Shrike

Shrike Cryx Light Warjack

The Shrike soars against the weight of its great tempered-steel wings by virtue of the roaring fires of its necrotite engine and the dark spells woven into its frame. Following the predatory instincts instilled in its cortex, the Shrike surveys the field of battle from aloft before plunging into the formations of the living to scythe through the ranks with its bladed wings. The appearance of Shrikes is often a precursor to a larger Cryxian force.

Basic Info

Shrike
Missing Info
	COST {{{cacost}}} UNIT SIZE {{{casize}}} FA {{{cafa}}} Warcaster 0 BASE Medium SPD 7 STR 7 MAT 7 RAT N/A M.A. N/A DEF 15 ARM 13 CMD N/A ESSENCE {{{essence}}} FOCUS N/A FURY N/A THRS N/A HP 20 F. Field N/A WJP {{{wjp}}} WBP {{{wbp}}} IHP {{{ihp}}} FA U UNIT SIZE N/A COST 6 N/A N/A N/A Warcaster 1 COST N/A N/A Understanding the Statblock

Abilities

• Warjack - All warjacks share the same set of special rules. Most notably being big and stompy. Click here for a newbie-friendly recap, or click here for the full rules.
• Construct
• Flight
• Blade Rush - While making a trample power attack, this model ignores free strikes and does not stop when it contacts a model with a medium or larger base, an obstacle, or an obstruction. This model makes trample attacks against models regardless of their base size.
• Smasher - This model can make trample power attacks without spending focus and gains an additional die on trample attack rolls.
• Threshing Blades - This model gains +4 to its trample power attack damage rolls.
• Trample Power Attack - This model can make trample power attacks.

Weapons

• Vicious Beak - 0.5" reach, POW 4, P+S 11 melee weapon.
• Wing Blades - 0.5" reach, POW 4, P+S 11 melee weapon.

Thoughts on Shrike

Shrike in a nutshell

The Shrike is a focus-independent trample machine, and does best as an anti-infantry model. Free tramples over anything within 10", attacking at MAT 7 + 3d6 and hitting at POW 11 is quite respectable on a 6 point package. And of course, you can always buff those numbers upwards.

The free tramples means you can operate outside your caster's control range (or be on a jack marshal) and still operate near peak efficiency. Its P+S is high enough to threaten light/medium single-wound infantries, including elusive solos. Lastly, with a respectable SPD7 and a medium base finding somewhere you can trample to is usually not as difficult as it is with a large or huge based model.

Combos & Synergies

• Infernal Machine grants a bonus to SPD and thus, Tramples and a bonus dice to hit, letting you hit the most nimble infantry.
• The Infernal Machines theme force provides free Hyper-Aggressive for battlegroup members - and the Shrike is surely a jack your opponent doesn't want to get any closer.
• Mortenebra2 - Fail Safe ensures that the Shrike remains operational even on a single HP. Locomotion can add crucial extra inches, while Spell piercer can help you with annoying upkeeps. You might have better target for all these spells, but under her feat there's hardly any engaged target the Shrike cannot hit.
• Lich Lord Venethrax - Terminal Velocity is yet another source for extra accurate tramples against living models.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• The main drawback to the model is that, to get a decent trample off, requires your opponent to setup his models in the optimum position for you.
• Typical bonejack - infuriatingly high DEF, but tinfoil ARM; stay away from auto-hits.
• It takes only 10 damage to knock out your Movement system completely, greatly reducing the capability of the Shrike.
• Even with P+S 11 it will not really hurt heavies.

Tricks & Tips

• The shrike has two initial attacks, including one that cannot be crippled, so the Shrike is still a decent anti-infantry warjack even if it cannot trample.
• Your trample damage roll is STR + 4 + 2d6. (It's not P+S + 4 + 2d6)
• If the enemy managed to turn around your Shrike (with Telekinesis for example), remember that you can change facing before trampling, and you do not have to have LOS to your trample target (something to remember against the Witch Coven).

Other

Trivia

• Originally released in Reckoning book (2015)
• The real world Shrike is a bird known for impaling its prey on thorns, barbed wire, and etc.

