Special Characters

Basically, I see space marine special characters (with and exception maybe to Calgar and a few others) as Captains (or chapter masters) tooled up with extra wargear/special rules. This is not to say that they are ineffective, or too costly, but they do have their place, as do all units in 40k. I will grade each unit on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being crap or not at all competitive, and 10 being a must. WARNING(There may be no 10's in the SM codex). Keep in mind that Special Character will be ranked on competitiveness with certain armies, and that you may right a list that works much better than mind that will increase or decrease these numbers.


Marneus Calgar: 250 points w/out upgrades
Master of the Ultramarines, Lord of Macragge, and probably the most famous space marine still living, Calgar can only be described as an unstoppable warrior and leader. Or can he?! Let's take a look at the famous Ultramarine, because here is one special character that I have my doubts about. The first thing under his entry is his profile: the equivalent to a captain with an extra wound and attack. This is no bad thing and he will of course need it, as when yours opponent hears that you are fielding him they will stop at nothing to bring him down. This is probably the only reason why I would field him, but I will get to his tactics later. After his profile we come to his special rules. All of the standard space marine combat training until you get to Eternal Warrior. A nice rule, and one that I think he could not really do without, both according to fluff and to make him effective in the game. Next, like all chapter masters, he has Orbital Bombardment, not a terrible rule/weapon and one that can really turn the battle in your favor if you are playing someone like Tau or Chaos. But, you have to rely on it hitting, which it will not always do, but that is part of the game, and it is still a nice rule, although it really is just in there to make him like the other chapter masters. Titanic Might is the next special rule of Calgar's, which lets him reroll all failed wound attempts. Pretty nifty if he is up against a daemon prince or something of the nature, which is actually where I would throw him at. In shooting though, this rule will not do too much, though he could possibly drop a terminator or two. Although the rerolls are awesome and the rule's name even more so, he is only one man and cannot win the entire battle alone, which at small-points-cost games, he practically will be. God of War, truly an awesome rule, and one which can really help you when against close combat heavy armies, such as dark eldar, chaos marines, and the like. But against things like tau, or imperial guard, morale tests won't have an overly large impact on the game. His guns are nice, and he can take terminator armor( a must in my opinion, and only for 15 points!) but he has no mega-wargear that you often find in 40k, and you have to remember that close combat is where you want him, and he is only armed with powerfist. They are good weapons but, they are not extra-special. The fact that Calgar doesn't have oodles of cool swords and pistols actually make me like him more, they show that he really relies on his training and tactics to win the day. But, as I said he has a limit of places he can be at once, and there are units that can crush him, broadsides and eldar aspect warriors, to name a few. Calgar's model looks pretty cool to me and he can be truly awesome but he costs a fair amount of points, and so I would use him only in large games, or against things like chaos marines or tyranids. Tactics I would use, include things like deep-striking him or packing him in a land raider but these will both eat up points and there are other characters who can still kill him if he is alone, just look at the space wolves.
(5 TO 7)

Cato Sicarius:200 points
I like Sicarius a lot and I hear many people say the initiative. This is not a game-winner obviously but it can be nice, and is probably just about as reliable as Orbital Bombardment, which can't be fired if your master moves (which you will probably want him to) and only hits half the time. Rites of Battle lets all of your units use Sicarius' leadership for morale tests, which is helpful, but only slightly more because half of the time your marines will pass, and the other half you will want them to fail. But still nice in a pinch. Battle-forged Heroes lets you give a tactical squad in your army a special rule from: cthey like him, but my reason is because he seems to have a variety of uses and works well with a variety of other units. Profile-wise he is just like any other captain, unlike Calgar who relies on his profile to be effective. He is not a chapter master and therefore does not have Orbital Bombardment, but he has a fair replacement for it- Surprise Attack- which lets you reroll for seizing ounter-attack, infiltrate, scout, and tank hunters. Counter-attack might be fair against something like Orks but you will still most likely be beaten in combat and killed. I would reccomend Scout or Tank Hunters, Infiltrate might be kind of cool, but if you are not a great tactician in the movement phase then it will not be all that helpful. Scout is pretty much the same, and should be taken in objectives based games, or ones where you need to get into assault. Tank hunters might work with a tactical squad armed with meltagun, lascannon, and a powerfist in a drop pod, but not too many people take that. His weapon is a powersword with a single special attack he can use which basically is an instant-death relic blade, but with only a single attack. This can be pretty powerful in Sicarius' deft hands, and only just the other day I played a game against Ultramarines with Sicarius and some Vanguard Vet in a rhinno and they really brought the pain. He also as artificer armor with feel no pain, which is pretty cool, and will keep him alive against things like charges from Howling Banshees. Also, he can be taken with a command squad, which can be pretty fun, though they are pretty similar to Vanguard Vets. I would use Sicarius in most point-values and get him into combat with a fast elite unit. I find he is also best used against things like Chaos Marines, Witch/Daemon Hunters, or other armies with high points cost elite units.
(7)


