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First some caveats.

1. half these pictures are ruined to blurry motion. We where just blowing through this game so I didn't take the necessary time to get the pictures right.

2. I am still proxing some models because I like to find their effectiveness before I buy. So please forgive the Terminators.

3. This is a learning game for me, so you are going to see some tactical mistakes. I never confess to be a great 40k general and sometimes it takes making the mistakes to know the importance of a few things.

I am posting this so you can see some of the tactics to how the new Tyranids play and our trouble with Space Wolves. If you take anything from this Batrep, I hope it is learning from my mistakes.



Here we go. Here are the lists in play, from Memory:

Space Wolves - 2000

Logan Grinmar
Rune Priest w/ Jaws, Living Lightning
Rune Priest w/ Thunderclap, Living Lightning
Lone Wolf w/ Terminator Armor, Chainfist, Storm Shield
Lone Wolf w/ Terminator Armor, Chainfist, Storm Shield
4 Wolf Guard Terminators w/ 2 Wolfclaws, 2 Storm Shields, Powerfist, Chainfist, etc. in Land Raider Crusader
5 - 6 Grey Hunters w/ Powerfist, Meltagun in Rhino
12 - 14 Blood Claws w/ Powerfist, WolF Guard Leader w/ Thunderhammer
Standard Land Raider
6 Long Fangs w/ ML
6 Long Fangs w/ ML

Tyranids - 2000 Points

Hive Tyrant w/ Life Leech, Paroxym, Stranglehorn Cannon, Ancient Enemy, Hive Commander, 2= save
3 Zoenthropes in a Pod
Deathleaper
10 Termagaunts
Tervigon w/ Crushing Claws, Adrenals, Toxin, Catalyst
9 Genestealers
9 Genestealers
9 Genestealers
Carnifex w/ Bioplasma in a Pod
Carnifex w/ Bioplasma in a Pod

This was an uphill battle and I specifically asked my opponent to play as competitively as he usually does in tournaments. He has won the last four local RTTs in a row with this list (and variations), and I was on my second playtest with my list with an army I never played until this new codex.

One thing to note, we started a game previous to this and he wiped me off the table on turn 3, mainly due to an incredible amount of mistakes on my part. This game took place immediately after.

We rolled mission and objectives. It was multi-objective and Dawn of War. I won the roll to go first, and decided to go first (first mistake ).



Here is my initial set up, I decided to deploy the Hive Tyrant, Tervigon (w/o a base), and the Termaguants on the table. Since I have a mostly Deepstriking and Outflanking army, my goal was to put as much pressure as possible on his army in his deployment zone to prevent him from taking objectives. (The flags and the skaven model are objectives).



Not pictured, but he deployed the Rune Priest w/ Jaws, Grey Hunters, and Rhino right out side of 18" of my lines.

My turn one the Tyrannofex come in and missed the Rhino. The Hive Tyrant wasn't able to do anything either.



His turn one, most of his things hit the table. I was able to weather his initial shooting rather well (helps to have 2+ saves). His Rune Priest, who was reduced to leadership 8 by the Deathleaper, has to roll under 8 on 3D6 to get Jaws of the World Wolf of. He rolls, triple ones! Great, just great. He draws a line on the Tervigon and the Hive Tyrant. I roll a 2 on my Tervigon and thankfully he survives, but I roll a 6 on the Hive Tyrant. That's right, the 280 point Hive Tyrant, crucial to buffing my forward line, was taken out on turn one, not by shooting but by a 100 point psychic power. Fantastic.



My turn two, I get 1 Carnifex and 2 Outflanking Genestealers. I put one unit of Genestealers and the Carnifex on the left side to put pressure on the Blood Claws standard raider, and the Long Fangs. The Carnifexes shooting is good along with the pod and I was able to put some MLs down.



Over on the other side, I still put some preassure on the Rhino, and the best I can do is immobilize it. Notice I should have moved the Gaunts in front of the Tervigon for the inevitable charge. Stupid of me, but this is why we play these test games.



