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Why are we to split up our Drop Pod units?

Is it to reflect that the Drop Pods descend all through the battle including turn 1? (The reason is because of background.)

Is it to deny a player to have them all arrive at the very first turn? (The reason is because of rules and balance.)

Why should we be forced to have some arrive at turn 1?

A beer for your thoughts... (Just call me when you get to Denmark.)

Likely a question of balance.

2 Words
Steel Rain

Balance

If I got to place my entire army exactly where I wanted it turn one, games would be over very quickly, and not be fun for my target. Pod armies let you choose roughly half of your list and deploy them optimally. So you are outnumbered, but have the advantage of getting in the first shot and being where you want to be. But you need to survive until the rest of the pods come in.

Both.

The drop pod assault in fluff is a massive drop of many pods as a blitzkrieg shock-tactic: you have a coordinated drop of many pods into the battlezone so that your enemy cannot effectively prepare defenses. The battlebarge cannot usually launch an entire chapter in pods at the same time so they are split into waves. The waves of pods is represented(poorly) in the rules by the half pods first turn followed by normal reserves rolls for the rest.

Balance-wise half first turn would prevent the marine player from auto-losing with a full drop army, and at the same time both preserving the fluff for waves/balance of having all the marines reserves entering 1st turn.

Units delayed until 3rd or 4th turn can also represent anything from mechanical errors that keep the pod from launching right away, to parts of the space battle delaying the launch, to the commander aboard the battlebarge deciding that the unit should be delayed for tactical reasons(which is poorly represented by the rules, but that cannot really be helped due to the other reasons as being valid)

 Kommissar Kel wrote:
Units delayed until 3rd or 4th turn can also represent anything from mechanical errors that keep the pod from launching right away, to parts of the space battle delaying the launch, to the commander aboard the battlebarge deciding that the unit should be delayed for tactical reasons(which is poorly represented by the rules, but that cannot really be helped due to the other reasons as being valid)

Having a late game tac squad in a pod can be good for objectives. If you drop on turn 4, you only have a turn or two to be shot at before the game ends. From a fluff POV, if you need to hold that objective at a specific moment for whatever reason (finish/prevent the ritual, activate the mcguffin, etc) it would be a sound tactic. Or from a more traditional reserves use, they can land where needed to help mop up after the first wave.

It is the randomness that makes the delay less of a tactical choice fluff-wise(and in game play). You don't really have the full control to decide that you are holdin a pod or 2 until 4th turn(and there is always the chance that you get wiped out in turn 3 when coming in piecemeal).

I agree with what you are saying, and it was what I was saying; it is just poorly represented by the rules(especially in an all-drop force). At least without taking the other 2 explanations into account.

 Nevelon wrote:
Balance

If I got to place my entire army exactly where I wanted it turn one, games would be over very quickly, and not be fun for my target. Pod armies let you choose roughly half of your list and deploy them optimally. So you are outnumbered, but have the advantage of getting in the first shot and being where you want to be. But you need to survive until the rest of the pods come in.

Now, thanks to Space Wolf Strike Force, for a tax of a few units, you can get all your pods on turn 1. Plus the pods are free, and they do not count towards drop pod assault, so if you bring something like a formation in a pod, it comes down turn 1 as well. Going to try out a 4 pod list tonight with 4 pods on turn 1, I could AUX in murderfang in the lucius pod and have him in on turn 1 as well for extra fun in the sun.