GW might have had some logic from their point of view for eliminating the Black Templars.  I was bored for a bit this morning and had a little time so I was typing up my designer notes that I use to justify my logic for how I was going to treat the Black Templars in a codex.  Then I started realizing...here was a "Chapter" that was as big as a Legion, more secretive than the Dark Angels, at least as good at CC as Blood Angels, at least as non-compliant as Wolves, potentially with as widespread an intelligence network as the Inquistion, still true to the Emperor's decrees & mission, with possibly the most powerful fleet in existence (certainly one of the top three Imperial starships), apparently totally independent of support requirements from anywhere in the Imperium (can you say generations and generations of workers on the support ships?!), Techmarines who wll put up with Mechanicus' rituals & secrecy...until in interferes with the success of a Crusade and thereby the Emperor's will, AND finally beyond all oversight of any official Imperial body.  Not just technically, but literally.

Then given Sigismund, their founder, close to both Dorn and the Emperor, selected by Dorn and approved by the Emperor to be the first, and only while the Emperor was active, Emperor's Champion as the paragon of what a Space Marine should be.  Which probably means that the Black Templars have inherited the Imperial Fists original mission and Dorn's original role.

Think about how much of a nightmare that would be if they had kept developing it instead of eliminating it.  So, roll the suckers up and turn them into whiny little candy arses who wish the Emperor would let them have their own psykers again so they could worship them or some such.

...40k?  Was it really just over the Black Templar nerfing/smurfing?  I mean seriously Algesan, I know they got the Black Templars now and the Sisters a while back, but the first 40k models you did buy were Necrons and they are doing a pretty good job of kicking arse.  They are competitive enough for anyone and still fun to play, so why quit over a little GW raping of fluff and making the Templars compliant? 

I've been asked these and similar questions recently.  Short answer: No, it isn't the only reason.  Instead it is a group of ongoing issues, some with GW, but others with players.

From Frontline Gaming.    Helbrecht.     Grimaldus.

While the guys at Frontline are somewhat clueless on what Black Templar were (i.e. - they think Black Tide is "the" Templar build from fluff), I pretty much agree with them.  Both have nifty stuff, but for what are supposed to be combat characters they are underwhelming and not worth the points.  Frankly, I could make a better case for the old codex versions being included in lists than the new ones.  Both suffer from GW passive aggressive nerfing...."Look, we made it better, stronger than it was", while not quite giving it the upgrade contemporary units got....you know, the ones with new models GW would like to sell for a higher price.  I think we've panned the EC enough over on Implausible Nature and he's right in line...over priced and under powered.

Welcome to the Really Deep Dark Blue Templars....

Having looked over the physical aspects of the changes to the Black Templars, I'd have to say that the units came out about like I expected, which was a bit short of what should have happened.  Mainly, ignoring the fluff aspects, it was to the good as far as cost of units, wargear options, etc. 

1) It surprised me how many people on the Internet, even non-Black Templar players, agreed that rerolls to hit in CC should have been have been standard for all Black Templar models.
2) Expected fail on GW's part to correct the cost of the plasma pistol.  Seriously, it was pegged at 15 points back when you could use it in CC (and it would be darn well worth it) for its S/AP.  For the last two editions, it should have been dropped down to a more reasonable 10 points at the very least.
3) Keeping the ability to have a special & heavy weapon in a 5-man squad was a little surprise, the plasmagun going up to 15 points was not.  The increase in PW/PF costs was also expected. 
4)  I think Marshal Laeroth is correct.  By RAW, if you upgrade one Initiate to Sword Brother, then you can only have 9 Neophytes from the phrasing.  I don't think that is the intention, but there it is.
5)  As expected, no price break on the LRC, but the LRR does get a little break.  The LRC should have shared that break, and I would have called it down to 225 each for base costs.  GW missed the boat on not giving Black Templars a benefit to being the discoverers/inventors of the LRC by giving Crusader squads (+ICs) that total 16 models a serious price break on the LRC, say down to 175.  "Oh you can take LRCs in your troop choices, that rocks soooo hard.", just doesn't cut it when it is still the same price as anyone else pays.  Pretty much any Marine group can take some LRCs and shove troops into them by giving up HS choices.  Sure, they lose HS slots, but at those prices who can afford much other HS for those slots or need more than 2-3 anyway?
6) Sword Brethren units becoming equivalent to Sternguard/Vanguard was expected and not a bad thing if GW had intended to be honest about upgrading the Templars while saving some effort by placing them in the same book.
7)  The EC pretty much...stinks.  Not bad, but overpriced.

Given the changes to fluff, the spurious "chapter tactics" and the fact that the above, where it is good, is all the good there is...GW drives yet another person away.  I was chatting with my FLGS manager yesterday and after he thought about it, the few "serious" players they have left drop about $500 with each codex release, plus a bit from others who have that army.  The owner (manager of the second store) is already discussing what to replace their GW product wall with because of declining sales overall.  So the manager was happy to talk about me filling an empty game table on 40k game days with something else that others might want to start buying.

