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The Rules

Quick Start Guide Core Rules Crusade Rules Rules Commentary

Matched Mission Packs

Leviathan Pariah Nexus Battles

Crusade Mission Packs

Tyrannic War Pariah Nexus

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Boarding Action Rules

Pariah Nexus

Books

Book	Kind	Edition	Version	Last update
Pariah Nexus
Pariah Nexus	Expansion	10		January 2024

Introduction

In this section you will find a wide variety of new Battle Honours you can give to your warriors as they fight in the dreaded Pariah Nexus, as well as new missions and unique Crusade Blessings that can come into effect in your games. Additionally, you’ll find rules for gathering Blackstone Fragments to purchase bespoke upgrades, and guidance on howto organise a Pariah Nexus campaign.

BLACKSTONE DISCOVERY
Forces of all allegiances seek to gather the mysterious substance known as blackstone, whether to create prototype weapons, offer it to a benefactor or for more nefarious reasons. This section explains how to gain and then utilise this resource in your Crusade games.

BATTLE TRAITS
These rules cover all of the skills and new capabilities your forces can learn from fighting in this specific theatre of war as they gain experience and achieve new ranks.

CRUSADE RELICS
Many powerful artefacts, found within these pages, can be utilised to tip the scales in this horrific war zone.

PLAYING A PARIAH NEXUS CRUSADE MISSION
Follow the sequence in this section to set up and play Pariah Nexus Crusade missions.

CRUSADE BLESSINGS
This section provides a range of new Crusade Blessings that can be used by an Underdog to get a leg-up on their more experienced opponent, ensuring every Crusade game provides a fair battle.

AGENDAS
When playing one of the Crusade missions presented in this book, you can choose from these Agendas, which provide unique ways for your units to gain experience on the battlefield.

CRUSADE BADGES
Here you will find nine Crusade Badges representing goals you can set yourself depending on the alliance you decide to fight for in your Pariah Nexus campaign.

PARIAH NEXUS CAMPAIGN
These rules allow you and your friends to play through a combined Crusade experience across a campaign, working together in your alliance to take the fight to the enemy.

CRUSADE MISSIONS
This section includes a variety of missions of all game sizes, allowing you to play your own narrative battles as they might take place in the Pariah Nexus.

Blackstone Discovery

The Necron Crypteks and the forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus are seeking a key resource in the Pariah Nexus: blackstone. While some factions are happy to assist in the acquisition of this substance, others are determined to interrupt it.

GAINING BLACKSTONE FRAGMENTS
While playing in a Pariah Nexus campaign, your Crusade force will accrue Blackstone Fragments, a powerful resource that will help empower your units in a number of ways. Blackstone Fragments can be gained as a result of Pariah Nexus Agendas and mission rules, as well as through other means such as Crusade Relics. Keep a Blackstone tally on your Order of Battle, adding 1 to it each time you gain a Blackstone Fragment. Each time you harness or salvage Blackstone Fragments as described below, reduce your Blackstone tally by the necessary amount. You can also use the Order of Battle to keep a log of your Blackstone Fragments.

HARNESSING BLACKSTONE FRAGMENTS
During a Pariah Nexus campaign, you use Blackstone Fragments in a variety of ways, ranging from accessing unique Blackstone Upgrades such as Battle Honours and Crusade Relics. If you are playing a Pariah Nexus campaign using alliances, your Blackstone Fragments can even be the deciding factor in whether or not your alliance wins the campaign!

SALVAGING BLACKSTONE FRAGMENTS
In addition to being used to purchase Blackstone Upgrades, you can also salvage excess Blackstone Fragments in return for XP. This could represent utilising it for new archeotech or sending it to your forces benefactors - whatever best fits the narrative of your Crusade force.

If you wish to do so, after a battle, you can spend 5 Blackstone Fragments to grant 5XP to one Character unit from your Crusade force. While playing in a Pariah Nexus campaign, you can only salvage Blackstone Fragments in this way once per campaign phase.

Below, Blackstone Fragment quantities are presented as shown here.

Blackstone Upgrades

Blackstone Battle Honours

CHARACTERS ONLY

The following Battle Honours can be purchased using Blackstone Fragments. Once purchased, each Battle Honour can only be applied to one CHARACTER model from your Crusade army. To apply the same Battle Honour to another CHARACTER, you must purchase it again.

NODAL MAP

With each fresh blackstone deposit discovered and recorded, it becomes ever easier to determine where the next such hidden prize may be secured.

While the bearer is within range of an objective marker, if the bearers unit is Battle-shocked, change the Objective Control characteristic of models in that unit to 1, instead of 0.

SINGLE-MINDED SEEKER

Locating the strange riches of this region only feeds this commander’s desire to accrue more such esoteric wealth.

If the bearer is your Warlord, at the end of the battle, roll one D6, adding 2 to the roll if you won the battle. On a 6+, you gain 3 Blackstone Fragments.

ACQUISITIVE OPPORTUNIST

Thanks to the stifling effects of the nodal matrix, many commanders fighting in this region are forced to do so in relative ignorance or while wrestling with the nightmare effects of the Stilling. This warlord has become adept at recognising these weaknesses in their foes and adapting accordingly.

At the start of the battle, if the bearer is your WARLORD, until the end of the battle, it gains the ability below that corresponds with the Strategic Footing you selected in the Select Strategic Footing step:

Aggressive: Models in the bearer’s unit have the Scouts 6" ability.
Balanced: The bearer has the Lone Operative ability.
Defensive: Models in the bearer’s unit have the Stealth ability.

Blackstone Crusade Relics

You can spend Blackstone Fragments to purchase the unique Crusade Relics below. Each one can only be purchased once. When a CHARACTER gains a Crusade Relic, you can select one of these Crusade Relics you have purchased for that CHARACTER to gain.

EMPATHIC DISINCLINATOR

This experimental neuro-emitter can be energistically entangled with local deposits of blackstone, causing them to resonate on micro-frequencies cogitated to trigger disturbing visual hallucinations amongst the foe. Enemies so much as looking in that direction have their aim fouled and their blows robbed of strength by the horrors they see.

At the start of the battle, select one objective marker. While the bearer is on the battlefield, friendly units within range of that objective marker have a 5+ invulnerable save.

NOCTILITH ARMAMENT

Many would consider it reckless to augment a weapon with shards of empyrically charged blackstone. It cannot be denied, however, that the results can be impressive...

Select one melee weapon equipped by the bearer (excluding a weapon that has been replaced by an Enhancement or upgraded via the Weapon Modifications table). That weapon is now a Crusade Relic; note this on the bearers Crusade card and give the weapon a suitable name. Once per battle, in the Fight phase, the bearer can activate this Crusade Relic. If it does, until the end of the phase, each time an attack is made with that weapon, invulnerable saving throws cannot be made against that attack.

BLACKSTONE AMULET

This soul-sapping periapt may destroy its wearer given time. However, in the short term it renders even their mere presence baleful.

Each time a melee attack is allocated to the bearer, on an unmodified saving throw of 6, the attacking unit suffers 1 mortal wound after it has finished making its attacks. If that attack was made with a Psychic weapon, this effect applies on an unmodified saving throw of 5+ instead.

Battle Traits

Battle Traits are skills or upgrades that units have acquired during their years of warfare, and help to give them a vital edge on the battlefield. Each time a unit gains a Battle Trait, either roll one D6 and consult the table below to randomly determine which Battle Trait the unit has gained, or choose the Battle Trait that you think tells the best narrative. A unit can have more than one Battle Trait, but it cannot have the same Battle Trait more than once (if a duplicate result is rolled, roll again until a different result is rolled).

CHARACTER UNITS	D6
(excluding MONSTER and VEHICLE units)

LEAD FROM THE FRONT Amidst the horror and confusion of war in the Nephilim Anomaly, dynamic war leaders can make a great difference. This unit has the Infiltrators ability.
HORROR-HARDENED Nothing in this nightmarish war zone now has the power to distract this hardened veteran from their duty. You can target this unit with Stratagems even while it is Battle-shocked.
ARCH ACQUISITOR The relentless hunt for Noctilith has focussed this warrior on seizing battlefield objectives at all costs. Add 3 to the Objective Control characteristic of one CHARACTER model in this unit.
CLAIM STALKER Bitter experience has taught this commander to seize contested battlefield prizes with caution. While this unit is within range of an objective marker, it has the Stealth ability.
HEROIC CONSTITUTION This exemplary commander can endure the most nightmarish hardships and fight on with soul and body unflagging. Add 1 to the Wounds characteristic of one CHARACTER model in this unit.
DUELLIST Many a duel of martial champions has been fought in the Nephilim Sector, sometimes deciding the fates of entire war fronts! Each time a Character model in this unit makes a melee attack that targets a CHARACTER unit, you can re-roll the Hit roll.

