How Imperial Guard Fight Against Blood Angels
by Raqeeb Bekr
introduction by Brother Edward

Greetings my battle brothers!

   Our guest speaker this evening has been playing 40K since '93.  He started with Dark Angels, then moved on to fielding Imperial Guard armies in '96 (2nd Edition), and has been playing Imperial Guard almost exclusively in 3rd edition. He has helped me improve my 40K game on countless occassions in the past year, his advice has always been very insightful. I am honored to welcome tonight's guest speaker, my friend Raqeeb Bekr.

    (lights dim and spotlight comes on as the speaker steps up to the podium)

Okay, here we go.  I was asked to write about the Imperial Guard, and what the Blood Angels can expect to face when they battle them.  I?ve been on the receiving end of the BA bloodbath many times, and have slaughtered some BA armies in my day also.  Hopefully you?ll get some use out of my random thoughts.

To start off  I will discuss ?getting to know your enemy?, because knowledge is power, and fore-warned is fore-armed.

  IG Units- What are they good for?
   Counterassault Units
       Although IG is not good at hth, they still need certain units to fight off enemy assaults.  Typically there will be 1 of these counterassault units in a 1000 point army, 1-3 in armies of 1500-2000 points.  A list of these counterassault units, and their strengths and weaknesses against BA might be helpful, because most BA players tend to concentrate on HTH

1.        The command platoon command squad.  This is usually the most cost effective counterassault unit in the IG army.  It can have 4 flamers/plasmaguns, a colonel with up to WS5, a preacher with a powerfist and Rosarius, and a commissar/missionary.  The commissar and the colonel can both have 5+ Invulnerable saves and powerfists/powerweapons.  Add to that a chimera transport, and you can understand why this makes a decent counterassault force.  I have surprised many opponents with this unit, because no one seems to understand the hidden strength of this unit.
2.        Catachan Assault Squads-  These are allowed in normal IG armies now.  They are still guardsmen, but they come with pistol/ccw, and WS4.  But they are still S3, T3, with a 5+ save, and no power weapons, so against BA, they should not be that tough in hth.  However, they can have Demolition Charges, a thrown weapon that is ORDNANCE.  Beware the demo charge!!  It can kill most things in the game.  Useful against high point cost units!
3.        Veteran Squads  These squads can be outfitted also for hth.  Multiple special weapons, the vet sgt can get a powerfist, and you can attach another officer with power weapon to them.  Add to that their morale benefits (ignore morale modifiers, and can rally even when below 50%) and you get a tough unit, but really better at shootin.
4.        Catachan Devils squad  This is the same as the vet squad, except WS4!  Expensive, but they can be nasty to deal with, especially in cover.
5.        Stormtroopers-  Well, technically they can get Pistols and CCW.  However, WS3. T3, S3, I3 means that they do not use them well : )
6.        Ogryns-  With the Ogryn CCW (+1S) and led by a preacher with powerfist and rosarius this unit can nasty.  Strong, tough, and hard.  Very useful as a counterassault unit.  Fully kitted out (5 Ogryns and Preacher) is 180 points.
7.        Platoon HQ-  These can be kitted out for hth, but with the exception of an added preacher/commissar, they are just guardsmen with ccw?s/pistols.  Although the LT can get a powerweapon.
8.        Sentinels-  These (especially the Catachan version) can be annoying in hth, because a marine needs a 6 to glance from them.  The catachan version gets an extra attack and has a heavy flamer.  Useful for tying up tac squads of BA, but powerfists kill them quickly.
9.        Rough Riders-  The Terminator killers.  If you allow these guys to charge, they will kill the first unit they face.  Then they are easy to kill.  On their first charge they are I6 S5 power weapon armed!  Great for killing terminators, or other expensive marines.  Very vulnerable to shooting.  And after their first round of combat, they revert to basically normal guardsmen.  Effective, but they take practice for the IG to get the most out of them.
10.        Assassins- not technically an IG unit, but a very common addition, to try to add hth ability.  But, an eversor or callidus assassin, unless supported by one or more other units will die, usually after savaging one unit.  You guys should already be aware of how to kill these guys.

