Tournament Tactics

[Ceres]

Since I

[ironloki]

Well I think its pretty hard to write what makes a good tourny list as it depends on the army and the tactics used. The only thing I can think at the moment is that tourny lists need to try and be versatile and able to deal with a variety of opponents. So missile launchers are your friends :devil:

[Espi0n-DA]

Well at least we all have Power Armour in common.

 

I don't have much experiance with the game so I'm going to wait and see where this thread leads.

 

I think it should Include:

 

* Lists for Tournament armies at 1850 Points but also a smaller section for 1000 or whatever, as theres generally RTT's etc and then the smaller local tourney at your local GW.

 

* Different types of Marine armies people can use.

 

I think Competitive armies should have mobility, firepower and a good base of troops. Devastator Squads with ML's are useful, as are Tactical squads with a PURPOSE. You should make them either Shooty or Assault through however you see fit, but there should be this divide.

 

Like i said i dont have much experiance, so I know I'd be greatful if some more experianced gamer could take up the challange in a thread that will be widely read..

[Night Scar]

No lists from me, but some basic advice.

 

1. Playtest your list...alot. Winning isn't everything, but going and getting your a$$ kicked because you jumbled a list together at the last second, will not increase your fun factor.

 

2. Remember the objectives of each game. I have one games where I was getting the snot kicked out of me VP wise, because I remembered the objective of the scenario and my opponent was caught up in putting a whooping on me.

 

3. Know the rules..to me that is what makes a good player a great player is knowing all the rules backward and forward and knowing the latest rule updates. (Dakka's "You make the Call" is great for it as well as these forums)

 

4. Be courteous but firm with other players...I have lost games because in the interest of sportmanship, I haven't called opponents on obvious infractions. Don't be rude, but if you know you are right, don't be afraid to voice your concerns.

 

5. Get advice from this and other forums. There is always somebody out there with good ideas for a list or strategy. There are alot of experienced tourney players (like Mauleed) who can give you many good ideas.

 

6. Playtest your list...alot.

 

7. I will stay away from the obligatory "remember to have fun" comment. Because if you are playing in tournaments, you are there to win AND have a good time, so don't be afraid to play aggressive, but fair.

 

Good luck, hopefully I will see some of you guys at Baltimore GT

[SalPyro]

How about we go through the new codex since I haven't had a chance to update the tactica and discuss good and bad choices for a tournament environment? While I would say there isn't any unit in the codex that can't be made to work in a specific fluff based list, or fit any playstyle, for a full blooded tourney environment there are some options that clearly work better than others. Why not discus this, then offer suggestions based on available models?

 

For instance, lets begin with the HQ option Commanders. Based on the new Commander box set, what would be the best commander to bring to a tourney? Once we discuss each option at length, I will create a sticky with the discussions for each unit to make a complete discussion on the new codex as a whole. :devil:

[Ceres]

Aaah, good idea SalPyro. But I think we still need separate topics to Tournament and Friendly armylists, because they are much different, and two topics would be more clearer in this case (In my opinion). Or then they could be put in the same topic but clearly separated.

[Night Scar]

Again some random tourney thoughts from the new codex

 

1. We all know Librarians got a lot better, but I think fear of darkness is a must have in a tourney. Tau, IG, Orks will hate to see it and even other loyal Marine, some chaos and Tyranids will not be happy.

 

2. Have at least 5 Assault Cannons in your army.

 

3. Remember to keep your army mobile, tourneys in 4th have to be mobile due to capturing objectives, etc. So don't be afraid to still use those Rhinos.

 

4. For Traits, I love "Suffer not the work of Heretics" with Tactical squads getting Tank Hunter. I think it would be a great surprise if your Las/plas tactical squads are strength 10 and 8 respectively. Think about it, your opponent places his heavy support, you put down your tactical squads afterward with some serious tank busting ability, that is not readily apparent to your opponent.

 

5. I love Termi Assault squads with Furious Charge. for a little less than 350 points, you can get 6 St 5, I5, reroll wounds attack and 2 Thunderhammer attacks, pretty nasty. I do recommend putting them in a LR instead of deepstriking, because of the obvious lack of shooting. This makes them a pricey, but very lethal unit.

