The HEAVY GUNS of the BLASTED PRAETORIANS
Welcome Brothers and Sisters, I’m James, an average closet Warhammer Nerd who has been drawn back into the Warhammer Universe by a Slaaneshi Fiend (friend) I thought I had left the Grim Dark Future behind me in the late 90’s….but it looks like I am back. Join me on my journey back to social and tournament 40K gaming.
The Space Marine factions are spoilt for choice when it comes to tanks and heavy hitting ranged weaponry.
A couple of months ago, top 40K players and Meta muncher’s, were using some Mech heavy lists. John Lennon was using a Stormraven Gunship, Zach Point was using 3 Repulsor Executioners and Mark Hertel was using his 3 Land Raiders army.
STORM RAVEN
Art of War’s John Lennon was using a StormRaven Gunship…
These are some big Meta brains and each of them were making it work to win tournaments. Obviously I am also going to be focused more on competitive games (no apologies) and so it’s tempting to see this sort of army working and jump on the bandwagon.
However, I’m not in the same league as these guys..…yet and so the precise deployment and movement needed with armies like these is risky for a green horn like myself.
But the more lore I read and listen to and the more tanks and Dreadnoughts I see, I just flipping love them!! The tanks, Dreadnoughts and big Mecha of the other factions have a thematic powerful look on the tabletop. Whether it’s Tau Battlesuits and Hammerheads (Yes even Tau) or Ork Big Meks in Mega Armour or a Leman Russ tank, I can’t get enough of how kickass they look in game. My return to Warhammer has been a journey back to my childhood, letting myself just have fun and using my playful imagination again. The more I am letting go of Warhammer being just for kids, the more I want big, smashy, fast hulking stuff that can crush a man or even a superhuman genetically modified man!!! You know for sure I’m going to be making the muffled sound of tank tracks rolling and Dreadnoughts stomping during the movement phase.
(the hammers of Dorn list will happen next year!!)
The Imperial Fists lore is steeped in their abilities with siege warfare and I think for future commissions the Tech Priests at Blasted Miniatures are going to be getting a request for a Vindicator and perhaps even a Whirlwind or two!! The whirlwind I had totally written off but I think there could be some serious value in them, especially if you are brave and take two of them.
There isn’t much in the way of indirect fire in competitive 40K at the moment and I think having indirect fire and making it an effective tactic, would rely on the rest of your force being completely built around this though. For now I don’t want to go all in for that tactic but it’s another interesting idea brewing in my squishy brain.
As for Vindicators, they just look so damn cool!! I know some people hate the sculpts and think they look like a shoebox with a toilet roll stuck on the front! But I think they look chunky, uncompromising and industrial, just the sort of thing the Imperium would build (leave that sleek curvy stuff to the elves). With that hazard warning marking painted across the dozer blade, Ooooh Yeah!! as Randy Savage would say. This would also be a much easier fit for my current list as I would just swap out a unit of Terminators. The Vindicator is a bit of a gamblers choice though, you could be doing anything from 30 wounds or more, down to 1 or 2 wounds and a sad face. I do think their threat counts for a lot though but you’ve got to be able to capitalise if your opponent is avoiding it or prioritising it. This time around, their points cost just barely pushed it out of reach with the other units I wanted to include in the army.
VINDICATOR
A boxy boy might be a Hammer of Dorn addition in the future. Purely for their good looks :-)
So who made the cut for my tank line in the 2025 draft, well number 1 pick was the Gladiator Lancer. Apart from targets with an invulnerable save, whatever the Lancer hits….he destroys!! AP-4 is savage, giving no save to most targets, damage D6+3 and being able to re-roll one hit, wound and damage roll, it really is a lethal tank. The weakness is he only gets 2 shots from the big gun and he is a high priority target for the enemy. Depending on how my matches go I could see myself exchanging a Ballistus for a 2nd Lancer, especially if KNIGHTS continue to feature heavily in the Meta. I was sent a recent video of mine as it progresses:
Oh yeah, number 2 in the draft, a pair of Ballistus Dreadnoughts. These venerable old Brothers are solid, tough and reliably hard hitting. Re-rolls to hit on enemies above half strength, 2 lascannon shots and the nice ability to be able to choose between krak and frag shots dependant on the target. Sure their movement isn’t great but I will probably play around with having 1 of these Brothers in reserves, giving me that bit of flexibility to react to the enemies first 1 or 2 rounds of movement. In my head I’ve already nicknamed them The Brothers Grimm.
A BROTHER GRIMM
One of my Two Brothers grim - latest work in progress picture.
Joining the Brothers Grimm and the Lancer is the classic Predator Destructor. For starters, its a tank that looks like a tank. It reminds me of the tanks I had on my wall as a little kid and so it’s already got extra cool bonus points. In game its relatively cheap at 140 points and packs a lot of punch. As well as the 2 lascannons, the Autocannon provides some much needed anti elite infantry threat. Being able to get the bonus pip of AP when targeting infantry makes these guys a real worry for things like Eightbound and Bullgryn and if they aren’t worried, they should be!! Actually I’m not sure Eightbound or Bullgryn tend to worry about anything, maybe they worry about who would win in a benchpress contest if they found themselves in a gym, that’s a lot of testosterone right there!!
So that’s the Blasted Praetorians, the result of a lot of switching of idea’s six months ago, from emperors children, raven guard, grey knights, black templars, to minotaurs and finally I’ve landed right back where I started. A reformed former chaos heretic doing it for Dorn. Pure in Mind and with a cold logic that is ready to dismantle my foes. Nine weeks now until London GT, win lose or draw, the experience there is no doubt going to be awesome. I know I’ll meet some great people, my 40K skills will skyrocket and I might even make some friends along the way. Bring on the beer and hotdogs.
FOR THE EMPEROR!!
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