Swamp Gobber River Raider

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Swamp Gobber River Raider Mercenary, & Minion, Gobber Privateer Sea Dog Solo

Mark IV Status: Prime - This model is available in one Prime Army, Talion Charter. It can also be used in the Unlimited game mode. You can view the other Mk3 models that made it into a Legacy Army at this page. Note that the rest of this page is about the model's Mark III rules.

Although many gobbers have gained acceptance at the fringes of society, swamp gobbers have always held a particularly unsavory reputation, and those who serve as river raiders among the pirate crews that prey on western Immoren are no exception. With rusted hooks, axes, and swords, they hack into their enemies with a savagery common only to the wilds.

Basic Info

Swamp Gobber River Raider
Missing Info
	COST {{{cacost}}} UNIT SIZE {{{casize}}} FA {{{cafa}}} Warcaster 0 BASE Small SPD 6 STR 3 MAT 5 RAT 5 M.A. N/A DEF 14 ARM 11 CMD N/A ESSENCE {{{essence}}} FOCUS N/A FURY N/A THRS N/A HP 1 F. Field N/A WJP {{{wjp}}} WBP {{{wbp}}} IHP {{{ihp}}} FA 9 UNIT SIZE N/A COST 1 N/A N/A N/A Warcaster 1 COST N/A N/A Understanding the Statblock

Mercenary - This model will work for Cryx.

Minion - This model will work for Circle, or Skorne.

Abilities

• Dual Attack - This model can make melee and ranged attacks in the same activation. When this model makes its initial melee attacks or a power attack, it can also make its initial ranged attacks. This model can make ranged attacks even while in melee.
• Prowl - While this model has concealment, it gains stealth.

Weapons

Harpoon Pistol
		RNG			ROF			AOE			POW
		6			1			-			10
Reel In - When this attack hits an enemy model, immediately after the attack is resolved place this model B2B with the enemy model.
Poisoned Hand Weapon
		RNG				POW				P+S
		0.5				3				6
Weaken - A living model hit by this weapon/attack suffers -2 STR and DEF for one round. Bane - A non-living model hit by a weapon with Bane suffers –2 ARM for one round.

Theme Forces

• Mercenaries
  • The Talion Charter. Swamp Gobber River Raider gains Sacrificial Pawn [Sea Dog trooper] in this theme.

• Minions
  • The Blindwater Congregation
  • Vengeance of Dhunia
  • Will Work for Food

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this model in the Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Crosse2 is leading the army.
  • Trollblood players can use this model in the Vengeance of Dhunia theme.
  • Furthermore, Minion models can be hired by other Factions. Normally those Factions' themes will have a limit on how many models they can hire. Refer to #Other Theme Forces, below.

Thoughts on Swamp Gobber River Raider

Swamp Gobber River Raider in a nutshell

Swamp Gobber River Raiders are fantastic throwaway bodies. They are cheaper per model than just about any unit except Mechanithralls and can fill the pesky final point in your army. On the table, they block charge lanes or get in weird places.

They are tremendous scenario pieces allowing you to contest things far away without giving anything of value up, and occasionally they'll hit a Weaken on a Titan or Dire Troll or something. Plus they score flags.

For some reason they also have an ARM debuff that works on Archons, Warjacks and Undead on their Hand Weapon, which is great.

Combos & Synergies

As Mercenaries

• First Mate Hawk - Privateer Sea Dogs. POW 6 with 3 damage dice against warriors! Arrr!
• Anyone that can make them more likely to hit
• Fiona the Black likes cheap models to channel through that can get to weird places.
• Shae it’s all about speed with Shae you can stick these guys some odd places.
• Rahera they benefit from black spot, her feat and reducing enemy ranges helps deliver them.

As Minions

• They have an impressive synergy with Helga the Conqueror's feat. Swamp Gobbers move forward, reel in and are placed into the back arc of the enemy. They now have a rather good chance of hitting the enemy and slamming the models forward and thus closer to your own models. Assumes you hit both attacks of course. They are also pretty good for triggering Gang Fighter.
• They are the second cheapest choice for Barnabas, Lord of Blood to trigger with his feat, with only the shamblers from the Gatorman Bokor & Bog Trog Swamp Shamblers being cheaper.
• Trollblood/Minion players can use them in Vengeance of Dhunia this opens up some other caster synergies (such a Grim2, where they are great with Mark Target and Snipe) but also offers the Krielstone for +2 ARM

Drawbacks & Downsides

• You get what you pay for. DEF 14 models that cost less than most conscript infantry and have both a ranged and melee attack.
• One of the few mercenary models that doesn't work for The Irregulars.
  • being bound to Talion Charter means you can only play them with 4 casters in mercenaries.
• MAT/RAT 5 can be a real problem. The MAT can be fixed if you reel into the enemy back arc, but you still need to connect the RAT 5 shot to do so. The low range also means aiming the shot is not on the table in most cases.
• They will usually never damage anything with their weapons, but their key abilities rely on hitting, not damaging, anyway, so it doesn't matter.

