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Hi,

So I have decided to begin my first Space Marine army after getting 3000 points of Eldar finished and painted, and I have opted for Imperial Fists. I really like they're color scheme/lore, although I plan on doing a darker yellow and black compared to the classic in your face 'McDonalds' colors. I think I will start with the Start Collecting! Space Marines box but then I am not sure where I want to go. I know that I want to get a unit of thunder hammer/storm shield terminators with Lysander in a land raider and then 3 devastator centurions, but then where? Also what is (in your opinion) the best way to equip a tactical squad? I plan on running at least two, maybe in drop pods. Is plasma gun/melta combo any good? as they will be on the move most of the time. I was tempted to go lascannon/plasma gun but the tactical squad box doesn't even come with a lascannon :(. Also does the start collecting box come with Imperial Fists decals?

Thanks for any help you can give!

Fraser

If you want heavy weapons other then missile launchers, you need to pick up a devastator box.

I’d recommend looking into formations. A battle demi-co is a solid core. Probably with a 1st company TF to make a gladius.

How to gear tac squads depends a lot on the rest of your list. It’s a good spot to fill gaps.

Things that work well for Imperial Fists:

HQ
-Lysander. Can't go wrong with the Main Man.
-Librarians. Divination on your Devastators or Sternguards is great.
-Pedro Kantor. Just paint him yellow and call him Vorn Hagen.

TROOPS
-Scouts. Superior to tactical marines imho. Tons of special rules, cheaper, as effective offensively. Just stick bolters on them, put them in some ruins on objectives and let them do their thing. The LSS is a valid investment for them, but hardly necessary.
-Tactical Marines. I only really use them when I run a Gladius. Otherwise they tend to be disappointing. I leave them with just boltguns or a meltagun, nothing else. Razorback or drop pod. Don't footslog them.

ELITES
-Sternguards. These guys are awesome. They will die, though, as they tend to draw a lot of fire. Stick them in a drop pod with a few combi-meltas. Great with Pedro (for objective secured) and/or a Librarian (for divination/telepathy).

FAST ATTACK
Nothing here really benefits from our Chapter Tactics. Bikes are good, especially with grav guns. Stormtalons are good for air support. If you want to run the Gladius, you need something from here. I like a lone MM attack bike or a bike squad with 2 grav guns and a combi-grav on the sarge.

HEAVY SUPPORT
-Centurion Devastators. The favored build (Grav cannon/Hurricane bolter) doesn't benefit from our chapter tactic, but is still very good. Lascannon/Missile works for us thanks to getting Tankhunter. I suggest you magnetize the weapons so you can do both builds.
-Devastators. Buy two boxes. They each come with 2 of every heavy weapon. Build 4 lascannon dudes, they go very well with our Chapter Tactic as Tankhunter helps them a lot. You can make 4 of another heavy weapon. Grav cannons are good, but don't benefit from our Chapter Tactic. Heavy bolters can work if you are in a Xenos infantry heavy meta, but are pretty meh otherwise. Missiles have always disappointed me. I would say 4 lascannon and 4 grav cannons are your best bet.

Nothing else really benefits from our Tactics, so see what you find lacking in your list and go from there.

Heavy bolter benefit from the chap tactics rule. A nasty thing I like to do is combat squad sterguard and take 2 heavy weps. Split up and leave the heavies to rain pain and hold objsec. Push forward with other squad forcing your opponent too pick which one is bigger threat. If you take Kantor sternguard scoring makes them a pain to deal with. Also a conversion beamer tecmarine on a bike can snipe backfield vehicles on the move.

Franga wrote:
Hi,

So I have decided to begin my first Space Marine army after getting 3000 points of Eldar finished and painted, and I have opted for Imperial Fists. I really like they're color scheme/lore, although I plan on doing a darker yellow and black compared to the classic in your face 'McDonalds' colors. I think I will start with the Start Collecting! Space Marines box but then I am not sure where I want to go. I know that I want to get a unit of thunder hammer/storm shield terminators with Lysander in a land raider and then 3 devastator centurions, but then where? Also what is (in your opinion) the best way to equip a tactical squad? I plan on running at least two, maybe in drop pods. Is plasma gun/melta combo any good? as they will be on the move most of the time. I was tempted to go lascannon/plasma gun but the tactical squad box doesn't even come with a lascannon :(. Also does the start collecting box come with Imperial Fists decals?

Thanks for any help you can give!

Fraser

Don't buy the Start Collecting box. Get Betrayal at Calth- you get nearly a full demi company. You just need a devastator squad and an assault squad.

You'll want Scouts, Sternguard, and Devastator Centurions. Accept no substituted.

I'd rate legion of the damned ahead of sternguard myself, but generally the above are fairly universally rated highly. I'm sure a imp fist/sentinels of terra battle company in drop pods could be pretty decent if you like tactical marines.

I think fists lend themselves more to drop pods then rhinos as they don't have scout. If I was running imperial fist tactical marines, melta gun, combi melta, melta bomb and a drop pod would be the way I'd go.

Imperial fist scouts are super accurate to be fair, so you'd want a specific build to incorporate tactical marines. Like if you were going with Grav centurions in pods, then tactical squads with melta in the troop choices to get your pod numbers up would make sense, as you generally aim for an uneven number of drop odds in your army.

Imperial fist multi melta Devs in a skyhammer aren't terrible on paper either.

Sentinels of terra can take Grav centurions in the elite slots, which means you have the heavy support options of things like thunderfire cannons or nice forgeworld sicarian battle tanks without losing out on centurions.

Franga wrote:
I know that I want to get a unit of thunder hammer/storm shield terminators with Lysander in a land raider and then 3 devastator centurions, but then where? Also what is (in your opinion) the best way to equip a tactical squad? I plan on running at least two, maybe in drop pods.

First, if you're going to get a Land Raider, you have to know that they suck balls. Way too expensive for what they do. Buyer beware.

If I was building an IF list, I'd max out on Dev squads (armes with Plasmacannons) and then maybe look at getting a horde of Tacticals. Maybe get a Storm Talon or two.

As for the Tacticals loadout question, I would say 10-strong with plasmagun and gravcannon and riding a drop pod with Deathwind launcher on it.

Slayer-Fan123 wrote:
You'll want Scouts, Sternguard, and Devastator Centurions. Accept no substituted.

Regular Devastators work well enough, but Cents are preferrable.