GateKeeper Tournament

This is a little late in coming, but that's because I got started playing Zelda: Ocarina of Time and I got sucked in for about four days, and then had some busy painting to do. However, I now have an important update!

This afternoon I went to a local tournament in Topeka, Kansas (sister's graduation, so I was back down here for about 10 days). Really rather small, only about 8 total players, 2100 points with three matches. Unfortunately, it used Battle Points. Fortunately, they were only tie-breakers for the top places.

I went in a large Terminator Command Squad with leading Marshal (PW, Plasma Pistol) and attached Reclusiarch, two Dreadnoughts (one Ven. w/ Assault Cannon/ML and one with a MM in a Drop Pod), a close combat Crusader Squad in a Drop Pod with the Emperor's Champion and a Techmarine, two MM Bunkers, two 8-9 man Missile Launcher squads, and a wing of Typhoons.

My first game was against Orks, and through some funny rolling, a mistake or two and running into the time-limit, we tied. It was Dawn of War with KP basically counting for one Objective, as well as Capture and Control. We tied on KP and each held an Objective, though if he had been a little more aggressive with his units he could have gotten a victory.

Second game was Spearhead with 4 Objectives and I faced my first more competent Grey Knights list. The worst portion was the 1,000 point Paladin unit with each model equipped differently and I just made too many mistakes. One was picking the wrong corner, one was focusing on the Paladin squad, one was not looking at his list before I deployed, one was charging his Paladin squad with the living half of my Terminator Command Squad, one was positioning my MM Dread badly, and of course I gave no protection to my Land Speeders. So I lost 3-1.

Third game was Pitched Battle Annihilation against Eldar. Some target priority mistakes left my opponent with a lot of badly damaged things which couldn't hurt me, but weren't claimed as Kill Points either until the very last phase when I could finish off three of them. I also got to use a flamer most effectively on a squad of Pathfinders so I pulled a win by two.

Unfortunately I did not place in the higher-ranks, but I did get some more experience and had a chance to see my large Terminator Command Squad on the battle-field (by large I mean 6, but it looks large with the two Independent Characters with it) and I had a good time, net win.

Anyway that's all I have for now, though if there are any questions I will be happy to answer them. I might go to weekly posting since I noticed that I get spikes of traffic about Friday or Saturday night, so I could get single articles up just before then (say, Thursday night or so) and that would give me an easy, strict posting schedule to stick to. I'll think about it.

Land Raider Pricing

So I visited Algesan’s blog…several weeks ago and he was asking what Land Raiders would have to cost to be worth taking.

I started writing my comment, explaining what I thought they should be priced at (based on the Metric numbers system I am relying less and less on) when I realized that I could neither easily explain how I got to those numbers nor why they were ideal

So I cleared that comment and began writing another, starting from the assumption that Land Raiders would come as a possible alternative to Predators. I started going through the price adjustments to Predators to account for the benefits the Land Raider has and I realized something interesting, which I hope to enlighten now:

Take your standard Auto/Las Predator: 125 points. It is basically a poor-man’s gunboat Land Raider if you consider an Autocannon comparable to a Twin-Linked Heavy Bolter. So adjust the price by multiplying by 4/3 to account for the increased accuracy of having Twin-Linked Lascannon Sponsons (now 8/9 to hit rather than 6/9, or a ratio of 4 to 3). Add PotMS. Transport capacity is 10 models or 5 Terminators, and the closest thing to that is a Drop Pod, so add the price of a Drop Pod; ignore the Assault Vehicle special rule and just assume that it is included with the Drop Pod price increase. AV 14 is a big step, but having it all-round is much bigger. The increase of one could be accounted for by essentially the Blessed Hull upgrade (different effect, but close enough to use the price), but this is different; instead just increase the cost by 50 points and call it good.

So how are those adjustments? They sound pretty fair, but maybe the AV increase is overpriced, drop it to only 30. Where does that put the price of the Land Raider? Right about 255, but 250 is a fine number to round to. So Land Raiders are actually well priced, compared to Predators. So why aren’t they used, and why is it that when they are they weaken the list?

