Welcome to Competitive Innovations, our weekly feature for a number of game lines across the tabletop wargame space. Each week our army list and tactics experts canvass the top tournaments for their game of specialty, looking at the week’s top match-ups and how they played out on the tabletop to let you know what’s hot, what’s not, and what might be coming next as the competitive meta evolves year-round.
Lowest of Men: Hi guys! Sorry for the disrupted schedule this week – Wings has been sick and I’ve been knee deep in preparations for Home Nations, so this absolute bumper week of events came at a bad time! That said, there are some really cool lists in here, so let’s get into it!
Firebug Open 2025
156-player, 6-round Grand Tournament in Ettlingen, BW, Deutschland on April 11 2025. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Fred Otto – Imperial Knights (Noble Lance) Army List - Click to Expand
Ein Atrapos
4 Warglaives
6 Helverin
10 Sisters mit Imo
(Short and sweet Fred, like it)
Thoughts
A blowout win here that merits an autopsy. Ynnari Aeldari are one of the strongest rulesets in the game with a lot of great datasheets. The Yvraine / Incubi brick gives you great central control, and you have a lot of reach with Banshees and Warp Spiders to cause mischief. Wraith Lords give you a bit of solidity. What the army doesn’t have, is the ability to consisntely manage massed stat-checks, especially of a mech variety.
Lots of Armigers, an Atropos and an Immolator is a classic build for Knights at the moment. To do meaningful damage to it, Fire Dragons and Wraith Lords have to be committed – very little else in the Ynnari list reliably kills Knights, though you do have some Fusion Guns smattered around on the Autarchs. Armies that can force an ‘all-in’ from the Elves – and the high toughness, high OC Knights are certainly one – have the best chance of forcing a huge early scrap that the Aeldari really don’t want, and rolling to victory if they fall short. In the event, it looks like that is what happened here.
Result
Imperial Knights (Noble Lance) Victory – 100 – 48
Fred Otto – Imperial Knights (Noble Lance) – 1st Place
Imperial Knight Lance. Credit: Jack Hunter
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
Ein Atrapos
4 Warglaives
6 Helverin
10 Sisters mit Imo
Archetype
Armigers, Big Knight, Immolator
Thoughts
Another event win for the Imperial Knights, who are having a strong few months. Big skew can catch out the many infantry armies teching for each other, and the disappearance of Dakka can only be a positive for the Noble Houses. Not a tonne else to say about it – stripping cover for Armigers is a recipe for success! Very well done on the event win.
William Fuhrimann – Chaos Space Marines (Renegade Raiders) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)
Abaddon the Despoiler. Credit: Swiftblade
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
0.01 thanks liam (2000 Points)
Chaos Space Marines
Renegade Raiders
Strike Force (2000 Points)
CHARACTERS
Abaddon the Despoiler (280 Points)
• Warlord
• 1x Drach’nyen
• 1x Talon of Horus
An interesting combined arms build that channels four tanks and Abaddon energy but compliments them with 15 Possessed. There is a sneaky Sorcerer in Terminator Armour to drop down and provide an extra AP for the army via Death Hex – this takes Renegade to some really silly places, and there are plenty of scoring pieces here to supplement the damage. CSM outside of Bile haven’t been as common of late so it’s cool to see this out! Well done.
Leif Westermann – Aeldari (Devoted of Ynnead) – 3rd Place
Credit: Greg Narro
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
firebug (2000 points)
Aeldari
Strike Force (2000 points)
Devoted of Ynnead
20 Fire Dragons is a vibe – you aren’t getting caught out quite as hard by a vehicle or monster skew, and it is far harder for the opponent to push you. I like the Raider and Wave Serpent in Ynnari – Transports are a consistent means to triggering Lethal Intent if the opponent really wants to deal with you. Great work on the top placing!
Christian Schachmann – T’au Empire (Mont’ka) – 4th Place
An absolutely brutal triple Hammerhead, triple Riptide, triple Skyray Tau list – this is going to come at you fast and blast you to pieces, and I low-key love it. MSU Kroot Hounds and Stealth Suits support and score. It ain’t subtle, but it is glorious. Well done!
The Best of the Rest
There were 12 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
6th – Patrick Schmitt – Tyranids: ‘Nids’, apparently. Lol.
7th – Pascal Haberstroh – Blood Angels: JPI and Bladeguard Heavy BA with some Ballistus in support.
8th – Simon Rosen – Emperor’s Children: An early run out for Coteries Goodstuff EC – max Noise bois, Lord Exultants, some Daemon Princes and Rhinos.
9th – Samir Amr – Chaos Space Marines: Abaddon tank Renegade Raiders with some Warp Talons.
10th – Roman Kleiber – Aeldari: The Ynnari list from the showdown.
