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Salamanders Tactics and List Ideas

Reecius

Hey everyone, Reecius here to talk about some Salamander Space Marines Tactics.

As always, check the Tactics Corner for more informative articles.

Salamanders are one of the coolest chapters in the 40k universe in my opinion. They’re steadfast, loyal, brave, fierce warriors and master artisans. They’ve also got some very cool rules in 8th ed and I think are an underrepresented Chapter in competitive play. Let’s take a look at what makes them special.

The Master Artisans chapter tactics are very strong. They allow you to get a Guilliman style force multiplier on 1-2 models in a unit. This is great as it gets a lot of mileage out of high value, single shot weapons. It also makes melee characters and Dreadnoughts even more reliable in combat. The key to remember is that this is a full re-roll so it is extremely effective, better than the popular Captain+Lieutenant combo so often seen in Marine armies, but applied to a smaller number of units.

To get maximum effect out of this Chapter Tactic, you want as many individual units with single shot, high powered weapons as possible. 5 strong Tactical Marine or Scout Squads with a single heavy weapon/special weapon, or one of the previous and a combi-weapon for example works well. As you are unlikely to miss and/or fail to wound with both weapons at the same time, but are likely to fail some of those roles, having two weapons lean into Master Artisans is a safe bet and will increase the efficiency of the unit significantly. Other units that this compliments well are Dreadnoughts, Multi-Melta Attack Bikes, Devastator Squads (although with Salamanders I often found running 5 strong units with 2-3 weapons worked great and gave me some ablative wounds in the unit as well), etc.

However, in 8th ed you need to be able to clear chaff which Multi Meltas and Las Cannons most assuredly are not good at. To that end you have a very effective stratagem in Flamecraft which gives a unit’s flame weapons +1 to wound (and note, this can be used on any Salamanders unit, not just Infantry or Dreadnoughts). This can be devastating if used on the right weapons and unit.

Obviously, a unit with lots of flamers makes sense and what I have found works quite well is a unit of 3 Land Speeders with double Heavy Flamers (which you can still do thanks to the GW FAQ). In a unit of 3, you’re packing 6 Heavy Flamers and with their special rule are able to move 20″ as opposed to 16″. This means you are highly likely to get in to range to attack on turn 1, hit your opponent with 6d6 auto-hitting attacks that are strength 5 with +1 to wound and AP-1. What combos with this really well is the Storm of Fire Warlord Trait which gives you an additional -1 to your AP on a wound roll of a 6+, which becomes a 5+ with the strat. That gives you a lot of wounds that become AP-2, which is brutal. Against toughness 3 light infantry (which is what most screens are) you will smoke an average of 18 models, 20 if a re-roll wound aura is nearby. Then, you can charge a unit with them as they’re tough enough to usually survive overwatch and then stop an enemy unit from shooting in their turn. In your turn, you bounce out and thanks to the Fly keyword, you can shoot again. Profit. Now, this unit is not cheap though, so bear that in mind. However, if you can get a few rounds of shooting out of them before they pop, they can do a lot of damage.

Aggressors and Assault Centurions are also good choices, as can be Command Squads with all flamers, or Sternguard with Combi-flamers/Heavy Flamers. However, all of those units require some type of delivery mechanism to really function effectively unless you go max units sizes and support them with things like Apothecaries or Shen. So you need to consider how you will get them into range to do their thing. However, that moves well into another of the Slamanders key strengths: Vulkan and Herath Shen.

