Which Special Character for a Termie Squad?

[Montuhotep]

Okay, this one has doubtless been asked many hundreds of times but since Searchy appears to be a little flukey this evening, here we go again:

 

 I have a 10 strong Termie gun squad that I roll out for 2000 point games. 10 Stormbolters, 2 Cyclone Launchers. To this point I have been using Lysander for the bolter reroll and his big hitting stick of hittiness. However, I now think that Shrike may be a worthy inclusion instead, IF Termies can infiltrate.

 

 On the understanding that a large hunk of Terminator Armour in his face is going to be something my opponent will have to deal with right from the get-go. Thus potentially causing disruption to his entire force. The fact that infiltrators cannot assault on the turn they use this rule is immaterial to me. Survivability is fairly high to start with and powerfists still strike last anyway, so to my thinking not much of a loss.

 

 And even if they can't infiltrate, a unit of Fleet Terminators is good for a laugh just from the sheer image if nothing else (plus I won't risk a deep strike mishap or similar).

 

 So, CAN they infiltrate and if so, is it a decent idea or stupid as Hell?

 

 Thoughts, gentlemen?

[Naminé]

It could work I think. Fleet will keep them in action, too.

 

Theres nothing to say that termies can't infiltrate with shrike in the squad.

[Giga]

They can infiltrate, but keep in mind it's unlikely your ~650 pts unit is going to be able to do all that much damage.

 

First turn they're going to get shot up by every AP2 gun in the opponent's army and with only 5+/5++ they aren't very survivable. Even if the rest of your army consists of some REALLY nasty stuff, it's still not all that great of an idea to spend a third of your point on a deathstar that isn't going to do much except die on first turn.

 

If, however, you replaced the tactical terminators with assault terminators, you might be able to survive a lot more punishment and actually get into the assault. 

[DarkGuard]

With that unit, you use either Lysander, a TDA/SS/FA Libby with Gate and Null Zone, or Cassius. The former and latter soak up damage well, allowing you to take hits that might overwhelm your 2+/5++. Lysander is the better choice here due to EW, W4 and Bolter Drill, which really makes the unit nasty.

 

I actually use it with Lysander and the Libby, as they both have storm shields to soak up hits, makes the unit a lot nastier, and allows me to move them unexpectedly.

 

With Shrike, he's not so great with that particular unit. You want as much shooting out of them as possible before getting into CC, hence why you walk them. If you infiltrate a Terminator unit with Shrike, make it Assault Terminators. More likely to stand up against anything your opponent will throw at them, and more deadly in assault as in they're harder to kill. You're also not wasting points on shooting when you're hardly going to be doing it.

[Muctar]

I agree with DarkGuard, Lysander is definitely the way to go, with the GoI libby in support if you have the points. Lysander adds so much to the unit that he's too good to pass up, while the libby can add even more survivability as well as utility.

[W0lfie]

<p>It depends if you include forgeworld characters or not.  From the standard codex line up? I think you might want to stay with either Lysander, or just grab a SS librarian instead.  Librarian can buff the unit (especially with Biomancy and, to a lesser extent, pyromancy) or debuff their targets (biomancy, telekinesis, codex powers) or just sit there and be an extra tough terminator with an improved DTW.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Lysander just adds so much to the unit, especially survivability while he's out front, as well as actually making their shooting strong enough to be worth skipping the stormshields and making them stubborn.  </p>

<p> </p>

<p>If you're willing to go forgeworld, then Tyberos the Red Wake makes them melee monstrosities (Furious Charge, Rage, Preferred Enemy, as well as Tyberos himself being there), Mordaci Blaylock makes them scoring and Carab Culln fits with them very well (MC relic blade, MC SB) and because of his stupidly high number of attacks, can help the unit deal with threats it otherwise would not be optimal to deal with (i.e. conscripts, ork boyz, gaunts) and being a great duellist to boot.  In fact, for just 5 points more than Lysander, you can have Sevrin Loth, which would be awesome.  Ivanus Enkomi would work as well, giving them +2A on the charge and acting as a chaplain.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Generally I would avoid Shrike, not because he is bad or doesn't buff the unit or anything, but simply because he is fragile when you consider the threats terminators are expected to deal with.  Plus, you are not putting his jump pack to good use! ...And he will never contribute to their shooting.  Maybe consider the Khan?</p>

[roryokane]

What about Calgar in the Armour of Antilochus?

[Forza St. Pauli]

What about Calgar in the Armour of Antilochus?

Calgar in TDA is always a good idea. He's a monster!

[W0lfie]

 

What about Calgar in the Armour of Antilochus?

Calgar in TDA is always a good idea. He's a monster!

Not so helpful with terminators, however.  He doesn't really buff them in any significant way (i.e. Lysander boosts their shooting, shrike gives them fleet, forgeworld characters can either make them choppier/scoring etc.)

[DarkGuard]

Calgar is a force multiplier for the whole army, plus a beatstick. He's very expensive, so you need to make sure you get the most out of him.

 

For Terminators, he's worst than running Lysander with them. But if you don't like Stubborn but want a durable SC who can beat face in combat, he's your man.

[W0lfie]

An interesting thought: If you take khan, on top of being able to abuse outflanking Furious Charge terminators in a Land Raider, you could have the rest of your outflank to support them.  A problem a lot of deathstars encounter is getting pulled away from their support and torn up.  Not an issue if the support swings off the table edge for a drive-by in their rhino.