1200 pts Space Marine "Forge from the Skies"

[Dunadan]

Master of Forge 155
-Conversion Beamer
-Bike

1xIronclad Dreadnought 165
-Heavy Flamer
-2x Hunter-killer Missiles
Drop Pod 35

1x Dreadnought 140
-Plasma Cannon
-Heavy Flamer
-Extra Armour
Drop Pod 35

1x Sternguard Veteran Squad 205
-8 Veterans
-Melta bombs
Drop Pod 35

2x Tactical Squad 170
-Flamer
-Heavy Bolter
Drop Pod 35

2x Locator Beacons +20(will go on 2 of whichever drop pods I decide to drop in the first wave.)

1200pts

The Master of the Forge's abilities will become more useful in larger games, but for now he acts as a long range support unit, as the bike can get him 12" away from whatever he wants to shoot at, and makes him relentless.

[mkerr]

@Dunadan: Looks like an interesting list and you've worked in some new models (which is always cool to see).

Here are a few comments:

1. I'm a little concerned about getting enough out of the MoF. First of all, he's 155pts (pricey for a 1200pt army) and secondly you are going to have to keep him in reserve half of the time (when your opponent gets the first turn). That's going to limit his effectiveness (even though that Conversion Beamer can be awesome). But his Blessing of the Omnissiah is never going to come into play and he's basically going to stay in the back and shoot his blast.

2. For the price, I'd rather have a nasty HQ in the drop pod with my Sternguard to make my army more "focused". Pedro Kantor is only 20pts more than your master but he makes your whole army Stubborn (great against those pesky Psyker Battle Squads), gives every unit within 12" an extra attack (including your Dreadnoughts) and makes your Sternguard scoring. What's not to like?

3. The Ironclad is awesome, but I'd drop the HK missiles. They look good on the model, but you don't really need them (see below).

4. I'd just stick with the Multimelta and Heavy Flamer on your Dreadnought. It's a fantastic build and saves you 10pts. The extra armor is nice, but it's not as necessary in the Drop Pod variant if you need the points elsewhere. Play it a few times both ways and see if you miss it.

5. I'd drop the Meltabombs on the Sternguard (Krak Grenades work pretty good against most stuff) and go with 2 Combi-Meltas instead (so you can still use the special ammo). I tend to put a Bolter and Power Weapon on the Sergeant (you give up the extra attack, but you keep the special ammo -- Pedro helps balancing that out).

6. For the Tactical Squad, I recommend going with the Multimelta as the unit's free heavy weapon. It's awesome and you can combat squad when you deploy from the Drop Pods to take advantage of it. I prefer Meltaguns to Flamers for these squads because they are a lot more versatile.

7. You don't really need Locator Beacons for Drop Pods. Their interial guidance system will pretty much guarantee that they land where you need them. This only takes a few games for you to really get the hang of.

Best of luck and the list looks pretty good for 1200pts! Have fun with it.

-- mkerr

[Dunadan]

@Dunadan: Looks like an interesting list and you've worked in some new models (which is always cool to see).

Here are a few comments:

1. I'm a little concerned about getting enough out of the MoF. First of all, he's 155pts (pricey for a 1200pt army) and secondly you are going to have to keep him in reserve half of the time (when your opponent gets the first turn). That's going to limit his effectiveness (even though that Conversion Beamer can be awesome). But his Blessing of the Omnissiah is never going to come into play and he's basically going to stay in the back and shoot his blast.

2. For the price, I'd rather have a nasty HQ in the drop pod with my Sternguard to make my army more "focused". Pedro Kantor is only 20pts more than your master but he makes your whole army Stubborn (great against those pesky Psyker Battle Squads), gives every unit within 12" an extra attack (including your Dreadnoughts) and makes your Sternguard scoring. What's not to like?

I was originally going to use Pedro, but I didn't think he could join a non-retinue squad in their dedicated transport, or are drop pods the exception to this?



4. I'd just stick with the Multimelta and Heavy Flamer on your Dreadnought. It's a fantastic build and saves you 10pts. The extra armor is nice, but it's not as necessary in the Drop Pod variant if you need the points elsewhere. Play it a few times both ways and see if you miss it.

I've played the Dread several times with a Plasma Cannon, and have not been disappointed with it yet, so I think I'll stick with it.



5. I'd drop the Meltabombs on the Sternguard (Krak Grenades work pretty good against most stuff) and go with 2 Combi-Meltas instead (so you can still use the special ammo). I tend to put a Bolter and Power Weapon on the Sergeant (you give up the extra attack, but you keep the special ammo -- Pedro helps balancing that out).

Melta-bombs were just points filler, so I may look into that.



6. For the Tactical Squad, I recommend going with the Multimelta as the unit's free heavy weapon. It's awesome and you can combat squad when you deploy from the Drop Pods to take advantage of it. I prefer Meltaguns to Flamers for these squads because they are a lot more versatile.

If I drop the H.Bolter, won't I be hurting my anti-infantry capabilities? I already have two dreads and possibly several meltaguns.



7. You don't really need Locator Beacons for Drop Pods. Their interial guidance system will pretty much guarantee that they land where you need them. This only takes a few games for you to really get the hang of.

Best of luck and the list looks pretty good for 1200pts! Have fun with it.

-- mkerr
Good point. Thanks for the advice :)

[mkerr]

I was originally going to use Pedro, but I didn't think he could join a non-retinue squad in their dedicated transport, or are drop pods the exception to this?

Yes, you can attach Pedro to the Sternguard and deploy them in the Drop Pod. You can even split them into Combat Squads when it lands (and then decide which one Pedro is in).


If I drop the H.Bolter, won't I be hurting my anti-infantry capabilities? I already have two dreads and possibly several meltaguns.

If you are playing against hordes, then heavy bolters in drop pods aren't going to be much help (it's going to shoot once, if you are lucky). Your rapid firing bolters and flamer templates will do fine against hordes (you do have a hurricane bolter and a heavy flamer on your Ironclad, right?).

-- mkerr

[Dunadan]

I was planning on going with the Seismic Hammer & the other cc arm(which has a built-in meltagun), but I'll leave the arms unglued so I can mix and match them through different games until I find the combination that works best(same with the tac squad heavy weapon).

[Dunadan]

Updated and expanded the list to 1500 pts so that I could use some of my favorite models.

Pedro Kantor 175

1xIronclad Dreadnought 165
-Heavy Flamer
-2x Hunter-killer Missiles
Drop Pod 35

1x Dreadnought 125
-Plasma Cannon
-Heavy Flamer
Drop Pod 35

1x Sternguard Veteran Squad 210
-8 Veterans
-2x Combi-Melta
Drop Pod 35

2x Tactical Squad 175
-Meltagun
-Missile Launcher
Drop Pod 35

Scout Squad 100
-Power Fist
-Shotguns
Infiltrate or Outflank, depending on the mission.

Grey Knights Teleport Attack Squad(7) 200
Opted not to give them Incinerators so that I do not feel the need to deep-strike super close to an enemy unit. They can provide fire support from the flanks to take advantage of their Shrouding.
1500