Review by: William Abner

Slowly but surely, THQ and Relic are throwing every Warhammer 40K army into the fray in Dawn of War II. What started as a straight up Space Marine, Ork, Eldar scrum has turned into a Battle Royale with Chaos, Tyranids and now the Imperial Guard joining the arms race, the latter included in the latest expansion, Retribution.

The Imperial Guard isn’t considered a “sexy” army even by players of the Warhammer 40K miniatures game. I‘ve always been a fan, however, as no other 40K army can get as much devastating armor on the field as these guys. The regular IG infantry might be fodder but the fun doesn’t really begin until a few Leman Russ and Baneblade tanks are on the scene. Throw in fanatic Commissars pushing their troops like Stalin’s secret police on the lines of World War II‘s Eastern Front and you have a recipe for a pretty cool outfit despite their lack of “magical” powers like the others in the 40K retinue. Basically if you like grunts and good old fashioned firepower then the Imperial Guard is for you.

This is reflected well in the game, too. The standard issue Imperial Guard soldier is absolutely no match for a Space Marine – or even an Ork for that matter. But the Guard can get a lot of infantry on the field and if players allow an Imperial Guard player in a multiplayer match to build its tanks, it can get dicey. If the massive Baneblade is spotted on the battlefield – run like hell because it’s absolutely devastating.

The Guard have access to basic infantry, heavy infantry which you can equip with a lascannon (an anti-vehicle weapon), the rough and ready Catachan jungle fighters who have access to all sorts of gear from knockback shotguns to grenades. Guard fans will also appreciate the addition of Ogryn squads (think Ogres in space, with guns). These front line fighters provide some needed beef to the infantry. Elite ranged Stormtrooper infantry is also available (for a steep cost). Still, it’s the armor that make the Guard fun, despite their lack of wild looking units – sometimes a giant tank with a big cannon is all you need to get the job done.

The campaign, which runs about the same length as the previous expansion, Chaos Rising, allows you for the first time to play as any army and not just the Blood Raven Space Marines. This finally opens up the door to play as the bad guys. The story picks up right where Chaos Rising left off, which if you are familiar with 40K at all means everyone is mad at each other, and let the killing commence. It’s admittedly cool to play one of these mini campaigns but by allowing you to play as any of the races, the writing and the overall narrative suffers a bit for it. I thoroughly enjoyed the storylines from the original and especially Chaos Rising as that game’s “corruption” mechanic allowed for your Marines to potentially go to the dark side.

In Retribution, you still get a good chunk of dialogue (I’d wager more than you got in Chaos Rising due to all of the races being represented) but the story isn’t nearly as interesting. I played through the campaign as the Imperial Guard, half of the Chaos campaign and nearly all of the Space Marine campaign and I still prefer the twists and turns from Chaos Rising. Granted, everyone doesn’t care about the storyline in an RTS but 40K, to me, is about story and characters as much as it is about Power Fists and Melta guns.