Dark Angels VS Space Wolves Apocalypse Batrep

The Space Wolves bloggers and friends finally got together for an apocalyptic game of Warhammer 40K!

Despite players being substituted at the last minute and one army also being borrowed at the very last minute, we managed to organise a 6,000 points a side game of Dark Angels against Space Wolves that lasted most of Saturday.

We were even able to borrow boards, terrain and someone's boardroom to play our game in too.

We all agreed upon the standard Apocalypse deployment with a slightly shallower board to make the whole thing fiercer, but banned the use of Strategems or Formations. We effectively chose to play a big game of 40K with 6 Objectives instead.

All the armies were around 2,000 points and included a number of characterful units for a more fun game. After all, this would get boring if there was nothing but cut n' paste las/plas Razorback spam army lists all over the table.

The Space Wolves had a nice mixture of Thunderwolves, Lone Wolves and Wolf Scouts mixed in with the usual assortment of Grey Hunters and Long Fangs. Meanwhile, the Dark Angels had three forces themed around their 1st, 2nd and 3rd companies.

Objectives
While half of us were unpacking our armies, the other half were busy setting up the terrain.

The centre and West side of the battlefield was dense with ruined buildings while the East side was sparser, dominated by a single bastion, barricades and a ruined artillery emplacement.

Before deploying we chose 6 buildings to be the Objectives for the game. Simply being within 3" of a building would allow units to claim or contest them. So this would be a very close game indeed -especially considering the number of Land Speeders in play. These would be ideal to contest objectives, as would most of the Dark Angels Ravenwing. Meanwhile the Space Wolves would have to rely on their brute strength to wrestle the objectives from their rivals.

The Space Wolves:
In typical Space Wolves style, each of the forces sent forth from the Great Companies was very different. While John favoured as many Grey Hunters as possible with Wolf Scouts to disrupt the enemy battle plan, Brad favoured Wolf Lords riding Thunderwolfs to battle while Dave favoured Lone Wolves to beat the enemy senseless. But together their armies complemented one another to create a horde of Grey Hunters and heroes backed up by a multitude of missile launchers.

Erik Morkai's Great Company
Wolf Lord with Wolf Claw and Storm Shield with Saga of the Warrior Born riding a Thunderwolf and joined by 2 Fenrisian Wolves.

Wolf Lord with Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield with Saga of the Beast Slayer riding a Thunderwolf and joined by 2 Fenrisian Wolves.

Rune Priest with Jaws of The World Wolf and Living Lightning

(X2) Dreadnoughts with 2 Twin Linked Autocannons

2 Landspeeder Typhoons
(X2) Landspeeder Tornados with Multi-Melta and Heavy Flamer

(X2) 8-Man Grey Hunter Pack:
Wolf Guard with Powerfist and Combi-Melta
Mark of the Wulfen, Melta Gun, Wolf Standard
The Squad rides in a Rhino transport

(X2) 6-Man Long Fang Packs:
Sergeant and 5 Missile Launchers

Harald Deathwolf's Great Company
Wolf Lord with Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield with Saga of the Bear riding a Thunderwolf and joined by 2 Fenrisian Wolves.

(X2) Lone Wolf with Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield and 2 Fenrisian Wolves

5-Man Wolf Scout Pack with Melta Gun, led by Wolf Guard with Powerfist and Combi-Melta

Thunderwolf Cavalry with Wolf Claw and Storm Shield.

(X2) Landspeeder Typhoons

(X2) 8-Man Grey Hunter Pack:
Wolf Guard with Powerfist and Combi-Melta
Mark of the Wulfen, Melta Gun, Wolf Standard
The Squad rides in a Rhino transport

(X2) 6-Man Long Fang Packs:
Sergeant and 5 Missile Launchers
One of these squads ride in a Razorback armed with a Lascannon and a Twin Linked Plasma Gun

Gunnar Red Moon's Great Company
Rune Priest with Tempest's Wrath and Living Lightning

(X2) 5-Man Wolf Scout Pack with Melta Gun

(X4) 8-Man Grey Hunter Pack:
Wolf Guard with Powerfist and Combi-Melta
Mark of the Wulfen, Melta Gun, Wolf Standard
The Squad rides in a Rhino transport

(X3) Landspeeder Tornados with Multi-Melta and Heavy Flamer

(X3) 6-Man Long Fang Packs:
Sergeant and 5 Missile Launchers
Two of these squads ride in Razorbacks armed with a Lascannon and a Twin Linked Plasma Gun


The Dark Angels:
James, Glenn, Neil made up the Dark Angels team and everyone was in awe as James brought tray after foam tray full of painted miniatures out of an enormous carry case.