 

just some more random tourney thoughts.

 

Hope to see you in Baltimore

 

NS

[Brother_Darius]

How about we go through the new codex since I haven't had a chance to update the tactica and discuss good and bad choices for a tournament environment?  While I would say there isn't any unit in the codex that can't be made to work in a specific fluff based list, or fit any playstyle, for a full blooded tourney environment there are some options that clearly work better than others.  Why not discus this, then offer suggestions based on available models? 

 

For instance, lets begin with the HQ option Commanders.  Based on the new Commander box set, what would be the best commander to bring to a tourney?  Once we discuss each option at length, I will create a sticky with the discussions for each unit to make a complete discussion on the new codex as a whole.  :devil:

I think that would be great. Although I think it would need to start with a new thread. I think we should be able to discuss the Chap/Commander/ Command Squad option in one thread but due to the Lib's various Psych powers he'll need to be discussed seperately.

[stjohn70]

Ok then, let's go through the commanders.

My thoughts:

 

Masters: A steal. With the ability to give all units Ld 10, he figures strongly into shooting and assaulting. He can save you from upgrading sgts in squads that don't require power weapons/fists. Can be bought stripped down to direct the troops from the back of the lines, or with a combat oriented command squad. Infiltrate or Furious Charge are great skills to have here. Drop pod only if entire army is doing so - as his Ld should start on the table if at all possible.

 

Chaplains: Close combat leaders. With a default power weapon and 4+ inv save (without using up your valuable relic slot) and his re-roll of misses on the charge makes him valuable in assault heavy armies. Best package seems to be with a jump pack accompanied by assault troops - perhaps with Furious Charge if trait available. 3 wound variety may be more preferable since he'll be in a lot of close combat.

But in all but the most assault-oriented armies, the Masters and Librarians newfound status makes them more effective choices - usually.

 

Librarians: Welcome back to the age of Psychic Powers. Now that they come default with Force Weapon and Psychic Hood and have a bevy of powers that can change the course of the game - these have become the Commander du Jour. The Codicier is available for those looking for a cheaper version, only needing to use one power. The Epistolary is for those who need the flexibility of two powers and want to be able to really have a chance to stop opposing Psychic Powers with his Psychic Hood. (Interesting note, always upgrade to your most expensive power first, then pay the higher cost for the cheaper power - it always works out cheaper this way.)

One Librarian variant, kitted out with all the goodies, a familiar, and a Furious Charge command squad, can become a St 5 In 7 character killer.

Powers:

• Smite (Will of the Emperor or something - I can't remember its name): default power. Not really useful with limited range and with the new template rules. Only really useful against deep-striking units. Probably should not be used in tournaments.
  
• Fury of the Ancients: Extremely useful power if used properly. Can cause a few casualties, but its real strength is in causing Pinning checks. Useful if you can get a line to hit multiple units. Also a great way to cause your opponent some worry by sniping at lone Independent Characters. Should be taken by "Shooty" armies or those that want another way to dictate battlefield control.
  
• Fear of the Darkness: The new uber power. Highly useful against most armies that you will face in tournaments (except fearless & BT). Can be used to high effect by deep striking Librarians. Also decent to use to repel units away from your lines, but its limited range limits this use to once or twice a game. Speeders or other drop pods can keep many units running all the way to the table edge.
  
• Spirit of the Warrior (name? - the d3 attack one): Can be put to good use in high-assault style armies. Has utility in that can be given to any member of squad. Like the Chaplain though, it often suffers from having too many other good choices. Is often used in the character killer style - but is downsided by the fact that the Librarian needs to save his PP use for his Force Weapon.
  
• Veil of Time: Useful for when you really need your Librarian to accomplish something. Rerolls on just about everything, but only during your turn - so use wisely. Probably the hardest power to use correctly - and for that reason probably best left at home, unless your Librarian doesn't join any units or have a command squad.
  
