Hi everyone, Michael here with a review of one of the elite combat units for the Space Marine army, the Centurion Assault Squad. For more reviews and analyses, check out the Tactics Corner.
Overview:
The Centurion Assault Squad is designed to be a brutal hammer to crush the enemy force, used where speed is not an issue and relying on their durability against the foes guns to get them into battle. On the tabletop, they are a solid combat unit. Their Siege Drills are a powerful melee weapon, able to kill most infantry and Biker units with ease, while making short work of other heavy units in the game. However, their weaknesses are their speed on the field and their vulnerability to heavy enemy firepower.
The Centurion Assault Squad consists of 1 Centurion Sergeant and 2 Centurions. The unit can be fielded in a squad of up to 6 models. Each Assault Centurion costs 74 points for the basic model (including wargear).
I would give the Centurion Assault Squad the Situational rating. They are an effective melee unit, able to put out a lot of anti-infantry or anti-armour firepower based on how you arm them, and there are few units that can stand up to them in assault. However, in order to be used effectively, you will need to buy them a lot of support. This increases the cost to field them effectively considerably. If your plan revolves around the use of the Centurion Assault Squad, they could prove to be an effective asset to your army, but your force may suffer in other areas of the game.
Wargear:
- Two Siege Drills- Sx2, AP -4, 3 damage.
- Two Flamers
- Centurion Assault Launchers- If a model equipped with Centurion Assault Launchers finishes a charge move within 1″ of an enemy unit, roll a D6. On a roll of a 4+, that unit suffers a mortal wound.
- Any model may replace their two Flamers with two Meltaguns.
- Any model may replace their Centurion Assault Launchers with a Hurricane Bolter.
Abilities:
- And They Shall Know No Fear
- Combat Squads- A squad containing 6 models can be split into two units of three models before deployment.
- Omniscope- Enemy units do not receive the benefits of cover to their saving throw against attacks by a unit including a Centurion Sergeant.
- Keywords: Imperium, Adeptus Astartes, <Chapter>, Infantry, Centurion, Centurion Assault Squad.
Tactics:
Let’s check out the statline for the Centurion Assault Squad. They have WS and BS 3+ (average for Marines), strength and toughness 5, 3 wounds, 2 attacks (3 for Sergeant), Ld 7 (8 for Sergeant) and a 2+ save. They only have a 4″ move, which is one of their key flaws as I will discuss below.
The Centurion Assault Squad are primarily designed to be a close combat or close quarters unit in the Space Marine army. Their role is to get up close to the enemy army and cause as much damage as possible. The Siege Drills are a pretty effective close combat weapon. Unlike most other high strength weapons, they don’t suffer from -1 to hit. This is actually a big deal, making them more effective in combat. I can’t tell you how many times my Power Fist or Thunder Hammers have whiffed in combat, or crucially been denied a re-roll after rolling a 3 to hit. Hitting on a 3+ in most cases in melee is actually a big boost for the Centurion Assault Squad, more so as they only have 2 attacks on a standard Centurion. The Siege Drills will hit at S10, so will be wounding just about everything on at least a 3+, and wounding most infantry and Bikes on a 2+. With -4AP and 3 damage with each wound, there is little that will survive a wound from these powerful melee weapons. Only a strong invulnerable save or some sort of FNP-type save is going to keep an enemy unit safe from their attacks.
A unit of 3 Assault Centurions has the potential to do up to 21 wounds in a single round of combat. With the right buffs from nearby characters, it is quite possible to do the full number of wounds in a single turn and decimate a small elite unit or powerful vehicle/monster in the enemy army.
In addition, with the Centurion Assault Launchers, you might be able to cause some Mortal wounds on the charge, further boosting your damage output.
Where the Assault Squad will struggle is against horde of cheap infantry models. With only 7 attacks on a standard three-man unit, the Centurion Assault Squad will have problems getting through any chaff models your opponent will throw at them. A large unit of Ork Boyz, Grots, Termagants or Conscripts, etc. will have little trouble in tying up the Centurion Assault Squad for several turns of combat, possible for the whole game if the chaff unit has some form of morale mitigation. The Centurions may go through them eventually, but it will be a big waste of their potential to spend the whole game hacking through a unit costing a fraction of their points cost.
