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Hi dakka,

I am wondering what HQ to take for my SM gunline in 6th. In 5th I used Calgar, but as leadership is less important now, I was thinking of dropping him. My first thought was libby, but he can't take divination.

Thanks

Lysander for his bolter drills.

but i'd go with a MotF with a Conversion beamer

I thought about Lysander, but I like being able to auto fail moral. As for MotF, I don't run that many tanks in 6th, just rhinos and and a las pred, But I'll think about adding him.

the MoTF is great, chuck him on a bike to make him relentless, that way you can move him 12" and keep the beamer at long range (where it's the most powerful).

Aside from fixing vehicles the MoTF can also Bolster Defenses (improve a terrain piece's cover save by 1) - Aegis Defense Line with a 3+ cover save? Thanks very much!

Praxiss wrote:the MoTF is great, chuck him on a bike to make him relentless, that way you can move him 12" and keep the beamer at long range (where it's the most powerful).

Aside from fixing vehicles the MoTF can also Bolster Defenses (improve a terrain piece's cover save by 1) - Aegis Defense Line with a 3+ cover save? Thanks very much!

I thought that he could only bolster ruins. If he can bolster the agegis defense line, he is defenitly going on the short list.

I thought it was a piece of terrain. I haven't played Sm in ages so I may well be wrong. I would check the 'dex to make sure.

Even if it is just ruins that still gives you a 3+ cover save anyway, and with terrain being so prevelant these days and you playing a gunline....having some ruins in your deployment zone if more or less a given.

MoTF is also BS 5, so you can have him shooting the guns of any fortifications you bring.

Praxiss wrote:the MoTF is great, chuck him on a bike to make him relentless, that way you can move him 12" and keep the beamer at long range (where it's the most powerful).

Aside from fixing vehicles the MoTF can also Bolster Defenses (improve a terrain piece's cover save by 1) - Aegis Defense Line with a 3+ cover save? Thanks very much!

While the did FAQ Bolster Defence to be allowed to improve more than ruins in the most recent FAQ. It also explicitly disallowed improving bought terrain. The Libby is still the best HQ for SM despite the fact that the hood got hit with the nerf bat.

tedurur wrote:

Praxiss wrote:the MoTF is great, chuck him on a bike to make him relentless, that way you can move him 12" and keep the beamer at long range (where it's the most powerful).

Aside from fixing vehicles the MoTF can also Bolster Defenses (improve a terrain piece's cover save by 1) - Aegis Defense Line with a 3+ cover save? Thanks very much!

While the did FAQ Bolster Defence to be allowed to improve more than ruins in the most recent FAQ. It also explicitly disallowed improving bought terrain. The Libby is still the best HQ for SM despite the fact that the hood got hit with the nerf bat.

With what powers or domain(s)?

tedurur wrote:

Praxiss wrote:the MoTF is great, chuck him on a bike to make him relentless, that way you can move him 12" and keep the beamer at long range (where it's the most powerful).

Aside from fixing vehicles the MoTF can also Bolster Defenses (improve a terrain piece's cover save by 1) - Aegis Defense Line with a 3+ cover save? Thanks very much!

While the did FAQ Bolster Defence to be allowed to improve more than ruins in the most recent FAQ. It also explicitly disallowed improving bought terrain. The Libby is still the best HQ for SM despite the fact that the hood got hit with the nerf bat.

Well that's a shame, but understandable i suppose. I tend to steer away from psykers and prefer a more gun heavy army (hence the fact i play 'crons and Iron Warriors) so i woudl alwaystake a MoTF ovr a Libby.

Blood angels libbies can get divination. Take an allied contingent of blood angels? Also getting a squad of assault marines as troops would help with objective claims.

I would say Marneus is even more powerful in 6th than he was in 5th. With Terminator Armor he becomes even better in CC. Not quite as much as Lysander but he still keeps uber combat tactics. I use Sicarius though as it is fluffier for my army

I like calgar, but I mainly took him for LD in 5th, and as LD is less important in 6th, I feel he just isn't worth the points for my list. I took sicarius before I took calgar but he is basically just a cheaper version of calgar.

A master of the forge on a bike with a conversion beamer is a great option.

Beyond that, a terminator librarian stuck with whatever your counter melee unit is works well too. So does a chaplin.

You can also take vulkan to twin link for shooting.

Pedro could be an option. Take him and some Sternguard who automatically become scoring.

Nevelon wrote:MoTF is also BS 5, so you can have him shooting the guns of any fortifications you bring.

