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Hello,

I'm interested in starting a small Skitarii force and I'm wondering what the major differences are between the Vanguard and the Rangers gameplay wise, and what people think of the units in general. Any other gameplay tips you feel like adding about a Mechanicus force would be much appreciated as well, how the army plays and so forth. I've heard they play like a combination of Necrons and Tau but unfortunately I've played neither armies.

Cheers.

Honestly between the two as troop choices on paper the Rangers seem to be the better choice, but that's not quite the case here. The Rangers are a nice supplement to camping backfields using the Trans Arq sniper thing with stupid range for taking pot shots against SM Sergeants and heavy weapon wielder since it's naturally AP3, but as a unit they're just not as good as the Vanguard.

The Vanguard are honestly the bane of all creatures with a Toughness value simply from their basic weapon the Rad Carbine a STR 3 AP 5 Assault 3 with the Rad Poisoning rule. Now you're probably thinking who cares if it has 3 shots I'm wounding MEQ's on 5's, but here's the thing the Rad Poisoning rule is what makes them dangerous. They also synergize really well with the rest of the armies CQC's squads better than the Rangers.

Rad Poisoning: when firing a weapon that has this special rule, a To Wound roll of 6 causes 2 wounds on the target unit, regardless of the targets Toughness.

Find a way to get rending on Skitarii Vanguard (Psychic powers ect)
Shoot ANYTHING with a Toughness Value
Now Watch as your 140 point unit takes out a WRAITHKNIGHT in a turn

Ive been digging the vanguard recently, a squad of ten can put out 30 shots with rad poisoning, and then assault whats left. Rangers are definetly best for backfield grabbing objectives with their range and move thru cover.

Vanguard with carbines are the best choice, maybe with an occasional arc rifle. Plasma calivers can be useful if you use the doctrine that gives them +2 bs (which means you reroll 1s to hit, so they're not likely to get hot) but a single model with a caliver costs more than four guys with carbines.

If you were looking for one or the other, Vanguard hands down. Rangers camp the backfield, but I think they are best left to be run in minimum squads of five. You can grab two Sniper Rifles (easier pill to swallow with War Convocation) and sit back on an objective. I don't think the other special weapons work well for them, and it's nice to fire at 60" for times when the enemy is out of your basic rifle range.

Vanguard are a powerful shooting unit and can hold their own in a round of CC with a bit of luck. They have the tools to do some serious damage, but their Toughness is a weak point for the army as a whole. Be smart about using your Doctrines too, as -WS for +BS will put you at a disadvantage in melee. They also have a hard time tanking shots for your Warlord if you choose that particular Alpha as your leader. You could make a strong case for Arc Rifles though if you prefer a pure Skitarii Army.

For the army itself, they are not very durable but more mobile than most typical gun lines due to their special rules. This is negated a bit without an available transport, but you generally want to move forward and shoot while using any available cover (big surprise) as their armor is weak. Keep your Sicarians safe until other units can fire on similar targets or they will be dead in a turn of shooting. The Onagers are strong with great range, and they make a great Anti Air choice if you go with the Icarus Array... Or the only choice for us. I'd go with something else if you aren't facing fliers as they fire at BS1 against ground troops, but the number of shots they can fire off negates that a bit. Dragoons are strong in melee but lack shooting unless you upgrade them, and they will die fast if left unattended.

I got into them strictly for the Skitarii aspect, but I am building towards a War Convocation since I like the Tech Priest fluff too. I don't think they are great as a standalone choice, and need some bulkier units to take away shots on Rustalkers/Infiltrators/Infantry. Destroyers from Ad Mech fill that role, and there are also the Kastelan Robots as well. They should have been a single codex anyway given the lack of unit diversity spread across the three books. Also, Gets Hot shots with Plasma are a non issue when running the War Convocation formation... and the Plasma Guns are a free upgrade too (along with all weapons, wargear, relics, etc.). Add being able to use the Ad Mech Canticles for the rest of your formation and they become one of the stronger armies.

Good luck with your Skitarii Army, should you decide to go that route.