Necron Unit of the Week Series: Immortals

[NTaW]

NECRON UNIT OF THE WEEK SERIES

Welcome to the Necron Unit of the Week series for 10th edition! Each week will see a different unit from the Codex, Imperial Armour, and Legends datasheets featured for discussion. The goal here is to discover and chronicle tactics for the featured unit so that new players and veterans alike can use this database to inform their strategies with the wider knowledge of the forum. The game of Warhammer 40,000 is ever changing though, and as the rules evolve throughout the edition everyone should feel free to return to older threads with the release of new FAQs/errata, changes in points values, information gathered from games played, and of course the Codex being released. These threads are also great places for newcomers to the Necrons to post their questions about tactics related to the featured units.

Please note that the purpose of this series is not to lament what the current meta deems “ineffective”, or that another unit “does it better”. Those units will get their own threads.

 

This week’s unit is:

Immortals

 

What role do Immortals play in your battles?

Do you use units of 5 or 10, armed with Gauss or Tesla?

Are there any characters you find useful attaching?

Are there any Detachment and/or Stratagem rules of significant benefit?

How useful has their Implacable Eradication ability been?

 

 

Series Index

[Tyriks]

It's hard to imagine not running Immortals now.  Warriors took such a hit, Immortals just seem so much better to me now.  Which, to be fair, is great for me - I love Immortals but they've been inferior pretty much since I got into Necrons (except when both were bad!).  I have been running 30 in my lists, but that's because it's all I have painted, I wouldn't mind running more. 

 

I like both guns right now.  Tesla is kind of more fun to me, because who doesn't love getting 30 hits from 20 shots?  But I think Gauss is still really good right now.  I have never regretted bringing my Gauss Immortals. 

 

Plasmancers seem like the best character to lead them.  I quit using technomancers with them because it mattered so little, or even not at all, in the first few games I played.  I just don't think it's worth it, at least against my common opponents.  Chronomancers offer more utility, but Plasmancers just boost killing power a lot in my experience. 

[Karhedron]

I agree that the Plasmancer is probably the best character to lead these guys. I am big believer in the best defence being a good offence. 

 

I like that both weapons benefit well from Critting on a 5+. Lethal Hits and -1AP lets them punch up on tough targets as they can normally count on putting around 9 wounds on even T10+ targets (before saves). Tesla is obviously for horde control although 30 S5 hits will leave a mark on most targets. 

[Usernamesareannoying]

so i'm about to put some immortals together... are tesla and gauss still too close to call on whether one is better than the other?

any thoughts on which way to go?

[Prot]

On 4/3/2024 at 6:32 AM, Usernamesareannoying said:

so i'm about to put some immortals together... are tesla and gauss still too close to call on whether one is better than the other?

any thoughts on which way to go?

 

Honestly, I don't think there is an advantage. This is a rare situation where GW's design of a squad was pretty bang on. Basically you're looking at the use case scenario. 

 

Lethal hits vs harder targets vs. volume of fire vs weaker/less armour.  If you're not list tailoring and playing pick up games or tournaments I'd take both. For myself I've never regretted using both. Some games you wish you had more of one over the other, but again, if you're not list tailoring both have good bang for the buck.

[Usernamesareannoying]

thanks prot, that seems to be the running theory, both are good :)
i think im going to go with gauss simply because i like how they look more although now you have me question if i should just run a squad of each :D

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

A squad of each is definitely the way to go. Neither is bad this edition, and having flat reroll 1's to wound is a GODSEND for both gauss and tesla, but especially tesla. And they synergize amazingly well with the Canoptek court-- crit hits on 5's, rull rerolls to hit in your power matrix, and full rerolls to wound if the enemy is on an objective... it's a wonderful feeling. Gauss is definitely better at sitting back and plinking, IMO, since they don't get assault, and can target somewhat heavier units as they push.

 

But I can also say that a full squad of tesla immortals in the middle of the board can essentially threaten anything they want to with a wall of lightning. Toss some cryptothralls in and they get even tankier.