[ROT]

With the Current Possessed hype in Chaos Space Marines Army lists; due to Darkreevers latest challenge.

I'm interested to know your thoughts on running 3 Squads of Possessed...
The Main reason they aren't used is the randomness... But if you use them as a Neutral squad, with enough support in each area, they can effectively become Str5 Marines, with a Good Special Rule..

Ignoring a roll of 1;

Who would say no to a squad of 5 str5 Marines with one of the following;

Power weapons, Feel No Pain, Fleet, Furious Charge or Rending....

So i think if you had ENOUGH possessed in your army, you could really make use of them, because you'd end up with 3 Squads of very strong Marines, that would effectively be very good at what the dice has rolled for them as a role.

I'm determined to find something i can use possessed for... They're so overlooked, cast aside, And they're such nice models..

I dont think they fit into 1,500... But i think in Bigger armies, where there is more freedom in a unit's role in the game, they could be very useful.

What does Heresy think?

 

[Cyklown]

I think that there are other things I'd rather do with an elites slot. Like... termicide!

Possesed aren't going to do much to vehicles and they aren't going to go that far beyond lawnmower units. I'd expect more from a unit of that cost.

Chosen or termicide units seem like they'd do more for you.

 

[Dawnstar]

I would think a list that had 3 squads of 10 possessed and 2 (or so) squads of Berzerkers would be fearsome if you had the right roll for the possessed :biggrin:

 

[Serpion5]

Agreed, it is potentially devastating, but also potentially risky.

I would go for two in 1750 or higher, but that would be it.

As I said in the other thread, a lone vanilla squad serves me just fine.

That said, if you want to try, then by all means. :grin:

 

[Bloodcuddler of Khorne]

Actually the big criticism I keep hearing for possessed is that they don't have grenades. They have a decent point, in that an assault unit that strikes last if it assaults into cover has some problems. And Cyklown has a point in that those Elites slots could be used for more versatile things like Terminators.

That said, I'm also one of the bigger advocates of actually using possessed. I bought a friend's huge pile of Chaos stuff that he wasn't playing anymore, which included 30 Possessed models, and I have been very pleased when using them. Even when I roll 1, the extra move has proved at least slightly useful.

However, I'm not sure I would use three squads of them unless I was specifically going for a "demonic" themed list, as described in the thread you're talking about. Depending on whether or not I know what army I'll be fighting, I'll either go with two Possessed squads and one Terminator, or one Possessed and two Terminator. Usually I go with more Possessed, since they're cheaper and I usually take other units that can handle vehicles pretty well.

 

[Pzycho Leech]

I'd indeed increase the number to something more than 5 in a single squad.

As a Unit they are a little unstable, but there is one thing about them that is very stable. They can use Icons, that is a huge advantage. Potentially giving them 4+ inv saves, extra T, I or A. That should not be underestimated, and it's something that Can be changed from match to match. One day against other marines we want extra Ini, so we pick a little Slaanie, next day we might Favour Nurgle.
Of course You like Khorne, we all know that ;P

Another little Idea I've had is, What if you feel a good couple of squads together with Fabius Bile? That's a little Risky, but the rewards are tremendous! Ex. You have 3 squads of 8-10, in worst case, they get str6 and beat themselves at the start of the game. But they can become a Str7 unit with a little (un)luck. And then again they could also get Furious charge or Fleet in the same round. There are great risks and rewards to this.

But hey, The World Eaters see it as a great honour to be possessed, so I can't understand why You havn't got some already, just to keep the lore and fun straight.

 

[Katie Drake]

What does Heresy think?

I can't speak for anyone else, but I'm of the opinion that taking lots of a bad unit isn't going to suddenly make said unit good, or somehow improve the army's performance. Dedicated assault units without frag grenades are bad. End of. Suddenly even units that are bad in assault like Tactical Squads can take a chunk out of Possessed before they get to lift a finger and any unit that's decent in combat will in all likelihood kick the crap out of them (Grey Hunters, Assault Marines, even units of Ork Boyz).

People talk a lot about "using them right" but frankly I'm not convinced. Berserkers are just as good in many ways, cost less and fulfill the same role all while being scoring units and not relying on a dice roll at the start of the game to make them effective.

