Sigh Imperial guard could easly be balance by having a easyer time of getting special wpns like plasma guns, hotshot lasguns(not to mention the Lasguns whit hotshot option, few shoots though) and the many more wpns they got access to. They have an advantage of space marines in size, easyer getting good wpns and more tanks!
Yeah, and just because we wear green doesn't mean we have to get the Luigi treatment (lucky to be playable at all, and even then Player 2). Really, making Guardsmen "equal" to Space Marines in strength shouldn't be a goal in the first place because our vehicles are going to be so much better, we've got to have a weakness somewhere to compensate. I believe that Carapace Armor and our signature officer mechanics, combined with our normal selection of equipment, will make IG entirely adequate to be competitive enough for their tanks to make up the difference. Plus if air units ever get in we've got some of the best air support in the 40k universe.
The only way I can see IG being implemented without ruining immersion if that you are a commander that has a hundred guardsmen following you, or you are in a vehicle like a Leman Russ, Baneblade or Vulture gunship. The standard ork boys being able to go up against a space marine one on one is bad enough. But a space marine in lore is equal to a hundred guardsmen, and should remain so in games too. One of the good things in this game is that is had races and classes that why aren't space marine level, are at least close enough not to totally ruin the immersion of it. Like elite eldar and elite orks.
Oh please, if the difference was really that large the Imperial Guard wouldn't even exist except as background material in a couple novels. One Space Marine is not equal to a hundred Guardsmen, nor is he equal to a Baneblade (which the Baneblade actually is worth about a hundred Guardsmen). Considering our long history in the tabletop and our presence in two RTS games, I think we deserve a bit of respect.
In the lore though, one Guardsmen really IS worth a hundred marines. It just doesn't balance out on the tabletop (or in Dawn of War) because it would penalise Guard players (having to buy so many models). In Storm of Iron Honsou mentions one squad of Iron Warrios casually slaughtering their way through a few hundred Guardsmen. The Guard primarily rely on Tanks, and sheer numbers (Like with Chenkov taking a fortres in a month, but losing 10 million men).
He is Right The Guard has Never turn down a Fight even if outmaned or outguned and Sure they may not be as strong as us Chaos But there Able to put up a Hell of a Fight .
"The lore", or Space Marine novels? Because in Space Marine novels I'm sure they tear apart Baneblades with their bare hands too, without putting on their power armor. But that doesn't make a good basis for balancing a game. As far as I'm concerned, Space Marines and their novels can go take a hike through the Eye of Terror. They're just a bunch of power-armored Mary Sues written by immature hacks and Matt Ward (with apologies to immature hacks). I mean come on, taking over whole planets with just a couple hundred Marines? Have fun securing tens of thousands of square miles all by yourself! And while losing a hundred million men to secure a planet may sound like a lot, on an Earth-sized planet that works out to about five square miles per casualty. That's a lot better return on investment than a lot of RL armies have gotten. I'm sick and tired of hearing about fanfiction where Space Marines cut down ten thousand Guardsmen by glaring at them. In every game they've ever been in the effective force ratio between IG and SM has been in the 1.5:1-3:1 range with certain elite classes being able to 1v1 standard Tacs, and that's the way it's going to stay.
General lore. Guard novels, etc. And they don't secure thousands of square miles-they go and conquer cities, and take out key positions. Remember that the tabletop doesn't accuratly reflect the lore, as Sisters Power armour is less than marine armour etc. Don't get me wrong, Guardsmen are still amazing soldiers, it's just that Marines were created to be THE BEST, whereas Guardsmen are just normal guys doing the best they can.
Even a city is several hundred square miles, and a typical planet has a lot more than a couple hundred of them. The fact of the matter is that Space Marine lore is blown so far out of proportion that it's impossible to take seriously, and thus should not be the basis for any balance decisions. They run on nothing but author wank and plot armor, and everyone knows it. You're not going to get an automatic 100:1 K/D ratio against Orks, so you're sure as hell not going to get that against Guardsmen who can actually shoot. If the Imperial Guard getting the respect they deserve tramples on someone's Space Marine power fantasy so hard that they can't keep their mouse hand steady, too bad for them.
I'd argue that your just as much a guard fanboy as the marine fanboys you're complaining about. There are guard novels where a Guardsmen somehow defeats a Chaos Lord in combat, etc.
