Does anyone know if it's possible to play a game where you're just foot sloggers?

Is the game actually at DH level in terms of power level?

It'd be a shame if the game about playing Imperial Guard is anything but about playing an actual Guardsman who isn't Sly Marbo or a Commissar.

And really, having everyone play the Guardsman career in DH doesn't cut it.

The DH career's names are just a general guide really; a scum with Guard Flak and a lasgun is a Guardsman, just the one who runs the company's black market…The Adept's the voxcaster or the officer's aide etc etc..career names are just a generalisation with a 40k flavour to them.

Okay, but it'd still suck if the only real choice to playing a more 'vanilla' IG game is…not playing the official IG game.

Frankie said:

I imagine its about what your players are willing to put into the game as much as the GM. What I mean is somebody shoudl play joe guardsman. Not everyone should be a special snowflake of a character. A similar thing happens in Deathwathc where in some games no one wants to play a tactial marine becuase they aren't sexy enough. One thing to keep in mind though is that you can't play a whole platoon as there simply aren't enough players in most people's idea of a good game.

Yeah, I get that.

I haven't seen the demo. Maybe Stormtrooper can be relfuffed. But atleast 5-6 don't fit a 'vanilla' IG game where you just play Guardsmen, be they vets or whatever.

 From the demo I'd say probably.

Stats are pretty much the same as dark heresy stats. Mostly high 20s low 30s with a 40 or two thrown in on something important. Weapons seem to be sort of similar, frankly the demo weapons were messed up. (heavy flamer without cone spread, basic class laspistol, every melee weapon with its own unique messed up damage profile) Some of the special talents were pretty high grade (Target selection and Assassin Strike with a new name) but I suspect those are class abilities.

I'd place it around mid to late rank two dark heresy with a few special war talents added and better access to weapon trainings.

It did look like it was Dark Heresy in power level (but stats very optimised, which may suggest a vaguely "points buy" build for the demo. There were lots of 20s, and then a couple of 40s and high 30s in vital stats). It looks like the specialities may come with their own special powers (ala all the "classes" since RT). Also looks like Catachans maybe get +5 to Strength.

I don't think the game is really aimed at "vanilla" guard game, especially seeing as you can have a mixed squad of stormtrooper, tech priest and Ogryn….

I really doubt that a lot of players would chose to play vanilla grunt with lasgun instead of a specialist. So I guess that you can play a grunt with that lasgun but some special job besides just that. But no vanilla IG.

borithan said:

I will just point out that just because you *can* have a mixed squad doesn't mean you *have* to. Honestly, it's good to have options, but by no mean does it mean that you're required to use them, and it seems silly to assume just because FFG is giving us a lot of options that they're "aiming" to ignore the possibility of a 'vanilla' squad, although given the variety of canonical IG regiments, vanilla is kind of meaningless.

Well you don't have to play an Enginseer or a Commissar or whatever. Nothing stopping you from all being basic troops.

BYE

I am not saying they won't think of the possibility of people playing a proper Imperial Guard squad, but I presume that their base presumption is that players will like variety and so will choose a variety of specialities, rather than a squad made up from 1 Sergeant type, one "heavy gunner" and 8 "normal guardsmen" (which would also be a rather large play group…), much as they would have presumed most players would not play 6 Tactical Marines in Deathwatch, or 6 Rogue Traders in Rogue Trader. With this in mind I feel that will be the base play style aimed at by the base presumtion of the rules, career roles and GMs guidance.

I thought Deathwatch did a good job of laying the information out so that you could play a "traditional" Space Marines games if you wanted to.  It pretty much tells you what skills the characters get for free by being in the Deathwatch and has Deathwatch advances on their own tables.  It's actually pretty easy to just strip this stuff out and have everyone pick a chapter to be from (assuming your players want to go along with this kind of campaign)

I'm hoping that Only War will have a similar level of "modularity" to it so that it is easy to drop stuff without having to house rule things to much to suit the game to the kind of campaign you want to run.  

 Well at this point, just pick up the Beta and read it yourself so you don't have to "guess" whether something is the case or not :-D

Yeah, I bought it.

Operator, Weapon Specialist (Rifleman+Special Weapons Guy), Sergeant, Medic and Heavy Weapons are all the 'vanilla' specialties.

The other 7 are considered 'support specialties'.

OK, the whole "Comrades" system sounds like a good way to do this. Means that you do have a full squad, even if your players are just playing the "stand out" members of it. Dunno how it worked mechanically, but it seems like a nice way of resolving that issue.

And I guess if it is free character choice you can build as "normal" a guard squad as you like… even if I still don't like free character building myself.