Goatboy’s Warhammer 40K Hot Mess: GW Should Save Command Squads
Once long ago, Command Squads were awesome-sauce . We need to turn today’s 40K Hot Mess back into badasses.
Man I remember the old days of specific Command Squads being allowed for specific characters or models that were awesome. I know a few Codexes have them and we have a reborn one with the Company Heroes unit from Space Marines – but it really feels like something that is missing from a ton of books. We need to have a gang of companions that hang out, grab some drinks, and probably steal a bit of cash from the leader from time to time.
First of all, what does a Command squad even mean? Is it just a slightly better unit with some extra rules or do we create something unique for each type of “leader”. Do we build a unit that is designed to get better when a character joins? Does it need to be specifically locked in without a whole lot of wiggle room? Or does it need to be much more customizable. Is it even worth it to have in the game now as is, or should we continue moving on and just MSU the crap out of the game?
Glam these guys up!
Make Command Squads Unique for Armies
First we need to make them unique for each army they are available in. I think making them cool and unique will help drive how these are supposed to work. Things like a special gang of CSM Chosen that are with their Chaos Lord friends for years. They could have an initiate psyker, the gun-happy guy who just got the Obliterator Virus, and the dude that loves the Chaos Gods a bit too much. You can basically create little “character” gangs that can easily be sold as a “cool” box and let you have a ton of flavor to add to your army.
Give Command Squads Cool Rules Combos for Character Leaders
You could have a Librarian conclave that helps the caster do cooler things or let their abilities be Auras. You could have a whole group that helps amp up your “God” driven character. Heck, you could have cool technical leaders, too, that help spread their vehicle healing aura in some unique way. I love how the Dark Eldar have a Court of the Archons. But it needs to do more than just be a creepy gang that hangs out with the leader.
Bring Some Fluff Back To the Tabletop
I know we had a ton of rules clean up with the current edition but a few fluffy things could help out. There are so many stories of small groups of jerks that are hanging out with leaders and trying to cause some ruckus. You would think a Space Wolf leader would have a ton of cool brothers to drink, wreck stuff, and tell stories with. I just love the idea of creating a ton of unique character models that fill in stories for your army.
I just miss some of the Command Squads from back in the day. I hope we see more like Company Heroes but with some more unique rule sets and “unit” coverings that match up with the army. This way, you could name a bunch of your guys, give them back stories, and watch as they die on the battle top to a ton of Fire Dragons popping out of a Falcon.
For the Emperor!
