Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I was palying a space marine army with lots of vehicles (land raider predator rhinos razorbacks), some stern guard and some terminators and 3 tac squads lead by a librarian and chaplain in termi armor.
The Ork player fielded this as far as i remember:

4x 30 boy squads
1x 7 man nob squad with battle-wagon
1x warboss
1x Big mec
2x 2 Killa Kans Squads
1x Looted vehicle with a 36" ordinance blast

I was swamped so fast I didn't think I had a chance. (dis iz what Orkses do best)

What would you field against a horde army similar to this (or a nid horde or IG) if you were space marines (codex chapter) arround 2000-2500 points.

Anything would rock! Thanks for reading and mucho thanks for responding.

P.S. would you take any special characters for this task?

Edit: ork boyz number corrected and looted vehicle added

Hit your knees and pray. And unless this was an Apocalypse battle there is no way he was bringing 40 man boyz squads, they cap at 30. That isn't too much anti tank in his list how was he handeling your armor?

Lots and lots and lots of templates.

Land Speeders w/ typhoon missile launchers and heavy bolters are your friend, as is riflemen dreadnoughts and lots of bolters. Vulkan makes your flamers and meltas twon linked, but bringing pedro or lysander makes your guys stubborn, which can bog down entire boyz mobs for a game if you roll just average.

Deployment is key too. Quickly blow up the single battlewagon, make his nobz run at you, rather than drive. Also, deploy in one corner and slam into one of his flanks using a refused flank strategy. Deny him his numbers, make it as close to 1 ork vs. 1 space marine as possible, and you will annihilate him.

Windicators, sternguard vets, crusaders, assault terms w/lcs, honour guard...lol, flamers, missile launchers, lots of tac squads... there is few things that should help.

Well what exactly were you running? Some details on:
Heavy weapon on tac squads?
What variety of Land Raider?
Weapons on the Razorbacks?
What variety of Predator?
What variety of Terminator?

All of these questions will help us. For instance, if you are running a vanilla land raider, you are doing it wrong. If you have Multi-meltas as your heavy weapon in you tacticals, they aren't going to help much.

There are basically 4 template machines in the vanilla book: TFC, Whirlwind, Typhoon land speeder, Cyclone missile launcher.
Thunderfire Cannon- this is a love hate thing. All agree that it is able to annihilate hordes, especially because of it's 4 small templates per turn. However, being artillery, it dies if an enemy looks at it wrong. Even so, with savvy positioning, and some smart tactics, these can really dominate.
Whirlwind- The only source of a large blast template in this book. I'm personally meh about it, but you can't argue with a large blast. It is more mobile than the TFC, and is marginally fewer points, so if you are really strapped for points, this may be the way to go.
Typhoon land speeder- awesome. Very mobile, and able to throw out 2 small templates per turn. It does also have the 2 krak missile option, so it can do some AT. They are expensive for what you get, but they can be very deadly.
Cyclone Missile Launcher- essentially identical to the typhoon launcher, it has basically all the same benefits. The problem is its platform. You have to put them on tactical terminators, which, to paraphrase, are lackluster. If you really need templates, and can spare the points, they can be fun.

Now I know what all of you are thinking "but what about the free missile launcher in your tactical squads?". Well the above list is template machines. I.E. things that throw out more than just one small template a turn. Because while that single template can do some damage, when facing a green tide, you need to maximize your number of template. Granted, having 3 squads all with missile launchers can't hurt...

Brother-Thunder wrote:Lots and lots and lots of templates.

Land Speeders w/ typhoon missile launchers and heavy bolters are your friend, as is riflemen dreadnoughts and lots of bolters. Vulkan makes your flamers and meltas twon linked, but bringing pedro or lysander makes your guys stubborn, which can bog down entire boyz mobs for a game if you roll just average.

As already stated, templates are your best friend in this situation. As far as special characters, I like Vulkan as well. Another strategy you can do is drop pods. Upgrade them to the template weapon option and fill them with SM. If you can deploy them in ideal positions, that may be able to level the field a little more for you.

