6th Edition Starter Box Details!

Beasts of War, certainly the coolest looking gaming news site, has posted some great infoon the new 6th edition boxed set. 

So the word has been out for some time that the new Warhammer 40K starter box, replacing Assault on Black Reach, will (or is that should) contain Dark Angels and Chaos Marines… but is that really true… and if it is, what will you get?

Well, you might feel better to know there are still some insiders in the Stalinist like regime that is GW who want the fans to be excited and those plucky rebels have braved the wrath of the mighty Empire to bring you some solid information on the contents of the new box… information that bodes very well for those interested, not only in starting 40K, but those with existing collections too!

So here we go… and remember… many Bothan spies lost their lives bringing you this information!

Chaos Cultists are in!

That’s right all you Chaos players… I refused point blank to believe that GW would ever release Chaos Cultist, but they have. The Dark Vengeance boxed set (did I not mention the name previously?) will have 2 units of 10 Chaos Cultist models, one armed with auto-guns (with a shotgun & CC weapon for the leader and a Heavy Stubber support trooper) and one with auto-pistol & CC weapon (with 2 CC weapons for the leader and a Flamer support model).

The Chaos Cultist look like everything you’ve ever wanted for Chaos. They’re bound in rags, with metal half-masks and weapons that suit the cobbled-together, improvised look that you expect from the dregs of Chaos.

But that’s not all for those naughty Chaos worshippers; they’re getting a unit of 6 Chosen…elite Chaos Space Marines, armed with a variety of Power Weapons (a Maul on the Sergeant, a Power Fist, a Chain Axe and a set of Lightning Claws by the look of things). The remaining Chosen are armed with Boltguns, but this bodes well for the potential that these exemplars of Chaos might get some more customisable options in the upcoming new Chaos Marines codex.

To lead your forces, you have the obligatory Chaos Lord, armed with a Power Sword & Plasma Pistol. His pose is a bit static, but that is only in comparison to the much more animated Chosen.

Lastly… what would Chaos be without something big and menacing to bring to the table? Well… how about a brand new model… the Hellbrute!

The massive Hellbrute model comes equipped with a Multi-Melta & Power Fist. Suggesting that this isn’t a Dreadnought replacement, but is in fact a huge suit of specialist armour crewed by a Chaos Marine (or more likely a Champion). Actually, the model resembles a huge suit of Terminator Armour with lots of cool Chaos gribbly bits… I’m hoping for a Monstrous Creature that acts like the Dreadknight… what about all you Chaos fans? What would you like it to be?

But what about the Dark Angels?

They haven’t been left wanting and with a new codex (no doubt in their future) there is quite a bit to have a look at.

Firstly, they wouldn’t be Space Marines without the obligatory 10 man Tactical Squad. However, the Dark Angel Tactical-Squad has a twist… it’s got Plasma!

The ordinary Space Marine grunts come sporting a Boltgun, but the squad also has a Plasma Gunner and a Heavy Plasma Cannon model giving support… and just to round out the theme… a Plasma Pistol/Chainsword Sergeant.

Looks like that squad will be getting hot!

The Tactical Squad also has a mixture of poses, this time around. Some of the Bolter-totting Marines are holding their ubiquitous weapon at jaunty angles to make the squad look a bit more animated… and it works too… good job GW!

The Marine side wouldn’t be Space Marines without a smattering of Terminators… so you get a squad of 5 of them. It’s a pretty standard squad, with Stormbolter/Power Fist, with a Power Sword Sergeant. However, you do get an Assault Cannon and Chainfist option… and true to previous form… the models now come in a variety of more dynamic poses with the squad sergeant even sporting Wings but thankfully no nipple armour!

The last squad in the box is a unit of 3 Space Marine (or Ravenwing) Bikers, with Sergeant and one Biker sporting Bolt Pistol/Chainsword and the third Biker packing a Plasma Gun. The models look similar to previous Ravenwing Bikers (with that big wing banner on the back) and are probably the least inspiring out of the box.

But let’s not end on a low… let’s talk about the Dark Angel Triple Whammy… 3 Heroes!

The box will contain a Dark Angels Company Master (Balthasar)… resplendent with his erect Power Sword!

A Dark Angels Librarian… with a slightly less impressive looking Force Sword… and a limited edition Interrogator Chaplain, who’s Power Armour (including smoking exhaust details) and embellished robe might be the most ostentatious model in the box!

That’s all the models in the box… but what about the Rulebook?

I know many of you have been planning to buy the box (price TBC) in order to get your hands on the smaller rulebook. So rest easy… there will be one in the box.

