Starting IG Combat Patrol/ 40k in general

[Deleted]

A couple friends and I are beginning to plaay Combat Patrol as a change. I would lvoe some general 40k help from anyone and maybe even some specific Imperial Guard help too. Right now what I have is:

25 Infantry, including some assorted flamethrower/grenade launcher guys and some officers
1 walker
2 heavy weapon teams (missile launcher/ not assembled yet)
Possibly a tank of some sort.


I got this all from a friend, and would like to spend as little money as possible on other stuff. I am a pretty good converter and have a TON of extra bitz I can use to make these guys into whatever I want.

Does anyone have any suggestions listwise? Tacticwise? general advice?

Thanks so much in advance...

GRASHNAK

PS- I'm going to be facing mainly Tau

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

Right, You got 2 basic squads and a command squad
1 JO with a Honourif Imperialas
1 ten man squad with heavy weapon
1 ten man squad with heavy weapon
One Sentinal

If its a Leman russ, YOu cant take it. if its a Chimera [ You can tell by does it have a massive cannon on the front? if not, its a chimera], use it to ferry one squad around

[Deleted]

It's a Chimera I guess.

Is that about 400 points? Is it at all a good list?

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

It may not be 400 Points, I dont have hold of my Codex. but if you could type out EXACTLY what you have. Ill type up an army list, and then get someone with a 'Dex to look at it for you.

[Deleted]

Ok I have

5 Vostroyans (including one officer)--I want to use these guys as a command squad

20 guardsmen, one with grenade launcher, 1 with flamethrower
2 guardsmen officers (blister pack)

1 missile launcher team
1 other heavy weapons team (not assembled yet)

1 walker, with some large machinegun looking thing

1 Chimera

Thank you so much by the way... I truly appreciate it

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

right, A ROUGH Army list

HQ
One SO and Weapons
4 Guardsmen and Weapons

Troops
Platoon HQ
One JO
4 Guardsmen

Squad 1
One Sergeant
One Missile Launcher
One Flamer
6 Guardsmen

Squad 2
Armoured Fist Squad:
One Sergeant
One HW [Unknown at time]
One Grenade Launcher
6 Guardsmen

Fast Attack
1 Sentinal armed with Autocannon


And that leaves you with one Model Spare.

Someone with a 'Dex give it the one over and a rough points outline.
I can advise when I get home and and look at mine

And Grashnak, Any time, I love helping Imperial Guard players old and new, young and old.

[Deleted]

Wow that seems great. So what weapons/tactics would you advice. Coming from a WFB standpoint, what I would think of doing would be putting the non-vehicular troops in a comfy position where they can lay down some fire and then sending the chimera, its 10 dudes, and the sentinel to try aand turn the opponents flank. Is that a logical plan? would an all-out attack be better?

And are there any Doctrines that would help me against the Tau?

[Woz]

IG don't do too well running across open ground.

Stick with your plan - dig in most of your troops (your opponent will come to you) and flank with the Chimera and walker.

[Deleted]

But people have told me that that doesnt work against the Tau as the outrange me.... is this true?

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

Xeno - Tau.
Good doctorine for fighting lots of Tau.

[Deleted]

its true grashnak...most of their weapons WILL outrange you...i would suggest slogging it under cover of whatever terrain there is...supported by the sentinel and chimera...use them on the flank as u sed...keeps ure opponents fire diverted from the remainder force..doesnt hurt to try

[Deleted]

and what weapons do you guys suggest using?

and doctrines as well?

thanks again

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

Right. Doctorines.

Xeno-Fighters: Tau
Hardend Fighters
Sharpshooters
Die-Hards
Iorn Discpline

[Deleted]

my patrol list goes something like this :

1 armoured fist squad
vet sgt with a bolter,1 grenade launcher,1 heavy bolter.
3 sentinals with multi lasers in one squad
2 sentinals, 1 w/multi laser 1 w/AC

I don't sugest writing an army list for just one oponent, makes them more important then they are but if you are going ot go against them more often then it's cool.

My docs are usually
C.O.D.
sharp shooters
maybe camelioline
C.O.D. is free, S.S. only costs a little and Camelioline could help out greaty in cover for saves.
Hope this helps

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

I mailed him a full 400 Point Army list for what he has, plus doctorines set for fighting Tau. Its a good list

[Deleted]

thats cool.I know different people all have their own style of patrol missions.I guess mine is abit mobile.I use that one against a local tau player and it was a close battle but i did win.He uses those darned pesky suits well, constantly jumping around cover. I had a hard time taking them out with the sentinals but the good guys finally prevailed /YEAY OUR SIDE!!!

[Deleted]

azalar said:

Right. Doctorines.

Xeno-Fighters: Tau
Hardend Fighters
Sharpshooters
Die-Hards
Iorn Discpline

I would strongly advice against using Xeno Hunters: Tau and Hardened fighters against a Tau force. Why? Well, first of all, "Xeno hunters: Tau" doesn't exist. Tau are so bad in Close Combat that they make Xeno Fighter: Tau totally redundant. A guardsman hits a Tau on a 3+ anyhow. Furthermore; Xeno Hunters cancel out your advantage in close combat gained by Hardned Fighters when used(since they make you hit on a 3+ regardless of weapon skills), making you pay 15 points extra in order to make yourself harder to hit. Which in this case has little effect at any rate, seeing as how Tau, barring specialist units like Vespid, would hit Guardsmen on a 4+ weather they had WS 3 or 4.

