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Disclaimer:
I know stompas are awful. I know I will lose most games, if not all. I've had the kits for ages and want to use them. Therefore the stompas are an inflexible element of the list. The issue is what to fill out the rest of the list with, and what to use for elements like <KLAN> keywords, warlord traits, etc, with the goal of making the force...if not 'good', at least as 'close to not atrocious as possible'.

So...at 2000 points, a pair of Stompas with 5 rokkits each costs 1830 points and have to sit in super-heavy auxiliary detachment, costing 6 of my 12 command points.

170 points and 6 command points isn't a huge amount of room to customise; I can see only one real approach for supporting troops.
A big mek in each stompa would be great but 2 auxiliary support detachment would break the 3-detachment-limit.

If I can only get one mek, I might as well take a mega-armoured one: a mega-armoured mek with kustom shoota, power klaw and kustom force field and ten grots just fits, and leaves me 6 command points, and a CHARACTER warlord that can take warlord traits and relics.

The stompas don't get a KLAN trait, so the KLAN is only about stratagem access - I feel like either snakebites or deathskulls feels best for the 'kill big things' stratagem. It could matter if giving the mek the 'kleverest boss' stratagem and trying to make him a bit killy

The blitza-gatler is an easy pick, but as a stratagem kustom job or instead of a warlord trait?

If I did take a warlord trait, Kunning but Brutal seems like a good pick - redeploying a stompa could be a big deal.

Other than 'pick another army', what are people's thoughts?

Perhaps not what you want but maybe only take one? Could run:

Spearhead:

-Big Mek w/ KFF
-x3 Morkanauts
(or)
-x2 Morkanauts, x1 Gorkanauts
-Stompa

Would give you basically a Stompa Mobs and his little friends, still cost 6 CP and help with the FoC issues

Well...not really, no. I have, and want to use, two, rather than throw the wrong side of a hundred and eighty pounds on other units.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm mostly looking for advice on KLAN, warlord traits, and relics, and what stratagems to keep in mind.

I guess the best you can do is getting one stompa the kustom job and then have one KFF mek embark on each of them, because there is no chance of having all parts of a stompa wholly within 9".
You will need to drop some of the rockets to get a unit of gretchin to create a patrol with the two meks.

The other option would be running the stompa without the kustom job as kustom stompa to get some more fancy weapons.

As for clans, it doesn't really matter much. The only clan-specific thing that would matter is Wreckers, though you are probably better off using moar dakka and ramming speed.
The most important stratagem is going to be patch up, since it restores a half-dead stompa back to being fully operational.

Depressingly, even with only three rokkits each, a minimum grot mob, and two just on force field meks, you're at 2,010 bloody points. Which means only one mek - hence why it might as well be in mega armour.

I agree patch up is probably key. Deathskulls would give me access to da fixa uppa, though.

Can you just do 2 superheavy aux with no warlord? Is that legal? Elegance would dictate a Stompa+KustomStompa = 2k

You can. Your warlord doesn't have to be a CHARACTER, it just removes your access to warlord traits (and Kustom Jobs) if they aren't.

A kustom stompa is worth a look, and stompa/kustom stompa clocks in at 2000 on the dot.

It's just a shame it doesn't get power fields or a kustom force field. The klaw is a touch worse than a mega-choppa, and I'm not sure a lifta-droppa is worth the swap (the deffkannon/gatler is a lot better than when the index was written).

Basically you're buying it for the gaze of mork. Sadly, even with every cost-saving option taken, I don't think you can fit in a belly kannon, which would be the main appeal.

It is a shame that the most impressive units are all priced out of the game - titans and stompas would be great to actually see on the board, but in practice if you want a TITANIC army I think you get Imperial and Chaos Knights and Militarum super-heavy tanks and that seems to be about it.

So...
Yes, stompas still suck, but the Imperial Armour Kustom Stompa appears to be cheaper and better.

At 850 points with standard Stompa arm weapons - other arms are available, but whilst:

the klaw hits much harder it loses the ability to slash for multihit attacks, costs 20 points and doesn't have a twin big shoota.

the liftadroppa now puts out a lot more shots, but swapping out a killkannon also costs the Kustom rokkit racks and the supa-gattler, both of which are fairly chunky weapons. Plus, despite a random rate of fire, it lacks blast.


The good news is that you still get a dramatic firepower increase. I can now get the gorgeous chest- and head-pieces and a revised force can look like this:


Patrol
Big Mek in Mega Armour with Killsaw and Kustom Force Field
Big Mek with Kustom Force Field
10 Grots x2

Superheavy Auxiliary
Kustom Stompa with Deffkannon, Mega-Choppa and Belly Gun


Superheavy Auxiliary
Kustom Stompa with Deffkannon, Mega-Choppa and Belly Gun


I know it's still a relatively flimsy army, but having an objective secured 'krew' to kick out as you pass something important and a kustom force field on each stompa, plus the extra firepower of some 20-odd belly gun shots and 7 or so gaze of mork shots per turn is a big uptick in the list's capability.

I'm thinking I'd use Blood Axes for the KLAN - that means the big mek in a T-shirt can have Mogrok's Finking Map and take kunnin but brutal - meaning I can redeploy one and probably both stompas before the game starts - whilst the one in his Sunday best armour can take something like Ard as Nails, Kleverest Boss and Supa-Cybork, giving him a fighting chance if he ever chose to get out of the stompa to punch someone significant in person.

That leaves 4CP for stratagems various.

Thoughts on better ideas for gubbinz, warlord traits, etc, are welcomed.

I could always downgrade the warlord to a 'normal' big mek or remove one stompa's krew unit and have points to play with if I did want to take a klaw (I'm fully aware that against something like a knight you WILL see the difference), or I guess I could forgo a dedicated melee weapon and pack a cannon and lifta droppa - but a stompa stuck with a basic AP- D1 melee weapon feels like a bad idea. Opinions?

If you lose the belly gun (I really don't think it's worth 50 points), the two stompas would only come up to 1600. You can fit an additional killtank for 275 in there to make them a super-heavy detachment and actually have them benefit from clan traits, AND still have room for a KFF mek/gretchin patrol.

Also note that you can trade away the choppa for a lifta-droppa as well, which isn't a horrible trade at all. Also don't forget to put use the kustom job for the gattler.