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Hi, everyone

I started this post because I need some help deciding which army to get back into 40K with. To make a long story short I use to play back in the late 90's through the early 2000's, to be exact 1999-2001 and the only reason I stopped was because the people I played with were no longer coming to our strategy gaming club after school. So 10 years ago when I had start, I had bought several different books for the game, the rule book, which I believe may have been the 3rd edition because it had the Black Templars on it, the Chapter Approved, the Imperial Guard Codex, the Ork Codex, the Eldar Codex and Chaos Space Marine codex. My initial army was Eldar because I enjoyed the look of the models and fluff that was associated with them. To be honest I only played rough about 30 games if memory serves me right, most of the time we would either be painting and building our armies or watching someone else play or just joking around. So after the people that I played with stopped coming to the after school club, I pretty much dropped it and moved on to other things. So a few months later, during our spring break, my cousin came over to visit for a week, saw my eldar army and took an interest in it and I gave it to him along with the codex. I dont remember how big my Eldar army was, but I do remember that the highest game I had played was a 1000 points. My cousin still plays to this day, however I believe he branched off from Eldar into other armies and I believe he sold off the army, no harm no foul in my opinion because i had given it to him.

Which bring to today, a few weeks ago I was moving some boxes in my parents basement for them and I came across a box of gaming books and the book on top of the pile in the box was the 40k rulebook. So the I took the 40k books home and started looking over them, needless to say the 40k bug hit and I wanted to get back into it. With that I started to catch up with the current edition and its source material. Now I've run into the problem of not knowing what army I want to play with, I've read several other posts and blogs from this site and many others and I understand the general rules when it comes to . Play an army that you will like the look of, enjoy painting and the fluff of, now what do you do when you have several armies that fit into that category?

So when I first started thinking of what army to come back to 40k with, I initial thought Chaos Space Marines, because I had an old codex of theirs and I enjoyed their fluff and the way their units looked. So after reading a few posts and watching some battle reports on Youtube and just looking around on the games workshop site, I was swayed into Dark Eldar, so I read into them and enjoyed their fluffed and ect. After that I did the same thing as I did with Chaos Space Marines and the idea of the Eldar came back into my head, after the Eldar, the Grey knights caught my eye and I thought "Hey they seem really cool and awesome". After all that I figured maybe I should play a Space Marine Army since they're a bit more forgiving and it would a good army to ease back into the flow of the game and its rules. Now I wish it was just that and I would be set, however I started reading into the Space Marines and their individual chapters, got the codex that was associated with the chapter, so after reading each codex, my mind changed every other second. So I decided why not ask on a forum? Below is a list of the armies I thought i would like to play and would enjoy painting them, I also set up a poll to see which one gets the overall pick.

Chaos Space Marines
Dark Eldar
Eldar
Grey Knights
Blood Angels
Space Wolves
Black Templars
Dark Angels

Now I understand that each army plays differently and I also understand that several people will ask "What do you want to do with your army?". To be honest, I like the idea of being about to jump in and hit the opposing units hard, however i also like the idea of staying back and shooting the opposing army. Also I would like to have the ability to compete with the army at local tournaments So you could say I'm pretty torn at the moment on which army to restart with, now after I finally pick one, I will start off small either 500 or 750 point games just to get back into the flow of things and shake off whatever rust i have.

So please feel free to give your opinions or criticisms on the following armies I had listed above and let me know what would be the best out of those for me to get back into 40K with. Also if you suggest an army please give a reason why. Anyway thanks for taking the time to read my post and I do apologize for making it a bit on the lengthy side.

kessler out

Okay, heres what you need to do. Do not play Eldar, Grey Knights, Blood Angels, Space Wolves, Unless you want to be called cheese (Blood Angels, Space Wolves,) or you want to lose every game (eldar) or you want to be disliked by some people (Grey Knights)

Dark Eldar are awesome they strike hard and fast.

Black Templars and Dark Angels are old and need a reboot so just use the regular marine codex instead because these two chapters need an update and not really good and they are really thin in paper quality.

Chaos Space Marines are horrible with their new codex do not get them at all XD

thats just my opinion you can just ignore it if you do not want to.

Funny I started in 2001.

Blood angels can play very up and in your face when needed, but they can also do Razorspam and keep at a nice distance if needed. They are fairly competitive right now too so I think that satisfies all your requirements.

We can use the regular marine codex for black templars now?

Viersche wrote:We can use the regular marine codex for black templars now?

As long as the units are WYSIWIG, there's no reason you can't. This is a reason Marines are popular - you can hop between codices between games as long as your models are equipped correctly.

Oh ok that's good to know. Thanks!

Well, it's also frowned upon by many players. Most people think that once you pick your chapter, you stick to its codex. Personally, I'm one of them. But, it's still something a lot of Marine players do.

