Editing Warhammer 40,000/7th Edition Tactics/Space Marines (section)

====Melee Weapons====
[[Dakka|When the enemy just won't budge in the shooting phase]], [[Rip_and_tear|you need to budge them through Close Combat]]. Here are the tools of the trade.
*'''Chainsword''' - The only real use is for Salamanders characters who can make it Master-Crafted for one melee re-roll - otherwise, just a stat-less CCW.
*'''Power Weapons''' - Come in 4 different flavors: Axe, Maul, Sword, Lance...but only the former 3 actually have official models from GW. The Power Sword is the most reliable but relatively weak, striking at AP3, base S and base I. The Axe drops you to I1 but you are now S5 and AP2 - good, but only if you can't get, or can't justify the cost of, a Power Fist. The Maul is great against Imperial Guard and Xenos scum, since the +2S gets you to S6, which is Instant Death for T3 enemy characters. It even has Concussive, which, along with the +2S, helps against big, tough gribblies. It's also perfect if you want to slam open a vehicle without it blowing in your face. The Lance is only S+1 AP3 on the charge, then in subsequent rounds is only AP4, AND you'd have to convert your own from Fantasy or other armies. Just...no. LOOKS fantastic (and are actually almost decent) on White Scars bikers, though. Use the mythical 'Counts as' rule to just make them standard Power Swords, Power Axes, or Chainswords if you just want them for their Rule of Cool looks. If somebody complains point out how halberds and glaives are pretty much axes or swords on sticks. Grey Knight Nemesis Force Glaives work great!
*'''Lightning Claws''' - Specialist Weapon, so not so good on Sergeants since an extra attack with a Power Sword is better against most targets. AP3 with Shred is still nothing to sneer at, and a model that can take a pair of Claws is a whole different story (i.e. Assault Terminators or Vanguard Veterans). Note that since both are Specialist Weapons, you can take a Lightning Claw and a Power Fist to get +1 attack and be able to choose between either profile before each Fight phase starts. Versatility - but at cost! Note that if you are taking a lightning claw or a power fist you don't lose an attack as you normally do by taking a combi-weapon. 
**Biker Sarges wanting CC weapons (not recommended if you're min-maxing) should take a Lightning Claw or Power Fist over a Power Sword since they only have one weapon to exchange, and thus can't get the two-weapon bonus anyways.
*'''Power Fist''' - A Specialist weapon, so you won't get the 2-weapon bonus unless you grab a Lightning Claw. But, at S8 AP2, you shit on most other characters, and are a great surprise for overconfident vehicle commanders. Unwieldy, sadly, so these will work best on something tough enough to shrug off hits and strike back (i.e. 2+ armor, an invulnerable save, Feel No Pain, etc) and things that are quick enough that it won't matter anyway (lash whip warriors, yes please)
*'''Thunder Hammer''' - 5 extra points for a stylized Power Fist with Concussive. It usually is seen with units that have something else going for it (Storm Shield Terminators). It's rare that a fight goes on long enough for it to matter, but Concussing an enemy down to the same I1 for latter turns can mean the difference between killing it or getting killed without striking (most likely MCs or models with Eternal Warrior). A rare situation, though, so you can just take the slightly cheaper Power Fist instead.
*'''Eviscerator''' - Unlike his baby brother, this heavy chainsaw sword is a two-handed chainfist: Sx2 (so S8 for Marines) AP2 Unwieldy with Armorbane (rolls 2D6 when determining vehicle penetration). Great for tank-hunting, and it's not like Assault Marines can take any other melee weapons. But do note that it still has very poor cost-efficiency, since the only place you can see it is in a T4 3+ 2A model.. while you can use careful play and tricks (even Formations) to deliver that ASM safely into combat to tear up vehicles, having only 2A unavoidably means that you get off very few attacks in return for the hefty cost of the Eviscerator. Alternatively, since the option states that any one in five models may equip it, you can give it to the Veteran Sergeant who has 2A (to better use the expensive weapon).. but of course, as with all Unwieldy weapons on squad leaders, that leads to forcing you to avoid Challenges at all costs.
*'''Force Weapons''' - Librarians come with these. Power Weapons with Force, essentially. The Force Sword is the most reliable choice. Axes make you S5 AP2, but drop you to I1 (bad for Librarians without 2+ or invulnerable saves), while the Staff gives +2S and Concussive but drops to AP4 - good for Librarians with Iron Arm, perhaps, but without that you're not getting through MEQ armor. Still, if Force goes off the Maul becomes a lot more dangerous since every To Wound roll has Instant Death, but also less relatively dangerous, as its competitors now ALSO cause Instant Death on T3.
*'''Relic Blade''' - Available to Honour Guard, Vanguard Veteran Sergeants and Captains. A S+2 AP3 Two-handed sword that hits at normal Initiative, near perfect for MEQ shredding and decent against some MCs. Just like the Power Maul, always remember that S6 means Instant Death for T3 HQs, ''plus'' the Relic Blade can also cut through 3+ to boot. The only real downside is, that you never get the +1A for 2CCW due to them being Two-Handed.  Well, that and [[terminator]] armour. Note that relic blades can be used with storm shields for great effect since storm shields prevent the use of two weapons at the same time, but not two-handed weapons.