Warhammer 40K Tabletop XIX: "Understand the gravity of the situation."

[gooddragon1]

Well then any unit can be indestructible. I'm not sure what the point of your hypothetical is? If my opponent always rolls 1s, and 1s are auto-fail, then my opponent can literally do nothing against me, and it doesn't matter what my unit is.

A Gretchin is T2, with no save. The weakest unit in the game. If my opponent rolls '1' to Hit, then I don't have to do anything. My grot is now indestructible because my opponent can't Hit.

But could it take on any army singlehandedly? I've heard you need special stuff to attack air units. What's the cheapest unit that could take out any army with absolute luck?

[Cheesegear]

But could it take on any army singlehandedly?

No. Nothing can. Else what's the point in building an army?

[gooddragon1]

No. Nothing can. Else what's the point in building an army?

I mean if you controlled all the rolls could a unit with skyfire and groundfire theoretically beat an army on it's own?

[Grim Portent]

No. Even a Bloodthirster or Lord of Change couldn't, and they're among the most individually powerful non-special characters in the game. They just don't have the attacks.

An army will consist of 1-2 HQ, 2-6 Troops, 1-3 Heavy, Elite, and Fast Attack. Depending on the points limit it's possible you may be against 9 or more separate units. Nothing in the game can kill more than a transport, the squad inside it and any special characters with it in a turn. And since the max number of turns is seven then it's not possible to kill a whole army with any standard unit no matter how well you roll, unless you're playing 750 points or something where a single monstrous creature with wings can really mess stuff up.

[Cheesegear]

I mean if you controlled all the rolls could a unit with skyfire and groundfire theoretically beat an army on it's own?

I know exactly what you mean. And no.

[Mitigated]

Depends what's in the next Battleforce - if one will come out at all. There's always something to be said about buying models before a new Codex comes out, especially in the current trend of Codecies. Things that are good, will generally stay good. So, what's in the current Battleforce?

x3 Warriors: While they've currently seen a marked increase in play due to both Tau and Eldar's inability to field anything higher than S7, and, that Shadow In The Warp-out-of-a-Spore does actually defends against the self-buff Powers of Divination. But, the fact is that you're going to need a lot more Warriors to make them viable - as well as a Spore.
New Codex predictions; Nowhere to go but up. It's hard to imagine how they could be made bad in the current meta. But, increase in points cost would do it.

x8 Genetealers: Currently suffer from a myriad of problems. Do not buy.
New Codex predictions; Any change would make them better than they are now.

x16 Termagants: Currently the mainstay in most Tyranid army builds (for those players who haven't figured out that Warriors in Spores are kind of awesome). But, you'll need upwards of 50 to make any useful army. Do not buy unless you have the Tervigon to go with them.
New Codex predictions; Again, they seem pretty fine as-is. The only thing that would ruin them is a points increase.

x16 Hormagaunts: Currently useless. Do not buy.
New Codex predictions; Who knows? GW keep trying to make 'awesome' Assault units, but, they keep failing.

So, the current Battleforce is bad. Really bad. Do not buy.

So is there anything you think I can buy that would be reasonable? I'm pretty interested to get started on this hobby and I don't want to have to wait a month, think I would possibly be relatively safe getting something like a Tervigon or a Swarmlord?

[Grim Portent]

A hive tyrant is likely to be a safe investment. Termagants will likely be decent after the new codex comes out as well, and they're useful now as well. Though anything bought now is subject to codex change so it's hard to guess what will be good.

[Hootman]

I know exactly what you mean. And no.

Well, actually, I would suggest that any squad with at least one long-range S8+ weapon could win a game entirely on its own, with perfectly rigged dice rolls (ie, you always select the result of every roll instead of rolling).

