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Codex
Space Marines Overview and Tactics
Written by, Kevin Wade
Okay guys. There are literally reams of information on the net about the Marines in 3rd edition. They are without a doubt the most flexible army in the game, and new players often begin with them. If you are a beginner then you will (hopefully) find useful information here. If you are not a beginner then a lot of this will probably be review, but with any luck you may find enough tips to make the read worth your while.
What you will not find here are example army lists, killer combinations, or 'ultimate' units that will win you the game. Instead, I will go over the choices contained within the codex and describe what I consider each unit's strengths, weaknesses, and ideal uses are.
HQ
Heroes, Librarians, and Chaplains
Strengths: Can be outfitted for a variety of tasks, good stat lines, flexible point costs, can take a command squad.
Weaknesses: Can get too tricked out, cannot single-handedly take on tough opponents.
Uses: Heroes, Librarians, and Chaplains are best used to give a key squad that extra 'oomph' in hand to hand combat. The sheer number of choices for wargear means you can outfit them to your tastes, including tailoring their point values for a given list. Heroes are by far the most flexible, the Librarian psychic power works as a nice little addition to a squad's close range firepower (and always hits if the psychic test is made), and the Chaplain is set up to be a hand to hand powerhouse. The command squad is one of the best in the list, and is worth taking a few looks at.
Command Squads
Strengths: Good leadership value, able to take multiple assault or heavy weapons, assured to enter board with command figure they are attached to in reserves missions, can include Apothecary, Techmarine, and Standard Bearer in addition to Vet Sergeant.
Weaknesses: Expensive heavy weapons, higher point cost than tac squads, cannot take bolt pistol/CCW as an option.
Uses: Command squads can form a pivotal unit for the rest of your army. With their exhaustive weapon choices and special models able to get wargear, they can be tailored to fit in many different roles. Using two heavy weapons and a techmarine they can be a mini devestator squad with a hand to hand punch. Special weapons such as meltaguns or flamers make the squad a perfect accompaniment for a hand to hand character. The best part about these squads is that you are assured that your command figure will not enter the board by himself in reserves missions. Be careful not to load up too much on the options or you'll find yourself with a very juicy target for your opponent that you can't afford to lose.
Elites
Terminator Squad
Strengths: Best armor save available, high rate of fire even while moving, devastating hand to hand capacity, access to move & fire heavy weapons, ability to teleport
Weaknesses: High point cost, always strike last in hand to hand, cannot sweeping advance, can only be transported by Land Raiders
Uses: Like so many other things in 3rd edition, the role of terminators has changed from what they were in 2nd. Terminators used to be nigh indestructible units of death. Now, they are elite infantry units that can be felled easily by anti-tank weaponry. The difference has left a sour taste in many veteran marine players' mouths. Because of the comparison between editions, these elite units have gotten a bit of a bad rep. No longer will you see squads of terminators marching unopposed across a battlefield, they just cost too darned much and are susceptible to masses of enemy fire. If you want to use these guys, use them wisely. Always provide ample backup in the form of assault troops, tac squads, and armored units. Use the multiple threat ideology to keep them around and try not to engage units designed specifically to take down heavily armored foes (like any opponent armed with power weapons). They can provide a hard core backbone to any assault when used correctly.
Terminator Assault Squads
Strengths: Best armor save available, devastating hand to hand capacity, ability to teleport, access to either invulnerable hand to hand saves or re-rolls on missed to-wound rolls
Weaknesses: High point cost, cannot sweeping advance, can only be transported by Land Raiders, must get in close to be effective
Uses: Terminator assault squads are much like their stormbolter-armed brethren. They can devastate any close combat opponent in the game, but are usually deemed as too slow to be of any use in that role. Use these guys as counter charge agents to keep your line from being overrun, or spearhead an attack making sure to use plenty of supporting units. A unit of these monsters pouring out of a Land Raider is enough to ruin most opponents' day.
Dreadnoughts
Strengths: Good armor value, access to a variety of weapons, able to fire heavy weapons on the move, good close combat ability, can have vehicle upgrades.
Weaknesses: Weak rear armor, can get stuck in hand to hand combat, high visibility target.
