Warhammer 40K: How To Play With Only Classic Marines
Let’s talk about how you can still play with just your old 40K Classic Marines.
For decades the old Classic Space Marine has ruled the stars and the tabletop. Over the last few years however, there has been a major shift in power, as the newly introduced Primaris Marines gained an expanded line and role. As the power of Primaris has grown, that of the Classic Marines has waned, to the point where some might even call them obsolete.
40K Classic Marines Still Got Game
However one should not confuse obsolete with useless. Plenty of armies have won conflicts with weapons that are technically obsolete and the current Marine Codex gave the Classic Marines a bit of a boost by pumping up their wounds, and often firepower. Indeed it’s still possible to play an army with only 40K Classic Marines. Today let’s take a look at some units you want to focus on if you want to play an only Classic Marine 40k army.
Captains
Yes, Smash Captains got a big nerf in the current book, but Captains remain a powerful and useful unit. In the past they used to stand really head and shoulders above Primaris Captains, though that gap has narrowed recently, you’ll still want to take a look at Captains in any Classic Marine force. In particular, both Jumppack and Bike Captains combine a ton of mobility and close combat power, making them great at buffing units and/or fighting on their own. With their increased mobility these are units that are arguably still as good as their Primaris counterparts. Upgrade one to a Chapter Master and you’re back to having an old-style Smash Captain that can bring the pain.
Dreadnoughts
Vehicles are sort of a weird area right now since they removed the Primaris keyword from them. Are all vehicles non-Primaris/Classic now? Are none? For our purposes, I think we can define a 40k Classic Marines vehicle as one that existed before the introduction of Primaris units. Here Dreadnoughts are in a great space, as they have a ton of variants you can look at taking. As our own Goatboy has pointed out, among others, Dreadnoughts got some big boosts this edition, losing the penalty to move and fire, getting upgraded weapons and being buffed by Duty Eternal. These are great units now and you could build an entire army based around Classic Marine Dreadnoughts, or just use them to augment your army. In particular Relic Contemptor Dreadnoughts are a stand out unit and have been a mainstay of competitive Marine lists for a while.
Vanguard Veterans & Company Veterans
Mobility and damage output are two of the key factors in making a unit good. Vanguard Veterans combine these, with Deep Strike, fast jump pack movement, and a decent number of attacks with a great variety of close combat weapons. In the past Vanguard have been great damage dealers but a bit of a glass cannon. For their high cost, they were really only as durable as other Marines, and while Storm Shields could help them vs heavy attacks, they were just as susceptible to small arms fire as a Tactical Marine. Now with a second wound and buff vs small arms for Storm Shields, they are significantly more durable than before. A block of Vanguard can act as a nasty surprise for just about anyone and is a great choice for an assault unit in a 40K Classic Marine force. Indeed this is another unit that has found a home in competitive Marine armies, beating out Primaris choices.
As an alternative choice for those of you who love the 1st Company, don’t forget you can take Company Veterans for next to nothing. These vets are perfect to hold those out of the way objectives. They are cheap as chips, and can be equipped to be fairly nasty in assault. Not nasty enough to kick real assault units in the teeth, but certainly enough to wipe the floor with most armies’ throwaway rear objective holders like Cultists, Guardians and the like.
Dropods
I’m not sure droppods are “good” right now, but they are the least interesting. These guys give Classic Marines some options, and open up tricks that Primaris just don’t have access to. The most obvious is to fill them full of Devastators, either armed with grav or melta weapons, and drop them in as a super deadly assassination squad. Loading them up with combi-weapon armed Sternguard Veterans is also an interesting choice, especially given the changes in flamers. We’ve also seen Deathwatch make great use of them to drop Frag Cannons in, in lists like the one featured here. While the pod itself is a bit of a one-shot unit, the guys inside can deliver a lot of close-range firepower and remain a threat that has to be dealt with. These are another strong option to look at when running all Classic Marines.
Attack Bikes
Attack Bikes were for a long time a massive joke. However the most recent Codex gave them a lot of buffs. With the buff to Heavy Bolters and Multi-Meltas in particular their weapon options are a lot better. They’ve got speed and decent durability and aren’t very expensive. Eradicators are getting a TON of love right now, but an Attack Bike a crazy amount more than them, and is tougher, almost 3 times as fast and gets some free bolter shots, while having the same primary weapon output as a basic Eradicator. Throw a unit of three of these down and they can zip across the table to get in easy half range with a lot of melta shots. They were particularly popular right when the Codex dropped, and did get a nerf with a points bump, but they remain a strong unit, especially in a classic Marine army.
Chapter Specific Units
A lot of chapters with supplements have units only they have access to and the bulk of these are, for now at least, Classic Marine units. In particular, Blood Angels, Dark Angels, Space Wolves, and Deathwatch (leaving out Grey Knights as their own thing) have some really strong unique Classic Marine units. While you don’t have to play one of these chapter to use an all Classic Marine force, they will help it out. Indeed if you are playing one of these Chapters, there is a good reason you’re already going to lean towards Classic Marines a bit. While combined they are too many units to go into here, the key point is that if you really want to stick with the old guard, then you’ll likely want to take a look at one of these chapters (or a successor) for access to some sweet units.
PSST, Whirlwinds – I’m Serious!
Also, as Honorable Mention, there is even a Whirlwind trick. Just saying…
Let us know what Classic Marine units you still love, down in the comments !
