WD Codex Sisters of Battle 2000 Points

[Root]

This is version 2 of my list, it is thus far untested but the original version did manage a 3-0 record against Orks, Vulkan Marines, and Chaos Space Marines and I think this one is slightly better...
HQ:
The Saint
Uriah Jacobus
Battle Conclave x9 (1 Crusader, 4 DCA, 4 Arco Flagellants) Rhino w/ XTA DZ
Jacobus joins the Conclave in their Rhino. The Saint joins Seraphim.

Fast Attack:
Seraphim x10: Eviscerator, Twin Hand Flamer x2

Elites:
Sisters Repentia x10 (They borrow a Rhino from whatever Battle Squad gets tapped for home base defense)

Heavy Support:
Exorcist: DZ
Exorcist: DZ
Retributors x10: Heavy Bolter x4

Troops:
Battle Squad x10: Meltagun x2 Rhino w/ XTA DZ
Battle Squad x10: Meltagun x2 Rhino w/ XTA DZ
Battle Squad x10: Meltagun, Flamer Rhino w/ XTA DZ
Battle Squad x10: Flamer x 2 Rhino w/ XTA DZ

I'm surprisingly happy with this list and that goofy Codex, (?!!?) it has pretty decent shooting at all ranges, a few solid melee units, 7 vehicles, 81 models, and 4 scoring units. So far for me it has torn my opponents up pretty well with the Saint + Seraphim combo (The Five Flamer Death Punch™) demolishing foes and Uriah + Conclave being shockingly effective. If you can keep them under control the Repentia are also pretty good for the points. The Battle Squads are cheap and respectable at shooting but suck mightily in melee, sadly 5th ed requires an abundance of Troops so I believe you need a minimum of 3 to 4. Its pretty much the rest of the army's job to keep them safe and happy on top of objectives. All 3 entries from Heavy Support have done extremely well and I feel they are a bargain.

I do miss my old Faith rules (new Faith = suck) and pretty much all the old WH wargear (The Book, Eviscerators) but this new Codex does give me 2 vastly underpriced and excellent special characters (who really help offset the high cost of a few units) and makes several off the old units that never saw the light of day some playing time. Compared to my old WH army list I have 20 more infantry and 2 more Rhinos, I hit harder but I die easier and am more likely to run away. I don't think its better or worse really, just a lot different.

What do y'all think about this list and the state of the ladies in general?

[Asdrubeal]

I see nothing glaringly wrong with your list. I'm currently planning out my SoB list and it looks very similar to yours. Mine has a few minor differences. Im running 3 exocists instead of the retributor squad. Also I have Uriah in an immolator with 5 DC assasins. I also wouldnt run the repentia squad preferring a second seraphim squad instead. But, overall it looks good to me.

[The Twilight Fade]

I was just about to say that I played a game with a list just like this but when you look at the sort of units available it becomes obvious whats good and whats not.

I had a big squad of 20 sisters run away after they got charged by a single nid warrior and got hacked down. Gutted to say the least but at least i've learned to keep them in rhinos now!!

Overall it seems good, can't over emphasize how good dominion squads are, scouting melta/flamers? yes please, also retributor squads with heavy bolters are a steal!

I tend to run the battle conclave with more DCA's than Flagellants as they get 5 attacks on the charge thanks to uriah anyway, get feel no pain from him which the arco's already have and they are I6 power weapons which the sisters are lacking quite badly, the lack of eviscerators in the squads hurts.

[Root]

I see nothing glaringly wrong with your list. I'm currently planning out my SoB list and it looks very similar to yours. Mine has a few minor differences. Im running 3 exocists instead of the retributor squad. Also I have Uriah in an immolator with 5 DC assasins. I also wouldnt run the repentia squad preferring a second seraphim squad instead. But, overall it looks good to me.

I run 2 Exorcists because I have 7 Rhino/Immolator/Exorcist hulls to work with and I like having 5 Rhinos to play with, plus Retributors are so cheap its hard not to take them. Swapping the Repentia for Seraphim would be a solid trade IMO, but I don't have the Seraphim models and those poor Repentia have been locked in the army box for so many years they deserve a couple of battles now that they don't compete for the worst unit in 40k award.

[Root]

I was just about to say that I played a game with a list just like this but when you look at the sort of units available it becomes obvious whats good and whats not.

I had a big squad of 20 sisters run away after they got charged by a single nid warrior and got hacked down. Gutted to say the least but at least i've learned to keep them in rhinos now!!

Overall it seems good, can't over emphasize how good dominion squads are, scouting melta/flamers? yes please, also retributor squads with heavy bolters are a steal!

I tend to run the battle conclave with more DCA's than Flagellants as they get 5 attacks on the charge thanks to uriah anyway, get feel no pain from him which the arco's already have and they are I6 power weapons which the sisters are lacking quite badly, the lack of eviscerators in the squads hurts.

