Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Not with the excellent Dominion and Seraphim choices.

Elite is just such a gaping hole right now. It's our one bad slot.

I could imagine Seraphim getting a spin off elite version, like how SM got Vanguard as an improved Assault Squad.

I could see some of the Witch Hunter Inquisitor henchmen sans inquisitors, repurposed and rewritten. For example a unit of Crusaders.

 pretre wrote:
Elite is just such a gaping hole right now. It's our one bad slot.

For my own list, I added some Hospitaller units:

An Almoness (granting an FNP aura) escorted by a squad of Celestian Protectors (with Counter-Attack and defensive grenades instead of Witch Hunter and frag grenades)
The Saints of Kavaal (three Hospitallers granting a better FNP aura) escorted by Celestian Protectors
The Samaritan (a military ambulance) as a dedicated transport option.

Elites ...

The only thing that springs to mind that I would *want* to see there would be this exosuit idea that just came to mind whilst posting in the Centurion thread.

The Sisters are a very focused army with not nearly as much diversity as the Guard or adaptability as the Space Marines, so personally, I feel their hierarchy and organisation should intentionally be very small.
Those CC exosuits I'd deem suitable only because they are essentially equipment, and I'd fluff their pilots to be members of the Celestian corps.

Furyou Miko wrote:The main problem with Lynata's idea is that... well, every Battle Sister and every Techpriest have power armour - why does this random battle sister techie not have power armour?

Because the Hospitaller doesn't, either.

To me, it's primarily a stylistic choice to make them more different both from the other Sisters, as well as from their Space Marine counterparts - but one could surely whip up some excuses for practical reasons, such as them having to be more nimble and mobile to better deal with broken vehicles in the field, possibly having to crawl halfway inside some tank etc. Whereas a Techmarine has finer control over their armour (black carapace), plus a long mechadendrite that can reach where his bulky form doesn't.

Hmmh, I wonder if perhaps such a character should not be a Battle Sister herself, but be classed under the "Sisters from other Orders" group - perhaps hailing from the Orders Pronatus, or an entirely new / as of yet undescribed Order that focuses on servicing the technology of the Sisterhood, in the same manner that the Orders Militant apparently have Sisters Hospitallers as attached medical specialists rather than training their own medics.
I think part of me would prefer these technicians to hail from the ranks of the Battle Sisters, but a special Order to service the entire Sisterhood could then also aid all the other branches of the Adepta Sororitas, such as maintenance of the Hospitallers' medical equipment, or the databanks of the Orders Famulous, and so on.
The Adepta Sororitas has been described as a huge network of interlinked parts all helping each other out, after all...

I would like something simpler... Useful Celestians.

 ClockworkZion wrote:

 pretre wrote:
Also, being in heavy support, I would probably never use them.

We really need something good in elite.

Fast Attack has room for more options too.

I think the main addition needed for Fast Attack would be some sort of flyer. I'd also like to see a land speeder variant as well, but earlier in this thread people also discussed gunned cars of sorts that SoB are mentioned as having in fiction as another addition.

We're not going to get it, but a second troop type would be ace.

aka_mythos wrote:I could imagine Seraphim getting a spin off elite version, like how SM got Vanguard as an improved Assault Squad.

I could see some of the Witch Hunter Inquisitor henchmen sans inquisitors, repurposed and rewritten. For example a unit of Crusaders.

Seraphim already have a spin-off elite version: Celestians. :p

Now I guess they just need to split them into Sturmguard Celestians and Blitzguard Celestians...

 Furyou Miko wrote:
Now I guess they just need to split them into Sturmguard Celestians and Blitzguard Celestians...

Totally okay with this.

 pretre wrote:
Not with the excellent Dominion and Seraphim choices.

Elite is just such a gaping hole right now. It's our one bad slot.

We have -2- choices there. Some alternatives and competition would be good.

Besides, a drop pod slamming down on the enemy and shooting them in the face screams angrily "Fast Attack".

I don't disagree that having extra choices is good. I just think that we should have at least 2 viable choices in each slot before adding more to already valid slots.

