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Ultramarines Specific Strategies
RULES / POINTS VERSION:
10th Edition, 2025–2026 Chapter Approved
April 2026 Eye of Terror Update
MATCHUP:
| Faction: | Detachment: |
| Necrons | Cursed Legion |
| VS | |
| Faction: | Detachment: |
| Ultramarines | Blade of Ultramar |
MISSION:
| GW Mission | K |
| Primary | Scorched Earth |
| Terrain Layout | GW Terrain Layout 6 |
| Deployment | Search and Destroy |
| Deployed First | Ultramarines |
| First Turn | Necrons |
LISTS:
Necrons:
List
Necrons
Cursed Legion
Strike Force (2,000 Points)
CHARACTERS
Chronomancer (80 Points)
• 1x Chronomancer’s stave
• Enhancements: Murdermind
C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer (340 Points)
• 1x Gaze of death
• 1x Scythe of the Nightbringer
Hexmark Destroyer (75 Points)
• 1x Close combat weapon
• 1x Enmitic disintegrator pistols
Lokhust Lord (80 Points)
• 1x Resurrection Orb
• 1x Staff of light
Nekrosor Ammentar (185 Points)
• Warlord
• 1x Blade tail and whip coils
• 1x Enmitic disintegrators
• 1x Nullstone Field Generator (Aura)
• 1x Unmaker Gauntlet
Skorpekh Lord (90 Points)
• 1x Enmitic annihilator
• 1x Flensing claw
• 1x Hyperphase harvester
OTHER DATASHEETS
Lokhust Destroyers (180 Points)
• 6x Lokhust Destroyer
◦ 6x Close combat weapon
◦ 6x Gauss cannon
Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (165 Points)
• 3x Lokhust Heavy Destroyer
◦ 3x Close combat weapon
◦ 3x Enmitic exterminator
Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (110 Points)
• 2x Lokhust Heavy Destroyer
◦ 2x Close combat weapon
◦ 2x Gauss destructor
Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (165 Points)
• 3x Lokhust Heavy Destroyer
◦ 3x Close combat weapon
◦ 3x Gauss destructor
Ophydian Destroyers (80 Points)
• 3x Ophydian Destroyer
◦ 3x Ophydian hyperphase weapons
◦ 1x Plasmacyte
Ophydian Destroyers (80 Points)
• 3x Ophydian Destroyer
◦ 3x Ophydian hyperphase weapons
◦ 1x Plasmacyte
Skorpekh Destroyers (180 Points)
• 6x Skorpekh Destroyer
◦ 2x Plasmacyte
◦ 6x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons
Skorpekh Destroyers (90 Points)
• 3x Skorpekh Destroyer
◦ 1x Plasmacyte
◦ 3x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons
Skorpekh Destroyers (90 Points)
• 3x Skorpekh Destroyer
◦ 1x Plasmacyte
◦ 3x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons
Ultramarines:
List
Space Marines
Ultramarines
Blade of Ultramar
Strike Force (2,000 Points)
CHARACTERS
Lieutenant with Combi-weapon (95 Points)
• 1x Combi-weapon
• 1x Paired combat blades
• Enhancements: Armour of Antoninus
Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus (140 Points)
• Warlord
• 1x Gauntlets of Ultramar
Uriel Ventris (95 Points)
• 1x Bolt Pistol
• 1x Invictus
• 1x Sword of Idaeus
BATTLELINE
Intercessor Squad (80 Points)
• 1x Intercessor Sergeant
◦ 1x Astartes grenade launcher
◦ 1x Bolt pistol
◦ 1x Bolt rifle
◦ 1x Power fist
• 4x Intercessor
◦ 4x Bolt pistol
◦ 4x Bolt rifle
◦ 4x Close combat weapon
OTHER DATASHEETS
Ballistus Dreadnought (150 Points)
• 1x Armoured feet
• 1x Ballistus lascannon
• 1x Ballistus missile launcher
• 1x Twin storm bolter
Ballistus Dreadnought (150 Points)
• 1x Armoured feet
• 1x Ballistus lascannon
• 1x Ballistus missile launcher
• 1x Twin storm bolter
Incursor Squad (80 Points)
• 1x Incursor Sergeant
◦ 1x Bolt pistol
◦ 1x Occulus bolt carbine
◦ 1x Paired combat blades
• 4x Incursor
◦ 4x Bolt pistol
◦ 1x Haywire Mine
◦ 4x Occulus bolt carbine
◦ 4x Paired combat blades
Repulsor Executioner (230 Points)
• 1x Armoured hull
• 1x Heavy onslaught gatling cannon
• 1x Macro plasma incinerator
• 1x Repulsor Executioner defensive array
• 1x Twin Icarus ironhail heavy stubber
• 1x Twin heavy bolter
Repulsor Executioner (230 Points)
• 1x Armoured hull
