Draigo-Wing Analysis Part 3: Support

We come to the third and final installment of this series. What additional units are we going to take to support our handful of uber-troops? We must ensure that our choices shore up the weaknesses of our existing units, without providing new weaknesses for the enemy to exploit. The biggest weakness is a lack of melta and ranged anti-tank. Close to that is a weakness to Strength 8 and above - especially in large volleys.

Let's start by discounting strike squads, interceptor squads and purgation squads. Firstly because they don't fit the theme as I see it, but mainly because I don't want to add softer targets for enemy anti-infantry weapons. I have held back on skipping Purifiers simply because they are so awesome. Squads of 5 in rhinos with 2 psycannons will make a useful contribution against mech and hordes, and the Rhino chasis provide valuable cover for your Dreadnoughts as they advance. Add halberds to taste.

So what about a Landraider? Definitely not! Why pay extra points for the toughness of a Paladin when you are going to hide them away? And how could we justify wasting those 8 psycannon shots per turn? If you want to take a Land Raider put normal Terminators in it.

Dreadnoughts are a great complement to Paladins, because they bring long range or melta weaponry, and share a vulnerability to Strength 8 shots. The most obvious choice is of course the ubiquitous Psyfleman Dread, who brings long range Strength 8 to the table. These will definitely help neutralise distant threats whilst the troops move forward. I think there is also scope for the inclusion of a single multi-melta/heavy flamer Dread that can move forward with the infantry and pop cans.

Seriously consider the Venerable option, as it raises the survivability of the models greatly. You roughly double their chances of surviving against AP1, and triple the chances against other weapon fire. Also the fact that you will be rolling a lot more 1s and 2s on the vehicle damage chart combos beautifully with the Fortitude psychic power, allowing you to ignore these results completely. I think it's almost mandatory on the multi-melta dread, so he can survive a melta volley, and/or hit consistently with his valuable melta shot.

Dreadnoughts bring another incredible power to the army - Reinforced Aegis. This power alone is enough to convince me that Dreads are essential in any list that hasn't packed a Librarian. Even then, subtracting 4 from enemy Psyker Leadership against game-changing powers like Jaws, Lash, Doom, Vortex of Doom and Warp Rift is invaluable.

Last up is the Dreadknight. He shares the 2+/5++ terminator saves and multiple wounds of the Paladins, and brings Toughness 6 too. Not a bad choice in theory, though seems to lack the synergy that the Dreads share with the rest of the army.  I think the real problem here is that it doesn't bring enough anti-tank options to the table (just one more psycannon) which is a hole that definately needs to be filled in the list. Let's put them down as having potential...

Well that it, until next time. Please feel free to comment on this series - did you find it helpful? Am I full of shit? Let me know!