Slots that meet that currently:
HQ: (for people who don't care about SC) Celestine and Uriah/Kyrinov
Heavy: Exo and Rets
Fast: Doms and Seras

Slots that don't:
HQ: (For people that do care about SC) Canoness/CCS/etc is not good
Elite: Celestians and Reps are just not as good as other slots
Troops: One choice

 pretre wrote:
I don't disagree that having extra choices is good. I just think that we should have at least 2 viable choices in each slot before adding more to already valid slots.

Slots that meet that currently:
HQ: (for people who don't care about SC) Celestine and Uriah/Kyrinov
Heavy: Exo and Rets
Fast: Doms and Seras

Slots that don't:
HQ: (For people that do care about SC) Canoness/CCS/etc is not good
Elite: Celestians and Reps are just not as good as other slots
Troops: One choice

The Drop Pods don't really fit as "elites" though.

And I get what you're saying, but one thing at a time, alright?

My homebrew list has en elite unit I call 'The Fallen'. I got the idea from Dawnof War: Soulstorm. Basically spirits of dead Sisters come back to fight on in the name of the Emperor. Its kind of like how the Legion of the Damned form C:SM just arrive to fight on. I gave them an Angelic appearance. They were in essence Seraphim with an invuln save and more attacks. They were appropriately expensive as well.

"The Fallen" is also the name of the traitorous Dark Angels.

I think LOTD make a great ally for SOB.

I was thinking of allying Tigurius, some Cent Devs and a LOTD squad for funsies.

Well since we (SisterSyndey ) like to link homebrew here, I took a legitimate crack at my own: Adepta Sororita Drop Pod Updated Rules

pretre wrote:I would like something simpler... Useful Celestians.

I think we all agree on that!
Just give them storm shields and power weapons and call it a day.

Anyways, if you want variety ...

HQ
- Canoness (IC)
- Palatine (IC)
- Confessor (IC)
- Special Characters (IC)

Troops
- Battle Sister Squad
- Novice Aggregation Squad
- Frateris Militia Mob

Elites
- Celestian Squad
- Celestian Gladiatrix Squad
- Repentia Squad
- Hospitaller (IC)
- Armouress (IC)
- Priest (IC)

Fast Attack
- Dominion Squad
- Seraphim Squad

Heavy Support
- Retributor Squad
- Penitent Engine
- Exorcist MARS
- Lightning Attack Fighter
- Dominica Gun Pod*

Dedicated Transports
- Rhino APC
- Venator Scout Car
- Repressor IFV
- Immolator IFV
- Valkyrie Dropship
- Dominica Drop Pod*

*: unlocked by Canoness or Palatine, may only be fielded if the entire army deploys via deep-strike

("Gladiatrix" is the WiP name for this CC-focused exosuit unit I've been pondering about, armed with a huge shield, some kind of melee weapon, and a built-in flamer - I'm still unsure about the name; a lot of good terms such as Vanguard, Purifier, etc. are unfortunately already occupied by the gazillion things that some Space Marine Chapter gets)

Why can the drop pods only be fielded if the entire army deploys via deepstrike. That's no fun.

 pretre wrote:
Why can the drop pods only be fielded if the entire army deploys via deepstrike. That's no fun.

Agreed! Sometimes you need to the wrath of the Emperor on a Heretic's head to soften them up for the the Sisters to break their lines.

And yes, IIRC, that was a restriction from the CJ list, but still...

 pretre wrote:
And yes, IIRC, that was a restriction from the CJ list, but still...

Some rules are made to be forgotten!

pretre wrote:Why can the drop pods only be fielded if the entire army deploys via deepstrike. That's no fun.

I know, I know ...
I just thought it needs to be represented how rarely these pods are pulled out of mothballing - in short, they shouldn't show up as one or two useful pieces like with Marine Drop Pods, but either used not at all or as a devastating STEEL RAIN in lightning raids against critical objectives.

Also, I just noticed the Lightning would be a Heavy Support option...
The Fast Attack slot appears a bit empty now, but the scout cars could essentially be deployed in this role. Should they be listed in both categories? I'm just wondering because the Immolator is (atm) only a Dedicated Transport as well, no longer an individual Heavy choice.

I disagree on the grounds that I should never be shoehorned into a specific list build just to field things.

What about the times where they need to pull a "Hail Mary" and drop those into the entrenched enemy lines to disrupt, confuse and pull the Sister's butts out of the fire? Can't do that if I can only go all drop pod or none at all.

