Devastator Squad
The basic marine heavy support choice, the devastator squad forms the backbone of many a gun line and has remained unchanged for many year. These are the most basic and in many respects the most versatile heavy support choice in the book, being able to be equipped with anti-infantry and anti-armour weapons and with the 8th ed rules, are now even easier to mix and match. With access to various weapons you can make this units a cheap or as expensive as you want. The one question I always have though is whether it is worth paying for the extra bodies. These extras cannot take heavy weapons and while can act as a meat shield for the gunners, they are often wasted, as they are usually out of range to do anything and there seems little point in splitting them off on there own, you might as well just get a tactical squad. I like devastators, they are versatile, usually easy to hide and can still pack a decent punch. I just wish those extra marines could take heavy weapons as well!
The basic marine heavy support choice, the devastator squad forms the backbone of many a gun line and has remained unchanged for many year. These are the most basic and in many respects the most versatile heavy support choice in the book, being able to be equipped with anti-infantry and anti-armour weapons and with the 8th ed rules, are now even easier to mix and match. With access to various weapons you can make this units a cheap or as expensive as you want. The one question I always have though is whether it is worth paying for the extra bodies. These extras cannot take heavy weapons and while can act as a meat shield for the gunners, they are often wasted, as they are usually out of range to do anything and there seems little point in splitting them off on there own, you might as well just get a tactical squad. I like devastators, they are versatile, usually easy to hide and can still pack a decent punch. I just wish those extra marines could take heavy weapons as well!
Predator and Baal Predator
The classic marine battle tank and the BA's own special version. Now I have lumped these in together as the base vehicle is the same, with the same stats and degrading profile, it is just the weapons that change. Now, the weapons changes do change the purpose of the predators a bit, with the original being set up more as an anti-armour or monster vehicle and the Baal Pred being much more of an anti-infantry vehicle. Both vehicle have a place in the armoury, however, the good old tri-las predator is still the best at anti-armour and monster hunting and the classic Baal is best for hordes, while as good as the Flamestorm cannon is, its not as good as it was and has a very short range, leaving it vulnerable to counter charges and shutting it down from shooting. The main thing that will dictate what version you take will be what role you want it to perform, but in either form, they are still good vehicles to have around.
The classic marine battle tank and the BA's own special version. Now I have lumped these in together as the base vehicle is the same, with the same stats and degrading profile, it is just the weapons that change. Now, the weapons changes do change the purpose of the predators a bit, with the original being set up more as an anti-armour or monster vehicle and the Baal Pred being much more of an anti-infantry vehicle. Both vehicle have a place in the armoury, however, the good old tri-las predator is still the best at anti-armour and monster hunting and the classic Baal is best for hordes, while as good as the Flamestorm cannon is, its not as good as it was and has a very short range, leaving it vulnerable to counter charges and shutting it down from shooting. The main thing that will dictate what version you take will be what role you want it to perform, but in either form, they are still good vehicles to have around.
Hellblaster Squad
The primaris plasma boys and one of the new must have units. While there is no doubt that they are a good unit with lots of lovely plasma options, all of which are better than anything the old marines have, they are quite pricey and being primaris marines won't be making it in to any of my current armies. I'm waiting to see if we get more variety of "hellblasters" with melta, and grav weapons.
The primaris plasma boys and one of the new must have units. While there is no doubt that they are a good unit with lots of lovely plasma options, all of which are better than anything the old marines have, they are quite pricey and being primaris marines won't be making it in to any of my current armies. I'm waiting to see if we get more variety of "hellblasters" with melta, and grav weapons.
Hunter and Stalker
The anti-aircraft versions of the rhino, useful for taking down flyers and not much else. Now, they both have a +1 to hit against fly keyword units, so their versatility has increases this edition, as the range of targets that this applies to has increased and most armies now have at least one fly keyword unit, so it will rarely be without a target. There are a couple of differences though, with the hunter getting re-rolls to hit and the stalker getting a -1 to hit against other targets. The biggest difference is obviously in the weapons profile, with the hunter being a one shot but heavy damage and the stalker being multi-shot but only minor damage. the potential for both weapons is the same but someone would really have to do the maths to really be sure which would be the best bet. I don't face many fliers in my area, so I haven't bothered with either of these and to be honest, if I did, I would purchase another Vendetta and use an Air Superiority Wing Detachment.
Whirlwind
The good old Whirlwind, the staple of marine artillery for many years. There is no doubt that this weapon is still a viable and useful weapon, being able to fire over most of the board and hit things that it cant see, one of the few weapons in the marine arsenal that can and for the sons of Baal, the only one. My only issue is that you have to choose to take either one type of missile or the other and cannot change during the game. It would be nice to be able to chop and change depending upon what targets you were going to target. Having faced a whirlwind several times I can say that this is a good weapon, capable of dishing out a good amount of damage and is, in my opinion, a very good option. Sit it at the back, in cover or behind a building and rain death down on your opponent, at the very least it will give you opponent a headache, at best it will start deleting some of his prized units.
The good old Whirlwind, the staple of marine artillery for many years. There is no doubt that this weapon is still a viable and useful weapon, being able to fire over most of the board and hit things that it cant see, one of the few weapons in the marine arsenal that can and for the sons of Baal, the only one. My only issue is that you have to choose to take either one type of missile or the other and cannot change during the game. It would be nice to be able to chop and change depending upon what targets you were going to target. Having faced a whirlwind several times I can say that this is a good weapon, capable of dishing out a good amount of damage and is, in my opinion, a very good option. Sit it at the back, in cover or behind a building and rain death down on your opponent, at the very least it will give you opponent a headache, at best it will start deleting some of his prized units.
Vindicator
The real heavy weight hitter of the heavy support section, the demolisher cannon armed Vindicator. This weapon can put out some serious damage and will be wounding pretty much everything on a 3 and most things on a 2. kicking out d6 damage at -3ap a time means that even the biggest and toughest units will wither quickly under its fire power, once you get in range that is. With only a 24" range, you have to get close and be prepared for the consequences. This is its biggest weakness, getting close enough to hit the enemy can heavy you very exposed if you don't wipe them out, as it leaves you open to a counter charge, especially as many of the units you will be targeting with this weapon will most likely have a move of 10 inches or more. Taking a pair would solve this issue some what, but it then becomes expensive. Its for this reason that I am reluctant to take one, as while it really is a strong and powerful weapon, it is easy to shut down. If you were running Ultramarines, then this would be less of a problem, but as a BA unit, I would be looking at other units, probably the whirlwind.
The real heavy weight hitter of the heavy support section, the demolisher cannon armed Vindicator. This weapon can put out some serious damage and will be wounding pretty much everything on a 3 and most things on a 2. kicking out d6 damage at -3ap a time means that even the biggest and toughest units will wither quickly under its fire power, once you get in range that is. With only a 24" range, you have to get close and be prepared for the consequences. This is its biggest weakness, getting close enough to hit the enemy can heavy you very exposed if you don't wipe them out, as it leaves you open to a counter charge, especially as many of the units you will be targeting with this weapon will most likely have a move of 10 inches or more. Taking a pair would solve this issue some what, but it then becomes expensive. Its for this reason that I am reluctant to take one, as while it really is a strong and powerful weapon, it is easy to shut down. If you were running Ultramarines, then this would be less of a problem, but as a BA unit, I would be looking at other units, probably the whirlwind.
Land Raider varients
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