2000pts vs Nids

[Frontline989]

I have an upcoming battle with a nid player and I come here for advice. The last time I played him I lost due to not being able to kill enough of his army to come out on top with objectives. He fields all the nid mainstays such as genestealers, tervigons, trygons, warriors, and hive guard. I've got a LR Redeemer and a Vindicator so that should help with his swarms but Im worried about not being able to kill enough as well as getting shredded in CC by his MC's. Usually he'll screen his MC's with gaunts and then by the time my GH are out of their transports he gets in CC with his MC's and strikes before me and wipes the squad.

 

Ive got enough Long Fangs to field 4 ML, 2 PC, 2 LC, and 2 HB. Also I have enough GH for three squads and enough Wolf Guard to form a squad with a mixture of power weapons and fists. Ive also got a VenDread but he doesnt seem to fair well against Nids. MC's pop him easy or he could tar pit him. My initial strategy is to start in rhinos and b-line to cover to strike first in CC and blast away before he gets to me. Still worried about those MCs and if its an objective game he'll certainly swarm them and I'll have to fight to score them which might put my precious troops in jeopardy of getting swarmed in CC. Also if its a DoW deployment thats one less round of shooting with my LF before I get swarmed by his fleet units.

 

Im working on a list now that I'll post up later but any initial suggestions would be helpful.

[Quillen]

This is going to sound wierd but I get wins on Nids by tring to table them. I never bother with objectives till turn 4 or 5, I focus on killing as much as I can as fast as I can.

 

My old list was 2 10 man Grey Hunter packs in Rhinos 1 6 man Grey hunter pack in a razorback, 15 Blood claws with a heroe in a LRC (which rocks against Nids) and 3 Preditors (2 annilators and 1 destructor)

 

The other build I used was the same on Grey hunters But I went with 3 Spuads of plasma Cannons. This list tabled the other players by turn 4 or 5 and I rolled onto the objectives turn 6 to add insult to injury.

 

If he is rushing all objectives he is spreading out. You focus fire at one part then move on. Keep moving in mass and killing. Turn one you might have to give a little ground but you have 5 turns and usually 6. So do not sweat it turn 1 and 2. By turn 3 you need to be moving foward, but with 2 solid turns of firing you should have shredded him enough you can roll over him. I can't explain it, but this works for me almost always with Nids. Orks too. Give at first and then push farward. Drive them off.

 

The sad trueth about 40k is who ever gets hurt the worst first 2 turns loses. It's almost impossable to come back. Unless the guy your fighting forgets objectives. I have had this happen about 3 games when I was getting stomped but they got so focused on the stomping I was able to get the objectives. So cripple him the first 2 turns and them roll him. If you can't roll him you should have cleared a couple of objectives and be able to contest his and capture something you cleared.

 

Your Long fang packs should do awesome. I would go 3 Missile Launchers and 2 Las Cannons and 1 Missile Launcher and 2 Heavy bolters and 2 Plasma Cannons. Gaunts are not all that scarey. You can thin them out pretty easy. It's stealers and such that hurt. So kill the troops and then focus on the biggens.

 

Hoped that helps some.

[Wulfebane]

What HQ you running? A rune priest with MH and/or LL or JotWW is devastating to a 'nid player. The best use you can get out of JotWW, bar none, is taking out just a single Carnifex; although most other units have pretty good Initiatives, so its usage is minimal and/or circumstantial against nids. Any destruction caused after that is pure gravy.

[DV8]

Actually a fair number of Tyranid Monstrous Creatures have low Initiatives, and are thus incredibly vulnerable to Jaws of the World Wolf.

 

Carnifexes, Tervigons and Tyrannofexes are all Initiative 1, and will fall to Jaws on a 3+.

Hive Guard, Tyrant Guard, Tyranid Warriors, and Zoanthropes are Initiative 4 (but not Monstrous), and will fall to Jaws on a 5+.

 

Things to avoid with Jaws, unless you have no other targets: Hive Tyrants, Trygons, Mawlocs, and Broodlords. The latter is Initiative Ridiculous, and the rest fail on 6's (since Monstrous subtract 1 from their roll).