^This needs repeating^
Also librarian powers help shooting.

In general keep the HQ cheap and get cool units.

Honourable mentions to pedro which makes a nice sternguard gunline with scouts, MotF for a dread gunline, and biker captain who does make a biker gunline based on premeasuring you can TLbolter everything.

I vote Pedro. Sternguard with 3 Attacks and Overwatch is hard to assault. Scoring is icing on the boltercake!

Pedro with blood angel librarian(for divination back up) Those Sternguard just got crazier

SlaveToDorkness wrote:I vote Pedro. Sternguard with 3 Attacks and Overwatch is hard to assault. Scoring is icing on the boltercake!

Ta-Da. Slave to dorkness beat me to it.
This. +1

Personally, I would take either a Librarian for the cheapness and effectiveness, or Lysander for his bolter drills, althought I agree that the MoTF is a good choice when on a bike

Nullzone Librarian for the SM HQ.

+ A Blood Angel Librarian + 3 Death company allied is only 160 points all up.

A Telepathy Librarian is a nice boost. Invisibility greatly helps protect your lynchpin units against shooting and assault and the other telepathy powers aren't bad either. The other option I'm considering for SM gunline is a Bike captain to run with a 6+ man bike squad with 2 plasma (counterattack by fire out of reserves or depth) and an allied BA librarian with divination and an assault squad for mobile scoring.

Take a Librarian with Telepathy.

Stripping Fearless off units that are charging your lines is useful. Psychic Shriek can do 8 wounds to LD10 if you roll well. Hallucination will deal 15 wounds if you hit the 5/6 to a boyz mob. Or stop them in their tracks.

Mind Puppet (or whatever it's called) can take over tanks, and use it to fire a Demolisher Cannon or what have you into the enemy. Or use a Hydra to shoot down an enemies flyer.

Invisibilty will make anyone striking at you WS1. Give you Stealth and Shrouding (+3 Cover Save, so 4+ on anything not in cover!)

The only power that is bad for a Space Marine army is the one that makes a unit Fearless for a turn. (out of Telepathy, at least.)

If your libby is in Terminator Armor, give him Null Zone + Vortex. If he's an epistolary, you get Warp Charge 1 Vortex + Null Zone. S 10 AP 1 Large Template, hooo. Even the plain powers can help a gunline.

Another thing to note is if you ally up a blood angels librarian, with the reroll to hit power, you can take one of their honour guard squads, and load it with plasma. This combined with a few vindicators, and a normal space marine librarian with the obligatory nullzone can be quite deadly.
You could also fit in a stormraven, or slightly more point efficient devastors, or fast predators or vindicators.

Just take a libby with telekinesis or pyro and that should set you up
Or MoTF

Cato Sicarious is very good now. Combat Tactics is golden. 2+/4++ with feel no pain so he can lead from the front of a unit. Board wide ld 10, but you can choose to fail. adds a bonus to a tactical squad... I like him.

Inquisitor_Dunn wrote:Cato Sicarious is very good now. Combat Tactics is golden. 2+/4++ with feel no pain so he can lead from the front of a unit. Board wide ld 10, but you can choose to fail. adds a bonus to a tactical squad... I like him.

What happens if a unit of say 3 typhoons shoots krak missiles at him. 2+ save or 2+ look at sir, it is a little too likely he is going to die I am afraid. This was just an example, but the point being 200 points needs to be less likely to die, even some points contribute to the buffs he gives.

If someone is going to dedicate that much firepower onto him, they are not focussing on the rest of the list. Remember you have effectively 2 lots of 2+ saves on him, so not many shots would get through, just park him in the back of the squad, and he should be fine

MFletch wrote:

Inquisitor_Dunn wrote:Cato Sicarious is very good now. Combat Tactics is golden. 2+/4++ with feel no pain so he can lead from the front of a unit. Board wide ld 10, but you can choose to fail. adds a bonus to a tactical squad... I like him.

What happens if a unit of say 3 typhoons shoots krak missiles at him. 2+ save or 2+ look at sir, it is a little too likely he is going to die I am afraid. This was just an example, but the point being 200 points needs to be less likely to die, even some points contribute to the buffs he gives.

Cover or no cover for anyone in the unit? It matters cause then you LOS! to them. His 2+/4++ doesn't mean you sit in the open with everyone. Play smart. He allows you to make 2+/5+FnP vs mass low strenght ap3 shots.

Pedro for scoring sternguard, and throw Lysander in one of the sterns for automatic exterminatus