New Starshatter Arsenal Detachment

[NTaW]

Happy Grotsmas indeed! The new Detachment released by Warhammer Community as part of their 40k Advent Calendar is really quite nice. Here's a link to the WarCom download page if you're unfamiliar with this glorious addition to our toolbox. The general focus is making Necrons Vehicle and Mounted units more consistent with shooting, movement, and durability. Here's a Goonhammer article that runs through what this brings to the table quite thoroughly.

 

For me, I'm quite looking forward starting out with this 1k list and building out as I get the hang of things.

 

Overlord w. Voidscythe, ResOrb, Dread Majesty

10x Lychguard w. Swords, Shields

 

Lokhust Lord w. Lord's Blade, ResOrb, Chrono-Impedance Fields

6x Lokhust Destroyers

 

5x Immortals

 

3x Heavy Lokhust w. Gauss Destructors

 

Doomsday Ark

 

I think that Chrono-Impedance Fields reducing incoming damage to the Lokhust will be excellent, and I also welcome the Assault keyword added to their weapons. The Unyielding Forms stratagem will further help filter out some incoming wounds, and so long as they're pushing up to objectives you can activate their Reanimation Protocols an extra time with Endless Servitude. I feel like Imotekh would be useful for his CP generation because all of these stratagems look like they could be useful. Even the Dimensional Tunnel one would help me pop the DDA out from behind cover.

 

What's everyone else's reaction to this new Detachment, do you think that it's worth switching away from the more popular choices right now? From what I've garnered from Fb comments, GW means to add these Grotmas options to the app come January as official content.

 

 

[Bonzi]

I played a game with it the day after it came out.  I ran a 50/50 flying circus destroyers and vehicle spam (X2 Triarch & X2 Doom Stalkers, Annihilation Barge, Doomsday Ark, and a CCB).

 

 The buff for +1 to hit on enemies on objectives was far more useful than I ever thought it would be.  It lets a lot of units that can't be joined by characters in an Awaked Dynasty really shine.  The enhancements are game changers, especially the reroll aura on a CCB.  The detachment is super CP hungry so I think Immotek is almost a must take as much as it irritates me to pay points just for a CP generator.

 

This detachment unlocks a lot of units that can get character support due to the buff and the rerolls from the enhancement.  I'm looking to try out Ophydians, Praetorians, and Tomb Blades. 

 

I think my biggest sadness is I wish there was something in here that gave a bigger nudge to AnniBarges.  Assault on the guns and +1 to hit vs objective targets is nice but they're not useful enough to waste the durability strats on them.  It feels like most of our other vehicles make more interesting gains from this detachment.

[Galron]

I was going to sell my entire Necron army, I am now probably going to keep about 2k for the time being just to run this detachment because it looks like a lot of fun to run the way I like running my Necrons that I havent been able to do this edition.  I feel the need, the need for speed! and more firepower.

[NTaW]

On 12/9/2024 at 12:44 AM, Bonzi said:

I think my biggest sadness is I wish there was something in here that gave a bigger nudge to AnniBarges.

 

You know, when I saw these rules I thought to myself that my CCB w. 3x Annihilation Barges of yesteryear would thoroughly love this Detachment. Figured that Dread Majesty would go nicely with the AnniBarge's firepower.

[Lord_Ikka]

Just played with this detachment today. Very, very nasty. Lychguard on an objective with an Overlord w/Dread Majesty is just killer. Hitting on 2s, usually wounding infantry on 2s with the +1 Wound strat, and then rerolling all 1s means that even the fairly anemic damage from the Lychguard can do some work just based on consistency. Vehicles/Mounted having Assault also makes it a fairly fast moving army.

[Bonzi]

On 12/17/2024 at 5:18 PM, NTaW said:

 

You know, when I saw these rules I thought to myself that my CCB w. 3x Annihilation Barges of yesteryear would thoroughly love this Detachment. Figured that Dread Majesty would go nicely with the AnniBarge's firepower.

 

It's certainly the best detachment for them but at the end of the day, AnniBarges just don't do much that's unique or interesting.  The splash mortals are nice but not reliable.  +1 to hit vs targets on objectives is nice and the reroll 1s from a CCB lord is good too, but at the end of the day it's still only St 8 AP 0 attacks.  Damage 2 is nice but with no rend you need volume and barges just don't have volume unless you're super hot on the 6s.  It's a gun that's good against tough multiwound models that don't have good armor saves.....that's an incredibly narrow niche.  The times I've brought a single AnniBarge this edition they've been nice chip damage and are pretty tough with a 4++ but I've always struggled to get my value from them. 

 

By contrast the Starshatter rules and reroll CCB can lift Doomstalkers and Doomsday Arks to some really high lethality and those units are dangerous enough to benefit from the durability strats of the detachment.