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More creative ARO options.

Discussion in 'Access Guide to the Human Sphere' started by Maksimas, Jul 26, 2018.

  1. Maksimas

    Maksimas Heavy Infantry Addict Maxim

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    So, I've been wondering... what do people use instead of TR HMG REMs for area denial/control?

    I've found myself asking a few times for what would be a decent ARO piece to use, and almost every single time I ask, the answer is the TR HMG REM... but I feel like there are more creative solutions than simply using a TR HMG REM, or even several of them.

    Hidden Deployment snipers/MLs ( Or if there exist Hidden Deployment (H)RLs or even nade launchers, I'd count them here too, really. ) seem like they'd be one such option for that to me. So do minelayers.
    And if I had to delve into a more ''creative'' idea ARO I could pull out of a hat for an example... Caledonian Volunteers with the Light Shotgun/Chain Rifle profile seem like decent guys for safeguarding the table edges just beyond your DZ for cheaps. And I'm thinking of putting some Celestial Guard FOs to the test for ARO use aswell, they seem like they'd do nicely if you don't put them out there too openly and can be half-decent at guessing ''Is my enemy closer than 8'', or further away than 8''?''.

    Anyways, what do you think are some more creative ARO pieces/solutions, whether specific to a single faction/sectorial, or as a broader concept for several factions?
    I'm interested to see what creative stuff people can think of here.
     
  2. MikeTheScrivener

    MikeTheScrivener O-12 Peace Kepper

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    Long range weapons in a link team – the high ballistic skill and SS2 is tough to beat in a straight up fight.
    TO camo Missile Launcher/ Sniper rifle – A tough to hit powerful weapon capable of catching an opponent off guard or in the open is tough to escape!
    8pt repeater mimetism REM – Jesus, these guys are good. dirt cheap, some defense and a nasty flash pulse. capable of shutting down Total Immunity Rambos too.
    Infiltrators – This one is tricky, often capable of throwing down a mine unopposed or surprising an opponent with a shotgun blast. a dug-in infiltrator can often trade up, provided that he is cheap enough to make it worth it. (Hard cases are good at this, or often things with Minelayer)
     
  3. Maksimas

    Maksimas Heavy Infantry Addict Maxim

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    Ariadnas Hard cases do seem like an interesting form of midfield control, what with having infiltration, CH:Ambush and a Light Shotgun.
    One might complain about them being irregular, but... it does make them cheaper, and it is basically an order already put aside on them ether for relocation or taking an opportunistic shot. Interesting.

    Also, on the topic of TO MLs. While I'm not very well versed in what TO MLs exist out there ( I only know of the Swiss Guard, Hac Tao and Shasvastii Noctifier. ), two of these ( The Swiss and the Hac ) seem like they could double ( I suspect they'd primarily be used as such even. ) as really solid active turn pieces too, what with being high-BS and rather durable HIs.
     
  4. MikeTheScrivener

    MikeTheScrivener O-12 Peace Kepper

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    Well an important thing to keep in mind is that you should expect your ARO piece to die. After all, you are purposely exposing your trooper to the enemy in order to eat up orders.

    At the end of the day, the Hac and Swiss will probably end up doing some active turn work with there secondary weapon or testing their luck with the B1 missile. they ARE 70 points after all.
     
  5. colbrook

    colbrook Grenade Delivery Specialist

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    Irregular isn't a bad thing if you expect the trooper to die, it means there's no loss to your order pool.

    ARO troopers are a lot like sex toys, anything can be one if you try hard enough.

    An HMG pinning down a group of cheerleaders at 20"+ is a better ARO trooper than a sniper at 4" to a warband, it's all about context and positioning, especially when a trooper has a Suppression Fire weapon when and how you use the is as important as the trooper itself.

    The real trick is ARO in depth, you have to accept that any trooper put on ARO duty will eventually die but if your opponent has to fight it's way past a linked sniper, then a mine laying skirmisher, then a pair of cheerleaders in Suppression, then a warband with smoke, just to get to the objective, they'll probably run out of orders before they get there.
     