Uses: Dreadnoughts are amazing in 3rd edition. Again, many comparisons to the previous edition has given them bad reps, but trust me on this. You can tailor a dread to perform almost any task you want. For close-in fighting take a heavy flamer and either twin heavy bolters, assault cannon, or multi-melta. For anti-armor work go with the twin lascannon/missile launcher combo (but beware of close combat squads tying up your weapons platform). Both the plasma cannon and twin autocannon weapon fits are good at multiple tasks. Just don't expect this unit to last long unless you have other hard targets for the opponent to pick from.
Veteran Squads
Strengths: Good leadership, access to heavy and assault weapons, can be equipped with bolt pistol/CCW combo.
Weaknesses: Expensive when compared with tac squads
Uses: There are only two reasons to include a Vet squad over a tac squad in your force (army background aside). Vet squads have a better leadership on the basic troops and they can be outfitted to perform better in close combat with the pistol/CCW base weaponry. They can perform any task that a tactical squad can perform (see below), or they can join up with one of your HQ choices to make for a nasty little hand to hand squad.
Troops
Tactical Squads
Strengths: Great stat line for base troopers, can wither large amounts of fire relatively unscathed, can be outfitted for a variety of roles
Weaknesses: Higher point cost than other army's base troops
Uses: Tac squads can perform just about any role you want them to. Large squads are more than capable of holding onto your flanks against superior numbers. You can also put squads into Rhinos to take the fight to your opponent. A small squad with a Razorback can provide a decent firebase to help control the table or provide support to advancing elements. The firepower from multiple bolters is enough to drop most foes at range, and including special/heavy weapons only adds to this. The only real drawback to the tac squad comes if you try to outfit them for too many roles at once.
Scout Squads
Strengths: Infiltrate, same great stat line, may be outfitted for multiple roles, fast through difficult terrain
Weaknesses: worst armor saves in the codex, cannot have a transport
Uses: Scouts make for excellent support troops in a marine list. The large number of options means you can outfit them for a number of roles. A sniper squad can foul up enemy troop formation with pinning or take down powerful enemy monsters (like Avatars, Wraithlords, Talos, and Greater Daemons). Give them shotguns and they can mow down lightly armored foes while advancing. The bolt pistol/CCW option gives you a group of infiltrating close combat specialists that can target high priority squads on the enemy's flank. Bolters & heavy weapons give the squad a good long range punch, and if the mission allows infiltration then they can secure a flank for your other troops to advance into. Just don't allow your scouts to get too far away from support or they won't last long.
Fast Attack
Assault Squads
Strengths: Excellent close combat troops, fast moving, ability to deep strike
Weaknesses: high point cost, not as good as many other lists close combat experts
Uses: Assault squads should either move along with your marine push to add a hand to hand bite, or hang back behind your lines to allow you to react to enemy charges. The ability to take plasma pistols in the squad means the squad can take down most armor, at least from the rear, or thin out tough opponents before getting stuck in. The 3d6" pursuit move makes it easy to run down defeated squads or sweep into a fresh enemy. Just avoid the pitfall of thinking they can take on all comers. Some enemies can eat assault squads without pause, and these should be shot at range rather than engaged on their ground (where they will be allowed to sweep even closer to your non-close combat squads once they are done with the assault guys).
Bike Squads
Strengths: fast, twin linked weapons, tough, can take special weapons, can include an attack bike
Weaknesses: high point cost, can't make use of cover
Uses: Bike squads should be used in one of two capacities: infantry harassment or armor hunting. The best way to clear out masses of infantry is to take a full sized squad, add an attack bike w/heavy bolter, and give them a pair of flamers for close in work. This squad can take down hordes of weak troops in short order. The armor hunting group can be either a small squad with two meltaguns, or a large one with two meltaguns and an attack bike w/multi-melta. Their bolters allow them to still thin out infantry squads at range and the melta weaponry makes them a big threat to hard targets. The biggest thing about this squad is to avoid rushing them forward without any support. The squad costs a lot and if your opponent can target them without fear of the rest of your army then they won't last long (and you've just wasted a bunch of points). Also, watch out for close combat experts.
