Rogue Daemonhunter fueled by Chaos
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IG Regiments: an in-depth look
Whether you are a competitive player looking to rack up tournament wins, or a dedicated fluff nut looking to create the perfect blend of models, background, and rules, selecting the regimental doctrine(s) for your army is an important consideration for list building, play style, and even purchases. Choosing the regiment for an IG army is a bit more logistically different than other <factions> in the game, simply due to the existence of actually distinct models, not just different color schemes, for each regiment. In the majority of gaming communities, there is no shame in using <Tallarn> rules with Cadian models, so most players do not need to worry too much about hunting down metals on eBay. That said, splashing in a few old metals for veterans, officers, or other distinct squad is a neat way to make models stand out. Still, this essay is going to focus on which regiment to select, rules-wise.
First, I want to say a few words about running multiple regimental doctrines. This is completely legal under the core rules and the rules of essentially all tournaments. While not as extreme as, for example, the <craftworld> doctrines, the <regiments> work best on pretty distinct units and loadouts. If you're running multiple detachments anyway, running the doctrine that boosts each detachment is a way to get more performance out of a list without really spending any more points. The biggest thing to consider is that ITC does require that it be readily apparent which models use which rules. You can paint them differently, you can paint the base edges different colors, or you can even use different models. Just don't expect opponents to tell which infantry squad is Tallarn and which is Cadian on their own!
Second, there are some fairly complicated rules about custom regiments. Basically, you can select any doctrine for your custom regiment, but you cannot include any named characters, relics, stratagems, etc. for them. So, if you decide that you want to be <Tanith>, you can select the Tallarn doctrine, but not their stratagem, orders, etc. Of course, if you use Tanith models, but call them Tallarn, and the list says <Tallarn>… then you can use the Tallarn orders and such. This sounds super fiddly for IG, but remember that armies like Space Marines have chapters like the Crimson Fists, which have a named character distinct from Imperial Fists, but do not gain Imperial Fist Relics. It's an odd reminder that GW sometimes expects us to believe that the named characters are literally individual heroes, not archetypes, but that's a longer conversation. In short, there's really no reason not just pick one of the named regiments for rules, and call them whatever you'd like in the fluff.
Third, it is always important to talk about Militarum Tempestus. While they are a <regiment>, they have a number of special rules that govern how they interact. To gain any <regiment> doctrine, a detachment must include only that <regiment>, and then a long list of non-regimental units (ogryn, psykers, etc.) The one exception is that you can add Militarum Tempestus to a detachment, and that detachment can still gain another <regiment> doctrine. So, you can have a detachment with <Cadian,> < Militarum Tempestus>, and non-regimental forces, and the Cadians still gain their doctrine. Note that Militarum Tempestus forces do not gain any other regiments bonuses. For a Militarum Tempestus detachment, you cannot include any other regiment if you want to retain the bonus. However, Militarum Tempestus, just like any other regiment, can use regimental stratagems or orders, even if they are not receiving the doctrine.
So what does each regiment give you? Like other factions, each regiment has a doctrine, a warlord trait, a relic, and a stratum. Two regiments also have named characters. However, to reflect the guard use of orders, each regiment has a unique order. When discussing the regiments, the focus is mostly going to be on the doctrine, which affect many to most <regiment> models, followed by the stratagems and named characters (if any), and then orders, warlord traits, and relics as appropriate for each regiment. I'll be broadly rating all of these on a three point scale: strong, useful, or niche. Strong options either have major effects in specific situations, or many significant effects. Useful options either have small broad effects or significant focused effects. Niche options generally have small, specific effects. To help calibrate, I rate both Born Soldiers and Brute Strength as strong, as Born Soldiers has a significant effect on a huge range of your army (re-rolling ones when static), while brute strength has a large impact on a decent sized chunk of your army (re-rolling shots in vehicles). I won't try to rank them, but since it's easy to benefit in a big way from both doctrines, they are both strong. Conversely, Send in the Next Wave is incredibly niche, in that it costs a CP to deploy a unit (that costs points) only after the exact same unit has been destroyed. It's not impossible to think of a situation where this would help, it's just going to be pretty unlikely.
