If a player’s army is painted to a Battle Ready standard, that player will score an additional 10 victory points. Make a note on the scoring sheet if a player’s army was Battle Ready or not.

This is all a real shame because I honestly believe in this format, which has snappier play and refines actions into something that fixes their major issues. If Games Workshop made a version of this that used a 44×30″ board and came with non-Gallowdark terrain and allowed say, a single vehicle or something similar, I think they’d be able to create an exceptional introductory version of the game in a way that has eluded them before now. I like Boarding Actions, enough that I’m going to play more, but I’m also immediately thinking about how to make it work with Zone Mortalis terrain. I’m also concerned with how long it’ll get support, since this seems exactly like the kind of thing we get right before a new edition to pad out a release schedule.The Arks of Omen season brought several changes to the game. The Arks of Omen detachmentmade list building far more open-ended, making it easier to construct an army list however you like. As with previous matched play seasons, GW released a Munitorum Field Manual with updated points values for all units, and a Balance Dataslate that made tweaks to their rules. We’ve produced a rundown of the differences between the Arks of Omen Balance Dataslate, and the previous season of matched play. Rad Leak takes the players into proximity of a leaking reactor. The board is divided into four sectors, labelled A through D, representing different levels of distance away from the reaction (sector A is particularly bad). During the course of the mission the radiation levels increase, ranging from “none” to “extreme” depending on how bad things are. The effect of radiation is to reduce Leadership, Move, and Toughness characteristics depending on the level. Players can score up to 15 points per turn for securing one, two, or more objectives. At the end of the game players score 15 points if they control both markers labelled Critical and 10 points for killing the enemy Warlord. This truncated list really helps keep Boarding Actions games light when it comes to mental load and also helps prevent some of the more degenerate mechanics and combos that might otherwise destabilize the game from rearing their heads here.

Arks of Omen: The Lion also includes Boarding Actions rules for the last few factions. The Leagues of Votann are experts in extracting salvage from deep space structures of all shapes and sizes. Their void-armoured warriors eradicate anything standing between them and their prize with an Exacting Focus resulting from well-practised combat drills. If your Arks of Omen Detachment is a CHAOS Detachment, you can include one CHAOS KNIGHTS Super-heavy Auxiliary Detachment (containing one DREADBLADE unit) as an Allied Detachment. Which of the units from their army will start the battle in Strategic Reserves (units with the Fortifications Battlefield Role can never be placed into Strategic Reserves). In an Arks of Omen: Grand Tournament mission, a player does not have to spend any CP to place units into Strategic Reserves.

This Detachment is incredibly flexible and will work for all factions, though there will be a couple of specific additional rules to it to allow for unusual armies like Drukhari and Dark Angels forces, that would previously have usually been made of multiple smaller detachments. Aside from the Lore no doubt setting up some new stalemate, I am keen to see what Crusade content that may come along to expand upon this format. The book features a total of nine missions in a familiar format, with each mission containing specific rules, objectives, Underdog Bonus, and a map for setting up the individual terrain sections. Every mission but one features four objective markers (Power Struggle features five). Every mission features a progressive objective revolving around controlling objective markers in addition to a secondary element such as an end game objective. All but one (Access Junction Primus) includes a caveat that objectives cannot be controlled in the first round and that the player who goes second scores their final turn at the end of the turn instead of at the end of their Command Phase. Unlike matched play there are no secondary objectives or bonus points for having a painted army. There is also no limit on the total points that can be achieved from securing primary objectives, outside of those specified in the missions. Honestly my opinion is that this rule set should have been released as a booklet in a White Dwarf and then they could have drip fed the rest of the Faction-specific content over the next few issues. I doubt we’ll see any FAQs or a second print run of the Boarding Action terrain set for this series which is a shame because it looks like a lot of fun to play. So maybe organize a whip round your gaming group and chip in for the terrain and the books? If your Arks of Omen Detachment is either an ASURYANI or DRUKHARI Detachment, you can include one HARLEQUINS Patrol Detachment as an Allied Detachment.

There are still those who can oppose their dark plan. Chief amongst them are Supreme Grand Master Azrael and the many Unforgiven Chapters who fight beneath his banner. Gathering their might, the Dark Angels and their successors answer the Arkifane’s challenge, hoping to quell whatever malevolence he and Abaddon seek to unleash. Nor are they alone in their quest, for Commander Dante races to lead his Blood Angels – and countless other Imperial forces – to the coming battle. In Arks of Omen: Abaddon the Warmaster is plotting his next action on The Vengeful Spirit when he is met by the demigod Vashtorr the Arkifane, who promises him an alliance that would serve both of their interests. If their efforts succeed, Abaddon would gain the weapons needed to pursue his goal, while Vashtorr would achieve his goal of ascending to become the Fifth God of Chaos. This plan would unleash a new age of terror and war across the Imperium. If a secondary objective is listed in one of the faction sections, it is a faction secondary objective and it can only be selected by a player if their Arks of Omen Detachment is a Detachment that matches the faction heading at the top of that list of secondary objectives. Through various winding story segments, we follow Abaddon and Vashtorr’s hunt for the key fragments, and the assorted forces opposing them – including not only Imperials but xenos races too, most notably the Tau Empire‘s Commander Farsight.

Aircraft

Are you excited about the changes to warlord traits, command paints, and secondary objectives in the new Warhammer 40k Chapter Approved?

Poring over blueprints and schematics of voidcraft to glean an advantage in combat is the tactic du jour for many forces, but experienced Thousand Sons commanders can tap into the warp resonance of these oft-haunted hulks – a Walker of Fractured Ways can slip through imperceptible gaps in reality to ambush unsuspecting foes. Grand Tourmament 2020/ 2021/ War Zone Nachmund/ War Zone Nephilim/ Arks of Omen • Munitorum Field Manual/ 2021/ 2022 • Tactical Deployment The Furnace contains a specific region in the board called The Furnace and another region called the Furnace Control Zone. Models inside the control zone can perform an action to turn on the burners in the furnace, which naturally has an unpleasant outcome for anyone inside the furnace (roll a D6 for every model inside and inflict a mortal wound on a 4+). Inside the furnace are a pair of particularly valuable markers which would explain why someone would want to go in there. Players score up to 15 points per turn for controlling one, two or more objectives and an additional five points if they control one or more objectives in the Furnace. They also score an extra 10 points if they control one or more objectives in the Furnace at the end of the game. In addition to all this, there is also an Underdog Bonus for the player with fewer points, if the difference between the two armies is more than 30 points. This particular bonus depends on the mission.

Building Arks of Omen Armies

Warp Portal - Each Ark includes a captive Warp Portal for a purpose known only to a select few outside of Vashtorr and Abaddon. The walls themselves can melt and disappear mid-game in Empyric Erosion as the warp shifts around you, while the cavernous corridors of Macro-Junction IV-B allow each player to take a hefty Critical Threat from a list of valid options like Broadside Battlesuits , Helbrutes , and Sentinels – the perfect mission for when you want cut loose and squeeze a hulk into your space hulk.*