• 1x Heavy onslaught gatling cannon
• 1x Macro plasma incinerator
• 1x Repulsor Executioner defensive array
• 1x Twin Icarus ironhail heavy stubber
• 1x Twin heavy bolter
Scout Squad (70 Points)
• 1x Scout Sergeant
◦ 1x Astartes chainsword
◦ 1x Bolt pistol
◦ 1x Close combat weapon
• 4x Scout
◦ 4x Bolt pistol
◦ 4x Boltgun
◦ 4x Close combat weapon
Storm Speeder Hammerstrike (125 Points)
• 1x Close combat weapon
• 1x Hammerstrike missile launcher
• 2x Krakstorm grenade launcher
• 1x Melta destroyer
Victrix Honour Guard (220 Points)
• 1x Chapter Ancient
◦ 1x Banner of Macragge
◦ 1x Master-crafted power weapon
• 1x Chapter Champion
◦ 1x Blades of honour
• 4x Victrix Honour Guard
◦ 4x Master-crafted bolt carbine
◦ 4x Master-crafted power weapon
Victrix Honour Guard (220 Points)
• 6x Victrix Honour Guard
◦ 6x Master-crafted bolt carbine
◦ 6x Master-crafted power weapon
Wardens of Ultramar (105 Points)
• 1x Ancient Gadriel
◦ 1x Bolt rifle
◦ 1x Close combat weapon
• 1x Veteran Sergeant Metaurus
◦ 1x Heavy bolt pistol
◦ 1x Master-crafted power weapon
◦ 1x Storm Shield
• 1x Gaius Silva
◦ 1x Archeotech laspistol
◦ 1x Power weapon
◦ 1x Refractor Field
• 1x Aemelia Minervas
◦ 1x Archeotech laspistol
◦ 1x Power weapon
• 1x Dainal Komelius
◦ 1x Astropathic Blast
◦ 1x Force stave
• 1x Lucia Vestha
◦ 1x Archeotech laspistol
◦ 1x Close combat weapon
FACTION SPECIFIC STRATEGIES:
Necrons:
For this list, I am packing in as many Destroyer models as possible, as well as the C’Tan Shard of the Nightbringer. The idea behind the list is to lean in on the shooting side of Destroyers since that seems to be what the army’s stratagems buff the best. I have 3 full sized units of Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (LDH’s), a max sized unit of Lokhust Destroyers, and then a Lokhust Lord and Chronomancer to lead them. The idea is to mix and match what Lokhust units the Lord and Chronomancer lead depending on the matchup to maximize shooting lethality.
The Skorpekhs are then there to skirmish for objectives in the midfield, with the Nightbringer as my “Distraction Carnifex” that I shove through the middle to scare the opponent. Lastly, the Hexmark and Ophydians are there to do actions and score points.
The only one that I still need to refine a role for is the Nekrosor. On one hand, he is a great buff piece for giving Sustained Hits to my ranged shooting. On the other hand, he is also a great counter charge and Heroic Intervention threat for the Skorpekhs due to his Fights First. I think I will start with him buffing the shooting and then coming out to the midfield mid to late game, but did struggle with that last time as I waited too long and he never got into action.
Win Condition: Focus on target priorities and pick my matchups. On paper, the Necrons Lokhust Heavy Destroyers line up decently well into the Ultramarines’ Vehicles. They have good damage, decent AP, and a ton of buffs thanks to the Nekrosor and Lokhust Lord. The trick will be to focus them on the right targets.
Similarly, the Lokhust Destroyers and Enmitic Annihilator Lokhust Heavies have good profiles into a lot of the Ultramarines’ chafe units and should be focused on them.
The problem is that the Necrons don’t have a great answer for the Victrix Honour Guard, outside of the Nightbringer. The Skorpekhs should be able to hurt them in theory but Armour of Contempt really nerfs them and they will instantly die to a crack back.
All of this adds up to the Necrons needing to ensure that they get the right profiles lined up into the right targets. If they don’t, this could be a rough game.
What I Want to Work On This Game: Playing better with the Nekrosor. Last game I played him too passively and I want to see what he can do in melee and not just as a buff wagon.
