Fleshing out a patrol box

[Charbe86]

I finally have the money and opportunity to grab my patrol box this week.  I've settled on Terrans, based on reading various blogs, podcasts, and forum posts, and I was wondering if there are any suggestions on what I should get to flesh it out to 800 points.

[Ruckdog]

I'm sure Quickdraw, our other resident Terran aficionado here on the forums, will be along shortly to offer his opinion, but here are my thoughts (in no particular order):

-Carrier Support: You don't have any SRS capability in the patrol box, so it might not be a bad idea to go for either the carrier box or the assault fleet box and use the assault carrier.

-Reinforcement Box: This box gives you some good flexibility, as it gives you another Frigate option and a light cruiser and/or torpedo cruiser squadron. All of these ships can either be used in independent squadrons or as attachments to your existing squadrons, have some nice capabilities (like Torpedo Spook), and are awesome models to boot.

- Shield Cruisers: With Terrans having shields on everything, having some shield cruisers around to buff that ability can't hurt.

Hope that helps. Of course, given my W-L record recently, I'm probably the last guy you should be taking tactical advice from! 

[Ryjak]

 That is hard to answer without knowing why you decided on Terrans.   This is compounded by Terence themselves; they are very versatile, but not exceptional, particularly with the patrol fleet.  The patrol flea is roughly 500 points, so you have 300 points to work with.  Second, every unit in the patrol fleet is not particularly effective using reserves and Shunt entry.  So my suggestion is to start by finding a good reserve force...  particularly if you like how Terrans are versatile.

 The carrier is a good option, thanks to a large wing capacity and deck crews.   Depending on your opponent, it can start on the table and play defense, or going to reserves and play offense.  Heavy cruisers can really drop the hammer when they emerge from reserves, but are useless starting on the table.

 Another option is to expand your toolbox with the task force box set or the system Wars box set

[Quickdraw]

I think there are some good suggestions up above. I would tend to agree straight up with Ruckdog on his suggestions.

The carrier gives you some hefty wing support and could make a great shunt deployment option or a defensive area denial tool.
The new reinforcement box is a fantastic option! The ships in it are interesting, they're very modular, and it gives you some cool toys to play with.
I think the shield Cruisers are also great. It can be a real frustration for your opponent when your shield are buffed, and you could use them as an add-on for your Carrier or your regular Cruisers. They do take a little bit longer to learn to use effectively though.
Another good possibility are the Destroyers. They can't be targeted outside of 20" and can really burn holes in an uncareful opponents fleet.

[Ryjak]

 Whatever you end up going with, you should definitely magnetize whenever possible.

 Also, consider Hawker allies if you want  to enhance your fleet's durability.

[Quickdraw]

Agreed on that ryjak! Magnetize your Cruisers for extra options. I ended up magnetizing my original Cruisers and purchased two extra heavy cruiser top pieces a whole year down the road.

[Charbe86]

Thanks for the tips.  I mostly picked Terrans for their durability, and their combination of long range torps with short range broad sides.  Since asking this question my wife has decided she'd like to play too, so the extra money will be going to another patrol box, with possibly two reinforcement boxes if I can swing it. 

[Ryjak]

There are currently 19 Patrol boxes available, for the 22 different factions.  If you want your wife to keep playing, let her pick which one she likes... even if it's something with few options outside the Patrol Fleet Box.

And if you like the durability of Terran shields, you should definately look into Shield Cruisers, and every squadron with the option to bring one as an Accompanyment (Cruisers, Carriers...)  Also look more closely at Hawker Industries.

[Charbe86]

My wife has never played a miniatures game, so I thought if I got her the patrol box and the reinforcement box she could try both armada and task force.  I showed her the site, explained the basics concepts, and she chose Aquans, although she was a bit put off when I told her they don't come assembled and painted.

[Ryjak]

Hopefully painting is something you like to do.

[Charbe86]

I've never enjoyed painting in the past, but I think that has been because of how I viewed 40K.  40k was just a game for me, rather than a hobby, so painting was more a necessary evil.  I have a lot more interest in Firestorm, and I'm actually looking forward to painting my ships and Ive been doing a lot of research into colour schemes, techniques, etc.

[Fracas]

imo spaceships are exceedingly easy to paint
choose a color primer to prime the models
then a few more colors to pick out features you like, whether racing stripes, engine exhausts, or weapon points
then you are done

you can always do more later, like shades and washes but you don't have to

[Ryjak]

I still treat FSA as a game first and a hobby second, yet I still find time to paint my models.  Heck, I even got an airbrush just so I could paint a good engine glow.  Now I just need a pile of time to get good with the airbrush to do it!

Finding a paint scheme that works helps a lot too.  Lots of good painters on this forum if you need help.