There are a lot of threads popping up here and there about new army "discoveries" with the Solonavi Striker.

It's not the army boys, it's the figure.

Only the Creator can match both the movement and and the range of the striker. All other figs get out-moved or out-ranged. The striker is also extremely efficient for his point cost, with high attack values, high damage values, good defense values *and* toughness (many clicks) to negate the normal free damage methods of taking down big uniques.

In my book the striker has no peer and is worse than a troll artillerist or red amotep gunner.

I tend to shy away from using artillerists, amoteps, and now the striker in armies because it makes winning too easy. The challenge is not there. Anyone who is not careless can play a striker well.

He's fun because he is so strong and extremely point efficient. Not only that, he breaks away easily with flight or bound, and with that movement it is not likely he will be caught by your usual harasser/speedy figure type.

It'd be easy to dance out of range of other figures with him all day long.
Yes, you can argue that his abilities "inspire" new army types because that kind of range and movement make certain army types stand out, and engender ideas, but to me, he's just a figure you can sit down with and lay a whupping on anyone with.

The challenge for me now is just to start manufacturing armies that are good but can also be adapted to kill or chase the striker around so that he is of the smallest advantage possible to his owner... for instance 3 or so **fell reapers and a mobile/decent ranged piece like a soaring gunner to follow the reapers and lay additional damage on the striker when the opportunity arises.

I guess the thing I like least about the striker is that it makes the game less fun/more discouraging for new MKers when they have to play against it, since they have so few options in countering the threats it presents.

Next to that, it is a piece whose abilities beg to be played all the time, and I'll get really tired of seeing strikers popping up all the time, like maguses and storm golems used to.

But he is quite a piece, and I guess I've said my piece about him now.

So what am I looking for here? I would like you fellow realmers to make arguments counter to what I have layed out above, if possible. Help me see how he is a fair piece/is not broken/can be countered like any other unique in mage knight. Sell me on how newbies that play in armies opposite him won't get discouraged by him.

I'm not necessarily sold on what I've stated above, but right now it is kind of hard to see the striker in any other light. This is what I need help on. ;) Thanks.

600HPVETTE-2 things. One is that the Striker has Toughness so the Magic Retaliation will do no damage to him. The second thing is that Striker is 112 points. The figs you used to beat him cost 193 points (3 Deadwood Golem*, 1 Shaman*, 2 Scorpem Gunners***).

One of the few ways to take down a Striker is with a powerful range formation. You could use 3 Troll Artys** and a few blockers. The Striker can only hit one of the Artys and the Strikers F/L will do nothing because of the trolls toughness. I would just move into the Strikers range and then move some blockers in front of my Artys. If the Striker doesnt move, I will push the blockers out of the way and then push with the trolls to hit the Striker. When moving into the Strikers range, I will make sure he has an action token so that running will cause push damage.

I too think the Striker is broken but I think that he's just having is moment in the sun. You sais that the new army "discoveries" that are popping up arent new, just striker armies. but what are KI swarm with out Standard Bearer( and, yes Inf. Cap.'s) or F & P without the Technomancer?

The Striker just takes an older not so competive army and makes it tournament worthy.

Yes, to play against him in your first game or two is a little discouraging but I don't feel he's that much worse than some of the others. My first game I played against a HBM followed two games later by an Arcane. Did it both suck and blow and the same time? You betcha. but I found ways to beat them. I think the Striker will always be popular but right now he's just the new toy on the block. We'll learn to beat Guerrilla armies just like Swarm and F & P's.


I dont think he's much more broken than gunners or arties, he's just bigger. At least you can only have one of them in an army

I decided to delete my post thanks to Chaotic Mage, who do you think you are? Just kidding. Your idea is much better and if I come across a striker I will use your method to blow it up. There is so much to learn.

The Striker reminds me alot of Techun, when I first played against it. The thing was just plain ol' intimidating, with 5 damage, 12" range, flight, etc...

I remember my first game against it. Managed to catch it between 2 Magic Blasts from Magus and Chaos Mage, crippling it. I'm thinking that Magus/Chaos Mage/Summoner/any other good 12" magic blaster is going to be good against Striker. Sure, it'll fly away most of the time, but if it's gonna be feeling threatened by big imposing magic blasters, it won't stick around for long.

There'll be ways to bring down this monster.

