When you start a Kill Team Spec Ops campaign, you must create a dataslate. A dataslate is used as a reference and record of all information concerning your kill team in a Spec Ops campaign. It also includes narrative datacards for each operative in your kill team.

The first step in creating a dataslate is to select your kill team’s faction. This specifies what operatives you can select for your kill team, and all the operatives in your kill team must have that faction keyword in common. Factions are presented in kill team army lists, and are always specified with a skull symbol, e.g. KOMMANDO.

Once you have chosen your faction, you must select one of that faction’s kill teams, adhering to the selection requirements it specifies, and complete a narrative datacard for each of its operatives (note that you only complete a narrative datacard for the operatives selected to fulfill that kill team’s selection requirements, not for every operative listed as an option). Operatives that have the same selectable keyword (e.g. <CHAPTER>) must have the same keyword chosen (e.g. DARK ANGELS) These are the operatives you will start your Spec Ops campaign with.

During the campaign, the number of operatives on your dataslate can change as recruits join and operatives are slain. You can only add more operatives to your dataslate when a rule specifies, such as the Operative Assigned Requisition. Each time you do, complete a narrative datacard for that operative accordingly. You can remove an operative from your dataslate before or after a game, but if you do, it cannot be added back to your dataslate as it was removed - all experience points, injuries, Battle Honours etc. the operative gained are lost. You can never have more than twenty operatives on your dataslate.

Once you have chosen your starting kill team, it is good practice to establish your kill team’s background. Not only does it give your kill team an identity - particularly as your operatives start to gain Battle Traits and Battle Scars that must be tracked - but it also adds a sense of individuality and storytelling to your kill team as you become invested in its journey and celebrate its achievements. To establish your kill team’s background, complete each of the sections on your dataslate that are listed below. When doing so, you can choose each element yourself, or you can use the background generator found in your faction’s publication.

Name of your kill team
Name of each of your operatives
The base of operations from which your kill team will operate.
The history of your kill team
Any quirks they have

On your dataslate you will notice sections to keep track of various pieces of information, such as the XP, specialisms, Battle Honours and Battle Scars of your operatives. Similarly, you will find sections such as Requisition Points, Spec Ops log, Stash and Strategic Assets. This information will be explained below.

A dataslate, which records your kill team’s information in a Spec Ops campaign.
Your kill team’s name, your name and the faction keyword that all your operatives have in common.
The background of your kill team, which includes their base of operations, history and quirks.
Your current Requisition points and Asset Capacity.
Your Spec Ops. Note that there is room for three to be recorded, allowing you to keep track of when you have completed two other Spec Ops.
A list of equipment in your stash.
A list of Strategic Assets you have added to your base of operations.
Notes for your kill team, e.g. requirements for a Tac Op.
A narrative datacard, which is necessary for each of the operatives in your kill team.
The operative’s name.
The operative’s type.
Any Battle Honours the operative has gained.
Any Battle Scars the operative has gained.
A tally to mark each game the operative was not selected for deployment, often used when a Recovery test is required for an operative.
Your operative’s selected specialism.
Your operative’s current amount of experience points.
Your operative’s current rank, which determines how many Battle Honours it can have.

Blank narrative dataslate:

Blank narrative datacards:

Experience

When you start a Spec Ops campaign, your operatives are adepts who have been formed into a new special forces unit. As you play games with them, they will earn experience points (XP) and progress through ranks, earning new skills and a fearsome reputation for doing so.

When an operative is first added to your dataslate, it always begins with 0 experience points, the Adept rank and no Battle Honours.

During a battle, the deeds of your operatives will not only determine who wins the game, but will also earn them XP. Each time a friendly operative gains (or loses) XP, adjust its XP tally on its narrative datacard accordingly. After a battle, in the Update Dataslates step of the mission sequence, operatives gain XP as follows:

If an operative incapacitates any enemy operatives in a battle, it gains 1 XP.
If an operative completes any mission actions in a battle (excluding the Operate Hatch action), and/or earns you any victory points for controlling an objective marker in a battle, it gains 1 XP.
Each time you complete a condition of a Tac Op, select one friendly operative that scored you those VPs to earn 1 XP.

If an operative has gained (or lost) enough XP, its rank will change. The XP threshold for each rank is shown in the table below:

XP	Rank
0-5		Adept
6-15		Veteran
16-30		Ace
31-50		Grizzled
51+		Revered

Battle Honours

Each time an operative earns enough XP to increase its rank, it gains a Battle Honour. Similarly, if an operative loses XP so that its rank decreases, it will lose a Battle Honour of your choosing. In either case, update its Battle Honours on your dataslate.

The first time an operative gains a Battle Honour, you must select one specialism for it to progress in. A specialism is a focused skill-set to which the operatives talents are suited. Each operative’s datacard will specify which specialisms you can select for it, which are as follows:

	Combat
	Staunch
	Marksman
	Scout

Once you have selected an operative’s specialism, you then determine one Battle Honour for it to gain from that specialism. Each time an operative gains a rank thereafter, you can determine another Battle Honour for it to gain from that specialism.

