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 jifel wrote:
I summoned 8 for 40 attacks. They're 3 base and they all had ScyTals because summoned, then they charged for 5 attacks each.

How nice are the Free upgrades =D

 vercingatorix wrote:
Have people had any luck with the cult as a small allied force? I'm thinking of a full imperial guard artillery army, medusas, quad mortars, basilisk, blob squad and then adding in a sub uprising or something? I don't have the models but I think it would do well.

First tournament I took them to I took nids, and just had a tiny GSC CAD containing a Patriarch, Magus, and a handful of acolytes and purestrains. The idea being to roll summoning and pour tons of extra purestrains onto the table.

It worked really well. In 2 of the 6 games i failed to roll summoning, but the cheap units being able to hop around the table grabbing objectives still made them fantastically useful.

Would definitely recommend fitting a small allied detachment in with your guard.

Hmmm I'm assuming the tau list with the Y'Vahra and R'Varna had a CAD? Otherwise I don't know how he could take them unless he went unbound.

 Buzzdady wrote:
Hmmm I'm assuming the tau list with the Y'Vahra and R'Varna had a CAD? Otherwise I don't know how he could take them unless he went unbound.

Correct. It was a CAD with the three FW tides, some Tetras and some adding crisis suits plus a coldstar, then a Triptide wing.

 jifel wrote:
The Flyrants were very underwhelming in all three tau games, only thing they did was vs the surge list Land on turn 5 for Objectives. And no, I sadly failed to get mind control against the surges. I only have 5 rolls on broodmind since I don't take a CaD. :( and yeah the tau could've played better. My last opponent spread out too much so I was able to isolate and lock up his tides with minimal overwatch. But the game I lost was against my chief rival, who knows my army inside and out cause we've played quite a few times. He did all the right things other than the Skull snafu. And the reason I summoned the Stealers not Guard was because I wanted a legit Cc threat that I expected to take a lot of shooting. I was going to summon them into terrain where stealth and T4 and a 5++ would help CS weight of fire and smart missiles. But, when I rolled the 6, I felt good about the choice!

I feel like a flyrant + cult list would probably be best by being primarily a flyrant list, using cult to obj grab in place of the usual lictors or rippers. Fewer flyrants really impacts their redundancy. So 4-5 flyrants and some obj grabber squads (hell, maybe favoured disciplines for fearless).

Has anyone had a look at the cult list for shadow war? We look to be one of the most hordey factions and have a ton of options, some of which are unlikely to be modelled (pistols on regular guys). If anyone has played necromunda would be interested in hearing your thoughts on a start out list!

@Benlisted I keep the Flyrants in because they are absolute money against non tau. They allow me to dominate BattleCo and daemons where I feel I would otherwise struggle. R&H and Eldar also have no good answer to them. I've found that the Flyrants do more than my old 6-7 Flyrant lists because they are almost never being targeted anymore. GSC + Trirant has honestly been going very well for me so far in the 40+ games I've played. Tau is the only match that's really been troubling me.

Benlisted wrote:

Has anyone had a look at the cult list for shadow war? We look to be one of the most hordey factions and have a ton of options, some of which are unlikely to be modelled (pistols on regular guys). If anyone has played necromunda would be interested in hearing your thoughts on a start out list!

If you have played necromunda

You are basically aiming for a Delauqe list, but it is better to not have your leader CC orientated
I know for my first coupe of campaigns I'm just gonna use my Delauqe models, but I use them in my GSC army anyway

So about 4/5 Autoguns (maybe a shot gun or two)

3 with auto pistols (1 or two chainswords)

1 flamer and 1 Heavy Stubber

I like the flamer myself because it makes people a tad worried about mass charging me, but Heavy Stubber is the most efficient heavy weapon in the game


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I wish the Seismic Cannon was cheaper in Shadow War..

looks like it would be fun, but at more than double the cost of a Heavy Stubber, its just not worth it

GodDamUser wrote:

Benlisted wrote:

Has anyone had a look at the cult list for shadow war? We look to be one of the most hordey factions and have a ton of options, some of which are unlikely to be modelled (pistols on regular guys). If anyone has played necromunda would be interested in hearing your thoughts on a start out list!