His turn he easily dispatched the Carnifex (it helps when you hit and wound with all of your heavy weapons, of which you have 5). But that thankfully left my Genestealers un-molested.



Hey, remember that Rune Priest. Again, he has to roll 3D6 on leadership 8 and he rolls, triple one! Again! He kills himself. However, the power goes off and takes out the Tyrannofex. So for you kids keeping track at home, a 100 point Rune Priest, by the end of turn two, took out over a quarter of my army. Thank you Phil Kelly, thank you very much....

Logan and his squad assault the Tervigon and Gaunts. Between the Counter Attacking, Furious Charging, Poison Gaunts, and the Tervigon, I took out the Terminators in a single round of combat. Logan swung on the Tervigon and had trouble wounding it.



The three Genestealers on the right side the lasted a round of Shooting from the Grey Hunters in the Rhino, moves up, assaults them and breaks them so they are fleeing off the table, only one Genestealer lives the combat and moves into position to have them further fall back. The 5 Gaunts on an objective counter charges into Logan in a vain attempt to get me out of that combat. Not pictured, the three Zoenthropes land and immobilizes the standard raider. The other unit of Genestealers on the left side takes out the remaining Long Fangs. The Deathleaper (IE the terminator) shows up right behind the Tervigon to hopefully disrupt difficult terrain rolls.

This picture was taken when the Grey Hunters already fell back at the start of the Space Wolves turn. One more rounf of falling back and they are off the table.



Durning his turn, he counter attacks the second Rune Priest and one of the Lone Wolves in the combat on the center, killing everything there. The Genestealers on the left side die to firepower save one, and the Genestealer on the right side escorting the Grey Hunters off the table predictably dies in a fire.

In my turn, the Genestealers that stayed in standard reserve move on to the table and captures an objective. The Deathleaper contemplates going back into reserve, but doesn't (and I probably should have). My thought was that if I can disrupt Logan (who only had a single wound left), the Lone Wolf and the Rune Priests difficult terrain rolls, I can stop them from contesting objectives or joining the Blood Claws sure to get out of the Raider soon. The Zoenthropes (red terminators) move into difficult terrain, the idea was that when the Blood Claws get out, they will probably not have range to assault me (having to take a DT test) and I can pelt his last scoring unit dead with my blasts. Thet fire at the Crusader and only shake it. The last Carnifex shows up to finish the Grey Hunters walk off the table and put pressure on an already diminished Long Fang squad.

His turn the game is getting close, the Lone Wolf takes out the Deathleaper in a single round of combat. The Blood Claws get out. 2" disembark and a 6" move puts him 6" away from my Zoenthropes in Difficult Terrain. He rolls and gets, a six! Horray! I would have been better off running the Zoenthropes. Of course the Zoenthropes go down to the massive amount of attacks. The massacre unto an objective. Three Missile Launchers put two wounds on the Carnifex. The Land Raider Crusader turns around, moves 12", fires the assault cannon, and get 3 rends on the Carnifex. Thank. you. sir. can. I. have. another.



Here are what things look like at the end of turn 5



Even after all my hits and various mistakes, I still might eek out a draw. We roll to see if the game goes on and guess what?

Needles to say, this is what happens after his turn.





So, not only did I loose, I got Massacred. I really can't complain to much, I made some pretty serious errors, and the dice where just with my opponent, but I still managed to be in the game up till the end.

I can't overstate enough how much Jaws of the World Wolf hurts Tyranids. I would hate to be running a Gaunt farm against a Space Wolf player with two Rune Priests w/ Jaws. Most of our monsters are only initiative one.

Hope you enjoyed the read.

Cool report, I like the pod... how did you make it?

Like the avatar too... stay thirsty my friend.

In regards to JOTWW, you got lucky on the Tervigon save and you were very unlucky on the HT, so I guess it played out even in the end. Most of the people I play when I am running SW, don't let my priest survive past turn 2.

