Final 1250 point list for the 9k 1250 tournament

Finally finished tweaking my 1250 list for the upcoming tournament the 24th. I play tested the list, tuning it to something which i was satisfied had a good balance of armor killer, good amount of troops, mobility and last but not least, some good amount of demolition charges!

The way i been playing the list is fairly simple. I hang out in the back  firing on the enemy as he advances towards my gun line. I made some horrible mistakes with my vendettas in the beginning when i started using them and ended up loosing them fast.

Now i hang back with them, demeching metal boxes and prepare for swooping in at turn 5 to claim objectives(my vendettas are carrying the special weapons squad and platoon command squad(both troops)). If its not objectives i then use em  very aggressive trying to get maximum damage outta em(which in the later games have been a great success).

The Veterans, which i actually bought the Chimera for, is for does tough 2+ save units or high toughness(terminators, nob bikers, deep strikers, demon prince, nurgle marines etc.). I also use this squad to try and grab objectives in the later game if they are still alive.

Straken is keeping near my gun line, throwing out orders and ready to counter attack. Basilisk is staying behind the gun line most of the time in cover if possible, else i put it in the furthest corner away from my main force. Marbo is there for fun and an additional demo charge!

Next thing coming up is the finished special weapons squad, which i am painting the bases for as we speak, so expect them soon! Then i just need 3 guardsmen more and i will be done with my grunts.

More to come.

Ras

Preparing for 1250 tournament! Next months plan and List

Hey Guys, Ras here from Romania.
Just found out that 9k is having a 1250 tournament on the 24 September and this time i am actually home to compete.. Wooohuuu!! Now everything has to be painted and its WYSIWYG so that leaves me with a about a month to paint up the last i need for my list so this mean lots of Catachan post for you guys who missed the Catachan content the last few months.We will play the missions from Nova.

Mostly stuff i usually bring with the exception of a vendetta gunship and veterans without Harker! Now i still need confirmation from Michael that he have time to give the vendetta and the sentinels the usually base green with highlights but if hes for it, then this list is more or less the one i will bring(feedback always welcome, but keep in mind i still need to paint it! ;)).

Here is what i need to paint in the month:

2 Guardsmen with flamers
1 Sargent
5 regular guardsmen
1 vendetta gunship(needs to be catachanized)
2 scout sentinels

I am up for the challenge!

The 1000 points team Tournament list

I think i finally finished my army list for the team tournament.  I am working on finishing at least another Chimera, the platoon plasma squad and the ratlings within this month.

Leaving me with a basilisk and 2 mortar teams April! I cant wait to play with a fully painted army for the first time in my life..!

So expect pictures of the plasma platoon, another chimera and ratlings next week.

I might be a little short on Tank busters but all 3 of my team members wield a lot of that so i see no need to change my normal tactics.

I form a firebase and let loose the pain on my advancing opponents. When they get near i will sacrifice my infantry squads on at a time, buying me optimistic 2 more rounds of shooting(hopefully they will wipe my infantry squad in their charge). Strakens squad will kick some ass after with a counter charge.

Ratlings and mortars will try and slow(pin) and thin down the troops outside transports. If i meet a mechanized army on my side i will open up the transports with my auto cannons(bring it down), missile launchers(bring it down) and multilasers. Then rain fire from the sky on the merging troops with mortar/sniper fire/basilisk. Round 4-5 i will use the chimeras(if they still live) to race forward and grab a extra objective(if we play objectives).

I had some very good games lately at the club. I am starting to get a good feel on the infantry list and to use it well. Mobility in some games are still a problem, but overall i am very happy how my catachans are doing. Also its priceless to play as the only one, in a world of mech, with an infantry army(although the arrival of chimeras and basilisks wont classify it that anymore).

I will miss my special weapons teams with my usual flamer/demo, melta/demo setups and Harkers devils but for this tournament only 1 Special character on each team. My mates knowing i always have a special character or 3 in my army, gave me the rights to use Straken(god bless em) and i just don't have the points for the special weapon teams. I am trying out a lot of new things in this list and i am looking forward to seeing how it will do!

Ras

1000 points team Tournament list

Tournament time!

Okey guys so there is a tournament at the local gaming club coming up in roughly 2 and a half month. We each form teams consisting of 4 players. I joined forces with 2 space marines and 1 Grey Knight player. I know one of the space marine players like to play very offensive, wheres the other one is very mech heavy(lately been running with 3 preds) and the Grey knight player is one of my friends starting up Grey knights, so i have no idea how he will roll. But i am thinking lots of power armor and properly terminators and dreads.

So with that in mind, i started forming a list using the same tactics as my newly made 1750 points list except from the outflanking part(there is not enough points). 

The plan!

If we are playing objectives:

I will hold our objects and create a fire base. I will hold everything back trying to do as much damage on my opponents as i can trying to support my ally while he advances up the table until turn 3 or 4 and then zoom in with my chimeras and try to contest/claim another objectives. If the possibility to infiltrate in a good spot opens up i might infiltrate either ratlings , vets or maybe both. I will use Straken to boost my auto cannons and infantry squads. If the opponents happens to get near me,  i will then feed my infantry squads one at a time while hopefully down em in fire after their consolidate move. Strakens cleans up if anything left.

