Blood Angels Unit of the Week series Unit of the Week: Sanguinary Guard

[Jolemai]

 

Welcome to part one of the Blood Angels Unit of the Week series!

 
Following the release of the 10^th edition Index, there is no better time to discuss all the units we have access to. Each week a different unit will appear, with the idea being that we discuss how best to use that model on the battlefield. Where part one will discuss the units from the units found within Index: Blood Angels, parts two to four will discuss Index: Space Marines, part five will be Imperial Armour, and part six will be Legends.
 
Note, this isn't to lament any nerfs, etc, from previous editions; the rules are as they are so try to unlock its potential for those who wish to use them all the same. Similarly, this thread is only for using the option being discussed; it matters not if you feel something is a better choice as such comments aren't constructive to the topic and shall be removed.
 
Without further ado, here's this week's entry:

 

Sanguinary Guard

What are you thoughts here folks? How best would you play the Sanguinary Guard?

• To compliment a list, or to build a list around? 
• Sons of Sanguinius or Gladius Task Force?
• What Leader are you attaching?
• What wargear options are you choosing?
• What delivery options are you using? 
• What deployment options are you using?
• Stratagem synergy of note?

 

Over to you.

 

[Jolemai]

Should you want your model on display here (or on another thread), then submit a photo here please.

 

(Once I work out how best to float it!)

 

***

 

As an aside, the thread setup may change over the coming weeks until I'm happy with them. This includes the photos.

[Karhedron]

In the initial list, these guys were too expensive to consider but following the points reductions, I feel they are worth taking now. Their various special rules mean they actually compare very well with Bladeguard Veterans in terms of durability (better vs low AP attacks, slightly worse vs high AP) whilst having Jump Packs. They also do slightly better against tough targets thanks to the ability to take a power fist and Inferno pistols.

 

I think they can work well in either SoS or GSF. It will be interesting to see if we can use the new Detachments in the SM Codex but that applies to BAs generally and not specifically to SG. To get real value out of them, you need run them with your Warlord to trigger Heirs of Azkellon. In practice this means you will probably only want 1 squad and you will be running them with either a Jump Captain or Dante. I don't see multiple squads as being viable in this edition.

 

For Wargear, I think you will always want to take a Power Fist (or 2 if running a 10-man squad). Since there is no reason not to, I would also take an Inferno Pistol on every squad member. This makes them a legitimate threat to even large targets. I would also always take the Banner since it is free and +1 OC is always welcome. Persoally I would be tempted to run the full 10-man squad and use them as a Speartip unit.

 

For Deployment, the choice between starting on the board or Deep Strike is always a tricky one. I tend to favour starting them on the board as that means they will usually be in position for a charge on T2. It is not impossible to pull off a T1 charge if your opponent goes first and moves well into no-mans-land. You can go second and trigger the Assault Doctrine for Advance + Charge in a GSF. Coming in from Reserves means you only have a 28% chance of pulling off the charge out of DS on T2 (48% if you are willing to burn a CP on a reroll).

 

In terms of Stratagems, Armour of Contempt works well on a unit with a 2+ save as it will halve the damage you take from massed Bolt Rifle or Chainsword attacks. Offensively, Red Rampage is a great Strat if you are running SoS as the combination of Lance and Lethal Hits is pretty tasty on all those Damage 2 attacks.

 

[BluejayJunior]

For deployment, I've so far started in deep strike and then used the rapid ingress stratagem (granted that was when the captain made it free). They're solid alone, but I think need a captain attached to be worth it. 

[Paladin777]

I just finished a 1000 point match and took a Squad of 5 plus a captain. They walked through around 700 points of Custodes, including Trajann and one of their terminator captains, and only took a single casualty!

 

admittedly, Trajan and the two guard he was with attacked the Heavy Intercessors/gravis captain after I used Only in Death Does Duty End on the Sanguard, but still!
 

I know they'd probably get shot off the board pretty easily, but once they get to Melee they really put in some work!

Edited September 19, 2023 by Paladin777