Initial impressions of Necrons had some fans a bit worried. Reanimation protocols had been changed again, and this new version looked to be the weakest ever. However, the reports from players and events are starting to come in, and it looks like Necrons are more implacable than ever before. They may be the most durable army in 10th Edition, the unstoppable legion of immortal warriors Necron players have always wanted. Let's finally take a look into what they have available.
STRATAGEMS
We've already seen both of the Necron Army rules from the Faction Focus. Now we get to assemble those with the rest of their abilities.
Protocol of the Eternal Guardian - 1CP
Well that's definitely going to help them be durable! Each Necron Character can just be resurrected once per game for 1CP. No re-roll or conditions, just put the character back outside of Engagement range with half of its wounds left. This can be done any phase, so you can setup the Character in your Command Phase and then heal them with Reanimation Protocols. Crazy good!
Protocol of the Hungry Void - 1CP
+1 Strength for any Necron unit in melee isn't anything to right home about, but an additional pip of AP if that unit is being lead by a Character is very nice. AP is at a premium, so if you can get this on some good units you can get a lot of damage done.
Protocol of the Conquering Tyrant - 1CP
Again, you'll almost always want to use this on a unit with a Character, though this one at least still might have use on other units. Re-rolling wounds is a powerful ability, especially if any units have good access to DEV WOUNDS.
Protocol of the Undying Legions - 1CP
One of the powerful things about older versions of Reanimation Protocols was that it often occurred soon after a unit took damage. This strat lets you bring back some of that old power, with another bonus if the unit has a Character.
Protocol of the Vengeful Stars - 1CP
Oh wow! A shoot back ability with a kicker! I really like the theming on this one, and can easily imagine a Necron commander casually ordering their unit to fire back on the enemy as they expose themselves. IGNORES COVER is really good now, so this Strat will almost certainly see use.
Protocol of the Sudden Storm - 1CP
Necrons are one of the slower armies. So giving some of them the ability to Advance and Shoot and re-rolling the Advance roll is a nice bonus.
These are all very good strats. Of them, I think the one you'll probably use the least is the previously revealed Hungry Void. But I definitely hope Necrons have good CP regen, because you'll want to use these all frequently.
ENHANCEMENTS
Veil of Darkness - 20 pts
Teleporting a unit at the end of your opponent's turn is a very powerful ability. You're going to want to take this!
The Sovereign Coronal (Aura) - 30 pts
This feels a bit pricey, but so many of this Detachment's rules key off of being lead by a Character. And this is definitely cheaper than purchasing a Character for every single unit.
Hypermaterial Ablator - 25 pts
Stealth is nice, but it's so easy to get Cover in 10th Edition. This is probably going to stay back at the Tomb World.
Sempiternal Weave - 10 pts
Okay, I know Characters in 10th Edition don't have a lot of wounds to make the best use of FNP. But this still feel like a bargain, and you want to keep your Characters alive. Take it!
I think we've got two really good Enhancements here, with a third you might want to use to get the most out of the Detachment. Not too bad!
DATASHEETS
Imotekh the Stormlord - 105 pts
Oh wow! He's T5! That's really not a bad profile for a 105 pts character and the Staff of the Destroyer looks plenty mean. He also looks like your primary source of extra CP and has a once per game mortal wounds bomb. He feel pretty auto-include.
Orikan the Diviner - 80 pts
The main reason you're taking this unique Cryptek is for that 4+ Invuln on his unit. But his Finest Hour ability is also really good! It also looks like Crypteks can be a second character in a unit, so that makes him a very good pick.
Anrakyr the Traveler - 95 pts
How is he cheaper than Imotekh? Anrakyr honestly looks like a beast, even if you know you're going to constantly roll 1s for his tachyon arrow. His ability to cripple enemy Vehicles is very nice. His only drawback is he can only lead Immortals. So if they're not all that good, you won't be able to make good use out of him.
