The Secutarii Arrive! Early Thoughts and Review

Greetings all.

A long awaited moment for Titan owners came about today as Forge World announced the general release of the Secutarii Titan Guard.  These currently take the form of the Hoplites and Peltasts.  Even better, we were given their 40k experimental rules for us to use them as soon as we get them built and ready to fight.

Lets dive into a quick review of them and see what they can offer to the Collegia Titanica forces.

First off, they are part of Codex: Adeptus Mechanicus- Skitarii and they take up Elites slots.  This really isn't a bad thing since they are going to be an effective unit and have some very specialized gear.  In the long run, it likely won't be an issue since most of us are taking our beloved Titans in Apocalypse games where these slots really don't matter.

Here's the real kicker though about them.  Their faction is NOT Skitarii or Cult Mechanicus.  Their faction is actually ADEPTUS TITANICUS!  No units currently have that as their faction designation, not even the Titans themselves.  This could mean that a Codex: Adeptus Titanicus may be coming, or far more likely that the faction will be created in the supposed Imperial Armour book that will pit the Mechanicus and Red Scorpions vs the Tau.  This could be an early portent of what is to come.

So, what's going to make the Secutarii special?  

Their stat lines are pretty vanilla and boring.  They are what you expect of Skitarii with no real noticeable differences other than they are BS4 (vs the standard Skitarii's BS3) and the unit Alpha has one less wound than standard Skitarii Alphas (this may be FAQed later on).  They retain the standard 4+ armor save, even though they have Secutarii Warplate instead of Skitarii Warplate.  They also retain Doctrina Imperitives, Relentless, and Feel No Pain (6+) meaning that they are Skitarii with a different rules set.  However, this means they will mesh well with your current Skitarii and benefit from everything that the codex does.

The biggest draw of the Secutarii is their specialist nature wargear.  All Secutarii have the Kyropatris Field Generator which will make them a considerably more survivable unit.  The short of this is that as long as the unit numbers five (5) models or more they can re-roll failed armor saves of one (1).  In addition, as long as the squad numbers 10 or more models, then all shooting attacks against them have their strength reduced by one (1).  As the minimum size of the Secutarii is 10 and the maximum is 20, it means you'll be able to build a unit that has a surprising amount of durability for what is only a T3, 4+ armor unit.  Even Space Marine bolters in rapid fire could have a tougher time taking this guys out.

The Hoplites come with an Arc Lance (a long-range Arc Maul, basically) that has two profiles.  This gives the Hoplites the ability to engage the enemy in close range, meaning they are the ones tying units up in combat to keep the Titan from meeting several power fists, and the ability to have a ranged attack before being set upon.  While not hard hitting, these weapons will be effective and can even give power armored foes a run for their money.  Furthermore, the Arc Lance has haywire, meaning that the unit has increased versatility and will effectively shock vehicles to death before they can also attack the Titan.  The final thing the Hoplites possess is their Mag-inverter Shields, which grants them a 5+ invulnerable save and makes them excellent at surviving the heavy weapons that are likely to target them to bypass their armor and Kyropatris Field Generators.

Source: Forge World Website

The Peltasts will sit back at range and pelt (pun intended) the enemy with shot from their Galvanic-casters.  Secutarii Peltasts have the same equipment as the Hoplites except they trade out the Arc Lance and shield for their guns.  The Galvanic-caster is an all-comers type of weapon in terms of killing infantry.  Where the Hoplites are designed for tying up units that get too close to the Titans and are well suited to tank killing, the Peltasts are designed to butcher infantry and can even crack power armored units.  Their guns have three different firing modes that can lay down a volley of shots with shred, hit targets out of their line of sight, or even have a 30" range that wounds most enemies on a 4+ and is AP3.  Furthermore, they have a Blind Barrage ability that allows them to grant Shrouded to a friendly unit, even super-heavies if two units use the ability on it.

Source: Forge World Website

The only real issue with the Secutarii is that they lack the fluffiest thing about them, Titan Guard defense.  Titan Guard are sworn to protect the God-Engines of the Adeptus Mechanicus and will lay down their lives without hesitation for them.  They are stalwart defenders who are pitiless in their duties and fearless in the presence of the Titans.  No rules for the Secutarii reflect this or even mention the Titans themselves.  

Combined with the standard Skitarii there is quite a lot that the Secutarii can add to the defense of a Titan.  They do not stand ridiculously far from their Skitarii brethren, but their rules and weaponry certainly indicate that they are among the elite of their kin.  The Secutarii will certainly be defensive of the Titans in terms of their durability and ability to take down whatever will go after the God-Engines.  Furthermore, many combinations that are currently available to the Skitarii (such as the Vanguard's -1T effect and the Infiltrators' nerf effects) will make the Secutarii even deadlier than their current weaponry would indicate.  These will indeed be a worthy addition as your Titan Guard.

Let us know in the comments section what you think of the new Secutarii release.