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Ravager Tactica [Broken HTML]

Submitted By: Date: April 25, 2006, 09:02:21 AM Views: 3353
Summary: <p class="subheader">Overview:<br /></p> <p class="body">The Ravager is an extremely effective vehicle. It is the only true vehicle available to the Dark Eldar that is not a transport. It is both fragile and devastatingly powerful, as almost all Dark Eldar are effective but have slightly different roles in the end.<br /><br /></p>
<p class="subheader">Armament:<br /></p>
<p class="body">The Ravager’s standard equipment of three Dark Lances is easily sufficient to destroy any vehicle other than a Necron Monolith or any other tank with a rule akin to Living Metal (at the time of this writing this includes an upgrade available to both the Armoured Company and the Land Raider Crusader).  However, for 5 points less than a Ravager, a Dark Eldar Warrior Squad with 2 Dark Lances can be purchased.  The Warrior Squad is slower and has less firepower.  However, the Warrior Squad is far more durable and does not take up a Heavy Support slot.  The Ravager is more fragile but has an advantage in speed and pure firepower.<br /><br />

Disintegrators are what makes the Ravager truly fearsome.  The defensive weapons rule allows for Disintegrators fired in sustained mode to be fired even if the Ravager is moving over 6".  Thus, a combination of two or three Disintegrators is ideal for as long as the Ravager moves 12", or less, it can fire all of its weapons in some fashion.  However, Disintegrators are largely ineffective against vehicles as a single S7 shot will not consistently damage vehicles.  Thus, Ravagers are generally more effective when specialized to destroy infantry.  The exception to this is open-topped vehicles such as Ork Trukks. However, there is a general lack of significant numbers of this kind of vehicle to make the Disintegrator a tank-hunting weapon.<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader">On Upgrades:<br /></p>
<p class="body">The upgrades available to a Ravager are largely useless.  Horrorfexes, Scythes, Torture Amps and Trophy Racks do not increase the effectiveness of the Ravager in any appreciable way.  Screaming Jets do allow for the option to Deep Strike but the wisdom of sending an incredibly fragile and relatively long-range vehicle up close to the enemy escapes me.<br /><br />

Night Shields are a matter of some debate.  They are largely a matter of personal taste.  I do not believe that Night Shields are worth the cost as they are simply countered by moving 6" forward.  Furthermore, several of the more common anti-tank measures that your opponent will have available to them possess sufficient range to effectively disregard the marginal protection a Night Shield offers.  However, if you find that a Night Shield is saving your Ravagers, or you are in a large game and desperately want to burn some points, perhaps take one.<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader">2 Common Configurations:<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader1">Anti-infantry:<br /></p>
<p class="body">Ravager w/ 3 Disintegrators.<br />
Uses: Target the most expensive T4 or lower infantry you can find.  A single volley from this configuration will kill on average 3 T4 models a turn or 4 T3 models when firing all Disintegrators in sustained mode.<br />
Rating: 5 / 5 for anti-infantry, 2 / 5 for anti-tank.<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader1">Mixed:<br /></p>
<p class="body">Ravager w/ 2 disintegrators, 1 Dark Lance.<br />
Uses: More varied than the 3 Disintegrator-armed Ravager, this configuration maintains a degree of anti-tank firepower while still being able to devastate infantry.  It is marginally less effective than the 3 Disintegrator-armed Ravager for shooting at infantry and if firing the Dark Lance at heavily armoured vehicles, or even moderately armoured vehicles, the Disintegrators are largely wasted.  <br />
Rating: 4 / 5 for anti-infantry, 3 / 5 for anti-tank.<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader">What not to do!<br /></p>
<p class="body">Do not take a Ravager armed with 2 Dark Lances and 1 Disintegrator!  You will seldom be able to fire all your weapons, your anti-tank power is diminished and it costs you points to do it and against infantry a single Dark Lance shot is overshadowed by the templates or multiple shots offered by a Disintegrator.  It cannot be stressed enough that this combination of weapons is completely ineffective compared to others.<br /><br />

Remember to fire Disintegrators in Maximal Mode if shooting Terminators and others with 2+ saves.<br /><br /></p>

<p class="subheader">Conclusion:<br /></p>
<p class="body">Although specializing your Ravager to destroy one type of target is effective; the versatility that a 2 Disintegrator-armed Ravager offers is a fair trade for a slight reduction in anti-infantry firepower compared to a 3 Disintegrator-armed Ravager.  Both common configurations are effective but have slightly different roles in the end.<br /><br /></p>
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