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Tactica: Shrike and Fleet

Shadow Captain Shrike (or counts as)

The defining Raven Guard HQ of choice, and one that gifts specific chapter tactics upon the list he is in. For just shy of 200pts what do you get, and how best should you use him?

Pros
Incredibly fast with a jump pack and fleet, a potential 24" charge range
Can deploy a variety of ways including deepstrike, infiltration and flank
Master crafted lightning claws ensure re-rolls, rending also threatens tough targets
High WS and 5 attacks on the charge
Invulnerable save of 4+
Grants Fleet as a combat tactic

Cons
Vulnerable to instant death
Needs to be with a unit to be at his most effective
Not great against very tough tanks or monstrous creatures
No melta bombs anymore
Must get into combat to be effective

Overview
To get the best out of Shrike it’s important to know what he is best at and what he is vulnerable too. His weapons ensure he has to get into assault; this is your prime mission for him. At almost 200pts you don’t want him standing around. Fortunately Shrike is wickedly fast so this shouldn’t be a problem.

You also need to asses where he will wreak the most damage, this will not necessarily mean the biggest and badest target.

What unit to deploy him with Shrike
Shrike is very vulnerable on his own, a lascannon to the face doesn’t help. So best ensure he has friends. Remember that his speed is an asset and he only makes up his points in assault. With that in mind choose wisely.

Assault squad
A large squad of ten gives him a lot of protection and ensures he looses none of his speed. Arm the assault sgt with a thunderhammer and you have the core of a deadly team. It becomes a unit than can handle most assault situations and is a character killer.

Vanguard Squad
You can really tool up this squad to ensure it is a combat nightmare, but do balance cost with output. With jump packs you have a unit that can move and strike hard.

Other variations
A Terminator close combat squad can take adavantage of Shrikes infiltrate rule. He will loose some of his speed, but have a lot of protection. It also means your fleeting terminators will get into assault very quickly.

A Dev squad is an interesting choice in that it lets you deploy in the best locations, but it takes away Shrikes effectiveness and means he has to leave and find a means into assault. Still worth considering if that Dev squad can cause maximum damage on turn one.

Tac squads are a possibility if there is a particularly hard objective out of reach, but again Shrike will loose much of his purpose

Deployment
With so many options which is the best? Well first remember that Shrike is only effective in assault and every moment he is not is a waste of points.

The other thing to keep in mind is support. If left alone Shrike does not have the staying power. He will usually require fast support.

Infiltration will allow you to set up after you have seen where your enemy has deployed, meaning you can select your first target and set up 12” to 18” away. But if you do not have the first turn then this is a gamble. Still, Shrikes speed ensures that only the fastest target will get away.

Flanking and Deepstriking are viable options. But remember that he is loosing his worth every moment he is not in combat, and a bad deepstrike or flank roll is hard to recover from. The element of surprise can be a strong asset, specially if your opponent has set up a gun line or is castling his units. If he does this then do not just throw Shrike at them and hope for the best. You will need to break them up, and hold him back a turn or two.

Regular deployment is useful when your opponent has set up well or very defensibly, or against horde when you know a charge will come your way. In this scenario hold shrike back and target either the closet unit or most deadly unit when they get close. Remember support, don’t leave him and his unit alone.

Targets and Assault
So how do you select the best target? Well look at Shrikes out put of a possible 5 power weapon attacks with re-rolls to hit (1) and wound. Bare in mind his limitations against big tanks and monstrous creatures. He excels at cutting down squads of well armed and armored units, like tac squads, crisis suits, chaos marines, burner boys etc. Throw him at units that are vulnerable or will hit you hard like devs, units that think they are safe.

He can also take on characters with his high WS, but try to ensure he is backed up by a sgt wielding thunderhammer or power fist. Librarians and some special characters can take advantage of the fact Shrike can be instant deathed.

Light tanks can also be assaulted but can be a waste as a failed assault leaves him and his unit very vulnerable. Monstrous creatures are really not advised as he lacks both the strength and toughness to go toe to toe. Do not rely on rending as most big beasties have too many wounds for you to get 6’s to wound. Then they lay the hurting on him next round.

Lastly, it is important to remember that in assault he is a separate unit and can be targeted by who ever is in base with him and within 2" of that guy. Your biggest fears are powerfists and the like. You have to avoid them, so pay attention when you charge and who he’s in base with. They can target you but you cannot target them specifically (unless they too are an independent character)

Also, if targeted properly well he will wipe out the unit he charges, so assume he will do so this. Ensure he has support or will not be in the open. Strike from the shadows then return there.

One last thing, he has a bolt pistol. So if not fleeting then shoot it!

The Fear factor
Amusingly, you will find that Shrike has a bit of a reputation that perhaps exceeds his abilities. But this too can be used to your advantage, forcing your opponent to adjust to either avoid him or target him. Be aware of this and hold back his deployment as long as you can (infiltration helps here)

He can do damage when used right and at the right target. But he is no superman and goes down to double strenthgh weaponry and massed fire. Lightning claws are not powerfists, so evaluate strongly whether to charge tanks and monstrous creatures (don’t even think about land raiders as he cant hurt them at all)

Other HQs
Shrike loves a buddy. Chaplains are great to add to his units but you will be loose your abilty to infiltrate and flank. You can still deepstrike if the entire unit has jump packs though. Still, adding in a Chaplain can be tempting to create a truly fearless and fearsome unit with either an assault squad or vanguard.

