"40k Army Best in Show" Nominations / people just give their input. Might as well do this now before 8th changes up anything, and also because I'm actually interested in the answers.
>Mechanical Categories Shootiest Army Best CQC Army Best Psychic Army Most Durable Army Fastest Army Most Numerous/Best Horde Army Smallest Workable Army
>Design Categories (more subjective) Most Visual Variety Most Conversion Options Most Interesting Color Schemes Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay) Easiest to Paint Hardest to Paint Well
>Feel free to nominate more categories!
Bonus question: why do you play the armies you play/why are they your favorites?
Josiah Fisher
Shooties: Tau Best CQC: Orks Best Psychic Army: Chaos Space Marines Most Durable Army: Space Marines Fastest Army: Dark Eldar Most Numerous/Best Horde Army: Orks Smallest Workable Army: Custodes
Most Visual Variety: Daemons Most Conversion Options: Orks Most Interesting Color Schemes: Space Marines Best Special Characters: Imperial Guard Easiest to Paint: Necrons Hardest to Paint Well: Tau
Tried to be as unbiased as possible, try to guess which army I play.
John Green
Imperial guard
Aaron Edwards
I'd probably add that Best Psychic likely goes to specifically Thousand Sons/Thousand Sons+Tzeentch Daemons.
Also are regular Spacies really tougher than Death Guard? Great Unclean Ones are like fucking black holes for bullets.
How hard are Tau to paint?? I've always though Chaos was harder. Fucking speaking of Tzeentch.
I thought Orks were in a bit of a rut right now. Can they really stomp people in CQC?
Damn shame 'Nids can't compete for Best Horde...
Jordan Evans
wrong guessing you play Chaos. I just say Tau cus nobody paints them and it looks like all those battlesuits could be a bitch.
Charles Myers
Orcs aren't best cqc though. They get fucked up the ass.
I'd also argue that the right eldar list will out psycher anything, and the only reason csm ever use psychers us to spam deamons.
Charles Garcia
Sorcerers are the cheapest of all psykers but yes I was considering putting Eldar on the list as best but then I remembered all the stuff Chaos gets. Orks are meant to be good in melee, and generally they are, it's just a matter of getting them there.
Hudson Moore
Garbage Fire Category: 8th edition.
Most Boneheaded Balance Decision: Giving Tau, a race with only one weakness, the ability to leave melee at will and shoot in the same turn.
Best Game Idea And Shittiest Implementation Due to Greedy Fatcats and Masochistic Nerds Suffering Due to the Sunk Cost Fallacy: Any GW game besides Blood Bowl. Because at least they made Fumbbl when GW stopped giving a shit and made a better and free game. 40cucks haven't.
Adam Adams
My nominations >Da Shootiest: Tau (and they love reminding us about that) >Best CQC: Orks (When they can get there anyway!) >Best Psychic Army: Thousands Sons >Most Durable Army: Necrons >Fastest Army: Eldar >Most Numerous/Best Horde Army: Orks (with the 'nids coming in at a close 2nd place >Smallest Workable Army: Custodes
>Most Visual Variety: Space Marines (seriously, how many different chapters are there now? I lost track around 25.) >Most Conversion Options: Orks win this, no contest. >Most Interesting Color Schemes: Space Marines, specifically the Celestial Lions >Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay): Imperial Guard (and I will fight anyone who says the Space Marines have better ones) >Easiest to Paint: 'crons. >Hardest to Paint Well: Remember those Celestial Lions I mentioned earlier? Painting that color scheme in real life seems damn near impossible.
My attempt at being as fair and unbiased as I could.
Ayden Green
How is it hard? I mean it's just like prime gold, wash, then drybrush on another brighter gold to get that shine back, then just block in the blue bits as you like. Free hand little details otherwise.
Grayson Reed
Considering Celestial Lions apparently like painting star-charts on their armor, the amount of detail and steady hand that sort of thing requires is... well frankly insane.
Juan Robinson
Shootiest Army - Tau Best CQC Army - Chaos Best Psychic Army - Demons / GK Most Durable Army - Nurgle marines Fastest Army - Dark Eldars Most Numerous/Best Horde Army - Guard Smallest Workable Army - Scions
>Design Categories (more subjective) Most Visual Variety - Demons Most Conversion Options - orkz Most Interesting Color Schemes - Demons Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay) - CSM Easiest to Paint - Mrines Hardest to Paint Well - Skitarii ? lots of little bits and bobs
Anthony Ward
Shooty: Tau CQC: Khorne Daemonkin Psychic: 1k sons Durable: Death Guard Fastest: Dark Eldar Horde: Orks Small: GK
Variety: Chaos Space Marines Conversion: Orks Color Schemes: Eldar Special Characters: idk Easiest to Paint: Crons Hardest: Guard
Jose Kelly
>Most Durable Army: Space Marines Do you even play this game?
