Are Lychguard a must ? and if so - with what weapon config ?

[Memnarch]

I keep reading that Lychguard are a must in most lists - except maybe in a heavy Farming list. Why is that ? And how would you guys equip the Lychguards, and what seems to be their sweetspot numberwise ?

-M-

[Venerable Ironclad]

I myself get along fine without lychguard. I don't believe Lychguard are a must have as much as they are fun to use. They are very much like terminators, high price hard to kill fire magnets. That said, I do know that you want to give them dispersion shields, otherwise they kind of lose that hard to kill quality. All that is left is to give them a Lord with res orb and warscythe and you are good to go.

[Arlins]

no theyre not a must , they have a place but are not a silver bullet unit .

[PyroSikTh]

A close combat unit is a must, and Lychguard are one of the best, but they're not a must themselves.

If you're taking them, equip them with Swords and Shields, then give them a Lord/Overlord with Warscythe and Resurrection Orb. Add in Trazyn to effectively make them scoring. Whalla!

[Memnarch]

thanks for the input guys

[Badarmies2]

not a must, i prefer wraith.

[scorcher5]

If you're playing orks or tyranids, I would get the warscythes instead of the d-shields seeing as the two armies don't have much to AP you with. (unless you're in cc) I normally go w/ 7-8 lychguards b/c 5 is not enough and 9-10 is quite a bit of points. For effectiveness, you're always going to be happy w/ these guys. Even though they're I2 they'll still get a tremendous amount of blows in there, and if you take a res orb they become cc BEASTS. They're fun to field and almost never go down without a fight. I wouldn't recommend using them in 1000 pt games b/c they eat away so many points, but in 1500-2000 pt games I always find myself using at least 7-8.

[PyroSikTh]

If you're playing orks or tyranids, I would get the warscythes instead of the d-shields seeing as the two armies don't have much to AP you with.

Hive Guard will absolutely wreck Lychguard. As will literally any Monstrous Creature. Orks have nothing that would require you to have massed S7 and 2D6 Armour Pen. One Warscythe Lord is enough.

You're better off with Swords and Shields against EVERY opponent.

[commandojimbob]

What are Lychguard there for ? I personally dont get them - for me I would take Wraiths for my CC unit over Lychguard any day- same cost (give or take 5 pts) better invulnerable save, higher strength, rending (so can go for more targets) faster, multi-wound, potentially better initiative, better attacks etc etc etc . Wraiths are great - they are so much better than they were !

While I have not used them but I will be using 10 - for me Praetorians are what to go for - so long as you understand that they are there to go for selective targets (with pistol and void blade).

[PyroSikTh]

I think Wraiths and Lychguard are actually fairly equal. On one hand you get 2 wounds and 3+ invulnerable save, on the other you get T5 and Reanimation Protocols. On one hand you get Whip Coils, Rending and Extra attacks, on the other you get Power Weapons. On one hand you get Jump Infantry and ignoring terrain, on the other you get Necron Lords with Warscythes and Resurrection Orbs.

[commandojimbob]

I do agree with your points Pyro - BUT - Lychguard DO need a Lord with Orb and in reality DO need a means of transport - whether it is a Ghost Arc or a Cryptek with a Veil - which then if you start looking at it makes it a big investment and starts to force your list for you.

Wraiths on the other hand can be used independantly with out affecting the other choices in your list - which I admitt depends on your opinion, but I think is better. The "Independant" choices I can make in my list that work well together, the better flexibility . If you have unit A that means you need B then you have to take C - starts to make the list too rigid - all be it usually you can get some great synergistic gains - while it lasts.

[Aeviaan]

^^ This. But keep in mind while you say they have a better invulnerable save, they have a 3+ (66% pass). Pray you don't get hit with a powerfist and fail. Guard have a 4+ (50%), 1 wound so it hurts less if you do bomb it, and then another 4+ (50%) chance to get back up afterwords. That totals to a 75% chance to ignore a power weapon wound coming at them, better then the wraith's chance. They are effected by ID much less.

That being said, I usually take a Destroyer Lord with 3 wraiths and a unit of 7 guard, Sword/Board with an Overlord Scythe/ResOrb in most of my 2k games. If one must drop to go to a lower value, I usually switch between removing them to get a feel for both of them on their own, and neither of them has let me down yet.

