Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Space Marine Bikes revamped

Not too long ago, I posted up a bike list with a tremendous amount of firepower. It was weak to fliers but otherwise extremely solid. I've tweaked the list a bit to cover that weakness, and here is the new, improved SM bike list

  • 150 Captain
    • Power Axe
    • Bike
  • 200 Bike Squad
    • 2 Plasma Guns
    • Attack Bike
    • Power Sword
  • 185 Bike Squad
    • 2 Plasma Guns
    • Attack Bike
  • 185 Bike Squad
    • 2 Plasma Guns
    • Attack Bike
  • 200 Bike Squad
    • 2 Meltaguns
    • Attack Bike with Multi-Melta
    • Power Maul
  • 200 Bike Squad
    • 2 Meltaguns
    • Attack Bike with Multi-Melta
    • Power Maul
  • 120 Attack Bike Squad
    • 3 Attack Bikes
  • 155 Storm Talon
    • Skyhammer Missiles
  • 155 Storm Talon
    • Skyhammer Missiles
  • 100 Thunderfire Cannon
  • 100 Thunderfire Cannon
  • 100 Thunderfire Cannon

Total: 1850

Basically, this downgrades the captain's weapon, loses a couple other axes, and swaps 2 attack bike squadrons to pick up a pair of Storm Talons. The volume of shots means we aren't really losing out on anti-infantry firepower, and it gives us some solid and reliable anti-flier shooting. As always, I'm open for critique!

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

CAGE List Update

We had our practice tournament this weekend for CAGE, and I went 2-1, losing out to Cron Air (Necron Air Force). Too much of my anti-flier tools were on AV11 platforms, which night scythes tend to shred very quickly. I've come up with the following changes, retaining my ability to deal with infantry and ground vehicles, and giving the acolytes a leg up in durability with sporty new rides. Anti-flier shooting is much improved, though I can now fire on fewer targets. I do give up fewer kill points though, which makes winning Annihilation easier. I lost the defense line, so the infantry blob is now set to advance and have a good ol' time.

Primary Detachment

  • 100 Coteaz
  • 240 Strike Squad
    • 2 Psycannons
    • Psybolt Ammo
  • 240 Strike Squad
    • 2 Psycannons
    • Psybolt Ammo
  • 35 5 Acolytes
    • 5 Storm Bolters
  • 35 5 Acolytes
    • 5 Storm Bolters
  • 205 Storm Raven
    • Multimelta
    • Assault Cannon
  • 205 Storm Raven
    • Multimelta
    • Assault Cannon
  • 160 Nemesis Dreadknight
    • Heavy Incinerator
  • 160 Nemesis Dreadknight
    • Heavy Incinerator

Allied Detachment

  • 80 Lord Commissar
    • Power Axe
  • 260 Power Blob
    • 1 Platoon Command Squad w/ 4 Flamers
    • 3 Infantry Squads w/ Power Axe, Flamer, Melta Bombs
  • 130 Vendetta

Total: 1850

Let me know what you guys think. My first test game with the basic setup felt pretty good, even though I played rather poorly. The list made up for that though and killed lots of stuff.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Chaos Space Marines with Necron Allies @ 1850

Another distraction on my path to finishing up that Dark Eldar series, this is an idea I had for Chaos Space Marines when another friend was curious about potential uses for allies and trying to figure out a list for CAGE. For this army, I would definitely try a counts-as approach, making all the Necron stuff similar to the new Daemonforged units.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Space Marine Bikes @ 1850

Part 2 of the Dark Eldar article is on the way, I promise. I haven't had much time to type it all up yet. I did, however, respond to someone in the 3++ Chatterbox today to give an idea of where I'd start for a bike-based list under 6th Edition. Here's what I had to say:

Friday, October 26, 2012

Playing Dark Eldar in 6th (Part 1): Hybridization

I've seen many people having trouble with Dark Eldar in 6th Edition, and for good reason. They are perhaps the most fragile army in the game. Orks have individual models that are more vulnerable, but their weight of numbers produces a durability all its own. So how do we go about utilizing this army to its fullest potential? Two things. First, we toss aside the full MSU lists we saw under 5th Edition. Second, we get a little Desperate! This is gonna be long, and spread into multiple posts, so bear with me!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Playing Dark Angels: Allies for Now

