necrons tactica

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The Army

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Necron Lords The vengeful remnants of Necron civilisation, Necron Lords are the commanders of the Necron armies

across the galaxy - their sheer malice, and hatred of all life, fuels their acts.

Necron Lords are tough, strong HQ choices with access to a dazzling array of wargear. For only 100points you get a character comparable to a Space Marine Captain - he's even armed with a power weapon and a good missile weapon in the guise of the Staff of Light. That's good, but it's the extrawargear he can be upgraded to carry really make him special. A Resurrection Orb will enable Necronunits within 6" to make We'll Be Back rolls, regardless of what kills them. There are other great items too -



I swear by the Destroyer body (which increases the Lord's Toughness and lets him move like a Jetbike),although you'll see some despicable tactics later on revolving around other items of wargear.

P ros: - High statline, especially Strength and Toughness, make the Lord durable and dangerous in combat.

- Brilliant array of wargear allow you to tailor your Lord to almost any function.- At only 100 points, a Necron Lord is a bargain!

Cons:

- Comparatively low Weapon Skill and Initiative (only 4 each) means that other characters will find your Lord easy to pick on in close combat.

C'tan The almighty overlords of the Necron race, the C'tan are star gods given physical form by the bewilderingtechnologies of the Necrontyr. Only two of the C'tan remain to stride the battlefield - the Nightbringer andthe Deceiver. Both are beings of staggering power and both are as different in their methods as nightfrom day. The Nightbringer lives only for slaughter and destruction, pulverising his foes in close combat or with blasts of eldritch power. By contrast, the Deceiver is a being of cunning, overwhelming the senses of the enemy and ruining their plans with his uncanny tinkerings. Both are a dread threat that can easily killall but the very greatest enemy models.

Whichever C'tan you opt for, you're bringing a warrior of almost unparalleled destructive force to the



battlefield - only the absolute best champions of the enemy have even the vaguest chance in battleagainst them. They are, quite literally in the case of the Nightbringer, death incarnate.

P ros: - Monstrous close combat prowess.

- Amazing special rules to bewilder or destroy the enemy.- Almost indestructible, due to their godlike powers and staggering Toughness.

Cons:

- They aren't 'Necrons', so they don't contribute to your Phase Out limit.- They cost lots and lots of points (they're well worth it), so you need to seriously consider whether youwant to include them, especially in light of the previous point.

P ariahs

The by-product of the Necron's vile science and the evolution of Mankind, the Pariahs are possessed of the same psychic blankness as the Assassins of the Culexus Temple - where they go psychicemanations are blotted out, replaced by an overwhelming aura of absolute horror.

In battle Pariahs wield warscythes with built-in gauss blasters. It's almost impossible to find the equal of this combination of weapons, wherever you look. The Warscythe ignores not only enemy armour saves(in the same way as a power weapon) but also passes through invulnerable saves too. Even Terminatorsfind themselves sliced to ribbons by the Pariahs. Gauss blasters are very good too, boasting two Strength





P ros: - Gauss blasters allow the Immortals to blow most things apart with relative ease.- Toughness 5 and the Necron special rule means they're very hard to kill off.

Cons:

- Immortal's aren't very good in close combat - they're not bad (they're as good as most other Necronsare) but they're weaker in combat than anywhere else.

F layed Ones In an army that is renowned as an effective long-ranged force, the Flayed Ones seem fairly incongruousat first. They have no missile weapons at all, but don't be put off by that. These relentless close combatwarriors are more than capable of holding their own in an assault.The real strength of the Flayed Ones lies not in their stat-line (which is good) but in their special rules.Flayed Ones can always Deep Strike, they can Infiltrate, they can Move Through Cover and perhaps,best of all, enemies that fight against them in close combat must take a Leadership test at the start of each round - if they fail then they will only hit the Flayed Ones on the score of a 6. This might not win you



any battles against Orks or Tyranids who generally laugh off Leadership tests, but on more than oneoccasion it's made a real difference to my Flayed Ones.