I intend to up the # of DCA's in the squad as soon as I can find some or come up with a decent conversion (Wyches?) but for now I only have 2 plus an Eversor and Callidus standing in. I've had the same luck with my Battle Squads, as soon as they see melee combat, they die quick and bloody deaths. I haven't tried Dominions yet but they look enticing. One of my Battle Squads could easily be swapped out for a unit and maybe the Rhino could get the Immolator upgrade for around the same points. I have all the turrets but I just never fell in love with Immolators either in the book or the old one and have never used one in probably 40+ games with the SoB.

Retributors are indeed a bargain. I probably wouldn't bother with the full squad of 10 but I ran out of places to spend the points...

[Spidey0804]

I do miss my old Faith rules (new Faith = suck) ?

If you do the Math you make out way better with the new system WH SOB 2000pt list would have on the average 9 to 11 points. So lets run the numbers to get full use of all the point 1. I would have to rely on martyrdom meaning all my VSS or Cannoness or Faithful units would have to die off to get them back. So if we take that into consideration we will run it for 5 turns. meaning I will kill off them and get back my points so 18 total faith points. Divided that by 5 that gives you 3 points you can use per turn and have with loosing some of your hardest hitters. This is also hoping that you don't go to Rnd 6 or 7.

New faith with Jacobus = on the average you are going to have a roll of 3 over the five turns (I use the phase twin-linking my faith.) Over 7 turn i will average 21 faith points and never have to "Kamikaze a single model." most of the time you can look at having 4 pnts per turn meaning you would have 28 pnts through 7 turns.

Standards can then create a second layer of twin-linking you faith spend the points to at least to get one on your Rets. I would put a MM in there also through alot of play testing people like to drop pod dreadies within assault range of them this gives you a deterrent against that.

[thecactusman17]

Yeah but that first turn of shooting was far more reliable. Our first salvo would cripple the target unit. More that is far more difficult.

[Root]

If you do the Math you make out way better with the new system WH SOB 2000pt list would have on the average 9 to 11 points. So lets run the numbers to get full use of all the point 1. I would have to rely on martyrdom meaning all my VSS or Cannoness or Faithful units would have to die off to get them back. So if we take that into consideration we will run it for 5 turns. meaning I will kill off them and get back my points so 18 total faith points. Divided that by 5 that gives you 3 points you can use per turn and have with loosing some of your hardest hitters. This is also hoping that you don't go to Rnd 6 or 7.

New faith with Jacobus = on the average you are going to have a roll of 3 over the five turns (I use the phase twin-linking my faith.) Over 7 turn i will average 21 faith points and never have to "Kamikaze a single model." most of the time you can look at having 4 pnts per turn meaning you would have 28 pnts through 7 turns.

Standards can then create a second layer of twin-linking you faith spend the points to at least to get one on your Rets. I would put a MM in there also through alot of play testing people like to drop pod dreadies within assault range of them this gives you a deterrent against that.

The # of powers you get during the game is undeniably higher, but the powers themselves aren't really making me moist. Its not that I don't get lots of Faith points, its that half of my powers are weaksauce.

[Shadow Puppet]

My brother tends to take 2 20 woman string squads and 2 10 woman string squads with 2 dominion squads and 4 rhinos, 2 immolators, 3 exorcists, Celestine and some saraphims. Overall his list does well, as long as he can roll decently for his exorcists. Those are some fickle tanks.

[Root]

As an update I've used this list about 15-20 times and it has performed admirably with only one serious loss and quite a few dominant victories. The weakest links have been (no surprise) the fragility of the Troops who are sadly vital in most missions. Learning point: STAY IN YOUR RHINOS with Battle Squads. The other less than stellar unit has been the Retributors who I would definitely replace with a 3rd Exorcist if I had the hulls to spare. The Saint is retardedly good as are Seraphim and the Conclave. Repentia hit like a ton of bricks and are very tough if you stay in cover so if you can avoid getting f'd by Rage they rock. The only change I am considering is dropping Extra Armor, a few Retributors, and a Repentia or 2 and putting in another smaller squad of Seraphim.

Normally I swear by Extra Armor on transports but with the 6++ I don't know if its worth it. Thoughts?

[Root]

My brother tends to take 2 20 woman string squads and 2 10 woman string squads with 2 dominion squads and 4 rhinos, 2 immolators, 3 exorcists, Celestine and some saraphims. Overall his list does well, as long as he can roll decently for his exorcists. Those are some fickle tanks.

I wouldn't run 20 strong squads, they're awful in melee and easily broken and run down. A generic Tactical Squad will smoke them in combat and run them down. Keep 'em at 10, keep 'em mounted in Rhinos, and only get out when you aren't gonna get charged in return.

I've had great success as long as I've used the rest of the army to keep the enemy off the Troops. As soon as the enemy gets into your Battle Squads you're toast...

[Calypso2ts]

I like the concept of running large SoB squads in a foot list (maybe not 20, it is hard to get that many models into rapid fire range), but possibly 14-16 and keep them anchored in place with Kyrinov and throw in a few Heavy Bolter rets as well.

