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So I have a 1350 or Grey knight army right now (Dread knight, Pallies, Purgs, Pures, Strike, and LR). In my area tournaments are usually 1850 pt armies and I'm thinking of running some Imp allies to get my army up to that point for the AP and range capabilities, as well as just more units. Any suggestions on this strategy? Or should I just stick with pure Grey Knights? If Imperials, what units?

Imperial Guard (Astra Militarium) would be my suggestion - provides some cheap scoring units for backfield objectives, long range firepower in the form of tanks, and works well as an Allied Detatchment due to being able to field squadrons and platoons as single slots.

I've got some IG/AM for the reasons so clearly set out by Quanar.

I also have some SM

The key weaknesses of GK for me are: lack of firepower in certain areas and lack of options. Allies allow you to make up for this, especially in terms of AA firepower. I have a stalker in my small SM allied contingent. An IG hydra would be great too for this. IG give lots of bulk for holding objectives, etc. SM can provide other gap fillers like bikes for FA where GK are critically weak.

I play GKs too and your best options for allies are Guard/Astra Militarium, Inquisition, Imperial Knights, or SM.

IG/AM offer cheap bodies that can be spammed to take objectives while your GKs go do some killing. You also get access to Hydras and Russia tanks.

Inquisition pretty much the same as IG/AM but without the tanks.

SM can offer you a few different options. Salamanders give you melta, and tons of it, which is something GKs get almost nothing of. White Scars can offer you a fast, durable, mobile force. Imperial Fists offer you great devastator units.

Imperial Knights are risky because they are expensive and every anti vehicle weapon on the field will be aimed at them. Though with that big melta weapon/CC attacks/stomp it will wreck some stuff if you get it in range.

Eldar. They are excellent allies for Grey Knights. Imperial allies are boring to play, and not that effective. If you are running Draigo-star or Centurion-star or any army with Imperial Knights, that's fine, but you can still have fun and be competitive with Grey Knights and Eldar.

If you want to run a weird list, use the Farseer to summon Bloodletters and give your HQ the thing that gives him 2+ invul when a Daemon of Khorne is nearby. The reason why the Farseer is the best option for non-daemon daemon summoner is because of the Ghost Helm which can ignore the wound caused by the Peril.

Anyway, the Eldar gives more Warp Points to your Grey Knights more cost effectively. The Farseer is 3WP for 100 points. Warlock is 1WP for 35 points. You can also ally with Daemons to get the Warp Points for Grey Knights, but that is heretical to the extreme.

The Eldar can provide supporting fire with Wave Serpents against soft targets like small squads of Heavy Weapon Teams or Pathfinders. The Grey Knights should have no problem against hard targets such as Land Raiders or Riptides because the Dreadknight has S10 attacks and can Teleport 30 inches.

If you are using the Nemesis Strike Force Detachment, that is even better now that you get superior mobility. Run and shoot in the same Shooting Phase for everyone.

I run Grey Knights with Eldar allies myself and have beaten most opponents.

If you want to do well at tournaments then you should do the cheesy Centstar shenanigans.

SGTPozy wrote:
If you want to do well at tournaments then you should do the cheesy Draigowing shenanigans.

I believe SGTPozy is refering to Centstar

Draigowing (Draigo and all paladins) doesnt really do much anymore comparatively

 WrentheFaceless wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:
If you want to do well at tournaments then you should do the cheesy Draigowing shenanigans.

I believe SGTPozy is refering to Centstar

Draigowing (Draigo and all paladins) doesnt really do much anymore comparatively

Oops, wrong one.

This thread seems to have popped up like... ten times in the last two months. As a GK player, I smirk, as we all go through the same pattern of enjoying the army, and quickly realizing allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

As always, I will say that you will hear folks mention Space Wolves often as well, and rightly. They provide Drop Pods for the over-rated (IMO) Purifier/Cleansing Flame abuse, and also wonderful, cheap objective holders in Grey Hunters/Blood Claws.

I'll also say I increasingly run Adepta Sororitas allies, and they're a match made in heaven...

1. Scouted Meltas in Immolators support your first-strike style
2. Exorcists are amazing, period, and GK's benefit from its range
3. Cheap, hard to shift blobs for holding objectives back-field.

Thanks everyone for all the great tips!!! I think I've narrowed it down to either AM or the Sororities. Right now I've just started it out and I'm honestly into the game after reading the books for years, so I'm trying to find a nice combination of challenging and lore-correct, not too easy with the Grey Knights and allies lol, but possibly I can work out something with the Sororitas, especially with the Purgators taking up my extra heavy assault slot. I'll definitely start looking into these options, thanks again everyone!!!

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

Really? So you think that GK need allies more than:
Millitarum Tempestus
Assasins
Inquisition
Imperial Knights
Legion of the Damned

Already stated I was new to the game, so I'm not embarrassed to ask: Is there a Deadbeat Faction? That could be pretty badass, lol. Couldn't find it on Google so I doubt it but it never hurts to ask.

SGTPozy wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

Really? So you think that GK need allies more than:
Millitarum Tempestus
Assasins
Inquisition
Imperial Knights
Legion of the Damned

Forgive me... I meant amongst the Codices that presumably should have been "full" armies unto themselves. Assassins, Knights, etc... are obviously a different animal altogether, unless you're being smarmy... which since, its you, and a Grey Knight thread... I am going to assume is the case.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

Really? So you think that GK need allies more than:
Millitarum Tempestus
Assasins
Inquisition
Imperial Knights
Legion of the Damned

Forgive me... I meant amongst the Codices that presumably should have been "full" armies unto themselves. Assassins, Knights, etc... are obviously a different animal altogether, unless you're being smarmy... which since, its you, and a Grey Knight thread... I am going to assume is the case.

