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I wonder what's going to get the Cognis Flamer. None of the units on that poster seemed appropriate.

So is there going to be another Ad Mech codex to cover all this new stuff?

If so, what happens to the Skitarii book?

Are these rules just additions to the Skitarii book via WD exclusive?

 Blacksails wrote:
So is there going to be another Ad Mech codex to cover all this new stuff?

Yes.

If so, what happens to the Skitarii book?

It remains the same.

Are these rules just additions to the Skitarii book via WD exclusive?

It's just a preview of what is in the new book, I think.

So the Skitarii book then becomes an expensive preview of the full book?

Seems...odd...and just like something GW would do.

 Kanluwen wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Not sure how I feel about a Tech-Priest that doesn't have an Omnissian Axe and a Servo-Arm. A power fist just feels weird...

Datasmiths aren't Tech-Priests!

They're Inquisitors! *duck*

Thems Figtin' words!

I hope they have weapon options in the box

 Blacksails wrote:
So the Skitarii book then becomes an expensive preview of the full book?

Seems...odd...and just like something GW would do.

I don't think the Skitarii stuff is in the new book at all. Just the new stuff. So you'd need both to use all the stuff, which is equally a GW thing to do.

 ImAGeek wrote:


I don't think the Skitarii stuff is in the new book at all. Just the new stuff. So you'd need both to use all the stuff, which is equally a GW thing to do.

I...but...ughnn...it hurts, stop.

Why? Why?

Is that confirmed at least?

 Leth wrote:

 Yodhrin wrote:

 endtransmission wrote:

Super Newb wrote:
Yes... interesting. Another way to say not as good as picking at the start of your turn lol.

But an interesting take on the whole pre-programming the robots. I like it as a concept and is a nice nod back to the convoluted programming rules of 1st edition

Yep. You'll have to be damn careful issuing anything bar the FnP one though, if your Datasmith buys the farm you could be stuck unable to move or unable to shoot. Mind you, the thought of marching a unit up into the midfield against Marines and just leaving Protector mode active gives me good-time shivers; that's a 36" death-bubble for MEQs.

These chappies do make the Phosphor Onager seem even more underwhelming in comparison to the other loadouts though; there was an argument for it when it was really the only way of getting reliable long-range Luminagen, but Kastelan bots give you that, in greater volume, and on a more durable platform. Not to mention the opportunity cost of taking Phosphor over Neutron or Icarus.

Considering it looks like the bots are gonna start at around 300 points(if the base robots are 120 and the squad leader is 50). That is a pretty heafty starting point

Sure, but lets say that's right; a basic unit of two with all-Phosphor upgrades would be 320, giving you 12 Phosphor shots(6 TL), or 18(6 TL) with Protector active, on a T7, 3+/5++/5+++ platform with 10 wounds between them. If you spent those points on Phosphor Onagers you'd get 3 with no other upgrades for 315, giving you 9 TL shots on an AV12/4++ platform with 9HP between them. That's a reasonably favourable comparison, but the bots don't have to risk being blown up in one shot and they have more combat potential even in all-ranged configs because of the Datasmith. If you kit out the Onagers with IWND-claws and Stubbers you could almost afford to add a third robot, which would just skew things even more in the bots' favour.

I'm not saying there's no place for Phosphor Onagers anywhere, but in any size game at all if you want loads of anti-MEQ or loads of Luminagen, you're better with the bots.

 Agent_Tremolo wrote:
S6 Ap3 Heavy3 and Luminagen? On a T7 platform?

Hehe, Eldar Windriders, meet your bane!

And that's a good point; a unit of these guys working in tandem with an Icarus Onager or two would do nasty, nasty things to Scatbiker-spam.

 Blacksails wrote:

 ImAGeek wrote:


I don't think the Skitarii stuff is in the new book at all. Just the new stuff. So you'd need both to use all the stuff, which is equally a GW thing to do.

I...but...ughnn...it hurts, stop.

Why? Why?

Is that confirmed at least?

More or less as confirmed as it can be.

I'm actually okay with it. Annoyed, certainly, but I like the fact that they differentiated the two and hope they do similar for Sisters of Battle/Ecclesiarchy when the time comes.