If you have played necromunda

You are basically aiming for a Delauqe list, but it is better to not have your leader CC orientated
I know for my first coupe of campaigns I'm just gonna use my Delauqe models, but I use them in my GSC army anyway

So about 4/5 Autoguns (maybe a shot gun or two)

3 with auto pistols (1 or two chainswords)

1 flamer and 1 Heavy Stubber

I like the flamer myself because it makes people a tad worried about mass charging me, but Heavy Stubber is the most efficient heavy weapon in the game


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I wish the Seismic Cannon was cheaper in Shadow War..

looks like it would be fun, but at more than double the cost of a Heavy Stubber, its just not worth it

Thanks for the input! Hording out seems like a good plan to me, probably cult's biggest benefit. Are laspistols any better than autopistols? Cos in our list they're exactly the same points, which feels like an oversight if they just have a better ammo roll...

Benlisted wrote:

Thanks for the input! Hording out seems like a good plan to me, probably cult's biggest benefit. Are laspistols any better than autopistols? Cos in our list they're exactly the same points, which feels like an oversight if they just have a better ammo roll...

Na that should be right.. haven't had too close of a look, but traditionally. Las have better Ammo but Autos are more likely to hit

 jifel wrote:
@Benlisted I keep the Flyrants in because they are absolute money against non tau. They allow me to dominate BattleCo and daemons where I feel I would otherwise struggle. R&H and Eldar also have no good answer to them. I've found that the Flyrants do more than my old 6-7 Flyrant lists because they are almost never being targeted anymore. GSC + Trirant has honestly been going very well for me so far in the 40+ games I've played. Tau is the only match that's really been troubling me.

I've found that vs battle company the amount of bodies plus summoning (I take 6 lvl 2 psykers) makes it a fair match up in that neither of us has an advantage. I figure I just have to outplay my opponent which is all I can really ask for in an army list.

As for daemons, while flyrants are good at getting rid of fateweaver I feel like they really struggle vs flying lord of change or magnus.

So far I've found that I do pretty well in those match ups because I can usually string together combats enough to cause instability checks and get rid of Magnus's ground support. As for Fateweaver, having 6 psykers plus adwill everywhere means I can block the novas from him (And eldar!) pretty reliably. I've played against magnus 3 times and won all 3 and oracle plus screamerstar once and won it. So not a huge pile of a data but enough for me to feel reasonably confident. It's also pretty funny having magnus flying around going "uhhh, now what?" as your hordes of guys run around the board avoiding him and his stupid chariots.

The only issue is summoned flamers and chariots but thankfully there aren't that many players that own enough of the models to really cause problems. 3 flamers and two chariots isn't overwhelming but one player in our area has 9 flamers and 2 chariots, that's a problem.

However, if you don't have the models to run a full summoning GSC list then I think flyrants is a much easier and cheaper army to run.

I've honestly been extremely lucky that I've only played against one tau player but I think the beta strike summoning is the way to go against them if you're staying ITC. We have a lot of daemons and eldar in our meta so Tau never do well, you basically just have to hope you don't play them first round, make sure you win your round, and you're probably good to go.

How are you guys structuring your summoning list now? What does an 1850 list work for you, vercingatorix?

