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Author Topic: Grey Knights in 6th Edition: Strategies and Tactics with the boys in grey  (Read 11885 times)

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Offline ~Iron Captain Softy~

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Welcome to my personal overview and pseudo-guide to the Grey Knights in 6th Edition! I am writing this partly because I want to enrich the community as a whole and partly because I'm tired of typing/lecturing on the same topics over and over again, and just want to write it down once in reference format to save myself some work. This is a living document as the game will no doubt change as time goes on, so I'll be sure to hang around and make adjustments/corrections as they become necessary.

I'm always open to suggestions and requests to cover certain topics as long as they are consistent with the purpose of this article. Please do not hesitate to ask.


Overview
 - Individual Unit Analysis
 - Strategic approaches to achieving objectives
 - Synergistic Tactics/Strategies
 - Maneuver Tactics as applied to GKs
 - Strategic considerations for each match-up

If you do not know what the term OPFOR means, it basically stands for Opposing Force and refers to your opponent's army and opponent as a collective entity. With that out of the way, let's get started.

Individual Unit Analysis

     HQ

   Kaldor Draigo. Need I say more? ... Ok, fine. Draigo is here for one reason: Making Paladins work. His improved statline, Eternal Warrior, and Storm Shield make sure that the Paladins are mostly shielded from harm for at least a turn or two of dedicated firepower, which is hopefully all you need. Combine this with good old Grand Strategy for some more force multiplication, and you're looking at a surprisingly useful HQ for the hefty price tag. While I wouldn't recommend using Draigo without Paladins, the stuff he gets over a generic Grand Master can sometimes warrant his use for either his directional shield tactics or as a distraction via deepstriking with an accompanying squad into the backfield and causing trouble, depending on the overall style of your chosen methods.

   Mordrak is a distraction through and through. His abilities and retinue are tailored for this use, and given the right conditions, he can cause a bit of damage before he is destroyed. The biggest detractor from him and his retinue is that he has basically no ranged firepower to apply on the drop. Just as good, as he probably has the most reliable deep strike I've ever seen. However, you can attach a single Independent Character to get some more hitting power. Most popular one I've seen is the Librarian with Warp Rift. I don't approve of this plan though because this means that your warlord has basically been given up as forfeit for the distraction, automatically putting you behind on VPs. Overall, I'd say Mordrak should only show up for fluff lists.

   Stern... I have a very hard time seeing how he could be a good idea in any list. He's not a Grand Master, he has a double edged offensive power, and he's super expensive for not that much hitting power. Unless you really want to use him because you like his model, I'd avoid Stern like the plague.

   Crowe is one of those HQs that I really want to like, but just can't. On the one hand, he makes one of the best generalist units in the codex your troops choice, has a cleansing flame that makes terminators cringe, and has Heroic Sacrifice for use as deterrence. On the other hand... he's always alone. Not having the ability to join squads pretty much sucks all the useful tactical applications out of Crowe, making it basically a miracle if he makes it into combat. About the best you can ask out of Crowe is that he hide close to your home objective and dare your opponent to try to take it from him.

   Grey Knight Grand Masters are the go-to option for those who want to stay pure Grey Knight and want to avoid Special Characters. While he's essentially a generalist HQ that pays quite a bit for it, his force multiplier ability in Grand Strategy makes this flaw forgivable. Equip him according to what role he is going to play and watch him go.

   Grey Knight Brother Captains are absolutely worthless. The existence of the Grand Master makes Brother Captains obsolete, as they are both exactly the same statwise and equipment wise. Don't bother.

   Brotherhood Champions are the bargain pure GK HQ for use in smaller games or with certain strategies. While his ranged output is outright pathetic, his close combat game is where it's at. On defense, Brotherhood Champions basically deny the enemy the use of their heavy hitter HQs, sometimes even neutralizing them with Heroic Sacrifice. On offense, he can use the challenge system to make sure that your squad does not eat sergeant power fists or serious single model melee threats like the Swarmlord. Incidentally, they can also ensure that you "save" an enemy model from death while your killer squad eliminates the opposition. Of course, this is bound to work only once, as the opponent will most likely wise up and not accept the challenge (unless you're chaos... sucka~), but there it is. While the Brotherhood Champion is a limited force multiplier, the advent of challenges put Brotherhood Champions back on the roster of useful HQs, ironically as one of the best close combat choices in the codex.

   Librarians are the classic Force Multiplier HQ. Librarians are most effective in armies that consist of many different units working close together, as his Area of Effect powers get exponentially more effective. As long as anti-psyker rules are not in play, the Librarian can cover the lack of the more exotic Nemesis Force Weapons as well as providing defensive boosts. If your chosen powers aren't effective in your match-up, the option to take Divination instead is a welcome addition to the Librarian's options, as this table abounds with force multipliers. It's not all good though: Inquisitors have much cheaper access to the Divination powers. If you have no plans on using the Grey Knights specific powers, pass on the Librarian, as your points are spent better elsewhere.

   Coteaz is hands down the most efficient named HQ in this codex. He unlocks the most deadly specialist units in the codex as troops, adds some reliability against seize the initiative, is Mastery Level 2 (?!), and has a hard counter for danger close deep striking units. Throw him in with a warband designed for shooting, roll up some divination powers, and force multiply away. Henchmen are already ridiculously deadly for their point cost. Prescience, Perfect Timing, and Misfortune increase their hitting power to epic proportions. While the Librarian technically has the same access to these force multipliers, you're paying 1.5 times more and losing all the special benefits Coteaz offers.

   Karazamov offers a little bit of a wild card to Grey Knight players. He's expensive, but he's pretty tough and has quite a bit of wargear (as well as the rare Multi-Melta, not bad). The biggest standout feature of Karazamov is no doubt his Orbital Strike Relay in conjunction with By Any Means Necessary. By using specific units, you can ply the OSR to great effect, effectively neutralizing light/medium infantry and getting enemy troops terrified of engaging your flanking forces. IMO, this OSR is the only one worth taking.

