As you may have seen last week, Games Workshop decided that the output of Immortals in the new Canoptek Court detachment was maybe a little too Devastating, and dropped a hammer on the combo. That, of course, was too late to be adopted by events on the weekend, meaning that Phaerons across the globe (including me) got to unleash its full power for one tournament.
The results from the weekend strongly suggest GW were right to banish this particular interaction back to the crypts, but Canoptek Court wasn’t the only Necron build excelling on the tabletops, with C’tan heavy Hypercrypt builds putting in numerous fantastic performances as well. Necrons have come in super hot, and even in my capacity as OVERLORD WINGS, I’m hoping GW have kept the option of some small final tweaks to the Dataslate open, as although the metagame might manage to adapt to this latest threat, C’tan are looking like they’re probably a bit too cheap after all the buffs they picked up in the book. Equally, maybe some buffs for underperforming factions will provide new challengers – we’ll have to wait and see. The changes to the Court did make the rules cutoff for LVO, so at this weekend we’ll get a full showcase of where they sit relative to other top factions.
That’s for the future though – this week we’ve got eight events to look at, and today I (Wings) will be covering:
- Unified Tournament Circuit 40K Finals
- New Years Knockout 2024
- Critical Hit Grand Clash
- German Finals 2023
On Friday we’ll have Lowest of Men looking at:
- The Nottingham 40k Super-Major
- Münsterland GT5
- Torino Open Qualifier
- Mekabrew Mania
Unified Tournament Circuit 40K Finals
41-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Westminster, MD, US on January 13 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
The Showdown
Take and Hold – Search and Destroy – Chilling Rain
Derek Apsche – Chaos Space Marines (Slaves to Darkness): Abaddon leading waves after waves of Accursed Cultists to war, plus some Forgefiends and utility Daemons. Chaos Space Marines CHARACTERS Abaddon the Despoiler (310 points) Dark Commune (55 points) Dark Commune (55 points) Dark Commune (55 points) BATTLELINE Cultist Mob (55 points) Cultist Mob (55 points) Legionaries (90 points) OTHER DATASHEETS Accursed Cultists (190 points) Accursed Cultists (190 points) Accursed Cultists (190 points) Chaos Bikers (85 points) Forgefiend (180 points) Forgefiend (180 points) ALLIED UNITS Nurglings (35 points) Nurglings (35 points) Nurglings (35 points) Seekers (85 points) Syll’Esske (120 points) Exported with App Version: v1.8.1 (33), Data Version: v319
Army List - Click to Expand
accused cultists (2000 points)
Strike Force (2000 points)
Slaves to Darkness
• Warlord
• 1x Drach’nyen
1x Talon of Horus
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Cult Demagogue
• 1x Autopistol
1x Commune stave
• 1x Mindwitch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Warp Curse
• 1x Iconarch
• 1x Autopistol
1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Blessed Blade
• 2x Commune blade
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Cult Demagogue
• 1x Autopistol
1x Commune stave
• 1x Mindwitch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Warp Curse
• 1x Iconarch
• 1x Autopistol
1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Blessed Blade
• 2x Commune blade
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Cult Demagogue
• 1x Autopistol
1x Commune stave
• 1x Mindwitch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Warp Curse
• 1x Iconarch
• 1x Autopistol
1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Blessed Blade
• 2x Commune blade
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Cultist Champion
• 1x Autopistol
1x Brutal assault weapon
• 9x Chaos Cultist
• 6x Autopistol
6x Brutal assault weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Cultist grenade launcher
1x Flamer
1x Heavy stubber
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Cultist Champion
• 1x Autopistol
1x Brutal assault weapon
• 9x Chaos Cultist
• 6x Autopistol
6x Brutal assault weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Cultist grenade launcher
1x Flamer
1x Heavy stubber
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Aspiring Champion
• 1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Heavy melee weapon
1x Plasma pistol
• 4x Legionary
• 2x Astartes chainsword
4x Bolt pistol
4x Close combat weapon
1x Heavy melee weapon
1x Lascannon
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 10x Mutant
• 10x Blasphemous appendages
• 6x Torment
• 6x Hideous mutations
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 10x Mutant
• 10x Blasphemous appendages
• 6x Torment
• 6x Hideous mutations
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 10x Mutant
• 10x Blasphemous appendages
• 6x Torment
• 6x Hideous mutations
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Biker Champion
• 1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Combi-bolter
1x Plasma pistol
• 2x Chaos Biker
• 2x Astartes chainsword
2x Close combat weapon
2x Combi-bolter
2x Plasma gun
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Armoured limbs
2x Ectoplasma cannon
1x Ectoplasma cannon
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Armoured limbs
2x Ectoplasma cannon
1x Ectoplasma cannon
• 3x Nurgling Swarm
• 3x Diseased claws and teeth
• 3x Nurgling Swarm
• 3x Diseased claws and teeth
• 3x Nurgling Swarm
• 3x Diseased claws and teeth
• 1x Heartseeker
• 1x Lashing tongue
1x Slashing claws
• 4x Seeker
• 1x Daemonic Icon
1x Instrument of Chaos
4x Lashing tongue
4x Slashing claws
• 1x Axe of Dominion
1x Cacophonic choir
1x Scourging whip
vs.
Matt Lorah – Necrons (Hypercrypt Legion): Teleporting Immortals galore, complete with Monolith and Szeras, plus two C’tan to murder stuff. Necrons CHARACTERS Chronomancer (60 Points) Chronomancer (70 Points) C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer (255 Points) C’tan Shard of the Void Dragon (270 Points) Illuminor Szeras (160 Points) Imotekh the Stormlord (100 Points) Plasmancer (80 Points) BATTLELINE Immortals (140 Points) Immortals (140 Points) Immortals (140 Points) OTHER DATASHEETS Canoptek Scarab Swarms (40 Points) Canoptek Scarab Swarms (40 Points) Deathmarks (65 Points) Lokhust Destroyers (30 Points) Lokhust Destroyers (30 Points) Lokhust Destroyers (30 Points) Monolith (350 Points) Exported with App Version: v1.8.1 (26), Data Version: v319
Army List - Click to Expand
Immortal hypercrypt (2000 Points)
Hypercrypt Legion
Strike Force (2000 Points)
• 1x Chronomancer’s stave
• Enhancements: Dimensional Overseer
• 1x Chronomancer’s stave
• Enhancements: Osteoclave Fulcrum
• 1x Gaze of death
1x Scythe of the Nightbringer
• 1x Canoptek tail blades
1x Spear of the Void Dragon
1x Voltaic storm
• 1x Eldritch Lance
1x Impaling legs
• Warlord
• 1x Gauntlet of Fire
1x Staff of the Destroyer
• 1x Plasmic lance
• Enhancements: Arisen Tyrant
• 10x Immortal
• 10x Close combat weapon
10x Gauss blaster
• 10x Immortal
• 10x Close combat weapon
10x Gauss blaster
• 10x Immortal
• 10x Close combat weapon
10x Tesla carbine
• 3x Canoptek Scarab Swarm
• 3x Feeder mandibles
• 3x Canoptek Scarab Swarm
• 3x Feeder mandibles
• 5x Deathmark
• 5x Close combat weapon
5x Synaptic disintegrator
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Gauss cannon
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Gauss cannon
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Gauss cannon
• 4x Death ray
1x Particle whip
1x Portal of exile
Thoughts
A classic Showdown here, pitting a well-established metagame tyrant against a particularly unusual build from the new Codex on the block. Accursed Cultists with Abaddon providing a 4++ are even more of a nightmare to clear off the table than they normally are, providing the Chaos side of things with overwhelming pressure that threatens to bowl lots of armies clean off the table on Search and Destroy. Adding some speedy utility units like the Seekers and Bikes is great on this map too, helping reach out and cause problems whenever needed, and I think more lists should be running solo Syll’Esske in general. All good stuff – so do the Necrons have the tools to answer it?
They certainly look ready to have a crack at it, and just in general here I think Matt’s list rules. Between the Monolith, Chronomancers and the Hypercrypt stratagems those Immortals are going to be bouncing around like nobodies business, and for general purposes I think the choice to go with Gauss on two of the units is pretty sharp. With Szeras, that gives you a juicy AP-2, which means they’ll reliably clip some wounds off sturdier targets than normal. Here that’s obviously a bit less good – you really want all Tesla all the time into the cultists, but at least you have the one Arisen Tyrant Plasmancer unit to go full re-roll sicko mode and obliterate the hordes. They can’t do everything by themselves, but at least there are some fairly considerable speed bumps kicking around in the form of the C’tan. A full Undivided Cultist unit might threaten one of these on their go turn, but nothing else has an efficient story into them, and killing-wise the Necrons clearly have this.
Where they might have issues is just on suffering full-bore Primary denial. The Chaos side can play a pretty efficient Homers/Engage Fixed Secondary plan, easily reaching 30-35VP, so if they do that, lock in some early 10s and stick the Necrons on 5s for most of the game, they might be able to build an insurmountable lead. Heavy pressure will also reduce the Necrons room for maneuvre with their deep striking – Cosmic Precision and the Monolith both give them a bit more ability to work around a board flood than normal, but if they get boxed in it’s still very bad for them. Assassinating Abaddon is their key route to making their lives far easier – after that, the Deathmarks or Epic Challenge can plausibly snipe out Dark Commune leaders, after which the Cultist blocks will melt instantly. I think you quite genuinely go for trying to Cosmic Precision the Nightbringer right next to Abaddon here, and hope he can’t run away fast enough to avoid the following turn’s charge, as if he goes down the entire tenor of the game changes.
That’s easier said than done of course, and this feels like a game where the Necrons are the side that has to make something happen – if they try and play safely, they’ll get ground out. It looks like the Chaos forces did a good job of suppressing the scoring at least partially, but in the end the Necrons were just able to eke out enough of a score to take the title.
Result
Necrons (Hypercrypt Legion) Victory – 79 – 76
Matt Lorah – Necrons (Hypercrypt Legion) – 1st Place
The List
See Showdown
Archetype
Hypermobile Hypercrypt
Thoughts
Covered in the Showdown, but I really do need to stress again how much I love this build – it can do some absurd tricks on the table, it has all my favourite toys in it, and it has me seriously wondering if I need to paint 20 more Immortals. Major props to Matt on the big win!
The Best of the Rest
There were 6 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
- 2nd (4.5-0.5) – Joshua Campbell – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Triple C’tan, double Wraiths and the Immortal bomb.
- 3rd – Derek Apsche – Chaos Space Marines: See Showdown.
- 4th – Mark Hertel – Ultramarines (Gladius Task Force): Land Raider spam continues, and given Mark only dropped a game to the Immortal bomb (incredible into Raiders) expect even more of this to come.
- 5th – Scott Horras – Astra Militarum: A medium tank masterclass – three Dorns, some Bullgryn to protect them, and a mixture of cheap transports, Cyclops and Gaunt’s Ghosts for objective play.
- 6th – Andrew Gonyo – T’au Empire: Heavily mechanised Tau with three Breacherfish plus an extra Devilfish with Pathfinders, supported by a full Crisis bomb, Longstrike and a Hammerhead.
- 7th – Zach Comeau – T’au Empire: Even more Breachers here, some forced to footslog, and a bunch more infantry to boot, backed by some small troubleshooting Crisis units.
