Why take a Primus Medicae?

[Icosiel]

It's possible I'm missing something, but what advantage does a Primus Medicae give to a squad that a regular Apothecary doesn't provide? I looked through the Libers and I can't find a single unit that benefits from the Sacred Trust ability. Is the PM just a more expensive Apothecary that takes up an HQ slot?

[Brofist]

There are few advantages. Cost t isn't one of them, so use a regular apothecary unless you need to satisfy some of the following in your list:

• The PM is an independent character who can join almost any unit. Apothecaries can't join terminator squads, for example, so this is your only way to give them FNP
• Unlike an apothacary, the PM is a multi-wound combat character. For deathstars, which are also often terminators, this means both extra offensive and defnesive power.
• Unlike an apothacary, the PM lets you re-roll IWND rolls. Some legions have special units with IWND and this guy doubles the odds they regain wounds. Primarchs also have IWND, so buffing one with FNP AND re-rolling its IWND rolls allows for effective, albeit cheesy, wound shenanigans

[Cruor Vault]

5 hours ago, Brofist said:

There are few advantages. Cost t isn't one of them, so use a regular apothecary unless you need to satisfy some of the following in your list:

• Unlike an apothacary, the PM lets you re-roll IWND rolls. Some legions have special units with IWND and this guy doubles the odds they regain wounds. Primarchs also have IWND, so buffing one with FNP AND re-rolling its IWND rolls allows for effective, albeit cheesy, wound shenanigans

The 'Sacred Trust' special rule specifies Infantry or Cavalry models gain the re-roll on IWND.  So Primarchs are unaffected by it.

[MichaelCarmine]

Yah, the only unit that comes to my mind, which can benefit from that are the Salamanders Fire Drakes... I think, his only real purpose is to accompany terminators and/or CommandSquads, which Apothecaries cannot be assigned to (preErrata). 

Would welcome a small change, in which he would just straight up confer a 6+ IWND or +1 to existing IWND. So more units could benefit from Sacred Trust

[arnesh88]

Firedrakes and multiwound Salamanders units in general are the only thing I can think of that can take advantage of Sacred Trust, but it still feels way too niche. Main reason to take them is to give FNP to terminators.

[Cactus]

The Alpha Legion's Lernean terminator squads have IWND too. Given how wound allocation works I would never plan around IWND but they could benefit. Adding a Primus Medicae to a large unit of Lerneans to create a FNP Line cataphractii brick seems decent in itself.

[Gore Crow]

I guess the problem with lerneans there is that only one of them will be wounded at any one time?

 

Edit: for the IWND I mean, cataphractii with FNP will be tough for sure. 

Edited October 21, 2022 by Gore Crow

[Cactus]

Yes, exactly. A 1/3rd chance to recover one wound that might not happen depending on whether the unit has suffered an odd or even number of wounds is a nice bonus but not the basis for a winning strategy.

 

IIRC a Primus Medicae makes that a 1/2 chance but it's still weak and situational.

[Lord Krungharr]

I only have 1 to give my Siege Tyrants FNP.  Though I'm thinking another black one to go with my Raven Guard Deliverers could be a good idea too.  I didn't even notice the IWND thing.

[Brofist]

8 hours ago, Cruor Vault said:

The 'Sacred Trust' special rule specifies Infantry or Cavalry models gain the re-roll on IWND.  So Primarchs are unaffected by it.

 

I guess Khan on bike is just an edge case that would benefit from it

[Captain Idaho]

Another benefit to the Primus Medicae is when the unit dies, he can hop onto another nearby unit to keep alive. Situational but it's there.

 

Technically he can be cheaper if you consider you have to bring HQ into the game and want an Apothecary. You're saving on taking the latter and spending the points from an HQ on the health care professional.

 

However, that is an assumption you ain't taking anything else in HQ, which I imagine most of us have plans for one way or another!

Edited October 21, 2022 by Captain Idaho

[Hfran Morkai]

I actually ran out of HQ choices in my Recon Company planned list.

 

Praetor (because you need one)

Vigilator (because cool and thematic, would be nice if there were more "specific Counsel can open up very select RoW")

Command Rhino (again, thematic, want to build it as a mobile observation post, some infiltrators/saboteurs and a rapid reaction force)

 

Then would love a Speaker of the Dead and in V1 I could because of the 1 HQ per 1000 opening up extra slots/requirements.

[Captain Idaho]

Yeah it's a bit of a weak reason from me there, because I can't imagine many people not wanting another HQ for whatever reason, but I'm sure there's some hyper competitive folks who play HH out there...

[Lord Krungharr]

An allied detachment with a Battle Brothers (or whatever the current term is) Legion could have a Primus Medicae HQ and whatever Troops choice.  Then the Primus could join the unit of choice in the Primary Detachment, but of course not ride along in a transport.

[bushman101]

Some Warlord traits grant IWND (UM Burden of Kings) and some other models can borrow those (like Raldoron).

I think some legions make better use of the PM than others

[Xenith]

On 10/21/2022 at 4:48 PM, Cactus said:

Adding a Primus Medicae to a large unit of Lerneans to create a FNP Line cataphractii brick seems decent in itself.

 

Though they lose Hydran Exemplars if you add the Primus, so depends if you want the 5++ or +1 to hit. 

[Cruor Vault]

On 10/22/2022 at 6:02 PM, bushman101 said:

Some Warlord traits grant IWND (UM Burden of Kings) and some other models can borrow those (like Raldoron).

I think some legions make better use of the PM than others

 

Expensive...  But Burden of Kings with the Mantle of Ultramar Praetor + a Primus inside a unit of Fulmentarius would be...  Hard to shift.

[SmorcInc]

On 10/21/2022 at 5:18 PM, Brofist said:

 

I guess Khan on bike is just an edge case that would benefit from it

Khan doesn't gain Cavalry, instead he gains the ability to join Cavalry units.

Primarchs gain nothing from Medicae, same from Apothecaries.

 

For the record if you do have IWND on characters (WE Crimson Path, Salamanders, Lernienators) you can wound every character in your squad slightly, then have them all heal on a rerolling IWND, without risking their deaths since characters of all kinds (including sarges) are always opt into taking wounds (excluding enemy getting to pick wound allocation).

[Brofist]

Nah its pretty clear imo. It says any rules that affect cavalry units also affect the Khan, so it does indeed work.

[Lord Krungharr]

I'm making a Primus Medicae w jumppack to join my Deliverers for the Raven Guard.  Such an expensive unit needs some insurance, and the deductible isn't too bad.