Approaching reserves and nest entrances

[Galatea]

Reserves may enter the battlefield via Nest entrance.

1. Does this apply to airborn units?
Can I bring in a squad of hopper bugs via Nest Entrance, when I haven't chosen attack tactics?

2. Are Nest Entrances of any use if I don't take attack tactics? (and therefore do not have reserves)

3. Need models one action to enter the battlefield?
Or can I just place a squad of hopper bugs on a Nest Entrace, ready and hover?

 

[Adastra]

Check out page 3 of the Rulemasters forum - "TMG Bug Nest & Reserves question."

1. The Nest is treated just like a table edge from which your reserves could enter - thus Hoppers could make a hover attack straight out of the Nest, just like they could from one of their table edges.

2. If you have Air units, they can come on as Reserves regardless of what tactics you use. This incidentally sparked a lively debate about how an all-drop capsule MI army could enter as reserves, even if they took Defend tactics!

3. You don't even have to spend that Ready action. Models with special move modes (hover, jump, tunnel, etc.) can come in as if they had previously taken a Ready action. So, with their first action, Hoppers could make a Hover attack straight out of the nest, Spiders or Firefries could jump out of the nest, etc.

 

[JoseDominguez]

What about 2)
I'd assume air units couldn't enter from a nest entrance though, surely air units always enter from 'the air'.

And Galatea, remember that when the hoppers arrive they can hover in, attack and move back all on their first action, they still have an action left.
This is a major arachnid strength, hover in to attack then move back out of range. You've got an action left: so READY. Got a brain bug? Do it all over again!IN one turn reserve hoppers can hover and attack twice and still end up out of range thus never recieveing any reaction fire.

The other option is to hover form the nest, attack then move back to the nest and leave the unit readied. Nasty for anyone approaching.

 

[Adastra]

First you say, "surely air units always enter from 'the air'", then in the last part of your post you talk about Hoppers being able to Hover attack from the Nest.

Maybe we're getting confused on terminology. When I talk about Air units, I refer to anything that has flight speeds and can operate in the Air Phase. Hoppers are considered Air Units. They can move in the Air Phase, they're assigned V/STOL and Loiter speeds. They could come out of the Nest at Hover, then in their second phase use a Move action to climb to altitude. Ripplers would qualify in the same way.

When you refer to Air Units, do you only mean units that come on the board specifically in the Air Phase? In that case, I agree - if a Hopper or Rippler unit comes on the table in the Air phase, it would have to start from a table edge, and not the Nest. I think we're on the same page, just getting our terms mixed up a bit.

 

[JoseDominguez]

No confusion at all, I specifically said hoppers could 'hover in' from a nest entrance. Implying normal reserve entrance. My other example was of hoppers flying in from a board edge, so obviously in the air phase.

A hopper is only an air unit if you elect to bring it on flying, that's a player choice. Once it lands it is considered a land unit (of course it can take off again)....... that's important as other 'flying' units like Tac Uavs etc... can't claim victory points, even if they do land in the appropriate board half.