Other Cryx models

Cryx Index       (Edit)
Battlegroup & Similar
Warcasters	Agathia - Aiakos2 - Asphyxious1 - Asphyxious2 - Asphyxious3 - Coven - Deathjack2 - Deneghra1 - Deneghra2 - Deneghra3 - Goreshade1 - Goreshade2 - Goreshade3 - Mortenebra1 - Mortenebra2 - Rahera - Scaverous - Skarre1 - Skarre2 - Skarre3 - Sturgis2 - Terminus - Venethrax
Warcaster attachments	The Withershadow Combine - Satyxis Blood Priestess - Skarlock Thrall - Doctor Stygius (Partisan) - Madelyn Corbeau (Mercenary)
Other Warjack Controllers	Jack Marshals: Iron Lich Overseer       "Junior Warcasters": Aiakos1 - Asphyxious4 - Deneghra0
Light	Cankerworm - Deathripper - Defiler - Helldiver - Nightwretch - Ripjaw - Scavenger - Shrike - Stalker
Heavy	Barathrum - Corruptor - Deathjack1 - Desecrator - Erebus - Harrower - Kharybdis - Inflictor - Leviathan - Malice - Nightmare - Reaper - Seether - Slayer
Colossal	Kraken - Sepulcher
Units, Solos, Battle Engines, & Structures
Units	Asphyxious4 - Bane Knights - Bane Riders - Bane Warriors - Bile Thralls - BO Boarding Party - BO Ironmongers - BO Smog Belchers - Blackbane's Ghost Raiders - Bloodgorgers - Marauders - Carrion Thralls - Cephalyx Drudges - Cephalyx Overlords - Mechanithralls - Necrosurgeon - Revenant Cannon - Revenant Crew - Satyxis Gunslingers - Satyxis Blood Witches - Satyxis Raiders - Scharde Dirge Seers - Scharde Pirates - Soulhunters - The Devil's Shadow Mutineers - The Withershadow Combine
Solos	Aiakos1 - Agrimony - Axiara - Bane Lord Tartarus - Bloat Thrall - BTO Mobius - Captain Rengrave - Darragh Wrathe - Doctor Stygius - Deneghra0 - Gerlak - Hellslinger - Iron Lich Overseer - Machine Wraith - Master Gurglepox - Misery Cage - Necrotech - Ol' Grim - Pistol Wraith - Satyxis Blood Priestess - Satyxis Raider Captain - Scrap Thrall - Skarlock Thrall - Severa Blacktide - Soul Trapper - Warwitch Siren
Battle Engines & Structures	Wraith Engine
Theme Forces
Black Industries - Dark Host - The Ghost Fleet - Scourge of the Broken Coast
Mercenaries
Refer to Who Works for Whom and/or Category: Cryx Mercenary
This index was last updated: 2021.11

Rules Clarifications

Rules Clarification : Warjack      (Edit) The Cortex/Induction core rule means a warjack cannot have more than 3 focus at any time (maybe 4 if they're really special). Many abilities give out focus and don't state an upper limit (such as Convection and Empower). Despite not stating an upper limit, they are always "hard-limited" by the core rule. A warjack can have more than 3 focus during a turn, though. For instance, a knocked down warjack can Power Up and be Allocated 2 focus, then spend 1 to shake knockdown, then another model could Empower it back up to 3. Warjacks cannot spend focus outside of their activation. For instance, they can't boost free strikes or trigger Powerful Attack on Broadsides. (Infernal Ruling) Inert warjacks Abilities that say they cannot be used if the model is stationary (such as Shield Guard) cannot be used while a warjack is inert, either. Refer "Warcaster Destruction", page 59 of the core rulebook.