There will also be templates and a new How to Play Dark Vengeance booklet, that allows you to jump right into the action.

So there you go all you 40K fans… that’s what you can expect very soon to help get your pals interested in your favourite game.

Thanks to Beasts of War, a website that has really been making its name in the hobby.  And check out the art of Celeng, who did the above art.  His Deviantart page is here.

Loken

Horus Heresy New Releases - Audio Books

More Horus Heresy goodness headed your way from The Black Library.  The whole Garro series, which brings us the beginnings of the Grey Knights, is being done in audio book/MP3 form.

Garro: Sword of Truth

A Black Library Audio Book that continues the Garro saga.

The story

Nathaniel Garro, knight errant and agent of the Sigillite, returns from the battlefields of Calth to find a new mission already waiting for him – a ragged fleet of Space Marines from several Legions lingers at the edge of the Terran system. With the presence of World Eaters and Emperor’s Children causing concern among the loyalist defenders and drawing a grim parallel with his own frantic flight, Garro must look beneath the obvious if he is to determine friend from foe...

Grey Angel

A Horus Heresy audio drama written by John French. Performed by John Banks, Toby Longworth and Ramon Tikaram. Running time approx 35 mins.

THE STORY

On a distant world of the Imperium, an agent of Rogal Dorn finds himself the prisoner of a Legion whose loyalties may be divided. Shackled and bound, the former Luna Wolf must fight a battle of wits with his captor, lest the course of the Horus Heresy take an unexpected turn. Will his very presence drive his erstwhile allies into the arms of the Warmaster or will maintaining the status quo prevent another Legion from turning traitor? And just who is the mysterious Space Marine aiding him from the shadows?

This is all good news for me.  I am a huge Horus Heresy fan and Garro's story has been an anchor of the series since "Flight of the Eisenstein", which many feel is one of the best of the Horus Heresy books.

Loken

Black Library "Fear to Tread" and Other Posters Available

The Black Library has been releasing posters of every cover of their Horus Heresy range of novels ever since "Horus RIsing".  I own every single one, and now just need enough walls to put them all on!  The posters have been sold out and then restocked from time to time, and now The Black Library has them ALL in stock.  Check them out here.

The "Fear to Tread" poster is the latest release.  You get Sanguinius battling a greater Daemon on a world in flames!

And here is the requisite "Fear to Tread" video trailer.

Forge Planet Releasing New Weapon Systems

Well, the name isn't very original.  I mean "Forge Planet"?  You couldn't find a better name than a knock off for "Forge World"?  OK, whatever.  Let's see how you do with the resin stuff...

Well, they do pretty well so far, at least judging by their website.  They obviously plan to do accessories for all races, but right now are concentrating on Space Marines (Space Legions) and Imperial Guard (Planetary Guard).  Again, not very original, but we all know the game here:  avoid GW IP lawyers.

Well, first go check out their website for ongoing info and a web store.  Forge Planet.

So what have they released so far? Well, first there are Walker Double Autocannons.

These sell for $ 10.95 a pair.

Then there are Razorback Turrets.There are all the usual suspects, and they are $ 10.95 each.  They also sell teh weapons without the mounts, or just the mounts. I love the las-plas one.

And the video they produced:

Centurion Weapon System

And the Video for the Centurion: 

I am all for supporting new resin manufacturers and so I hope you will give these guys a try! 

Loken

Forgeworld Games Day Seminar Notes - The Horus Heresy

Well, the Horus Heresy news from Forgeworld has been well discussed.  Mostly arguments about why fanboys don't want the Horus Heresy to be in game form vs. those like me who LOVE the idea.  But here is some more info that came out of the Forgeworld Seminar:

Horus Heresy will be an ongoing series of books.

All Major Factions, Space Marine or otherwise, will be covered.

The 6th Edition rulebook will be controlling.  So the books will use 6th Edition rules.

These are not technically "Imperial Armour" books, but a separate line of books.

LOTS of models to go with the books.

The books will be large, deluxe format books.


Plus, some rumors that have been circulated:

It is not clear how the chapters will be released.  Will it follow the order of the Horus Heresy books from The Black Library, or will it be strictly chronological, or will it be something else?

Supposedly no new models, but chapter upgrades and characters.    However, this goes against what we heard in the seminar, which was pretty specific that there would be LOTS of models to go with the series.  Personally, I think this rumor is wrong.  Forge World doesn't put out big, impressive books, without lots of models to sell.

That is all for now!