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  6. Maksimas

    Maksimas Heavy Infantry Addict Maxim

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    Oh trust me, I am used to not getting too attached to my units. 40k has taught me that very well by way of excessive amounts of Fire Warrior firing squads-

    I generally grant myself an expectation that if my opponent wants a unit to die, that unit will be dead by the end of the turn.
    But hey, so long as the unit died a useful death, I am okay with it.

    Also, I find the sex toy metaphor rather amusing-
     
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  7. Section9

    Section9 Well-Known Member

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    TRbots are the ARO tool (almost) everyone has.

    Mechanically, Camo Snipers (or ML/RL) work better in active turn, to have the Surprise Shot bonus. But they can work if nothing else is available. (Camo Snipers at >32" is actually the hard counter to TRbots, trivially easy to get the TRbot down to -12 to-hit that way)

    HI link team with big gun works. ML or RL is preferable to HMG or Spitfire in this case, but you should probably keep both in the team. Probably the most extreme example of this is the Neko DoTanko link:
    [​IMG] Japanese Secessionist Army
    ──────────────────────────────────────────────────

    [​IMG]5 [​IMG]3
    [​IMG] OYAMA Chain Rifle, E/M Grenades / Breaker Pistol, AP CCW, EXP CCW. (0 | 28)
    [​IMG] DOMARU Spitfire / Pistol, E/M CCW, Shock CC Weapon. (2 | 39)
    [​IMG] TANKŌ Missile Launcher / Pistol, Monofilament CC Weapon, Shock CC Weapon. (1.5 | 32)
    [​IMG] TANKŌ Flammenspeer, Contender / Pistol, Monofilament CC Weapon, Shock CC Weapon. (0 | 23)
    [​IMG] TANKŌ Blitzen, Submachine Gun / Pistol, Monofilament CC Weapon, Shock CC Weapon. (0 | 23)

    3.5 SWC | 145 Points

    Open in Infinity Army

    Ignoring the limited ammo Blitzen (save that for HI or TAGs) and Flammenspeer (save that for Tohaa or camo bastards), you have a Contender and ML for ARO, and a Spitfire for active turn. Most of them will be at effective BS19 with Sixth Sense L2. Dodge this!

    In JSA, the midfield is owned by the ODD SMG Ryuken. Hi, I'm at -9 to-hit before cover and range mods. Have fun.
     
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  8. colbrook

    colbrook Grenade Delivery Specialist

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    The humble Warcor is probably the most cost effective ARO piece in the game.

    3 points for a completely disposable flash pulse or discover attempt.

    Any sniper under 20 points and 0.5 or less SWC makes a fine speedbump too, honourable mentions to the Grunt sniper with ARM 3 and the ABH for BS12 (and a gorgeous model if you can find it ).
     
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  9. loricus

    loricus Satellite Druid

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    Yeah I just shoved my Gecko way too close to a Vet Kazak T2 so they had to use Pistol or 0 range to keep cover. Effective pinning ARO is entirely context.

    Otherwise an ARO troop is the one you want to choose your opponent to fight.

    One rule of thumb for me is that if they can trump anything you don't want strong AROs, you want any AROs. You want them to be spending orders repositioning that trump peice to get past your aros, because you aren't gonna beat it anyways.
     
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  10. Alphz

    Alphz Kuang Shi Vet. Retired.

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    An alternative way to think about ARO is less about what can kill your opponent but more about orders;

    1. What can burn orders without your opponent achieving their goal. Perimiter weapons, hackers high arm units with doctors nearby. Think about the game in terms of order efficiency. Your reactive pieces are trying to reduce your opponents efficiency. If they had to spend 3 extra orders throwing smoke, then you're up on the game.

    2. Tarpits and counter attack. Some units can deny area simply by being so effective at attacking at close range. Meaning your opponent might think twice about taking up a position on the other side of a building.
    Don't forget the threat of lean out for a unit on building which has positional superiority.
     
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  11. paraelix

    paraelix Seed Embryo Scholar

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    Interestingly, TR HMG REMs are one of those things that everyone uses obsessively when they start playing the game... But most people get out of the habit of using. I think the only one I consistently reuse is the Combined Army one (because Mimetism on that thing is godly), but even then it is usually when I run an Avatar list.

    Suppression becoming better has seen them drop off as a favourite for ARO and link teams largely trump them for active turn work.
     
