Hey everyone, Reecius here to talk about different
strategies in building a Tactical Marine heavy list! Be sure to check out the Tactics Corner for more great articles!
I love me some infantry heavy armies, always have. I have
always been drawn to the infantry over armor in any military style setting. It
just feels more intense and personal. But, as far as tactics and list building
are concerned, there are a number of reasons why infantry armies work well in
40k. For one, you generally make enemy anti tank weapons wasted points as they
often do little more than take out a single infantryman. Secondarily, they
often excel at taking objectives as they will have a legion of ObSec units to
lean on.
Space Marines do this especially well with Tactical Marines.
On his own, the humble Tactical Marine really isn't much, these days despite
what the fluff might make him sound like. He's got a Bolter, Bolt Pistol, Frag
and Krak Grenades and a 3+. But, he also has the incredible And They Shall Know
No Fear special rule, which means every point invested into a unit of Marines
is going to be a pretty safe bet.
Strength in numbers and morale control are the name of the
game with this style list. You can outlast your opponent simply because you
have so many reliable bodies to ensure you have more ObSec models on objectives
at end game than your opponent does. You can also choose to us Combat Squads,
which means you can double down on your Tactical Marines units if it is a
benefit for the mission you are playing. Nice!
In missions that use progressive objectives (like Maelstrom)
or end of game objectives (Dawn of War missions), or both, large numbers of
mobile, reliable Tactical Marines can win games without doing a lot of damage.
These armies are actually a lot of fun to play, too. They require a lot of
thought with movement, but when played well will defeat armies that are much
more powerful offensively.
However, there are a number of questions you want to ask
yourself before you commit to a Tactical heavy list. Firstly: which book do you
use to build your army? While Tactical Marines are largely the same from
chapter to chapter, there are some subtle differences that can really add up.
While every chapter has something to offer, these are my favorites.
Ultramarines: the boys in blue are built to rock Tactical
Marines. With their Combat Doctrines, they can really pack a wallop on a
critical turn (or two, with Calgar). Going this route requires the most
tactical acumen, IMO, as each Doctrine is only useable once, so you really need
to be able to think a turn ahead. And, speaking of Calgar, gaining the ability
to choose to pass or fail any morale check is incredibly good for the style of
play Tactical spam encourages. I can't emphasize enough how good this ability
is! Being able to flee if you need to, or stand firm at a critical time is game
winning.
White Scars: Hit and Run, combined with potentially Scouts
from Khan (assuming they are in Dedicated Transports) means these Tactical
Marines can be very flexible during deployment and slippery as hell, which
makes them even better at taking objectives than other types of Tactical
Marines.
Sentinels of Terra: With twin linked Bolt weapons at half
range, what's not to love? This makes the marines really efficient with their
Bolters and you get Tank Hunters on your Devastators. Not bad! The big question
here is Rhinos or Drop Pods?
Salamanders: a free Master-Crafted weapon and master crafted
flamers (and potentially Meltas, with Vulkan) means you get a really powerful
punch out of these Tacticals. Plus, you get increased flamer defense, too,
which while not always relevant, is awesome when it kicks in.
Iron Hands: With FnP 6+, and IWND on vehicles, Iron Hands
tactical spam is actually quite solid. They get their nice little buff to their
resilience, and their vehicles are harder to kill, too. Plus, they gain access
to the wonderfully versatile Chapter Master with Shield Eternal on a bike. With
his increased durability, mobility and hitting power, he's a one man support
tool that will really help to shore up your Tactical Marines wherever he is
needed.
Blood Angels: The option for a Heavy Flamer in the unit is
very valuable, and helps to keep them mobile. Furious Charge is a nice little
boost to their melee ability, too. But, really it's the option for fast Rhinos
that makes Blood Angels so appealing for this style list! The ability to put an
ObSec unit up to 24" away in a single movement is potentially game
winning.
Red Scorpions: Every Tactical Squad gets an Apothecary. Not
bad! They cannot go to ground which is kind of a big deal, honestly, but, their
increased durability is a nice benefit that keeps them mobile and they are
capable in any type of Tactical spam list, be it on foot or mounted. Plus, you
gain access to the incredible Severin Lloth, who is easily one of the best
Librarians in the game and to Carab Culln, who is a solid melee character that
also boosts ld of all your Tacticals to 10 for morale and pinning tests.
Charcharadons: The ole Space Sharks allow you to take a
melee weapon on your Tacticals at +1 pt per model. That is a reasonable price
tag to gain truly flexible Tactical Marines. You also gain the underwhelming
Fear USR, and Rage if you defeat an infantry unit in melee. If you max out 60
of these bad boys, you're essentially getting Tactical Marines and Assault
Marines. Not bad!
