40k Campaign Question

[Splinter Fleet Ktulu]

Me and a group of 3 friends have just gotten into 40k (over the last year or so) and we've gotten a handful or two of games in. I was hoping to get our group more active and try to get a regular scheduled gaming time going and figured a good way to do this was put together a campaign. As we all are still trying to nail down all the rules I was wanting to keep it simple, so when I happened upon the "40k in a Flash" article on GW's web site I thought this would be a great way of doing it. As I read the rules, every thing seem to make good sense and easy to run as well as play in. But as I came to the Army restrictions and bonuses from claiming territory I soon realized that it was not set up with our purely biologic race in mind. Therefore I was hoping that someone with a more experienced background could give some pointers on changes that could be made.
If you are unfamiliar with this campaign here is the link to it:
us.games-workshop.com/games/40k/gaming/40Kin40min/default.htm

Any recommendations on how to tweak the rules in order to allow for a Tyranid Army would be greatly appreciated. In specific, the rules reguarding Vehicles and Wargear.

Army Restriction Summary:

• 500 pt.
  
• At least 1 Troop choice
  
• May have 1 HQ, but no more (subject to chng as campaign progresses)
  
• Can only spend 50 pt. on wargear (subject 2 chng as campaign progresses)
  
• No model can have more than 3 wounds
  
• No Special Characters
  
• No 2+ or better Sv.
  
• Can only spend 200pt. on Vehicles(subject 2 chng as campaign progresses)
  

With these limitations effectively remove the Hive Tyrant, Carnifex, and Zoanathrope, is it possible for the Tyranid player to be competive against armor 13 and 14 vehicles?

Thanks in advance for any advise.

[Overread]

This form (similar to combat patrol in its limitations) is not nid friendly. I would suggest taking up the rule which limites the armours that vehicels can have (its in combat patrol), that should balance out your guns.
When ever I have played this type of game I tend to field the following:
shooty warrior support with devourers and vennom cannon - to take out tanks mainly
genestealers with extended carapace - as many as I can.
and thats it! It does not work too badly, though I find that against any army using snipers (eldar pathfinders!) you tend to get blasted to bits. The rules will let you have a lictor though, so you could drop one or two into your army to try and hit hidden sniper groups, even if they don't kill off the snipers it will give you one turn of saftey.
Also you could consider throwing rippers into the army, that would eat up tones of shots from snipers, though you would need a larger warrior precence, which any decent player will target first, thought the leadership of rippers is good.
I have also seen people running swarm armies in this type of game, and I think that if you know there will be players with heavy ranged support then a swarm might be the best line, as it will eat up the shots comming at you.

End result - its not nid friendly, but you can win - its just harder for you than it is for some other armies (like Tau)

[coredump]

Yes it rules out the TMC's and Zoan. But you can take the BLord and warriors for synapse.
Also look towards things that have a high leadership, or don't need synapse.
Stealers, gargoyles, lictors, raveners, rippers, biovore.
With only 200pts in vehicles, it helps you out. (Combat patrol has no such limit) Stealers and raveners do just fine taking out tanks, and if a lictor can get to the rear armor, it should work out okay.
If you want to run gaunts, you may have issues with enough synapse. But in general, there really isn't a need to change the rules.

[Splinter Fleet Ktulu]

Thanks for the advise. I'll give it a try and see how I do.

[kilzoth]

Use biovores for taking down the vehicles or if your really worried about it clear using a elite fex with your friends in exchange for not having vehicles (if they all run one)

Deepstriking 3*3 Bioacid mines works wonders in small games. 108 points for 9 small blast templates. They will kill any unit your enemy has (ap 3) if they wound it. Also open topped vehicles they automaticly score a glancing hit even if they don't glance but with 2d6+3 armor penetration it should even the odds. 200 points in vehicles goes down quick to 100 points if spore mines.

[coredump]

I advise against it. To me 100 out of 500 pts is too much to risk on the spore mines. They can easily scatter too far.

Bioacid mines do not auto glance, that is Toxin mines

[arcticsnake]

500 points is too small a game to try to squeeze suicide models in. Better use of the points would be a Lictor, Raveners, Stealers, or making sure that you are able to field three Biovores.

[Overread]

Lictors are strickly suicide models anyway, but they are more directed and not as big a waste of points. I would recommend them as at low point levels you need something to break up a shooty/sniper unit, even if you only get one or two turns of safty.

[obit]

What all fits under the 50 pt Wargear limit? I've always thought that would just be Bio-morphs. Since you have to have a weapon, weapon-symbiotes wouldn't count as wargear...?

