9th Edition 40k Battle Report 215- Dark Angels Ravenwing vs Drukhari

This week's battle report sees my Dark Angels Ravenwing take on the Drukhari in a 2000 pts mission in a barn stormer of a game! We were using the new Grand Tournament Missions 2021 rules, so had updates to some of the secondary missions, as well as points costs. We rolled up and got the Retrieval mission. 

My army consisted of:

Outrider Detachment

Primaris Chaplain on Bike- Master Orator, Warlord, Canticle of Hate, Recitation of Focus

Sammael

5 Bikers- TL Bolters, 2 Plasma Guns, Power Sword

5 Bikers- TL Bolters, Meltagun, Power Fist, Flamer

Landspeeder Typhoon- Multi-melta, Typhoon Missile Launcher

Attack Bike- Multi-melta

Ravenwing Apothecary- Selfless Healer, Chief Apothecary

5 Black Knights- Corvus Hammers

4 Black Knights- Corvus Hammers

Outrider Detachment

Talonmaster- Arbiter's Gaze, TL Heavy Bolters, TL Assault Cannon, Brilliant Strategist

3 Bikers- Plasma Gun, TL Bolters, Power Sword

3 Bikers- TL Bolters, Meltagun

3 Bikers- TL Bolters, Grav Gun

Landspeeder- Heavy Bolter, Assault Cannon

Landspeeder- Heavy Bolter, Assault Cannon

A few change ups from last week's army. I dropped the Darkshroud, to add more Black Knights. I just don't think it is worth the points any more, as the -1 to hit bubble is not as essential in the army any more. I also dropped the Champion to fit in the Black Knights. A few units went up in cost (Attack Bike, Apothecary and Talonmaster), while the Chaplain dropped a few points as well. 

Once more, I had a fast and mobile force, with a decent amount of firepower. 

Dark Angels Codex Review: Part 5- Relics of the Rock

This part of my Dark Angels 9th edition codex review will look at the relics available to the army. I will also look at the unique Special Issue Wargear for the army. 

Relics of the Rock

Mace of Redemption- A Power Maul or Crozius Arcanum that is Sx2, AP-3 and 2 damage. Each attack against a Fallen or Heretic Astartes unit, on an unmodified wound roll of 4+ inflicts 2 mortal wounds on the target and the attack sequence ends. 

A decent relic, but a bit situational with the bonus. Going up to S8 AP-3 and 2 damage on an Interrogator Chaplain is a solid bonus, especially after bonuses from litanies. If you want to go with a relic crozius on your Chaplain, you might be better off with the Benediction of Fury from the Marine Codex, but this is a pretty good alternative. 

Pennant of Rememberance- Deathwing Ancient only. In your command phase, select one Deathwing Infantry Core unit within 6". Until the start of the next command phase, subtract one from damage from attacks on the unit to a minimum of 1. 

A very powerful relic for the Deathwing Terminators. They are already pretty tough with the built in Transhuman Physiology and a 2+ armour save. Going to -1 damage is incredibly powerful on an already durable unit, so this will make them very hard to shift off of the table. 

Shroud of Heroes- Bearer gets -1 to hit from attack rolls. 

A nice bonus for keeping a character alive for a bit longer. Not sure I would go with it, but a decent option nonetheless. 

Reliquary of the Repentant- Ravenwing Biker model only. While an enemy unit is within 3" of the bearer, invulnerable saving throws are only passed on a 5+. 

An incredible ability that really neuters the invulnerable saves of enemy units. The short range is the only issue here, but a 6" bubble would be far too powerful. This would be strong on a melee character, such as a Ravenwing Champion or Chaplain on Bike. This should allow you to get a lot of damage in on enemy toughs with high invulnerable saves. More limited on using your firepower, unless you charge the character up into the enemy lines and probably lose them in the following turn. I think this is a very strong relic for the army. 

Foe-Smiter- A Storm Bolter that is 24", assault 4, S5, AP-1 and 2 damage. 

This is actually pretty strong against Marines. In Tactical Doctrine, you will be wounding on a 3+ at AP-2 and killing Marines. Pretty decent if you want some added firepower for your character, but I think there are better Relics. 

Eye of the Unseen- Enemy units within 6" are at -1 Ld. At the start of the Fight phase, any enemy Character units in engagement range of the bearer are not eligible to fight until all other eligible units from your army have fought. 

