This just in from BOLS.
GW has released some IG exclusive stratagems for Cities of Death, which you can find here.
Also, pics of the new Hellhound, Banewolf, and Devildog, which can be found here.
Still working on that SW article, so watch out for that tomorrow or Monday.
Reds
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Blog Donations
NobleWolves has provided us with a list using the advice from his previous article. Here it is.
Double Up and Crush Them 2000 pt.
HQ
Command Squad
Bolter
Vox
Medi-Kit
Plasmagun
Chimera
Master of Ordnance
Astropath
Total: 217
Troops Platoon Hammer, 45 (Two 20-man combined squads, Platoon Command)
(C) Vox
(C) 3 Flamers
(S) 4 Flamers
(S) 2 Vox
(S) 2 Commissars
(Com) 2 Power Wep.
Total: 370
Platoon Anvil, 25 (Two 10-man squads, Platoon Command, 2 HW squads)
(C) Vox
(C) 3 GL
(S) 2 GL
(S) 2 Vox
(S) 2 Autocannons
Autocannon HW Squad
Autocannon HW Squad
Total: 340
Elites
Ratlings, 6 Total: 60
Ratlings, 6 Total: 60
Fast Attack
Scout Sentinels, 3
3 Lascannons
Total: 150
Scout Sentinels, 3
3 Lascannons
Total: 150
Heavy Support
Leman Russ Squadron, 2
2 Heavy Stubbers
Total: 320
Leman Russ Squadron, 2
2 Lascannons
Total: 330Points
Summary: HQ: 217 Troops: 710 Elites: 120 Fast Attack: 300 Heavy Support: 650
KP: 15
Scoring: 8
Infantry: 97
Vehicles: 11
Total Points: 1997
Da Kunnin' Plan: This list has a little bit of everything for everybody. You've got outflanking tankhunting Sentinels aided by an Astropath, 12 snipers, 5 big pie plates per turn, Commissars with power weapons, and more Autocannons, Grenade Launchers, and Flamers than you can shake a lho stick at. Using the Hammer and Anvil technique, the Hammer platoon and the tanks move up the board, delivering a good whallop to the Enemy while the Snipers and Anvil platoon remain behind to hold main ground. Then the Sentinels come in to deliver the killing blow to any armor or Terminator-equivalent.
There you go guys. Enjoy!
Double Up and Crush Them 2000 pt.
HQ
Command Squad
Bolter
Vox
Medi-Kit
Plasmagun
Chimera
Master of Ordnance
Astropath
Total: 217
Troops Platoon Hammer, 45 (Two 20-man combined squads, Platoon Command)
(C) Vox
(C) 3 Flamers
(S) 4 Flamers
(S) 2 Vox
(S) 2 Commissars
(Com) 2 Power Wep.
Total: 370
Platoon Anvil, 25 (Two 10-man squads, Platoon Command, 2 HW squads)
(C) Vox
(C) 3 GL
(S) 2 GL
(S) 2 Vox
(S) 2 Autocannons
Autocannon HW Squad
Autocannon HW Squad
Total: 340
Elites
Ratlings, 6 Total: 60
Ratlings, 6 Total: 60
Fast Attack
Scout Sentinels, 3
3 Lascannons
Total: 150
Scout Sentinels, 3
3 Lascannons
Total: 150
Heavy Support
Leman Russ Squadron, 2
2 Heavy Stubbers
Total: 320
Leman Russ Squadron, 2
2 Lascannons
Total: 330Points
Summary: HQ: 217 Troops: 710 Elites: 120 Fast Attack: 300 Heavy Support: 650
KP: 15
Scoring: 8
Infantry: 97
Vehicles: 11
Total Points: 1997
Da Kunnin' Plan: This list has a little bit of everything for everybody. You've got outflanking tankhunting Sentinels aided by an Astropath, 12 snipers, 5 big pie plates per turn, Commissars with power weapons, and more Autocannons, Grenade Launchers, and Flamers than you can shake a lho stick at. Using the Hammer and Anvil technique, the Hammer platoon and the tanks move up the board, delivering a good whallop to the Enemy while the Snipers and Anvil platoon remain behind to hold main ground. Then the Sentinels come in to deliver the killing blow to any armor or Terminator-equivalent.
