How to use Death Runners?

[Sasparillafizz]

So just unlocked them and tried them out against the scalies. I want to like them, but struggling to see how to impliment them.

That -50% armor for a whopping 30 seconds sounds damn powerful on paper. And the use of stalk means you can stroll right up and hit them. But they're just so damn FRAGILE. 1v1 they will lose to even t1 swordsman.

Any suggestions on how to use them? Their fragility makes them poor even for back line harassment, despite them equipped with Stalk. It's like night goblins without the poison to even things up.

Perhaps having them mixed in with frontline troops against armor? Send them in, get a few swipes for the -50% armor debuff and pull them out again? The debuff lasts for a good long time, so I wouldn't need to keep them engaging in and out over and over like shock cavalry. Just 1 hit and pull away, in theory. In practice I'm not so sure.

[Siim]

I'm not sure 'cause i havent used them but maybe you should flank with them?

[Sasparillafizz]

Originally posted by Siim:

I'm not sure 'cause i havent used them but maybe you should flank with them?

They're REALLY fragile. 20 armor, low health. So if you actually put them in a sustained fight, even against backline troops, they tend to not do well.

I had them fight a t1 cudgel infantry in their back line. The deathstalkers were wiped, the cudgel infantry (Saurus Warriors?) took less than 1/3 damage. And that was with some poison gutter runners debuffing their attack. Definitely not good to take any units out with them.

And units vulnerable to flanking tend not to be the kind to make use of that sweet 50% armor debuff anyway.

Thus why I'm pondering how to use them.

[Drakenson]

For me, I would keep them on the outside flanks with something to guard them, maybe Stormvermin or even slaves to muck up any potential cav. Secure your opponent's forces onto an 'anvil' and bring your Runners around the enemy's sides and fire into their backs.

At least, that's what I do for any ranged unit that isn't necessarily meant to trade vs. other ranged units. Otherwise, I like to use bow units to fire over the front engagement. I would have 2 bow units, one on each side behind your frontline, and have the left unit fire into the right engagement, and the right unit fire into the left engagement. It usually works out, even more so if you fire into your own skaven slaves :P

[Dezztroy]

I haven't tried them yet, but I would assume that the point of them is a simple hammer and anvil. Stalk and fast speed should make them easy enough to move around the side once the armies have clashed.

[PegAsi]

I haven't gotten my death runners just yet in my campaign, but for my gutter and night runners. I have been using them to flank and be very mobile.

With me summoning units every where and chasing big units and cavalry. My fights are all over the place .

I try to flank in fights with them. Sometimes I put them in melee when i feel like a final rear charge is needed to rout a unit or to surround a lord.

I also found them very useful against annoying great eagles, that sit in high elf settlements.

[Walk the Void]

theyre great for flanking around and dealing with artillery

[Maschinengewehr]

Originally posted by Walk the Void:

theyre great for flanking around and dealing with artillery

Menace below does that anyway.

I find them to be higher tier skirmish infantry for the late game where there are more armoured units around. They can do alright when you have a chaff tarpit of clanrats holding the enemy line in place whilst death runners come from behind and shower them with missiles.

[Sasparillafizz]

Originally posted by Maschinengewehr:

Originally posted by Walk the Void:

theyre great for flanking around and dealing with artillery

Menace below does that anyway.

I find them to be higher tier skirmish infantry for the late game where there are more armoured units around. They can do alright when you have a chaff tarpit of clanrats holding the enemy line in place whilst death runners come from behind and shower them with missiles.

Deathrunners are a melee unit. Do you mean gutter runners?

[Maschinengewehr]

Originally posted by Sasparilla:

Originally posted by Maschinengewehr:

Menace below does that anyway.

I find them to be higher tier skirmish infantry for the late game where there are more armoured units around. They can do alright when you have a chaff tarpit of clanrats holding the enemy line in place whilst death runners come from behind and shower them with missiles.

Deathrunners are a melee unit. Do you mean gutter runners?

Death runners have a short range missile attack too dont they? Or am I confusing them?

[Sasparillafizz]

Originally posted by Maschinengewehr:

Originally posted by Sasparilla:

Deathrunners are a melee unit. Do you mean gutter runners?

Death runners have a short range missile attack too dont they? Or am I confusing them?

Nope. Melee only. Stalk, and 'Weeping armor' which reduces the armor of anything they attack by 50% for 35 seconds.

In theory, amazing for ♥♥♥♥ like giants and mammoths and other super huge monsters with redonculous armor rating to shrug off damage. Even lords, cut it from 120 to a more managable 60 with 1 attack.

They're just REALLY fragile. I've been getting some work out of them with flanking, but even flanking they don't come away unscathed. But damn that debuff is nice...

[Darkaiser]

Originally posted by Sasparilla:

Originally posted by Maschinengewehr:

Death runners have a short range missile attack too dont they? Or am I confusing them?

Nope. Melee only. Stalk, and 'Weeping armor' which reduces the armor of anything they attack by 50% for 35 seconds.

In theory, amazing for ♥♥♥♥ like giants and mammoths and other super huge monsters with redonculous armor rating to shrug off damage. Even lords, cut it from 120 to a more managable 60 with 1 attack.

They're just REALLY fragile. I've been getting some work out of them with flanking, but even flanking they don't come away unscathed. But damn that debuff is nice...

Maybe for hitting lwss destructive units like the Chaos Warhounds? I just had a fight with them and those critters are FAST. Other than Light Magic is there any way to hold an enemy unit in position? If so, maybe Death Runners would be good for this?

Otherwise, it sounds like you want to get the target nailed to a powerful unit (like Stormvermin) and then 'tap' them in the back just long enough for the weeping armor to kick in. Pull them back and the Stormvermin (or whatever) have half a minute of thin enemy armor to strike against.

[Fiona]

I believe they have an ability to reduce armor in melee right. In that case, maybe using the sword and shield stormvermin to tank the damage from the front, then run the deathrunners in the rear to reduce their armor. Thus making it easier for the Stormvermins to take the armored unit without using anti-armor means.