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While the rules will get in the way of things, nothing stops you from modelling it your way.

I got a squad of Scions that's full on tacticool for exemple, because they had gear from a different Forgeworld than other elements of my army.

On my Aquilons, I gave the Sgt a carbine and a pistol with a knife sheathed elsewhere the arm that held the Power sword went to the melee Aquilon who is now a dual wielder with a gun on his back.

Well obviously a bunch of guys with swords and semiautomatic pistols would slaughter a bunch of guys with halberds in real life, not that they'd do much with the sword.

My rationale is as follows:

Regular sword + pistol: The pistol is the generally superior weapon because it can hit equally hard at range, but the sword has the advantage of not requiring ammo and preventing someone from grappling you in tight spaces. Therefore sword + pistol is better than 2 pistols, especially in an extended mission where ammo is limited (since shooting twice as fast means you shoot for half as long).

Power sword + pistol: Here the power sword is generally the better weapon because it has the ability to kill tough enemies, but the ability to kill or even just threaten someone at range makes the off-hand pistol too useful to forgo unless you're a hardcore specialist. If a mutant is pointing a meltagun at you from 20 yards away you can kill him and save yourself with a bolt pistol but not dual lightning claws.

And then as previously mentioned, long arms with bayonets are commonly used in place of short polearms, which makes sense. Or at least makes enough sense for 40k.

The Guard doesn't really do melee weapon outside of officials (or cavarly, who uses spears), and swords in such capacity are mostly ceremonial.

It is Marines who could get something out of halberds, and well at least GKs do use halberds.

There were rules for Guard with CC weapons back in the day, so they do exist in universe. There was a named regiment used as an example too, though I forget the actual name.

The Kanak Skull Takers appears in the '99 codex and the doctrine Warrior Weapons is an option in the 2003 codex. The requirement is that all infantry squads, not just some, replace their rifles with a ccw and either a pistol or second ccw. Bizarrely, they have to pay points to do this, and also there was no official sprue. Kanak is also a setting in an excellent and defunct mobile phone vidya game, Space Wolf.


You have to outright reject all of that background. The Overfiend is fundamentally wrong, and bad for you

The Kanak skull takers were in the 2003 codex as the example regiment for warrior weapons. They were also mentioned in Epic Armageddon as some arrived on the world later in the war. Warrior weapons were inexplicably expensive, it was like 2pts per model.

Either way, every Guardsmen is supposed to have a melee weapon, usually the mighty bayonet!

Brass spears are bloomin' sharp and plastic spears tend to be pretty wiggly.
So my theory is that it didn't suit the model makers back in the day and now the universe is established.

Insectum7 wrote:There were rules for Guard with CC weapons back in the day, so they do exist in universe. There was a named regiment used as an example too, though I forget the actual name.

pelicaniforce wrote:The Kanak Skull Takers appears in the '99 codex and the doctrine Warrior Weapons is an option in the 2003 codex. The requirement is that all infantry squads, not just some, replace their rifles with a ccw and either a pistol or second ccw. Bizarrely, they have to pay points to do this, and also there was no official sprue. Kanak is also a setting in an excellent and defunct mobile phone vidya game, Space Wolf.

Googling lexicanum, they got annihilated by Chaos in that Space Wolf game.

So lorewise they kinda sucked.

 Tyran wrote:

Insectum7 wrote:There were rules for Guard with CC weapons back in the day, so they do exist in universe. There was a named regiment used as an example too, though I forget the actual name.

pelicaniforce wrote:The Kanak Skull Takers appears in the '99 codex and the doctrine Warrior Weapons is an option in the 2003 codex. The requirement is that all infantry squads, not just some, replace their rifles with a ccw and either a pistol or second ccw. Bizarrely, they have to pay points to do this, and also there was no official sprue. Kanak is also a setting in an excellent and defunct mobile phone vidya game, Space Wolf.

Googling lexicanum, they got annihilated by Chaos in that Space Wolf game.

So lorewise they kinda sucked.

The majority of lore outside the mobile game is from the following sources.
Codex Imperial Guard (3rd edition, 2nd codex):

Epic: Armageddon main rulebook:


They are feral deathworlders, and have the strengths and limitations of such. They seem to have a solid reputation as vicious troops ("infamous") and to have strengths in surviving hostile environments with low support.