MONSTER AND VEHICLE UNITS	D6


HARDENED DEFENCES Amidst the gruelling hardships of this war zone, this unit has undergone battlefield bolstering and repair by the warriors it fights alongside. Models in this unit have the Feel No Pain 6+ ability.
TOTEMIC PRESENCE This unit has come to be seen as an icon of victory and conquest by its comrades. Add 2 to the Objective Control characteristic of one model in this unit.
TANK HUNTER Amidst the strained supply lines of the war zone, eliminating irreplaceable enemy assets is a valuable skill. Each time a model in this unit makes an attack that targets a MONSTER or VEHICLE unit, re-roll a Wound roll of 1.
STUBBORN EXPLORATOR The heaped bodies, abandoned ruins and war-torn dig sites of this war zone are no obstacle to this bulldozing behemoth. Each time this unit makes a Normal or Advance move, it can move over terrain features that are 4" or less in height as if they were not there.
HEAVILY ARMOURED It takes fortitude and fortune to survive long beneath the shroud of the nodal matrix. Once per battle, when an attack is allocated to a model in this unit, you can change the Damage characteristic of that attack to 0.
REAPER Infantry fall like wheat before the scythe of this terrible slaughterer’s weapons. Each time a model in this unit makes an attack that targets an INFANTRY or MOUNTED unit, re-roll a Hit roll of 1.

INFANTRY UNITS	D6
Excluding CHARACTERS

BATTLE-SCARRED RESISTANCE No matter the hardships and horrors these warriors face, still they forge on un-Stilled and unstoppable. Models in this unit have the Feel No Pain 6+ ability.
WRAITH OF RUIN These warriors employ the apocalyptic ruinscapes of the Nephilim Anomaly to mask their advance. Models in this unit have the Infiltrators ability.
UNITED BY ADVERSITY This unit watch over their allies, knowing that in this dread war zone isolation means death. You can target this unit with the Heroic Intervention Stratagem for 0CP, and can do so even if you have already targeted a different unit with that Stratagem this phase.
RAIDERS This squad are adept at seizing blackstone and other riches from their foes. Each time a model in this unit makes an attack that targets a unit that is within range of an objective marker, re-roll a Hit roll of 1.
PURGATORS These warriors have become quick to resort to extreme - explosive - measures. This unit gains the GRENADES keyword. If it already has that keyword, once per battle, you can target this unit with the Grenade Stratagem for 0CP.
TERROR ASSAULT Fighting so long amongst such horrifying environs has left a dread mark upon these warriors, which they exploit gladly. At the start of the Fight phase, select one enemy unit within Engagement Range of this unit. That enemy unit must take a Battle-shock test.

MOUNTED UNITS	D6
Excluding CHARACTERS

RIDERS OF RUIN These warriors have become adept at picking a path through the haunted ruins of the Nephilim Sector. Add 2" to the Move characteristic of models in this unit.
THUNDERING ONSLAUGHT No foe can escape when these warriors sweep down upon them from the wastes. Add 1 to Advance and Charge rolls made for this unit.
SADDLEBORNE ASSASSINS These warriors exploit the often-confused nature of war in the anomaly to close swiftly upon unsuspecting prey and gun them down at close quarters. Each time a model in this unit makes a ranged attack that targets the closest eligible target, improve the Armour Penetration characteristic of that attack by 1.
LINEBREAKERS After many desperate melees, these warriors have become skilled in striking hard and tearing through the enemy lines. Each time this unit ends a Charge move, until the end of the turn, melee weapons equipped by models in this unit have the [SUSTAINED HITS 1] ability.
CRUSHING CHARGE These warriors have become quick to resort to extreme - explosive - measures. Each time this unit ends a Charge move, select one enemy within Engagement Range of it, then roll one D6 for each model in this unit that is within Engagement Range of that enemy unit: for each 4+, that enemy unit suffers 1 mortal wound.
BLUR OF SPEED This unit push their speed to the maximum, relying on it to confound their enemies’ aim. Models in this unit have the Stealth ability.

Crusade Relics

When fighting in the Pariah Nexus, units from your Crusade army can gain the following Crusade Relics.

Artificer Relics

BLACKSTONE COMPASS

Which crazed engineer fashioned this esoteric device of brass and wires is unknown. ’There is no denying, however, that the strange contraption’s shrilling note indicates deposits of noctilith near at hand.

After you win a battle, if the bearer is on the battlefield, you gain an additional 2 Blackstone Fragments.

VEIL OF ANCIENTS

During the frenzied excavations throughout the Nephilim Sector, more has been unearthed than just noctilith. This strange energy-emitter is of a design unfamiliar even to the Crypteks of the Necrons, yet the efficacy of the shimmering shield-cloak it creates cannot be denied.

The bearer has a 4+ invulnerable save.

TREASURE OF THE TECHNOMANDRITES

Legitimised anew by Szarekh’s patronage, the rogue Crypteks known as the Technomandrites have wasted no time in fashioning and unleashing terrifying new weapons. Some of these, lost amidst the carnage on blazing battlefields, have since been scavenged by many warring factions.

Select one weapon equipped by the bearer (excluding a weapon that has been replaced by an Enhancement or upgraded via the Weapon Modifications table), then select one of the abilities below for that weapon to gain. That weapon is now a Crusade Relic; note this on the bearer’s Crusade card and give the weapon a suitable name.

[LETHAL HITS]
[PRECISION]
[SUSTAINED HITS 1]

ARMOUR OF THE SOULLESS SENTRY

Deep beneath the surface of Cherist, explorator teams discovered a shrine to an unknown alien god. Its guardian, an ancient being of a sort unknown to Humanity, had been rendered soul-dead by the Stilling. The creature was taken for study, but the armour it wore went mysteriously missing. Whether it was stolen or found some other, more sinister means of evading destruction, this unearthly suit of highly adaptable and sublimely protective plate has surfaced several times since.

Improve the Toughness and Save characteristics of the bearer by 1.

Antiquity Relics

NOCTILITH SIGIL

This finely wrought icon of noctilith is inlaid with theldrite circuitry and psycho-resonant slivers of a wraithbonelike substance. It protects not only its bearer, but also nearby allies, from the infernal energies of warpcraft.

Non-PSYKER model only. Models in the bearer’s unit have the Feel No Pain 4+ ability against Psychic Attacks.

DOLMEN KEY

The dolmen gates of the Necrons lace their captive tunnels through the Nephilim Sector. This mysterious - seemingly semi-sentient - device is able to locate and hack a quantum path into these interstitial tunnels, allowing its bearer to walk these hidden roads at will.

Models in the bearer’s unit have the Deep Strike ability. In addition, you can target the bearer’s unit with the Rapid Ingress Stratagem for 0CP, and when resolving that Stratagem, you can set up that unit anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 6" horizontally away from all enemy units and within range of an objective marker. Until the end of the turn, that unit is not eligible to declare a charge.

VANTACHREN’S MIRROR

This sinister device was brought from the deepest vaults of Dantris III by Magos Charth. Rumoured to be a relic of Old Night, it warps the realspace presence of its bearer and nearby allies, confusing enemy senses in a most unnatural fashion. Rumours that the bearer slowly fades from reality altogether may be lent some credence by the unexplained disappearance of Charth and his entourage.

Models in the bearer’s unit have the Stealth ability. In addition, each time the bearer’s unit is selected as a target of a charge, subtract 2 from the Charge roll.

EYE OF MARS

This thrumming, fist-sized device entered the war zone worn upon a servo-torque by Ausipcatrix Magna Ohlm. Though subsequently seized as a trophy when it was cut from Ohlm’s neck along with her head, its powers of strategic perspicacity and tactical early warning remain undimmed.

After both players have deployed their armies, select one unit from your Crusade army and redeploy it. When doing so, you can set that unit up in Strategic Reserves if you wish, regardless of how many units are already in Strategic Reserves.

Legendary Relics

BLADE OF THE DYNAST

This is a flowing and many-formed weapon sheathed in living metal and powered by a shard of a captive star. It was forged for use by Necron dynastic champions to wield in honour duels whose outcome could, by Triarchal code, decide the fate of worlds.

Improve the Strength, Damage and Armour Penetration characteristics of the bearers melee weapons by 1. Once per battle, in your Charge phase, if your Crusade army is in the Aggressive Strategic Footing, the bearer can activate this Crusade Relic. If it does, until the end of the phase, add 2 to Charge rolls made for the bearer’s unit.