You army doesn't seem to have alot of ranged firepower to deal with a RP or mech ghosting around the table. Do you think you might have faired better if you had been running some strong fire support in the form of 2 T-Fexes and 2-3 units of shooty elites as Shep has been promoting?

Let me know when you take on SW again. I would also like to see some battle reports with Biovores.

Yep, Jaws is very stupid against Tyranids. I'm still not sure exactly what the theory behind that power's existance is.

However, I wouldn't count on him rolling triple 1s twice in a row, or passing that LD check twice in a row at LD8 on 3D6. If you had either of those bugs around for another turn or two you would have had a much different picture to look at.

Great report though!

Mahu wrote:So for you kids keeping track at home, a 100 point Rune Priest, by the end of turn two, took out over a quarter of my army.

LOL

Great report and wonderful picture.

Cool report, I like the pod... how did you make it?

They are from the Plasma Hatchers toy.

In regards to JOTWW, you got lucky on the Tervigon save and you were very unlucky on the HT, so I guess it played out even in the end. Most of the people I play when I am running SW, don't let my priest survive past turn 2.

Yeah, but the Tervigon loss would have hurt more. It is almost guaranteed that would have taken out the Gaunts as well. The fact that every defense I place in the list against such things failed me doesn't make me too happy.

You army doesn't seem to have alot of ranged firepower to deal with a RP or mech ghosting around the table. Do you think you might have faired better if you had been running some strong fire support in the form of 2 T-Fexes and 2-3 units of shooty elites as Shep has been promoting?

Can't say for sure, it was Dawn of War so I was already limited on what I could put on the table without it walking on.

If you take the same Space Wolf list and match it up against Shep's build in a mission with a deployment zone, it would still favor the Space Wolves. Don't underestimate how flexible the Wolves can be. Can Tyranid long range shooting (including Hive Guard) kill a Rhino and all the Grey Hunters in a shooting phase, because that is what you will need to even get to the Rune Priest. With Jaws being 24" and Shep's list not having much to close the distance, it's almost guaranteed he will get the power off. God forbid Jaws hits a Tervigon with a Gaunt screen, that though keeps me up at night.

And even if you do devote so much to that one squad, there is another Rune Priest in the list that can have Jaws to, and he is in a Land Raider. It's tough, and an extremely high mountain to climb. That's why the Death Leaper is and always shall be in my lists.

However, I wouldn't count on him rolling triple 1s twice in a row, or passing that LD check twice in a row at LD8 on 3D6. If you had either of those bugs around for another turn or two you would have had a much different picture to look at.

Three critical things happend in our game to his favor that would have changed things dramatically.

1. Getting Jaws off twice, killing so much of my force.

2. Getting three rends on my second Carnifex. If it would have lived I could have killed the Land Raider the next turn and kept my only scoring unit left alive on an objective on turn 6.

3. Getting the perfect DT roll to assault my Zoenthropes. If that never happened I could have all but wiped that unit with my Warp Blasts.

Have any one of those going for my favor and it would have been a different game indeed.

Did your Pods manage to hit anything with their waving tentacles? You don't really mention them, beyond noting that their passengers got out. I'm curious to see whether they end up useful.

I'm torn on the Deathleaper. On the one hand, he bolsters psychic defense (kinda), and still helps against some non-psyker armies. On the other hand, you *have* to get more than that out of his 140 pts. Did you shoot his flesh hooks at anything? Could he have assaulted something with his boosted rending? (Probably not Lone Wolves, but it seems like he should be able to beat up a little Long Fang squad.)

Loved the pods. It was their Shooting + the Carnifex that was able to kill 4 Long Fangs the turn that they dropped.

On a friends recommendation I am changing the Carnifexes from have two sets of talons to one set and MC Devourers. Sure the unit now costs 240 points, but now when it lands you get a Plasma Cannon, 6 Twin-linked shots that hit on 4 and wound on twos, and 6 shots that hit on 5's and wound on 2's. So before armor saves on that unit I should be able to put 8 wounds on the unit, 2 of which they at best get cover saves on, and I have better utility against vehicles.