Cadia
In many ways the default regiment, both by fluff and models, Cadia brings a great suite of options to the table. With a strong doctrine, warlord trait, stratagem, relic, and order, with two strong named characters, Cadia gives you a lot of options. The doctrine is simple, and applies to both vehicles and infantry: if they do not move, you can re-roll ones to hit. Further, if infantry do not move and are given the Take Aim! order (which allows a unit to re-roll ones), the unit can re-roll all miss. So… this is the go to doctrine for heavy weapon squads, artillery (especially basilisk and wyverns), anything with plasma including Leman Russ Executioners, and very long ranged weapons like Hydras. The downside is that it does not help mobile elements at all, and the psychology of "giving up" the re-rolls might cause you to play more conservatively than you should. Still, if you are disciplined, and allow mobile elements to stay mobile, this doctrine is awesome.
Cadia also has three special characters, with Pask and Creed being fairly strong, and kell having his uses. Pask is a cheap upgrade over a tank commander, gaining BS2+ and a second order, so he's a no-brainer if you're running tank commanders in a Cadia list. Creed is more of a corner case, in that he's over twice the cost of a company commander, which gets him a third order, and a 12" range on orders. Further, if he is the warlord, you gain two command points. The downside is that making him your warlord locks you into the Cadian Warlord Trait, thus giving up Grand Strategist. Guard can buy 5CP for 180pts, but balancing resources is a topic for a later essay. Kell does amp up Creed, and can punch a bit, but isn't worth picking Cadia for. Speaking of the Cadian Warlord Trait, Superior Tactical Training is deceptively simple: every time your warlord issues an order, on a 4+ another unit can be affected by that order. To really take advantage of this, you want a lot of units that want similar orders, and obviously the more orders the model starts with, the more they get. While it's one of the better regiment specific warlord traits, a few things hold it back. First, IG have great universal traits. Second, this trait was better when you could bring tons of heavy weapon squads (full rerolls on three mortars!), but the rule of three limits how many you can bring. This is still a fine choice for a warlord in a firebase, but it really comes down to how much you love mortars.
The Cadian Stratagem is very strong: Overlapping Fields of Fire is 2CP, and played after a cadia model wounds a unit. All other Cadian models attacking that unit are +1 to hit. This is obviously great against large or tough units, and will help you eat through them quicker. Any time you can get a +1 to hit is a good time, even if it just offsets a -1 to hit. The Cadian Order "Pound them to Dust" allows a tank to re-roll the shots for its turret weapon. Since Cadian russes can reroll ones just by sitting still, this allows them to improve their firepower with an order. Obviously of no use for punishers (or exterminators/vanquishers), this helps battle cannons or executioners up their shots. I've seen this used to good effect, as it basically allows Cadian tanks to rep the best of both Cadia and Catachan. Remember that unlike Catachan, it does not allow for re-rolls of plasma sponsons, only the turret! Finally, the Relic of Lost Cadia is arguably the best IG relic, and solves a couple of issues for Cadian armies. While one turn only, it allows everything within 12" to reroll ones to hit and wound, and re-roll all failed hits and wounds against Chaos. This can either just help in a critical turn with wounding, or can be carried with mobile elements to provide some support in a key moment. Since IG armies swim in CPs, there is rarely a reason not to take this relic.
Overall, Cadia's strengths are static shooting, access to plenty of orders, and general purpose buffs. If you are just starting with IG, I would start here, and even for a grizzled commander, this is the port of call of choice for many builds. Notably, most "soup" armies use Cadia, as you can run a 279 Battalion with two company comamnders, three infantry squads, and three mortar squads. This pops for 5 CP, has 30 objective secured wounds, and will reroll all hits from the mortars. Cadia is good enough to be the default, but there are plenty of good reasons to run the other regiments.
Catachan
Catachan has a strong doctrine, a strong character or two and not much else that great. However, Brute Strength is such a good doctrine that it makes Catachan one of the better regiments, as long as you play to its strengths. For infantry, Brute Strength has two bonuses: +1 LD when near an officer, and +1 Strength, all the time. The former is more generally useful, as it allows you to have LD8 IG without investing in any specific resources. The strength bonus is sexy, but most of the time it's a pretty minor bonus. A full ten man squad has 12 attacks for six hits, which means Brute Strength turns two wounds into three. That's not nothing, but it doesn't make your guardsmen crazy in combat. Now, when combined with a priest and Straken, it makes them a bit more legit, but keep in mind that we have Bullgryns for actually competent melee. Still, if you like to play more aggressively, S4 guardsmen can be fun, especially when your opponent watches you wound his MEQs on 4s.