| Category | Description |
| Leader / Bodyguard Combos: | Chronomancer with Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (with Gauss Destructors) |
| Lokhust Lord with Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (with Gauss Destructors) | |
| Skorpekh Lord with Skorpekh Destroyers (Min sized unit) | |
| Strategic Reserves: | Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (with Enmitic Annihilators) |
| Skorpekh Lord with Skorpekh Destroyers (Min sized unit) | |
| Key Stratagems: | Driven to Butchery [1CP] Shooting phase or Charge phase – WHEN: Your Shooting phase or your Charge phase. TARGET: One DESTROYER CULT unit from your army. EFFECT: Until the end of the turn, your unit is eligible to shoot and declare a charge in a turn in which it Advanced. |
| Methodical Murder [1CP] Shooting phase or Fight phase – WHEN: Your Shooting phase or the Fight phase. TARGET: One NECRONS unit (excluding MONSTERS and VEHICLES) from your army that has not been selected to shoot or fight this phase. EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, weapons equipped by models in your unit have the [SUSTAINED HITS 1] ability. | |
| Key Combos: | Nekrosor Ammentar + Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers + Cold Fervour detachment rule + Optimised For Slaughter ability + Destroyer Cult ability + Driven By Hatred ability This is the main combo in this detachment. It gives you 3 Lokhust Heavy Destroyers with your gun of choice (I’m putting it with the Gauss Destructors for this matchup) that gets +2 Strength, Critical Hits on 5+’s, and Sustained + Lethal Hits as long as the Nekrosor is nearby. Add in a re-roll 1 to Wound against Vehicles and this looks nasty. |
| Lokhust Destroyers + Cold Fervour detachment rule + Hard-Wired For Destruction ability + Methodical Murder stratagem Similar to the above combo, this one gives you a unit that gets Sustained and Lethal Hits that also gets full re-rolls against the nearest target if it is on an Objective. Its a bit tough to setup and can be nerfed by AoC, but is powerful into the right target. | |
| Skorpekh Lord + Skorpekh Destroyers + Plasmacyte ability + United In Destruction ability + Whirling Onslaught ability + Driven to Butchery stratagem + Methodical Murder stratagem Another somewhat niche combo that requires some setup, but this one gives you a unit of Advance and Charge Skorpekhs that get Sustained, Lethal, and Devastating Wounds (once per game) alongside Hit re-rolls if you Charged. |
Ultramarines:
This is a pretty standard, meta Ultramarines list these days. It is a gun line that seeks to hide behind 2 units of Victrix Guard and the plan is to simply out kill the opponent by having more shots, more CP, and more flexibility.
From a list perspective, the idea is to start the Combi-weapon Lieutenant in the midfield to screen and do secondaries with the Scouts and Incursors. The Wardens of Ultramar are there to sit on an Objective and be annoying while also providing the flexibility to redeploy if needed. Ventriss + Victrix Honour Guard are the most likely unit to re-deploy as they could be moved into Reserves to become a Rapid Ingress threat. Lastly, Clagar + the Victrix Guard are there as a midfield bully unit to distract the opponent while the 2 RepEx’s and Ballistus Dreads kill everything they can see with ranged fire.
The ideal game is to blow away the opponent and then, once the opponent is gone, the Ultramarines can max points and win the game.
Win Condition: For this matchup, the win condition is to take down anything on the Necrons that wants to be in the midfield. If the Ultramarines can turn the Necrons into a one phase army that only wants to shoot, while still having the Victrix Guard alive, this game will be rough for the Necrons.
What I Want to Work On This Game: Ranged shooting. I tend to be more of a melee specialist and want to work on setting up my ranged shooting. I have very rarely played this amount of guns and want to see if I can maximize its effectiveness.
| Category | Description |
| Leader / Bodyguard Combos: | Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus with Victrix Honour Guard (with Champion and Ancient) |
| Uriel Ventris with Victrix Honour Guard | |
| Strategic Reserves: | Storm Speeder Hammerstrike |
| Key Stratagems: | Armour of Contempt [1CP] Opponent’s Shooting phase or Fight phase – WHEN: Your opponent’s Shooting phase or the Fight phase, just after an enemy unit has selected its targets. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES unit from your army that was selected as the target of one or more of the attacking unit’s attacks. EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, each time an attack targets your unit, worsen the Armour Penetration characteristic of that attack by 1. |
| Courage and Honour! [1CP] Fight phase – WHEN: Fight phase. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES unit from your army. EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, melee weapons equipped by models in your unit have the [LANCE] ability. If your unit is under the effects of the Assault Doctrine, until the end of the phase, improve the Armour Penetration characteristic of such weapons by 1 as well. | |
| Ultramarian Adaptivity [1CP] Command phase – WHEN: Your Command phase. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES unit from your army. EFFECT: Select the Devastator Doctrine, Tactical Doctrine or Assault Doctrine. Until the start of your next Command phase, that Combat Doctrine is active for your unit instead of any other Combat Doctrine that is active for your army, even if you have already selected that Combat Doctrine this battle. | |
