Quick(ish) Hits - March 2019 Assassins

Our first Quick Hit of 2019 is Index Imperialis Officio Assassinorum. As there are only 4 pages or rules, this will be a slightly more in-depth look than a regular Quick Hit.

Special Rules

Execution Force  
The standard way to add the Assassins to your army. It's been updated to still give you the Command Point bonus for the Detachment if it contains one of each Assassin.


Independent Operative 
Assassins can't be your Warlord or gain a Warlord Trait via other means. They can also Deep Strike.

Lightning Reflexes 
Their universal Invulnerable Save, letting them shrug off 50% of hits.

Elites  

Vindicare Assassin
A Sniper par excellence with his ability to pick out Characters and ignore Invulnerable Saves. He always hits on 2s unless he moves now, and can do additional Mortal Wounds if the initial shot didn't slay the target. He is much improved over the original Index version, but still has a 1 in 6 chance of missing the target, and then a 1 in 6 chance of failing to wound the target when he does it. The flipside is he is more likely to one hit kill lesser Characters when the dice are average.  

Callidus Assassin 
She does the least damage on the tabletop still, although she can be pretty good in melee. Where she shines is the Reign of Confusion rule. This potentially increases the cost of your opponent's Stratagems across the first Battle Round. With the FAQ change to Command Point regeneration, this can really demolish opponents that are reliant on a bunch of costly Stratagems during the early game.
With Polymorphine, she has a decent chance of coming in from Reserve and being able to charge a key target. She'll probably be gunned down the turn after, but by then the job should be done.

Eversor Assassin 
The melee blender, with the explosive centre, the Eversor is still a monster. Adept at killing elite units of single- or double-wound models. Killing Rampage increases their attacks as he slays models in the unit and increases their Consolidation move to keep them in the thick of the opponent's force.

Culexus Assassin  
The anti-Psyker, Abomination makes it much harder for your opponent to cast and deny powers by subtracting 2 from their tests. Etherium makes them hard to hit, although the weight of fire will still kill them.

Stratagems

Operative Requisition Sanctioned  
This allows you to add an "Assassin" to your army and decide which one during deployment. The flexibility of this, 85 points and 1 Command Point to have a toolbox of whichever Assassin you think is best against your opponent.

Priority Threat Neutralised  
When your Assassin kills a Character, gain some Command Points. A solid way of getting them back, though it isn't currently clear how it interacts with Tactical Restraint.

Double Kill Vindicare
After the Assassin shoots, it can shoot again at a different target. Great for killing multiple support characters in a turn.

Turbo-Penetrator Round Vindicare  
If you hit a Monster or Vehicle, do some Mortal Wounds. Good for finishing off a Flyer, as the Vindicare will always hit it on 2s.

Acrobatic Callidus  
Allows you to Advance and Charge, as well as giving your opponent -1 to hit the Callidus. Makes it easier to reach targets, while slightly upping survivability.

Supreme Deception Callidus
Re-activate Reign of Confusion for another round. Great for really punishing the armies with high-impact early game Stratagems.

Stimm Overload Eversor  
Have your Eversor fight again. This can let them make a mess of more units in a  turn.

Hypermetabolism Eversor 
Give your Eversor a 4+ feel no pain. Critical for surviving Overwatch.

Soul Horror Culexus 
Make nearby units strike last. Useful when your opponent gets to the Culexus in melee.

Pariah's Gaze Culexus 
Ups the damage of the Culexus' ranged weapons to D3. Good against armies like Thousand Sons.



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Quick Hits - December 2018 Sisters of Battle

Our final quick hit of 2018 is Code: Adeptus Sororitas, using its beta form from Chapter Approved 2018. In light of it being a beta, I will also add any initial suggestions for improvements.

Special Rules

Acts of Faith
These are like Stratagems that you get in addition to Command Point-based ones, but require a successful die roll to activate. These are amazing.
I would look at changing The Passion's trigger to the end of the Fight phase. It's your hardest to achieve Act of Faith and you risk your opponent being able to kill the unit it's been activated on before they can strike a second time. By making it end of the phase, it works more like the similar Stratagems many armies have access too.    

Shield of Faith 
Universal Invulnerable save and limited protection against low-cast powers. Helps the army survive longer than you would otherwise expect.

Zealot  
Allows re-rolls to hit for units in the Fight phase. Pretty good for the units that have this rule.

HQ  

Celestine 
A fantastic character, who is great in combat and still has the ability to come back from the dead. The one problem with making her your Warlord is she will draw a lot of enemy attention, so the added target on her head is probably a bad thing even with her ability to come back to life once a game.

Canoness
Your standard HQ, and a pretty good shout for all Adeptus Sororitas armies.

Uriah Jacobus  
A slightly better Missionary, the only real benefit is the Banner of Sanctity, so I would probably pass on this guy.
See the Missionary for my note.   

Missionary  
These units buff Morale for units around them, but you can only take one per detachment.
I'd like to see Word of the Emperor affect Astra Miitarum units as well. I think you would see people taking one of these if they did.      

Troops 

Battle Sister Squad 
Your core unit. They can be taken in units of up to 15 and can gain +1 to the Act of Faith test. It's a shame that the amount of Special and Heavy weapons the unit can take doesn't scale with the number of models in the unit. 

Elites  

Geminae Superia 
Bodyguard for Celestine and a nice little melee unit in their own right. I would actually consider taking these without Celestine to fill a gap in a Sisters of Battle army.

Repentia Squad 
They have decent enough melee weapons and are likely to be ignored until it's too late as they don't look that threatening on their own. They won't do well as your only assault unit though so you will need to support them.
These may be a little too expensive at 15 points each. It's also a shame that the maximum squad size is smaller than it used to be. However, you can fit them into a transport.    

Mistress of Repentance
A buff character for the Repentia Squad. A little bit underwhelming though.
This character lacks the <Order> Repentia Squad keyword, so she doesn't buff her own ability to hit. More importantly, she doesn't buff her own Advance and Charge rolls so struggles to keep up with the unit she is supposed to buff. They can easily get out of range of her when they move into combat and she will struggle to make the charge to keep up. A simple fix is to give her the keyword to match them.  
 
Celestian Squad
Essentially Veteran Battle Sisters. The army has both enough rival options in Elites as well as enough other Sister units for me to never take these.
I'm not sure the army wants or needs this unit to exist, but I feel that way about Space Marine veterans, so maybe it's just me.   
     
Preacher  
Like an Astra Militarum Priest, but with a debuff for Chaos Morale. Good for the extra attacks he grants, especially if you can get him near Repentia or Seraphim.

Hospitaller 
An Apothecary, there is a possibility of taking a large unit of Sisters and then using this alongside a bunch of tools to make it too difficult to shift them off a central Objective. They either dedicate resources to trying to take the Objective or to deal with the rest of your army, not both. Worth a test, certainly.

Dialogus 
A buff to Leadership and re-rolls for Acts of Faith? Sign me up!

Arco-Flagellants  
No save, but a Feel No Pain. With a random number of attacks (2d3), I would rather take Sisters Repentia, as they cost the same amount.
Not sure what I want from these, they may just be too expensive for what they do.  

Crusaders  
I wasn't overly impressed with these in the Astra Militarum list, but now they have access to Acts of Faith they may be better when taken there. As part of a Sisters army, pass.

Death Cult Assassins 
An idea for these is to take a Priest so they don't take up Detachment slots, then take a couple of small units to counter-charge/protect your backline units from assault. They are fairly cheap for 4 attacks each.

Fast Attack 

Seraphim Squad 
These are great to Deep Strike in, especially in conjunction with one of the Stratagems, and are your fast assault unit. A decent unit for this job used alongside the other assault units you have access to.

Dominion Squad 
Vanguard lets you get a unit of these to the place you need them, with the Special Weapons to do the job. A great unit whose only downside is you really want to take a Transport to go with them. Luckily, the Sisters have a fantastic transport.

Heavy Support 

Exorcist  
A bit random due to having d6 shots, but a fantastic long-range unit.
As an aside, while looking at improvements for things, I wish Smoke Launchers weren't instead of shooting. It's great for transports that surge forward and advance, looking to get to the opponent, but terrible for gun tanks like this one. They also fail to help the tank if your opponent goes first. And this applies across all armies with access to them, not just Adeptus Sororitas.   

Retributor Squad 
Essentially your Devastator squad, but with much more limited choice in weapons. Heavy Bolters are fine, Heavy Flamers are great for a more mobile unit and Multi-meltas have too short a range for static anti-vehicle fire.

Penitent Engines 
A pair of these can tear a vehicle apart, and their Heavy Flamers give them some protection against infantry. They can even fight twice in the Fight phase and have a Feel No Pain. They are 100 points each though and lack Act of Faith.

Dedicated Transport 

Sororitas Rhino  
A Rhino, but with Shield of Faith. It's surprising what a difference a 6+ Invulnerable save makes.

