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Best tank unit


irwit

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Hi all

 

I'm just coming up with ideas for a new list and wondering what would be the best tanking unit we can take for our army or via allies?

 

Obviously anything with a storm shield is good and I have heard about corbollo who must be a real pain in the backside to finish off. Are there any other combos out there worth looking at ? Also any combos worth looking at? Aegis defence line + shrouding being another but not really tanking I guess?

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Tanking isn't really a phrase that is used a lot in tabletop gaming, as the MMO concept of a Tank generally relies on exploiting the programming in a game's artificial intelligence. A human opponent will just try shooting at something else! :P I do see what you are getting at though, so my answer would be anything that either has a high Toughness stat or a good invulnerable save, and can get up and in your opponent's face as quickly as possible to "force" the opponent to deal with them first, thereby protecting weaker units.

 

Deep striking TH/SS terminators is the obvious choice, but there are others. Bikes can be used aggressively, being protected by their T5 and jink save, and being fast enough to get into the enemy lines pretty quickly. Large AV14 units, such as Land Raiders, can physically protect either infantry inside them, or weaker units hiding behind them.

 

[EDIT - this question is probably best answered in the Tactica forum however] :D

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Hmmm - Biomancy can give Mephiston T9, with a 2+ save and 5 wounds he would take a lot to kill, but no ++ save, though he is probably one of the quickest 'tank' individual models. Or you have something like Lysander with a 2+, a 3++ and EW... Calgar gets a mention in the Armour of Antilochus, but is probably slightly worse than Lysander...

 

Maybe a Deathwing Term Squad (all TH/SS and a Cyclone Luancher maybe) - guaranteed first turn deep strike, hard to kill and a threat to anything? Downside being limited squad size there, and the enemy can always just take the 2 cyclone shots per turn and run away from them to minimise damage till they can deal with them...

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LoTD is a great "tank unit" if I understand the term. Every model is 3++, slow and purposeful, firing the heavy weapons as they move forward, remeber the old old joke that had a punchline of the guy walking by saying "tank...tank...tank...", yeah, these are those guys....
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If you want a tank, as in, something to lure as much enemy fire to it as possible, then vindicators are where it's at. People will expend enormous amounts of shooting to take them out.

 

Aside from that, a land raider filled with assault termies will draw huge amounts of fire. Another deathstar you can consider is a bike command squad kitted out for close combat, but I don't think this is a good unit.

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Hmmm - Biomancy can give Mephiston T9, with a 2+ save and 5 wounds he would take a lot to kill, but no ++ save

 

Not to mention it can give him Feel no Pain/Eternal Warrior/It will not die... Sure it'd take some lucky rolling, but my god

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Toughness 9, that would be awesome! FnP would be easier to give him via sanguinary priest though ?

 

So look out sir, lets say you have meph up front and a storm shield termie behind. Bolter fire has to hit meph and bounces off as he is in front. If a lascanon shot comes in when do I choose to make a LoS save?

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Toughness 9, that would be awesome! FnP would be easier to give him via sanguinary priest though ?

 

So look out sir, lets say you have meph up front and a storm shield termie behind. Bolter fire has to hit meph and bounces off as he is in front. If a lascanon shot comes in when do I choose to make a LoS save?

 

Mephiston doesn't have independent character so cannot join units, he has to act alone so can never benefit from a look out sir.

 

If you used a different character who could join the unit you use the "mixed saves" wound allocation method.

- take the first wound and allocate it to the closest model (when measured from the unit shooting at them)

- if that model is a character you could then attempt a look out sir

(if not a character the target model gets their save (if any), if they fail they take a wound)

- if the look out sir is passed, the closest model to the character takes the wound instead, resolve it as above

- if the look out sir is failed, the character has the wound resolved against him as above.

 

Laterz...

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Toughness 9, that would be awesome! FnP would be easier to give him via sanguinary priest though ?

 

True, just keep him in that 6" blood chalice bubble and you're away laughing. Nasty. Gonna have to try this out some time.

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Toughness 9, that would be awesome! FnP would be easier to give him via sanguinary priest though ?

 

True, just keep him in that 6" blood chalice bubble and you're away laughing. Nasty. Gonna have to try this out some time.

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The problem with Mephiston taking Biomancy powers is that he loses all his BA book powers...like the Wings of Sanguinius that allows him to actually reach the fight. If Mephy doesn't get that power off at least two turns in the game, he typically won't even make it into melee, so his T9 and other such grossness is largely wasted.
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The problem with Mephiston taking Biomancy powers is that he loses all his BA book powers...like the Wings of Sanguinius that allows him to actually reach the fight. If Mephy doesn't get that power off at least two turns in the game, he typically won't even make it into melee, so his T9 and other such grossness is largely wasted.

QFT. Im very happy when mephiston takes BGB powers since he loses much of his presence as an immediate threat and doesnt effect the board state nearly as much.

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If you are willing to go the FW route, Svrin Loth of the Red Scorpions is one of the toughest options out there.

 

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/Downloads/Prod...F/p/Psykers.pdf

 

Give him Biomancy (his rules give him PML 3 and six powers from a BGB psychic discipline) and use the Iron Arm and Endurance abilities on him. Combine that with Armor of Selket (2++ save when a warp charge is expended) and you have:

 

-Toughness 5-7, depending on your roll

-2++ armor save against all attacks

-Two wounds with EW and It Will Not Die

-FNP

 

Whether in a challenge, in normal combat, or leading a squad and absorbing LC hits to the face and shrugging them off, this guy is one of the best examples of a "Tank" that I can think of. The only weakness he has is his wounds (only 2), but this is mitigated by EW, It Will Not Die, and even his ability to use Life Leach on subsequent turns (remember, he knows all 6 Biomancy abilities, if you choose that discipline) to "regenerate" a lost wound back by causing an unsaved wound on an enemy unit.

 

Just to put it into perspective, it would take on average (32) BS4 Lascannon shots to kill him using this set-up. Alternately, it would take an average of (162) BS4 Bolter shots to torrent him down. And all of this does not take into account using Look out Sir! Rolls and his abilities to regenerate a lost wound due to It Will Not Die and Life Leach.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Put Sevrin Loth with some grey hunters with Enfeeble and Endurance. Charge into melee (make sure you rapid fire those relentless bolters and pop your wolf standard!)

 

Allocate all wounds to Loth, as he has a 98.9% chance of saving against any str 8 (-1 strength = 7) or less attack (2+, rerolled, followed by 5+, reroll 1s) and str 8 will not ID him. Moreover, enemies are at -1 strength (meaning that incoming wounds at strength 4 are reduced by 1/3 and at str 3 are reduced by 1/2).

 

If you're charging foes with str 9/10 then maybe use iron arm in place of enfeeble, but on the other hand, maybe not. 97% chance to save against instant death is still pretty decent in my books!

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