                                                                                                        

How about a different approach? Two Twin-Linked Lascannons and a Twin-Linked Heavy Bolter that can move and shoot at multiple targets while carrying models, sounds familiar?…Of course, that is just like three Razorbacks! Actually not perfectly, the Razorbacks can target three different units instead of two and can move independently of each other; they can also carry a unit each rather than being limited to one. But a Land Raider cannot get chain-shaken and prevented from firing while the Razorbacks can, and most weapons cannot hurt Land Raiders (especially ones that stay back) while Razorbacks can get killed by just about any anti-tank weapon. The price of Razorbacks to equal the guns on a Land Raider is 90, 90 and 70 which equals 250: The price of the Land Raider, which means that a Land Raider should be an equivalent trade-off to three such Razorbacks, with the allowance that Heavy Bolter Razorbacks are pretty much a waste of time and thus this trade is not efficient besides the problem of being forced to leave two infantry squads without a transport.

How about combining the two above comparisons? Two Las/Bolter Predators clock in at 260 points. One the one hand you have AV 14, the ability to carry a unit, and being guaranteed the ability to fire a gun; on the other you have the ability to put gun vehicles in two different positions on the board and more anti-infantry firepower, but you can’t direct all anti-tank shots to tanks while anti-infantry shots go to infantry. But the Predators will be taken nearly every time, often as Auto/Las Predators to save points.

Are these comparisons just not valid? Probably, since even though the prices match the Land Raiders are neglected. My first inclination would be to see how much the price should be adjusted on the Land Raider, but how about looking at these comparisons and see what’s tipping the balance?

Single Predator vs. Land Raider are all price adjustments and make the Land Raider look even over-priced, unless you count the Autocannon worth saving 20 points to drop to the Heavy Bolter, and even then the Drop Pod’s price for the transport capacity seems small, so the only real difference is that the Land Raider is more expensive, and perhaps requires some creative use to get full value.

Razorbacks vs. Land Raider come down to having a spread-out value compared to a concentrated value. The Razorbacks benefit from needing at least 3 shots to kill but the Land Raider will likely need many more unless a specialized weapon is targeted at it. But I suppose you do gain more benefit from the Razorbacks by getting the protection to more units and being more flexible.

Two Predators vs. Land Raider once again, more flexibility with the Predators and more benefit from having two Auto/Las ones, for the same cost. Being Predators Melta isn’t especially a problem while the Land Raider should really be taking advantage of its transport capacity by moving a close combat unit forward.

What does all this tell us? In their current incarnation, Land Raiders should not exist. No, really, they are just too much to have any real, genuine value over taking more, weaker choices. Those choices are just as good, if not better, and add more flexibility to your list. Land Raiders are just doing too much.

How to fix them? Well, you could drop them to AV13 all-round. That would be a balancing effort for the game in general (allowing armies without Melta to have a better chance against them) and it would justify dropping its cost to something reasonable that would make it a valid option to compete for attention with Predators and Vindicators.

Or we could just make them a better value for their cost than anything else in the book. Will it tip things in their favor? No, because they still gimp you for costing so much, but at least it’s a trade-off rather than a simple sacrifice. Now I don’t have a whole lot of objective reason for how much I would price them at, but I like round numbers (to 10s or 20s), and it needs to still be one of the most expensive units that Black Templars can field.

A PotMS Vindicator or Tri-Las Predator will come in at around 160-170, maybe even up to 180 or 190 if you want to drop some upgrades on them. So 180-200 is a good number for the Godhammer Land Raider, and the Crusader should go for about 15 points more, just as it is now. That way it is costing you to go from Predators to Land Raiders and the Crusader variants still demand a specialized role to be worth taking as a transport, but the costs involved are worth it if you have the points. However this does mean that Predators are the choice in lower-point games while Land Raiders become the better option when you have more points to spend.

So I stand by my previous assertion: Land Raiders should not exist. No, Wounds or Structure Points would not solve the problem; they are just too much and need to be priced too high to be worth taking.

++++++

Yes, I’m most likely back to posting regularly. I am going to wait for at least two more posts before being certain that I can get up multiple posts a week. I have a lot of painting finished and possibly a tournament coming up next weekend, so I’ll try to stay updated on here about those.

Escalation, After a Thousand

Alright, this will be a quick update on the Escalation League I mentioned a month or two ago, with an update at the end.

