Hi folks, I've been scopin' the list since my hols but not really had a chance to post since then. I see the Space Marine ships have been....provactive. While I don't particulalry like the implication that I'm incapable of doing my job right I also acknowledge that I do screw up (more frequently than I'd like) and make bad calls, or more often just don't explain things properly. So here goes....
The philosophy behind having 50pt master of the fleet is that quite simply a third of Space Marine ships will be Ld 10. The cheap rerolls also reflect this and the SM reliance on Ordnance for a lot of their offensive strength. Both of these factors is also tempered by the fact that these are _Space_ Marines and have lots of fluffy reasons for being good with their ships (incidentally I always find the term 'fluff' a bit demeaning for the background, if we were playing WW2 games no one would refer to the history as fluff, yet for sci-fi/fantasy the so-called fluff fulfills exactly the same role, it contextualises the game).
The 6+ armour represents not only their heavily armoured ships but their crews consisting of wired-in servitors and Space Marines in full power armour - as well as being a neccessity for delivering their all-important payload of Space Marines to the target (as a side note the I've always imagined that the armour/shield interaction to be influcenced both by ships having more shielding on the most armoured parts of the ship, and the fact that weaker armour will make the ship more vulnerable to collateral damage from shields 'leaking' and collapsing). Absolutely 6+ armour is a very good thing, I play an Ork fleet mostly and I have a very difficult time dealing with 6+ armour so believe me I know. But there again four shields is a very good thing, 60cm range weapons is a very good thing and so on.
The bottom line with Space Marines is that of trust. Either you trust me and Gav to get it balanced (or close enough as makes no odds), or you don't. If you don't then you don't have to play against Space Marines and _no one_ can make you do it.
Damn.... I was going to do an update on CSP etc. (thanks for all your comments by the way) but I should really get on and do some (other) work. I'll just finish up by answering the question on whether or not you have to pay points for the battlebarge and strike cruiser supports off the Space Marine table in a campaign instead.
Well?
The short answer is no, they are free, costing 0 points for that one scenario (flinches and shields eyes from A-bomb style furore which is bound to develop).
Now before everyone gets into a massive flame-war again can I just point out the context of this seemingly horrifying imbalance.
1. The chance of actually receiving a Space Marine battle barge is 1 in 108 (a successful 'other appeal' followed by rolling snakes eyes of the Space Marine table.
2. That one-time (if it works) appeal must be balanced against the long term benefits of reinforcements and refits - This is bound to draw comparisons with the Forces of Chaos table, please also bear in mind that the Chaos table can give you extra Chaos Lords and other long term benefits which are a bit more useful than the boarding bonuses are for Imperials.
3. It's a _campaign_, and you should be prepared to expect the unexpected, the wicked wiles of fate etc etc.
Remember that the most exciting battles are seldom those with an equal number of men and a level playing field. That's sport, not warfare.
Signing off and waiting for the storm to break.
AndyC