Struggling with BA vs Necrons (Decurion Detachment obv...)

[PlasmaGuy]

Fairly self explanatory really...

I have played BA vs Necrons a few times and really struggling to make any in roads against them. Just seems that they shrug off alot of shooting (bolters may as well be pea shooters!).

In a 1500 - 2000 point list what are my best options?

So far I have tried tactical marine spamy list, assault marine orientated list etc. However I have not tried taking any large name characters, instead opting for a mere captain etc.

Any specific suggestions would be helpful. We do play tactical objectives sometimes which naturally have gone better, however it has always been quite a whitewash.

Finally, we play on fairly scenery heavy boards because they are the most thematic and good looking, so negating armour saves is all well and good, but it still will result in a cover save most of the time.

Am I best going flyer heavy?

Using special characters?

Maybe using alot of mechanical units?

Or possibly spamming the psychic phase (if so which spells work well)?

So far infantry spam has not been kind...

Any suggestions welcome and thanks!!!

[son_of_volmer]

The Signals from the Frontline podcast on Necrons, (The Necron Special) lays out the Necron weakness pretty well
-They struggle against units with +2 armor saves.
-Necrons can't really shoot beyond 24"
-Low initiative value means they can be wiped out if you win combat, they break and you make a sweeping advance.

I thought Heavy Bolters might help because they can shoot 36" (stay out of Necron range) and are AP4. Many Necrons have a +4 save. Negating that save means they only get their Reanimation Protocols.

Maybe two Razorbacks and an Attack bike with Heavy Bolters. You could throw some marines inside the Razorbacks and motor them around with the sole intent to grab objectives away from the Necrons who will be lacking objective secured.

Troops wise, the only guys that can stay outside of the 24" Necron range are Scouts with Sniper Riffles (range 36"). So up to this point, I have only suggested units that are available to any Marine list... sorry.

I think constantly trying to position yourself outside of the Necron Range will help you out. Assault Units must willfully enter the 24" range of the Necrons, and your opponent can seize on that opportunity. Assault Vehicles like the Storm Raven can help mitigate that.

An assault unit with a +2 save might be able to weather some punishing overwatch. I think your best bet is Sanguinary guard. Assault Terminators with Thunder hammers and Storm shields make their overpowered attacks after the pitiful Necron Initiative step. Lighting claws might be useful, but Sanguinary guard can close the distance faster.

I'd suggest five stock Sanguinary guard, with the Chapter banner and a Sanguinary priest (with jump pack) in a Storm Raven. The Sanguinary Guard would have Feel No Pain, mirroring the Reanimation Protocols you're facing.

The last thing, and hardest nut to crack is getting Necrons to break after they fail combat. Across the board Necrons have Leadership 10. The only thing that can help you is Terrify in the Telepathy discipline, and it only lowers Leadership by 1. Blood Angels cannot generate powers from Telepathy, so then allying with Grey Knights could be really helpful.

Grey Knight can provide a +2 save on an objective secured unit. They also have a ton of weapons that get around the first +4 save on Necrons, but they have 24" range. Putting a Grey Knight Librarian with 5 Terminators in a Stormraven makes an equally enticing target as you Sanguinary guard, which forces the opponent to choose where they direct their fire. Purgators with Incinerators in a Blood Angel Drop Pod can come in and put down a serious amount of templates.


Sanguinary Priest, with Jump Pack, bolt pistol [76pts]
5 Sanguinary guard, Chapter banner [190pts]
Stormraven [200pts]
Tactical Squad (6man, 1 flamer) in Razorback [154pts]
Tactical Squad (5man) in Razorback [135pts]
Attack bike [45pts]
Drop Pod [35pts]

Grey Knight Librarian, mastery level 3 [135pts]
5 Grey Knight Terminators, psycannon [180pts]
Stormraven [200pts]
5 Purgators, 4 Incinerator [150pts] in Blood Angel Drop Pod

Or you could just take an Imperial Knight.