Tactica Astartes: Special Rules

[Fetterkey]

This post comprises the first of several threads that will eventually comprise a complete Tactica for the 5th Edition Space Marine Codex. As each segment of the full Tactica is quite long, it has been separated into individual threads for ease of view and discussion. As I am new to the whole Tactica game, please let me know if my formatting is insufficient or can otherwise be improved. I am going to start from the top here, so this section deals with the special rules that help define a Space Marine army.

 

 

 

1.1: And They Shall Know No Fear

All non-Fearless Space Marines benefit from And They Shall Know No Fear (ATSKNF for short). This ability allows Marine units to automatically reform after falling back, even if they have taken over 50% casualties. Further, Marine units cannot be automatically overrun if they are caught by enemy units in close combat-- instead, they merely take No Retreat wounds. This fundamentally changes the abilities of Marine units as compared to other units without ATSKNF. When a Marine unit fails a morale check, it merely drops backwards 2d6" and is ready to move and fight the next turn; when a non-Marine unit fails a morale check, it retreats the same distance, has to test in order to reform, cannot move normally, and is unable to reform at all if it has taken sufficient losses. That said, ATSKNF is not infallible. A savvy player will keep his units close to enemies that are in danger of falling back in order to prevent their reform, ATSKNF or no ATSKNF. Further, ATSKNF does not protect from pinning weapons such as sniper rifles or mortars. Thus, while Space Marines are highly resilient to morale effects, they are not totally immune. However, they are still superior to those units that do not benefit from ATSKNF, and can pull off maneuvers that would be extremely risky for any other force. With All On Your Own checks removed from the game, ATSKNF is better than ever, as it means your troops will usually keep fighting, even down to the last man.

 

 

 

1.2: Combat Squads

Second, the core infantry of the Space Marine army possess the Combat Squads ability. New to Marines in their 5th edition incarnation, this ability allows you to split full ten-man squads into two five-man squads, which then operate independently. This ability offers great potential, especially when used by Tactical Squads. Essentially, it allows you to make your units more efficient by minimizing the number of Marines who are stuck doing nothing when the heavy weapon has to take a shot. While Tactical Squads in previous Codices often ran into trouble when trying to use heavy weapons, the new Codex has no such weakness. Through the use of Combat Squads, one element of the Tactical Squad can stand back to fire the heavy weapon and claim home objectives, while the other can advance with the Sergeant and special weapon and engage the enemy at close range. This allows you to concentrate your firepower more effectively, and also makes "split role" squads viable. Essentially, Combat Squads allow a unit that would otherwise be focused in two different areas to instead split into two units, each focused in one area. This is not always ideal-- in some cases, keeping your Marines together can allow for increased survivability, especially if you intend to enter hand-to-hand combat-- but provides an option that can greatly increase your army's efficiency if used properly. More details regarding Combat Squads will be provided in the specific unit entries for units that can benefit from it; for now, just know that it is an option and that it can be effective in the right hands.

 

 

 

1.3: Combat Tactics

In addition to those rules mentioned above, all Space Marines (or at least all Space Marines taken from the generic Codex) also possess either Combat Tactics or one of the variant Chapter Tactics. Units with the standard Combat Tactics may voluntarily fail Morale checks. On first glance, you might not understand why failing a check would be useful. However, there are several cases in which this can be turned to your advantage. The three most common cases are outlined below; as you become more experienced with Marines, you will likely gain a more precise understanding of when to use this rule and when to avoid it.

 

First, Combat Tactics may be used to deny charges. If the enemy shoots your unit and you suffer 25% casualties or more, you can voluntarily fail your Morale check at the end of the Shooting phase and fall back. And They Shall Know No Fear will allow you to immediately reform, as long as the enemy isn't threatening your fallback corridor, and the fall back move can easily take you out of range of enemy assault troops.

 

Second, Combat Tactics may be used to prevent you from being locked in assault. If one of your units is charged and beaten in close combat, you probably want to fall back immediately so that you can shoot the enemy assault unit in your next turn. Combat Tactics means that you don't rely on dice to see whether your men try to make it out, while And They Shall Know No Fear minimizes the risk of being overrun. In many cases, though, you actually want your unit to be destroyed rather than remain in assault. This is another point in favor of Combat Squads, as their small size makes it comparatively likely that the No Retreat! wounds will finish them off if they are unfortunate enough to be caught. Note that you never want to do this during your own assault phase, except in extreme special cases, as the enemy will simply shoot and charge you on his turn. Note that this does not work if your unit draws combat or beats the enemy.