Still, where Brute Strength really shines is on vehicles, where it allows a weapon to re-roll one die to determine the number of shots, each time that weapon fires. The wording is a bit ugly, but that's to allow you to re-roll each time a turret weapon fires with Grinding Advance, for example. Weapons with d6 shots benefit more than those with d3, while those with multiple dice actually gain more absolute benefit, but less of a percentage increase. Meaning, a Wyvern under Catachan (4d6 shots) will go from averaging 14 shot to 15.79, which is nearly two full more shots, but only a 13% increase. A heavy flamer (1d6 shots) will go from 3.5 to 4.25, which is only 0.75 shots but a 21% increase. A battle cannon will go from 7 shots under Grinding Advanced to 8.5, which is a pretty big deal. The percentage increase is important to keep in mind because Born Soldiers gives models that do not move a flat 16% increase in firepower, so even if your army uses a lot of blast weapons, if they stay still they might still be better off as Cadian. This doctrine is thus pretty limited in scope: the units that do best are a pretty short list: Leman Russ with Battle Cannon or Executioner, Hellhound, heavy flamer sentinel, chimera with heavy flamers, Manticore, and some more exotic stuff like the Griffon Mortar. While a short list, this is some of the better stuff in the IG codex, so this doctrine gets a big thumbs up from me!
Catachan has three interesting characters. The key figure is Harker, who aside from a pretty decent gun has one of the very few reroll ones auras in the our book. Depending on your play style and the flow of the game, he can move up to support infantry, or you can stay tucked next to tanks and/or artillery. Since he gives a re-roll ones aura, that's roughly a 16% boost in firepower, and at 50pts, he "breaks even" supporting even two bare bones LRBTs. One of the few auto-include models in the codex, Harker should be in any army with a Catachan detachment, as his synergy with our hard hitting vehicles is amazing and affordable. Straken is more of a mixed bag, as he tries really hard to turn IG into something they are not: an assault army. He's a bit too expensive to use for a counter-charge element, and we don’t' have the tools to take combat to the enemy. He's fun, but hard to use. Sly Marbo is a pure tool box, with some neat abilities at a fair price. You can take or leave him, but he's likely to so something cool.
Past the doctrine and the characters, the rest of the Catachan suite is pretty niche. Vicious Traps is a 1CP stratagem that does d3 mortal wounds on a 4+ after an enemy unit charges a squad entirely in cover. I think I usually forget to use this, but it requires your opponent to take a specific action. Probably better than I think. The Mamorph Tuskblade is a sidegrade from the Blade of conquest which trades a pip of AP for Damage 2 instead of d3. It is fine, but pretty much any resources spent tool up IG characters for combat is like buying $1 scratch offs: every now and then you win a small prize, but mostly you just lose a small amount. Burn them Out is the an order that allows you to re-roll shots for flamers/heavy flamers, and all later units that shoot the target ignore cover. More valuable for stripping cover than a marginal increase in fire power, this order is niche because it relies on a unit to have a flamer, and flamers are arguably the worst special weapon in the book. Also, an astropath can remove cover while also casting a psychic power, so… yeah.
Overall, Catachan lists will end up looking pretty similar. Infantry almost entirely for screening, with plasma and possibly power weapons. LRBTs, hellhounds, and Manticores to do the heavy lifting, with Harker for buffs. Still, these are strong units, and Catachan is one of the few regiments to really buff Fast Attack, making them a solid choice for a Brigade.
