TheChirurgeon’s Road Through 2022, Part 17: Slinging Ultramarines at an RTT

Welcome back, Dear Reader, to the ongoing journal of my hobby and competitive progress in 2022. Last time I talked about prepping for the Goonhammer Open and playing a couple of practice games. That event went well, but I didn’t actually play in it. This week I’m back talking about competitive games again, and the consequences of losing the bet I made back in May.

The Bet

As you may recall from an earlier Road Through post – This One – I had previously made a bet with local Houston player Carmine Battista over our then-next game that the loser would have to play with an army of the winner’s choosing at the following RTT. As fortune would have it, we matched up in the final round of the May Asgard RTT and Carmine won, which meant I had to play an event with his Ultramarines.

The good news – and there’s very little of it – is that I wouldn’t have to do anything for the event hobby-wise, and I could just show up and slam some hams… albeit with an army I don’t care for, don’t know much about, and is very bad, competitively speaking.

The List

Smug Jerk Carmine Battista and his stupid Ultramarines

Here’s the list Carmine provided me with:

++ Battalion Detachment -4CP (Imperium – Adeptus Astartes – Ultramarines) [94 PL, 1,700pts, ] ++

**Chapter Selector**: Ultramarines

+ HQ [14 PL, 260pts, -2CP] +

Chief Librarian Tigurius [7 PL, 135pts]: 1) Veil of Time, 2) Might of Heroes, 3) Null Zone (Aura), Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades, Rod of Tigurius

Primaris Chaplain on Bike [7 PL, 125pts, -2CP]: 1. Litany of Faith (Aura), Absolver Bolt pistol, Benediction of Fury, Crozius arcanum, Frag & Krak grenades, Litany of Hate, Rites of War, Stratagem: Hero of the Chapter [-1CP], Stratagem: Relic [-1CP], Twin Bolt rifle

+ Troops [17 PL, 360pts] +

Infiltrator Squad [6 PL, 130pts]: Helix gauntlet [10pts]
. 4x Infiltrator [96pts]: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades, 4x Marksman bolt carbine
. Infiltrator Sergeant [24pts]: Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades, Marksman bolt carbine

Infiltrator Squad [6 PL, 130pts]: Helix gauntlet [10pts]
. 4x Infiltrator [96pts]: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades, 4x Marksman bolt carbine
. Infiltrator Sergeant [24pts]: Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades, Marksman bolt carbine

Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 100pts]: Bolt rifle
. 4x Intercessor [80pts]: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades
. Intercessor Sergeant [20pts]: Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades

+ Elites [31 PL, 495pts, -1CP] +

Bladeguard Veteran Squad [10 PL, 140pts]
. 3x Bladeguard Veteran [105pts]: 3x Frag & Krak grenades, 3x Heavy Bolt Pistol, 3x Master-crafted power sword, 3x Storm Shield
. Bladeguard Veteran Sergeant [35pts]: Frag & Krak grenades, Heavy Bolt Pistol, Master-crafted power sword, Storm Shield

Bladeguard Veteran Squad [10 PL, 140pts]
. 3x Bladeguard Veteran [105pts]: 3x Frag & Krak grenades, 3x Heavy Bolt Pistol, 3x Master-crafted power sword, 3x Storm Shield
. Bladeguard Veteran Sergeant [35pts]: Frag & Krak grenades, Heavy Bolt Pistol, Master-crafted power sword, Storm Shield

Chapter Champion [4 PL, 75pts, -1CP]: Adept of the Codex, Blade of Triumph, Champion’s blade, Frag & Krak grenades, Master-crafted power sword, Stratagem: Hero of the Chapter [-1CP] Stratagem: Relic [-1CP],

Primaris Apothecary [4 PL, 80pts]: Absolver Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades, Reductor Pistol

Victrix Honour Guard [3 PL, 60pts]
. Victrix Honour Guard [30pts]: Frag & Krak grenades, Power sword, Ultima Storm Shield
. Victrix Honour Guard [30pts]: Frag & Krak grenades, Power sword, Ultima Storm Shield