I mean, I'd love to throw a Baal Predator and Stormraven in my Salamanders, but the codex that represents Salamanders doesn't have them, so I don't.

sks_kessler wrote: ...I like the idea of being about to jump in and hit the opposing units hard, however i also like the idea of staying back and shooting the opposing army. Also I would like to have the ability to compete with the army at local tournaments...

I would give space wolves a look, if I were you. They do exactly this, and do it very very well. I also find their meta fluff really compelling (if that matters to you).

I would lean towards Blood Angels, Grey Knights or Space Wolves. All three have plenty of good assaulting units as well as your long range requirements. Unfortunately there are a TON of people playing these armies but what you could do is branch off on a different chapter like Flesh Tearers for Blood Angels or the other successor chapter for the Space Wolves, I cant remember the name, just to keep the tournament scene a little different.

I would advise against Dark Eldar. While they are the flavor of the month and can be very competitive... they are glass cannons and not very forgiving.

Blood Angels are most likely the best for a new player with your desires. They can be played vehicle heavy, assault heavy and really just about anything in between. They have one of the strongest characters in the game, plus they get the added bonus of access to unique dreadnoughts and the flying brick (stormraven).

I hope you enjoy getting back into the game.

Based on what you've said, either BA, SW or DE would work for you, and they are all first tier armies. From everything I've read though DE are really tough to play right. Once you figure them out they're murder though.

Thanks for all the input guys. To be honest, I'm a bit shocked by the poll, I figured Grey Knights would be in the lead.

Blood Angels or Grey Knights are both awsome. I play BA because I like their looks, but they are comp. too. As for GK the same.

I would trust your first instinct. If Chaos Space Marines was what drew you, do them.

Black Templars.

Pick a Army on what you want to Paint and what fluff you like if your going to spend 100+ hours painting atleast pick one you want to paint and make sure when you see the minatures on the battlefield they excite you and you feel like you accomplished something.

But hey if your just picking a army for competitive play (Which i dont reccommend) Just get Blood Angels or Space Wolves.

Asherian Command wrote:Black Templars and Dark Angels are old and need a reboot so just use the regular marine codex instead because these two chapters need an update and not really good and they are really thin in paper quality.

Black Templars got an update in a recent FAQ.

You said you wanted to be able to jump in and kill them, but at the same time have the ability to blow them away from afar.

That leaves only one choice, CSM. Your initial thought was what you should have stuck with.

Why?

All CSM have extra CCW, meaning an extra attack standard in melee. No other marines do, on standard troops.

CSM have the ability to run huge hordes of power armor, up to 20 in a squad if you so desire, with these taking marks to further augment them. Hows +1 attack for everyone sound? What about +1 toughness? Maybe you want a +5 invun save, or +1 initiative?

Demon weapons. They kill stuff dead. Would you like to be able to crash into an opponents unit of 10 marines and just wipe it out?

Shooting. Standard BS 4. Don't you know your facing? Take obliterators, they have practically every gun in the game, on each guy, for free. Havocs are great, since you can take large hordes of them, allowing for some to die and have you not lose those important weapons.

Chosen. Does running a squad with 5 plasma guns sound good? How about them appearing from the edges of the board, or even starting the game 18 inches away? Want 5 other guns? Sure take your pick.

CSM have the best standard troops in the game, period. Your standard CSM, plus the 4 cult troops make you a force to be reckoned with in infantry combat.

CSM fear no tanks. With demon princes, obliterators and much more they enjoy getting to the chewy insides.

Demon princes, when size matters, it shows. Flying targets to death that will destroy anything but a landraider easily. Can take warp time. What's warp time? How would you like the ability for your demon prince to re-roll any to wound or to hit rolls on both your and your opponents turn?

Chaos can take possession on vehicles. This means, unless the weapon is destroyed or the vehicle is wrecked, it can ALWAYS shoot.

Chaos also has crazy psychic powers, the kind that make your opponent cringe. Want a flamer template that ignores all cover and armor? How about the ability to move your opponents forces around, each turn? Or maybe you just want to create a huge stink cloud that causes hits to all enemies in a certain radius?

Have I convinced you to join chaos yet? They have good dental after all.

juraigamer wrote:Have I convinced you to join chaos yet? They have good dental after all.

Really? How are your guys HMO and 401K plans?

LOL

Thanks everyone for the input, I'll be playing Dark Eldar, tonight or tomorrow night I will go to my local game shop and see what the other people are play and then build a list from there.

Actuall space wolf grey hunters have the same armament as the chaos marines do, for the same points

I ran into a bit of a hic up, when I went to the game shop, it turns out, that out of the 16 people that play, 6 of them are running Dark Eldar. All of them gave me different pointers and a few of them even recommended a different army, the most common recommendation was Orks. Now I know very little about Ork, I do own an older codex of theirs but I never gave them a chance, I know that they're a horde army and they're pretty good when it comes to the assault but that is it. Also the people that recommended them to me, said that they would be more forgiving for a person coming back to the hobby and still do what your looking for.