I assume that a "summoning " list is an incursion and two CADs for six psykers total. Not a bad idea at all, I just find it takes too long in competitive play. And I suppose that the Flyrants vs Summoning is a matter of choice, as it's hard to fit in both. I've also noticed that summoning is super huge vs Tau though, I might cut down to two Flyrants and a CAD for extra Magii. A little ObSec wouldn't hurt either. But the shadows in the warp is actually massive against Daemons. Let's me reliably cut down their psykers with instability and makes a Lord of Change with impossible robe MUCH more likely to be killed.

 jifel wrote:
I assume that a "summoning " list is an incursion and two CADs for six psykers total. Not a bad idea at all, I just find it takes too long in competitive play. And I suppose that the Flyrants vs Summoning is a matter of choice, as it's hard to fit in both. I've also noticed that summoning is super huge vs Tau though, I might cut down to two Flyrants and a CAD for extra Magii. A little ObSec wouldn't hurt either. But the shadows in the warp is actually massive against Daemons. Let's me reliably cut down their psykers with instability and makes a Lord of Change with impossible robe MUCH more likely to be killed.

Good point on the shadows. I only played with flyrants a few times but I don't think I ever played them against daemons. However when I played daemons I always felt reasonably confident vs flyrants. So that's kind of what I was judging my opinion on. However I played daemons before GSC came out so maybe that combination is a different animal.

You're also pretty spot on with my list.

Brood cycle with 3 mining lasers and 10 Genestealers

Sub up with 20 man squad with banner
10 man acolyte squad
5 man metamorph
5 man metamorph

doting throng
3x 10 man acolytes
magus w/ crouchling
patriarch

CAD 1
magus
magus
2x10 neophytes

CAD 1
magus
magus
2x10 neophytes

93% chance of getting 1 summoning and usually get 2-3.

Not to mention it's pretty formidable to a lot of armies even without the summoning. 60 neophytes actually has a decent amount of firepower when they all show up at once within rapid fire range on an enemy flank.

With this army I almost always choose second. I'll deploy the sub ups because I have too. Then I'll put whatever unit rolled a summons in with the brood cycle neophytes and probably my patriarch with stealers on the board or put the summoning magus with one of the zealot units.

I try to husband my obsec neophytes till end game while flooding the board with summoned and starting units. Generally people don't want to give you first turn because everyone is scared of the alpha strike that genestealer cult is kind of known for.

The one army this doesn't work as well against is daemons. They're simply going to outsummon you. So I try to put pressure on them and disallow them from flying fatey or escaping with thieir screamer star. With 12 dice and adwill bubbles everywhere and shrouding and ld 10 in half my squads and ld 9 in the brood cycle I'm pretty resistant to flickering fire, save all my dice to block novas, and shrieks can hurt but also do nothing.

If they're screamerstar can't get away even with a 2+ they get tied up in a combat with a bunch of brimstones and that's not something they like.

Murderhorde is brutal as well. If you can't get rid of their hatred bubble quickly our armies simply erase each other. MSU stuff is becoming less popular because of Aeldari so I think GSC is in a really good place meta wise.

So I took a GSC cult list to the 800pt WHW doubles event last weekend (they announced 8th live during the event, pretty cool). It was:

CAD of Patriarch, 10 and 15 neophytes w/autoguns, aegis
2 Sub uprisings of 3x5 acolytes and 3x 5 metas (1 whip, 4 claws)
one squad of acolytes was upped to 10 to fit the Patriarch in.

My friend took a Psykana with guard vets (3 autocannons) and 9 rapier las batteries, summoning daemons (so somewhat relevant to the earlier discussion).

We ended up winning all 5 games - it is random pairings so that doesn't necessarily mean that much, but still not a bad showing. The Psykana did seem to work quite well with cult - we bubblewrapped initially, then took the enemy's lines whilst the daemons occupied midfield and Guard castled up. We didn't get past turn 3 except in the game we tabled our opponents though, slow as hell to play...

Anyway, here's hoping cults retain their awesome and unique playstyle in 8th!

So there was a lot of talk earlier in the thread about movement blocking fliers. I can say with confidence that it can work!

Here's a quick battle report from my last 7th edition tournament.

I have a pure Cult army with a brood cycle, sub uprising, and double cads.

