40k Battle Tactics: The Art of the Turn 1 Assault

One thing that people never expect, and hope never happens to them, is being assaulted by their opponent before they have even started their first turn. Most players don't realise it can even happen, and of those players who know that it can technically happen, most don't rate the unit they think will be the one assaulting.

There are a few key components to the turn 1 assault and making it work for you, and not all armies have the ability. The first component is a fast moving unit with scout. Infiltrate will not get the job done, nor will a unit on foot with scout, as you have to end your scout move outside of 12" of your opponent, so you will never be in charge range. So usually what this means is you need to have scout bikes, or something of the like. The second key component is to have an independent character (or multiple if possible) that has an assault vehicle. The most common army that can do this are Space Marines or Space Marine equivalents such as Grey Knights (ie. Land Raider). There are other armies which have the same capabilities, but I will focus on these for the examples provided. The final component is knowing how to sling shot independent characters.

3 New 40k Podcasts

It's seems like 40k podcasting is experiencing a Renaissance. New podcasts are appearing overnight and starting to fill up my "To Listen" pile. Well I have made good progress getting through them in the last week but if this keeps continuing I am going to have to start making some hard decisions about my podcast diet :)

The first new podcast on the block is Preferred Enemies. I have listened to 4 episodes and a bonus now and I've got to tell you - I'm totally hooked! The hosts are down to earth and just doing a great job of providing interesting content. I think I just really relate to them. Their discussion on the current calls for a GW boycott was open-minded and level headed.

The second podcast is Screaming Heretic, a "sister" podcast of Eternal Warriors (aka Dice Like Thunder for the old school out there). The hosts are friends with the EW crew - girlfriend in one case. Huh? Yes that's right, this one has GIRLS. Huh? Yes, that's not a typo, it's a plural. Last time I heard girls on a 40k podcast was that hobby segment they used to have on DLT - and someones partner delivering fresh muffins on 40KUK. I've only listened to a couple of episodes so far, it's been mostly a "get to know you" so far. Stand by for more opinions...

The final podcast I hasn't actually listened to yet, so this one is at your own risk :) Told you I was getting behind in my podcast listening queue. It originally started out also being called Preferred Enemies (!) but that obviously wasn't going to work. Check out Tyrant's Due. I'm downloading the 4 available episodes now from iTunes...

Hope you find these little updates helpful. If you haven't seen the phenomenon that is the Squad Smackdown, check it out and place a bet on whose got the best CC troops in 40k - there are prizes to be had!

Squad Smackdown: Place Your Bets!

The Smackdown is coming in six days and now is the time to get your bets in...I'm giving away a custom painted model to the winner!

Please check the original post to learn all about it.

And If any of my fellow bloggers out there would consider posting a note about the Smackdown it would be much appreciated. A good fight needs an audience :)

Introducing "Squad Smackdown": You Could Win a Prize!

There's been a recent spate of people running tournaments between special characters from all the Codices, eliminating the losers until a single winner is reached. I saw this first on the blog The 40k Project, and more recently in a segment on the "40K UK" podcast. This is helped by the fact that there are sixteen current Codices - the perfect number for an elimination tournament!

Now "A Plague Spreads" wants a piece of the action, but I am going to do things a little differently. My contestants won't be the superheroes of the 41st millennium, but rather those army workhorses, the lowly troops units. I'm going to take one unit up to 200 points from each Codex and battle them against each other according to the following rules.

In the spirit of "steal the initiative" I won't be doing what I've seen elsewhere, where everyone counts as assaulting. Instead a random roll will determine the aggressor, modified by the units maneuverability. As this unit will also get to fire any weapons if possible before assault, it's going to be a huge advantage. Luckily the defender gets a random chance of being in cover!

So... who's got the best troops?

Codex: Harlequins

May I present for your my vision of the Harlequins in 40k. This is something I have been working on for a while, but it is not well play-tested. Points values may need tweaking, so I would greatly appreciate any feedback that you have.


Codex: Harlequins
by Plague Marine

• Requires Codex: Eldar and Codex: Dark Eldar.
• Rules for Warp Portals and Shadow Fields taken from Codex: Dark Eldar.
• Rules for Hallucinogenic Grenades taken from Codex: Grey Knights. 

The mysterious Harlequins live within the webway, sworn guardians of the Black Library. The may emerge at any time or place to perform, or wage war, with exquisite grace.

40k Battle Tactics: Sling Shotting

Plague Marine has asked me to join the Plague Spreads team to provide some insight into some of my battle tactics in Warhammer 40,000. Here is the first of hopefully many techniques that can help get you across the line in a tough game.

So "Sling Shotting", what is it? Sling Shotting is when you use an independent character to get a unit closer to the enemy or an objective. The technique works exactly the same in reverse, using a unit to get an independent character closer to the enemy. This move can win games by itself. If you get to the last turn and you have a scoring unit just out of range for claiming an objective, if a fast moving independent character can get there to make coherency, it can be the difference of claiming or contesting an objective.

An Aussie Perspective on GW Pricing.

In case you rely solely on "A Plague Spreads..." for all your GW news, those bastards have switched all their metal to resin combined with a price rise of up to 25% on some models. Simultaneously they have banned their UK resellers from servicing customers from outside the EU.

First of all I want to give a heartfelt thank you to those of you in the northern hemisphere who are expressing their anger at the way us Aussie gamers are being treated by GW. Actually I am excited to see the blogging community responding to this crisis. Our international community might just be a new power in the fight for the rights of GW customers.

Your Grey Knights Questions Answered!

With the number of questions emerging from the Grey Knights Codex increasing every day, Games Workshop have decided to nominate a member of our blogging community as the official arbitrator on all such queries. Until such time as the FAQ is released, any rulings published on this blog should be considered the source of truth during the arbitration of rules disputes.

If my Grand Master uses the Unyielding Anvil option of the Grand Strategy power on one or more of my vehicle units, are the targeted vehicles able to hold objectives like a non-vehicle troop?

New Podcast: 40K UK

If you have been listening to The 11th Company over recent months then you would have heard the "40K UK" segments. Its content covers the UK tournament scene hosted by Dave Symcox, with his trusty side-kick (who's name I can't remember - it's not my fault they have nothing about him on the website!). To be honest they have become a highlight of the podcast to me. So when I found out that Dave was ready to cast off a new podcast into the internet sea you can understand my excitement.

On The 11th Company the boys were basically reporting on their tournament experience. They live in Nottingham which is the home of Games Workshop, and the center of 40k activity in England and perhaps the world! The segments consisted of them discussing the outcome of each tournament they attended, and Dave interviewing opponents and others live at tournaments. I like Dave's relaxed competitive outlook and enthusiasm for the game.

A Six-pack of Themed 750pt Lists

There is tournament here in Melbourne called Judgement Day that I have attended for the last three years. It is a unique event on the calendar - five 750 point games in a single day packs in the fun and makes for a great variety of games. The atmosphere among the 60+ attendees is great and I have enjoyed every game played so far.

Each year I have taken a different army: Plague Marines, then Vanilla Marines, then Tau last year. Here are the lists I am considering to take this year. The event is heavily comped, but that is panel comp so you get a fair score for your list, not an unfair score from a losing opponent. So bear in mind I'm trying to make lists that are interesting and fit to a theme, but still competitive.