ClockworkZion wrote:What about the times where they need to pull a "Hail Mary" and drop those into the entrenched enemy lines to disrupt, confuse and pull the Sister's butts out of the fire? Can't do that if I can only go all drop pod or none at all.

But that's specifically what these units are not meant for!

I totally get what you mean and I agree this limitation is ... well, limiting, but at the end of the day it's just not how the Sororitas operate, or even (apparently) have the capabilities for. We could always discuss changing their fluff, but my suggestion is based on how they were meant to be used by the Citadel Journal background. It's why I also didn't put one of Sydney's tanks in there even though I dig the idea itself.

(and yes, it also serves to keep things a bit different from how the Marines do it - something that a lot of posters in this thread were concerned about earlier!)

 Lynata wrote:

ClockworkZion wrote:What about the times where they need to pull a "Hail Mary" and drop those into the entrenched enemy lines to disrupt, confuse and pull the Sister's butts out of the fire? Can't do that if I can only go all drop pod or none at all.

But that's specifically what these units are not meant for!

I just don't agree with that. I can't imagine someone going "well crap. We're stuck in and at this rate we'll lose. Let's not use the weapons we have on our ships that are perfect to fix this issue to solve this problem." They're the Sisters not the Administratium!

 Lynata wrote:
I totally get what you mean and I agree this limitation is ... well, limiting, but at the end of the day it's just not how the Sororitas operate, or even (apparently) have the capabilities for. We could always discuss changing their fluff, but my suggestion is based on how they were meant to be used by the Citadel Journal background. It's why I also didn't put one of Sydney's tanks in there even though I dig the idea itself.

And my suggestion is that design philosophy is pants.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
And I want to point out that Marines only get Drop Pods filled with Assault Cannons or Missiles from FW. Ours could easily be codex and more awesome.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Just for the record: I'm not mad at you Lynata, it's just that GW as a whole have pretty much abandoned that sort of design philosophy and I loathe going back.

ClockworkZion wrote:I just don't agree with that. I can't imagine someone going "well crap. We're stuck in and at this rate we'll lose. Let's not use the weapons we have on our ships that are perfect to fix this issue to solve this problem." They're the Sisters not the Administratium!

Technically, it's not that easy. You don't just ship a bunch of Drop Pods stored in the armouries of the Convents Sanctorum and Primaris to some faraway warzone in a matter of minutes just because some SoB strike force is in trouble. Even if the Sisters would love to do that, travel limitations kind of make it impossible to use the small number of pods anywhere but in those high profile missions where they are deemed absolutely necessary right at the planning stage, so that they can be held ready and available where they are needed.

Hell, most times they likely wouldn't even have ships in the orbit. Or do you want to limit drop pods to the six Ordo Maioris paint schemes?

ClockworkZion wrote:Just for the record: I'm not mad at you Lynata, it's just that GW as a whole have pretty much abandoned that sort of design philosophy and I loathe going back.

's alright, I don't really like saying "no" here either, it's just that my stubborn adherence to established (studio) writings sometimes forces me into the role of Devil's Advocate, and this is one such case ...
I admit that I also don't see it as much of a big deal, though. It's certainly better to have them this way than not having them at all!

 Lynata wrote:

ClockworkZion wrote:I just don't agree with that. I can't imagine someone going "well crap. We're stuck in and at this rate we'll lose. Let's not use the weapons we have on our ships that are perfect to fix this issue to solve this problem." They're the Sisters not the Administratium!

Technically, it's not that easy. You don't just ship a bunch of Drop Pods stored in the armouries of the Convents Sanctorum and Primaris to some faraway warzone in a matter of minutes just because some SoB strike force is in trouble. Even if the Sisters would love to do that, travel limitations kind of make it impossible to use the small number of pods anywhere but in those high profile missions where they are deemed absolutely necessary right at the planning stage, so that they can be held ready and available where they are needed.

Hell, most times they likely wouldn't even have ships in the orbit. Or do you want to limit drop pods to the six Ordo Maioris paint schemes?

Sisters have fleets in 2nd edition. It's not been countered by fluff yet. So why do the drop pods need to be stored on Terra and Ophelia VII exactly?

