In the Warhammer 40k Universe, warhammer 40k tactics are very important! On this page, I loaded up as Warhammer 40k resources that I could think of, either from personal experience or researched, and made them ready and available, at your fingertips! Each race have their own unique advantages and disadvantages. Each army must utilize the most effective Warhammer 40k Tactics available to them, if they want to be successful.
Imperial Guard: The Imperial Guard are in many ways like Tyranids. How? Well think about it. Tyranids field lots of troops, so do the Imperial Guard. Tyranids field lots of monstrous creatures, Guardsmen can field a lot of tanks. Coincidence? I think not... Anyways. Down to business. Firstly, Guardsmen have pretty good tanks – decently armed and armored, carrying a big primary gun. They pack a punch, but ultimately will go down relatively quickly to lictors, Carnifexes, Wraithlords, etc. They sure are durable, but don’t expect them to survive very long.
Guardsmen are unique in a sense – while their guns are not that powerful, an army of guardsmen focusing their fire is nothing to sneeze at. They truly are a shooty army, and certainly able to take down things many times their size. They can field Heavy Weapon teams, which can lay down an impressive amount of firepower, taking down tanks in a glance. The only problem with guardsmen – with their low ballistic skill, they tend to miss… a lot, so don’t be totally surprised if out of those fifty shots, you only hit with twenty five of them...
Tyranids: Ah... where to begin? Tyranids have endless possibilities, from a “Nidzilla” list (fielding 7+ Tyranid Monstrous Creatures), to the classic Horde list, to the rarer “Flying Circus” and “Unholy Choir” armies. Let’s start with...
Nidzilla: This is all about fielding two Hive Tyrants, Six Carnifexs, and the Rest Genestealers. The Carnifexes should be outfitted for a shooting role (Three of them “Dakka Fexes” (2x Twin linked devourers, and enhanced senses) and the Heavy fexes should be “Gunfexes, the Venom Cannon, Barbed Strangler, and Enhanced senses) The Hive Tyrants should be either Combat Tyrants or “Dakkarants” (2x Twin linked devourers, toxin sacs, enhanced senses). These beasties crank out 12 shots at strength five, re-rolling failed to hit AND wound! The Genestealers should have combat covered, and if you need some heavier hitting power, send in a Carnifex or two. These are amongst the most scary lists ever written in 40k.
Horde: This is all about fielding as many Spinegaunts as you can, with the odd Hive Tyrant, Carnifex, and warrior brood to provide heavier hitting. This list fares fairly well, because gaunts are extremely cheap, and can be fielded in numerous broods. The Carnifexes are there to roll over tanks, and they do it quite well.
Flying Circus: This list is all about gargoyles. Gargoyles are often overlooked in favor in other units. However everyone misses their true power. Let’s take a brood of 32 Gargoyles for example. They will be attacking a Terminator squad of 10. The Gargoyles fly up, crank out 32 shots, and on average, 2-3 Terminators will die. They Charge, and they get 64 attacks at initiative four. But wait: The Bio-Plasma! This means they get an additional 32 attacks at Initiative eight! On average another 2-3 terminators will die. Then when they strike the terminators with their normal attacks, they get their normal 64 attacks, and on average 4-6 Terminators will die. A whole 10-man squad of terminators in one turn. Not to shabby for a brood of flying gaunts!
Unholy Choir: This list is all about psychic scream. Field 3 Zoanthropes and 2 Hive Tyrants, give them all Psychic Scream. This means enemy units will have to make leaderships on 5s or under! This list is more risky, however, because a fearless unit is immune to this effect and you would be powerless against them. Well of course you have Hive Tyrants, gaunts, etc. But you know...
Continued on page Four of the Tactics Section.
Well as you can see, each army has totally different playing styles. However keep in mind this is just a basic guide to get you started, this is not a “Be all end all” rule you must always follow. If it works for you, it works for you, and don’t let me ruin your day! Warhammer is all about experimenting with army lists and tactics, so while you may be losing all your models today, some day you will start to win and then you can’t be defeated!
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