The sentinel, be it of the scout or armoured variety, has to be the smartest and most fun walker in the game. It is a rather simple kit with lots of variety and has rules that let it fill a multitude of roles on the battlefield. My first experience with the sentinel horde was back in 4th edition when fielding 12 at once was possible thanks to them being part of the HQ slot as well. The list wasn't powerful at all, but it was the best to use if I needed a break from competative play and fancied something a bit different. When I used it at my local gaming club they even gave me the nickname 'Sentinel Guy' and it has stuck with me forever.
With the dawn of 5th edition and my focus on competative gameplay I have rather neglected the sentinel of late. It doesn't have the firepower of say a hellhound, or a griffon, and can't compete with the cheap chimera or vendetta. So what can they do these days?
Well firstly in my experience there are 3 ways to run sentinels, but feel free to disagree and post your own ideas.
1) 1-3 armoured sentinels with autocannons. These really work well as squadrons that can move up in support of your mech platoons and chimera vets. Thanks to their walker status they can fire on the move and really help to add some long range firepower to you shorter melta weapons. I prefer to run single sentinels in this method and to use them instead of paying for heavy weapons in my mechanised platoons. Treat them as a mobile heavy weapons team and you can't go wrong. Just remember that they are expendable and don't be afraid to use them to stall hordes who will spend the rest of the game trying to punch through them. Another thing not to forget is the extra armour they come with. If those meltaguns that are fired at you only manage to stun you then that extra armour keeps you in the game, and puts you in combat with them next turn, a place that most infantry won't want to be.
2) 1 armoured sentinel with heavy flamer. This guy works well protecting your objectives and moving up behind your chimeras to engage the enemy up close. At his low cost value the speed bump as he has become affectionately known is exactly that - there to grind units to a halt or at worst slow them down a bit. The AP4 heavy flamer is great against most things and combined with a few flamers from platoon command/infantry squads can even bring down MEQs if you force enough saves. As a backfield guardian the flamer sentinel comes into his own in the late-game when squads are already weakened and getting close to objectives. Also that heavy flamer works superbly to toast outflankers, especially the worst of the bunch - wolf scouts, who as we all know can be a pain for any IG player to deal with. For that reason alone I recommend a flamer sentinel stick behind your gunline of leman russes and artillery tanks as a rearguard.
3) 1-3 scout sentinels with multi lasers. Cheap with plenty of S6 shooting and outflank. Use them to come on from the table edge and shoot stuff in the rear or flank. They are so cheap it hurts (mostly the enemy), and unlike the huge valkrie/vendetta they can be hidden. Also great for engaging heavy weapon squads or objective holding holding squads in combat provided they aren't tooled up to take them out with a powerfist or two.
So there you have it, my guide to the sentinel. Now there are some weapons I didn't touch on, namely the missile launcher, lascannon and plasma cannon but these really are poor choices on sentinels mainly due to points cost and BS3, and should be saved for tanks or infantry squads where they are more survivable.
So next time your valkyrie gets gunned down the turn it arrives just remember there are other viable options in the fast attack slot, that whilst not being as powerful, do fill a necessary roll in the IG army list.
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