HQ Choices, Indepedent Characters (6E)

Emperor’s Champion.  Abhor the Witch is the new default vow purchase, mostly because it’s cheap.  The psychic protection also appears to stack with Deny the Witch, so that’s cool.  Accept Any Challenge is no longer what it was, but it’s still not bad.  Having access to Rage is worthwhile.  I don’t have AAC as the default choice because it’s the most expensive vow and I believe BT armies need to be built specifically to take advantage of the new AAC.  Suffer Not is not an attractive choice because Initiative plays such an important role in close combat.  But, I figure, there are certain army builds that would benefit from +1S/-1I.  Uphold is the worse vow.  Pinning weapons just aren’t plentiful enough to replace access to cover saves.

While we’re on the topic of the EC, let’s talk allies.  When Black Templars are taken as allies, the entire ‘Chosen of the Emperor’ paragraph under the Emperor’s Champion entry is ignored.  Why the entire entry?  Because every sentence of the paragraph has the context of a”Black Templar army.”  When you field a Black Templar allied detachment, you are not fielding a “Black Templar army” (your primary detachment determines your army).  If someone argues otherwise, tell them to fuck off and learn English (especially if they’re one of those RAW Nazis).  When the ‘Chosen’ paragraph is ignored, the EC becomes a normal HQ choice in all respects.  This means, in an allied detachment, the EC does not have to be taken at a specific point value.  It also means that the EC takes up a HQ slot normally and this means that the EC does fulfill the single necessary HQ choice for an allied detachment.

Chaplains.  Well, we have to take a HQ choice in addition to the EC, so we better start thinking seriously about our other HQ’s.  Chaplains fill the following roles:  Challenger and Combat Support.  A Challenger is designed to find enemy Challengers and defeat them in close combat, and Black Templar Chaplains do extremely well at this.  Base equipment includes:  Adamantine Mantle, master-crafted Powerfist, Bolt Pistol, Frag Grenades, and Terminator Honors.  Optional equipment includes:  a Bike, Artificer Armor, Storm Shield, or a Holy Orb.  The Adamantine Mantle and Powerfist are perfect compliments to the Chaplain’s 4+ Rosarius.  Most enemy Challengers should fall to a single Powerfist hit (or a single S6 Maul hit) and the Mantle gives the Chaplain a good opportunity to get that hit in.  Against T5 or Eternal Challengers, the fight becomes a slugfest and the Chaplain will have a harder time.  For that reason, it’s not a bad idea to take a Storm Shield.  I don’t consider the Artificer Armor base equipment because enemy Challengers will probably be wielding AP2 weaponry.  If you have 20 extra points should you take the Artificer Armor or Storm Shield?  Tough choice, but I’m thinking the Artificer Armor would be more useful.  The Bike provides less instant death protection for added mobility when it replaces the Adamantine Mantle.  This is not a bad option and allows the Fearless Chaplain to venture out on his own and challenge/delay/lock up tough close combat units without risking other friendly models.

Combat Support characters are designed to accompany units into close combat and buff that unit with Litanies of Hate.  Such characters do not necessarily have to be tricked out for challenges.  In fact, keeping such characters cheap (and spending those points on the unit he will be attached to) is probably the better approach.  Remember that if a challenge is offered, the Chaplain can always refuse and the unit still benefits from Litanies of Hate.  Base equipment options include:  Bolt Pistol and Frag Grenades.  Good optional equipment includes:  Artificer Armor, Holy Orb, Bionics, Meltabombs, a Power Weapon, and Terminator Honors.

Commanders.  Commanders fill two roles:  Challenger and Leadership Support.  Black Templar Marshals make great challengers.  Base equipment includes:  Storm Shield, Adamantine Mantle, master-crafted Powerfist, and Terminator Honors.  Optional equipment includes:  Artificer Armor, Bike, or a Holy Orb.  Is the Marshal better than the Chaplain at challenges?  I don’t know if the Marshal is better, but he is more cost efficient (no ‘wasted’ points on a Rosarius).  The Chaplain definitely has the advantage on the charge (and a little versatility in terms of weaponry), but after that, their damage output is basically the same.

