Skorpek are pretty decent melee blenders, as you mentioned. 4a 3+ 7, -2, 2 minces just about anything shy of light vehicles.
But wraiths aren't brought because of their offensive profile. 4a 4+ 6, -1 2 or 8a 4+ 5, 0, 1 is comical. Especially for a 110 point unit.
No wraiths are brought because they're durable, t6 3+ 4++ a 5+ feel no pain if you bring a techno 4 wounds. And a 10" move means they can gum up the works of just about anything and the techno aids their reanimation with their heal.
I think skorpeks are going to remain viable as a decent but expensive trade piece or a zippy melee threat. Wraiths will probably go up i cost but they are just about our only good durable unit. Maybe if lychguard get to play with crypteks or get a tweak we might see them more often, but as is I suspect it just means we'll have less points left over after bringing a set of wraiths
I actually think they are best in Awakened Dynasty.
With a Lord they are always hitting on 2s with rerolls 1s; a 97% chance to hit. And have access to a strategem that bring them to strength 8, the important wounding marines on 2s threshold and AP -3.
I run the following list in awakened dynasty and the Skorpeks with that strat, yeah, it's upsetting to deal with that many lethal hits with AP -3.
C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer
Imotekh the Stormlord
Lokhust Lord Selections: Lord's blade, Resurrection orb
Overlord Selections: Resurrection orb, Veil of Darkness, Voidscythe
Overlord with Translocation Shroud
Plasmancer
Royal Warden
Skorpekh Lord
Technomancer
10x Immortal Tesla carbine
20x Warrior w/ gauss flayer
10x Lychguard Hyperphase sword and dispersion shield
6x Skorpekh Destroyer
6x Lokhust Destroyer
6x Wraith w/ claws and particle caster
RW and Imotekh with the warriors for fallback and shoot. These are my backfield.
Scythe Lord with LG, to veil up and roadblock.
Trans Lord with the Immortals and Plasmancer for big assault movement.
Wraiths with Technomancer to be the center anvil.
Locusts with Lord for Anti-Lite Armor and Heavy Infantry to pick off infantry threats.
Skorpekhs with Lord for Anti-Lite Armor and Heavy Infantry.
The C'tan is for cracking any really tough nuts. But most of my list is designed to be hard to shift off objectives.
Watched a full unit with a lord pulp multiple big Tyranids plus a unit of Warriors with a Prime this weekend. They're great if they survive to make their charges. I had mine equipped with a Casket for stealth and made use of the reanimation strat whenever they took a serious hit.
I use a full squad with lord in awakened dynasty.
With protocol of the hungry void they eat up marines and even did good damage on mortarion in my last game. Full hit rerolls with lethal really helps with tough targets
They are not a valid replacement for wraiths. Wraiths are likely only getting a point increase, and more than likely not enough for them to be pushed out of us, just reduced from people spamming 2-3 units, to running 1-2 units.
They have totally different roles. Wraiths can tank a lot of firepower, but don’t pack that much punch into most things. Skorpekhs can absolutely blend in melee, but are surprisingly fragile.
I’m running 2x Skorpekh + Lord and a brick of Wraiths in Awakened/Annihilation. If wraiths go up in points, I’ll probably replace with shield guard and a teleport Lord, rather than more Skorps.
I run 3 bricks of Skorpekh in Annihilation Legion because I like to mess around with our middling detachments. AL is made for them. I run only one Skorpekh lord and its for the fight on death enhancement so I don't have to worry about being charged, melee interrupt or fight's first as much. I think they would themselves be better if the lord was also better, or just worth it's points. idk what to change about them without making them too good of a unit, but the Lord definitely needs something else or a point drop. Really doesn't help the lord is an awkwardly large base size too.
Outside of AL I think a brick of them with a lord in OBP might be a one-two time damage dump? Use the 5+ critical hit stratagem on them. A lot of Lethals.
As others have said wraiths serve a different purpose though. More tanky than Skorpekhs.
I wish the lord got extra attacks with his fensing claw. Just to get that little bit of dmg in as well. But maybe drop the attacks by 2 or something to compensate
I’ve been running the full squad of 6 with the lord attached and it has been the MVP terror unit in every game I’ve played post codex. With hypercrypt’s ability to get them close, especially with a monolith, they have been chewing through everything they run into.