Shooty IG units- Backbone of the Army
  The IG?s bread and butter is shooting, and therefore they have an abundant variety of these type of units

1.        Heavy weapons squads- These HQ squads are the IG equivalents of devastator squads.  Each squad can take 3 heavy weapons, and the type of heavy weapons are limited by the type of squad.
   A)  Antitank- can have 3 lascannons/missile launchers.  The 3 lascannons are great for popping Land Raiders and Terminators, which otherwise annoy my Guardsmen to no end.
  B)  Fire Support-  3 Heavy Bolters/Autocannons.  Against Blood Angels, these would be used (especially with the autocannons) to pop light vehicles and transports.  Skimmers, dreadnoughts and Rhinos should be careful of the autocannon squad (6* S7 48? range shots a turn!) 
C)  Mortar Squad-  3 mortars.  Not especially fearsome to the BA, but those pin tests can still be annoying.
2.        Veteran Squads- With BS4, sniper rifles, heavy weapons and special weapons, this squad can be a handful of nastiness in the shooting phase.
3.        Stormtroopers- The hellgun is just another flashlight to the BA.  But their carapace armor gives them saves from bolter fire, and armed with 2 plasma guns, these guys can have a surprising punch.
4.        Ratlings-  picture 5-10 sniper rifles.  ?nuff said.
5.        DWV Snipers-  To me, these are much more scary.  3 of them is a single elites choice of 60 points.  They set up and shoot as if they were each a separate squad.  Reroll to wounds.  Great for harassing the enemy, but not a major troop killer.
6.        Guardsmen-  A fully kitted out squad (sgt and 7 guardsmen with lasguns, 1 heavy weapon and a special weapon (plasma gun etc) only runs 78-83 points.  Very plentiful.  They are effective in numbers.  And because they are cheap, I do not mind sacrificing a squad or two to protect my better stuff.
7.        Armored Fist squad-  This is a mobility seize the objective squad.  With the chimera, a heavy weapon and a special weapon, they rush to an objective (especially if it is in cover), and then defend it until the rest of the army arrives.
8.        Hellhound-  This is a greatly feared vehicle, but it is very fragile.  The autofallback rule can really break up an assault.  Recommend shooting this thing before you get close.
9.        Sentinels-  The normal versions (Multilaser, or Lascannon) are mobile fire support, and can get into firing positions/cover early, becoming an great annoyance to try to kill.
10.        TANKS!  REMEMBER * a roll of 6 on the Ordnance weapon damage table kills everything in a transport with NO saves!*
A)  Leman Russ-  Great all around killer.  VERY good at killing the Deathcompany!  (S8, AP3 heh heh).  Me like Ordnance.
B)  Demolisher (S10 AP2) The termie killer.  Add plasma cannon sponsons and it is still useful even when the main gun is destroyed.  Short range is not really a liability against the BA, who always seem to come at the IG.
C) Vanquisher- An expensive leman russ, with the added ability to kill Land Raiders, and everything in them (a 6 on the ordnance table kills EVERYTHING in a transport, no saves).
D) Basilisk- Indirect fire from this is over-rated.  36 inch minimum range is easy to get inside of.  However then the direct fire mode, with S10 AP3  becomes a Death Company nightmare, again.
E) Griffon, and Exterminator- These two tanks are of limited utility against BA, but can be used to kill light vehicles, rhinos etc.

These are the IG shooters.

  A typical IG 1700 point army looks something like this
HQ
  Command Squad geared up for HTH w/ commissar
  Lascannon AT Squad
Elite
  3* DWV Snipers
Troops
  Platoon 1
    Cmd squad with hvy weapon
    2 squads with hvy weapons/specials
 Platoon 2
   Same as above
 Armored Fist squad
Fast Attack
  2* Sentinels
Heavy
  Leman Russ
  Demolisher 
  Griffon

That is approximately my standard IG army.
 