There you go guys. Enjoy!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
A Mad Scheme....
I just had a rather mad thought, inspired by Aceblitzkrieg's comment in the below post.
I'm hoping to get as many people from the IGMB together as possible some time in July or August for a Meet and Greet/ Grand Battle. Details are a very sketchy at this point, but it would probably be for 1 day, and would take place either in Northern VA or Southern Maryland. It's open to non IGMB members and non IG armies, though.
Here's the original thread...
http://commissar.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=General&thread=6781&page=1
If you're interested, post a comment below, in the thread, or shoot me a PM
Reds
I'm hoping to get as many people from the IGMB together as possible some time in July or August for a Meet and Greet/ Grand Battle. Details are a very sketchy at this point, but it would probably be for 1 day, and would take place either in Northern VA or Southern Maryland. It's open to non IGMB members and non IG armies, though.
Here's the original thread...
http://commissar.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=General&thread=6781&page=1
If you're interested, post a comment below, in the thread, or shoot me a PM
Reds
Battle Royale!
I've agreed to do something very brave (or foolish). On June 7th, real life permitting, I will travel through the Warp that is the VA roadways, and do battle against the combined forces of Reds' and Aeon's IG with my Space Marines. I've not yet decided if I will be fielding them as vanilla or Blood Angels. Expect updates sporadically until the fated day arrives...
Rolling out the fire support.
Hey guys. I wanted to talk a bit about Heavy Weapons today.
Since the new Codex, there's been a lot of talk about what Heavy Weapons to take, which are better, etc. I'm going to try and break the choices down for you, give you the reason for each ranking, and talk about how to maximize their effectiveness.
In my opinion, here's the ranking of each HW, based on effectiveness.
1. Missile Launcher
2. Heavy Bolter
3. Autocannon
4. Lascannon
5. Mortar
Missile Launcher: This should be one of the staples of your line. It's a good, cheap, all purpose AT weapon, and can crunch MEQs quite nicely. It also has the ability to fire a Frag Template, meaning you can use it as an Anti-Infantry weapon if you need to, which is why it noses out the Heavy Bolter for the top spot. There ares ome problems, though. It does struggle with AV 13, and it can only glance AV 14 at best. Thos Frag Rounds I mentioned can kill infantry, but they're not the best at it, and should only be used in that role if there are no other targets, or you NEED to kill an infantry squad. Also, with only 1 shot per round, it's susceptible to the Guard's BS 3.
Tips for effective use: Always try to put these guys in an HW section, instead of in squads. It does make them a little more vulnerable, but you put three shots into the target in a single volley. That means you don't have to waste the shooting of three infantry squads, and it helps to balance out the BS 3. Also, combined with the "Bring it Down!" order, you can make them Twin Linked, which means you'll get at least 2 hits, if not all 3. Also, remember that Missile Launchers are good against top and side armour. Taking two sections, and placing them on both flanks, especially high up, means the enemy will be hard pressed to deny you a shot at the side armour of his tanks.
Heavy Bolter: If you want infantry dead, take the Heavy Bolter. It's got decent strength, good AP, and puts out a lot of shots. It's also cheap as hell. It can rough up Trukks and light vehicles, but you really should be using it to kill enemy squads. It's perfect for fighting IG, Nids, Orks, Tau, and can even make MEQs sweat, due to the sheer number of armour saves. The Str 5 does hurt it a little against Orks and MEQs, and can't do jack against heavy vehicles, though.
Tips for effective use: This is the perfect weapon for basic infantry squads, since they excel at anit infantry (if you're using your basic infantry with Plasma or Meltas, you're making a mistake, and we need to talk). HBs will magnify their squad killing power, and those 3 shots go a long way toward canceling out the BS 3. Issuing "FRF, SRF" or "Fire on my target!" to the squad makes them even better, as they can slaughter a whole enemy squad in a single volley. Don't bother using HBs against any armour though. MLs are better at it.
Autocannons: I'm going to catch some flak for saying this, but Autocannons are simply not as useful as HBs. They do fine against high toughness enemies, like the bigger Nids, and can slaughter Rhinos and other APCs, but they don't do as well against basic infantry compared to the HB, because they put out less shots (Remember, BS 3 means you'll only get 1 hit on average), and they don't do well against medium and heavy vehicles, simply because they need a 6 to penetrate AV 12 and glance AV 13.
