Actually, if they leave themselves out like you suggest, it would be more profitable to drop a mine. That really screws with the next order declaration.
With few visors it means you rely more on templates and CC to deal with vis mods and you have tools to exploit those aspects or avoid the confrontation with smoke and camo. The best thing to do against the arm 5 HI is avoid it or engage it from an angle where it doesnt have cover or is at a disadvantage.
Its not as rough as it used to be as most knights that are specialists are stacked for classified completion. They're mostly all vet or elite infantry, the Santiago, FKFO and Hospitalier doc bring their specialties and they're obviously HI. It's great classified coverage but the engineer ones can be a but rough without a TAG or something durable to target without your opponent wiping it off the table and the usual wip 12 issues.
LoL ? Sure you are BS14 but most of those camo guys have mimetism so that you are on effective BS11 versus their BS11-12 ^^ (it's really not that funny to shot Frontivicks HRL in link in close range even with KotHS, as the guy shoots better than you)
Actually new classifieds are more important to MO than the recent "rework". New classifieds puts more emphasis on CC or other "close combat" skills, or actually promote some risky plays (those unopossed CC/WIP check in engaged state) or D-Charge usage (hello new Santiagos). But in general low order count will make every Classified Run a thing which you really have to plan for.
Pretty well as almost all you guys are veteran or elite, good at CC and heavy infantry. D charge is not hard to bring either just as almost any kind of specialist (hacker, docteur and you got a good TO Fo) I would even say that's one of their favorite mission now with the new classified deck.
Highly Classified might be one of their preferred scenario. Just like Comm Center and Countermeasures. In fact, the only one the really fear is Transmission Matrix due to evident reasons but I think you can manage to have a list which can dominate this one too.
Anything that relies on specialists, but doesnt want to lose those specialists ties in well with MO. Oustide the engineer MO has both a Tough Doctors, Hackers, Forward Observers and Dcharge carriers. combined that innate toughness with linkabillity and its pretty baller to not worry too much about assassination the way other factions have too.
Or as an MO player rely on your High strength HI. typical MO gunfighters will tear through an ariadna fighter, leveraging the higher BS, true 2W and linkabillity. and if we look at the top end MO HI we really can smash through that kind of unit. Or you can bring your CC to bear on hte opponents gunfighter and kill it that way
I have to say that even with the stats, I have had few to no situations to get into CC against an enemy model with MO unless I was being silly. On the other hand I usually find myself in CC at least once a game with Haqq due to leverage numbers and or smoke. With MO I just find that I have to engage my opponents in ways that prohibit CC or just make it a worse choice. Against a arm5 HI I would probably be looking to drop a boarding shotgun on it if possible or some sort of close range shooting.
I agree the CC is primarily defensive in nature on MO. Protecting them by giving them a threat vector vs other CC specialists. But it is an option. Particularly with tuetons and magisters who will really leverage their CC relative to BS weaponry
You can move to a corner, force a ZoC aro, when move in plain sight with second skill. Then on another order you can engage in CC. Against some targets it can be really worth it. Also it depends on the kind of table you have. In N3 CC is not anecdotic anymore.
I fully understand and use this when possible, it's just I have trouble getting into these situations due to my opponent's prerogatives. For better or worse, they force me to engage them often head on at range, in places where this would not be possible, where they are covered by additional AROs or math says drop the hammer with the shotty. CB seems to believe that knights will be attacking in gangs in CC to makeup for the lower end CC specialist stats and abilities. This isnt really helped by the nature of fireteam activation and how unwieldy it is to get multiple models into base to base without some aid. The end result is as DABorder said, its primarily a defensive measure against warbands and the like, and, personally, the far more valuable courage and stealth aspects of MA on religious HI.
ill be honest Im not sure thats CBs take on Knights CC at all (that they gang up) Id have thought I was on the money (that its primarily defensive/utility in nature)
@Judge Dredd I would rely on it all day long. But if your opponent has to take this option into account, not setting suppresive fire in corner, that mean this CC skill allready had some utility. But off course you will be shooting at range 95% of the time.
I figure it's part of what they see as the overall design of the knights as they're mostly expect to act in fireteams. It would go towards explaining the philosophy of limiting them so much in terms of CC capabilities if you expect them to take advantage of gang bonuses to pump them up vs most other CC that solos their way on through. Maybe it's the terrain we play on is very different, but my opponents setting up suppression fire on the corner is actually part of the issue in getting in there.
I think if you think that Infinity in 2019 isn't actually really about linked HI MLs in cheap fireteams with fast durable specialists to rush into your opponent's board half then you're playing the game from two years ago.