Vargard Obyron - 85 pts
Interesting! You're almost always going to want to take Obyron with Zahndrekh. He's a pretty good melee Character assassin, and Fights First is fantastic.
Illuminor Szeras - 220 pts
Szeras is expensive, and his defensive profile isn't very good for his cost. Fortunately, you should be able to stop it from ever coming up. He gets Lone Op when near other Necrons, and you'll be keeping him near at least one unit. With eldritch lance having a 36" range and some decent ability to punish anything in melee that wanders close enough to shoot, he can do everything he needs to without ever putting himself at risk. And his Aura is simply incredible, even if it only affects Battleline.
Necron Epic Heroes are no joke!
Nemesor Zahndrekh - 85 pts
All of the abilities on Zahndrekh's Transient Madness are good to have, though you'll always want to get DEV WOUNDS. He also gets a Vect, which is very nice. He's definitely worth taking.
Trazyn the Infinite - 75 pts
Our first potential miss is everyone's favorite history buff. His defensive profile honestly isn't bad for his cost, and the fact he can use other characters as extra lives or a teleport is great. However his combat profile is lacking, and while sticky objectives is good, Necrons shouldn't have any issues with board control.
Royal Warden - 40 pts
40 pts! How is this only 40 pts? Buy!
Skorpekh Lord - 115 pts
This is pretty good! If Skorpekhs are good, and you decide you want to take them, you should probably take this too.
Lokhust Lord - 85 pts
Oo! The Lokhust Lord grants their unit Crits on 5s! If they've got good USRs to take advantage of this, then that's pretty potent. I've said my piece about finishing blow abilities.
Lord - 65 pts
The generic Necron Lord looks okay. Additional movement is always nice, especially on such a slow army. But why make it so that you can use strats on Battle-shocked units when the Royal Warden can just end Battle-shock?
Catacomb Command Barge - 150 pts
Okay, I like the Command Barge way more than the generic Necron Lord. It's definitely shootable, and that's always going to be a problem. But it's got some nice durability, and it definitely makes your basic troops a pain to deal with.
Overlord - 85 pts
For 20 pts more than the generic Necron Lord, you get a huge durability buff, the ability to take a voidscythe, and the Captain ability. I think Necron Lords are going to be collecting dust for a bit.
Technomancer - 60 pts
This is an interesting piece of tech. You can either join them to a unit, granting the old school Reanimation Protocols for a 5+ FNP, and have them buff your Canoptek units, or you can make them a Lone Operative and have them play objective games while still getting to heal your models. Either way, they're worth the 60 pts.
Psychomancer - 50 pts
Wow! That is such a good weapon for such a crappy combat profile! Necrons haven't played much with Battle-shock yet, so this is a tool that might be welcome. Battle-shock is turning out to not be the most impactful thing, but it's still an annoying debuff you can inflict. And 50 pts seems about right.
Chronomancer - 50 pts
There's that much need mobility boost! This is fantastic! Buy!
Plasmancer - 55 pts
That's a slightly better profile for a weapon like that, but hitting on 4s still stings. Still, scoring crits on 5s is fantastic. But the real draw here is Living Lightning. Abilities like this are normally once per game, but the Plasmancer gets it in their Shooting phase. Even with mortals on 6s, that's still fantastic! Buy!
Necron Warriors - 120 pts for 10 models (12 pts per model)
And the shoe finally drops. Necron Warriors are 12 pts per model. Necron characters are great, but they can only attach to at most three units. Right now we're 0 and 1.
Immortals - 70 pts for 5 models (14 pts per model)
Alright! That's more like it! For 2 pts more per model, Immortals are much tougher and have way better shooting. They're probably still only fine, but this is a much smaller tax to pay to bring your characters.
Canoptek Reanimator - 95 pts
This is a lot to pay for 6 T6 wounds with some mediocre shooting. But that aura is great! The 4+ FNP definitely helps. It'll be tough with how tall they are, but if you can find a good hiding spot they'll greatly increase your army's durability.
