Forces of the Omnissiah
The following comprises a full listing of the servants and armies of the Machine God during the dark age of the Horus Heresy. It includes full Army List entries for the esoteric armouries of the Mechanicum at the onset of the civil war, a time at which the Mechanicum was accumulating vast reserves of arms and armaments in preparation for a terrible coming war. This volume provides all of the rules which allow players to build and field armies of the Mechanicum Taghmata Omnissiah. Further to this, as part of this volume the Mechanicum’s armies may also be supplemented with the battle suits of the Questoris Knights and Titans of the Collegia Titanica.Books
| Book | Kind | Edition | Version | Last update |
 Liber Mechanicum | ||||
| Liber Mechanicum | Rulebook | 2 | 1.1 | December 2023 |
FAQ
Rulebook: Liber Mechanicum
| Q: | Does a model that has used either the Battlesmith (X) special rule count as having made a shooting attack for purposes of gaining an additional Reaction from The Logic of Victory Warlord Trait? |
| A: | No |
| Q: | Can a model equipped with a machinator array or servo arm choose to resolve all of its attacks using that melee weapon profile? |
| A: | Yes. |
| Q: | Can a unit with the Paragon Unit Sub-type make Reactions? |
| A: | No. |
The Mechanicum Army List
| ‘Core’ and ‘Expanded’ Army List Profiles All Army List Profiles for the Warhammer: The Horus Heresy – Age of Darkness range are divided into two categories: Core units and Expanded units. All of the units in this book are ‘Core’ units. These represent the mainstay of the Legiones Astartes and are supported by a wide range of miniatures. Expanded units will have rules for their use provided in supplementary PDF downloads available from the Games Workshop website, White Dwarf magazine or other places. Both types of unit may be freely used in any Horus Heresy battle, and this category does not affect their availability as part of an army or Detachment or the rules for their use during a battle. As new units and models are released, their Army List Profiles will clearly state if those units are Core or Expanded units, and future publications may shift the category of a given unit, with any such changes clearly noted in the unit’s Army List Profile. | ||
The Mechanicum at War: Building a Mechanicum Army
In games of Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness, the models under a given player’s control are referred to as that player’s army. Each army is composed of a single Force Organisation chart, which will include one or more Detachments, and an army whose Primary Detachment is selected from this Army List is considered a Mechanicum army. Other, non-Primary, Detachments in the same army may be selected from any other Army List, but each Detachment may only include units from a single Army List, unless another special rule states otherwise.Before selecting an army, players should first decide on the Allegiance (Loyalist or Traitor) of the army – this choice will apply to all units in the army, across all Detachments included as part of the Force Organisation chart, and units or models that must be of the opposing Allegiance may not be included in the army.
Once Allegiance has been determined, a points limit must be set for the battle – this is the maximum number of points worth of units that may be included in any individual army. A points limit of 3,000 is considered ideal for the average Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness battle. Each player will use the points from this limit to add units to their army, with each unit worth a number of points as shown on its Unit Profile in the Army List, with many units including a number of options that may be selected for a listed number of additional points. A player may choose to spend less than the agreed points limit, but may not spend more than that limit. Once the points limit has been agreed upon by all players, each must select a single Force Organisation chart before spending any points to select units.
| ALLEGIANCE AND THE MECHANICUM This volume presents the more orthodox forces of the Mechanicum that comprised the Taghmata of numerous Forge Worlds across the galaxy; this orthodoxy has little to no bearing on whether they sided with those loyal to the Emperor or the Warmaster in the wider conflict of the Horus Heresy. Orthodox Forge Worlds found political advantage among the ranks of both the Loyalist and Traitor Legions, each depending on their own galactic position and their individual circumstances. As such, players should feel free to use this volume to create armies from Forge Worlds that chose to follow either the Loyalist or Traitor Allegiance. The only exception to this rule is a unit that has a special rule or other note that forces it to use one or other particular Allegiance. Such units will have this exception prominently noted in their Army List Profile. | ||
Force Organisation Charts and Detachments
The maximum and minimum number of units that may be included in a given army is defined by a Force Organisation chart, of which there is one basic chart available, the Crusade Force Organisation chart. Some special rules, Divisio Tactica and other publications may provide additional Force Organisation charts for use by Mechanicum armies – where players have a choice of several Force Organisation charts they must select one before assembling their army and adhere to the restrictions of that Force Organisation chart. These charts will adhere to the same set of basic principles as the standard Crusade Force Organisation chart presented in the Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness rulebook.Any Force Organisation chart is made up of one or more Detachments. A Force Organisation chart will always include one Primary Detachment, which must be selected, and may also include a number of optional Detachments which a player may choose to use or ignore. Each Detachment that a player chooses to use as part of their army must use a single Army List, which determines the Faction of that Detachment. Most optional Detachments are not required to be the same Faction as the Primary Detachment, but some Detachments may have special rules which require them to be of a certain Faction (and thus use a specific Army List). Detachments of different Factions in the same army will have additional special rules that determine how they interact see allies in the age of darkness.
Each Detachment is composed of a number of boxes, each linked to one of the Battlefield Roles. Each of these boxes allows the player to make one selection from the section of their Army List that includes units of the same Battlefield Role. Dark boxes indicate Compulsory selections, which must be included as part of the Detachment, while the lighter boxes indicate optional choices, which are only included as part of the Detachment if the player in question chooses to do so. If constructing a Primary Detachment using the Crusade Force Organisation chart, this would mean that the Primary Detachment would be required to take at least one HQ choice and two Troops choices. These compulsory choices are intended to ensure that the core of each Detachment is illustrative of the force represented by the Army List in use, and are capable of properly participating in the varied missions available to players in the Age of Darkness.
Sometimes, a single choice in a Detachment may allow you to select more than one unit, or to vary the Battlefield Role of the unit selected. In all cases, such deviations from the normal procedure will be fully explained in the Force Organisation chart that the Detachment is part of.
Each unit selected to fill a box in any single Detachment must be chosen from the same Army List, and must be of the same Battlefield Role as that of the box. The unit profile in the Army List will dictate the number of points from the points limit that must be spent to add the unit to the player’s army. Players continue to spend points to fill boxes in Detachments within the chosen Force Organisation chart until either they run out of points, fill all boxes in all available Detachments or the player chooses to stop.
The Divisio Tactica Mechanicum
The Mechanicum is an incredibly diverse organisation, split by the bounds of the Forge Worlds along lines of religious ideology and the practice of the worshippers and forge-fanes within them, and even by the many orders and sub-cults which operate across the galaxy in specialised roles to further the overall ambitions of the Tech-Priests. When assembling a Mechanicum army, the Primary Detachment must be chosen using the rules for either the Taghmata Omnissiah (the core Mechanicum Army List) or a Divisio Tactica of the Mechanicum such as the Questoris Household and Titan Legions Divisio Tactica lists. Rules for these Divisio Tactica are presented in this volume, and further Divisio Tactica may be added in future supplements. All special rules, Wargear options and Force Organisation changes that apply to specific Divisio Tactica are described in their own rules section, and may be used by the army where appropriate, as defined by those rules and options. The Divisio Tactica army lists count as having the Mechanicum faction for the purposes of levels of Alliance.Lords of War and Primarchs in the Age of DarknessThe dominating presence of Lords of War and Primarch units can unbalance even the largest games, and so additional restrictions are applied to these Unit Types in order to ensure the most enjoyable game experience for all players. Lords of War and Primarch choices may only be included in an army whose total points value is at least 2,000 points, as long as the Force Organisation chart in use has the appropriate slots. In addition, the combined points value of all Lords of War and Primarch choices present in an army may not exceed 25% of the army’s total points cost, unless specified otherwise by the mission or Force Organisation chart being used. This means that the maximum combined points value for any Lords of War and Primarch choices included in the more common army sizes in the Horus Heresy – Age of Darkness is as follows:
CRUSADE FORCE ORGANISATION CHART  Primary Detachment (Required)
Allied Detachment (Optional) Lords of War Detachment (Optional)
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Allies in the Age of Darkness
During the Age of Darkness, all of the armies within the Imperium were riven by treachery and distrust; where once they had stood as brothers one and all, now old rivalries and grudges guided their association. Any army which includes a Mechanicum Primary Detachment may be composed of units of two or more of the Factions that make up the various armies fighting in the Horus Heresy using the rules for Allied Detachments, as long as each individual Detachment is entirely composed of models of a single Faction. When your army incorporates units from more than one Faction, this section tells you how those models will interact with each other.The wars of the Horus Heresy were fought between a number of Factions, most of which were present to some degree among both the Loyalist and Traitor armies. Each of the eighteen Space Marine Legions forms a single Faction, each differentiated by the version of the Legiones Astartes special rule that units of that Faction possess, with examples of other Factions being the Mechanicum and the Imperial Army. In all cases, units of these Factions may be from either the Traitor or Loyalist Allegiance. There also exists an Agents of the Emperor and Agents of the Warmaster Faction – models of these Factions are always either Loyalist (Agents of the Emperor) or Traitor (Agents of the Warmaster) and may not be selected in an army of the opposing Allegiance.
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Factions and Army Lists
The Age of Darkness Allies chart shows the relationship between these various Factions which, in turn, dictate how units of those Factions behave in battle when included as part of the same army.
Age of Darkness Levels of AllianceTo represent the long history of grudges, sworn compacts and battle-tested oaths that exist between the various Factions of the early Imperium, the Age of Darkness Allies chart is used. When an army features two or more Factions amongst its Detachments then the controlling player should check the chart to establish the level of alliance that exists between them, and how that will affect the various units of those Factions in play. Each of the various levels of alliance is described here, as well as the rules associated with them. Some entries may refer to ‘allied’ units, in these cases all units not part of the same Faction as the Primary Detachment are considered ‘allied’ units. The closest of allies who have fought beside each other many times. The two forces are considered ‘friendly units’ in all regards. This means, for example, that Sworn Brothers may be joined by allied Independent Characters, are treated as friendly units for the targeting of special abilities, Warlord Traits and so on. Note: Not even Sworn Brothers can embark in allied Transport Vehicles, and rules that affect a particular force owing to its Legiones Astartes special rule do not carry over to Sworn Brother allied units.  The two forces are willing to fight together for common cause against their foes. Units in your army treat other units at the Fellow Warriors level of Alliance as not being part of the army with the exception that they may not be deliberately targeted, attacked, targeted with special abilities, etc, (note that Blasts and the like may still scatter over allied forces and adversely affect them). Fellow Warriors cannot benefit from the effects of allied Warlord Traits or be joined by allied Independent Characters, and are not counted as friendly units for the purposes of special abilities. In essence, the two forces fight alongside each other without any additional positive or negative effect.  The two forces can make common cause against an enemy, but never fully trust each other due to a long-standing feud or inherent antipathy. Models in the allied detachment are treated exactly like Fellow Warriors except that units in this allied detachment are never counted as Scoring units and may not hold Objectives.  The two forces will only ever fight beside each other in the direst of circumstances or by the direct command of their overlord, be they the Emperor or the Warmaster. The two forces are dealt with as Distrusted Allies but, in addition, whenever a unit is within 6" of a unit that is part of a Faction that falls under this level of alliance then both units reduce their Leadership by -1 until they are no longer within 6" of any unit from that Faction that is part of the same army. Agents of the Emperor (or Warmaster) Some units are described as Agents of the Emperor (notably the Talons of the Emperor – the Legio Custodes and the Silent Sisterhood), or Agents of the Warmaster. These are always treated as Sworn Brothers to either all Loyalist or all Traitor forces respectively. | ||
Warlords of the Mechanicum
Warlord Traits
Your Warlord is a potent force upon the battlefield. Not only are they a mighty hero, with all the skills and renown you might expect from the leader of a great army, but over the course of a long career they will also have picked up specialised abilities, which we refer to as ‘Warlord Traits’. Each Warlord has one Warlord Trait, selected from the list of Core Warlord Traits that follows during army selection (or another list of Traits made available as part of that model’s Allegiance or Faction) and noted on the player’s Army List or roster. Some special rules attached to certain Factions or models may allow a Warlord to select Warlord Traits other than those presented in the Core list – such rules will specifically note which other Traits may be selected.
- A Warlord taken as part of a Mechanicum Primary Detachment may choose a single Warlord Trait from either the Core Warlord Traits or from the Mechanicum Warlord Traits.
Characters With Set Warlord Traits
Some Character models will have a special rule that specifies a Warlord Trait that must be used if that model is selected as the army’s Warlord. If such a unit is your Warlord, do not select a Warlord Trait – instead, that unit automatically has the listed Warlord Trait. Note that the unit will only gain that Warlord Trait if it is your Warlord.
If another model is selected as your Warlord then that Character will not have any Warlord Trait, even if there is a Trait listed in its Profile.
Death of the Warlord
If your Warlord is removed as a casualty during a battle, any abilities or special rules granted by their Warlord Trait are immediately lost. If the Warlord Trait in question conferred a special rule that allows an unusual method of deployment from Reserves (such as conferring the Outflank ability on certain units), that special rule is immediately lost and the affected units must instead deploy from Reserves in the normal fashion.
Core Warlord Traits
These Traits are available to any Character model selected as an army’s Warlord, regardless of Faction or Allegiance.Bloody-handed Some warlords are only satisfied by the clash of blades and the screams of the enemy as they fall before them. For such warriors, strategy is but a means to an end, a tool by which they can bring their forces into the brutal crucible of the melee as soon as possible. There, in the heart of the battlefield, they seek victory at any cost. Any combat with at least one friendly model within 12" of this Warlord, or a combat which includes this Warlord, gains a bonus of +1 to the number of Wounds caused for the purposes of combat resolution. In addition, an army whose Warlord has this Trait may make an additional Reaction during their opponent’s Assault phase as long as the Warlord has not been removed as a casualty. |
Stoic Defender This warlord is a rock, the hard place against which their foes are dashed and broken. When the enemy surges forth, they do not foolishly go to meet them, but dig in so that the foe may exhaust themselves against the defences prepared for them. When this Warlord or any friendly unit joined by a Warlord with this Trait makes a Shooting attack, the target unit must make a Pinning test if it suffers any unsaved Wounds. In addition, an army whose Warlord has this Trait may make an additional Reaction during their opponent’s Shooting phase as long as the Warlord has not been removed as a casualty. |
Ever-vigilant Always ready to take advantage of the foe’s weakness, this warlord is a master of predicting and exploiting the flow of battle. Where the foe advances, this warlord falls back to better ground, where the foe retreats, this warlord advances, for victory is fickle and only falls into the grasp of those prepared for any eventuality. When this Warlord, and any unit it has joined, Runs during the Movement phase, it adds the value of the Warlord’s Initiative Characteristic, increased by 1, to the distance moved, rather than the lowest Initiative Characteristic in the unit. In addition, an army whose Warlord has this Trait may make an additional Reaction during their opponent’s Movement phase as long as the Warlord has not been removed as a casualty. |
| ARMY LIST PROFILES AND MINIATURES The Army List Profiles presented in this book relate to miniatures available in the Citadel and Forge World ranges, and in most cases it is clear which sets relate to which Profile. Many Profiles, however, have a range of upgrade options that may not be represented in a particular set of miniatures, but are available as upgrade sets – for example, a Knight Moirax with a graviton pulsar is made by upgrading the Mechanicum Knight Moirax with Volkite Veuglaire and Gyges Siege Claw with the Mechanicum Knight Moirax Graviton Pulsar. In other cases, models have available to them weapons and options that are found in other sets – the weapons and wargear of the Mechanicum are extremely varied and esoteric in design, and the Mechanicum and Adeptus Mechanicus ranges benefit from being extremely customisable as a result. Players will often find they have plenty of spare weapons or wargear that they can use on other models. | ||
Mechanicum Warlord Traits
A Warlord selected from a Detachment that has the Mechanicum Faction may select one of the following Warlord Traits instead of a Core Warlord Trait.A Soul of Cold Iron Many of the most powerful magi among the ranks of the Mechanicum have left behind almost all of the weak flesh that once bound them to humanity. These creatures are no longer truly human, and the concerns of lesser creatures are meaningless to them. On the battlefield, they feel not terror, nor sadness, nor even the joy of victory, and advance even in the face of horrors that would send lesser warriors fleeing. A Warlord with this Trait and any friendly unit with at least one model within 6" that is Pinned may still move and declare Charges, but is limited to only firing Snap Shots until it is no longer Pinned. In addition, an army whose Warlord has this Trait may make an additional Reaction during their opponent’s Movement phase as long as the Warlord has not been removed as a casualty. |
The Logic of Victory Among the warriors of the Mechanicum it is not valour that sustains the attack, nor hatred that fuels their defence – but the cold imperative of logic. They fight only when the calculations of the magi predict victory for the attack or when there is no other option but mutual annihilation. The finest logis-tacticians seek not to influence the flow of battle with simple force of arms, but by manipulating the ever changing equations of victory. If, at no point during this Warlord’s controlling player’s turn as the Active player, a Warlord with this Trait has neither made a Shooting Attack or been locked in combat then they gain an additional Reaction in each Phase of the following turn as the Reactive player. In addition, a Warlord with this Trait and any unit it has joined gains +1 WS and +1 BS when making attacks as part of any Reaction and +3 Initiative or +3 Movement when making a move as part of any Reaction. |
The Science of Slaughter Combat is not an art to those of the Mechanicum that dedicate themselves to its perfection, but a brutally callous science – for everything has its weakness, all things can be broken and dismembered if one knows when and where to apply force. Those who study the Mechanicum’s methods of combat are terrifying threshing machines of destruction, untiring and utterly implacable. Once they have engaged a target, it is only a matter of time until they detect and exploit its vulnerabilities. On the second turn of each combat a Warlord with this Trait is engaged in, and each turn it is locked in the same combat after that, it gains a bonus of +1 to its WS and +1 Strength (to a maximum of 10). Once a given combat has ended and the Warlord is no longer locked in combat, the Warlord’s WS and Strength Characteristics are reset to the original values. In addition, an army whose Warlord has this Trait may make an additional Reaction during their opponent’s Assault phase as long as the Warlord has not been removed as a casualty. |
Mechanicum Advanced ReactionThis Advanced Reaction is available only to units as part of a Mechanicum Detachment. Unlike Core Reactions, it is activated in unique and specific circumstances, as noted in its description, and can often have game changing effects. Advanced Reactions use up points of a Reactive player’s Reaction Allotment as normal and obey all other restrictions placed upon Reactions, unless it is specifically noted otherwise in their description.Scornful Fire – This Advanced Reaction may be made once per battle during the Shooting phase when any enemy unit declares a Shooting Attack targeting a unit that includes a model with the Independent Character special rule under the Reactive player’s control which is part of the Mechanicum Detachment. The Reacting unit, and any friendly Mechanicum units eligible to make a Reaction within 12", may make a Shooting Attack, targeting the unit that triggered this Reaction and following all the usual rules for Shooting Attacks. Any unit that makes a Shooting Attack as part of this Reaction counts as having made a Reaction in this Phase. A unit that makes a Shooting Attack as part of a Scornful Fire Reaction may not make any attacks indirectly (without line of sight) including weapons with the Barrage special rule or other weapons or special rules that otherwise ignore line of sight, and Vehicles may only fire Defensive Weapons. Template weapons may only be used as part of a Scornful Fire Reaction if the target unit is within 8" and must use the Wall of Death rule instead of firing normally. | ||
Divisio Tactica
This section presents the Divisio Tactica, alternative deployments of troops aligned with the Mechanicum faction. Each Divisio Tactica presents a new Force Organisation chart and may also include new units or other effects and restrictions representing one of the more exotic formations fielded as part of the Mechanicum’s vast legions.
This section presents the most common of the Divisio Tactica, but other publications may present additional Divisio Tactica.
Divisio Tactica: The Titan Legions
The first way to include units from the Divisio Tactica: The Titan Legions in an army is to select a single Lords of War unit with The Titan Legions icon (
) to fill a Lords of War Optional Detachment in a Crusade Force Organisation chart.The second way to include units from the Divisio Tactica: The Titan Legions in an army is to use the Titan Maniple Detachment. The Titan Maniple Detachment may be included as an Optional Detachment in any army that uses the Crusade Force Organisation chart (this does not replace any other Optional Detachments in that Force Organisation chart).
A Titan Maniple Detachment may only include units from the profiles with The Titan Legions icon (
). These units may not be selected as part of any other Force Organisation chart or Detachment besides a Lords of War Detachment in a Crusade Force Organisation chart or Titan Maniple Detachment. Titan Maniple Detachment (Optional)
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Divisio Tactica: Questoris Household
Those Knight Households that maintained some measure of autonomy, whether through strength of arms or steadfast loyalty, could retain the right to sanction independent military operations or to join the ranks of the Ordo Questoris—the Household forces independently seconded into the service of the Expeditionary fleets and the Great Crusade armies. Such Houses were driven to seek glory among the far-flung stars of the galaxy far from the Taghmata of their patron Forge World, or even engaged in their own conquests; as loyal to the ideals of Unity and the Emperor as ever they were to their Mechanicum patrons. The riches and reputation brought from such independent martial endeavours served, in some cases, to aid them in gaining greater autonomy from their Mechanicum patrons, which is why many archmagi were loathe to grant such rights as part of the Sidon Protocols.
excluding Armigers) to fill a Lords of War Optional Detachment in a Crusade Force Organisation chart.The second way to include units from the Divisio Tactica: Questoris Households in an army is to use the Household Detachment.
The Household Detachment may either be used as a Primary Detachment in an army using the Questoris Household Force Organisation chart, or as an Optional Detachment in an army using the Crusade Force Organisation chart. When used as the army’s Primary Detachment, the 25% limit on Lords of War choices does not count for units taken as part of the Primary Detachment of that army (but any Lords of War choices selected as part of any other Detachment must adhere to the 25% limit rule).
A Household Detachment may only include units from the profiles listed with Questoris Household icon (
) and these units may not be selected as part of any other Force Organisation chart or Detachment besides a Lords of War or Households Detachment.QUESTORIS HOUSEHOLD FORCE ORGANISATION CHART Household Detachment (Primary or Optional)
Allied Detachment (Optional)
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Household Ranks
Each noble, referred to heraldically as a ‘scion’, within a Knight Household is a warrior with their own Chronicle of Battle and the traditions and glories of their forebears to uphold. A Household’s bloodline ranges from the scions aspirant, freshly raised up to command their Armour in battle and wreathed in dreams of would-be glory, through the scions martial, the experienced fighters who make up their Household’s line of battle, to the upper echelons of the House who hold the traditional ranks of the Household’s command and who have already writ their own legends in battle. In times of open war, when a Knight Household takes to the field en masse, each will have their own roles to play, roles founded as much in ancient tradition as in the individual record and reputation of the Knight Armour and the warrior piloting it. Unleashed, such a tide of iron and fire is a force few powers in the galaxy can withstand.Any Lords of War choice selected as part of a Questoris Household Detachment may select one upgrade from those listed below, but note that some upgrades are limited to certain units or may only be selected a limited number of times as noted in their description.
The martial traditions and aristocratic rule of the Knight Households demanded a rigid hierarchy and at the apex of this order was the seneschal. For a Knight to have attained a rank heavy with such symbolic authority and might, they must have proven themselves both in combat and tactical command, besides the more insidious battlefield of dynastic struggle. The role of seneschal involved both practical generalship and an understanding of the myriad strengths and natures of the Imperium’s vast forces, as well as the countless dangers of the cold stars and the foes that awaited there. Only a single unit in a Questoris Household Detachment may be upgraded to have the Seneschal rank, and an Acastus Knight Porphyrion or Acastus Knight Asterius may not be given this upgrade. |
An Arbalester excelled at dealing death and destruction at a distance, utilising their Knight’s firepower to its fullest and most devastating effect. While some of their more impetuous or glory-hungry brethren scorned their tactics as unworthy, these skilled gunners took on a vital role in the Household’s battle line, identifying and destroying enemy heavy weapons emplacements to screen their comrades’ advance and help shield their fellows from aerial attack. A model with this upgrade increases its Ballistic Skill Characteristic by +1 and gains the Character Unit Sub-type and Arbalester special rule. |
The Knight Households were not simply a military force but a hereditary bloodline of war, a bloodline whose sons and daughters were tempered in the fires of battle from a young age. Such an apprenticeship was a dangerous one, but vital to the maintenance of a Household’s strength across the generations. Only the most desperate of battles would force a Household to endanger all of its aspirants at once however, and so, competition was fierce among the fighting-age youth seeking to join their kin on the field of battle. A model with this upgrade must reduce its Weapon Skill and Ballistic Skill Characteristics by -1 and its Movement Characteristics by -2. |
Though on many Knight Worlds affairs of honour were settled through highly ritualised duels, when pressed, massed battle was inevitable. In such warfare the Aucteller was oathsworn to strike down the foe’s greatest warriors at the cost of their own life. During the Great Crusade such tactics were suppressed, but as the wars of the Horus Heresy unfolded, the need for such sacrifices was born again. A model with this upgrade increases its Weapon Skill Characteristic by +1 and gains the Character Unit Sub-type and the Aucteller special rule. |
The title ‘Dolorous’ was bestowed upon the most famed beast slayers among the Knights of the Household. It also implied one to whom life beyond the confines of their Knight Armour was a pale and hollow thing. Such Knights often sought deployment in the forefront of battle and would charge into every fray. Those who survived learned to temper their fury but not the restless desire for continuous battle, and many would go on to become Freeblades. A model with this upgrade increases its Weapon Skill Characteristic by +1, and gains the Character Unit Subtype and the Dolorous special rule. |
An epithet applied to a Household Knight who had shown a particular aptitude for siege warfare, an ‘Implacable’ was an invaluable warrior in the maelstrom of cityscape warfare. In such situations a Knight, despite its power, could become swarmed by enemy infantry. Not so the Implacable, whose caution on the battlefield seemed not to diminish their fervour for crushing infantry like vermin. A model with this upgrade increases its Hull Points by +1, gains the Character Unit Sub-type and the Implacable special rule. |
Sometimes a scion would display a particular facility for technology and serve time observing and learning from their Household’s sacristans. These scions were able to impart not only the lore of arms to the Household’s aspirants, but also to teach a deeper understanding of the Knight Armour and the division of machine and man, earning themselves the honoured title of preceptor within the Household. The preceptor’s lore could also be put to use on the battlefield, allowing them to use advanced augury and auspex equipment which served the role of tactical coordination and communications for their Household in battle. A model with this upgrade increases its Ballistic Skill Characteristic by +1 and gains the Character Unit Sub-type and Preceptor special rule. |
The Uhlan tradition was one followed by the most hotblooded and impetuous Knights. In war, they sought to destroy their foes in a fury of close-range fire and swift assault. Caution was anathema to them and valour was found only in the close press of battle. The scions Uhlan were used by the wiser Household commanders as advance scouts and reavers, either to form the front skirmish line of the Household in the open field or as flanking forces to encircle a foe and run down an enemy once it had broken. A model with this upgrade increases its Movement Characteristic by +4 and gains the Character Unit Subtype and the Scout and Outflank special rules. This upgrade may not be given to an Acastus Knight Asterius or an Acastus Knight Porphyrion. |
| KNIGHTS AND THE CHARACTER UNIT SUB-TYPE Unless otherwise specified, a model with the Knight Unit Sub-type and the Character Unit Sub-type may not issue or accept Challenges – except when the enemy unit includes at least one model with the Knight, Titan or Monstrous Unit Sub-type or the Primarch Unit Type, and in those circumstances the Challenge must be accepted by a model with the Knight, Titan or Monstrous Unit Sub-type or the Primarch Unit Type. While Engaged in a Challenge, a model with the Knight and Character Unit Sub-types may not leave combat or the Challenge and may not make any Stomp attacks. | ||
Mechanicum Unit Types
This Army List includes a number of new Unit Types and Unit Sub-types to represent the vast panoply of the Mechanicum at the height of their ambition. These Unit Types and Unit Sub-types are presented here for easy reference and operate under the rules established for Unit Types and Unit Sub-types in the Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness rulebook:
Armiger Unit Type
Like the Dreadnoughts of the Legiones Astartes these war machines are huge behemoths of steel and ceramite, all but invulnerable to lesser weapons. However, unlike the war machines of the Space Marines these indomitable engines of war are piloted by the aspirants of the Knight Households and lack the decades of experience and mental discipline of the Dreadnought’s occupant. Thankfully, the sheer firepower most Armiger type war engines can deliver more than makes up for their shortcomings.
