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Made in us
Shadowy Grot Kommittee Memba






Heyo, so a buddy of mine had his old book for Urban Assaults and Cityfight, and we decided to try and translate the old school rules to work with modern 40k stats and keywords and such, and it actually turned out wickedly fun. A little bit of a guideline for terrain setup: We use lots of somewhat smaller than average buildings (so rather than your usual big L-ruins we have a lot of like 8"x4" ruin buildings) about 30-50% more dense than a typical 40k board. Also, one should keep in mind obviously that vehicles are at something of a natural disadvantage in urban combat, though there are a few rules provided here that make it a bit easier to run them than they otherwise would be. And lastly though we did make the oldschool cover saves an optional thing, this still does work somewhat better/more enjoyably with non-power armor armies than it does with power armor.

Urban Assault

in the sprawling hives and dense urban centers of the imperium, the terrain itself is often referred to by commanders as the third combatant in any conflict. Sniper teams post up on rooftops, armored vehicles crash through ruins, and breaching squads clear abandoned hab-blocks one by one as the streets are taken.

Urban assault uses an alternate terrain system to the typical keyword-based terrain system presented in the core 9th edition rules for warhammer 40,000. Instead, terrain is divided into two categories: Building terrain, or any terrain piece that players both agree models should be able to be set up inside or on top of, and Obstacle terrain, which models may shelter behind, but no models may end their moves on top of.

Claiming Cover Bonuses

Urban combat is tight, chaotic, and confusing, with even the often superhumanly gifted warriors of the 41st millennium unable to pick out what would always be their ideal targets.

When declaring a shooting attack for a model, draw the shortest possible straight line between the base of the attacking model to the base of the closest model in the target unit (substitute 'model' for 'base' if either model has no base.) If that line must pass through or over a piece of terrain that is not within 1" of the attacking model, that terrain piece grants cover to the target unit.

Obstacle Terrain

Pieces of Obstacle terrain are items such as barricades, lone crumbling walls from buildings that have lost all integrity, statuary or other items that get in the way of firers getting a clear shot at their target. If a line of sight line for a shooting attack must pass over or through a piece of Obstacle Terrain, subtract 1 from the ballistic skill (BS) of the firing model when making that attack.

Building Terrain

Urban Assaults typically take place in much more recently-functioning cities and settlements than typical battles in the war-torn 41st millennium. The buildings present here are not simply the last, strongest portions of their former selves, but instead offer far more substantial protection, but highly destructive weaponry can be used to remove this protection mid-battle.

If a line of sight line crosses a piece of Building Terrain which is not within 1" of either the attacker or the target model, line of sight is blocked and the shot cannot be taken. However, if a line can be drawn to another model in the same unit without crossing a piece of Building Terrain, shots can be taken but only those models that are visible can be destroyed by that attack.

If a line of sight line crosses a piece of Building Terrain within 1" of only the target model, that model can choose either to claim cover normally, or use the building itself for protection and claim a Cover Save. If it claims cover normally, add +1 to Save rolls made against that shooting attack.

If the unit claims a Cover Save, it gains a save that acts the same as an Invulnerable Save in all ways except that it is treated by several modifiers listed below. Cover Saves for buildings start at 3+.

Units with the INFANTRY, BEASTS, and SWARMS keywords may move through walls in pieces of Building terrain as if they were not there.

Cover Save Modifiers

-For each level of Damage a building has received (see Damaging Buildings), reduce the Cover Save by -1

-If an attacker is located on a higher level than the target unit (see Plunging Fire), reduce the Cover Save by -1

-If the weapon fired has the Blast type, reduce the Cover Save by -1

-If the weapon fired hits automatically or has the Grenade type, Building terrain cannot be used for any kind of Cover.

Breaching Assault

Close combat is often the surest way to deny enemy units the defenses of a building, but the time required to scale walls, break down doors and jump through windows offers a crucial advantage to defenders.

If a unit wholly within a piece of Building terrain is declared as the target of a charge, then the charging unit does not count as having charged in the fight phase (and therefore does not gain a fight first effect from charging).

Plunging Fire

Models with the Infantry, Swarms, Beasts, and Fly keywords may end their moves on top of Building terrain as long as the upper level of the terrain piece is larger than the base of the model ending its move on top of it. When a model on the upper level of a piece of Building Terrain draws line of sight for a shooting attack, subtract 1 from Cover Saves for that attack, and ignore cover rules for any Building or Obstacle terrain pieces not within 1" of either the attacking model or target model that are lower than the bottom edge of the attacking model's base. Additionally, ignore these intervening terrain features for the purposes of cover when a model on an upper level is the target of a shooting attack.

