Tactica Imperial Guard

[Lord Cook]

Anybody else think they're unlikey to be this good/cheap next time....

Who cares? 'Next time' will be five or six years away.

[Logarithm Udgaur]

I care. I have already had it too good with Chaos 3.5. Now I have it to good with IG, so I do not expect to have it anything but bad when it gets re-done.

[Pendragon]

Don't touch with 10ft standard pole. Hit 1/2 of times, kills less than 1/3 of times, target often doesn't have LOS or has smokes/cover, and you find you're killing a tank with the main cannon less than once per game.

If you're using IA1:FAQ rules, then the Coaxial heavy stubber makes it 50% better within 36". It's still crap at killing tanks.

AP1 and BS4 MIGHT have made it ok at the anti-tank role.
Either that, or letting it keep its dual profile, with its main role same as the LRMBT with AT shells for back up, would have made it useful at another task for extra points.

As is it's not even half as good as a Manticore for taking out tanks, and Meltavets are better still than that.
Which is a shame, because the vanquisher is without doubt my favourite variant aesthetically.

With the new IA rules, it's a fairly good, if overpriced, mobile light infantry mower when equipped with two stubbers and a bolter. Well, at least compared to other tank hunters

[Captain Micha]

I would use an Exterminator with an Autocannon Gatling gun special. Rather than the Punisher.

Looks even cooler, costs far less points, and is actually good on the table top performance.

As for Two Executioners. Hey, you never know! Besides they are such sexy beasts why not? With the amount of Marine dexes you are likely to encounter at a given tournament you'd probably do very well for yourself

[IncrediSteve]

As for Two Executioners. Hey, you never know! Besides they are such sexy beasts why not? With the amount of Marine dexes you are likely to encounter at a given tournament you'd probably do very well for yourself

And it's certainly no slouch against hoard armies either; 5 disintegrating blast templates can take out numbers pretty reliably too!

It's also good for nicking transports with stray shots I've found. Rhinos, Trucks and Chimeras are fairly easily popped if a template deviates onto them.

[GIKvack]

Ok it's been referenced a few times by now, but I would just like to know can you really switch out the weapons on the new russ's without magnets? That doesn't seem like something GW would build into there models.

I'm asking because I have a few tanks already, but not many of the "new" ones since I started playing not long before they removed a bunch of these tanks the last time beside the truely new ones. I'll go out and by some more if they are easily changable... but I want to be really sure first.

I didn't even know they had the stuff to make the different tanks out yet... this sring and summer I got way to far removed from the hobby...

[Logarithm Udgaur]

All sources indicate they are easily swappable with slot/tab interfaces. You may need some Handi-tack (or local equivalent) to hold them in place though.

[Lord Cook]

I care. I have already had it too good with Chaos 3.5.

Nothing in our army is that broken. We won't get the same kind of knee-jerk reaction when our next update comes along.

[Lamoron]

All sources indicate they are easily swappable with slot/tab interfaces. You may need some Handi-tack (or local equivalent) to hold them in place though.

They are... you don't even need handi-tack... but this only applies to sponson weaponry... the main guns tend to fall of mine if not magnetised.

[Logarithm Udgaur]

Nothing in our army is that broken. We won't get the same kind of knee-jerk reaction when our next update comes along.

I can only hope. It is at least a few years in the future though, so I will enjoy our spanking new codex while it lasts.

Seeing as our thread has dropped down a bit on the page, I would appreciate any advice on the tourney list I will be playing on Oct 3-4. http://www.warseer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=218390
I have already turned in the list, so it cannot be changed. I would like advice on how you all think it will do against various tourney builds (double lash, nob bikers, etc..) and what tactics I might adopt to defeat them.

[Lord Cook]

For all those who contributed towards the Tactica PDF in one way or another, whether through advice, written articles or just consenting to the use of your pictures; it may interest you to know that we recently passed 1,500 downloads. Keep it up people. I need 70,000 downloads before they give me the free Rapidshare desktop USB webcam missile launcher. It fires nerf rounds and everything.


Anyway, thank you all for helping to make it a success. I also created accounts with every IG forum I could find and offered our work up there as well. 40kOnline immediately shelved it into obscurity citing "prohibited advertisement of other forums" , but Boot Camp, Librarium Online and the IG Message Board all proved to be gracious hosts. A selection of feedback for the benefit of our authors:

"Awesome guide, I'm only 10 pages in, it's going to be a long night."
~Canis13

"Wow, what a phenomenal guide! This... this is really really good stuff."
~Longinus

"I like most of it, but there are some issues I have, mostly with praising gimpy units as good and disagreements about unit assessments."
~==Me==

"I have to admit that for a comprehensive tactica, specifically from Warseer, it is better than I was expecting...
The problem for me right now is that it is so long it is difficult to sit down and critique it properly in anything less than say... 5 hours. "
~RecklessFable

"From what i've read it's an alright tacticia but i've seen much better."
~kevin vanrooyen

"I've not gotten a chance to look through this yet, myself, but I've heard good things about it from IG Players on other Boards."
~westrider

"I've just spent most of afternoon reading it, and as someone new to the imperial guard, yet to play game, I'd like to thank you and the other authors. It was very helpful and interesting!"
~Happyorange

"I really think you have something here that could make a valuable contribution, but it is currently limited by the sole viewpoint of a single author in each section."
~Macfeegle



Feedback was generally positive. Main issues revolved around "The advice is too basic", and "I disagree with point x made by author y", which are both entirely fair IMO. Notably, kevin vanrooyen did not provide a link to whatever he has seen that is 'far better'.

