How to use a Stormraven

[Blindman6]

After I field tested a pair of Stormravens the other day in an apocalypse game I was wondering how other people would use them, or if they are even recommended. I took one with a plasma cannon/multi-melta and the other with a heavy bolter/assault cannon (low ap vs. high shots) and both had hurricane bolters and extra armor. Sadly, they did not live up to their shooting power, and were both killed. The plasma cannon Stormraven shot two entrenched loota squads into an off-the-board retreat on the first turn (the only really good kill) and killed only a few orks on the second before being downed by a big mek's shokk attack gun. The assault cannon Stormraven killed some commando orks on its first turn and then got wrecked by an orbital bombardment (again, apocalypse game). I moved them both 12" the first turn to dish out some fire, and used a dreadnought in one's rear grapple to shield them both with Shield of Sanguinius. My opponents were both incredibly lucky in their attacks (the Shokk attack gun fired twice and both were basically direct hits, strength 8 and 9, and the orbital bombardment was perfectly placed and does not scatter), but nonetheless the Stormravens just didn't justify their point costs in damage done. The only possible redeeming part was they got two dreadnoughts and a death company safely into close combat, and diverted fire from my rhinos, but is that worth it?

 

How would you recommend using the storm raven, or would you disregard it all together, and why?

[Fortunate Son]

I use mine to deliver the reclusiarch, 11 DC and a DC Dread with talons.

It's a rapid deployment vehicle equipped with the melta and assault cannons.

Once it has delivered it's payload, it normally dies pretty soon, but that keeps my other stuff alive.

 

Then again, my Stormraven army is that, a couple squads of mm speeders, and a couple squads of assault marines/priests with jumppacks.

You can see why I need them to shoot at the Raven.

Everything moves toward the enemy as fast as possible.

It doesn't always win, but it's always bloody fun.

[Crynn]

This thread comes up way to often, its simple they are fluffy and cool, but not effective in competitve games, simple simple my friends.

[lunchb0x]

they could be good in competitive games you just need to play them correctly. A sort of mix of eldar skimmer tactics and land speeder tactics.

[GlauG]

I ran a two-Stormraven list at a 1500pt Tournament as a joke and almost won. http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.p...howtopic=207786 See for yourself. :P I like one with TLC/TLMM and one with TLAC/TLMM, and give both Extra Armour. They're tremendously handy for keeping Death Company alive, and things like Dreads, or Mephiston in a pinch. If it gets your Fleet DC Dread, or Mephiston/Jump Troops at least 12" across the board before being wiped out, it can be enough to win you the game by ensuring they can now make it into assault. If there's a lot of anti-tank, whiz them Flat Out for the save, or better yet if you play on boards with tall enough terrain (as I have done sometimes) by all means, use it! The only time I recommend more caution is against Tau where there are things with Markerlights, as they can strip your cover save, and almost guarantee hits...

[KhorneHunter57x]

they could be good in competitive games you just need to play them correctly. A sort of mix of eldar skimmer tactics and land speeder tactics.

True. I don't think that Marine players are used to having the abilities that the StormRaven gives, as the combination of speed, firepower, durability, and transport ability has only been seen in Guard and Eldar forces until now. I know that most Mechdar players would give just about anything for assault ramps, and IG players would love the Machine Spirit. I think that most BA players need to learn that the StormRaven requires different tactics from anything else in the Codex.

[Redo]

Now I do not have one yet but I am of the opinion that a Stormraven has a lot of potential. I am waiting for the model; hope it has a lot of potential too.

 

Anyway I believe to run a SR effectively you will always need Extra Armour. It runs in perfect sync with the Machine Spirit. Allowing you to move fast and always fire a weapon. I also think that the Machine Spirit means that the SR can move flat out and still fire one weapon. (Not 100% on this but the consensus I have reached at the store and here previously that this is no problem.) Thereore you get a 4+ cover save.

