Today, we’ve got Top 5 competitive 40k lists from the NOVA open that dominated the event. Which do you think will change when the FAQ NERF bat swings?
These lists definitely used the meta to their advantage. Knights were everywhere and there but there were some Dark Eldar and Thousand Sons thrown into the mix for disruption. With all that being said, let’s break down the top 5 lists from NOVA.
Coming from Best Coast Pairings, Here’s what made it to the tabletop.
Top 5 Lists in 40k Now, Before the NERF Bat Swings
Andrew Gonyo-Catachan Fighters
Andrew Gonyo took the approach of using Guard to screen his Knights like almost every other list does. But he used the angry S4 versions of Infantry using Catachans. He brought Crusader squads with Stormshields to act as a solid backbone unit that would be hard to uproot from the table.
Then comes the mortar team for giving him a long-range threat bubble against units trying to hide from LOS. Lastly, he brought the Knight Castellan which has proven itself to be an absolute animal on the tabletop, and two Blood Angel Smash Captains.
All in all, the list was solid all around and that goes without saying after placing first at NOVA. Let’s take a look at some of the other top lists!
Erik Trok- Catachan Fighters
Catachan Brigade Detachment:
HQ
Straken
Company Commander (power fist)
Company Commander (power fist)
Primaris Psyker
Primaris Psyker
TROOPS
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
Infantry Squad: Lasgun
ELITES
Astropath
Ogryn Bodyguard: Slab shield, Ripper Gun
Priest
FAST ATTACK
Artemia Pattern Hellhound: Heavy Bolter
Artemia Pattern Hellhound: Heavy Bolter
Artemia Pattern Hellhound: Heavy Bolter
HEAVY SUPPORT
Heavy Weapons Squad: Mortars
Heavy Weapons Squad: Mortars
Heavy Weapons Squad: Mortars
Blood Angels Batallion Detachment:
HQ
Captain: Jump pack, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield
Captain: Jump pack, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield
TROOPS
Scout Squad (5): Chainsword Bolt Pistol
Scout Squad (5): Chainsword Bolt Pistol
Scout Squad (5): Chainsword Bolt Pistol
Super Heavy Auxillary Deatachment:
Knight Castellan: Questor Mechanicus House Raven
This list is strikingly similar to the top list. The player didn’t use any Crusaders and decided to run the fancy Hellhounds. Looking at the list, you can get a feel for exactly how it played. Using the Hellhounds to drive into enemy lines and explode, while the Captains pounded the big threats.
Of course, the Guard were used as a screen for the important things like big ol’ nasty House Raven Castellan. The list already brought plenty of Command Points to the party but the player wanted the maximum farming capability. Bringing Kurov’s Aquilla and the Veritas Vitae, the player could actually net CPs. On top of that, the Blood Angels were even scarier with one having the Angels wing and both getting the Black Rage.
Trent Northington
Almost identical to the other two, we’ve got an Imperial Guard Batallion with Hellhounds to disrupt the enemy line. A secondary Blood Angels Battalion was brought with the Scouts taking bolters instead of the usual Chainswords. Of course, no Blood Angels list would be complete without a couple of Smash Captains.
Nick Nanavati- Eldar
Nanavati took his trusty Eldar to the tournament. With a combo of Dark Eldar and Ynnari, he was using one of the best Eldar factions supported by the Eldar gods. Of course, Eldrad was there for his psychic powers and acting as a safety net against other Psychic shenanigans for his buddies.
Surprisingly enough, there weren’t any Raiders being used in the list. But holy moly. 14 Grotesques…What made everything even scarier was the potential threat of the Yncarne popping up after the opponent managed to kill one of his units.
This list was hard to track. With the threat of the Yncarne making a guest appearance after a unit died, the opponent had to play a bit more passively with his units than normal.
Justin Curtis (Team Happy)– Thousand Sons
This list capitalized on the scariest models Chaos has to offer instead of going for the MSU list. Magnus, Mortarion, AND Ahriman all showed up to party.
With these three models alone, they’re able to soak up enemy fire and move across the board quickly. But the scariest part of these dudes is the psychic presence. The amount of mortal wounds they can do as well as slapping enemy powers out of the sky is on-point. On top of that, you’ve got some smaller unnamed Psykers like a Daemon Prince and a sorcerer.
Lastly, the player decided that he needed a handful of command points so he fleshed out a cheap Battalion detachment using as little points as possible (Tzaangors and Cultists).
Congratulations to all the players that made it to the top!
Well, there you have it. Another 40k 8th edition tournament is finally over and those were the results. What do you think about the meta right now? Would you like to see something other than Knights hitting the field?
Will Orks cause a meta shift when they get their codex? What will get hit by the NERF bat this September, Knights, or the bubble that protects them?
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
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About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials:@RealmbrushPainting
Bio: Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4.
If you like what he writes and want to reach out or get your models painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
