player doesn't like Terminator Armor

2) The player doesn't like the price of Paladins

3) The player doesn't want >50% of their army to be Paladins + Libby

4) The player doesn't want to play Draigowing

5) The player wants to have all Power Armor in their army

6) The player wants a Coteaz Henchmen list

7) The player wants a Crowe Purifier MSU list

8) The player's local meta is heavily anti-psyker and a Libby would be a waste of points (Nids SitW, Eldar RoW, GK players with lots of anti-psyker, etc.)

 

To name a few. I can give you more, if you like.

 

What if these Paladins and Libbies are facing armies like DE or Valkyrie/Vendetta-heavy IG who have the mobility to stay out of foot-slogging Paladins' range and pound them with S8/AP2 or better weapons for 4 turns, until its time to take the objectives out from underneath them?

a unit of paladins due to multi wounds draigo eating dark lance shots survives longer then a unit or considering the points cost 2 of interceptors . the outflanking and last turn caping is also tricky . first some games have random turn lengh and if you dont go second , you may never get to chance to use those .

Draigo can eat single shots for the team, sure. What about the Vendetta's 3 Lascannons? Odds are only 2 of the 3 will hit, so Draigo eats one and another Pally dies.

 

What you're not taking into consideration in declaring the Interceptors will die is that they have the mobility to take advantage of cover.

 

I don't Outflank them, so that isn't tricky. I also don't see last turn capping as tricky, either. Its really pretty simple- be within at least 30" of the objective you intend to shunt to on turn 5 by the end of turn 4.

 

also as 4 turns of shoting goes . A paladins have enough support units [or rather psycannnon platforms] to make the life or non av14 armies realy hard . the very fact means that after 4 turns they never is the same number of vendettas/venoms/ravagers as there was on turn 1 . now on the other hand a GK army that hides a unit of interecptors or pushes it back in reservs using communion , shots less downs/stuns/shakes fewer such units so takes more damgage .

A smart IG/DE player will keep their vehicles out of range of those psycannon platforms and make the life of the Draigowing really hard- easily done with better mobility.

 

Now on the other hand a GK army of mostly Interceptors won't be hiding the unit or pushing it back in reserves using communion and will instead get aggressive with those skimmers, shaking, stunning and shooting down more such units so takes less damage.

 

Any unit that can wipe a unit of MEQ off the table in a single turn will require your opponent to be very wary of them, especially if they are as mobile as Interceptors.

a meq unit no one uses and before you go "but those could be tacs holding an objective" rememeber that the interceptors have to pop their rhino first . thats another turn of taking hits or being counter assaulted .

Opinion. Many people use Devs. Or Long Fangs. Or whatever you want to call it- backfield shooting MEQ. Popping Rhinos isn't hard, either, especially when Psybolts and Psycannons can make it happen from 24" away- well before the Interceptors get counter assaulted.

 

interceptors alone are a bad unit

I can use that same line of logic for any unit, jeske. Give me any unit from any codex and I can tell you that they're a bad unit. Me stating it- or you stating it- does not make it true. It is what is called an opinion.

 

3.5 average unsaved wounds on MEQ in a single shooting phase is nothing to sneeze at

only any GK unit with 10 dudes can do the same and all of them have either better rules/options[puris] are cheaper[GK] tougher[pally squad ] etc

And none of those options that you listed can get into position with the same speed and effectiveness as Interceptors. Purifiers and Strikes require the purchase of a transport and if that transport is killed, they have zero mobility. Equip a Strike Squad identically to my Interceptors and buy them a Rhino and they are only 20 points cheaper. Pallies are intended to footslog and by definition have zero mobility.

 

Properly used, mobility is the king of warfare

not in w40k . most armies that win a lot are not zipping around 18" per turn around the tables . high movment is of course important , but it is less important then the number of cheap shoting attacks you can do from range .

To make an example nids are all about movment . infiltratre , beast , deep strike , pods and they still get out classes because they dont hit hard enough .

Yeah, "most" armies that win. Its really easy to mathhammer the most bestest uber list evar and just play standard tactics against standard net lists in the standard tournament meta and get some good dice rolls and win.

 

The point is, with superior movement you can run circles around your standard opponent. You can be behind cover when you don't want to get shot and get around your opponent's cover when you want to shoot them. You can stay out of assault range when you don't want to get assaulted and get into assault range when you want to do the assaulting. If you have the mobility advantage and put it to use properly then you dictate the terms of the battle to your opponent.

