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I recently started Dark Angels army.
Using raven wing(Bikers) as troop.
But my bikers die quickly.

So I'm looking for article/post about basic tactics for space marine bikers. (focusing on raven wing one is best tho)

Or there is no such things,tell me how to fight with bikers.

There are alot of resources at:
40K Online.
Bolter and Chainsword.
Librarium Online.
And here in dakka dakka, just have to buy the Search function a beer

I KNOW there are threads in all those sites with a wealth of information.

Just cause it's my post, here's a linky to something I wrote a while ago.
It's not exactly Ravenwing, but anything about bikers will be helpful I think:

http://www.40konline.com/community/index.php?topic=182311.0

Example of a thread about SM bikers. (though similar but different):
http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/257907.page#995368

As to Ravenwing: I think DoubleWing is prob. the best way to go with Dark Angels.
Unique and gives you some tougher stuff with good flexibility.

Some more sites w/ useful information:
http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.php?showtopic=162219
http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.php?showtopic=124179
http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.php?s=d51a95097655add3205dfa3479632cf3&showtopic=106015

Thank you!
I'll read them all!

I play with a all bike army using the Space Marines Codex. While different than Ravenwing the basics should be the same.


Use your speed and ability to shoot while moving to your advantage. Move your units so you can focus on small parts on the enemy force and get your special weapons where you need them. Take out the most threatening stuff first and try to avoid giving the other player the best return shots. In general its better to stay at range and shoot less then get close and get shot back at.

Try keeping your entire army in reserve to start the game. When your units come on the table you can place them where you need them. In addition, the enemy gets less turns to shoot at you. Using this strategy you will not focus so much on attacking the enemy but grabbing or contesting objectives at the end of the game. If you play in tournaments or in timed games this is a good idea because your opening turns are shorter.

Try keeping your entire army in reserve to start the game. When your units come on the table you can place them where you need them.

I find this is a good option 50% of the time. It's really a choice you make after you see what the mission/deployment/terrain looks like.
And if you are in an open list environment, what's in the enemy list.

Certainly it's nice to place stuff where you need it (in addition to limiting LoS to returning fire), but you are still coming in piece by piece, and that can be a very bad thing.

In addition, there is no guarentee that they stay in reserve until the variable end to contest/claim stuff.

So... with so many deployment options, i would suggest much caution on top of all of it. Bikers are not forgiving and deployment is huge for them.
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As to Ravenwing: it depends on the list, if you are going doublewing, then he'll most likely want the bikers starting on the board if he goes with Deathwing Assaulting.

Otherwise, Ravenwing much more like the defensive qualities of Reserves/Outflank, but suffer more in that their model count per squad is lower and more things are randomly coming in piecemeal.

Soo... I think the rewards for playing Ravenwing are much higher as it's a scalpel, but the falls hurt real bad.

Sanctjud wrote:
So... with so many deployment options, i would suggest much caution on top of all of it. Bikers are not forgiving and deployment is huge for them.

True. Keeping everything in reserve depends on some factors. Because of their unforgiving nature and a reliance on deployment caution is needed. While I have enough units to have stuff come on at good times throughout the game, there are times where a certain unit (a bike captain and command squad) won't come on the table until turn 5.

I probably keep my army in reserves around half of the time. The two things I go by are...

-Am I going first or second? If I go first I might keep everything in reserve to keep my opponent guessing. I typically chose to go second, so I will decide based on my opponents deployment or the scenario.

-Can I deploy anywhere and avoid getting shot at? This depends on the range of the other army and any available terrain to hide behind.

Overall, what you want to do is use your speed to allow yourself to deploy well and to then to use your firepower to maximum effect and your mobility to keep yourself safe. It took me a little while to learn how to use my bike list. While I am still learning things I can use it to fairly good effect. You may start off losing games but you should get better with experience.

Thx for reply.

About deployment.....We,Raven wing, can do "Outflank" cuz it have "scout" rule.
Bad point is, I use Double-Wing,Death wing and raven wing tactics.
So,No bike,no safe. But I do use "Outflank" some time.

Anyway,good to read. thx.