| Exemplary Vigilance [1CP] Shooting phase – WHEN: Your Shooting phase. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES unit from your army that has not been selected to shoot this phase. EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, ranged weapons equipped by models in your unit have the [IGNORES COVER] ability. If your unit is under the effects of the Devastator Doctrine, until the end of the phase, improve the Armour Penetration characteristic of such weapons by 1 as well. | |
| Practical Tactics [1CP] Opponent’s Movement phase – WHEN: Your opponent’s Movement phase, just after an enemy unit ends a Normal, Advance or Fall Back move. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES INFANTRY or ADEPTUS ASTARTES MOUNTED unit from your army that is not within Engagement Range of one or more enemy units and is within 9″ of the enemy unit that just ended that move. EFFECT: Your unit can make a Normal move of up to D6″, or a Normal move of up to 6″ instead if it is under the effects of the Tactical Doctrine. | |
| Tactical Foresight [1CP] Opponent’s Shooting phase or Fight phase – WHEN: Your opponent’s Shooting phase or the Fight phase, just after an enemy unit has selected its targets. TARGET: One ADEPTUS ASTARTES unit from your army that was selected as the target of one or more of the attacking unit’s attacks. EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, each time an attack targets your unit, if the Strength characteristic of that attack is greater than or equal to the Toughness characteristic of that unit, subtract 1 from the Wound roll. | |
| Key Combos: | Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard + Glory Of Ultramar ability + Inspiring Leader ability + Practical Tactics stratagem What if you wanted all of the Movement tricks in one unit? This combo gives you a unit that can Advance, Shoot, and Charge; Fall Back, Shoot, and Charge; Reactive Move; and Surge Move. It is insanely flexible. |
| Victrix Honour Guard + Glory Of Ultramar ability + Ultramarines Honour Guard ability + Armour of Contempt stratagem This is part of what makes Victrix Honour Guard so annoying to deal with. Adding a character to lead them and then using AoC results in a 2+ Save, -1 to Wound unit that can Surge into you if you shoot them and do damage. | |
| Repulsor Executioner + Incursor Squad + Mastered Doctrines detachment rule + Multi-Spectrum Array ability + Exemplary Vigilance stratagem What if you had just all of the guns and got to give them all Assault and then also give them Ignores Cover and +1 AP? And then what if you could also add in +1 to Hit against a single target? Thats what this combo provides. It takes the RepEx’s to the moon as far as how scary they can be. | |
| Victrix Honour Guard + Mastered Doctrines detachment rule + Courage and Honour! stratagem And finally, as if there weren’t enough powerful combos in this detachment, a melee blender combo. This one takes your already very good Victrix Honour Guard unit and gives them access to Lance and +1 AP (if in the Assault Doctrine) in melee. |
ROUND-BY-ROUND RECAP:
Necrons deployed somewhat conservatively as they are very worried about how open the center of the board is and how scary the Ultramarines; RepEx’s are. They focused on staging most of their units making sure that the Lokhust Heavy Destroyers had ready access to shooting lanes and the Skorpekhs and Nekrosor Ammentar have access to the center of the board.
The Ultramarines also deploy pretty conservatively as they want to make sure that the Necrons have to spend at least one turn in the midfield before they get their charges off. They stage both Victrix Honour Guard units in terrain with easy access to the Center Objective, both RepEx’s behind terrain but with access to shooting lanes in Round 1, and the Ballistus Dreads as bait to force the Necrons to “come out and play”.
Board state after Deployment is shown below.
Post Deployment
The Necrons win the roll off to go first and have no Scout moves.
The Ultramarines move their Incursors up 6 inches towards Objective 5 to start forcing the Necrons to have to dedicate a resource to hold it. They want to spread the Necrons out.
Board state at the start of the battle is shown below.
Start of the Battle
ROUND 1:
| Phase: | Go First: Necrons |
| Score at Start | 10 |
| CP at Start | 1 |
| Command | [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Bring It Down & Establish Locus |
| Movement | [Necrons] Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Advances onto Objective 5 to Shoot Ballistus Dreadnought 1 [Necrons] Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Makes a Normal Move towards No Man’s Land to Shoot Ballistus Dreadnought 1 [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Makes a Normal Move towards Objective 5 to Stage |
| Shooting | [Necrons] Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Shoots Ballistus Dreadnought 1 and Deals 0 Damage thanks to rolling three 1’s to Hit [Necrons] Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers uses Driven to Butchery stratagem [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 1 uses Armour of Contempt stratagem [Necrons] Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Shoots Ballistus Dreadnought 1 and Deals 0 Damage thanks to rolling another 1 to Hit and the Ballistus Dreadnought making a save. |
| Charge | [Necrons] None |
| Fight | [Necrons] None |
| End of Turn | [Necrons] Drops Secondary: Establish Locus for 1 CP |
| Score at End | 10 |
| CP at End | 2 |
Oh no! From a Necrons’ perspective, that turn was brutal. They start by drawing what looks to be great Secondaries. Bring It Down with an easy target in view and Establish Locus, which will be cycled to jump start their CP economy. Instead, they completely whiff and Ultramarines will get a free shot at their anti-tank without suffering any consequences. This is a bad start for the Necrons.
The board state in the middle of Round 1 is shown below.