NOCTIC SHIELD

It is unclear which warring faction fashioned this seemingly crude and unwieldy shield. Anti-gravitic microsuspensors counteract the weight of what is essentially a worked slab of noctilith, laced through with esoteric circuitry and fluctuating between empyrically polarised states. The defensive properties of the Noetic Shield cannot be gainsaid, however, for it both wards away projectiles and blades with kinetic pulses even as it drains the will and strength of those who assail its bearer.

Add 1 to the Toughness and Wounds characteristics of the bearer. Once per battle, when an attack targets the bearer’s unit, if your Crusade army is in the Defensive Strategic Footing, the bearer can activate this Crusade Relic. If it does, until the end of the phase, each time an attack is allocated to a model in the bearer’s unit, subtract 1 from the Damage characteristic of that attack.

ROD OF THE OMNISSIAH

What may once have been a simple data-wand or command stave has been augmented with bone-caged arcane runes, coiling nests of esoteric wiring, and slivers of blackstone suspended in solutions of blood and sacred unguents. The result is a singular device that channels the motive force of organic, mechanical and even supernatural entities, both giving and - on certain horrifying occasions - leeching away.

At the start of your Command phase, the bearer regains up to D3 lost wounds. Once per battle, at the start of your Command phase, if your Crusade army is in the Balanced Strategic Footing, the bearer can activate this Crusade Relic. If it does, select one enemy unit within Engagement Range of the bearer. That enemy unit suffers a number of mortal wounds equal to the number of wounds the bearer has regained as a result of this Crusade Relic during the battle.

Playing A Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

A Pariah Nexus Crusade battle is waged by following the sequence below.

Select Battle Size

Players must first select the battle size they wish to play: Incursion, Strike Force or Onslaught. The table below gives a rough guide of how long each battle should take.

SELECT BATTLE SIZE
BATTLE SIZE	POINTS PER ARMY	BATTLE DURATION
Incursion	1000	Up to 2 hours
Strike Force	2000	Up to 3 hours
Onslaught	3000	Up to 4 hours

Muster Crusade Armies

Each player must then muster a Crusade army and provide a copy of their Army Roster for their opponent to read through.

Determine Mission

Next players determine which mission will be used for the battle; they can choose from the missions presented in the tables (see below) for their chosen battle size. This will determine the deployment map that is used, as well as the specific mission briefing. Players can either simply agree which they will use with their opponent, or they can roll a dice to randomly select a mission.

When rolling to determine an Incursion or Strike Force mission, first roll one D6 to determine which table to use: on a 1-3, use the Incursion/Strike Force A table; on a 4-6, use the Incursion/Strike Force B table. Then roll one D6 to determine which mission to play. For Onslaught missions, roll one D6 to determine which mission to play on the Onslaught table.

INCURSION/STRIKE FORCE A
D6	MISSION
	Gheists in the Static
	Dig Site Raid
	Quantum Siege
	Outflank
	Overwhelming Dread
	Unstable Archeotech

INCURSION/STRIKE FORCE B
D6	MISSION
	Polarising Energies
	Amidst the Miasma
	False Intel
	Tortured Worldscape
	Interdimensional Clash
	Nullification Field

ONSLAUGHT
D6	MISSION
	Into the Tomb
	Reawakening
	Final Acquisition

Select Strategic Footing

Each player secretly selects a Strategic Footing and reveals it. This will determine which player is the Attacker and which player is the Defender.

Read Mission

Each mission has a mission briefing that will detail the aims of the battle. Each mission will also list one or more additional mission rules that will apply for the duration of the battle and a series of objectives, which may be different for the Attacker and the Defender. Players should read and familiarise themselves with these before proceeding.

Place Objective Markers

Players now set objective markers up on the battlefield. Each mission’s deployment map will show the players how many to set up and where each should be placed.

Create The Battlefield

Next players create the battlefield and set up terrain features. The size of the battlefield depends on the battle size selected, as shown in the table below (the table shows the minimum size of battlefields).

BATTLEFIELDS
BATTLE SIZE	MINIMUM BATTLEFIELD SIZE
Incursion/Strike Force	44"x60"
Onslaught	44"x90"

Unless otherwise stated, when setting up terrain features, use the guidelines detailed in the Core Rules. Players must use the rules presented in the Core Rules for terrain features.

Terrain features should not be set up with any impassable sections (such as the walls of a ruin) within 1" of any objective markers.

Purchase Requisitions

If you have access to any Requisitions that are used before a battle, you can spend RP to use them now. lf any of these upgrade one or more of your units for the coming battle, make a note of that upgrade on your Army Roster.

Select Agendas

Each player then secretly selects two Agendas for the battle and writes them down. Each can award Experience points to certain units in that player’s Crusade army, as described on the Agenda itself. Once both players have selected their Agendas, they reveal their selections to their opponent.

Select Crusade Blessings

When two Crusade armies battle each other, it is likely that one or the other will be more experienced. To determine this, both players should compare the combined Crusade points total of all the units that are on their Army Rosters.

If there is a difference of at least 5 between the players’ Crusade points tot er whose Army Roster has the lower total number of Crusade points is the Underdog and gains a number of Crusade Blessings to use in that battle, depending on the difference. This represents high command funnelling additional resources to the Underdog to help them combat a more experienced foe.

The Crusade Blessings available depend on the war zone the battle is being fought in - if the battle is being fought in the Pariah Nexus (or if you are playing in a war zone that does not list Crusade Blessings) use them.

Mission Objectives

During the battle, players can gain Victory points (VP) by achieving mission objectives. Mission objectives can either be ‘Progressive’ or ‘End Game’. Progressive mission objectives are scored during the battle (exactly when is detailed on the mission objective itself), and can be achieved, and hence award Victory points, several times. End Game mission objectives are scored at the end of the battle.

Some Progressive objectives will award Victory points ‘each time’ an enemy model or unit is destroyed. A model or unit can, if it is resurrected for any reason (i.e. it was destroyed and subsequently returned to the battlefield}, potentially contribute several Victory points due to these types of mission objectives (assuming it is resurrected and subsequently destroyed several times over}.

Declare Battle Formations

In the order stated below, both players now secretly note down:

Which of their Leader units will start the battle attached (they must specify which Leader unit is attached to which Bodyguard unit).
Which of their units will start the battle embarked within TRANSPORT models (they must specify which units are embarked on which models)
Which of their units will start in Reserves (including Strategic Reserves).

When both players have done so, they declare their selections to their opponent.

In Pariah Nexus Crusade missions, Reserves units cannot arrive during the first battle round, and any Strategic Reserves or Reserves unit that has not arrived on the battlefield by the end of the third battle round counts as having been destroyed, as do any units embarked within them (this does not apply to units that are placed into Strategic Reserves after the first battle round has started).

Deploy Crusade Armies

Players now alternate setting up their remaining units one at a time, starting with the Defender. A player’s units must be set up wholly within their deployment zone - the Attacker’s and the Defender’s deployment zones are shown on the deployment map of each mission. If one player finishes deploying all their units, their opponent then deploys the remainder of their units.

Determine First Turn

Unless the mission briefing says otherwise, players roll off and the winner takes the first turn.

Resolve Pre-Battle Rules

Players alternate resolving any pre-battle rules units from their army may have, starting with the player who will take the first turn.

Begin The Battle

The first battle round begins. Players continue to resolve battle rounds until the battle ends.

End The Battle

The battle ends after five battle rounds have been completed. If one player has no models remaining in their Crusade army at the start of their turn, the other player may continue to play out their turns until the battle ends.

Determine Victor

At the end of the battle, the player with the most Victory points is the winner. If players are tied, the battle is a draw. If every model in a player’s Crusade army is painted to a Battle Ready standard, that player is awarded a bonus 10 Victory points.

The victor of a mission can then claim the Victor bonus listed on that mission. If the game is a draw, neither player can claim the bonus.

Update Crusade Cards

The players must now update their Crusade cards for all the units they used in the battle by taking Out of Action tests for any that were destroyed, and selecting a unit to be Marked for Greatness. If this results in any units gaining a rank, before the next battle they can gain Battle Honours.

Update Order Of Battle

Increase your Battle tally and Requisition points by 1, and make any notes that you wish to record following your battle. If you wish to add any units to your Order of Battle or spend any Requisition points, do so and update your Order of Battle accordingly before your next battle.

Crusade Blessings

An Underdog in a Pariah Nexus battle can select one or more Crusade Blessings from those presented here. The number they can select depends on the difference in Crusade points between the armies, as shown in the table below. The same Crusade Blessing cannot be selected more than once.