Necrons bro.
Nathan Rodriguez
We have very little of the context surrounding the Tau rule. For all we know it's a lot easier to get into combat and they need that fall back rule. By the look of the reserve/deep strike rules that might just be the case.
Nicholas Harris
Battlesuits aren't bad for the most part. Lots of panels with rounded edges. Compare to something like Skitarii...
Chase Jackson
And we in fact know that against Wyches, and probably other CQC units, the Tau only have a 33% chance to escape (if I did the math right). And no pistols of note to shoot back with.
Aaron Sanders
I've seen you write this every 8th edition thread despite having no clue how this interacts overall with the game. Is it too hard to not have kneejerk reactions to everything before we know about it?
Gabriel Wright
>Mechanical Categories Shootiest Army: Renegades and Heretics with Ordnance Tyrant. Taudar otherwise. Best CQC Army: Barkbarkstar builds. Honorable mention to Genestealer Cults. Best Psychic Army: Chaos Space Marines with Daemon Support. The CSM get good disciplines and Spell Familiars, Daemons give cheap Warp Charge. Most Durable Army: I would argue for Orikanstar Decurions over other deathstar setups as you can't "shut it off" with a Culexus. Alternately, a Fist of Medusa Stormlance. Fastest Army: Genestealer Cults on a technicality. They have slowish combat speed but really fast strategic (re)deployment. Most Numerous/Best Horde Army: Hordes generally don't work in 40k. I'd probably argue your best bet would be a no-vehicle Cadian Battlegroup, due to better Orders, and being the only "shooty horde" army in 40k. Smallest Workable Army: For 1850 points? I'd probably do an Optimized Stealth Cadre and Riptide Wing. It would have issues being all-comers but would have the "lowest model count" while technically being workable; don't forget Target Locks for the Ghostkeel unit. Positional Relays can be cute on the Riptides too.
>Design Categories (more subjective) Most Visual Variety: Chaos armies in general Most Conversion Options: Chaos armies in general. Most Interesting Color Schemes Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay): Necrons Easiest to Paint: Necrons Hardest to Paint Well: Goddamn Harlequins
>Feel free to nominate more categories!
Bonus question: why do you play the armies you play/why are they your favorites? I play Word Bearers because if you're going to play Chaos, you might as well play the Legion that is unapologetic in its devotion to Chaos. Also, they are an underdog among the Traitor Legions due to not actually getting a proper "models with Veterans of the Long War" Legion Tactic. I tweaked a build I had from Traitor's Hate and have been really satisfied with the results so far (pic related)
Sebastian Ward
Shootiest: Tau CQC: Space Wolves fuckstar, Genestealers Psychic: Thousand Sons Durable: Death Guard Fastest: DE Most Numerous: Guard conscript infantry Smallest Army: Custodes
Most Visual Variety: Eldar (aspect warriors) Most Conversion Options: Orks, Chaos, and Mechanicus. Most Interesting Color Schemes: Harlequins Best Special Characters: IG Easiest to Paint: Necrons Hardest to Paint Well: Harlequins.
Adrian Jenkins
>Bonus question: why do you play the armies you play/why are they your favorites? Ooh, fun. I play Mechanicus because they were the faction that really grabbed me when I was 12 and buying my first box of Marines, and their introduction as a model line got me back into 40k. I painted them blue because of the four Mechanicus forces at my store, the other three are red.
I play Death Korps because they're my favorite army in general just on looks, and I play a tank-heavy list of Death Korps because a Leman Russ tank covered in boxes, ammo, tarps, and other crap is objectively the best model in the game. I love their stubborn, unbreakable attitude, I love their brutal tactics, and I love the WWI style.
I play Custodes because I love their lore as the Emperor's bodyguards, and I painted them silver to drab them down to fit in with my panzer gray Death Korps infantry.
I play Seraphon because my friend really likes Age of Sigmar.