Last month I went with an Assault Cannon/Storm Bolter Dreadnought in a Drop Pod, a Castellan with Power Weapon, Bolter and Holy Orb, and two Crusader Squads: One with a Neophyte and Missile Launcher, the other with four Neophytes, a Flamer and a Drop Pod. Those games did not go well, as I lost all three.

However, while deciding on my list for this month I looked back at my previous list and realized that it did not provide me with the tools to face anything I was going to face. An assault cannon, a missile launcher, a flamer and some bolters? So my thousand-point list was much better built.

Now, part of the reason was that I have since picked up quite a few new toys. I now have three Typhoons, two Rhinos, Plasma Guns, Meltaguns, and a fifth Powerfist Terminator so that I can field the squad without an HQ choice to accompany it. So my thousand point list was as follows:

*Emperor's Champion: Vow (Abhor);
*Terminator Squad (5): 2 CML, Tank Hunters;
*Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, Missile Launcher, Smoke Launchers, Searchlight;
*Crusader Squad (5): Missile Launcher, Plasma Gun; Rhino: Smoke Launchers, Searchlight;
*Crusader Squad (5/4): Meltagun; Drop Pod;
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter;
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter;
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter;
Total:-999

Now I have firepower. I was kind of concerned about only two troops, and in the last game I would have liked to have another, but they did fine. Anyway, compare: 12 Missiles to 1, and an additional three Heavy Bolters. Tank Hull to protect my home squad instead of an extra Neophyte and a more effective Dreadnought.

First game was against Eldar. I killed all of 4-5 models, one of which was pure luck and the others in Close Combat by my Emperor's Champion. I had that bad of shooting for the whole game. I missed three times with my Meltagun. I shook one of his two tanks once. And yet, I would have tied the game if I had just killed one of his tanks with the Meltagun.

Second game was against a really terrible Grey Knight list. 4 Models. The 500 point version had 3. Draigo, two single Paladins, and the fourth was a 500 point Librarian with all the fixin's. Thanks to my mass of firepower and my ability to shoot what I wanted (plus some poor rolls on his part) I tabled him 35 minutes after we started setting up. And yet he had a great time, probably because he wasn't expecting much from them (mostly just trying to get the games done when he could, otherwise it would count as a loss for us both when the month ended), and partially because it just went so fast (he did kill my Terminators though).

Third game was against Tyranids. I realized just before this that I had the ability to pretty much kill a Monstrous Creature per turn, plus all of the small blasts meant I wasn't especially concerned. We called the game early  at the end of turn 5 because the store was closing and I was claiming two Objectives, contesting a third, and he had one. He had a single Hive Guard and two smallish units of Termagants (one in combat with my Terminators), while I still had a large portion of my force left.

The scoring is simply 3 points per win, 1 point per draw, and 1 point per month for using a painted army. Now at the half-way point for the league, I have 8 points out of a potential...26. So after the first month where I had three losses (but with a painted army, so yeah), I'm not doing too well, but I am playing against more people and getting better known, so things are going fairly well.

Anyway, on to the update I mentioned before. I have an almost finalized list for the 1,500 point month, but I would appreciate any opinions on what's missing or queries for why something is the way it is. Here's the list:

*Emperor's Champion: Vow (Accept); -140
*Marshal: Bolter, Power Weapon, Holy Orb; -106
*Terminator Squad (5): 2 CML, TH; -265
*Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, Missile Launcher, Venerable, TH, Smoke; -148
*Dreadnought: Multi-Melta, Storm Bolter, DCCW, Extra Armor; Drop Pod; -150
*Crusader Squad (5/3): PF, Meltagun, Frags; Drop Pod; -173
*Crusader Squad (5): Multi-Melta, Plasma Gun; Rhino: Smoke Launchers, Extra Armor; -154
*Crusader Squad (5): Multi-Melta, Plasma Gun; Rhino: Smoke Launchers, Extra Armor; -154
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter; -70
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter; -70
*Land Speeder: Typhoon, Heavy Bolter; -70
Total:-1,500

There is also new (for any interested) a Win/Draw/Loss record for all of my games. Right now it's not looking too good, and you have to keep in mind that these are mostly just pick-up games at my local store, but it's getting better.

Tournament Results, Part 2.

