FirebaseSix - PartTwo (Focus On Games Workshop Specialist Games)

Specialist Games Supplement
Hi there Specialist Gamers! format the tale. In this case, itll be a Tale of Specialist Gamers, and its our main Firebase feature in this issue. Each of our tale articles will not just involve collecting and painting an army, but also it will show you each persons approach to collecting a new force for a Specialist Games game system. If youve never tried a Specialist system, then perhaps thisll give you a window into how to approach starting a new Specialist Game. So, let me start again Hi there, prospective Specialist Gamers!
SPECIALIST GAMES
A TALE OF SPECIALIST GAMERS Collecting Epic IG. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Collecting Epic Feral Orks . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Collecting an Imperial Fleet . . . . . . . . . . 93 Collecting a Gorkamorka mob . . . . . . . . 97 Collecting a Necromunda gang . . . . . . . 98 INQUISITOR The Silent Hunters - Tau operatives in Inquisitor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 AERONAUTICA IMPERIALIS Keeping Things Square Meditations on the Aeronautica movement phase . 108 Tactica Imperialis A comprehensive tactica for Imperial Players . . . . . . . . 113 Battle Report Dark Angels vs. Orks . . 116 BATTLEFLEET GOTHIC: Da Mek Sez sculpting Ork ships.. . . . 125 GORKAMORKA: Propa Ork Klan Roolz! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 New Gubbinz!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 EPIC: Space Marines versus Chaos Space Marines, both with Titan allies . . . . . 142
On second thoughts, perhaps thats not the best opener for this issue you see, after our last issue I carried out an informal poll of gamers on Warseer, asking questions here and there, to try and nd out what kind of articles you wanted to see in the Specialist Games section. Two comments tended to stand out prominently: 1) More hobby articles! 2) More introductory articles! With that in mind, we have decided to run a series of articles along the lines of a familiar
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Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
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Collecting Imperial Guard for Epic: Armageddon
COLLECTING IMPERIAL GUARD FOR EPIC: ARMAGEDDON

By Jonathan Brown Ive been playing Epic in its various forms since Adeptus Titanicus. However Ive never had an Imperial Guard at either scale. Epic Armageddon gave me the excuse to nally collect one. ONE CAREFUL OWNER In the last couple of years Ive discovered eBay, so the army has been sourced from there and GW Mail Order. Although not strictly necessary, a PayPal account will make your life a lot easier if you are buying via eBay. For a start your payments are safer, instant, and lots of sellers are PayPal only. Buying second-hand models often means buying painted models. I strip the paint from metal models using Nitromors, widely available in the UK. Put your minis in a steel or ceramic dish, and pour the Nitromors over it, and leave it as long as you want. Points to note: Nitromors is nasty stuff. Handle and dispose of with care, dont feed to your kids etc. This includes the washings. Nitromors is harmless to metal models, but will eat anything organic. This includes plastic models, bases, bowls, glue, your hand All paint and other organics is reduced to an opaque sludge, which washes off your metal models quite easily with the help of a sawn-off toothbrush. However you need to be careful with smaller metal components (like epic tank turrets) as these can easily be lost in the goo. My trick is to stick the models to be stripped into a chip pan or sieve rst. Make sure you arent going to use these for actual food ever again For plastic models, US modellers use Simple Green for paint stripping. This product is not readily available in the UK. Maybe a coalition of British modellers needs to order a job lot.The most effective alternative Ive come across is brake uid (the standard stuff you get from Halfords). To be honest, Im not that impressed with the results, as a fair bit of residual paint remains. This also applies to your own masterpieces from years past. When E:A came out I went through the process of remastering my Marine and Eldar armies from my earlier days, and will do the same with Chaos and Tyranids (eventually). Before making purchases I started with a vague idea of what I wanted: large blocks of infantry, numerous super-heavy tanks, and at least one Leman Russ company. I spend far more time modelling and painting than I do playing, so I went with what appealed to me rather than what is necessarily gamewinning. FOOTSLOGGERS The infantry are what symbolises the Guard: hordes of brave if under-equipped normal human beings. No superhuman implants, ceramite power armour, or armour piercing exploding bolts. Just a ashlight, long coat, and an occasional autocannon. Being Old Skool, all my existing armies (including those given a spruce-up for E: A) are mounted on the old square 20mm x 20mm infantry bases. These were standard up to 2nd Edition, until replaced with the current rectangular version. I dont want to have a mishmash of base types across my armies, which means using the older types, which are legal in E:A. This leads to a few problems which need to be overcome: Square bases arent made any more. You cant buy them from GW. Therefore I bought all the ones I needed from eBay. I found about 10p each (including postage) is a reasonable price, which you can do if you buy in bulk.
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Models from 3rd edition onwards (all the current Specialist Games ones, plus greatcoat Guard etc) dont t the old bases; the individual circular base on each model is a little too big to t in the holes on the base. This can be remedied by carefully trimming the bottom edge with a craft knife, and smoothing with a le. Hardly back-breaking stuff, but not worth it if you dont have a problem with rectangular bases. Painting is slightly more difcult, as the models get in each others way a bit. I picked some of the old style Cadian infantry off eBay, but the modern greatcoat version is harder to nd (at least when it isnt glued on to those horrible rectangular bases). So I ordered 2 packs from GW. I have to say, the greatcoat version looks a lot better. The only compulsory choice in the army list is the Regimental HQ Company. This consists of a Supreme Commander stand, 12 infantry stands, and 7 chimeras to transport them all. Unlike other armies, the IG Supreme Commander is an actual infantry stand rather than a character upgrade to a normal stand. I decided to order an IG character pack from GW, plus two sets of chimeras which are fairly cheap. This gave me a total of one HQ company, one mechanised company, and two footslogging infantry companies. Since this army was going to be fairly tankheavy, I wanted the Adeptus Mechanicus Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 to be represented somehow. I did this by adding a tech-priest to the Supreme Commanders stand. There isnt an actual tech-priest in the IG character pack, so I improvised with a Space Marine Techmarine model. Using my rudimentary sculpting skills and a wetted pointy stick, I added a green stuff cloak and hood to the model whilst still attached to its sprue. There isnt an in-game effect from having the Tech-Priest, I just wanted him there! Supreme Commander Stand The IG list in the rulebook allows you free reign to put your random Commissars wherever you want in each formation, so I could have added him to a regular infantry stand or even a chimera. However the Supreme Commander is potentially the most valuable unit in the army as he allows any formation to re-roll an initiative test each turn. This is particularly important for the IG as even without blast markers they fail initiative tests 1 time out of 6. Knowing my luck, this could be at a game-winning point.
With a Commissar my Supreme Commander becomes Fearless, which means he wont get wiped out with blast markers.
One out of two regular IG infantry stands carries an autocannon. You work this out each time the formation shoots (add up all the survivng stands and divide by two to give you the number of shots). You dont get heavy weapons troopers in the sprue, so I didnt represent these on the regular stands. I used the Commissar Yarrick model for the colonel himself. With the powerclaw and storm bolter he looks a bit like the general from Dawn of War, and the model is yelling in a suitably Commanding Ofcer fashion. He is joined by a radio operator and standard bearer. I also added a plastic Commissar from the infantry sprue to keep an eye on him. Once the rst two infantry companies had been assembled, I ocked them by adding watered-down PVA to the bases and dipping them in sand. After several minutes the bases are tipped upside down and icked to remove excess sand, and any glued to the models themselves scraped away. I repeated this for any bald areas.
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Regimental HQ and Mechanised Infantry Companies drilling a hole in each component and tting a length of metal (chopped up paper clip) to reinforce. The pins were superglued to the turrets, but these were left loose until after painting. I always wanted to eld super-heavy tanks. To that end I bought far too many off eBay, and now have enough for several companies of Baneblades, Shadowswords, and plasmaarmed Storm Swords. For the time being, I am limiting myself to a company each of Baneblades and Shadowswords. Shadowsword (top) and Baneblade Super Heavy Tank Companies the chassis and tracks. I tted this piece with three pins for extra reinforcement, and attached the heavy bolter sponsons with pinning. Finally, the Baneblades had the barrels of the demolisher and turret cannons drilled out, and the Shadowswords had the Volcano cannons drilled out. Baneblade Turret showing Pin
For the time being Im not including Ogryns or Snipers. Ogryns could be useful as counter-assault units for various companies (e.g. Baneblades) and as infantry with decent armour saves to the various infantry companies. In most cases they would need chimeras either to keep up or to avoid giving free infantry targets in tank formations. I have also bought a number of the old fashioned Cadian infantry stands. Im intending to use these as passengers for various war machines (Capitol Imperialis, Moles, Imperator Titans) in future projects. The Mechanised Infantry chimeras were cleaned up and had the turrets pinned. Im a rm believer in pinning metal models, i.e. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
The latest versions of these models are the nicest, so I used these for now. I pinned the sponsons and the Baneblade turrets. The turret is left unglued to assist painting. For Shadowswords, the Volcano cannon and crew compartment is a separate piece from
I also bought two companies of Leman Russ tanks off eBay. Again they are archetypal IG vehicles. They have reinforced armour and a nasty array of heavy weapons, and with FF4+ will help support engagements. The models needed quite a bit of tidying up, with areas of the tracks needing green stuff. Each turret was also pinned but unglued, and the cannons drilled out.
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In addition, there are a number of War Engines including Titans, Moles, and a Capitol Imperialis. For the time being, this army can borrow Warhound Titans and Imperial Navy aircraft from my Marine armies. One long-term project is to paint up a pair of Imperator Titans as moving shrines to the Emperor, but that one is a good way off. If you can get hold of an unpainted/undercoated Imperator for around 30 including postage of eBay, youre doing pretty well. The Capitol Imperialis is a gigantic transporter; think of Star Wars AT-ATs with tracks instead of legs. They dont have ofcial rules in E:A, but house rules can be engineered to suit. The Capitol Imperialis is protected by void shields and can carry a couple of companies (even super-heavy tanks!). Capitol Imperialis go for around 25 on eBay. The original model is all metal apart from the tracks, which were plastic. This can make paint stripping a pain, as even if you can extract the tracks from a painted model without damaging them, they will still have someone elses paint job on them. However all is not lost, because identical tracks are available on the 1:76 scale M113 ACAV by JB Models. I bought mine on eBay for 2.50. The remainder of the kit ends up as spare, Im sure it will get used up one of these days. In the next installment I will show all these beauties painted up, and hopefully some of the War Engines to go with them!
Leman Russ Companies On The Painting Tray That gives me enough for the following: Regimental HQ Company Mechanised Infantry Company 2 x Infantry Company Tank Company Super-heavy Tank Company Which comes to a total of 3,700 points, rather more than I could eld in a standard game of 3,000 points. In addition to these Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
completed (but unpainted) models, I have a number awaiting assembly: 3 x Baneblades 7 x Shadowswords 9 x Basilisks (Artillery Company) 2 x Deathstrike Missile Launchers 1 x Capitol Imperialis new tracks 3 x Moles 6 x Termites Numerous Cadian infantry Numerous miscellaneous vehicles (Leman Russ, Bombards, Gorgons, Demolishers)
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Collecting Epic Feral Orks
TALE OF AN EPIC GAMER A FERAL ORK ARMY STORY

By Henrikki Almusa I own several amount of Epic armies, but so far the Orks have not been included in that list. I have friend with bucketloads so I havent been that interested in pursuing them. However he doesnt have Ferals and thus Ive felt that I would like to get them. There is a problem though. Ferals have most costly pound per point unit that one would need. Squiggoth. Regular army has 3000 points. Squiggoth is 50 points in game and costs 10 pounds each! Luckily I managed to get an answer to it. I had participated in a competition by Specialist Games to create an army list. I managed to win that and got a free 2000 point army of my choice. Needless to say it was composed of Feral Orks with large amount of Squiggoths (so that I wouldnt need to buy them anymore). My usual style of getting an army is to buy everything once and some things more than once (bits that interest me). In this case it was pretty easy as there is very few blisters and boxes for Ferals. So with the competition prize and some extra mail order I have now managed to get (or have placed order for) SPECIAL GAMES: 2 Feral Ork Warbands boxes 2 Ork Warband boxes 1 Ork Orkeosaur box 3 Feral Ork Steam Gargant boxes 3 blisters of Squig Katapults 4 blisters of Junka Trukks 2 blisters of Ork Characters 10 blisters of Squiggoths FORGE WORLD: 3 Epic Ork Gargantuan Squiggoths CHAOS ORC: 1 Epic: Ork Warriors OOP x100 1 Epic: Ork Nobz x60 (Loose) 2 Epic: Ork Boar Boyz x15 (Loose) I also got some heavy weapon boyz from a friend to ll the ranks of the regular boyz as Feral Warband boxes dont have any heavy weapon models. That should make my army to be sufciently large. Now during this series, dont expect me to nish all that. So far none of my armies are fully painted, but I have made a list that I will use as target for this. The OOP Ork Warriors Im planning to use as Wild Boyz and Kommandos would be used as Mad Boyz if needed. The second character blister was an accident actually as I didnt remember that I asked for it in the prize and bought it separately after that.
THE TARGET LIST 250 Uge Boarboyz Horde 175 Big Boarboyz Horde 300 Big Junka Brigade 100 + 2 Wyrdboyz 100 + 2 Nobz 350 Big Steam Gargant Mob 200 Normal Warband 75 + 3 Squig Katapults 50 + Wyrdboy 200 Normal Warband 75 + 3 Squig Katapults 50 + Wyrdboy 150 Normal Wilboyz 150 + 3 Squiggoths 25 + 2 Wildboyz 50 + 2 Boarboyz 50 + Wyrdboy 350 Big Warband (BTS) 250 + 2 Orkeosauruses 50 + Wyrdboy 0 + Warlord 3000 Total points The army has a bit modied costs with regards to Swordwind rulebook. For example Junka Brigade is 50 points more expensive and Squig Katapults are 0 - 3 selection instead of unlimited. These changes are aimed to balance the list and so Ill be using them as base for the army even if they arent ofcial [1]. List has 8 activations with most formations larger than 10 to allow easier rallying. Its a bit few activations perhaps and even if this list would allow quite nice popcorn armies, I like my Ork formations big
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Collecting Epic Feral Orks

and powerful. All in all the list has total of 113 units and 6 War Engines. Thats a proper WAAARRRGH as far as Im concerned. Main usage would be to garrison the Normal Warbands to objectives and shoot anyone that comes too near. The Steam Gargants provide rest of the heavy support for the army. The main body of the army are reasonably fast to move except the Big Warband as Orkeosaurs are as slow as infantry, but should have thoughness to move slower being 6DC War Engines. Just hope that they dont end up facing Shadowsword company as that would ruin their day. One negative point is the Warlord. In Ferals it must be placed in a formation with most units. Unfortunately this means (with Feral list anyway) that the BTS is very easily that same formation. This is the case here. So it makes the formation kind of a re magnet easily. FIRST TARGETS Steam Gargant, Junka Brigade or Boarboyz. Decisions, decisions, decisions. But above is the nished Normal Warband. 1. Feral Ork changes suggestion by the current Army Champion http://www.tacticalwargames.net/cgi-bin/ forum/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=83;t=10491 Normal Warband cut off from sprues. To start the actual painting, I decided to paint a single normal Warband with Squig Katapults. Next I have several contenders for the painting slot. So it will be Squiggoths, Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 92
Collecting an Imperial Fleet
ALL AHEAD FULL, AND DAMN THE TORPEDOES!

