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Competitive Innovations in 10th: New Year Retribution pt.2

By Lowest of Men

Back for part two, this time with Lowest of Men at the helm.

Today we’re looking at:

  • Glass City GT
  • EXTERMINATUS VIII – Rise of the Noodle
  • Defcon 2024 – Warhammer 40k
  • Warlords of Walsall GT 1 UKTC ITC

If you’re looking for any of the following, go check out part 1 with Wings:

  • Denver 40K Fight Club January Open
  • A Grimdark New Years 40k GT
  • Hammer In The New Year 2024
  • Warhound GT in January

Glass City GT

78-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Toledo, OH, US on January 06 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.

Folger Pyles – Aeldari (Battle Host) – 1st Place

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Aeldari Goodstuff

Thoughts

Come on dataslate, where are you? Aeldari are still very, very good, as is this list. Necrons present a new challenge and CSM can be scary, but there’s not a lot else that can hold a candle to Phantasming a death brick around and scoring for fun whilst super jacked characters do neat tricks with magic dice. Congratulations on the first place finish Folger!

Randy Brigham – Necrons (Canoptek Court) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)

Illuminor Szeras
Illuminor Szeras. Credit: Rockfish

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Canoptek Court Wraiths

Thoughts

Canoptek Court boasts some serious midboard presence via the sheer durability of Wraiths, some fun move away and lone-op shenanigans to no-sell enemy attacks, and the boosted output of Immortals (taking a big old hit in this weeks FAQ but still nasty regardless). Illuminor Szeras is an exceptional character, tanky, offering huge force multiplying buffs (that add up in combat too Necrons players, don’t forget!), and another durable character to serve alongside the C’tan. This build needs to protect the Immortals from tagging or dying to keep its hard target removal, but it will score Primary like a beast and needs to be put away quickly before victory becomes inevitable. Really good work on the top placing!

Manik Gudimani – Tyranids (Vanguard Onslaught) – 3rd Place

Genestealers
Genestealers. Credit: Pendulin

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Vanguard Full Send

Thoughts

Ok, I love this. Vanguard Tyranids are exceptionally cool, and Genestealers benefit a lot from the advance and charge and fall back and charge buffs the detachment hands out to them. This list can come in hot via forward deploy and scout moves but also has plenty of shenanigans (the very best kind of nanigans) to scoot away from the foe and trick them with a well placed Lone Op stratagem (a bit like Canoptek Court! How many armies will get this one-two I wonder…).

The big challenge for Nids is getting damage through hard armoured targets, but with the right Battleshocks and wounding buffs the ‘Stealers and Exocrines can do serious work, and it can always fall back on pinning the opponent in, outscoring them and kneecapping their Primary with a well timed Shadow in the Warp. The coolest control army in the game right now and not to be underestimated. I’d love to see ‘Hunting Grounds‘ snuck into this list to screw over enemy armies attempting to leverage deep strike and reserves and really complete the rout. Very well done on the top placing!

Conan Jennings – World Eaters (Berzerker Warband) – 4th Place

Credit: Robert “TheChirurgeon” Jones

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

World Eaters Rhino Rush

Thoughts

World Eaters are still very much a thing. They’re coming for you, in party buses laden with skulls, ready to smash you up and steal yer points. All the right enhancements and all the right characters here, as the patented Anthony Vanella ‘1975’ list archetype gets another run out. Much like the band, I’ve been rather overexposed to this build at this point and Taylor Swift has reportedly lost interest too, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t good. Excellent work on the finish.

The Best of the Rest

There were 8 more players on 4-1 records. They were:

  • 5th – David DeLisle – Tyranids (Invasion Fleet): Invasion Fleet Tyranids with lots of Exocrines and Maleceptors, a Norn Emissary, and sneaky scoring utility bugs.
  • 6th – Brian Daugherty – World Eaters: All the good characters, lots of Berzerkers and Eightbound, and Rhinos. Chaaarge!
  • 7th – Pajama Pants – World Eaters: The same again, but piloted by a player called ‘Pajama Pants’, which deserves full recognition.
  • 8th – Kevin Leonard – World Eaters: The same again, but piloted by Kevin Leonard, which is a lovely name but its hardly ‘Pajama Pants’ now is it. GW, give WE some new models ASAP.
  • 9th – Scott Ketcham – Adepta Sororitas: Well balanced Vahl / Arcos / Exorcists Sisters with lots of Seraphim to drop in.
  • 10th – Rick Kincaid – Orks: Ork Trukkstuff with a tasteful squad of Squighog Boyz and a couple of Squigbuggys to shell from safety!
  • 11th – Adam Pastor – Black Templars (Righteous Crusaders): Mixed arms Templars with some melta-toting tanks, Crusaders and Sword Brethren and all the awesome characters.
  • 12th – Christopher Brown – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Only a single Wraith brick here, 20 Immortals and double C’tan. Doomstalkers provide fire support.