To determine what Battle Honour your operative gains, you can either roll one D6 and consult the appropriate table to randomly determine a Battle Honour (re-rolling if it isn’t suitable), or you can select a Battle Honour of your choosing from the appropriate table. An operative cannot have the same Battle Honour more than once (if a duplicate result is rolled, roll again until a different result is rolled).

COMBAT
D6	Battle Honour
1	Inexorable: Each time this operative fights in combat, the enemy operative in that combat cannot be supported.
2	Bladework: Each time this operative fights in combat, in the Roll Attack Dice step of that combat, you can re-roll one of your attack dice.
3	Dirty Fighter: Each time this operative fights in combat, if any friendly operatives are supporting them, add 1 to the Attacks characteristic of their melee weapons for that combat.
4	Vicious: Add 1 to the Critical Damage characteristic of this operative’s melee weapons.
5	Duellist: Each time this operative fights in combat, subtract 1 from the Weapon Skill characteristic of the enemy operative for that combat.
6	Savage: Each time this operative fights in combat, in the Roll Attack Dice step of that combat, if you retain any critical hits, you can inflict one Mortal Wound on the enemy operative in that combat.

STAUNCH
D6	Battle Honour
1	Resilient: Add 2 to this operative’s Wounds characteristic.
2	Shrug Off: Each time this operative is the target of a shooting attack, in the Roll Attack Dice step of that shooting attack, you can change one of your opponent’s retained critical hits to a normal hit.
3	Focused: When determining control of an objective marker, treat this operative’s APL characteristic as being 1 higher. Note that this is not a modifier.
4	Stalwart: This operative is never injured.
5	Invulnerable: Each time this operative is the target of a shooting attack, in the roll defence dice step of that shooting attack, ignore the AP1 special rule.
6	Indomitable: Each time this operative would lose a wound as a result of a mortal wound or critical damage, roll one D6: on a 5+, that wound is not lost.

MARKSMAN
D6	Battle Honour
1	Gun Ace: Each time this operative makes a shooting attack, in the Roll Attack Dice step of that shooting attack, you can re-roll one of your attack dice.
2	Crack Shot: Each time this operative makes a shooting attack, if you roll any critical hits, inflict one mortal wound on the target.
3	Calculated: Each time this operative performs an Overwatch action, for that action’s shooting attack, do not worsen the Ballistic Skill characteristic of its ranged weapons as a result of performing an Overwatch action.
4	Careful Aim: Each time this operative makes a shooting attack, when determining if the intended target is in Cover, Cover lines ignore the bases of all other operatives.
5	Sharpshooter: Each time this operative performs a Shoot action, when you would retain attack dice for that action’s shooting attack, if it has not performed a Normal Move, Fall Back or Charge action during that activation, you can select one of your results of 5+ to be retained as a critical hit.
6	Death From Above: Once per Turning Point, after this operative makes a shooting attack while on a Vantage Point, if the target did not lose any wounds as a result of that shooting attack, repeat that shooting attack.

SCOUT
D6	Battle Honour
1	Runner: Each time this operative is activated, so long as it does not perform a Shoot or Fight action during that activation, it can perform one free Dash action.
2	Swift: This operative can perform a Dash action more than once during its Activation. In addition, it automatically passes Jump tests and does not need to spend to traverse.
3	Covert: When this operative is activated during the first Turning Point, you can change its order.
4	Picket: During the Set Up Operatives step of the mission sequence, this operative can be set up within of your drop zone.
5	Evasive: Each time this operative is the target of a shooting attack, in the Roll Defence Dice step of that shooting attack, if it has a Conceal order, you can re-roll one of your defence dice.
6	Dodge: Each time this operative performs a Normal Move or Dash action, it can move within Engagement Range of enemy operatives, but cannot finish that move within Engagement Range of them. Each time this operative performs a Charge action, so long as it finishes that move within Engagement Range of an enemy operative, it can move within Engagement Range of any enemy operatives during that move.

Casualties

As you play through a Spec Ops campaign, the impact of war will begin to take its toll on your operatives. Damage suffered can turn to Battle Scars, and at worst, death. Managing the Battle Scars of your operatives is an essential part of a Spec Ops campaign, such as knowing when to rest them so they can recuperate, and having a dataslate with enough operatives to cover their absence.

Casualty Test

At the end of each battle, a Casualty test must be taken for each friendly operative that was incapacitated in that battle. To do so, roll one D6: on a 2+, the test is passed, but that operative can gain no more than 3XP from that battle. On a 1, the test is failed, and that operative gains a Battle Scar.

For each friendly MEDIC operative that was selected for deployment, so long as it was not incapacitated during that battle, you can re-roll one Casualty test after the battle.

To determine what Battle Scar an operative gains, roll one D6, subtract 1 from the result for each other Battle Scar that operative has, then consult the Battle Scars table below. Each time the result corresponds to a Battle Scar that operative already has, re-roll the D6 until a Battle Scar is determined that the operative does not have.

