Infinity: Fusilier Fireteams in the Varuna Immediate Reaction Division

Fusilier Fireteams in the Varuna Immediate Reaction Division

Like many of our PanOceanian Sectorials the Varuna Immediate Reaction Division has the option to field a Core Fireteam built from Fusiliers, and other options which can be added to Fusilier Fireteams, or which count as Fusiliers for the purposes of Fireteam composition.

Fusilier Core Fireteams allow a solid firebase of long range firepower to be built and established in our Deployment Zones. They offer the opportunity to add protection to a Fusilier Lieutenant, and they provide an order battery which is more resilient than most others due to the inherent ability of Core Fireteams to protect themselves from offensive units.

Fusilier Core Fireteams are, generally speaking, relatively poor options for projecting firepower up the table. They do not, by default, offer much in the way of effective medium range firepower and little more than Combi Rifles for close in combat work. Furthermore the inherent vulnerability of one Wound line infantry means that they will seldom be the best choice for advancing to engage the enemy.

With that in mind, let us consider the basic options which we have available to us in the Fusiliers:

Fusiliers present us with a range of the most common and basic Line Infantry choices. A basic HMG, LGL, Missile Launcher, MULTI Sniper, Hacker, and Paramedic are all present. There is no SWC charge on the Lieutenant option, which is nice, and the Forward Observer does provide Deployable Repeaters for just a touch of "spice".

The basic Combi profile is useful here largely due to the low cost and ability to mask the presence of a Lieutenant. Although Varuna still lacks Chain of Command to enable more offensive options, the Fusilier Lt is somewhat less popular, and effective, due to competition from the (outstanding) Zulu-Cobra Lt option. This does slightly dim the light of the regular Combi, but they are nevertheless solid, as you shouldn't underestimate a Core Linked Combi Rifle in Fusilier hands. Burst 4 at BS 15 is nothing to sniff at and can do a lot of work in close when you really need it to.

Both the Forward Observer (thanks to the option to Flash Pulse in ARO as an alternative to the Combi Rifle, as well as Specialist status) and the Light Grenade Launcher are bringing very useful options which you can't pull in from anywhere else in Varuna. Having at least one Specialist in your Core can be a useful backup for clutch moments, and there are some targets on some tables which make an LGL nearly compulsory for competitive ITS play.

Of more middling utility, the Hacker and Paramedic remain somewhat viable choices. The Hacker is the cheapest way to authorise Remotes, and regular Hacking Devices are useful for their Supportware. However the presence of a Hacker does open another channel to hit the Fireteam, 'though Sixth Sense on a Hacker does make Stealth capable Hackable opponents sad. The Paramedic simply lacks by comparison to the much better, and equally costed, Forward Observer 'though Scenario bonuses may make them worthwhile.

In Varuna it's difficult to justify the SWC on a HMG, Missile Launcher or MULTI Sniper Rifle in the hands of a regular Fusilier most of the time. This is not to say that these can't be solid choices, with the Fireteam Core bonuses they can be made into a significant threat, but thanks to the ability to drop in an ORC or a Kamau, there are usually going to be better ways to bring that long range firepower to bear for your Varuna force. However you probably should consider an "opposites" approach (with a Fusilier HMG to back up your Kamau Sniper, or a Fusilier Missile Launcher to back up your ORC HMG) if you can't afford the full cost of top tier choices for Active and Reactive in your Core.

Let's turn, next, to the "Special Fireteam" option which the Varuna Fusiliers offer, in the form of the Varuna Division ORC Troopers. You can field up to 3 Fusiliers alongside up to 2 ORC troopers, so you either need a pair of ORCs, or a Wildcard option to replace one of them, to attain your full 5-trooper Fireteam bonuses:

Keep in mind that for the purposes of our Fusilier Core Fireteam we are ignoring the top 11 rows, as only Varuna Division ORC troopers need apply. Despite that, we once again have a generic range of Heavy Infantry options available, but with a few interesting standouts. Due some consideration alongside other factors is the straightup toughness of a Core Fireteam Linked Heavy Infantry trooper as a Datatracker, especially in those Scenarios where the Datatracker needs to survive the game. The ORC with Fusiliers is an excellent choice here.

Strong options for consideration up front are the HMG, Feuerbach and Boarding Shotgun. The HMG brings the kind of raw long range firepower which you expect from PanOceania, with a Burst 5 BS 17 HMG being truly hard to argue with. The Feuerbach, in a Core Fireteam, becomes both a strong ARO presence and a solid active turn offensive option, serving a role similar to a "heavy Sniper Rifle" and complimenting a Kamau Sniper well. Likewise the Boarding Shotgun can hit BS 23 in its range sweet spot (and at those ranges can often deny cover to actually fully benefit from that number) and offers capabilities which a Fusilier Fireteam would otherwise not bring.