Another strong relic for a melee character. This stops enemy characters from targeting your units before you strike and have a chance to kill them. This also works well with Engulfing Fear, giving nearby enemy units -2 Ld. This makes failing morale more likely against a range of enemy units. 

Cup of Retribution- Chaplain only. Once per battle you can use this relic to automatically recite the Feast of Malediction litany instead of using another. This litany gives Dark Angels core units within 6" +1 attacks. 

Once per game, but a pretty good bonus for a number of melee units in the Dark Angels army. Combines with Shock Assault to give you some serious attack strength on the charge with this litany. Also very strong if you combine it with the litany of +1 to wound in melee. 

Special Issue Wargear

Heavenfall Blade- A power sword that is +2S, AP-4 and 2 damage. The bearer can make an additional attack with the weapon. 

A decent swap for a power sword. The extra attack, AP and damage could turn this character into a strong melee contender. Could be useful on the Ravenwing Champion, who is able to fight first against characters. 

Dark Angels Codex Review: Part 4- Interromancy Discipline

Part four of my 9th edition Dark Angels codex review will look at the Interromancy Discipline psychic powers that you can add to your army. 

Interromancy Discipline

Mind Worm (WC6)- Select one enemy unit within 18", he unit suffers 1 mortal wound. Until the start of the next psychic phase, that unit is not eligible to fight in the Fight phase until all eligible units from your army have done so. 

A pretty solid power. The extra mortal wound is nice, but forcing an enemy unit to fight last is really strong against certain army builds. This allows your combat units, such as Black Knights or Terminators, to ensure that they can attack without an enemy unit cutting them down before they get a chance to strike. 

Aversion (WC6)- Select an enemy unit within 24". While the unit is within 6" of the Psyker, subtract one from the attacks characteristic of that unit. Any time an attack is made by the unit, subtract 1 from the hit roll. 

A good power for de-buffing an enemy unit. Getting -1 to hit is not as strong as it once was, as these can no longer stack, but it can still be pretty powerful. Also strong against melee attacks, where -1 is more difficult to get. Reducing the attacks of the enemy unit is also strong. This doesn't specify reduce the attacks by 1 to a minimum of 1, but I expect this to come in the FAQ. If not, this is really powerful against standard infantry. 

This also stacks really well with the Line Unbreakable stratagem. Forcing only enemy models in engagement range to be able to attack, along with -1 to hit and -1 attack really hinders the damage output of an enemy unit and could help your psyker survive or other units survive a powerful enemy melee unit. 

Dark Angels Codex Review: Part 3- Warlord Traits

The third part of my Dark Angels Codex Review will look at the Warlord Traits available for the army. The Dark Angels have access to six standard traits, but also have additional Deathwing and Ravenwing traits to add to your army. 

Warlord Traits

Brilliant Strategist- In your command phase, select one friendly Dark Angels unit within 6" of the warlord. Until the start of the next command phase, the unit considers the previous doctrine to be active for the attack. i.e. if the unit is in the Tactical Doctrine, then the Devastator Doctrine is considered to be active for that attack. 

A decent trait for boosting the firepower of your units with selected weapons. It would be better if you could choose which doctrine was active for the unit, but there are stratagems that allow you to do this. Not one I think I would choose all that often, but could be useful with some army builds. It is not limited to core units, so your vehicles could benefit from this. 

Fury of the Lion (Aura)- When a Dark Angels unit is within 6" of the warlord, if this warlord made a charge move, was charged or performed a Heroic Intervention in this turn, add 2 to the strength characteristic of that unit. 

A solid warlord trait if your army is focused on assault. The one limitation is that your warlord has to have made a charge, so there is a risk you could fail the charge or your other units could fail a charge. Getting to wound most infantry on a 3+ is a big boost. This works better if you pair it with +1 to wound in combat from the Chaplain's litany. 

Winters SEO battle report- Deathwatch vs Orks

I recently got to play Winters SEO again, this time my Deathwatch take on the Orks using the new Marine book. Follow the link to watch the game. 

Hobby Update 03/12/20- White Scars Assault Intercessors

 Today's Hobby Update features a new Assault Intercessor unit for my White Scars. Given their propensity for combat, adding another assault unit to the army is a solid option for the force. 

