The situation is dire for the Allies as Axis forces sweep through Southern England. They caught the Allies off-guard, and their devastating Laser Grenadiers and armored walkers march through the streets in great numbers. Shorthanded, the Allied soldiers struggle to hold their ground against the tremendous firepower each Axis walker brings to the battlefront, but that may all change shortly as the Allied Red Devils arrive to offer reinforcement…

As the war intensifies in Southern England, both Allied and Axis forces are sending more battle-suited infantry to the front lines. These tough-as-nails infantry can shrug off bullets and wreak havoc on their foes with rare and powerful advanced weaponry.

Generalist and specialists

Any successful commander knows that every unit in Dust Tactics has a role to play. While units like Death Dealers are tactically flexible, engaging a variety of enemies with some skill, heavy infantry units like Red Devils and Heavy Recon Grenadiers serve more defined roles.

Do you need to bust some armor? Maybe your opponent’s infantry is dug in and you need to loosen his grip on a strategic point? Well, Red Devils can punish all but the heaviest of armored vehicles with their 60W Phaser Guns. Moreover, since Phaser Weapons ignore cover, dug in units will fear the approach of the Devils .

On the other hand, the Red Devils are not likely to be your first choice for taking and holding important areas of the battlefield. No, these elite troops are much more suited to ferreting out specific threats in your opponent’s army than sitting still and waiting for the action to come to them.

Using the right tool always makes a job easier, and with the new heavily armored reinforcements arriving for both factions, your toolbox just got a little bigger.

Risks and rewards

With only three models in a squad of armor 3 troops, it is particularly important to make sure your soldiers make it to their target. Losing even a single model in such a small squad will reduce its combat ability by a third! A shrewd leader will attempt to hide these elite troops behind less valuable troops or on the flanks of the battle line where they are less likely to draw attention.

A unit of Heavy Recon Grenadiers , for example, could start the game on the edge of your line and quickly move into cover where your opponent will struggle to remove them, thus creating an instant bulwark for your army to rally around. The Damage Resilient rule combined with a cover save will make this unit exceedingly stubborn. Opponents will be forced to dump loads of firepower on the Heavy Recon Grenadiers in order to dislodge them.

Since these troops lack the armor penetrating firepower to deal with the kinds of threats you will likely encounter in the thick of the battle, they are well suited to strengthening and defending your position elsewhere. The MG 44 Zwei pumps out a massive amount of fire, but it is better suited to dealing with light and moderately armored opponents.

Bring in the heroes

Adding a hero to a squad is a great way to boost its capabilities on the battlefield. Both the Red Devils and the Heavy Recon Grenadiers units can also benefit from this strategy.

Some Dust Tactics players have already received Action Jackson with the Summer 2011 Dust Tactics Game Night Kits , but those of you who haven’t will soon have the opportunity to add him to your Red Devils when he comes out with the Allies Hero Pack in the first quarter of 2012. When he leads his paratroopers into battle, they become an even more devastating force for the allied cause. His assault skill adds mobility and flexibility to the squad. Paired with the awesome firepower of the 60W Phaser Gun, this group of warriors can easily spread devastation all over the field of battle.

Lara , from the Dust Tactics: Revised Core Set , is the perfect leader for the Heavy Recon Grenadier unit. Adding a pair of MG 44 Zweis to the mix will make this squad even punchier, and she also lends them the assault skill. This means Lara and crew can take up residence in prime territory even quicker and pump out an impressive amount of shots at any enemy foolish enough to get too close. Imagine pummeling some Allied troops with a torrent of bullets. Sounds enticing, right?

Exactly what the situation calls for

These new units won’t replace their less armored comrades, rather they will add versatility to your forces. Be sure to expand your options and add these units to your games of Dust Tactics when they hit the shelves.

Look for these exciting new, heavily-armored squads to appear later in the month, as both the Allied Red Devils and Axis Heavy Recon Grenadiers will deploy to the front lines soon!

Dust Tactics is a tactical miniatures game of brutal combat for 2-4 players. Based on the popular universe created by artist Paolo Parente, Dust Tactics presents an alternate 1940s reality in which alien technology fuels gigantic machines of war, and the world's superpowers clash over rare mineral deposits that could ultimately decide the outcome of WWII.