Frater Cornelius Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 Okay, this is a somewhat more complicated topic, but bear with me. This may yet result in some slamming conversion work. The Guardsman. While they are usually throw-away fodder in most armies, I like to see mine as sufficiently drilled militia. They may not really compare to specialists like Grenadiers, but they are far from useless fodder. Through a combination of characters and items, mine are capable of scouting, re-rolling to hit and wound in melee, possibly re-rolling saves, stubborn, counter-attack, preferred-enemy and some others on top of their orders. They do evoke the feeling of a professional army. Still inferior to super-humans or monsters, but more than capable of making up for it with training and equipment. Since these guys get stuck in melee more often than not, I wanted to do some alterations, namely model some guys with sword + buckler or with a pike. They would still have their ranged weapon, probably holstered on their back. I want to have a healthy 1:2 mix between melee soldier and ranged soldier (with their other weapon holstered, respectively). This really evokes the feeling of combined arms warfare and their tactical flexibility. Besides, I am a fan of the pike and shot approach, which is not that far off, considering how many melee threats there are in 40k. Do you think that would fly in terms of representing models correctly? Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
wulfgar hammerfist Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 Sounds like a cool idea! It sounds like a great foundation for a feudal world style IG force under the control of a Lord Baron/Duke/Seneschal. I would put together a test model and see how you like the outcome. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4147497 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 15, 2015 Author Share Posted August 15, 2015 I was more thinking about Conquistador-type force. Explorers who need to be really for anything, so you have pike and shot and sword/buckler dudes under capable leadership. The specialists are not numerous enough, so they support the foot forces. But yeah, we are talking 15th and 16th century aesthetics with some steampunk. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4147511 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ulrik_Ironfist Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 As for the professionalism of the guard I think you're missing something. Conscripts are the disposable fodder, while the run of the mill guardsmen are well trained and capable soldiers. If you broke it down like the US army, you'd have the Guardsmen as your average infantryman, while the veterans would be more akin to the pathfinders and scouts, and the Stormtoopers/Scions are the Rangers/Special Forces. Since the US no longer has conscription we have nothing akin to conscripts, and even when we did, we trained everyone to the same standard. As for your melee guys, I guess bayonets just don't do it for you? It sounds like a cool idea. Do you have specific minis in mind? Or are you planning to kit bash? Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149094 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Kit bash as always. But I am mainly using Warhammer Empire minis with alternate heads for this kind of Guard. Muskets as Lasguns for example. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149125 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inso Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Catachan Jungle Fighters, Like Cadians, are born into fighting and are inducted into the guard early... I'd say they were very professional soldiers :) Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149270 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Catachan Jungle Fighters, Like Cadians, are born into fighting and are inducted into the guard early... I'd say they were very professional soldiers I suppose it is that stereotypical image of a commander sending wave after wave to their deaths that is stuck in my mind ;) Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149279 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucien Eilam Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Well yeah, that's one of the big jokes of the setting. They are professional soldiers, armed with the equivalent of a lightweight, fully-automatic, recoilless anti-materiel rifle. Which in 40k terms makes you flashlight cannon fodder. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149293 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Well yeah, that's one of the big jokes of the setting. They are professional soldiers, armed with the equivalent of a lightweight, fully-automatic, recoilless anti-materiel rifle. Which in 40k terms makes you flashlight cannon fodder. Yeah, so basically the rest is so super-human that professional soldiers are as useful as cannon fodder. Sad but true. Solution? Give them Pikes and Sword. At least they will die in style ;) Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149342 Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderPirate Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Catachan Jungle Fighters, Like Cadians, are born into fighting and are inducted into the guard early... I'd say they were very professional soldiers I suppose it is that stereotypical image of a commander sending wave after wave to their deaths that is stuck in my mind Gotta admit, I'm a big fan of the Zap Branigan approach to warfare... Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149815 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 Catachan Jungle Fighters, Like Cadians, are born into fighting and are inducted into the guard early... I'd say they were very professional soldiers I suppose it is that stereotypical image of a commander sending wave after wave to their deaths that is stuck in my mind Gotta admit, I'm a big fan of the Zap Branigan approach to warfare... Well, I hope you are not planning to be an officer in the army :D Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149821 Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderPirate Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Catachan Jungle Fighters, Like Cadians, are born into fighting and are inducted into the guard early... I'd say they were very professional soldiers I suppose it is that stereotypical image of a commander sending wave after wave to their deaths that is stuck in my mind Gotta admit, I'm a big fan of the Zap Branigan approach to warfare... Well, I hope you are not planning to be an officer in the army Haha, don't worry, I don't think there's much danger there. Even my toy soldiers would mutiny given half the chance! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149974 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frater Cornelius Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 Bro, you need a bigger moustache ;) Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4149976 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Antaeus Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 It's not that rank and file troops in AM are bad, it's that all of the other threats in the galaxy are so terrifyingly, pants-crappingly powerful that it seems like their weapons and tactics are useless. AM vs AM are always interesting games because there's a lot of maneuver and the troops can actually get out of their ADLs and stretch their legs periodically because they generally don't have to fear things like carnifexes. Squad on squad action is usually a slugfest and generally comes down to a few dice rolls. When you add in transhuman supersoldiers who have enough naked aggression to charge through walls and slimy polio daemons that are abominations to objective reality, the guard look comparatively weak and untrained. As always, the truth is more complex. Even veterans and scions, the elite of the guard only have a bump of +1 BS on their statline--that's how close they are. As for your army, I could see, in the nightmare future of tyranid bio-terrors leaping onto the battlefield that some enterprising commander managed to re-invent the pike hedge, ringing his rifles with brave men holding nothing but pikes and hate. For model purposes, I would put lasguns on their backs because they wouldn't hold onto the pikes once battle had been joined, but I could see that absolutely being put to good use. Hell, maybe you have a combined feudal world/modern world regiment whose mix of renaissance-era infantry formations and modern battle drill somehow adds up to more than the sum of their parts. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4155259 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap'm Heckus Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Zap Branigan.... That name rings a bell. On topic, I can totally see some rich rogue trader hiring out his personal guard as a private army. Well armed vets with good armor and plasma. Or an inquisitor comindering a RT's guard. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/312434-professional-soldiers/#findComment-4155290 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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