+ Heavy Support [32 PL, 585pts] +

Eliminator Squad [4 PL, 75pts]: Las Fusil
. Eliminator Sergeant [25pts]: Bolt pistol, Camo cloak, Frag & Krak grenades, Instigator Bolt Carbine
. 2x Eliminators [50pts]: 2x Bolt pistol, 2x Camo cloak, 2x Frag & Krak grenades

Eradicator Squad [14 PL, 305pts]: Heavy melta rifle [25pts]
. 4x Eradicator [180pts]: 4x Bolt pistol
. Eradicator Sgt [45pts]: Bolt pistol
. Eradicator with MM [55pts]: Bolt pistol, Multi-melta [10pts]

Eradicator Squad [14 PL, 205pts]: Heavy melta rifle [15pts]
. 2x Eradicator [90pts]: 2x Bolt pistol
. Eradicator Sgt [45pts]: Bolt pistol
. Eradicator with MM [55pts]: Bolt pistol, Multi-melta [10pts]

++ Supreme Command Detachment +3CP (Imperium – Adeptus Astartes – Ultramarines) [19 PL, 300pts, 5CP] ++

+ Configuration [3CP] +

**Chapter Selector**: Ultramarines

Detachment Command Cost [3CP]

+ Primarch | Daemon Primarch | Supreme Commander [19 PL, 300pts, 2CP] +

Roboute Guilliman [19 PL, 300pts, 2CP]: Hand of Dominion, Nobility Made Manifest, Stratagem: Warlord Trait [-1CP], The Emperor’s Sword, Warlord

++ Total: [113 PL, 4CP, 2,000pts] ++

Carmine’s Notes: Bladeguard and victrix defensive line, eradicator push (split to 4/3/3) guiliman engine for rrs and counter push with 3D chaplain and champion in melee. Farm cp 5+ obsec bubble Infiltrators screen back objectives then teleport forward using guerilla tacs to rnd t 4/5

Same list I’ve been using except added Gman in lieu of captain and more bladeguard.

Rnd
Oath
Banners

I mean as far as Ultramarines lists go it’s fine, I guess? Guilliman at least gets me more CP to work with and there are tons of Eradicators here. Of course, one of the big problems with Ultramarines is that their Chapter Tactic ability – being able to Fall Back and shoot – isn’t very good when one of your secondary objectives gives you VP for not falling back in a given round. Choosing between VP and a tactical withdrawal sucks.

Otherwise, I read the list – which I got the Thursday before the event – but didn’t have much time to study up. That might have helped a bit – more on that later – but probably didn’t change much with my final event results. I’ve played against marines enough to know what most of this does.

That said, the Asgard RTT scene is not particularly easy – there are a lot of regulars from the Astros Militarum group that regularly play in events and are more than capable of bouncing my ass playing a weaker army I’m not familiar with. If I run into Carmine, Erik, Garrett, or Andrew, I can chalk that one down as a loss out of the gate.

Round 1: vs. Brendan Muller

Round 1 vs. Brendan

Ah, Brendan, my old nemesis. I think I’m 0-2 vs. Brendan at this point, owing to the fact that 1. He’s gone first in both of our games, and 2. He’s always had insane dice against me, particularly when it comes to rolling shot counts on Manticores, Basilisks, and Russes.

Brendan's List - click to expand

Cadian Battalion 1.9 w/ Scions (Warhammer 40,000 9th Edition) [116 PL, 2CP, 1,998pts]
Battalion Detachment 0CP (Imperium – Astra Militarum) [105 PL, 4CP, 1,850pts]
Configuration [6CP]
Battle Size [6CP]
Selections: 3. Strike Force (101-200 Total PL / 1001-2000 Points) [6CP]
Categories: Configuration
Detachment Command Cost
Categories: Configuration
Gametype
Selections: 4. Chapter Approved: War Zone Nephilim
Categories: Configuration
Regimental Doctrine
Selections: Regiment: Cadian
Categories: Configuration
Stratagems [-2CP]
Imperial Commander’s Armoury [-1CP]
Selections: 1 additional Heirloom of Conquest [-1CP]
Categories: Stratagems, No Force Org Slot
Tank Ace [-1CP]
Categories: Stratagems
Agents of the Imperium [5 PL, 95pts]
Inquisitor Coteaz [5 PL, 95pts]
Selections: Bolt pistol, Malleus – Warding Incantation, Master-crafted nemesis daemon hammer, Psyber-eagle, Smite
Categories: Coteaz, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Inquisitor, Psyker, Character, Faction: Ordo Malleus, Agent of the Imperium
HQ [29 PL, , 480pts]
Knight Commander Pask [14 PL, 225pts]
Selections: Lascannon [20pts], Turret-mounted Demolisher Siege Cannon [5pts]
Categories: Faction: Cadian, Character, Faction: Imperium, Knight Commander Pask, Leman Russ, Officer, Tank Commander, Vehicle, Faction: Astra Militarum, HQ
Lord Castellan Creed [3 PL, 1CP, 60pts]
Selections: 2x Hot-shot Laspistol, Power sword, Stratagem: Warlord Trait [-1CP], Warlord [2CP]
Categories: Faction: Cadian, Character, Faction: Imperium, Lord Castellan Creed, Officer, Faction: Astra Militarum, HQ, Warlord, Cadian Warlord
Tank Commander [12 PL, -1CP, 195pts]
Selections: Battle Cannon [5pts], Heavy Bolter [15pts], Relic (Cadia): Gatekeeper, Stat Damage (Leman Russ Commander), Stratagem: Relic [-1CP], Weapon Expert
Categories: Leman Russ, Character, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Officer, Tank Commander, Vehicle, Faction: Astra Militarum, HQ
Troops [22 PL, 450pts]
Conscripts [7 PL, 150pts]
Categories: Conscript, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
30x Conscript [150pts]
Selections: 30x Lasgun
Infantry Squad [3 PL, 60pts]
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry Squad, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
5x Guardsman
Selections: 5x Lasgun
Guardsman W/ Special Weapon
Selections: Meltagun
Guardsman w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Lasgun, Vox-caster
Heavy Weapon Team
Selections: Lasgun, Missile launcher
Sergeant
Selections: Laspistol
Infantry Squad [3 PL, 60pts]
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry Squad, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
5x Guardsman
Selections: 5x Lasgun
Guardsman W/ Special Weapon
Selections: Meltagun
Guardsman w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Lasgun, Vox-caster
Heavy Weapon Team
Selections: Lascannon, Lasgun
Sergeant
Selections: Laspistol
Infantry Squad [3 PL, 60pts]
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry Squad, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
5x Guardsman
Selections: 5x Lasgun
Guardsman W/ Special Weapon
Selections: Meltagun
Guardsman w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Lasgun, Vox-caster
Heavy Weapon Team
Selections: Lascannon, Lasgun
Sergeant
Selections: Laspistol
Infantry Squad [3 PL, 60pts]
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry Squad, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
5x Guardsman
Selections: 5x Lasgun
Guardsman W/ Special Weapon
Selections: Meltagun
Guardsman w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Lasgun, Vox-caster
Heavy Weapon Team
Selections: Lasgun, Missile launcher
Sergeant
Selections: Laspistol
Infantry Squad [3 PL, 60pts]
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry Squad, Infantry, Faction: Astra Militarum, Troops
5x Guardsman
Selections: 5x Lasgun
Guardsman W/ Special Weapon
Selections: Meltagun
Guardsman w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Lasgun, Vox-caster
Heavy Weapon Team
Selections: Lasgun, Missile launcher
Sergeant
Selections: Laspistol
Elites [8 PL, 110pts]
Astropath [2 PL, 35pts]
Selections: Psychic Barrier, Telepathica Stave
Categories: Astropath, Character, Faction: Astra Telepathica, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Faction: Scholastica Psykana, Psyker, Faction: Astra Militarum, Elites
Command Squad [2 PL, 25pts]
Categories: Command Squad, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Veterans, Faction: Astra Militarum, Elites
Veteran
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun
Veteran w/ Medi-pack
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Medi-pack
Veteran w/ Regimental Standard
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Regimental Standard
Veteran w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Vox-caster
Command Squad [2 PL, 25pts]
Categories: Command Squad, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Veterans, Faction: Astra Militarum, Elites
Veteran
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun
Veteran w/ Medi-pack
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Medi-pack
Veteran w/ Regimental Standard
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Regimental Standard
Veteran w/ Vox-caster
Selections: Frag grenades, Lasgun, Vox-caster
Platoon Commander [2 PL, 25pts]
Selections: Frag grenades, Laspistol, Relic (Cadia): Relic of Lost Cadia
Categories: Character, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Officer, Platoon Commander, Faction: Astra Militarum, Elites
Fast Attack [3 PL, 40pts]
Scout Sentinels [3 PL, 40pts]
Categories: Scout Sentinels, Vehicle, Faction: Astra Militarum, Fast Attack, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium
Scout Sentinel [3 PL, 40pts]
Selections: Multi-laser
Heavy Support [38 PL, 675pts]
Basilisks [14 PL, 250pts]
Categories: Basilisk, Vehicle, Faction: Astra Militarum, Heavy Support, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium
Basilisk [7 PL, 125pts]
Selections: Earthshaker Cannon, Heavy Bolter, Stat Damage (HS)
Basilisk [7 PL, 125pts]
Selections: Earthshaker Cannon, Heavy Bolter, Stat Damage (HS)
Heavy Quad Launcher Battery [15 PL, 270pts]
Categories: Artillery, Heavy Quad Launcher, Faction: Astra Militarum, Heavy Support, Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium
Heavy Quad Launcher Battery [5 PL, 90pts]
Selections: 3x Guardsmen Crew, Heavy Quad launcher
Heavy Quad Launcher Battery [5 PL, 90pts]
Selections: 3x Guardsmen Crew, Heavy Quad launcher
Heavy Quad Launcher Battery [5 PL, 90pts]
Selections: 3x Guardsmen Crew, Heavy Quad launcher
Manticore [9 PL, 155pts]
Selections: Full Payload, Heavy Bolter, Stat Damage (HS), 4x Storm Eagle Rockets
Categories: Faction: <REGIMENT>, Faction: Imperium, Manticore, Vehicle, Faction: Astra Militarum, Heavy Support
Patrol Detachment -2CP (Imperium – Astra Militarum) [11 PL, -2CP, 148pts]
Configuration [-2CP]
Detachment Command Cost [-2CP]
Categories: Configuration
Regimental Doctrine
Selections: 9th Iotan Gorgonnes
Categories: Configuration
HQ [3 PL, 40pts]
Tempestor Prime [3 PL, 40pts]
Selections: Frag & Krak grenades, Hot-shot Laspistol
Categories: Faction: Tempestus Scions, Faction: Astra Militarum, Character, Faction: Imperium, Faction: Militarum Tempestus, Infantry, Officer, Tempestor Prime, HQ
Troops [8 PL, 108pts]
Militarum Tempestus Scions [5 PL, 63pts]
Categories: Faction: Tempestus Scions, Faction: Astra Militarum, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Troops
6x Scion [54pts]
Selections: 6x Frag & Krak grenades, 6x Hot-shot Lasgun
Tempestor [9pts]
Selections: Frag & Krak grenades, Hot-shot Laspistol, Power sword
Militarum Tempestus Scions [3 PL, 45pts]
Categories: Faction: Tempestus Scions, Faction: Astra Militarum, Faction: Imperium, Infantry, Troops
4x Scion [36pts]
Selections: 4x Frag & Krak grenades, 4x Hot-shot Lasgun
Tempestor [9pts]
Selections: Frag & Krak grenades, Hot-shot Laspistol, Power sword

