How to build a strong list in Warhammer 40,000

3 types of units you need in every list you build

I often tell friends that games are won and lost when building the list for your next game. As tempting as it is to just cobble something together at the last minute, not having the answer to a particularly tough monster or vehicle can instantly shut you out of winning. Careful deployment and cunning strategy will always help mitigate problems with a bad list, but a well-constructed list with the game’s top units will almost always win out.

Why’s that? In essence, all basic strategy in Warhammer 40K boils down to two things: removing models from your opponent’s army and finding a way to score points via your primary and secondary missions. If you can do that, you win.

To that end, you just need three things in every army list:

1. A unit to hold your home objective.

2. A unit that can advance up the board to take objectives from your opponent.

3. A unit that can kill your opponent’s big models.

I know that sounds almost too simple, but it’s really, truly the starting point for all lists in this game.

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Here’s a full breakdown of why it works:

To start off with, consider how you’re going to hold objectives. You typically need a unit to stand back and guard your home objective and screen out deep-striking units. I always look for something cheap-but-durable that can eat a few shots but doesn’t cost a lot of points. Example? A Tyranid Biovore. It’s 50pts, but it has indirect fire that allows it to sit behind cover on an objective the entire game. Another good option is cultists if you’re playing a Chaos army or Sisters of Silence if you play Custodes.

Second, you should consider what unit(s) you’re going to use to take objectives away from your opponent. Here I like to use a combination of high toughness units alongside fire support from a tank sitting on the edge of your deployment zone. High toughness models and/or ones with a high invulnerable save can march up the board slowly soaking up damage. When supported, you can use these units to take mid-board objectives without losing them in a bad trade (more on this in a later post).

Finally, you need something (preferably more than one thing, honestly) to reduce the models in your opponent’s army.

When selecting these models, I consider three common toughness/wound profiles you’re bound to encounter in a game. I need a unit with a weapon that can shred T3/1W units. I need a unit that can dish out 2W/AP-1 or -2 shots to kill T4/2W units. And I need a unit with a S12+/AP-3 or -4 profile to hunt down enemy artillery. For Tyranids, that’s Venomthropes, a Maleceptor and Zoanthropes, respectively.

In larger games, I usually invest more in this last category because very often these units can score secondaries or move up onto objectives when there’s no enemy unit for them to kill.

Putting it all together

Here’s a 1,000pt list for Tyranids that achieves all of the above:

Tyranids
Invasion Fleet
Incursion (1000 Points)

CHARACTERS

Hive Tyrant (250 Points)
  • 1x Heavy venom cannon
  • 1x Monstrous bonesword and lash whip
  • Enhancements: Perfectly Adapted

Neurotyrant (105 Points)
  • Warlord
  • 1x Neurotyrant claws and lashes
  • 1x Psychic scream

Winged Hive Tyrant (225 Points)
  • 1x Monstrous bonesword and lash whip
  • 1x Tyrant talons
  • Enhancements: Adaptive Biology

OTHER DATASHEETS

Biovores (50 Points)
  • 1x Chitin-barbed limbs
  • 1x Spore Mine launcher

Maleceptor (170 Points)
  • 1x Massive scything talons
  • 1x Psychic overload

Zoanthropes (200 Points)
  • 1x Neurothrope
     ◦ 1x Chitinous claws and teeth
     ◦ 1x Warp Blast
  • 5x Zoanthrope
     ◦ 5x Chitinous claws and teeth
     ◦ 5x Warp Blast

TL;DR? Games are won and lost by how you build your lists. The above template isn’t always guaranteed to get you a win, but it’s a great starting point to think about what units you should be bringing and what they need to accomplish.