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So we see this topic and question every month: "What is the strongest (and by extension, weakest) codex". It is a question that usually has the same answers without much deviation, and more often than not devolves into flames over what's broken or not. It's an interesting topic though overdone and completely loaded.

However I ask something different. What is the most balanced codex? In your honest opinion, what is the meter stick of fairness that other codexes (codii?) should abide to? And by extension, how should balance be determined? By the points of a unit's features, by the their use, or by the meta? Does the amount of viable builds available count to it or simply the strength of the units in it?

What's your opinion? I'll give my own later.

In terms of current playability, I'd have to say that it's a tie between the Ork codex and the Dark Eldar codex.

The Ork book is just extremely well written. There are a few bad eggs that rarely see the tabletop, but nothing is disgustingly overpowered or underpriced, and the army continues to perform well on the table when quite a few others have been limited to very select lists and choices. The prices of the units are good, they do their job on the tabletop with little fuss, and you can make just about anything in there work for you if you try.

The Dark Eldar book is the right way to update a codex. Sure, they get all sorts of fancy new toys, and they have certainly gotten far more powerful, but this is balanced by their fragility and the fact that you really need some skill to use them effectively on the tabletop. The prices are fairly good for what they bring to the table, and there's a wide selection of units to choose from, almost all of which are useful. And again, you aren't limited list-wise. You can run a slow-moving Haemonculi coven, or a lighting-strike Wych kabal with nothing but Venoms, or so on and so forth. It's a well written and open-ended book that's easily the best of the newest codices to come out of GW.

In my opinion, I'm going to go with the Orks, because they've got a book that has really held up extremely well against all sorts of power creep, especially in the last 2 years. (Also, I'm an Ork player, so I'm biased! )

Agree totally. I would say Orks because of all the different builds you can play and still be competitive.

GK is very well balanced internally, and is only mildly stronger than the vanilla marines - about BA, but cewrtainly not SW or IG level. It has a lot of interesting and varied units and consequently builds, very few why-would-you units, and so on.

Space Marines and Blood Angels would be my vote. They offer unparalleled diversity of different builds that all play well and evenly within the larger games. Cannot really comment on Grey Knights yet.

IG, Nids and Space Wolves are evidently atrocious. I find the internal balance of the DE-Codex to be very poor (Ravagers being sorta the new Long Fangs) and the Ork book is let down by the extremely poor editing and rules-writing (6 pages of FAQ anyone? Not even the Nid Codex was written as poorly). Most other Codexes are somewhat dated and lack the diversity in balance of the above mentioned books. They often compete on one-list/build-to-rule-them-all (though, as Space Wolves proves, a Codex doesn't need to be old to fall into the mono-list trap).

Dark Eldar probably. Excellent internal and external balance. Orks are probably second. Starting to show its age but it has lots of effective units and only a couple below par.

Most of the more recent books however are..silly. In terms of external balance, I think Wolves are the worst, followed by BA and IG. Wolves are just..."Space Marines+" 90% of the same stuff, but better and cheaper in most cases. BA's likewise are just able to field too much fast armor, especially heavy armor, and dreads, far more than any other SM army, for a force that has never been typified as armor heavy and rather as a fast jump pack army, while IG just...tankslol and awful internal balance. Grey Knights also have some issues, dirt cheap MSU henchmen, lolhordes Purifiers, 5pt psyammo upgrades on rifleman dreads...(really, how did that get through playtesting) and unstunnable transports for only a 5pt premium...? Tyranids feel like an afterthought adversary for BA's. C:SM has some interesting issues, after it came out I didn't see a Space Marine army without Vulkan for 12 months, and it's been...years since I've seen a C:SM army without Ironclads in drop pods and only once in a blue moon without TH/SS terminators.

Dark Eldar are probably the most balanced Codex right now, followed by Orks.

I have always heard that Tyranids were balanced because the codex isn't overly broken. But from the look of what some people mentioned about balanced in this thread, you mean having various viable builds that are all competative. I am still in that phase of finding a good build for Tyranids but so far, the list alludes me completely. After trying my next list today either against Orks, Dark Eldar, or Chaos Space Marines, I kinda wander if I can build against the meta with nothing that cares about S8...I am going to need more models

I honestly think the Space Marines are the most balanced. I think that they allow the greatest chance for success with a 'takes-all-comers' list. I have to agree that Orks are a strong contender as well.

Easily and without a doubt Codex Space Marines but with Codex Orks following in a very close 2nd.

DiscoVader wrote:
The Dark Eldar book is the right way to update a codex. Sure, they get all sorts of fancy new toys, and they have certainly gotten far more powerful, but this is balanced by their fragility and the fact that you really need some skill to use them effectively on the tabletop. The prices are fairly good for what they bring to the table, and there's a wide selection of units to choose from, almost all of which are useful. And again, you aren't limited list-wise. You can run a slow-moving Haemonculi coven, or a lighting-strike Wych kabal with nothing but Venoms, or so on and so forth. It's a well written and open-ended book that's easily the best of the newest codices to come out of GW.

This. I love that the DE codex has very definite strengths and very exploitable weaknesses, more than the generic "They're still marines, they can die!" excuses you get for GKs and some BA builds.

