# Dreadnaughts



## evantar (Dec 31, 2007)

Why is it I don't see very many people taking dreadnaughts in their lists? I personally like them, but wanted to try out different variations of the Predators recently. 

Any dreadnaughts, Furioso, Venerable, anything.....

Do they stink and I'm not realizing it or are they best in certain situations?


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## Red Orc (Jun 14, 2007)

Here's a dread-thread that may be of interest...


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## angels of fire (Dec 4, 2007)

No dreadnoughts rock they basically kick ass in shooting and can also give something a kicking in close combat (instant death) :biggrin:


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## Terminator (Nov 17, 2007)

I've always preferred the las/ML with extra armor dreadnought for anti-tank. It is able to move and shoot both heavy weapons, which is a strong advtantage. If I have the extra points, I spring for Venerable and Tank Hunter as well.


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## Dirge Eterna (Apr 30, 2007)

Yeah. Those fire support dreads are nasty. I use Plasma, Power fist, Tank Hunters, and Venerable when I have points. When I don't, I use Las, ML, Smoke launchers, Extra Armor.

-Dirge


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## martin4696 (Oct 30, 2007)

love them thats why i have 3. mine arecheap, simple

dreadnought, assault cannon, heavy flamer, extra armour smoke, drop pod

more points add venerable


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## Archangel (Dec 30, 2007)

I don't use them because I can get a full loaded predator for less points. Being venerable is awesome, but my Elite slots are taken up by Vets and Scouts (DA Player). I see their value, but only if you're a footslogger so the dread can keep up. Or if you're super mobile and drop pod it in the fray.


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## ltgreer (Jan 6, 2008)

*Problem with with dreads*

In my experience the main problem is how fragile they are to enemy shooting. They are amazing units on paper, about the best infantry support you could ask for, able to keep up well and provide great support in both close combat and shooting, but your opponents know this too and they just can't take much missile launcher or lascannon fire. 

It also seems that often times when people take dreads, they are the only armor they field. A lot of people that mainly use infantry will use dreads to back them up and not really have any other tanks, problem is that dreads are the only armor your fielding then they are the only real target for your opponents long range anti-tank fire, and they just can't take that kind of firepower, front armor 12 doesn't hold up to serious shooting for long. 

Drop pod dreads are amazing, you limit the enemy shooting to a turn or so hopefully, and arrive right on their door step ready to play, a great tactic.


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## nightmarine (Mar 30, 2007)

Oddly enough i couldnt agree more with terminator. Most of the time (meaning unless im fighting something that likes flesh over steel <- look i made a funny for all u SM players out there) i outfit the dread with Las+ML, E armor, Venerable, Tank hunters, and Smokes if possible. Sure may be a bit (a lot) more then pred to field but pred just doesnt seem to offer as much flexability and is a bigger model which means it draws fire so i dont like it too much (and because of the fact that i dont have one because im on predator strike). most people i play with underestimate dread when i got the LR on the other side of the table and like to waste time on the LR over the dred.

but i know a long time ago when i was asking what i should add to my list, i had a lot of people telling me to get a dred above anything else


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## The Son of Horus (Dec 30, 2006)

Dreadnoughts are an excellent tool for supporting an infantry assault. I tend to arm mine with an assault cannon, dreadnought close combat weapon/storm bolter, extra armour, and smoke launchers-- quite bare bones, really-- and screen it with Rhinos. It can assist infantry in the shooting phase and it can break most opponents' backs in close combat, particularly if it's backed up by a Tactical squad. It's better for a steady advance rather than a rapid strike approach, though-- a lightning attack setup really requires the fire support to come from units that can keep up-- Vindicators, Predators with heavy bolter sponsons, and the like, while the majority of the army swoops in on jump packs or deploys from Rhinos and/or Land Raiders.


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## Stella Cadente (Dec 25, 2006)

well most of my experience with dreadnoughts comes from my Dark Angel Mortis dreadnought (2 Twin Linked lascannons), and hes been good ever since the first time I used him and he killed 750pts+ without dying, and his records been going strong ever since.
the Mobility and firepower combined produce a thing more powerful than any vehicle I can think of.
and the weaker armour is no worry, at least it never has been


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## FrozenOrb (Dec 23, 2006)

A nice thing about Dreadnoughts is that they are the only SM model with 12 armour making them perfect for going against Bright/Dark Lances.