Immolator 
A Razorback with Shield of Faith and different weapon options. The Immolation Flamer is exceptional, as it is both Assault and auto-hits allowing you to really move the tank and still shoot. The better transport, unless you want to carry larger units.

Order Convictions  

Half of these centre around Acts of Faith and the other half actually work better with different army builds.
It feels like two of these do the same thing, regardless of how you have built the army; regain Faith points. The third makes Tests of Faith easier and will probably go on to be the default choice for players. I would change Argent Shroud's ability to something else,  possibly something like the Space Marines Salamander's re-roll ability.  

Stratagems  

Stand-out Stratagems

• Burning Descent
• Vessel of the Emperor's Will
• Final Redemption
• Faith and Fury
• Purity of Faith
• Martyrdom
• Sacred Rites

Warlord Traits 

A couple of these are interesting and can determine if you are going to hold your Warlord back or get stuck in.

Relics of the Ecclesiarchy 

Stand-out Relics

• Blade of Admonition
• Book of St. Lucius
• Brazier of Eternal Flame
• Litanies of Faith

Quick Hits - December 2018 Grey Knights

Our next quick hit should cleanse some of the recent heresy from the blog, Codex Adeptus Astartes Grey Knights. If a unit isn't covered here, then check out my review of Codex Adeptus Astartes Space Marines for my thoughts, with the caveat that some of them are Psykers on top of their normal capabilities.

https://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/05/quick-hits-may-2018-space-marines.html

Special Rules 

Daemon Hunters 
A solid buff, although specifically against Daemons.

Rites of Banishment 
Smites only do 1 Mortal Wound, except against Daemons where they do 3. A rule that is both flavourful and powerful against their nemeses.

Teleport Strike 
Some units can deep strike.

HQ 

Lord Kaldor Draigo 
Essentially the Grey Knight Chapter Master, he seems pretty good especially now that Chapter Approved has dropped his points by 60.

Grand Master Voldus 
A psychic powerhouse with a decent melee weapon. Grants the standard Grand Master re-roll 1s too.

Grand Master 
Why take one of these when you can upgrade to Voldus or Dreadknight?

Grand Master in Nemesis Dreadknight
A much-improved frame for combat and access to better weapons. It does lose the protection of being a Character though due to the increase in Wounds.

Castellan Crowe 
An okay melee character, but the Black Blade of Antwyr is an anaemic weapon.

Brother-Captain Stern
Has his own source of re-rolls, but your opponent gets one in return every time you use it. He also has the standard Brother-Captain ability.

Brother-Captain
They increase the range of Smite, which is great for an army that doesn't increase the difficulty for additional casts.

Librarian
It's kinda weird that a chapter full of psykers would still need a Librarian.
 
Brotherhood Champion
Meh.

Troops

Terminator Squad
Terminators as troops, and psykers to boot. Not the best unit for filling a Battalion, but a useful slot for them to be in if you want to field a unit.

Strike Squad
Storm Bolters and Force Swords make these actually quite well equipped.

Elites
   
Paladin Squad
Terminators with more Wounds and Attacks. Probably not worth it though.

Purifier Squad  
A much shorter range Smite that does d6 Mortal Wounds? Still, pass.

Fast Attack
     
Interceptor Squad
Teleport Shunt is the key here, allowing for rapid redeployment as needed.

Purgation Squad  
You can give 4 of them Special Weapons, which is great for maximising firepower.

Heavy Support

Nemesis Dreadknight
These are okay, but better taken as the Grand Master version.

Brotherhood of Psykers

A buff to Psychic tests and Denys that is amazing, plus they ignore the increasing modifier for Smite.

Stratagems 

Stand-out Stratagems

• Truesilver Armour
• Mental Focus
• Teleportation Boost
• Psychic Channeling
• The Aegis
• Heed the Prognosticars
• Psychic Onslaught
• Psybolt Ammunition
• Finest Hour

Warlord Traits  

These are only okay, a couple of good ones (Nemesis Lord and Lore Master) and the rest are marginal.

Relics of Titan 

Stand-out Relics

• Cuirass of Sacrifice

Psychic Powers  

The Sanctic Discipline has a good suite of powers and is the key to what makes the Grey Knights the army they are. 

Quick Hits - December 2018 Tyranids

Our next Quick Hit is a look at Codex Tyranids

Special Rules

Synapse
Immunity to Morale is really good for the units that can come in large numbers.

Instinctive Behaviour
If you are too far away from Synapse, you get debuffs unless you attack the nearest enemy unit. Much less crippling than it has been in previous editions.

Shadow in the Warp
Increases the difficulty of opposing Psychic, potentially deadly in combination with one of the Warlord Traits.

HQ

Broodlord
Can Advance and Charge and buffs Genestealers. It's also Synapse and a Psyker.  A strong HQ choice.

Hive Tyrant
The iconic HQ for Tyranids, especially with wings. They bring a lot to the table and are usually both the first and second choice for HQ units.

The Swarmlord
A unique Hive Tyrant, who is a literal beast in Melee. He also lets a friendly unit move instead of shooting which almost ensures successful charges every turn.

Tyranid Prime 
Good if you are taking a lot of Tyranid Warriors, otherwise pass. It feels too expensive and lacks Psychic ability.

Tervigon 
Buffs Termagants and also replenishes dead ones. I really like the idea of taking this alongside masses of Termagants as the core of a Battalion.

Neurothrope 
A Psyker that can heal Zoanthropes or itself whenever it uses Smite. Also, it is an easy to hide source of Synapse.

Old One Eye 
An interesting melee beast, but overshadowed by the other options available to the army.

Troops 

Tyranid Warriors 
A source of Synapse available in the Troops slot so good if you feel you may be lacking in Synapse.

Genestealers 
One of the best melee units in the game, especially with the tools available in the Codex. I wouldn't bother with the Infestation Nodes though.

Termagants
You can take large units of these and fill the battlefield with bodies. They are so cheap and their shooting can be surprisingly deadly in large numbers.

Hormagaunts
A large swarm re-rolls 1s for hits and wounds in Melee, and they have the speed to get there.

Ripper Swarms
Small, so you can hide them on backfield Objectives and forget about them.

Elites

Tyrant Guard
They are bodyguards for the Hive Tyrant but struggle to keep up when one has wings. A group of these supporting the Swarmlord might be okay.

Hive Guard
The weapon options for this unit are fantastic. Either Strength 8 that ignores line of sight, or Strength 7 Haywire. They are expensive though.

Lictor 
These want to hunt backline units, but they don't feel like they make enough impact when they manage to get to them.

Deathleaper 
A named Lictor that hunts Characters, so it looks worse at it is unlikely to kill its prey.

Zoanthropes  
A Smite cannon unit with a 3+ Invul. Large units are really good.

Maleceptor 
An expensive Psychic bomb, overshadowed by the other options.

Venomthropes 
They shroud your army with a -1 to hit, which gets better the more you take. Also, their weapons aren't spectacular but do D3 damage.

Pyrovores 
Heavy flamers that do Mortal Wounds as they take damage. Great for holding an Objective.

Haruspex 
Not a bad beast, it's ability to get wounds back can increase its survivability.

Fast Attack 

Gargoyles 
Essentially, Termagants that you can deep strike, the Blinding Venom helps keep them alive if they make the charge.

Raveners 
A modular deep strike unit, these are probably better at hunting backline units than Lictors.

The Red Terror 
A named Ravener, it's Swallow Whole ability could potentially kill a character instantly but is unlikely to actually work.

Mucolid Spores 
Living mines, good for doing Mortal Wounds and keeping the opponent away from areas.

Spore Mines 
Smaller mines, they do less damage but come in groups of three.

Heavy Support 

Exocrine 
It gets +1 to hit and the ability to shoot twice if it doesn't move and it's weapon is fantastic.

Tyrannofex 
More modular, I like the idea of taking two of these, one with Rupture Cannon for the big targets and one with Fleshborer Hive for helping clear Infantry.

Biovores 
If it hits it doesn't Mortal Wounds, if it misses it makes Spore Mines. I really like these.

Toxicrene 
I think this has the potential for assaulting elite Infantry and doling out more damage than it receives. If it encounters heavy fire though, it will probably drop.

Carnifexes
The Tyranid equivalent of Dreadnoughts, these can be customised for the job you want. They lack the Dreadnought weakness as there are more targets in the army to absorb the opposing heavy firepower.

Screamer-Killers 
These are really good, I think they are the best kind of Carnifex.

Thornbacks 
A Carnifex with the ability to do a Mortal Wound in melee. Not exceptionally compelling over the other Carnifexes.

Mawloc 
The ability to burrow up, deal Mortal Wounds and then block enemy movement is really good. It doesn't do much damage on its own but the disruption is amazing.

Trygon 
A deep strike assault unit that can take some Troops with it. Not bad, but the Toughness seems low for a model of its size.

Trygon Prime  
A Trygon, but with Synapse. If you are looking to field a Trygon, then this is worth upgrading to, otherwise, pass.