  12. Leviathan

    Leviathan Hungry Caliban

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    Stuff that can push into midfield with direct template weapons, crazy koalas, mines, shotguns, that sort of thing. Positioning them properly so that enemies have to come in close is the important piece.
     
  13. Stiopa

    Stiopa Trust The Fuckhead

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    TO trooper hidden below or above TR Remote, so when enemy moves in to attack the bot he has to face an unexpected TO ARO and is forced to split fire or eat unopposed shot.

    HI or fast combat Remote pushed up the flank into enemy DZ and placed in Suppressive Fire, forcing enemy to either deal with it spending orders he could use on objectives or his own attack, or ignoring it and allowing to continue the rampage next turn.

    If going second: Flash Pulse/Repeater Remotes with EVO:Overclock up. Cheap and efficient.
     
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  14. loricus

    loricus Satellite Druid

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    I've seen someone reveal a TO Hexas MSR and a TO Crocman AHD as someone brought their TAG around to shoot a TR.
     
  15. Leviathan

    Leviathan Hungry Caliban

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    I've used a Haiduk sniper to bait TAGs into range of a pair of Noctifer MLs.
     
  16. meikyoushisui

    meikyoushisui Competitor for Most Ignored User

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    This is one of the best ways to play the Hac Tao or Swiss Guard Missile Launcher. Stack them so the best shooting corner to aim at the revealed ARO piece forces the active model to split burst. The fear of losing a f2f to a missile launcher (who they'll probably be shooting at at least a -9) is really scary to most people.
     
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  17. Solar

    Solar Well-Known Member

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    Morans with Koalas, Minelayer Zeros, Spektr Sniper, Morlocks with Chain Rifles, Hecklers Jammers, Tsyklons on suppression with Marksmanship, Pitchers, Intruders lurking on rooftops...

    The trick isn't to kill the enemy in reaction but to force them to spend more orders to go where they want to go and do what they want to do. Make them send chaff in to clear Koalas, make them drop smoke to get past the Spektr, make them spend orders shooting a Morlock CRing them back. Jam them up and slow them down until they run out of orders and then counter through your own screen.
     
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  18. Maksimas

    Maksimas Heavy Infantry Addict Maxim

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    Yeah, I do suppose it's more so about the threat of harm than the actual harm itself.
    Mind games and all that, I suppose.
     
  19. natetehaggresar

    natetehaggresar Senior Backlogged Painter Manager

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    There are a couple of good strategies for ARO options.

    1. To lock down a lane, you need to generate a strong modifier differential. The easiet way to do this is to stack things like ODD/cover and range. Range is a really big deal, if you can be in your good range, and your opponents bad range thats a 6 point difference right there, which is a huge swing in the odds. The active player picks their engagements, but even a bad sniper like a ABH, can completly shut down an advance, or foce the repositioning of a competent attack piece.

    2. To lock down an area you can use Direct Template Weapons and disposable troops. Trading hits with chaff is not ideal, this strategy works better in tight confines so you can't be engage outside of template range. You can also use tools like mines in a similar manner. Equipment like repeaters, hacking devices, jammers, and koalas can be used to compound area denial. At times you can force "No" good option by directing conventional and comms attacks, forcing normal rolls against the active player.

    3. There are also options for nasty surpises, from hidden deployment. The ideal is to either reveal an unexpected HD model late in your opponents turn so they don't have order left to counter it, or to reveal at the same time they are targeting another unit. Forcing active players to split burst dramatically inrease your chance to win the face to face rolls, a boarding shotgun (or Missile launcher if you have it!) out of hidden deployment can really ruin someones days, moreso if they are moving links or coodinated orders.

    Remember the most realistic goal of your reactive turn is to waste your oppenents orders, forcing orders wasted repositioning, dodging, and resetting or shots wasted at so-so odds wich result in nothing happening.

    If you are consistantly removing enemy models during their active turn, you're either doing an excellent job, or your opponent is doing a poor job, or probably both. (You're probably winning!)
     
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  20. eciu

    eciu Easter worshiper

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    Well I once dropped a TOFOOS and TO MSR on a Unidron link attacking my TR Drone ;)
     
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