My opponent had magnus, fateweaver, screamerstar, and cultist and brims to fill out the list.

The deployment is hammer and anvil and scouring.

Deployment


He deployed first in a corner with fatey and magnus and brims and culstist as a bubble wrap. I rolled the good warlord trait for my Patriarch with 10 genestealers. I also rolled a 6 for my 7 metamorph unit and a 5 man unit of acolytes from the brood cycle.

Daemon Turn 1 Maelstorm - 0


I completely movement blocked fateweaver but magnus could still fly because he could move his brims out of the way. So fatey flew off the board and left magnus flying. Magnus did some damage but with only having 7 base dice compared to my 12 he only managed to get a beam and a small blast off. He didn't finish off any units.

Cult Turn 1 Maelstrom - 3

I wiped out all his chaffe units that weren't flying. My favorite being the unit of 5 acolytes charging in with furious charge and hatred vs cultist and a champion. Completely wiped the squad before they swung and then the sorcerer got run down. I used the rest of my army to block magnus from flying. Since all he had one turn 1 was fly from one side of his corner to the other, it required very little movement.

Daemon Turn 2 Maelstrom - 0

His turn 2, the screamers fail their reserves, fatey flies on in the middle of my big blob of guys blocking Magnus movement. Magnus can't fly continue flying so he leaves the board. His low psychic dice count and me having adwill and psykers everywhere mean I block all of fatey's powers.

Cult Turn 2 Maelstrom - 6

I leave most of my stuff where it is because my units are in long lines and fatey is preventing a lot of them from leaving the board. The two units that leave are the Patriarch and genestealers who pick their result and metamorphs. I hold all the objectives and score 3 maelstrom.

Daemon Turn 2 Maelstrom - 1
His screamers come in, fatey flies in the middle of a bunch of stuff, magnus flies in the middle of a bunch of stuff. His screamerstar failed grimoire even with fatey's reroll. He casts cursed earth and rolls a natural 10 on the warp storm table so they're still at a 4+. His psychic phase is pretty brutal in that he kills a whole lot of guys but only fully kills off a single magus, 2 neophyte squads, and a 5 man acolyte squad.

Cult Turn 3 Maelstrom - 8
My warlord and 10 patriarchs choose to assault from reserves and show up 3 inches away from the screamers. The metamorphs that went into reserves also charge. The rest of my army goes into reserves and regenerates quite a few guys. He throws all his dice at stopping one of my summonings, which he did. But then my last 3-4 dice allowed me to do +1 strength and rage on my genestealer unit AND cast mass hypnosis on the screamers. Since I was charging through cover I didn't want my stealers to get hit too hard. Now the screamers had 1 less attack and were hitting on 5s so they did a single wound to the patriarch before getting utterly annihilated from the 50 strength 6 attacks from the stealers.


The rest of the game was me avoiding his fliers and regenerating as many wounded squads as possible. I had bottom of the turn so I just hung around until turn 5/6 and jumped on the objectives.

Now, obviously it really helped that my opponent failed grimoire. With that being said. I still did 50ish wounds to the squad between the metamorph unit and the stealer squad that assaulted it. And the turn after that would have seen(I rolled a 6 with them but there were no ground targets alive) a 20 man acolyte squad with hatred and furious charge and likely the +1 strength and rage power hitting it. So I don't think it changed the overall game result but it did hurry it up quite a bit. The end result being, even with a psychic powerhouse army like that, 12 dice with adwill and psykers is enough to block novas and the worst beams. That means that they probably will not have the firepower to deal with the rest of the army. I think my opponent relied too much on novas and not enough on flickering fire as well. He finally did realize it and one lvl 3 flickering fire picked up my entire large squad. the flickering fire killed a bunch and then the soulblase and warpflame killed another 5. It was brutal and left me with only 2 models left and one of the ICs dead.

Hopefully in 8th the general mechanics of cult ambush will still work so games like this will likely be possible. I doubt they'll change the rule of enemy models being able to exist with an inch of another.