 

Last but not least, Combat Tactics, when combined with And They Shall Know No Fear, may be used to effectively break pinning. If you've taken 25% casualties or more and are pinned, simply fall back; in most cases, it's better to be 2d6" back than it is to do nothing next turn. This is also a good combination with Go to Ground; if a unit gets caught in the open by an enemy Demolisher cannon or another similarly deadly attack, feel free to hit the deck for that 6+ cover save. In all likelihood, this will preserve one or two members of the squad, where most or all would die otherwise, and by using Combat Tactics to fall back afterwards, you can break pinning for the remaining models and let them continue the fight on your next turn.

 

A savvy opponent will soon grow wise to your use of Combat Tactics and refrain from shooting your units in situations that might allow them to maneuver into a superior position; however, even if you never actually get a chance to actively exercise your Tactics, this is still a net gain, as it essentially means that simply by virtue of playing Space Marines, you've disrupted the enemy's own tactics and forced him to play differently than he does most of the time. One warning, however-- if you are close to your table edge (or any table edge in a mission without an "own" edge), it can be unsafe to fall back, as units that fall back off the edge of the board count as being destroyed. This "danger zone" increases for bikes and jump pack troops, which fall back further than normal units. Therefore, in order to use Combat Tactics effectively, you must advance onto the board in order to give yourself room to maneuver. Fortunately, you generally want to be doing this anyway.

 

 

 

1.4: Chapter Tactics

Some special characters in the Space Marine Codex have a rule called Chapter Tactics. This rule is unique in that it does not apply only to the character, but rather replaces Combat Tactics for every model in your army. Taking such characters thus changes the playstyle of your entire force, and should not be done lightly. If you happen to have multiple characters who possess Chapter Tactics, you get to choose which version you'd prefer to use. However, if you take one of these characters, you cannot opt to use the standard Combat Tactics rule, regardless of whether you have multiple versions of Chapter Tactics in play or not. There are five different characters who have a Chapter Tactics rule: Chapter Master Pedro Kantor, Captain Darnath Lysander, Shadow Captain Kayvaan Shrike, Forgefather Vulkan He'stan, and Kor'sarro Khan. Kantor and Lysander replace Combat Tactics with the Stubborn universal special rule, Shrike replaces Combat Tactics with the Fleet universal special rule, He'Stan eliminates Combat Tactics altogether but twin-links your melta and flamer weapons, and Khan replaces Combat Tactics with the ability to outflank.

 

Being Stubborn, sadly for all those Imperial/Crimson Fists players out there, is not particularly good for Space Marines. In fact, I would consider Stubborn a general downgrade from Combat Tactics. The reason for this is simple: Stubborn units can be locked in assault incredibly easily. Space Marines, at least in normal builds, don't want to be locked in assault, and Combat Tactics helps prevent this. As Chapter Tactics replace Combat Tactics, taking Lysander or Kantor makes your force far more vulnerable to being locked in assault. Generally, that's a bad thing; however, in specialized, assault-focused army builds, it is less disadvantageous. Stubborn does have its benefits, however. A Stubborn unit is far harder to push off an objective than one without this rule, and being Stubborn also makes your Marines more resilient to certain attacks that cause Leadership penalties. Such attacks are generally rare, but can be extremely dangerous. If you want to take Lysander or Kantor, you should make sure that your army includes strong assault or counterassault elements so that you don't have to worry about being trapped in hand-to-hand combat with a superior foe. You will also have to be significantly more attentive to the placing of your units, as you can't employ Combat Tactics to get out of a bad spot. In summary, Stubborn Space Marines are very difficult to dislodge from their positions; however, they are very vulnerable to assault if caught out of position.