Hexmark Destroyer - 70 pts
It'll be tricky making use of this models Lone Operative ability, but it'll definitely be worth it. While its Pistols are only Dmg 1, you can put out so many shots it's kind of crazy. And worse comes to worse, you use it to score objectives.
Lychguard - 95 pts for 5 models (19 pts per model)
I'm calling these fine too. So while none of the Necron units you can put your characters in are really standout, you do have options. These can even make a credible melee threat with the right Characters.
Deathmarks - 65 pts for 5 models (13 pts per model)
Wow, we're just gonna shame Warriors now. These are actually really good! Especially with all the rumors of GSC running amok, their ability is absolutely fantastic!
Flayed Ones - 70 pts for 5 models (14 pts per model)
I don't like their ability very much, but that is a lot of attacks they can put out. They're really slow though, so I'm pretty sure these aren't going to find a home in many lists.
Cryptothralls - 40 pts for 2 models (20 pts per model)
These seem overpriced, but if I understand the rule correctly I think they grant the whole unit a 3+ Fight on Death. That's a mean ability to give your Bodyguards.
Skorpekh Destroyers - 110 pts for 3 models (~36.67 pts per model)
These have a great combat profile, and a once per game DEV WOUND ability. I think these are probably on the edge of fine at that cost. You're definitely only taking these if you're taking a Skorpekh Lord.
Triarch Stalker - 125 pts
I think this is great! It's got a good profile for its cost and three interesting weapon options. I think I really like the particle shredder, though the heat ray is also good. But the main reason you're taking these is to mark targets and get rid of Cover.
C'tan Shard of the Deceiver - 265 pts
This feels a bit pricy to me, especially since the timing on redeploys seems to be undesirable. But he's probably going to snipe a character every time he gets in range. I feel you're going to struggle to get your points back with him though.
C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer - 255 pts
This is better in my opinion. I feel like The Nighbringer is still going to be an excellent, tough, melee threat.
C'tan Shard of the Void Dragon - 270 pts
Nice, they fixed the WS on the spear! Vehicles are a thing in this edition, and the Void Dragon is still great at dealing with them. I think this is good.
Transcendent C'tan - 280 pts
What, why? Why is this the most expensive C'tan? Yeah it can teleport and blast things with its gun, but that's the only trick it has. It's not bad, I just don't know why this is the expensive one.
Canoptek Spyders - 75 pts per model
I don't think Psychic attacks are really going to be that big of a deal in this edition, though Gloom Prism is nice when you run into your odd KSons or Grey Knights player. So you're mostly taking this to make your vehicles tougher and your Scarabs more annoying.
Canoptek Scarab Swarms - 40 pts for 3 models (~13.33 pts per model)
Hah! The Scarab Swarms have LETHAL HITS! That's fantastic! These honestly still look like they'll be a great screening and harassment unit.
Ophydian Destroyers - 110 pts for 3 models (~36.67 pts per model)
Hey! Tunneling Horrors is our thing!
Jokes aside, you lose quite a bit of durability and striking power for the movement shenanigans. Skorpekhs were right on the edge and really only work because you can take a Skorpekh lord. Still, Necrons can use the mobility.
Tomb Blades - 80 pts for 3 models (~26.67 pts per model)
Yeah, Necrons are definitely being charged a premium for mobility. You get to be the slow, inevitable end, but if you step out of that lane you get hit hard for it. I'd still say these aren't bad.
Triarch Praetorians - 135 pts for 5 models (27 pts per model)
Oh wow! And here I was lamenting the cost of the Tomb Blades! These are garbage!
Canoptek Wraiths - 110 pts for 3 models (~36.67 pts per model)
I think I like these more than Ophydians. If you're looking for a fast melee unit, I think this is where you go. (Edit: Until I notice the 4s to hit below.)
Annihilation Barge - 115 pts
This one gets that weird splash damage rule. Honestly I think this is pretty good. I'd definitely take the gauss cannon to give it some ability to shoot at harder targets.
