How do you protect your Horrors?

[Infidel]

Hey people.

 

The general consensus is that if you want to take objective campers, take PBs, and if you don't like PBs, take Horrors.

 

That's a sentiment that I agree with whole heartedly, but while a squad of Plaguebearers can sit in cover, go to ground, T5, 5++, feel no pain and can just sit there for the opponent to shoot at and live, the Horror have a pedestrian T3 (albeit with a 4++) and seems to have a tendency to spontaneously combust when any significant amount of shooting goes their way, and let's not mention if they got into HtH.

 

People in my area are starting to realise that it's not very usefuly to spend all of their shooting to take down my Daemonzillas (1 GD 3 DPs) and bite the loss the big guys and fiends are causing, and just go after my troops instead. From the last several non-kp games, it's been a case of either a stupid amount of firepower being directed at my horror while the rest of his force gets munched, or the horror sits behind a big squad locked in assault and can't shoot anything and being generally useless save for cheering for their slannesh sisters.

 

So, I am curious, for those of you who have experiences with Horrors, what is your personal recipe for protecting horrors while ensuring that you're putting their AP4 firepower to good use?

[avatar8481]

You protect them by leaving them in the foam in your case. They don't really have a place in a competitive Daemons army (to the extent that such a thing exists). If you want to win with Daemons you take PB troops.

 

If you want to take a Tzeentch themed army, that's another thing, but then you're playing for fluff and not competitiveness anyway, so what does it matter if they die.

 

To answer your actual question though, they need to be in cover, behind a screening squad of something else or you have to have so much else that your opponent is worried about that they can't be shot at. If your opponent has realized your troops (except PB) suck, and can win by just denying you the troops, then you need to either: take so much offense that you table him and win by default and just take min-size troops choices, or you need to change your strategy completely and actually take troops that can live for more than a turn of shooting (PB).

[Infidel]

take so much offense that you table him and win by default and just take min-size troops choices

I've got a Tzeentch/Slaanesh Army and that's basically what it's been doing. Normally, the horrors are far back while the front line munch away at the enemy by the mouthfuls.

 

I normally take 3 small horror squads and nominate them to be in the 2nd wave and an off-balanced first wave and hope for that 3+ to get my GD, DPs and shooty heralds.

[Corpse.]

I run a horror heavy army and I can say they work best if they arrive second in a mix army. That way, they fire while the first wave charges. Popping transports where possible. My anti troop units are large, while my anti tank units are small. With minimal waste of horror shots.

 

To have them as a unit to sit on an objective, thats a hard one. Normally sticking a unit of PB in cover, using "going to ground" inside 4+ cover grants them 3+ cover saves. Giving them 4+ cover by having other units in front of them of course.

 

You can do that with horrors, for the 3+ cover save but lacking the ability to shoot hinders that greatly. Daemonzilla slaanesh+tzeentch is not easy to get the needed damage with all the extra bits you put points into. You picked two of the more costly and fragile sides of the codex.

 

Your all about damage, and being mobile+aggressive. You dont need to be on an objective in the start of the game or middle, just be within 3 turns movement of claiming it by turn 3. That means within 18", granted if your sketchy you can run two turns to be absolutely sure.

[Infidel]

they work best if they arrive second in a mix army. That way, they fire while the first wave charges. Popping transports where possible.

QFT. On occassions, however, i find them to be of use against DE and I more or less the entire Tzeentch element sans Flamers and get 6 bolts on the board at once.

 

My anti troop units are large, while my anti tank units are small. With minimal waste of horror shots.

Again, can't agree more. I only run 3 small squads, each with bolts. I find that single bolt very handy when taking pot-shots at anything with armour save, those occassional wound you get to put on Carnifex, Termi and Wraithlord puts a big grin on my face.

 

Daemonzilla slaanesh+tzeentch is not easy to get the needed damage with all the extra bits you put points into. You picked two of the more costly and fragile sides of the codex.

Fragile, sure, costly, I don't know. Most of the cost comes from upgrades on the DP, a flying Nurgle prince is 215 points with all the standard shibang, while a Tzeentch Prince comes stock at 160 (Bolt + Gaze) and Slaanesh at 145 (Hide, Might, Aura). When they hit they do roughly the same damage (2+ to wound on both instances, although the Nurlge DP gets to reroll) and a lower point cost means that you get to field 6 fiends as well as 4 MCs in the same 1,500 pt army.

 

But hey, this is about horrors. I'm quite happy to know that I use them in the same way as other more experienced player here. ;)

[Firedrake28]

I always take two eight man units of Horrors with Bolt and often a Herald of Tzeentch. The way to keep them alive is to make it impossible to ignore the other parts of your army. Fiends, Daemon Princes, Greater Daemons and Bloodcrushers are all very, very scary units. If your opponents have you well and truly figured out, try taking a single squad of Plaguebearers (I personally run a unit of 7 with Icon) so you're almost sure to have at least one objective by the end of the game. At that point all you need to do is contest the others which isn't too hard.

[Khaeron Baoth]

I use many small horror squads, usually I have from 4-6 squads in 1500 points game. Rest points are Lord of Change, demonprinces and flamers. Sure enemies can shoot horrors away, but they have to to do it one squad at time and same time worry other forces. Usually they ignore horrors and take some damage from them. Usually horrors are worth of their points.

[Seahawk]

The changling can always help, sometimes causing one or two units not to shoot at them, such as when a landspeeder blows apart a razorback with an assault cannon; which I found highly amusing. In all seriousness, a mere 5 points goes a long away, especially against lower-Ld armies.