Chaos Space Marines vs. IG Mech • Part IV • Going 2nd

So I have written the first of three tactical articles for playing CSM versus IG Mech. A lot of the tactics revolve around going first, which really helps a lot. CSM don't really have any tricks to improve their odds of going first so you must be prepared for the worst... That is IG Mech goes first & has an Officer of the Fleet. Officer of the Fleet subtracts one from your reserve rolls so in my mind if you simply put all of your army in reserve then there is a good chance you will come in piecemeal and your opponent can focus fire against a small portion of your army. Just as in my tactical articles that dealt with going first I still think it's a good idea to start with both of your lash princes in reserve. Again the advantage is they can fly in from your board edge and assault the chimeras that have wandered over towards your deployment zone. Most IG players have a tendency to simply focus on shooting so there is always a good chance they will forget about your princes, over commit and leave themselves open to the assaults. It's hard to hide a prince so starting them in reserve will help them to last longer when they finally decide to turn up. Make sure to assault the chimeras such that if they are wrecked your princes will have the 4+ cover save.

So if you have to go second make sure to try seizing the initiative. If that fails then your deployment is very important and will probably decide if you will have the opportunity to win. Here is the list I have suggested for an 1850 point CSM army:

Winged Lash Prince
Winged Lash Prince
Summoned Greater Daemon

5x Nurgle Marine/2x meltagun, power fist, icon - rhino/Havoc missile launcher
5x Nurgle Marine/2x meltagun, power fist, icon - rhino/Havoc missile launcher
5x Nurgle Marine/2x meltagun, power fist, icon - rhino/Havoc missile launcher
5x Khorne Berzerker/power fist

Landraider
3x Obliterators
3x Obliterators

Obviously the Berzerkers ride in the landraider you will want to deploy the landraider in cover. In objective based games the Berzerkers might not ever disembark... Basically you have invested these points in being able to hold one objective. Guard will be very cautious to approach your landraider - if they do it will either be melta toting vets in a chimera/skimmer or a melta tank. Remember what i said earlier about IG scouting a vet squad in a Vendetta or Valkyrie, I think it's illegal so try to get the judge to stop this if possible. If they can it's going to be tough to stop but maybe you can trade the landraider for the vets and the Vendetta and that's better than nothing but a burning wreck. You can always position your rhinos such that they wall off the landraider but that might expose them to the alpha strike. Look at the terrain, see where the objectives are placed then decide what is best. You will need to be able to move your rhinos up and get on top of those objectives. So maybe it is best to use your landraider as bait, if so try your best to use terrain for a cover save. If your landraider can survive the first turn and your rhinos are still mobile you will be in a great position.

The IG alpha strike is brutal against mechanized CSM so again you need to use the terrain as best you can. The IG player will try to shoot out your transports and leave you stranded. I have had some good friends swear by placing their entire army in reserve but I don't like it... For the reasons given above. I remember when Tau were very strong... Everyone said that Nurgle Marines riding in rhinos were completely screwed. But there is a way... So I will refer you to an old tactical article that helped many Nurgle players find a way to win. It all revolves around your rhinos and is all about mech tactics. You want to confuse your opponent and lead them into making bad decisions. Start with your rhinos behind intervening terrain and cutoff enemy LOS as much as possible. You may have to use the landraider as bait but try to make it a difficult target such that the IG shoot with at it with as many of there units as possible. The landraider is your most resilient unit and it can soak up a lot of firepower. The first turn is all about coming out of it with as much of your army intact as possible. So the initial phase of the game is about first protecting your rhinos then moving onto objectives and popping the smoke launchers. If you can achieve this then you will have the opportunity to win.

Your Oblits are golden in this scenario. Deploy them using your mech for cover such that the IG cannot target them. Second turn after your rhinos roll forward the Oblits move into terrain for the cover save and you can start to blast away at the IG. You will again want to first target the Vendettas then next pepper their ordnance. I know there will be the desire possibly to deep strike your Oblits but if you do so then you are simply throwing them away. In cover the Oblits can weather a lot of enemy shooting and pound away at the IG ordnance. This is part of the plan to both confuse & frustrate your opponent.