CRUSADE BLESSINGS
DIFFERENCE IN CRUSADE POINTS	NUMBER OF BLESSINGS
0-4	0
5-9	1
10-19	2
20+	4

PREPARED POSITIONS

Between the apocalyptic collapse of dozens of Imperial settlements and complexes, and the successive waves of warfare and siege that have swept the worlds of this war zone since, many defensive positions lie abandoned. It is the work of hours for experienced soldiery to garrison them afresh, repairing damaged structures and heaving aside glassy-eyed heaps of the Stilled.

Until the start of the second battle round, each time a ranged attack targets a unit from your Crusade army, if that unit is wholly within your deployment zone, it has the Benefit of Cover against that attack.

HIGH STRATEGY

Beneath the smothering shroud cast by the nodal matrix, those commanders who can either resist its powers or remain immune to them have a distinct advantage. More than most, this is a war zone where securing reliable lines of communication and supply can win entire battles before the first shot is fired!

You start the battle with 2CP.

COMPARTMENTALISED PLANS

Faced with the risk of operating in isolation for long periods of time, or communications being severed without warning, many commanders have taken to drawing up their own emergency plans. Should the situation deteriorate suddenly, these emergency directives may save lives or even entire war fronts.

You can select one additional Agenda for this battle.

DEFIANCE UNDIMMED

The gruelling conditions of this war zone wear down those who fight here with every stifling hour that crawls past. Yet with every battle survived, and every victory claimed, their morale is bolstered anew and they learn better how to survive this living nightmare.

At the end of the battle, each unit from your Crusade army that is not destroyed gains 1XP.

FORTUNE FAVOURED

No matter where a commander may lead their armies, nor the perils and terrors of the foes they face, sometimes there is no substitute for simple good luck. This is just such an instance.

Once per battle round, if your Warlord is on the battlefield, you can use the Command Re-roll Stratagem for 0CP.

DESPERATE OFFENSIVE

Entropy is the enemy of all who wage war within the Nephilim Sector. Driven by this urgent knowledge, commanders drive their warriors hard into battle, knowing they must seize victory quickly before their forces degrade or the strategic situation shifts around them.

During the first battle round, add 1" to the Move characteristic of INFANTRY and WALKER units from your Crusade army.

LINCHPIN LEADERSHIP

With armies enduring the horrors of the Stilling, of unexpected civil war, and of witnessing the effects of apocalyptic nightmare weapons, firm leadership from their commanders is more important than ever.

Until the end of the battle, improve the Leadership characteristic of models from your Crusade army by 1 while they are part of an Attached unit.

BLACKSTONE BOUNTY

Cached and forgotten or lost by an army long since driven from this location, you find a wealth of noctilith just waiting to be seized.

After the battle, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment. If you won that battle, you gain an additional 1 Blackstone Fragment.

DEFEND THE DIG SITE

Your extractors are in the midst of unearthing a rich noctilith deposit, but they must be defended against an enemy breakthrough.

At the end of the battle, for each unit from your Crusade army that is on the battlefield, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment (to a maximum of 3).

PSYCHIC SHIELDING

Wearing experimental charms fashioned from blackstone may be deeply unpleasant and ultimately harmful for many beings, but it does help to ward off hostile psychic energies.

Once per battle, in your opponent’s Shooting phase or at the start of the Fight phase, you can use this Crusade Blessing. If you do, select up to three units from your Crusade army; until the end of the phase, those units have the Feel No Pain 5+ ability against Psychic Attacks.

NOCTILITH AUGURY

Suspended in an esoteric solution, empyrically polarised slivers of blackstone can be used to perform empath-augury, scrying out the thoughts and intentions of the foe. Beneath the unnatural pall of the nodal matrix, such insights can prove especially valuable.

During the Select Strategic Footing step, after Strategic Footing selections have been revealed, you can change your Strategic Footing. If you are playing in a Pariah Nexus campaign, you cannot select this Crusade Blessing more than once per campaign phase.

Faction Crusade Blessings

You can only select one of the following Crusade Blessings if every model from your Crusade army meets the keyword restrictions indicated.

EMPOWERED BY FAITH

A surfeit of zeal allows the warriors of the Imperium to throw off the smothering effects of the Stilling, at least long enough to seize victory in battle.

IMPERIUM only.

Once per battle, at the start of your Command phase, you can use this Crusade Blessing. If you do, until the start of your next Command phase, each time an Attached unit from your Crusade army takes a Battle-shock or Leadership test, you can re-roll that test.

RIGHTFUL HEIRS

To the android minds of the Necrons, the galaxy is rightfully theirs to reclaim. The Silent King has commanded that this wholesale reconquest begin in the Nephilim Anomaly, and his legions march out to obey.

NECRONS only.

At the start of your Command phase, select one NECRONS INFANTRY unit from your Crusade army. Until the start of your next Command phase, add 1 to the Objective Control characteristic of models in that unit.

UNEXPECTED MEDDLERS

Humanity and the Necrons are far from the only warring factions seeking conquest or survival within War Zone Nephilim. Raiding parties and warbands of many factions carve their own bloody paths through contested systems, exploiting their enemies' preoccupation with one another to attack without warning.

Excluding IMPERIUM and NECRONS
After both players have deployed their armies, you can select up to two units from your Crusade army and redeploy them. When doing so, those units can be placed into Strategic Reserves, regardless of how many units are already in Strategic Reserves.

Agendas

Agendas offer unique and exciting ways for your units to gain additional Experience points in a Crusade battle. From assassinating key enemy leaders to going on guerrilla recon missions, there are a whole range of different Agendas you can choose from to best suit your Crusade force’s narrative. When playing a Pariah Nexus Crusade mission you can select from the following Agendas.

Some Agendas will award Experience points or tally marks each time’ an enemy model or unit is destroyed. A model or unit can, if it is resurrected for any reason (i.e. it was destroyed and subsequently returned to the battlefield), potentially contribute several Experience points or tally marks to these types of Agendas (assuming it is resurrected and subsequently destroyed several times over).

TO THE LAST

For every band of warriors consumed by the horrors of unbound technology or laid low by despair and the blades of the foe, another squad perseveres in the face of horrors uncounted to rise stronger than ever.

At the start of the battle, you can select up to three units from your Crusade army that are on the battlefield. For each of those units, at the end of the battle:

If that unit is not destroyed, it gains 2XP.
If that unit is not Below Half-strength, it gains 1XP.
For each of those units that is not destroyed, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment.

CRITICAL RESOURCES

Many are the battlefields in this war zone where abandoned material and resources can be claimed by those willing to pick through carrion and ruin.

At the start of the battle, your opponent must select two different objective markers on the battlefield (if there is only one objective marker, only that objective marker is selected). At the end of the battle, select one of those objective markers. If you control that objective marker, you can select up to three units from your Crusade army that are within range of that objective marker. Each of those units gains 2XP, and for each selected unit, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment.

KING SLAYER

There is always strategic value to eliminating the enemy's leadership structure. Amidst the gruelling horror of this war zone, those benefits are magnified tenfold.

Each time a model from your Crusade army destroys an enemy CHARACTER unit, that model’s unit gains 2XP and you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment (to a maximum of 4 Blackstone Fragments). In addition, each time a model from your Crusade army destroys the enemy WARLORD, that model’s unit gains an additional 2XP.

DRIVE HOME THE BLADE

Few missions are as dangerous as being charged with breaking through the enemy’s lines in the face of ferocious opposition. Yet for those who survive and prevail, there are bloody lessons to be learned.

At the end of the battle, you can select up to three units from your Crusade army (excluding AIRCRAFT) that are wholly within 6" of your opponents battlefield edge. If your opponent does not have a battlefield edge in the mission being played, you can select up to three units from your Crusade army (excluding AIRCRAFT) that are wholly within your opponent’s deployment zone instead. Each of those units gains 3XP.

RECOVER BLACKSTONE DATA

Crucial data-caches have been lost in this region, each one holding the key to triangulating the location of a rich deposit of noctilith. This information must be seized before the enemy can secure or destroy it.

At the start of your Shooting phase, you can select one INFANTRY or MOUNTED unit from your Crusade army that is not Battle-shocked and is eligible to shoot. That unit is tasked with recovering blackstone data and is not eligible to shoot or declare a charge that turn.

At the end of that turn, if that unit is within range of an objective marker you control that is not in your deployment zone, roll one D6: on a 4-5, that unit gains 1XP; on a 6, that unit gains 2XP and you gain 1CP. Each time a unit from your Crusade army gains XP as a result of this Agenda, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment (to a maximum of 3).