 

Fleet is an interesting ability for a Marine army, but not one that is necessarily good for the majority of units. It greatly benefits assault-oriented squads, while providing little to no advantage for more firepower-oriented units. If you take Shrike and therefore replace Combat Tactics with Fleet, many of your units will forfeit Combat Tactics for an ability that is situational at best. Fortunately, several other units, including the mighty Assault Terminators, are significantly improved by this ability, as it often gets them into assault a turn earlier. If you choose to field Shrike, you will lose out on the benefits Combat Tactics provides in exchange for allowing your units a significantly greater average charge radius. When combined with Shrike's ability to infiltrate along with a unit, this can even lead to lethal turn one assaults. This ability is obviously most useful when taken in an aggressive army that includes a large number of assault units; in a standard fire-and-maneuver army, it will provide little benefit and is probably not worth losing Combat Tactics over.

 

Vulkan He'stan is a special case. Rather than giving all your units a new rule to replace the old one, he improves specific weapons in your army, namely flamers, heavy flamers (but not flamestorm cannons), meltaguns, multi-meltas, and thunder hammers. This benefit is significant but comes at a high price. As many armies have begun to take flamer and melta weapons in order to compensate for the improved cover and more resilient vehicles of 5th edition, He'stan can seem extremely appealing. However, one should be wary; losing Combat Tactics has its drawbacks, and those drawbacks may outweigh the improved weapons performance that these Chapter Tactics can provide, especially in armies more oriented towards long-range firepower. If you do take Vulkan, you should obviously include as many of the weapons he improves as possible so that you get the most bang for your buck.

 

Last but not least, Kor'sarro Khan and his Chapter Tactics allow your units to outflank. This ability can be useful; it forces the enemy to cluster his troops in the center of the board, allows units coming in from Reserves to be a threat even late in the game, and potentially allows you to assault the enemy without ever being fired upon. However, holding units in Reserves can also be dangerous, as you risk coming in piecemeal and having each unit isolated and destroyed as it enters the battlefield. Therefore, this ability is probably best used by players who have a good understanding of the flow of the game and a solid grasp of when one should hold forces in Reserves and when one should deploy on the field proper. If you do not intend to hold forces in Reserve, do not know how to do so effectively, or do not have troops that gain much by doing so, you should not take Khan; if you often find yourself deploying significant elements of your force in Reserve, he may be right for your army.

[Sternguard sergeant McColl]

Nice topic, although IMO you are kind of over emphasizing how effective combat tactics is. Still this is a very interesting read that will spark a lot of debate and thought on how to effectively use SM's without a Special character. I can say I'll definitely be following this all of the way, because to be frank I'm not very astute at using combat tactics.

[Fetterkey]

Just a bit of perspective on the whole Combat Tactics thing-- I started playing Warhammer 40,000 back in 3rd edition. In Andy Chambers's designer notes for the 3rd edition rulebook, he mentioned that voluntary fallback was considered to be a good idea, but that they kept it as an optional/house rule largely because it would make Space Marine armies much better than they would be otherwise. I agree with his assessment, and now that Combat Tactics have been added to the Space Marine Codex, we can begin reaping the benefits of that no-longer-optional rule.

[Sternguard sergeant McColl]

Interesting, Didn't know that. Only been playing warhammer since last september. B&C has been a huge contributor to helping me learn the game and I consider myself a little bit of an experiment in that regard; how much can one learn about warhammer in one year granted i've gone completely overboard? Anyway I'm not going to try to derail the topic anymore, good luck to you!

[waaanial00]

Fetterkey - A few things here, which on the surface may seem to be nit picking but some of them are important.

 

1.1 -

 

Should be No Retreat wounds rather than fearless wounds. I know most people know that it is basically the same thing but in a tactica for new players they will not know the distinction and it will be easier to look up in the rulebook.

 

Your statement "...and is ready to fight next turn", whilst correct implies that they are considered reformed after they have run back 2D6". They actually reform at the start of their turn as per normal, they just dont have to take a morale check to do so. This may not seem like an important disctinction to make but given that the enemy can close to 6" distance in their own turn and deny you the benefit is a well used tactic. Some arguments might get caused if you dont spell it out properly.

 

Might be worth highlighting that they do not count as moving when they reform. Its a nuiance that many do not realise and therefore do not use the freshly reformed marines to full effect.

 

You also dont point out the all important thing of them not being immune to going to ground or pinning using this rule. Its messed me up a lot.

 

1.3

 

Might be a point to emphasise that in certain circumstances combat tactics are really not helpful. In particular when you are being tarpitted by a unit which you are either beating by a small margin or are level pegging. Because you are not losing this combat you cannt bug out of it no matter how much you might wish. It can be a very frustrating experience which I know all too often.

