A couple of weeks ago, I started delving into some options for the terminators I have laying around from my old Deathwing army. In addition to using my old Terminator models and my LandRaiders, I also want to have the army conform to the ideas put forth in the Water Warrior philosophy. You can find out more information about that in either the first installment of this series (link above) or in an article I wrote about it here. (Note that the philosophy is not my creation, but that article contains links to where it was initially laid out.)

While I've detailed the philosopy elsewhere, what this means is that I want the army to incorporate Terminators in some numbers, LandRaiders and that the other units should generally be capable of moving and still shooting at full effect, and should also be capable of shooting and still assaulting. Basically, it should be extremely flexible, which greatly limits the number of options I'll be able to use.

My old army list followed the DeathWing army, a subset of the Dark Angels Chapter of Space Marines. They have their own, separate codex, but I knew that the main Space Marine codex had a lot of options, and some specific things that help Terminators out that aren't available to the Dark Angels or the Deathwing. Since that was the case, I figured I should check out what options were available under the aegis of Codex: Space Marines.

Given that I had a hard time locating the single sentence in the Dark Angels codex that allows you to field Terminators as Troops, I read very carefully through the Space Marines codex. Then I re-read it. Finally, I realized that there was no way to field Terminators as Troops, but there was still an option open to me...

First off, taking a standard Space Marine army wouldn't really be an option. Your only options for Troops are either Tactical Squads or Scouts. While Tac squads can get rhinos for better mobility, they don't fit the requirement for being able to move and still shoot to full capability or to shoot and still assault. That means I had to look for other options, and I finally found one.

Taking Kor'Sarro Khan allows you to take Space Marine Bike squads (as long as they number at least 5 models.) While they aren't Terminators, they are another unit that can move, shoot and assault all at full effectiveness on the same turn. In fact, my Deathwing plan included some Ravenwing Biker squads. Kor'Sarro Khan (mounted on his bike, Moondrakkan, of course) costs 205pts. For the curious, Khan is the Master of the 3rd Company of the White Scars Chapter, though I could use a home-made chapter and have the character "count as" Kor'Sarro.

Terminators: Unlike DeathWing Terminator squads, their standard brethren can have squads up to 10, but since they don't count as Troops, it's not as useful as it could be in terms of durability for holding objectives. Like the DeathWing, the best weapon option for use in the Water Warrior concept is the Assault Cannon. 4 Stormbolters, 1 Assault Cannon, 4 Powerfists and 1 Power Weapon. 230pts. Interestingly, unlike the DeathWing, one standard Space Marine Terminator squad can take a LandRaider as a dedicated transport option. The DeathWing army list does not have that option, which would be handy for an army list that uses Terminators as Troops.

Space Marine Bike squadron: These guys have a lot of options. Since these guys are the Troops in the army, upgrading their firepower and assault effectiveness is definitely worthwhile. A squad of 5 with a powerfist and Plasma Pistol for the sergeant (giving them effectiveness in assault and the option to take on even heavy vehicles) and a pair of plasmas (to give them more power against light vehicles and heavy infantry) costs 210pts. For additional firepower, I could swap out one standard bike for an attack bike with Multimelta, which would bring the squad total to 235pts, which is a pretty good deal.

Venerable Dreadnaught: Strangely, the Venerable Dreadnaughts of the non-DeathWing variety are more expensive. I think I'd replace the Multimelta with an Assault Cannon, but leave it otherwise alone. 175pts each and an Elite option along with the Terminators.

LandRaider: While Crusaders and other kinds of LandRaider might be useful options, the basic one fits the Water Warrior concept best, I think. It has heavy anti-tank and anti-heavy infantry shots and very long range weapons. It can also move 12 and transports Terminators, allowing them to assault straight into combat if needed. In addition, it has legendarily sturdy armor. The only real upgrade it needs is Extra Armor. 265pts.

that brings me to this approximate list for 1500pts...

205 Kor'Sarro Khan, riding Moondrakkan

175 Venerable Dreadnaught with Assault Cannon and Dread CCW
175 Venerable Dreadnaught with Assault Cannon and Dread CCW

230 DeathWing Terminator Squad with 1 Assault Cannon

210 Space Marine Biker Squadron with Powerfist, Plasma Pistol, 2 Plasma Guns and 2 Twinlinked Bolters
235 Space Marine Biker Squadron with Powerfist, Plasma Pistol and 2 Plasma Guns, a Twinlinked Bolter and an Attack Bike with MultiMelta.

265 LandRaider, Extra Armor

1495pts While it definitely fits in with the Water Warrior concept, it only features 5 Terminators and one LandRaider, which means I wouldn't be using as many of my existing units as I'd like. Still at only 19 models (6 of which I already own) it's not too bad. In the next installment of this series, I'll be taking a look at the Chaos side of things to see if I can come up with an army that fits my requirements better than this or DeathWing.

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