Space Marines are en vogue right now, but don’t forget about the Phobos! Check why you should try these Primais combos in your army!
Wanting to get a deeper look into the Phobos trend that GW has been focusing on for Primaris Marines? Check out the combos you can pull off with some of the units first spotted out of the Shadowspear Box Set. You might be surprised at how effective these guys can be.
Phobos Combos Are Secretly OP: Primaris Tactica
In a 40k meta where most players playing Marines bring the bare minimum in terms of Troops, it might benefit you to go all-in on a squad or two of Infiltrators. But don’t stop there. You’ll also want a Phobos Librarian. While this may take up about a fifth of your army’s points, it might be a little scary to try for the first time at a tournament. However, the power of these units might shock both you and your opponent.
Firstly, bringing a squad of ten Primaris models in a unit is already chunky. At two wounds apiece, they won’t just roll over to any kind of firepower. And the fact that they can Infiltrate cutting off part of the enemy’s movement paths or nab objectives makes them even better.
So jumping right in, bring a squad of ten, as well as a Librarian in Phobos armor with the following powers:
- Scryer’s Gaze (WC 6): Select a PHOBOS unit within 18″ of the Psyker. Until the next psychic phase, they can re-roll all failed hit rolls for attacks made with ranged weapons. In addition, enemy units do not receive benefits of cover.
- Shrouding (WC 6): Select a PHOBOS unit within 18″ of the Psyker. Until the next psychic phase, the enemy can only target that unit if it is the closest unit and visible. (Essentially character keyword protection but better as Snipers can’t even shoot them).
These two abilities are from the generic Obscuration discipline that all Chapters have access to and are probably the most useful.
Combos with Scryer’s Gaze
Normally, if you were to Infiltrate a squad up the board and wanted re-rolls, you would also have to pay points for a Captain and spend 2CP to make him a Chapter Master. However, for rolling a 6+ on 2D6, you can effectively have a Chapter Master for free. Rerolls on a unit like Infiltrators is huge to begin with as it helps you fish for the auto-wounding 6’s to hit. To add even more icing on the cake, you’re probably going to be in rapid-fire range, being able to pump 20 shots out with all the re-rolls.
Depending on the Chapter you’re playing, if it’s a generic Chapter, you’ll have access to Doctrines bumping their guns AP to -1. However, if you’re playing units like Blood Angels or Space Wolves, you’ll also be able to capitalize on melee combat even more. If your enemy was aggressive enough in their deployment, you may be able to pepper one squad with shots and charge another beating them with your shock assault fists.
Combos with Shrouding
If you’re playing a game where you REALLY need to hold an objective but it’s out in the middle of the open, you can always take Shrouding and throw it on a squad of Infiltrators. Not only do Infiltrators come with a free smoke grenade for every game, but you can make them completely untargetable. As long as they’re not the closest unit (which you would more than likely have other Infiltrators up the board or Jump units in the way), that unit can’t be targetted. Note that’s the only stipulation. Enemy Snipers won’t even be able to touch you as it says they can only ignore the CHARACTER keyword.
Popping this psychic power in the middle of the game might be enough of an edge to squeeze out a point and leave your opponent surprised. As far as we can tell, there aren’t too many people out there giving these powers a shot!
What do you think about the Phobos units out of Shadowspear? Do you use a Phobos Librarian in your games? What’s the best psychic power out of the Obscuration discipline in your opinion?
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About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials:@RealmbrushPainting
Bio: Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4.
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