New starting out with astra militarum.

[jimbo1701]

Hi folks. After many years I am finally taking the plunge with an AM army. I’m going to run them principally as a brigade of necromundan spiders but have a few questions as I start to assemble the final elements.

 

1. Auxiliaries such as ogryns - do they incorporate into the regiment ie wear the same colours etc or are they just assigned to them?

 

2. I wanted to stick to the platoon organisation (5 squads) which leaves me 3 options for the 6th troop option and I wanted some opinions:

A - ignore platoon organisation and just add a 6th infantry squad.

B - add in some scions (would probably use the new enforcers) - would this affect army rules etc ?

C - conscripts - would fit with the organisation but would mean spending / painting a lot more. They don’t look very viable anymore with their points the same as infantry and poor stats with only a few costly ways to negate the morale issue.

 

Any info greatly appreciated folks. Cheers.

[WarriorFish]

Welcome to the Guard :D In answer to your questions:

1. They can share the regiment's colours, incorporate some, or be entirely different - the choice is yours :)
2. Again it's up to you really:
   A - Platoons are a lore thing only now, as the rules don't reflect them at all so I wouldn't worry about it much in 8th
   B - Stormies can be part of a normal Guard force, though they won't benefit from the Regimental bonus but it's easy to put them in their own Detachment as a proper Scion force if you want them to get their rules
   C - Conscripts are sadly poor currently, I would ignore them and focus on your other models for the time being

Hope this helps, don't forget to keep us updated with pictures. Do you have the colours for your scheme all planned out?

[apologist]

Welcome to the Guard! 

 

As a general note, it's worth remembering that the Imperial Guard is so vastly varied that pretty much anything goes – there are examples in the background of everything from hordes of naked warriors armed with bows and arrows up to and including power-armoured soldiers, and encompassing every possible cultural combination you could imagine. This is an Imperium of a million worlds, after all.

 

With that said, there are some general structures in place that are followed more or less closely, and if you want to game with the army, there are some concessions to make to fit your imagination into the rules set. With those provisos, here are my thoughts on your questions:

 

 

 

1. Auxiliaries such as ogryns - do they incorporate into the regiment ie wear the same colours etc or are they just assigned to them?

 

Ogryns are generally recruited as regiments, then broken down and assigned to other regiments. Some host regiments will issue the ogryns with a version of the regimental uniform; others will insist the ogryns are marked out, either by leaving them in their original kit, or by giving them a different, unique kit. 

 

In the case of the Necromundan 8th specifically, it's likely ogryns will come in from off-world. I'd suggest that the background for Necromunda would err towards the ogryns wearing the same uniform as everyone else, on the basis that the recruits come from lots of different hive cultures etc. Certainly the old RT-era images of the 8th have everyone wearing the same, and we can only presume that they're drawn from hives as varied as Primus.

 

 

 

2. I wanted to stick to the platoon organisation (5 squads) which leaves me 3 options for the 6th troop option and I wanted some opinions:

 

As warriorfish says, ruleswise platoons no longer exist. In background terms, the guard are hugely varied – even the old rules stated different regiments varied in size, and the 'between 2 [later 3] and 5 squads' was only a guideline.

 

Specifically to Necromunda, I get the impression from the old material that the company/platoon structure was fairly closely followed (in all likelihood, the 8th – as the principle example of a regiment at the time, drove the generation of this background). With that borne in mind, I'd suggest that you can certainly have platoons in the background – marked out by different shield coloration, perhaps, if you're using the Rogue Trader-era Guard figures? 

 

With that borne in mind, a sixth Infantry squad in a platoon is well within 'normal limits', so your options are free.

'A' has the benefit of getting the sense of undistinguished mass infantry; 'C' fits with the old background of Whiteshields being attached to a platoon and earning their colours – very fitting for the Necromundan 8th.

 

'B' stands out as less fitting for a Necromundan regiment specifically, but – as I say above – it's a big galaxy, and Necromunda's a big world. There's ample space for new ideas, and even if you are harking back to the older background, you don't need to be a slave to it. Some enforcer-based figures would be a great addition, and could fit in as a special detail, either temporarily or permanently attached to the regiment.

 

While I think about it, perhaps they could be a way to nod to the old commissariat training squads; but building that old background in with the more recent background of the Officio Prefectus – a squad of (high-grade) cadets that might specialise into either Tempestus Scions or Commissars in the future, but are attached to the regiment for a period?

