Deathwing Deployment

[captain sox]

He everyone,

 

Just a quick question or 2 about DW deployment. Do many of you deploy your DW troops via Deep Strike? do you use the DW Assault at all? or is your preference placeing them on the table like 'regular' troop choices? Do different enemies require diffent deployment tactics?

 

Thanks!

[Chaplain Lucifer]

I only deploy DW via deepstrike using DW assault... and only when there are RW on the table to use teleport homers.

only against armies I want to get close fast (Tau for ex) and only If I get first turn.. Or if I have 2nd turn and no place to conceal the army to my likings.

[BigGumbo]

I use DW Assault with homers and hope the bikers last long enough to guide the rest in when they turn up - generally not a problem as I tend to limit reserves to three squads, so two arrive on turn 1 leaving only one to risk mishap. Minimum RW deployment tends to be one 3-man squad and an Attack Bike so there's usually a homer still on the table after one enemy shooting phase...

[EPK]

Same as Cpt. Lucifer. And since I got RW out of my typical list, I never DW assault anymore.

[RayJ]

Usually, i deep strike a single squad (the command squad), with everything else on the table. My RW squads are usually outflanking. Some situations might call for an aggressive RW-assisted strike of 3+ terminator squads on turn 1, but most of the time, it's better to have those bodies shooting missiles.

[Interrogator Stobz]

As I often play against DoA BA and other 'fire' style aggressive lists, I often set up a group of 2-3 DWS near home base as a castle and keep the rest (1-2) in normal reserve, that way when he DS's in and attacks me I can choose the assaults of the reserved units. My opponent is very good at controlling combats and I need to retain some reserve units to counter attack. Luck of the reserve dice decides the game sometimes though :)

 

s

[Brother Kovash]

If I have the initiative, I usually deploy a few squads with CML, and use Deathwing assault for the rest. There have been times I have deferred the initiative to my opponent to see how they deploy, and if they expect my to deepstrike, I deploy my whole force to counter their deployment. I rarely use Ravenwing when I play, but when I do I use my scout moves to get in position, and then deepstrike with my teleport homers to guide me.

[shabbadoo]

Ditto on what Chaplain Lucifer and EPK said. The fault lies not with the Deathwing Assault rule, but with the Deepstrike and Reserves rules. Just ask Daemon players how "awesome" it is to have huge chunk of your army not be fully available in first few turns of a game. A full Deathwing army operates under similar conditions to a Daemon army, ergo Deathwing Assault is just about as "awesome".

[riddles]

i tend to mix it up.

 

at 1750 i'm running 5 DW squads. I have put all 5 into reserve precisely once. More likely, i'll deploy 2 and DWA 2, or deploy 4 and DWA 1. That way i'm leaving, at maximum, 1 DW squad in reserve.

 

it entirely depends on my opponent, his army list, the mission etc.

 

for example, in multiple objective missions against meched up imperial guard, i'll stick 3 in reserve and deploy 2, on objectives in my half of the table. I'll drop 2 as close as close as possible to my opponent first turn, trying to get cover saves from at least some of the ap2 templates. hopefully my 10 missiles (2 terminator squads and 3 typhoons) will shake a couple of the other ap2 death tanks, meaning i can fire with my 2 squads and not worry about it. alternatively, I run to spread out for templates and take the hits on storm shields. Next turn i'm going after those tanks in combat to eliminate mobility.

 

capture and control is the only mission where i'd consider reserving all 5, with 3 dropping down (1 command squad, 1 with belial, 1 with chaplain or libby) to make a go of contesting my enemies objective and the other 2 will come down to claim mine.

 

I don't buy into deep striking without bikes either. intelligent deepstrike placement is mostly safe. Dangerous terrain is a 1 in 6 chance and you have storm shield invuns. as long as you don't have a mishap you're fine.

[BigGumbo]

Dangerous terrain is a 1 in 6 chance and you have storm shield invuns. as long as you don't have a mishap you're fine.

 

That's true but my recent record with TDA armour saves means I never take it for granted. Five guys 'porting into difficult terrain => 2 or more wounds at the moment :blink:

[riddles]

bad times! it's still not terribly difficult to deep strike in the open. average scatter is 7 inches. you scatter 2 out of 3 times.

 

if you're going at side armour, you want to place further away because front armour is usually a smaller area for you to scatter into.