James is the proud owner of an enormous Dark Angels army and while we were only playing with 6,000 points a side today, there was plenty more where all this came from.

It's worth mentioning that because the Dark Angels Codex is considerably underpowered, we agreed that 1st and 2nd company units would be drawn from the Codex as standard, while 3rd company units could be purchased from the Space Marines Codex.

Dark Angels 1st Company
Master Belial with Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield
Librarian in Terminator Armour
Deathwing Terminator Assault Squad:
Thunder Hammers, Storm Shields, the Deathwing Standard and an Apothecary.
The squad rides in a Land Raider Crusader

(X5) Deathwing Terminator Tactical Squads:
Sergeant with Power Sword, Chainfist, Cyclone Missile Launcher

Dark Angels 2nd Company
Master Sammael riding in custom Land Speeder

(X4) 10-Man Ravenwing Squads:
Sergeant with Power Sword, 2 melta guns
Attack Bike with Multi Melta
Landspeeder Tornado with Assault Cannon and Heavy Bolter

Landspeeder Typhoon

Dark Angels 3rd Company
Chaplain with Jump Pack

(X2) Dreadnought with Plasma Cannon, Close Combat Weapon and Heavy Flamer

Dreadnought with Twin Linked Lascannon and Missile Launcher

(X3) 10-Man Tactical Squad:
Sergeant with Powerfist, melta gun, lascannon
The squad has a Razorback transport with Twin Linked Heavy Bolters

(X2) 10-Man Assault Squad:
Sergeant with Powerfist, flamer

(X2) 5-Man Devastator Squad:
Sergeant with Auspex, 4 Missile Launchers


Deployment
After measuring out the deployment zones in the Apocalypse style, the two teams took it in turns to select which buildings would be their objectives before rolling off to see who would go first.

Normally in Apocalypse the teams 'bet time' to set up, but we really couldn't be bothered with that. It would also make forming battle plans far simpler.

So with a 'team' element in mind, all 3 players from each side would roll their dice and add up the total number. The Dark Angels began by rolling 5, 5 and 6 while the Space Wolves rolled 3, 4 and 1.

The Dark Angels opted to take the first turn and began setting up first. This would give them the first turn of fire, which could make all the difference. It also allowed them to pick the best terrain to deploy in. However, it also meant that the Space Wolves could counter-deploy to meet their strategy and would also have the final turn of the game, allowing them to claim or contest objectives more effectively.

The Dark Angels deployed most of their forces to the West with the Ravenwing occupying the ground and the 3rd company heavy weapon teams occupying the rooftops and taking up firing positions. A smaller position was also created in the centre of their lines.

Meanwhile Mast Belial's Deathwing Assault Squad riding in a Land Raider Crusader was deployed on the West flank.

The rest of the Deathwing were in reserve and would Deathwing Assault on the 1st turn.

Two Assault Squads were also placed in reserve.

The East side was left unoccupied due to its lack of terrain and could provide an ideal landing zone for a Deathwing Assault.

This left the Space Wolves with a deployment zone lacking in terrain. The Long Fang packs set up as best they could on the small rooftop spaces, behind barricades on the ground and used every ounce of terrain available to find good firing positions for the game.

A mass of armoured vehicles packed full of Grey Hunters were deployed in the open to the West, flanked either side by Thunderwolves and Lone Wolves.

Meanwhile the Space Wolves forces swept down to the East, hugging terrain as best they could in anticipation of a Deathwing Assault or change in direction for the highly manoeuvrable Ravenwing forces.

All of the Landspeeders were held in reserve, as were all but 1 of the Wolf Scouts which infiltrated just outside of the Dark Angels main force to the West.

Turn 1
Three Deathwing squads deepstrike into the centre of the battlefield, using the teleport homers to land safely. Meanwhile the Dark Angels army advances as one.

countless lascanons blasts and krak missile impact against the hulls of the Space Wolves Rhino transports while bolters, heavy bolters and assault cannons rake the Thunderwolf Cavalry. But at the end of the onslaught only a few Fenrisian Wolves had fallen to the guns of the Dark Angels while the Rhino transports emerged for the most part unscathed. However, the Wolf Scouts in the centre had been wiped out after putting up a brave fit that took a number of Ravenwing bikers down with them.

The Space Wolves also advanced with Thunderwolves and Lone Wolves leading. The Space Wolves fired the smoke launchers on their vehicles while the countless packs of Long Fangs returned fire with salvoes of krak missiles that blasted a huge hole in the Ravenwing formation.

