3.5/5 stars. Rounded up. Useful. But not as much as previous editions.
Background.
Apothecaries in 30k stride the battlefield as one with their brothers. Capable of fighting and shooting just as well as any other, they also have the sacred duty of recovering gene seed from the dead, as well as keeping their brothers in the battle as much as possible.
Strengths.
The apothecary has 2 wounds and is otherwise fairly standard except he brings the Medic rule to any unit that he joins.
Explicitly, this functions like an advanced reaction. Upon activation, you get a recovery save of 4+ for any unsaved wounds from shooting. This is, of course, very useful!
Weaknesses.
This is certainly not the feel no pain of previous editions, but in my view it is a little fairer across the board. It is a way of not only getting rid of particularly stubborn opponents in one fell swoop by the designers, but also retains the spirit and fluff of the apothecary. He literally has to patch people up on the fly, and as such, an advanced reaction seems appropriate.
I should also mention the 3+ armour save and the general lack of upgrades - I would single out the jump pack here which is now only available to Primus Medicae (as well as bikes, jet bikes and so on). This is bad. The Narthecium is also re-purposed here: it allows recovery tests in the morale sub-phase. If successful, they get -2 to the characteristic check. This is mega-clunky and not really very good in my opinion.
Builds.
Apothecary (30 points).
I honestly don't feel the need to take upgrades, but the odd power weapon here might be useful.
No comments:
Post a Comment