So with the currently revealed new rules so far for 8th we have some unexpected bonuses for GSC

Bonus sentenels improved...
Bonus Pistols able to be fired in CC
Bonus Russes more durable
Bouns S3 weapons able to damage everything on a 6
Bonus Psychics getting better
Bonus Characters not joining units but able to pile into nearby combats
Bonus Flamers are auto hits (and since most of ours are pistols even better)
Bonus Genestealer and a few of our other units movement likely to be higher.
Bonus AM getting some love which will effect some of our units as well.

If we keep our return to and out of shadows which I expect we will as it is our defining characteristic I think things will be very interesting for us.

Timeshadow wrote:
So with the currently revealed new rules so far for 8th we have some unexpected bonuses for GSC

Bonus sentenels improved...
Bonus Pistols able to be fired in CC
Bonus Russes more durable
Bouns S3 weapons able to damage everything on a 6
Bonus Psychics getting better
Bonus Characters not joining units but able to pile into nearby combats
Bonus Flamers are auto hits (and since most of ours are pistols even better)
Bonus Genestealer and a few of our other units movement likely to be higher.
Bonus AM getting some love which will effect some of our units as well.

If we keep our return to and out of shadows which I expect we will as it is our defining characteristic I think things will be very interesting for us.

The biggest item of interest for me is the pistols in combat personally. I'm guessing pistols are going to loose the attack bonus with the aforementioned change, but our main close combat units still have two melee weapons anyway so we should retain our +1 attack. Also I'm not sure if the Russ is more durable. In the current edition it is a bit better, but from what I have seen a lot of the weapons are going to be getting far nastier against single large models compared to infantry, so I'm suspecting it might end up overall more fragile in comparison. Might not be as easy to 1-shot as certain anti-tank weapons can do now, but there are a lot more things that can hurt it whereas currently it is flat out immune to anything weaker than S8 on the front.

I assume our characters will more or less remain as they are, since their main buffs are already in an area of effect.

Reese from Frontline Gaming, one of the 8E playtesters, insists that that Lemun Russ will be fearsome in 8E.

I am secretly hoping they give the GSC some bassies in 8th...

I know unlikely but I have one just sitting there I want to use D=

With the changes to blast.. I am more looking forward to using Grenade Launchers over flamers.. (depending of course on the rules for them)

So if everyone can now assault after deapstrike/reserve what will cult ambush do?

Timeshadow wrote:
So if everyone can now assault after deapstrike/reserve what will cult ambush do?

Getting you closer for easier assaults.

Timeshadow wrote:
So if everyone can now assault after deapstrike/reserve what will cult ambush do?

That is not a confirmed thing. There are no more universal deepstrike rules any more.
What was confirmed is that the particular rules for what restrictions each unit has will listed be on its dataslate. It's also been mentioned that cult ambush is still a thing, but no hint on how it will actually work.

Deploy 9inches away seems like a reasonable/safe bet, but that's pure speculation.

What was confirmed was that half your units need to deployed at startup.

 adamsouza wrote:

Timeshadow wrote:
So if everyone can now assault after deapstrike/reserve what will cult ambush do?

That is not a confirmed thing. There are no more universal deepstrike rules any more.
What was confirmed is that the particular rules for what restrictions each unit has will listed be on its dataslate. It's also been mentioned that cult ambush is still a thing, but no hint on how it will actually work.

Deploy 9inches away seems like a reasonable/safe bet, but that's pure speculation.

What was confirmed was that half your units need to deployed at startup.

I suspect that GSC can still go back in the shadows and then deploy 9 inch away (with assault option). Maybe deploy the whole army 9 inch instead of half at startup. Still speculation..

Alright, so this is completely a RUMOR but someone on FB has been posting what he claims is the new Cult Ambush table for us.

