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Hi all,

Haven't touched 40k since early 3rd ed, so I'm horribly horribly rusty. Recently picked up the IG codex, and after some reading and browsing of some dakka IG threads, came up with this list.

Doctrines
    Allow Rough Riders
    Close Order Drill
    Drop Troops
    Iron Discipline
    Veterans

Command Platoon 81 Pts
        3 Command Squad Lasguns (x3)
        1 Junior Officer, ID, Honorifica Imperialis
        1 Veteran, Standard Bearer

5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts

5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts

5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts

Infantry Platoon 330 Pts
        4 Command Squad, Lasguns (x4)
        1 Junior Officer, ID
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun

Infantry Platoon 330 Pts
        4 Command Squad, Lasguns (x4)
        1 Junior Officer, ID
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun
        10 Infantry Squad, Lascannon; Plasma Gun

5 Rough Riders, Hunting Lances 72pts
1 Rough Rider Veteran Sergeant Laspistol; Hunting Lance

1 Leman Russ Battle Tank 155 Pts Battle Cannon; Hull Heavy Bolter; Heavy Bolter Sponsons

1 Leman Russ Battle Tank 155 Pts Battle Cannon; Hull Heavy Bolter; Heavy Bolter Sponsons

1 Basilisk 125 Pts Earthshaker Cannon; Hull Heavy Bolter

Models in Army: 99

Total Army Cost: 1473

Some advice please:

- What do I do with the remaining 27pts?
- I'm in an environment with many MEQ armies, but am I overdoing the plasma gun/lascannon thing a little? I don't really see horde armies in the area, and I'm hoping massed lasguns, battle cannons and earthshaker is enough to deal with infantry. Am I wrong?
- How do the russes perform usually? Having 2 AV14 tanks is nice, but they are still the only things with AV on the table for my enemy to shoot at. I'm thinking of changing them to basilisks instead, to deny my opponent's heavy weapons any target (nice to have their lascannons pick off cheap guardsmen 1 at a time...), but is having 3 basilisks overkill, and too susceptible to deep-striking/infiltrating anti-tank units? However, night-fight rules may kill a gunline list, and I like having the searchlight on an AV14 vehicle rather than an AV12 basilisk or fighting blind.
- Is the model count at 99 too low? I keep hearing people say I should have 100++ models on the table. Maybe by changing some lascannons/plasma guns combis to heavy bolters/flamer combis, dropping the LRs to basilisks, I can bring more squads. Should I do this?
- To save more points, should I drop some veterans and instead give my infantry platoon command squads plasma weapons/melta guns, and have them take over the sacrificial unit role? But I'm rather loathe to do so, since I'll be losing the command bubbles (ld8 may not be great, but it's better than 7...)

Any and all comments are welcome!

Also, may I ask what are the advantages and disadvantages of playing mechanised armies? While the mobility is undoubtedly useful, I keep thinking that spending 70++pts on a chimera is inefficient when I can get a full squad with heavy weapons for a little more. And the mobility also comes at a price of not being able to fire heavy weapons, which IMO is what the squads are there for in the first place.

Am I missing something here? Sure, having cheap tanks to block LOS/approach avenues etc may be useful, but in general is mechanised IG worth playing compared to the gunline IG? Or should I try to incorporate a little of both into an army list?

Thanks all!

"5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts

5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts

5 Hardened Veterans, Plasma Guns (x3), 75 Pts "

you could give 1 or 2 of these squads meltas instead
of plasmaguns to help with vehicles.

I use a squad with melta guns, but only because I run out of plasma guns. Most of the time you're dropping in to shoot rear armor or heavy infantry....and in both cases I think the plasma wins. Only against something like a land raider would the melta really be better, and you've got 6 lascannons and 3 ordenance blasts to deal with them (as well as the fact that they're a good percentage of the enemy's army at 1500 points).

Thank you for your comments!

With regards to the plasma/melta issue, I personally find the melta way too limited in range. Even with drop troops I may not be able to get close enough to hit the target I want, especially when the real benefit from using a melta is within 6". In all other cases I prefer the drop in 1 str to gain better range and more shots, but that's just me...

Keep the comments coming! Especially those pertaining to the questions I listed in my original post!