1) Dawn of War -- No enemy is more than 11" from the edge of the table along their rear edge.
2) Night-fighting doesn't happen.
3) You go first.
4) All of your shots auto-hit and auto-pen/explode-or-wound anything you shoot at.
5) All non-vehicle, non-Fearless targets with insufficient numbers fail morale and run 12"+ away, hitting the table edge and leaving play.
6) Any assaults go much the same way, and you always auto-sweep your target so long as it is possible for you to deal wounds and your target is not permanently Fearless. Space Marines instead always flee 12"+ toward the board edge instead of being swept.
6) Repeat in the following turns, forcing morale on everything so that anything still on the board at the end of the game (which happens only when you're ready) is running away at the time, and is thus destroyed automatically.
6a) Remember, you also control reserves-related rolls, so all Deep Strikes automatically end in Mishap: Destroyed (if possible) and things only come in when you're ready for them (out to turn 4 or so).
7) Opponent considered tabled, Major Victory.

You can even use vehicle explosions (always 6", naturally) to kill every surrounding model, forcing morale on units you didn't even shoot at. Full-mech, Fearless, and fielding the ultimate MSU force of Marines or Guard could outlast this method of fighting, depending on the point value of the army.

I'd probably recommend a unit of Missile-Long Fangs (with one Lascannon) or Las-Centurions if I'm going single-unit-no-transport, as they can hit multiple targets at once. The most powerful option is a full, unblobbed Guard Platoon if the restriction is "single-force-org selection" rather than "single coherent unit", but that's pretty obvious. After that, triple-Russes, Basilisks, Vendettas/Valkyries, or Hellhounds/Devildogs are among the best single units that, due to a pile of templates, hit multiple enemy units due to magical manipulation of the mighty scatter-die.

Alternatively, a maxxed unit of 12 Biker Boyz (with a PK Nob, naturally) could multi-assault most of an army at maximum coherency after Turbo-boosting on Turn 1, glance most vehicles to death (Rear Armor 10's pretty normal), and auto-break anything non-fearless. Unless the rules explicitly state that you CANNOT declare a charge on the first player turn no matter how fast you can move, then you could actually move 12" and assault 12" on turn 1, clearing the 24" dead space in the middle of the board, and break ad few heads before your opponent could even maneuver away from the board edge. Bikes are, unfortunately, defeated utterly by ladders, because they probably don't have the luxury of actually stopping their assault rampage to shoot you down to the ground floor.


...Well, that was an amusing thought-experiment. I have NO idea why such knowledge would ever be useful, though.

[Renegade Paladin]

Is it possible if you could control the results of all rolls for a single unit to be indestructible on the tabletop?

Given the condition ("you could control the results of all rolls") any unit would be indestructible. You would simply control the results of all to-wound rolls against it to be 1.

[Cheesegear]

So is there anything you think I can buy that would be reasonable? I'm pretty interested to get started on this hobby and I don't want to have to wait a month

If you're up for Tyranids. It looks like you're going to have to wait. GW is expensive. Unless your income is literally disposable, buying Tyranids now, may be a mistake. Their current Codex is riddled with holes meaning that some of their units might end up bad, and some might end up good, because we all know GW just pulls points costs out of a hat so nobody knows what they'll do.

Then there's the new kits coming out. Do we know if the new units will be better than the old? Probably. Maybe. Who knows what you need to buy? 'Cause it isn't me.

Well then any unit can be indestructible. I'm not sure what the point of your hypothetical is? If my opponent always rolls 1s, and 1s are auto-fail, then my opponent can literally do nothing against me, and it doesn't matter what my unit is.

A Gretchin is T2, with no save. The weakest unit in the game. If my opponent rolls '1' to Hit, then I don't have to do anything. My grot is now indestructible because my opponent can't Hit.

Given the condition ("you could control the results of all rolls") any unit would be indestructible. You would simply control the results of all to-wound rolls against it to be 1.

I win. Double

[Squark]

Part of the problem with buying now with a new codex on the way is even if a unit stays good, the wargear may not. I guess you could buy boxes and not assemble them, or leave all your models armless, but other than that...

[Renegade Paladin]

I win. Double

At least I understood what he said the first time.

[Hootman]

It occurred to me that I should post my standard Ork list for critique, to see if people think it would crumble in an ultra-meta fight, or if I've really managed to forge a mighty Waaagh from an outdated codex. Either one would be pretty cool, since I learn something either way.