The two Wolf Lords riding Thunderwolves lost their Fenrisian Wolf companisons, but made short work of the remaining Ravenwing bikers in the centre and advanced towards the newly arrived Deathwing Terminators.

Meanwhile to the East the Space Wolves repositioned, expecting the possible arrival of Dark Angel Assault Squads from the board edge as well Deathwing reinforcements.

Turn 2
Two more Deathwing Squads arrived from Reserve and Teleported alongside their 1st company brothers in the centre.

Meanwhile both Assault Squads also arrived from reserve and advanced behind the main Dark Angels battle line to the West.

It was clear to see that the Dark Angels had abandoned the East and would concentrate on claiming objectives in the centre and to the West.

The Dark Angels continued a cautious advance, gunning down the Thunderwolves, before blasting apart a Rhino and annihilating the Grey Hunters that stumbled out of the wreckage with a deadly plasma cannon blast from a Dreadnought.

Countless more missiles and lascannon blasts slammed into the main force of Space Wolves Rhinos, but now concealed by smoke and with some bad luck on the Dark Angels players' part, they only suffered minor damage and remained actively mobile.

Meanwhile the Deathwing formation in the centre advanced, gunning down the nearest pack of Long Fangs on the roof of a ruin.

One squad charged the nearest Wolf Lord riding riding a Thunderwolf and were torn to shreds by his Wolf Claws combined with the Saga Of The Warrior Born. Having reaped a tally of 3 kills in the previous round of close combat, the Wolf Lord was on 8 Attacks!

In the Space Wolves turn almost all of the Land Speeders arrived from reserve to the West, as did the Wolf Scouts who together advanced to target the Dark Angels Ravenwing, Dreadnought and Master Belial's Land Raider with their melta guns and multi-meltas.

The Land Raider Crusader exploded spectacularly, leaving the rest of the Land Speeders to unleash their flamers on the tightly packed Ravenwing bikers. Only a few of the bikers perished in the flames, but Belial and his Deathwing Assault Squad were now stranded and would have to cross the battlefield very slowly on foot.

With many of their transports unable to move this turn, the Space Wolves chose to sit tight while the Lone Wolves got stuck into close combat with the Ravenwing bikers and began hacking their way through them with their chainfists.

To the East the Space Wolves began advancing towards the objective in the centre while leaving long ranged units behind to claim the objective.

Meanwhile the Long Fangs unleashed a salvo of frag missiles into the Deathwing Terminators in the centre, inflicting casualties across all of the squads.

The Space Wolves Dreadnoughts both fired their autocannons at the Dark Angels Venerable Dreadnought, immobilising its legs and leaving it unable to move.

Turn 3
To the far West Belial's Deathwing Assault Squad, the Dreadnought and the remaining Raveniwng bikers began butchered their way through the tightly packed Space Wolves Landspeeders. The Land Speeders had done their job and that was to take down Belial's Land Raider, leaving him effectively stranded and out of the game. The Wolf Scouts gave a valiant account of themselves, but were also wiped out when the Chaplain led Assault Squad also joined the fray.

In the West the Ravenwing advanced all guns into rapid fire range and gunned down the Lone Wolves with sheer weight of fire.

The Assault Marines flew across the table to contest a Space Wolves held objective while Razorbacks with Dark Angels combat squads inside drove to claim more objectives.

Finally, the Space Wolves Rhino formation was destroyed from deadly accurate fire from the remaining Dark Angels Devastator squads and Ravenwing Landspeeders.

In the centre the Deathwing Terminators advanced towards the central objective while gunning down one of the Wolf Lords riding Thunderwolves, but they could only wound the other.

The remaining Space Wolves Landspeeders arrived from reserve and along with the Long Fangs succeeded in wiping out most of the Deathwing and Ravenwing bikers with frag and krak missiles.

The remaining Wolf Lord riding a Thunderwolf charged the full strength Deathwing squad which had been unscathed by the salvo, killing two of the Terminators in close combat with his Thunder Hammer while taking a wound himself.

Meanwhile the Space Wolves forces in the East continued their advance towards the objective in the centre.

At this point it was clear to see that while the Dark Angels controlled 2 objectives to the West and fought for another in the West, the Space Wolves controlled 2 objectives to the East, which meant that it was the central objective that would decide the winner of this battle.

Turn 4
On the final turn of the game, all hell broke loose in a blood soaked frenzy of close combat as the Dark Angels and Space Wolves wrestled for control over the 6 objectives.

