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Got a SW army and was contemplating building another army. The necrons are a different type of army and thought they may be a cool alternative (Nothing beats the SW though ). I don't know too much about the necrons and was wanting to know if they are a decent competitive army? Also, Space Wolves have sites such as space-wolves-grey.blogspot.com, which is a good site for the modeling and converting side of the hobby. Not sure if there are really many conversion possibilities with the necrons. Are there similar sites for the Necrons?

EDIT: How are the Necrons at close combat? GW describes them as a shooty army.

As a side note, I like tanks and vehicles and I noticed the Necrons really don't have many vehicle options.

The necrons have their own personal forum here

http://necrontyronline.freeforums.org/tactica-necrons-f3.html

The necrons are very playable. The fluff may be atrocious, but the rules are dead solid, and there are tons of options and variations to play with.
Think of them as being a slightly weaker version of GK - They have tons of powerful short to mid ranged shooting (like GK), but they are weak in close combat (unlike GK). Their vehicles are ridiculously tough, however, and you will usually see their transports absorbing several lascannon hits before going down, and the same good be said about their infantry, most of them having some ways of returning to the field after "death".

I saw your edit just now

As I said before, the Necrons are very weak in close combat, mainly thanks to the fact that they all have ini 2 (except for C'tan, which have ini 4). They do have some CC specialists, but due to their low initiative they are more suited to a counter attack role.That said, these CC units are still very resiliant, and there are some nasty pieces of wargear that can disrupt an enemy's assault phase (like mindshackle scarabs)

They're not THAT terrible in close combat, they just hit last. I wouldn't recommend charging them into a mob of slugga boyz though. Wraiths/flayed ones can do serious work in close combat, as can Scarabs/Spyders

bombboy1252 wrote:They're not THAT terrible in close combat, they just hit last. I wouldn't recommend charging them into a mob of slugga boyz though. Wraiths/flayed ones can do serious work in close combat, as can Scarabs/Spyders

True, but that still doesn't help when they take more hits then they could give out due to their pitiful ini, and end up getting swept. As I said though, they are still fairly resilient.

CthuluIsSpy wrote: The fluff may be atrocious

I always found the fluff to be pretty neat, if it is kept in a vacuum. The C'tans stories are pretty fun also... if you pretend they don't exist in the 40k universe.

Emerett wrote:

CthuluIsSpy wrote: The fluff may be atrocious

I always found the fluff to be pretty neat, if it is kept in a vacuum. The C'tans stories are pretty fun also... if you pretend they don't exist in the 40k universe.

I meant in regard to the previous fluff, and to the writing style.
I am still reeling over the whole "Dolmen Gates" bullcrap.

CthuluIsSpy wrote:

Emerett wrote:

CthuluIsSpy wrote: The fluff may be atrocious

I always found the fluff to be pretty neat, if it is kept in a vacuum. The C'tans stories are pretty fun also... if you pretend they don't exist in the 40k universe.

I meant in regard to the previous fluff, and to the writing style.
I am still reeling over the whole "Dolmen Gates" bullcrap.

I blocked that fluff out like a bad dream, to me they still have inerta-less drive.
Also, if you say the tomb-worlds overlord or dynasties phaeron is suffering from the "destroyer-virus"(which is really a failing sanity and not a virus at all) they can have personalities AND want to kill everything ever.

Exalted Pariah wrote:

CthuluIsSpy wrote:

Emerett wrote:

CthuluIsSpy wrote: The fluff may be atrocious

I always found the fluff to be pretty neat, if it is kept in a vacuum. The C'tans stories are pretty fun also... if you pretend they don't exist in the 40k universe.

I meant in regard to the previous fluff, and to the writing style.
I am still reeling over the whole "Dolmen Gates" bullcrap.

I blocked that fluff out like a bad dream, to me they still have inerta-less drive.
Also, if you say the tomb-worlds overlord or dynasties phaeron is suffering from the "destroyer-virus"(which is really a failing sanity and not a virus at all) they can have personalities AND want to kill everything ever.

Yeah, that's one of the good things in the fluff. There is still the possibility to make fluffy old school genocidal crons. Which is fine I guess...but still. I do wish there was an emphasis on the psychological horror aspects, you know? Granted, there are the deathmarks and the sounds of those flyers, as well as the grisly history of the Ghost Arks, but its just not enough, you know? They are just minor footnotes alongside the flashy royalty of the Triarch.