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HQ
Warboss, 155pts
-Bike, PK, Kombi-skorcha, Cybork Body, Attack Squig

Elites
Lootas 9, 135pts
-2 Meks w/ Big Shootas (Optional: Requires me to be fielding vehicles somewhere)

Lootas 9, 135pts
-2 Big Meks w/ Big Shootas (Optional: Requires me to be fielding vehicles somewhere)

Troops
Shoota Boyz 20, 185pts
-2 Rokkits; Nob w/ PK, 'Eavy Armor, Bosspole

Shoota Boyz 20, 185pts
-2 Rokkits; Nob w/ PK, 'Eavy Armor, Bosspole

Grots 19, 67pts
+ 1 Runtherd

Heavy Support
Big Gunz 2, 65pts
-Kannons, 2 Extra Krew, 3 Ammo Runts

Big Gunz 2, 65pts
-Kannons, 2 Extra Krew, 3 Ammo Runts



This is the roughly 1000 point skeleton to all non-experimental lists. When building up, I have a few tried-and-true additions I throw in depending on how many points I have to work with and where I fall on the scale of goofing off to making people cry.

Burn-a-port
Weirdboy, 85pts
- Warphead
BurnaBoyz 12, 180 pts

Attach these two together and hope the Weirdboy rolls a 5 to 'Ere We Go! into the enemy lines. Despite relying on a random roll, the Warphead reroll makes it reasonable to expect it within the first two turns. Throwing 10+ flamers on an unsuspecting unit never gets old.

Ramshackle Rampage
Meganobz 3 or 4, 170-210pts
-1 Kombi-skorcha
+ Trukk (Red, Ram)

Charge, charge, and charge some more. The best, most stupidly durable distraction you can buy for the points to cover your advance. No brakes on this klaw-train. Throw in a Warphead optionally to give them someone to protect who will get them to point-blank range in a heartbeat and scare the snot out of your enemy.

It's Courteous to Bring Your Opponent a Box of Tissues
Nob Bikerz 9, 535pts
-PK, Dok, Bosspole, Waaagh Banner, Big Choppa/Kombi-skorcha
-All Cybork Bodies

Put the Warboss in this squad and prepare to reign supreme over anyone who didn't bring a Vindicator (and most of those people too). Unstoppable, unkillable, scoring masters of disaster. Getting "Dust of 1000 Worlds" on the Warboss never gets old either, and having him in the unit gives them access the Waaagh rule that the FAQ stripped from them. Also, stikkbombs, for the few times it really matters. Did I mention that they score? Because they totally score.


That's basically it. I add an extra Grot unit first, then either another unit of 20 ShootaBoyz or 30 ChoppaBoyz when I think I need more Troops. I wish I could use my Kommandos again, but Snikrot got nerfed into the ground, and 10 Infiltrating boyz that can only assault isn't better than 20 scoring boyz with guns that work for the same price.

I really want to try out Stormboyz--their sweet models and fun-quotient looks like it outweighs their terribleness. Got some Warbuggies and 2 Dakkajets in my to-do box, so I'll eventually be able to field those, but for now I haven't met a nut my boyz can't crack.

[Wraith]

Your basic list looks pretty solid. There are only two critiques I would offer:

One: If your Boys are running around on foot and you're not abusing the Scoring Meganobz/Biker Nobz allowance, you should seriously consider swapping your Warboss for a Big Mek with a Kustom Force Field. 5++ might not sound like much, but compared to a normal Ork's saving throw and the fact that you can potentially get most of your army under it at once then it's freaking amazing.

Two: More Boys! Lootas are a decent unit, but if I were building a 1k Ork list I think I'd try to have 3 big units of Boys - you'll still drown most armies in bodies, and it's always handy to have one more scoring unit than your opponent expects.

Having said that, they'd still probably be the first unit to go if I wanted to try something experimental, so I certainly won't say that you've made a 'bad' decision.

[Requizen]

The worst part about this hobby is that I can be really impulsive with my money and end up buying things that I think are cool but really shouldn't spend my money on.

So now I have a Librarian and a squad of GK Termies. At least they can ally with my Crons....

>.>

[Grim Portent]

Sometimes you just have to stop caring about good units and go for what feels right to buy. And this is coming from the guy with five squads of berzerkers so I know what it's like to have a bad squad.