For example, a Casualty test is failed for an operative with a Critical Impairment Battle Scar. The player rolls one D6 and the result is a 2. They must subtract 1 from the result as the operative already has a Battle Scar, therefore the final result is Slain.

Battle Scars

Designer’s Note: You might find that, though the names of the results below work for the majority of kill teams, a small number might not. If you find the name of a result on the table below does not fit as well with the theme of your faction as much as it could, feel free to replace the name with a more thematic result. For example, ‘Damaged Logic Circuits’ might fit better for a Necron Warrior or Skitarii Ranger than ‘Severe Concussion’. Be sure to note which of the ’actual’ results you have rolled, however, as the impact it has on the operative in battle will still be the same!

Recovery Test

At the end of each battle, operatives will attempt to recover from their injuries and prepare themselves for the next fight. All operatives recuperate wounds lost during the battle (excluding those that are Slain), and are no longer considered injured.

A Recovery test must be taken for each operative on your dataslate that has a Battle Scar. To do so, roll one D6, adding 1 to the result for each consecutive battle in which that operative was not selected for deployment (known as ‘Rested’). On a 5+, the test is passed: remove one Battle Scar that operative gained from a previous battle (you cannot remove a Battle Scar that the operative gained from the same battle).

For example, a Recovery test is taken for an operative with a Battle Scar. The player rolls one D6 and the result is a 4. The operative was not selected for deployment for three games in a row, therefore 3 is added to the result. The final result is a 7, therefore the test is passed, and that operative’s Battle Scar is removed.

BATTLE SCAR
D6	Result
1 or less	Slain: This operative can no longer be used. Remove it from your dataslate.
2	Critical Impairment: This operative cannot perform Dash actions and its APL characteristic cannot be increased.
3	Severe Concussion: This operative always suffers the penalty to the Ballistic Skill characteristic of its ranged weapons as if it were injured.
4	Sapped Strength: This operative always suffers the penalty to the Weapon Skill characteristic of its melee weapons as if it were injured.
5	Lingering Ailment: This operative always suffers the penalty to its Movement characteristic as if it were injured.
6	Cerebral Affliction: This operative does not gain a Battle Scar but does not gain any experience from this battle.

Base of Operations

In a Spec Ops campaign, kill teams will be operating independently for extended periods of time, so they must establish a base of operations. At the start of a Spec Ops campaign, your base of operations will be named, but will provide no other function other than a place for your operatives to rest and recover. However, certain Requisitions will allow you to add to your base of operations.

Equipment

Your army list will detail various equipment you can equip your operatives with for a battle. In a Spec Ops campaign, your access to this equipment is managed via your stash. When you begin a Spec Ops campaign, there is no equipment in your stash. Instead, you must add equipment to your stash, such as by using the Equipment Drop Requisition. Each time you add an item of equipment to your stash, make a note of it in the ‘Stash’ section of your dataslate.

Before a battle, you can select equipment to equip your operatives with (as specified by the mission sequence), but you can only select from the equipment you have in your stash. Note that when doing this, the quantity of equipment matters. For example, if you have one item of equipment in your stash, then only one operative can be equipped with that item of equipment. If you wish to equip more than one operative with that item of equipment (assuming the equipment would allow you to), you would have to add the relevant quantity of that equipment to your stash.

Rare Equipment

As you play through a Spec Ops campaign, your kill team will come across rare equipment. This could be specialised wargear that high command has assigned to you, unique artefacts your kill team discover, or personalised gear the members of your kill team utilise.

Rare equipment cannot be added to your stash like normal equipment, rather it will specifically state when you are able to, such as by completing certain Spec Ops. Once you have added rare equipment to your stash, however, you can access it just like any other item of equipment, meaning you can equip operatives from your kill team with it before a battle. There is a selection of rare equipment presented opposite, and more can be found in other Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team publications.

Each time your kill team gains an item of rare equipment, you must determine what item to add to your stash. To do so, you can either roll one D6 and consult the relevant table to randomly determine the rare equipment (re-rolling if it isn’t suitable), or you can select an appropriate one. Your stash cannot include more than one of each item of rare equipment (if a duplicate result is rolled, roll again until a different result is rolled).

For each of the items of rare equipment presented opposite, when you equip an operative with it before a battle, you must select one relevant weapon (i.e. a ranged or melee weapon) that operative is equipped with to be upgraded and gain that rare equipment’s rule for the battle. You can only upgrade each weapon an operative is equipped with once.

Designer’s Note: The names of the Rare Equipment used below are very well suited for a great number of kill teams, though you may wish to tweak the name depending on the faction your kill team is from. For example, if you play a Tyranids kill team and one of your operatives gains a ‘Thermal Sight’, you might wish to note this as ‘Photothermic Bioreceptors’ or something equally thematic instead. If you choose to do this, make a note where appropriate so that it is clear what upgrade the operative has.