Tricks & Tips

• Hold them back and run to contest.
• Use them to block charge lanes of anything you would put an arm buff on - Put pillows on the fists of any enemy living model who eyeballs them the wrong way with a weak but effective free strike. The enemy now needs to waste attacks trying to hit annoying little gobbers or accept that their heavies are now even easier to hit and punch like lights.

Other

Trivia

Swamp Gobber River Rafter; Minicrate Exclusive.

• Released 2015.10
• This model has a limited edition sculpt, released in 2021.08.

Other Theme Forces

Cryx (Edit)

• Black Industries
• Dark Host
• The Ghost Fleet
• Scourge of the Broken Coast

Circle Orboros (Edit)

• Secret Masters. This theme doesn't have a limit on how many Minion solos you can take. Also, you can spend Requistion Points on Minion solos.
• The Bones of Orboros
• The Devourer's Host
• The Wild Hunt

Skorne (Edit)

• Disciples of Agony. There is no limit to the number of Minion solos you can take in this theme.
• The Exalted
• Masters of War
• Winds of Death

Rules Clarifications

Rules Clarification : Poisoned Hand Weapon The Poisoned Hand Weapon will benefit from Hawk's buff to Sea Dog Hand Weapons. (Infernal Ruling)

Rules Clarification : Reel In      (Edit) Reel In is compulsory. Nothing happens if the original attack destroys the target.

Rules Clarification : Weaken - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification:  : Dual Attack      (Edit) (Click Expand to read)

* If you fail a charge, then you do not get to make ranged attacks. If you have multiple ranged attacks and/or melee attacks, you can intermingle them in any order. (Infernal Ruling) You can charge, make a ranged attack, then make your charge melee attack. Even though you made a ranged attack, that doesn't change the fact that your first melee attack is the charge attack. (Infernal Ruling) You must complete all initial attacks before buying attacks. You can't go: Make an initial melee attack, then buy a melee attack, then make an initial ranged attack. (Locked Thread) Dual Attack doesn't let you mix initial attacks with a (★) attack. Dual Attack only lets you make either: Initial melee attacks and initial ranged attacks. Power attack and initial ranged attacks. Any other combination of (★ Attack) and initials is disallowed. See this thread for full explanation and links to relevant Infernal Rulings. You could theoretically make a special melee attack and then buy additional ranged attacks (or vice versa) ... but the core rules say "The rules for these special attacks indicate the nature of any additional attacks that can be made afterward, if any" so the special attack would have to explicitly allow a swap - and I'm unaware of any that do so. There is no penalty for shooting an enemy you are in melee with. Your ranged attack(s) can target a model you are not in melee with. (Infernal Ruling) Dual Attack & Drag ( Edit ) This is pretty-much limited to just the Prime Axiom under Syntherion, or the Swabber, Galleon or Prime Axiom under Aurora2 If you charge model A then utilise Dual Attack to make a ranged attack vs the same model, then you would get the free melee attack from Drag. The Drag attack is a charge attack. (Infernal Ruling) If you charge model A then utilise Dual Attack to make a ranged attack vs a different model, then you would lose the free melee attack from Drag. Your first melee attack must be versus the charge target, and you cannot save the Drag attack for later. (Infernal Ruling) If you didn't charge then ... just go nuts. There's no restrictions that I know of. Dual Attack & Slam/Trample ( Edit ) Power Attack Slam and Trample combine your Normal Movement and Combat Action, and how this works with Dual Attack is: Slam: You must resolve the movement, the attack, and moving the slammed model. Only then can you make initial ranged attacks. Trample: You must resolve the movement, the attacks, and the free strikes. Only then can you make initial ranged attacks. (Infernal Ruling)

Rules Clarification : Prowl and/or Just a Tree?     (Edit) Whether you can trigger this ability is a bit awkward; As long as you have concealment you get Stealth ... even if the attacker ignores concealment (such as with Hunter). If you're standing in a cloud, and the attacker "ignores clouds for LOS" (such as Bird's Eye) you get Prowl/Tree. If you're standing in a cloud, and the attacker "ignores clouds completely" (such as Alchemical Mask) you don't get it. (Infernal Ruling) Similar for standing in a forest. If a debuff removes Stealth, Prowl/Tree do not reapply stealth... But this ruling is being rechecked. (Infernal Checking) Rules Clarification : Stealth      (Edit) Stealth models are not invisible and you can target them - you'll just auto-miss most of the time. You can target them with a charge. You can target them with an AOE, have it auto-miss and scatter, luckily land on top of them anyway, and that will hit them.