Deep Strike Redux: No Fateweaver

My original column on the subject of deep striking focused on how to do it if everything is going as you'd like it, and you get your preferred wave with Fateweaver, etc...

Sadly, sometimes things don't go as planned.  And sometimes, it all goes straight to hell.  Yesterday I played a small eight man tournament at 1500 points.  In the final round I played against mechanized Guard with two Manticores and a Demolisher Russ plus Chimera's galore.  I went second, naturally, which was fine, but left me without tons of safe places to drop after he moved around.

My list:

Fateweaver
5 Flamers
5 Flamers
5 Daemonettes
5 Daemonettes
5 Plaguebearers
6 Screamers
6 Screamers
5 Screamers

Primaris Psyker
Veteran Squad, Autocannon, 2 Flamers, Grenade Launcher
Vendetta

1498

For my first wave I wanted Fateweaver, both Flamers one squad of Screamers and the Plaguebearers.  I chose to put two squads of Screamers in the second wave so that I'd have better survivability during the first turn in case I got the wrong wave, which I did.  One of the Screamers mishapped despite my best efforts, leaving me with ten Daemonettes and six Screamers on the board against his entire force.  Now, despite there being impassible terrain everywhere, there was only one ruin that could block line of sight

So, I turboboosted underneath it where they couldn't be hit by barrage weapons thanks to there being a higher level.  They ended up taking two wounds from shooting, which allowed me to get back in the game and eventually table my opponent on turn 6 in what would have been a much easier game had I been a bit more lucky.  The Daemonettes had nowhere to hide and got completely wiped out.  I was really sweating that first turn, but I figured there was no way he could kill all six of my Screamers.  Just the same, with so much of my army in reserve, I was on my heels the entire game and I couldn't turn the tide until turn 4.  Wish I'd taken pictures.

It is generally accepted that stacking your waves is a bad idea, but I've found that one wave is almost always weaker than another no matter what I do.  This is especially true if I have Fateweaver, and it just so happens that at tournaments, I always do.  So, if you get the wrong wave, or you don't have Fateweaver, your strategy has to change from trying to group up and hit the enemy en masse, to trying to minimize casualties.  This way, you can muster your forces on turn 2 and hit the enemy hard on turn 3.  If Daemons can survive long enough to get in the opponent's face, they are generally potent enough to wait an extra turn before letting your opponent see the violence inherent in the system.

With the list above, I put eleven Screamers and ten Daemonettes in the second wave because the 'nettes could drop out of sight (theoretically) and not worry about it, and the Screamers could boost and do the same.  It's just that in this game, the board didn't have but one place to hide.

So, if you have no way to keep your waves completely equal, put your more survivable stuff in the non-preferred wave such that they can make it though ok without Uncle Kairos babysitting them.