 

Also combat tactics plus ATSKNF is sometimes a kick in the pants if you are fighting a high initiative unit which is busy mashing your marines in combat. Sweeping advance turning into no retreat rolls means that even when you want to bug out of a combat with said unit you cant always do so because you are trapped in whilst losing more marines for the pleasure.

 

I concur with you about stopping the enemy shooting at you going into combat. You can really drive the enemy to distraction with their inability to soften up units just before a charge for fear of you running away and leaving them high and dry.

 

1.4

 

Whilst I disagree with you about Stubborn you have a point. In some circumstances you want that tactical squad to get the hell out of dodge so you can shoot the damn thing.

 

However there is a flip side to this coin, there are some times when you want that damn tactical squad to hold the enemy who is superior enough to force a LD but not completely maul you.

 

These times are usually when you need to be able to dedicate a lot of shooting to a high priority unit and dont want to have to split fire. In this case charging a stubborn unit of 10 marines into a Demon Prince will hold it up effectively for at least two turns because it cant kill all your units in one go and cant capitalise on assault gains.

 

Also take the scenario of a tactical squad facing off agaisnt a slightly better combat squad near to your board edge. Do you really want that -2 combat res to push you off the board, especially when each combat you stay on it means one less unit getting killed?

 

The added benefit of stubborn is that it is effectively (with a high enough leadership) making your unit fearless without the negative benefits. This makes things like Assault Squads better as they can grind the enemy down without worrying about combat resolution making them run or killing more because the chaplain has made them fearless.

 

By the way I am not arguing the toss because I am a CF player, I have tried and tested Lysander (dont like Kantor) and found his Stubborn the best thing about him. I am currently playing without stubborn and there are times and enemies I face where I really would pay additional points to keep the stubborn ability.

 

I also disagree with you about normal builds, as demonstrated with the above example, there are times when regardless of what you have in your army you could do with having an effective roadblocking unit. LD9 is great unit you start losing key holding combats at -3 modifiers then your unit is going to be either running or losing even more with sweeping advance (if you are unlucky to roll low).

 

I am not saying that Stubborn is better than CT its far too much of a sweeping statement to justify. But you shouldnt generalise either by saying that marines are better off without the stubborn ability. Combat Tactics has enough flaws that sometimes you are better off not using it either, generalising that marines are better off without it because of said flaws is a bit much especially in a tactical overview.

 

Generally -

 

I agree with the previous poster. This seems less of a general overview of the tactical application of each of the special rules and more of a "Why Combat Tactics is better". As a tactical guide for the community it is much more useful to go down the route of application rather than comparison.

 

Drawing each of the Chapter Tactics back to combat tactics is smart but too much direct comparison based on personal preference diminishes the worth of what you are writing. It is enough to put it as a header that there are drawbacks of going with Combat Tactics and leave it at that. The pros and cons of chosing certain Chapter Tactics are strong enough for people to make a decision and you have already laid out how combat tactics can be used to better your game.

 

It is good but could be made better IMO.

 

Wan

[Fetterkey]

Should be No Retreat wounds rather than fearless wounds. I know most people know that it is basically the same thing but in a tactica for new players they will not know the distinction and it will be easier to look up in the rulebook.

Good point, fixed.

 

 

Your statement "...and is ready to fight next turn", whilst correct implies that they are considered reformed after they have run back 2D6". They actually reform at the start of their turn as per normal, they just dont have to take a morale check to do so. This may not seem like an important disctinction to make but given that the enemy can close to 6" distance in their own turn and deny you the benefit is a well used tactic. Some arguments might get caused if you dont spell it out properly.

I understand this, but being forced to fall back during your own turn is rare enough that I felt adding it would be confusing.

 

 

Might be worth highlighting that they do not count as moving when they reform. Its a nuiance that many do not realise and therefore do not use the freshly reformed marines to full effect.

Good point, added.

 

 

You also dont point out the all important thing of them not being immune to going to ground or pinning using this rule. Its messed me up a lot.

This is actually advantageous, but I added a mention anyway.