Tips for effective use: Take Autocannons when you know you'll be facing light vehicles, or small groups of high Toughness enemies, like Tyranid Warriors. Always take them in an HW Squad, too. Since you're only hitting half the time, you can still put a decent amount of shots on the target, guaranteeing at least 1 wound or penetrating hit. Also, Vets with 3 Grenade Launchers and an Autocannon are great for ripping apart high Toughness targets, but never take more then one squad of them (or it would be too expensive). "Bring it Down!" and "Fire on my Target" are both good when used with AC Sections.
Lascannons: These are okay for dealing with heavy and medium armour and killing really tough targets, like Monstrous Creatures. That said, they're much more expensive than the Missile Launcher, and you only gain +1 to Strength and AP. They still have a hard time dealing with AV 14, so they can't always cope with Russes and Land Raiders (in fact, giving an SW Squad 3 Demo charges is cheaper, and you have a better chance of killing the target). They also have only one shot. While this is a minor annoyance for the Missile Launcher, it's a real pain for the LC, considering what you're paying for it.
Tips for effective use: Take them in an HW Section, and only take section in the army. A Vanquisher is actually a better choice for killing Land Raiders and Russes, but an additional Lascannon section never hurts. Have them hit side armour wherever possible, and use them to snipe the toughest targets facing you. Some people also like to use them for hunting Termies, but Meltas and Plasma are better for that, simply because they're more mobile.
Mortars: These are the problem children of the HW family. You need to take a lot of them for them to be effective, they have low Strength and AP, and are fairly inaccurate. They do use the Barrage rule, which helps, and are good against tightly grouped IG and Nids, since they deny them a cover save, and force them to rely on a 5+ armour save. They're decent against Orks, but against Tau (who will get a 4+ save from their armour even if they lose a cover save) and MEQs (3+ save), they're pretty worthless.
Tips for effective use: Take two HW sections, and hide them. Use them to hit gunlines or mobs of fragile units.
There you go. I plan on covering Special Weapons soon, too.
Reds
Since the new Codex, there's been a lot of talk about what Heavy Weapons to take, which are better, etc. I'm going to try and break the choices down for you, give you the reason for each ranking, and talk about how to maximize their effectiveness.
In my opinion, here's the ranking of each HW, based on effectiveness.
1. Missile Launcher
2. Heavy Bolter
3. Autocannon
4. Lascannon
5. Mortar
Missile Launcher: This should be one of the staples of your line. It's a good, cheap, all purpose AT weapon, and can crunch MEQs quite nicely. It also has the ability to fire a Frag Template, meaning you can use it as an Anti-Infantry weapon if you need to, which is why it noses out the Heavy Bolter for the top spot. There ares ome problems, though. It does struggle with AV 13, and it can only glance AV 14 at best. Thos Frag Rounds I mentioned can kill infantry, but they're not the best at it, and should only be used in that role if there are no other targets, or you NEED to kill an infantry squad. Also, with only 1 shot per round, it's susceptible to the Guard's BS 3.
Tips for effective use: Always try to put these guys in an HW section, instead of in squads. It does make them a little more vulnerable, but you put three shots into the target in a single volley. That means you don't have to waste the shooting of three infantry squads, and it helps to balance out the BS 3. Also, combined with the "Bring it Down!" order, you can make them Twin Linked, which means you'll get at least 2 hits, if not all 3. Also, remember that Missile Launchers are good against top and side armour. Taking two sections, and placing them on both flanks, especially high up, means the enemy will be hard pressed to deny you a shot at the side armour of his tanks.
Heavy Bolter: If you want infantry dead, take the Heavy Bolter. It's got decent strength, good AP, and puts out a lot of shots. It's also cheap as hell. It can rough up Trukks and light vehicles, but you really should be using it to kill enemy squads. It's perfect for fighting IG, Nids, Orks, Tau, and can even make MEQs sweat, due to the sheer number of armour saves. The Str 5 does hurt it a little against Orks and MEQs, and can't do jack against heavy vehicles, though.