Necro-While I dont buy the striker as an Uber-fig (it is excellent mind, just not broken), I dont think your average 12 Mb'er is going to do the job. Striker never has to be in range. Ever. I think what you have to do is keep something in front of it, and when you do hit it, hit it out of its bound clicks. But I havent had the opportunity to play agaisnt it, so I remain grounded in the realm of the theoretical.

I actually had to play against one in the Sinister Marquee. It was an ugly battle but I did just what Simanith said to do. I was a warrior sprite to hold it off while I took out its support as best as I could. I got lucky and it critically missed on a shot early and lucky for me my oppenent wasn't smart enough to push into the bound. I sicked my Warbear on it, and did three clicks of damage and got it past the bound slots. I sacrificed the Warbear but was able to push the striker past all its best slots, and was able to finish it off later

Hmm...we all remember the firt time we encountered the terribly Hierophant, don´t we?
There´s always a way to bring an fig down..always :-)

I agree completely that the striker is extremely good for how much its worth. Unfortunately, my friend just got one last week, and i have played him once, and i have a theory on how to beat it. First off, if they do not include a healer, then it is beaten very easily. Of course, no one is stupid enough to do that. So here's my theory: use a ***steam golem and a ** star leech medic to take out whatever else is in the enemy army. With the other put in a thunder golem and a *technomancer. With a little bit of luck, the striker won't attack the steam golem, but just in case make your way around the striker (easier said than done with a range and movement of 14, right!). Wait for the striker to come to you!!! This is vital, and as soon as he moves use the techno mancer to shoot the thunder golem close to it (do not base the striker of course, because that gets rid of battle armor). You now give him two choices: push and attack, or wait and possibly take 4 damage (toughness is neutralized by pierce). The best choice for your opponent is to push it, and attack. After that, just fight it out and with a little bit of luck, you'll prevail. I know its not a surefire way to win, but hey it works sometimes. Unfortunately, i havent used the stragedy because I'm in the Gray Company and i wont lower myself to use atlantis guild. whooo, thats a lot of text, sorry bout that. I'm out!!


-Everdark the Prophet

Ever see warrior sprites tie up a striker? i have :)

Ever see a warrior sprite that was tying up a striker get charged by a horned hatchetkrugg? I have. ;)


(Sorry, I couldn't resist. :p )

The Striker is an awesome figure. I'm even thinking of a 200 point army with only the Striker and the Avenger (198 points?). I would love to see the look on my opponents face when I put those two on the field.

phall

A horned hatcket krugg maybe, but who said it was only warrior sprites? And while you try to get the sprites, the other stuff kills the rest :) Anyway this is the same reactions people had with the Storm Golem when it first came out :)

Yeah, yeah, back and forth. And while your other stuff is killing my rest who is killing your sprites who is tying up my striker, my fodder is tying up your harasser who is trying to capture my force marcher, who was really just minding his own business in the first place, but then my loner comes and attacks your healer and then your wood golem comes along and swings at one of my guys but misses and hits one of his own guys so his own guy swings back but my guy sticks up for him and swings at your guy who was swinging at your wood golem but then my other guy swings at him for swinging at the guy who was swinging at the wood golem and then it gets really nasty when somebody screams and runs off to the office to tell and next thing you know the principal comes in and breaks it up and we all get detention and he says you know boys, its all fun and games until someone loses an eye and we all look and sure enough the wood golem who was swinging at his own guy has missed and hit himself, whack, right in the eyeball and theres this blood and gore running down and we all laff like heck cause its funny when a wood golem puts out his own eye but then the wood golem gets mad cuz were laffing at him and whack, whack, kills the striker AND the warrior sprites, all 17 of 'em and then we all go home crying cuz neither one of us won and we still got detention AND our figures were killed by a stupid one-eyed wood golem that we didnt even like anyway.

SO.... next time, just leave the warrior sprites at home. Or else this whole thing could get ugly, and a wood golem could get hurt.

And nobody wants that, do we? :rolleyes:

Not always is the striker the key to winning!

I had the unfortunate luck of having to play against one for a match in the marquee tournaments. The army had that, a ***wrath golem, and a *scouting automation.

The strategy I used was to combat the striker with my ***troll gunner, that was able to hit it twice, so it was weakened enough that my puny elvish recruits was able to handle with relative ease.

So, on the all, The striker is a great piece, but two other pieces that work well together could still be used to take the monster down[ag]