Raptors: besides just being cool, Raptors Tacticals gain
Scouts, stealth on the first turn and if they hold still, their Bolters become
heavy 1, Rending. Nice! These guys are quite viable on foot, if you wanted to
go that route. Lastly, you get access to Lias Issodon, one of the best support
characters available to Space Marines.
Mantis Warriors: Like the Raptors, these guys function
fairly well on foot, if you want to do that. You gain MtC and HoW, which is
pretty solid for taking on high initiative models and light infantry or
Invisible units. For example, HoW on your Tacticals makes fighting things like
Daemonettes and Harlies a lot less daunting. You also get Furious Charge when
you assault out of terrain, which is a cool little benefit. Lastly, the army
bonuses of a re-roll to seize the initiative (awesome!), Divination for your
Libbies (also, awesome) and the named Librarian Azra Redth, make Mantis
Warriors another great choice for Tactical Spam!
Red Hunters: Lastly, the very cool Red Hunters. They come
stock with Adamantium Will, which is solid. They can also, once per game, choose
to give a number of units equal to the turn number one of the following USRs: Counter-attack,
Monster Hunter, Tank Hunters, Hatred, Skyfire, or Interceptor. That is really
cool, and provides a lot of flexibility. Like Ultramarines though, you need to
know when to pull your ace card with these guys but when done right, it can be
devastating.
Clearly, there are a lot of viable options to spam out your
Tacticals. You can make any of the chapters work if you wanted to, even Dark
Angels, but those listed above are my favorites.
The next question to ask yourself is how to play the units?
Do you want to go on foot? Mount up in Rhinos or even Razorbacks? Or, Drop
Pods? All of these can be viable options, depending on what style of play
speaks to you the most.
If you go foot, you will want to take a close look at those
Chapter Tactics that boost your mobility or that focus on boosting infantry
models that are on the table. For example, Raptors gain Scouts and Stealth on
the first turn (but not their transports). This means you can get them further
up-field, right out of the gates, be in range to start using your Rending
Bolters, and take advantage of Stealth. You can also Outflank if you want to.
Mantis Warriors are also a good example, with MtC, HoW, and gaining Furious
Charge out of terrain. All of these abilities favor units that are on foot.
Their named character, Azra Redth, is a 3 wound libby that has a WC1 Shrouded
psychic power + whatever else you roll (including Divination), and if he is the
Warlord, gives the unit Interceptor (great for those Deep Striking Wraithguard)
and Night Vision. Nice! Positioned well, this can be a really solid deterrent
unit.
Foot lists will also want to consider taking advantage of solid,
ranged weapons like Las Cannon, Plasma Guns or Missile Launchers. Using Combat
Squads to leave a shooting half of the unit and a mobile half to grab
objectives is a solid strategy. With a foot list, you also gain the benefit of
saving points by not buying transports, less Kill Points in the list, but also
less ObSec units and reduced mobility in addition to not gaining the protection
that a transport provides.
If you choose to mount up, you get a lot of benefit with
little draw back. For one, you get mobility. That counts for a lot as Tactical
spam is all about movement. You gain another ObSec unit, and, you gain
protection for your Tacticals inside. This can be critical for last turn
objective grabs where you need a layer of protection from a powerful shooting
or assault unit. Transports also allow you to Tank Shock, charge block, and
provide mobile LoS blocking cover. They also make the game play quicker for
you, as you are moving fewer models. You will want to focus on mobile weapons,
and cheap Heavy Weapons if you take any at all as you will likely be on the go
every turn. Blood Angels shine here with their Heavy Flamer option.
In this edition, I am in favor of Rhinos over Razorbacks as
they transport a full 10 Marines, allow two to fire out the top, and are
cheaper. However, while Razorbacks are certainly not what they were in their
heyday in 5th ed, I bet a creative player could still make them work. Assuming
you go with Rhinos, however, many of the chapters will work very well in them.
White Scars Tactical heavy lists especially, want to be in Rhinos. If you take
Khan, they gain Scouts which is fantastic. That plus Hit and Run means White
Scars are going to be masters of movement. Iron Hands also favor Rhinos as
theirs will repair themselves as you go! Blood Angels are also stand outs for
Rhino rush tactics. With fast Rhinos, and a weapon load-out that really favors
mobility, Blood Angels can race around the table scoring objectives and posing
a threat to armor or infantry units.
Lastly, you can mount up in the trusty Drop Pod. While Pods
are tailor made for Alpha Striking, they do have some draw backs. For one, once
you're down, you're down. You can find your Tactical Marines spread out,
unsupported and out of position if you drop poorly. Secondly, you are reliant
on reserves. Whereas Rhino rush Tactical Spam has all of your assets on the
table and in play from turn 1 if you want, Drop Pods dictate that some of your
units start off the table, which can hurt as it allows your enemy to focus on
what you do have. Drop Pods also don't contribute too much once on the ground.