RANGED WEAPONS RARE EQUIPMENT
D6	Result
1	Auto-loader (2EP): This weapon gains the Ceaseless special rule.
2	Flux Capacitor (2EP): This weapon gains the P1 critical hit rule.
3	Rending Rounds (2EP): This weapon gains the Rending special rule.
4	Propulsion Amplifier (2EP): Add 1 to both Damage characteristics of this weapon.
5	Thermal Sight (2EP): This weapon gains the No Cover special rule.
6	Seeker Spirit (2EP): Each time a friendly operative makes a shooting attack with this weapon, in the Roll Attack Dice step of that shooting attack, for each critical hit you retain, you can re-roll one of your attack dice.

MELEE WEAPONS RARE EQUIPMENT
D6	Result
1	Power Enhancer (2EP): Add 1 to both Damage characteristics of this weapon.
2	Inertia Displacer (2EP): This weapon gains the Brutal special rule.
3	Perfectly Weighted (2EP): This weapon gains the Balanced special rule.
4	Rending Blade (2EP): This weapon gains the Rending special rule.
5	Monomolecular Edge (2EP): This weapon gains the Lethal 5+ special rule.
6	Arc Unit (2EP): This weapon gains the Stun critical hit rule.

Strategic Assets

Your base of operations can also have strategic assets that supplement aspects of your Spec Ops campaign. Just like equipment, when you begin a Spec Ops campaign, your base of operations will not have any strategic assets. Instead, you must add them, such as by using the Asset Acquired Requisition. Each strategic asset will specify its effects on your Spec Ops campaign, and you can never have more than one of each. Each time you add a strategic asset to your base of operations, make a note of it in the ‘Strategic Assets’ section of your dataslate.

Your base of operations has a strategic assets capacity, which is the maximum number of strategic assets you can have in your base of operations. You start a spec ops campaign with an asset capacity of two, but this can be increased by completing Spec Ops. Your asset capacity can never exceed five. If a rule would increase your asset capacity but it is already at the maximum, you can instead use the Asset Acquired Requisition without spending any Requisition points. You can remove a strategic asset at any time before or after a game to make room for new strategic assets you would like to add.

STRATEGIC ASSETS

Engineering Bay

Whether it be slabs of scrapmetal, larvae that excrete rapidly hardening mucus or simple construction tools and materials, kill teams of all stripes have access to means to bolster defensive positions.

At the end of the Set Up Barricades step of the mission sequence, you can select one terrain feature within of your drop zone. Until the end of the battle, all parts of that feature with the Light trait have the Heavy trait instead.

Intelligence Network

Kill teams use all manner of methods to secure the intelligence they need to carry out their missions and gain advantages over the enemy Local agents, covert transit routes, stolen access codes, classified data, prisoners, scrapcodes, stealth drones, sneak-squigs, memory-burrowing beetles, psychic spoor trackers and nigh-magical hacking technologies all play a role.

In each game, if you select the Infiltrate option in the Scouting step, you can use that option one additional time during the first Turning Point.

Surveillance System

The base of operations is fitted with all manner of listening devices, thermal scanners and proximity sensors in the form of surveillance servitors, advanced tactical drones, watch-squigs, makeshift devices, tentacles and highly sensitive insectoid antennae. Many of these systems are portable, lending enormous tactical advantages to the kill teams who use them.

In each game, if you select the Recon option in the Scouting step, you can use that option one additional time when resolving your selection.

Expanded Armoury

A substantial and well-stocked armoury from which your operatives can gear up sufficiently before each mission is crucial. Some wargear will have been ripped from the dead hands of enemies, or indeed friends, while others are issued specially for field testing. Some will have been constructed by hand out of scrap, or will be standard weaponry provided by high command. This wargear may even have been grown in amniotic sacs fed by the kill team with the flesh of their prey.

In the Select Equipment step of a mission sequence, you can use 4 additional points worth of equipment to equip operatives from your kill team with.

Med Bay

All operatives in a kill team will suffer wounds and injuries that need restoring after battle, and all factions have different ways of bringing their troops back to full health. Some utilise hyper-advanced medical facilities with one-use sterilised tools and stations, some depend on the brutal attention of lobotomised medicare servitors, and others even hibernate for a time in thick-membraned sacs full of restorative fluids.

In each Update Dataslates step of the mission sequence, you can re-roll one Casualty test. This is in addition to any other Casualty test re-rolls.

War Shrine

A venerated assemblage of relics, war logs and banners that exemplifies the mighty record of your kill team and inspires those that join its ranks. Your kill team might keep the skulls of fallen enemies, recorded words of encouragement from inspirational leaders, texts of battle-hymns or rags marked with the scent of those to be hunted and consumed next.

In the Update Experience step of a mission sequence, you can select one operative of Adept rank that was selected for deployment to gain 1XP. You can only add this asset to your base of operations if your dataslate includes at least one operative of Ace rank or higher.

Comms Network

A closed communications network for your operatives to receive real-time battlefield information and react accordingly as well as provide it for high command. The factions of the 41 st Millennium use myriad ways to communicate with their kill teams, whether it be the daemon-possessed and chained psykers of the forces of Chaos, data uplink nodes of the Adeptus Meehanicus or wraithbone psychic broadcast amplifiers of the Asuryani.

Once per battle, when rolling off to determine who has the initiative, you can re-roll your dice.