Mahu wrote:Loved the pods. It was their Shooting + the Carnifex that was able to kill 4 Long Fangs the turn that they dropped.

On a friends recommendation I am changing the Carnifexes from have two sets of talons to one set and MC Devourers. Sure the unit now costs 240 points, but now when it lands you get a Plasma Cannon, 6 Twin-linked shots that hit on 4 and wound on twos, and 6 shots that hit on 5's and wound on 2's. So before armor saves on that unit I should be able to put 8 wounds on the unit, 2 of which they at best get cover saves on, and I have better utility against vehicles.

Interesting choice. Not sure if I'd agree, though - you get better alpha-strike capability, but it's now easier to tie down Mr. Fex in HtH, and much harder for him to hit moving vehicles in HtH (which will hinder his role as a LR-hunter). Have you considered buying a gun for the Pod, instead? It's Monstrous, so can fire 2 weapons, and a Barbed Strangler might make an interesting addition, as well as increasing the threat-radius of a landed pod significantly. Might also dilute enemy fire a bit - the Carnifex was always a threat, but now they can't just ignore the pod after getting 6.1" away from it.

I look forward to hearing how it works out for you.

What I am finding with the Deathleaper is that you are in a "Damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation. I apply the condom rational to him, better to have it and not need it, then need it and not have it.

I am getting slowly better at using him, every game I find that I am able to place him in a slightly better position. I find that his disruption abilities (how hard it is to shoot him, messing up difficult terrain) is better then him in actual assault.

It's now easier to tie down Mr. Fex in HtH, and much harder for him to hit moving vehicles in HtH (which will hinder his role as a LR-hunter)

He still get 5 attacks on the charge, which most times I will be hitting on 4's anyways or the vehicle is sacrificing the ability to shoot me. So I don't loose much there. I gain the ability to at least stun lighter vehicles the turn I land and to really threaten Infantry Squads that can bear heavy weapons on me. If I am in CC with an Infantry unit, one of two things happens, its against a unit that can dominate in CC anyways (and I am going last) so I may not even have a chance to swing, or it is against a unit I can win combats against. There are few units that will just tarpit a Carnifex, and if that happens, I love it because that means I can counter charge or go other places un-molested.

Well then, have you considered buying a gun for the Pod, as well? I'm curious to see how it plays out - sometimes, your opponent will want to kill the pod regardless (it's giving cover to the Carnifex, or it's contesting an objective), but other times (and particularly with Zoanthrope pods, which don't need to land as close), it seems like the Pod is useless and ignored after landing.

The pod dies so easily though, and with such a low BS, it just doesn't seem worth it at those price levels. Yes they are blasts, but they can scatter wildly. I just can't see myself finding the points for that.

I was looking at Stranglers on pods too. The pinning alone is potentially huge when it works. My concerns are about cost and bad scatters onto my own stuff, given the closest target restriction. I guess that's not a concern if you're mainly dropping MCs in a hybrid list, though.

Edit: If you're playing Carnifexes with the mentality of them being suicide troops, I think the spitters make some sense. At least you're more likely to take some stuff with it if it takes a bunch of melta in the face after the drop.

Thanks for the report. Couple questions.

--Now that the GW put an end to the countercharge and FC thing, would you configure your tervi differently? It was sure nasty to have the FC on the counter charge but I dunno if it pans out without that ruling.

--How have the IB rolls been going on the carnifexes? With IB feed and what, LD 7 or so, I can see losing the chance to shoot at key moments if synpase is absent. That's my biggest concern with dumping points into shooty carnifexes that drop.

--I've been thinking TL deathspitters on pods are worth taking (BS2 TL is not too shabby at 5/9 to hit), but I guess it depends on the unit it is carrying. I don't like blasts that have to be shot at the closest unit so I don't think I would go that route.

