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

====Special Characters====

'''Note''' Successor chapters (including custom successor chapters) lack access to special characters as explained on page 74 of the DA codex. 
*Interestingly though, if you include Belial and Sammael in their own supreme command detachment (with say, a jump pack Librarian or beat stick Master) then their Grandmaster abilities still affect the custom chapters Deathwing and Ravenwing as you only replace the Dark Angels keyword in creating successors. This means you can use them to boss around their successors first and second companies at the chapter master level as well as having their fighting prowess (assuming there's been no FaQ), very fluffy.
*'''[[Azrael]]:'''Azzy is no slouch in melee, and can slug it out with all but the best of the enemy combatants. His Sword of Secrets gets five attacks that strike on a re-rollable ''(see below)'' 2+ at S6 AP-3 D1d3, plus deals ''additional'' Mortal Wound each time any to-wound roll results in a 6+. The Lion's Wrath is an improved combi plasma with a D2 AP-1 bolter part that can be fired in both modes endlessly and at the same time, ''without'' overheating if you don't overcharge it ''(which you should refrain from doing anyway)'', only causing him a -1 to hit if you do decide to fire both; so that'll be a 3+ re-rolling 1's then thanks to his aura. he also carries a bolt pistol but that's for show only, if he's been bogged down in melee, that one S4 shot will rarely make the difference.
**As Chapter Master, he gives his army +1 command point if they are battle forged and he is the warlord, and grants a re-roll to all {{W40Kkeyword|Dark Angels}} units within 6", including himself, of course, and speaking of auras, the lion helm is still there, granting a 4++ invulnerable save to every {{W40Kkeyword|Dark Angels infantry}} and {{W40Kkeyword|biker}} '''''model''''' within 6", which is a slight change to how it used to apply to only his squadmates (and sadly does not include guardsman blobs, but you can get a lot of Tactical Marines inside a 6" bubble). Since you cannot attach him any more, just hug him to a couple of units you need to keep safe and create a bubble of protection. As of the Codex, vehicles do not benefit from his 4++ invuln anymore. RIP the Las Predator bubble of unkillable death. Because he no longer gives as much of a benefit to vehicles anymore, this is an opportunity to take advantage of new potential strategies, such as running Azrael up the board with a squad of Hellblasters. Or Aggressors! Terminators work well, but Aggressors are perhaps the greatest "walk up the board" unit, as they can blast things with a ton of shots and still roll with power fists when its time to finish off stragglers. Finally they can walk and shoot free of penalties, and fire twice once you find a choice position. Bring some apothecary/ancient backup and hold the center of the table with confidence!
*'''[[Belial]]:''' He's still an excellent duelist, the Sword of Silence wounds non-vehicles on a 2+, but also grants +1 Strength which means hes gets to wound those T8-T9 vehicles on a 5+. The Sword has the stats AP:-3 Damage:2 so its role has a TEQ slayer has come to the fore, and it also reduces the WS of any attacks coming his way by 1, a handy little buff considering that all those guys with Fists and Hammers already reduced their WS by another 1. Combine with Aversion on a TH/PF terminator unit, or PK toting Meganobs, and watch them trying to hit you on 6+. Belial should now really only choose the claws if he has no intention of fighting characters and needs to focus on large groups, while the Thunder Hammer should be taken if you really need the 3+ invulnerable save from the Storm Shield, since it even the sword beats it for wounding potential against Toughness 5 or higher. His Storm Bolter is more of a "sidearm", firing 4 shots all the time that gives him a little bit of ranged power and Overwatch protection if someone tries to charge at him.
**Belial also buffs his army a little bit: {{W40Kkeyword|Dark Angels}} units within 6 inches re-roll to-hit rolls of 1, or all failed to-hit rolls if they're part of the {{W40Kkeyword|Deathwing}}. Consider the Inner Circle strategem.
**As of the codex, Belial <s>no longer has access to the TH/SS or Lightning Claw combinations</s> download the Warhammer Legends datasheets and tell your opponent that Thunder hammer is totally legal. And RAW "Parrying Blade" now affects Belial no matter what he's running &mdash; why yes, I ''would'' like to [[Awesome|force my opponents into a -1 to hit while still rocking a 3++]].
*'''[[Sammael]] on Corvex:''' Sammael is most definitely the fastest and shootiest hero in the Dark Angels army and is a very comfortable melee combatant too. On his Jetbike he can fire off a magnificent [[Awesome|EIGHT]] bolter shots every turn AND 1d3 plasma cannon shots all on rerollable 2+, meaning he can throw out the same firepower as a five man tactical squad all by himself. In melee: he has a bolt pistol for point blank shooting and can swing the Raven Sword five times on a rerollable 2+, which acts like a +1 strength master crafted power sword ''(so S+1, AP-3, D2)'' that has the additional effect of increasing his strength to eight any time he charges and wounding those MEQs on a 2+. Also, for the fact of being on a jetbike he can move 14" and gains toughness 6. Yes he has poor old power armour but with a 4+ iron halo it's not a huge deal. Also, the Corvex is still sexy AF, so go ahead as you wish! The plasma cannon is kind of meh, since it almost always gets penalized by moving, and overchargeing it on the move invokes almost straight-up death due to the combined penalty of moving with a heavy weapon.