Now, there are a few things to keep in mind when Fighting Tau;

•You will almost always win close combat. If your opponent it smart, he knows this, and will try to minimize the damage by removing casualties in base to base contact and hoping that he fails his Ld-check, allowing him to escape without the threat of Sweeping Advance. Therefore: be sure to try to get as many models as possible in base-to-base contact.
•They will out-shoot you. A full squad of Firewarriors with Pulse rifles within Rapid Fire range of you is as deadly as two Heavy-Bolter Fire support squads. He removes your basic save with his base weapon. You do not remove his.
•Consider Carapace armour. Sure, it is expensive, but it halves your casualties from pulse weapons. Suddenly, that full squad of Firewarriors go from killing 8.33 Guardsmen on a turn of shooting to only killing 4.16.
•Chem inhalers could also be worthy of note. It makes it impossible to use Iron Discipline or Die-Hards, but on the other hand you'll have more staying-power and will be next to Fearless.
•Plasmaguns within 12" and Autocannons are good against light skimmers.
•The Hellhound is your very best friend.

If I were to make an Anti-Tau doctrine setup, I'd use;
Close Order Drill
Chem-Inhalers
Carapace armour
Priests
Conscript Platoons/Ogryns/Rough Riders/Mechanized

I added the Priest because he's awsome. Even if you don't give him an Evicerator, he's still going to grant you 5,55 dead Tau ny sticking him in an infantry squad. Rnough to break any unit, as opposed to thier "normal" of 3,5. If you decide to use an evicerator the grand total climbs towars 6,51 dead Tau.

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

Go with his doctorines, and reaarange your list.

[Deleted]

I was looking through the dex today about the xeno fighters and didn't see Tau also... i thought it might be in a white dwarf or something.Then i go to thinking that it wouldn't do any good anyway except with the crisis suits becouse you would be hitting on 3's anyway in cc.
I have to agree with the hell hound, it is just plain killer against tau and can be used in a patrol mission i do beleive since the armour is only 34.

[Colonel Grammissar Azalar]

Seriously, Tau are Xeno, Therefor, I didnt double check the list of Races that were allowed to be used with Xeno Fighters

[Deleted]

hengeist said:

I have to agree with the hell hound, it is just plain killer against tau and can be used in a patrol mission i do beleive since the armour is only 34.

Argh! I totally forgot that rule. You can't have more than 33 points of armour in a Combat patrol army!

Ah, well, too bad. When you start playing normal games, pick up a Hellhound as fast as you can. S5 AP4 that ignores cover means that five out of six Tau hit by the flamer template will die, even if they sat in a bunker. I love the smell of Promethium in the morning. Smells like… victory.

azalar said:

Seriously, Tau are Xeno, Therefor, I didnt double check the list of Races that were allowed to be used with Xeno Fighters

I also thought you could make Xeno Hunters: Tau at first and that it only was really a really pointless use of a doctrine point. I really only noticed that there wasn't one when I went to check the exact wording of the doctrine.

*******

Some other general anti-Tau advice: Fear the "Fish of Fury" tactic. Basically, it's a tactic where a Devilfish drives up to within 12" of you, and unloads a full squad of Firewarriors between it and you. It shoots(since you can shoot past skimmers), you die. If anything is left standing, it cannot charge the unit, since you will have to go around the Devilfish, and that will simply be to far. How do you avoid being killed by this tactic? Maneouver your forces such that he cannot do this without being charged by another squad the turn after. This is hard. Your best bet is, of course, to take out his tanks before he can get to you. Massed Plasma and Autocannon shots could do the trick. Having fast counter-charge units(in the case of IG only Rough Riders will do the trick. You don't need many, though.) are also great, as long as you can keep them safe.

Tau can deal with everything pretty well, but have a harder time with some things, and their units are very, very specialized. They will have a tactic to take out your big tanks(Most likley Hammerheads or Broadsides), Small tanks(Missile Pods and maybe Seeker Missiles) and infantry(Pulse Weapons). Broadsides are extremly effective. You will have to try to kill these before they get to kill you. Deep-striking Storm Troopers with two Plasmaguns and a power weapon can really do the trick, if you dare to risk deep-striking. Tau have arguably the best anti-infantry shooting in the game, so skipping tanks will do you little good. You will really want tanks, so consider the mechanized doctrine. If you decide to use tanks, you sould first target(or just avoid) their tanks and their 'suits, since the Chimera's front armour is one of few things in the Imperial Guard army that can afford to scroff at pulse weapons. When you can, drive up to them, unload behind the tank(remember that they get to move before they shoot. Place them wiseley) and charge them next turn. Don't forget that you can have several heavy flamers on a chimera. Yum.