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Deathwatch Rites of Battle status has been updated from On the Boat to Shipping Now!

http://fantasyflightgames.com/edge_upcoming.asp

The wait crawls slowly... closer to an end.

Darknite wrote:Deathwatch Rites of Battle status has been updated from On the Boat to Shipping Now!

http://fantasyflightgames.com/edge_upcoming.asp

woot! i thought i was the only one paying attention to those symbols on my weekly checks, lol. thanks for the update.

I look at them too.

We should have the book very soon.

In that case I need to check my local tomorrow as we seem to get things when FFG think they are still on the boat

Getting Frozen Reaches this Thursday, all I need to do now is sit tight and wait for Battlefleet Koronus.

http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/2011/01/24/43096

looks like Rites of Battle is scheduled for release on january 26th!

That’s... tomorrow!

Ahh!

I just got done writing my review of Frozen Reaches. I was very disappointed. Lure of the Expanse had given me high hopes for this one.

BaronIveagh wrote:I just got done writing my review of Frozen Reaches. I was very disappointed. Lure of the Expanse had given me high hopes for this one.

That's sad to hear. It's next on my pile of books to read too... Then again if Rites of War does come out tomorrow that will probably jump straight to the top anyway

Awww. Our FLGS says it will arrive sometime in the next 4-6 week. Looks like this boat is bypassing the UK and going straight for the US.

BaronIveagh wrote:I just got done writing my review of Frozen Reaches. I was very disappointed. Lure of the Expanse had given me high hopes for this one.

I'd like to see the review.

I liked it, or at least the mechanic used to resolve mass combat looked elegant to me.

http://www.darkreign40k.com/drjoomla/index.php/news/1-latest-news/1285-out-in-the-cold-the-baron-reviews-the-frozen-reaches

For my review. As you can see, i was less then happy. Maybe I expected too much from FFG after Lure of the Expanse.

Thanks!

I agree that the content of Frozen Reaches can be seen as being canned and linear.

I guess that I look at adventure products as being fodder for my own campaigns and rarely consider running them in toto, as written. As such I saw the section on running large scale combats as being a workable game-table solution for roleplayers in my own games. It provides for players who lack combat-monster skills to role play solutions that aid the battlefield in a reasonable way.

The rest of it I'll take or leave.

Well, it wasn't as much that it was absurdly linear, though it was, as the whole thing was a huge 40k stereotype. Almost everything in it was lifted in the entire from BL novels and just remixed.

As far as the large scale combats bit goes, it's also being released in Battlefleet Koronus. Personally, if that's all you're getting out of it, save your money and just get that.

Isn't Frozen Reaches part one of an adventure trilogy?

BrookM wrote:Isn't Frozen Reaches part one of an adventure trilogy?

Being the first part of a trilogy is no excuse for this level of lame. The first part of a series is supposed to hook the reader into reading more, not make them not want to buy the sequels. I will, since they don't send me free samples to review, but if the books that follow are as uninspired as this one, I'm not looking forward to it.

Slow down there Cocheese, I wasn't looking for excuses. I was just asking if it was part of a trilogy.

Yes, it is. the Warpstorm Trilogy.

Just picked up my copy Rites of Battle at my FLGS. It is pure gold!

Darknite wrote:Just picked up my copy Rites of Battle at my FLGS. It is pure gold!

ok, so what's in it? give us a rundown on the table of contents! new chapter options, specializations, what the different SM armors do, etc. what. are. you. waiting. for???

Here's what I put up at the FFG board...

