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Someone in another thread was asking this question, and I felt it would do some good here.

Essentially the question is this:

Does Vulkan's ability to master craft Combi-Meltas benefit the bolter profile of the weapon?

So, lets say I have a unit of Sternguard with Combi-Meltas -- would this allow me to re-roll a single failed hit when shooting with Special Ammunition?

I could see an argument to RAI, but RAW seem to allow it. So I'm trying to figure out what I may have missed. I didn't see anything that would bar it from happening, especially now that they are Master Crafted instead of Twin Linked AND Vulkans ability specifically mentions Combi-Meltas

Thanks for the help!

I think it should because in Chapter Tactics Imperial Fist it specifically omits all shots from a combi weapon other than a normal bolt shot from benefitting from Bolter Drill, but in Vulkan's army ability it just says Combi-Meltas.

RAW yes, but I would never do it

 Slinky wrote:
RAW yes, but I would never do it

I don't know that I would do it simply based on point costs alone!

So if you had extra points, you can essentially Master-craft all your Sternguards in a Vulkan army... hmm... New doors of possibilities opening. And they are opening fast.

RAW yep. Not sure about RAI, but until an FAQ alters it, I'm doing it.

Well, this is a bit weird. Vulkan gives Master-crafted to the combi-melta, and Master-crafted gives you one failed reroll for that "weapon".
I took a look at combi-weapons on page 56 of the rulebook as well, and this is where it gets wonky. The entire entry deals with "combi-weapons" - ergo suggesting that both parts are considered one weapon - but then goes on to also define that it has a "primary weapon" and "secondary weapon".

So how the hell do we determine whether Master-crafted applies to the entire... erm... item, or just one part of it?

RAW I reckon it's the whole thing, because of one detail - Vulkan's rule specifically mentions "combi-melta", and under combi-weapons the two separate sides are named as the boltgun, and the meltagun (per the weapon profile on that page). The separate melta part isn't called a combi-melta on its own, so can only be referring to the whole thing.

One thing is that the salamander trait specifies that it allows re-rolls when shooting the flamer part of a combi-flamer (IIRC).
So there's an example of clearly mentionning that only a part of a combi-weapon ...

 B0B MaRlEy wrote:
One thing is that the salamander trait specifies that it allows re-rolls when shooting the flamer part of a combi-flamer (IIRC).
So there's an example of clearly mentionning that only a part of a combi-weapon ...

I don't see that specificity listed anywhere on the chapter tactic.

However, even if it had been there, the argument could/would be that Vulkans ability is completely different and separate from the chapter tactics, and contains no such wording.

That was from memory. I"ll check it , I might have mixed things up. Could it be the imperial fist one where they would get the bolter drill only when shooting the bolter part of the combi then?

 B0B MaRlEy wrote:
That was from memory. I"ll check it , I might have mixed things up. Could it be the imperial fist one where they would get the bolter drill only when shooting the bolter part of the combi then?

Yeah, the Imperial Fist one does specify combi-weapons firing as bolters.

So I'm not absolutely going kuckoo! Take that, world!
So, wouldn't the imperial fist one set a precedent showing the combi-melta mc should work on both "halves"?

 B0B MaRlEy wrote:
So I'm not absolutely going kuckoo! Take that, world!
So, wouldn't the imperial fist one set a precedent showing the combi-melta mc should work on both "halves"?

I would agree, but this is the internet

Someone is bound to show up with an argument.

I don't see why it wouldn't; a combi-weapon is made up of two profiles, and it says the combi-weapon may be master crafted. I don't see why both profiles would not benefit.

I'd say it covers both bits as I think it would say somthing like 'master crafted melta guns, including those part/fired from a combi bolter, if it wanted to only cover the melta part.