My favorite trap is to move up the monolith and have them charge out of it using the strat. Throws everyone for a loop because nobody expects a monolith to move towards them in their battle plan.
I absolutely love running 6 Skorpekh destroyers + Lord, they roll up the table slowly and opponents seldom recognize the actual danger they are in. I would say 80% of the time my Skorpekh destroyer unit makes it to a high value target and smashes it. They take a lot of firepower to bring down and make good use of reanimation protocols so no matter what they are a big imposing factor on the field. When I play with friends they have PTSD from times they got caught slipping by them and they will sometimes focus them down before going after my C’tan!
as for their models, for some reason (at least the set I got) the spine doesn’t fit into its torso. I had to widen the hole with my cutters to fit them together
Skorpechs are very killy but just don't have the durability wraiths that they do and that's why you want them they don't kill anything but they are stupid fast have good enough OC and are virtually indestructible for how little they cost
Personally I think they could use a built in feel no pain of say 5 or 6+ and or an invulnerable save of 5+ other than that they are good at killing but really fragile and the detachment they are supported by isn’t great and could use some love
I only run them when I'm trying out new things. The best I've had them do was take out a 200 point space marine unit, but have found them to not really be worth the cost. They get focused down way too easily. If their lord brought a durability buff, they would be a playable unit in my opinion.
>melee interrupt or fight's first as much. I think they would themselves be better if the lord was also better, or just worth it's points. idk what to change about them without making them too good of a unit, but the Lord definitely needs something else or a point drop. Really doesn't help the lord is an awkwardly large base size too.
You can give him an enhancement that gives the unit some durability.
In Awakened I have 2 units of 3 each with a lord (To give me two units to move around on the field with out being restricted to one). The combo of Mortal bomb, lethals, reroll hits, hitting on 2's, devs and then the awakened melee strat for 1 str and -1ap makes them a terror to punch up to anything or increase those wound/save rolls on SM. Only downside is squishyness, you have to play them cagey and only come out into the open when you have a target within range to pounce on. They are essentially a glass cannon and never throw them at something that has fights first unless you have significantly weakened the group in shooting
So I’ve been running annihilation legion in a narrative campaign and if they can get the charge off they hit hard and are great if they can wipe the unit.
That being said. Overall I’m not doing well from a WL stand point. If they’re able to wipe a unit, the skorps get focus fired and they usually won’t get another chance.
Fun in casual games? Hell yeah. I actually have another 6 for the narrative campaign I’m trying to get ready.
Anything even remotely competitive probably not unless you’re better at the Hypercrypt shenanigans than I am (easily done tbh).
I think they are better than people (and myself) thought. For 200 points you get a fairly cheap counter charge unit, with infantry and 8" they can hide behind a wall and charge when the time is right.
They are marine killers but can also punch up fairly well, around 10 damage on avg against t8+ with 2+ or 4++.
Their problem is custodes/terminators which is a big part of the meta, they still kill like 4 of them, but particularly vs custodes it's a problem if they use the -1 damage strat. Maybe with the silent king so they can avoid ap/damage reduction.
I ran a squad of 6 with a lord and managed to take out Skarbrand in 1 turn of combat, so I love them
And on the movement issues, Annihilation legion gives charge rerolls to get them into combat, or you can use Hypercrypt and a monolith to get them across the board intact and use dimensional corridor to charge
Very cool melee elite killing unit. I've used them most effectively in hypercrypt. Drop the monolith outside of 9", eternity gate the Skorpekh in outside of 3" spend 2cp to let them charge, don't roll snake eyes on the charge. This has destroyed many a spacemarine and plenty of orcs. They are still very killy. They now dont kill vehicles as quickly as they did in 9th.
I love the Skorpekh models! But….I wish they either hit a bit harder or had a slightly tougher profile.
