starting a new sisters army

[thedarklord]

i am starting a new sister of battle army, where should i start for 500 pts

[RandomGuy]

I would try to get 3 boxes of sisters of battle and a Cannoness. That will give you a list that looks something like this

 

10 Sisters w/2x Flamer and Veteran Sister (136/136)

 

10 Sisters w/2x Storm Bolters and Veteran Sister (134/270)

 

10 Sisters w/Flamer, Storm Bolter and Veteran Sister (135/405)

 

Palentine w/Blessed Weapon, Litanies of Faith and Book of St Lucius (95/500)

 

That's 31 Power Amoured models in 500 points. Not even marines can manage that. I would have taken a cannoness instead of the palentine but the combat patrol rules (effectively the rules for 500 point games) won't let you have models with more than 2 wounds so she's out. If you wanted to you could get rid of 1 of the units of sisters and have a unit of 5 celestians in an immolator, but I prefer men on the ground.

 

Random Guy

[thedarklord]

thanks, looks great, but isnt it a bit lacking in anti tank?

 

do the box sets come with flamers,?

[Thraximus]

At 500 points you generally won't see any tanks, but if you are worried, you can always get a Sister with meltagun/multi-melta blister, give them all krak grenades, or give the Heroine meltabombs if you fiddle the points. There is also the chance that your Sister Superiors will come with plasma pistols in the box, since they are supposedly packed at random.

 

And yes, the box set come with a flamer and a stormbolter. :)

[Toogeloo]

You may want to supplement your purchases with some individual figs found at Games Workshop. Get several Heavy Flamer models since every Battle Sister squad should have one, and then just make sure you have a fair amount of Flamers and Meltaguns. Storm Bolters are useless for the most part and you should avoid fielding them.

 

At 500 points, there is nothing wrong with a tank or two by the way, I just wouldn't go crazy with armor (like field a Land Raider).

 

 

An alternative 500 point List can be:

 

Canoness: Cloak, Evicerator, Bolt Pistol, Jump Pack (111)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, Flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, Meltagun, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (196)

Points: 499

 

 

This list can get you up to speed in the most competitive Sisters format, the Mechanized List. The Rhino's aren't a big armor threat to your opponent for sure, but they add the much needed mobility Sisters need for competitive play since the girls specialize in short range fire fights.

[thedarklord]

as for faith points, do do you use them in 500pts games?

 

what tatics are there for this list,

 

Canoness: Cloak, Evicerator, Bolt Pistol, Jump Pack (111)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, Flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, melta gun, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (196)

Points: 499

 

i might replace the melta gun with a flamer and a melta bomb for the Canoness who can fly around and blow up tanks at 500pts easyly.

[Melissia]

I'd reccomend staying away from storm bolters. They aren't as much help as flamers to be sure.

 

 

Also, the Eviscerator already gets +d6 armor penetration, and you can have them strike at strength 8 with an Act of Faith, so that should be your anti-tank. 3 S8 power weapon attacks (technicly more like four on the charge) with +D6 armor penetration will stop any vehicle that can fit into 500 points, easilly.

 

 

Finally... for that list, basicly march forwards and get into rapid fire range, let loose and use Divine Guidance, and use your canoness to tie up assault units or attack a vehicle.

[ArmouredWing]

I'd have to say that at 500pts rhinos are a luxury that you can afford to lose. Playing at low points you need to concentrate on the type of game and possible opponents you'll be playing. To put it another way, there are a lot of rosters out there that will be able to outnumber and outgun you so every bolter and ablative wound counts.

 

My low point lists tend to have a couple of large sister squads, maybe 12 or 14, with a vet, heavy flamer and a melta as my core. Then anything else is according to taste. Maybe a palatine and celestian retinue or a jump canoness kitted out or a cheap HQ and an immolator.

It works well, especially when you combine a bit of DG.

[thedarklord]

i will be playing space marine and Nurgle chaos marines, slannesh chaos marines,

 

 

Canoness: Cloak, Evicerator, Bolt Pistol, Jump Pack (111)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, Flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Points: 496

 

i like this list because it if fast

 

but do i need more guns on the field?

 

how to i counter the armys above?

 

and does anybody know a stunning colour Scheme for these girls

 

thanks for all the help,

[Melissia]

For color schemes, I have a few made up already that I'm not using right now.

 

 

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/melissiablackheart/th_AmberScorpion2.jpghttp://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/melissiablackheart/Other/th_redblackwhitescheme.jpghttp://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/melissiablackheart/Other/th_ASColorSchemeOne.jpghttp://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/melissiablackheart/Other/th_ASColorSchemeThree.jpghttp://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/melissiablackheart/Other/th_ASColorSchemeTwo.jpg

Click ont he images for larger pictures.

[the jeske]

but do i need more guns on the field?

yes but its impossible to do , if you want to stay mobile .

 

how to i counter the armys above?

like the necron . the sob have an effective 1 turn of shoting [when they go in to 12" range] if something is fast enough to deny them that [like BA army built around jump packs or a khan build army] , they die in hth . if some plays a mecha list [like chaos] its the same problem , a chaos player can put 2x2str7 attacks on the rhino each turn they are in 12" range , sob can only do drive by with flamers . + if more then 4 of csm survive there is a big chance that they will still beat sob in hth.

