Editing Warhammer 40,000/7th Edition Tactics/Imperial Guard/Armoured Battlegroup (section)

==Allies==
7th edition made all units scoring. What was the past problem with AB armies? Lack of Scoring units! Well now you needn't to worry, squire: your squadron of Leman Russes now count as scoring unit and it even has "Objective Secured!" if you built your force according to default CAD.

However, we live in age where almost all armies have access to some sort of apocalyptic fart-machine that throws S:D blasts everywhere, starting with psykers that choose Sanctic dicipline and ending with Revenant Titan armed with quad-firing S:D pieplates. What this means that army built completely around 7-8 heavily armored tanks might as well be armed with tinfoil and kebab when they are facing a rampaging Imperial Knight or swarm of Broadsides, ready to bear with their 12 S7 AP4 shots. And that means: don't do like the Germans did during WW2 and leave your precious machines of death without infantry cover.

The easiest solution to the problem is: just allying with your buddy buddy Astra Militarum. With that, you get access to bubblewraps and cheap meat to throw into the grinder while your tanks show the enemy what happens when you make poor decisions in life, say like standing in front of trio of Thunderers firing salvo. Consider taking Imperial Knight or two since it's (their) life expectancy is vastly improved with techpriest in Atlas or Trojan glued to it's (their) butt plate(s).

On the other hand, the Armored battle group shines as a ally to another army. As stated they ally like Guard, so any army in the game <strike>(except nids) that takes them as allies can take from a minimum of 2, (HQ and one troop)</strike> can take anywhere from 2 up to a max of 11 heavy vehicles counting the artillery from heavy support, commissar tank form elite, and taking air support or Hellhounds/Salamanders <strike>(for even more tanks) for fast attack. This howewer sucks a lot of points from your main detachment and only useful in large point games (where you can take double FOC anyway)</strike> so any existing army can be beefed up with AV 14 and all the templates you can carry. 

Basically the optimum ally AB FOC for tight points cost consists of 1 CCT Vanquisher equipped with BH shells and C-ax stubber, and 1 Thunderer Siege Tank because pieplates and <del>instant death to [[Wraithknight|manbarbies]]</del> ([[Cheese|Wraithknights are now Gargantuan Creatures]], which take d3 wounds from Instant Death effects. Not nearly as effective.) For a few more points, pick up a Commissar Vanquisher for another BS4 tank with a lovely LD10 bubble.

Remember who you're battle brothers with so you can use your Tank orders and leadership ten bubble on allies, namely other guard since marines are all but fearless anyway and tank orders only affect certain types of tanks, none of which marines possess.

An important development is the addition of Genestealer Cult as allies of convenience.  They can serve as an immense distraction, think 10 metamorphs with furious charge and str6 base right off the gate.  In this role the armored company can serve as a strong ally or you can break out the various strong formations available to the cult.  The First Curse and Subterranean Uprising both bring terrific pressure, leaving your tanks a fair bit more defended. And, with the Demolition Claw, you can get your own accurate, if still disastrously close-ranged, mob of pie-plate-flinging tanks, full of relatively faster, harder, and stronger troops (i.e.: Acolyte Hybrids), who don't give up accurate shooting to use said pie-plates.

[[Category:Warhammer 40000 Tactics(7E)]]
[[Category: Imperial Guard]]