Codex comparrisons - part 3

Sisters of Battle.
All I can say about this army list is that it desperately needs a proper codex and not a white dwarf article. At the moment it is woefully lacking in everything. They don't have enough options for vehicles, no flyers and not enough options for their infantry choices. Under 6th they should probably be put away until GW give them a proper book.

Space Marines.
The Space Marines have gained something this time around! Yay! Moving and firing a heavy weapon, being able to overwatch and the host of new psychic disciples have bumped up their playability now. Their tanks are more survivable under the hull point system though you do have to adapt your thoughts to rhinos and realise that they are there to get you half way up the table now. If they survive then yay. Obviously this applies to the other space marine codex as well but I included it here because it is a boost for this codex. Since 6th I have had much more luck and won more games than I ever did under 5th. The changes have been good for them. Tactical squads still need close combat weapons or the option to take them though.

Space Wolves.
This army was a nightmare under 5th and have got worse under 6th. Although the new edition has made the right move and favours shooting over combat, Space Wolves are still IMO the best close combat army in the game. It's for this reason that they are the commonest ally I see taken by other players.
They get so many options for weapon load outs that they can almost cherry pick like Eldar do. Their rune priests can deny the witch in an area on a 4+ which is just crazy. Long Fangs can split fire with heavy weapons which is a huge bonus.
I think 6th edition has done this codex very well.

Tau Empire.
Under 5th the Tau army has always been a one trick pony - they sit back and shoot with scary accuracy. Close combat screwed them severly and that was an opponents saving grace. 6th edition has changed that. The codex still desperately needs an update but can now hold it's own a lot more. Overwatch has helped stem the assault problems and they can pick vehicles apart a lot better. Much like with Space Wolves, I fully expect the Tau to end up relegated to the ally detachment until they get a new book.

Tyranids.
Under 5th the Tyranids were yet another nightmare to deal with. They don't have good shooting so they became crazy good at close combat, as you would expect. However I feel that they were made too good. The current codex did a nice job of toning them down and bringing them to an equal level with everyone else. The problem, once again, is that some units have become obsolete. Genestealers won't see use under 6th and why take carnifexes when trygons are a better option?
Overwatch has been a balancing factor for other armies but if you get into close combat with tyranids you can just count your unit as a speed bump.
Tyranids are still a really tough army to play against and have come through 6th edition in  a good way. As with many codexes, it will just take players time to work out what does and doesn't work any more. Like the hive, they'll have to adapt.

Battle Report

While on patrol, the battle barge Sword of Endeavour picked up a faint distress call eminating from the world of Avacyn. Formally an Imperial world that fell to an unknown aggressor nearly ten years ago. Deviating from their course, the 4th company set down to investigate and found themselves under surprise attack from a company of Space Wolves. Unable to raise their commander, the Sons of Tantalus fought against their brothers for their very survival.

Played a 2000pt game against Muffin last night with the Big Guns Never Tire mission (4 objectives). Yet again I got that bloody awful corner deployment (Dear GW, why? It's just awkward!). I played my regular list with the addition of a Librarian and a regular pattern land raider.

Muffin's list was very unusual for him I thought but fair enough. Trying to remember it was something like two rune priests and a wolf lord, two squads of battle brothers, two long fang squads (one with missile launchers and one with plasma cannons), and two terminator squads. There might have been one or two more but I forget.

I haven't played against a space marine horde list for quite a while and it was a real pain to deal with. The two long fangs squads did most of the damage really, by blasting my rhino's apart and then striking the survivours with the blast templates. I lost my scouts early on who were holding one objective and forced me on to the defensive. After that it was just mass firepower and living lightning psychic attacks which screwed me. Random heavy shots and some meltaguns finished off my Redeemer before it could really do anything.

One interesting and infuriating event was the challenge between my captain and his wolf lord. We knocked a wound of each other and then made every armour save. They were locked in combat with 4 rounds and did sod all to each other. Not had that before.

When the game ended at the climax of round 5 it was obvious who had won. Muffin won 11 victory points to 4. Good game but rather annoying at the same time. Muffin has come a long way since he first started and that's good.

It is unknown why the Space Wolves attacked the Sons, but when the dust settled and the dead collected, a report was filed about their actions. The two chapters will not look at each other the same way ever again.

