Light Infantry Shasvastii Seed Soldiers Saise:
+ One Turn Camo
- Weak stats, Limited AVA
Seed Soldiers sucks. But not enough, to be "un-take-able"! Seed Soldiers have puny stats in comparision to Vanguard and costs only 2 points less. And well, they are not morats so no bonuses here. BUT they have two most important stats to a cheerleader on the same level as Vanguard - BS and WIP, so they shoot and discover as good as the basic monkey! And well, to be honest, if cheerleader actually does something on the battlefield is either shoot or discover. Also, those are the cheapest guys we can field apart from the R-Drones. And they have one solid plus - being camo markers in first turn - making your opponent think twice before he make a first turn rush with tactical jump, impersonator or combat jumper! Pretty neat ability, but without "Oh-Ah!" factor in it.
And only four options! And one can be useful! Well, regular Combi Rifler is cheap and... cheap. But give him a Light Grenade Launcher for a few additional points and SWC if you have one to spare, and you have a guy for speculative bombardment - from the safety of being not seen he can kill multiple of his point cost with little luck and persistence in grenade spamming. As a paramedic or forward observer... like with Vanguard, we have simply way better guys to fill those roles. Choose this only if we need them badly and have no points!
Calculon:
Bottom line: bare-bones Shasvastii troops with an odd deployment approach; slow to yield their point values, and with some interesting weapon options
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Seed-Soldiers: The most basic Shasvastii. A part from what has been said; you can field a Light Grenade Launcher loadout, but initial BS11 make speculative shots tricky. You can also field Fordward Observer loadout, making a cheap specialist for missions and a handy AROer.
Morat Vanguard Infantry Saise:
+ Solid Statline, Religious Troops
- Expensive for a cheerleader
Morat Vanguards are the most basic troopers we have access to next to Seed Soldiers and god-damn, they are expensive at terryfing 16 points a piece. Why? Explanation is Simple - they have the best overall stats amongst all basic infantry with exceptional CC, solid WIP and the highest PH of its kind. Belive or not but this is worth additional points - but if you still want to make a fuss about them being too expensive remember, they are Morat so they are Religious! Don't run away, don't care about fighting without lieutenant.
Like all basic infantry they have a wide spectrum of options and weapon output, however I do not find those very tasty - HMG is never a bad choice and its quite cheap on those for only 1 SWC and 25 point cost, so why not if I have points to spare? Multi Sniper Rifle? No, not really, if you want firepower go with the HMG - 4 bullets are twice as much, and you need all the dices you can gather with BS:11. That's why I would not give those guys Missile Launcher either, especially now, when we can buy dirty cheap rockets on TO Camo, Dogged Noctifier or even cheaper Panzerfaust on much harder Yaogat. Hacker? Nope. Never. First, because its expensive as hell, 3 points more than a HMG totting Vanguard! Second, because we have access to much more awesome hackers. Same thing with forward observers and paramedics. And a big no no to a Lieutenant option for 2 SWC killer cost!'
So what is the role of Vanguards? Simple - Cheerleaders. Expensive Cheerleaders, but also a cheerleader that can dodge bettet than most cheer'ios, shoot as well, punch way better and have solid Willpower. Yeah. Cheerleader on stiroids !
Eypyeash:
Morat Vanguard - Pretty cheap, and very flexible, like all line infantry. You pay more for them than other basic troopers, but it's probably because of that Morat special rule. They're one of the only places to get a Missile Launcher, and for a meager 32 points, at that. In a full link team you'll probably have solid success: the +3 BS is pretty much a requirement if you want to use them as a firebase of any sort, because their standard BS of 11 just won't cut it against the other monsters in the world. That means in vanilla Combined, you'll have to rely on a lucky shot, and you're better off with the Shasvastii option instead, frankly (see Noctifer). You can also get a very cheap hacker (28 points) and a solid Forward Observer (19 points).
