Vanguard Veterans

[The DeathJester]

How do you equiped your vanguards?

 

Whats the Best Equipment for them?

[Meatman]

http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.p...pic=213767&

 

http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/index.p...pic=217097&

 

Those links should help, a quick search in the tactics section brings up loads of pages, but these ones looked most helpful. Enjoy!

[The DeathJester]

Thankyou,

[thade]

I hate to toot my own horn, but it made me smile how much I was quoted in both of those threads, and I only appeared in one of them.

 

Maybe it's, um, time for me to try another unit. @_@

 

In summary, here's the formula:

- A model never gets more than one upgrade; it gets ONE of the following: Power Fist, Single Lighting Claw/Power Weapon, Storm Shield

- For each model in the unit that has a weapon upgrade, have at least one model without a weapon upgrade.

- Take at least one power fist.

- Take at least one storm shield.

- Shoot for 6-8 models.

- Give them wheels, not jump packs.

- Do NOT use HI with them (unless you are BA...and even then, just give them wheels).

 

Here are some samples:

- vet with PF, 2 vets with single LCs, vet with SS, 4 vanilla vets

- 4 vets with LCs, vet with SS, 3 vanilla vets

- 1 vet with PF, 7 vanilla vets

- 10 vanilla vets

 

The last one is a favorite surprise of mine, because 40 vanilla face punches will ruin an assault terminator teams day. Add chaplain and you're allowed to spell out "LOL" as they charge the terminators.

[DarkGuard]

Thade, what do you think about a relic blade on the Sergeant? Or would you prefer the thunder hammer/power fist for the points discount, and rely on the relic blade from a HQ choice (if you're playing C:SM that is)?

 

Must admit I like you're set ups, and I'm tempted to try something similar, either on a Vanguard squad or my Command squad, but given the fact that any Vet can get a power fist, while on Captains, Chapter Masters and the Vanguard Sergeant can get a relic blade it would be a good place to pick it up.

[thade]

Back when I used the vanilla dex, I ran a Relic Blade on the sergeant a great deal. It's nice anti-infantry and hard to get them in your list otherwise (other than the vanilla Vanguard Sergeant, I think the only ways to get them are Honor Guard and Captain/Chapter Master). What's nice is you can still get a PF in the mix too if you want. I have nothing against it. It never dazzled me, but it looks cool and it's fun.

 

I never ran a melee-centric command squad because I never felt I could make it large enough to soak the kind of damage that a melee squad is going to take; it's not large enough to really fit with my formula. One guy with a fist, one guy with a claw, one guy with a shield, bolt pistol/chainsword vet, apothecary. Really with a unit that small you want to hit whatever you are charging at harder on the charge as a way of minimizing the potential return attacks. I4 is pretty typical though, so they're going to take the full brunt of it almost always when they charge; they WILL take losses.

 

That said, this is less of an issue if their goal is to counter-charge (i.e. a tactical squad is charged or charges in with them) then you might get away with the lack of ablative wounds. I've never tried them - or HG - really; I see too much value in ablative wounds to eschew them. Just my opinion though. Real reason I never painted up an HG is I changed the codex I'm using (to BA) last year.

[DarkGuard]

Thanks for the quick reply Thade, as helpful as usual :).

 

I would be very tempted to try out a Vanguard squad with a relic blade, thunder hammer and a couple of lightning claws and a couple of storm shields, but that would less left over bodies and more points spent on them. Maybe in a Rhino.

 

And the Command squad wouldn't be for serious gaming, I use my quad plasma then. No, that's when I feel like being more fluffy but still want them to do something. At the moment it's thunder hammer, CC and close combat weapons. Would add a lightning claw and a storm shield to make it better I think. However, I would rate Vanguard as better for the same reason as you do, more wounds. FnP don't mean nothing when you're being hit with power weapons, but superior numbers do.