Chapter I - Deathwatch Origins
Trials of the Aspirant (5 pages)
Creating your own Chapter (30 pages)
The Imperial Fists (8 pages)
Successor Chapters (~ a dozen of them, 16 pages)
Joint Operations (using DW with DH & RT and vice versa, 4 pages)

Chapter II - The Call of War
Deeds (bought during character creation,13 pages)
Distinctions (sort of elite advances, 10 pages)
Advanced Specialties (Black Shield, Deathwatch Champion, Deathwatch Chaplain, Deathwatch Dreadnought, Deathwatch Epistolary, Deathwatch Forge Master, Deathwatch Keeper, Deathwatch Kill-Marine, Deathwatch Captain, First Company Veteran)

Chapter III - Expanded Wargear
Ranged Weapons
Grenades & Explosives
Launchers
Exotic Weapons
Melee Weapons
Special Issue Ammunition
Armour
Force Fields
Weapon Upgrades
Tools & Equipment
Cybernetics
Power Armour
Relics

Chapter IV - Vehicles
Vehicle Classifications
Driving and Flying
Vehicle Combat
Aerial Combat
Chaos Vehicles
Tau Vehicles

Chapter V - Honour or Death
Renown (4 pages)
Honours (7 pages)
Requisition (2 pages)
Imperial Assets (9 pages)
Divided Loyalties
Advanced Solo and Squad Mode (1 page)

Chapter VI Watch Fortress Erioch
Many things (24 pages)

Wonderful stuff. Look forward to getting a copy as soon as one shows up anywhere near me.

cool, thanks for the recap. any idea what weapons and vehicles are detailed in the book? (not stats, just the names out of curiosity) do the vehicle rules seem complete?

Got a complete list of vehicles in the book?

Space Marine Vehicle name (Renown)
Drop Pod (Initiate)
Land Raider [+ Crusader, Helios, Prometheus, Redeemer, Terminus Ultra] (Distinguished)
Land Speeder (Respected)
Land Speeder Tempest (Respected)
Land Speeder Storm (Initiate)
Space Marine Bike (Initiate)
Predator Tank (Distinguished)
Rhino (Respected)
Razorback (not clear)
Damocles Command Rhino (Distinguished)
Dreadnought (Famed)
Ironclad Dreadnought (not clear)
Thunderhawk (Famed)
Stormraven (Distinguished)
Vindicator (Distinguished)
Whirlwind (Distinguished)
Warhound Titan (special dispensation)

Vehicles can be requested in a method outside the regular requisition system.

Chaos Vehicles
Harbinger Heavy Bomber
Hell Blade Fighter
Hell Talon Fighter Bomber
Chaos Dreadnought
Defiler

Tau Vehicles
Barracuda Fighter
Devilfish
Hammerhead
Orca Dropship
Piranha
Remora Stealth Drone Fighter
Sky Ray
Tetra Scout Speeder
Tiger Shark Fighter-Bomber

Warhound Titan?

Awesome!

One thing to mollify those who complain about the Space Wolf Solo Mode ability is there's a helmet included that allows SWs to use their enhanced senses sealed up along with autosenses.

The Power Armor section is outstanding. Lots of good in-game and fluff differentiations between the various Marks (I-VIII) and some expanded history tables. Deathwatch Scout Armor is fraggin' great, too.

This thing will take a while to read but there are very crunchy bits all over the place. The impression I get is that it's not a Munchkin's Guide to Deathwatch, like so many follow up gear and career guide books can be. There is serious attention paid to providing deep contextual, historical and motivational elements for the characters as well as providing even more methods of differentiating members of the various Astartes Chapters and disciplines into something more than cookie-cutter fighting machines.

Yes, the Wolf Helm helmet is a nice addition and I suspected that it's rules would allow Space Wolves to wear their helmet. The Chaplain Skull Helm is AP9 compared to other helmets - does it have any special rules beyond that?



And what is the Successor Chapter bit about? Just modifications on existing Chapters? How does it work? And are the Flesh Tearers included? If the Flesh Tearers are there, what do they do different to the Blood Angels?

Deathwatch Scout Armor?

Color me intrigued...

Hey Kan, some of the Deathwatch books talk about Deathwatch formations so large they would be the equivalent of 2-3 Companies of Marines.

Do you want me to E-mail FFG to let them you that you can't have a Deathwatch army? I mean, that's what you told me, and you're never wrong.