Canoness - The Canoness is not the greatest leader to have for you army. She is not a great shot or a combat ace. She an Imperial Guard commander with good armor for all practical purposes. Your Canoness is going to need protection, so give her a big bodyguard of Celestians. She should have a rosarius and wargear to boost the abilities of those nearby and to keep them from running. In the game, keep your Canoness at the front center of your lines, but don’t advance toward the enemy.
Missionaries and Confessors- Missionaries are very similar to Canonesses, but lack the armor. Confessors are mainly for character. Missionaries can fullfil the same role as a Canoness, but I prefer to have him lead a squad of Celestians on a surprise attack against weaker units. Throw them in an Immolator and away you go. Missionaries seem more impetuous and daring, so this gives character to your army. Confessors are pretty much the same, with 1 less wound. Confessors just annoy me. I didn’t use them in the old 40k either.
Celestians- These are fairly decent troops for your army. When you choose Celestians, I prefer Celestian squad for every two normal Battle Sister squads. This is because they cost more, and there shouldn’t be more Celestians than normal Battle Sisters in a balaced army. I like to have one semi-attacking Celestian squad and the rest holding the battle line with their superior Ld. Make sure you have a melta weapon in every squad unless you are playing Orks or something similar.
Battle Sisters- These form the backbone of your army. Since their stat line is quite dismal, take full 10-woman squads. They can take a lot of punishment with big squads like these and can be expected to kill things on a regular basis. For every 500 points in your army take at least one full sized squad. You should also equip them with the obligatory special and heavy weapons. The bad thing about Sisters of Battle is the lack of plasma weapons(they are really good now), but that would hurt the image of purifying evil with fire. Unless fighting Imperial Guard with their hoards of tanks, use two heavy bolters for every one multimelta. I don’t use flamers as much, since I don’t close the distance with the enemy, and you need meltaguns to rid yourself of heavily armored troops.
Seraphim- Well....hmm.....erm... I must say these troops have been the most hurt of any Sisters of Battle troops in the switch from 2nd to 3rd. Their main role would seem to be assault, but then you see the WS3, S3, and A1. Then you think, "I’ll get really close, and shoot them to pieces like I used too." Now you see the BS3 and they can only shoot once each. I must say I can’t find something for these gals to do. I’m trying to use big squads lead by a veteran superior with a power weapon. This has only proved successful when I get the charge in and only against very weak combat opponents.
Retributors- I’m glad GW added these girls into the new edition. They work very well and don’t cost much point wise. Never give them heavy flamers as the enemy shouldn’t be getting that close anyway. Instead give them 1 or 2 multimeltas and 2 or 3 heavy bolters for a generic squad. Or you could choose to make an all multimelta and an all heavy bolter squad for a more specialized approach. Either way you want a couple of these squads because they won’t hit very often. Try to throw in a couple normal sisters to absorb fire to keep the heavy weapons alive longer.
Immolator- This tank is pretty good still. The only downside is the need to fill you heavy support slots with Retributors. Your enemy will probably target your Immolators first, so don’t be too mad if they don’t do anything. Try to include two or three by buying them for your 6-member Retributor squads. You can simply drop the Retributors off and go around torching stuff. You can also stick a Celestian squads led by a character in your Immolator if you need to capture ground. After dropping off the sisters, your Immolator can support them.
back to the Order of the Ebon Chalice