   Valeria is a bit of an oddball in the roster. She can be decently deadly in close combat and very short range, but she contributes basically nothing else to the army. Valeria is never seen for a good reason.

   The Generic Inquisitors offer a lot for the ridiculously low price tag they boast. Inquisitors have all the tools they need to perform the role you want them to perform. Ordo Malleus does decently well at mid-range, Ordo Xenos can perform both at long range and as the ultimate close combat force multiplier, and Ordo Hereticus can provide some laughs. Equip to your heart's content and be content in the knowledge that you spent a heck of a lot less on your HQ then most players spend on single model elite choices.

     Elites

   Techmarines are good for two uses: close combat force multiplier via grenades and Hammerhand and Beamer guy. Bolster Defenses is an added bonus, but relying on this facet of the Techmarine became much less fruitful thanks to the FAQ reverting valid targets to only ruins. Consider the point expenditure very seriously before including the Techmarine.

   Purifiers are extremely good for the points you pay. Veteran statline, Cleansing Flame, unprecedented access to cheap heavy weapon options, cheap force weapon upgrade options... It's rather hard to find reasons why Purifiers are bad. The only real drawback that Purifiers have is their lack of the ability to Deep Strike, forcing you to get a Rhino or Stormraven to transport them. Otherwise, there is basically nothing Purifiers can not do. Plant them in Midfield and watch the carnage ensue.

   Venerable Dreadnoughts... don't even bother. Worthless.

   Paladins get lambasted as expensive all the time, but they are surprisingly cheap given what they gain over regular Terminators. Paladins make the ideal Shock unit due to their durability and increased psycannon firepower. Due to their nature, Paladins are extremely vulnerable to Instant Death weapons, especially those of the Large Blast variety. Exercise sensible positioning, and your Paladins should serve you well enough.

   The Temple Assassins are, for the most part, extremely niche in application and generally not recommended. The Vindicare Assassin is probably the most useful due to his ability to nearly automatically inflict penetrating hits on vehicles. While he can be used to try to eliminate specific models, LO,S! can get in the way of hitting sergeants and Independent Characters, limiting you to targeting special/heavy weapons and other random upgrade models. What kills Vindicare Assassins as an option is their inability to deal with cover IMO, as each successful cover save accentuates how many points you spent on a model that does so little every turn. Can be useful in some situations, but unfortunately can give your opponent just the opportunity they need to claim First Blood. Unless you know exactly what you are doing, I suggest you avoid these.

   Henchmen Warbands are the hidden gold in this codex. They are simultaneously the most powerful close combat unit and the most powerful ranged unit in the army. For the most part, this unit is a glass cannon and is highly reliant on cover/positioning to survive battles, so careless use of them will see them leave the board in a hurry. They are best used as either a firebase to support a main GK offensive with overwhelming firepower or as a flanking close combat monster that devours whatever it charges. They make very little impact on your point total for the amount of offensive capability they afford you. I highly suggest you consider at least one (maybe two) of these to fill a void in your list.
   How you outfit your Henchmen Squads is entirely up to you. If you feel you want more dice to throw at your opponent, Storm Bolter equipped acolytes, Heavy Bolter Servitors, and two Jokaero can provide you what you're looking for at a very reasonable price. If you feel you are lacking in anti-elite firepower at mid-range and CQB, Acolytes with plasma guns, Plasma Cannon Servitors, and the Double Monkeys can work wonders in providing you what you need. If you need an overwhelming close combat threat on a budget, a combination of Death Cult Assassins and Crusaders can work wonders, especially when augmented with the fun grenades and CC force multipliers like Hammerhand, Prescience, Might of Titan, and Quicksilver. If you're going to be taking advantage of the Summoning, a CQB unit composed of melta/flamer acolytes backed up by Crusaders and a mystic can give you the base from which to drop in 100 point Purgation squads with 4 incinerators and a surprise unit of Paladins exactly where the opponent does not want them. Your imagination is the limit.

     Troops

   Terminator Squads pale in comparison to Paladins both in point efficiency, real firepower potential, and staying power. They do not, however, require an extremely expensive Draigo to perform their role, so they are sufficient in a pinch. While I don't suggest these as your mainstay troops, you can most certainly make them work, as they are reasonably effective in any mode of combat.

   Grey Knight Strike Squads are the all round solid choice for non henchmen armies. Reasonably durable, good point to firepower ratio, and options at the strategic level of planning. Warp Quake provides a great defense against deep strikers, which coincidentally stops some diversions from working as intended. Outside of Henchmen, Strike Squads provide the most Storm Bolters for your points, and I say you can never have too many of those. While not as flashy as Purifiers, Paladins, or Henchmen, they can certainly work just well enough.

     Fast Attack

   Stormravens are a must have in your army if you are not taking allies to handle anti-air. We may have been able to get by barely by ignoring fliers so far, but now that the Heldrake is flying around with a torrenting Flamestorm Cannon, that's not much of an option anymore. These may not be as generally potent as their C:BA counterparts, but they are flexible enough to serve as both an Interdictor and as an Assault Transport. Mindstrike Missiles also provide a good way to take offending psykers off the table merely by hitting them, making some match-ups more tolerable for you.

   Interceptor Squads make ideal flanking forces due to their self-sufficient mobility. Other then their teleporters, they are rather unremarkable in close combat. Use with care, as each death will be very poignant with the amount of points you spend.

     Heavy Support

   Purgation Squads are only marginally useful in 6th edition given the exorbitant price on Psycannons and barely useful Astral Aim ability. However, Purgation Squads are unique in that they have access to Incinerators for free. A small unit of 5 with 4 Incinerators can make an interestingly cheap and devastating harassment unit to mount up in a Stormraven or Rhino/Razorback. A librarian casting the Summoning in conjunction with a mystic can get some pinpoint fire on whatever you need softened up. Overall, it's a bit of a redundant unit, so I'd think twice before taking any Purgation squads.

   Dreadnoughts still have a tiny bit of merit left in 6th edition simply because of Reinforced Aegis and the Psybolt upgrade. While they're not exactly durable anymore thanks to Hull Points, they are cheap enough to not really care as much. Visually isolate, and you should be fine using them.

