Infinity/N3 Tactics/Varuna

The unit overview and tactica for the Varuna sectorial of PanOceania

Faction features

PanO's Fist

Tired of playing a defensive, backfield camping PanO... well, you should probably play a different army/break out MO. BUT if you want an aggressive version of 'Classic PanO' this is where you want to be. Modern, i.e. mixed, link teams with some amazing options all aimed at bringing the pain for the hyperpower. What ORCs were always meant to be and able to use cheap Fusiliers and bots to back them up. Add to this wildcards with BTS6 and WIP 13 as well as what most people will agree is one of, if not the, best TAGs in game with the fearsome Cutter. Also now a ridiculous duo Squalo profile. These guys are the first into the fight, and they play to win. Make no mistake what you trade away in options you make up for in access to profiles.

The flip side to this is that SWC not Points will be your limiting resource in this faction, and man will that hit hard when you start taking the new toys out for a spin.

Special Skills

MIxed Fireteams: A huge step up on NCA, the other 'high tech/shooty/traditional PanO' faction comes from the mixed fireteams, especially with ORCs. Also with the clipper bot, which loses its smart missiles but also which can fill out fire teams which contain only 'up to 3 Fusiliers.' All the perks of the traditional ML Fusilier link but with an extra level of unconscious and immunity to many of the more common long range weaponry, plus can take supportware, and is only 18 points vs an ORC. You also get a functional Haris with either cheap Kamau escorting a Machinist [upgraded with Mimetism, but sadly not in WIP], or a heavy one that can form without SWC [critical in Varuna] on your new Character ORC Patsy.

Helots: Alright, it's not a skill, but neurocinetics and decoy camo do a great job of buoying up some traditional weaknesses of the hyperpower, and Varuna gives you the option to bring a bunch of them. They can be great roadbumps and force your opponent to worry about whether that camo marker has a MSR, a Red Fury, a Marksman Rifle, or is one of your Zulu Cobras with a Jammer/KHD.

Jungle and Aquatic terrain: Not that many people play with terrain rules, but it is the default setting for campaigns and it's flavorful for a water planet.

Working the Angles: You have access to TO infiltrators, a couple of Forward Deployment models and the all new Echo Bravo airborne infiltrators. This means you've got a lot more flex than PanO factions traditionally do, giving board control and the chance to jump on or coordinate your way to those early objectives/own the midfield. Especially useful given how powerful your Helots can be in that role.

Camo; - Slightly 'lower tech' than traditional PanO in that you actually have Camo infantry, you still have the hyperpower on your side though with both Croc Men, tailor built TO infiltrators with zero fat/extra skills you're paying for and the mighty Cutter. Plus mimetism floating all over the place.

