Basic intro army for new players

Through my adventures on this forum I've seen so many army builds and so much confusion that its very easy to get lost in all the different options that you can bring to the table Due to this mess, I have attempted to put together a very basic list composed of a range of units that will demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of what the grey knights have to offer.

Many players come here asking what's best, but from what I've learned via my own noobiness and questions it really comes down to just getting those games in and deciding what you like and how you like to play. This is a relatively basic 1500 point list that also incorporates a few things that separate us from the rest of the power armor, and should be viewed as a take off point for what direction you want to take your army. I've also tried to incorporate a good amount of fluffiness to make you feel like you are indeed leading the Grey Knights of Titan into battle! The list is as follows:

HQ:
Grand Master - Master Crafted Hammer, master crafted stormbolter, rad grendades, psybolt ammo - 210 points
Why: The Grand Master has tons of options, and three abilities that make Grey Knights, Grey Knights: grand strategy, psychic communion, and hammerhand. Learning how to use grand strategy will help significantly in many battles as it grants vast versatility to your army. Psychic communion will aid in deep striking through various game types, and hammer hand will usually be your ace in close combat.

Troops:
10x Grey Knight Strike Squad - 1x nemesis deamon hammer, 2x Psycannons, 7x nemesis swords, psybolt ammo, rhino dedicated transport - 290 points
10x Grey Knight Terminators - 1x nemesis deamon hammer, 2x psycannons, 5x nemesis halberds, 2x nemesis swords, psybolt ammo - 470 points
Why: Two full squads of both bread-and-butter units, power armor and terminators. Both are loaded out to prioritize shooting, but still strong enough to survive in close combat. There will not be any purifiers or paladins in this list since the idea is for the player to learn his/her preference for armor types, footslog/transport etc. From here the player can decide on what elites to bring along.

Heavy Support:
Nemesis Dreadknight - Personal Teleporter, Nemesis Greatsword, Heavy incinerator - 260 points.
Why: Like it or not the dreadknight is an icon of the GK force, and when modeled correctly, absolutely terrifying on the table. This model may be expensive, but when you shunt across half the table with 2^/5^ 4w monster and rip a heavy incinerator across that horde army your opponent's face shall delight you to no end This beast can also tie up units in close combat early as you fire away with a hail of storm bolters and psycannons. The Nemesis great sword also rerolls to hit, to wound, and armor penetration.

2x Dreadnoughts - 2x Twin Link Autocannons, psybolt ammo - 135 points each (270 points)
Why: Otherwise known as the "Psyfledread," these are one of the very best units in our codex, and should always be brought in any list you make in the future. As Grey Knights must prioritize shooting, these units can take on all comers from 48" away. These are the bulk of your anti tank fire and will be able to support your units as they move across the table.

Total: 1500 points

I believe this list provides a range of abilities for new players to learn and experience, as well as a solid starting point for deciding where to take your army. There is a decent range of units that prioritize shooting and bring solid close combat ability to the table as well. The learning curve for this list should be easy enough that you can win a few games with it, and versatile enough that you can expand on it yourself once you know what you like.

Please post your input!

I like it, but i'd put an extra hammer in the terminator unit. I feel that, especially for new players, they need to have a good mix of the weapons to see what works for their playstyles, and hammers are the most important weapon, as they allow you to deal with heavy vehicles and MC's.

Also, i wouldn't encourage any new players to use a mastercrafted stormbolter, or put psybolts on one guy. I feel like digital weapons and/or another type of grenade (many people underestimate blind grenades) would be much better.

I feel like the dreadknight can go with or without the sword - it's preference.

Overall i like the mixed unit composition, the inclusion of most of the basic elements unique to GK that you'll need to know, and the ease of each models use for a newbie. Storm ravens, purifiers, assassins and paladins may be awesome if used right, but this is a solid core with a mobile DK. Kudos.

I think you could use one more psycannon, give it to your GM. Much better than 2 S5 shots. Also, the NF great sword for the DK is good but the doom fists work quite good too, plus you get one extra attack. I'm not sure about the teleporter, it's cool but the points could be used in something else; perhaps a Brotherhood Champion (if you can spare 25extra points) for extra punch on the termi squad.
Overall a solid list, let us know how it performed.
Cheers!

