[1000] Elysian Drop Troops (Codex Traits Only)

[NiteRabbit]

This Elysian Drop Troops list will only use the Codex Traits as detailed in Imperial Armour 3: The Taros Campaign. I will not be using the list provided in IA 3 but Forgeworld has definitely produced some gorgeous Elysian Drop Troop models - still debating over whether to get the full resin kits or buy the Heads and Grav Chutes to use on Cadian models. Also, this is my first time writing an Imperial Guard list so any tips, comments, and general Guard rules-of-thumb would be appreciated.

Doctrines are:
- Drop Troops
- Iron Discipline
- Veterans
- Storm Trooper Squads
- Special Weapon Squads

Now, without any further ado, bring on the Deep Striking Army!

Elysian Drop Troops 1000pt

Doctrines: Drop Troops, Iron Discipline, Veterans, Storm Trooper Squads, Special Weapon Squads

HQ
--
Command Platoon
===============
Command Squad
- Junior Officer w/Honorifica Imperialis, Power Fist
- Heavy Bolter
- Master Vox
- Medic
Total: 131 points

2 Anti-Tank Support Squads
- Lascannons
Total: 120 points

Troops
------
Infantry Platoon
================
Command Squad
- Junior Officer
- Heavy Bolter
- Medic
- Vox Caster
Total: 66 points

2 Infantry Squads
- Heavy Bolters
- Plasma Guns
- Vox Casters
Total: 170 points

Infantry Platoon
================
Command Squad
- Junior Officer
- Heavy Bolter
- Medic
- Vox Caster
Total: 66 points

2 Infantry Squads
- Heavy Bolters
- Plasma Guns
- Vox Casters
Total: 170 points

Fast Attack
-----------
2 Armageddon Pattern Sentinels
Total: 110 points

2 Armageddon Pattern Sentinels
Total: 110 points

1 Armageddon Pattern Sentinel
Total: 55 points

Overall: 998 points

Seems like it's only 60-odd Guardsmen...seems a bit small for a Guard army. Is it?

[Sokhar]

Aye, it is indeed rather small considering my 400 point Combat Patrol list has 45 guardsmen in it. Sentinels, the Anti-Tank squads, and a few other assorted odds and ends suck up your points substantially.

The question I pose to you that you need to answer for this list and any future ones is: How do you plan to win with this list? You call it an Elysian, all deep striking list, yet I see nothing that makes effective use of deep strike. I see a lot of infantry squads with heavy weapons. How do you propose to kill the enemy with those? At the earliest any deep striking units appear on turn 2, chances are for most it'll be turn 3 or 4. On the turn they land, they can't use their heavy weapon, so that's wasted. Likewise the rapid fire weapons can't shoot beyond 12". Realizing that deep striking infantry squads aren't effective?

[socprof]

The only problem with this list is what sohkar pointed out. Its a Nilla guard unit that tries to be mobile.

Without any other support its going to be sitting ducks for the first turn the units arrive.


What you should do is start with things like the Sents DS and the troops on the board.

Also drop the plasma if you really want to DS all your line squads. Meltas, GLs and flamers in that order are the perferred weapons for DS because it lets you do more than just sit around your first turn. But then again moving is more or less death for IG.


I'd recommend only DSing a small percentage of your force.

[Sokhar]

The "k" goes before the "h," socprof.

Anyway, I agree with just about everything the 'prof had to say, except:

Also drop the plasma if you really want to DS all your line squads. Meltas, GLs and flamers in that order are the perferred weapons for DS because it lets you do more than just sit around your first turn. But then again moving is more or less death for IG.

With the exception of grenade launchers, none of those weapons are any more beneficial in terms of first turn shooting. And in that sole instance, you can fire 24" instead of twelve. Flamers have minimal range and do very little damage. Meltas have the same 12" range of plasmas when they deep strike but can only fire once. They're great for dedicated tank hunting units (Special Weapons Squads, Storm Troopers, Hardened Veterans, or 4 special weapon Command Squads), but they're pretty useless for infantry. The lasguns of the other 9 guardsmen can't do squat to whatever vehicle you're targetting with the melta. The extra range of the grenade launcher is offset by its lesser strength and AP value. Truly, plasma is the weapon for typical deep striking units. Can do a nice job of damaging any model in the game that doesn't have an armor value of 14 and can rapid fire. Its a risk to your troops but you're already deep striking in near the enemy. The threat of plasma overheat pales by comparison.

[Cheredanine]

This Elysian Drop Troops list will only use the Codex Traits as detailed in Imperial Armour 3: The Taros Campaign. I will not be using the list provided in IA 3 but Forgeworld has definitely produced some gorgeous Elysian Drop Troop models - still debating over whether to get the full resin kits or buy the Heads and Grav Chutes to use on Cadian models. Also, this is my first time writing an Imperial Guard list so any tips, comments, and general Guard rules-of-thumb would be appreciated.

