List Building, Part 1.

Alright, this is a while in coming, but here it is: an attempt at a Black Templar Close Combat list with good numbers.

We are actually going to try something new; I am going to walk through the steps as I make the list (which actually isn’t made by the time I’m writing this intro).

First off, rather than beginning with the two Troops and the Emperor’s Champion I like to start with standard things we need and then use what's left over on other things; so first thing we need is a basis of fire-power. Three Typhoons and three Auto/Las Predators are a fine start and there aren’t really better options from those slots (there are good, but not better). So we have a fire-base, as long as we improve upon this in later selections we should be fine.

While it may be tempting to grab some Assault Terminators, we shouldn’t. High cost, require a transport, and don’t really add to our fire-support. No, but we can take some Dreadnoughts. Three basic ones (not even Heavy Flamers) with nothing but Extra Armor, Smoke Launchers, and make one Venerable. I am actually torn between getting Tank Hunters (better shooting) and Furious Charge (better Initiative), however I can’t count on assaulting and I don’t really need that extra point. So Tank Hunters it is.

Now we need Independent Character support for our Crusader Squads (who I intend to do the greatest pull of combat). The Emperor’s Champion with Accept Any Challenge (of course), but do we take Castellans or Marshals? I’m going to go with Castellans armed with Frags, Power Weapons, and Storm Shields for now. They are less vulnerable to Instant Death and cheaper, both of which are is important since we’re taking two. If we have the points we can upgrade, but I want to be sure to have a strong Crusader base.

And finally, we get to the troops. We’ve got three options, take massive units (in Land Raider Crusaders), take regular units (in Rhinos), or take small units (in Razorbacks). Just for fun, let’s see how massive units would work out. We have…just let me do some calculations…705 points (assuming Smoke Launchers on the Predators). Okay, a 10/4 Crusader Squad with a Powerfist, Meltagun, and Frags in a Land Raider Crusader with Smoke Launchers costs…507 points. So we can get one of those and another squad to sit on our home objective with a Lascannon and Razorback; or not. How about regular sized squads? Standard setup (with room for the Castellans) costs 224 points so we can get three of them and have 33 points left over.

33 points? Upgrade to Marshals and slap some Searchlights on those Dreadnoughts! What about another 20 points to make those Power Weapons into Lightning Claws? Well, knock off those Searchlights again and drop a single Initiate. Viola, 20 points!

-Disclaimer-After adding up the list, I found that I was 30 points short. So replace the missing Initiate and…give the Marshals each Meltabombs, and put the Searchlights back on the Dreadnoughts. -/Disclaimer-

Now our list looks like this:

Emperor’s Champion: Vow (Accept) -140

Marshal: Lightning Claw, Storm Shield, Frags, Meltabombs -116

Marshal: Lightning Claw, Storm Shield, Frags, Meltabombs -116

Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, DCCW, Storm Bolter, Venerable, Tank Hunter, Extra Armor, Smoke, Searchlight -134

Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, DCCW, Storm Bolter, Extra Armor, Smoke, Searchlight -114

Dreadnought: Assault Cannon, DCCW, Storm Bolter, Extra Armor, Smoke, Searchlight -114

Crusader Squad (7/2) BP/CS, Powerfist, Meltagun, Frags; Rhino: Extra Armor, Smoke -224

Crusader Squad (7/2) BP/CS, Powerfist, Meltagun, Frags; Rhino: Extra Armor, Smoke -224

Crusader Squad (7/2) BP/CS, Powerfist, Meltagun, Frags; Rhino: Extra Armor, Smoke -224

Land Speeder: TML, Heavy Bolter -70

Land Speeder: TML, Heavy Bolter -70

Land Speeder: TML, Heavy Bolter -70

Predator: Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Smoke -128

Predator: Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Smoke -128

Predator: Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Smoke -128

Total:-2,000

There we go! Now let’s look at how it measures up on the metric system:

DMS: 17.84

DMCC: 25.58

DRPG: 48.06

DLRPG: 12.11

So what does this tell us? It tells us that we can’t rely on shooting to kill infantry, our Close Combat is limited and insufficient, we will have a good deal of trouble killing light vehicles unless we can count on melee, and we can barely handle heavy mech. So at best, we have an aggressive list which uses a combination of shooting and close combat to deal with the enemy, and at worst we have a bad list. You decide.

I know, I know. I haven't tried Terminators. Well I will some other time, but I was trying to do it without Terminators for some reason. Personally, I don't think it will be great, but we'll see. Though I'm still undecided for what to do next.