To help mitigate this somewhat, the Centurion Assault Squad does come with 2 Flamers each as standard. Six D6 automatic Flamer hits in the shooting phase or in overwatch can help make a dent in some bigger sized squads that the Centurions may come up against. It is a bit of a deterrent to charging the Centurion Assault Squad, especially for smaller, elite units, as a single round of poor saving throws from overwatch fire can seriously hurt these units.
If you choose to take the Hurricane Bolters, this will gain the unit a further 36 Bolter shots at Rapid Fire range. Combined with the Flamers, this will put an average of 22 wounds on a standard T4 infantry model. That will put a serious dent in any chaff unit in the shooting phase, making them much more vulnerable to a charge from the Centurion Devastator Squad.
You can also choose to swap the Flamers for two Meltaguns. This increases the cost of each Centurion to 90 points per model. This is pretty pricey, but will supply you with 9 Meltagun shots. If you can get into Melta range with the unit, they will likely cause a lot of damage to whatever they are firing at. Combined with a subsequent assault, there is very little in the game that will stand up to that much high strength, high damage attacks.
So, the Assault Centurion Squad can do a lot of damage in the shooting phase and assault phase, why aren’t we seeing them in every Space Marine army?
First up, they are incredibly slow. With only a 4″ move on a melee-orientated unit, you are pretty much obligated to buy them a transport vehicle in order to get them into assault range and to get them there safely. Unfortunately, the only transport options available to them are the Land Raider or the Stormraven, as they can no longer be put in a Drop Pod. While both these vehicles are a very effective way to get the unit into combat, they are not the cheapest of options.
I would be inclined to go for the Stormraven as a transport option. It will practically guarantee a turn 2 charge for the Centurion Assault Squad if your opponent does not have a way to easily take out the Stormraven. In addition, the Stormraven has a lot of potent firepower for targeting a range of threats in the enemy army. The Land Raider is a solid option for getting the Centurion Assault Squad into combat, but may take up to turn 3 to get them into range of an assault depending on how deep your opponent deploys or the deployment zones being used.
Another issue with the Centurion Assault Squad is their durability to enemy shooting. In assault, they are pretty durable. With T5, 3 wounds and a 2+ save, most standard infantry units will struggle to put much of a dent in them in combat. Any strong melee unit or unit that can muster a ton of attacks might be able to take them out in combat, but hopefully you will be charging first from your transport vehicle, so will have a chance to take them out first before they can harm you.
However, there is a lot of potent shooting in the game that could make short work of the Centurion Assault Squad if they are out in the open. This is why a transport option is key for the effective use of the unit. It should hopefully keep them safe in order to get into melee or shooting range. Once they are on the table, it will be more difficult to keep them safe. They will likely annihilate any target you charge in melee (if you choose the right target), so will either need to try and consolidate into another combat to keep them safe or just hope they can withstand the firepower. Even if you do make it to another combat, your opponent can always fall back and open fire with the rest of their army.
As a result, you can only really expect one strong assault and shooting phase from the Centurion Assault Squad. They are a pretty expensive unit (222 pts base) to throw away on a single turn of damage, so it will really depend on whether you can make that one turn count by taking out a key enemy unit. In most games, they will be pretty strong, but may struggle to make their points investment back.
The Honour the Chapter Stratagem will be very useful for this unit. While expensive at 3 command points, it would allow the Centurion Assault Squad to attack again at the end of the phase. This can allow you to go after a second key enemy unit if they are close enough to your first destroyed target (within 6″ at least) or to attack again if you fluff your first attacks or you opponent gets lucky with their invulnerable saves.
Unit Synergy
Aside from the almost compulsory transport vehicle for them, there are a number of other units in the Space Marine codex that can benefit the Centurion Assault Squad.
A Chaplain or Captain is a great option to accompany the Centurions. The Chaplain gives the benefits of full re-rolls to Hit in melee, which is great for the squad. The Captain allows re-rolls to hit of 1 in shooting and assault. The shooting is only really useful if you take the Meltaguns or Hurricane Bolters, but re-rolling half your misses in melee will help maximise their combat effectiveness.
