Fantasy

22 February 2009

A look at the Red Blok

Infantry

Krasnye Soldaty (type 1 infantry) (Krasnye Soldaty pic/reference card)

Fighting in units of 8 to 12, these fighters form the soul of Red Blok armies. Looking at their stats, however, you won’t be impressed. Their assault rifles (2, 1/1, - , 4/1) leave much to be desired. But, they make up for these deficiencies by giving players lots of dice to roll and good Morale. Throw in grenade launchers and you’ve got a unit capable of inflicting quite a bit of damage against enemy infantry units--provided you get close enough. Thankfully, Red Blok Kolossus and combat strider units are suited to the task of helping the Soldaty to the objective. Those not killed by the grenade launchers will be grounded.

If you want to concentrate on an anti-armor role, use the Marushka rocket launchers. These are not locked shot weapons, nor are they limited to use only against AFVs. Accuracy 1, yes, but you get to roll 2 dice per rocket launcher, inflicting 2 points of damage per successful penetration.

The Krasnye Soldaty special weapons can be rocket launchers or grenade launchers. Their specialists include medics and/or mechanics (0 to 2).

RPG Soldaty (type 1 infantry) ((RPG Soldaty pic/reference card)

Also fighting in units of 8 to 12, the RPG Soldaty deal out more damage than their Krasnye comrades. Armed with the smgauss, with special weapons including the mgauss or rocket launcher, they appear ideally suited for battle against opponents with higher Protection stats. You’ll pay the same AP cost for a unit of RPG Soldaty as you would Krasnye. Something tells me that the Krasnye might not see the tabletops as often as these guys, although, as evil merlin points out, there's something to be said about being able to ground a unit using grenade launchers. Background on the RPG Soldaty suggests their role on the battlefield is primarily as anti-armor. Indeed, these guys are used to destroy mutinous units, or to destroy Red Blok combat striders before they fall into enemy hands.

Specialists in RPG Soldaty units include medics and/or combat engineers (0 to 2).

Spetsnatz Kommandos (type 2 infantry) (Spetsnatz Kommando pic/reference card)
Fighting in units of 6 to 9, the Spetsnatz Kommandos form a complementary unit to the Krasnye Soldaty. They hit harder and can hold out longer, or scrape an enemy unit off of an objective using their gauss rifles and flamers. Again, if you prefer some balance and want some anti-armor capability, use the rocket launchers, which aren’t limited to combat striders. Feel free to target TacArms, Bane Goliaths and Assault Goliaths.

Their specialists include combat engineers and/or medics (0 to 2).

Dragonov Kommandos (type 2 infantry) (Dragonov Kommando pic/reference card)

Fighting in units of 6 to 9, the Dragonov Kommandos are excellent for disruption of enemy command and control thanks to their snipers and electronic warfare specialists. The sniper ability is the same as that of other AT-43 snipers in UNA and Therian armies. The electronic warfare specialist has the Disruption ability (see Sgt Tymofiyeva above for an explanation of this ability).

Dragonovs are, currently, the only Red Blok infantry with the Detection ability thanks to their infrared goggles. These work just like UNA triple lens helmets. The +1 increase to Accuracy is already accounted for on the reference card. Dragonovs are always equipped with infrared goggles; they’re not optional.

Their specialists include medics and/or electronic warfare specialists (0 to 2). A maximum unit of 9 can include 3 sniper guns or 3 atgauss guns.

Kolossus Units: Spetsnatz, RPG, and Strielitz (type 3 battlesuit infantry) (Spetsnatz Kolossus pic/reference card) (RPG Kolossus pic/reference card) (Strielitz Kolossus pic/reference card)

Take a look at the Kolossus profiles. Impressive, hunh? Don’t worry about the 10 cm movement, though. All Kolossus units have Assisted Propulsion, which gives them the Blitz ability: their movement is increased by 10 cm for their first round on the battlefield, and they may act normally when they arrive in reinforcement via a drop point. Being battlesuits, the Kolossi fight in units of 3.

