Dark Angel Tactics
Pointing Up (And some Themed Army Examples)
Okies updated for the new codex changes. Working on tactics vs specific armies now.
The Dark Angels
are pretty much accepted as having a ropey codex , we have disadvantages but
not enough advantages to even things out (this is being fixed in the upcoming
codex revision. YAY!). However, it's not so bad as to leave us no chance of
winning! If played to their advantages the Dark Angels can be a real tough bunch.
In this article I will talk about using a normal Dark Angel army, not Deathwing
or Ravenwing armies as they require very different overall tactics.
PROS
1. Because so many of our units can have the "Stubborn" rule (they are immune
to moral checks) Dark Angels make an excellent defensive force. A dug in Dark
Angel force is incredibly hard to shift, almost every model will need to be
killed.
2. Intractable
means we never fall back from casulties due to shooting.
3. Using Ravenwing as fast attack allows us to field Squadrons of Landspeeders
or Attack Bikes for just one fast attack choice, an excellent mobile counter
attacking force.
4. The Deathwing will never fall back, terminators that have to be killed to
the last marine.. nice!
CONS
1. Same as all space marine armies, a low number of models in the army.
++++++++++++++++
HQ
*All Dark Angels HQ units are Stubborn. I'm not going to go into much detail
on HQ units, they perform pretty much the same role and need little explanation.*
Grand Master or Master
Pretty much the same as normal Space Marine officers, always a good choice.
Equip to make a close combat monster :)
Librarian
The "Weaken Resolve" psychic power is excellent against units that have are
not immune to psychology. Charge this guy into combat, win the combat and then
make the enemy unit take their leadership test on 3D6! Really nasty.. give him
a jump pack and he can leap quickly into combat where ever he is needed. Of
course you could take Smite and go for more shooty damage. Always use one of
these with a Psychic Hood against Eldar and Tyranids.
Interrogator Chaplain
Perhaps the best value character, very hard hitting, a power weapon and with
a 4+ invulnerable Rosarius save. Your opponents close combat nightmare.
ELITE
Dreadnought
I love Dreads :) They look cool, hit hard and mash things up in close combat.
They can also be used to draw fire, a Dreanought marching towards your lines
is a scary sight! The different weapon options make it very versatile, able
to fulfil Fire Support, mobile anti armour, siege, or infantry support. I always
buy extra armour and smoke for my dreads, extra armour keeps you moving and
smoke can be a life saver.
Fire Support - Twin Linked Lascannon and a Missile
Launcher. Get hull down at the back of the battlefield and nail enemy armour.
I tend to either find a place with a good field of fire and stay there, or use
the dread to guard places where the enemy might want to move.
Mobile Anti-Armour - Twin Linked Lascannon (or
Multi-Melta) and Close Combat Weapon with Heavy Flamer. The lascannon and heavy
flamer may appear as an odd combination, but I find this is an excellent multi-role
and support unit. Moving forwards with your infantry or as a solo trouble maker,
this config can cause your enemy all sorts of problems. It's primary role is
to advance using the Lascannon to nail any mobile armour, but it's Flamer will
decimate any sneaky infantry, before you charge into combat of course.. The
other option is to take Twin-linked Autocannons, while lacking the punch of
the Las if you're facing lots of light armour it's a better choice (2 STR 7
shots).
Infantry Support - Assault Cannon and Close Combat
Weapon with Storm Bolter (or Heavy Flamer). Advancing with your infantry this
config adds firepower against enemy troop positions. Personally I prefer the
Storm Bolter for this role, it keeps the ranges the same and 5 shots at 24inch
range is pretty nasty.
Deathwing
Tough, powerfull and able to fight over range or in close. Nothing draws fire
like Deathwing. There's all sorts of different ways to set up your Deathwing
squads, how to do it depends on what role you'd like them to perform. I find
it best to have the same type of special weapon in a squad, better to concentrate
your fire. All these squads are 5 man units. BTW personally I prefer to only
have 1 special weapon per 5 marines, but GW changed this in 3rd edition to 2
weapons per squad, so for the sake of completeness I've written this to 3rd
edition style.
Close Combat I:
2 Heavy Flamers & Chain fist, 3 Lightning Claws
Excellent in fighting tightly packed light infantry, the combined power of 2
heavy flamers is awesome. Teleport in or get dropped of by a Land Raider into
the thick of things, then roast one unit, charge another.