11th – Marc Worz – Necrons: Silent King and Destroyer MSU in Awakened.
12th – Ben Hacklander – Death Guard: Massed Predators in Plague Company.
13th – Norman Werner – Thousand Sons: Tsons Goodstuff with lots of Cultists.
14th – Ares Luthi – Aeldari: Punchy Aspect Host with a big Fire Dragon brick.
15th – Rudiger Krauss – Leagues of Votann: Double Fort Oathband with 20 Hearthguard.
Tennessee Elite Open GT
61-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Clarksville, TN, United States on April 12 2025. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Mark Perry – Chaos Daemons (Unknown Detachment) – 1st Place
Be’lakor, the Dark Master. Credit: SRM
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
bellcore (1995 points)
Chaos Daemons
Strike Force (2000 points)
Shadow Legion
CHARACTERS
Be’lakor (375 points)
• Warlord
• 1x Betraying Shades
1x The Blade of Shadows
Bloodthirster (320 points)
• 1x Great axe of Khorne
1x Hellfire breath
• Enhancement: Fade to Darkness
Lord of Change (260 points)
• 1x Bolt of Change
1x Staff of Tzeentch
Shadow Legion is emerging as a force to beat in the meta game – being able to no-sell shooting armies, pick off melee ones with an anti-trading Bloodthirster, and generally cause mayhem with invuln toting deviants is a recipe for success! Not a tonne of surprises in the list here- Havocs love hanging out with their new best pal Belly – and it’s definitely a list you need to understand if you want to go deep in an event. Well done on the win!
Tony Baumayr – Astra Militarum (Combined Arms) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)
Cadian Shock Troops. Credit: SRM
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
TEO – Tank CA (1995 points)
Astra Militarum
Strike Force (2000 points)
Combined Arms
A tasteful smattering of Rogal Dorn, Leman Russ, and massed Infantry with transports here. A 20 brick of Krieg adds a bit of solidity. Guard seem able to muddle through to top placings at the moment but it’s not easy, with a lot of pressure to navigate to make it to the top. Really well done on the top placing!
Blake Clotfelter – Leagues of Votann (Oathband) – 3rd Place
Leagues of Votann Hearthkyn Warriors. Credit: Rich Nutter
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
April GT (2000 points)
Leagues of Votann
Strike Force (2000 points)
Oathband
Votann continue to prove solid and consistent, with lots of Sagitaurs, Land Forts, and Thunderkyn propping up this particular build. Volum S5 shooting is nice to have with orks about, and the overwatch control lane helps make life perilous for those pesky elves as well. The formula of a skew that is itself anti-skew keeps on making hay for the Kyn! Well done on the placing.
Charles Barber – Aeldari (Devoted of Ynnead) – 4th Place
Eldar Farseer Skyrunner. Credit: Rockfish
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
Putzing Around the Underworld (1995 points)
Aeldari
Strike Force (2000 points)
Devoted of Ynnead
Chunky Wraithlord Ynnari is emerging as a staple build. Nice to see the Farseer with the Enhancement here for a tiny bit of extra juice and a cheeky dev wound or two where you need it. Otherwise, very much business as usual here! Well done on the top placing.
The Best of the Rest
There were 7 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
5th – Steven Crawley – Adeptus Custodes: Heroic all-in Allarus in Lions. Amazing.
Swooping Hawks (170 points)
• 1x Swooping Hawk Exarch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Hawk’s talon
• 9x Swooping Hawk
• 9x Close combat weapon
9x Lasblaster
Warp Spiders (95 points)
• 1x Aspect Shrine Token
• 1x Warp Spider Exarch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Death weavers
1x Spinneret rifle
• 4x Warp Spider
• 4x Close combat weapon
4x Death spinner
Warp Spiders (95 points)
• 1x Aspect Shrine Token
• 1x Warp Spider Exarch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Death weavers
1x Spinneret rifle
• 4x Warp Spider
• 4x Close combat weapon
4x Death spinner
Warp Spiders (95 points)
• 1x Aspect Shrine Token
• 1x Warp Spider Exarch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Death weavers
1x Spinneret rifle
• 4x Warp Spider
• 4x Close combat weapon
4x Death spinner
Archetype
Kabalite Ynnari
Thoughts
An event win for the Ynnari, who dine out on their incredibly powerful sequencing plays. Double Kabalite Venom is fantastic in this detachment- you get throwaway OC, cheap transports, and lots of potential triggers for the Yncarne and Lethal Intent. Can highly recommend! Really well done on the event win.
koldo besga – Orks (More Dakka) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)
A Ynnari / Dakka podium feels about right! This list slams in two Morkanauts and two Gorkanauts for style points. Deadly, very effective when placed tactically in the Waaagh, and a great transport chassis for lots of Lootas and Flash Gitz. What’s not to love? Well done on the top placing.