Which Kolossus unit you choose to field is up to you. Take a look at your objectives and which army you’ll face. Each of the three Kolossus units is differently armed: Spetsnatz have two flamers; RPG have two rocket launchers; and the Strielitz have 1 flamer and 1 grenade launcher each. Kolossus units do not have gyroscopic stabilizers like TacArms, so your unit(s) can be grounded by indirect fire weapons.

Armored Fighting Vehicles

Red Blok AFVs are divided into three basic frames. Recon striders are light and mainly used for anti-infantry combat. Assault strider frames are suitable for combat against other AFVs. Support striders are technological monsters designed to destroy anything in their way.

Recon Striders

Nakovalny
(type 1 combat strider)

(Nakovalny pic/reference card) Fighting in units of 1 to 3, the Nakovalny is armed with two light mgauss weapons. Its purpose is primarily that of anti-infantry, supporting their Red Blok infantry comrades most admirably. It’s suited not for lightning attack, but anti-personnel fire and protection against heavy salvoes.

Sierp (type 1 combat strider) (Sierp pic/reference card)

Fighting in units of 1 to 3, the Sierp is armed with two light mortars, and has communication disruptors. The light mortars are indirect fire weapons, which don’t require line of sight! Fire away at enemy infantry: those not killed by the blast will be grounded. The communication disruptors give the Sierps the Disruption ability, removing up to 3 LPs from your enemy’s Leadership Pool during the tactical phase!

Molot (type 1 combat strider) (No pic/reference card available at this time)

Fighting in units of 1 to 3, the Molot is armed with two light flamers, meaning you’re going to have to get close to fire. They also have loudspeakers, which give them the Countermeasure ability: the enemy’s Disruption and Interference abilities have no effect on a company containing Molots.

Zviezda (type 1 combat strider) (No pic/reference card available at this time)

Fighting in units of 1 to 3, the Zviezda is armed with a light mgauss and a light mortar. It’s effective against infantry, but you’ll have some trouble against AFVs. It also has motion sensors, which give it the Detection ability just like triple lens helmets or infrared goggles. Its +1 to Accuracy is already accounted for on its reference card.

Assault Striders

Kossak
(type 2 combat strider) (Kossak pic/reference card)

Fighting in a unit of 1, the Kossak is armed with two medium missile launchers. Thanks to its Protection of 15, it can advance confidently, destroying infantry and AFVs easily. You’re rolling six dice when both medium missile launchers are operational. With a Penetration of 12/2, not too many AFVs--or infantry--will survive unscathed.

Hetman (type 2 combat strider) (No pic/reference card available at this time)

Fighting in a unit of 1, the Hetman is armed with a medium antitank cannon and a medium rocket launcher. The Hetman is designed as a hunter, moving from cover to cover to destroy enemy AFVs thanks to its two high powered weapons (Penetration 18/2 and 12/2, respectively). Your opponent will think very carefully before placing his AFV units in LOS of the Hetman’s weapons. Note: the medium rocket launcher is not a locked shot weapon.

Hussar (type 2 combat strider) (No pic/reference card available at this time)

Fighting in a unit of 1, the Hussar is armed with a medium missile launcher (locked shot weapon) and a medium rocket launcher. Advance against enemy AFVs using the medium missile launcher (rolling two dice per shot), then switch to the medium rocket launcher for close-in work against armor and personnel alike.

Support Strider

Dotch Yaga
(type 3 combat strider) (No pic/reference card available at this time) At 775 AP, the Dotch Yaga is a monster combat strider, armed with a heavy gauss cannon (4, 5/0, -, 15/2) and a heavy mortar (4, 1/0, 10, 6/1). With Protection 17, this combat strider is designed to survive, advancing against any type of fire to deliver total destruction of enemy forces.



Taken from the forum post here: http://en-forum.at-43.com/viewtopic.php?t=1886

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