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I Just Bought the new codex just the other day and frankly i Love it.
I started this poll to see what the world thinks.

I think the Codex is OK. They have fethed it up in places but there are some welcome additions.

The OC-D

It's "ok s**t". There's nothing wrong with the army from a gameplay standard, however the rules for just about every unit were changed for no apparent reason (and, in most cases, seemingly arbitrary reasons).

The rules are pretty decent, not sure they can stand up to eldar/chaos in terms of raw game 'power' but at least there is quite a few decent choices now (too bad theres alot of trash too..), however tthe actual codex itself is crap imo-the background section is very small and is it just me or is the marine codex like twice as thick?>_>

i like the new codex, mainly from the system of platoon squads

yes i voted good. Its easy to read and find the rules. And on top of it all the guard got a boost(yes i know only vets can have doctrines now)

I said good, it did screw up in a few places but for the most part it was good.

I just got it today. I had a Guard Army from a while ago but haven't updated them in a while. Just dug out the models not long ago and figured "Why not?'

It seems interesting, but I'm going to have to update/buy a few extra models now I'm thinking. And do answer the Space Marine Codex question, it is thinner, but then again also 5 bucks cheaper from what I've seen.

They feth'ed up some unit costs, like stormtroopers and orgyns. Ratlings are good for their costs, along with vets and troops. Several armor options are great along with several awful ones.

However.. i don't care what anyone else says.... I'm going to field deathstrike missile launchers!! MUHAHAHAHA

I like it a lot. Definitely better than the old codex. They've given competitive IG players a lot more tools in the box and only "fethed up" on units that were gak to begin with, like Ogryn and Stormtroopers. I'm completely okay with the units I never used being crappy.

Do I think they could have done better? Yes. Absolutely 100%. As H.B.M.C. and others are very willing to point out, there's some completely random, messed up stuff in this book.

But I don't care because it could have been far, far worse.

I'll take a dozen tank and artillery options in exchange for a sergeant with a laspistol any day of the week.

Again with the Laspistol Sergeant thing.

The Sergeant problem with not being able to get Lasguns is not a rules thing, it's a modelling thing. For people who have lots of infantry, having to re-model all their Sergeants is a pain in the ass, especially when it is a change that didn't need to be made. It's one of the many utterly mystifying arbitrary changes that makes this Codex so damned confusing (not bad, confusing).

I love the armies and possiblities of the new codex and many of the new units are wonderful but I think there are a large number of rule holes that should have been resolved before the book was released. A few months of playtesting during the writting process and paying a little attention to things like the new flying base could have made the book great

I guess GW didn't want squads getting an extra flashlight shot with "First Rank Fire ect..." if sergeants could take lasguns...

No lasguns for sergeanst and the reduction in availability of carapace armour killed it for me.

The vanished stormbolters and wierd heavy weapon team rules were merely the icing on a very dismal cake.

Bob the Hobo wrote:I guess GW didn't want squads getting an extra flashlight shot with "First Rank Fire ect..." if sergeants could take lasguns...

I'm confident that thought didn't even cross Robin's mind when I wrote that part. What's more likely is that he simply thought "Sergeants have pistols and chainswords", and wrote that into their rules.

If you have never had an Imperial Guard army before, this codex is pretty good, maybe awesome! Factor in that it is a new codex and you lose some points, bringing down to a great and on the upper end of okay. Factor in that you also now have a whole ton of odd vehicles that don't seem to be very interesting, other than that they are different/exotic, or maybe even distinct enough to have granted a completely new vehicle (the Imperial Guard is supposed to have a plethora of different vehicles serving the same roles using different methods, but some of these tanks are just plain "too much stuff" options), and it is back to okay, in my opinion.

Now if you look at it from older Guard editions, you should feel a bit staggered. The last Codex wasn't horrendous, doctrines weren't that bad (arguably), lack of Russ and Basilisk options made it a bit bland, and it had its problems. But that only really called for a minor tweak and injecting a bit more flavor with more characters, a few more classic tanks (priced properly), maybe one or two new ones (priced properly), and the like. Advisors are a cool idea, and so would the practice of needing special characters to bolster abilities (Perhaps a Hessian based character in a command squad to grant Sharpshooters, a Praetorian for Iron Discipline, a Mordian for Close Order Drill, Corbec from the Tanith First and Only for Camo Cloaks, etc...) that would also be viable for as close combat units where the IG needed them to divert or attract enemy assault units as well as replace doctrines. Make Commissars in command squads cheaper and bolster the leadership rather than a variety of general commanders. Make Ogryns viable (either moarkably cheaper, or T5 with FNP and open the Bone 'ead to Officer Armory), don't make Heavy Weapons Teams a single model, or get rid of command bubbles, forget orders or make that a Creed Only feature.

