Anybody use them? Lately I've been feeling like the few times they do stick their landing and don't immediately die to enemy shooting, they aren't worth taking up slots in a single combat group, or are too much of a risk when for the cost of 2 i could take a flash pulse bot which is a better ARO backline guard. Thoughts?
I’m not much of a fan of them in single combat groups. But they’re great for padding up a second group.
Precisely so. If you go the Limited Insertion way, 2 fireteams, an Agema and maybe a heavy hitter like Achilles or Diomedes are much more interesting than 2 gambles. But when spamming, to shore a 2nd group... specially on Hunting Party, where the "basic" Chain Rifle Myrmidon suddenly turns into a powerful ARO piece, linked or alone (since the ADL won't trigger Frenzy), and the chain rifle Ekdromoi also gives nightmares to the enemy.
It depends on your goals. If you wanted a limited insertion list, i would not recommend netrods. If a more order intensive list then netrods are very strong indeed.
In a split list...I guess I just havent found points space for them. And I just hate that they're so hit-or-miss (literally) lol. Also I'm not a fan of the models tbh ;)
There is absolutely zero need to lose a Netrod to dispersion. Reading from the Dispersion rule: So, just deploy it always 16 inches away from any border. There, problem fixed.
There is the edge case of dispersing to somewhere it doesn't fit, which isn't exactly addressed by the rules. Troops are specifically said to get placed in your deployment, but AI Beacon are equipment, so it could be ruled that such doesn't apply to them.
Point taken. Around here we have house-ruled it as putting it in the closest spot where it fits near where it should have landed, but this is rather rare, it's more likely it'll end up in the middle of the board ready to be shot to pieces. Bad luck but at least you likely got one turn with it's order before it died.
That's a reasonable compromise. I've played it as being unable to be placed = off the game table and gone, but it certainly has a fair amount of wiggle room.
My group has always played it that if it disperses to a piece of terrain or something where it would normally go into your deployment zone, it's lost. My group also plays very agressively anti-netrod, so any of mine that are in LOS always get killed first turn :\
Of course it gets even more weird in Biotechvore trying to figure out if you follow the normal rules or the special rules...
Actually, the rules do address situation where it disperses into a place it won't fit: Netrod which disperses on the table but in impossible location gets to be placed in deployment zone touching the edge. Explanation, starting with AI Beacon rule: The bearer of an AI Beacon must be deployed using the AD: Combat Jump Special Skill if it appears in its Troop Profile. In such a situation, the deployment of this piece of Equipment must be done in the Deployment Phase. Now we check AD:Combat Jump: If the trooper fails his PH Roll, make a Dispersion Roll, placing the center of the Dispersion Circular Template on top of the center of the trooper's base. The result of the Dispersion Roll determines the troop's effective deployment location. AROs are generated taking only that location into account. Which leads us to Dispersion Roll page: "If the dispersed element is a troop, such as one using certain Deployment Special Skills (AD: Combat Jump, Impersonation...), and the Dispersion places the troop outside of the game table, or in any location where it cannot be placed, or within the opponent's Deployment Zone, then the figure is placed anywhere within the limits of its owner's Deployment Zone in contact with one of the borders of the game table." Now we double check AI Beacon exceptions: If during the Deployment Phase, the bearer of AI Beacon suffers a Dispersion using the AD: Combat Jump Special Skill that causes it to exit the game table, then the player must consider it lost, and a casualty that counts toward the Retreat! and the Victory Points. Here we see the part of rule for dispersing outside table is overriden, but not overrridenthe dispersing in invalid location.
This is actually a good thing, every order that is spent on killing a 4pt net rod, is an order that doesn't go towards outmaneuvering or killing your actual troops. Net rods can work as bait to an opponent, if you make them look as easy kills, and then set up AROs to deal with the killers. Of course, there is no reason to just place them in the open as an easy kill, but at 4pt there is no real reason to lament their loss. As long as they just hit the table they'll be sure to have an effect. What you shouldn't do; is to rely on them to shore up a Limited Insertion list, as you're then dependent on a 60% chance of them hitting the right spot in cover, as all losses will be a 10% loss of efficiency to your active turn.
Note that I'm not disagreeing and feel that you are correct in how it should work, but given that AI Beacons are equipment (as specifically called out in the AI Beacon rule you quoted) and not a troop it is possible that it could be ruled differently and people should be aware of that.
Netrods say to use combat jump as a trooper. If the player believes that the dispersion rules only apply to troopers, then a netrod cannot disperse. That thought is silly so netrods are still troopers (as far as this jump is concerned) for dispersion. An effect of dispersion is to go into deployment zone if off the table or cant fit in spot or land in enemy deployment zone. However another seperate rule says land off table = dead. But it says nothing else about the other effects so they must still be abided by.