New Years Knockout 2024
49-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Raytown, MO, United States on January 13 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Dan Sammons – Leagues of Votann (Oathband) – 1st Place
The List
Army List - Click to Expand Leagues of Votann CHARACTERS Einhyr Champion (60 points) Grimnyr (85 points) Grimnyr (90 points) Kâhl (70 points) BATTLELINE Hearthkyn Warriors (110 points) DEDICATED TRANSPORTS Sagitaur (100 points) Sagitaur (100 points) Sagitaur (100 points) Sagitaur (100 points) Sagitaur (100 points) Sagitaur (100 points) OTHER DATASHEETS Brôkhyr Thunderkyn (75 points) Brôkhyr Thunderkyn (75 points) Cthonian Beserks (100 points) Cthonian Beserks (100 points) Einhyr Hearthguard (300 points) Einhyr Hearthguard (150 points) Hernkyn Pioneers (90 points) Hernkyn Pioneers (90 points) Exported with App Version: v1.8.1 (33), Data Version: v319
Judgement Day (1995 points)
Strike Force (2000 points)
Oathband
• 1x Autoch-pattern combi-bolter
1x Mass hammer
1x Weavefield Crest
• 1x Grimnyr
• 1x Ancestral Wrath
1x Ancestral ward stave
• Enhancement: Appraising Glare
• 2x CORV
• 2x Autoch-pattern bolter
2x Close combat weapon
• 1x Grimnyr
• 1x Ancestral Wrath
1x Ancestral ward stave
• Enhancement: Wayfarer’s Grace
• 2x CORV
• 2x Autoch-pattern bolter
2x Close combat weapon
• Warlord
• 1x Mass gauntlet
1x Rampart Crest
1x Volkanite disintegrator
• 1x Theyn
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x EtaCarn plasma pistol
1x Kin melee weapon
1x Weavefield Crest
• 9x Hearthkyn Warrior
• 9x Autoch-pattern bolt pistol
7x Autoch-pattern bolter
9x Close combat weapon
1x Comms Array
1x HYLas auto rifle
1x Magna-rail rifle
1x Medipack
1x Pan Spectral Scanner
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 1x Armoured wheels
1x HYLas beam cannon
1x Twin bolt cannon
• 3x Brôkhyr Thunderkyn
• 3x Close combat weapon
3x Graviton blast cannon
• 3x Brôkhyr Thunderkyn
• 3x Close combat weapon
3x Graviton blast cannon
• 5x Cthonian Beserk
• 5x Concussion maul
1x Mole grenade launcher
• 5x Cthonian Beserk
• 5x Concussion maul
1x Mole grenade launcher
• 1x Hesyr
• 1x Concussion hammer
1x Exo-armour grenade launcher
1x Teleport Crest
1x Volkanite disintegrator
• 9x Einhyr Hearthguard
• 9x Concussion gauntlet
9x Exo-armour grenade launcher
9x Volkanite disintegrator
• 1x Hesyr
• 1x Concussion hammer
1x Exo-armour grenade launcher
1x Teleport Crest
1x Volkanite disintegrator
• 4x Einhyr Hearthguard
• 4x Concussion gauntlet
4x Exo-armour grenade launcher
4x Volkanite disintegrator
• 3x Hernkyn Pioneer
• 3x Bolt revolver
3x Bolt shotgun
1x Comms Array
1x HYLas rotary cannon
3x Magna-coil autocannon
1x Pan Spectral Scanner
3x Plasma knife
• 3x Hernkyn Pioneer
• 3x Bolt revolver
3x Bolt shotgun
1x Comms Array
1x HYLas rotary cannon
3x Magna-coil autocannon
1x Pan Spectral Scanner
3x Plasma knife
Archetype
Sagitaur Spam
Thoughts
Dan has appeared in this esteemed column many times, and it’s usually when he’s devised some new and improved method to blast all his opponent’s models off the table at speed. Votann are extremely good at this, because they have ranged outputs to cater for most targets, with Sagitaurs providing a nice mix of anti-tank and volume fire, Hearthguard being one of the very best anti-horde choices in the entire game, and Thunderkyn adding some very cost-efficient additional shots into vehicles or elite infantry. Only 2+ save tanks give the guns real pause, and there you have the excellent fallback plan of double-stacking them with Judgement tokens and unleashing Beserks with Warrior Pride, ready to hammer them into next week.
The only challenge with assembling this army is finding enough stuff to put in the Sagitaurs, and I like the choice of adding a couple of Grimnyrs – they’re cheap, their shooting is surprisingly efficient, and because of their pet CORVs they can’t just get punked by a single big shot like some Characters. Wayfarers Grace on one of them also makes them extra sticky, providing a pseudo Lone-Op experience for a key turn if they’re far from the foe. I have developed a healthy respect for Votann after some recent encounters with them, and this looks like a particularly well optimised version, well done to Dan on the win.
