via the Warhammer Community
The Deathwatch are an army of unparalleled flexibility – and their Stratagems are no exception.
Well placed to take full advantage of these Stratagems thanks to their strong Troops slot, the Deathwatch can fill out Battalion or even Brigade Detachments without losing tactical flexibility. What’s more, you’ll also be able to recoup lost Command Points with the Lord of Hidden Knowledge Warlord trait:
We’d recommend structuring a Deathwatch army around two Battalion Detachments – that’s six Troops and four HQs. This’ll give you a hefty 13 Command Points to spend on Stratagems, with the Lord of Hidden Knowledge Warlord Trait giving you several more across the game, depending on which Stratagems you use (and how well you roll).
We’ve talked about how Special Issue Ammunition and Mission Tactics allow you to tailor your strategies on the fly, and how your Primaris Space Marines can be assembled into Kill Teams to fulfil nearly any battlefield role. Deathwatch Stratagems are designed with that same spirit of flexibility in mind. You’ll be able to benefit from both a unique Stratagem for each xenos race, as well as a series of Doctrines that provide extra offensive bite against specific Battlefield Roles.
Anti-xenos Stratagems
There’s nothing worse than spending a couple of turns trying to winnow down a unit of Necrons, only to watch them make a successful Reanimation Protocols roll and waste all of your hard work! With Overkill, you’ll be able to ensure your foes stay down.
With a couple of flamers – from Aggressors, combi-weapons or any other option you choose – you’ll be able to cripple charging Orks and buy some extra space for the rest of your army. Even if you don’t prevent a charge entirely, reducing the distance they can move when they do so can be crucial in stopping key units from being swarmed.
Everyone knows that, when fighting Tyranids, it’s a good idea to shoot the big ones first – but what if your opponent is cleverly keeping their synaptic web up with a Tyranid Prime, a Neurothrope, or a Broodlord? With this Stratagem, you’ll be able to excise them with ease.
When fighting against Aeldari, pinning down units that can fly can be very tricky – whether you’re looking to peel some jetbikes off a key objective or just want to slow down a Raider packed with Wychesbefore it reaches your lines. This Stratagem lets you stop enemy flyers in their tracks and creates a considerable bubble of threat around your units.
An elite army like the Deathwatch can be vulnerable to the focused tactics of the T’au– where concerted markerlights can leave a unit vulnerable to a devastating combined attack. With this Stratagem, you’ll be able to thwart your opponent’s efforts to pin down your favourite units.
Even if you’re not fighting xenos, you’ll find the various doctrine Stratagems invaluable. Essentially, for two Command Points, you’ll be able to add 1 to your wound rolls against your chosen Battlefield Role:
As all these doctrines are different Stratagems, you’ll be able to use several in a turn across various different units in your army – handy!