Allies: Deathwing & Imperial Guard -- For The Numbers

As per my last post about strategies, some of the major challenges facing a newly-created Deathwing army are:

1. Being a bullet-magnet eventually hurts: red-shirts are useful
Red-shirts. I need 'em. For this reason many people recommend Imperial Guard as allies.

2. Too slow and lack of maneuverability
I have a Need for Speed.

3. Not enough guns. 
I need more boom-sticks.

Before we get started it's worth noting that this is still a new army, with very few models. We're counting 685 points for:
- Belial as a H.Q., armed with a thunder hammer and storm shield,
- Five terminators with stormbolters, power fists, one cyclone missile launcher in the squad (the sergeant who has a power sword) and,
- Five more terminators for the second choice, all armed with thunder hammers and storm shields.

In this post I'll be looking at the pros and cons of fielding Imperial Guard allies to tackle the first of these three challenges that face a Deathwing army. As we'll soon see, the purpose of having these boys on board would prove very grim indeed for the individual guardsman..

"When you decide to die, remember to give your enemy the same honour"
- Commissar Grenville

..so let's go over them quickly to get a general idea of what the I.G. have to offer. If you feel compelled to do so, I do invite anyone who plays Imperial Guard, knows a lot about them, or who feels that he or she knows enough about 40k strategies, to leave their comments below. Perhaps there's something we can all learn from your insight?

Red-Shirts Are Useful

Let's consider the situation: Terminators are easily thinned out and, when faced with too much firepower (such as when facing Tau), they eventually fall. On the other hand Imperial Guardsmen are cheap and appear more like tides, than men.

Let's remember why I felt this was an important lesson: when my opponent had the firepower of his entire army focused on my two tiny terminator squads (whether he was a Space Marine or Tau commander), the sheer number of his shots overwhelmed my armour and invulnerable saves. To be sure, it's worth re-iterating that the laws of probability and statistics will eventually kill your men, even to small arms fire.

So the issue here is really about giving the enemy something else to shoot at, other than two squads of terminators. For this reason it's all about the idea that quantity is in itself a distraction. In addition, a squad Imperial Guardsmen can score victory points and hold down objectives. 

"Peace? There cannot be peace in these times."
- Lord Commander Solar Macharius

Therefore to solve this issue we want to look at the points cost of an Imperial Guard H.Q. and Troop selection, while asking ourselves: "How can I get the most guys for the least amount of points?" In other words, as far as this first problem is concerned, we're looking for quantity over quality which is, after all, the complete opposite of Deathwing terminators. So let's look at what H.Q. will offer us the most guys, for the least points.

H.Q.: Command Squad -- 50 points for 5 models

This decision is both easy and obvious. Why? Because while a command squad stands at five men (or "five wounds"), at 10 points a piece,every other H.Q. choice starts at 1 model, for a minimum cost of 45 points. This H.Q. choice therefore gives us the most models, at the lowest price.

So what about the Troop choice?

Troop: Infantry Platoon -- 80 points for 30 models

There are three troop choices with Imperial Guard: Infantry Platoons, Veteran Squads and Penal Legion Squads.The veterans are cheaper than the penal legionnaires, at 7 points per model. However when we compare the veterans to two infantry squads of ten men (that's TWENTY guys in one troop choice!!!) and their platoon command squad (that's an extra five guys wounds for a single troop choice!!!), we find that the group averages out at about 2.66 points per model wound!!!

So what have we discovered? Simply that an Imperial Guard ally can offer a Deathwing army a minimum of 35 men wounds, at a total base cost of 180 points! I doubt if any other ally can top that!

However this won't be the single defining factor, as in 6th edition players can shoot over squad-blobs. In addition, there are two other factors to consider here: (1) speed/maneuverability, and (2) how many ranged weapons we can bring to bear. Finally, numbers alone isn't the only factor that will secure victory, but a tide of men can certainly help.