Cygnar is the faction we can consider the main protagonists of the setting. They wield technologically advanced weapons and Warjacks and take a combined arms approach—neither excelling in one particular area of combat, but through a combination of spells and units working together, a Cygnar army can overcome enemies.
Cygnar armies are characterised by their efficient Focus generation on their jacks and electrical attacks. Spells available to the army generally enhance defensive attributes or enhance the shooting abilities of the units in the army. This article will look at a sample of units to highlight the Cygnar playstyles.
Warcasters
Captain Athena di Baro
The Scout Warcaster of the army, and so playable in 30pt games of just a Warcaster and Warjacks, she has an average combat profile with a high ARM. This is further enhanced by her Defense Formation - where she and her Warjacks, if in base-to-base contact with other models in her cohort, get a further +2ARM. A shield wall of Warjacks within her control will be tough to shift.
Her attacks are nothing special, but where she comes into her own is her feat and spells. Her feat makes all models in her control range gain an extra die on attack rolls, removing the lowest. Enemies then get the reverse - one extra die removing the highest. A well-timed use of the feat can ensure that her cohort of Warjacks can hit and that Focus points are reserved for boosting damage rolls. Her spells, in effect, buy her Warjacks extra attacks beyond their basic attacks and Focus.
Major Anson Wolfe
Wolfe is a close combat caster, favouring wading into hordes of grunts thanks to his ability, which boosts his ARM and causes melee damage for each kill he makes. His close combat attacks suit this play style, allowing him to wade deep into the enemy lines and hit multiple targets with Electroleap.
Keeping this theme of getting stuck in, his feat sees Wolf and his cohort get a bonus attack in response to a model in his army getting killed. Likewise, his spell Energizer fits this idea of pushing deep into the enemy ranks, while Positive Charge is a spell that enhances the combat abilities of a cohort model and also those near to it. All of these spells, feats and abilities favour getting into combat fast.
Major Allister Caine
The Warcaster that comes in the starter set, Caine, is the ultimate shooting Warcaster and assassin on the Cygnar list. Thanks to his Teleport spells, he has some movement tricks to allow for hit-and-run attacks, making Caine hard to pin down. For good reason, Caine has a low ARM and could easily be killed.
Caine is less of a Warjack controller and aims to use his Focus to buy extra shots. This means Caine can, in turn, lay waste to a unit of grunts or take out an enemy leader. But Caine is more than just about guns - he is if anything a bit of a tool kit Warcaster, with his guns able to disrupt enemy tactics, or crippling enemy Warjacks ready for attacks by the rest of the army. His Feat plays into that, enhancing the ranged attacks of Gun Mages and Warjacks and allowing the Gun Mages in the army to exploit their tool kit of attack types.
Warjacks
Stryker
The Heavy Warjack is not as tough or hard-hitting as the Khador equivalents. Again, as is typical for Cygnar, it is middle of the road. It doesn't excel in one particular form of combat, but it does have options that make it flexible in its combat role. Strykers get a free Focus for being in proximity to Storm Legion models—again reinforcing that these Warjacks work best supporting units of troops.
In terms of weapon and head options, the Styker has some heads that allows some movement benefit. At the same time, the other two will enable it to gain Eyeless Sight (shoot-through cloud effects and Stealth) or Plasma Nimbus (defensive retaliatory electrical attacks). The Stryker can carry a good mix of ranged and combat weapons. However, care has to be taken as the Electro Bombard locks you out of the powerful combat options. An absolute beat stick combo is a Stryker with Shield and Hammer combo, but a good all-rounder is the Mag-Bolter and Hammer combo.
Courser
This Light Warjack is a fundamental toolkit for Cygnar. It's faster and more challenging to hit than the Stryker and can range from being a defensive shield for your Warcaster to helping support units with its arc node option. It isn't going to hold its own easily in combat vs other Warjacks, but operating with other units, and it can block charges or support them in tackling heavier units. A popular option is the storm thrower - a gun with a built-in combat weapon!