Tactical Uplink

An overlay of the killzone is transmitted to your operatives, allowing them to plan their tactics and strike at the opportune moment. For some this might be a data uplink directly into mechanical minds, for others this might take the form of a sudden instinctive compulsion or a direct psychic pulse of information.

Once per Turning Point, you can use a Tactical Ploy without spending any CPs.

Stimm Stash

Whether it be stimms, combat drugs, speshul shroom brews, complex mineral supplementations or fleshy tubes of liquid painkillers and growth hormones, these restoratives are on hand to aid the recovery of your operatives and maintain their fighting strength.

In the Update Dataslates step of the mission sequence, each time you take a Recovery test, you can re-roll unmodified results of 1.

Requisitions

When a kill team embarks upon a Spec Ops campaign, a reliable support network must be maintained to keep them at fighting strength. This is done using Requisitions. Requisitions cost Requisition points, which are a limited resource you earn during a Spec Ops campaign. When you first create a dataslate, you gain four Requisition points. You will then earn one Requisition point each time you complete a game with your kill team, but your Requisition points can never exceed five. Keep an up-to-date note of Requisition points on your dataslate.

If you wish to use a Requisition, you must spend Requisition points equivalent to its cost. If you do not have enough Requisition points to spend on that Requisition, you cannot use it. Each time you spend a Requisition point, reduce your total by one. Each Requisition will tell you when it can be purchased. Unless stated otherwise, there is no limit on the number of Requisitions you can purchase, the number of times you can purchase each Requisition, nor the combination of Requisitions you can purchase, so long as you have enough Requisition points.

Some Requisitions upgrade an operative so that it interacts with rules in a different manner (e.g. Weaponsmith). When you use such Requisitions on an operative, make a note of its upgrade on its datacard.

OPERATIVE ASSIGNED1RP

Kill teams grow in size in all manner of ways. High command might assign new soldiers. The kill team's boss might bully a lesser warrior into joining its mob. A new creature may daw and bite its way out of an amniotic sac, or a lone survivor might be found on the battlefield.

Purchase this Requisition before or after a game. Add one operative to your dataslate. This must be an operative from your faction.

EQUIPMENT DROP1RP

For some kill teams, acquiring new equipment might involve being sent wargear by their commanders. For others it might mean stealing said weapons before the rival can collect it. On occasion a kill team might be issued with trial weapons - depraved creations from sadistic minds, highly advanced technologies developed by brilliant scientists or anything in between.

Purchase this Requisition before or after a game. Select up to 5 points worth of your faction’s equipment and add it to your stash.

ASSET ACQUIRED1RP

All kill teams seek to enhance their base of operations, whether that be with hideous pain-extractor stations, territorial prowler squigs, sophisticated drone surveillance technology or weaponsmith forges.

Purchase this Requisition before or after a game. Add one strategic asset to your base of operations.

MEDIVAC1RP

Some kill team operatives sustain injuries too severe to keep them in the front lines. They might be reprogrammed by their Overlords or Tech-Priest masters, sent to the Painboyz for patchin' up, despatched to highly sophisticated medical facilities or even sent to filthy, improvised medicae tents.

Purchase this Requisition in the Update Dataslates step of a mission sequence, after rolling to determine a Battle Scar for a friendly operative. That operative suffers Cerebral Affliction instead, and cannot be selected for deployment in the next battle.

RECUPERATE1RP

Rest and basic medical care goes a long way to restoring the health of injured operatives. The same can be said for a temporary forced shutdown, memory scrub or the reciting canticles of maintenance.

Purchase this Requisition in the Update Dataslates step of a mission sequence, after rolling a Recovery test for a friendly operative that did not take part in the battle. Add 1 to the result of that Recovery test.

PROFICIENT OPERATIVE1RP

By sheer luck, divine beneficence, manipulation of fate or pre-programmed plan, some kill team operatives survive mission after mission. Some have faced so many different threats they have gained new capabilities through alien manners of biological adaptation. Others have learned new skills along the way, only making them more likely to survive.

Purchase this Requisition in the Update Dataslates step of a mission sequence, when a friendly operative gains the Grizzled or Revered rank. You can select one additional specialism for that operative from the specialisms specified on its datacard, and can determine the Battle Honours it gains from any of its specialisms. Each operative can only be upgraded with this Requisition once.

WEAPONSMITH1RP

Very well-equipped operatives serve vital functions in kill teams. How they become this way differs greatly. Some are blessed by their dark patrons with all manner of empyric gifts. Others have proven their worth and been mechanically upgraded by the masters they are programmed to serve. Many learn the skills to upgrade their own wargear, painstakingly combining rare components, or bashing them together until they resemble something that works.

Purchase this Requisition before or after a game. Select a friendly operative with the Ace, Grizzled or Revered rank. Weapons that operative is equipped with can be upgraded with the rare equipment twice, rather than once. Each operative can only be upgraded with this Requisition once.

Spec Ops

Once you have chosen your kill team and set up its base of operations, you are ready for action. In a Spec Ops campaign, your kill team will be conducting Spec Ops. A Spec Op is a campaign objective you must achieve over multiple games. By completing its operations across a series of missions, your kill team will further the goals of their faction and be commended for their exploits.

