Unit of the Week: Dreadnoughts

[Acebaur]

This week we are talking about another classic unit that has seen a resurgence in power and durability, the dreadnought!  Finally gone are the weird half infantry half vehicle rules of the old days! Now they sport an armor save, high toughness and the ability to have a S value above 10!  Able to properly tangle with monstrous creatures and other hard hitting enemy elites they hit back just as hard if not harder than in days past with many of the weapons available to them doing multiple wounds(S. Hammer doing 5!) They come in 4 flavors and all but the Contemptor do not have diminishing stats as they take damage, making them scary right up til the last wound. The only downside they have now is they lost the ability to cram into a non-FW drop pod. 

 

So how are you running dreads this edition? Taking the extra firepower of the excellent choice of weapons they have? Or perhaps the hard hitting combat abilities of the DCCW's?  What loadouts have worked well for you?

 

 

[Race Bannon]

First: the choice of RG Dread pic is awesome.

 

My current plan for the standard dread is to keep it relatively cheap. Heavy Plasma Cannon and a Storm Bolter :tu:

 

That is all.

[Alcyon]

How do people find their Dreadnoughts working out given the limited 6" move and advance? Is it still worth running CCWs if you aren't putting them in a drop pod? And conversely is it a waste of their CC potential to make them a simple gun platform?

 

I'm so sad there's no Mortis skyfire option anymore...

[Montford]

In my last game I had a dreadnought with Assault Cannon / Heavy Flamer / CCW and he did pretty well vs. Blood Angels.

[Kua]

Yes, compliment on the pic choice. B)

 

The dread, I imagine him working a CC variant well in a mechanized list for reasons of wound saturation, and otherwise I’m rather seeing the TLLC long range variant at work.

In which case I’d consider the venerable upgrade for better BS not lowering when losing wounds (in contrast to the Contemptor).

[PaddyG]

Even if you do have a weapons platform dread, unless they're assaulted by a dedicated close combat unit they hold up just fine. They then hit back with 4 S6 attacks, which isn't much without any AP, but it still forces saves. I do try to screen for a weapons platform dread, though, as even 1 turn it can't shoot is a waste.

 

The big upside is unless your opponent can take them down in 1 turn, they remain on the field with maximum effectiveness, hitting on 3+ or 2+ depending on your choice of normal or venerable. 

 

What does everyone think of the 20 point upgrade from the dread to venerable dread? I think it's a great investment for shooty dreads, but I haven't tried it on anything else.

[olcottr]

Units can charge out of transports, even from Reserve, so CCW Dread must come in Drop Pods or Stormravens. Unless for some reason you're using them as a counter-charge unit.

[Captain Idaho]

There's much more close combat in 8th edition so a Dreadnought close combat isn't a poor choice even with a footslogger Dreadnought.

 

However; it's all about the Venerable Dreadnought with Twin Linked Autocannon and Assault Cannon. 10 shots hitting on a 2+ is amazing and if you move the Dread it still hits on a 3+.

 

With all those Orks and Genestealers in the game, such a weapons platform is invaluable.

[Race Bannon]

Why not two TLAutoC?

[Cognative]

I think you are crazy not to take the venerable upgrade. Hitting on twos and the feel no pain style save are absolutely amazing. I've been running Venerable dreads with double twin autocannons, and by the Emperor do they do work. 8 shots hitting on twos, -1 AP, 2 dmg. In my last game against Dark Eldar they crippled the incoming ravagers and Raiders very quickly.

[Kua]

You are taking the normal dread if you stuff it with H-flamers.

For close combat you could take the ironclad, I guess, with its very valuable 8th T point. But it is much more expensive than a venerable, so idk.

What do you think about this one?

[God-Potato of Mankind]

Who needs boxnaughts when you can take a Relic Contemptor with double chainfists and heavy flamers. Nothing is going to want to charge it :D

[Timur]

Cheap and effective: Dread w/ dual autocannons.

 

Best in Show: Contemptor w/ kheres.  You have a techmarine on bike right? Good, then he's almost invincible.

 

Surprisingly effective in larger games: Ironclad.  Take the Dreddy chainfist to reroll 1's and do 4 dam.  If you have enough T8 or high threat he will reach the enemy and you will smile.

