I believe that the game shouldn’t come down to “I blew up your Type III first, I win” and fortunately Red Blok has a way to deal with this problem. Red Blok are arguably the weakest faction at dealing with a type 3 without their own on the table due to their lack of jammers, but the GenCol advantage gives them the tools they need to survive such a setback. Remember, Red Blok is all about staying power, so pick the unit you want to “stay” (the Dotch Yaga) and build your list around that.

This list is tooled to do two things. Keep the Dotch Yaga in the game with repairs, and in the event that the DY goes down to enemy fire, still be able to deal with type 3’s effectively.  In order to do this we forgo the Red Blok staple of a sierp. The Dotch Yaga has the 10cm mortar which is more than up to the task of taking out entrenched enemies. Make sure you’re targeting units that will undermine your opponents strategy first.

The Dual Urods are great backup for the Yaga as they are able to deal with type 3’s, and can also repair. You have Vrachov and his krasnye for holding a point and you have snipers to deal with specific infantry threats.

Platoon 1
- 3 Dragonov Groupa S
- 9 Dragonov Kommandos (Sergeant, 3 Sniper Gun)
- 12 Krasnye Soldaty (+ Captain P. Vrachov, 3 Grenade Launcher)
- Dotch Yaga
- Urod (+ Colonels Odin & Manon)
Platoon 2
- 9 Dragonov Kommandos (Sergeant, 3 AT Gauss Gun)
- Urod (+ Colonels Odin & Manon)

This list is a bit weak to an infantry heavy army, but when you play to its strengths it is still able to deal with that sort of opponent easily. Use the snipers to force your opponent to use more LP, especially if they are using a special weapons team heavy list.

Even if you lose your type 3 the game is far from over. Like most things you just have to plan for that scenario happening.

This list is tuned for 3k points and follows the basic Red Blok troop pattern.

Platoon 1
- 12 Krasnye Soldaty (+ Captain P. Vrachov, 3 Grenade Launcher)
- 8 Krasnye Soldaty (1 Grenade Launcher)
- 9 Dragonov Kommandos (Sergeant, 3 Sniper Gun)
- Urod (+ Colonels Odin & Manon)
- Dotch Yaga (Lieutenant)
Platoon 2
- 12 RPG Soldaty (+ Sergeant A. Tymofiyeva, 3 Rocket Launcher)
- 2 Sierp (Sergeant)
- 1 MedTec

In addition to the starter set you would need the following boxes.

• RPG Soldaty + attachment
• Sgt Timofiyeva
• 2 Sierps
• Captain Vrachov
• Dragonov kommando attachment

This rounds out the force at 3000 points, gives you a great base of models to build on and gives you the essential Sierps. You also gain almost unlimited staying power when combining Captain vrachov’s Krasyne with the  medtec unit. This guy becomes your point holder. No one will be able to kill that unit when it has 6 medics and a field hospital.

Sgt Timofiyeva also adds some disruption and the ability to mess with your opponents activation order. This is a nice basic list with a few great tricks up its sleeve.

Platoon 1
- 3 Dragonov Groupa S
- Urod (+ Colonels Odin & Manon)
- 12 Krasnye Soldaty (+ Captain P. Vrachov, 3 Grenade Launcher)
- 3 Dragomirov Kolossus (Sergeant)
- Urod (+ Colonels Odin & Manon)

This list is a defensive powerhouse. First off you have the Dual Urods. These guys move together and can repair each other each turn. This behaves just like the the UNA Mind list as your opponent will have to destroy one Urod outright, otherwise they’ll both be back at full strength.

You get sniper support to deal with nasty battle suits and pesky heroes from the Dragonov Groupa S and you get the close in fire support of the Dragomirov kolossus. The kolossus should remain hidden and only expose themselves when you are sure you can inflict maximum damage.

Captain Vrachov’s Krasnye unit will be virtually unkillable once it hunkers down on an objective, and the grenade launchers can be used to ground enemies and slow their advance.

