Ish

Cool! It definitely seems like GW has decided to start offering terrain for factions other than “Generic Imperial.”

I always assume that leaks for gaming content are a mix of genuine leaks from play testers, “leaks” from play testers that have the wink-and-a-nod from the publisher, and “leaks” directly from the publisher themselves.

Whoa. This is huge. A tactic that I’d been using for several editions with my Deathwing and planned to use with my Custodes was to plop one guy with a storm shield into my units for every five men. Use the storm shield to “tank” the occasional high AP hit and then let one of the others take the small arms fire. Imperial Guard Infantry Squad with a lascannon shoots the squad, shield tanks it with 3++ Save. The eight guys with lasguns shoot, take it all on the 2+ Save of a regular trooper. Now, not only must all shots from the one attacking unit be taken on that first man, he must continue to try to tank shots for the rest of the Shooting phase!

Yeah, I wouldn’t want it for every unit in 40k, but it wouldn’t be too bad it it was just a special rule for a few things like Knights, Tyranid mega-bugs, and so forth.

As I recall, 1/2” is the default mêlée range in AoS, but there are mêlée weapons have a range stat, just like shooting weapons, so units with spears or other large weapons often fight at 2”. Perhaps they’re going to add something like this in WH40k for those few units that have really large mêlée weapons? They did tease us with this notion during one of the earlier previews... Maybe we just haven’t seen this rule yet? Cheers to this, says I. A full-throated and hearty Huzzah!

Horde Armies have the “2/3 VP at the end of your turn, 3 units wholely within 3 quarters, wholey within 4 and over 6" from the center“ objective as an almost guaranteed pile of points. Gas up the Chimeras.

So this is going to be an automatic pick for my Custodes...

This is a rule that most tourneys have used since the dawn of time, but it’s nice to see it codified as an official rule.

Well, that’s gonna need a FAQ addressing how it works with Custodes... Unless they intended for my stormshield equipped Custodian Guard to have a 3++ Invulnerable Save and a 1+ Armor Save.

That would make more sense.

$200-250 seems like a plausible price for the Indomitus box, depending on whether or not it comes with a soft-back mini rulebook or a full-blown hardcover deluxe rulebook. I want to like the Hammerfall turret, but I’m not quite sold on it. Is it supposed to be a modular unit that gets dropped into a zone and then assembled (which it looks like) or is it dropped into place as-is (which the name implies, but the model absolutely doesn’t look like something that could be aerodynamically dropped... even with the Imperium’s usual tenuous notions of what aerodynamic designs are). And what was wrong with the classic Deathstorm drop pod!?

Potential point cost leaks* have been spotted. * Authenticity in no way guaranteed or even implied.

I just happen to have seen a battle report on YouTube for that exact scenario.

The Command Benefit means you only get the CP rebate if your Warlord is in the Supreme Command Detachment which means he will not in the Brigade/Battalion/Patrol Detachment, in which case it still costs 4/3/2 CP. You don't get extra CP by having this detachment, you simply won't lose any... But it does meant Magnus, Mortarian, and Roboute won't necessarily spend Ninth Edition decorating your shelves.

Random turn length is a sacred cow that needed to be slaughtered a long time ago. If it was an aspect of one or two narrative scenarios where it added some sort of tension – Can you defend the spaceport long enough for the civilians to evacuate? – it wouldn’t be so bad, but when any given scenario has a 67% chance of going to turn six, and a 33% chance of going to turn seven... The game becomes a chore. You either have to table your opponent or build up an unassailable lead by turn five. Otherwise, your opponent will drop all pretense of trying to win and just play for the draw.

It’s theoretically possible...

Frostgrave also has various types of soldiers that are, basically, upgraded versions of others. Which means you totally can “advance” the mooks in your warband. Thieves are basically “low level” Treasure Hunters; a Crossbowman is a “low level” Marksman; a Thug becomes a Man-at-Arms who becomes a Knight... But rather than spend time and mental energy having to do bookkeeping for them all, you just save up your gold, and when you’re able to do so you fire a Crossbowman and hire a Marksman. Name them both “Roderick” on your roster and continue to use the same miniature.

Hence the “we don’t really know, but we wanna speculate anyway” caveat.

I do so love Marvel Crisis Protocol, but I’ve already committed to a WH40k game.

Frostgrave‘s second edition is due out in mid-August. I’d suggest holding off for another two months.

A recent post from Goonhammer seems to be leaning towards large units actually being rather good. Of course, they also add that:

I haven’t been able to find a Land Raider anywhere! But, then again, I’ve also only been looking for “pre-owned” Land Raiders. They’re usually pretty common on the second-hand market (until I wanted one) and since I figure I’ll need at least two, it seemed prudent to save money. But it seems like everyone on the internet has decided that Custodes lists should just be nothing but Terminators, Telemons, and Bikes... and I’m just sort of reflexively contrarian by nature. So I’m gonna dig in my heels and not use (many) of those units.

The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story documentary on Netflix. I flipped it on mostly to have as background noise while building miniatures, but I got sucked in. I’ve been a classic rock / prog rock fan since I was in utero thanks to my dad having Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull, and so for on the stereo 24/7 for my entire childhood. But my personal favorite always was and always will be Queen. The band stopped touring when I was still in kindergarten and I never got to see them live... and Freddie Mercury passed away when I was ten (tragically/ironically, Wayne’s World would introduce them to the rest of my generation shortly afterward). When Brian May and Roger Taylor started teaming up with guest artists, I was distinctly underwhelmed. So I pretty much avoided listening to anything they ever did with Adam Lambert... Oh man, was I wrong. Very wrong. The Show Must Go On documentary takes great care to let May and Taylor explain why they choose to continue touring, how reluctant they were to replace Freddie, and just how impressed they were when they first met Lambert. It also let’s Lambert have ample time to explain that he knows he cannot (and isn’t trying) to be the new Freddie Mercury... But, honestly, he’s probably the next best thing (or rather the best next thing) because he although he doesn’t have Mercury’s voice, he’s definitely got Mercury’s soul. And his voice is equally phenomenal. I’m still not crazy about Lambert’s solo stuff (too pop, too dance, not enough rock) but I’ve 180° reversed my opinion of his partnership with Queen.

I was making a joke, WestRider: Hyperbolic exaggeration for comedic effect.