Games Workshop reveals another Astra Militarum regiment, this time: the Valhallan Ice Warriors!
Always a cool looking regiment, it is great to see the Valhallans getting some love. This regiment is known for being very dour and merciless in the face of their enemies. They rules that reflect that quite well I think
So this may not seem as flashy as some of the other doctrines like Catachan, for example, but it is really good in an army that builds to take advantage of it. Like the other regiments, part of it affects infantry, the other vehicles. The infantry part halves the number of models that run away from a failed morale check. This is awesome as Astra Militarum leadership tends to not be very good. It also means units of Conscripts suffer less casualties if the Commissar gets killed or you can run basic infantry squads around the table without worrying too much about morale support. The vehicle boost is awesome as it allows you to ignore your degrading profile until the vehicle is damn near dead. A Leman Russ, for example, would be at full efficacy until it had only 4 wounds remaining and would then not degrade again until it was down to a single wound!
Their unique order likewise, reflects that stern demeanor. It allows you to shoot at enemy units within 1″ of friendly units but on a roll of a 1 to hit, you hit a friendly model. Obviously you want to try and have a reroll 1 aura effecting this unit to offset that with a model like Commissar Yarrick. But, this is very powerful as it allows you to absorb a charge with a unit like Conscripts and then blast the enemy unit even if you are unable to withdraw from combat with the Conscripts such as if they get pinned in combat.
This unique Stratagem reflects that strategy quite well as if you do lose your Conscripts (or other infantry unit), you can bring them back for 2 CP. This can be an awesome and tricky tactic to use, playing a unit very aggressively and then when they die, recycle them on to a back objective.
What do you all think of the Valhallans? Cannot wait for this awesome new codex which will be available for pre-order this Saturday, September 30th!
I like this one, but maybe not as much as I like the Vostroya. What do you think about the conscript changes?
I think they are for the better. Many armies struggle to deal with Conscripts.
With the Combined Squads stratagem, does this really change anything though? I mean, with being able to bring blobs back to life, and still be fearless (Unless commissars have changed) they don’t seem better off, Haha.
To clarify, they discussed this in the Warhammer Live stream, so it’s entirely possible someone lost something in translation, but that makes them seem even more oppressive, somehow. Let alone Scions shooting an extra time on a 6+ at half range, lol
the full picture, patience, etcetc
I like that it makes the normal Infantry Squad appealing.
Thank god for that. Normal infantry squads were in a really awkward place.
Can’t tell if this is what you are implying – but it says specifically in the revive stratagem that you can’t use it on a squad that has been combined.
So yes you can spend CP to combine two squads of conscripts (assuming it works on them) to make a squad the same size as you could before. But they are still nerfed as far as orders go and you’re forcing them to spend CP to get something they got for free before.
Since I can’t use my main tag from mobile for some reason, I’m not meaning to imply they can be used together. I’m saying that with all of the new* options, it doesn’t seem like they’ve been nerfed very much at all (potentially didn’t really NEED to be).
While the argument can certainly be made guard will need to spend additional CP, they also have the easiest time obtaining CP, if they so chose.
I’m not sure how strong reviving a Conscript blob within 6″ of table edge is. Especially given you can’t reliably give them the double move order. Still, I was expecting BS/WS nerfs.
The fact that the stratagem says you can’t do it on combined infantry squads would lead me to think its only infantry squads that can be combined
That tank doctrine is nasty. Absolutely 0 degradation until 1/4 life. It’s going to be almost impossible to hit the lowest degradation without being on 1 or 2 wounds for almost every tank.
Yeah, especially on Super Heavy tanks!
And here I kept asking you what I should do with my Shadowsword.
Dude, wait till you see its stats, lol
Curious if your opinion on the best superheavy tank has changed?
They’re all quite good, now! Stormlord is still a beast, but I honestly like them all but I lean towards the Banehammer, personally.
So you still have to pay for that resurrected squad in matched play though right? That’s fairly situational ability to save the points for it.
No, you don’t pay extra points for it. You pay the command points to enact it.
Page 214, Matched Play rules:
REINFORCEMENT POINTS
Sometimes a psychic power or ability will allow you
to add units to your army, or replace units that have
been destroyed. One of the most common examples of
such an ability might allow you to summon a unit of
DAEMONS to the battlefield. In a matched play game,
you must set aside some of your points in order to use
these units. The points you set aside are called your
reinforcement points, and need to be recorded on your
army roster (see below).
Codex trumps BRB and the stratagem says nothing about paying points for the unit. I would say that a stratagem is not a psychic power nor an ability. Also, having to pay points for the recycled unit would render the stratagem pretty useless.
But I’ll let the people who helped play test field this one.
In previous instances of things being created by abilities where you do not need to pay points, it specifies that you do not. Specifically see setting up spawn and daemon princes from Chaos Boon. This is an instance of the Codex countermanding the BRB. Not explicitly saying that you have to follow it is not the same as the Codex trumps the rule book.
The Strategem is what allows you to do it, but I don’t see anything that “overrules” the BRB. I would think you need to pay the points for these units in Matched Play. Same for the Cultists brought back using their essentially identical strategem.
They’re very different, not identical. The cultists Stratagem adds models BACK to an existing squad. Similar to a Tervigon, which is free. This one creates a new unit after one is destroyed.
How is this any different from the Agripinaa “Fresh Converts” strategem and do you all believe they have to pay for another unit of Kataphrons, etc in order to use that strategem?
Tide of Traitors and Fresh Converts take a Unit that is still on the field, restore all lost Models to it, and re-deploy it. They do not create a new Unit. They just add lost Models back in, which does not require Reinforcement Points.
I think the key is that you are not adding units to your army. You are taking the same unit that was destroyed and placing it again. Just like if Bobby G or another character “resurrects”, you don’t pay reinforcement points.
The other instances you are creating new units (clearly requiring reinforcement points) or you are adding to an existing unit (clearly not requiring them)
But it actually says replacing destroyed units cost points explicitly. In the rules for reinforcement points.
How is this stratagem not replacing a destroyed unit?
Also Guilliman’s ability doesn’t seem to let him die. Just moves him around and gives him d6 wounds back. Much like the new version of the resurrection relic that death get in AoS. They made it like that specifically to make it not cost points.
Same thing with Celestine. They are not allowed to be removed and considered destroyed and instead regent wounds. Ability does not replace a destroyed unit.
So I’m kind of curious…will Yarrick be relegated to Armageddon regiments only?
Commissars aren’t Regiment specific, so he shouldn’t be.
He’s not a commissar, he’s Commissar Yarrick, so he should be.
No I mean fluff wise commissars aren’t tied to regiments. Also he was never associated with the Steel Legion anyway. He was part of the Planetary Defense Force.
No Commissars have a keyword.
How does Yarrick’s role as a commissar of the Armageddon PDF justify his use in non-Steel Legion armies?
Because the Armageddon PDF is a non-Steel Legion army?
Agreed.
But has the biggest question been answered yet:
Are Grenade Launchers still woefully awful? Currently they wouldnt be usable even if the were free because of opportunity cost of missing on more effective weapons and making the unit less likely to do its job.
Grenade Launchers are great, it’s just that the Plasma Gun was too cheap comparatively. I actually quite like Grenade Launchers for their versatility.
So are plasmas more expensive now or what?
They are for BS3+ or better units.