Middle of Round 1
| Phase: | Go Second: Ultramarines |
| Score at Start | 10 |
| CP at Start | 3 |
| Command | [Ultramarines] Draw Secondaries: Extend Battle Lines & Establish Locus [Ultramarines] Declare the Devastator Doctrine [Ultramarines] Oath of Moment on Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers [Ultramarines] Intercessor Squad uses Objective Secured ability to sticky Objective 2 |
| Movement | [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 1 Makes a Normal Move onto Objective 4 to Shoot or Establish Locus [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad Advances towards Objective 5 to Shoot [Ultramarines] Lieutenant with Combi-weapon Makes a Normal Move onto Objective 3 [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar Advances towards Objective 5 to Shoot [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Advances into No Man’s Land to Shoot [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 2 Advances towards No Man’s Land to Shoot [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Makes a Normal Move within their DZ to Shoot [Ultramarines] Intercessor Squad Makes a Normal Move away from Home Objective to Screen [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard Makes a Normal Move towards Objective 4 to Vect and to Stage |
| Shooting | [Necrons] Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers uses Image of Death stratagem [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 2 Shoots Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Deals 4 Damage [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad Shoots Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Deals 0 Damage but mark them for +1 Hit using Multi-Spectrum Array ability [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 uses Exemplary Vigilance stratagem [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Shoots Chronomancer + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Destroys the Unit [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 1 Shoots Lokhust Lord + Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Destroys the Unit |
| Charge | [Ultramarines] None |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] None |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Extend Battle Lines — 4 VP [Ultramarines] Drops Secondary: Establish Locus for 0 CP [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 uses Tunneling Horrors ability to go into Reserves |
| Score at End | 14 |
| CP at End | 2 |
And the Ultramarines add to the Necrons misery by high rolling and blowing away both Lokhust Heavy Destroyer units. That turn went about as well as could be expected for the Ultramarines and about as poorly as could have been expected for the Necrons. The Ultramarines are now squarely in the driver seat of this game as they have more units, more board control, more CP, and second turn. While they expected to take some shots on their Lokhust Heavy Destroyers, the Necrons did not expect to lose both and are going to have to get creative to avoid a blow out here.
Board state at the end of Round 1 is shown below.
End of Round 1
ROUND 2:
| Phase: | Go First: Necrons |
| Score at Start | 10 |
| CP at Start | 3 |
| Command | [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Sabotage [Necrons] Score Primary: 5 VP |
| Movement | [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Makes a Normal Move onto Objective 5 to Charge [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Advances into Necrons Deployment Zone to Screen and Stage for Round 3 [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Makes a Normal Move towards Objective 4 to Shoot [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers Makes a Normal Move towards No Man’s Land to Stage [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 Makes a Normal Move towards Ballistus Dreadnought 1 to Charge [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 Deep Strikes near Objective 5 to Sabotage [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Deploys From Reserves near Objective 5 to Shoot |
| Shooting | [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Shoots Ballistus Dreadnought 2 and Deals 9 Damage [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Shoots Wardens of Ultramar and Kills 5 models |
| Charge | [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 Declares a Charge into Ballistus Dreadnought 1 — Charge Succeeded with CP re-roll [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Declares a Charge into Incursor Squad — Charge Succeeded |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad uses Haywire Mine wargear ability to deal 3 Mortal Wounds to Skorpekh Destroyers 1 [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 uses Plasmacyte wargear ability for Devastating Wounds [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Fights Incursor Squad and Kill 4 models [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 1 uses Armour of Contempt stratagem [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 uses Plasmacyte wargear ability [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 uses Methodical Murder stratagem for 2 CP thanks to Vect aura from Uriel Ventriss [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 Fights Ballistus Dreadnought 1 and Destroys the Unit [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 2 Consolidates into Ballistus Dreadnought 2 [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 2 Fights Skorpekh Destroyers 2 and Deals 1 Damage [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad Fights Skorpekh Destroyers 1 and Deals 1 Damage |
| End of Turn | [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Bring It Down — 4 VP [Ultramarines] Scout Squad uses Guerilla Tactics ability to go into Reserves |
| Score at End | 19 |
| CP at End | 1 |
That turn went much better for the Necrons as they were able to push the Ultramarines off of two midfield Objectives and take down 1 of the Dreadnoughts. They still are behind and will most likely get cracked in return, but are putting up a fight and showing signs of staying in the game.
Board state in the middle of Round 2 is shown below.
