So. example: Steel Phalanx deploys first. The list contains Hector, myrm, myrm, myrm, machaon and phoenix, among other stuff. I deploy Hector and two or three myrms in proximity with the intent of a fireteam creation. But! I might keep phoenix in reserve. So i can decide which is the optimal ARO lane for him after opponent deploys. The optimal spot might not be as part of the fireteam i would default him to afterall. Thus: - If i field him in proximity of hector and the boys , can he still join that link during deployment if the leader token had already be placed earlier with one of the myrms? - Or do I have to place the leader token after I deploy phoenix and is he obligated to be the leader in that case? - Can i throw down the leader token during deployment without, at that stage, declaring who exactly is part of that link? [example: you deploy Hector and 3 myrms, but the plan is to only have hector en 2 myrms be part of the team, because you might want to add a fourth member which you have in reserve] - What if You deploy Hector, Machaon en 3 myrms in proximity of one another, when do you declare which 4 of the 5 are comprising the link? I swear, the longer i think about it, the more confused i become. I'll just stop rambling right here, thx.
Ok, this is one of the "not spelled out, but doable": First we go to "Creation of a Fireteam" So, you can place the marker "during the Deployment Phase": Spoiler: Deployment Phase Deployment Phase This phase comes after the Initiative Roll, once the Initiative and Deployment have been chosen. During the Deployment Phase, before the game begins, players place their troops on the battlefield. The Deployment Phase is divided into the following steps: Player One Deployment: Following the order established in the Initiative Roll, as decided by the player who kept Deployment, the first player places all but one of his troops inside his Deployment Zone. Player Two Deployment: Once Player One is done, Player Two places all but one of her troops inside her Deployment Zone. Player One Last Figure: Then, Player One places the troop he kept back during step one. Player Two Last Figure: Finally, Player Two places the troop she kept back during step two. REMEMBER Some Special Skills, such as Infiltrate, Impersonation and Mechanized Deployment, allow players to place certain troops outside their Deployment Zones. Other Special Skills, like Airborne Deployment or TO Camouflage, allow players not to place certain troops on the battlefield at all during the Deployment Phase. Finally, the Strategos Special Skill can alter the Deployment rules for both players. Deployment Rules To deploy your troops on the table, follow these rules: The base of each troop must be entirely within the Deployment Zone. Troops cannot be deployed in base to base contact with enemy troops, neutral troops, Markers or Objectives, regardless of their Special Skills. If, at the beginning of his first Player Turn the player's Lieutenant has been not deployed by virtue of some Special Skill, such as Airborne Deployment, that player begins his first Player Turn in a situation of Loss of Lieutenant (see Loss of Lieutenant. When a troop deploys, its owner can choose to deploy it Prone. To do so, simply place a Prone Marker (PRONE) beside the troop. Unless otherwise agreed upon, troops cannot deploy in a location without enough space to fit their entire base. So the real important part is the one I place in red, which marks "when" does the Deployment phase starts, and the dark green, which marks the steps it's composed of. In conclusion: you can place the Fireteam marker at any time during deployment, and the Deployment phase ends for you once you placed your last miniature on the table, so to speak. So you can hold Phoenix for the last, and then create a Phoenix + machaon + mirm+mirm team with phoenix as the team leader.
So it looks like (combining both @xagroth and @ijw 's answers), you are allowed to hold back a unit that you might want to place in a fireteam and then do so, creating the fireteam by placing your team leader marker at the very end (or maybe creating it earlier, if you want), but you can only adjust for coherency during steps 1 or 2... meaning that your reserve model must be placed by eyeballing it and if you mess up (known once you check deployment coherency after placement) then you're out of luck. Is that right?
Yes, that's right. However you can place that last miniature "inside" the coherency zone by defining the position in your head when you check during steps 1 and 2. Small tricks, like using your HVT to know where the Biotecvore zone ends, or calculate distances using that, angles, and objective markers...
Of course. Intricacies like that come with experience, I was just making sure the rules were right on that because I don't think I've played that strictly to the book in the past (e.g. I'm pretty sure I've held back a plasma sniper Unidron and then adjusted its position after placement to be sure it was in coherency before).
