Editing Warhammer 40,000/8th Edition Tactics/Deathwatch (section)

==Why Play Deathwatch==
[[File:Codex Deathwatch Cover.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Cover art for the 7th Ed codex. Yes, he has a Necron sword. Just plug in the batteries....]]
The battle-brothers of the Deathwatch are the foremost xenos hunters in the Imperium. They are a black-clad brotherhood of noble warriors, bound by ancient oaths to defend Mankind from the alien, no matter its form. Hand-picked from the breadth of the Adeptus Astartes for their expertise in the slaughter of xenos threats, each of those who have joined the Long Vigil is a hero, tempered in the furnace of conflict and girded for battle with an arsenal of specialist weaponry. When the Watch Companies of the Deathwatch go to war en masse, there is no alien in the expanse of the galaxy that they cannot overcome.

"Amongst a hundred men, there may be one fit for the Adeptus Astartes. Amongst a hundred Space Marines, there may be one fit for the Deathwatch."- Watch Captain Brand MacLir

===Pros===
*'''Operation Operators Operating Operationally''' - The Deathwatch are the Imperium's premier xenos-hunting special forces, and as a result they get the best gear.
*'''Codex: [[Your Dudes]]''' - The relatively small model count and composition of many different chapters allows for great modelling and character opportunities. More so than any other army - you can really individualize each model, as they are all experienced veterans from different chapters. Trade bits with other Marine players to make each model stand out. Run your Kill-team from the [[Deathwatch (RPG)|Deathwatch RPG]] as part of your army!
*'''Awesome Paint Scheme:''' Because Black and Silver is the new Black.
*'''Quick And Easy To Get Onto The Table''' - The simple, yet awesome, paint scheme, combined with the low model count, means Deathwatch are [[Adeptus Custodes|one]] [[Grey Knights|of]] the fastest armies to get built, painted, and battle-ready. And, if you like to play Sternguard and Vanguard veterans as [[Counts As|count as]] Deathwatch, you likely already have the beginnings of a kill-team or two ready to go.
*'''Forge World Support:''' As of the FAQ 1.1, Deathwatch can now field units from the Forge World Index: Forces of the Adeptus Astartes book. This opens up a wealth of possibilities with access to tons of dreadnoughts, flyers, tanks, super-heavy transports, and other craziness.
*No longer are your Veterans just Sternguard in disguise, you are now the only guys with access to special issue ammunition.
*One of only two armies with Frag Cannons. [[Derp|Though somehow only Deathwatch have the portable version while Blood Angels are limited to mounting Frag Cannons on their Dreadnoughts.]]
*Because [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4-9uGTfPBw| Squad Loadout] is the personal theme of your local gaming group.
*You're a fan of [[X-COM]] and the FFG board game just doesn't work for you. With some work, Inquisition allies means you can build a fully upgraded Psi-operative and a close approximation of the [[Awesome|Commander's Avatar]]. Tech-Priest Lily Shen and the misanthropic snarky robot sidekick cost extra.
*Corvus Blackstar, the coolest looking flyer in the game. <s>Subjective</s>. "Objectively subjective".
*One of two factions that can take Terminators in the troops slot(for now). Though yours require a bit more work than [[Grey_Knights|Grey Knights]] as they are add-ons for Power Armor squads. You could count [[Space Wolves]] but they only get one Wolf Guard Termi per squad as an upgrade.
*Lots of wound re-rolls and a focus on adaptability. With Stratagems geared against specific xenos foes and bonuses against units with specific battlefield roles, list tailoring is a cinch. 
*Primaris-friendly; access to Special Issue Ammunition and mixed squads does a lot to address the NuMarines' issues with overspecialization.
*Excellent anti-horde capabilities. Between frag cannons, storm bolters with SIA, combi-flamers, a decent amount of melee attacks, and more, your veterans can handle any horde with ease.

===Cons===
*Low model count - Just like the Grey Knights and Adeptus Custodes, each model is extremely expensive, even when compared to other Space Marine chapters, without gaining much by way of added durability. 
*There are some oddities with loadouts and conversions when compared to the Vanilla Marines.
**To clarify, you aren't able to take many of the vehicles that other marines are capable of taking, such as Predators or Vindicators, and [[FAIL|You can't take Veterans armed with Lascannons, Grav Cannons, Plasma Cannons or Multi-Meltas]]
*You're still Space Marines, and are still vulnerable to anything they struggle against, especially when it comes to non-xenos armies.
*If you're not keen on Forge World models or Primaris Marines, you'll need some allies to patch the miles-wide hole in your long-range shooting game.
*Having a squad where every single model has a different equipment loadout can make for slow play despite the low model count as each weapon is resolved individually, to say nothing of keeping track of how their rules interact with each other. Not recommended for beginners who need to constantly refer to datasheets.
*If you're lucky, 4 of your Stratagems will be meaningless. If you're unlucky? 5. 
*This is not a beginner army by any means, mastery of the Deathwatch will take time and a lot of trial and error. Knowing which Mission Tactic to use and how to set up your squads is crucial to success.
*No regular apothecaries - only Primaris ones can be fielded. In addition, there are no Techpriests in your army, meaning you have no way of healing your vehicle units.
*Unless you take some Primaris units or Forge World, your anti-armor capabilities leave much to be desired.
*Hope you enjoy watching GW give all the other marines that can take Primaris the new and shiny Vanguard Marines, especially infuriating as Vanguard Marines essentially ARE Deathwatch in spirit (small sneaky well-equipped squads that are used as the scalpel to the normal marines’ sword.)