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I'm sorry if this sounds stupid but, if ya don't know then ya don't know...

I've heard people saying about putting 15 bloodclaws etc with a Rune Priest as a multiplier... I have no idea what they are on about.
I've looked over my codex several times but nothing seems to shed light on this.
Mulitply what? How?

Multiply refers to the fact that a runepriests potential isn't in the modell itself, but what it can do to friendly units. (e.g. he uses the divination table to give longfangs rerolls)

It's a force multiplier. Like do you know how Ethereals give out bonuses and CCS's in guard give orders?

What they mean is that the Rune Priest on it's own is pretty okay, it has some neat tricks. But when paired with another unit is quickly shows it's true value as it drastically improves the combat ability of others, hence multiplying their effectiveness. Chaplains are good examples of force multipliers by handing out FNP, while the Ethereals, once garbage, now took a page out of the Imperial Guard's book with totally not orders.

 Kain wrote:
But when paired with another unit is quickly shows it's true value as it drastically improves the combat ability of others, hence multiplying their effectiveness.

Aye, that's the very definition of multiplier. An IG Company/Platoon Command Squad can be effective by itself but the orders the officer can give is the real power in it. A psyker can destroy things by himself but he'll often be more effective by buffing a squad instead. Eldar Farseer, anyone? Doom + Guide is likely to be far more devastating than Mind War or the blast power... And so on.

Rune Priest in a squad of blood claws? I suppose you'd be using divination psychic powers to buff the unit. 15 blood claws with reroll to hit and 4++ would be kinda gross, but temperamental as you'd have to roll that.

Maybe a RP + WP?

I digress, force multiplier. The two parts by themselves are singular, but the combination of the two would be more than 1+1 = 2.

It might be easier to explain with a simpler example:

The Necron Triarch Stalker has a 24" Heavy 2 Melta gun. Pretty okay for a dreadnought like vehicle. However, anything it shoots and hits, all other friendly Necron models now count as twin linked against that target. Imagine tagging a Tyranid MC with a Stalker and then having some Deathmarks near by... those Deathmarks now are hitting on 3+ twin linked vs 3+ normal. They also have rending, rapid fire sniper rifles that can wound a select target on 2+. Either portion alone is good, but if you combo these two units together, you can get a nasty effect (20 sniper shots, wounding on 2 rending on 6... good way to murder Tervigons on a good roll!)

I wonder if someone has mixed up Rune Priests with Wolf Priests. Wolf Priests automatically bring a lot of fun stuff to whatever unit they join. Rune Priests would have to get specific psychic powers on a lucky die roll. Otherwise their contribution drops quite a bit.

Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

 Mannahnin wrote:
Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

Which is good until you get perils, or another rune priest, or eldar on the table. Its not quite as sure of a thing as fearless and oath that you get from a wolf priest.

 Jayden63 wrote:

 Mannahnin wrote:
Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

Which is good until you get perils, or another rune priest, or eldar on the table.

Which is the opposite of guaranteed lol. More to the point; why are you running blood claws?

 Griddlelol wrote:

 Jayden63 wrote:

 Mannahnin wrote:
Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

Which is good until you get perils, or another rune priest, or eldar on the table.

Which is the opposite of guaranteed lol. More to the point; why are you running blood claws?

Especially in the edition where melee is at it's most impotent in quite a while.

 Griddlelol wrote:

 Jayden63 wrote:

 Mannahnin wrote:
Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

Which is good until you get perils, or another rune priest, or eldar on the table.

Which is the opposite of guaranteed lol. More to the point; why are you running blood claws?

At the moment I don't have a single model assembled as a blood claw, everything I've got at the moment is wolf guard with Logan making them troops.
These are all just tactics I've read on others peopled threads etc. I had been considering getting a full 15 claws, firstly to get my model count up and gimme some troops so I don't HAVE to take Logan to be legal, and also I thought the idea of 15 claws bailing out of my Land raider crusader, with the possibility of getting berserk charge for the 2+ attacks (so 45 total)... That might have its uses. If I'm not mistaken they'd get a further 1+ attack for pistol/ccw, so a potential 60 attacks for a 225 point unit. Plus the 16th space in the LRC for a model that could further bolster them claws some how.
Not a tactic I'd use all the time or anything bit the option to do it does appeal to me.