Belial and the forces to the far West moved as quickly as they could, but were too far away to do anything this late in the game. The Chaplain led Assault Squad however was able to fire their jump packs and crash into close combat with pack of Grey Hunters.

The other Assault Squad also charged into close combat with another pack of Grey Hunters.

Meanwhile the Ravenwing also piled in after gunning down a few of the Space Wolves with their twin linked bolters and melta guns.

Now all the Dark Angels' guns were focussed on the Grey Hunters to the West.

In the centre the Deathwing Terminators made an incredible number of 5+ invulnerable saves before pummelling the Wolf Lord to red mush with their Power Fists.

The other Deathwing Terminator squad, accompanied by a single Ravenwing Landspeeder stood their ground against the oncoming Space Wolves from the East, but only succeeded in blasting the turret from a nearby Razorback. Hopefully they could stay out of charge range while weathering the storm of lascannon, plasma, missile and bolter fire which would be coming their way...

In a devastating display of firepower the Space Wolves forces from the East disembarked and surrounded the Deathwing squad with guns while the Long Fangs in the buildings turned their missile launchers towards this new target. As did the Landspeeder Typhoons and the nearby Razorbacks.

The Ravenwing Landspeeder fell out of the sky and crashed spectacularly while the Deathwing Terminators were cut down by sweeping energy beams and plasma blasts before finally being riddled with bullets from a firing line of Grey Hunters. The central objective had been claimed by the Space Wolves.

Meanwhile, the battle to the West had devolved into a bloody close combat with a heavy tally of casualties on both sides, but with so many units clustered around the last objective, neither side could claim it. And with that the game ended.

3 Objectives to the Space Wolves, 2 Objectives to the Dark Angels.

CONCLUSION
It was a close, extremely violent and very enjoyable game! However, it did take a lot of organisation, but it was all worth it in the end. Best of all, we all got to meet up for a day of what we all enjoy.

As for the game itself, the army lists were all excellent. However, it was the deployment of these forces that seemed to make or break the game.

I felt that the Space Wolves deployed very well, considering the lack of terrain available to them. But not only that, their deployment contained a mixture of units across their battle line, while the Dark Angels seemed very segmented.

Committing so much to the far West was possibly a poor plan for the Dark Angels, especially when Belial's Deathwing Assault Squad riding in a Land Raider Crusader was placed here. This is a devastating unit which could have battered the Lone Wolves, Wolf Lords riding Thunderwolves and most of the Grey Hunters single handedly in the centre, even if the Land Raider had been destroyed.

Instead this unit was stuck far out on a flank and once the Land Raider was taken care of, it could be ignored.

But overall the Dark Angels had plenty of Toughness 5 bikes, Dreadnoughts, Assault Squads and Terminators with powerfists and could have taken the fight to the Space Wolves and won. Instead they sat back and cautiously shot, which we've seen isn't effective enough at wiping out whole units.

However, the Space Wolves weren't perfect either, because they could have been more aggressive too. I felt that the Rhino just sat there taking hits turn after turn when they could have been advancing forward at full speed. This would have given the Thunderwolves some protection too, but instead they just got shot and killed.

The Landspeeder Typhoons all should have been on from the start as well. With their range they could sit back out of harms way and add to the salvo of missiles being unleashed each turn by the Long Fangs.

But having played a game of Apocalypse, I think we would all play it again very differently and have a much more direct strategy in mind. Because you only get 4 turns to play in, everything you do has to count. So units being inactive or not doing anything for a turn can really hurt your army as a whole.

I'd like to thank Brad, John, Dave, James, Glenn and Neil for all coming along and making it such a great day. Also a special thanks to Alex West for lending us his army at 8am in the morning!

After this we were all really fired up to go home and start working on our armies. But I've got to say that after seeing how much carnage Wolf Lords and Lone Wolves can cause, I'm keen to get some for myself. Some Landspeeder Typhoons seem like a good choice too.

Ragnar Blackmane Tactics

Ragnar Blackmane is the youngest Space Wolf have have ever been promoted to Wolf Lord. Famous for his blood curdling howls and berserk charges, Ragnar has a capacity for raw hatred that gives him great strength, yet many believe that his impetuous nature may yet prove his downfall. But to witness one of his beserk rages is to watch the fury of the hurricane come to life and countless blows are rained down upon the enemy.

As an aspirant Ragnar slew an enormous blackmaned wolf and wore its hide on his journey through the great snow drifts and back to The Fang. From that day Ragnar took the Blackmane as his totem and namesake, forever cementing his place in the legends of the Sky Warriors.