• Vortex of Doom: This is the one that I see players pick up as the new toy. Unfortunately, its uses are limited as Smite. Its best use is against multi-wound, low initiative models - such as the Carnifex, and other higher cost low initiative models - such as Necrons (no WBB). In truth though, this is likely the least useful power with little to no variation in its use, and it's easy to avoid most of the effects.
  

That's my thoughts for now.

[Ahmato]

Vortex of Doom cannot be used on a Carnifex because it is a monstrous creature, would be kinda cool thou, not having to knock of soo many wounds of toughness 6 monster...

 

My input:

 

As of SalPyro's advice here is my out-of-box advice:

 

Commander: The Master option should be chosen here, if just for giving everything Ld 10, however he can also be used as an assaulting monster if equipped in the right way....

Adamantine Mantle: This is a must have if you are facing opponents which you know will be fielding M.Creatures, such as Carnifex's, or using powerfists often.

Iron Halo : This item is useful when facing opponents that are known to be using weapons that ignore armour saves, like Howling Banshees, however as it is a relic then there is a difficult choice between a save which you can always take, or an item which stops instant death. In my own opinion I would choose this item as most weapons/creatures that can instant kill can ignore A.Saves.

Artificer Armour: This depends on what kind of role you want to field your Commander in. If you would like to get him down and dirty and beat the excrement out of your opponents this is a must. If you expect to be using him mainly for his Ld in a support/shooty kinda squad this ain't really nessascary. (Argh I can't spell that word :devil: )

Purity Seals: Not very useful as with 10 Ld you can't expect to be falling back to often, however if you do the this can help you stay close to the fight or pull further out.

Bionics: Depends on how good you think you're dice rolls are, if you think you can roll a six anytime take this! If you're like me, give it a miss.

Terminator Honours: This is a sorta two way thing. If you're guy is on his own then this is very good if you expect him to get into close combat. If he has a command squad, forget it. Get an extra guy with a BP/CCW and you will get an extra body, and two attacks basic.

Frag/Krak/Melta Grenades:Frag is a good for an assault-orientated guy and its a steal at such a low points cost, Leave Krak on the bench as with a meagre S6+D6 you cannot expect to 'Krak' many tanks with it. Melta is where its at, an excellent explosive, equivalent of a close range Multi-Melta will give you many a 'Melta'd' tank on the battlefield, if that is what you seek. If you're guy is not gonna be in an assault forget everything you just read.

Sorry for the Awful Puns, I'm tired. *Coughs*.

I think that is all the wargear you get in the box set, if there is any more tell me and I'll gladly put it here. Also if there is demand I'll do a Tactica on the weapons as well.

Hope this Helps.

 

Ahmato

[Night Dragon]

Well, the commander looks covered fairly well, so I'll stick in a bit about chaplains. Master of Sanctity, Reclusiarch, they're both chaplains and will be referred to as so (because chaplain is easir to spell :devil: )

 

Roles: Defenitly assault. The litanies of hate decide this. I suppose he could join a squad to make them fearless, but that's a waste. A command squad would be pretty good, or he could join another squad. Assault squad if he has a JP, terminators if he has T.D.A.

Upgrades: With a chaplain, you have a pretty clean slate. He comes standard with a 4+ inv. save and a power weapon, so DO NOT waste the points giving him another weapon. Unless you have fluff reasons, but it is not cost effective. Grenades are ok, steer away from krak, they just suck. Artificer armor could be a good idea, because he will be in assault a lot. A bolt pistol is pretty good, one attack more for 1 point, not a tough decision. Same can be said for terminator honors. Terminator armor can take care of Artificer armor and term. honors at once, but you need the model and then he will be slower. A jump pack is a good idea too, especially if you have an assault squad. Also, if you're not using another commander that could do with an iron halo, consider an adamantine mantle. Overall, he can have just about anything but needs very little to work to full potential.