Close Combat II:
4 Lightning Claws, 1 Thunderhammer & Storm Shield
This unit is a power armour killer, with a Thunderhammer for any armour that
pops up. Again teleport in or get dropped of by a Land Raider, then charge into
your opponents dangerous units. Aim for things like Chaos marines or Aspect
Warriors, though avoid power weapon carrying assault troops (one exception is
Banshees, better to charge than be charged)
Anti-Infantry/Light Armour:
2 Assault Cannons & Chain fists, 2 Storm Bolter and Powerfist, Sgt Storm Bolter
and Power Weapon
Use the terrain to shield your advance from enemy anti-armour. Approach the
enemy laying a constant wall of fire into their infantry. Remember Assault Cannons
can tear things like Vypers apart, they can even take out Falcons (though this
would be a waste of dice normally). Charge normal infantry, avoid assault troops.
Anti-Infantry/Heavy Armour:
2 Cyclone Missile Launcher & Storm Bolter, 2 Storm Bolter and Powerfist, Sgt
Storm Bolter and Power Weapon
I don't like this unit. It's good as part of a Deathwing army, but IMHO a waste
of points in a normal Dark Angel army. Why? Well Dreadnoughts and several choices
from the Heavy Support section can supply much better anti tank firepower. Also
what a waste of those Storm Bolters. I have no advice for using in a combined
force.
FAST
ATTACK
Ravenwing Bike Squadron
Hmmmm.. I don't really rate bike squadrons, I like them, I just don't rate them
for the points, but used correctly they can be fairly usefull. Bikes make lousy
close combat troops, yes they've got toughness 5 which makes them hard to kill,
but 1 attack is not good and if you face any power weapons... bye bye. They
can carry a nice selection of guns though and when used as flank harriers can
be a real pain in the neck. I like to use them with 2 plasma guns and a attack
bike, they race up a flank using the terrain for cover. They then pop out and
whack exposed troops or armour, staying out of range of any dangerous chargers.
Use them to be annoying. Don't expect them to directly win a game for you, but
they can sure as hell contribute by frustrating your opponent.
Ravenwing Attack Bike Squadron
3 multi-meltas :) Oh yes indeed, these rock. Only use them as tank busters or
for killing the heaviest infantry (Terminators, Wraithguard, etc), being sure
to keep out of any charge ranges. Race up flanks and try to sneak round the
enemy armour to attack from the rear, this will probably not work as your enemy
will react, but it will force your opponent to move his army to compensate and
therefore opening themselves up elsewhere. The threat of 3 Multi-Meltas is a
very real one and will not be ignored, if it is more fool them.
Ravenwing Landspeeder & Tornado Squadrons
I love speeder squadrons! The ability to move 24inches in one go is unrivalled
in a marine army, worth it just for claiming parts of the battlefield. But where
they really come into their own is for destroying isolated units. 1st turn move
full speed behind (or into, remember Ravenwing can re-roll difficult terrain
tests) a wood or other terrain piece out of the line of fire. 2nd Turn pop over
to an isolated target and let lose with 3 Heavy Bolters and if you're using
Tornadoes Assault Cannons aswell. After that it depends what you're using, normal
Landspeeders constantly move at 12inches nailing troops, but for Tornadoes I
like to move slower so I can fire both guns (that's 18 dice!). Just be carefull
not to get exposed to too much fire, Speeders are VERY fragile and the Ravenwing
jink save is worthless (6+ pffft nice one).
Landspeeder & Variants
If
you're using single speeders take a multi-melta version and use it to pop tanks,
jsut don't expect it to live long after. Oh and the Typhoon looks great, but
is no where near as good as a Whirlwind.
Assault Squad
In defensive formations use Jump pack troops to counter charge enemy attacks.
In offensive formations use them to leap from cover to cover and engage the
enemies main infantry based threat (apart from power weapon using assault troops
leave them to your guns). If possible try to engage their heavy weapon troops.
Of course you could use an Assault Squad without jump packs and mount them in
a Land Raider, something I do now and again :)
TROOPS
Tactical Squad
The best unit available to you, though this current trend of the minimum of
2 five marine tactical squads is utter pants.
1. Yes it's more tactically flexible, but it's unfluffy
2. It's a cheesey attempt to get more special weapons
3. They die quicker
4. Put your faith in the Bolter!
I love traditional 10 marine squads. Opening up with all those bolters.. yum.