My Dreadnought I almost always field is the bare-bones Assault Cannon, CCW and Storm Bolter with no vehicle upgrades. He serves no big role and earns his points spent, nothing more.


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## Ordo Xeno Commander (Jan 17, 2007)

thats a good point. ive just re-written my entire army list to include a dreadnought. i love them. in my old SM army i had 3


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## SPYDeR13 (Dec 18, 2007)

Well being a Chaos player I don't use Dreads but as for there Space marine counter parts they are rock solid, in any layout. I prefer the death Co. Furioso or a Venerable with assault cannon and ccw.


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## Lord Sinkoran (Dec 23, 2006)

the problem with dreds is their armour isn't spectacular and doesn't take much to penatrate


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## Damned Fist (Nov 2, 2007)

I use one with the ML, LC and upgraded to a Ven. Tank hunter. I usually try to put him in cover somewhere in the back ground so that if he is shot at a penetrating hit can be turned into a glancing hit on a roll of 4+. I have him in every list because he does offer some heavy firepower that usually draws attention to him and away from whatever else I am doing on the board.

Remember..., Keep him in cover if you can!


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## Alexander_67 (May 5, 2007)

Dreads are great as a backup armour for your troops. But i feel like most things in the SM armies that they are very balanced. Good on CC, good on firing, but excelling at none in particular.


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## Lord Sinkoran (Dec 23, 2006)

i'll be using a chaos dread with 2 combat weapons in my khorne


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## Ordo Xeno Commander (Jan 17, 2007)

ive just completed my BT Ven dread, and they are very reliable firing and CC platforms. if you want to excel at shooting go, LC/ML combo. otherwise the AC/CC/HF combo is great for those annoying troops and light armour


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## Insanity101 (Jan 13, 2008)

Usually if I field a Dread, I field 2. For me they usually have to be ablative, or they don't do much on thier own.


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## Warhound (Oct 6, 2007)

*Ya Ya*

I personaly LOVE dreads, I have 3 in my list, all of which are venerable. The trick with dreads is not to be tempted with that nice and shiny lascannon or missile launcher. While the tend to be decent fire support, they tend to be MORE than decent assaulters.:smoke::smoke::smoke:


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

ive never had a dreadnought


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

i will however be getting some wraith lords


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## Ordo Xeno Commander (Jan 17, 2007)

did you take the "heed the wisdom of the ancients" trait?, if so, whats your disadvantage?

because if you didnt, there is a 0-1 limit on the venerable status



Warhound said:


> I personaly LOVE dreads, I have 3 in my list, all of which are venerable. The trick with dreads is not to be tempted with that nice and shiny lascannon or missile launcher. While the tend to be decent fire support, they tend to be MORE than decent assaulters.:smoke::smoke::smoke:


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

some chapters dont have traits hooah


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## Ordo Xeno Commander (Jan 17, 2007)

i know, but you can take them. and which chapter allows the use of 3 ven dreads?


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

one venrable dred per a detachment... maybe he ment 3 dreds 1 ven


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## Someguy (Nov 19, 2007)

To be honest you can usually take a "disadvantage" that doesn't really do anything. For instance, prevent the use of allies if you weren't going to anyway.


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## Jadow (Nov 23, 2007)

DW do not have the 0-1 Ven dread limit


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

can space wolves have more than one ven dred as you can use it as a hq choice too ?


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## The Son of Horus (Dec 30, 2006)

No, it's 0-1 Venerable Dreadnought, if you look at the unit entry in the Space Wolves codex. You can have it be either an HQ choice or an Elites choice, but generally speaking, if you take a Venerable Dreadnought, you might as well take it as an HQ choice in a Wolf army. Characters are hella expensive when they're properly equipped, and a Venerable Dreadnought can alleviate having to take three or more HQ choices quite nicely. The better HQ selections I've seen have been a Wolf Lord, a Rune Priest, and a Venerable Dreadnought at 2000 points.

