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Greetings all.

Just a quick bit of advice I'm looking for really. Has anyone had any luck using VWB with Icarus lascannon in 7th? They're only BS2 but they are twin linked with a decent number of shots. Plus they're chunky AV14 buildings that could provide additional cover. The issue I'm having with them is that they don't have the "primary target" rule that the firestorm does, so you're stuck shooting the closest target whether it's a flyer or not. That said, they are fairly cheap and with a bit of clever positioning could help keep drop pods and flyers from spoiling my day.

All comments welcome please!

With the inability to fire at full BS on ground units i feel like they're just a waste since it already had trouble dealing ideal damage by having to shoot the nearest target so can easily have its shots wasted by a smart opponent.

If anything you want to go battle cannon on a VWB. 85pts for an av14 all round battle cannon is a steal. Plus being a large blast, bs2 isn't such a huge deal. If opponents try all game to distract its firepower with other units, you have invested 85pts to influence your opponents tactics, plus the damage it causes to those less desirable units.

Poly Ranger wrote:
If anything you want to go battle cannon on a VWB. 85pts for an av14 all round battle cannon is a steal. Plus being a large blast, bs2 isn't such a huge deal. If opponents try all game to distract its firepower with other units, you have invested 85pts to influence your opponents tactics, plus the damage it causes to those less desirable units.

Agreed.
VWB beg to be given battle cannons and treated as cheap static Leman Russ.

Either take the Battle Cannon or don't take a VWB. The Icarus upgrade is useless.

Well the icarus is not entirely useless as you can still intercept with it and thus mitigate the "target closest" to some degree. I would however agree that the battle cannon is probably the best deal of the weapons as it is a generalist weapon that does decently against whatever you fire it at and I would always prefer a large blast on low BS models.

Unless you try and intercept a drop pod (you know, the things they were *designed* to stop) and need 6's to hit that drop pod....

I know that this is a left field question, but can an IC 'join' a VB?

Before I get shouted down with a no, please hear me out. An IC cannot join a vehicle or a unit containing a MC. A VB is neither of these. It is also a unit in your army. While I know that you can't use things like the IC BS, any rules that apply to the unit, surely would apply across eg stealth/shrouded. A Tau commander with CnC or Multi spectrum.

Cheers

Andrew

See p110 in the small rulebook 2nd paragraph. Buildings using transport vehicles rules but main difference being they can't move and units from either side can embark upon them.

But the VB isn't a 'transport' building though. It can't be occupied. It is an unit in its own right.

Cheers

Andrew

True. But it says ALL buildings. The lack of transport does make it a little confusing, as well as use of the word 'aspects' in the sentence. I viewed a rules thread shortly after 7th came out and it was catagorically shown that buildings followed vehicles rules. Its around somewhere. Sorry I couldn't show the exact quote/logic steps.

You are very probably right on this, but a VB, while following the rules for vehicles, is categorically not a vehicle. It's unit type is 'Impassable Building'. I can't find any sections or supplements that say a VB is treated as, or is considered, a vehicle.

In all probability it's there but I can't find it. Is this a case of GWs famous watertight rule set? Definitely.

Cheers

Andrew

One REALLY nice things of the VWB is that it's an impassable building - meaning you claim it when you deploy it and your opponent can't claim it himself.

Why does this matter? Claimed buildings are scoring in 7th.

So if possible, deploy a VWB so it's holding a backfield objective. Your opponent has to either contest/claim it with a troop (so getting all across the map to it) or they have to completely destroy it (not just weapon destroyed) in order to get you off of the objective.

Being AV14 medium building (4HPs) means it'll take a lot of hits before it drops. Many of my opponents have completely missed the fact that the building remains even after they have destroyed the weapon.


Beyond that - I agree with others, the battle cannon is great. The Quad-Icarus is pretty good too but I get better mileage from the Battle Cannons.

 Unholyllama wrote:
One REALLY nice things of the VWB is that it's an impassable building - meaning you claim it when you deploy it and your opponent can't claim it himself.

Why does this matter? Claimed buildings are scoring in 7th.

So if possible, deploy a VWB so it's holding a backfield objective. Your opponent has to either contest/claim it with a troop (so getting all across the map to it) or they have to completely destroy it (not just weapon destroyed) in order to get you off of the objective.

Dude, scoring VWBs...

Not to mention that when their ObjSec troops move in to steal the objective the VWB is camping, they get a battlecannon to the face.

@Op: Ditto what previous posters have mentioned. With BS 2 the math is as follows: 1.11 hits against the flyer, then 0.93 hull points against AV 11 targets and 0.74 hull points against AV 12.
That's BEFORE factoring in them saving half the hits if they choose to jink.
Not worth it.