As with other Unit Types, the Armiger Type includes a number of Unit Sub-types which may be referenced in other Age of Darkness books. The following rules apply to all Armiger models and any Armiger Unit Sub-types:- Successful Wounds scored by attacks with the Poisoned (X) or Fleshbane special rules must be re-rolled against models of the Armiger Unit Type.
- All Armiger models have the Stubborn special rule.
- A model with the Armiger Unit Type may fire all weapons they are equipped with in each Shooting Attack they make, including as part of a Reaction.
- A model of the Armiger Type may fire Heavy and Ordnance weapons and counts as Stationary even if it moved in the preceding Movement phase, and may declare Charges as normal regardless of any Shooting Attacks made in the same turn.
- No model that is not also of the Armiger Unit Type may join a unit that includes an Armiger model.
- A model with the Armiger Unit Type is affected by the Haywire, Detonation, Armourbane (X) and Battlesmith (X) special rules as if it had the Dreadnought Unit Type.
Cybernetica Unit Sub-type
Powerful hulking war machines equipped with the finest weapons and bulky armour, these units are given the sole purpose of bringing ruin upon a foe.
The following rules apply to all models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type:- Models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type are subject to the Programmed Behaviour provision. During both the controlling player’s Shooting phase and the Charge sub-phase, an Automata unit must attempt a Shooting Attack and/or Charge if there is an enemy unit within range, and must target the closest enemy unit possible that is within its line of sight and is a valid target for a Shooting Attack or Charge. If two or more targets are equally close then the controlling player chooses which will be the target of a Shooting Attack or Charge.
- A model with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type may fire all weapons they are equipped with in each Shooting Attack they make, including as part of a Reaction where eligible (this rule on its own does not allow units to make Reactions if they would otherwise be prevented from doing so).
- Models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type may fire Heavy and Ordnance weapons and count as Stationary even if they moved in the preceding Movement phase, and may declare Charges as normal regardless of any Shooting Attacks made in the same turn.
- Models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type ignore any penalties to their Initiative Characteristic when Charging into or through Difficult Terrain or Dangerous Terrain.
Guardian Unit Sub-type
Such units are programmed for little by way of independent initiative, but only to protect their master at the expense of their own existence.
The following rules apply to all models with the Guardian Unit Sub-type:- Units including models with the Guardian Unit Sub-type may Embark freely upon models with the Transport Unit Sub-type and within Buildings and Fortifications as if they had the Infantry Type, even if their Unit Type would normally restrict this.
- Units including models with the Guardian Unit Sub-type may be joined by friendly models with the Character Unit Sub-type or Independent Character special rule, and when they are joined in this manner may make Reactions, even if their Unit Type would normally restrict this.
- If a unit contains any models with the Guardian Unit Sub-type as well as one or more models with the Character Unit Sub-type, any Wounds which would be allocated to the Character (even those caused by the Precision Strikes (X) or Sniper special rules) may instead be allocated to a model with the Guardian Unit Subtype first.
- Unless they are joined by a friendly Character, all models with the Guardian Unit Sub-type suffer the following provisions:
- Reduce their Movement Characteristic by -2 and may not Run.
- Reduce their Initiative Characteristic to 1.
Paragon Unit Sub-type
The finest warriors, be they honed flesh and blood or masterwork automaton, are capable of feats of arms and endurance unthinkable to standard humans.
The following rules apply to all models with the Paragon Unit Sub-type:- Models with the Paragon Unit Sub-type are not affected by special rules that negatively modify their Characteristics (other than Wounds or Hull Points).
- A model with the Paragon Unit Sub-type may fire all weapons they are equipped with in each Shooting Attack they make, including as part of a Reaction.
- Models with the Paragon Unit Sub-type may fire Heavy and Ordnance weapons and count as Stationary even if they moved in the preceding Movement phase, and may declare Charges as normal regardless of any Shooting Attacks made in the same turn.
- A unit that contains a model with the Paragon Unit Sub-type may never be joined by any other models, regardless of any other special rule.
Unique Unit Sub-type
Among the warriors of the Horus Heresy are many singular heroes, those whose names are known throughout the galaxy. Likewise, there are those individual war machines whose legacy of destruction has spread their names across uncounted battlefields. Such heroes, prototypes and icons are rare and though their power can tip any battle in their favour, they can only be in one place at a time.
The following rules apply to all models with the Unique Unit Sub-type:- An army may not include more than a single instance of a unit with this Unit Sub-type. For example, if Unit A and Unit B both have the Unique Unit Sub-type, then a single army could include one of Unit A and one of Unit B, but no more than one of either unit.
- A model or unit composed entirely of models with the Unique Unit Sub-type may not select any options other than those included on its Army List Profile (this includes options provided by other sources, such as Orders of High Techno-arcana).
Skirmish Sub-type
Intended to scout enemy positions and screen the advance of heavier units. Skirmishers rely on speed and use of cover to survive rather than heavy armour, rarely faring well when pitted in open battle against true shock infantry.
The following rules apply to all models with the Skirmish Sub-type:- A unit that includes only models with the Skirmish Sub-type has a unit coherency range of 3" rather than 2".
- A unit that includes only models with the Skirmish Sub-type increases all Cover Saves granted by terrain by one (i.e., from 6+ to 5+). This only increases existing Cover Saves and does not grant one when in terrain that does not normally grant a Cover Save. This rule cannot increase a Cover Save to better than 2+.
Cybertheurgy
On the battlefields of the Horus Heresy, the Mechanicum is feared not only for the power of the war engines it produces, but also for the terrifying control they wield over all forms of technology, a control so absolute that to some it seems as strange and potent as the warp-magic of the psyker. By means of the arts known as Cybertheurgy, the magi of the Mechanicum can unleash terrible data-djinn to corrupt systems, overload power cells and even turn the enemy’s own weapons against them.
In games of Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness, certain models may make use of Cybertheurgy to attack the enemy and confound their plans. Cybertheurgic Attacks will use the existing rules for attacking the enemy, being resolved as either Shooting or Melee Attacks, and occur during the Shooting and Assault phases as do other attacks. Cybertheurgic Rites, any effect of Cybertheurgy that is not represented as a weapon and resolved as an attack, are also resolved during one of the existing Phases, but often have their own unique rules, each of which is explained as part of that power.
In all cases, to use a Cybertheurgic Attack, weapon or Rite, a model must possess the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type.
Cybertheurgist
Much like Character, Cybertheurgist is a Unit Sub-type that can be applied to a model of any other Unit Type. This is used to indicate models that are capable of using Cybertheurgic Rites and weapons. On its own this Unit Sub-type grants no abilities or rules, but many other rules, weapons and abilities will target or require a model with this Unit Sub-type in order to be used. Often a rule will reference or target a ‘Cybertheurgist’ – this means any model with the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type. Models that are or can become Cybertheurgists are also often given the option to acquire other abilities or attacks that require that Unit Sub-type. If such options exist, they will be noted on that unit’s profile or Army List entry.The following example shows the most common unit that also has the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type:
- Mechanicum Archmagos Prime: Infantry (Character, Cybertheurgist)
Throughout the rules for Cybertheurgy there are references to ‘Cybertheurgy checks’ – a Cybertheurgy check is a kind of Leadership test and is taken in exactly the same manner as any other Leadership test – however, special rules that allow a model to modify or automatically pass Leadership tests have no effect on Cybertheurgy checks.
It is also worth noting that while Cybertheurgy and the rules for its use are very similar to those used for Psychic Powers and the Psyker Unit Sub-type, these two sets of rules do not interact with each other. Effects that modify Psychic Powers or attacks have no effect on Cybertheurgic Rites or attacks, and effects that target Psykers have no effect on Cybertheurgists unless the effect also specifically targets them.
Cybertheurgic Weapons
The most common form of Cybertheurgic power encountered on the battlefield are those that act in a manner akin to more conventional weapons. Whether the esoteric manipulation of energy or the release of datadjinn, these attacks are presented and function in exactly the same manner as any other weapon. They use exactly the same rules, Characteristics and resolution methods as any other attack made and can be both ranged and melee.A Cybertheurgist that gains a Cybertheurgic attack has it in the same manner as any other model has Wargear that is part of its profile. A model that has the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type may make Shooting Attacks using any ranged Cybertheurgic weapon available to it (or more than one, or in combination with ranged non-Cybertheurgic weapons if that model has a rule that allows more than one weapon to be used during a Shooting Attack) or during the Assault phase a Cybertheurgist may attack using a Cybertheurgic weapon with the Melee type. In close combat, a Cybertheurgic weapon with the Melee type does count for deciding if a model has more than one weapon, but obeys all the usual restrictions. However, a Cybertheurgic weapon can never be destroyed or otherwise removed from a model unless a rule specifically targets a Cybertheurgic weapon.
In most cases, the Cybertheurgic Arcana available to a Cybertheurgist will provide one or more Cybertheurgic Weapons as part of their portfolio of abilities.
Cybertheurgic Rites
The next type of Cybertheurgic ability falls under the more common heading of Cybertheurgic Rites. These abilities can achieve many diverse ends, from simple destruction to the subtle subversion of the enemy, and are represented in a form more akin to special rules in order to represent the many effects a trained magos of the Mechanicum can produce. Not all Cybertheurgists have access to the same suite of Rites, and those available to any given model will be detailed in that model’s profile or Army List. The key difference between a Cybertheurgic Rite and a Cybertheurgic weapon is that a Rite is not resolved as a standard attack and has its own rules for resolving any effects it may cause, much like other special rules.In most cases the Cybertheurgic Arcana available to a Cybertheurgist will provide one or more Cybertheurgic Rites as part of their portfolio of abilities.
Cybertheurgic Arcana
Models with the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type gain a number of special rules and abilities to represent their technical mysteries. These collections of abilities are known as Arcana, and represent one of a myriad of possible focuses for a Cybertheurgist. Each Arcana will be composed of a set of special rules, Cybertheurgic Weapons and Cybertheurgic Rites themed to represent specific talents of a certain focus of technical esoterica, and those Arcana available to a given Cybertheurgist will be listed on their Army List entry. Some models may be able to choose from several different Arcana, however, they only gain abilities from one that is selected or set as part of their basic abilities. When a model or unit is granted an Arcana or asked to select one, they gain all the powers, attacks and other rules included as part of that Arcana. Some models may be able to take more than one Arcana, if so, they gain all abilities from all Arcana selected. A set of Cybertheurgic Arcana is presented as follows, but other publications may present additional Arcana.Cybertheurgic Feedback
Common to all forms of Cybertheurgic Ritual is the possibility of the temperamental spirits of the machine rebelling and sending feedback cascading through the consciousness of the cybertheurgist. This is represented by the Cybertheurgic Feedback special rule. Most Cybertheurgic Rites and attacks dictate under what conditions a Cybertheurgist must suffer Cybertheurgic Feedback, but in most cases this will be as the result of a failed Leadership test while using a Cybertheurgic Rite or attack.Whenever a Cybertheurgist or other model/unit suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, apply the rule below:
Cybertheurgic Feedback: When a model or unit suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, it receives a single Wound against which only Invulnerable Saves may be taken (no Damage Mitigation rolls may be made to negate these Wounds). This Wound must be allocated to a model with the Cybertheurgist Unit Sub-type if possible, otherwise it may be allocated to any model in the unit that has suffered Cybertheurgic Feedback, in the same manner as those received during a Shooting Attack. In addition, the Cybertheurgist and any unit it is currently part of are immediately Pinned. If the Cybertheurgist is a model with the Vehicle or Automata Unit Type then it suffers D3 Hull Points of damage or Wounds against which only Invulnerable Saves may be taken instead, but the unit is not Pinned.
Cybertheurgic Arcana: Artificia Machina
A Cybertheurgist with this Arcana gains all the listed Rites, Weapon and other special rules.Animatus Integro (Cybertheurgic Rite) Manipulating the machine spirit of any complex machine, the cybertheurgist is capable of remote activation of repair sub-routines and of repurposing auxiliary systems to perform repairs other lesser artificers might have deemed impossible. Such is the formidable skill of these machine-wrights that such ministrations are carried out from afar, without laying hand nor tool upon the shattered hull of the stricken machine. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may apply the effects of any version of the Battlesmith (X) special rule they have to a single model with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type that is within 12" of the Cybertheurgist. The effect is rolled for as normally required by the Battlesmith (X) special rule, but does not require the Cybertheurgist to be in base contact or Embarked upon the model. If successful, the controlling player may choose to make a Cybertheurgy check for the Cybertheurgist model, if successful then the effect of the Battlesmith (X) special rule is applied twice without further rolls (i.e., an additional Wound is restored, or an additional Weapon Destroyed result removed from the target, etc.). If the Cybertheurgy check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback. |
Animatus Excindor (Cybertheurgic Weapon) Just as Cybermancy can over-charge a machine’s systems to power its re-invigoration, so can it overload those systems and crush the heart of even the most powerful war machines. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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Cybertheurgic Arcana: Artificia Cybernetica
A Cybertheurgist with this Arcana gains all the listed Rites, Weapon and other special rules.Cybernetica Exortus (Cybertheurgic Rite) The master magi of the Cybernetica cohorts are well versed in the intricacies of their steel charges; they know the incantations to coax the greatest potential from them. In battle it is by their efforts that the unfeeling legions of the Mechanicum can overcome the fickle and unpredictable armies of flesh and blood soldiers. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may select a single friendly unit with a model within 12" which contains at least one model with the Automata Unit Type and apply one of the following effects to all models with the Automata Unit Type in the unit:
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Mordeo Cogita (Cybertheurgic Weapon) Many have thought the automata of the Mechanicum among the toughest warriors to tread the battlefields of the Age of Darkness, but by means of coded incantations the adepts of the Arcana Cybernetica can purge the engrams of these metal beasts, bringing them to a sudden stop with but a thought. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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Cybertheurgic Arcana: Ephemera Incursus
A Cybertheurgist with this Arcana gains all the listed Rites, Weapons and other special rules.Ephemera Perfidiae (Cybertheurgic Rite) The sheer ubiquity of the Machine Cult’s works in every fighting force on both sides of the civil war give the more insidious tech-magi an incredible amount of power over their enemies. With little more than a thought and a muttered binaric chant, a canny technomancer can alter their opponent’s target priority and friendly fire protocols, deceiving them into bearing down on their allies. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may select a single enemy unit with a model within 12" that is entirely composed of models with the Vehicle or Automata Unit Type. The Cybertheurgist’s controlling player may immediately make a Shooting Attack as if they controlled the chosen unit – this Shooting Attack may target any unit that is considered an enemy unit by the Cybertheurgist’s controlling player and is made as Snap Shots. The Cybertheurgist may choose to make a Cybertheurgy check before making this Shooting Attack, if successful the Shooting Attack is made using the Cybertheurgist’s BS and is not made as Snap Shots. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback and no Shooting Attack is made. An enemy unit used to make a Shooting Attack with this Rite may attack normally in its controlling player’s turn and gains the Hatred (Cybertheurgists) special rule for the rest of the battle. |
Ephemera Exocluo (Cybertheurgic Weapon) There are few warriors on the battlefields of the Age of Darkness that do not rely on some form of technological aid to function, from targeting scanners to vox communicators. A magos skilled in the ephemera exocluo can disrupt, destroy and subvert these devices and leave their users helpless. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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Cybertheurgic Arcana: Ephemera Lacyraemarta
A Cybertheurgist with this Arcana gains all the listed Rites, Weapons and other special rules.Ephemera Instigare (Cybertheurgic Rite) Flesh bound to the will of iron is the trade of the Lacyraemarta, thralls for the armies and forges of the Mechanicum. In battle they use their cybertheurgic talents to goad their minions into battle regardless of the danger or the brutal injuries they suffer in the process. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may select a single friendly unit within 12" that is entirely composed of models with the Infantry Unit Type and is of the Mechanicum Faction. The chosen unit may immediately move a number of inches up to twice its unmodified Initiative Characteristic directly towards the nearest enemy unit. If the chosen unit has mixed Initiative Characteristics, use the highest unmodified Characteristic. The Cybertheurgist’s controlling player may choose to make a Cybertheurgy check for the Cybertheurgist. If the Check is successful, then the chosen unit gains the Hammer of Wrath (1) and Furious Charge (1) special rules until the end of the subsequent Assault phase. If the Check is failed, the chosen unit and the Cybertheurgist suffer Cybertheurgic Feedback. |
Ephemera Excrusis (Cybertheurgic Weapon) The adepts of the Lacyraemarta are experts on the application and manipulation of pain to motivate and damage flesh. In combat they often employ short range bursts of exotic radiation and energy discharges to weaken and disrupt the enemy. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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Cybertheurgic Arcana: Artificia Reductor
A Cybertheurgist with this Arcana gains all the listed Rites, Weapons and other special rules.Porta Fractis (Cybertheurgic Rite) There is no gate or portal that can be held against the magi of the Ordo Reductor. No bar nor lock will halt their passage and no enemy will find refuge from their onslaught. The data-djinn and subtle knowledge at their disposal will turn any key and expel any that cower in the false security of fortifications. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may select a single Building, Fortification or enemy unit with the Transport Unit Sub-type that has an enemy unit Embarked within and is within 12" of the Cybertheurgist and must then make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is successful then the enemy unit Embarked on the chosen target must immediately make an emergency Disembarkation and once Disembarked must make a Pinning test. If the Cybertheurgy check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback. |
Manos Ruinus (Cybertheurgic Weapon) A mere gesture from the adepts of the Ordo Reductor sunders armour and reduces fortifications to ruin, they know exactly where to strike any defence to shatter it utterly. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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The Orders of High Techno-arcana
The Taghmata Omnissiah’s intricate web of feudal obligation was further complicated by the secretive and specialised nature of the Mechanicum’s cultish mysteries. Each archmagos possessed not only immense political power, but also jealously guarded techno-arcane secrets. As a result, when called into service by their trans-Martian overlord, each archmagos could bring to bear a force as unique in their style of warmaking as the archmagos themselves.
All Archmagos Primes and Archmagos Primes on Abeyant have The Orders of High Techno-arcana special rule – this requires them to select a single High Techno-arcana upgrade during army selection. However, no Archmagos Prime or Archmagos Prime on Abeyant may take more than one such upgrade, and some upgrades may not be available to all types of Archmagos Prime. If certain upgrades are available to only certain Archmagos Primes, it will be noted in their description along with any other benefits or restrictions. Note that no High Order of Techno-arcana may be chosen more than once in a single army, regardless of the number of Detachments.
Each High Techno-arcana upgrade grants the model a number of additional special rules or items of additional Wargear. They may also modify the model’s Unit Type, Unit Sub-type or Characteristics. In all cases, the High Techno-arcana type’s description will indicate all changes, benefits and restrictions.
In addition, the rules for each individual High Techno-arcana will present a number of effects which will grant a Detachment that contains a model with that High Techno-arcana new options or special rules. Unless otherwise stated as part of the High Techno-arcana’s rules, all effects must be applied to models and units that are selected as part of the Detachment that contains a model with that High Techno-arcana. In addition, unlike Warlord Traits, effects granted to units within a Detachment by the High Techno-arcana persist, should the model that possesses the Orders of High Techno-arcana rule be removed from play.
Archimandrite
At the pinnacle of each Forge World’s intricate web of power and fealty sits the archimandrite class; they who have risen above all to supreme power. In their hands are entrusted the secrets of the lost Dark Age of Technology, its treasures and its secret sins. At their will does the vast power of a Forge World march to war; whether it be under the banner of the Emperor or the Warmaster, they are rulers in their own right.
- Bonds of Vassalage: A model with this special rule must be the army’s Warlord. In addition, a Mechanicum army that includes a model with this special rule may include a Mechanicum Allied Detachment. An Archmagos Prime or Archmagos Prime on Abeyant included in this Allied Detachment cannot select the Archimandrite Order of High Techno-arcana.
- Magister Theurgica: A model with this special rule may select an additional Cybertheurgic Arcana from those available to it.
- Master Technomancer: Models with the Battlesmith (X) special rule in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may add the following effect to the list of options they may apply to units with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type targeted by the Battlesmith (X) rule:
- Until the end of the Shooting phase, the target unit may make Shooting Attacks using the Ballistic Skill of the model that successfully used the Battlesmith (X) rule.
- Until the end of the Shooting phase, the target gains the Power of the Machine Spirit special rule. This effect may only be applied to units with the Vehicle Unit Type.
Cybernetica
Most often found leading the Cohorts Cybernetica, these magi are masters at manipulating the automata found throughout the armies of the Mechanicum.
- Cohorts Cybernetica: All Castellax Battle-automata Maniples in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule gain the Line Unit Sub-type.
- Networked Sensorium Protocols: When making Shooting Attacks, models with the Automata Unit Type in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule reduce the benefits of any Cover Save the target unit has by -2 (a 4+ becoming a 6+, a 5+ being ignored entirely, and so on) if the model making the Shooting Attack is within 12" of two or more friendly models with cortex controllers.
- Preservation Protocols: A model with this special rule gains the Patris Cybernetica special rule. In addition, when joined to a unit with the Automata Unit Type, any Wounds which would be allocated to the Character (even those caused by the Precision Strikes (X) or Sniper special rules) may instead be allocated to a model with the Automata Unit Type first.
Lacyraemarta
Masters of the thralls and servitors that work the forges and march to war in the name of the Mechanicum, the Lacyraemarta can marshal vast hosts to the battlefield at need and have few qualms at expending the lives of their servitors to grasp victory.
- Incorruptible Flesh: Any Hits allocated to a model with this special rule, or any model with the Infantry Unit Type in a unit they join, with the Rending (X), Poisoned (X) or Fleshbane special rules only affect that model on a D6 roll of a 6 instead of their usual effect.
- Opus Viscera: If a model with the Battlesmith (X) special rule in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule is in base contact with at least one model in a unit comprised of only models with the Infantry Unit Type during the Shooting phase, they can attempt to enhance that unit instead of making a Shooting Attack. Roll a D6. If the result is equal to or more than the value listed in brackets as part of the Battlesmith (X) rule, then one of the following effects may be applied to the unit this model is in base contact with:
- Restore a lost Wound. This will not return a model that has been previously removed from the battle.
- The unit may immediately move a number of inches equal to twice the Initiative Characteristic of the majority of models in the unit. This movement is not Running, and therefore, if the unit did not Run in the Movement phase, it may still make Shooting Attacks and declare a Charge as normal for the remainder of the turn. - The Sanguine Hook: A model with this special rule gains the Ephemera Lacyraemarta Cybertheurgic Arcana, but may not select any other Cybertheurgic Arcana from those available with the Cybertheurgist special rule.
Macrotek
Often the most numerous of the classes of magos who govern the Forge Worlds, the macrotek are venerated fane and forge masters, the tech-wrights of the great macro-furnaces that power the endless cycle of production, and at whose ministrations the vast engines of industry and war thunder.
- High Enginseer: Tech-Priest Auxilia units in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may be taken as Troops choices. However, any Tech-Priest Auxilia that are taken in this way must choose the Enginseer Techno-arcana.
- Moderati Munitoria: During the battle’s set-up, but before Objective markers have been placed or deployment has been determined, the player that controls a model with this special rule may choose to alter the terrain set-up on the battlefield. The player that controls a model with this special rule may choose to move up to three pieces of terrain each up to 6", so long as their final position is not within 2" of another piece of terrain. If two or more players control models with this special rule, they roll off. They then take turns choosing and moving terrain, starting with the winner of the roll-off, until each player has moved three pieces of terrain, or chosen to pass. A piece of terrain can only be moved once by this rule.
- Rector Aedificii: Models with the Battlesmith (X) special rule in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may repair Buildings in addition to units with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type. In addition, they add the following effects to the list of options they may apply to models targeted by the Battlesmith (X) rule:
- Until the start of the controlling player’s next turn, any Hits allocated to the chosen model, with the Breaching (X), Exoshock (X) or Rending (X) special rules only affect that model on a D6 roll of a 6 instead of their usual effect.
Malagra
The sinister Malagra are the magos-warlords of the Prefecture Magisterium, charged with enforcing the doctrine of the Omnissiah and the execution of the heretek and the transgressor.
- Ictus Insidiae: Any models with the Character Unit Sub-type in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may upgrade a machinator array or servo-arm they are equipped with to include an in-built prehensile dataspike for +10 points.
- Interfector Auxilia: Tech-Priest Auxilia units in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may choose the Interfector Techno-arcana instead of Enginseer, Lachrimallus, or Reductor options.
- Interfector: Tech-Priests and Magos Auxilia in the unit are each equipped with a prehensile dataspike. In addition, models in the unit gain the Scout special rule. - Sacred Mission: A single Arcuitor Magisterium unit in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may be taken as an HQ choice. A unit taken in this way loses the Hunter Killer special rule and instead gains the Scout and Court of Executioners special rules. Note that this unit is still a 0-1 choice, so if it is taken as an HQ, another Arcuitor Magisterium unit cannot be taken as an Elites choice and vice versa.
- Court of Executioners: A unit with this special rule may include up to two additional Arcuitor Magisterium for 110 points each. When deployed onto the battlefield (either at the start of the battle or when arriving from Reserves), all models with this special rule in a unit must be deployed within unit coherency, but afterwards operate independently and are not treated as a unit. - Scindex-malagrus: A model with this special rule gains the Preferred Enemy (Characters), Precision Strikes (5+) and the Monster Hunter special rules. In addition, a model with this special rule increases their Weapon Skill Characteristic to 5 and Attacks Characteristic to 3.
Myrmidax
The Myrmidax are the lords of the Myrmidon sub-cult, savants of firepower and master weaponsmiths. Few magi are more feared by their own kind, or as lethal.
