Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Necron HQ review,Lords x2

Necron Overlords are the highest and most powerful of their race. They rule one if not many Tomb Worlds. They retained many if not all of their previous intellect, mannerisms and motivations through the biotransference process. At their command are uncountable legions of Necron Warriors, terrifying war machines, and a vast array of devastating weaponry.
The Overlord is the 1st of two blank slate codex HQ choices. They run with: WS 4, BS 4, strength and toughness 5, initiative 2, wounds and attacks of 3, leadership 10 and a 3+ save. They have the usual Necron silliness and the everliving rule. The come armed with a staff of light, which they can swap for a few choices:  hyprephase sword (free) gauntlet of fire (+5), voidblade (+10), or a warscythe (+10). They also have a few equipment options as well: phylactery (+15), mindshackle scarabs (+15), sempiternal weave (+15), tesseract labyrinth (+20), tachyon arrow (+30), resurrection orb (+30) and a phase shifter (+45). They may also spend +20 to upgrade themselves to a Phaeron. They may also buy a Catacomb Command Barge for +80 points as a transport. I’ll get to that thing another day. This guy will cost somewhere between 89 and 91 points base.
What all the upgrades and weapon swaps do!  If you really want to know, or have forgotten.


Phaeron- makes the Overlord and any squad he joins relentless. This is only useful with Warrior and gauss blaster Immortals. A nice addition if you want a walking contingent that can also fire to full effect.

Destroyer Lords are Necron Lords who suffered physical damage or gone a bit mental during their hibernation. They are fitted or choose to be fitted with a Destroyer body. They share their nihilistic views with other Destroyers and are usually cordoned off with them. Being more machine-like than standard Necron Lords they are said to be the most maniacal and calculating of their kind.
The Destroyer Lord comes at a higher cost and has a few differences than his fellow Overlord. This joker comes with: WS 4, BS 4, strength 5, toughness 6, wounds and attacks of 3, initiative 2, leadership 10 and a 3+ save. He is jump infantry, has the Necron rules, everliving and preferred enemy (everything!). He comes armed with a warscythe and can swap that for: gauntlet of fire (free), staff of light (free), or a voidblade (+5). He may also grab a few upgrades like; sempiternal weave (+15), mindshackle scarabs (+20), tachyon arrow (+30), and a resurrection orb (+30). He starts at a base cost of the atomic number of the yet-to-be-discovered element Unbipentium.
The Destroyer Lord is a bit of a head scratcher. It would appear he is made for close combat, but is he really? A pure toughness 6 is great as is the warscythe and 3 wounds. Still he has to go somewhere or risk going alone. Does he go with Wraiths? Could run there, but they lose their cool phase through terrain that gets them places faster. He could walk with a squad, but then loses that toughness 6 when the shooting starts.
Then there are the upgrades these guys can grab. Why ever take anything besides a warscythe? In what world is a voidblade comparable to a warscythe? It is great that a +2 strength power weapon is only +10 points and please don’t change that. However, why is an entropic strike/rending weapon the same cost and who is ever going to take this for the same cost as a better weapon? Is anyone paying +30 points for a one use ranged weapon? Better still is anyone paying +30 for a one time use close combat gimmick? Hopefully no is the answer to both! If you really care about your HQ then grab the +2 armor and a 3++ save. Granted it costs ½ as much as base Overlord, but is want him to have a better chance at life those options are good.
The resurrection orb was once a staple in many Necron lists, now it seems to have fallen into a couch crevice. This is another meh item. If you want better reanimation chances then sure grab one. However, it no longer a within 6” range, it is only the unit it is within. Sure it is cheaper, but not really as useful anymore. A 4+ to reanimate is much better than a 5+ that’s for sure. Still I would pass on it  and just spend those points on more guys.
The mihdshackle scarabs look fun, but seem a bit too random fun. The chance for a unit to hit themselves is groovy. Yet, it is only a D3 and they are not auto hits. There are even odds those hits will miss the unit. Still watching a demon or Astartes teeth kicker punch themselves in the face instead of you does have some merit.
I like my HQ’s cheap and an Overlord with warscythe is just that. Why dump a bunch of points into a Necron HQ? Almost every other codex had HQ choices that will beat or can be made to beat face faster and better than Necrons (Guard and Tau you get a pass here). If your Necron HQ is in close combat hope for a lot of misses, or that you are not in base-to-base with some Astartes with a power axe to grind.

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