   Dreadknights have gained quite a second wind with 6th edition, as we now have challenges to single out deadly weapons in combat and higher durability vs power weapons. Depending on how you equip them, they'll serve well as either a cheap diversion/objective cleanser or as a hunter/bully, picking off isolated units on the flanks. Achieve local superiority and Dreadknights should serve you well enough.

   Land Raiders occupy a curious position in 6th edition. While they have gotten much more vulnerable to anti-armor weapons, the overall shift of the meta has seen the emergence of full squads and high body count armies, thus many have started taking medium strength high ROF weaponry instead of single shot high strength weaponry. Thus, taking LRs can catch some unprepared, giving you the advantage in a situation where the opponent has no ability to tailor. Of course, the possibility of this actually happening is slim, so I wouldn't bank on it. Not everything is bad though. The LR has gotten slightly faster thanks to Flat Out moves, so it should reduce the time it takes to reach a viable target. However, Stormravens provide similar transport capacity and vastly faster speeds at the expense of high risk. Not generally recommended, but it can work if you play your cards right.

Someone please post, this system is a little messed up and won't let me reserve any spots. There is a LOT more left to post up.
« Last Edit: November 5, 2012, 07:46:04 PM by ~Iron Captain Softy~ »
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Offline Guildmage Aech

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Looks good, it will be nice to have a modern guide to the Grey Knights.

A couple of suggestions, try to make things easier to read. For example if I want to find out what you've written about say, Purifiers, I have to go looking for them. Separating units into sections for HQ, Elite, and so on with big bold titles helps people to skim to the section they're looking for.

You're more than welcome to rip the style I used on the old Deamonhunter codex guide (which is still in the inquisition articles section - I won't link to it as its waaaaay out of date). After you get the whole thing up, perhaps we can look though it and you could submit it as a new article and get it featured on the front page!
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Offline WisdomLS

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Nice breakdown  :)

Only thing I'd suggest is going into a little more detail on the different types of henchmen as they are a very diverse unit and perhaps a breakdown of the different psychic powers that are available to the units. You may of course have that planned for later in the process.

Offline ~Iron Captain Softy~

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Strategies for achieving objectives

Before I go into detail, I should cover some basic concepts that occur very frequently in tactics for elite armies.
     Local Superiority is what I call a situation where your forces are overwhelmingly better then your opponent's immediately available assets. This can be brought about either by using terrain to visually isolate a part of the OPFOR or by simply positioning yourself so that the OPFOR is effectively blocked off by it's own bulk.
     Overwhelming Strike is what I call the act of focusing your offense on a single unit/part of the OPFOR. Part of enacting this is understanding your effective range (This is a function of your equipment's basic range and your ability to maneuver) and setting up different range bands so that your army is able to focus their fire without getting in each other's way.

With these in mind, let's go into Grey Knight specific strategies.

     As I see it, Grey Knights have plenty of ways of achieving Victory. First, there's the pure counter type army (Henceforth known as the Water type army). Second, there's the total victory type army (Fire type). Third, there's the rolling thunder type army (Earth/Fire hybrid type). Fourth, there's the surgical strike type army (Air type). What I will do is outline the Modus Operandi of each archetype and general guidelines on what to focus on during list creation. What I will not do is give specific directions on how to achieve said guidelines, as that is up to the player to perform.

     Water type armies focus on supreme tactical versatility for the end goal of engaging in the type of combat where the OPFOR is weakest in the position that is most compromising to the OPFOR. Troops in this type of army will usually aim to be self-sufficient and able in all phases of the turn. Players using this type of army must be on top of pertinent knowledge about all other codices in the game so that they are able to successfully identify the nature and probable strategy/tactics employed by the OPFOR and bring units that are able to take advantage of openings and weaknesses shown. While it's not a requirement for all the units in the army to be extremely mobile, it's usually a good idea, as mobility is required to get into position efficiently and quickly. Typically, Power Armored Grey Knights and Grey Knight Terminators make up the bulk of the forces, as they embody true tactical flexibility with mobile firepower, decent close combat potential, and the ability to deep strike for the most part. Support forces will also want to be somewhat mobile in order to maneuver to positions where they are needed (Note that mobility is an amalgamation of Range + Speed).

     Fire type armies want one thing: Total annihilation of the OPFOR. Troops in this type of army focus on bringing as much destructive capability as possible at the cost of all else. This type of army is probably the easiest type of army to play, as you simply advance and shoot/charge whatever is foolish enough to cross your path. Typically, Henchmen feature prominently in army lists like this, as their offensive capabilities are unparalleled in this codex. Support forces will consist of a combination of two types: Units that contribute even more firepower to the army, and units that help preserve the combat effectiveness of the main army.

     Earth/fire type armies aim to engage and outlast the OPFOR in a straight up fight. Troops in this type of army want enough durability to require more then a light breeze to destroy, but want to put enough firepower out that entire enemy units have the potential of being annihilated quickly. Purifiers embody this type quite iconically, though GKT/PAGKs can also serve the same purpose. Support forces should catch flanking forces and neutralize them, allowing the Troops to engage and push through the OPFOR's mainstay force without having to worry about flanking attacks. Additionally, since the Troops in this type of list will not normally have the ability to deep strike, support forces should either provide the means for those troops to reach the backfield quickly or be able to engage backfield elements that are out of reach of the Troops.

     Air type armies utilize the extreme speed that C:GK offers in order to outmaneuver the OPFOR and hit the flanks/isolated units using the concepts of Local Superiority and Overwhelming Strike to divide and conquer. This type of army is highly reliant on the opponent's mistakes and the terrain situation, as either condition not being in your favor will quickly result in you losing the momentum and very quickly losing your victory conditions as a result. Armies of this type consist almost entirely of units that are capable of moving more then 12" a turn and of destroying almost any typical equivalent unit outright using whatever means necessary. I don't personally think this archetype is a good idea at all, as this type of list is highly susceptible to being blindsided by a list well suited to consolidating in a single position and negating local superiority, but far be it from me to dissuade people from running lists how they want.