A Lieutenant is also a great support character for the Centurion Assault Squad. Given that you are probably going to be going after tougher units with the squad, they will generally be wounding on a 3+, so getting to re-roll half your failed wounds on average will also help to boost their damage output. Against weaker units where you are wounding on a 2+, they will get great benefit from the Lieutenant, re-rolling all their failed wounds.
An Apothecary can also be useful for healing or reviving lost members of the squad. For expensive elite units such as the Centurion Assault Squad, the Apothecary is well worth the cost to include to keep the unit alive for longer.
A Librarian can also be a useful addition. If he can cast Null Zone, removing an opponent’s invulnerable saves, there is little in the game that could stand up the to the Centurions in combat. Veil of Time can also be great for ensuring that the Centurions can charge and helping them to strike first in a protracted combat.
As you can see, there are a number of strong support Characters that can benefit the Centurion Assault Squad. My preference would be the Captain and Lieutenant. Even though the Captain only gives re-rolls of 1’s to hit in melee, his re-rolling in the shooting phase can be effective for other units, especially the Stormraven if it goes into hover mode after dropping off the Centurions and support characters. Plus, the Captain can be a potent melee threat on his own.
Chapter Tactics
The right Chapter Tactics can further improve the effectiveness of the Centurion Assault Squad.
Ultramarines is great if the Centurions get tied up in combat from a chaff unit. Being able to fall back and launch 6 Flamer attacks (and maybe some Hurricane Bolters) at an enemy unit should do a lot of damage. Especially if they had to suffer from overwatch fire from charging the unit.
White Scars Chapter Tactics can also be useful, allowing you to bounce from one enemy unit to another in assault. This could allow you to charge a unit that will tie you up to keep you safe from enemy shooting, then move away from the chaff unit and go after a more important target in the enemy army.
Imperial Fists Chapter Tactics can be useful for the Centurions if you go for the Hurricane Bolters. At short range, the unit can pump out a lot of S4 firepower, so denying your opponent the benefit of cover will help add to the number of failed saves if they are going from a 2+ save to a 3+ save. In addition, if you ever do fight a Building, they Centurions will probably tear through it.
Black Templars tactics are great for ensuring the unit gets into combat, with re-rolling failed charges. In addition, the Abhor the Witch Stratagem will be useful for helping to keep them safe from Smite or other mortal wound dealing psychic powers.
Salamanders Chapter Tactics are really good on the Centurion Assault Squad. Getting a free re-roll to hit and to wound in the melee will really help to boost their damage output. In addition, the Flamecraft Stratagem is great on a unit with 6 Flamers, giving you +1 to wound with the Flamers and helping to cause more damage with their shooting.
Raven Guard Chapter Tactics can be brilliant for the Centurion Assault Squad. The -1 to hit might be less effective as you will likely want to be getting close to the enemy army, but may be useful for protection from further away firing units. This Chapter Tactic does give the unit access to the awesome Strike From the Shadows Stratagem. This allows the unit to be held in reserve and then be deployed at least 9″ from an enemy unit at the start of the first battle round. This will allow the Centurion Assault Squad a very good chance of getting a first turn charge and allow them to bring their potent firepower to bear. It also means you don’t need a transport vehicle, effectively more than halving the cost of the unit. However, this tactic can be incredibly risky. If you don’t get the first turn, the squad could be targeted and eliminated without having done anything of note, a waste of their big points investment.
Iron Hands Chapter Tactics will be useful for keeping them alive for longer, with a 6+ FNP roll.
Overall
A squad of three Centurion Assault Marines in a Stormraven will cost you 517 pts for the standard load out. If you take Hurricane Bolters on the Centurions and Stormraven (which I would recommend), it will take you to 558 pts. For over a quarter of the points of a standard army, that is a significant points investment.
If your opponent has a way to deal with the Stormraven on turn 1 (quite likely in a competitive army list) and destroy it before it has moved, they probably won’t even need to target the Centurion squad, as they are unlikely to make it to your opponent’s lines. However, if they do get to assault, they are a threat that will need to be dealt with quickly in some fashion, either through shooting them off the board or tying them up with a sacrificial unit.
I think the Centurion Assault Squad could provide a nasty surprise to an opponent if they don’t know what to expect and allow them to make it into combat. The squad is pretty effective in the shooting phase and assault phase, but does need a significant points investment to get the most out of them in a game.