Skitarii are the "military" branch while Cults Mechanicus are the "arcana" branch.

Am I wrong or is that half-skull Knight head new?

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Am I wrong or is that half-skull Knight head new?

Good spot! The metal skull side is exactly the same as the one in the current Knight kit, but the organic skull side is new I think. I wonder if it's an all new face or just the skull bit that goes over the old one.

 alleus wrote:
I'm mostly happy with the stats, but BS3? Really? Come on.. super high-tech robots of the year 40,000 whatever can't aim?

Surely if the Space Marines have optical aim enhancement because of cybernetic implants, you would think that cybernetic beings would be able to aim just as well.

Because other folks super high tech robots of the year 40,000 have BS2 like Space Marine machine spirits and tau drones. Mechanicus is already a step up from the others as befits them.

I think you might be right. That would mean you have the Knight head, then the faceplate that goes over it, then half a skull that goes over that.

 ImAGeek wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Am I wrong or is that half-skull Knight head new?

Good spot! The metal skull side is exactly the same as the one in the current Knight kit, but the organic skull side is new I think. I wonder if it's an all new face or just the skull bit that goes over the old one.

It's new. There are two or three new face plates in the Knight kit.

Henshini wrote:
Man, I wish dreadnoughts were MCs like this instead of walkers...

Agreed. Even with the addition of hull points, there is a big disconnect between the durability of vehicles and "normal" models with toughness and armor saves/fnp/invuls. I've always found it odd that you can one-shot a vehicle (ammo rack) but can't do the same to larger creatures (head shots). They should have just gone with one system instead. The good news is that you can counts as your dreads for these guys along with a techpriest to make them more worth taking.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
I think you might be right. That would mean you have the Knight head, then the faceplate that goes over it, then half a skull that goes over that.

So now that this stuff is out, can you fess up and say whether you knew it was in the pipeline via your FFG work? I'd assume given your interests that you'd be keen to pick up on those types of hints/details.

 Kanluwen wrote:

 ImAGeek wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Am I wrong or is that half-skull Knight head new?

Good spot! The metal skull side is exactly the same as the one in the current Knight kit, but the organic skull side is new I think. I wonder if it's an all new face or just the skull bit that goes over the old one.

It's new. There are two or three new face plates in the Knight kit.

Yeah I know, but I just mean it could just be half a skull that fits over the metal skull mask already in the kit. The other side is identical.

 Kanluwen wrote:

Spoiler:

More or less as confirmed as it can be.

I'm actually okay with it. Annoyed, certainly, but I like the fact that they differentiated the two and hope they do similar for Sisters of Battle/Ecclesiarchy when the time comes.

Skitarii are the "military" branch while Cults Mechanicus are the "arcana" branch.

Thanks for that, missed it skimming these last few pages.

I couldn't stomach paying that much just to run what is essentially the complete force anyways. I get there's technically a difference between them, but functionally, they're all Ad Mech, which is what an army book should represent. Its the same way I feel that Militarum Tempestus is a joke of a book and the three pages of rules could have easily found a home within the IG book.

Eh, this whole release is a bunch of mixed feelings for me. The rangers are very cool kits, but the Onager is pretty derpy. The new robots look pretty meh to me, but the tracked servitors and tech priest dude look solid.

The Onager was really derpy to me as well, but I'm in the midst of assembling one(of three!) and it's really grown on me.

I just wish the interior had the Vanguard "pilot" that was hardwired in.

For me sometimes you don't have 300 points to work with. I can usually find 105 or 115, but 300 is something I have to build my list around

Second while I agree they are more durable they can be hurt by a wider range of weapons more easily.

 Kanluwen wrote:
The Onager was really derpy to me as well, but I'm in the midst of assembling one(of three!) and it's really grown on me.

I just wish the interior had the Vanguard "pilot" that was hardwired in.

If you thought they looked derpy, why did you get three? I'm actually curious (no sarcasm intended). Is it just because you were happy to get something/anything Admech or did you think the rules were good enough to overcome that derpyness?