The goal of this list is to out last the enemy and gencol gives you all the tools to do it. If you want to stop this list you need jammers, lots of them, or indirect fire weapons that can take out Vrachov’s unit. Even then it will be a very tough battle as the list still has tremendous staying power.

These guys are best used from reserves or brought in through a drop point. They don’t have the speed to be able to move easily from cover to cover but they are very difficult to kill. Some strategies employ KK5 to medic them as they move towards the enemy, some like to use med tec units to keep bringing them back into the game. You must keep them in cover at all times with “take cover” since as soon as they are vulnerable to fire, you can be sure every AT weapon in your opponents arsenal will come bearing down on them.

When adding Lt Dragomira to the squad they gain fire at will, increasing the effective range of their weapons and making them very hard to kill when combined with Med Tec. Lt Dragomira has a combat double and she can only be killed if an attack causes more than one wound to her giving you an extra hit for free if she is the only one left in the unit.

The best way to deal with these guys is with long range anti tank fire, and grounding. Dont think of sending your type 1 AFV’s after them as they will surely be turned into scrap metal.

The sierp is arguably the best anti-infantry afv in the game. With a cost of only 200 points, high armour, and a 4cm blast radius, these guys are able to take out even the most entrenched enemy. Since they get 2 dice to throw the chances of hitting go up compared to the Cobra snake dramatically, especially with more than 1 Sierp in a unit.These are the ideal tool for taking out a point holding unit and should be used to control infantry movement on the board.

When multiple Sierps are involved, they only need 3 hits to push into double damage as their blast radius is 12cm, greater than 10. This pretty much guarantees they will not only ground, but kill the unit they are firing on.

If you are facing Sierps they should become your number one priority as they will very quickly shred your infantry, making it hard for you to capture victory points. Read the errata on indirect fire and overwatch as there have been some changes on how it these both work with blast weapons.

The Sierp is a fantastic unit and if there is any AFV you get for Red Blok the sierp should be it.

Krasnye Soldaty

The Krasnye Soldaty are the longer ranged of the two infantry types. Their standard special weapon is the grenade launcher which lets them attack from cover without exposing themselves, or hit the enemy in cover while pressing the charge. Their standard weapons have poor range but gain a reroll which increases their effective range by 20cm.

The Kransye have access to mechanic specialists which let them repair AFVs. They are the only infantry type that can do this so if you are looking for some vehicle support, the Krasnye are it.

The Krasnye can also be led by Captain Vrachov who is himself a medic. This increases the total number of medics available to the Krasnye to 3. A full unit of these guys with grenade launchers and Captain Vrachov sitting in cover is extremely difficult to dislodge. This makes them the Red Blok’s point holding unit.

RPG Soldaty

The RPG soldaty are built for close quarters combat.

Their weapons have a range of 0 but get two shots each. They also have access to the very tactical combat engineer. Their standard special weapon is the SM Gauss which can put down an extreme volume of strength 7 fire. For an additional cost they can be upgraded to carry Rocket launchers.

The combat engineer lets the RPG soldaty destroy terrain elements which when used at the right time, can expose the enemy unit or spring an ambush. This lets the RPGs also reveal all of their soldiers without triggering overwatch. They may destroy their cover, shoot with all their members, then move to another area of cover.

The RPG Soldaty can be led by Sgt Tymofiyeva who can give them fire at will to increase the effective range of their weapons.

