Are Hounds and Hunters merely Shock Troops?

[Borast]

Yes.

[Jefffar]

In the Nightlands they are the primary combat force.

On Earth, they are typically a special assault troop.

Occasionally a small pack will be assigned to a tracking job though.

[Marcethus]

Shock troops for the most part but occasionally on earth they are used as extra muscle for things that they really want dead or need to track down .

[Sentinel]

For the most part I see them as shock troops. I like to use them for special ops now and again, usually with some other creature as either the lead or the back-up NPC.

[Sentinel]

Everyone take a minute and welcome my friend Thistle to the boards.
And I only had to cajole him for the past year...

[Marcethus]

Hounds= Cannon Fodder
Hound Masters= Commanders of Cannon fodder and sometimes Commanders of them on earth where they can use their illusion powers to hide them.
Hunters= Air force
Great Hounds= Elite Shock troops and body guards

Ashmedai, Namtar, Doppleganger and the Doppleganger Warlord are more likely to be your Special Forces.

[Sentinel]

Has anyone ever used the Hounds for surgical strikes?

I realize that life has a totally different meaning for humans than for the Nightlords, but as a GM I buck the system, create special units for tough jobs.

Look at the RANGERS and Normandy. They were given the daunting task of a beach landing straight into the teeth of the Germans. They had extensive training and great losses.

Don't use them as you would the Xiticix or Coalition soldiers or ground troops from Atlantis. Create tactics that exploit their strengths and strengthen their weaknesses.

I've never used the Hounds for such missions, as I prefer to use others for the missions you describe.I just never considered them the Rangers of the Nightlords.

[Jefffar]

The hounds of course have tactics uniquely suited to their own capabilities. Drawing a direct comparison to any real world force is dangerous.

There are occasions when the Hounds (or more importantly the Hunters) can be used for missions where speed and stealth are the most important factor. But generally a standard Hound is not an asset unless you are 1) expecting heavy combat 2) tracking something down or 3) dealing with illusionists.

[The Artist Formerly]

The hounds of course have tactics uniquely suited to their own capabilities. Drawing a direct comparison to any real world force is dangerous.

There are occasions when the Hounds (or more importantly the Hunters) can be used for missions where speed and stealth are the most important factor. But generally a standard Hound is not an asset unless you are 1) expecting heavy combat 2) tracking something down or 3) dealing with illusionists.

Bingo. As they aren't like anything else, the comparison doesn't hold. They do have some special abilities unique to them, so there are times when they will recive missions that they wouldn't normally see. A particularly bright squad of hounds or hunters might see special operations work.

[Sentinel]

Speaking of Hounds, has anyone ever played a renegade Hound Master?

Do you think they should be capable of learning OCCs? They're certainly smart enough.

I prefer to leave them as NPCs.
There ae more than enough interesting PCs to choose from.
Plus, I wouldn't want to give the player control over Hounds.