Joe Guzowski – Orks (Waaagh! Tribe) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)
The List
Army List - Click to Expand Orks CHARACTERS Big Mek in Mega Armour (85 Points) Big Mek in Mega Armour (85 Points) Boss Snikrot (85 Points) Mozrog Skragbad (195 Points) Warboss (80 Points) Warboss (65 Points) DEDICATED TRANSPORTS Trukk (60 Points) OTHER DATASHEETS Battlewagon (185 Points) Deff Dread (130 Points) Gretchin (40 Points) Kommandos (135 Points) Meganobz (150 Points) Meganobz (150 Points) Nobz (210 Points) Nobz (210 Points) Stormboyz (65 Points) Stormboyz (65 Points) Exported with App Version: v1.8.1 (26), Data Version: v319
Fax (1995 Points)
Waaagh! Tribe
Strike Force (2000 Points)
• 1x Grot Oiler
1x Kustom Force Field
1x Kustom mega-blasta
1x Power klaw
• 1x Grot Oiler
1x Kustom Force Field
1x Kustom mega-blasta
1x Power klaw
• 1x Mork’s Teeth
1x Slugga
• 1x Big Chompa’s jaws
1x Gutrippa
1x Thump gun
• Warlord
• 1x Attack squig
1x Kombi-weapon
1x Power klaw
1x Twin slugga
• Enhancements: Supa-Cybork Body
• 1x Attack squig
1x Big choppa
1x Kombi-weapon
1x Twin slugga
• 1x Big shoota
1x Spiked wheels
1x Wreckin’ ball
• 4x Big shoota
1x Deff rolla
1x Grabbin’ klaw
1x Killkannon
1x Lobba
1x Wreckin’ ball
1x ’Ard Case
• 3x Dread klaw
1x Kustom mega-blasta
1x Stompy feet
• 1x Runtherd
• 1x Grot-smacka
1x Slugga
• 10x Gretchin
• 10x Close combat weapon
10x Grot blasta
• 1x Bomb Squig
1x Distraction Grot
• 1x Boss Nob
• 1x Power klaw
1x Slugga
• 9x Kommando
• 1x Breacha ram
1x Burna
4x Choppa
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
2x Close combat weapon
1x Rokkit launcha
4x Slugga
2x Speshul Kommando shoota
• 5x Meganob
• 3x Kustom shoota
3x Power klaw
2x Twin killsaw
• 5x Meganob
• 3x Kustom shoota
3x Power klaw
2x Twin killsaw
• 2x Ammo Runt
• 1x Boss Nob
• 1x Big choppa
1x Slugga
• 9x Nob
• 4x Big choppa
5x Power klaw
9x Slugga
• 2x Ammo Runt
• 1x Boss Nob
• 1x Big choppa
1x Slugga
• 9x Nob
• 4x Big choppa
5x Power klaw
9x Slugga
• 1x Boss Nob
• 1x Power klaw
1x Slugga
• 4x Stormboy
• 4x Choppa
4x Slugga
• 1x Boss Nob
• 1x Power klaw
1x Slugga
• 4x Stormboy
• 4x Choppa
4x Slugga
Archetype
Ork Pressure
Thoughts
The tried and true orky plan of rolling people over (both metaphorically and literally, see the Battlewagon) gets another excellent outing here. This build feels particularly good into Necrons, saturating them with targets and packing enough volume melee to plausibly cut down C’tan, and since the forces of the Dynasties are looking very strong even after the Immortal changes that’s definitely a valuable feature. I think if the meta is going to adapt to Necrons Orks are one of the factions that can potentially do it, so watch this space, and well done to Joe for upholding Orky honour with an undefeated finish.
The Best of the Rest
There were 8 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
- 3rd – Chase Campbell – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Triple C’tan, Double Wraiths, Immortals.
- 4th – Howard Watts – Ultramarines (Gladius Task Force): All-rounder Ultramarines with a Deep Striking Calgar/Apothecary/Aggressor brick as the centrepiece.
- 5th – Tyler Devries – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Immortal-free Court, going for Double C’tan, triple Wraiths and triple Doomstalkers to maintain that ranged threat.
- 6th – Aaron Hermstedt – Death Guard: Crunchy Death Guard, presenting a mixture of Rhino-riding Plague Marines, Plaguebursts and War Dogs to the foe.
- 7th – Tim Royers – Black Templars (Righteous Crusaders): MSU Mechanised Sword Brethren riding a mix of a Redeemer and an Impulsor, supported by a fairly all-rounder mix of tools.
- 8th – Peyton Preece – Adeptus Mechanicus (Skitarii Hunter Cohort): 18 Ironstrider/Sydonian bodies supported by some mechanished infantry and tonnes of MSU Pterazii and Infiltrators.
- 9th – Ben Cherwien – Black Templars (Firestorm Assault Force): MSU Crusaders and Sword Brethren ready to make use of the Detachments transport shenanigans, and a big unit of Aggressors with flamers to roast stuff.