By contrast, the much cheaper Aggressor Squad has increased firepower thanks to its special rules, and while it is not as formidable in melee, it is still a potent melee threat. For this reason, it is hard to recommend the Centurion Assault Squad as a competitive unit. It should be fun to field and will probably do a lot of damage, but most competitive lists will be able to deal with them without too much bother.
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You did a great job of illustrating the strengths and weaknesses of the unit. They are so close to being good but the fact that it is so hard to deliver them into combat and that they can get smoked by a few errant las cannon shots really holds them back. I think they need more attacks and/or an invul save to make them viable. I want to like them, though.
Cheers Reece! Yeah, even a 5+ invulnerable (similar to Terminator armour) would help them out against heavier firepower or combat attacks.
Extra attacks on the charge or the base profile would be great. It’s crazy that the heavy close combat specialists get the same number of attacks as a basic Marine with a Chainsword.
I mean, these days a 5++ is basically the same as having 2+ armor, as you’ll get your 5+ against Lascannons anyways. The invuln only really matters if it’s 4++ or better or you’re getting hit by those rare AP-4 or AP-5 weapons out there.
Speed and deliverability are the real problems. They’re surprisingly well-rounded at close ranges thanks to Flamers + Hurricane Bolters, but it’s so hard to get them anywhere near their targets that they struggle a lot.
I keep forgetting that is true in 8th edition! Regaining the use of Drop Pods would help with mobility, but you still need to make that 9″ charge.
Yeah, though in that regard they’re no better (or worse) than anyone else. I suppose it’s feasible to sneak them in with the Raven Guard stratagem, since they are infantry and there’s no specific prohibition against it- that is a pretty reasonable way to get them in close, at least.
Drop Pods would be the best thing to help boost them up.
They need to be deployable in Drop Pods. Otherwise they are such a waste.
Drop Pods would be a nice cheap option for them. Otherwise, as said above, you are stuck with the Land Raider or Stormraven. Two pretty effective vehicles on their own, but very expensive in an army.
tl;dr against anything faster than a building they’ll never make it into combat
If you had read it, you’d see this is one of the weaknesses that was picked up on. They do suffer from needing a transport vehicle to even give them a chance of getting into combat.
Yup. But, Land Raiders are not bad at all in 8th. I think people still tend to shy away from them but every time I use one I am pleased with the result. The issue though, is that they+the LR starts to get really pricey.
If you have a cheap and reliable transport for them, they’d be serviceable. But also needing an expensive transport leaves them in a rough spot.
Yeah, if your opponent is not tooled up to take down a T8 vehicle, the Land Raider is really tough to crack.
I’ve been having fun with the Land Raider Crusader, but one of my opponents made a big mess of my Genestealer Cults with the Redeemer. Those flamestorm cannons cannot be taken lightly.
I’ve been loving my Salamanders Redeemer with Vulkan, flamer command squad and multi-melta devs, but I can see why that’d be way too many eggs in one basket for a competitive list.
I am not so sure, honestly. Every time I put a LR on the table, I am not disappointed I did. In the competitive meta many lists don’t actually have the tools to deal with a LR. For example, Dark Reapers (one of the big spam units right now) are not actually very good against it. They hit it reliably but wound on a 4+ and the LR gets a 4+ save. Unless it is Doomed, it is not in that much danger especially considering so many of the Reapers have Tempest Launchers which don’t do much to it.
Oblits can be a threat if they roll well on their damage profile but if they don’t they’re not going to do too much to them. Cultists Bomb won’t do squat to it, and even many of the flyers will struggle to hurt it. The biggest threat is getting tagged in combat and lowing the ability to shoot (which, LRs should ignore that, IMO), but if you position it carefully you can often avoid that.
Suppose it’s maybe still too much of a culture shock to consider LRs in competitive lists 😛
Would be interesting to see it tried, and yeah falling back and still being able to shoot even if it’s -1 to hit or something would make sense for LRs and their equivalents.
I think you’re right, lol, people just file the LR into the “bad” category in their minds and move along. All it will take will someone doing well with one in a tournament and the perception will shift.
But totally agree, the LR should be able to leave combat and still shoot. That would make it so much more appealing.