Dedicated Transport 

Tyrannocyte 
A drop pod. It's conceptually cool, but probably not worth fielding.

Fliers 

Harpy 
A decent mobile gun platform that also drops Spore Mines.

Hive Crone
Has a decent Strength flamer, and access to Haywire. If I want a Flier though, I'd rather have a Harpy.

Fortification 

Sporocyst 
A bunker that spawns Spore Mines, it does seem a little expensive for a unit that can't move. You can deep strike it in though.

Hive Fleet Adaptations 

I say this a lot about sub-faction abilities, but all of these are really good. There are so few truly bad sub-faction abilities in the game.

Stratagems 

Stand-out Stratagems

• Caustic Blood
• Rapid Regeneration
• Scorch Bugs
• Single-Minded Annihilation
• Pathogenic Slime
• Sporefield
• Power of the Hive Mind
• Death Frenzy
• Overrun
• Call the Brood
• Adrenaline Surge
• The Deepest Shadow
• Endless Swarm
• Opportunistic Advance

Warlord Traits 

These are about 50/50, although the Kronos one really punishes opposing Psykers.

Bio-Artefacts of the Tyranids 

Stand-out Relics

• Chameleonic Mutation
• Hyper-Adaptive Biology
• Balethorn Cannon
• The Norn Crown

Psychic Power 

The best powers here are all of the buff/debuff powers. It gives you a lot of battlefield control.

Quick Hits - December 2018 Death Guard

Our next quick hit (at long last) is a look at the Death Guard. If something isn't covered here, check out my opinion on it in the Thousand Sons quick hit or the Chaos Daemons one;

https://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/05/quick-hits-may-2018-thousand-sons.html?zx=38dce3ed9ef5db0f 

https://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/12/quick-hits-november-2018-codex-chaos.html

Special Rules

Disgustingly Resilient
The keynote rule of the Death Guard. It makes their units that much tougher to put down,  especially on the units that are tough already.

Plague Weapon
Like having a built-in Lieutenant, but only for selected weapons. This puts in a lot of work.

HQ

Typhus
Buffs your Poxwalkers and gives nearby units a Mortal Wound generating ability. Good if you are taking a lot of Poxwalkers. Is also a Psyker.

Lord of Contagion
Has Nurgle's Gift, like Typhus, but doesn't buff Poxwalkers and isn't a Psyker. Their low speed can see them easily left behind as well.

Chaos Lord/Chaos Lord in Terminator Armour
Your Death Guard Captains.

Sorcerer/Sorcerer in Terminator Armour
Your Death Guard Librarians.

Malignant Plaguecaster
A specialist Sorcerer who also doles out Mortal Wounds if he rolls high enough while casting Powers. Worth the extra points.

Troops

Plague Marines
Your "Standard" Marines, with access to a suite of Plague Weapons. They combine Toughness 5, Power Armour and Disgustingly Resilient to become hard to shift. They do pay the points for it though.

Chaos Cultists
A thing to note, these guys are not Disgustingly Resilient.

Poxwalkers
A shambling zombie horde, that can add to its number by slaying Infantry in melee. Large numbers of these are dangerous.

Elites

Noxious Blightbringer
Lowers opposing Leadership and helps Death Guard Advance faster. They almost feel like a must-have.

Foul Blightspawn
This guy is interesting, as he stops opposing units that Charged from striking first. Worth looking at for a defensive build.

Biologus Putrifier
Makes your Blight Grenades a lot nastier, especially in conjunction with the Blight Bombardment Stratagem.

Plague Surgeon
Gives a buff to Disgustingly Resilient and is pretty cheap.

Tallyman
Re-rolls for Melee and Command Point regeneration makes this guy really good.

Deathshroud Terminators
Set-up as bodyguards, but woefully slow and with woefully short ranged weapons. Pass.

Blightlord Terminators
Much like the Plague Marines but for Terminator armour.

Possessed
Random Attacks and no Disgustingly Resilient means you will almost never see these.

Fast Attack

Foetid Bloat-drone
Fast and hard to deal with, these are best with either Plaguespitters or Fleshmowers. A great unit.

Myphitic Blight-hauler
Mobile heavy weapons, these are deadly in units of three.

Heavy Support

Plagueburst Crawler
A great artillery piece, whose only weakness is a lower Ballistic Skill than you would expect.

Lord of War

Mortarion 
Deadly once he gets in close, if you can keep him alive long enough. A monstrous gamble, at his points cost, but well worth it.

Inexorable Advance

Allows units to Advance and still shoot normally, to get around their lower movement values, and great alsongside the Noxious Blightbringer. It also increases the range of Rapid Fire weapons. It makes a seemingly static army surprisingy mobile.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Nurgle's Rot
• Putrid Detonation
• Blasphemous Machines
• The Dead Walk Again
• Blight Bombardment

Warlord Traits

Most of these are about making your Warlord harder to kill. Rotten Constitution is a highlight.

Relics of Decay 

Stand-out Relics

• The Suppurating Plate
• Dolorous Knell
• Fugaris Helm

Psychic Powers

A good suite of powers, Miasma of Pestilence always being your first choice.

Quick Hits November 2018 - Codex Chaos Daemons

Our latest quick hit is a blast from the past, Chaos Daemons. I will separate the units by Patron God

Universal Special Rules

Daemonic
A simple 5+ Invulnerable save for everyone. Makes the AP of your opponent's weapons irrelevant.

Daemonic Ritual
This lets you summon in units, but is random and in Matched play requires you to have set aside the points in the first place. Very meh at the moment.

HQ

Be'lakor
A Daemon Prince/Chapter Master who re-rolls failed saves. Possibly a little too expensive though.


Daemon Prince of Chaos
Semi-customisable combat monsters, your first HQ should be one of these who worships your God. They gain the ability from the keyword too.

Fast Attack 

Furies 
They cause extra losses from nearby Morale tests and a small unit is quite cheap. They can't afford to be on the front lines though. They do gain the ability of the keyword though.

Heavy Support 

Soul Grinder 
You can grant them the ability from they chaos keyword you give them, but they seem like expensive tank substitutes that will attract all the opposing anti-tank fire.

Daemonic Loci 

These are all worthwhile incentives for not building mixed Detachments.

Stratagems 

Stand-out universal Stratagems

• Denizens of the Warp
• Daemonic Possession
• Warp Surge

Khorne

Special Rules

Unstoppable Ferocity
A massive buff for assault, especially on large units of Bloodletters.

HQ

Skarbrand
He has a lot of powerful Melee attacks, but as he takes wounds his movement drops drastically. It feels like his lack of wings really hurts.

Bloodthirster of Insensate Rage
Once he gets to assault, he makes a mess of big, single model units. All the Bloodthirsters (and Skarbrand) are massive targets that will attract a lot of fire though.

Wrath of Khorne Bloodthirster
A character hunter, but I'm not convinced that the Insensate Rage just isn't better.

Bloodthirster of Unfettered Fury
A Bloodthirster with no extra rules. Pass.

Skulltaker
A better character hunter due to his size, who also gives Bloodletters +1 to hit.

Bloodmaster
The Herald of Khorne The Strength buff, plus Unstoppable Ferocity, allows Bloodletters to bring down heavy targets.

Skullmaster
Herald on Juggernaut. Extra survivability for extra points.

Blood Throne
Herald on a throne. Even more Wounds and Toughness, plus an ability to potentially heal. I think the lower point versions are better.

Karanak
An amazing character hunter that can also deny to Psychic powers. A fantastic HQ.

Troops

Bloodletters
Their melee weapons are amazing, and with all the buffs available they can chew through pretty much any unit.

Elites

Bloodcrushers 
Great for assaulting Vehicles, as their Horns become strength 8, but Bloodletters give you the weight of numbers.

Fast Attack 

Flesh Hounds 
I thought these would have scarier stats, but they are fast and let a Khorne army deny the witch.

Heavy Support 

Skull Cannon 
A decent anti-tank weapon, these are surprisingly deadly fire-support.

Esoterica 

Best Stratagem - Banner of Blood
Best Warlord Trait - Rage Incarnate
Best Hellforged Artefact - The Crimson Crown

Tzeentch

Special Rules

Ephemeral Form
Invul saves on 4s rather than 5s. That lets them ignore a lot more hits.

HQ

Kairos Fateweaver
A fantastic Psyker, but you really want the first turn so you can establish some defences.

Lord of Change
Also a great Psyker, the Rod of Sorcery is an interesting upgrade.

The Changeling
Send this guy looking for characters. He copies their melee stats and weapon and has a good chance of offing them first.

The Blue Scribes
A great counter to opposing Psykers and they also cast a random, unstoppable power each turn. These guys look amazing.

Changecaster
The Tzeentch Herald. The Locus buff seems less relevant for non-Khorne daemons. Otherwise, this is okay.

Fateskimmer
Herald on Chariot, for added speed. I recommend the Chanting Horrors upgrade.

Fluxmaster
Herald on Disk. If I want an upgraded Herald, I'd rather take the Fateskimmer.