By Liam Salt INTRODUCTION Many, many moons ago (before I became one of those bone-idle student types) I was given the Battleeet Gothic boxed set as a birthday present. My mother, utilising no doubt her feminine intuition, saw t to combine my twin loves of Games Workshop and the naval branch of the armed forces. Unfortunately, I had few regular opponents for basic 40k, let alone Specialist Games, and so, like Blood Bowl, Epic and my Orks, Battleeet Klar was packed off to the back of a dusty cupboard. When I moved out of my mothers house and in with friends to begin University, I dusted off my old models and began to take more of an interest in the hobby again. So, when it became apparent that Specialist Gamers were required to do a piece for Firebase, I though What better opportunity to dust off the old cruisers? STAGE ONE: GATHERING THE FLEET The main problem I had to face, initially at least, was the poor state of such ships as I had. Four basic cruisers and some frigates had been sitting in a box for nearly three years, shunted around from cupboard to cupboard. In the process many had broken from bases or lost antennae. The task of gluing ships back onto broken bases is a long and unthankful one, but, once all was nished, I had the beginnings of a eet. Four Cobra Destroyers and six Sword Class Frigates provided a fast strike force capable of punching above their weight if used effectively. A Lunar and a Gothic Class Cruiser provided a small but effective basic cruiser squadron, while a Dominator cruiser and a Mars Battlecruiser provided a bit of long-ranged support, through the combined use of nova-cannons and (in the case of the Mars Class) launch bays. Finally, a sole Dauntless Light Cruiser provided a nice balance between the repower of the cruisers and the speed of the frigates. The eet was still missing something however. While four cruisers is an adequate starting point, years of neglect had seen the Battleeet advance no further, and it certainly could not hope to hold its own in a serious battle. With this in mind, and on a shoestring student budget, I set about scouring the internet for additions to the eet. Thanks to good old eBay, I was able to acquire a Battleship (Emperor Class) and four more cruisers. The next task was to decide exactly what ships to construct from the four additional cruisers. With a little background for the eet already decided upon (seen later), I ultimately settled on two more Mars Class Battlecruisers, the aircraft carriers of this eet, and two more Lunar Class Cruisers. The reasoning behind this was simple the eet was intended to be a small, border Battleeet defending a relatively insignicant sector. Therefore, I didnt really want anything too ashy and advanced, settling instead for the Mars Class (no longer constructed by the Mechanicus and considered outdated and under-gunned by many captains) and the Lunar Class, a relatively simple ship commonly seen throughout the Imperium. Despite these perceived weaknesses, the eet is well rounded, with a good mix of fast and slow ships, long- and short-range weapons, and plenty of hard-hitting lances.
STAGE TWO: ORGANISATION With the ships bought and assembled (or re-assembled where necessary), I set to organising the eet into squadrons. Weighing in at 2485 points, I felt condent that I now had a diverse enough group of ships to deal with most enemies. 93

Having been out of the game for some time, thinking tactically proved harder than I had anticipated. The rst and most logical step was to organise the three Battlecruisers into a single squadron. These would, I reasoned, be useful at engaging the enemy from afar with waves of attack craft or pummelling them with the long-ranged nova cannon and would act in concert with the launch bays of the Emperor Class Battleship. As extra support, I formed three of the Swords into Defender Squadron, to hang around and if necessary, counter any threats to the Battlecruisers. The remaining frigates were divided into Serpent Squadron consisting the four Cobra destroyers, and Van squadron, consisting of three Sword Class frigates. Van Squadron is also to be accompanied by the lone Dauntless Light Cruiser. The remaining ve cruisers were split into two groups, one of four ships and one of a lone cruiser. The Dominator, armed with a prow-mounted nova-cannon, was as capable of engaging from a distance as it was at closing with its enemies. With this in mind, I formed a sort of reserve squadron to react to any unusual or unexpected changes in the dynamic of the battle. The second squadron, of four cruisers, was to be the backbone of the eet. Three Lunar and a Gothic Class Cruiser provided a bristling wall of lances and weapon batteries that would prove a formidable challenge to such enemy vessels as crossed them. Such experience as I have with BFG Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 94 necessitates that I stress the value of frigates. While lightly shielded and armoured, they are small and speedy and can cause problems for ships far larger than themselves. The Cobra Destroyers in particular are capable of launching small spreads of torpedoes which, when combined, can severely damage a middle-sized capital ship (such as a light cruiser or possibly even a cruiser), and wipe out other frigates. Similarly, attack craft can prove exceptionally useful. I have a large group of ships capable of launching attack craft in my eet. These can be kept back from the main battle, making good use of long-ranged weapons and the ability to launch waves of Starhawk bombers. STAGE THREE: PAINTING THE FLEET With the eet built and organised, I began work on a colour scheme. My painting skills, while adequate for a gaming level, are still relatively rudimentary, and so I wanted a quick and easy colour scheme that would allow me to paint several ships in short order. With this in mind, I sketched out some possible schemes, and nally painted up two frigates, a Sword and a Cobra. These were base coated in Chaos Black, then quite heavily dry-brushed with Goblin Green. The prows were then picked out in Scab Red, highlighted with Blood Red, and nally where necessary edged with rst Golden, and then Sunburst Yellow.
Weapons batteries and warp drives were picked out in Mithril Silver and washed with watered down black ink. Finally, I picked out the tips of antennae and other similar areas of the ships with Sunburst Yellow, to create the effect of lights.

ship designs, including an unusually large number of the discontinued Mars Class Battlecruiser. Notable eet actions include numerous scouting missions by Serpent Squadrons Cobra Destroyers (primarily against incursions from Eldar Pirates) and the defence of Klar Primus during the First Klaran War. This method proved both quick and easy, taking roughly twenty minutes to paint a frigate from base-coat to nished model, or thirty to forty-ve minutes for a Squadron of four cruisers. STAGE FOUR: FLEET HISTORY With the eet all but nished, I set about to create a short history for the ships and the Battleeet itself. I nd that having a back-story for the force adds extra depth to games you care more about your Battleship, with its own name and history than you do for Brother No-Name or Private J. Doe, or any of the multitude of indistinguishable characters you might encounter in a regular game of 40k. Battleeet Klar then, is the permanent defence force of the Klaran Sector. Based at the Space Station Phoenix in orbit around the principle planet of Klar Primus, the Battleeet is commanded by Admiral Horton Greaves aboard the Emperor Class Battleship Deus-Imperator. Stationed on the Eastern Fringe, the Battleeet is comprised primarily of older and more common Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 With the eet nished and a back story established, all that remains is to break it in. Hopefully this article has inspired a few more of you to get involved with Battleeet Gothic the Navy needs You! FLEET ROSTER Emperor Class Battleship Deus-Imperator Dominator Class Cruiser, Reserve Sq. Subjugation Mars Class Battlecruiser, Rear Sq. Might of Terra, Lord Dornos, Styxii Honori
Dauntless Class Light Cruiser, Van Sq. [II] Loyal Servant Sword Class Frigate x 3 - Van Squadron
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Lunar Class Cruiser, Centre Sq. Dynamic Warrior, Shield of Egrador, Indomitable Will Gothic Class Cruiser, Centre Sq. Emperors Sword
What are you wearing to the GT?

Actual Text: THEORY HAMMER rarely survives contact with the enemy
Sword Class Frigate x 3 Defender Squadron
11 different designs more designs to be added

Cobra Class Destroyer x 4 Serpent Squadron
Shirts and Sweatshirts available Variety of colors and styles White print on Dark shirts Black print on Light shirts
Actual Text: MATH HAMMER dont make a move without knowing the odds
www.mathhammer.net
Have a design request? Submit it at jmattison@mac.com
Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 96
Collecting a Gorkamorka mob
THE TALE OF A BORN AGAIN GORKA

INTRO So here I am minding my own business, when one of my friends I played gorkamorka and 40k back in the day sends me a phone text. Quite innocently it says I have a proposal: how would you like to start up gorkamorka again? it turns out GamesWorkshop have released the Gorkamorka rules online, and this in turn has inspired my friend to start up, and go buy a new box set. The advantages of releasing rules for free! Excited at the prospect at driving through the skid at breakneck speeds with a bunch of trash hunting orks, I answer yes and head down to my local Games Workshop store. Upon arriving I notice the 40k orks have had a make over, so tying in this release of gorkamorka seems like a good move to get a 2nd edition 40k player back in into the game. I pick up an Ork Trukk and a Boyz box, and take it home, much to my excitement. My rst job before I build anything though is to come up with a roster. I once again go through the rules and brush up on all things Ork, then sit down with my trusty excel spreadsheet and start creating my mob Jerffrowz Toll. For 100 Teeth you pretty much either have the option of having lots of Orks with little weapons and armour, or a Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 small select mob of highly equipped orks. I went for the later, as a skirmish game for me is more interesting with fewer characters. I started by deciding to go with a gorka mob, as experience has led me to believe I enjoy the games more when my mob get into some serious ghting, like Orks should. And thats what the gorkas excel at! No time to think, just hurt! Warggh ..*COUGH* I mean err lets continue. With a mob of 6 Orks, including a gunner and driver, I can start modelling my guys. I break open the trukk box to nd lots, and I mean lots, of parts. I can tell that this thing is going to be a beast. I also decided to build my Orks at the same time, just to get the building out of the way! All in all, building the orks and the trukk took about 2 hours in total. This included shaving off all the mould lines and sanding down all the sprue bits, as they really do turn ugly. So far I am pleased with the way this has turned out. Over the next few issues I plan to go through painting the gang, playing their rst game and then going over the best part of skirmish games: watching the boyz grow up! NEXT TIME : PAINTING THE HORDES
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Collecting a Necromunda Gang
COLLECTING A NECROMUNDA GANG

Hiding place for all manner of desperate scum, the Underhive is a vicious and often deadly place. Jon dancingmonkey Webb peels back its murky layers to reveal the process of hiring a motley crew looking to make their fame in its depths
INTRO: Ah Necromunda the stench of unwashed humans living atop each other, the taste of cheap recyc and the constant babble of traders peddling their wares. There is no place like it. This great little game rst appeared on my radar way back when I was a beardless nipper, coming to light in issue 190 of White Dwarf, the third I ever bought. At the behest of ChaosandEvil I thought it was time to bring my gang kicking and screaming into the light, and over the next few issues reveal the hiring process, along with some of their infamous misdeeds and interesting characters. I play Escher, and have been involved in several Necromunda campaigns in my time. Indeed, at one point it was pretty much the only GW game I was interested in. During my time as a GW monkey I was involved heavily in running a large-scale campaign that eventually had about 25 players, and cumulated in a huge nale involving all the remaining gangs, a platoon of Imperial Guardsmen and a shuttle bound for the uphive. Why Escher? Quite simply it comes down to the models. Jes Goodwins heavy with Heavy Stubber still ranks as one of my all time favourite GW models and looks as good today as it did when it was released all those years ago. I think I have three or four of them in my collection ready to be converted into all manner of other things. LEADING THE CHARGE: So, time for the introductions. My lovely girls go by the name Kitty and the Goth Bitches. They are veterans now with a number of unusual bits of kit, but for this rst article I will simply go through my recruitment process. First up is Kitty, my leader. As an essential part of any gang I would always start here. At this stage, I wouldnt go crazy. You never know when an opportune juve is going to frag your leader in the rst game. Part of the joy of playing with Escher is that you can buy Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 98

swords from the start of a campaign. I love swords. Ten points for a combat weapon with parry is too tempting. I also give her an auto pistol and some frag grenades as a nasty surprise for enemies that gang up too much. Note that Kitty the model is currently armed with a power sword and bolt pistol. Obviously these are not available from the initial recruitment stage, but they proxy well enough for her actual kit. Ok its not WYSIWYG, so sue me. Next up on the vital list is a heavy. Creds are hard to come by after recruitment so get one now. I favour the heavy stubber because its cheap and effective. (And as mentioned I love the model). For 120 creds you get a potential six strength four shots, usually enough to deal with anyone. I add an auto pistol for when the bullets run out, although usually my heavy hits the deck and hides once that happens as she is too valuable to waste. RANGED SUPPORT: I tend to split my gang into smaller groups when playing, each with specic duties. As such I chose my gangers accordingly. The recruitment rules state you need a minimum of three models in a gang, but any less than ten, and expect a rough ride in the early campaign stages. To make up numbers I select a number of gangers, always with roles in mind. First up I take one of each basic weapon (lasgun, autogun and shotgun) and the gangers needed to carry them. These are all provided with autopistols as back up weapons and the shotgunner gets man stoppers for extra power if I have the creds spare. I take autopistols as they dont have a longrange modier unlike laspistols. These girls are split into two groups and use to hunt the enemy. Usually I group the autogun and lasgun as they have similar ranges, whilst sending the shotgun off with a juve to get in the face of my foe. UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL: With the ranged support covered, I take a couple of combat specialists who will team up with Kitty and advance under cover from the shooting elements of the gang.
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Firstly, I take a ganger with two swords. Those parries will come in extremely handy, trust me. Affectionately known as crazy Rianne after a girl that once stalked me, in our campaign she survived till the end before being shredded by an enforcer grenade meters from safety. One day I will resurrect her as a half bionic nutter with head wounds and a limp. She is supported by a ganger with a sword and an autopistol, and another ganger with a ail and a laspistol simply because I like the model. OPERATION MEAT SHIELD: With eight members of the gang, it is time to turn to the juves. The secret weapon of any gang, juves will save you a fortune in armour bills, because theyre it. Harsh, but such is life. Each juve is assigned a bodyguard from the gang. Usually they stand in front of said ganger and catch any nasty bullets ying towards the more expensive gangers sheltering behind them. One will usually accompany Kitty as well, to see how a real woman ghts. The juves get a mix of clubs and pistols as they are not experienced enough to be
ROSTER:
Kitty Dixie Rianne Sophs Missy Trish Lillith Kath Babs Nikki Sarah Leader Heavy Ganger Ganger Ganger Ganger Ganger Ganger Juve Juve Juve Sword, Autopistol, Frag Grenades Heavy Stubber, Autopistol 2 Swords, Laspistol Flail, Laspistol Sword, Autopistol Autogun, Autopistol Lasgun, Autopistol Shotgun, Manstoppers, Autopistol Stubgun, Club Stubgun, Dumdums Autopistol 175 creds 195 creds 85 creds 75 creds 75 creds 85 creds 90 creds 90 creds 45 creds 40 creds 40 creds
Total: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 995 creds. * note all models are automatically equipped with a knife in addition to any other equipment. trusted with anything else yet. Plus when they inevitably take the stubber rounds for the rest of the gang you dont lose much equipment. So 11 models recruited, ve creds left in the stash, its time to roll some territories and go looking for a ght. NEXT TIME: Hopefully this has given a brief insight into the recruitment process. Next time I will dredge up some more stories from the girls past, and introduce you to the concept of a juve plugging a lasgun into the mains power. Also, the girls will hopefully be 100 undergoing a slight face-lift as the paintwork is starting to show its age. Till then, keep rolling those sixes.
Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters
TAU SILENT HUNTERS

