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Having a hard time figuring out how to build my new box. Leaning boltstorm crossbows and the prime with the Shockbolt Bow.

I think crossbows are awesome if you plan to let the enemy come to you. You'd get three shots for standing still and range wouldn't be a problem. If you want to be more proactive I'd say bows. Double range + better to wound and -1 Rend. Bows would also let you pick off buff characters more easily since they aren't likely to come within 12", and the Rend helps agains character armor saves. Crossbows on the other hand will probably slaughter massed melee infantry. So it depends on which role you want for them.

The dudes with Boltstormers are some of the few SE I like. I say go with them because they look 1000 times better than the guys with bows!

Looks are more important to me than rules.

Bows give you rending damage and good range. Crossbones give you very limited range. All ranged units in aos are very poor in close combat. With possible charge ranges of 12", this makes crossbow armed se not efficient or worth as much.

Higher rate of fire is not as good as a rending attack imho. Rending can make sure you damage heavily armed characters.

I'd go with bows

Build them with crossbows.
Then clip the arms off some extra liberators from the box set, and glue the bows on those.
Liberators are dirt cheap (ebay), and it gives you options for both.

Seeing how the units do totally different things, it's tough to say which to field. Xbows behind liberators buffed by a castillian is really useful. 3+ save, re-roll 1's and regain wounds on 6's is a tough nut to crack. They can screen the 3x firing crossbows for quite awhile.

I do find that mix in match the special weapons seems to work best. I put the super bow with crossbows and the mortal wounding crossbow with the bows.
That gives 1 unit a very high number of hits, and the other with rending and mortal wounds. More dedicated for any given task.

-Matt

The bows are definitely the most flexible option, but from playing both I can say that once the armies have actually closed the gap xbow judicators really make a mess of infantry.

If it's your first set, go with bows as they are a better all-round unit.

 HawaiiMatt wrote:
Build them with crossbows.
Then clip the arms off some extra liberators from the box set, and glue the bows on those.
-Matt

Matt,

Noob question but which warscroll would these characters use? Would they essentially become Judicators or keep all characteristics of Liberators but gain a shooting phase?

Thanks,
Will

They become judicators, since they almost all have the same armor, so placing the bows on their bodies is a good idea.

I magnatized mine so I can swap out whenever I want. Tried both a few times each and the crossbows are pretty terrible compaired to the bows (unless your fighting hordes of skaven)

The special bow doing 6d wounds, hitting on 2+ and wounding on 3+ with rend is vastly better in every game ive done.

str00dles1 wrote:
They become judicators, since they almost all have the same armor, so placing the bows on their bodies is a good idea.

Thanks for clearing that up. I have a spare set of eBay Liberators NOS so I will give this a shot.