- Avatar of Destruction: A single Thanatar Siege-automata Maniple unit consisting of a single model may be taken as a non-Compulsory HQ choice in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule. This model must be replaced with a Thanatar-Calix and may not take the Paragon of Metal upgrade. While wholly within 6" of a Thanatar-Calix taken as an HQ choice in this way, friendly Myrmidon Secutor Hosts and Myrmidon Destructor Hosts gain the Line Unit Sub-type and add +1 to the Wounds score used to determine if they win a combat in the Assault phase.
- The Myrmidon Host: Myrmidon Secutor Hosts in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may be taken as Troops choices and Myrmidon Destructor Hosts may be taken as Elites choices.
- Vessel of Destruction: A model with this special rule gains the Hatred (Everything) and Bulky (3) special rules. In addition, a model with this special rule increases their Wound Characteristic to 5.
Reductor
Though often considered a minor and esoteric order, the magi of the Ordo Reductor are a fearsome force on the battlefield, where their skill in the employment of heavy artillery has turned the tide of many a battle.
- Demolisher: Models with the Battlesmith (X) special rule in a Detachment that includes a model with this special rule may target Buildings with the Battlesmith (X) special rule, in addition to models with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type. However, they may neither choose any option in the Battlesmith (X) special rule that restores lost Wounds or Hull Points, nor options that repair Weapon Destroyed or Immobilised results. Instead they may only choose from the following effects (If you are selecting the second effect listed, the model with the Battlesmith (X) ability can still use it, even if they are locked in combat and normally would not be able to fire a weapon):
- Cause a target Building or model with the Vehicle Unit Type to lose a single Hull Point.
- Inflict an automatic Wound with no Saves of any kind to a model with the Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type.
- Inflict an automatic Weapon Destroyed result on a Building or model with the Vehicle Unit Type. The target does not lose a Hull Point as a result of this effect.
- Inflict an automatic Immobilised result on a model with the Vehicle Unit Type. The target does not lose a Hull Point as a result of this effect. - Harbinger of Devastation: During the battle’s setup, but before Objective markers have been placed or deployment has been determined, the player that controls a model with this special rule may nominate up to three areas of terrain, Buildings, or Fortifications. If the chosen item is an area of terrain that provides a Cover Save, then that Cover Save is removed and the area counts as both Difficult Terrain and Dangerous Terrain. If the item chosen is a Building or Fortification then all rolls on the Building Damage table made for that Building or Fortification gain a modifier of +1. If two or more players control models with this special rule, they roll off. They then take turns nominating terrain, starting with the winner of the roll-off, until each player has nominated three pieces of terrain, or chosen to pass. A piece of terrain can only be nominated once by this rule.
- Secrets of Annihilation: A model with this special rule gains the Artificia Reductor Cybertheurgic Arcana, but may not select any other Cybertheurgic Arcana from those available with the Cybertheurgist special rule.
Mechanicum Special Rules
This Army List includes a number of new special rules to represent the vast panoply of the Mechanicum at the height of their mysterious power and arcane might. These special rules are presented here for easy reference and operate under the rules established for special rules in the Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness rulebook.
Ardex-defensor
The god-engines of the Legio Titanicus are studded with intricate systems of automated defensive weaponry.
A model with the Knight or Titan Unit Sub-types that has weapons with this special rule may make the Overwatch Reaction when it is triggered by models that do not have the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy, or Lumbering Unit Subtypes, or that have fewer than 8 Wounds. When making Shooting Attacks as part of the Overwatch Reaction, the Reacting model may only make Shooting Attacks with weapons with this special rule.Armiger and Moirax Talons
The Scout Knights of the Taghmata and Questoris Households often roamed the battlefield independently as the vanguard of their orders. While each war machine strode the battlefield distant from their companions, they shared fierce bonds of fealty and brotherhood.
When deployed onto the battlefield (either at the start of the battle or when arriving from Reserves) all models in the unit must be placed within unit coherency, but afterwards operate independently and are not treated as a single unit.Binaric Stratagems
As well as the axiarch’s own wealth of strategic experience, the datacores which have been surgically implanted in replacement for parts of their cerebellum contain dedicated stores of tactical doctrines and historical information on the myriad foes their Titan Legion has faced in the past. Such programs can be accessed and stratagems enacted based upon them before battle by being uploaded directly to the forebrains of the Secutarii under their command.
At the start of the battle, once both armies have set up all their models, including any units with the Infiltrator special rule, a player that controls any models with this special rule may select one of the effects listed below as part of this special rule. All units with the Kyropatris field generator item of Wargear in the Detachment that includes the model with this special rule gain the chosen effect for the duration of the battle. Note that only a single bonus may be given to the units, regardless of how many models with this special rule are present in the Detachment. If an army includes multiple Detachments that include any models with this special rule, the controlling player must select an effect for each such Detachment and may select the same or different effects for each Detachment:- Pain Suppression Override: Affected models gain the Feel No Pain (5+) special rule.
- Explorator Synaesthesis: Models in affected units gain the Move Through Cover special rule.
- Deconstructive Confluence: Models in affected units gain the Wrecker special rule.
- Extinction Interlock: Models in the affected units gain the Preferred Enemy (Infantry) special rule.
Blind Barrage
In addition to their standard panoply of shells and munitions, Secutarii Peltasts carry a limited supply of blind canister shot. These explode into dense storms of thick particulate multispectrum electromagnetic radiation that occlude both sight and augury scans. These storms of flickering fog can confuse the most able targeting system and utterly blind the enemy to their intended target.
So long as a unit with this special rule contains at least five models with galvanic casters, once per battle during the controlling player’s Shooting phase, the unit may make a Blind Barrage instead of making a Shooting Attack. Select a friendly unit with a model within 18" and within line of sight of the unit making the Blind Barrage. That friendly unit gains the Shrouded (4+) special rule until the beginning of the controlling player’s next player turn. Models with the Vehicle Unit Type, the Knight Unit Sub-type, the Titan Unit Sub-type, or the Monstrous Unit Sub-type may not be the target of a Blind Barrage.Breaching (X)
Some weapons are capable of breaching armour with a terrifying ease, whether by specially designed munitions, careful targeting or sheer brute power.
When rolling To Wound for a model that has the Breaching (X) special rule, or is attacking with a weapon that has the Breaching (X) special rule, for each To Wound roll equal to or higher than the value listed in brackets, the controlling player must resolve these wounds at AP 2 instead of the weapon’s normal AP value. This rule has no effect on models that do not have Wounds, such as models with the Vehicle Unit Type.For example, a model with the Breaching (5+) special rule that rolls To Wound and rolls a result of ‘5’ or higher, the Wound inflicted gains an AP of ‘2’ regardless of the AP value listed on the weapon’s profile. Note that a weapon that has both the Breaching (X) and the Gets Hot special rules always uses the base AP of the weapon when rolls of ‘1’ To Hit inflict Wounds on the attacking model.
Brutal (X)
Some weapons strike with such force that they cause terrible wounds that can lay low even the most formidable combatant.
When a model is allocated a Wound inflicted by a weapon with this special rule, it does not suffer only one Wound but instead suffers a number of Wounds equal to the number in brackets associated with the specific variant of this special rule, with all of the Wounds inflicted using the same AP and special rules as that of the initial Wound. Roll to save against each Wound inflicted separately, but note that Wounds caused in excess of a given model’s remaining Wounds do not spill over to other models and are lost. This special rule has no effect on models that do not have a Toughness value.Catastrophic Destruction
The lost technologies that drive the Knight Atrapos rely on esoteric energies barriered behind overlapping containment fields that can cause hideous damage to anything nearby when breached.
When destroyed, a model with this special rule resolves Catastrophic Damage at AP 1.Catastrophic Explosion
The chassis and weaponry of the massive Acastus class Knights are powered by volatile engines.
When destroyed, a model with this special rule resolves Catastrophic Damage at AP 2.Data-djinn
Cybertheurgists use all manner of feral code-constructs and sophisticated lex-simulacra collectively known as data-djinn to corrupt and sabotage the machine spirits of enemy constructs.
When allocated to a model that does not have the Automata, Vehicle or Dreadnought Unit Types or is not a Building or Fortification, any Hits from a weapon with this special rule automatically fail to Wound without any dice being rolled and regardless of the weapon’s Strength or the target’s Toughness.Destructor
The massive gauntlet-claws wielded by certain Knights of the Mechanicum and Questoris Houses tear through the chassis plating of even the most heavily armoured Titan with ease. Woe betide any mere mortal that is caught in their indomitable grip.
Any model which suffers an unsaved Wound or Hull Point loss from a weapon with this special rule instead suffers D6 unsaved Wounds or Hull Points of damage. In addition, if the target of this attack is a model with the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy Vehicle, or Building or Fortification Unit Type, or the Monstrous Unit Sub-type, increase the number of Wounds suffered or Hull Points lost to 2D6.Detonation
A carefully placed explosive charge can easily doom even the most heavily armoured vehicle, but are difficult to attach accurately in the heat of combat.
A weapon with this special rule may only be used to attack models of the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Types, any model with a Movement Characteristic of 0 or ‘-’, or Buildings or Fortifications. Furthermore, a model that is chosen to attack with a weapon with this special rule during the Assault phase may only make a single attack in the Fight sub-phase, regardless of its Attacks Characteristic and any bonus attacks from Charging or other special rules.Disruption (X)
The coruscating bolts of lightning hurled from arc weapons overload and burn out the circuitry and neuro-matrices of simple and complex machines alike.
To Hit rolls of the value X indicated made by a weapon with this rule cause an automatic Glancing Hit against models with the Vehicle Unit Type instead of rolling for Armour Penetration, and an automatic Wound against models with the Dreadnought or Automata Unit Types, instead of rolling To Wound.Djinn-sight
The sinister blank-faced helms of the Thallaxii conceal an array of inhuman sensory apparatus through which they experience the battlefield as a raging storm of electromagnetic turmoil, blood-heat and seismic percussion. However, for the organic brain to handle this hurricane of data, it must be surgically mutilated, removing the mere human senses such as sight and hearing.
When making Shooting Attacks, djinn-sight reduces the benefits of any Cover Save the target unit has by -2 (a 4+ becoming a 6+, a 5+ being ignored entirely, and so on). Additionally, Infiltrators may not be set up within 24" of units with this special rule, regardless of line of sight.Feudal Hierarchy
The archmagi of the Mechanicum jealously guarded their rights of rulership over their feudal subjects. While alliances and cooperation in service to a common overlord were frequent occurrences, no archmagos would tolerate sharing power with their peers.
A single Detachment may not include both an Archmagos Prime and an Archmagos Prime on Abeyant.Designers Note: For the purposes of the Feudal Hierarchy special rule:
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Flank Speed
The Cerastus Knight armour is renowned for its agility and speed, capable of pushing beyond the limitations of its heavier and more cumbersome brethren.
A model with this special rule may increase its Movement Distance by 4" in any Movement phase, but if it does so it may not make any Shooting Attacks in the subsequent Shooting phase. Note this model may still Charge in the Assault phase. In addition, when declaring a Charge after making a Shooting Attack, a model with this special rule may Charge a unit that it did not target in that turn’s Shooting phase, provided that the target of the Charge meets all other criteria of a valid Charge target.Galvanic Traction Drive
The lumbering tread drives of the Mechanicum’s heavier tanks and carriers are motivated by arcane electro-chem engines designed to overcome even the most treacherous battlefield environments.
A model with this special rule must re-roll failed Dangerous Terrain tests.God-engine
The devotees of the Omnissiah view the colossal war engines of the Legio Titanicus as avatars of their machine god. In the shadow of their towering might, the warriors and mystics of the Mechanicum fight with absolute confidence in their deity. Indeed, these blessed constructs remain inviolate to energies that would scour the machine-minds of lesser automata.
A model with this special rule ignores all Psychic Powers and Cybertheurgic Rites and Attacks made by Psychic and Cybertheurgic Weapons. In addition, a model with this special rule ignores the effects of the Haywire and Disruption (X) special rules. In all cases, weapons which benefit from these special rules must attempt to damage a model with this special rule normally using the attack’s Strength value. In addition, all friendly Mechanicum units with at least one model within 24" of a model with this special rule gain the Fearless special rule.Grav Wave
Through means lost to all but the deepest mysteries of the Mechanicum, some more potent graviton weapons are capable of emitting a reactive field of gravitational inversion, throwing nearby enemy formations into disarray.
Any successful Charge that targets a unit containing a model with a weapon with this special rule is always counted as a Disordered Charge.Graviton Singularity
Some graviton weapons can bend the most terrible power in the galaxy to its breaking point, collapsing gravity in upon itself and creating super-dense singularities that consume light, matter, and time itself.
Before firing a weapon with this special rule, roll a D6. On a 1, the firing unit suffers a single Wound against which no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls may be made. A model with the Vehicle Unit Type instead suffers 1 Hull Point against which no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls may be made. On a 2-5, the weapon fires normally. On a result of a 6, the attack is carried out with the Vortex special rule.Greuso Protocol
The Mechanicum Knight Moirax is deployed primarily to be kept at the heel of valuable automata and constructs as their guardian, running ahead to identify and neutralise threats. Its programmed behaviours restrict it from straying too far from its ward, remaining within range to respond to aggressors.
A unit that includes one or more models with this special rule may make use of the Greuso Protocol Advanced Reaction.Advanced Reaction: Greuso ProtocolAdvanced Reactions are available to specific players as noted in their description. Unlike Core Reactions, they are activated in unique and specific circumstances, as noted in their descriptions, and can often have game changing effects. Advanced Reactions use up points of a Reactive player’s Reaction Allotment as normal and obey all other restrictions placed upon Reactions, unless it is specifically noted otherwise in their description.Greuso Protocol – This Advanced Reaction may be made whenever an enemy unit declares a Charge targeting a friendly unit with the Automata Unit Type or Knight Unit Sub-type which is within 12" of another friendly unit that includes at least one model with the Greuso Protocol special rule and is not itself locked in combat. The unit with the Greuso Protocol special rule may make a Shooting Attack, targeting the unit that triggered this Reaction and following all the usual rules for Shooting Attacks. A unit that makes a Shooting Attack as part of a Greuso Protocol Reaction may not make any attacks indirectly (without line of sight) including weapons with the Barrage special rule or other weapons or special rules that otherwise ignore line of sight, and Vehicles may only fire Defensive Weapons. Template weapons used as part of a Greuso Protocol Reaction use the Wall of Death rule instead of firing normally. The unit targeted by the Greuso Protocol Reaction may not take Cover Saves against Wounds inflicted as part of that Reaction. | ||
Hazardous Munitions
Among the arcane weapons of the Taghmata, some utilise such volatile ammunition that they can prove as dangerous to their wielder as the enemy.
If a model with this special rule suffers an Explodes result on the Vehicle Damage table as a result of a Melee or Shooting Attack, the Explodes result causes nearby units to suffer a Str 8, AP 4 Hit for each model within D6+6" instead of the usual damage and area of effect.Heavy Structure
The physical construction of this engine of war is all but impenetrable to conventional weapons.
A model with this special rule has an Invulnerable Save of 6+ against Shooting Attacks.Loyalist
Whether pledged to the Emperor himself as the rightful leader of Mankind or to the dream of the Imperium that he intended to create, some warriors swore to fight and die for the Loyalist cause and no other.
A model with this special rule may only be included in an army that has the Loyalist Allegiance.Macro-extinction Targeting Protocols
The Knight Atrapos is possessed with a predatory machine spirit that drives it to single-mindedly stalk and eradicate the largest and most dangerous prey on the battlefield.
When making Shooting Attacks against targets with the Super-heavy Vehicle, Knight or Titan Unit Types or the Monstrous Sub-type, a model with this special rule counts all of its ranged weapons as twin-linked.Molecular Dissonance
Some ammunition is saturated with volatile charged particles that disrupt its target on a molecular level.
Any To Hit roll of a 6 made by a weapon with this special rule Wounds automatically. This special rule has no effect on models with the Primarch or Vehicle Unit Types.Ordinatus Transport Bay
Some of the largest transport vehicles are specially designed to carry both infantry and machines of war into battle, allowing for versatile battle groups to be deployed to the battlefield at once. These rare engines of war are often restricted to the most elite elements of an army, and used to tackle the most perilous of missions.
A model with this special rule may carry models with jet packs and jump packs, as well as models of the Dreadnought, Cavalry and Automata Unit Types. Each Dreadnought model uses 10 points of Transport Capacity, while each Automata and Cavalry model uses up a number of Transport Capacity points equal to twice its starting Wounds Characteristic.Paragon of Metal
While each battle-automata of the Legio Cybernetica is in itself a creation of a near lost age of human power; a miracle of technological artifice and the product of arcane secrets without number, there remains among them war machines whose powers and capabilities are far beyond their peers. Whether somehow blessed by the Omnissiah, the product of a single magos’ unmatched genius or the darker influence of the forbidden, a Paragon of Metal is a near-unstoppable engine of war, albeit one perhaps not to be trusted, even by its master.
Only one model in an army may be upgraded to have the Paragon of Metal special rule. Models upgraded with the Paragon of Metal special rule must have the Automata (Cybernetica) Unit Type before the upgrade is applied. This rule confers the Paragon Sub-type, which replaces the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type, and confers the It Will Not Die (4+), Precision Strikes (4+), Precision Shots (4+) and Rampage (2) special rules. A model upgraded with the Paragon of Metal special rule also increases both their starting Wounds Characteristic and their Weapon Skill Characteristic by +1.In addition, a model with the Paragon of Metal special rule may not be targeted or affected by any Cybertheurgic Power or any Weapon with the Data-djinn special rule, either friendly or enemy.
Patris Cybernetica
Many of the most senior magi among the Mechanicum are capable of interpreting the binaric chatter of base automata, commanding them as lesser mortals command their warriors of flesh and blood with a simple word or gesture. Such magi are often found in the company of these iron killers, directing their programmed imperatives and sheltering behind their armoured bulk.
An Independent Character with this special rule may join a unit composed of models with the Automata Unit Type or Monstrous Unit Sub-type. However they cannot join a unit which contains models of any other Unit Type if the model with this rule also has the Automata or Dreadnought Unit Type, or the Monstrous Unit Sub-type.Prisoned
This short range weapon requires a sizable charge of energy and is easily dodged if the target has not been restrained prior to the attack.
A weapon with this special rule may only target models with the Infantry Unit Type, and a model attacking with a weapon with this special rule makes only a single attack (regardless of any other factors).Pride of Place
The pride of some warriors is so great that they refuse to be carted around the battlefield within the confines of a transport vehicle. Preferring instead to be visible to their subjects and their enemies alike.
A model with this special rule may not embark upon any model with the Transport Unit Sub-type, regardless of its Unit Type or any special rules the model with the Transport Sub-type may have.Ram (X)
Reinforced to withstand massive impacts from its forward facing, some vehicles are built to hammer into enemies using their sheer build and motive power.
When a model with a weapon with this special rule performs a Ram Attack, it inflicts a number of additional hits equal to the value of X. These additional hits are resolved using the profile of the weapon with this special rule.Reach (X)
Some weapons rely not on the speed of their wielder, but on their sheer length or cunning design to inflict harm upon the foe before they can react.
A model making attacks as part of an Assault using a weapon with this special rule, adds the value of (X) that is included as part of this special rule to its Initiative Characteristic. If a model has more than one weapon with this special rule then that model only increases the value of its Initiative by the value of the special rule on the weapon whose profile is used by that model to attack during the Fight sub-phase. A weapon that is not used to attack does not modify the model’s Initiative Characteristic – models that may attack with more than one weapon, or models claiming the bonus for having a second weapon, may only add the value of the highest variant of this special rule and do not add the values together.For example, a model attacking as part of an Assault with a weapon that has the Reach (1) special rule increases its Initiative by +1.
Reactor Overload
This weapon requires dangerous amounts of energy to fire at full power. Doing so puts the vehicle at risk of pushing its reactor past the breaking point.
A weapon with this special rule may double the number of shots it makes, but if it does so the firing model suffers D3 Wounds or Hull Points of damage with no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls of any kind allowed.Reactor Meltdown (X)
The colossal engines of the Ordo Reductor and the Titan Legions are driven by devastatingly powerful thermonuclear reactors. Should these engines be breached, the resulting explosion is apocalyptic for any caught in its blast.
When a model with this special rule is destroyed, the damage caused by its Catastrophic Damage is altered depending on the value of (X) in the version of this special rule as follows:Magna
When destroyed, a model with this special rule resolves Hits caused by Catastrophic Damage as Destroyer attacks.
Major
When destroyed, a model with this special rule resolves Hits caused by Catastrophic Damage as Destroyer attacks at AP2.
Maxima
When destroyed, a model with this special rule resolves Hits caused by Catastrophic Damage as Destroyer attacks at AP2, and doubles the range of the Catastrophic Damage effect.
Reinforced Structure
The construction of this god-like engine of war is rivalled only by the resilience of void ships themselves.
A model with this special rule has an Invulnerable Save of 5+ against Shooting Attacks.The Rite of Pure Thought
These warriors have undergone massive cranial surgery to destroy the emotional and instinctual response centres of the brain.
A unit with this special rule may not make any Reactions or Sweeping Advance moves.Seismic Shock
This weapon causes massive tremors to rip through the earth beneath the feet of its targets, driving those who survive to their knees and slowing the enemy’s advance.
Units which suffer one or more Wounds or Hull Points lost from an attack from a weapon with this special rule halve their Movement Characteristic and may not Run or make Reactions until the end of the attacker’s next Shooting phase.Sonic Wave
The varying waveform of destructive sound energy produced by this weapon is able to shatter the most resilient materials. The annihilating wave-pulse traverses the battlefield, wreaking havoc in its path, the particular effect of its design meaning that the larger the target struck, the more damaging the wave’s impact.
When making a Shooting Attack with this weapon, place the Large Blast (5") marker so that its edge touches the Front hull of the firing model. Instead of scattering this Blast marker, move the template in a direct line away from the firing model, travelling in any direction within the weapon’s 45° forward firing arc until its maximum range is reached or the template leaves the battlefield. All models the template passes over suffer a single automatic Hit. Flyers are also Hit if the template passes over their base. Should a model with the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy Vehicle, Building or Fortification Unit Type be Hit by this attack, increase the Strength of the attack to 10.Surveillance Protocols
The enhanced behavioural programming of some cybernetica constructs allow them to ignore the more predatory aspects of their machine spirits to better focus their efforts on tasks for which they are better suited.
A model with this special rule and the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type may ignore the Programmed Behaviour provision described as part of that Sub-type during the Charge sub-phase.Subterranean AssaultA subterranean assault is a full scale attack conducted by units that have approached the target site by means of subsurface transport, emerging from below into the teeth of the enemy force, shattering its formation and sowing chaos amongst its ranks. Such attacks are most often initiated in order to counter enemy macro-fortifications or to navigate otherwise impassable terrain, but some commanders favour them for the sheer surprise they engender. Before the start of the first turn, when placing units into Reserve, a player must assign all units with the Subterranean Assault special rule and any Infantry units Embarked upon them to perform a Subterranean Assault. All models in a unit assigned to a Subterranean Assault must have the Subterranean Assault special rule, or be Embarked on a model with the Transport Sub-type that has the Subterranean Assault special rule itself.When rolling for Reserves, roll a single dice for all of the units assigned to the Subterranean Assault rather than rolling separately for each unit. If the roll is successful then all of the Subterranean Assault units must enter play in that turn and follow this procedure: Performing a Subterranean Assault Once a Reserves roll for the units assigned to the Subterranean Assault has succeeded and the units are to be brought into play, the controlling player selects a single unit to deploy first. That player must place a single model with the Subterranean Assault special rule that is either a Dedicated Transport or a unit of its own (this model may have a unit Embarked within) anywhere on the battlefield that is at least 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain and then scatter that model. If the model’s final position is within 1" of an enemy model, any battlefield edge or a piece of Impassable Terrain, the controlling player’s opponent may move that model to any position within 18" that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain. If there is no suitable position within 18" then the model may be repositioned anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain. Once this first unit has been deployed, roll a dice. On the roll of a ‘1’ the Subterranean Assault is Disordered, and the opposing player may deploy each remaining unit in the Subterranean Assault anywhere within 12" of the first unit without scattering, though no model may be within 1" of an enemy model or within Impassable Terrain. If the roll is a ‘2’ or higher, the controlling player deploys each other unit anywhere within 12" of the first, though no model may be within 1" of an enemy model or within Impassable Terrain. Any models Embarked on a model with the Transport Sub-type must remain Embarked and may not Disembark as part of a Subterranean Assault (but may Disembark normally during the following Movement phase). Once all units are deployed, any enemy units with one or more models within 6" of any unit deployed as part of the Subterranean Assault suffer D6+3 Str 6, AP 4 Hits (Wounds caused by these Hits do not cause Morale checks or Pinning tests). Once all Hits are resolved, any enemy units that are neither Pinned or Falling Back and are within line of sight may choose to make the Interceptor Reaction targeting any one of the units deployed as part of the Subterranean Assault. Note that no Reaction other than Interceptor may be made against the deployment of a unit as part of a Subterranean Assault. Once all units from the Subterranean Assault have been deployed and any Interceptor Reactions have been resolved, the turn proceeds as normal. Units that have been deployed as part of a Subterranean Assault may Move, Run or Shoot as normal. However, only units deployed aboard a model with the Transport Sub-type with the Assault Vehicle special rule may declare and resolve a Charge and Assault as normal. Other units deployed as part of a Subterranean Assault may not declare or resolve a Charge on the same turn as they are deployed. | ||
Tempest
The elegant Tempest warblade of the Knight Castigator uses relic technology from a bygone age to infuse its strikes with searing energy, leaving glowing trails of embers and ash behind its sweeping arcs.
Instead of making a Melee Attack, a model with a weapon with this special rule may make a special attack at Initiative step 2. This automatically inflicts a single Hit against each model (friendly or enemy) in contact with the attacking model’s base, using the profile of the weapon with this special rule.Terrestrial Disregard
Burrowing up from the depths, the Ordinatus Aktaeus shatters the surrounding landscape, devastating all in its vicinity.
Instead of using the normal rules for Subterranean Assault, when a model with this special rule enters play via Subterranean Assault, place an Apocalyptic Blast marker (10") anywhere on the battlefield that is at least 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain and then scatter that marker.If the marker’s final position is within 1" of an enemy model, any battlefield edge or a piece of Impassable Terrain, then the controlling player’s opponent may move that model to any position within 18" that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain. If there is no suitable position within 18", then the model may be repositioned by the controlling player’s opponent anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain.
Once the final position of the marker has been determined, the controlling player may place the model with this special rule on the battlefield so long as the centre of the marker is underneath part of the model’s hull, and the model remains more than 1" away from any enemy model. After the model has been placed, each Fortification within 6" of it immediately suffers D6 Str 10, AP 2 Hits, and nearby units suffer one S10, AP 2 Hit for each model within 6" of the model. Any unit that suffers one or more Hits from this effect must take an immediate Pinning test.
The area under the Apocalyptic Blast marker (10") is treated as Difficult Terrain and Dangerous Terrain for the remainder of the battle.