by Dave Knowles INTRODUCTION Many players coming to Inquisitor from a Warhammer 40,000 background simply try to port their favourite troop types straight into the game but are frustrated by the lack of 54mm models to represent them. In my opinion these players are missing out on the real joy of Inquisitor; the chance to explore the universe beyond the front-lines. Why
+++ A Report on the Tau Organisation known as KauyonEshh +++ +++ Report Reference: ISE-6544-JDO-1 +++ +++ Author: Inquisitor Hannibal Isenberg +++ +++ Date: 5.273.974.M41 +++ My lords and peers, No doubt you will all be aware of the interactions between the four main Tau castes and the mysterious fth caste, the Ethereals (see report ISE-8623-HSD-2). The Ethereals are commonly seen as the leaders and policy makers of the Tau Empire. However my information shows me that some members of this Caste act as free roaming agents of the Tau Empire; seeking out threats (both internal and external) to what they call The Greater Good in a similar manner to our own Holy Inquisition. Thus far I have been unable to gather much information on this cabal of Ethereals or even to determine whether they think of themselves as a coherent organisation. In this, as in most other matters, the Ethereals are a mystery. What I have discovered is that these cowardly beings usually act through agents who carry out their will while they remain rmly behind the scenes. Interrogation of one of one such agent captured by my team tells me that these operatives are known as the KauyonEshh, which roughly translates as the Silent Hunters. From what little I discovered before the agent was rescued it appears that the KauyonEshh is made up of members of all four castes, led by the Ethereals, and that they are highly trained in their specialist elds. As one would expect, the majority of their front-line agents come from the Fire Caste. They perform all manner of black ops such as reconnaissance, demolitions work and assassinations as directed by their Ethereal leaders in their mission to defend The Greater Good. My intelligence tells me that these agents were responsible for the destruction of the Imperial Cruiser Hawkwind while in dry-dock above Hasina Prime, the assassination of the late Governor of Hackstor III and most worryingly, the theft of the ++INSUFFICIENT SECURITY PERMISSIONS++ from the Inquisitorial stronghold on Klysforge. A preliminary medical carried out on the operative suggests that as well as undergoing intense training, the agents of the KauyonEshh also undergo some biological modication (see report ISE-6544-JDO-1 Appendix B). It is may estimation that although
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simply take a Necron Warrior straight from the battleeld and attempt to squeeze him into the shadowy world of Inquisitor where he doesnt really belong (except perhaps as an end of campaign bad guy) when instead you could create a Necron-worshipping cult or an AdMech Magos whose attempts to merge Necrontyr and human technology has resulted in unstable abominations. In my opinion, these concepts better t the Inquisitor ethos and could be more easily converted using the existing range. On The Conclave there have been quite a few threads where people have wanted advice on using teams of Fire Warriors in games of Inquisitor. In my opinion Fire Warriors, especially teams of them, are better suited to games of 40k or Kill-team; however these conversations sparked an idea - what if not all members of the Fire Caste joined the regular army? What if some were employed by other, more secret, organisations? From this the idea of a Tau Splinter Cell-type operative was born. A member of a Tau Secret Service; a James Bond or Sam Fisher type agent who would use stealth and cunning to achieve his objectives. From this seed, I created the Silent Hunters (or KauyonEshh); a secret division within the Tau Military who perform covert missions and black ops in elds such as reconnaissance, assassination, sabotage and inltration. They work behind the front-lines, and often far from actual war-zones, seeking out those who threaten the Greater Good. Their work Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
these xenos agents will never reach the peak of ability seen by members of the Ofcio Assassinorum due to the inferior physiology of their race, they are still formidable opponents and should be tackled with caution. The armour worn by these agents appears to be a modied version of that seen on Tau Fire Warriors and Pathnders. They also appear to be supplied with the best of the heretical technology produced by the Tau Earth Caste. Assuming that the subject acquired by my team is representative of these agents then it seems that like most Tau, they prefer to ght at range. The agent we captured was carrying a Pulse Carbine with a Pulse Pistol as backup and used the word Holyth when he referred to these. Unable to translate this word I assume it must be a name, so for now I have dubbed them as being Holyth Variant Pulse Weapons. They are different to both the variant commonly carried by the Fire Caste, and to the variant often supplied to the traitorous Guevesa. Scarring on the agents body found during the medical matched that often seen during autopsies of Pathnders who were equipped with the experimental Rail Rie. My assumption is therefore that the KauyonEshh use a modied Rail Rie for ranged assassinations. Analysis of the xenos agents armour shows that it incorporates miniature versions of systems often tted to larger Tau battle-suits such as advanced scanning and communications equipment and drone controllers. The few Pict and Vox records we have of the the KauyonEshh agents are all from systems close to the Tau Sept of Dalyth and suggest that their primary weapon is usually stealth. Although not present in the armour of the agent we captured, there is evidence that some of their suits are tted with a derivative of the stealth elds tted to the XV-15 and XV-25 battlesuits. Unlike these more common suits, the armour worn by the KauyonEshh is too light to carry a full stealth system, so instead it seems that small camo-eld generators are tted to some of the larger armour plates allowing the agent to blend into their surroundings to a certain extent. My ndings suggest that the KauyonEshh represent a very real threat to our operations in and around Tau space. At this time I do not know whether they are specic to the Sept of Dalyth or are active across the whole Tau Empire. Therefore, I advise that we dedicate more resources to discover the true scale of their operations and put in place plans to counter the threat they pose. +++ End Report +++
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often takes them deep within the borders of Imperial space where they might nd themselves being hunted by (or hunting) an Imperial Inquisitor. USING THE KAUYONESHH IN GAMES OF INQUISITOR KauyonEshh agents are equally suitable for use as both a player character or as a GM controlled antagonist. However, when used as a player character one should be bear in mind that these operatives will almost always act alone and not as part of a warband (although as with most things there will be exceptions). This means that players will have to adapt to a different style of play, using stealth to stay out of the line of re and taking on their opponents one by one. In this the Recon Drone is hugely useful allowing the Tau player to be more aware of events than would otherwise be possible. As the KauyonEshh are used as the eyes, ears and hands of the Ethereals who seek out threats to the Greater Good they will become involved in many similar situations to members of the Imperial Inquisition. Given below are a few ideas for scenarios in which a KauyonEshh agent might become involved; A inuential Pro-Tau cult on a world bordering Tau space has contacted the Empire indicating its wishes to join with the Greater Good. A KauyonEshh agent has been dispatched to deliver a holo-message to the leaders of the cult. Imperial agents are seeking to intercept the message and bring down the cult. An Imperial Inquisitor operating on the fringes of Tau space has been deemed to represent a clear threat to the Greater Good. The Ethereals have tasked a KauyonEshh agent with assassinating the Inquisitor by any means necessary. A KauyonEshh operative has been dispatched to an Imperial world to gather information regarding the chances of peacefully incorporating the world into the Tau Empire. The operative has been discovered by agents of the Imperium and must ght his way out to the extraction point. In their quest to discover more about the Warp and its interaction with Real-space the Tau seek to obtain a forbidden grimoire secreted in the bowels of an Inquisitorial Fortress. The KauyonEshh agent must inltrate the fortress, steal the grimoire and escape. The war is going badly for the Tau Empire but they have discovered a weak point in the Imperial supply lines, a munitions factory operated by the Adeptus Mechanicus. Rather than attempt a largescale frontal assault a KauyonEshh agent has been tasked with sneaking into the factory and setting demolition charges. For now Ive only concentrated on the front line agents drawn from the Fire Caste as it seems to me these will be the most commonly encountered operatives. However all secret agents have their support organisations. Examples relating to the KauyonEshh include their shadowy controllers drawn from the Ethereal Caste, their Air Caste pilots, the Earth Caste scientists and engineers who supply their equipment, and the Water Caste Interrogators who debrief them after their missions. These backroom boys are not covered in this article as they will rarely take to the eld.
RANDOM: WS = 40 + 2d10 BS = 55 + 2d10 S = 40 + 2d10 T = 45 + 2d10
I = 50 + 2d10 Wp = 60 + 2d10 Sg = 55 + 3d6 Nv = 70 + 2d6 Ld = 65 + 2d10
RULES FOR KAUYONESHH Equipment: KauyonEshh operatives are commonly equipped with a Rail or Pulse Rie or Carbine with a Pulse Pistol as backup. For close combat they usually carry a Vibroblade or other easily concealable weapon. They usually wear XV-14 battle armour which may be tted with stealth eld generators. They are often accompanied by one or more Recon-Drones. OPERATIVE WS BS S T 50 65 50 55 I Wp Sg Nv Ld 55 70 65 75 75
Special Abilities: Like all Tau, agents of the KauyonEshh have the Blunt trait. Common abilities include shooting skills such as Deadeye Shot, Rock Steady Aim and Quickload.
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XV-14I ARMOUR The armour worn by members of the KauyonEshh is a lighter version of that worn by the Pathnders. It provides 3 points of armour on all locations except the head. The standard t of armour includes climbing equipment giving the operative greater mobility and granting him the Scale Terrain ability. Additionally, the armour can be tted with small camo-eld generators on the larger plates allowing the operative to better blend in with his surroundings. If camo-eld generators are tted the wearer gains the Camouage ability. XV-14D HELMET The XV-14d Helmet is an open helmet providing 2 points of armour to the head. It is tted with advanced sight & hearing autosenses, and built in Range-Finder and Motion-Predictor gunsights as standard. An optional visual scanner can also be added incorporating a Blacksun Filter, Bio-scanner and Infra-scope giving the wearer excellent awareness of his surroundings. It takes one action to switch between the three devices and only one can be active at once. The helmet is also tted with a comm-link and drone controller (see Recon Drone special rules). BLACKSUN FILTER A character using a Blacksun Filter gains the Nightsight special ability. HOLYTH VARIANT PULSE WEAPONS The KauyonEshh regularly use Holyth variant Pulse Weapons. Unlike other variants, a Holyth Pulse Carbine has a single shot mode allowing for greater accuracy, however it is not capable of the same rate of re as other variants. Also, it is not compatible with the grenade launcher often tted to other pulse carbines. The Holyth Pulse Pistol is a compact, accurate side-arm often carried as a backup to a larger weapon. Non-Tau characters attempting to use any Holyth variant Pulse Weapon suffer a -15% accuracy modier due to the difference in hand shape and number of digits. VIBRO-BLADE The hilt of the vibro-blade contains a small generator which sends high-speed sonic vibrations through the blade. These vibrations allow the blade to cut through armour more easily and rupture organic tissue. Reach Vibroblade 1 Damage 2d6+1 Parry Penalty -25% TAU RECON DRONE These small unarmed drones are deployed by the KauyonEshh to scout ahead and spy on the enemy both visually and using their in-built auspex (usually either a Bio-scanner or Motion-tracker). Recon Drones have limited A.I. and so can act independently of their operator who does not need to expend actions controlling them. In general the drone uses the servo-skull rules with a few exceptions; it is not limited to remaining within 2 yards of its operator and counts as being Speed 2 (Initiative 30) so gets a minimum of one and maximum of two actions per turn. There are only two actions a Recon Drone can take, move (at a rate of up to six yards per action) and scan (where it will use its in-built scanner on active mode to scan its surroundings). Due to the link with his helmet senses, the Drone Operator will be aware of everything
HOL YTH VARIANT PULSE WEAPONS:

Pulse Rie Pulse Carbine Pulse Pistol Rail Rie Type Basic Basic Pistol Basic Range H F E G Mode Single S/3/6 Single Single Accuracy Damage Shots Reload 3d6+5 30 2 3d6+5 30 2 2d6+3 15 2 3d10+3 1 4 Weight 35 25 15 40 104

that the drone is, (as with a Hunter Servoskull). A Recon Drone has no offensive capabilities and counts as a small target. Recon drones only have a electronic brain, and therefore are immune to many kinds of psychic powers, gases and toxins, and so on. Drones have an Armour value of 8 but are destroyed if they take any damage. They also contain a self-destruct mechanism. This can be activated by its operator at a cost of one action, or has a 50% chance of being triggered when the drone is destroyed. The self-destruct mechanism will cause the drone to explode with the force of a frag grenade. BUILDING A KAUYONESHH OPERATIVE The Silent Hunter concept was inspired by Splinter Cell and that was the sort of look I wanted for the model; however when it came to building him I had something of a problem - theres only one Tau model in the Inquisitor range and hes a robed Water Caste Emissary - not really the look I was going for. Looking around I came to the conclusion that the Eversor model, with its segmented armour plates and general hightech look seemed like a perfect base for a Tau conversion. The rst stage in the process was to remove the skull mask and le off any non-Tau iconography from the Eversor. At this stage I also removed the heels from the Eversors boots to give his feet roughly the same structure as Tau ones. As it turned out, resculpting his boots to match those worn by Fire Warriors was fairly easy. One night I sculpted a hoof shape over each foot, then the next I added the detail. While the putty on his feet was hardening I xed the areas where Id removed the non-Tau symbols, the most obvious being the skull on his chest that I replaced with a blank disc where a symbol could be added later. I had a spare Water Caste head in my bits box that I planned to use, however members of the Water Caste have taller thinner skulls than their Fire Caste brethren, so to remedy this I led down the top of his skull and used green-stuff to bulk out his jaw. With that done, I started Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 105
building him a set of Splinter Cell-inspired goggles. The lens over his right eye was carefully sliced off a Fire Warrior helmet, then for the left side I made a multi-function unit using three gun barrels glued to part of a Battlesuit weapon. With these glued in place, I then sculpted the back and sides of the goggles using brown-stuff. The nal touch was a Fire Warrior antenna glued above one ear to represent his comm-link.

Next up were his hands and weapons. I had previously built a Pulse Carbine for a radical Ordo Xenos Inquisitor by combining a shotgun and Battlesuit multi-tracker antenna, however when I saw the new Sniper Drones I realised that their gun would make a perfect Inquisitor-scale Pulse Carbine. All I had to do was rebuild the stock and add a gunsight made from a 40k Pulse Carbine grenade launcher. For the Pulse Pistol I borrowed an idea Id seen on The Conclave, a cut-down Gun Drone Antenna with a Fire Warrior antenna attached to the side. Converting his hands was actually quite simple, I carefully sliced off the ngers from plastic Ork Boyz hands and resculpted them with the correct number of ngers for a Tau. To give the model more of a Tau feel I raided my bits box and added some Fire Warrior shoulder pads and a Target-lock on his backpack. Finally I built him a small Recon Drone by gluing a Battlesuit head to a Shield Generator. I decided that a dark and stealthy colour scheme was called for with this character, so painted his suit in a dark brown, with the armour plates in dark blue. When it came to paint his weapons I realised that he was looking a bit drab, so rather than paint them black I decided to go with a high contrast yellow instead. It rather ruins the stealthiness of the model, but I really like the nished look. As a nod to the Splinter Cell inspiration I painted the lenses of his goggles a bright green. The nishing touch was a Dalyth Sept transfer on his chest-plate. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
+++ Shasvre Oran - KauyonEshh Operative +++ +++ Report Reference: ISE-6544-JDO-1 Appendix A +++ +++ Author: Inquisitor Hannibal Isenberg +++ +++ Date: 5.275.974.M41 +++ The following is all that is known of the personal life of the Tau agent known as Shasvre Oran. He was captured by my team during an attempt to inltrate and destroy the Ecclesiastical Synagogue on Wellingrex Six prior to the Ascension Day celebrations. The second member of his team, an Air Caste pilot, was killed in the attempt. Oran was born on the Tau Sept world known as Dalyth. He was raised in what we would call a Military Academy where from an early age he was trained to be a soldier. His abilities in the elds of stealth and concealment meant he was destined to join the Pathnders. It seems Oran served as a Pathnder for four Taucyr and achieved the rank of Shasui. He had hoped to be trained in the use of XV-25 armour and join a Stealth Team, but instead he was recruited by the KauyonEshh. Other than this we were unable to retrieve much coherent information about his early years. As a member of the KauyonEshh, Oran underwent an intense training regime, raising his speed, strength and skill far above the levels normally seen in a member of his race. He was trained in a variety of tactics, inltration methods, counter-interrogation techniques, and unusually for the Tau, he received a high degree of close-combat training. Although he denied it, I believe that not all of the improvement in his physical and mental abilities was purely down to training. It is my belief that during his training Oran was surgically and chemically modied. Details of the missions that Oran was involved in are still being veried and will be published in a follow-up report.
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+++ Addendum +++ Shasvre Oran was rescued before the interrogation could be completed in a covert raid by other members of the KauyonEshh. It is still unclear how they managed to by-pass our security, but the very fact they managed to get in and back out demonstrates how well equipped and resourceful they are. +++ End Report +++ Equipment: Holyth Variant Pulse Carbine + two reloads; Holyth Variant Pulse Pistol + reload; Vibro-knife; XV-14i Armour; XV-14d Helmet; Recon Drone. SHASVRE ORAN WS BS S T I Wp Sg Nv Ld 51 66 50 56 57 69 67 75 78 Special Abilities: Ambidextrous, Blunt, Deadeye Shot, Hipshooting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dave has been involved with the GW hobby on and off more years than hed care to remember. He started painting and converting Inquisitor models just over two years ago and won both the Conclave Hobby Competition 2005 with his Inquisitor Kaled model, and the Specialist Games - Inquisitor Character Competition with his Haemovore Cultist. He also came third in the Inquisitor Grand Tournament 2007. He is an active member of the Conclave forum where he can usually be found in the Painting and Modeling forum.
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Aeronautica Imperialis - Keeping Things Square
KEEPING THINGS SQUARE

MEDITATIONS ON THE AERONAUTICA MOVEMENT PHASE, PLUS A WHOLE NEW WAY OF PLAYING.
By Lack0fBetterName with EaterOfSmallThings A few weeks back, during a friendly game of Aeronautica Imperialis something happened to make me and my opponent start discussing the accuracy of the location of his models on the table. I dont remember what started the talk (maybe someone bumped the table, or a watcher spun an aircraft around to look at it) but the focus of our conversation was about the difculty of maintaining the correct angle which they were originally facing. Now I am an excessively casual player so I was content to just let my opponent put it facing which ever way he thought was correct and move on. But as my opponent put his plane back in the position on the table he stated he knew exactly which direction it was facing. Now I consider myself to have a good memory when it comes to stuff like this, but I was curious how he knew exactly which way the model was facing. He then explained to me that he has started the game with his base ush against the edge of the table, and that aircraft had only performed maneuvers to take it in a straight line (straight, loops, Side Slip, etc.) so the edge of the base should still be parallel to the edge of the table. This got us thinking about whether there was an easy way to make sure we were making our maneuvers accurate to the geometric nature of the game. So at some point later on I took the Aeronautica maneuver cards and scanned them all onto my computer, uploaded them into AutoCAD, then began to measure angles. Lo and behold, I discovered that all the maneuver cards were in 30 degree increments (I.E. you can either turn 30, 60, 90 or 180 degrees). This is a neat discovery because the aircraft are on hexagonal bases. The six interior angles of a hexagonal base are all 120 degrees (again a multiple of 30 degrees). Equipped with this knowledge, let us say you start the game with the edge of your aircrafts base ush against a table edge (or parallel to one). Because of the way the maneuver cards are made, at the end of every turn you should ALWAYS have 2 edges of your base parallel to a table edge. The imagines below shows all the possible 108 locations your base could end up facing if you start the game as described. This is just an easy method to make sure you are doing your maneuvers accurately. PLAYING WITH HEXES Because of the previously-stated facts, Aeronautica lends itself very well to a game that could be adapted to a hexagon-based board. I have included 3 pages worth of rules for adapting it as such. These are not 100% perfect and have yet to be play-tested. However, I feel the benets of a hex-based game may lead to some interesting new possibilities, including greater ease-of-play and the development of new maneuvers. Decide for yourself. Illustrations on following pages.
Aeronautica Imperalis Tactica : The Imperials
AERONAUTICA IMPERALIS TACTICA : THE IMPERIALS

