L30n1d4s

Good points on both counts here.... I guess the best way to run this would be Gladius, where you can get an extra -1AP from Strats.

I am starting to think that 10 Sword Brethren, all with Chainswords, riding in a Land Raider Crusader with a Marshal and Lieutenant leading them, is a pretty ridiculous unit. Now that they get 6A each, hitting at WS2+, a 10 man squad puts out 60 attacks at S4 AP-1 Dmg1. Coming out of a LR Crusader, they get to reroll Hits and wounds of 1, they get Lethal Hits (from the Lieutenant) and Sustained Hits 1 (built into their chainswords), they get critical Hits on 5+s (from the Marshall), and they have +1 to wound against anything T4 or higher (from Accept Any Challenge). Taken all together, I think this unit can be a "hammer" squad that can take out enemy flagship units when required. For example, against an Imperial Knight, this squad averages 46 x AP-1 wounds, so about 23 unsaved wounds (and that is without the Marshall's and Lieutenant's attacks factored in). Against Deathshroud Terminators, the same squad averages 60 x AP-1 wounds, so 5 dead Deathshrouds (throw in their shooting and the Marshall and Lieutenant attacks and you likely will kill the whole squad and maybe even the character leading them). Even against a super tough unit, like Necron C'tan, this squad averages about 15 unsaved wounds, so enough to kill it outright in a single fight phase. Finally, against any horde infantry, like Orks or Guard or GSC or Nids, this unit obviously should be able to wood chipper through almost anything they hit. Bottom line, I think this unit might be a hidden gem within the new BT codex and I am excited to try it out, especially combined with some of the other great new tools (like BT Repulsors, the new Helbrecht, new EC, etc.)

Excited about the new Deathwatch KT, looking forward to what rules they get in 40K. Seeing all the custom weapons/models, I hope GW does something like this: M6" T4 W2 Ld6+ OC2 (Gravis models are 3W, T6, and M5") Special Rule - "Enhanced Gear and Tactics" - Reroll 1s to hit for all attacks and Ignore Cover with Shooting [Based on the models we see in the kit] 1 - Watch Sergeant - (x1 model) a) Xenophase Blade/HBP [or] b) DW Plasma Pistol (2 shot version of PP) and Power Weapon 2 - Phobos DW Marines - (x2 models) a) Paired MCed Combat Blades (4 x S4 AP-1 Dmg2, Twin-linked, Sustained Hits1) [or] b) Instigator Bolt Carbine (36" 1 x S4 AP-2 Dmg3, Precision, Dev Wounds) 3 - Gravis DW Marines - (x2 models) a) DW Frag Cannon (18" D3 x S7 AP-2 Dmg2, Rapid Fire D3, Blast) [or] b) Infernus Bolter (choice between Heavy Flamer or Heavy Bolter each time it shoots, both with AP-2) c) DW Heavy Bolt Rifle (30" 2 x S5 AP-2 Dmg2, Lethal Hits) and DW Grenade Launcher (30" 1 x S10 AP-2 Dmg D3+1) DW Tacticus Marines - (x5 models) a) PW and Storm Shield [or] b) Heavy Thunder Hammer [or] c) DW Plasma Gun (normal PG with +1 Dmg in both normal and overcharged mode) [or] d) DW Bolt Rifle (24" 4 x S5 AP-2 Dmg1, Dev Wounds)

I'm a big fan of 10 Sternguard led by a Sanguinary Priest in a Drop Pod. Against an OoM target, they get 30 x S4 AP-1 Dmg1 Dev Wound attacks, all with full rerolls to hit/to wound, then on the charge they get 51 x S6 AP-1 Dmg1 attacks and 5 x S10 AP-3 Dmg2 attacks, against with full rerolls. Add in a grenade for some MWs and this unit can be a threat to an entire spectrum of units (if you need to, you can give them Lethal Hits and Lance with a strat to upgrade their melee attacks even further). Being able to drop a unit like this at will anywhere on the battlefield more than 9" from enemy units I think can be quite a useful capability, especially for exploiting holes in their defense, move blocking, or giving him a "distraction carnifex" that he cannot ignore.

One of the biggest winners is the Librarian with "Fussilade" enhancement / 10 Sternguard - now that they can all fit in a drop pod, almsot no Vehicle or Monster unit is safe (even on turn 1)!

Being able to have attached characters makes such a difference in the usability of Drop Pods - there are numerous times where I considered taking them (I have 6), but ended up not doing it, at least in part because I couldn't take any characters with the full squad.

So I just did a RTT this weekend and my Azrael/Sternguard squad did very well, pretty definitely one of the all-star units every game. For only a 6 man squad, they killed well above their weight, taking out an enemy Hellblaster squad, Aleya/Vigilators, a Beast of Nurgle, and helping drag down a Great Unclean One (no easy feat, since it had the 4+++ FNP enhancement). They also survived a good amount of enemy damage, between their 4++ and once per game 4+++ vs MWs, and Azrael gave me a lot of extra CP (at least, until he died). Overall, for a 215 point unit, I am quite pleased with them and will definitely be keeping them in my future competitive list!

The Advance and Shoot/Charge strat would help a lot, but the +2S Strat for shooting won't really help (this combo works mainly on Dev Wounds). Also, the -1 to wound, combined with the 4++ from Azrael, could work well to keep this little unit alive a bit longer.

