I was wondering what the thoughts are on Ariadna and its sectorials way to deal with strong ARO pieces (Particularly I've been thinking how scary a fully linked MSV2 Sniper Kamau or 2 are. TAK I'd say a fully linked Vet Kazak HMG, or fully linked MSV1 Frontovik would be just about the best in a straight firefight, a fully linked Highlander in CHA and maybe now a . A fully linked sniper Kamau ignores everything about a surprise Spetsnaz attack, ignoring camo, surprise shot and the mimetism imposing the same penalty as cover. I'm sure you can always say flank them with Antipode or Dog-Warrior style units, but what do you guys think is Ariadna's answer to very strong ARO units with good positioning like a tower-based MSV2 sniper or something similar? What would each of the sectorials and vanilla bring to bear?
Antipode Assault Pack is an option. They are fast and in CC they will tear them appart. He can only discover one at a tme, and you can recamo if needed.
you covered most. The basic procedure is to isolate an enemy link team member and shoot with better odds. more dice and bette mods. If it is absolutely not possible to isolate a link member and also not possible to ignore the threat while continuing the mission, you can sacrifice one trooper to hopefully kill a team member by pouring all the shots at it and getting killed by another one. After that, it should be possible to deal with the rest. Always try to ignore a threat if it is too costly to eliminate it.
Usually against any "long-range" fireteam, (normally used as ARO pieces), my basic tactics are, (in rough order); Ignore it. Ignore it again. High burst weaponry - e.g. the aforementioned Vet Kazak HMG in TAK, or Highlander Grey HMG in CHA. Close-range guns - e.g. shotguns. Throwaway units, preferably with direct templates; and even better if they have Total Immunity! CC. OK, MSV2 means we can't use smoke to cover our advance, so it'll probably take more orders to manoeuvre into close range, but it's still doable.
Coordinated Orders are another option, one member will likely be a sacrifice but the others will get unopposed shots unless they dodge.
For TAK specifically: While it is tempting to just roll your Spetsnaz against a 5-man core team, and it might work, the best option is an aggressive rush by either an Irmandinho or a Dog Warrior. Antipodes are an option but IMO they are going to have a harder time getting multiple models into b2b if the opponent is positioned on a rooftop against cover. For an S2 low arm enemy, chain rifles are the better option. That said, against tough AROs they are good for their AP. Last game I sent antipodes after a Harised Rudras because of the ARM and STR considerations, for example. Using a Dog or Irmandinho, you don't necessarily want to go after the ARO piece first...better to get close and either chain rifle multiple guys filling the link to remove the ARO piece's link bonuses, or spec fire grenades to hit multiple guys. Once the link is down to 3, your Spetsnaz is the preferred tool. For Ariadna generally: Uxia is extremely good for this. Superior infiltrate, then pop the corner and blast fools with your BSG or spray them with B5 Assault Pistols. CR/AP SAS are kind of a budget version of her in this regard. If they're particularly bad at CC, you can always throw smoke and carve them up. Across the board, Infiltrators with mines are good. Van Zant is useful for shooting people in the back. While you won't be able to negate SSL2, you can pie slice and engage one enemy at a time. Last unit I'd recommend is the Paracommando HMG. If you can AD out of LOF of the SWC-equipped team member, you can maneuver to pick off other team members and reduce the link's bonuses.
use one of the billion and one infiltrators with mines to bust links? Ariadna is in a very very good place lately. Just remember to spam orders and abuse camo, as always :)
Coordinated order - either like colbrook said, or cheap FOs to get the ARO piece targeted, and then a traktor mul with katyusha...
Assuming you don't want to shoot the linked heavy weapon due to bad odds, and assuming the linked heavy weapon has MSV2 to limit smoke, you can just use Camo to do the mission. If they opt to Discover, you can try for an uncontested shot, or just leapfrog from cover to cover to achieve whatever needs doing. Alternately, Ariadna isn't exactly short on units that can be inside the enemy DZ in one order, threatening the link members. For many armies, "hunt the link members" isn't an easy option because they're presumably very well hidden. Vanilla Ariadna doesn't have to worry about that though. Mirage-5, Van Zant, Uxia, Infiltrating Grunts to tear up link bonuses is pretty easy. Special mention to Duroc for his durability when he enters play, which lets him or Margot follow up with grenades vs squishy low PH, low-ARM targets.