Tactics: One of the main things you need to do is keep him with a squad. A large squad/squad with lots of attacks is the best, to make the full use of the litanies of hate. Also; try to charge him into soft targets. Hard hitting units like terminators could wipe the chaplain out easily. Basic troop squads will give him the opportunity to get back his points with minor danger. Although he could, with a squad, do well against a powerful close combat unit. Back him up with some fire support, do not think that he can take anything he wants. Also, if you can charge weakened units, do so! The more times you get the charge, the more you get to make use of the litanies of hate.

 

That's all i have right now, there is probably a lot more about chaplains that you could tell me. I've never actually used a chaplain under the new codex.

[SalPyro]

@Ceres: Well like the title said, this would just be for serious tournament fighting. A full in-depth analysis for all purpose SM would also need to include a discussion of traits, wargear, all units, etc. For now I think we can just focus on the best stuf for a tourney situation and ignore the rest (scout bikes, etc.) :lol:

 

@ Night Scar: 1)Not sure about that. It's good, but there are enough fearless armies out there to make me reconsider it. I think Veil of Time is an absolute must have, with FotD running a close second (or take both!) 2) Not sure you need THAT many, but at least a few is always good. 3) I still don't think rhinos are a good idea unless the entire army is mounted now. Take assault marines, speeders, pods or bikes for mobile units now IMO. 4) I would save that trait for the dev squad(s) and just give the tac squads lascannons. 5) I never recommend the "eggs in one basket" idea, there are too many shooty armies that can kill both the LR and it's terminators. I suggest a drop pod instead, they get where they need to with no potshots inbetween and still have cover when they land.

 

HQs: Anyone else dislike the Chaplain making a unit fearless now? :P I think that Librarians are the new Chaplains this edition, and a commander is almost a must have, even just a "cheapie" for the Ld boost.

[Darkuwa]

Best weapon in the new commander box to put on your commander: the lightning claw.

 

As long as your army does not have he true git trait then the lightning claw is simply a more effecient version of a power weapon especially if you master craft it. Without the ability to use the bolter in close combat the claws no +! for different second weapon disadvantage can be completly ignored.

 

 

Do not underestimate the power of command squads both the regular and the terminator. The ability to combine the powers of the different HQ's along with putting some meat shields in the way of enemy fire, make having a command squad a must.

[SalPyro]

If you are putting just a single lightning claw on your commander then a Storm shield would be the logical choice for the other arm, better at any rate than a bolter or combi-bolter and with the points saved from not taking an Iron Halo you can afford terminator honors (like you wern't gonna take those anyway...)

[Daylak]

General Ideas when building a tournament list:

1) Theme. Your army should have a planned overall theme, such as en masse close combat (millions of attacks, i.e. Tacticals with BP/CCW and FC, etc), no-saves close combat (Lots of power weapons and the like), precision long range fire (Lascannons, Missile Launchers, Autocannons, and sniper rifles), Mass Fire (Heavy bolters, assault cannons, storm bolters), template heavy (plasma cannons, flamers, whirlwinds, vindicators), No Saves (lots of ap2-1 and power weapons), ultra high mobility (bikes, speeders), etc. Pick a theme and make sure that every choice fits within that theme.

 

2) "Anti-" elements. Always build your army to be balanced, able to handle nearly any threat. You should have roughly 4-8 anti-tank elements (meltas, lascannons, missile launchers, chain/powerfist-armed squads, etc), and 2-4 anti-horde elements (flamers, ordinance template weapons, etc), as well as a good combination of close combat and ranged elements as well.

Even in an insanely close-combatty army you still need to provide *some* fire-support on the way across the board, and likewise even with an insanely shooty army (dark angels comes to mind...) you still need 1-2 close combat elements.

Be aware of what counts as what type of element, for example, a Dreadnaught with TLLC and DCCW counts as both an anti-tank element (both the lascannon and the claw are serious anti-tank weapons) and as a defensive (unless drop-podded) close-combat element (hard for many medium-power squads to deal with armor 12, pretty much you'll just lock them up for the game or keep bouncing them off your front until you shoot them to death).

 

3) Min-Maxing and/or Over-Balancing. This is always the bane of any sort of 'composition' points, and also can be the bane of your army if you're not careful.