Thanks all!

That's a very good list considering how long you've been out. Rest assured, you can still play IG roughly the same way as before. I'd advocate buying a boltgun for your CO, an auspex for your first platoon commander - to whom the CO ought to give his HI, since with COD that's LD 10 - and four flamers for the last PHQ.
The choice of Basilisks over LRBTs is personal - my brother ended up proxying his chimera and both Russes as Basis after a few games against my Tyranids, but then combined-arms Nids, more so than certain starlance weilding Elves, tend not to care about AV. The difference if your list is basically a second squad of RRs - if you want a second cav squadron, go Basis, otherwise, you're golden.
The only other thing I think you might want to consider is a Heavy Weapons Platoon in lieu of a tank, or making one of your tanks a Demolisher. You want something either incredibly strong and mean, or laughably disposable, to place near the center of the board. This will force you opponent to deploy about a foot further back than they would have the option of otherwise, a bit of ju-jitsu for the so-called "disadvantage" of deploying first.
My brain has suffered a spontaneous collapse though I doubt not any serious errors in your list that have escaped me shall presently be corrected...a bunch of the members here have stand and shoot guard down to a science.

A solid list. With the remaining 27 points and the points from the Basilisk you could get a 3rd Russ. If 2 AV14 targets is hard to deal with, 3 will give your opponent's headaches.

Otherwise yes, I'd take atleast 1 Melta unit for the H-Vets. You never know when you might scatter well and get a nice 6" or less shot at some side armour with 3 BS4 Meltas.

BYE

Thanks guys!

Will try out the meltas instead of plasmas, but given my kind of luck, I doubt I'll ever scatter well...

Having 3 russes should be a pretty intimidating sight, but I've always been a sucker for the bassies... And I figured if I could hide all 3 bassies far away at the corner of the board behind terrain, my opponent would have nothing to shoot his lascannons/plasmas/rail guns/autocannons/missiles at except lowly guardsmen. With my kind of luck again, AV14 doesn't last too long when my opponent keeps rolling 5s or 6s...

But, having 3 russes is sure something I'll like to try out. My obsession with bassies has clouded me to the fact that I have enough points for 3 russes...

And btw, what's an auspex? Can't find it in the IG codex...

How's this for a revised list? Or is the original still better?

Doctrines
Veterans
COD
Iron discipline
Rough Riders
Drop Troops

HQ

Command squad 81
Junior officer, honorifica
3 guardsmen
Vet with company standard

Elites

5 hardened vets, 3 plasma guns 75
5 hardened vets, 3 plasma guns 75
5 hardened vets, 3 meltas 75

Troops

Platoon 1

Command squad, JO, 4 guardsmen 45
Squad 1, las/plas 95
Squad 2, las/plas 95
Squad 3, las/plas 95
5 Remnants, flamer 36

Platoon 2

Command squad, JO, 4 guardsmen 45
Squad 1, las/plas 95
Squad 2, las/plas 95
Squad 3, HB/flamer 76
Squad 4, HB 70

Fast support

5 RRs, +1 sergeant, hunting lances 72

Heavy support

3 basilisks, indirect fire 375

So what do you guys think? Basically downgraded the russes to bassies, and used the points plus leftover points to convert a las/plas squad into 2 HB squads for a bit more anti-infantry firepower. Also stuck in a remnant suicide squad to push my opponent's deployment back if possible, act as a speed bump, and to flame infantry if they get close. Seems worth itl for 36 points. Had to drop a flamer from my HB squad to give the remnant squad a flamer though...

I have 4 more points to spend, most probably on a smoke launcher on 1 of the basilisk. I'm also tempted to drop a vet squad and to bring another rough rider squad, they are just plain nasty!

How's this list compare to the first one? This is about the tightest list (points-wise) I have come up with in a while, absolutely no points spend on fancy stuff, and, to my inexperienced eyes at least, it does seem to have a good balance of anti-horde, anti-MEQ, and anti-tank capability with 3 suicide veteran squads, 5 lascannons, 5 plasma guns, 2 HBs, 2 flamers and 3 basilisk pie-plates.

Please feel free to rip this list apart, and let me know how I can further optimise it! Thanks all!