Calculon:
Bottom line: the most straightforward line troops in the Combined Army. Strong stats and the Morat attribute keep them (and your army) in the fight, but a minimum cost of 16 points makes it hard use them just to provide orders
Morat Guide to Supremacy:
It's easy to forget Vanguard Infantry due to competition with other units and their high cost (most expensive Line troops around) but they bring a number of advantages to the table, as well as being the only place to aqiure some of the rare specialist option's in the aggression forces. While Daturazi are similarly priced (or cheaper) and bring a number of upgrades, Vanguard life expectancy is remarkably longer due to their less impetuous nature and more reserved role. Ultimately you need some inexpensive orders to be your mainstay and these guys fill the role very well when given the chance. Having a boost in CC and the best PH of all line troops (along with being Morat) piles on the cost, but a 5-man link with an HMG or ML can be devastating and as far as morats go one of the more affordable links.I have also had a sucsess running 3 with a HMG as order providers and a backup link if the Yaogats go down.
• Combi Rifle- cheapest option, wars are won on the shoulders of grunts.
• HMG - Nasty gun, BS14 Burst 5 with Sixth Sense L2 (in a 5-man link) is nothing to laugh at.
• Light Grenade Launcher - only non TAG launcher around and speculative fire can be used out of
LOS and has a template making it surprisingly useful, I find people always underestimate grenade
launchers. Sadly the SWC makes it an option that often can't fit.
• Missile launcher - only place to get one of these devastating guns, Linked team makes it more
reliable with +1 burst. Also the lack of a model doesn't help this guys playtime.
• MULTI Sniper Rifle - cheaper option then Yaogat but the 1.5 SWC and the lack of
BS and Visor (when compared to the Yaogat make it the less attractive option.
• Hacking Device - one of two places to get a hacker, and i personally love this model.
• Forward observer - only Morat that has it, flashpulse is a good Rambo solution (blinding ends
killing spree's), marking targets for speculative from grenade launchers or other parabolic weapons, been
wanting to team one of these up with a Riacho.
• Paramedic- only paramedic, a lonely proffesion for a morat but given our races naturally high PH I
find myself bringing this guy alot, also a medtech can nullify our 100% religious so this is my personal
medical solution. I have had success running him with a Daturazi (long as you can keep him under
control) to provide protection and smoke cover, keeps him mobile and fixing up your dudemen.
• Lieutenant - cost a lot of SWC making it an un-attractive option,i think the lieutenant order must
be used on someone that will get more done, not hiding, also Yaogat's can hide just as well and use the
extra order much better AND dont cost SWC, I have never used him. Remember Morats don't hide like
weak humans.
Med-Tech Obsidon Mechanoid Saise:
+ Multipurpose, cheap support
- Very low durability, need slaves to be of any serious use
Well, if you got multiple race to fight alongside in your huge invasion army there will be a problem with non-combatant field support. For example, you need a doctor that can patch up guys with totally different anatomny. You need an Engineer that can fix gear from two totally different technology branches. Hard to get specialists like that, that's why EI wasn't wasting time for searching one, but its create one - Med-Tech Obsidon Mechanoid is a multipurpose battlefield support, a Medic, an Enginner, all in one. And he is good at it with WIP of 14. Also, he can defend himself if needed with a Combi Rifle and solid but far from outstanding BS.
Costing only 23 points he is a great addition to any force, but... and this is a BIG BUT... he is super fragile with only one wound and 1 points of ARM.
That's why you need to buy him a slave or better two of'em. Those are cheap and almost mandatory to make our Mechanoid more useful and way more durable, as he don't need to show himself to enemy, while his slaves skitter across battlefield with haste (6-4 move) and with little additional protection (CH:Mimetism). All in all I found Obsidon to be a compulsory spot on any of my 300+ points lists, for he is cheap and can fulfill a multiple of roles that I need to be fullfilled.