Any suggestions about that?

Go DE. Why, you ask? Well, to begin with, they have a somewhat new codex and modela. They have great assaulting units (Archon with Huskblade and Soultrap with five Incubi as bodyguards FTW!) And they can dish out some nice ranged punishment too, both anti infantry and anti tank. They have the fastest vehicles and their models are totally awesome. You're an experienced player, so you won,t have too much of a hard time using and painting them. I say go for it.

Will you be more competitive?

SPACE WOLVES (i hate them model-wise, but they're good)

Will you be a collector/painting just for a cool army (and casual gaming?

TAU

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/Warhammer-40000/Tau/TAU-BATTLESUITS-AND-DRONES?filter_reset=1

Look at these battlesuits! Compare that to a walking metal box they call a dreadnought!

moarmoarmoar wrote:Look at these battlesuits! Compare that to a walking metal box they call a dreadnought!

I like the walking metal boxes. They're purdy. Especially the Forgeworld ones.

I think that, if you're going to choose an army, you should choose one that looks good and whose fluff appeals to you.

I chose Necrons because my painting skills are really subpar, because I like metal skeletons, and because I enjoyed the whole "Ancient forces hate us for million year old grudges" gig. Since you're interested in the gaming side of the hobby, you should probably also get a force that at least is decent and fun.

-Loki- wrote:Well, it's also frowned upon by many players. Most people think that once you pick your chapter, you stick to its codex. Personally, I'm one of them. But, it's still something a lot of Marine players do.

I mean, I'd love to throw a Baal Predator and Stormraven in my Salamanders, but the codex that represents Salamanders doesn't have them, so I don't.

Well, there is always the "Create your own Chapter/Successor Chapter method, then you can use any book you want.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

juraigamer wrote:You said you wanted to be able to jump in and kill them, but at the same time have the ability to blow them away from afar.

That leaves only one choice, CSM. Your initial thought was what you should have stuck with.

Why?

All CSM have extra CCW, meaning an extra attack standard in melee. No other marines do, on standard troops.

Space Wolves, anyone?

CSM have the ability to run huge hordes of power armor, up to 20 in a squad if you so desire, with these taking marks to further augment them. Hows +1 attack for everyone sound? What about +1 toughness? Maybe you want a +5 invun save, or +1 initiative?

Outside of maybe MoS, they are all overprice and underwelming compare to cult units.

Demon weapons. They kill stuff dead. Would you like to be able to crash into an opponents unit of 10 marines and just wipe it out?

So long as it doesnt back fire on you and kill your expensive HQ

Shooting. Standard BS 4. Don't you know your facing? Take obliterators, they have practically every gun in the game, on each guy, for free. Havocs are great, since you can take large hordes of them, allowing for some to die and have you not lose those important weapons.

Oblits are good, Havocs are rather overpriced this edition

Chosen. Does running a squad with 5 plasma guns sound good? How about them appearing from the edges of the board, or even starting the game 18 inches away? Want 5 other guns? Sure take your pick.

They are all right, gets expensive pretty darn fast. Somehow dont have an extra attack like every other MEQ vet units

CSM have the best standard troops in the game, period. Your standard CSM, plus the 4 cult troops make you a force to be reckoned with in infantry combat.

GK Strike Squads (Or Purifiers), BA ASMs and SW Grey Hunters are better.

CSM fear no tanks. With demon princes, obliterators and much more they enjoy getting to the chewy insides.

Not really all that better at AT than other MEQ

Demon princes, when size matters, it shows. Flying targets to death that will destroy anything but a landraider easily. Can take warp time. What's warp time? How would you like the ability for your demon prince to re-roll any to wound or to hit rolls on both your and your opponents turn?

Not all that difficult to take down with their mediocre saves, dont actually challenge any serious CC units with them.

Chaos can take possession on vehicles. This means, unless the weapon is destroyed or the vehicle is wrecked, it can ALWAYS shoot.

You are also BS3 and miss half the time.

Chaos also has crazy psychic powers, the kind that make your opponent cringe. Want a flamer template that ignores all cover and armor? How about the ability to move your opponents forces around, each turn? Or maybe you just want to create a huge stink cloud that causes hits to all enemies in a certain radius?

Has to pay quite a lot for them for some reason. The only good ones are Lash and Warp time.

Have I convinced you to join chaos yet? They have good dental after all.

Also if you like the old codex, odds are you wont like the new one...

juraigamer wrote:You said you wanted to be able to jump in and kill them, but at the same time have the ability to blow them away from afar.

That leaves only one choice, CSM. Your initial thought was what you should have stuck with.