CENTRAL POSITION

Striking at the key point near the heart of the enemy's battle line, you have a chance to divide their disordered forces, encircle and destroy them one after another then claim the blackstone bounty of this region.

At the end of your Command phase, each CHARACTER unit from your Crusade army that is within 3" of the centre of the battlefield gains 1XP. If you gain 4 or more XP as a result of this Agenda, you gain 4 Blackstone Fragments.

REAP A TALLY

The enemy in this region are on the verge of breaking. If you can inflict sufficiently horrific casualties upon them, you will smash their morale altogether.

For every third enemy unit that is destroyed, select one unit from your Crusade army that destroyed one or more enemy units this battle. That selected unit gains 2XP and you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment (to a maximum of 2).

PSYCHIC BEACONS

Determined to force a vital message through the miasma of the Stilling, your most powerful psychic operatives must take up ritual positions to act as channelling conduits for the crucial missive.

At the end of the battle, select two or more PSYKER CHARACTER units from your Crusade army that are wholly within different table quarters (but only one per table quarter). Each of those units gains 2XP and you gain 4 Blackstone Fragments.

RE-ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION

You have a vital chance to end your army's temporary isolation from its parent force. To seize it, you will need to secure a hardened communications relay on this battlefield and hold on long enough to get a distress call through to high command.

At the start of the battle, your opponent must select one objective marker on the battlefield to be the Comms Array. At the end of the battle, if you control that objective marker and one or more CHARACTER units from your Crusade army are within range of it (excluding Battle-shocked units), select one of those units. That unit gains 4XP and you gain 4 Blackstone Fragments.

Strategic Footing Agendas

You can only select one of the following Agendas if you have chosen the corresponding Strategic Footing.

FIRST INTO THE FRAY

The shock value of hurling your forces headlong into the enemy lines cannot be understated. Moreover, those warriors who survive the experience will doubtless learn bloody lessons.

Aggressive
At the end of the first battle round, select up to three units from your Crusade army that are within Engagement Range of one or more enemy units. The selected unit gains 2XP and you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment for each unit selected.

CALCULATED DESTRUCTION

You have an opportunity on this battlefield to shift the balance of the wider war front in your favour. This needs to be done with precision, cunning and measured aggression.

Balanced
Each time a unit from your Crusade army destroys an enemy unit that was within range of an objective marker, it gains 1XP (to a maximum of 3XP per unit). For every 3 enemy units destroyed in this way, you gain 1 Blackstone Fragment (to a maximum of 2).

HOLD STEADY

Overstretched and undersupplied, now is not the moment for reckless action. Instead, you must hold the line, eliminate your enemies, and minimise your own casualties so as to stabilise your situation.

Defensive
At the end of the battle, if at least half of your Crusade army’s units are not destroyed, you can select up to three units from your Crusade army that are not destroyed. The selected units each gain 2XP and you gain 3 Blackstone Fragments.

Crusade Badges

Seekers Alliance

If you participate in a Pariah Nexus campaign as a member of the Seekers alliance, you can earn the Crusade Badges below.

Seeker Adepts

Gained 10 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won three or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Purchased two or more Blackstone upgrades.

Seeker Warriors

Gained 20 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won five or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Purchased three or more Blackstone upgrades.

Seeker Conquerors

Gained 30 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won eight or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Purchased five or more Blackstone upgrades.

Protectors Alliance

If you participate in a Pariah Nexus campaign as a member of the Protectors alliance, you can earn the Crusade Badges below.

Protector Adepts

Gained 10 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won three or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Salvaged Blackstone Fragments one or more times.

Protector Warriors

Gained 20 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won five or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Salvaged Blackstone Fragments three or more times.

Protector Conquerors

Gained 30 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won eight or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Salvaged Blackstone Fragments five or more times.

Interlopers Alliance

If you participate in a Pariah Nexus campaign as a member of the Interlopers alliance, you can earn the Crusade Badges below.

Interloper Adepts

Gained 10 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won three or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Gained Advantage in a battle three or more times.

Interloper Warriors

Gained 20 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won five or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Gained Advantage in a battle three or more times.

Interloper Conquerors

Gained 30 or more Blackstone Fragments during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Won eight or more battles during a Pariah Nexus campaign.
Gained Advantage in a battle five or more times.

Pariah Nexus Campaign

Crusade offers a fantastic narrative experience to the Warhammer 40,000 player, letting you take your collection on its own unique journey. But you might also want to share that journey with other players, weaving combined tales of heroism and victory as you fight both with and against each other in a multi-game campaign. The rules on the following pages provide a framework that you can use to take your Crusade forces on just such a path, scaling the experience to whatever duration you and your friends desire.

Introduction

A Pariah Nexus campaign allows a group of players to get together, form alliances and play a series of games. It is split into three campaign phases, each of which consists of numerous battles between the factions. At the end of each campaign phase, the alliance with the most Campaign points in that phase will achieve victory, earning them Strategic points that count towards the campaign’s final winners. As the campaign phases progress, each is worth more and more Strategic points, ensuring that the ultimate victors are not decided right up until the end of the campaign.

For Pariah Nexus campaigns, players can exchange their Blackstone Fragments as a team each campaign phase to earn either special bonuses or Strategic points to contribute to their alliances’ overall goals. This means that each player is responsible for managing their Blackstone Fragments as they see fit during the campaign, but must always consider that they can pool resources to achieve total victory.

Campaign Badges

At the end of any Pariah Nexus campaign battle, every unit that was part of your Crusade army for that battle that does not already have it gains the Pariah Nexus campaign badge.

As the unit fights in other campaigns, it can gain additional campaign badges. As well as being a visual record of a unit’s fighting history, various Battle Honours are only available to units with particular campaign badges. Note that a unit keeps its campaign badges - and therefore - any associated Battle Honours, for future battles, even if those battles take part in a different campaign.

Campaign Master

A Pariah Nexus campaign is best run with a Campaign Master. They will take on the mobilisation and organisation of the campaign so that the other players can focus on playing games. A Campaign Master can indeed play in the campaign, but their primary role is to facilitate a smooth and enjoyable experience for all players involved.

Forming Alliances

Once a Campaign Master has stepped forward, their first task is to gather the players and sort them into alliances. The system can support anything from just two players, up to dozens of players. The campaign works particularly well with a small group of like-minded and enthusiastic players who can meet on a regular basis.

Alliances should be organised as evenly as possible, and when feasible, based on the Factions being played. Once players are assigned to an alliance, their Crusade force is committed to that cause. For this reason, players should play the same Faction through the campaign. If they wish to change their Faction, they can do so at the Campaign Master’s discretion. The alliances are as follows.

Seekers

Those who seek to harvest the blackstone for their own will as well as put an end to the Stilling. The forces of the Imperium would be best suited to this alliance.

Protectors

Those who wish to protect the blackstone from others. The Necrons and any others who may have their own goals for the noctilith in the Pariah Nexus are best suited to this alliance.

Interlopers

The Interlopers range from Chaos warlords who seek to use the cover of the Stilling for raids on Imperial forces to mysterious Aeldari and Ork raiders. This alliance is best suited to those who carve their own path - even if they aren’t all working towards the same goals.

Allies Of Convenience

Note that these are guidelines on how to organise players into an alliance, rather than a requirement. If it suits the group better to organise the alliances differently, the Campaign Master should feel free to do so.

For example, if many of the players in the group have Crusade forces associated with a single alliance, to make the alliances more evenly numbered some of them may have to fight for a different alliance than what we have recommended. You could always create some interesting narrative to explain why one side fights for another.

Campaign Length

A Pariah Nexus campaign is split into three phases, each of which involves battling in a different stage of the war. Before the campaign begins, the Campaign Master should determine the length of time allocated to each campaign phase and the total number of games that can be played in that phase. Once either of those conditions have been met, that campaign phase ends and the victorious alliance in that phase is determined. Once the third campaign phase ends, the campaign ends and the overall winning alliance is determined.

A campaign can be a long and expansive experience where each campaign phase takes place over a month, with many battles fought and mighty heroes lost to the fires of war. Equally, it can be a short and focused campaign played over a weekend, with each campaign phase consisting of just one battle representing the key moments of the conflict.

As a guide, if each member of your campaign group will play one game a week, we recommend each phase of the campaign lasts as follows:

Length of Time: 2 weeks
Total Number of Games: Equal to the number of players

Once you have gathered the players into alliances, established the way to play and determined the length of the campaign, it’s time for the struggle for the Pariah Nexus to begin!

