Necron Flayed Ones - Food for Thought

[Maelstorm]

The lowly, much-maligned Necron Flayed One. What's a Necron Overlord to do?

The same Weapon Skill, Strength, Toughness and Wounds as a standard Space Marine but with 3 Attacks. 13 points per model with the standard Necron Initiative of 2, they strike last against everything except Terminators.

How can we turn these Necron Lemons into something uselful? Add Vodka - of course! Or in this case a Necron Destroyer Lord.

A unit of 20 Flayed Ones with a Destroyer Lord (free Warscythe) with Sempiternal Weave, Mindshackle Scarabs and a Resurrection Orb suddenly becomes a close combat nightmare. With the Destroyer Lord adding Preferred Enemy - Everything! to the unit you'll get 80 initial attacks with rerolls of 1 to hit and rerolls of 1 to wound... Before the Destroyer Lord cuts 2-4 more in half with his Warscythe - Plus whatever enemies killed themselves with Mindshackle Scarabs.

With the Resurrection Orb (4+ Reanimation Protocols) in the unit half of all Flayed Ones shot down on the way in will get back up - and with Reanimation Protocol shenanigans will move your unit 3" closer to the enemy for the next turn charge.

If you take Nemesor Zahndrekh (HQ) you can give the Flayed Ones any of his fun tactis: Counter-attack, Furious Charge, Hit and Run, Stealth, Tank Hunters - while Counter Tactics will take all of the same abilities away from your opponent. Zahndrekh also gives you Phased Reinforcements - Since both Flayed Ones and Destroyer Lords have the Deep Strike rule you can bring them in during your opponents turn.

Imagine your opponents chagrin when he has to stop all of his plans to turn every gun on the unit of 20 models that just appeared in his lines. If he doesn't kill all 20 Flayed Ones in 1 turn, 50% of the downed models will get right back up! This also has the bonus of redirecting all fire from the rest of your Necrons as they walk forward into 24" range...

[Deadlift]

Very cool ideas, your costing me an arm and a leg ;)

With your insights, you should write a necron unit tactica. I for one have found your necron insight very useful.

[Mr Mystery]

I see them as objective bulldozers myself. Majority of 'camper' units aren't noted for their hand to hand potency, but their ability to soak up damage.

Flayed Ones of course, dish out plenty of damage and can infiltrate to boot. Swarm them into an enemy held objective and force a reaction. They're resilient enough to be left to their own devices for a turn or two, whilst the rest of your army systematically dismantles all resistance. Keeping a camper unit tied down is not to be sniffed at, particularly if it's set up for fire support (scouts, tactical squads and the ilk).

They can of course be seen off with a concerted effort, and that should be kept in mind. Whilst you shouldn't expect them to be around for the end game, you can exploit the distraction they bring to control the flow of the battle!

[Maelstorm]

Very cool ideas, your costing me an arm and a leg ;)

With your insights, you should write a necron unit tactica. I for one have found your necron insight very useful.

Thanks. As I put together fun Necron combinations I'll drop them on BOLS for the gangs amusement. :D

I was able to scrounge-up 20 of the old metal Flayed-One models when they were sitting unsold on the wall of every hobby shop in the states. I look forward to setting the whole mob on the table next weekend.

Save a bunch of $$ over the Fugly Finecast sculpts - Look around the web to find easy conversions for basic plastic Warriors to turn them into Flayed Ones.

[Houghten]

If you're able to deep strike a 21-model unit, you probably don't have enough terrain.

[Sonikgav]

Admittedly with Zandrekh i can see how they suddenly become much more of a threat. They can throw your opponent right off his gameplan when they pop up right next to his squishy units.

Theyre gonna take a beating still but its nice to see them, along with Destroyers (damn Tomb Blades trying to out-do them), recently re-emerging as potentially usefull.

[Maelstorm]

Unless you are playing a game with Kill Points, they can be a tough, hard-hitting, reanimating, throw-away unit. They require a little support and a little planning - while throwing your opponents game plan out the window... always a good thing!

As a delivery system to get the big nasty Destroyer Lord deep into enemy lines, it's spot-on! You can split him off at any time and cover most of the enemies backfield with one of the games best Warlord slayers (Strength 7, Toughness 6, Challange + Mindshackle Scarabs + Warscythe).

[Maelstorm]

If you're able to deep strike a 21-model unit, you probably don't have enough terrain.

20 Flayed Ones (covered in fresh-bloody flesh) in standard Deep Stike layout = About the same area as a Drop Pod with the doors closed or 5 Terminators.

With a 33% chance of a "Direct Hit" on Deep Strike it shouldn't be too bad.

http://i832.photobucket.com/albums/zz246/bbrine01/20130303_015124_zps5c494012.jpg

You can now abuse Deep Strike placement rules to put the Destroyer Lord anywhere on the perimeter of the Flayed Ones. Possibly on the front for "Look Out Sir" shenanigans. Although I find it hilarious to think of Flayed Ones throwing themselves in front of the Destroyer Lord to take a Bolter round... :p

All of the firepower put into knocking down all 20 of the Flayed Ones is NOT going into putting down your Scarabs/Annihilation Barges/Warriors/Immortals/Destroyers/Wraiths. If they don't put down all 20, half will get back up, and the process starts all over again...

[Slacker]

This is often how I have thought of them, almost with an orky mentality. I mean, while everyone is so down on the fact that they only have initiative 2, my response has always been 'so do ork boyz.' To which I get the response 'but ork boyz are cheap' and I say, 'but flayed ones are way more durable'

[Anggul]

And yet you would still probably be better off with Warriors who can do damage earlier on, score and threaten vehicles, as well as not being more likely to end up in a fight with a superior dedicated combat unit (all of them because I2 sucks when you aren't tough enough to take the hit first), beaten and run down.