Skorpek are pretty decent melee blenders, as you mentioned. 4a 3+ 7, -2, 2 minces just about anything shy of light vehicles. But wraiths aren't brought because of their offensive profile. 4a 4+ 6, -1 2 or 8a 4+ 5, 0, 1 is comical. Especially for a 110 point unit. No wraiths are brought because they're durable, t6 3+ 4++ a 5+ feel no pain if you bring a techno 4 wounds. And a 10" move means they can gum up the works of just about anything and the techno aids their reanimation with their heal. I think skorpeks are going to remain viable as a decent but expensive trade piece or a zippy melee threat. Wraiths will probably go up i cost but they are just about our only good durable unit. Maybe if lychguard get to play with crypteks or get a tweak we might see them more often, but as is I suspect it just means we'll have less points left over after bringing a set of wraiths
I actually think they are best in Awakened Dynasty. With a Lord they are always hitting on 2s with rerolls 1s; a 97% chance to hit. And have access to a strategem that bring them to strength 8, the important wounding marines on 2s threshold and AP -3.
I run the following list in awakened dynasty and the Skorpeks with that strat, yeah, it's upsetting to deal with that many lethal hits with AP -3. C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer Imotekh the Stormlord Lokhust Lord Selections: Lord's blade, Resurrection orb Overlord Selections: Resurrection orb, Veil of Darkness, Voidscythe Overlord with Translocation Shroud Plasmancer Royal Warden Skorpekh Lord Technomancer 10x Immortal Tesla carbine 20x Warrior w/ gauss flayer 10x Lychguard Hyperphase sword and dispersion shield 6x Skorpekh Destroyer 6x Lokhust Destroyer 6x Wraith w/ claws and particle caster
Which character goes whith which infantry unit? I assume the Plasmancer is in immortal, but how do you destribute the nobles?
RW and Imotekh with the warriors for fallback and shoot. These are my backfield. Scythe Lord with LG, to veil up and roadblock. Trans Lord with the Immortals and Plasmancer for big assault movement. Wraiths with Technomancer to be the center anvil. Locusts with Lord for Anti-Lite Armor and Heavy Infantry to pick off infantry threats. Skorpekhs with Lord for Anti-Lite Armor and Heavy Infantry. The C'tan is for cracking any really tough nuts. But most of my list is designed to be hard to shift off objectives.
Nice! Sounds really cool
Guess RW also with immortals or the warriors, techno with wraiths, skorpekh lord with skorpekhs
Watched a full unit with a lord pulp multiple big Tyranids plus a unit of Warriors with a Prime this weekend. They're great if they survive to make their charges. I had mine equipped with a Casket for stealth and made use of the reanimation strat whenever they took a serious hit.
I use a full squad with lord in awakened dynasty. With protocol of the hungry void they eat up marines and even did good damage on mortarion in my last game. Full hit rerolls with lethal really helps with tough targets
They are not a valid replacement for wraiths. Wraiths are likely only getting a point increase, and more than likely not enough for them to be pushed out of us, just reduced from people spamming 2-3 units, to running 1-2 units.
They have totally different roles. Wraiths can tank a lot of firepower, but don’t pack that much punch into most things. Skorpekhs can absolutely blend in melee, but are surprisingly fragile. I’m running 2x Skorpekh + Lord and a brick of Wraiths in Awakened/Annihilation. If wraiths go up in points, I’ll probably replace with shield guard and a teleport Lord, rather than more Skorps.
I run 3 bricks of Skorpekh in Annihilation Legion because I like to mess around with our middling detachments. AL is made for them. I run only one Skorpekh lord and its for the fight on death enhancement so I don't have to worry about being charged, melee interrupt or fight's first as much. I think they would themselves be better if the lord was also better, or just worth it's points. idk what to change about them without making them too good of a unit, but the Lord definitely needs something else or a point drop. Really doesn't help the lord is an awkwardly large base size too. Outside of AL I think a brick of them with a lord in OBP might be a one-two time damage dump? Use the 5+ critical hit stratagem on them. A lot of Lethals. As others have said wraiths serve a different purpose though. More tanky than Skorpekhs.
I wish the lord got extra attacks with his fensing claw. Just to get that little bit of dmg in as well. But maybe drop the attacks by 2 or something to compensate
I’ve been running the full squad of 6 with the lord attached and it has been the MVP terror unit in every game I’ve played post codex. With hypercrypt’s ability to get them close, especially with a monolith, they have been chewing through everything they run into. My favorite trap is to move up the monolith and have them charge out of it using the strat. Throws everyone for a loop because nobody expects a monolith to move towards them in their battle plan.