Tallarn
More than any other regiment, Tallarn boosts units more on what they are equipped with, than which units you select. Infantry can advance and shoot anything but heavy without penalty, while vehicles can move and shoot heavy weapons without penalty. Also, Titanic Vehicles (superheavies) treat all heavy weapons as assault when they advance. So, clearly, to gain the biggest benefit, you want to minimize infantry heavy weapons and maximize vehicle heavy weapons. Infantry heavy weapons are generally optional, so giving them up to gain essentially an extra d6" of movement is a pretty good deal, if not game changing. For vehicles, this doctrine makes good units far more mobile, while making some otherwise low value weapons pretty interesting. Notable weapons that benefit are LRBT sponson and hull weapons, hellhound hull heavy bolters/multi-meltas, all sentinel weapons aside from the heavy flamer, and the Taurox autocannons. Tank Commanders with multi-meltas are very spicy under Tallarn, while Sentinels become useful mobile weapons. This doctrine allows a baneblade to move 10+d6", and shoot nearly everything at a -1 penalty. This can be combined with the crush them Doctrine to allow a superheavy to move, advance, shoot, and then charge. One thing to note is that advancing is done in the movement phase, so if you're CP rich, that's a reroll without a lot of competition. Overall, this doctrine gives you quite a bit more mobility.
The good news for Tallarn is that they have an amazing stratagem and Order. Ambush is a 3CP pregame stratagem that allows you to outflank up to three units, only one of which can be a vehicle. (the models can deploy within 7" of a table edge, and 9" from the enemy.) With the beta deep strike rules, this stratagem loses some luster, but I think it can still be used effectively. One downside is that they are considered to have moved maximum distance, which while that doesn't really hurt Tallarn normally, does mean that LRBTs cannot shoot turret weapons twice. Still, this is a pretty decent want to gain some tactical flexibility. The Tallarn order also grants a ton of flexibility. Get Around Behind Them! Is a tank order that allows the unit to immediately move 6" before or after firing, without affecting Grinding Advance. This allows you to move/shoot/move, or rapidly close with short range weapons. Unfortunately, due to the Big FAQ of April 2018, you cannot Ambush, then order closer into heavy flamer range. Still, a very useful order in skilled hands.
After that, things get a bit lean. The Tallarn Relic is the Claw of the Desert Tiger, a D2 power sword that also gives plus two attacks. It's fine, but another close combat tool. IG have some good basic relics, unless you're going for style points I'd avoid this one. The Warlord trait is also combat based, but at least affects other Units. Swift Attacker allows the warlord and all Tallarn units within 6" to charge even if they fell back. On a company commander, that means you can fall back, shoot with get back in the fight, than charge back in. This is pretty neat, but very situational and probably not the best use of a warlord trait. Still, it's possible to imagine building an outflanking platoon with Ambush, the Claw, and Swift Attacker to appear, shoot, charge, fall back, shoot, charge. Not sure it would work, but it would be fun trying.
Overall, Tallarn does not give any real increase in firepower, but instead gives more mobility to your forces. Their biggest benefits have been nerfed by FAQs, but they are still the regiment of choice for mobile armored combat or outflanking.
Vostroyan
After the big three, the regiments drop in overall utility, but that doesn't mean there aren't great reasons to play them. Vostroyan's offer a simple doctrine that buffs nearly all weapons: an extra 6" of range on anything 24" or longer. This means lasguns, plasma, punisher cannons, multi-meltas, and all the heavy weapons gain an extra half foot of range. This really benefits lasguns and plasma for infantry, and also really buffs punishers, which are already pretty good. Longer range stuff doesn't much care about an extra 6", but for things under 48" range, it can really help. Do not forget that lasguns rapid fire at 15" with this doctrine, making First Rank Fire! Second Rank Fire! Deadlier at that range. It's a solid doctrine that works best with the most common infantry weapons, and really boosts one of the better LR weapons.
Vostroyans do have one of the better stratagems in Firstborn Pride, which gives one unit +1 to hit in a shooting phase. Obvious candidates include units with a lot of plasma to avoid supercharge wounds and general firepower units. Hell, a punisher will get 6 more hits due to this, and who wouldn't pay 1CP for a six pack of S5 hits? My sneaky suggestion: take a single lord of war in a superheavy auxiliary detachment and make it Vostroyan. Yes, you lose the doctrine, but you can pump it up for 1CP a turn. Imagine a shadowsword or stormlord shooting at BS3+!
The warlord train of Honored Duelist allows your warlord to re-roll hits and wounds in combat, which does not exactly turn him into a powerhouse. If you really want to try, combine with their relic, the Armor of Graf Toschenko, which gives T4 and a 2+ save. Repel the Enemy! Is an order that allows infantry weapons to shoot like pistols, meaning a squad can shoot while engaged with 1" range. For those times when you want to shoot, but not fall back… which is pretty rare.
