Tables of Organization and Equipment

Designing an Imperial Guard Regiment

This article is based on a very old White Dwarf article (the original appeared in issue 49 - yes I have been a gamer geek for THAT long!) the original was an article intended for organizing Imperial Guard regiments for Space Marine (the predecessor to Epic40K). I photocopied it for my Space Marine notebook while I was still in college (at the time, Space Marine was THE game among the local gamers). I came across it again while looking for fluff ideas for my Guard army. I have adapted the ideas from the original article to the current (4th) edition of Warhammer 40K.

Introduction

The Imperium is vast and wars are constantly raging throughout the galaxy. Rebellions flare up and are crushed; Orks, Eldar, Tau, Tyranids and other alien races attack on a thousand fronts; heretic prophets rise to brief glory and are destroyed; new worlds are claimed for the Imperium and are pacified. At times it seems as if the whole universe is at war.

 Indeed as far as the front line of the Imperial Guard trooper is concerned the entire universe is at war. The Imperial Guard makes up the vast bulk of the Imperial military machine; recruited from the planetary defense forces of the Imperium’s millions of worlds it is a huge military force of humans and abhumans.

 No one knows the true size of the Imperial Guard, and only the huge Codex Exercitus, maintained on Terra by the highest echelons of the Administratum, contains the necessary data for such a calculation. There are some guesses and rumors - some say that if the whole of the Imperial Guard were paraded shoulder-to-shoulder they would cover the entire planetary surfaces of such-and-such a system, or stretch from Terra to such-and-such a star. The only thing known for certain is that the Imperial Guard is unimaginably vast.

 Because of its enormous size, the Imperial Guard is also an incredibly diverse organization. To define the configuration of every company and platoon, to describe every variation in troop organization, equipment and tactics, would require a work many times the size of this one and the lifetimes of many scribes beside your servant who writes this. Of necessity then, we must confine ourselves to standard issue equipment, common troop types and conventional tactics.

 The major unit of the Imperial Guard is the regiment. Precise numbers vary but most Imperial Guard Regiments are raised with strengths of 2000-6000 men. Each regiment is raised from a single homeworld, and the Imperial Guard trooper regards himself as belonging to the Regiment rather than to the Army which it is assigned to at its raising.

 Regimental Names

Regiments are identified by the name of their homeworld and a number – for example the 18^th Lyubov Regiment of the Imperial Guard is the eighteenth regiment of the Imperial Guard raised from the world of Lyubov at a particular raising. Regiments are typically given nicknames by their commanders; thus the 18^th Lyubov Light Infantry is often called the Ice River Guards after the district on Lyubov where they were originally raised. The Necromundan Eighth are called ‘The Spiders’ and use a spider in their regimental emblem. Colonel Raeven Mortz, the commander of the Necromudan Eighth even goes so far as to keep a deadly Necromunda Greenback Spiders as pets and mascots.

Recruitment

Each of the populated worlds of the Imperium has its own planetary defense force, raised from among its population. The Lex Imperia de Munimenta Publica lays down that each planet shall raise and maintain a planetary defense force, and a further Imperial decree provides that these planetary defense forces shall provide recruits far the Imperial Guard.

Recruitment for the Imperia Guard creams off the elite of the planetary defense forces, according to a series of quotas set by the Administratum urn. Using a complex system of probability computations and battle forecasts backed up by the Imperial 'l'arot, the Administratum issues a requirement for troops, which is passed down to the Imperial Commanders of individual planets. The Imperial Commander can then formulate his population control policy for the next generation around the Administratum's requirement for Imperial Guard troops and his own requirements for labor, agriculture, and the like.

 Quotas are normally set each generation, but in times of great need, the Administratum may require a planet to supply two or more raisings from a single generation. During the wars of the Horus Heresy, for example, Necromunda was required to provide dozens of separate raisings, supplying the Guard with hundreds of millions of troops in total. Many hive worlds suffered similar burdens, while at the other end of the scale, many agricultural and feral worlds were almost entirely stripped of their meager populations, and had to be left for several generations in order for their populations to recover.

 Among the planetary defense forces, it is considered a great honor to be chosen for recruitment into the Imperial Guard. Many young hopefuls, especially on hive worlds and factory planets, flock to the planetary defense force in the hope of being found worthy of the Imperial Guard - their only chance of escape from their claustrophobic homeworlds

 Methods of recruitment vary according to the world involved. On hive worlds such as Necromunda, it is common to draft entire street gangs into the planetary defense force - in effect, to legitimize their activities and give them formal control of an area. The most successful of these - and some are so successful as to threaten the long-term stability of a wide area - are drafted as complete platoons or companies into the Imperial Guard. On feral and mediaeval, worlds, the planetary defense force is recruited from the warrior caste by a series of trials and ordeals, and given names such as the Knights of the Star Lord or the Eagle Warriors. The greatest of these, chosen again by tria1, may join the Warriors from the Stars when their great ships come out of the sky. Some feral-world warriors will commit ritual suicide if they fail to meet recruitment criteria.

