Heavy Weapon Squad or something else?

[major higgins]

Hi comrades,
What do you think about Heavy Weapon squad?
Do you think they whort their price, ore are they a Fire Magnet for a easy Kill?
I usually run 3 Autocannon team, and usually they will be completely ignored, or quickly wiped out, because when heavy weapons targeted my LR, small weapon fire is usally directed towards these poor guardsmen.

What If I change them whit some kind of Counter attack unit such as 3 Power lifter sentinels, or change them in another Leman Russ?
My primary AT asset are 2 annihilators, 2 Battle tank and a couple of basilisks...
Better 3 AT team or a punisher or a Colossus?
 
cheers

[duz_]

Depends what youre trying to achieve with them?

 

I think as a cheap way to fill out a brigade they get the job done. Running them as cadians they're even more effective.

 

They also benefit from being able to go into cover. :)

[MARK0SIAN]

If I include heavy weapons squad in a list I tend to go all in and get a lot of heavy weapons squads. Here cheap enough and it ensures that at least some of them will survive. Plus giving them orders is a huge bonus.

 

I don’t think one heavy squad will be of much benefit for the reasons you said but a few working together can inflict a lot of pain for a relatively small investment

[major higgins]

Sorry, I mean 3 squad of three Autocannon

[PliskinAJ]

I used to like autocannons but they wound now like heavy bolters but you pay a premium price for 2 shots. Since guard suck at shooting I would rather take heavy bolters for 3 chances to hit. That being said since your running all three the same I don't see an issue. When I do run heavy weapons I now run a combo of lascannon/heavy bolter and mortar taking full advantage of split firing. 

 

You seem to have a lot of direct fire support in vehicles if you changed them to heavy bolters you probably nearly have enough points to get 2 more squads of mortars (dont have the book with me) and they actually do well in this edition. 

[duz_]

I have to admit I  Heavy Bolters this edition, they definitely seem to be better value
Although the D:2 is nice against Necrons and their damn quantum shielding!

[Gloomfoe]

They do seem liKe a fire magnet. I would keep them in your backlines and in cover. Or just go the mortar route and hide them from LOS. Longer range is better, bolters I think are better suited embedded in infantry squads.

 

Also, expensive/scary squads are even juicier targets. Meaning a full lascanon or AC squad is even more of a fire magnet. Maybe throw in some mortars to those squads to help lower their target priority, and give them some throwaway wounds.

[Colonel Bindoff]

Do you have a lot of infantry in this list? And what’s the points value? If you can’t shield the teams I’d probably leave them for the reason you’ve said; bolter guys will shoot them instead of wasting time trying to plink wounds off your tanks.

 

That said, I’ve had some great success with them in mixed arms lists precisely because they are less of a threat than the armour and artillery; cover and distraction units are your friend there.

 

I mostly leave them in the troopship (cardboard box with ‘regimental transport’ written in sharpie) at the moment though.