If we are playing kill points:

Basicly same tactic. Form a fire base in one corner and try to shoot our opponents to pieces before they get to us.

The catch!

I have 2 and a half month to paint units in the list i haven't already painted up so i need to finallise my armylist as fast as possible so i can plan what units to paint. I would love all you guys thoughts on my list.

Ras signing out. 

To play fluff or not to play fluff? New 1750 catachan jungle fighter army list.

From the start of the blog i have always kept my Catachans straight with the fluff. I have always taken great joy in being not one of does players that look in the book, takes the best units and then just spam them on the armylist paper. When i play my foot army i know many people are shaking their heads and think: "Ohh boy.... this guy doesn't know whats going on in his own codex" but at the same time it is almost always guarantied that the same person will smile while thinking it.That being said i wanna change my army in a bit different direction and i am gonna tell you my reasons.



The Weaknesses

 

My list have 2 big weaknesses in objective games. Mobility and heavy firepower. Cause i have no transports i am forced to either foot slog it up the board towards the objectives, infiltrate near the objectives or outflank and grab one of my opponents objectives while holding on to my own.

First one is very bad for IG since we are very weak in generel close combat. Our army is made for pounding the enemy from afar certainly not get closer.

Secondly, while it is possible we are back to point one. Even Harks squad dug in deep with 3+ cover save, die very fast when close combat troops get to em or enough ranged firepower are brought on em.

Third have been my main tactic since i started playing and while this can work well in some situations, it suffers from a few things in my current army list. My main out-flankers have been Sentinels, penal legion and from time to time Harkers devils(veterans). The most common reason to this not working is that outflanking is horrible unreliable. Sometimes my out-flankers all come in in 1st or 2nd turn and get wiped out in 3rd or 4th turn. For this tactic to work best, i have to arrive in 3rd or 4th turn so my opponent already move most his forces forward.

Mobility.. Yeah footslogging troops don't have much of that. Even with my guerrilla army list with Harker, penal legion, sentinels and Marbo. Once they are in, they are in and my opponent knows where i will be at the next turns.

Heavy firepower.. while my army can put out a good deal of str 5-8 pr turn, i am really lacking the lascannons or bigger to take on some of the bigger beasts in the game. I am lacking a central gather point where i can focus my defenses around and dig in.

The change

Here is a sketch with my thoughts on how i would like to try to improve my army and at the same time go to 1750 points and be more competitive.

I still got some things to figure out. Like what weapons to put on the chimeras and what to use the last 8 points on.

The plan

The plan with the list is to fortify myself as far away from my opponent as possible and put all the hurt on him as possible from afar. Then in turn 3 or 4 start moving my chimeras out with my CCS and PCS inside to claim and contest objectives in turn 5 and in case game goes further hold it.

My army will center around my basilisk and mortars. I will use my infantry squads as sacrificial units to get eaten up when they reach me and then i will counterattack with my special weapons teams with some(hopefully) well placed demolition charges and then finished by ogryns or Straken CCS if they survive mass firepower and the demo charges after the consolidation move.

The sentinels and my penal legion will still outflank and hopefully draw some units away from the main force and maybe even capture a objective(it have happened before). Marbo will still jump out of nowhere and deal some hurt. Harkers devils... They will be where they will be most needed depending on who and how my opponents position himself. Which brings me back to the first picture in the post!

What do you guys think? One of the main worries i have is that the chimeras even held back behind cover might not survive the first 3 turns if my opponent figures it out. But then again, they are front armor 12 and i will try to park one so that it will give cover to the basi and the other so it will get a 4+ cover save. Might be easier said than done.

Ras signing out!

Catachan 1500 point armylist and future 1750.

The last week or two i been seeing some real nice debate on the blog concerning improvements on my 1000 point list. Basically what worked, what didn't work and what units could be interesting to put in to cover some of the weaknesses in my list.

I had a plan on what units i would use in when i expanded from 1000 point and i had bought most of them in some of the first months of starting my army. Does of you who haven followed me for a while or read just a few on my post properly already know that my army is based more on fluf than winning tournaments. The fluf is what drives me to keep painting, converting and playing an Imperial guard: Catachan jungle fighter army. That being said i would still love to win games at the local club. In short i would like to be competitive at a club perspective, but still follow the fluf.

Now without further mumbling here is my 1500 points list(notice i am building from the 1000 points).

Edit. This list is actually wrong. I seem to have miss calculated the Command squad. As Marcus said its actually 310 not 260 which is a whooping 50 points wrong!

