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Been about three months since my first Necron list. I've stressed over it and cut it down to a simpler 1000pt army. Rolled some dice to get a feel for how they shoot. I was going for a sort of mechanized infantry. Feel free to critique or vindicate.

My Concerns about this list is;
A) it rely too much on the arks
B) it lacks in punch against a heavy armor or heavy assault army. Especially the armor as the stalker is the only dependable anti-armor I have.

HQ
------
Overlord
-Command Barge
-Warsythe


Troops
---------
8 Warriors
-Ghost Ark

8Warriors
-Ghost Ark

6 Immortals
-Gauss blaster

6 Immortals
-Gauss blaster

Elites
--------
Triarch Stalker
-Heavy Gauss cannon

Well there are a number of things. As a long time necron player I have some pretty strong opinions about what constitutes a "good" necron list, so if you don't like my advice disregard it and roll it out for yourself. I think fliers in 6th edition are too powerful and I don't like using them in a spamming fashion because I feel it makes the game not so fun. With nine and a coms relay you show up turn 2 and wipe. Forgeworld sentry pylons make for a fun "protect the cannons list" but if you're going for mech inf then here are some suggestions.

First and foremost drop the immortals or forget about ghost arches. They only benefit warriors, immortals and ghost arches ruin what synergy there is there. Warriors are better than immortals for foot slogging anyway as you can have a 20 man squad. When you take casualties they all can be placed ANYWHERE within unit coherency which means at the head of the squad or moving your squad closer to an objective or whatever. This is a huge benefit.

Second go back to the heat ray for the stalker, or at this point value you may want to remove it all together. The whole army is 24" range, again keep you synergy. Also 1 shot twin linked is actually less likely to hit then two separate shots and has the potential for more damage at reduced point cost.

Third, if you want your scoring units to foot slog then take res orbs. They will need them.


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So for me(keeping in mind your general theme) 1000 point list would look something like this...

Overlord with res orb
120

20 warriors
260

Ghost arch
115

10 warriors in arch
130

3 annihilation barges
270

3 wraiths
105



Automatically Appended Next Post:
My reasoning being, the whole list now has the same range. You have way more versatility in this shooting as your annihilation barges will kill flyers, monstrous creatures, light vehicles, and any infantry they happen to come across. I never leave home without filling my heavy support section with these or sentry pylons(if forgeworld is allowed).

If you want to keep the stalker then you can trade out the 2 a barges for it and put those points into your overlord. Which really is fine if that's what you want to do. Giving two linked to all that gauss is pretty great however if you have strong opponents they will figure out that your stalker and your ghost arch are the keys to your army. Being open topped vehicles they will be super easy to kill once they get past your av13. So be careful who you take it against. Other than that remember to have fun it's not all about winning but you always want to have a respectable showing.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Lastly, just in case anything tries to assault you wraiths can tarpit them of even outright kill them, with no points for whip coils they won't rip through things as fast but they are still a solid choice. You could also potentially drop your res orb for 3 whip coils if you feel you need them. The 20 man squad with 5+ Reanimation protocols and ghost arch support should be able to survive without them.

I put the immortals in that slot because I felt that there was not enough infantry in what is supposed to be a necron's mechanized infantry. I will also admit that I have a fondness for the model. However, I have to admit that you are right, and having them foot march, trying to keep up with the arks, was a weak decision.

Second go back to the heat ray for the stalker, or at this point value you may want to remove it all together. The whole army is 24" range, again keep you synergy. Also 1 shot twin linked is actually less likely to hit then two separate shots and has the potential for more damage at reduced point cost.