OK well personnaly I much prefer the actual IA3 list, the use of demo charges, drop sentinels, the ansence of heavy weapons, all goes to make it more drop troopy.

Below are links to my elysians:

http://www.librarium-online.com/gall...hp?i=3612&c=36

http://www.librarium-online.com/gall...hp?i=3611&c=36

http://www.librarium-online.com/gall...hp?i=3610&c=36

No to your list:

Doctrines are:
- Drop Troops
- Iron Discipline
- Veterans
- Storm Trooper Squads
- Special Weapon Squads

indeed they are, top right page,

Now, without any further ado, bring on the Deep Striking Army!

Elysian Drop Troops 1000pt

Doctrines: Drop Troops, Iron Discipline, Veterans, Storm Trooper Squads, Special Weapon Squads

HQ
--
Command Platoon
===============
Command Squad
- Junior Officer w/Honorifica Imperialis, Power Fist
- Heavy Bolter
- Master Vox
- Medic
Total: 131 points

OK what is this unit to do? drop troop armies must get close and hurt fast. The heavy bolter is really my issue here, you cant fire it on the turn you arive, it is mo use, much rather have some special weaponry, either melta, flamer or plasma in here. If you got ennough command squads then losing the master vox wouldnt be bad

2 Anti-Tank Support Squads
- Lascannons
Total: 120 points

Hmm, fluff wise, directly from IA3 - Las cannons are too heavy to be practical for drop troop armies, but that asside, much better to use special weapons squads all over here. go for meltas, plasma or flamer, and throw in demo charges, these are really nightmares for MEQs, and a primary reason for taking a drop troop army.

Troops
------
Infantry Platoon
================
Command Squad
- Junior Officer
- Heavy Bolter
- Medic
- Vox Caster
Total: 66 points

as above, ditch the heavy bolter, replace with 2 special weapons, give the officer some wargear, be tempted to lose the vox system

2 Infantry Squads
- Heavy Bolters
- Plasma Guns
- Vox Casters
Total: 170 points

OK, be tempted to lose the voxes as per above

Infantry Platoon
================
Command Squad
- Junior Officer
- Heavy Bolter
- Medic
- Vox Caster
Total: 66 points

2 Infantry Squads
- Heavy Bolters
- Plasma Guns
- Vox Casters
Total: 170 points

as above

Fast Attack
-----------
2 Armageddon Pattern Sentinels
Total: 110 points

2 Armageddon Pattern Sentinels
Total: 110 points

1 Armageddon Pattern Sentinel
Total: 55 points

see where you are going, but do like drop dentinels for this, meltaguns are rude!
Also again special weapons squads

Seems like it's only 60-odd Guardsmen...seems a bit small for a Guard army. Is it?

in 1000 points, no, it is fine. my issue here is you have created basically a foot slogging army, these rely on the opponent having to waltz accross the batlefield under fire, by deep striking you are arriving late and closer, you are not gonna have as much chance to shoot, also you tend to arrive peacemeal.

When I have used my Elysians as codex my rules are yours, but:

1 use iron discipline - you may have but you have to pay for it
2. dont buy stuff unless you are gonan use it - vox system - I do but that is cos I drop all over the shop, somewhere I have a tactica on this, (see below) it also applies to heavy weapons with point 3.
3. You need to hit hard on the turn you arrive, this means maximising your special weaponry, which means always take special weapons squads, ideally with demo charges and 2 special weapons, it also means taking veterans - to get 3 special weapons plus wargear on the sgt, and potentially using your command squads as special weapons squads.

Below is tactica I wrote:

A Doctrine too far - Imperial Guard Drop Troop Tactica

I have been tempted to write this for a while as I find myself saying the same thing over again on the IG forum, this is basically a guide to the uses of the drop troop doctrine available from codex IG. I am going to try and bite my tongue and not mention my Elysians (damn did it already) or general forgeworld goodness that fits so well with the doctrine (Vuture gunships)

So mostly we have all seen “A bridge too far� or “Black hawk down� right? All excited? Want to field an army which deep strikes onto the battlefield and through heroic courage and skill at arms manages to save they day? The look no further (this could put you off the idea for life)

Classically paratroops are used as part of a combined arms operation, taking objectives ahead of an advancing body of troops. This really doesn’t equate to the skirmish scale of 40K but it can be used in the game. Add to this that fact that IG generally stands and shoots relying on putting down a hail of fire for as many turns as possible as the opponent treks towards them, however the drop troop doctrine when applied to a unit means the unit gets fewer turns shooting having missed at least the first one and starts closer to the enemy. Disaster? Not entirely, deep striking isn’t on of those “All or nothing� doctrines, you can give it to selected units, which brings us, rather laboriously, to the first area:

Partly drop troop Armies

This is the most common usage of the drop troop doctrine, the main body of the army is played as standard IG army but selected units are given the deep strike ability in order to “reach out and touch someone�

Objective taking
In theory odd squads can be deep struck onto objectives, a cunning plan, probably best reserved for storm troopers, but don’t expect them to hold onto it if your opponent makes any serious attempt to take it, even a squad of stormies cant cope that well in close combat, rather, if you have units arriving very late, drop them onto objectives that are well clear of your opponent, but this is more or less a target of opportunity rather than a planned tactic.