Despite the fact that it's the same number of points and they can hit two separate targets and all that mess, two un-upgraded 5-man assault squads are not better than one 10-man squad.

A devastator squad with one of each heavy weapon is going to suck in general, because most of the time only one of those weapons is going to be useful. If you really want to break it up, try to focus the squad on one type of enemy, for example a 2-ML 2-PC squad would mostly handle medium-light tanks (AV10-13), but could also handle troops by switching to 'template mode'. Tactical squads with Lascannons/Missile-Launchers and melta guns are almost a joke. The ultra-short-range meltagun is never going to be fired if the lascannon or missle launcher is being fired from a good 'cross the board and in cover' position. Even a flamer might be a better option, as it can help to fight against a horde enemy when the enemy gets close enough that the LC has already dropped a big target earlier in the game and the squad is ready to move up and engage the horde on the charge.

 

4) "Oh this is/looks/sounds cool! Lets take it!"-syndrome. Castellan minefields are really cool, but dont add a single whirlwind to your army just for those. If they dont fit in your theme, dont use them, and if you're going to go castellan, do it on a serious scale and put 2 or 3 in to seriously screw up your opponents movement options.

So frequently I see the random plasma cannon somewhere in somebody's list, at the end of the tactical squad list, added as though it were an after-thought. This is so rediculous and violates #1 in a major way. Pick a style of shooting and go with it. A single plasma cannon is going to be less effective overall than a Heavy Bolter in the same situation, as it's not really strong enough to stack up next to those lascannon squads and it's a template weapon so it's probably not going to hit more than 2-3 models anyway and a large portion of the plasma cannon's effectiveness is it's psychological shock value, and a single PC doesn't carry much of that.

 

5) Can you really paint/model that? Things with extra details like plasma weapons or robed models or the like add a whole new level to the painting required to field a good-looking army. Since almost every tournament contains an Appearance section, you want to field the best looking army you can, so dont try to over-do it. Pick things you know you can model and paint, and then be creative with them. Pick an overall modeling and painting 'theme'. When I did my first DA army, I wanted all white robed models, so I coverted everything needed to do so, and let me tell you, that apothecary and the techmarine were annoying little buggers to deal with, and because I didn't really have the skill at the time to do it right, I probably shouldn't have tried to include those and other similar models, as they really didnt contribute all that much overall to my battles.

A solid color theme is also important. Think about what you want your army to look like. In my 2nd army, I wanted it to look very very dark and militaristic, so I decided to use just dark/camo greens, greys, silvers and whites (as well as red for the eyes, but that is a natural diversion, to make them stand out from the overall model), with the only flesh or remotely pink/gold/yellow elements being on my leader types (sgts, librarian), and with the only gold elements being on my librarian to set him appart from everyone else. This gave my army an excellent overall color scheme helping to tie it all together visually and improving my appearance score overall by 3 out of 18 points from my previous army in which I used a much more varied selection of colors.

The main point of this is, dont forget when you're building your list that you'll actually need to assemble/model and *paint* these things for the tournament, so be careful not to pick a bunch of stuff that looks great from a stat-line point of view, but will be a major pain to model or paint up. Pick things you know you can paint well and stick with those, experiment with new techniques and models after the tournament so you can see how others did them and try to learn what they did.

 

6) Scito te ipsum (Know Thyself) Know how your army works above all else. Know exactly how your rules work, what your specialties are, and what you as a player are able to do. Know what you will do against each army type you may see. Know your own weaknesses, how to exploit them, and how best to minimize them for your opponent. Know your own strengths, how to capitalize them, and how to keep your opponent from being able to weaken them. Know how you will need to handle each type of setup, be it a "take objectives" mission, a "kill them all" mission, or anything in between, and for each type of opponent and terrain situation you may be in (lots, sparse, hindering, blocking, etc). Knowledge is power, and power leads to victory. Steel yourself against anything your opponent may choose to use against you. Give no room to any type of psychological warfare your opponent may use. Yes, An'ggrath the Unbound is a truely terrifying thing to see your opponent place on the table, but never show any fear or worry, and know that your army will be able to handle it one way or another ("run away!!!"). It really unnerves your opponent when you watch a 600+ point unit of <Insert-Uber-Trooper-Here> dissapear in 1 round of combat/shooting with a totally passive face and just dismiss it as though it means nothing to your army overall. They will spend the rest of the game trying to figure out what secret weapon you're hiding somewhere in your army, and make mistakes while doing so.