Troops

Horrors
A great unit for screening/tying up as you can Split them from Pinks all the way down to Brimstones.

Elites 

Flamers 
Good for attack hordes and deadly on Overwatch.

Exalted Flamer 
A source of short-ranged anti-vehicle fire as well as Overwatch to protect itself.

Fast Attack 

Screamers 
This is a surprisingly deadly melee unit for Tzeentch. 

Heavy Support 

Burning Chariot 
A combo of Exalted Flamer and 2 Screamers, but I think the individual units are better at the job.

Esoterica 

Best Stratagem - Locus of Conjuration
Best Warlord Trait - Boon of Sorcery
Best Hellforged Artefact - The Endless Grimoire
Best Psychic Power - Treason of Tzeentch 

Nurgle

Special Rules

Disgustingly Resilient
A 5+ feel no pain, this makes Nurgle Daemons so tanky alongside their natural Invul save.

HQ

Rotigus
The deluge of Nurgle is interesting, otherwise, he's a bullet magnet.

Great Unclean One
Great if you are Summoning units via the Doomsday Bell. The ability this has to resurrect models is also pretty good.

Epidemius
If you can kill the enemy, the tally is really good. Probably worth taking for that ability alone.

Horticulture Slimux
Buffs Nurgle Beasts and spawns Feculent Gnarlmaws. Great HQ for a fun army that runs around the table, not sure how good that is in practice.

Poxbringer
Herald of Nurgle, nothing special but a solid HQ.

Sloppity Bilepiper
An amazing character who increases your chance of triggering Daemonic Icons.

Spoilpox Scrivener
Gives an amazing set of buffs to Plaguebearers.

Troops

Plaguebearers 
Hard to shift when in large numbers.

Nurglings
Cheap infiltrators that can sit on objectives and easily be ignored.

Elites

Beasts of Nurgle
A tough melee unit let down by having a random number of attacks.

Fast Attack 

Plague Drones 
These give Nurgle some much needed speed, but are otherwise unremarkable.

Fortification 

Feculent Gnarlmaw 
This is good for putting on an objective and disincentivising your opponent going near it, while allowing your army and initial burst of speed to spread out. So cheap as well.

Esoterica 

Best Straatagem - Locus of Fecundity
Best Warlord Trait - Plaguefly Hive
Best Hellforged Artefact - Horn of Nurgle's Rot
Best Psychichc Power - Miasma of Pestilence

Slaanesh

Special Rules

Quicksilver Swiftness
Always striking first in combat means that once they reach your lines they will stay a threat turn after turn.

HQ

Keeper of Secrets
An interesting set of debuffs for a character that is easy to shoot, however the lack of an updated model leaves it with much more scope to hide behind terrain.

The Masque of Slaanesh
Buffs Daemonettes and punishes opposing units in combat. A solid character.

Herald of Slaanesh
Like the Tzeentch Herald, feels a bit out of place for this diety.

Troops

Daemonettes
They feel like worse Bloodletters, unfortunately, although they might be solid when backed up by The Masque.

Elites

Fiends of Slaanesh
A fast-moving unit that disrupts psykers and stops opposing units falling back. I think they are underrated.

Fast Attack 

Seekers 
These are just faster Daemonettes. Pass.

Hellflayer 
I'm not sure what this units purpose is.

Heavy Support

Seeker Chariot
Like the Hellflayer, but at least it can benefit from Daemonette buffs, I guess.

Exalted Seeker Chariot 
Like the Seeker CHariot, but bigger and therefore worse.

Esoterica 

Best Stratagem - Rapturous Standard
Best Warlord Trait - The Murderdance
Best Hellforged Artefact - The Mark of Excess
Best Psychic Power - Symphony of Pain

Quick Hits - November 2018 Orks

Our latest quick hit is Codex Orks.

Special Rules

Dakka! Dakka! Dakka!
Sixes always hit and also trigger extra shots for shooting attacks? For an army that can muster a large amount of firepower, in an edition where every gun can potentially hurt every unit, this is immensely powerful.

'Ere We Go!
Re-rolling either/both dice for Charging gets Orks in combat a lot easier.

Mob Rule
By keeping your Infantry together, you can make them immune to Morale unless they take a horrific amount of casualties.

HQ

Ghazghkull Thraka
The Twin Big Shoota is ok. The Kustom Klaw is pretty good. But you are taking him for the Great Waaagh! Allowing your Orks to charge even if they advanced and giving them an extra Attack will drown a lot of enemies in green bodies and leave them not much left to strike back with.

Warboss
Waaagh! is good and Breakin' Heads is ok. This is a solid HQ choice, especially if you aren't Goff.

Big Mek with Shokk Attack Gun
The weapon is very unreliable, but great when it works. Being a Mek, he can also repair Vehicles which is something to keep an eye out for.
Big Mek in Mega Armour
Your only on-foot source of Kustom Force Field now, as the other choice is relegated to the Index. The Tellyport Blasta isn't worth taking, so the Force Field is the way to go.

Weirdboy
Having the potential to get +3 to Psychic Tests means most powers you cast will succeed and puts the enhanced Smite well within reach. Totally worth the increased chance of Perils of the Warp.

Boss Snikrot
Gives your Blood Axe Kommandos re-roll 1s in the Fight phase. I'm not that impressed with him though.

Boss Zagstruk
A decent assault character who can do an impression of a Smash Captain.

Deffkilla Wartrike
A Warboss for Evil Sunz, it's surprisingly powerful once it gets close.

Kaptin Badrukk
A surprisingly decent Shooting character who buffs your Flash Gitz, the Gunz for Hire rules makes him easy to slot into any army.

 Troops

Boyz
Green Tide encourages large units of Boyz, giving them 3 attacks each. The special weapon choices are ok, but I'd want to either make these Choppa Boyz for combat or Shoota Boyz for shooting and use the weight of dice to my advantage.

Gretchin
They get +1 to hit if the unit is large enough, but they can't use your Clan Kultur or most Stratagems. Still, they are meant to be cheap chaff and that's the job they do.

Elites

Mad Dok Grotsnik
He's a Painboy with marginally better stats and a Slugga, but he has a must charge clause. I'm not impressed.

Painboy
A feel no pain bubble and the ability to restore wounds makes Painboys really good.

Mek
A source of Vehicle repair at a very cheap cost.

Runtherd
Helps keep Gretchin from fleeing to Morale and gives them re-roll 1s in the Fight phase. Good if you are taking a decent sized mob of Gretchin or two.

Burna Boyz
Up to 15 guys, all armed with Flamers? Sign me up. There is also some mileage to upgrading one to a Spanner, for that extra Vehicle healing.

Tankbustas
Re-rolling hits against Vehicles and all having Rokkit Launchas is amazing. The Squig Bombs are just icing on the cake.

Nobz
I think I would rather spend these points on more regular Boyz.

Nob with Waaagh! Banner
+1 to hit in the Fight phase for nearby Orks makes this an amazing, yet underrated character.

Meganobz
A very killy unit, but even a 2+ armour save is surprisingly fragile in this edition of Save modifiers.

Nobz on Warbikes
Much like their on-foot counterparts, I'd rather spend the points on more regular Bikers.

Kommandos
These guys are ok for Deep Striking. Make them Blood Axe 'Ard Boyz for a 3+ save against shooting from over 18" away.

Fast Attack

Warbikers
Fast Orks, especially combined with a Deffkilla Wartrike to let them advance and still charge.

Kustom Boosta-Blastas
A decent mobile gun wagon, with amazing protection against being charged.

Shokkjump Dragstas
Amazing gun and decent melee, my favourite thing is the Shokk Tunnel isn't optional. If you Advance and roll a 4+, you have to Deep Strike in which is hilarious.

Boomdakka Snazzwagons
A decent amount of shooting, but unimpressive compared to the other new vehicles.

Megatrakk Scrapjets
Weirdly slow for a fighter jet on wheels. It's made for hunting other vehicles, especially if you take 2-3 of them.

Rukkatrukk Squigbuggies
A very versatile anti-infantry mobile gun wagon.

Stormboyz
They can Deep Strike, Advance 6" and be taken in mobs of 30. These guys are really good.

Deffkoptas
These guys are ok, I think they are best equipped with Kopta Rokkits.

Heavy Support

Mek Gunz
The Bubblechukka is trash. The Traktor Kannon is a little overhyped, but not by much. An auto hitting Krak Missile for such a low cost is impressive, but the platform itself is fragile.

Battlewagon
Surprisingly this and the other two variants only have a 4+ save. I think this isn't worth upgrading and would rather keep it as a large troop transport.

Gunwagon
Shooting twice with a Killkannon is really good, especially with Mobile Fortress.

Bonebreaka
Looking for melee, it's surprisingly deadly if it can get the Charge in early.

Killa Kans
Taking a bunch of these with Grotzookas and Buzz Saws could be fun, but they are weirdly susceptible to Morale if your opponent can kill two or three in a turn.

