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I'm looking for the most take-all-comers competitive setup for these guys. I'm talking about taking on wraithknights, necron wraiths and all the nasty stuff you can think of. I've for the most part avoided getting more Rangers because the extra points you pay for them really hurt. But if a strong utilitarian case can be made for some more Rangers, I'm all ears.

Here's what I have to take them with in my current skitty army:

vanguard:
- 7 radcarbines
- 2 omnispex/radcarbines
- 2 haywire rifles
- 2 calivers
- 1 arcmaul/arcpistol (sgt)
- 1 taser/radcarbine (sgt)

rangers:
- 5 galvanic rifles (4 + sgt)

So, Dakka community, how should I kit my next 10 Skitarii infantry?

You're playing full Skitarii. You can't take all comers.

That said, I'm right there with you. Love the troops, and I'm playing an 8 Dragoon army.

Firstly, I'd say 5 more rangers if you're playing Maelstron (which, honestly, you should be. It's by far the best game mode.) Rangers are great at sitting on an objective, because their range allows them to still be an active part of the fight while crouching on it. SInce you can usually get to two of the objectives in the game easily, having two groups, or one larger squatter group of 10 is usually healthy.

The troops you have at the moment are pretty kitted. Don't fall into the trap of just piling expensive toys on every unit where they can fit. It makes them extremely painful to lose. I'd say use the other 5 as standard kitted Vanguard to flesh out your current ranks. You need bodies in which to hide those expensive pieces of weaponry.

The transuranic arquebus is a tempting weapon to take too, and if your friends are kitting out their troops like you are, then you should aim to have at least one of your rangers be one of these. They are amazing for picking out an expensive special weapon from a squad of Space Marines. But again, they're expensive, so you have to look at how much you want to be able to pick those out. If your friend's plasma rifle keeps blowing itself up, it might not be a priority, but if it keeps blowing up your Onager, then get an Arquebus and start picking his little feller out round one.

 Purifier wrote:
You're playing full Skitarii. You can't take all comers.

That said, I'm right there with you. Love the troops, and I'm playing an 8 Dragoon army.

Firstly, I'd say 5 more rangers if you're playing Maelstron (which, honestly, you should be. It's by far the best game mode.) Rangers are great at sitting on an objective, because their range allows them to still be an active part of the fight while crouching on it. SInce you can usually get to two of the objectives in the game easily, having two groups, or one larger squatter group of 10 is usually healthy.

The troops you have at the moment are pretty kitted. Don't fall into the trap of just piling expensive toys on every unit where they can fit. It makes them extremely painful to lose. I'd say use the other 5 as standard kitted Vanguard to flesh out your current ranks. You need bodies in which to hide those expensive pieces of weaponry.

The transuranic arquebus is a tempting weapon to take too, and if your friends are kitting out their troops like you are, then you should aim to have at least one of your rangers be one of these. They are amazing for picking out an expensive special weapon from a squad of Space Marines. But again, they're expensive, so you have to look at how much you want to be able to pick those out. If your friend's plasma rifle keeps blowing itself up, it might not be a priority, but if it keeps blowing up your Onager, then get an Arquebus and start picking his little feller out round one.

If the rangers are going to be sitting in the back, wouldn't it be easier to just take 5 vanguard and give them the Arquebus? I usually pair my Skitarii with my Cult Mechanicus and the Cult Mechanicus usually marches forward, leaving the rangers unable to fire at anything. In such circumstances, wouldn't it be better to save 10 points that could go into something else?

Also, whoops! I forgot to mention that I run them with Cult Mech. Sorry. So how can I use my new skitties to complement big ole battle bots and spidertanks?

LexOdin9 wrote:
If the rangers are going to be sitting in the back, wouldn't it be easier to just take 5 vanguard and give them the Arquebus? I usually pair my Skitarii with my Cult Mechanicus and the Cult Mechanicus usually marches forward, leaving the rangers unable to fire at anything. In such circumstances, wouldn't it be better to save 10 points that could go into something else?

Also, whoops! I forgot to mention that I run them with Cult Mech. Sorry. So how can I use my new skitties to complement big ole battle bots and spidertanks?

