Recently I have been considering the building of a Rohan army, naturally, the cavalry and infantry basic troops form the bulk of a Rohan army, but then I got to thinking about the RRG.

The RRG boast better fight and defense stats than their warrior cousins as well as having the body guard rule, they undoubtably present themselves as some of the strongest warriors in a Rohan list, certainly the best infantry option.

My question is though, does the increased points of these elite warriors still make them a viable choice in an army where many warriors are already a relatively high points cost for a basic statline, in my case I'm considering foot versions being 3 points more than a warrior with throwing spear and shield when equipped with a spear, only 9 of these guys sets you back over 100 points, whereas you can get 12 WOR for the same number of points.

A further point I have considered is that these guys could deal with reduced to below 50% better than warriors due to their bodyguard rule, possibly reducing the need for many captains to hold the line, as well as being the perfect guys to charge headlong into terror causing enemies.

Simply put, does the trade off of a better stat line compensate for reducing infantry numbers by about a quarter?

I'm interested in hearing any experience about these guys, are they better on foot, better value mounted, better to leave out in exchange for more warriors? Should a small contingent be used for key tasks, or does taking a load of the guys give a solid battle line?

Just so you guys know, in the past I've only ever used half a dozen to do their part in taking on enemy elites or feeding to trolls, which i feel is especially wasteful considering their price, and I've now been considering using 12 to form a solid core to my infantry.

Looking forward to reading your thoughts

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Having sworn fealty, must I spend my whole life in servitude?

They're elites- not basic troops. While people may play full elite armies (Mostly powergamers) with forces like Moria Prowlers and Dwarven Khazad Guard, Rohan Royal Guard are not great troops for that.

However, their extra defense, fight value, and Bodyguard rule make them good to take in small numbers to provide a little punch and staying power to your lines. And with all the terror-causing opponents evil has available, the Bodyguard rule is pretty handy.

They do fare better mounted, because they have the fight value advantage and extra point of defense. Definitely consider it. Of course, the new Sons of Eorl are probably a much better option...

In short, don't take an army of them, but do take some. The number is up to you. Always try to get a good number of models in your army. 6 is a good number. 8 Might be better. I've never really built a Rohan army- I just faced them.