 

When not doing this it is important to have some sort of cover. Much like a Landspeeder. Obviously the Stormraven has the added potential to deliver hard hitting marines right into the thick of battle faster than any other marine vehicle. It can come in on reserve, start deep in the field and as such deliver marines to virtually anypart of the field in 2 turns. Then it can provide support. Could this be the idea that marine players have to adjust to?

[BLACK BLΠFLY]

Extra armor, twin linked lascannon & twin linked multi-melta. That's it.

 

0b :woot:

[GlauG]

Extra armor, twin linked lascannon & twin linked multi-melta. That's it.

 

I have to say, from experience if you're running a pair having one use the Assault Cannons instead isn't a bad plan. I find it nice to have it as an option against heavy infantry, and what you deploy in each 'Raven can change depending on who you're playing of course. Has anyone used the TL Plasma instead? I kind of want to try it, but as kind of a halfway house between the AssCan and the Las, I can't help but imagine it as mediocre. On the other hand, the longer range than the Assault Cannon makes it more viable for a support role against heavy infantry or light vehicles.

[Leardinal]

I have run my in several games. I used the lascannon, but it never did anything. The multi melta smashed a couple of transports, but also didn't do much. The missiles are amazing though. I don't know if I have been using it wrong, but my friends and I interpreted the missiles the same way. The raven was immobilized first turn against tau in one game, and then he left it alone. Next turn I launched all the missiles into his broadsides. Because he had drones, he saved two of them and the other 2 killed 2 broadsides. I found that It works better for me as a fast transport rather then an fire base.

[lunchb0x]

Lascannon on it doesnt make much sense, due to how much you will be moving it.

 

Things with short range and hard hitting would work more.

[Quantra]

I've used my Storm Raven with good effectiveness for some time now. I find thinking of it as a transport rather than a gun ship is useful, after all it is a skimmer with assault ramps and a dual capacity. Trying to hold the Storm Raven back and use it for shooting I don't think is such a good idea since it is so big and scary it will likely get shot to pieces. However the same could be said for rushing it forwards at full tilt, at least with my dice rolling abilities relying on that flat out cover save has rarely done me any good.

 

I think what I really should say though is that the Storm Raven isn't so great if it is not backed up by units with similar speed and aggression. If it is the only thing rushing towards the enemy then yes it will get blown out the sky but I find backed up with a drop pod dropped close to the Storm Raven's target and an army of jump packers keeping up with it the enemy has a lot more to think about than just the Storm Raven.

 

Also what you put in the Storm Raven makes a big difference. If the Storm Raven unloads a unit that is not such a threat as the Storm Raven itself then why would the enemy change targets? For maximum effectiveness I like to pack Mephiston and a DC Dread with talons into mine. The reason for this is simple, they both have fleet and they are both scary units which can be unloaded quickly.

 

At the end of the day that is how I consider my Storm Raven, a transport to get those guys into the thick of it. If it drops its load in a useful place it has succeeded in it's mission, if it survives further to kill a few more things then that is a bonus.

 

Additionally I would add that if you are not set to go first and you are worried about long range AT taking out the Storm Raven early then there is nothing wrong with reserving it. Also as much as I stand by what I have written here the Storm Raven is an incredibly flexible vehicle and should the situation dictate it there is nothing wrong with switching up your tactics.

 

I run mine with TL Assault Cannons and TL Multi Melta this set up has proven flexibility and effectiveness for me. The multi melta is great for a first turn tank killer which really can ruin your opponents day and the assault cannons are just so multi purpose they never feel like a waste, I often find them useful to take a wound or two from an MC or whittle down a unit before something else charges it. Oh yeah and no extra armour =p It's an upgrade I have tried on many vehicles including the Storm Raven and never found it that useful (and don't understand the hype xD).

[KhorneHunter57x]

I haven't used mine yet, but I built it with the TL Assault Cannon, Typhoon Multi-Launcher, and the Hurricanes. My thoughts on this are that it can bring a torrent of fire against infantry (16 TL shots at 12" plus two blasts) when moving 12", it can threaten medium armor when moving 12" (from the Assault Cannon and the Krak Missiles), and when you decide to move 6" to unleash the Bloodstrikes, the Typhoon Launcher allows you to add 2 more S 8 missiles to the salvo.

