[HH1.0] Word Bearer's Tactics

[dethric]

 

 

Where are you getting +3 to strength?

Axe Rake/Power Axe, Dark Channeling and Furious Charge.

 

 

Axe, check. Dark Channeling, check. Furious Charge, what?

 

My bad, looks that I have been cheating for a while with my Warp Talons/Raptors, for some reason I had got into my head that JP gave reroll charge + FC (instead of HoW) if they didn't use their JPs in the movement phase.

Edited October 8, 2015 by dethric

[Lord Asvaldir]

 

 

Have no fear, he gets access to Divination instead. Precog Lorgar is not to be trifled with.

 

 

I guess I can't really complain about that, divination is a pretty awesome lore as well. 

[Arac]

Please mind that if you Play Lorgar and Zardu Ashen Circle can't become Troops. If Lorgar is present Zardu can't be Warlord and the AshenCircle=Troops perk comes from the Warlord Trait of Zardu.

[Marshal Loss]

Hey guys,

 

I've decided to do a 2,500 point WB army myself for a tournament in January. It's a 'narrative' event, but I fully expect a bizarre mixture of tough and soft lists, luck of the draw really. So I kind of have to hit the sweet point of having an army that isn't terrible without going full insane ridiculous. To that end, I'm avoiding the bulk of daemon summoning shenanigans. There will be no full Knight armies there, although some will have 1-2 allied.

 

Zardu Layak

Centurion - Power fist, Tainted Weapon, melta bombs, artificer armour, refractor field

 

10x Tacticals - Rhino, Power fist, melta bombs

10x Tacticals - Rhino, Power fist, melta bombs

 

10x Gal Vorbak - Dark Martyr has power fist/artificer armour/melta bombs, 2x power maul

 

Spartan Assault Tank - Flare Shield, Armoured Ceramite, Dozer Blade

Deredeo - Autocannons, Missile Launcher

Sicaran Venator

 

Glaive

 

It's light on troops but heavy on firepower. The main reason it has tons of tanks/vehicles and not so many Word Bearers is that I'm basically starting the army based off a bunch of Word Bearers my friend Brad doesn't want (he is starting another army also for this event after playing Word Bearers this year) and adding in a bunch of vehicles I hadn't used for my Sons of Horus.

 

I'd like to keep the Glaive in there if possible, just because it's a sick model. I also figured that Zardu could keep summoning Daemons to make up for the few troop options, while the rhinos were left in reserve. Keep buffing the Gal Vorbak with Cursed Earth and just let them rip faces off.

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated. I was contemplating dropping the Deredeo for Graviton Rapiers or Quad Mortars, but then I'd have literally no anti-air. Maybe the Venator should be dropped too? But then I lose my instant "your Typhon sucks" button.

Edited October 18, 2015 by Marshal Loss

[dethric]

I also figured that Zardu could keep summoning Daemons to make up for the few troop options, while the rhinos were left in reserve. Keep buffing the Gal Vorbak with Cursed Earth and just let them rip faces off.

Zardu Layak is level 2 and you need 7-8 dice to summon daemons with a high chance of success (over 75%), so having him summon daemons while also expecting him to cast other powers is not realistic in my opinion.

On average you will have 3.5 dice per turn, which would put you at 50-66% chance of success if you only summon one group of daemons. The tactic you mention relies heavily on you getting lucky the first turn to summon in some Warp Batteries. If you want to go down the summoning route, I would include an allied detachment of daemons to have a couple of extra charges.

[Marshal Loss]

That's true. I did state I don't want to go down the heavy summoning route though, I'll likely just take my chances and hopefully manage to snag a unit or two throughout the game as an objective holder to make up for the relatively light numbers of troops. Even a single successful summon will drastically increase my chances of holding multiple objectives. And unfortunately anyway, there really isn't any space at all for allied daemons without cutting out a heavy support choice. Appreciate the thoughts though

[fesojnaibaf]

I dont see a lot of love for Mhara Gal, any reason why?