The Leadership Support role revolves around Rites of Battle.  I think we’ll be seeing more Black Tide (foot based) armies, if not units, in 6E.  It’s hard to say what those lists will look like yet, but there is the potential for army wide LD10 to be more useful than a unit or two benefiting from Fearless, especially when we consider the updated And They Shall Know No Fear rules.  There’s a lot of wargear options for a Leadership Support Marshal, so I won’t be specific.  Generally such characters should stay out of frontline combat (including Challenges) and buff the entire army for as long as possible.  This means a Leadership character shouldn’t get too expensive.  Ranged weapons are preferable, but close combat weapons would allow the Marshal to reinforce an important melee combat.

Multiple HQs.  If you’re planning on spending points on 2 HQ choices (plus the EC), then which two characters do you take?  It depends on the rest of your list.  A largely mechanized force would probably benefit from a Marshal Challenger and a Combat Support Chaplain (with assault terminators).  A more foot based list might benefit more from a Leadership Support Marshal (for army wide Rites of Battle) and a Challenging Chaplain.  The problem with fielding 3 total ICs is the overall cost to your army.  Can you field everything else that is necessary to make the army effective?

Terminator Armor.  I haven’t discussed terminator armor for our characters, but it’s certainly an option.  I don’t consider 2+ armor a requirement for Challengers because of the likelihood of AP2 weapons.  But our Terminator armor is a cost efficient way of achieving both 2+ armor and an extra attack if the points are available or it fits the role of a character.  The big consideration when using terminator armor is transport capacity and mobility.  In most lists, a terminator IC will have a place to ride, be it a landraider or drop pod, so this isn’t a major point, but it’s something to consider when purchasing your gear.

Terminators and Drop Pods

Drop Pods have been on my mind since I first read the new 6th Edition rules.  Vehicles seem more fragile, though there are arguments to the contrary, and fielding 50pt Rhinos in a Black Templar army just doesn’t seem worth it.  Therefore, drop pods.

I’ve experimented with Terminators and drop pods and I haven’t been impressed.  A unit arriving by drop pod must kill something the turn it drops.  The more potent the target the better.  If it can’t do that, it must at least have great durability.  And our terminators accomplish neither of these things.  Seriously, they don’t.

Our tactical terminators don’t cause enough damage.  I know you’re thinking that’s crazy to say considering we’re allowed two heavy weapons, but that’s the truth.  When a dual assault cannon unit drops, what is it going to kill?  It will not drop and eliminate a Long Fang squad.  It will not drop and eliminate a Landraider.  It will not drop and severely weaken an Ork mob.  It will not drop and wipe out a Harlequin squad.  It might drop and destroy a Predator or Ravager type unit.  But the most common scenario will be, termies drop and destroy a cheap transport.  So now you’ve spent 285pts to kill 35pts, or at best, about 125.

Then you have to survive the enemy’s shooting phase.  Terminators are more survivable in 6E.  Actually, that’s not quite right.  Terminators are more survivable in close combat in 6E.  When it comes to shooting, they’re just as susceptible to torrents of fire and plasma as they have always been.  In fact, with hull points and AP2 causing more vehicle damage in 6E, we’ll begin to see a greater potential for terminators to be wiped off the board in the shooting phase.

Assault terminators obviously can’t shoot and they’re just slightly more survivable in the shooting phase.

Dropping multiple units of terminators in the first turn isn’t necessarily the solution.  If you hope to increase your alpha strike capabilities, you’re not going to accomplish it with multiple termie units because each unit is still lackluster when it comes to shooting after the drop.  If you’re after weight of numbers, that’s a costly investment in the hopes that something survives the enemy’s shooting.  A combined approach (termies alongside non-termie units) is probably the best approach.