Deuce
One of the character Heavy Warjacks in the Cygnar list, Deuce is narratively tied to Caine. It uses the Stryker chassis but benefits from improved shooting capabilities and defence. Deuce is a dedicated gun platform, boasting a powerful cannon thanks to its efficient ability to boost attack and damage rolls with a single Focus point and an array of shot types, which against other warjacks means Deuce is rolling up to 4 dice for damage. Deuce also benefits from Reposition, allowing it to move forward, shoot, and retreat. Like the Stryker, it gains an additional Focus point if close to other Gun Mage units, meaning it has a lot of built-in synergies with Caine, Faulk and the Black 13th - Caine grants Warjacks in his cohort Evasive, letting them move 2 inches after being hit by enemy attacks. Deuce is obviously not optimised for close combat.
Units
Stormblade Legionnaires
A core part of the Storm Legion army, they work well supporting Strykers, in particular blocking charges meant to prevent a Stryker attacking its target. They have average stats but a good armour value, which gets further boosted thanks to their Shield Wall ability and their ability to stop Warjacks charging and slamming them.
Tempest Thunderers
These heavy troopers have higher armour and offensive traits than the Stormblades. They can make melee and ranged attacks in the same turn and can cut through lightly armoured units in close combat while obliterating them at range with their blast weapons. With some luck, Thunderers can knockdown enemy targets with their Blasters - with Athena's Feat increasing their chances.
The Black 13th
This character unit is a toolbox of ranged attacks. They all have a high defence and a decent ranged attack ability, meaning they will hit most targets. The power of their pistols and guns are all power 10 - so they will not easily harm light Warjacks and troops with equivalent armour. On top of their defence, the unit has Prowl - which means they can happily gain Stealth. But that is mitigated by the host of abilities that the unit boasts.
Ryan grants Prey to the unit - so they pick a unit as the target that they get +2 to attack and damage rolls - which can help them more easily kill lightly armoured units or even light Warjacks. Watts grants Reposition, which means the unit can happily pop out of cover to shoot and jump back in. Glover grants True Sight, which negates Stealth and cloud effects, which are essential for a ranged unit.
As for their weapons, like Deuce, Caine, and Faulk, they all have a choice of shot types. Ryan gets two shots, each able to pick things like extra damage dice or causing a pushback. But perhaps the practical choice is Shadow Fire - the target now doesn't block line of sight! Perfect to set up Caines assassination run. Watts has a more extended range and the option of Blast, which can help clear out lightly armoured units. Glover can also pick a shot type to slam and knock down targets and, as an option, fire just one shot with +4 damage - allowing this model to threaten higher armour targets.
Solos
Sharpshooter
Keeping with the shooting theme, the Sharpshooter has better armour than The Black 13th, but the same ability at range, and can fire twice if they don't move - two shots benefitting from aiming. The Mag-Bolter is Armour Piercing, meaning it can threaten happily medium armoured units, and thanks to the Marksman skill, what damage they can do can be allocated to take out specific columns and, in turn, systems.
Legionnaire Officer
Perfect for supporting the Storm Legion units. They benefit from weapon master on a slightly more potent melee weapon, allowing them to take on medium armoured units and light Warjacks happily. More importantly, they can enhance friendly units. Being able to enable a unit to ignore difficult ground is essential for a charge, or ignore a unit for line of sight purposes, or ignore Tough.
Captain Sebastian Falk
Falk is a lesser version of Caine of sorts. He can tag along near Deuce as a Gun Mage to help power it up. Like The Black 13th, he has Prowl. But he also grants Gun Mage units Reciprocate - if a ranged attack misses them, the model makes a free ranged attack. Combined with a defensive spell, you can get Gun Mage units to pump out extra shots in the enemy's turn.
Falk's scattergun is a spray weapon, letting you ignore cover while also picking a shot type. In particular, Decrepitation allows a bonus die on damage rolls against Warjacks and undead - allowing Falk to damage light jacks and most medium armoured undead units.
Summary
It is clear that Cygnar has a mix of ranged and melee units; likewise, their Warjacks and Warcasters can accommodate either play style for the army. While no unit is an absolute master of their means of combat and has weaknesses that expose them when a Cygnar army is working in harmony, Warjacks operate with efficiency unlike other armies, and units acting in conjunction with each other, Warjacks and solos can take advantage of blocking and unblocking charge lanes and lines of sight. No unit or Warjack alone will win the game, but working together can bring great results.
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