Overall, while Vostroyans gain a universal benefit, you only gain a bit more range and the ability to get +1 to hit for one unit a turn. If you really like lasguns and punisher cannons, it can work pretty well, but otherwise, I'd look hard at other regiments.
Valhallan
The defensive tech doctrine, Grim Demeanor helps keep your army in the fight even after taking damage. Infantry halve the number of losses they take from morale, while infantry count as having double the wounds remaining when they degrade. There is nothing really wrong with this doctrine, but infantry morale is one of those things that are pretty easy to fix if you are worried, and pretty easy to not worry about. With Insane Bravery and Mental Fortitude, you can make two squads fearless for 2CP and a WC4 psychic power. On the flip side, while it's great to not lose models, 4pt infantry squaddies aren't going to make or break your game plan. For vehicles, this doctrine appears very strong. How useful it is to you might depend on how people around you play. If you play in an environment with a lot of ranged anti-tank and players with good fire discipline, you are likely to end up with only one damaged but not destroyed tank per turn. If people tend to whittle your tanks down, this doctrine also becomes much better. Finally, at the risk of beating a dead horse, you can also mitigate some degradation with unit choice, notably running hellhounds with track guards.
Valhallans do have a genuinely useful relic in Pietrov's MK45, a bolt pistol with AP1 and D2, that also limits any morale losses within 6" to a single model. This more or less recreates the original commissar rules, and will keep your squads fighting until the bitter end. The Vallhallan order is also pretty useful, allowing the ordered unit to shoot an enemy unit within 1" of a friendly unit, with any ones causing a hit on a friendly unit instead. The two big uses here are to either shoot at a unit that's tying up a vehicle, or to help a unit that wants to stay in assault, such as Bullgryn or Crusaders. This is incredibly handy when a small unit charges a tank, preventing it from shooting. That's a pretty niche use, but it's really handy when it happens. The warlord trait is pretty simple: 5+++ to ignore a wound, 6+++ if the warlord is a vehicle. Neat, but on a fragile character it's just not enough. Finally, the poor Valhallan stratagem… Send in the Next Wave. On paper, it's pretty good: 2CP, take a destroyed Valhallan infantry unit, and redeploy within 6" of your own table edge and 9" from the enemy. However, the affected squad costs reinforcement points in matched play, which means you need to set aside the points in your list to use this. Which means you're basically buying a unit that you can only deploy after a similar unit gets destroyed. There are so few reasons to do this, it's basically an unplayable stratum in matched play.
Overall, Valhallans were designed to have a range of useful abilities, several of which suffered nerfs since the codex was released. The Strategem costs reinforcement points while the conscript squads which Valhalla was clearly designed around went up in cost. I think you can still build an interesting army emphasizing the Valhallan strengths, but it's not going to have the power of the other regiments. If you take bullgryns, conscripts, and Pietrov's pistol, you can gum up the middle of the board with a lot of models. You can than shoot into those combats with your infantry, while your tanks and artillery fire at full effect all game. If nothing else, it'd be a flavorful army!
Mordian
This is arguably the weakest doctrine, because it's both situational, and it only benefits overwatch. I've had entire games go by without shooting overwatch, so a mild benefit to overwatch doesn't get me excited. Parade drill gives +1 to Overwatch when infantry are base to base, or when a vehicle is within 3" of another Mordian vehicle. Infantry in close order also get +1 leadership. Since 8th edition no longer has templates, close order doesn't really hurt, but there are still reasons for a squad to spread out, such as screening for tanks. If two vehicles are that close to each other, my concern is that they will both get charged (or piled into), so that seems like a trap as well. OTOH, plus 1 leadership isn't nothing, and in many games, small units start assaulting, so doubling overwatch could be helpful. If nothing else, this doctrine allows plasma to overcharge in overwatch without concern!
