Hey guys, Bill here with another tactics article. This time
I want to talk about a timeless tactic that has stood the test of time and
several editions. Many people know about it but not too many people use the
tactic known as the slingshot.
The slingshot is a tactic that can do two things; the first
is using an independent character that is closer to an intended charge target
than a unit to pull that unit into combat. The second is just the opposite;
using a unit that closer to a charge target than an independent character and
his current unit to get that character into combat.
The utility of this tactic is obvious; it allows characters
and units to cover more ground, or charge targets that were at one point in the
turn out of reach.
Before we get into actually using the tactic is important to
remember two rules; any Independent character that ends his movement within 2”
of a unit automatically joins that unit. The second and much more important is
that once a character joins a unit in the movement phase; that unit cannot move
any further so make sure the unit moves before the independent character does
in all scenarios.
An average charge threat range for a standard infantry unit
is 13” (6” move, avg. 7” charge). If you do something as simple as join a
character to that unit at his maximum coherency you are improving that average
by 3-4” (2” coherency, 1-2” base). While this was without a doubt more critical
in 5th edition with a fixed charge distance, the current state of
melee armies means that anything that makes that charge more likely to happen
is important.
In this picture "the bad guys" are the red circles and your purple unit has just been joined by an IC that used to be in your green unit. Your charge range is now much shorter and the charge range is now much more likely or even possible in a situation where it may not have been possible before.
Even more useful is pulling a character in that is normally
too far away to charge. Depending on the unit size the character is joining,
joining a character to a unit that is further ahead than he is can help even a
standard infantry character cover massive distances and get into those melees
to make a huge difference. The best part about this tactic as well is it is
often harder to see coming and your opponent will be more likely to leave a
unit vulnerable.
In this picture that same IC is changing from green squad to purple but in this example a fight he was once not eligible to join he is being brought in by joining the closer unit to our "bad guys."
When making this move you want to be sure to calculate pile
in moves and potential damage, the last thing you want to do is setup this
charge only to have found out that you strung your unit out too much and you
cannot pile in to stay in combat. Even if your character cannot get in to fight
this round, he will get to fight next round and look at all that extra ground
you just covered.
Also keep in mind that while the things outlined here are
offensive. This could even be used defensively to charge a much weaker unit to
pull yourself away from a target that can kill you if your standard move and
run is not enough to escape. It can also be used to pull a scoring unit closer
to an objective or a unit over to contest or get into a table quarter. In a
game where movement is key, play laterally, think outside the box and be
sneaky, very sneaky.
Hope you guys enjoyed the article, I know others have wrote
about it before but as a severely under-utilized tactic I felt it my duty to
resurface the topic and generate some discussion.
Any questions? Ask away!
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment