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I've been playing around with the idea of a Storm Trooper fandex and have came up with a few experimental rules heavily based on the IG codex. Please share your thoughts and critique and thank you for your time. Here is what I have thought up thus far.

This really isn't a large or diverse enough army list to form its own army, I think your best idea would be to add more options so you could make it more of an elite, breakthrough force IG army type thing, or add stuff like Grey Knights and Deathwatch and turn it into an inquisition codex.

If you want to make a stormtrooper army list using exclusively stormtroopers, it needs a bit more work. Think of what special forces nowadays have. A vehicle like the Elysian Tauros would be a good stand in for a LRPV, perhaps dropping the heavy weapon on it for space to transport a small squad.

Perhaps a 'trainee stormtroopers' unit, men from the scholam who are on their first few missions and still learning the ropes, could help to fill out the troops. They'd be cheaper, a bit more poorly armed, but they'd give an important thing, variety.

Things that shouldn't be in it;
-easily spammed and cheap heavy weapon units of 4 re-rollable scatter deepstriking meltaguns/plasmaguns, whose reserves can be re-rolled for

-only one troop choice

-a veteran choice which is basically the troops choice with a USR

-the orbital bombardment rule

I do like the trainee stormtrooper idea. Perhaps going oldeschool and outfitting them with hellguns? In my experience in the military, the ones in training always get the shoddy equipment.

Though I can't necessarily call the hellguns shoddy, I've always been a fan of them.

Also, instead of the sniper rifles, why not go with a sniper variant, like a long-barreled hellgun? 36" S3 AP5, Sniper.
You could also make rules for a hellgun hot shot.

Some of my thoughts....

If I wanted to create a vision of elite imperial guard forces....

HQ -

Storm Trooper Command Team
5 models
Valkrye or Chimera

Lord Commissar

Can replace the Company Commander as an upgrade to the above.


Elite -

Elite Storm Trooper Commandos - Must either Deep Strike, Infiltrate, Or Come in Valkrye

0-2 Commissar Morality Team
5 Commissars in a team.

They can either deploy among other units. Or be a unit of just commissars
Valkrye or ChimeraTransport

0-2 Storm Trooper Recon Team
2 Model Teams, They must infiltrate.
Hot-Shot Lagun Sniper Rifle for one of them and the other with a standard rifle and an equipment that lets the sniper re-roll misses (like a spotter irl)
give them a special rule "broken arrow"
If this team is within in 3 inches of an enemy unit, it can order an orbital bombardment or airstrike on its position.
This team is then lost...

Troops -

2+ Storm Troopers
10 Model Teams That can be deployed as 2 5-model teams
No HW
Valkrye or Chimera


0-2 Local Indigenous recruited units.
US Special forces are trained to raise combat units from the local population. This Units are called force multipliers, because a member of an elite team is trained to essentially run a company sized unit of local troops.
1 Storm Trooper as sgt of this force and between 9-29 "cultists, Gue'Vesla,conscript" type meat shields. These could be model as humans, kroot, tau, eldar, ork - even, just locals raised to fight.
Maybe even give these guys HWs....

Fast Attack

Storm Trooper Scout Bikes
Similar to Space Marine Scout Bikes stat wise

Tauros -

Heavy Support - - This army would not have tanks, but perhaps flyers/bombers that provide close air support/ special rules to help them make a difference.

Vendetta Gunships

Some other Bomber/Flyers from IA

Perhaps a good base for a storm trooper army would be to look at the old Terrax Guard from the previous IG codex. They're pretty much a storm trooper/veteran army

I would suggest the following for an "elite" guard army

HQ:
Storm Trooper Command Squad
Lord Commissar
Lord General (include some epic bodyguards/command squad vets, like WS 4 BS 5 bodyguards)

Elites:
Storm Trooper Veterans (can infiltrate, deepstrike, or scout)
Storm Trooper Kill Team (10 models, 5 with "hot-shot sniper rifles (or Long-las whichever you like more)" the other 5 are spotters, each allowing one sniper to reroll misses while he is alive, sniper rifles are AP 3)
Saboteurs (can lay booby traps and stuff?, can infiltrate)

Troops:
Storm Troopers (can't infiltrate, deepstrike, or scout)
Grenadiers (BS 3 storm troopers with the ability to take a heavy weapon team and only one special weapon)
Combat Engineers (carapace armour with shotguns, frag grenades, krak grenades, meltabombs, and a demo charge)