P ros: - Strong, tough, with 2 Attacks and a 3+ armour save, Flayed Ones are genuinely worthy close combat

troops.- Their special rules give the Flayed Ones some real advantages - never underestimate a close combatunit that also has the Infiltrate special rule.

Cons: - No power weapons and only limited anti-tank capability (disruption fields for +3 points) mean that theywill really struggle against other close combat specialists and vehicles.- Since they're racing off to join close combat, they are often found isolated, especially away from your Necron Lord.

Necron Warriors The heart and soul of the Necron force, Necron Warriors are powerful and durable. They are roughlyequivalent to Space Marines in terms of their stat-line, with the added bonus that they've got the We'll BeBack special rule and gauss flayers, which can damage even the best armoured vehicles. It's hard toimagine a more versatile Troops choice.Realistically, there are only two (potentially negative) points worth making about Necron Warriors - thefirst is that they're fairly pricey at 18 points each. That's not really a big complaint, since they're worth the



points you pay... but they're going to be outnumbered, a lot. The other is that they're the only Troopschoice available to the Necron player. Again, that's not really a big deal, but your opponent will know whatyour Troops are, and how to deal with them before the game has even started.

P ros:

- Strong reliable troops, with their We'll Be Back rule they're perfect for holding objectives.- Gauss Flayers can wound any enemy and even damage vehicles.

Cons:

- High points cost on basic troops means that they're always going to be outnumbered.- Perhaps a little vulnerable in close combat (their Initiative 2 leaves them at risk).

Necron Warriors The heart and soul of the Necron force, Necron Warriors are powerful and durable. They are roughlyequivalent to Space Marines in terms of their stat-line, with the added bonus that they've got the We'll BeBack special rule and gauss flayers, which can damage even the best armoured vehicles. It's hard toimagine a more versatile Troops choice.Realistically, there are only two (potentially negative) points worth making about Necron Warriors - thefirst is that they're fairly pricey at 18 points each. That's not really a big complaint, since they're worth thepoints you pay... but they're going to be outnumbered, a lot. The other is that they're the only Troopschoice available to the Necron player. Again, that's not really a big deal, but your opponent will know whatyour Troops are, and how to deal with them before the game has even started.



P ros:

- Strong reliable troops, with their We'll Be Back rule they're perfect for holding objectives.- Gauss Flayers can wound any enemy and even damage vehicles.

Cons: - High points cost on basic troops means that they're always going to be outnumbered.- Perhaps a little vulnerable in close combat (their Initiative 2 leaves them at risk).

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The Army (Continued)


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Wraiths Necron Wraiths are a hard unit to justify; at 41 points they are a costly investment in a Necronarmy. Despite their high cost, however, they're extremely destructive if used effectively. Wraithsmove like jetbikes, with the following exception: they can move through any terrain, treating it as



open ground. This makes them possibly the fastest, most manoeuvrable unit in Warhammer 40,000.Not only are Wraiths fast, they're deadly in close combat. With 3 Attacks and a staggeringlyhigh Initiative and Strength, they typically cause carnage when they charge, weathering anyattacks back with their 3+ invulnerable save. Try using them to pick off vehicles too, since their

Strength 6 is more than enough to batter through a vehicles armour in close combat.

P ros: - Fast, very, very fast.- Invulnerable saving throw means they can take on almost anything.- Lots of Attacks and a high Strength makes for deadly close combat proficiency.

Cons:

- 41 points is a lot, and unless you take more than one they'll probably get killed off prettyquickly. Linked to this, their small maximum squad size means that they can get isolated and

killed unless you're careful with them.- No long-ranged weapons.

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Necron Destroyers Necron Destroyers are seriously dangerous business. They move very, very fast (since they're

jetbikes), they're armed with savagely powerful gauss cannons and they benefit from the We'll BeBack special rule. You'd be forgiven for thinking that Necron Destroyers had no real weaknesses.



