Well, after fiddling with my list for a long time, I've finally come down to the hard draft. This is what I am going to be taking to the Storm of Silence in 2015.
1750 Points
CAD - Space Marines (White Scars)
HQ - Khan on Moondrakken
NS - Command Squad on bikes, 4 Storm Shields, Apothecary, 4 meltaguns
TR - Red Bike Squad Bikers x6, 2 Meltaguns
TR - Blue Bike Squad Bikers x6, 2 Meltaguns
TR - Green Bike Squad Bikers x6, 2 Meltaguns
TR - Yellow Bike Squad Bikers x6, 2 Meltaguns
TR - Violet Bike Squad Bikers x6, 2 Meltaguns
TR - Tactical Squad Marines x5, Drop Pod, Grav-gun
Formation - Dark Angels Librarian Enclave
Ezekiel
Librarian on bike w/Force Axe, ML 2
Librarian on bike w/Force Axe, ML 2
Librarian on foot w/Force Axe, Power Field Generator, ML 2
So there it is. This is the tool box I'm taking with me next year. I know, you have complaints and questions. Let me handle the most obvious.
First, what's the game plan? Easy. First, we stick Ezekiel and the foot libby in with the Tac Squad, and have them drop to hold an objective or get Line breaker. With the Power Field, every model should be getting a 4++ save, and with Ezekiel nearby, Mindworm now has a 24" range, making that a dangerous drop pod squad. Next, we stick the two libby bikers in with Khan to create a Bikestar. Now the opponent has to worry about that unit as well, giving them two tough nuts to crack on the field. On top of that, there's also more bikes than they cna shake a stick at. With 3+ armor and cover saves (with Jink and Skilled Rider), along with the Scout ability, the regular bikes can be very scary indeed.
If my opponents list needs something special, I can also stick the libbies into normal squads to boost them, and I'll have 9 powers to generate on the field. In addition, the formation special rules also give me the ability to cast powers from any model within 12" also from the formation. And 9+d6 psychic dice is comparable to Elder spam too.
Oh, and did I mention the Psychic Hoods? Deny the Witch rolls for units within range? Pretty sweet.
Next Question.
Why no anti-air? Well, I can always snap shot the meltas and grav at the fliers. But really, my secret weapon here is Mindworm and Prescience against FMC, and Prescience against normal flyers. Rerolls are damned good in this game, and my dice love em. It is a risk, but I feel confident in being able to hide my bikers in close combat, and roll the right psychic powers. Worst case scenario, It'll take my opponent a few rounds to table the regular bike squads, and can't normally come in until turn 2, so I could still pull out a win by numbers depending on the scenario. It's a risk, yes, but if it plays out right, I will have a tremendous win!
Next Question.
Why only a single Grav-gun? Shouldn't there be more?
Look, I get that Space Marines get an awesome unique weapon. It's pretty cool, and can toast vehicles and MC pretty quickly. But here's the thing. Sometimes it just doesn't work. There are cases where the Grav-gun just won't get the job done. And I don't like that. When I take weapons, it's because they are either forced on me, or they can be used in any situation. This is why I stack Melta like crazy. In a meta where triple Knight lists and Lords of war are common, I need a weapon that can penetrate the toughest armor, and has a better chance of destroying things in one hit than the Grav guns. So the only Grav-gun in the army goes onto the squad where I can ensure the best chance for it to be useful. I know a lot of players who swear by them, but my loyalty lies with the tried and trusted melta weapons. Remember, range isn't an issue with this extremely mobile army.
Alright, enough questions. Down to my to do list:
1) Assemble and paint a command squad. I need more meltaguns for this.
2) Assemble and paint the Tac Squad. I have enough bits, but need a drop pod.
3) Assemble and paint the Dark Angels Librarian Enclave. I have enough bits for the two bikes. Maybe enough for the two foot models too. Need bits for the Force weapons on all of them though.
So I have a little shopping to do, and a bit of painting. After Christmas, I get to work!
I'll keep you guys updated!
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
New Ideas Abound!
So I haven't been sleeping well, and it's forced me to the bench where my models are stacking up. Over the past few nights, I've built about 20 bikes in total, and took apart about as many other models to gather bits and pieces to fill in Khuster's Cav.
The Tau formation list is pretty solid, but it leaves me with a huge bubble I have to work around, and given my history with terrain and movement in the past (I hate Vanguard deployment), I don't want to cripple my army further. So I've been putting the list options through their paces, and nothing seems to be working well.
After reading a few billion battle reports, I really like the "deathstar" unit for White Scars (my understanding being that it consists of Khan stuffed into a command squad of storm shields with an apothecary, stuffed into a duck, or something like that) so I made a list with two HQs to be stuffed into identical Command Squads with storm shields and meltaguns. And of course an apothecary in each.
I tried the unit out in the most brutal way possible. I ran them into the open area where nearly all of an 1850 point Eldar army could see them. 1 bike lived, and considering how impressive that result was, I decided to keep them.
So knowing how tough they were, why would you not put two of those in the army? You can survive some of the toughest shooting and assaults with the storm shields, and having FNP is pretty badass as well. Plus, Hammer of Wrath, and either Khan with his instant death on 6s, or a suped up Libby with Iron Arm, and you're in for a fun fight on bikes.
