The sky is falling

I wanted to write this report about the premium O12 Combat Drop unit; the Crusher, but unfortunately he didn’t land in two consecutive games, which has driven me to the conclusion that Parachutist is better than Combat Drop, especially in O12. Part of the reason for this is because it is very difficult to predict what the gaps in an O12 list will be, so it is unlikely that your opponent will have the game sense to counter deploy  against an O12 parachutist. 

Looking at the two premium Drop troops in O12; the Crusher and Cuervo Goldstein. They both cost 40ish points that you will be gambling with if you choose to combat drop.  These guys have great stats, but if they end up in your deployment zone those profiles are not going to be doing much. A special mention to the 45 point Santiago Knight that is available in Starmada, he really ruins your game plan on the roll of a 17.    

After the crusher failed to drop twice I turned my attention to the cheaper Combat Drop troops, the Delta’s.  These guys can blast if they drop into the right spot or panzerfaust from the edge of the table.  This is good and all, but they are still dropping on 15s with support. So even though the risk is less, it’s still a drain on your orders and combat power when you roll a 16 or higher. 

These numbers are all assuming that you’re dropping with EVO assistance, which is a massive indication to your opponent that you will be using assisted jump, allowing them to prepare accordingly with their unit facing and deployables.  Not to mention that if your opponent has an EVO Hacker of their own then you are going to be parachuting anyway, “if” you can.  

Drop troops have more flexibility than parachutists, I won’t argue with that, but I would counter that Drop troops in the deployment zone find it very difficult to be relevant, so why pay points for the privilege of a skill that you probably won’t use.  

This brings me to the O12 Parachutist; the Nyoka. These guys are about the same price as a Delta but the points from Combat Drop have gone into better gun options, and Climbing Plus. This piece is reliable. It has good range bands and good damage potential.  The Nyoka is not the greatest gunfighter with BS 12, but he can often get targets out of cover or in their back arc.  If you are trying to get past your opponent’s guard then try a Nyoka, or any parachutist for that matter because they might be just what you need.