Horus Heresy: The Care and Feeding of Your Cerberus Heavy Tank Destroyer
Games Workshop is releasing the plastic Cerberus Heavy Tank Destroyer. But how exactly should you use yours?
THE DOGS OF WAR ARE UPON US! Get to your FLGS and adopt this 3 headed puppy ASAP. Coming to an FLGS near you, the Cerberus Heavy Tank Destoyer, will be rumbling to battlefields this week. Much like the Sky Hunter Squadrons I’d be first in line if you’re interested in acquiring this behemoth. Word on the street is that these will likely be allocated with low numbers to most stores as GW is still struggling with supply chain issues. If the Lion was any indicator of how fast the online community will scoop a box, I’d consider placing a preorder if any are left with your local shops. We’ll know on release day by the sound of Loyalist/Traitors bemoaning the lack of stock as to who was smart and who lost out.
Loadouts
Not much explanation is needed here. You’re taking this thing because you want a Str 10, AP1, Ordnance (4), Shock Pulse, Sunder, Gets Hot weapon sitting in your back line killing whatever you want. The sponsons are somewhat of an afterthought. Though if you’re already in for a penny you might as well be in for a pound. I personally like the Cerberus with Lascannons and a Heavy Bolter pintle weapon. If you’re going to be hunting tanks or other hard-to-crack units at range you may even consider just going with bare-bones options that keep the tank cheap. Loading up the Cerberus with short range options when your main weapon is 72″ can be problematic. Consider the range heavily when making modeling choices for your sponsons and pintle weapons.
Overall the Cerberus is built to kill armor and tough units that generally cause problems for space marines. It is an excellent addition to any army because its main weapon is the stuff of nightmares for other tanks, dreadnoughts, terminators, and custodes. With a relatively high volume of fire, Ordanace (4) it can kill things dead in no time. In most cases, a failed save will result in a dead model due to the absurd weapon str of 10. As a weapons platform, beyond the absurd Neutron Laser Battery, options like the Las sponsons will give you plenty of ways in which to turn your opponent’s tough units into casualties.
Finally, the Cerbus is still a vehicle. Lord of War or not it’s going to have issues with dedicated tank killers and anything with Str 9 or above weapons. With a range of roughly 72″ you’ll surely want to be keeping your tank floating around the backlines and screening it properly to ensure you get the most out of it. You’re also going to struggle mightily with Contemptors due to their 2+5++ saves. Multiple Contemptors that can close the distance are going to be problematic. The Neutron Laser Battery is going to put in work – but you’ll need to bubblewrap your tank and protect it. Like all Spartan variants, this Dog of War comes stock with smoke launchers and flare shields which will keep your tank truckin’. I highly recommend taking a Tech Marine along with this vehicle or squadon. It is imperative that the main weapon and tank stay functional as long as possible to earn back those points. You may also want to put a searchlight onto your tank, nightfighting is a huge problem considering that Cerberus’s massive range, just be leary of other long range fighters that are looking to take pot shots against your armor. Cerberus…Cerberi are hefty points investments. If they get exploded early you’ll be losing a ton of firepower when you’ll need it most.
Death Guard
You’re loath to find a better legion to equip with a Cerberus than the Deathguard. If rolling around the battlefield at full movement and firing all your guns is your idea of fun you’ll want to invest in some cream and olive drab paint for your spicy new rolling deathdealer. On top of that, you have the ability to move and still fire your Ordinance weapons without penalty. Death Guard tank lists are not the most finessed army but given GWs penchant for tanks over the last 8 months they are well supported and effective. Armored spearhead lists and a parking lot of tanks depend on mobility more than you might think if you’re not familiar with running them. They are giant walls that widely depend on getting unobstructed fields of fire to be effective. Nothing sucks more than having all that firepower stuck behind the Great Wall of Tanks.
