Possible New Dark Angels Player

[RebelGrunt]

I'm still new to Warhammer 40k(had my army for about a month now). I've been using a mobile ork army. I decided to start a second army that is fun. I've read about the Dark Angels story and history and I loved them since I started. The problem is that it seems the major things to run are the Deathwing Terminator Company or the Ravenwing Fast attack Company. I can't decide which is better or which I like more. I just wanted to see if any of you veteran DA players had some tips/advice for me. Which is easier to build, more killy, or just plain fun. Plus if there are any combinations between the two i would like to hear them.

 

EDIT:

 

I have read the forums below and came up with the following 1,500 point list:(post comments and suggestions please)

 

HQ:

Belial: Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield

Sammael: Jetbike

 

Troops:

2x 5man terminator squads with thunder hammer&storm shields except 1 guy in each squad has a power fist and assault cannon

 

2x 7man ravenwing bike squads with 1 sergant and a attack bike in each with a multi melta, plus each squad has two plasma cannons

 

I figured I could put Belial with a squad of terminators and Sammel with a bike squad. The bike squads will charge toward the enemy and when they get close I use there homer beacons to teleport my terminators right into there lines.

 

I figured this could go good or bad for me because I feel like my bikes will get ripped apart. Also, Should I put Sammael into his landspeeder?

[Gealgain]

who says you have to choose? I pesonally play both, my 2500 list looks something like...

 

belial with LC

librarian in termi armor

 

5x terminator squads with AC

 

2x ravenwing squads with multi melta attack bikes

 

2x land raiders

 

more often than once i've had the opponent look at my army and ask "is that all for 2.5k?" but then I point at the terminators and tell him that they're all troops, oh and half of them are deepstriking turn one, all of my bikes have scout, and my landraiders... well theyre just there to draw your fire.

my opponent calls shenannigans until I show him the rulebook. then I think he pees himself a little, deploys expecting me to alpha strike in his face. i decide to keep everything in reserves, he calls further shenannigans and he just waits until i come into battle. oh, and everything's fearless.

 

the best part is the rematch, which will happen, then you can play an entirely different game with the same force. you can deploy everything in a defensive position and let him come to you. or you could alpha strike with outflanking ravenwing.

 

my most effective tactic thus far has been keeping 3x DW squads in reserve (for alpha strike), scouting my RW up to use the beacons, have the remaining two DW in the landraiders just blasting away, moving to the objectives.

 

the rule bending with a DW/RW force is almost cheating, if you don't account for the costs of everything in that list, which can get rather exorbitant. at least I have fun!

[Droma]

Deathwing are a bit strong on their own than Ravenwing but combined they are very killy. A nice 1500 list Belial+Sammiel for HQ's making bikes and termies troops and then using 3xTermy squads and 2X bike squads one kitted out with plasma bikers and attach 2 attack bikes with multi melta's. Oh this lets you afford an apothecary for both your raven and deathwing.

 

You have to be careful but half the time your opponent is either trying to kill Termies and your bikers are just mauling them or they're chasing your bikes and your termies are crushing them in assault. And with everything being troops your bikes can turbo boost and snag objectives very late in the game and your termies are just a huge pain in the rear to shift off an objective especially one in cover.

 

Edit: I forgot how awesome fearless is. Now you never have to worry about any of your stuff running and it's all good unless they kill the whole squad. Single termies from 2 different squads sitting on an objective has won me a lot of games. They don't know which one to waste all their shots on.

 

The FAQ being updated so our weapons are as good as normal SM's really helps too. Heavy 2 cyclone missle launchers ontop of a termy squad with thunder hammers and stormshields means thats a nice mobile heavy weapon with a 2+ save and 3+ invuln save.

[Bartali]

The problem is that it seems the major things to run are the Deathwing Terminator Company or the Ravenwing Fast attack Company. I can't decide which is better or which I like more.

 

As others have said, DA currently work best when combing the two. At 1500pts you'd typically have Belial, 4 x Deathwing Squads and 2 Ravening squads with an Attack bike in each.