Eypyeash:
Medtech Obsidinoid - 6-4 Doctor/Engineer with D-Charges and WIP 14. This guy is your go-to for most objectives-based missions because he's just so damned fast... he's also creepy looking, which may be a bonus for you. Personally, I've never utilized his Doctor ability because most of what I run either winds up outside a rational sector of the table for him to assist (i.e. not enough rational for orders-to-effectiveness), but his Engineering is solid. And, of course, he can get the standard 3-point wormbots to help him out, if you want to cover a few areas with him. Usually you'll want to send them out instead of him, but he does have a gun...
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Med-Tech Obsidon Mechanoid: Wip 14 engineer and doctor, 6-4 movement, 23 points, an old reliable for missions. The only “buts” you can say about it, are their 40mm base and what is a Medic in a sectorial plenty of Auto-Medikits and V:Dogged
Shasvastii Cadmus Saise:
+ Great at harassing, can grow to be a serious threat
- hard to use well and require solid luck to sparkle
Cadmus is a very weird piece of a unit. First of all, he is quite cheap Combat Jumper - simply, because he must combat jump with a puny PH and he does it while in capsule know commonly as seed-embryo. This is both a drawback and advantage - its always good to have a combat jumper to make your opponent fight on more than one sides and keep him distracted, but Cadmus need luck to land where we need him to be, and he is quite an order hog if we want him to became a real monster. If we don't want to wait for another turn for him simply to hatch (and belive me, you don't want to, as he will be killed by massive shooting if we let opponent have an entire turn to "get ready", even if the egg is armed with a single mine and electric pulse) we must hatch him prematurely with a short skill and kill something outright with BS attack.
And this is not easy task, but if it happens we are on a good road to make Cadmus a true pain in the bottom. With Boarding Shotgun option he can surely take even on elite heavy infantry, and if he manage to make it fall unconcious everything is going by the plan - now, our order hog Cadmus can spend entire Order to scan his miserable target with his Striga: Morpho-Scan to take his stats - if we do it on elite infantry our Cadmus can grown to something way more scarier than his point costs suggest. And, well, first level of Striga, the Protheion, give us possibility to eat the unconcious fella and gain a wound - this scenario is pretty sweet, as we have a multiwound, Boarding Shotgun totting, elite statline guy ready to kill behind enemy lines.
Well, if the scenario goes well - thats why Cadmus is so cheap point wise for what he can do. 23 points isn't much for a Combat Jumper with V:Dogged (first level of protheion grant this skill) and chance to grow bigger and badder (yes, V: Dogged is our savior here and the reason WHY Cadmus is a sweet yet still risky guy - if we land badly, or recive and ARO we still have a great chance to live long enough to take our revenge and eat something nutricious to regain a wound and cancel the Dogged state!). As you see, well used and well placed Cadmus can be a real winner - if only our opponents was so kind to deploy in a way to find a blind spot to land in, heh.
Eypyeash:
For some reason, I don't see much talk about the Cadmus. If you want a cheap, airdropping mine for 23 points, he's your guy. I'm actually a fan, but he does have some inherent flaws. PH11 on a drop (and you MUST Combat Jump) means if you scatter, he's gonna cost you two orders to bring on the table, potentially to his sudden death by walking into someone's fire. On the positive, he's also inherently Dogged due to Striga2, and you can make good use of him once he hatches in the back field. Why? Well, usually, there are some juicy elite troops back there, and he can Morpho-Scan them, for starters. Without a good target to scan, he's still got a (if you picked right) boarding shotgun, and all three versions have an assault pistol. That means light infantry will die by the thousands to his six creepy cucumber fingers, and he can eat them all up as he goes. A 4-4 movement is good, but be careful when you select a Morpho-Scan target... he can drop to a 4-2 if you pick someone with that. Hopefully you get a good weapon out of it when you kill them.
Calculon:
Bottom line: a little weird to use - with seed and airborne deployment, and low stats pre-Morpho Scan, they take some time to get into the game. It's been pointed out that you can morpho-scan your own troops, which stacks nicely when you start involving terrifying EI aspects.