Middle of Round 2
| Phase: | Go Second: Ultramarines |
| Score at Start | 14 |
| CP at Start | 4 |
| Command | [Ultramarines] Draw Secondaries: A Tempting Target & Sabotage [Necrons] Pick Objective 5 as Tempting Target [Ultramarines] Declare Devastator Doctrine [Ultramarines] Oath of Moment on Skorpekh Destroyers 2 [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad passes Battle Shock [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 2 passes Battle Shock [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar passes Battle Shock [Ultramarines] Score Primary: 10 VP |
| Movement | [Ultramarines] Ballistus Dreadnought 2 Falls Back away from Objective 4 [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar Makes a Normal Move towards Objective 5 to Shoot and Charge [Ultramarines] Storm Speeder Hammerstrike Deep Strikes near Necrons Deployment Zone to Shoot [Ultramarines] Scout Squad Deploys From Reserves near Objective 3 to Sabotage |
| Shooting | [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Split Fires into C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer for 4 Damage and Skorpekh Destroyers 2 to kill 3 models [Ultramarines] Storm Speeder Hammerstrike Shoots Skorpekh Destroyers 2 and Destroys the Unit [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad Shoots Skorpekh Destroyers 1 and Deals 0 Damage [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Shoots C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer and Deals 0 Damage [Ultramarines] Scout Squad Performs Sabotage |
| Charge | [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar Declares a Charge into Skorpekh Destroyers 1 — Charge Succeeded |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar uses Courage & Honour stratagem [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord 1 uses Image of Death stratagem [Ultramarines] Wardens of Ultramar Fights Skorpekh Destroyers 1 and Kills 1 model [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Fights Incursor Squad and Whiffs [Ultramarines] Incursor Squad Fights Skorpekh Destroyers 1 and Deals 1 Damage |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Drops Secondary: A Tempting Target for 0 CP [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 1 uses Tunneling Horrors ability [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Sabotage — 3 VP |
| Score at End | 24 |
| CP at End | 3 |
Another good turn for the Ultramarines, although missing out on scoring A Tempting Target for a Secondary because 1 Skorpekh Destroyer model survived on 1 Wound is very annoying. There is also the looming threat of the C’Tan Shard of the Nightbnringer hovering over the midfield that looks very ominous, especially since he tanked all but one attack into him that turn.
Board state at the end of Round 2 is shown below.
End of Round 2
ROUND 3:
| Phase: | Go First: Necrons |
| Score at Start | 22 |
| CP at Start | 2 |
| Command | [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Display of Might & Recover Assets [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 uses Insane Bravery stratagem [Necrons] Score Primary: 10 VP [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 uses Reanimation for 2 Wounds [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer uses Reanimation for 1 Wound |
| Movement | [Necrons] Skorpekh Destroyers 1 Falls Back onto Objective 5 [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Makes a Normal Move towards Repulsor Executioner 1 to Shoot and Charge [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Makes a Normal Move onto Objective 5 to Shoot [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Makes a Normal Move towards Storm Speeder Hammerstrike to Shoot and Charge [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord + Skorpekh Destroyers Deploys From Reserves near Storm Speeder Hammerstrike to Shoot and Charge |
| Shooting | [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 Performs Recover Assets [Necrons] Hexmark Destroyer Performs Recover Assets [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Shoots Ballistus Dreadnought 2 and Destroys the Unit [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Shoots Wardens of Ultramar and Incursor Squad and Destroy both Units [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Shoots Storm Speeder Hammerstrike and Deals 2 Damage [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Shoots Storm Speeder Hammerstrike and Deals 0 Damage |
| Charge | [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Declares a Charge into Repulsor Executioner 1 — Charge Succeeded [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Declares a Charge into Storm Speeder Hammerstrike — Charge Failedwith a CP re-roll [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord + Skorpekh Destroyers Declares a Charge into Storm Speeder Hammerstrike — Charge Failed |
| Fight | [Necrons] C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer Fights Repulsor Executioner 1 and Deals 10 Damage [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Fights C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer and Whiffs |
| End of Turn | [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Recover Assets — 3 VP [Necrons] Drops Secondary: Display of Might for 1 CP [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Sabotage — 3 VP |
| Score at End | 35 |
| CP at End | 1 |
Ugh. Dice again impacting the game for the Necrons. In this case, it was the Nightbringer rolling two 1’s to hit followed by two 2’s to Wound, which resulted in him not killing the RepEx in front of him. This bodes very poorly for the Necrons next turn as he is now exposed and will probably eat a double dose of RepEx cannon fire.
The board state in the middle of Round 3 is shown below.
Middle of Round 3
| Phase: | Go Second: Ultramarines |
| Score at Start | 27 |
| CP at Start | 5 |
| Command | [Ultramarines] Draw Secondaries: Storm Hostile Objective & Assassination [Ultramarines] All Units uses Oath of Moment on Nightbringer [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard uses Ultramarian Adaptability stratagem to select Assault Doctrine [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 fails Battle Shock [Ultramarines] Score Primary: 10 VP |
| Movement | [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard Advances onto Objective 4 |
| Shooting | [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Shoots C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer with a CP re-roll and Destroys the Unit [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Shoots Skorpekh Destroyers 1 and Destroys the Unit [Ultramarines] Storm Speeder Hammerstrike Shoots Skorpekh Lord + Skorpekh Destroyers and Kills the Skorpekhs Destroyers [Ultramarines] Lieutenant with Combi-weapon Performs Burn Objective on Objective 3 |
| Charge | [Ultramarines] None |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] None |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Storm Hostile Objective — 4 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Assassination — 5 VP [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 uses Tunneling Horrors ability |
| Score at End | 46 |
| CP at End | 3 |
And down goes the Nightbringer. That probably seals the game for the Necrons as the Ultramarines can down bring out the Victrix Honour Guard to sweep the board clean with little to no threat of reprisal.
The board state at the end of Round 3 is shown below.