[Maelstorm]

With 3 attacks, 4 on the charge and the ability to Deep Strike attached to a Destroyer Lord - They bring new tools to the table another unit of Warriors does not. A unit of 15-20 Flayed Ones will net you 3-4x the number of attacks of similar cost unit of Wraiths. However, they get back up from ANYTHING on a 4+, where a couple of bolter rounds will put down a Wraith for good, and a single lost Wraith significantly reduces its units effectiveness. The Destroyer Lord with Mindshacle Scarabs and the Warscythe will account for a number of enemies, plus he can issue Challanges to zero out any big nasties.

The unit would be wasted if thrown against a dedicated CC units. They are meant to cause chaos in the backfield of the enemy, threatening important support units and mopping up soft objective holding units. It should take 40 wounds to put down 20 Flayed Ones with a 4+ save. If your opponent does not put at least 40 wounds into them half of the downed units get back up and assault...

[Necron2.0]

I never knew people maligned the Flayed One. Mathematically speaking it's probably one of the better hand-to-hand units the Necrons have. I did a statistical analysis to calculate expected unsaved wounds inflicted by unit type and cost, and Flayed ones came in first on the list, followed by Lychguards and then Wraiths. I did this analysis prior to 6th ed, so the exact numbers may have moved around a bit, but I doubt things would change overly much. Lychguards weren't a close second.

[Maelstorm]

Look anywhere on the net - nothing but dren thrown at the Flayed Ones...

Poor little misunderstood guys - they just want a hug!

[Anggul]

The difference is that Wraiths move faster, strike faster, ignore difficult terrain, have an Invulnerable save and can also significantly threaten most vehicles. There also still isn't anything they can do that I wouldn't rather just have Warriors doing. I would sooner have a Gauss Flayer and be troops than a couple more I2 attacks each. You're getting more S4 hits overall, and you have AP5 as well as not worrying about being beaten and run down. The Flayed Ones Deep Strike and Infiltrate are also irrelevant when you can give the Warriors a Night Scythe to drop them in... and you get a Night Scythe.

They just aren't much good at anything when you can have Warriors instead.

[Houghten]

And when it comes down to it, I wouldn't take Warriors much either unless I was trying my hardest to squeeze in as many non-Troops choices as possible. An extra four points per body nets you a stronger, piercier gun and a better armour save. Immortals' only disadvantage is their maximum squad size of 10...

...you know, when I'm not playing Orks, I'm a bit of a beardy jerk. Huh.

[skoffs]

Flayed Ones
Pros:
- 3-4 attacks
- can deep strike/infiltrate
Cons:
- can not have Royal Court members added
- can not take Nightscythe
- deep strike in, only to sit there and do nothing

Warriors
Pros:
- scoring
- can shoot
- can threaten vehicles
- can take a Nightscythe
- can have Royal Court members attach
Cons:
- can not deep strike alone
- only 1 attack (... but rapid fire kind of makes up for that)

Common to both:
Pros:
- cheap
- can get back up
- much better with Destroyer Lord attached/buffs from Zahndrekh
Cons:
- strike at I2, so easily swept in combat

Advantage: Warriors

Conclusion: Without such useful rules as Fearless, Fear (causing), Rending, or the ability to assault after deep striking (all of which would have fit the fluff perfectly), Flayed Ones are just a suicide distraction unit. You stick them in your opponent's back field and let them get shot at/assaulted. On the off chance they survive, you can then go tie something up once it reaches your turn again... but then, that's not much different to what Warriors can do.
The difference is Warriors are immediately useful when they arrive (either by Veil or Nightscythe).
If I'm going to deep strike something in, I would much rather have a unit that can actually DO SOMETHING the turn it arrives, other than stand around with their thumbs up their collective metal arses.
At the end of the day, you have to ask yourself: what is it that Flayed Ones can do that Warriors can't do better?
So far, I have yet to find a valid example.

(the only way a lot of people would consider using them is if those rumors that FW are going to include the Flayer King special character when they release Imperial Armour 12, who would hopefully give them some special rules which would make them suck less).

[Maelstorm]

Additional Thoughts: Flayed Ones + Anrakyr the Traveller;

* Free Counter Attack and Furious Charge to his attached unit.

* If infiltrated or on Deep Strike he will get to use his Mind in the Machine ability right away and will have plenty of regenerating meat-shields around him to make use of the ability for 2 or 3 turns.

* He can also add a separate unit of Pyrrhian Eternals (Free Counter Attack and Furious Charge).

[Sonikgav]

* If infiltrated or on Deep Strike he will get to use his Mind in the Machine ability right away and will have plenty of regenerating meat-shields around him to make use of the ability for 2 or 3 turns.


How is Anrakyr managing Infiltrate or Deepstrike?

Id say Flayed Ones are more effective in an Imotek/Zandrekh Combo list.

[Maelstorm]

How is Anrakyr managing Infiltrate or Deepstrike?

If he is attached to the Flayed Ones won't they allow him to Infiltrate?

The Deep-strike thought was vodka induced. :)

[Maelstorm]

Ack! I see on page 38 of the small rule book - "An independent Character without the infiltrate special rule cannot join a unit of infiltrators during deployment."

He can only join the unit after deployment. :/ The synergy I was looking for from Turn 1 on is not there for Anrakyr and the Flayed Ones.

No more Vodka tonight.

I'll stick with the Destroyer Lord attachement...

[skoffs]

Additionally, Anrakyr does not grant Furious Charge to units he joins, only Counter Attack.
(otherwise, adding him to a unit of Warscythe Lychguard will suddenly make them incredible)