[Suspicious Pancake]

I just joined the forum and made a thread in the introductions section. I want to play Space Marines, I think I will do a homemade chapter though Black Templars are my favorite. But as a new player I don't know how Space Marine armies function. Not sure if I should have a dedicated army that specializes in one thing or having a wide mix of units. I don't even have a codex yet or really understand all the rules. So I am just looking on GamesWorkshop's site to see what is available. I have been told that SM are a more shooting army over melee.

So I am not sure how I want to build my force which will probably be small since I am starting new. Even though I am using a homebrew chapter, if I need to I can substitute HQ units right? Meaning say i really like the model of the Chaplain but I want Marneus as my Hq. Can I use the chaplain but give him Marneus' stats and gear?


As a total noob, in my head I am thinking of having 2 tactical squads, 1 hq unit (don't know what's good) 1 devestator squad, and I don't know how good dreadnoughts are but they look pretty sweet. I have read online that SM assault units are very poor (since most people claim SM are a shooty army)
I don't have a ton of money and honestly don't feel like spending $100 on a single tank. How well would an all infantry army be at under 1500pts?

Would you mind giving a new player a sense of direction because I feel very lost lol With all these weapons like meltas, flammers, etc I don't know what they excel at.

 

[Moriouce]

Hello and welcome! Your idea of two tactical, one dev and a HQ sounds like a solid start. Begin there and have yourself some battles to learn the game and you units. Then build from you weakness thereon. Good luck!

 

[ntaw]

Not to slight Moriouce's suggestion, but I'd suggest getting to know the Codex just a little bit before buying any models (not that you can really go wrong with a couple Tacs and Devs). I fully support the rule of cool, but with 4k+ of Blood Angels a lot of my cool models hang out on display while the more effective models play the game. The Space Marine book caters to pretty much any unit preference, and there are three options for Troops (Tactical marines, Scouts, and Bikes) which can greatly effect your purchasing choices and other unit selection. It's a ton of information to take in, but once you get the gist if you mosey on over to the Space Marine Army List section of the forum us Heretics can help you sculpt a list tailored to your favourite models and with an eye on strategies that you might not yet see even reading the book a few times.

 

[Rush Darling]

All excellent advise above.

The bonus of a home brew chapter is that you get to decide which chapter tactics to follow, and can change your mind if you don't like them!

Just in case you haven't come across that part in the codex yet, chapter tactics are a set of special rules unique to each of the founding loyalist chapters that don't have their own codex. (Blood Angels, Dark Angels and Space Wolves have their own codices. Black Templars used to but now they're back in the big group hug). They're mostly straight forward and affect most of your army.

I made my army before these came in, and I'm still adjusting parts of my play style to suit (I play using the Raven Guard chapter tactics). I don't think anyone is likely to stop you playing as a different chapter every now and then, and it's indeed fun to try something different every once in a while. (Playing your Ultramarines Army as Salamanders for example, just make sure you're opponent is fully aware before you melt his face)

I guess the easiest advice is to think of your preferred playstyle first, then pick a set of chapter tactics you think will support it and give it a whirl.

It's also worth noting that chapter tactics also limit your choice of special characters, although you can work around this using allied rules. Just don't go buying all the special snowflakes in the book as your starter army.