Anyone else having success with this combo? In my latest army list, I have Azrael attached to a 5 man Sternguard squad and, so far, they have been hitting above their weight for me. Combined with the Grenade strat and OoM, against a Necron C'tan (with its T11 4++ 5+++ FNP and half damage rule), between shooting and charging they average 10-12 unsaved wounds: -2 from Grenade -4-5 from Sternguard/Azrael shooting -4-5 from Sternguard/Azrael close combat That is almost enough to kill a C'tan by themselves, and easily enough to finish off almost any unit that has already been damaged a bit already. For only a 6 man squad (which can hide easily), I am finding that the combination of full rerolls to hit and full rerolls to Wound (from Oath of Moment), Sustained Hits 1 (from Azrael), 18 shots with Devastating Wounds (in Rapid fire range), 6 x S6 AP-4 Dmg2 melee attacks with Devastating wounds (Azrael), and 4 x S8 AP-2 Dmg2 / 16 x S4 AP0 Dmg1 attacks (Sternguard) can do a LOT of work. Add in the unit wide 4++ Invul, -1 to hit and free Cover outside of 12" (I play Vanguard Spearhead), and a once per game 4+++ FNP vs MWs (from Azrael), and so far this has been a very positive addition to my army. Currently, I am playing them primarily as an "Objective Contesting" unit that holds back (and generates extra CP from Azrael) until my opponent tries to grab Objectives in No Man's Land, then gang tackles that unit with the help of my fire base units if necessary. I am playing a tournament this coming Saturday, so we will get a resl test of how good (or not) this unit is after that, I think. Anyway, thought I'd share here, love to hear others' experiences, good or bad, running this combo!

Holy Toledo... IP with Impulsor and squad of Desolators... at half range, that's 10 x S10 AP-2 Dmg 6+1 attacks, plus you still have the indirect fire (5D3 +5 (blast) S4 AP0 Dmg 1 attacks) to help clear some enemy chaff on Objectives... expensive, but can deal with both heavy and light units each turn (don't forget the Impulsor's own Missile Array, Heavy Stubber, and 2x Storm Bolters)!

One more combo that seems pretty good is an Iron Priest with a Repulsor Executioner, using Oath of Moment in an Ironstorm Spearhead detachment. Using the strat that gives you Sustained Hits 1 on rolls of 5s or 6s, with full re-rolls to Hit, plus the extra shots from the IP for rapid fire, you can reliably turn the 2 shot Heavy Laser Destroyer into 3-4 hits at S16 AP-4 Dmg D6+4... the reliably high damage is where I think this combo has an advantage if you really need a certain target dead (also, don't forget the free reroll to wound or damage roll from the Ironstorm detachment rule).

Another good one is Ragnar leading Blood Claws in Gladius. They can Advance and Charge, Ragnar gives the unit rerolls to Wound, and you can use a strat for +1AP and Lance... so, on the charge, this unit has 76 x S4 AP-2 Dmg1, 4 x S5 AP-3 Dmg1, and 10 x S6 AP-4 Dmg2 attacks, all with +1 to wound and full rerolls to Wound. Throw in Oath of Moment for rerolls to hit and you have a unit that should be able to Woodchipper even super tough targets like Knights or C'tan or Greater Daemons.

What are your favorite new combos from the upcoming Codex? So far, some of my favorites are: 1) Alpha Strike Strat with Murderfang - With 9" move, D6" advance (which can be re-rolled), and a 2D6" charge, Murderfang gets an average charge threat range of about 20", letting him unleash his 8 x S14 AP-2 Dmg3 attacks (with TLed and SH1). Pretty great value for 170 points and 1CP. 2) Battle Leader with "Wolf-Touched" enhancement leading a pack of Wulfen with Storm Shields - Giving Wulfen re-rolls of 1s to Hit and Sustained Hits can really amp up their damage, plus multiple useful strats from the Saga of the Beast Slayer detachment (Blood Surge, +1 to wound, 6" reactive move, "uppy downy," etc.), not to mention Lethal Hits against Characters/Monsters/Vehicles. Overall, gives you a highly mobile, decently tough, very hard-hitting unit that should be able to handle almost anything it gets into melee with (and, with the Battle Leader giving them OC1, can actually hold objectives, unlike Wulfen by themselves) 3) TWC in the Gladius Detachment - With the ability to Advance and Charge from the Detachment rule, plus a strat to give them Lance and +1AP, this both extends their threat range significantly and buffs a 6 man pack up to 24 x S5 AP3 Dmg3 and 18 x S5 AP-2 Dmg1 attacks, all with +1 to wound. What about everyone else? Any new SW combos are you excited about with the release of the new codex?

Anyone else hope there is an Errata allowing generic SM models to lead unique SW units? For example, I would love to have a Terminator Captain (counts as TDA Wolf Lord) be able to lead WG Terminators, or have a Librarian (counts as Rune Priest) lead Wolf Guard Headhunters, or have a Judiciar lead a maxed out Blood Claws pack.

All Questoris are characters, so Bjorn gets full rerolls to hit and wound against them... that means that 97% all 6 attacks will hit, then 88% they will wound, so 5-6 wounds, with 3-4 getting through 5+ saves, so that's 9-12 damage inflicted.