Command squad

[Brother-Chaplain Gaius]

I'll agree it's not as useful as before they redacted them being a Retinue (a decision which I still think is insanely stupid - I never ever have my Captain leave the Command Squad, it's the most retarded concept ever), but the Storm Shield is still very handy.

 

Having your captain leave his Command Squad behind is called "Uriel Ventris Syndrome." :P

<---- LOL!

[jesselowe]

I wonder if it'd be worthwhile to add a Techmarine to the squad. He's an extra body and an independent power fist for 50 points; add a servo harness and you've got two power fist attacks, a flamer, and a plasma pistol. And he can fix your ride.

 

Downside, of course, is that he makes the unit even more expensive, and you can't fit the squad + 2 ICs in a Razorback. But I think he'd work well in a bike command squad.

[Koremu]

How important is adding a Power Fist really?

 

It seems like an odd question considering how awesome they are but assuming your Captain has the standard Relic Blade, you're already wounding most things on 2's and insta-killing T3 models. True you lose out on pure anti-MC or the ability to insta-kill Nobz/Warriors and that is reason enough I suppose.

 

I guess I'm just thinking of them as a bully squad, picking on basic infantry and the like. I'd rather throw a 10 man Tac squad with a Power Fist at an incoming MC just because it has more bodies to absorb.

An interseting idea. I think the powerfist is mostly for security. If it doesn't include one, the high-priced Command Squad could become an MC magnet - and won't be able to deal with the threat.

 

I wonder how often it really does make the difference as opposed to a more cost-effective weapon?

In a game of IC+Squad vs IC+Squad, the first side to get an Instant Death hit on the enemy IC usually wins.

[minigun762]

In a game of IC+Squad vs IC+Squad, the first side to get an Instant Death hit on the enemy IC usually wins.

 

Good point but I wonder if a Captain/Command squad is the right unit to toss against another IC/squad.

 

It seems like you're not really working to your strengths and instead trying to out assault another assault unit and that seems to be counter to the whole "stab the shooters and shoot the stabbers" idea of Marines.

[Titan87]

Lysander with FNP is just sick and wrong :)

 

Seconded and awesome.

 

I was tired of trying to use lysander with his split personality, so I tried running him with a command squad. The unit performed admirably taking out IC's, MCs, Tanks, and troops. Lysander with FNP is as ridiculous as it sounds as the torrent of fire directed at the unit is usually what will kill them. In addition with bolter drill the unit was able to thin the enemy numbers through shooting, greatly improving the numbers game in the assault.

 

In all I think the ability that makes the command squad great (especially with Lysander) is their versatility. We have few units in the codex that have the ability to to put out fire at range, kill tanks and MCs, as well as be deadly in the assualt. The Command Squad is a unit that is actually good in multiple aspects not just one (i.e. sternguard or Assault Termies)

[Brother-Chaplain Gaius]

Lysander? run Calgar the guy kills everything wether hes shooting or swinging.

[Titan87]

Run Calgar the guy kills everything wether hes shooting or swinging.

 

Agreed he leads my Ultramarine Force. However He is near impossible to "count-as" with fluff and Lysander is a good second for an assault based army. (Sorry for getting off track)

[Xeonic]

As for the powerfist, it's the most essential upgrade for any charge/countercharge unit, or any unit that expects to see CC ever(melta armed tacts for instance). Yes, 75% of the time it's 10 pts for -1 attack and wounding on a 2+, but even that's well worth it.

The point is not that you don't want them engaging a dread or carnifex, or whatever in CC, because you don't, it's that you need the powerfist to deal with it when you do, because there will be a situation where you need it. IDing ICs is also somewhat essential, there are plenty of T4 ICs that can be instagibbed by a powerfist. Given the choice between two power weapons and a powerfist and meltabomb(same pts), I'd take the powerfist and meltabomb every time. You might not want to be charged or charge that other IC+retinue, but then again, the game doesn't always give you the choice now, and the fist could mean the difference between say Abaddon walking over the entire squad or not.

 

The issue I have with running a command squad with Lysander is that you can only run lysander in a raider or on foot(EDIT: well I suppose you could pod them in...), and if he's in a raider, a 5 man tooled up command squad is a bit of a waste when for similar points you can take a squad of assault termies, and the only reason I can think so footslog a command squad is to use them as a ranged firebase. The cheapish option here is to just give them storm bolters for the rerolls.

I don't like either option personally. There are other more effective raider borne squads in the same cost bracket, and on foot a ranged command squad should really enjoy the ranged punch of plasma guns for best effectiveness. Still, for less than 130 pts you can give footslogging Lysander 5 more wounds, FnP, and 4 rerollable storm bolters.

[glayvin34]

Just my 2 centavos on the command squad loadout-

Last night I fielded Shrike v. an IG list with a biker command squad outfitted like so:

1. Thunder Hammer + Storm Shield

2. Flamer + Storm Shield + Meltabombs

3. Storm Shield + Meltabombs

4. Champion + Meltabombs

5. Apothecary

 

They infiltrated along with a Land Speeder Storm full of CC scouts, and kicked major, major butt. I infiltrated them 18" away from his main objective, then ran in on turn one and started wrecking shop in assault. I was sure to have them supported by a land raider and TFC from across the board, but the command squad took out a Leman Russ, Colonel Straken and his squad, an inquisitor, a heavy weapons team and a sentinel before finally being taken down by hotshot las. I had Shrike attack an Eversor assassin that ended up killing him, so he didn't participate, but I think that ended up for the best as the command squad was often locked in combat on my opponent's turn, when they wouldn't have been if Shrike's 4 LC attacks had been in the picture.

 

The ability (with Shrike, of course) to assault on turn 1 with power weapons and THs/PFs is just unparalleled. That squad took out around 200 points of Heavy Support on round 1 and cleaned out his HQ on round 2. For a ~300 point unit, they made their points back no problem. Of course, I do wonder what would have happened if my opponent had gone first instead of me and been able to shoot with his 2 Leman Russes that I disabled before they could do anything.