Once again I should apologize to anyone who regularly checks to see if I have made any new posts. School this semester really occupies both my time and my thinking, plus my weekly visits to my FLGS suck a fair amount of my time and I’m still trying to catch up on sleep. So while I apologize once more, I also want to say right now that there probably won’t be anymore posts until school is over (after the first week in May). However I do have an actual post for now.

Those nine games I played have demonstrated to me a few things. Part 1 was getting kind of long, and was more intended to give a brief summary of each game but here I want to look at some of the lessons I’ve learned from finally getting to play test all of my lists.

Game 4 demonstrated an innate weakness in the DDP style of list. It struggles with those big units of Terminators. Whether through a strategy I haven’t discovered or a change to the list, I need to be able to handle those (as they form the back-bone of at least three popular types of lists and are common enough otherwise to demand some attention). This problem may exist in other lists but those enjoy the distance to have more time to pound them, so I need some way that a Drop Pod list can specifically deal with them.

Game 5 demonstrated that the theory behind using nothing but TL-Lascannons as Anti-Tank (not entirely true, as I also had Plasma Guns and the Dreadnoughts were armed with Missile Launchers) isn’t a perfect idea. It lacks the number of results on the damage table to reliably kill vehicles, despite re-rolling to hit and the high-strength. It may have just been the horrendous rolling, but the problem is still there.

Game 2 (I’m out of order, deal with it) suggested something a little more…drastic. The winning list that time essentially just used Drop Pods instead of Rhinos for transports. It still had Predators and Land Speeders and about half of the army started on the board. My thoughts were that this would hinder the list by allowing all of the fire to be directed at a few targets, leaving the reserved portion of the list lacking support when it came down (thus, Rhinos should be a better choice for the list). Surprisingly enough, this didn’t happen. Whether it was because of the terrain or because I didn’t target correctly or move correctly or whatever, it suggests that Drop Pods and Rhinos are essentially little different unless you want to do something that the Drop Pod just can’t do (such as fire out of the hatch). Is the cheaper price of Drop Pods worth the potential disadvantages? I don’t know, but it is something that I need to do some research on once I am done with this Tournament thingy (so a long-term plan).

Game 3 made it clear that S5 is not an Anti-Tank weapon. Not even massed S5. And S6 isn’t really either. Add to that my experiences with S3 in Close Combat from Game 6, and I’ve learned something more. Unless you are rolling with a 50% chance or better on the roll (each individual roll, not combined), you are setting yourself up for failure. You are just not likely enough to succeed to get reliable results unless you have A LOT of dice that you’re rolling (given that somewhere around 18 dice is only enough to get maybe 1-2 successes, I really mean a lot). To demonstrate this, in Game 6 I charged a unit of Terminators with 11 Termagants. 22 Attacks, something like 17-18 hits at S3. 3 wounds. Not average? No, but still a reasonable result. What is the other end of a reasonable number of wounds in this case? 9 wounds. If those Termagants were S4 or had poison, 9 wounds would be average, and with luck like what I actually got, I would have had 6 (based here on the chances, not necessarily the actual rolls). So, double the effectiveness even though only half-again the chance. That is the weakness of S3 against Infantry, or S6 against Vehicles, or basically anything relying on basically a 5+. You need better. I need better. And I will be keeping that in mind when I make lists and decisions during games. By the way, this is also very good reason not to include glancing hits in Nike’s Metric System: their average doesn’t accurately represent how they’ll do.

So over all, I will have to be making some changes to at least some of my lists. A lot of the changes will be to the Tyranid lists, as I am less confident in my ability with them and I have seen some of my failures there, but I might be making some posts about changes to the Black Templar lists; we’ll see.

As for what those changes will be, they are straight from the examples above. I need to be able to put results on the damage table against vehicles. I also need to continue to look at how Drop Pod based lists do. So far, it seems that without a good number of Drop Pods (to be landing several down at once) the squads tend to die (which is easily predicted), so at low-points the list looks like it would fall apart. Lastly, I need to make sure that I’m not using mid-strength weapons as my primary anti-tank options (such as Plasma Guns).

