Topic: 10th Company Tourney Fine Tuning

[Wombats]

This is a Scout themed army...although the bits without Scouts I'd like to see performing as well as possible. 

This is the core of the army which is unlikely to change as I have converted all the miniatures:

4 x 10 Scouts, CCW & Bolt Pistol, Powerfist
2 x 10 Scouts, Bolters, Six Sniper Rifles, Missile Launcher
Kayvaan Shrike

The optional bits (which I am about to buy and would love advice on):

4 Scout Bikers, Veteran can be converted to Powerfist if worthwhile. 

2 x 3 Tornadoes, Assault Cannons and Heavy Bolters

This is obviously lacking in serious anti-tank. 
I'm considering Multi Meltas on the Land Speeders but I'm not sure. 
I figure the Assault Cannons can get around the back anyway and then the multiple shots will be scarier, especially with Smoke Launchers and the like. 

I was thinking about minimum sized Scout squads just for Meltabombing vehicles but the Land Speeders don't leave any Fast Attack slots free. 

Drop podding Dreadies is fluffy for Raven Guard but I'm really not buying it in a light scouting force.  I do have one Dread already. 

Anyway, this is working in some pretty tight parameters with this theme but if anyone has experience fielding these units I'd be grateful for pointers as I'm about to invest. 

[Wallance]

I love nothing more in the game then seeing fluffy armies.  Math-hammer be damned!

[Tarrin the Space Marine]

Nice idea.

Whats the points cost? Where is it, the tourney that is?

The core looks nice, although for a themed scout force i would be tempted in using a basic master over the shrike stats as he may stand out like a sore thumb. I understand you want the all infiltration i guess. If you took a basic guy with minimal stats you would bolster the Ld of the force, without any risk. Shrike does this but he will be involved and you WILL lose him as he doesn't have the support of his squad, and nothing else you have is that fast. Expensive HQ to throw away.

Scout bikers are nice for eliminating close hard targets in the first turn (such as tanks), but as a unit to hold the line you might find them a bit poor due to their save. Also as you will be infiltrating most of the army first turn, they will be countered easily. They do however fit into the theme nicely. I have found them ok at best, and not had much success at tourneys with them.

The Tornado squadrons are good, and put out a bag of fire, but as you say you will be missing some anti-tank.

I would consider:
1: Dropping shrike to a basic guy, and give him CCw/Bolt Pistol (saving ~80-100 points). Keep him hidden, boosting the Scout Ld.

2: Take a small squad of scout bikers. Keep hidden and use these as a mobile scoring unit to seize objectives in last turn. Give them meltabombs in case a tank gets too cocky).

3: Take 2 x tornadoes as you describe.

4: Take 2 x tornadoes with MM/HF combo

5: If you dont like the scout bikers,  consider another squad of tornadoes, or if you feeling luck with you, go with a pair of typhoons. The blast/HB combo is sweet on packed troops.

6:The points you save with dropping the 2 tornadoes from the speeder squads, and from shrike, will be enough to get you a predator destructor (with HB's) or two. These will give you rolling forepower, 2 more scoring units and they fit in with the scout theme as they are not the heavy combat version (annihilator).

I have seen a similar list played by a guy in Utah and it worked well.

Its hardly math-hammer as you arent fully kitted but if you follow my ideas, you will have 12 units, 11 scoring.


you could of course add an inquisitor and an assassin

[Wombats]

Our tourneys are usually 1,750, this force is 15 points over so dropping a few sniper rifles will get me there. 

The big bike squad was meant to hide Shrike in if I don't get the first turn. 

Not so sure how well that will work, though.  They'll need some good terrain to hide behind, too. 
54 points for a scoring unit is damn tempting. 

Dropping to two Land Speeders squads sounds like a good plan. 

The Predator is exactly what the bearded cheesemonger in me wants to take but it just doesn't fit. 

A drop podding Dreadnought won't kill as much but it will come in late for corner capturing goodness? 
I guess there is nothing here that will stop a big tank firing whereever it likes.

With the Land Speeders cut down and still the big Scout Bike squad and Shrike I have 175 spare. 

I'm tempted to go nuts on Dreadnoughts as they are cheap table capturing units. 

[Tarrin the Space Marine]

I think the drop podding dread fits less than the preds.