If the Possessed models are what draw you to them, why not use them and some bits from the Khorne Berserker kit and make some Possessed Berserkers? Use the 'Zerker rules and the pretty Possessed models and you're getting the best of both worlds.

 

[ckcrawford]

I like possessed, though, I prefer to use them with the MoS. i like to think of them as tyranid like unit. fast, tough, a few attacks, and strong. But I would use them in a "all infantry" type army so you don't use too many points into heavy choices... and of course in rhinos... don't want your units running across open fields

 

[Doombreed]

Sadly I'm on the side of the fence that says the Possesed models are awsome... however I will be waiting for the next codex to come out to use them effectivly (along with Chaos Dreads, Spawn, Raptors...).

That being said I have used them before and they are fun to use but as many have said before there are just other units in the codex that do the job better.

@ Pzycho Leech: Only the basic CSMarines can benefit from Bile's "enhancements". Thou that would be a pretty bad arse CC unit if it was possible. I like the way you think.

 

[Pzycho Leech]

@ Pzycho Leech: Only the basic CSMarines can benefit from Bile's "enhancements". Thou that would be a pretty bad arse CC unit if it was possible. I like the way you think.

Well, that's just a flaw in the codex or a Typo or something...
Well Damn, I had this dream about Making CQC terminators with +str and fearless using Bile XD
Ty anyhow.

But as long as the once I play against are none the wiser, I'll do it for laughs and giggles. We bullcrap each other constantly k:

 

[Bloodcuddler of Khorne]

Dedicated assault units without frag grenades are bad. End of.

That only matters if you're assaulting an unengaged unit that's in cover. What about guys blown out of a transport? What about guys that are already fighting those Berserkers? What about assaulting a unit of loyalist terminators, who strike on the same initiative that you would, and that you likely outnumber with your Possessed?

And even if they do strike last on the first assault turn, they're also a lot harder to kill than Berserkers. They have the same inv save as terminators, and you can either make that even better or give them toughness 5. To use the examples you used, if you make the Nurgle Possessed both Tactical and Assault squads need 5s to wound them, they still have a 1/3 chance to negate wounds from any power weapons that might be in the unit, and Ork Boyz need 6s, while the possessed only need 3s to wound all of those. (As for Grey Knights, well, they're Grey Knights. They're part of a codex specifically built to fight Chaos, and honestly they pretty much slaughter anything unless it's an entire unit of something with power weapons. Moving on.)

Howling Banshees? Nurgle Possessed make these guys cry. Seriously. Oh darn, you can get through their armor save. Too bad you need to roll 6s just to do so, and even if you do they've got their inv save. Yeah. Om nom nom banshees. Lets see how berserkers do in that same situation. Striking Scorpions? Oh darn, they wound on 5s instead of 6s. Too bad they still have to deal with the armor save. Wounding Tyranid Warriors on 3s with a whole bunch of attacks is fun. I've even taken down more than a few Avatars in a single round of combat using these guys. Or any other monstrous creatures for that matter, since the only ones I know of with a Toughness over 6, Wraithlords, really don't want to be in CC most of the time anyway, or C'tan, which people usually don't use anyway. Unless it's a Hive Tyrant with a bunch of Tyrant Guard with it, Possessed can be surprisingly good at killing MCs.

And all of that is without the random bonus. That's really just icing on the cake. Power Weapons or Rending can suddenly make them even better against those big scary things, but even without them they'll still get the job done.

Sure, Berserkers can meet, or even exceed the damage they deal to basic infantry, but they also die a lot easier. Sure, Terminators are only missing the Str 5 out of all of these advantages Possessed have. But they're also more expensive, need a laundry list of upgrades most of the time, and can't be transported in a Rhino, not to mention the fact that they're not Fearless. And even if all they manage to do it is soak up a bunch of shooting, you'd be surprised how much punishment they can take, and those are shots that they could have used to take out something more important.

I know you probably still won't be convinced, but they still have a place in the codex. It might not be a place that suits everyone's style, but that doesn't strictly make them bad. There are things in many codexes that really are bad, and I'll admit Possessed could be better, but they're not nearly as horrible as everyone seems to think.

 

[Ghost792]

Even if you do wish to assault a unit in cover there is always lash of submission to drag the unit out. If there were a C'tan in a Necron army you would do well to never assault it anyway and just lascannon it to death.