Loken

Forgeworld Rules for 6th Edition

Forgeworld has released new rules for 6th Edition.  There are 10 different PDFs that deal with different aspects of the game and different units.  You can download them on the Forgeworld Downloads page here.

From Forgeworld:

Forge World is currently preparing FAQs intended to provide completely updated rules for all of the Imperial Armour and Imperial Armour Apocalypse books released prior to the arrival of the sixth edition of Warhammer 40,000. If you have any queries about Imperial Armour rules, army lists or units, please send an e-mail, including examples of how this query has come up in play, entitled ‘Imperial Armour rules query’ to forgeworld@gwplc.com. You can also call 0115 900 4995 within the UK, 011 44 115 900 4995 from the US and Canada or 00 44 115 900 4995 from much of Europe.

Apocalypse Update - 20/07/2012

Decimator Update - 20/07/2012

Deimos Predator Executioner Update - 20/07/2012

Heavy Artillery Carriage Update - 20/07/2012

Imperial Armour Allies Update - 20/07/2012

Imperial Guard Rapier Update - 20/07/2012

Space Marine Rapier - 20/07/2012

Psykers - 20/07/2012

Vehicles Update - 20/07/2012

Spartan Assault Tank Experimental Rules - 20/07/2012


I will be reviewing the new rules shortly, so stay tuned.

Loken. 

Resin Roundup!

So much new stuff coming out, so I am going to cover some of it today and some of it Wednesday.

PUPPETS WAR

Puppets War is one of the most prolific and consistent makers of resin accessories.  They have been releasing head swaps, vehicle accessories, Razorback turrets and more.  I have bought a bunch form them and you can find their website here.

More Samurai Heads

Demonic Swords

Demonic Axes

Missile Turret Mk 2

KROMLECH

Kromlech is one of my favorite resin accessory makers as they release product at a regular rate and produce quality stuff for Imperials, Marines, CSM, Orks and other races.  They specialize in head swaps and extra weapons.

You can see Kromlech's range and keep up with them here. And their web store is on eBay here.

Their latest releases are below.

Sons of Thor Backpacks - Yeah, we all know they are for Space Wolves, but Kromlech is just smart about what they call them.

Ork Commisar

Ork Remote Controlled Mines

More coming, so stay tuned.

Loken

Forgeworld to Release Horus Heresy Books

The Horus Heresy is coming! Forgeworld has announced that it will be releasing Book 1 of a series on The Horus Heresy. Check out the teaser trailer.

And now let me say that is the most BORING trailer I have seen from GW. Come on guys. 16 year olds with a Mac do better video than that. And you are talking about the most EPIC of battles. UGH. Getting tired of these lame "trailers".

But I am excited to lose my retirement savings to gaming! Bring on the Thousand Sons! This is going to bring a whole new aspect to Warhammer 40K.

Loken

Chaos Daemons up on Advance Order!

21 Daemon items are up on Games Workshop's 40K Advance Order section.  Find everything here.

A few of the best new items:

Exalted Seeker Chariot of Slaanesh

Seeker Chariot of Slaanesh

Flamers of Tzeentch

Off to Disney for the weekend, so there may be no updates till Monday.

Loken

Giveaway Winner and Next Week's prize!

THIS WEEK'S GIVE AWAY

T-Hawk from 102 Projects won our set of FOUR Custom Minis Dreadnaught Autocannon Arms.   So if T-Hawk would contact me, we will arrange Custom Minis to ship your prize to you!

And the next giveaway is a ANOTHER set of FOUR Custom Minis Dreadnaught Autocannon Arms.This is enough to make two Rifleman Dreadnaughts.

Next Friday we will pick one winner from all the comments on this weeks blogs.  So what do you have to do to win?

1)  Follow our blog.  Over on the right column is a section that is titled "Followers".  Just click on "Join this site" and you will be added to our followers.

2)  Friend Apocalypse40K on Facebook.

3)  Post a comment on any article between now and Sunday.   It doesn't matter what, but put some effort into it (At least a full sentence!).

We will pick one Follower from our blog this coming Friday and then make sure he/she is following us on Facebook.  If so, you win.  And Custom Minis will ship the Dreadnaught Arms to you for free.

Loken

Black Library Releases Space Wolves Anthology

The Black Library has released another eBook and this time it is an anthology of Space Wolves stories, including some only available as audio books previously.