As far as I can see it, you'd be right. They're expensive in points, but undoubtedly worth it andthey're a Fast Attack choice. They're a must-have choice for your army.Either take larger units (the full five models allowed in a squadron) or a couple of smaller unitsand keep them within close range of each other. You need a least one Destroyer standing at theend of the enemy's turn so that you can make We'll Be Back rolls.

P ros: - Gauss Cannons, with Strength 6, AP 4 and Heavy 3 are just devastating.- They're jetbikes, so they're lovely and fast.- They've got Toughness 5 , they're Necrons and have a 3+ armour save, so killing them off ishard work.

Cons:

- 5 0 points each means that a unit or two will eat up a sizeable chunk of your army.- They're just as poor in close combat as other Necron units (which isn't that bad, but it's probably

their greatest weakness).

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S carab Sw ar m s

Often underrated but actually highly effective, Scarab Swarms are cheap, fast and capable of causing anarchy in your opponent's side of the board. Each Scarab Swarm has 3 Wounds,enabling them to tie down most opponents in protracted close combats. Watch out for enemyblast markers, (which cause double wounds on swarms) and keep away from models with







unit. Their weapon is equivalent to a lascannon and can smash apart armoured vehicles withrelative ease. The Necron army has a lot of weapons that can damage enemy vehicles, but notmany that can kill them easily, and that's where the Heavy Destroyer comes in.Use your Heavy Destroyers to quickly manoeuvre their way to the flanks of the enemy wheretheir enhanced penetrating power can really take advantage of the lower armour values found

on vehicle's side and rear armour. Take care not to overexpose your Heavy Destroyers though -they cost 6 5 points each and they're only available in squadrons of up to three. Use their speedto move from cover to cover and only reveal them when you're ready to blow some poor unsuspecting tank to smithereens!

P ros: - Powerful anti-tank weapon mounted on an extremely agile frame.- Benefits from the We'll Be Back rule.

Cons:

- Very expensive for a single wound model.- Only available in small squadrons of 1-3 models.

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M onolith The Monolith is a symbol of terror on the battlefield, capable of unleashing monumental arcaneenergies from its pulsing green crystal core. Necrons can enter play through it's malevolentlyglowing portal while its banks of weapons unleash torrents of fire onto the foe. The Monolith is the



best-armoured vehicle in Warhammer 40,000 (Apocalypse notwithstanding), it has armour value14 all around, its living metal hull means that weapons do not gain bonuses to damage it and, tomake matters worse, it can Deep Strike into play.

As far as I can see, and in all my experience with and against them, there is only onedisadvantage to the Necron Monolith - it costs 23 5 points. That's actually a really good price for a

model as destructive as this, but bear in mind that's 23 5 point's worth of models that contribute toyour phase out limit missing from the force. To some extent this is mitigated by the fact that theMonolith can help keep your warriors fighting - if it teleports a unit, the models get to reroll anyWe'll Be Back rolls, and as you will see later there are some really great 'dirty tricks' that can workaround the Monolith.

P ros: - Deadly weaponry with the gauss flux arc and particle whip.- Living metal hull makes it practically impervious to all but the best anti-tank weaponry!- Enhances the Necron's manoeuvrability thanks to the portal.

Cons: - 23 5 points is a lot to put into one model - one very lucky lascannon hit could kill it.- It does not contribute to the Necron's phase out limit.

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Cunning Ploys




There are a few tactics and strategies that have served me particularly well in my games. Here I'll showyou my typical army list, talk you through my favourites ploys, and explain how to pull them off.

This army is my 'Necron-heavy' force. There are 44 'Necrons' in the force, so it's fairly hard to force themto phase out, and with the resurrection orb at the centre of the force this becomes doubly difficult for theenemy. The concept behind the force is relentless advance and it 's very comfortable against armies likeSpace Marines, Tau, Eldar and Imperial Guard.

