The next section of the book that were going to look at is the troop section. Now this is quite a small section, as it tends to be in all codices, so we will also be looking at dedicated transports as well, as this also happens to be a small section.
Infantry Squad
The first unit listed in the book is the standard infantry squad. The only change from the Index is that sergeants now no longer get a chain sword as standard but is instead a no cost option, so in reality, every sergeant will be carrying one. In terms of the squad itself, its pretty much business as usual. The infantry squad is your basic squad, capable of taking a special weapon and a heavy. They are not your dedicated hunters, that falls to the vet squads, but they are a fairly solid and reliable selection. I would always advise taking a couple of these squads in pretty much any list, as they are cheap, disposable units that can be used for a wide range of jobs, from speed bumps to objective campers and bubble wrap.
Conscripts
This is perhaps the most controversial unit in the codex right now and even though they have seen a pretty big nerf in the codex, they are still the hot topic of the moment. The changes to conscripts have been pretty well advertised, with a drop in numbers to a max unit of 30, down 20 models, and the new rule, Raw Recruits, meaning that your orders will only apply half the time. So, in theory this should mean that conscripts are now no longer the go to unit in the codex and while they aren't as strong as they were, they are still very strong. For bubble wrapping or speed bumps, they are by far the best choice and they still have weight of numbers on their side. I still expect them to see a lot of action on the table top and they are defiantly a unit to consider for any army, just be mindful that they are not going to kill much, even at full strength and you will need a commissar to babysit.
Militarum Tempestus Scions
Again, little has changed, the only change i noted was the dropping in power point for bringing 5 extra scion in the squad. In terms of the unit itself, it still retains all its options and remains the only deepstriking troop choice, although with the new doctrines, you'll need to be careful how you play these guys. There is no doubt that this is a strong unit, in 5 or 10 man form, but they seem to be a one trick pony these days, ie deepstrike in and plasma stuff, which is a shame, as they are a lot more versatile than that. Yes, most of there versatility is down to deepstriking aand unless your running a pure scion army, your going to be deepstriking these guys in to the enemy backfield. They work just as well armed with melta or volley guns for anti-armour or infantry work and are great for late game objective grabs. A good unit to have in reserve and capable of many roles, its always worth taking a unit or two in a game.
So, only 3 troop choices these days, now that the platoon structure has disappeared, which I still think is a shame but is understandable. Of these three, conscripts still stand out as the best choice for many armies, as a cheap disposable unit that will be very hard for you opponent to shift but that doesn't mean that the other choices are poor, as both have there roles. Infantry squads are very versatile with lots of weapon options and can perform a wide range of roles from assault squads to hidden objective campers and then the scion squads are great as dedicated hunters, especially when loaded with plasma, and late game objective grabbers. All three squads have a place and none should be discounted when designing your army.
We'll also take a look at the three dedicated transport options, starting with the oldest and most versatile, the chimera.
Chimera
The chimera has gained a power point from the Index, but remains the same points wise and keeps all of its other rules and options. This is the original transport choice for the Imperial Guard and remains the strongest and best option. Yes the Taurox is faster and armed just as strongly, the chimera has greater versatility, greater capacity and is tougher. The only reason I see to take a Taurox over a chimera is price.
Taurox
As I mentioned above, the Taurox is pretty much inferior to the chimera in every way, except for speed and price. While it is faster, those extra couple of inches aren't going to make up for the other weaknesses. Some may argue that having two autocannons is better than the heavy bolters or flamers on the chimera and in some respects they might be right, but the job of a transport is mostly to get the troops where they need to be, which is generally close to the enemy. This is where the Taurox suffers and the extra range of your autocannons doesn't make much difference. You also can't take a vet squad and platoon commander, a major drawback if you ask me, as you really want the commander to boost the vets. No, the only reason I see to take a Taurox is cost and boy, what a cost save. With the points drop in the codex it really does make it a proper choice and rival to the chimera, where as before it was more of an also ran. Now you'll need to decide what you want, fast mobile transport or bigger tougher mobile gun platforms.
Taurox Prime
At the other end of the scale we have the primes. These are one of the few units to gain points in the book, pushing the overall costs of even the cheapest version north of 100 points. While this is expensive for a transport, a guard one at least, its a very hard hitting one. It still has the lower toughness of the standard Taurox but it backs far more punch than any of the other transports. With options for a missile launcher, battle cannon and Gatling cannon, it is more a mini battle tank than transport. The only downside to the Prime is, unfortunately, quite a big one, as only the scions get access to it. This is understandable as they are supposed to be a fast moving and hard hitting force, which LRBT's aren't but Primes are. As for whether you should take Primes in your army, that depends on what your running. If your just running a few squads as part of a AM army, then no, there are better support options and better and cheaper ways of running mechanized infantry units. You would be better just deepstriking the units. If your running a pure Militarum Tempestus army, then you definitely need several of tbese units, with a mix of weaponry to support your troops.
All in all, you have a very limited selection of dedicated transports. For your AM armies the chimera is still the go to transport as far as I can see but the Taurox is now a good and cheap alternative. The Primes are a specialist unit and your only option for your scions. I would like to see the standard Taurox opened up to the scion units but that seems unlikely to happen.
Next up will be elites, which form a large part of the codex and will be split over two posts, one covering characters and one the elite units.
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