The legs and weapons are cool, but the body seems really out of place. I don't quite know what I'd change or what I'd replace it with, but it doesn't sit well with me.

Likewise, the strider things have a great silhouette, but I can't get over the curled up driver dude in the middle. I'll search around for conversions that do away with it and contemplate getting one.

 warboss wrote:
So now that this stuff is out, can you fess up and say whether you knew it was in the pipeline via your FFG work? I'd assume given your interests that you'd be keen to pick up on those types of hints/details.

Technically it's not out yet, as no official channel has shown off the minis.

But to answer your question, no, I didn't know about any of this stuff. I wish I had (not that I could've told any one!), but sadly I did not.

 Blacksails wrote:
I couldn't stomach paying that much just to run what is essentially the complete force anyways. I get there's technically a difference between them, but functionally, they're all Ad Mech, which is what an army book should represent. Its the same way I feel that Militarum Tempestus is a joke of a book and the three pages of rules could have easily found a home within the IG book.

I agree with you to a point, but given how we've never had real AdMech representation in 40K (outside of the RPGs), the fact that we get two books filled with new artwork and fluff is a pretty good consolation prize for having everything split into two books.

 warboss wrote:

 Kanluwen wrote:
The Onager was really derpy to me as well, but I'm in the midst of assembling one(of three!) and it's really grown on me.

I just wish the interior had the Vanguard "pilot" that was hardwired in.

If you thought they looked derpy, why did you get three? I'm actually curious (no sarcasm intended). Is it just because you were happy to get something/anything Admech or did you think the rules were good enough to overcome that derpyness?

To a point it was the rules, the fact that it was something/anything AdMech, and third it was because I wanted to be able to field an all-Skitarii army with no allies if I want.

 Yodhrin wrote:

I'm not saying there's no place for Phosphor Onagers anywhere, but in any size game at all if you want loads of anti-MEQ or loads of Luminagen, you're better with the bots.

There's still room for the humble Onager IMHO. The robots win by sheer resilience and volume of fire, but have a fairly obvious Achilles' heel in the weedy datasmiths that shepherd them to battle. A maniple is a frightening unit in its own right, but a well-placed barrage can leave them vulnerable to leadership-based attacks.

And that's a good point; a unit of these guys working in tandem with an Icarus Onager or two would do nasty, nasty things to Scatbiker-spam.

Given that most windrider squads come with an attached farseer for psychic buffs, I was going to go further and suggest adding Ordo Hereticus Inquisitors with psyocculums to the unit in order to bypass that unimpressive ballistic skill.

But now I remember, I think there's a ban on IC's joining monstrous creatures. Gah, I'll have to check the rulebook back home.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:

I agree with you to a point, but given how we've never had real AdMech representation in 40K (outside of the RPGs), the fact that we get two books filled with new artwork and fluff is a pretty good consolation prize for having everything split into two books.

I understand that, especially for people who have been aching for this faction for...well, too long really. I always liked the Ad Mech, but I never cared too much they didn't have official representation, so this release didn't excite me as much as say, you. To that end, having the whole faction split in two books really kills whatever excitement I may have had for this release. I can't stomach paying ~$100 for what could have easily fit in a single book, rules wise. I haven't seen how much art is in the Skitarii book, nor read the fluff yet to see if its worth picking up, but it may get me off my ass to check the local GW.

So with majority T you can run the little guy up front to get a T7 2+ armour, FNP blanket when you rush the enemies.

What would be nice is a small transport for the datasmith that he can direct his charges from. Not gonna happen, but I think it would fit, and be cool. Myself, I might buy some and just paint/play them as dark mechanicus. Might get a little akward between them and my Night Lords/ Black Legion, but it might work out well.

Pft, transport?

That's when you model the Datasmith onto one of his charges--Master Blaster style!

 Kanluwen wrote:
Pft, transport?

That's when you model the Datasmith onto one of his charges--Master Blaster style!

Ooooooh soooo cooooooool

 Kanluwen wrote:
Pft, transport?

That's when you model the Datasmith onto one of his charges--Master Blaster style!

Call me old skool but I prefer Baby Carrier style!

That's what the refractor shield is for.