Vindicator

Crucible Arms has taken over the production of the Ordic Toro chassis, an aggressive workhorse heavy warjack armed with sword and shield that has fought with the Ordic Army for decades. The multipurpose Vindicator can fight with its heavy maul or fire its compression cannon at range to unleash tactically useful entropic and psychoactive substances.

Basic Info

Abilities

• Template:Construct
• Template:Alchemically Treated

Weapons

Multi-Chambered Compression Cannon
File:Gun icon.jpg		RNG			ROF			AOE			POW
		12			1			4			15
Template:Attack Type Template:Decrepitation Template:Psychomorphic Destabilizer Template:Withering Humor Template:Powerful Attack Template:Steam Pressure
Maul
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		2				7				18

Theme Forces

• Crucible Guard
  • Template:Magnum Opus
  • Template:Primae Materia. This model gains Cutting Edge in this theme.

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this model in the Template:Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Lukas is leading the army.

Thoughts on Vindicator

Vindicator in a nutshell

The Vindicator is an effective answer-providing heavy with a solution to almost any threat that exemplifies Crucible Guard's versatility. It has a good P+S 18, 2" range melee attack but it is obviously focused on its gun. Its cannon uses different Attack Types to cover a lot of different situations. It has an excellent threat range both on the move and when aiming. Decrepitation effectively makes the Vindicator a Weapon Master against 'jacks, pretty much every Convergence model, most Cryx models, the stone side of Circle, and undead warbeasts such as those found in Minions. Psychomorphic Destabilizer is the bane of anything that relies on being Incorporeal to survive or protections such as the Choir of Menoth's Hymn of Passage. Withering Humor is a fantastic tool for dealing with living and/or Tough models, gives you another option to use against undead models, and supplements or replaces Dragon's Breath Rockets in your list. The Vindicator brings an answer to almost any question your opponent will ask.

Combos & Synergies

• As per usual, Prospero can provide it with Guided Fire, Veteran Leader or simply focus points. However, with Powerful Attack the Vindicator doesn't benefit from these nearly as much as other CG ranged warjacks.
• Captain Eira Mackay amps up its ranged game with Flare, Return Fire, and a feat that boosts it's damage and gives it Run & Gun.
• Marshal General Baldwin Gearhart & Mr. Clogg provides Snipe, and Prey on feat turn. Boosted RAT 7 POW 17+4d6 or POW 19+3d6 WILL hurt, and with Snipe it can do it from 20" away.
• Aurum Lucanum Athanor Locke can give it Sentry and allows it to have a 19" threat range while aiming thanks to Road to War.
• Aurum Legate Lukas di Morray can extend it's threat by up to 4" with Telekinesis and amp up it's damage with Disintegration. On feat, Lukas gives it free focus.
• Aurum Adeptus Syvestro makes everything better, and the Vindicator is no exception.
• It forms an excellent pair with the Suppressor. Withering Humor debuffs the armour of living models, which the Suppressor struggles into. Rust debuffs constructs, which the Vindicator can put fully boosted Decrepitation shots into. Withering Humor and Ice Cage can also ruin the day of any warbeast if used in conjunction.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• It only has one initial in melee. But it's a powerful one and CG has many debuffs, so it's not that big of a problem.
• It doesn't have any special tools to deal with models that are not living, undead, or constructs (e.g. Archons) other than POW 15 Powerful Attack shots.
• Technically, you can get the Withering Humor debuff for cheap from a Dragon's Breath Rocket, either for 5 points or as a requisition card. Practically, the rocket does not have attack types, access to focus, the statline and boxes of a heavy warjack, and a P+S 18 whackstick, all of which make the extra 10-15 points worth it. The Vindicator can also be bough with your caster's WJPs.

Tricks and Tips

• Wraith Engines hate Vindicators. Psychomorphic Destabilizer removes Incorporeal, Decrepitation does lots of extra damage against it as a construct AND undead model for up to 5 dice of damage if boosted, and Withering Humor lowers it's ARM by 2. The Wraith Engine is also vulnerable to Rust, Disintegration, and Telekinesis to really mess with it (the latter two from Lukas).
• Other notable models that REALLY hate Decrepitation are Deneghra3 and Mortenebra2.
• Don't forget that the effects from the attack type you chose and the boosted damage from Powerful Attack both apply to the AOE blast damage.
• You have to announce which attack type you use before you make your attack rolls, or you will have to default to the top position type printed on its card. In casual settings, most players will let this rule slide, and allow you to declare it after rolling, and assume you picked the "right" one for the situation. In tournament settings they might call you out on it, so it's recommended you make it a habit to declare such things at the appropriate time.

Other

Trivia

Released 2018.06