Thanatar Maniple
These cybernetica monstrosities are possessed of such will that they can only be formed into loose squadrons for a short time before succumbing to their independent nature.
When deployed onto the battlefield (either at the start of the battle or when arriving from Reserves) all models in the unit must be placed within unit coherency, but afterwards operate independently and are not treated as a single unit.Towering Monstrosity
Among the god-engines of the Titan Legions, some are of such colossal size, incalculable power and superior design that they are all but impossible to harm from ground level. Their vital systems are elevated far above the heads and hulls of those upon the battlefield below it, atop legs that are plated with metres-thick armour to prevent it from being assaulted by infantry or laid low by explosive charges.
No melee attack made by models with the Knight Unit Sub-type or the Super-heavy Unit Sub-type may successfully hit a model with this special rule on better than a 5+. No melee attack made by models with the Automata, Cavalry, Dreadnoughts, and Infantry Unit Types may successfully hit a model with this special rule on better than a 6+.When making Shooting Attacks with Carapace Mounted weapons, a model with this special rule may not choose a unit as a target if all models in that unit are within 24" of the attacking model.
Lastly, a model with this special rule makes a number of Stomp attacks equal to 6 plus the model’s unmodified Attacks Characteristic.
Traitor
In the name of the Warmaster Horus, a vast host took up arms against those they had once called brothers – some driven by a lust for power and others by a misguided desire for justice. Regardless of the cause they held dear, there could be no turning back for these warriors, only victory or damnation.
A model with this special rule may only be included in an army that has the Traitor Allegiance.Void Shields (X)
Some vehicles are equipped with almost impenetrable shields of energy, relics from ancient times known as void shields.
A model with this special rule has a number of void shields, as listed on its profile. Shooting Attacks which Hit a model with this special rule instead target this model’s void shields while at least one remains active. Void shields have an Armour Value of 12. A successful Glancing Hit, Penetrating Hit or any successful Hit from a Destroyer weapon which targets a void shield causes it to collapse, reducing the number ‘X’ by -1. When the number of void shields is reduced to 0, this special rule has no further effect and subsequent Shooting Attacks target the model instead. Void shields have no effect on close combat attacks, and may not be affected by close combat attacks.Vortex
Whether tearing a hole in the veil between realspace and the Warp or collapsing gravity into a superdense singularity, this weapon creates a lasting calamity which threatens the very stability of reality around it.
Once an attack with this special rule has been fully resolved, any Blast markers placed as part of that attack are not removed from play and instead are left in place for the remainder of the battle. Such a Blast marker is then referred to as the Vortex marker. The area under a Vortex marker is treated as Area Terrain for the remainder of the battle, and applies the following effects to all models that enter its boundaries:No line of sight may be drawn through, into, or out of the area covered by the Vortex marker (as such, models within such an area of terrain cannot draw line of sight to any other model, nor can other models draw a line of sight to them).
Any models that enter the boundary of this area of terrain, or begin the Movement phase of the model’s Controlling player within its boundaries, immediately suffer one Str 10, AP 1 Hit and the Instant Death and Armourbane (Melee) special rules. If the model has the Vehicle Unit Type and suffers a Penetrating Hit due to this effect then it adds a modifier of +3 to that roll on the Vehicle Damage table instead of the +2 modifier it would normally add due to being AP1.
This area of terrain does not confer a Cover Save and no model within its boundary may use a Cover Save granted by any other rule or effect.
Vox Silence
Shorting out the vox comms of enemy targets, this weapon isolates its victims from their allies and the direction of their commanders.
Any models with the Infantry or Cavalry Unit Types in a unit that suffers one or more Hits from a weapon with this special rule must reduce their Leadership by -2 until the start of their controlling player’s next turn. This modifier is not cumulative, and any given unit can only be affected by a single instance of the Vox Silence special rule at a time. Nor is it cumulative with other special rules that negatively modify Leadership. Always use the highest single modifier among those applicable. In addition, units affected by this special rule do not gain the benefits of nuncio vox, command vox or other similar Wargear items until the start of their controlling player’s next turn. Units that include one or more models with the Stubborn special rule ignore this effect.Wrecker
Some attacks cause severe damage to their targets, frying circuitry and ravaging infrastructure as they strike. Few engines of war or armoured bastions can survive the onslaught of such attacks.
Penetrating Hits caused by attacks made with weapons or models with this special rule add +1 to the result of any rolls on the Vehicle or Building Damage tables.Armoury of the Mechanicum
The Mechanicum makes use of a number of weapons and items of Wargear that were unique to the configurations of the Taghmata. This section presents the rules for these weapons and artefacts of the Horus Heresy.
Weapon Strengths Above 10On certain extremely powerful weapons, the Strength value of the weapon can be higher than 10. These weapons roll for armour penetration against models with the Vehicle Unit Type and Buildings as normal – adding their full Strength value to the roll of a D6. When rolling to Wound a model with a Toughness value, the weapon is treated as though it had a Strength value of 10 on the To Wound table. However, when determining if such a weapon inflicts Instant Death use its full Strength value. | ||
Archaeotech Pistol
Despite the renaissance of human power in the galaxy that the Great Crusade has created, there remains much of Mankind’s ancient might and arts that are lost to myth and legend, save for a few relics that have survived the stifling darkness of Old Night. One of the more common types of these relics found are sidearms of surpassing firepower and elegance. Be they bespoke slug throwers utilising micro-atomic munitions or searing kill-rays that draw power from a planet’s ambient magnetosphere, such priceless artefacts of war find their way into the hands of the magi of the Mechanicum.
The archaeotech pistol, like several classes of weaponry available to the magi of the Mechanicum, is intended to represent a wide variety of weapons and to give players a profile that can be used for converted or unusual handguns whose power exceeds that of more common weaponry.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Archaeotech pistol | 12" | 6 | 4 | Pistol 1, Rending (3+), Master-crafted |
Arc Weapons and Lightning Guns
These weapons are powered by potent capacitors of ancient design, the schema for which are thought to reside on Mars alone, though uncorroborated reports suggest that the Forge World of Mezoa lays claim to such as well. When these energy repositories are discharged, they produce an ear-drum splitting crack of sound and a bolt of pure, blue-white lightning which can overload both a mechanical data-core and a biological cortex with equal ease. Akin to these weapons, the arc lance is a powerful spear which can project bolts of coruscating energies over a short range, its power supply augmented by the inversion generators mounted in the mag-inverter shield it is usually paired with.
Lightning guns are aptly-named weapons, taking the form of baroquely designed carbines connected to reactor cores of various sizes. They fire ionising las-beams, down which a powerful phased discharge of electromagnetic force is unleashed. These weapons are equally effective at slaughtering the living and overloading machine targets.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Arc pistol | 12" | 6 | 5 | Pistol, Disruption (6+) |
| Arc rifle | 30" | 6 | 5 | Rapid Fire, Disruption (6+) |
| Arc blaster | 24" | 6 | 5 | Heavy 4, Shred, Disruption (4+) |
| Arc lance (Ranged) | 12" | 6 | 5 | Assault 1, Disruption (6+) |
| Lightning gun | ||||
| - (Arc) | 18" | 4 | - | Heavy 3, Shred |
| - (Strike) | 18" | 7 | 5 | Heavy 1, Rending (4+), Shred |
| Lightning lock | 36" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Rending (4+), Shred, Exoshock (4+) |
| Lightning cannon | 36" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Rending (4+), Shred, Exoshock (4+) |
Artillery Cannon
Often operating on the same principles as bolt or auto weaponry, these weapons are considered of a separate kind simply due to the excessive calibre and often prodigious size of the weapons themselves – used as they were to lay bare the fortresses of those that stood against the Emperor. Intended to engage targets at extreme ranges and to subdue enemies whose armour or innate toughness made them proof against lesser weapons, these cannons rely on either huge explosive payloads or advanced armourpiercing technologies to achieve a destructive capacity that few other weapons can match.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Rapid-fire battle cannon | 48" | 8 | 4 | Ordnance 2, Large Blast (5") |
| Mori quake cannon | 24"-360" | 10/8/6 | 3 | Destroyer 1, Apocalyptic Mega-blast, Barrage, Seismic Shock, Concussive (1) |
| Nemesis quake cannon | 24"-480" | 10/8/6 | 3 | Destroyer 1, Apocalyptic Mega-blast, Barrage, Seismic Shock, Concussive (1) |
Auto Weapons
An ancient form of firearm that propels a solid slug by means of chemical explosion, both ancient ‘bullets’ of lead or other base metals and more modern armour-piercing sabot rounds. Among the warriors of the Mechanicum there are few examples of the older autoguns that once formed the main armament of the Emperor’s armies, but a number of larger autocannon remain in use due to the reliability of such simple tools of war. Such weapons are most often used in an anti-armour capacity, delivering volleys of large armour piercing shells to defeat that which is proof against the mass reactive fire of the more advanced bolter weaponry. This category of weapons also plays host to more advanced weapons, such as the first generations of assault cannon and magnetic charge accelerator cannon.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Auto’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Heavy stubber | 36" | 4 | 6 | Heavy 3 |
| Rotor cannon | 30" | 3 | - | Assault 4, Pinning, Shell Shock (1) |
| Light autocannon | 36" | 6 | 4 | Assault 2 |
| Autocannon | 48" | 7 | 4 | Heavy 2, Rending (6+) |
| Icarus autocannon | 48" | 7 | 4 | Heavy 2, Rending (6+), Skyfire |
| Defensor autocannon battery | 72" | 7 | 4 | Heavy 4, Rending (6+), Twin-linked, Sunder, Skyfire |
| Phaeton autocannon | ||||
| - AP rounds | 64" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 2, Sunder, Rending (6+) |
| - Ignis rounds | 64" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 2, Ignores Cover, Rending (6+) |
| Avenger gatling cannon | 36" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 12, Rending (6+) |
| Gatling blaster | 60" | 8 | 3 | Destroyer 2, Apocalyptic Blast (10"), Pinning, Shell Shock (1) |
| Macro-gatling blaster | 72" | 10 | 3 | Destroyer 3, Massive Blast (7"), Pinning, Shell Shock (1) |
Bolt Weapons
A branch of weaponry now commonplace among the ranks of the Mechanicum, bolt weapons are based on a robust Terran design, refined from the weapons used during the Emperor’s battles to conquer Old Earth. These brutally efficient weapons fire a self-propelled mass reactive munition, more akin to a miniature rocket than a simple bullet and easily capable of eviscerating most foes against which the warriors of the Imperium find themselves matched.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Bolt’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Bolt pistol | 12" | 4 | 5 | Pistol 1 |
| Bolter | 24" | 4 | 5 | Rapid Fire |
| Heavy bolter | 36" | 5 | 4 | Heavy 4 |
| Maxima bolter | 12" | 4 | 5 | Assault 3 |
| Kraken bolter | 30" | 4 | 4 | Rapid Fire |
| Mauler bolt cannon | 24" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 4, Pinning |
| Defensor bolt cannon | 24" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 6, Ardex-defensor |
| Castigator bolt cannon | 36" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 18, Pinning, Shell Shock (1), Twin-linked |
| Vulcan mega-bolter | 60" | 6 | 3 | Heavy 15, Pinning, Shell Shock (1) |
Conversion Beam Weapons
These esoteric energy weapons fire a beam that induces a subatomic implosion in their target, with the beam itself gathering power over distance up to a terminal point of beam instability. Conversion beamers are both difficult to construct and highly complex to use, needing skilled calibration to operate as well as dedicated reactor core systems to power. As a result, they are primarily used for siege warfare or starship breaching assaults by specialised operators such as Techmarines and Mechanicum Destructors. More rarely, larger conversion beamer weapons are mounted on a vehicle chassis with advanced control mechanisms and an abundance of reactor power.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Conversion Beam’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons. An attack made with a conversion beamer has a number of different profiles, the use of which depends upon how far the chosen target is from the attacking model up to the weapon’s maximum range. When attacking with one of these weapons measure the distance to the target, place the weapon’s Blast template and scatter as normal for a blast weapon. Once the final location of the template has been determined, measure to the centre of the Blast marker and consult the weapon’s chart to determine the effect.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Conversion beamer | ||||
Up to 18" | 6 | - | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
More than 18"-42" | 8 | 4 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
More than 42"-72" | 10 | 1 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
| Conversion beam cannon | ||||
Up to 18" | 7 | - | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
More than 18"-42" | 9 | 4 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
More than 42"-72" | 12 | 1 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Blind | |
| Heavy conversion beam cannon | ||||
Up to 18" | 7 | - | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Blind | |
More than 18"-42" | 9 | 4 | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Blind | |
More than 42"-72" | 12 | 1 | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Blind | |
Cutting Tools of the Mechanicum
These are powerful industrial tools that make use of a phase field to assist short, continuous releases of high energy packets. More portable and easily manipulated than common lascutters, phase cutting tools are preferred in industrial processes to cut the composite ceramite and rolled plasteel sheets in which constructs are commonly clad. They are sometimes used by branches of the Imperial Army in siege warfare, though to the magi of the Mechanicum they are little more than readily available tools able to be easily mounted to experimental automata, and can be quickly refitted with alterations to their priming and phase field mechanisms to serve the needs of a given task-servitor.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Las-impulsor (Ranged) | 12" | 10 | 2 | Heavy 2, Sunder, Instant Death |
| Atrapos phasecutter (Ranged) | 12" | 10 | 2 | Ordnance 1 |
Flame Weapons
Among the most ancient of weapons employed within the ranks of the Mechanicum, flame has always been potent against creatures that lurk in darkness. Many Forge Worlds considered the cleansing power of flame a key part of their arsenal, and indeed the ability of these weapons to rout the enemy from fortified positions has proven pivotal in any number of battles.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Flame’ or ‘Flamer’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Flamer | Template | 4 | 5 | Assault 1 |
| Heavy flamer | Template | 5 | 4 | Assault 1 |
| Acheron flamestorm cannon | Hellstorm | 7 | 4 | Ordnance 1, Shred |
| Inferno gun | Hellstorm | 7 | 3 | Destroyer 1, Torrent (24") |
Galvanic Weapons
Electro-galvanic weaponry uses a combination of magnetic and galvanic forces to project solid shot or explosive ballistics at low velocities but with the precision accuracy of a marksman. More advanced forms of such weapons, such as the galvanic caster, are laser-guided, multi-functional launchers akin in some ways to advanced combination weapons. These weapons are able to fire rapid bursts of razor-edged metallic flechettes, or with their secondary discharger attack concealed targets with their retinaburning ignis charges.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Galvanic caster | ||||
| - Flechette | 24" | 3 | 6 | Rapid Fire, Shred |
| - Ignis | 18" | 2 | 5 | Assault 2, Blind, Ignores Cover |
| - Hammershot | 30" | 4 | 3 | Assault 1, Molecular Dissonance |
Graviton Weapons
Little understood even by the Tech-Priests of Mars, the term ‘graviton gun’ refers to a group of gravity projector devices whose sophistication is such that the few that now remain are relics of a lost age. Such weapons prove extremely useful when fighting on a starship or in a null gravity environment. The power of the graviton gun’s highest settings is sufficient to rupture organs and crack bones even inside armour, but its primary use is to impede the enemy and damage machinery without the risk of secondary explosions.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Graviton’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Graviton gun | 18" | * | 4 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Concussive (1), Graviton Pulse*, Haywire |
| Graviton imploder | 18" | * | 3 | Heavy 2, Graviton Pulse*, Concussive (1), Haywire |
| Graviton pulsar | 24" | * | 4 | Heavy 2, Blast (3"), Concussive (1), Graviton Pulse*, Haywire |
| Graviton hammer (Ranged) | Template | * | 6 | Heavy 1, Concussive (1), Graviton Pulse*, Grav Wave, Haywire |
| Graviton ram (Ranged) | Template | * | 4 | Heavy 1, Concussive (1), Graviton Pulse*, Grav Wave, Haywire |
| Singularity cannon | 36" | 8 | 2 | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Haywire, Concussive (1), Graviton Singularity |
Las, Photon and Pulsar Weapons
In the Imperium the term las is applied to a wide variety of weapons, from crude particle weapons like the ubiquitous laspistol, to more complex and deadly weapons like the neutron laser beam cannon. The defining features that link these disparate weapons are their nature as energy weapons, rather than projectile weapons, and their reliance on rechargeable power packs or portable generators instead of conventional magazines. This ability to draw and project vast quantities of power has made such weapons ideal anti-tank armament among the ranks of the Mechanicum.
Photon and pulsar weapons are deadly but unstable, and their secrets are jealously guarded by the adepts who hold them, leading some to believe the technology is xenos in origin or else originates in forbidden caches of the Dark Age of Technology. When fired, photonic weapons unleash howling, needle-thin beams of utter blackness able to pierce the densest matter, or else explode in scintillating pulses of blinding light, slicing armoured men and machinery apart like razors, leaving waves of darkness burned upon an observer’s retina in their wake. The exotic power sources of these unearthly weapons are extremely unstable, and catastrophic failure can lead to its firer being consumed by raging flames until only dust remains. While they have intransigent and unpredictable machine spirits, once primed for war the efficacy of such weapons against heavy infantry, in particular power armour, was noted by several Primarchs with concern in the last years before the outbreak of the Horus Heresy.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Laspistol | 12" | 3 | - | Pistol 1 |
| Las-lock | 18" | 4 | 6 | Assault 2 |
| Multi-laser | 36" | 6 | 6 | Heavy 3 |
| Photon gauntlet | 12" | 5 | 2 | Assault 2, Blind, Gets Hot |
| Photon thruster | 24" | 6 | 2 | Assault 2, Blind, Lance, Gets Hot |
| Darkfire cannon | 36" | 7 | 2 | Heavy 2, Blind, Lance, Gets Hot |
| Lascannon | 48" | 9 | 2 | Heavy 1, Sunder |
| Defensor lascannon | 48" | 9 | 2 | Heavy 1, Ardex-defensor, Sunder, Twin-linked |
| Pulsar-fusil | 36" | 9 | 2 | Ordnance 4, Pinning |
| Magna lascannon | 72" | 10 | 2 | Ordnance 2, Large Blast (5") |
| Sollex heavy-las | 48" | 10 | 2 | Heavy 3, Armourbane (Ranged), Shock Pulse |
| Turbo laser destructor | 96" | 12 | 2 | Destroyer 1, Large Blast (5"), Ignores Cover |
| Laser blaster | 96" | 10 | 2 | Destroyer 1, Large Blast (5") |
| Volcano cannon | 120" | 14 | 1 | Destroyer 1, Large Blast (5"), Ignores Cover |
| Belicosa volcano cannon | 120" | 14 | 1 | Destroyer 1, Apocalyptic Blast (10"), Sunder |
| Nemesis volcano cannon | 36"-180" | 14 | 1 | Destroyer 1, Apocalyptic Blast (10"), Sunder |
Melta Weapons
Capable of focusing microwave beams to such a fierce heat that even the sturdiest of armour runs like water, melta weapons are among the most fearsome anti-tank weapons available to the warriors of the Emperor. The origins of this technology are unknown, for it was in common use among the armies of Terra, Mars and Jupiter long before the Emperor unified Sol.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Melta’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Meltagun | 12" | 8 | 1 | Assault 1, Armourbane (Melta) |
| Multi-melta | 24" | 8 | 1 | Heavy 1, Armourbane (Melta), Twin-linked |
| Thermal lance | 36" | 8 | 2 | Heavy 2, Armourbane (Melta), Twin-linked |
| Thermal cannon | 36" | 8 | 1 | Heavy 1, Large Blast (5"), Armourbane (Melta) |
| Melta cannon | 60" | 10 | 1 | Heavy 1, Massive Blast (7"), Armourbane (Melta) |
Missile Weapons
From advanced guided missiles to crude explosive rockets, the Mechanicum makes use of a variety of rocket propelled munitions. Most common is the humble missile launcher, a portable weapon used to supplement the firepower of the Taghmata’s cohorts, but a number of vehicle mounted launchers serve as both artillery and anti-aircraft weapons. Though such weapons are crude by comparison to many of the wonders of the magi of Mars, they still serve as vital tools for the prosecution of the Great Crusade.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Missile’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Missile launcher | ||||
| - Frag | 48" | 4 | 6 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Pinning |
| - Krak | 48" | 8 | 3 | Heavy 1 |
| - Flak | 48" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 1, Skyfire |
| - Ignis | 48" | 5 | 6 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Ignores Cover |
| Havoc launcher | 48" | 5 | 5 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Twin-linked |
| Hunter-killer missile | 48" | 8 | 3 | Heavy 1, One Shot |
| Whirlwind launcher | ||||
| - Hyperios warhead | 48" | 8 | 3 | Heavy 4, Skyfire, Twin-linked |
| Ironstorm missile pod | 48" | 5 | 4 | Ordnance 1, Large Blast (5") |
| Stormspear rocket pod | 48" | 8 | 3 | Heavy 3 |
| Karacnos mortar battery | 60" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 1, Massive Blast (7"), Barrage, Fleshbane, Rad-phage, Ignores Cover, Pinning, Shell Shock (3), Crawling Fire |
| Apocalypse missile launcher | 24"-360" | 7 | 3 | Destroyer 2, Apocalyptic Barrage |
| Terrebrax rocket battery | 48" | 7 | 5 | Heavy 12 |
Plasma Weapons
Unleashing projectiles of super-heated plasma capable of melting armour and flesh with equal ease, plasma weapons are understood only by the secretive Tech-Priests of Mars. Kept contained by temperamental magnetically sealed flasks, the plasma that feeds these weapons is as dangerous to the wielder as to the foe and deadly leaks or even explosions are far from unknown. Yet, such is the destructive power of these weapons that even the risk of such detonations does not outweigh their value.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Plasma’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Plasma pistol | 12" | 7 | 4 | Pistol 1, Breaching (4+), Gets Hot |
| Plasma gun | 24" | 7 | 4 | Rapid Fire, Breaching (4+), Gets Hot |
| Plasma cannon | 36" | 7 | 4 | Heavy 1, Blast (3"), Breaching (4+), Gets Hot |
| Phased plasma-fusil | 24" | 6 | 3 | Heavy 3, Breaching (4+), Gets Hot |
| Plasma mortar | 36" | 8 | 4 | Ordnance 1, Large Blast (5"), Breaching (4+), Ignores Cover, Reactor Overload |
| Plasma blastgun | 72" | 9 | 3 | Ordnance 1, Massive Blast (7"), Breaching (4+), Reactor Overload |
| Sunfury plasma annihilator | 72" | 9 | 2 | Destroyer 2, Apocalyptic Barrage, Ignores Cover, Reactor Overload |
Rad Weapons and Irradiation Projectors
‘Irad’ or ‘rad’ projectors are potent anti-personnel weapons and relics of the Dark Age of Technology used exclusively by the militant forces of the Mechanicum. They commonly comprise a bulky generator unit terminating in a dish-like projector that unleashes a powerful blast of deadly cross-spectrum radiation. Victims caught in the blast of such a weapon suffer an appalling death as they are boiled alive from within – their tissues blasted apart on a cellular level. Thick barriers of solid matter between the beam and the target provide some protection from this effect, though victims who survive the initial blast will often die later of extreme radioactive contamination. The ammunition of radium weapons leeches devastating levels of radiation into the target, causing catastrophic cellular damage to living tissue and ensuring that even minor injuries can prove fatal.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Rad’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Lucifex | 8" | 2 | 5 | Pistol 1, Fleshbane, Rad-phage |
| Irad-cleanser | Template | 2 | 5 | Assault 1, Fleshbane, Rad-phage |
| Irradiation engine | Template | 4 | 3 | Heavy 1, Fleshbane, Rad-phage, Torrent (12") |
| Radium pistol | 12" | 3 | - | Pistol 1, Brutal (2) |
| Radium carbine | 18" | 3 | 5 | Assault 3, Brutal (2) |
Volkite Weapons
‘Volkite’ was an arcane Martian term for a variety of powerful ray weapons whose origins date back to the Age of Strife. Possessed of considerable killing power surpassing most armaments of their size, volkites were difficult to manufacture, even for the most able of the Mechanicum’s forges, and the demands of the Great Crusade swiftly overwhelmed supply of them. A commonplace technology among the armouries of the Mechanicum, these weapons were found in wide use among the Taghmata of Mars as a standard infantry weapon, having not suffered from the fall from favour that saw them removed from the arsenals of other Imperial forces.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Volkite’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Volkite serpenta | 10" | 5 | 5 | Pistol 2, Deflagrate |
| Volkite charger | 15" | 5 | 5 | Assault 2, Deflagrate |
| Volkite caliver | 30" | 6 | 5 | Heavy 3, Deflagrate |
| Volkite culverin | 45" | 6 | 5 | Heavy 5, Deflagrate |
| Volkite incinerator (Ranged) | 10" | 5 | 5 | Assault 2, Deflagrate |
| Volkite veuglaire | 30" | 6 | 4 | Heavy 5, Deflagrate |
| Volkite chieorovile | 45" | 8 | 4 | Heavy 5, Deflagrate |
Exotic and Miscellaneous Weapons
The Mechanicum also employs a number of other weapons that do not fall into any easy category. These are listed here.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Sonic destructor | 72" | 6 | 2 | Destroyer 1, Large Blast (5"), Sonic Wave, Pinning, Armourbane (Ranged), Murderous Strike (5+), Ignores Cover |
| Shock lance (Ranged) | 18" | 7 | 3 | Heavy 6, Concussive (2) |
Arc Weapons
These weapons are powered by potent capacitors of ancient design, the schema for which are thought to reside on Mars alone, though uncorroborated reports suggest that the Forge World of Mezoa lays claim to such as well. When these energy repositories are discharged, they produce an ear-drum splitting crack of sound and a bolt of pure, blue-white lightning which can overload both a mechanical data-core and a biological cortex with equal ease. Akin to these weapons, the corposant stave is an intricate staff of office which channels powerful currents of electromagnetic energy through its copper-studded crest.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Arc’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Arc lance (Melee) | - | +1 | 5 | Melee, Disruption (5+) |
| Corposant stave | - | +1 | 4 | Melee, Two-handed, Haywire |
| Arc maul | - | +2 | 5 | Melee, Disruption (5+) |
| Arc scourge | - | +2 | 3 | Melee, Rampage (D3), Disruption (5+) |
Basic Combat Weapons
As stated in the Horus Heresy: Age of Darkness rulebook, all models are considered to have some form of basic close combat weapon – be it a knife, entrenchment tool or simply bared fists and stubborn determination. Regardless of the nature of this weapon, all basic close combat weapons share the same profile, repeated here for ease of reference:Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Basic close combat weapon | - | User | - | Melee |
Chain Weapons
These savage weapons have their origins within the blood-red depths of the Terran wars of Unity. They feature heavy grips and a series of razor-edged blades mounted along the edge of the weapon and set into cacophonous motion by the powerful motors at its heart. Able to shred flesh and armour with equal ease in the hands of a skilled wielder (and all but unusable otherwise), there were those, even before the Heresy, who wondered at the development of such a weapon, seemingly designed as much for the displays of fountaining gore it created as its effectiveness in battle.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Chain’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Chainsword | - | User | - | Melee, Shred |
| Chainfist | - | x2 | 2 | Melee, Armourbane (Melee), Unwieldy |
| Chain bayonet | - | +1 | - | Melee, Two-handed, Shred |
| Scyllax combat array | ||||
| - Standard | - | User | 5 | Melee, Shred |
| - Dismember | - | +3 | 2 | Melee, Cumbersome, Unwieldy |
| Reaper chainblade | - | 9 | 2 | Melee, Shred |
| Reaper chainsword | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Shred |
| Reaper chainfist | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Armourbane (Melee) |
Cutting Tools of the Mechanicum
These are powerful industrial tools that make use of a phase field to assist short, continuous releases of high energy packets. More portable and easily manipulated than common lascutters, phase cutting tools are preferred in industrial processes to cut the composite ceramite and rolled plasteel sheets in which constructs are commonly clad. They are sometimes used by branches of the Imperial Army in siege warfare, though to the magi of the Mechanicum they are little more than readily available tools able to be easily mounted to experimental automata, and can be quickly refitted with alterations to their priming and phase field mechanisms to serve the needs of a given task-servitor.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Las-impulsor (Melee) | - | 10 | 1 | Melee, Unwieldy, Cumbersome, Armourbane (Melee), Instant Death |
| Atrapos phasecutter (Melee) | - | 10 | 1 | Melee, Cumbersome, Armourbane, Instant Death |
Graviton Weapons
Little understood even by the Tech-Priests of Mars, the term ‘graviton weapon’ refers to a group of gravity projector devices whose sophistication is such that the few that now remain are relics of a lost age. Such weapons prove extremely useful when fighting on a starship or in a null gravity environment. The power of the graviton gun’s highest settings is sufficient to rupture organs and crack bones even inside armour, but its primary use is to impede the enemy and damage machinery without the risks of secondary explosions.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Graviton’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Graviton hammer (Melee) | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Armourbane (Melee), Concussive (2) |
| Graviton ram (Melee) | - | 10 | 1 | Melee, Armourbane (Melee), Concussive (2) |
Paragon Blades
Weapons forged of consummate artistry or irreplaceable relics of the ancient might of the Dark Age of Technology, Paragon blades are few in number and may take many forms. The most common Paragon blades are two-handed power weapons of extraordinary balance and durability. Even more rarely, unique chain weapons wrought from the teeth of terrifying xenos-beasts and night-black sickle swords found on remote death worlds on the edges of the Halo Stars have been known to hold similar phenomenal killing power. Regardless of their form, Paragon blades are valued beyond price by the Imperium’s warriors.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Graviton’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Paragon blade | - | +1 | 2 | Melee, Murderous Strike (6+), Specialist Weapon |
Power Weapons
These melee weapons are sheathed in disruption fields that allow them to cleave armour as though it were paper and annihilate flesh or bone with ease. They are both difficult to master, for a single mis-stroke can lead to catastrophe in a close packed melee, and expensive to manufacture and maintain, and so are mostly found only in the hands of the finest warriors.