While the doctrine is pretty niche, Mordians enjoy a very useful order and stratagem. Form Firing Squad! Allows the ordered unit to target characters with rapid fire weapons, which are the main sorts of weapon IG squads usually have. This isn't game breaking, but enemy characters get within 24" of IG squads all the time, and this will make them regret it. For 1CP, a Mordian squad can Volley Fire, and when they roll a six, that model can fire again. Keep in mind that it's not an extra shot, but a full firing of the model. While further sixes do not explode, this adds a lot of bite to your squads. Both the order and stratagem are begging for consolidated squads, and an infantry heavy Mordian army wants to look hard at Laurels of Command to stack orders. A Mordian Warlord can have the trait Iron Discipline, which allows you to ignore fleeing models within 6" on a 4+. While interesting, there are no shortage of ways to work with morale that do not cause your warlord trait. Finally, the Mordian relic, the Order of the Iron Star of Mordia gives your noble character a 4+++ feel no pain. Probably the best defensive relics in the book, this doesn't really synergize with what Mordians do.
A Mordian list will likely be infantry heavy, as they have no real advantages for tanks, but they have some nasty punch, especially with consolidated squads. A veteran squad with triple plasma, under Firing Squad and Volley Fire can shoot characters with an average of 8 plasma shots and 16 lasgun shots. Past that, there isn't much juice in this regiment, but they do at least one thing pretty well.
Armageddon
First off, I'm annoyed that this regiment is Armageddon, and not Steel Legion. I remember third edition, when there were multiple regiments all raised on the planet Armageddon itself, including the Steel Legion, city fight PDF, and the Ork Hunters. Despite the vague name, the rules for this regiment clearly mimic the Steel Legion. Their doctrine, Industrial Efficiency, allows infantry to rapid fire at 18" instead of 12", and allows vehicles to treat AP1 attacks against them as AP0. These are both semi-decent, with infantry able to fire at full effect essentially out of charge range from most enemy units, and vehicles gaining a small amount of durability. Ap1 weapons now do 2/3 the damage they would normally do, which is actually pretty nice. There are plenty of AP1 weapons, but few of them are really used en-masse to destroy tanks, so this really just helps with the sort of bonus fire power a lot of lists have. Heavy bolter sponsons, krak grenades, heavy flamers, that sort of thing. Somewhat perversely, those are exactly the sort of weapon you want shooting your durable tanks, and not your squishy infantry.
Armored Fist is a 1CP stratagem that allows an infantry squad that just disembarked to re-roll ones to hit. This is pretty situational, but it does allow you to drop a veteran squad toting plasma and re-roll those ones. It's best use is with an overcosted unit that requires transport, so I wouldn't say I'm a fan. One legit good use is to disembark, order the squad to FRF!SRF!, and then also re-roll ones to hit. It's a fine toolbox option, but probably not worth picking Armageddon to get. Armageddon officer can also order a squad to Mount Up!, which allows a squad to embark in a vehicle immediately after shooting. While finicky, it allows for some cool tricks, such as shooting the chimera's lasgun arrays after the squad shoots, and disembarking the next turn and getting to re-roll ones with Armored Fist. The whole thing seems to have too many moving parts for too little benefit for my taste, but I can see some people loving it. Your warlord can be an Ex-Gang Leader for an extra attack and plus one to wound rolls, which is probably the best combat trait. With the blade of conquest, your Company Commander can actually do some work in combat. Not a lot, but if you want to get up close, this is a good trait to look at. The relic, the Skull Mask of Acheron, gives -1 to enemy LD within 3", -2 if they are orks. I'm solidly unimpressed by leadership bombs, but if you want to try it feel free.
Overall, while this is a straightforward regiment, it's super niche. It's built around keeping lasgun squads about 12-18" away, and popping into and out of chimeras. Transports are not overly effective in 8th, at least for the price, but if you like chimeras and really want to make them work, this isn't a bad place to start.
Militarum Temptestus
In a delightful troll, the doctrine for the Militarum Tempestus is called Storm Troopers, after the old unit type the Scions replaced. The doctrine has one benefit for all units: at half range or less, any 6 to hit generates an extra shot, with those extra shots not generating further shots. When it works, this is brutal, basically adding 11% to your firepower within half range. The problem is that Aerial Drop leaves you outside of half range for meltas and hotshots, while the Taurox Punisher has to be within 12" to gain the benefit. This means that if you're stormtrooping, the unit will be assaulted next turn. That's expected, but it makes this doctrine a bit of a one use wonder. While native only to Scions and Tauroxes, this doctrine can be selected for a custom regiment (although you cannot then use Militarum Tempestus warlord traits, orders, stratagems, or relics… not a huge loss, IMO). While this isn't a bad doctrine, there are better doctrines for non-scion stuff, and Scions are damn good regardless of doctrine, so the real question is usually if it's worth trying to build a full Militarum Tempestus detachment, or just splashing them into another detachment.
