bigted Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 Hi everyone I'm considering starting a guard army, and I was looking at getting a baneblade. Are they any good? What is the best way to use them? What about the other variants like the Stormsword or Doomhammer ect? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scatmandoo Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 Sorry I am no help as of yet, I am getting a Baneblade for Christmas. I too am interested in how they perform and will give insight once I use them in a game. I think as far as there isn't too much cover the tank can be quite useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorFish Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 Think of it as a scaled up Russ battle tank, as that's pretty much what it is with the associated benefits of being a super heavy :) Like the standard Russ it's more of a generalist and brings lots of fire power, but note that it doesn't quite bring "apocalypse grade" weaponry which you will need the variants to do. It can really form a backbone to a list for a price that isn't too bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girot Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 I've seen Baneblades wipe the table with infantry and armour alike. I cannot adequately express how much I love these models. Baneblades are by far my favorite tanks. They aren't invincible BUT they are crunchy as hell and can dish out some serious punishment. Remember, these bad boys are shooty models. Don't let monstrous creatures or nasty CC types get to close. An amusing example: One of my old crew wanted to see if his Abaddon could go toe-to-toe with my Baneblade (I think it was late 4th/early 5th at the time). So we set them up and went for it. Abaddon's epic saves kept him alive long enough to charge the tank head-on. He basically cut it clean in half with one assault BUT walked away with only one wound left. We tried it again with every other character in the book and basically everything else got splattered before they could get close enough to assault. With a proper army backing me up it would have been no contest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flint13 Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 I can back Girot up on that one. I have a Baneblade that I bring out occasionally for fun theme games or whenever I'm feeling particularly sassy. Treat it exactly as you would a squad of leman russ consisting of a demolisher, an annihilator, and a vanilla russ and you won't be far off (in effectiveness or points, haha!). The Baneblade is excellent for a first super heavy, especially for the Imperial Guard just because it is so ubiquitous. The amount of firepower they bring, coupled with the fact it has weapons for any situation (though admittedly, what situation *doesn't* benefit from a demolisher cannon?) make it a choice you really can't go wrong with. They are also huge models that can provide plenty of cover for the rest of your army if need be, and are great fire magnets since you opponent really can't ignore them. Mine is magnetized so I can swap it for a Stormlord or a Doomhammer, but those are really just thematic choices on my part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 Personally, I am not a fan. While the model is great and makes for a great tank to get out now and again, it's performance is lack-luster in my eyes. Well, its offensive capabilities are fine, however I do not really like investing 500 points in a unit that can be deleted by a single alpha strike consisting of angry combi-melta men and even angrier centurions, all arriving in angry drop pods. Now, if you can cast Invisibility on it with a rather high reliability, then we can talk. However, only Sevrin Loth and Tigurius are capable of doing that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girot Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 I've never fielded mine in a "normal" game before, only ever Apocalypse. Typically there are other scarier things on the table to draw fire so I on average I got at least three turns out of mine before it went down. Also the cost doesn't sting as bad when you're fielding 30,000 points per side, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorFish Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 What kind of ninny would think the Baneblade wasn't shooty? It's eleven barrels of hell, not eleven hammers! :lol: Like all tanks it needs escorts, just that the price tag means that this is more important. Baneblades look cooler with infantry support too, so you've no excuses not to take some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 What kind of ninny would think the Baneblade wasn't shooty? It's eleven barrels of hell, not eleven hammers! Like all tanks it needs escorts, just that the price tag means that this is more important. Baneblades look cooler with infantry support too, so you've no excuses not to take some. I just hate bringing big shiny models to the table and having to take them right off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girot Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 What kind of ninny would think the Baneblade wasn't shooty? It's eleven barrels of hell, not eleven hammers! Like all tanks it needs escorts, just that the price tag means that this is more important. Baneblades look cooler with infantry support too, so you've no excuses not to take some. I just hate bringing big shiny models to the table and having to take them right off. This is true, but if you paint it well enough you're opponent will be distracted staring at it on the sidelines. :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ammonius Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 I run a Hellhammer, so my response is more limited to a 36" circle :) Absolutely make sure that your Baneblade (or variant) is as beautifully distracting as possible. If the enemy spends the effort to take it off the table turn one, be sure you hit them with everything they ignored. However, in my experience it will get taken off the table at some point, so try not to get emotionally attached. Depending on what size of game you are playing and what the reserve rules are like, you may want to put your Baneblade+ Escort (you do have an escort for it, right?) in reserve so that you can deploy it after the battlefield had developed a bit. In Apocalypse, you may even be able to drive it on from the flank, allowing for some very interesting firing opportunities. At any rate, it's a great kit, and a fun model to build, so I encourage you to do so! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 What kind of ninny would think the Baneblade wasn't shooty? It's eleven barrels of hell, not eleven hammers! Like all tanks it needs escorts, just that the price tag means that this is more important. Baneblades look cooler with infantry support too, so you've no excuses not to take some. I just hate bringing big shiny models to the table and having to take them right off. This is true, but if you paint it well enough you're opponent will be distracted staring at it on the sidelines. Yeah, player IQ is the decisive factor here :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 22, 2014 Author Share Posted December 22, 2014 Thanks for the replies guys! All this info is very useful. I've made my mind up to get one, although I'm still not sure which variant I should get, any suggestions would be appreciated. I don't have the apoc rulebook yet so I have no idea what the different types do . If someone could link an article describing the differences between the variants I would appreciate it. Thanks again everyone, this is an awesome forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorFish Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 The simple answer is: get them all The Baneblade is a fair chunk of your points and quite scary especially if someone hasn't fought them much but this can also be a strength. Big and nasty things must be either negated/ignored somehow or destroyed. Whatever your opponent does try to make it work to your advantage As for the variations I'm afraid I don't have the time to detail them right now but I'm sure someone else can do it instead The most important thing is you track your shiny new tank's progress in a WIP topic here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoffeeGrunt Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 "Are Baneblades any good?" Pff! Guardsman if I hear any more of that talk out of you, I'll hand you over to the Commissars myself! Ain't you ever seen a Baneblade? Yeah, I thought not ya feral worlder! She's the size of a city block, with a hull so thick a Carnifex can barely scrape the paint off 'er. She crushes the foes of the the Imperium under treads as wide as you are tall! When you stand in her cupola, feeling the winds of righteous battle, you can see all, held up as a God over the battlefield, riding a steed that unleashes death from eleven barrels of hell! A Baneblade is the nearest you'll ever see to the fury of the Emperor brought back to the battlefield. Consider yourself lucky if you ever get to fight with one before you die! Rules-wise I've only use the Shadowsword, which is lacklustre due to the D nerf. Still a fun vehicle to field. Remember that even in a 12" deployment, the chassis is going to barely fit, and it can have a little trouble moving through tight terrain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girot Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 im pretty sure the new kit has all of the major variants except one. thats the stormsword i think, the one with the gloriously oversized plasma cannon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CommissarZac Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 I have both a Bane blade and a Shadowsword. I LOVE using them. I was one of the first to embrace them when "Escalation" came out. Using the Escalation Rules they are more fun and not as OP as people say. They do swing a mean stick, but if you don't use them right they will go down hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thoqqu Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 There was mention about them being shooty and not letting stuff get in melee... there was a one game where 38 different demon models ended their turn in charge range of my baneblade. Next turn there was one prince hiding behind a rock... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorFish Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 First time I encountered one it was punked by my Sternguard squad in short order. Escorts for high value targets are essential, as decreed by the Tactica Imperialis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girot Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 Here it is... the Stormblade is the variant I was thinking of: http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/Images/Product/DefaultFW/xlarge/sbark.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorFish Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 The Stormblade is a Forge World model, so if you want one you'll need to either visit them or get a little creative with the GW kit :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 24, 2014 Author Share Posted December 24, 2014 Here it is... the Stormblade is the variant I was thinking of: http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/Images/Product/DefaultFW/xlarge/sbark.jpg WOW! That's the biggest plasma cannon I've ever seen . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionofjudah Posted December 24, 2014 Share Posted December 24, 2014 I built 5 of them for a buddy at my LGS. Great kit and a lot of fun to run on the table. As said, they need an escort to make sure the melta crowd can't get to close but otherwise they are a solid performer. I sold mine years ago when I got a Vulcan macharius as I really like lots of dakka... The mini super heavys are fun to check out as well;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoffeeGrunt Posted December 24, 2014 Share Posted December 24, 2014 Macharius Vulkan seconded! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
librisrouge Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 "Are Baneblades any good?" Pff! Guardsman if I hear any more of that talk out of you, I'll hand you over to the Commissars myself! Ain't you ever seen a Baneblade? Yeah, I thought not ya feral worlder! She's the size of a city block, with a hull so thick a Carnifex can barely scrape the paint off 'er. She crushes the foes of the the Imperium under treads as wide as you are tall! When you stand in her cupola, feeling the winds of righteous battle, you can see all, held up as a God over the battlefield, riding a steed that unleashes death from eleven barrels of hell! A Baneblade is the nearest you'll ever see to the fury of the Emperor brought back to the battlefield. Consider yourself lucky if you ever get to fight with one before you die! I really have little else to add I'm fielding mine tomorrow and it has never failed me. It's the ever faithful Leman Russ plus one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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