All weapons listed here are counted as ‘Power’ weapons for those rules that affect such weapons. A model that is eligible to select a Power weapon may take any of the weapons included in this entry.Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Power sword | - | User | 3 | Melee, Rending (6+) |
| Power axe | - | +1 | 2 | Melee, Unwieldy |
| Power maul | - | +2 | 3 | Melee |
| Power lance | - | +1 | 3 | Melee, Reach (1) |
Although technically operated on the same principle, the following weapons are far rarer and more difficult to master than the more common power weapons. They count as ‘Power’ weapons, but may not be selected by a model eligible to claim a generic power weapon.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Power blade array | - | User | 4 | Melee, Breaching (5+) |
| Lightning claw* | - | User | 3 | Melee, Shred, Rending (6+), Specialist Weapon |
| Myrmidon axe | - | +2 | 2 | Melee, Sunder, Two-handed, Unwieldy |
| Power fist | - | x2 | 2 | Melee, Unwieldy, Specialist Weapon |
| Thunderstrike gauntlet | - | 12 | 2 | Melee, Sunder |
| Tempest warblade | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Deflagrate, Tempest |
| Titan power fist | - | 14 | 1 | Melee, Sunder, Destructor |
| Arioch power claw | - | 15 | 1 | Melee, Shred, Destructor, Instant Death, Armourbane (Melee) |
*When a model is equipped with two lightning claws, that model gains +2 Attacks instead of the usual +1 Attack for using an additional weapon in combat.
Servo Weapons
Complex arrays of industrial claws and manipulators, as well as more exotic and disturbing tools, these weapons are often spliced or directly connected to the wielder and double as mechanical aids. These tools supplement a warrior’s already potent ability in combat.
A model equipped with a servo-arm or prehensile dataspike may make an additional single attack per turn as well as any they would normally be eligible to make, while a model equipped with a machinator array makes two additional attacks per turn. These attacks are made using the weapon profiles shown below.Additionally, a machinator array incorporates a flamer and a meltagun. A model with the Battlesmith (X) special rule may add +2 to their Repair roll result if they also have a machinator array.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Machinator array | - | +1 | 2 | Melee, Unwieldy, Shred, Armourbane (Melee) |
| Prehensile dataspike | - | 5 | 4 | Melee, Breaching (4+), Murderous Strike (6+), Reach (2) |
| Servo-arm | - | 8 | 2 | Melee, Unwieldy |
Shock Chargers
Used to augment the combat power of a Legio Cybernetica Battle-automata or Questoris Knight, these weapons amplify the force of a weapon’s blows with a powerful magneto-hydraulic action that releases electrostatic discharges which detonate like thunderclaps when striking their target. Advanced variants of such weapons are even able to project short ranged blasts of electromagnetic plasma.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Shock charger | - | User | 3 | Melee |
| Shock lance (Melee) | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Reach (1), Exoshock (5+) |
| Shock ram | - | 10 | 4 | Melee, Concussive (3), Ram (D6) |
Siege Destroyers
This is a general term given to a specialised form of massive close combat weapon intended for Questoris Knights and Mechanicum Battle-automata. Wreckers are designed to enable these heavy assault units to smash through fortifications and easily crush armoured barricades and defences in siege warfare. The most common form of this weapon is a hydraulic ram or massive disruption-field augmented hammer, although specialised forms of heavy claw or drill systems are also used.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Siege wrecker | - | 10 | 2 | Melee, Brutal (2), Sunder, Wrecker, Specialist Weapon |
| Siege claw | - | x2 | 2 | Melee, Brutal (2), Sunder, Wrecker |
Exotic and Miscellaneous Arms of the Mechanicum
The Mechanicum also employs a number of other weapons that do not fall into any easy category. These are listed here.
Range | Str | AP | Type | |
| Melta bomb | - | 8 | 1 | Melee, Detonation, Unwieldy, Armourbane (Melee), Instant Death |
| Volkite incinerator (Melee) | - | 6 | 2 | Melee, Instant Death, Prisoned |
Wargear
Aktaeus Class Seismic Excavator Macro-drill
The Ordinatus Aktaeus is effectively a siege platform which carries a seismic excavator macro-drill. The workings of such a device are complex beyond the ken of even most tech-adepts of the Mechanicum. As such, deploying the seismic excavator is a lengthy process which will only be undertaken in the heat of battle and rarest of circumstances.
The Aktaeus class seismic excavator macro-drill grants the Ordinatus Aktaeus the Ordinatus Transport Bay special rule.In addition, once per battle, at the end of the controlling player’s Movement phase, the Ordinatus Aktaeus may employ its seismic excavator macro-drill to cause a Seismic Shockwave. When this occurs, the Ordinatus Aktaeus cannot move for the rest of the battle and counts as a vehicle that has suffered an irreparable Immobilised result on the Vehicle Damage table (although no Hull Point loss is suffered). Units may not choose to Embark onto or Disembark from the Ordinatus Aktaeus in a turn in which the Seismic Shockwave ability is used, but may do so as normal in subsequent turns.
At the beginning of each of the controlling player’s Shooting phases for the rest of the battle after the Ordinatus Aktaeus has employed its seismic excavator macro-drill to cause a Seismic Shockwave, pick a point within 6" of the front of the hull of the Ordinatus Aktaeus (for the purposes of determining this point you should use the Front arc of the unit). All units, friendly or enemy (excluding the Ordinatus Aktaeus itself), within a number of inches equal to the current Game Turn number multiplied by 6 of this point suffer D6 Str 7, AP 4 Hits with the Pinning special rule. Models with the Vehicle Unit Type are hit on their weakest Armour Facing. Should a model with the Vehicle Unit Type suffer a Penetrating Hit from this attack, it immediately suffers from Crew Shaken in addition to any other effect.
Armour of the Mechanicum
While energy shields and more esoteric devices are common among the savants and soldiers of the Taghmata Omnissiah, most also rely on more mundane means of protection. Ranging from simple ballistic plating to intricate mechanical systems that augment or replace the wearer’s biological form, to the uninitiated, the armour of the Mechanicum can appear as unique and varied as those who wear it.
The Corpus Skitarii
The Corpus Skitarii, or armoured body of the Skitarii and Secutarii warriors, embodies the virtue of the Mechanicum in all of its glory. Each Skitarius warrior voluntarily undergoes extensive physical modification as a veneration of the ideals of the Machine Cult, cutting away their flesh and bone to replace it with advanced bionic prostheses. It is both the privilege and responsibility of their Order to replace even brain matter and neural connections that they might align all of their internal anbaric architecture in dedication to the holy duties of servitude and submission to the Omnissiah. Very little in the way of true organic matter often remains within the Skitarii of this Order, with their skin, organs and other tissues voluntarily replaced with metals, bioplastics and other augmetics to better serve their martial function as militant fanatics of the Machine God. The extent of the bionics, cybernetics and augmetics integral to their machined and ritually maintained forms grants the Skitarii resistance to many battlefield dangers.
The Corpus Skitarii confers a 4+ Armour Save. In addition, a model with Corpus Skitarii may re-roll Feel No Pain Damage Mitigation rolls which are the result of attacks made by weapons with the Poisoned (X) or Rad-phage special rules.Lorica Thallax
A divergent form of power armour technology developed by the Ordo Reductor of the Mechanicum. Permanently surgically bonded to the body of the wearer, it uses linked mechanical armatures to replace the primary limbs and a compact reactor core to generate power for the Thallax’s weaponry. The armour is fused directly to the spinal column and nervous system of the Thallax and marks them both as warriors of the Mechanicum and serves as a symbol of their servitude.
The Lorica Thallax confers a 4+ Armour Save. In addition, a unit that includes any models with Lorica Thallax may not make Sweeping Advances.Titanshard Armour
Each and every Secutarii axiarch is sheathed in Titanshard armour, Secutarii warplate reforged with fragments of one of the Legio’s Titans fallen in glorious battle, and whose revered remains were successfully preserved for the Legio by the blood and faith of the Secutarii who now bears the armour. As a masterwork of the Titan Tech-Priests’ art, it offers a defence equal to the power armour of the Legiones Astartes and, furthermore, something of the god-engine’s near-indestructibility and bellicose machine spirit still haunts the armour, making the axiarch truly inhuman.
Titanshard Armour confers a 3+ Armour Save and a 5+ Invulnerable Save. In addition, a model with Titanshard Armour may re-roll Feel No Pain Damage Mitigation rolls which are the result of attacks made by weapons with the Poisoned (X) or Rad-phage special rules.Augury Scanner
This energy scanning device has the effect of alerting the user to the concealed presence or imminent arrival of enemy troops in the vicinity.
A unit that includes at least one model with an augury scanner gains all of the following benefits:- Enemy models cannot be deployed using the Infiltrate special rule within 18" of a model with an augury scanner.
- A unit that includes at least one model with an augury scanner ignores the 24" limit to line of sight when making Shooting Attacks while the Night Fighting rules are in effect.
- When any enemy unit is deployed to the battlefield from Reserves, a unit that includes at least one model with an augury scanner may make the Interceptor Advanced Reaction without expending a point of the Reactive player’s Reaction Allotment. This does not allow the unit to make more than one Reaction per Phase, but does allow the controlling player to exceed the normal three Reactions limit in a given Phase.
Cortex Controller
This control and signalling device uses data-djinn to command Battle-automata fitted with Cybernetica cortex systems, allowing the wielder to witness the battlefield through the automata’s own senses as well as monitor their status and exact precise control over their actions. Only the most highly experienced and specifically augmented adepts of the Mechanicum and the Forge Lords of the Legiones Astartes can hope to fathom the use of these fractious devices and successfully interpret the storm of data streaming from their un-living minions.
Any unit that includes one or more models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type may ignore the Programmed Behaviour provision described as part of that Sub-type while within 12" of a friendly model with a cortex controller.Cyber-familiar
Utilised by Techmarines and the Adepts of the Mechanicum, cyber-familiar is a term that encompasses a variety of semiautonomous devices such as servo-skulls, mek-spiders and other smaller drone units and lesser haemonculites tied into the direct neural control of their operator. These miniondrones are an extension of their master’s will and provide them with a host of additional senses and capabilities.
A model with a cyber-familiar adds +1 to its Invulnerable Save (to a maximum of 3+) or an Invulnerable Save of 6+ if they do not already possess one. In addition, they allow them to re-roll failed Characteristic tests other than Leadership tests, Psychic checks or failed Dangerous Terrain tests.Dozer Blade
Ranging from simple slabs of steel crudely attached to a vehicle’s hull, to the artfully fitted and specially-designed blades borne by the Legiones Astartes, dozer blades for the clearance of mines and other obstacles are a common feature of many armoured vehicles.
A model with a dozer blade may re-roll all failed Dangerous Terrain tests made for it.Energy Fields and Deflectors
The forces of the Taghmata, Questoris Houses and Titan Legions make use of a wide array of energy shields.
Atomantic Deflector
Powered by the vast glut of energy from its atomantic heart, the more advanced Mechanicum war engines were veiled in a protective shroud of energy that could deflect or disperse las bolts and kinetic munitions. Yet, such was the power channelled through this little-understood device that in death the war machines erupted in fiery ruin, a danger to both friend and foe.
A model with an atomantic deflector gains a 5+ Invulnerable Save and any model with an atomantic deflector and a Wounds Characteristic that suffers an unsaved Wound with the Instant Death special rule is not immediately removed as a casualty, but instead loses D3 Wounds instead of one for each unsaved Wound with the Instant Death special rule inflicted on it. In addition, when a model with an atomantic deflector loses its last Wound or Hull Point, but before it is removed as a casualty or replaced with a Wreck, all models both friendly and enemy within D6" suffer an automatic Hit at Str 8, AP -.Flare Shield
Another of the Mechanicum’s specialised systems that only their high adepts truly understand, a flare shield is a directional electromagnetic flux field generator rumoured by some to be a product of Dark Age technology from a source best left forgotten.
A model with a flare shield reduces the strength of Shooting Attacks made against its Front Armour by -1, or -2 if that Shooting Attack has the Blast special rule or uses a template to determine its Range. A flare shield has no effect on Shooting Attacks inflicted with weapons of the Destroyer type.Ion Gauntlet Shield
The shield generator mounted in the Lancer’s gauntlet assembly is more concentrated than the ion shield mounted on other Questoris Knights, but lacks its tactical flexibility.
A model with an ion gauntlet shield gains a 5+ Invulnerable Save against Shooting Attacks which target its Front or Side Armour Values, and a 5+ Invulnerable Save against all Melee Attacks.Ion Shield
These sophisticated energy screens rely on ion fields to deflect the path of solid projectiles. The main limitation of these devices is their immense energy requirement, sustainable by only the largest war engines.
A model with an ion shield gains a 4+ Invulnerable Save against Shooting Attacks which target its Front Armour Value, and a 5+ Invulnerable Save against Shooting Attacks which target its Side Armour Value.Ionic Deflector
A lesser example of ion shield technology, tied to a smaller directional generator that can protect only a narrow arc of the war engine upon which it is mounted. Fortunately, the Knights that most often mount such devices are more capable of positioning the device to best protect themselves, and using the lower energy drain of the deflector to better power their devastating arsenals of weapons.
A model with an ionic deflector gains a 5+ Invulnerable Save, and any model with an ionic deflector and a Wounds Characteristic gains the Eternal Warrior special rule. In addition, when a model with an ionic deflector loses its last Wound or Hull Point, but before it is removed as a casualty or replaced with a Wreck, all models both friendly and enemy within D6+3" suffer an automatic Hit at Str 8, AP -.Kyropatris Field Generator
The Kyropatris generator projects a weak deflector screen capable of lessening the impact of kinetic strikes and directed energy beams. It is engineered so that multiple field generators can overlap, creating a more powerful defensive effect.
So long as a unit contains at least five models with a Kyropatris field generator, all models in the unit may re-roll failed Armour Saves of 1. In addition, if the unit contains at least 10 models with Kyropatris field generators then all Shooting Attacks made against the unit suffer a modifier of -1 to the Strength of the attack (to a minimum of Strength 1).Ordinatus Dispersion Shield
An arcane and obscure hybrid of both void shield and flare shield technologies, the powerful dispersion shields mounted on Ordinatus class vehicles are designed to make them all but impervious to counter-battery fire. However, such is the strain the field creates on its generators that its protection degrades over time as its elements begin to burn out.
For the duration of the first Game Turn, all Shooting Attacks made against a model with an Ordinatus dispersion shield that target the model’s Front or Side Armour values, or any indirect Shooting Attacks (such as those with the Barrage special rule) are reduced by -2 Strength, and any Explodes results on the Vehicle Damage table are ignored.Refractor Fields & Mechanicum Protectiva
This term covers a variety of energy field and defensive shield projectors devised by Mechanicum magi to protect themselves both on the battlefield and from assassination by their rivals. They encompass the wearer in an energy field or force barrier which serves to refract or deflect impacts and energy discharges, although the need for the wearer to move and fight, as well as their power consumption prevents them from being anywhere near inviolable to attack. Devices of this nature are relatively rare and are the province of senior figures, where they are often incorporated into armour or amulets and gifted as a mark of favour and rank.
A model with a refractor field gains a 5+ Invulnerable Save, and a model with a Mechanicum Protectiva gains a 4+ Invulnerable Save.Invulnerable Saves granted by a refractor field or Mechanicum Protectiva do not stack with other Invulnerable Saves, but can benefit from rules (like cyber-familiar) that specifically increase existing Saves. If a model has another Invulnerable Save then the controlling player must choose which one to use.
Grenades
Small hand-held explosives have been a feature of warfare for millennia, with a near-infinite variety in use by both human and xenos armies. Even within the Imperium there are innumerable patterns and designs, all intended to perform similar tasks. The Divisio Militaris orders such devices into broad categories to ease the burden of supply and distribution.
Representing a huge variety of handheld explosive devices used for an equally vast number of battlefield roles, grenades are represented in battle as Wargear items with a specific effect rather than as weapons. Using grenades does not count as a Shooting Attack and their effects are entirely covered by the rules presented here. Note that grenade launchers do not use these rules and are Shooting Weapons governed by the standard Shooting rules.Frag Grenades
This class of grenade contains only a small explosive charge, and is intended primarily to disorientate and distract the foe while closing on a fixed position.
A unit that includes at least one model with frag grenades makes attacks at its normal Initiative Step during an Assault after it has successfully Charged through Difficult Terrain or Dangerous Terrain, but still suffers any penalties to Charge rolls imposed by Difficult Terrain or Dangerous Terrain when resolving a Charge through Difficult Terrain or Dangerous Terrain.Krak Grenades
This class of grenade encompasses a variety of shaped charges, plasma detonators and crude bombs, all intended to disable armoured vehicles.
The controlling player may choose to have a model with krak grenades that is Engaged or otherwise in base contact during the Assault phase with a Building or Fortification, or a model with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type, inflict one automatic Str 6, AP 3 Hit on the target in Initiative Step 1 instead of attacking normally. Any model in a unit that is chosen to inflict Hits using krak grenades may not otherwise attack or make use of any other special rule or item of Wargear that inflicts Hits or Wounds on a model in the same Assault phase (but may participate in Sweeping Advances as normal).Rad Grenades
These weapons are relics of the darkest years of Old Terra’s isolation, designed to poison both the enemy and the land upon which they were detonated. The Emperor himself forbade the use of such weapons, save by the elite of his own legions.
During a turn in which a unit with at least one model with rad grenades successfully Charges, or is themselves successfully Charged, all models in the enemy unit(s) suffer a -1 penalty to their Toughness Characteristic, to a minimum of Toughness 1, until the end of the Fight sub-phase that follows the successful Charge. Note: This does affect Instant Death thresholds.Mag-inverter Shield
The mag-inverter shield carried by the Secutarii is a highly sophisticated relic technology incorporating a powerful inversion generatoria at its core. This generator is sufficient both to enhance the resilience of the shield far beyond the limits of its material strength, so it may resist blows which would otherwise slay its bearer instantly, and further provide the copious power needed by the arc lance carried by the Hoplite as their principal weapon.
Mag-inverter shields confer a 5+ Invulnerable Save. A model with a mag-inverter shield cannot claim bonus attacks for having more than one melee weapon, or make attacks during the Assault phase using a weapon with the Two-handed special rule.Invulnerable Saves granted by a mag-inverter shield do not stack with other Invulnerable Saves, but can benefit from rules (such as cyber-familiar) that specifically increase existing Saves. If a model has another Invulnerable Save then the controlling player must choose one to use.
Mechanicum Jet Packs and Jump Packs
The Mechanicum uses a wide variety of propulsion systems to traverse the battlefield, from anti-grav repulsors to combustionfuel rocket thrusters.
Incunabulan Jet Pack
Capable of granting the hulking thallax a manoeuvrability that belies their bulk, these jet pack systems have gone through hundreds of years of refinement at the hands of generations of magi and been tested in hundreds upon hundreds of engagements. They have proven both a reliable and deadly addition to the armouries of the Mechanicum, superior to the simple jump packs in use by other Imperial armies.
A unit composed entirely of models with Incunabulan jet packs may choose to increase its Move Characteristic by +6" and ignore terrain while Moving during the Movement phase. A unit that ends or begins its movement in Dangerous Terrain will still need to take Dangerous Terrain tests as normal, even when employing Incunabulan jet packs and treats Difficult Terrain as Dangerous Terrain. In addition to the bonus to Move during the Movement phase, a unit composed entirely of models with Incunabulan jet packs may make an additional Move of 6" during the Shooting phase. This Move must be taken after the unit has completed any Shooting Attacks, is not limited by the weapons fired by that unit during the Shooting phase and ignores terrain in the same manner as moves made using a Incunabulan jet pack in the Movement phase.Any model with an Incunabulan jet pack also gains the Bulky (2) and Deep Strike special rules, or if it already has the Bulky (2) special rule it gains the Bulky (3) special rule instead. Models with an Incunabulan jet pack may Embark on models with the Transport Unit Sub-type, contrary to the normal Transport rules, but still must take into account their size due to the Bulky (X) special rule.
During any Reaction that allows a unit to Move, a unit composed entirely of models with Incunabulan jet packs increases the distance of that Move by 6 and allows it to ignore terrain in the same manner as other Incunabulan jet pack moves.
Stratos Thrusters
Larger and more powerful than other iterations of the humble jump pack, the Stratos thruster system is capable of more sustained flight, allowing those units equipped with it to cover large distances swiftly and unhindered by adverse terrain.
A unit composed entirely of models with Stratos thrusters may set its Move Characteristic to a value of 16" for the duration of the controlling player’s turn. This allows the unit to move up to 16", regardless of the Movement Characteristic shown on its profile and gain any other benefits of a Movement Characteristic of 16" (including the bonus to Charge distance). In addition, Stratos thrusters allow units to hover above the battlefield and thus ignore the effects of Difficult Terrain and Dangerous Terrain at all times.Utan Jump Booster
Though of similar purpose to the more common jump packs in use by various branches of the Imperial military, the Utan jump booster makes use of toxic propellant to provide a boost to its lift capabilities. Such fuel would normally be deadly to any user, but the Utan is designed to be used in conjunction with automata like the Arlatax, which suffer not at all from the foul clouds that are emitted from the unit.
A unit composed entirely of models with Utan jump boosters may set its Move Characteristic to a value of 12 for the duration of the controlling player’s turn. This allows the unit to move up to 12", regardless of the Movement Characteristic shown on its profile and gain any other benefits of a Movement Characteristic of 12 (including the bonus to Charge distance). In addition, the unit ignores terrain while Moving and Charging. A unit that ends or begins its movement or a Charge in Dangerous Terrain will still need to take Dangerous Terrain tests as normal, even when employing Utan jump boosters, and treats all Difficult Terrain as Dangerous Terrain.A unit composed entirely of models with Utan jump boosters may not Run. During Reactions made in any Phase, a unit composed entirely of models with Utan jump boosters may not activate them to gain any bonus to their Movement Characteristic. Any model with an Utan jump booster also gains the Deep Strike special rule. Additionally, models with an Utan jump booster may Embark on models with the Transport Unit Sub-type, contrary to the normal Transport rules, but still must take into account their Unit Type and their size due to the Bulky (X) special rule.
Nuncio-vox
A nuncio-vox is a beacon and communications array that allows constant co-ordination with other elements of an army – be they in a neighbouring region or in orbit high overhead. This allows precision reinforcements to be deployed nearby and strikes to be targeted with deadly accuracy.
While at least one model with a nuncio-vox is present on the battlefield and not Embarked in a Vehicle or Building, the controlling player may re-roll any Scatter rolls made (whether as part of a weapon attack or the deployment of a model or unit), as long as the model with the nuncio-vox has line of sight to the unit targeted by the attack or the point chosen as the target of the deployment. In addition, a unit that includes at least one model with a nuncio-vox ignores the -1 penalty to Leadership imposed by the Night Fighting rules.Rad Furnace
These horrific devices were originally an offshoot of early research into atomantic generators, but have since been turned to vile weapons of war. They serve to generate and emit a constant deluge of exotic radiation, an insidious onslaught that bypasses armour and other defences to cripple the foe. Only those magi with properly shielded organics or full automata can bear such devices for any length of time without collapsing from the corrupting touch of the radiation they emit.
Any melee Hits allocated to models locked in combat with one or more units that include a model with a rad furnace require one lower result To Wound than they would normally, to a minimum of 2+. This effect is not cumulative with itself if more than one model in a combat has a rad furnace. Models with rad furnaces are immune to the effects of rad grenades, the Rad-phage special rule and the rad furnaces of models they are locked in combat with. In addition, Hits from weapons with the Rad-phage special rule that are allocated to a model with a rad furnace only successfully wound on a To Wound roll of a 6+.Searchlights
Mounted illum-beacons or simple electric torches, many vehicles mount some kind of portable light to aid in target identification and destruction in darkness and poor weather.
A model with searchlights ignores the 24" limit to line of sight imposed by the Night Fighting rules when making Shooting Attacks, however enemy units also ignore that same restriction when making Shooting Attacks that target a model with searchlights.In addition, any unit that has been the target of a Shooting Attack made by a unit with searchlights (regardless of whether any Hits were inflicted or not) may be freely targeted for Shooting Attacks by any other unit in the same Shooting phase, ignoring the 24" restriction to line of sight imposed by the Night Fighting rules.