Since then he quickly rose through the ranks, displaying incredible ferocity and rising from the ranks of Blood Claw to Wolf Guard, which was an almost unheard of promotion. Finally, having avenged the death of his Wolf Lord, Ragnar found himself elected as the next Wolf Lord -a remarkable accomplishment for such a young warrior.

Naturally, such a ferocious character is a very appealing HQ choice for any Space Wolves player. Ragnar Blackmane not only has the Saga Of The Warrior Born, but also a number of other unique abilities to increase the Assault potential of friendly units around him.

Equipment: Bolt Pistol, Frost Blade, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman, Melta Bombs, up to 2 Fenrisian Wolves.

Skills: Saga of the Warrior Born, Insane Bravado, War Howl (Furious Charge), Incredible Reflexes.

Using War Howl
It's easy to forget that this ability automatically gives Ragnar and any unit he leads the Furious Charge ability. When he uses his War Howl, all units within 12" also receive Furious charge for that assault phase.

So this ability is best used at times when all your Grey Hunters have disembarked from their transports and are ready to pile in to a massive close combat! No doubt you will be able to easily measure 12" from Ragnar to a model in a friendly unit.

Of course, if Ragnar is in the centre of your battle line, you've got a 24" wide area of effect for this ability centred on Ragnar.

Using Insane Bravado
Any squad Ragnar joins MUST launch an assault if possible. In addition to this, Ragnar and any unit he leads gets +D3 Attacks when they charge instead of the usual +1.

While some players may be keen to have Ragnar leading a pack of Blood Claws, the Blood Claws' Berserk Charge ability offers a similar bonus to Insane Bravado, making the combination of these two units a poor choice.

Instead we would recommend having Ragnar lead a pack of Grey Hunters because of the Wolf Standard. Because the Wolf Standard allows the rerolling of all 1's during the Assault Phase, this would also allow you to reroll and Insane Bravado rolls of a 1! Because of Ragnar's many other abilities, the Wolf Standard would give even greater benefits with its rerolls.


Ragnar Blackmane Leading Wolf Guard
As a Wolf Lord, many will be keen to give Ragnar Blackmane his own bodyguard of Wolf Guard. However, a regular pack of Wolf Guard can't compare to a pack of Grey Hunters.

Although Combi-weapon spam Wolf Guard Terminators in a Land Raider have proven to be a brilliant assassination unit to take down enormous monstrous creatures or powerful characters.

I always arm mine with a mixture of combi-weapons, power weapons, a chainfist or thunderhammer (for anti-tank, anti-monstrous creature and last minute infantry smacking), a wolf claw to help with wound allocation and finally a cyclone missile launcher for long ranged fire power.

Its the optimum combination and the most rewarding in return on investment for your points. It also makes all 5 models unique for the purpose of wound allocation.

When you add Ragnar Blackmane to the mix, these Terminators get a boost to their Initiative, Strength and Attacks when charging -And that's really good when you're attacking with a plethora of power weapons!


However, to fit Ragnar in their Land Raider we need to boot out a Wolf Guard (and lose the Cyclone Missile Launcher) or take a Redeemer over the standard Land Raider. I've often said that Space Wolves need all the lascannons they can get, but there's no denying the awesome power of the Redeemer's flamestorm cannons.

While the idea of getting Ragnar, a handful of Wolf Guard Terminators and bunging them in a Land Raider Redeemer sounds like a brilliant idea, this unit comes to over 700 points! That's a lot of eggs in one basket.

Ragnar Blackmane Leading Blood Claws
As mentioned above regarding Ragnar's Insane Bravado, there really aren't any benefits to be had by Ragnar leading a pack of Blood Claws. Sure, they get Furious Charge, but that's about it.

There are far better units in the army for Ragnar to join and share his abilities with. In particular, Grey Hunters who are able to share their abilities with Ragnar in return, creating a much stronger unit.

Ragnar Blackmane Leading Grey Hunters
We all know that Grey Hunters are the best unit in the army and largely its down to them having access to a Wolf Standard.

The Wolf Standard works brilliantly with Ragnar's Insane Bravado and Wolf Howl while allowing the unit and Ragnar to reroll all rolls of a 1 for a single assault phase.

Also, Grey Hunters do have a tendency to get bogged down in close combat in the assault phases following the first (which they often use their Wolf Standard for). This is where Ragnar's Saga Of The Warrior Born really comes into play, keeping the number of hitting and wounding attacks high to ensure that the enemy are effectively wiped out without sustaining too many casualties.