[march10k]

It really depends...I run several different DW lists, depending on my mood. My mechanized list doesn't use DWA at all, I can barely cram three land raiders and four squads into 1750, And I need the mars pattern and the two CMLs (I only actually mount two of the squads, the other raider is there for fire support and to help overload the enemy's AV14-management potential) firing from turn one. My black/white list with termies, bikes, and dreads puts three squads into reserve, DWAing two of them off of the single ravenwing squadron. And my termie "horde" list with five terminator squads, an interrogator-led attack squadron, and not much else, doesn't generally DWA more than a single squad, and that depends on the opponent.

[shortysl]

I only ever use Deathwing Assault/Deep Strike against particularly squishy foes that DON'T want a nice expensive squad of terminators near them (guard, tau etc.). Against other foes (blood angels, orks) it's near suicidal so they get deployed as normal so that i can make use of their firepower to thin out the opponent's ranks. I've found that Deep Striking a terminator assault squad is just stupid unless you have exceptional positioning.

[march10k]

I only ever use Deathwing Assault/Deep Strike against particularly squishy foes that DON'T want a nice expensive squad of terminators near them (guard, tau etc.). Against other foes (blood angels, orks) it's near suicidal so they get deployed as normal so that i can make use of their firepower to thin out the opponent's ranks. I've found that Deep Striking a terminator assault squad is just stupid unless you have exceptional positioning.

 

That's because only an idiot deepstrikes precisely five or six terminators that way. You need mass if you're going that route at all. Try flooding one end of the enemy deployment zone with eleven terminators and seven or eight bikes, and you've instantly achieved overwhelming local superiority AND turned the enemy's flank. All thoughts of advancing towards your own deployment zone are abandoned as he scrambles to come about and face the thousand points that you just dumped in his lap out of the reach of most of his shooting.

[riddles]

That's because only an idiot deepstrikes precisely five or six terminators that way. You need mass if you're going that route at all. Try flooding one end of the enemy deployment zone with eleven terminators and seven or eight bikes, and you've instantly achieved overwhelming local superiority AND turned the enemy's flank. All thoughts of advancing towards your own deployment zone are abandoned as he scrambles to come about and face the thousand points that you just dumped in his lap out of the reach of most of his shooting.

 

this.

 

DWA is a tool in your tactical armoury, not the sole way you go about battle. only practise and knowledge of opposition armies will impart you with the ability to know when it is the best option.

[shortysl]

I only ever use Deathwing Assault/Deep Strike against particularly squishy foes that DON'T want a nice expensive squad of terminators near them (guard, tau etc.). Against other foes (blood angels, orks) it's near suicidal so they get deployed as normal so that i can make use of their firepower to thin out the opponent's ranks. I've found that Deep Striking a terminator assault squad is just stupid unless you have exceptional positioning.

 

That's because only an idiot deepstrikes precisely five or six terminators that way. You need mass if you're going that route at all. Try flooding one end of the enemy deployment zone with eleven terminators and seven or eight bikes, and you've instantly achieved overwhelming local superiority AND turned the enemy's flank. All thoughts of advancing towards your own deployment zone are abandoned as he scrambles to come about and face the thousand points that you just dumped in his lap out of the reach of most of his shooting.

 

I'm going to assume that you're not, in fact, specifically referring to me being an idiot with your comment. As for your advice about doing it with eleven terminators and a number of bikes, the point i was trying to make about the nature of my foe is that they are typically Blood Angels or Orks; both of whom have no problem with overwhelming a dozen terminators and half a dozen bikes in close combat, and both of whom will typically thank you reducing the number of turns it takes them to earn 4-5 kill points.

[Chaplain Lucifer]

I think march10k was agreeing with you, reinforcing the point that you can see a single terminator squad DSing willy-nilly and expect them to survive (or accomplish anything for that matter).

[riddles]

I'm going to assume that you're not, in fact, specifically referring to me being an idiot with your comment. As for your advice about doing it with eleven terminators and a number of bikes, the point i was trying to make about the nature of my foe is that they are typically Blood Angels or Orks; both of whom have no problem with overwhelming a dozen terminators and half a dozen bikes in close combat, and both of whom will typically thank you reducing the number of turns it takes them to earn 4-5 kill points.

 

whatcha gonna do if he is, hmm? FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!

 

the eleven terminators and bikes point works better with the likes of imperial guard, who end up blocking line of sight to you with their own tanks, allowing you to cut a bloody swathe through them before the executioners/demolishers can eat you up (and even then - storm shields ftw!). which i believe if the point both of you were making.

 

Horde orks require you to deploy waaaaaay back and template spam them until you are forced to counter charge.

 

Blood angels are fast, but unless they're in jump packs or land raiders, they can't charge you when you drop. that decision though, depends entirely on the mission.