Not many people have faced a properly utilized Tikbalang. They might have been on the receiving end of a lot of dirty tricks, but nothing quite compares to a Mimetic BS15 HMG with C+. HMGs usually aren't in a position to kill stuff on rooftops just to retreat back behind linked Sapper Snipers and a Naga Minefield. S6 with unimpaired vertical Movement requires a completely different approach to defense. A Su-Jian is a lot less deadly and easier to kill off as he needs to be closer and ISS doesn't have the same defensive capabilities. To come back to Aleph, C+ might be the saving grace for the Rudras, but the base Profile is just so awful next to Tik and Kitty.... it also doesn't really benefit much from the Apsara or Assisted Fire. If the Rudras had some sort of Breaker gun to get some very good use out of the extra ARM Roll from Assisted Fire Shock ammo, that would have been worth considering. As it is, the big bot's main purpose is to bring a body with better raw defense and a Repeater for a Yadu Link. Apsaras are also a bit of a bummer, one of the main reasons I liked tje, a week ago was to get some good use out of Alpeh's TR Drone. With the actualy release it turns out Jumper Z only works on Links.... so that idea is pretty much dead now. BS13 Dakini with Number 2 is still a good reason to bring one, but it's also pretty much the only thing that really benefits.
Huh? Sure, Rudra might not be Tik's equal, but it's to be expected, it costs half the points. I recon it comes pretty damn close. K1MR with Assisted Fire seems to me like a complete murder against anything.
I call that one. My answer is the Sphinx for even moar pain (spitfire, double flamethowers, TO... C+) I also find that a big neon sign yelling "don't play Vanilla, play OSS!!!!". Frankly, while I could understand why not give that to the TR drone (or maybe the EVO, etc...), making the Apsaras available for lone Dakinis or Rudras would have been ok. Meh, it's not the unit, but the competition. There are other, more attractive units for Aleph, that are either more durable or less, with a cost more acceptable. Right now, the mine dispenser and the k1 are the only good selling points, since the apsaras requires the guy to be in a fireteam to work... and I think the best use of the Apsaras there would be a Haris of Rudra with FTO and a Yadu. Hardly more interesting that a Rudra with Supportware and a Core of Dakinis with the Apsaras.
I don't think I'd strain getting Jumper support for the Rudra, unless I'd really need that +1 BS edge. I'd start with Jumper on Dakinis, and use old school Assisted Fire on Rudra. It does have competition - Yadu MRifle or NCO, Shakti, Deva Spitfire, Mk.3/4 - but brings enough uniqueness to the table. At least for me. I consider it to be an awesome unit.
Rudras are okay. They could've been much more interesting units if they were willing to give us more and different weapon options. And if they put weapons on tail. 2x MULTI Rifle or 2x Breaker Combi Rifle would have been an awesome yet not overpowered option. I would've loved Feuerbach or Missile Launcher. Viral Marksman Rifle! As is... Eh. It's definitively playable, but not very exciting unit.
Now that i had time to consider, I'm pretty happy with the Sectorial: not as many fun mechanics as Tunguska, but everything is playable and list building is diverse enough that you can mix things up every game.
I suppose it's because I contrast Vs Vanilla Aleph, and in those points I have too many options with greeks...
I think apsara are a waste for me. Putting another 30 points to buff a fireteam when i already have an alternative way to buff in the list is just gratuitous. Those points could go into giving the list more depth outside 9f the link.
By the way, don't forget the rudras is a repeater, which will help keeping it under assisted fire. Dakinis link for example won't move with their own repeater and will need to bring a deva HD if they want to have an easy access to buff - which is a liability in a fireteam. I think the poor Rudras is misconsidered here because it is a toolbox. Yes, for it's price, there may be better choice for doing this or that, but the rudras can do both this and that. It is a remote that is made to go into the field, not to stay at long range. That's fine, it has 15/10 and climbing +. And Arm4 / STR2, so it won't go down from a single shot or a lucky crit, contrary to dakini HMG for example. Since the engineer may not be close, that's a good thing. It has it's own repeater, so it can always be buffed, including EVO if it is not (or not anymore) in a fireteam (remember they are AVA2, with 2 lamedhs and/or daleths taking an EVO may have some sense). It's weaponry is aimed at midrange battles, but it's quite good, especially when buffed. For example if in reactive in a haris with assisted fire, this is a B2 DA+shock ignoring cover mod to hit with MULTI rifle. Or suppressive fire K1+shock. On a rather sturdy platform. It can do plenty imho, and deserves some love.
One thing I've been heavily considering is a Repeater ARO team of a Daleth (maybe even two), two Lamedhs, and a Rudra, all buffed by an EVO Probot. Overclock all those REMs, and that's B2 Flash Pulses, B2 Combi Rifle(s) (if that's better than using the Daleth's Flash Pulses due to the battlefield situation), and a B2 K1 Marksman Rifle. All for 100-117 points and 0.5 SWC. Combine with an Engineer, and spend the other 150-200 points on whatever you please. Best of all, said ARO team does half a dozen other jobs, from Camo sweeping, to fast Specialists, to an excellent Repeater network for any other Hackers you bring, to all the other programs on an EVO hacker, to all the durability and toolbox capability of the Rudra. Sure, it's a bit pricey, but I'm convinced of its potential.
@RecklessPrudence: I'm using PanO counterpart - Pathfinder+Fugazi+Peacemaker+Bulleteer - on a regular basis, and I swear by it. It brings loads of utility, just as you've noticed.
Yeah - I was already occasionally using the Daleth, Lamedhs, and EVO-bot for an ARO network and all the functionality they bring, but I feel like the Rudra will be the final piece of the puzzle, and make it work a lot like the PanO version, only with an Aleph twist.
Or December. It's all speculation for now, though. And I really hope that box will include LGL as well.
Hmm. The Rudra's Mine Dispenser could work really well as a support piece for an Andromeda alpha strike. Move the REM up once and toss a mine from a distance, then let her pop the ARO.
That could work pretty damn well, especially as part of a Yadu Haris team. Move up and throw down some mines, then Andromeda can flush them out and the other Yadu can clean up the mess (perhaps a HMG, or a Deva Spitfire!)
Any clue as to why we got stiffed with a 3 model box that neglects the LGL? Or the opportunity to add a Deva/Yadu/Apsara in the vein of the Securitate and Keisotsu boxes?
Why not use a Naga? She can deploy closer, and has a marker status... If they do, then they can eat it. I don't need an eight deva as a tax to get dakinis with such ridiculous poses/sculpts (yeah, I see the sniper pose as useless, the HMG I dislike because of the drum, and the paramedic... I don't even wanna think about that one).