Ragnar Blackmane Leading Long Fangs
They would have to be some seriously ferocious Long Fangs for Ragnar to lead them!
There really are no benefits to Ragnar joining a pack of Long Fangs...or any static unit for that matter.


CONCLUSION
If you're looking for a Wolf Lord who encourages you to get stuck in to close combat, you won't find better than Ragnar Blackmane.

While he's fairly expensive in points, he does give the unit he leads +1 Initiative, +1 Strength and +D3 attacks on the charge. He also gets these bonuses himself, so he's an excellent close combat character. And that's before we take Saga Of The Warrior Born into account.

The best place for Ragnar seems to be in with a pack of Grey Hunters because of the benefits from the Wolf Standard.

This not only enhances all the abilities he passes to the Grey Hunters, but also enhances Ragnar's abilities (like Insane Bravado) in return.

Now you just need to decide whether you want Ragnar Blackmane to join a pack of Grey Hunters in a Rhino or to get more of them into a Land Raider Redeemer and take the fight straight to the enemy!

Ulrik The Slayer Tactics

Ulrik the Slayer is the Wolf High Priest of the Space Wolves and has been mentor to some of the greatest leaders the Space Wolves Chapter has ever seen.

Ulrik gained the name 'slayer' during the first war for Armageddon, as one of Lord Kruger's Wolf Guard. As Lord Kruger was cut down by Khorne Bezerkers, Ulrik leapt to defend his dying Wolf Lord and butchered them all, earning himself the name 'slayer' and receiving a grim salute from the lord of the World Eaters.

Once the battle was over the remaining Wolf Guard elected Ulrik to be Kruger's replacement and become the next Wolf Lord. Astonishingly, Ulrik turned the honour down. Instead he accepted the rank of Wolf Priest and applied his centuries of martial experience to the selection and training of new recruits.

In recent years however, Ulrik has become ever more aggressive onthe battlefield, swearing great oaths to cut down the most deadly of enemies in the name of Russ and the Emperor without a care for his own safety.

But in game terms Ulrik the Slayer is a Wolf Priest who not only improves the close combat abilities of the unit he joins, his improved stat line means he's no slouch in close combat either.

Equipment: Plasma Pistol, Power Weapon, Fang of Morkai, Wolftooth Necklace, Wolf Amulet, Wolf Helm of Russ

Skills: Fearless, Slayer's Oath, Mentor

Slayer's Oath
Much like Saga of the Beast Slayer, Ulrik has a special version of the Wolf Priest Oath of War ability. In this case he and any unit he joins which allocated their attacks to a model of Toughness 5 or higher may reroll to hit and reroll to wound.

While this is great for hacking your way through Necron Elites, Plague Marines or Bikers, it also means that you don't get the flexibility offered by the regular Wolf Priest Oath of War.

Mentor
This allows you to give 1 model in the army +1WS so long as they're not a special character. It's a nice way of giving a close combat specialist a bit of a boost. Really you're looking to promote a WS4 model up to WS5, because then they're more likely to be hitting on 3+. This would be wasted on characters who are likely to have a Wolf Tooth Necklace anyway. Instead I'd give the upgrade to a regular Wolf Guard with a Powerfist leading a Grey Hunter pack. That way you can make sure that his Power Fist scores as many hits as possible.

Wolf Helm of Russ
Any Space Wolves unit that can trace a line to Ulrik may reroll failed morale tests, which is nice, but nothing something you can really plan a strategy around.

Meanwhile any enemy Independent Characters attacking Ulrik in close combat must pass a Leadership test to attack. Once again, this is nice if it happens, but it's not something that can be relied upon as most Independent Characters have good Leadership values. That said, a powerful character failing the test will give you something to laugh about!

Ulrik the Slayer Leading Wolf Guard
While some people like to run combi-weapon spam Wolf Guard units, I don't feel that they're very cost effective. Combi-weapon spam Wolf Guard Terminators on the other hand are pretty good.

I always arm mine with a mixture of combi-weapons, power weapons, a chainfist or thunderhammer (for anti-tank, anti-monstrous creature and last minute infantry smacking), a wolf claw to help with wound allocation and finally a cyclone missile launcher for long ranged fire power.

Its the optimum combination and the most rewarding in return on investment for your points. It also makes all 5 models unique for the purpose of wound allocation.

Mine also ride in a Land Raider to get them to where they are needed quickly and to take out a particular target.