Why?

All CSM have extra CCW, meaning an extra attack standard in melee. No other marines do, on standard troops.

CSM have the ability to run huge hordes of power armor, up to 20 in a squad if you so desire, with these taking marks to further augment them. Hows +1 attack for everyone sound? What about +1 toughness? Maybe you want a +5 invun save, or +1 initiative?

Demon weapons. They kill stuff dead. Would you like to be able to crash into an opponents unit of 10 marines and just wipe it out?

They also have an unfortunate tendency to kill the user.

Shooting. Standard BS 4. Don't you know your facing? Take obliterators, they have practically every gun in the game, on each guy, for free. Havocs are great, since you can take large hordes of them, allowing for some to die and have you not lose those important weapons.

Personally, I'd say havocs are better than Obliterators since they get a minimum of two more shote per turn.

Chosen. Does running a squad with 5 plasma guns sound good? How about them appearing from the edges of the board, or even starting the game 18 inches away? Want 5 other guns? Sure take your pick.

CSM have the best standard troops in the game, period. Your standard CSM, plus the 4 cult troops make you a force to be reckoned with in infantry combat.

I'd have to disagree with you on this one, having recently lost a 20 man squad to 10 GKs.

CSM fear no tanks. With demon princes, obliterators and much more they enjoy getting to the chewy insides.

Demon princes, when size matters, it shows. Flying targets to death that will destroy anything but a landraider easily. Can take warp time. What's warp time? How would you like the ability for your demon prince to re-roll any to wound or to hit rolls on both your and your opponents turn?

Chaos can take possession on vehicles. This means, unless the weapon is destroyed or the vehicle is wrecked, it can ALWAYS shoot.

And of course, so can GKs, but without the BS reduction.

Chaos also has crazy psychic powers, the kind that make your opponent cringe. Want a flamer template that ignores all cover and armor? How about the ability to move your opponents forces around, each turn? Or maybe you just want to create a huge stink cloud that causes hits to all enemies in a certain radius?

Unfortunately, Vanilla marines also have this, but better.

Have I convinced you to join chaos yet? They have good dental after all.

Apart from Nurgle.

You want Space Wolves. Why? Because they can do each of the things you're after. They're great at shooting from range and they're great in combat and all with the same models. They're truly the swiss army knife... um... army.

Chaos Space Marines are similar to the Wolves, just slightly less efficient. If background and aesthetics is important to you and you prefer theirs to the Wolves', you should do them. They'll be updated within a year, but you can count on regular CSMs and Rhinos etc. to remain useful.

Dark Eldar are also capable of achieving good shooting and assault in the same army, but I think from your list that you are feeling a pull towards Marines.

Asherian Command wrote:or you want to lose every game (eldar)

Say word?

Eldar may not be Blood Angels, Imperial Guard, Space Wolves, Grey Knights or even Dark Eldar- but to say "lose all the time" seems like a bit of a strech. The Eldar codex is still holding up despite the fact that it was built in fourth edition!

There have been many threads detailing army performance at events like Nova, and Eldar are consistantly middle of the pack in all of those polls. And those are tournaments. The whole way tournaments work is that player skill starts to matter less because everybody is so good. When you are just starting out, or playing in local tournaments, player skill is still the most important variable. You could give a poor player the hardest space wolf list available, and he'd still find a way to lose to a very good player with a semi competitive tau or necron list.

Pick the army that you like the feel of most. By the time you are ready to compete in major tournaments the flavor du jour will probably have moved anyway... So your first army should be one you like the most aesthetically and style wise.

For me at least, I play Eldar and am starting Chaos Space Marines.

I love Eldar for the play style of the army. Fast tanks engaging enemy weak points, reserved flanks, playing from reserve, scattering to objectives from nearly anywhere on the board on turn 5 and 6. Its a very surgical strike feeling army. You know you are out gunned, and you know you have weaker armor, but you've got the speed and special abilities to exploit nearly any weakness your opponent shows. Very rewarding playstyle. Dark Eldar is like Eldar except even more exaggerated. Dark Eldar are faster, and have more fire power, but every unit dies extremely easily. Dark Eldar vs Eldar matches are rather fun as an Eldar player- its rare I get to play an army that not only can keep up with me but outpace my movement.

Chaos i am drawn to because of the models. The Forgeworld Great Unclean One is perhaps the most beauti- I mean putrid model I have ever seen and the Finecast Nurgle Daemon Prince is a distant second (but still second).

At the end of the day, all armies can have competitive builds, the top tier armies just are more competitive at the *highest* levels of play. Were I you I'd focus on getting back into the game with an army you love. You can cross the top tier competitive army bridge later, maybe start a space wolf army or something with Hard Boyz in mind. I dunno. But to get back in you need to be passionate about your models.