We also need to consider range to the enemy when we drop.  Both dual assault cannon and dual typhoon terminators can keep their distance when they drop and it’s probably in their best interest to do so.  The closer you are to the enemy the more susceptible you are to torrents of fire and plasma weaponry.  If you’re going to keep your distance, why not just deploy them normally and save 30pts?  Only dual heavy flamer terminators need to be close to the enemy and therefore warrant a drop pod.  Nobody has considered fielding this unit for a long time, but perhaps now is the time.  However, I don’t think an elite dual heavy flamer unit is versatile enough; it’s not going to do much to tanks.  Instead, we should consider dual heavy flamers when we build terminator command squads.  Doing so allows the terminator Sergeant, and the HQ choice, to take combi-meltas.

For a pure BT army, we have a few non terminator options:  Command Squads, Sword Brethren, Dreadnaughts, and Crusader Squads.

Dreadnaughts are out.  The assault cannon isn’t going to do much on average, the multi-melta misses a third of the time, and a single heavy flamer isn’t going to kill enough.  Sword Brethren?  Not the best choice, but maybe.  Without Sternguard-like access to weaponry they’re damage output is minimal and if you’re planning on an assault the turn after they drop, they’ve got to survive the shooting phase first.  Crusader Squads are a lackluster unit.  Drop pods don’t change this.  A meltagun misses a third of the time and a single plasmagun isn’t going to do massive amounts of damage.  Crusader Squads are not durable either.  But they’re troops so they’re scoring.  This means Crusader Squads are best left in reserve in order to drop near an objective later in the game.  That leaves Command Squads.  Having dual meltaguns doubles the chance of killing a worthwhile vehicle and an apothecary increases survivability.  There’s also the option, albeit costly, of unlocking more combi-weapons through the purchase of terminator honors.  Out of the non-terminator units, the Command Squad is the best choice.

So, when we look at the Black Templar codex as a whole, we have two units vying for drop pod usage:  Terminator Command Squads with dual heavy flamers and Command Squads with dual meltaguns.  Nothing else is going to cut it.

Troops in 6E, Part 1

My knee jerk reaction to the new Eternal War missions was, 5 of 6 missions include the capturing of objectives, therefore Troops are more important.  Half a dozen games into 6E and I question that reaction.  The reality is, only 3 of the missions have numerous objectives that might necessitate lots of troops:  Crusade, Big Guns, and the Scouring.  Big Guns and The Scouring add, respectively, heavy support and fast attack as scoring units.  Therefore, it’s possible that fielding numerous Troop choices might not be necessary.

This is an important question for Black Templars because our sole troop choice is not particularly durable and not particularly destructive.  If we consider numerous troops king, and they’re not really necessary, we’re handicapping ourselves.  If Black Templars can field Fast Attack and Heavy Support choices that are useful enough, and durable enough, we might be able to shift points into better units and away from our lackluster Crusader Squads.

Before I fully delve into Crusader Squads, let’s consider other non-ally options we have in terms of scoring units.  A free (but random and not always employed) option is the Personal Warlord Trait Immovable Object.  A list shouldn’t be designed around this possibility, but it should cross your mind as you build your Warlord.  If scoring is an issue for your list, then perhaps your Warlord is built as a support character and not a front line Challenger. The question is, what units can we take that are good at their intended role and can function as scoring units in a pinch?

In terms of Fast Attack, the Typhoon landspeeder is a worthwhile choice.  The Typhoon provides solid fire support, but the bad thing is, in the context of capturing objectives, it’s a juicy and worthwhile target.  There’s a good chance it won’t be alive at the end of the game to capture objectives.  The Assault Squad is more attractive in 6E, but I still think it’s too costly.  Same with the bike options, though at least the bikes can take a beating.  I would consider 3x Attack Bikes with heavy bolters to be an option; however, every other marine codex fields this unit for 30 points less.

In terms of Heavy Support, my initial reaction has been, there’s more mobility in 6E therefore it’s harder to protect AV11 side armor.  I have yet to use any predator-like Heavy Support units, however, so my opinion is only theory in nature.  The truth is, we’re probably going to need predators to provide long ranged fire support, even if we expect those preds to die early in the game.  This, however, reduces their likelihood of capturing objectives.  That leaves Landraiders, which I’ve discussed in another post.  Landraiders can survive, and they can be useful, so they’re a good option; but they’re costly.

