Our Man On The Inside

THE INTRUDER WITH HMG GETS A (SECOND) LICK OF PAINT

The most recent release for the Nomad Nation has been a loadout I've been waiting for a long time - so long, in fact, that I made my own conversion to represent it! The Intruder with HMG is one of the best units available to the Jurisdictional Command of Corregidor, and I have run it in (literally) dozens of games over the past year. Joined by a second Intruder with MULTI Sniper Rifle and a pair of Jaguars, the Intruder Assault Commandos have secured many victories for my team, and will always have a place in my competitive Tournament lists.

This is the second time I have painted this model, following a horrific accident with spray varnish last week. This time round feels a little rushed as I was so annoyed with losing the original paintjob, a little rough around the edges compared to the smooth finishes I like to maintain. Nonetheless, I think the model looks good and am satisfied with the result.

Tactically the Intruder brings a lot to the table - one of the best Ballistic Skills in the force, Camouflage, Multi-Spectral Visor Level 2 and a good Armour value make it a very attractive choice. Paired with a Jaguar (or anything carrying Smoke Grenades, really), the Intruder can open fire (almost) without risk of repercussion, and the classic Smoke trick is an great way to deal with pesky snipers or Total Reaction units.

Another of my favourite uses is to hunt down enemies with Camouflage or Optical Disruptors - prevalent in popular Factions like PanO or ALEPH. Surprisingly few troopers carry both Camouflage and Multi-Spectral Visors, meaning the Intruder will carry the advantage when hunting them down. It will suffer less negatives when rolling to Discover, and the heavy weaponry should dissuade the enemy from chancing a firefight. For the ODD-equipped troopers, there usually cavalier approach to running around will be severely curtailed when they face an Intruder - without firing a shot, you will have already spoilt ALEPH's day!

All of these tricks are even easier with a heavy weapon like an HMG. Four shots at Damage 15 with the bonuses of a good range band and the Multi-Spectral Visor will cause problems for almost every opponent in the Human Sphere. Personally I like to have the Intruder with HMG in a position where it can move - not in a high tower like a sniper but perhaps on a large building or gantry, or even on the ground where it can run freely to get the most out of the big gun. Remember that the HMG suffers negatives to hit over 32", which is not as long as you might think! Unlike the monstrous range of the MULTI Sniper Rifle, the HMG will need to reposition several times during a game, and don't forget the possibility of Suppression Fire!

The weaknesses of the Intruder are few, but must be remembered. The Intruder only has one wound, meaning a lucky ARO will take it out of the game, and special ammunition like Shock or Viral will probably kill it. I like to run a nearby Zondbot and Doctor, or at least a Paramedic, to keep them alive. He is also expensive - at least if his advantages are lost. Caught out by opposing forces with Multi-Spectral Visors, the defences of the Intruder will be lost and no smoke tricks will help. You will feel the difference between firing at a trooper through smoke suffering a -12 to hit, and a better-equipped soldier who is only suffering -3, if that!

I tend to run one Intruder with HMG and one with MULTI Sniper Rifle, and they have served me VERY well. Of the two, the HMG tends to be shot down more often, as I play much more aggressively with it while the sniper gives covering fire from the back of the board. In other lists, I tend to take the sniper over the HMG, as I have heavy firepower from other sources such as Hellcats. Nonetheless, it is often missed! Regardless of loadout, the Intruder brings too much to the table to be ignored, and those games where I have not taken any Intruders has often ended badly - the Jurisdictional Command of Corregidor rely on these powerful troopers for a source of high-BS heavy weaponry, Camouflage and Multi-Spectral Visors.

Aesthetically, the new Intruder is a marked improvement on the original model, which seemed to have a bowling ball for a head and a squat posture. The new one bridges the initial redesign from the Jurisdictional Command of Corregidor Starter Set and the latest models from Operation: Icestorm, who feature a slightly larger scale and all the extra detail this has allowed. The model is certainly closer to the Alguacil design than its forebears, and though some see this as a negative, I am very pleased, and painting the model really drew my attention to the cohesion the new sculpting process has brought to the Infinity range, I am not worried about "Scale Creep" whatsoever, and see the differences in height as natural rather than problematic.

The Intruder Assault Commandos have been joined by their big brother, and the Army of Three becomes Four. I will continue to use all four of my Intruders in future games, and may try using them all at the same time one day! The old HMG-equipped Intruder will now be used as an Adhesive Launcher, which I feel is a fair proxy.

Thanks for reading,

George