Take a look at our top 3 home-brew army lists that went against the established 40k meta and did surprisingly well at their events.
While each faction has their undisputed competitive choices, some players take on the challenge of bringing a few units that might have been overlooked. 9 times out of 10, they’re not that bad. Check out these three unique lists spotted in tourneys over the weekend.
Thanks to Best Coast Pairings we can look back at the event as if we were there ourselves.
Iron Halo: Imperial Fists- Kevin Lynn
This list dumped a bunch of its points in a Battalion that was turned into the Siegebreaker Cohort formation from Vigilus. That unlocked the dakka of the list (Centurions mainly- but perhaps the Aggressors here) to spam mortal wounds when they fired.
While most Imperial Fist players run this formation, the list also brought two of the new Eliminator squads and even a 5-man unit of Terminators! While the meta is still feeling out how Eliminators do on the field, the Terminators are a big surprise to see. Plus, the Centurions were all armed with lascannons over the normal heavy bolters. Usually, dakka is taken on the Centurions for maximum mortal wound output.
However, we can definitely see the player’s mentality of just doing reliable damage without popping a CP. All in all, this list had plenty of units to cover the ground with the Intercessors as its backbone. Great job.
Iron Halo: White Scars- Treynor Wolfe
Moving to this White Scars list, these Marines were geared toward combat and almost nothing else. While the Chapter gets a bonus for using Bikes, being able to advance and charge is still super solid. It’s not hard to see that the main workhorse of the list was the Space Marine Veterans with Stormshields and Thunder Hammers/Chain Swords.
With the Assault Doctrine active, these guys were able to do two damage a pop with their Chain Swords alone. 
For more CP, a 2nd Battalion was taken with cheap Troops. Dakka Centurions were brought with flamers and bolters to mulch any screens that tried to tarpit the Veterans. And finally, two Thunderfire Cannons were brought for the two amazing Stratagems they have access to now. Awesome list!
RTT Scifi Citi: Iron Hands- Christopher McGee
Moving into the newly upgraded Iron Hands, this list brought some interesting choices we didn’t expect to see. Choosing not to dump points into any Leviathans, it went for the cheaper, albeit weaker gun chassis in the form of Redemptors, Repulsors, and Stormhawks.
The cheapness of these units made them spammable and had them unload a disgusting amount of -2 AP firepower. All thanks to the doctrines, of course. Feirros, being the lynchpin of all vehicles, stuck closeby to the Redemptors and Repulors while the Stormhawks uprooted dug-in enemy units up the board. Redemptors and Repulsors might not be as tanky as the Leviathan but they definitely aren’t fragile with the Iron Hands Chapter Tactic. Awesome list!
What do you think about these three armies? Are White Scars lists better off without Bikes? Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group, and sign up to get your free hobby updates newsletter (with discount coupon codes) each morning as well!
About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials: @RealmbrushPainting
About Wesley Floyd: Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He is known for his satirist takes on trending topics and imaginative yet amazingly affordable hobby solutions to painting Warhammer miniatures.
Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. 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 contact him or have your tabletop minatures painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
