Another big update has arrived for Warhammer 40,000 and sees many of your favourite ceramite-clad warriors getting stronger, tougher, more deadly, or some combination of all three!
With the impending release of Codex: Space Marines, Astartes of every ilk will see changes to some of their characteristics, which will be some combination of their Move, their Toughness, or some of their weapon options.
So which factions are affected? The list includes:
Black Templars
Blood Angels
Chaos Space Marines
Dark Angels
Death Guard
Deathwatch
Emperor’s Children
Grey Knights
Space Wolves
Thousand Sons
World Eaters
Imperial Agents
Movement
Starting off with movement changes, Phobos armoured Space Marines will be increasing their Move characteristic to a whopping 8” while staying at Toughness 4. This better reflects the lighter and more manoeuvreable armour these warriors are equipped with and allows them to play a different role within your armies – namely, fast moving units, ideally suited to harrying other weaker units (especially those with Toughness 4 or lower and a single Wound), blocking movement,* and scoring objectives requiring positioning or actions. No longer will you be just short of scoring that crucial objective. However, these units will see a points increase as a result of getting faster.
Toughness
The most widespread change is Toughness – most Space Marines will now have an extra point of Toughness. This covers Tacticus armour, Terminator armour, and many Chaos units.** It won’t include units in Gravis armour, the previously mentioned Phobos squads, or the Death Guard.
So what does this mean? All units that are increasing in Toughness can also expect an increase to their points. Your armies will likely see a dramatic change, most certainly fielding fewer units, but you can expect those units to be more survivable against small arms fire. It may also change how your army plays, by encouraging different detachment combinations and Force Dispositions.
Weapons
As previously mentioned, some weapon options see changes. Namely the workhorses for each Space Marine faction – boltguns (of various kinds) and chainswords (as well as other similar close quarters weapons). These generally gain a point of Strength, going to 5, and in some cases earn a point of AP.
The Sons of Mortarion
This might be most impactful for the Death Guard, their boltguns and plague knives both getting the S5 and AP-1 treatment. Plus, with their Nurgle’s Gift army rule, their odds of wounding and being wounded by other Astartes factions doesn’t change, but the chance of inflicting damage increases due to that extra AP. Knowing the other factions will see points increases and fewer models in their armies, every point of damage goes further than ever. And with the Death Guard not increasing in Toughness, they aren’t seeing the associated point increases.
Does all this mean that Nurgle is in ascendancy? Only time will tell.
Finally, the Adeptus Custodes will see some small changes to their bolt weaponry to give you a taste for the gloriously golden updates that will be unleashed with their impending new Codex.
What happens if you don’t play some variation of boltgun-wielding giant? Check in tomorrow where we will discuss this further. In the meantime, download the new balance update now.
Warhammer 40,000 September Update
Download now
* Fast units that are cheaper in points excel at preventing opposing units from moving, due to the 2” engagement range that those opposing units cannot enter, meaning with some clever placement and maximising your use of unit coherency, your unit may sacrifice itself in the name of denying your opponent a strategic play.
** This includes Chaos Space Marines, Emperor’s Children, Thousand Sons, and World Eaters.