One final note: I don’t remember all of the promises I made about posting up lists and, rather than checking back to remember, I’ve decided to just not post them without a request from someone to do so, and here’s why. Someone on YTTH (I believe TKE) mentioned that he’s stopped reading list-building articles because he doesn’t gain anything from them, and that made me realize: I’ve been doing the same thing. I’ve stopped reading list-building articles unless they’re by someone I talk to (like Marshal Learoth or Algesan) or on YTTH (and only then Black Templar and Tyranid ones). So, not being a fantastic list-builder myself, I’m going to stop doing those kinds of posts unless someone asks me to or I think I’ve stumbled onto an idea that I should share (which won’t happen until our new codex, so…).

Tournament Results, Part 1.

I’ve decided to go through a tournament of sorts. But I don’t want to call it a tournament, because it only involves me and my lists, and when you think of a tournament you think of, well, a tournament. But the only other thing I can think of to call it is a gauntlet, and I know that isn’t as accurate. So we’ll call it a ‘tournament’.

The point of this is to get some practice in with all of my lists and hopefully to practice making clear descriptions of battles. I’ve got 18 lists between my Tyranids and Black Templars, though not all are equal. To keep the number of games down, I’m going to use a simple win/loss elimination system.

Here are the match-ups for the first round:

Assault Drop (Templar) vs. Comp. List (Templar)

Best of List (Templar) vs. Disruption (Templar)

Bolterback (Templar) vs. Warrior (Tyranid)

Foot List (Templar) vs. Drop Pod (Templar)

Casual Drop Pod (Templar) vs. Lasbolter (Templar)

Aftermath (Templar) vs. Shooty (Tyranid)

PotMS (Templar) vs. First List (Tyranid)

Black Tide (Templar) vs. Close Combat (Tyranid)

Variant (Templar) vs. Variety (Tyranid)

Low-Troop (Templar) vs. Stealer Shock (Tyranid)

I randomly determined which lists would fight, and if there are any questions as to the general nature or structure of any lists (because, you know, those names are so descriptive) I will be more than happy to answer them. I will also include either short descriptions of each or links to where you can see the lists.

1^st game: Assault Drop vs. Comp. List. 5 Objectives, Pitched Battle, Assault Drop goes first

Both of these can be found on my blog, and I wasn’t sure how either of them would do as they are both ones that I built because of their apparent novelty, rather than a sound battle-plan behind them. What it ended up being was an insanely close game where almost all of the troops died, leaving two stuck in combat with each other and the Comp. List winning 1-0. It came down to if either the Typhoons could kill that one Initiate claiming the winning Objective (protected by cover and the Emperor’s Champion who had only one wound left) or they finally won the combat in the next turn, then it would be a tie. But the next round did not come.

2^nd game: Best of List vs. Disruption. 5 Objectives, Pitched Battle, Best of List goes first

The Best of List can be found on B&C, as well as here on the blog. The Disruption list was based on an idea that I had a while back when Marshal Learoth was first trying to recreate Tony Kopach’s list and I got to thinking about how to include various disruption elements into my lists (hence, the name). What eventually decided the game was the Disruption list being able to push the Best of List off of a couple of objectives with little effort. They weren’t able to claim one of those, but they did deny it and won the game 2-1. Yet again, a close game which, had a few engagements gone in the other side’s favor, would have turned out quite differently.

3^rd game: Bolterback vs. Warrior. 2 Objectives, Dawn of War, Bolterback goes first

The Bolterback list was basically just something that I made trying to get Razorbacks with TL-Heavy Bolters to fit into a working list. I mostly succeeded, but there are better ways to go. The Warrior list was something that Stelek first thought of before the Tyranid Codex had come out (I looked back at his early Tyranid lists and articles); the premise is that there are simply so many Warriors that you just can’t kill them all despite Instant Death. And so they got tabled. Too many shots ignoring their armor, too little anti-tank, it was a massacre, 2-0 and annihilation. Man I rolled a lot of S5 shots…

4^th game: Foot List vs. Drop Pod. Kill Points, Pitched Battle, Foot List goes first

So, a list I’ve never tested (you can find it somewhere on here) against a list I’ve thoroughly tested, but never against something like this. Let’s do this thing! Well, the Foot list won at 13-11, but that is a little deceiving when you consider that the Drop Pod list killed all 15 Terminators and all the Foot List had left were two Crusader Squads, numbering 4 and 1, both stuck in Close Combat with Dreadnoughts. Oh yeah, and I hate being Fearless in Close Combat.