By Lack0fBetterName with assistance from EaterOfSmallThings This tactica will give a brief run down of all of the aircraft available to the imperial player and their pro & cons, as well my suggestions on how to run them. For this tactica I am only going to be looking at the aircraft in the rst book. THUNDERBOLT VS. LIGHTNING There has been a long running debate between many players and in many AI forums about which aircraft is better, the Lighting or the Thunderbolt. It is basically my opinion that nether one is better, and if one does have an edge it should be considered negligible under the best of circumstances. The Lightning has higher maneuver and decreased repower, however this is offset by the fact that its points cost is 25% less then that of the Thunderbolt. If you equip your Lightning with and additional weapons load of sky-strike missiles, its repower is now closer to par with the Thunderbolts, with the exact same point cost So it is my rm opinion that the Thunderbolt/ Lightning option is entirely user preference. In my case it was decided by the fact that I like the Lighting models so much more then the Thunderbolts. They are easier to scratch build and much more fun to paint. When I do run Thunderbolts I run them without any additional weapons, when my Lightings take to the sky (a much more common occurrence) I typically arm them with additional sky-strike missiles for an added air-to-air punch. LIGHTNING STRIKE While both the Thunderbolt and standard Lightning can take additional weapons to target ground targets, the Strike carries hellstrike missiles as one of its primary weapons. It can be further upgraded with more hell-strike missiles for to make for a great strang aircraft throwing 4 missile dice, and 1 las-cannon dice. You can also use sustained burst, if you are using the advanced rules to make for one deadly strang run. You could also outt the Strike with bombs. It is possible to climb 2 elevations in 1 turn; as such you could come in at elevation 1, hit the target with the hell-strike and las-cannons, then pull up to elevation 3 and drop your bombs in the next turn as you y away. The Lightning Strike makes for a great attack aircraft against soft ground targets. If the target has only 1 or 2 hits, the Lighting has a good chance of destroying in a single strang run. The important thing to remember about the strike is regardless of what weapons loads you take, all your weapons damage on a 3+ or better, and all your weapons have the additional damage rule. My favorite load out is full hell-strike missiles. Equipped this way I can almost always count on a Lighting Strike to do 2 hits of damage on a strang run. As previously stated this is great for hitting those ork trucks, or any other targets that it can destroy with 2 hits. The Lightning Strikes major drawback is the fact that it lacks a large amount of ammo. With the sustained burst advanced rule you could burn up all of the ammunition you carry in 2 shooting turns. I nd this drawback to not be that substantial, as I can easily make 2 attack runs then disengage the aircraft, or y off to a safer part of the board.
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MARAUDER MARAUDER DESTROYER THUNDERHAWK The Marauder, it is a Pure bomber and rules state it is unable to make stafng runs. However if you equip it with and additional payload you can be throwing 24 bombing dice at a target. That being said, I strongly suggest against an additional payload for the standard Marauder, as the additional weapons load cost 75% of the cost of the aircraft, and only increases its bomb payload by 50%. Instead I would suggest just trimming some points and getting a second Marauder. One of the biggest drawbacks of the Marauder is that once it drops it bombs, it is practically done for the day. It is too slow and clumsy to hunt down enemy ghters, and lacks the repower to take out any larger aircraft on its own. The Space Marine Thunderhawk is a strang bomber. While it has the option to take wing mounted bombs, I much prefer the Hell-Strikes as my additional weapons load as then you are able to re all of your weapons at a single target while on a strang run. The Thunderhawk is tougher, faster and has better thrust then the Marauders, and is able to keep speed and adjust thrust just like a lighting or thunderbolt. It also is the only one that can act as a transport if the mission requires. Another perk of the Thunderhawk is it gets you access to the turbo-laser, which is the most powerful weapon the imperials can eld. The Marauder Destroyer is somewhat of a mixed breed, with the weapons and ability to both strafe a target and bomb it. With the ability to take an additional weapons load it can become as good as a pure bomber as the standard Marauder (while costing almost twice as much). The Destroyer is also slightly better at being a stafng bomber then the Thunderhawk. As discussed before it is possible for a bomber to strafe a target, then the next turn change elevation and bomb it, this is a extremely valid tactic for the Destroyer because it carries bombs as standard. Of all 3 bombers the Marauder Destroyer has the most capacity for damaging a ground based target. If you can set it up right, and get 2 rounds of shooting with the auto-cannons and pull up and drop all of your standard and additional bombs average dice rolling should net you about 10 or 11 hits on a ground based target. The major downfall of all three of these craft is the fact that they all have low maneuver. As such you are likely to only get one chance to strafe or bomb a target, and over/under guessing your movement can be disastrous. As such, It is best if you take the rst two turns to attempt to line up where you can make a single pass over multiple ground targets, before disengaging. My favorite of all 3 is the Thunderhawk. But I believe this is because it outshines the other 2 choices in the model coolness, transport capacity, and durability categories. A Destroyer with additional weapons load out has the most capacity for damage to a single ground target, while a standard marauder will get you the most damage for the fewest points. The Thunderhawk however gets you a really awesome looking model that is hard as nails and can act as troop transport if the mission needs it. VULTURE & VALKRYIE The Vulture and the Valkryie are the most maneuverable aircraft the Imperium can eld. Despite this fact the two aircraft are difcult to use successfully in dogghts. This is due to their incredibly slow top speed and the fact that nether has access to any air-toair weaponry with a range longer then 12. What the Vulture and Valkryie are designed to do is to close in on a ground target without attracting any attention to themselves then sit on it, letting loose with their weaponry for as many turns as possible. This works particularly well when you use multiple of them, and on softer targets (2-3 hits). The Vulture has a wide array of additional weapons load options available to it. However the downfall of this is that it more then doubles the cost of the aircraft. The problem is the vulture only mounts a single heavy bolter, so without the additional
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weapons loads it is not nearly as effective. If you do take a weapons load I like #6 (autocannons & hunter-killer missiles). Both of these weapons have a fair number of shots, ammo and are damaging on a 4+. The other option you have is to eld them without a weapons load. If you were to do this I believe the Valkryie is the better choice. For a mere additional 2 points it gets you a multi-laser, and makes your heavy bolters able to re 360 degrees. It also includes more heavy bolter ammo and the ability to carry troops. So in my opinion it comes down to taking a squadron of 3 or so, and making them all ether bare bones Valkryies, or Vultures with an additional weapons load. Anything else in my mind seams like a waste of points. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS AIRCRAFT The Aeronautica Imperialis book includes two more aircraft, the Aquila and the Arvus Lighter. The Aquila mounts a single heavy bolter, and the Arvus can not take any weapons. Both have the same transport capacity of 1. The Aquila is double the points cost of the Arvus, but I strongly believe the extra maneuverability and speed are well worth the points to help it avoid enemy aircraft. The Arvus in my opinion is just to slow and clumsy and prone to being shot down. GROUND FORCES The imperial players in aeronautica have available to them 5 different types of ground defenses (Sabers, Hydras, Manticores, Heavy Flak Cannons and they Hyperios). However there are only 3 ground emplacements or vehicles I ever consider using. First is the Saber platform. The Saber platform is the ultimate in the Imperiums anti-strang technology. Despite its altitude and range restrictions it is an extreamly good deal for the points you pay for it. The range and altitude setbacks can easily be overcome by deployment. You can throw down the Sabers close to a ground based objective and force enemy ghters that may be on a strang run to come to you. As far as what variant to take, mathematically all 3 variants of the Saber platform function the same. For their points the Sabers are the best ground based weapons at short and medium range. They Hydra comes in at a close second but having altitude +3, means it can only hit the lowest of low ying bombers. The second platform I recommend using is the heavy ak cannon. The ak cannon clocks in at a respectable the third, in the most effective weapon at medium ranges for the points category. However the reason why I like it is it is the most effective weapon at long range for the points. This combined with a good altitude stat means any bombers that y over the range of a heavy cannon will be hitting their target on 6+s, which is ok with me. Combining Sabers and Heavy Flak Cannons, you can create a fair amount of ak for both aircraft attempting to strafe targets, and for high ying bombers. The last platform I would recommend using is mainly for the coolness factor. The Manticore comes in last in the effectiveness for the points you pay category at all ranges and all altitudes 6 and below. The downsides of the Manticore are numerous, however what makes the Manticore fun is not only is it a good looking model, but that it can hit up to altitude 8 and it has extra damage 5+. This means that if you put it on a level 1 hill the Manticore can hit anything on the table within a 3 diameter circle. This allows you to pick any ghter (or other 2 hit aircraft) within that 3 diameter circle and roll a dice, if you roll a 6, followed by a 5 or better, the aircraft is just dead. For those of you who believe in math-aeronautica thats around a 5.5% to outright kill any ghter within 18. I could see this being exciting if used in a battery of 4 Manticores in casual gaming.
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Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks
BATTLE REPORT: IMPERIUM VS. ORKS

By Lack0fBetterName with more writing & assistance by Eater of Small Things INTRODUCTION This battle report is going to be a historical re-ght of one of the earlier sorties own during the war on Medusa IV. The mission will pit the combined forces of the Dark Angels Space Marines Chapter and 23 Cadian Lightning Fighter Wing vs. the Savage Ork Fliers of Evil Sunz Clan. I, Lack0fBetterName, will be running the Imperial Squadron in this scenario, as well as authoring the commentary to follow. My opponent is Eater of Small Things, who will be running the Ork Air Waaagh! and contributing additional commentary and some editing. We both frequent the Warseer forums; feel free to look us up there. This mission features an experimental aircraft, the Ork Minelayer. Since this oating Orkish monstrosity has an ofcial datasheet for large Apocalypse battles in Warhammer 40k, we thought it only appropriate to develop our own rules for the Minelayer to be used in Aeronautica Imperialis. For this mission, the Minelayer is considered a moving objective, with the tactical bonus of having the ability to drop aerial mines. As it is otherwise unarmed, it does not have a point value, and is essentially a free Ork aircraft in our scenario. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 mark the altitude of each mine, so that both players can easily see their height. At the end of any Movement Phase where an aircraft is within 3 of an aerial mine, and at the same altitude, the mine is triggered and detonates. The mine hits the aircraft on a roll of +5, and damages it on a 2+ (extra damage on a +5), similar to a Grot Bomb. It is possible for multiple aircraft to be hit by a single aerial mine blast; simply roll to hit each target that is within 3 and at the same altitude. Remove the mine from the table after it is triggered, whether it damages targets or not. Aerial mines can be triggered by friendly aircraft, except for the Minelayer on the turn it deployed the mine in question. Keep in mind that the Minelayer can still trigger mines that it has laid in previous turns, so be careful! Aerial mines can be shot down. A mine is treated as an aircraft with 1 hit. Any hits against an aerial mine will damage it on a roll of 2+ regardless of the weapons normal damage roll. If a mine is destroyed in this manner, its repulsor eld malfunctions and it plummets harmlessly to the ground. Simply remove the destroyed mine from the table; no detonation occurs.
ORK MINELAYER Hits = 4 Thrust = 1 Maneuver = Very High Weapons = Aerial Mines
Max Speed = 3 Min Speed = 0 Max Alt = 7
DEPLOYING AERIAL MINES The Minelayer carries a payload of 8 aerial mines. It can deploy 1 mine per turn during the Firing Phase, just as if it had chosen to re its weapons. A mine is deployed by placing it in contact with the rear arc of the Minelayers ight base. The deployed mine is at the same altitude as the Minelayer and remains stationary until triggered (the mine cannot move or adjust its altitude). Note that it is important to have some way to
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FORCES
For the Imperials, the lack of Marauder Bombers In the area has necessitated that the Dark Angels Thunderhawk, Angels Wrath lead the assault (plus, I just love my Thunderhawk). Captain Walker Smith has volunteered to lead a ight of escorts in the form of 5 Lightning variants drawn from the Cadian 23rd Lightning Fighter wing. The models in my list are all scratch-builds. I hope this fact will convince more people to try out Aeronautica Imperialis, since the price of Forgeworlds resin models may put off a lot of potential gamers. Designation Angels Wrath Blue 1 Blue 2 Blue 3 Green 1 Green 2 Pilots Name Brother Jaden Capt. Walker Smith Author Milton Jack Wilkins Lt. Max Kingston Tom VanDyke Aircraft Thunderhawk Lightning Lighting Strike Lighting Strike Lighting Strike Lighting Strike Add. Weapons Load Hellstrike Missiles Skystrike Missiles Hellstrike Missiles Hellstrike Missiles Bombs Bombs
The Ork forces will include an Ork Minelayer, the Ork factory (which sports a whopping 10 hit points) and another 100 points worth of aircraft and eld anti-aircraft guns. The Orks will also have another six aerial-mines to place before the battle begins. Designation Fighta #1 Fighta #2 Fighta #3 Fighta-Bommer Flakk Trukk Flakk Trukk Eavy Flakk Kannon Pilots Name Chompa Squigface Da Barun Bomma Bastat X X X Aircraft Fighta Fighta Fighta Fighta-Bomba Trukk Trukk Platform Add. Weapons Load Rokkits Rokkits Rokkits 2 Grot Bombs Flakk Flakk Eavy Flakk
THE MISSION: BOMBING RUN This mission will include 130 points worth of Imperial aircraft. It will be a standard Bombing Raid mission. As such, the Orks will have 75% of the Imperials points (100 points after some rounding). Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
For this mission we will not be using victory points. Instead the Imperial player will have an objective to meet. The Imperial objective is to destroy the Ork factory and the cause signicant damage (half or better) to the Mine Pig. If the Imperial player does this, then they
win, if they complete only half the objective (pig or factory) then it is a draw, otherwise the Ork player wins. The Ork players objective is to go really fast and shoot down all the enemy planes with lots of dakka.
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IMPERIAL DEPLOYMENT I deployed my forces rst, throwing the Thunderhawk down on the south side of the board with blue 2 & 3. I hoped these aircraft would draw most of the attention of the Ork ghters. As such I deployed Green 1 & 2 to the far north of the board in hopes that they might be able to slip by at high altitude with minimal damage, then dive in and bomb the factory. Blue 1 had the best chance to put some damage on the Mine
Pig, so he deployed in the center of the board at medium speed and altitude so I could adjust to wherever the mine layer showed up. ORK DEPLOYMENT All Ork planes are deployed at their board edge at various altitudes in hopes of intercepting the inbound Imperial aircraft and showing off. The Minelayer, affectionately referred to as Da Mine Pig deploys behind the faktory.
Excerpt from an electronic transmission intercepted moments before engagement Oiy! Dem Umies nk dey can go fasta than us Orks! Dey is yin over dis way to try an bomm our faktory! Well dey is in for a suprise cause we got rokkits, shootas, da Mine Pig, and we is fasta! Waaagh!!!
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Both sides raced towards each other. The Ork Fighta-Bommer red off the rst of its Grot Bombs. Blue 1 cut to the south and dropped in altitude to get a better bead on the Minelayer. Turn 1 was rather uneventful and there was no shooting.
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Both sides continued to close on each other. Blue 1 got a lock on the Minelayer and left y with multiple salvos of sky-strike missiles and lascannon re causing 2 hits. In retaliation, Ork Fighta #1, and the Eavy Flakk Kannon shot and destroyed Blue 1 in a hail of big shoota re. The Thunderhawk cut north and managed to get out of line of site of the FightaBommers forward guns. The Thunderhawks copilot spotted a Grot Bomb bearing down on them at breakneck speed. He quickly ordered the rearwing heavy bolter servitors to open re, and they destroyed the grot-guided missile with incredible accuracy. The Thunderhawks forward heavy bolters scored a hit on Ork Fighta #3.
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Turn 3 saw the skies above the factory become very crowded, with aircraft swirling and diving all over the place. The Thunderhawks rear heavy bolter servitor earned his keep today, causing 2 hits as he sent the last of his ammunition into a Flakk Trukk perched on a hill. However, all of the Thunderhawks forward facing weaponry failed to inict any damage on the factory. Blue 2 and Blue 3 also expended the last of their ammunition as they let y all of their shots into the factory causing a total of 5 hits. There were a few really lucky dice rolls in this round of shooting for the Imperials. The Orks, on the other hand, were plagued by sub par dice rolling as they failed to score any hits.
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Having expended all his ammo, Blue 3 left the board and returned to base. Blue 2 and the Thunderhawk, running low on ammunition and out of position for a follow-up attack, decided to follow suit and make for the board edge. Green 1 and 2, still completely unscathed, cut south to line up for their bombing run on the factory. Turn 4 saw the orks shooting take effect as Fightas #1 and #3 swarmed down and destroyed Blue 2 before he could make the board edge. Fighta #2 scored a hit on Green 2.
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As the Thunderhawk streaked of the board edge; Green 1 & 2 dropped down to elevation 4 and let loose with a urry of bombs, scoring 5 more hits and destroying the factory entirely. The Orks saw many of their aircraft moving too fast to do any good, overshooting Green 1 & 2. Content in the destruction they had rained on the factory and minelayer, Turn 6 saw all remaining Imperial aircraft hit the board edge and return to base.
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IMPERIAL CONCLUSIONS The game was probably a whole lot closer then it appeared. I think if I had lost a second Lightning in Turns 1 or 2, I dont think I would have had the repower to completely take down the factory. It would have taken least another two or three turns which would have seen Green 1 & 2 getting swarmed by Fightas before they could drop their bombs. My MVP of the match has to be Blue 1. He was my only aircraft that had a chance of putting those 2 hits on the Mine Pig by himself. If he didnt do it before he got shot down, I probably would have had to send a pair of the Lightning Strikes after it, and that would mean 2 Strikes wasting their time and ammo on the Minelayer instead of the factory. The Thunderhawk was probably my weakest unit. Despite dealing out 5 hits, it was unable to damage either objective. Part of this way my fault for not realizing how fast it was going as it ew in to strafe the factory. To bad the ammo for the forward heavy bolters cant be used for the rear turret ones, which twice had a target to shoot at, but had already spent all their ammunition. ORK CONCLUSIONS Despite an aggressive application of dakka, my Orks failed to bring down Lack0fs swarm of Lightnings before it was too late. The Minelayers aerial mineeld limited
the approaches to the factory, but none were triggered due to some fancy ying on Lack0fs part. Even though I lost the game, it was a lot of fun--- chock full of the whistling of Grot Bombs and the whooping shrieks of their pilots.
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Battleeet Gothic: Da Mek Sez...
DA MEK SEZ SCULPTING YOUR OWN ORK SHIPS