Searchlights do not count as weapons and may not be targeted by the Weapon Destroyed result on the Vehicle Damage table.
Smoke Launchers
Many armoured fighting vehicles bear simple grenade systems rigged to distribute smoke upon being triggered, granting the vehicle a brief and passing cover that can prove crucial in the worst of situations. Such devices are of most use in slow moving campaigns, as a vehicle at maximum speed will quickly disperse or outrun its own shield.
The controlling player may choose to trigger smoke launchers once a model with them has completed its movement in the Movement phase, and may only choose to trigger them if the model has moved no faster than Combat Speed that turn. Once triggered, the model with smoke launchers counts as being more than 25% obscured, regardless of terrain, until the start of the controlling player’s next turn and gains a 6+ Cover Save. A model whose smoke launchers have been triggered may not make any Shooting Attacks, except as part of a Reaction, in the same turn. Smoke launchers may only be used once per battle, and once triggered may not be further used – in addition, they do not count as a weapon and may not be targeted by Weapon Destroyed results on the Vehicle Damage table.Those versed in the secret arts and teachings of the Mechanicum, whether Techmarine, Forge Lord or Magos, have the skill and ability to reconstruct and effect field repairs to war machinery in the very heat of battle.
If a model with the Battlesmith (X) special rule is in base contact with, or Embarked upon, one or more damaged Vehicles, Dreadnoughts or Automata during the Shooting phase, they can attempt to repair one of them. If they do so, the model that attempted the repair cannot shoot any weapons or use any other abilities that would be used instead of making a Shooting Attack. Roll a D6. If the result is equal to or more than the value listed in brackets as part of this rule then one of the following options may be applied to any one Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata the model is in base contact with or Embarked upon:- Restore a lost Hull Point.
- Restore a lost Wound.
- Repair a Weapon Destroyed result.
- Repair an Immobilised result.
This weapon is very large, and more than a little clumsy, making swift blows all but impossible to achieve.
A model attacking with this weapon Piles-in and fights at Initiative step 1, unless it has the Dreadnought Unit Type or Monstrous sub-type.Some weapons and warriors strike in a flurry of blows, tearing flesh asunder in a series of brutal strikes.
If a model has the Shred special rule, or is attacking with a Melee weapon that has the Shred rule, it re-rolls failed To Wound rolls in close combat.Similarly, if a model makes a Shooting Attack with a weapon that has the Shred rule, it re-rolls its failed To Wound rolls.
This weapon has been crafted with one aim in mind – to pierce the hides of armoured vehicles.
If a model or weapon has this special rule, it rolls an additional D6 for armour penetration when targeting a Vehicle model, or, when targeting a model with the Automata or Dreadnought Unit Type, re-rolls all failed rolls To Wound instead. These effects apply to both Shooting Attacks and close combat attacks.Some instances of the Armourbane special rule may include a qualifier after the rule in brackets, for example Armourbane (Melta) or Armourbane (Melee). These variant rules are described below:
Armourbane (Melta): A model or weapon with this Armourbane special rule only gains the benefits of the Armourbane special rule when at half range or less. If the attack is more than half its Maximum Range away, it gains no benefit from the Armourbane special rule. If a weapon with this version of Armourbane also has the Blast special rule, measure the distance to the centre of the Blast marker after it has scattered. If this is half the weapon’s range or less, then all Hits are counted as having the Armourbane special rule, otherwise the Hits are resolved as if they did not have the Armourbane special rule.
Armourbane (Melee): A weapon or model with this version of the Armourbane special rule only gains the benefits of the Armourbane special rule when attacking in close combat.
Armourbane (Ranged): A weapon or model with this version of the Armourbane special rule only gains the benefits of the Armourbane special rule when making Shooting Attacks.
Whether pledged to the Emperor himself as the rightful leader of Mankind or to the dream of the Imperium that he intended to create, some warriors swore to fight and die for the Loyalist cause and no other.
A model with this special rule may only be included in an army that has the Loyalist Allegiance.In the name of the Warmaster Horus, a vast host took up arms against those they had once called brothers – some driven by a lust for power and others by a misguided desire for justice. Regardless of the cause they held dear, there could be no turning back for these warriors, only victory or damnation.
A model with this special rule may only be included in an army that has the Traitor Allegiance.
However, a unit that Runs may not make Shooting Attacks of any kind during the following Shooting phase, or declare Charges during the Assault phase of the same player turn. If any models in a unit Run, then all models in that unit are counted as having Run, regardless of the distance moved by any individual model.
Units making a Reaction during their opponent’s turn may never choose to Run as part of that Reaction.
Other Detachments in the army, such as Allied Detachments or Lords of War Detachments, may have a different version of the Legiones Astartes (X) special rule. In which case no models in the same Detachment may have a different version of the Legiones Astartes (X) special rule to the one chosen for that Detachment. Models within a non-Primary Detachment are affected by all the special rules for the version of the Legiones Astartes (X) special rule chosen for them, as well as access to any Wargear options and special units.
If the Vehicle moved before its passengers got aboard, it cannot move further that turn (including pivoting on the spot). If the Vehicle did not move before its passengers got aboard, it can move as normal after they have Embarked. In either case, a Vehicle cannot Ram in a turn that a unit Embarks upon it.
Blast weapons fire shells, missiles or packets of energy that explode on impact.
When firing a Blast weapon, models do not roll To Hit. Instead, pick one enemy model visible to the firer and place the Blast (3") marker with its hole entirely over the base of the target model, or its hull if the target is a Vehicle. The hole at the centre of the marker must be within the weapon’s Maximum Range. You cannot place the Blast marker so that the base or hull of any friendly model is even partially under it.The large area affected by the blast means it is going to be very hard to miss completely. Nonetheless, the shot might not land exactly where intended. Roll for the Blast marker to scatter and subtract the firer’s Ballistic Skill from the distance (if any) that it scatters, to a minimum of 0". Note that it is possible, and absolutely fine,for a shot to scatter beyond the weapon’s Maximum or Minimum Range and line of sight. This represents the chance of ricochets, the missile blasting through cover and other random events. In these cases, Hits are worked out as normal and can hit and Wound units out of range and line of sight (or even your own units, or models locked in combat). If the shot scatters so that the hole in the centre of the marker is beyond the battlefield’s edge, the shot is a complete miss and is discarded.
Once the final position of the Blast marker has been determined, take a good look at it from above – each unit suffers one Hit for each of the models included in that unit that is fully or partially beneath the Blast marker, even if those models are not within the firer’s line of sight.
Once the number of Hits inflicted on the unit has been worked out, roll To Wound and Save as normal. Note that, unlike other attacks, Wounds inflicted by an attack with the Blast special rule can be allocated to any models in the target unit, even if they are out of sight of any models from the attacking unit.
- It is Embarked upon a Transport Vehicle of any kind (once Disembarked it may count as a Scoring unit as normal).
- It is a Zooming Flyer.
- It has a special rule specifying that it never counts as a Scoring unit.
- It is currently Falling Back or Pinned (if the unit Regroups or recovers from Pinning, it immediately reverts to being a Scoring unit again).
- It is a Building or Fortification.
A unit can only control one Objective marker at a time. If a unit moves into a position where it could control two Objective markers, the controlling player must make it clear to their opponent which Objective the unit is controlling.
For some missions, an Objective is defined as a certain area of the battlefield rather than an Objective marker. In these situations, the Objective is considered to be controlled by a player if there is at least one of that player’s Scoring units wholly within the defined zone, and no models from enemy Scoring units wholly within the defined zone. Any unit that is in a Building or Fortification is considered to be wholly within an Objective zone if the Fortification or Building they are embarked in is wholly within that zone. Note that, for controlling Objective zones, enemy Denial units are not counted, only Scoring units can control or contest an enemy’s control of a scoring zone.
Some units make use of their inherent speed, stealth or other capabilities to launch a surprise assault on the foe from an unexpected direction.
A unit made up entirely of models with this special rule may perform a Flanking Assault. Certain Faction or unit special rules may present other options for the deployment of units with the Outflank special rule.Coming under fire without knowing where the shots are coming from, or having ordnance rain down from the skies, can shake the resolve of even the bravest warriors, making them dive flat and cling to whatever cover presents itself.
If a non-Vehicle unit suffers one or more unsaved Wounds from a weapon with the Pinning special rule, it must take a Leadership test once the firing unit has finished its Shooting Attacks for that Phase. This is called a Pinning test. If the unit fails the Test, it is Pinned. As long as the Test is passed, a unit can be called upon to take multiple Pinning tests in a single turn, but only once for each unit shooting at them.A unit that is affected by any of the following conditions does not take Pinning tests, and if called upon to do so is considered to automatically pass them:
- The unit is locked in combat.
- The unit is already Pinned (the unit remains Pinned, but takes no further Tests).
- The unit is composed entirely of Vehicle models.
- The unit is Embarked on a Transport Vehicle.
- The target unit is affected by the Fearless special rule.
Some weapons can inflict critical strikes against which no armour can protect.
If a model has the Rending special rule, or is attacking with a Melee weapon that has the Rending special rule, there is a chance that their close combat attacks will strike a critical blow. For each To Wound roll equal to or higher than the value listed, the target automatically suffers a Wound, regardless of its Toughness. The controlling player may choose to resolve these Wounds at AP 2 instead of the weapon’s normal AP value.Similarly, if a model makes a Shooting Attack with a weapon that has the Rending special rule, a To Wound roll of equal to or greater than the listed value wounds automatically, regardless of Toughness, and is resolved at AP 2.
In either case, against Vehicles each Armour Penetration roll of equal to or greater than the listed value allows a further D3 to be rolled, with the result added to the total Strength of the attack. These Hits are not resolved at AP 2, but are instead resolved using the weapon’s AP value.
For example, a model with the Rending (5+) special rule that rolls To Wound against a non-Vehicle model will wound automatically on the roll of a 5+, and the attacking player has the choice of using an AP value of 2 instead of the AP value of their weapon.
These weapons are grafted to the same targeting system for greater accuracy.
When attacking with a weapon that has this special rule, the controlling player may re-roll all failed To Hit rolls.These are heavy, man-portable weapons that typically require reloading between each shot or bracing to counter their recoil.
When making a Shooting Attack, a model with a Heavy weapon attacks the number of times indicated. If a model equipped with a Heavy weapon moved in the preceding Movement phase, they can only make Snap Shots with that Heavy weapon during the Shooting phase. Note that weapons with the Blast special rule cannot fire Snap Shots. Models that make Shooting Attacks with Heavy weapons in the Shooting phase cannot Charge in the ensuing Assault phase.
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- A ‘Small’ Blast marker (3" in diameter).
- A ‘Large’ Blast marker (5" in diameter).
- A ‘Template’ (a teardrop-shaped template roughly 8" long).
- A ‘Massive’ Blast marker (7" in diameter).
- An ‘Apocalyptic’ Blast marker (10" in diameter).
- An ‘Apocalyptic Barrage’ marker (a clover-shaped set of five overlapping markers, each 5" in diameter).
- A ‘Hellstorm’ (a teardrop-shaped template roughly 16" long).
The templates and Blast markers are used as a way of determining how many models have been hit by an attack that has an area of effect or a blast radius. When an attack uses a template or Blast marker, it will explain how the template is positioned, including any kind of scatter that might occur (scatter is discussed further later in this section). To work out the number of Hits, you normally need to hold the template or Blast marker with its central hole over an enemy model or a particular point on the battlefield, and then look underneath (or through, if using a transparent template) to see how many models lie partially or completely underneath. Various special rules and weapon effects will provide additional details on the specific use of templates when making attacks with those special rules or weapons.
A unit takes a Hit for each model that is fully, or even partially, underneath the template or Blast marker. Remember that a model’s base is counted as being part of the model itself, so all a template or Blast marker has to do to cause a Hit is to cover any part of the target’s base.
Some weapons are designed to leave any foe that manages to survive their strike disoriented and easy to slay.
A unit that suffers one or more Wounds, regardless of whether those Wounds are Saved or otherwise discounted, from a weapon with this special rule must take a Leadership test at the end of the Shooting phase (if the attacks were inflicted as part of a Shooting Attack), or the current combat (if the attacks were inflicted as part of a Melee attack). If the test is failed then that unit’s WS is reduced by the value in brackets listed as part of the special rule until the end of the following Assault phase (if no value is listed then reduce the target unit’s WS by -1).No matter how many times a unit has taken saved or unsaved Wounds from an attack with the Concussive special rule, it may only be forced to take one Leadership test because of it. If a single unit has been the target of several Concussive attacks with different values and fails the Leadership test, then it suffers the effects of the highest single modifier among those attacks – the effects do not stack or otherwise become cumulative.
Some weapons crush their targets, cracking bones and rupturing organs.
Instead of rolling To Wound normally with this weapon, any model without the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type that suffers a Hit from a weapon with this special rule must instead roll under their Strength on a D6 or suffer a Wound (a roll of a ‘6’ always counts as a failure). If a Graviton Pulse weapon also has the Blast type, then leave the Blast marker in place after resolving all Wounds, or otherwise mark the area. This area now counts as both Difficult Terrain and Dangerous Terrain until the start of the next turn of the player that made the attack.Glancing Hits – If a Glancing Hit was scored, the Vehicle loses 1 Hull Point.
Penetrating Hits – If a Penetrating Hit was scored, the Vehicle not only loses 1 Hull Point, but also suffers additional damage.
After deducting any Hull Points, roll a D6 for each Penetrating Hit and look up the result using the Vehicle Damage table, applying any appropriate modifiers. All modifiers on the Vehicle Damage table are cumulative. If you inflict a Penetrating Hit, you must roll on the Vehicle Damage table even if the Vehicle loses sufficient Hull Points to be Wrecked, as there is still a chance it might suffer an Explodes result on the Vehicle Damage table.
Invulnerable Saves are different to Armour Saves in that they may always be taken whenever the model suffers a Wound, or, in the case of Vehicles, suffers a Penetrating Hit or Glancing Hit – the Armour Piercing value of attacking weapons has no effect on an Invulnerable Save. Even if a Wound, Penetrating Hit or Glancing Hit ignores all Armour Saves, an Invulnerable Saving Throw can still be taken.
Haywire weapons send out powerful electromagnetic pulses.
For each Hit inflicted on a unit that contains at least one model with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type, roll a D6 to determine the effect rather than rolling To Wound or for armour penetration normally. AP has no effect on this roll:
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The ancient volkite weaponry employed by the armies of Terra in the earliest years of the Great Crusade fired arcing blasts of energy rather than solid projectiles.
After normal attacks by this weapon have been resolved, count the number of unsaved Wounds caused on the target unit. Immediately resolve a number of additional automatic Hits on the same unit using the weapon’s profile equal to the number of unsaved Wounds – these can then be saved normally. Models in the targeted unit must still be in range in order for these additional Hits to take effect. These additional Hits do not themselves inflict more Hits and do not benefit from any other special rules possessed by the attacking model, such as Preferred Enemy (X) or Precision Strikes (X).The Ballistic Skill of a model making a Snap Shot can only be modified by special rules that specifically state that they affect Snap Shots, along with any other restrictions. If a special rule doesn’t specifically state that it affects Snap Shots, then the Snap Shot is resolved at Ballistic Skill 1.
Some weapon types, such as Ordnance, or those that have certain special rules, such as Blast, cannot be used to make Snap Shots. In addition, any Shooting Attack that does not use Ballistic Skill cannot be made as a Snap Shot. These exceptions aside, Snap Shots are treated in the same manner as any other Shooting Attack made with a Ballistic Skill of 1.
Units that are locked in combat cannot move in any other Phase or make Shooting Attacks for any reason. Similarly, models cannot choose to target units locked in combat with Shooting Attacks for any reason. Blast markers and templates cannot be deliberately placed such that they cover any models locked in combat, but they may end up there after scattering and will then cause Hits on any units or models they contact as normal.
Units that are locked in combat do not take Morale checks or Pinning tests caused by Shooting Attacks, and cannot be Pinned.
| Any player, unless a special rule or other effect specifies otherwise, may make one Reaction in each Phase of their opponent’s turn. | ||
The Reaction Allotment of any player may be modified by special rules or other effects, granting that player additional Reactions either in every Phase (an increase of the Reaction Allotment) or in specific Phases. This may either increase the base Reaction Allotment, that is the number of Reactions allowed in every Phase, or only grant a bonus to the Reaction Allotment in specific Phases.
For example, a player might have a special rule that states ‘This special rule increases the Reaction Allotment to two’, which would indicate that the player could make two Reactions in every Phase of their opponent’s turn. However, a special rule that states ‘This special rule increases the number of Reactions that may be made during the Assault phase by +1’ would allow a player with a Reaction Allotment of one to make a single Reaction in the Shooting and Movement phases, but two in the Assault phase.
Regardless of any special rules or other effects, no player may ever increase their base Reaction Allotment above three, nor may any player ever make more than three Reactions in a given Phase unless a special rule specifically allows for a number of Reactions above the normal limit of three.
A Reaction may be made with any unit controlled by the Reactive player, though in a number of situations a special rule or condition may deny a unit the opportunity to react. The most common such conditions where a unit may not make a Reaction are:
- It is Pinned.
- It is Falling Back.
- It is locked in combat.
- It has already made a Reaction in the current Phase.
- The controlling player has exhausted their Reaction Allotment for the current Phase.
- Another special rule, effect or condition specifically states they may not (for example, the Fearless special rule and certain effects caused by weapons and Psychic Powers).
Mighty heroes go where they are needed, being at the forefront of the most vital charges and leading their troops to victory.
Independent Characters can join other units. They cannot, however, join units that contain Vehicles, Dreadnoughts, Automata or any model with the Monstrous sub-type (unless the Independent Character also has that Unit Type or sub-type). They can join other Independent Characters though to form a powerful multi-character unit.For one model to have line of sight to another, you must be able to trace a straight, unblocked line from its body (the head, torso, arms or legs) to any part of the target’s body.
Sometimes, all that will be visible of a model is a weapon, banner, or other ornament they are carrying. In these cases, the model is not visible. Similarly, mechanical appendages such as cables, probes and ammo feeds are ignored, even though they may be part of a model’s body. These rules are intended to ensure that models don’t get penalised for having impressive banners, weaponry, and so on.
In many cases, what a model can ‘see’ will be obvious – if there’s a hill, building or mechanical construct in the way, the enemy might be blatantly out of sight. In other cases, two units will be clearly in view of each other as there is nothing at all in the way.
On those other occasions, where it’s not entirely obvious whether or not one unit can see another, the player will have to stoop over the battlefield and look from behind the model’s head for a ‘model’s eye view’. This means getting down to the level of your models and checking the battlefield from their perspective to ‘see what they can see’. You will find that you can spot lurking enemies through the windows of ruined buildings, catch a glimpse of a model’s legs under tree branches and see that high vantage points become very useful for the increased line of sight that they offer.
Barrage weapons lob shells high into the air, landing them in the midst of the foe.
All Barrage weapons use Blast markers and consequently use the rules for Blast weapons, as indicated by their profile, with the following exceptions:Barrage weapons can fire indirectly. This means they can fire at a target that they do not have line of sight to, as long as the target is beyond their Minimum Range (if applicable). When firing indirectly, the Ballistic Skill of the firer is not subtracted from the scatter distance; unless a Hit is rolled on the Scatter dice, the Blast marker always scatters a full 2D6". If a Barrage weapon has line of sight to its target it can fire directly, even if the target is within its Minimum Range.
Note that any Hits inflicted upon Vehicles by an Attack using the Barrage special rule are always resolved against the Vehicle’s Side Armour Value.
Template weapons shoot clouds of fire, gas or other lethal substances, rather than shells or bullets. They are excellent for killing enemy troops in cover, as the payload simply flows over intervening obstacles to assail the foe behind.
Template weapons are indicated by having the word ‘Template’ for their range instead of a number. Instead of rolling To Hit, simply place the template so that its narrow end is touching the base of the firing model, or the end of the firing weapon’s barrel for Vehicle models without bases, and the rest of the template covers as many models in the target unit as possible, without touching any other friendly models (including other models from the firing model’s unit). Any models fully or partially under the template are hit. Against Vehicles, the template must be placed to cover as much of the Vehicle as possible without touching a friendly model. The position of the firer is used to determine which armour Facing is hit. A Template weapon never hits the model firing it.Template weapons have the Ignores Cover and Wall of Death special rules. Wounds inflicted by Template weapons are allocated following the normal rules.
- Place the object on the battlefield as instructed by the rule.
- Roll a Scatter dice and 2D6 to determine the direction and distance of scatter in inches.
- If a Hit is rolled on the Scatter dice, the object does not move – leave it in place and resolve the remainder of the rule.
- If an arrow is rolled, move the object the distance shown on the 2D6 in the direction of the arrow. Ignore intervening terrain, units, etc, unless the rule states otherwise.
- Once the object has scattered to its final position, resolve its effects.
Scatter dice and other dice and accessories that you can use in your games of Horus Heresy – Age of Darkness can be purchased from the Games Workshop website.
When a Sweeping Advance is performed, both the unit Falling Back and the winning unit roll a D6 and add their unmodified Initiative to the result. In a unit with mixed Initiative Characteristics, use the highest Characteristic. The units then compare their totals.
If the winner’s total (Initiative + dice roll) is greater than their opponents’, the Falling Back unit is caught by the Sweeping Advance and destroyed. All models in the destroyed unit are immediately removed as casualties. Unless otherwise specified, no Save or other special rule can prevent the unit from being destroyed.
If the Falling Back unit’s total is higher, or the final result is a tie, they break off from the combat successfully. Make a Falls Back move for the losing unit. The winners can then Consolidate.
Each blast from this weapon that pierces its target’s armour sets off a chain reaction of secondary explosions.
If this weapon successfully scores a Penetrating Hit on a target, roll a D6. If the result of that roll is equal to or higher than the value in brackets after the rule, a second automatic Penetrating Hit is inflicted on the same target against which Cover Saves may not be taken. For example, a weapon with the Exoshock (4+) special rule would inflict a second Penetrating Hit on the score of a 4+. This second Penetrating Hit does not gain the effects of any other special rules, and cannot trigger additional Hits.If, for any reason, a given instance of this rule does not have a value in brackets after the special rule, assume the value is 6+.
Scouts are always in the vanguard of the army. Unnoticed by the enemy, they range ahead of the main force.
After both sides have deployed (including Infiltrators), but before the first player begins their first turn, a unit containing at least one model with this special rule can choose to redeploy. If the unit is Infantry, Artillery, Dreadnought or Automata, each model can redeploy anywhere entirely within 6" of its current position. If it is any other Unit Type, each model can instead redeploy anywhere entirely within 12" of its current position. During this redeployment, Scouts can move outside the owning player’s Deployment Zone, but must remain more than 9" away from any enemy unit. A unit that makes a Scout redeployment cannot Charge in the first Game Turn. A unit cannot Embark or Disembark as part of a Scout redeployment.If both sides have Scouts, roll off; the winner decides who redeploys first. Then alternate redeploying Scout units one at a time. If a unit with this special rule is deployed inside a Dedicated Transport, it confers the Scout special rule to the Transport (though a Disembarkation cannot be performed as part of the redeployment). Note that a Transport with this special rule does not lose it if a unit without this special rule is Embarked upon it. Having Scout also confers the Outflank special rule to units of Scouts that are kept as Reserves.
A number of key unit sub-types are presented here – more may be referenced in other Age of Darkness books.
There are many virulent and lethal poisons in the Age of Darkness. It is simplicity itself to adapt such toxins for battlefield use. It does not matter whether they coat blades or bullets, or are secreted by alien monstrosities – all are lethal.
If a model has the Poisoned special rule, or is attacking with a Melee weapon that has the Poisoned special rule, it always Wounds on a fixed number (generally shown in brackets), unless a lower result would be required, when attacking in close combat. In addition, if the Strength of the wielder (or the Poisoned weapon) is higher than the Toughness of the victim, the wielder must re-roll failed rolls To Wound in close combat.Similarly, if a model makes a Shooting Attack with a weapon that has the Poisoned special rule, it always Wounds on a fixed number (generally shown in brackets), unless a lower result would be required. If no number is shown in brackets, the rule is Poisoned (4+).
Unless otherwise stated, Poisoned weapons are treated as having a Strength of 1. The Poisoned special rule has no effect against Vehicles.
Many are the weapons and creatures whose merest caress is fatal.
If a model has this special rule, or is attacking with a Melee weapon that has this special rule, they always Wound on a 2+ in close combat.Similarly, if a model makes a Shooting Attack with a weapon that has this special rule, they always Wound on a 2+.
In either case, this special rule has no effect against Vehicles or Buildings.
If you re-roll a 2D6 or 3D6 roll, you must re-roll all of the dice, not just some of them, unless the rules specify otherwise. Any modifiers that applied to the first roll also apply to the re-roll.
If two or more special rules combine to the effect that all failed and all successful dice results would have to be re-rolled, do not re-roll any dice; simply use the original result(s) instead.
Many warriors live and die according to the principle of ‘death before dishonour’. Seldom do such warriors take a backward step in the face of danger.
When a unit that contains at least one model with this special rule takes Morale checks or Pinning tests, the unit ignore any negative Leadership modifiers. If a unit is both Fearless and Stubborn, the unit uses the rules for Fearless instead.Ordnance weapons are cannon so vast, they are typically mounted on tanks and artillery.
When making Shooting Attacks, a model equipped with an Ordnance weapon fires the number of times indicated in its profile after its Type. A non-Vehicle model carrying an Ordnance weapon cannot attack with it in the Shooting phase if they moved in the preceding Movement phase. Ordnance weapons cannot make Snap Shots. Furthermore, if a non-Vehicle model attacks with an Ordnance weapon, that model may not make any further Shooting Attacks with any other weapon in the Phase nor will it be able to Charge in the ensuing Assault phase. Vehicle models that fire Ordnance weapons may also suffer some restrictions based upon the distance they have moved that turn.Ordnance weapons hit with such force that when you roll to penetrate a Vehicle’s armour with an Ordnance weapon, roll two dice instead of one and pick the highest result.
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A carefully placed explosive charge can easily doom even the most heavily armoured vehicle, but are difficult to attach accurately in the heat of combat.
A weapon with this special rule may only be used to attack models of the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Types, any model with a Movement Characteristic of 0 or ‘-’, or Buildings or Fortifications. Furthermore, a model that is chosen to attack with a weapon with this special rule during the Assault phase may only make a single attack in the Fight sub-phase, regardless of its Attacks Characteristic and any bonus attacks from Charging or other special rules.Stationary – A Vehicle that remains Stationary will be able to attack with all of its weapons, regardless of type, with no modification to their accuracy.
Combat Speed – A Vehicle that travels equal to or less, than half of its Movement Characteristic is said to be moving at Combat Speed. This represents the Vehicle advancing slowly to keep firing. A Vehicle moving at Combat Speed may attack with all non-Ordnance or non-Destroyer weapons with no modification to their accuracy. A Vehicle moving at Combat Speed may only fire a single Ordnance or Destroyer weapon, and if it does so then all other weapons must be fired as Snap Shots.