5^th game: Casual Drop Pod vs. Lasbolter. Kill Points, Pitched Battle, Lasbolter goes first

Both of these can be found, but you’ll have to do some searching for the Lasbolter (one of the List Building articles, however I’ve since made a couple of adjustments, but it is still essentially the same list) while the Casual Drop Pod is hidden beneath my regular one in the same article. I have never seen such frustrating dice. I know, I know, I haven’t seen that many dice when you think about it, but it wasn’t one-sided or anything. It was just general inability of units to kill things and there really isn’t anything I could have done to improve my chances. The game only went for five turns (Casual Drop Pod winning 6-4; yes, out of a possible 40 KILL POINTS that were available only 10 were claimed), but there were so many shots that didn’t penetrate or only Shook/Stunned their targets (or just didn’t Wreck, I think I got three legitimate Wrecks and Explosions; with all of that Melta and Open-Topped, that just isn’t right).

6^th game: Aftermath vs. Shooty. 2 Objectives, Spearhead, Shooty goes first

The Aftermath, like the Disruption, was made due to the thoughts and ideas coming out of NOVA Open, except that this one is for the 2011 tournament, rather than just remaking the winning list from 2010. I think you can find it in the September-October archives. The Shooty list is just that, I was attempting to make a Gunline Tyranid list (difficult when most of their guns are less than 18” range). Because the Aftermath list had three units of Terminators (which are neigh-invulnerable, can bring down Monstrous Creatures, and can bring down hordes) the Tyranids just couldn’t break through their line with more than a few Termagants (who got shot to death the next turn) while the Aftermath list (which I had adjusted to include two Close Combat squads in Drop Pods) was able to get a Crusader Squad and 2 Terminators to contest the Tyranid’s Objective and won on T5 1-0.

7^th game: PotMS vs. First List. 5 Objectives, Spearhead, PotMS goes first

The PotMS list is self explanatory, and can be found somewhere. The First List is, descriptively, my first serious attempt at a Tyranid list (and I thought that, after a few changes, was worth keeping). Unfortunately, the PotMS list did not have enough firepower to take advantage of the limited Synapse that the First List had (a Hive Tyrant and two Tervigons with Dominion). The Tyranids just overran the Black Templars until the Synapse finally began to die, at which point the Tyranids lost much of their effectiveness and only barely were able to win 3-2, controlling the deciding objective in the second-to-last phase of the game (their shooting phase on T7). Overall, a very close game but I need to better learn how to use those Vindicators, as they were dead by T2 and killed very little (because the Tyranids spread out to reduce damage, and the Vindicators have no other options), although when two exploded they killed something like 20 Hormagaunts.

8^th game: Black Tide vs. Close Combat. 5 Objectives, Spearhead, Black Tide goes first

The Black Tide can be found a few posts below. The Close Combat, like the Shooty and the First List, is exactly what it sounds like. On the fifth round, thanks to a few unlucky armor saves, the Tyranids annihilated the Templars. There are three things that decided the outcome. First was that I used the Terminators wrong, I employed them to control mid-field but I should have used them to support the horde squads against things like Monstrous Creatures (which they only have a Powerfist against). Second was that the list is just bad because it lacks the fire-power needed to kill those Monstrous Creatures, and there really aren’t many options to get that fire-power. Third was that the large Crusader Squads just aren’t very good. They cost a large number of points but were too few and too weak (even with supporting Independent Characters) to go and claim an Objective by themselves. Essentially Black Tide is just bad.

9^th game: Variant vs. Variety. 4 Objectives, Dawn of War, Variety goes first

Apologies for the similar names; the Variant will be up sometime soon, while the Variety is a list I made by starting with a wish-list of all the things I wanted in a Tyranid list (mostly units that I liked) and then tried to make a good list that included all of them, to some success. Essentially, the Tyranid list just couldn’t cope with all of the tanks and high-strength shots (especially those Vindicators). A shooty list that was getting out-shot…it didn’t go well. Final score was Templar victory, 3-1 though another round could have seen 2-1.