Dis iz da baddest, biggest Mek Itzybitz. Iz wun bad mutha Oi! Shut yer gob and get on wif it den! Yes Boss, Sure ting Boss. Weeza guna konstruct a krooza so us orkses kan Waaaaagh! Throo da kosmos. Iza guna let me oomie slave tellz ya da know-wotz to construct a krooza fer yerself. DA GUBBINZ YUZE WANTZ: Sculpey (or Greenstuff, Procreate, etc.) Pointy Tool (Scalpel, Pick, Exacto Knife, Toothpick, Sharp Stick, etc.) Sharp Tool (Scalpel, Exacto Knife, Razor Blade, Choppa, etc.) Screw (Flathead) Compass Orks are a space faring race. Their ships arent as sophisticated as the Eldar or as elaborate as the Imperiums, but thats part of their charm. Their crazed meks use whatever bitz of otsam and junk they can to create the fearsome warships of an ork battleeet. This ramshackle nature gives the ork Battleeet Gothic player a great chance to do some scratch building and still t in with the unique look of an ork eet. I decided to use Sculpey to build my terrorship. However, the basic techniques shown in this article can be used to build an ork warship from greenstuff, plasticard, Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 found materials, or a mix. It is important to note that Sculpey must be baked to harden. Therefore, if you are using a mix of materials make sure they can stand up to high temperatures before adding them to a pre-baked Sculpey model. In order to begin your space Waaagh! the rst thing you need to do is download the Battleeet Gothic (BFG) rules from the Specialist Games website. Be warned, there is a lot of material to download. However, it is at my preferred price point; free. Once you have a basic understanding of the rules, it will help to create your own kustom models. One of the interesting things about BFG is that the size of models does not matter. All measurements are measured from the base pole, while ramming and ordinance hits are measured from the base itself. Therefore, you are pretty free to build your ork ships anyway you like. So lets get started. The rst thing you will want to do is create a prow for your ork ship. Ork prow design is somewhat boxy compared to other eets. They dont have the plow shaped prow of the Imperials, or the cone of the Eldar. This make sit even easier for us. Take a wad of Sculpey about the size you want the prow to be, and mold it into a box shape with your ngers. Dont worry about leaving ngerprints in the clay.
It will look something like this. Next, take a pizza cutter (or anything you feel will give you a clean edge. I like the pizza cutter. Just dont use it on pizza afterwards.) and trim the sides into the shape you want for the prow. I tried to slant the edges to look a bit more like the BFG models prow. The basic shape of the prow is now complete. Set it aside for a bit.
The next step is to create the basic hull of the ship. This will act as the spine for the model and be the anchor for the rest of the ship to build off of. As a result, it will have the tallest and lowest points of your model. 125

Simply roll a ball of Sculpey, and then atten it to the desired thickness. Some people use a rolling pin for this stage, but the palm of your hand is perfectly acceptable as well. Once you have the putty at, cut out the desire shape you want with a bladed instrument. Be careful to avoid cutting yourself. I used a scalpel, but I have used the pizza cutter for this stage in the past. Other modelers have used Exacto knives, razor blades, toothpicks, pins, and other pointy objects. Remember, this will be the basic shape for your ships hull, so take some care in designing the look you want. The next step I took was to create wings for the model. Not every krooza will need this step depending on your design. Flatten and cut out the desired wing shape using the same method we used to cut out the hull of your spaceship. Then pin the wings to the underside of the hull with push pins.
Then I trimmed the vertical pins down to size, but left the front pins. This was where I was going to attach the prow of the ship that I had made earlier. That way the prow would also be supported by the ships wire super structure. Dont worry about ngerprints or small marks in the clay. Most of the hull will be covered during the construction process. After placing the prow onto the front of the hull, I created a collar of Sculpey to help join the two pieces together snuggly. Once baked this collar would reinforce the model for increased endurance.
Once you have the basic hull shape you will want to reinforce it so the model will be durable for transport and game play. I used a combination of oral wire and push pins for this process. However any wire will work, even chopped up paper clips. Take the wires and run them through the clay lengthwise and also vertically. I ran a pin through each ridge in my hull design to help keep them rigid and upright. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
Now comes the most time consuming part of the entire process. Take a pointy tool such as a scalpel, toothpick, Exacto knife, etc. and scratch detail marks into the surface of your ship. Since ork ships are ramshackle affairs built from whatever scrap the meks could get their hands on, dont worry too much about making it look perfect. I happened to use a scalpel for lines and a tool called a stylus to make small indents in the crafts hull. I would not be concerned about ngerprints or small imperfections in the putty when building ork kroozas. 126

for the next stages properly. For found materials, now is a great time to let the glue set before continuing. While I was baking the krooza, I took the time to work on some other parts of the spaceship. I had decided early on in the design process to include engines. I had decided on four, but really you can have one really big engine, or as many as you want. To make engines, simply roll an oblong piece of clay to start with. Then, cut off the ends using the tool of your choice. Now, simply detail the engine with a pointy tool using the same methods you used to detail the hull of your krooza. Repeat this process for as many engines as you want your spaceship to have. Once they are detailed the way you like bake them or let them set as appropriate.
If your krooza is going to have bow torpedo tubes, you will want to add these now. Simply nd a small stir stick or similar object and press it into the bow of your ship like in the picture below. It will leave small round tubes when it is removed.
Once the ends are cut off, carefully hollow out both ends of the engine. Preferably, the front hole should be bigger than the hole on the rear of the engine. Again, I used a stylus for this but any tool will sufce.
By this time, your main krooza hull should be ready to go. At this point, you want to bulk up the hull of the ship to give it some substance. This is very simple. Use the same method you used to create the main hull. The only difference is to make the piece small enough to t on the main hull the way you want.
The basic hull is now ready to set. If you are using Greenstuff, let it sit for a day or two to harden. If you are using Sculpey, bake it at this stage. If you are using something else, please be sure to read the instructions carefully so you can prepare the model Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 127

Layer the sides up to the desired thickness. Then use your handy pointy tool to detail the sides again. Since this is an Ork ship, you will want to add a Gob, also know as a Waaagh! glyph on the front of the ship. Essentially, it is a stylized toothy grin. If you arent sure what it looks like, then take a look at the glyph plates on most ork models. To make the Waaagh! Symbol, just roll a piece of Sculpey at, and cut out the desired shape with a sharp tool. Then place it on the prow of your ship. will have launch bays and relatively few gun batteries, while Kill Kroozas will have a lot of gunz batteries. Keep this in mind when arming your krooza. Finally, go back to your engines and mount them on theooza. If you are using Sculpey, you can mount the engines before baking or you can bake the engines separately and attach them to the hull later with glue. I have used both methods successfully, but I nd baking them onto the ship more effective. If you glue any parts onto your krooza, be sure you will not have to bake the ship afterwards. The glue will not hold up in the oven. At this point, your ship should look something like this. Then, I ran a screw through the middle to act as the ight stand. A screw allows you to twist the nished model onto the stand. They allow for a sturdy, secure ight stand for in game play and let you remove the spaceship for transport. I recommend using athead screws, but if you dont have any, simply bury the round head in the clay. Make sure the screw is straight, then bake or let set. However, you are not done yet. The most important part of a BFG spaceship is the base. Keep in mind what I said about base sizes previously. I simply used a compass and scalpel to make the base the desired size
The next step is to add the gunz batteries. This is also relatively simple. Roll very small balls of clay, and then press them at onto the hull of your krooza. This will leave a small disk. Trim a very small piece of wire and insert it into the disc. Then, use your pointy tool and again add some details. Along the sides of the ship, I simply inserted some trimmed wire directly into the sides of the hull at certain points. These will work as the port and starboard batteries. Launch bays can be made with small squares of clay detailed to look like garage doors or small holes in the side of the craft. Terrorships Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
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Normally, I start the mounting hole in the krooza with a pin vice drill. This creates an easy starting point for the screw. I then simply tighten the ship onto the base. Be careful that the area of the Krooza you are attaching to the screw is thick enough to accommodate the screw mount, otherwise it can lead to cracking. Congratulations, you now have your rst scratch built ork ship for Battleeet Gothic! Give it a coat of paint; preferably red because they go fasta, but a nice lucky blue will look nice too. Then, Waaaagh! thru da kosmos. Oi, dis iz Mek Itzybitz. Not bad fer a oomie. Jobz a gud un!
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Gorkamorka: Propa Ork Klan Roolz!
PROPA ORK KLAN ROOLZ!

INTRODUCTION Gorkamorka was released after the success of Necromunda by Games Workshop as one of their splash releases, and has been recently uploaded to the Specialist Games website as a free download. With the new Ork Codex and Ork models being released what better time is there to start thinking about Gorkamorka? With that being said, there have been two main drawbacks to Gorkamorka. The rst is its divergence with the original Ork background by not mentioning the original and popular Ork Klans. Secondly, it lacked the diversity of forces that its sister game Necromunda possessed. This article will attempt to remedy both of these issues with Gorkamorka, and provide some house rules for your Greenskins to use. ORK KLANS IN GORKAMORKA Orks are unique in the Galaxy because all of their knowledge is genetically programmed into their DNA. Orks are literally born with the knowledge they will need in society. Most of the orks simply have enough knowledge to be warriors; however some of the Oddboyz have more specialized skills such as Meks, Slaverz, Docs, etc. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 An orks preprogrammed DNA has also led to another curious phenomenon. Orks are often attracted to a particular lifestyle called a klan. This manifests itself in a variety of unique behaviors and preferences, even going to the extent of inuencing an orks style of dress. Normally, klan differences are subsumed within the large context of Ork society. Typically a tribe/warband is composed of orks that adhere to various klan preferences. To the general observer, they are just another disorganized Orkish mob. However, the trained observer can pick out the different klans within any particular mob. However, there are some orks where their klan preference is so pronounced, that they only want to associate with orks of like mind. These mobs are composed of boyz that have the same inbuilt DNA preferences to each other. As a result, they become klan specic mobs. Ork klans are made up of the following selfidentied archetypes. GOFFS - Goffs consider themselves the only true Orks. They are the arbiters of true Orky Kulture, and take this role very seriously. In a Goffs mind a propa ork is concerned
about getting in close with the enemy and delivering him a solid eadbutt. An orks purpose in life is to ght up close and personal with his rivals and enemies. They dislike buggies and bikes, but tolerate them in order to close with their enemies. To reect their no nonsense approach, the Goffs prefer to wear black clothing with white or red checker patterns and dag marks. Huge horned helms are also a favored item. A Goff can also be identied by their preference for bull or horns symbols. BLOOD AXE - The Blood Axe clan was the rst to be encountered by humans, and as such other orks often think of them as tainted. The Blood Axes are duplicitous and sneaky by nature and value low cunning more than any other clan. This hasnt helped with their reputation, as other orks think that a Blood Axe will run off at a moments notice instead of ght. Blood Axes have adopted rudimentary camouage patterns as their outt of choice. They also seem disposed to insignias of rank and prestige. Where Goffs use horns the Blood Axes have adopted the more human approach of using metals, peaked caps, and stripes. Field caps are also popular with Blood Axe Orks. Like their name implies, the Blood Axe klan likes to use two crossed axes as their identier. 130

BAD MOON - Bad Moons are unique among Orks in that there teeth grow faster than other Ork klans. The reason for this is unknown, but since teef are the primary currency in Ork society, they are the richest of all the clans. Due to this wealth, they have a greater propensity to engage in trading and negotiation. Bad Moonz tend to dress in ashy clothes and bright yellows to draw attention to themselves. They usually have the best armor and weapons as well. A curious crescent shaped felt cap is popular with Bad Moonz, as it is evocative of their symbol. Not surprisingly, the Bad Moonz uses a leering crescent moon as their symbol. DEATHSKULL - Deathskullz are well known as the best looters in the galaxy. They are notorious for swiping things from any ork within arms reach. They are particularly attracted to shiny objects and things that make loud noises. The members of this klan are the most tolerant of grotz. Deathskullz are extremely superstitious, and as such like to paint themselves up in blue paint. They believe that the blue paint attracts the attention of Gork or Mork and the benets of good luck. The higher ranking the Deathskull, the more blue paint he is likely to daub on. Often, a Deathskullz clothing will be a patchwork of different material that he has acquired. Another key identier is the use of a horned skull totem. SNAKEBITE - All orks have a certain barbaric and feral nature compared to humans. The Snakebites take this to the extreme. Often times, they prefer to stay with their feral roots, and never fully adopt modern Orky Kulture when they wander into Mektown. Snakebites are well known for their wanderlust and inability to stay in one place for any length of time. They just tend to wander off, and take all of their belongings with them. In addition, of all orks the Snakebites have the closest afnity to the natural eco-system and tend to prefer riding animals rather then using motorized vehicles. Snakebites tend to wear leathers and skins instead of the more mundane textiles. Feathers and other animal trophies are common as well. Snakebites are often heavily scarred, as they have a practice of subjecting themselves to poisonous bites and stings of local animals to help enhance their toughness. This practice has given rise to their klan name, and their snake head totem. EVIL SUNZ - Evil Sunz love things with engines and going fast. Every single member of the klan has an unnatural afnity for mechanical devices. However, they prefer to use their talents tinkering with their buggies. Other orks see the value in going fast, but the Evil Sunz have an obsession, often spending hours racing each other all over the Skids and across Mektown. The Evil Sunz prefer to wear the color orange. However, all of their clothing is usually stained with grease and oil. They also have an afnity for polarized lenses to keep the sun out of their eyes when they drive, and squig hide gloves to grip the steering wheel better. Fringes and tassels to wave in the wind are also popular, as are orange dag marks and ames. The klan symbol is a leering faced orange sun. KLAN SPECIFIC RULES The rules below will allow you to eld klan specic mobs in your games of GorkaMorka. When starting a klan specic mob you will rst need to decide what klan you want to use. This will inuence some of your choices during the mob recruitment process, provide special rules for campaign play, and affect your experience advancement tables. Keep in mind that you do not need to play a klan mob; you can still use the normal Gorkers or Morkers. Those mobs are simply composed of orks from various klans ghting together.
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GOFFS Goff Nobs start with LD 8. They do not need to win a battle in order to raise their LD to 8. They are all ready battle hardened, since Goffs spend more time than any other ork ghting. A Goff Nob never recruits Grots. They are too weedy, and are beneath him. A Goff Nob may hire up to 2 other Nobs for the Mob. They start with LD 7, and they will not increase except through the normal campaign experience system. BLOOD AXE Blood Axes may choose to be led by a Spanner instead of a Nob. Blood Axes are sneaky; hence they can re-roll Da Bad Nooz rolls. However, they must abide by the second rolls results even if it is worse than the previous roll. BAD MOON Bad Moon Nobz may start the recruiting process with 115 teef instead of 100. Bad Moon boyz that are mining scrap earn an extra +1 teef per roll in the income stage of the campaign.
CLAN ADVANCE TABLE

