# Army Selection Tactics



## Mastermime (Mar 27, 2009)

First of all I must apologise for my lack of activity on this glorious site, it has always been a wealth of information to me and I thought it time to put some back.

I've been an avid fan of 40k since the glory days of 2nd ed where a turn took three days to complete and vortex grenades were feared by Chapter Masters the galaxy over. Over the years I've seen the best and the worst the game has had to offer and fielded most of the worst myself, but I have, against better judgement managed to pick up a few tips and tactics that have led me to victory (On the odd occasion the Dice Gods accepted my sacrifices that is!)

*1. Stick to your strengths.*

This one is pretty simple, in theory. Each army has its own particular preference when cutting a bloody swathe across the galaxy, and each is as unique as the last. The key is to maximise this difference to its full potential. There is no point taking a fearsome army of Khorne Berzerkers if they can't get into CC is there?

CHEESE! I hear you cry? Well, I have to dissagree here I'm afraid. Focusing upon a strength forces your opponent to rapidly re-think his stratagems on the fly. Yes, he may be geared up to take on two or three mobs of boys, but four 30 strong shoota mobs led by Ghazgul and Old Zogwart? I think not. What is he going to do with all those Lascannons he bought to deal with the trukks and wagons he was hoping you'd field? By maximizing your strength, in this case, a Goff Boyz Mob Army you render vast amounts of the atypical 'All Comers' army innefectual. By fielding an armoured column you render all those Big Shootas obsolete, and so and so on.

Plus, by maximising your strengths you add character to your army, make it themed. Yes, you may sacrifice some cool toys or tricks, but you gain a massive advantage that you can exploit at your opponent's dismay.

Now obviously I'm not condoning ridiculous army lists full of house rules and 2d tactics but thoughtful, well considered and above all characterful choices. Nobody wants to see three baneblades as your three compulsory choices, but a Leman Russ Column can be a really individual and difficult army to beat.

*2. Know your Enemy.*

You'd think this one goes without saying, well, you'd be wrong miladdio, very wrong.

Not knowing what weapons render "We'll be back" usless or being unaware that Guardsmen now fire a bajillion shots can easily cost you the game. Just as your army has a certain strength it exells at, so does your opponents. Knowing what to expect puts the advantage back in your favour. My golden tip here is this: Leave some wiggle room in your list.

Don't give it a massive overhaul and replace every model in your army for one that has a power weapon and plasma pistol, just leave a few points here and there for commanders, squad leaders and vehicles to 'Tool Up' accordingly. Change a sponson here or a pistol there, nothing drastic, just a slight nudge in the right direction. After all, it's a game not a personal vendetta, and nobody likes taking on "Anti-insert your army name here" Armys, it's just not fun and you'll soon find yourself down a player.

For Imperial and Chaos Players I find your best bet for covering the draw is simply to take a nice mix of Heavy Bolters and Missile Launchers. It will save you a fortune on replacement models and should still give you all the firepower you need to tackle just about everything.

*3. Cover the Spread.*

Ok, this where I burst all the bubbles. 40k is not a game of unique and flawed armies fighting over a wartorn galaxy for reasons corrupted by the long aeons. It is in fact, a game of mathematics, plain and simple.

The simplest way to boil it down is this: A unit costs X points and in order to be considered cost effective it must be able to remove X+1 points from the enemy army. Therefore there is absolutley no point putting all your points into one massive "Super Killy Unit" if it can't possibly redeem the prodigious amount of points you spent on it before the enemy drops the hammer on it.

For example, there is no reason to take a Leman Russ Exterminator when three Sentinels with Lascannons can do the same job of hunting tanks, and have a better chance of redeeming their points too. All it takes to destroy the Leman Russ is one lucky shot, where three Sentinels have to take three shots before the unit is wiped out, simple mathematics yes?

Now, that is not to say that you shouldn't take a Leman Russ, but make sure you're certain it can pay for it's self first. (See Point 2) The same goes for infantry too. Is that unit of tooled Nobz more capable of redeeming its points than the 20 man strong Mob of Boyz?

To summarize; An army is like a stock portfolio, you must gamble with your investments. You want them to make a return so you spread them out over as many as possible to minimize the risk of a few crashing.

*4. Stick to the Plan!*

Now I for one love an all out Meatgrinder as much as the next guy, but apparently sometimes you have to concentrate on things other than kicking the teeth out of the enemy. 

I am of course, talking about scenario objectives. It is a common mistake in 40k to completely forget about taking that fuel dump while you're gleefully taking your chainsword out of a stomach. Sometimes charging headlong into the enemy, or standing back and blasting the marrow out of them can be the wrong thing to do, especially against the more manuverable armies out there. (Tau, Eldar, Dark Eldar etc). In most games objectives are the key, and holding them is vital. This is where a nice well rounded army that hasn't skimped on basic troops comes in handy. Space Marines in particular start with an advantage in this respect as the humble Scout can start the game snugly inside a terrain piece and possibly hold it all game. Selecting a large amount of troops in the modern game is often the key to winning games, as only troops can hold objectives, and yes, they may not be glamourous, but they can do the job just as well. There's a reason you have six Troop slots you know.