I converted one of the Intercessors to carry a Thunder Hammer to give them a bit more punch in melee. This was converted from a Heavy Thunder Hammer from my Deathwatch spares. 

Deathwatch Codex Reviews

 I've recently been posting some Deathwatch reviews on Frontline Gaming. You can find the links for the different sections below:

Stratagems Review

Warlord Traits Review

Xenopurge Discipline Review

Relics Review

Hobby Update 16/11/20- Deathwatch Primaris Outrider Squad

 Today's Hobby Update features an Outrider Squad for my Deathwatch army. 

Outriders have some great bonuses in a Kill Team for the Deathwatch. First off, you can field them in units of up to 5, compared to the limit of 3 for normal Marine armies. Second, thanks to the Kill Team mechanic, this squad gains objective secured, making them great for taking objectives from your opponent. They can also do some weird movement tricks thanks to gaining the infantry keyword, but I expect this to be FAQ'd at some point in the future. 

For one of the Bikers, I decided to replace the Chainsword with a Heavy Bolt Pistol, just to add a bit of variety to the models. 

Space Marine Codex Review: Part 2- Stratagems (second half)

Welcome to the second part of my Space Marine 9th edition codex review. This part will look at the second half of the stratagems available to the Space Marines. 

Stratagems

Skilled Riders (1CP)- Use when a Biker, Land Speeder or Storm Speeder unit that advanced is targeted by an enemy shooting attack. The unit is at -1 to hit. 

This stratagem went from an invulnerable save (moving or advancing) to -1 to hit. Still pretty useful in some circumstances, but the invulnerable save was much better. I think this should still help the durability of Bikers, especially as they got an extra wound. The only issue is that you need to advance. Sadly, the White Scars have currently lost the stratagem to advance and still shoot (with everything but assault weapons), so there is less use in advancing. Nice if you need to advance onto an objective and want to make it harder to shift the squad from it. 

Uncompromising Fire (2CP)- The unit can shoot and still perform an action. 

Pricey at 2CP, but well worth it in my opinion. This allows your unit to perform an action on an objective or in the centre of the board for your secondaries and still get to shoot with the unit, meaning they are not wasted sitting doing nothing. Very powerful in the right circumstances. Also great for holding the centre of the board with something like Flamer Aggressors and still getting to shoot to good effect. A key stratagem for the Marines. 

Steady Advance (2CP)- An infantry unit acts as stationary until the end of the turn, even if they moved. 

Again, pricey at 2CP. I think this would be amazing if Aggressors could still double shoot if stationary. I can still see a strong use for this for a number of units. Devastators in Drop Pods can now fire their heavy weapons with no penalty, as well as allowing other units to move and fire to full effect. Great for getting into position or grabbing objectives. Also useful on Stalker Pattern Bolters. I think this will be great on the Dark Angles, as you will be getting +1 to hit as well, meaning Devastators can arrive from a Drop Pod and hit on a 2+ with their heavy weapons. 

Space Marine Codex Review: Part 1- Stratagems (first half)

 Welcome to the first part of my Space Marine Codex review for 9th edition. As expected, Marines lead the charge with one of the first codexes for the new edition of the game. This first part of my review will take a look at the Stratagems available to the army. 

Stratagems

Space Marines have a plethora of great stratagems to choose from, stretching four pages in the new codex! This review will take a look at the first 17 stratagems on the first two pages. 

Death to the Traitors (1CP)- When making melee attacks against a Heretic Astartes unit, you can re-roll the hit roll. 

A decent bonus when you are playing against Chaos Space Marines. Situational, but I can see this coming in useful for my White Scars when coming up against Chaos.

Honour the Chapter (2CP)- Use at the end of the fight phase. An Assault Intercessor squad can fight again. 

This stratagem dropped to 2CP, but got a serious reduction in power, allowing it to only be used on Assault Intercessors. No more attacking with your Thunder Hammer smash Captain again if you didn't manage to kill off your target the first time round. Again, could be useful for my White Scars, but I don't see it getting used too often. Nice to get the reduction to 2CP. 

Fury of the First (1CP)- Add 1 to hit rolls for Terminator models in the shooting or fight phase. 

Quite useful for negating the effects of power fists or Thunder Hammers in a Terminator squad in combat. Also great for hitting with your Bolters on a 2+. Could be useful if you are running Terminators in your army, who are a lot better with the extra wound and bonus to armour saves from Storm Shields. 