I would appreciate any advice on the tourney list I will be playing on Oct 3-4...

I'll take a look.

[Asymmetric]

A question for the mechanised players out there. Do you prefer to just go flat out 100% mechanised, or use a fat merged platoon (preferably in cover with a commissar) to anchor your objective and for the rest of your army to go mechanised.

I can understand the desire to go full mechanised on the simple principle of increasing target saturation for your enemy and I suspect this is where conventional wisdom lies, however... vets simply don't seem a cost effective way of hanging back and providing meaningful firepower nor are they particularly difficult to shift. Don't me get wrong, as Tony the Tiger would say "They're Grrrreeeeaaat," I just feel they are a little fragile, close ranged and pricey for the job of clinging onto my home objective.

Let me give you an example, this was the current army list I was intending to run:

HQ

Company Command Squad - 140
- 3xMeltas
- 1xFlamer
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Troops

Veteran Squad - 155
- 3xMeltas
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Veteran Squad - 155
- 3xMeltas
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Veteran Squad - 190
- 3xPlasma
- Autocannon
- Chimera (ML/HB/Pintle HS)

Veteran Squad - 190
- 3xPlasma
- Autocannon
- Chimera (ML/HB/Pintle HS)

Fast Attack

Vendetta - 140
- 3 Twin linked Lascannons
- Heavy Bolter Sponsors

Heavy Support

Leman Russ Battle Tank - 165
- Hull Lascannon

Leman Russ Executioner - 205
- Hull Lascannon

Manticore - 160
- Hull Heavy Flamer

1500 pts exactly. 6 Chimera chasis, 2 LR (one rear AV11), 1 Vendetta.
I'm a little "uncomfortable" just having a couple of plasma/autocannon vets holding the home objective.


What if this army however was changed to:

HQ

Company Command Squad - 140
- 3xMeltas
- 1xFlamer
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Troops

Veteran Squad - 155
- 3xMeltas
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Veteran Squad - 155
- 3xMeltas
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Infantry Platoon - 380

Platoon Command Squad
- 4xFlamers
- Chimera (ML/HF)

Infantry Squad 1
- Autocannon
- Commissar (PF)
- Power Fist Srg

Infantry Squad 2
- Autocannon
- Power Fist Srg

Infantry Squad 3
- Autocannon
- Power Fist Srg

(All 3 merged)

Fast Attack

Vendetta - 130
- 3 Twin linked Lascannons

Heavy Support

Leman Russ Battle Tank - 165
- Hull Lascannon

Leman Russ Executioner - 205
- Hull Lascannon

Leman Russ Battle Tank - 165
- Hull Lascannon

1500 pts exactly. 2 plasma/auto vets dropped for the platoon. Only lose one Chimera, changed the manticore to a second Russ to compensate for armour loss and the increased horde killing but decreased low AP ability of the platoon/vets change. 4 Chimera, 3 LR, 1 Vendetta. Lost a killpoint as well, which is always awesome. I slapped powerswords around on the reasoning that if their in cover, most enemies are probably going to have to drag them into CC to dig them out and 8 strength 6 no save attacks isn't bad for a good old fashioned tarpit.

Personally I am inclined just now to go to option 2, if anything with the proliferation of medium strength multi-shot anti mech weapons around I think I am going to get more mileage out of the third LR chasis anyway.



Advice welcome.

[CKO]

Having heavy weapons gives you an advantage over other mech list.

[ECZangief]

Very informative stuff, thanks guys.

[Volandum]

Seriously Asymmetric, what does changing a Manticore to a Russ to compensate for armour loss mean? Do you mean that you're going to give up on saturating AV12? Because Russes aren't going to draw fire from Chimera hulls.

[CKO]

He means av 14 at long range is tougher to crack then a hidden manticore.

[Volandum]

Sure it is. But it's just going to lead to more focussed fire on his AV12 hulls, making his lack of target saturation worse. Manticores would draw some of that fire away.

[CKO]

Who said he has to advance, he can go gunline and out shoot other mech list because of his firebase and wait for his opponent to come to him.

[Volandum]

I didn't say he had to advance. But he has AV12 that's going to draw fire - the Vendetta, say - and AV14 is not going to reduce fire to that AV12.

[CKO]

What long-range anti-tank is going to take out his av12 chimeras? If his two list were to play each other the only long-range anti-tank he has to worry about is the vendetta, manticoe, and battletank. He could simply sit back and out shoot the other list then advance.