Dedicated Transports:
Chimera
Valkyrie (HQ choices only)

Fast Attack:
Valkyrie Squadrons
Vendetta Squadrons
Hellhound Squadrons

Heavy Support:
LRBT and all its variants
Something well armed and fast, armour can be light

@Buttons: Yeah I noticed the lack of diversity in the dex and lumping them in with the Inquisition dex may not be a bad idea, I miss codex Daemon Hunters and Witch Hunters T_T. I also like a lot of your suggestions, but I am not sure Storm Troopers would even need a Commissar with them, according to fluff Commissar are drawn from a pool of storm troopers so they would already be more disciplined then the average guardsmen.

@motyak: yeah i agree this would need more work, this was just an idea i was toying around with. The idea of weapon specialist was to make up for their lack of heavy armor and fire power, wasn't sure what to add as another troop choice, and wasn't sure how to implement a veteran choice. The Orbital Bombardment rule was something I just tossed in there because i thought it was cool lol but i can see how it could be broken.

@nocturn: Yeah I always like hell guns as well, I was kind of disappointed that codex: IG did away with them. As for a sniper variant, I actually like the idea, there is a variant in fluff called a long-las.

@warpaw: like the idea of indigenous recruits, but would the Imperium of man be too hot about the idea fluff wise? I also like the idea of bringing in the Tauros as a fast attack choice and maybe bombers as heavy support.

Thank you all for your responses. This was just an idea i was toying around with and might revisit.

You should definitely revisit it. It would be great fun as a list, if you can get it balanced with dakka's help, to play with your mates at home, probably not LGS, but around home, if we get it balanced, it'll be hell fun. I'm trying to work on a fantasy army book for the same reason.

motyak wrote:
Things that shouldn't be in it;

-the orbital bombardment rule

Why? Why wouldn't Storm Troopers have Naval support? Why would the elites of the IG, who seem to almost exclusively be fitted with Vendettas and Valkyries not be supported from space? Take their tanks away, give them OB, hit hard and fast, and then GTFO, that's what the idea of the ST's should be built around.

DemetriDominov wrote:

motyak wrote:
Things that shouldn't be in it;

-the orbital bombardment rule

Why? Why wouldn't Storm Troopers have Naval support? Why would the elites of the IG, who seem to almost exclusively be fitted with Vendettas and Valkyries not be supported from space? Take their tanks away, give them OB, hit hard and fast, and then GTFO, that's what the idea of the ST's should be built around.

Except that OB rule was a 'suicide run by the CCS, then hit it with an unscattering S10 AP1 Large Blast and kill everything around him'. It wasn't a hit hard and fast and then GTFO. I'd be fine with that. It was not. It was just a way for a CCS to commit super suicide and so very abuseable. I stand by my first comment.

Edit: Sorry, my bad, hit it with D3 Large Blast S10 AP1 no scatter Ordnance, Barrage.

UrgeToKillRising wrote:

@warpaw: like the idea of indigenous recruits, but would the Imperium of man be too hot about the idea fluff wise? I also like the idea of bringing in the Tauros as a fast attack choice and maybe bombers as heavy support.

Thank you all for your responses. This was just an idea i was toying around with and might revisit.

I suggest you keep revisiting it, I remember reading in the 3rd or 4th edition rule book army list for IG, the possibility of field all storm trooper regiments. It would be fun, and boy do I miss the doctrines.

I think the recruits could fit fluffwise - and could be any model. As long as the will of the Emperor if fulfilled, the means matter not, especially when it may take hundreds of years for the imperium to react to a situation, perhaps a company of stormtroopers and their ship are the only force that can respond to a chaos manifestation on a kroot planet.... and with the new ally rules, almost anyone can be an ally

UrgeToKillRising wrote:
@nocturn: Yeah I always like hell guns as well, I was kind of disappointed that codex: IG did away with them. As for a sniper variant, I actually like the idea, there is a variant in fluff called a long-las.