- 10th – Josh Lewis – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Only one Wraith unit here, backed by two Immortal squads, two C’tan and three Doomstalkers.
Critical Hit Grand Clash – 2 Day GT
30-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Courtice, ON, Canada on January 13 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.
Nicholas Redford – Chaos Space Marines (Slaves to Darkness) – 1st Place
The List
Army List - Click to Expand Chaos Space Marines CHARACTERS Chaos Lord (75 points) Chaos Lord (75 points) Chaos Lord (75 points) Dark Commune (55 points) Dark Commune (55 points) BATTLELINE Cultist Mob (55 points) Legionaries (90 points) DEDICATED TRANSPORTS Chaos Rhino (75 points) Chaos Rhino (75 points) OTHER DATASHEETS Accursed Cultists (190 points) Accursed Cultists (190 points) Chaos Predator Destructor (130 points) Chosen (110 points) Chosen (110 points) Chosen (110 points) Forgefiend (180 points) Forgefiend (180 points) Warp Talons (100 points) ALLIED UNITS Nurglings (35 points) Nurglings (35 points) Exported with App Version: v1.8.1 (33), Data Version: v319
accursed chosen (2000 points)
Strike Force (2000 points)
Slaves to Darkness
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• Warlord
• 1x Daemon hammer
1x Power fist
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Daemon hammer
1x Power fist
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Daemon hammer
1x Power fist
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Cult Demagogue
• 1x Autopistol
1x Commune stave
• 1x Mindwitch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Warp Curse
• 1x Iconarch
• 1x Autopistol
1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Blessed Blade
• 2x Commune blade
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Cult Demagogue
• 1x Autopistol
1x Commune stave
• 1x Mindwitch
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Warp Curse
• 1x Iconarch
• 1x Autopistol
1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Blessed Blade
• 2x Commune blade
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Cultist Champion
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Cultist firearm
• 9x Chaos Cultist
• 6x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Close combat weapon
6x Cultist firearm
1x Cultist grenade launcher
1x Flamer
1x Heavy stubber
• Mark of Chaos: Slaanesh
• 1x Aspiring Champion
• 1x Chaos Icon
1x Close combat weapon
1x Heavy melee weapon
1x Plasma pistol
• 4x Legionary
• 2x Astartes chainsword
4x Bolt pistol
4x Close combat weapon
1x Heavy melee weapon
1x Lascannon
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Armoured tracks
1x Combi-bolter
1x Combi-weapon
1x Havoc launcher
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Armoured tracks
1x Combi-bolter
1x Combi-weapon
1x Havoc launcher
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 10x Mutant
• 10x Blasphemous appendages
• 6x Torment
• 6x Hideous mutations
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 10x Mutant
• 10x Blasphemous appendages
• 6x Torment
• 6x Hideous mutations
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Armoured tracks
1x Combi-weapon
1x Havoc launcher
2x Lascannon
1x Predator autocannon
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Chosen Champion
• 1x Boltgun
1x Chaos Icon
1x Plasma pistol
1x Power fist
• 4x Chosen
• 3x Accursed weapon
3x Bolt pistol
1x Boltgun
2x Combi-weapon
1x Paired accursed weapons
1x Plasma pistol
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Chosen Champion
• 1x Boltgun
1x Chaos Icon
1x Plasma pistol
1x Power fist
• 4x Chosen
• 3x Accursed weapon
3x Bolt pistol
1x Boltgun
2x Combi-weapon
1x Paired accursed weapons
1x Plasma pistol
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Chosen Champion
• 1x Boltgun
1x Chaos Icon
1x Plasma pistol
1x Power fist
• 4x Chosen
• 3x Accursed weapon
3x Bolt pistol
1x Boltgun
2x Combi-weapon
1x Paired accursed weapons
1x Plasma pistol
• Mark of Chaos: Chaos Undivided
• 1x Armoured limbs
2x Ectoplasma cannon
1x Ectoplasma cannon
• Mark of Chaos: Nurgle
• 1x Armoured limbs
2x Ectoplasma cannon
1x Ectoplasma cannon
• Mark of Chaos: Slaanesh
• 1x Warp Talon Champion
• 1x Warp claws
• 4x Warp Talon
• 4x Warp claws
• 3x Nurgling Swarm
• 3x Diseased claws and teeth
• 3x Nurgling Swarm
• 3x Diseased claws and teeth
Archetype
CSM Goodstuff
Thoughts
Lots of the standard Chaos Space Marine toys on show here, fielding the regular mix of Chosen, Accursed Cultists and Forgefiends to unleash terrible destruction and mayhem. I do really like the Nurgle Predator as an extra shooting unit when points are a bit tight – Nurgle Pacts give it some surprisingly nasty spike potential, and it being pretty small makes it fairly easy to either hide or sneak on from Strategic Reserves when some extra oomph is needed. A nice little tech piece added to a classic setup, and the Dark Gods rewarded Nicholas well for his choices.
