My friend got it finally, so I've been playing it here and there.

So far, the tactics based gameplay of having to constantly manage your units is awesome.

I don't understand why people keep thinking the gameplay was dumbed down, you do the EXACT amount of fast clicking as you would while playing the old-fashioned RTS style of base-building, just now it's combat-oriented and bloody.

I'm actually using the abilities of squads at a constant rate, unlike the original where I would just mass units and right click the enemy base. Ya it's fun seeing an entire bloodshed battle take place, but there's hardly any interaction once that starts. The most interaction you do in the original Dawn of War was the process of teching, researching, and building bases. That gets boring after a while, especially in the DC and SS campaigns of having TO BUILD THE SAME FUCKING BASE OVER AND OVER AGAIN. This isn't Age of Empires or Civilization where strategy makes sense in the long run, the concept of RTS with Starcraft, Company of Heroes, and Dawn of War is a hybrid of RTS and RTT. Strategy is long term, tactics are short-term and here and now.

That being said, I still like all types of these games, I am looking forward to Starcraft 2. I just like games in general

Back on topic:

Though honestly, I can see perhaps base-building return for an Imperial Guard campaign, in which your first mission is to clear out an area of enemies or just move your troops and supplies into an unoccupied area and you, in real time, build your HUGE base, setting up warehouses, barracks, bunkers, emplacements, command center, rockrete walls, etc etc.

And you conduct your mission from there, in real time by direct your troops across the map (strategy) and upgrade your base over the long run (strategy) and whenever there is a conflict, you switch to the view of the units you sent out and fight the battles like in the Dawn of War 2 campaign (tactics). This, IMO, would be the perfect blend of RTS and RTT, but in the most sense possible, as you wouldn't be building a base constantly in the middle of a battlefield but you'd still have a strategic area to operate from.

But that's in the future, one can hope. Anyways, gotta get back to the campaign, still haven't gotten that far but hot damn this game is good. Marines are fluffy and powerful, Heavy bolter rounds explode around the ground when they miss (still awesome), and overall it's just... fun.

Word of caution: Primarch difficulty is like what would happen if Games Workshop allowed the plot to advance and the enemies of the Imperium then crush everything in their path. Playing on Captain for now