I've been known to struggle a little against Orks and Tyranids with this force makeup, simply for lack of blast weapons and close combat specialists. Such opponents are tough, but not impossible - just focuson wiping out one enemy at a time and if close combat becomes inevitable, make sure you do thecharging, robbing the enemy of valuable attacks and charge bonuses. That's where the Tomb Spydersand Destroyer Lord can really help out too - they've both got Toughness 6, which makes them hard towound and their weapons go through armour with ease.

HQ Necron Lord 100 Destroyer Body 30 Warscythe 10 Lightning Field 25

HQ Necron Lord 100 Resurrection Orb 40 Gaze of Flame 15

E lites 6 Imm ortals 168



HQ Necron Lord 100

T roo p s 10 Necron Warriors 180

T roo p s

10 Necron Warriors

180


Fast Attack 3 Necron Destroyers 150

Fast Attack 3 Necron Destroyers 150

Fast Attack 5 S carab Sw ar m s 60

H eavy Supp ort 2 x T o m b Sp yders 110

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T actic 1: T he F iring Line

The three units of Necron Warriors and the Immortals form my mainbattle line, with the Necron Lord onfoot attached to the centre unit. The idea here is that the resurrection orb keeps the core of the army aliveand kicking, no matter what. The firing line then advances unflinchingly into the face of the enemy,keeping up a steady hail of fire.

The rearmost unit of Necron Warriors is placed ready to duck back and claim an objective later in thegame, once the enemy has been thoroughly suppressed.



T actic 2: S ec u re T he F lanks The Tomb Spyders are placed guarding each flank. Here, they can slow down (and sometimes even stopdead) any attempts to encircle my army with fast-moving assault troops. Tomb Spyders are great for slowing down dedicated assault units, unless the enemy are using power fists or equivalent.

I don't create new Scarab Swarms with my Tomb Spyders, as a general rule. I need them alive and well(and I need the average Toughness to remain high).

T actic 3: H igh- Sp eed Death The Destroyers play a vital role in this army, responding to the enemy threat wherever it is greatest with adeluge of high-powered gauss fire. Typically speaking I have one unit on either flank where they can fireinwards at units in the centre (36" range has it's uses). This way they tend to be hitting the sides of



vehicles and catching infantry unawares. By keeping the Destroyers within 12" of the Tomb Spyders, I'mable to ensure their survival a little longer too. If one whole unit should be destroyed, the Tomb Spyder enables them to make their We'll Be Back rolls, and rejoin another unit of the same type elsewhere on theboard. A great way of getting around their relatively low unit size.

T actic 4: T he Lord of H osts Although his weapon can only be used up close and personal, I expect great deeds from the Destroyer Lord in this army. Typically he ranges out ahead of the army (generally turbo boosting in Turn 1) andlooks for vulnerable enemy units. Small formations of elite troops and enemy vehicles are my favouritetargets. The Warscythe ignores all saving throws and gives +2D6 penetration against vehicles, so he'll

easily smash anything shy of a Land Raider.

Half of the effect of a unit such as this is the psychological value - the Destroyer Lord is so unnerving hedraws a lot of fire. With that in mind, position him so that he can't be targeted too freely. He's gotToughness 6, a 3+ armour save and a 4+ invulnerable save, but even so he's not unstoppable.



T actic 5: A P lag u e of S carabs! Scarabs are great fun! I hurl these forward with the Necron Destroyer Lord. The presence of five largebases of buzzing Scarabs is inordinately distracting and well worth the 60 points they cost. As soon as I can, I throw them headlong into the nearest enemy unit (choosing shooty ones, if I can). They're great atbogging down enemies who would interfere with my Necron Lord's plans for a start.

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Nick's Nasty Necrons!




Nick Bayton of the Studio Hobby Team is a renowned Necron player with an absolutely huge Necroncollection (something like 6000 points worth in total). I don't know anyone who plays with a Necron forcequite as often as Nick does, and as a result he's become quite adept, to say the least.

The army presented here is a fairly typical 2000-point army list, one that Nick has used a few times over the last couple of months. The second Monolith is an expendable element, and Nick will happily replace itwith a squad of Pariahs if he's planning on trying out the second of his tactics (see below).

