Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

So, with prices being current a stock squad of 5 scarabs is the same price as 10 rubrics. Except with the scarabs you gain deep striking and good assault and if you like a heavy warpflamer and scarab missle launchers. Also, the cult of time power and the stratagem work far better with scarabs. The only weakness I can see is that scarabs are very vulnerable to overcharged plasma. Is this enough of a reason to bring rubrics and forgo the above? In my meta plasma is played but not spammed so for me the risk is less.

I do not think Scarabs are to cheap. I think rubrics are still to expensive. 14 seems to be right point cost. Also, another thing that is in favor of Rubrics is that they can load up on warp flamers if they ever change them to a reasonable cost (which will be never).
Am I missing something here? Please let me know im making a GIANT oversight and being a scrub. Because im looking for a reason to use my rubrics and just cant find any with scarabs the way they are priced.

Also, to fill troop reqs cultists are better anyhow as its easier and cheaper to fill out divisions for max CP. I would say Tzangies as well but I cant bring myself to pay 8 points for them.

I dunno, I look at Scarabs and I don't see much that Rubrics would offer compared to them. However the design of the Thousand Sons army is bad to begin with so it's hard to look at any of them with any positive context.

Rubrics are troops and therefore op-sec and CP generators, and you can take two squads of 5 if you want, doubling your smite potential and your objective-securing potential (which is more than doubled thanks to op-sec). They can also screen a vastly larger area of the board because they are 10 models instead of 5, even if taken in a single squad. And your opponent's multiple damage weapons are roughly half as efficient against them.

Those may or may not be compelling for your specific list, but they are all significant advantages for the Rubrics in certain circumstances.

Multi-dmg weapons. Everyone packs them if able, and then your Scarabs suffer. Especially for Cult of Time, you want to keep that unit on board, so considering multi dmg Rubrics are better. Rubrics can also be "risen" or webwayed, so for 1-2 units you can have the utility of Scarab teleportation for extra cmd points.

Also, new strat for Rubrics shooting twice is very very good, obviously with VotLW and larger units.

Rubrics also see more utility for their All is Dust, as most 1dmg tends to be low Ap also, and because Scarabs also pay for that special getting to use it is nicer than not getting any utility.

Melee pontential for Scarabs is a red herring: most of the time, you want to shoot with them, and not charge and risk being stuck. Weak point is number of attacks and str, although now we are better of with the +1A when charging.

Also, the troop or not question as mentioned is an issue most of the time.

Having said this, I like to have both with Magnus in larger games. Seems fluffy.

Yeah melee on Scarabs is a bit of a trap, you really don't want them there. They're pretty terrible at it, point for point.

yukishiro1 wrote:
Rubrics are troops and therefore op-sec and CP generators, and you can take two squads of 5 if you want, doubling your smite potential and your objective-securing potential (which is more than doubled thanks to op-sec). They can also screen a vastly larger area of the board because they are 10 models instead of 5, even if taken in a single squad. And your opponent's multiple damage weapons are roughly half as efficient against them.

Those may or may not be compelling for your specific list, but they are all significant advantages for the Rubrics in certain circumstances.

Truth on the Obsec but I feel that cultists can cover that at half the cost. As for smites. Remember both rubrics and scarabs are only getting 1 damage on smites unless you get a high roll. I find it much better to have squad sorcs cast actual spells. Nothing clench, but you are going to get more mileage out of firestorm than a mini smite. But to each their own.

And on the multidamage thing. Yes. But I feel that is going to vary from meta to meta. But you should still expect a fair amount.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

yukishiro1 wrote:
Yeah melee on Scarabs is a bit of a trap, you really don't want them there. They're pretty terrible at it, point for point.

It all depends on the situation imho.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Timmon wrote:
Multi-dmg weapons. Everyone packs them if able, and then your Scarabs suffer. Especially for Cult of Time, you want to keep that unit on board, so considering multi dmg Rubrics are better. Rubrics can also be "risen" or webwayed, so for 1-2 units you can have the utility of Scarab teleportation for extra cmd points.

Also, new strat for Rubrics shooting twice is very very good, obviously with VotLW and larger units.

Rubrics also see more utility for their All is Dust, as most 1dmg tends to be low Ap also, and because Scarabs also pay for that special getting to use it is nicer than not getting any utility.

Melee pontential for Scarabs is a red herring: most of the time, you want to shoot with them, and not charge and risk being stuck. Weak point is number of attacks and str, although now we are better of with the +1A when charging.

Also, the troop or not question as mentioned is an issue most of the time.

Having said this, I like to have both with Magnus in larger games. Seems fluffy.

Correct me if im wrong. But I think the strat works on both Rubric and Scarabs. Edit : Just read that I am not wrong. It works on both units.

Also, Time Flux and Sorcerous Infusion work twice as well on scarabs.

Cult of Time shenanigans generally favour larger units in my (limited) experience. but if you're playing in a Plasma light meta, Sacrabs are the way I'd suggest...

I really like a 5 man basic SoT squad with duplicity hoping around the battlefield disrupting the enemy back field taking objectives etc. 5 SoT are more than a match for most backfield and objective campers and obj sec doesn’t really matter as they can kill small squads camping rather easily. I also usually bring two ten man rubric squads as time. They are great hold the line type units against most things. And with Tgors being 8 points they are way over cost so rubrics are going to build you battalion. (If using all cultist last then might as well play CSM and use thousand son supreme command). Guess my vote is use both.

Slayer-Fan123 wrote:
I dunno, I look at Scarabs and I don't see much that Rubrics would offer compared to them. However the design of the Thousand Sons army is bad to begin with so it's hard to look at any of them with any positive context.

if min squads:

1) Obsec
2) CP
3) more smites/powers per squad

If larger squads

1) risen rubricae
2) far less weakness to multidamage weaponry. If an enemy turns plasma on your rubrics, you can pop a strat to give them a 4++ and they're extremely hard to shift

i think both scarabs and rubrics have a place, but there's a lot to recommend rubrics in several situations.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

yukishiro1 wrote:
Yeah melee on Scarabs is a bit of a trap, you really don't want them there. They're pretty terrible at it, point for point.

Eh, when I use my scarabs I generally find myself charging with them because they've blown away some screen and they've got a chance to get some kind of backline unit in melee. 12 power sword attacks and 4 force staff attacks aint nothing. You never want to fight a dedicated melee blender with them but they do surprising work.