Chaos review #18 THE polarizing unit

This is the last unit before I dive into the HQ units. This is the final fast attack choice and it is quite a polarizing unit, the Heldrake.

Sure it is a pic of a bad Rhodan comic, but this is what jumps to mind when I hear Heldrake.

This is the flyer for the Chaos Marines. It comes with BS 3 Armor 12/12/10 and 3 Hull Points. It is armed with a Hades Autocannon  (36” S8 AP4 Heavy 4, Pinning). It has the ability to be a Flyer or Hover (skimmer rules that will never be used). It has the Demon, It Will Not Die, Demonforge and Meteoric Descent rules. This vehicle comes in at  the maximum check-out possible in a standard game of darts in points, and for all the trouble it causes people I’m surprised it doesn’t cost more than that.

Meteoric Strike- is an ability to act like a flying monstrous creature. While flying this plane monster can dive down and melee attack a unit. It causes D3+1 hits. These are resolved at S7 AP3. This does count as firing a weapon, but the Heldrake has only one gun, so it can still fire in the shooting phase. This thing can even shoot a different unit than what it just dive bombed. Even better, this is done in the movement phase so there is no real defense or retaliation against it.

There is only one upgrade available for this unit and it is the Baleflamer. This is a Template weapon with S6 AP3 and the Torrent and Soul Blaze rules. This gives it the ability to be fired 12” out from the unit, much like the Imperial Guard Helhound. A FAQ has given this a 360 degree arc of fire to boot.  The Soul Blaze is just an irritation and nobody seems to care about that part. Wait the best part….it is a free weapon upgrade.

One can easily see why this unit is polarizing. You will either love or hate it. There is no middle ground. The Heldrake can dive bomb units and put some hurt on them. Then it can decide to light them on fire or roast something else nearby. Either way with AP3 on both attacks it is easy to see why marine players are aggravated by this plane/monster. 

Then there is the 5++ save (and useless Fear) for being a Demon. The 5++ is something and many people love it. I don’t care about it.  Sure it is better than nothing and all that. However, when you add in the It Will Not Die rule, well then I take notice. If you do get hit, miss the 5++ and lose a Hull Point there is a chance to regain that next round by rolling a 5+. This is basically a re-roll able save. I’ll pay attention to and approve of that. However, it also makes this unit a bigger pain to destroy.

Wait, it also has Demonforge and can Hover. The Demonforge is pretty useless. This ability only affects wound rolls of 1 and armor penetration rolls.  This thing wrecks light armor without help and wounds most units on a 2+. Demonforge is still a useless ability. Will anyone ever Hover with this thing? Why? It takes away the best ability of the unit, which is to be a plane. Why pull the irritation of needing 6’s to hit  from shooting, or spending points to take anti-plane units and/or terrain? Hover? Please. Why even give this unit that option?

Ask around about the Heldrake. All you get is either good or bad opinions. Never do you hear a neutral thought. I dislike the model immensely. The forward swept wings, the nubby tail, the head and the horrible baroque/antique-ish detailing  all make for just an ugly model. The fact that this unit was made to sell the Chaos codex and is the only unit most Chaos players really care about is just sad. Then throw in that this is a thoughtless easy button unit and it becomes even more disappointing. The imbalance with flyers and anti-flyer stuff is another bit of annoyance; but with Tau and Eldar out now (insert Tau/Eldar easy button anti-aircraft stuff now) I’m guessing that might change a bit. Maybe this will force Chaos to be more than just an army that acts as a way to get multiple Heldrakes on the table.

Yeah I’m on the negative side of the Heldrake but for more than the obvious reasons. It is a unit made to kill Marines, and since that is 85% of the armies out there it can be annoying. There is nothing really wrong with taking multiple Heldrakes, it seems like a dick move and a thoughtless one at that. It is legal, but everyone knows what your doing and why.  I’ll call it now. This thing will suck or cost a lot more next edition.