Vulkan is a stud. His only downfall is that he is on foot, but that aside, he’s got a lot to love. With solid defense at a 2+/3++, and offense with an assault Heavy Flamer, and the Spear of Vulkan at strength 6, AP-1, D3 damage, plus a great buffing aura giving re-rolls of 1 to hit per a normal Captain but also a full to hit and wound re-roll aura for Melta and Flamer weapons within 6″, he’s a tremendous HQ choice. All that at only 154 points and you’re kicking ass. There’s a lot of ways to implement him in your list, and it really just comes down to how you want to play. I have had fun playing him with a unit of Assault Centurions in a Land Raider Redeemer or Crusader with Shen and another support character such as a Company Ancient, Libby or Lieutenant. The only issue with that is it is a lot of eggs in one basket and you are practically begging your opponent to make that their number 1 target priority. It’s a big risk/big reward combo but when it works it hits like a truck.

The fun part is that Herath Shen, the named Salamanders Apothecary HQ choice found in the Forge World space marines index, is solid as can be. For one, he’s only 75pts. For an HQ that is already awesome. For two, he heals a unit D3+1 wounds or resurrects a dead model on a 3+. So as you can see, running him near high value units like Centurions or Aggressors gives you a really safe investment in them. Nearby melee characters also love this as that big heal means unless they died, they are likely to go back up to nearly full wounds which keeps them alive and swinging for a lot longer. He’s also decent in melee with 3 attacks and a strength 4, AP-3, 2 damage Power Sabre. While walking up the table with short ranged units is challenging no matter how you slice it, if you can shoot when you die on a 3+ thanks to the relic banner, and then can be brought back to life on a 3+, you are certainly increasing your odds of success! This works quite well with Centurion Devastators, too despite them not having the Salamanders theme of flame and melta weapons.

While the Salamanders Warlord Trait and Relic are certainly not bad, granting +1 strength and +1 toughness respectively, they’re just not as good as the other options available. As stated, Storm of Fire works very well for them and the Standard of the Emperor Ascendant and/or Shield Eternal are just so dang good.

Also worth noting is the mighty Bray’Arth Ashmantle who, while very expensive, is tough as an old pair of boots! With a combination of toughness 9, a 2+/5++/4+++ save, 8 wounds and the Character keyword, he’s a durable S.o.B. He also packs some solid offense with 4 melee attacks at strength 16, AP-4, D6 damage a pop (and remember, benefiting from the Salamanders’ CTs), as well as Dreadfire Heavy Flamer which is a strength 6, AP-2, 3 Damage heavy flamer and lastly his Burning Wrath 2d6 auto-hitting strength 4, AP 0, 1 damage pistol weapon. At 400pts, that is a hefty price tag but if played well, he can be a lot of fun to use and can pack a punch. And, did we mention he’s tough? If playing him, I’d additionally spring for a Techmarine who with Salamanders CTs and a Servo-Harness is actually pretty decent.

Speaking of Dreadnoughts, Salamanders get a lot of mileage out of them. As they also benefit from Master Artisans I find them to be very efficient. Even just the basic load-out of a Multi-Melta, fist and Storm Bolter can work out great for a low cost. Likewise, a twin Las Cannon is also a good buy due to the increased efficiency Salamanders grant you. Ironclad Dreads are also a solid buy. While the Heavy Flamer/Melta Gun option fits the Salamanders theme best, I have actually found the Hurricane Bolter option to be most effective on the table as it gives you some much needed small arms fire. The toughness 8 of the Ironclad is its real strength though, making it significantly harder to take out (although to be fair, Dreadnoughts are generally pretty squishy if focused on). Salamanders make for a solid Dreadnought army if you are so inclined to go that direction as they don’t need much support from other characters.

Lastly, Captain Pellas Mir’San is another named Salamanders character found in the Forge World index and while not outstanding, certainly isn’t bad. He’s got the standard Captain stats including the re-roll 1’s to hit aura, and a 2+. He additionally gains 2 bonus attacks if within 1″ of an enemy Character. He comes equipped with Cinder Edge, a D3 damage power sword, and Steelsilver, which grants him a bonus attack after making his normal attacks but hits like a Chainsword. That means if near an enemy Character, he rocks 7 attacks which is solid. For firepower, he packs a Combi-flamer. For 130pts, not bad at all, but again, not my first choice.

