Bikes viable in deathwatch?

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**ballzonya**

Are bikes viable in a deathwatch army? I'd like to run 6 all power swords

**Slayer-Fan123**

What you do is not run them by themselves.

Take a full Killteam, but split off 4 Bikers and a Vanguard Vet. Typically I would split that off a squad with 5 Stalkers.

This literally is the only use of Combat Squad I managed to find for this edition so far.

**BaconCatBug**

I second the combat squad. You take 1 Sergeant, 4 Veterans, 3 bikes and 2 Vanguard Vets. Split them into the 5 footsloggers and the 3 bikes/2 Jump pack. The unit now has T5 and can run about smashing things.

**ballzonya**

To be honest that's a great strat I never split my army before I just figured what's the point. So you think all my Vanguard vets should run like that or is a squad alone viable

**Slayer-Fan123**

BaconCatBug wrote:
I second the combat squad. You take 1 Sergeant, 4 Veterans, 3 bikes and 2 Vanguard Vets. Split them into the 5 footsloggers and the 3 bikes/2 Jump pack. The unit now has T5 and can run about smashing things.

I disagree on 2 Vanguard simply because I want more shots, but it isn't a terrible option to have another bullet catcher with a SS.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

ballzonya wrote:
To be honest that's a great strat I never split my army before I just figured what's the point. So you think all my Vanguard vets should run like that or is a squad alone viable

If I were to do all Vanguard Vets, I would go dual Bolt Pistols ala Seraphim. Shoot one unit and charge another, though you'll likely die once that unit falls back.

**ikeulhu**

Yeah, combat squad is the way to go when it comes to running bikes in DW. If you already have six then I would go with running two kill teams each with three bikers and two vanguard vets with storm shields combat squadded out as BCB suggested. I run one team in that format myself and am often impressed with just how long T5 alongside two storm shields can actually survive.

**Cilithan**

I use 1-2 squads of the following :

1 Sergeant, Storm shield, stormbolter, twin bolters
2 Bikers, twin bolters
Deathwatch Teleport homer

In my experience they are cheap, fast, relatively tough, bring 16 SIA bolter shots and have the Homer which I place near a home objective for my Corvus deployed Veteran squad with Terminator. Their bases are long enough to block movement and shield more imposant units. All in all the Bikes bring a flexible tool to an all Deathwatch list IMHO.