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These rules replace the Mysterious Objectives table. They are intended to make objectives more significant during the game and encourage players to control them rather than waiting to claim them at the end of the game.

1. Trap!
When this objective is first revealed, place a large blast marker centred over the objective, then scatter it D6”. Any models under the blast marker immediately suffer a S 7, AP 4 hit. The objective is not damaged by this explosion, but gives no special advantage to the unit controlling it.

2. Tactical Cognitor.
At the start of each of their shooting phases, the unit controlling this objective may choose to gain one of the following special rules until the start of it's next shooting phase: Interceptor, Monster Hunters, Skyfire or Tank Hunters.

3. Armoury.
At the start of each of their shooting phases, the unit controlling this objective may choose to gain one of the following special rules for all it's shooting attacks made in this phase: Blind, Haywire, Fleshbane or Skyfire.

4. Targeting Array.
Nominate one friendly unit within 12” of the unit controlling this objective at the start of their shooting phase (this may be the unit itself). That unit may re-roll any missed shots from shooting attacks made until the start of their next shooting phase.

5. Invigoration Field Generator.
A unit controlling this objective has the Feel No Pain, It Will Not Die and Stubborn special rules.

6. Shielded Sanctuary.
A unit controlling this objective has a 5+ Invulnerable Save. In addition, any enemy psyker within 24” of a unit controlling this objective must re-roll successful psychic tests.

they seem somewhat powerful for objectives... and too useful. the fact that one player can roll a dud objective and the other roll a good one is a bit irritating, but the idea that a scoring unit can choose between 4 different very powerful special rules is somewhat ludicrous. I mean, fleshbane, really? you want a squad of imperial guardsmen to suddenly star wounding on 2+? that's effectively doubling their guns strength vs infantry.

also, skyfire on 2 options? are we having problems dealing with fliers perchance?

I like the idea that the explosion scatters, stops people from sitting exactly 3" off the objective, still taking it but being missed by the explosion. personally, I'd like to see the explodes result actually destroy the objective. it was sabotaged, it exploded, it's not there any more. that'll teach you for focussing on an entire army of static gunline. it'll promote more balanced lists.

I'd also like to see a more extreme result for some, like finding out it's a doomsday machine or a necron solar pulse generator that suddenly makes it night fighting for 2 player turns, or a gravity augmenter that increases range but decreases accuracy when fired through it (may snapshoot at unlimited range through this 6" bubble, for example), or a vortex sabotaged objective that starts everything moving, or a kustom tellyporta that makes the unit that just took it go into ongoing reserves & then deepstrike onto a random objective next turn (or as near as possible without a mishap automatically happening) without scattering. fun, random stuff that doesn't just say "i have an objective so I'm somehow better now". a target marker generator that's going wrong, the unit holding it has -1 cover. there's loads of random effects that can not have one unit suddenly become brilliant (skyfire on a large unit of t'au, for example, or +1 cover to scouts in a bolstered ruin, half-your-charge-range on a tau firing line that'll whittle you down to a longer charge. that sort of thing). I say make it a gamble as to whether you get something good on an objective, not a given.

Well, the idea is to encourage people to take objectives as early as possible and defend them, so they do have to be pretty good. Few people are going to be strongly motivated to take objectives which don't benefit them.

I do see your point about some abilities being rather too powerful for large units to be able to take from turn 1, especially the 'armoury' ones, which make some issues with gunlines camping objectives in their deployment zone worse.

Skyfire was included twice to give players some chance of dealing with opponents who use flyer-spam. If your anti-air gets taken out, at least you can get someone onto an objective to provide some cover. Likewise, abilities like haywire let you deal with armour-spam. Makes taking so many of a specialist unit type that you simply overwhelm a balanced list's ability to deal with it less devastating.

Downsides or more random effects seem like they might be a good idea to balance things out a bit, but truly weird stuff seems like it should be in the realm of archeotech artefacts rather than objectives.

I never understood the whole skyfire objective thing anyway - it works for space marines, and that's where their logic-test stops. these gaunts have a skyfire nexus, and somehow it works for them, because be quiet if they were spehz mehreens it'd make sense.

I'd much rather have a chart like this:

1: explodes, it's gone, go find another
2: nuffin' much, only worth 1 point
3: quad gun
4: ammo stores (reroll 1's)
5: kustom tellyporta - randomly reappear 4D6" in a random direction, after that it's just an objective.
6: Sun eater engine - controlling player can turn night fighting on if they want to for one game turn.

This makes people go for the objectives sooner, and stops people from making last turn land-grabs which so often win the game and make the opponent grumpy because he'd had the objective for longer. now there's 1/6 says it kills you and never was an objective (or if it was, it ain't no more), there's a chance you'll jump on in the last turn and then jump off immediately due to a tellyporta, a quad gun is far more of a no-brainer for use than a magical box that helps you point at the sky, and then the sun-eater will be great for some armies to get a good round of runnin' in, or hidin'.

I'd like to keep the six options lined up with the symbols on the mysterious objective dice if possible, so a quad gun won't work, but you could easily give them a missile launcher gun emplacement.

The problem with your trap and teleporter rules is that it is pretty easy to reveal an objective without dedicating a unit to controlling it.

I'd like the trap to give some kind of advantage to the unit controlling it, even if it's just defensive grenades.

Teleporters might work better with something like 'the controlling unit is teleported at the end of their shooting phase on a 4+.' Maybe give them a 5+ invulnerable save as well and call it a displacer shield...

well, it's easy to reveal if you happen to go for it straight away, which is what you wanted, isn't it? I thought this was to give people more cause to go for objectives and hold them rather than jump on them at the last minute. what better cause to do so than to give them a half a chance of being either a trap, worth a single point or teleporting immediately off? you'd have to find out what it is as soon as you can, rather than praying it's a good one right at the end. at the same time, you don't want the good ones to be so good as to give the entrenched gunline even more of a boost than they already have when facing an army dedicated to taking the opponents objectives.

I don't see how my objectives are easier to reveal than any others, to be honest. if someone wants to find out what they are without taking them, then they will. mine just prevent last-moment grabs from always working, meaning you have to put a bit more of a concentrated effort to get an objective.

if you want people to hunker on objectives, make a scenario in which each objective gives the controlling player a point at the end of every player turn. the longer you hold it, the more points you get. competitive players who do last-minute grabs know that it's victory points that win the game, not the 1/6 chance of a skyfire nexus.