You need "Heed the Wisdom of the Ancients" trait for a Codex: Space Marines army to take multiple venerable dreadnoughts. You can take up to six dreadnoughts with that trait, which is kind of cool. Iron Hands have that particular trait, as well as the one which allows Techmarines to be HQ choices with an extra wound. 

I've always found drawbacks a bit dry and not really "drawbacks" at all, if they're of the Minor variety. Faithful Unto Death and Have Faith in Suspicion both are actual drawbacks, unlike some of the things like We Stand Alone, which basically isn't a drawback at all since you don't need to be taking Inquisitorial allies in a Space Marine army anyway. Part of why my Lions Rampant have Have Faith in Suspicion is so there actually IS a drawback for having Trust Your Battle Brothers.


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## evantar (Dec 31, 2007)

Blood angels aren't limited to one venerable dread anymore. We can now have 3 Furioso Death Company Venerable Dreadnaughts or 3 Venerable Dreads if we wanted....

Say that three times fast.

Though I kind of wish I was able to try fielding 6 Dreadnaughts like we use to be able to.... I never got the opportunity.


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

would you suggest me using traits for my space wolves or cant i? so im only allowed 1 dred ven... hown many normal dreds ?


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## The Son of Horus (Dec 30, 2006)

If you choose to use Codex: Space Wolves, then you cannot select Chapter Traits-- Codex: Space Wolves is a seperate army list in its entirety, with a couple references to Codex: Space Marines and nothing more. 

Your codex will tell you what units you can take, how many of them you can have (if there's a limit beyond the restraints of the Force Organization Chart), and any other nitpicky little details that apply to your army. If you don't have a copy of Codex: Space Wolves, that should be your next purchase, as you need it to play your army.

And yes, you can have ONE venerable dreadnought. If you look in the Space Wolves army list, you'll see that there is a seperate entry for Dreadnoughts, which is not noted as 0-1. That means you can have up to three of them, as you have three Elite choices available to your army. Each Dreadnought takes an Elites slot. If you choose to take three dreadnoughts, you won't be able to take things like Wolf Scouts, Wolf Guard (including pack leaders!), or an Iron Priest, as those are also Elites choices.


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

so i could have 4 dreds then 1 ven for hq.. but i use pack leaders for blood claws so only 2


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## Lord Sinkoran (Dec 23, 2006)

for SW theay can have 4 dreads total 3 elite and one venerable for HQ


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

yeah but if i dont want my blood claws to run aroudn headless i need some elite spaces for guards /. pack leaders


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## Firewolf (Jan 22, 2007)

>> Put an hq choice wi yer Claws. i usually have them wi a Rune Priest leading them. As for dreads, i used to use them, then realised that you can get an extra squad for the price of a venerable dread.


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

i have 15 claws in a crusader
and 10 claws in a rhino

i have 2 leaders with power fists that lead them both.

i have 2 power fists 1 power weapon in 15 squad
2 power fists in 10 squad

i can have a melta in either or a melta and 1 flamer or i can go all cc

suggestions?


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## th.nome.who.kld.xm (Jan 21, 2008)

dreads rock!!!! although i use obliterators more cause they kick ass!!! ( loads of wepons and a 2 up save)


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## Engelus (Jul 26, 2007)

I love dreads, but compare them to wraithlords and they suck.

they should be on par with a wraithlord or crisissuit/broadside.


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## evantar (Dec 31, 2007)

Ya, wraithlords have an advantage with their high toughness and wounds... It takes multiple heavy weapons to knock out a wraithlord when one could theoretically do the job in taking out a dreadnaught.


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## wetware (Dec 8, 2007)

The dread does have some advantages. First of all, since it is a vehicle it cannot be locked in combat. Since it can 'move freely' and fire a heavy weapon that means that as long as it survives an assault it can leave, shoot and then wade right back in. If it's a venerable with Furious Charge, that translates to 3 init 5 strength 10 attacks or 3 strength 7 attacks if it's got a missile launcher. That also means that anything less than strength 6 can't hurt it at all (vs str 5 for the wraithlord) and the obligatory powerfist only has a 1 in 4 chance of doing any damage per hit. IF the assault cannon didn't do enough and IF the dreads init 5 beatdown didn't do it in. So basically, you want to spend your opponent's shooting phase in melee with a squad of their guardsmen, gaunts, fire warriors, guardians, etc. Basically anything that can't fight back effectively.

