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With the advent of 5th Edition and its accompanying cover save and blast rules, many aspects of the Imperial Guard are going to change.

I think the Thudd Gun (FW Quad Launcher) will become a very important part of this change.

The abundance of intervening model and terrain cover saves is now going to greatly reduce the anti-infantry firepower of the Heavy Bolter, multilaser and Autocannon. Mortars and Grenade launchers don't really look to be the real answer either as they are going to become less likely to hit even with the upgrade of partials to full hits and the Mortar takes up valuable heavy weapon slots and still doesn't hit very hard.

Now currently, the Thudd Gun already isn't very accurate, and 5th Ed won't change this a whole lot. What will change is that when it does hit, it will hit harder. Given that each Thudd gun gets 4 shots and causes pinning at -1, its inaccuracy becomes less of a problem and each hit means more. Intervening models cover saves won't come into play here, and often neither will terrain cover saves unless models are physically in the terrain rather than just behind it. Granted they will only get to fire 4 of the 6 turns (or whatever given the new variable game turns) but those first two turns of fire will be cruicial, and the Thudd Gun can really bring the hurt here.

Instead of loading up on heavy bolters and such for anti-horde firepower, I propose using those heavy weapons units for much needed anti-MC/tank firepower and using Elites slots with thudd guns for anti-horde. With their pinning ability and increased hitting power with only a marginal reduction in average hits compared with other anti-infantry weapons, it allows other heavy weapons units to load up on lascannons and missile launchers to combat tougher tanks and MC's with more cover saves. I think this will become the Thudd Guns time to shine.

Any thoughts?

I don't have alot of experience with Thudds, but their achilles heel is they're a FW item with FW rules. Unless it makes its way into the Codex, people will bitch about it. Keep in mind, I'm FW Friendly and have no issues with it. The only reason I haven't used it in the past was because I preferred my Suicide Vets.

Don't they shoot every other turn, so 3/6 shooting rounds?

I'm so very curious to see what GW will do with the next IG Dex. With new Ogryn minis and PF not getting the extra attack, the pendulum could swing pretty hard in their favor with an improved statline/ point cost. (I could be waaaay off base so let me know)

Attack of the pendulum could really save Mortars as well. They're blast so auto hit right S5 and BWB will make a killing off mortar bits.

Regardless of the rule changes and potential Dex changes, some things will always remain the same. BS3 only hits half the time. HRoF weapons like heavy bolters will always have a place, especially against Orks. The HB/ flamer squad may even become a staple for a platoon's picket line.

I'm really liking Heavy Weapon squads with HBs. 280 (naked HQ) points for 27 HB shots/ turn can make alot of failed cover/armor saves over the course of a game. Add a 2nd or 3rd platoon for redundancy and Bob's your uncle. For every squad, your getting a LR worth of shooting (no ordanance ofcourse) with out the worries of a lucky hit destroying it in 1 turn. Not to mention, their mortality rate will improve with V5. Feel free to pick this apart as I'd rather not waste time and effort if I analyzed incorrectly.

After every two turns of firing they have to skip a turn. but over the course of those two turns each gun will throw out 8 S5 blasts, so out of a battery of three, that means over two turns you are hitting a unit with 8 S5 blasts of 24 fired. I forgot about Vets being an upgrade, and that makes them even more appealing.

I also understand that as an FW unit, its not exactly tourney friendly, but for non-tourney games it's fine, and hopefully (although not likely) it will find its way into the new codex.

I think that you're fooling yourself if you think that an Imperial Armour unit will bring about "an important" change in the way that IG is played. The people who use IA units are a small minority of 40K players.

Thudd Guns will be good for those who have them, but I don't see them having an impact on the metagame in most places.

Besides, Heavy Mortars are better.

BYE

Heavy mortars agreed are better, and cheaper.

Though people will probably not ever use that awesome "smoke screen" shells available to them ever again with the new cover saves being so prevelant and all that

The issue with the heavy mortar to me is, its very likely to whiff entirely with the new rules for blast weapons, especially indirect fire weapons.

The Thudd Gun will almost always hit at least one and likely have one close hit and two whiffs, where the HM has a greater chance to whiff overall. So given a battery of three of each, with the HM you may get one solid hit, and with the Thudd Gun you may get three and a couple close ones, netting the greater overall damage potential (taking into account upgrading of partials to full hits) to the Thudd Gun, at least to me.

That said, I see both weapons as extremely useful, and especially a heavy mortar battery with inferno shells.