After you consider that the Guard were around before the new Codex, you might feel that the new one is a rather crappy replacement that changed the flavor of the Guard for disappointing reasons.

Is it a viable and fun army? Yeah, maybe even competitive too! Only time will tell there.

Technically, it's OK. It gives the Guard a particular way to play, and it gets rid of pretty much all of the questionable / arguable / contentious elements in the previous Codex.

It should be moderately competitive, if your preferred playstyle is static Platoon shooting, followed by a late-game Objective rush.

The problem is that there really wasn't anything innovative done to allow for flavors of Platoons. GW went through all this trouble to add flavors of Hellhounds, Russes, Demolishers, Basilisks, and Artillery - but they couldn't take a single moment to allow flavors of Platoons, the bedrock of the army?

With 2 distinctive sets of models, GW couldn't have taken a moment to create a Jungle Fighter Platoon alternative (Stealth, Infiltrate, Move Through Cover but Sv-)?

And GW pulls stuff like the Vendetta and Devildog right out of their ass, without bothering to make the Conqueror competitive? Or making the Salamander playable?

Ultimately, I see the IG Codex as a failure. A playable, reasonably-balanced, and likely semi-competitive failure, but a failure nonetheless.

When I was Comparing it to the old one I found Yarric has been "Spruced up" a bit.
Also they have put alot of Forgeworld Tanks in there too!

Yay!

H.B.M.C. wrote:Again with the Laspistol Sergeant thing.

The Sergeant problem with not being able to get Lasguns is not a rules thing, it's a modelling thing. For people who have lots of infantry, having to re-model all their Sergeants is a pain in the ass, especially when it is a change that didn't need to be made. It's one of the many utterly mystifying arbitrary changes that makes this Codex so damned confusing (not bad, confusing).

The ironic thing is that vet squads not being able to take pistol and sword nullified this problem for me

SpaceDuck wrote:When I was Comparing it to the old one I found Yarric has been "Spruced up" a bit.
Also they have put alot of Forgeworld Tanks in there too!

Yay!

more like got his balls back...

Yarrick in the new Guard 'Dex is what Yarrick should be like. Yarrick Lite or Diet Yarrick from the last Codex was most underwhelming.

JohnHwangDD wrote:Technically, it's OK. It gives the Guard a particular way to play, and it gets rid of pretty much all of the questionable / arguable / contentious elements in the previous Codex.

It should be moderately competitive, if your preferred playstyle is static Platoon shooting, followed by a late-game Objective rush.

The problem is that there really wasn't anything innovative done to allow for flavors of Platoons. GW went through all this trouble to add flavors of Hellhounds, Russes, Demolishers, Basilisks, and Artillery - but they couldn't take a single moment to allow flavors of Platoons, the bedrock of the army?

With 2 distinctive sets of models, GW couldn't have taken a moment to create a Jungle Fighter Platoon alternative (Stealth, Infiltrate, Move Through Cover but Sv-)?

And GW pulls stuff like the Vendetta and Devildog right out of their ass, without bothering to make the Conqueror competitive? Or making the Salamander playable?

Ultimately, I see the IG Codex as a failure. A playable, reasonably-balanced, and likely semi-competitive failure, but a failure nonetheless.

I can see why H.B.M.C hates you. Stop whining! Guardsmen are guardsmen; just a faceless mass. This isn't Sparta, this is the Grim Darkness of the 41st Millennium (tm) in which nobody really matters. If you want fluffy Catachans, take lots of Veteran squads and all three characters.

Cheese Elemental wrote:

JohnHwangDD wrote:Technically, it's OK. It gives the Guard a particular way to play, and it gets rid of pretty much all of the questionable / arguable / contentious elements in the previous Codex.

