So onto the Elites section of the book. You have some interesting bits and pieces here, but I really feel only two are the "best" option. But will go over each one with my own opinions on them. I have built all of them for my army and have used them in games. Our local metagame is a bit strange, as IG is extremely strong in the area so some of the things you might think work well within your area might be bunk in mine.
ELITES - RETURN OF THE NEAT!!!
Wolf Guard Packs - Or we got all the cool toyz!!
I find Wolf Guard packs to be one of the better options in the Elites section of the codex. I always use a squad of 3, 2 with Powerfists and 1 with Mark of The Wulfen. I do this to give my troop squads Leadership 8, as well as some extra punch as needed. I didn't go with any combi-melta etc as I feel it just adds too much to the cost of a single wound model. I started adding these in as I was tank shocked off the table a few times by Eldar. Having that extra bump in leadership helps, as well as the ability to get a fist in there to hit something with a high Toughness. I have seen a lot of people run them pretty expensive with either terminator armor or some other nonsense. I think just leaving them simple is the way to go. You want to try and limit your overall cost on these guys as they are not meant to win you the game, they are designed to help your boys stay alive a bit longer. From a game design point this is one of the few ultimate design units in the game. The amount of options are insane as well as the ability to create small characters and a unique story for your army.
9/10 - I always use 3 now, but you don't "need" them. Still I high five to GW for making a cool unit
Dreadnought/Venerable Dreadnought - I BEZ A ROBOT!
The elite section is jam packed with goodies that the poor dreadnought/venerable dreadnought is really left to the side. Their cost is very similar to many of the other choices that have a bit more survivability. Beyond that he is just like a normal dreadnought, so really you play him because you like too. As a mobile gun bank he is not that great, as usually a razorback can do the same job at a cheaper point limit as well as become scoring when holding some smelly puppies. I think if the Iron Priest allowed you to take them as heavy, you might see some cool Dreadnought/Drop Pod shenanigans, but at an Elite choice there are better options for the points.
5/10 - What it is a dreadnought, your Long Fangs squad/Razorback spam, etc can and will do more for the same points
Iron Priest - Holy Shit - we got some gold in dem hills
Here is what I consider to be the best choice in the elites section. I originally didn't see this guy at first, because I thought only Wolf Lords and Battle Guard leaders could take Thunder Wolf mounts. I just thought he was a gimpy Tech Marine who could take some transforming tape puppies (Transformers - Shockwave - Extra Robots - shit I feel old). But no, he is the little bit of secret sauce that changes your hamburger from being kinda gamey into a really annoying in your face Turn 2 army. His "free" thunder hammer and runic armor makes for an extremely hard hitting unit that can easily be the help you need to take some life out of a forwarding enemy unit. I usually equip him with 4 cyber wolves (making any shots needing to wound versus T 5), Thunder Wolf Mount, and Wolf tooth Necklace. So now he hits on 3's has 4 strength 10 attacks on the charge, 1 strength 8 attack and the dogs will throw down with 12 strength 4 attacks. That is pretty dang amazing for 165 points. If you have Canis as one of your HQ's then most marine armies will probably be decimated by the time they can smack back after the dogs slobber all over them. And best of all, you can run them in front of your Thunder Wolf Cav and give your guys a 4+ cover save.
10/10 - Make these guys. You can always use one.
Wolf Scouts - I wish they were cheaper - I really do
The thought of coming from behind the enemy lines is a great one. The issue is, that a smart opponent will limit that by army placement pretty easily enough. Mix that in with really only having to worry about them on Turn 2+ and you have an easy way to mitigate their effectiveness. I wish they were cheaper as they would be a neat unit to field, or a troops choice. Of course since they are considered an elite unit they couldn't help you score in the game. Still, game design wise they are pretty fun and definitely something to think about in a fluffy forward scout type of Space Wolf Army. I think the best build would be a meltagun, meltabombs, and two power weapons. If you are seeing a lot more nids, then drop the power weapons for plasma pistols to help let you throw a few wounds on an MC that might be hiding in the back field.
5/10 - Neat design, high cost plus being an elite makes it a meh choice.
Lone Wolf - No one Likes me!!! (Its cuz you smell)
Here is a new unit that I feel really adds in a neat bit of fluff to the army. We all like the idea of Rambo, assaulting the main front line and trying to win one for his fallen comrades. So design wise, this is a home run hit. You have lots of cool options to make him neat, his special rules are cool, and the modeling capabilities is pretty dang sweet. What hurts him as an overall choice is his lack of movement abilities. Yes I know he can run, but running can only get you so far. I wish he could have a Thunder Wolf as he would be the ultimate choice in the elite section. Or hell even a bike. Anything that will let him move more and get into the thick of it. As he is right now, he will walk around, till he gets too close and then is dakka dakkad out by some regular fire. I know why they didn't give him a Thunder Wolf, but damnit it would have been awesome. he would probably need to go up to 50 points a piece. Usually if I run one, I put him in terminator armor, with a chainfist, and two dogs that can stand his smell.
6/10 - Higher due to the face I like the game design
Alright that is the elites section. Look for the troops to come on Saturday most likely as Friday is Xmas the return of the Xtreme Santa. Also this next year I am looking at writing reports of every game I play during the week. The armies I plan on playing heavily this next year are my SM bike army as well as my Space Goats. Nids will probably fall in there too, as I plan on updating an old army with a new paint scheme.
Fun fun fun, my painting this week will be slow. I am tired from dealing with my cat who had to go to the vet and fix his back leg. Looks like someone accidentally hit him and he had one of his back legs pop out. It was out too long before I found him and it needed surgery. He came through fine and the surgery will have him walking fine pretty quickly. He is a little shit and should be back to driving me crazy soon. It is just expensive and one of those things that you had to do because if not, his walking would have sucked and he would have been in pain. It also was not something that was a "put him to sleep" sort of decision as it was just a simple surgery. But if you have had any type of surgery (broken ankle with a bit metal plate) it ain't cheap. Lucky for me, I was saving money for a new laptop and didn't buy one yet even though I had it. I guess my brain was like, dude I see the future and your cat is gonna be hurts so don't buy anything new and shiney. Or something like that hah. But either way think of my cat and his unlucky car radar.
3 comments:
Dude, Wolf Scouts are an awesome 'fear factor' unit for just 80pts. 5 of them with a melta gun is all you need.
Once a player knows about them, it is pretty easy to play around them - either A) give them nothing to really shoot - (ie very mobile army) or just don't worry about them. Their lack of assault ability if you set them up that way makes them not nearly as good.
I do think if you see lots of foot devastators or other style things in your area it is worth it. But for me, it is just not something I see used all the time.
Now if you just came out whatever edge you want without the chance for oh crap wrong side, I think they might be better. But I do think they are "fun".
I think they're great for taking out tanks that roll on from reserve or Imperial Guard infantry squads set up 12" on.
They may not have any power weapons, but their basic stats and attacks should see them through against other light infantry.
Also, when the rest of your space wolves force is surging straight towards the enemy, an attack from the rear is the last thing he needs. The Wolf Scouts might even be able to hold up a unit for a turn so you main assault wave can hit home more easily.
BTW Goatboy, someone is spamming your blog. Look at the first comment on this post.
Unfortunately this seems to be happening on a lot of the 40K blogs right now. May I suggest setting up an email alert whenever someone leaves a comment for you.
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