The Hacker will generally be a poor choice for most list builds, but it does offer an interesting option if you are also including a Fusilier Hacker and a TinBot ORC. Most opponents won't expect solid Hacking capability from PanOceania and a Fireteam build like that will be more than a surprise. It might even occasionally be worthwhile to play with the Stealth on the ORCs and lack thereof on the Fusiliers. This makes the TinBots somewhat viable to allow for extra protection to Core Fireteam linked Hacking, which with the Repeater network a PanOceanian force can establish with their Remotes can offer an unexpected an intriguing avenue of attack.

Of more questionable utility is the generic Multi Rifle option, which ends up simply being very expensive for its capabilities and the HMG Lieutenant. The Multi Rifle simply overlaps too heavily on a range band the Fusiliers already cover. The HMG Lieutenant would be excellent, IF there was Chain of Command available in Sectorial, but without that backup it's very expensive for a tough Lt choice in Scenarios where your opponent has an incentive to go after him. Such missions are common enough that it elevates this option slightly, but it competes even more heavily with the Zulu-Cobra Lt in that role.

The first of our two "Counts as a Fusilier" options is the old standard, Fusilier Indigo Bipandra. Often held up as one of the worst examples of Dire Foe design:

Bipandra is an interesting potential choice for a couple of reasons, the first of which is the synergy which she offers with Kamau and ORCs. As both Kamau (thanks to the ability in their profile) and ORCs (by virtue of having 2 Wounds) are Shock immune, the value of a decent Doctor in the Core Fireteam with them increases significantly. This also allows you to bring a Doctor into the Core for those missions where you want that Specialist type for the Scenario.

Bipandra is also bringing a Nanopulser, which brings a Direct Template Weapon into the team. As we've discussed in other articles before, DTWs combined with Sixth Sense (as the Core Fireteam will offer at 4 members and up) make for some very tough choices for Alpha Striking attack pieces. Two automatic BTS hits will make many sit up and take notice (even if the odds are in their favour).

On the other hand, she is very expensive for what she's doing. It's usually fairly easy to ensure that a Trauma Doc or her PalBot is in position to support your long range ORCs and Kamau, and on top of that good Helot placement will usually make her DTW redundant.

She IS the only way to get a DTW into your Fusilier Core in Varuna 'though, and that's not nothing.

Our second "Counts as a Fusilier" is the new choice of Richard Quinn, who is actually a pretty interesting potential pick for Varuna:

So here's the thing about building Varuna lists; you run out of SWC REAL quick. Most of the really amazing things which the Sectorial offers come with SWC costs (Kamau Sniper and Helots being the best examples, but far from the only ones) which can bring you up hard against that limit before you cap out on points.

This means that low SWC "strike" options are well worth considering. Now Varuna has a few of these at first glance, but your availability limit on Zulu-Cobra tends to run out VERY fast and Croc Men are expensive when you starting taking a couple of them, so getting one with decent range and a solid shooting package in your Fusilier Core for a reasonable price is great.

Not only is Indigo Quinn packing BS 16 and Burst 4 with +3 out to 24", he's also got MSV 1 (ideal for picking off midfield Camo units). This makes him a relatively cheap supplement to improve the Active Turn combat capability of your Fusilier Core without a significant investment, which is certainly a nice thing to have in your pocket (should you need it).

But on top of all that Quinn is also a Forward Observer with Wip 13, which along with his MSV 1 and the Sixth Sense he's pulling from the Fireteam Core, makes him a threat to Rambo pieces. Not only that but the Shock Marksman Rifle which he's packing also serves the same for dealing to Warbands, making him a good supplement to any of the ARO choices you can add into your Fusilier Core.

That brings us to our Wildcard options, and boy oh BOY do we start off with a doozy! Probably one of the best Wildcard options available to any Sectorial, and one of the definitive features of "Late" N3 play, the Kamau:

Now, to kick us off a note on Fireteam composition. Obviously a Kamau can drop in to replace a Fusilier (as a Wildcard), but it's important to note that it can ALSO drop into a "Special Fireteam: Core" of Fusiliers and ORCs, and that when it DOES it can replace one of the ORCs rather than a Fusilier. This gives you the option of fielding a Fireteam consisting of one ORC (often an HMG or Feuerbach), one Kamau (often a MULTI Sniper) and three Fusiliers.

As BS 13, Shock Immune Light Infantry with Mimetism, Kamau are excellent "point gun" pieces for your Fusilier Fireteam. Dropping in a Kamau HMG gains you an effective BS 19 compared to the BS 17 which an ORC brings in the same role. Of course the second Wound and the Armour difference are both significant factors which will argue in favour of picking an ORC under some circumstances (despite the points difference). Nevertheless it's important to note that as well as their very reasonable points costs, Kamau have Light Infantry SWC costs on their weapons (so that substitution for an ORC also nets your more SWC to put elsewhere).