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Cadmus: The one and only shasvastii airborne, and exotic troop if there was ever one. Coming into play as a Cadmus-Seed they are not as “inmediate” as other AD units, and can’t field heavy weaponry as other AD units either. Although the Light Grenade Launcher loadout offer some amount of sinergy with the Cadmus feature: Morpho-Scan; duplicating a high BS, the Cadmus could be the better source of speculative shots available. As a shortcoming, this unit is the same points range of the better units in the sectorial, so they don’t see much games.
Shasvastii Noctifiers Saise:
+ Cheap TO Camo, good weaponry
- Low durability
Noctifers are what we neede. Noctifers are what we should love. Noctifers - the perfect addition from Human Sphere. Tactical Dominance Special Wing of Shasvastii are the frontline officers of the Expeditionary Forces, great strategists that enter the battlefield in a direst need to change the flow of battle. And O-Mi-Gosh, they can really do it! First of all, Noctifer is a very cheap TO Camo unit with a decent BS of 12 and additional survivability grantet by V:Dogged skill, making them quite a solid choice for an offensive trooper. Ok, low armour make them a little fragile, but if we don't get in the way of MSV carrying opponents our TO Camo should grant as an upper hand in shoot-out's.
Each variant of Noctifer is a very good and affordable choice. Basic Noctifer cost only 23 points and run with Combi Rifle, a decent and well-around piece of standard weaponry - with advantages of TO Camo even this standard piece of gun can be dangerous (Combat Camo bonuses!). For a mere 30 points and 1,5 SWC we can arm one of those with Spitfire, making them way more deadly - Spitfire fired from TO Camo on Dogged trooper is a way to put some serious damage before he bleeds out and die - and his low point cost make it quite easy to earn his value back by killing more expensive enemy units. But we have another sweet option for Noctifer - a Missile Lanucher! For 42 points it is cheap, as rocket flying with Combat Camo bonuses can kill something outright without risk of being ARO'ed by target at all! If you are looking for a unit to deal with super hevy infantry or TAG's, Noctifer with Rockets is a good choice.
Noctifer is also a reasonably priced and very good Lieutenant - with 23 point cost and just a single SWC he is a cool and safe choice, hiding behind a TO Camo marker and in some safe place in our deployment he can avoid any danger. He can also be a Hacker but honestly, we have way better hackers than this one, so just leave it
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Noctifers: TO non-infiltrator unit, and with the V:Dogged twist. Apart of the basic and Lt loadouts, both with combi, they can be fielded with Spitfire, Missile Launcher or as Hacker.As no infiltrators, and its cost, Spitfire Noctifer is not the most useful unit. Missile Launcher attack from combat camouflage is a big surprise, but most of the times after this blazing glory momento, the noctifer is going to have to do some overtime to rent its cost. The hacker option would be ideal if there were no a higher WIP hacker available, but the V:Dogged skill is pretty useful if the Noctifer have to venture in a hot area to reach an objective.
Shaviish:
Today I bring you a troop that I used only a couple of times and he didn´t do what I expected... but I think they are a good choice: the Noctifers.
A cool light infantry.
I think that only Spitfire, missile launcher and hacker are the good choices. Spitfire is a powerful weapon that in hands of a TO troop and dogged, we can be sure that he's going to accomplise his mission... if no shock ammo take him down, of course.
Missile launcher is a thumbs up. Our best choice to take down big enemy troops like IP or TAGs, but also linked teams.
Hacker option is only good because of his BTW -3 that makes him a good deffensive hacker.
Shasvastii Aswuangs Saise:
+ Solid statline, ADHL, Camo-Vampire!
- A little risky but overally no minuses!
Holy Jupiter Juggling Moses! Those guys are just plain uber-awesome for my taste. Fantastic statline for its cost, with very good 17 CC, solid BS and all around PH and WIP is just the beginning, as this sweetheart run across the field as a Camo marker - Camouflaged soldier with Protheion ability is pure evil, as he can go all sneaky like to an enemy and jump into close combat out of marker - risky? Not at all in most cases - even if our target react with shooting Protheion gives us V:Dogged special rule, so we can survive a wound and take our revenge in close combat - if we succed, we will regain wounds by eating our poor target.