Conclusion

Both units are great choices in a Red Blok army. The Krasnye grenade launchers are capable of hitting units in cover and attacking from cover while the RPG soldaty are able to advance on the enemy firing the whole way. RPGS can fire with their entire unit without having to worry about return fire if they can use their combat engineer properly. Its a matter of play style as to which infantry you prefer. Want to hunker down on an objective or keep your type 2 AFVs running in top shape? The Krasnye are the ones for the job. Want to flank the enemy and eliminate them with a colossal amount of firepower, the RPG’s are up for the task.

platoon 1 – 16 LP total

• 1 Sierp 200 AP
• Urod 570 AP
• 8 Krasnye Soldaty 1 grenade Launcher 2 Mechanics 150 AP
• 9 Dragonov Kommandos 3 AT-Gauss Sergeant 310 AP
• 3 Dragonov Groupa S 125 AP

Platoon 2

• 1 Sierp 200 AP
• 1 Hussar (sargeant) 445 AP

This list is very easy to split and given Frontline’s ability to take RP points very quickly, you can leave UROD off the board in reinforcements and grab enough RP points to bring him on in  turn 2 (Scenario depending). This really leads to a stunned look on your opponents face when he realizes you’re putting 6 units on the board turn 1 with 3 AT-Gauss guns, 2 sierps, a hussar, a repair unit, and if that wasn’t enough, sniper support.

I’ll see how this list stacks up against Karmans and UNA later but so far I’m really enjoying it.

The Hussar fills this gap in the Red Blok’s arsenal while still staying true to the Red Blok’s style. With a missile launcher that fires 2 missiles that hit on a 4+ with a strength of 14 that ignores cover, this AFV has a damage potential of 4 from anywhere on the board. Its Medium Rocket Launcher must still get in close to be effective though. This keeps the Hussar in line with red blok’s style of rush the enemy and overwhelm them with firepower.

More importantly the Missiles are capable of damaging type 3 AFV’s, something the strength 12 Medium Rockets need 6’s to achieve. If you are facing an opponent that keeps their afv’s at long range the hussar gives the Red Blok the ability to hit key threats like UNA Snakes and Karman Jungle buggies before they lay waste to your expensive armour.

This AFV isn’t going to replace the Hetman or even the Kossak, but covers a large hole in the Red Blok’s armour; long range AT firepower.

The next thing to do is back them up with Urod and min sized krasnye with engineers. This armoured column should constantly move towards the enemy as fast as possible. You force your opponent to focus on the Molot’s or Urod. If they focus on the Molots, Urod will be able to repair them, and if they focus on Urod the molots wont be taking any fire. Always force your opponent to make this type of choice, it will help guarantee that some of the units arrive in one piece.

If Urod leads the charge be sure to use shield formation. He has higher armour than the molots so you will take fewer damage over all if the lighter armoured units are benefiting from cover.

Have a goal in mind, usually this involves torching a key point holding infantry unit, If you are running Frontline once your afv’s destroy this unit they will be able to hold the point themselves. If you aren’t running frontline make sure to have an infantry unit that is backing up this armoured column.

Molots are a great asset to many red blok lists, they are feared by all and a well played unit of them can take away your opponents ability to gain Victory Points.

Urod for the Red Blok is quite a power house. The Hetman is quite a capable Type 2 AFV, but give it 2 repairs and it becomes very hard to take down. This, in a nutshell describes Urod. With high leadership, high armour and the long range AT-Cannon it is best used to pick off battle suits initally as it charges towards the enemy. The Medium Rocket Launchers have limited range so in order to get full use out of this AFV, it needs to keep moving towards the enemy.

The activation of Urod becomes very important as using his repairs at the right time is essential. Make no mistake, your opponent will throw everything they have at this guy and he will go down eventually, but this will buy you enough time to move the rest of your forces into position.

Backing up Urod with a min sized squad of krasnye with mechanics will increase his survivability, giving him 4 repairs a turn. This becomes even more feasable with Urod being given shield formation in order to protect the delicate repair unit.

Urod with his range and repairs makes for a highly survivable AFV commander, in a frontline list he becomes almost a must have and there is hardly a time when taking urod is a poor tactical decision.

This also sets some back story for Sgt Timofiyeva. I sure hope that more back story of the various AT-43 Heroes and history will be revealed through mini scenarios like this. Especially if they become a frequent occurrence.

