How to build armies in 8th Edition

Hey all, Danny here to talk about how we are going to start putting our armies together in the brave new world of 8th edition.   So long formations, and technically, so long CAD as well.

In 8th edition, in terms of Matched Play, Battle-Forged armies are still a thing, namely Unbound is now squarely in the land of Open play (bring whatever you want).  To be Battle-forged is very much like in 7th, meaning each unit you bring must be part of a Detachment, and each Detachment has requirements and optional Battlefield Roles.  This is all what we are used to for the most part, but the big difference is that everyone is now forced to use the same Detachments.  Formations are gone and even Codex-specific Detachments are gone (but I bet we see them return in some form with the return of proper Codexes).

So, to start, you need to select a Detachment and start filling in requirements.  In Matched Play, GW suggests a limit of 3 Detachments per army at 2,000 points, so you can expect more TOs to follow this at first.   Just like before, plug in units to a Detachment until you are out of points or meet the minimum requirements of that Detachment.  The new wrinkle here is that each Detachment gives between  -1 and 9 Command Points, and these can be used for rerolls, new Maelstrom objectives, or changing the assault order, so they are worth keeping on an eye on.  All Battle-Forged armies start 3 CPs base.    In terms of allies, they are gone, but well, all you need to do is share a Faction keyword and you can be used in a Detachment, so Imperials, Chaos, and Aeldari pretty much have one giant codex.  The rub here is that most special abilities don’t target just “Imperials” or “Aeldari” but specifically “Ultramarines” or “Khorne Daemons”.