Deff Dreads
Suffer from the "Dreadnought Weakness" where they are targeted by all the anti-Vehicle weapons, but don't have enough Wounds to survive the attention.

Morkanaut
The Kustom Force Field one with anti-Vehicle weapons, they are hardier than other Vehicles, but can't quite go toe-to-toe with a Knight.

Gorkanaut
The anti-Infantry 'Naut. I feel the Kustom Force Field makes the Morkanaut a better choice.

Lootas
Deffguns are still a real good choice for a ranged unit for Orks. They can get a lot of shots, which makes Dakka! Dakka! Dakka! really good for them.

Flash Gitz
BS 4+ and Snazzguns, plus the chance that the unit may fire twice a turn makes these look amazing.

Dedicated Transports

Trukk
A cheap transport, with the potential to reduce damage dealt to it to 1.

Flyer

Dakkajet
Four Supa-shootas that get +1 to hit if they all shoot the same unit is really good. A great flyer for thinning out infantry.

Burna-Bommer
Skorcha missles are worth taking and the Burna Bombs is pretty good.

Blitza-Bommer
The shooting isnt as good as the other Flyers, but the Bomb is more powerful against Vehicles.

Quick Hits - October 2018 Dark Angels

Our next quick hit is Codex Adeptus Astartes Dark Angels. Many unit reviews can be found here
 http://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/05/quick-hits-may-2018-space-marines.html
so this review will cover the changes and additional units.

Special Rules 

Jink 
Ravenwing get a 4+ Invulnerable save when they advance. This gives them decent protection.

Inner Circle 
Auto-pass morale is always good. The extra ability against Fallen is gravy.

HQ 

Azrael 
Such a key HQ, re-rolling hits and providing an Invulnerable save. It's so hard to imagine not wanting to take him, his Sword of Secrets can also dole out Mortal Wounds.

Belial 
A decent support character for your Deathwing.

Sammael on Corvex 
A great support character for Ravenwing, although I would never risk overcharging his Plasma Cannon.

Sammael in Sableclaw 
A better steed for Sammael if you are expecting to face a lot of hordes of Infantry.

Interrogator-Chaplain/Interrogator-Chaplain in Terminator Armour 
Like a regular Chaplain, but with a negative Leadership aura. Not overly impressed.

Ravenwing Talonmaster 
A Lieutenant on a Land Speeder. A decent choice for a mobile buff, with a lot of built-in firepower.

Asmodai 
Gives extra attacks, but is rather unimpressive for a special character.

Ezekial
A better Librarian, but not by much, unfortunately.

Elites 

Deathwing Apothecary
An Apothecary, but able to Deep Strike in with the rest of the Deathwing.

Deathwing Terminator Squad 
The biggest things they get are access to Plasma Cannon and the Watcher in the Dark. Having a built-in, once per game protection against Psychic powers is amazing.

Deathwing Knights 
The assault version of Deathwing, they are equipped with Flails that do 2 damage each and the damage spreads across the unit. You just have to get them to combat.

Ravenwing Apothecary 
A very mobile version of an Apothecary that can heal bikes.

Fast Attack 

Ravenwing Darkshroud 
A Land Speeder that gives a negative to-hit aura. Really good for keeping things alive.

Ravenwing Land Speeder Vengeance 
A Land Speeder with a Plasma Storm Battery. There are many, many better sources of Plasma in the Dark Angels.

Ravenwing Black Knights 
With mobile Plasma, these guys are really good. The Plasma being assault means they can still shoot it when they advance and benefit from Jink.

Flyer 

Ravenwing Dark Talon 
With the Hurricane Bolters and (admittedly once per game) Stasis Bomb, this is really good against Infantry, but the Rift Cannon is great against Vehicles and Titanics. I guess that makes it a really good all-rounder.

Nephilim Jetfighter 
I like the Avenger Mega Bolter. not sure about the Missiles/Lascannons.

Grim Resolve 

Re-roll 1s to hit for shooting if you haven't moved is good for the non-Ravenwing units. Only losing one model a turn to Morale is amazing though.

Stratagems 

Stand-out Stratagems

• Deathwing Assault
• Never Forgive, Never Forget!
• The Lion and the Wolf
• Hunt the Fallen
• Weapons from the Dark Age
• Intractable
• Speed of the Raven

Warlord Traits 

A smorgasbord of standard Marine traits, nothing really stands out as Dark Angel, to be honest.

Relics of Caliban 

Stand-out Relics

• Shroud of Heroes
• Lion's Roar
• The Eye of the Unseen

Interromancy Discipline

These powers are amazing. The only bad one is Engulfing Fear, as there may end up not being any Morale tests near the Librarian.

Quick Hits October 2018 - Adeptus Mechanicus

After a short delay, our next quick hit is Codex Adeptus Mechanicus. As the Knights codex released after this and made changes to the Knights part of the codex, I won't be re-covering them here. See
https://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/07/quick-hits-july-2018-imperial-knights.html for my opinions on that book.

Special Rules

Canticles of the Omnissiah gives a random, army-wide buff each round. You can mitigate the randomness by choosing, but you then lose access to that effect for later rounds. Some of these are less than helpful if they appear at the wrong time, but the option to choose makes u for it.

HQ

Belisarius Cawl

He lets you modify the roll when randomly choosing your Canticle (in a Forge World that lets you roll twice on the table and gain both) and is also a pretty good Warlord. He is expensive and locks you into Mars though. He does bring better healing and re-roll ability than a regular Dominus though.

Tech-Priest Dominus
Brings a re-roll 1s to hit aura and can heal friendly models. Their weapon choices aren't too bad either.

Tech-Priest Enginseer
Not expected to be seen much outside an Astra Militarum army. I guess they are useful if you need a cheap HQ choice.

Troops

Skitari Rangers
Galvanic Rifles are okay as a basic weapon, especially with a range of 30". The special weapon options are interesting too.

Skitarii Vanguard
The mobile Troops choice and they can put a fair bit of damage out with some lucky rolls. I think I'd rather stick with the solid Rangers though.

Kataphron Breachers
They have melee weapons that you don't really want them to be in a position to use, and their firepower is aimed at wrecking vehicles. Shame the Heavy Arc Rifle is only strength 6.

Kataphron Destroyers
I'd want these guys armed with Plasma Culverins to put out the damage and Cognis Flamers to limit the ability to the opponent to lock them in melee. I rate these guys over the Breachers.

Elites 

Servitors 
Originally designed to accompany Tech-Priest Enginseers in older editions, you should be able to find better units to take.

Cybernetica Datasmith 
Used to be a unit leader for Kastelan Robots, now they are just another character that can give out healing. They are also used to change the Data Protocols of the Robots, but they don't have much use outside of that.

Sicarian Ruststalkers 
A pure melee unit, they can put out a bunch of Mortal Wounds with enough 6s to wound.

Sicarian Infiltrators 
With Flechette Blasters and Taser Goads, they are really good at clearing out screening units at close range. It's a shame that their "Infiltrate" puts them into Reserve, as the latest Big FAQ leaves them unable to arrive until Turn 2.

Fulgurite Electro-Priests 
A unit that in large numbers can do a tonne of Mortal Wounds. They can also improve their Invulnerable Save if they defeat a unit in melee. They are threatening to almost anything once they get into combat.

Corpuscarii Electro-Priests 
A hardy unit that is pretty good at clearing out screens once it gets close to them.

Fast Attack 

Sydonian Dragoons 
I'd keep these guys cheap and just take the Taser Lance. They are fast, hit like a truck and have a negative modifier for ranged weapons to hit them.

Ironstrider Ballistarii 
These guys have a decent ballistic skill, and can advance and fire their heavy weapons! That gives them a massive threat range and both weapon options are really good for hammering opposing vehicles.

Heavy Support 

Kastelan Robots 
I love how these guys look like 1950's sci-fi robots. They are also pretty good on the table, acting like a unit of Dreadnoughts. They can be kitted out for melee or shooting and do a great job at either. Expect them to draw a lot of firepower.

Onager Dunecrawler 
I think the best loadout for this vehicle is the Icarus Array for 10 anti-Fly shots.

Forge World Dogma 

Lucius feels like a bit of a dud, though I may be underestimating how many -1 AP weapons are in use. The rest are really good though.

Stratagems 

Stand-out Stratagems

• Zealous Congregation
• Binharic Override
• Scryerskull
• Protector Doctrina Imperative
• Conqueror Doctrina Imperative
• Tech-Adept
• Dunestriders
• Acquisition At Any Cost
• Infoslave Skull
• Machine Spirit's Revenge
• Fresh Converts
• Legio Teleportarium
• Plasma Specialists
• Steel Mind, Iron Logic
• Deafening Assault
• Knight of the Cog

Warlord Traits

Most of the options are a bit underwhelming,  although I think the Metalica one is fantastic.