EXTERMINATUS VIII – Rise of the Noodle

63-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Wagga Wagga, NSW, Australia on January 05 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.

Tim Neal – Adeptus Custodes (Shield Host) – 1st Place

Adeptus Custodes Venatari Custodians
Adeptus Custodes Venatari Custodians. Credit: Jack Hunter

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Custodes Mixed Arms

Thoughts

I’m a huge believer in Custodes being a lot better than their overall stats at the moment suggest, so thanks to Tim for vindicating me! This list has good board presence and wonderful fight phase control which goes a long way in an increasingly combat-centric meta. Venatari can produce a sudden and unexpected Rapid Ingress nightmare via ‘Swooping Dive‘, which can let you drop in both squads alongside a THIRD candidate for no additional cost. Position carelessly and this will body you off the points. Light on characters to free up resources for bodies, I really like it. Congratulations on taking first with one of the lesser seen armies at the moment!

Alexander Englezos – Cult Mechanicus (Skitarii Hunter Cohort) – 2nd Place

Skorpius Dunerider
Skorpius Dunerider. Credit: Pendulin

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Ad Mech Primary Kings

Thoughts

Ad Mech didn’t get the fanfare Necrons did on release, but it is a book chock full of cheap units with little sneaky tricks for playing the mission, and they do it extremely well. Vanguard in Duneriders are amazing Objective players, reducing enemy OC and flipping points on a whim for minimal cost. The absolute truckload of Pteraxii here is very interesting- so much fire and fade nonsense that will do work into light armour and can be very hard to engage with. I think it will take awhile for Ad Mech to settle as compared to ‘Crons but there are some powerful, financially ruinous builds in here. Lists like this will typically have been annihilated by the end of the game, but they’ll leave their opponent scratching their heads as to where all their points went, and i’m here for it. Really well done on the top placing.

William Wykoff – Leagues of Votann (Oathband) – 3rd Place

Brôkhyr Iron-master. Credit: Rockfish
Brôkhyr Iron-master. Credit: Rockfish

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Votann Sagitaurs and Blast Guns

Thoughts

Votann start the new year with success, as Hearthguard, Sagitaurs, and cost effective shooting and melee continue to get things done. The Thunderkyn / Ironmaster feel a solid investment given that Wraiths and Ad Mech vehicles have entered the chat, and they have good guns for helping with that once Judgement Tokens get involved. I’m a touch fearful for Votann in the upcoming slate, but if they can duck and weave and some of their predators take well-deserved hits then they should be well placed to keep on slaying in 2024. Very well done on the top finish.

Rowan Kennett – Tyranids (Vanguard Onslaught) – 4th Place

Winged Tyranid Prime. Credit: Rockfish

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Vanguard Mixed Arms

Thoughts

More Vanguard sneakiness here, this one packs more monsters (Mawlocs, and a Maleceptor), and places its melee hopes in Tyranid Warrior bricks instead of Genestealers. There is plenty of combat push here and the ability to return units into reserves and then reappear is going to keep opponents honest all game. Mawlocs can sprinkle mortal wounds around which is particularly nasty into MSU Eldar builds. Big brain plays from the biggest brain of them all, our beloved Hivemind. Vanguard feels particularly well suited to answering new challengers like Hypercrypt, and Hunting Grounds can play a big role in that, adding the threat of failed Battleshock into every attempt to drop down and cause trouble. Really well done on the 4th place Rowan!

The Best of the Rest

There were 7 more players on 4-1 records. They were:

  • 5th – Peter O’Neill – World Eaters: Triple Master of Executions nestle amongst the usual World Eaters Goodstuff.
  • 6th – Bren Kentwell – Thousand Sons: An unusual Tsons build with TWO Daemon Princes, big blocks of Rubrics and a Forgefiend alongside Magnus and Ahriman.
  • 7th – Dale Mann – Aeldari: This list wins best name for the week, as it is called ‘Highly Interactive Gameplay’. Fire Prisms, and many of the other nasty Eldar tricks you know and love.
  • 8th – Vincent Wang – World Eaters: A bumper serving of Berzerkers, two Master of Executions, and the usual WE killingness.
  • 9th – Joshua Brodie – Ultramarines (Vanguard Spearhead): John Lennon style Vanguard Ultramarines with a couple of Whirlwinds for digging out targets.
  • 10th – Michael House – Genestealer Cult: A cheeky fight first forward deploy brick of Metamorphs with a Locus, and Catachans in Taurox alongside the typical GSC damage dealers. This is very cool.
  • 11th – Ashton KNIGHT – Chaos Daemons: Tonnes of small utility pieces flock around Be’lakor.

Defcon 2024 – Warhammer 40k

44-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in Östergötlands län, SE on January 06 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.

This event used 20-0 scoring.