When it comes to building a competitive list for 40k, there are many factors you have to plan for in your army list. Most of these boil down to 2 things: mission type and opponent's army composition. 6th Edition has added a new unit type that has become difficult for the Dark Angels to work around: Fliers. There is simply not a unit in the codex with the durability and firepower to handle them on a competitive scale. Your army needs to be capable of dealing with 3-5 opposed fliers in a competitive setting. Sure, the infamous Cron Air (Necron Airforce) can pump out 8-10 fliers, but I expect it will be living a short lifespan and already has some hard counters in some of the more popular armies.

Combine this with an increase in infantry and plasma usage and, and the traditional Dark Angels army (Deathwing) starts having problems. We can increase this capability, but it really comes down to needing to branch out with allies to get the tools we need. When we do this, we find that rather than shoring up DA weaknesses, DAs make the better allies, as the core of Belial and 2 squads of terminators give other armies some great durability and combat-effective units. The army that makes best use of these units and covers our needs most is Imperial Guard. Here is a look at how we would run with Imperial Guard primary with Dark Angels as allies.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Chaos Space Marines @ 1850

I'm helping my friend Alex work up a list for Chaos Space Marines so he can learn the game and get some solid tactics under his belt. He's already got a decent CSM collection, so the following list uses some of the stuff he likes and gets enough shots and bodies on the field to deal with the major problems he might face.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Updating Grey Knights + IG @1850

I've been doing a good bit of playtesting with the Grey Knight + IG list recently posted, and I've been trying out various combinations. The following is the current incarnation, and is pretty well set to be what I am using for the 2013 Alabama CAGE Match provided Dark Angels doesn't give me something more awesome to work with.

You can see the list and my thoughts on it after the break.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Major News! First post for 6th Edition

I know it's been a while since I've posted up anything, but with all the changes going on in the world of 40k, I really didn't have much to add that others weren't already saying. I've also been analyzing the meta with various lists I've seen people discussing. I ran a successful GT last month which utilized double FOC available. I feel I have a solid enough grasp on the game right now to make some statements and lists.

I'm also starting up commission work, and I will soon be putting up lots of pictures of stuff that's in progress or completed. Right now I'm sticking to local work, so if you're anywhere near Rocket City, USA, check out The Foundry and ask about having RayJ do your commission!

With that in mind, here is my first truly competitive army list for 6th Edition. It has a major weakness in the fragility of its troops, but it puts out shots like nothing else. This list is built at 1850 using Grey Knights as the primary army, and Imperial Guard as an allied detachment.

painted by Lukas-the-Trickster

Primary Detachment

  • 100 Inquisitor Coteaz
  • 63 Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
    • 3 Warrior Acolytes
    • Razorback
      • Psybolt Ammunition
      • Searchlight
  • 63 Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
    • 3 Warrior Acolytes
    • Razorback
      • Psybolt Ammunition
      • Searchlight
  • 63 Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
    • 3 Warrior Acolytes
    • Razorback
      • Psybolt Ammunition
      • Searchlight
  • 63 Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
    • 3 Warrior Acolytes
    • Razorback
      • Psybolt Ammunition
      • Searchlight
  • 63 Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
    • 3 Warrior Acolytes
    • Razorback
      • Psybolt Ammunition
      • Searchlight
  • 136 Dreadnoguht
    • 2 TL Autocannons
    • Psybolt Ammo
    • Searchlight
  • 136 Dreadnoguht
    • 2 TL Autocannons
    • Psybolt Ammo
    • Searchlight
  • 136 Dreadnoguht
    • 2 TL Autocannons
    • Psybolt Ammo
    • Searchlight

