Something stirs under the sands of a a million dead worlds, vast monoliths break the crusts of planets, eldritch light scours the skies, the shroud of deat descends from upon high and legions of glittering ancient automatons stalk forward in a morbid mockery of life ready to harvest all life in the galaxy.
The Necrons have returned, and they are not impressed with what they are seeing.
The Necrons are finally recieving a massive update next month, with a new Codex, new background and some stunning new models to boot. Remember those warm, squishy feelings I got when I saw the reimagined Dark Eldar. Imagina that, only tenfold! The new Necrons look astouding, and almost make me regret my choice of army in our Tale of Four Gamers (almost). So behold dear readers, the immortal hordes of The Old Necrontyr Dynasties!
One thing the Necron’s have always sadly lacked in my opinion is strong characters, leaders and interesting set piece models. I mean sure, they have the C’tan, but there’s only two of them and even then only one of them is awesome. So I love the new influx of Necron characters, such as Imotekh the Stormlord, perhaps the greatest Necron general to ever exist. Coldly logical and with a devilish flare for personally duelling enemy leaders, Imotekh is a force to be reckoned with.
Fancy being a bit sneakier, then you’ll love Trazyn the Infinite, the Necrons greatest mind and collector of oddities. He’s equally as brutal as his metallic kin, but has a vast array of wargear that allow him to befuddle and confuse his foes. He can literally project copies of himself across the battlefield, fooling his foes while he strikes elsewhere. Groovy!
If you prefer to craft your own character, Games Workshop have introduced a new rank over the standard Necron Lord: The Necron Overlord. A brutal close combat monster, the Overlord can be tailored to your individual needs and is a frightening proposition to face on the battlefield.
The Necrons do not use Psykers, indeed they are anathema to them. Instead they have Cryptecs, creatures who utilise ancient and dark science and technology to bend the very fabric of space and time to their wills. They can rend entire companies apart with a gesture, vanish into thin air and pass through solid matter as if it where smoke. Woe betide anyone who goes up against a Necron Cryptek unprepared.
The Necron hordes have also recieved reinforcements, and at the front of the pack is The Lychguard, tireless guardians and wardens of the Necron Tombs. Armed with a dizzying array of close combat weapons, these implacable goliaths will defend their lords regardless of the cost.
My favourite new unit so far is probably the new Deathmarks, undying snipers and assassins of The Necron Dynasties. Armed with incredibly accurate gauss technology, and able to slip into other dimensions to escape and ambush their foes, Deathmarks give the Necrons some long distance accuracy and ambush power. And they look bloody creepy too!
An oldie but goodie! The Necron Immortals are back with a stunning new plastic kit looking as dangerous as ever. Check out the new Heavy Gauss Cannons hardwired to their spines!
The Flayed Ones also return with a new kit, and they’re even more gruesome now than ever. Wearing the shorne skins of their defeated foes, they’ve also taken to dragging the cadavers of their enemies about with them whilst they hack, rend and tear apart all in their path.
Another area our metallic chums have sorely lacked is in vehicular fury, but those clever chaps at Games Workshop are solving that with brand new skimmers for the Necron hordes. Introducing the Doomsday Ark and The Ghost Ark. Ones a tank destroyer, hovering over the battlefield raining pillars of luminous death on the enemy hordes whilst the other is a mobile deployment and repair craft.
Finally we have two new mounted vehicles, the Catacomb Command Barge and The Annihalation Barge. Bothy are small. nippy and dangerous skimmers. Both boast enough firepower to level a tank and both are astouding looking. The Command Barge can even be taken as a pulpit for your Necron Overlord, making him an even more frightening prospect.
So there you have it folks, the new Necrons are upon us and I can hardly wait. If you fancy pre-ordering any of these juicy new releases, then get ye over to the official Games Workshop site for all your archaic needs.
- Sean ‘The dynasties must be restored‘ McCarter