When you add Ulrik the Slayer, these Terminators become even better at hunting the big and tough stuff that typically needs a lot of combi-weapons and a couple of powerfists to kill it. Ulrik's Slayer Oath allows them to re-roll to hit and re-roll to wound anything with Toughness 5 -and that's exactly the kind of enemy units this squad is designed to hunt down. Ulrik simply makes them much better at it, which is great when they have a tendency to get bogged down in close combat if things don't go well for them.

However, to fit Ulrik in we can either boot a Wolf Guard out of the Land Raider or take a Redeemer over the standard Land Raider. I've often said that Space Wolves need all the lascannons they can get, but there's no denying the awesome power of the Redeemer's flamestorm cannons.

Ulrik the Slayer Leading Blood Claws
The best way to run Blood Claws is to have a Wolf Priest leading them, because his oath of War gives them Preffered Enemy against a particular unit type chosen at the start of the game.

Ulrik's Slayer Oath however, only allows them to reroll to hit and reroll to wound against enemies with a Toughness of 5 or above.

Ulrik the Slayer
Wolf Guard in Terminator Armour, Combi-Melta, Chainfist
15 Blood Claws, 2 Melta guns

In this loadout we've swapped our regular Wolf Priest for Ulrik. You can still run these across the board and into the carnage of close combat. However, you'll probably go for Toughness 5 models as a priority instead of simply attacking the nearest unit.

Still, a savvy opponent could deny you getting near anything with Toughness 5, making Ulrik's Slayer Oath useless.

Ulrik the Slayer Leading Grey Hunters
Similarly, Ulrik has the same issues leading Grey Hunters. Due to their midfield role, you're not very likely to get to choose exactly what you charge -unless you pack them all into a Land Raider of course.

But when the best configuration is 7 Grey Hunters and a Wolf Guard in a Rhino and you have three units of these, it's almost impossible to know which squad to put Ulrik in or where he'll end up by the end of the battle.

As before, a savvy opponent can just keep his Toughness 5 units well away from you.

Ulrik the Slayer Leading Long Fangs
Brave as my Long Fang pack leaders might be in close combat, there really are no benefits from attaching Ulrik the Slayer to Long Fangs when his Slayer Oath only works in close combat.


CONCLUSION
For 80pts more than a regular Wolf Priest, you get a Character with I5 who is a little better in close combat and gives you an extra boost against anything with Toughness 5.

This makes him awesome when leading units which are designated monster hunters, like the Wolf Guard Terminators. But a regular Wolf Priest is just so much more versatile.

And that's the whole point of a Wolf Priest, to augment the unit he's leading. Unfortunately, Ulrik only does this in very specific circumstances and for many Space Wolves armies a regular Wolf Priest will be a much better choice.

So whether you use Ulrik or not really comes down to how many Toughness 5 units you're likely to face. That's generally Necron Elites, Plague Marines and Bikers, which means if Toughness 5 units become more common, then he is definitely worth taking.

Canis Wolfborn Tactics

Canis Wolfborn, the Fangrider is essentially a Wolf Guard Battle Leader with extra wounds and attacks who allows you to take Fenrisian Wolves as Troops while giving them a Leadership and Initiative boost.

The Wolf Priest theorise that Canis was somehow lost in the wastes and raised by a brooding she-wolf in whose lair the young Canis found shelter. And having been raised by Fenrisian wolves, all wolves great and small now instinctively obey his commands.

In battle he rides Fengir, the largest of the Thunderwolves into battle, which accounts for his improved stat line and extra attacks.

Canis Wolfborn is a pure close combat character who works best in the thick of the fighting, surrounded by as many enemies as possible. But without an invulnerable save he does require a little bit of looking after.

Equipment: Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman, Two Wolf Claws, Thunderwolf,

Skills: Saga of the Wolfkin, Rending, Wrath of the Savage, Lord of the Wolfkin, The Wolf King.

Lord of the Wolfkin
Any unit of Fenrisian wolves within 12" may use Canis' Leadership instead of their own. It's a nice bonus, but it's not going to win you any games, especially when Canis' Saga of the Wolfkin gives Fenrisian Wolves a Leadership boost already.

The Wolf King
This ability allows you to field Fenrisian Wolves as Troops in an army joined by Canis Wolfborn. Unfortunately Fenrisian Wolves cannot claim objectives.

Still, this does allow you to take 2 minimal, cheap troop choices so you can max out on units designed to obliterate your enemies instead.

Lately some players seem to prefer this to bothering with objectives. After all, if the enemy are all dead, you win automatically anyway!

