Warhammer 40K: Understanding & Controlling The Dice Flow
6 Minute Read
Jan 18 2015
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Often when we start our journey into the grimdark universe we are in a hurry tactically to start building out list and learning how to use our models on the table- important stuff, but there is a piece of the game we need to understand first- the part that powers the models and allows them to work on the table.
Sure, the moving, shooting, and assault phase is what brings out the tactics of the models we all love, but it is the dice behind the models that gives or takes success on the table. Many players are quick to blame the dice when things don’t go their way, and while it can be a convenient fallback, sometimes there is some very hard truth to this…
In Warhammer 40,000 we are at the mercy of the dice- the inject a level of randomness that helps create the tension of the game turn by turn so we never really know what is going to happen. Amazing things happen when you roll those dice so understanding how to influence them NEEDS to be understood in every action you take.
Volume of dice is the kry to doing this- expanding your volume and contracting your opponent’s volume. Let’s use an example to help illustrate this…
We are going to look at Space Marines for this example, since everybody understands Space Marines. I’m willing to be you have or have played a Space Marine army at some point, and/or have played against them so you are somewhat familiar with them.
Think of these Space Marines as a template to understand and manipulate.
Imagine you are going to engage a group of terminators with your unit in the shooting phase- how are you going to get them removed as casualties?
You are either going to have to bypass the 2+ armor save or the 3+/5+ invulnerable save. Many players would say shoot them with plasma based weaponry since it is AP 2 and they will only get the 3/5+ save.
Tactically this makes sense, but is only a fraction of the full understanding of the understanding.
This kind of thinking does not take into account the different layers that need to be bypassed to remove a single terminator.
What are these layers?
First you have to hit the terminators.
Then you have to wound them.
Next they have to fail an armor or invulnerable save.
Your initial dice pool in shooting- how many shots you have from your unit going into the terminators is big at first, but as you go through the layers it gets smaller and smaller.
Say out of ten shots, six hit, and three wound, and one fails an armor save.
You want to maximize your dice for each layer so the largest volume gets though.
Let’s look at shooting first- of course you want to try and select units that have a high ballistics skill- hitting on a 3+ over a 4+, but you will have to work with what your codex has.
What you can control is the distance when shooting- plan and work to get the most shots out of each model- rapid firing weapons shooting at closer range gives you more shots than over longer ranges. Weapon options that put out more dice are favorable over single dice. Ways to get a re-roll to hit, such as twin-linked weapons all help keep you to-hit dice pool as big as possible.
When you shoot to wound, try to maximize higher strength weapons to bypass the toughness of the models- S6+ is better than S4.
And of course shots that ignore armor saves are best.
Now, you will not be able to get the maximum in all three layers, but rather when looking to engage a unit look as getting the maximum for each layer.
Let’s say I have a group of twenty Chaos Space Marines armed with bolters and a group of five Chosen Chaos Space Marines armed with melta guns both able to move and engage the terminators.
Which group has the best chance at leveraging the dice against those terminators?
The big squad of Chaos Space Marines does- 20 Marines double tapping at 12” throws up more dice which will then filter down through the other layers.
NOW, let’s turn the tables and look at it from our perspective when our opponent tries to bypass the various dice layers against us. When the tables are turned it is our goal to engage with units that have the most layers of dice the opponent has to bypass.
So again, first they have to hit- can we stay at long range to cut down on the shots? Can we force them to shoot with snap-shots only?
Then they have to wound- can we engage with higher toughness to weapon strength units?
Then we need to fail armor saves- can we make sure we at least get an armor save, or if needed get cover saves?
And finally can we throw up a fourth layer of dice our opponent has to bypass- can we engage with a unit that has a special rule that gives us more dice like feel no pain, or regeneration that our opponent has to bypass- same with multi-wound models.
Leveraging the volume of dice is VERY important.
Next is understanding the efficient use of the dice and how units need to engage other units, and how to select units that generate the correct volume of dice.
Back to our example of Space Marines, say a tactical squad this time…
In our tactical squad we have a veteran with a plasma pistol and chain sword, a marine carrying a melta gun, one marine carrying a plasma cannon, and the rest carrying bolters. On the surface analysis they have a range of weapons to handle a variety of threats- anti-infantry, anti-tank, and a way to hurt monstrous creatures, all good stuff.
However, this doesn’t mean they should be engaging all three groups!
Imagine our tactical squad has to destroy a rhino full of Khorne Berserkers moving forward- is the squad well suited to do this in terms of generating dice? Possible, but it not the most efficient- remember layering the dice.
Segment the dice out into a pool assuming the rhino is at close range.
The plasma pistol generates one shot.
The melta gun one shot.
And the plasma cannon another- only these three model/weapons can stop the rhino.
Take the shots from the bolters and put those dice in another pool- these are WASTED shots since you have no change of hurting the rhino.
Imagine the target changed to a land raider full of ‘zerkers- now only the melta gun stands a chance of hurting the land raider and all the other shots are wasted since they can’t hurt the target.
Some players will still try to engage the land raider with the tactical squad since the melta gun can destroy it, but this is not efficient use of the dice- and what if the land raider fired its smoke launchers to throw up another layer for your single shot melta gun to bypass?
That tactical squad is better off engaging the ‘zerkers once they are outside the land raider since they have volume of dice with the rapid fire bolters, and ways to bypass toughness and wounds with the melta and plasma.
You want to use your generated dice against targets where they will have the most effect and least amount of layers to get past.
Better to have another unit somewhere on the table, with efficient use of the dice to destroy the land raider- and use it for that, say veteran Space Marines armed with melta guns or combi-meltas and then use the tacticals to engage the ‘zerks.
Always look to select units that can generate the largest volume of dice and apply them against units to bypass the most dice layers.
In 40K anytime you roll dice there is the chance that something “bad” will happen- you suffer a wound, fail an armor save, leadership, etc.- the first fundamental tactic is to try and minimize your dice rolling, and look to maximize your opponent’s dice rolling so bad stuff will happen to them.
Select your units this way.
Move your units on the table this way.
Engage your opponent in this way.
Author: Fred Hansen
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