Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I play vanilla SM and am fairly new to 40k (only played 2 games). I'm trying to get a handle on when to give ground vs. when to assault. I know that marines are relatively weak in assault, but it seems like sometimes it's better for them to assault simply to deny the enemy their own assault bonuses.

accepting that every situation is different and external factors have to be considered (e.g., what other units can offer support, where are objectives located, intervening terrain, etc.), here are a few scenarios:

scenario 1:

it's my turn and I have a 10-man tactical marine squad 6" from an enemy 10-man marine squad (hot marine-on-marine action!). I'm within 12", so my bolters get 2 shots, so I could just hold my ground and blast away. I could also fall back 6" and still get 2 shots each, though that's probably not far enough to deny my opponent the assault if he tries it. or I could move 5" up, shoot bolt pistols into his face, maybe lob a krak grenade and then assault.

scenario 2:

like scenario 1, but this time my squad is 10" from the enemy. I can stand my ground and get my 2 shots per bolter. I can fall back 6", losing one shot per bolter and gaining a reasonable chance that he won't make his charge distance (if he decides to assault). or I can move up 6", shoot bolt pistols again and have a pretty good chance of making my own charge roll.

scenarios 3 & 4:

like scenarios 1 & 2, but this time I'm facing something a bit more scary on the charge, like a 15-boy mob of orks (no idea how this unit would stack up against a 10-man marine squad; just using it as a generic example of a unit that's good on the charge).

how would you play each scenario?

Many times it will make more sense to charge BECAUSE... On THEIR turn they cant shoot YOU. And on THEIR turn afterthe assault, you can choose to fail the assault if you feel outclassed. if you escape (IF), then you auto regroup and fire into him.

The biggest thing is position. If you need to stop a unit from reaching a location on the board then the answer is easy. Mariens tie people in place amazingly well. On the flip side if you need to GET to a location real bad, the choice is easy: shoot only and perhaps just move and run.

So the one time it make sense to fall back and not be engaged is when you want them to get in closer to the deadly range of more of your units or to draw them from cover. Those are good times to do it. Fading bck and losing some Marines to the enemy shoot+OTENTIAL charge may be worth it if their succes and/or falure means they take more punishment from you in the end. Remember that when he moves towards more of our units, he's shortening YOUR charge distances for you. That could be the way to go.

So this is a treal situational question. Terrain has so much to say about when it maes sense and when it doesn't but those would be my guidelines.