Welcome back to the Vault! Next weekend will see 40 keen gamers attend the 2022 First Founding Doubles Tournament. Let's have a look at what factions players are bringing and teams have been formed. And then, as has become somewhat of a Vault tradition, I'll indulge in some punditry and make some predictions as to who will do well.
I don't think I've ever predicted the winner, but I've come close a few times!
Let's start by looking at the individual forces:
Fourteen different factions are hitting the table tops, and whilst Space Marines are by far and away the most popular force there are a number of different Chapters being represented (more on that later), and each can play quite differently.
Necrons have a decent presence and it will be very interesting to see how well they do given the recent buffs the Toasters have received. Doubles Teams sometimes form around a "one shooty, one stabby" pairing and if the Necrons field large bricks of warriors it may be difficult for their opponents to bring enough damage to bear to wipe units to avoid Reanimation. I've learnt the hard way recently how frustrating that can be.
Custodes and Mechanicus are also well represented. Both forces have had recent codexes and have reputations for doing well competitively. How well they'll fare in a doubles environment is to be seen; Custodes are tough as nails so will well at the "sitting on objectives" aspect of the missions whilst Ad Mech will no doubt provide plenty of efficient shooting.
I'm glad there's a decent amount of diversity in the other factions. I enjoy playing against a variety of opposing forces at tournaments as a change up to my regular opponents.
Let's have a quick look at the Space Marine Chapters. In the following graph a given Chapter name also includes it's corresponding successors for ease of grouping. The exception are the Howling Griffons; I think they are Ultramarine successors but quite frankly anyone insane enough to paint an entire army of quartered yellow and red deserves a shout out.
I don't have visibility of the specific lists, but assuming the Chapters want to play into their traditional strengths there is a decent mix of assault (Templars, Blood Angels, White Scars), shooting (Dark Angels, Imperial Fists, Salamanders) and tricksy (Raven Guard) forces which will provide plenty of variety. It's interesting that there are no Iron Hands being fielded.
That assumption is not going to hold true in all cases; some players have been sharing information and there are some "unusual" lists being taken including...
- A seven (!) dreadnought Blood Angels force
- Belakor the Uber Daemon and a 30 strong Bloodletter bomb!
- A Drukhari list with "just 3 guns". Just a squillion stabby, choppy blades then.
So who has partnered with who?
That's an awful lot of Double Marines. These teams should do well; they can deal out pain both at range and up close, and have some decent durability. As an aside all the missions (chosen from CA22) have mid table objectives and marines are happy to play in that space.
Some of the other pairings will play in a similar manner:
- Custodes and Grey Knights
- Marines and Custodes/Death Guard/Necrons
I really like the Custodes and Grey Knights set up, and I'm intrigued to see the lists; I think these will do well.
I suspect Double Necrons will fare well; whilst a same faction pairing is limited to two of any particular data sheet (beyond troops and dedicated transports), the Necrons have a lot of strong units and this may feel like playing against a coherent 2000 point force!
And then we have the unique pairings. There are some "thematic" choices
- Guard and Genestealer Cult
- Chaos Knights and Death Guard
And there are some more unusual set ups. One of the unique aspects of the Doubles event format is that you can encounter army make ups not permissible in standard matches.
Drukhari and Ad Mech is a strong combination (and piloted by two good players), and I really like the thought of the tricks that Drukhari and 1000 Sons can pull.
I'm intrigued by the Tau/Orks pairing. No doubt the Tau will bring plenty of guns, but Orks can lean into shooting and krumping.
So who do I think will do really well? Two predictions from the head, and one from the heart.
- Adeptus Custodes/Grey Knights (head: strong codexes with a lot of good choices)
- Double Necrons (head: I think Necron resilience and lots of Ob Sec will be a major factor in their matches)
- Chaos Knights/Death Guard (heart: I love the thematic choice and want the team to do well).
I've resisted the temptation to just go "Drukhari/Ad Mech" on the grounds of knowing the players (a lot of the other analysis is made without taking the players into account). Sods law says they'll win it now.
As an aside, this punditry is really just a bit of fun. The First Founding events are primarily social, fun affairs and not super competitive. I'm really looking forward to saying hi to the 39 other participants, playing enjoyable games with a bunch of them, and ogling the lovely minis that people will bring.
I know some really good painters are bringing new armies on the day; can't wait to see them all!
I'll report post the event on how my team have fared, and how good my predictions were. Fingers crossed there will be plenty of tea and medals for the Colonel!
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