     No matter what type of list you are running, you want to consider ways of achieving the secondary objectives reliably. While Slay the Warlord is more or less up to the Wheel of Fate to decide, you should aim to 1: make your warlord as hard to reach as possible, and 2: make sure that you maximize your chances of claiming first blood. While these should not be paramount in your considerations, you should not completely forget them, as Secondary Objectives turn out to be the final straw so often it's not even funny.

Synergetic Tactics/Strategies

     No army is a simple list of units doing their own thing (unless it's incompetently created...), and there are many combinations of different units in C:GK that combine with each other to affect successful projection of force. In this section, I'll detail all the different tricks I use and know of.

Karazamov + Dreadknight
     This is a simple combination that counters screening and fixing tactics used against the Dreadknight and gives you the ability to lay down the hurt on an enemy unit that you need damaged/removed ASAP in a given turn. If you're using Dreadknights, I'd highly suggest you try to find some room for Karazamov, as he greatly increases your tactical options and provides operational security.

Paladins & Coteaz + Strike Squads
     Paladins have a bit of a weakness to getting flanked and hit from the rear, as us paladin players might have noticed. If you know you're going to get hit by deep strikers, try doing this.

     Paladins advance up to midfield and do their thing. Make sure Coteaz is positioned as far back as you are comfortable with. Then, have your strike squads positioned so that their warp quake bubble covers everything but a 12" zone behind the Paladins.

     This creates a situation that is enticing for deep strikers. There is a relatively safe zone behind the paladins to deep strike and hit, but they have to not mishap and survive the IBEY shooting attack to pull it off. Usually, this is sufficient to dissuade the more cautious players, but some of the braver players will take that chance. There is very little chance of most deep strikers surviving a Prescienced shooting phase from a full paladin squad, so you'll most likely dispatch them with no trouble, or weaken them enough that their attack is pitiful.

Assault unit from Hell
     If you're tired of being pushed around in close combat by the foul heretic scum, then try using this unit as your ace in the hole.

OX Inquisitor: Rad, Psycho, ML 1
Henchmen: 8 DCA, 4 Crusaders (DCA armed with Axe & Sword)
Librarian: Shrouding, Might of Titan, Quicksilver
LRC: Psybolts, Mmelta

     If you're packing a techmarine, throw him in the unit as well.

     If you can find yourself a ruin big enough to hide the LR in/behind, bolster that, then keep shrouding up for a 2+ cover save on your LR (This is great fun, I loved the look people had when I was rolling 2 ups for my LR). Anything comes near, you barrel out and charge with this monster unit. Anything short of 20 TH/SS terminators don't stand a chance of weathering that storm. It's especially fun springing this on a Paladin or Nob Biker player who thinks their big death stars are invincible to anything.

Shooty Henchmen + Deep Striking/Shunting GKs

     Load up your henchmen with powerful shooting weapons and place them in areas of cover. This gives your opponent a direction to orient to. As you maneuver/drop, use this orientation to get straight at your opponent's valuable models, as they will most likely be placed in the rear to avoid being killed by the henchmen.

GK firing line + flanking CC threat

     Place the ADL right at the center of mid-field, then move your mass of guys up to it with a Librarian at the middle providing Shrouding for 3+ cover saves at the center. This basically locks the battle at the center. If the situation places you at the advantage in a CQB fight, then do the following. Wait for the Stormraven to come in, then fly/flat out into position to assault a target next turn.

     This same turn, move your entire army up and shoot/run. This poses a serious problem for the opponent, as the OPFOR wants to deal with the stormraven and assault unit, but also wants to take advantage of the percieved opening of leaving cover. No matter what kind of firepower the opponent is toting, it is most likely not enough to destroy the stormraven + contents AND suitably weaken the advancing line of GKs. It will be a decision between a rock and a hard place, and no matter what happens, something of the OPFOR will be dying a horrific death.

Maneuver Tactics

Flank/Rear Assault
   While this is a fundamental concept for Fantasy players, 40k players in general seem to not understand directional attacks at all. Every time I see complaints about the HarlieStar or Draigowing or other such shock units using directional shield tactics, I can't help but shake my head and say "hit the flanks".

   When you are faced with a unit using an IC as a shield for the unit, you have two options you can employ to work around this. First option is to use units with high mobility to work around and hit that shock unit from the side, thus bypassing the IC altogether. Second option is to use weaponry with the Barrage type to change the direction from which the attack is coming from, thus bypassing the IC.

Denied Flank
   When you are faced with a numerically superior OPFOR, it is very often a bad idea to try to engage the entirety of the OPFOR with your whole army. In such cases, aim to deploy second so you can force your opponents hand. If this does not come to pass, use reserves/deep strike to achieve the same effect. This will naturally lead to a situation where you can establish local superiority, which will in turn stack the odds in your favor as you engage a minority of the OPFOR with a majority of your own forces.

   When enacting this tactic, a diversion is very often necessary to preserve local superiority long enough for you to successfully neutralize the section you engage and redeploy into favorable positions to assault the remainder. The cheaper the diversion, the better, as the diversionary force will almost invariably be destroyed in the pursuit of this goal.

Baiting
   If your opponent is a more reactive player that likes to set up killzones and traps for you, do the following. Deploy a small part of your force in such a manner that ranged attacks will affect that force very little. This will encourage the OPFOR to close the distance in order to see better results. Use this opportunity to either shunt or deep strike the rest of your forces on to the weakest flank (the rear flank is usually ideal). This will create an optimal position for you to establish local superiority. This tactic is most effective when the "bait" is very effective at shooting, as this will pressure your opponent into showing his hand and advancing to engage. Be careful not to overextend your forces, as the tables can be turned on you very quickly if your opponent becomes savvy to the trick.

Cross-up
   With the dawn of 6th comes the advent of positioning tactics. Many players now place their special/heavy weapons and upgrade units in the back of the unit in order to put as much of a buffer between them and their investments. This is a tendency that can be exploited with some implied threats and clever positioning.

