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With the substantial drop in points for both baneblades AND lascannons I've decided I might try a "baneblade" company at an upcoming major tournament and I'd like some thoughts as to the build. List is below, all units are Vostroyan Regiment. Points are including the options taken. List comes out to exactly 2000 points and 11 total CP.

Super-heavy Detachment (3CP)

LORDS OF WAR

Arkurian Pattern Stormhammer (495 pts)
-Hull lascannon
-6X Sponson lascannons
-Twin battlecannon
-Stormhammer cannon

Baneblade (510 pts)
-4X Lascannon and Twin Heavy Bolter sponsons
-Autocannon
-Demolisher Cannon
-Hull Twin Heavy Bolter
-Baneblade Cannon

Shadowsword (540 pts)
-4X Lascannon and Twin Heavy Bolter sponsons
-Hull Twin Heavy Bolter
-Volcano Cannon

Battalion Detachment (5CP)

HQ (60pts total)

Company Commander (warlord - Grand Strategist WLT)
-Laspistol
-Chainsword

Company Commander
-Laspistol
-Chainsword
-Kurov's Aquila

TROOPS

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun
-Lascannon Heavy Weapons Team

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun

Infantry Squad
-Plasma Gun

DEDICATED TRANSPORT (98 pts)

Trojan Support Vehicle
-Hull Heavy Bolter


I went with the Vostroyans because I felt they best benefited the baneblades and infantry. The Vostroyan +1 to hit strat is an amazing value when used on a baneblade, and the extra 6" range on every gun in this army will ensure that NO ONE is safe ever. Even though it doesn't seem like it, the army is also highly mobile since baneblades ignore penalties for moving and shooting heavy weapons. In addition, unless the opponent can outright deny overwatch (not impossible, but relatively unlikely/uncommon) they will not want to try to get into meelee with the baneblades.

The tactic for this army is relatively simple.
-The tanks will use the Vostroyan +1 to hit strat and the trojan's reroll misses bonus as needed to ensure they decimate whatever major threats they need to. If opponent is Chaos, VFC will be used too.
-The infantry will perform multiple roles depending on the opponent and situation, whether it be pouring 30" lasguns and plasma into horde armies, running up to nab objectives, or screening for those armies that can actually ignore overwatch. They are flexible board control.

My key concerns are as follows:
-First turn Alpha. Baneblades are not actually that durable, even if I can position well enough to get cover on all 3 (somewhat unlikely) I'm going to lose at least one Baneblade before I've fired a shot if my opponent goes first.
-Every tank lost is going to be felt, badly.
-Units that can ignore overwatch and manage to break through my screens of infantry will be a major thorn.

What can I do to mitigate some of the weaknesses, and what weaknesses am I missing?

Psyker. You ommited this category which is so very cheap now that astros are 15 points each.


A baneblade with a 2+ armor save can situationally be awesome .. in cover, its ignoring your enemies as if it were a 1+ save .. so a LAZCANNON still only passes on a 1,2,3 on the save.

A baneblade is a fire magnet. -1 to hit against it will make some very heavy hitters .. like knights .. that are hard to buff the shots past 3+bs miss a lot more than they might otherwise, and potentially save it a lot of hassle. Especially against a row of basilisks!

Just those TWO astropaths also incrementally increase the effect of the 5 other squads of infantry you have, or even of the baneblades themselves. Need to kill a bunch of centurions in cover? They may come with the equivalent of 0+ armor, chewing your 3+ from the lazcannon up to a 3+ save. (Some marines CAN pull that off. But not so much if you laugh and take their cover away before the LZCN barrages.)


A third astropath is the dedicated malstrom. Every single round, in midfield, it hits something for a couple mortal woudns. Flyers, knights, heavy marine elites, characters you can't quite hit, all are its prey, and viola.

So if you drop one squad with one plasma and pick up 45 points of psyker, you ALSO get three denies, potentially givintg you a "haha, no" against some spell like the elf wizards throw to make your saves crappy.

Are they powerful? Not on their own, but they benefit from character protection and a suddenly 2+ save baneblade hugging cover with -1 to hit on it is a LOT more resilient than it was a moment ago.

Honestly I would struggle to find a way to carry an engenseer in this list, as well, cause a baneblade that also regens just that critical couple points a round ... is a huge asset greater than one more lazcannon on a squad.

Nu-marines will alpha strike the hell out of you, and completely (if well handled) kill 6 units of gaurd on roudn one, and THEN charge.

The Astropaths don't help against first turn alpha, but they are exactly the kind of tactic I wanted to be reminded of. I will definitely do this. Do they make Astropath models with no stave and just the laspistol though? If so I will definitely do away with 1 infantry squad to put 3 of these gems on the field. Thank you for bringing them up.

Anyway, the very basic "its an astropath" is also pretty easy to accomplish, if you just get (1) some kind of coat or cloak, (2) a staff or a laspistol and (3) a wierd helmet or head.

I made all of mine out of commisars (each startkit had a free commisar, and after 9 or so, there was little need for more commisar) by putting tempestor prime helmets on them, and giving their arms laspistol arms or little staffs(one uses the scion command rod as a spell focus). The result is something that looks fairly not like anything else in the imperial lineup, and its not hard to put a laspistol on their hip in a holster if you want him gesturing with both hands.
The baneblade kit has this guy in it, he is wearing a full length coat and standing. I plan to use mine as an inquisition cheap 55 point inquisitor -- however, you could get a nice astropath out of him with a funky helmet of some sort (skitarii would serve) and a laspistol. Since you have 3 or so superheavies, that's easy enough for you to do, I think.
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