[Penguinizer]

I have a Defiler I will probably not paint for ages because I realized just how little I are for the boxy upper torso. I'll probably end up converting the upper torso at some point but that doesn't seem to be any time soon.

[Grim Portent]

There's a nice defiler conversion at Bolter and Chainsword. Looks more like a baroque knight that towers over the battlefield than anything else. Plan to do one for my World Eaters at some point since I have a thing for humanoid walkers.

[Hootman]

Your basic list looks pretty solid. There are only two critiques I would offer:

You know, I tried the Big Mek thing a few times back in 5th Edition, but it's never seemed particularly helpful for anything but giving vehicles a 4+. We alternate between 25% and 1d3/sector terrain at my FLGS, so there's never any shortage of things to duck behind on my march up the field. I should really try him out again in a few games, now that we're well into 6th, and see if I can use it better now that I'm a better player.

I do agree with the idea that I shouldn't squander my Warboss's secondary ability, though, so I'll have to see if I can come up with something more useful to field. Of course, if I had a Big Mek on the field, one could theoretically make the same argument about not fielding a Deff Dread (hidden under that KFF I should be bringing, because otherwise the Dread would get splattered in 5 seconds).

For your second point, as bizarre as it sounds, I'm not sure I really NEED more Boyz at 1000 points. Orks lack reliable special weapons except through their Elite units, and Lootas have the range and strength to start pounding big stuff on Turn 1 that I might otherwise only be able to hurt with my Powerklaws. Again, though, something worth considering--I could try building the army a little differently to make sure I still had the gun-muscle to be a threat against heavies....or a faster way to fill my opponent's side of the field with Powerklaws. Maybe some kind of double or triple MANZ-rush...Interesting.

[Tehnar]

Why the big shootaz on the Meks (in the lootaz unit?)

[Grim Portent]

Trying to work out a model list to make a dark mechanicus allied detachment for my Chaos Marines, other than sentinel walkers and techpriests I can't work out what to get. I think veterans would be the better option for troops, elites I might go ogrynns because I think I could convert them to vat servitors or something. Stuck on heavy support choice though, can't decide between artillery and tanks.

[Cheesegear]

Trying to work out a model list to make a dark mechanicus allied detachment for my Chaos Marines, other than sentinel walkers and techpriests I can't work out what to get.

Here's a list of thematic units.

Straken. He's basically a robot.
Commissar Yarrick. Ditto.
Ogryns. Literally. Praetorian Servitors. If the thought of using Ogryns fills you with dread (it should!), just mount them on 60mm bases, do some conversion work and use them as Heavy Weapon Teams. Some variation of Nork Deddog is fine, too.

Sergeant Harker. I'm sure you can find a reason for why the Mechanicus have a man sized model with a Relentless Heavy Bolter.

Aside from Rough Riders (don't use!), the rest of the Guard Codex is just Infantry and Tanks. Pick your favourites.

[Hootman]

Why the big shootaz on the Meks (in the lootaz unit?)

Range, and no other reason, really. In my experience, Lootas are not within 24" of a majority of their target most of the time, making the Rokkits and KMB's less efficient in terms of "ability to shoot". While I'm aware that the lesser strength of the Big Shoota reduces their overall ability to would, it's the best solution I've had so far.

Honestly, I forgot to make a note in the original list that said the Meks' presence was totally contingent on me planning to use non-Trukk vehicles or buildings in my list, as otherwise their repair abilities are useless (and thus, they and their not-a-Deffgun weapon are useless). I'll go fix that now.

[shadow_archmagi]

Last night I was in another game against my Space Wolves friend.

His Warlord, Canine Punchface, ran up and flung a melta bomb onto my Piranha, destroying its gun. With no weapons, the pilot spent the rest of the game Tank Shocking through the poor guy's Fenrisian wolves. As it happened, the wolves were not particularly spooked by loud noises, but Punchface flipped out and immediately sped far, far away from combat. I love the idea of a single hoverbike being an effective counter to huge numbers of battle wolves, though. (Even though he didn't route the wolf squads, getting the commander out of there meant the snipers and missile crisis team could spare the firepower to deal enough damage to cause pinning and fall-back tests, which they *did* fail)

[Hawkfrost000]

So I've been poking around with the Necron codex and come up with something like this:

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Necron Overlord 135
Warscythe
Mindshackle Scarabs
Tesseract Labirynth

Catacomb Command Barge 80
Gauss Cannon

Royal Court 135
Necron Lord w Resurrection Orb
Harbinger of Destruction
Harbinger of Destruction

20 Necron Warriors 260

10 Warriors 230
Night Scythe

10 Warriors 230
Night Scythe

Annihilation Barge 90
Gauss Cannon

Annihilation Barge 90
Gauss Cannon

1250

Its kind of a combination of a big phalanx of warriors backed up with artillery and a mobile force. The lord runs with the footslogging squad and the Harbingers go with the Night Scythe squads.

Anything i'm missing? Any gaping holes in strategy?

DM

[DaedalusMkV]

Last night I was in another game against my Space Wolves friend.

His Warlord, Canine Punchface, ran up and flung a melta bomb onto my Piranha, destroying its gun. With no weapons, the pilot spent the rest of the game Tank Shocking through the poor guy's Fenrisian wolves. As it happened, the wolves were not particularly spooked by loud noises, but Punchface flipped out and immediately sped far, far away from combat. I love the idea of a single hoverbike being an effective counter to huge numbers of battle wolves, though. (Even though he didn't route the wolf squads, getting the commander out of there meant the snipers and missile crisis team could spare the firepower to deal enough damage to cause pinning and fall-back tests, which they *did* fail)

I don't mean to be a whatsit, but you cheated. Piranhas are not Tanks, and cannot Tank Shock any more than Land Speeders or Viper Jetbikes can.

[shadow_archmagi]

I don't mean to be a whatsit, but you cheated. Piranhas are not Tanks, and cannot Tank Shock any more than Land Speeders or Viper Jetbikes can.

"Cheated" implies malice on my part. I was merely wrong.

[DaedalusMkV]

"Cheated" implies malice on my part. I was merely wrong.

Obviously not, or you wouldn't have gone on the internet and commented about it. Still, unintentional or not, you did gain a significant advantage by doing something that's against the rules. Don't be offended by my choice of words;I'm not saying that you did anything reprehensible, I just don't think cheating requires intent and refer to that sort of clearly advantage-granting mistake that way (perhaps I should have said "unintentionally cheated"? Yeah, I probably should have phrased it that way in retrospect).

Regardless, and absent any sort of blame, vehicles without the Tank subtype cannot Tank Shock or Ram. Checking when it comes up is often a good idea, since it's not always immediately obvious what is and is not a tank by 40k rules.

[Yaktan]

Also, pirahnas have drones, so even if their main gun is toast, they can still gun stuff down.

[Cheesegear]

More Space Marines, sorry for anyone who has been waiting.

HQ

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Chapter Master: With four Wounds and four Attacks - as well as the lack of any good ranged weapons - this guy is a clear beatstick. Rush him forwards as fast as you can, in a Land Raider, Stormraven or Drop Pod, this guy should be in the centre of every fight and winning.

Relic Blade / Teeth of Terra; Cheap.
Storm Shield / The Shield Eternal; Always bring a Storm Shield, but, with extra Wounds, Eternal Warrior is great on this guy.
Artificer Armour; Always take.
Thunder Hammer; With Shield Eternal, this guy will put the serious hurt on pretty much anything.
The Burning Blade; It's expensive, and, you can end up doing yourself some damage which isn't great.

Jump Pack / Space Marine Bike; The Jump Pack lets hit climb stairs and ladders, and the Bike gives him move speed, better Toughness and makes Bike Squads Troops. The Bike also gives Relentless so you can shoot your Orbital when you move.

Honour Guard: Two attacks each. 2+ Save. As well as the option for a few Relic Blades. Not great for the most part. But, if you know your meta, the ability to equip Axes or Maces will allow you to roll your enemies in nearly every game. Must have a Drop Pod or Land Raider.

Captain: Cheaper than Chapter Master, lacks the wounds and attacks and the Orbital. There's only one reason not to take a Captain, and that's if you're taking a Chapter Master instead.