Militarum Tempestus Primes have a unique order: Elimination Protocols Sanctioned!, which allows the squad to reroll all wounds against monsters or vehicles. They make meltas much better against hard targets, and it's worth considering using this over Take Aim even with overcharging plasma. It will cause more wounds, even if it causes more losses due to overheating. This order is so good, it actually makes meltas out perform plasma, even when not in half range. Your Warlord can also be a Faithful Servant of the Emperor, and get a single deny the witch roll. Useful, but not nearly as useful as the general traits. However, the relic, the The Tactical Auto-Reliquary of Tyberius, allows the model to issue an extra order on a 2+. Orders are great for scions, so this is worth considering. Finally, the Scions can pay 1 CP for Superior Intelligence, a standard "shoot a unit that deployed within 12" at -1" stratagem. When you can pull it off, this bad boy is great.
Overall the Militarum Tempestus has decent options, but the specific scope of their models make them all just pure bonuses. Generally, scions work best with orders, so getting to a pure detachment is pretty straight forward.
Superheavies and Regiments
The IG codex clearly states that a superheavy bought in a superheavy auxiary detachment does not benefit from any regimental doctrine, but those bought in other detachments do. This means you can either run a Superheavy Deatchment with 3-5 lords of war, or a supreme command detachment with 3+ HQs, 0-1 elite, and 0-1 Lord of War. We'll look at both options here.
If you're running three lords of war, you want to select a doctrine that really helps you out. Catachan can help with blasts, Cadian will help if you stand still, Vostroyan can help with range, while Valhallan will help you keep firing. Tallarn allows you to advance and shoot, but at -1, so that's more of a last ditch tactic than something to build around. Meanwhile, Armageddon and Mordian provide very minor benefits. If you are playing aggressively, and baneblades are plenty aggressive, I'd go Catachan, as the extra blasts will help more than re-rolls if you stand still, and you can still include Harker if you want. OTOH, a Cadian Shadowsword is a thing of beauty!
The supreme command can be built quite cheaply, as Primaris Psykers are only 46 points, and even company commanders can be 30 point taxes. Keep in mind the rule of three, and don't run out of cheap HQs, but you can sneak a single superheavy in really nicely. As noted above, Vostroyan isn't a bad choice, as First Born Pride turns a superheavy into a sharpshooter. For the blast turrets, tanks with demolisher cannons, and anything with heavy flamer sponsons, Catachan brings a lot of oomph to the fight. If the rest of your army is Cadian, Overlapping Fields of Fire makes a Cadian Lord of War really good, even if you don't stand still. Superheavies also synergize well with the Relic of Lost Cadia, giving them re-roll ones while moving.
Final Thoughts
While there are some clear tiers of utility within the regiments, there are ways to use nearly all of them to some interesting end. A new player will likely want to start with Cadian, while Catachan and Tallarn are very strong with the right build. Outside of tournaments, the rest all have areas where they really excel, be it in infantry hordes, precise sharpshooting, or mechanized warfare.
When bulding your army, you need to decide what types of detachments to take, and which regiment to run for each. From a competitive standpoint, the following detachments are the most common:
Cadia: Brigade, Battalion, Spearhead (LR executioner, basilisk, heavy weapon squads),
Catachan: brigade, battalion, spearhead (LRBT/Manticore heavy), Supreme Command (for a baneblade with heavy flamers)
Tallarn: Brigade, Battalion, Spearhead (LRBTs loaded with sponsons), Vanguard (veterans ambushing)
Vostroyan: Spearhead (punishers), Superheavy Auxiary
Militarum Tempestus: Battalion, Patrol
Note there is little reason normally to run a supreme command or outrider for IG, although catachan hellhounds are pretty nasty.
The more you rely on non-regimental units, the less your regiment matters, but always make sure you're picking the regiment that most helps your play style.
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