--Have you considered running warriors (maybe in pods) to increase the footprint of shadows in the warp? I don't think you have much else you can do in a situation where multiple JotW are in play. Its either that or skip the I1 units entirely (something worth considering).

Wouldn't wings on your tyrant put a damper on Jaws? Also how did jaws get range on the Tyranofex? I know games are all about learning, I've made more than a few mistakes already, like bouncing between Talons getting rerolls or +1 attack from the last codex.

"Between the Counter Attacking, Furious Charging,"

That only works for space wolves again :(

SuperGaunts! I5 Gaunts with re-rolls to-hit and to-wound, at 5pts per model, should do well against those pesky fighty grey hunters (or virtually any non-walker unit out there). Granted, you will be pressed to get the charge but using a spawned 10-strong squad of gaunts from the Tervigon to sit infront of your larger(est) sqaud of gaunts to allow for the counter-charge. Also, using the tervigon to engage troops (whilst he may go down after a turn or two, he shouldn't evaporate that turn).

How about some cover saves, try out a venomthrope. Any missile launchers directed to take those down (where they will get a 4+ cover) will be shots not spent on MC's.

I agree about trying wings on that Tyrant; If your fielding a JotWW heavy Space Wolf list, its the way to go. Likewise, try some Hormagaunts/Gargoyles to go and engage/pit those pesky priests as both have larger threat ranges.

Good use on that deathleaper, Once the rest of your army starts to mesh and you get more comfortable, it seems like you should start getting some good returns.

Cool batrep

sexiest_hero wrote: Wouldn't wings on your tyrant put a damper on Jaws?

The rules for JOTWW are permissive in that it lists what Jaws effects, not what it excludes. JOTWW affects all MC, so it wouldn't matter whether the MC also counted as Jump Infantry (in theory). Really, JOTWW is not a significant threat to a Tyrant who will pass his test 5/6 of the time. This was more of a freak incidence. It is a huge threat to carnies, tervigons, and T-fexes who have a mere 33% of passing its test. So I understand Mahu's fears. I also play SW, so I plan on capitalizing on these fears .

"Between the Counter Attacking, Furious Charging,"

That only works for space wolves again :(

Well with the updated SW FAQ, SW don't get it anymore.

Right on both accounts, I just don't take Hive tyrants anymore

What about Shrikes and Gargoyles? They're Jump Infantry, right? They might be what you want to assassinate a Rune Priest.

Good report. I'm still chewing through the options.

Also, was this game at Sci Fi City? If so, I am envious. I saw that store for the first time when I went to the Necro last year.

Considering you already have a bad matchup against the wolves your list has some glaring weaknesses.

Hive Tyrant w/ Life Leech, Paroxym, Stranglehorn Cannon, Ancient Enemy, Hive Commander, 2= save

Clearly this is the first thing that must be taken down, with his lascannons and missle launchers he can easily pick away at you from range. He also has several cc options that will give the tyrant trouble up close such as the lone wolves and land raider cargo. This thing is dangerously close to the swarmlord in points if that is the case take him instead. The ability to give a genesteller unit 18 inches away furious charge or preferred enemy is amazing plus he can help them come in on the right side with outflanking, and when he is in combat .

3 Zoenthropes in a Pod

Is usually an excellent choice, but in your list do you need 3? If your opponent doesnt neutralize it with his runic weapon, they will die next turn so you should just take 2, the extra wounds will not help you in cc.

Deathleaper

Is a single decrease in ld worth it? I think it can work, as you can usually try to take down long fang units or contest objectives at the last minute, but like you said learning how to play with him is difficult.


10 Termagaunts
Tervigon w/ Crushing Claws, Adrenals, Toxin, Catalyst

Can not complain about this set up, but you may be able to play with those adrenal and toxin point wise as your not realistically going to be able to pull off super gaunts without starting with more gaunts and tervigons.


9 Genestealers
9 Genestealers
9 Genestealers

Overall genestealers are good but why 3 different squads, why not 13 and 14?

