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In my most recent tournament everyone seemed very scared of my 3 squads of 5 ratlings, and blew them to bits immediately at the start of every game. In the one game they were not instantly destroyed, they did some decent wounds to magnus and mortarian over a few turns, letting me bring them down more easily (admittedly my psykers did the hard work). How does this list sound for a hard-hitting cadian firebase? It's mainly ratlings and HWSs, with an advancing infantry wave and some outlflanking rough riders!

Not very much in the way of morale mitigation, but can't have everything I guess...

Brigade detachment (cadian tactics)
HQ
Company commander (warlord with Kurov’s aquila relic and grand strategist warlord trait) 30pts
Company commander 30pts
Company commander 30pts
Elites
Platoon commander (with plasma pistol and dagger relic) 25pts
Astropath 15pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
Troops
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with plasma gun and bolter 48pts
Infantry squad with bolter + lascannon 61pts
Infantry squad with bolter + lascannon 61pts
Infantry squad with bolter + lascannon 61pts
Fast attack
5 Rough riders with 2 plasma guns 60pts
5 Rough riders with 2 plasma guns 60pts
5 Rough riders with 2 plasma guns 60pts
Heavy support – 384pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts

Vanguard detachment
HQ:
Inquisitor 55pts
Inquisitor 55pts
Elites
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts

Spearhead detachment (cadian tactics)
HQ:
Primaris psyker 40pts
Elites
5 ratlings 35pts
5 ratlings 35pts
Heavy support
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts
HWS with 2 mortars and lascannon 48pts

One thing to consider : ratlings only have a 6+. Yes, in cover this will increase to 4+, but while putting 3 units of 5 ratlings into cover sounds easy, your list has 14 units of 5 ratlings. Making sure that all 70 of your dudes are in cover and got a line of fire at the enemy might be complicated depending on the quantity of terrain used.

Also, these units melt to any cover negation, although admittedly you're less likely to see Imperial Fists/Iron Warriors than Raven Guard/Alpha Legion for instance. (which admitedly cause their own trouble to guard)

I'm a big fan of the plasmagun infantry squads - dirt cheap and still capable of incredibly deadly power.

Anyway, on the sniper spam - any enemy Guard list will weep when facing you, as the ratlings will utterly crush any and all officers around. And even Space Marine characters will not be safe. But the army feels kinda flismy at a first glance. Granted, the infantry squads will be difficult to slaughter wholesale, but the rest feels flimsy on paper.

Another point is that you might want to put Kurov's Aquila and the Warlord Trait on two different dudes, so your enemy can choose to snipe either, not both at once. I don't bother to in friendly games, but for a competitive environment that should be considered.

I wanna see this army on a table. Cause I can't see how everything is getting cover!

Yeah, I know I'd rapidly run out of cover for the ratlings when deploying. I'd just prioritise giving them cover and set plenty up in my own deployment zone. I guess the aim is that a decent number of them go ignored as he infantry, HWTs and rough riders get to work on the enemy.

My warlord skulks at the back behind a huge infantry screen out of LOS, so he's usually pretty safe. If the enemy wants to kill him, they have to do something special or sacrifice a key unit!

I'm curious: Are you taking the index rough riders? I was unaware that RR were legal since the codex came out.
Also, how did you come across SO many ratlings? I've never been able to find or order more than a box or two at a time at any time.

But you are right, wasting a few shots on 5 guys worth 35 points that will probably dish out a mortal wound a turn isn't a high priority.

Yeah index units are legal if they don't appear in the codex.

And I don't actually have the ratling models - I've just been converting guardsmen with sniper rifles. It's been a fun little project. No one's raised it as an issue at any tournament I've been to yet, and if they do I'd happily just say 'assume they are a fair bit shorter for LOS purposes'. I'm not the biggest fan of the ancient ratling models in all honesty

Honestly, with that many ratlings, it'd suggest buying some skaven boxes and throwing sniper rifles on them. What? They're called rat-lings!

I have seen that done before haha!

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=ratling+conversion&newwindow=1&rlz=1C1AVNE_enGB763GB763&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjz9uy_vLTXAhXGrxoKHY-CDRoQ_AUICigB&biw=1366&bih=675#imgrc=PjaHUczV22ev1M: