Anyway, here's my last army build - with a twist. I've been trying to think more tactically when I build armies and put them on the board. And I've been trying to pre-plan this step more overtly and decide ahead of time what characters join which units, which units will DS, and what role each unit will play in the game. Rather than just push my minis across the board and throw a bunch of dice (which admittedly works out pretty well for me), I'm trying to push to the next tactical level here.
The standard point level against my usual opponent has moved to 3000pts. No real limit other than that. Not sure which of his armies he'll throw at me, but it's a toss up between Space Wolves and Tau. Maybe Space Marines. But that's it. Anyway, I don't usually concern myself with that, since it feels cheaty - I want to build lists that can take on a range of opponents. Anyway, enough babbling...
*****
Khorne Daemonkin Combined Arms Detachment #1
Chaos Lord w/ Goredrinker, Lightning Claw, Juggernaut, and Sigil of Corruption
Chaos Lord w/ Bike, Kor'lath Axe of Ruin, Lightning Claw, and Sigil of Corruption
20 Bloodletters w/ Banner of Blood
10 Chaos Space Marines w/ Boltguns, two Meltaguns, and a Rhino and Chainaxe Champion
8 Terminators w/ Combi-meltas; 5 w/ Power Swords, 3 w/ Chainfists
Khorne Daemonkin Combined Arms Detachment #2
Herald w/ Exalted Locus of Wrath
Herald w/ Greater Locus of Fury
18 Bloodletters w/ Bloodreaper
18 Bloodletters w/ Bloodreaper
Soul Grinder w/ Phlegm Bombardment
Soul Grinder w/ Phlegm Bombardment
Khorne Daemonkin Formation Gorepack
8 Chaos Bikers w/ two Meltaguns and Powerfist Champion
8 Chaos Bikers w/ two Meltaguns and Powerfist Champion
10 Flesh Hounds
10 Flesh Hounds
10 Flesh Hounds
*****
The Juggerlord joins a unit of Flesh Hounds, being a hard target and looking to rack up easy early game kills. The Biker Lord joins a unit of Bikes, and charges in, forcing my opponent to tempt fate with the Axe. The Exalted Herald joins the Terminator unit to convey Hatred. The Greater Herald joins the 20 man blob of Bloodletters with Banner, conveying Rage.
The bikes and CSMs will be objective grabbers out the gate. The Flesh Hounds will screen the bikes and serve as a bus for the Juggerlord. Soul Grinders are for support and cracking hard targets. Terminators are my anti-armor and will start in DS reserve. The Bloodletters are opportunity hunters and backfield threat and will start in DS reserve as well.
Counting on Turn 2 to be my big DS turn, I'll pick up army-wide FNP. Turn 3, I'll go for the extra attack. Turn 4 and beyond will likely be summoning as needed. Skull Cannons have been a big boon in this regard. Maybe not worth it in points, but for free they're hard to beat.
I know a lot of people champion the MSU approach for KDK, but in my experience, it's too easy for my opponent to blunt the effectiveness of a unit that way and I've often found myself wishing for a couple more wounds to help the unit get where they're going. Especially on bikes. And mobs of Bloodletters scare my opponent, so there's that.
Wish me luck!
