The Ratling Gun

Yes, my friend who plays Skaven says the same - they can't be shot at, just as if they were a character.

Regarding Life is Cheap - picture this situation: a Spawn of Chaos in combat with a clanrat regiment of 30 models. The ratling gun fires into the combat. Now, the rats have a US of 30 and the spawn has a US of 3. Is it still fair that you have a 50/50 chance of hitting the spawn?

No, but that is when it becomes a matter of game mechanics, not balance. If you have to calculate unit strenght, then calculate chance of hitting, alot of people will give up. Massive units of clanrats will be gone as people try to minimize unit strength. The problem I have with LIC is that it should only affect slaves. That would make it balanced. And that the only unit I ever shoot at. Unless it is losing combat, then I turn my guns against it to punish it!

It has the same targeting restrictions as a character on foot, as long as it is within three inches of the unit it started the game with. That means they can be shot at as long as they are the closest target.

That's a very good suggestion! It would actually make it fair and balanced, I think.

It has the same targeting restrictions as a character on foot, as long as it is within three inches of the unit it started the game with. That means they can be shot at as long as they are the closest target.

I know this person too. WE use his rule against him. If i cast chillwind on his clanrats, kill one rat, the special rules about the unit apply to his gun...

I think lic is a good rule for skaven it is very characterful however I do agree some other armies should get it for instance all orcs may shoot into a goblin combat, chaos dwarfs into a hobgoblin one however I don't think there is another army that would do that

Indeed there would. For example, why should a Tzeentchian lord refrain from casting Blue Fire into a combat where a single warhound is fighting against a juicy target like swordsmasters? Does he care even the slightest bit about the life of the warhound? No he does not. Is he allowed to fire into the combat? No he is not.

You see my reasoning? Skaven are not the only ones who have little regard for life. Take the Hellcannon for example. Do you really think the chaos dwarf crewmen care about who is on the recieving end of their barrages? Would they care if a few marauders got killed along with the enemy? Certainly not. Would the general who gave them the order to fire care? Say he was a Slaaneshi lord. He has absolutely no regard whatsoever for human life - not for his own and definitly not for some pony riding marauders'.

Take the more civilized races for example. Say a Vampire count hired a regiment of Tilean Crossbowmen mercenaries to fight for him and ordered them to fire into a combat between some zombies and Silver Helms. Would the mercs refuse? Absolutely not.

No, my friend, LiC makes absolutely no sense. As it stands, it is the most annoying and out-of-place rule in the game and I would be very glad to see it gone.

The thing is, if ever race (well, all it seems fluffy for) had it, what protection would there be for our poor chaos warriors? Now, the only protection for them is combat. When that is taken away, shooty armies are made even more powerful. I just think there should be a special rule thjat covers it. Something along the lines of:
Slaves- You can shoot into a combat invovling this unit, only causes panic due to breaking in other slave units.

Warhounds, snotlings, skaven slaves, maybe one for the DE, CD hobgolbins, some other units. That seems ok.

Well, that is a possibility. I could live without it though - I don't particularly want LiC and most armies do fine without it. A rule that says skaven are the only race that can shoot into combat, and then only if slaves or rat swarms are the only friendly units involved in that combat would be fine.

I agree that the safest place for most of our units is in combat, it's just that this is not the case with Skaven. I mean, if the ratling gun was even the slightest bit unreliable (which it is not with the current rules), it would almost be tolerable. But the way it is now, Skaven have arguably the best shooting in the game (certainly the most devastating), the most reliable and destructive pseudo-war machine in the game and a rule that allows it to fire into combat, with only a small chance of killing off a couple of clanrats or something. Funny.

Its not that reliable

It most certainly is - it's at least as reliable as any other blackpowder war machine (and can be more reliable). I thought Skaven weapons were supposed to be unreliable, but apparently the Ratling gun is the very cream of the crop.

Yeah, a lot of skaven players seem to get really lucky when they use the ratling gun...

it's not about luck you just keep rolling until you get a 5 or 6 (or a double) and then stop and it won't blow up the helblaster doesn't have the option to stop why should a rattling gun?