Tips for effective use: This is the perfect weapon for basic infantry squads, since they excel at anit infantry (if you're using your basic infantry with Plasma or Meltas, you're making a mistake, and we need to talk). HBs will magnify their squad killing power, and those 3 shots go a long way toward canceling out the BS 3. Issuing "FRF, SRF" or "Fire on my target!" to the squad makes them even better, as they can slaughter a whole enemy squad in a single volley. Don't bother using HBs against any armour though. MLs are better at it.
Autocannons: I'm going to catch some flak for saying this, but Autocannons are simply not as useful as HBs. They do fine against high toughness enemies, like the bigger Nids, and can slaughter Rhinos and other APCs, but they don't do as well against basic infantry compared to the HB, because they put out less shots (Remember, BS 3 means you'll only get 1 hit on average), and they don't do well against medium and heavy vehicles, simply because they need a 6 to penetrate AV 12 and glance AV 13.
Tips for effective use: Take Autocannons when you know you'll be facing light vehicles, or small groups of high Toughness enemies, like Tyranid Warriors. Always take them in an HW Squad, too. Since you're only hitting half the time, you can still put a decent amount of shots on the target, guaranteeing at least 1 wound or penetrating hit. Also, Vets with 3 Grenade Launchers and an Autocannon are great for ripping apart high Toughness targets, but never take more then one squad of them (or it would be too expensive). "Bring it Down!" and "Fire on my Target" are both good when used with AC Sections.
Lascannons: These are okay for dealing with heavy and medium armour and killing really tough targets, like Monstrous Creatures. That said, they're much more expensive than the Missile Launcher, and you only gain +1 to Strength and AP. They still have a hard time dealing with AV 14, so they can't always cope with Russes and Land Raiders (in fact, giving an SW Squad 3 Demo charges is cheaper, and you have a better chance of killing the target). They also have only one shot. While this is a minor annoyance for the Missile Launcher, it's a real pain for the LC, considering what you're paying for it.
Tips for effective use: Take them in an HW Section, and only take section in the army. A Vanquisher is actually a better choice for killing Land Raiders and Russes, but an additional Lascannon section never hurts. Have them hit side armour wherever possible, and use them to snipe the toughest targets facing you. Some people also like to use them for hunting Termies, but Meltas and Plasma are better for that, simply because they're more mobile.
Mortars: These are the problem children of the HW family. You need to take a lot of them for them to be effective, they have low Strength and AP, and are fairly inaccurate. They do use the Barrage rule, which helps, and are good against tightly grouped IG and Nids, since they deny them a cover save, and force them to rely on a 5+ armour save. They're decent against Orks, but against Tau (who will get a 4+ save from their armour even if they lose a cover save) and MEQs (3+ save), they're pretty worthless.
Tips for effective use: Take two HW sections, and hide them. Use them to hit gunlines or mobs of fragile units.
There you go. I plan on covering Special Weapons soon, too.
Reds
Monday, May 25, 2009
Blog Donation Part 3: The Search for Part 2
Hey all. Today, we've got another article by "TheNobleWolves". He's written an in-depth article on how to build IG lists for those of you who are new to the hobby or the Guard.
"And another little blog donation. This time, the subject is on list-building for those who are new to the hobby.
My father always said a list of pros and cons is the best way to start out, so let's take his fatherly advice:
IMPERIAL GUARD-Pros:
- A massive amount of cheap infantry.- Can field an equally massive amount of heavy and special weapons.
- No army can throw out the volume of fire like an Imperial Guard army
- The best all-round tank in the game, the Leman Russ chassis.
- Our new elite choices can actually do something
- Powerful characters.
Cons:
- Guardsmen are statistically pathetic.
- We need volume of fire to compensate for our crappy Ballistic Skill
- Our elites still can't compete with the Elites of most other armies
- The new codex throws so many options at us that list-building now seems like a chore (the "Its New So I Should Take It" syndrome)
So there we have it. Based on these Pros and Cons, any list that we make should be based on a majority of the following principles:
1. There are three types of armies you should base your force around: Airborne Drop armies with a lot of Valkyries; Armored Forces with a lot of tanks; or Infantry Companies with a lot of basic Guardsmen. No matter what it is, the mantra should be: TAKE A LOT!
