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Hey mates. While I am still planning at doing Black Templars atm, I am not going to deny that the recent update about the Deathwatch Space Marines getting there own Codex and being able to field an army of them to me personally is very tempting. As they have a "Mercenary" type feel, and being a fan of there fluff, I am very interested to see how they will turn out. According to rumors (take with a grain of Salt) they will:

* Have their own Codex
* 3-5 Formations they can utilize
* Can only Take Drop Pods
* Have access to a Special Flyer/Transport
* Numerous Special Characters
* Only 1x to 2x Troop Choices

That is what I have been able to hear about them so far, and even then there is still one thing that intrigues me about them. General thought is that they will be like the Sternguard, but they will also have a ton of options for customization and depending on which Chapter they represent, could have an affect on the Kill-Team in terms of Pros and Cons. Granted it's all here say and rumors ( Again, take with a grain of Salt ), but it is making me excited for what is to come. With that being said, even though they could easily be run with a Standard CAD to go with the formations, would you only just still utilize the Deathwatch as a Formation Unit?

I assume you're talking about the deathwatch board game formation? If so, yes, I believe they'll remain as a formation, in fact they could be apart of the 3-5 formations.

 #1ShieldBrother3++ wrote:
I assume you're talking about the deathwatch board game formation? If so, yes, I believe they'll remain as a formation, in fact they could be apart of the 3-5 formations.

Rumor is that the Deathwatch is getting there own Codex to field as a stand alone 40k Army, along with 3x to 5x formations. Usually don't post stuff like this but these rumors are pretty persistent and they are from BOLS and such.

I don't understand your question, is this a thread about the deathwatch units to come? Does "as a formation unit" mean people just running the formations? There is really nothing to go on here. We don't even know if it will be a thing yet.

 #1ShieldBrother3++ wrote:
I don't understand your question, is this a thread about the deathwatch units to come? Does "as a formation unit" mean people just running the formations? There is really nothing to go on here. We don't even know if it will be a thing yet.

....Don't see what the issue is mate. All I'm asking is if the Deathwatch come out with their own codex, would you be tempted run an army of just them or would you probably just stick to the formations they are rumored to get as well. It's from BOLS mainly they've always been reliable.

This kind of speculation doesn't really work until we see the actual rumors come to light; it's really hard to gauge anything GW does from precedents since they change their minds on a whim (just look at the FAQ drafts). Plus formation rules can drastically change a unit's role in the game. Say they get the Skyhammer Annhilation Force equivalent in one of the formations (with the "relentless and charge from deep strike"), this formation would be far more useful if it turns out Deathwatch has an easier time making everything dead rather than capping objectives (which they might very well be, considering specialist ammunition and such).

It also depends on what upgrades they would have. If the board game is any indication, we'll be seeing some unique weapon combos and possibly entirely new weapons (like the man-portable frag cannon).

From a fluff standpoint though, I know a few people who already run a standalone Deathwatch army; you just use 1st Company Taskforce and Librarius Conclave and run the Deathwatch Overkill guys as an allied detachment if you need those specific characters.