[Melissia]

It's true. Even with Acts of Faith, it can be rather hard to beat such dedicated melee specialists as the CC oriented CSMs in hth combat.

[ArmouredWing]

i will be playing space marine and Nurgle chaos marines, slannesh chaos marines,

 

 

Canoness: Cloak, Evicerator, Bolt Pistol, Jump Pack (111)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, Flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Battle Sister Squad: Vet, flamer, Heavy Flamer, Rhino (192)

Points: 496

 

i like this list because it if fast

 

but do i need more guns on the field?

 

how to i counter the armys above?

Sisters rely on having a good weight of fire and so the answer would have to be a 'yes' you really do need more guns on the field.

Mech sisters are not easy to master, even at 1500+ pts where you've got additional support from other available units and without smoke on the rhino's you'll possibly find them being popped pretty easily. Chaos SM's are a tugh nut to crack, the first round of the UK GT was dominated by chaos lists (I was somewhat surprised by the number). They are tough (especially DG) and mince most enemies in CC so the first rule of thumb is don't get into CC with them if possible so with that being the case you really do need more firepower.

 

Next up, you like the fast list, ok, but why do you want a fast list? To capture objectives? The next question is how are you going to hold those objectives once you're occupying them?

 

Finally, effectiveness for points. What's better, a fast but vulnerable squad, a slow and survivable squad or a mixture of both?

 

Don't be blinded by the toys if you want to play to win. Keep it simple and look at the weakness' rather than the strengths.

[thedarklord]

so what your saying is that sisters have trouble destroying chaos units, and if even four survive then they charge and its all over,

 

but if i use a fast list and combine two of my units to destroy one of theirs while my Canoness is protecting their back, and two rhinos (ill add smoke to them) blocking sight doesn’t that solve the problem?

 

what do you think? it will need some skill to make work, but Practise make perfect.

 

Melissia: thanks they look really cool, i like the first and fourth, which one do you think will look better.

[ArmouredWing]

so what your saying is that sisters have trouble destroying chaos units, and if even four survive then they charge and its all over,

 

but if i use a fast list and combine two of my units to destroy one of theirs while my Canoness is protecting their back, and two rhinos (ill add smoke to them) blocking sight doesn’t that solve the problem?

 

what do you think? it will need some skill to make work, but Practise make perfect.

It's not bad in theory but there's some fundemental considerations to take into account.

 

Firstly, you've got a plan A but no plan B. You're planning on winning the game by attacking and wiping out your opponent unit by unit. 20 sisters + a canoness will not achieve this unless you are playing an utter novice and even then you'll need a HUGE amount of luck. There's not the weight of fire and you'll definitely not come out best from CC, even with 2 units against 1. Additionally your canoness will not be able to hold off the rest of your opponents force on her own. Remember, she may have the cloak but eventually she'll take W's and if one of those is S6 or better she's out of the game regardless how many W she's got left. A canoness is most effective when she's supported because she can be very vulnerable on her own.

 

Secondly, using rhino's as cover is a good sound tactic when used right but if you're planning on using it to prevent being shot at you need to realise that you won't be able to shoot back either. Cover like this works both ways and it is best used to prevent being shot at by long ranged fire from the likes of dev's, ret's etc. At medium-short range you're giving cover to assault units who will sneak up and charge into you.

 

500pts is a tough limit to play with. It takes a lot of discipline to put together a list at this level but it can be done.

[thedarklord]

what tatics would you use for a fast sisters army, what plan B should i have then?

[ArmouredWing]

what tatics would you use for a fast sisters army, what plan B should i have then?

 

Ok, take a look at this;

 

Sister squad 1;

10 sisters+ vet, Rhino+smoke, Hvy flamer, flamer, Book of St Lucious (BoSL is ESSENTIAL SoB wargear)=200pts

 

Sister Squad 2;

14 sisters+ vet, Meltagun, Meltagun, BoSL = 193pts

 

That leaves you 107 points to play with for you HQ.

 

With this loadout you've got a lot of versatility. One squad dedicated anti infantry to drive by with flamers, the other dedicated anti armour who use the run rule to get close and then eliminate tougher targets. The other thing to remember is that the second squad will virtually pass DG every time and with 24 shots you'll be able to eliminate quite a few death guard with your 6's. Squad 2 can also bring up the rear to reinforce squad one as and where needed.

 

Whatever you choose though the BoSL is pretty much a mandatory piece of kit due to all Ld tests made unmodified.

[Toogeloo]

Don't forget to use the Rhino to your advantage. You can fire two girls out the top (both flamers) and the storm bolter to cause a couple casualties, make your opponent assault the Rhino and force you out, but once he has done so he has also put himself in a nice little clump that makes the flamer templates even more devastating. Rhino's also make nice barricades and LoS blockers so positioning of them is important. Most importantly, do not isolate your Sisters of Battle because they are stronger when they work together. You Canoness can go off on her own, but don't just throw her out like a lamb to the slaughter, be wise about her direction. Be more tactical than your opponent and you can stop him from using his strengths against you.