Units

Light Infantry

• Echo Bravo, Ready Action Unit: The Navy SeALs to the Sikh’s 101st Airborne, they are definitely sneaking in from a board edge. On the plus side this means if you have 2 groups (or 9 orders for some reason) your opponent will be freaking out about the flanks. Also means they know where he’d be coming from. But hey: you get an AD troop, be happy! The actual guy had no mod support and only packs SWC weapons but they’re all pretty decent and you get 2 specialist profiles. AHD on a WIP 12 is pretty pathetic truth be told, but can give some solid board control where your opponent might not have the tools to counter, and are bonused on many missions, and a DEP makes people have to think twice or face AP+EXP BS 13. The paramedic option is probably more interesting. Gains a light shotgun and the first appearance of the Wild Parrot, basically an EM Fast Panda you can use to force people to split ARO & which can shut down both fireteams of little guys and the big guns of most (or, really, any) army lists. Problem is it’s disposable so one shot for 0.5 precious SWC. The LRL + BSG and Red Fury are more straightforward, use to taste. RF can be considered a discount Spitfire in some ways but... inevitably it’ll pale in most close comparison.
• Fusiliers: The PanOceanian basic line infantry, 10pts for a base one, with BS 12. Just like everywhere else, in PanO they get all the basic heavy weaponry and specialist options as well as a non-SWC Lieutenant. These guys will be your most likely cheerleaders and BS 12 makes them for a decent ARO piece (especially with a Missile Launcher), if you’re willing to spend 1.5 SWC on a Fusilier, which in Varuna is even more of a concern. BUT it can help take the pressure off your expensive active turn pieces and force them to spend time/orders hunting something else.
  • It's also worth noting that this is the only sectorial with UNLIMITED AVA for Fusiliers. This is HUGE as it means your 10 point order monkeys can reform their own core links once the ORCs/Kamau is shot out, and gives you a reason to pay a couple points over the repeater/baggage bot. Underestimate a BS 15 B4 combi-rifle at your own peril, especially later in the game when the good stuff is dead. It's 100% worth taking the extra Fusilier for when your missile bot dies so you go second you can still take over active turn with a 5 man link and go around critting with your BSG.
  • If going mixed fireteam, read the fine print, ‘up to 3 Fusiliers and up to 2 ORCs.’ Now initially this sounds restrictive until you remember for 3 points you can take a bot over a Fusilier ML and Kamau have wildcard.
  • Kamau adding Kamau give you 2 options: high WIP Specialists and a better gunfighter. For double the points. Which, in Varuna where points are cheap and SWC is king, can be worth it. Your 1 SWC HMG gets near ORC levels of BS 16/B 5, but looses that second wound you’d really want in an active turn piece for your big link. Militiamen is great for helping win firefights though. Probably better off in the Haris or wild carding in after the ORC goes down. though. That MSV2 MSR ARO will pretty much never hit on worse than a 13. With 2 shots. WIth mimetism, think about that when mod stacking. B3 even makes it viable for active turn hunting. The hacker is interesting as well and the stand out from the specialist front, BTS6 helps vs hacking attempts (it was probably one of 2 that along w the HMG saw play to begin with) the rest are quite a bit of premium for 1 more point of WIP and some mild mods.
  • ORCs: adding ORCs gives the Fusiliers a few options, the first is a ridiculously potent offensive gunfighter, a BS 17 Fuerbach or HMG will do mean things in active turn. Note that this is only the Varuna ORCs though, which is pretty decent except they all cost SWC except the multirifle. The multi-rifle and BSG give you pretty hard room-clearing and midfield gunfighting options whilst the fusiliers watch the back and maybe carry a repeater for the KHD. The BSG can do the old Knight Hospitaler trick of critting its way to a win with 3 AP shots hitting on 23s vs enemies in the open within 8." Note, this fire team is Up to 2 ORCs and up to 3 fusiliers, so have a plan to fill the gap when an ORC goes down or when you cant afford it. The Missile bot is the answer most of the time, speaking of which
  • Clipper Dronbot: lose the smart missiles, the ability to go prone, and pay 3 more points so you can get your link up on the cheap and take supportware. Vs the Fusilier missile launcher these are extremely viable.
  • Fusilier Indigo Bipandra: A WIP13 Doctor, making her the tied for best doctor in the faction. Has a Nanopulser and WIP13, AND you're now playing a faction that can get a LOT of work out of those 2 wound HIs. The link will also move her up the field to keep pase with an aggressive ORC. It's not like you're doing much else w your command tokens right? Feel free to re-roll to your heart's content!

• Helot Militia: Neurocinetic and SWC weaponry except for one profile, come admirably cheap and kitted for bear. Unfortunately, the rest of the stats are a touch on the 'meh' side. 'Only' BS 11, but you're ARO-ing anyway so you get the extra shots to offset that. The big potential for game changing ∆ comes from the synergy of Zulu Cobra and Helots where their decoys form extra targets, and make your opponent have to consdider whether your were willing to spend 1/4 of your SWC on an MSR helot that they can ignore or try to deal with that guy standing up on overwatch. Realistically in Varuna, you're probably taking at least one if not more of the marksmanrifle profiles, which are far from bad, still can leave your opponent guessing which is which and which is the ZC, and do a good job providing SWC free total reaction.

