Opinions on the Spektr MSR

Damn Spektrs not being immune to crits.

 

I thought it was interesting that you didn't rearrange things to squeeze out the points to upgrade the Daktari to a Tomcat, which would usually give the you the option to bring back a 39 pt model that your opponent will be frustrated to have to deal with again. Was the Daktari primarily supporting the Kriza then?

I'm not a big fan of Multi Snipers in general, but I think that Nomads are pretty stacked in that area the Moira, Spektr, and Intruder Snipers are all solid imo,

 

I've tried the spektr sniper in close to 20 games. Sometimes he's been amazing and has locked down the field in ARO or popped up for a great diagonal cross board shot on an un-suspecting squishy target running for a console. The latter occurrences are usually game highlights! Usually I try to find a spot near the table edges where he can see across the board width-wise but only up up to the mid-field line length-wise.

However, he's also had a lot of games where he'll get a shot off, maybe kill or wound a model, then get blasted off the table. I like to reveal him in ARO when the opponent is down to his last or second-to-last order but sometimes you get forced into revealing him too soon. He's also been eaten by chain rifles a few times when I was forced to sacrifice him to reveal for a key shot in ARO. Unfortunately, when I review his performance, a mix result like that is difficult to accept for such an expensive shooter. I've never had an opportunity to use his mines.

The problem for me is infiltrate. It's pretty rare to have a table with a sniper nest in that ideal spot (unless it's at my place, hahaha!) so I'm usually forced to put him on a roof top where he's stuck dueling with opponents who are also in their good range bands. I feel like that I can't *not* use infiltrate as you pay such a premium for it. He has stiff competition with the Intruder and Moira MSRs and I find their more traditional back-field roles work better as it's easier to keep enemy guns away. Plus, the Intruder is a much deadlier with smoke nearby and both have higher armour which gives better odds of shrugging off an opposing sniper. If they're hit by an MSR or Viral, they're all equally dead but that armour 3 + cover can be the saving grace against an HMG or regular sniper.

I love Spektrs but my experience has been their TO and infiltrate shenanigans is better suited to a hacking or shotgun profile and the snipers do better when hidden way back-field. At 39pts, the MSR spektr will probably come out every once in a while (especially on my board) but it's tough to justify compared to Intruder/Moira.

 

I have a personal belief that once a model passes the midfield line, it's dead. I'm not going to waste any resources bringing it back up as in most time the effort and orders spent are not worth the risk. Hilariously, in that Quadrant control game I actually broke this rule when an enemy tanko finished turn 2 engaged with my spektr, so I had one of the jaguars run across the table and engage the tanko back before CCing him to death.

So yeah, the daks was there mainly to support the Kriza, which she did fairly well too. The kriza, buffed tsyklon and bandit were the models I was spending the most orders on at any time. But I really liked having the spektr as a scalpel.

 

That's usually true but I've had success with a Tomcat recovering downed Wildcat links. I pin them down with a team of flamethrowers. They spend their turn dismantling them. Then I spend my turn recovering them with a Zondcat while the Tomcat takes a few objectives.

 

I've never done it with a Spektr, but I have done with McMurrough and a Chimera before, and I favor running up the side with both models to keep it a viable tactic. In this case, it seems that you are hugging the board edge anyway so that isn't an issue. The reason I don't run the Spektr as opposed to the Intruder or Moira is that those models, by virtue of being in my DZ, are far easier to bring back up when my opponent inevitably takes them down. If I was to commit to the Spektr, I would probably want the Tomcat. For a disposable midfield sniper, I would rather save 13 pts and use a Zero.

 

I've lost the same Intruder to the same TR bot something like 8 times in one game (probably more) I think every one if not almost to a crit. Shoot, die, Dak. Shoot, die, Dak.

 

To be honest i use MSR only with intruders, i like my spekters with BSG blowing up my enemy in the sweet range from behind, once they pass by the spot i hidden deploy the spekter. i know that TO snipers could work well, but the lack of visor could render them useless, if there is any smoke on the enemy team while the intruder thrive on situations like that.

 

I think the idea is that with hidden deployment they won't know where to smoke. Anyways if they have to smoke a lot to get around that's good for wasting orders too.

Not that I disagree. I play Corregidor so I don't have the choice but I take the Intruder MSR largely to counter enemy smoke.

 

TO Camo MULTI-Snipers do have uses that Camo (Intruders) or simple ODD (Moiras) don't. They have the same use of being nice for clearing out enemy ARO pieces (such as TR bots) but have significant advantages over those other units in your reactive turn, as their hidden deployment state can be used to smack someone down an opponent who rushes around a corner, expecting to only have to deal with one model but suddenly having to factor in dealing with two. I find they have particular use as part of a Coordinated Order, as they are usually going to be in your good range band and have a heap of negative modifiers stacked on hitting them thanks to ODD and cover and potentially Surprise Shot, which makes your opponent more likely to hope for a good dodge rather than just eating whatever it is your Spearhead (Szalamandra?) is laying down.

 

And Intruders better for TO snipers. Also
>Snipers Counter Sniping
YOU BETTER BE DESPERATE.

 

I would not take that shot unless I had no other choice. A bit of order efficiency isn't worth losing on your own order 1/3 the time.

 

No I mean over however many orders it takes for someone to be wounded it will be your guy just under 1/3 of the time. I'm more than alright with having under 50% chance to kill as long as the ratio is good.

 

I don't have a number I just gotta feel it
But I'm sure that's not it.

Edit: again, unless I have no choice. But you could lose a game without giving your opponent a turn on 1/3.

Edit2: If a Moran can get within 16" with white noise it's about 1/7 instead.

 

I tend to feel that ARO Snipers want mods that apply to enemy BS and Counter Snipers/Active Turn Snipers want to be able to ignore BS mods. Most Snipers fit into these categories and a rare few fit into both, like Intruders and Nisse to a lesser extent.

I like the Spektr Sniper because it has the TO Camo marker state, hidden deployment and -6 to hit to protect it, and therefore presents a fearsome ARO against anyone with MSV and plenty of troops with it anyway if you get the range right. BS 12 and a MSR is also pretty strong and on the reactive turn the ARO itself is nasty enough that it can put most targets down. But when you add infiltration so you can use odd angles and firelanes to improve your defensive capability even more, then it becomes really strong.

I've never taken two and infiltrated them at opposite ends of the halfway line, with two lateral firelanes covering each other. I'm not sure how well that would work. I'm somewhat scared the answer would be "extremely well"