EDIT : Aw dammit, I just derailed the thread. Sorry OP

So yeah, necrons = very playable, and very customizable.

The necron army is now better than ever. So everyone join up with the faceless horde. They are a very shooty army but they excel at it. As for assault if you build the list right it is not a big problem but still something you have to watch out for. Plus every gauss weapon can hurt a vehicle on a 6.

The Necrons seem playable for me. I hope that their shootiness and tactical viability point to a rebirth of the Tau...

But who am I kidding. No one cares about the Tau.

*sob*

The tau are a better gun line than necrons will ever be.

Local Necron Menace 78729 wrote:The tau are a better gun line than necrons will ever be.

You think so? Even the new Necrons? I'm way more familiar with the Tau than the Necrons - I've just flipped through your codex, played a few games against Necrons - but they seem very effective, while the Tau seem... not.

the Tau codex is in need of a update no doubt however the range of the basic fire warrior makes them better. making the list is a hard task with tau but gunlines are the way to go i played Tau for 2 years with a 1850 gun line list lost like 3 games but tied about as often as i won.

amrogers3 wrote:Got a SW army and was contemplating building another army. The necrons are a different type of army and thought they may be a cool alternative (Nothing beats the SW though ). I don't know too much about the necrons and was wanting to know if they are a decent competitive army? Also, Space Wolves have sites such as space-wolves-grey.blogspot.com, which is a good site for the modeling and converting side of the hobby. Not sure if there are really many conversion possibilities with the necrons. Are there similar sites for the Necrons?

EDIT: How are the Necrons at close combat? GW describes them as a shooty army.

As a side note, I like tanks and vehicles and I noticed the Necrons really don't have many vehicle options.

Necrons have shown so far to be a very competitive army. You can find a large amount of Written Batreps by JY2, in the batrep forum, and video battle reports over at http://www.frontlinegaming.org/ showcasing the New Necrons.

That being said, Necrons are a tougher army to play, than space marine variants. You generally have to be very precise in the list building phase, as it is very easy to get distracted by all the shiny toys that Necrons can bring.

Necrons have a lot of interesting weapons and special rules as well. Things like Tesla weapons, which for every "6" you roll to hit, you generate two more automatic hits. These can add up very quickly when coming from a squad of Immortals, or a Twin-linked Tesla Destructor. Reanimation protocols, which is what Necrons are known for, allows models that have been killed, to come back to life. This makes Necron Infantry very hard to down, unless the entire unit is wiped out.

Necrons also don't have Psychic powers. We make up for this, by having our Royal Court Crypteks. There are 5 different types of Crypteks, which can bring a host of Wargear, and weapons to your army. This includes things, like causing a blast that makes an enemy go through difficult terrain, The Ability to Cause/Cease nightfighting, Having a unit already on the board, be able to deepstrike again, etc etc. These can be split off into certain squads, and is what allows Necron players to pack heavy weapons in their Infantry.

For the most part, Necrons are subpar at close combat. Necrons do have a lot of things to help close this shortcoming. Mind Shackle Scarabs, for instance, can turn the tide of combat quite quickly. Wraiths are also phenomenal at close combat. With a few Whip Coils, they will almost always go first. I'd say the Motto for most Necron infantry is "Resiliency at range, Fragility in Combat"

Necrons have two types of Vehicles. They have ones with "Quantum Shielding" which grants them AV 13 until the first penetrating hit. This is VERY resilient against most firepower. All Necron vehicles come with "Living Metal" as well. This allows you to ignore shaken on a 2+ and stunned on a 4+. Combined together, LM and QS create an exceptionally resilient vehicle, which is almost always guaranteed to be able to do it's job. This does comes at a price though, as QS vehicles are very expensive, most them are slow, and all of them are Open Topped.

The Second type of Necron vehicle we have available, are the two flyers. The Night Scythe Transport, and the Doom Scythe heavy weapon flyer. Currently, there are no models available for these two (rumored to be released in March riht now) so you probably won't see many lists with these right now. These are both AV 11 close topped vehicles, with Living metal. They also have the Super Sonic, and Aerial Assaults special rules. These vehicles are both fast, and carry heavy firepower.