 Lynata wrote:

ClockworkZion wrote:Just for the record: I'm not mad at you Lynata, it's just that GW as a whole have pretty much abandoned that sort of design philosophy and I loathe going back.

's alright, I don't really like saying "no" here either, it's just that my stubborn adherence to established (studio) writings sometimes forces me into the role of Devil's Advocate, and this is one such case ...
I admit that I also don't see it as much of a big deal, though. It's certainly better to have them this way than not having them at all!

Studio writings give us the tools to easily adjust and change things though as we have fluff about Sisters having fleets and being bankrolled by the richest organization in the Imperium. I'm pretty sure they can mange to get enough drop pods together for our "~21,000-30,000" Sisters of Battle.

Hrm... I dunno. I don't see it so much as having shipped out a bunch of pods on a ship on the off-chance that they might be useful, but rather the ship the Sisters arrived to this war-zone on has them equipped and, who knows? Maybe the Sisters *did* originally deploy via pod, and they were recovered, repaired, and reinstalled.

Now, the battle we have on the tabletop right now is later on in that campaign, the Sisters find themselves in a situation where they need to deploy whatever reserve elements they have (that would be the Sisters in the pod, either newly arrived to the AO via other ships, or returning to active duty after combat injuries and cycling through reserve elements before returning to full duty), and so they call the reserves down in the pod. Of course, the Sisters being the Sisters, they don't have *that* many reserve units, so you get one, two squads of Battle Sisters, or maybe one squad supported by a pod filled with automated guns.

 Psienesis wrote:
Hrm... I dunno. I don't see it so much as having shipped out a bunch of pods on a ship on the off-chance that they might be useful, but rather the ship the Sisters arrived to this war-zone on has them equipped and, who knows? Maybe the Sisters *did* originally deploy via pod, and they were recovered, repaired, and reinstalled.

Now, the battle we have on the tabletop right now is later on in that campaign, the Sisters find themselves in a situation where they need to deploy whatever reserve elements they have (that would be the Sisters in the pod, either newly arrived to the AO via other ships, or returning to active duty after combat injuries and cycling through reserve elements before returning to full duty), and so they call the reserves down in the pod. Of course, the Sisters being the Sisters, they don't have *that* many reserve units, so you get one, two squads of Battle Sisters, or maybe one squad supported by a pod filled with automated guns.

Those also make nice points!

I am with Lynata here. Fluff is everything. I will actually like no Drop Pods in the Codex… and then a supplement about an Ordo Hereticus Strike Force, allowing you to field Drop Pods as in CJ49.

By the way. here is my wish list:
1) Palatines
2) Custom-made Living Saints
3) Praxedes. More named characters.
4) Combat Doctrine equivalent to represent the main Orders… and the Order of the Ermine Mantle.
5) Improved Celestians. Improved Command Squads. Famulatas, Elohim.
6) Plastic models for everyone.
7) Additional fluff with the Sisters kicking ass. Additional references to SM chapters been wiped out by them. The Sisters´ version on the war on Fenris. Fluff about the Sisters´ fleet.
8) Flyers (Avenger? Lighting Fighter? Valkyrie?).
9) Old style Repressor (four Fire Points). New Repressor.
10) Keep the 12 pts each. They are “equal to Space Marines”. Do not make them cheaper.
11) Penitent Engines moved to Elite. Shooty variant.
12) Acts of Faith reworked as in Witch Hunters
13) Incarcerators. Cataphalque tanks (whatever they are, they appeared in a leaked list as a dual kit with the Exorcist). Land Raider equivalent. Exorcists with skyfire. More tanks.
14) Zealots and Redemptionists. Crusaders and Arco-flagellants Squads.
15) Drop Pods (OH supplement?)
16) Techpriest equivalent with fluff explaining how they do their thing
17) Novices/ Cantus. Additional fluff about their training. Can Novices do Acts of Faith?
18) Close combat version of the Seraphins (Patronica Squads?)
19) Neural whips and Jump Packs for the Canoness.
20) Blessed Weapons, Blessed Armour, Braziers of Holy Fire, Fire Lances, Thunder Flamers, updated Praesidium Protectiva, Holy Prometium, and Phosphor Grenades!