So now we move into the midgame. From here on out it plays the same as if you had gone first and you can refer to my previous articles to see what to do. Again if possible your Nurgle Marines should remain embarked in their rhinos up until the endgame. Shoot their meltaguns at the IG ordnance if in half range, if not then pop their chimeras. At this point in the game your princes will start to appear and this can swing the game back in your favor if you happen to find yourself behind the proverbial eightball.

Endgame you are holding objectives and killing guardsmen. That's it.

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Tactica Chaos Space Marines vs. IG Mech • Part III

Here are some other bits of advice. Like I have said it's important to keep your troops in cover. If their transports are destroyed and a squad of Nurgle Marines are getting pounded then Go To Ground (Go To Ground)! That 3+ cover save means your opponent will be forced to focus fire on your Nurgle Marines in order to finish them off. Every IG unit that fires at this squad is taking heat off the rest of your army.

Obliterators deployed in cover are golden. Don't deepstrike them. Nothing is going to worry an IG player more than a squad of three mobile lascannons firing at their tanks and to be honest they most likely will not have a lot of options to directly deal with your Obliterators if you hold them back out of short range melta/plasma killiness. The deepstrike is a gamble and you are trading one expensive unit for one tank, it's not worth the tradeoff.

So now we move onto the end game. You have crippled the skimmers and deadly ordnance. Your opponent is bascically left with their command squads, veterans and psyker battle squads roaming the board in their chimeras. They still have the potential to hit you with short range melta & plasma but that's about it. You now have a strong advantage... Namely your flying princes! It's time to wreck their chimeras, lash the guardsmen and beat them in close combat. You will need to have claimed your share of objectives by this point and now you can shift from a defensive to aggressive stance. Guardsmen outside their chimeras are very weak so it's all about moving forward to control the other objectives left.

So that's about it from the perspective of going first. Next I will discuss how to win should you have to go second.

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Tactica Chaos Space Marines vs. IG Mech • Part II

Let's assume you have the first turn. Let's also assume you are playing to control objectives. You will want to move your transports onto the objectives and pop smoke if necessary. Use terrain for cover and cut off enemy LOS. It's worth investing the points in dozer blades for your rhinos as they are dirt cheap and you will often need to move into difficult terrain for cover. Place your objectives such that they are close to your deployment zone and easy to reach with one move. By doing so you will force the IG to counter by moving their chimeras towards your line. This will bring them into range of your meltaguns so you can pop them. Keep your squads embarked for maximum protection as they are safest inside their rhinos during both the initial phase of the game (turns 1 & 2) and into the midgame (turn 3). You must also decide what are your first target priorities during the initial phase of the game. Vendettas are easy to target in the initial phase since they are mounted on high flight stands. I will generally target the Vendettas first since they typically don't have an intervening cover. Vendettas are fairly easy to drop with your lascannons and the CSM list I have presented has up to 8. Once you have eliminated the IG skimmers they can no longer snipe your armor. So the first two turns are all about taking objectives, using terrain for cover or blocking LOS and dropping the Vendettas.

The midgame is when you will want to eliminate the tanks (Leman Russes, Leman Russ variants, Medusas & Manticores). It's important to focus on destroying tanks that can drop one pieplate and wipe out a squad of Nurgle Marines. The main emphasis should be all about focused fire on Leman Russes, Leman Russ Demolishers and Leman Russ Executioners as this class of tank all have high strength low AP pieplates. The Demolishers in particular are extremely nasty as they can easily destroy both your armor and troops. Next up is the Executioner as it can drop up to 5 plasma small blast templates. The Executioner can easily wipe out one squad of exposed troops plus your lightly armored rhinos. You can shoot them with your plethora of lascannons plus by midgame your meltaguns should bs in range as well. If you can eliminate the bulk of the Vendettas plus the bulk of their ordnance then all you have left to target are chimeras. Even if you only manage to shake or stun a tank you have prevented it from shooting the next turn which is very helpful plus it can leave the enemy exposed. Remember that typically it's best up through the midgame to keep your troops embarked for safety; you can still move your rhinos up to 6" and still fire your meltaguns from the hatch. This is a conservative style of play and you are counting on your opponent to make some mistakes. Basically you should be in a position to control the most objectives forcing your opponent to react to your game plan.

To be continued...

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