Strategies and Tactics (7)

Learn the best strategies and tactics for the Imperial Guard in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. Master numbers, ranged combat, and artillery for victory.

Alright, let's talk about how to really make the Imperial Guard shine in Dawn of War. Their biggest strengths are definitely their sheer numbers and their ability to lay down some serious firepower from a distance. So, the game plan is simple: make sure you've got both in spades!

Right from the start, you'll want to get some Guardsmen squads training from your HQ. Before you even think about building those Techpriests, get a couple of squads out to start capturing those vital control points. Once your Techpriests are up and running, keep those Guardsmen coming! Seriously, no matter your strategy, you'll need them. If you're going for a quick rush, you'll need a solid mob of them. If you're planning to build up a super-powerful late-game army, well, you'll need all the Guardsmen you can possibly produce.

To get the most out of the Guard, you need to keep the requisition flowing. This means building structures, and you'll need a lot of them. Having more control points helps with this, but here's a neat trick: the structures that produce your units actually expand the control zone where you can build. If you ever find yourself boxed in and out of building space – and trust me, it happens on some maps – send a Techpriest out to a new area. Don't build it too close to your main base; this makes it harder for the enemy to wipe you out. Setting up a second HQ to start a new base can really open things up.

When it comes to attacking, the Guard requires a bit more coordination than some other factions. With so many Guardsmen and vehicles, you've got to be smart about how you approach the enemy base. Trying to force your whole army through a single chokepoint is a recipe for disaster – you'll just be feeding them to the enemy one by one. A great way to avoid this is to attack from multiple directions. Send your infantry in on one side, and as soon as the enemy troops turn to face them, hit them with your tanks from the other side and start tearing down their buildings.

Remember, the Guard is generally designed so their units counter the enemy's equivalent. Tanks are for vehicles, and infantry are for infantry. However, Imperial Guard tanks are absolutely bristling with guns, making them surprisingly effective against enemy infantry too. So, leading an assault with your tanks can be incredibly devastating.

Now, about artillery. I don't usually rely on it, but the Basilisk is just too good to pass up. It's got incredible range and serious hitting power. Try camping a couple of them behind a ridge, facing the enemy base, while the rest of your army engages. Just be super careful to tell your Basilisks to target an area *away* from your own troops – that artillery fire is absolutely brutal and definitely not friendly!

What really makes the Basilisk shine, though, is its special shells. These things do outrageous amounts of damage, and since you get to manually pick the target location, they're incredibly accurate. Use them wisely!

Every faction has its weaknesses, and the Imperial Guard is no different. First off, they're not great in close-quarters combat. They can handle a minor scuffle, but you're not going to win a melee brawl with them. Your best bet is to eliminate the enemy before they even reach you. This is easier said than done, but if you concentrate your fire, you can often get the AI to pull its troops back once they start taking heavy losses. This gives you a window to shoot them as they retreat, keeping you out of that nasty melee range.

Another thing to watch out for with your infantry is their toughness. Guardsmen can go down pretty quickly when facing serious opposition, so you need to be ready to reinforce them constantly. This can be done quickly and cheaply, but you've got to stay on top of your production queues to keep them coming.

Finally, the Imperial Guard can be a bit vulnerable to mid-game assaults. They don't really hit their full stride until the late game. This means you might find the enemy knocking on your door mid-game with a force that could give you a real struggle. If you've been keeping up with your Guardsmen production (you are still training them, right?), and you've got a solid Honour Guard, you should be able to hold them off. However, you probably won't have much in the way of heavy vehicle support at this point, so you need to be careful and bring those heavy tanks into play as soon as you possibly can.