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Because I'm bored Edit: profanity, some small rules for use in regular 40k. Some of them have appeared here before, but no experimental stat changes this time.




- Chain weapons (chainswords, chainaxes, biting blades, etc) may re-roll failed wounds.

- Pulse Rifles become Range 36", Heavy 1. Carbines stay as they are. Photon Grenades count as both offensive and defensive grenades.

- Bolt weapons gain Rending against non-vehicle units (to represent second-stage detonation within target or its armour).

- Sniper weapons have double current range, and on a to-hit roll of 6 may allocated any subsequent wound. No consistent 4+ to-wound rule (unless poisoned), but a Strength value instead (4 in most cases). Still Rending and Pinning.

- Gauss weapons count infantry/vehicle Armour Saves/Values as 1 less (but lose 1 AP).

- Independently guided weapons (such as Missile Launchers or Smart-Missile Systems) always count as Twin-Linked.

- Template weapons become Range 12", Assault 1 Small Blast weapons that ignore Cover Saves and never scatter. Advanced template weapons (like the Inferno Cannon for example) would simply have longer range, gain an additional shot and/or use the large blast marker. Flame weapons also modify the target unit's Leadership by -1.

- Imperial Guard COs and NCOs can all be equipped with Lasguns and Shotguns. Shotguns can also be taken as free special weapons. Shotguns that are currently Strength 3 become Strength 4.

- Special melee weapons don't need to be matched in order to gain an additional attack. That's just gak.

- Units with the Fleet USR can consolidate into enemy squads (just like consolidation in 4th Ed.).

- Units caught in a Sweeping Advance aren't automatically killed. Instead, they take a number of hits equal to the number of models in the sweeping squad (counting multiple hitpoints) at said enemy squad's average Strength. After any subsequent Wounds are resolved, the squads are once again locked in combat.

- Each Shooting Phase, one model per squad with Offensive (but not Anti-tank) grenades (frag, stikkbomb, plasma, etc) can use a grenade like any other ranged weapon. Frags or Stikkbombs for example would be Range 12", Strength 3, AP6, Assault 1 Small Blast, same as a Frag round from an Imperial Grenade Launcher. Plasma and Photon grenades on the other hand wouldn't inflict any damage, but instead automatically force any squads under the blast marker to take a Pinning test. Offensive grenades would no longer provide an arbitrary bonus when assaulting units in cover, but would actually allow you to physically dislodge them. Other upgrades (like Flesh Hooks for example) wouldn't be affected.





Any other random changes people can think of?

A lot of these rules confuse me as to why they are needed or what their purpose is. Let me try to point out the big ones:

Pulse rifles. Why make them completely terrible? They are not great already, but it would make Fire Warriors utterly and completely useless.

Why make bolters insanely overpowered? I know they are explodey, but this would utterly destroy balance, especially when considering the proliferation of bolters.

How are missile launchers independently guided? It's just a missile launcher, not a system.

Why change template weapons? A flamethrower does not throw a ball of fire at one point, it is a spray of flame. I don't understand why you would do this.

12" range for a thrown grenade is really, really, REALLY far for anything thrown.

I didn't include cost changes. Nearly everything would need to be altered, and I couldn't be fethed writing it all.

curran12 wrote:Pulse rifles. Why make them completely terrible? They are not great already, but it would make Fire Warriors utterly and completely useless.

Decrease points cost of Fire Warriors (should probably be the case anyway). More troops able to deliver more shots at longer range, but relying on carbines up close.

curran12 wrote:Why make bolters insanely overpowered? I know they are explodey, but this would utterly destroy balance, especially when considering the proliferation of bolters.

Cost and proliferation are inversely proportional, so increase cost. And how would it destroy balance? Not arguing, I'm just curious.

curran12 wrote:How are missile launchers independently guided? It's just a missile launcher, not a system.

Adhering to modern military terminology, missiles are guided munitions. Rocket launchers for example wouldn't become twin-linked.

curran12 wrote:Why change template weapons? A flamethrower does not throw a ball of fire at one point, it is a spray of flame. I don't understand why you would do this.

Number of reasons:

1. Flamethrowers do attack an area. Besides, blast markers/templates are only indicative of a weapon's effect, and don't actually truly emulate the actual firing process of said weapon. So it wouldn't actually compromise the portrayal of weapons currently represented by templates.

2. Blast markers are much more versatile in terms of range.

3. It would simplify the shooting process, entirely removing the need for the flamer template.

4. Template weapons could now be fired through squad-members, just like every single other weapon.

curran12 wrote:12" range for a thrown grenade is really, really, REALLY far for anything thrown.

Ok, Range 6" then.

Fire Warriors changes I disagree with, no matter what points cost you stick them at; Transports full of firewarriors dropping them off <12" is too important to firepower saturation to change at the moment.

Rather than rending, to-wound rolls of 6 cause an extra wound.

Sniper Weapons need Range: Unlimited S: X AP: 4 Special: Heavy 1, Rending, Sniper

Sniper would be pinning, S = Ballistics Skill, To-Hit of 6 = Roll to-wound separately, allocate resulting wounds. Sniper models points mostly unadjusted, but ratlings might be bumped to 13. Pathfinders and Rangers are already expensive enough, Scouts are BS3 so are fine.