 

Nids are a poor comparison. They don't have the shooting or assaulting strength of the Grey Knights codex, nor do they have the flexibility of the Grey Knights codex, nor do they have the mobility of the Grey Knights codex.

 

You seemed to ignore my first two words of the statement, so I'll restate for you: Properly used, mobility is the king of 40k.

[Lady_Canoness]

You seemed to ignore my first two words of the statement, so I'll restate for you: Properly used, mobility is the king of 40k.

 

Let's not over look that the GK Librarian, properly used, can give the army the ability to redeploy all the way across the table thanks to the summoning - something that I think will make much more of a difference than Interceptors. That is mobility for you.

Though I can also place myself in the jeske's camp: in 40k a proper defensive deployment can mitigate all but the best attempts at outmanoeuvreing. Let us also not forget that psyfle-men are still very common.

 

For people like me who aren't willing to sink too many points into a 10 man harassment unit, Interceptors will flop against a 10-man tactical squad with a power fist in both shooting and assault - I got to learn that one the hard way!

 

And don't worry wycked, we love you because you're crazy :lol:

[number6]

Sigh. First Purgators are useless. And now Interceptors are useless? :D

 

People: Virtually every unit in this codex is good. But you have to stop looking at units in isolation. Vacuum analysis is worthless and tells you nothing. Units are good (or bad) only in the context of an entire army list and its tactical use by the player. I mean, if Lady Canoness wants to rate Interceptors as terrible because she sacrificed them needlessly ... that's just makes no sense to me.

 

I posted a 1500 pt version of the following army list a few months ago to prove this exact point with respect to both Interceptors and basic GK Terminators. I guess it's time to do so again. But to demonstrate that units -- and oftentimes, army concepts -- can scale effectively, here's the same basic idea at 2000 pts.

 

HQ

[100 pts] Brotherhood Champion

 

Elite

[116 pts] Techmarine, conversion beamer, 2 servo skulls

[116 pts] Techmarine, conversion beamer, 2 servo skulls

[113 pts] Techmarine, conversion beamer, servo skull

 

Troop

[235 pts] 10 Strikers, 2 psycannons, halberd, justicar w/hammer

[235 pts] 10 Strikers, 2 psycannons, halberd, justicar w/hammer

[110 pts] 5 Strikers, psycannon

 

Fast Attack

[325 pts] 10 Interceptors, 2 psycannons, halberd, 3 hammers, justicar w/master-crafted hammer

[325 pts] 10 Interceptors, 2 psycannons, halberd, 3 hammers, justicar w/master-crafted hammer

[325 pts] 10 Interceptors, 2 psycannons, halberd, 3 hammers, justicar w/master-crafted hammer

 

Total: 2000 pts

 

Attach techmarines to combat squads in your deployment zone, send everybody else forward.

 

This is something of an extreme example, I admit, seeing as I made Interceptors the actual focus of the entire list. But there are definitely ways to include Interceptors as support units in GK lists with completely different structures from this one. The trick is ensuring that you're not just tossing them in randomly. They have to be included as part of an overall strategic approach that the entire list coheres around.

[Something Wycked]

Victory often rests on the correct weaponry being in the right place and at the right time. Even the most destructive weapons of war are worthless if absent from the battle.

True, The Summoning is an impressive mobility tool. It has drawbacks in that it is a psychic power (which can be directly countered, where Shunt and 12" moves cannot) and that the only place models can be summoned to is where the Librarian is. For a force like yours, Lady, its an important mobility tool. For a force like mine full of Interceptors and Dreadknights with personal teleporters, The Summoning is a little redundant ;) Everything is subjective and rightly so ^_^

 

Yes, a proper defensive deployment can be difficult to overcome. A defensive deployment, however, is static. Like all static emplacements, they can be probed and defeated. Take the metaphor of a wall: you cannot pass through it without exceptional destructive force, it is too tall to jump over and it completely encircles the valuables inside. You can, however, dig a tunnel underneath it, climb (or fly) over the top of it, or find its weak point, such as a gate, and breach that instead. And you can do all of this because the wall will sit there, immobile, and allow you to probe it until you find an exploitable weakness (even if the defenders on top of the wall will not! :D ) No conflict subject to the modern rules of mobility has been won using static, defensive tactics.

 

Show me a fortress and I'll show you a ruin.

Let them hide in their fortress. My crew can use the target practice.