HQ:
CCS: Straken, medic, 2 laspistols with close combat weapons, Nork Deddog, vox and carapace armor upgrade.
260points

Lord Commisar: powerfist (Joins the ogryns)
85points

TROOPS:
PCS:  Vox and heavy bolter HWT.
45points
Infantry squad 1: grenadelauncher, HWT with missile launcher and vox.
70points
Infantry squad 2: grenadelauncher, HWT with missile launcher and vox.
70ponts
HWT 1: 3 Missile launchers. 
90points
HWT 2: 3 autocannons. 
75points
Veteran squad: Harker, 2 melta, flamer and 1 demolition charge.
180points
penal legion
80points

Special weapons team: demolition charge, 2 flamers.
65points

HWT squad: 3 Mortars
60points


ELITE:
Marbo:
65points

Ogryns: 3 ogryns + bone ead
175points

FAST ATTACK:
1 scout sentinel squad: 2 with auto cannons and 1 missile launcher
135p

Total 1455.

Now this leaves me with 45 points left which can be used for upgrades when its needed. I was considering upgrading all the sentinels with lascannons for 35 points but i am very worried that it wont do with bs 3.
The second reason to the list is to ignore the Landraider and let it come to me.. with Straken, Nork, a bunch of angry ogryns and to top that of a special weapons team with demolition a charge, i wouldn't give it long to live, when it do get near(hopefully).

I do know that i am to low on Mortars but when i go 1750points ill add a lot of mortar HWT in, maybe even sooner after testing the list.

Plan is that i make a fire base and leave one flank to the PCS and 1 inf squad. Ill then outflank with the vets, penal legion and the sentinels to steal objectives and get does long ranged artillery. The penal legion squad doesn't need to kill anything, but if it can hold up some artillery, engage some devastators etc to give the rest of the army some breathing space while Strakens boys along with the ogryns beat beat on everything with the rest of the army shooting with everything it got.

I was toying with the vendetta gunship armed with the missing las cannons, but i am afraid it would give my opponent 1 juicy target to shot at.

With the added Lord Commissar i also have the option of combining squads for when playing killpoint missions with that big nasty blob of infantry leaded by a the lord Commissar with ld 10.

I know that my CCS is clocking out on 260 points which is a hell of a lot, but i think it will be worth it.


The above picture was drawn by Phil Moss 
and belongs to him.

My new 1000 point Catachan list.

 Okey so here is the list i came up with for Thursday next week. I altered the old list to tweak in some more ranged tank buster firepower and i also threw out the small ratling squad. I am curious to see if this list + the experiances i gained last Thursday will put the Catachans on top of the game versus the fast and brutal space wolves. 


 With this list i will have to make some alterations with the Heavy weapon teams and also need a few extra heavy weapon teams made. I already converted the sentinel with the missile launcher. My main plan this time will be to hang out more in the back with cover and try to hurt the wolves all i can before they charge in my face. Hopefully with the added firepower i can stop more than last game which shouldn't be to hard considering i only took out one rhino. Without further waiting, here is the list.


HQ:
CCS: Straken, medic, 2 plasma, carapace armor and vox.
180p


TROOPS:
PCS:
35p vox
Inf squad 1: grenadelauncher, HWT with missile launcher and vox.
70p
Inf squad 2: grenadelauncher, HWT with missile launcher and vox.
70p
HWT 1: 3 Missile launchers. 
90p
HWT 2: 3 autocannons. 
75p
Vet squad: Harker, 2 melta, flamer.
150p

ELITE:
Marbo:
65p
Ogryn: 2ogryns + bone ead
130

FASTATTACK:
1 scout sentinal squad: 2 with autocannons and 1 missile launcher
135p

Total 1000p straight.

My 500 point starting list

A few days ago i got woken up by a knocking on my door. My girlfriend went up and open the door and as i hoped, the box from the UK had arrived!



With the postman coming with the IG codex and a Catachan battle force it was time to get started on figuring how to approach my first 500 point army. I skimmed the codex and i made a army list based on some ideas on how i would like to play my army. My ideas had lots of holes amongst other things i didnt have a plantoon command squad! But luckely i had help on the forum and i ended up with a list very close to what i wanted and this time it was legal...!

This is the list i ended up with:

HQ

CCS (5) (vox)(Melta.)
-65 points

TROOPS
PCS (5) (vox)(grenadelauncher)
-40 points
Infantry squad (10) (vox)
-55 points
veteran squad + Gunnery Sergeant Harker (10) (vox, 2 meltas, 1 heavyflamer)
-170 points
-Heavy weapons squad (auto cannons)
-75 points
Infantry squad (10) (vox)
-55 points

FASTATTACK

Scout sentinel (auto cannon)
-40points

=500 points

The plan is that i will deploy Harker with his squad in cover near my enemy's deployment zone and try to pop as much mech as possible. The heavy flamer and Harkers Heavy Bolter should be able to do some damage if my opponent try to assault the squad. The bonuses from cover and Harker should make the last a few turns with just a bit luck.

The heavy weapon teams will add more "tank bustah" firepower and the infantry squads will be claiming and infantry killing. The sentinel i just threw in there to try it out and to add just a bit of uncertainty to my opponent with autocannon on the top.

Atleast thats the teory, when i get the army painted up ill put it to the test.