Storm Shield / The Shield Eternal; In contrast to the Chapter Master, the Captain has less Wounds and less base attacks, making the expensive Shield Eternal less effective than it could be.

Artificer Armour
Relic Blade / Teeth of Terra; The Rampage ability gives your Captain even more attacks.
Jump Pack / Space Marine Bike; Always have one of these two, unless in a Drop Pod or Land Raider.

Power Axe & Power Maul
Lightning Claw and Power Fist; Two variants of the same concept. However, bringing a Storm Shield as well is missing the point. Which makes this early-6th Ed. build is a lot less effective because of the Relic Weapons.

Command Squad: The main goal of this unit is to have a 3++ and/or FNP. If you don't have or can't build that, don't bother. The Vanguard box is a huge step in the right direction. These guys arguably fill the same role as Sternguard or Vanguard, without achieving anything close to the same effectiveness as actually taking one of those units. If you want to build a Command Squad, check out Sternguard and Vanguard sections in Elites. The main limitation of the Command Squad, is that you have to take a Captain, rather than a Chapter Master.

Space Marine Bikes; Putting FNP on a T5 unit with 3++ becomes a real threat that armies that aren't Space Marine variants or Imperial Guard can have real trouble dislodging.

Terminator Captain: Next.

Librarian: A tough sell. Doesn't have access to Divination, can't reliably get Powers that you actually want, and doesn't quite do what a Chapter Master/Captain with The Shield Eternal (gives Adamantium Will, remember?) couldn't do. If you aren't already playing Ultramarines and auto-taking Tigurius...Probably Battle-Brother in Tigurius or a Tau Buff Commander or any other non-Codex Marine variant that does have access to Divination.

Jump Pack
Space Marine Bike
Terminator Armour & Storm Shield
The Armour Indomitus; Take one of the above.

Chaplain: Against models with a 4+ or worse save, the Zealot buff that a Chaplain provides is slightly more useful than having a Chapter Master with Thunder Hammer in the same squad. Against everything else, your unit turns into a Chapter Master Delivery System. If you know your meta, a Chaplain can be useful. But, a Chapter Master is going to be more useful, more often.
If you need to make a unit Fearless (such as a Death Star), including a Chaplain is never a bad idea.

Master of the Forge: His only real use is to spam Ironclad Dreadnoughts.
Conversion Beamer & Bike; Not only are you dropping your extra attacks for a Conversion Beamer that you don't need, but you're now really expensive for a model that is basically just a tax.

Techmarine: No. If they were Independent Characters...Well...Still no.

Servitors: Ablative wounds for your Techmarine Master of the Forge, so you don't give up your Slay the Warlord on your tax model, as well as a really cheap way to add Plasma Cannons to your gun line.

Troops

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Tactical Squad: Yes. Just bring them. Always bring them in squads of 10. If you have extra points at the end of your list, Veteran Sergeants on your Troops units should always be a consideration when you're weighing what to take other than spamming Melta Bombs. Your Heavy weapon favourites should be; Multi-Melta, Missile Launcher (+/- Flakk Missiles) or Lascannon. Your Veteran/Sergeant can pick up a Combi-weapon of your choice and maybe even Melta Bombs if you still have spare points for some reason.
Drop Pods are your friend.

Scout Squad: You always want at least one unit of Scouts. Either as Infiltrators to block opposing Infiltrators and Scout moves, or to get into a good position early, or, as a cheap backline Scoring squad. Scouts are just so cheap that it's just silly not to take one unit of them.
Camo Cloaks; Only for use on Objective campers.
Shotguns; Get your head out of 5th Ed. Keep your Boltguns instead.
Combat Blades; You need something on the order or 40+ Scouts to make this anywhere near close to being effective. But, if you really, really want to...Go ahead.
Sniper Rifles; Large squads of 10 will bring the pain. Even if it does cost a little extra points.

Land Speeder Storm: A 55 Point Boltgun team in a Storm with a Heavy Flamer is surprisingly effective and catches a lot of opponents off-guard. However, during Deployment, don't forget that its Jamming Beacon will absolutely ruin Deep Striking Melta teams. Finally - and most importantly - don't forget about the Large Blast, Blind-causing Cerebrus Launcher, it ruins Tau and Necrons and provides a neat little ace in the hole against everything else.