Varro Tigurius: 230 points
In my eyes Tigurius isn't all that competitive, but he has his uses and is a pretty cool character, in theory. He has the exact same statline as a regular librarian, much like all the other special characters share with captains/chapter masters. He does know all of the psychic powers which is the big reason for me why I would field him. There will be no getting stuck in the situation where you wish you had The Avenger to get rid of those last fire warriors holding the objective, or when you need to use GoI to get to the remaining objective the last turn. Hood of Hellfire is a psychic hood which lets him cast 3 powers a turn, which is expected from such a revered psyker. He can also reroll reserve rolls, so an Apocalypse/Planetstrike terminator heavy army would be a wise place to include him, but the rule is usually not that big of a deal. If you are really depending on making your reserve rolls, then I would recommend revisiting your list. A master-crafted force weapon is cool, but nothing that much more special over a regular Librarian's free force weapon.
(5)


Ortan Cassius: 125 points
Chaplain Cassius is an interesting character because his design and role in the game is almost completely different than that of the other special characters and HQ choices in general. His toughness is the first big difference, which is pretty insane. Toughness six is two points higher than a tactical marines, which places him as the toughest model in the Space Marine codex and also means he can not be instakilled. He comes with feel no pain which, coupled with his very high toughness and power armor/rosarius, makes him very likely to survive for while. This is very appealing to me, because I have a hard time making any real use out of my HQ's without them being killed. This just might be my poor tactics though. He also comes equipped with a master-crafted combi-flamer, loaded with hellfire rounds, so obviously GW either wanted to spice things up or was just looking for anything that would set him apart. It works to my standards, though, and writing this makes me want to try him out at this monday games night. However, he is not often seen in games involving Space Marines, and I think I know why. A large amount of players swear by taking jump-chaplains or terminator-chaplains which Cassius has not the capacity. He can't buy any other weapons either, so his options are limited. But in a small 500 point game, especially against imperial guard or the like, I think Cassius could excel. Just sticking him with a tactical squad could be effective, but there are other units to choose from, which may work better, such as Sternguard Vets.
(6)
Torias Telion: 50 points
First of all, Telion is not an HQ choice but a Scout Squad unit upgrade. Now, in the last few games of taking sniper scouts, they have proved highly innefective. This may be because I did not take Telion as he may be a great boon to the squad. But I doubt that 2 sniper shots with rending are really going to turn the game around, which I needed the last few games. However, if you can set yourself up to take out some nobz leading an Ork horde or the Exarch in command of an aspect warriors squad, this could potentially make a large impact. For 50 points, he is somewhat expensive in low-points-cost games, but he has the profile of a regular marine sergeant, and adds some flavor to an army. Take Telion only if you really want him in your army, otherwise I am sure you can find a place for the points.
(6)

