Tactical Squad - 40K Space Marines

By the Force Organization Chart, you are required to field an HQ and 2 Troop choices. In many cases, Space Marine players pick their two troops (sometimes by taking scouts instead of tac squads) and then start eying the other more powerful squads to fill out their armies.

Don't be so quick to dismiss tactical squads. Their value in 5th edition has been significantly increased, and should take up a bigger portion of your army.

Benefits of Taking Tactical Squads

1. Tactical squads carry bolters and boltpistols - Although the regular tac squad members don't have chainswords for an additional close combat attack, tactical squad members can choose to fire their bolters OR boltpistols. Why? To permit shooting in the shooting phase, and still allowing an assault phase (which bolters would omit).

2. Combat squads allow you to create a shooty squad and an assault squad - Build a 10 man squad, put the heavy weapon in one squad and the assault weapon in the other squad.

3. All Space Marines come with frag and krak grenades - This makes assaulting into cover and attacking vehicles and other armored units easier for free.

4. With a 10 man squad, several weapons are now free - You used to have to pay a premium to get a squad with anything other than just bolters.

5. Free veteran sergeant - After 4 editions, your sergeants now get to purchase gear from the armory without paying extra to make him better.

6. Rhinos, Razorbacks, and Drop Pods - Tactical squads have access to 3 different transports for different tactical uses, all for less cost than in the past.

7. Troops choices are the only units that can hold terrain/table quarters. Note: This does include scouts.

8. Deployment and separation - Combat squads deployed in rhinos can separate when they disembark and be two separate squads (although they must be deployed together). Combat squads can split up to take a razorback while leaving the other combat squad behind. Combat squads can also split up after disembarking from a drop pod.

Bulk up the core of your army with flexible, hard-hitting and resilient tactical squads. Each box comes complete with everything you need to build a ten marine squad.

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Tactical squads have access to 3 assault weapons which can be used to move and shoot (the plasma gun is of course rapid fire and not an assault-fire weapon), and 5 heavy weapons.

This allows for 15 combinations of weapons depending on your needs of range, penetration, enemy troop hardness and enemy troop quantity.

As mentioned before, since tactical squads can be split into combat squads, mobile portions are free to move and shoot to control terrain and prepare for assaults, while the non-mobile portions can stay put to fire heavy weapons. Each combat squad should be designed for its ultimate purpose, be it assault, tank hunting, large squad suppression, hard troop suppression, or some combination of these.

Each weapon has benefits and drawbacks and can be mixed and matched depending on what you're fighting.

Flamer - Good for multiple targets under a big template, but harder targets will get saves, and mostly useless against armor.
Meltagun - The best weapon against armor at short range, and good for taking out any troop, but only one shot and limited range.
Plasma Gun - Good for hard troop targets, capable of penetrating weak armor, negates your assault phase if fired.
Missile Launcher - Good armor penetration, also capable of covering multiple weaker troops. Krak missile only one shot to defeat hard troops, frag less likely to beat hard troops, but can stop weaker troops. Can't move and shoot.
Plasma Cannon - Devastating against groups of hard and weak troops, some vehicle penetration. Can't move and shoot.
Multi-Melta - Better range than meltagun, but can't move and shoot. Best against armor and good on hard troops, but one shot.
Lascannon - Great armor penetration, great against hard troops, only one shot. Can't move and shoot.
Heavy Bolter - Great against weak troops, not so good against harder troops that will get a save. Fires more shots to cover more targets. Can't move and shoot.

Drop Pods

Drop Pods are my new favorite toy in 5th Edition as they finally allow Space Marine players to launch troops deep into enemy territory with little initial risk (more favorable deep strike rules), while making short range weapons much more effective.

Note that no unit can assault the round it disembarks from the drop pod so you need to be able to survive a round of fire. Heavy weapons will also not be able to fire during the round they disembark. Best to include a plasma or melta gun that will take advantage of short range and lay into a squad or vehicle. The next round, settle in with the heavy weapon and maneuver the assault-capable troops.

Alternately, drop into a strategic location and maintain the location with long range weapons.

Rhinos

Rhinos come stock with storm bolters and smoke launchers.

If you're using it to get a position with assault troops or positioned shooting troops, go full tilt and fire the smoke launchers in the first round. The advantage over drop pods is that the rhino can also draw fire from other valuable units while it streaks across the battefield.