This is however not all of Asuangs glory - he has a BS 12, so he can shot quite well, and he have access to Adhesive Launcher, one of my favourite piece of gear in entire game. Oh, imagine this - first, he use Combat Camo ability to glue someone donw. If this attack was a success, he gently walks to a glued fella and eat him alive to became a multiwound monster. Sweet as chocolate. And he cost a mere 25 points for all we get, no matter if he is carrying a Combi Rifle or Boarding Shotgun in addition to ADHL. We can also take him in a more offensive option, paing 6 more points and 1 SWC to arm one with Spitfire - a nice option to have, but while totting a Spitfire he lose his ADHL, and I will not stand for that - espeically, that we have Noctifers and Gwailos to carry Spitfire into shoot'outs.
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Asuangs: More camo’d units, and through S:Prothein sharing V:Dogged with Noctifers. Arguably the most playable Spitfire (even not infiltrating), the only ADHL source, and the best cost-effect relation Lieutenant in the sectorial. One of those units which owns its cost range. Ironically the miniature available is the less playable loadout.
Shasvastii Haiduks
Saise:
+ Cheap Sapper, Guided sniper ammunition
- SWC hungry
Another interesting addition from Human Sphere, Shasvastii Haiduks are support snipers for any Combined Army force. Haiduk have a very medicore statline all around but this is atoned by being a Sapper - and this skill grant our fella a lot of nice gimmicks like CH:Mimetism, V:Courage and being in partial cover from all directions as long as he don't move away from his foxhole. If you find a nice spot in your deployments zone that can cover a solid part of battlefield (some elevated position maybe) you can't go wrong with Haiduk, as he is totting a dreaded MULTI Sniper Rifle for a mere 26 points! This is super-sweet, considering that for most opponents he will be hard to shot at (-3 for being in cover, -3 for mimetism) and have a solid ARM of 4 (again, Sapper bonuses!).
But the real thing is the option to take a Gudied MULTI Sniper Rifle - if you field this guy you can play it all safe and deploy him in a way, that no enemy will see him. Ok, he will do nothing either, but while he is safe from harm, if any of our forward observers marks somethin he can unleash hell and kill any possible target with those huge, damage 15 AP+DA bullets homing for the target - no BS roll, no problems, just pure pain. However this variant is way expensive than regular sniper, costing 37 points - still, I find this option a very powerful way to deal with the hardest stuff your opponent can bring along to the field of battle.
Calculon:
Bottom line: sniper specialists, with the game's only Guided Multisniper option to date.
De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Haiduks: Another weird unit, without the most common skills. Sapper don’t make them as hard to kill as the rest of the available AROers, but Haiduks can overtake areas which other units couldn’t just because they can create cover in the middle of nothing. Even with their low points cost, their subpar BS and their CAP cost don’t make them profitable. Guided multi sniper loadout is an exercise in futility, and personally I’ve tried to make a slot for them in several lists without any memorable performance
Kurgat Regiment of Assault Engineers Saise:
+ Heavy weaponry, battle-engineer
- Vanguard statline, low durability
New and quite tasty addition from human Sphere. Morats are Morats - everything they do they do on the field of battle. So if a Morat must become an Enginner, he will understand that in fact he must carry the biggest guns and crack enemy heavy support, bunkers and defences. Simple logic, aye? Well, Kurgats have Vanguard statline on all fronts, and that is pretty sad - with one point of armour and BS:11 they have not only low durability but also don't shoot on an awesome level with their big weaponry. On the other side, they are cheap for what they can do. Each variant is an engineer (so they are good companions for Raicho, for example) and carry D-Charges, what makes them quite dangerous in close combat and Antipersonnel Mines, so they can lay some of those stuff in your deployment zone and also use Intuitive Attacks and sweet AROs with them.