   First part of this tactic is to set the opponent up. Hit the target unit with an attack on any flank. Typically, this will have the opponent orient the target unit in relation to the threat presented. If the opponent does what you're looking for (all special models positioned at the back), the stage has been set. Second part of this tactic is to enact the cross-up. Use a highly mobile unit to maneuver to the rear flank of the target unit, at which point you are directly removing his valuable models.
« Last Edit: November 5, 2012, 08:15:54 PM by ~Iron Captain Softy~ »
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Offline Raktra (So long, I guess)

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Other than dropping a bombardment on the Dreadknight's head, what can Karamazov offer? Because if it is indeed just that, surely Crusaders in a rhino/ chimera would be the better option on basis of cost alone?

Offline ~Iron Captain Softy~

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He gives you a squad of Henchmen to use if you're not using Coteaz (who is consequently not the best HQ to use all of the time. Sometimes, having a Henchmen squad in an elites slot instead of a troops slot can be helpful if you're loading up on other kinds of troops). He's got a TL Multi-Melta, which is a bit of a rarity outside of Henchmen in C:GK. He also has his leadership modification ability, which makes him like Calgar-lite. But yes, I'd say the majority of the use that comes out of Karazamov is his pinpoint accuracy bombardments with the OSR. It's a capability that can not be replicated elsewhere in the codex.

Match-up specific strategies and tactics

   Obviously, different opponents will require different tactics (sometimes strategies) to overcome, and I will go over all my thoughts and experience on the most common match-ups.

Codex: Space Marines
   Space Marines are a grab bag of possibilities. One match, you may be facing a shooting line from hell. Next match, you'll be eating a ton of close quarters battle goodness. Best you can do is either have an army and strategy that is flexible enough in application to either take the fight to them or be able to stave off incoming forces long enough to divide and conquer, or have an army that is so offensively oriented that your opponent can do nothing to stop you (... not that hard where C:SM is concerned). Overall, a match-up to be wary of, but hardly your toughest fight.

Codex: Blood Angels
   Blood Angels will typically come in three varieties. First type is the mechanized speed demon force, Second is the Assault Squads from hell, and Third is the gunline.

   Mech Blood Angels used to be the force to be reckoned with in 5th, but now, it's almost too easy to neutralize. Predators and Rhinos fall easy prey to S5 storm bolters and psycannons, and the token troops occupying the razorbacks pose almost no threat to anything. Use flanking/rear attacks to destroy the high priority threats first, then mop up the rest.

   Assault Squad Spam Blood Angels seems to be more popular then the gunline, at least around my neck of the woods. This kind of list will consist of either regular Assault Squads or Sanguinary Guard and will be supported by either Devastators, Predators, Baal Predators, or Stormravens. Depending on how assault capable your forces are, Assault Squads vary between Medium to Low on the target priority list, as our standard equipment sees them off with only Feel No Pain to keep them company. Sanguinary Guard go High now as we require Daemonhammers or Doomfists to ignore their armor save. Depending on your army's configuration, you will have to choose between prioritizing their firebase or their incoming assault forces. A diversion like a Strike Squad or a Dreadknight romping about in their backfield can suffice for keep fire support occupied while the rest of your force focuses on engaging the assault squads.

   Gunline Blood Angels are a rare breed for some odd reason. If the OPFOR is composed entirely of shooting elements, get in close and engage in CQB where we have the great advantage. If the OPFOR has a Shock Unit supported by a list full of shooting units, this is where it gets tough. Thanks to Corbulo, Blood Angel Shock Units are all but immune to small arms fire from the front, and their flanks are well covered by the firebase. Combat Squad what you can and get in danger close to engage the gunline elements. You will most likely win those individual skirmishes, as those gunline elements typically have little to no close combat capability. The results of this are two-fold: You force many little situations of local superiority and you force the Shock Unit to decide where to go. As with basically all Shock Units, it can only be in once place at a time, and when you have the entire board covered, there aren't exactly many winning situations to be had. If you feel confident enough to engage the shock unit and win in a straight-up fight, then you should be fine for the most part.

Codex: Space Wolves
   This is no doubt a tough fight no matter which kind of Space Wolves you run into, as our psychic powers won't be as reliable as they normally are. The Space Pups come in three main varieties: Mechanized wolves, Drop Pod wolves, and Hybrid wolves.

   Regardless of the army build, Wolf Scouts and Lone Wolves will be a pain in the rear to deal with. Thankfully, the Scouts can no longer assault when they come in, so shooting them once should deal with them sufficiently. Lone Wolves are probably the second best distraction in the game. If you can, ignore the Lone Wolf. If you must kill the lone wolf, use the unit with the least amount of shooting options first so that you can try to preserve your offensive options as much as possible.

   Mech wolves are very similar to Mech blood angels, and you can deal with them in much the same way. In a way, mech wolves are less able then blood angels because they move much slower, giving them less ability to reposition after you initiate a flank attack. However, this puts you in range of their Rune Priests, which can carry all sorts of risks itself based on what powers they generated. If at all possible, try to hit the Rune Priests first, preferrably with Mindstrike weaponry.

   Drop Pod wolves give you two methods of dealing with them: keep them at arms length and get into a gun battle, or let them come close, weather the storm, then shoot/charge them, aiming for the wipe.

   Hybrid wolves provide a couple of ways of answering them. First, you can ignore the mech/shooting part of the list and prioritize the podding squads first. Second, you can deep strike yourself so you can engage the backfield elements and force the OPFOR to drop their squads into friendly territory to support. Either way, keep target prority in mind and don't be afraid to move on to other targets after you sufficiently weaken one squad (<25%).

Codex: Grey Knights
   This mirror match is an absolutely lethal match-up, as we are our own worst enemy. Close Combats will be on the whole lethal and extremely quick, and all our anti-psyker related weapons will work wonders on our own kind.

   This fight will basically boil down to who is able to shoot first and inflict casualties faster then the other, then who is able to get the charge off.

