Flux List

- 2 K-Fighters (Mentor) Karmic Warrior
- 4 Wendigos
- 1 Easy Trike  Karmic Warrior
- Jindo-Un (+ Saint Anuman) Karmic Warrior
- King Buggy

The idea behind this list is to quickly grab enough RPs (RP blitz) to bring your reinforcements in for the beginning of turn 2. You will want to deploy  your K-fighters on the board first turn as taking over an enemy AFV first turn will be crucial.

Second turn will see the Wendigos rush on with the easy trike. the easy trike’s target will be a type 1 AFV. If you don’t take it over outright, use your karmic warrior for a second chance at the die rolls. You can save this easy trike until you have perfect positioning to ensure a no cover shot on an enemy AFV as well, but the goal is to take a type 1 the turn it enters the board. This is a risk move for sure but can pay off in strides. Capturing 500 points worth of enemy armour by the second turn will make your opponent think twice.

Save Jindo’s karmic warrior for the lucky roll your opponent gets that manages to immobilize him or destroy him. Since you have no repairs in your list you need to acquire enemy AFVs to replace the ones that get destroyed or immobilized.

You don’t have a lot of minis on the table to its important to use karmic warrior to minimize losses or to ensure you capture and enemy vehicle, don’t use it for anything else. This list either works really well or fails stupendously, but thats half the fun of playing it. Its weaknesses are infantry based anti AFV lists that can afford to lose their AFVs and not have it impact them too heavily.

There are two variants of trike armour, one granting 3 frame points and the other only 2. This is the only faction so far that has a variance in their type 1 AFV frame points so its worth mentioning that you will have a weaker or stronger trike depending on which one you take.

Easy Trike

The Easy Trike is equipped with jammers and each one can put down 4 shots each. This gives a unit of 2 of them a great chance at taking out an enemy afv in a single salvo. Combine this with Jindo’s ability to take control of AFVs destroyed by jammer fire and you’ve got a very potent unit.

Dirt Trike

The Dirt Trike comes in the weaker armour with only 2 frame points. It is armed with dual drum guns which makes it very adept at taking out hordes of infantry. Due to its speed it can easily rush up on an opponents position, negate their cover and unload a large volley of fire right into their face. This is how the dirt trike is best used, the quick assault with guns and BBQ attack.

Jungle Trike

The long range anti tank trike varient the jungle trike comes with ZZ Guns. They are able to put 4 shots on target each and a unit of these guys is able to rip most afvs and battlesuits into tiny pieces. It is also one of the weaker armoured trikes at only 2 frame points so be careful with these guys, or rush them in from reserves and annhiliate an entire unit of battlesuits at point blank range. They work just as well in both capacities.

Thunder Trike

The Thunder trike is a blend between the dirt and jungle trike sporting one drum gun and one zz gun. This makes the unit more flexible, able to engage a wider variety of targets. They also have 3 frame points which will let them survive a direct hit from a missile.

The key to fighting trikes is to put lots of fire on them early. They are very fragile and will drop like flies to concentrated fire. If left on the board for more than a turn they will cause a large ammount of damage, so they should become a high priority for any commander that wants to survive.

Darius may only join Anakonga squads, this is odd seeing as he does not have a jet pack and is armed like a kaptar, but it has been confirmed by rackham that this is correct. The Anakongas may still use their jetpacks but Darius must walk on foot, this means that the Anakongas can still fly over an obstacle but Darius must walk around. Squad coherency must be maintained as well. This reminds me of the other useless Karman hero, Mentor Freezer. Guess what, he can join Anakongas but doesn’t have a jet pack either.

This guy really should have been a Kaptar it just doesn’t make any sense to put him with Anakongas. Seriously I would house rule this one because it borders on ridiculous. Below is the card that comes with him.

UPDATE: Rackham has errata released that lets guide darius join any type 1 infantry unit. This is a well welcome change. Thanks Arpad for the heads up on this one.

Wendigos

The Wendigos strength comes from their indirect fire. They all have access to maser strike which trades strength and attack rate for the ability to fire indirectly. This strength is further accentuated by the grenade launchers available as special weapons. This creates the ideal point holding unit for the Karmans giving them the ability to fire from cover with a large amount of indirect fire.  This is where you want to be with karmans as every casualty is exceedingly costly.

Yetis

The Yetis are very costly point wise compared to the Wendigos. They are equipped with jet packs which lets them move towards the enemy rapidly. To use this unit effectively they need to stay in cover for as long as possible advancing towards the enemy. When they are in position they reveal themselves and with a hail of fire leave smoldering wreckage in their wake. They have access to rocket launchers which are the only karman weapons to cause more than 1 damage, and flamers which give them powerful anti infantry tools. Due to their specialist nature and high cost they really shine in larger point value armies as a flanking unit.

