Any true Space Wolf player will enthusiastically insist that all of your Grey Hunters should take extra close combat weapons.
Firstly because that used to be their standard equipment in previous editions.
Secondly "because they're Space Wolves" and have a reputation for being fierce in close combat.
But let's stop a moment to do some Mathammer and see whether or not the upgrade is really worth it.
Or if, in a controversial move, you ditch Bolters altogether for Bolt Pistol and Close Combat Weapon!
Bolters Only
For easy maths, let's do this with 10 Grey Hunters. 2 of them have Melta Guns and 1 of them has been upgraded to a Wolf Guard, armed with a Combi-Melta.
That's 180pts.
They're going to shoot an enemy 12" away. That's 14 Bolter Shots, inflicting 10 Hits and 3 Melta Shots, inflicting 2 Hits.
In close combat the Space Wolves charge (or Counter-Attack!). That's 21 Attacks.
Shooting Orks = 7 Kills
Close Combat with Orks = 5 Kills
Shooting Imperial Guard = 9 Kills
Close Combat with Imperial Guard = 9 Kills
Shooting Chaos Marines = 4 Kills
Close Combat with Chaos Marines = 2 Kills
Bolters, Bolt Pistols and Close Combat Weapons
Let's do that again, but with an extra close combat attack.
They're going to shoot an enemy 12" away. That's 14 Bolter Shots, inflicting 10 Hits and 3 Melta Shots, inflicting 2 Hits.
In close combat the Space Wolves charge (or Counter-Attack!) and have extra close combat weapons. That's 31 Attacks.
Shooting Orks = 7 Kills
Close Combat with Orks = 8 Kills
Shooting Imperial Guard = 9 Kills
Close Combat with Imperial Guard = 13 Kills
Shooting Chaos Marines = 4 Kills
Close Combat with Chaos Marines = 3 Kills
Is it Worth it?
For an extra 20pts you can kill 3 Orks, 4 Imperial Guard or 1 Chaos Marine in a single round of combat. And that's not a bad return on your points.
So when you consider how much a pack of Grey Hunters can kill without the extra close combat weapons for 180pts, they certainly can't kill 180pts in a single turn of shooting and assault.
The only concern is if those Grey Hunters you've paid extra to give close combat weapons to get killed. Then you will have wasted even more points.
It's a tough one.
Alternatively you could always...
When you consider that it's Strength, Wounds and AP that cause the most kills (just compare firing Melta Guns over Bolters), perhaps giving the Wolf Guard a pair of Wolf Claws is a better investment in points?
So for +20pts (we'll drop the Combi-Melta) we can give the Wolf Guard +1 Attack with a Strength 5, AP3 close combat weapon with Shred.
Let's run the maths for the squad!
Shooting Orks = 6 Kills
Close Combat with Orks = 7 Kills
Shooting Imperial Guard = 8 Kills
Close Combat with Imperial Guard = 12 Kills
Shooting Chaos Marines = 3 Kills
Close Combat with Chaos Marines = 4 Kills
Overall the numbers are lower for shooting and close combat, except for close combat with Chaos Marines.
But the thing is, you need to try to keep 1 model safe in the squad in order to keep your close combat attacks up.
This means that you can afford to take some casualties, so long as you don't lose the Wolf Guard. But can you really keep up with that kind of micro management in the middle of a game with your Grey Hunters getting shot at from all angles?
Possibly not.
Versatility is Key to Success
The one thing I must emphasise with Grey Hunters is that you NEED to get them into Rapid Fire range with their Bolters to make them an effective unit.
Then you NEED them to get stuck in to close combat to kill even more of the enemy and hide from the enemy's guns.
A 5 man squad sitting at the back of the board with a Plasma Gun is just a fat waste of 80pts. You're not going to be able to out-shoot 80pts of Imperial Guard, Firewarriors or even Orks with that.
So Grey Hunters need to get stuck in and be as versatile as possible.
14pts for a Grey Hunter with a Bolter or 16pts for a Grey Hunter with a Bolter and + 1 Attack?
I can see tournament players who go for the minimalist approach not paying for the upgrade and just rapid firing those Bolters and Special Weapons while doing their best to stay out of close combat.
Personally, I know I'm not going to be able to stay out of close combat.
I WANT to get into close combat when the moment is right, because it stops armies with greater firepower than the Space Wolves from blowing my Grey Hunters away. It also helps my army to push its way up the board and chase down enemy units.
Also, Space Wolves have Counter-Attack as their Chapter wide special rule. And by giving our Grey Hunters extra Close Combat Weapons we can make the most of what defines a Space Wolves army.
I've always found that being versatile is the greatest strength of the Grey Hunters who have forever been the core Troop choice of the Space Wolves army.