Today on Goatboy’s review extravaganza, we will look at a unit that went from a zero to a very rare hero in the Necron Codex. That unit is the mighty Tomb Blade, which became an instant hit when it was stuck on the loading dock and everyone needed to get at least a squad of 3 for their Necron Decurion Detachment as a part of the Reclamation Legion. For more reviews check out the Frontline Tactics Corner.
Overview:
When we initially got the Tomb Blades they seemed a bit lackluster. They were initially used as a quick Line Breaker unit and didn’t see a ton of table top usage. This all changed when the new book hit and they got a significant boost in the power department with decent toughness, strong shooting, and a plethora of good rules. I think the only thing keeping massed Tomb Blade armies in check is that they were hard to get and the current age of army power level shift has kept players from going out and buying a ton. This unit can go from Maelstrom helper to damage output machine all based on how you want your list to function.
Wargear:
The Tomb Blade actually has a lot of options available to it. Unlike other Necron choices it has both defensive upgrades as well as offensive upgrades. The Weapons available are a Gauss Blaster or a Particle Beamer. The Gauss Blaster is pretty strong as it is Twin Linked and can get an option to ignore cover. Massed Str 5 weapons can be a nightmare for most Xenos armies as they normally do not get the 3+ armor you see in Marines and other Marine like armies. Plus the Gauss has the normal Gauss rule which allows them to Wound/Glance on a 6+ versus anything. The Particle beamer shoots a Str 6 Ap 5 small blast that you can get Ignores Cover on as well. This one isn’t bad as you can put a ton of wounds on other Xenos but I feel the default option is the best. The other Wargear changes can give you a 3+ armor save as well as Stealth. This isn’t too bad on a Jetbike model as we all know how having a 3+ Jink save can keep these buggers alive and causing trouble – especially with a Decurion Reanimation protocol save.
Special mention for the Ignores Cover upgrade, which really makes them shine. With Guass weapons, they can be a big threat to vehicles as they auto glance on a 6, or to light infantry such as you see with most Xenos, where they just shred them with twin linked, STr5, AP4, no cover save shooting.
Special Rules:
Just like all Necrons they get a Reanimation protocol save. This unit is part of the basic Decurion so they can get an improved save as well as Move Through Cover. This is great as they can just go anywhere and be a pain in the butt for your opponent. They can get +1 cover save through the Shadowloom upgrade as well – and we all know how that one rule can give it to the entire unit. As a Jetbike they are extremely fast and give a Necron player an option to go get Line Breaker, complete Maelstrom missions, or just be a pain all over the field. The 3+ armor save upgrade is also worth it as it gives you some toughness that doesn’t make you have to jink to stay alive. Also as this is a Jetbike unit they +1 to their toughness making small arms fire have to work a lot harder to wound them.
Tactics:
As this unit is a default choice in a Decurion you see a lot of Necron armies just run 3 of them. Normally they are upgraded to 3+ armor save and one might have a Stealth upgrade if they need it. Their weapons load out stays Gauss and they are seen as a harassment/line breaker unit. That tactic is pretty easy as they do the job Eldar Jetbikes do without the Str 6 gun and Objective Secured. Personally I think there is still a really strong army that utilizes a lot of these to create “bad situations” for your opponent as you can ignore cover and wound with everything.
Their speed and toughness is great as they can take an assault from a “basic” troop unit and have a good chance to survive and win the combat due to their high toughness. With the Decurion allowing you to take more squads of them I could see them being used as mini Destroyers that are faster and you can sacrifice them more due to their lower point cost. I know with my own local friends we always think a true massed Tomb Blade army could be a great spoiler list for any team based event as the damage potential is pretty high versus most armies. I would think a Knight army would be scared as all that Gauss will mean a lot of Ion Shield saves will be needed to be rolled.
Unfortunately the shadowloom doesn’t give stealth to the entire unit. It says in the codex ‘A model equipped with a shadowloom has +1 cover save’, so if you want them all to have 3+ jink, you need to buy every model the upgrade.
Still a bloody good unit though.
Also, you now have to choose between Shadowlooms and Nebuloscopes. It says “may take one of the following”. I go with the Nebuloscope, myself.
Yeah, there’s basically no excuse to not always take Nebuloscopes every time.
Man, I’ve been wanting to try out like 3×10 squads of them. That would be fun.
I honestly feel that Tomb Blades are one of the best units in this book. They’re incredibly good.
They are very good, and I’m be building 6 for my army. However do they really beat out destroyers (particularly in the cult). Destroyers have twice the wounds, twice the shots at 12-24″, and come stock with better AP on their guns and a 3+ save.
I really like that they can be used like Eldar jetbikes to nab objectives, while also having the option to shoot with ignore cover to harrass weak units with good cover saves that the rest of the necron army would struggle to shoot efficiently.
Rathstar
Yeah, but hey, cool for Crons to have to choose between two awesome choices, haha
Main Issue with TBs is the model so but after getting my hands on them i realized if you don’t add the rider or all the extra bits onto the tail thing and adjust where the seat plate is you can have some badass canoptek looking scorpion things.
As a result I’ve fielded 30 and they are quite dirty popping skimmers and wiping medium and light infantry off the table, all while jumping around being tough as nails.
now my main issue is in order to get more i will need a second decurian…