Snipers are also next to ineffectual against the dread, unlike the wraithlord.

The dreadnaught is shorter. I know this doesn't sound like much, but the wraithlord sticks up over terrain. That's a sword that cuts both ways.


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

why cant the wraith lord squat ? he has legs

i believe ive seen a picture of a wraith lord with some pathfinders kneeling

plus arnt wraith lord more exspensive


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## evantar (Dec 31, 2007)

Wait a sec....

Are you sure dreadnaughts cant be locked in the assault? I thought anything with a WS was locked into an assault when assaulted...?

And actually I think wraithlords are cheaper than dreads. Not much if any, but I do believe they are.


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## Engelus (Jul 26, 2007)

Dreads can be locked.

if you put a wraithlord and a dreadnought up against each other in either shooting, or melee, the wraithlord will win every time. (barring rediculous luck of course.)


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## wetware (Dec 8, 2007)

"Whilst vehicles may be assaulted by infantry, they cannot be Locked in close combat with them." P 71, Main Rule book.

And yes, I read the section later on about walkers in close combat. I don't see anything that supersedes the rule above about vehicles not being able to be locked in combat. Seems to me the dread is only locked in H2H if it chooses to be. Could be we have another RAW debate on our hands. D'oh.


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## Dobber (Feb 8, 2008)

A venerable forgeworld dread with power drill and multi melta. Make a drop pod using internet templates. Bomb it in next to a baneblade and it's bye bye, 1 multi melta shot and a 3 att s10 charge.


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## Mad King George (Jan 15, 2008)

venerable space wolfs dred, attacks 3 normal + 1 charge + 1 cc wep thats 6 ws 5 + 1 from ulrik thats ws 6


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## Deceiver (Sep 19, 2007)

small book p.71 under results.
if vehicle has no ws it can move freely. the dreadnought has a ws and therefore is locked in combat. It is in cc until either it or unit(s) assaulting it are destroyed.

p.72 tells about dealing with walkers in an assault.


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## wetware (Dec 8, 2007)

Huh. Great. Way to go GW. That line of text is simply not there in the big rule book and it is not addressed in any FAQs. That, quite frankly, is piss poor work.


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## Galahad (Dec 21, 2006)

Wetware, it's in the big book too.
P71, where it says "Results"

Then on 72 it goes on to say that Walkers fight in assaults the same way as Infantry

The big book and small book are identical, at least in the sections that they have in common.


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## Dobber (Feb 8, 2008)

Get a GK dread, 3 psycannon shots, hitting on 2+ wounding on 2+ ignores _invulnerables!_ pops off enemy captains in seconds plus 4 s10 power claw atts on charge!


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## Estragon (Feb 25, 2008)

Plasma Cannons? Quite possibly the only time you'll not sweat at a 'gets hot' roll. And as I play chaos, there's a 1 in 6 chance it'll be able to fire twice....Excellent, so long as I'm not the nearest unit in los. And a good 'blood frenzy' roll is not to be sniffed at...up to 18inches of sprinty dread death. It's all about positioning.


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## Changer of Ways (Jan 3, 2008)

Dreadnoughts are a walking waste of points. Most other SM squads will live longer than a dread and can do more damage (remember, one good hit with a strong shot and you just flushed your points down the toilet with 12/12/10 armor). This is the primary reason most people avoid using them.
Then again if you have just enough points left over when making your list, I guess you might as well take one... with an assault cannon of course!


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## warmster4 (Mar 9, 2008)

I have 3 dreads too. 2 with las and CCW and HVY flamer and a dread with multi melta, strm bolter and CCW


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## casanova (Nov 1, 2007)

i know few dreadnaughts that arent dangerous although what they lack in is amrour for somethin like 40k apocalypse


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