Heldrake
Heldrakes are a type of Daemon Engine utilized by the Chaos Space Marines in Warhammer 40,000. Introduced in Sixth Edition, they were immediately the center of a deliciously skubtastic debate.
Heldrakes are giant, metallic, fire-breathing, Chaos dragons/jetfighters. They used to be regular Space Marine aircraft, but they've been warped by the power of the Immaterium. The pilot(s) remained trapped inside, only to have his body consumed and his soul bound to the daemonic machine; in fact, the Heldrake's roar is actually the amplified screams of the former crew. They travel trough the Warp clinging to their warband's ship, before dropping, bat-like, from space, and wreaking unholy havoc (Word Bearers approvedTM).
This is, of course, really awesome fluff, but it's from Phil Kelly, so that's not exactly a surprise.
The model itself has a FATAL-size anal hole. Many fa/tg/uys find this absolutely silly, although it is based on an old Epic 40,000 model, so...
Crunch-wise, Heldrakes are hilariously overpowered, in a book that is generally pretty weak. In fact, Heldrakes are considered pretty much the only thing keeping Chaos Marines competitive nowadays. Fielding more than one (sometimes even only one) Heldrake in a game is the fastest way to have your opponent bitch about the only thing in your Codex that can keep you on the board and have him ragequit. If you field three or more you automatically are That Guy.
Why the Heldrake is Overpowered
- It has a flamer weapon, so it ignores cover.
- Said flamer weapon has AP3, so it ignores most armor.
- Said flamer is also a Torrent weapon and turret-mounted, meaning it ignores positioning (which is especially important, as the Heldrake is a flyer). Not any more. The Helldrake's ranged weapon is now counted as a hull mounted weapon with a 45 degree fire arc (45 degree total, not 45 degrees each side), measuring all ranges and line of sight from the barrel.
- Said flamer also has a ridiculous range, in part because of the flamer template's basic size (8"), in part because of the Torrent USR (the template can be 12" from the Heldrake), and in part because of the natural speed of the Heldrake.
- Said flamer is S6, meaning it causes Instant Death for GEQ and wounds on a 2+ for MEQ.
- Said flamer had an FAQ where it can fire in any direction it pleases, rather than the front. So there's just no way to avoid it once your near it...
- It's a flyer, meaning most guns only hit it on a 6+.
- Because it starts off the board and can attack as soon as it comes on, it is guaranteed at least one attack with impunity unless the opponent has Interceptor weapons (which are quite scarce).
- It has the Daemon USR, therefore possesses a 5++ without the need to jink.
- It has the It Will Not Die USR, meaning it can regenerate one hull point per turn on a 5+.
- It can Vector Strike one unit it flies over, dealing D3+1 S7 AP3 hits with Ignores Cover, meaning it could tear apart enemy flyers (or anything else with worse then AV13/Sv2+) and burn down some infantry on the same turn. Or it can attack an infantry unit with both the Vector Strike and its flamer, which will reliably wipe out a ten-man MEQ unit or weaker.
- It has AV 12 on the front and sides, making it completely invulnerable to small-arms fire and nearly-invulnerable to S6 and S7 fire; in other words, if you wanna take one down, start looking at lascannons or lance weaponry. You'll need high-Strength AA fire, which many armies lack (although you can always bring Tau as allies to use Broadsides).
- It has Daemonforge, meaning that, for one phase, it gets to reroll all failed To Wound rolls.
- It's only 170 points, and flyers as a whole average about 160 points, making it INCREDIBLY cost-efficient.
A Heldrake also appears in C. Z. Dunn's novel Pandorax, where it shrugs off at least sixteen direct missile hits, three point-blank twin-linked lascannons, and about a hundred tons of falling rocks. As if the things didn't have enough durability without an extra helping of plot armor.
And Then, 7th Edition
With the arrival of 7th Edition and the corresponding FAQ, the Heldrake took several massive hits in its brazen demon balls that might throw it down from the mighty spire of cheese it so proudly dominated before. First, the rulebook changed the rules of the Vector Strike USR to only do one AP 2 S user hit on normal troops, while enemy fliers take D3 instead, and after that, the recent FAQ nerfed the Heldrake by removing the turret rule to the flamer weapon, so it now have to shoot from the tip of the weapon, aka the head of the drake. While this might not make it unusable, it does nerf it to more logical levels for a flyer.