THE STORY

These are the sagas of the Great Wolves, the Lords of Fenris and the Champions of Asaheim. Heed their legends and be ready for the charge of the Rout! Vlka Fenryka!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Includes:

• Kraken by Chris Wraight - Originally published as an eShort - 2012
• Twelve Wolves by Ben Counter - Originally published in Legends of the Space Marines
• Deathwolf by Andy Smillie (prose) - Originally released as an audio
• Deathwolf by Andy Smillie (script)
• Thunder From Fenris by Nick Kyme (prose) - Originally released as an audio
• Thunder From Fenris by Nick Kyme (script)
• Runes by Chris Wraight - Originally published in Victories of the Space Marines

You can buy the eBook here.

Loken

New Black Library Releases - Blood Angels and Imperial Guard

The Black Library is bringing out a lot of eBooks lately, since they take a fraction of the effort of a printed book.  Here are the two latest 40K ebooks.

Eclipse of Hope by David Annandale

A short story about the Blood Angels featuring Mephiston!  I think one way that The Black Library makes the game of 40K itself more interesting is by doing stories of its named characters, so those characters are more interesting when we use them in a game.

From The Black Library:

When Mephiston and the Blood Angels discover a world slain in a massacre that defies reason, they must unearth the cause of this mass killing but risk their own sanity to do it.

Iron Guard by Mark Clapham 

Nice to see The Black Library giving even an out of favor division of The Imperial Guard its due.  But will writing about units like the Mordian Guard mean that Games Workshop might wind up releasing corresponding models in the future if the book is a hit?

From The Black Library:

The pride of Mordian arrive at the mining world of Belmos VII, unaware of the terrible affliction plaguing the local populace. What manner of daemon or xenos could cause such horror?

There is so much coming out from the Black Library now that there is something for everyone.  And short stories are rather cheap in eBook form.  So give them a try.

Loken

More Chaos Daemon info...

More Daemon rumors hitting the Internet.  This is from 40k Daemon:

Screamers

Screamers now cost 9 more points per model and have two wounds, 3 attacks at S5 AP2 with armourbane.  Better against most vehicles.  Probably a bit worse against Land Raiders, but I haven't done the math yet.

Update:  A single screamer has a 21% chance to blow up a Land Raider under the new rules and a 19% chance to do it under the current rules.  Pretty much unchanged.

They also get a slashing attack that works like a vector strike if they turboboost.  It's d3 S4 AP- hits which stinks, but it does say that hits are resolved from where they end their move, which kind of gives you a clue about how you should resolve vector strikes.

Screamers are now terminator killers in addition to anti-armor thanks to 4 S5 AP2 attacks on the charge at I4.  They lost their 4+ save, which is now 5+. 

Hellflayer

The new fast attack choice.  You can only have a squad of one (LOLwhut?!).  It costs 10 points more than a naked Herald.  It's a non-skimmer chariot that is fast and open-topped with AV 11 (Immune to bolters) and two hull points.  Its Hammer of Wrath attacks are S4 AP- rending and it deals an extra D6 HOW attacks for each hull point it has left, (so 2D6 HOW attacks at full HP.).  Terrible!

Soulscent allows the Alluress to take a few more swings for each unsaved wound caused by the HOW attacks before she almost certainly dies.  This makes it worth 20 points more than aSeeker Chariot.

It is Fast and Fleet so it can move 12" after deep striking and reroll the charge move.

This is a disappointing unit.  Why only one per squad?  If you have a few points left over for a bugsmasher I guess you could field this. 

Seeker Chariots and Exalted Seeker Chariots

Ok so these come in a squadron of 1-3 and have Fleshshredder but not Soulscent.  They are on friggin huge bases so you'd better have a lot of space to deep strike them.

The exalted chariot has 4 HP so can do 4D6 HOW hits.  A squadron could do up to 12D6 HOW hits for 270 points.  Which gets you about 7 rending hits plus 36 S4 hits on average.  This will kill most anything that is not flying or a Land Raider or Draigowing.  It had better, too because those Alluresses will not survive combat.

So here's the question.  A Herald of Slaanesh can take a Seeker Chariot.  Can it join a squadron of Seeker Chariots?  It seems like they should be able to, but I can't find a clear answer in the rulebook.

Here's the next question.  The Alluress dies if the Chariot is blowed up, but does the Herald?  I'm inclined to say no because it's an IC and would probably be allowed to get off just like the Necron barge Lord. 

I have been looking for an HQ choice to bridge the gap between 2k point games and 1500 and below since Heralds are all flawed and GDs are too expensive.  A Herald on a Seeker Chariot may be the answer.  

