Trencher Infantry

Prepared for anything, Cygnar’s highly trained trenchers are the first on and the last off the battlefield. These combat-hardened soldiers dig in and make life hell for the enemy, with rifles and grenades softening up the opposition before the decisive bayonet charge.

Only time and experience can dig in under heavy fire and keep his edge for weeks of unrelenting tension when food and ammunition run low. Those who survive may be promoted through the ranks; many a capable soldier has proudly ended their career with a sergeant's stripe. Chosen for their natural talent and coolness under fire, the highly trained snipers exhibit exceptional skill and marksmanship.

Grenadiers are selected from among the trenchers with an interest in demolitions and are then thoroughly trained in the safe assembly and preparation of rifle grenades, a recent improvement on the traditional explosive grenade.

Basic Info

Abilities

File:Trencher CA.jpg

Command Attachment

• Entire unit
  • Template:Advance Deployment
  • Template:Assault
  • Template:Tough
  • Template:Dig In
  • Template:Smoke Bombs

• Entire unit except Sniper and Grenadier.
  • Template:Combined Ranged Attack

• Officer only
  • Template:Officer
  • Template:Cautious Advance
  • Template:Into the Breach

• Sniper only
  • Template:Sniper

Weapons

Grunts, Leader, and Officer (CA)	Military Rifle File:Gun icon.jpg  RNG   ROF   AOE   POW  10 1 Template:- 11 Bayonet File:Sword icon.jpg  RNG   POW   P+S  1 3 9 Template:Brutal Charge
Sniper (CA)	Scoped Rifle File:Gun icon.jpg  RNG   ROF   AOE   POW  14 1 Template:- 11 Bayonet File:Sword icon.jpg  RNG   POW   P+S  1 3 9 Template:Brutal Charge
Grenadier (WA)	Military Rifle File:Gun icon.jpg  RNG   ROF   AOE   POW  10 1 Template:- * Template:Attack Type Template:Rifle Shot Template:Rifle Grenade Trench Knife File:Sword icon.jpg  RNG   POW   P+S  0.5 3 9

Theme Forces

• Cygnar
  • Template:Gravediggers - This units gains Rise.

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this unit in the Template:Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Sloan is leading the army.
  • Mercenary players can use this unit in the Template:Llaelese Resistance theme. They become Llaelese models and gain Pathfinder.
  • Mercenary players can use this unit in the Template:Kingmakers theme. They gain Feign Death.

Thoughts on Trencher Infantry

File:Trencher WA.jpg

Weapon Attachment

Trencher Infantry in a nutshell

Trenchers are a unit with a ton of rules that all adds up to something that can do almost anything well. Their relatively high native RAT, CRA and weapon attachments make them dangerous at range to just about anything. Brutal charge and 1" reach allows them to do fair amounts of damage to medium infantry, light's or more squishy heavies. With native tough and their plethora of tricks, they can achieve high levels of survivability that can fluster opponents. Advance deployment and decent speed mean they can get into scenario zones and flags surprisingly quickly.

Dig In makes their DEF astronomical, and they will be nearly unkillable at range. The two main weaknesses to Dig In are melee attackers, who ignore it completely, and sprays, which ignore cover anyway. With the CA the unit gains a method to move and remain dug in (or rather, re-dig in after your move). KEEP IN MIND: Digging in means that your Trenchers will NOT block line of sight, so they essentially can shoot through each other as if they had Martial Discipline

A wall of Smoke Bombs is a great way to block LOS and prevent your warcaster from being sniped off the board, but remember that it won't block LOS to the Trenchers themselves (although they will get the concealment bonus).

Thoughts on the Command Attachment

The Trencher Infantry CA is almost a must-have to make Trenchers truly amazing in a Cygnar army. Cautious advance means they can still remain survivable while also moving, which is very handy early in the game. His minifeat can be difficult to use, though can be exceptionally frustrating for opponents who can't see through clouds.

The Sniper is handy, but doesn't add a whole lot to the unit. Since he can't CRA, he ends up sniping out solos or plinking a point of damage onto things with exceptionally high armor.

Thoughts on the Weapon Attachment

A squad of Trenchers can have up to 3 grenadiers attached. Useful as an extra body, but don't expect much from them. They can't CRA unfortunately, but POW 10 blast damage can slaughter light infantry, and even threaten squishy casters.

Combos & Synergies

In Cygnar

• Trenchers defensive stats are at the point where they are very easy to kill, but any sort of buff makes them instantly a pain to deal with. If they dig in they are immune to all types of ranged attacks except CRA's and sprays. Blur, Arcane Shield, Deceleration, Deflection, and Dauntless Resolve are all excellent spells to provide them. Additionally, Heightened Reflexes from Caine2 can ensure they stay standing if they make their tough roll.
• Their middling range is helped immensely by Snipe from any of those casters, and allows for the entire unit to get a CRA onto something.
• Colonel Markus ‘Siege’ Brisbane ups their hitting power with Fury, their threat ranges with Desperate Pace and makes them more annoying to remove with High Ground.
• Major Prime Victoria Haley provides them with their favourite spell: Tactical Supremacy This way, they can walk forward, pop smoke, then reposition backwards out of the smoke. This makes the entire army invisible to an opponent that doesn't have true sight, and they can continue to do this every turn. This can be an incredibly simple and effective tactic against a lot of different armies. She also has Temporal Distortion bubbles, which are great with trencher, because if you haven't caught on by now: Defensive techs are really good on Trenchers.

In Mercenaries

• The Llaelese Resistance theme allows (it also grants them Pathfinder) them and Ashlynn d'Elyse really appreciates that. Her Veteran Leader, Quicken and feat all are great with them.
  • Major Harrison Gibbs is essential for this kind of army, since he grants the same Reposition they get under Haley.
• The Kingmaker's Army allows them too and Damiano runs them extremely well thanks to Death March, Surefoot and his feat.
  • Boomhowler2 gives them Reposition or Boomhowler3 gives them Hoof It, so they can back up behind their clouds.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• Expensive infantry unit, whose survival depends on smoke bomb cover, Dig-In, and occasional Tough rolls. Lists and armies that bypass some or all of these (e.g. Eyeless Sight, Hunter, Grievous Wounds, RFP attacks) will kill them pretty soon and armies liek that aren't rare either.
• Models with 2" melee range and/or Parry can run in and out to engage them, cancelling the cover bonus from Dig-in without taking free strikes.
• Lightning, Fire and Corrosion are valid dangers, even for dug-in Trenchers. Watch out for your own Electro Leap-capable models too.
• Smokewalls work both ways, and it can take practice to learn how to block your opponent without also blocking yourself.
• Their delivery can be hindered greatly by difficult terrain tricks.
• They really don't hit hard in melee, not hard enough to dent heavies anyway.

Tricks & Tips

• Bringing their CA will allow Trenchers to advance, Dig In, and then perform a ranged attack. They can even CRA after using Cautious Advance
• A very economic way of dealing with above average ARM is to perform multiple 2-man CRAs at POW 13, which should crack most armored infantry with decent rolls
• One of the most efficient ways of killing a hellmouth is by casting fire for effect on a single trencher, then performing a 10 man CRA lead by him. The damage roll will be 2D6+3, meaning a 5 on 2D6 will kill the hellmouth outright. While a niche application, this is a very effective way of dealing wtih a common problem.

Other

Trivia

• The unit (not including CA or WA) was originally released in Warmachine: Prime (2003)
• The CA & WA were released in Warmachine: Superiority (2006)