Special Characters

[ElectricPaladin]

Personally, I don't like them.

It seems weird to me when someone plays Marneus Calgar in a 1,000 point game. I guess it feels like they should be saved for 10,000+ point games and the little skirmishes that have less than 200 "troopers" doesn't seem like a big enough deal for a special character to be in... Except for Gaunt.

Don't a bunch of the older special characters have rules like that? All the Tau special characters are limited to games of 1.5k or larger.

That said, I don't really agree with you. Sure, Marneus Calgar probably only sets out to fight in big 10k battles, but there are lots of reasons he could end up in a smaller engagement. Marneus and his (extensive, one thousand point) bodyguard could end up being ambushed on their way somewhere, or the battle you're playing could be just a small part of a larger conflict.

[DaveLL]

Don't a bunch of the older special characters have rules like that? All the Tau special characters are limited to games of 1.5k or larger.

That said, I don't really agree with you. Sure, Marneus Calgar probably only sets out to fight in big 10k battles, but there are lots of reasons he could end up in a smaller engagement. Marneus and his (extensive, one thousand point) bodyguard could end up being ambushed on their way somewhere, or the battle you're playing could be just a small part of a larger conflict.

To a point, I used to agree with kaiserdean. That is to say, I thought that people who brought a special character to every game they played seemed to be cheapening that character - why, after all, is Fateweaver somehow directly in charge of absolutely every battle that any daemon army ever fights?

That's why I'm a fan of the idea that a special character can be closer to a template than an individual.

[thefremen]

I LOVE Draigo as a character although Crowe is technically better since the unit he makes troops are far more efficient.

Draigo's backstory is fun though, it's nice to have a Space Chuck Norris who isn't a Space Wolf.

[Admiral Kenaris]

Straken. Ah, the joy of winning close combats as a Guard player...

[mysterex]

Until very recently in this part of the world army composition was a factor in event results (typically 25% of the score). As most special characters were seen as over the top they pretty much guaranteed a low comp score and so virtually no one used them competitively.

Historically they were often also seen as a points sink and so not worth it, although this has changed with recent codicii. More often they are opening up new army builds or have abilities the whole army can leverage off.

That has started to change in the last 6 months and I'm attending my first no comp event in June. I suspect that will open the flood gate for all sorts of crazy web lists rather than the more balanced lists I'm used to seeing.

Outside of events the only special characters I've used are Abaddon, simply because I'd made a conversion purely as a modelling exercise and Belial because he opens up the deathwing as troops option.

[Levitas]

Duke Sliscus. Captain Jack Sparrow for the 41st millenium and everyones favorite drug dealer.

They have been pretty popular in 5th, as they are changing armies instead of just being super powerful.

[ElectricPaladin]

Oh, ok, so if we're talking about making judgements...

I don't have a problem with special character when they're well-written, well-made, have cool models, and are fun to play with and against. I don't think you should be penalized for using the cool rules that are in the book you paid for. While I think that sportsmanship is an important factor in tournaments, comp is kind of a cop-out. It's GW's responsibility to make a game that's balanced, clear, and fun to play, whether you're winning or losing, and it's our responsibility to play it with grace, fun, and sportsmanship. The idea that GW is going to make stuff that isn't balanced or fun to use, and then it's the community's responsibility to penalize people for using that stuff is... frankly, kind of dumb.

TL;DR version: I think that everyone should use all the special characters we like, but they should be written to be balanced and fun.

[commissar camenzuli]

got to be yarrick. who doesnt love iron will???

[Zuul]

The only special character I like is Pedro Kantor, and even then, I use a counts-as model built from a MKVIII body with the original left arm& back pack with the old right handed PF from the RTB01 box on the other side and gussied up with some extra bits and GS. Truth be told, I miss the dirt cheap generic commanders from 3rd ed.

[DarkLink]

Driago is awesome. Anyone who disagrees needs to take a step back and reevaluate why they're playing a game full of genetically engineered psychic super-soldiers that wear armor that makes them literal walking tanks and carries a fully automatic rocket launcher and a chainsaw sword as their most basic weapons.

I LOVE Draigo as a character although Crowe is technically better since the unit he makes troops are far more efficient.

People tend to overestimate Purifier spam. They're good, but not that good. They're roughly on par with Paladins.

The difference between the two lists is that Driago is worth his points, while Crowe is not. Purifiers are good enough to almost make up for Crowe's weakness, but even Purifiers aren't so amazing that they can make up a 150pt deficit required to make the list.

Purifiers are slightly better than Paladins, by virtue of the concept of MSU and their impressive flexibility, but only slightly so. Driago is significantly better than Crowe, but since HQs themselves are only a small part of the list it all kinda balances out.