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I really like the look of the repulsor as a model and want to get one but are they worth taking on the table top and how do you use them?? As gunboats or as a transports??

Like most SM things, they are a bit overpriced for what they bring. I’ve run mine a couple of times as a dakka gunboat, with all the bolter/heavy bolter equivalent weapons. First game I got a little lucky, with first turn I was able to take out a lot of my opponent’s AV firepower, and his dice were cold on his first turn, so I lived to keep chewing up units all game.
Second game I ran it, I moved up first turn and then got blown off the table.

Both times I had troops inside. 5 hellblasters and 5 intercessors. They both benefited from being up table and the turn of protection.

They are not as rugged as I’d like. While T8 is good, the 3+ save is not as nice as the 2+ on the similarly priced LRs. Seeing that most things shooting at it are going to have a decent AP value, you basically get no/6+ save. So the wounds melt away quick.

Could the points have been spent better elsewhere? Maybe. Were they spent on a cool looking model? Yup. It’s not useless, but might be a tad inefficient.

@nevelon yeah I came up with a list contains 2 predators plus a load of primaris dudes bit considered a repulsor as they look sweet but I think I may just go with original choice and hope they don't re model the predator too soon!

This tank and the Aggressors are the best mobile unit that answer to hordes army. Point to point the Assault Cannon Razorback is better in providing dakka, but they are not mobile because of -1 to hit; meanwhile if they get charged they are as good as dead. The Repulsors on the other hand, do not worry about that.

However, if it comes up facing against baneblades, Lenan Russ tank company, Imperial Knight, the repulsor is usually wasted of points.
on the other it is great against Tzaangor blomb, Bloodlette bomb, Genestealer Bomb, then yes. You might be able to thin their numbers with this tank.

Orks hate this tank for sure. Then again being good against orks doesn't take much ATM...But then there are many armies that will simply blow it up without too much of effort. It can be useful but there's many armies which will take it out without breaking sweat which is why I think it's not that popular in tournament lists. Well apart from marines in general not being all that hot.

I'd consider taking this tank if they knocked off 100 pts. Even then, it wouldn't be an autotake. That's how bad it is atm. Don't forget that if it dies you have to roll on the expensive-ass primaris guys inside to automatically die.

I dislike it; it has too many different weapon statlines (I've literally seen people using a checklist to make sure they remember to fire everything), it isn't anything like tough enough for its cost, and with the Deathwatch teleportarium stratagem I don't actually need it to deliver anything.

Even in casual games I find it needs an Invulnerable save, Might of Heroes for T9, or both to make any difference, though if you've got an AT-light meta you might try it.

If you go first and use a librarian to cast might of heroes to make it T9 then yes

Otherwise meh

 fraser1191 wrote:
If you go first and use a librarian to cast might of heroes to make it T9 then yes

Otherwise meh

That's way too many conditionals for a 300+ point model.

Martel732 wrote:

 fraser1191 wrote:
If you go first and use a librarian to cast might of heroes to make it T9 then yes

Otherwise meh

That's way too many conditionals for a 300+ point model.

Hey man I didn't design the thing

I know. I'm just saying why that approach starts behind the 8-ball.

Martel732 wrote:
I know. I'm just saying why that approach starts behind the 8-ball.

Okay, but this is a tactics game to some degree still. It's not just running numbers and shaking hands without moving a model. Scions don't do jack without a Tempestor, ditto Sanguinary Guard and a warlord/ancient. Force multiplication shouldn't be poo-poo'd as "starting behind the 8-ball" - because that just sounds like you want to have a killy box you don't need to think too much about.

I love my Shadowsword, but unless I take three, my opponent is going to fething blast it off the table in his turn. So that means if I run just one, I get to buy up Guardsmen to keep the tides back, a Psyker to buff it's save and give it a -1 to-hit, and then take other "scary stuff" to mitigate it's (eventual) destruction and not leave me wanting.

8th is basically the edition of combos and force multiplication - don't fight it!

I"m not fighting it. But a 300+ point model shouldn't NEED combos to be marginally effective.

Them, just like the Land Raider, need about a 60-80 point drop in order to be effective at the moment. The guns are great for anti horde but on a platform that's a bit too expensive.

MistaGav wrote:
Them, just like the Land Raider, need about a 60-80 point drop in order to be effective at the moment. The guns are great for anti horde but on a platform that's a bit too expensive.

It's abilities are all offense; no defense powers at all except <fly>. T8 3+ with no invuln is painfully easy to burn down in 8th. Just ask baneblades.