Flamers

HEY! GW realized these guys were horrible so they made them somewhat better.  The cost is dropped 12 points (I think that's a 3, not a 5), they have 2 wounds and I4.  You can now take a 5 point upgrade character who is there for Look Out Sir! and not for the extra attack on his profile.

Oh and you can't take Bolt of Tzeentch anymore (Sob!)

It is now a viable strategy to run a Herald on a disk with this unit for LoS wound allocation.  In fact, it's a better idea than a Tzerald on a chariot.  They may just survive long enough to reach spitting distance.

Oh, by the way, the save is 5+ now.

I think they're still not as good as Fiends, but definitely much improved.


We are pretty close to the release date, so I am guessing the above is right on!
 
Loken

Chaos Daemons are coming! Videos and Release Date

Well, it is confirmed that Chaos Daemons are winging there way to stores. We will see them in the New White Dwarf and they have a new codex.  Here are the release dates:

AUGUST 4th 

Plaguebearers (Plastic) 29.00 USD (10 Man box) 

Screamers (Plastic) 29.75 USD (3 figures) 

Flamers (Plastic) 20.00 USD (3 Figures) 

Seekers Chariot of Slaanesh (Plastic) 29.75 USD (1 Model) 

Nurglings (Plastic) 25.00 USD (3 figures) 

The Blue Scribes (resin) 40.00 USD 

The videos in Danish, but the images are what counts! 

And another:

We are in for a wild ride the last half of the year, with Daemons, Chaos and Dark Angels all rumored to be coming our way now. 

Loken

LOTS of Chaos Rumors.......

Blood of Kittens continues to break more rumors than any other site and usually has very good info. TastyTaste's post this time not only reviews previous rumors by Skcuzzlebumm, which appeared here and all over, but he posted a TON of new stuff.

Skcuzzlebumm Review (TastyTaste's comments in bold)

-Release date: September 1st (my guess as well)
-Hard back (my guess as well)
-There is an Eye of the Gods-like table ~like the WFB  Warriors of Chaos table.
You get to roll on whenever a character kills another character in a challenge, or a Walker or Monstrous Creature. There is a multitude of gifts (and curses) that your Characters can acquire which range from +1 Save, +1 Toughness, or becoming either a Spawn or a Daemon Prince!!! (Sorta True — trying to lump all the funky stuff into one table  is not totally accurate. CSM codex is table land. Expect many random charts and upgrades it will be hard to keep track.)
-Chaos Cultists are in (true– said this and others before)
-The Dragon flyer is in  – think Necron Night Scythe with the main chassis replaced by a massive mechanical dragon head with segmented wings sweeping forward and around from it. (True – The thing looks like a dragon head attached to the Owl from Clash of the Titans)
-Dark Apostles – ~Word Bearers rejoice!!! (True– but more of cultist leader/moral buffer)
-Warp Smiths – Chaos Techmarines that can curse vehicles and degrade terrain. ~maybe they’ll have anti-psychotic grenades ( True -Think Doc Ock )
-New Daemon Engine – half way between a Dreadnought and a Defiler. (True -I would say halfway between Defiler and Trygon)
-Defilers are Daemons and have a 5+ Inv save. (Yes a Demon, and some extra lovin…)
-’Cult’ units are all Elites and are unlocked to Troops by appropriate HQ choices (True- Said this before, but have some good news on that front)
-No Cult Terminators ~boo hiss!!! (-True, boo hiss!!!)
-Obliterators are exclusively for shooting – so no powerfists. (-False they will shoot, but still have a powerfist)
HOWEVER there is a new unit which is basically a close combat Obliterator. (True)
-There are 2 types of Raptors now: regular CSMs with Jump Packs, and Possessed Daemonic Raptors with Lightning Claws. (True)
-Possessed take multiple benefits from the Eye of the Gods table. (not sure)
-NO Daemons in the Codex. (true, but allies FTW!)

And now on to TastyTaste's Rumors:

–Important Designer Note–

The new CSM codex is not a return to the 3rd edition codex, this is the successor to Gav Thorpe’s creation– the current CSM codex. Unlike before Phil Kelly was put in charge of  building from the ground up; Space Wolves, Dark Eldar, and Orks codexes he instead has taken a much more subtle approach with the CSM Codex. This is not the reinvention of the wheel at its core this is a validation for Gav Thorpe and perhaps if you could ask Gav, Phil Kelly’s CSM codex would have been the codex he wished he could have written, but wasn’t allowed to.

–What will be Released–

We will know if GW has changed policy. This codex will reveal if GW has abandoned the wave method to model release with a new codex or if they have stopped caring and show you all the new models even if they don’t come out right away.