So, in terms of non-allies, we have a couple options.  They’re good at their intended jobs, but they’re not very durable (minus the Landraiders).  It would appear that Crusader Squads are really the only units that we can rely on to capture objectives.  That kinda sucks.  So I ask this question:  are Troops really ‘king’ in 6E?

I think the answer is, not necessarily.  The reason being Secondary Objectives.  Achieving First Blood, Linebreaker, and Slay the Warlord can make a huge difference in assuring victory, or stealing it from your opponent.  Emphasis needs to be put on these Secondary Objectives and in doing so I think we’ll be able to spend our points more wisely, ie not on Crusader Squads.

Landraiders

I’m reposting this from Bolter and Chainsword.  These are my thoughts on Black Templar landraider options in 6E.

Crusader: In 5E, the LRC was solid. It had a definite assault range of ~21 and frag launchers. The frags were necessary for twin claw termies, but even after our storm shields were updated, the LRC remained the better choice (over the Phobos) for a couple reasons: carrying capacity and firepower. The LRC holds more guys, to include ICs, that support the unit inside. The LRC also allows for Crusader Squads to embark, though, as it has been discussed on these forums many times, the close combat power of a Crusader Squad (even with 14 models and an IC) doesn’t really warrant the taking of an LRC. What made the CS choice passable, and what nicely complimented embarked termies, was the LRC’s firepower. In 5E, vehicles had to move in order to protect themselves from assault. With AV14, the LRC could move 6″ and greatly reduce the chance of being destroyed in close combat. Only a small move was necessary and since the LRC previously moved 12″ before disembarking, it was probably close to an enemy unit. In other words, a 6″ move meant the LRC was firing at full capacity.

In 6E, the LRC is not as solid. A definite assault range has been replaced with a possible assault range. Reaching a target 20″ away was guaranteed. Now, after advancing 12″ (move and disembark), an 8″ assault is 41% successful, a 9″ assault is 27% successful. That is a nerf. There is no way to spin that. My own experience tells me the LRC provides less effective firepower and the mathhammer backs this up. It is still preferable to move a vehicle in order to protect it from assault, though doing so in 6E is less effective. However, even if the LRC moves 1″, it no longer fires at full effectiveness. This is where the LRC shined after disembarking a unit; it’s no longer so shiny. Perhaps the answer is not moving, but this is a double edged sword. Having moved 6″ less than a 5E LRC, you might be out of the enemies assault range. But that also means you’re not within half range of the hurricane bolters. Assuming the MM fires at something worthwhile, a distant but stationary LRC kills 5.6 Orcs; a half ranged but moving LRC kills 4.8 Orcs. Woopdeedo? The only reason I see the LRC continuing to move forward is either to use the MM or distract the enemy (both costly choices for a 265pt model).

The saving grace of the LRC is its troop capacity. However, I still don’t see Crusader Squads being worthwhile occupants. They just don’t hit hard enough, though possibly with Rage and a Chaplain? That leaves assault termies and the return of the twin claw termies. Storm shields are no longer necessary in close combat against most units. A twin claw’s 2+ armor is going to go a long way and lightning claws, despite being AP3, are still solid weapons. Weight of wounds may go a long way to countering 2+ armor. But they need to be able to strike at I4, so the LRC gets a bump over the LRPhobos because of its frag launchers.

Phobos: In 5E, the LRP wasn’t a good choice. Landraiders need to take advantage of both their transport capacity and weaponry. The LRP couldn’t do both at the same time. At best, the LRP held a minimal Crusader Squad for capturing objectives.