The librarian doesn’t grant any direct advantage, but can perhaps use gate to get him out or into trouble. His box of tricks can be useful though so do try him out with Shrike.

Conclusion
Get him into combat fast, select your target and deployment wisely. Know his limitations and what combinations of units help or hinder him.





Fleet
If you take Shrike then you may take fleet for your chapter tactics too. Useful.

However, Fleet needs to be taken in to consideration and its value strongly evaluated. On one hand it grants you some of the fastest moving assaults, but on the other can leave you vulnerable if ill timed.

Fleet lets you run AND charge

Evaluating distance
Get good at mentally knowing how long 24" is. Practice and experience helps, but use some guide or make a set measuring stick. The more you can effectively judge a distance the more fleet becomes of value.

When to Fleet
Remember that it is just a D6 run roll, but one which can help you in a lot of situations.

First is that running ignores difficult terrain. Useful when you have jump packs, so land just short and run in to avoid loosing valuable troops. It cuts down the odds of your assault falling short and thus failing.

Second is the wandering unit. Your opponent may not be used to fleeting units and will have assumed his unit is safe. Judge the distance by eye and think whether it is worth it. I have caught many an opponent by surprise when pulling off a long range assault. But do be prepared for a low roll. Sometimes in battle the risk is worth it.

Third is the guarantee. Fleet can be used to ensure you navigate scenery and get every last model into combat. It can make a big difference if your opponent is caught short with a bad deployment. (large ork squads can be caught like this as they can’t bring their numbers to bare)

Fourth is the back up. Fleeting Tacs can add surprising support to an assault squads charge and tip the balance. Fleet can ensure all your units get to play.

What Fleet won’t do

Don’t fleet unless you have a 75% chance of making it into combat. Risk can loose you the game, as well as win it.

Don’t run for the sake of it. Some times it is better to stand and shoot. Evaluate the situation.

Fleet will not make you hit harder, just get you there faster. Remember that running into a head on train will not help you. There are many harder targets out there and the Raven Guard hit only as hard as a codex marine. Is charging that group of stealers worth it? Your are more like the Flash than Superman. Choose your targets.

Conclusion
Fleet is an asset but not a game winning formula straight out the box. It requires thought and restraint, and a good judge of distance. But it can catch a lazy opponent by surprise. It also allows you to co-ordinate assaults without showing your hand or signposting them. Support is the key. Anything that runs needs to either be able to survive or have back up, or it runs into trouble.

A well thought out and written Tactica. Excellent.

A few language issues though:

Shrike does not have Combat Tactics, but Chapter Tactics. A subtle difference in language - but a big one with respect to rules. To avoid confusion, I would change all of the "combat"s to "Chapter"s.

Also, ' = feet and " = inches. That is a really big assault range you have there.

Keep up the good work.

shrike,

in the states, the ' and " thing is as you say, but in other parts of the world is not always so, just so ya know but typically when dealing with "Imperial" measurements, like inches, feet and miles, its as above.

While having shrike with assault or vanguards is good, don't toss away the usefulness of using Shrike to get a Devastor squad into range of required vechiles... a squad armed with MultiMelta's could be firing on vechiles first turn,, and then you could have your assault squad use Jump packs + fleet to run up quickly so SHrike can join them for a turn 2 assault.

From my limited experience, turn 1 assaults normally leave the assaultee alone without support...

fair points, and the infiltration of a dev squad is a viablee tactic which is why I listed it too.

Turn one assaults work well with planning, the general speed of RG means that they can quickly support. Even more so with drop pods landing on turn 1 or infiltrating scouts. If the squad is on its own then of course it will suffer. But in my 30+ games with Shrike I have found the first turn strikes to be pretty brutal, so i personally favour infiltration and a squad to enhance his abilities.

But experimentation is always fun, and the unique tactics of each player also come into play.

I really like this one. Good Job.

The Flash - Superman analogy is very apt, after all, that's what the Raven Guard are. Something i'd like to add is that you should consider taking Shrike for the infiltrate. Personally, i haven't found fleet to be of such huge importance, however, the infiltration and myriad ways of deployment adds a greater dimension to my games. It gives me options without ever having to change the list.

Perhaps something to emphasize abit more on is the toolbox Shrike becomes. That the style of deployment can change how you fight battles. And the ability to choose how to deploy allows you to bring to bear "silver bullets" before he can do anything.

Example, if you're fighting a shooty army, you can get an assault squad in their faces. Alternatively, a horde army can be taken down by infiltrating a squad of devastators with 4 heavy bolters, just to fill them up with holes. Wanna kill tanks, infiltrate a multimelta or two.

Nonetheless, this is an excellent peace.

your tactic is a good read, but i miss the loss of combat tactics as a disadvantage of the use of shrike. i made the experiance that combat tactics can be a mighty instrument if used right.