Campaign Phases

Over a campaign phase, players from opposing alliances will battle each other to gain Campaign points for their alliance. The Campaign Master has a few options concerning how players are matched up for games. They can leave players to arrange games themselves, with challenges thrown down and honour at stake. Alternatively, it may be appropriate to introduce more structure to the match ups. For example, a game schedule will ensure that everyone gets an equal amount of games, or, in campaigns with a large number of players, each alliance can be broken down into smaller subgroups that are then matched against each other to make arranging games even simpler.

CAMPAIGN POINTS
Each time you play a game, your alliance gains a number of Campaign points based on the size of the game and what the outcome was, as shown in the table below.

Example: If you play an Incursion sized game and win, your alliance gains a total of 3 Campaign points. This is then reported to the Campaign Master, who keeps a record of each alliance’s total Campaign points.

Once the campaign phase comes to an end, the victor of that phase is the alliance with the most Campaign points, and the alliance with the second most Campaign points is the runner-up alliance (use the total number of battles won by each alliance as a tie-breaker - if there is still a tie, the Campaign Master randomly selects between the tied alliances). The victorious and runner-up alliances of a campaign phase will gain a number of Strategic points (see below).

When the next campaign phase begins, each alliance’s Campaign points are reset to 0, putting alliances on an equal footing for the next phase of the campaign.

CAMPAIGN POINTS EARNED
	LOSE	DRAW	WIN
Incursion	1	2	2
Strike Force	1	2	3
Onslaught	2	3	4

BLACKSTONE ALLIANCE UPGRADES
At the end of each campaign phase, an alliance can work together to select Alliance Upgrades (see below). For this process, we recommend electing a captain to coordinate each alliance, especially in larger campaigns. These Alliance Upgrades are limited - once they’ve been purchased by an alliance, others cannot purchase them for the rest of the campaign, and they offer benefits to every member of the alliance.

SELECTING ALLIANCE UPGRADES
At the start of the second and third campaign phase, before any battles are fought, each alliance can select an upgrade (see below) that lasts until the end of the next campaign phase and applies to the entire alliance. Selection begins with the alliance who currently has the lowest Campaign points and ascends.

STRATEGIC POINTS
At the end of each campaign phase, the victorious and runner-up alliances gain the number of Strategic points shown in the table below, based on which phase of the campaign it is.

At the end of the campaign, the alliance with the most Strategic points wins the campaign and its players are declared the victors!

If any alliances are tied, tally up the total number of Blackstone Fragments between all members of each alliance. The alliance with the most Blackstone Fragments is the winner.

STRATEGIC POINTS EARNED
CAMPAIGN PHASES WON	STRATEGIC POINTS (VICTOR)	STRATEGIC POINTS (RUNNER-UP)
Phase 1	2	1
Phase 2	3	1
Phase 3	4	0

Alliance Upgrades

UNDERESTIMATED THREAT

There is some strategic advantage to being underestimated by your enemies, and you intend to seize it.

In the next phase of the campaign, each time a player from the alliance plays a battle, if they are the Underdog, they can select 1 additional Crusade Blessing for that battle. If they are not the Underdog and their opponent would select two or more Crusade Blessings for that battle, subtract 1 from the number of Crusade Blessings their opponent can select.

SUPPLY SURPLUS

Recognising that your alliances efforts in this region are crucial to the wider war effort, elements behind the lines have diverted more resources in your direction.

Each member of the alliance gains 3 Requisition points.

TIMELY REINFORCEMENTS

Whether they come by fortuitous warp jump, glowing dolmen gate or some other more esoteric means, you have received a sudden and substantial influx of much-needed reinforcements.

Each member of the alliance increases their Crusade force’s Supply Limit by 500 points.

MIGHT OF ANTIQUITY

In the face of adversity on every front, your alliance has sanctioned the deployment of ancient war relics and supernatural super-weapons. So armed, surely you cannot fail.

Each member of the alliance can select one CHARACTER unit (excluding EPIC HEROES) from their Order of Battle; that unit gains a Crusade Relic.

EXCELLENCE THROUGH ADVERSITY

For a select few, the nightmarish conditions within the nodal matrix draw out their inner martial excellence.

Each member of the alliance can select one INFANTRY unit (excluding CHARACTERS) from their Order of Battle; that unit gains 7XP.

STRATEGIC AUGURY

Foretelling the future through psychic or hyper-cogitational means provides your alliance with potent insights to exploit.

The alliance gains 1 Strategic point for the campaign.

TELEPORT ARRAYS ARMED

Whether by ancient technologies, dark sorcery or powers altogether stranger, your alliance is ready to hurl their finest warriors into the very heart of battle in a sudden shock assault.

Before a battle in which a member of the alliance has Advantage (see Strategic Footings), that player can select one Infantry unit from their Crusade army to gain the Deep Strike ability for that battle.

ORBITAL BOMBARDMENT

Shapes vast and dark slide into attack positions above the contested world as your warships prepare to rain death upon the armies battling far below.

During their next battle, each member of the alliance can use the following ability:

Orbital Bombardment: Once per battle, at the start of your Shooting phase, place a marker anywhere on the battlefield. At the start of your next Shooting phase, place another marker anywhere on the battlefield with its centre within 9" of the centre of the first marker, then draw a line between the centre of those two markers. For each unit that line passes over or through, roll one D6: on a 2+, that unit suffers D3 mortal wounds. Both markers are then removed.

FORTIFIED DEFENCES

Exploiting the rubble, wrecks and ruin of countless previous battles, your hosts are able to swiftly assemble improvised defences ready to help them weather the next enemy onslaught.

During their next battle, each member of the alliance can use the following ability:

Fortified Defences: Once per battle, at the start of your Command phase, you can use this ability. If you do, until the start of your next Command phase, each time a ranged attack targets a unit from your Crusade army, if that unit is within range of an objective marker you control, models in that unit have the Benefit of Cover against that attack.

HOARDED NOCTILITH

Certain that it can be put to myriad potent uses, your alliance shares out a portion of their hoarded blackstone.

Each member of the alliance gains 2 Blackstone Fragments.

Strategic Footings

Due to the effects of the Stilling, combat in the Pariah Nexus is chaotic - communications are strained, and enemies can be hard to detect amongst the mental haze. Because of this, your Crusade army will often have to deploy with less strategic information than it would normally possess, and you must make decisions as a commander as to the strategic footing you will adopt.

It is not just your army struggling, however - your opponent will have to decide how they want to take on each battle as well, leading to last-minute decisions that could make all the difference in how the conflict plays out.

During the Select Strategic Footing step, each player must secretly select an Aggressive, Balanced or Defensive Strategic Footing for that mission. Once both players have selected, you must reveal your Strategic Footings at the same time and compare your results using the table opposite (referencing the key below). The upper icon in each cell dictates which player is the Attacker, and the lower icon dictates which piayer (if any) gains Advantage. Note that some situations require both players to roll off to determine the outcome: the winner of this roll-off becomes the Attacker or gains Advantage, respectively.

The effects of gaining Advantage vary from mission to mission, and are described in each Pariah Nexus mission. Note that other rules may also be affected by gaining Advantage.

Attacker gains Advantage

Player A is the Attacker

Player B is the Attacker

Defender gains Advantage

Neither player gains Advantage

Roll off

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Gheists In The Static
1

Throttled by the nodal matrix, conventional methods of communication are reduced to squalls of interference through which broken voices gasp for orders and aid. Only by seizing hardened comms relays can such all-important messages be forced through.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Before the battle, select one unit from your Crusade army. Until the end of the battle, that unit has the Infiltrators rule, but it cannot begin the battle within range of an objective marker in No Man’s Land.

Attacker: The Attacker has the first turn.

Comms Blackout: At the start of the Command phase, each player only gains the 1CP they normally would if one of more units from their army are within range of one or more objective markers in No Man’s Land that they control.

VICTOR BONUS
The victors Crusade force gains 1 additional Requisition point and 3 Blackstone Fragments.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

HOLD OUT

Progressive Objective

Amidst such grim and confused conditions, whichever force has the bloody-minded determination to dig in and hang on will stand a good chance of seizing victory.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.
If they are the Attacker, they control one or more objective markers that were controlled by their opponent at the start of that battle round.
If they are the Defender, they control one or more objective markers that they controlled at the end of the previous battle round.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Dig Site Raid
2

With warring factions expending great efforts to rip noctilith deposits from deep beneath the ground, swift gains can be made by those quick enough to launch hit-and-run raids to steal their amassed caches of blackstone.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, you can target a CHARACTER unit with the Epic Challenge Stratagem for 0CP.

Blackstone Collecting: At the start of the battle, each objective marker on the battlefield contains one Blackstone Fragment. At the start of your turn,
if a CHARACTER model from your Crusade army is within range of an objective marker you control that contains a Blackstone Fragment, that model can collect it. If it does, that model takes possession of that Blackstone Fragment and that objective marker no longer contains a Blackstone Fragment.