Ive just started a WB force and bought it, as its a sweet model and has pretty cool rules...

[WolfOfHorus]

Great model. Interesting rules, but overpriced.

[Marshal Loss]

Hopefully they reduce the points a little when they redo the red books next year.

[fesojnaibaf]

It's a shame because he's awesome really.

[depthcharge12]

They'll likely drop the points now that the Leviathan dread is out and probably does better for about the same points.

[Hesh Kadesh]

Not really sure why. It's a WS6 I5, Move Through Cover, LoS Blocking ignoring monster, with 5 S10 AP2 attacks at I5 forcing enemy models to reroll their invulnerable saves with a Bolter or 2 firing Blind Shots and forcing enemies under T7 to hit on a -1, while its Fear tests are at a -2. 

 

So, if your character passes the Initiative Tests for Blind Saves, AND passes the Fear Tests, AND survives the I5 Attack routine which instant kills him and forces his 4++ to be rerolled, he is hitting on a 5+ against an AV13 Dreadnought with a 5++ Invulnerable, 4HP and IWND. 

 

For fun;

 

4x Mhara Gal = 1220pts

 

Allied Macrotek Archmagos, Jetpack, Cyber Familiar = 150pts

Tech-priest Auxilia, 4 Servo Arms, Triaros Conveyer = 210pts

Tech-priest Auxilia, 4 Servo Arms, Triaros Conveyer = 210pts

Tech-priest Auxilia, 4 Servo Arms, Triaros Conveyer = 210pts

 

= 2000pts, leaves 1000pts of army. Basically rush forward with all of the Mhara Gal causing Panic Tests at -1 with the S8 Plasma Cannon, while keeping them alive with the 4 Battlesmiths. Silly, spammy army.

[Caillum]

Another thing is that while the Mhara Gal is a bit costly points-wise, they are cheap £-wise! And BS3 doesn't matter much with a Blast weapon - it's nice that it's at Strength 8 for Instant Death against Marines! Just keep it away from your Daemons, Psykers and other Mhara Gal...

 

Would like to see more of them out there!

[Marshal Loss]

Worth noting also is that if you play ZM, the Mhara Gal is insanely good!

[Terminus]

Hopefully they reduce the points a little when they redo the red books next year.

That goes for regular contemptors too.

[Arac]

I can confirm the MG's worth in ZM. Jumping through walls is a danger that the enemy simply cannot ignore. He is not able to anticipate your movements as well as with the other Units.  

[Seahawk]

Starting up a Word Bearers force via the BaC box. That'll give me:

 

- 2 characters (likely will just be the requisite dudes)

- 2 Contemptors (one is 2x asscann, the other will be magnetized with 2 multimeltas and 2 more asscanns as options

- 30 marine bodies

- 5 Cataphractii (might bump these over to my Ultramarines)

 

So with the daemonic allies aspect I know I want to make use of my vast daemons collection as well. Thus, would it be advisable to build the WB part for shooting, and the daemons part for assault? Such as:

 

- Diabolist

- Chaplain/Centurion

 

- Mhara Gal - 2 warpfire plasma cannons

- Mortis Contemptor - 2 asscanns

- Mortis Contemptor - 2 meltas or asscanns

 

- 10 Tactical - Sergeant w/ arty armor, power fist

> Rhino

- 10 Tactical - Sergeant w/ arty armor, power fist
> Rhino

- 5 Support - volkite chargers/plasma guns/melta (which do I choose?)

> Rhino

- 5 Support - volkite chargers/plasma guns/melta (which do I choose?)

> Rhino

 

 

Still debating on the support squads. I could either have them mobile, or go 10 strong and take 10 calivers.

 

That leaves me with some points for daemons I reckon. Not sure whether I go for a greater daemon/daemon prince, or heralds to improve daemon mobs. I've been thinking daemonettes or bloodletters for troops, and maybe Fiends or Exalted Chariots for lots of rending punch.