Suicide squads
By far the most common use of drop troop doctrine is the creation of a suicide squad that lands next to an opponent unit and destroys it, subsequently they tend to get wiped out but some units are very effective at this. The two riders on this are that firstly you can not guarantee the squad wont deviate/scatter, often this makes them completely ineffective so don’t rely on them as an absolute, secondly the nature of deep strike means you wont be using these squads in turn 1 so don’t depend on them to take out armour or fast elites that will do their damage early on. Classics include:

Special weapons squads with flamers and/or demo charges – these can devastate full squads of the biggest, hardest units in your opponents’ army, and rather pleasingly the demo charge reinforces the suicide nature of the squad by deviating back on to its own unit half the time

Special weapons squads with meltaguns and/or demo charges – again can devastate MEQs but clearly can take out tanks very effectively

Veteran squads (small in numbers) with 3 flamers or 3 meltas – can do the same as above

Arguably platoon HQs tooled with flamers or meltas can do this too but this is rather a waste of the points spent on an officer

Sentinels – the most common option being the heavy flamer which can kill troops effectively, but equally all other options can get access to the rear armour of vehicles

But I see myself as Gene Hackman in a beret with a dodgy Polish accent
Ok so if you genuinely want to play a drop troop army and drop everything onto the table, then.. your forces are going to arrive piecemeal and off target, you can not out fight your opponent and you have hampered your shooting, all you have is guts and the bare faced refusal to look facts in the face! Me, I am in! This isn’t an army for the inexperienced or faint hearted; it needs to be played cunningly and innovatively. You need to hit hard and then hold on for dear life

Classically my drop troops, when the Elysian rules are banned, takes the iron discipline doctrine. All squads have voxs and the Command HQ has a master vox. All squads take vet sgts. The HQs provide fire support from as many special weapons as I can get into them, but I do tend to include a medic, roughly the army can be broken down into 3 areas: 2 assault elements and odds and sods. The 2 assault elements are essentially the infantry platoons and their command squads. Each infantry squad has a special weapon and a missile launcher (the only viable heavy weapon mini for the Elysians). In addition to this are the odds and sods, these include special weapons squads (flamers and meltas with demo charge), the HQ command squad, with loads of special weaponry, a sentinel with an Autocannon and improved comms, 2 sentinels with las cannons and HK missiles, veterans and storm troopers.

Assault Elements:
Identify 1 target per platoon (in my case 2 targets), ideally these are objectives guarded by strong squads. Deep strike platoons around the target, usually the whole platoon around a single objective, and rapid fire into the defenders, what is left will generally charge you, charge it right back, with as much as possible, the only proviso on this is if other units are in the area, you may need to dose these up with fire. Gradually get your units into firing positions on the objective.

Odds and Sods
These have a number of roles, firstly they can reinforce the assault elements, if you feel the entire platoon can not handle the current defenders then support them with an odds and sods unit.
Secondly these units can take out enemy squads threatening your assault units, particularly good for this are the special weapons squads with demo charges, although rolling the scatter dice twice makes you very prone to missing.
Several of these units can be used to take out enemy tanks and fire support, deep striking deep into the enemies deployment zone and chewing up his rear, this can be a suicide mission, but if so will distract your opponent from taking on your assault elements and recapturing the objectives.
These are to all intents and purposes, a tactical reserve to squander or hoard at your peril, generally if they have killed more points than they cost, then they have done their job.

Usually by turn 5 the majority of your army has arrived, most of the odds and sods have been killed or are routing off the board and what is left of your assault elements are hiding in cover around objectives and trying to tough it out. Arnhem all over again, unfortunately 30 Corps is not ever going to arrive, but hey, you have the advantage of the game ending around turn so you just need to tough it out until then

Cityfight
Drop troop armies are a mixed blessing in a cityfight, but can be extremely effective, their lack of vehicles, high numbers, mobile fire power all contributes to make them pretty effective, but don’t deep strike them if at all possible, watching as you entire platoon disappears thanks to the scatter dice gods is not a pleasant feeling.

Most importantly – have fun, enjoy the flamboyance and daring of the army, revel in the fact that your drop knocked your opponents plans into a ****ed hat and by the time he had recovered, the game was over. Personally I always enjoy sitting through the deployment phase with my arms crossed looking smug and watching my opponent get anxious on turn 2 when I pick up the dice for the reserve rolls