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Ok, I am seeing Screamers being used a lot now that the new WD update came out for them. I was unable to get my hands on one before they sold out and have yet to face them. With a tournament coming up and Screamers clearly being the new hotness for CD what is it that makes them so much better than before? It isn't just a price drop like flamers is it?

They are very good now. They get attacks on a unit they turbo over. In CC have AP 2 attacks. And now have 2 wounds.

There are a combination of factors that play into Screamers coming to be the new hotness.

To begin with, they have slash attacks that act the same as Dark Eldar Jetbike Bladevanes. For example, they Deep Strike in and Turbo-Boost over an enemy unit getting these attacks so that they aren't useless.

Another thing is that they also have Armor Bane. Now, they get 2d6 Armor Penetration at Strength 5 so they can bring the hurt there as well.

Add in their speed, resilience and a few other things and you've got a top notch support unit.

Basically, they lost a point on their Invuln save, but gained a wound and their melee attacks are much more scary now.

The real advantage to the new screamers are AP 2 attacks and the 6th rules letting them Turbo Boost 24" for being jetbikes. This lets them close very very quickly on enemies and deep strike in rather safe places.

Slash Attacks and Armourbane are icing on the cake (slash is 1d3 S4 hits on a unit you turbo boost over - vehicles hit on side armor)

Not to plug too much but I used them in a bttle report here http://purple-40k-reign.blogspot.com/2012/09/1850-rtt-g2-9-8-12.html and http://purple-40k-reign.blogspot.com/2012/10/1850-rtt-g1-10-14-12.html in this one they won the game for me Turn 2. In all the 6 games from 6th written there the have been brutal.

The new flamers might be even worse.

Ok, that all makes sense. But they still can't attack flyers?

They can do their sweeping thing on fliers but only at str 4 ap - and with no other special rules.

 Brometheus wrote:
They can do their sweeping thing on fliers but only at str 4 ap - and with no other special rules.

Well, that's a bit lackluster tbh. I think I may skip screamers in my daemon allies contingent.

 OverwatchCNC wrote:

 Brometheus wrote:
They can do their sweeping thing on fliers but only at str 4 ap - and with no other special rules.

Well, that's a bit lackluster tbh. I think I may skip screamers in my daemon allies contingent.

What do you expect from a jetbike unit? Harming flyers?

o boo-hoo, the screamer's fly-by is useless against vehicles.

Thats not what its for obviously.

I'm waiting for the new CD before I pick up any Allies, but if Screamers stay this good, I will have to pick some up for sure!

 Grey Templar wrote:
o boo-hoo, the screamer's fly-by is useless against vehicles.

Thats not what its for obviously.

I was asking specifically about fliers not vehicles because I find csm and CD struggle against them, but your response was completely valid and extraordinarily helpful.

 Sasori wrote:
I'm waiting for the new CD before I pick up any Allies, but if Screamers stay this good, I will have to pick some up for sure!

Honestly when do you think a new codex would be though? ^^

Not for a while given they just got a wd update. But I dare not attempt to claim to understand the gw business model!

 OverwatchCNC wrote:
Not for a while given they just got a wd update. But I dare not attempt to claim to understand the gw business model!

Aparently they want to sell flamers/screamers and FMC's right now.

... And eldar jetbikes/farseer kits for kitbashing invisible bikers of doom ...

jdjamesdean@mail.com wrote:

 Sasori wrote:
I'm waiting for the new CD before I pick up any Allies, but if Screamers stay this good, I will have to pick some up for sure!

Honestly when do you think a new codex would be though? ^^

Rumor tracker has them around January, with a Fantasy Counterpart as well.

 Sasori wrote:

jdjamesdean@mail.com wrote:

 Sasori wrote:
I'm waiting for the new CD before I pick up any Allies, but if Screamers stay this good, I will have to pick some up for sure!

Honestly when do you think a new codex would be though? ^^

Rumor tracker has them around January, with a Fantasy Counterpart as well.

Before my beloved Eldar, how dare they QQ

they're 225 for a unit of 9. the st 5 ap2 is why they're good. five terminators cost about that.
the flamers can even kill land raiders out of deepstrike. they're just soooo good.

Turbo boosting right after they deepstrike is ridiculous.

You put them just inside a unit on one of your opponent's flanks. They turbo boost over than unit, decimating... no annihilating it. And they are now out of range of most of your opponent's weapons. Next turn they assault a vehicle or some expensive melee unit, more annihilation.

I use mine to boomerang around Fateweaver. I'm using mine in units of 5, but found I need more than that for terminators.

I had a tournament this weekend with them. Some highlights are as follows.

Against Tyranids, I wipe out a large unit of gargoyles with the parasite. This is my first turn. Fateweaver finished the unit off, but the majority of the work was done by my two units of 5 screamers turbo-boosting. They then got a re-rollable 4+ cover save from Fateweaver. It got first blood and slay the warlord for me. I ended up winning the game. I got 10/10 poibts for that mission.

Against regular Space Marines, he had a regular dreadnought and a ironclad dreadnought charge my screamers. A unit of 5 took one dreadnought out one turn, then explodes the ironclad next turn. This is the game I lost, 10 Terminators is too much for just 5 screamers.

Overall, it comes down to their str 5 ap 2, jetbikes, and slashing attack. Remember to jet over 12" or less the unit you're going to charge. Get those slasging attacks, the hammer of wrath, then your regular attacks. With Slashing Attacks and hammer of wrath that's D3+1 attacks before they even attack, then their 4 one the charge. Makes for a nasty assault unit.

I actually usually turbo boost the Screamers over a unit and land them interspersed between my opponents tanks/infantry blobs. This protects them from LoS a bit, provides and immediate threat and enemy tanks need to move forward to disembark the troops.

It really pins down an enemy, prevents them from dropping blasts/flamers on you and it is pretty hard to remove 18 wounds of 4++ T4 saves.

 calypso2ts wrote:
(slash is 1d3 S4 hits on a unit you turbo boost over - vehicles hit on side armor)

Which means that a unit of 8 screamers can inflict ~16 STR 4 hits on the turn they arrive and any following turn they don't wish to assault.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 TheContortionist wrote:
they're 225 for a unit of 9. the st 5 ap2 is why they're good. five terminators cost about that.
the flamers can even kill land raiders out of deepstrike. they're just soooo good.

Does the armorbane work on their flyby attacks?

 labmouse42 wrote:

 TheContortionist wrote:
they're 225 for a unit of 9. the st 5 ap2 is why they're good. five terminators cost about that.
the flamers can even kill land raiders out of deepstrike. they're just soooo good.

Does the armorbane work on their flyby attacks?

No, it's for their melee attacks only.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 OverwatchCNC wrote:

 Grey Templar wrote:
o boo-hoo, the screamer's fly-by is useless against vehicles.

Thats not what its for obviously.

I was asking specifically about fliers not vehicles because I find csm and CD struggle against them, but your response was completely valid and extraordinarily helpful.

It wouldn't matter even if the strength of the sweeping attacks was good enough to penetrate a flyer. They simply can't hit a zooming flyer or swooping FMC.

That's what I thought. The flyback attack is not very dangerous to most of the vehicles in the game.
The real danger to vehicles is the assault.

Part of what makes screamers (and flamers, seeker chariots) so good is their dual use. All of those units are extremely good against both vehicles and infantry. That's whats makes the new daemon units so darn good.