Antaro Chronus: 70 points
Like Telion, Chronus is not an Hq choice but is an upgrade for Heavy Support tanks. He is effectively a tank commander that grants benefits to the tank he is in, though if the tank he is in is destroyed, he does have a small chance of leaping out just in time. He gives the tank he is in Ballistic Skill 5 instead of 4, and makes it immune to crew stunned and shaken results on the vehicle damage chart. The extra BS is really not all that handy in my eyes, as a tank with one less BS is almost as like to hit with its guns as a tank with Chronus. However, I can see him greatly increasing the threat of a Predator Annhilator, but it is a lightly armored tank, and will probably not survive for too long without being destroyed, especially as it will become a much bigger target with Chronus in it. This is a tactic though, putting Chronus in a tank to use it as a diversion for the rest of your army closing in, but will not work against enemies like Orks. The shaken/stunned immunity is the only real benefit I see, and this is why I would take him. Sticking him on top of a charging Land Raider against, say, Imperial Guard might be effective, but you do really have to consider his cost, and what you will have to forfeit because of it.
(6)
Pedro Kantor: 175 points
Despite playing Crimson Fists, I am not a huge fan of Kantor lists, though his fluff is pretty cool, and he is a nice model. A chapter master with, essentially, an assault heavy bolter is not much by itself, but it never should be with Space Marine HQ's. He makes his army stubborn, and Sternguard Vets scoring units, plus he gives a bonus attack to all in twelve inches. These seem amazing, but I am not so sure they will work too well. The inclusion of the Sternguard-scoring rule sounds as if you are going to take many Sternguard, whose real purpose is for adaptable bolter shots. Firing them means they cannot assault, which is really when you would want the extra attack. Although, it means they can take a charge much better, if your opponent does not know it. Really, I would only take Kantor if you are going to take lots of Sternguard.
(7)
Darnath Lysander: 200 points
Lysander has some of my favorite fluff but I am not completely sold as far as his in-game-performance. At 200 points he is a pretty expensive investment, barring apocalyptic games, and he is not all that fast either. If he did all the things he does, but was wearing different armor, he would be used in games more often. Bolter Drill is a nice rule, and I wish they made the same for another character but with plama weapons, or missile launchers. As he is in Terminator armor it is most logical that you would put him with Terminators, probably the non-assault variety because of Bolter Drill. You could stick him in a tactical squad mounted in a Land Raider, so you could fire twin-linked bolters, but this is nothing to Vulkan's Chapter tactics, and Lysander would not be doing all that much, as he is designed to get up close with a special named thunder hammer, and a captain's profile (with four wounds instead of three). Making his army stubborn is always good, but it is the same as Kantor's in that it is not all that helpful, depending on your foe. I might try him out my next game, by sticking him with a untit of terminators, and deepstriking behind the gunline (next game will be against Guard). He could potentially take out a tank with the Fist of Dorn, and the twin-linked storm bolters are not all that bad against guardsmen. Also, bolster defenses is good for some armies, and Eternal Warrior can always only help, especially as he is in Terminator armor and will be facing the toughest guns.
(7)

Kayvaan Shrike: 195 points
At 195 points Shrike is darn expensive, but is also extremely effective. Granting your army Fleet, and giving the squad he is in Infiltrate, Shrike will definitely be considered next time I am up against Tau. Stick him with an Assault/Vanguard Squad, infiltrating of course, and slam into those battlesuits as early as possible. Add some tac squads and some scouts to the mix and the blue-skinned aliens shouldn't stand too much of a chance. All this, and his dual lightning claws are Rending and Master Crafted, giving him 5 lethal attacks on the charge.
(HIGH 7)
Vulkan He'stan: 190 points
Also a very expensive character, Vulkan costs nearly as much as Shrike. But, he is just as competitive, granting his army twin-linked melta and flamer weaponry, and making thunder hammers master crafted. Also, he is not a bad close-combat monster, as he has a twin-linked heavy flamer, a master crafted relic blade, and a 2+/3+ save. If you like melta/flamer/thunder hammer units than I would recommend Vulkan, and if not, I would still recommend Vulkan. Against challenging foes, he is good support, and will probably shift the odds so they are in your favor atleast a little more.
(8)

Kor'sarro Khan: 160 points/205 with moondrakkan
Kor'sarro Khan is different from most other SM special character, because he is really meant for a speed/finesse army. By finesse I mean that positioning and unit choice matter more, but that is not to say that they are any less durable. In fact, if you are going to take bikes with Khan (which I recommend) than toughness 5 will make you even more durable than most other marine armies. As with Shrike, Sicarius, and Vulkan I believe that Khan is also a very competitive character. He is a captain like the rest, with a sword similar to Sicarius', in that it can cause instant death. More than this, he grants him and his squad Furious Charge AND Hit and Run, which make a bike squad, or even a terminator/tactical/assault squad that much more lethal. He also has Moondrakkan, which can potentially (please correct me if I am wrong) turbo boost, then run, then assault with furious charge. All of these neat tricks and he even lets your entire army outflank (including transports), Khan is good for many jobs and can seriously harass all but the fastest armies.
(8)