In 6E, opportunities exist for the LRP. First, it has the potential to be scoring in one BGB mission. A small point, but worth mentioning, and applies to the LRC as well. What has improved for the LRP is its its ability to utilize both its carrying capacity and firepower. It can now move 12″ and fire everything. On top of an accurate lascannon shot using PotMS, a snap shot with a lascannon has a 30% chance of hitting. That’s not bad. Even the heavy bolter has a 16% chance of glancing AV11. A 6″ move with a LRP fires two accurate shots at up to two separate armored targets. Since we’ve been using the LRC for so long and we’re so used to its tactics, here’s where we have to thing outside our box. The turn after disembarking a unit into assault, since it is already 6″ more distant from the enemy, the LRP backs up! Crazy, I know. A 6″ move in reverse leaves the LRP with two accurate lascannon shots and allows the LRP to pick up another unit (perhaps a minimal Crusader Squad following on foot?). Even after disembarking its primary cargo, the LRP continues to use both its carrying capacity and firepower, something that the LRC is less likely to do.

The LRP is more survivable midfield than the LRC because it remains further away from melta. Unfortunately, the LRP can’t purchase Blessed Hull. No doubt, some will consider this a major hit against the LRP. It’s not. The LRC is now lackluster and spending 25 more points on it isn’t going to help, especially considering the LRC will have to continue into the ranks (and melta weapons, which don’t care about BH) of the enemy in order to even make passable its “bonus” firepower. “But the LRP doesn’t have frag launchers.” No sweat, take 5x TH/SS termies. Problem solved.

Here are some mathhammer statistics done by Nikephoros regarding the Phobos.

Redeemer: A LRR functions a lot like a LRC, so I won’t rehash everything. However, when the LRR continues to advance into the enemy it is a far greater threat! Flamestorm cannons have to be accounted for. Of course, allies are necessary to take a Redeemer so, in a way, Rage enters the discussion. If your BT army is designed to take advantage of Rage, the LRR is a less attractive choice because BT terminators can’t use the LRR. The LRC steps up on this point but immediately runs into the nerfed multi-charge rules. A unit of 6+ assault termies (now with twin claws) plus Rage warrants a discussion about overkilling a single unit.

Drop Pods: If LRC advocates are willing to focus on its transport capacity and ignore its lackluster firepower, then the answer is drop pods. Two units of 5xTH/SS termies in drop pods is five points less than 5xTH/SS in a LRC. And in 6E those pods drop first turn. That’s what I call one hell of a blocking distraction. “Yeah, but the termies have to survive a round of shooting.” They do, and it’ll take a lot of firepower to finish them. That’s advantageous to everything else in your army. Use it!

Conclusion: The LRC is a lackluster unit, even in terms of transporting a unit into the fight. The Redeemer provides more anti-infantry firepower; the Phobos and drop pods havemore tactical flexibility. It’s time to think outside the box and away from the LRC.

Space Marines vs Space Wolves

Some thoughts regarding a 1999+1 battle I played yesterday.

I fielded a Blood Angel list with Space Marine allies and my army was a drop pod/mech hybrid.  My opponent fielded Space Wolves with Space Marine allies and his army was all on foot except for a Stormtalon.

Pre-Game.  In our one-off game we set up terrain according to the Alternating Method.  This made things very interesting.  ALL of the terrain ended up between the midfield and his board edge.  He was able to place area terrain for his 3xLong Fangs; I was able to place line of sight blocking terrain that limited his field of fire.  It greatly effected the battle.  I’m expecting most tournaments to shy away from the handling of terrain, but I hope that’s not the case.  Terrain has always played a huge role in warfare and I think the ability to choose your field of battle adds great depth to 40k.

Drop Pods.  I really enjoyed using drop pods.  With 4 units in pods, I felt like I had flexibility about what I could drop, especially considering I fielded Tigurius.  Pointing out the obvious, perhaps, choosing which drop pods drop on the first turn happens right before you drop them and not during deployment when you declare which units are in reserve.  I like that flexibility.  The goal now is to find a good method for ‘equipping’ drop pods.

Dreadnaughts.  The growing consensus is that Dreads are now limited to ranged fire support.  I agree.  Time to buy some Autocannon arms (non-BT codex, of course).