Conclusions

While the wendigos are useful in great many situations, the Yetis in the right situation have a much larger damage potential due to their rocket launchers. Given the focus on point holding in at-43 the wendigos are the better choice to fill a single type ** slot. When playing at larger point values where the yetis high cost doesn’t eat into a large portion of the total army value, they are extremely deadly.

Kaptars

The Kaptars are the multipurpose type 1 infantry. They have zz rifles which with a strength of 6 are able to inflict damage on targets up to armour 11. This means that even some lightly armoured AFV’s have to be careful of this unit. They have a high rate of fire at 4 shots each and can be equipped with sniper rifles or ZZ guns as special weapons.

Anakongas

The Anakongas are the highly mobile shock troop of the karman army. They are equipped with jetpacks which lets them fly over terrain without penalty. They are also armed with drum pistols which have a very short range but an extremely high rate of fire. Unfortunately the weapon strength is only 5 so it it is less effective vs battlesuits and AFV’s. This makes them well suited for battles with other infantry at close range. Their special weapon options reinforce this role as they get flamers. If you need to clear an entrenched enemy position, or take and hold a contested point the anakongas are a decent choice.

Comparison

Of the two, the Kaptars are more versatile unit. Their decent range, access to snipers and anti-AFV ZZ Guns makes them a better all around choice. The anakongas can be used in specal weapons teams though, and a 2 model flamer team can wreak havoc on enemy lines. If you have a specific strategy in mind like capturing a drop point, rushing the enemy position with flamers and a hail of bullets the anakongas are the tool for the job, but for a unit that can adapt to most any situation, attack up close and from far with access to snipers or anti afv firepower, then the Kaptars are the better choice.

K-Fighters

They are the jammer equipped variant of the K’s. With  4 shots per model they are able to put out a lot of jammer fire. Jammers don’t have the range that ZZ-guns do though so you’ll have to be a little closer to your target than normal. Coupled with Jindo-Un this unit can easily capture enemy afv’s with one salvo.

K-Warriors

They are equipped with mortars making them the long range anti infantry choice. Again with 4 shots a piece they are easily able to create a max sized template that hits for 2 impacts, or able to engage at least 2 units of infantry when they fire strength 7 is also able to hurt all battle suits. This puts them a notch above the Wendigo Grenade launchers in terms of indirect effectiveness as they can actually dent red blok kolossus.

K-Shooters

They are armed with ZZ-Guns what sets them apart from a kaptar unit’s heavy weapons is they get an additional shot each and also are able to use concentrate fire in order to re roll their failed damage tests.  This damage re-roll is extremely valuable as it ups their damage potential by about 50%.  Throw karmic warrior on these guys and the chance of not doing damage becomes virtually 0.  They are also the cheapest K unit which opens up space in the other slots in your army.

K-Burners

They are highly specialized flamer equipped battle suits. They are very mission specific as they need to be within 25 cm in order to unleash their flames. They do not pack any more punch than the Anakonga or Yeti flamer teams but they also give you increased armour and the Super power grips for close combat action. This comes at a higher point cost than the Yeti or Anakonga teams but can pay off if used against units that have low strength weapons.

All of the K units have their uses though the K-warriors and K-Shooters are the most versatile.  If you want to run a small wendigo unit, taking K-Warriors will give you some great additional grounding power. Similarly if you want to beef up your anti afv capabilities the K-Shooters are really the way to go. K-Fighters are great but you must be using Saint Anuman / Jindo Un with them. This goes for pretty much any Jammer unit in the Karman force. Don’t take jammers without him.

One of the first questions most Karman players have is Anakongas or Kaptars, closely followed up by Yetis or Wendigos. For a starter list I would recommend going with Kaptars and Wendigos. Kaptars have higher strength and more range and therefore make a better all around unit. Wendigos have higher strength access to grenade launchers as well as maser strike. Yetis are very good but situational.

Karmans – Karmans (2000 AP)

Platoon 1
- 4 Kaptars (Mentor)
- 8 Wendigos (+ Venerable Cornelius, 2 Grenade Launcher)
- 2 K-Shooters (Mentor)
- 1 Easy Trike (Mentor) / (proxy jungle trike)
- King Buggy (Mentor)

I built this list to be compatable for zero proxies, I know some people don’t like to play with them. If you do allow proxies i would use a jungle trike and use the extra points on karmic warrior for the wendigos.