The King is Dead! Long live the King! 
Let’s take a look at the 12 different Detachments (good bye Force-Org chart) that we have now.
Patrol 
Required:
1-2 HQ
1-3 Troops
 Optional: 
0-2 Elite/Fast/Heavy/Flyer
+1 CP
Say hello to what was once the Allied Detachment in 7th edition. If you are really just trying to get a small taste of a Faction or playing a low point game, here you go. You do get to cherry pick as you are only required to take 1 HQ and 1 Troop, so for codexes or armies that do not have powerhouse HQ choices or Troop choices, you are only taking 2 tax units for up to 2 of the more specialized battlefield roles, but you only get 1 CP.   Since Allies are gone, this will likely not be too common except at lower point values as Imperial, Chaos, and Eldar can just take units from everywhere, they don’t need a separate Detachment of only Dark Eldar or only Ultramarines.  Of course, this could change if TOs decide to enforce that you must share two Faction keywords rather than just one.
Battalion
Required: 
2-3 HQ
3-6 Troops
 Optional: 
0-6 Elites
0-3 Fast/Heavy
0-2 Flyers
+3 CP
This is the closest to the old CAD. You need 2 HQs and 3 troops rather than the old 1 HQ and 2 Troops, but this is to keep you from being able to easily wrack up 9 CPs since why not have a Brigade then. 6 HQs 9 troops is a lot to get 9 CPs although it is still likely cheaper than a full Brigade, depending on the Faction.
This is an easy way to slot in a small force or a good sized one. If you’re looking to get some decent CPs at a decent price, this is a good choice. This feels like more of a puzzle piece rather than the whole picture. If you spend too much on this, you are likely better trying to run a brigade. If you want just a taste, Patrol is better. This is that weird middle ground either for smaller games or to try and farm up CPs with a few other low CP detachments.  Still, it is highly useful as a small Battalion plus one or two of the specialized detachments can still net you 7-8 CPs plus with a lot of skew as you are rocking up to 9 of a specialized battlefield role.
Brigade
Required: 
3-5 HQ
6-12 Troops
3-8 Elite
3-5 Fast/Heavy
Optional: 
0-2 Flyers
+9 CP
The big daddy. You have to take the whole menu, but you get 9 CPs, so really 12. That’s a lot of tactical wiggle room to get rerolls or put someone forward in the combat order. In maelstrom missions, being able to discard a card for 6 turns can be game changing. Yes, you have to take a huge amount of stuff, but most factions can do this as either a single detachment army or as a cheap chaff machine to fuel a few super hitters.  This seems especially necessary for Factions that are very limited in terms of their “allies”, mainly Tau, Necron, Tyranids/GSC, and Orks.  This helps even the playing field as these Factions still have a very rewording system for staying focused.
Chances are, if you take this Detachment, it will be the bulk of your army unless you are really bringing it cheap to just earn CPs.  We don’t know how much CPs will impact the scene, and if they are dominant, then yes, a super slim Brigade might be common, but if not, then you are best using this Detachment to just fill up a whole army.   A quick note: pretty much each detachment except for Superheavy, Flyer Wing, and Auxiliary have slots for Dedicated Transports, namely for each unit purchased, you can take 1 Dedicated Transport.  Now everybody has a ride!
Ok, that’s the three “main” Detachments.  Let’s look at the smaller, more specialized ones:
Vanguard
Required:
1-2 HQ
3-6 Elites
Optional: 
0-3 Troops
0-2 Heavy/Fast/Flyer
+1 CP
You want assassins or a lot of Warp Spiders (maybe Howling Banshees now)? This is where you go.  You don’t get too much of a CP boost here, but you do get to select all of the lovely Elite choices in your Faction without having to worry about Troops.  If your faction has a deep Elite section, this is a good place to go.
Spearhead Detachment
Required: 
1-2 HQ
3-6 Heavy Support
Optional: 
0-3 Troops
0-2 Elite, Fast, Flyer
+1 CP
Nidzilla!! If you want to run a heavy duty, slap your momma, low model count army, here you go. Whether it be a wall of Big Beasties, a fleet of Ravagers, or a full armored company, this detachment is your friend.  Depending on your Faction, it can be pretty easy to turn this entire Detachment into a single 2K point list of pure heavy firepower.   Just like the other specialized Detachments, you are not going to be getting a lot of CPs here.
Outrider Detachment
Required:
1-2 HQ
3-6 Fast Attack
Optional: 
0-3 Troops
0-2 Elite/Heavy/Flyer
+1 CP
Did you run Wolftide? Now you kinda can. If you want to spam FA choices, here you go.  Whether it be Bikers, Wolves, or Hellions, this is a good detachment if you want to try and add some serious speed to an army.  Again, you don’t get much CPs here, but this can slot in nicely to the other, more familiar structures to really help you skew your list toward a faster, more aggressive build.
Wolftide…we hardly knew ye. 
Supreme Command
Required: 
3-5 HQ
Optional: 
0-1 Elite/LoW
+1 CP
So this is essential a Company of the Great Wolf or a nod to people who went deep into Cyclopia Cabal/Librarius Conclave. If you want lots of thunderwolf characters, here you go. Any army that has a lot of badass characters, especially under ten wounds to hide, can make real solid use of this Detachment. Again, space wolves can be happy here. If you have good psykers, you can smite spam here as well. You could also spam blood thirsters.  Whatever works for you.
Super-Heavy
Required:
3-5 LoW
+3 CP
If you play Imperial Knights or want to play Wraithknights, here you go. You even get 3 CPs, and with the free 3, that’s a decent but not great amount, but hey, you get to play with all the big toys. You can easily build a 2k list with just this, so if you want your 3 Baneblade army, here you go. This is actually the most fun to me just because you can now run an army of super-toys if you want, regardless of faction.  Pretty much any Faction that has access to these big hitters (which at this point is everyone but GSC) can just play with 3-5 big stompies and call it a day.  If you like Pina Coladas and getting caught in the rain and tournaments, this is an easy way to do so.
Air Wing 
Required: 
3-5 Flyers
+1 CP
It is interesting that flyers are their own battlefield role, and if you want more, here you go. The  3 “CADs” all have slots for flyers, but only 2 most. If you really want to go Air Force, you need this slot. The bonus CP is nice, but nothing too special.  Really, if you play Elysians or any flyer-transport heavy army, you will probably want this one.
Super-Heavy Auxiliary
Required: 
1 LoW
+0 CP
This is how you quickly add a Knight/Baneblade/whatever to your force. You get no CPs, but it’s an easy way to slot in some heavy firepower.  No other Detachment outside of Supreme Command and Super-Heavy have a Lord of War slot, so you kind of need this if you plan to just take 1 big hitter.
Fortification Network
Required: 
1-3 Fortifications
+0 CP
If you want Fortifications, here you go. Being able to take 3 easily could change a lot of things depending in what they look like. Multiple VSGs, even if nerfed, could still add up. You don’t get any CPs, so that can hamstring you if you invest too heavily here. Again, it is important to note that no other Detachment has a Fortification slot, so if you want to play with a Fortification, you have to give up a Detachment to do it.
Auxiliary Support 
Required: 
1 choice of either HQ/Troops/Elite/Fast/Heavy/Flyer/Dedicated Transport (just one total, not one of each)
-1 CP
This is a really interesting choice as it is essentially what allows you to start adding in whatever you need, particularly dedicated transports.  If you want to really cherry-pick, this is how you do it, but you do lose a CP each time you do this. This also counts as a detachment, so if you run into an event that limits detachments, this can easily work against you, especially if 3 becomes the standard. Still, if you really want a specific unit without taking any other units, this is the way to go.
Ok, so that’s building armies.  Do you go CP heavy? Do you build the thematic list of your dreams? Do you say Screw It and take 4 Baneblades? Whatever you want, kid. You do you.
Thanks as always for reading, and be sure to get hyped as we approach the dawn of 8th.  Of course, we will be streaming live all day on Saturday the 17th, and you can win some sweet, sweet prizes like rulebooks, indexes, and Primmies.  Be sure to send us pictures of your Kans because episode 100 will be recording very soon, which means the contest is almost over.  Win a badass Brass Scorpion or a Girlyman!  Also, do us a solid and hit us at Patreon since we give away a lot of cool stuff, let’s be real-real.