And Finally....

*Have Fun, I'ts Only a Game!*

Need I say more? Sadly, yes. I have seen players take the game far too seriously and lose their rags, I have seen Power Gamers become so smug and beardy they never get a game and I have seen players get too enthusiatic, buy up all the models they can at once and then cry as the realise the monumental task before them. (I include myself in this last catagory...So many Iron Warriors!:cray: )

Bottom line, 40k is a hobby and a game, it's supposed to be fun, for everybody involved not just you and your baneblade in a friendly 1k game.

Take your time and build the army at your pace, if you only buy a squad every other month, fine, not everyone is a speed painter with too much free time on their hands. I still have models I've meaning to paint for years now.

Take some time and decide on the theme of your force, the paint scheme, the conversions, the tactics and, if your like me, the 300 page backstory and honour roll and occasional blog from your commander on Myspace. :wink:

Don't be beardy but do read the rules, everyone uses them to their own advantage and forknowledge saves those time consuming moments when you have to thumb through the LRB for a commonly known rule. But, don't be that guy who measures six feet away from where the scatter dice landed in completley the wrong direction, I hate that guy.

I also feel I have to stress how annoying "Anti" armies are, just because your brother plays tau doesn't mean you have to take a CC tooled all drop pod and lascannon raven guard army just because it will rape the poor little blue buggers into a distant memory. The bottom line is this, your brother will simply not play you any more. Admittedly it is a lot harder to make these Beardy armies now, but they still happen every now and then and it's simply not fun to play against these armies. It is easer than you think to make a themed, well balanced and enjoyable army that doesn't rely on gamebreaking elites.

So, ranting aside, these are my Five key points to making a fun, balanced and gamewinning army. I hope they are of use to you all, and please no trolling, I can accept critizism and welcome the discussion eagerly.


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## Blammer (Nov 17, 2009)

Mastermime said:


> First of all I must apologise for my lack of activity on this glorious site, it has always been a wealth of information to me and I thought it time to put some back.
> 
> I've been an avid fan of 40k since the glory days of 2nd ed where a turn took three days to complete and vortex grenades were feared by Chapter Masters the galaxy over. Over the years I've seen the best and the worst the game has had to offer and fielded most of the worst myself, but I have, against better judgement managed to pick up a few tips and tactics that have led me to victory (On the odd occasion the Dice Gods accepted my sacrifices that is!)
> 
> ...


Nicely written and very true + rep for you.


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## Mastermime (Mar 27, 2009)

Thanks, I appreciate it.


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## HOBO (Dec 7, 2007)

I agree, well written and rings true for the most part.....but it's already been covered many times before now and on many Forums so nothing new really.


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## johnnymajic (Jan 2, 2009)

good work
+ rep


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

I disagree slightly, a unit does not have to kill its points back to warrant taking it. There are other factors that go towards unit selection.

Gaunts are a perfect example at the moment. They can't kill their points back easily, but they give you cover saves and also a good way at taking objectives.

Then theres redundancy. Sure those Sentinels might be enough AT, but if your opponent destorys them, then you might have no AT left. In that case a second unit will gurantee that you have AT and while it may notbe able to earn all its points back, it will be worth it if you lose the first unit.


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## HOBO (Dec 7, 2007)

There are a few ways to look at it, but I think they basically end up at the same place...that been a decent competitive all-comers list, that also happens to be fun to play with and hopefully against, but that comes down to the attitude of the players moreso than the list imo.

I build my lists by meeting the following criteria -
Mobility 
AV 10/11/12 destroyers
AV 13/14 destroyers
Infantry/MEQ/MC killers
Objective takers/holders
and as WLS also said - redundency, so multiples of the above and/or units that can multi-task.

Cover all these bases and you're well on your way....but it's nothing new.


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## Jackinator (Nov 18, 2008)

Good work, Plus rep
But I have to say I agree with Wolf_Lord_Skoll
If for example I take a 300pts unit of Meganobz complete with ork warboss and it gets annihilated by Imperial guard on the second turn, yeah I've just lost 300pts worth of models but the guard aregoing to be hurting even more when I hit them next turn. The Meganobz have drawn fire, sometimes a unit isn't good because its killed loads, sometimes it's good because it distracts fire etc.
After all, do you really expect a Rhino to kill it's points back?


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## Culler (Dec 27, 2007)

A lot of that does ring quite true. There are some points though that I don't quite agree with.

3 lascannon sentinels aren't necessarily tougher than one leman russ. Autocannons, lootas, and the like have a 47% chance of destroying a sentinel in a squadron per hit. Their chance of destroying a leman russ (from the front or side) is 0%.