• Kamau, Amphibious Intervention Teams: Kamau are an elite Light Infantry choice, geared for long range fighting. BS13, WIP 13 and Mimetism drive up the price on such a squishy unit, but BTS6 might be useful for a hacker or against Tohaa and the HMG gets an 0.5 SWC discount over the Nisse. Speaking of, there’s an MSV2 MULTI Sniper option too, because clearly every PanO sectorial needs one. What is more interesting is the HRL + SMG profile, both extremely rare weapons for PanO. But in general Kamau will be a lot better in Varuna than they are for generic armies. If you want to take a core of them, go wild, but it’ll probably be worse than dropping one or 2 in other fireteams. As wildcards they can actually drop the cost of an ORC link and give better specialists as well. If you’re taking a Combi Rifle guy in a fireteam, note the free Lt option, which is an extra point of WIP over a fusilier. Also means you only need one no frills of each to keep them guessing. (So feel free to take the medic AND the FO fusilier for the wonky specialist hat trick.
  • Haris: this is where they shine, can wither nuclear themselves with 0.5 SWC or just wildcard into both of Patsy’s Haris slots (which is pretty cheap and buys you your specialist as well). Here they can add a cheap long range HMG mimitism. The reason you’d take their own Haris is because they can bring a Machinist along which is a low WIP specialist but a very useful one/very rare in PanO and worth it if you have a Cutter or even missile bot on the board or for when your ORC runs afoul of a hacker or glue gun. It’s also cheaper, but accordingly worse. If you can squeeze in a Tech Bee definitely consider it, but sadly in limited insertion you’re running with the worst engineer basically in the game (which is pretty crazy when you think about Irmandino fluff).

• Machinist : Basically a non-linkable Fusilier with Engineer and higher BTS. Not very good, but it's the only Engineer in entire PanOceania, so if you're heavy on Remotes or taking a TAG, you'll be taking him anyway and his Varuna profile buys it’s place into the Haris with a few extra rules for a few extra points.

• Tech-Bees, Maintenance Battalions: An odd Irregular trooper, the Tech-Bee is a 5pts specialist (WIP12, but for that cost it's still a bargain) armed with a pistol and a Flash Pulse. But the more interesting part is Remote Assistant Level 1: Tech-Bee gives a +1 WIP bonus to all your Engineers and Remote Pilots, a.k.a Machinist and Crabbot (and in TAGline, Cordelia). Very much worth considering given Varuna' special Machinists, TAGs, and the fact that a lot of the non-killy ways to deal w ORCs leave them IMM.

• Trauma-Doc: The cheap Doctor option. Much like Machinist she's not very good, but she's also dirt-cheap.

• WarCor:Flash Pulse and Aerocam are nice for an annoying ARO... that's it.

• Zulu Cobra, Special Recon and Intervention Group: lots of guns and what not, but you're here for 2 profiles. The jammer assault pistol combo is mean on a camo troop, as it can do work with surprise shot at zero range and just shut down big chunks of the board. The KHD is a specialist with no SWC, good willpower, and can help you hunt the major threats to your armored assault. The Lt profile on that Jammer is kind of fun as it gives you a WIP 13 camo Lt, who can feed the order to Patsy via NCO and do a good job of holding a corner for a TAG/ORC team to fall back to or do some turn 3 hunting when it doesn't matter. Also fun, the shock marksman rifle and X-visor profile for sniping out annoying characters; did we mention it also clocks in at 0 SWC?

Heavy Infantry

• Montesa Order Motorized Knights: The first biker HI, making Yu Jing forever salty. Montesa are fast, durable and killy, though they have "low" BS 13 and only pack Multi Rifles or BSG, making them feel a little undergunned. Mimetism outsets their inability to take Cover. They're cool, but personally I would use a Bulleteer instead.