   Henchmen can change the equation a bit, especially those of the close combat variety. Henchmen outfight most of the Grey Knight units point for point, so pure grey knight opponents will be very threatened by henchmen and the accelerated rate of attrition they inflict.

Codex: Imperial Guard
   This is one of the toughest match-ups we have, bar none. On the whole, Guard units evaporate before Grey Knights, but there are simply so many that we get overwhelmed more often then not. Their shooting also has much better stand-off capability, which puts the onus on us to close the distance.

   We may not exactly be great at stand-off shooting, but we must not neglect it. Henchmen can serve great purpose here, as they can fire on high priority targets with heavy weapons right from the start. Anything that can start opening up chimeras and shaking/destroying manticores/medusas/leman russ tanks in the opening phases of the game helps tremendously.

   Line infantry are probably best off deep striking into terrain, hopefully establishing local superiority so they can fire at least once at full strength. Shoot as often as possible and charge if you can, you have to be active in as many phases as possible to have a chance of neutralizing enough of the army to be relatively safe in the later phases of the game.

   The more bodies you bring to this fight, the better you usually are, as model quality means very little here.

Codex: Dark Eldar
   Dark Eldar are the iconic fire type army, as their offensive power is unparalleled even by the Imperial Guard. Thankfully, their defense is very lacking, and that is our only saving grace. Avoid spending too much on upgrades to bring more bodies, as you will probably be facing down a lot of firepower.

   Achieving Local Superiority against Dark Eldar is like trying to catch fish with your bare hands. It's possible, but very unlikely, so you're better off just focusing fire and cutting off their mobility. Since they outrange most Grey Knights for the most part, Deep Strike will be the key tool to use here. As long as you can hamstring the Dark Eldar by neutralizing the Raiders/Venoms ASAP, you should stand a good chance of keeping the OPFOR in mid-range so that the fight is even.

   Shooty Henchmen are worth their weight in gold in this match-up, as they take advantage of the Dark Eldar's poison weaponry to be more durable then Grey Knights given some good cover to hug. Combine this with their shooting ability, and most Dark Eldar players will learn to fear your Henchmen something fierce.

Codex: Necrons
   Necrons are probably the most annoying match-up to face. Vehicle support is basically null and void thanks to Gauss, so it's up to the boots on the ground to win the day. Grey Knights will outshoot Necrons at mid-range, but assault can pose a problem if you rely on low model count units to do the killing thanks to Mindshackle Scarabs.

   On the ground, Terminators will be vital in providing counter-assault support against Wraiths/Lychguard and Characters, as they will be a bit much for the Power Armored Grey Knights to handle. As always, HQs that provide force multipliers to the unit will be the best choice for shooting/assault support, as beatsticks will become counter-productive to you.

   In the air, Necrons bring an insane amount of fliers, and there's honestly not much we can do about that outside of allies, Stormravens, and fortifications. About the best we can do in the air is to hit the Doom Scythes first, hopefully take those down, and ignore the Night Scythes, hoping those don't do much damage.

   Target priority will be a bit simpler then normal against Necrons. First target priority will be the close combat capable necrons, as those are willing to close in and engage in CQB. Second target priority will be Doom Scythes, as those can do quite a bit of damage left unattended. The other vehicles are third on the list. Warriors/Immortals can be saved for last, as they are relatively easily dispatched in CQB. In any case, focus fire as much as possible, as Reanimation Protocols can render your efforts moot if you spread out your damage too much.

Codex: Orks
   This match-up is pretty simple for Grey Knights. We come with Storm Bolters standard (S5 is almost a given), have super assault cannons in every slot, and rock force weapons standard. This means that their troops are dropping like flies as they advance, all of their armor is extremely vulnerable to every single unit we bring (Hit the Flanks of those battlewagons, same deal), and Nobs are facing serious damage in assault against even our basic strike squads.

   Dreadknights serve a great purpose here, as their heavy incinerators can make extremely short work of any orks you want to hit. Combine this with Karazamov, and there is basically no ork unit that will ever want to assault the Dreadknight, EVER (excluding Ghazghkull, but whatever).

   Since Orks want to drown you in dice (either via shooting or close combat) and require a lot of space to do so, don't let them get that space. Use the terrain to your advantage. Set yourself up so that there are only a few ways to get in at you cleanly without having to deal with terrain, and take care of the problem one target at a time.

   Nob Bikers may be terrifying to other Marine armies, but they shouldn't phase us at all. Toughness 5 is a little bit of a concern, but that's what Librarians are for IMO. Soften them up with your shooting phase (hopefully, you should have at least 3 full squads of guys for their one Nob Squad points-wise), let one unit get charged (I'd suggest combat squading one of those squads and putting them out front to soak the charges), then surround the nobs, shoot, then charge. Librarians help tremendously here, as they can cast Hammerhand and Might of Titan, letting the squads save their warp charge for force weapon activation. This has taken care of Nob Bikers every time I fought them, and I rarely see them now because of that (This is just against me though... seems they show up a bit more often against other non-GK people).

   Ork Fighta-Bombas can be rather destructive given the right unit combinations. As always, Stormravens can help keep the skies clear for you so you can concentrate on the fight on the ground. Stormravens also bring the additional benefit of being able to reach the backfield, taking care of ork fire support and hopefully diverting some of the orks back towards their own board edge.

Codex: Chaos Space Marines
   This is quite the classic match-up for us Grey Knights. The current codex is too new for me to throw out any specific tactics that are proven to work against them, but I will still record my thoughts at the moment about what I think will be a good way to play against them. As I get more experience beating some Chaotic bum, I'll post more and more tactics that I find effective against them.

   My general impression of the new codex and the few times I've crossed blades with them is that, for the most part, the basic units for chaos are about the same as before. Not much has changed with their weapon options and specific usage tactics, and the cult troops are pretty much where they were before with the Gavdex (Berzerkers got a big middle finger though... sucks to be them, I suppose). Just get to mid-range and flood them with saves, and they'll go down just as easily as they did before.