From a weapon platform perspective, get an additional storm bolter and/or a hunter-killer missile. Run to a location, block a gap and fire off all of the guns, while laying down cover fire for the troops inside to advance. Again, draw fire from other units, particularly the troops in the transport.

Razorbacks

For just a few points more than a rhino (and 4 less transport capacity) you get a heavy bolter. For quite a few more points you get a versatile weapons platform. Add a twin-linked lascannon for armor penetration, an assault cannon for troop sweeping, or add the lascannon/plasma gun combo for a little of both.

The razorback is still a useful transport carrier, although not as fast. Move at half speed, fire off the weapon and deliver your troops when its appropriate. Since the capacity is six, it's perfect for a 5 man squad plus an HQ. This usually allows you to carry two power weapons and maybe a flamer or melta gun if you choose, making the force that gets out a nightmare in assault.

As much as I love the Drop Pods' ability to drop death pretty much where I want it, I prefer the razorback. It has the same armor as a rhino, and can be destroyed by a lot of weapons - you don't even need heavy weapons to do it. It seems like a waste of points, but field a few of them and some other dangerous units, and your opponent has to take pause. The twin-linked lascannon gives you range against armies that need time to close, the assault cannon helps you sweep away larger, weaker squads, and even the stock heavy bolter routs smaller weaker squads quickly. All for way less than half the cost of a tricked out Predator. If the razorback blows up or the weapon gets destroyed, the squad gets out and goes to work.

Razorbacks are a bit expendable, but that's the point. Any fire applied towards them is fire not going to more valuable units. For their price, even with the bigger weapons, they are a bargain compared to a Predator.

You can even add all the extras that go on a rhino, so if you want first round punch with a hunter-killer missile or an extra storm bolter, go for it.

I tend to put heavier weapons on my Razorbacks, but if you are facing a horde army like Orks or Tyranids, you can swap back to the Heavy bolter, save a bunch of points and buy an extra unit or two, or flesh out a small unit with more troops or better gear.

5th edition has made the Razorback far more flexible and valuable for small squad delivery, fire support and distraction.

So with so many options and decent cost, what can be done with just tactical squads? I'm not saying you shouldn't get some termies, a dreadnought, tanks or bikes, but you can do a lot with tac squads and can even win a game with nothing but troops and an HQ.

I'm going to assume we're fighting another hard force, such as Chaos Marines. Higher strength/lower firing rate weapons can be replaced with different weapons against bigger forces of softer troops like Orks, Eldar and the like. This force is designed to have assault portions, mid-range mobile forces and long range hold-and-shoot forces.

HQ - Chaplain

Tactical Squad 1 - 10 Space Marines, melta gun and missile launcher, Razorback with twin-linked assault cannon
Tactical Squad 2 - 10 Space Marines, plasma gun and missile launcher, Razorback with twin-linked lascannon or lascannon/plasma guns
Tactical Squad 3 - 10 Space Marines, plasma gun and lascannon, Rhino
Tactical Squad 4 - 10 Space Marines, plasma gun,plasma cannon, Rhino
Tactical Squad 5 - 10 Space Marines, meltagun, Drop Pod, Sgt with power weapon, combi-melta
Tactical Squad 6 - 10 Space Marines, flamer, Drop Pod, Sgt with power weapon, combi-plasma

1515 points

Now I concede that I would like to have a power fist or two, a third drop pod for better first round deployment and some other goodies, but you can see how this is a fairly well rounded 1500 point force (which is also over points). The force is capable of moving to and holding ground, dropping where you want them and destroying tanks and large, hard groups of troops, and getting and giving fire support. Rhinos can move quickly with razorbacks moving a little less swiftly behind them in support. There are plenty of heavy weapons to deal with heavy armor forces such as Chaos, Space Marines, Necrons and Imperial Guard, plenty of weapons that will avoid armor saves and many targets to disperse fire.

In fact, with 6 tactical squads, you have 18 independent forces, two combat squads per squad plus a vehicle. Granted, rhinos and drop pods aren't much of a threat, but they provide cover and keep a storm bolter in the fight. Razorbacks aren't tough to kill but they draw fire from 12 combat squads.

With an additional 500 points, you can keep the vehicle heavy aspect going with some veterans in rhinos or razorbacks, or put dreadnoughts in drop pods or on foot, add a squad of bikes or assault troops, or add some tanks. Adding armor can allow you to scale back the heavy weapons in your tac squads and make a more assaulty force to support terminators or assault squads.