Finecast: Dark Apostle, Warsmith, New Lord, Oblits, All Old Special Characters not updated already

New Plastic: Dragon, Raptors, Dreadnaught, Demon Engine, Assault Oblits, Chosen

Upgrade Packs: Plague Marines, 1k Sons, Emperor’s Children

–General Changes–

Almost all of the old units are either the same point cost or have gotten cheaper. With the notable exceptions of Chosen, Terminators, Defilers getting more expensive. The notable cheaper ones being basic CSM, Oblits, Zerkers,  The CSM is really an upgrade codex, while things have gotten cheaper you will be hard pressed to keep your units inexpensive with all the wargear you can add. The cheaper units doesn’t come without a cost as well, almost all units saw a LD drop. Also you will start to see a lot of the new USRs in the CSM book.

 –What has stayed the Same–

The Cult units are the same in stats and basic wargear. No new Spacial Characters. Abbadon is still the only one with Eternal Warrior. Demon Weapons still can kill you. The Dreadnaught is still Crazy. The unit sizes have stayed the same as well as the wargear options found in the old codex; e.g. Chosen can still get a butt load special weapons.

–Psychic Powers–

As can you expect each Chaos God gives their chosen Sorcerer access to their own set of spells. That allows you to pick from Basic Spells and the new ones for each God. If anyone was wondering Lash of Submission is gone.

Ok now that we got the basics out-of-the-way let us get to the good stuff

–Daemons–

A good number of units in the CSM codex have this USR.

• Raptors
• Oblits
• CC Oblit
• Defilers
• Demon Engines
• Dragons
• Possessed
• Demon Prince

–It Will Not Die–

Wonder who was getting this new USR well you guessed it CSM is.

• Dragons
• Defilers
• Demon Engines

–Demon Possessed–

Demon possessed just got a whole bunch cuter really. Instead of not being able to embark in demon possessed vehicles they now will only eat one of your guys and repair itself. Otherwise works the same way as before lose BS and ignore shaken and stunned, In addition some things get wargear automatically.

• Dragons
• Defliers
• Demon Engines

–Challenges–

All CSM characters must always accept challenges

–Icons and Marks–

Marks and Icons are both purchasable by most units. That means you have five new Icons and the same four marks, in which units can have a combination of two. This is a list of the USRs and stat bonus possible.

• Fearless
• FnP
• +1 T
• +1 Invul Save
• Rage
• Soul Blaze
• Furious Charge
• Fear
• +1 I

–Space Marines Better Hide–

Almost all CSM units get Hatred Space Marines. Now I am not sure if this includes all Space Marine variants or just Smurfs and friends.

–?Eye of the Gods Table?–

Yeah this will be the chart to end all charts and competitive players will cry everywhere because it is random. All 60+random abilities! Yes you heard it right over 60! How it works I don’t know, but characters can get multiple rolls on the chart through various methods.

Time for some specific models right? Sure why not!

–Dragon–

Oh the Dragon yeah the model on everyone mind. This is a CSM answer to other flyers it is designed almost exclusively to hunt and destroy other flyers. Clocking in about the same points cost of Carnifex these little hell on wings Vector Strike and bring pain to a lot of things. Did I mention it gets to re-roll wounds and armor pens.

–Demon Engines–

The other mystery model that has been leaked. These guys sit on the large bases like Trygons. They have an assortment of special weapons that have never been seen before. They are designed for Building and Heavy armor destruction with Melta CC weapons and bonuses against buildings. They as well get to re-roll wounds and armor pens.  Side note: Defilers as well get to re-roll wounds and armor pen. 

–Dragons, Demon Engines, Defilers oh my-

So let me put this in perspective. All these models ignore shaken and stunned, have 5+ invul saves, re-roll wounds and armor pens, and can recover wounds and hull points lost.

–Cult Units–

I know much of the Internet was crying about them only being in the Elite slot when I first mentioned it. How dare they force me to take Kharn to spam Berserkers! Well don’t worry is not as bad as you think. You can also get a generic Lord and buy the correct mark and unlock them as troops as well. As for the rules themselves just minor changes.

• Zerkers: Rage, Cheaper
• 1k Sons: Soul Fire, Same cost
• Emperor Children: Weapons Ignore cover and now have Salvo USR, Cheaper
• Plague Marines: Poison Weapons, More Expensive

–Typhus and Cultists–

Typhus is now a mastery level 2 sorcerer of Nurgle. In addition as reported earlier he can make any cultist a zombie. Zombies are going to be disgusting in 6th edition. FnP, Fearless, Fear, and all for no additional cost. As for Cultists they are cheap not conscript cheap, but close. You can get over 30 of them in a squad.