What the Blood Angels Must Kill (Prioritized List Of Targets)
1)        The Tanks  I know, no duh, right?  But, these will do damage to you, to your best units EVERY turn until you kill them.  So, why do so many BA commanders plan on just using assault troops with powerfists and meltabombs to kill them?  That is giving them turn after turn to fire, causing more and more problems to the BA.  The best way to kill a direct fire tank (Leman Russ, Demolisher) is with long range firepower.  Nothing in the BA armory beats the lascannon at that.  Dreads with lascannons, predators, baal predators, and the humble devastator squad.  If you take two or more of these, then you have a good chance of depriving the IG commander of his favorite weapon.  Missile launchers work, but less well, and plasma cannons cannot penetrate the front armor.
2)        AT Squads- These guys can kill your transports, your vehicles and your terminators.  They are also high cost.  Killing them should be a priority.  Best way to kill them?  The whirlwind.
3)        Indirect Fire vehicles- The basilisk and the griffon.  These can be harder to kill, but they are important.  The whirlwind can do it, after that, these are great targets for that assault squad with powerfist/meltabombs.
4)        Transports- In any game that involves objectives etc, kill the IG transports.  Slow them down.  Plasma works, as do missile launchers.
5)        Command squads-  Our leaders are key.  Kill them.  Then watch the LD 7 IG start to run.  Again, since these are behind the lines, the Whirlwind is excellent against them.
6)        Troops.  Now here is your assault targets.  Get into hth with them, shoot them, kill them.  However, do not get so wrapped up with killing them that you forget the scenarios objectives.
 

Okay, enough about the IG:  What about the Blood Angels?  I have seen several common mistakes made with the BA, that a good IG commander can exploit.  A short list of them is:
1)        Relying solely on hth and meltaguns as tank killers.  Why give the tanks a free pass in the first few rounds, while you try to get short range units within killing range.  Shoot them!  As I stated, Dreads with TL lascannons, predators and Devastators work wonders at that.
2)        Taking a few vehicles:  Notice I did not say taking no vehicles.  I am talking about a BA force with an honor guard, DC with packs, assault squads, scouts, and A single dread and predator.  All my heavy weapons now have just 2 worthwhile targets to shoot at, and with the numbers of heavy weapons the IG has, just how long do you think 1 or 2 vehicles will last?  If you take vehicles take many.  Overwhelm the ability of the IG to kill all the vehicles, and make the IG commander have to choose which vehicles he tries to kill.
3)        Bunching up.  I know that assault works better when you can concentrate a squad in a tight group and overwhelm each enemy unit, but it is bad against IG.  We like large groups of people, so that our ordnance kills many many marines.  BA already has overwhelming advantages over IG in hth, no need to bunch up to achieve overkill.  Spread out, so that templates and blasts only kill 2-3 marines, instead of 6-8  (6 terminators and a BT chaplain is my personal best, done with one shot of a demolisher cannon).
4)        Forgetting the scenarios objectives- remember it is you minis that suffer from Black Rage, not you.  Sometimes sitting on the objective is more important than trying to charge and kill that IG squad that is nearby..
5)        Forgetting that BA is not really a less shooty an army than any marine army.  You have advantages in hth, granted.  But you also can shoot!  Whittle down the IG with fire, before crushing them in assault.

