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Sorry if this has been dealt with but the search function calls up an error page.

I was wondering if there were any chapters distinguished in the fluff for having a large number of Dreadnoughts in their ranks. So far all I know is that White Scars are a Chapter that avoid/has no Dreadnoughts.

The reason being is that I want to branch out from my Tyranids to a second army, something I can build slowly and artfully. I don't want a full army I'm not even looking for something to be "competitive", it's more like I want a piece of an army. What I mean is, for example, one of my friends plays Orks and has a DoA as a second army. He doesn't play BA as a whole just a DoA list. Another friend plays Orks, Eldar, and just Khorne from Chaos Daemons. I want to make a Dreadnought spam list as my non-main army.

My ultimate plan is to make a faction up if need be "that has been out on the rim crusading a really long time" by kit bashing Mk II-VI power armour from Forge World for troops and their Dreadnoughts for the bulk of the armies points, then just codex hop for variety so I'm not playing the exact same list every time. Always maxing out dreadnoughts for the point level after filling HQ and Troop requirements then spending the left over points. The closest I've found to chapters with a lot of old/salvaged armour is the Carcharodons Chapter but they aren't quite what I am looking for.

From a more technical game playing perspective it's my understanding that:

Blood Angels: 3 elite, 3 heavy support, and 5 troop Dreadnoughts.
Space Marines: 3 elite and with a Master of the Forge as HQ 3 heavy support dreadnoughts.
Grey Knights: 3 elite, 3 heavy support Dreadnoughts
Space Wolves: 1 HQ and 3 elite Dreadnoughts.
Others: 3 elite dreadnoughts.

So for >1500 point games it would be BA, SM, and/or GK and if playing <1500 then I could do SW also.

Thanks for any input.

The BA have at least 40 Dreads(so, that's half a company right there). Says so in the codex.

blood angels can bring 5 troop dreds....wtf lol thats hilarious and seems to answer ur question.

It's noted in Codex: Blood Angels that there are 41 functional dreadnoughts. Otherwise, perhaps a technology savvy chapter? The Iron Hands and Sons of Medusa come to mind.

Smitty0305 wrote:blood angels can bring 5 troop dreds....wtf lol thats hilarious and seems to answer ur question.

Yeah, but to even get access to get the 5 troop choice dreads you must buy a 25 man Death Company blob for 500 points which is non scoring and has the Rage usr. The dreads also have rage. So, I could probably make a 3 elite +3 heavy support + 2-3 troop dread army at 2K point level. With upgrades I'd need to be a 3K game to field 11 dreads "reasonably". The problem with rage is that it's not really fun, it's pretty much auto-pilot after deployment. Though the challenge of still making it work, or at least not fail terribly 100% of the time is appealing, but having SM and GK or no Death Company BA's as a back up is good thing.

So while BA's are at the top list with respect to modeling/painting at the moment, I think I'd prefer to just make my own chapter then, since I don't really care much for BA fluff. I am hoping there's more options in the list of established factions.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

o Oni o wrote:It's noted in Codex: Blood Angels that there are 41 functional dreadnoughts. Otherwise, perhaps a technology savvy chapter? The Iron Hands and Sons of Medusa come to mind.

Oh, I hadn't thought of following successor chapters on the 40K lexicanum. Sons of Medusa definitely sound better then BA, but better still the Brazen Claws a different Iron Hands successor sound even better " ... went on a Crusade against the forces of Chaos into the Eye of Terror to earn vengeance and regain their honor and have not been seen in the Imperium since. Oddly enough elements of the Chapter did participate in the defense of Cadia from the forces of Chaos during Abaddon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade."

This fits in with Mk II-V armour all jumbled up as they struggle to maintain functionality and entombing more and more SM in dreads to maintain numbers while in the Eye. I like the paint scheme also, hardly ever see marines painted with a quartered pattern. Unless there's even better out there I think this may be the one.

Thank you.

On something like this, I would just make a home brew Chapter, seems like it would be easiest in the long run,

Home brew is a good easy button, and I have a buddy that runs a Drednought heavy Imperial Fists, arguing that a siege oriented army would have quite a few Ironclad Dreadnoughts to break enemy lines.

Iron Hands have a fair number of Dreadnoughts, as well as Salamanders, as they both are on good terms with the Mechanicus (for both supply of material and Techmarines) and the large number of respect they have for technology/dreadnoughts.

There were two Chapter which fielded large numbers of Dreadnought (18 in between them I think) at once against a horde of Deff Dreads/Kans, so you could create an army from that event if you wanted.

An Iron Hands successor chapter that crusade could easily have access to a large amount of early-era armour.

Hope that helped

Blood Angels, apparently.

The Salamanders should have a large amount of Dreads, given there close ties with the Mechanium and the Chalice of Fire.

I would say Iron hands - MoTF as HQ and 6 dreads.. 2x5 scouts w monkey wrenches as 'tech support' or something ( they even have the telephone headsets!)

I love the above recommendation - but yeah Iron Hands are what iimediately come to mind.

IIRC Iron Hands lost most of their Dreadnoughts and terminator armour during the Heresy. Though they probably got more in the intervening 10,000 years.

I remember reading that they lost most of their Terminator Armor, but they loves them some Dreadnoughts.

IIRC, the IA rules for them back in 3rd allowed them more Dreads as well as Ven Dreads for HQ, and with Terminator Armor available for Veteran Sergeants but no Terminator squads.

A chapter founded on Iron Hands geneseed would likely fulfill the background you are looking for.

Fair enough.
Less terminator armour but more dreadnoughts...

definitly Iron Hands, or a successor chapter.

Dreds would be very fluffy.

Blood Angels have 42 working dreads. The Death Company arent counted with them, and AFAIK the Librarians also not.. Thats some dreads there.

Actually the Iron Hands only have 7 dreadnoughts as per the novel Iron Hands. The represent the pinnacle of the chapter and as a result that is why there are not many.

Aren't the Space Sharks noted for the amount of dreadnoughts they have?

yes, but their new name is the Charcaradons.

Huh. Thought their names were inter-changeable.

I don't think so.


Space Sharks simply sounded a little too simple or dorky.


Charcaradons sounds alot cooler.

dripwelquest wrote:So, I could probably make a 3 elite +3 heavy support + 2-3 troop dread army at 2K point level.

Here's what that army looks like(if you take out Astorath, Dante, Corbulo, and Mephiston who somehow found their way into the shot):



According to the Furioso Dreadnought design article from February's White Dwarf, the BA book writers state that the BA are the chapter with the largest number of Dreadnoughts.