Honour Guard - 4x PG?

[ServoBadger]

Hi all,

 

I've got a few bodies left over and four plasma guns in my bits box, and I'm thinking about an Honour Guard.  I usually avoid plasma like the plague because I object to paying points for stuff that seems to be actively trying to kill me, but I'm thinking about running them with a divination Librarian, which should hopefully stop at least SOME of them self-destructing on turn one!  They'll either be arriving by pod or Razorback.

 

Is this worth trying out, and if so should I be looking at other upgrades for the squad as well, or keep them simple?

 

Finally, how do you paint your Honour Guards?  Gold helmets or gold all over?

 

Thanks for any replies!

[Daddywarcrimes]

I went with just the gold helmets, reserving the full gold armor for Sanguinary Guard.  I like the idea of plasma Honour Guard and I experimented with 4 of them with jump packs back in 5th edition.  The cost deterred me so I built a squad with 4 flamers (3 and a storm bolter after the stupid wound allocation FAQ) instead during 6th.

 

Now, I'm back to the old reliable of 4 meltaguns with jump packs.

[Leonaides]

You dont even really need the librarian - the Priest gives FNP anyway and they are a bit of a glass hammer unit since there are only 5 models.

 

I give mine jump packs and they bounce around soften up hard targets before i charge them or if i can catch something like a unit of terminators who've just deep struck or something like that. The JP's give me the extra mobility that they can support a large amount of my line or DS themselves if i think the enemy's not going to come to me - a couple of RAS with meltaguns to crack open transports then the plasma honour guard to destroy the contents usually does the job. 

[knife&fork]

4 meltas and 4 flamers is a legal loadout and costs as much as the quad plasma.

[Zynk Kaladin]

4 meltas and 4 flamers is a legal loadout and costs as much as the quad plasma.

I did this once to the displeasure of my best friend's IG. He's still very bitter about it

I've run a JP div libby with x4 JP plasma HG just as Leonaides explained. They're expensive and aren't too terribly competitive because they're so vulnerable to damage, but they're hilariously fun. A drop podded squad should also work really well as an alpha strike unit and you have some room to position them well. I wouldn't drop them alone, though, so have a fragioso or 2 for support.

My NAngels have a quite different color scheme, but if I were to paint BA HG I'd stick to just gold helmets because that's how honor guard are portrayed in the fluff. Paint them however you like, though.

[JamesI]

Mine is currently armed 4 plasma, but I really like the idea of 4 melta and 4 flamers.

[thevibesman]

I'm planning to build some honor guard with 4x plasma + 4x storm shields. The 4x Melta + 4x Flamer sounds fun

[JamesI]

I'm planning to build some honor guard with 4x plasma + 4x storm shields. The 4x Melta + 4x Flamer sounds fun

Thats really expensive.  I don't think the storm shields are worth it.

[Kanis]

I had made an HG squad recently myself, armed with quad plasma I put them in a bare bones razorback that followed my wall of rhinos and Attack Bikes, they stayed inside giving a FNP bubble until a crucial late game turn they got out to help melt a Riptide in my ASM way! XD I was very pleased with them, a nice left hook unit and one of my favorites from the fluff. Gold-helms came in handy, may your luck be just as good Brother. :)

[ServoBadger]

Thanks for all the replies, I've got to admit the flamer/melta idea sounds hilarious but I don't have four flamers and four meltas lying around.  I suppose I could try to convert hand flamers and infernus pistols... has anyone modelled their HG this way?  I'd love to see a picture!

 

I'm still tempted to make use of the four plasmaguns that I've got.  Is it worth putting a power fist in the squad too, just in case?

[John Rainbow]

I rock the 4x Plasma pretty often with my Honour Guard but they are magnetised so I can switch out if I need. 4x Melta is also great but really it depends on what you are going to be facing. As I often give my RAS melta I tend to find the plasma a better bet on the HG who are usually accompanied by a cheapo libby rocking divination. With the change in the new ed. to the damage chart and some more metal bawkses on the table I tend to prefer the option for rapid fire plasma rather than melta which is more prone to missing and doesn' result in critical damage as often any more.