[Brother Captain Kezef]

A friend of mine runs an all ravenwing army, it's fast and nasty and definitely fun.

[krewl]

Howdy new player!

 

As for my advice, I have played the following and found them very entertaining, but all very different.

As for what you like will be down to preference and what YOU think is cool. It helps a lot when you need to paint something that the models and background appeal to you as it motivates you to keep on painting when you feel it's a bit of a drag.

 

Pure Deathwing

They used to have range issues meaning they did not shoot very far, but a recent FAQ update made that an issue no more.

As in playstyle they are hard to kill with good saves, but you are few in numbers. (30-35 models in 1700 points is normal.)

Not fast (normal 6"moves) but will move and shoot always so they march ono relentlessly.

 

Pure Ravenwing

Got a small boost with the new FAQ in that the landspeeders tornado are quite cheap and good now.

very fast army, placing and target choice is everything because they can be dead very fast. A bit hard to master to play well, but oh so fun when you do and you find out hardly any army can beat you easily and you are at the least able to draw seemingly unwinnable games. When you get to grips with it you will love the postioning and replacement options you have. Before that you will lose a lot of games, part of the deal. :)

 

DeathRaven (Deathwing and Ravenwing Combination)

Also worked quite well (before the FAQ so they should be a bit better at least now), where you scout up bikes and deep strike termies safely from their homers.

again a small numbers elite army, combining a bit of hardness in the termies with a bit of speed from the bikers, covering eachothers weakspots if used well.

I'd say the hardest of the 3 to master because of the difference in your 2 parts of armies, best to try after playing both above first.

 

Greenwing.

Pure greenwing is just Dark Angels without the 2 wing elements. Most of what they can do can be done a bit cheaper and/or better with just codex Space Marines. BUT if you paint your army with angel logo's but a different colours scheme you can use any codex you like. (Make them a dark Angels successor.)

Then you are free to use whatever codex you like :)

 

Combined is where you can use strengths of all to support eachother. (Say a Deathwing Belial guy and 1 or 2 units of termies and 2 tactic squads in rhino's for some numbers, some predators for ranged supprt, speeders for speedy melta and more Missile shots and a RAS squad for some fast anti tank.)

the options on that are almost limitless but it is obvious that this are at the least very well playable armies.

 

Have fun with your robed marines!

[EPK]

Combined is where you can use strengths of all to support eachother. (Say a Deathwing Belial guy and 1 or 2 units of termies and 2 tactic squads in rhino's for some numbers, some predators for ranged supprt, speeders for speedy melta and more Missile shots and a RAS squad for some fast anti tank.)

the options on that are almost limitless but it is obvious that this are at the least very well playable armies.

 

This is more or less the route I have taken, though I'm usually light on any Ravenwing units. With the new Typhoon's I might use more in that regard. The last army list I used is here.

 

I've tried the Deathraven once or twice as well, and I think there might be a bigger learning curve there. You are relying on elite units in smaller numbers. I shy away from bikes because they are fragile and in my opinion fearless bikes can actually work against you.

 

I believe Pure Deathwing has been noted as a "glass hammer" and I assume Pure Ravenwing is something along the same lines, a "glass <something faster>", so I have stayed away from those, being a novice myself. Pure Deathwing can dish it out, but even a few wounds here and there can hurt bad. I've never gone completely pure anything.

[LardO'Blood]

I play pure Deathwing, pure Greenwing, GreenDeath and Green Marines (Dark Angels using the Space Marine codex).

It's a bit of a cycle, right now I'm having lots of fun with my Deathwing and I'm going to probably play Green Marines a bit in the near future because I'm a sternguard addict/

[shortysl]

My 2k army;

Belial

Interrogator Chaplain inTDA

 

3 Dreads with various weapon combos and 1 drop pod

 

2 Deathwing squads

2 Tac squads with rhinos

 

Ravenwing attack squadron with attack bike

 

Nice combo of all three wings, combines massive firepower with speed and combat ability.