Note: Normal rules for drawing line of sight to enemy models apply even when one model is on an upper level of a terrain feature.

Damaging Buildings

Savvy Commanders will seek to destroy the enemy's best cover using their most destructive weaponry.

Building terrain pieces may be targeted as if they were enemy models by shooting attacks, or attacked in the Fight phase by models within 1" of them, as long as the attacking unit is not on or within the terrain piece.

Do not roll to-hit rolls when targeting a piece of Building terrain, and treat any attacks with Blast weapons as scoring the maximum number of hits. Roll 1d6 for each hit against that building and add the Strength value of the weapon. If the total equals or exceeds 14, the building suffers 1 point of damage.

Each point of damage reduces the Cover Save granted by a building by 1. If a building receives 4 points of damage, it is destroyed. Roll a D6 for each model on or within a building that is destroyed - on a 1 or a 2, that model's unit suffers D6 Strength 4 AP- D1 hits, or 2d6 hits if that model is a vehicle or monster. Then, remove the building from the battlefield and place each surviving model that was within it as close to its original position is possible on the battlefield.

Note: If a building has a footprint of 1' x 1' or larger, such that its destruction would leave the battlefield unreasonably bare, players may declare before the beginning of the game that building a superstructure, in which case it is not destroyed if it receives 4 points of damage, and simply cannot be used to claim Cover Saves.

Vehicles and Monsters

Urban combat often presents a logistical challenge for larger units, as they find themselves required to drive over or through a great deal of terrain to reach the enemy. This inevitably slows their advance, but the powerful weapons these large units bear can be necessary to flush out entrenched enemy forces.

VEHICLE and MONSTER keyword units may choose to move through Obstacle terrain pieces as though they were not there. If they do so, roll 1d6 - on a 1, the moving unit suffers 1 mortal wound and the terrain piece is removed from the game board.

VEHICLE and MONSTER keyword units that begin the movement phase within 2" of the wall of a Building terrain feature may choose to breach through that wall. If they do so, rather than moving their normal distance, instead move the model the minimum amount necessary to place the model on the other side of that wall, and roll 1d6. On a 1 or a 2, the model's unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, and the Building suffers 1 level of damage. A breach move cannot cause a unit to move more than its movement characteristic.

Any VEHICLE or MONSTER keyword unit with a frontally-mounted ram, weapon or claws (example: Deffrolla, Vindicator Siege Shield, Tyranid Crushing Claws) may choose to re-roll any D6 roll they make when moving through an obstacle or building wall.

This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at 2021/12/02 23:30:22


"Got you, Yugi! Your Rubric Marines can't fall back because I have declared the tertiary kaptaris ka'tah stance two, after the secondary dacatarai ka'tah last turn!"

"So you think, Kaiba! I declared my Thousand Sons the cult of Duplicity, which means all my psykers have access to the Sorcerous Facade power! Furthermore I will spend 8 Cabal Points to invoke Cabbalistic Focus, causing the rubrics to appear behind your custodes! The Vengeance for the Wronged and Sorcerous Fullisade stratagems along with the Malefic Maelstrom infernal pact evoked earlier in the command phase allows me to double their firepower, letting me wound on 2s and 3s!"

"you think it is you who has gotten me, yugi, but it is I who have gotten you! I declare the ever-vigilant stratagem to attack your rubrics with my custodes' ranged weapons, which with the new codex are now DAMAGE 2!!"

"...which leads you straight into my trap, Kaiba, you see I now declare the stratagem Implacable Automata, reducing all damage from your attacks by 1 and triggering my All is Dust special rule!"  
   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka





This sounds like a lot of fun. A few pedantic notes:

Models with the Infantry, Swarms, Beasts, and Fly keywords may end their moves on top of Building terrain as long as the upper level of the terrain piece is larger than the base of the model ending its move on top of it. When a model on the upper level of a piece of Building Terrain draws line of sight for a shooting attack, subtract 1 from Cover Saves for that attack, and ignore any Building or Obstacle terrain pieces not within 1" of either the attacking model or target model that are lower than the bottom edge of the attacking model's base. Additionally, ignore these intervening terrain features when a model on an upper level is the target of a shooting attack.


My unit is on the 3rd story of a building. My target is on the street below. Building B is 2 stories tall and stands between my unit and my target but not within 1" of either unit. So because my units bases are above my targets head, I "ignore" the clocktower. Does ignoring the clocktower mean I can draw line of sight to my target even though the clocktower completely blocks my real world line of sight to that target? Does my target gain no cover benefits from the clock tower physically blocking that LoS?

Second scenario: Same positioning of units and terrain, but the unit on the street wants to target my unit that is standing on the third story of a building. The unit on the street isn't allowed to ignore the clocktower because they're not "on the upper level of a piece of Building Terrain". So they can't shot back at the same unit that just shot them.