 

I consider the StormRaven to be more of a gunship than a transport, but I think that they are best run in groups of 2 or three.

[Leardinal]

@lunchbOx:I completely agree with you now, I just thought I needed some dedicated anti-tank. I now have realized how versatile the Assault Cannon is.

 

@Quantra:This is what I was saying, but now that you mention it, EA really has never been used on any of my vehicles, they always end up as the damaging results.

 

@KhorneHunter57x:Yes, if you deck it out that way it is going to be a better gunship than transport, but I prefer to move it all out, shoot one weapon, then next turn drop the squad and dread, then unleash all the weapons I didn't pay extra for. All depends on how you deck it out and decide to field it. Of course, good dice rolls help too

[Deschenus Maximus]

Would it be a good idea to move flat out all the time (in order to always have your cover save)? If you can still fire one weapon, maybe take MM and PC as the free weapons will allow you to pick which is going to be more useful for that turn.

[Blindman6]

I'm beginning to think that it has a lot of potential almost solely as a gunship. If you arm it with a typhoon missile launcher and twin-linked lascannon, it can deal very impressive anti-tank/anti-monstrous creature in a single turn at up to two targets per gunship. (Two gunships gives one turn fire of 12str 8 weapons and 2 twin linked str9, enough to probably crack several tanks and monstrous creatures). It is very lightly armored, but part of that is countered by the long range firepower (unlimited for the blood strikes). I also am willing to argue that it's greatest power in competitive play is skies of blood. If you have a squad embarked, this allows you to take one (skies of blood the squad) and contest one (the raven itself) objective in a single swift move.

[Leardinal]

@Deschenus Maximus:I try to move it all out, but the way the rules prevent constant, fast moving transport skimmers is by saying no one can disembark if the transport moved or is planning to move flat out, which would prevent it from being a viable assualt boat. That is why I move it all out turn one(because nothing will be in assualt range at cruising speed), firing a weapon with PotMS, then next turn let the DC and Dread out to play while letting the SR unload on anything that looks like a threat.

 

I need to reserve it more, because it only seems to die turn one, but I get cocky at the beginning of the game and try to sung it up against a rather tall building, which I always forget that because the windows are the size of space marines it doesn't block LoS, but grants cover.

 

I like the plasma cannon, but I would end up using the assault cannon I think. I don't like small blast weapons because everyone in my group spaces their models to the edge of coherency to avoid them. Plus, the assualt cannon is probably my favorite ranged weapon :P

 

@Blindman6:Yep, it could be a very good gunship, especially with more then one. I just have a strange phobia of all vehicles and that is why I play a codex that allows Jump Infantry as troops. The Raven, the Dread, and the Raider are about the only vehicles I use, and even stopped taking these after watching them get destroyed over and over by Tau broadside fire. I would use them again, but the Tau seem to be in every game...

[Soups]

I use mine with Twin-linked Las and Multi-melta. It carries 10 DC and Lemartes. Sometimes it will have a dreadnought in it.

 

Usually, it's end up on reserves for me, rolling in off my table edge. My meta has plenty of long range strength 8, so I do feel foolish if I can not get off 4 bloodstrike missiles into a unit. That's only if I didn't get first turn, most of the time. The storm raven is a DC delivery system for me. I figure, I might as well have my DC in a vehicle, if I'm running 10-12. It's also greatly prized for making dreadnoughts tactical.

[BLACK BLΠFLY]

The twin linked multi-melta kills more tanks than any other weapon on mine. I take the twin linked lascannon as the other weapon. I always start in reserve moving on 6" if possible and fire everything into a landraider if my opponent has one. Against IG I will often move flat-out the turn it arrives from reserve and fire the multi-melta. Some armies are devoid of any long range shooting and versus these the Stormraven is invincible... Just make sure to keep it out of assault range.

 

0b