Forge your saga across the stars with a Space Wolves Combat Patrol. With the launch of 9th edition Warhammer 40,000, Games Workshop began moving away from Start Collecting! sets and to Combat Patrol boxes. While that box gives a new player a legal starting Space Wolves force, it might not be exactlyt what they want. So, I’m going to conduct a overview of the units and their uses. In later articles, I’ll be covering other boxes to add or build your own unique combat patrol.
Space Wolves require the use of both Codex: Space Marines and Codex Supplement: Space Wolves. While most units in Codex: Space Marines are permitted in a Space Wolves force, remember to check page 124 of the main codex for restrictions.
Space Wolves Combat Patrol
The actual box set from Games Workshop includes 17 miniatures. While the units shown are all solid, only one is pulled directly from the Codex Supplement (optional!).
Combat Patrol – 27 Power
1x Primaris Lieutenant (LT) – 4 Power
1x Invictor Tactical Warsuit – 8 Power
10 Primaris Intercessors – 10 Power
5 Primaris Reivers or Hounds of Morkai – 5 Power
2x Space Wolves Primaris Upgrade Frames
With 27 Power, this force is a bit too large for Narrative Play. In Open Play, your opponent would be limited to 23 Power according to the rules. However, Open Play provides a flexible framework. You opponent should just take 27 Power themselves and then you can have at it.
Your Units
Infantry
In play, the Primaris Intercessors are a solid block of wounds with great ranged fire from bolt rifles without sacrificing mobility. Alternately, build as auto bolt rifles for a shorter ranged, but more shooting force. With the short table sizes of Combat Patrols you’ll soon be in range. While it might be tempting to use the Combat Squads ability to split this unit, it will depend on the scenario your playing. Choose carefully.
The Primaris Lieutenant and Intercessors should keep together, you’ll get more use out of the LTs reroll to wound here than with the Reivers or Hounds. He also provides a small counter charge punch through Heroic Intervention.
The Primaris Reivers are a melee unit with a weak melee attack; the combat knife being Strength 4 and 0 AP. While the special issue bolt pistol tries to make up the slack with -2 AP, it still has only 1 Damage with Strength 4.
Now, the upsides are the grapnel launcher and grav-chute. Grapnel Launcher vastly increase the unit’s ability to traverse the board by ignoring vertical distances during a Move, Advance, or Fall Back. It also grants Outflank ability, lettings them come in from any board edge. The grav-chute grants Death From Above and lets them enter the board at any location more than 9″ from the enemy. While both are tempting, stick with the grapnel launcher (see Hounds of Morkai)
On the board, you’ll want to get into melee, but only on your terms. Ideally, your looking at launching your own charge at a shot up foe or using Heroic Intervention against a charge. The Reiver’s Terror Troops degredation of leadership helps here during the Morale Test making Combat Attrition more likely.
Or you may choose to build the Reivers as Hounds of Morkai. The Hounds are still designed for melee, but excel in hunting psychers. However, you may not see many unless your regular opponents include Aeldari, Daemons, or Thousand Sons. Still, if you forgo the grav-chute when building your Reivers, then you may swap them in as Hounds as needed.
Vehicle
The Invictor Tactical Warsuit is a brutal vehicle brimming with weapons. The heavy bolter and Twin iron-hail heavy stubbers generate solid anti-infantry firepower at up to 36 inches. It only gets worse, for them, as range decreases as the fragstorm grenade launcher and incendium cannon shoot as well. At 12 inches you’re throwing a huge number of attacks.
The warsuit is far from helpless in melee. The warsuit has 4 attacks with the invictor fist. Each one that lands deals a 14 strength hit at -3 AP and 3 damage. Basically, each hit deletes an infantry model or puts a solid dent in an opposing vehicle.
With this model you do have one option, replace the incendium cannon with a twin ironhail autocannon. Should you do it?
Autocannon or Incendium
On the one hand, the incendium cannon has to close to 12 inches to even get a shoot. That leaves the warsuit vulnerable to a charge. This is a great time to use the Fire Overwatch stratagem. Like a flamer, the cannon always hits for 2D6 free Strength 5 hits. Plus, with the a warsuit’s weapon loadout, they’re many more opportunities to hit even if they’re on 6s.
Alternately, you may replace the incendium cannon with a twin ironhail autocannon. The autocannon system delivers 6 more attacks out to 48″. These attacks are at strength 7 and deal 2 damage each. The autocannons let you deal with other light vehicles you can expect to find in combat patrol games or chew into solid blocks of heavier infantry.
Tactically, armed with the incendium cannon, the warsuit may better advance alongside your infantry. Small units won’t want to charge that and larger units may find themselves activating Heroic Interventions from your Reivers and Intercessors. With the twin ironhail autocannons, the warsuit may still follow your main body, but you’ll have to keep a close eye that it doesn’t get bogged down with a large unit of weak infantry. Otherwise, you’ll lose out on a huge amount of shooting.
I would build with the twin ironhail autocannon. It is just more effective on all but the most crowded urban boards.
Worth the purchase?
The Space Wolves Combat Patrol box gets a thumbs up from me for new players. The LT and Intercessors synergize well. In small games, the Warsuit is about as large and deadly a vehicle as you can get. While I find the Reivers lacking as a melee unit, acting in support, they have a use. When you expand to larger games they convert to Hounds of Morkai and go hunting psychers.
Having established the units are good and useful, what about price. At MSRP, the contents save you about 35% over buying them individually before factoring in any FLGS loyalty programs or online discounts.
Yes, if you want to start Space Wolves, then grab this box.
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