Special Weapon Advice for Raptor Squads

[Xeraxen]

I'm whipping up my first 10 man squad of Raptors, what should I equip them with for special weapons?

 

Meltas were preferred in 5th ed from what I've heard, but they're advised against now.

 

Blood of Kitten's 'It's like tactics' review suggested flamers, which sounds enticing, but I want to get a second opinion.

 

Your thoughts?

[Brother Amarel]

Well, what do you want them to do?

 

If they're there for fast tank-cracking, then Melta's are still the best choice. If you want them to take out hidden MEQ's, then Plasma. If you want them to take out non-MEQ/TEQ infantry then Flamers.

[Xeraxen]

The majority of my opponents in the clubs I play at use vehicles, so meltas it is! :P

[Brother Amarel]

I'm still a big fan of them, especially on anything fast moving. Plasma is becoming the 6th ed special weapon of choice (certainly my generally CSM have switched to foot-slogging and Plas), but it does have limitations (and the more expensive the carrier, the more likely it is to get hot :P).

[derpasaurus]

mine are currently running 1 melta and 1 plas pistol, mostly because i don't have any spare melta guns :lol:

i too use mine for tank hunting, and if there are no [surviving] tanks, nothing sucks like getting blasted with MoK raptors hauling melta before an assault consisting of like 41 attacks on the first round.

[Sception]

I run plasma on infantry, melta on jump/bikes, and it's done alright so far. I might consider plasma on bikes, or on min size raptor squads, but in general you still want some melta, and faster units that can get in close early are where you want it.

[Iron Father Ferrum]

I ran two units of five Raptors with double melta each for deep strike tank hunting. Worked pretty good -- in six games, I only mishapped once and claimed a total of two Land Raiders, a Leman Russ, a Vindicator, and a pair of Basilisks.

[Khestra the Unbeheld]

I run them with dual meltas and send them vehicle/MC hunting. If I don't go the Biker route and bolster my Raptor numbers instead then I'll trick some out with magnets for weapon switching as needed.

[A D-B]

Mine currently have dual-meltaguns, and they handily liquified a Grey Knight Brother-Captain...

 

...right before his 5-man Terminator squad came back and pulped all 6 Raptors, along with my dual lightning-clawed Khorne Lord.

 

Going to try them with plasma guns in the future, along with the bold new tactic of never charging Terminators again.

[Sception]

yeah, a lightning claw-armed chaos lord never wants to be anywhere near an enemy terminator squad. Also, never give an HQ, or anyone else for that matter, dual lightning claws if you have the option of giving them one lightning claw and one power fist to instead. Doesn't even need to convert anything, most lightning claws seem to be mounted on power fists anyway, I just call them 'fisticlaws' and count them as one of each.

 

Even so, that isn't a unit you want to put an HQ near if you can help it, unless that HQ is named 'Abaddon' or 'Daemon Prince'.

 

Anyway, if that had been a quad of five raptors with two meltaguns and nothing else, I'd have called it a good trade, anyway.

 

If you're running them as a retinue, you probably want more raptors than that, anyway. 10 at least. Possibly Slaanesh instead of Khorne as well, for the Icon of Excess.

 

Like... max squad of raptors, two meltaguns, fisticlaw champ carrying the icon of excess, escorting a fisticlaw slaaneshi jump lord or a force sword slaaneshi sorcerer maybe? Still would rather be bikes, but I think it could work out. Running strategy would be to hug cover until you can jump out, paste a transport, and charge the contents? You still wouldn't want to charge terminators, but you'd be using your jump packs to try and avoid such unfavorable match ups.

 

Could go khorne instead of Slaanesh, for the reroll charge & first turn attacks. If you do though, definitely definitely Axe of Blinding Fury on the lord. Seriously, it's worth getting a new HQ model, r ripping your old one apart.

[Spaz431]

My Night Lords warband, Mortem Lux, are equipped to take down vehicles so meltas. I deep strike them on my enemy's rear while dropping terminators with combi meltas on the front. I have a pic of my raptors on my flicker.

 

http://m.flickr.com/lightbox?id=8245429855

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

Five man squad, two Meltaguns. Cheap as chips and twice as effective.

 

Plasma works too of course, but with a weapon as short-ranged as Meltaguns you need them on a mobile unit and in a Chaos army, Raptors are as mobile as they come. Because you do still need Meltaguns, in my experience. To misquote Mr. Twain, rumours of mech's death have been greatly exaggerated.

[wargame insomniac]

Any squad that could be seeing combat regularly I will take Meltaguns rather than Plasmaguns. The fact that Plasmaguns are rapid Fire would make them useless in a combat unit.

 

Meltaguns for Raptors give me more options vs tanks but also allows me to take out MEQ/TEQ when I shoot before charging. Short range is less of a problem as I am moving Raptors forward towards enemy anyway.

 

I can see flamers being useful for Raptors vs Orks or GEQ but otherwise Meltaguns offer more IMO.

 

Cheers

 

James

[derpasaurus]

along with the bold new tactic of never charging Terminators again.

 

oooh i sing the Lament of the Power Weapon every weekend now. i used to run my raptor lord with claws and my raptor champ with claws, in 5th i murdered poor little terminators. now with ap3 my raptors mostly slaughter rear guard if they survive after breaking tanks.

