Necron unit that is weak #1. Warriors. (Weekly thread)

[Beatnik cryptek]

Ok we all know the unit of the week and how we can't discuss improvements to units it it or anything like this.

 

Soooo, I wanted to do a weekly thread about necron units that are weak and various ways to fix them. Nothing OP, let's just give our metal boys some reasonable buffs to counter their weaknesses in some areas.

 

I'm starting with necron warriors. While the warriors themselves are OK, their sole weapon is kinda un impressive, both fora weapon with some of the rules the gauss flayer has had and for a weapon that is supposed to be the most advanced technology in the galaxy.

 

Let's try to make the rules match the fluff and make the humble gauss flayer more effective but not OP.

 

I've had several ideas but they were kinda fiddley. My latest is at least simple.

 

Flayer effect: a gauss flayer never has to roll more than a 5+ to wound regardless of target toughness. A flayer that rolls an umodified 6 to hit has +2 AP. A flayer that rolls a 6 to wound scores 2 damage.

 

The cost of a gauss flayer would rise 1pt.

 

Larger gauss weapons could have their own variation on this rule.

 

These are fairly minor changes against most infantry but make them more effective against high toughness and vehicle targets. It also reflects the fact a gauss weapon is supposedly of incredibly advanced technology one has twice the chance of wounding a very tough target that most other weapons.

[Beatnik cryptek]

Also boosting the gauss flayer would help the warriors remain effective even given the fact they have absolutely zero options. No heavy weapons, no special weapons, no grenades, no close combat weapons, no special leader with equipment, etc.

[Kaldoth]

That is quite a buff for a single point. If anything, I'd just give them this:

 

Gauss Weapon: An unmodified hit roll of 6 with this weapon automatically wounds the target regardless of toughness.

 

Simple, effective, still gives Gauss weapons the flavor they're missing from previous editions, and it isn't so over the top that putting it on blasters or cannons would make them OP.

 

I think another big issue with warriors is their survivability. Why GW tried to make them a large squad fodder unit is beyond me. Reduce the max unit size to ten again and give them back their 3+ save. Right now there's no reason to take 10 warriors to fit in a ghost ark when you can just take the ghost ark itself. Same firepower, more wounds, higher toughness, and QS.

[Beatnik cryptek]

Well it's a buff that only affects some targets. The chance of doing two wounds means nothing to units with one wound. Against low t targets the wounds on a 5+ is no change. You have to roll 6s to get the the special effects asides from the wound on a 5+. So they are limited in their effect and most matter only on a 6 to hit ow wound. So maybe one point is enough.

[Kaldoth]

Well it's a buff that only affects some targets. The chance of doing two wounds means nothing to units with one wound. Against low t targets the wounds on a 5+ is no change. You have to roll 6s to get the the special effects asides from the wound on a 5+. So they are limited in their effect and most matter only on a 6 to hit ow wound. So maybe one point is enough.

 

It definitely isn't as you've written it. What you just did made 20 man warrior blobs absolutely busted.

 

5+ to wound regardless of toughness, -2 AP 2 Dmg hits on 6s with 2 shots per flayer when inside rapid fire? Add in a Lord with veil and Triarch Stalker for support and a single unit of 20 warriors is peeling an average of 15 wounds off of a knight Castellan on turn one. That is ridiculous for our most basic troops choice.

[Beatnik cryptek]

Ok what should be done to gauss flayers? They're too damn weak to be the only weapon warriors have as it espesically since spess muhreens got a boost to their bolters. Want to drop the 2 dam on a 6 to wound? Ok, I can see that. Like I say if they will be the only weapons a warrior squad can have they need to be boosted a little. As it warriors can take absolutely nothing but the flayers, no grenades, special weapons, sargewnts, nothing. Given that paradigm I say they just aren't powerful enough.

 

Even the lowly IG squad has a ton of options, but not us.

[Kaldoth]

And we never have. That's kind of the feel of necrons my man. If you're going to try and improve a unit, the goal shouldn't be to make it like a unit in another army just for the sake of doing so. I can't stand hearing players in any faction say "well they get this so I should get it too." That argument leads to making every army the same in a roundabout way.

 

Again, what I suggested before is what I would go with. Auto wounding anything on a hit roll of 6 brings Gauss weapons back in line with the way they used to be in previous editions without making them completely overpowered. With that and a boost to the Warrior save characteristic, it makes our most basic troops choice respectable without being over the top. And given that they're already overcosted, it brings them up to what seems pretty fair for their current cost.

[Beatnik cryptek]

By auto wound do you mean mortal wound? I proposed that and people wailed that it would be too OP.

[Kaldoth]

Nope, just regular wounds, because yes that would be unbalanced.

 

I can't think of another army that has their bare bones basic troop choices pumping out mortal wounds on 6s. That's not what troops are for. Mortal wounds are something specialty units do. If Necron warriors were pumping out MWs on 6s, then I wouldn't even bother taking anything else. I'd just run as many squads of warriors as I could.

 

I get the frustration with seeing space marines getting book after book while Necrons are pretty much forced into taking cookie cutter lists to be even remotely competitive, but trying to stack loads of ridiculous rules onto units that really don't need them isn't the way to fix our dex.

 

In fact, I'd go as far as saying going unit by unit isn't really the way to fix our dex either. The core rules of our army (Or in the case of Gauss weapons, lackthereof) are what are broken. Add on top of that most of our units being overcosted, and then further add on codex creep... fixing our dex isnt as simple as throwing out this week's underpowered necron unit.

[Beatnik cryptek]

Ok one porposal is auto wounding on a 6+ to hit, always on a natural 6 even with a -1 or with a plus to bit.

 

Also on a natural 6 the shot has a +1 AP.

 

That's petty weak but at least it's something .