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View Full Version : Cygnar: Charger vs Hunter Review



doom-kitten
02-16-2011, 12:53 PM
After numerous games in which people mock me for my dependance on the Charger light jack and why I don't make more frequent use of the Hunter I have decided to justify my use and review the two warjacks first we'll start with the Hunter.

Hunter, Light Warjack, Points Value: 4, FA U, MB
SPD 6, STR 8, MAT 6, RAT 6, DEF 13, ARM 16
Dual Cannon RNG 12, ROF 2, POW 12, Powerful Attack
Battle Hammer, POW 4, P+S 12

Advantages: The Charger is cheap for a measly for points you get a warjack that makes maximum use of it's focus, has a decent range and POW for dealing against medium and small targets, any Cygnar warcaster can field this jack for free in addition to another 1 or 2 points of other jacks. The powerful Attack special rule really is fantastic giving it the ability to spend one focus to boost both it's attack and damage rolls, with three focus this jack can pump out 2 shots that are boosted on both attack and damage at a range of eight, against the high non-character jack armour (20) this can can potentially do at total of 20 damage provided the jacks user rolls very well like epic well most of the time I'll look for a smaller target. Against Medium targets this jack assuming the basic medium arm is 16-18 can do roughly 28-24 damage again provided the roller rolls all sixes, it's also fast moving at 6 inches per turn not as fast as say a bonejack but fast enough to outmanuever most Khador or Menoth units. The charger also I find gets a limited target priority from my opponent and it's can often sneak by a shot or two on a vital target I've even had one sneak up and deal the finishing blow on Terminus, Cryx player was not happy about that at all. The Charger is the ideal warjack for a general looking for getting alot of shots for a little points.

Hunter, Light Warjack, Point Value: 6, FA U, MB
Advance Deployment, Pathfinder
Extended Range Control
Parry
SPD 6, STR 7, MAT 6, RAT 7, DEF 14, ARM 15
Long Arm, RNG 14, ROF 1, POW 6, Armour Piercing
Battle Axe, POW, P+S 11

Advantages: Admittedly your getting alot of special rules the Hunter is very much a what it's named for with advance deployment it can quickly bring it's gun to bare and the pathfinder prevents it from wasting time poking around in the bushes, word to the wise keep it in the bushes that concealment with often save it's hide. The very mention of Armour Piercing will bring a tide of death on this poor jack and I find it spends most of the game redeploying and running away from nasty death, unlike the Charger it's has a good range however one shot lets hope you don't miss. Also I find putting focus into a one shot jack is a very cautious moment if you put two into to hit say a bonejack then miss well you got a useless focus floating around the charger makes up for this by being able to shoot again. The Armour Piercing is nice but at POW 6 I find it to be more of a novelty than and actual threat, against ARM 20 (ARM 10 from AP) it has the potential of 14 damage provided it's user rolles well this is awesome but how often are you gonna roll that high. Medium targets is were this jack shines of doing 16-15 damage a shot, expect alot of return fire though as your opponent will try to get it first. Most Cygnar casters can get this jack for free but other like Haley gey it for 1 point not bad I know, anyways the Hunter is for the kind of general who wants every shot to count or alot of high priority targets to confuse or mislead their opponent.

Against small targets the Charger is more effective as the Armour Peircing rule doesn't cut their ARM it's only gives it +2 to it's POW, don't expect a hunter to to be getting many Warcaster snipe opportunities. Both jacks have their uses and yes the Hunter provides more tactical options but the Chargers better focus control and higher rate of fire makes it better in my books also I can feild 3 at the same points of two hunters and as the russians say quantity is often quality. What do you think?

Bentron
02-16-2011, 02:05 PM
Just a quick note: I'm not sure exactly how much information is okay to post, but I probably wouldn't post all the stats for each Jack in explicit detail.

That being said, as a Cygnar player with about 15 games under his belt, I would say that both Jacks are very strong. Many people like the improved maneuverability of the Hunter and appreciate its lower focus dependence. It's a good jack if you want to hunt heavy jacks (which is something that Cygnar can have trouble with IMO.) The Charger is cheaper, and is still a very decent Jack. It is very focus efficient, but has a focus dependence in order to do its best. Some casters, like eNemo can make the Charger incredible during feat turn, so that's nice too. (20pts for 5 Chargers all with 3 focus = massive death to the enemy, especially when aiming and moving with Energizer.)

Overall, I would say the Hunter tends to do better, if only for its ability to be Marshalled to ATGM UAs with great effectiveness, advancing up 6", firing at 18" away and hitting a normal Heavy Jack for with a damage-boosted AP shot with almost 100% accuracy (it hits 35/36 times against DEF 10). Casters like eHaley allow this to happen twice a turn, from an additional 2-4" away. (Meaning a total threat of 26-28". The 2nd Hunter shot won't be boosted though.)

Of course, that's overall. I think the Charger is an excellent Jack and makes a nice fit in most forces. Especially at the 15pt level, where it can really shake it up.

doom-kitten
02-16-2011, 02:32 PM
Thats awesome lol figures theres someone out there that has a better idea of what their talking about then me, I generally run eHaley with a Squire so I hardly notice the 3 Focus required to run the Charger effectively and with Kara Sloan I only use the one spell so the Focus isn't needed anyways. But wowsers never considered running Nemo with a couple Chargers XD never really like the old thunder man's look and the name bothers me. As for the stat-lines anyone can get the info so it's hardly top secret and it's allows a better idea of the two jacks being compared.

DarkLink
02-16-2011, 06:40 PM
I use the Hunter mainly because I get a ton of shots already. Between my Cyclone, B13th and Assaulting Storm Blades I get a lot of shots that can take out most stuff. I don't really need two more power 12's, whereas the Hunter's gun gives me something to hurt heavy armor that most of the other shooting I have won't do much to.

FastEd
02-17-2011, 07:12 AM
To keep this short because it's late (well...early at this point), I think it's an apples to oranges situation. I love both 'jacks, but the only thing they have in common is being lights. The hunter is designed to make large holes in large (figuratively and literally) targets, and only takes one focus (which makes it nice for marshaling), where as the Charger is set up to take down low to medium armor targets, and specifically ones that may have a higher defense. They also function in different parts of the game. I find that my hunters tend to be an early game asset to take down or soften large targets before they become to big of a threat, where as the Charger tends to shine in the late-mid game where it will more likely have multiple targets in range and worth firing at.

In short, the hunter is a specific tool, in this case the clique analogy of a scalpel cutting away a problem area, where as the charger is like a multi-tool. Sure, the knife isn't quite as honed for delicate surgery, but if you need to open a jar a pickles because you got hungry while operating it's ready to pull double duty.

I think in the end it's just a matter of personal taste, and where it fits into your current army build. I personally love them both, something I couldn't say about the MK1 charger.

DarkLink
02-17-2011, 11:50 AM
Sure, the knife isn't quite as honed for delicate surgery, but if you need to open a jar a pickles because you got hungry while operating it's ready to pull double duty.


I'm glad you're not my doctor.

doom-kitten
02-17-2011, 01:17 PM
Awesome comparision but I'd have to agree with Darklink XD

FastEd
02-17-2011, 08:26 PM
I may have been a little hungry at the time.

Image
02-18-2011, 11:27 AM
Yesterday a hunter did 15 damage boxes to my Fire of Salvation. My answer to that? Burn the Hunter with fire!

But as mentioned, if you need to take out/damage heavy and light jacks, few options are quite as strong as the hunter. Plus, that it requires so little focus makes it a solid choice for Cygnar. The charger is great too, no doubt.