Codex Marines versus Monstrous Creatures

[PyronusSouria]

Anyone else find assault cannons help a ton?

[Captain Idaho]

Assault Cannons rule! That's why I can't leave my Heavy Gunner Dread at home when I take the 5th Company to war! An Autocannon and Assault Cannon hurts most things and even MCs with decent saves will take so many wounds, as well as the odd rend, they suffer a wound or 2 regardless.

[Coopervisor]

My regular CSM opponent sometimes plays two winged, warptime, nurgle princes. Can make it tough to drop them before they reach something. I find that null zone helps, especially if you can put out a lot of AP3/2/1 fire (plasma, meltas, lascannons, krak missiles). It may sound simple, but it's also worth firing anything at them. The amount of times that final wound has been knocked off by a boltgun. It's all about forcing them to take saves, they will fail them eventually.

 

A one off game, I managed to charge one with Ashmantle (special dreadnought from IA10) who I was trying out at the time, the look on his face when he realised I'd just hit him with something he couldn't touch was quite funny.

[Laughingdagger]

Hammernators or sternguard or dreadnought(s) or predators. We have many tools.

[ShinyRhino]

Good suggestions, everyone.

Some of the ideas folks have posed are definitely viable (torrents/volleys of S7+/AP3,2,1 weapons). It becomes a race against time when facing three MCs on the board at once, sadly. Tanks I can handle, but MCs with an 18" assault threat range, not so much.

In the past, I've used Typhoons to good effect against Tyranid MCs. I can drop a Carnifex or Trygon in one turn, but it's the Daemons that hurt the most, because of the wings. The ability to hide outside LOS or behind hill cover for a 4+ save effectively halves my damage output. If it takes a full turn of shooting to kill one MC on a good day, and that is halved, I quickly fall behind the 8-ball in taking down all those Princes and Greater Daemons.

 

Hilariously, one of the ways I've managed to take down some big beasties in the past has been the hail mary bolter blitz. My heavy bolter attack bikes are notorius for taking down MCs with twinned bolter fire and heavy bolter shots. Hardly reliable, and you don't want to plan around it.

 

Dreadnoughts have never been of much use in taking down MCs for me. The low rate of fire and extreme vulnerability in melee combine into a poor matchup. My ancients end up punched out of their sarcophagi and eaten :).

 

Sternguard are one unit I've always wanted to field, but never have. Someday!

[carnosaur93]

i havnt tried dealing with MC's playing marines, yet... but if my group started showing up with MC's regulary (we are 3 nid collecters afterall, even if not having played them yet, me being one of them), i would be sure to allways include atleast a full unit of sniper scouts with hellfire HB... atleast if not having the points for a drop pod full of sternguards...

[Coopervisor]

Dreadnoughts have never been of much use in taking down MCs for me. The low rate of fire and extreme vulnerability in melee combine into a poor matchup. My ancients end up punched out of their sarcophagi and eaten :(.

 

The dreadnought I was refereing to was the BRAY'ARTH ASHMANTLE special charecter from IA10. He has a rule that means MC (also melta, etc) don't get their extra D6 to roll for penetration, that and being armour 13 at the front means my opponent's demon prince ended up being up able to hurt him. Not a usable tactic I know, but was funny in that one instance. Obviously a flying MC can pick it's fights and avoid the big bad dreadnought.

[Kay]

Ever tried tigurius?

Cast quickening, cast might of the ancients, charge. 4 mastercrafted attacks at str6 and I10, pray to cause 1W, then ID them. Usually those MC that have eternal warrior have poor saves (ctans) in these cases, tigurius goes with the sternguard. Cast null zone and then hellfire them to death.

 

Tigurius+10 sternguards with 3 or 4 combimeltas, maybe 1 or 2 heavy flamers, PF if u like, and a rhino. That's around 525 or so points, but they are a very versatile unit, with a huge dmg output. You can even save the rhino and gate to infinity them around...

[DarkGuard]

And if he fails he's got a strong chance of being killed easily, not just through ID from a Carnifex etc, but just because MCs tend to be S5+ and ignore armour, so they'll cut him down unless he's using Force Dome, and even then he might still die.

[Captain Idaho]

Ever tried tigurius?

Cast quickening, cast might of the ancients, charge. 4 mastercrafted attacks at str6 and I10, pray to cause 1W, then ID them. Usually those MC that have eternal warrior have poor saves (ctans) in these cases, tigurius goes with the sternguard. Cast null zone and then hellfire them to death.

 

Tigurius+10 sternguards with 3 or 4 combimeltas, maybe 1 or 2 heavy flamers, PF if u like, and a rhino. That's around 525 or so points, but they are a very versatile unit, with a huge dmg output. You can even save the rhino and gate to infinity them around...

 

My problem with this advice is the 10 Sternguard would suceed or fail regardless of Tigurius' interference. He just isn't worth the points in my humble opinion.

 

Sorry to dispute it so strongly, I just rarely see a place in a list for Tigurius which isn't just as well served by another, cheaper choice. He is only 20pts cheaper than Calgar (35pts in Terminator armour)!

 

Shame really because I love his fluff.

[Iron Father Ferrum]

I have to agree with Tiggy being too expensive for general use. The only time I'd take him is in an all-pod army, where the reroll to Reserves would come in handy.