Combat Tactics.  Honestly, part of what is drawing me to the SM codex is Combat Tactics.  Reasons being: the slight lean towards shooting in 6E, the inability to ‘escort’ fleeing models off the table, and a space marines ability to auto-rally according to And They Shall Know No Fear.  In this battle, Combat Tactics played a minor role… largely because one of my Tac Squads got fragged to hell and back by some Long Fangs.  It was nasty.  But also because of being mostly Blood Angels. 

Rune Priests.  A majority of my spells were shut down by my opponent’s Rune Priest.  It was impressive and frustrating.  Having been a Black Templar player for so long, I’m excited to use psychic powers and most of my theoretical lists go heavy on the psykers.  This I will have to rethink.  The prevalence of SW (even more so through Alliances) has a real potential to shut down psykers.  The only noteworthy power I got off was Gate of Infinity, which was cool because the Librarian and his unit were in a Landraider and I disembarked by teleporting out.  As far as we could tell, no rules prevent this from happening.  The question I have is, does Gate of Infinity benefit from locator beacons?  I believe the answer is Yes.  The follow up question is, do locator beacons work for friendly allies?  Again, I think the answer is Yes.

Landraider Crusader.  My Landraider didn’t take much fire this game, so the jury is still out on vehicle survivability.  The single Rhino I took went down quickly to a Stormtalon.  However, in terms of firepower the ‘new’ Landraider Crusader was disappointing.  In 5E, the LRC could move 6″ and fire at full effectiveness.  In 6E, the LRC moves 6″ and isn’t quite as effective.  The multi-melta and assault cannon fire at full, but the hurricane bolters are snap shotting.  Much less effective.  On a 12″ move, the LRC is slightly more effective.  One weapon uses PotMS and everything else snap fires.  More firepower than before, but it’s still not going to do much, even with twin-linked.  In BT lists, the standard (Godhammer) Landraider might become a better choice.  If snap firing Lascannons hit, chances are the target is more worthwhile than a single infantry model.  Also, the heavy bolter isn’t completely worthless anymore.  For non-BT, I’m looking towards the Redeemer.  A 12″ move snaps fires the assault cannon and PotMS toasts all non Termie equivalents with a flamestorm.  No to hit rolls, no cover saves, and probably no armor saves.

No access to Drop Pods?

This argument will no doubt occur quite often until a new round of FAQ’s are release, so a post is worth the effort.  The question:  with the release of 6E, did Black Templars lose access to Drop Pods?

Turn your attention to an unedited version of the BT codex, pg 22 under the Drop Pod Assault heading.  The first sentence of the second paragraph is what I will refer to as the “important sentence.”  It reads:  Any Command Squad, Sword Brethren Squad, Dreadnought or Crusader Squad (not BT Assault Squads) and all types of Terminator squads….”  Those who argue that BT have lost access to drop pods will cite the removal of this important sentence with the release of our 6E FAQ.

I don’t agree with this argument.  I think it’s weaker than the one I’m about to give.

First, let us ask, if the intent was to remove access to drop pods, why update our Drop Pod Assault rules in the first place?  We must have access to drop pods if they updated our drop pod rules.  Makes sense and it’s simple.  This suggests that GW made a simple oversight and will correct their mistake in the next FAQ.

Some might argue that such an oversight isn’t simple because GW included in our FAQ updated wording for the Transport section of our unit entries.  If they were so thorough in updating our Transport entries, but failed to include access to Drop Pods, it must have been intential.  I don’t think this is the case.  Consider what is more likely.  First, the aforementioned scenario:  no access to drop pods.  Considering, fluff wise, that Templars are a fleet based army, this just doesn’t make sense.  Or second, that GW’s sole purpose in updating our Transports sections was to add the word “dedicated.”  Considering a distinction between transports and dedicated transports is important (especially now that units can infiltrate in their dedicated transports), you can see their purpose in doing so.

There’s also the Transport heading for the Drop Pod entry on BT pg 38.  This remains unchanged and gives us some guidance — albeit uncomfortably broad in comparison to other codices — about which units can take a drop pod:  10 Space Marines, 5 Terminators, or 1 Dreadnought.  I believe this sentence gives us enough of a foot hold in arguing for access to drop pods and enough guidance as to which units have access.