Bringing it All Together

So how do you bring these elements together in a functional list? Again, you have to ask yourself how you will solve the essential questions to a competitive 8th ed list:

  1. How will you deal with common unit archetypes you are likely to face?
  2. How will you score mission objectives?
  3. How will you prevent your opponent from achieving their objectives?

In this current meta you must plan for screen units. This can take the form of cheap infantry, very tough units or in some cases, transport vehicles. Luckily, Salamanders are extremely well equipped to deal with tough screens (like Bullgryn, Plague Toads, etc.) or vehicles with their efficient firepower. Even the common -1 to his isn’t as bad for them due to the full re-roll their CTs provide them. However, dealing with cheap chaff units like Cultists, Conscripts, etc. can be a bit more challenging for Salamanders if that screen unit is not coming at them. To that effect, I like the Flamer Speeders listed above although as stated, they are certainly not cheap. Ironclad Dreads with Hurricane Bolters are also decent in this roll and get better as you get closer, too. You can also use old trusty units like Scout Bikers or Sternguard with Special Issue Bolters or Stormbolters.

Scoring objectives in a Space Marines army is pretty standard across most Chapters for me. As you all have heard me say a million times: Scouts, Scouts, Scouts. They’re easily top 3 most important units available to you as a pure Space Marine player (if not #1) and if you are not using them you are playing with one arm tied behind your back. They are your screen unit and your primary objective takers as well as opening up CP rich detachments. They’re just an outstanding unit, tactically speaking. For me, every Space Marine list I write, regardless of Chapter, begins with 3 units of Scouts. What you equip them with is up to you, but Bolters/Shotguns/melee all work very well. Sniper Scouts are good fun, but not for a screening roll.

Tactical Marines are my go to for defensively holding objectives and screening out your backfield. Three units of 5 I find to be enough to deny your opponent nearly anywhere to deep-strike/outflank behind you. Plus, being Salamanders, they put out highly accurate long ranged firepower. A las cannon is a solid choice as is a Missile Launcher especially to take advantage of the Flakk Missile strat, as well as what I consider to be a mandatory Heavy Bolter for the Hellfire strat. However, for fun try a unit of 5 with a Multi-Melta and Combi-weapon of your choice (I prefer Combi-plasma). With their re-roll ability they can move up the table and still shoot pretty accurately as a unit that goes for objectives and then holds them. It’s actually quite effective.

For preventing your opponent from achieving their mission objectives you should always take what is for me the essential Thunderfire Cannon. As I’ve stated many times before, this is one of the Space Marine player’s biggest assets. The Tremor Shell strat is simply exceptional. Halving the move, advance and charge distance of an enemy unit (so long as they don’t have the Fly or Titanic keyword) is stupid good. You have to try it in practice to really see how powerful it is. This, like Scouts, should just be in every Space Marines list, IMO. It stalls a key enemy unit preventing them from taking an objective, making a critical charge, getting in the way of other units taking them out of play for a critical turn, etc. while you do what you need to do.

Beyond those basics though, it is really down to you to consider how you will deal with some of these key enemy units and how you will deal damage to your opponent. While Space Marines tend to favor infantry armies generally, Salamanders can make an interesting mechanized list if you want to go that direction. With the index option of a twin Heavy Flamer on the Razorback, and Vulkan’s mega buff, you can play your Salamanders in a Sisters of Battle style army with MSU units packed into transports. Razorbacks are quite good, and if you have some solid units inside to really punish your opponent they can work in tandem with them, clearing infantry and charging into shooty units to take away a shooting phase from them while the Infantry inside hit harder targets with re-roll to hit and wound melta guns (again, thanks to Vulkan). When backed by an Ancient and Shen as described above, you get a lot of mileage out of these types of units as they fire in death and then come back.