Arcana Mechanicum

Stand-out Relics

• Anzion's Pseudogenetor
• Autocaduceus of Arkhan Land
• The Omniscient Mask
• The Cerebral Techno-Mitre
• The Eye of Xi-Lexum

 

Quick Hits - August 2018 Deathwatch

Our next quick hit is Codex Adeptus Astartes Deathwatch. Many unit reviews can be found here
http://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/05/quick-hits-may-2018-space-marines.html
so this review will cover the changes and additional units.

Special Rules

Special Issue Ammunition
This lets the majority of Bolt weapons in the army shoot other profiles. Hellfire is the most common, as it wounds non-Vehicles on 2s, but I can see times when the others will be useful.

HQ

Watch Master
Like a Chapter Master, but with access to a Guardian Spear.

Watch Captain Artemis
The Stasis Bomb and Hellfire Flamer are both useful, otherwise, he is an expensive Captain.

Troops

Veterans
Essentially Sternguard, they can take a variety of extra models that then give the squad access to other equipment and abilities. These may or may not be worth doing, dependant on what you are equipping the unit to deal with.

Intercessors
Like the Veterans, but with Primaris and Primaris extra models.

Flyer

Corvus Blackstar
A mix between Gunship and Dropship,  it's also your source of long-ranged heavy firepower. One of the better flyers in the game.

Mission Tactics

The bread and butter of the Deathwatch, choose a Battlefield Role and get re-rolls 1s to wound. Very good when your opponent has taken a lot of units in the same role, plus there are abilities that let you change tactic to focus on another role.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Auspex Scan
• Teleportarium
• Death to the Alien!
• Adaptive Tactics
• Stem the Green Tide
• Targeting Scramblers
• Intercepting Volley
• Overkill
• "Tactic" Doctrine

Warlord Traits

As is common, there is one optimal choice, to maximise your Command Points. It doesn't help that four of them are terrible. Vigilance Incarnate is good though, as it lets you change Mission Tactic.

Relics of the Vigilant

Stand-out Relics

• The Beacon Angelis
• The Tome of Ectoclades

Quick Hits Bonus July 2018 - Renegade Knights

Here comes a bonus Quick Hit, Index Renegade Knights. Most of the opinions are the same as in the Imperial Knights review (see here http://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/07/quick-hits-july-2018-imperial-knights.html ) so I will focus on the differences.

Lord of War

Renegade Armiger
Can be taken either as Helverins or Warglaives.

Renegade Knight Dominus
Can be taken as a Valiant or a Castellan.

Renegade Knight
This has fully customizable weapon options. While this allows you to match any Questoris build, it also allows you to take two of the same weapon choice. Two Rapid-fire Battle Cannons sounds terrifying.

Strategems

Only 2 Stratagems; Rotate Ion Shields and Trail of Destruction. Both are really good.

Warlord Traits

Only one choice; Infernal Quest. Gives the model Objective Secured while also counting as 10 models.

Quick Hits July 2018 - Imperial Knights

Our latest quick hit is Codex Imperial Knights

Special Rules

Knights don't have any, just some clarification on how their Faction Keywords work.

Fortification

Sacristan Forgeshrine
It's hard for your opponent to interact with this, but the benefits take a turn to kick in and make the Knight unable to really do anything for a turn. Great for scenarios though.

Lord of War

Armiger Helverin
The Autocannons are ridiculously long-ranged, on a mobile shooting platform. Plus enough shots to make shooting at Infantry seem worthwhile.

Armiger Warglaive
The Thermal Spear seems really unreliable in regards to the number of shots, but the Reaper Chain-cleaver seems good in both modes. Getting it into melee as quickly as possible seems to be the way.

Knight Preceptor
The Las-impulsor looks impressive until you see the range on its high-intensity mode. It does allow both types of Armiger to re-roll 1s to hit though. It's expensive for a buff unit but stands up quite well on its own.

Knight Paladin
Rapid-fire Battle Cannon and melee weapon. The "standard" Knight. Good against a wide range of targets.

Knight Errant
Thermal Cannon and melee weapon. Supposedly good against heavy targets, but 2 Armiger Warglaives can do the job better.

Knight Gallant
Pure melee, and the cheapest Questoris class Knight. It's a shame that Chainsword and Gauntlet are wasted against the majority of targets, due to Titanic Feet being mathematically better.

Knight Warden
Avenger Gatling Cannon and melee weapon. Good at thinning out elite infantry, but possibly outclassed by a pair of Armiger Helverins.

Knight Crusader
Your choice of ranged weapons, I think the best loadout would be Avenger Gatling Cannon and Rapid-fire Battle Cannon.

Canis Rex
A named Preceptor, but without the Mentor ability. Kewl concept and doesn't count as destroyed until Sir Hekhtur is also slain, which could frustrate your opponent in some missions.

Knight Castellan
Huge firepower, but Dominus' only have 4 more Wounds than Questoris. A good centrepiece for a gunline, that can be mobile if it wants.

Knight Valiant
The close assault Dominus. The Thundercoil Harpoon looks amazing, but being single shot will probably let you down more often than not. The Conflagration Cannon makes up for it though and makes the Valiant a nightmare to charge.

Knight Lances

Extra Command Points for taking pure Knight Detachments is always a good thing.

Household Traditions

An interesting mix, with two really good ones - Hawkshroud and Taranis.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Noble Sacrifice
• Rotate Ion Shields
• Exalted Court
• Oathbreaker Guidance System
• Full Tilt
• Death Grip
• Bonded Oathsmen
• Valiant Last Stand
• Machine Spirit Resurgent
• Sally Forth!
• Slayers of Shadows
• Our Darkest Hour
• Saturation Bombardment

Warlord Traits

There are some hits and misses here, but there are ways of giving them to multiple Knights, allowing lots of room for combinations and experimentation.

Heirlooms of the Noble Houses

Stand-out Relics

• Sanctuary
• Armour of Sainted Ion
• Endless Fury
• Traitor's Pyre
• Mark of the Omnissiah
• Cawl's Wrath
• Thunder of Voltoris
• Angel's Grace

As a side note, with Titanic Feet being so good, there is little point taking Ravager, Honour's Bite or The Paragon Gauntlet.

Freeblade Qualities and Burdens

An interesting way of building and customizing your Knight, at the expense of a Household Tradition. Looks especially fun if you are taking just a single Knight.

Quick Hits - July 2018 T'au

Our next quick hit is Codex T'au Empire.

Special Rules

Accompanying Drones
22 units can be accompanied by Drones. This gives you a lot of potential extra models without taking the Drone units. With Saviour Protocols (see the Drones), that's a lot of potential extra wounds for your key units.

For the Greater Good
Multiple units can Overwatch when one unit is charged! This is a key ability for the T'au, who want to not be in combat. Be aware that a careful opponent can use this against you, so always consider if you need to activate it.

Master of War
A once per game choice of either stay still and shoot better (Kauyon) or move faster and still shoot normally (Mont'ka). It only lasts for one turn. I'd recommend building your army with an eye towards which one you are likely to activate but to keep the other in mind in case it ends up being a better tactical choice.

HQ

Commander Shadowsun
On her own, she isn't that impressive. Where she shines though is with her ability to activate Master of War - Kauyon, even if you have already used the ability, and her Command Drones. The Command-link Drone saves on Markerlights for a key unit. A great choice for a Warlord.

Commander Farsight
A melee model for the T'au, he helps nearby units get a few extra hits in the Fight phase and also lets you activate Master of War - Mont'ka, even if you have already done so this battle. An interesting choice for a close combat army, but it's going to be an uphill struggle.

Commander in XV8 Crisis Battlesuit
All the Support Systems are good, but this model is begging to be given 4 of the same weapon and aimed at the enemy. Can also upgrade to have a 2+ Armour Save.

Commander in XV85 Enforcer Battlesuit
As the regular Commander, but with an extra wound. Worth the extra 4 points, although you lose the 2+ save option, so a good budget choice.

Commander in XV86 Coldstar Battlesuit
Both a 20" Move and a 20" Advance, this can deliver the firepower you want, where you want. Combine with Mont'ka to ignore the hit penalty too.

Aun'Va
He reverses the effect of AP from weapons that shoot at him and can activate 2 Elemental powers a turn. Where he falls down is against massed low AP firepower, as his bodyguards aren't characters and remove the protection that keyword gives him. Pass.

Aun'Shi
Only worth it over a regular Ethereal if you are expecting him to get into melee. And you don't want that. Pass.

Ethereal
Failure Is Not An Option and Invocation of the Elements are both fantastic rules, so you would be hard pressed to justify not taking at least one Ethereal in your army.

Cadre Fireblade
Not only does he come with a Markerlight and decent Ballistic Skill, but he gives nearby Pulse weapons extra shots. A great choice for an infantry heavy army.

Darkstrider
A Markerlight, a boost to wound rolls and allows your infantry to shoot even if they fell back. This guy is fantastic.

Longstrike
A better Hammerhead that buffs nearby Hammerheads. Worth a look, but I find the other HQ's (apart from the named Ethereals) are better choices.