Of course, the highlight here is the Kamau MULTI Sniper Rifle with Multispectral Visor Level 2. This is the meta shaping option which has become one of the "must answer" questions which any tournament level list must come up with some kind of response for. It's especially deadly against most Warbands, totally negating their Smoke and posing a significant challenge even for those with solid Dodge or other options. The "effective" BS 19 actually becomes BS 19 when you can't pull any Cover modifiers, and that's deadly with two dice coming downrange.

So if the HMG and the MULTI Sniper are both top tier choices (and one of each for switching from "Reactive" to "Active" is a nice build indeed), what's worth considering? Often overlooked at first glance, but attractive to Veterans who know their potential, the Heavy Rocket Launcher also brings a SMG, which is a very nice set of weapons to cover most range bands effectively. If you want a decent ARO but also need to have something functional in the Active turn then the HRL can be a good way to go. Meanwhile the Forward Observer is Willpower 13 and Mimetism, which can make for a nice mid-range ARO option to shut down Rambo pieces if you can afford the 9pts up over a Fusilier FO. The Hacker can also be an interesting option, offering solid BTS on top of the Willpower (better than your Fusilier or ORC Hacker options) especially to go into a team with a TinBot for a "surprise, we CAN hack!" build.

Obviously the Haris profile is pointless here, and the plain Combi or Lieutenant really no more (it's got nothing beyond WIP 13 to recommend it, and you've got Zulu-Cobra for that), so the only thing left is the Paramedic. In a situation I'm sure I've never been in before (and am unlikely to ever be in again) I find myself having to say "you may as well take Bipandra". Seriously, she's one point more and if you are actually considering a Kamau Paramedic for some reason she'll do nearly everything it can do better.

Our Second Wildcard option is Patsy Garnett, ORC troops 'Varuna Div. NCO. Not quite the Haris boon she once was (oh so briefly), and worth looking at for our Fusilier Core.

Patsy can also drop into a Fireteam Special: Core as an ORC, but for the purposes of the Fusilier Fireteam it doesn't really matter either way (as she could simply replace one ORC as a Wildcard anyway). She's a (fairly pointless) point of Close Combat up on the average ORC trooper, and more importantly (especially because she's a Forward Observer) one point of Willpower up as well.

Now, her package of equipment is interesting, with SMGs being nice for in close action (especially on a two Wound model) and both Nimbus Plus and D-Charges being situationally useful. But probably the biggest thing which you will get from Patsy and no-where else in Varuna is NCO. The ability to spend the Lt order on your Fireteam can be a very nice addition if you ARE planning on going somewhere and doing something with the team. Keep in mind that Patsy has to be the Fireteam Leader when that happens (so you can't get extra kills out of it with your HMG or other heavy weapons), so it's usually going to be most useful for additional mobility.

If you need a tough Datatracker who is going to complete Classified Objectives, or one who can access consoles or other Specialist roles in Scenarios, then Patsy is one of the best options you've got. And she's never more survivable than when she's in a core.

It IS a lot of points to spend on her 'though!

Last, but certainly not least (especially for some builds), we have the Clipper Dronbot. Varuna offers a Wildcard Missile Launcher armed option which can offer some interesting potential:

This particular option is often overlooked (like the Kamau HRL) on the basis that it's overshadowed by the Kamau MULTI Sniper and it's MSV 2 madness. However the Clipper has one key feature which makes it very attractive for some lists.

It's dirt cheap.

Now it's still the same SWC cost, but just 18 points for something as tough to actually kill as a Remote Presence unit can be fantastic. Especially for a throwaway ARO piece. But that's the key, with a Machinist backing it up (or the PalBot anyway) you can often keep putting this back up, because your opponent isn't always going to have the orders to finish it off.

Now, why would you go for something like this instead of the best single ARO piece in the entire game?

Look right.

Yeah, that one.

When you build around a Cutter then you are going to make a few list compromises. And there are, to be fair, a number of other build archetypes which Varuna can bring which (likewise) don't leave the points free to pull in a Kamau MULTI Sniper, or which use a different Core.

And for those the Clipper is solid. Especially when backed up with a Hacker to give it supportware. So between Shock immunity (thanks to Structure) multiple levels of Unconscious (thanks to Remote Presence) and the ability to buff with Supportware it's usually going to be worth the 3pt upgrade on a Fusilier Missile Launcher. Heck, if you've somehow got the SWC it's not even bad to go WITH a Kamau Sniper!

So, no matter what you are looking for in terms of fireteam options, there's something to consider in the Varuna Fusilier Fireteam Core! If you are looking for specific examples of how to build a Fusilier Core Fireteam then check out our next article.

Let us know what you think. Especially if you think we've missed anything.

Is the Fusilier team your go-to core in Varuna?

Have you tried them in any matches?

What are your thoughts?