–Daemon Princes, Sorcerers , Chaos Lords–

Princes got more expensive wargear bringing them in line with the Demon Codex. Sorcerers are pretty much the same with the ability to buy up to Master level 3, but they only ever have 2 wounds. Chaos Lords are where it seems to be at, Phil Kelly wants you to design a Lord tailored to your army, their list of wargear options is easily the largest of any model in the book. Also remember they allow you to make Cult Units troops.

Ok that is all I got for now, depending on how the week goes and what GW does I might get more rumors for you, but until now that is all I got. Wait, no I just remembered something…

Please check out the Blood of Kittens site.

Loken

Has 6th Edition Killed Off the Thunderhawk?

A guest blog by Michael Ovsenik.

Once upon a time, the mere mention of this gunship’s name struck fear into the heart of 40k players near and far, but with the arrival of 6^th edition I can’t help but wonder whether the crown jewel of my collection has become obsolete.  Having run this massive chunk of resin in several Apocalypse games, I have come to realize just how difficult it is to maneuver on the gaming table, but worth all the frustration after its main cannon tore apart the armies beneath it.

It was incredibly fast and extremely hard to hit, only a few other flyers in the game had weapons with built in anti-aircraft systems capable of hitting it at full ballistic skill, and even fewer ground based units, most deadly to flyers being the Necron Pylon and the Imperial Guard Hydra tank. With Games Workshop’s decision to expand flyers into standard games the Thunderhawk is now an overpriced gunboat incapable of keeping up with this newer generation of flyers.

As you can see in the picture above the Thunderhawk is roughly three times the size of its smaller cousin the Storm Raven (forgive the lack of paint they are a work in progress).  For the cost of one Thunderhawk you can field 4 Storm Ravens which under 6^th edition rules even with 3 structure points (equals out to 12 hull points),  would spell doom for the Thunderhawk every time. The Storm Raven is more heavily armored and its missile systems are far superior to those found on the Thunderhawk.  Also with the introduction of the Skyfire rule the Storm Ravens can strike the Thunderhawk with its full ballistic skill. Under 6^th edition it would only take 2 Storm Ravens 1 to 2 turns at the max to down a Thunderhawk with its missiles and other weapons.

The Thunderhawk is now going through a major identity crisis. They used to label it a multipurpose troop carrier/bomber, but with Flyers being added to every list on the planet, there would be no reason to switch from missiles to bombs on the Thunderhawk. It would need every weapon it has to fight off the newer flyers cruising around it. The Thunderhawk is not built for dogfighting that much is obvious, but a vehicle so entrenched in Warhammer 40k fluff as being the best of the best deserves an upgrade in my opinion. With Imperial Armour Aeronatica due out on the 27^th of July and the Thunderhawk Gunship is listed in the Table of Contents hopefully it will receive the upgrade it deserves.

Here are some comparisons points wise when examining the Thunderhawk, for its points you can purchase 5 Necron Night Scythes loaded with 5 warriors in each or 5 Doom Scythes with Death Rays and Tesla weaponry capable of cutting through a Thunderhawks armour.

Marines have as I mentioned above the Storm Raven with its awesome Flyer destroying missiles and two other potent  weapon systems capable of hurting a Thunderhawk, should note though the Blood Angel variant’s missiles are better at downing flyers, the Grey Knight Storm Raven’s missiles can barely harm a Rhino.

Then there is the Storm Talon which has more than enough weaponry to put a serious hurting on the Thunderhawk, and for the cost of one Thunderhawk you can purchase 6 Storm Talons.

I saved the best for last. I know there are other flyers out there, but the coup de grace is the Imperial Guard Vendetta. For the cost of one Thunderhawk you can field 7, yes 7 Vendettas all kitted out with 3 twin linked Lascannons, that’s 21 twin linked Lascannon shots, say buh bye to the Thunderhawk.

I guess the one good thing that can be said about the Thunderhawk is its transport capacity, right? Wrong!  The brand spanking new Storm Eagle from Forge World can carry up to 20 power armoured marines, or a full ten man squad of Terminators, the Thunderhawk has a carrying capacity of 30. The Storm Eagle is a little more expensive than its smaller Raven or Talon brethren, but you can still pick up 3 Storm Eagles kitted out to the gills for the price of 1 Thunderhawk.