Each player will determine their own Spec Op, so will therefore be working to achieve their campaign objective individually. This means a player in a Spec Ops campaign can play other players attempting to achieve different Spec Ops, and can even play against players who are not taking part in a Spec Ops campaign, as their campaign objective is all self contained.

Each player in a Spec Ops campaign must select one Spec Op their kill team will be assigned to. There are a selection of Spec Ops presented below, and more can be found in other Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team publications. Once you have selected one, make a note of it in the ‘Spec Ops log’ of your dataslate.

Each Spec Op will have a series of operations that must be conducted in order. Once you have completed that operation, starting from the next game, you can attempt to complete the next operation. Once all of a Spec Op’s operations have been completed, you will receive its commendation in the Update Dataslates step of the mission sequence.

You should then assign your kill team to a new Spec Op. A kill team cannot be assigned to a completed Spec Op again until it has completed two other Spec Ops. To keep track of this, once a Spec Ops has been completed, cross it out on your Spec Ops log, and remove it once you have completed two other Spec Ops. At the end of any battle, you can choose to abort your uncompleted Spec Op. That Spec Op is removed from your log (you can assign it to your kill team again in the future) and you can assign a new Spec Op to your kill team instead.

1.0 Elimination

Various rival factions have deployed kill teams in the area. If they gain a foothold, your faction’s war effort will be severely hampered. Your kill team must make a series of pre-emptive strikes and eventually eliminate the enemy’s command structure before their forces gain too much ground.

OPERATION 1: DRAW THEM OUT

You must conduct a series of raids to collect Intelligence on enemy leaders, bleed their forces, and draw them into a battle on terms in your favour.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Mark Target’, ‘Execution’ and/or ‘Rob and Ransack’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: NEUTRALISE TARGET

Intelligence has been gathered and the enemy’s composure is frayed. You must now apply overwhelming force to neutralise an enemy’s command structure. Nothing but the elimination of the enemy leader will achieve victory.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Headhunter’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
The friendly operative that scored you victory points from the ‘Headhunter’ Tac Op earns 5 XP. This is not affected by a passed Casualty test.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

2.0 Recover Archeotech

Rumours are circulating of a hidden archeotech artefact, a rare and ancient item of technology that offers great power. Your kill team must search the area, and if the rumours prove to be true, retrieve the archeotech for high command.

OPERATION 1: INVESTIGATE SITES

By conducting a comprehensive investigation of the area’s structures, you can discover the archeotech’s data traces. Collect enough data and you can triangulate the archeotech’s location.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Seize Ground’ and/or ‘Vantage’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: RETRIEVE ARCHEOTECH

You have discovered the location of the archeotech. The enemy are unaware of its true power, so you must press the attack to retrieve it and deliver it to headquarters.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Retrieval’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain three Requisition points.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

3.0 Perform Ritual

The war continues, the cost in Lives and resources ever increasing. You must perform a complex ritual to amass the strength required and gain enough power to secure victory.

OPERATION 1: COMMENCE RITES

Various rites must be performed to develop the ritual. Only by completing the required tasks, and preventing the enemy from obstructing them, can you culminate the ritual.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Hold the Line’ and/or ‘Protect Assets’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: COMPLETE RITUAL

The rites have been completed. Only the final steps remain to be taken to complete the ritual and summon the power needed for victory.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Plant Banner’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
The friendly operative that scored you victory points from the ‘Plant Banner’ Tac Op earns 5 XP. This is not affected by a passed Casualty test.
You can distribute 5 XP across the other operatives on your roster.

4.0 Demolition

The enemy has garrisoned the area. Their robust line of fortifications and supply network has made a conventional assault suicide. Your kill team must strike at their foundations, bringing the whole thing down upon the foe.

OPERATION 1: PLANT CHARGES

Various key points across the front have been identified as targets for demolition. Your kill team must conduct excursions into enemy territory to rig structures with explosives and transponders.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Plant Signal Beacon’ and/or ‘Sabotage’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: DETONATE

The charges are set and transponders are in place, but the enemy is jamming incoming signals. Your kill team must initiate the detonation sequence in close proximity.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Upload Viral Code’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain three Requisition points.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

5.0 Infiltrate the Enemy

The enemy’s strength outstrips that of your own forces, so high command has tasked your kill team with waging unconventional warfare to tip the scales. By infiltrating the enemy’s ranks, an operative can weaken them from within.

OPERATION 1: GATHER INTELLIGENCE

Your kill team must secure enemy uniforms, access codes, surveillance data, patrol movements, garrison locations and all manner of relevant intelligence to plant an operative successfully.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Rob and Ransack’, ‘Implant’ and/or ‘Behind Enemy Lines’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: PLANT OPERATIVE

With all the necessary intelligence gathered, a complex plan has been hatched for an operative to infiltrate the enemy’s ranks and strike from within.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Interloper’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
The friendly operative that scored you victory points from the ‘Interloper’ Tac Op earns 5 XP. This is not affected by a passed Casualty test.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

6.0 Purge Order

A decisive message, declaring your dominance, must be sent to your enemies. To deliver it, your kill team has one task - the wholesale elimination of enemy operatives.