GOFFS Muscle Nobz Yes Boyz Yes Spannerz Yes Slaverz Yes Yoofs Yes Grotz n/a Ferocity Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes n/a Driving Yes Cunnin Yes Dakka Yes Yes Yes Odd
Yes n/a n/a n/a
Yes Yes n/a
BLOOD AXE Muscle Nobz Yes Boyz Spannerz Slaverz Yes Yoofs Grotz
Ferocity
Driving Yes Yes Yes Yes
Cunnin Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dakka Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Odd Yes Yes Yes
BAD MOON Muscle Nobz Boyz Spannerz Slaverz Yoofs Grotz
Ferocity Yes
Driving Yes Yes
Yes
Cunnin Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dakka Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Odd Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
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DEATHSKULLZ The Deathskull Mob maybe led by a Slaver instead of a Nob. Grots can mine 1d3+1 Teef per grot that is mining in the income stage of the campaign. SNAKEBITES Instead of buggies, bikes, and tracks the Snakebites use boars/Squigs, Squiggoths, and Cyboars/Squigs. These units may move as foot sloggers instead of turning 45 degrees as vehicles. Also, they may always move through difcult terrain, instead of getting stuck like buggies. EVIL SUNZ Evil Sunz maybe led by a Spanner instead of a Nob. Evil Sunz may re-roll vehicle permanent damage. However, the second result must be abided by, even if it is worse than the initial roll. CONCLUSION Using the rules presented above you will be able to eld the Ork klans as well as Gorkers and Morkers in your games of Gorkamorka. Hopefully this will help provide some added depth to your Gorkamorka campaigns. With the release of the new Ork models and Ork Codex, this is a perfect opportunity to start building a nicely themed Warhammer 40K force while playing some fun games of Gorkamorka. Now get out there and hit the Skidz.
CLAN ADVANCE TABLE (CONTINUED)

DEATHSKULLZ Muscle Nobz Yes Boyz Yes Spannerz Yes Slaverz Yes Yoofs Yes Grotz Ferocity Yes Driving Cunnin Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Dakka Yes Yes Yes Yes Odd Yes Yes Yes
SNAKEBITE Muscle Nobz Yes Boyz Yes Spannerz Yes Slaverz Yes Yoofs Yes Grotz
Ferocity Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Driving
Dakka Yes Yes
Odd Yes Yes Yes
EVIL SUNZ Muscle Nobz Boyz Spannerz Slaverz Yoofs Grotz
Ferocity Yes
Yes Yes
Driving Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dakka Yes Yes Yes
Odd Yes Yes Yes Yes
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Gorkamorka: New Gubbinz!
NEW GORKAMORKA GUBBINS, WEAPONS AND TRANSPORTATION V2.0

by Jayden Barr
NEW VEHICLES AND TRANSPORTATION

BATTLEWAGON - 35 TEEF (LIMIT 0-1) The Battlewagon uses the normal trukk/ trak/buggy hit location tables, except for the fact that every location gets +1 Armour. Battlewagons mount *lots* of big guns. Each Battlewagon may take a combination of up to 3 vehicle mounted weapons, mounted with a 90 degree re arc in any of the four directions. A BattleWagon may purchase 0-3 Big Guns, 0-3 Twin Linked Guns, 0-1 Very Big Gun. Due to their staggering size, Battlewagons inevitably require extra maintenance compared to ordinary trukks or buggies, and as such call for the attentions of two assigned Spanner Boyz instead of just one SPECIAL ROOLZ: Uge - If a battlewagon is involved in a Ram, Sideswipe, Rake, Crash, Collision, etc etc etc, it will inict quite a lot of damage on the unfortunate vehicle also involved. This means it always inicts one more point of damage than normal on the other vehicle. Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
Eavy - Battlewagons are very, very heavy. This means they only get to move 4 inches for every thrust it makes (not 6 inches like a trukk or 5 inches like a trak). In addition, if it has any sort of random movement, it will move D3 inches instead of D6. Since Battlewagons are immensely heavy, this increases their traction signicantly as they rumble over the ground and allows them to move through difcult terrain without penalty. BATTLE FORTRESS- 48 TEEF (LIMIT 0-1) The Battle Fortress uses the normal trukk/ trak/buggy hit location tables, except for the fact that every location gets +2 Armour. Battle Fortresses mount *lots* of big guns. Each Battle Fortress may take a combination of up to 5 vehicle mounted weapons, mounted with a 90 degree re arc in any of the 4 directions. A Battle Fortress may purchase 0-3 Big Guns, 0-5 Twin Linked Guns, 0-1 Very Big Gun. One weapon may be given a Turret mount for +4 teef, which allows it to re in a 360 degree arc. Due to their staggering size, Battle Fortresses inevitably require extra
maintenance compared to ordinary trukks or buggies, and as such call for the attentions of two assigned Spanner Boyz instead of just one. SPECIAL ROOLZ: Uge - If a Battle Fortress is involved in a Ram, Sideswipe, Rake, Crash, Collision, etc etc etc, it will inict quite a lot of damage on the unfortunate vehicle also involved. This means it always inicts one more point of damage than normal on the other vehicle. Eavy - Battle Fortresses are very, very heavy. This means they only get to move 3 inches for every thrust it makes (not 6 inches like a trukk or 5 inches like a trak). In addition, if it has any sort of random movement, it will move D3 inches instead of D6. Since Battle Fortresses are immensely heavy, this increases their traction signicantly as they rumble over the ground and allows them to move through difcult terrain without penalty. GUBBINS FOR BATTLEWAGON OR BATTLE FORTRESS DEFF ROLLA- 10 teef A Deff Rolla is a great spiked roller that brings the colossal weight of a battlewagon to bear on anything in its way. 134

Any model on foot that is successfully run down with a Deff Roller will take D3 S4 hits before being bounced D3 out of the way. A vehicle with a Deff Roller also counts as having a Reinforced Ram. If hit in the gubbins, a Deff Roller is damaged on a 4 or more like any other gubbins. (Battlewagon and Battlefortress are based on rules originally published by James of http://www.miteyheroes.co.uk/mektown ) KILLA KAN (15 TEEF) A Killa Kan is bought as an armoured suit for a grot (Ork mobs only). The grot will leave any equipment it previously wielded in the Mobs stash. The tting of the suit is somewhat Serjikal, and the grot may not be removed from the suit after it is purchased (if the grot dies as a result of his injuries in the post battle sequence, the suit and its weapons are lost as with any other gear). The Kan counts as a cybork body, replacing the grots T and W values with AV9 and special wound rules as described on point 6 of page 84, Da Uvver Book. The Killa Kan suit comes with a Power Klaw (listed below) and may purchase one Twin Linked gun, or a Big Gun from the following list: Skorcha, Eavy Shoota, Rokkit Launcher, Harpoon Gun. POWER KLAW: Close Combat Str:6 Dam:3 Sv Mod:-3 Krump - Killa Kans may not make boarding actions, however if a Kan charges into combat Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 with an enemy vehicle, make an Initiative test: if failed, the Kan takes a S4 hit on a 4+ and is bounced back D3 as if it has failed a boarding action. If the Kan makes a successful initiative test, it has managed to latch onto some part of the vehicle with its Klaw and attempts to do its worst. Inict D3 S6 hits against random locations on the vehicle. The following upgrades may be purchased from Mektown for a Killa Kan: EXTRA ARMOUR PLATES (4 TEEF EACH) A Killer Kan may purchase up to 3 armour plates. Extra armour plates are welded into place giving the Kan a saving throw against penetrating hits. When a Kan takes damage, make an extra armour saving throw before testing to see if the hit takes the Kan out of action. With one armour plate, the Kan ignores the damage on 6, 2 armour plates ignore damage on 5+, 3 armour plates ignore damage on a 4+. If the armour plates fail to deect the shot, test to see if the Kan explodes as normal. WRECKER BALL (7 TEEF) An optimistic Spanner has seen it t to attach a large, unwieldy steel ball on a crane arm to the already unwieldy Killer Kan. When attempting to Krump a vehicle in close combat, the Wrecker Ball inicts one extra hit on the vehicle, which penetrates automatically! The Wrecker Ball hits the vehicle and inicts one penetrating hit even if the Kan fails its Initiative test to Krump the vehicle. SPECIAL ROOLZ: Squig Fuel Injectors - A Kan may optionally make a test to use its Squig Fuel Injectors... at the start of the players turn roll 1D6, on a roll of 1-5, the test is passed this turn and the Kan may add +2 to its regular prole values for Movement and Initiative. On a roll of 6, the grot has juiced it a bit too much and the Kan ails wildly out of control. Move D6 in a random direction, the Kan may not move any further this turn but may re as normal. A Kan may test on any turn it wishes to use the injectors, but the roll may only be made at the start of the players turn and the effects will only last for the duration of that turn until the next roll is made. Stompy - A Killer Kan adds +1 Attacks to the grots prole. A Killer Kan may not be transported, and starts on the board as a vehicle would. A Killa Kan is not subject to pinning. A Kan may carry a scrap counter without movement penalty. Klunky - A Killer Kan is not a subtle device, It can be heard stomping and whirring wildly a mile away and the Boys can easily run circles around it. Killer Kans do not receive any bonuses for charging into combat, and enemies ring at a Kan from overwatch do not suffer the
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normal -1 to hit for a charging target or an appearing/disappearing target. A Killer Kan may not Hide. A Killer Kan counts as a Large Target. SKILLS: A Kan will still use the Cunnin Skills table as per a regular grot, with the following change on the roll of a 5 on the table (replacing Play Dead) Lucky - The pilot is particularly lucky. The Kan may re-roll its rst failed penetrating hit roll. The second result stands. Collecting Teef - The Kans Power Klaw is also an excellent tool for severing scrap from the desert oor. A Killer Kan can be put to work digging D6 teef worth of scrap after a game. or Cyboars for their own nefarious reasonsIts all up to the player to decide! SQUIGGOTH Cost: 25 teef (Ork mobs only) M 6 WS BS S T 2 2 5(7) 5 W 4 I 1 A 3 LD SV 6 5+ MOVEMENT: A Squiggoths normal move may be made at up to double its basic movement rate, and it may engage enemy models on foot in close combat or ram enemy vehicles. Up to two 45 degree turns may be made, but any turn made after the Squiggoth has moved over its basic movement rate requires the driver to pass a LD test, or the Squiggoth will immediately move forwards d3 and come to a halt. For the purpose of embarking, disembarking, shooting at and shooting from a moving Squiggoth, a Squiggoth making a normal move up to double its basic movement rate counts as a vehicle that has moved under gas engines. SPECIAL ROOLZ: Rampage - A Squiggoth driver may choose to unleash his pet into a furious rampage. The Squiggoth may move up to its normal movement rate, turning twice up to 45 degrees before declaring a rampage. Pick any number of dice and roll them all at once. Any roll of 3-6 counts as a pass, any roll of 1-2 fails. If up to two dice fail, then up to two successful dice are also removed from the successful rampage dice pool. If 3 or more dice fail, only one dice may be used from the Successful rampage pool, and the Squiggoth suffers from Stupidity in its following turn. On any other result, the sum of the successful rampage dice pool is the distance that the Squiggoth must rampage (usually in a 136
Large Target, Causes Fear Weapons - Tusks (counts as a uge choppa in close combat) Squiggoths do not have an experience rating or gain experience points. Each Squiggoth in your mob is added to the vehicle roster like a buggy, and requires one Slaver to tend to it (the Slaver is effectively its driver and spanna). If a Squiggoth is left driverless during a game, roll a D6: on a roll of 1-3 it will suffer from Stupidity or on a roll of 4-6 it will be affected by Frenzy until it can be controlled again by another member of the mob (see out of control vehicles). If a Squiggoth has come under control by a model who is not a Slaver, any LD tests the new temporary driver is called upon to turn the Squiggoth are made at an additional -2 LD. If the Squiggoths Slaver dies, it may not take part in any battles until a replacement is recruited. A Squiggoth may transport models on foot in its armoured Howdah. It may mount one Big Gun or Linked Gun as a xed weapon.
SQUIGGOTHS, CYBOARS AND FERAL MOBS IN GORKAMORKA

Many feral orks will ride captured and improoved Cyboars, and their PigDoks will raise Squiggoths to serve as their preferred mode of transportation. Riding high on a Squiggoth offers a great deal of protection from the perils of the desert, and more importantly they can deal out a lot of stompin when they are provoked! Feral mobs are not enforced by a particular Mob list, however if one wanted to build a list strictly using low tech weapons and beasts for transportation, the option is there. Some feral mobs will also use Junka Trukks, and some ork mobs will want to train Squiggoths Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

