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Hey guys I'm still pretty new to 40k and all my experience has been with Eldar, but I wanted to get into an Imperium race. I want the Guard because I love the back story and the constant fight for survival. My question then becomes and I'm sorry if I put this in the wrong forum but what is stronger a mech list vs a foot list. I know they both have their advantages and disadvantages but I like to hear more input before I move on and get more Guard. Also is there a balanced hybrid of both? Again sorry if I'm in the wrong place.

I'm liking having a mixture of 3 squads of mechanized Veterans with melta and plasma, backed by a platoon of boots to bring the heavy weapons.

IG die like flies outside of vehicles and are infantry so not very fast. Vehicles can give them a speedy ride to an objective or target, so it is generally advisable to put anything you don't want walking (IE units that actually need to do something) in a chimera. Infantry platoons can be big enough to take fire and just sit in cover near an objective.

I agree that it is most effective to put vets/pcs/ccs/swts in chimeras and let infantry platoons slog or hang out to be meat shields for backfield artillery. A pure foot list is too slow and very vulnerable. It also lacks much to distract from the HS vehicles that you probably want to bring. I like 6 or so chimera hulls to back up/block for my HS vehicles.

Chimeras also bring good support firepower as a multilaser has a high ROF decent Str shot and also carry a heavy flamer or HB.

I was thinking at least two vet squads with meltas and chimeras to push on objectives. Four platoons with either lascannons or autocannons to take out heavy armor or monstrous creatures. My problem then just comes with what should I get next.

Auto cannons don't take out heavy armor. Single lascannons don't really, either at BS 3 and are expensive. Melta vets, melta Stormtroopers, Vendettas are all much more reliable choices.

Autocannons are a cheap way to minimize BS3 while still bringing high S shots that threaten light vehicles (IE transports, especially rhinos). They are ok for MC, but many of these will sport 3+ or 4+ Invuln. And fly.

I would say 3-4 vet squads w/ melta and plasma (I like 2 squads of each). Gives a lot of threat. Back up with 2 vendettas and your HS. Infantry platoons with flamer/AC hold ground.

Four vet squads sounds do able. I'm working on budget but amazon really has been helping on that one. The vendettas I like but with them alone would I have to worry about flyers? I know I could use one of my heavy slots for a hydra but could that cost me in the long run?

You're going to be happier with a Vendetta than with the Hydra, due to the issues the Hydras have with shooting ground targets. Really, the Vendetta's ONLY problem is transporting them.

Having Marbo could hlep as well; a one man army a bit costier than a regualr infantry squad and he's an elite choice but he'll rain on anyone's parade and catch your opponent's attention. Plus can't go wrong with a demolition charge backed by a BS of 5; better change of pie plating something important.

Well, Mech IG armies have become more mobile in 6th - flat-out moves for our Chimera's and our fliers can transport troops across the table incredibly quickly. We also benefit from being able to move 12" in a transport and still shoot out the top (snap shots only, but still valuable).

Foot IG is about attrition which we took a hit with in 6th - the changes to cover/shooting mean that most of the time, you'll be removing models without getting a save. Add to this your Commissars/special weapons/heavy weapons can get picked out of blobs and, on paper, it looks like an uphill struggle. You can still bring hundreds of bodies in relatively small points games and chances are if you're playing Marines they literally will not be able to fire enough shots to kill every model in your army. Of course, you don't have to kill everyone in a squad to render them ineffective but as we can regroup easier now, it pays to finish squads off for good. Foot IG heavy weapons are also incredibly fragile and the only real defenses they have are either a) safety in numbers (bring a LOT) b) hope there is a suitable ruin you can deploy in or c) bring your own fortification.

Like many IG players, I prefer a mix of armour and troops - usually 1-4 squads of mechanised Veterans and a Platoon but a lot of it depends on my Heavy Support choices. If i'm taking static gun tanks/artillery then the Platoon is a must for protection/speed-bumps - if my Heavy Support can keep up with Chimera's (i.e. sponson-less Leman Russ) or are cheap enough to not care about (Griffon) then I won't bother with the Platoon. Sometimes I just like playing different lists, so i'll mechanise a Platoon; not the best use of points but you can get a scary amount of tanks/troops for a very reasonable cost. Add Al'rahem occasionally to taste.

From my experiences so far with the new rules, I don't think there'll be a right or wrong way to build a list - mech, foot or hybrid - but I think IG will again be a harder army to play and do consistently well with and new players shouldn't get IG under the premise that they are a 'top-tier' codex. If I believed in that sort of thing I would say that the IG codex is one of the better ones but nowhere near as forgiving in any of the stages of a game (list building/deployment/movement/shooting/assault) as say, a Marine codex.

I am liking the idea of a vet mech list because I do love the armour of the IG. Space marines I like but I never really fell in love with them as IG. So I have a ccs and a battleforce should two chimeras and a vendetta be next up on the buying list?

Marbo looks very cool but I heard he can be an easy kill point after the turn he comes on. Arm stormtroopers as bad as I have heard or are they better than they are given credit?

Marbo is a shot magnet; but think of it like that; after he shows up, throw a pie plate (surely killing his value in point- either a heavy support, elite troops etc..) he get fired at by your opponenet; whihc is a unit not shooting your weaker, more fragile guardsmen, which in turn can pump out lots of shots still.

Stormtroopers are nice, mostly used for surgical strike against units; with the "models closest gets the wound" rule, pop a ST squad behind a HQ unit, or any unti your opponent keeps a character bheind a wall of faceless troops and start assasinating. The fact Deep strike is easier as well (that I saw- didn't checke dit out m'self) it makes it a more viable pick than last edition.

Cool I like the look of the ST and was hoping they be better than what I have heard in the past. Marbo does sound fun and I have a friend who hate to see him pop up behind his lines.


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Cool I like the look of the ST and was hoping they be better than what I have heard in the past. Marbo does sound fun and I have a friend who hate to see him pop up behind his lines.

If you're looking purely from a competitive standpoint, go mech. It's cheaper, faster to deploy, easier learning curve (it plays a lot like other armies) and is slightly easier to transport. Just be ready to buy a LOT of melta and plasma off ebay. Marbo and Stormies are good choices as well. Your heavy support will largely depend on preference and what the rest of your army stuggles with. Leman Russ battle tanks, Demolishers, Exterminators, Basilisks, Griffons, Colossi, and Manticores all have a place in an army, and it's up to you on which ones you feel you need.

Foot guard on the other hand is a very hard to play army, especially if you want to win at high points games. And taking them to tourneys is tough unless you're a really fast player. I would not recommend it to a starting IG player unless you just REALLY love the idea of infantry. Heck, I've been playing it for almost a year and I'm still learning new things about it every game. However, an infantry platoon is never a bad choice, even in a mech list, and it can be adapted to almost anything. Hold the line, provide extra chimeras, give cheap melta throwaway units to ride in your vendettas, heavy weapon squads, etc.

Do you have your codex yet? Most of what we say won't mean much to you until you have one.

Yeah I have my codex, just wondering which was better which is sounding more and more mech.