>Unless it is Doomed,
Yeah but… Doom is kinda one of the main ways that Craftworlds armies deal with vehicles. You can’t really just throw that one out the window and ignore it; that would be like saying “other than Shining Spears, Eldar armies don’t really have any good fast assault units.” It’s sorta technically true, but only in the sense that you are completely ignoring one of the most powerful tools they bring to the table.
I wouldn’t call Land Raiders “bad” in the way that they have been in earlier editions, but their biggest problem- being a huge concentration of points- actually got worse this edition when they raised their price. And since you inevitably are taking a LR specifically to transport some expensive/slow unit across the field, any game where it gets killed turn 1 (and that is very, very possible for most lists) is gonna be an incredibly bad time as you lose a 350pt model and strand a ~250pt squad in your deployment zone.
Fair points, but Doom is no certainty, either. I fail to cast it constantly, lol, and you can use psychic defense to further lower the odds, etc. My only point is that it is not a given.
And yeah, a LR isn’t tier 1 but I honestly would consider taking one to a tournament, without question. The only thing that holds me back personally is that I like to play brigades and it is hard to fit them in one.
They suffer greatly from overcosted loadouts on a too fragile platform that need an expensive transport and babysitting auras.
They die to fast from stray heavy weapon shots and multi-W fire.
This makes some of their loadouts never used. How many wounds do you get and at what cost for one model armed with twin meltaguns and all the other sprinkle and how easy does that model die?
On top of it all said model needs an expensive transport just to start earning its points back.. down that transport fast and the player is left with three absurdly overcosted footsloggers that just stand there.
The same goes for the cent devastators. They highlite the flaw in 8th that is same wargear costs for different platforms meaning for example a lascannon or melta cost the same no matter if it is given to a cent, tactical, predator or lone grot. This is wrong on so many levels it makes me wonder what the designers were thinking when they came up with that one.
Differing loadouts are supposed to be usable and fun since they represent choice and variaty in this game!!
For example ask yourselves, the cent armed with twin lascannons and chest missiles cost how much? How easy does it go down to a single lascannon?
Compare the same weapon (lascannon) on a predator platform, same weapon, same upgrade point cost, vastly different platforms meaning usage, survivability, wounds, movement etc.
There is a reason nobody ever takes cents of any type in tourneys. They need babysitters in the form of apotecharies at the least, stand in cover and/or rely on exclusive transports and on top of it all they cost insane amount of points fully upgraded for a comparably weak survivability.
3 LC/ML cents OR 3 laspreds that get an awesome strategem on top that they actually dont need in order to kill stuff (contrary to the tfc)..anyone?
There is not even a choice between which of these two units to opt for, its like choosing between a chocolate cake or haggies.
I love the models and have spent weeks converted 6 of them with a zillion magnetized options but that´s it. Earlier where grav was broken because SM needed a shadow of a chance vs eldar cheese, dev cents at least did something, now they are on the dust shelf along other failed units like Lotd, whirlies and all the “spare” thunderfires.
One or a mix of some from the below needed:
1: Redo the wargear cost for cents of both variants so that no matter loadout they will have a point efficient role in the game. (this approach will start fixing the flawed wargear-cost-platform system in 8th) OR price naked cents so low that WITH a loadout they become cheap enough to be relied upon earning their points back.
2: Give them a means of delivery. Best would be personal teleporters allowing them to deepstrike jump several times, even when tied up in melee.
3: Better survivability, better inv save then terrain cover or more wounds or a healthy points reduction so that they at least stand a chance earning their points back no matter loadout.
4: Make their secondary weapon systems like flamers and meltaguns act as pistols so that they can be used while tied up in melee.
For the points these models cost and the way they get killed by the multi wound weaponry prevailing in the game some of the above ideas would be the least to ask for.
I don’t think they are greatly overcosted They are expensive for what they can do, but certainly not as ridiculously overcosted as the Centurion Devastators.
As I was writing the review, I was all ready to write them off. However, as I was writing, I started to warm towards them. Dual Flamers and Hurricane Bolters each actually allows them to put out a lot of short ranged firepower, while they hit like a ton of bricks in combat. I might actually try running them with a Stormraven and see how they perform. Yes, the Stormraven is expensive, but it can do a lot of damage on its own, so not really a poor investment of points in an army.