[Custodian Athiair]

I know it's not exactly as powerful as the builds you guys are putting out. But I ran your basic DCCW and MM Dreadnought in my first game of 8th, and it tore up the battle field. Granted it wasn't a big game, but it started off smashing it's opposite number into the earth (and surviving the ensuing explosion), then ripped apart a rhino and most of a Templar Crusader squad.

 

It ended the game basically unscathed as well. 

 

Sadly I don't have the ability to build these wonderfully shooty designs you're all talking about, but they sound devilish

[Captain Idaho]

Why not two TLAutoC?

I'm glad you asked! :d

 

The Assault Cannon/Twin Linked Autocannon build (Heavy Gunner I believed I christened it many moons ago) is an anti-infantry build.

 

Firing Autocannons at vehicles is okay and all, but why don't we have lascannons and Missile launchers for that task?

 

10 dice will help you kill Orks, Genestealers, Daemons etc more than 8. In addition, Assault Cannons perform the same against Marines and Deathguard as Autocannons, so the extra 2 shots is superior.

[Kua]

And what about the range?

It’s not like we had too little ways to fight infantry masses.

[Firepower]

I think, if you are taking a Stormraven, you are doing yourself a disservice by not having an Ironclad swinging from its belly like a monkey in a tree.  If you aren't taking one, its deployment is troublesome.*  Fast armies would never get caught by the lumbering brute.  But on that note, the Hurricane is now not only dangerous, but dirt cheap.  It's worth giving up a crunchy fist to give the Ironclad a bit of reach and something extra for overwatch.

 

I haven't got any shooty Dreads, but looking at what they can do now I regret that. :(

 

*Unless you have access to FW rules and know the rules for a Dread Pod.  Unlike me

Edited July 13, 2017 by Firepower

[Kua]

By giving the Ironclad ‘something to overwatch’ you mean giving up on the option to take a second heavy flamer, right? ;)

 

The FW dreadnought droppod is expensive with something about 120 pts and drops you 9" away, as usual.

I’d stick with the Stormraven until the codex changes something.

[Tyberos the Red Wake]

Why not two TLAutoC?

 

2 TLAC is absolutely a viable build, but my guess is the focus on this specific loadout is the assault cannon. It's simply that you cannot have dual assault cannons so you make due with a TLAC on the other arm.

[Amon777]

TL ACs on dreads are seemingly perfect in 8th as transport hunters since T7 is the common level. They beat out the traditional hellfire pattern for me since las razorbacks are more effecient and have a much higher rate of fire. Make the rifleman pattern a venerable and stick him near a captain and they are near auto hit.

[Gen.Steiner]

I have five Dreadnoughts across my Space Marine armies at the moment.

1 Ironclad with ALL the options (I prefer hurricane bolter and chainfist usually).

1 Venerable with TLLC/DCCW & SB
1 Dreadnought with AC, TLLC, ML, and DCCW with SB
1 Dreadnought with MM/DCCW & HF
1 Venerable with PC/DCCW & HF

 

None of them have seen action in 8th yet, but I have high hopes for them. I am also (re)considering my Deathwing list and planning to put one or two Venerables with two TLACs in. Nothing like a 48" range to reach out and touch the enemy with 8 S7 -1 Ap 2DAM shots, eh?

[Captain Idaho]

And what about the range?

It’s not like we had too little ways to fight infantry masses.

What about the range? 24" and a move if needed, that's good enough. I hazard Orks and other infantry are coming to you anyway.

 

Twin Autocannons is absolutely a viable build. I just would like kill vehicles with lascannons and missile launchers. Both do it better.

[Helycon]

Autocannons are better against more mobile vehicles. They generally have lower toughness en lower saves to compensate for their agility. You blow them up quite handily with an autocannon.

[Race Bannon]

So, it seems to me that Auto Cannons more reliably punch into light vehicles and heavy infantry, thus the ideal targets. The Assault/Auto combo is not bad at all and more diverse (while losing some Rule of Cool)?

[Ishagu]

The best Dreads are the Relic Contemptor because of his speed, survivability and wealth of options.

 

Also the Chaplain and Libby Dreads by virtue of being characters and offering additional synergy with units.

 

 

I think these are great units to include in an army :-)