OPERATION 1: NO PRISONERS

Your kill team must establish a foothold in the area and locate enemy kill teams. Once you have them cornered, move in to attack and leave none alive.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Deadly Marksman’, ‘Rob and Ransack’ and/or ‘Execution’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: ROUT

With enemy kill teams reeling, you must press the advantage and utterly rout them. Only by breaking them entirely will you achieve dominance.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Rout’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
You can distribute 5 XP across the operatives on your roster.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

7.0 Breakout

Be it a desperate escape attempt or a return to base from a daring mission, our kill team is out of position and behind enemy lines. They must fight bravely and cleverly to return safely.

OPERATION 1: ON THE RUN

Your kill team must move fast, plotting a course through enemy territory and evading enemy kill teams deployed to apprehend or eliminate them.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Overrun’, ‘Vantage’ or ‘Triangulate’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: LAST DASH TO SAFETY

Your kill team has survived being on the run for many days and draws near to safety. Although weary, they must make one last dash for freedom.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Behind Enemy Lines’ or ‘Interloper’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain three Requisition points.
After the battle, all friendly operatives pass Casualty and Recovery tests.

8.0 Extraction

Your kill team has gained possession of an invaluable resource, such as a prisoner, powerful artefact or the knowledge of a vital secret. Your enemies now descend to secure it for themselves. You must survive until high command can extract you.

OPERATION 1: SECURE EXTRACTION POINT

Your kill team must find and establish a defensible position from which you can await extraction. You must hold at all costs.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Hold the Line’ and/or ‘Damage Limitation’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: EXFIL

The extraction point is beset from all angles, with enemy kill teams overrunning your position. With extraction en route, you must hold on just a little longer.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Seize Ground’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
After the battle, all friendly operatives pass Casualty and Recovery tests.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

9.0 Honour-bound

Perhaps to serve as an act of repentance for a previous failure, or due to the political machinations of a rival, your kill team has been assigned a forlorn operation. Victory under such circumstances will test any kill team and is highly unlikely, but acclamation and vindication awaits those that achieve it.

OPERATION 1: PURSUE ATONEMENT

For your kill team they must win, or they will die. Though the odds are stacked against them, they must look the hazards dead in the eye. Honour demands nothing less.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Execution’, ‘Headhunter’ or ‘Rout’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: GLORY AND VINDICATION

Your kill team is on the verge of erasing the stain from their record. In their final acts of redemption, a champion must step forward to reclaim their honour and cement their deeds in legend.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Challenge’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain one Requisition point.
The friendly operative that scored you victory points from the ‘Challenge’ Tac Op earns 5 XP. This is not affected by a passed Casualty test.
You can distribute 5 XP across the other operatives on your roster.

10.0 Secure District

Your kill team must take and control a key district until high command can reinforce it. The enemy, too, recognises the area’s value, and will send in raiding parties to pick it clean of resources.

OPERATION 1: DRIVE THEM BACK

Your kill team must respond with a swift application of force when an enemy raiding party appears.

Complete five games in which you scored victory points from the ‘Protect Assets’ and/or ‘Plant Banner’ Tac Op.

OPERATION 2: STAND YOUR GROUND

For days on end your kill team has been pushed, fighting back enemies seeking to encroach upon your lands. They are exhausted. Reinforcements are on the horizon, however, and your kill team must hold until they arrive.

Complete a game in which you scored victory points from the ‘Central Control’ Tac Op.

COMMENDATION:

You gain three Requisition points.
You can add one item of rare equipment to your stash, or you can increase your asset capacity by one.

Narrative Play Mission Sequence

To play a narrative play game, each player must have a dataslate. A narrative play game is then completed by following the sequence below:

1. Determine Mission

The players determine which mission they will play. First, the players must select a mission pack, such as the one presented here. They must then select a mission from that pack, either by agreeing which one to use, or by randomly determining which one to use.

2. Read Mission Briefing

Each mission has a briefing that will detail the mission rules, mission objective and a map detailing drop zones and where to set up objective markers. The players should familiarise themselves with this information before proceeding as it will detail key rules for the mission and how victory can be achieved.

3. Determine Killzone

The players determine which killzone is in use, either by agreeing which one to use, or by rolling off and the winner decides. The players then set up its gameboard.

4. Set Up Objective Markers

The players set up objective markers in the locations specified by the mission map.

5. Set Up the Killzone

The players set up terrain features. This is done by following the guidelines here, or by following the configuration specified by the mission (if any). When setting up a terrain feature, the players should agree on the terrain traits of each part of it. If players are using terrain features configured in the same manner as their Killzone Environment, these terrain traits will be specified.

6. Select Drop Zone

The players determine who will be the Attacker and who will be the Defender, either by agreeing what is most appropriate to the narrative, or by rolling off and the winner decides.

Some missions will specify which drop zone belongs to which player. Otherwise, the Defender selects one of the drop zones for their operatives. The Attacker has the other drop zone.