Legion Trait: Remorseless – Arguably one of the best options for a vehicle heavy list, this Legion Trait makes your Cerberus mobile and grants it the ability to fire all weapons even while getting maximum movement. Most other legions have to settle for keeping a vehicle stationary to fire all of the weapons or moving it half its movement characteristic to fire a single weapon. For a tank that really wants to be getting the best firing handles and minimizing its profile .
It’s not hard to imagine a vehicle-heavy list with the Cerberus as a centerpiece surrounded by the soon to arrive to be released Vindicator decked out with demolisher cannons. Its fluffy, its effective, its Death Guard.
Iron Hands
Tanks that don’t die. That’s the goal. The ever-resilient iron hands have some fun options that make your vehicles especially hard to kill. The one major downside to the Cerbus tank is that it does have Gets Hot on it main weapon which can quickly deplete its hull points with its rate of fire:
Legiong Trait – Medusa’s Scales – This trait is amazing for dreadnoughts and pretty good for vehicles. While the -1 str for incoming weapon shots does not apply to vehicles, you do get a 6+ It will not die on your vehicles.
Blessed Auto-Simulacra – Let’s go ahead and put this on our Cerberus. Suddenly we get +1 to our It will not die.
The Iron Father – Let’s go ahead and take an iron father, who is not only exceedingly tough but has a 3+ Battlesmith and park him near our tanks. He can now repair a lost hullpoint, wound, weapon destroyed or immobilized result. He will get your tank back in the fight quickly.
Ferrus Manus – It can’t be understated how much of a force multiplier Ferrus is for the Iron Hands. Not only does he give all infantry a 6+ FNP, but for vehicles he confers a 5+ It Will Not Die, and he’s a 2+ Battlesmith, so he can repair things efficiently. On top of it all, he’s an absolute melee monster with a Str 12, AP 1, Brutal (3) weapon, and a 2+3++ save profile. He’s both tough and has huge damage, especially against other primarchs. If you’re concerned about someone touching your tank, Ferrus will apply the wax to buff out the scratches and slap around whoever left the fingerprints.
The Iron Hands have more repair ability than the Maytag man, and their innate durability makes them very hard to overcome. Many times if a vehicle is not outright destroyed in a single turn it has the potential regain a few hull points. As an opponent it’s morale depleting to keep having to dump shots into a tank that is pounding your army turn after turn while Iron Hands units advance all over the board sweeping you off objectives. I think the Cerberus benefits from a mixed list in an Iron Hands army. Its definitely hard not to include their iconic dreadnaughts as they benefit from the -1 to Str against range attacks and will force your opponent to commit to the threats in their face rather than those on the other side of the table where they may have to move turn after turn to get into range. However they want to handle it, it presents a choice that they have to deal with; be killed from afar or be killed up close.
<style=”text-align: center;”>If you’re looking for more information about the best legions to play alongside your new Cerberus Tank Destroyer check out our deep dive into the Armored Spearhead Rite of War
Final Thoughts
The Cerberus is an excellent centerpiece to add to any army as a delete button for most hard-to-kill units. While I think that some legions have significant advantages in running them over others, they offer a high strength, low AP option that can quickly make trouble whatever it fires at. Any unit is going to feel the punishment of the Neutron Laser Battery, Str 10 AP 1, is nothing to sneeze at, and it will absolutely make terminators quake in their boots. While the name implies this is a Tank Hunter, this is definitely a positive addition to any arsenal that is going to be facing down Pride of the Legion, Fury of the Ancients or Armored Spearhead. Even better, they can be taken in squadrons of 2. With this tank hitting shelves in under a week, its going to be open season on some of those tougher Heresy lists.
So what’s next? Well, on the horizon, there is the first Black Book that was shown off at Adeption and a variety of upgrades for tank commanders. With Warhammer Fest right around the corner, the next week is going to be packed full of sneak speaks at all of the upcoming releases. I suspect that sneak peaks will be for items contained inside the Cthonian War Black Book. I have no idea, no inkling of what is coming at this point…but I’m excited for the reveals coming out of Warhammer Fest and looking forward to what they could lead to.
What are you most excited about or hoping for in the new black book?