The King buggy is a great all around buggy. Its flamers are what set it apart and make it better than the Thunder buggy. in this list you’ve got K-shooters so having a Jungle buggy is a bit of overkill. For a comparison of all the buggy types see the battle of the buggies.

Curtain of Flames is an interesting ability. When it is activated it obscures visibility of the King Mammoth and any units that are behind it. This works only for the side of the mammoth that the flamers are mounted on so you must be careful how you position it.

The best way to defeat the curtain is to shoot the Mammoth on overwatch as the curtain is considered to be down while it moves.

This ability provides some much needed cover to Karman troops to advance and shields the king mamoth from fire until it can bring its heavy weapons to bear on a target. The King Mammoth is a great addition to any Karman list and provides both heavy firepower with a great special ability.

King Buggy

Weighing in at 400 points this is the cheapest option available to the Karmans. Don’t let its lower point cost fool you though it is a very capable unit. Armed with twin ZZ Cannons and Twin Flamers this unit is used best when pushing towards the enemy. The nice thing is that this guy tends to attract fire away from your other units. No one wants those twin flamers to hit their troops.

Pros:

• Low Point Cost
• Flamers for dislodging infantry

Cons:

• Must get in close for maximum efficiency, otherwise it is simply a jungle trike with more Frame points

Jungle Buggy

The Jungle buggy is an AFVs worst nightmare. with 4 zz cannons putting out 8 shots, this is enough to ruin most anyone’s day. Those extra ZZ-cannons dont come cheap though, weighing in at 525 points its more than half the cost of a jungle trike over the king buggy. This guy does best sitting at the back of the field laying down a lot of accurate anti afv fire. It will become a very high priority early on as it will completely dominate firing lanes, making any afv or battle suit wary to poke its head out.

Pros:

• 8 ZZ Cannons will melt anything that gets in its way

Cons:

• High Cost

Thunder Buggy

The Thunder Buggy is a blend of both king buggy and Jungle Buggy. With 2 ZZ cannons and 2 Drum Guns it can deal with infantry, battle suits and lightly armoured afv’s. Weighing in at 425, I find this buggy excels at dealing with UNA. The drum guns can wound toads on a 5+ tacarms on a 4+. if you are hoping to hurt anything with armour greater than 11, consider paying the points to take the Jungle Buggy or save yourself 25 points and take the flamers on the King buggy and get in close.

Pros:

• Drum guns are great against UNA
• only 25 points more than the King buggy
• Can be effective from medium-long range

Cons:

• Drum guns ineffective on targets with moret than 11 armour (need 6 to wound)

There you have it. All of the buggies are useful in different situations. Depending on what sort of army list you build you may want the overwhelming power of the Jungle Buggy, The Infantry Routing of the King buggy, or the hail of drum gun rounds from the Thunder Buggy. The most important thing is that you have a plan for how you are going to use your buggy to its maximum effectiveness. If you dont then the points are simply wasted.

The fast hit from reserves is how I use them best. They have a 30cm movement and on most missions you can easily get the 200 RP to bring one on your second turn. When I bring them on I dont plan on them surviving very long so I make a bee line usually towards the enemies battle suits. With karmic warrior and the rerolls of the ZZ guns you are pretty much guaranteed to hit with all your weapons at close range. 15 strength will wound even the dreaded kolossus on a 3+. Not too shabby for a 200 point unit.

against armies that dont have missile launchers you can also have them hang around at the back of the field and take potshots all day long, just use their high movement to keep as much distance between your opponent and the trike and you’ll likely get a few rounds of fire un harassed. Arceo lists are ideal for this as you can give the trikes “take cover”.

There is no middle range for these guys, its either charge towards auto hit range and hopefully take a round of AT fire off your buggies, or hang back and let cover and range give you the advantage. Regardless of how you play them they’re a huge asset to a karman commander. I wouldn’t leave home without them!

I recently picked up a Karman army and have been having a ton of fun with Guru Lucius leading a unit of 4 Kaptars. Lucius gives the unit he is leading stealth when they are in cover and given the take cover drill. This gives the usually fragile kaptars a lot more room to step out and fire all their weapons. The other benefit is that Lucius comes with 2 drum guns listed separately on his profile. This gives his unit the possibility of firing at 3 different targets with the split fire combat drill. This is extremely helpful when dealing with a UNA morningstar list as they are able to field a large number of smaller sized infantry units and if you’re lucky they’ll have left the triple lens helmets at home.

I am not totally sold on using diamond over a king buggy though. The flamers seem to be much more useful at clearing out infantry and for AFV killing, nothing beats the jungle buggy. Then again I usually run a Nova list so having a hero in an afv seems like a bit of a waste if they are anything less than a Saint.