straight line!) before it runs out of steam. Any number of turns may be attempted by the driver passing a LD test, however every test after the rst accumulates a -1 LD modier. A driver equipped with a whip may make its rst rampage turn automatically. For the purpose of embarking, disembarking, shooting at and shooting from a rampaging Squiggoth, it counts as a vehicle that has moved using thrusters. A rampaging Squiggoth can never be stopped unless it goes out of action, becomes disoriented and collides with impassable terrain, or it runs out of steam and nishes its move. Any model on foot that is in the path of a rampaging Squiggoth must pass an Initiative test to move out of the way or it will suffer D3 S3 hits, and is bounced d6 in a random direction (pray that this is not back in front of the Squiggoth!). Any collision event or vehicle rammed by a Squiggoth follows the normal vehicle ramming rules as if being rammed by a buggy. Any vehicle that has been rammed by a Squiggoth is moved out of its path and spins. Any rampaging Squiggoth making contact with another Squiggoth will count as charging it in close combat. BOARDING ACTIONS AND SQUIGGOTHS IN CLOSE COMBAT: Squiggoths may move into close combat Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 with enemy models on foot, or nd themselves charged by enemy models. A Squiggoth engaged in a close combat may choose to disengage from close combat with enemy models on foot at the beginning of its movement phase, the enemy models are simply moved out its way. Enemy models on foot which are in contact with a Squiggoth may either choose to attempt to board a Squiggoths Howdah to ght its crew just as a normal vehicle boarding action, or to charge the Squiggoth itself in close combat. Muties or Cyboar Riders may not attempt to board the Howdah; however they may choose to either ght the crew or the Squiggoth in close combat. If an enemy boarding party has successfully tossed all of the Squiggoths crew overboard and at least on enemy model remains in contact with the Squiggoth, they have succeeded in laying a heavy blow to the beasts head and knocking it out cold. A Squiggoth that is taken out by a boarding party slowly crumples to the ground and the boarders may safely jump off. Leave the model on the board but it is effectively out of action. DAMAGE: Shooting, ramming and collision hits are taken against the following chart. Chart entries are the same as that for a buggy unless otherwise stated. See chart at right. SQUIGGOTH DAMAGE CHART: 1 CREW (AV8) 2 FIXED WEAPON (AV8) If there is no xed weapon on the model, the Squiggoth is hit. 3 GUBBINS (AV8) If there are no gubbins on the model, the Squiggoth is hit. 4 HOWDAH (AV9) The Howdah is hit. Roll a d6 to determine the result: (1-3) Rigging damged. One of the belts harnessing the Howdah has snapped off and wrapped itself aroung the Squiggoths legs. Reduce its basic movement rate and the result of each rampage dice by -1. If the Squiggoths basic movement rate is reduced to 0, it has been taken Out of Action. (4) (5) (6) Off Balance - The hit rocks the Howdah violently causing the Squiggoth to swerve. Confused - The blast temporarily disorients the beast. The Squiggoth spins. Tangled - The Howdah takes a blast to a critical point on its belt sending it crashing under the Squiggoth, tripping it up and taking it Out of Action.
5 DRIVER (AV8) 6 SQUIGGOTH (T) The beast itself has been hit. Resolve the hit against the Squiggoths Toughness value using the weapon as normal, or take a S5 hit from a ram, rake, sideswipe, crash or collision.
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OUT OF ACTION: A Squiggoth that is reduced to 0 wounds by shooting, close combat or ramming, crashes to the ground and is effectively Out of Action. Leave the model on the board, but any crew or enemies on board the Squiggoth are thrown off d3 in a random direction and suffer a s3 hit on a 4+. INJURIES: Squiggoths that nd themselves out of action at the end of the game must roll on the Serious Injuries chart, with the following entries modied: 23 Raw Hide - The Squiggoths naturally thick layers of scaly armour have taken a severe beating. Reduce the Squiggoths saving throw by one. 32 Gobsmacked - The Squiggoths mighty tusked jaw has been broken in several places, making him slightly more hesitant on the charge. Reduce the Squiggoths Strength by 1. 61-63 Captured! - Follow the Vehicle Permanent Damage table entry for Captured! 66 Survival Against the Odds - Abandoned by its eeing mob, the stricken squiggoth has somehow made its journey back to camp, ghting off attacking creatures and opportunistic diggas, devouring as many of them as possible along the way. Everyone reckons he smells worse than ever, but he looks a bit bigger..... Any permanent injuries that the squiggoth has incurred have now disappeared. VETNERRY KARE: The Squiggoths Slaver may tend to its injuries after a game. The Slaver may attempt to heal one injury after each matchroll a D6 on the following Da Big Day table for Squiggoths: DA BIG DAY TABLE 1 Dis just Might Werk. Roll on the Eksperimental Serjury table in the Doks Serjury section of Da Uvver book. Negative effects of the Eksperiment will take place during the next game, however they may be corrected for free and the original injury healed at the end of the next game. See the Corrective Serjury section for details. Despite the guff, The Slaver still needs D6 Teef for supplies. 2-3 Stompys Restin. The serjury was a success; however the beast needs extra time to rest. The squiggoth and its slaver must miss the next game; however the serjury counts as Jobs a Good Un! 4-6 Jobs a Good Un! The Slaver has managed to heal the Squiggoths injury! Remove the effects of the injury, however the Slaver requires D6 teef to pay for the supplies. DA BAD NOOZ No matter what happens on Da Big Day, a Squiggoth is a big beast and it requires a lot of squig plasma, fungal funny gas and other assorted supplies to look after. If you cant afford to pay the bill, the Squiggoth may not be used until all of the supplies have been paid for in full. DEATH OF A SQUIGGOTH: Unfortunately, even a mighty Squiggoth can succumb to the harsh ways of the desert. If a Squiggoth Dies, any Gubbins or Fixed Weapons (if any) are lost along with it. SQUIGGOTH GUBBINS: Gubbins may be purchased for a Squiggoth as per the normal rules for purchasing gubbins for a buggy. The following gubbins entries are modied: EXTRA ARMOUR PLATES Additional: If the Squiggoth takes a wound, it may attempt to deect it using its armour plates before taking any saving throws. WRECKER BALL This is a huge iron ball mounted on the end of the Squiggoths tail. No crew member is required to work the wrecker ball. A wrecker ball can be used if the Squiggoth moves into a position to ram, rake or sideswipe an enemy vehicle. Regardless of whether a ram is made or not, the wrecker ball can be swung before the enemy vehicle has had a chance to swerve away. The ball hits d3 random locations on the target vehicle, and penetrates their armour automatically. Any driver or crew who are hit are knocked off the vehicle even if they 138

survive the wound, landing d3 away and taking a S3 hit on a D6 roll of 4+. If hit in the gubbins, a wrecker ball is damaged on a D6 roll of 4 or 5 like any other gubbins. If a 6 is rolled, the Squiggoths tail ails wildy around and manages to smash itself with the wrecking ball before it breaks off its mounting! Resolve a hit against the Squiggoth just as if it has been hit by a wrecking ball. REINFORCED RAM No rules changes- just rename it to Reinforced Tusks! for terrain and movement purposes (with the exception of the special thrust rules as below). SHOOTING A Cyboar mounted ork may carry the normal amount of weapons allowed. He may re weapons without penalty under normal movement, and may re weapons with a -1 to hit if it has run or boosted. A Cyboar mounted ork may re a twohanded Gun in a 90 degree arc to its front. He may alternatively re a one-handed pistol or throw a grenade with a 360 degree arc of re as he wheels around in the saddle, using one hand for his weapon and one hand to hold on for dear life! BOOSTING A Cyboar rider may choose to use its mounts Squig Fuel Injection system to articially kick his pig into top gear. At the end of its normal movement, a rider may choose to test for thrusters like a regular vehicle, with a maximum movement distance of 4 inches per thrust. The rider can choose to make a leadership test to turn up to 45 degrees at the end of a successful thrust move as normal. A thrust move may be used to take the rider into close combat with another foot mounted model or vehicle. If a failed thrust or turn test on the thruster buster table results in the rider being moved into contact with another model, it will count as charging into close combat (Even if it hits a friendly model!). Resolve close combat with an enemy model as normal. If the rider hits a friendly model, each model will take a S3 hit on a 4+ as their (large, rampaging) paths collide. Neither model may make any further movement this turn. CLOSE COMBAT Cyboar mounted orks gain a +1 Strength, Attack and Initiative on a turn in which they charge into close combat. On any turn after the rst, combat is fought as normal as the Cyboar has spent all of it momentum. Cyboar mounted orks may charge enemy vehicles (from the side or rear, making an initiative test or takinging a s3 hit and bouncing back 3, ghting one crew at a time etc.) and ght their crew, however they do not actually board the vehicle, instead ghting alongside or behind it swinging wildly from their saddles. A Cyboar rider that defeats a vehicles driver or crew member does not throw them off (though remember that a model that goes down on a vehicle will fall off). A Cyboar rider defeated in combat by an enemy on a vehicle will be moved out of combat in addition to any injuries caused. Once combat is resolved, the vehicle may move away as normal in its next movement phase. A Cyboar rider may disengage from combat with a vehicles crew during any of their movement phases by riding out of contact with the enemy vehicle.
CYBOAR MOUNT (5 TEEF)

Cyboar mounts can be purchased as a mount for any Ork member of an Orks mob. Cyboars may only be purchased if there is a Slaver in your mob. Each slaver allows your mob to purchase up to 4 Cyboars. Cyboar mounted orks are placed on the table at the start of a match as a vehicle would. Cyboar mounted orks may not ride or embark on vehicles. An ork riding a cyboar may not dismount it during the game. If an ork chooses not to ride a cyboar for a game, it may be left back at the fort like any other gear. Orks wearing Heavy armour may not ride Cyboars. Whilst he is mounted, A Cyboar adds +2 to the riders basic Movement characteristic, and confers an unmodied 6+ saving throw. Cyboar riders still count as a model on foot Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
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ATTACKING FORTS Cyboar riders may not attempt to climb fort walls, instead they will circle the fort shooting at defenders whilst trying to take down the gate! SCRAP COUNTERS A Cyboar rider may pick up a scrap counter if it nishes its move on top of it. A Cyboar may only carry one scrap counter at a time. a Cyboars movement rate is unaffected by carrying a scrap counter, however if a thrust test is failed, the scrap counter will be dropped behind the Cyboar at the point where the test was made. A Cyboar rider that is hit and injured will drop its scrap counter. RACING If the Cyboar rider has ended its turn within 2 of an enemy vehicle and is facing the right direction, it may attempt to race or chase the enemy vehicle in the enemys movement phase as per vehicle rules. If the Cyboar rider is successful in staying within 2 of the vehicle at the end of the vehicles movement, he will count as having charged a member of the vehicles crew during the enemys close combat phase. INJURIES A Cyboar rider that goes down during a game suffers the same movement restrictions as a regular model, as the boar eadbutts the ork with its snout waiting for him to pull himself together. A Cyboar rider may who has gone down cannot be taken out of action automatically in close combat as the confused pig is likely to have a go at them. If a Cyboar rider who has gone down is engaged in close combat, he will ght back with one attack dice, and -1 to WS and BS as if he has taken an extra esh wound. If a ghter goes out of action, His boar will wander the desert and eventually make it back to camp when it feels hungry. Make a note: if a ghter goes out of action, on a roll of 1 before the orks next game the Cyboar is still missing out in the desert, and may not participate in this battle. If this means that the ork boy cannot be transported in any way, it means that he must also miss the game as he takes to the blazing desert on foot calling for his pig. Both will make it back to camp in time for the next game. When a Cyboar rider goes out of action and is injured, his mount will make it back to camp one way or another. One of the mobs slavers will attend to the welfare of the pigs, Cyboars will be ready for the next game when his rider is. If a result of captured! is rolled, they take his Cyboar with the rider. If a Cyboar rider is Killed, His Cyboar has met the same fate or has ed into the desert. an additional +1 attack dice. A Nob wearing Heavy Armour may ride a super Cyboar. NEW EQUIPMENT Bomb Squig (Slavers Gear) 9 teef - Bomb squigs are purchased as weapons for Slavers. A Slaver must be equipped with a Grabber Stick to be able to eld a bomb squig in a game (as the slaver restrains the squig). Only one bomb squig may be elded per slaver in your mob (Slavers will only bring one bomb squig with them each per ght, as they have a hard enough time grappling with one rabid, explosives laden squig!). A bomb squig is a one use per match weapon, but the slaver is assumed to round up another victim to strap the goods onto for the next match. A bomb squig has the following prole: M 6 WS BS 4 0 S 3 T 3 W 1 I 3 A 2 LD SV 10 4+
SUPER CYBOAR (NOB ONLY, 7 TEEF)

A Super Cyboar follows all of the rules as above for a Cyboar, but adds a further +1 to its riders basic movement, and on the charge adds
Bomb squigs must begin the game on the same vehicle as the slaver, and if the slaver disembarks a vehicle the bomb squig must remain within 2 of a slaver until such time as the slaver chooses to release the bomb squig. Whilst a bomb squig is being restrained by a slaver, it will always move with its slaver and use its slavers successful or unsuccessful initiative tests for special movement (see the Volatile rule!). Whilst the slaver is restraining a bomb squig, the bomb squig may never be individually targeted for shooting (but may be hit by 140

blast or template weapons incidentally) or combat (instead, the restrained bomb squig adds to his slavers combat score, see special rule Vicious). A bomb squig will stay next to its slaver if he goes down, but if the slaver is taken out of action, the squig will wander harmlessly away. SPECIAL ROOLZ: Vicious - Whilst a slaver is restraining a bomb squig, he will always count as having an extra multiple attacker bonus in a combat (ie, in a single combat +1 attack dice and +1 combat result, as a second attacker +2 attack dice and +2 combat result etc.). Volatile - If a slaver restraining a bomb squig enters combat, or a roaming bomb squig has been attacked in combat, on a roll of two fumbles (squig eyes) the bomb squigs ordnance accidentally explodes! After the combat is resolved, all parties involved in the combat will take a Strength 5 hit on a roll of 4+. On board a vehicle, only the slaver and his opponent will be hit by the explosion. In the event of accidental bomb squig explosion, the bomb squig is removed from play. If a slaver restraining a bomb squig fails his initiative test for releasing the bomb squig from a moving vehicle that has used its thrusters, or for embarking or disembarking a vehicle that has used its thrusters, the embarking or disembarking model will instead trigger an accidental explosion and take a Strength 6 hit on a 4+, placing the blast marker over the model! Remove the bomb squig from play if any accidental explosion occurs. Release the squig!: A slaver may release a bomb squig in his shooting phase (or from overwatch). The slaver must make an initiative test to successfully release a bomb squig from a vehicle that has used its thrusters (see Volatile special rule), otherwise a bomb squig released from a vehicle is placed as per normal disembarking rules. The bomb squig makes a special move in this phase 2D6 in a straight line towards the nearest enemy vehicle. If the bomb squig moves into contact with an enemy vehicle, the enemy player may make a swerve test with -1 Ld value. If the swerve is successful, move the vehicle away as if it had been rammed. If the swerve test is failed, the bomb squig has achieved its ultimate goal! Resolve D6+1 Strength 6 hits against the enemy vehicle. If a released squig does nd its target in the initial shooting phase, it will always run towards the closest enemy vehicle at double its regular movement rate in its movement phase. If a bomb squig moves into contact with an enemy vehicle in its own movement phase, resolve the hit as above.
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Epic Battle Report: Space Marines vs. Chaos Space Marines
EPIC BATTLE REPORT: SPACE MARINES VS. CHAOS SPACE MARINES

Epic is by far my most favourite gaming system, so when I was organising an event to mark the grand-opening of our Wargaming facilities I couldnt resist the opportunity to plan a participation game for the guests who were attending. This also gave me the opportunity to put some of the terrain Ive been making to good use including a large (for epic scale!) Fortress /Bastion model I had scratch-built. I felt this would not just be a suitably impressive centre-piece for the game, but also an objective worth ghting over. Using my Iron Hands Space Marine army (over 4,000 points) and a mix of Iron Warriors and Imperial Guard (standing in as Lost & the Damned traitors), I had a pretty impressive 10,000 points worth of miniatures to use. Remembering some of the back-ground narrative from 2003s Eye of Terror campaign heres the scenario and background I put together for this special game: During Abaddons 13th Black Crusade, Medusa (home world of the Iron Hands Space Marine Chapter) came under attack from the hordes of Chaos. After one of the biggest Tank battles in the History of the Imperium, the forces of Chaos were held at bay, and the blasted surface of Medusa was littered with the burning wrecks of thousands upon thousands of Tanks. One of many large-scale actions saw a combined force of Iron Warriors armour and Traitors assault the Bastion of Ferrus, a massive Fortress which was also the depository
of part of the Iron Hands gene-seed. The loss of such a stronghold would have been a devastating blow to the Iron Hands one from which they could never have recovered. Tasked with defending the Fortress was the clan of Iron Father Karastov, and an entire company of Space Marine armour. Supported by a Warlord Titan of the Legio Dominatus, the Dominators Titan Legion, a mere 100 Space Marines stood ready to give their lives to protect their Chapters legacy. The scenario lent itself to two things rstly, that the Space Marines would be
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IRON HANDS SPACE MARINES 4,500 POINTS

FORTRESS GARRISON KARASTOVS CLAN BRETHREN: Tac. Formation Karastov (Supreme Commander, Hunter): 475 points Tac. Formation Bastelle (Captain, Hunter): 425 points Devestator Formation Acteus (Razorbacks, Hunter): 425 points Whirlwind Formation Invigilatus (Hunter): 375 points ARMOURED RELIEF FORCE: Predator Formation Venator: 300 points Predator Formation Prosecutor: 300 points Land Raider Formation Veneratus: 400 points ASSAULT FORCE: Terminator Formation (Captain) : 375 points Assault Formation (Captain): 225 points AERIAL SUPPORT: Thunderhawk: 200 points Thunderbolts: 150 points LEGIO DOMINATUS SUPPORT TITAN Imperias Veritas Warlord Titan: 850 points
outnumbered by the Chaos forces, and secondly that the Space Marine Tactical and Devestator formations would have to start the game deployed in the Fortress. The objective would be simple the forces of Chaos would have to destroy or force the Space Marines to ee from the Fortress. DEPLOYMENT This battle was fought across 3 tables admittedly this is unusual, but I really wanted to show off what our guests will be able to do with the tables & terrain at our facilities, like combining them to hold enormous battles. The forces of Chaos were able to deploy along the entire long board edge of the combined tables, whilst the Iron Hands had to deploy the four Garrison formations in the Fortress (which was in the centre of the middle table) ; the remaining forces were deployed at each corner edge of the opposing table edge of the Chaos forces. The forces of Chaos were controlled by two of our guests Adam Spikedog Humphrey and Sam McMullet Roberts, and quite shrewdly they deployed the bulk of their forces on the edge of the middle board, with the Iron Warriors armour on either ank to counter the threat posed by the Iron Hands support. When I deployed the Warlord Titan Imperius Veritas on the left of the Marines deployment, Adam & Sam had no choice but to deploy the Banelord Ferrus Eternum on their table edge, directly opposite; right then the stage was set for a potential Titan-on-Titan mle, always a high point in any game of Epic!
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FORCES OF CHAOS 5,520 POINTS