An IG commanders view of some BA units

1)        Characters with Honor Guard- Ordnance bait.  I realize if these guys hit my lines, I can?t stop them.  So, I will shoot at them early and often to destroy them.  They scare me.  However, lots of points spent on wargear like power weapons etc, does not really bother me, as my 5+ Armor save is practically worthless anyways.   So, do me a favor.  If you take the honor guard, spend every point possible on it, so that there is a lot less men and goodies in the rest of your army.  : )  Seriously, spending too many points on any one squad can be a killer, when the ordnance blast falls on them.
2)        Veteran Assault Squads-  Okay, BA in rhinos.  Kill the rhino, and then later on come back and kill the marines walking towards me.  Bad for me if they make it into my lines.
3)        Furiouso- This can wait a couple of rounds before I have to kill it.  Not a priority target in round one.
4)        Terminators- Again Ordnance bait- Specifically Demolisher tank bait.  Use the S10 Ap 2 cannon on them.  Shoot plasma at them.  Must kill them.  Alternatively, shoot lots and lots of lasguns at them.  Eventually everyone rolls a one.  IF they are assault termies, kill their land raider.  Then you can wait a round or two before you have to deal with them (see furiouso above)
5)        Tac Squads- Marines in numbers scare me.  They can shoot, they can assault, they take many shots to kill.  Large troop armies of marines are a problem.  Because my good antimarine weapons are only limited shot weapons.  Therefore large numbers of marines become hard to kill
6)        Scouts- Scouts scare me far less than marines, because I have autocannons and grenadelaunchers to kill them.  There is a big difference between a 3+ save and a 4+ save.
7)        Assault squads- although slightly less scary than the Honor Guard, these guys are among the biggest headache for IG.  Ten marines, moving fast, and if they hit my lines they can crumble an entire flank. Shudder.  I must kill them quickly.  Use cover to try to keep them alive.
8)         Bikes- less scary than assault squads, because they are fewer in numbers.  Can be a pain in my but, but they are more manageable than Assault Squads.
9)        Skimmers.  I like skimmers.  Autocannons really do a number on them.  As do grenade launchers, etc.  If you take them against IG, use cover to get close.  Expect them to die.
10)        Dreads-  Depending on the weapons is how important killing the dread is.  Lascannon dreads must die.  Heavy bolters, assault cannons are less important.
11)        Tanks- Call it jealousy, but all enemy tanks must die.  But, I prioritize them.  First that must die are anything that is capable of hurting my tanks.  That means lascannons on tanks get shot at.  Then troop killers.
12)        Rhinos.  One or two rhinos is no problem.  5-7 is.  If you take rhinos, take lots of vehicles to overwhelm the commanders.  Vehicles in ones and twos dies.
13)        Devastators-  Depends.  What are they armed with, and how many are there.  Minimum size squads are easy to hurt.  Larger squads are much harder.  Also, what weapons- short range (multimeltas, heavy bolters) long range (missiles and plasma) or antitank (lascannons).  I always target devastators, so large squads can take some wounds before they start losing heavy weapons. 
14)        The Deathcompany.  Again a great target for my ordnance.  After that, I use heavy weapons.  DC w/jumppacks led by a chaplain usually forces me to have to change my underwear, if they get into hth with me.  IG MUST stop this unit.

Some commonly seen tactics I have had use against me, and how well they work

1)        rhino rush up the middle (Ride to the sound of the guns!).  Usually a disaster for the BA player.  IG specializes in stopping this.
2)        Assault squads/bikes skimmers rushing up the flanks.  Rest of the army moving up the middle using cover.   Fire support units establish a baseline.  This can be very effective.  It forces the IG to split fires, etc.  Problems are if the BA commander runs into unplanned problems, he can lose coordination in his army.  (that Blood raging Devastator squad, that failed difficult terrain test).  And depending on scenario and terrain, this could leave the IG to blast apart the BA army in pieces
3)        All assault army- Again, this requires hitting the IG in a coordinated fashion.  Charging piecemeal usually spells disaster.  Can be devastating if the BA commander pulls it off though.
 

Okay, that is all I can come up with at this time.  Hopefully, I?ve shown you something you had not realized before, and given you something to think about.  Most importantly HAVE FUN!

Raqeeb Bekr
187th Wahatian Guard, The Desert Jackals.