Brendan’s running a Cadian list I’d have been ecstatic about playing against with my Thousand Sons but with Ultramarines it’s a much more daunting proposition – This army is much slower than my Thousand Sons, despite the ability to forward deploy, and the Intercessors feel a lot more vulnerable as backfield objective holders than Rubrics, and with the latter I can push back to my objectives if I need.

The Mission: Tear Down Their Icons

This is a really bad mission for this matchup. It’s a long walk across that table, and Brendan’s got ample space to hide along the far back of his deployment zone. As is, my biggest challenge will be holding the center with what is not a ton of units, while trying to find a way to stop from getting shelled by Manticore and Basilisk fire. I also don’t really have the melee threats to tear through Brendan’s conscripts and if he can clear me off the backfield objectives, I’m gonna have a bad time. I need to go first and hope that gives me enough of a movement boost to tag his tanks by rounds 2 or 3.

My Secondaries:

  • Oaths
  • Bring it Down
  • Retrieve Nephilim Data

Brendan’s Secondaries:

  • Boots on the Ground
  • Retrieve Nephilim Data
  • Inflexible Command

I’m already seeing how shitty the objective game is for marines. Oaths is not good here and neither is Bring it Down but I don’t have a ton of other options. Assassination has play but is going to be harder – and if I don’t deal with the tanks I’m boned anyways – and I have no confidence in my ability to score Engage or Behind Enemy Lines.

I’m Going Second.

Infiltrators hiding on the other side of a wall from some conscripts

Welp, that’s not good. There’s nowhere on the board I can hide from the indirect fire, and I lose a unit of Infiltrators on turn 1 plus a unit of Eradicators and one of my Eliminators. It’s not as bad as it could be, but it also means Brendan gets to start pushing his Scions onto the board early. Ultimately, Brendan’s able to slow me down mid-table with concripts while shelling the units in my backfield to take me off objectives. It’s a slow game wading through shitloads of dice for indirect fire and there’s not a ton this army can do – The Eradicators are all dead by round 3 when they’d be able to start actually seeing tanks. Maybe putting them in Strat Reserves could have been the move but even then I’m not sure Brendan couldn’t have just aggressively screened me out.

There was a moment that knowing the army better might have helped, and that’s when Brendan tried to aggressively control my movement by putting conscripts 2″ away from my Bladeguard Veterans – had I realized Guilliman’s Warlord Trait would let them intervene, I could have just done that. Or more realistically, told Brendan he’d need to stay more than 3″ away to avoid getting Heroic’d.

Result: 64-86, Loss

God dammit, Brendan! Next Time we play it’ll be with a real army of mine.

OK well that’s fine – it puts me in the loser bracket, which is where I expected to be anyways.

Round 2: vs. David Miracle’s Necrons

David’s a swell guy running Novokh Necrons with the Silent King, which means that while his army can be a real menace, they aren’t the overtuned nightmare that Necrons can normally be, and lack the pregame move to really threaten the crap out of me.

David's list - click to expand

++ Battalion Detachment -3CP (Necrons) [81 PL, 1,600pts, 1CP] ++

Dynasty Choice: Dynasty: Novokh

+ HQ +

Chronomancer [5 PL, 85pts, -1CP]: Dynastic Heirlooms, Entropic Lance, Relic: Veil of Darkness

Technomancer [5 PL, 70pts, -1CP]: Canoptek Cloak, Dynastic Heirlooms, Relic: Voltaic Staff

+ Troops +

Immortals [4 PL, 80pts]: 5x Immortal, Tesla Carbine

Immortals [4 PL, 80pts]: Gauss Blaster, 5x Immortal

Immortals [4 PL, 80pts]: Gauss Blaster, 5x Immortal

Immortals [4 PL, 80pts]: Gauss Blaster, 5x Immortal

Necron Warriors [12 PL, 260pts]
. 20x Necron Warrior (Gauss Reaper): 20x Gauss Reaper

+ Elites +

Lychguard [14 PL, 250pts]: 10x Lychguard
. Hyperphase Sword and Dispersion Shield

Skorpekh Destroyers [8 PL, 180pts]
. 2x Skorpekh Destroyer (Reap-Blade): 2x Hyperphase Reap-Blade
. 4x Skorpekh Destroyer (Thresher): 4x Hyperphase Threshers

+ Fast Attack +

Ophydian Destroyers [4 PL, 90pts]: Ophydian Destroyer (Reap-Blade)
. 2x Ophydian Destroyer (Thresher): 2x Hyperphase Threshers, 2x Ophydian Claws

Ophydian Destroyers [4 PL, 90pts]: Ophydian Destroyer (Reap-Blade)
. 2x Ophydian Destroyer (Thresher): 2x Hyperphase Threshers, 2x Ophydian Claws

