Monday, September 28, 2015

USAriadna Marines - The Devil Dogs

The USMC in space is represented by giant raging dog men.  Must be a European thing.  This pair is one of the most visually different in the US box, mainly due to its size.  Dog warrior models have come a long way!

Extremely Impetuous werewolves on 40mm bases are nothing new to Ariadna, but these guys do bring a host of new things to our low-tech list that you don't normally get exposed to if you're commanding a Cameronian or a traditional antipode pack.


Devil Dog

The leader of the unit, this beast is similar to a transformed dog warrior or a Cameronian: Courage, Total Immunity (ha ha, Pan-O!), and Super-Jump.  He's a sprinter at 6-4 MOV and has all the stats to get in your face and shred you.  CC 21, PH 16, ARM 4.  His BS is a meager 10, but like other dog warriors, he's smart enough to come with chain rifle.  He can have that with smoke grenades and an AP heavy pistol or go for heavy shotgun and smoke for another 9 points.  Option 1 seems like it makes more sense, but heavy shotguns are pretty rad.

Oddly enough, Devil Dogs are AVA 3.  That breaks out from the Max-2 dog warriors norm, so go nuts.  The K-9 is AVA 1, but that seems to apply to a max of 1 per Devil Dog.

K-9 Antipode

The antipode is fast and sneaky.  He's got 6-6 MOV as well as Kinematika L2 and PH 15, so he can move and dodge very quickly,  CH: Mimetism puts him at -3 to hit.

Given that the pair will probably be toward the front lines, Sensor will come in handy. Sensor lets you make a discover roll with a +6 bonus to find all enemies within the model's zone of control.  Range, Camo, and Hiding mods don't count - you can't hide from an antipode's nose.
The +6 also applies to normal discover rolls made by the user.  He gets Sensor: Triangulated Fire, too, but let's not get too excited about that with an antipode.

Weapons are as you'd expect: AP CCW (teeth).

The Team

Here's where things get a little different from how we're accustomed to seeing our dogs.
First off, they're Marine Corps, so they get aquatic movement.
G: Synchronized is the bit that's fairly unique in Ariadna, though.  This rule is normally seen in more technically advanced list, where there are little servant robots running around.  It's worth summing up, just so I can get used to the idea before game day.


  • Team generates a single order (Irregular in this case as well as its Extreme Impetuous order)
  • Devil Dog is the handler, K-9 is the synched Ghost.  
  • Both models activate together with the one order and must receive the same order.
  • They can target different models, etc; they just need to receive the same order.
  • Any model in the team that can't perform the given order does nothing and is considered inactive.
  • Each model gets its own ARO, but like normal orders they need to do the same thing.
  • The team activates together, so they only create a single ARO opportunity.
  • The K-9 has to remain within the Devil Dog's ZoC. If he isn't, or the Devil Dog goes unconscious, the K-9 becomes IMMobilized.  The K-9 will reconnect at the end of the order in which the conscious Devil Dog ends with the K-9 in its ZoC.
  • Comms Equipment - G: Synch is susceptible to hacking and special ammo in 3rd ed, so watch out!  If your comms get interrupted, the Devil Dog will be isolated and the K-9 will be unusable.

This will be a great fast, tough unit to use in rooting out sneaky enemies and backing up some of the lighter forward rangers.  It will be interesting to see how Extreme Impetuous figures into the equation since the rest of the force is so well trained, but I'm hard pressed to think of a better use of 30 points.



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