During deployment, you can set this unit in ambush instead of on the battlefield. At the end of your Movement phase it can launch an ambush - when it does so, roll a dice and consult the table below.
If you wish, before rolling on the Cult Ambush table for a Genestealer Cults Character you may pick one friendly Genestealer Cults Infantry unit that was also set up in Ambush to arrive with them, make one roll on the Cult Ambush table and apply the same result to both units. However, each of these units must be set up within 6" of each other.
If your army is Battle Forged, a unit can make use of this ability if every unit in its detachment had the Genestealer Cults keyword.
Cult Ambush
1 - Cult Reinforcements
Your opponent nominates 2 battlefield edges one after another then you roll a dice. On a 1-3, set the unit up wholly within 6" of the first edge. On a 4-6 set it up the whole within 6" of the other edge. The unit must be set up more than 9" away from any enemy models.
2 - Encircling the Foe
You nominate 2 battlefield edges one after another then you roll a dice. On a 1-3, set the unit up wholly within 6" of the first edge. On a 4-6 set it up the whole within 6" of the other edge. The unit must be set up more than 9" away from any enemy models.
3 - Lying in Wait
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 12" away from any enemy models. Alternatively, set it up anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models and not visible to any enemy models.
4 - A Perfect Ambush
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models.
5 - A Deadly Trap
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models. It can either move D6" or shoot with all its ranged weapons as if it were the shooting phase (doing so does not prevent it shooting in the Shooting phase or charging in the Charge phase of that turn)
6 - It Came From Below
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models. The unit can move normally, even though it had just arrived as reinforcements.

Again, this is purely unconfirmed but it does sound pretty nice if its true.

 jifel wrote:
Alright, so this is completely a RUMOR but someone on FB has been posting what he claims is the new Cult Ambush table for us.

During deployment, you can set this unit in ambush instead of on the battlefield. At the end of your Movement phase it can launch an ambush - when it does so, roll a dice and consult the table below.
If you wish, before rolling on the Cult Ambush table for a Genestealer Cults Character you may pick one friendly Genestealer Cults Infantry unit that was also set up in Ambush to arrive with them, make one roll on the Cult Ambush table and apply the same result to both units. However, each of these units must be set up within 6" of each other.
If your army is Battle Forged, a unit can make use of this ability if every unit in its detachment had the Genestealer Cults keyword.
Cult Ambush
1 - Cult Reinforcements
Your opponent nominates 2 battlefield edges one after another then you roll a dice. On a 1-3, set the unit up wholly within 6" of the first edge. On a 4-6 set it up the whole within 6" of the other edge. The unit must be set up more than 9" away from any enemy models.
2 - Encircling the Foe
You nominate 2 battlefield edges one after another then you roll a dice. On a 1-3, set the unit up wholly within 6" of the first edge. On a 4-6 set it up the whole within 6" of the other edge. The unit must be set up more than 9" away from any enemy models.
3 - Lying in Wait
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 12" away from any enemy models. Alternatively, set it up anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models and not visible to any enemy models.
4 - A Perfect Ambush
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models.
5 - A Deadly Trap
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models. It can either move D6" or shoot with all its ranged weapons as if it were the shooting phase (doing so does not prevent it shooting in the Shooting phase or charging in the Charge phase of that turn)
6 - It Came From Below
Set up the unit anywhere that is more than 9" from any enemy models. The unit can move normally, even though it had just arrived as reinforcements.

Again, this is purely unconfirmed but it does sound pretty nice if its true.

Actually it sounds pretty bad if it is true..

1-2 are pretty much the same thing (1 being the worse of the two)
3 is terribad
4 is normal DS
5 is great
6 is the same as 4

It is already established that arriving from reinforcements do not stop you from shooting or charging...
So who ever posted that on FB is talking out of their arse

GodDamUser wrote:

6 is the same as 4

It is already established that arriving from reinforcements do not stop you from shooting or charging...

So it isn't the same, as being able to move pretty much secures a charge.

