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Greetings!

I played 40k back when the inquisition wasn't a thing, imperial guard was imperial guard, and mauleed marines were rofl-stomping the world. That is to say, 3rd/4th edition. I've been square-basing for a while now, but that game's going to the dogs.

So I'm back and looking at what I'm getting myself into. Namely, what are the "mauleed marines" of today? I've been looking but can't really see a pattern. My best guess is as follows:

-Transports are everywhere
-Troops selections seem fairly minimal
-Most points spent on HQ/Elite/Heavy
-Mostly elite armies where a squad has a job for which it is optimal
-Everything has like, 5 different saves

Now, when I used to play, IG had doctrines, my favorite of which were drop troops and special weapons squads. I basically loaded up on as many special weapons as I could and took infantry squads with just a plasma gun or melta gun. And then dropped them from low orbit. In a game where armies were 30 models, I was dropping in 200 men. Yes, it was literally raining men.

It was really great because I was able to get alpha strikes and deal huge damage, while not leaving enough time for the enemy to kill all 200 chumps. Even in games where I didn't get to deep strike, I could just run all 200 meatbags across the table and bludgeon things to death with volumes of flashlight fire.

I can no longer do this. Alas. That said, is a shooty-horde still doable? How about rapidly deploying special weapons teams? Plasma or melta? Las cannons or auto cannons? Cheap and volumes of fire or goodies? Specific tool for specific job or massive redundancy?

Finally, if "It's raining men" is no longer an option, how is "Charlie don't surf!"? Air cav is a go? Valkeries are a thing now, when they used to just be IA. Do I need to convert up so Huey counts-as chimeras?

Save me Dakka, you are my only hope.

Thanks!

Honestly the meta is a mess right now.

Most top lists of big tournaments are doing some odd and unexpected combo, running large numbers of "poor" units and factions regarded as weak and generally win by throwing curveballs...

Others get an OP unit/codex , spam such as wave serpents and spam like he'll to go for brute force method.


Add the supervquick release rate, and by the time one tournament gets analysed properly, new options are thrown into the mix, leaving people guessing again...

7-th is probably the best edition to see a good list variety - from minmaxing heavy supports with minimum troop taxes, mobile unkillable deathstars to greentides and extreme troop msu. Maelstorm mission type means that board presence is very important and you generate victory points throughout the game instead of just last turn + secondaries. It's somewhat random and some people hate it. It also makes you want to be at least partially mobile or be able to go midboard and hold your ground there, so static gunlines are no longer that frightening.

I think there has been a real shakeup in the meta in 7th with the move to detachments and the rapid release schedule. Some people may not like change but as someone who does my best tactical advice is to focus on mobility. You will see a wide variety of opponents so the only constant is needing to score points and claim objectives quick. Build your army around that and the specific matchups matter less.

Now as for Guard droppers....you've got options my friend.

Option 1) Valkyries. Since Forge World is now officially recognized 40k, the FW Elysian Drop Troop rules are now a thing you can play with! Way more fun than just running them as fast attack.

Option 2) Storm Troopers (or officially Milistriocopyrightyum Tesdosteroni. Apparently some guy named Lucas had the copy right on storm troopers so GW couldn't have it) they drop. They're in the regular guard codex or if you hate yourself they're in their own special extra gakky Dex with no options.

Option 3) Borrow a drop pod. Welcome to Warhammer 40k Friendship Edition. Armies who are classified as Battle Buddies can use the transport vehicles of one another. There's a Blood Angel space marine detachment with 6 Fast Attack slots, a Drop Pod is Fast Attack... This is honestly the closest you can get to your dropping squads from low orbit, and here's the kicker-that is winning tournaments at this point. Space wolves can do it too but only get 3 FA pods.

If you want a really, really elite special weapons drop force, look into Imperial Armour 4 (make sure you get the current one, which is the second edition).

You get access to the Elysian D-99; a special forces unit of Elysian Veterans loaded out with all the cool toys and training.

The elite squads are especially cool - squads entirely armed with flamethrowers, sniper teams where each sniper has a spotter who actually does something (spotter's magnoculars get used instead of firing, and extend the range of the sniper and give him night vision).

First of all, welcome back

Secondly, you will have to find a local group in order to observe their meta in order to understand where to go*

However, where to resume boils down to three options:

1. retain your single-dex mono build, and win with a serious curveball. Very few armies besides maybe tau or another IG army can even hope to gun through 200 dudes in a single game, and that's before you take into account the tanks.
Guard shooty blobs are still extremely viable. Pair with many many heavy weapon squads, and add munitorum priests to the blobs to make them fearless, and win by literally making your opponent unable to position his models and drowing things in flashlights.

2. Formations and allies are a thing. Ally in for the gimmicks other armies get. You can, as Scotsman said, use the Blood Angels Flesh Tearers Strikeforce from the exterminatus campaign book to get access to 6 FA slots, for the relatively low tax of one HQ & one Troop option.
This will allow you to drop Meltavets or Plasmavets in Astartes grade style, all the while your tide of regular dudes comes crashing closer. Or, take Mephiston and make a Leman Russ Battle Tank squadron invisible. Or ally in something bigger, like an Imperial Knight, because who doesn't love big mechs with battle cannons and a sword larger than a small tank.

3. Psychic abuse. The psychic phase is what literally breaks this game, especially when done on the MSU level. This is done best through the inquisition. 175 points will generate you 13+D6 Warp Charge (the new 'psychic points') each and every turn.
You can use each one of these psykers to do something different, from making your own units invisible or giving an entire squad twin-linked (FRFSRF I hear you think?), to throwing fireballs and tearing a portal to the warp open within enemy battle tanks.

And that is just staying with the Imperium's Finest, you could just as easily pick up a new army, and make it rain Crisis Suits (Farsight Enclaves have their own codex supplement now), run a wall of wraithguard (Iyanden Eldar supplement), or run the indestructible robots, which can, as you so rightly say, gain up to 5 saves on a single dude.

The options in 7th are pretty much endless.

*For the record, I feel sorry for the headache you're about to get.