The 11th Edition Faction Focus previews come to a close with today’s Necron preview.
It’s been a wild ride, but the end is finally here. The final 11th edition Faction Focus article has arrived, and with it, three new detachments for Necron players to use in the new edition of 40k. As usual, the article is accompanied by a brief video overview and discussion of the new rules.
Hand of the Dynasty
The iconic hordes of Necron Warriors and Immortals rise from their tombs to take their rightful places upon the battlefield in this detachment. A number of new rules here add some interesting benefits for the army’s core troops.
The addition of ASSAULT, combined with the ability to make advance moves and still take actions seems like a powerful combination. Necrons infantry are not exactly fast on their feet but this should dramatically increase their ability to take objectives and actions without sacrificing any of their substantial firepower.
A nasty little enhancement for your immortals, granting their potent ranged attacks RAPID FIRE 1. Immortals pack quite the punch already but gaining Rapid Fire on top of the detachment bonuses of ASSAULT means you’re going to be able to fire a staggering amount of shots as close-support. I suspect we’re going to see a lot more Immortals on the tabletop this edition.
A 1 CP stratagem to return fire, even as snap shots, is a pretty nice benefit for what’s probably a gigantic block of infantry. Necron Warriors already excel in attrition warfare and this only makes them better at it.
Skyshroud Spearhead
Tomb Blades have not been a regular sight in Necron armies for a minute but I suspect this detachment is going to change that. Tomb Blades are the focus here, but this detachment also offers some benefits for other hovering undead robots like the Lokhust Destroyers. This detachment is an interesting counterpart to the new Space Marine Fulgurus Task Force. It will be interesting to see some skimmer duels!
Deep Strike for Tomb Blades! I think this is going to seriously improve their stock this edition, especially paired with that +1 to hit rolls the turn they arrive. This looks like it will offer a great way to apply pressure on the table from unexpected vectors.
This looks really powerful to me. Heavy Destroyers are incredibly effective tank hunters and gaining Assault means they are going to be able to reliably get exactly where you need them. Being able to effectively respond to enemy armor anywhere on the board is huge.
This detachment-unique stratagem gives you an on-demand increase in survivability for your heavy hitting mounted units. Destroyers and Tomb Blades hit hard but are relatively fragile by Necron standards so being able to weather a turn of heavy weapons fire could be a game changer.
The Phaeron’s Armory
The Necrons Big Three are further empowered by the boons of the Phaeron’s Armory. Monliths, Obelisks, and Tesseract Vaults all gain some substantial benefits making these centerpiece models as powerful as they appear to be.
A simple +6″ M for your biggest engines of war is the core benefit for this detachment. Historically, these big models are impressive but can struggle to get where they’re needed. This straightforward movement buff seems like it might really help these models. As an aside, HYPERCRYPT is my new band name.
The Monolith is there to disgorge your troops deep in enemy territory. With this enhancement those troops become exceedingly deadly on the turn they hit the table. You can choose either LETHAL HITS or SUSTAINED HITS 1, depending on the target you need to obliterate.
This is a wild defensive stratagem. Your titanic warmachines are tough as nails by default with enormously high Toughness and Wounds. Being able to reduce the AP of incoming fire on-demand means your opponent is going to really struggle to take these monsters off the tabletop.
And that concludes Games Workshop’s Faction Focus series. Every army in the game has now had three or more detachments revealed and 11th edition is just a few weeks away. The previews don’t stop here, though. They’ve promised to be back on Monday with a PDF of the full core rules for the new edition!
Now that we’ve seen every army’s faction focus, which has you most excited?
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Simon Berman has been a wargamer since 1993 and has worked in the tabletop games industry since 2008 as a staff writer for the first three editions of WARMACHINE and HORDES. These days he’s the General President of the Brush Wielders Union, a worldwide organization of miniatures painters of all skill levels, a freelance games writer who has contributed to a number of roleplaying games like Eclipse Phase, Dune: Adventures in the Imperium, and The Hammer and the Stake. He runs his own small-press publishing company, Strix Publishing, and paints more miniatures than he can keep track of. Simon lives with his wife in Tacoma, Washington along with a number of cats and a pack of savage wiener dogs.
Source: Bell of Lost Souls
