Warhammer 40K: The Silent King’s Rules Preview
Rule the stars with an Iron Fist. Or at least with a sweet Necrodermis Cape. It’s a closer look at the Silent King’s rules!
We already got an up close look at the details of the Silent King’s model. Today, we’re putting his rules under the microscope to see how he stacks-up. Can he take on a Daemon Primarch? What types of army benefits will he possess? Will we see a points cost?! Read on to find out.
To kick things off, let’s get a recap of his stats:
That’s certainly an impressive stat line to start. The Silent King doesn’t stand alone – he’s got those two Triarchal Menhir’s that float with him making this a unit with a whopping 26 wounds when you think about it as a total package. And speaking of those Triarchal Menhirs, they aren’t just for display as they are packing some serious firepower.
So yea, there are two of them. Ouch. The name does seem appropriate. Moving on…
The Silent King does not ride alone. He’s got two buddies with him (besides the floating rocks of death). The two Necrons that are riding shotgun are the actually Phaerons in the king’s court. They are the Phaeron of the Stars and the Phaeron of the Blades – and they aren’t just there for show! They actually provide a pair of buffs while active:
If you have some bodyguards nearby in the form of Necron Core units, it might be the King who is baby-sitting them – and providing some nice re-roll auras in the process!
Now, let’s just supposed the enemy got bold enough to get close to the Silent King. What’s a ruler to do about it? Is he just going to standby as his enemies defile his throne? No – he’s going to fight back and he’s got the weapons to do just that!
That Sceptre isn’t just for show! Apparently it’s packing some firepower in there and at two damage a shot, it’s potent enough to drop a Primaris Marine in a single hit – or really scuff up armor, too! In melee, it’s also not messing around with the King’s profile, that’s a base of 6 attacks at strength 9. Sure, the number of attacks drops has takes wounds, but that’s still a very respectable 12 damage that he can generate in close combat (at least so far). But does he have more tricks up his sleeve? In the words of the Kool-aid man “Oh yeah.”
Are you in Engagement Range of Szarekh the Silent King? We, you’re swinging after everyone else in the Necron Army goes. Surprise. So the King will swing first – along with any other units. That’s going to leave a mark.
He’s not a Psyker himself, but thanks to the amount of Blackstone he’s rolling around with, he can at least attempt to shut down a Psychic Power a turn. So he’s not completely at the mercy of Psykers. And the final preview is another Necron specific buff:
He’s ready to call an audible with the Command Protocols whenever he needs to. This can be a pretty powerful play as the Command Protocols do offer some nice benefits – if you’ve planned correctly. If you haven’t, this is a nice switcharoo to get the protocol you need.
Well, GW didn’t drop his points on us – but we did get a good look at all his rules. So can he take on a Daemon Primarch? Well, if he gets the chance to really open up on one – yeah, he’s got a decent shot at it. Sure, he’s gotta get a little lucky, but that’s why we play a game with dice. Does he have some nice army boosts? Indeed! Between those two auras (his big base) and the ability to swap Command Protocols, he’s got some potential. We’ll have to get our hands on the Codex to really get in there and see how beneficial those boosts are as we still have questions about which units will be core. We also don’t know all the Command Protocols – both of those are big factors to consider.
The reign of the Silent King is coming very soon. Are you ready for it?