Raiding Their Cache: If a CHARACTER model in possession of a Blackstone Fragment is destroyed, place a marker as close as possible to where that model was destroyed. For the purposes of the Blackstone Collecting rule, that marker counts as an objective marker containing one Blackstone Fragment (which can be collected as described above), but does not count as an objective marker for any other rules purposes.

VICTOR BONUS
Select one unit that collected one or more Blackstone Fragments during the battle; that unit gains D3+3XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

CONTROL BLACKSTONE SITES

Progressive Objective

Seizing and defending the blackstone caches at this site will prevent the enemy from laying claim to them.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

BLACKSTONE EXTRACTION

End Game Objective

Ultimately, the true prize in this battle will go to whichever force is able to amass the most cached noctilith and extract it from the combat zone.

At the end of the battle, each player scores 10VP for each Blackstone Fragment possessed by a CHARACTER model from their Crusade army. In addition, for each of those Blackstone Fragments, that player s Crusade force gains 1 Blackstone Fragment.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Quantum Siege
3

Many strategically valuable Necron sites in this war zone, from dolmen gate entries to the access points to towering pylons, are defended by quantum shielding. Defending or sabotaging such defences is therefore paramount to many battle plans.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, in your Command phase, you can select one unit from your Crusade army Until the start of your next Command phase, add 1 to the Objective Control characteristic of models in that unit.

Siege Offensive: The Attacker has the first turn.

Quantum Shielded: At the start of the battle, each objective marker is considered to have its quantum shield enabled. While a unit is within range of an objective marker with its quantum shield enabled, models in that unit have a 5+ invulnerable save against ranged attacks.

Configure Shield Conduit: At the end of each player’s Movement phase, the player whose turn it is can select one objective marker they do not control that has one or more units from their Crusade army (excluding Battle-shocked units) within range of it. That player can choose to enable or disable that objective markers quantum shield.

VICTOR BONUS
Before the next battle, the victor can use the Rearm and Resupply Requisition up to two times without spending any Requisition points to do so.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

SEIZE SHIELD NODES

Progressive Objective

Control of these thrumming hubs of Necron technology is crucial to this conflict, whether in order to defend them or to wreak violent sabotage upon them.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

SHIELD STATUS REPORT

End Game Objective

Whether the shields have fallen or not by battles end will likely determine the victor.

At the end of the battle:

The Attacker scores 20VP for each disabled quantum shield on the battlefield.
The Defender scores 15VP for each enabled quantum shield on the battlefield.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Outflank
4

Between communications breakdowns, fluctuating command structures, swift offensives and counterattacks, and the confusion of xenos civil war, conditions are ideal for swift outflanking strikes against poorly positioned or disrupted enemy forces.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: You can select which deployment zones will be used for this mission: either those marked A or those marked B. If you select B, the Attacker must set up at least one third of their army’s units in each of their deployment zones marked B and the Defender always has the first turn. If neither player has Advantage, use the zones marked A.

Flanking Strike: The Defender cannot place any units into Strategic Reserves or Reserves (excluding units that must always be placed in Reserves, e.g. AIRCRAFT that cannot Hover, Drop Pods).

VICTOR BONUS

IF THE ATTACKER IS THE VICTOR

Each unit from the victor’s Crusade army that ends the battle within range of an objective marker gains 2XP.

IF THE DEFENDER IS THE VICTOR

The next time the victor adds a unit to their Order of Battle, that unit starts with 6XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

STRATEGIC HOLDOUT

Progressive Objective

The attackers dynamic gamble leaves the battle in flux, offering the opportunity for a decisive commander to drive home or resolutely blunt this sudden offensive.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

CRITICAL OBJECTIVE

End Game Objective

Defending or seizing so crucial a strategic objective will make or break the fates of this sudden and bloody clash.

At the end of the battle, the player who controls the objective marker at the centre of the battlefield scores 20VP.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Overwhelming Dread
5

The oppressive influence of the Stilling presses down like a shroud on this region, impacting mortal souls, empyric energies and technology alike. Worse, its ravages have rendered key strategic points perilous through malfunction and neglect.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Before the battle, select one objective marker on the battlefield. Until the end of the battle, that objective marker is not affected by the Stilled Nodes or Disruption mission rules.

Stilled Nodes: While a unit is within range of an objective marker, each time that unit takes a Battle-shock or Leadership test, subtract 1 from that test.

Disruption: While a unit from your Crusade army with an Aura ability is within range of an objective marker you control, the range of that Aura ability is decreased by 3" (to a minimum of 1").

VICTOR BONUS
The victor gains 2 additional Requisition points.

MISSION OBJECTIVE

SECURE AND ENDURE

Progressive Objective

It is not enough simply to seize strategic control of this area - commanders and armies must also hold their collective nerve in the face of mounting horrors.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.
One or more units from their Crusade army passed a Battle-shock test while within range of an objective marker that battle round.

Objective Marker
Only used in Strike Force games.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Unstable Archeotech
6

Many unpredictable horrors of technology were brought into this war zone by reckless Tech-Magi. A device of just this sort has vomited its unstable payload over this area, and commanders must now scramble to direct its fury against their foes.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, at the start of your Shooting phase, you can select one objective marker you control. Until the start of your next Shooting phase, that objective marker can be moved using the Delivery mission rule without preventing a unit from shooting or charging.

Delivery: At the start of each players Shooting phase, the player whose turn it is can select one or more units from their Crusade army (excluding Battle-shocked units) that are eligible to shoot and within range of an objective marker. Until the end of the turn, the selected units are not eligible to shoot or declare a charge.

At the start of that players next Command phase, for each of those units, if that unit is still within range of the same objective marker and not within Engagement Range of one or more enemy units, that player can move that objective marker up to 6", provided it ends that move closer to their opponent’s battlefield edge.

VICTOR BONUS
Each unit from the victor’s Crusade army that ended the battle within range of an objective marker the victor controls gains 1XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS

Progressive Objective

The payloads must be secured and hastily relocated into enemy territory.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5 VP if they control one or more objective markers.

DETONATION

End Game Objective

Its machine spirit driven to apoplexy, the device unleashes its wrath on those within the blast radius.

At the end of the battle, each objective marker detonates:

The Attacker scores 20VP for each objective marker that detonates in their opponent’s deployment zone.
The Defender scores 20VP for each objective marker that detonates in their opponent’s deployment zone.
If an objective marker detonates in No Man’s Land, the player who controls it scores 10VP

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Polarising Energies
1

Jutting from this region are a number of surface noctilith deposits, possibly even extrusions of a distant pylon. Something has disrupted their empyric polarities, causing them to fluctuate with reality-warping results.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, at the start of the battle round, you can choose for the polarity of the objective markers not to shift that battle round.

Positively Charged: Objective markers marked A begin the battle positively charged. While a unit is within range of a positively charged objective marker, that unit has the Benefit of Cover.

Negatively Charged: Objective markers marked B begin the battle negatively charged. At the end of the battle round, each unit within range of a negatively charged objective marker suffers 1 mortal wound.

Shifting Polarity: From the second battle round onwards, at the start of the battle round, each objective marker shifts polarity (i.e. positively charged objective markers become negatively charged, and vice versa).

VICTOR BONUS
The victor gains 3 Blackstone Fragments.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

CONTROL THE EXTRUSIONS

Progressive Objective

By seizing these strangely polarised deposits, it may be possible to exploit their energies or study what has caused this bizarre and seemingly spontaneous phenomenon.

At the end of each Command phase:

The player whose turn it is scores 5VP if they control one or more objective markers.
If the player whose turn it is controls more objective markers than their opponent, the player whose turn it is scores 15VP.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Amidst The Miasma
2

Unleashed by warfare or the degenerating Imperial infrastructure of abandoned machineries and neglected facilities, miasmal fumes and billowing smoke obscure this area. This dreadful haze has caused two armies to clash in unexpected confusion.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: At the start of the battle, select one unit from your Crusade army. Until the end of the battle, that unit is not affected by the Shambling Through the Fog mission rule.

Shambling Through the Fog: Each time a unit is selected to Advance, if it is within No Man’s Land, subtract 2 from the Advance roll.

Fight Through The Haze: Each time a model makes an attack that targets a unit within No Man’s Land, subtract 1 from the Hit roll.