Captain Vrachov

This commander can either drive a Kossak or join a krasnye Soldaty unit as a third medic. He is very useful on foot and makes the unit he joins very hard to dislodge from cover.

Sgt. Tymofiyeva

When on foot in an RPG soldaty unit Sgt. Tymofiyeva gets the disruption ability. in addition she has interference which allows her to move any card in the opponents activation sequence (before it has been revealed) to another location. This can play havoc with their activation order and give you the upper hand. (especially nasty vs  UNA with Col stark as he must deploy first)

Kransye Soldaty

These guys have your only mechanics you’ll likely want a full unit of them as they also are very difficult to dislodge from cover when Captain Vrachov is with them. This gives them 3 medics and the ability to stay alive forever.

Urod / Kossak

You will need one of these type 2 AFV’s both are decent choices. If you get Urod you have some extra long range weapons and the ability to self repair, if you get the Kossak you can turn him into KK5 which can heal nearby troops (especially useful for getting kolossus to the battle alive). Urod will be more forgiving to mistakes as his repairs turn him into an absolute beast. If you take the Kossak though you may find you have trouble filling up a 2000 pt list without buying another unit of something if you aren’t using RPG kolossus.

RPG Soldaty

These guys get rockets and combat engineers they’re supposed to get in close and melt enemy AFVs. They have to get close like most red blok units as they have very poor accuracy. their standard weapons also have twice the shots of the krasnye so they will score double the imacts with their standard weapons over the krasnye. The combat engineer can blow up terrain to speed this units movement since you dont have to move around something that no longer exists. Blowing up cover is a good way to attack without triggering overwatch as well.

Sierps, 2 of them

Sierps are feared by any army that faces red blok. with 2 light mortars they have a strength of 6, enough to impact even karman type 2 infantry 50% of the time. If 3/4 of the shots hit from this unit you score double impacts. what isn’t killed outright will be grounded. With a unit of 2 of these badboys you can be sure to ground 2 infantry units a turn. In addition to this the sierps have the disruption ability which drains the Enemies LP pool by 1 point per sierp. This can constrain what the enemy will do with their LP and can be a game changer if you can snipe / kill their commander.

Kolossus, RPG or Dragomirov

Both of these kolossus are good choices. The Dragomirovs have one rocket launcher and one mgauss giving you 6 rocket shots and 9 mgauss shots to divide among your opponents. If you want some pure anti AFV firepower go with the RPG kolossus they get 12 rocket shots and once in close very little can survive that sort of onslaught. I prefer to have each unit dedicated to a certain task so RPG’s are what I would take, but if you’re on a budget the dragomirovs might be more flexible.

Dragonov Kommandos

With their Sniper rifles your enemy will think twice about exposing their commanders and battle suits. Keep these guys in the back and pick off high value targets. You can use AT-Gauss Guns with them as well if you need to beef up your AT firepower. They also get the disruption ability just like the sierps, each unit of Dragonovs can cause 2 LP of disruption if they take 2 electronic warfare specialists. This leaves them without medics so it is a bit of a tradeoff.

Final Lists

• 12 krasnye soldaty grenade launchers + captain vrachov
• 12 RPG soldaty +rocket launchers + Sergeant Tymofiyeva
• 9 Dragonov Kommandos + sergeant + sniper rifles
• Urod
• 2 Sierps + sgt

or

• 12 krasnye soldaty grenade launchers
• 12 RPG soldaty +rocket launchers
• 3 RPG kolossus + sgt
• Urod
• 2 Sierps + sgt

or

• 12 krasnye soldaty grenade launchers
• 12 RPG soldaty +rocket launchers + sgt tymofiyeva
• 3 RPG kolossus + sgt
• KK5
• 2 Sierps + sgt

or

• 12 krasnye soldaty grenade Launchers + captain vrachov
• 12 RPG soldaty +rocket launchers
• 9 dragonov kommandos + at-Gauss
• kossak
• 2 Sierps

(final list has a few points to spare)

As you can see all these lists are very similar and will let you get into the game with no wasted purchases. All the units listed here you will use and provide a fairly balanced starter army.