 

 

 

These children are known as the Progena, and most of them will end up serving the Ministorum or in other branches of the Adeptus Terra. Others will go on to become military leaders and special forces troops within the Imperial Guard or Imperial Navy such as elite Tempestus Scions or iron-willed Imperial Commissars.

[jimbo1701]

Chaps thanks for the replies - very helpful.

 

Warrior fish, I think I will use the scheme peachy showcased on warhammer tv as a basis for the models. Probably spray them mechanic is standard grey then celestra grey before adding astrogranite to the base, washing and adding details.

 

Apologist, I may go halfway and have some ogryns painted up as off world but have the bodyguard in same colours to represent a more permanent attachment.

 

I really can’t decide still so what I may do to start with is grab a single box of 5 push fit guard - this would give me enough spares between heavy and special weapons to field the 6 squads in a brigade.

 

I’ll have a rummage around my bits box to see if I’ve enough spare to convert a box of enforcers to a scion squad as I like the idea that they’ve been seconded from the governors chaps into the regiment. I also like the idea of conscripts but think I will hold off for now as I’ve plenty to paint and when updates come they may become more viable again.

 

What are the best ways to keep a blob squad on the battlefield with the poor morale? Seems a bit of a waste with using a psychic power or commissar warlord trait.

[duz_]

The push fits help you bulk out your forces whilst making the most of the special weapon options from the kit

Some searching in the barracks should net you a couple of how twos on making nearly all the heavy weapons from the kits too

 

As for morale Lord commissars are probably the best

Although to be honest the best mitigation is just more squads

Leadership isn't that big a deal because the squads will be likely dead by the time its a big deal and if you really need the squads to hold there's a couple of stratagems you can use any how

[HallofStovokor]

Hi folks. After many years I am finally taking the plunge with an AM army. I’m going to run them principally as a brigade of necromundan spiders but have a few questions as I start to assemble the final elements.

 

1. Auxiliaries such as ogryns - do they incorporate into the regiment ie wear the same colours etc or are they just assigned to them?

 

2. I wanted to stick to the platoon organisation (5 squads) which leaves me 3 options for the 6th troop option and I wanted some opinions:

A - ignore platoon organisation and just add a 6th infantry squad.

B - add in some scions (would probably use the new enforcers) - would this affect army rules etc ?

C - conscripts - would fit with the organisation but would mean spending / painting a lot more. They don’t look very viable anymore with their points the same as infantry and poor stats with only a few costly ways to negate the morale issue.

 

Any info greatly appreciated folks. Cheers.

To answer your questions.

 

1. You absolutely can give them the same color scheme. If you'd like you can give them the most garish look you can do. Part of the hobby is building your army the way you want to. My bullgryns have Cadian color schemes with the exception of the bone'ed. He's got the same color scheme as a commissar, because his commissar told him that he was her big helper.

 

2. a) platoon organization isn't a thing in 8th edition. So you can absolutely just add a 6th infantry squad.

 

b ) scions do work in the detachment, but I'm not really a big fan of scions. If you want to give a squad of scions order, which you should, you will need to include a tempestor prime. If you want scions to have a regimental trait you need to keep them in their own detachment.

 

c) Conscripts are in a bad place right now. They received big nerfs in the way of a point increase and the nerf to how commissars work. I wouldn't take them, but if you want to bring a bunch of meat shields they still accomplish that feat. I'd just take more infantry squads instead of conscripts.

Edited December 17, 2019 by HallofStovokor

[jimbo1701]

Bit of threadomancy chaps. I’ve been assembling furiously but newborns make progress slow. Ive decided to paint the tanks in a different colour scheme and have a few tanks from years ago which I sprayed in an olive brown/green colour - I think it was called Italian tank camo but can’t recall the manufacturer and can’t find now.

 

Anyway, anyone have a good suggestion for a current range of sprays, ideally with accompanying range of paint for touch ups? Would make getting a tank company painted up a lot easier. Thanks.

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Tamiya and Testor both have a military line of spray points - I use the Tamiya paints for my models.  In fact, I chose the paint colour for my army based on having the same colour both as a spray and as a paint pot.

 

Mine are tan, though, so I don't know if you can do the same with any of their greens.