~hagg

Firstly brillaint work m8 it brought everything together and more, good list of varying tactics and the overview of shrike is great!! top notch stuff




hmmm interesting ideas Sy, but both will have to be supported, against a shooty army and the lack of moving into additional combats really puts them out on a limb, its a brilliant scare tactic but not a great one to kee it alive and shrike is almost bound to win you combats increasing the ris of him being all on his own. i know its not very fair comparison, but my friend borrowed my Raven guard and pulled this tactic against my Tau, and yes while his dread, Sternguard and shrike with Vanguard took a huge chunk of my army out of the game, (a hammerhead a squad of firewarriors, and half a squad of kroot), My crisis teams with a little help from a firewarrior squad, jumped out destroyed the vanguard and shrike in one turn (bad rolls and the deathly plasma, fusion combo), broadside took out the dread and my kroot had lunch on the sternguard, Then i rearranged the line and waited for the reinforcements to show on my gunsights.

As a signature move its brilliant, but as a tactical strategy its... unreliable. just my opinion though obviously, and in a way it worked for him as the game ended in a draw, with neither one of us wanting to be fully comitted with what remained of our troops.

The fact that Shrike and his squad should ALWAYS be supported is a given. I didn't think i'd need to mention it as well.

Although, it's good that you did, because i think a small section for providing adequate support would do really well.

alternatively, the codex could contain a tactica on supporting units. What do you guys think?

I prefer combat tactics compared to fleet.

In a game.. just how much of your units really benefit from fleet? i dare say one or two units only. And they are mostly assault units.

IMHO unless you are playing assault oriented army (which people say is not RG style), i dont think fleet is needed. I've tried Shrike, Khan and Lysander. And i'd say out of those three, Shrike ranks the lowest in terms of combat prowess and overall contribution (tactical wise) to the army.

But i will still play Shrike once in a while.. Just because when people see my RG, they will keep on asking, "Where's Shrike?"

In my experience you have to build a list around Shrike and the fleet tactic to get the best out of both. He has to be at the core, as indeed assault squads gain the most from the extra charge range.
With any list, a successful one combines all its elements and they work within harmony. If you play Eldar this is the only way to get them to work. With Marines you get a bit more give as they are pretty flexible. But still a list requires focus.

I've said before that I would have prefered a better option than fleet, and that still rings true. But the more I play with it the more i'd hate to loose it. It allows you to pick your fights, my assault squads havnt got charged in 20 games because I have that edge. If your arm tacs well then they can benifit from it also and suppport the assaults with power weapons, melta guns and flamers.

Shrike is 5 power weapon attacks with re-rolls and a the ability to put them where you want, in a nut shell. Both Khan and Lysander are fine choices, but in a fluffy RG list i would find them a little out of place.

i agree to that

Niway, FLEET is okay. That extra inches is good psychologically and they can really take you into combat. But most of the time, even RUN is enough.

I'm not against fleet. It's just that i think combat tactics are better.

Agreed that Combat Tactics find better use in more games than Fleet. However, its fluffy for RG as it makes them more mobile then they already are.

And, it also makes them able to have the only scouts in the game with first turn charge.

Infiltrate 19" (you must infiltrate MORE than 18" from an enemy if out of cover), Scout move 6", Move 6", Fleet 1-6", Charge 6".

Something that i forgot to mention earlier is this:

IMO, you don't take Shrike for fleet...What you do take him for is for his infiltrate. It just adds so much in terms of deployment, that i keep him just for that. The ability to come in anywhere, be it infiltrating, outflanking, or deepstriking just adds so much tactically. Personally, that's where the fluffiness comes from. You may not get to change your list to suit your opponent, but Shrike gives you options to change your tactics, your style to suit each opponent.

The fleet is a bonus. What i like is the fact that it really helps drop pod tacticals stay mobile. Also, something that most people overlook is that RG scouts can do something other scouts can't: First turn assault.

Infiltrating in the open is more than 18"(i.e. 18.5") so, even with the scout move (move 6 forward) you're still out of range of the first turn assault. With Shrike on the other hand, your scouts are GUARANTEED to reach assault first turn, because even if you roll a 1", you're in.

Now you may be wondering, why this is so good. Here's the thing...instead of assaulting a squad with them, assault a vehicle. On the first turn, it will be auto-hit on the back armour with your krak grenades.

So turn 1, you'll already have him down by at the very least 1 tank. And this is only counting the scout squad. What about your infiltrated vanguard?

Also, today in my game against ultras, my drop pod tacticals first walked into position to assault his sternguards. But during the course of shooting, my speeders wiped that squad out. So, instead of waiting to get charged by the nearby assault squad, they fleeted and charged the assault squad.

Then when trying to reach an objective on the far end, my tacticals moved 6, fleeted 6, and charged a rhino, allowing them to advance more rapidly than others.

All this is due to fleet. You don't need a list centered around the fleet, just remember to use it when you need to.

Nicely put dude. To put it simply, do not rely on fleet as its effectiveness is in a diceroll but consider it as an added bonus.

If you look at good Ork players, they position their troops well so that they can actually play a whole game without calling a single Waaagh!