I'm very new to this but that 24" range on the heat ray makes me nervous. Yes the its a heavy 2 melta, AND the flamethrower makes it even better at supporting the infantry. However, it also puts it and its precious twin-linking ability much closer to the enemy. Also (and I could be wrong on this), because the ray is a heavy weapon, that means once the stalker is moved within range of its target, it can only fire off a quick snap shot in the next shooting phase. Which means that the target has a chance to quickly move away before the next round succeeds at hitting it, or even worse decide to return fire with its own weapon if the target is strong enough.
The heavy gauss isn't as great at penetrating enemy armor, but it does put the stalker at a longer distance. Allowing it to mark targets for the warriors and arks, and still be enough of a threat to enemy tanks. I will admit that I don't have table top experience, but that was my line of thinking for the stalker.

Now I *can* drop the immortals and have enough points for two annihilation barges, but what I would have is two heavy weapons platforms, and semi-heavy walker supporting a force of 16 warriors. It feels less like transport vehicles supporting foot soldiers and more like an armored army supported by a handful soldiers. Not that anything is wrong but it wasn't my intent. I like function *and* form.

In fact, thinking on it now, my idea may not be very conducive to necrons. Their ground transports don't carry immortals, only warriors who only seem to do well in groups larger than the arks carry. Also the arks have to expose the whole of their sides in order to back up the infantry with gauss fire.

 Havlok wrote:

I'm very new to this but that 24" range on the heat ray makes me nervous. Yes the its a heavy 2 melta, AND the flamethrower makes it even better at supporting the infantry. However, it also puts it and its precious twin-linking ability much closer to the enemy. Also (and I could be wrong on this), because the ray is a heavy weapon, that means once the stalker is moved within range of its target, it can only fire off a quick snap shot in the next shooting phase. Which means that the target has a chance to quickly move away before the next round succeeds at hitting it, or even worse decide to return fire with its own weapon if the target is strong enough.

The stalker is a walker, the heavy rules don't apply due to it being strong enough to move and shoot. (how bad would that be if it can only move 6 and can't shoot lol)


I absolutely love the stalker.

My favorite 1k list is

Overlord - MSS, WS, res orb
2 destructeks

9 warriors in Ghost ark
8 warriors in ghost ark

Stalker with Heat ray
2 Annihilation barges

overlord in 8 ghost ark, with a cryptek of destruction
other cryptek in other ghost ark


The two barges move up the field together with stalker walking behind it. The barges just drive around shooting stuffs.

The MSS is just for incase you get into CC.

The stalker is a walker, the heavy rules don't apply due to it being strong enough to move and shoot. (how bad would that be if it can only move 6 and can't shoot lol)

Ok that makes me feel better about the ray. (I misread those rules. I thought that sounded weird) The range still makes me uncomfortable. If there were two, I would go with it because the enemy's attention would be split between them. If just one walks out, well I know what I'd try to blow up first.

 Havlok wrote:

The stalker is a walker, the heavy rules don't apply due to it being strong enough to move and shoot. (how bad would that be if it can only move 6 and can't shoot lol)

Ok that makes me feel better about the ray. (I misread those rules. I thought that sounded weird) The range still makes me uncomfortable. If there were two, I would go with it because the enemy's attention would be split between them. If just one walks out, well I know what I'd try to blow up first.

That's why it walks behind your ghost arks! The true firepower up front. And even if they did shoot at your walker, it's armor 13 until a penetrating hit lands. lol

Thats not a bad list. I guess this point list isn't quite big enough for the Overlord to warrant his own barge, and I forgot crypteks were so cheap. At higher points I could slip in another ark, maybe another stalker. Some lords n' orbs. (If only I could get the immortals up to speed!)

But would just 17 troops be enough? Again, it seems to be a lot of support being heaped on a handful of warriors, especially when the warriors offer little in return.

An argument could be made both ways, I personally enjoy keeping a nightscythe in reserve with 9-10 troops for late game dropping onto an objective.

I also really like running Wraiths, they are strong enough to kill most things.