 Particularly on feral worlds, the taking of scalps, ears, and other trophies is encouraged as an index of martial prowess. Trophy-taking is also common among hive world gangs, which are similar in many cultural respects to the tribal warbands of pre-gunpowder feral worlds. On Necromunda, for example, many gangs take the smallest finger of the right hand as a trophy. Trophies are all-important proof of martial prowess, and thus of worthiness to join the Imperial Guard.

 An Imperial Guard Regiments is recruited from a single planet in a single raising. The regiment is shipped to its posting after its raising but generally does not receive replacements for losses (The Vostroyan Firstborn are an exception to this) Because of the vastness of the Imperium, and its huge Human population, it is rare for the transport of personnel to justify the huge costs and d time-lags involved. However, in many Regiments the guardsmen's offspring are brought up within the regiment, and are recruited when they come of age. Until that time, they perform menial and support duties and may fight as a Probitor (Whiteshield) unit alongside the rest of the Regiment, being fully inducted when they come of age

 Because of the lack of ongoing recruitment, many Imperial Guard regiments are severely depleted, and it is thought a great many Imperial Guard Regiments are currently at less than half their founding strength. In some cases, such as 22/4 Valeria, two or more Regiments serving on a world may be combined to form a new Regiment, which is given the name of the base world if its parent regiments came from different homeworlds.

 Training and Deployment

Recruits to the Imperial Guard are already partially trained by virtue of their service with the planetary defense forces from which they are recruited. Advanced training, weapon cross-training and various drills take place during the long voyage from the Regiment's homeworld to their posting. Since it is Imperial policy to post Imperial Guard units well away from their homeworld in order to minimize the risk of revolt, these voyages can take months or even years. By the time an Imperial Guard unit arrives at its destination, it is a highly-trained and cohesive force, ready for almost any eventuality.

 The Imperial Guard is most often deployed into war zones on planets where a garrison is required. Garrison postings are seldom the easy tasks they may seem, for often an Imperial Guard garrison has to conquer a world, or recapture it from Chaos forces or other aliens, before they can garrison it. Less common postings include attachment to entourage of a Rogue Trader, and posting to a Titan Order as Secutor support troops. 

A successful Regiment can look forward to being granted the overlordship of the planet to which they are posted. If the planet remains peaceful and meets all its quotas, the Regimental Commander may in time be rewarded with the title of Imperial Commander and the governorship of the planet, while substantial land grants may be made to Guard veterans who retire from active service due to old age. In due course of time, regiment will become hereditary nobility, almost indistinguishable from the now-peaceful native population. The descendents of the original garrison may well be recruited into the planetary defense force, and then Imperial Guard Regiments that are raised there.

 Occasionally, the powers and responsibilities of office may corrupt a Regimental Commander who is appointed Governor of his garrison planet, and he may be tempted to rebel, as in the case of the 3rd Vorradion Regiment on Bradur IV. In such cases, Imperial justice is swift and total - less than a hundred days after the rebellion began, the governor's palace was assaulted by the Space Marines of 3 Company, Legio Astartes Blood Drinkers, with orders to take no prisoners and accept no surrender terms.

 Supply

A Regiment is supplied with weapons and other equipment at its foundation, and a Regimental Commander may request equipment from the Administratum for a particular task. However, since these requests can take some time to process and are by no means certain to be approved, many Regiments will take over factories and workshops on the world to which they are assigned. Uniforms are supplied at the foundation, but are not replaced thereafter; it is the responsibility of the Regimental Commander to arrange the supply of such items, and in an old-established Regiment it is common for uniforms to vary from platoon to platoon. The basic pattern of the uniform will remain the same, as laid down by Imperial regulations, but its color and material will vary according to what is available at the time. Thus, for example, a Regimental Commander may requisition a batch of material from a factory on the Regiment's posting world, and if only blue material is available, then the replacement uniforms will be blue.

 Religion in the Imperial Guard

Commissars act as priests and advisors, conducting rituals giving instruction and performing other duties to ensure a firm adherence to the Imperial cult. This does not necessarily mean that the religious or ritualistic practices of a platoon's cultural origins are forbidden. On the contrary, the Commissars are skilled at adapting such rites and making them an official part of the Imperial Cult.