 Griddlelol wrote:

 Jayden63 wrote:

 Mannahnin wrote:

 Jayden63 wrote:
I wonder if someone has mixed up Rune Priests with Wolf Priests. Wolf Priests automatically bring a lot of fun stuff to whatever unit they join. Rune Priests would have to get specific psychic powers on a lucky die roll. Otherwise their contribution drops quite a bit.

Well, Prescience for re-rolls to hit is guaranteed.

Which is good until you get perils, or another rune priest, or eldar on the table.

Which is the opposite of guaranteed lol. More to the point; why are you running blood claws?

Obviously my statement that it is "guaranteed" was in response to Jayden's mistaken notion that it requires a "lucky die roll" for a Rune Priest to be a force multiplier. The nature of the Divination lore is that the primaris power is a force multiplier, so any psyker with access to it is inherently a force multiplier character without any lucky dice rolls required. Most of the rest of the powers on that lore are force multiplier powers as well.

Obviously psychic powers are not 100% reliable, but that wasn't the misconception I was addressing. Wolf Priests do bring a couple of nice force multiplier benefits without the chance of being negated, but OTOH they also don't bring along 24" radius psychic defense, which is another thing the RP does to enhance your army in general.

They're both clearly useful characters, and they're both clearly used as force multipliers/enhancers primarily, rather than just as beatsticks,

 Mannahnin wrote:
Wolf Priests do bring a couple of nice force multiplier benefits without the chance of being negated, but OTOH they also don't bring along 24" radius psychic defense, which is another thing the RP does to enhance your army in general.

Oh I'm not denying that the RP is better than the WP. It's no contest really. Not to mention all the other potential other divination powers than prescience, however none of them benefit a Blood Claw star other than the 4++.

Well, the default re-rolls to hit is the main one, especially for a unit throwing a lot of attacks, which is kind of the only thing Blood Claws bring to the party.

What others said, 'multiplier' refers to the term 'force multiplier'. The Priests of the Space Wolves are force multipliers, as they make whatever unit they lead far stronger than they otherwise were.

For leading Blood Claws you want a Wolf Priest, not a Rune Priest, and not just for fluffy reasons. Really, Blood Claws can only be used two ways now:

Take 15 Blood Claws, pretty much naked, and either take them on Foot or in a LRC. Either way you give them a Wolf Priest. Why? Preferred Enemy + Fearless + Stealth (you are taking Saga of the Hunter on your Wolf Priest, aren't you?) + 5+ save against Psychic Powers on top of Deny the Witch (you are taking a Wolf Tail Talisman aren't you?) + you aren't forced to charge everything within 6".

If you take them on Foot, give them a Wolf Guard Pack Leader (I prefer one with MotW) and consider giving them a Rune Priest as well. Let them lead the long walk across the board. You would be surprised how useful having 18 Power Armored bodies screening the rest of your infantry can be, and how difficult it is to stop them. For added fun, take Storm Caller on the Rune Priest so you have a healthy 4++ Save in an open field for the entire unit. The forward Runic Weapon bubble can be particularly annoying to some enemies as an added bonus.

Mind you, that whole thing costs like 478 points to 585 points and its only good against basic infantry. But it is scoring and only IG (maybe new Tau) have a good chance of dealing with the Blood Claws before they charge. Even Venom spamming Dark Eldar tend to get hit by some of the unit. Though the 'unit' tends to be 5-6 models by the time it gets to the enemy lines. At the same time though, the rest of your army (say 40-50 Grey Hunters, Wolf Guard, Thunderwolves, and a few Long Fangs) is largely untouched as well. Unless they decided to ignore the Blood Claws...

Anyways, don't short change the Wolf Priest. Rune Priests are almost mandatory, but I'd take a Wolf Priest over a second Rune Priest any day. 120 point for Fearless, Preferred Enemy, Stealth, a 5+ Psyker save, and Meltabombs tends to make a unit of Grey Hunters damn useful. Even more fun with Allies and you have him join a Blob of IG for the Fearless/Stealth bonus. Makes whatever objective(s) you have behind your ADL hard for the enemy to take.