First things first, a common error among 40k players comes from their ignorance of the English language.  So, many of them see "heresy" and think that it means religion.  Although religious heresy is the subject of the primary definition of the word "heresy", it is not the only one.  So, when Space Marines, including Black Templar, speak of "heresy", it does not automatically mean that they consider the Emperor to be deity.  So both the priest of the Imperial Creed (who mean the religious type) and Space Marines can speak of "heresy" and not have the same import.  Why?  The other (and possibly original) definition of heresy:

a :  dissent or deviation from a dominant theory, opinion, or practice
b :  an opinion, doctrine, or practice contrary to the truth or to generally accepted beliefs or standards

So, you can have a "scientific heresy", "political heresy", "social heresy", or even "40k list building heresy".  It does not require acceptance of the Emperor as deity.

On the subject of the recent retcon, a number of people flinched and said they could "see that" BT might venerate those who had "touched the Emperor" (sanctioned psykers).  I thought about agreeing, it kinda, sorta sounded reasonable, but something kept stopping me from doing so, even though I remember arguing that since the Emperor had sanctioned Navigators and Astropaths, the Black Templar would accept them, so it wasn't that big a deal, right?  I found the answer in some of my recreational reading.  It goes a bit, you have been warned.

I'll have to see how things go.  40K has just ended up on the shelf.  Fortunately I have my KR Multicase coupon from NOVA, so I can start dealing with overflow of Dust Tactics models in a better way when they come off the shelf to be played and make room for 40k.

To all those who find being just another cog in the Codex Astartes smurf wagon, enjoy yourselves.  Seriously, just enjoy yourselves. 

The most common refrain from the GW apologists for the massive changes apparently coming to the Black Templar is the title along with "... because all Marines lost that since 4th Edition."  Let me blunt, they are stupid, morons, idiots & arseholes with the addition of various Anglo-Saxon derogatory four letter words added for additional emphasis..

True, 40k Radio may be not have the final print copy they claim and GW might have removed its collective head from its rear, but these are the issues being justified by that false to fact excuse.

We know how the year has been for Black Templar, especially starting it off with me vainly trying multiple variations last year to try to get some kind of list functioning.  In the end, having drifted to a BT/IG list that would have required buying, building & painting a bunch of vehicles (above & beyond) those that I had already bought in anticipation of 6th...I bailed out to my Necrons.  I was actually tempted to play them again since I already had a proven list variant from last NOVA and to field it would require two vehicles sitting in boxes on my shelf.  However, with the recent supposedly dead on accurate rumors of the smurfing...errr...."fixing" of the Black Templar by rolling them up into the Codex of Ultramarine Compliant Chapters, this might be my last shot at running Black Templar that are in at least shouting distance of playing like the fluff.

...in list planning.  After a few more games, I can state that my list and the minor variations of it are brutal in the dakka department.  It also works quite well in the grabbing objectives department.

Primary - The High Marshall's Own [IG]
1x CO Command Squad  w/ 4xSnipers [70]  Warlord
2x Ratlingsx3 [60]
2x IG Platoons (Points are doubled in the individual lines except for the SWS, only one of those)
--1x Plt Cmd, AC, 2xFlamer in Chimera [210]
--2x Inf Plt, AC, Flamer, Chimera [480]
--1x Heavy Weapon Squad w/ AC [150]
1x SWS (attached to one platoon), Flamer, 2xmelta [60] (ride in Valkyrie)
1x Valkyrie w/ HB sponsons [140]
1xArmored Sentinel w/ Plasma Cannon [75]
Detachment Total: [1245]

Ally - Panacea Crusade, Black Templars
1x EC w/ ATW [110]
1x THDC (2xCML/SB/PF, 3xSB/PF), Tank Hunter [265]
1x Crusader (5/0, LasCannon, Plasmagun, 3xBolters) [101]
1x StormTalon w Skyhammer ML [125]
Detachment Total: [601]

List Total: [1846]

NOTE  1: The Sentinel is a throw away placeholder.  I was sitting there with 79 points left over, couldn't make up my mind and I just happened to have this model that came as part of a lot I'd picked up on Ebay, so....  In any case, I'm a bit surprised by how well the little sucker has performed (including in CC, where it is AV12 all the time), but not enough to keep it.  It does tempt me to want to squeeze in the old TLLC/HF Dread though.

NOTE 2:  I've played a couple of odd point games (1900 & 2000) where I just added the Imperial Defense Line (by itself) and some bling in the 2k game.  I'm mixed on it.  Those games my HWS did better, but it takes careful use or it ends up cramping my mobility.

Anyway, on to the reason for the title of this post...

This is going to be a quick and dirty because I was more interested in a "learning" game than a more serious one, so I didn't even bother with notes.  Especially since January was my last game.

My list
EC-ATW
THDC Terminators
Las/Plas Crusader
Stormtalon (AssCan/SWML)

Co Cmd (4xSniper)
2x Inf Platoons of 1xPlt Cmd (AC, 2xFlamer, Chimera), 2x Inf (AC, Flamer, Chimera), HWS (AC)
1x SWS (2xMelta, Flamer) attached to one platoon to ride in Vendetta
2x Ratling Squads (3x Snipers)
Vendetta w/ Heavy Bolters.
Armored Sentinel w/ Plasma Cannon (hey, I got the model with some other stuff and it covered that last 75 points...)

Opponent, Coteaz in TDA
6 GKT squads (everything combat squads, so maybe only 3x) with a bit of bling.
Vindicare Sniper
StormRaven (empty)

Normal setup (long side) & Emperor's Will.  No night fighting, Warlord traits were never relevant.