Elites

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Vanguard Veteran Squad: Raven Guard only, really. A unit of Honour Guard in a Drop Pod is just going to be better.

Sternguard Veteran Squad: Your Swiss army knife unit. Is useful against any opponent, even if you do mess up your wargear options, the amount of redundancy built into the squad just makes these guys really, really good. Just really, really good. Always have one unit in a Drop Pod. Every Space Marine army should have at least one Drop Pod in their army, and these boys are 90% likely to be unit that you're going to use.
x4 Combi-Meltas, x4 Combi-Gravs/Combi-Plasmas, x2 Heavy Flamers + Drop Pod is your optimal load-out. Scale down to suit. If you know your meta, you can wreak absolute havoc, because like Honour Guard, Sternguard are simply that customisable. Not to mention that with Combat Squad out of a Drop Pod or Stormraven for extra firepower...I'll stop. Just take Sternguard. Even a unit of 8 with a pair of Lascannons behind an Aegis as a 'pillbox' is fairly scary.

If you want to take more than one unit (not counting Combat Squads) you. Are. Taking. Pedro Kantor. Sternguard in Drop Pods and Devastators and Thunderfires in the back.

Dreadnought Venerable Dreadnought: Multi-Melta & Heavy Flamer in a Drop Pod is a cheap alternative to your Sternguard (especially if Salamanders). Your other choice is a Plasma Cannon and Missile Launcher.

Ironclad Dreadnought: One of the few Walkers in the game that are actually any good. The Ironclad does not have a Storm Bolter. It has a Heavy Flamer and is 145 Points base. Fact. With double Hunter-Killers and a Meltagun, an Ironclad is a scary opponent to most vehicles. If you need a Drop Pod and aren't bringing Sternguard, an Ironclad is a close second-choice for Drop Pod units. Even better if used by Iron Hands.

Legion of the Damned: These guys make Thousand Sons look like a joke. AP5, Ignores Cover is far, far, far more useful than AP3. And 3++ is better than 4++. Obviously. If you aren't taking Sternguard, you need a really, really, really good reason not to bring LotD to substitute in. Not only are the models awesome, but, Plasma Gun & Plasma Cannon that Ignore Cover are 'Space Marine Heldrakes', except better. The only downside to this unit is that it must always Deep Strike, but, you can re-roll the Scatter dice for awesome times. If you're ever thinking about taking an even number of Drop Pods, don't. Lose the last Pod and bring LotD instead.

Terminator & Terminator Assault Squads: I'll bunch these two together because they function practically the same. GW still thinks that units of 2+ are actually scary, and have therefore priced them under that fallacy. Only Character models with 2+ Saves are any good because they can Challenge and Look Out, Sir! to avoid taking unnecessary damage. But, a unit? Most 2+ units get hit by AP2, Large Blast weapons, or get thrown under the Monstrous Creature bus. The only way that Terminators work is by fielding a Land Raider to go with them. And that's even more expensive.

Centurion Assault Squad: Only use is as a cheaper source of Land Raiders than Terminators, which you lose if you take up to two Meltaguns, which you should.

Fast Attack

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Assault Squad: No. Vanguard are better, even though they cost more points. The math works out. Unfortunately, the Elites section is so cluttered that it's hard to take Vanguard. But, you're not going to not have that in Fast Attack. So, in a nutshell, the only Assault unit in this Codex worth a damn are Crusader Squads and Honour Guard, which means you're playing Black Templars.

Land Speeders: Only use is Multi-Meltas with Vulkan He'Stan. Otherwise ignore.

Stormtalon Gunship: An amazing Flier. Due to the model specs, don't forget that the Assault Cannon actually counts as a turret. Fly over a vehicle, and Twin-Linked Assault Cannon said vehicle in the Rear Armour. Unfortunately, you lose the ability to fire your fixed arc other weapon;
Skyhammer; Cheap and decent.
Twin-Linked Lascannon; Another good choice if you don't have it elsewhere.
Typhoon Missile Launcher; Expensive is bad. But it still isn't as bad as it otherwise could be.