Been playing Crons myself since 3rd, and want to back up most of what Epartalis said. There is Synergy lost when you mix Ghost Arks with non-warrior infantry. They really work well when you run Warrior heavy lists. One advantage of having the Arks is that they can add 6" to their effective range. For this reason you should try to get 9 or 10 man units if you have the points. If you think the unit can survive 1 turn outside the Ark then don't be afraid to do so. You can always load them back in the following turn, to repair them. The Arks aren't fast so are going to be moving at the same speed as the Immortals, so I don't see why that would stop the Immotals from being able to 'Keep Up'.

Like Epartalis, I absolutely hate the Flyer spam. I rarely see a need to run more than 2 on my own lists. Nightscythes are great and if you have the Immortals, you should really consider putting them in one. Especially if you're running them with Gauss. I actually think the Tesla carbines are mostly useless and have rarely been worth the points. One of the few times I would recommend them is when you start them on the table, like you are, and have a Stalker, like you do.

The Triarch Stalkers were the one unit that I was most excited about when the Dex came out and I own 2 of them. First I need to clarify something you've either been told wrong or just don't know. They use the rules for Walkers, and that means they can move and fire Heavy weapons, no Snapfire. So in that regard they aren't as useless as you may think the rule is. The only 2 weapons I've found worth it are the Large blast one (Forgot the name right now) and the Heavy Gauss. The heat ray is too limiting for the 24" reason you listed. I had more luck with the Blast, and trying to hit 2 units with it. I only run them with the Gauss now because the 36" and twin linked have been the most useful.

The problems with the Stalker became known REAL fast. First, they work best with the more guns you have. The cheapest gun we have is Warriors. With the Arks and how their LoS and splitting fire work, they're really not going to use the bonus granted by the Stalker often, and will rarely have an impact on the game when they do. The second problem is that we don't even get Dread CC weapons. I thought it was great when I assaulted a unit of LC termies till I learned this. 5 Turns of just sitting there Derwin it out. The last problem is that it costs more than a Dreadnought, and they get 2 weapons to shoot, and do something in Close combat.

I've only recently acquired 2xAnnihilation Barges. They are fantastic and are a perfect match for a Mech themed Cron list. They aren't necessary (I might get shot for saying that) but I've never gotten them because I've never seen a need. I had mine given to me by a friend for the same reason. They're overrated. They're still good and I'm enjoying them, but they aren't game breakers.

I've ZERO experience with Command Barges, but with the rules as they are, I'd probably take it out. If you've got them to work then great.

So with all that in mind, here are some suggestions to guide you in making a successful Mech list. I'd sort out a list for you, but I don't have my Dex handy and you'll probably play around with it yourself.

* Arks work best when there is also a unit on the Ground to replenish if needed. Units inside can be repaired, but that won't matter unless you get the squad inside out of the Arks to take casualties, or the Ark has been Destoyed which will be too late. Don't be afraid to get the Warriors inside out of the Ark if you need.

Successful Ark lists run 2 Arks with a unit of Warriors in between. Or they run 3+ Arks, so when one goes down the other Arks can team up to repair the unit inside. Either of these would be a great base to form you Mech list around.

* Stalkers work great with Mass infantry. On a Mech list, that Gauss will allow it to run behind the Arks and still be effective in the battle. Remember you only have to hit to gain the benefits, and would still be worth keeping if you run the unit on the Ground between the Arks. Otherwise drop it.

* Gauss Immortals will outperform Tesla Immortals in most games. The only time you'll wish you had them is when playing armies that are shootier than you. With scenarios being objective orientated, even those armies will need to come to you in most games. I'd highly recommend at least 1 unit in a Nightscythe both for mid game scoring, mobility (Hammer n Anvil), and to start using their RF on the turn they show up.

* Anni Barges are the best Heavy Support unit in the Dex. They aren't the best unit. I'd suggest 1 at 1k then 2 after that in a Mech list. 3 is fine, and VERY easy to find points for, but I don't recommend including 3 in every list. Makes sure you get what you need in there first.

Good luck