Larger squads are harder to destroy, they can hold areas for much longer than
smaller units, they'll get you points in a tournament too. 10 marine squads
are also more scary than what looks like little drips and drabs of units scattered
about. BTW you may have noticed by now I like my units to attract attention,
this is because it confuses your opponent, I talk about that in detail here.
I mainly use my Tactical Squads as the centre line of my army, securing my position
and defending any objectives. Though I sometimes use them in a very offensive
role, hacking them up real close in a Rhino, getting out, shooting charging.
Remember a normal marine will kick most other races arse! What special and heavy
weapons you choose depends totally on what race you are facing and the squads
battlefield role. Below are some suggestions:
Missile Launcher, 8 Bolters & Flamer - For use
against Imperial Guard, Eldar and Orks. The Missile Launcher is versatile, it
can maim their troops and damage their vehicles. The Flamer is for if they (or
you) get close, flamers can kill a lot of light infantry.
Lascannon, 8 Bolters & Plasma Gun - Against anything.
With a Lascannon this unit is a lot more anti-tank, the Plasma Gun can damage
a lot of vehicles too.
Heavy Bolter & Melta Gun - Against Tyranids, Imperial
Guard, Orks & Eldar. The heavy bolter maims troops, the Melta Gun is your insurance
policy if anything big gets close.
Plasma
Cannon, 8 Bolters & Plasma Gun - Great against any armies that have heavy
infantry, just so damn nasty :)
Scouts
A very usefull unit, with several tactical uses. Remember the extra for moving
in cover! I use Scouts in the following roles:
Snipers - Apart from the obvious ranged killing,
the ability to pin units is a valuable tool. You can stop a unit moving into
cover, stall potential assault units allowing you to charge them and generally
screw up the enemy plan. Also, Wraithlords, those underpointed Eldar monstrosities
can be torn to pieces by a barrage of Sniper fire. Toughness 8 means nothing
to a weapon that always wounds on a 4+. Chuck a Heavy Bolter in for some extra
ommpf.
Close Combat - Infiltrating close combat troops,
you gotta like that. Sneak them through woods and get up close. You'd be amazed
how many times an opponent ignores Scouts moving through woods "they're only
Scouts after all". They won't be saying that when they smash into the side of
their dug in heavies. Of course if they do go for them, well they're just being
drawn away from your more powerfull units.
Close Combat/Shotguns - Unlike most players, I
like shotguns. Yup you heard right. Well, against Eldar and Imperial Guard anyway..
2 shots at strength 3, so that's only 4s to wound and you can unload a fair
few shots. I often use them as Guardian Hunters, sneaking through the woods
and then attacking or as an assault support unit, clearing away stragglers,
lending their firepower to the assault.
HEAVY
SUPPORT
Devestator Squad
I always take a squad of these, always. Dug in they are more survivable than
a tank and pack more firepower! The most common mistake people make with Devestators
is multi-role, multi-weapon squads, it's just a waste of points. You want the
squad to be able to concentrate it's fire and excell in it's role. For example
the common "Missile Launcher, Plasma Cannon, Heavy Bolter, Missile Launcher"
unit, that Heavy Bolter is just wasted against tanks and the other heavies are
wasted against troops (cept the plasma). Here are the squads I recommend:
Armour - 2 Lascannons, 2 Missile Launchers
These can deal with any heavy armour and if you do run out of heavy targets
then the Missiles Launcher's frag missiles make up for the Lascannon's single
targeting when firing at infantry.
Heavy Infantry - 4 Plasma Cannons
Ok the over heating is going to kill somebody, but this squad can destroy almost
any squad with one Salvo. A terrifying prospect for your enemy.
Light Infantry - 4 Heavy Bolters
Cheap and effective, 12 Strength 5 shots can seriously hurt enemy infantry.
Though if you're facing lots of large Tyranids it might be worth getting a couple
of Missile Launchers, they are the only real multi-role heavy weapon available
with the choice of Frag or Krak.
Multi-Role - 4 Missile Launchers
Frag is crap against heavy armoured troops, but great against light stuff like
Imperial Guard or Cultists. Krak, is not the best tank buster, but it sure as
hell ain't a bad one!
I tend to use my Devestators for killing Armour, more often than not I have
the "Armour - 2 Lascannons, 2 Missile Launchers" config. Obvious as it sounds,
always get your Devestators dug in, hopefully wit at least a 5+ cover save.
Often they will be prime target number 1.