CthuluIsSpy wrote:

EDIT : Aw dammit, I just derailed the thread. Sorry OP

So yeah, necrons = very playable, and very customizable.

No worries. You mean customizable as far as the amount of weapon/wargear options the army has? I was thinking more along the lines in terms of actually converting the minis in a hobby aspect.

To make an all around good 1500 pt army, what units would you suggest?

EDIT: I'll also throw this question out to Sasori

Sasori wrote:
That being said, Necrons are a tougher army to play, than space marine variants. You generally have to be very precise in the list building phase, as it is very easy to get distracted by all the shiny toys that Necrons can bring.

amrogers3 wrote:

CthuluIsSpy wrote:

EDIT : Aw dammit, I just derailed the thread. Sorry OP

So yeah, necrons = very playable, and very customizable.

No worries. You mean customizable as far as the amount of weapon/wargear options the army has? I was thinking more along the lines in terms of actually converting the minis in a hobby aspect.

To make an all around good 1500 pt army, what units would you suggest?

EDIT: I'll also throw this question out to Sasori

Sasori wrote:
That being said, Necrons are a tougher army to play, than space marine variants. You generally have to be very precise in the list building phase, as it is very easy to get distracted by all the shiny toys that Necrons can bring.

Well, start with an Overlord. An Overlord is what unlocks your Royal Courts, so you'll always want at least 1. I usually throw a Warscythe on him, and mount him in a Catacomb Command barge, for the sweep attacks. From there, you have to decide what Troops you want to take, and if you are going to take a Dedicated Transport with them. Lanceteks are a great choice for Crypteks, and get you that Solar Pulse. Annihilation barges are a fantastic heavy support choice. Wraiths are always good.

Just watch your spending on things like the Lords/Overlords gear. Things like the C'tan can also run up in price very quickly. Most Necron Vehicles are 100 points and over, including our transports, so keep that in mind as well.

Sasori wrote:
Well, start with an Overlord. An Overlord is what unlocks your Royal Courts, so you'll always want at least 1. I usually throw a Warscythe on him, and mount him in a Catacomb Command barge, for the sweep attacks. From there, you have to decide what Troops you want to take, and if you are going to take a Dedicated Transport with them. Lanceteks are a great choice for Crypteks, and get you that Solar Pulse. Annihilation barges are a fantastic heavy support choice. Wraiths are always good.

Just watch your spending on things like the Lords/Overlords gear. Things like the C'tan can also run up in price very quickly. Most Necron Vehicles are 100 points and over, including our transports, so keep that in mind as well.

Alright, I won't be able to get the codex until next month (traveling), however, I found a guy selling some Necron units at 30% off and could use some advice.

What would you recommend getting off this list:

NECRON LYCHGUARD x4

NECRON IMMORTALS x6

GHOST/DOOMSDAY ARK x4

CATACOMB Command BARGE x3

Necron Warriors Set x 4

Necron Destroyer x 6

Necron Monolith x2

Yes, necrons are playable, just like all the other armies. The codex is completely legal. Build incorrectly, and winning is gonna be hard.

Ask a better question, like what would be effective/not effective to use in the codex. Asking a question this broad is not helpful to you are anyone else...

amrogers3 wrote:

Sasori wrote:
Well, start with an Overlord. An Overlord is what unlocks your Royal Courts, so you'll always want at least 1. I usually throw a Warscythe on him, and mount him in a Catacomb Command barge, for the sweep attacks. From there, you have to decide what Troops you want to take, and if you are going to take a Dedicated Transport with them. Lanceteks are a great choice for Crypteks, and get you that Solar Pulse. Annihilation barges are a fantastic heavy support choice. Wraiths are always good.

Just watch your spending on things like the Lords/Overlords gear. Things like the C'tan can also run up in price very quickly. Most Necron Vehicles are 100 points and over, including our transports, so keep that in mind as well.

Alright, I won't be able to get the codex until next month (traveling), however, I found a guy selling some Necron units at 30% off and could use some advice.

What would you recommend getting off this list:

NECRON LYCHGUARD x4

NECRON IMMORTALS x6

GHOST/DOOMSDAY ARK x4

CATACOMB Command BARGE x3

Necron Warriors Set x 4

Necron Destroyer x 6

Necron Monolith x2

Make sure you check if the Immortals are the Old metal ones, or the new plastic kits.