Gauss Weapons - I really don't like how flayers were handled. I still think they should be 24" S4 AP5 Assault 2, rolls of 6 to pen should always glance and rolls of 6 to wound should always cause a wound. Altering saves would be fluffy but overpowered. Blasters would be 24" assault 3 S5 AP4, etc., etc., etc.

Not missile launchers, but HK, SMS, Seekers, etc.

Special weapons DONT need to be matched. Only LCs, Thamers, and Power Fists.

Shotguns change is fine and won't alter anything

Fleet USR assault change won't do much for anyone who isn't orks nids or mephiston so is fine.

Sweeping advance change is silly and cumbersome. Combat resolutions need to be faster and more decisive, not slower, in my opinion.

I agree with flamers being ranged. Use the template and start at 3" range though. The wide end represents where they started their firing, and the narrow where their spray tapers off. It's fine, and it's a rule I always try to get my opponents to adopt.

Flamer: 3" Heavy: 6" Flamestorm: 9" GK Flamefagcannon: 12"

etcetcetc.

< Taken by the void dragon. >

RIGHTO SO MY HEAVY BOLTERS, AN INDISCRIMINATE FIRE WEAPON, CAN ACCURATELY HIT TARGETS JUST AS FAR AWAY AS MY TRAINED SNIPERS USING HIGHPOWERED RIFLES BUILT TO TAKE OUT DISTANT TARGETS ACCURATELY THIS IS AWESOME.

That is to say, 36" is the standard range for higher powered but still not particularly accurate weapons, such as heavy bolters and missile pods and lances. It is not, however, a very good range for something like a sniper rifle, which should be able to hit anything on the battlefield with relative ease, especially considering its other drawbacks such as low rate of fire and expensive, weak units to carry them around.

< Taken by the void dragon. >

My problem isn't with the HB's range. It's with the HB being able to accurately hit at that range just as easily as it can point-blank. @36" 3 hits from an HB is representative of its high rate of fire. @36" 1 hit from a sniper rifle is representative of its low rate of fire. @48" 1 hit from a sniper rifle is representative of its low rate of fire. @60" 1 hit from a sniper rifle is representative of its low rate of fire.

Modern snipers have a max effective range of around 2km these days. Some are pushing it to 2.5. Upcoming advancements in technology via infrared and laser-assisted windspeed tracking, higher-powered and fin-assisted bullets, and more accurate rifles will be increasing this to 3KM. Most modern tanks are fairly comfortable at the 900m-3km range as well. If you're telling me that the elite bred-for-war snipers of the 41st millennium using magical supertechnology can't hit a guy usually less than a 2 KM away with any consistency, then we have vastly different perspectives on the meaning of realism.

Also, Lascannon distance is limited in distance by the same problems that limit every laser: diffusion and the inverse square law. I have no problems with Battlecannons being unlimited range, either, nor with most other heavy weapons that involve targeting systems and barrels I can crawl into.

< Taken by the void dragon. >

What's wrong with double range?

Yes that's what the maximum effective range is - the maximum range at which they can be effective. 2.5km shots recordworthy, 1.6 - 1.8km shots happen frequently and are nothing to write home about with modern technology. With coming laserassisted algorithmic targeting, the largest barriers to 2.5-3km shots - air resistance and flow direction - will make those longer shots possible, and 2-2.2km shots will become more common, if still indicative of extreme luck and skill.

From what we've seen of every 40K videogame, in perspective of Bolter fire being represented at 24" on tabletop, we can pretty easily say that - from this comparison at least - even a 1200m shot would have ~180" range. If distances are exaggerated in the videogames as grossly than they are on the tabletop, 60-72" range still sits comfortably within an 'average' shot. (based on 2story buildings in DoW2 being roughly 6m tall, and the firing distance of the bolter.)

That is, if you'd like to bring any sort of realism into the game from the perspective of ranges, starting with the bolter seems to be the easiest place to begin as it's the most pervasive weapon in terms of 40K fluff (outside of the lasgun, whose range has fluctuated wildly and quite inconsistently in comparison to the bolter). From the bolter, inferring ranges based off of current realworld numbers is the easiest place to go. Sniping is the current topic, and sniping ranges are easy to find, and when scrutinized, their ranges are long as balls on the tabletop.

< Taken by the void dragon. >

First of all, comparing 40k to the real world is largely a fruitless effort. Second of all, 40k is nowhere near being remotely realistic of even a futuristic wargame tabletop simulation. Thirdly, the ranges of the weapons are , and nothing short of a complete revamp of the entire game is going to fix that.

To the OP, I find the vast majority of your rules to be either a downgrade (Pulse rifles Heavy 1...?), an unnecessary and potentially breaking upgrade (bolt weapons getting rending), or just weird and largely unnecessary. What makes the missile launcher independently guided? For all we know its targeted by the Omnissiah.

Templates are fine, no need to change them, and certainly not with a small blast marker. IG officers taking las/shotguns makes sense. No consolidating into another close combat...just no.

Sweeping advanced is fine either way, your way is nice for large blobs that could be swept. Granted, half of the codices can't be swept anyways, so...yeah.

Grenades are interesting, and its not a bad idea. Could work.