**'''Sammael on Sableclaw:''' A bit more expensive than the Jetbike, but comes with a lot more dakka: a twin Heavy Bolter and a Twin Assault Cannon for 6/12 shots respectively. He also still fights just as well with the Raven Sword if he gets engaged.  Enemies can no longer shoot at him even if he is not the closest target, as he has 7 wounds now, and still has the 4++ invulnerable save to protect himself with. The primary issue he has is that the weapons he fires are all Heavy, so if he moves he drops down to hitting on a re-rollable 3+ ''(and with the FAQ to re-rolls, he can't re-roll 2's to hit when moving)'', and he ''cannot'' advance and shoot (unless you use the Strategem), so he doesn't have the same reach as Corvex.
***Sammael in either form grants a re-roll failed to-hit aura to any {{W40Kkeyword|RAVENWING}} unit within 6", and grants the ability to re-roll 1s to regular {{W40Kkeyword|DARK ANGELS}} within 6", too. Even if you don't take much Ravenwing, he puts out so much hurt by himself and is so comparatively resilient that it might be worth taking him in any army.
**When compared to Kor'sarro Khan, Sammael is now ''slightly'' inferior in a straight up fight, due to Khan's double strength modifier allowing him to wound Sammael on a 3+, but Sammy's extra attack pulls him back up, so the difference between them adds up to a 0.16 wound/turn difference, assuming Khan rolls average damage. This is not a true test though, since Sammael has more than twice the shooting potential of Khan ''(and pretty much any other character in the game too)'', does better against the "average" mook, and can {{W40Kkeyword|FLY}}.
** Often overlooked but stated above, Sammael has the {{W40Kkeyword|FLY}} keyword, meaning he can cruise over enemy units and to get to weaker units and fuck up enemy flyers as nearly almost all of them are T7 and below. Not to mention to fall back and unload his range arsenal on some heretics. Thanks to him flying he has some great utility that is nearly always forgotten. 
*'''[[Asmodai]]:''' As an individual, the Master of Repentance still has problems finding his place. The Blades of Reason still suck, doing D6 damage for each unsaved wound, but still only strike at S:User and AP:0, so you are better served using the Crozius, unless you are doing something crazy, like going mano-e-mano with Imperial Knights or heavy tanks, where the Crozius' strength bonus and armour penetration doesn't really matter as much, and you're fighting with luck and sheer balls, rather than anything else. Asmodai does have one trick up his sleeve in this edition: the ''Litanies of Hate'' that Chaplains usually get has been replaced with ''Exemplar of Hate'', which still grants the reroll to-hit bubble within 6", but also grants {{W40Kkeyword|Dark Angels}} within that bubble an extra attack. When coupled with his aura of dread, Asmodai acts as real force multiplier in assault, rather than doing anything useful himself.
**The Blades of Reason aren't as bad as they seem. They are, on average, better than the crozius against anything that is t3, t6 or t7, doesn't have 2+ armor, and, obviously, has more than two wounds. They are also better against anything with an invuln matching the armour. This includes many vehicles (because Asmodai is so batshit sadistic that he'll manage to torture a rhino to death), basically all greater demons and demon princes, and many of the vile Xenos.
*'''[[Ezekiel]]:''' Even better than last edition and the same points cost as well. He no longer gives friendly Dark Angels within 6" +1 attack. Instead, if a friendly Dark Angel dies in the fight phase while they are within 6" of Ezekiel, they get to make a single attack (this is especially funny as aura abilities now target the characters who have them, so if Ezekiel dies in melee, he can go down swinging. Another good use of this power is on Deathwing Knights). He got himself a 4++, while also getting weapon upgrades. His sword, Traitor's Bane, is S+1 AP-3 D1d3, but against {{W40Kkeyword|psyker}}s it has +1 damage. Then his pistol, The Deliverer, got an upgrade: it's a bolt pistol with AP-1 and D2, which is not too shabby. Finally, he can cast 2 psychic powers a turn from interromancy, of which he knows 3 powers; the new powers are amazing, and he can try to deny the witch 2 times a turn. This pairs well with his psychic hood. Overall, not the psychic powerhouse that the ultramarines or space wolves have, but he is great in his own right, he is great in combat too, has an invulnerable save unlike the aforementioned (although one can get one for some points, while this guy comes stock with it) and has some sturdy psychic potential of his own.
*'''Master [[Lazarus]]:''' While his fluff <s>absolutely sucks</s> is complete dog shite, Lazarus is good in melee, especially against psykers. Enmity's Edge gets five attacks that strike on 2+ and re-roll 1's at S6 AP-4 D1d3, plus re-rolling wound rolls and damage rolls against psykers. As a Master he grants re-roll to hit rolls of 1 to all {{W40Kkeyword|DARK ANGELS}} units within 6", including himself, and speaking of auras, Lazarus has the Spiritsheild Helm (which is not at all a replacement in waiting for when they kill off Azrael), granting Lazarus a 4+ save against all mortal wounds and 5+ save against all mortal wounds to all {{W40Kkeyword|DARK ANGELS}} models within 6" of him. A potential strategy would be to run Lazarus with Azrael, Veterans and a Deathwing Ancient with the Pennant of Remembrance. This would provide a 4++ invulnerable save, 5+ feel no pain, then bodyguards on 2+. The Veterans can then ignore the mortal wounds on 5's. Add in Transhuman physiology <s>or +1 toughness stratagem to Deathwing models</s> (While he gets the inner circle rule, thankfully he doesn't get the Deathwing keyword, so he doesn't get to completely shit all over regular Masters in the rules department) for some extra durability!