Along with all the in-depth background lore, Raid and Ruin campaign rules, and astoundingly fun Crucible of Champions rules found in The Maelstrom: Lair of the Tyrant, you also get a booklet containing six piratical Detachments for armies of Chaos Space Marines, Aeldari Corsairs, Orks, and the Leagues of Votann. Some of them quite radically change how your army works, so today we’re going to have a look at a few and see how they slot into the 41st Millennium zeitgeist.
Compared to many of the indolent warbands that claim to hail from the original Traitor Legions, the Red Corsairs are flush with youthful vitality and care little for the blessings of the Chaos Gods. Never has this been more clear than in the new Renegade Warband Detachment, which casts off the Dark Pacts faction ability entirely in favour of suspiciously Codex Astartes-flavoured battle tactics that more closely resemble their former lives among loyal Space Marines.
DETACHMENT RULE
RENEGADE WARBAND:
VENDETTA
Bitter minds hold on to lasting grudges.
At the start of your Command phase, select one unit from your opponent’s army. Until the start of your next
Command phase, that enemy unit is your Vendetta target. Each time a HERETIC ASTARTES model from your army(excluding DAMNED models) makes an attack that targets your Vendetta target, you can re‑roll the Hit roll.
TWISTED DOCTRINE
These Renegades ally their knowledge of the Codex Astartes with their own unrestrained savagery to horrific effect.
In your Movement phase, each time you set up or select a Heretic Astartes unit (excluding Battle‑shocked units) from
your army to move, it can choose to Default to Doctrine. If it does, it must first take a Battle‑shock test. Then, select one of the following:
Until the end of the turn, this unit is eligible to shoot and declare a charge in a turn in which it Fell Back.
Until the end of the turn, this unit is eligible to declare a charge in a turn in which it Advanced.
These renegades use a twisted version of their old combat doctrines mixed with the raw savagery of a superhuman unbound from duty, focusing on singular targets and ensuring their destruction with surprising discipline (for an army of Chaos). Their Stratagems are also highly practical and easy to slot into your game plan – if you need something unquestionably dead, for instance, Vengeful Destruction and Corrupted Munitions are a vicious pair that will swiftly relocate the target of your Vendetta six feet under the soil.
VENGEFUL DESTRUCTION (1CP)
RENEGADE WARBAND – BATTLE TACTIC STRATAGEM
Hatred is a powerful motivator. Those who cross Renegade Space Marines rarely live long enough to regret their actions.
WHEN: Your Shooting phase or the Fight phase.
TARGET: One HERETIC ASTARTES INFANTRY (excluding DAMNED units) or HERETIC ASTARTES MOUNTED unit from your army that has not been selected to shoot or fight this phase.
EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, each time your unit makes an attack that targets your Vendetta target, add 1 to the Wound roll.
CORRUPTED MUNITIONS (1CP)
RENEGADE WARBAND – BATTLE TACTIC
Without traditional methods of resupply and rearmament, Renegades must plunder or barter for their ammunition. Whether seized from the holds of captive vessels or acquired from daemonic arms dealers or xenos black marketeers, these munitions are horrifically effective.
WHEN: Your Shooting phase
TARGET: One HERETIC ASTARTES unit in your army that has just been selected to shoot.
EFFECT: Until the end of the phase, each time a model in this unit makes a ranged attack, improve the Armour Penetration of that attack by 1.
If you’ve ever looked across at your beloved spiky traitors and wondered what it’s like fighting on the loyalist side of the fence – albeit with a distinctly Chaos vibe – this is the one to try. Just… don’t spend too long snubbing the Dark Gods – they’re still watching after all, even if you’re not listening.
The Aeldari Corsairs joining the party alongside Huron’s crew this Saturday also like the sound of bucking the trend and have employed a new method for upgrading their elite squads – letting you apply Advancements to (nearly) any Anhrathe unit rather than just their Characters. Before we look at that, though, we’ve got an objective to take, and since there aren’t any Eldritch Raiders around it must be perfectly sa–
BOOM.
DETACHMENT RULE
CORSAIR COTERIE:
RELENTLESS RAIDERS
Should the Anhrathe detect valuable plunder, they will go to great lengths to seize it, and fight with shocking ferocity to protect their prize.
While an objective marker is under your control, each time an enemy unit ends a Normal, Advance, Fall Back or Charge move within range of that objective marker, roll one D6: on a 2+, that enemy unit suffers D3 mortal wounds.
ANHRATHE units from your army have the following ability:
Void Thieves: At the end of a phase, if this unit is within range of an objective marker you control, that objective marker remains under your control until your opponent’s Level of Control over that objective marker is greater than yours at the end of a phase.
DETACHMENT RULE
CORSAIR COTERIE:
VETERANS OF THE VOID
No two bands of Anhrathe warriors are identical. Each possesses a wealth of experience that a cunning commander can bring to bear upon the foe.
Each time you add an Anhrathe unit to your army, it can be given up to one Corsair Enhancement.
Each Corsair Enhancement included in your army must be unique. If a unit is given a Corsair Enhancement, you must increase the points cost of that unit by the amount shown (see Munitorum Field Manual). If this causes your army to exceed the points limit for the battle you are playing, you cannot include that unit in your army.
Yeah, the Relentless Raiders rule makes it a real pain charging into one of the Corsairs’ held objectives, and since they hold onto strategic locations without needing to be there in person, you can play a great game of cat-and-mouse as enemy forces blow themselves up chasing you between objectives.
Corsair Enhancements show off just how elite these pirate crews are by giving whole units a boost fit for a Character. The Webway Pathstone gives any one Anhrathe unit Deep Strike – which can only result in delightful shenanigans – while Infamy makes even rank-and-file troops a dab hand at stealing objectives out from under those who deserve them less.
ENHANCEMENT
CORSAIR COTERIE:
WEBWAY PATHSTONE
This smooth token contains esoteric knowledge of local Webway spurs. When activated by psychic impulse, it projects a mental map of these routes into the minds of the bearer, enabling them to locate hidden gates, bypass their foes, and seize the treasures they seek.
ANHRATHE unit only. Models in this unit have the Deep Strike ability. In addition, once per battle, at the end of your opponent’s turn, if this unit is not within Engagement Range of one or more enemy units, it can use this ability. If it does, remove this unit from the battlefield and place it into Strategic Reserves.
INFAMY (AURA)
These infamous raiders are rightly feared, and use their reputation to their advantage with easily identifiable armour and insignia.
ANHRATHE unit only. While an enemy unit is within 3" of this unit, subtract 1 from the Objective Control characteristic of models in that unit (to a minimum of 1).
Beyond those two outstanding options, you can also assemble:
A raiding party including Huron Blackheart himself, that wants nothing more to please their maniacal master
Prince Yriel’s most elite raiders, who move like lightning alongside Path of the Outcast allies
An Ork Freebooter crew who genuinely play the objective game rather than just breaking things – but only because they want the shiny gubbinz stashed there
Mercenary Kin who weaponise the acquisition and spending of their Yield Points for explosive effects
While we’d love to talk about them all here, we’re more concerned that Huron’s avaricious little blighters are raiding our stash while we’re chinwagging, so we’ll have to cut for now. Don’t worry though – all of these Detachments will be available for free after updates to their respective Faction Packs coming soon, so you can pore over them yourself and see just how amusing it is when your Painboy adds random bioniks to his long-suffering squad.
Don’t forget to pre-order The Maelstrom: Lair of the Tyrant and the brand new boxes for Huron, the Red Corsairs, and their Aeldari nemeses this weekend!