[Iron-Daemon Forge]

Try get your hand on a GW Tournament Rule pack they give you the out line really fo what what as for army list just do not make them for on off game say a Marine army desinge to take out Ork but they you find it Choas.. just make them able to fight all armise due to you do not know what you will face just fouce on your army strength be it CC or shoot or both then make you army list like that but keep in mind you theme/fluff.

 

 

Hope this help you out man :P

 

IP :lol:

[Belphanior]

Balance, balance and balance!!!! GT's and RTT's favor differing scenarios from round to round with an emphasis on table quarter possession or annihilation of your enemt for bonus points. Be sure you can face up to a wide variety of opponents (some of whom you may never have played against before) Above all remember to have fun and not attempt to strangle your opponent even if he or she is being a complete ass. Look for the Blue Steel legion and their accompanying Legio Mortis Titan at GT Baltimore and say hello. (The Titan is strictly there for the display board and good luck...no I am not trying to run it in the tourney)

[Varath- Lord Impaler]

i went in a 1000 pont tourny a few weeks ago and there are 2 tactics which made me go well.

 

1. The "Big things" mentality:

 

You ever seen a wraithlord on the table first turn and did a silent scream in your mind? ("oh my god, that thing is huge! how can i kill it?) this is a good way to hit your opponent off balance. in 1000 points i had 2 "big things" a dreadnaught and a daemon prince. my opponents went NUTS trying to take this pair down and they rejoiced if they did. then their face fell as i told them the rule that my daemon prince is the only thing in my army that cant take table quarters after 4 turns of dedicated shooting!

 

and...

 

2. the designated decoy.

 

this is part of the "big things" mentality, in all of my games my daemon prince was my DD and, to a lesser extent, my dready was too.

 

The designated decoy can be ANYTHING that looks particularily nasty and large. This tactic is much better when you can give them lots of defensive wargear.

 

My daemon prince had:

Stature

resiliance

feel no pain

beserker glaive

essence

 

these defensive upgrade kept my daemon prince in their to wreak havoc. There was no finesse, no grace for him. Just go towards the bulk of their army as fast as humanly (or daemonically, as the case was) possible.

 

Their brain will say "Oh dear gods! That thing is massive and its headin' straight for us!" so the bulk of their army shot at that large, imposing creature. and it still did not die! so the longer the DD stays in the game, the more frantic your enemy will become to kill it. thereby they will keep on using MORE units to kill it. This is My favorite tactic and my favorite view when the opponents face drops when they launch everything they have at my DD and only takes a wound off!.

 

 

...well thats it for me.

 

the impaler

[SalPyro]

Ok, we are getting off track here. While I'm sure you could write a book of advice for attending a GT in general, let's focus on what units/setups are most effective and which are not. For instance you don't want to use 5 man squads anymore. Scout bikes arn't usually worth their points, etc. Personally I think that Chaplains are now not as effective as before, as they pressure you into focusing on one almighty assault unit. The new command ability to spread Ld around is probably the single most valuable skill to me, with the new librarian powers running a close second. And how about troops? Not many people are taking about how 4th ed has changed their tactical squads...

[Varath- Lord Impaler]

well 4th edition has made my tac squads be more focused in what they do.

 

i only take 1 heavy or special weapon in each unit for tactical flexibility.

 

i have 5 tac squads in the making.

 

2 of them have 10 men with 1 missile launchers, they aid the backfield with men and firepower.

 

1 with 10 men and a plasma gun, they move ahead and take on heavy infantry.

 

1 with 10 men a melta gun and a techmarine with harness. this unit can take on tanks and marines, but tanks are the higher priority

 

1 with 10 men, flamer, frag grenades, veteran sergeant with powerfist.