Yeah the 6 result is actually pretty good since it allows a move after. Since Nid Genestealers are confirmed to move 8" its reasonable to assume our Purestrains will as well, and a hybrid to move at least 6 as a guess. The big thing is that 4/5/6 all include reasonably makeable charges, meaning we'll get more units into assault off of Cult Ambush than before.

The faction focus is out and wow I can't wait to assault with my rockgrinders. Another question ... can our vehicles cult ambush now? It's cool we can take a nidz or guard unit for each cult unit we have...sweet.

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2017/05/27/warhammer-40000-faction-focus-genestealer-cults/

From the shadows, the Genestealer Cults come to sow dissent and distrust. They undermine the foundations of the Imperium from within to prepare the way for the Great Devourer.

Genestealer Cults are both a new and old faction. They’ve got their roots way back in the mists of Warhammer 40,000 history but have recently made their triumphant return to the game. Genestealer Cults were largely defined in their play style through their very cool and characterful Cult Ambush special rule. That is still true in the new Warhammer 40,000 as well. Cult Ambush allows you to place Genestealer Cults units into reserves and then enter the game through a variety of means determined by a D6 chart. These range in effect from coming on to a table edge to being able to appear anywhere on the table more than 9” away from any enemy units but being able to move as well, allowing you to get extremely close to enemy units to shoot and then charge them as well. For units like Genestealers or Aberrants armed with power picks and rending claws, this can be punishing!

Speaking of Genestealers, if you thought they were deadly in the Tyranid army, they are even more flexible with Genestealer Cults due to the Cult Ambush rule as stated above. Combined with the Patriarch, they hit just as hard as the Broodlord and Genestealers do with Tyranids, but with Genestealer Cults, the Patriarch also allows nearby units to ignore morale, and he benefits from the Unquestioning Loyalty special rule which all Genestealer Cults Characters posses. This allows them to avoid taking a wound on a 4+ as a minion sacrifices its life and jumps in front of the attack. This makes these Characters extremely durable and even helps them survive things like Sniper fire.

Another nasty trick the Genestealer Cults have is their Mass Hypnosis psychic power, which prevents an enemy unit from firing Overwatch, makes them strike last in combat (even if they charged) AND gives them -1 to hit. Ouch! That leaves an enemy unit in a very compromised position as the minions of the Four-armed Emperor emerge from ambush and then run them through in melee.

One of my favourite aspects of the Genestealer Cults, though, is their ability to form their army using both their own faction, Tyranids and Astra Militarum, too. Huzzah! Due to the way that allies worked in the previous edition, making an army that mixed Genestealer Cult units and Astra Militarum wasn’t always straightforward. These are, of course, not “real” Astra Militarum, but devoted followers of the Cult who have turned from the Emperor’s light and betrayed their fellow man. The way it works in the new Warhammer 40,000 is really fun. You can take one Astra Militarum Detachment for each Genestealer Cults Detachment in your Battle-forged army. They each need to be entirely comprised of units with their respective keyword, but this allows incredible amounts of diversity in your army that is also quite characterful.

But you won’t always need to sneak into the Imperial motor pool to hijack their vehicles; the Genestealer Cults have access to some fantastic mechanised war machines of their own. The Goliath Rockgrinder is one of my favourites.

For armament, I prefer the Clearance Incinerator, as it automatically hits its target D6 times up to 12” out and, of course, you have to take the Cache of Demolition Charges! While you can only fire this weapon if a unit is embarked upon it (as they need to chuck them out!) and it is short ranged at 6”, boy does it pack a punch! D6 shots, Strength 8, AP -3 and D3 damage per hit. That’s no joke. If anything survives that, you can ram them with the Drilldozer in melee for a possible 6+D3 Strength 8 attacks with an AP of -2 and D3 damage per hit.

I was kinda disappointed with this Faction Focus

That being said.. Rockgrinders look like they can be awesome depending of course on points and HP