Andreas Holm – Orks (Waaagh! Tribe) – 1st Place

Ork Beast Snagga Boys. Credit: Magos Sockbert
Ork Beast Snagga Boys. Credit: Magos Sockbert

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Ork Trukkstuff

Thoughts

Orks continue to place well in combatland, and this excellent showing from Andreas highlights a few small shifts in how players are approaching things. Nobz as MSU fives allow for more back and forth trading than the big 10 man bricks, and the single brick of Squighogz gives you an ideal ‘Ard as Nailz’ candidate. It scores well, it punches hard, and it never goes down easy. Very well done on the first place finish!

Sebastian Larsson – Chaos Space Marines (Slaves to Darkness) – 2nd Place (Undefeated)

Credit: Dan “Swiftblade” Richardson

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

CSM Accursed and Guns

Thoughts

Chosen get benched here, in favour of Accursed bricks and supporting shooting from several Brigands. If other CSM shooting takes a nerf these might become more popular with their insane shooting efficiency, and they’re ideal for popping transports. Slaaneshi Warp Talons are amazing action-doers, with access to fall back and do things via a stratagem to ensure those homers get deployed. Very well done on the top placing!

The Best of the Rest

There were 5 more players on 4-1 records. They were:

  • 3rd – Björn Eriksson – Chaos Knights (Traitoris Lance): War Dogs and Daemons, baby.
  • 4th – David Klang – Necrons (Canoptek Court): Triple C’tan Canoptek Court, get ready to brawl.
  • 5th – Erik Westman – Black Templars (Righteous Crusaders): Redeemer based Templars with some Lancer support and plenty of melee push threats.
  • 6th – Sebastian Magnusson – Leagues of Votann: Votann goodstuff with double Fort and some lovingly named characters. ‘Little Smuttefutt’ was a highlight.
  • 7th – Marcus Levin – Black Templars (Righteous Crusaders): More transport Templars, this time with double Impulsor for rushing to the fray.

Warlords of Walsall GT 1 UKTC ITC

27-player, 5-round Grand Tournament in England, United Kingdom on January 06 2024. All the lists for this event can be found in Best Coast Pairings.

The Showdown

Take and Hold – Chilling Rain – Search and Destroy

Rich Steele – Necrons (Canoptek Court)
Army List - Click to Expand

vs.

Billy Guest – Orks (Waaagh! Tribe)
Army List - Click to Expand

Thoughts

A very intriguing match up here, as the new hotness of Canoptek Court butts heads with the Greenskin menace. In my teams early testing of Necrons our impressions were that very agressive combat armies were probably one of the things Court would struggle with, with so much of its output dependent on midboard control and the melee output of Wraiths leaving something to be desired even when boosted. C’tan hit hard but can be swamped and drowned over time, so an army that can chew through the Wraith bricks quickly (with any hard-hitting character able to Epic Challenge and slay the ‘mancer a massive bonus) is going to have a good chance.

Orks are especially indicative of this. They can hit very hard when they connect, they have characters more than capable of punking enemy characters, and with -1 to wound on tap they can really strangle Necron output. Baddruk and the Gitz are also solid at pumping damage onto a Wraith brick if they can get close enough, ready to overwhelm it with attendant melee. I don’t think this particular Ork build is packing all the raw heavy-hitters you might want (Nobz into Wraiths feels like a good time for the Nobz), but it has so many units and the means to pin and gum up the Necrons to prevent them doing exactly the same to them. As it was this one went right to the wire with a narrow Orks win, epic stuff.

Result

Orks (Waaagh! Tribe) Victory – 70 – 68

Billy Guest – Orks (Waaagh! Tribe) – 1st Place

Weirdboy. Credit: Rockfish
Weirdboy. Credit: Rockfish

The List

Army List - Click to Expand

Archetype

Ork Trukkstuff

Thoughts

A more Snagga centric Trukk build here, which is great for overwhelming primary and lighter targets but leans heavily on two big Squig riding Bois for hard target removal. The Weirdboy is here as a solo teleport piece for scoring, and Kommandos ensure there are not nasty surprise rushes from armies like World Eaters early in the game. A build that needs to die on the line to get over on scoring rather than raw output, but a very solid one. Congratulations on the first place finish Billy!

The Best of the Rest

There were 4 more players on 4-1 records. They were:

  • 2nd – Karl Bickley – Aeldari (Battle Host): Wraithguard / Yncarne Aeldari with Falcons and Support Weapons in place of Spinners.
  • 3rd – Rich Steele – Necrons (Canoptek Court): The ‘Crons list from the showdown.
  • 4th – Charles Gould – Aeldari (Battle Host): Harlequin heavy Aeldari with loads of characters and antics.
  • 5th – Matthew McCurdy – Space Wolves (Stormlance Task Force): Stormlance Space Wolves with loads of Wolf Riders. Here for a good time, not a long time.

Wrap Up

That’s it for this week folks! The Nottingham GT looms in the UK, and we are all counting down the days until the Dataslate drops and injects further intrigue into an increasingly spicy meta. Have fun out there and we will see you again next week.

Lowest of Men, out.

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