[obit]

Suggested Army:
Broodlord with 5 Genestealer Retinue
1 Lictor
6 Genestealers
3 Warriors with +BS, +S, 2 Devourers, Venom Cannon
2 Raveners with Rending

499 points

[Overread]

Not sure if this is the right place for an army list obit - tactics might be better
next; with no monsterous creatures you will never ever spend more than 50 points on wargear for a tyranid in this format - if you do you have done something mad!

Now for the list: I can see where you are going, but I don't like the looks of the list. Nothering specific, just that I feel that it is trying to do too much. I would, personally, keep the lictor and try to add another, whilst - as you have - focussing the rest of the army on CC. The lictors should be able to buy you so good defence against a sniper player - but don't rely on their survivl, treat them as a one shot wonder, and then be happy if they survive longer.
The warriors I would want to give ectended carapace to, it really is worth is on warriors, also those warriors would have to have a second weapon as well, I would stick with scything talons for cost.
raveners are good, don't get me wrong, but I feel that in this list they are out on their own a bit = just the way I feel.

[obit]

Ah, I did forget the 2nd weapon. So noted.

I was trying to form a list that is well adapted to most situations. With the Broodlord + retinue, you have a great threat that will obviously bring the attention of your opponent. With 500 point armies, he will either need to completely focus on the BL or run from it. This allows your other "threats" to come to bear.

For example. with the Lictor, you have a pretty good chance of deep striking 1 if not both of the raveners. Either make a pincer attack with your BL + retinue on one side and the Raveners on the other, or place them near the BL (Synapse benefit) to guarantee a strong flanking attack. The lictor is just meant to pick off the heavy weapon teams, the loaners, etc, anything to tie up the troops till your flankers, or main force gets there. (I hate devastator teams that get 3 turns to fire all heavy weapons).

The warriors are just there to provide the much needed fire support and anti-tanking. You can't take Zoanthropes (+2 save), you can't take a shooty tyrant or carni (4 wounds). Perhaps a Biovore could fill the nitchbut doesn't seem to fit well with such a low point army. The warriors also give you some backup synapse. The genestealers are vulnerable, but with so many other crucial targets (BL, Raveners), they could potentially be ignored till they close.

It is an elitist build with the object being to have several individual units that are very deadly if ignored. I have no idea how it would actually perform but may game test it to find out.

To get the points to work out, and adding the save to the warriors (I agree they could really use it) it would need to look something like:

1 Bl with 5 Gene
1 Lictor
1 Ravener
3 Warriors, +BS, +S, +SV, 2 Devs, 1 VC, 3 Rend (my preference)
6 genes with scuttle

[obit]

I guess the other thing that comes into to play is how the campaign develops. If you are going entirely off of the 40k in a flash campaign, certain territories will grant you bonuses. Unless I missed it, none of the territories will allow you to take units with more than 3 wounds or 2+ saves. So even has the campaign progresses and your points get higher, you will be limited to the same restrictions. Bonus wargear, as overmind2000 pointed out, to non MC's is only a slight bonus. Points for tanks are worthless.

Maybe in constructing the campaign with Nids, you can tweak the rules to get a 3 wound carni, or custom the territory roll chart.

[Overread]

The ravener is not a deep striker, he can be good at grabbing table quaters and objectives late game, but he is not a deep striker. why?, because he cannot to a thing for a whole turn, the only way he can is if you give him a gun, where he then becomes overly expensive. The lictor works well because he can assault as soon as he appears, thus get into action before the enemy can turn and shoot.
From that list I would drop the ravener and either try to fit in more genestealers. Note that the stealers with scuttlers will overtake the broodlord as his group cannot fleet, whilst the other can. Also consider adding extended carapace to the genestealers as opposed to scuttlrs, I find it works, but this advice is very much dependent on who advises you, tyranid players can find no common agreement to the answer.

[TheRockit]

I want to get some clarification on interpreting the rules for this campaign style...
The rule indicate that you cannot initially field a unit with a 2+ or better save. Lictors have an 'always gets cover save from shooting' & Zoanthropes get an invulnerable save. It seems to me then that these units would NOT be available to use under the guidelines. Same would go for Thousand Sons, Eldar Rune Armor, etc.

I am interpreting '2+ or better save' as any save which is 2+ or provides a save in a situation where normally the model would not get a save or would have a worse save.

Any help or ideas on that? (My Eldar buddy is perturbed that I think a 5+ Invulnerable is equal to or better than a 2+ normal save & it's a sticky point in the camapign we are starting).