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Just wondering which of these melee units is the best.

1. Which of them would win if they had to fight each other? I mean, various duels among them. I think it will look something like this:
Bloodletter>Incubus>Lychguard>Assault Marine

Provided they have their standard equipment, a random encounter during a battle between their armies


2. Which of them is more effective in killing weaker troops (like ordinary guardsmen)

I'd put Incubi and Lychguard in the higher tiers, since they're both the elites of their factions, with Incubi being deadlier in terms of speed and skill, whereas Lychard have the durability and relentlessness to power through long fights thanks to being non-organic and their necrodermis, so I'd edge towards the Lychguard slightly since they're tougher to take down permanently which can be the edge needed against an Incubi. Assault Marines and Bloodletters are both just effectively the line troops of their respective factions. While they're both deadly in their own right, they're on much lower level compared to the other two that are mentioned. I'd edge towards the Assault Marine actually having more of an advantage over a Bloodletter since they have the mobility of a jump pack and versatility of having ranged/melee weapons to destroy a bloodletter, who is also dependent on the warp for stability in the physical realm.

Are we talking lore or tabletop here? This is the background forum, so I'm going to guess it's lore.

This is strictly assuming equal numbers.

When it comes to dueling, the ranking is like this:

1. Incubi: These are masters of killing. Nuff said.

2. Lychguards: Much like the Incubi, the Lychguards are tasked with defending the ruler. The Incubi focus on dispatching the attacker quickly while the Lychguards are more about tanking hits for their lord.

3. Assault Marines: Generic close combat Space Marines still pack a punch, especially when well-led.

4. Bloodletters: Lesser daemons are meant to die very fast in all situations. While Bloodletters are the most powerful among them, they still fight and fall in large numbers and would be trounced easily by the above fighters with equal numbers.

In terms of killing horde:

1. Assault Marines. Their jump pack allows them to close the distance on the squishy ranged enemies like Tau, Termagants, Cultists, or Guardsmen. Hand flamers will roast light-armored troops while grenades will cause further carnage and confusion.

2. Bloodletters. These guys can savage melee enemies like Orks, Hormagaunts, and Warriors just fine, but they will also likely die a lot. They struggle against ranged enemies unless they can be summoned close to them.

3. Incubi. Not much to say here.

4. Lychguards: Lychguards are rarely sent to kill weaker troops unless the Necrons are desperate. Their powerful but overall slow attacks would result in the lowest number of kills compared to the other three candidates.

 Grimskul wrote:
I'd put Incubi and Lychguard in the higher tiers, since they're both the elites of their factions, with Incubi being deadlier in terms of speed and skill, whereas Lychard have the durability and relentlessness to power through long fights thanks to being non-organic and their necrodermis, so I'd edge towards the Lychguard slightly since they're tougher to take down permanently which can be the edge needed against an Incubi. Assault Marines and Bloodletters are both just effectively the line troops of their respective factions. While they're both deadly in their own right, they're on much lower level compared to the other two that are mentioned. I'd edge towards the Assault Marine actually having more of an advantage over a Bloodletter since they have the mobility of a jump pack and versatility of having ranged/melee weapons to destroy a bloodletter, who is also dependent on the warp for stability in the physical realm.

I agree that the incubi are masters of assassination, but I assume that their bloodstones, which make the blood of enemies boil, will not work against lychguards and bloodletters?

darkoms wrote:

 Grimskul wrote:
I'd put Incubi and Lychguard in the higher tiers, since they're both the elites of their factions, with Incubi being deadlier in terms of speed and skill, whereas Lychard have the durability and relentlessness to power through long fights thanks to being non-organic and their necrodermis, so I'd edge towards the Lychguard slightly since they're tougher to take down permanently which can be the edge needed against an Incubi. Assault Marines and Bloodletters are both just effectively the line troops of their respective factions. While they're both deadly in their own right, they're on much lower level compared to the other two that are mentioned. I'd edge towards the Assault Marine actually having more of an advantage over a Bloodletter since they have the mobility of a jump pack and versatility of having ranged/melee weapons to destroy a bloodletter, who is also dependent on the warp for stability in the physical realm.

I agree that the incubi are masters of assassination, but I assume that their bloodstones, which make the blood of enemies boil, will not work against lychguards and bloodletters?

Well, for one thing, bloodstones aren't the main weaponry of an Incubi, but the Klaive, so even if it wasn't effective somehow against them, tormentors and their very deadly power weapons still would be.