sergeant equipment

[shan vener]

hey guys. a couple days ago i was at my local store and the topic of anti armor and anti MC came up. i said that all of my sergeants have a power fist and melta bombs. everyone else gave me weird looks and said that for the same points you could have a thunder hammer. supposedly the hammer is better because it makes enemies hit strike at I 1 and it auto shakes vehicles. although i like my loadout because it can handle MC just the same and the melta bombs can destroy a land raider (quite helpful when your forgetful opponent tank shocks a unit) so can i get some other opinions on which is better.

 

EDIT: and before you ask i almost always end up fighting either chaos marines or tyranids.

[Brother_Byhlli]

hey guys. a couple days ago i was at my local store and the topic of anti armor and anti MC came up. i said that all of my sergeants have a power fist and melta bombs. everyone else gave me weird looks and said that for the same points you could have a thunder hammer. supposedly the hammer is better because it makes enemies hit strike at I 1 and it auto shakes vehicles. although i like my loadout because it can handle MC just the same and the melta bombs can destroy a land raider (quite helpful when your forgetful opponent tank shocks a unit) so can i get some other opinions on which is better.

 

If you're set on spending all the points, take the thunderhammer. Personally I'd just stick a power fist on and be done with it.

 

The problem with melta bombs is that you only get one attack. The power fist or thunderhammer gives your Sergeant all three of his attacks, which makes you significantly more likely to damage the tank.

 

I think the only time I would take melta bombs is if I was massively short on points and I needed to find one last desperate shot at taking out a tank. But if you have the thirty points to spend, as I said earlier, my personal preference would be for thunderhammer every time.

[JamesI]

Thunderhammer. Knocking those Nid MCs (or even demon princes in chaos) to I1 is worth it.

[Losfer Werds]

I've got to agree with the previous posts, Thunder-hammer is the way to go if you're spending that many points. Power fists (without the meltas) are a little less expensive. I try to put a power-fist in any tactical unit that doesn't have any anti-armour weapons i.e. melta-gun or rocket launcher (except the one squad where the sergeant has a bolt pistol and a plasma pistol, that was just for sheer cool).

 

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j260/LosferWerds/2011-04-17_12-10-45_304.jpg

 

Need to sand the arm joint down a bit to bring the arm angles in a little more. I was going for a kind of "Cypheresque" pose.

[shan vener]

well one other problem that i face is that my assault squads look like this.

 

assault squad of 10, 2 flamers, sarge w/ power fist, melta bombs (2 of these)

 

assault squad of 10, 2 melta guns, sarge w/ power fist, melta bombs (2nd one in the works)

 

as you can see i dont have alot of mobile melta

[JMac]

Yeah, that is always a problem. You can always "count as" until you get enough models to make it happen. Go onto ebay and buy some melta gun bits, they are fairly cheap.

 

Now back to that list, you honestly won't need more than one unit with two flamers. Since you said you mostly face Chaos and Nids, those flamers likely won't do much. They will probably hurt the bugs the most, but any smart player won't leave his bugs template vulnerable. Beyond that, any experienced bug player will run a tervigon and cast FNP onto one of those squads giving them their 6+ save then their 4+ FNP. What I am trying to say, out of experience, running that many flamers tends to turn out useless for me.

 

However, if they're working in your meta, keep them! And here are some more ideas for some more anti-tank punch.

 

5 man Honor Guard Squad with jump packs and 4 meltas for 205 pts - These guys DoA in next to a mob of tanks and wreck shop.

 

2-3 Attack bikes (my newest addition to my army, and can't complain) with 2-3 multi-meltas for 100-150 pts - These guys turbo boost up the field, granting them a 3++ save, then next turn move 12" and fire away. Oh yeah, they are toughness 5 for determing to wound rolls against them and they are the only squad in our dex that has 2 wounds each.

 

Furioso Dread with Blood Fists with built in meltagun, magna grapple for 140 pts - This guy can be taken with transportation or without, either way he will tear apart some armor with 2 melta shots a turn and some str 10 attacks to follow up what he doesn't destroy. Plus he is AV13 in front making him quite durable.

[shan vener]

strange. they always get their points back for me.

[AbusePuppy]

Thunder Hammer vs Power Fist is not actually a big deal- if you're getting damage results, you are pretty much guaranteed to be doing something significant, and reducing people to I1 is irrelevant when they already were I1 (most MCs) or are dead (anything else hit by a Hammer.)

 

Melta Bombs are not an amazing option for their points, but they aren't horrible, either. The main issue is that S9+d6 with multiple attacks will generally be pretty on par with S8+2d6 and one attack, so you're not getting a lot out of them. However, if you see a lot of Land Raiders or Furioso Dreads, it's not a terrible deal.

[knife&fork]

Grenade attacks strike at initiative, can be pretty important, specially in a smaller unit that can't afford to take a lot of casualties.

[JamesI]

AbusePuppy, what Monsterous Creatures are you facing that are I1? Most I face are I5 or higher (Demon Princes, Hive Tyrants). The slow ones are I4. Very rare to see lower I MCs on the table.

[skawolf]

Hammer over fist, for all of the aforementioned reasons + the hammer looks way cooler.

[GreatEscape_13]

I figure that if I play ten games, there are nine that I may never use the meltabombs. But in that tenth, they're spectacular. So I say keep 'em, even w/ a fist/hammer.

 

Cheers.

[Captain Idaho]

Got to disagree with people regarding the effectiveness of Thunder Hammers. Most targets are killed by them in a single hit, the ones which aren't are MCs and Ork Warbosses and the occassion Tyranid.

 

Of the models not killed by them, you can't really kill the models before they strike with the Thunder Hammer in the next turn anyway, since they would strike simultaneously with you.

 

Consider this example:

 

Full Assault squad charges a Trygon, causing a wound by shooting. The Trygon attacks with the Marines in assault, killing 4 Assault Marines. Return attacks take off a wound. The Thunder Hammer swings and takes off say 2 wounds through luck. Then next turn the Assault Marines (who don't die from No Retreat) will be lucky to take the last 2 wounds before it strikes, thus the Trygon still get's it's return attacks.

 

Sure that is a specific example, but most circumstances in a game end up like this. Tactical sergeants do even worse with Thunder Hammers.

 

Basically, if you have to spend the extra 5pts on something, you better off with melta bombs than Thunder Hammers instead of Power Fists because you will likely get more use out of them.

[knife&fork]

Meltabombs definitely have their place.

It's also a 5 point tank shock insurance.

[ieat daemon corn]

the TH and PF are both good but i would just have a fist no melta bombs

 

 

I use 2 Assault squads x2 melta guns Sgts Power wep so i just shoot Vehicles i have 2 Vindies and 2 baal preds for Mc and Vehicles

[Mutters]

Fists are insurance. For 4 of them (and melta bombs) you can buy a Dreadnought. That's how I price them.