7. Select a Kill Team

Each player determines their operatives for deployment by selecting one kill team from their army list. They then select any operatives from their dataslate to be in that kill team, so long as those operatives adhere to the restrictions of that kill team. Note that this means a player can include less operatives than specified by that kill team. Once both players have selected their kill team, they should reveal it to their opponent.

If a player’s kill team includes a LEADER operative, they add 2CP to their pool. In addition, each player adds up the total number of Battle Honours of the operatives they selected for deployment, as well as how many strategic assets they have, and compares the total with their opponent. For every two that one player’s total is less than the other, they can select one of the following for the game:

Add 1 CP to their pool.
They have two additional points to select equipment with.

8. Select Tac Ops

Each player secretly builds a six-card Tac Ops deck. Up to three of their cards can be their faction’s Tac Ops as specified in their faction’s army list. The remaining Tac Ops in their deck must be from an archetype of their choosing.

Each player shuffles their six-card deck, then determines which Tac Ops they have for the battle in secret. To do so, they draw two cards from their deck, select one and discard the other. They repeat this process until three Tac Ops cards have been selected. They do not need to declare which Tac Ops they have selected.

9. Select Equipment

Each player selects up to ten points worth of equipment from their stash to equip operatives from their kill team with for the battle, following all rules specified in that kill team’s equipment list. Once both players have selected their equipment, they should reveal it. After each game, all equipment is returned to the stash and an operative is no longer equipped with it.

10. Set Up Barricades

The players alternate setting up barricades, one at a time, starting with the Defender, until the players have set up two barricades each. Each time a player sets up a barricade, it must be within of their drop zone and not on a terrain feature (unless it has the Insignificant trait).

11. Set Up Operatives

The Defender sets up all of their operatives first. Then the Attacker sets up all of their operatives. When a player sets up an operative, it must be wholly within their drop zone and must be given an Engage or Conceal order.

12. Scouting

Each player secretly selects one of the pre-game scouting options. Each option will provide the player with an additional benefit, however it will affect who has initiative in the first turning point. A player selects a scouting option by secretly putting a number of D6 into their hand that corresponds to the number of the option they would like to select. For example, if a player would like to select the Recon option, they would put three D6 into their hand. Once both players have selected, they reveal the number of D6 in their hand simultaneously. They then resolve their selection starting with the Defender. The scouting options are as follows:

13. Begin the Battle

The first Turning Point of the battle begins. In the first Initiative phase, initiative for the first turning point is determined based on the players’ choices in the Scouting step:

If one player selected Fortify and the other selected Infiltrate, the former decides who has the initiative.
If one player selected Infiltrate and the other selected Recon, the former decides who has the initiative.
If one player selected Recon and the other selected Fortify, the former decides who has the initiative.
If both players selected the same scouting option, the Attacker decides who has the initiative.

14. End the Battle

The battle ends after four Turning Points have been completed. If one player has no operatives remaining in the killzone, the other player continues to play out each remaining Turning Point until the battle ends.

Ideally, a battle should always be played until the end. Not only will this allow for heroic last stands, but it will give the players every opportunity to complete their Spec Ops.

15. Determine Victor

At the end of the battle, the player with the most victory points is the winner of the game. If players are tied, the game is a draw.

Each player can score a maximum of 12 victory points from the mission objective.
Each player can score a maximum of 2 victory points from each Tac Op, therefore a player’s Tac Ops are worth 6 victory points in total.
If every operative in a player’s kill team was painted to a Battle Ready standard, that player scores 2 victory points.
In total, each player can score a maximum of 20 victory points from the game.

16. Update Dataslates

Each player updates their rosters by completing the following steps:

1. Take Casualty tests.
2. Update Experience.
3. Take Recovery tests.
4. Complete operations.

Spec Ops Narrative Play

Starting a Spec Ops Campaign

Dataslates

Experience

Battle Honours

Casualties

Casualty Test

Battle Scars

Recovery Test

Base of Operations

Equipment

Rare Equipment

Strategic Assets

Requisitions

Spec Ops

1.0 Elimination

2.0 Recover Archeotech

3.0 Perform Ritual

4.0 Demolition

5.0 Infiltrate the Enemy

6.0 Purge Order

7.0 Breakout

8.0 Extraction

9.0 Honour-bound

10.0 Secure District

Narrative Play Mission Sequence

1. Determine Mission

2. Read Mission Briefing

3. Determine Killzone

4. Set Up Objective Markers

5. Set Up the Killzone

6. Select Drop Zone

7. Select a Kill Team

8. Select Tac Ops

9. Select Equipment

10. Set Up Barricades

11. Set Up Operatives

12. Scouting

13. Begin the Battle

14. End the Battle

15. Determine Victor

16. Update Dataslates

OPERATE HATCH1AP

VANTAGE2AP

DESTROY BANNER1AP

PLANT SIGNAL BEACON2AP

SABOTAGE2AP

UPLOAD VIRAL CODE2AP

INTERLOPE1AP

TRIANGULATE1AP

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