IRON WARRIORS IXX GRAND COMPANY Warsmith Haggath and Chosen Formation (Obliterators): 410 points CSM Retinue Formation (Sorcerer, Rhinos, Havocs, Obliterators): 635 points Chaos Predator Company: 300 points Chaos Land Raider Company: 450 points Decimator Company: 675 points (note : the models I used for this were conversions representing Heavy Artillery to tie in with the feel of my Iron Warriors army, but as there are no ofcial rules for these I counted them as Decimators) TRAITOR TITAN LEGION SUPPORT Ferrus Eternum, Banelord Titan: 800 points CHAOS NAVY AERIAL DOMINATION SQUADRONS Hellblade Formation: 200 points Hell Talon Formation: 300 points SCIONS OF THE PLEASURE GOD (FORMERLY XXXIII DURANI PUREBLOODS) Traitor Mechanised Guard Company (Demolishers): 600 points (note: the models I used for these will be the commanders from a planned Slaaneshi LatD army I am going to make; they include a Chaos Lord, models from the Imperial Guard command blister, and the Exodus Wars Guild range. www.exoduswars.com) Traitor Tank Company: 650 points Traitor Basilisk Battery: 250 points Traitor Basilisk Battery: 250 points
USING THE BASTION OF FERRUS Although outnumbered, the Space Marines garrisoning the Fortress would gain abilities to help them survive the onslaught of Chaos. I decided to apply the following rules to units within the Fortress: It can hold up to 16 infantry units (Terminators and Ogryns count as two units), and 20 Tank units - but not War-engines. This is divided between the two sides of the Fortress; in effect, it can have two formations on each side (for this battle, the Tactical Formation containing the Supreme Commander and the Whirlwind Formation were in the side facing the Marines table edge; the other Tactical and Devestator formations in the side facing the Chaos army). Units in the Bastion gain the following abilities - Reinforced Armour, Thick Rear Armour, and Fearless. So although they can still be red at and assaulted normally, this represents the protection offered by the Bastions thick armoured structure. When formations in the Bastion become broken they do not make a withdrawal move; rather they remain in the structure but cannot re or assault until they have rallied. Finally, the Bastion is studded with weapons and gun ports which are operated by those defending it. Any formations inside the structure are allowed to re their weapons normally, with the normal penalties; but they are not allowed to assault enemy formations unless they move out of the structure. 144

Already on this side of the table it looked like there would be a bit of a cat & mouse game between the armoured formations. Realising that the Basilisks were going to be a major annoyance, the Thunderbolts were sent on a Ground Attack mission to try and destroy them, but their Missiles failed to do any damage. This gambit proved especially fruitless when the Chaos players teleported in the Obliterators attached to the Iron Warriors Chaos Space Marine retinue, meaning that the Thunderbolts would have to weather 6 Anti-Aircraft (AA) shots when they manoeuvred off-board in the end phase! However it wasnt all going against the Marines: the Hellblades were sent on an unsuccessful intercept of the Thunderbolts, only to y in to the AA zone around the Fortress (4 Space Marine Hunters!) and two were shot-down.
With deployment completed it was left to the Chaos players to take the rst turn a departure for Epic, but the scenario lent itself to letting the attacking side take the rst go. TURN ONE Adam and Sam began advancing the bulk of their forces towards the Fortress, but their rst activation saw them re at the Tactical Formation in the Bastion with a Sustained Fire action, killing one unit of Marines. On their right ank they began moving the Banelord, in response to the advancing Warlord Titan, supported by the Predators, which advanced in between the ruins on its ank. The Iron Hands Land Raiders Doubled from their deployment zone to the cover of a hill at the edge of the middle table. It seemed that both the Chaos and Marine forces had the same idea to support the Titans with some Anti-Tank (AT) repower.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, the Iron Hands Predators were cautiously Advanced forward to the cover of the ruins in the middle of the third table, which prompted the Chaos players to Double their Land Raiders round a hill to head them off.
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In an attempt to neutralise the support that the Predators would likely offer the Banelord, the Iron Hands Terminators were teleported in and Engaged them in assault, destroying all 6 tanks. This proved to be an ill-considered move when the Chaos players teleported in the Warsmith and his Chosen, and engaging the Terminators! They wiped the Iron Hands out, losing only two units from their formation, but ironically breaking and having to withdraw In the End Phase the Obliterators with the Chaos Marines shot down the Thunderbolts (ouch!), while the Chaos Chosen successfully rallied. TURN TWO The bulk of the Chaos forces continued to advance, and Basilisk re continued to whittle down the Tactical formation. This Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
turn the Leman Russ Battle Tanks from the Traitor Armoured Company had Advanced near enough to re their Battle Cannons at the Marines in the Fortress. A few more Tactical Units and two tanks from the Tactical Formation were destroyed, breaking the formation! Awaiting the rest of the Traitors to come within range of their guns, the Devestators were put on Overwatch. Realising something had to be done to answer the problem of continual Basilisk artillery re, the Iron Hands launched their Thunderhawk Gunship, transporting Assault Marines, to undertake a Ground Assault action against the Basilisks. Assaulting the rst formation in combat, the Assault Marines succeeded in destroying them, only to lose 3 of their Units in the Fire-ght with the other
Basilisk formation! The remaining Assault Marine unit lost the roll for combat resolution, became broken and so had to withdrawal. With no assault support and most of the aerial support gone too, it looked like the Iron Hands would not be able to counter the horde of Traitors bearing down upon the fortress. So the Supreme Commanders Tactical formation and the Whirlwinds exited the Bastion, each heading in opposite directions to alternately link up with the Predators and try to assault the ank of the Traitors, supported by the Land Raiders. But before this could happen, the Predators needed to do something about the Chaos Land Raiders which posed a signicant threat. Making a sacricial run, one Predator formation Advanced forward, drawing 146

and ring upon the Chaos Land Raiders which sprang forward, shooting two of the Predators, before the other formation Advanced and destroyed two of the Land Raiders, breaking them. On the other side of the table, the Titans continued to advance slowly towards each other, the Warlord beginning to get in to range with its Volcano Cannon, which took one Void Shield from the Banelord. The Chaos players decided they needed to do the same to the Warlord, and seeing as the Banelord wasnt in range to bring its guns to bear, the sent the Hell Talons on a Ground Attack mission to bomb the Warlord knocking down 4 of its Void shields. In the meantime, the Iron Hands Land Raiders Marched forward so they could support a Marine counter-attack. The Decimators slowly advanced forward, but not far enough to shoot at the Iron Hands Predators, so we quickly moved in to the End Phase which saw the broken Tactical formation rally, the Banelord fully replenish its Void Shields (whilst the Imperial Titan could only manage 1!), and the Chaos Land Raiders successfully rallied. TURN THREE The Marines started to become more effective this turn, as some bad-dice luck began to effect the Chaos players. Firstly, the Thunderhawk was sent on a Ground Attack mission to re at the Decimators. Although the single Battle cannon shot didnt hit, the single blast-marker aficted was enough to make the Decimator fail its activation! The Iron Hands Predators position looked a little safer. The Chaos players advanced both the Chaos Retinue and Traitor Mech Infantry, effectively swapping places so the former could meet the advance of the Iron Hands commanders formation, and the latter would be in range to re at the Devestators. However, this brought them in to range of this formation which was still on Overwatch, and the subsequent volley of re destroyed 3 infantry units. Then the Whirlwinds advanced and unleashed a barrage against the Mechanised traitor Infantry, killing a further 6 infantry units and a transport! On the other side of the table the Titans continued their advance, and now the Warlord was in range to unleash its full arsenal against the Banelord. 8 Turbolaser shots and 4 Gattling Cannon shots succeeded in stripping it of all its Void shields; then a Volcano Cannon shot succeeded in not only causing 3 points of damage on the Banelord, but also inicting a critical hit ! As the Banelord succumbed to Daemonic Rage, it charged forward ironically, in to sufcient range to assault the Warlord next turn. The threatened Titanon-Titan brawl was now a certainty
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The Chaos players bombed the Warlord again with the Hell Talons, knocking-out all but one of its Void shields. Also, enough of the Chaos horde had advanced in range of the Fortress so that more repower could be unleashed on the Marines inside after re from the Tank Company and the Mechanised Infantry, the last of the Tactical formations units were destroyed, along with & Devestator and a Razorback. But not before the Iron Hands Land Raiders had Advanced forward, destroying the remaining Basilisk formation. The Iron Hands Predators were holding their own against the Chaos Land Raiders, and the Supreme Commander-s formation would be in ring range of the Traitors next turn. It all looked set for the Marines to deliver a devastating counter-attack TURN FOUR At least, if it werent for a typically daft decision on the part of the Marine player (which was me!). Epic can be a harsh game at times, one needs to be careful about how certain formations are used (send them forward to soon, the will be exposed and inevitably destroyed). Some mistakes are just plain silly, though, resulting from momentary lapse of certain aspect of the rules. And it was just such a mistake that saw the Iron Hands Land Raiders Advance over a hill upon the slowly approaching Warsmith and Chosen. There were two problems with this: 1) forgetting that Terminators are infantry, and so arent affected by the Land Raiders Lascannons ; 2) while these were in range, of the Land Raiders Heavy Bolters (which could affect the Chosen), only 2 were in range. Result: no dead Chaos Chosen Terminators, and the Land Raiders left in a position were they would inevitably be assaulted. Which they were. Inspite the fact that 2 of the four Land Raiders were able to support with Fire-ght attacks, the Chaos Chosen Terminators and Obliterators were just too much for them, destroying 3 of the Land Raiders and breaking the Formation. Over at the Bastion, the Devestators were slowly being whittled away after taking more Traitor re, only 2 Devestator units and 2 tanks remained. Things continued to look bad for the Marines, as they lost another two Predators to the Chaos Land Raiders (destroying one in turn), and then the
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Traitors, getting in to ring range of the Chaos Marine formation, killing one tank and two Chaos Marine units. Then came the games high-point. After launching yet another bombing run at the Warlord (and not damaging it), the Chaos players charged the Banelord in to its nemesis. After failing to make an impact on it with its shooting, boy did it do the business in combat : not only did it take down 7 of the Warlords 8 Damage Capacity, it succeeded in causing a critical hit. Managing to cause only one point of damage on the Banelord in return, the Warlord broke from the combat, trailing clouds of plasma from its now damaged plasma generator. Sadly, the end phase didnt see the spectacular nale to this combat everyone hoped for rather than blowing up and destroying the Warlord in a spectacular explosion, the damaged reactor was repaired though the Titan didnt rally. However the remaining Iron Hands Land Raider did, meaning it would be able to support the Supreme Commander in the inevitable assault against the Chaos Marines next turn. TURN FIVE Things were looking desperate for the Marines now. On their right ank, the remaining four Predators managed to hold their ground against the Chaos Land Raiders although they did not destroy any more of them, the additional blast marker from the Thunderhawks Ground Attack was enough to break them. The Supreme Commanders formation Advanced and red upon the Chaos Marines, killing another tank and infantry unit. The Chaos Marines then assaulted the Iron Hands and for a moment things seemed to be going the loyalists way, as they succeeded in killing 3 more Chaos Marine units and another Rhino, losing only one Tactical unit in return. However, their luck deserted them in the roll for combat resolution : they lost, losing another Tactical unit and having to withdraw. The Chaos players then turned their focus to the remaining Devestator units
Decimators nally succeeded in passing their initiative test, allowing them to bring their full repower to bear in the Whirlwinds. Then again, maybe not : in one of the games most memorable moments, the Decimators unleashed 9 Barrage Points (BP) of artillery and 16 Reaper Autocannon shots at the Whirlwinds and succeeded in destroying none of them( !) Just at it looked like the Marines luck might have returned, the Chaos players Advanced their Traitor Armoured Company ; and in a volley of Battle Cannon and Lascannon re, the entire Whirlwind formation was annihilated. The Supreme Commanders formation steadfastly continued its advance on the
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in the Bastion ; in turn the Traitor Armoured Company, Mechanised Infantry, and Decimators pummelled the Devestators until all that remained was one Razorback. Finally, they launched their Hell Talons, and the bombing run was enough to take care of this one remaining tank. With no Marine units in the Bastion, and the remainder of the garrison broken and falling back, Chaos had won the game. FINAL REFLECTIONS Well, this was a hugely entertaining game. I think that the scenario itself was a little awed, in that it favoured Chaos: it might have been better to have the fortress face the far edges of the table, rather than the long edge. That way the Iron Hands would have both halves of the garrisoning force be able to re at their attackers, and the Chaos forces would have been forced to split their attacks. Having said that, this battle did offer the opportunity to develop some strategic acumen the scenario cant have been the only reason for the Chaos victory, indeed a couple of poor decisions cost the marines dearly. It just goes to reinforce that in Epic timing really is everything, you cant just throw formations forward un-supported. And of course, it helps Firebase Issue #6 April 2008
if one remembers the difference between AT & AP (Anti-personnel) re If this was a report in White Dwarf, no doubt Id have included some piece of narrative with the Iron Hands Iron Father keying in the code for a remotely-triggered destruct sequence to prevent the Fortress falling in to the hands of Chaos. But this is a battle Ill denitely run again for our guests and next time Ill include
not only the alterations to the scenario, but Ill have more Chaos and Imperial forces painted ; so itll also be much bigger Anyway, at the end of the day the result of this battle seemed irrelevant, it was a fantastically fun game with loads of carnage on either side, it had some great moments, and I was able to introduce two new players to Epic - which is always a great thing!
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FIREBASE: HARDER! BETTER! FASTER! STRONGER! MORE COMICS! MORE AWESOME CONTENT!
C O M I N G T H I S J U LY !
Firebase Issue #6 April 2008 153

FirebaseSix - PartTwo (Focus On Games Workshop Specialist Games)

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FirebaseSix - PartTwo (Focus On Games Workshop Specialist Games)

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Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Collecting Imperial Guard for Epic: Armageddon

COLLECTING IMPERIAL GUARD FOR EPIC: ARMAGEDDON

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Collecting Imperial Guard for Epic: Armageddon

Collecting Imperial Guard for Epic: Armageddon

Collecting Imperial Guard for Epic: Armageddon

Collecting Epic Feral Orks

TALE OF AN EPIC GAMER A FERAL ORK ARMY STORY

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Collecting Epic Feral Orks

Collecting an Imperial Fleet

ALL AHEAD FULL, AND DAMN THE TORPEDOES!

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Collecting an Imperial Fleet

Collecting an Imperial Fleet

Collecting an Imperial Fleet

What are you wearing to the GT?

Sword Class Frigate x 3 Defender Squadron

11 different designs more designs to be added

Collecting a Gorkamorka mob

THE TALE OF A BORN AGAIN GORKA

Collecting a Necromunda Gang

COLLECTING A NECROMUNDA GANG

Collecting a Necromunda Gang

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Collecting a Necromunda Gang

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

TAU SILENT HUNTERS

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

RANDOM: WS = 40 + 2d10 BS = 55 + 2d10 S = 40 + 2d10 T = 45 + 2d10

I = 50 + 2d10 Wp = 60 + 2d10 Sg = 55 + 3d6 Nv = 70 + 2d6 Ld = 65 + 2d10

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

HOL YTH VARIANT PULSE WEAPONS:

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

Inquisitor: The Silent Hunters

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperialis - Keeping Things Square

KEEPING THINGS SQUARE

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Tactica : The Imperials

AERONAUTICA IMPERALIS TACTICA : THE IMPERIALS

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Tactica : The Imperials

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Tactica : The Imperials

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks

BATTLE REPORT: IMPERIUM VS. ORKS

Max Speed = 3 Min Speed = 0 Max Alt = 7

Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks

Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks

Firebase Issue #6 April 2008

Aeronautica Imperalis Battle Report: Imperium vs. Orks