 

 

Might be a point to emphasise that in certain circumstances combat tactics are really not helpful. In particular when you are being tarpitted by a unit which you are either beating by a small margin or are level pegging. Because you are not losing this combat you cannt bug out of it no matter how much you might wish. It can be a very frustrating experience which I know all too often.

I expand on this idea later, but I added a brief mention anyway.

 

 

Also combat tactics plus ATSKNF is sometimes a kick in the pants if you are fighting a high initiative unit which is busy mashing your marines in combat. Sweeping advance turning into no retreat rolls means that even when you want to bug out of a combat with said unit you cant always do so because you are trapped in whilst losing more marines for the pleasure.

True, though I find that if you use small units this isn't a problem. Usually the No Retreat wounds are enough to finish the unit off in the case that it does get caught after running.

 

 

These times are usually when you need to be able to dedicate a lot of shooting to a high priority unit and dont want to have to split fire. In this case charging a stubborn unit of 10 marines into a Demon Prince will hold it up effectively for at least two turns because it cant kill all your units in one go and cant capitalise on assault gains.

I don't find this to be an efficient use of troops, and I am skeptical of most ten-man squads in the first place. Your mileage may vary.

 

 

Also take the scenario of a tactical squad facing off agaisnt a slightly better combat squad near to your board edge. Do you really want that -2 combat res to push you off the board, especially when each combat you stay on it means one less unit getting killed?

I mention this at the end of the Combat Tactics section; in general, Space Marines should not be near their own board edge.

 

 

The added benefit of stubborn is that it is effectively (with a high enough leadership) making your unit fearless without the negative benefits. This makes things like Assault Squads better as they can grind the enemy down without worrying about combat resolution making them run or killing more because the chaplain has made them fearless.

Yes, as I mentioned, Stubborn is much better for assault units.

 

 

I also disagree with you about normal builds, as demonstrated with the above example, there are times when regardless of what you have in your army you could do with having an effective roadblocking unit. LD9 is great unit you start losing key holding combats at -3 modifiers then your unit is going to be either running or losing even more with sweeping advance (if you are unlucky to roll low).

I get into this more later, but I generally find that standard Marines are insufficient roadblock/tarpit units, Stubborn or no Stubborn. Fortunately, several other units in the Codex can be used to this effect.

 

 

I am not saying that Stubborn is better than CT its far too much of a sweeping statement to justify. But you shouldnt generalise either by saying that marines are better off without the stubborn ability. Combat Tactics has enough flaws that sometimes you are better off not using it either, generalising that marines are better off without it because of said flaws is a bit much especially in a tactical overview.

]

I feel that standard Marine builds benefit from Combat Tactics and are penalized by Stubborn. Though Stubborn can help in specific cases, it is not good as an army-wide ability unless you have an assault-based army. I get into alternate uses of Stubborn later on in my section on allies, but I think that Chapter Tactics: Stubborn hurts the core units of the army in most cases, and there are other, better ways to provide high leadership to key units.

 

 

Drawing each of the Chapter Tactics back to combat tactics is smart but too much direct comparison based on personal preference diminishes the worth of what you are writing. It is enough to put it as a header that there are drawbacks of going with Combat Tactics and leave it at that. The pros and cons of chosing certain Chapter Tactics are strong enough for people to make a decision and you have already laid out how combat tactics can be used to better your game.

 

It is good but could be made better IMO.

 

Wan

Thanks for your criticism. I've made several changes to the text. In my section on special characters, I elaborate more on Chapter Tactics; hopefully, the expanded explanations will be more to your liking. :P

[ShinyRhino]

Why was I oblivious to the ability of Combat Tactics to allow you to fall back after a Shooting phase morale check? That might have saved my bacon several times over when facing Orks or Nids.

 

Also, in a Spearhead mission, don't you only fall back toward your own long table edge?

[Brother_Kluft]

Also, Marines still cannot regroup if there is a enemy model within 6 inches of them. So marines still can be run off the board. Hence you should be careful when falling back using combat tactics, cause the enemy might just follow you!

[Fetterkey]

ShinyRhino: Yes, isn't it great? Looking over the rules, you're also right re: Spearhead missions, so I've amended that segment. This makes Combat Tactics even better than I thought, since my group's apparently been playing Spearhead missions wrong for quite some time now.

 

Brother_Kluft: Correct. One more reason to avoid losing assault in your own turn.