Attack Bike Squads
Strengths: fast, best armor saves available, tough, able to be equipped for different roles
Weaknesses: single wound makes them fragile, can't make use of cover
Uses: Attack bikes can be used to either hunt hard targets or mow down light/moderately armored infantry. If being used to go after hard targets, then obviously the multi-melta is a necessity. Squad size in this case depends on personal preference. The biggest advantage to using multi-melta attack bikes over landspeeders is that they can hide behind friendly transports as they approach. For anti-infantry duty, a squad of three with heavy bolters is hard to beat. This gives you a solid mobile fire support squad. Mixing the two types in a single squad can be useful - I would advise using two heavy bolters and a single multi-melta, but the choice is up to you. Be careful when using squads of more than one bike, as reducing the squad to a single model forces you to take 'last man standing' checks every turn!
Scout Bike Squads
Strengths: fast, can re-roll difficult terrain checks, twin-linked weapons, tough
Weaknesses: lowest save in the army, can't make use of cover, expensive
Uses: Scout bike squads have one big advantage to regular bike squads - they can re-roll failed difficult terrain checks. Their main role is to harass enemy infantry while being able to quickly dart away through nearby terrain. The squad can be given Krak grenades so they at least have a chance at breaking enemy armor, but I wouldn't count on their chances unless assaulting the rear of a vehicle. The Vet Sgt upgrade also gives you the option to grab a few items of wargear that can help the squad out. They are not the powerhouses that the regular bike squad is, but they still have their uses when played right.
Land Speeder Squads
Strengths: fast, skimmer, choice of weapon loadout, can be taken in squads
Weaknesses: thin armor
Uses: Everyone's favorite, the land speeder. Marine speeders are great - they are more survivable than many other light vehicles because they are not considered open-topped. Their uses pretty much mirror that of the attack bike squadron, with the addition of being able to grab table quadrants and objectives easily. Use them to guard an advance, hunt down enemy units, or duel with your opponent's fast vehicles. Just be careful not to expose them to too much enemy firepower, even squads with Strength 4 weapons can take them down.
Land Speeder Tornado
Strengths: fast, skimmer, multiple weapons options
Weaknesses: thin armor, can get expensive
Uses: Tornados are the 'uber skimmer' in the marine arsenal. You've got four choices of weapon loadouts: Heavy Bolter/Heavy Flamer, Muli-melta/Heavy Flamer, Heavy Bolter/Assault Cannon, and Multi-melta/Assault Cannon. At 75 points, the base configuration is great for giving enemy infantry fits. Snipe with the Heavy Bolter and then close in for the kill with the Heavy Flamer. Likewise, the HB/AC is murder on infantry squads. The big difference is you have to slow down to make the best use of the firepower of this variant, so be careful and make use of cover if possible. The MM/HF combo is a close in powerhouse, able to vaporize enemy armor or infantry squads with ease. The only variant I'd caution against is the MM/AC variant. In place of that 100 points spent, I'd rather pay 115 points for a pair of regular speeders - one with HB and the other with MM.
Land Speeder Typhoon
Strengths: fast, skimmer, longer range than the other two variants
Weaknesses: thin armor
Uses: Typhoons pretty much mirror the uses of the Tarnado. The base configuration can drop enemy infantry at range, and should have little fear of slowing down to make the best use of its weapons given a little cover on the board. The multi-melta upgrade can be a bit tricky. You've got one weapon designed to pepper infantry at range and the other is designed to destroy armor up close. I'd recommend keeping this variant in your backfield and using the typhoon launchers primarily. The MM then becomes a kind of 'insurance policy' to help prevent enemy armor from steam rolling over you.
Heavy Support
Devestator Squads
Strengths: Great stat line, can wither large amounts of fire relatively unscathed, can be outfitted for a variety of roles, multiple heavy weapons
Weaknesses: High point cost weapons, vulnerable to assaults
Uses: Devestators can bring a withering amount of firepower to the table. You can tailor the squad to fit whatever need you have in your force. Heavy Bolters shred most infantry and light vehicles, Lascannon can bust most hard targets, Missile Launchers and Plasmacannon suit multiple roles well. Large squads can soak up inordinate amounts of enemy fire before they begin to lose effectiveness, and small squads can usually find a good defensive position in your backfield to provide a firebase. Mixing weapons is not a bad idea, as it gives the squad multiple uses on the battlefield. Just make sure that your opponent doesn't break through your line, undefended Devestator squads tend to become high priority targets quickly.