 

I think an important point is that you see Interceptors as a harassment unit, and I see them as my front line troops; obviously you have paid the points for tougher front line troops and therefore Interceptors fill the duties of flank harassing. The same codex, the same unit, two completely different perspectives ^_^

 

Its odd that a Tactical squad should outmatch Interceptors; their shooting is poorer in the 13-24" range band, their assault is much poorer with only a single weapon that ignores armor, and they have less than half the mobility of Interceptors. I think the situation and/or dice may have favored the Tacticals much more in that instance ;)

 

You'll not call me crazy after I fully get my army together and start getting concrete competitive results with my army list and I'll tell you- *rants and raves while getting dragged off the soap box and thrown in the back of the asylum wagon* :lol:

[Grand Master Caloth]

I have to agree with Wyked and with 6. Jeske, you are taking the unit individually, which glares out their weaknesses. the GK codex, more than most, relies on inter-army balance and synergy. I dont use interceptors in my current list, but i have, to GREAT effect. I ran them with incinerators, and usually combat squaded them into a 5-man with hammer, and a 5-man with both incinerators, all with psybolts. They work great if your list can support them, and you arent sending them commando-loner-Tanith's First and Only style missions. They arent anti-tank, they fill an anti-infantry role primarily. I do agree that the psycannons are wasted on interceptors, because they want to be moving. But what Wyked says about mobility is close. Its not KING, but its a huge component to victory. In the US Army, we compare roles for different branches to Chess pieces. The infantry, we say, is the Queen of Battle. We go anywhere, move in any direction. Artillery is the King of Battle, they dont move but their presence is felt. But these guys are the epitomy of that infantry mindset, as Purgators are the epitome of the Artillery (i know they are on foot, but the concept is the same). Sun Tzu wrote something along the lines of If your enemy is well defended, use forces to draw his men out of position. Interseptors fill this role well, because if ignored, they can lead to pain on your opponents forces. They are a harrassment, yes, but not one that can be dismissed out of hand, if commanded by a capable player.

[Something Wycked]

:P Hooah, GM Caloth! Thanks for your service, keep your head down!

 

To continue the chess line of thought... Interceptors are very much like Rooks or Bishops; instant across-the-battlefield mobility, with a fairly high shock and threat value. Also like the pieces, the Interceptors are vulnerable to being quickly removed from the board if they have no support.

[Archon_77]

Hey, I"M just loving that we have SEVERAL options to choose from in our codex rather than the old days of PAGK. I think 6 has hit it right on the head again, it's all about synergy and every unit in a list working together. I have brought this up in nurglez thread but I'm threatening/playtesting running Draigo Paladins with a DK and a sqaud of 10 interceptors with hammers purely to shore up the mobility issues that paladins have, because I gain VERSATILITY. There is a great article up, "Winning Armies" on 3 ++ right now about this very topic: http://www.3plusplus.net/ Point being that the "BEST UNITS EVAR" in the "BEST LIST EVARRR" are a poor substitute for good generalship and knowing what you do best as a player and then exploiting it.

[the jeske]

Jeske, you are taking the unit individually, which glares out their weaknesses. the GK codex, more than most, relies on inter-army balance and synergy.

we [including me on the first page of this topic] already covered that they are run in pair with a NDK , Cannones was doing the write up for using them as a single choice instead of unit of puris/paladins or a rifle dread . as a single they are not worth the points . Saying that they are viable alone or that they can solo units[which never get used] proves nothing . I mean imagine them with 2 incinerators against a scout sm army . you could kill 8+scouts with RLx2 and maybe talion[if lucky] in a single turn , if you hit a fire base.

 

 

. In the US Army, we compare roles for different branches to Chess pieces.

yeah only you dont win wars using mobilty , but by having a 3+ to one force ratio . last time US effectivly won wars it was like that . to make a more w40k example . DE win not because they are so fast , but because they can spam trueborn/warriors and venoms with flicker fields . If they had speed and didnt have the spam component they wouldnt be viable.

 

 

. Sun Tzu wrote something along the lines of If your enemy is well defended, use forces to draw his men out of position. Interseptors fill this role well, because if ignored, they can lead to pain on your opponents forces.

only this only works when you dont know the enemy forces . If someone ever read/faced a GK army he will know what happens to units that chase one that can move 30" per turn[and probably go out of cover to do so , so eat mass of psycannons next time]. In sun tzu times [or rather in the time of the conglomerats of many writers that were later known as the single author of the art of war] you didnt know what is around the hill . In a game of w40k I very well know what is around the hill , because I can see it . I know the arments because WYSIWYG is enforced and anyone can read the dex and/or test against it so they know how the dex works and what set ups can be better then others .