 

I just want to make sure I have enough anti-heavy armor in the WB part to allow the daemons a chance at the gooey innards. 

[depthcharge12]

What about a Kharybdis with 8 terminators, a chaplain, and Hol Beloth?

 

It's a fast heavy assault unit that gains WS5 plus rerolls for a turn on top of fearless from the chaplain. Toss in a few mixed weapons or combi weapons and you're golden. Use it as an anvil for your assault marines, Gal Vorbak, or Adhen Circle to hammer your enemy against.

 

Or drop Beloth, and take a bunch of Gal Vorbak with the Chaplain in a Kharybdis for an unstoppable unit. Maybe toss in a Primus Medicae with the ++ save debuffer.

[xera32]

That leaves me with some points for daemons I reckon. Not sure whether I go for a greater daemon/daemon prince, or heralds to improve daemon mobs. I've been thinking daemonettes or bloodletters for troops, and maybe Fiends or Exalted Chariots for lots of rending punch.

 

If you want rending punch avoid fiends or chariots. The seeker has 3x the damage output per point than the fiends, and are about as tough as them. Fiends have always underperformed for me as they constantly get killed by S8 shooting, or just don't hit enough. Seekers have the same attacks, for a third the price, with a higher WS and don't suffer to being ID'd by S8. The chariots are just garbage.

[depthcharge12]

Has anyone considered taking an athame on a biomancy burning lore character? You might get the Iron arm power and it would be hilarious to have a strength 7 AP2 instant death weapon (using the power) for challenges :P

 

It's nowhere near gauranteed, but if you run multiple characters it might pay off lol

[Marshal Loss]

Yeah, I do that. I run a Centurion with a power fist + tainted weapon combo, with burning lore - if I get either Iron Arm or Warp Speed, he becomes very, very nasty indeed!

[dethric]

Has anyone considered taking an athame on a biomancy burning lore character? You might get the Iron arm power and it would be hilarious to have a strength 7 AP2 instant death weapon (using the power) for challenges

 

It's nowhere near gauranteed, but if you run multiple characters it might pay off lol

Well, you should have about 40-45% chance to pull it off with 3 burning lore characters, try it.

The only problem I see is that since you are taking a chance on getting it, you still have to kit all the characters to function without Iron Arm too, which means investing quite a lot of points into them.

I think I will keep the Athames on my Dark Martyrs S5 Rending Instant Death is enough for me

[Flint13]

 

Has anyone considered taking an athame on a biomancy burning lore character? You might get the Iron arm power and it would be hilarious to have a strength 7 AP2 instant death weapon (using the power) for challenges

 

It's nowhere near gauranteed, but if you run multiple characters it might pay off lol

Well, you should have about 40-45% chance to pull it off with 3 burning lore characters, try it.

The only problem I see is that since you are taking a chance on getting it, you still have to kit all the characters to function without Iron Arm too, which means investing quite a lot of points into them.

I think I will keep the Athames on my Dark Martyrs S5 Rending Instant Death is enough for me

 

 

Small pedantic point. We're talking about tainted weapons, not Athames. There were only 8 Athames held by chief powers of the XVIIth. Rando characters in the legion just had small, less effective copies. Cultists and Militia operating under the Word Bearers certainly never got their hands on any legit Athames ^_^

 

But, putting one on a Dark Martyr is an idea that had not occurred to me until now. 

 

I've just been avoiding using them with the Word Bearers entirely and using them with my allied cultists, one on the demagogue one on the biomancer alpha pskyer, since they are both rending and only 5pts per tainted weapon.

[Hesh Kadesh]

Can Dark martyrs take them? They don't have Legiones Astartes (Word Bearers)

[Caillum]

Yeah, I just checked that too - it simply says "Any Word Bearers character with the option to take a power weapon may take a tainted weapon instead at the same cost."

 

Seems like they can to me!