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Now, I know it's in the rulebook. But why don't people use it into friendly games where both have actual allies? I'm just imagining so many silly things you can do with this rule.
For instance, Vect and Eldrad in the same army, who wouldn't love that? Expensive, sure, but who cares? Space marines with LM. Sure! Lets take those two. Lets not forget Orks with Tau, taking their fabulous suits.
But why do people like this rule? Explain it. Because the reason why I don't like it, is the potential for cheese that just fills me with disgust.

Pray tell, what cheese?

I'd say it's a massive boon for those who want to play their CSM with Daemons or Traitor Guard, or for those that want to play their Sisters of Battle with IG support, for example. The more powerful army lists already have ways of taking care of everything, so I don't see them allying in stuff too much.

hmm.. Maybe I'm spelling doom too much. Since hey! 500 points. What's the worst that could happen.
*2 months later*
OH GOD WHY.

I like that daemons and CSM can hook up, and obviuosly it makes fluff sense that all the imperial factions can fight together, but space marines BBF with TAU! really, how can they be battle brothers with them when they aren't even battle brothers with SoB or GK? PLease tell me i'm reading the table wrong!

I like allies for the fluffy lists or the idea that my IG can have some SoB rush up to stall the big horde of orks. Will some people try to find horrible deathstars of doom? Sure, but at least in my area people have been decent about not spamming such things. The next few tourneys may have something else to say though...

Give people a system and they are certain to abuse and break it.

I think allies is an awesome addition that opens up a whole host of interaction between codices. So long as the allies make sense from a narrative perspective, I see no reason why they shouldn't be used.

L. Wrex

I like it because I'm new and I can sample alot of different armies w/o committing to buying a whole force. The next army I'm going to try and build is IG and over time I'll probably try and sample about every ally they can take.

Its a way to massively diversify the possible army lists and it makes things like Skitarii, Tau auxillaries, Chapter serfs and a whole host of things which are mentioned in the fluff but which have never had a list (or haven't had a list in years) doable without having to resort to using poorly fitting proxies. My Death Guard army has been bolstered by a Traitor Guard infantry platoon for example.

Of course given that 40k seems to have developed a 'competative' mindset and that GW's routinely fails to properly balance their lists there is defeinate scope for abuse by power gamers but on balance the allies rules are a good thing.

It's got no more potential abuse than having a second FOC open up at 2k pts, or fortifications, or fliers, or anything else. WAAC players will always find something to abuse, and if it wasn't allies, it would be something else.

For every guy out there who's trying to make a super cheesy list, there's probably 3 more trying to make a really cool flufly army, or a newer guy who's getting to use models from an army he'd normally wouldn't be able to use for months. I know I represent the last 2. I just started orks, and allies lets me bring them with my IG, allowing me to play with the few models I have and get a better idea of where I want to go in the future. The allies rule also lets me do a fluffy Blood Axe army, either counting the orks as mercenaries for the IG, or modeling some grots as guardsmen with looted tanks and making it a pure blood axe force.

Allies is a good thing. Yeah, GW is probably using it as a scheme to sell more models, but I don't care. All the cool stuff you can do with it far outweighs the bad. And if you see some guy with a super cheesy combo, here's a crazy idea, DON'T PLAY HIM.

Also, shouldn't this be in general discussion?

Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Eldar are "Battle Brothers" with Dark Eldar? Tau allied with Orks? Imperial Guard allied with Chaos Daemons?

Any of the Ork combos can be seen as a desperate commander paying off Ork freebooters, against a greater threat. Guard and daemons makes as much sense as guard and CSM, who's to say there wasn't corruption and heresy amongst the regiment, and now they are under the thrall of chaos?

TedNugent wrote:

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Eldar are "Battle Brothers" with Dark Eldar? Tau allied with Orks? Imperial Guard allied with Chaos Daemons?

Eldar protect their own even if their views don't match.

I can see Tau using the Orks to their advantage in battle if needed though I personally see it as a desperate ally rather than allies of convenience.

Imperial Guard with Chaos Demons = Traitor Guard.

Also, hasn't it been mentioned that eldar and dark eldar have worked together at times? Bear with me, don't know much about eldar.

As for orks, theirs is less an ally chart and more of a loot chart, although blood axes do hire themselves out as mercenaries at times.

I'm surprised you didn't point out the real bizarre ones like SM and tau battlebrothers, or that sisters of battle are even desperate allies with dark eldar and regular eldar

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Dark Eldar and Slaanesh Daemons?

Ponies are chaos wrote:Now, I know it's in the rulebook. But why don't people use it into friendly games where both have actual allies? I'm just imagining so many silly things you can do with this rule.
For instance, Vect and Eldrad in the same army, who wouldn't love that? Expensive, sure, but who cares? Space marines with LM. Sure! Lets take those two. Lets not forget Orks with Tau, taking their fabulous suits.
But why do people like this rule? Explain it. Because the reason why I don't like it, is the potential for cheese that just fills me with disgust.

I like it becasue it allows more potential to represent campaigns and scenarios in more variety. It supports fluff and story-arc.

Im not worried about abuse because the group I play with has self-restraint ad respect for the fluff/campaign/scenarios we normally play.

I think you will INDEED see lots of abuse in general by the usual suspects, but then I just ignore those types and avoid them so it is a non-issue for me personally.

Choose your friends/opponents better and you should be fine.

I like it because it gives folks who wanted to collect another army an excuse to do so.

Why do people like my little pony? The universe is a strange place, everyone has different tastes.

xttz wrote:

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Dark Eldar and Slaanesh Daemons?

Not all Dark Eldar are oppsed to Slaanesh Daemons. Some embrace it. There was some fluff about a Dark Eldar Captain who has a Slannesh Daemon cohort.

Shovan wrote:

xttz wrote:

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Dark Eldar and Slaanesh Daemons?

Not all Dark Eldar are oppsed to Slaanesh Daemons. Some embrace it. There was some fluff about a Dark Eldar Captain who has a Slannesh Daemon cohort.

Cite your source.

htj wrote:

Shovan wrote:

xttz wrote:

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Dark Eldar and Slaanesh Daemons?

Not all Dark Eldar are oppsed to Slaanesh Daemons. Some embrace it. There was some fluff about a Dark Eldar Captain who has a Slannesh Daemon cohort.

Cite your source.

I can as soon as I get home. Internet at work only allows me to do so much.

I await that eagerly then.

htj wrote:I await that eagerly then.

Come to find from looking around google a little that older fluff has some Dark Eldar worshipping Slaanesh. Since the new codex this is not the case.

Shovan wrote:

htj wrote:I await that eagerly then.

Come to find from looking around google a little that older fluff has some Dark Eldar worshipping Slaanesh. Since the new codex this is not the case.

Hmm, never saw that. Maybe it was in 3rd? I wasn't paying a lot of attention back then. Seems like it's pretty contradictory to the current envisioning of DE, though. Certainly from what the current Codex says, DE worshipping Slaanesh seems like a contradiction.

I'm down for fluffy allies in friendly games, but if I see grey knights with allied space wolves, or some similar crap, no game.

because starting a new army that takes advantage of the new rules costs $700 and takes months to build and paint. With the allies rule you can play with a brand new army and just buy a little bit of it. It's simple, it's cheaper to get into a new army....it's fun and it's new.

xttz wrote:

Shovan wrote:

TedNugent wrote:Because it's exploitable cheese, and it allows for completely unfluffy combinations.

Such as?

Dark Eldar and Slaanesh Daemons?

chaos eldar

I like allies firstly because I own BA and IG and want to play them together. I like allies because you used to be able to use allies and not allowIng them (5th) seemed silly.

Mostly I like allies as it evens the playing field (for most armies, except tyranid players ). Now cheese is readily available in all flavors to all.

I am sick of the crying concerning allies. It makes more sense to include them. The amount of times I have had to face a gk or codex marine player just because of a lack of diversity in my available opponents, I don't sit and state well we can't fight each other because we are both goodies. I play the game. Arguing over what you can or should be able to ally with seems less important to me fluff wise when there is NO RULE stating good guys can't fight each other. In fact grim dark means fighting your supposed allies sometimes an teaming up with baddies when there is a greater threat.

Read the horus heresy novels. Read about the interex. Read about how different armies feel abou each other and now understand that contexts are constantly changing. There is a possibility or almost any combination teaming up against chaos or mindless hungry aliens.

I like the ally rules but then I have most armies so I can mix and match for fun
It gives people a chance to try stuff and newcomers to be a part fo an larger and (hopefully) better commanded army to get to know the game but still use their shiny new models

I just wish they have been more careful with the Martix and not made IMO so many fluff errors:

To me the obvious changes:

Tau should be Allies of Conveience with SM
SOB should be Allies of Conveineince with BT
Tau should be desperate allies with Orks
SOB should be Come the App with Dark Eldar
SOB should be Desperate Allies with Space Wolves
Tau should be Desperate Allies with Chaos Marines
Necrons should be Come the App with Chaos Marines
BT should be Desperate Allies with Eldar
BT Should be Desperate Allies (or even Come the App given the events in the Necron Codex) with Necrons
Tryanids should be Desperate Allies with Guard and Tau (genestealer cults and other control and inflitration tecniques/organisms)

There are some odd combos at the moment - Yarrick and Gazghukul, Helbrecht and Imotek, Vecht and Vulkan etc etc - but then i guess its all very Marvel team up of the year