HQ Necron Lord 100 Veil of Darkness 60 Nightmare Shroud 30




E lites 10 F layed Ones 180

Fast Attack 3 Destroyers 150

Fast Attack 10 S carab Sw ar m s 120

H eavy Supp ort H eavy Destroyer 65



HQ Necron Lord 100

H eavy Supp ort M onolith 235

H eavy Supp ort

M onolith

235

1985

T actic 1: All Fear M e! Nick: To pull this off you'll need a Necron Lord with the veil of darkness and a nightmare shroud (and itdoesn't hurt to have a squad of Pariahs knocking around too). It's a straight-forward tactic though - simplyDeep Strike your Necron Lord into the middle of the enemy force and unleash the nightmare shroud.

Every enemy unit within 12" must pass a Leadership test or fall back towards the nearest board edge.

This tactic is absolutely perfect for using against armies that like to lurk near the edges of the board, suchas Imperial Guard and Tau. A well-placed 'reveal' can often cause several units to flee in disarray and if they're already near to the board edge when it happens, you can scupper your opponent's plans!



Extra evil: get a unit of Pariah's into position by any means necessary, bringing your enemy's Ld down to7.

T actic 2: T he Ol' One- T wo

Nick: For this trick you will need two monoliths (although you can make do with a Monolith and a Lordwith the veil of darkness, if you want to).

Watch in glee as your Monolith pounds your enemy elites into submission! All you need to do is engagethe enemy with one of your own Necron units that is tough enough to survive a round or two of combat(Flayers are a good choice). In your next Movement phase, use one Monolith to teleport your beleaguered unit out of close combat (which might yield some more reinforcements thanks to the rerolledWe'll Be Back rolls). The other Monolith should then open fire on the enemy, who will now be tightlypacked together since they were moments ago engaged in close combat. If your large blast marker doesn't cover the whole squad, I'll be very surprised.

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Chad's Close Combat Necrontyr

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Chad's Necrons are one of the most common sights on the gaming boards here in the Studio - he's an oldhand at using his evil, metal-skinned aliens to unleash carnage on the battlefield.

When asked to produce a recent army list, he offered the following - a sinister force with a terrifying closecombat potential, quite at odds with what most players would expect to face when playing against aNecron army.

HQ Necron Lord 100 Warscythe 10 Resurrection Orb 40 Phylactery 15 Gaze of Flame 15





HQ Necron Lord 100 T roo p s 10 Necron Warriors 180

Fast Attack 3 Wraiths 123



H eavy Supp ort 3 x T o m b Sp yders 165

H eavy Supp ort M onolith 235

1489

T actic 1: T he Nefario u s Nine Chad: using three units of three Wraiths working in concert, you can create a close combat wave that canbe used to break the enemy centre, or can attack one flank and slowly work their way from one side tothe other. Three charging Wraiths have a total of 12 Attacks between them, which is increased to 36 if you can hit with all three units at once. Bearing in mind their Initiative and Strength of 6, there's not much



that can weather such an offensive and live. Of course, you lose all three of your Fast Attack choices, butthe rewards are usually worthwhile.

Remember against vehicles (except 'fighting' ones like Dreadnoughts) you always roll to damage againstthe rear armour - so they'll even smash up tanks.

T actic 2: Arachno p hobia

Chad: Tomb Spyders in groups are very effective against tanks and other armoured vehicles. Avoid thetemptation to replace a close combat weapon with a particle projector if you want your Tomb Spyder'smain role to be anti-armour. Because they are monstrous creatures, Tomb Spyders roll 2D6 armour penetration, and with their Strength of 6 and the typically low rear armour value of vehicles they're almostguaranteed to penetrate.

The real trick is to keep your Tomb Spyders out of the line of fire and in some cover until they're ready tostrike! This has proven especially useful in Apocalypse games where there are lots of tanks to choosefrom.

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necrons tactica