Warhammer 40K: There Are Strange Things Going On With Astra Militarum Infantry
Take a look at the new Imperial Guard Infantry rules, and some weird things going on there.
If you’re like the rest of us you’ve spent the past weeks pouring over the next Indexes for Warhammer 40,000 10th Edition. The recent drop of the points for all the units so far, has given us the last thing we needed to start building lists. Now redoing the whole game, with over 1000 units, was never going to be easy. Some issues were going to crop up. The 10th Indexes have a fair few of them. Some people have even called them effectively a beta run before new Codices get released. With that in mind I want to take a look at Astra Militarum Infantry in the new Index. There is some weird stuff here, that is emblematic of some larger issues. Hopefully by calling it out we not only see what units to take, but get GW to fix it in FAQs or the new Codex, sooner rather than later.
The Infantry Squad
First up we’ve got the classic Infantry Squad. It’s a mainstay of the Guard and for the longest time was their only Troop/Battleline choice. Classically the unit can take a special and a heavy weapon, and most people’s armies are likely built that way. However there is an issue with the new Index listing.
On the face of it things haven’t really changed. Apart from a nice new rule, the Squad is the same. However here is the issue. Two of the units upgrades, vox-casters, and special weapons are tied to unit size. You get 1 per 10 models in the unit. However if you chose to take a Heavy Weapon Team in a minimum size unit you now don’t have ten models, you only have 9. This means the base size squad can’t take a special weapon or a vox-caster if it takes a heavy weapon. Moreover the max size squad of “20” can only take 1 of each if it has any heavy weapons. The new app confirms that this is the way it currently works. This seems pretty silly and likely unintended. As such I hope it gets fixed.
Cadian Shock Troops
Next up we’ve got Cadian Shock Troops. These guys don’t really have any big issues. The unit at least works like it’s supposed to. However it also seems a bit weird to have it cost the same as the other units. This comes into further focus with the weapon options.
First off Shock Trooper Sergeants have worse options than those in most other Infantry units. They’ve got no options to take power swords and plasma pistols. The unit can take 2 or 4 special weapons’ (based on it’s size) but this still feels a little underpowered vs the other Battleline options. The biggest bonus they get is having a lot of officers to join them, so maybe that balances them out. Maybe?
The Death Korps
Next up we’ve got the Death Korps of Krieg. And these guys seem to be the real winners in terms of power. They are amazing, and it makes little sense for them to be as cheap as all the other Battleline. They come with an absolutely amazing rule in Grim Demeanour. This gives them bonus to-hit and to-wound as they get shot up. Given that the unit can take 3 or 6 special weapons and some plasmas pistols (not counting attached units) this is really an amazing buff. Their Medi-pack also lets you bring back models every turn, making them the most survivable Guard Infantry.
Only we’ve got a small problem with the Medi-pack. The unit doesn’t seem to have any way of taking one. Is this just something they get by default? All other wargear only works if its listed in the units equipment. If you can take them, can you take more than one? Does having two let you bring back 2d3 models per turn? This seems like an oversight. Also, amusingly, taking a plasma gun does not replace the model’s lasgun, meaning they carry, and can fire, both. Krieg are just built differently, I guess.
Catachans
Lastly we’ve got Catachans. This is a total joke of a unit. At first it seemed cool that all the types of Guard Infantry cost the same at 65/130. But you will never convince me that garbage Catachans are worth the same as the amazing Krieg. The Catachan rule of Jungle Fighters is a joke. +1 S and -1AP on their single pathetic close combat attack in the first round of combat? Useless. They don’t even have a good option to get more attacks. Hell, Krieg with their option to get +1 to hit and wound in both shooting and combat, will out fight Catachans easy. I guess Scout is supposed to make up for this, but its of fairly limited use on such a weak unit.
The unit doesn’t even get any good upgrades. It’s stuck with only being able to take flamers (and Vox) which are widely considered the worst special weapon. It’s useless. Moreover the Sergeant doesn’t have any weapon options either. They are stuck with 1 attack and a las pistol. This makes them actively worse than the basic trooper. Comparing these guys and DKoK is a sad joke.
Why No Catachan Command Squad?
To add just a little more insult to the injury Catachans don’t even get their own Command Squad. Why not? Cadians get a special Command Squad to call their own. GW sells (normally, along with many other units in the army are currently out of stock) a dedicated Catachan Command Squad box. This would be a nice way to give them an extra rule. Maybe the Catachan banner gives them an extra attack, thus making their unit rule kind of worth it. Even if it was just the same as the other Command Squads, it would give you access to more Command Squads in total. It might get you to take Catachans in order to use them. But no. Despite having a relatively newer Catachan Command Squad miniatures kit they don’t get to be a unit. This is just very odd.
Let us know what you think about these weird things, down in the comments.