VICTOR BONUS
The victor can select one additional unit from their Crusade army to be Marked for Greatness.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

STRUGGLE FOR CONTROL

Progressive Objective

With the battling armies badly disrupted and struggling with hostile conditions, the battle becomes an anarchic fight to assert control.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

ESCAPE

End Game Objective

Little is to be gained from remaining within the churning horror of this conflict to be torn apart. Retreat in good order is surely the wisest course.

At the end of the battle, each player scores 10 VP for each unit from their Crusade army that is wholly within their opponent’s deployment zone.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

False Intel
3

With confusion already rife across the battlefronts surrounding Stornvor’s Fortress, wily commanders resort to seeding false intelligence, the better to misdirect their enemies and leave them open to attack.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, before rolling off for the Intel Discovery mission rule, you can choose to automatically win that roll off.

Intel Discovery: At the start of the battle round, both players roll off. The winner can set up one objective marker wholly within No Man’s Land, more than 9" away from all other objective markers and within 1" of a unit from their Crusade army that is not Battle-shocked and is not within Engagement Range of one or more enemy units. If that player does not have an eligible unit, their opponent can set up one objective marker as described above instead.

VICTOR BONUS
The victor can select one unit from their Crusade army that was not destroyed to gain a Battle Trait. This must be a unit that can gain a Battle Trait.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

INTEL DOWNLOAD

Progressive Objective

There are genuine strategic secrets to be gleaned from this conflict, but only by those swift enough to seize their opportunities and sift the false leads from genuine facts.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 10VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control an objective marker that was set up during this battle round.
They control the objective marker at the centre of the battlefield.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Tortured Worldscape
4

The competing cosmic energies unleashed by the super-weapons of warring factions have destabilised the very world beneath their feet. The resultant tectonic fury may yet spell mutual destruction for all.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, at the start of the battle round, you can select one fissure; until the end of the battle round, while a unit from your Crusade army is within that fissure, models in that unit have the Feel No Pain 4+ ability against mortal wounds inflicted by the Open Fissure rule.

Open Fissure: At the start of the battle round, each unit within an open fissure (see deployment map) must take a Leadership test. If that test is failed, that unit suffers D3 mortal wounds.

Splitting Earth: At the start of the first battle round, Fissure 1 is open and Fissures 2 and 3 are closed. At the start of the third battle round, Fissure 2 opens, and at the start of the fifth battle round, Fissure 3 opens.

VICTOR BONUS
The victor can select one unit from their Crusade army that was not destroyed. That unit gains 5XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

WITH RISK COMES VICTORY

Progressive Objective

Capture your prizes while the heaving earth allows it.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control one or more objective markers within an open fissure.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

TO ASH AND EMBERS

Progressive Objective

Match the volcanic ferocity of the battlefield itself

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They destroyed one or more enemy units.
One or more enemy units were destroyed as a result of the Open Fissure mission rule.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Interdimensional Clash
5

Battling around the feet of the Necron pylons becomes а confusing nightmare as overlapping overlapping dimensional oubliettes and localised teleportation corridors add to the tangled devastation already created by thepylon’s emergence or manifestation.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: If you are the Attacker, extend your deployment zone by 3" towards your opponents battlefield edge. If you are the Defender, reduce the Attacker’s deployment zone by 6" towards their battlefield edge.

Danger Close: When resolving the Deadly Demise ability, increase its range by 3" and add 1 to the roll.

Designer’s Note: We recommend placing a higher volume of terrain such as ruins in No Mans Land and the Defenders deployment zone to represent a tight, close-quarters battlefield.

VICTOR BONUS

IF THE ATTACKER IS THE VICTOR

Each unit from the victor’s Crusade army that ends the battle within range of an objective marker in the Defenders deployment zone gains 3XP.

IF THE DEFENDER IS THE VICTOR

Each unit from the victor’s Crusade army that ends the battle within range of an objective marker in their deployment zone gains 3XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

A GRIP ON REALITY

Progressive Objective

Amidst such unpredictable and dimensionally unstable conditions, it is imperative to secure a solid foothold and push the enemy back long enough to rally your forces.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5 VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Nullification Field
6

In this region, a potent contra-energistic Necron defence structure has awoken and unleashed its leeching powers. With no other option, warring forces must push forward through the squall of negative energies to seize victory.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Select one objective marker within the Null Field, excluding the one at the centre of the battlefield. You can move that objective marker up to 6“ in any direction, so long as it ends that move not within the Nullification Field and within No Mans Land.

Nullification Field: While a model is within 12" of the centre of the battlefield, invulnerable saving throws cannot be made for that model.

VICTOR BONUS
The victor can select two units from their Crusade army to be Marked for Greatness.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

WITH RISK COMES VICTORY

Progressive Objective

There can be no victory on this battlefield without forcing a path forward into the heart of the nullification field.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 10VP for each of the following conditions they satisfying:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control one or more objective markers that are within the Null Field.
They control the objective marker at the centre of the battlefield.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Into The Tomb
1-2

The Necrons’ efforts in this region have drawn unwanted attention to one of their awakened tomb complexes. Now warring factions fight amidst shadows and eldritch energies of ancient structures as they seek to seize or sabotage them.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, you can select one objective marker and add 1 to or subtract 1 from that objective markers Power tally (to a minimum of 0).

Besiege the System: The Attacker has the first turn.

Power System Override: At the start of the battle, each objective marker has a Power tally of 0, and each starts under the Defender’s control, and remains so until controlled by the Attacker.

At the start of each player’s turn, for each objective marker the Defender controls, add 1 to the Power tally of that objective marker. For each objective marker the Attacker controls, subtract 1 from the Power tally of that objective marker (to a minimum of 0).

Overloaded Systems: If at any point an objective marker’s Power tally reaches 5 or more, that objective marker is overloaded and removed from the game.

VICTOR BONUS
One unit from the victor’s Crusade army that is not destroyed at the end of the battle gains D3+3XP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

SAPPERS

End Game Objective

What better way to eliminate the threat posed by this complex and its denizens than to reduce them all to blazing rubble?

At the end of the battle, for each objective marker that was overloaded, the Defender scores 20VP.

SYSTEM CONTROL

End Game Objective

Raiding and wreaking havoc is one thing, but true strategic victory will likely belong to whichever commander secures the complex, its entrances, exits and vital systems.

At the end of the battle, for each objective marker the Attacker controls, the Attacker scores 10VP.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Reawakening
3-4

Amidst a confused and increasingly ferocious conflict, a disrupted Necron macro-system is coming back online one relay at a time. The combatants have a limited window to seize or sabotage the crackling energistic nodes as they reawaken.

MISSION RULES
Advantage: Once per battle, you can target a unit with the Rapid Ingress Stratagem for 0CP.

Drop Zone Blocked: Units arriving from Reserves or deploying using the Infiltrators ability cannot be set up within range of any objective markers.

Narrow Window: During the first and second battle rounds, objective markers marked A are active and can be controlled normally (all other objective markers cannot be controlled). During the third and fourth battle rounds, objective markers marked B are active and can be controlled normally (all other objective markers cannot be controlled). During the fifth battle round, the objective marker marked C is active and can be controlled normally (all other objective markers cannot be controlled).

VICTOR BONUS
The next time the victor uses the Legendary Veterans Requisition, it costs 1RP.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

POWER STRUGGLE

Progressive Objective

With so few strategic sites viable at any given moment, this battle will soon become a savage brawl to control those that can be accessed.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

FINAL BATTLE

End Game Objective

The greatest concentration of Necron technology lies at the very heart of this site. Surely, the commander who seizes this central node stands the best chance of securing or sabotaging the entire system.

At the end of the battle, the player who controls the objective marker marked C scores 20VP.

Pariah Nexus Crusade Mission

Final Acquisition
5-6

After a bloody back and forth amidst the haunted ruins of a dead world, two mighty forces clash for final control of vital noctilith riches. The commander who sweeps away their foes and secures this region will win a great victory for their faction.

MISSION RULES
Sweep and Clear: If a player controls an objective marker at the end of their Command phase, that objective marker remains under their control, even if they have no models within range of it, until their opponent controls it at the end of any turn.

VICTOR BONUS
The victor gains 5 Blackstone Fragments.

MISSION OBJECTIVES

CONQUERORS

Progressive Objective

Drive the enemy from this vital strategic site wholesale, securing the region one cache of blackstone at a time until all of its riches are yours.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 5VP for each of the following conditions they satisfy:

They control one or more objective markers.
They control more objective markers than their opponent.

OUTWITTED AND OUTFLANKED

Progressive Objective

Exploit your enemy's singular focus and incaution, sweeping your own forces around or through their battle lines to lay claim to riches they should have guarded better.

At the end of each Command phase, the player whose turn it is scores 10VP if they control the objective marker in their opponent’s deployment zone.