The Thunderhawk has one thing going for it that all of these smaller flyers do not have though - the ability to take a Destroyer weapon. This is none too shabby, considering Titans are the only imperial vehicles that can normally carry a Destroyer type weapon. The problem here is the confusion regarding the FAQ Forge World just released; Super Heavy Vehicles have always been able to fire all of their weapons at different targets, and in 6^th edition, the Skyfire rule states that all flyers can fire in Skyfire mode or fire at the ground.

As a super heavy flyer is the Thunderhawk bound to this rule as well? If so the Thunderhawk will have to either try and kill everything it can on the ground before being swarmed by a half dozen smaller flyers, or forgo its Destroyer shot (as it can’t hurt flyers) and use its secondary weapons against the flyers coming at it.

Now I realize that Games Workshop and Forge World will be selling thousands of the new flyers for every one Thunderhawk, but that is no reason to leave the Thunderhawk out in the cold. Hopefully they will make it right when Imperial Armour Aeronatica comes out on the 27th. What are your opinions on the new flyers? Let us know below.

Special thanks again to fellow Freshcoast40k member Maelstrom for all the hard work he put into my Thunderhawk.

The Titan Manufactorum Goes Live.

Spyros Kypriotis (Who goes by Tsipis) is the brains behind The Titan Manufactorum, which produces 40K scale Titans for Apocalypse players.  Check out his new site as he has lots of Titan goodies and his models are very reasonably priced.

We previously did an interview with Tsipis you can read here.

Here is the new "Guardian" Titan he is working on, which is basically a Knight Titan.

And a video for your enjoyment:

Tsipis wil be writing some detailed articles on his Titans and we will have them up for you soon. 

Loken 

Bardus Tactica - Controlling Transports

Can a Rhino control an objective in 6th edition? Yes and no.

A guest blog by Sam White.

Whilst skimming the 6th edition rulebook, I came across something interesting. On page 109, we learn that Dedicated Transports count as the same branch of the Force Org. as the unit they were purchased for. So what does this mean?

Well, in the mission Big Guns Never Tire, the Heavy Metal rule allows Heavy Support vehicles to control objectives. Guess what? That dedicated transport you bought for your Devastators, that now counts as a Heavy Support option, can now take that objective. This same effect applies for Fast Attack units in the mission 'The Scouring'.

This allows a clever player to sneak a harmless little Rhino, that's now scoring, up to an objective at the end of the game. That's silly though. With only 3 hull points and armor 11, a Rhino may not be something to rely on for this. Let's say, however, you play Blood Angels, and buy your Vanguard Veterans a Land Raider as a dedicated transport. You now have something that has 14 armor and 4 hull points that can park up on an objective and steal it from under your opponent's nose. Better yet, buy some Drop Pods for your Devastators/Vanguard Vets and drop them on your opponent's objectives toward the end of the game! [Edit: I've just been made aware that becuase Drop Pods are immobile, they cannot score.] There are some very interesting ways to use this if the opportunity presents itself.

Seeing how clearly this rule is worded on page 109, I think it would be hard to argue against with the rules for controlling objectives as the 2 special missions are specifically referenced on page 123. Will this win you a tournament? Unlikely. And planning around it could cost you points that may never see fruition. What it can do, is come in and save you in the clutch. So, like with all the tips in the Bardus Tactica articles, keep it in the back of your mind for when you need it.

What do you think? Questions, Comments, Concerns? 

Sam White

Black Library Releases Blood Angels Horus Heresy Novel

 

"Fear to Tread" is the new Horus Heresy novel from The Black Library.  FInally we get to see the Blood Angels in action in the year 30,000!

 From the Black Library:

The story

Since the earliest days of the Great Crusade, Sanguinius – angelic primarch of the IXth Legion – was ever among the closest and most loyal of Horus’s brothers. But the Blood Angels have long kept their true nature hidden from the rest of the Imperium, and when the Warmaster hints that the key to their salvation may lie in the ruins of a conquered world, the sons of Sanguinius race to claim it. Now, as the revelation of their betrayal dawns and the traitors’ hand is revealed, the Blood Angels must face all the warp-spawned armies of Chaos, as well their own personal daemons, upon the blasted plains of Signus Prime...

 You can read an extract here.

Here is the video trailer for "Fear to Tread":

You can buy the novel through The Black Library here.

Scibor Releases Awesome Dark Angels Biker

OK, so Scbior calls it a "SF Knight" but we all know a Dark Angel when we see one!  And timely too as Dark Angels are rumored to be coming in October.

Find the Dark Angels Biker here.