The biggest issue is the lack of mobility and expensive transport option. Some form of inherent deep strike would help them considerably. I don’t think they’ll get personal teleporters, that seems to be a Grey Knight thing.
Wargear costing the same for each unit is a bit of a bummer, but is pretty standard through most of 8th, certainly for ranged weapons. Melee weapons do seem to sometimes get discounts for non-character models.
More wounds or a decent invulnerable save would be a big boost for them. If the price didn’t go up, they would be a decent assault option in the army.
Also, you picked the wrong writer to ask about choosing Haggis or chocolate cake. Not such an easy choice 😉
Well the prices on weapons don’t matter too much if the price for the unit takes that into account. Proper balance for unit costs makes weapon costs a moot point.
To some degree, yes, but it doesn’t (and can’t) take into account the varying utility of different weapons on a single platform. For example, Assault Centurions are very slow- this makes Meltaguns, a primarily-offensive weapon that only works at short ranges extremely poorly costed for them. Adjusting the base price of the Centurion doesn’t fix this, because that changes the total price of the overall unit- so altering it will affect how good other weapon options (such as Flamers) are as well.
Fixed weapon prices really are something of a problem, because as soon as you have a weapon being carried by more than one unit, they introduce a set of interconnected variables that become incredibly difficult to manage. The issue crops up in many armies- such as Tau, for example, where you pay the same price for a BS4+ Crisis Suit and a BS2+ Commander.
I feel like these guys are only really useful in Narrative play, particularly Stronghold Assault-type games. Give them a scenario like that, tho, the sort of thing they’re actually intended for, and they could be awesome.
Also, I like you phrasing in the IF Chapter Tactics bit about if you “fight a Building”. Reminds me of an old Hungover Owls post: “I got in a fight with what turned out to be a staircase. I did not win.” 😀
Yeah, they should do a lot of damage against a target that can’t run away from them!
They should have a ability that allow them to advance and ignore all penalties for it and still charge.
Yeah, that is a cool idea.
So the slowest unit in the codex should be the fastest unit in the codex?
Not the fastest unit by far. If you allowed them to still act normally after advancing, on average they would be moving 7-8″ in the movement phase (max of 10″). There are plenty of much faster units in the codex, and even then, it would still take them 3-4 turns to get to your opponent’s deployment zone.
I realize that, I was using hyperbole to make a point. Centurions are conceptualized from the very beginning as being slow, unstoppable war machines- making them extremely fast completely unravels their concept. Very few units in the game get to charge after advancing, and I don’t see any good rationale as for why Centurions should- just give them a higher movement value if that’s what you’re after.
“As I was writing the review, I was all ready to write them off. However, as I was writing, I started to warm towards them. Dual Flamers and Hurricane Bolters each actually allows them to put out a lot of short ranged firepower”
True. You are right but this highlites what I was saying. Some loadouts are quite good while some are outright useless due to the cost. Dakka cents can earn some points back while lascannon-missile cents are more akin to walking jokes.
The set wargear upgrade cost simply NEEDS to go.
“I realize that, I was using hyperbole to make a point. Centurions are conceptualized from the very beginning as being slow, unstoppable war machines”
I agree, this is how I see them as well and I love my cent models. Sadly I cant use them since I´ll gimp my game if I do due to reasons already mentioned.
As something slow and unstoppable they are laughably fragile..for what they cost upgraded or not.
Here is a wonderful example of failed point cost -to- wargear mechanic and the concept of being unstoppable war machines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fimfa0H8p44
a 6 man unit with just the hurricane bolters will pump out 72 shots at 12 inch range (rapid fire 6 24″) i fail to see how this doesn’t completely wipe the table with any horde army its 53 points for centurion assault squads and its 10 points per model to equip hurricane bolters. (got nerfed with chapter aproved) but if you wana field lots of hurricane bolters you should be using centurion devastators anyway they are 40 points and have that hurricane bolter as standard equipment.
Yeah, they are certainly a viable option, now.
An interesting tactic I considered was leaving them on a control point behind cover from the enemy lines. They can’t actually get close enough unless they are a chargy melee unit or fast attack option and when they do, they get absolutely shredded by the flamers and boaters. If your opponent sends something like assault terminators or a unit which fills a similar role you’ll stand a good chance to destroy them with your siege drills
I meant to say bolters not boaters, btw