My blog posts and articles typically focus on new builds that I've tested and new approaches to competing in an established metagame.
Today's post is different in that I'm posting a purely hypothetical army build that I've never tested and only put together last night. It's been demanding my attention since I came up with it, though, and that usually means that I'm onto something that's either incredibly brilliant or stunningly stupid. Let's hope it's the former.
The established Warhammer 40k tournament metagame can be boiled down to a very simplistic overview; if your army is good at putting out a high volume of middle-strength shots at decent range, you're probably going to do well. Imperial Guard, Dark Eldar and Space Wolves all fit this stereotype; they can each put out a high volume of fire at 36"-48" ranging from Str 6 to Str 8.
The reason that builds like these do so well is that they counter the traditional min/max builds focusing on a large number of lightly armored vehicles; your six Rhinos, for example, are no match for my 27 Dark Lance shots turn one.
This all begs the question: What would happen if someone were to eschew the traditional min/max build and instead do their damndest to put out as many heavily armored vehicles as possible? If I were able to spam vehicles ranging from rear AV12 to rear AV14, would I be able to circumvent the fundamental strength of those top armies and saunter into the finals of a Grand Tournament?
I don't know, but I'm certainly curious. Here's my 1850 Grey Knights army:
HQ
Inquisitor Coteaz
Troops
Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
3 Warrior Acolytes w/Meltaguns
Razorback w/Heavy Bolter, Psybolt Ammo
Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
3 Warrior Acolytes w/Meltaguns
Razorback w/Heavy Bolter, Psybolt Ammo
Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
3 Warrior Acolytes w/Meltaguns
Razorback w/Heavy Bolter, Psybolt Ammo
Inquisitorial Henchmen Warband
3 Warrior Acolytes w/Meltaguns
Razorback w/Heavy Bolter, Psybolt Ammo
Fast Attack
Stormraven Gunship
Assault Cannon, Multi-Melta
Stormraven Gunship
Assault Cannon, Multi-Melta
Stormraven Gunship
Assault Cannon, Multi-Melta
Heavy Support
Land Raider
Land Raider
Land Raider
The goal here is, as I mentioned, to put as many heavily armored vehicles on the board as possible. In order to do so I've taken Coteaz as my HQ and unlocked 12pt scoring units; each has been upgraded to carry three meltaguns, giving them the potential to lay some hurt if the opportunity arises.
Each scoring unit has taken a Razorback with Str 6 Heavy Bolters, but it's important to note that the Henchmen won't be riding in their transports; instead I'll protect them by placing three in Land Raiders and one in a Stormraven, giving me durable and versatile scoring units. The Razorbacks are going to be irritating for my opponent, as their beefed up Heavy Bolters can put the hurt on light armor and their AV11 should provide an enticing target to opposing anti-tank weaponry, thereby improving the durability of my three Stormravens.
Once again I'll put this list to the question: Can this win? I think that it can, especially given the opportunity to playtest and adjust it. Dark Eldar may be the roughest matchup for me, but then again it may not; with four Razorbacks able to deal with light armor and six heavy tanks that can shoot twelve targets per turn, I may be able to put their entire mech lineup into the dirt before they get a shot off.
1 comment:
I like the idea of it. I think this is also one of the reasons that Psyflemen Dreadnoughts are so effective for Grey Knights, AV 12 is harder for people to deal with than it seems, only armies like Tau and IG have good long range S10 weapons in any kind of abundance. In fact, if you push that list up to 'Ard Boyz points level, you could do a lot worse than to add 3 Venerable Psyflemen.
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