Good suggestions, however, the ideal GM is 250 points, and very hard to squeeze in at this point level (MCDH, rad nades, blind nades, psycannon). Honestly you should be using a libby, but I wanted to have grand strategy in there for learning purposes. Now that I think about it, he should have blind grenades instead of the MC stormbolter, but i would advise the psybolts so you can have those extra two s5 shots along with the other 16 from the termie squad he's attached to...I tend to always consider shooting before CC.

the problem is, one extra s5 wound rarely makes any difference, where as negating a whole squads charging bonus might outright win the combat.

I do think the teleporter needs to be in there somewhere, either on a DK or interceptors, and it's a great tool the GK have, so learning to use it at the right time (instead of just to rush to combat faster, unless that becomes the 'right time' ) is a crucial GK skill. and scoring interceptors with the GM will make the new player feel so smart when he wins the game by combat squading scoring inteceptors, keeping them back, then last minute jumping on objectives....

well dont forget, the idea here is super basic with a few different elements for a new player to learn and get used to. If the player likes teleporting around with his ndk, then he can go the way of interceptors and have more fun with grand strategy (I wasn't trying to set out ndk tactics)

However, I certainly agree that interceptors kick ass

Dont get me wrong, Klauzer - I love the list above! I'm not recommending changing out the NDK for interceptors, although that certainly is an option once someone gets a game or two in with this list.

I was just saying the teleporter is a crucial piece of equipment to learn, and giving an example where that knowledge might be handy. I personally like the NDK over interceptors for the newbie list, and then let them decide if they want interceptors or NDK more later, as long as they've worked with the teleporter already.

ahhh I see, thanks for clarifying

I truly appreciate this post as well as the feedback from you GK veterans. I am brand new to WH40k (or any game like this for that matter) and have decided I will be playing Grey Knights, I currently have the codex as well as the rule book but no models yet.
I've just been trying to plan out what I need to buy so I don't waste cash. This list I think will be where I start, I like the versatility but everyone has suggested I just start with a Kaldor Draigo list simply with a load of paladins...yes? no? At this point, any advice will be greatly appreciated as I am truly as new to 40k as one can get haha.
Thanks in advance for all your help.

Draigo paladins is often suggested because its a viable list that is very cheap to buy. It probably shouldn't be your first list, as it has some very good matchups you won't learn much with and some very bad ones you need a lot of skill to win. In addition, its somewhat focused on one type of model so its hard to try out new thing/ builds as all you have are terminators.

But then again, it is cheap and after you learn it well it can be good, so its definitely an option if money is a big factor

Draigo lists are great because of the model count, but there are so many iterations of the basic list you can do pretty much whatever you please with it. My advice is don't go and copy some internet list, instead try to build it yourself perhaps using those lists as guidelines.

Your matchups will depend on your style of play and your local metagame. Thus. your list building will be affected by them. Choose something you like and build from there, post your list and we'll be happy to help.

cheers!

Great thread Brothers! A lot of great information
Keeping with the "money IS an issue theme". I can't afford to buy a NDK so that I can get used to shunting, and then buy 10 GKIS models.
It sounds like both the NDK and the GKIS have pros and cons to them (as everything does).
What would you say those pros and cons are, and which unit would you recommend if only one of the units can be bought?

I'd choose GKIS over NDK, simply because of the model count. This variable is extremely important in 40k, so the more the merrier. NDK is great, but its cost is an issue and only in certain builds. Besides there are better options in the Heavy Support slot, so considering including one or two in your army is an issue, because you'll be building your army around the NDK.

On the other hand, GKIS can be included as support to your strategy and can even score if you want to. A full GKIS squad could potentially add two more scoring units to your army. A option that by itself beats any beating stick like the NDK.

Hope it helps!

It does, thank you.
Can the GKIS cause as much damage as a NDK? The heavy incinerator and fists seem to a very powerful load out. What would be a good all around build for the GKIS that would maximize their effectiveness?

Constantine wrote:It does, thank you.
Can the GKIS cause as much damage as a NDK? The heavy incinerator and fists seem to a very powerful load out. What would be a good all around build for the GKIS that would maximize their effectiveness?

Depends on the rest of your list and most importantly how you use Grand Strategy. I have plenty of troops so I use GS for Scouting, I'm currently trialling a 5 man squad with cinnie MC Hammer and Halberds to zoom around nailing small squishy units like long fangs etc If you're using them for last minute objective grab I'd consider a 10 man squad with double cinnies, use Communion to keep them say off the board until turn 5 or so when you can shunt on.
The other build I was considering was full 10men with MC hammer, double psycannon and psybolt to try and pop rear armour / weaker vehicles. The problem is you need to be in cover if you're close to the enemies main strength, but jumping into/out of cover = dangerous with GKIS.