 

They are a harrassment, yes, but not one that can be dismissed out of hand, if commanded by a capable player.

they cost too much to be a harrassment unit . I understand the use of a combination [draws away fire something will get in to hth . probably both if not focus fired etc] as a single they are a jump pack armed unit of GK . GK with scout in a rhino can do the same for less points.

 

 

 

Interseptors fill this role well, because if ignored, they can lead to pain on your opponents forces.

how and against which armies ? when is it better to focus on them then on main line units . their shoting is not better then GK SS and we kind of a dont see armies cave in becuase of those .

You can, however, dig a tunnel underneath it, climb (or fly) over the top of it, or find its weak point, such as a gate, and breach that instead.

we have a saying for that . If you get hit by a granded when your behind a wall then maybe you will surive , when you get hit when your going over or under it you will die , If you are hit when your inside the wall then you will wish you have never been born .

get a interceptor unit inside an IG/SW/DE shoting or assault and you will see what happens to them .

[tksolway]

I have to side with the Interceptors here. I have always been in favour of mobility over toughness. Mabye this comes from being an old water player. But, as soon as I saw the interceptors I knew they would be good. In the ancient days of our 3rd Edition codex I spent my time retreating from my opponents and hitting them with large amounts of Dakka at 24". The best way my opponent could counter this was with faster units and transports. The 12" move is the key here, shunting is awesome, but the real key is the 12" move, it allows the troops to be faster than most of the things on the board allowing you to maintain your superior range. GK are still a shooty army, but they are a unique shooty army, because they do not build a gun line. When the codex first came out, I tried to use all the new transport options, but couldn't get an army I was really comfortable with, naturally, that army was still good, but it didn't work as well as I would have hoped, and I realized that it was because I was not using the GK's best attribute to its fullest, the Stormbolter. The Interceptors are great because they exploit the GK's greatest weapon with the mobility you need to maintain the advantage of that weapon.

[Brother Dimetrius]

I must say I've been enjoying this discussion immensely. The tactical view described here, coupled with certain pictures of Interceptor conversions based upon the BA Sanguinary Guard have pretty much convinced me to include a unit type I had discounted completely when first looking at the codex. :yes:

[Grand Master Caloth]

Well im glad that this discussion line has inspired you to give them a shot, because for the one who speaks up, there are 5-10 people who are thinking "i bet i can make these work, i think i will give them a shot in my list". Cheers!

[Abaddonshand]

I've decided not to go with incinerators due to cost, I'd rather have psybolts and psycannon. Besides, I'll have free incinerators (4 of em) on my purifiers. Also, despite wanting to model them with falchions, rulewise they're too expensive for what they do. If the FAQ had gone the other way, it would be worth the additional cost, but as it is 36 points base is too close to terminators without the survivability IMHO.

[Something Wycked]

Its a trade off- nearly identical points cost for nearly identical assault performance, and the difference is Terminators are more survivable while Interceptors are far more mobile.

 

Using Terminators requires: 1. even more points spent on a transport or 2. risks taken with Deep Strike (maybe not arriving until Turn 5, scatter, mishaps, inability to assault the turn they arrive and simply taking a full turn's shooting) or 3. footslogging across the board 6-12" per turn.

 

With Interceptors, they can get across the board 12-18" per turn or 30" with a shunt, no transport required. The risk is they will get shot down before making it into assault, so effective and extensive use of cover is in order.

[Zode]

As a purely recreational player (no tournaments) I have the ability to change my list every time I play, and I do. A such, I use interceptors on and off depending on who I am playing. My last game my interceptors ate a slightly weakened unit of necron immortals plus lord that would have taken twice a long to kill off with purely shooting. The next turn they got eaten by wraiths. So, they can both destroy and be killed very easily based on who they are put against.

 

I agree with those that say when used wisely, like everything in the GK dex, they can be useful. Would I include them in a tournament list? I don't know, it would really rely on getting the required synergy right. I think anything could work if someone wanted to take the time to figure out how to make it work, so rather than just calling something crap maybe point out the weakness you see and then let everyone decide for themselves if they could make it work. It's more helpful that way.