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Fire Prisms

1K views 17 replies 9 participants last post by  Veahirin 
#1 ·
As far as I can tell from the search function we haven't had a fire prism thread since the last edition. I'm thinking of getting some. So I wanted to see what people thought about their utility and loadout.

The top issues in my mind.

Holofields? On one hand rerolls are nice, but it's about a 1/3rd increase in price for the holo field. And while there's a fair chance of keeping the thing from being destroyed, the chances of losing the main gun are pretty good.

Hmmmm would holofields work if you ram with the thing?

Then Stones. Cheap, and more likely to come up if you use the field. On the other hand without the skimmers moving fast rule this doesn't really matter a ton unless you're looking to ram, about to go body surfing to contest an objective, or are about to be attacking in close combat. I wouldn't think prisms would be in positions to have those apply all that often.


Finally the shuri cannon upgrade. Most of the time you probably wouldn't even be using it I wouldn't think. On the other hand it's cheap and since losing the main gun is all too likely with holofields this could at least give you a semi respectable weapon to go after the enemy with.
 
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#4 · (Edited)
Um. Do you play where the playing area is the whole floor of the room? Typically play is on a 6x4 table. Which means that most of the time there isn't anywhere to "dance" to that can't be hit. Especially if you're playing 1000+ point games.

Plus most armies have deepstriking, outflanking, really fast, or very long range anti vehicle units. Actually I think all armies have at least one of those options. Usually three.


And yes taking more than one prism is almost mandatory :)
 
#5 ·
shrug, depending on your opponents list type for situation dictates. in terms of their mobility, numbers, and firepower or assault range.

though it's usually not too hard to manipulate line of sight and range to a degree. especially if you're both setting up terrain taking turns beforehand. you can always use lesser not-as-important vehicles to help block sight as well too when need be.

seen smurfy play and he can be rather good at his vehicle formations and making it difficult to kill any of the vehicles he doesn't want to sacrafice. but as he said, most times, a stone is all that's necessary for any vehicle not intended for close range (you can always use a vehicle with a holo as above mentioned blockade as well).
 
#6 ·
Fire Prisms are invaluable to an Eldar force. They are universally good against every army as you can shoot Dispersed shots with one of the Prisms powering up the other one so you can kill MEQs, each one can fire a dispersed shot against GEQs, vehicles can be done away with by powered-up focused shots as can commanders. They are some of the only vehicles in the game where it is consideably better to get 2 of them than it is to get one.

DiW
 
#8 ·
I've recently began playing mech eldar. General list at 1850 is three waveserpents, 2 fireprisms, and a falcon for fire dragon transport.

The wave-arch defense of wave serpents makes them very useful for screening/ providing cover to fire prisms. I have at least 1 farseer (sometimes two, sometimes eldrad) making judicious use of Fortune on any vehicle with a cover save. I think opponents get really frusturated when your fireprisms start getting re-rollable 4+ saves, and it causes them to be more aggressive and/ or make more mistakes.

Also, i tend to use the twin-linked fireprism ability more often than not, if only to re-roll scatter against small units (e.g. terminators, tanks).
 
#9 ·
The wave-arch defense of wave serpents makes them very useful for screening/ providing cover to fire prisms. I have at least 1 farseer (sometimes two, sometimes eldrad) making judicious use of Fortune on any vehicle with a cover save. I think opponents get really frusturated when your fireprisms start getting re-rollable 4+ saves, and it causes them to be more aggressive and/ or make more mistakes.
Assuming your opponent can't keep a cool head though, which is a pretty bad assumption to make.

It is a brilliant idea though, but in an 1850 list, I'd be running 3 prisms (4 if I could) Because I'd be wanting to run my Farseer(s) up with the rest of rest of my army, and be casting guide and doom for them, so the extra prism would cover for the cover saves I'd be missing out on.

~ L
 
#10 ·
i've been fielding a fire prism for a while now, and i'd say the best way to keep it alive is put a bunch of other things out there with it. supporting it by having a wave serpent or two rushing up into attack range give your opponents something to shoot at besides the pesky artillery tank. also having it deploy behind hard cover when you can on the first turn is a good thing (impassible obstructions, such as buildings). keeps the lascannons off of you.

it's a great tank and its never a bad thing to have.
 
#14 ·
Actually I would think that firing twin linked blast weapons would be annoying. Sure if you scatter way off it's clear you should re-roll.

But frequently you'll wind up with hitting something or someone. Just not as many as if you'd rolled a hit.

And so you're faced with just taking the hits you've got in hand vs making the re-roll.

One other detail I thought off. You can never re-roll a re-roll. So you can't use fortune on a twin linked weapon. Or rather you could but it wouldn't do anything.
 
#15 ·
All your mathhammering is very good, thanks for the actual statistics on that, but you also have to take into account the additional Strength/AP values on the twin-linked shot - so which one you choose to do still seems like ti should be based on whatever's best in the situation, as neither is outirghtly better than the other.

for example against something like the dameon armour in the old CSM codex (It's all i can bring to mind that has a 2+ armour save and no invul. off the top of my head), bringing the AP down to 2 would undoubtedly be very useful. Mathhammering that one - despite the chance to scatter being higher, and having no chance at all of 2 direct hits, the chance of your opponent passing a 2+ save surely outweighs it.

~ L
 
#17 ·
Thank you for the rep ^-^

Sunnyside is completely correct. Granted, Mathhammer cannot win games, only help inform us of the statistically favorable decision.. As such, circumstantial criterion will always be the deciding factor.. Understanding the probabilities only helps us to better judge the worth of those criteria.
 
#18 ·
Just wanted to throw my two cents in. I have been playing Eldar for a VERY long time and almost always use prisms in my lists (usually 2). Though Holofields and such are nice little toys I don't bring them at all. Generally I can almost get a squad of scatter laser war walkers if I don't get upgrades on my prism. (and I shave a few things elsewhere).

ALso, I have found that if you have a target rich enviornment most enemies will only throw a few pot shots at the prisms, as they are more worried about other things like seer councils on bikes, or dragons/ harlies. etc.

Don't undersetimate your opponents idiocy. It is often greater than both of you think it is.

-V
 
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