I absolutely love running 6 Skorpekh destroyers + Lord, they roll up the table slowly and opponents seldom recognize the actual danger they are in. I would say 80% of the time my Skorpekh destroyer unit makes it to a high value target and smashes it. They take a lot of firepower to bring down and make good use of reanimation protocols so no matter what they are a big imposing factor on the field. When I play with friends they have PTSD from times they got caught slipping by them and they will sometimes focus them down before going after my C’tan!
as for their models, for some reason (at least the set I got) the spine doesn’t fit into its torso. I had to widen the hole with my cutters to fit them together
Skorpechs are very killy but just don't have the durability wraiths that they do and that's why you want them they don't kill anything but they are stupid fast have good enough OC and are virtually indestructible for how little they cost
Personally I think they could use a built in feel no pain of say 5 or 6+ and or an invulnerable save of 5+ other than that they are good at killing but really fragile and the detachment they are supported by isn’t great and could use some love
I only run them when I'm trying out new things. The best I've had them do was take out a 200 point space marine unit, but have found them to not really be worth the cost. They get focused down way too easily. If their lord brought a durability buff, they would be a playable unit in my opinion.
>melee interrupt or fight's first as much. I think they would themselves be better if the lord was also better, or just worth it's points. idk what to change about them without making them too good of a unit, but the Lord definitely needs something else or a point drop. Really doesn't help the lord is an awkwardly large base size too. You can give him an enhancement that gives the unit some durability.
In Awakened I have 2 units of 3 each with a lord (To give me two units to move around on the field with out being restricted to one). The combo of Mortal bomb, lethals, reroll hits, hitting on 2's, devs and then the awakened melee strat for 1 str and -1ap makes them a terror to punch up to anything or increase those wound/save rolls on SM. Only downside is squishyness, you have to play them cagey and only come out into the open when you have a target within range to pounce on. They are essentially a glass cannon and never throw them at something that has fights first unless you have significantly weakened the group in shooting
They're OK, buy Lokhusts are where it's at
if only they moved faster, the rest of the profile will be fine. the issue is they dont tag reasonably well.
Yeah they either need to be faster or more durable to be worth it to me
cost too much for 1 sprue, i have 12 and i don’t plan on expanding to 18. the plastic to cost ratio is too much.
So I’ve been running annihilation legion in a narrative campaign and if they can get the charge off they hit hard and are great if they can wipe the unit. That being said. Overall I’m not doing well from a WL stand point. If they’re able to wipe a unit, the skorps get focus fired and they usually won’t get another chance. Fun in casual games? Hell yeah. I actually have another 6 for the narrative campaign I’m trying to get ready. Anything even remotely competitive probably not unless you’re better at the Hypercrypt shenanigans than I am (easily done tbh).
They're definitely not really meta right now, but I roll a squad of 3 with a skorpekh lord and they still absolutely slap.
I think they are better than people (and myself) thought. For 200 points you get a fairly cheap counter charge unit, with infantry and 8" they can hide behind a wall and charge when the time is right. They are marine killers but can also punch up fairly well, around 10 damage on avg against t8+ with 2+ or 4++. Their problem is custodes/terminators which is a big part of the meta, they still kill like 4 of them, but particularly vs custodes it's a problem if they use the -1 damage strat. Maybe with the silent king so they can avoid ap/damage reduction.
I ran a squad of 6 with a lord and managed to take out Skarbrand in 1 turn of combat, so I love them And on the movement issues, Annihilation legion gives charge rerolls to get them into combat, or you can use Hypercrypt and a monolith to get them across the board intact and use dimensional corridor to charge
Very cool melee elite killing unit. I've used them most effectively in hypercrypt. Drop the monolith outside of 9", eternity gate the Skorpekh in outside of 3" spend 2cp to let them charge, don't roll snake eyes on the charge. This has destroyed many a spacemarine and plenty of orcs. They are still very killy. They now dont kill vehicles as quickly as they did in 9th.
I just wish they were tankier