New 30k FAQ and Errata Digest

The new FAQ and Errata digest from Forge World came out whilst I was offline the other day. In today's post I wanted to focus on a couple of points that have arisen from the new document. For the main part it covers all the other errata that have previously been issued, but also adds some new and exciting things on top of them, plus a contentious point that I will turn to later.

Terminator armour.

The first major point in the document is that Terminators who are wearing Tartaros armour can now make sweeping advances. I cannot underscore enough what a big deal this is. Indeed, it is a bit of a game changer as to how one might approach building terminators in army lists. By fore-going the Cataphractii armour and an extra pip in invulnerable save, we gain the ability to rid ourselves of an opponent outright in close combat. 

Therefore, I would expect to see many more builds involving Tartaros amour. Close combat builds specifically, to be sure. Hence more power fists, thunder hammers and even the none-upgraded and humble power axe will be prevalent here, rather than focussing on long range firepower. I would also expect to see more of them in land raiders now as well - rather than deep striking on to the board (although that also remains a viable tactic). Even pairs of lightning claws become a distinct possibility here too. 

Praevain and Delegatus.

These two character models now have rules that are official. Although they could have been considered official before, the new document makes it very clear and adds in their entries. Presumably they will be included in a future publication, or the re-working of the "red books".

Dreadnought attacks.

On par with their contemporaries ten millennia later, dreadnoughts now have a modified profile. This makes even the ordinary dreadnoughts a very attractive prospect to army list builders.

Knights.

All varieties of knights -- including the ones from Warhammer 40,000 -- are now valid to field in the Horus Heresy. This is awesome, as we can now use the fully plastic kit to build our own knight detachments for use in this game, rather than the resin variants. Not that cost might be such an issue if one is already playing Horus Heresy era games, arguably.

Relics.

Sadly, relics are noted as not being intended for regular (or casual) play. They are only intended for use within narrative campaigns, as presented within Conquest. What this means is that the Alpha Legion combination of automatically exploding tanks is not going to happen in tournament play.

I am actually sad about this and regard this as somewhat contentious. I noted in my original post on how to automatically explode tanks that this would probably be changed by Forge World. It seems that this prediction has come true. But not in the way I would have originally thought. Regular Warhammer 40,000 armies all have access to relics. To deny the legions, Solar Auxillia, and the rest access to relics in regular games is really sad to see. In competitive play, these things might be taken care of by compositions scores and similar. But to just outlaw them outside narrative games is disappointing. 

Overall.

I'm really happy with these changes apart from the relics. It really is a very good move by Forge World and demonstrates a commitment to their product line and the balance striking required for a modern war-game. Long live the Heresy!