Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War/Space Marines

A Space Marine of the Ultramarines chapter.

Space Marines are the elite forces of the Imperium of Man. They are super-soldiers selected at an early age and enhanced by numerous surgical implants (such as a secondary heart and other neo-organs), extensive medication and hypnotherapy. These enhancements allow them to develop superhuman physical and mental abilities, making them unsurpassed warriors. Cybernetic interface implants allow them to use the signature power armour, a heavily armoured suit that augments their strength and provides basic survival/medical functions.

The Space Marine concept is a small force of extremely skilled and tough individuals. Their veterans may have decades of constant warfare under their belt; Dreadnoughts may have centuries. In Dawn of War this "elite few" effect is a bit lost because of the number of troops available - according to Warhammer 40,000 canon a Space Marine chapter consists of 10 companies of 100 men each, yet in Dawn of War you could lose more men in a single mission than your entire company is supposed to have.

The game manual describes Space Marines as an "elite but generalist" faction. This is mostly manifested through unit upgrades - many units can be customized with different weapons. However, in Dawn of War clicking the upgrade button (say, choosing an anti-vehicle weapon which in turn makes the unit ineffective against infantry) pretty much makes them specialists so the distinction seems superficial.

Commanders

Force Commander (Gabriel Angelos)

• Class: Commander (primary)
• Role: Melee specialist, air strikes

The Force Commander is your main commander unit, available through every mission. He is an uber-veteran with superior combat skills. He has good ranged damage and great melee damage, and can be upgraded with better weapons and armour. The Force Commander can also order Orbital Bombardment strikes (requires the Orbital Relay structure) which do high damage and knock infantry to the ground. Attached to a squad, he provides a big morale bonus.

In low-level fights, you can send the Force Commander in solo; his melee attack will disrupt infantry squads while your ranged units shoot them up. He will even do decent damage against vehicles and structures. If the enemy has many advanced units, you should be more careful and attach him to a squad. If you lose him, he will respawn around your Stronghold for free after a while, so just use and abuse him.

Librarian (Isador Akios)

• Class: Commander (secondary)
• Role: Melee specialist, psyker

Inquisitor Toth

• Class: Commander (secondary)
• Role: Melee specialist, air strikes

Colonel Brom

• Class: Commander (secondary)
• Role: Melee specialist

Brom is the local Imperial Guard commander, available to you in a couple of missions. He's good in melee but still the weakest commander, with only half of the Force Commander's health. You may want to attach him for the morale bonus, though he can take basic infantry squads by himself if necessary. Brom will respawn if killed.

Infantry

Servitor

• Class: Infantry
• Role: Builder unit

The Servitor builds your structures and repairs your vehicles, and that's about it. You can set two on the same project to make it happen faster. Servitors take up Squad Cap, so don't keep unnecessary units around. Note that you can Deep Strike them through the Orbital Relay (can be useful if setting up a secondary base).

Scout Marine Squad

• Class: Infantry
• Role: Scouting, sniping

Scout Marines are light infantry that can infiltrate, making them invisible to most enemy units as long as they do not attack. They are lightly armored and have a maximum squad size of 4, so they should generally avoid fights. In single-player they are mainly used to scout enemy positions and spot targets for long-range firepower. When upgraded with sniper rifles they can also take out leader units and destroy enemy morale from behind your lines in bigger scraps. You should get Scout Infiltration Research from the Stronghold right away to make them less vulnerable (besides, it's pretty cheap).

Space Marine Squad

• Class: Heavy infantry
• Role: Versatile

File:W40k-dow space marine squad screenshot.jpg

Space Marine Squad with standard bolter guns and a Sergeant squad leader unit.

The Space Marine Squad - Tactical Squad in the tabletop game - is your basic infantry unit. They hold their own in both ranged and melee combat; generally you want to keep them shooting at strong melee infantry (like most Orks) and charging at physically weak ranged specialists (like most Eldar). They can be upgraded with a variety of heavy weapons, making them flexible and useful from short range anti-infantry to long range anti-infantry to anti-vehicle situations.

• Flamers should be put on squads that will fight in the front line. They have short range and moderate damage, but will quickly wreck enemy morale, making any charging infantry very ineffective.
• Heavy bolters have long range and great damage against infantry but cannot be fired while moving and even require a short setup period after stopping before they fire.
• Plasma guns have shorter range but can be fired on the move and are slightly more effective against heavy infantry and commander units.
• Missile launchers are ineffective against infantry (although they do disrupt enemy squads) but good against vehicles and buildings.

There are several global research upgrades that apply to Space Marine Squads available from your Armoury and Stronghold structures. Generally you want to purchase all of them in each and every mission, probably starting with the Bionics and Heavy Weapon Increase upgrades. Each Space Marine Squad can also be upgraded with a Sergeant leader unit who increases squad morale and has the Rally special ability which instantly restores morale. You should always get Sergeants and use the Rally ability liberally.

Assault Marine Squad

• Class: Heavy infantry
• Role: Melee anti-infantry, hit & run anti-vehicle

Assault Marines are jump infantry, meaning they have jetpacks and can be jumped from point A to point B even over impassable terrain. They also move a bit faster than basic Space Marines. Assault Marines are melee units and used most effectively by keeping them back and dropping them over enemy ranged specialists (who should optimally be shot up by your ranged units while engaged in melee). Because of their mobility they can quickly reinforce a weak spot in a fight or prevent an enemy squad from escaping.

Assault Marines can be equipped with short-range melta bombs so they can jump in, bomb a vehicle or building, and jump out. You can also jump them into an enemy base to spot good targets for artillery units (useful if you can't get any Scout Marines in).

The squad can be upgraded with a Sergeant just like a Space Marine Squad. However you cannot attach a commander unit to an Assault Marine Squad, as none of your commanders have jetpacks and they obviously couldn't keep up.

Terminator Squad

• Class: Heavy infantry
• Role: Ranged firepower

Assault Terminator Squad

• Class: Heavy infantry
• Role: Melee specialist

Apothecary

• Class: Heavy infantry
• Role: Healer unit

The Apothecary can be attached to a squad like a commander unit; he doesn't improve the squad's morale or fighting capacity, but boosts the squad's health regeneration (and that of other nearby units). He has a chainsword and can hold his own in melee, but he's not really a combat bonus like a commander. There's no reason not to get and attach the maximum number (4) of Apothecaries.