Vehicles can turn any number of times as they move, just like any other model. Vehicles turn by pivoting on the spot about their centre point, rather than wheeling round. Pivoting on the spot alone does not count as moving, so a Vehicle that only pivots in the Movement phase counts as Stationary (however, Immobilised Vehicles cannot even pivot on the spot). Pivoting is always done from the centre of a Vehicle to prevent it from accidentally moving further than intended or allowed. Just like other units, Vehicles cannot move over friendly models. A Vehicle may only pivot during the Movement phase, unless another rule specifically allows it to do so at another point. Unlike other models, Vehicles may not move vertically in terrain or on Terrain Pieces in order to ascend levels.
Some Vehicle types, from combat aircraft to lumbering artillery vehicles, as detailed later in this section, can affect both the manner in which a Vehicle moves and the distances it may move.
The galaxy is replete with swordsmen and blade-masters who can pick out an enemy from a crowd and land a blow on them, even amidst the swirling chaos of hand-to-hand combat.
If a model with this special rule, or attacking with a weapon with this special rule, rolls equal to or higher than the value in brackets when making a To Hit roll as part of a melee attack, that hit is a ‘Precision Strike’. For example, if a model with the Precision Strikes (4+) special rule rolls a 4 or higher when making a To Hit roll, then that attack is a Precision Strike.Wounds from Precision Strikes are allocated against a model (or models) of the attacking player’s choice in the target unit, as long as that model is engaged in combat with the attacking model’s unit, rather than following the normal rules for Wound allocation.
Sniper weapons are precision instruments, used to pick out a target’s weak points.
If a weapon has the Sniper special rule, or is fired by a model with the Sniper special rule, all Wounds inflicted by its attacks are ‘Precision Shots’. Wounds from Precision Shots are allocated against a model (or models) of the attacking player’s choice in the target unit, as long as it is in range and line of sight of the firer, rather than following the normal rules for Wound allocation. Note that Snap Shots can never be Precision Shots and attacks with the Blast or Template rules may never benefit from the effects of the Sniper special rule.
During the course of a game, a unit can get broken up and lose unit coherency, usually because it has sustained casualties from enemy fire. If this happens, in their next Movement phase, the models in the unit must be moved in such a way that they restore unit coherency, or as close to unit coherency as possible. If the unit cannot move in its next turn, or is unable to restore unit coherency in a single turn, then the models must move to restore unit coherency as soon as they have the opportunity, including by Running if they have that option.
To take a Leadership test, use the following procedure:
- Roll 2D6 and compare the result to the model’s Leadership Characteristic.
- If the result is equal to or less than the model’s Leadership Characteristic, then the test has been passed.
- If the result is greater than the model’s Leadership Characteristic, the test has been failed and the model faces the consequences as detailed in the rule that prompted the test.
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To Hit rolls are easy to remember if you subtract the Ballistic Skill of the attacking model from 7. For example, a model with BS 2 needs to roll a 5 or more (7-2=5).
Note that the minimum roll needed To Hit is always at least 2. When rolling To Hit, there is no such thing as an automatic Hit and a roll of a 1 always misses.
Some weapons are fuelled by unstable power sources and risk overheating with each shot – often to the detriment of their wielder.
When firing a weapon that Gets Hot, roll To Hit as normal. For each unmodified To Hit roll of 1, the firing model immediately suffers a single Wound with an AP value equal to that of the weapon that was used to attack (Armour Saves, Invulnerable Saves and Feel No Pain rolls can be taken, but not Cover Saves or Shrouded rolls) – this Wound cannot be allocated to any other model in the unit. A Vehicle instead rolls a D6 for each roll of a 1 To Hit. If this roll results in a 1 or 2, the Vehicle suffers a Glancing Hit.Assault weapons either fire so rapidly or indiscriminately that they can be fired while a warrior is moving.
A model attacking with an Assault weapon makes the number of Attacks indicated on its profile regardless of whether the bearer has moved or not. A model carrying an Assault weapon can make a Shooting Attack with it in the Shooting phase and still Charge in the Assault phase.
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Cybertheurgists use all manner of feral code-constructs and sophisticated lex-simulacra collectively known as data-djinn to corrupt and sabotage the machine spirits of enemy constructs.
When allocated to a model that does not have the Automata, Vehicle or Dreadnought Unit Types or is not a Building or Fortification, any Hits from a weapon with this special rule automatically fail to Wound without any dice being rolled and regardless of the weapon’s Strength or the target’s Toughness.Animatus Integro (Cybertheurgic Rite) Manipulating the machine spirit of any complex machine, the cybertheurgist is capable of remote activation of repair sub-routines and of repurposing auxiliary systems to perform repairs other lesser artificers might have deemed impossible. Such is the formidable skill of these machine-wrights that such ministrations are carried out from afar, without laying hand nor tool upon the shattered hull of the stricken machine. Instead of making a Shooting Attack, a Cybertheurgist with this Cybertheurgic Rite may apply the effects of any version of the Battlesmith (X) special rule they have to a single model with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type that is within 12" of the Cybertheurgist. The effect is rolled for as normally required by the Battlesmith (X) special rule, but does not require the Cybertheurgist to be in base contact or Embarked upon the model. If successful, the controlling player may choose to make a Cybertheurgy check for the Cybertheurgist model, if successful then the effect of the Battlesmith (X) special rule is applied twice without further rolls (i.e., an additional Wound is restored, or an additional Weapon Destroyed result removed from the target, etc.). If the Cybertheurgy check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback. |
Animatus Excindor (Cybertheurgic Weapon) Just as Cybermancy can over-charge a machine’s systems to power its re-invigoration, so can it overload those systems and crush the heart of even the most powerful war machines. Cybertheurgic Focus: Before making any To Hit rolls with this weapon, the Cybertheurgist must make a Cybertheurgy check. If the Check is passed then the Cybertheurgist may attack as normal using the profile shown for this weapon. If the Check is failed then the Cybertheurgist suffers Cybertheurgic Feedback, and if the model is not removed as a casualty then it may attack as normal but may not use this weapon.
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Some blows can slay an enemy outright, no matter how hardy they may be.
If a model suffers an unsaved Wound from an attack with this special rule, it is reduced to 0 Wounds and is removed as a casualty.In the far future, hatred is a powerful ally.
This rule is presented as Hatred (X) where X identifies a specific type of foe. If the special rule does not specify a type of foe, then the unit has Hatred against everyone. This can refer to a Faction or a specific unit.For example, Hatred (Mechanicum) means any model of the Mechanicum Faction, whilst Hatred (Thallax) means only Thallax. A model striking a Hated foe in close combat re-rolls all failed To Hit rolls during the first round of each close combat.
The effects of this special rule only apply when a unit that has it begins an Assault phase not locked in combat and then either Charges or is Charged by an enemy unit. If an enemy unit Charges this unit when it is already locked in combat then that does count as a new ‘first’ turn of combat for the effects of Hatred.
This attack looses a brilliant flare of light, searing the sight of the victim and forcing them to fight blind for a few moments.
Any unit hit by one or more models or weapons with this special rule must take an Initiative test at the end of the current Phase. If the Test is passed, there is no further effect. If the Initiative test is failed, all models in the unit are reduced to Weapon Skill 1 and Ballistic Skill 1 until the end of their next turn. Should the attacking unit hit themselves, they automatically pass the Test. Any model that does not have an Initiative Characteristic (for example, Vehicles, Buildings, etc) is unaffected by this special rule.Shorting out the vox comms of enemy targets, this weapon isolates its victims from their allies and the direction of their commanders.
Any models with the Infantry or Cavalry Unit Types in a unit that suffers one or more Hits from a weapon with this special rule must reduce their Leadership by -2 until the start of their controlling player’s next turn. This modifier is not cumulative, and any given unit can only be affected by a single instance of the Vox Silence special rule at a time. Nor is it cumulative with other special rules that negatively modify Leadership. Always use the highest single modifier among those applicable. In addition, units affected by this special rule do not gain the benefits of nuncio vox, command vox or other similar Wargear items until the start of their controlling player’s next turn. Units that include one or more models with the Stubborn special rule ignore this effect.Many warriors hurl themselves headlong into combat, seeking to crush or trample the foe.
If a model with this special rule ends its Charge Move in base contact with an enemy model, it makes a number of additional attacks equal to the value in brackets listed as part of this special rule. These attacks hit automatically and are resolved at the model’s unmodified Strength with AP-. These attacks do not benefit from any of the model’s special rules (such as Furious Charge, Rending, etc.). These attacks are resolved during the Fight sub-phase at Initiative step 10, but do not grant the model an additional Pile-in Move.If a model with this special rule Charges a Vehicle of any kind or a Building, the hits are resolved against the Armour Value of the Facing the charging model is touching. If the model is in contact with two or more Facings, the player controlling the target model chooses a Facing upon which the attacks are resolved. If a model with this special rule Charges a Building or Vehicle that is a Transport, the hits are resolved against the Building or Vehicle, not the unit Embarked within the Building or Vehicle.
Some warriors use the impetus of the charge to fuel their own fury.
In a turn in which a model with this special rule Charges into combat, it adds a bonus to its Strength Characteristic until the end of the Assault phase. The bonus added to the model’s Strength is equal to the value in brackets after the special rule, for example a model with Furious Charge (2) adds a bonus of +2 to its Strength.A model that has made a Disordered Charge that turn receives no benefit from Furious Charge.
To make a To Hit roll, roll a D6 for each attack a model gets to make and compare the WS of the attacking model to the WS of the target unit. Then, consult the To Hit chart below to find the minimum result needed on a D6 To Hit.
As the chart below shows, if the target’s WS is half or less than that of the attacker’s, they are hit on a 2+; lower than the attacker’s but more than half, they are hit on 3+; if the target’s WS is equal to the attacker’s, they are hit on 4+; if it is higher but not twice the attacker’s, they are hit on 5+; and if it is twice or more than the attacker’s, then they are hit only on a 6+.
UNITS WITH MULTIPLE WEAPON SKILLS
Some units contain models with different Weapon Skills. Whilst each model in such a unit rolls To Hit using its own Weapon Skill, Attacks made against such a unit are resolved using the Weapon Skill of the majority of the engaged enemy models. If two or more Weapon Skill values are tied for majority, use the highest of those tied values.
One of the terrors of Old Night, rad-phage weaponry was created to corrupt and poison, to reduce a powerful foe to an impotent and pitiable wreck.
A model which loses one or more Wounds to an attack with this special rule and survives has its Toughness value reduced by -1 for the rest of the battle. This effect is not cumulative with other attacks using the Rad-phage special rule, but can be stacked with other special rules that also reduce the Toughness Characteristic of the target. Note that this special rule can never reduce a model to a Toughness value of less than 1.
If the Vehicle had not moved before the unit Disembarked, the Vehicle can then move normally. If the Vehicle had already moved before the unit Disembarked, the Vehicle cannot move further that turn (including pivoting on the spot). In addition, a Vehicle cannot Ram on a turn that a unit Disembarks from it.
Whether due to its inherent weight, shape or because it was never meant for use in combat, this weapon proves difficult to wield even for the most accomplished of warriors.
A model using a close combat weapon with this special rule can only ever make a single attack at WS 1 in an Assault phase, regardless of their profile or any bonus or other special rule.Some attacks cause severe damage to their targets, frying circuitry and ravaging infrastructure as they strike. Few engines of war or armoured bastions can survive the onslaught of such attacks.
Penetrating Hits caused by attacks made with weapons or models with this special rule add +1 to the result of any rolls on the Vehicle or Building Damage tables.Enginseer: Tech-Priests and Magos Auxilia in the unit are each equipped with a servo-arm. While the unit contains any number of Servo-automata, Tech-Priests and Magos Auxilia in the unit improve their Battlesmith (X) special rule to Battlesmith (4+).
Lachrimallus: Tech-Priests, Magos Auxilia and Servo-automata in the unit have the Feel No Pain (5+) special rule. Friendly Adsecularis Tech-thrall units with at least one model within 6" of one or more Tech-Priest or Magos Auxilia with this special rule add +1 to their Feel No Pain Damage Mitigation rolls or gain the Feel No Pain (6+) special rule if they do not already possess the Feel No Pain (X) special rule
Reductor: Tech-Priests and Magos Auxilia in the unit are each equipped with a servo-arm, and all models in the unit gain the Sunder and Wrecker special rules. Magos Auxilia may exchange their servo-arm for either a conversion beamer or graviton imploder for +25 points each.
The interface between this vehicle’s advanced machine spirit and its fire control mechanisms allows the crew to target foes with incredible accuracy.
A Vehicle with this special rule may attack different targets with each Ranged weapon it is permitted to fire during any Shooting Attack.This control and signalling device uses data-djinn to command Battle-automata fitted with Cybernetica cortex systems, allowing the wielder to witness the battlefield through the automata’s own senses as well as monitor their status and exact precise control over their actions. Only the most highly experienced and specifically augmented adepts of the Mechanicum and the Forge Lords of the Legiones Astartes can hope to fathom the use of these fractious devices and successfully interpret the storm of data streaming from their un-living minions.
Any unit that includes one or more models with the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type may ignore the Programmed Behaviour provision described as part of that Sub-type while within 12" of a friendly model with a cortex controller.Many of the most senior magi among the Mechanicum are capable of interpreting the binaric chatter of base automata, commanding them as lesser mortals command their warriors of flesh and blood with a simple word or gesture. Such magi are often found in the company of these iron killers, directing their programmed imperatives and sheltering behind their armoured bulk.
An Independent Character with this special rule may join a unit composed of models with the Automata Unit Type or Monstrous Unit Sub-type. However they cannot join a unit which contains models of any other Unit Type if the model with this rule also has the Automata or Dreadnought Unit Type, or the Monstrous Unit Sub-type.Some weapons are capable of breaching armour with a terrifying ease, whether by specially designed munitions, careful targeting or sheer brute power.
When rolling To Wound for a model that has the Breaching (X) special rule, or is attacking with a weapon that has the Breaching (X) special rule, for each To Wound roll equal to or higher than the value listed in brackets, the controlling player must resolve these wounds at AP 2 instead of the weapon’s normal AP value. This rule has no effect on models that do not have Wounds, such as models with the Vehicle Unit Type.For example, a model with the Breaching (5+) special rule that rolls To Wound and rolls a result of ‘5’ or higher, the Wound inflicted gains an AP of ‘2’ regardless of the AP value listed on the weapon’s profile. Note that a weapon that has both the Breaching (X) and the Gets Hot special rules always uses the base AP of the weapon when rolls of ‘1’ To Hit inflict Wounds on the attacking model.
Some weapons are so cruel of form or powerful in aspect that a well-placed strike can slay even the toughest opponent.
Attacks with this special rule cause Instant Death on a To Wound roll equal to or greater than the number listed in brackets associated with the specific rule. Roll any viable Saves against this Instant Death-causing Wound separately and before any other Wounds the attack inflicts.Some weapons rely not on the speed of their wielder, but on their sheer length or cunning design to inflict harm upon the foe before they can react.
A model making attacks as part of an Assault using a weapon with this special rule, adds the value of (X) that is included as part of this special rule to its Initiative Characteristic. If a model has more than one weapon with this special rule then that model only increases the value of its Initiative by the value of the special rule on the weapon whose profile is used by that model to attack during the Fight sub-phase. A weapon that is not used to attack does not modify the model’s Initiative Characteristic – models that may attack with more than one weapon, or models claiming the bonus for having a second weapon, may only add the value of the highest variant of this special rule and do not add the values together.For example, a model attacking as part of an Assault with a weapon that has the Reach (1) special rule increases its Initiative by +1.
While each battle-automata of the Legio Cybernetica is in itself a creation of a near lost age of human power; a miracle of technological artifice and the product of arcane secrets without number, there remains among them war machines whose powers and capabilities are far beyond their peers. Whether somehow blessed by the Omnissiah, the product of a single magos’ unmatched genius or the darker influence of the forbidden, a Paragon of Metal is a near-unstoppable engine of war, albeit one perhaps not to be trusted, even by its master.
Only one model in an army may be upgraded to have the Paragon of Metal special rule. Models upgraded with the Paragon of Metal special rule must have the Automata (Cybernetica) Unit Type before the upgrade is applied. This rule confers the Paragon Sub-type, which replaces the Cybernetica Unit Sub-type, and confers the It Will Not Die (4+), Precision Strikes (4+), Precision Shots (4+) and Rampage (2) special rules. A model upgraded with the Paragon of Metal special rule also increases both their starting Wounds Characteristic and their Weapon Skill Characteristic by +1.In addition, a model with the Paragon of Metal special rule may not be targeted or affected by any Cybertheurgic Power or any Weapon with the Data-djinn special rule, either friendly or enemy.
- An Arcuitor Magisterium may be joined by one of the following for their normal points cost:
- An Arlatax Battle-automata Maniple
- A Vorax Battle-automata Maniple
This unit may be upgraded freely as described in their profile, though they may not take the Paragon of Metal upgrade. If taken in this manner, the unit forms a single unit with the Arcuitor Magisterium, and the Arcuitor Magisterium gains the Patris Cybernetica special rule. The Arcuitor Magisterium may not voluntarily leave this unit during the course of the battle. This unit counts as being part of the same Elites choice as the Arcuitor Magisterium and does not take up a separate Force Organisation slot.
If a successful Reserve roll is made for a unit, that unit must be moved onto the battlefield this turn. From the start of Game Turn 4 all Reserve rolls are considered to automatically succeed, unless another special rule states otherwise, and all of the Active player’s units that are in Reserve must be moved onto the battlefield or they are considered destroyed.
Some special rules can modify the roll required for a unit to arrive from Reserve. Regardless of the modifier(s), a natural roll of a 1 always means that the unit in question remains in Reserve, and a natural roll of a 6 always means that the unit in question arrives from Reserve.
Any unit for which a successful Reserve roll has been made must move onto the Battlefield at the start of the Controlling player’s Movement phase, before any other models are moved. Select one of the Active player’s arriving units and deploy it, moving it onto the table in the manner described as follows. Then pick another arriving unit and deploy it, and so on until all arriving units are on the table. The Active player can then proceed to move their other units as normal.
Many of the galaxy’s warriors train hard to overcome a particular foe, allowing them to predict the enemy’s battle-stances and thus land a blow or shot with greater ease.
This rule is presented as Preferred Enemy (X) where X identifies a specific type of foe. If the special rule does not specify a type of foe, then everyone is a Preferred Enemy of the unit. A unit that contains at least one model with this special rule re-rolls failed To Hit and To Wound rolls of 1 if attacking its Preferred Enemy. This applies both to Shooting Attacks and close combat attacks.If a model with this rule makes an attack against a mixed unit which has one or more models to which their Preferred Enemy rule pertains, but is not entirely composed of such models, it may still benefit from the effects of Preferred Enemy for all attacks made against that unit. For example, a model with Preferred Enemy (Independent Characters) may re-roll failed To Hit and To Wound rolls of 1 against all of the models in a unit which has been joined by an Independent Character.
The Great Crusade allowed many of the Emperor’s warriors to hone the skills needed to topple mighty monsters and towering automatons.
A unit that contains at least one model with this special rule re-rolls all failed To Wound rolls against Dreadnoughts, Automata and Primarch models as well as any unit with the Monstrous sub-type.
This creature is so massive, it takes up an inordinate amount of space in any vehicle or building it enters.
Bulky models count as a number of models equal to the value X in brackets after the rule’s name for the purposes of Transport Capacity and whether a given unit outnumbers another in combat.For example, a unit comprised of five models all of which have the Bulky (3) special rule, would count as 15 models when attempting to Embark on a Transport Vehicle or when deciding if they outnumber an enemy unit (see, for example, Rampage (X)).
Many armies employ reconnaissance troops who sit concealed for days, just waiting for the right moment in which to strike.
You may choose to deploy units that contain at least one model with this special rule last, after all other units (friend and foe) have been deployed. If both players have such units and choose to do so, the players roll off and the winner decides who goes first,then alternate deploying these units.Units that Infiltrate in this way can be set up anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 9" from any enemy unit, as long as no deployed enemy unit can draw line of sight to them. This includes in a Building, as long as the Building is more than 9" from any enemy unit. Alternatively, they can be set up anywhere on the battlefield more than 12" from any enemy unit, even in plain sight.
If a unit with Infiltrate deploys inside a Dedicated Transport, the same rules apply when deploying their Transport.
A unit that deploys using these rules cannot Charge in their first turn.
Having Infiltrate also confers the Outflank special rule to units of Infiltrators that are kept as Reserves.
The Kyropatris generator projects a weak deflector screen capable of lessening the impact of kinetic strikes and directed energy beams. It is engineered so that multiple field generators can overlap, creating a more powerful defensive effect.
So long as a unit contains at least five models with a Kyropatris field generator, all models in the unit may re-roll failed Armour Saves of 1. In addition, if the unit contains at least 10 models with Kyropatris field generators then all Shooting Attacks made against the unit suffer a modifier of -1 to the Strength of the attack (to a minimum of Strength 1).Whether through force of will, bionic augmentation or foul sorcery, this warrior can still fight despite fearsome wounds.
When a model with this special rule suffers an unsaved Wound, it can make a special Feel No Pain roll to avoid being Wounded (this is a special Saving Throw which is made after unsaved Wounds are suffered).Feel No Pain rolls may not be taken against unsaved Wounds that have the Instant Death special rule.
Roll a D6 each time an unsaved Wound is suffered. On a result that is equal to or greater than the value in brackets, the unsaved Wound is discounted – treat it as having been saved. On any other result the Wound is taken as normal.
For example, a unit with the special rule Feel No Pain (5+) would need to score a 5 or 6 in order to discount a Wound inflicted upon it.
This is a Damage Mitigation roll – any model may make only a single Damage Mitigation roll of any type for any given Wound.
Some warriors are skilled at moving over broken and tangled terrain.
A unit that contains only models with this special rule suffers no penalty for moving or charging through Difficult Terrain.Rapid Fire weapons are very common and usually come in the form of semi-automatic rifles. Their versatility means they can be fired as effectively when a squad is advancing as when taking single, long-ranged shots.
A model armed with a Rapid Fire weapon can make two attacks at a target up to half the weapon’s Maximum Range away. Alternatively, it can instead make one attack at a target over half the weapon’s range away, up to the weapon’s Maximum Range.If a unit attacking with Rapid Fire weapons is found to be partially within half range of the target, the firing models within half range make two attacks, while those further away make one attack.
Models that attack with Rapid Fire weapons in the Shooting phase cannot Charge in the ensuing Assault phase.
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This weapon fires ammunition that cheats an enemy of their shelter.
Cover Saves and Damage Mitigation rolls granted by the Shrouded special rule cannot be taken against Wounds or Hull Point damage caused by weapons with the Ignores Cover special rule. This includes Cover Saves granted by Reactions and other special rules as well as Cover Saves conferred by terrain.Some ammunition is saturated with volatile charged particles that disrupt its target on a molecular level.
Any To Hit roll of a 6 made by a weapon with this special rule Wounds automatically. This special rule has no effect on models with the Primarch or Vehicle Unit Types.The source of the darkness around these warriors matters not – only a lucky shot has any chance of piercing the shroud that hides them from view.
When a model with this special rule suffers an unsaved Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit, it can make a special Shrouded roll to ignore it (this is not a Saving Throw and so can be used against attacks that state that ‘no Saves of any kind are allowed’). Shrouded rolls may not be taken against Melee Attacks, against attacks with the Ignores Cover special rule or for models (excluding models with the Primarch Unit Type) with the Fearless special rule.Roll a D6 each time an unsaved Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit is suffered by a model with this special rule. On a result that is equal to or greater than the value in brackets, that unsaved Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit is ignored. On any other result, the Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit is applied as normal. For example, a unit with the special rule Shrouded (6+) would need to score a 6 in order to ignore a Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit inflicted upon it.
If on any unit this rule is presented simply as Shrouded, without a value in brackets, then count it as Shrouded (6+).
This is a Damage Mitigation roll – any model may make only a single Damage Mitigation roll of any type for any given Wound, Glancing Hit or Penetrating Hit.
Note that the minimum roll needed To Wound is always at least 2. When rolling To Wound, there is no such thing as an automatic Wound and a roll of 1 always fails.
Each weapon has its own Strength Characteristic, which is given in its profile or in the description of the weapon. The following are examples of weapons and their Strength Characteristics:
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Consult the chart below, cross-referencing the attacker’s Strength Characteristic with the defender’s Toughness Characteristic. The chart indicates the minimum result on a D6 roll required to inflict a Wound, and is the same chart as is used during the Shooting phase. A ‘-’ indicates that the target cannot be wounded by the attack. In most cases, when rolling To Wound in close combat, you use the Strength on the attacker’s profile regardless of what weapon they are using. However, there are some Melee weapons that give the attacker a Strength bonus, and this is explained previously in the Weapons section.
MULTIPLE TOUGHNESS VALUES
Rarely, a unit will contain models that have different Toughness Characteristics. When this occurs, roll To Wound using the Toughness value of the majority of the engaged unit. If two or more Toughness values are tied for majority, use the highest of those tied values.
+1 Charge Bonus: Engaged models that Charged this turn get +1 Attack this turn. Models in units that made a Disordered Charge do not get this bonus.
+1 Two Weapons: Engaged models with two single-handed weapons (often a Melee weapon and/or Pistol in each hand) get +1 Attack. Models with more than two weapons gain no additional benefit; you only get one extra attack.
Other Bonuses: Models may have other special rules and Wargear that confer extra attacks.
- If the total is less than the Vehicle’s Armour Value, the attack has no effect.
- If the total is equal to the Vehicle’s Armour Value, the attack inflicts a Glancing Hit.
- If the total is greater than the Vehicle’s Armour Value, the attack inflicts a Penetrating Hit.
A model is only required to make a maximum of one Dangerous Terrain test during a Phase. Any subsequent Dangerous Terrain tests it would be required to make during that Phase are assumed to have automatically been passed.
The coruscating bolts of lightning hurled from arc weapons overload and burn out the circuitry and neuro-matrices of simple and complex machines alike.
To Hit rolls of the value X indicated made by a weapon with this rule cause an automatic Glancing Hit against models with the Vehicle Unit Type instead of rolling for Armour Penetration, and an automatic Wound against models with the Dreadnought or Automata Unit Types, instead of rolling To Wound.Fearless troops never give up and seldom make full use of cover – even if it would be wiser to do so.
Units with one or more models with the Fearless special rule automatically pass Pinning tests, Regroup tests and Morale checks. In addition, models with the Fearless special rule ignore the effects of the Fear special rule.However, units containing one or more models with the Fearless special rule cannot use any Reactions that grant a Cover Save, Armour Save or Invulnerable Save, and cannot choose to fail a Morale check due to the Our Weapons Are Useless special rule. If a unit has become Pinned and then gains the Fearless special rule, all the effects of being Pinned are immediately cancelled.
Whether tearing a hole in the veil between realspace and the Warp or collapsing gravity into a superdense singularity, this weapon creates a lasting calamity which threatens the very stability of reality around it.