That's a lot of stuff, and more than you can field in normal games. The Barge kits are a great buy, as they come with a plastic Overlord.

The Monoliths aren't as good as they used to be, but they still have a use. As the rules are now, I don't field one anymore, and I own two. They can still be useful though.

People are Divided on their opinion of Ghost Arks. They are a very Expensive transport, at 115 points a pop. They are used for warriors, as it can repair warriors that have died. It has limitations on what it can carry as well. Almost everyone dislikes Doomsday Arks, as they are very expensive, and must remain stationary to fire their weapon to it's fullest extent.

Most people are using the Lychguard/Praetorian Kit for conversion bits for Crypteks right now. Lychguard aren't bad, but they don't have a good delivery mechanism. Praetorians suffer from being too expensive for what they do, even though they have a pretty good weapon selection.

I wish you could get the codex, it's hard to make a really informed buying decision without it.

By customizable I mean that you can design your army list in any way you want, and it should be usable.
Want a horde of cheap infantry? Done
A fast, highly mobile strike force? Done
A bunch of fast, multi-wound killing machines backed up by weapon platforms and MEQs that can shoot bolts of friggen lightning? Done, Done and Done.

From a modelling standpoint you can also have a bit of fun, due to the abundance of multipart plastic kits.

Sasori wrote:
I wish you could get the codex, it's hard to make a really informed buying decision without it.

I'm not even remotely close to a store that sells 40K. I need to move fast because I am trying to get ready for a "friendly" Adepticon tournament. I was trying to get a SW army together but that is not going to happen in time for the convention. I can put together and paint a Necron army pretty easy. Ain't like Necrons come in a lot of colors ;-) Plus, who doesn't like an army that gets back up when you try and kill them??

Anyway, I got a list and need some feedback so I can go ahead and order the models and codex.

Here is a Challenge for the more experienced than me Necron players, how would you guys change/modify the following list to get it down to 1500 points:

Total 1849

HQ
1. Imhotek- 225
2. Destroyer Lord, mindshackle scarabs- 145

Troops
1. Immortals x6- 102
2. Immortals x6- 102
3. Immortals x5, tesla carbines- 85
4. Immortals x5, tesla carbines- 85

Elite
1. C’Tan Shard, Writhing Worldscape, Lord of Fire- 220

Fast Attack
1. X10 Canoptek Scarab bases- 150
2. X10 Canoptek Scarab bases- 150
3. X6 Canoptek Wraiths, x6 particle casters, x6 whip coils- 305

Heavy Support
1. X2 Canoptek Spyders, x1 gloom prism, x1 tl particle beamers- 140
2. X2 Canoptek Spyders, x1 gloom prism, x1 tl particle beamers- 140


Any help would be appreciated.

amrogers3 wrote:

Sasori wrote:
I wish you could get the codex, it's hard to make a really informed buying decision without it.

I'm not even remotely close to a store that sells 40K. I need to move fast because I am trying to get ready for a "friendly" Adepticon tournament. I was trying to get a SW army together but that is not going to happen in time for the convention. I can put together and paint a Necron army pretty easy. Ain't like Necrons come in a lot of colors ;-) Plus, who doesn't like an army that gets back up when you try and kill them??

Anyway, I got a list and need some feedback so I can go ahead and order the models and codex.

Here is a Challenge for the more experienced than me Necron players, how would you guys change/modify the following list to get it down to 1500 points:

Total 1849

HQ
1. Imhotek- 225
2. Destroyer Lord, mindshackle scarabs- 145

Troops
1. Immortals x6- 102
2. Immortals x6- 102
3. Immortals x5, tesla carbines- 85
4. Immortals x5, tesla carbines- 85

Elite
1. C’Tan Shard, Writhing Worldscape, Lord of Fire- 220

Fast Attack
1. X10 Canoptek Scarab bases- 150
2. X10 Canoptek Scarab bases- 150
3. X6 Canoptek Wraiths, x6 particle casters, x6 whip coils- 305

Heavy Support
1. X2 Canoptek Spyders, x1 gloom prism, x1 tl particle beamers- 140
2. X2 Canoptek Spyders, x1 gloom prism, x1 tl particle beamers- 140


Any help would be appreciated.