10^th game: Low-Troop vs. Stealer Shock. 2 Objectives, Dawn of War, Stealers goes first

The Low-Troop list is also due to getting a post about it, but with everything that I have lined up I’m not entirely sure when that’ll be. The Stealer Shock I started because I needed just one more list for this tournament and it was rather unique, the name should be descriptive (though it is worth noting that it has 9 Zoanthropes). So between my forgetting about having Abhor the Witch so often, the imecable 3++ saves on the Zoanthropes, and the 40+ Outflanking Genestealers who all crowded on the edge they wanted, it didn’t go well for Templars as the Tyranids won 2-0. There was still an Initiate, a Typhoon, and the Venerable Dreadnought (albeit, the Typhoon was immobilized and without its Missile Launchers with a Tervigon coming at it, the Initiate was in combat with a half-score of Termagants, and the Dreadnought was immobilized and weaponless in combat with a dozen Genestealers and two Broodlords).

And that’s all of them. I’ve got another round to do between the winners and I’m strongly considering using the Centurion system for the missions (I’ve got a PDF bookmarked, so we’ll see how useful it is). Don’t worry, as there are fewer battles I will get into more and more detail (not to the extent of my first Vassal Battle-Report, but still better than one paragraph).

Escalation League, 500 points

I know that in my reply to Algesan's comment on my last post I said something about what would be in the next post (this one) but I haven't finished writing that and something has come up.

I've signed up for an escalation league at my FLGS, what used to be called First Chance Last Chance Games but now is something like Who's Gaming House. It begins at 500 points and moves up by 500 points each month until it reaches 2,000 points. 3 games a month, which have to be scheduled by the players of each game to get together and play. Fortunately, there are no special missions or rules or anything, just rolling from the Rule Book. In the first month I'm against (in no particular order) Orks, Dark Eldar, and Dark Angels. That is this month and I have a game this Tuesday.

Each player is allowed only a single list each month, and I have to decide on one by this Tuesday (about 6pm). Now, I'm limited to what I have and 500 points, and even though I've drafted 3 500 point lists to try I want some input on the them.

First list: Drop Podding-

Castellan: Bolter, Power Weapon, Holy Orb, Frags; -92
Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, DCCW, Storm Bolter, Extra Armor, Smoke Launchers; Drop Pod; -143
Crusader Squad (5/4): Boltersx3, BP/CSx5, Flamer, Frag Grenades; Drop Pod; -165
Crusader Squad (5/1): Boltersx4, BP/CSx1, Missile Launcher; -100

Total:-500

Here I'm trying to take advantage of the two Drop Pods that I have and also trying to not simply have a foot list. Plus, the practical experience with the Drop Pods will help me to know when to pod in the units and when to start them on the board.

Second List: Terminators-

Castellan: Bolter, Power Weapon, Frags, Kraks, Auspex; -86
Terminator Command Squad (4): 2xCML, Tank Hunters; -228
Crusader Squad (5): Missile Launcher, Boltersx5; -90
Crusader Squad (5/1); Boltersx3, BP/CSx2, Flamer; -96

Total:-500

I made this list as an option because I wanted some way to use my Terminators and their Cyclones. But by doing so I really just make it a deathstar list. However, that much firepower keeps this list among the possibilities.

Third List: Hoofing It-

Castellan: Bolter, Holy Orb, Power Weapon; -91
Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, Missile Launcher, Smoke Launchers; -118
Crusader Squad (5/2): Boltersx2, BP/CSx3, Multi-Melta, Flamer; -116
Crusader Squad (5): Boltersx4, Missile Launcher; -90
Crusader Squad (5): Boltersx4, Heavy Bolter; -85

Total:-500

Here I'm just going full foot. A big bonus for this one is that it has 3 Troops which will help me in Objective games. Plus, with the Multi-Melta it has a reliable source of Anti-Land Raider that isn't melee or S9 based. So definitely a contender when taking a transport cuts way down on my firepower plus having two dedicated Objective Holders.

So what are people's thoughts? Stuff that I have that isn't on these lists is a Chaplain in Terminator Armor, a Techmarine (with Servo-Harness), another Terminator, another Heavy Bolter and maybe a couple of Initiates, in case any of those things would be better suited to being in any of the lists. Which one would be best? Are there any changes that should be made? Should I use something different than any of these (I don't know, maybe just one Drop Pod with Terminators or something)?