Well I have been working on an IG codex largely to bring back doctrines1 and actually decided to separate hellguns and hot-shot lasguns into different weapons. The former is more of an anti-horde gun (assault 3, AP 5), while the latter is best used against MEQs (rapid fire, AP 3), with each being allowed to fire a single shot per game at str 5 AP 3 that can get hot (if it does the gun is out for the whole game whether the guy using it lives or dies). Thinking of tossing in a morale check to use the ability, but that will wait until testing. The fluff basis behind all of it is pretty much
1. The HSLG and hellgun seem to be different weapons, with the former being a specially built super charged lasgun, while the latter seems to be purpose built to store as much power as possible in the backpack.
2. Since a HSLG is like a super charged lasgun (meaning lasguns can be modified to increase their damage output to begin with) and storm troopers know a great deal more about their weapons than regular guardsmen they might potentially be able to modify it further to the point where it is dangerous to the user and the enemy, thus the single super shot per game.
3. Since the hellgun has almost unlimited ammo I decided to make it assault 3 to illustrate how storm troopers can be more liberal in the application of their force when using a hellgun.

1If I ever finish it, you can create a unique force, the current system I am working on is several platoon types (infantry, grenadier, light infantry, drop troop) with the option to give them special equipment (like CCWs and pistols, monomolecular edged CCWs (AP 5 and rending), and various poisonous or toxic weapons), as well as specialized training, allowing them to use special rules (like infiltrate or rage), or to sacrifice stats in one area for a boost in another (for example, pay 10 points and sacrifice -1 WS for +1 BS (and visa versa)), or get special firing modes and whatnot.

warpaw wrote:I suggest you keep revisiting it, I remember reading in the 3rd or 4th edition rule book army list for IG, the possibility of field all storm trooper regiments.

I doubt that. In any and all GW books so far, it mentions only one single Storm Trooper Regiment in existence.
The whole idea behind the Storm Troopers is that there is a single regiment of 10.000 men which sends single squads or, at times, entire companies out to crisis warzones where they are then attached to an Imperial battle group to help out where they can. It's why they are listed as a troop choice to be included in any army.

I suppose it's possible to design an entire "army" of ST for a small 500 pts game, but above that it gets a bit weird.

That being said, the fluff is not a law, and regardless of what many in the fandom seem to believe, GW designers and BL/FFG authors alike have repeatedly pointed out that there is no such thing as a strict canon. So if OP feels he wants to field entire regiments of ST or, in general, deviate from what the rulebooks and codices say, that is a valid option. It all depends on which sources he wants to stay true to (as they do occasionally conflict, given that novel or RPG book authors make liberal use of just this freedom to deviate from studio material).

Lynata wrote:

warpaw wrote:I suggest you keep revisiting it, I remember reading in the 3rd or 4th edition rule book army list for IG, the possibility of field all storm trooper regiments.

I doubt that. In any and all GW books so far, it mentions only one single Storm Trooper Regiment in existence.
The whole idea behind the Storm Troopers is that there is a single regiment of 10.000 men which sends single squads or, at times, entire companies out to crisis warzones where they are then attached to an Imperial battle group to help out where they can. It's why they are listed as a troop choice to be included in any army.

I suppose it's possible to design an entire "army" of ST for a small 500 pts game, but above that it gets a bit weird.

That being said, the fluff is not a law, and regardless of what many in the fandom seem to believe, GW designers and BL/FFG authors alike have repeatedly pointed out that there is no such thing as a strict canon. So if OP feels he wants to field entire regiments of ST or, in general, deviate from what the rulebooks and codices say, that is a valid option. It all depends on which sources he wants to stay true to (as they do occasionally conflict, given that novel or RPG book authors make liberal use of just this freedom to deviate from studio material).

Still, such an army list could represent many things anyway, it could be a storm trooper company, with support assets from the Imperial Navy and/or Inquisition, it could be grenadiers from an IG regiment, who are frequently equipped in a manner similar to storm troopers, and superior to most guardsmen.

Buttons wrote:Still, such an army list could represent many things anyway, it could be a storm trooper company, with support assets from the Imperial Navy and/or Inquisition, it could be grenadiers from an IG regiment, who are frequently equipped in a manner similar to storm troopers, and superior to most guardsmen.

That's true - I just think it would look better the smaller the points are.
Another option would be a group of Inquisitorial Storm Troopers, by the way, since you already mentioned the Inquisition. "Codex Apocalypse" mentions 12 Inquisition Storm Trooper squads in service of one Inquisitor Lord Scallen, for example. This group operates under the designation "Clavigers".



There is often some way to make an idea fit a particular origin of fluff - you just gotta be creative, and willing to consider adaptions.