List Ideas

Here are a few list ideas to hopefully fire your imagination. As always, I make no claims that these lists are the best or only way to play Salamanders, but present them as ways to get you going with your own Salamanders army and hopefully provide some inspiration! I always try to strike a balance between units I find fun to play, theme and efficiency.

Salamanders Brigade

That Lieutenant slot gives you some points to play with which for me if I don’t take him, usually means some useful upgrades such as Storm Bolters where appropriate and a Culexus Assassin to help counter some of the nasty psychic powers out there and Smite which even with the recent nerf is still a big threat to Space Marines. For clarity, the Culexus would be in an Auxiliary detachment, lowering your CP by 1. Or, a Chaplain to help get more mileage out of the Aggressors in melee. This is sort of my normal Space Marines play style. It gives you a lot of units, a lot of Command Points, tons of the cool tools you need as a Marine player to leverage your stratagems, loads of ways to take objectives, a good mix of anti-infantry and anti-monster/tank firepower and lots of spaced out weapons to help get the most out of your Salamanders Chapter Tactics. The core to it though is the 12 Aggressors. Now, I went all flamers to make the most of being Salamanders, however, you could easily swap one unit out for Auto Boltstom Gaunlets as they’re very good and cheaper. They’d only be re-rolling 1’s to hit and a single other to hit and wound roll but still, solid. In this configuration I would consider a Lieutenant for more efficiency from them.

However, with 12 of them who can be resurrected, and can also advance and still shoot normally, they are more mobile than they may at first appear. Once in position to double shoot (if that comes about) they can devastate their target. This is a lot more probable to occur on defense where a single unit can put out potentially 24d6 flamer shots on overwatch, lol. That also means they are great for holding objectives if needs be. With Vulkan giving them re-rolls to wound and potentially the Biker Captain giving them the Storm of Fire bonus plus the Flamecraft strat, that can be staggering damage output. Having two units makes it much more likely you will actually get across the table to use them, too. Plus, the little cluster of Aggressors and Characters means you pack a vicious punch in melee, too. The Captain especially can be a beast. You can read this article for a detailed breakdown on his use.

All that said, this is by no means going to be an easy army to play. If you find yourself facing a hardcore shooty army with not much terrain (or one that ignores LoS), you may be in for a rough game. But, with proper terrain and some skilled play, you can do some work with this army and it is both fun and fairly unique, too.

Salamanders Mechanized Army

So a bit more unique and thematic army, here. You’ve got the Scout screen/objective grabbers and the Thunderfire Cannon to do their normal thing, plus the Biker Captain who cruises around with the Razorbacks to play free safety. The difference though is that you’ve got a lot of flame and melta weapons which is very thematic for Salamanders, and at close range, also very powerful. Multi-meltas don’t typically want to be on the move but with the combination of Vulkan and their CTs, they don’t mind nearly so much and if you can get in close they do a ton of damage, even against the prevalent -1 to hit armies out there right now as you slip in close enough to bypass that protection or your flamers simply auto-hit them. I have found that the extra range they have is incredibly useful for shooting past screen units to hit the things you want to take out. Shen heals the Biker Captain and resurrects models with special and/or heavy weapons that have died who are hopefully shooting again before dying thanks to the Ancient. The army is fairly mobile and hits hard. You’re a bit starved for CP so you will have to use them intelligently to get the most out of the tools at your disposal. What we’ve found though, is that many armies struggle to deal with this many vehicles in the current meta. Not all, but many. And if you play aggressively you can throw many armies off of their game.

Now, again, this is not going to be an army to expect to win a GT with, but it has tons of re-roll auras and some potentially devastating firepower at close range. It leaves some points to customize a bit. With the volume of accurate Melta though, you’d be surprised how effective your shooting phase is once you get close. You just have to focus on clearing screens which hopefully your Razorbacks can do for you.

Hopefully this gives you some inspiration to come up with even better Salamanders lists! What has been working for you Salamanders players out there? Did I miss anything you have found to be effective?

 

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