Out of a 1,750pts army, spending 80pts on 2 Troop units so that you can spend 1,670pts on Long Fangs, Land Speeders, Thunderwolf Lords, Thunderwolf Cavalry and Wolf Guard Terminators in Land Raiders could put you at an awesome advantage -Especially if your opponent has spend at least 300 points on standard objective grabbing units that don't do much all game.

Wrath of the Savage
Instead of using his regular 6 attacks (that's 5 +1 for a pair of wolf claws), Canis may choose to use the number of enemy models in base contact with him as his basic Attacks characteristic.

We managed to surround Canis with 10 models in base to base contact, giving him a total of 10 attacks +1 for his Wolf Claws. So that's 11 attacks in total and we used his Wolf Claws to reroll to hit, because his Thunderwolf puts him up to Strength 5, so rerolling to wound wouldn't be as much of an issue.

Remember that because of his Wolf Tooth Necklace, he always hits on a 3+ as well. So statistically, that's 11 attacks, producing 8 hits, rerolling 3 fails and getting 2 more hits for a total of 10 hits! Providing he's attacking Toughness 4 models, his 10 hits should produce approximately 7 wounds with no armour saves allowed.

And because Canis is Initiative 5, he's likely to strike first as well. However, of those 3 models remaining, 1 of them will probably have a Power Fist. So be carefully, otherwise Canis will cause a great deal of damage, only to get pummelled in return.

Rending
It's easy to overlook this, because you're going to be attacking with Canis' Wolf Claws, but don't forget that when attacking vehicles in close combat Thunderwolf Cavalary have the Rending ability which will help you to pierce armour -especially if you end up in close combat with a Dreadnought.

Canis Wolfborn Leading Grey Hunters, Long Fangs, Wolf Guard, Blood Claws, Skyclaws, Swiftclaws
For obvious reasons, you wouldn't have Canis leading any of these units. They're simply not fast enough (or move at a different speed in different phases) and would tie him down.

We had considered putting him in with a pack of Blood Claws as they always run forward anyway. However, for competitive purposes we'd advise against taking Blood Claws altogether, because they're not a patch on Grey Hunters.

Canis Wolfborn Leading Thunderwolf Cavalry
While this seems like an obvious choice, it's actually an extremely expensive one! Many people have stopped taking big units of Thunderwolf Cavalry simply because they cost so much in points. Similarly, attaching a character like Canis to them makes the unit even more expensive and puts all of your eggs in one big basket.

Canis Wolfborn Leading Fenrisian Wolves
Because Canis is going to do most of the damage, giving him 2 Fenrisian Wolves as wargear and attaching him to a pack of Fenrisian Wolves is a great way to get him across the board and into close combat.

Who cares if all those wolves get shot at? Getting Canis into close combat and surrounded by enemies is what you need to do. Any Wolves that make it in can be used to tie up any Powerfists and keep them out of base to base contact so that Canis can continue to butcher the enemy for another turn.


CONCLUSION
Canis Wolfborn is good fun to play because of all his extra attacks and Wrath Of The Savage ability. However, many players would prefer to take a Wolf Lord riding a Thunderwolf with the Saga Of The Warrior Born instead.

Our optimal Thunderwolf Lord has the following:
Thunderwolf Mount, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Claw, Runic Armour, Storm Shield, Saga of the Warrior Born, 2 Fenrisian Wolves

The Thunderwolf boosts his Toughness, Strength and Attacks by +1. So he can't be instantly killed by a Strength 8 Powerfist.

The Wolf Tooth Necklace ensures he always hits on a 3+.

The Wolf Claw allows him to reroll to hit or reroll to wound. This works well with the Wolf Tooth Necklace to make sure you inflict as many wounds as possible.

The Runic Armour and Storm Shield obviously helps to keep him alive, as do the 'ablative Wolves'.

Finally, Saga of the Warrior Born works with the Wolf Tooth Necklace and Wolf Claw to keep the number of successful kills as high as possible turn on turn.

All this comes to 280, while Canis costs 205pts. The extra 75pts buys you survivability and a Saga that doesn't need you to be dangerously surrounded by enemies in order to benefit from it. You just have to kill things.

So after comparing these two units, the only real benefit of taking Canis is his ability to make Fenrisian Wolves Troops choices for the army, which is totally not worth it -Especially when Grey Hunters are such useful Troops choices to have, even if they can get quite expensive with all their upgrades.

Our advise is to get the Canis Wolfborn model and convert him into a Thunderwolf Lord with a storm shield. That's a nice and simple conversion!