Opinions wanted!

[Wraith]

Hey, everyone.

After the first few matches of a BFG campaign that have seen me utterly flatten the best that the Imperial and Xenos forces can throw at me, I've got a simple question for you: Does this fleet list look horribly broken??

Despoiler Battleship
-Warmaster (Ld9) with mark of Tzeentch
-Chaos Marine Crew

Hecate Heavy Cruiser
-Chaos Lord (Ld8.)

2 Murder Cruisers, squadroned

2 Carnage Cruisers, squadroned

I don't think they're all that bad, and my first battle swapped a Repulsive and a Devastation for the BB, but I've slaughtered 2400 out of 3000 opposing points for a grand total of 5 damage points in return, all on different ships and all repaired after every match.

I'm not a half bad admiral if I do say so myself and the Chaos fleet is a real monster to start with, but this still seems a bit too dominating - what do you guys think??

[jakustodus123]

First off i can't find the Hecate Heavy Cruiser in the GW pdf's so i have no idea how good it is

The despoiler is a solid ship with a hefty 8 attack craft and also a powerful lance salvo at 30 not that you want to be at that range.
The murders and carnages are both excellent squadroned.

Unless the Hecate is just craziness then its a great fleet but its not like its a insta win combo or something it would be easily match by a good imperial fleet. Like if your opponents are complete noobs or something that would do it.

Other wise i don't see anything wrong with it, i'd even suggest improving it with a few escorts if you can (i didn't calculate the points).

[horizon]

I agree the list doesn't seem to strong. Heck, powergamers never take Murders or Despoilers afaik.

[Wraith]

I figured as much, I just wanted some outside corroboration! I guess either I'm just that good, or they're, well... Not.

It seemed so bizarre for a fleet that's only been active since this past fall to be this dominant that I was halfway wondering if I'd unwittingly stumbled on some sort of secret "I Win" button.

Oh, and FYI, the Hecate is one of the ships listed in the BFG additional ships compendium, originally from BFG Magazine #1.

*240 Pts
**8 hits
**25cm movement, 45 degree turns
**2 shields, 5+ armour, 3 Turrets
***Port and Starboard weapons (45cm S6)
***Port and Starboard Launch Bays (4 total, fighters/bombers/assault boats)
***Prow and Dorsal Lances (60cm S2 each)

So in essence it's a Hades that swaps some guns for the Launch Bays off of a Devastation. Not quite the huge carrier capacity of the Styx, but it's cheaper and much more capable in a gunfight.

[horizon]

Hmm,
maybe you could tell us what your opponets field? Maybe they just bugger up immensly with their own fleet lists....

[Wraith]

Hmm,
maybe you could tell us what your opponets field? Maybe they just bugger up immensly with their own fleet lists....

Well, the Eldar player wasn't a big surprise... An Eclipse (which got nuked by my very first salvo), A Shadow and a horde of Hemlocks. My gunnery decks just engaged and obliterated his fleet as each part passed the 60/45 cm mark (depending on which ship we're talking about). My only casualties were a few Idolators I fed to the Shadow out of pity on the last turn.

The Imperial fleet was a bit more heavily built. A Mars and a Dominator filled in the center, with paired Gothics and Lunars on either flank, and 6 escorts darting about, 3 Swords and 3 Firestorms. My Murders and Carnages swung around either of his flanks while the Despoiler and the Hecate plowed through the center. His whole fleet got mashed into a tight central block that really hurt him once his cruisers started blowing up. The BB soaked up 5 Nova Cannon hits for no actual damage!

[jakustodus123]

Okay well the imperial victory was more based in luck than lists i think, statistically the despoiler should be dead, lunar gothic combo should have recked chaos cruisers (assuming he got within range), The escorts should have been all one type then he could have capital ship caliber firepower on escorts that are hard to hit( swords=24 firepower/ firestorms=6lances and 12 firepower) the dominator was sorta ill placed as it has huge broadsides but they are a waste if it just nova canons the whole game, he should have changed both of them for dictators and then either grabbed some cobras or shifted some points for a battlecruiser upgrade on one of the lunars (preferably the armaggedon)

that would have been an excellent list but its not like it was terrible to start with, unless he used some crazy fan dangled strategy

can you elaborate more on what he did with his ships?

[Wraith]

can you elaborate more on what he did with his ships?

Not a whole lot, really. They started out line abreast and funnelled inwards towards my heavies in the middle. They launched several dozen torpedoes at my left flank (the Murders), but good spacing and a quick Burn Retros order let my ships slip away, just grazing the smallest salvo and letting their massed turrets handle the torpedoes. The escorts and one lunar/gothic pair on my right flank fared poorly, managing little more than knocking down a few shields before my Carnages mauled them both, crippling the escorts and knocking out the port and prow weapons on the cruisers. (and go figure, I'm on his port and prow sides!)

The Despoiler and the Hecate pushed their way past his Nova barrage, suffering around 8 hits in 2 turns, all shrugged off by shields, and proceeded to tear out his heart (the Mars and Dominator) with gunfire, bombers and dreadclaws.The Mars just drifted, but the Dominator's plasma drives exploded, finishing the escorts and stripping the shields from pretty much everything he had left - at which point the Carnage and Murder pairs went for the kill from either side.

Finalk result was 3 hulks captured, 2 cruisers blown up, all the escorts dead, and the last cruiser (a Lunar, IIRC) limping away when the game ended.

[jakustodus123]

Okay well his strategy was a little flawed

he let you play all the chaos advantages of speed and long-ranged weaponry and neglected to use his advantage of 6 up prows and massively powerful broadsides and deadly/mobile escorts.

he should have tried to go around your cruisers to the outside (even in failing he would push your cruisers far enough away from the centre combat to interfere) and used his escorts en-mass on one of the flanks to overpower your cruiser group and then move in to support the middle outnumbering your ships and flanking you

the middle group only had to hold on until the flankers could come to help.
actually it would have been prudent for him to nova canon one side instead of the middle in hopes of making it easier to deal with quickly

the main point is never put all your ships close together were the chaos ships could just circle you at a distance firing into your unwieldy centre cluster****

well thats what i would have done in his position