There's also a boatload of light grenade launcher in ariadna, so speculative fire is often an option. For TAK specifically, you have grenades on the spetnaz parachutists profiles. With PH12 you're lobing them on a 9 if you're close enough. He's also a good option to alpha strike the fusillier link and weaken it a bit before launching an attack on the kamau with a linked kazak AP HMG/Frontovik Sniper or a spetsnaz HMG. Otherwise as barakiel said you can just ignore it and use your camos to move around and do the objectives, unless the kamau has LoS on all objectives ofc (which is more a table layout issue than a list/match-up one to be honest).
The guys in my games LOVE their 5 man links, and will dump points and SWC to ensure they have a scary dude with high BS and MSV on their side. But we are Ariadna, we do not fight fair. They're on our Dawn now. Here are some of my favorite ways too despose of MSV sniper links. Antipode assault pack, these guys are a furry tow missle that with few a few orders will murder a single mini you really need dead. Use clever movement, high mov, and abuse super jump, They will go places no mini has gone before. I tend to prefer them over the Dog warrior as he seems better suited to kick in the door on an order farm. The Antipode assault pack isn't too big of an investment, as the handler is still a regular order with a smoke grenade launcher. If they kill most anything other than a line trooper you're in the black, and I've had more then one opponent invest orders into seeing them dead when they've already completed their task. They're more of a rambo killer then a link killer... down below are my real favorites. Shotgun spetznaz has been my go to link buster (I may be biased as he's the mini that got me into infinity/russians/tak) for anyone who doesn't invest in full pain train links. He can level the BS playing field within 8" and going on blast mode will put down a link that your opponent put in a poor position with a single shot shredding people under a shock template. Yet again, he has stealth or you can feed it more orders with cautious moves to deny ARO's and get in position after parachutist. Shoot people in the back. Be sneaky, hit hard. In the right position he will mop the floor with an unfortunate link. Scouts, Ojotnik and infiltration offer more then just the camo token. This is where you'll hear the term split the pie. Get rid of that 5 man bonus and then work from there. With infiltration you have a lot of freedom to put him in a place where his MSV sniper in his ivory tower may not be able to see the scout, but the scout can see one of his linked friends. Shock helps if he keeps a doctor or a paramedic to keep the link upkept. As for the red white and blue Desperadoes, a bit tough too get up into the right place. But they can hold a MSV hostage if they're close due too SSl2 and a smoke placed earlier in the turn. If they ARO then they get sprayed with a chain rifle as I sit in the smoke. If you wait till active you have assault pistols to burry them in dice in a range most msv snipers are at a disadvantage. Oh they're also 13 pts for the assault pistol loadout, if I lose the desperado it's no biggie. I've also had success with spec firing the minuteman(woman) with grenade/boarding shotty. Good BS, good movement. Lob grenades until he gets out of way or fails and catches on fire... For bludgeoning your link problems to death, the Ariadna thiccboys may be able to do the job. As blackjack or ratnik spraying rocket/t2 sniper/aphmg fire may be able to simply play the game of. "I can survive 1 hit, can you?" Get him to accept a dodge out of the way instead of a gamble and the king in the castle is out of position for a turn in which you tighten the noose and pick off more link members. On active the HMG blackjack can simply fish for crits or gamble on pure dice rolls, it looks scary on the table and with those 4 dice of aphmg fire. Sniper towers can be unpleasant, but defeating MSV in my experience is doable with good use of terrain, or simply the right tool for the right job. Just remember, not everyone has MSV and MSV can't see through terrain. Splitting the pie is big here, getting rid of that +3bs is massive, and he can't reform the 5 man link until his turn. You have infiltration and therefore good placement options on your side... Most importantly have fun Comrade.