Editing Warhammer 40,000/6th Edition Tactics/Dark Angels (section)

===HQ===

*'''[[Azrael]], Supreme Grand Master''' - The closest thing Dark Angels have to the traditional "guy who costs as much as a Land Raider", clocking in at 215 points. His statline is the same as the Space Marine Chapter Master, albeit with a 2+ Save and 6+FnP. His Lion's Helm gives him and the members of any squad he joins a 4+ Invulnerable Save, which is quite handy, and he also swings a master-crafted Power Sword which strikes at Strength 6. Oh, and he carries a master-crafted blinding Combi-Plasma and a Bolt Pistol. Oh, and for 6th ed, Azzy now makes BOTH Deathwing and Ravenwing squads ''troops'', the ''entire army'' uses his leadership of 10 (not that this will affect space marines that often) and on top of that he can choose his warlord trait from the Dark Angels specific table instead of having to roll. 

*'''Master [[Sammael]] of the Ravenwing''' - He lets Ravenwing Attack Squadrons become Troops choices. His statline's identical to an SM Master's, but with Toughness 5. He pilots the Imperium's last functioning Jetbike, which just so happens to be loaded with a Plasma Cannon and a Twin-Linked Stormbolter. He also carries a Bolt Pistol for that ever so helpful +1 attack. He swings an AP2 Power Sword as he rides through the battle, and has an Adamantine Mantle (Eternal Warrior in a nice flapping cape). Also has an Iron Halo. Alternatively, he can take to the field in an AV14 on the front and sides, AV10 in the rear, Land Speeder armed with a Twin-Linked Heavy Bolter and a Twin-Linked Assault Cannon. With that Halo still working, meaning the speeder gets 4++. He also has Scouts, Skilled Rider, and Hit and Run like the rest of his company. A good, solid choice. How he rolls is up to your playstyle. Also, his jetbike model is one of the sexiest motherfucking models that GW has ever made.

*'''Master [[Belial]] of the Deathwing''' - At first Belial looks like a Company Master in Terminator Armour with the option for either his sword of silence, a fleshbane power sword, pair of Lightning Claws, or a Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield, but then you see that he gives you Deathwing Terminators as a Troops choice. Also any inner circle unit he joins does not scatter when deep striking. In large games he's going to die like a bitch because there is absolutely nothing else spectacular about him whatsoever, but in smaller games he's a reasonably-priced HQ choice who can help your Termies stomp a vital target. I recommend you take the Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield loadout if you're gonna face a lot of AP2 weaponry and his iron halo won't hold out. Otherwise, his sword of silence is pretty nasty against most things and if you're taking him, take a DW command squad to keep his ass alive. He can also shoot bitches out of squads with a 5+ Precision shot. So the SB on him can do that little bit more to ruin your opponent's shit.

*'''[[Ezekiel]], Grand Master of Librarians''' - He comes with the same statline of the Librarians of old, with stats comparable to a Company Master -1WS, and is now a mastery level 3 psyker who can roll from Divination, Pyromancy, Telepathy, or Telekinesis in any combination. This would be amazing if you could replace his stupid Mind Worm power with a third roll on the chart (for those wondering, Mind Worm is 12 inch range Assault D3 with S4 AP2 Ignores Cover and saps WS, BS, Ld and I from whichever model it wounds; objectively decent but comparatively terrible for the same reasons as Smite). Though Sap Will really hurts character or monstrous creature focused armies as the stat reduction is for the rest of the game and each wound caused reduces those stats by 3. So 2 or 3 hits essentially turns multi-wounds models into expensive paperweights maybe with a special rule or two.
**'''Gear:''' Ezekiel makes use of a ''two-handed'' master-crafted Force Sword (how useful), a master-crafted Bolt Pistol (why bother? His sword is two-handed), Artificer Armour (2+ armour save), and he carries the Book of Salvation, which gives all friendly units within 6" of him +1WS. He also comes equipped with a Psychic Hood, so all units within 6" of Ezekiel can use the him for Deny the Witch rolls. Since Ezekiel is Mastery Level 3, this helps quite a bit. Park him next to some Deathwing Knights and enjoy 3+ Witch Denial against everyone not named Eldrad or Ahriman.

*'''[[Asmodai]], Interrogator Chaplain''' - GUESS WHO'S BACK, MOTHERFUCKERS! Asmodai makes a welcome return in 6th, sporting a brand new model. In game terms, he comes loaded with all the goodies that make Chaplains Chaplains, plus his trademark Blades of Reason. You may scoff at their lack of an AP or strength bonus,  but they cause Instant Death. And if that's not your thing he still has his Crozus Arcanum.
**Now that the high of having this guy back has worn off, I really don't see any reason to actually take him. A regular Interrogator Chaplain with the Mace of Redemption has the same statline, basic wargear, and price, but puts out more damage more reliably. An Epistolary Librarian with a Conversion Field, Prescience, and a Force Sword can do roughly the same job as Asmodai while having AP3 to boot, all for 15 points less.

*'''Interrogator-Chaplain Seraphicus''' - According the the new FAQ, the limited edition Dark Vengeance Chaplain is actually a special character. Instead of re-rolls to hit on the charge, he lets his unit re-roll ones to hit and wound for both shooting and melee. The problem? It only works against Chaos Space Marines. For 125 points, he's the same cost as a regular Interrogator-Chaplain with a plasma pistol (he has one), but you have no reason to waste your points on this guy unless you know for sure that you will be facing CSM.
**'''Other Notes:''' Standard Interrogator-Chaplains already get this (Inner Circle gives them Preferred Enemy: Chaos Space Marines which does the exact same thing as Serpahicus's special rule) as well as Zealot. Chalk this up to a rushed FAQ that came out less than a week after the Codex hit the shelves and just take him as a standard Interrogator Chaplain with a plasma pistol.  