All of three variants possible to take have solid and sweet weapons. Autocannon is what everyone want to have and now we got it - for a 37 points and 1,5 SWC its expensive, because Ariadna have the same guy on much better soldier than Kurgat is. Its good to play with this huge piece of armament but hell, I belive it is too expenive for a 1 Arm, 1 Wound model. But we can give him an MK12 for 0 SWC and just 24 points! I call it the best possible choice for this unit - deadly mid-range weapon in hand, enginner skills, mines and bomb - a real battle-engineer that can take something donw and repair our broken stuff. If you want to spare some points you can still take a Kurgat with a boarding shotgun for mere 20 points, which is also a very sweet and cheap option for what we get out of him.
Battlefield role? If you have a tag, let him run behind it or just close to it, so he can fix'it on the way. If the TAG fall down you still have a heavily armed soldier out there. Second option is to ignore him being an Engineer and just use him as a cheap storm trooper, possibly with MK12 - this is a great piece of weapon that make him dangerous to almost any target, so beside his low durability he can still fill this role.
Eypyeash:
Kurgat Assault Engineers - Jacks of all trades. They come equipped with pretty nasty weapons outright, and every one is a WIP13 engineer with D-Charges and AP Mines. Their BS11 is sad, but it does mean their Autocannon is a steal at 37 points. For 20 you get a pretty basic Engineer with a boarding shotgun, which is plenty dangerous in its own way. Very solid dropzone defenders, and good for objective hunting (4-4 and alright WIP).
Calculon:
Bottom line: gives you options to deal with mines, frozen HI and ADHL while still deploying a competent combat troop. As always, more effective with a slave drone. MK12 and Autocannon both help Kurgats do double-duty as credible threats.
Morat Guide to Supremacy:
A standard Morat that trades 1 CC to become an Engineer with D-charges and Anti-Personnel Mines, plus he get's some great firepower options. As of right now D-charges seem to be very situational but can be a last ditch effort to explode an immobilized tag, hopefully with the campaign in effect they'll get used more in mission play. The mines however make for a great way to cover your back from AD and mesh naturally with the long range of the Autocannon, or use them on one of the other builds in a more up field way to discourage camo-markers and infiltrators.
• Autocannon - one of two possible places in all of infinity to get this gun, and it's pretty solid
boasting great range, damage and AP+EXP. As devastating as it looks.
• Mk 12- Essentially a much improved Rifle, don't overlook this as it has improved range
and damage for it's class.
• Boarding Shotgun- Cheapest Kurgat option, close ranged but has decent damage and a template.
Cadmus-Naish Agent Sheskiin De Natura Shasvastiirum:
Agent Cadmus-Naish Sheskiin: The only sectorial’s chacacter, linkable with any fireteam. Despite its ARM 1, Agent Sheskiin has a nice survivality due the Nanoscreen, S: Protheion and V:NWI, so its a good Lt option. Multi Rifle and Nanopulser are great weapons to be in a fireteam
Shaviish:
Sheskiin. Our Little Beauty Beast.
This is a miniature I love... perhaps too much human but an excellent sculpt with an awesome profile.
She has great stats: good shooter, awesome CC fighter, and she also has BTS!. But let's see her "gadgets".
NANOSCREEN: cool gadget that puts Sheskiin in ARM 4 and adds a -3 as if she is in cover. Remember it's affected by E/M.
PROTHEION: this hability can be used to "eat" unconscious enemies and you also can use it in CC to gain wounds for a maximun total of 3
NO WOUND INCAPACITATION: if she's not hited by shock ammo this counts as an additional wound... if she is at "full charge" she counts as if she have 4 wounds!... tough lady.
Sheskiin's weapons are cool too: multi rifle that allos her to react with DA ammo and with a BS 15 (18 if full linked), Nanopulser (useful versus enemy groups and IP), D-Charges (for missions), CC DA Weapon (I only use it when she's whith her "4" wounds).
I think it's more useful sending her alone to the enemy deployment zone, eating some enemies and decimate their troops with the Nanopulser, Multi and also in CC. If she is with her "4" wounds, for sure that you have half of the battle won.
Only one more thing: never use Sheskiin as Lieutenant, this will be too obvious and your opponent will concentrate firepower in her.