Rules Clarification : Construct - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification:  : Flight      (Edit) (Click Expand to read)

Flight doesn't ignore: Impassable terrain. Most hazards. The exception is they do ignore Acid Bath and Burning Earth as long as they don't land in them. Templates that stay in play and do damage to models moving through them (such as a Scather). Free strikes. Trampling with a flying model (Edit) Flight allows you to trample "over" medium- and larger-bases. Although you trample "over" them, you don't get to make a trample attack vs them and you don't ignore their free strikes. Refer the core rulebook. Unless, of course, you have an exception like Blade Rush. Flight on a Cavalry model (Edit) Although flyers can move over obstacles/models, and horses can pause to do impacts while charging, flying horses cannot make impact attacks while overlapping models/obstacles. You need to pause in a legal position. Charging through models (Edit) You can't charge all the way through your charge target, with the intention to turn around and face them once you're on the other side. Because you aren't able to satisfy the "must keep the charge target in melee range" clause at the point after you are through the model but before you turn to directly face. At that point the target is behind you, not in your front arc, and thus not in your melee range. Your melee range only extends to your front arc. Refer to the latest errata. You can still "skim" through the edge of their base, if you're careful and smart with your positioning.

Rules Clarification : Blade Rush - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification : Smasher      (Edit) Smasher is a "gain", so you can still boost it if you want.

Rules Clarification : Threshing Blades - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification:  : Trample Power Attack      (Edit) (Click Expand to read)

Can't normally trample Sometimes Power Attack: Trample is a special rule given to a model type that can't normally trample. If that model is a warjack or warbeast (such as the light warjack Shrike) then it needs to pay a focus/fury to do a trample. If that model is not a warjack/beast (such as the Battle Engine Gun Carriage) then it can trample for free. Trample Movement You don't need LOS to your trample direction. You cannot change your facing after finishing a trample. Refer main rulebook. Unless you have something that allows you to ignore contacting the obstacle or obstruction (such as Flight), your trample will stop when contacting an obstacle or obstruction during a slam and/or trample. (Infernal Ruling) If the trampler's Movement system becomes crippled (for instance by an Acid Cloud), this will not stop the trample. (Infernal Ruling) Free strikes take place after the trampler has finished its movement, not during the movement. (Infernal Ruling) If there is insufficient room to fit your base on the other side of the model, you have to "rewind" along the trample path ... you don't get to pick a different trample direction that suits you better! Yes, this does mean that in a worst-case scenario you might end up trampling 0" ! Thankfully, in Mk3, you can premeasure to avoid these issues before committing to the Trample direction. "End Movement" triggers If something triggers when a model ends its movement (such as Countercharge), this will trigger and resolve before the trampler makes any trample attacks. This can lead to a lot of oddities. (Detailed List of Oddities & Infernal Rulings on them) Contact You have to move completely over & past a model for them to be trampled, merely contacting them is not enough . You can trample over medium-and-larger based models, if you have some way of moving through them. (For instance, you have Flight or they have Incorporeal.) Note that, even though you "trample over" those medium-and-larger models, they don't suffer trample attacks and they do get to make free strikes against the trampler. Attacks Even though your attack target is out of LOS and melee range when you're at your final position, you get an attack anyway because the Trample rules override that. (Infernal Ruling) All abilities/buffs/etc involved with the attacks, both the trampler and the free strikers, are based on the models' final positions (except as noted otherwise in the core Trample rules for Shield Walls etc, where the contact point becomes important). (Infernal Ruling) So, for instance: If the trampler contacts a model and ends in its front arc, it won't get the back strike bonus (regardless of whether it 'trampled into' its back. And vice versa. (Infernal Ruling) Free strikes vs Trampler Resolve free strikes after the trample attacks. If a free striker has some sort of 'directly away/towards' movement effect on their weapon (such as Critical Smite) then the direction you move the Trampler is based on the final model positions. For instance, you trample past someone with Critical Smite, end up behind them, and when they smite you via the free strike you'll end up further behind them. Other If the trampler has a 'models within [X]" ... ' ability (such as Ruin's Soul Taker, or anyone's Dark Shroud) then it will only apply to models within [X]" of the trampler's final trample location (not every model they trampled through). Trampling with a flying model (Edit) Flight allows you to trample "over" medium- and larger-bases. Although you trample "over" them, you don't get to make a trample attack vs them and you don't ignore their free strikes. Refer the core rulebook. Unless, of course, you have an exception like Blade Rush. 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)