Lastly, who determines legality?  People might assume GW, but that’s not the case.  Players prefer a response from GW because it allows for consistency.  However, Tournament Organizers have the final word.  This is true in every case.  I mention this because you might need to argue for the legality of BT drop pods; who knows when GW will fix our codex and FAQ.  Good hunting.

Thoughts on 6th Edition

Been a long while, I hope everyone is well.

This post addresses the question, ‘how has 6th Edition effected Black Templars?’

The short answer:  fielding Black Templars is tough… that didn’t changed.  We’re about the same, or perhaps a little worse off, than we were in 5E.

The long answer.

Vehicles and Transports.  Specifically, the inability to assault out of non-assault vehicles such as Rhinos and Razorbacks.  I’ve continued to play BT even though I haven’t been blogging, and my light mech lists progressively gained more firepower while at the same time gaining more bodies.  Terminators, Typhoons, and Predators became my base of fire and I got rid of Laserbacks.  Instead, I went for weight of numbers with 3-4 full Crusaders squads (heavy on the Neophytes) in Rhinos.  Weight of numbers and Accept Any Challenge was serving me well enough.  With 6E, these Crusader filled Rhinos just aren’t worth it;  an added turn of shooting will eliminate my numerical advantage.  Furthermore, BT Rhinos are just so expensive, and as I see it, easier to kill in 6E.  Same goes for Razorbacks.  In my opinion, both are out.  In terms of transports that leaves Land Raiders and Drop Pods.  My personally jury is still out on Land Raiders and time will tell if their survivability increased or decreased.  That leaves Drop Pods, which I will cover more extensively at some point, but which more immediately brings me to my next point…

Combat Squads can now share transports.  Unfortunately, Black Templars can’t combat squad and with 5 of 6 missions being objective based, i believe pure BT players will be at a disadvantage.  Solutions are aplenty, to include Allies, but that’s a larger discussion.   While all codices will have to concern themselves with how many troops they field, this concern is higher on the list for Black Templars.

Sergeants.  I have only a couple of 6E games under my belt, but I expect our lack of Sergeants will be detrimental.  In terms of close combat preparation, Precision Shots increase survivability.  Against armies like Space Wolves, who greatly outnumber us in terms of power weapons, Precision Shots are necessary in order to even the odds.  As well, in terms of survivability, a majority of our basic power weaponry will lack Look Out Sir protection.  While minor in terms of scale, I believe our lack of Sergeants will take its toll.

Emperor’s Champion.  He no longer fills our HQ requirement.  Thankfully, we have the potential to create powerful characters.  But they aren’t cheap.  Points in a BT army just became tighter.

What do I think improved?

Terminators, without a doubt.  Dual Assault Cannons with Tank Hunters is looking amazing.  As for the survivability of Terminators, my jury is still out.  With the change to vehicles people will be taking more plasma and more multi-shot weaponry, and Rapid Fire weaponry is also improved.  None of this is good for Terminators.  Time will tell.

Drop Pods.  Some may consider the updating of our Drop Pod Assault rules to be detrimental, but I don’t feel the same.  I think it’s a good thing, especially considering reserves rolls are now 3+.  Drop Pods are our cheapest delivery system and I expect they will see more usage.  This is the path I’m looking to take with future BT builds.

Typhoons.  This is a wash, actually.  Landspeeders are less survivable in 6E, but they’re allowed to fire both weapons on their 12″ move.  This is nice for Typhoons with Heavy Bolters, but has the potential to be even more beneficial to Typhoons with multi-meltas, something I like to field considering they’re still 5pts cheaper than other basic Typhoons.

In terms of fluff and style, Black Templars are still the sexiest army out there.  However, personally, I’m starting to lean away from Black Templars and towards the Blood Angel and Space Marine codices with Black Templars and Grey Knights as allies.  A change of scenery will be nice, but also, as the players in my area get better, Black Templars just aren’t gonna hang.  We’ll see how it goes.