Once an attack with this special rule has been fully resolved, any Blast markers placed as part of that attack are not removed from play and instead are left in place for the remainder of the battle. Such a Blast marker is then referred to as the Vortex marker. The area under a Vortex marker is treated as Area Terrain for the remainder of the battle, and applies the following effects to all models that enter its boundaries:No line of sight may be drawn through, into, or out of the area covered by the Vortex marker (as such, models within such an area of terrain cannot draw line of sight to any other model, nor can other models draw a line of sight to them).
Any models that enter the boundary of this area of terrain, or begin the Movement phase of the model’s Controlling player within its boundaries, immediately suffer one Str 10, AP 1 Hit and the Instant Death and Armourbane (Melee) special rules. If the model has the Vehicle Unit Type and suffers a Penetrating Hit due to this effect then it adds a modifier of +3 to that roll on the Vehicle Damage table instead of the +2 modifier it would normally add due to being AP1.
This area of terrain does not confer a Cover Save and no model within its boundary may use a Cover Save granted by any other rule or effect.
Greuso Protocol – This Advanced Reaction may be made whenever an enemy unit declares a Charge targeting a friendly unit with the Automata Unit Type or Knight Unit Sub-type which is within 12" of another friendly unit that includes at least one model with the Greuso Protocol special rule and is not itself locked in combat. The unit with the Greuso Protocol special rule may make a Shooting Attack, targeting the unit that triggered this Reaction and following all the usual rules for Shooting Attacks. A unit that makes a Shooting Attack as part of a Greuso Protocol Reaction may not make any attacks indirectly (without line of sight) including weapons with the Barrage special rule or other weapons or special rules that otherwise ignore line of sight, and Vehicles may only fire Defensive Weapons. Template weapons used as part of a Greuso Protocol Reaction use the Wall of Death rule instead of firing normally. The unit targeted by the Greuso Protocol Reaction may not take Cover Saves against Wounds inflicted as part of that Reaction.
Only Infantry models can Embark upon Transports unless specifically stated otherwise. Certain special rules, notably the Bulky (X) special rule, may modify the Transport Capacity required for a given model to Embark upon a Transport, and this will be specified in the model’s rules. Sometimes, there will be constraints on which types of models can Embark upon a particular Vehicle, and this will be specified in the unit’s entry. Whilst Embarked upon a Transport, units gain the Fearless special rule and cannot be made to Fall Back or become Pinned while Embarked upon the Transport.
In the dark corners of the galaxy, there are creatures that heal at a terrifying speed.
At the end of each of your turns, roll a D6 for each of your models with this special rule that has less than its starting number of Wounds or Hull Points, but that has not been removed as a casualty or destroyed. On a roll equal to or greater than the number in brackets associated with the special rule, that model regains a Wound, or Hull Point, lost earlier in the game. For example, a model with It Will Not Die (5+) would regain a lost Wound on the roll of a 5 or more.Many of the galaxy’s marksmen are able to single out enemy leaders or soldiers with particularly powerful weapons and snipe them with unerring accuracy.
If a model with this special rule, or attacking with a weapon with this special rule, rolls equal to or higher than the value in brackets when making a To Hit roll as part of a Shooting Attack, that shot is a ‘Precision Shot’. For example, if a model with the Precision Shots (4+) special rule rolls a 4 or higher when making a To Hit roll, then that attack is a Precision Shot.Wounds from Precision Shots are allocated against a model (or models) of the attacking player’s choice in the target unit, as long as the target model is in range and line of sight of the attacking model, rather than following the normal rules for Wound allocation.
Note that Snap Shots and shots from weapons that scatter, or do not roll To Hit, can never be Precision Shots.
For some warriors, being outnumbered is not a cause for despair, but a call to set about their foes with a berserk counter-attack.
At the start of any Fight sub-phase, models with the Rampage special rule gain a number of Attacks equal to the value listed in brackets if outnumbered by enemy models (including the effects of the Bulky special rule) – count all models locked in the combat, not just those models that are engaged. If the value in brackets is randomly determined by rolling dice, then roll once for each such variant of the Rampage special rule present in the unit to determine the number of Attacks that may be made, applying the result to all models with that variant for the current phase. For example, a model with the Rampage (D3) special rule that is outnumbered by the enemy in close combat receives D3 additional Attacks in that Fight sub-phase.A model that has made a Disordered Charge that turn receives no benefit from Rampage.
To perform a Ram Attack, first turn the Vehicle on the spot to face the direction you intend to move it in, and, after measuring, declare how many inches the Vehicle is going to move, up to a maximum of its Movement Characteristic. If, due to the size of the Vehicle model making the Ram, pivoting the model brings it into contact with an enemy unit then move the Ramming Vehicle the minimum distance required to keep it 1" away from any other model before beginning the Ram. Once the Vehicle has been ‘aimed’ and the intended distance declared, move the Vehicle straight forwards until it comes into contact with a unit, enemy or friendly, or it reaches the distance declared – no other changes of direction are allowed during a Ram.
Note that a Vehicle conducting a Ram may not contact a unit that is locked in combat. If its movement would bring it into contact with a unit that is locked in combat then it must halt its movement 1" away from that unit, ending the Ram.
If a non-Vehicle unit is reached then that unit suffers D6 automatic Hits. These hits are resolved at a Strength equal to half the Front Armour Value of the Ramming Vehicle, rounding up, and with an AP of -. If the Ramming Vehicle is a Super-heavy Vehicle then the Strength of the attack is always 10, and the number of Hits is increased to 2D6. Once all Hits sustained from the Ram have been resolved, the unit that has been rammed must take a Morale check and immediately Fall Back if it fails. Regardless of the result of the check, the Vehicle stops moving 1" away from any other models and does not move any further this turn.
If the Ramming Vehicle comes into contact with an enemy Vehicle or Building, then all Vehicles or Buildings immediately inflict a Hit against any Armour Facing that is in contact with another Vehicle. The Strength of Hits inflicted on all Vehicles will be equal to half the Armour Value, rounding up, on the facing that is in contact with an enemy Vehicle or Building.
If the Ramming Vehicle has more starting Hull Points than any Vehicle or Building it is in contact with, add +1 to the Strength of the Hit, and if the Ramming Vehicle has the Slow or Super-heavy type, or is a Building, add +4 Strength, to a maximum value of 10. Both players roll for armour penetration against any of their opponent’s Vehicles or Building involved in the Ramming Attack, and any results are immediately applied. Regardless of the damage dealt to any Vehicles or Buildings involved in the Ram Attack, once the Ram Attack is resolved the Ramming Vehicle halts 1" away from any other models and does not move further this turn.
If, at any point in its move, the Vehicle would enter into contact with Impassable Terrain or a battlefield edge, or if it passes within 1" of units in combat or friendly units, it immediately stops moving 1" away from any other model.
Mounted only on the largest and most fearsome of war machines, Destroyer class weapons are capable of annihilating smaller targets and tearing through even the thickest armour with ease.
A model making a Shooting Attack with a Destroyer weapon attacks the number of times indicated on the weapon’s profile whether or not the bearer has moved. A model carrying a Destroyer weapon can attack with it in the Shooting phase and still Charge in the Assault phase. In addition, when you roll for armour penetration with Hits caused by a Destroyer weapon, roll three dice instead of one and discard the single lowest dice rolled, or any one of the lowest dice in the case of tied results. Use the total of the remaining dice to determine the result.In addition, when a Destroyer weapon inflicts a Glancing Hit or a Penetrating Hit, it inflicts D3 Hull Points of Damage instead of a single Hull Point. When a Destroyer weapon inflicts a Wound on a non-Vehicle model, it inflicts D3 Wounds instead of a single Wound.
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When checking range, simply measure from the attacking model to the nearest model in the target unit that is within Line of Sight of the attacking model. Any weapon that is found to be out of range of all models in the target unit to which line of sight can be drawn may not be used to make attacks.
Similar to other Leadership-based tests, Morale checks (also sometimes referred to as Morale tests) are taken by rolling 2D6 and comparing the total to the unit’s Leadership value.
If the total is equal to or less than the unit’s Leadership Characteristic, the test is passed and the unit does not suffer any ill effects.
If the total is higher than their Leadership Characteristic, the test is failed and the unit will immediately Fall Back.
Some units have special rules pertaining to Morale checks that are detailed in their Army List or Army List entry. For example, some units might always pass Morale checks, while others might always pass all Leadership tests. This difference is subtle, yet important. A unit that always passes Morale checks still has to test when hit by an attack with the Pinning special rule, while a unit that always passes all Leadership tests wouldn’t.
Fall Back Moves are 2D6", unless a rule specifies otherwise. Fall Back Moves are not slowed by Difficult Terrain, but incur Dangerous Terrain tests as normal. Units with models that Fall Back at different speeds always Fall Back at the speed of the slowest model in the unit.
Each model in the unit moves directly towards their own battlefield edge by the shortest possible route.
If playing a mission where there is no ‘own’ battlefield edge, models move towards the closest battlefield edge instead.
If any model from a unit that is Falling Back moves into contact with a battlefield edge, the entire unit is removed from the game as casualties as it scatters and flees the battle.
Interceptor - This Advanced Reaction may be made whenever an enemy unit enters play from Reserve within line of sight of a friendly unit, and within the maximum range of at least one weapon in that unit. The Reacting unit may make a Shooting Attack, targeting a unit deployed onto the battlefield in this Phase and following all the usual rules for Shooting Attacks. Vehicles may only fire Defensive weapons, unless another rule specifically states otherwise. Shooting Attacks made as part of the Interceptor Reaction do not cause Morale checks, regardless of the number of casualties inflicted.
Unless otherwise specified by another rule, making this Reaction expends a point from the Reactive player’s Reaction Allotment for the Phase in which the Reaction is made.
This vehicle is specifically designed to disgorge troops into the thick of the action.
Passengers Disembarking from Access Points on a Vehicle with this special rule can Charge on the turn they do so (including when forced to make an Emergency Disembarkation) unless the Vehicle arrived from Reserves that turn.Subterranean AssaultA subterranean assault is a full scale attack conducted by units that have approached the target site by means of subsurface transport, emerging from below into the teeth of the enemy force, shattering its formation and sowing chaos amongst its ranks. Such attacks are most often initiated in order to counter enemy macro-fortifications or to navigate otherwise impassable terrain, but some commanders favour them for the sheer surprise they engender. Before the start of the first turn, when placing units into Reserve, a player must assign all units with the Subterranean Assault special rule and any Infantry units Embarked upon them to perform a Subterranean Assault. All models in a unit assigned to a Subterranean Assault must have the Subterranean Assault special rule, or be Embarked on a model with the Transport Sub-type that has the Subterranean Assault special rule itself.When rolling for Reserves, roll a single dice for all of the units assigned to the Subterranean Assault rather than rolling separately for each unit. If the roll is successful then all of the Subterranean Assault units must enter play in that turn and follow this procedure: Performing a Subterranean Assault Once a Reserves roll for the units assigned to the Subterranean Assault has succeeded and the units are to be brought into play, the controlling player selects a single unit to deploy first. That player must place a single model with the Subterranean Assault special rule that is either a Dedicated Transport or a unit of its own (this model may have a unit Embarked within) anywhere on the battlefield that is at least 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain and then scatter that model. If the model’s final position is within 1" of an enemy model, any battlefield edge or a piece of Impassable Terrain, the controlling player’s opponent may move that model to any position within 18" that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain. If there is no suitable position within 18" then the model may be repositioned anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 1" from any enemy model, battlefield edge or piece of Impassable Terrain. Once this first unit has been deployed, roll a dice. On the roll of a ‘1’ the Subterranean Assault is Disordered, and the opposing player may deploy each remaining unit in the Subterranean Assault anywhere within 12" of the first unit without scattering, though no model may be within 1" of an enemy model or within Impassable Terrain. If the roll is a ‘2’ or higher, the controlling player deploys each other unit anywhere within 12" of the first, though no model may be within 1" of an enemy model or within Impassable Terrain. Any models Embarked on a model with the Transport Sub-type must remain Embarked and may not Disembark as part of a Subterranean Assault (but may Disembark normally during the following Movement phase). Once all units are deployed, any enemy units with one or more models within 6" of any unit deployed as part of the Subterranean Assault suffer D6+3 Str 6, AP 4 Hits (Wounds caused by these Hits do not cause Morale checks or Pinning tests). Once all Hits are resolved, any enemy units that are neither Pinned or Falling Back and are within line of sight may choose to make the Interceptor Reaction targeting any one of the units deployed as part of the Subterranean Assault. Note that no Reaction other than Interceptor may be made against the deployment of a unit as part of a Subterranean Assault. Once all units from the Subterranean Assault have been deployed and any Interceptor Reactions have been resolved, the turn proceeds as normal. Units that have been deployed as part of a Subterranean Assault may Move, Run or Shoot as normal. However, only units deployed aboard a model with the Transport Sub-type with the Assault Vehicle special rule may declare and resolve a Charge and Assault as normal. Other units deployed as part of a Subterranean Assault may not declare or resolve a Charge on the same turn as they are deployed. | ||
To reflect the unique capabilities of these towering machines, Knights and Titans use two additional types of weapon mount:
Arm Mounted – Arm Mounted weapons may fire at targets in any Firing Arc, except the Hull (Rear) arc. All Arm Mounted weapons count as Defensive weapons (but note the additional restrictions on Knight and Titan Reactions).
Carapace Mounted - Carapace Mounted weapons may fire at targets in any Firing Arc without restriction. However, they may not target any unit within 12" of the firing model.
Instant Death: If a model suffers an unsaved Wound from an attack with this special rule, it is reduced to 0 Wounds and is removed as a casualty.
Pistols are light enough to be carried and fired one-handed.
A model attacking with a Pistol weapon makes the number of Attacks indicated on its profile regardless of whether the bearer has moved or not. A model carrying a Pistol weapon can make a Shooting Attack with it in the Shooting phase and still Charge in the Assault phase. A Pistol weapon also counts as a close combat weapon in the Assault phase. In addition, all models with two Pistol type weapons can attack with both in the same Shooting phase. This follows the normal rules for shooting.
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Some weapons are lovingly maintained artefacts, crafted with skills now lost. Though the exact form of master-crafting varies, it is always considered to be the pinnacle of the weaponsmith’s art.
Weapons with the Master-crafted special rule allow the bearer to re-roll one failed roll To Hit per turn with that weapon.Apocalyptic Mega-blast weapons have three Strength values and three AP values. Correspondingly, the Apocalyptic Blast marker is divided into three zones, as shown in the diagram below, one for each Strength and AP value.
The Strength and AP of any Hits depends on the zone in which the target model is located. The first Strength and AP value are used for the inner zone, the second Strength and AP value are used for the middle zone, and the third Strength and AP value are used for the outer zone. Always use the best Strength and AP if a model straddles two or more zones. If a unit has models in several zones, work out the Hits inflicted for each zone separately. Note that there will be a different Wound Pool for each zone.
Hits from Apocalyptic Mega-blast weapons made against Vehicles are always resolved against their Side Armour Value.
This weapon causes massive tremors to rip through the earth beneath the feet of its targets, driving those who survive to their knees and slowing the enemy’s advance.
Units which suffer one or more Wounds or Hull Points lost from an attack from a weapon with this special rule halve their Movement Characteristic and may not Run or make Reactions until the end of the attacker’s next Shooting phase.Some weapons produce such a weight of fire that any target pummelled by their attack is left dazed and stunned.
Pinning tests taken due to an attack or weapon with this special rule are made with a penalty to Leadership Characteristic equal to the value listed as part of the special rule.For example, a unit that is forced to take a Pinning test by an attack made using a weapon with the Shell Shock (2) special rule, suffers a penalty of -2 to their Leadership Characteristic when resolving that Test.
Skyfire weapons excel at shooting down enemy aircraft.
A model which has this special rule, or that is firing a weapon with this special rule, fires using its normal Ballistic Skill when shooting at Flyers and Skimmers, but it can only fire Snap Shots against other targets.Some weapons strike with enough force to make a mockery of anything except the most reinforced of armoured shells.
Attacks with this special rule may re-roll failed Armour Penetration rolls against Vehicles and Buildings (both with Shooting Attacks and in close combat) and re-roll Glancing Hits, in an attempt to instead get a Penetrating Hit, but the second result must be kept.The god-engines of the Legio Titanicus are studded with intricate systems of automated defensive weaponry.
A model with the Knight or Titan Unit Sub-types that has weapons with this special rule may make the Overwatch Reaction when it is triggered by models that do not have the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy, or Lumbering Unit Subtypes, or that have fewer than 8 Wounds. When making Shooting Attacks as part of the Overwatch Reaction, the Reacting model may only make Shooting Attacks with weapons with this special rule.This weapon fires massive gouts of flame, gas or lethal fluids across the battlefield.
A weapon with this special rule is treated like any other Template weapon, but when firing it in the Shooting phase, place the template so that the narrow end is placed within a number of inches equal to the value in brackets listed as part of this special rule. The wide end must then be aligned so that it is no closer to the firing model than the narrow end.For example, a weapon with the Torrent (18) special rule must place the narrow end of the template at a point within 18" and the wide end no closer to the firing model than the narrow end.
Through means lost to all but the deepest mysteries of the Mechanicum, some more potent graviton weapons are capable of emitting a reactive field of gravitational inversion, throwing nearby enemy formations into disarray.
Any successful Charge that targets a unit containing a model with a weapon with this special rule is always counted as a Disordered Charge.Some graviton weapons can bend the most terrible power in the galaxy to its breaking point, collapsing gravity in upon itself and creating super-dense singularities that consume light, matter, and time itself.
Before firing a weapon with this special rule, roll a D6. On a 1, the firing unit suffers a single Wound against which no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls may be made. A model with the Vehicle Unit Type instead suffers 1 Hull Point against which no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls may be made. On a 2-5, the weapon fires normally. On a result of a 6, the attack is carried out with the Vortex special rule.The terror of tank commanders, a lance weapon fires a concentrated beam of energy that can bore through any armour, regardless of thickness.
Weapons with the Lance special rule count Vehicle Armour Values that are higher than 12 as 12.Some weapons emit such a storm of radiation and electrical impulses that they can temporarily incapacitate even the most well-armoured fighting vehicles.
Any model with the Vehicle, Dreadnought or Automata Unit Type that suffers a Penetrating Hit or unsaved Wound from an attack with this special rule may only make Snap Shots when it next makes a Shooting Attack either as part of a Reaction or during its vontrolling player’s Shooting phase.Certain items can only be used once, so a general must choose wisely when to do so.
A weapon or ability with this special rule can only be used once during the course of a battle. Once a weapon with the One Use or One Shot special rule has been used to attack, it is no longer counted as a weapon and may not be destroyed (for example, by rolls on the Vehicle Damage table) or repaired by any other rule or effect.Phosphex, sometimes known as the ‘crawling fire’, seeks out and extinguishes life with a terrifying hunger.
After the Blast marker for a weapon with this special rule is placed, the attacking unit’s controlling player may move the marker up to 2" in any direction so long as this would cover more models than it previously would have.Once the final position of the marker has been determined, roll a number of dice equal to the number of attacks on the weapon’s profile. So, for example, with a weapon with the type ‘Heavy 4, Apocalyptic Barrage’, you would roll four dice. Each dice roll corresponds to a ‘strike’ on one of the circles on the Apocalyptic Barrage marker. For example, each roll of a 2 indicates a strike on circle number 2. Resolve the strikes as for a Multiple Barrage, as if each were a Barrage attack that had landed on that circle and hit all the models underneath it. To determine Cover Saves, always assume the shot is coming from the centre of the entire Apocalyptic Barrage marker.
This weapon requires dangerous amounts of energy to fire at full power. Doing so puts the vehicle at risk of pushing its reactor past the breaking point.
A weapon with this special rule may double the number of shots it makes, but if it does so the firing model suffers D3 Wounds or Hull Points of damage with no Saves or Damage Mitigation rolls of any kind allowed.Some weapons strike with such force that they cause terrible wounds that can lay low even the most formidable combatant.
When a model is allocated a Wound inflicted by a weapon with this special rule, it does not suffer only one Wound but instead suffers a number of Wounds equal to the number in brackets associated with the specific variant of this special rule, with all of the Wounds inflicted using the same AP and special rules as that of the initial Wound. Roll to save against each Wound inflicted separately, but note that Wounds caused in excess of a given model’s remaining Wounds do not spill over to other models and are lost. This special rule has no effect on models that do not have a Toughness value.The varying waveform of destructive sound energy produced by this weapon is able to shatter the most resilient materials. The annihilating wave-pulse traverses the battlefield, wreaking havoc in its path, the particular effect of its design meaning that the larger the target struck, the more damaging the wave’s impact.
When making a Shooting Attack with this weapon, place the Large Blast (5") marker so that its edge touches the Front hull of the firing model. Instead of scattering this Blast marker, move the template in a direct line away from the firing model, travelling in any direction within the weapon’s 45° forward firing arc until its maximum range is reached or the template leaves the battlefield. All models the template passes over suffer a single automatic Hit. Flyers are also Hit if the template passes over their base. Should a model with the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy Vehicle, Building or Fortification Unit Type be Hit by this attack, increase the Strength of the attack to 10.This weapon is particularly heavy and requires both hands to wield.
A model attacking with this weapon never receives +1 Attack for fighting with two Melee weapons.The mightiest weapons only reach their full potential when wielded in pairs, as they require an entirely different battle stance from that of more commonplace weapons.
A model fighting with this weapon does not receive +1 Attack for fighting with two weapons unless it is armed with two or more Melee weapons with the Specialist Weapon rule. The additional weapon does not have to be the same weapon as the one used to attack, but it must have the Specialist Weapon rule in order to grant an additional Attack for fighting with two weapons.The elegant Tempest warblade of the Knight Castigator uses relic technology from a bygone age to infuse its strikes with searing energy, leaving glowing trails of embers and ash behind its sweeping arcs.
Instead of making a Melee Attack, a model with a weapon with this special rule may make a special attack at Initiative step 2. This automatically inflicts a single Hit against each model (friendly or enemy) in contact with the attacking model’s base, using the profile of the weapon with this special rule.The massive gauntlet-claws wielded by certain Knights of the Mechanicum and Questoris Houses tear through the chassis plating of even the most heavily armoured Titan with ease. Woe betide any mere mortal that is caught in their indomitable grip.
Any model which suffers an unsaved Wound or Hull Point loss from a weapon with this special rule instead suffers D6 unsaved Wounds or Hull Points of damage. In addition, if the target of this attack is a model with the Knight, Titan, Super-heavy Vehicle, or Building or Fortification Unit Type, or the Monstrous Unit Sub-type, increase the number of Wounds suffered or Hull Points lost to 2D6.Reinforced to withstand massive impacts from its forward facing, some vehicles are built to hammer into enemies using their sheer build and motive power.
When a model with a weapon with this special rule performs a Ram Attack, it inflicts a number of additional hits equal to the value of X. These additional hits are resolved using the profile of the weapon with this special rule.This short range weapon requires a sizable charge of energy and is easily dodged if the target has not been restrained prior to the attack.
A weapon with this special rule may only target models with the Infantry Unit Type, and a model attacking with a weapon with this special rule makes only a single attack (regardless of any other factors).Some of the largest transport vehicles are specially designed to carry both infantry and machines of war into battle, allowing for versatile battle groups to be deployed to the battlefield at once. These rare engines of war are often restricted to the most elite elements of an army, and used to tackle the most perilous of missions.
A model with this special rule may carry models with jet packs and jump packs, as well as models of the Dreadnought, Cavalry and Automata Unit Types. Each Dreadnought model uses 10 points of Transport Capacity, while each Automata and Cavalry model uses up a number of Transport Capacity points equal to twice its starting Wounds Characteristic.As such, Vehicles have different Armour Values, representing the thickness of their armour. Armour Values for individual Vehicles often vary between its Front, Side and Rear Facings. Attacks are resolved against the Facing of the Vehicle that the attack comes from. To see what Facing an attack is coming from, draw two imaginary lines through the corners of the Vehicle (see diagram below). If a unit has firing models in two or more different Facings of a target Vehicle (some models in the Front and some in the Side, for example), attacks are resolved separately for each Facing. Each individual model may only direct its attacks at a Facing it can draw line of sight to and, in situations where a model can draw line of sight to more than one Facing, the controlling player may choose which Facing will be the target of any attacks.
This may require attacks targeting a Vehicle to be divided into separate pools, each resolved against the appropriate Facing and the Armour Value attached to that Facing. In any situation where a model is hit by a weapon or attack which fires Indirectly or does not otherwise require line of sight to its target, Hits are always resolved against the Side Armour Value. The direction a turret is facing has no bearing on what arc of a Vehicle you are firing at.
To take an Armour Save, roll a D6 and compare the result to the Armour Save Characteristic of the model that has been allocated the Wound. If the dice result is equal to or higher than the model’s Armour Save Characteristic, the Wound is negated. If the result is lower than the Armour Save Characteristic, the model suffers a Wound. This means that, unlike most Characteristics, an Armour Save is better if it is a lower number.
Models don’t have a choice of what Characteristics to use – the Characteristic to be tested will be specified in the rule.
To make a Characteristic test, follow these steps:
- Roll a D6 and compare the result to the relevant Characteristic in the model’s profile.
- If the result is equal to or less than the number in the profile, the test is passed.
- If the result is greater than the number in the model’s profile,the test has been failed and the model faces the consequences as detailed in the rule that prompted the test.
Some heroes refuse to be laid low, even by what would be mortal wounds to lesser warriors.
If a model with this special rule suffers an unsaved Wound from an attack that inflicts Instant Death, it only reduces its Wounds by 1, instead of automatically reducing its Wounds to 0.Utilised by Techmarines and the Adepts of the Mechanicum, cyber-familiar is a term that encompasses a variety of semiautonomous devices such as servo-skulls, mek-spiders and other smaller drone units and lesser haemonculites tied into the direct neural control of their operator. These miniondrones are an extension of their master’s will and provide them with a host of additional senses and capabilities.
A model with a cyber-familiar adds +1 to its Invulnerable Save (to a maximum of 3+) or an Invulnerable Save of 6+ if they do not already possess one. In addition, they allow them to re-roll failed Characteristic tests other than Leadership tests, Psychic checks or failed Dangerous Terrain tests.Some units make their way to battle via tunnelling, teleportation, flying, or some other extraordinary means which allows them to appear in the thick of the fighting.
A unit made up entirely of models with this special rule may perform a Deep Strike Assault. Certain Faction or unit special rules may present other options for the deployment of units with the Deep Strike special rule.These weapons are relics of the darkest years of Old Terra’s isolation, designed to poison both the enemy and the land upon which they were detonated. The Emperor himself forbade the use of such weapons, save by the elite of his own legions.
During a turn in which a unit with at least one model with rad grenades successfully Charges, or is themselves successfully Charged, all models in the enemy unit(s) suffer a -1 penalty to their Toughness Characteristic, to a minimum of Toughness 1, until the end of the Fight sub-phase that follows the successful Charge. Note: This does affect Instant Death thresholds.