The Firebat looks cool to me, but a canopy would look a lot better on it. A pilot should not be exposed to the open like that. I think they should all be Remote Presence drones. I understand though why they did it. They like the idea of a person in control. Like riding a flying bike. But the looks don’t matter to me. I can think of better things to spend points on.
I just wish they were worth taking. They’re not terrible. But comparing say the Firebat or the less good Haqq one to the Go pod or Redeye. I feel like they either need to be cheaper or tuned to be more in line with the others. I know comparing across factions is not ideal, but since these are new and only a handful of units currently exist, it’s hard not to. I thinks it’s a cool idea. As an aside, I do hope some other non areal VH units come eventually. They don’t have to be massive tanks or whatever. I know they said that’s not the direction they want to go. But I think there’s more to explore in the sci fi universe than motorcycles and flying motorcycles. XD
Hmm, as far as I can see, the Haqq flyers are: Zaybak. ARM 5, STR 3, and packs a Spitfire & Smoke GL, plus Albedo (-6). It makes the model a pretty straightforward high-burst gun platform, rather robust, and brigning in advantage against both MSV and non-MSV targets. I see it as rather intuitive (if kinda blunt) instrument to use. It is available in Qapu Khalqi, a sectorial which defintiely appreciates a robust gun platform. Haytham. ARM 3, STR 1,5 (as in, STR 1 + NWI) plus Mimetism -6. Packs a +1B Heavy Shotgun and either a Thunderbolt (decent, though not spectacular) or Heavy Flamethrower (an... odd choice for a flying vehicle) and Flammenspeer (thematically, very appropriate, but IMO lacking here under current rules - Burst 1 and Disposable (2)). Defintely an instrument requiring a lot of finesse IMO. Haytham is availablein Ramah, and Ramah tends to be a bit more on the Glass Cannon side. In my eyes, the cheaper of the Haytham variants needs a little upgrade: straight Burst 1 Flammenspeer with 2 shots is not enough to brave AROs while trying to close in for the use of the shotgun (apparently intended as main weapon). +1 SD Burst should do the trick, and I'd love to have an extra Flammenspeer on it (so 4 shots total, albeit still fired at Burst 1, +1 SD).
I don't get why they gave many of them short range, low burst weapons. The majority Feiquan weapons are only good up to 16". The only thing that can get up to 24" is the Akrylate. I'm having a hard time seeing he USE of them. The Redyeye and Go-Pod at least look like fairly good killers. But they are not specialists. They are not good distractions. The only use I can see right now for the Feiquan is the Sensor. But I have other cheaper ways of doing the same thing. Edit: I want to say that I do appreciate CB trying new things. They need to push new products sell. I just wish they were a bit more balanced and tested things more. They need a checklist of things. 1. Does this have purpose to the army it is in? 2. Does this do something that that the force it's in doesn't already do? 3. Is it balanced in comparison to other forces? 4. Is it worth taking over something that does the same thing? 5. Is it appropriate for the force it's in?
Feiquan can move up to 14" in a single order, is relatively durable, and has an absolutely amazing kit on either of its profile within 16", all while being fantastically cheap for its abilities. With two orders, you can pretty much ensure he's in position to brick any high-value target you could want. The thing is nuts.
I'll try it out the Feiquan but wish I could say the same for the Firebat. Either way, it's proxies for me for a while.