@praetor Dave
Land Raider redeemer
Predator w/ Auto cannons and heavy bolters
Razorback w/ Heavy bolters
Terminators" 1 5man stormbolter and 1 5 man hammer and shield

As for the enemy anti armor: Kanz with dread CC weapons. They smoked my tanks.

I deployed a wall of tanks with my SM on high ground to give the LOS but they seemed to have swamped my by turn 3. Every thing was in CC so fast.

You running any meltas? I just can't believe his Kans made it to you lines. Was his Big Mek equiped with a KFF and if so was it protecting the kans or the battle wagon?

Cram an unholy amount of fire power into your army. The Looted wagon is only armour 10, which means lascannons are bad news.

Just fire at his models like crazy

PraetorDave wrote:Wel

There are basically 4 template machines in the vanilla book: TFC, Whirlwind, Typhoon land speeder, Cyclone missile launcher.

Vindicator

Exergy wrote:

PraetorDave wrote:Wel

There are basically 4 template machines in the vanilla book: TFC, Whirlwind, Typhoon land speeder, Cyclone missile launcher.

Vindicator

oops...how did I miss that one?

Only thing I would concern yourself about would be if he alpha strikes and boosts at your tanks sitting in the back with buzzcoptas or kommandos. With their low AT a buzzsaw can effectively ruin your day. Especially since most players tend to have 2 units of buzzcoptas. I like the land speeder idea better.

My advice would be to swap the redeemer for the crusader.
For a mere 260 points you get: a tl ass. cannon, two hurricane bolters, and a mm, all of which can fire (at two different targets mind you) if you move at combat speed

Whirlwind would be pretty nice against that kind of horde.

If it were up to me, I'd have 1 whirlwind, 1 devastator squad with missile launchers (to kill the kans first), another dev squad with heavy bolters.
One five-man assault terminator squad with LR Redeemer.
Dreds with autocanons.
And as many tac squads with flamers and missile launchers as I could fit.

Land Raider redeemer
Predator w/ Auto cannons and heavy bolters
Razorback w/ Heavy bolters
Terminators" 1 5man stormbolter and 1 5 man hammer and shield

I would say, upgrade your LRR to a LRC, at 24"s you have 6 Str4 Ap5 Shots, 4 Str6 Ap4, at twelve you get 12 Str4 Ap5 shots + 6 Str6 Ap4. I'd also say if he has kans, take a MM and burn a few on your way in. not to mention an Assault Cannon and MM being fired into the Battlewagon could easily ruin its day.

Tactical Terms should be taking a CML for 2 Str8 AP3 shots, or 2 St4 AP5 templates, keep them far away from the orks, if you can help it no closer than just out of assault. your Assault Terms should also consider taking a few claws to help thin ranks as they plow into an ork mob.

Tactical Marines, Missile are a must for you, being free and Str8, they can help crack open those Kans, as for your special weapon, I'd say go for either a Plasma Gun(S7 AP2 at 24" to help keep the ork at range) or plan on playing up close and take flamers.

Razorbacks, if you can turn them into Lascannon/Twin Plasma Guns, as they will help deal with his armor when its on the other side of the table, and up close with twinlinked S7 Ap2 shots.

Sternguard, now these guys are fun, if your using them in a gunline fashion, keep using their 30" shot to help thin the horde, for up close they can take either Combi Plasmas, or Combi Flamers, then throw in two Heavy Flamers(nothing says ouch to an Ork mob than Str5 Ap4 Template). if you go the combi route, feel free to load them into a pod, drop them in, and roast a ton of boys on turn 1.

if you decide taking the Flamers/combi flamers in your army, I would adivse taking vulkan to make all that point blank shooting more effective. at those ranges you will be charged and with rerolls on failed wounds for your flamers, could be the difference between denting the swarm, or crippling it.

these are the changes I would make, hopefully you find this helpful,
GA