Third scenario same as the second scenario, but the unit on the street is instead standing on top of a cargo container that my opponent and I have called a 1-story "building". The clocktower is still physically blocking line of sight between the units, but now the unit at a lower elevation can ignore the clock tower and shoot back at my unit?

If a unit wholly within a piece of Building terrain is declared as the target of a charge, then the charging unit does not fight before other units during the fight phase of that turn.

I assume this means that it cancels out the usual "initiative charge bonus" of 9th edition rules; not that it makes the chargers always fight last? So for instance, I charge two of my units into two of my opponent's units in a building. Neither of my units "count as charging" because of the quoted rule, but they also aren't forced to fight last. So my opponent gets to activate his first non-charger, then I get to activate one of my two units that charged, then he gets to activate his second non-charger, then I get to activate my second unit that charged, right?

How does this interact with always strike first/last rules unrelated to charging? I assume you just treat chargers as having not charged for initiative purposes.

Note: If a building has a footprint of 1' x 1' or larger, such that its destruction would leave the battlefield unreasonably bare, players may declare before the beginning of the game that building a superstructure, in which case it is not destroyed if it receives 4 points of damage, and simply cannot be used to claim Cover Saves.

Can I place other pieces of terrain on top of a super structure? Ex: You can't blow up that landing pad, but you can blow up the scrapmetal fort some gangers built on top of it.

VEHICLE and MONSTER keyword units that begin the movement phase within 2" of the wall of a Building terrain feature may choose to breach through that wall. If they do so, rather than moving their normal distance, instead move the model the minimum amount necessary to place the model on the other side of that wall, and roll 1d6. On a 1 or a 2, the model's unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, and the Building suffers 1 level of damage.

I have an avatar of Khaine. He's standing next to a rectangular wall (think a castle wall) that is wider than his base and 18" long. I opt to breach to the opposite side of the wall. Do I get to move 18"? I get that the intent is to let me end up inside of a warehouse or something; just nitpicking for the sake of rules clarity.

Also, breaching seems like a cool thing for an anti-tank weapon squad to do. Maybe create a universal strat that lets meltagunners, krak missile dudes, etc. put a marker next to an impassible wall that lets other units walk through the hole represented by the token?

Overall, really good stuff. I'd definitely give these a try.


ATTENTION
. Psychic tests are unfluffy. Your longing for AV is understandable but misguided. Your chapter doesn't need a separate codex. Doctrines should go away. Being a "troop" means nothing. This has been a cranky service announcement. You may now resume your regularly scheduled arguing.
 
   
Made in us
Shadowy Grot Kommittee Memba






Thanks for the feedback! I've added a couple of sections I noticed myself - I forgot that Breachable would no longer apply to these buildings, so I've added it to the general Building terrain rules - and clarified some language to tighten things up per your suggestions.

I'm tempted by your suggestion to allow special weapon gunners to break through walls (and obviously, disallow the normal sorts of units to go thru them as default) but I'm having a tough time codifying it in such a way that doesnt result in unintended consequences, and there's also the matter of rules burden to consider with any of these house rulesets.

I want there to be just enough rules to feel distinctive, and for the custom rules to really matter when they apply. If a rule is a bit 'fiddly' or un-impactful in one of these variant systems (the 3e system I pulled from is a culprit of this as well there's a lot of fooling about with the concept of 'roads') then I think there's a potential to overwhelm people.

i've seen older editions of 40k try to tackle the concepts of "doors" "windows" "ladders" "stairs" etc within buildings, and it just..never really goes great.

"Got you, Yugi! Your Rubric Marines can't fall back because I have declared the tertiary kaptaris ka'tah stance two, after the secondary dacatarai ka'tah last turn!"

"So you think, Kaiba! I declared my Thousand Sons the cult of Duplicity, which means all my psykers have access to the Sorcerous Facade power! Furthermore I will spend 8 Cabal Points to invoke Cabbalistic Focus, causing the rubrics to appear behind your custodes! The Vengeance for the Wronged and Sorcerous Fullisade stratagems along with the Malefic Maelstrom infernal pact evoked earlier in the command phase allows me to double their firepower, letting me wound on 2s and 3s!"

"you think it is you who has gotten me, yugi, but it is I who have gotten you! I declare the ever-vigilant stratagem to attack your rubrics with my custodes' ranged weapons, which with the new codex are now DAMAGE 2!!"

"...which leads you straight into my trap, Kaiba, you see I now declare the stratagem Implacable Automata, reducing all damage from your attacks by 1 and triggering my All is Dust special rule!"  
   
 
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