2. No matter what army you take, remember when kitting them out: less is more. No other army, save perhaps Chaos, has as many kit options as the Imperial Guard. It can be tempting to load down an individual unit with a massive amount of kit, but that can be expensive and can lead to 'waste kit'- kit that, for some reason or another, is never used.- Example: Vendettas should never be used in a transport-primary role. Why? When zooming around the map delivering their payload, 66% of their lascannon payload can't be fired. That 40-50 pts. doing NOTHING.
3. ALWAYS compensate for a Guardsman's crappy ballistic skill. There are two ways you can do this: template/blast weapons, and redundancy.
-Template: These weapons will ALWAYS hit, no matter what. Heavy/Flamers will be your primary dispenser of these babies, so give them to troops you'll have on the front line
-Blast: These weapons will always get on the board, but because of scatter will sometimes miss. So many weapons are small/large blast that it'd take too long. For your troops, Grenade Launchers/Mortars will be your primary blast dispensers.
-Redundancy: BoLS's Goatboy is big on redundancy, and I'm also a follower. Whenever you take ANYthing, always take another. Not only will you be able to concentrate fire better (and thusly have more shots land) but you'll have doubled its survival chances by giving the enemy 2 things at which to shoot.
4. Never build a list around a certain unit. The Imperial Guard are renowned for being one of the few armies without a certain 'linchpin' unit. Kill our tanks and you still have our infantry to deal with. Pin our infantry and our artillery will get you. So and so forth.
5. The basic Guard strategy is the Hammer and Anvil technique- one portion of the army remains stationary to hammer away with heavy weapons(Anvil) while another, more mobile section sallies forth to meet the enemy head-on (Hammer). Keep this in mind when building a list, as well.
There you go guys. Wolves has promised me a list illustrating these concepts, so watch out for that in the future. Also, be sure to check out his blog, The General Critic, here.
Reds
"And another little blog donation. This time, the subject is on list-building for those who are new to the hobby.
My father always said a list of pros and cons is the best way to start out, so let's take his fatherly advice:
IMPERIAL GUARD-Pros:
- A massive amount of cheap infantry.- Can field an equally massive amount of heavy and special weapons.
- No army can throw out the volume of fire like an Imperial Guard army
- The best all-round tank in the game, the Leman Russ chassis.
- Our new elite choices can actually do something
- Powerful characters.
Cons:
- Guardsmen are statistically pathetic.
- We need volume of fire to compensate for our crappy Ballistic Skill
- Our elites still can't compete with the Elites of most other armies
- The new codex throws so many options at us that list-building now seems like a chore (the "Its New So I Should Take It" syndrome)
So there we have it. Based on these Pros and Cons, any list that we make should be based on a majority of the following principles:
1. There are three types of armies you should base your force around: Airborne Drop armies with a lot of Valkyries; Armored Forces with a lot of tanks; or Infantry Companies with a lot of basic Guardsmen. No matter what it is, the mantra should be: TAKE A LOT!
2. No matter what army you take, remember when kitting them out: less is more. No other army, save perhaps Chaos, has as many kit options as the Imperial Guard. It can be tempting to load down an individual unit with a massive amount of kit, but that can be expensive and can lead to 'waste kit'- kit that, for some reason or another, is never used.- Example: Vendettas should never be used in a transport-primary role. Why? When zooming around the map delivering their payload, 66% of their lascannon payload can't be fired. That 40-50 pts. doing NOTHING.
3. ALWAYS compensate for a Guardsman's crappy ballistic skill. There are two ways you can do this: template/blast weapons, and redundancy.
-Template: These weapons will ALWAYS hit, no matter what. Heavy/Flamers will be your primary dispenser of these babies, so give them to troops you'll have on the front line
-Blast: These weapons will always get on the board, but because of scatter will sometimes miss. So many weapons are small/large blast that it'd take too long. For your troops, Grenade Launchers/Mortars will be your primary blast dispensers.
-Redundancy: BoLS's Goatboy is big on redundancy, and I'm also a follower. Whenever you take ANYthing, always take another. Not only will you be able to concentrate fire better (and thusly have more shots land) but you'll have doubled its survival chances by giving the enemy 2 things at which to shoot.
4. Never build a list around a certain unit. The Imperial Guard are renowned for being one of the few armies without a certain 'linchpin' unit. Kill our tanks and you still have our infantry to deal with. Pin our infantry and our artillery will get you. So and so forth.