Carnifex w/ Bioplasma in a Pod
Carnifex w/ Bioplasma in a Pod

4 wounds is not alot and it is an easy target for jaws so do not play to aggressively, but if your opponent spreads out this unit is great for destroying stuff that is left behind such as long fangs.

Tyranofex cannons (forgot to include it in the op)

I dont like this guy inorder for him to be worth his points the enemy has to waste fire power on him and 2 bs 3 str 10 shots is not worth a landraider.


The main problem with the list is that it comes in pieces and lacks a hammer unit. I dont think our units can survive unsupported alone(even the tyranofex) coming in like that, you in this game accomplish your goal of putting pressure on his units, but over time pressure is relieve if you do not have a unit that will come in and finish off what the other units started.

Finding the right hammer unit is very important in outmanuevering armies. I think the perfect hammer unit you should add to this list is a large squad of hormagaunts with toxin sacs. With fleet, move through cover, and their 3d6 run they will be able to apply the pressure where you need it most(around the objectives). The hormagaunts at i 5 will strike first or at the same time with most of his units, they will be able to wipe out any of his units with the number of saves they have to take, and with feel no pain they are hard to take down. Having a unit like this around for the cargo of his landraider will be nice, however he will use the landraider defensely(shooting you to death) if you do not have a threat near by such as a carnifex. I believe that gargoyles would be a better fit because of their movement and with a large squad you can usually take down those longfangs then charge whatever survived the shooting.

Thats what I think, keep up the good reports!

JoWW was made to destroy nids saddly... and almost anything else (I lost 2 demon princes in a game due to rolling high lol) thats huge and beefy.

I'm afraid Space Wolves match up well against the new nids (actually, against any army out there). They have an incredibly balanced codex, and enough shooting/psychic powers to hurt the nids. I play both SW and nids (though I haven't played the new nids yet), and I must say that probably one of the few armies to be a struggle for the new nids are the new wolves.

--Now that the GW put an end to the countercharge and FC thing, would you configure your tervi differently? It was sure nasty to have the FC on the counter charge but I dunno if it pans out without that ruling.

The Poison is still mandatory, and in my list, the idea is I am supposed to have Preferred enemy in range as well (we know how that worked out ). Adrenals suddenly became an optional choice, but I will leave it on and see if I get any use out of it.

--How have the IB rolls been going on the carnifexes? With IB feed and what, LD 7 or so, I can see losing the chance to shoot at key moments if synpase is absent. That's my biggest concern with dumping points into shooty carnifexes that drop.

Fun fact about IB, you roll at the beginning of the turn and if the Carnifex is not on the table and the beginning of the turn....

--I've been thinking TL deathspitters on pods are worth taking (BS2 TL is not too shabby at 5/9 to hit), but I guess it depends on the unit it is carrying. I don't like blasts that have to be shot at the closest unit so I don't think I would go that route.

Low ballistic skill and a requirement to shoot the closest and the expense of the gun makes me not too excited about them. I rather pay the points to make my Carnifex a little more shooty.

--Have you considered running warriors (maybe in pods) to increase the footprint of shadows in the warp? I don't think you have much else you can do in a situation where multiple JotW are in play. Its either that or skip the I1 units entirely (something worth considering).

The problem is I still have to have a list that works versus armies that are not Space Wolves . You can do crazy Warrior Heavy, I have seen it, but I like my Monsters, and I would hate to have to drop them all just because of one power in one codex. That is the only imbalance in 5th edition right now, Arby should have given us some defense.

And idea I had was putting a Brood Lord in a Genetealer squad and podding them. He has his own leadership modifier, if I can get the power off, and allows me to place Genestealers a little more aggressively because the Brood Lord can take hits.

Is usually an excellent choice, but in your list do you need 3? If your opponent doesnt neutralize it with his runic weapon, they will die next turn so you should just take 2, the extra wounds will not help you in cc.

3 lets me get past Runic Weapons easier, but in the cotext of this list, you may be right.