Troops

Breacher Team
The closer the enemy is, the better their guns get. These are your mobile infantry.

Strike Team
Your regular infantry. Take Rifles for the gunline, or Carbines for mobility.

Kroot Carnivores
Better in melee than the rest of the army, but still poor compared to the rest of the game. They can scout move at the start of the game though, which can be key for controlling the battlefield.

Elites

Kroot Shaper
Worth taking to buff your Kroot, but bear in mind that it can't scout move with them.

Krootox Riders
The gun on this unit is alright, but it feels weird in a T'au army. Would be better if you were taking a pure Kroot army, but they lack an HQ choice.

XV25 Stealth Battlesuits
Infiltrating, harder to hit and Burst Cannons. A great unit for denying objectives to the enemy.

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
The typical T'au unit. Deep strike and decent weapon choices make these guys great.

XV8 Crisis Bodyguards
Not worth taking over regular Crisis suits, as the Sworn Protectors role is performed at a much cheaper cost by Drones.

Firesight Marksman
Worth taking if you have Sniper Drones, otherwise avoid.

XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit
Harder to hit and infiltrate, it's a bigger and more powerful Stealthsuit. It's going to be frustrating for your opponent to deal with.

XV104 Riptide Battlesuit
Still an absolute beast of a unit. The Nova Reactor is amazing, especially Nova-charging the Heavy Burst Cannon.

Fast Attack

Pathfinder Team
Scout move and Markerlights. They also have Pulse Carbines if you would rather have the extra firepower. The Ion and Rail Rifle options are interesting too.

TX4 Piranhas
A fast Fusion Blaster delivery system for when you run out of Commanders. Just be aware that they aren't too hard for the opponent to kill.

Tactical Drones
They ignore the penalty for moving and firing Heavy weapons, so make these your main source of Markerlights. Take the other options as your attached drones with other units.

Vespid Stingwings
Fast moving, deep striking and decent anti-Marine firepower. Often overlooked and they really shouldn't be.

Kroot Hounds
The only thing holding them back from being an amazing assault unit is the Strength 3.

Heavy Support

XV88 Broadside Battlesuits
I really like the Heavy Rail Rifle, but I see why people take Missile Pods. These guys are slow, so try and deploy them with good lines of fire and consider Drones to keep them alive longer.

TX7 Hammerhead Gunship
The Railgun suffers from its solid shot only being 1 shot, which makes bad dice worse. Otherwise a pretty standard battle tank.

TX78 Sky Ray Gunship
An odd tank, as it's primarily a source of Seeker Missiles. Pass.

MV71 Sniper Drones
Harder to hit, and they are like normal snipers, but with Strength 5 guns. A solid choice for taking out utility characters, especially alongside the Firesight Marksman.

Dedicated Transports

TY7 Devilfish
A solid transport with decent weapons and survivability.

Flyer

AX3 Razorshark Strike Fighter
An anti-flyer flyer, it's Ballistic Skill gets worse against ground targets. Avoid unless you are expecting a lot of Fly keyword targets.

AX39 Sun Shark Bomber
The Drones that come with this have a great weapon and its bomb is really good. Not sure it's worth the points investment, but your mileage may vary.

Fortifications

Tidewall Shieldline
Like a really slow transport, except the passengers can still fire. The ability to reflect shots is ok, and it seems a good choice for a gunline army with lots of infantry.

Tidewall Droneport
Another mobile bunker, this one comes with Drones.

Tidewall Gunrig
A mobile bunker that comes with a Railgun, but has more shots than the Hammerhead? I'm not sure why you don't see more of these.

Lord of War

KV128 Stormsurge
The thing holding this back the most is Toughness 7. The Pulse Blastcannon is shortish ranged but gets stronger the closer it gets and its "worst" profile is pretty good.

Matched Play Rule: Commanders

This limits the number of Commanders you can take. While some argue that this rule isn't needed while you have the Rule of Three in the FAQ, 5 datasheets have the Commander keyword.

Sept Tenets

While each of these encourages a specific playstyle, the T'au Sept's improved Overwatch is too good to ignore.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Fail-Safe Detonator
• Automated Repair System
• Neuroweb System Jammer
• Repulsor Impact Field
• Command-and-Control Node
• Uplinked Markerlight
• Branched Nova Charge
• Point-Defence Targeting Relay
• Stimulant Injector
• Focused Fire
• Strike and Fade
• Drop Zone Clear

Warlord Traits

All of these are good, and because none of them regains Command Points, you don't feel forced into one choice.

Signature Systems

Stand-out Relics

• Puretide Engram Neurochip
• Solid-Image Projection Unit
• Vectored Manoeuvring Thrusters
• Dynamic Mirror Field
• Grav-Inhibitor Field

Quick Hits - June 2018 Necrons

Our next quick hit is the Necrons.

Special Rules

Reanimation Protocols
Models with this rule that are slain can potentially rejoin their unit in future turns. This can make large units of Necrons nightmare-ish to shift. Especially once you start looking at the buffs this roll can get from other things in the Codex. Remember that Necron Warriors can come in units of 20 and are good at holding objectives.

Living Metal
This allows a lot of the characters and vehicles to regain a wound a turn. Again pushes up the survivability of your units.

HQ

Imotekh the Stormlord
Can My Will Be Done two units a turn, and has an improved Living Metal. Decent weapons and stats and makes a really great Warlord. Lord of the Storm is fantastic too.

Nemesor Zahndrekh
He is expensive, but the ability to turn off character aura buffs is...interesting.

Vargard Obyron
An expensive bodyguard for Nemesor Zahndrekh with a super conditional re-deploy ability? Pass.

Illuminor Szeras
Adds 1 to Reanimation Protocol rolls and gives permanent, yet random, buffs to units. A pretty good named Cryptek.

Orikan the Diviner
Gives nearby infantry an invulnerable save, and can potentially change into a much stronger profile. Also no too expensive.

Anrakyr the Traveller
Gives an attack buff and has an ability that just got better; shooting with the weapons of opposing vehicles. That seems really good with some of the new Knight weapons, you've just got to get him close enough.

Trazyn the Infinite
Surrogate Hosts can make him hard to kill, but I'm not sure he is worth the effort over a regular Lord.

Catacomb Command Barge
Increased stats over a regular Overlord, and increased range on My Will Be Done. Quantum Shielding also makes this unit very resilient against normal anti-vehicles weapons and makes Living Metal more valueable. May take a Resurection Orb for extra Reanimation Protocol rolls.

Overlord
If you don't fancy paying extra for the named characters, this is your go to source of My Will Be Done, after taking a Catacomb Command Barge. May take a Resurection Orb.

Lord
An aura of re-roll 1s to wound and access to a Resurection Orb.

Cryptek
Adds 1 to Reanimation Protocol rolls, and can either give a small aura of invulnerable save or a cloak for Fly and enhancing units with Living Metal.

Destroyer Lord
I would leave the Staff of Light on this guy and hang around Destroyers to give the re-roll 1s to wound in shooting. Can also take a Resurrection Orb.

Troops

Necron Warriors
Your standard troops with no options. Decent enough stats and Reanimation make them great for sitting on and holding objectives. Movement might be a little slow though.

Immortals
For a few more points you get a better save and a choice of better weapons, but a smaller unit size. I'm a fan of the Tesla, as the more shots you get the more likely you are to roll 6s to generate extra hits. I can see an arguement for Gauss Blasters though.

Elites

Lychguard
A pure melee unit, I'd keep the Warscythes and go hunting enemy vehicles via one of the deep strike options in the Codex.

Deathmarks
I like this unit a lot, but it's hurt by the newer FAQ. They won't be able to follow enemy units in the first turn if they deploy in their own deployment zone but not within 12" of your deployment zone. If your opponent is waiting with their reserves though, these guys are still golden.

Flayed Ones
Good for slaying chaff units, as they increase the difficulty of their Morale test and re-roll wounds. They are melee only though and I think this limits their utility, as they struggle against non-chaff.

Triarch Praetorians
Assault troops with a decent move. I'd keep the Rods of Covenant as they have the better ranged profile.

Triarch Stalker
Quantum Shielding and Living Metal, plus it buffs the shooting of any units shooting it's target that phase. I'd keep the Heat Ray for the melta-esque profile and the really good Overwatch.

C'tan Shard of the Deceiver
Grand Illusion allows you to re-deploy and infiltrate the C'tan plus d3 other units. This alone is really powerful. It also has access to 2 powers of the C'tan and is a monster in melee.

C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer
Not as good as the Deceiver and not much cheaper. Means he's gonna get crowded out a lot.

Fast Attack

Canoptek Wraiths
Fast, tough and witha 3+ invulnerable save, these guys are good. Ignore the shooting options and get them in melee asap.

Canoptek Scarabs
Not as easy to shift as the look due to having 3 wounds each and easily finding terrain to hide behind. They never need worse than 5s to wound in melee and have 4 attacks each making them a threat to high toughness units too.