The Best of the Rest
There were 3 more players on 4-1 records. They were:
German Finals 2023
This event was the finals of a series of tournaments bringing together all the top-ranked players in Germany, so although there were only 12 players in this event, they’d been through several previous challenges to get there!
All the lists for this event can be found in Tabletop Herald. The event used 20-0 scoring.
Matthias Bellman – Necrons (Canoptek Court) – 1st Place
The List
Army List - Click to Expand 40 Shades of Assassination Detachment Choice: Canoptek Court C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer [255pts]: Gaze of death, Scythe of the Nightbringer Illuminor Szeras [160pts]: Eldritch lance, Impaling legs Imotekh the Memelord [100pts]: Gauntlet of Fire, Staff of the Destroyer, Warlord Chronomancer [50pts]: Chronomancer’s stave Chronomancer [50pts]: Chronomancer’s stave Hexmark Destroyer [70pts]: Close combat weapon, Enmitic disintegrator pistols Overlord with Translocation Shroud [85pts]: Overlord’s blade, Resurrection orb Plasmancer [55pts]: Plasmic lance Technomancer [80pts]: Dimensional Sanctum, Staff of light Technomancer [75pts]: Hyperphasic Fulcrum, Staff of light Immortals [140pts] Immortals [140pts] Immortals [140pts] Canoptek Acanthrites [85pts] Canoptek Wraiths [220pts] Canoptek Wraiths [220pts] Canoptek Reanimator [75pts]: 2x Atomiser beam, Reanimator’s claws ++ Total: [2,000pts] ++
. 10x Immortal: 10x Close combat weapon, 10x Tesla carbine
. 10x Immortal: 10x Close combat weapon, 10x Tesla carbine
. 10x Immortal: 10x Close combat weapon, 10x Tesla carbine
. 3x Canoptek Acanthrite: 3x Cutting beam, 3x Voidblade
. 6x Wraith w/ claws and particle caster: 6x Particle caster, 6x Vicious claws
. 6x Wraith w/ claws and particle caster: 6x Particle caster, 6x Vicious claws
Archetype
Canoptek Wraith/Immortal Spam
Thoughts
Another Canoptek Court build to round us out today, here going fairly all-in on using Immortals to get stuff done. Adding Chronomancers for some units and packing a Reanimator and Szeras to castle them round means they can actually hold a position (or dance around for objective shenanigans), and bringing Imotekh along for the ride as well means that there’s a ready supply of Command Points to allow for double-dipping on Cynosure when needed. Two units of Wraiths and the Nightbringer is more than enough to hold up the opponent while all that devastation is unleashed, and although Tyranid monster mash was able to narrowly bring it down in one game, Matthias emerged from the bloodbath of top players with the only 4-1 record, and thus took the trophy!
The Best of the Rest
The rest of the top four were:
- 2nd – Kevin Zöllinger – Black Templars (Ironstorm Spearhead): The classic Black Templars combo of cheap board presence from Crusader squads plus a bunch of hulls (Reapers and Predators), some of which have extra multi-meltas strapped to them.
- 3rd – Arne Zerndt – Chaos Space Marines: Triple Accursed Commune pressure, with some Warpflamer Rubricae as extra overwatch threats.
- 4th – Leif Westermann – Aeldari: Spinners, Wraithguard, Yncarne, with the only unusual inclusion being some Fire Dragons to babysit Fuegan.
Wrap Up
Make sure to check back on Friday for the rest of this Canop-tastic week, and make sure, of course, to come back next week as we break down the LVO results.
