Here we are in 2011. Here we are with the first post of the new year. As promised I am going to delve into tactics more. List development is all well and good, but give an awesome list to a player without any tactical ability and it will still lose. In this installment of “Seer's Tactics” I will be covering a range of topics all of which have one thing in common. Killing Space Marines. It is no secret at the FLGS that I loathe and hate marines with the fiery passion of a thousand suns. I thought I would share some tactics and tricks I have come up with on the fly when facing the Emperors finest. So here we go.
VS Drop Pod Lists
The drop pod assault is a mainstay for some players. Not so much at our FLGS as you will soon find out why. Drop Pod list have one real big flaw. They can't assault when they come in. With a couple exceptions the marines come in, shoot a bit and then just stand there. The other flaw in the list is the amount of kill points it brings to the table. Hitting the marines with concentrated fire and then sending in the assault troops is the simplest method to deal with the marines amongst you. You can be extra crafty though with your deployment to direct the pods where you want them to go. You do this by leaving holes in your deployment. When facing Drop pods I generally deploy my troops spaced out enough so drop pods have to come in at my front firing line. This means casualties but it also means I can fire enmasse and then send in the Banshees, Scorpions or Wyches to clean up the leftovers. I do leave pod sized holes though sometimes if there is a unit I want to kill quickly. Your average player will view the hole as a mistake and deploy a dreadnought or command squad to lead a heroic charge in the midst of my force. Really it is a kill zone manufactured to get me at least 2 kill points very quickly. The secret is to leave a very tempting target in firing range of the drop pod and then have another unit in range to kill the pod and unit inside it. You have to conceal the unit though. I like to do it in a wave serpent or falcon as your opponent can quickly forget what is inside the transports and how fast they can move. This is especially true of Dark Eldar Raiders as you can still pop out and assault.
So deploy to manipulate your enemy into a position where you want them so you can bring an optimal amount of fire to bear. This can be used against pretty much any army that likes to deep strike or is deep strike themed.
VS Razorback Spam.
This is somewhat of an oldie, but a goodie especially when it comes to Space Wolves and codex marines. You are faced with a ton of 5 man combat teams mounted in Razorbacks. It brings a lot of fire and can really be bad against infantry and vehicles almost equally. There are two big flaws you can exploit though. In fact the Craftworld Eldar and Dark Eldar are in a unique position to really bring the hurt to this style of mech list. The aforementioned flaws are, The army lacks punch when the Razorbacks are gone. The five man combat units of marines are very easy to kill especially with massed fire. This style of army also brings a massive amount of kill points to the board. You have 2 to 3 kill points per unit in razorback. This is why some people are fond of tournaments that don't count transports as kill points. A totally ridiculous and bias style that encourages WAAC marine players. So how do you deal with this kind of spam? You blow it apart and get the prize inside. There are several very efficient ways to do this. Its actually very easy with for the Craftworlders. Mostly because you have options. Strike teams of Warp Spiders hitting the rear of the transports is the most effective. Granted the Death Spinner is AP nil but you have a chance to wreck the Razor back and then jump away to escape retribution by the marines, which you can kill the following turn. Vibrocannons also hamper this list greatly as they hurt it where it counts. It makes it so the vehicles can't shoot, thus the marines inside can't shoot. They have to get out to shoot which makes heavy weapons unable to shoot. It allows you to advance and pop the transports and kill the marines inside with impunity.
The Dark Eldar can really bring the hurt as well. Trueborn squads armed with blasters and haywire Grenades can pop razorbacks very well. Venoms then can take out the occupants with their twin splinter cannons. Scourges also can take the wind out of the sails of this list. They are more than capable of popping the transports and at the same time staying out of massed bolter range. They can then jump in and hose a 5 man combat squad with their shard carbines. Wyches armed with Haywire Grenades or even just giving the Hekatrix a blast pistol can also cause some damage. The real secret though is to deny the ability to shoot. Dark Eldar lists really can take advantage of keeping a lot in reserve to deny shooting. Then deep striking in to wreck havoc at close range.
Well this was a decent start. Next time I want to talk about Killing Terminators and Librarians. I will also touch on Thunder Wolves. These 3 units can be quite frustrating, but if you keep your cool you can wipe them out quick. Also I will hopefully have the first installment of my new Podcast later this week. I have to think of what to call it. Nothing has jumped out. Any Suggestions? I will also have some details about the Tournament in March next week. I have to consult Farseer Re-Rolls as he is the Manager of our FLGS. I am calling the tournament “The Challenge of Khaine” Will you be able to stand beside the chosen of the Bloody handed God?
Until then..........
Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
