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Okay, this is going to seem a little bizarre, but its something I noticed while flicking through my IG book.

In each codex, there is a myriad of wierd and wonderful units floating about for you to choose from. Some are more powerful than others, and some are downright useless.

This brings me to the IG book. More importantly, the heavy support section; which brings me to the main point of this thread.

I noticed whilst playing an Ork/CSM team, that my mech vet force could do with chucking some large blasts down range to deal with hordes. The Manticore is ideal in this scenario, throwing 1-3 blasts each turn. However, despite all the plusses the Manticore had going for it, I kept leaning towards vanilla russes because I kept thinking "what if Manticores dont exist in the next book?".

Has anyone else out there deliberately handicapped their list, even if only a little, simply because they were worried about a unit not being around in a year or two?

It has basically been guaranteed that GW will not just delete units from new codexes, so no, I doubt that anyone else has. The most you have to fear is the nerf bat.

*cough* Pariahs *cough*

You can use them as counts- as... but still

I've had to modify my orks over the years, as each codex has altered some units or removed them altogether. Sometimes they take options away on wargear that make models useless (couple from the old DE book to the new for example)

They've been less prone to removing them of late though. More like nerfing the hell out of existing units so you'll buy the new shiny units they just made up. I wouldn't worry about it. They only units i've seen go foosh lately have been when they were radically rewriting an old codex.


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Addendum: Why handicap your list NOW, because it might be less viable 2 years from now? The Orks can still loot the manticores and run them after all

Go with the Manticore. The manti has a plastic kit so you can pretty much rest assured that it'll be in the next IG dex.

Its more of me being a worrisome old git haha. I know things wont just disappear, just theres just that voice telling me that it could happen.

If they somehow retcon out the vanilla russ, Ill give up the game

I doubt they would.

They aren't beyond retconning out whole races or units, but it's not likely.

Even if they are removed, you can always alter them a bit or just use them as another unit. I highly doubt they would be removed entirely though. More likely just nerfed into oblivion. In any case, you're unlikely to be getting a new dex for quite awhile, as Guard is still top-tier, and there are tons of other codices in more need of an update (Tau, Eldar, BT, Sisters, to name a few.

You'll be safe for a while, IG is a relatively new codex. I'm sure you'll get your money's worth out of it.

If you were looking at something like ratlings/ogryn though I would definitely be worried, because those are just in metal and I'm sure they dont sell enough to warrant a plastic kit (regardless of how cool ogryn would be)

There's really no good way of knowing. Units that make up troops sections are pretty safe, but as for extras, who knows?

A CC carnifex today becomes trash tomorrow

A pariah today gets retconned tomorrow

But a Manticore is a quite relatively new plastic kit, so has zero chance of being taken out of the next Guard codex, no matter how many years down the road that is.

it would be like removing Fire Prisms from the Eldar codex. Not gonna happen .

No. GW's update cycle is so ridiculously slow that even the most painfully obvious balance issues will be ignored for years at a time, so odds are you'll get many fun games with your favorite unit before there's even a chance that anything happens to it. This is especially true for a recently-updated (in GW terms, for the industry as a whole it would be long overdue for an update) codex like IG, where it will be years before GW gets done with Tau/BT/etc and even thinks about IG again. The worst that could possibly happen is a WD/FW release that gives you some overpowered new unit that makes Manticores look pathetic in comparison, but you'll still have the same old Manticore available.

3rd Ed made me quit my guard (and indeed WH40K for 10 years) when they told me my sponsons were useless if I planned to use the battlecannons on my 7 Russ Chassis'.

Though they're not entirely useless, my Black Templars Librarians make me second guess fringe choices. I'm thinking about finally converting them, but I don't have need of more IC models.

I think a manticore is less likely to be eliminated though; you're probably pretty safe.

I try not to second-guess what's going to be phased out in new books, though that's probably because every army I have is the sort that's got pretty essential core units that they can't really change...

Actually, I do worry that 3 years or so down the road, my poor Justicar Thawn will cease to exist...

As a proud Forge World list player, I haven't seen Forge World ever outright drop a unit. So if it's something like, say, a Manticore, that started with Forge World and is still supported by Forge World (with even more options than the IG Codex, no less!) then you're safe.

There will be a version of the Manticore somewhere in 40k as long as it remains under Forge World's wing.

reaper with no name wrote:
Actually, I do worry that 3 years or so down the road, my poor Justicar Thawn will cease to exist...

So what, even if they got rid of the thawn upgrade any model you may have made for him is still playable as a justicar, or any grey knight in terminator armour for that matter.

They released the kit for it; they're not gonna remove a plastic kit in a hurry.

Snrub wrote:The manti has a plastic kit so you can pretty much rest assured that it'll be in the next IG dex.

This.

They're not going to put something out as a big multi-part plastic kit only to remove it later. Gone are the days of 3rd ed.

Plus, a vanilla russ is a terrible anti-horde weapon. If you want anti-horde and are for whatever reason not wanting to use new guard units, there are still better options for you.

As for me, personally, no, I haven't declined to build something based on the fear that it won't exist. Of course, my guard army is pretty conservative in that regard. A vast majority of my collection is guardsmen with lasguns or special/heavy weapons.

Solis Luna Astrum wrote:

reaper with no name wrote:
Actually, I do worry that 3 years or so down the road, my poor Justicar Thawn will cease to exist...

So what, even if they got rid of the thawn upgrade any model you may have made for him is still playable as a justicar, or any grey knight in terminator armour for that matter.

No one likes seeing their favorite unit go away, even if they can use the model for something else.