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Just played a game with a friend of mine (both of us beginners) where we had a piece of terrain that was a ruined building on a base, with the base being larger than the ruin (it had some debris etc outside the walls). We defined it as area terrain, but ran into a few problems:

1. In the rulebook, ruins are difficult terrain and have a 4+ cover save. Area terrain is also difficult but have a 5+ cover save. Does this mean that a model would receive a 4+ while inside the actual ruin and a 5+ outside the ruin but on the base?

2. If a model is standing inside the ruin but in a doorway so that it is completely visible to the enemy shooting at it, does it still get a 4+ cover save?

3. Can a model that makes a move inside the ruin move through internal walls and other obstacles as long as it passes its difficult terrain test?

4. Does a model receive the ruin cover save when shot at by an enemy unit inside the same ruin?

If the model is in the area terrain (within the edges of the base) it gets a 5+ cover. If it is obscured by the ruin, it gets a 4+ cover.

Waethion wrote:
1. In the rulebook, ruins are difficult terrain and have a 4+ cover save. Area terrain is also difficult but have a 5+ cover save. Does this mean that a model would receive a 4+ while inside the actual ruin and a 5+ outside the ruin but on the base?

You get the 5+ just for having any part of your model's base overlapping the base (exception: vehicles never get this). You get the 4+ only if you're at least 25% hidden from the firers (from at least ONE of the firing models, is how it works) by the actual structure of the ruin.

Waethion wrote:
2. If a model is standing inside the ruin but in a doorway so that it is completely visible to the enemy shooting at it, does it still get a 4+ cover save?

See above.

Waethion wrote:
3. Can a model that makes a move inside the ruin move through internal walls and other obstacles as long as it passes its difficult terrain test?

Yes, normally. If you have a ruin with some enormous solid-looking wall you could mutually agree with your opponent to play that wall as impassible, but by default troops are assumed to be able to move around through walls and such in Area Terrain, just busting through stuff or grenading through walls like in WWII. The Difficult Terrain roll abstracts and simplifies the chances of them getting slowed and bogged down.

Waethion wrote:
4. Does a model receive the ruin cover save when shot at by an enemy unit inside the same ruin?

Assuming the ruin is Area Terrain, yes indeed. Area terrain represents an area of denser cover and more prevalent obstacles than it's actually convenient to model. Think of it like two guys in a movie having a firefight in a building, constantly ducking behind walls or desks, or guys in a forest shooting at each other while ducking behind trees. If you're in it, you get the cover save.

If the Ruin isn't area, then no.

For that last part, I would actually say its usually a no.

Unlike area terrain, ruins only provide a cover save if the view of the target model is obscured by the ruin by 25% or more.

With 2 models "inside" the same ruin, its much more difficult to be obscured unless they are on different levels of the ruin.

You literally have to take a look from the firing model and determine if that models vision can see its target fully or if it's obscured by at least 25%.

Basically, the base is area terrain that gives a 5+

The walls and any above ground floors will give 4+ if they obscure the model by 25%


Vehicles don't get cover from Area terrain and must be visibly blocked.

Area terrain is a 5+ for being within whatever boundaries you set, in this case the base that is larger than the ruin.

Anything else is whether or not the shooting models can see you completely, or you are slightly covered by the ruins. The only thing far as i know that is still a 5+ even if it obstructs vision is trees since wood isnt that good of a wall against these weapons.

Even if he was in the ruins part, but you swooped around at an angle and you could see him completely, he would just get the 5+ since you claimed area terrain under it.

You only get the area terrain save if your in the terrain. Being in a level of a ruin is not the same as being in area terrain. ( unless your on the bottom floor of the ruin and it has a base.)

If your on the second floor and you can be seen fully, you have no cover save.

Where is the rule that excludes the levels of a ruin from being part of the area terrain?

Where it says the base is area terrain. It doesnt say the ruin is.

 Loopy wrote:
Where is the rule that excludes the levels of a ruin from being part of the area terrain?

pg 91 & 98 BRB