• ORC Troops: PanOceanian poster boy HI, has a reputation of being useless. This is mostly down to the fact that ORCs are as baseline as they come: no special skills, no fancy equipment, no interesting weapons. Welcome to Varuna! You're now the kings you were born to be. Make sure you're shooting with these things though, as their WIP will not make you want to F2F reset rolls. Since their main utility is in the Fusilier team due to their point cost, they're largely discussed there. They do have Fireteam Core though if you want to make Mobile Brigada feel over hyped [until you get into a hack off]. AVA 5 means you can take all of them and then have Patsy lead a Haris full of wildcarding Kamau. Your call on whether you think that's worth it. There's nominally a Haris, your call whether you want to drop a SWC on it [you don't].
  • Varuna Division - buys them multiterrain Aquatic/Jungle and Stealth. The latter is the cool part of this, as in addition to joining Fusilier links, it lets you sneak your way around a bit and not provoke AROs from hackers.
  • Patsy Garnett, ORC Troops' Varuna Division NCO: A Forward Observer who can form a Haris without SWC, use NCO to get her link team up the field on the LT's order, and do a good job at close range with a SMG. It's not as good as a BSG, BUT it'll do work up close with AP. Better WIP helps, better CC... probably wont do that much. The other cool thing though is that Wildcard means she can jump in on your Squalo duo link, to bring a hardcore specialist up the field with your TAG.
  • UPDATE - Apparently people are saying the Machinist can join the Patsy link which opens up all kinds of new crazy fun nonsense, 10 less points helps w cost, and loses one of the big reasons for that Kamau team & it's 0.5 SWC

Tactical Armoured Gear

• Cutters, Varuna Naval Chasseurs: Min-maxers call Cutter the only TAG worth taking, and that is because of TO Camo. If you thought Swiss Guard is ridiculous, here’s one TAG-sized. Costs a ton, so you’ll be making your list all about him. One of the big draws of Varuna, but functionally limits your options in many ways. Give serious thought to the Lt option: you are going to live and die on the thing and have an NCO who means you’re able to feed that order into any fireteam. It does cost you one more precious SEC though & makes your giant target even more critical to survival. BUT, that said, you can start in Hidden if you’re going 2nd, just make sure to reveal before you go active, and market state TO in cover is also pretty tough to deal with.

• Squalos, PanOceanian Armored Cavalry Heavy Lancers: Squalo is the TAG all other PanO TAGs (aside from Stingrays) are based on. ARM 8, MULTI HMG, Heavy Grenade Launcher, Squalo is a no-nonsense frontline TAG. Now with a funky Duo Profile, and interestingly one of the most common 'Double Tags' taken before in NCA. People are sure to appreciate some of that utility, but that's straight 2/3 of your army. Note that you should really be using this with Patsy since that lets you bring a hardcore specialist with better WIP up the field with your TAG.
  • Crabbot Ancillary Remote Unit: Not a TAG, but a TAG brain that acts as a Pilot equivalent if your fancy mech gets fried. In true PanO fashion it has high BS and low WIP... Making it pretty useless, as it has no actual ballistic weapons. But at least it has a knife.
  • Fireteam Duo: So... someone apparently thought both members of a fireteam duo get to shoot per order in a previous version of this. Actual benefit of double TAG: you can bring both of them, which allows you to switch whose up front/taking those hits, and access a larger pool of Structure. In Varuna where they really shine is the mixed fireteam, you have Kamau and Patsy wildcard, so you finally have a TAG that can also be an effective specialist.

Remotes

• Dronbots: Standard issue S3 Remotes, PanOceanian ones are not special in any way.
  • Clipper: The Smart Missile Launcher Remote. Unfortunately PanO does not have good FOs or Hackers, so it's usually a waste to take one. Especially as the missiles can be hacked back by other faction's better hackers.
  • Fugazi: The Repeater/Flash Pulse Remote. Cheap Regular Order and a mobile Repeater. Nice filler or Flash Pulse ARO.
  • Pathfinder: The Forward Observer Remote. Mobile Repeater, armed, specialist, for 16 pts. It is one of PanO's better specialists, in part due to its fast movement.
  • Sierra: The HMG Total Reaction Remote. Just park it where it can cause your opponent the most trouble moving around. Honestly in this list you have better places to put supportware and solid options for ARO with Helots, so it’s only there if you LOVE the whole HMG of it.

• Mulebots: Standard issue S4 Baggage Remotes. Come with Minesweeper, EVO Hacker and TR Combi profiles. EVO Hacker is the one to take if you plan on using a lot of AD (which... you have none of in this list), or Armbots/Clippers. Your call if you think 25 points and 0.5 SWC are worth eliminating a -3 mod (or really just forcing your opponent to move up faster. Minesweeper is a standard cheap Order and a way to dominate a quadrant.