I guess you see your army as a force ranging in front of teh main force. The pred fits...

I still thinks shrike is a waste. you could over course buy him a retinue, which would be nasty.

whirlwinds? you could get two for the price you have left. if you put those in, you could afford to equip the speeders with MM/HF.

would love to see your list

[Wombats]

Is Shrike really viable with his wing?

376 points minimum for guys who'll kill a cheaper squad and then be standing there in the buff with a big target paiinted on their foreheads. 

Even at the minimum four wingers its 204 points of meatshield. 
Nasty meatshield but I know where my mobile shooting would be pointing in the first round. 

I guess the scout bikes are pretty expensive meatshields anyway at 24+ points each. 
I'll probably put together the Wing anyway someday just because I love converting and dual lightening claws are fun if not cost effective. 

He is basically dead if I don't get the first round either way. 

Got my list at home with points values, will post tonight. 

These guys are either Raven Guard 10th company or Corax's failed experiments gone rogue (which explains no power armour). 

Dreadnoughts are still stretching it a lot, but it has the fluff's blessing for one or two...maybe not two...and I do have some Toughness 5 Ork characters I'd really like to snap in half

"Dreadnoughts of the Raven Guard, while rare, are also quite commonly deployed via drop pods. "

http://uk.games-workshop.com/spacemarines/ravenguard/

[Squirrelloid]

One of the cooler ideas i recall from something like a year ago was someone talking about 'artificer scout armor' - ie, veteran squads (or command squads) with infiltrate that were converted scouts to look like they had cooler armor.  Big shoulder pads, that sort of thing.  So the old fogies could come and show the young whippersnappers a thing or two on the field. 

[Wombats]

Just picked up two Dreadies with Drop Pods and Nine(!) Land Speeders with Assault Cannons off eBay. 

They need to be deployed together I think () as any of them alone are going to meet every anti-tank gun the opposing army can field. 

Would it be viable to keep Land Speeders hidden until the Dreadies drop in?  Is this just wishful thinking. 

I do like the idea of denying vehicle targets if only to annoy my opponent. 

[Jakuzie]

Well, land speeders can deep strike should it suit your fancy, they'd be arriving around the same time as the dreads...

You could hide the landspeeder, or at least use their great move to keep them out of range, except:
1) you paid points for those guns, best to use them.
2) 9 land speeders is a lot to hide.
3) 9 land speeders concentrating their fire effectively can eliminate the stuff that would be shooting at them "very quickly", thereby allowing themselves to run around at their leisure.


Think about it, you have, at BS 4, 36 str 6 ap 4 rending shots and 27 str 5 ap 4 other shots, and the movement to bring it to bare on your target(s) of choice.
 that's 63 shots of ouch. approximately 35 GEQ deaths per turn. Not to mention all the other firepower your scouts will be pumping out.

Do you really want that firepower sitting around till turn 2/3/4?
I think you should stick em behind terrain to reduce the incoming fire should you lose turn 1, then use them like the moving wall of hot led they are.

[NewHeretic]

I agree with Jakuzie's suggestions for using the Tornados from Turn 1. 

I also want to point out that trying to Deep Strike nine Tornados safely may be pushing things a bit too far.  First, they you must bring them in far enough away that they won't scatter onto any of your own or your enemy's units.  Second, you can't be sure what turn they'll arrive and they won't likely all arrive on the same turn.  Third, per the FAQ, Deep Striking Land Speeders are considered to have moved over 12", so they won't be able to shoot on the turn they arrive.

For those reasons, I don't believe that it is ever advisable to hold Land Speeders in reserve if you don't have to.

NewHeretic

[Tarrin the Space Marine]

i agree with new heretic. Get all of your guns on the field as soon as possible.

I would keep the dreads in reserve, as you will find people will hide valuable units away from the 9 speeders as you can use teh dreads to get these.

[Wombats]

I wouldn't dream of deep striking Landspeeders, I need to learn to use them for sure. 

If Landspeeders can hold their own against the part of the gunline that can see them it may even be worth having the Dreadies out at the start, too. 

Looking forward to having some mid-strength mowing ability after playing Sisters which is melta equivalents or flamers and nothing in between. 

The Scout Bikers are looking more and more like obligatory fluff than effective units. 
If I were to drop Shrike they'd have no function at all apart from cheap capping units.