 

If you can manage to combine Jaws with Arjac's hammer throw, you suddenly open up a world of pain for Tyranids (the FAQ allows Arjac's Foehammer to reduce targets to Initiative 1 when hit by the shooting attack.)

 

 

Murderous Hurricane becomes amazingly good, not only for forcing wounds on big broods, but because it forces both Dangerous and Difficult terrain tests, slowing them down and causing wounds in their phase.

 

As always, target priority is key to beating Tyranids. Focus on Synapse if you can, but with the new Instinctive Behavior rules, it becomes less of a detriment to no longer be in Synapse (shooting units will still shoot, combat units will still run towards you). The only thing you remove is Fearless. Eliminate their firepower first, and target immediate combat threats (Outflanking Genestealers, broods of Hormagaunts, etc.) Whatever presents the greatest immediate threat to you, focus fire until that unit is no longer a threat and move on.

 

Also, very few Tyranids have access to Assault Grenades, so a great way to absorb a charge is to stay in cover. A squad of Grey Hunters has a very high chance of beating down a charging Genestealer unit if they stay in cover. If they get charged outside of cover, those Genestealers will have some nice grey pants to add to their collection.

 

 

DV8

[lfbruss]

I regularly play against a very good Nid player; we usually split battles (all mission types). But the best way to win is table him.

Nids will always come to you, but, I like to beat him to the punch when I can!

 

As DV8 mentioned, JoWW can do major damage to a Nid army. Your best friend however, will be a RP in a rhino casting MH, and then when able JoWW.

As long as you are in a rhino his shadow of the warp (12" range, 3d6 for casting powers) will have no effect.

 

With Arjac it gets a bit tricky, it is a good tactic, but you should not base the game on it because a few things have to line up right, Arjac has to be within 6", RP needs to cast JoWW (from vehicle, or get shadow of warp), and JoWW must be "lined up" so you get what Arjac's hammer hit. Like I said tricky but not impossible.

 

MH will give you the cover you need when assaulted, as the assaulting unit will be in dangerous and difficult terrain, you hit first. Plus with a large group of gaunts, it will wound on 4 and kill them when they move on a 1 (and each model has to test).

 

Missile LF are good, but if he drops doom near you (12") you test every movement phase to include his, near any foot troops for that matter, or outflanking steelers the LF's are in for trouble.

 

I use TW Lord with RA, FB, SS, WTN, WTT, SoWB + 2 TWC with SS. This unit allows me to tie up his MC and kill them he cannot instant death you because of the T5 and the S6 from the Lord help with the high T of some of his units.

 

I drop pod 2 units of hunters(X10), 1 unit with melta's 1 with plasma

RP with 9 GH in rhino,

Missile LF x4, AC razorback, with las/plas turret

Pred, auto cannon, HB sponsons

Lone Wolf w/ mark, SS, BP and 2 wolves

WG TDA (x3, + Arjac) with RP in TDA, Drop Pod

 

As you can tell a huge amount of my points 400+ are with my lord and TWC, but they have held their own many times and he tends to divert his big things at them or they will run through his army. I MH from the rhino, drop 1 GH (plasma) off by themselves or near the TWC, to split his forces and the other GH + WG near each other, the Pred and Razorback work with each other, and the rhino unit works as a mop up unit always casting MH or when able JoWW.

 

 

lfbruss

[Blacksad]

I'd drop the lasscannon fangs, use flamerbacks, and flamers or plasmaguns on my grey hunters. a whirlwind is nice, as are plasmacannon dreads (with heavy flamer ofc)

 

murderous hurricane and jaws, arjac, sniperscouts. keep to cover as much as possible, and if you can double tap him while you're in terrain, grin evilly.

 

I don't like landraiders vs nids, too easily destroyed. lots of points. same with lasscannon longfangs, not enough bang for their buck against mosts nids imo. if you have the points for it tough, fen wolves are rather good vs his hordes, specialy if you have a char with sage of the wolfkin (cheap WGBL?)

[dswanick]

I shocked a friend of mine once by charging his unit of 20 genestealers with a brood lord. Ragnar, a WGPL (Bolter/PW) and 10 grey hunters (power weapon and MotW) made mince meat of the lord and a bunch of stealers, then destroyed the rest of the unit on his assault phase.