Re: [Epic] Psychic Phase [was: Re: Titan Legions]

From: DAVID C LADO, DEPT OF NEUROSCIENCE <LADO_at_...>
Date: Wed, 22 Jan 1997 12:27:26 -0500 (EST)

>I don't think the weirdboy tower counts as a psychic attack for the psychic
>phase. Otherwise it is entirely too powerful. It effectively makes the
>weirdboy tower a command unit, which I don't think was ever intended. The
>tower bolts work like a relatively normal weapon in every other
>circumstance, so why wouldn'tthey do so here?

I don't think the WBBT is all that powerful persay. Yes it has tremendous
killing potential and it can be protected by a dragsta (which effectively
makes it a 200pt unit). But, it is one of the few highly destructive
units that *always* gives you one full turn to stop it. You can hide
it behind terrain, but you can never put it in terrain, so it can
always be barraged. Also, while it can easily be protected, all the
infantry it is feeding off of cannot. To properly generate the maximum
charge requires 20+ infantry stands (a full clan plus a few vehicles).
If you can reduce this to about 14 the tower fires 4-5 dice hitting on
a 3+, which is much lessowerful. Another problem with the WBBT is that
it becomes attached to the infantry unit that fields it (unless you
put it with a megagargant, but they're 1400 pts). This means if you
hide it on the first turn, the whole unit must go to advance orders
for the thing to fire the next turn. Advance orders are the worst
orders for ork infantry in almost all cases.

Side note: I personally always play that the WBBT must have fire oers
to shoot. I seem to remember the rules saying that the psychic energy
was flared off harmlessly if the tower was on charge orders. I know
that, even if true, this was pre-psychic phase, but it is a reasonable
limitation and correct to the letter of the rules (assuming I'm not
rules-hallucinating again, I never check since I don't put them on
charge orders after turn 1).

My personal experience is that they work best against an oponent who
has never faced them before and so takes no steps against. My more
seasoned opponents take a combination strategy of targeting the
infantry (which gives up VPs anyway, so it's not a loss) and keeping
the more vulneralble units out of LOS (these are usually tanks and
flyers and the occasional sheildless titan). Moving their attack
to the psychic phase certainly made them better, though. I went from
never fielding them to fielding them every now and again (about 1
in 4 or 5 battles, and always against Chaos).

David
Received on Wed Jan 22 1997 - 17:27:26 UTC