TACTICA: Apothecary

I’ve played against Medics in Imperial Guard armies many times. I’ve used Chirurgeons in my Inquisitorial armies for years. But I rarely pulled out my Apothecary (in any of my Space Marine armies). I loved the model, but I could never seem to justify the extra points. With the new Dark Angels codex, I thought I would give the Terminator Apothecary a spin. After my first game, I realized how much I’ve been missing. I thought I would take a few minutes and share my recent experiences.

With a little skill and a lot of luck, a single Apothecary can ignore 12 wounds in the course of a 6-turn game. I’ve done it twice in my last six games with my Terminator Apothecary. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of this underappreciated model.

Tip #1: Remember the Apothecary can be used in both players’ turns. This not only allows you to shrug enemy fire in his turn, but it allows you to ignore a pesky overheat (or failed Perils of the Warp test) in your turn.

Dirty Trick #1: No wounds cause Instant Death to Sammael because he has an Adamantine Mantle. This means a Ravenwing Apothecary can ignore a S8+ wound placed on him. This is a fantastic way for expensive Ravenwing units to shrug powerful weapons like Lascannons.

Tip #2: This is the gem of the article and if you walk away understanding this tip, you are going to love your Apothecary. Most players lose the benefit of the Narthecium when they get into close combat (a model moves into base contact which locks the Apothecary). So the secret is to prevent the Apothecary from getting LOCKED in the combat.

First of all, when you assault take care in the placement of the Apothecary. Make sure he’s the last model moved. This allows you to place him within 2″ of a model in base contact with the enemy. I usually choose a model I won’t take as a casualty (my Power Fist Sergeant, for example). To prevent your opponent from getting in base contact when he assaults, make sure your Apothecary is inside your unit. This is pretty easy unless you are being assaulted by really fast units like Assault Marines or Seraphim.

Next, to keep the Apothecary from being locked, you have to have a clear understanding of the ‘Pile In’ rules.

The ‘Pile In’ Moves sections tells us “At the end of each Assault Phase, models in units that were locked, but which are not themselves engaged in combat, MUST move up to 6″ in an attempt to contact enemy that were in the same combat” (BGB, p44). The key word here is engaged.

If you look up “engaged” you will find that a model is engaged if it is “base-to-base contact, or within 2″ of a model from its own unit in base-to-base contact” (BGB, p38).

This means if one of your models is within 2″ of a model in base contact with the enemy, it doesn’t have to move in base contact. Almost everu 40K player plays this wrong and moves all models into base contact. But if the model is already in the killzone (i.e., within 2″ of a model in base contact), you don’t move him.

For example, you assault a unit with your Command Squad. You place each model in base contact, moving your Apothecary last. If done carefully, there will be no way to put your Apothecary to get into base contact so he moves behind a member of his own unit. He’s not in base contact with the enemy, but he is “engaged”. So he doesn’t Pile In at the end of the combat. Now he’s engaged, but not locked. This means his Narthecium will work in the next turn (and every turn until he is locked in base contact).

Tip #3: The Narthecium works on any friendly model within 6″ of the Apothecary. Even veteran players often forget this rule. So if you have two squads near each other, keep the important models within 6″ of the Apothecary.

Dirty Trick #2: I use a Deathwing Terminator Squad with an Apothecary and a Ravenwing Bike Squad with two Plasma Guns in my Dark Angels army. In my first turn I Deep Strike Deathwing Assault my Terminators 6″ in front of my Bikes, then move my Bikes 12″. This allows my Ravenwing to move their maximum distance but keeps my Apothecary within 6′ of the Plasma Guns. My Bikes rapid-fire and the Apothecary fixes the first overheat (saving me a very expensive bike). Works like a charm.

Tip #4: Don’t forget about the Reductor. I don’t get a lot of use out of this because I use a Terminator Apothecary in a Fearless unit, but it’s very handy for keeping preventing Morale tests in nearby squads.

If you are a Dark Angels player, I recommend trying out the Deathwing Terminator Apothecary (and Standard Bearer). Even if you are still using the Space Marine Codex, this addition is definitely worth the points if you play it right.

Thanks for reading and I’d love some comments from players who use the Apothecary (or play against one)!