Wartorn Streets

After playing a few Cities of Death games, I truly do appreciate the role infantry play in close combat support. People always say it's advantageous to keep a squad of infantry or two near vehicles, so let's take a deeper look into this.

First and foremost, against things like lascannons or other pesky ranged anti-tank, Guardsmen that surround the vehicle provide it with a 50% coversave, this does not mean that they take the shots, simply, they distract the shooter. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly in the confines of Cities of Death, they can screen the vehicle against assaults, you can't charge through a unit to get through to another. As Guardsmen however, when used in this manner, you forfeit their lives, so use this at your own discretion. Thirdly, when used to support one another there is nothing they can't tackle.

Some Guard scenarios often encountered in Cities of Death:

Space Marines: SM's benefit very little from Cityfighting, they have better armor than the cover provides, and their armor goes with them. Guardsmen however, benefit greatly from Cityfighting, using a plethora of cover, and orders to make sure you squeeze every last percent of probability out of them. That said, here's the best way to tackle a squad of Space Marines. Wait for them to come to you, trust me, they will, they think of Guardsmen as squishy, and easily beatable, a perception I love to fuel. Now when they do, make sure you are positioned about 20 inches away, that way, you can have line of sight (LOS), fire on them, and they have to either run to be in rapid fire range, or stay put, where they are at the mercy of your barrage weapons, and platoons of Guardsmen. Tanks are especially handy here, particularly the demolisher, who's short range (only 24') is no problem. Tanks are particularly great against Space Marines, as it denies them their armorsave, and most likely, gives instant death, and with a screening unit of Guardsmen, it should be an especially tough nut to crack.

Tau: Mobile Tau provide an especially daunting experience for Guard players in Cities of Death. They can fly over the buildings and hit your brave Guardsmen from any angle. However, there is a method of easily defeating them. First, when they disembark, hit them with multiple pinning weapons, mortars and sniper rifles are my preferred method, and you need at least two, that insures they will be pinned. Once pinned, charge them, they're only Tau after all, and with a flamer or two (a necessity in Cities of Death) you should wipe them out no problem.

Tanks: Guard have an advantage in both the tank, and screening unit categories here. Their tanks are usually better, and their screening units are cheap and there are plenty to go around. Just make sure you have screening units, and you're Leman Russ's should come out ok. Speaking of the Russ, it's important to know what loadout to take. For starters, the sponsons, just ditch 'em, they will be of little help in the narrow allies, if you want more anti-infantry, the stubber is a better option. Instead of a lascannon or a bolter, a flamer should really help, at the very least, it can clear opposing infantry from buildings. Heavy armor isn't all that necessary here, you should really be parking it anyway, or screening it with units. Dozerblade you can take depending on how much rubble you have.

Tank Hunting: In Cities of Death there is no shortage of vertical terrain, take advantage of this when tank hunting, because the top of a tank has the same value as the rear (yet another advantage for the Demolisher, who has rear 11). Now this works best for me with deepstriking units. Usually an opponent will lock down a street or intersection, so simply drop down with some stormtroopers, with a melta or two, and hit them from above. Killing the tank will immeasurable aid the Guardsmen about to overtake the intersection. All that said, pay attention to the loadouts of your opponent's deepstriking units, so that doesn't happen to you.

Orks: Few armies give my Guardsmen more trouble than Orks. A single Ork Boy, on the charge, could easily expect to kill two or even three Guardsmen. So the trick here, is to bring fewer Guardsmen, and a few more tanks. Now I'm usually no fan of "treadhead" armies, but for Orks I make an exception, especially in Cities of Death. A few Punishers will wreak havoc against those pesky hordes of Orks, especially if the Guardsmen nearby take the brunt of the assaulting powerclaws. Particularly troubling to me, is that intact buildings provide little help against Orks, saving you only from one round of combat, because the nob in the unit will simply blow it up with his powerclaw. So really, just stay as far away as possible, and get those Punishers out there.