Warmachine: Crucible Guard Solo Roundup
This week we take a look at the Crucible Guard Mechanik and Rocketman Ace. Lets see what these solos bring to the battlefield!
Crucible Guard Mechanik
A pretty straightforward support piece, the Mechanik comes in at a very reasonable price tag of 2pts. The All-Terrain ability to pass out pathfinder is invaluable as none of the Crucible Guard warjacks, except the Vulcan, have pathfinder natively. Having a guaranteed repair of at least 2 damage boxes is always welcome, especially when that critical cortex or arcnode gets shot out unexpectedly.
For 2 points you also get a nice cheap solo to score flags or contest other scenario elements. Even though the Mechaniks weapons are rather lackluster, just having another gun to shoot a random enemy trooper can be nice. Again, nothing super fancy here, but for the cost this is a solid support piece.
Rocketman Ace
The Ace rules the skies with some interesting and very thematic rules.
“Did someone call about a bird problem?”
High Defense, High Mobility
With SPD 7 and Flight this model is going to be able to go wherever it wants on the table. At DEF 16 and the High Flier rule this model is going to be a pain to take out, especially when in cover or concealment. On top of all that the Ace has Dodge, allowing it to move 2 inches if you miss an attack against it. This can either let the Ace move back into safety, or give it an extra 2 inches of threat!
Reposition[5] adds another layer of mobility, allowing for hit and run tactics against the enemy. Often this may be used to shoot then back out of enemy threat range, or in some cases reposition aggressively forward to threaten more of the table. Swift Hunter gives another 2 inch movement that can be used in a variety of ways. Are you just out of range with your Gravity Bomb attack? If there is something you can shoot and kill with your carbine, Swift Hunter can give you the extra movement you need to unleash the bombs.
Terror in the Sky
At first glance the Ace brings 2 average guns to the table. The Carbine is a pretty standard POW 10 and the Gravity Bomb is POW 12 with some nice rules. Ignoring cover and elevation plus an additional die of damage lets the Ace threaten most troops and solos. However the damage output of this model is drastically increased if any enemy models dare to challenge it in the air.
The Ace Might just one shot these little guys
The Dogfighter rule gives the Ace boosted attack and damage rolls against other models with flight. Circle Griffons, Skorne Archidons, Legion Beasts and more will need to be super careful around the Ace. Most flying models in the game have high DEF and low ARM. The Ace is RAT 7 and thanks to Dogfighter will reliably hit DEF 16-17. There isn’t any flying model in the game that wants to take a 4 dice damage POW 12. Don’t forget this also affects the Carbine shot as well, and boosted POW 10s will still hurt these low arm models.
Scenario Game
Playing scenario is always an important aspect of the game, with so many live scenarios in the current Steamroller it’s important to always be scoring and contesting whenever possible. The Mechanik gives a great cheap option to run and score a nearby flag, while the Ace can use it’s impressive mobility to potentially score a distant flag if given the opportunity.
If the Ace doesn’t have any flying models to hunt down, I especially like the idea of using it to babysit a flag. Each turn advancing 5 inches from the flag, shooting at the enemy then repositioning back to the flag to continue scoring. Running models into melee with the Ace won’t do much either, as the Gunfighter rule lets it use it’s ranged weapons in melee.
These 2 solos bring some nice utility to a Crucible Guard list. Given it’s low cost and great support abilities the Mechanik is likely to see a lot of table time. The Ace brings a lot of versatility and some amazing ranged damage output in the right matchup.
Do you think it’s worth running 2 Ace’s in a list?