End of Round 3
ROUND 4:
| Phase: | Go First: Necrons |
| Score at Start | 35 |
| CP at Start | 2 |
| Command | [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: A Tempting Target & Secure No Man’s Land [Necrons] Drop Secondaries: A Tempting Target [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Marked For Death [Ultramarines] Mark Intercessors, Calgar + Victrix Honour Guard, and RepEx 2 [Necrons] Mark RepEx 1 [Necrons] Score Primary: 5 VP |
| Movement | [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Advances towards Repulsor Executioner 1 to Shoot [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Makes a Normal Move towards Storm Speeder Hammerstrike to Charge [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers Makes a Normal Move towards Repulsor Executioner 1 to Shoot [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Makes a Normal Move onto Objective 4 to Shoot and Charge [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 1 Deep Strikes onto Objective 5 [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 Deep Strikes near Objective 5 to Screen |
| Shooting | [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Shoots Storm Speeder Hammerstrike and Deals 2 Damage [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers Shoots Repulsor Executioner 1 and Deals 2 Damage [Necrons] Nekrosor Ammentar Shoots Repulsor Executioner 1 and Deals 0 Damage [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers uses Driven to Butchery stratagem to Shoot [Necrons] Lokhust Heavy Destroyers Shoots Repulsor Executioner 1 and Destroys the Unit [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 1 Explodes and does 2 Mortal Wounds to Lokhust Destroyers, 4 to Nekrosor Ammentar, and 2 to Uriel Ventriss + Victrix Honour Guard |
| Charge | [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Declares a Charge into Storm Speeder Hammerstrike — Charge Succeeded [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord uses Crimson Harvest ability and does 3 Mortal Wounds |
| Fight | [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord uses Methodical Murder stratagem [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Fights Storm Speeder Hammerstrike and Destroys the Unit |
| End of Turn | [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Secure No Man’s Land — 5 VP [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Marked For Death — 2 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Primary: Burn Objective 3 — 5 VP [Ultramarines] Scout Squad uses Guerilla Tactics ability |
| Score at End | 47 |
| CP at End | 0 |
Ugh. It wasn’t the deciding factor, but the dice do seem to keep coming up for the Ultramarines. In this case, it is in the form of the RepEx exploding once it is killed and dealing 4 Mortal Wounds to Nekrosor Ammentar. On the plus side, the Necrons keep scoring and seem to have a viable path to getting above 50 total VP and avoiding a 20-0 teams differential blow out.
Board state in the middle of Round 4 is shown below.
Middle of Round 4
| Phase: | Go Second: Ultramarines |
| Score at Start | 51 |
| CP at Start | 4 |
| Command | [Ultramarines] Draw Secondaries: Bring It Down & No Prisoners [Ultramarines] Declare Assault Doctrine [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 uses Ultramarine Adaptability stratagem to go into Devastator Doctrine [Ultramarines] Oath of Moment on Nekrosor Ammentar [Ultramarines] Score Primary: 5 VP |
| Movement | [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard Advances towards Lokhust Destroyers to Charge [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Advances onto Objective 4 to Shoot [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard Advances with a CP re-roll towards Objective 5 to Charge [Ultramarines] Lieutenant with Combi-weapon Advances towards Objective 2 to Screen [Ultramarines] Scout Squad Deploys From Reserves near Objective 2 to Screen |
| Shooting | [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Shoots Nekrosor Ammentar and Destroys the Unit |
| Charge | [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard Declares a Charge into Lokhust Destroyers — Charge Succeeded [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard Declares a Charge into Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Ophydian Destroyers 1 — Charge Succeeded |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard uses Banner of Macragge wargear ability [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard uses Courage & Honour stratagem [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard Fights Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Ophydian Destroyers 1 Destroys both Units [Ultramarines] Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard Fights Lokhust Destroyers and Kills 5 models with a CP re-roll [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers Fights Uriel Ventris + Victrix Honour Guard and Whiffs |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: No Prisoners — 5 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Bring It Down — 4 VP [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers uses Tunneling Horrors ability |
| Score at End | 65 |
| CP at End | 0 |
And thats the final push that ends the Necrons. They have lost basically all units that matter at this point. They will score 5 on Primary next round and may luck out with a Secondary or two, but they aren’t winning this game.
The board state at the end of Round 4 is shown below.
End of Round 4
ROUND 5:
| Phase: | Go First: Necrons |
| Score at Start | 47 |
| CP at Start | 2 |
| Command | [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Overwhelming Force & Defend Stronghold [Necrons] Drop Secondaries: Overwhelming Force [Necrons] Draw Secondaries: Area Denial [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers passes Battle Shock [Necrons] Score Primary: 5 VP [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers use Reanimation for 2 Wounds |
| Movement | [Necrons] Lokhust Destroyers Makes a Normal Move towards Objective 1 to Screen [Necrons] Skorpekh Lord Advances towards Objective 1 to Screen [Necrons] Ophydian Destroyers 2 Deep Strikes onto Objective 1 |
| Shooting | [Necrons] None |
| Charge | [Necrons] None |
| Fight | [Necrons] None |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Scout Squad uses Guerilla Tactics ability |
| Score at End | 52 |
| CP at End | 1 |
Necrons score 5 on Primary and draw a very doable Secondary in Defend Stronghold. As a result they have castled up to defend Objective 1 at all costs.