Well... no. Galvanic Rifles have a range of 30". You should really always be able to stretch them a little so that they can reach something. Compare that to the Vanguard's Radium Carbine's at 18" range, they really need to move into range. Galvanic Rifles also has the Precision Shots special rule, which means they can help the Arquebus get your chances for picking out that Heavy Weapon a little better (basically, they want to shoot at the same kind of targets.) and their longer range makes it more plausible that they will actually be able to reach something that the arquebus is shooting at (although I often experience them mostly standing around watching the Arquebus shoot.) The Ranger's Move Through Cover also makes them a much more reliable choice for moving around in a building to get a good shot. Remember, your Skitarii are Relentless, so don't be afraid of repositioning them to get maximum cover every round.

That said, if you'd rather simply move everything up, and run back if you happen to have to sit on an objective, by all means, go full Vanguard.

 Purifier wrote:

LexOdin9 wrote:
If the rangers are going to be sitting in the back, wouldn't it be easier to just take 5 vanguard and give them the Arquebus? I usually pair my Skitarii with my Cult Mechanicus and the Cult Mechanicus usually marches forward, leaving the rangers unable to fire at anything. In such circumstances, wouldn't it be better to save 10 points that could go into something else?

Also, whoops! I forgot to mention that I run them with Cult Mech. Sorry. So how can I use my new skitties to complement big ole battle bots and spidertanks?

Well... no. Galvanic Rifles have a range of 30". You should really always be able to stretch them a little so that they can reach something. Compare that to the Vanguard's Radium Carbine's at 18" range, they really need to move into range. Galvanic Rifles also has the Precision Shots special rule, which means they can help the Arquebus get your chances for picking out that Heavy Weapon a little better (basically, they want to shoot at the same kind of targets.) and their longer range makes it more plausible that they will actually be able to reach something that the arquebus is shooting at (although I often experience them mostly standing around watching the Arquebus shoot.) The Ranger's Move Through Cover also makes them a much more reliable choice for moving around in a building to get a good shot. Remember, your Skitarii are Relentless, so don't be afraid of repositioning them to get maximum cover every round.

That said, if you'd rather simply move everything up, and run back if you happen to have to sit on an objective, by all means, go full Vanguard.

OK, so how about this with my new 10 skitties:

2 arquebus rangers
3 galvanic rangers

1 haywire vanguard
4 radcarbine vanguard

I fight a lot of tough vehicles like monoliths, baneblades, knights, the necron skimmers; so being able to put 3 haywire guns in a squad will be useful for 3 to 6 haywire shots per turn.

With the 5 new rangers I can make 2 five-man squads of rangers each with the arquebus.

-------------

I could also go with variant B:

1 arquebus ranger

1 haywire vanguard
1 caliver vanguard
7 radcarbine vanguard

-------------------------------------------------------------------

In terms of pre-game strategy, I always want to maximize any utility I get per investment. That's why I was suggesting Vanguard w/ arquebus over rangers with arquebus, since they'll just end up as meatshields either way. Those extra 10 points could give two datasmiths a 4++, for example.

If the Rangers had stealth, then I would be more inclined to shell out the extra points.

Sadly, the Rangers have never earned their points back in any game I've played. Then again, I'm always either fighting enemies with 3+ saves or 6+ saves. In either case they aren't used to their maximum potential.

The Arq has great range, but that's it and is basically why you're paying 25 as opposed to the 15 it MIGHT be worth. You'd be better off equipping the Rangers with Arc Rifles. They're a little shorter than the Galvanic Rifle, but will do more damage in the long run. Then I equipped the Vanguard with Plasma.

LexOdin9 wrote:


Sadly, the Rangers have never earned their points back in any game I've played. Then again, I'm always either fighting enemies with 3+ saves or 6+ saves. In either case they aren't used to their maximum potential.

If you're not facing people that bring special weapons on non-leaders that they hide in big groups, then the Arq is never gonna make its points back. It will be a waste. Ironically, if you're facing something like Skitarii, where our plasma calivers are very expensives pieces we hide in big units, then the arquebus can be essential.

I would proxy it before you glue. You seem to have a good idea of what you want to achieve, and if you play in a way that needs more Vanguard, then take that. But no, don't put the arquebus in a unit of Vanguard. If you're going for that approach, another Caliver will be better there any day of the week.

I play heavily for objectives, and I find the rangers serve me well there. If you're playing for map dominance, then rangers will just hold you back when you could have had more vanguard.