Ophydian Destroyers [4 PL, 90pts]: Ophydian Destroyer (Reap-Blade)
. 2x Ophydian Destroyer (Thresher): 2x Hyperphase Threshers, 2x Ophydian Claws

+ Flyer +

Doom Scythe [9 PL, 165pts]

++ Supreme Command Detachment +3CP (Necrons) [21 PL, 400pts, 5CP] ++

+ Configuration +

Detachment Command Cost [3CP]

Dynasty Choice: Dynasty: Szarekhan

+ Primarch | Daemon Primarch | Supreme Commander +

The Silent King [21 PL, 400pts, 2CP]: Stratagem: Warlord Trait, Warlord Trait (Szarekhan): The Triarch’s Will
. 2x Triarchal Menhir: 2x Annihilator Beam

++ Total: [102 PL, 6CP, 2,000pts] ++

David’s list is melee-focused and pretty unoptimized. I’m still worried about the Silent King, though – he’s a menace that I’ll need to deal with quickly. The upside is that I have a lot of Eradicators and the Silent King can’t really hide.

The Mission: Death and Zeal

My Secondaries:

  • Oaths of Moment
  • Raise the Banners
  • Engage on All Fronts

David’s Secondaries:

  • Purge the Vermin
  • Ancient Machineries
  • Treasures of Aeons

Purge vs. Engage is always a fun matchup but on this mission the Infiltrators help a lot with that, giving me early easy points scoring and denial for both. That’ll help because Necrons can score VP trivially easy, even when they’re not on Relentlessly Expansionist + Eternal Conquerors. My goal is to take out the Silent King early and then try and hold the middle with Guilliman for as long as possible.

I’m Going Second.

Not great, but not horrible. This game was weird – I’m not going to say David was particularly lucky on the whole, but a couple of things that he needed to go his way did at big times. Likewise, I had a couple of money saves late in the game that basically let me hold on for a win.

The big rough break on my end was that I fell 2 wounds short of killing the Silent King on my first turn. This gave him a turn to move up toward my units and when I killed him a turn later, he exploded, rolling an 11 on the explosion range. This ended up doing a total of 44 mortal wounds to my army, including 6 to the Eliminators – wiping them completely, killing Tigurius, the Chapter Champion, and the Bike Chaplain, plus a unit of Bladeguard, and depleting the rest of my units. I was having a pretty solid game until that moment right there and the explosion did enough damage to suddenly make this one very tight.

Fortunately, David didn’t quite have the support he needed on the other two table quarters and never had the ability to commit adequate melee resources to killing my two Infiltrator Squads, who proceeded to hang on for dear life until the final battle round, making some absolutely clutch 5+ saves against Lychguard. This also keeps me on Engage and him off Purge and that ends up making the difference.

Result: 85-74, Win

One more game with this godforsaken army and its bad secondaries. Fortunately for me, I get served up a nice slow pitch over center plate.

Round 3: vs. Luke Burchfield’s Chaos Knights

I’m paired down into Luke, a nice person and a member of the Astros Militarum. I’ve played against him before and written about it. Luke’s got some very cool Chaos Knight conversions and he’s running all War Dogs.

Luke's List - Click to expand

++ Super-Heavy Detachment -3CP (Chaos – Chaos Knights) [102 PL, 1CP, 1,830pts] ++

+ Configuration +

Battle Size [6CP]: 3. Strike Force (101-200 Total PL / 1001-2000 Points)

Detachment Command Cost [-3CP]

+ Lord of War +

War Dog Executioner Squadron [9 PL, -1CP, 175pts]: Iconoclast Dreadblade, Precision Cruelty
. War Dog Executioner: Character (Traitoris Lance), Daemonbreath meltagun, Helm of Warpsight, Stratagem: Relic, Tzeentch – Mirror of Fates, Warlord

War Dog Karnivore Squadron [25 PL, -1CP, 435pts]: House Herpetrax
. War Dog Karnivore: Corrupted Heirlooms, Diabolus heavy stubber, Helm of Dogs, Slaanesh – Quicksilver Throne
. War Dog Karnivore: Diabolus heavy stubber
. War Dog Karnivore: Diabolus heavy stubber

