ok.. new tactics required!

[Horst]

I got pretty darn destroyed this tournament at 1500. Trying to think of how to fix my list for 1850, because I really like the concept of guard + blood angel reinforcements.

Here's my new list for 1850.

HQ - Astorath the Grim - 220 pts
HQ- IG Company Command (Astropath, 2x flamers) - 90 pts

Troops - 10 man Death Company squad (power fist, 2x power ax) - 255 pts
Troops - 10 man Death Company squad (thunder hammer, 2x power ax) - 260 pts

Troops - IG Infantry Platoon - 285 pts
Platoon Command - Autocannon, Commissar - 75 pts
Platoon Squad I - 10x guardsmen (autocannon + flamer) - 65 pts
Platoon Squad II - 10x guardsmen (autocannon + flamer) - 65 pts
Platoon Squad III - 20x Conscripts - 80 pts

Fast Attack - 10 man Vanguard squad (2x power ax, 2x melta bomb, jump packs - 340 pts

Heavy - Stormraven (multimelta, TL assault cannon) - 200 pts
Heavy - Stormraven (multimelta, TL assault cannon) - 200 pts




Yea... this fixes, I think, the two major things that killed me.

1) Vanguard come in on turn 2 like 99% of the time with this list... able to re-roll reserves because they are jump infantry with blood angels, and able to come in on only 1d6 scatter, they should be fairly reliable for getting where I need them. Combat squad them and they can strike 2 targets. Their main purpose will be to go after squads that have sufficient anti-aircraft potential to take down the storm ravens. They are, effectively, the vanguard of my army (cool, huh? Vanguard units are the vanguard! Who'd have thunk it?) and act fast to neutralize the main threat to my death company. In the event there is more than 2 units that offer significant threat to my stormravens, the ravens will just have to try to focus fire the third unit down.


2) The conscripts will prevent me from losing the way I did in game 3. I'll bubble wrap the rest of my infantry in them, and the commissar will ensure they live for a good while. No more tabling me with turn 2 assaults... they will survive the first round of assaults, and if need by the vanguard can come in on turn 2 to pull the guard's ass out of the fire.



I -do- lose the Aegis line with this, so I won't have 2+ cover saves for going to ground, but I gain an additional 21 guard bodies on the field, so I think I'm still going to be as hard to displace with shooting.

[Staff]

A few things on the guard section:

1. The commissar needs to be in one of the platoon standard squads if you want him to be effective, that way if you combine the squads then the commissar will be keeping 20ish men in the fight, where as you currently set up for the commissar to keep 4 models in line. Also you might want to give him a power weapon for challenge antics, you can have the standard Sgt accept the challenge and then the commissar can hit the enemy squad with his power weapon.

2. I wouldn't use the conscripts, I think you've been misinformed if you're planning to move the commissar to the conscripts, he isn't an IC, he's permanently attached to his starting squad. So in affect you have a squad that will be 5 dead guardsmen away from taking an LD 4 test. If you want to get a commissar in there you need a commissar lord to join it.

3. I would give the CCS the auto cannon and move the Flamers to the Platoon command Squad, that way the CCS can use it's BS 4 and the flamers don't rob the BS 3 platoon command of much. If you were planning to hide CCS for most of the game and have them run out to double flame I think you need to remember that most orders require the target to be in LOS of the company commander, so you might as well fire a long range weapon while giving the orders.

Also I'd suggest you switch the infantry squad flamers for grenade launchers to mesh with the Auto cannons better, I assume the flamers are there to torch enemy units that get too close/ overwatch hits but I don't think you'll find that very useful for most games.

4. Use an ADL, if you want those guard to live you'll need the extra cover, and possibly the added heavy weapon.

Feel free to use any of these ideas, if you want some better advice ask Lucko, he is easily the best guard player in Rochester. Hands down

[Horst]

well, if I dropped the special weapons (the flamers) and the commissar, I could take a 3rd infantry squad with an autocannon and an aegis defense line w/ icarus lascannon. I think I like the lascannon more, because it can punch holes in av12 much easier.