If I had enough standard SoB I would definitely try that (I would also use a Canoness for a command squad with some multi-meltas and use Seraphim instead of Dominions while I was at it)

[Son_of_Osiris]

I like the list. I agree that you should drop the extra armor and find something to do with the extra points. Also, consider taking your repentia's rhino with the retributors. Doing this would at least allow you the option for 4 mechanized troops if necessary.

I've been running my repentia in units of 6 in immolators bought from retributors and sometimes rarely battle sisters. My logic for 6 instead of 8 or 10, is just to unleash them to wreck transports or dreads. After that, the enemy still has to deal with the eviscerator armed loonies in the middle of their army. I realized that if people know what repentia can do, they try to kill them regardless of how many there are lol.


The weakest links have been (no surprise) the fragility of the Troops who are sadly vital in most missions. Learning point: STAY IN YOUR RHINOS with Battle Squads.

I've both been amazed and frusterated by my battle sister squads. On one hand, power armor is power armor and the fact that battle sisters must be bought in bulk makes for tough units that can super auto rally, not bad. On the other hand, they are terrible in combat and can't fight they're way out of anything. I've found that when they do disembark, you must disembark multiple units and completely destroy what can retaliate against you.

I've had some serious issues with mass scarabs as of late and I've found myself taking more hvy flamer/flamer or 2Xflamer sister squads to fend them away.


Overall it seems good, can't over emphasize how good dominion squads are, scouting melta/flamers? yes

I agree here, I always try and take at least one dominion unit in a mm immolator. Scout and or outflank can make opponents set up differently than they would normally intend to... which I think means alot to sisters especially.

[Root]

I like the concept of running large SoB squads in a foot list (maybe not 20, it is hard to get that many models into rapid fire range), but possibly 14-16 and keep them anchored in place with Kyrinov and throw in a few Heavy Bolter rets as well.

If I had enough standard SoB I would definitely try that (I would also use a Canoness for a command squad with some multi-meltas and use Seraphim instead of Dominions while I was at it)

I like the theory but the problem is that by taking Kyrinov and a generic Canoness you are giving up the vastly superior Jacobus and Celestine. Those 2 models really make the army work and balance out cost issues elsewhere. The Saint is hands down the most underpriced model in 40k IMO and Uriah is a steal at 90. Would I like to try Kyrinov in a big squad? Sure. But not at the expense of the other excellent HQ options. ..

[Root]

[QUOTE=Son_of_Osiris;179712]I like the list. I agree that you should drop the extra armor and find something to do with the extra points. Also, consider taking your repentia's rhino with the retributors. Doing this would at least allow you the option for 4 mechanized troops if necessary.

I've been running my repentia in units of 6 in immolators bought from retributors and sometimes rarely battle sisters. My logic for 6 instead of 8 or 10, is just to unleash them to wreck transports or dreads. After that, the enemy still has to deal with the eviscerator armed loonies in the middle of their army. I realized that if people know what repentia can do, they try to kill them regardless of how many there are lol.



I've both been amazed and frusterated by my battle sister squads. On one hand, power armor is power armor and the fact that battle sisters must be bought in bulk makes for tough units that can super auto rally, not bad. On the other hand, they are terrible in combat and can't fight they're way out of anything. I've found that when they do disembark, you must disembark multiple units and completely destroy what can retaliate against you.

I've had some serious issues with mass scarabs as of late and I've found myself taking more hvy flamer/flamer or 2Xflamer sister squads to fend them away.

Sorry don't know how to quote small sections on a phone... For your first idea I am sadly out of Immolator/Rhino/Exorcist hulls so I can't include anymore. (Who would have thought 7 wasn't enough?!?)

I started off with a smaller squad of Repentia andcthey were still pretty awesome so if I can find a use for their points I'll drop a few.

Agree completely on the mass disembark and shot crazy #'s of shots at targets. It usually pays off and anything that does survive isn't much of a threat anymore. When jumping out of a Rhino, either everybody goes or nobody goes.

I don't think heavy flamers are worth the extra 15 points, especially since a Battle Squad's Faith power does nothing for flame weapons.

I haven't tried Dominions yet solely because I gotta give up a Troops unit to get them and I am a firm believer in 4 scoring units is the absolute bare minimum in 5th edition at 2000 points.

[Son_of_Osiris]

Sorry don't know how to quote small sections on a phone... For your first idea I am sadly out of Immolator/Rhino/Exorcist hulls so I can't include anymore. (Who would have thought 7 wasn't enough?!?)

You're preachin to the choir man, I've bought 8-9 immolator kits to comfortablly be able to field a 2k army with variation. Sisters have always been a real wallet breaker


I don't think heavy flamers are worth the extra 15 points, especially since a Battle Squad's Faith power does nothing for flame weapons.

I hear ya, I've moved away from heavy flamers for that reason, though I still have to include some double flamer battle sister squads because of scarabs. Scarabs haunt my dreams, they can dissolve any sister army, infantry and all!

EDIT: speaking of expensive sister armies, expensive in time as well! here's my new WIP log check it out:
http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/showthread.php?p=179973&posted=1#post179973