Asher Long
>Mechanical Categories Shootiest Army:Skitarii Best CQC Army:Khorne daemonkin/chaos Space marines Best Psychic Army: nothing but pink horrors is pretty gud Most Durable Army: custodes, necron or nurgle. That or eldar if you count invulnerable saves Fastest Army: genestealer cult. Can litteraly cross the board on a roll. Most Numerous/Best Horde Army: orks Smallest Workable Army: Officio Assasinorum
>Design Categories (more subjective) Most Visual Variety: imperial guard Most Conversion Options: do you even have to ask this question, orks Most Interesting Color Schemes: eldar Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay): any of the primarchs or chapter masters Easiest to Paint: necron Hardest to Paint Well: slave marines
>Feel free to nominate more categories! Ok >what model is the most dakka? >what model is the most choppy? >what model is the most cheesy? >What model is the ugliest?
Bonus question: why do you play the armies you play/why are they your favorites? For the fluff/flavor. My armies suck in game but they're fluffy as fuck.
Blake Wilson
So then who comes out as most durable? People seem to be swinging between Nurgle and Necrons. Which group of grim reaper fetishists is the 'ardest??
Brayden Flores
Does dodge/psychic deflect capability factor into durability? Or are Necrons/Nurgle still more durable than Eldar are agile?
Jordan Morgan
I would probably say Necrons overall, simply because cheaper base costs (13 vs 16) and Decurion RP being superior to the Vectorium FNP bonus are superior against more attack-types (poison, grav, monofilament, psychic shriek, etc) while their lower toughness doesn't make them that much weaker vs small arms fire.
Plus there's the Orikanstar which is probably the most annoying thing in the game to kill that can't be de-powered by a Culexus (though once again, an honorable mention goes to Azrael in a giant Fenrisian Hunting Pack).
Henry Lewis
>Shootiest Army Tau >Best CQC Army Orks >Best Psychic Army Grey knights >Most Durable Army Tzeentch Screamerwing >Fastest Army Eldar >Most Numerous/Best Horde Army Tyranids >Smallest Workable Army Imperial knights
>>Design Categories (more subjective) >Most Visual Variety Chaos >Most Conversion Options Chaos >Most Interesting Color Schemes Tyranids >Best Special Characters (visual and gameplay) Imperial guard >Easiest to Paint Necrons >Hardest to Paint Well Genestealer cults
>>Feel free to nominate more categories! >Asspulls driven background Chaos >Most stable background niche Tyranids
>Bonus question: why do you play the armies you play/why are they your favorites? Tyranids are simple, a combination of quality references, compact yet flexible designs, straightforward themes and challenging presentation on a gameplay level for both players.
Kevin Reyes
>>Best CQC Army >Orks I just remembered there're genestealer cults now
Joseph Edwards
>most conversions-chaos ORKS ORKS ORKS tho one could argue they are like the second most, I convert tons of nurgle stuff
Aiden Peterson
most cheesy is likely Tau, or Eldar. Ugliest model that I know of, probably havocs, looks like bubble gum wrapped around a terminator.
Logan Perry
>ORKS ORKS ORKS Seriously though, Orks out-convert any other faction, simply because looting other people's stuff and 'Orkifying' is part of their charm. >Tau Devilfish - with the proper Orky know wots, bang! Ork Kustom Battlewagon >Imperial Knight - HELLO NEW STOMPA, HOW ARE YOU TODAY? >Dread Knight - You call that thing a walka? Gimme dat! Now DIS iz a proppa' kustom Deff Dread!
John Smith
Oh yeah, and to nominate more categories:
Most bizarre combo: Word Bearers with a Grand Host and Warpack could theoretically have a Warlord Psyker Defiler that could summon Daemons on 3+ and ignore Perils on doubles besides 6s.
Most MSUish: GSC.
Most overrated army: Decurion.
Most underrated army: Foot Guard.
Laziest Codex: A tossup between Khorne Daemonkin, or Deathwatch. Waaagh! Ghazgkull was technically a supplement or else it would win this category hands-down.
Most Blatant Moneygrab formation: The War Convocation. 3 codexes, a Knight, two Battleforces and a partridge in a pear tree.
Most hilarious rulefail: A tossup between Deathwatch getting to wield Bolters and shotguns, or Khorne Daemonkin Flesh Hounds being able to escort Sorcerers of Slaanesh.
The "Do the rulewriters even play this army?" award: The Iron Warriors Warlord Table, which among other things can give your Chaos Lord Fearless. (Guess what USR all Chaos Lords have)