If you can drop them into scoring position on an Objective, awesome! If not,
they won't be doing much. However, I do have to add, the Deathwind Missile
Launcher is surprisingly good. A friend of mine plays Drop Marines, and all of
the Pods come with Deathwinds...they start to rack up kills which make them
much higher of a priority to deal with, confusing target priority.
On the plus side, Drop Pods give you the ability to go
pretty much anywhere on the board with impunity--thanks to the Inertial
Guidance rule--and hit an enemy unit (usually) before they hit you. Beware of
Interceptor, obviously, but beyond that you typically hit first. Chapters like
Salamanders, Ultramarines, Sentinels of Terra, Red Hunters, etc. that can do a
lot of damage in a single volley, will enjoy deploying in Drop Pods.
Charcharadons are also solid in Pods as they come down, perform like normal
Marines, and then next turn are in position to assault like Assault Marines if
that is what you require of them. No matter which way you go, though, try to
get a means of controlling your reserves built into your list to ensure you get
those second wave pods in when you need them!
If you go a full 6 units, you're looking at a roughly
1,000pt to 1,250pt investment. That is a big chunk of your army. But, remember,
your game plan is victory through objectives and attrition. So, the more units
of ObSec Tacticals you have, the better. What you need to consider beyond this
point is what support units to take? You have limited points, so you want to
choose wisely.
Firstly, which HQ are you going with? In some instances, the
choice is obvious as with Khan for White Scars, Calgar or Tigerius for
Ultramarines, Issodon for Raptors, Vulkan for Salamanders, or a Chapter Master
for Iron Hands. But, in other cases it isn't so clear cut. What I do recommend
though, is either choosing a very useful support character such as Redth for
Mantis Warriors, who will multiply the effectiveness of your Tactical Marines,
or a solid, mobile melee unit. Melee is not dead, despite what the internet
claims. In fact, it is alive and well and quite effective. A fast melee unit
that is reliable will help you immensely. Tactical Marines can get bogged down
in combat, or wiped out if facing a tough melee unit. If you have the ability
to quickly move to support them, that can be incredibly useful. Conversely, the
ability to go and apply pressure to your opponent will help to keep the heat
off of your Tacticals for a while. A unit like this plays well as a free
safety, going wherever needed and providing support. Dante fills this roll well
with Blood Angels and is easily taken with a small unit of Assault Marines, for
example, for a potent, accurate unit that becomes a very dangerous backfield
threat.
Another unit in this roll can be a Dread in a Drop Pod,
particularly in a Lucius pattern pod. You plop a high threat unit in your
opponent's backfield and force them to deal with it, which buys your Tacticals
time. Every turn they aren't getting chewed up, is a turn you are imposing your
strategy on your opponent.
If you find yourself facing these types of units, you have
to use some smart play. Tacticals can get gobbled up by powerful, speedy
assault units. Don't be afraid to sacrifice a Combat Squad here and there, even
if only to move block a unit. Again, remember, the clock is your friend. You
want to tie up your opponent's key units as long as possible to allow the core
of your army to win the mission.
Anti air is another consideration to factor in. Tactical
Marines are not always that great vs. air units, and can suffer a fair bit to
them, especially units like Heldrakes, which are mercifully less common, now
(but making a comeback due to Eldar and Crons!). Air units of your own, or
ground based AA (which in some cases, is covered by your Tacticals as with the
Red Hunters) is a solid bet. Baring that, Contemptor pattern dreads are solid,
as are Daraedeo, and Mortis Dreads, as well as the ever popular Storm Talon or
Fire Raptor.
Long ranged fire support is also something to consider. As
your opponent will often have their hands full trying to deal with all of the
units you have running around the table, some solid backfield firepower can
really make an impact and go relatively unmolested. Thunderfire Cannons are the
most common, but also 5 man Devastator Squads, particularly with Chapter
Tactics that buff them as with Sentinels of Terra, Ultramarines or Red Hunters.
But, units like Sicaran Tanks, Scorpius Tanks, and even Attack Bikes will
compliment Tactical Spam very well.
If you can squeeze in the points, a true hammer unit is not
a bad choice, either, such as some Centurions with a Chapter Master, or
something similar. A unit that can pack a mighty wallop and take a punch, too.
This helps to not only take a chunk out of the other player, but again, buys
you time by forcing them to deal with you on your terms, leaving your Tacticals
to focus on winning the mission.
I hope this has helped you Tactical Marine players out
there, or perhaps inspired some of you to give it a whirl! Tac Spam is a ton of
fun, challenging and very good at winning missions.