I’ve been playing some games with the available tier 3 units and this week it was the Baal Golgoth. I set up a 2000 point list for either side, the Therians using the Baal golgoth plus some min sized grim golem units and a unit of assault goliaths. On the Red Blok side I ran a standard list Urod, Krasnye soldaty, some RPG kolossus Dragonovs and molots.

The Red Blok list had tremendous trouble inflicting enough damage to defeat the Baal. With 16 armor even the Dragonov at-gauss need 5+ to wound. Atis was very quick in recognizing that the dragonovs were going to be the largest threat and quickly engaged and dispatched them. Urod wounded the baal on a 3+ but for a maximum of 2 damage. The Soldaty took rockets and needed to be in range of the deadly heavy flamer in order to engage so they weren’t much use.

I tried out some bacterial grenades to no avail. Essentially Atis gives the Therians the ability to remove enough strong AT firepower (dragonovs) to make killing the baal extremely difficult. When Dotch Yaga comes along it will be a different story, but I don’t think that Tier 3 should be the only way to deal with the Baal.

Some Quick math came up with the following. assuming that the Baal has no cover and a range of 3.

• RPG kolossus 1 impact (2 damage)
• Dragonov AT-Gauss .83 impact
• Urod .88 impact (1 damage) + .25 impacts (2 damage)
• Kossack .5 impacts (2 damage)
• Dotch Yaga 1.25 impacts (2 damage)
• Soldaty .33 impacts (2 damage)
• Bacteriological Grenades .33 impacts (2 damage)

As you can see nothing comes near the effectiveness of Dotch Yaga in defeating the Baal, there is nothing in the Red Blok arsenal that for equivalent point cost can effectively deal with a tier 3 threat. Which basically forces Red Blok to take a tier three unit because they never know if they will be facing one or not themselves. Even 4 units of min sized krasnye with grenades can potentially put out the same damage as dotch Yaga, but they have to get so close to the baal that its heavy flamer will just melt them.

The Red Blok Kolossus are a very hardy battle suit. With 12 armour regular weapons just bounce off them. Couple that with the take cover drill or an infantry screen and you can give your unit a good chance of getting in close. KK5 with his medic ability can make all the difference though. Especially coupled with the new frostbite combat drill that lets AFV’s become cover, these hardy troopers can advance up the battlefield virtually unscathed.

This works particularly well with Kolossus that have indirect fire weapons as you can advance and still fire with all three while only exposing a spotter to any fire. Should this unit be shot and actually take an impact there is the 3+ cover and a medic provided to KK5 to keep him in the fight.

Use RPG kolossus and hide them entirely, By the time KK5 is in effective range so too will the kolossus and they can simply move out from behind him and unleash their rockets. back KK5 up with a min unit of krasnye soldaty with mechanics and you’ll have a very hardy column of units that all need to get close to the enemy and support each other in getting there.

Overview

Fighting for Justice Equity and Unity the Red Blok seek to fight against those that oppose those values. Each soldier is dedicated to bettering the collective which has been striving for their goal for over a century.

Play Style

The Red Blok combine very heavily armoured AFV’s with large numbers of ground troops. They are a faction that is constantly moving towards the enemy due to their limited effective range. Once the Red Blok guns are within their effective range though they have the potential to unleash an enormous amount of damage. They have many tricks up their sleeves to slow the enemy down and need to use all of them to be effective.

Strengths

• Highly armoured AFVs
• High damage potential of infantry units
• Effective snipers
• Disruption reduces the LP available to their opponent each turn
• Large numbers of troops lets them take and hold strategic positions easily

Weaknesses

• Inaccurate weapons forcing them to advance on the enemy
• Difficulty taking down very heavy AFV’s (Type 3 for example)
• Infantry has lighter armour compared to the other factions