Imperial Guard Organization

The regiment is the largest permanent level of organization in the Imperial Guard. All larger commands are 'ad hoc' formations, created and disbanded at need. Each regiment contains its own infantry, armor and support troops making it capable of both assaulting and defending varied objectives against most types of opposition. Regimental commanders are granted some leeway in the training and organization of their regiments (represented in the current incarnation of the Warhammer 40K game by the Doctrines rules), limited only by the resources available.

Battalions

The intermediary organization between regiments and companies are called battalions. An Imperial Guard battalion commands two companies and attached battalion assets (such as the Battalion Medicae Station, Battalion Support, and the like). A battalion is typically the largest Imperial Guard formation fielded altogether at any one time in its entirety.

A regiment is divided into battalions (sometimes called Combat Commands). A regiment generally is comprised of three battalions, though some have more, plus a number of specialized units held in reserve at the regimental level that can be attached to subordinate battalions or companies at need.

The battalion is the smallest formation that can act as a combined arms force and as such often operate independently. A battalion is generally composed of at least two companies though some have more, and an number of battalion support assets.

During a campaign, several regiments may be grouped together as a division, several divisions might be termed a corps while several corps might comprise an army. An Imperial Guard Army operating with support from a Space Marine Chapter and/or a Titan legion is called an Army Group. However, all of these formations are temporary, being formed to complete a specific mission or campaign. Such ad hoc formations might be a few battalions combined for the purposes of a single battle right through an army group that fights an entire campaign lasting years or even decades.

The regimental template is a regimental command, three to six battalion commands and at least six (but no more than thirty-six) companies. The companies are chosen from either the Imperial Guard Infantry company list (Codex: Imperial Guard) or the Armored Company list (available free from GW's Imperial Guard Site)

Battalion level assets are chosen from the battalion assets mini-list, regimental assets are chosen from the regimental assets mini-list. Both mini-lists were adapted from the original Space Marine article.

Battalion level assets can be used to support either subordinate company of that battalion, regimental assets may be committed to any subordinate battalion or company in the regiment.

Companies

Regiments are divided into companies, which can vary widely in their size and composition. The company is the major tactical unit of the Imperial Guard. The heart of a company is composed of two to six platoons and various specialist units and machines are attached to the company as need, availability and doctrine dictate – robots, vehicles, support weapons, allied contingents and the like.

Platoons

The Codex Exercitus gives the standard configuration of an Imperial Guard platoon as a command section and up to six squads. A command section consists of an officer, and a staff of four troopers which may include a medic, standard bearer, special weapons troopers or heavy weapons troopers. Also attached to the command section may be advisors such as sanctioned psykers, priests, or commissars. An infantry squad consists of a sergeant and nine guardsmen and is always attached to a command section. Imperial Guard infantry squads always act as part of a platoon

Applying the template to the 18th Lyubov

The Lyubov regiment starts with a regimental HQ - A High Command Squad mounted in an APC commanding the Regimental Artillery, the Regimental Hospital, the Regimental Military Police, the Regimental Quartermaster, the Regimental Flight Wing and the Regimental Ortillery

Of the six battalions; Aleph, Bet and Gimel are all light infantry; Dalet and Hay are Motorized Rifles and Vav is Grav Attack (Light Grav Armor)

The first three battalions are all Light Infantry consisting of a Battalion HQ, 2 identical drop qualified Light Infantry companies and an Armored Cavalry company, for a total of 9 companies.

The 4th and 5th battalions are all Motorized Rifles consisting of a Battalion HQ, 2 Mechanized Infantry companies and an Armored Cavalry Company.

The 6th battalion carries the heavy striking power of the regiment, a Battalion HQ, 2 identical Light Grav Armor companies and a Grav Siege Company for support.

The Light Infantry Battalion HQs are identical consisting of 80 men (7 officers, 73 OR) and 19 vehicles:

• 1 High Command Squad mounted in a Command Chimera (5 officers, 9 other ranks)

plus a motor pool of 12 Wyvern Wheeled APCs (12 drivers, 12 gunners, and 6 mechanics)

plus the following support choices:

    Battalion Recon Section

• 1 Roughrider Squadron (2 officers, 10 OR)
• 1 Rapier Laser Destroyer (3 OR)
• 1 Sentinel Squadron (3 OR)

    Battalion Artillery Battery:

• 1 Barghest reconfigurable Self-Propelled Artillery Piece (4 OR)
• 1 Basilisk Self-Propelled Artillery Piece (4 OR)
• 1 Griffon Self-Propelled Heavy Mortar (4 OR)

Related Pages
[Regimental Assets]
[Battalion Assets]
[Assault Inf. Co.]
[Cavalry Troop]

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