And like Jackinator has said, one expensive unit that your enemy focuses on can be worth its points without earning them back by providing a distraction. When I run nob bikers this is what they end up doing. They're big and scary and usually get a few kills (though not earning their points back) and then die because my enemy is pointing everything in their army at them. By the time the nobs go, the rest of the horde is up in my opponent's face, and then it's too late to do anything about it.


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## Mastermime (Mar 27, 2009)

Hhmmm, I am forced to agree, all very good points and all valid. But perhaps I didn't explain myself clearly, a tendancy of mine I'm afraid.

This article is merely a beginners guide, a starting place for new players to get to grips with the game. I understand the need for fire magnets, they are worth their weight in gold, and I use them my self often. With my Ork Speed Freeks it's my Burna's Battle Wagon. Point 3 is aimed more at meat grinder missions and casualty heavy scenarios.

What I mean by Covering the Spread is: Lets say you're playing a thousand points do you take a 250 point Land Raider? Call me pessimistic, cowardly or whatever but putting a quarter of your army into a big single model is suicide. If you're looking for mobility take a much cheaper rhino as your mobile cover. If fire power is what you were looking for, take the cheaper Predator and spend the points elswhere.

I like to play with a lot of models, I try and absorb as much punishment as I can without it effecting the overall performance of my army. Yes I do have sacrificial units but they are not expensive ones. (Except the Battle Wagon, but I wanted one and I know what will happen to it so I pretend blowing it up was my idea.)

Culler, I do agree with your point, I play Speed freeks myself, but, why waste such an awesome unit when a cheaper Biker Mob would suffice as a kill screen for your Nobz to hide behind? My Nobs are probably not as loaded out as yours but I find they are fantastic at outflanking your enemy and hitting the tanks, a squad of Nobs easily reap their points back against taks. And, by using the bikers instead of the Nobs, you find the points deficit smaller to recoup.

Despite the points about Fire Magnets, I feel Covering the Spread is still a valid tactic and one that works well in Horde armies and the like, call me old fashioned but I like having numbers, rather than faith in big scary single models. Obviously this is just a guide and by no means a set of golden rules, whatever works for you stick with, I merely put this up here in the hope of helping newer players pick well balanced theme armies.

And thank you all very much for the feedback, much appreciated.


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## Culler (Dec 27, 2007)

Mastermime said:


> Despite the points about Fire Magnets, I feel Covering the Spread is still a valid tactic and one that works well in Horde armies and the like, call me old fashioned but I like having numbers, rather than faith in big scary single models. Obviously this is just a guide and by no means a set of golden rules, whatever works for you stick with, I merely put this up here in the hope of helping newer players pick well balanced theme armies.


I would say that perhaps instead of never having a big expensive unit, instead be very careful about it and make sure that it's worth it. It is easy to blow your points budget on less than optimal things, it's what I did when I first started so long ago.



Mastermime said:


> Culler, I do agree with your point, I play Speed freeks myself, but, why waste such an awesome unit when a cheaper Biker Mob would suffice as a kill screen for your Nobz to hide behind? My Nobs are probably not as loaded out as yours but I find they are fantastic at outflanking your enemy and hitting the tanks, a squad of Nobs easily reap their points back against taks. And, by using the bikers instead of the Nobs, you find the points deficit smaller to recoup.


Not quite sure what you mean. A cheaper biker mob wouldn't attract fire like the nobs nor be as resilient in taking it nor would they punish my enemy so severely for ignoring them. A warbiker mob also can't really screen nob bikers. They already have a 4+ cover save, screening them does nothing. If you're talking about warbikers screening nobs on foot, then the warbikers will quickly crumble and the foot nobs will be targeted anyway.
Perhaps you misunderstood my meaning when I say my nob bikers are fire magnets. I don't take them and wave them in my enemy's face hoping they'll get shot at, I ram them up my opponent's flank or down his gullet where they cut a bloody swath through my enemy unless they are stopped. This is why my enemy pretty much has to try to stop them, and since they're also so resilient this becomes no easy prospect (units like burnas that aren't resilient do not make good fire magnets because while they are dangerous and will be targeted, they lack the durability to endure such attention.)

Anyway, I wish someone had told me that my units don't need and in fact shouldn't take every upgrade possible back when I first started, which is what you seem to be saying.


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## Mastermime (Mar 27, 2009)

Culler said:


> I would say that perhaps instead of never having a big expensive unit, instead be very careful about it and make sure that it's worth it. It is easy to blow your points budget on less than optimal things, it's what I did when I first started so long ago.


A good point, and precisley what I meant. You seem to have boiled me down quite well.

I agree Fire Magnets are scary prospects, and it can be tempting to spend every last point you can on them, they often don't need them. I think what I am trying to say, as regards to how I play the game is when I see an expensive but small unit, or huge tank, I often think, he's going to get screwed when that dies.

I have nothing against massive units personally, I'm merely trying to offer an alternative here.

Anyway, thanks for the feedback, if I get the chance, I'll edit my original to include your points as they do make sense.


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