Nope, your first assumption was correct, I am not being 'smarmy'.

I also ran into the same problem as I think a lot of dedicated Grey Knight players have. I solved my problem by fielding SM with Imperial Fist Chapter tactics and also using the Sentinels of Terra supplement. It has worked out quite well and the Imperial Fists have filled out a lot of what I was lacking. At the same time, I have been teamed with AM and that was a great combination filling out what the GK lacked much in the same way. I have also brought my Imperial Knight along and that does fine so there are a lot of things in Imperial armies that can be used to help bring to the table what the GK lack in Heavy Support and air defense.

The biggest weaknesses of GK are long-ranged firepower and ranged anti-tank; Space Marines and AM can solve both problems quite easily.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

SGTPozy wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

Really? So you think that GK need allies more than:
Millitarum Tempestus
Assasins
Inquisition
Imperial Knights
Legion of the Damned

GK are the main-line book that ought to be a mini-'Dex. MT, Assassins, Inquisition, Knights, and LotD are mini-'Dexes.

 AnomanderRake wrote:
The biggest weaknesses of GK are long-ranged firepower and ranged anti-tank; Space Marines and AM can solve both problems quite easily.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

SGTPozy wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
allies are more mandatory for GK than almost any faction right now.

Really? So you think that GK need allies more than:
Millitarum Tempestus
Assasins
Inquisition
Imperial Knights
Legion of the Damned

GK are the main-line book that ought to be a mini-'Dex. MT, Assassins, Inquisition, Knights, and LotD are mini-'Dexes.

Yeah, unfortunately as much as I love the GK, it is true, they are more mini-dex status more than anything with not much variety compared to other codices and the fact that they really can't stand on their own needing support or being able to supplement other forces. Since I have gotten into Imperial Fists, I have upped the amount of Imperial Fists I have taken and shrunk my GK presence. I really love the GKs too but they are not a strong enough stand alone codex despite this.

I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

 Envihon wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

Hey it's a formation so he COULD toss in another DK for the hell of it.

 Quickjager wrote:

 Envihon wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

Hey it's a formation so he COULD toss in another DK for the hell of it.

I mostly do, two Dreadknights helps a lot on the board and I mostly try to take two myself but I just got a lot of new shiny Imperial Fist toys that I have been wanting to try out so I have reduced to only one for the time being.

 Envihon wrote:

 Quickjager wrote:

 Envihon wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

Hey it's a formation so he COULD toss in another DK for the hell of it.

I mostly do, two Dreadknights helps a lot on the board and I mostly try to take two myself but I just got a lot of new shiny Imperial Fist toys that I have been wanting to try out so I have reduced to only one for the time being.

I was thinkin Imperial Fists, but I decided to go Guard to compliment the elite nature. The biggest problem is I don't like how Cadians look... so I am doing painstakingly slow conversion of each guy, NO OPEN-FACED HELMS IN MY ARMY SOLDIER!

I am glad I am not the only one who hates faces in their army, and it is definitely easier to do this with Space Marines and even my Librarians have helms.

But yeah Imperial Fists have been great allies and they haven't let me down yet.

 Envihon wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

Ding ding ding... this man is correct. :-p Hate to say it, but every GK player is part of the same club. We can look at each-other and know, unspoken... with enough games under our belts, we end up learning the exact same truths.

Also, our local stores do a LOT of highlander events, so its one Dreadknight only, in my case (though I own three... because if you're gonna try 1850pts of pure GK and don't own three, you're already handicapping your chances of winning immensely).

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:

 Envihon wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I started with GK thinking i'd run them faction pure and be happy as well. Fifty+ games in, I now know that is virtually impossible. We have two EXCELLENT units in our Librarian and Dreadknight, and then maybe three "ok" units in Purifiers, Interceptors and our troop Terminators.

Beyond that I genuinely can't ever take anything else if I am being serious about being competitive. If I am playing for fun, absolutely... but seriously... Draigo, without allies, does nothing special for a mountain of points. Paladins cost a boat-load for adequet survivability, etc...

As with the above poster I started with Space Wolves and Sisters intended to be allies... and suddenly find my GK purchases at a complete halt, and instead expanding those.

My much loved GK/SW list, is about to become SW/GK... a subtle, but sad difference, in my mind.

Let me guess, as long as you can fit a GK Librarian, a 5 man GK Terminator squad and Dreadknight, you fill the rest with Space Wolves?

Ding ding ding... this man is correct. :-p Hate to say it, but every GK player is part of the same club. We can look at each-other and know, unspoken... with enough games under our belts, we end up learning the exact same truths.

Also, our local stores do a LOT of highlander events, so its one Dreadknight only, in my case (though I own three... because if you're gonna try 1850pts of pure GK and don't own three, you're already handicapping your chances of winning immensely).

Every single Grey Knight player in my gaming group independently came up with the same solutions to the problems of the Grey Knights. After a couple of games we all realized it and started looking into allies. The funny thing is we all ended up choosing Space Marines as the best allies for our Grey Knights. I think it was a subconcious decision that we still wanted an army that wore power army so there would be at least that uniform aesthetic. One guy went Ultramarines for Sternguard and access to Tiggy to preserve his domination of the psychic phase but the rest use Imperial Fist Chapter Tactics to get access to Tank Hunter and then we all use Centurion Devastators with Lascannons to help our distance anti-armor. Currently, I am the only one paint them actually Imperial Fists, everyone else went Crimson Fists because they don't want to even have to think of painting stuff yellow.