Tomb Blades
I'd upgrade to the two Tesla Carbines and the Shadowloom for a fast moving, hard to kill threat to infantry. Maybe adding Shieldvanes if I have points spare.

Destroyers
I'd stick with the Gauss Cannon and hunt down heavy infantry and light vehicles.

Heavy Support

Heavy Destroyers
Here are where you keep the Heavy Gauss Cannons for mobile, accurate anti vehicle fire.

Canoptek Spyders
A support model hiding amongst the Heavy Support, so it lacks the Character keyword. It can return dead Canoptek Scarabs to play and heal vehicles. I would always upgrade to the Gloom Prism to give some much needed defense against Psychic Powers.

Monolith
In most Codexes, this would be a Lord of War. It can deep strike, to protect it in your first turn, and also put some units in reserve with it. It has a lot of firepower and the Portal of Exile makes assaulting it very dangerous. It's expensive, but I really like it.

Annihilation Barge
A light tank, it can score a lot of hits when equipped with Tesla weapons, but Toughness 6 means that it can easily die to weapons that sneak under the Quantum Shielding.

Doomsday Ark
A light tank like the Barge, but with nearly double the wounds. The Doomsday Cannon is a powerful weapon, but Toughness 6 still feels like a liability. It's range does allow you to keep it away from the guns that ignore Quantum Shielding though.

Transcendant C'tan
Similar to the named C'tan but with a Fractured Personality. You can either choose 1 trait, or roll for 2. I'd choose Cosmic Tyrant, everytime.

Dedicated Transports

Ghost Ark
Quantum Shielding and a transport capacity, what makes it truly unique is allowing embarked models to continue to roll for Reanimation Protocols and allowing nearby Necron Warriors to roll again at the end of the movement phase.

Flyers

Doom Scythe
Nothing really makes this a stand out flier, the Death Ray is nice but gets -1 to hit because the Doom Scythe always has to move.

Night Scythe
This, in combination with your Monolith, allows you to deep strike in units really close to the enemy. It gets around the overall slow Move value of units like Lychguard.

Lord of War

Obelisk
Having 20 Tesla shots is really good, but this is a much worse Monolith for more points. Pass.

Tesseract Vault
For more points that the Obelisk, you get access to 4 Powers of the C'tan and the ability to use 3 a turn. It almost feels worth it. Almost.

Dynastic Codes

These are all interesting, but none of them really stand out. That allows you to pick the one that suits your playstyle.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Enhanced Reanimation Protocols
• Emergency Invasion Beam
• Enhanced Invasion Beam
• Damage Control Override
• Repair Subroutines
• Quantum Deflection
• Extermination Protocols
• Adaptive Subroutines
• Translocation Crypt
• Talent for Annihilation

Warlord Traits

A couple of stand out ones, but some real duds too.

Artefacts of the Aeons

Stand-out Relics

•  The Orb of Eternity
• Lightning Field
• The Veil of Darkness
• The Nanoscarab Casket

Powers of the C'tan

These can't be Denied, unlike Psychic Powers, but they all do Mortal Wounds. That's still really powerful, but not flexible.

Quick Hits - June 2018 Blood Angels

Our next quick hit is Codex Adeptus Astartes Blood Angels. Rather than restating reviews for units from Codex Adeptus Astartes Space Marines (see here http://hiveoffunandsilliny.blogspot.com/2018/05/quick-hits-may-2018-space-marines.html?zx=a67457f84ddec227 ), I will focus only on the units and abilities that are unique to the Blood Angels.

Special Rules

Black Rage
An extra attack while charging and a feel no pain is good for the limited units that have this rule.

HQ

From Codex Space Marines
Techmarine, Primaris Lieutenants, Lieutenants, Captain in Gravis Armour, Primaris Captain, Captain in Terminator Armour, Captain in Cataphractii Armour, Captain, Chaplain, Primaris Chaplain, Chaplain in Terminator Armour, Librarian in Terminator Armour, Primaris Librarian, Librarian.

Commander Dante
Built for hunting and killing characters in epic duels, he is actually to be feared when used in this capacity. Keep him away from hordes though, the weight of numbers will bring him down.

Gabriel Seth
Surprisingly good at tearing vehicles and monsters apart. His abilities to fight again and score extra hits are a little too random though.

The Sanguinor
Gives your infantry +1 Attack, so makes a really good character to back up your main assault unit.

Brother Corbulo
Has a personal re-roll once per turn and his Grail can generate extra attacks. Otherwise not actually better than a regular Sanguinary Priest.

Sanguinary Priest
Like an Apothecary, but also buffs the Strength of nearby Blood Angels. This actually makes a massive difference for wound rolls in melee if the Red Thirst rule is in play.

Chief Librarian Mephiston
Can Cast and Deny two powers and has his own feel no pain. The Sanguine Sword is amazing, especially when combined with Psychic buffs.

Librarian Dreadnought
A dreadnought with the Character keyword and the protection that comes with it. Can Cast two and Deny one. Interesting choice if you want a tougher Psyker.

Astorath
Gives an aura of re-roll hits in melee and once per game can also give +1 to hit. Feels a little expensive for these buffs though.

Lemartes
Like a normal Chaplain, but also lets the units re-roll failed Charges. Well worth the points to upgrade from a normal Chaplain.

Tycho the Lost
Swaps Rites of Battle for Black Rage. Flavourful, but not useful.

Captain Tycho
 Like a regular Captain, but with a bonus against Orks. Again, flavourful but not useful.

Troops

From Codex Space Marines
Scout Squad, Intercessor Squad, Tactical Squad.

Elites

From Codex Space Marines
Redemptor Dreadnought, Contemptor Dreadnought, Dreadnought, Sternguard Veteran Squad, Vanguard Veteran Squad, Tartaros Terminator Squad, Cataphractii Terminator Squad, Terminator Assault Squad, Terminator Squad, Reiver Squad, Company Veterans, Company Champion, Primaris Ancient, Company Ancient, Servitors, Aggressor Squad, Primaris Apothecary.

Sanguinary Guard
Like an Assault Squad, but on steroids. I can see why this is a key unit for the Blood Angels. Great shooting to thin out screens and then decent melee weapon choices for taking on the real target.

Sanguinary Ancient
Essentially a Lieutenant with a Jump Pack and all the benefits for being Sanguinary Guard. Worth taking to buff your key assault unit.

Sanguinary Novitiate
An Apothecary with a different name.

Death Company Dreadnought
A melee Dreadnought with an extra Attack and a feel no pain. Upgrade the Furioso Fists to Blood Talons and start tearing things apart.

Death Company
An Assault Squad with extra Attacks and feel no pain. A large unit of these has to be dealt with and is a pain to shift.

Terminator Ancient
An Ancient in Terminator Armour, although their banner re-rolls melee attacks instead of the usual effect. Your Captains should be in place to do this though, so probably not worth taking.

Furioso Dreadnought
A close assault Dreadnought. I really like the Frag Cannon upgrade, to send it out to mess up infantry.

Fast Attack

From Codex Space Marines
Inceptor Squad, Scout Bike Squad, Land Speeders, Attack Bike Squad, Bike Squad, Assault Squad.

Heavy Support

From Codex Space Marines
Land Raider Redeemer, Land Raider Crusader, Land Raider, Vindicator, Whirlwind, Stalker, Hunter, Hellblaster Squad, Predator, Devastator Squad.

Baal Predator
Twin Assault Cannon plus Two Heavy Bolters makes this really food at killing infantry. I'd pass on the flame weapons as they are far too short ranged. The Overcharged Engines don't really do anything either.

Dedicated Transports

From Codex Space Marines
Repulsor, Land Speeder Storm, Drop Pod, Razorback, Rhino.

Fliers

From Codex Space Marines
Stormtalon Gunship, Stormraven Gunship, Stormhawk Interceptor.

The Red Thirst

This rule is the Real Deal! Adding 1 to your Wound rolls means that Tactical Marine fists are wounding Imperial Knights on 5s. So any Strength increase becomes unreal, and you end up being able to wound a lot of things on 2s and 3s in melee. It encourages you to build an assault army and focus your shooting on clearing screens. The high Toughness of Vehicles and Monsters is less relevant to your army. This is an amazing rule.

Stratagems

Stand-out Stratagems

• Forlorn Fury
• Strike of Archangels
• Upon Wings of Fire
• Killshot
• Auspex Scan
• Descent of Angels
• Red Rampage
• Vengeance for Sanguinius

Warlord Traits

The Speed of the Primarch is okay, but the best choice here is Artisan of War. A Captain with this and a Thunder Hammer hits on 3s, re-rolls 1s and is Strength 8 with plus 1 to wound and does 4 Damage a strike!

Relics of Baal

Stand-out Relics

• The Angel's Wing
• The Veritas Vitae
• Standard of Sacrifice

 Psychic Powers

The best powers in the Sanguinary Discipline are the character buffs. They can make units like Mephiston and the Librarian Dreadnought terrifying in melee, plus Wings of Sanguinius can get them there quicker.