   Daemon Princes cost a ton more overall, but are much more capable. Biggest detractor from Daemon Princes is that they are now not immune to instant death! Combine this with the fact that we get Preferred Enemy rerolls against them, and they're looking at bullying shooty henchmen and strike squads only (even then, he still might get taken out by that one lucky force weapon hit). This combines into there being more Lords and Sorcerers coming to play, which will either be better or worse for us (Better if it's a Lord, as they are pretty much forced into the Melee beatstick role, worse if it's a sorcerer, as they have access to Telepathy and have ML 3 for half what we pay...).

   Their fast attack selections gained quite a bit of viability, as bikers are dirt cheap now, as are Raptors. Warp Talons are a mixed bag, as they come with double lightning claws for cheap, but are daemons and have no grenades. Basically, not much has changed, but there will generally be more of them.

   Biggest things that I'm wary of are those Sorcerers, Heldrakes, Maulerfiends, and Noise Marines. Sorcerers have a decent chance of getting Invisibility, which will complicate issues a bit for us. You remember those Harlequins with their 2+ cover saves and all that? Let's now make them Terminators or Bikers. Heldrakes are going to be extremely deadly to Power Armor players, as they will tear right through entire squads in a heartbeat. Maulerfiends are quite the distraction to deal with, as they're fast, cheap, and deadly. Noise Marines compete quite well with Grey Knights at Mid-range, and they're able to pack AP3 flamers as well (I'm noticing a trend here...) so CQB can be quite a risky proposition.

   Basically, Chaos Space Marines can do anything they want to do, so it's best to be prepared to either keep your distance or get in to CQB ASAP. Anti-air abilities are pretty much required in this match-up, as going without it can spell disaster pretty quickly for you. Pack at least one dedicated assault unit (Terminators/Paladins or assault Henchmen) so you can deal with flying DPs and close combat threats should they appear.

   Give me some time with this, I'll be back with more detailed analysis on common threats, combos, and counters.

Codex: Eldar
   This match-up has the potential to be the most annoying fight to go through. Our psychic powers are basically null and void thanks to Runes of Warding, and Eldar have access to some of the best force multipliers in the game. Their units are super specialized, fragile, and expensive. Their units are individually lackluster for the most part, but those psychic powers more then make up for those individual flaws in creating a coherent fighting force.

   What's most important to remember in this fight is that Eldar consist of many completely specialized units working together to achieve the end goal of victory. Your first step in this fight is to identify which element of his force is most deadly/disruptive to you and neutralize it first. If Mr. Eldar doesn't tailor his lists for you, there will be certain parts of the army that will be useless for the most part against you (If he does... target priority is basically whatever you can hurt at the time).

   Eldar have two ways of operating that I've seen: Earth type and Air/Fire type. While Air/Fire is typical of Eldar, Earth seems like an anomaly that certain players like to use to shake up the metagame from time to time.

   Air/Fire Eldar consist of mobile units designed to achieve local superiority and wipe out entire elements of the OPFOR at a time (sound familiar?). There are two ways to combat this: Consolidate on a position that offers little visual cover to the OPFOR and destroy whatever comes close, or use a small firebase to engage high priority targets while the rest of your forces deep strike to turn the tables and surgically remove key parts of the eldar offensive. You have to judge the situation and choose the option that exposes you to the least return fire. If you're facing War Walkers, Vypers, Night Spinners, Falcons, and other long range type Eldar, then the "castling" tactic is probably not the way to go, as that will maximize damage to you while ensuring that most of your army can not reach the OPFOR.

   Earth Eldar can be VERY annoying based on what's doing the surviving. These armies use the defensive force multipliers combined with certain units to create situations where shooting at them with basic weapons basically amounts to nothing happening. This is a situation where Incinerators/Heavy Incinerators become necessary, as psychic powers like Perfect Timing are not accessible to help circumvent this. Assaulting can be a risky proposition, as there is usually a squad of Harlequins/Striking Scorpions/Banshees waiting to counter-charge. You'll have two realistic options for dealing with this based on what you brought. If you have incinerators, use those to obliterate the units using the cover save tricks; this forces the Eldar player's hand, which you can subsequently take advantage of by shooting/charging the assault element and breaking that part of the army. If you don't have incinerators, you have to close the distance ASAP and get into assault. That counter-charge unit will do some serious damage, so you have to try to get multiple units into combat with that unit simultaneously to try to overwhelm it and break it's back.

Rest of the match-ups coming after the next post.
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They've got us surrounded? That simplifies the problem.
-General Lewis "Chesty" Puller, USMC

Offline Greg23

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Cool assessment of Grey Knights.  I agree that the Vanilla Brotherhood Champ is a steal for the points he costs.  At lower point games, <1500 points, the Brotherhood Champ is a real beast.

I disagree on the assessment of the Ven Dread.  I roll mine Psyfleman style in lower point games, <1500 points.  He simply does not miss.  At 4 Str X pops a turn on the money with a pre-measure threat radius of 54 inches, something is going to get hurt.  When you sum up terrain + Venerable + Fortitude, neutralizing the Ven Dread isn't as easy as it sounds.

In higher point games, you may be right that Ven Dreads loose their place.  The opponent can bring that much more spare firepower to bear.  But at lower point games, the opponent needs to make a objective vs threat assessment of the mission.  So far, my Ven Psyfleman has come out on top.

Looking forward to hear about the synergies in the GK Codex, what combos work, what falls flat, and why.

Offline ~Iron Captain Softy~

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The Ven Dread is damned in it's current iteration because Venerable only prevents damage by lucky explosion results. Ven does nothing to stop death by glancing, and given AV12, death by glancing is an inevitable prospect. The Ven dread does little that a regular dread doesn't do to enhance survivability, and when points are factored in, Dreads end up being more durable then Venerables because of the enhanced main battle forces it allows for.

Ven Dreads do provide improved accuracy (~97% hit rate vs ~89% hit rate). It's a question of if it's worth giving up more shots elsewhere. Me? I'd rather have more bodies and more shots.