 

This unit is for flushing enemies out of cover. becaues of the effects of cover, most enemies are bunched up inside it. This gives many chances for flamer and counter charge action.

 

the impaler

[Ceres]

Troops have changed a little bit, but not completely. In 3rd rhinos were an excellent choice, but now they have lost most of their usefulness, not all, but most. Mobility is still something that is very important in tournaments. That

[Night Scar]

I would like to make a case for the poor forgotten Rhino. I play a Rhino and a Razorback in my new tourney list and have used them as rolling terrain to great effect. I take both transports together and move them up together make a line of blocking terrain, pop smoke, and pile out with my command squad and vet. squad.

 

This gets my CC squads out of the vehicle gives some cover and gets them ready to assault next turn.

 

Anyway, this is one tactic that I have had great success with. I think without Rhino rush, the obvious tactic is gone, but armored transport is never useless.

 

IMHO

 

thanks

 

NS

[Varath- Lord Impaler]

yeah, if i face an army with heavy firepower i will put all three of my rozarbacks next to each other and Run my army behind them (leaving gaps for my devies of course)

 

the impaler

[MuteAssassin]

Here's some general tips for any Space Marine army that I see posted a lot and I try to follow. I'm no expert by any means so feel free to add or disagree:

 

1) Even numbered units whenever possible. Since scoring is based on being below 50%, it is more cost effective to use even numbers. This is less applicable to expensive units like terminators and bikes, where adding a man to an odd numbered unit is cost prohibitive.

 

2) Maximize your scoring units and target options Try to take more scoring units and less toys. Durability is important here but at the same time keep in mind that two 6 man units is more durable then a 12 man unit (8 kills on two separate targets vs. 7 kills on 1 target). Even so, high priority targets can benefit from additional models or defensive gear because they will draw a lot of attention.

 

3) Maximize shots/attacks Try to squeeze as much shooting or CC killing into each unit as possible. Effectiveness and efficiency is also important here but this isn't the place for spreadsheets.

 

Basic rules of thumb (not exhaustive or all-inclusive):

 

-Smaller squads allows for more shots (as well as the durability mentioned above).

-Smaller squads will kill less and die too easily in HtH so beef up squads that you want in close combat (8 is a good start for most marine type units).

 

-Powerfists > Power weapons > (T-hammers, L.Claws) for squad leaders.

-I5 > I1 for ICs

-Lascannon > Missile Launcher in tacs

-Missile Launcher > Lascannon in devs

-Plasma gun > (flamer, Melta gun) in non-assault squads

(-Flamer, Meltagun, plasma pistol) > plasma gun in assault oriented squads.

-Assault cannon > everything ^_^

 

4) Minimize use of wargear Do not use wargear frivolously. Use what is necessary and cost effective.

 

Rules of thumb:

-Mixed armor rules and being non-targetable makes armor upgrades a waste on squad leaders.

-IC rules makes invulnerable saves a must have on any IC (if possible).

-Use terminator honors (or aspiring champion upgrades) sparingly. Do not give them to your entire command squad.

-Frag nades are good to have on any assault-oriented unit.

-Extra armor is mandatory on any vehicles that needs to be mobile and frivolous on anything that sits and shoots

-Smoke is mandatory on transports and short-range dreads and optional on anything else.

 

5) Have mobility You will need some form of mobility. How much will depend on your army, tactics and the availability of mobility in your list. But ignore mobility (and mission objectives) at your peril.

 

6) Be prepared for escalation This isn't mandatory but make sure your not crippled by this fairly common mission type. Evaluate how your army will operate in Omega missions. Will your force be divided and easily conquered? Are most of your heavy weapons going to be in reserve?

 

Rule of thumb:

-Its best to either be all in reserve or all deployed.

-If your mixing, it is better to have a few reserve units and the rest deploy initially then vice versa because 1st turn will be brutal on a few lonely units.

-Remember that ICs cannot be attached to a unit in reserve. They may only be attached at the initial deployment or in the movement phase. This is especially important for ICs that you plan to attach to transported/jumpack squads.