[Stalker21]

I have yet to regret ever fielding my Lyches. At times, I have found my Wraiths to be wanting, typically through no fault of their own, simply my dice rolls. I don't think Wraiths would have fared better than my Lychguard did against a Deathwing list, though. That T5 really does pay off.

[PyroSikTh]

I do agree with your points Pyro - BUT - Lychguard DO need a Lord with Orb and in reality DO need a means of transport - whether it is a Ghost Arc or a Cryptek with a Veil.

Disagree. A Lord with a Warscythe is handy, and you may as well chuck in a Resurrection Orb while you're there, but by no means necessary. I don't think they need a means of Transport. They're not a charge into your opponents face kind of unit, because otherwise you leave the rest of your army open to assaults behind them. You hold them back as counter-assaulters, keeping your more precious scoring units safe.

[commandojimbob]

Hmmm - not quite sure if holding back a 225pts unit of 5 models is what I would want to be doing to protect scoring units - I personally think the new Necron codex works best with Offense is the best form of Defense, and if you allow your opponent the ability to dictate then it becomes unstuck.

Over time I may re-calibrate my thinking - but - still not convinced.

[Aeviaan]

My unit of 7 with an Overlord is my counter attack unit. They move down the center of the field protecting the infantry that will get wiped in the assault, and soaking up bullets. If they don't have to respond to an enemy CC threat, then they get moved to offense. I rarely assault before turn 3, but even at turn 3 I tend to have the majority of the models left. They are something you use to throw down the enemies throat and make them react to it.

[scorcher5]

I like to use them in my front lines as a great big line of cover. In 2k games especially, I take 7-10 dispersion shield lychguards w/ a lord and scythe w/ res orb and place them in a line in front of my more delicate units. This provides them with mobile cover giving them a 4+ cover save.

[Morollan]

If you don't mind taking a chance with the dice gods then a unit of Lychguard with Sword & Board, Lord with Orb (this is all rhyming!) and Cryptek with Veil is a nice little combo. Use the veil to DS as close as you dare to the enemy and then run to get even closer. Anything with heavy weapons is ideal as a target cos they won't want to shoot you due to the shield. Okay, you can't assault that turn but with T5 and 3+/4++ saves and the res orb you will be able to absorb a lot of incoming fire.

[yWizePapaSmurfy]

I'd say a Orb is pretty much mandatory with Sword n Board Lychguard; RP is what heavily distinguishes Lychs from Wraiths (Trading 2W for T5...donno the maths but that seems a even trade) The thing I can't over about Wraiths is they're T4 and since S4/Poison doesn't have much to shoot at anyway, the Wraiths drop in my head (Theory'ing how things play out) right out. I can definitely see them to help get a Destroyer Lord into a combat, but then the Destroyer Lord hits combat, kills good if you planned it well, and usually shot down next turn. Unless of course you invested 500 some-odd points in making the Destroyer Lord have a Invul + enough Wraiths to make people think twice.

Anyways, with a Orb I'm sure people have noticed the jump from 5+ RP to 4+ is pretty significant, I believe that's why you put them in your Immortals, Pyro? Gotta say I underestimated that, but in Warriors/Immortals who will probably be wiped out / chased down anyway by any *real* combat units (cough, Terminators, cough). Putting extra numbers on your units just makes it so you can hope you get stuck-in so other stuff can come to your aid in time...Honestly the enemy loves that and plan on being stuck in so you can't shoot them.

I like Lychguard because they are still mobile with a Night Scythe. I would count a Monolith if your really have trouble backing up in your particular Necron army, but to get them in a forward position, no lol. Meltas will get you if you try that (Deep Strike is not friendly either for this; but you can do it with a Night Scythe as well if need be...I just don't like Deep Striking anymore unless it's BA...Too unreliable/random in the small list that a Necron list usually is. And though I see CC as inherently weak, this is my fun unit, plus like I've said before, for me it's *technically* scoring. Otherwise, your enemy can ignore these pretty handily and shoot everything else.

Wow, I rambled off...

[PyroSikTh]

Anyways, with a Orb I'm sure people have noticed the jump from 5+ RP to 4+ is pretty significant, I believe that's why you put them in your Immortals, Pyro? Gotta say I underestimated that

Yeah. I'm not sure I'd bother with putting a Res Orb in a squad of Warriors below 15-strong, or minimum-sized Immortals, because you run the risk of them being completely wiped out before you get to do RP. The difference between 5+ and 4+ for it really is astounding though. When you think about it, it doesn't make much difference, but on the table it really does.