Index Astartes Deathwatch- Review and Initial Thoughts

As you will probably have seen, a lot of armies have had their rules updated for 9th edition. The Deathwatch have been folded into the Space Marine codex, and as such, have their own supplement to modify their rules to update them with the new codex. I'm going to take a look at some of the rules that have been presented and what they may mean for the Deathwatch. 

Special Issue Ammunition

This has seen a big change, not only in what the ammo does, but in who and what weapons can utilise it. 

Dragonfire Bolts- Target unit does not gain the benefit of cover. 

This is a great change for Dragonfire bolts. Under the previous rules, I don't think I even used this round type in any of my games, now I can see it being very useful. Not only do you ignore the +1 to armour saves of cover (great with the Doctrines now in effect), but you also ignore the -1 to hit from some cover types. This should help to provide good accuracy for your Bolter weapons throughout the game. 

Hellfire Bolts- +1 to wound against targets that are not vehicles or Titanic. 

This is the biggest change and reduction in power to the SIA. Being able to wound almost any unit on a 2+ was incredible for the Deathwatch and one of the reasons that the Storm Bolter became such a feared weapon for the Deathwatch. I think the change was inevitable, but it is a big blow to the army. The bonus to wound is still great, allowing you to wound all but the toughest monsters on a 4+, as well as wounding Marines on a 3+. I'm not sure how often this will be used in my games now, I will need to run the numbers to see. 

9th Edition 40k Battle Report 213- 2000 pts White Scars vs Orks

Welcome to my first battle report of 9th edition 40k! With everything that has been going on with lockdown and the pandemic, this was the first opportunity I had to play the new edition of the game. In this report, my White Scars Primaris army was taking on Sandy's Orks.  

In this game, we were playing Resupply. This mission has three central objectives and one in each player's deployment zone. In battle round four, one central objective is removed, while another is removed in battle round 5. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment (White Scars)

• Kor'sarro Khan
• Primaris Chaplain- Chogorian Storm
• 5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles
• 5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles
• 5 Infiltrators- Bolt Carbines
• 5 Infiltrators- Bolt Carbines
• 5 Assault Intercessors- Heavy Bolt Pistols, Astartes Chainswords, Plasma Pistol
• 5 Assault Intercessors- Heavy Bolt Pistols, Astartes Chainswords
• 3 Eliminators- Bolt Sniper Rifles
• 3 Inceptors- 2 Assault Bolters
• 3 Inceptors- 2 Assault Bolters
• 3 Eradicators- Meltarifles
• 3 Outriders
• 3 Outriders
• Incvictus Warsuit- Incindiary Cannon, Fragstorm Grenade Launcher, 2 Heavy Stubbers
• Impulsor- 2 Storm Bolters, Ironhail Stubber, Shield Dome
• Impulsor- 2 Storm Bolters, Ironhail Stubber, Shield Dome

With this army, I wanted to go for an all Primaris force. I added a number of elements from the Indomitus boxed set to my existing collection to bulk out the force. 

The army was led by Kor'sarro Khan, who provides some nice buffs to the army in assault. He was backed up by a unit of Assault Intercessors in an Impulsor. A second Impulsor would carry the Assault Intercessors and Primaris Chaplain. I gave him the relic Crozius and the Chogorian Storm warlord trait for extra attacks on the charge. 

I added two units of Intercessors and Infiltrators as troops choices to provide some firepower and objective grabbing ability. 

I then added a number of faster elements, including the Outrider squads and Warsuit, to threaten the Orks early and add some firepower. Two units of Inceptors would provide more anti-infantry firepower, while the Eradicators should deal with any vehicles I came up against. 

Hobby Update 10/08/20- Deathwatch Intercessor Squad

Today's hobby update features a unit of Intercessors that I painted up for my Deathwatch army. It's been a while since I broke out the paints for any of my forces, and I was surprised how quickly I got these done, only taking about a day of painting over the weekend to complete the small unit. 

I got this squad painted so that I could add some Inceptors and Aggressors to the squad to form another Primaris kill team in my army. Unfortunately, the recent updates for the Deathwatch means that fielding Inceptors in the squad is pretty pointless, as they no longer grant the ability to fall back and still fire.