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OK its content time again so I thought I would share with you my thoughts on what I think is a little gem in Codex: Space Marines, the Landspeeder Typhoon. This is essentialy a Landspeeder with some Missile Launchers bolted on and comes with the option of a Heavy Bolter (for the price of a basic 5 man Tactical Squad) or a Multimelta (for the same price as a MM on a tactical squad). I have three of these guys in my list and they have yet to let me down.
I arm mine with Heavy Bolters so that they can sit near or on my back line and snipe transports and massed infantry. Using their maximum range keeps them safe from the all too common S4 Rapid Firing bolters that are the bane of AV10 vehicles, this means they tend to survive longer than the suicide MM/HF Speeders. Being Fast means that when their guns are shot off, which happens to me alot for some reason :), they can still be used to contest objectives.
There are a few things to be wary of though. Never squadron them, the silly hit allocation rules mean that its relativley easy to shut down the squadron with Stunned and Shaken results. Remember to use the full 36" effective range to stay out of harms way where possible. Lastly, remember that they are still very flimsy so cover saves and LOS blocking is your friend.
Typhoons are a very versatile unit, which is what is needed in a good SM unit. The good news is that there isn't much competition for FA slots in most Marine armies, the only real challengers are MM Attack bikes. Even so a squad of 2 Attack Bikes seem like a nice complement to 2 Typhoons.
To summarise, keep your distance and your Typhoons willbe a massive headache for your opponent.
I am not certain I follow on why you shouldn't squadron them. I find them to more durable when they are squadroned. Hide one behind cover, and the other take shots but both get cover saves.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I'm unsure about the 'never squadron' advice, but I don't have much experience using them.
ReplyDeleteMaybe its just because I have some bad experience with squadrons but they never seem to do as well for me. When the hits get passed around the Speeders they all seem to suffer more or less equally. I found giving my opponent more targets to shoot at was better for me.
ReplyDeleteI did try the old "hide one and shoot the other" thing but it never seemed to work lol, maybe I just wasn't doing it right. Free extra armour is handy for contesting objectives though :)