[the jeske]

i used to run my raptor lord with claws and my raptor champ with claws, in 5th i murdered poor little terminators. n

how ? a twin LC lord got what 5A on charge . thats 3 hit then wounding on +4 with re-rolls . lets say 2 wounds and then he saves on +3 . so one dies , then lords was geting hit by TH in return and ID , because of t4.

[Hazath]

i used to run my raptor lord with claws and my raptor champ with claws, in 5th i murdered poor little terminators. n

how ? a twin LC lord got what 5A on charge . thats 3 hit then wounding on +4 with re-rolls . lets say 2 wounds and then he saves on +3 . so one dies , then lords was geting hit by TH in return and ID , because of t4.

 

Not all termies are ASS termies.

[the jeske]

yeah the other version in 5th were i6 nemezis halabard armed paladins , am not asking how you were "owning up" those.

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

Yeah, no-one in the jeske's insular little tournament scene took anything but Hammernators or Paladins/Halberdnators so it's entirely obvious that no-one anywhere ever took any other kind of TDA unit but those.

 

:rolleyes:

[the jeske]

take a look at this forums army list section and check the army lists for marines that were done under 5th ed . see for yourself what is the ratio of TH/SS termis to non TH/SS termis run in 5th ed.

 

I see you claim to play BAs . how many tactical terminators units , were there used in BA builds in the last 5+ years ?

 

Ah and the claim that everyone on all english speaking forums that post their army lists are Russian or mainland europe made me lol .

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

Oh yes. You play tournaments so everyone plays tournaments. No-one plays any other way.

 

I'll overlook that you're now tacitly admitting that people took TDA units other than Hammernators, even in tournament lists.

[derpasaurus]

how?

lord and champ with lightning claws that reroll failed wounds and used to ignore armor, followed by 9 other raptors with 3 attacks each to drown the survivors in saving throws. deathwing. i saw maybe 6 in a squad. i'd kill entire selections in one round of combat.

 

now it's exactly the opposite. all my stuff bounces off and termies paste me, i fail morale because i lost combat by like 8, break, and run off the board. so i don't assault terminators now, i plasma or pie plate them while my raptors go kill tanks and meqs. they're still really good at that.

[the jeske]

Oh yes. You play tournaments so everyone plays tournaments. No-one plays any other way.

 

I'll overlook that you're now tacitly admitting that people took TDA units other than Hammernators, even in tournament lists.

 

no dude . I doubt that the list posted on this or any other forum are ment for tournaments . In fact most realy good tournament players dont post their army list before events , so that shouldnt even be an argument to use .

 

And no am not admiting that people were taking tactical terminators in 5th . no one did . Th/SS was better for BAs and marines. termiantor units were not viable for SW , GK were non existent pre ward dex. DA pre faq didnt exist , post faq were all TH/SS with cyclons . what is left is BT , which actualy were runing tactical termintors for the dual cyclons with tank hunter , technicly it was possible to build a gunline army build around those , vindicators , las/plas mini max and land speeders . only everyone knew it was a bad idea . which the 6th ed FAQ showed us to be right .

 

non TH/SS terminators in 5th ed sucked . rending nerf 1 hvy weapon per 5 dudes killed them . Could someone be stupid enough to take them ? sure . But you see there are people who eat glass . I would class glass as something that is eaten just because someone is stupid enough to do it .

 

lord and champ with lightning claws that reroll failed wounds and used to ignore armor, followed by 9 other raptors with 3 attacks each to drown the survivors in saving throws.

how does a DA player who has deathwing assault let a jump infantry unit with an attached HQ single out one unit and how does he let this unit get in to charge range without losing a single model , when DW castled up ? And how does killing a single DW 5 man squad let you go over to "good in killing terminators in 5th ed" ?

[A D-B]

non TH/SS terminators in 5th ed sucked . rending nerf 1 hvy weapon per 5 dudes killed them . Could someone be stupid enough to take them ? sure . But you see there are people who eat glass . I would class glass as something that is eaten just because someone is stupid enough to do it .

 

Well, I'm sure people also took them because half of a Codex Chapter's First Company is comprised of them.

 

Or because they liked the models.

 

Or because they got them as gifts.

 

Or because the unit was effective in their own games, against regular opponents.

 

Or because, like the overwhelming majority of 40K players, they have no experience with tournaments, and no interest in them.

 

40K is about more than numbers, dude. This may surprise you, but your list choices are just as hilarious/unbelievable to some people as theirs are to yours. If you showed up with one of your tournament lists at many people's houses, they'd consider you a bad sport and a bad player in the exact same way you insult people who choose less-effective units. Practically every 40K player I know would have a hard time respecting someone in their games that used a cookie cutter internet list, with no flavour or character, designed purely to win at all costs - that doesn't make you or them right. No one's right. No one's way is better. Just different.

 

People have different expectations and goals in this hobby, and this game. They have different experiences, too. Try to remember that, man.

[Xenith]

Anyway...Id see how BA ASM are armed.

 

Theyre already good at anti infantry due to the attacks, take dual meltas.

[A D-B]

Meltaguns for Raptors give me more options vs tanks but also allows me to take out MEQ/TEQ when I shoot before charging.

 

That, blessedly, slaughtered a Grey Knight Brother-Captain. I may stick with the meltaguns for that fact alone.

 

...they also look better on the models. Personal taste, though.