Predators
Strengths: good front armor, good weaponry, can have vehicle upgrades
Weaknesses: weak side and rear armor
Uses: Predators are also good for shoring up weaknesses in your army. Annihilators with lascannon sponsons are a threat to any hard target and Destructors with heavy bolter sponsons make short work of infantry squads. Mixing weapons gives you more options at the cost of effectiveness, so it really depends on what your force needs the most. The sponsons are not necessary either, and a stripped down Predator makes a good distraction and first placement unit.
Vindicator
Strengths: good front armor, amazing power, can have vehicle upgrades
Weaknesses: weak side and rear armor, must be stationary to fire, short ranged
Uses: Vindicators do one thing very well - scare your opponent. Just the threat of taking a S10, AP2, ordnance template hit is enough to clear out large areas of the battlefield. Placing your vindicator first not only allows you to push your opponent's forces back, but it also gives you a nasty centerpiece for an initial thrust into your opponent's deployment area. The biggest threats to this tank are multiple targets and long ranged anti-tank units. Keep support around it and even if it doesn't last the entire battle, the fire it soaks up should make the addition worthwhile.
Land Raider
Strengths: Most heavily armored vehicle in the game, good weapon loadout, can have vehicle upgrades, can transport squads, attracts lots of heavy weapon fire.
Weaknesses: attracts lots of heavy weapon fire, cannot make use of both its firepower and its transport capacity at the same time, high point cost.
Uses: Land Raiders are very intimidating. The dual twin-linked lascannon almost guarantee two S9 hits on any enemy vehicles that get in the way and the twin-linked heavy bolters allow you to pepper enemy infantry as it rumbles across the battlefield. Add to this the support of either 10 regular marines or 5 terminators and you've got an incredible spearhead unit for any advance. The biggest threats are melta weaponry, brightlances, and darklances. Unfortunately, these weapons seem to be in great abundance in most competitive lists. Still, the wrap around protection, firepower, and transport abilities all add up to one of the game's most imposing tanks to face.
Whirlwinds
Strengths: long ranged barrage weapon with good strength and AP, low point cost.
Weaknesses: low armor value, must remain stationary to fire.
Uses: Whirlwinds have become another staple of 3rd edition marine armies. Their long ranged firepower is useful for both downing enemy vehicles and wiping out scads of infantry. Add to this the ability to pin an enemy unit and you've got one of the best point valued units in the list. The tank has to remain hidden or it will be destroyed as soon as possible, but if you're any good at guessing range this is not really a problem. Because it's a heavy support option you really need to have some kind of main battle tank to place first to push opponent's back should you win the roll for setup. Just don't leave this support unit alone, or fast opponents will swing around to silence its threat for good.
Transports
Rhinos
Strengths: Cheap, can have vehicle upgrades, can carry a full squad.
Weaknesses: Light armor protection.
Uses: Rhinos are great in 3rd edition. They can actually last for awhile so long as there are other things for your opponent to fire at on the board (they tend to be low priority targets). You can quickly reposition your forces if things begin to go wrong, you can evacuate a squad that's in danger of being overrun, or you can rush forward and take the fight to your opponent. The stormbolter just adds to the squad's firepower, and you can either equip the transport with a second stormbolter (giving most squads just scads of small arms fire) or a HK missile for a one-time punch. Adding both options may be a bit much. Extra armor is useful for making sure the transport can still do its job (transport its squad) and smoke launchers give the vehicle one turn where its as survivable as a Predator from the front!
Razorbacks
HEAVY
Strengths: Cheap, can have vehicle upgrades, can mount heavy weapons.
Weaknesses: Light armor protection, can only carry a short squad.
Uses: Razorbacks, generally, equate to extra firepower in your army. Their small squad capacity hampers their ability as a main assault transport except in a supporting role. However, small squads armed with long ranged weapons combined with Razorbacks make very powerful firebases for the rest of the army. Their armor is not great, but using available cover can greatly increase the life expectancy of a 'back. These are great multi-purpose vehicles that add a lot of flexibility to the marine army list.