War Dog Karnivore Squadron [26 PL, 450pts]: House Herpetrax
. War Dog Karnivore: Diabolus heavy stubber, Khorne – Blood Shield
. War Dog Karnivore: Diabolus heavy stubber
. War Dog Karnivore: Diabolus heavy stubber

War Dog Stalker Squadron [25 PL, 460pts]: House Herpetrax
. War Dog Stalker: Avenger chaincannon, Diabolus heavy stubber, Slaughterclaw, Tzeentch – Pyrothrone, Winds of the Warp
. War Dog Stalker: Avenger chaincannon, Diabolus heavy stubber, Slaughterclaw
. War Dog Stalker: Avenger chaincannon, Diabolus heavy stubber, Slaughterclaw

War Dog Stalker Squadron [17 PL, 310pts]: House Herpetrax
. War Dog Stalker: Daemonbreath spear, Diabolus heavy stubber, Nurgle – The Putrid Carapace, Slaughterclaw
. War Dog Stalker: Daemonbreath spear, Diabolus heavy stubber, Slaughterclaw

++ Super-Heavy Auxiliary Detachment -3CP (Chaos – Chaos Knights) [9 PL, , 170pts] ++

+ Configuration +

Detachment Command Cost [-3CP]

Gametype: 4. Chapter Approved: War Zone Nephilim

Shared Faction Bonus [3CP]

+ Lord of War +

War Dog Moirax Squadron [9 PL, 170pts]: Bold Tyrants, Iconoclast Dreadblade
. War Dog Moirax: Undivided – Warp-borne Stalker
. . Graviton pulsar
. . Siege claw

++ Total: [111 PL, 1CP, 2,000pts] ++

I love Luke’s War Dog conversions and he’s fun to play against. Unfortunately, this army is basically built to turbofuck him into the nearest dumpster, what with all of the double-shooting re-rolling Eradicators.

My Secondaries: 

  • Bring it Down
  • Oaths of Moment
  • Raise the Banners

Luke’s Secondaries: 

  • Grind Them Down
  • Storm of Darkness
  • Ruthless Tyranny

Chaos Knights give me trivially easy secondary picks, letting me take Bring it Down to score an easy 15, while Oaths is easier to max when I can score the vehicle bonus point. Banners is the only iffy one here but I like it more than RND. On Luke’s side, after Storm and Tyranny his options aren’t great; No Prisoners or Engage might have been better than Grind here but it’s a bunch of bad options.

I’m Going Second.

Credit: Luke Burchfield

That actually works out for me. My plan going first was to just hang back and take out the war dogs as they ran into my Eradicator meat grinder but as-is Luke will do that work for me. I pick up four War Dogs on turn 1 and from there we’re off to the races, with Luke racing forward to try and keep me off objectives as my Eradicators double-shoot War Dogs off the table at a rate of 3 per turn. It’s a terrible matchup for Luke and a rough way to end the day. I think this could have been a winnable matchup for Luke if he hangs back and plays it less aggressively – my army isn’t exactly aces at scoring points – but he still needs a way to touch the Eradicators to make things happen.

Result: 91-61, Win

I finish 2-1, which is good enough for 6th place. And while I always finish 2-1 at these goddamn things, the difference here is that I usually start 2-0 and then wind up losing in the final round instead of submarining through two games. Overall, Ultramarines sucked shit to play – they’re wildly underpowered as a faction and unable to deal with many of the game’s major threats, and I mostly squeaked by in games 2 and 3 by having a list overtuned for dealing with my opponents’ exact threats while also having opponents that weren’t as sure how to avoid them – it was possible, but difficult.

That said, it was at least refreshing to not have to transport an army to an event. That was the only upside. Fuck the Ultramarines, a stupid faction for bad people.

Next Time: Another RTT, But This Time With a Real Army

Next up is the Ettin September RTT, which is basically taking the place of NOVA for me. I’m going to be bringing my Thousand Sons to that one, because neither my Death Guard nor my Black Legion are ready for prime time. Should be another quality 2-1 finish.

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