Unit of the Week: DeathLeaper

[Xenith]

++Deathleaper++

 

 

We have a new unit of the week! This week it's the hard to find, chameleonic Predator Clone the Deathleaper! Theoretically a super-lictor, Deathleaper was introduced around the Medusa V campaign in ~2005(?), however is rarely seen on tables.  

 

What are you thoughts, and how best would you use it?

• To compliment a list, or to build a list around? Will the beta rules affect your list(s)?
• What size unit? Will you be running multiple units?
• What Hive Fleet Traits, Adaptative Physiologies and Stratagems do you prefer and how much does it depend on the above choices?
• Are you buffing this unit? If so, how?
• Uses in Matched, Narrative and Open Play

Over to you.

Edited June 14, 2021 by Xenith

[Arson Fire]

Well, it's a more expensive lictor. It has the Character keyword, making it unable to perform the action for the Deploy Scramblers secondary.

Being a cheap non-character infantry unit capable of performing that secondary is a big part of why people take lictors.

So from that perspective it's just worse.

 

In its background it's supposed to be a sort of psychological assassin. Tormenting an enemy leader until they become ineffective. It doesn't really have the rules to reflect this.

It's a little more capable in melee than a basic lictor, but still not enough to make it a serious threat to any dangerous melee character. Or even most characters in the game at all. 4 attacks at -1AP and flat 2 damage isn't all that impressive. Even with the re-rolls and S6.

 

I think it needs a total redesign. Something more akin to a callidus assassin would be fitting for it. Perhaps swapping out the ability to make enemies spend extra command points, for something like the ability to shut down an enemy characters auras.

Edited June 14, 2021 by Arson Fire

[Xenith]

Yea, agree completely, DL doesnt really even have better stats than a Lictor right? Maybe the -2 to hit is decent, but not so good in 9th. GW really need to choose a direction, the assassin or sabateur, which would be perfect for performing actions. Some more, actually relevant Ld buffs would be great, something like the old rules with a flat debuff to a character as the DL has been stalking them for weeks. 

[XeonDragon]

It'll look good on my self. 

[WarriorFish]

I'll start a petition to rename it "Deathleper"...

[Danosborne]

The only Lore I’ve ever read with Deathleaper in, it’s stalking Astra militarum characters, and it does pretty well at killing them in the game. The problem is, so do most things!