Well, for starters if you plan on running a scarab farm, know that it's a good build, but it has a lot of bad matchups. If that's what you plan to go with, Cut the C'tan, and a few immortals and you will have your 1500 list. The Dlord really needs a weave though. You can also cut the Particle beamers, on the Spyders, as this will still allow you to run wound allocation.

Also, you can't have both Particle casters AND whipcoils on the Wraiths. You really only Need 3 Whip Coils, so you can cut 3 coils, and 3 particle casters.

I can't recommend this route at all though, I feel you are better off going for a much more balanced approach, because some armies will just eat a Scarab farm without much effort.

Sasori wrote:I can't recommend this route at all though, I feel you are better off going for a much more balanced approach, because some armies will just eat a Scarab farm without much effort.

Please provide an example of a balanced army list?

amrogers3 wrote:

Sasori wrote:I can't recommend this route at all though, I feel you are better off going for a much more balanced approach, because some armies will just eat a Scarab farm without much effort.

Please provide an example of a balanced army list?

1 Overlord Warscythe
Catacomb Command Barge, Gauss Cannon

1 Destroyer Lord, Warscythe; Sempiternal Weave; Mindshackle Scarabs

1 Harbinger of Destruction Solar Pulse
1 Harbinger of Destruction
1 Harbinger of Destruction

9 Immortals, Tesla Carbines

8 Immortals, Tesla Carbines

5 Warriors

10 Canoptek Scarabs

6 Canoptek Wraiths Particle Caster x3; Whip Coil x3

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon


This is a pretty decent list, while a tad light on Anti-tank, is still pretty good. You could always substitute the D-lord for an Overlord if you wanted a second court for more Lances. You've got lots of Ap3 Firepower, with the underslung Gauss Cannons as well. Wraiths are Brutal on their own, and with a Dlord to catch Missles for you, it's going to be very difficult to do any damage to them, before they start tearing up the enemy.

Thanks for post Sasori. I'm going to go with your suggestions and your list. I'll post it up for some C&C and purchase the models tomorrow so I can get the ball rolling.

Love Sasoris lists.

I should start using a destroyer lord again i just hate sacrificing the second royal court

Cryage wrote:Love Sasoris lists.

I should start using a destroyer lord again i just hate sacrificing the second royal court

I find in 1500 or less, I love taking the Dlord. When it gets up to higher point levels, is when I find I start really needing the Second court. I wish Dlords could have courts!

Someone gave me a monolith for christmas and i dont play necrons.

but is the monolith still strong and competitive vs other necron heavy support?

Sasori wrote:1 Overlord Warscythe
Catacomb Command Barge, Gauss Cannon

1 Destroyer Lord, Warscythe; Sempiternal Weave; Mindshackle Scarabs

1 Harbinger of Destruction Solar Pulse
1 Harbinger of Destruction
1 Harbinger of Destruction

9 Immortals, Tesla Carbines

8 Immortals, Tesla Carbines

5 Warriors

10 Canoptek Scarabs

6 Canoptek Wraiths Particle Caster x3; Whip Coil x3

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon

1 Annihilation Barge Gauss Cannon

Is the 5 man Warrior squad an issue? If whole squad wiped out, no regeneration. Also, should I break the 10 man Scarabs into 2 - 5 man squads?

LunaHound wrote:Someone gave me a monolith for christmas and i dont play necrons.

but is the monolith still strong and competitive vs other necron heavy support?

The monolith is invaluable to my play style and I love the thing. I deep strike it and use it to pull squads of warriors and immortals through directly in front of or behind an enemy gun line. The Portal Of Exile ability works very well on those pesky GKs or other heavy melee units trying to rush your gun line as well. That being said, it is no longer the invincible slab of doom it used to be. It is still AV 14 all around, but the nerf to Living Metal makes it so I see it popped in one shot fairly often on those lucky dice rolls. Although there are a few games where it somehow survives many high strength shots at it and keeps on pulling my troops through for several turns. It's a big scary target that people will want to shoot, so you can use that to your advantage as well.

On the subject of C'tan, I love these guys. They are just as though and far more useful than a squad of 5 Lychguard. Being the only I 4 unit in the whole army also helps. I usually run Writhing Worldscape and Transdimensional Thunderbolt and he does amazing things. Sometimes I run 2 C'tan just for lulz and that also does hilarious amounts of damage.