Bike Squads: If you aren't taking these as Troops, then should be bringing at least one unit of Bikes with Grav-Guns anyway just to obliterate enemy armoured units. If you're using them as Troops...Well, just keep doing that, but more. No matter what kind of list you're running, it's hard to justify not including at least unit of Bikes because Bikes (and Jetbikes) are the best Unit Type in the game (followed closely by Flying Monstrous Creatures). If you want to bring an Attack Bike, always bring a Multi-Melta (unless you're Imperial Fists, at which point your meta dictates what you're bringing).

Attack Bike Squads: If you're taking any, you're taking three, and they all have Multi-Meltas (exception is Imperial Fists).

Scout Bike Squads: Nope. There's no point. Yes, you can have a minimum unit with a Locator Beacon, but no. That's not worth it either.

Heavy Support

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Devastator Squad: Rarely, do you need more than one unit.
Plasma Cannons, Missile Launchers and Lascannons. Go team. If you're playing Imperial Fists, give these guys Flakk Missiles and put them behind a Quad-Gun and you have Flier Defence covered. Remember to put a few extra bodies in the unit just for ablative wounds, and, for the odd Big Guns game (which is normally a staple for most tournaments).

Centurion Devastator Squad: You never need more than one unit.
Grav-Cannon; Always take.
Missile Launchers; Take Devastators instead.
Twin-Linked Lascannons; You know what a Land Raider is, right?

Thunderfire Cannon: Always bring one! Two! Three! They're amazing! Just, absolutely yes. Barrage is good for Character sniping, but, remember that using the Barrage rule is optional, so if you just want to plant 4 Markers in one spot, that's fine too, if slightly less effective against hordes.

Predator: Only reason to use one is if you have one. It's fine. But hardly an optimal choice. Autocannon & Lascannon Sponsons is the only weapons you should ever take. If you play Apocalypse even semi-regularly, make sure to magnetise the turret.

Whirlwind: It's cheap, and that's cool. But it outclassed very quickly by the Thunderfire Cannon.

Vindicator: A good choice if a Thunderfire Cannon isn't required in your meta.

Hunter & Stalker: Get an Aegis Defence Line. Way to fail, GW.

Land Raider / Crusader / Redeemer: Your meta determines which one you want. If you're playing with the latter two, bring the Multi-Melta.

Stormraven Gunship: You're not Blood Angels. You don't need more than one. The Stormstrike Missiles are Concussive and that's amazing when you follow up with a Chapter Master with Thunder Hammer, but, Grav weapons also do that job. Stormravens' other job is to transport Ironclad Dreadnoughts if you find yourself scratching your head as to whether or not to take an even number of 'Pods (hint; don't).

Allies

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Blood Angels: Mephiston/Dante, Corbulo and super Stormravens.

Dark Angels: Better Librarians than yours. As well as a Ravenwing Command Squad that can bring the auto-Hit & Run Banner makes a solid unit if you aren't on the 'Scars Wagon. Stubborn Troops also gives you a decent Scoring presence for no extra cost (aside from your Chapter Tactics).

Eldar: Not being Battle Brothers makes these guys only 'good', not great. Their Divination wont effect your other units and you can't bring the nigh-indestructible Seer Council. But you can still bring Jetbikes and a Wraithknight.

Grey Knights: Same problem as Eldar. Good units that you can bring if you want to. But not being Battle Brothers makes them sub-optimal.

Imperial Guard: Good. But not great.

Space Wolves: Grav (Concussive) weapons and Jaws of the World Wolf equals awesome. A couple of Thunderwolves and it's hard to find why you wouldn't do that because it's just so effective at dealing with threats. For high Initiative armies like Eldar, fine. Your Rune Priest swaps to Divination and Battle Brothers are awesome.

Tau: Battle Buff Bro'Mander, Interceptor units, mass Kroot Infiltrate denial/Linebreaker units, and Broadsides and Skyrays are just really good.

Don't bother with any Desperate Allies. They offer you nothing.

Forgeworld
TBA


The full Guide, if anybody forgot what I said about Special Characters (or doesn't know).