5. The basic Guard strategy is the Hammer and Anvil technique- one portion of the army remains stationary to hammer away with heavy weapons(Anvil) while another, more mobile section sallies forth to meet the enemy head-on (Hammer). Keep this in mind when building a list, as well.
There you go guys. Wolves has promised me a list illustrating these concepts, so watch out for that in the future. Also, be sure to check out his blog, The General Critic, here.
Reds
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
It's a trap!
Hey guys. I wanted to talk about something that's been bothering me lately.
Veterans
Now, I know these guys are awesome. Packing 3 Special Weapons and possibly a Heavy Weapon, hitting on 3+, and with the ability to get a Demo charge, a 4+ armour save, or a 3+ cover save, and counting as a troop choice, it's hard to resist the temptation to pack your army list full of these guys. After all, what's cooler then having an army made up of some of the best, most experienced troopers in the Imperial Guard? Also, since GW has repackaged the Cadian and Catachan troopers so you only get 10, Veterans are a very attractive choice for those starting out, or people who don't want to spend too much.
There is a downside, though. Several, in fact. They are too few and too expensive to make a good core for your army, and other units can do that job for less. For instance, a Veteran Squad with 3 Plasma Guns and Carapace will set you back 145pts. For 120pts, you can get a Platoon HQ with 3 Plasma guns, give the officer a Plasma Pistol, and have a medic backing them up. Yes, they may hit a little less often, but they have a better chance of surviving a plasma overheat (5+ armour AND Feel No Pain, as opposed to just a 4+ armour save), and you save 25pts, which you can use elsewhere.
Another example are "Dakka Vets". These are Vet Squads with 3 Grenade Launchers (or sometimes Sniper Rifles), a Heavy Weapon like an Autocannon, and Camo Cloaks. People will often take tow or three squads of these as a gunline. Well, each of those squads is 125pts, so three of them would cost 375pts. For the same cost, you could get 5 Infantry Squads with Grenade Launchers and Heavy Bolters, and a Platoon HQ with 4 Grenade Launchers. Not only is this another 25 men to absorb hits and put out shots, but you still get the same number of Grenade Launcher shots, 6 more Heavy Bolter shots, and more troop choices to grab objectives. Again, you aren't hitting quite as much, but you have a lot more shots, which makes up for it (and then some). You also have a 4+ cover save instead of a 3+, but, again, it's better to have 55 more men with a slightly worse cover save, then just 30 with a slightly better one.
A good example of this is when I fought Aeon this past weekend. He took 2 Squads of Dakka Vets for a core gunline, I took a full platoon. He had lost almost all of his gunline buy the top of turn 2, and I had yet to take a single casualty.
Here are a few things you SHOULD NOT do with your Veterans
-Use them as a gunline: Infantry platoons are much better at this simply because they're designed for it. They can take up to 5 HW Sections, instead of the single Team that Vets can, they have more bodies to absorb fire, and the Platoon HQ is great for taking Flamers for a counter charge unit, or Plasma to mess up so MEQs
-Do not stack upgrades unless you need to: Try not to take more then one of the three upgrade options unless you need to. Take Carapace if your Vets have Plasma Guns (and they should only if your Platoon HQ is being used for something else), Demolitions if they're going tank hunting or dropping out of Valks, and cam Cloaks if they're grabbing objectives. Try not to mix these roles unless you absolutely have to.
-Have more Vet Squads then Infantry Platoons: There are obviously going to be exceptions to this, but I find a good rule of thumb is to have 1 Vet Squad for every Platoon (even if it's only 25 men).
-Take only Veterans: This builds is related to what I just said about the Platoon/Vet ratio, but it's important enough to repeat. If you only take Veterans, you will have about the same number of men on the table that a Marine player does, and your Vets are nowhere NEAR as good as a Tac squad. They are not Marines, and there is no reason to have them cost as much, ever, because they cannot be as good. Marine Players will have a 3+ armour save and a 4+ cover save (if they're smart) to keep them in action. Your Vets,depending on how you upgrade them, will have a 4+ and 4+, or a 5+ and 3+ (If you've given them a 4+ and 3+, smack yourself with your codex and swap them out for a 25 man Infantry Platoon).
