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Now, I have never seen one of these in action or in pictures. If I were to build a Scout company army- 2000 points worth, just about- what should I include?
I was thinking of taking 6 5-man scout squads, one with sniper rifles, and the rest with bolters and a heavy bolter in each squad. They'd have Land Speeder Storms to grab objectives quickly and I'd also have a Thunderfire Cannon and a devastator squad for antitank.

What do you guys think? This is purely conjectural, and stems from my liking of scouts.

10 man alround squads should work too.
1 heavy bolte or missile, 3 sniper rifles, 2 shotguns, 4 boltguns.
Alround, specifically good at standing still and shooting, but when enemies come nearby.. Charge... My thoughts.

Go find GreatCrusade08 on the Bolter & Chainsword forum. Last I checked he ran a Scout army and had good success with it, so he's a good guy to get tips from.

I ran a mostly scout force last night. IIRC it had a captain on bike, 2 5 man CC scouts with PF and combi melta on the sarge (for early strikes and anti tank duty, nobody likes to get a unit killed on turn 1 by scouts). 2 5 man bolter scouts with HB (for midfield duty) 2 counts as troops melta bikes squads with MM attack bike, 2 landspeeder storms (with MM) to transport the CC scouts, a small scout biker squad with triple grenade launchers, and a couple 5 man units of sternguard with 2x MLs. Not the best force, but it was at lower points against a newer player. As a competitive list I wouldn't expect too much out of it, but I would like to think it wouldn't auto lose.

Since scouts only really use the troops and FA slots, you kinda need to branch into using other slots. Since scouts aren't going to be very mechanized, your support options shouldn't probably have much tanks (saturation, and fluff) For this reason you need to make sure you have enough anti tank and anti infantry since you can't make use of the 1+1 to balance things out (1+1 is unit plus transport that split responsibilities). Hence the sternguard and the bikes. Sternguard are decent anti tank with 2ML, but can really hurt infantry. Bikes are good anti tank, but have TL bolters to put some shots into infantry. The scout bikers can hurt light transports with side shots, or put wounds on infantry.

If I'd do scouts... I'll have three 10-man scout squads, 4 armed with sniper rifles, one with a missile launcher, 4 armed with CCW/BP and the sarge has a PFist and combi-melta.

Combat squad, then the CCW/BP and sarge ride a LSS w/ multi-melta. First turn charges!!!! The other half stay back. Maybe add a sniper scout squad with Telion and ML on the mix.

Another possible list is one revolving around Shrike.

If I did scouts I'd probably have a mix of troops. Snipers in the back, bolters and CC/BP in the front in transports. I'd then have a captain on a bike and as many full strength scout biker squads as possible. Then probably a command squad and some stern guard.

You could do a Captain in TDA for CC support.

I have not played scout forces too many times, but had some success at low point games with a scout squads, Storms, scout bikes and a command squad or tactical squad in a razorback. Was a glass hammer. But fun. I called it "recon by fire" cause the storms and razor back all had assault canons. Made them costly, but it was a style thing. What caused the most mayhem was the scout bike squad. Oh, and don't forget sgt Telion. when I used him I stuck him in the sniper squad with a missle launcher. Don't just write off shotguns too. I have used scouts as "arbites" as which hunter allies. I found 5 guys even at bs3 whizzing around in a storm to be a good mop up crew.

Oh...tactics....go first.

Shotguns seem to fit more in a fluffy army to me. From a rules standpoint, you get the same number of shots with a bolter as you do with a shotgun at 12". My scouts have one shotgunner though, and he's got a combat blade on his back, so he's like a breacher.

Ah the lowly shotgun, bolters are by far better weapons. But you loose the assault potential. Scouts are never stellar close combat troops, but for assaulting bloody shot up chunks they can finish a job, or start the job. You only get 5 guys jumping out of a storm, and I tried to use two teams to support each other. If they never had to get out of the storms blotters are awesome. In fact, I've run a storm with a bolter/ Hvy bolter squad as a pill box one time. Was not my intent, just how it worked out. Now in a perfect world, through my messed up point of view, one of the next sm codex will have storms as a dedicated transport option for scouts. They will probably do that in something like the BT codex, (sarcasm filter on) because it fits the current BT fluff so well. Maybe GW hired M. night shaymalan to retcon fluff. " they are like Necrons, but with a twist!". ( sarcasm filter off ) although anything that opens up possibility for army themes usually makes me happy.

lso remember that Landspeeder Storms have Cerberus Launchers, meaning they reduce the LD of the unit the scouts are assaulting next turn. Somehow people forget that: it would be possible additional wounds against MEQs and wipe out for the others.

