So I'm banging out a list.. 1850, Fun, we'll see if it can be Competitive...

[Kaffis]

First off, a few qualifications: I'm not looking to spend an exorbitant amount on new metal. I'm prepared to bump my PE count from 2 to 3, as I kind of wanted to do that anyways before they go plastic, just for the future old skool cred. And they're so damn pretty.

Secondly, I'd like to go for something that's not completely cheesed out with the initial conventional wisdom. So I realize there are likely to be some potentially suboptimal choices, and I'm willing to make some small sacrifices there in the name of variety and theme. That said, feedback is certainly welcome, as I'm happy to discuss and weigh alternatives for the sake of others and the intellectual exercise, even if it's something I will ultimately pass on due to the above.

So...

HQ
St. Celestine
115

Uriah
90

Battle Conclave
1 Crusader, 2 Arco-Flagellants, 2 Death Cult Assassins
Immolator w/ TL MM, Dozer
160

Troops
Battle Sisters Squad
10 Sisters, Meltagun, Flamer
Repressor
190

Battle Sisters Squad
10 Sisters, Meltagun, Flamer
Repressor
190

Battle Sisters Squad
10 Sisters, Meltagun, Flamer
Repressor
190

Fast Attack
Dominion Squad
5 Dominions, 2x Meltagun, Superior armed with Combi-Plasma & Meltabombs
Immolator w/ TL MM, Dozer
195

Seraphim Squad
8 Seraphim, 2x Dual Hand Flamers, Superior armed with Eviscerator
190

Heavy Support
Exorcist
135
Exorcist
135
Pentitent Engines
3x PE's

1850 points total


So, deployment-wise, obviously Uriah rides with his Conclave, and St. Celestine leads the Seraphim, which can deploy behind an obstacle or deep strike as appropriate. Repressors screen PEs turn 1, and are tall enough to do it effectively.

I went for the PEs instead of a 3x Exorcist list just for variety. As I said, I love the models, and I figure few enough people field raging units that opponents may be out of practice at leading them around effectively. Also, 3x Penitent Engines will kill whatever the other guy throws at them if they catch it, and if he stays out of reach, he's in danger of letting something else encroach on them if I deploy them smartly.

With the Penitent Engines, the (admittedly small) conclave, and St. C with some backup, I figure I'm covered for assault/countercharging. I expect St. C and the Seraphim to be the stars of the countercharge, which is why I gave the Superior an eviscerator to break up walker/MC threats. The 5 flamer templates and mass of double-pistol action should make them handy anti-infantry, too. Even at S3, the Act ought to let the hand flamers wound effectively; they've got a 55% wound chance on T4 if they get to reroll from the Act, so that's actually a hefty bump on the old rule where the two hand flamers combined into one S4 template, more than doubling their per-flamer model wounds, which might even make up for the loss of DG in that squad.

The dominions will scout, giving the TL MM a 30" double-die threat range on turn 1 (12" scout move, 6" T1 move, 12" double-die range), and the melta dominions inside ~26" at another target if they want to get out. The Dominion Superior has a combi-plasma (and can re-roll 1's to hit with their TL Act to protect her from Gets Hot) to use either against durable infantry or light transports after the big armored threats are neutralized, and meltabombs to assist a charge if they fail at killing a tank or dismounting a unit I deem to be crucial to restrict the mobility of.

The thing this list is really pushing for, though, is to give plenty of scary things for the opponent to panic about killing early on. 3 melta shots in your face turn 1 is pretty intimidating on its own, and then you've got 2 Exorcists pounding away at range, and the Conclave and Penitent Engines looming in the background.

I dropped heavy flamers from my old staple BSS loadout from C:WH, as the cost is restrictive. Instead, I opted for Repressors for the same (new) cost as including the HF in the squad itself. This actually may work out well, anyways, as I've always gone for multi-purpose target versatility in those BSS squads, combining template and meltagun. With the repressor, I've got a template standing by that can nail the passengers of whatever the meltagun blows up, instead of watching the HF go to waste as the squad shoots at the tank to get the melta in. As a bonus, the squad can do drive-by bolter volleys on dismounted or footslogging targets.

As I said, a little eccentric, maybe, but hopefully it'll be fun and win me some of my games. At the very least, it should be fun to see people react to the Penitent Engines.

[Callum F Seymour]

I'm considering 3 Penitent Engines at that points level as well, so I'm interested to see how they run for you.

Humble suggestions:
- I'd be tempted to get rid of the upgrades on the Conclave's Immolator in order squeeze in another Crusader.
- What happens if people don't let you use Repressors due to the fact that they're not any more official than Forge World rules?
- If you got rid of the Combi-plasma and Melta-bombs in the Dominions you could look at another member. You'll get more value out of it.

[Kaffis]

The additional Dominion only gets me an extra wound. It's not a squad that's supposed to stand up to fire, anyways. I suppose that's an argument against kitting out the Superior in and of itself... Those were certainly the last things I threw in. I'd be more inclined to get another Seraphim than another Dominion.

If Somebody objects to the Repressors (this is mostly for use within my circle of friends, and we're moving towards "play FW if you've got the books" as our policy), I count them as Rhinos and throw the heavy flamer sister back in for an easy equal points-swap.

Finally, 5 Conclave members + Uriah maxxes out the Immolator's carrying capacity. Otherwise, yes. I wanted to get the extra melta in there, since I haven't crammed my BSS squads full of it (they're supposed to be holding objectives, anyways!), otherwise I'd swap the Immolator out entirely for a Rhino + 3 additional members (of which 1 or 2 would be crusaders, yes). As it stands, I think 28 re-rolling attacks on the charge, 8 of which are power weapons, and the majority at WS5 ought to be killy enough for their purpose. If they're not, I have that fallback position of bumping the size in a Rhino.