It should be moderately competitive, if your preferred playstyle is static Platoon shooting, followed by a late-game Objective rush.

The problem is that there really wasn't anything innovative done to allow for flavors of Platoons. GW went through all this trouble to add flavors of Hellhounds, Russes, Demolishers, Basilisks, and Artillery - but they couldn't take a single moment to allow flavors of Platoons, the bedrock of the army?

With 2 distinctive sets of models, GW couldn't have taken a moment to create a Jungle Fighter Platoon alternative (Stealth, Infiltrate, Move Through Cover but Sv-)?

And GW pulls stuff like the Vendetta and Devildog right out of their ass, without bothering to make the Conqueror competitive? Or making the Salamander playable?

Ultimately, I see the IG Codex as a failure. A playable, reasonably-balanced, and likely semi-competitive failure, but a failure nonetheless.

By the way, I play Apoc!

I can see why H.B.M.C hates you. Stop whining! Guardsmen are guardsmen; just a faceless mass. This isn't Sparta, this is the Grim Darkness of the 41st Millennium (tm) in which nobody really matters. If you want fluffy Catachans, take lots of Veteran squads and all three characters.

Fixed it for him.

I like the new codex by the way. I think it will shake up the game quite a bit in needed directions without being too overpowered or underpowered.

I was seriously considering returning to the guard after a several (9?) year hiatus. I dont think the book is going to get me exited enough to return due to current projects at this time. I'm narrowly avoiding the bandwagon. Perhaps in the next year and a half.

I just think it's ironic that he complains about a loss of flavour and distinctivness yet lambasted me when I said the same thing about Chaos.

Pot to Kettle - You're a idi- uhh... I mean black.

That's not to say I don't see some truth in his comments even if he is being a hypocrit by saying them. He is correct about Robin going to all this (random) trouble to give us a bunch more tanks and other such units, but the humble Infantry Platoon has been left in the dust. It is quite strange, and is yet another thing that doesn't sit well with me about this Codex.

I have my copy BTW, and once I've sorted out these apartment things I'll be getting onto the review.

I think the Arbiter has done quite well with this, actually. It's certainly got some interesting new stuff, and this is only his first codex. Granted, he's not as good at writing as Phil Kelly is, but it's not bad at all.

Thats funny, I actually thought the basic infantry platoon was more complex now with the special units and heavies added in along with the mobbing rules.

I think infantry have several different 'modes' to test out. They dont seem all that boring to me.

I dont think distinctive valhallens, mordians, catachans and all that would've added all THAT much.

I like it, I only wish I could take Heavy wep platoons without a normal platoon.I like the kill point system fix.
And for all you guys who say the fluff section is fethed up. It may be. But it's 1000 times better than CSM: and didn't invalidate an entire army like my night lords. ANd didn't give us something like lash, WHILE taking away all options and nerfing our most Iconic HQ. I'd take this guy over Gav anyday.

You can take heavy weapon teams. Hurr durr.

I'm liking it. More choice in HQ, more choice in troops, elites still suck, fast attack are fun (Valkyrie!!), heavy support is the win.

I think the codex ended up being fairly well-balanced with enough options to make it so the guard can actually be played well in a variety of ways (horde, mech, air cav, tank wall, etc.) Which is the mark of a well-designed army list.

I like that they gave guard some CC balls (iron hand straken+mobbed up platoons, or even Creed with his For the Honor of Cadia! order).

I love the orders system being a way for Guard to do tricksy things almost like Eldar, only based on the infantry's ability to understand the order, rather than based on the Farseer's ability to use a psychic power.

I like all the versatility in the armor.

All of these things let you make lists that can do the things that are important in 5th ed: kill transports, take objectives, ignore cover saves, etc.

However, I have to say that the writing, especially from a rules standpoint, is some of the worst ever.

Also, the existence of terrible-never-take units (Nork, Heavy Weapons Squads) with OMG-you-get-what-for-how-many-points? units (Marbo, PBS, Chimeras, Vendettas, etc.) frustrates me as these are hallmarks of poor understanding of the metagame and game balance. I do think that the few "overpowered" units that the codex has are still pretty reasonable when compared to some of the things that Orks can do, so it's not really that bad... it's just that things like Nork, which cost so much, but do so little, frustrate me when I read the book.