As an aside, I think the inspiration is Pacific island tribes. Kanaks are a micronesian tribal group.

Survive sure, fight a war while at it...

I guess it depends on your SoD, but if you are going for the fantasy of big bulky barbarian half naked men swinging around two axes then a halberd doesn't quite fit.

Halberds existed within the context of late medieval/early Renaissance warfare alongside armored knights and pike blocks.

Melee guardsmen meanwhile are purely barbarian in theme, often specializing in individual dueling than formation based melee.

I can see halberds used by Inquisitorial Crusaders that have a medieval theme, but I don't believe there is a late medieval/Renaissance IG regiment.

 Tyran wrote:
Survive sure, fight a war while at it...

I guess it depends on your SoD, but if you are going for the fantasy of big bulky barbarian half naked men swinging around two axes then a halberd doesn't quite fit.

Halberds existed within the context of late medieval/early Renaissance warfare alongside armored knights and pike blocks.

Melee guardsmen meanwhile are purely barbarian in theme, often specializing in individual dueling than formation based melee.

I can see halberds used by Inquisitorial Crusaders that have a medieval theme, but I don't believe there is a late medieval/Renaissance IG regiment.

I don't see why feral guard are more likely to be duellists, I'd expect skirmishers and small unit tactics. I agree that a Pacific-islander themed regiment isn't likely to be toting halberds though. Spears are the most likely polearm, which is true of most historical inspirations. I've wanted to build a Kanak force and the best inspiration I've found is Maoris, who rapidly adopted european equipment and merged it with their own equipment and combat styles, and also frequently fought as colonial troops.

Guard recruited from feudal worlds is a thing, but they have been surprisingly poorly represented in lore given GW sold a variety of fantasy kits for perfect conversion fodder. The only mainstream example is Attilans, and they are themed after steppe peoples not europeans. There is a small reference to Krum "Ironsides", which are very English Civil War coded and one of the closest examples to a Rennaisance vibe.

Also, I presume the Armageddon Command Guard requested a Kanak clan because they thought they'd be combat effective, not just existing there. They probably intend for them to be scouts and roving raiders similar to the Asgardian Rangers (feudal regiments already deployed to the wilderness of Armageddon).

 Tyran wrote:
The Guard doesn't really do melee weapon outside of officials (or cavarly, who uses spears), and swords in such capacity are mostly ceremonial.

Also a lot of historical militaries just wouldn't let their officers bring long-range weapons to the battlefield, because if you're trying to shoot someone far away you aren't focused on commanding your own squad. Handing them a sword was a polite way of saying "you don't get a gun because shooting them isn't your job".

 Haighus wrote:

Also, I presume the Armageddon Command Guard requested a Kanak clan because they thought they'd be combat effective, not just existing there. They probably intend for them to be scouts and roving raiders similar to the Asgardian Rangers (feudal regiments already deployed to the wilderness of Armageddon).

Asgardian Rangers use guns though, and apparently tend to be skilled snipers.

 Tyran wrote:

 Haighus wrote:

Also, I presume the Armageddon Command Guard requested a Kanak clan because they thought they'd be combat effective, not just existing there. They probably intend for them to be scouts and roving raiders similar to the Asgardian Rangers (feudal regiments already deployed to the wilderness of Armageddon).

Asgardian Rangers use guns though, and apparently tend to be skilled snipers.

I mean... so do the Kanak? The one picture is literally holding a laspistol.

Anyway, the Asgardian Rangers mainly fought as rough riders in the wastes. Probably as dragoons a lot of the time but they wouldn't comment on how ferociously the mounts fought if there wasn't plenty of melee too, unless you suspect the horses also used guns?

Have the Asgardian Rangers bred Thirty/Thirty from Bravestarr as their mounts?

The Imperial Knights are the greatest swashbuckling morons in the universe. Unless I have to show you how the Reaper Chainsword actually reaches anyone

What do you mean? The knight drops itself sideways on its reinforced pauldrons and rolls heroically towards its target, proudly blaring inspirational imperial hymns the entire time. Complex calculations by its powerful machine spirit allow it to time this movement just so that it delivers a decisive hit with its melee armament. Truly a marvel of engineering.

I guess no one has told you about Imperial Titans with melee weapons. Those definitely aren't reaching anyone (aside of another Titan).