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G'day all

Recently purchased some really cool looking sniper rifles that are en-route to my doorstep as we speak, thinking of doing up some cool sniper teams or something of the sort. http://anvilindustry.co.uk/The-Armoury/Rifles-Shotguns-Pistols/M88-%22Negotiator%22

I'd like to know if there is an effective way to field sniper rifles in an IG army. My army list is comprised of veterans, valks and stormies primarily. Airborne vets to kill tanks, stormies to kill elite infantry, other guardsmen to kill everything in between. I haven't heard great things about sniper rifles in general, but these rifles are too bad-ass to pass up. What would be the best way to go about squeezing them in? Some things I've thought of;

- Taking elysians as an ally and using their sniper teams
- Another vet squad with snipers
- Field one sniper as a vindicare assasin
- SWS
- PCS
- Ratlings
- SM as an ally and have this be a scout squad

Alternatively, these snipers are pretty heavy duty and could be considered autocannons if that would be better.

I'd like to sit this sniper [These snipers?] somewhere concealed and have the opponent forget about them entirely, or just have them passively flanking or defending an objective. I'm beginning to feel like the vindicare idea is pretty good, but I think I would come up against opposition to a counts-as vindicare if I tried playing anyone outside my friends circle.

SWS with 3 snipers and 3 spooters is incredibly price efficient. 36p for a unit that will contribute a bit to the game and can stand on an objective with 50% of the squad hidden from sight forever.

The special weapon teams are probably the best way to go (since they have objective secured). Alternatively, ratlings are weirdly over-priced but with bs 4 and min squads of 3, you can use them as a very inexpensive distraction unit that can attempt to pick off enemy special weapons, squad leaders, etc. If the enemy chooses to fire at at 30-point ratling unit, all the better for you. Either way, if the enemy chooses to fire at your sniper teams, then it helps take pressure off of your more important units. If they don't, then you can use them to harass the enemy and claim/deny objectives, score line breaker, etc.

Nerak wrote:
SWS with 3 snipers and 3 spooters is incredibly price efficient. 36p for a unit that will contribute a bit to the game and can stand on an objective with 50% of the squad hidden from sight forever.

Spotters aren't a thing except in the Elysian D99 list.

I say min ratling squads, but SWS are probably better. I just like the extra rules ratlings get over the extra 3 wounds from the SWS.

 Kanluwen wrote:

Spotters aren't a thing except in the Elysian D99 list.

Would it be worth taking them from the D99 list? I've been considering some elysian stuff.

How would a vindicare stand up?

snipers suck in 7th... the only thing they're worth while is against high T targets, i.e. riptides, nid monstrous creatures, etc.

I found the best way to use them was just on platoon command squads. Usually they're tucked away anyway so they can give orders, rifles let them take shots at things while they're there. It's not something you design a list around, but if you have an extra 10 points kinda deal.

 slip wrote:
I found the best way to use them was just on platoon command squads. Usually they're tucked away anyway so they can give orders, rifles let them take shots at things while they're there. It's not something you design a list around, but if you have an extra 10 points kinda deal.

I second this - only if you play a gunline though, its less useful if the units you want to order are zipping around the board.

Ratlings are overpriced because of GW's knee jerk pricing on powerful units in fifth. They nerfed the hell out of sniper weapons across sixth and seventh, but didn't do anything to make their cost better adjusted for it. They're still alright, but they won't help at all against space marine armies.

As above, but I also throw them on the regular infantry of a static CCS too, range pairs nicely with a MoO and a Las Cannon team, and it's such a cheap upgrade I usually just toss them in because I have 4 straggling points left.

 More Dakka wrote:
As above, but I also throw them on the regular infantry of a static CCS too, range pairs nicely with a MoO and a Las Cannon team, and it's such a cheap upgrade I usually just toss them in because I have 4 straggling points left.

It's definitely not the worst thing you can do if you have the squad holed up somewhere secure in the middle of a gun line.