Doomsday Ark - 185 pts
Huh! This is a tricky one. On the one hand, it can put out some absolutely devastating shots with its doomsday cannon, especially if you can find a good firing lane for it. On the other, it's pretty fragile. At least it has a 4+ Invuln to help keep it alive.
Lokhust Destroyers - 30 pts per model
Wow, we are just all over the place with this Index!
These seem pretty solid. No muss no fuss, just plenty of mobile firepower.
Lokhust Heavy Destroyers - 45 pts per model
Another hmm. The re-roll wounds against its chosen target is nice, but what I really want is re-roll Hits on those gauss destructors. Still these seem pretty good.
Canoptek Doomstalker - 125 pts
Oh these are good! These are so good! Buy buy buy!
Ghost Ark - 125 pts
Again, we're seeing Necron mobility charged a bit of a premium, but at least this is a good platform. I wish it could carry two characters though.
Doom Scythe - 225 pts
Okay, this thing is really expensive, but I think it's worth it. That's just a ton of damage this can put out. I imagine you'll be splitting fire a lot to get the benefit against Infantry, but that's honestly just gravy.
Night Scythe - 145 pts
What! You spent this entire index charging a premium for Necrons to be able to move more than 5", and now you give us this? Why are you ever taking a Ghost Ark?
Obelisk - 325 pts
Nope! You're still leaving Obelisks at home!
Tesseract Vault - 425 pts
That's a lot of DEV WOUND this can potentially do. I'm still not sure it's worth taking, though. For 425 pts, you're basically shooting with one good gun each turn. This might make a good distraction carnifex, but I think if one of these is on the table you kind of just ignore it.
Monolith - 385 pts
This, on the other hand, looks really good. Not only is it a tough body with decent shooting, but it's got that wonderful mobility trick. Looks like we still get to keep playing with our Monoliths.
The Silent King - 470 pts
Okay! Szarekh is still awesome! Not only does he put out a ton of firepower, destroy things in melee, (Why does he have a generic close combat weapon? I think someone forgot to remove a copy paste.) and end battle-shocked, but he's got an amazing commander ability! Obviously, re-roll Hits and Wounds of 1 is good and pairs great with a lot of Necron high damage weaponry. But the real winner here is Bringer of Unity. So many debuffs, including the OC penalty on Battle-shock, are characteristic modifiers. He's basically a 6" aura of "I don't care," for many rules in this game. That includes his INDIRECT FIRE too! Hail to the king!
Convergence of Dominion - 225 pts
Hah! No. GW is still having trouble figuring out Fortifications I see!
Canoptek Tomb Stalker - 130 pts
At first I thought this wasn't bad, then I noticed it hits on 4s. I think I missed that on the Wraiths, so that honestly pulls them out of running for a melee threat. Pass.
Canoptek Tomb Sentinel - 115 pts
This isn't bad though. As a ranged piece, it's much easier to keep this in effective range of a Technomancer with a Control Node. And getting Armour of Contempt when it's on an objective will greatly increase its durability.
Canoptek Acanthrites - 85 pts for 3 models (~28.33 per model)
Okay, these may be pricy, but they can potentially mark some units for death. Not only do their shots do appreciable damage, but they grant your army improved AP against one target they hit. The problem is getting that hit. Three shots hitting on 4s is not very reliable.
Tesseract Ark - 130 pts
This isn't bad, I just wish it had a more impactful rule.
Seraptek Heavy Construct - 540 pts
It's tough, once we get to titan scale miniatures I always start to have more trouble pricing them. I just have so much less experience with the really big stuff. I think I like it though.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Necrons are good! This is definitely a solid army with a lot of real power behind it. I'm a little sad to see Warriors over-costed, but there's just a lot of power in this Index. Obviously, mobility is an issue for them and they don't have the best access to good melee. But it just feels like there are so many ways to rain death on your opponent that Necron players will be spoiled for choice. They also have some of the best morale in the game, with multiple ways to deal with Battle-shock. I think Necron players will be really happy with this Index.
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