New jetbikes - Why take Shuriken Cannons?

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**TompiQ**

Trystis wrote:
i don't play craftworld eldar, but I do play Dark Eldar. The range difference is massively important and easily makes the scatter laser generically better.

Venom have a 36 inch range which usually nullifies small arms fire. Even though its only av 10 they have to shoot real anti tank weapons at it to kill it usually,

When you apply this to Eldar jetbikes, and their assault move it makes them very survivable. In many list they will have to use long range weapons that have limited shots to overkill individual bikes because you should be able to use the bikes mobility to avoid most other threats. This can be compounded by bringing them in from reserve instead of starting them on the board.

This, so much this. 24" range might work if you get a decent assault phase move afterward, but roll poorly and the enemy will advance with his infantry and simply blow your bikes to smithereens. With 36" range, a decent assault move can even put you out of range of most RoF heavy weaponry unless mounted on a fast platform itself.

**Leth**

MEH, if you want to sit at the max range with your bikes and give me full board control I am fine with that I guess.

Personally I would rather win the mission(especially in things like maelstrom) than sit at the back of the board hiding and jumping around.

**greyknight12**

Leth wrote:
MEH, if you want to sit at the max range with your bikes and give me full board control I am fine with that I guess.

Personally I would rather win the mission(especially in things like maelstrom) than sit at the back of the board hiding and jumping around.

More range doesn't mean you have to sit back...it means you get more of your opponent's army to shoot at.

**TompiQ**

Leth wrote:
MEH, if you want to sit at the max range with your bikes and give me full board control I am fine with that I guess.

Personally I would rather win the mission(especially in things like maelstrom) than sit at the back of the board hiding and jumping around.

In reality it's not as much giving up board control as it is deleting your army of parts of the board and then moving up to claim it. Sitting back and shooting for a couple of turns will not punish the eldar player severely, as the faction is too inherently fragile to tank firepower from turn one if avoidable.

Edit - Besides, having longer range actually gives the eldar player more board control, as it increases his potential kill zone. The only units that have to move up to maintain control is short ranged ones and melee ones.

**Marsyas**

Doomface81 wrote:
I say this as a guy who loves shuriken weapons...but why for the same cost would you ever take the shuriken cannon over a scatter laser?

The only edge the SC has is bladestorm, which against the superior range and extra shot of the SL just doesn't seem to give it the same value.

Maybe there's something in the new codex we don't know yet or I'm missing something. What do you guys think? Sometime talk me into using shuriken cannons.

Because you don't physically own enough scatter lasers to convert your jetbikes with them.

**Okapi**

The bit about the Farseer is a very good point. Bikes going alone (or with just a Warlock): Scatter lasers. Escorting an HQ (especially a Farseer, but perhaps also an Autarch): Shuriken cannons.

Nearly all of the offensive psychic powers are 18-24", and in the case of the Autarch you want to be able to get that fusion gun in range.

(If you're bringing the Autarch for reserves manipulation though, you're probably better off giving him a reaper launcher and sticking him with the scatterbikes.

**Leth**

greyknight12 wrote:
Leth wrote:
MEH, if you want to sit at the max range with your bikes and give me full board control I am fine with that I guess.

Personally I would rather win the mission(especially in things like maelstrom) than sit at the back of the board hiding and jumping around.

More range doesn't mean you have to sit back...it means you get more of your opponent's army to shoot at.

Except that everyone is talking about it in the context of being out of range for retribution etc. Personally I play on tables with terrain so maybe that is my bias but I just dont see that working for them. They are not going to get the shots with everyone without getting close enough to deal with.