Predator
Like Devestators these work best if focused on one role. Don't buy Twin Linked
Lascannons and the put Heavy Bolters on the side sponsons.. Stick with either
all Lascannons or Autocannons with Heavy Bolters. Get hull down somewhere and
open up, I don't find Predators tough enough to be very mobile. You must keep
the enemy return fire to a minimum. However they are scary, use that to your
advantage.
Vindicator
One of my favourite tanks, limited in it's use, a 1 shot wonder with a huge
gun, but oh my life can it do some damage! It's not used enough so I'm going
to go into some detail about this baby.
Pros:
Difficult to miss with
Strength 10 instant kills
Huge template
Ordnance Pinning
Very scary
Cons:
Short range
Sometimes the explosion is too big!
Relatively light armour
Can not move and shoot
This leads to an obvious defensive or what I call a finisher role. Whatever
you do always buy it Extra Armour and Smoke.
The defensive role. The Vindicator excells at closing
off parts of the battlefield, the enemy will not want to go anywhere near it,
so you can easily funnel them where you want them. Place the tank where it can
cover a preferable movement channel (somewhere that the enemy would like to
move infantry or vehicles through), place it so the enemy has a minimal number
of guns with line of sight. You want the enemy to have to make a choice, they
can either avoid the Vindicator or take the risk of moving infront of it, possibly
not destroying it and being left open to a Demoliser shell. Play on your opponents
fear.
The Finisher role. Keep the Vindicator out of harms
way untill about turn 3 (assuming a 6 turn game), then using the terrain as
cover advance get into a position where you are in range with line of sight
on enemy units that have taken casulties. The enemy will do one of two things,
either panic and start shooting with everything at the Vindicator or they'll
completely ignore it. If they shoot at it, then that leaves the rest of your
nearby force to destroy the enemy afterwards. If they leave it, heh, kill them
all...
Whirlwind
Simple, sit out of sight and target enemy infantry. No explanation on how to
use this is needed, it's easy. BUT be wary of overusing these, I see too many
cheese armies with like 3 of them..
Land Raider
The scariest thing in a Space Marine army. 14 armour all round, Lascannons that
rarely miss, Heavy Bolters just incase and it might well have a payload of Terminators
inside.. nasty.
I think when used purely as a fire support tank the Land Raider is wasted. Much
better when it drives forward, a squad of Terminators get out and then it moves
into Fire Support. I like to use a Land Raider with Deathwing as a flank crushing
force, advance, deploy, destroy :)
One thing to be very wary of though, Eldar Bright Lances. The Land Raider is
no better than Predator head on to a Bright Lance. So watch out.
There are four different ways of pointing up an army:
1. Making an Army purely to win (often known as cheese Armies)
2. Choose your favourite units.
3. Based upon a theme.
4. Balanced
Making an Army purely to win. I've no interest in cheese armies, I can beat them but it's boring. If you're only interested in winning no matter what, then you'll find nothing of use here, I can only suggest you get some therapy. As for facing an army that's built legally ok but is not in the spirit of the game.. well that can be a real pain in the arse if you're using a themed army, with a balanced army a bit of tactical play and you'll nail them. Personally I will not play against cheesy players, they can keep their 3 Whirlwinds, 37 Starcannons, 2 winged Hive tyrants and master crafted Cyclones to themselves.
Choose your favourite units. Nothing really wrong with it, but not something I like to do. It tends to make badly balanced armies without much character.
Based upon a theme. The most entertaining and challenging way is to theme your army, this will give you a very characterfull (and fluffy) army, but it may make it more difficult for you to win. This is good, because you will become a much better general fighting difficult battles than easy ones! Themed armies can be rather unbalanced, a recon force would not have Heavy Support, a defensive force would not have much in the way of Fast Attack. So you have to really play to your armies strengths. Here are some 750pts examples:
Suprise
Assault
Recon Support
The Battered Defenders
The Tank Base
All of these have their soft spots and may take some time before you win with them, but they are enjoyable to use and a little different!
Balanced. This is your everyday run of the mill army, able to deal with any threat and can itself present various attacking options. I'm sure you're all familiar with balancing your armies so no need for me to get into any detail. Here's a 750pts example just incase:
Which ever style of pointing up you choose, always pay attention to your opponents strength and weaknesses. If you're facing Chaos Space Marines then there's little point taking flamers, but if you're facing Orks then its a different matter. You must know the ins and outs of both your own and your enemies army before you can be sure of victory.