But what if I wanted to have three of them?
Having played many opponents (and learned a lot each time I lost) I find that three high priority targets tends to be about the perfect mix to have on the field. It forces your opponent to focus on more than one unit in your army, and with the mix of objectives, table specific rules, and tactical VPs, it's almost an overload for any opponent.
So I'm going to take the new list and play a few games, and see how potent 3 "deathstars" units can be...
The Tau formation list is pretty solid, but it leaves me with a huge bubble I have to work around, and given my history with terrain and movement in the past (I hate Vanguard deployment), I don't want to cripple my army further. So I've been putting the list options through their paces, and nothing seems to be working well.
After reading a few billion battle reports, I really like the "deathstar" unit for White Scars (my understanding being that it consists of Khan stuffed into a command squad of storm shields with an apothecary, stuffed into a duck, or something like that) so I made a list with two HQs to be stuffed into identical Command Squads with storm shields and meltaguns. And of course an apothecary in each.
I tried the unit out in the most brutal way possible. I ran them into the open area where nearly all of an 1850 point Eldar army could see them. 1 bike lived, and considering how impressive that result was, I decided to keep them.
So knowing how tough they were, why would you not put two of those in the army? You can survive some of the toughest shooting and assaults with the storm shields, and having FNP is pretty badass as well. Plus, Hammer of Wrath, and either Khan with his instant death on 6s, or a suped up Libby with Iron Arm, and you're in for a fun fight on bikes.
But what if I wanted to have three of them?
Having played many opponents (and learned a lot each time I lost) I find that three high priority targets tends to be about the perfect mix to have on the field. It forces your opponent to focus on more than one unit in your army, and with the mix of objectives, table specific rules, and tactical VPs, it's almost an overload for any opponent.
So I'm going to take the new list and play a few games, and see how potent 3 "deathstars" units can be...
Thursday, December 11, 2014
Head in a Bucket!
Well, I have been working on other projects around the house, mostly D&D 5th edition related, but it's time for me to dive back into 40k, and prep for the upcoming Storm of Silence.
For those who don't wish to be bothered reading my earlier posts, the Storm is the sister tourney to the Harvester of Souls. The Storm happens in Spring, the Harvester happens in Fall. I skipped out last year, as my scheudle would not allow me to compete.
In the past, the Storm has always been more competitive than the Harvester, but I still show up with themed lists and play anyways. It's what I do. I would like to get a trophy one day, but for now, I'll settle with the only award I've won in those two tourneys, and that is the "Best Dark Angels General" from the Storm in 2013. Admittedly, I was the only Dark Angels player there, but hey, it's still a good award!
In the past, I've only ever won a single game in each tournament, and those are always the first games on the second day of the event. But this year, I am planning something much different.
You see, in the past, when I first started playing, I played Grey Knights. I had no experience with the army, and for nearly a year, I lost every battle I ever played. But I learned. And while some laughed at the horrible lists I made (they really were, looking back on them), what they couldn't laugh about was how much better I was at each game everytime I played. Yeah, it took almost a year, but my friends stopped winning. They started tying every game, and what was scary to them was just how close I got to winning each time.
I ended up moving away from Grey Knights during 6th edition, and that's when I came up with the Khuster's Cav idea. You can read the blog posts about it's evolution, but to some up, what started as a fun idea is slowly turning into a competitive army.
Right now I am in the middle of fine tuning my lists, and when I finish with that aspect, I expect to win more than just one game at the Storm this year. Do I expect an all out victory? No, but I can always hope.
So for now, I'm going to stick my head in a bucket and bob for bitz while I figure out my list.
For those who don't wish to be bothered reading my earlier posts, the Storm is the sister tourney to the Harvester of Souls. The Storm happens in Spring, the Harvester happens in Fall. I skipped out last year, as my scheudle would not allow me to compete.
In the past, the Storm has always been more competitive than the Harvester, but I still show up with themed lists and play anyways. It's what I do. I would like to get a trophy one day, but for now, I'll settle with the only award I've won in those two tourneys, and that is the "Best Dark Angels General" from the Storm in 2013. Admittedly, I was the only Dark Angels player there, but hey, it's still a good award!
In the past, I've only ever won a single game in each tournament, and those are always the first games on the second day of the event. But this year, I am planning something much different.
You see, in the past, when I first started playing, I played Grey Knights. I had no experience with the army, and for nearly a year, I lost every battle I ever played. But I learned. And while some laughed at the horrible lists I made (they really were, looking back on them), what they couldn't laugh about was how much better I was at each game everytime I played. Yeah, it took almost a year, but my friends stopped winning. They started tying every game, and what was scary to them was just how close I got to winning each time.
I ended up moving away from Grey Knights during 6th edition, and that's when I came up with the Khuster's Cav idea. You can read the blog posts about it's evolution, but to some up, what started as a fun idea is slowly turning into a competitive army.
Right now I am in the middle of fine tuning my lists, and when I finish with that aspect, I expect to win more than just one game at the Storm this year. Do I expect an all out victory? No, but I can always hope.
So for now, I'm going to stick my head in a bucket and bob for bitz while I figure out my list.
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