| “ | One can rely on the Deathjacks to silently track the foe to their location... but also snaffle the baggage train and the last of the mead! | „ |
Deathjacks (Archers) are an 
Empire Regiment of Renown missile infantry unit introduced in Total War: Warhammer II with The Hunter and the Beast.
Recruitment[ | ]
Recruited with: Regiments of Renown Recruitment panel
Description[ | ]
The Deathjacks are renowed archers who can track a foe at speed through any forest. First recorded on the Wurtbad roll of honor in the year 2004, the Deathjacks were hired to scout ahead of the main Stirland army during the civil war between the Three Emperors. The Deathjacks have continued to be of service to the Empire, ambushing opposing scouts and finding hidden paths from which to take the foe unaware.
Used to fending for themselves, the Deathjacks have been dubbed the Mutton-sticker or Thievingjacks by their own comrades, as baggage trains and supplies mysteriously go missing in their presence. All is forgiven, when the archers return from a scouting mission, waving their banner to signify enemies ahead, or blaring the all-clear on their hunting horns.
Attributes[ | ]
- Missile Infantry
- ▲ Vanguard Deployment: This unit can deploy in an expanded deployment area, allowing it to start the battle within striking distance of the enemy - or somewhere unexpected.
- ▲ Stalk: This unit can move hidden in any terrain.
- ▲ Sniping: Masters of stealth, concealment, and the precision shot, this unit stays hidden while firing.
- ▼ Weak Against Armour: This unit's attack can hardly punch through armour and is thus wasted on heavily armoured enemies.
Strategy[ | ]
Statistically, the Deathjacks are identical to a Rank 9 unit of regular Empire Archers, and share their Weak Against Armour trait. However, this is where the similarities end. The Deathjacks are one of the few units that gets the powerful Stalk-Snipe combination, allowing them to fire while remaining concealed from basically anywhere they please--which, thanks to also getting Vanguard Deployment, is basically anywhere on the map. This is counterbalanced by the fact that you can only ever have one regiment of Deathjacks--it is impossible to mass their fire for damage, which regular Archers need badly.
As such, the Deathjacks are wasted on line duty and instead act best as the ultimate skirmishers, or even the medieval equivalent of a Spec Ops team. They can remain concealed while the enemy advances and then loose sniping rounds into their unsuspecting backs. Alternatively, they can move unseen around the fight and shred the enemy's unarmored artillery crews one by one, or hunt down other long-ranged units like Warplock Jezzails, who are unlikely to remain near melee support and will get out-DPSed by the Archers. Using the Deathjacks properly will require giving them some attention to ensure they remain in cover and are hitting the right targets, but if given the chance, they can tear out key pieces of the enemy's army support completely unseen and leave them floundering.