• Armbots: PanO-specific combat Remotes, come in two flavors:
  • Bulleteer: ODD, BS 12, Spitfire or Heavy Shotgun, Repeater, 23 pts. Bulleteers are known cheap killers. With Marksmanship supportware a Bulleteer is a sure way to clear out enemy TR Remote and other ARO pieces in a straight up gunfight. After you’ve paid premium for your awesome HI trooper, a Bulleteer is a good way to cover his flank. Definitely better with a Spitfire than a Shotgun.
  • Peacemaker: Just like Bulleteer, comes with a Repeater and a Heavy Shotgun and Spitfire options. Loses ODD in favour of an Auxbot, making it a less straight-up aggressive bot, fit more for clearing out infiltrators. Much like Bulleteer, can be used to fill a blind spot, arguably better due to its two-in-one nature. For this role the Shotgun is preferable. It’s also worth keeping in mind as an upfield repeater (esp if it’s paving the way to your Cutter/ORC link and you have a KHD hiding in camo. Also helps provide much needed backup for expensive midfield stuff like Crocs/Zulus/Echos) or to give a TAG/Link somewhere to run home to where a flamethrower and heavy shotgun can keep them safe.

• Palbots: PanOceanian G: Servants. If you take Machinist or any of the Doctors they will usually need one. In this list they belong in fireteams, so... you either take these as cheap minesweepers, if a link falls apart, or if Bipandra is your EXTRA body waiting to fill a hole in your fusilier link. In this last, admittedly niche role, they can do great work and provide board coverage for your one decent doc in your HI heavy list.

Skirmishers

• Paradiso Croc Men: "The Croc Cock" is a versatile TO Camo infiltrator, good for any of the roles you’d want one. Having Deployable Repeater and mines on the FO profile is not common for this type of unit. X-Visor makes his Combi Rifle a lot more effective than usual, especially when put in Suppressive Fire mode. Lastly, Croc Men make for some mean snipers. Play well into Varuna’s more aggressive posture & can do a good job of providing an extra layer of complexity in a very straightforward faction. Worth noting: you’ll need those SWC elsewhere so it’s basically the AHD or FO + repeater. Probably too expensive as a Combi and you need him as a specialist.

Building Your Army

So, Varuna hits really hard, but doesn't have that many options. You choose your Core, build the Haris accordingly then decide where you're going.

If you went TAG, you'll have a mostly fusilier/Kamau rest of the list probably with an ORC shoehorned in somewhere and a Zulu-Cobra to keep the thing alive. You'll only be wanting regular orders though, since this is almost impossible to do 2 groups with, which means no Tech-Bees or Helots for you.

If you went ORCs, you'll still probably want to bring in a Zulu-Cobra to go hacker hunting, but you'll grab your HMG and Fuerbach, decide which you want in your big team [which, to be fair, you get to pick when you see what you're up against], and where you want to hedge your bets [ARO vs a 3rd hitting piece]. This option, because you have the second group, opens up a lot of the board control shenanigans. It also opens up the option for Echo Bravo because you don't need all 10 orders on the board first turn. Expect a more dynamic game style versus 'let's see how far the Tag gets lol!.'

Things to buy: The Varuna starter box gets you your SWC-heavy kamau gang. Bizarely your HMG is still in Beyond Icestrom though. The PanO starter box comes with fusiliers and an ORC, and realistically it's hard to prove the last guy is definitively a Sikh... Whether you want Mimitism [or even Mimitism + MSV] on your ARO piece in the fusilier link will decide if you want to get that Fuslier box. Some bots will be helpful as repeaters if you went KHD Zulu Cobra to keep your ORCs/TAG up and orders. After that it's basically TAG/no TAG/which TAG? Varuna doesn't have that many options, which does mean it's simple to get all of them.

The Superfriends: Start with the Fusilier core team, then start adding shit to it: Bipandra, ORCs, Kamau, clipper etc. These are an amazing buy, granting you a solid mix of troopers with good weapons, stats and abilities in a 5-man link - fucking solid! The best part is just how points and order efficient this link is, usually allowing you enough room for TAG and/or additional support units, depending on cost. MOVED