Match-up Analysis Continued

Codex: Tyranids
This is one of those match-ups where you basically have an answer to just about everything they're bringing. Storm Bolters on every guy helps a lot, as does the versatility of the Psycannon and availability of great close combat ability. Karazamov combined with Dreadknights can cut down swaths of their army with barely a sweat. If there's an easier match-up then Tyranids... I can't think of one.

For the most part, Tyranids have a single agenda: Get into CQB and attempt to overwhelm you with dice. Problem with this agenda is that this is where Grey Knights shine, as that's where we can backpedal while applying full firepower, then fire to full effect while charging for the mop-up. Low AP firepower is a rarity for Tyranids, so their only real way of dealing with an army of power armor is to try to fling as many dice at you as possible at range or ignore your armor in close combat.

That being said, it's not all completely bad for Tyranids. They have the most widespread access to the rulebook psychic powers, which can get a bit annoying given the right powers on the right units. Dreadnoughts are worth a look here, as the Reinforced Aegis can help neutralize those powers for the most part.

The dreaded Doom of Malan'tai is, for the most part, overrated, as cover saves are available against it's AoE attack and our army is full of torrent of fire and force weapons. When it lands, take the hit (shouldn't do much since you have warp quake up... right?), get a unit right out of 6" of the Doom, shoot it, and charge. You will most likely force enough wounds through to kill him (hasn't failed me so far). He's a prime target for Mortis Dreads (forcing saves with S8 weaponry is not a fun thing for it to deal with), so fire any of those first before you try to torrent him off.

The only thing you really need to watch out for is the Ymgarl Genestealers. If you know you're facing these, you have two options to employ: Stay in Rhinos and away from area terrain pieces, or completely cover all the area terrain with your infantry on foot. The former option will make sure that all the stealers can reach is the rhino (or have to roll difficult/dangerous to get to you), and the latter option will shut down their ability to burst out of that terrain. Any dedicated assault unit from C:GKs can obliterate stealers, so it shouldn't be an issue most of the time.

In general, consolidate your forces, use the bulk of the tyranid army against them to create local superiority as they try to get in close, and start the fireworks.

Codex: Sisters of Battle
This match-up is interesting. Sisters operate at the same range band as Grey Knights for the most part, so it's usually a slugfest. While the line troopers aren't very effective at close combat at all, their support forces can be very deadly, as they have access to henchmen, just as we do.

Keeping Sisters at mid-range sees them at a disadvantage, as their meltas/flamers are out of range and their bolters are less effective then storm bolters. Maintain this range band to the best of your ability, prioritizing the quick moving units first. Once the majority of the OPFOR has been neutralized, feel free to close in to initiate the mop-up operations. Just be weary of the henchmen assault squads, as they will mess up most PAGKs in a hurry.

The most annoying part of this fight is Saint Celestine. While she won't die, she's not super effective in close combat against terminators, so it's usually a good idea to use Terminators as the home base objective holders.

Codex: Tau
Tau are a deceivingly powerful army, and underestimating them can lead to a quick defeat. Their stand-off potential is overwhelming, as is their ability to engage at mid-range with overwhelming firepower. Local Superiority can be tough to achieve vs Tau, as their standard armaments have extremely long range.

The best thing about Tau is that, other then the Battle Suits, a majority of their units are T3 and 4+ save. This means that Incinerators of the mobile kind (think Dreadknights or Interceptors) can be worth their weight in gold both in achieving first blood and in wiping out flanks in a heartbeat. You're going to need some of this capability too, as Pathfinders will make your life a living hell if you do not deal with them.

On the whole, Tau are torn about you getting close in. On the one hand, their full firepower is realized when you're in close, as they can rapid-fire pulse rifles to do some serious damage. On the other hand, other then overwatch, Tau have basically no defense against any of our units that reach the inside. When closing the distance (either via Deep Strike or transports), make absolutely sure that you move as fast as possible and stick to cover, as your shooting out of midfield will do basically nothing to the Tau.

Beware when using units that rely on cover saves against Tau. Markerlights are one of the better force multipliers in the game in that they improve tau accuracy and reduce your survivability by reducing cover saves. If you're using shooty henchmen, prioritize Pathfinders, as once they're gone, threats to you are reduced to danger close battlesuits with flamers (I never see these, but you never know).

In general, It'll pay off to play as aggressively as possible using Deep Strike and Henchmen to put the pressure on. Either use deep strike and Stormravens to deliver care packages of henchmen/whatever to targets of opportunity (those isolated pathfinder squads, a line formation with weak flanks, etc), or drive forward and flat out to reach forward positions in the midfield. Whatever your methods, prioritize Markerlight equipped units first, as the Tau army loses effectiveness very quickly as markerlight count goes down.

Codex: Daemons
Believe it or not, this fight can either be the easiest match you ever played out or the most irritating fight you have to roll through.

In general, Daemons have it rough against GKs. We've got PE against them, augmenting our offense quite a bit. We have quite a bit of guns to use against them. We have Warp Quake that can keep them from dropping too close (with Interceptors, you could potentially destroy their entire army on T1 given a little bit of creative composition). They have no way of stopping our psychic powers beyond a 6+ DtW roll. Honestly, most cases it's a cakewalk.

However, there is one instance where Daemons can quite easily lock down GKs (maybe even destroy a large part of the GK force) and win on objectives. Khornate Daemons using Blessing of the Blood God en masse can be a pain in the rear to pure GK armies, as this grants them a 2++ agaisnt force weapons (I wonder who has those standard...). This kind of army is rare, given that this army will be rather ineffective against most other armies, but there is always the case where one Daemon player will have a bone to pick with Grey Knights and design an army solely for use against GKs.

This has a simple solution readily available: CC Henchmen. They aren't armed with force weapons, giving those khornate units their regular 5++ against their saves. They also have no way to stop our blessings, so the CC Henchmen augmented with grenades, hammerhand, and whatever else you want can wreck daemons pretty decisively where GKs themselves might falter.
Quote
They've got us surrounded? That simplifies the problem.
-General Lewis "Chesty" Puller, USMC

 


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