Battle Report

Wicker's World.
Tyken Sector.
The Salamanders chapter have spent three weeks scouring a Genestealer cult from this industrial world. At the last, a contingent of infected PDF made a heroic stand against the Imperium's finest. Unfortunately due to a malfuction in the communications system, the allied Space Wolves were not aware of the final situation. Sensing that the Salamanders were opening fire on loyalist forces, they struck from the skies and engaged their fellow space marines.

So, a club game against Fish (Space Wolves with IG allies). Basically a kill point mission with standard 12'' deployment.

This was quite a good but throughly tough game. The Imperial Guard allies were what really did the damage with massed firepower and AP3 shots. As usual though my bog standard guys were smashed apart in close combat (oh how I hate how good CC is in this game). Saying that I didn't do too badly over all and am pleased with the flow of the game.

I won't go into the stupid challenges again but I am glad that I got to try them now rather than suddenly in the middle of a future campaign.

Good game to Fish.

So, so far under 6th my marines have played 2 and lost 2.

Awkward update

Played a game of 40K tonight against my mate Fish at the club. 1500pts of Salamanders vs 1500pts of Space Wolves with Imperial Guard allies. For most part it was a really good and enjoyable game. However it drove home two elements of 6th that I cannot stand and have had to change.

1. Wound Allocation. Under 6th this is stupid and utterly pants! It really makes no sense.

Mallik the space marine takes a shot to the head and falls over. His battle brother Gallik looks over and says "Gee. I wish I knew how to pick up and fire my mates meltagun. I was trained to do so when I become a space marine. It would be really useful, but sod it."

Makes. No. Freaking. Sense!

So from here, I will only play games with the 5th ed wound allocation system.

2. Challenges. This is what really forced this tonight. It was no fault of Fish's but we tried out the challenges system. Hated it. Especially when my terminator chaplain ended up out base contact with the Wolf Lord he had been challenged but was in base contact with another SW terminator, and yet wasn't allowed to swing at him. WTF?

No. I hate these rules.

Though it will cost me potential games and drop me from future club leagues/campaigns, I will not play without the above changes. To do otherwise would ensure that I was playing a game that I did not enjoy.

Thankfully at least one other player is willing (more than willing) to go along with that.

Rankings

Over on the 40K forums site there has been a recent discussion with posters ranking the codexes. I've not taken part but I have read through it and here is my list from top to bottom (top being best).

Chaos Space Marines.
Grey Knights.
Tyranids.
Blood Angels.
Space Wolves.
Eldar.
Dark Eldar.
Chaos Daemons.
Imperial Guard.
Necrons.
Dark Angels.
Orks.
Tau Empire.
Sisters of Battle.
Space Marines.
Black Templars.

That's how I would list them. How would you?

Battle Report

Last Friday evening a small group of us gathered to play a couple league games away from the club. Out of the players gathered my Salamanders and I only had to face down Mike and his Space Wolf drop pod list in a Planetstrike mission (Desperate Assault).

As the defender he set up the table in a nice fair manner. He placed a Fortress of Redemption down in the centre and declared the three sections to be separate bastions as the objectives. Three squads started with one in each and he had used a stratagem to place a battle cannon on the central section. I launched my Firestorms and wrecked two bastions including the one that had the battle cannon. So, not a bad start and I was feeling hopeful.

First turn everything of mine except the Predator arrived but as my first stratagem was night fighting I just couldn't hit anything. On Mike's turn a shedload of drop pods came down and walled me in against my side of the table and the amount of melta shots he poured into me took out my redeemer and most of my terminators.

Second turn was basically a massacre. My Predator arrived but did nothing. His marines fired and then assaulted my units taking them down under brutal close combat. My advance has stalled before it even got going.

Turn three and all I had left was a land speeder, my captain, and two tactical squads in rhino transports. My captain died valiantly fending off a rune priest. His turn he destroyed the land speeder and was turning his guns on my rhinos.

At this point I felt I had no chance of succeeding at my mission with just two squads and their rhinos. Mike still had most of his army intact including units in the objectives. I conceded and gave him the win.


Looking back on it I don't think there was much I could have done differently. I really wanted to go second but the mission had me launching the attack. Things may have been different had it been the other way around. Mike's drop pod list hasn't done that well in recent games but it worked spot on this time and there was nothing I could do. Better luck next time.

New Space Wolves

New Tyranid and Space Wolf models

Looks like a German White Dwarf magazine, but we have a tyrannofex/tervigon kit, winged hive tyrant, and fenrisian wolves.

The link is here.

Space Wolves codex review