Board state in the middle of Round 5 is shown below.
Middle of Round 5
| Phase: | Go Second: Ultramarines |
| Score at Start | 65 |
| CP at Start | 3 |
| Command | [Ultramarines] Draw Secondaries: Display of Might & Recover Assets |
| Movement | [Ultramarines] Scout Squad Deploys From Reserves into Necrons Deployment Zone |
| Shooting | [Ultramarines] Scout Squad Performs Recover Assets [Ultramarines] Intercessor Squad Performs Recover Assets [Ultramarines] Repulsor Executioner 2 Performs Recover Assets [Ultramarines] Marneus Calgar in Armour of Antilochus + Victrix Honour Guard Performs Burn Objective on Objective 5 |
| Charge | [Ultramarines] None |
| Fight | [Ultramarines] None |
| End of Turn | [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Recover Assets — 5 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Secondary: Display of Might — 4 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Primary: 10 VP [Ultramarines] Scores Primary: 5 VP [Necrons] Scores Secondary: Defend Stronghold — 3 VP |
| Score at End | 89 |
| CP at End | 3 |
Ultramarines finish with 89 total VP which guarantees them a 89 – 55 victory.
Board state at the end of the game is shown below.
End of Round 5
RESULT:
Singles Format: 89 – 55 Ultramarines
WTC Teams Format: 16-4 Ultramarines WIN
GAME REVIEW:
To me, this game really highlighted how critical it is for damage dealing detachments to have access to some sort of ability to re-roll Hit rolls. I don’t think these lists were equally powered and Ultramarines probably win this game most of the time, but the disparity in access to Hit re-rolls really helped to decide this game. The Necrons had no access to Hit re-rolls and therefore saw their damage output spike in some turns while also cratering in others. Unfortunately, the cratering happened in the critical Rounds (1 and 3) and really cost the Necrons as it hung their Lokhust Heavy Destroyers and Nightbringer out to dry for very little in return.
On the other side, the Ultramarines ability to re-roll Hit rolls on what seemed like 2 to 3 different targets per turn made them very predictable to play and allowed me to play at a very controlled pace as I was virtually guaranteed to hit and kill the units that I needed to when I needed to.
I don’t bring this up as a way of arguing that we should feel bad for Necrons as they have other detachments that are doing VERY well in this meta. I more bring it up as a way of explaining why Cursed Legion may not be seeing a ton of competitive play. It is super fun and can spike damage like crazy (see my last game with them). Unfortunately, it also can see those spikes go the other way, which makes it very difficult to consistently play at a really high competitive level as you have no way to influence the dice to align with the math and list hammer that you built your list off of.
WHAT I WOULD CHANGE NEXT TIME:
- Necrons
- The obvious answer is Round 1 where I whiffed on all Shooting that mattered and then lost both anti-vehicle Lokhust Heavy Destroyer units in return. While that is true, I think the biggest mistake was not using the Chronomancer’s “move, shoot, move” ability to hide once it became clear that his unit had whiffed. That was a careless error that cost the neurons that unit.
- The second obvious answer is that I played the Nekrosor too passively AGAIN. This is now a trend and I need to do some thinking on why that is and how I fix it.
- Beyond those tactical mistakes, I think I need to rethink the list as I can feel myself fighting it when I play, especially with the Nekrosor. It’s probably not the optimal way to play the detachment, but I think I need to drop some shooting units and amp up the melee focus with more Skorpekhs. That will play to my strengths as a player better and also force me to play the Nekrosor more aggressively.
- Ultramarines
- Nothing major from the Ultramarines perspective as they played well overall. There were a few minor mistakes. One example is burning Objective 3 one round too early, which costs me a few VP here or there, but those are to be expected the first time that I play a list. Overall, I wouldn’t be surprised if this game turns into a 100 VP game for the Ultramarines next time I play it as this list is super strong.
EARNED THEMSELF A NAME:
The Repulsor Executioners. They killed what felt like half of the Necrons army in this game. RepEx 1 also had two of the cooler moments by tanking the Nightbringers’ melee attack to kill in in the next shooting phase in Round 3 and then by Exploding and dealing major damage in Round 4.
MAGNUS OF THE GAME:
The anti-vehicle Lokhust Heavy Destroyers. Rolling 4 of 5 dice as 1’s to Hit before you die in the clawback is a rough day at the office.
CINEMATIC MOMENTS OF THE GAME:
Nightbringer vs Repulsor Executioner 1 in Round 3
Uriel Ventriss and the Victrix Honour Guard Move to Put the Game Away in Round 4
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