Is a single decrease in ld worth it? I think it can work, as you can usually try to take down long fang units or contest objectives at the last minute, but like you said learning how to play with him is difficult.

I think so, the previous test game against the wolves, it actually did shut Jaws down a few times.

Can not complain about this set up, but you may be able to play with those adrenal and toxin point wise as your not realistically going to be able to pull off super gaunts without starting with more gaunts and tervigons.

I could free up points by not taking the Adrenal Glands, the only ultility is if I am going to get a charge. We will see.

Overall genestealers are good but why 3 different squads, why not 13 and 14?

Because if I outflank them all, I am guaranteed to get at least 2 on the side I want. Outflanking isn't helping that much, and I am probably going to diminish how many I take.

4 wounds is not alot and it is an easy target for jaws so do not play to aggressively, but if your opponent spreads out this unit is great for destroying stuff that is left behind such as long fangs.

They where crucial in this game to keeping the fight on his board edge. THe whole strategy of stopping him from getting to the middle of the table worked to an extent, I just took too many losses.

I dont like this guy inorder for him to be worth his points the enemy has to waste fire power on him and 2 bs 3 str 10 shots is not worth a landraider.

His roll is to take shots and be out there giving cover saves and taking long range fire power. In an earlier IG Battle he took 5 wounds from all of the shooting trained at it, that's fie wounds that would have killed my Hive Tyrant.

The main problem with the list is that it comes in pieces and lacks a hammer unit. I dont think our units can survive unsupported alone(even the tyranofex) coming in like that, you in this game accomplish your goal of putting pressure on his units, but over time pressure is relieve if you do not have a unit that will come in and finish off what the other units started.

I agree.


Here is my new list I plan to test the Saturday:


Hive Tyrant w/ Life Leech, Paroxym, Old Adversary , Hive Commander, 2+ save = 260
2 Zoenthropes in a Pod = 160
Deathleaper = 140
15 Termagaunts = 75
Tervigon w/ Catalsyt, Adrenal, Toxin, Crushing Claws = 200
20 Hormagaunts w/ Toxin = 160
9 Genestealers = 126
9 Genestealers = 126
Carnifex w/ Bioplasma. MC Devourers in Pod = 240
Carnifex w/ Bioplasma. MC Devourers in Pod = 240
Tyrannofex w/ Rupture Cannon = 265

Total = 1992

Now that I have a bigger Gaunt Screen, more often then not I will run the Genestealers on the ground.

Nice report Mahu. I have a lot of that loss was through sheer luck on your oppenents part. Yes you made some mistakes but i think your concept of herding your oppenents into one area by blocking them will work with practice. The MC Devourers should work well to, Str 6 Rhino popping here we come!

This game was indeed played at Sci Fi City.

Sarigar wrote:Good report. I'm still chewing through the options.

Also, was this game at Sci Fi City? If so, I am envious. I saw that store for the first time when I went to the Necro last year.

> Outflanking isn't helping that much, and I am probably going to diminish how many (Genestealers) I take.

It may not be getting a huge amount of kills, but if the threat of the Stealers charging in keeps people more than 15" away from the edges and effectively gives you a free objective or two, they're doing their job.

As a returning player to 40K, I was somewhat impressed with how "balanced" the codices in general were. The new gameplay style was that everyone got good stuff, so it evened out, in general. That is, until the Space Wolves. They have clearly leapt to the top of the heap because of all the free crap they get, cheesy powers such as Jaws, and virtually no drawbacks to their stuff. It's a virtually idiot-proof army and when the good players get ahold of it and truly min-max the list, it is frighteningly broken. Luckily, not too many people play them... yet... but it will not shock me at all to see many, many, MANY SW players in the higher ranks of the GTs basically due to their army list.

That rant aside, the Nids look fairly good and balanced, points- and effectiveness-wise, so maybe the SW codex was a one-off deal and we can expect future releases to not be as over-powered.

So, my advice to the Nid player: don't worry about losing to the SW too much. See how you do against the more balanced codices before tweaking your army lists and style too much.