Scout armies based around Shrike can be amazingingly effective. Infiltrate+scout+Fleet makes for easy first turn assaults. These types of lists make use of CC scouts (one unit of sniper scouts for holding a home objective) and scout bikers. They also usually use 3x MM/HF Dreads in Pods to land close to the scout bikers to pop tanks and add in some CC punch. Finally, they often include one unit of Assault Marines to be Shrike's bodyguard and add in more CC goodness..even better if you add in a Jump Chappie to make the squad+Shrike fearless and reroll hits on the charge.

Where this type of list is weak is against an opponent who can easily fight from reserves: Pods, Mechdar, DoA, etc., because you will not be able to use your first turn alpha strike.

OK token armies would be scouts and shrike to infiltrate 10 termies.
Or Kantor with sternguard scoring.

if you like the scout move though clearly Ravenwing is for you.

I have no idea how scout bikes perform or an actual scout army.

Peace, love and tranquillity

fletch

Juvieus Kaine wrote:Go find GreatCrusade08 on the Bolter & Chainsword forum. Last I checked he ran a Scout army and had good success with it, so he's a good guy to get tips from.

+1 His Scout Tactica is very valuable.

I have been playing more scout games and I am trying to get more comfortable with them, but I love the play style.

With Sniper Scouts I have found that a unit of 10 is almost a must have. They are still BS 3, so with a unit of 5 (and one being a missle launcher for me) you often only get 1 or 2 hits. Having a full unit of 10 fire greatly increases your change of pinning a unit, or taking down a monstrous creature with the 4+ wound. The Sniper Scouts is usually the only unit that gets the cloaks as well.

I started using a Thunderfire cannon as well to use as a heavy support. Fortify a good piece of terrain and deploy your snipers into it and you will turn that 4+ cover save into a 2+ (cloaks and terrain). Remember, just because scouts can infiltrate does not mean that you have to actually deploy them outside of your deployment zone. You got range on those sniper rifles, so deploy them far back and just shot the gak out of the enemy. It is very frustrating for the enemy to see you making 2+ after 2+ safe. Of course it is very frustrating for you when the enemy makes it close enough to lay a flame template over your poor snipers .

Storms are great, but you have to coordinate their weapons with the scouts they are carrying and what their function is. Playing a horde army? Load up on a heavy flamer and give the Sgt a combi-flamer. Playing a mech army? Load up on a multi-melta, combi-melta, and melta-bombs. Good chance you are going to crak open a transport turn 1.

Scout bikes are awesome. Rapid Fire Grenade launchers? Yes please! 6 templates a turn over a horde army, as well as a booby trapped piece of terrain, can turn the tide against any horde army. And having the ability to shoot 6 S6 shots into rear armor also covers your bases against mech armies.

But your best bet is to head over to the Bolter and Chainsword and read up on GC8s tactica. He is the Scout Army king.

Hmmm, I am going to look up this Scout King.

My Tactic, just got to tell someone right:

I spit the army in two Support and Attack,

Support is Thunderfire with half bolter half snipers 1 HB in one corner. And a Conversion Beam, Talion Snipers with ML in the other. Conversion Beam is highest point on table for LOS and furthest away for max damage. Both units have 2+ Cover save, both units can spray down infaltrators and drop pods if they drop in too close.

Attack is a huge scout bike force with the homing becon. 2 MM Storms with 2 half CC scouts, the other 2 half scouts can have the heavy weapon and infiltrate the objective, or hide under the HQ in the back. The CC scouts get 1-2 shotguns 1-2 PF and the rest BP. Scout bikes get the 3 launchers, the bomb and a PF.

By the way I play Talion as a Squad Leader giving +1 Cover. I have done the math, read so many forums, and compaired the points with other Sgt. Upgrades, and there is no way you would pay over 70 points for a 1W model that does what Talion did unless you could save the 30 points for the cloaks. Even if Talion was in a five man squad and gave +1 cover, he would a waste of points.

Depends how far your willing to go.

I think it was insaniak on here that made "Scout terminators"
Simply scouts in a walker like exo-armour.

So yea, you can pretty much go to town if you want to.

All about the scout bikers, but a squad of 3 is a waste unless you are low points and you can get a lot of them with mines. Total booby trap with grenades and melta bombs.

For me I have a couple builds but I like one big squad with a homing becon fist mines and melta bombs.

The Biker shotgun is worthless, other the for show. Twin linked bolters on rapid fire, then assult with the BP and CCW. PF will finish the job. Beacon goes off and sure enough, more scouts and storms in the back. Oh the humanity.....

As the P#@$@% faced alien from Star Wars would say "IT's a TRAP"