The upshot of all this is that you have less men, like Marines, who aren't that durable, unlike Marines. You'll be shot apart by Gunline Armies, squashed flat by Mech Armies, and ripped to shreds by Horde Armies if their commanders are half decent.
So there you have it. Be careful with how you use Vets, and remember; Cool is not the same as Effective.
Reds
Veterans
Now, I know these guys are awesome. Packing 3 Special Weapons and possibly a Heavy Weapon, hitting on 3+, and with the ability to get a Demo charge, a 4+ armour save, or a 3+ cover save, and counting as a troop choice, it's hard to resist the temptation to pack your army list full of these guys. After all, what's cooler then having an army made up of some of the best, most experienced troopers in the Imperial Guard? Also, since GW has repackaged the Cadian and Catachan troopers so you only get 10, Veterans are a very attractive choice for those starting out, or people who don't want to spend too much.
There is a downside, though. Several, in fact. They are too few and too expensive to make a good core for your army, and other units can do that job for less. For instance, a Veteran Squad with 3 Plasma Guns and Carapace will set you back 145pts. For 120pts, you can get a Platoon HQ with 3 Plasma guns, give the officer a Plasma Pistol, and have a medic backing them up. Yes, they may hit a little less often, but they have a better chance of surviving a plasma overheat (5+ armour AND Feel No Pain, as opposed to just a 4+ armour save), and you save 25pts, which you can use elsewhere.
Another example are "Dakka Vets". These are Vet Squads with 3 Grenade Launchers (or sometimes Sniper Rifles), a Heavy Weapon like an Autocannon, and Camo Cloaks. People will often take tow or three squads of these as a gunline. Well, each of those squads is 125pts, so three of them would cost 375pts. For the same cost, you could get 5 Infantry Squads with Grenade Launchers and Heavy Bolters, and a Platoon HQ with 4 Grenade Launchers. Not only is this another 25 men to absorb hits and put out shots, but you still get the same number of Grenade Launcher shots, 6 more Heavy Bolter shots, and more troop choices to grab objectives. Again, you aren't hitting quite as much, but you have a lot more shots, which makes up for it (and then some). You also have a 4+ cover save instead of a 3+, but, again, it's better to have 55 more men with a slightly worse cover save, then just 30 with a slightly better one.
A good example of this is when I fought Aeon this past weekend. He took 2 Squads of Dakka Vets for a core gunline, I took a full platoon. He had lost almost all of his gunline buy the top of turn 2, and I had yet to take a single casualty.
Here are a few things you SHOULD NOT do with your Veterans
-Use them as a gunline: Infantry platoons are much better at this simply because they're designed for it. They can take up to 5 HW Sections, instead of the single Team that Vets can, they have more bodies to absorb fire, and the Platoon HQ is great for taking Flamers for a counter charge unit, or Plasma to mess up so MEQs
-Do not stack upgrades unless you need to: Try not to take more then one of the three upgrade options unless you need to. Take Carapace if your Vets have Plasma Guns (and they should only if your Platoon HQ is being used for something else), Demolitions if they're going tank hunting or dropping out of Valks, and cam Cloaks if they're grabbing objectives. Try not to mix these roles unless you absolutely have to.
-Have more Vet Squads then Infantry Platoons: There are obviously going to be exceptions to this, but I find a good rule of thumb is to have 1 Vet Squad for every Platoon (even if it's only 25 men).
-Take only Veterans: This builds is related to what I just said about the Platoon/Vet ratio, but it's important enough to repeat. If you only take Veterans, you will have about the same number of men on the table that a Marine player does, and your Vets are nowhere NEAR as good as a Tac squad. They are not Marines, and there is no reason to have them cost as much, ever, because they cannot be as good. Marine Players will have a 3+ armour save and a 4+ cover save (if they're smart) to keep them in action. Your Vets,depending on how you upgrade them, will have a 4+ and 4+, or a 5+ and 3+ (If you've given them a 4+ and 3+, smack yourself with your codex and swap them out for a 25 man Infantry Platoon).
The upshot of all this is that you have less men, like Marines, who aren't that durable, unlike Marines. You'll be shot apart by Gunline Armies, squashed flat by Mech Armies, and ripped to shreds by Horde Armies if their commanders are half decent.
So there you have it. Be careful with how you use Vets, and remember; Cool is not the same as Effective.
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