IG vehicles are fine with no invulnerable save. They just have better costs than SM vehicles, and have better psychic powers like Nightshroud.

meleti wrote:
IG vehicles are fine with no invulnerable save. They just have better costs than SM vehicles, and have better psychic powers like Nightshroud.

Costing is key. It's always key. In fact, it's the only key.

Everything about the Primaris Space Marines line is ass-backwards. You have fast units that aren't assaulty, and assaulty units that aren't fast.

The Repulsor is a transport that is piled high with weapons. It has to have a high price tag because of the number of weapons it has. But since it's a transport it isn't very durable. So it's too expensive to use was a transport, and too weak to use as a tank. Double Fail.

I doesn't have to be expensive. Just make the base cost 100 pts less. Done.

It appears to be a victim of GW's design philosophy for primaris marines as the starter army.

Keep options to a minimum and even when their is options don't allow anything to become so specialist that it is totally ineffectual against any given target.

However this forced generalisation drives the cost of the models so high they don't work against other focused units.

If you like the model just take it.
I find these days if you take something the community at large shuns they have no clue how to deal with it.

I think there was a huge missed opportunity for the Repulsor kit.

The reason the Repulsor struggles is not because it has a weakness as such, it is because it is too good at lots of things. It has lots of guns, a monopoly on transporting Primaris and in decent numbers, good Toughness, and the Fly keyword that makes it next to impossible to tar pit.

Sounds great, right?

The issue is all of that contributes to the required points value of the unit. You want to use it as a battle tank? Cool, but you're still paying for that sweet transport capacity. You want to transport Primaris? You got it, but you still need to pay for the guns.

What would have been much more useful is a dual kit. Two variants on the Repulsor. A reasonably priced Battle Tank, probably around 250. OR a lightly armed Primaris transport, probably about 150 depending on armament. You build it as you need it.

Stux wrote:
I think there was a huge missed opportunity for the Repulsor kit.

The reason the Repulsor struggles is not because it has a weakness as such, it is because it is too good at lots of things. It has lots of guns, a monopoly on transporting Primaris and in decent numbers, good Toughness, and the Fly keyword that makes it next to impossible to tar pit.

Sounds great, right?

The issue is all of that contributes to the required points value of the unit. You want to use it as a battle tank? Cool, but you're still paying for that sweet transport capacity. You want to transport Primaris? You got it, but you still need to pay for the guns.

What would have been much more useful is a dual kit. Two variants on the Repulsor. A reasonably priced Battle Tank, probably around 250. OR a lightly armed Primaris transport, probably about 150 depending on armament. You build it as you need it.

Agree. I’d love to be able to just pop the turret off and run it more like a transport. Pulling the front mounted hull gun off would be harder from a modeling POV (leaving just the door and rear guns) but nice from a tactical one. Although I’d be good with 2xHB, 3xSB and the troops inside.

It would still be expensive, as a T8 flying transports is never going to be rhino cheep. But would be a lot less.

Just allow Primaris to transport in Rhinos and Landraiders at a reduced capacity...but hey, that won't shift new pricier kits.

They aren't shifting any kits right now. Primaris just aren't used in tournaments, and no one uses them in FLGS games for me b/c of Drukhari.

Martel732 wrote:
Primaris just aren't used in tournaments.

Is that correct? I honestly don't follow competitive 40k much, but every time I fight primaris I get my ass kicked.

Hell, on saturday, I lost 14 stormboyz and 11 lootas, turn 1 of MY shooting phase for daring to kill some agressors. I also would have lost an entire squad of shoota boyz due to a 1 cp stratagem after jumping them if he hadn't given me a heads up about auspex array. All of that damage from me killing ONE enemy unit. And hellblasters (especially raven guard ones) in cover may as well be invincible, because I can't hurt them.

I suppose a lot of that may be due to the fact I play orks, but hell, if primaris are bad I'm not sure I want to see what's good.

Well, they aren't placing if they are used. And there's a rumor that GW brass are "displeased" with lack of primaris in tournaments.

Want primaris? Don't publish Drukhari.

Most lists can kill aggressors at a range long before they are relevant.

Martel732 wrote:
Well, they aren't placing if they are used. And there's a rumor that GW brass are "displeased" with lack of primaris in tournaments.

Want primaris? Don't publish Drukhari.

Most lists can kill aggressors at a range long before they are relevant.

Or you could just buff Primaris via some ability to mitigate damage like the Genestealer cult abberants have or the tried and true point reduction. Giving them a transport that is not garbage would probably help as well.

Too many cheap 2 damage weapons, and gravis armor is a joke.

Martel732 wrote:
Too many cheap 2 damage weapons, and gravis armor is a joke.

I stand by my statement that all Primaris were designed for 7th and copied into 8th