I don't think it's so much a "balance" thing, so much as it's the idea that mistakes can be forgiven or will ruin you. As such, marines (except those wolves) are fairly balanced and forgiving for players who are learning the game (but offer fun, nasty, deeply strategic options), but other armies, such as Tyranids, Daemons and Eldar (both kinds) require much more sound tactics and are unbalanced because of it-a new player can't just pick them up and win while making a couple mistakes. Assault a unit of CC weapon fueled banshees with tactical marines? You lose your marines, but you can still win. Assault assault marines with fire dragons? Probably going to lose. BAD unit to lose. May cost you the game. That's where balance lies for me. Is it a forgiving army?

Orkz, easily. Best codex in circulation.

Orks for me.

There are so many lists that can be made to work, the cheese level is fairly low (and even the more pungent bits are hilarious for all concerned or too random to build a 'power' list around ) and the ork antics are fun.

It plays just as well at friendly and tournament levels, and is just as fun at either, unlike some codecii.

There are a couple of lemons in there for competitive types to decry via math-hammer, but they still see the light of day at less competitive venues. I have ugly memories of going up against a flash-git supported grot army led by Grotsnik and Zogwort, for example

Dark eldar.

A good seasoned De player is always a force to be reconed. The codex has good solid units and is balanced.

I'm probably asking to get shot, but what is it about IG that makes it unbalanced?

Shadelkan wrote:I'm probably asking to get shot, but what is it about IG that makes it unbalanced?

Guard can get a lot of powerful stuff for ridiculously low prices. The best examples would be the Vendetta, the Chimera, and the Manticore

They also don't have any real exploitable weaknesses. Their low Ld is solved by Commissars, their low toughness and saves by hiding in vehicles or in blobs, and advisers can screw over a deepstriking/outflanking army.

Also squadroned AV 13 tanks with pieplate cannon (9 on a field is a touch much) plus more tanks in the Fast attack section

I don't care overmuch myself, as there are few IG players near me, but being pieplated off the field on turn one gets stale fast at tournaments.

Oh right. I always figured the way to kill IG was just good ol'CC.

Shadelkan wrote:Oh right. I always figured the way to kill IG was just good ol'CC.

Only works if an IG player is stupid enough to take anything remotely resembling infantry. And even than, he's likely outflanking it with 100 pt. fast, skimmer, transport-capacity, three TL-LC FA flyers or hiding them in a cheap wall of boxes that will simply foil any CC engagement by virtue of redundancy and saturation of speed-bumps.

I say codex: Space marines. nothing out of control in that codex. and everything is well rounded.

though I can't wait to see the next codex for them!

Same as before, only with more shinies and 2++ saves

Da Ork or Nid book.

I'll chirp in with C:SM as well, though I haven't used every unit yet (disposable income not so disposable as it used to be) I think its pretty well balanced, though I own none of the units Vaktathi mentioned (I've only just started using drop pods and rhinos recently cause I was lucky with some ebaying and apc's never really appealed to me, I like infantry)

Zweischneid wrote:

Only works if an IG player is stupid enough to take anything remotely resembling infantry. And even than, he's likely outflanking it with 100 pt. fast, skimmer, transport-capacity, three TL-LC FA flyers

While undercosted, Vendettas aren't 100pts.

Ascalam wrote:Also squadroned AV 13 tanks with pieplate cannon (9 on a field is a touch much) plus more tanks in the Fast attack section

I don't care overmuch myself, as there are few IG players near me, but being pieplated off the field on turn one gets stale fast at tournaments.

AV14 actually. That said, you'll almost never see squadroned Leman Russ tanks, especially not 9. The squadron rules are atrociously punitive, making expensive leman russ tanks ludicrously easy to disable or destroy, as well as overconcentrating firepower where it isn't needed. There's a reason that Leman Russ spam isn't popular at tournaments, in fact it's nonexistent. the most you'll likely see in most armies is 3, one in each FoC slot and unsquadroned. It's an incredibly easy army to beat even with relatively few AT weapons, especially if you can get close at all.

In terms of the newest Codexes, DE is almost comical how balanced it is compared to Space Wolves/Blood Angels.
In general, probably between DE and Orks.

I'd probably have the say DE as well. I think GK are pretty balanced as well, but IMO its still too early to tell.

I would have to say Codex: space marines. Forgiving for new players, but with enough depth for experienced players. There a few bad units, but they are pretty obviously bad, so you won't see them brought. Overall, an excellent book.

Orks are second, with their lack of AT letting them down.

vanilla marines, DE, orks all 3 are pretty balanced

Ascalam wrote:Also squadroned AV 13 tanks with pieplate cannon (9 on a field is a touch much) plus more tanks in the Fast attack section

I don't care overmuch myself, as there are few IG players near me, but being pieplated off the field on turn one gets stale fast at tournaments.

AV14 actually. That said, you'll almost never see squadroned Leman Russ tanks, especially not 9. The squadron rules are atrociously punitive, making expensive leman russ tanks ludicrously easy to disable or destroy, as well as overconcentrating firepower where it isn't needed. There's a reason that Leman Russ spam isn't popular at tournaments, in fact it's nonexistent. the most you'll likely see in most armies is 3, one in each FoC slot and unsquadroned. It's an incredibly easy army to beat even with relatively few AT weapons, especially if you can get close at all.