The Best of the Rest
There were 7 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
3rd – Alex Robleno – Chaos Knights: War Dogs.
4th – Iñaki Arrieta – Necrons: Silent King / DDA Starshatter.
6th – Kikko Alpha Strike – Death Guard: Double Plague Marine brick and supporting Vehicles.
7th – Egoitz Eguillor – Adeptus Custodes: Tasteful mixed arms Custodes in Lions.
8th – The Butcher – Blood Angels: Sanguinor inspired MSU with some Vindicators.
9th – Peli – Death Guard: Deathshroud bricks with Brigand shooting support.
The 36 Chambers #4
40-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Stockport, England, United Kingdom on April 12 2025. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Rory Andrew – Adeptus Custodes (Lions of the Emperor) – 1st Place
Allarus Custodians. Credit: Pendulin
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
NEW STUFF! Lions test (2000 Points)
Adeptus Custodes
Lions of the Emperor
Strike Force (2000 Points)
CHARACTERS
Blade Champion (120 Points)
• 1x Vaultswords
Shield-Captain in Allarus Terminator Armour (155 Points)
• 1x Balistus grenade launcher
• 1x Guardian spear
• Enhancements: Superior Creation
Custodes take an event, with the newly juiced up power of Lions of the Emperor taking them back to the heights. This list packs in lots of the things that love the detachment- Guard with +1 to wound are insufferably brutal, Allarus give you the ability to switch up attacks and also get some MSU action going via Unleash the Lions, and Inquisitor shooting being taken up a notch by the detachment means a couple of these are a no brainer! Really well done on the event win.
The Best of the Rest
There were 6 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
2nd – Joseph Kean – Space Marines (Gladius Taskforce): Ultramarines Gladius with plenty of tanks.
3rd – Ash Loftus – Imperial Knights (Noble Lance): Canis, a Cerastus, and lots of Armigers.
4th – Adam Watson – Adeptus Mechanicus (Haloscreed Battle Clade): Cawl leading out 30 Ruststalkers to inflict harm.
5th – Lewis Archer – Dark Angels: Triple Ballistus Gladius Dark Angels.
6th – Andy Bradbury – Adeptus Custodes: A very nice Shield Host build with lots of Guard and Venatari.
Bedlam in the ‘Burgh 2025 40k GT
32-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Coraopolis, PA, United States on April 12 2025. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Lawrence Paladin – Genestealer Cult (Biosanctic Broodsurge) – 1st Place
Credit: BuffaloChicken
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
Lawrence (2000 Points)
Genestealer Cults
Biosanctic Broodsurge
Strike Force (2000 Points)
My favourite detachment claims a big trophy here, and I really like the subtle adjustment’s Lawrence has made by bringing in triple Rockgrinder with lasers and Flamer Acolytes riding along. You slightly (and only slightly) dilute the melee threat of the infantry, but get a lot more shooting for some of the elite infantry armies that can give Bio trouble. Awesome innovative list, that I may well steal. Well done on the event win!!!
The Best of the Rest
There were 5 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
2nd – Joseph Sault – Imperial Agents: A novel Imperialis Fleet list with tonnes of Inquisitors, some Immolator Sisters, and triple Subductor Squads.
3rd – Daniel Brown – Space Wolves: Wolf Jail with loads of Cavalry and Wulfen.
4th – Larry Paladin – Space Marines: Gladius Ultramarines with Calgar and his big golden boss leading the way.
5th – Git Gud – World Eaters: World Eaters Goodstuff, now with Goremongers!
6th – Erik Stratigos – Genestealer Cult: A more conventional Mining Laser Runner support Bio list.
Modhammer
26-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Modesto, CA, US on April 12 2025. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Erik Sousa – Aeldari (Unknown Detachment) – 1st Place
The List
Army List - Click to Expand
Modhammer (1990 points)
Aeldari
Strike Force (2000 points)
Devoted of Ynnead
A lovely list that packs in both Incubi brick AND Yncarne, plenty of Aspect MSU, some Autarchs, and goes to town. You can do incredible things with this army at the moment and it can leave the unwary on their backsides very quickly indeed. That said, piloting it to first in a meta where people are gunning for elves deserves some respect, very well done on the win!
The Best of the Rest
There were 3 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
2nd – Jeremy Newswander – Adeptus Custodes (Lions of the Emperor): Massed Guard and Wardens in Lions.
3rd – John Jeffries – Grey Knights (Warpbane Taskforce): A Ruben inspired Dreadknight spam list.
4th – Travis Bughi – Tyranids (Invasion Fleet): Old One Eye leads an eclectic mix of infantry and monsters to battle. Look a Trygon!
Wrap Up
There we are folks! A few more installments to come – stand by
Lowest of Men, out.
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