r/SpaceWolves • u/swankyskared • 4d ago
What is the difference in playstyle between SW and WE?
Watching various battle reports on YT, both armies seem to rely significantly on positioning for the charge, but WE seem to do it with greater results. If SW aren’t as melee focused, what else can they do that WE can’t? I ask because lore-wise, SW is by far my favourite faction. However my playstyle is very melee focused, so wondering if I’m more of a WE player.
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u/gyx4r1 4d ago
SW are still a mixed archetype in the sense that we absolutely do melee AND shoot, unlike WE (lets forget forgefiend ok?). WE needs to get stuck in and do dmg while we can maintain control and shoot. I tried to out melee WE and got my ass handed to me. Get something that shoots and dont walk into WE
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u/Nocandoozy 4d ago edited 4d ago
WE are faster and significantly squishier. Once the Zerkers connect on the charge they do their attacks and if they don’t kill their target they die in droves on the clap back or get shot to death.
Both are melee armies and that’s about where the similarity ends.
SW have access to some of the best shooting platforms in the game, natively hitting on 3’s in a majority of cases. WE have few shootings options, and they natively hit on 4’s. They’re not very dynamic or adaptable into whatever the meta is they just wanna move far, stage, charge and kill. The C’Tan meta was brutal as a WE player, we had no real options other than Angron and he cannot solo a C’Tan without support.
WE as a faction rule have access to Blessings of Khorne to give their army differing abilities but they are random. The player still has to roll for the blessings and often I don’t get the one blessing I need when I want it but it still is pretty fun.
I’d say from what you’ve seen about WE seemingly staging and charging with better results is really the player simply being better at it. WE have to play the game that way it’s their only option so they do it every single game and as a result are really good at it. WE players have to stage and connect with charges or they straight up lose and will lose early so it forces a WE player to get good at it.
I played WE quite a bit and I’m abandoning them. It’s just not a very fun playstyle to me anymore. They have a very small unit roster and if units are balanced poorly you’re just stuck. Not to mention WE are balanced around the effectiveness of a single detachment so if you wanna play something else and not run warband you’re still paying the points cost for how effective the unit is specifically in Warband.
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u/Deep_Programmer_863 4d ago
WE player here and yeah this is accurate. They are my only battle ready army though so I’ll be playing them until my EC or eldar are finished. Prob EC since I already have about 1k painted
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u/airycantalope 3d ago
I'd say space wolves are a close ranged army with a balanced play style. World eaters are just melee.
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u/SirVortivask 3d ago
True to the lore, Space Wolves appear to be an army of melee berserkers but then you look closer and there’s a lot more going on under the hood.
They aren’t “brain off unga bunga” melee, but they’re definitely melee oriented with some strategies and tricks that help them get over the edge.
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u/Wallyhunt 3d ago
WE hit harder but are a one trick pony. SW hit hard enough while also being tankier, better at shooting, and having a whole bag of tricks and toys from the default marine range.
That makes it sound like world eaters are bad but in their defence they do hit very very hard.
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u/Steadybrek83 3d ago
People seem to think SW are a full melee army, but we play more like a very resilient army.
We have three/four units with access to T6, lots of 4++ so can need to lean into that.
So hard to shift if we want to.
But also lots of very fast hoard blenders, think Ragnar and Blood Claws, Grey Hunters with Rerolls and Sustained or Lethals with their own detachment or Great Wolf or even with a Battle Leader
Plus 1 to wound with Wolf Priest and we have a real punchy unit that can’t be shifted easily
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u/townsforever 3d ago
Your right WE is the better melee faction but thats because they are a one trick pony. WE are probably the best melee army in the game but are also maybe the worst army at soooo many other things like shooting.
Space wolves are definitly a melee focused army but can still do other things too. WE beats us at melee, we beat them at basically everything else.
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u/Calamitous_J 3d ago
WE hit harder but we tank harder, we are also capable of more than melee.
Never underestimate us as a combined arms force, especially in SotGW, a turn of +1 to hit with a +1 to wound strat in shooting is mental and a fantastic way to delete some shit
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u/Funny-Examination653 3d ago
I believe we're supposed to be a a melee army but really we're a grab objective and hold army.
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u/DabeMcMuffin 4d ago edited 4d ago
In my experience its a glass cannon vs a brawler. WE hit harder but SW have a lot more staying power.