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Hi all,

I'm going up against Death Guard in a small game, I put together the following list. Any comment or advice would be appreciated.


++ Battalion Detachment 6CP ++

Regimental Doctrine: Gunnery Experts, Spotter Details

Company Commander

Tank Commander: Heavy Bolter, Relic: Kurov's Aquila, Turret-mounted Demolisher Siege Cannon, Warlord, WT: Master of Command

Platoon Commander

Infantry Squad
. 9x Guardsman w/ Lasgun
. Sergeant

Infantry Squad
. 9x Guardsman w/ Lasgun
. Sergeant

Infantry Squad
. 9x Guardsman w/ Lasgun
. Sergeant

Bullgryns
. 2x Bullgryn w/ Maul & Slabshield
. 2x Bullgryn w/ Maul & Brute Shield

Chimera Heavy Flamer, Turret Heavy Flamer

Leman Russ Demolisher: Heavy Bolter, Turret-mounted Demolisher Siege Cannon

++ Patrol Detachment -3CP ++

Regimental Doctrine: 9th Iotan Gorgonnes

Tempestor Prime Progeny of Conflict, Tempestus Command Rod, WT: Grand Strategist

Militarum Tempestus Scions
. 2x Scion w/ Hot-shot Lasgun
. 2x Scion w/ Plasma gun
. Tempestor: Chainsword, Plasma pistol

Militarum Tempestus Command Squad
. 4x Tempestus Scion w/Meltagun

++ Total: [59 PL, 3CP, 1,000pts] ++

Tactical notes:

LRs stay backfield, fire their HBs and demolisher cannons across the board at 30" (Spotter Details), rerolling number of shots (Gunnery Expert), wounding T5 DG on 2+

TC orders both LR with Master of Command

MT drop right into melta range with Iotan Gorgonnes stratagem

Somewhat lacks CP (3CP), but Kurov's aquila and Grand Strategist (Tempestor Prime gains WT with Progeny of Conflict) might help

You could make the company commander your warlord, and give a tank ace strat to the leman russ for 1 cp to allow it to double out orders. That way warlord is less vulnerable to enemy lascannons, etc.

Plasma guns will have a bit of an uphill time actually taking out DG, their damage output is cut in half. I would almost recommend you give each infantry squad a melta gun of its own (or plasma, whaever) and with the money you need to save, downgrade to a couple of hotshotvolleyguns. Those work from range, fire twice as often, and have decent AP and decent strength. Not grea, but decent.

Dukeofstuff wrote:
You could make the company commander your warlord, and give a tank ace strat to the leman russ for 1 cp to allow it to double out orders. That way warlord is less vulnerable to enemy lascannons, etc.

Probably, but I had the idea that a single company commander on the frontlines (that is where he has to be to make use of orders) is somewhat more vulnerable than a backfield TC. Plus, I'm already rather low on CP, upgrading to Tank Ace would mean that I'm down to just 2 CP.

Dukeofstuff wrote:
Plasma guns will have a bit of an uphill time actually taking out DG, their damage output is cut in half. I would almost recommend you give each infantry squad a melta gun of its own (or plasma, whaever) and with the money you need to save, downgrade to a couple of hotshotvolleyguns. Those work from range, fire twice as often, and have decent AP and decent strength. Not grea, but decent

Well, DG avoids one damage on 5+, 2 overcharged plasma guns rerolling 1s in rapid fire range mean 4 D2 shots, which still sound reasonable. But equipping infantry squads with meltas also sounds pretty good, especially with orders. I'm just not sure if they live long enough to get into melta range.

That's incorrect. As of ninth edition death guard codex, disgustingly resilient is NOT a feel no pain, it is a straight -1 to damage PER HIT, which makes every plasma weapon 1D rather than 2D. A 5 wound shot from a melta is now a 4 wound shot, etc.

Some DG units may ALSO have feel no pains, I believe the big one does, but every single one is going to take 1/2 normal damage from s8 plasma, gravgun, or similar, and that's why I said its uphill. You can still wound on a 2 of course by charging it hot, but the difference in damage is almost not worth it when you start to count your own guys dying on nat 1's. As a result, a lucky rolling hotshotvolleygun ...

Ok, lets say you shoot a deathgaurd unit who has lost a model already to your scions, and you pop the "killing fields" strat for +1 to wound vs something that has lost a model. Now fire your remaining scions into it, with the hotshotvolleyguns wounding on 3+ rather than 4+, but each one, potentially, hitting 4 times. A single plasma gun is either NOT HOT, and wounds on 3+ (now 2+) or it wounds on 2+ but the extra damage is lost.

so you end up with about 3 points damage from the hotshotvolleygun (or 3 1 wound models dead) vs 2 from the plasma (or 2 1 wound models dead.). But the cheaper HSVG lets you buy (somewhere) another unit of basica gaurd something like a plasma, melta, or grenade or flamer, which itself helps.

I hope that explained my comment there.
.

Thanks for the clarification reagarding disgustingly resilient, I'm still somewhat unfamiliar with 9th.

Dukeofstuff wrote:
Ok, lets say you shoot a deathgaurd unit who has lost a model already to your scions, and you pop the "killing fields" strat for +1 to wound vs something that has lost a model. Now fire your remaining scions into it, with the hotshotvolleyguns wounding on 3+ rather than 4+, but each one, potentially, hitting 4 times. A single plasma gun is either NOT HOT, and wounds on 3+ (now 2+) or it wounds on 2+ but the extra damage is lost.

I might be missing something again, but volley guns are S4, so they wound T5 plague marines on 5+ (4+ with that stratagem you referred to).

You are right that overcharging plasma does not worth it though, one damage is lost and S8 still wounds T5 on 3+.

"you are correct, I was wrong. They ARE t5 now."

Still, plasma loses a bit of luster with that -1 damage against anything in the DG army, and if you throw in each volleygun giving the regular gaurd a free melta to pass out, I think the volleyguns make a strong case (in your army) that they can force the enemy to split his anti-infantry shooting up a bit, rather than JUST delete your 9 scions bodies.