I had a dream..seriously...tonight Ii thought how can I invest in a fast deadly unit with the main purpose to kill enemy wizards and cavalry. Especially for a Slann free army. Then I remember we had ripperdactyl. 4 models with champion 146 points. Armours save 4+ and 4 attacks against the chosen unit with toad rage. What about if I add an hero to it? Skink hero on ripperdactyl, with glyph necklace (or 3 lodstones and charmed shield), BSB och standard of chotec. -2/3 some magic resistance and -2 to hit.. An alternative? Razor banner for the charge reroll to be sure to reach the target. With 5 models panic test require 4 wounds (2 models dead) and can be rerolled. Even with 2 models dead you still make 12 attacks with ripperdactyls + skinks (including the hero with lance/additional weapon). Thoughts? Ideas? It's just maybe a dream for a 300 points unit?
I heartily approve of this thread! Let's make them work. Sun standard is a great one when you're hunting missile weapons like bowmen. You mean rampaging banner but it is another good option. So is skevenpelt, +2 attacks per model and who cares about frenzy when you're already impetuous. BSB problematic on a unit like this I think it's likely to be lost, additionally likely to be out of position a great deal to benefit the rest of the army.
I agree with you regarding bsb, but I see so good possibility with it (skaven pelt is also a really really good one of course, but if you have a chance with impetuous to avoid a charge with frenzy you don’t have it) I thought to play them in a Slann free army, I didn’t thought to play a scarvet on carnosaur as bsb, the skink chief on Stegadon now is nerfed quite a lot so that’s reason I thought about them. The only problem would be..how avoid for them to charge on wrong enemy? I dont know if deployment on a flank is good ( or maybe better in the middle so you have to charge but have lot of options at least)
Chief on Stegadon is still one of the best units in our army list, even without them firing bows and spreading poison. All I can really think of is to charge them straight in the middle of the action so you have options about who to select for the charge
I think on an extreme flank is best. Cleaving Blow is the ability you want to try and maximise; Toad Rage is more difficult to pull off and could be valuable in deterrence more than anything. 360 charge arc is awful if only one charge target but this unit tears apart chaff quickly. Due to base size I wouldn't run more than 3 anyway but this does make them vulnerable to panic on the fringes (even with Cold Blooded). As we are so weak in cheaper combat-hitting units, this unit can be worth more than it seems on sheer efficiency. The threat range is massive and Swiftstride is one of the format-defining abilities.
If i try them i usually use them with a hero (4 in 2 rows of 2), better for panic since you have to kill 2, better ld for panic too.
Yeah I think you're right that 4 is the best number to avoid panic. 160pts is not bad for 360 skirmish charge range and 12 S4 Cleaving Blow attacks (against full infantry or cav frontage). I don't like the Hero so much as too great an investment - I think its about maximising 3-4 Ripper attacks - but as a BSB there's probably some shenanigans you can play to help them across the line. Maybe you do need something to guarantee combat win vs Warmachines, though - maybe that's just the forward Skinks' job?
Well you have to take a hero or a skink priest anyway in order to actually have them. I like the hero in there a lot, and have been having a lot of fun with them lately. They are not as bad as I first thought, I think around C tier and just so much fun. I think because I didn't realise how good skirmishers are! Impetuous is very difficult for opponents to take advantage of, not impossible but not as easy as I first thought, and its a committment for a 50% return. So, overall, I am going to run more as they are so fun. So fragile though! If I could change the unit design they need ONE more of any of the follow (wounds, toughness, armour) haha. And cleaving blow not working on monsters really sucks, monsters are so OP'd in TOW it really wouldn't matter if that worked on them