 

7) One is good, more is better This is true in many situations but I'm mostly talking about vehicles here.

 

Rules of thumb:

-Having a single vehicle in a list is just asking for it to get smoked. Only do this if it can be hidden and still be effective; is deep striking or is relatively cheap.

-Use more of the same type of vehicle. This dilutes the effectiveness of enemy shooting.

-Rhinos are better enmasse. Oddly enough, while the new rules neutered the rhino rush, it also made it the only half way decent way to use them (besides using a few for mobile cover).

-Drop pods are better en mass. Except maybe the odd dreadnought, they really need to be used in large numbers and in conjunction with other deep striking units.

 

8) Be prepared for what your most likely going to face The easy answer is usually marines and their equivilent. So tailoring your list to deal with lots of 3+ saves is a good idea. You may also have an idea what you will face from experience or by checking out the latest trends on the internet or at your local store. For instance you might know a large number of tau players are attending a local RTT and they all use lots of kroot and FW. So it wouldn't hurt to have an auspex or two and heavy bolters, whirlwinds, etc. Some call this 'metagaming' (ie game within the game). A good example would be assuming there will be alot of assault cannons at the GT and planning your list accordingly. An old example would be planning to face a rhino rush army. A future example will be assuming there will be a large number of all drop pod armies once a kit is released.

 

9) Be a good sport Realize that by following the above guidelines to the letter, you are making the most effective list possible. This is often called powergaming and can garner a lot criticism (here on B&C and on the table). It will depend on what army you're playing and also the subjective opinion of your opponent. In most tournaments you will be scored on both your list and how fun the game was for your opponent.

 

Regardless of whether your a 'win at all costs' type or a 'have fun is most important' type, I suggest you review your list and be willing to tweak things. This is because a list that is considered cheesy is a loss for you in either case. If your the later type then you want to ensure that your opponents have fun and if your the former then you want to make sure you get those sportsmanship, composition and theme points.

 

When making the changes consider this another form of metagaming. You are trying to antcipate the reaction of others. The only surefire way to know 'cheese' is either by personal experience or input from others. It also helps to know the background of your army and add as much theme and character to your army as possible. This is also somewhat subjective and can still lead to cries of 'cheese'. That is why it is a good idea that any time you post a list on the net, always ask for how they rate the list in composition/sports score.

 

Also know that no matter what you do, there will still be someone that will score your list low. It might be out of spite for losing or past experience with a more cheesed out version of your army. If you follow the above advice and that of other gamers it should be a rare event and even so don't take it personal. I'd also suggest being as impartial as possible when judging this yourself.

 

10) Know the composition guidelines of the tournament Go for full composition if at all possible. In most cases if you do this you minimize issues with pissing people off. This can vary and is sometimes subjective but the most common requirements are:

 

-At least 40% in troops

-No more then 25% or %> then troops in any other category

-Deductions for taking multiple unit types (non-troop) or min-sized units

 

Following the above requirements is also good to keep in mind for tournaments without set guidelines (like GTs). Many people look for these qualities even if they aren't specifically mentioned. You might also have a hard time sticking to the above and still keeping your theme. In that case you should be ok, as long as the theme is a well-known fluff premise (i.e. a 1st company space marine outfit or a bike heavy night lords) or isn't blatantly making excuses for powergaming (i.e.. having 14 auto cannons because your chapter likes auto cannons).

[SalPyro]

Outstanding post, MuteAssassin. :D

 

A few comments: #1: Yes for you loyalists, the Chaos gods are right. 8 is a magic number for assaulty squads, and 6 is a magic number for shooty squads. ;)

 

-Use terminator honors (or aspiring champion upgrades) sparingly. Do not give them to your entire command squad.

Exactly. Spending +15 points on a veteran so you can buy a 2 point auspex is just plain silly. You already have at least one IC that could carry it instead. Likewise, is equiping an entire squad of chosen wth powerfists going to net you or your opponent more VPs? (Hint: It probably won't be you!) ^_^