*'''Interrogator-Chaplain''' - Same as the regular Chaplain, but with +1 Wound,+1 BS, +1 Initiative, +1 attack, the ability to wear Terminator armour and so very much more. The Interrogator Chaplain is advised.

*'''Company Master''' - Clocking in at 90pts base, a cheap if underwhelming option, great for low point games. Generally overshadowed by the named Company Masters and the bonuses they give. If you're thinking of shelling out the points for Artificer Armour or Terminator Armour, you might as well pay the extra 100pts for Belial (you also get Terminators as Troops with him). If you want to fly (and you like Ravenwing), go for Sammael. If you want a cheap combat HQ, however, he's your man. Sometimes worth it, but I would suggest taking one of the named characters as your main HQ in higher point games.

*'''Chaplain''' - A general purpose support HQ. Allows himself and his squad re-rolls to hit in the first round of combat, no matter what, and comes with a 4+ Invulnerable Save and a Power Maul. Can ride a Bike, or use a Jump Pack. Still costs as much as a Company Master, and the Interrogator-Chaplain does everything this guy can do, only better. 

*'''Techmarine''' - Can be taken for every HQ that isn't a Command Squad or Techmarine themselves. Doesn't take up FOC, in the same way as a Command Squad. 50 points for Artificer Marine. Can be given a bike for speedy repairs.
*'''Librarian''' - The actual cheapest HQ choice, clocking in at 65pts base. The points-strapped player's Ezekiel. Can use the same disciplines as Ezekiel, but with -1 Wound, -1 BS, -1I, -1A and a 3+ Save. Can wear Terminator armour, but his Force Weapon isn't master-crafted. If you want to take a Librarian, spring for Ezekiel. You also can take a Bike, power field generator and an Auspex for him and ride somewhere behind vehicles, giving 4++ where it's most nessesary and reducing enemies cover save.
**'''Notes:''' Comes equipped with a Psychic Hood. All units within 6" of the psyker can use the psyker for Deny the Witch rolls. Usually improves the result by 1, by 2 if your psyker is level 2 and the opponent's psyker is level 1. If he's inside a transport, he can only attempt to Deny the Witch for the Transport.

*'''Company Command Squad''' - Let's say that for some reason you didn't take an HQ choice in terminator or on a bike. <s>For your peculiar efforts</s> they are the most usable for Standard of Devastation,with the ability to take boltguns, you can get these dudes to tag along with your HQ. Honestly, these guys aren't that bad if you load them up right. Think of them as Loyalist Chosen and you're not far off, armed to the teeth with a slew of special weapons. Be sure to take a banner and an apothecary but resist the urge to take a company champion unless you really need someone to take challenges.

*'''Deathwing Command Squad (New Unit)''' - Fairly pricey new unit that can do all the things a Deathwing squad can, wherein one guy can be made an apothecary, another dude can hold the flag and last but not least, one dude can be made the company champion, who gets +1WS and can take the Halberd of Caliban (+2S, AP2, 2-handed). Used to be a troops choice; now it's intended as a retinue for Belial or a Termie Master. Comes with 5 powerfists over the regular termies 4 and a powersword.

*'''Ravenwing Command Squad (New Unit)''' - Another reshuffling of the FOC, they are the Ravenwing equivalent to the Deathwing Command Squad. You can load these biker boyz out with all sorts of goodies including plasma talons (18" twin-linked plasma guns THAT ARE RAPID FIRE. FUCK YA.), Corvus Hammers (+1S, AP-, Rending) and one really weird grenade launcher. Just like the squad above, you can have an apothecary, banner bearer and a company champion. Enjoy! The squad is 3 knights but you can add two more guys, however Games Workshop only sell kits of three Black Knights. Do the math GW has not done (3+2&#8800;3+3) and take a squad of black knights or sell one to a friend if you don't want to waste your money. Irritating! Or use the leftover sixth bike to convert a bike character, since you need one anyway to unlock this unit. As a side note, these guys are 2 points each cheaper than their non-command squad Black Knight brethren, but have identical stats and wargear. If you're taking a character on bike and you plan on taking a smallish squad of black knights, you would be better served taking them as a command squad, so you can save yourself a FA choice and a few points.

*'''Damocles Rhino (Forgeworld)''' Yes, an HQ vehicle! Now 75 pts in IA12 and no longer takes up a HQ slot, so you still have to take another character, but is still one of your cheapest HQs (cheapest by points, but most expensive in terms of real money). Armed with nothing but a storm bolter and a searchlight for defense, with no transport capacity, it may not seem like an obvious choice. BUT, the Damocles true power lies in it's incredible support abilities, it allows a single Orbital bombardment in the same way as a codex chapter master, lets all teleporting units within 12" arrive without scatter and allows the owning player to modify reserve rolls by plus or minus one. This can be useful following a turn one-two Deathwing punch as not all Terminators are forced to used the Deathwing Assault rule, the reserve roll modifier is also handy for flyers, drop pods, outflanking scouts / ravenwing and land speeders, of which Dark Angels will have several. The damocles usefulness does not extend much past this however, and once the reserves have arrived and its bombardment spent theres not much you can do with it, but it will always have at least done something useful by the end of the game for 75pts.