Fortification

  • 100 Aegis Defense Line
    • Quad Gun

Allied Detachment

  • 70 Primaris Psyker
  • 165 Psyker Battle Squad
    • 5 Sanction Psykers
    • Chimera
  • 390 Infantry Platoon
    • [115] Platoon Command Squad
      • 4 Flamers
      • Krak Grenades
      • Meltabombs
      • Chimera
    • [125] Infantry Squad
      • Flamer
      • Autocannon
      • Power Axe
      • Meltabombs
      • Commissar
        • Power Axe
    • [80] Infantry Squad
      • Flamer
      • Autocannon
      • Power Axe
      • Meltabombs
    • [80] Infantry Squad
      • Flamer
      • Autocannon
      • Power Axe
      • Meltabombs
  • 140 Vendetta
    • Heavy Bolter Sponsons
  • 150 Ordinance Battery
    • 2 Griffons

Total: 1848/1850

The list should be pretty straight forward. Use the Platoon Command Squad as a sort of spearhead, usually riding along in the Vendetta. Their Chimera is great for blocking razorbacks and providing a backup transport for the Psykers.

Use Coteaz to man the Quad Gun, and pump S7 shots at anything that enters the table within 12 inches of him, on top of the 1 use of Skyfire/Interceptor each turn.

13 Vehicles is still going to be hard to mess with for most armies, provided you use the IG blob to block assaults properly. Depending on the enemy army, you may want the Primaris Psyker to roll up Biomancy for a chance at Iron Arm or Telepathy for Psychic Shriek. Keeping him with codex powers is also useful for the Lightning Arc.

Combat effectiveness outside the blob is going to be next to nil, along with squad survivability. This list is really relying on ranged firepower to pull most of the weight. Here's a weapon breakdown:

  • 1 S* APd6 Large Blast
  • 3 S9 AP2
  • 12 S8 AP4 Twin-Linked
  • 4 S7 AP4 Twin-Linked
  • 6 S7 AP4
  • 2 S6 AP4 Ordinance Barrage
  • 15 S6 AP4 Twin-Linked
  • 6 S6 AP-
  • 18 S5 AP4
  • 7 S4 AP5 Template
  • 21 S3 AP- Rapid Fire
  • 15 S3 AP- Pistol
  • 4 Meltabombs
  • 4 Krak Grenades
  • 4 Power Axes
  • 1 Force Stave
  • 1 Nemesis Daemonhammer

Comments, suggestions for improvement, and general critique are all welcome. This list is designed around dealing with mass fliers and large infantry squads, while having enough troops to hold objectives late game.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Playing Dark Eldar: The Ulthwé Rapid Response Fleet (Revised)

The basics behind the list haven't changed much in the past few months, but there are some substantial changes in the details that affect gameplay a good bit. I have a long way to go before I hit the ceiling with Dark Eldar, so I should see marked improvement each time out. Right now this is where the army sits at 2000 points based on playtesting and my current ability to utilize the army.

A new project for 2012: Playing Dark Eldar

Hey look, only 4 months between updates! I've been doing a lot behind the scenes, and the end of 2011 was super busy for me. Didn't do much in the way of gaming at all, though I did take 2nd place in a local RTT with my Death Hammer Dark Angels in early December.

Since then I have been painting up my Ulthwé themed Dark Eldar at a slow but steady pace, and I'm gonna be breaking out with it during the 2012 tournament season, beginning with the Battle for Stones River in Murphreesboro, TN.

I'm playing the Dark Eldar in our local escalation league that started last week, and using those experiences to hone my deployment and movement strategies. this is especially important at the lower point values where certain armies can destroy my vehicle fleet by just thinking about it. I earned 3 out of 5 possible points for this round of the league, and will be using them to expand my territory on our 3-planet campaign map (using planetary empires). I started off with a spaceport, and I'm 2 tiles from a hive city (the closest i could start to one), and am on schedule for claiming the hive city at the end of the 2nd round.

Here is the list of upcoming events where you will be able to see my Dark Eldar army in action. I'm sure I will be adding to this list, but these events have been scheduled and paid for already.

The Foundry escalation league - Currently ongoing
Battle for Stones River 2012 - February 25
CAGE Match Finals 2012 - March 24-25 (Representing the Foundry)
The Kalm Before the Waaagh! - May 4-5
Warhammer 40k American Team Championship - July 14-15 (Representing the Foundry)

I will be making another post today explaining my current list and thought processes behind it, but I have some stuff to take care of first.

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