The Raven Guard specialise in devastating strikes behind enemy lines, guerrilla warfare and rapid reaction to enemy manoeuvres. During the Great Crusade, the Raven Guard conquered countless worlds thought impregnable, by the precise application of force at an enemy's weakest point. At the outbreak of the Horus Heresy, the Raven Guard was almost destroyed, and only by employing the most desperate of measures, was the Legion saved.

After the massacre on Istvaan V, the Raven Guard had to make do with older armour and equipment. The resources were simply not available to re-equip them and even today there is a higher percentage of ancient suits of armour amongst the Chapter than most others. The owners of these suits view themselves as blessed by the Primarch and fight to prove themselves his equal.

The Raven Guard’s ability to have troops in vital locations to wreak havoc is legendary, and their mastery of rapid troop deployment and squad level tactics has been studied by many other Chapters. In several well-documented cases, the precise application of force in the right place has led to a rebellion being stopped before it has truly begun. However, their primary strength in battle is their ease of deployment. With most of the Chapter’s Space Marines usually being drop pod deployed, or otherwise mobile, they can rapidly reassess a combat situation immediately before engaging, which gives them the ability to deal effectively with a rapidly changing battlefield.

COMBAT DOCTRINE
The Raven Guard follows the dictates of the Codex Astartes closely, though they do differ in the tactical application of their troops. The Raven Guard depends heavily on Scout forces able to act alone for extended periods of time, and rapid reaction forces such as jump pack equipped assault troops. Quite commonly, they will deploy their Tactical squads in drop pod manoeuvres or Thunderhawks in response to intelligence gathered by their Scouts. The Chapter's forte in covert operations means that they will rarely engage in a frontal battle unless no other option presents itself. Where possible, the Raven Guard will use precise application of force to cripple their enemy while avoiding a protracted engagement.

Dreadnoughts of the Raven Guard, while rare, are also quite commonly deployed via drop pods. This approach leads to a Chapter which can assemble its forces extremely rapidly and can react quickly to unexpected developments. When their numbers were limited during the days of the Horus Heresy, the Chapter's troops became experts in guerrilla warfare, and this has carried on to the present day, with the Chapter very rarely utilising heavily armoured vehicles.