So the Imperial Guard, er, Astra Militarum have a new codex! Just wondering what people's first impressions might be as they get a chance to look/own it. I've just brushed through the rules and units, haven't looked through the fluff yet, but so far it seems largely the same with some tweaks.
My summary of my first impressions:
-probably the best Warlord Traits table yet. Almost every one is good for almost every battle, with only the Relentless one being situational (because sometimes your HQ doesn't have any Heavy or long-ranged weapons). 5/5
-a little disappointed that all the characters, with an exception for Yarrick and Nork Deddog, are the Cadian and Catachan ones. Mainly because I like using al'Rahem's Outflanking ability, and now the only way to get it is to roll it on the Warlord Traits. Otherwise, they're largely the same, but Creed has a better Tactical Genius rule (2 Warlord Trait rolls). 2/5
-I like the Relics. Granted, two of the five are pretty 'meh' (a fancy sword and a fancy bolt pistol), while the others are really good (always having Inspired Tactics, making your Warlord tougher to kill and causing Fear, and the third gives Preferred Enemy to all AM codex units within 6"). And except for the last one, they're all pretty damn cheap for Relics too. Others may not like them as much, but it allows my Warlord to bolster my Heavy Weapon Teams pretty effectively. 4/5
-the Regimental Advisors and other individual units (Psykers, Enginseers, Priests) have remained the same or been given a pretty huge buff. I can see Psykers with Divination and Priests featuring in almost every infantry blob, and tank heavy lists will love their Enginseers. 4/5
-there is a loss of a lot of artillery units, but on the other hand, the Basilisk is still there, the Deathstrike is majorly overpowered, and the Wyvern seems to cover a lot of anti-horde bases, so between it and the Basilisk, the bases are largely covered for killing infantry. 3/5
-Bullgyrns. Expensive, but I have to admit I like them, even if they are too expensive for most people. They have Hammer of Wrath with an option to re-roll the wounds for it, but also get the Very Bulky rule, so you can take a max of 4 in a Chimera or Valkyrie, and that's with no extra characters to buff them. Still, with the power mauls and brute shields they're S7, T5, 3 Wounds, 3 Attacks, Stubborn, with a 4+ regular save and a 5++ invulnerable. Combined with a Priest, you have one heck of a tough unit that can smash most things in their way. 3/5
-Sentinels. The rumours of Armoured Sentinels being removed was false, both Armoured and Scout versions are still in, just for cheaper. 3/5
-Devil Dogs. Hellhounds but with a blast template multi-melta. 4/5
-Veterans are the same. Was hoping they'd go up in points or be only able to have two specials weapons, but they actually went down in points a bit. 2/5
So overall, I'd say a 4/5 for this codex. Not a ton of new things or upheavals, mainly just tweaks here and there.
My summary of my first impressions:
-probably the best Warlord Traits table yet. Almost every one is good for almost every battle, with only the Relentless one being situational (because sometimes your HQ doesn't have any Heavy or long-ranged weapons). 5/5
-a little disappointed that all the characters, with an exception for Yarrick and Nork Deddog, are the Cadian and Catachan ones. Mainly because I like using al'Rahem's Outflanking ability, and now the only way to get it is to roll it on the Warlord Traits. Otherwise, they're largely the same, but Creed has a better Tactical Genius rule (2 Warlord Trait rolls). 2/5
-I like the Relics. Granted, two of the five are pretty 'meh' (a fancy sword and a fancy bolt pistol), while the others are really good (always having Inspired Tactics, making your Warlord tougher to kill and causing Fear, and the third gives Preferred Enemy to all AM codex units within 6"). And except for the last one, they're all pretty damn cheap for Relics too. Others may not like them as much, but it allows my Warlord to bolster my Heavy Weapon Teams pretty effectively. 4/5
-the Regimental Advisors and other individual units (Psykers, Enginseers, Priests) have remained the same or been given a pretty huge buff. I can see Psykers with Divination and Priests featuring in almost every infantry blob, and tank heavy lists will love their Enginseers. 4/5
-there is a loss of a lot of artillery units, but on the other hand, the Basilisk is still there, the Deathstrike is majorly overpowered, and the Wyvern seems to cover a lot of anti-horde bases, so between it and the Basilisk, the bases are largely covered for killing infantry. 3/5
-Bullgyrns. Expensive, but I have to admit I like them, even if they are too expensive for most people. They have Hammer of Wrath with an option to re-roll the wounds for it, but also get the Very Bulky rule, so you can take a max of 4 in a Chimera or Valkyrie, and that's with no extra characters to buff them. Still, with the power mauls and brute shields they're S7, T5, 3 Wounds, 3 Attacks, Stubborn, with a 4+ regular save and a 5++ invulnerable. Combined with a Priest, you have one heck of a tough unit that can smash most things in their way. 3/5
-Sentinels. The rumours of Armoured Sentinels being removed was false, both Armoured and Scout versions are still in, just for cheaper. 3/5
-Devil Dogs. Hellhounds but with a blast template multi-melta. 4/5
-Veterans are the same. Was hoping they'd go up in points or be only able to have two specials weapons, but they actually went down in points a bit. 2/5
So overall, I'd say a 4/5 for this codex. Not a ton of new things or upheavals, mainly just tweaks here and there.